Author: Chaos
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Qui-gon and Obi-wan and the universe they come from, along with their vehicle and all their luggage belong to George Lucas exclusively. They are respectfully borrowed with no intent to profit thereby or infringe on the copyright thereof.



Section 12

The next few days passed quietly. Debrah and the Jedi started each day with a little sparring. Their hostess would join them for the first little while, then would go back into the house to see to her sewing. After that, the three would take some time to drill the blond on the few Force powers she seemed to possess. Lisa spent most of the time in her sewing room, taking measurements, sketching patterns, sewing, fitting, measuring, altering, sewing and fitting again. Both men were in and out of the sewing room at least a dozen times a day. When they weren�t trying on their costumes, they played checkers out in the garden or wandered the grounds, admiring what Lisa had done with the landscaping and Obi-wan spent the better part of the afternoons play �fetch� with the dogs who seemed to adore him.

Debrah passed the time almost exclusively poring over her plans for the reconstruction of the hyperdrive. She would sit at the kitchen table, schematics and notes scattered all around her, her calculator by her side. The one time Obi-wan stopped by to ask her what she was doing the woman mumbled something about reverse engineering and waved a hand at him to go away. The stack of papers on the table only got thicker as the week went on and everyone knew better than to try and interrupt her for anything less important than meals. Occasionally she would stand up and pace from one end of the house to another, or back and forth through the gardens or maze, muttering to herself in equations and obscure technical terms.

Qui-gon and Obi-wan watched Debrah carefully, but, despite their fears, neither Morgan nor Maeve made any appearances. That would be something difficult to hide from their host and would require explanations they could not give.

Thursday evening Obi-wan stopped next to the table and waited to be noticed. Debrah continued to painstakingly sketch something on a schematic, often referring to several of the pages scattered around her. Curious, the young man reached out with the Force to sense her. The woman�s concentration was so complete that it was all he could sense. There was no emotion of any sort there. Experimenting, he nudged a Force surge in her direction to see if he could get her attention that way. Even as the wave crested over her, a shield of sorts that he had failed to notice flared up and diverted the energy around her. The blond never looked up. Her focus never wavered.

Engineers, he thought shaking his head. Maybe not consciously, but she was actually using to Force to keep things from distracting her. The lessons in the morning were paying off faster than anyone had imagined they would. The Jedi student was just opening his mouth to address her verbally when her sense changed dramatically. Debrah sighed in a pleased manner and leaned back in her chair, satisfaction suffusing her and drowning out the fading concentration.

�There, that ought to do it.�

�Can I see?�

Debrah visibly jumped and jerked around to face Obi-wan. She put a hand on her chest in a relieved manner and then scowled at him. �Benjamin Keith Maben, you almost gave me a heart attack! Don�t ever do that again.�

Obi-wan managed to look appropriately contrite, but his eyebrows slid up a notch on his forehead. He had a middle name now? He must have really startled her. He shrugged to himself and smiled apologetically at the green eyed woman. �Sorry. Can I take a look?� he gestured at the paper in front of her.

�Yeah, though I�m not sure how much sense it will make to you. I used the symbols and terms I was taught and I very much doubt they were the ones you were taught.� Debrah pushed the other papers out of the way to make a clear space around what appeared to be the final product of the last three day�s intensive effort. The young man leaned over to see what she�d done. Sure enough, there wasn�t a single familiar symbol or notation on the entire sheet, but it looked impressive.

�There it is: your replacement part. It�s probably gonna take up a little more space than the original, but there�s room as long as we leave the bulkhead open. It�s a high-frequency circuit, so I can�t use my breadboards to make it, but I can pick up some printed green-board and all the parts we need at just about any electronics store.� Debrah smiled confidently when Obi-wan glanced up at her from the schematic. �After that,� she shrugged, �I just solder it together and you�re all set.�

�Thank you, Debrah.� Obi-wan�s crystal blue gaze held her and kept the woman from interrupting him with denials. �You have helped us at every turn though it has cost you much in both time and money. Qui-gon told me that you may not be able to return to your home now, because you have helped us. I am sorry for that. I know it must be difficult to give up the only home you have ever known and doubly so to do it to help complete strangers. We are deeply in your debt. I do not know what we would have done without you.�

�I am sure you would have found a way, Obi-wan.� Those soft green eyes never wavered as she answered him, �But, you are welcome, despite what it has cost me or may yet cost me. You and Qui-gon have been wonderful friends to me in a time when I needed it most. Something is only worth what you are willing to give up for it. I am more than willing to give up my home, even my country, for that friendship.�

Obi-wan was deeply touched by the woman�s words. No one had ever put things in quite those terms before and no one had ever given up as much just to have his friendship. The moment stretched out over several long breaths, then they both smiled at each other.

