~ Jedi Bri Meets Sith Xara ~
by AJ Marks
Disclaimers: The two main characters look a lot like the ones we are used to, Xena and Gabrielle, and no I don't own them, wish I did. This story takes place in the Star Wars universe that I don't own either, that's owned by George Lucas, along with Yoda who I borrowed for this story.
Subtext: Yes this involves love between two women, nothing graphic however.
This started as a result of a discussion board in which a comment was made of how well Renee O'Conner would portray a Jedi Knight.
Send comments to AJMarks01@aol.com
Jedi Bri Meets Sith Xara
by
AJ Marks
Part 1
The place was unknown to her as she looked around the dark area. There was hardly any light to make out the nearby shapes. She could feel death near by, the stench was almost overwhelming her. The smell of smoke from extinguished fires mixed with the present death smell making her feel sick. Her senses were overwhelmed by everything.
She tried to think about how she got there. The last thing that she could remember was going to bed in her apartment. What could have happened that she would be here? There was no explosion, or real sound that woke her up, but she knew that something did and now she was surrounded by all of this death and destruction.
She got to her feet to slowly walked around to see if she could find out what happened. She stumbled over a body nearby but could not make out the features of the man's face. His clothes gave him away as a civilian, not a Jedi. She tried to extend her senses but found that they were blocked by something. Something dark was blocking it, and it was getting closer to her.
She reached down to her lightsaber and found that she still had that with her. She did not ignite the weapon, as the light given off by the weapon would give whoever was out there an advantage over her.
She tried to find a wall where she would have some protection behind her, but the room seemed to be very big. Almost behind her she heard the familiar click-hiss sound of a lightsaber coming to life. Whirling around with her own saber drawn she met the red saber as it headed for her head, only to be block by her own green saber.
She glanced at her attacker, and could make out the eyes, a pure blue, that at that moment were ice cold.
Bri Lighter started awake from her dream. Her heart was pounding so hard that she thought it might jump out of her chest and she was covered with sweat. She hated that dream for more than one reason, it was not the fear that woke her up, but a connection of loneliness and hatred in the blue eyes that did.
Knowing that sleep would be impossible after the dream Bri went down to the meditation chamber to meditate to see if perhaps this time she would receive some guidance from the Force about her dreams. For as long as se could remember those eyes had haunted her, the color of them she would not soon forget. Getting up out of her bed she quickly stretched her small frame, and ran a hand through her long strawberry hair. Grabbing her Jedi robe and quickly putting it on she made her way down to the chamber from her quarters.
"Bri, what troubles you?" A kind voice said interrupting her thoughts, she knew who it was by the voice even before she turned around
"Master Yoda, I was just on my way down to the meditation chamber." She replied to the small figure who had been her teacher before she had become a Jedi Knight. She knew that he was aware of her dreams and the push that made her one of the best Jedi negotiators in the realm.
"Another dream again little one." Yoda said to his former pupil. She was one of the brightest he had ever seen. Quick to learn, and always tried to talk first, using her lightsaber only as a last resort, not that she was not skilled with it, she was one of the best he had ever trained. She just did not like to use it. He had learned that she hated to kill anything, and that nightmares plagued the young woman. It was the one area that he could never reach, like it was blocked from everyone, including her.
"How was your two hundredth and fifth birthday?" She asked not wanting to talk about her dreams.
"Good it was, sorry I was that you were not there." Yoda said knowing that she did not get out much. Yoda knew that a Jedi must be committed to the cause, but even a Jedi needs rest to replenish their strength.
"I just got back from Alderaan." She replied knowing that he also knew it. He had kept an eye on her for a long time, ever since she had first arrived at the Jedi Temple when she was an infant. She had never learned who her parents were, they had been killed in a mining accident. She had been brought in with her parents. Master Yoda happened to be in the hospital at the same time tending to some injuries of his padiwan at the time. He had noticed the Force in her even then and had made arrangements for her to be taken to the Jedi Temple for training. Ever since he had been a father figure to her.
