Thank you to the 12 people who reviewed the last chapter, and put up with my long (it really wasn't supposed to be that long) explanation. Here is chapter 39. I have decided that I am going to post the wedding as this chapter instead of as a oneshot but it will not be that long, which is why this chapter is likely going to be short. Also, I am basing the wedding on the way weddings are done where I am. It probably isn't much different from the way it's done in the Star Wars galaxy but I just thought I'd point that out. I hope that you like the wedding and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.
Chapter 39
When he was tossed into the past with the task of preventing his brother from falling to the dark side and making the necessary changes to turn the future he lived in into a better one, Obi-Wan did not expect participating in a wedding would be one of those changes. In truth, he was surprised beyond belief when his master came to him in a dream soon after he, Anakin, Ahsoka and Jenica returned to Coruscant after Sugi and the other bounty hunters dropped them off at the Republic outpost. That had occurred well before the battle of Sullust.
His master came to him and told him, point blank, that the bond between him and Siri was a powerful one but he also pointed out that some things were going to happen and that one of those things was a wedding. He said that Obi-Wan and Siri had to get married, that the Force didn't think the bond it created was enough to solidify their relationship.
Obi-Wan had to admit that he was surprised the Force felt so strongly about him and Siri getting married. He had to wonder; why did the Force want them to get married? What was so special about marriage vows?
Obi-Wan understood why Anakin and Padmé had to get married; Padmé wasn't a Jedi. But him and Siri; they were different. They were both Jedi and the Force bond that existed between them was proof enough of that.
Which brought him back to his previous question; why did the Force want him and Siri to get married?
Obi-Wan didn't know. He did approach the topic with Siri though and was surprised when Siri told him that she had a dream about Tahl who told her the same thing Qui-Gon told him. She was just as confused as Obi-Wan was but they both were willing to follow the will of the Force even if they didn't know why the Force wanted them to get married.
"Perhaps the Force is trying to tell us something," Siri had suggested after they finished discussing their dreams.
Siri had a point but Obi-Wan wondered if, perhaps, the Force was trying to tell him something, something about the future, something the Force wanted to happen. He wished he could ask the Force itself but he knew that he couldn't. The Force was mysterious and wouldn't give him the answers he sought; he was positive of that. Qui-Gon often told him that it is not up to the Force to tell him of what he needed to know, it was up to him to figure the answers out for himself.
And yet Obi-Wan had to wonder what the answers were and when would they be revealed. Nevertheless, the Force's will was what led up to him participating in a wedding.
He told Anakin about it and Anakin, after teasing him relentlessly and insisting that he knew all along that they would eventually get married, asked if he and Padmé could be a part of it. After a little discussion at Padmé's apartment within 500 Republica, Obi-Wan and Siri agreed. Anakin proclaimed that, naturally, he was going to be Obi-Wan's best man and Padmé asked to be Siri's maid of honor.
"I never had a maid of honor, Anakin," she had said to Anakin.
Anakin promised her that when they renewed their wedding vows, Padmé could have a maid of honor and as many bridesmaids as she wanted.
The toughest part of this all, other than actually accepting that the Force wanted them to get married, was finding a place to get married without the Council figuring out what was going on. They had decided they would discuss that after the Battle of Sullust but the incident on Mortis prevented that and so, now that they had finally returned to Coruscant after Mortis, they decided to sit down and talk about it.
Subconsciously, Obi-Wan decided to do what he could to find a place for the wedding the Force, surprisingly, wanted that wouldn't alert Palpatine, and to a lesser extent the Jedi Council, to what was going on. Now that he knew Palpatine would discover someone was meddling with his plans, the last thing Obi-Wan wanted was for Palpatine to set his eyes on Siri if he happened to discover the identity of the one who was disrupting his carefully laid plans.
He cared about Siri and he would let her go when the time came but that did not mean he was going to willing let Palpatine kill her. He was also being practical; considering what Palpatine did in the future, Obi-Wan wouldn't put it past him to do whatever he could to try to hurt the person responsible for disrupting his plans.
Obi-Wan pushed that thought away; he shouldn't dwell on what might not happen. Qui-Gon did tell him that he should be mindful of the future but not at the extent of the present. Yes, Palpatine would soon discover someone was interfering with his plans and yes, Qui-Gon implied that Palpatine would also discover the identity of that person. But he didn't know now and Obi-Wan shouldn't worry about something that hasn't even happened yet.
