|
|
"Dinner? Just you and me?" Kairiku asked the blonde boy who was standing in front of her. They were between classes at the Jedi Temple and only had a few minutes before the next bell would ring. If Kairiku agreed to go, this would be Anakin Skywalker’s first official date. He wanted to impress the odango-haired girl, he wanted her to like him as much as he liked her. He had planned the evening a week ago and had just now gathered the courage to ask. He was embarrassed and nervous around Kairiku. Anakin Skywalker, the chosen one, the highest midichlorian count of all the Jedi, even higher than Master Yoda... was shaky and sweaty around a girl.
He wished he could be like his Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi. He was adept at looking suave. Annika didn’t know that he blushed whenever someone mentioned her name. Obi-Wan was good at controlling his emotions and appearing calm. It was a trait Anakin admired, one that he tried hard to imitate. But as he stood on shaky knees in front of Kairiku, he could feel the sweat bead up on the back of his neck.
What’s taking her so long to decide? How hard can it be to say, ‘Oh, I’d love to Anakin’, he thought. Maybe she doesn’t want to go, maybe she decided that she doesn’t like me anymore. The thoughts raced through his mind. He blushed. Drats! he cursed himself.
Kairiku shifted her books from one arm to the other. She figured she’d let the boy worry enough. A girl had to play hard to get, after all.
"Oh, I’d love to Anakin!" She kissed him on the cheek. The bell rang, and she ran down the hallway and into her Jedi philosophy class. Anakin floated to his class, elated at the prospect of having dinner with the pretty girl.
Warm fingers brushed the back of her neck. Annika smiled; she knew who it was. He always came to see her this time of day. She put her comic book down on the table and leaned back in her chair. This was the time she looked forward to every day. Seeing her true love always gave her a reason to smile.
"Yes, Obi-Wan?" she asked. A laugh echoed in her ears. He walked around and faced her.
"I wanted to invite you somewhere, but I’m afraid you’ll say no," he smiled. He folded his arms and looked down at her.
"Well, it all depends on where you’re inviting me."
"Chez Coruscant."
"The restaurant? What’s the occasion?"
"No occasion, I just want to spend time with you." Annika tried hard to control the soft pink colour that flooded her cheeks. Obi-Wan’s blue eyes were boring holes into her heart, and she felt like she was melting.
"What time should I be ready?"
"7.30 standard?" Annika nodded and kissed his forehead. She ran off to get dressed, even though it was only 3.30. Xarae was walking down the hall, and they collided.
"Ow!!!!!!" Annika rubbed her head. Xarae, as always, was graceful and elegant. She smiled and apologised to the white haired girl. Annika wished she could be more like Xarae, poised and polished all the time, as opposed to only the occasional times when Annika could be that way.
A plan formulated in her brain, and she ran off to think about how she would behave that evening.
Xarae had heard the conversation that took place. She didn’t mean to eavesdrop; she just didn’t want to interrupt. Times like this, she longed for Khameir. She wished he could be here with her. Wished they could go somewhere tonight.
She strolled through the quiet hallways, stopping to gaze at the pictures that adorned the fireplace mantle. There were photos of Priire and Kousotsu, Annika and Obi-Wan, Kairiku and Anakin, Riku and Coru, not to mention the countless other senshi couples. She sighed. She knew one day she would be reunited with her love, but the time until then was excruciating.
She found herself back in her bedroom. Her bed was very inviting, so she stretched out, letting her eyes fall closed. Her body relaxed as she breathed deep the wafting scents of her perfumes. A whisper danced around her ears. It sounded like... it sounded like...
"Xarae," the voice whispered. Her body tingled with the familiar Force feeling of someone. Her eyes snapped open and she scanned her room. Nothing. She must have been dreaming.
"Xarae," the voice said, louder now. She turned her head to see an all-too-welcome face. This wasn’t a dream, it couldn’t be. She reached her hand up and touched the cheek of Khameir Sarin. Real, he was real.
"I don’t understand..." Xarae whispered.
