DISCLAIMER: *glomps Maedhros and takes the Ring* Ha ha! Finally! I have my One Ring of Unlimited Copyright Privileges, and own EVERYTHING! Even your souls! Mwahahaha- *is smacked upside the head by Spock, who runs off with the Ring* Argh!

Many, many apologies about the delay in posting! I blame college exams and trying (and failing) to find a summer job! *sighs* Maybe I should just sell my soul to my college to pay off my tuition... For those of you who are wondering when the heck 'Castaway' is going to be updated... I have no idea. It depends on the muse, which is currently living in my sketchpad and demanding that I draw my original fiction characters. Meh.

Ren Ankh: Yes, indeed. But I'm a sucker for fluffiness, as I think you can tell, haha! YES, I loved that scene! Well, I just loved the entire movie! My best insults come from there! Aww, that's cute. All we get on our acreage is mice and gophers and pigeons. *sighs* Yes, we should tell the FFN Admins that, so they can fix it. *nods* No, I haven't heard that song before, although I think I'll have to check it out. Thanks for the recommendation!

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"Are you sure this is such a good idea, Master?"

"Yes, Padawan. This will be a good experience for you."

"I know... But..."

"But what?"

"I'm... I'm nervous. What if they don't like me, Master?" Zara looked up at her tall Master from her seat in the speeder, worry clouding her green eyes.

Cin's face was the perfect picture of Jedi calm. "I'm sure Dorlea has told them of your bravery in the mines. I'm sure they'd respect you, if not outright idolize you." He gently turned his Padawan to face away from him, soothingly rubbing the tense muscles in her neck and shoulders with one hand as he steered with the other. "Relax, Zara. Your mother wanted you to meet the rest of your family now that you've been reunited."

Zara nodded, leaning into his touch. "I know, and I'm glad I found Dorl- Mom, even if how we met wasn't the best of stories. But what about Father and my siblings? Mom said I have three brothers and a sister, and two of the brothers are older than me!"

"And I'm sure your mother has told your younger brother and sister all about you and how you did your family proud by becoming a Jedi." Cin lightly squeezed the teen girl's shoulder. "There's nothing to be worried about, Zara. They'd be fools to dislike you."

"Thanks, Master." Zara turned back to face Cin as the Master drove the speeder to the address scribbled on a sheet of flimsy. They were in a nice residential area of Coruscant, about mid-level. The buildings were nice without being overly extravagant, and there was even a small nature park nearby, a rarity on the city planet. Zara's family had done well for themselves.

Dorlea Taerich had never gone into too much detail over how she ended up on Ylesia in a spice mine, a captive of the Huttese crime lord Korra. But what Zara did know was that Dorlea had been in a Coruscanti spaceport, preparing to fly to her home planet of Lavisar, and the next she had woken up on a slaving vessel bound for Ylesia. Her family had searched for any word of her for four years without result until the day a Jedi Knight had returned the bedraggled, emaciated Dorlea to her home, with word of her elder daughter in Jedi care.

Zara's father, Klion Taerich, was a security officer for the Senate, who specifically guarded the Lavisarian Senator. Before her abduction, Dorlea had been a public relations worker for the Senator. Zara hadn't been able to dig up much information on her brothers and sister though. It was those members of her family that she worried the most about. What if they don't like me? Are they some of the people that dislike Jedi? Do they even look like me?

Zara was brought out of her musings by the sensation of the speeder coming to a gentle stop in front of a nice apartment building perhaps a half-hour's flight away from the Temple. The soft grey structure rose above the street below, with windows adorning almost the entire exterior. Zara noticed that quite a few of the balconies had small gardens, bringing a bit of life and natural colour to Coruscant.

Cin caught her hand in his as he set the parking brake. "Are you still nervous?"

Still looking apprehensively at the building in front of her, Zara nodded.

Cin gave her hand a squeeze. "It'll be all right, Padawan. Promise."

Zara nodded and sighed, before a question came to mind. "Master? Did you ever know who your family was?"

There was a brief silence in the speeder as Cin gazed contemplatively at his lap. "No," he finally answered, "I never did. I was found in an orphanage. I only had a flimsy tucked into my blanket with my name on it when the orphanage workers found me. They were more than willing to hand me off to the first Jedi who arrived at the planet." He shrugged and turned back to his Padawan. "I'm glad you're having an opportunity to meet your family, one I'll probably never get."

Zara returned the squeeze on her hand. "I'm sorry, Master. I didn't know-"

"Because I'd never mentioned it." Cin tucked a lock of the girl's red hair behind her ear. "But I never really missed my family, if they even live. You've become the family I always wanted."