"When you find out, talk to me you will?" Yoda asked her.
"Yes Master." She replied then they each went their own ways.
She entered the chamber and set about a deep meditation looking in the Force to guide her to understand the dream and the blue eyes.
Yoda watched as she left and shook his head. She was one of his brightest pupils, and was one of the most skilled negotiators he had ever run across, and he had even learned a few things from her. He did feel that there was a part of her that was missing, and until she found it, she would never reach her full potential powers. He had seen the tired lines on her face and knew that he must talk to the council, otherwise they would send her out on another mission, one that she was not ready for.
Master Yoda entered the Jedi council room and waited for the eldest to speak.
"Master Yoda, what troubles you?" Master Aqat asked the small Jedi in their midst. Aqat knew that this Jedi was destined for great things and his abilities in the force impressed him greatly.
"Master Aqat." Yoda said bowing to the council. "Concerned I am about a former pupil of mine. Jedi Knight Bri Lighter." Yoda told them.
"Yes, Master Yoda, she is one of our best Jedi." One of the members said. "I was not aware that something was wrong?" He questioned wanting more information.
"Rest she refuses and too hard she pushes herself, even for a Jedi." Yoda said to the council.
"Master Yoda is right, it is time for her to get some rest, before she fails an assignment." Aqat said to the council. They had been using the young talented Jedi in some of their hardest missions because of her abilities to resolve matters peacefully. "Bring her before the council, she will be ordered on vacation."
"Thank you Master Aqat." Yoda said with a bow before leaving the room.
The other members looked at Aqat after Yoda left waiting for an explanation. They almost never told a Jedi when to rest unless it was for their own good, such as Bri.
"Jedi Bri has been working non-stop since her title of Jedi Knight was bestowed on her, and that was eight years ago." He told the council who looked a bit shocked and realized why he was doing this.
The tall woman waited at the bar counter for her contact. She was dressed in a form fitting black suit that hugged her body leaving nothing to the imagination underneath a black robe. Her piercing blue eyes roamed over the bar looking for someone. So far all she had received were invitations to dance or rude suggestions that she calmly ignored. The last guy she almost killed on the spot. A smile came to her lips as she thought of different ways to kill the next person, but then realized that she did not want trouble.
Another one came up to her and she could tell what he was looking at by the lustful look in the man's eyes, but one look in her eyes and he knew that his usual tactics in getting women would not work on this dark haired beauty. He quickly backed off leaving her alone with her drink. She silently sighed as the man left, he had been more interested in her breasts than her.
A small older man came up and sat down in the chair beside her.
"You're late." She said coldly to the man.
"Had to get rid of some followers, unless you wanted me to bring them here." The man said with a raspy voice.
"Do you have it or not?" The woman said finally.
"Yeah, yeah." He said reaching into his pocket to retrieve a data stick. "Everything you need to know is right here."
"Be in touch." The woman said snatching the stick and after putting it in her pocket left the bar.
The man swallowed his fear after she left, for a second he thought that she would see through his lie. He had just forgotten to leave early enough. He let out a breath and quickly drained his drink that the bartender gave him then walked out of the bar.
He walked quickly down a few roads and through a couple of shortcuts to get home quickly. He made one turn and found himself face to face with the devil himself, or so he thought until he hear its voice.
"I don't like being lied to." The woman's voice said chilling the man to the bone as a lightsaber blade came to life quickly cutting the man in two.
"Consider that you severance pay." The woman said as she put her saber away and quickly left the scene. She knew that he had lied, but the information on the stick was over a week old and was no good to her now, the man had lost his usefulness to her and therefore was eliminated.
