Chapter 3: Onward to Courasant!

Obi-Wan felt the others, minus Qui-Gon, approaching in the Force and wondered, what would Rae have to say about Courasant? Nonetheless, he alerted the captain that Padme, Rae, and Jar-Jar were returning and to be ready with the door. He himself went down to the receiving bay to meet them. As the door went down, he smiled at the weary group. "Meet any interesting lifeforms out there?" he asked. Rae gave him a death glare that was much more efficient than her first attempt at one. He blamed the sweaty hair and thin sunburn between where her mask and her goggles had been.

"Your Master is a sadist, making me sit out in the twin suns to watch a podrace I could have told him the outcome of. There had better be some aloe vera in this tin can or I am going to be one very grouchy lady with lobster skin!" she growled. Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, but lead her to the med bay to get her sunburn treated. She looked at the bacta as if it were the strangest thing ever.

"It's bacta, and very effective," Obi-Wan said. Rae frowned, then looked at him and asked,

"Is it like kolto, from Mannan?" He blinked, wondering where she'd heard of that.

"Well... sort of. Where did you learn of that? Everything else you say seems to be of the future, not the past," he said. She smiled.

"A video game, Knights of the Old Republic. I played as Revan... though generally, I made my character a female whereas I'm told that Cannon!Revan was a male. Mission Vao was fun to hang out with. And there is no better friend than a Wookie. Oh! And I know how to take out a rancor if you have warning and a good place to hide," she said. Obi-Wan could only smile and shake his head.

"You'll have to tell me about this game later, Rae. Here, let me help you with that," he said, taking the bacta cream from her and smearing it over her burnt skin. He felt her shiver under his hands and fought down the strange feeling in his chest.

"Maybe, maybe not. A game cannot tell you the past, Obi-Wan, for each choice you make, each fight you fight, is different and shapes the path you walk," she said. Obi-Wan chuckled, ignoring Padme who was watching from the side.

"How did you like your time on Tatooine?" he asked. Rae made a harumph sound and glared at him.

"It is a boring dust bowl and a festering den of amorality that should suffer a revolution and struggle through a reconstruction. If I had the ability, I'd start said revolution! Slavery is a disgusting curse upon all sentient life," she said heatedly. Obi-Wan shook his head.

"There is no emotion, there is peace.

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.

There is no passion, there is serenity.

There is no death, there is the Force," he said. Rae snorted.

"There is no hate, there is love.

There is no despair, there is joy.

There is no fear, there is peace.

There is no anger, there is patience.

There is no death, there is Christ," she countered. Obi-Wan shook his head. She really was something else. And her Code was pretty close to the Jedi Code.

"Always doing your own thing, huh?" he said. She shook her head.

"Always by the book," she countered.

"Do you know..." Obi-Wan began, planning to ask if she realized she was impertinent.

"Beware the smiling politician, for he will twist your words to suit his own ends," Rae said swiftly, cutting him off with a rather serious look.

"Don't change the subject! And who is the smiling politician?" Obi-Wan barked, though he quickly shunted his irritation into the Force and regarded her with genuine curiosity.

"The Puppet Master."

"Clear as Yoda-speak," the Padawan dead-panned.

"Keep the Racer away from the Dark, Obi-Wan. Be a friend first, Master second," Rae told him with all the solemn wisdom of a sage, though Padme could have sworn there was a twinkle of amusement in her eyes.

"... Must you speak like this?" Rae smiled faintly.

"I can't just tell you the future, Obi. You still need to figure things out yourself. What I can do, however, is give you hints and subtlety prepare you for what is to come." He shook his head.

"What is so terrible that you know?" he asked. She moved away and looked deep into his eyes.

"I'd prefer to say it once, Obi-Wan. So please, wait until Courasant. I will tell the Council what they need, nothing more. There are some things that need to happen, I know there are. Besides, there are also things I have no clue how to go about changing or fixing or... whatever. So please, don't push. I'll tell you what I feel you need to hear, and nothing more," she said before getting up. "Oh and... yeah, I'm having way too much fun messing with you," she tossed over her should as she left the med bay. Obi-Wan shook his head and returned to his chamber for some more meditation.