�Enough seriousness for now. I�m hungry.�

�Good. I came in here to see if I couldn�t wake you from your equation induced stupor long enough to prepare a meal for us. The one time Lisa cooked is quite enough for all of us. Lisa included.� Kenobi rolled his eyes at the memory. Lisa had decided not to interrupt Debrah Tuesday night and had cooked dinner herself. It hadn�t been bad, but it certainly wasn�t up to par with one of the engineer�s meals. Since then, Lisa had been content to simply buy whatever food items Debrah put on the shopping list and they had all eaten very well as a result.

�Ah. Well, no need to interrupt since I�m done. In celebration, I�m going to make one of my specialties for dinner tonight. I am going to make chicken pot-pie.�

�Is it any good?� Obi-wan asked in a mock doubtful tone.

Debrah just reached out and gave his braid a stiff yank. �Just for that, you teenage brat, you don�t get any dessert.�

�Why, what was dessert going to be?� He didn�t look all that repentant, but then, a good pseudo-brother rarely did.

�Only my patented double fudge brownies with ice cream.� Obi-wan shook his head and shrugged in a �why should I care� manner. �Chocolate, you twit. Lots and lots of chocolate. And you don�t get any.� With that, Debrah stood up and headed for the kitchen to begin preparations and the young Jedi trailed after her, for once sounding genuinely contrite about disparaging her cooking skills.

Dinner and dessert were a resounding success. Debrah finally relented and let Obi-wan have dessert after drawing out the game for the whole meal. It was vaguely satisfying to make the young man beg for something in revenge for having thrashed her rather soundly that morning while sparring.

�Mmm, Debrah, you have got to give me the recipe for both of these before we go.� Obi-wan managed around a large mouthful of brownie and ice cream.

�I don�t think that I will, you brat.� The young man looked positively crestfallen � Ha! That�ll teach you to speak slightingly of my cooking.�

�I won�t do it again, I promise.� Debrah snorted derisively at his declaration. She knew young men, having grown up with three. He�d be right back to it the second he had what he wanted. Not that she really minded, because it was all a very familiar game and it eased the pang of loneliness that had settled in her heart.

�Do you? Really?� She glanced at Qui-gon. �How trustworthy is he, Jim?� Lisa was sitting very quietly, her hand over her mouth to hide her smile. Her blond friend sure liked to make life hard for the adorably handsome young man.

Qui-gon frowned thoughtfully. �He is very trustworthy. Although, there was that one time . . .� he trailed off and Obi-wan�s mouth dropped open in shock. His master was helping Debrah tease him. That wasn�t fair. Of course, he�d asked for it, but that didn�t change the odds any in his favor.

�Hmm, well, I�ll just have to think about it then.� She pushed away from the table and began to clear it.

Everyone pitched in with the clean up effort and the chore was soon done. Then they all retired into the living room to watch through the huge picture window as the stars slowly popped one by one into the night sky.

�So, is everyone ready for the Faire tomorrow?� Lisa asked into the comfortable silence.

�Oh yes.� Debrah responded quickly. �I�ve missed Faire and I wish that I�d had a chance to go to War more often. I�ve heard so many fun stories about what goes on. I wish that I�d had a chance to stand with the others members of House Aredian, our shields gleaming blue and white in the sun as we formed up our wall.� Her eyes were closed as she imagined just exactly it would look like. �Oh, Thunder and a couple of the other households would probably laugh us right off the field, but just to do it once, no matter the outcome. That would be so cool.� Her green eyes sparkled with laughter when they opened. �I can just hear our battle cry now.� Debrah locked gazes with Lisa and both opened their mouths together.

