When Ayame awoke the next day and got dressed to go to the podrace. This time, she dressed in her Jedi robes, and pulled a rough jacket overtop of it. She barely disguised herself because she wanted to make sure that people knew that she was here. That way, if that Sith saw her, he would follow her to try and find the Queen. Ayame, of course, would never give the Queen away, so the Queen was safe. As she headed for the entrance ramp, Obi-Wan called her.

"Ayame, wait," he said. Ayame turned around and saw him coming from his room. He threw a projector at her feet. She looked at it, and then smiled as the projector scanned her in. She picked it up and activated it. Sure enough, she found herself looking at a mini version of herself. Ayame shut it off and handed it to Obi-Wan.

"All you had to do was ask," she said with a laugh. Then, she looked into his eyes. He had been crying. "Are you alright?" she asked. He nodded at first, but then he pulled her close to him and held her in a tight embrace. Ayame wrapped her arms around him and held him just as close. She could hear Obi-Wan crying. "It's okay, Obi-Wan. I'm going to be fine," she said just loud enough for him to hear. He pulled away enough to look at her, but still hold her.

"I don't know that and you don't know that," Obi-Wan said. "I just want to make sure that I get to see you one more time…if the worst should happen." Ayame smiled wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Well, in that case," she said, and she moved closer until her face was barely an inch away from his. "Let's make this moment last." Obi-Wan smiled and pulled her into a passionate, loving kiss. If anyone had walked by and seen them, they would have seen two young Jedi locked in a loving embrace with an aura simply radiating from them. Ayame could feel their power joining as they kissed. Obi-Wan could feel himself getting stronger. Ayame was the first to pull away. As she did, she saw a brief shining light emanating from the boy that she loved so much. Obi-Wan saw the same thing on the girl of his dreams. They looked at each other for a moment, and then realized what Yoda had meant when he said that their love for each other would make them powerful. Ayame grinned.
"Now I know that I'll be okay," she said, feeling amazed at what had just happened. Obi-Wan nodded and kissed her once more.

"I love you…more than life itself," he said.

"I love you too," Ayame replied. With that, she gave him one last hug and opened the ramp. Obi-Wan watched her as she walked out into the hot desert sun towards Mos Eisley. He was still scared for her life, but he knew that she was doing this so that they could finish their mission. And, she was doing it for him. He wanted to stop her so bad, but he held himself back. Reluctantly, he took one last look at her, and then walked back into the ship.


BOONTA EVE RACETRACK


Ayame walked around the racetrack looking for Qui-Gon and the others. She knew that the race would be starting soon, so she knew that she had to hurry. All the while, she had been sensing that the Sith was here and looking for the Queen. Then, her thoughts were directed to a small podracer that was being worked on by a small boy and a very tall man with brown hair. That was Anakin and Qui-Gon. As she got closer, she saw Shmi, Padme, and Jar Jar. When they saw her coming, Anakin leaped for joy.

"Ayame, you came!" he cried. She waved and ran the rest of the way.

"Do you honestly think that I would miss this?" she asked him. Then, she pulled Qui-Gon aside. "That Sith is here. He's looking for the Queen, which means he will be looking for us. I'm almost positive that he knows that we're Jedi by now, so we don't have much of a chance of hiding ourselves much longer," she said to him.

"Is that why you're robes are so poorly concealed?" Qui-Gon asked. She nodded and explained her plan. "I don't like it," he said. "But you're doing what you think is right and that's the important thing. But I think that Obi-Wan will be brokenhearted if you die," he added with a grin. Ayame blushed.

"I know. That's why I don't plan to get killed," she replied. Then, they both turned to the podrace. Qui-Gon lifted Anakin into the cockpit.

"Remember, concentrate on the moment," Qui-Gon said to the boy. "Feel, don't think. Use your instincts." Anakin nodded. Ayame reached into her tunic and pulled out a small charm on a chain.

"Here," she said, putting the chain over Anakin's head. "This has always brought me luck when I needed it. I think, right now, you need it more than I do." The charm was a little symbol in the language of her homeland.

"What does it say?" Anakin asked.

"Luck," Ayame replied. Anakin smiled and nodded in thanks.

"May the Force be with you," Qui-Gon and Ayame said. The walked back to a special platform where Shmi, Padme, and Jar Jar were waiting for them.

"Is he nervous?" Shmi asked


"He's fine," Qui-Gon replied. Padme pulled him aside.

"Do you think this is wise, trusting our future to a boy we hardly know? The Queen…" she started, but Qui-Gon stopped her.

"The Queen trusts my judgment, young handmaiden. You should too," he said.

"You assume too much," she said under her breath. In no time, the race began. Anakin had trouble right off the bat. As they watched him struggle, Ayame whispered "luck" in the language of the charm that was currently around Anakin's neck. Sure enough, three seconds later, Anakin was off. The group turned their attention to a little view screen that was trained on Anakin. They watched as the boy easily maneuvered around other racers. Soon, he was close with Sebulba, the Dug that they had met in the marketplace the day before. Ayame noticed that every time Anakin got bumped or hit some trouble, she closed her eyes for a moment. Ayame placed a reassuring hand on Shmi's shoulder and gave her a comforting look. Then, they turned their attention back to the screen. What they saw was one of the engines on Anakin's pod was on fire. Ayame was about to whisper the word again, but Anakin quickly put the fire out and got the energy in the engines back to where it should be. Sure enough, Anakin won the race. They pulled the pod into the garage and the congratulations went all around. Then, Qui-Gon took Ayame to see Watto. He was up in a view box with a bunch of his betting buddies.

