They entered Rodia's atmosphere just as Obi-Wan finished changing into fresh robes. He walked out into the entry area and found that Qui-Gon was already there, as were the Queen and a guard. Anakin stood off to the side, looking much calmer than he had twenty minutes prior. There weren't even any tear-tracks on his cheeks. Obi-Wan suspected that Padmé had calmed him and gotten him cleaned up.
Obi-Wan moved to stand beside his Master, settling into the traditional place of a Padawan.
Why is the Queen herself here? Obi-Wan asked over their bond.
She is good friends with the Senator. Though he is not presently on-planet, she is familiar with the Rodian people and wishes to arrange for Sienna's care. We have called ahead and will be met on the landing platform by medical personnel.
Obi-Wan sent back an impression of acknowledgement.
The cruiser touched down gently and the ramp was lowered. A couple of Rodians approached with a hover-gurney between them and were immediately ushered onto the ship, led to the medbay by one of the handmaidens.
"Queen Amidala," The Rodian who stayed behind greeted with a bow, "it is an honor."
"The honor is mine. I thank you for your willingness to give medical treatment to one of our crew."
"Of course. We would not deny someone help. I am Reego, the chief healer. Your friend will be well cared for."
"Thank you, Reego."
Those with the hover-gurney returned again a moment later, muttering in their native tongue and moving quickly. Despite their outward calm professionalism, Obi-Wan could sense a great deal of urgency in their Force-signatures. He sensed a spike of concern in Reego's Force-signature too when the healer caught sight of the unconscious Padawan. The group swept away towards the buildings without a farewell.
And so did Anakin, before Qui-Gon could even think to stop him.
"Anakin!" The Jedi had to resort to using the Force to freeze the boy in place. "Where do you think you're going?"
"With Sienna! I'm not leaving her here all by herself!"
"You will do exactly that," Qui-Gon responded. "She is in good hands."
"She's my friend, and I'm not leaving her!" He crossed his arms and set his face in a fierce scowl, the effect of which was softened by his young features. "Let me go, right now!"
Qui-Gon closed his eyes and inhaled very slowly, then exhaled.
Despite the circumstances, Obi-Wan found himself slightly amused by the way the boy was trying Qui-Gon's patience.
"Anakin, I am going to release you now. Will you promise me you won't run off?"
Anakin glared even harder and said nothing.
"Anakin."
"Fine. I promise I won't run, but I'm not coming back to the ship."
"Very well." Qui-Gon opened his eyes and lowered his hand, releasing his Force-hold. "You may stay here with your friend. Obi-Wan will stay with you."
Obi-Wan jolted, turning to stare at Qui-Gon. "What?!"
"You heard me." It was Qui-Gon who looked amused now, a mischievous glint in his eye. "You will remain on Rodia to watch over Anakin until Sienna has recovered enough to travel, and then the three of you will return to Coruscant."
"But Master," Obi-Wan sputtered, "I'm not a baby-sitter!"
"You are whatever the Force requires of you," Qui-Gon replied calmly.
Obi-Wan inwardly groaned, but he dipped his head and went to fetch his other spare tunics.
He returned only a minute later with a travel-pack in hand.
"You are the worst," he muttered to Qui-Gon as he walked past the other Jedi.
Qui-Gon gave him a fond pat on the shoulder. "I am aware."
"Can we go now?" Anakin asked impatiently.
Obi-Wan shot Qui-Gon another long-suffering look and descended the ramp. He turned to face the cruiser as the ramp was raised.
"May the Force be with you," Qui-Gon called cheerfully.
And then the ramp closed and the cruiser rose up out of sight.
Obi-Wan sighed. "Well, come on then," he said to Anakin, "let's go find somewhere to wait for your friend."
Sienna awoke gradually, rising through the stages of sleep in slow motion, like bobbing up and down in a dark sea. She heard snippets of words, and someone asked a question, which she might have replied to, and then she had sunk again without even opening her eyes. This happened a few times, fading in and out, until finally her senses seemed to clear and she pried her eyes open.