�Ray.� they uttered in a low, bored tone. Both burst out in gales of laughter a moment later, despite the blank looks of the two men.

Debrah waved a hand at them. �Don�t worry about it. It�s an inside joke.�

The Jedi shared a look then nodded sagely in apparent understanding. �Tomorrow sounds like it will be an enjoyable diversion.�

�Only if you lighten up, Jim. Ben will like it, I�m sure of that. But, you�re so reserved and aloof that it�ll probably just annoy you.�

Qui-gon raised an eyebrow at her. �Is that what you think of me, Debrah?�

�That�s what everyone thinks about you, Jim. You need to learn to relax a little, have fun. It�s okay to show something other than dignity and serenity sometimes.�

The look he shot her in return told her and everyone else just what he thought of that sentiment, though he softened it with a thoughtful smile. �Those of us without the energy and enthusiasm of youth have to make do with wisdom and dignity, young lady.�

�Garbage.� Debrah pronounced. �Relax a little and I guarantee that you will have a good time tomorrow.�

*******

�Have you found her yet?� The suited man�s smooth voice was low and full of menace. Bradley winced and wished for the millionth time that he had not taken this job.

�No, sir. She hasn�t contacted any of her relatives or known associates. We are checking her school records, but with a University that size we have absolutely no way of tracking down every single person she may be able to go to for help. The list of people who shared classes with her is enormous and we�re having trouble tracking some of them down. Most of them never even learned her name while in the class.� He shuffled his papers uncomfortably as the suited man�s gaze bored angrily through him. �And then we�re also checking anyone she lived in the same apartment building with and the clubs she was rumored to have been in. There�s at least six of those, some of them with considerable membership. We�re looking for a needle in a haystack, sir.�

Bradley squared his shoulders, determined to at least not show fear. He was doing the best job he could under the circumstances and that was all anybody could ask of him. �Until she uses some money again, we can not even narrow down her location with any certainty.�

The suited man sighed deeply, his gaze locked on Bradley�s. After a moment he let it drop and nodded. �Very well. She can�t go far on what she had with her. She�ll need food soon. Especially if she�s got the two men with her. They are the ones we�re looking for, Bradley. I just know it!�

�Yes, sir. Um, sir, if I may? What about the field report from Collins and Larkin? Is she really an agent of the Laughing Buddha?�

�That knowledge is classified, Bradley.�

�Yes, sir.� He turned and left the office. The sharp tone of the suited man�s reply was enough to tell the senior tech that he had struck a nerve. Either even he didn�t know the answer or the answer was yes. Neither option was one that inspired confidence in the field personnel. No one wanted to go up against some one trained like that. And if the Laughing Buddha had given her the assignment of guarding those two men, did he know that they were most likely extra-terrestrial in origin? If so, who had he gotten his orders from?

*******

Breakfast was ready before the Jedi awoke. Lisa knocked on their doors, her hair damp from a shower, and called that the meal would be cleared from the table in fifteen minutes, eaten or not and that they had best hurry. The Faire, the fun and the two women would not wait for them.

Both men arrived at the kitchen table promptly and dug into the food immediately. Debrah, also sporting damp hair, was already washing the pans and practically snatched the Jedi�s plates from under the utensils the moment the last forkfull of food was lifted from their surface. Lisa had disappeared to finish drying her hair and getting dressed.

�You two are going to need to hurry. Lisa and I are almost ready to go and we�ve a bit of a drive to get there.� Debrah admonished them before hurrying off to finish her own preparations. The Jedi stared after her and then at each other. They didn�t say anything. They were too well trained and too well mannered to speak aloud the thoughts they shared. Women.

Debrah jogged down the hallway and immediately attacked her hair with dryer and brush. One of the few good things about Utah had been that her hair dried in only a few minutes out there. Here, where the relative humidity was much higher, it took longer, much longer. Satisfied that it was dry enough to start on it with the curling iron, she paused to apply her make-up and then dashed back to her room. On her bed she�d laid out her clothing options, still not sure which one she wanted to go with. She had several blouses, but they were all off-white, so there was only the choice of billowed sleeves or very billowed sleeves. She could go with either a vest or a bodice over that and either leggings and a skirt or pants under it. Her boots sat side by side on the floor and her various knives and accessories were scattered across the pillows.