"Let’s just say Master19 heard your wish and decided to grant it, only for tonight." Xarae’s thoughts tried to grasp the reality of having her love back but failed. She was too overwhelmed to think about anything other than being in his arms.
He wrapped his strong arms around her and pulled her close. For the first time in a long while, she felt safe. She didn’t want to move.
"I have forever to hold you Xarae," he whispered. "Tonight, I want to do something I was never able to do when I was living. I want you to accompany me somewhere. I want us to be a normal couple tonight."
"As normal as we get, you mean?" she smiled. He nodded.
She recalled the conversation she heard earlier, and a restaurant sounded perfect.
It was not the intention of Anakin to arrive at the same time his Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi. It was also not his intention to have dinner together. But the Force works in mysterious ways. His first official date was not so official after all. However, Kairiku did look fabulous. She was wearing a pale lavender gown, and her hair was swept up from its usual odango into an intricately braided bun. Small tendrils of blonde hair fell around her face, giving her an older appearance.
Anakin was allowed to wear his new black Padawan uniform and robe. He took two baths and rebraided his hair for an hour. He wanted this evening to be nothing less than perfect. The meditations he performed that afternoon helped him, and he had calmed considerably. He felt at ease and comfortable sitting next to Kairiku. Her perfume smelled sweet, and she filled him with a sense of pride. He was honoured to have the other patrons in the room staring at him, wondering who this gorgeous woman was.
Master Windu instructed him in the finer points of etiquette and manners earlier in the day, and he was ready for the main course. He knew when to use the different forks and not to put his elbows on the table. But he wasn’t hungry, he was happy to just bask in Kairiku’s glow. Until, that is, his Master showed up. The only other person who could have possibly made people forget about Anakin was Obi-Wan.
Kairiku noticed Anakin fidget at the sight of Master Kenobi. She could almost read his mind; he felt like he was being watched, chaperoned. Kairi-chan smiled. This night would be perfect, no matter who showed up. Just in case, however, Kairi-chan crossed her fingers and hoped that no Sailor Sith would appear.
The meditations she used had not been so effective; she was nervous. The secret weapon she had was that she was female, and she knew exactly how to use her wiles. So even though her stomach was turning somersaults, she appeared to be calm and poised.
Annika felt like a queen. Her arm was hooked around the arm of Obi-Wan Kenobi as they walked into the restaurant. She had a special dress flown in from Naboo. It was a soft powder pink with small delicately embroidered hearts gracing the seams. Her hair was down, and she borrowed some jewelry from Kyoko. The hem of her dress brushed her ankles, reminding her that her feet were indeed still on the ground.
Tonight, she was going to act more like Xarae. She would not trip over anything, she would not pout, she would not cry. She was going to make Obi-Wan proud.
She saw Anakin and Kairiku smiling and talking in the corner and suggested that they say hello. Annika’s Force talents were very weak, but even she could feel the stare Anakin gave them as they approached.
"Kairiku, how do you do this evening?" Annika asked the young girl. Everyone looked at her strangely. She had lowered her voice and talked slower, imitating her mother, Queen Nikana.
"Are you catching a cold, Annika?" Kairi-chan asked.
The white haired girl sputtered, "N-no. Why do you ask?"
Kairiku shrugged her shoulders. Suddenly her eyes lit up. "Why don’t you join us? We can double date!!"
Annika gasped as her hands snapped up to her mouth. "What a terrific idea!! We’d love to, wouldn’t we, Obi-Wan?"
"Well," he started, "I think perhaps we should-"
"Good!" She kissed him on the cheek before he finished his sentence. Obi-Wan pulled out a chair for Annika and then sat down himself. Anakin visibly pouted, but not for long, because a commotion at the door gained everyone’s attention.
Xarae had not expected to blend in, but she didn’t expect the hoardes of eyes now focused on her... and Khameir. She was wearing a sleek red dress that stopped just below her knees. The low neckline accentuated her long neck and graceful shoulders. Her hair fell in soft cascades over her shoulders and tumbled down below her waist.