She didn't recognize the ceiling above her, and her mind was still catching up, so instinct took over and she tried to bolt upright. Where was she? What had happened? Had she been captured, or kidnapped?
"Easy there," a hand rested on her shoulder and gently pushed her back into the pillows before she had even managed to sit up an inch. "You've just come out of surgery."
Surgery? What surgery? She blinked a few times, trying to get her brain to straighten itself out so she could think.
"Sienna!" A young voice shouted. She felt small hands in hers and a nova of a Force-presence filled her senses.
"Hey scamp," she greeted, the fog lifting as she turned her head to the side to smile at Anakin.
"You're ok!"
"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"
Anakin gaped at her. "You got stabbed! With a knife! In your belly!"
She huffed a laugh. "Not the first time I've been knifed, kiddo. Didn't stop me before."
"And we are glad it didn't stop you this time either," the first voice said.
Sienna tilted her head back and properly noticed the other person in the room. "Well well, if it isn't my handsome rescuer. Thanks for that."
The man in question blushed slightly. "You have Anakin to thank, really. He knew you were in trouble."
"Oh yeah?" She glanced back at Anakin.
He bobbed his head. "Yeah, I felt it in the Force, I think. And, I thought I heard you call me."
Sienna smiled. "It worked then."
"What worked?" Obi-Wan asked.
"This," Sienna reached up with her free hand and tapped the side of her head. "The Force nudged me towards our bond. I didn't think it would work, I didn't think the bond was strong enough for us to communicate over a distance, but I guess it was."
Obi-Wan gave her a curious look. "You two have a training bond?"
Sienna shrugged. Or tried to, anyway, her movements were still rather sluggish. "It's a something bond, that's for sure. Dunno if it really counts as a training bond, it's not like Ani's my Padawan. But there are lots of kinds of bonds, like familial bonds."
"Well, I'm just glad it worked," Anakin said.
"Me too, kiddo." She tried to ruffle his hair, but her hand just kinda landed on his head and slid off again. Anakin giggled, and Sienna huffed. "Clearly, I'm on a lot of drugs. Don't do drugs, Ani."
He giggled again, and Obi-Wan smiled too.
"Where are we anyway?" Sienna asked, letting her gaze slide lazily across the room. "This doesn't look like Tatooine. Or Coruscant."
"We are on Rodia," Obi-Wan said. "We had to make an emergency stop here. You wouldn't have lasted all the way to Coruscant."
"They were gonna leave you here, all by yourself!" Anakin cried. He glared at Obi-Wan, as if the man was the one to blame.
Sienna noticed the tired look on Obi-Wan's face, and she suspected this was a conversation the two had had many times while she was unconscious. "Well, they did have a mission, Ani."
Anakin turned an incredulous look to her. "But you were hurt and they were just gonna leave you here! Alone!"
"Rodia is a safe planet. I'm sure I would have been fine, even alone. There are skilled healers to look after me. Sometimes, we have to make hard choices, and trust other people to look after our friends."
Anakin frowned, every aspect of his posture showing that he did not like that answer one bit. "But-"
"You remember when Kitster got sick?" Sienna interrupted.
Anakin nodded.
"And his mom had to leave him home, all by himself, because her master wouldn't let her stay with him?"
He nodded again.
"Do you think she wanted to leave him home alone?"
"No."
"Then why did she?"
"Because she had to," Anakin said reluctantly.
"Exactly. Sometimes, we have to make hard choices, and sometimes we have to leave people by themselves. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Anakin sighed, fiddling with Sienna's fingers on the hand he was still holding. "I understand."
"Good." Sienna gave his hand a squeeze and sent a thrum of warmth across their bond. "That aside, I'm glad you're here. You and-" she paused, turning her gaze to Obi-Wan again. "You know, I don't think we introduced ourselves"
"We didn't have a chance," he agreed. "I am Obi-Wan Kenobi."
"Sienna Retrograde. I guess introductions are a little tricky when you're trying to avoid hypovolemic shock."
The man snorted. "Indeed."
"He didn't want to stay," Anakin said, the glare back in his eyes, "he only stayed because Mister Qui-Gon made him."