Even if, subconsciously, he was still worrying about the events of the future that he hadn't yet changed as was made clear by the vision the Son showed Anakin on Mortis.
Obi-Wan again pushed the thought away and began listening to the conversation around him. Padmé and Siri were discussing possible places that wouldn't draw the attention of the council while Anakin was looking at Obi-Wan with concern in his eyes.
"Master, are you all right?" he asked.
Obi-Wan sighed inwardly; he had to remember that he and Anakin were much closer than they were the first time around and they were pretty close the first time around. So, naturally, Anakin would detect if something was off and be concerned. I really must stop reminiscing about the mission the Force gave me, he thought.
"I'm fine, Anakin," he replied out loud.
Anakin didn't look convinced but he didn't push it. "Do you have any ideas, master?" he asked.
Obi-Wan shook his head. "Honestly, I do not," he said.
"I was thinking of Naboo," Anakin said thoughtfully. "Maybe the same spot where Padmé and I got married."
"Naboo is sentimental to you and Padmé, Anakin," Obi-Wan reminded him.
"So what planet is sentimental to you or Siri?"
Obi-Wan could not answer that question and, when he glanced at Siri who had overheard that question, he could see that she couldn't either.
Siri sighed. "I can't help but wonder why the Force is making such a fuss about this?" she said.
Obi-Wan's lips curved into a small smile. "The Force is very unpredictable in what it wants and doesn't want," he said.
Siri nodded in agreement. "And that's what makes this entire thing so frustrating," she said.
"If you are so frustrated then just choose a random planet," Anakin suggested.
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes. "Brilliant idea," he said sarcastically, "and if we so happen to choose a hostile world then it will be so much better."
Anakin flushed. "All right, that wasn't that good of an idea," he said. "But your sarcasm does hurt master."
Obi-Wan smiled faintly in reply.
Padmé narrowed her eyes. "Since the Jedi Council can't find out about this, this wedding can't be on Coruscant and you implied that you don't want to get married on Naboo though I can understand why Master Kenobi is reluctant to get married there," she said.
Anakin's eyes lit up with understanding. "Qui-Gon," he said quietly resting a hand on Obi-Wan's shoulder.
Obi-Wan sighed. "I've come to terms with Qui-Gon's death, Anakin," he said.
"But you don't want to get married on a planet that reminds you of Qui-Gon's death."
Obi-Wan snorted. "I don't see the point of getting married as it is but the Force wants us to get married for some reason," he said.
Padmé was silent for a long moment. "So not Coruscant and not Naboo. What about Alderaan?"
Obi-Wan thought about it while trying not to think of what would happen to Alderaan in the future should he fail. The Death Star destroying Alderaan, millions of lives lost to the power of the Empire's superweapon. It was a beautiful planet and Obi-Wan had been saddened that such a beautiful planet was taken from the galaxy because of the Death Star.
He didn't have many, if any, memories of Alderaan; the only vivid memory he had of Alderaan had been feeling its destruction and he found he didn't want that to be the only vivid memory he had. If he and Siri got married on Alderaan then there was a good chance it would replace the memory of Alderaan's destruction.
"Alderaan is beautiful. I think it will be the perfect spot for a wedding," Siri said.
"If Siri wants to get married on Alderaan then I don't mind either," Obi-Wan said.
Anakin grinned.
"Shut up, Anakin."
"I didn't say anything."
"I wish we didn't have to go behind the council's back," Siri said quietly, "especially since it's the will of the Force."
"I don't like it either, Siri, but what else can we do? The Force wants us to get married and the council disapproves of marriage. Who do we listen to? The Force or the Council? I, for one, trust the Force and if the Force says we have to get married then I will listen to it."
Siri nodded. "So will I," she said before she stood up and walked over to sit beside Obi-Wan before gently kissing him on the lips.
Obi-Wan kissed her back. He was still getting used to openly showing how he felt but he was getting better.
"Aw, isn't that sweet?" Anakin said grinning. "But will you please get a room?"
Although, Obi-Wan found he could do without his brother's teasing.
He rolled his eyes as he finished kissing Siri.