/*/

Anakin was amazed. He was free? The Jedi had freed him? But what about his mom? Then Rae's words came back to him and he was glad of the assurance they gave him. Once they were in the desert though, he felt something else. Something terrifying. Something dark. And it was coming closer. "Master Qui-Gon!" he called out, just before Qui-Gon told him to get down. A speeder bike flew over him, just missing his head. A red and black alien with horns instead of hair sat atop it, dressed all in black.

"Get to the ship! Tell them to take off!" Qui-Gon ordered, holding off the creature. Anakin wished he had the power to fight beside Qui-Gon, but he knew he didn't, and he couldn't do anything to help where he was. So he ran for the ship. The door was open and as soon as he was inside, it took off.

"What?" he asked. A light laugh sounded behind him and he turned to see Rae standing in the doorway to the rest of the ship.

"I told you kid, I know things. Now come on, Qui-Gon will need room for his landing," Rae said, drawing him away from the loading ramp. Soon, Qui-Gon jumped in the door and Rae shut it behind him quickly. "Well now... did we have fun playing around in the sand, Master Jinn? Are you done with the blinding sun and abrasive sand? Because there is no way in the 'Verse you're gonna get me to do this again!" she said, starting out in a sickly sweet voice and slowly letting darkness into her tone. Qui-Gon sighed.

"Yes, as far as I know, I am done with desert planets. And no, I did not have fun 'playing around in the sand' as you put it," he said.

"Was Rae attempting to be funny again?" a smooth, almost classy voice said from behind.

"OBI! You wound me, sir!" Rae cried dramatically. The new comer, Obi, smirked at the young woman.

"I do not. You're simply over reacting. Master, what was that?"

"I don't..."

"His name is Darth Maul, and his appearance marks the beginning of the 'fun' I spoke of before, Obi-Wan. It means the Dark is finally starting to move. You must all be on your toes, my friends," Rae interjected, her face grave. Anakin shivered. This wasn't what he had expected. This was scarier than when Watto got mad.

/*/

Some time later, Rae smiled as she watched Anakin with the droids. "You have magic hands, Anakin," she said as she leaned against the door. The little boy jerked, then turned to her with a slightly guilty look. She chuckled. "No need to look like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar, Anakin. I know just how unsettling it is to travel alone." She paused, memories of her family coming to the forefront of her mind. "I too have left loved ones behind. True, I had more than you, but that doesn't make the pain any different, does it?" Anakin looked up at her.

"What happened?" he asked. She sighed and sank down to sit on the cold flooring of the ship.

"I was... whisked away by the stars. I left my mother, my father, my brother, who's about three years older than you, my sister, who's five years older than me, both grandmothers, my grandfather, three aunts and their husbands, and some cousins I don't really know along with two that I used to spend several cold winter days with. Saul and Edward, the two cousins I know the best, live in a northern State where it hardly ever gets hot. When winter comes, you can get snow about this deep," Rae said, holding her hands roughly three feet apart. "We'd have snow wars and tell scary stories when it got dark out. It was fun, those Christmases. Grandpa Mayar headed a Church up there. I have fond memories of that old congregational Church. It has a new pastor, new elevator to replace the old, slow, stair-chair, and I haven't been inside in years, but I still remember how it used to be." She sighed and looked at the little boy, Anakin Skywalker, who sat beside her. He was listening with rapt attention. She smiled, though her heart wasn't fully in it. "So you see, I know what it feels like to lose family. I will likely never see my family again, Anakin. But at least, we have a chance to build a new family. Remember, Skywalker, family isn't always who shares your blood, but who you choose. Sometimes, love is thicker than blood," Rae said, ruffling his hair. He squawked and tried to fix his hair, but Rae just smiled. "Feel a bit better now, Hotshot?" she asked. He smiled shyly up at her, and nodded.

"Thank you for sharing. You didn't have to," he said. She smiled at him.

"Hey, I told you I have a little brother, right? He's a bit like you, though I doubt he could build a fully operational droid, even at twelve. So when I saw you fiddling about, I saw a little boy who was alone, scared, and far from home. I want to help you, Anakin. I'd like to be a friend to you, maybe even a big sister. And Obi-Wan's a nice guy too. Give him a chance, let him in, and he might just surprise you," she said. He smiled again, though there seemed to be a slightly coy edge to it now.