Obi-Wan turned beet red at the (truthful) accusation.
"Anakin," Sienna chided, "that was rude."
The boy grumbled. "It's true though."
"Doesn't matter. That was rude and unnecessary. I think you owe Obi-Wan an apology."
"But-"
"Ani."
"Fine. I'm sorry for being rude."
Obi-Wan dipped his head. "Thank you, Anakin. And I am sorry for giving the impression that I did not wish to stay."
Anakin didn't say anything, but Sienna sensed his mood lighten the slightest bit. She ruffled his hair again. "Good job. Now, why don't you go see if you can find some snacks for you and Obi-Wan."
"I'm not hungry. I wanna stay here with you."
"Your stomach is growling at me through the Force."
"That's not how the Force works."
"No? Then how come I know you haven't eaten anything the whole time I've been recovering?"
Anakin glared down at his stomach. "Tattle-tale," he whispered. He let go of Sienna's hand and hopped off the chair he had been seated on. "Don't go anywhere," he ordered Sienna.
She gave him a lazy salute. "Aye aye, doc."
Apparently satisfied, the boy left the room.
Sienna watched the door slide shut with a smile. "Brat," she said fondly.
"I don't think he likes me very much," Obi-Wan commented.
Sienna laughed. "He'll warm up to you, don't worry. You two got off on the wrong foot is all."
"Hmm. Well, he wasn't wrong. I wasn't happy when Qui-Gon told me to stay. And apparently I made it obvious. I am sorry about that."
Sienna waved away the apology. "Doesn't matter to me whether you wanted to stay or were dragged by a bantha. I literally do not care. And you probably weren't that obvious, Anakin's just really perceptive. Well, sometimes. Other times he's completely oblivious, or caught up in his own world, but we all do that sometimes."
"Hmm."
They lapsed into silence for a minute or two. Sienna took some time to look around the room again and to stretch out in the Force. She could feel Anakin walking away down the hall, and she could feel patients in other rooms. All seemed to be well. She had told Anakin that Rodia was a safe planet, but truthfully she wasn't completely sure what the state of Rodia was in this time period. Her claim had been made mostly based on the fact that Qui-Gon had seen fit to leave her and Anakin and Obi-Wan here, and she didn't think that he would have done so if it wasn't at least mostly safe.
"I'm gonna go out on a limb and assume you're Jinn's Padawan," Sienna said, striking up conversation again. She had noticed the long braid resting against Obi-Wan's shoulder.
"Yes, I am." Obi-Wan agreed. "What about you?"
"A long, complicated story is what I am," she said with a snort. "How much did Jinn tell you?"
"Not much. Only that you claim to be from another Jedi Order, in a different galaxy."
"Ah, a skeptic like your Master."
Obi-Wan turned a little pink again. "I mean no offense."
"None taken. Honestly, you two are taking it a lot better than I did when I first heard of it. I'm from the Cosmic Order. It's a small group. Home base is the planet Felidae. You wouldn't have heard of it, it's in another galaxy, like Jinn told you."
There were many things about that response that sparked questions in Obi-Wan's mind. He decided to start with the most pressing. "What are you doing all the way in ours then?"
"Regretting my life choices and cursing a moment of stupidity."
Obi-Wan laughed at that. "Sounds like fun."
"Mm. Tons. I fell through a Force-portal and I've been stuck on Tatooine for the past year."
"A Force-portal?"
"Yeah. Basically a doorway across space. I guess they're rare here?"
Obi-Wan tilted his head and glanced off to the side, trying to remember if he had ever learned about Force-portals. "I don't think I have ever heard of one, actually."
"Oh wow. That rare huh?"
"Apparently."
"Alright, hmm." Sienna took a moment to think of the best way to describe a portal. "Like I said, a portal is a doorway. They come in a few forms. Sometimes they're visible, and they look almost like a large round window where you can see through to the other side. The fancy ones have edges that are all colorful like a nebula. Or, if you're in one of the empty dimensions between portals, the edges have a border of cool designs. Kind of like the carvings around a fancy mirror. The other kind of portal is the invisible kind. You only know it's there because of the way the Force feels. With those ones, to an observer it looks like you just take a step and disappear into thin air. To the person going through the portal it feels kinda similar, except you take a step and suddenly you're in an entirely different place. Does that make sense?"