Her client was getting impatient and she needed the money, and her boss was also getting impatient with her, not a good combination. She was part of a secret dark Jedi organization, the Sith, that was waiting for the time when the Sith would take their revenge on the Jedi. A Sith Lord who was very cruel controlled them, and he had his eyes on her, she was usually very good, which was why she had this assignment. Others had failed and the organization was in danger of being discovered if the operation was not completed quickly.
Xara had discovered that the hardest thing about this mission was information, or lack of information. No one seemed to have up to date information of the target. The latest information had the man on Alderaan, but that was a week ago.
She sighed and went to her hotel to catch up on her sleep. As she walked into the lobby she managed to catch a glance of her target on the television. He was headed right for her. A smile formed on her lips as she now had the information she needed.
She quickly contacted her master and relayed the information. He was glad that she had the information she needed and that the mission would be over quickly.
Bri walked into the Jedi council room to meet with the council wondering what she had done recently. There was nothing that she could remember doing wrong so she would just have to find out.
"Master Bri, thank you for coming." Master Aqat said.
"Honored Council." She replied bowing to them waiting for what they were about to say.
"It had come to our attention that you have not rested in over eight years." He said and she looked a bit shocked. She had not known that they would have kept track of that.
"I do not require rest master." She replied to the council.
"Maybe not, but rest you will get. The council is ordering you to a months rest, with pay." The Jedi Master said.
Bri knew that there was no way that she could decline an order from the council, and that she would be on vacation for a month. "Yes master." She replied with a bow.
"Your vacation is to take place immediately." Aqat said watching her face. "I don't want to see you working on someone else's mission, alright." He said the last part pointing a finger at her and they both knew what he was talking about.
"Yes master." Bri said with a sigh of defeat. They had seen right through her, now everyone would be alerted to her forced vacation.
"Good, now get some rest." He told her having seen the bags under her eyes and the tired expression in her green eyes. Her small compact body also looked like it was suffering from fatigue. They had been driving her too hard lately and he felt guilty. He had decided to extend her vacation from the two weeks that they had decided on to a month after seeing her in the room.
Bri walked out of the council room not really sure as to what she was going to do now. She had never been on vacation before. Master Yoda had taken a few vacations while training her, but usually it was only a couple of days, or at most a week. Then she really realized that she had not taken a day off in a long time and that Master Aqat was right. She was going to burn herself out without some rest time, but where to go on her vacation. She decided to seek out Master Yoda again for council.
She found the energetic Jedi with his padawan in the hanger area. Yoda saw her coming and realized what had happened by her body language. He was able to see the indecisiveness in her body movements.
"The council has order me to go on vacation for a month, and now I don't know where to go?" Bri said to her teacher. "I was hoping that you would have a suggestion." She said with a slight bow to Yoda.
"The planet Naboo has some wonderful places to rest and regroup. Places that are isolated and off the path. There are also wonderful areas to meditate, I have gone there several times to be surrounded by beauty." Yoda said to his former padawan.
"Thank you master." Bri making her way to the local library to see what type of places that Naboo had that were out of the way.
She waited quietly in the darkness of the shadows. Her target would be approaching soon. He was a powerful leader of a large corporate business that refused to pay money to her Lord. She was to make sure that he would regret his mistake. She was to kill the man, and she knew that the rest of the company would fall in line. This was how they made their money, and she was good at it.
She had tied her long black hair in a ponytail so that it would not in her way. She could hear the footsteps of her target and knew that he would be coming soon. A key was put into the lock in the door she waited for a second until the door swung open.
She waited until the door had closed as she pulled the mask over her head and reached for her lightsaber. She saw that there were six men, three guards, two insignificant people and her target. They never heard her until her lightsaber came to life.
She moved quickly and took out two of the closest guards, cutting them in half within seconds. Her target had a terrified look in his eyes as she cut his head off. His head bounced a couple of times as it rolled to a stop in front of one of the others who looked like he was about to throw up.
The other guard had his blaster out, but was too terrified to fire. A quick flick of her wrist and the blaster was snatched out of the man's hands and into hers. She calmly walked up to the one who seemed to be the least terrified.