"So he'd be my big brother to your big sister?" he asked. She gave him a Look.

"What are you implying, Hotshot?" she asked.

"You like him, don't you?" he goaded. Rae kept up The Look, then sighed, a smile creeping onto her face.

"He's cute, and sweet, even if he is a straight laced by-the-book kind of guy. I'm hoping that, between the two of us, we can get him to loosen up," she said, giving the boy a wink. He smiled. "You're pretty cute yourself, Hotshot. So, what'cha working on?" Rae asked, drawing Anakin's attention back to the droid in front of him. Rae had to fight to keep thoughts of his future from the forefront of her mind. It wouldn't be fair to keep comparing him to Vader, even if he did come back before the end. And besides, what she had told Obi-Wan had been at least mostly true. Anakin needed a friend, a confidant. That was why he had turned to Palpatine. She was determined that the bright little boy in front of her would never have to visit that slime ball for some relief from the stuffy Jedi Order. She would do her best to help Anakin through the trials ahead. But what could she do? She wasn't really a fighter, she hadn't actively practiced her close combat skills recently, and she knew next to nothing about the tech in this universe, which ruled out ships or guns. Sure she could listen and joke and generally just be there, but Jedi were active, for all their meditation and peaceful teachings. They were warriors, and she wasn't. Anakin chattered at her about what he was doing and Rae just sat and listened, deciding to take things as they came. She passed him tools and parts and actually found herself learning quite a bit about droids from the young boy. That was how Obi-Wan found the pair, chatting and laughing with Anakin correcting Rae about where to put certain parts.

"Well aren't you two having fun," he said. Rae turned to him with a girly chuckle, because it wasn't a giggle.

"Anakin's teaching me about mechanics, Obi. Care to join us?" she said, part of her hoping he'd say yes and sit down with them. Instead, he shook his head, dorky little Padawan braid swinging about and nearly hitting him in the face.

"I'm sorry, but no. My master was wondering if you would join us in our cabin. He wants to talk to you about something," he said. Rae sighed but got up to follow.

"Sorry Hotshot, I have to go. But if you need me, don't hesitate to come find me, ok?" she said. Anakin smiled and nodded, turning back to the droid he had been working on previously. Rae smiled at him, then turned and exited with Obi-Wan. "So, what does His Tallness want to talk to me about? Surely he knows better than I," she asked. Obi-Wan shook his head.

"He didn't tell me." Rae huffed. Silly Jedi and their cryptic ways! She grinned. Well, she'd just have to keep on being cryptic back! When they arrived at the Jedis' cabin, Qui-Gon quickly brought her inside and set her down.

"We are nearing the Capital of the Republic and I need to know... what are your feelings about the planet?" Rae stared at the man. There were so many things she could say about that sprawling metropolis. What should she say?

"It sounds like 'croissant.' I like croissants! So buttery and flaky. Umm! Yummy!" Rae said. She mentally chuckled to herself at the confused look on the Jedi's faces.

"O... kay. But I was hoping for..." Qui-Gon began, but Rae cut him off.

"So many people! And big honking aliens! Hey, why do we say 'honking' when talking about how big something is? Does it honk? Heh heh, honk honk," she said, eyes dancing. Obi-Wan was starting to look a bit dazed. Oh, this was fun! She should do this more often.

"Um... right. What do you..." Qui-Gon tried again.

"People shouldn't smile too much. Makes it hard to trust 'em. And makes it hard to pay attention to 'em. Too busy watching their mouth and trying to figure out if it hurts to smile that much. And so wide! It's like they're trying to catch a fly! Why would you catch a fly in your mouth?" Rae rambled.

"Rae... please stop acting insane," Obi-Wan said, nearly whining. Rae pouted.

"Spoil sport. Okay. You want to know what I really think of the Capital? I can sum it up in a few words. Big. Smelly. Metal. Polluted. Den of politicians. Home of gangs. Means to an end. That's all you're getting out of me on this matter. Anything else or can I go back to my robotics lesson?" she said, losing the goofy smile and glowering at the two jedi in front of her. Obi-Wan shook his head slightly, as though she had derailed his train of thought. She grinned to herself. It was kind of fun doing that... when she knew she was doing it at least. She wondered briefly what her sister would have said, but Qui-Gon called her back.