Siri shrugged. "We would but we can't since this is Padmé's apartment and we can't very well go back to the Temple," she said. "Although, I wouldn't mind getting a room."
Obi-Wan went red while Anakin burst out laughing.
"Shut up, Anakin," he snapped.
"I'm sorry but you should have seen how red your face went when Siri said that." Anakin started chuckling again.
Obi-Wan glared at his former apprentice.
Aldera was more a beautiful painting than an actual city to Siri especially with the snow-capped mountains acting as a backdrop for the city. She smiled before glancing at Obi-Wan as he stepped out of the shuttle behind her. They were followed by Anakin, Padmé and Anakin's astromech droid Artoo Deetoo. Why the droid was there, Siri did not know.
Siri glanced at Padmé. "So where's it going to be?" she asked.
"I thought of a place where no one can see the wedding," Padmé said. "That way, they can't start talking about it especially if they recognize you as Jedi. Bail told me of a spring that lies inside the mountains and I've already spoken with a Justice of the Peace who was willing to meet us there to perform the ceremony."
"Then let's get going."
"I still need to get you ready," Padmé protested walking over to stand in front of Siri. "I was thinking of curling your hair and of course you're going to wear a dress."
"I don't wear dresses," Siri protested.
"You will today."
"But…"
"Don't bother arguing, Siri," Anakin said. "Padmé's too stubborn to be talked out of this."
Padmé responded to that by slapping Anakin's shoulder. Then she pulled out her comlink. "I'm transmitting the coordinates of the place where we're to meet," she said before sending the coordinates and then dragging Siri away.
A while later, Siri found herself wondering what in the blazes was she thinking inviting Padmé to come to the wedding? She and Padmé got along ever since they first talked soon after Obi-Wan told Anakin the truth. However, Siri didn't realize Padmé would go crazy for a simple wedding in which only three people, and an astromech droid, would be present.
She said as much to Padmé when the senator was looking through the racks of dresses at the third, or so, boutique they had been to since they left the boys. Padmé merely shrugged. "I think it'll be appropriate," she said.
"I don't wear dresses."
"Well, it'll only be for the wedding."
Siri again wondered why in the world Tahl told her that she had to marry Obi-Wan; she was sure the bond should have been enough to demonstrate their love for each other. But who was she to deny the Force's will?
She sighed. "Fine," she said.
Padmé smiled brightly before she began looking through the dresses again until she pulled out one. "What do you think of this?" she asked holding the dress up.
Siri examined it. "Well, it doesn't look too bad," she said.
"Go try it on."
Siri sighed but nodded. She unclipped her lightsaber before handing it to Padmé and then taking the dress. She stepped into the dressing room before changing into the dress surprised to find that it fit her perfectly before she stepped out of the room.
"I love it," Padmé said smiling. "But what really matters is what you think of it?" She gestured toward the full-length mirror in the boutique and Siri turned to look at herself in the mirror and she had to admit she rather liked the dress. It wasn't that uncomfortable and it complimented her figure.
"I think Obi-Wan will like it too," Padmé added quietly to avoid being overheard by anyone in the boutique.
Siri gazed at the chiffon dress she was wearing before she thought about it. She wondered if Padmé was right and Obi-Wan would like the dress. Of course, he will probably be surprised that Padmé actually got Siri into a dress considering Siri did not wear dresses unless she had to, which wasn't often.
"I think so too," she said with a faint smile.
"All right, now it's time to figure out how to do your hair," Padmé said.
"Can't we just leave it as is?"
Padmé shook her head. "I'm having too much fun getting you ready for this, Siri," she said grinning.
Siri sighed.
The spot that had been chosen for the wedding ceremony was beautiful. The spring sparkled in the light of the sun and the small, quiet waterfall flowed swiftly over river stones into the glistening waters of the spring. Trees surrounded the spring and covered it in a canopy of interlacing branches that allowed thin shafts of sunlight to drift onto the water. There were paths leading into the clearing where the wedding was to take place but, in order to not disturb the beauty of the spring, speeders were parked at the mouth of the path that Obi-Wan and Anakin had used to reach the springs.
"You ready, Master?" Anakin asked at Obi-Wan who was gazing at the spring and using the gently flowing water to allow him to clear his thoughts and quench the flutter of nervousness in his stomach.