The woman�s eyes momentarily flashed blue in the early morning light and the choice was made. Very billowed sleeves, emerald green bodice, black leggings and the dark green skirt. With her blouse tucked into her leggings and her bodice only half laced, Debrah hurried back to her now hot curling iron and went to work on her straight, uncooperative hair. She could hear one of the men in the shower as she sat at the vanity and tried not to burn herself on the modern torture device.

When Obi-wan came out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his lean hips, Debrah snagged him. �Hold up there. Let me take care of this before I forget.� The woman snatched up her make-up box and fumbled around in the top compartment, fingering past temporary tatoos of every shape, color and degree of believability. Finally she found what she was looking for: a fake scar.

�If you�re going to be a pirate, you ought to look the part,� she explained as Qui-gon stepped past the two for his turn at the shower.

�Where are you going to put it?� the young man asked, rather intrigued by the whole idea and not about to argue with her. Debrah was as excited and happy as he�d seen her and he had no wish to upset that in any way, shape or form.

�Hm, well. I think across the corner of your eye would produce a good effect.� She positioned it across the side of his face and moved to one side to allow him a view of it in the mirror. �What do you think?�

�Yeah. Put it there.�

�Okay, just hold still then.� With a little spirit gum and a little foundation to blend the edges into his skin and a whole lot of giggling and teasing, the effect the engineer had wished to produce was made reality. Lisa walked down the hall just as the finishing touches were being added and stopped dead still. Obi-wan�s towel was getting a little loose.

�There you go. Lisa,� Debrah spotted her friend standing there. �What do you think? Does it look okay?� She turned the young man around to display his new scar and the brunette managed an enthusiastic nod.

�Uh, yeah. It looks great. Very . . .,� her eyebrows were nearly into her hairline and a faint blush dusted her cheeks, �piratical.� It also served to make the young man look older by at least five years. Obi-wan smirked in response, his blue eyes dancing.

�Good, now, go get dressed, Ben. We need to leave soon.�

Obi-wan nodded and walked to his room and Lisa rushed to her friend�s side. �Debrah, how can you just stand there next that,� she broke off abruptly, her waving hand suddenly patting at her hair, as the bathroom door opened and Qui-gon walked out, also clad only in his towel, sleep pants draped over one arm.

�Excuse me, ladies.� He bobbed a head at them and smiled as he brushed past and returned to his room as well.

�How can you stand next to that gorgeous, practically naked man so calmly and pretend that you don�t see him?� she finished in a hushed voice.

�Lisa, he�s my cousin. He might as well be my brother. You�ve seen pictures of Justin. He�s just as good looking and I�ve seen him in smaller towels than Ben was wearing.� The blond shrugged and favored Lisa with an amused smile. �Sorry to disappoint you, but I just don�t think about him the way you seem to.�

Debrah scanned Lisa�s garb, taking in the brown boots, the black pants and the green vest over her brown shirt. �Well, Sven, are you ready to go to the Faire?�

�As soon as you are, sir.� The shorter woman replied, snapping her hand to her forehead in a quick salute.

�It�s good to be the First mate,� Debrah remarked, smirking and then hurried to finish up the last bit of curling she needed to do.

*******

Obi-wan stepped out of his room in his costume just in time to come face to chin with a tall, black clad, imposing figure coming out of Qui-gon�s room. The young man jumped back and grabbed reflexively at his belt for his sabre, but his hand only encountered the dagger Lisa had loaned him. The surprise was gone as fast as it had come because of the bond the two men shared, but Obi-wan ducked his head in chagrin anyway, his cheeks tinged pink.

�You scared me, Master. I thought you were a Sith.�

A faint smile tugged at the tall man�s lips in response to that. �I think that was the whole point of this little exercise, Padawan. I am intended to look sinister.�

�Well, it worked. Lisa is indeed a wizard with her sewing machine.� Qui-gon�s long, black, hooded robe draped across the man�s broad shoulders and flowed to the ground. It was tight fitted down the torso where it where it began to flare, but it was still made with much less material than his normal robe. Belted and open all the way down the front, it revealed a black tunic and pants of the same material. It looked heavy and hot, but Lisa had taken the weather into account when she had made the outfit and it was all crafted of a very light-weight material that breathed easily. Obi-wan�s own garb fit like a glove. The pants clung like a second skin, but were easy to move in. His vest fit just right, open down the front and stopping just above his waist, showing off his trim hips.