"Make sure that you buddies know what happened to him, if they don't comply the same thing will happen to them." She said lifting the red lightsaber to where the tip was just under the man's chin.
The man strained out a yes, not wanting to move for fear that he would get cut, or worse. The dark assassin then backed out of the room and left the three remaining men alone in the room still quaking in their fear.
Xara walked into her hotel room several minutes later and let her boss know that the mission was a success, and that he was now dead. Her boss told her that it was good work, and to report to Naboo until the heat died down from her latest mission.
She knew that it was more like a forced vacation as no one had seen her face, and it was not on any video. She had made sure that she had disconnected any recording device before starting. It was there way of rewarding successful work, and her bank account would have a significant deposit made before she reached Naboo.
Sighing she stripped out of her clothes and went to the shower to wash away the grim form the attack. Even though a lightsaber left little blood, there was always a little bit that escaped and she always felt like it hit her, even though chances were nothing even got on her. She luxuriated in the feel of the water on her skin, almost as if it was washing away all of the blood on her hands.
Grabbing a towel she dried herself off and went to work on her lightsaber, making sure that it was operating at the highest level it could. It was the one possession she had that cost was not an object with. If it needed repair she bought the best material possible. It was her only friend she ever had, and had never let her down yet.
After cleaning and running it through a few quick drills she was satisfied with it and turned in. It took her a few minutes before she was able to fall asleep, and she wondered if she would dream tonight.
Bri walked off the transport in to the fresh air of Naboo. It was different than Coruscant, with all of its industry all over the planet. There were many air converters and most often the air smelled as though it was recycled once too often. This air she could smell the water, something that always seemed to calm her, and ancient deeper calmness that she could never explain.
Grabbing her small pack, which contained her few possessions, mostly clothing, but a few personal items from gracious people that she had helped she set out to find a cab to take her to the country side. She had read about a small lake that was out of the way, and a small local hotel that was on the lakeshore, one that was well known among the Jedi.
"Ma'am, you are headed to Pristine Lake are you not?" A small man said coming up to her.
"Yes I am." Bri said wondering how the man knew that the lake was her destination. He saw the look in her eyes and continued.
"You are a Jedi, they almost always go there." He replied opening his door to his cab, which she noticed had the lake's name on the side.
She got into the cab and he started to head for the lake.
"The owner will be happy to see a Jedi, its been about a month since we had one there." The cab driver said. "I usually keep an eye out for any Jedi, they usually arrive from Coruscant, so it's easy to see where they come in." He rambled on.
"Oh yes, we've had quiet a few, apparently they like the peacefulness of the lake. My name is Darrin." The cab driver said.
"Bri." She replied back to Darrin.
"So, are you a Jedi Master, or a Knight? I doubt you're a padawan, they usually don't come here unless it's with their master." Darrin said making conversation with the young woman in his back seat. If she had not been a Jedi he would have tried to ask her out.
"Jedi Knight, I haven't wanted a Padawan." Bri replied feeling at ease with the man. He was honestly curious about everything, like most cab drivers she had encountered. "I'm on vacation for a couple of weeks."
"You must have not had a vacation for a while, wait a minute, the Jedi Knight Bri Lighter?" He asked as his mind registered who was in his cab.
Bri blushed a bit when she realized he who she was. "Yes, that's me." She confirmed.
"Wow!" He said with childlike enthusiasm making her blush even more. "Master Yoda talks about you quiet a bit. Man, the others won't believe who I have in my cab, they'll be so jealous."
I wonder what he has told them. Bri thought to herself trying to get rid of the blush on her face whole also wondering how much longer it would be until they arrived at the lodge.
"Here we are." Darrin said a couple of minutes later as he pulled the cab up to a gorgeous old time house that overlooked the lake.