"Yes. What do you know about me? I have wanted to ask this before, indeed since you first arrived, but have been unable to do so until now," Qui-Gon said. Rae sighed.

"I know your name, I know a bit of your reputation with the council, I know you are Obi-Wan's master, and I know how you die and a vague time frame for your death. Would you have me tell you of your death? And with your Padawan, who looks to you as a father, in the room? I would not do so, Jedi. It is a pain that I would spare you... and him."

"Please... if I know I can prepare," Qui-Gon said. Obi-Wan nodded. Rae sighed.

"I'll tell you, but not now. Not now," she said, then got up and breezed past the pair, hoping they didn't stop her. She couldn't bear to tell them. Not now. And she wasn't sure she'd be able to make it through telling them later either.

/*/

Obi-Wan looked over at his Master, curious as to what he thought of Rae's answers to his questions. The Jedi Master was pensive, but that might have been because of the rather odd statements Rae had made. Still, the last part, where she had been serious, was confusing enough without the random babble before hand. Rae really did seem to enjoy being as confusing as possible. "Well Master, she's not wrong," Obi-Wan finally said, leaning back in his berth. Qui-Gon looked up in confusion. "Courasant does sound like 'croissant,' it is big, smelly, polluted, made of metal, home to many dangerous gangs and cartels, and it's a den of politicians. What's confusing me about that is, what did she mean by 'a means to an end?'" he clarified. Qui-Gon sighed.

"Perhaps she means just that. Coursant is the capital, the center of the Republic. You can get just about anywhere from there. You can also find a lot of things there. Shops, jobs, careers, ships, Jedi. But what it means to her... I'm not sure." Obi-Wan sighed and flopped down on his berth.

"Well, I sure hope you're happy with what she gave you, because unless you want to be a bit more forceful, it's all you're going to get," he said, then rolled over and slept. Qui-Gon sighed but followed his padawan's example. It really had been a long week.

/*/

Padme was the next person to come talk to Rae, but she wasn't really there looking for information. She just wanted to talk, though considering she didn't know much about the mysterious stranger, there was really only one way she could think to start a conversation. "You know things, right?" Padme asked the strange girl. Rae smiled up at her.

"Yeah, the stars told me a lot, but I've forgotten more than I remember," she said. With her eyes closed, she couldn't see the rueful shaking of the young queen's head.

"Rae... what do you know about me?" Padme asked. It shouldn't have come as a surprise that the girl groaned and threw her head back, gently knocking it against the metal of the wall.

"Why does everybody ask that?" she asked, face twisted into a grimace. Padme giggled, though she stopped when Rae turned her head to glare at her. "Qui-Gon already asked me how he'd die, Padme," she solemnly stated. Padme felt a chill go down her back. "When I saw it, it was emotional, but only because of Obi-Wan's reaction. It held no real meaning for me, because I didn't know the guy, hadn't talked with him, hadn't shared lunch with him, hadn't sat out in the hot sun with him. It was just a movie to me then but now... looking back on it, or forward as the case may be... it hurts, Padme. It really hurts. And when I think about what I know of you... oh merciful heavens!" Rae said, dropping her head into her hands. She could already feel the tears starting up. Visions of Mustafar and the birth of the twins danced in front of her eyes, the pained scream of Darth Vader when the Emperor told him Padme was dead echoed in her ears. Memories of Fanfiction describing the emotional pain Darth Vader lived with, the love that the two of them had shared... all of it pressed against her conscious mind and drowned out the world around her. Padme watched as Rae broke down beside her, tears dripping down her face as she sobbed. It made the queen feel guilty. She had asked about herself, had asked for knowledge she wasn't supposed to have access to, and in doing so had hurt the visitor to her ship.

"I'm sorry Rae. I didn't mean..."

"I know," Rae gasped. She didn't move, and Padme wasn't sure she'd come out of the mental pain she'd been in, but she had responded. "I know you didn't mean to hurt anyone. You're a peaceful queen, a kind Senator. But sometimes... seemingly simple things can lead to huge things. A single stone, when cast into the pond, can create ever cascading waves," she said, ignoring the jerk Padme gave when she confirmed that she knew the other girl was the queen.