"You!" he exclaimed when he saw the two of them. "You swindled him in! You knew that he was going to win the race! Somehow you knew! I lost everything," he finished lamely.

"When you gamble, my friend, eventually you will lose," Qui-Gon said. "Have the parts delivered to the main hanger. I'll come by your shop later so that you can release the boy."

"You can't have him. It wasn't a fair bet," Watto replied. Ayame folded her arms.

"Perhaps you would like to discuss it with the Hutts. I'm sure they can settle this," she threatened. Watto wasn't about to deal with the most powerful creatures on Tatooine.

"Take him," he said, defeated. Qui-Gon and Ayame bowed and left. On two creatures, they brought the parts back to the ship. The moment they were spotted, Obi-Wan opened the ramp and ran out to meet Ayame. When she saw Obi-Wan, Ayame jumped off of her steed and ran into Obi-Wan's arms. He was just happy that she was alive. By the time Qui-Gon made it to the ship, the two were already kissing.

"Now you two, let us focus on the task at hand," Qui-Gon said with a laugh. The two Padawans looked at the Master sheepishly and nodded, letting go of each other. "Get these parts in place. The sooner we get out of here the better."

"Yes Master. It shouldn't take long," Obi-Wan said.

"I'm going back. I have some unfinished business in town," Qui-Gon said. Obi-Wan was about to ask what it was, but Qui-Gon had already turned around and left. Obi-Wan looked at Ayame for an answer.

"It's the boy who is responsible for getting us these parts," she said. "Qui-Gon won his freedom because the boy won the race. He'll be coming with us to see the Council."

"Why is it that everywhere we go we seem to pick up another life form?" he wondered aloud. Ayame laughed and helped carry the rest of the parts on to the ship. Once they were in place, she went outside and waited for Anakin and Qui-Gon to return. About half an hour later, she saw them coming over the horizon. Suddenly, she saw a speeder coming behind them fast. The pilot jumped off with a red Lightsaber in his hand. Ayame screamed. It was the Sith that she had been having visions of. She ran at the two of them and activated her Lightsaber and joined in the fight.

"Anakin, go!" she shouted. "Tell them to take off!" Anakin nodded and ran to the ship. The three of them kicked up a cloud of sand that surrounded them, making it hard to see. Suddenly, they heard the ship sailing above them. Qui-Gon and Ayame force-jumped onto the ramp and got on board as the ship sailed away, leaving the Sith behind. Once the ramp closed, the two of them collapsed in the hallway, panting. A door opened nearby and Obi-Wan and Anakin came in.

"Are you alright?" Anakin asked.

"Yes," Qui-Gon replied.

"What was that?" Obi-Wan asked.

"It was the Sith that I've been having visions of…I'm sure of it," Ayame said. The other two Jedi were quiet. This didn't bode well.

"We're going to have to report this to the Council when we return," Qui-Gon said. "But we'll worry about that later. Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"Hi," Anakin said. Then, he got a good look at Obi-Wan. "You're a Jedi too? Pleased to meet you," he said, shaking Obi-Wan's hand. The Jedi chuckled and left. Obi-Wan and Ayame went back to Ayame's room. Once the door was shut, Obi-Wan pulled Ayame into a tight embrace. Ayame gasped and gave a giggle.

"Obi-Wan, I'm fine…really," she said. But Obi-Wan didn't let go.

"Why didn't you just come back to the ship when he showed up?" Obi-Wan asked her furiously. Ayame glared.

"Well, I was thinking about Qui-Gon and Anakin's safety. I was too worried about them to be worried about myself. What would have happened if that man had defeated Qui-Gon? He would have headed right for the ship if I hadn't been there. And then our mission would have been a failure," she snapped. Obi-Wan was taken aback at this. Ayame hadn't gotten angry at him for a while. Then, he realized that he had let her own safety get in the way of the mission.

"I'm sorry, Ayame. I wasn't thinking straight," he apologized. Ayame smiled and gave him a kiss.

"It's okay…I understand that you were just worried about me," she replied. Obi-Wan smiled and pulled her into a gentle kiss. Ayame melted into him and kissed him back with an undying passion. Soon, they were back on the bed. They actually got farther before Ayame stopped him again. So, for the remainder of the trip, Ayame and Obi-Wan just sat there in each other's arms until Ayame fell asleep. As she slept, Obi-Wan looked at her fondly. Suddenly, Qui-Gon came in. Obi-Wan jumped and was about to let go, but he remembered that Ayame was asleep and held back.

"This is a better sight then what I was expecting," Qui-Gon said with a smile. "I'm glad that you two have finally spoken with one another."

"You knew too?" Obi-Wan said accusingly. Qui-Gon laughed, grabbed a chair, and sat down across from the two Padawans.

"I read the prophecy, yes. However, I didn't know that it was going to be you two until your first mission with her. Then, I figured it out," he replied. Obi-Wan sighed and smiled at the memory. They were dispatched to a planet on the Outer Rim to settle a border dispute. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon had gotten captured and were in separate locations. Ayame, by herself, had rescued Obi-Wan first, then they rescued Qui-Gon. Ayame had carried Obi-Wan half the way because he was unconscious. When he had woken up, he remembered thinking that he was being watched over by an angel. Really, it was Ayame trying to wake him up as a lamp lit the cave that they had hidden in.

"I remember," he said. Then, the ship gave a small lurch. They were landing on Courescant.