Bri got out of the cab and made her way inside the building to where the front desk was located. The older man standing behind the desk looked a bit familiar to her, but she could not place the face. His hair was white from age and there were a few wrinkles around his eyes and mouth that crinkled when he smiled.
"Jedi Bri Lighter." The man said surprising her that he knew her name. The confusion showed on her face. "You don't remember me, Jason Uly, I owe my life to you and Master Yoda for the Ilderian incident."
Bri's mind clicked as to where she had seen the man. It had been one of her fist assignments with Master Yoda almost seventeen years ago. "Jason, I didn't recognize you." Bri said finally giving the man a hug. Jason had gotten himself involved with an evil crime lord who had taken his two children as hostages, but with the help of Master Yoda and his padawan Bri they had foiled the crime lord's plot and put the man away for a long time.
"Master Yoda has told me quite a bit about you with his time here." Jason said ringing the bell on the countertop. Shortly a young bellhop appeared. "Take my guest here to room 6A." He told the man who asked Bri to follow him.
"I'll see you later." Bri said allowing the man to lead her to her room. It was on the upper level of the house as the man opened the door for her. She walked into the room and stopped at the sight. It was an off white room with lots of space. In one corner facing the lake was a meditation stool, on the other side was a comfortable looking bed, and plenty of space to move around and practice. The whole room appeared to be set up for Jedi.
"You must be a Jedi." The man said as he put her things down on the Chester drawers. "Only Jedi are given this room, otherwise its unoccupied." He told her.
"Yes I am." She said taking off her light blue robe and allowing the man to see her lightsaber underneath.
"If you require anything, all you have to do is call down." The man said leaving her alone in the room.
Bri walked over to the bed and fell onto it. The softness of it surrounded her making her feel like she was floating on air. She might have been a Jedi, but she still occasionally liked to indulged in the finer things in life and pampering her body. Taking off her normal clothes she put on a simple tunic and shorts and went out on the balcony and just sat down and enjoyed the sights before her.
Xara made her way down to the lake shore near where she was staying. So far very few people had asked her about what she did for a living, which was fine to her. The fewer people who asked about who she was, the more she was able to relax. So far she had been there for almost a week, and she was beginning to get edgy. She was ready for her next mission.
The thought had just rolled through her head when she noticed the beautiful young strawberry blond jogging the opposite way she was. As they approached each other Xara took the opportunity to check out the young woman. The strawberry blond had on a form fitting sleeveless shirt, and a pair of short shorts. Her arms and legs were muscular, but not overly so, just enough to allow Xara to see that there was strength in the small compact body.
As they neared each other Xara was able to see more details about the young woman. She had a wonderfully shaped body, perfect curves. Xara wondered if she would be able to bed this fine woman. Her thoughts quickly headed south as she noticed that the young woman's shirt was practically see through from the sweat the woman had worked up on her run as her nipples were visible through the shirt and a pleasant sensation worked its way down her spine.
Xara smiled at the young woman as they passed each other and noticed something she was not expecting to see.
Bri had watched as the woman she was closing in on checked her out. She knew that this shirt was not the best one to run with, but it was her only clean shirt today. The woman in front of her was beautiful, that was for sure. Her tall frame, black hair, and figure made her seem powerful in Bri's eyes. However it was the eyes that captured her attention as they passed. They were a blue like she had only seen in her dreams and she suddenly stopped and looked back.
Xara noticed that her mysterious enchantress had stopped so Xara turned around to make sure that they young woman was all right.
"Are you alright miss?" Xara asked when she noticed that the young woman was staring at her eyes.
"Ah, yes thanks." Bri murmured a bit embarrassed at having been caught staring at the woman. She had never had such feelings and it was overwhelming her. The eyes were definitely out of her dream.
"My name's Xara." She said extending her hand.
"Bri." Bri replied shaking the woman's hand feeling a connection with this woman in front of her.
"So, Bri, do you live around here?" Xara asked when Bri showed no signs of talking or releasing her hand.