Obi-Wan nodded, and hummed an affirmative.
"The one I fell through was the invisible kind. Although, I should've sensed it, so I'm not totally sure what's up with that. But basically I was standing in front of a rock and got Force-pushed and then whoops, I was lying in a desert."
"You couldn't just walk back through?"
"Nope. They disappear sometimes. Or sometimes they're single-use portals. Honestly it's all pretty complicated, I only understand half the logic of it. It usually boils down to trusting and following the Force. Thinking too hard just gives you a headache."
Obi-Wan absorbed that information and mulled it over, trying to visualize what Sienna had described and make sense of it. "And your Order, you deal with these how often?"
"Um, pretty much daily."
Obi-Wan stared at her. "Daily?"
"Yep. I mean, our home on the planet is only accessible by portal, so."
The man frowned, his brow furrowing in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"I think Master Azimuth calls it a pocket dimension? Or something similar at least. The only way to get to or from our territory is via portal."
"You mean your Temple, or is it a whole planet?"
"Neither. Our city, and the surrounding land."
"But how does that work? Does the land just end? Are there walls?"
"I mean, it's kind of a large island basically, and you can only swim so far before the Force just kinda… stops you I guess?" Sienna did some vague hand gestures to try and illustrate her point.
Obi-Wan ran a hand over his short hair. "That is all very strange."
"Yeah, we usually just try to avoid having to talk about our home. It's crazy."
Obi-Wan laughed. "Crazy enough that I don't think anyone would want to make it up though."
"So you believe me? You aren't gonna ask for like, proof or anything?"
"I wouldn't know where to even begin asking you to prove anything. I take it you can't exactly summon portals on a whim."
Sienna snorted. "Nope."
The door slid open just then and Anakin padded into the room with snacks and a healer. He offered Obi-Wan a fruit that the latter only vaguely recognized, but which he accepted anyway with a word of thanks. The healer checked how Sienna was feeling and spoke with her briefly about her injuries (though a child-friendly version, considering Anakin was in the room) before leaving the three alone once more with a promise to have a more in-depth discussion with Sienna later.
"So, what's our game plan?" Sienna asked Obi-Wan once the healer had left. Anakin was perched on the side of the bed, next to Sienna's knees, munching on his snacks.
"We are to return to Coruscant once you are healthy enough to travel. I believe Qui-Gon would like both you and Anakin to meet with the Council."
Sienna hummed. "I figured. That'll probably break a couple of my Order's intergalactic travel rules, but whatever."
"How so?"
"There's a reason none of you knew we existed. We're supposed to keep the Order a secret."
"Why? Is it just because of how ridiculously complicated your circumstances are?"
Sienna's lips twitched in amusement. "That, and also something to do with keeping the space-time continuum intact, not accidentally ripping a hole in the fabric of existence, that sort of thing."
Obi-Wan blinked at her.
"It'll probably be fine."
"Ripping a-"
"Don't worry about it."
"The fabric of existence?"
"You know, I probably shouldn't even have said that."
"What does that even mean?"
"Nothing you need to worry about."
Obi-Wan looked like he was definitely going to worry about it.
Padmé played the recording of Sio Bibble's message for what felt like the hundredth time. Padawan Kenobi had advised Sabé not to answer, and Master Jinn had advised the same, claiming it was a trap to find out the Queen's location. It made sense, and Padmé knew that to reveal her location would be to put the entire mission in jeopardy, but she hated sitting around doing nothing.
The trip from Tatooine to Coruscant would take six days. After that, it would be an additional six days back to Naboo from Coruscant, plus however long it took for the Senate to figure things out in between. The Nubian people were facing at least two weeks of suffering at the hands of the Trade Federation, and Padmé couldn't do anything to help them.