Her beauty almost overshadowed her companion. Whispers of "It can’t possibly be" and "That’s not who I think it is" found their way to Xarae’s ears. She held her head high and walked to the maitre'd.
"I’m sorry, but we can’t possibly seat you tonight, miss," the short man said. Xarae’s eyes scanned the room, noticing several empty tables. The maitre'd insisted those tables were reservation only.
"Perhaps this was not a good idea," Khameir whispered to Xarae. She shook her head.
"This is a perfect idea, and we are not leaving until we eat dinner."
Annika noticed Xarae talking to the maitre'd in a firm, controlled way. She didn’t understand the problem until she saw the large man standing next to Xarae. Fear shot through the Bakuran princess. Darth Maul had killed Qui-Gon Jinn and tried to kill Obi-Wan. As a matter of fact, he almost succeeded in killing Obi-Wan. Annika reminded herself that this man was no longer Darth Maul, the man that had been controlled by Darth Sidious. This was Khameir Sarin. And Just as Annika loved Obi-Wan, Xarae loved Khameir. As the senshi of love, Annika completely understood.
Kairiku noticed Xarae and Khameir as well. She also felt the Force waves that flowed from both Anakin and Obi-Wan at the sight of their past adversary. Anakin’s feelings were different from Obi-Wan’s. Anakin’s were angry and bitter. Kairiku could feel Anakin trying to fight his feelings, trying to overcome them.
Suddenly, Obi-Wan stood and walked over to the controversial pair.
"Is there a problem here?" he asked.
The maitre'd sputtered and said, "No, Master Kenobi. Everything is under control."
"Good." He turned to face Xarae and Khameir. He bowed to them. "I am honoured of your presence this evening. I would be flattered for you to join our table."
Xarae initially bristled at the idea; she wanted to be alone with Khameir, but as the eyes around the room continued to stare, maybe sharing a table wasn’t such a bad idea.
Kairiku grinned when Xarae and Khameir joined them. "Now it’s a triple date!"
Kairiku ordered steamed Naboo vegetables with a creamy white sauce. Anakin ordered Tatooine rice with sweet bread rolls. Kairi-chan grinned at how Anakin stopped to think about the different forks when she herself was using whichever fork was closest to her plate.
Obi-Wan and Annika were both eating Bakuran water vegetables with rice. Annika had relaxed from the older appearance she was trying to project from earlier in the evening. Back to her normal self, she promptly spilled her glass of water. She bit her lip to keep from crying. Xarae offered Annika her glass.
The red liquid in Xarae’s glass tasted terrible, and Annika made a face. Wanting to be more mature, she decided that if Xarae was drinking it, so would she.
"It’s wine," the brunette woman explained.
"Oh, I know... I drink it all the time," Annika lied. Kairiku gave her a look.
"What? I do drink it all the time!"
Kairiku wasn’t about to let Annika be the only one acting grown up, so she took turns taking sips from Xarae’s glass. And within a span of approximately twenty minutes, both girls were acting rather strangely.
"Kairi-chan? Are you okay?" Anakin asked the laughing girl next to him. She was too busy telling a story that made no sense to listen to him. Both Kairiku and Annika began laughing uncontrollably, but no one knew why.
"Perhaps," said Obi-Wan, "we should call it a night." He looked at the girls strangely. He should have told them about the intoxicating effects of wine, he thought in hindsight. Anakin agreed wholeheartedly, wanting to be alone with Kairiku. Khameir and Xarae decided to stay and finish their dinner.
Obi-Wan held onto Annika while she stumbled outside. They walked a little bit before Annika started to cry. She sank to the cold ground, ruining her dress.
"I’m sorry Obi-Wan," she sobbed. "I tried. I tried so hard to make you proud of me..." She picked at the pink hearts on the hem of her dress.
The Jedi laughed. "I don’t understand. What are talking about?"
"Well... I thought that if I were more mature and graceful, like Xarae, that maybe you wouldn’t be so embarrassed of me."