"Really?" Zara looked at Cin, surprised. Her eyes smiled as she reached over and hugged Cin around the waist. "I'm... I'm honoured, Master."

She felt Cin chuckle as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "No, Padawan. I'm the one who's lucky to have you." He dropped a kiss on her forehead. "And so is your biological family, Zara. We shouldn't keep them waiting."

"Right..." Zara looked up at the apartment complex again before seizing Cin's hand. "Can you come with me, Master?"

Cin hesitated before giving in. "I'll walk you to the door, Padawan. I wouldn't want to intrude on your reunion with your family." He stepped out of the speeder before turning to assist his apprentice out. "Don't worry, Zara. Everything will be fine."

"Yes, Master," answered Zara. If she didn't know better, she would have suspected that Cin was worried over losing his Padawan to her biological family and trying to reassure himself more than the teenager that nothing would go wrong. "What floor do they live on again?"

"The thirty-sixth," answered Cin, glancing at the flimsy before it disappeared into his belt pouch. "Thank the Force for turbolifts."

Fifteen minutes later...

"This is it, Padawan." Cin came to a halt in front of a nondescript door in the hallway. "Your family's right through there."

Zara took a deep breath to calm her nerves, trying to release her anxiety to the Force. She could just hear the sounds of activity going on through the door. The sounds of a normal, Force-blessed family life.

She reached up to touch the door-chime, but froze, worry preventing her from moving. She was aware of Cin's hand on her back, reassuring her he was still there. "Everything will be fine. I'm right behind you, Padawan."

With a deep, shaky breath, Zara nodded and touched the door-chime.

There was a sound of hurrying footsteps approaching the door before it slid open, allowing Dorlea Taerich to catch Zara in a tight embrace. "Ah, you found it! I was getting worried you wouldn't come!" She pulled back from Zara, examining her with a mother's eye before hugging her again. "You look so much better than the last time I saw you..."

Zara grinned and hugged her mother back. "I wouldn't miss this for anything, Mom." She looked up at the sound of another pair of footsteps approaching and instinctively backed up a step as a stocky, broad-shouldered man appeared behind Dorlea. He had twinkling blue eyes underneath his short-cropped light brown hair and a light tan to his skin that accentuated the taut muscles under his tunic.

"Zara." The man smiled gently. "You probably don't recognize your father at all." He held a hand out to Zara, belying the strength hidden under his grip with surprising gentleness. "But I'd know you anywhere. I was the one who carried you to the Temple fourteen years ago."

Zara looked up at the man, a smile on her lips. "Daddy?"

Klion Taerich pulled Zara close, lightly hugging her. "Yes. Come meet your brothers and sister. The older two barely remember you..." He continued talking as he drew Zara into the apartment, introducing her to the older teenage boys, the pre-adolescent girl and the youngest boy sitting in the kitchen. The boys looked a fair sight more like their father, while the girl was a miniature of Dorlea. But all five siblings shared the same bright red hair in varying styles.

Cin watched the reunion for a moment until he saw the eldest of Zara's brothers tightly hug her. Reassured that she would be in good hands until he came back for her, he turned away and started walking away, trying to ignore the slight tightness in the back of his throat until he heard the indignant, "And where do you think you're going?"

The tall Jedi turned back to face Dorlea, who stood just inside the hallway, hands on her hips. "I wouldn't want to intrude, Dorlea. You are Zara's family and she should be permitted to meet you without me watching over her shoulder."

"Zara's family, yes. But you're the man who's raised her for the last several years. She thinks the world of you!" Dorlea crossed her arms over her chest, raising an eyebrow at Cin, daring him to refuse. "You may not be related to us by blood, but you're as much family to us as Zara is."

Not even Cin's Jedi discipline could suppress the pleased flutter in his chest. "I'm... I'm honoured." He walked back to the apartment, welcoming Dorlea's gentle hand on his shoulder.

"No, Master Cin." Dorlea smiled up at Cin as she led him back inside. "We're the ones who are honoured to have such a fine Jedi taking care of our daughter. We're more than happy to call your family."

Cin smiled as he stood inside the apartment, watching Zara be reunited with her father and siblings. My family too. "I wouldn't want a better family than this."

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I know it's another Cin-Zara centric story, but the plot bunny bit and won't let go. *sighs* If you want more Obi-Qui stories, or any others, tell me. I'm starting to *gasp!* run out of ideas here!

Oh yes, and there's a new poll on my profile. Check it out.

Don't forget to review! Thanks, guys!

Xaja