That shook Bri out of her shell and she quickly let go of the woman's hand. "No, I'm on vacation." She replied slightly embarrassed that she had been caught staring.
"Me too." Xara replied then before she could stop herself she continued. "Would you like to have dinner?"
Bri went into shock for a few seconds as her mind registered what the beautiful woman in front of her had just asked. She quickly wondered if her response was wise even as she accepted the offer.
"Great, where are you staying?" Xara asked before pointing to where she was staying. "I'm over there, at the Paradise Lodge."
"Oh, I'm over there, the Heaven on the Lake Lodge." Bri replied back to the woman.
"How about I pick you up at six." Xara offered pleased when the young woman accepted the offer. "Great, see you in a little bit, and the place I have in mind is casual." Xara said as they both walked back to their rooms to change for the evening.
Xara wondered what she should wear. The place she had in mind was perfect for her limited wardrobe. She chose a black top with matching shorts. She noticed that she was actually nervous about meeting Bri and wondered what it was about the small woman that made her nervous. The young woman would probably run the other way if she found out what Xara did for a living, after all, telling someone that you work for the Sith is not something that everyone hears about or accepts.
Bri meanwhile was having a hard time figuring out what to wear. Most of what she had was workout clothing, not something to meet someone in. She decided that a pair of shorts and her best shirt would work. Xara probably thought that she was rich or something by where she was staying. The owner, Jason, allowed Jedi to stay for free for saving his life, even though most paid for a bit anyways. Karen would be shocked to find out that she was actually a Jedi Knight and any thoughts of friendship might go out the window.
Bri waited patiently as she watched Xara walk up to the lodge that she was staying at. Xara walked up to her and asked if she was ready, to which Bri nodded her head and the two of them walked off together towards a small restaurant located not far away.
Bri had not been in this restaurant before, although it was a place she had wanted to try. It had a nice hometown atmosphere along with local dishes for tourists to try.
"So, Bri, what do you do for a living?" Xara asked wanting to learn more about the young woman in front of her.
"I'm a free-lance negotiator." Bri replied not reveling her true job, although it was close. "What about you, what do you do?" Bri asked right back.
"I'm a bounty hunter." Xara replied knowing that it would be the closest without lying to the young woman.
"I'm surprised that we haven't met before." Bri said watching Xara's face.
"No, I usually work in the shadows." Xara replied her voice sending a wave of excitement down Bri's spine and for a second she had a memory of her last dream, where the eyes had come out of the shadows, but with a lightsaber.
"Is there anything wrong?" Xara asked as she saw her companion's face.
"Oh, sorry, just remembering a dream I had." Bri said.
"Perhaps you'll tell it to me." Xara said with a smile.
"Perhaps." Bri replied with a smile of her own
The rest of the night went to fast for either woman as they both found that they enjoyed each other's company. They walked along the lake's shoreline in comfortable silence arm in arm, neither wanting the night to end.
"Well, I guess I need to go to sleep." Bri said with a yawn. "I'm on a forced vacation." She said as if to explain the yawn.
"When was the last time you had a vacation?" Xara asked and was a bit startled when Bri said eight years. "Wow, eight years, It seems like I'm almost always on vacation."
"I guess when you're a bounty hunter if you're not on a mission then you're on vacation." Bri replied.
"You're also not getting paid." Xara replied a bit somberly. "It's a balance you have to try and maintain, but if you're good enough then the jobs come to you."
"Pretty much like what I do." Bri said.
"Yeah." Xara said watching as the younger woman yawned again. "I think that you should get some sleep, how about breakfast?"
"Love it." Bri replied as they made plans for breakfast the next morning.
The next morning Xara and Bri went to a small cafe to have breakfast. It was a place that Bri had already been to several times and knew that the food was good. Even though she had been raised all her life as a Jedi, she still had quite an appetite for someone her size. It was also a common joke around the temple and people were always amazed at how much a small person could put away.