He knelt down beside her. "What? I’m not embarrassed of you, how could I be? It’s true that Xarae is more graceful than you, but I love your clumsiness."
Annika started to cry again. "I am clumsy!!"
"Yes, but Mika’s clumsier than you are."
"Oh. That’s true, I guess."
Obi-Wan sighed. "Annika... I love you. I love the fact that you are a clumsy cry-baby who whines too much." Annika furrowed her brow.
"What I mean is," he recovered, "you have all these wonderful little quirks. But it’s you, and you are wonderful." He lifted her chin and kissed her. He helped her stand, and they walked for a while longer. She didn’t know that he was worried about her being embarrassed of him. A princess and a Jedi; it didn’t make much sense. He shook his head and smiled.
Obi-Wan walked Annika to the Room of a Thousand Waterfalls. They stood near one waterfall in the back, the one that concealed an entrance to the Senshi headquarters.
"This evening didn’t exactly go as I had planned," Obi-Wan laughed. Annika laughed too and suggested they go out again the next night.
"All right, and next time, it will be just you and me." He kissed her on the forehead and watched as she slipped behind the waterfall.
Anakin sulked for a few minutes before turning to Kairiku. "Kairi-chan, did you have fun tonight?"
"Of course I did!" she said with her head still a little bit dizzy from the wine. She grabbed Anakin’s hand and sensed his emotions race. She smiled. "Did you?"
"Yes!" He didn’t hesitate. "But... it would have been nice if it had been just us."
Kairiku nodded. She didn’t tell him that she would have been happy with him no matter where they were or who was there.
A soft breeze caressed her bare shoulders and loose strands of her hair. Anakin looked at her in awe. She was so beautiful, he was lucky to even know her. And as they walked along in silence, he felt he needed to do something. He wanted to kiss her, but he was too nervous. He tried applying the meditations again to no avail.
They approached the Jedi Temple. Kairiku was hoping that no one was waiting for them; she would die of embarrassment if Kyoko was sitting on one of the benches just waiting. She stretched out with the Force and sensed the room was empty. She smiled and happily sighed.
"Hey," Anakin said. "What kind of night is most peaceful?"
"I don’t know, what?"
"A Jedi Knight!" he laughed.
Kairiku couldn’t help but laugh at his joke. He was sweet, and she stared at him in the dim twilight. His features were becoming more mature, he was getting older. Don’t think about the future, she scolded herself, focus on right now.
The Room of a Thousand Waterfalls was beautiful at night. Kairiku started to walk behind the back waterfall, but Anakin stopped her.
"Wait!" he said. He was determined to kiss her. But his emotions were too erratic too control. Before he had time to decide what to do, Kairiku placed her small hands on either side of his face. She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. He didn’t know what to say, but he was glad she saw him blush this time.
Xarae and Khameir had stayed in the restaurant to eat desert, then strolled hand-in-hand to a secluded place. They sat on an embankment that overlooked the senshi’s garden, Khameir’s strong arms wrapped around Xarae’s delicate shoulders.
"Was tonight worth it?" Xarae asked, remembering the events of that night.
"Every moment I spend with you is worth it." He ran his fingertips over her cheek and breathed deep her perfume. She smelled exotic and clean. His fingers trailed up to her hair. She smiled and closed her eyes. She didn’t ever want this moment to end.
Khameir knew his time with Xarae was running out and he would have to return. The day would soon arrive when they would be together forever, he thought. But he didn’t know if he had that much patience.
They sat quietly, drinking in each others presence, until Khameir felt a tugging at his life force. He knew he was being summoned and his time here, for now, was done. Xarae sensed it too, and tears coursed down her cheeks.
"Why do you cry?"
"Because I don’t want you to leave."
"Do you think I’d leave you if I didn’t have to?"
"No, it’s just that..."
"We will be together, never forget that. And until then, I will always be watching over you. No matter where you are, I’ll be watching over you."
Xarae turned her face and pressed her lips to Khameir’s. She felt the weight of his lips vanish. She opened her eyes, and he was gone.
"Goodnight," she whispered.