"Rae... could you tell me about your hobbies?" Padme asked, hoping that would distract the girl from her painful memories. Rae sat up slowly and smiled wanly at the girl queen.

"Smooth queeny, smooth," she remarked. "My favorite two are reading and writing. My love for both is pretty equal, but if my muse is on strike I have to settle for reading. I like to listen to music and sometimes sing along, but I don't like singing in front of others. I also like to practice martial arts. I had an air pistol back home, kind of like a toy gun, but it didn't always aim well. If I'd had the money, I would have liked to collect swords and armor from around the world, or at least replicas. I also would have liked to take kendo, which is basically sword fighting. Though sometimes, pole arms and staves caught my interest as well. Also, I liked to watch TV. My favorite shows came from Japan, giving me an interest in ninjas," she said, then chuckled sheepishly. "So, what about you?"

"Well. I don't know what Japan and ninjas are, but I can tell you I like to read as well. I also practice hand-to-hand combat with my handmaidens. Captain Panaka likes to know we can handle ourselves if need be. I don't really like weapons, but I'll use a blaster if I have to," Padme responded. Rae chuckled.

"Yeah. Feels like I had more to say. So, would you like to spar with me? The last spar I had was against Obi-Wan, and he has an unfair advantage," she said. Padme gave her a sly smile.

"He's cute?" she asked. Rae blushed.

"No denying that, but I was thinking more along the lines of he's got more experience and muscle," she said. Padme laughed.

"Okay, not going to deny that either. Sure, I'll spar with you," she said. It was the start of a beautiful friendship between the two young women, one that would change the fate of the galaxy.

/*/

Jar-Jar also forged a friendship with Rae. After their talk outside Watto's shop, the Gungan had decided to find out more about the young woman. What he found was as comforting as it was puzzling. She was kind, smart, and fun in her own way. But under all the warmth and safety she projected, she was cold and foreboding. She wasn't a soldier or a warrior, but she was a fighter. He had seen her practicing with the handmaidens. All of them could handle themselves against a common thug, though their skills would be worthless against droids. So, he ambled in and went to the closet where the blasters were kept. Happily, he found a few staves there as well. Grinning his froggy grin, he handed them out. "I thought you had no training. And that you were banished. And clumsy. Yet here you are, handing out staves like you know what you're doing. I want an explanation, Mr. Binks," Rae said, voice calm and even. Jar-Jar felt a shiver go down his back. She wasn't dangerous, but she had the voice down. The same voice many of the generals back in Oto-Gunga had.

"Mesa clumsy, yes. But mesa still Gungan!" Jar-Jar defended. Rae quirked an eyebrow.

"What kind of accidents did you cause to be banished, and how long ago?" she asked. Jar-Jar smiled sheepishly.

"Seven months. Mesa knocks over two or three Generals."

"Uh-huh. And were they mouthing off? Insulting someone?" Rae asked, trying to figure out what happened.

"Maybe."

"That alone shouldn't be enough..."

"Huge goober fish." Rae blinked.

"... Did you tick off one of the other inhabitants of the swamp?" she asked. Jar-Jar bowed his head and Rae laughed. "So you're not entirely clumsy when you move, you're clumsy with your words," she said. Padme looked at her like she was mad. "Hey, I'm not saying he isn't a trouble magnet, I'm just saying that maybe he's not as roughshod as we think. He survived seven mouths outside the city, and no-one knew about him. No-one from the human city found out about the Gungans until Jar-Jar crashed into Qui-Gon. That takes a bit of skill no? So," she tossed her staff from her left hand to her right and tapped it firmly on the floor, "I'm willing to see what he has to show me. What about you?" Padme shook her head, but stepped up as well. And that was how Jar-Jar found himself teaching a group of young women how to use staves. Gungan style.

/?/

A/N: I had to, alright? Jar-Jar has to have some redeeming quality to him. So what if I make him wildly OOC? I only remember him in Episode One and one scene of Episode Two. I blocked Two and Three almost completely, so things are going to be different. And yes. I really, really, had to.