Tales from the Temple
Summary: A collection of independent oneshots depicting the relationship between Obi-Wan and Shaak Ti. Others probably will show up later as well. (Obi-Wan/Shaak Ti)
Usual disclaimers apply. I don't own the characters. I just borrowed them for fun. Mistakes are mine, though.
Chapter 1: On Kamino
She was standing by the window in her quarters, bruised and battered after the events of the day.
She had discarded her robe long ago, and she had no idea where her ruined west had gone. She was standing in her short top that left her injured abdomen exposed and in her torn and bloody skirt, she had no energy to get out of.
The wind was howling incessantly outside as lightning lit up the dark sky.
She shivered.
She was cold. It was always so cold on Kamino.
She missed the warmth of the sun on her skin, the feel of the earth under her feet—the fresh air.
But it was not to be. She was confined here, burdened with the task of overseeing an operation she did not agree with. Earlier that day, she was ready to die for a cause she did not fully believe in. At least she was not alone.
She could feel the burn of the blaster fire only after she had sliced the MagnaGuard in front of her in two, and it clattered on the floor. How did she miss that?! Instinctively, her eyes searched his. They always did, she admitted with some embarrassment that she had accepted long ago. But again, she had always found him looking right back at her. But instead of his always smiling eyes, terrified blues greeted her. It was bad, she knew it, her knees buckling from under her, her lightsaber falling from her hand.
The clones had already closed around her by the time Obi-Wan made it to her fallen form. He gathered her into his arms and pressed his hand on hers over the injury. His hand was so warm. She smiled weakly as he desperately tried to reassure her that she would be all right. As unconsciousness slowly claimed her, she felt the ghost of a bond spring to life, and she imagined feeling his being wrap around her like a warm blanket.
She wasn't sure whether it was really so.
She could feel his presence even before the door whooshed open behind her. She didn't move, her eyes glued to the dark waves of the troubled ocean. He stopped by the door, standing in silence, and a small smile tugged at her lips. She could imagine it: him standing there, clad in his Jedi robe that swallowed up his whole frame, his hands tugged into the sleeves in front of him, regarding her with gentle eyes.
His eyes were always gentle and warm.
"I hate it here," she found herself voicing her thoughts, and for once, she wasn't ashamed of her feelings. Not in front of him. "I hate the rain. I hate this city. I despise the Kaminoans, and I resent what we are doing here," she admitted. "And I am so lonely."
He remained silent still, but he took the few steps that got him next to her.
She could feel his fingers tentatively searching out hers, and she let them intervene, leaning into his presence.
"You are not alone," he whispered, and she felt the bond she thought she had imagined earlier light up. She startled, but then she probed it gently, and it flared. She looked up at Obi-Wan, and he smiled. "I am here."
She smiled back at him and slowly laid her head on his shoulder. She could feel him pressing his cheek against her montral.
His hand was so warm.
THE END
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