With a frustrated sigh, Padmé turned off the comm and pulled out a datapad to begin drafting her plea to the Senate. She would have only one opportunity to make her case, and she needed to make sure she was firm and convincing. She typed up a quick message to Senator Palpatine, informing him of her imminent arrival, as well as one to Chancellor Valorum. The man was a friend of Naboo, and she had confidence that he would support her cause.
She had just pressed 'send' when someone slid into a seat across from her. Padmé glanced up and was met with a kind smile from Qui-Gon, who had a mug of tea in hand. She gave a polite nod, powering off the datapad and setting it aside.
"It seems everything has worked out quite well," Qui-Gon commented. "We will soon be on Coruscant, with only a day and a half delay."
Padmé leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms. "I still think your plan was unnecessarily risky. And the Queen was not entirely pleased either."
"It is the unfortunate reality that not everyone will be entirely pleased with us at all times," Qui-Gon said. "I let go of that childish goal long ago."
Padmé frowned. "And do you think it is childish for those tasked with protecting their people to be unwilling to gamble with their futures?"
"The greater the risk, the greater the potential reward."
"And the greater the potential downfall," Padmé retorted. "In your own words, 'when you gamble, eventually you must lose.'"
"It was not wholly a gamble. The Force was with us."
"I do not think it wise to risk my planet based on your religion."
"The Force is much more than a religion, my young friend," Qui-Gon said. "You know this to be true. If it weren't for the Force, Anakin would not have won that race."
"Perhaps. But it was still wrong to gamble with Naboo without seeking the Queen's approval."
"I think if the Queen truly disapproved of my actions, she would have done more to stop me."
Padmé furrowed her brow. "You didn't inform her of the extent of your plan. You said, and I quote, 'the Queen does not need to know.'"
"And yet you were fully capable of informing her," Qui-Gon commented. "You were her spy on this mission, sent out because the Queen was 'curious about the planet.' What were you there for if not to keep the Queen informed?"
Padmé stared at him.
Qui-Gon continued. "And seeing as I received no message from Her Majesty with orders to change my plan in any way, I will assume that either the Queen did not have an issue with my plan, or you did not keep her in the loop."
Padmé was at a loss. How had Qui-Gon somehow managed to make this her fault? He was technically right. She hadn't liked the plan, but she also hadn't tried to stop him. So yes, she had allowed the Jedi to gamble with her people in order to save them. It had been his plan, but she had gone along with it. Had it gone poorly, she would have been just as much at fault as he would have been, perhaps more so.
Qui-Gon seemed to sense his victory in this conversation. He had a smug twinkle in his eye as he took a sip of his tea, a look Padmé met with a glare.
"I am off to meditate," the Jedi announced, standing from the booth. "Enjoy your evening, my young friend." He inclined his head, and then strolled away.
Padmé continued to glare at his retreating back.
Blasted Jedi.
A/N: Shoutout to the Star Wars franchise for having absolutely NO hyperspace continuity. I did hours of research, only to end up having to find my own measure to estimate hyperspace travel times because the movies just aren't consistent. Which then forced me to rearrange many of the scenes in the coming chapters and scrap some of my plans. Thanks a lot, Lucasfilms.
A quick google had come up with the 7 hour travel time from Tatooine to Coruscant that I mentioned in the last chapter, but when I did some more digging I couldn't find a good source for that, and frankly it just made no sense given how far apart Tatooine and Coruscant are. I have changed it to 6 days. This is based on what appears to be a widely accepted travel times estimation method for Star Wars rpgs. On a standard map of the Star Wars galaxy that has a grid, one square equals one day of hyperspace travel with a good hyperdrive. I am not nerdy enough to get into the nitty-gritty of hyperdrive qualities, so I am just going to use that standard time for everything.
There's a big difference between 7 hours and 6 days, which was good news for some plot points and less good for others. One of the side effects is that our trio here will be spending much more time together than I expected, and that this fic will end up being longer overall than I had anticipated. One of the more annoying side effects is that I had three chapters written that I had to significantly edit in order for the timing to make sense. Oh well. Hopefully it will still flow nicely.
In happier news, I currently have up through half of chapter 10 written, which is by far the most prepared I have ever been with a multi-chapter fic. *pats self on back*