"Yes, I am," he said out loud.
Anakin shorted. "You don't sound ready," he said.
"Weren't you nervous at your wedding?"
"A little. Sola, Padmé's sister, said that it's natural. Her husband was nervous when they got married. She said that even she was a little nervous," Anakin said. "So you aren't the only soon-to-be husband out there who is a nervous wreck at his wedding."
"I am not a nervous wreck."
"You could have fooled me."
Obi-Wan glared.
The Justice of the Peace was a tall, man with hair graying at the roots and kind eyes. He patiently waited as Anakin happily dragged Obi-Wan, who was trying to get rid of the nervousness he was feeling, to stand in front of him.
Artoo beeped.
Anakin glanced at the little droid. "So Padmé and the bride are here?" he asked.
Artoo beeped an affirmative.
"Okay so we can get this ceremony on the road. Wow."
At Anakin's surprised gasp, Obi-Wan turned and had to force himself not to stare when Siri, with Padmé just behind her, stepped into the clearing. She was stunningly beautiful in her v-neck chiffon dress with a feather brooch resting on her hip. Her blonde hair was done in gorgeous curls with a few curly strands falling in front of her eyes.
Siri walked across the grass to stand next to Obi-Wan who was speechless. "Are you all right, Obi-Wan?" she asked.
Anakin grinned. "You made him speechless," he said.
"You were speechless when you saw me at our wedding, remember?" Padmé said walking to stand beside Anakin while Artoo rolled to Padmé's other side.
Anakin flushed a little.
Obi-Wan pulled himself from his stupor. "You look beautiful, Siri," he said honestly.
Siri's cheeks reddened a little. "Thank you," she said.
"Are we ready to begin?" the Justice of the Peace asked.
Obi-Wan reached out with the Force and felt Qui-Gon's presence at his side. 'This must be done, Obi-Wan. It is the will of the Force and no, I cannot tell you why the Force wants you two to get married,' Qui-Gon's voice whispered.
Obi-Wan didn't really think his former master could tell him the reason why the Force wanted them to get married but it would have been nice to know. He glanced at Siri. "Are you ready, Siri?" he asked.
Siri nodded. "I'm ready," she said quietly.
Obi-Wan sensed that Qui-Gon wasn't the only one at his side; he could also sense Tahl's familiar Force presence. He didn't know Tahl for as long as his former master, because she died on New Apsolon soon after he began an apprentice, but he did know her long enough to recognize her Force presence.
"Then let us begin," the Justice of the Peace said. "We are gathered here today to witness the joining of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Siri Tachi in holy matrimony. If anyone does not wish for these two to be joined then speak now or forever hold your peace."
No one spoke so the Justice of the Peace went on. "Please join hands," he said.
Obi-Wan and Siri gently took each other's hands.
"Do you, Siri Tachi, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love and to cherish, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poor, till death do you part?" the Justice of the Peace asked.
"I do," Siri said quietly.
"Do you, Obi-Wan Kenobi, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love and to cherish, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poor, till death do you part?"
"I do," Obi-Wan said quietly.
"Then, by the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."
Obi-Wan and Siri kissed.
Not only did Obi-Wan feel the Force's approval, he also felt Qui-Gon and Tahl offer their congratulations to both him and Siri before the two Jedi Masters returned to the planes of the Force.
A/n what do you think?
Blaze: okay, the wedding chapter was a bit longer than I thought it would be, and the wedding itself was actually a bit shorter than I thought it would be, and, again, I based it on how weddings are done where I live
Darth: I liked it
Anakin: aw, you two look so cute together!
Obi-Wan and Siri: shut up, Anakin
Anakin: but it's true
Palpypie: is there something I should know?
Obi-Wan: no (drops burning boulder on Palpypie's head)
Maul: mwahahahaha
Obi-Wan: Blaze, may I borrow your flaming machete?
Blaze: (hands Obi-Wan a flaming ax) use this, it works better
Obi-Wan: (grins, takes flaming ax and chases after Maul)
Maul: (screams like a girl and takes off running)
Blaze: (chuckles) please review and I shall post chapter 40, which will definitely cover "The Citadel", as soon as I possibly can but I doubt it will be anytime soon. It depends on when I finish typing it.