"Did you have any dreams last night?" Xara asked wondering if Bri might share her dreams with her.
"No, I don't have them often, but when I do they come for about a week or so." Bri said wondering if she should tell Xara about them. It was her eyes that were in the dream.
"Is the dream more of a nightmare, or something you like?" Xara asked probing the young woman.
"Well, it's more like you're in it." Bri said making up her mind to tell Xara about them. Bri noticed that Karen looked a bit shocked at the news and definitely wanted to know more.
"About me?" Xara asked. "How do you know it was me, I mean after all we just met."
"Your eyes, I see them as clear as I see them now. Of course I always wake up just before I see anything else." Bri replied. "However I have seen you with a lightsaber, do you ever use one?"
Xara was caught unaware at the question. This was something that she had not been expecting. "Not often." Xara said, lying just a bit.
"You're usually in someplace dark and there are dead bodies in the room with only you standing there. You see me and then the dream ends right there, sometimes you have a lightsaber, other times you do not." Bri said having made a decision to tell Xara.
"Well, it is true that my job does call for me to kill people, and I do have a lightsaber, usually for cutting things because it's so good." Xara said using her bounty hunter alibi to explain such a weapon. "Do I try anything against you?"
"No, that's the strange part, usually something like that would be horrible but I never feel like I'm in danger from you." Bri replied and Xara felt better about the answer.
"Hey!" Xara said noticing that they had finished breakfast. "There was an interesting museum not far from here, want to go."
"Sure, I love history." Bri said as they got up and hailed down a taxi.
The next two weeks went by quickly for the two women who enjoyed each other's company a lot. They had settled down into a routine. They would meet for breakfast, and then do sightseeing all over the planet before having a relaxing dinner before going to bed. Both, however, knew that it would not last. Xara could be called away for a mission at any time, and Bri only had a couple of days left on her vacation.
Xara awoke to her communicator going off, and she realized that her services were needed again. Picking up the device she was not surprised to see the Sith Lord appear.
"Apprentice Xara, I have a job for you." He said in a deep voice.
"Yes, my Lord." Xara replied not expecting to feel the desire to turn off the device and leave the room.
"It appears that our tactics did not work, and the Galactic Communications Inc's new CEO will not cooperate, kill him." He said then signed off leaving Karen a download of information. Her first priority was to tell Bri that she was leaving.
She met the young woman for breakfast and the younger woman immediately picked up that something was wrong.
"I've had an assignment come in." Karen told her. "I'll have to leave tomorrow." She said.
"Where are you going?" Bri said but Xara just mentioned something about client secrecy, which Bri accepted.
They spent the rest of the day just sitting along the lakeshore talking and enjoying each other's company.
The next morning Bri found herself unable to control her emotions as a tear made its way down her cheek as they said their good-byes. Xara gently wiped the tear away and gave the younger woman a slight kiss, meaning for it to a simple gesture, but not expecting the explosion of senses it evoked in both of them.
When they broke away both felt the loss from the contact. Karen said that they might meet again.
"May the Force be with you Xara." Bri said, using the common good luck good bye between friends.
"May the Force be with you as well Bri." Xara replied the got in the cab and drove away.
Bri went back into her room after the cab had left her sight and went to meditate. She tried for the rest of the day and the remaining days, but it seemed to evade her, almost as if she was out of balance. There was something about the woman that had captivated her from the first time she laid eyes on her. There was also a shadow around Xara that Bri found hard to reach, but it was also familiar to her in some way.
The cab ride back to the spaceport was a bit better, and Darrin was his usual bright and cheerful self. Darrin hoped that he would see her come again, and Bri mentioned that it could happen, she did not plan on going so long without a vacation again.
She got out of the cab, and this time she was dressed in her usual Jedi clothing and light tan robe, which was different from other Jedi, who usually wore a darker robe.
End Part 1
Continued in Part 2
The Athenaeum's Scroll Archive