�I just don�t feel quite dressed in this,� he remarked, tugging at the edges of the vest.

�There will be people there wearing less than that, Ben.� Debrah told them as she stepped out of her room. Her bodice was fully laced now, pushing her breasts up to create a formidable amount of cleavage and emphasizing her lean waist and the swell of her hips. Her green skirt was pulled up in front of each leg and tucked into the waistband under the edge of the bodice, showing her black clad legs and giving her greater freedom of movement. A silver chain belt draped her hips and supported a leather pouch. The tops of her black boots were turned down, exposing shiny, smooth leather that flapped around her feet as she walked. A dagger was strapped to her right thigh, a smaller knife hung from her belt and as she turned to close her door, Obi-wan could see a hint of yet another tucked up behind her bodice. Large gold hoops hung from both holes in her ears and her hair was an unruly mass of wild curls. Her fingers were busy twisting a small braid into her hair over her right ear.

�Shall we go?� There were nods all around and the group piled into Lisa�s car for the hour drive to the Faire site. �Now, Sven, are you sure you know where we are going?�

�Of course, ma�am. I am the navigator after all.�

�You are also called Sven the �Lost� and we did end up in China that one time.�

�I said I know where I�m going! And besides, if we get lost, at least it will be to somewhere cool.�

�I�ll hold you to that.� The dark haired woman only grumbled something unintelligible in response and then they were off, driving down the road toward the highway.

Not five minutes of silence later, Debrah broke into song and Lisa joined her almost immediately.

�A Scotsman clad in kilt left the bar one evenin� fair,
and one could tell by how he walked that he�d drunk more than his share.
He staggered round until he could no longer keep his feet,
then he stumbled off into the grass to sleep beside the street.�

The tune was bouncing and lively and Obi-wan found himself involuntarily nodding his head in time with the music and joining in on the chorus with his mellow baritone voice. Half way through he realized that it was a risque sort of song that he probably ought not to sing,. But, caught up in the spirit of things, he smirked at Qui-gon and kept on singing the chorus, curious as to what the punch line of this particular song might be. When they reached it, Debrah shot a wicked glance at him over the back of her seat and he blushed furiously in response. His master was sitting stoically beside him, determined to remain dignified and calm.

There was only a momentary silence before the two women started up another song, this one a haunting duet about a woman out to avenge an attack on her family.

�Kerowyn, Kerowyn, where are you going,
dressed in men�s clothing, a sword by your side?
Your face pale as death and your eyes full of fury.
Kerowyn, Kerowyn, where do you ride?�

The songs continued unabated the whole trip. Some times only one of the women would sing, some times they would sing together, but either way, they seemed to be getting into the spirit of things.

�If you ever go across tha sea ta Ireland.
Then maybe at tha closing of yer day,
you can sit end watch tha moon rise over . . .�

Obi-wan started. Debrah was singing alone on this one and she had adopted a light, lyrical accent that reminded him of his master�s. He glanced up at the older man to see a tightening around those grey-blue eyes. Qui-gon, too, had noticed the change in voice and did not like what it might portend. The song drew to a lovely close and Lisa sighed slightly in envy.

�That was lovely, Morgan.� Obi-wan jolted again at hearing that name given to the blond woman. �I always like to hear you sing that one.�

�Thank ya, Sven. If ya have enna requests, I�ll see what I can do ta oblige ya.� She twisted in her chair to look at the men. �Enna requests from tha back?� Her deep blue eyes glinted merrily. �You boys have been awfully quiet.�

�No, Morgan. We have no requests at this time.� Qui-gon replied.

�Alright then. What next, Sven?�

�Rose?�

�Traditional or pagan?�

�Traditional, please.�

As the song floated mournfully out into the confines of the car, Obi-wan leaned over toward his master and whispered hurriedly. �Morgan, Master? What are we going to do? Lisa is sure to notice and we have no explanations to offer.�

�None except the truth, Padawan. We shall just have to see what happens and act accordingly.�

�Yes, Master.�




Section 13