The Negotiator and the Fire Fang

Broken Spirits Pt. 1

Sahrea Shan pulled the covers of her bed sheets over her shoulder as she readjusted herself in her sleep. The air in her bedroom was cool, but she was the perfect amount of warm underneath the blankets. She caught the smell of Xelric Cactus blooms from the spiky plant in the corner of the room.

The outside was deathly quiet. Not even the wind dared to break the silence. It was so peaceful, until a noise tugged at her sleep induced brain. Sahrea initially ignored it, thinking it was no more than her imagination. But then the sound came again and it took a moment for her sluggish thoughts to realize what it was. She groaned.

"I got it." she muttered, her words laced with fatigue. She opened her eyes to her darkened bedroom, her sight falling on a shelf of texts on the wall. Moonlight was falling through the windows and onto the floor. Sahrea flung the blankets off her legs, giving a slight recoil to the cold air that immediately embraced her. She pushed herself up onto her elbow, but fell face first back into the pillow as two strong arms wrapped arms around her torso. Shan laughed weakly as she was pulled against a warm body.

"Obi-Wan." she chastised her husband playfully. She could feel him breathing against her skin. He lifted a hand and ran it gently through her unbound hair. After all this time, his touch still managed to send her heart into a frenzy.

"I know." he murmured against her shoulder. He placed a gentle kiss on the back of her neck before releasing her. She sighed as she flipped around to see his face.

Exile had aged him slightly, but it did not harm his looks at all. He was still sporting the thick beard he had during the war that Sahrea loved. His skin was beginning to wrinkle from the devastating Tatooinian suns. Although it was impossible to see currently, there were grey streaks beginning to strike their way through his auburn hair.

Despite all of these however, it somehow only managed to mature his already handsome features even more. She put a hand to the side of his face, rubbing a thumb gently over his cheekbone. A subconscious smile tugged at his mouth as she pulled her hand away. Kenobi shifted momentarily before falling back asleep.

As for Shan, she got out of bed and padded her way through their home to the source of the noise. She pressed the panel on the side to open the door.

"What's wrong my little cactus bloom?" she asked as she entered her daughter's room. Her words will still a bit muddled with sleep.

Coda was curled up under the covers, trying to muffle the sounds of her tears. Sahrea had found this behavior quite curious. Her firstborn would always run to her and Obi-Wan for anything and everything; a sandstorm that was too loud, a flying Sand Searcher shadow that got too close to the window. She was always comforting him for something. But then Coda came along, the girl who always tried to hide that she was upset, even at the tender age of five.

The child popped her head up. She was holding onto her stuffed Wookiee with all of her might. Her blue eyes were wide and glassy with tears. She sniffled. Sahrea sat on the edge of her daughter's bed and brushed her reddish-blonde hair back.

"I saw... glowing eyes and a scary looking man!" the child explained, almost bursting into tears again at the thought.

"He was little and had a hood. Mama, he looked right through my window!" she exclaimed, her words running together in her haste to speak. Shan kept her irritation at the trespassers inside. Jawas. Of course. Sahrea gave her daughter a warm smile.

"It's alright Coda. They're just Jawas. They're pests, but relatively harmless. You remember Jawas right?" she asked gently. "You know, little hooded creatures, talk funny, like to steal things." Sahrea poked her daughter's belly. The girl gave a quick smile, but it slipped away almost instantly.

"I remember. I tried to go wake Anakin, but he wouldn't get up!" Shan chuckled. "Well you know your brother. It would take a thermal detonator to wake him." Coda tightened her hold on her stuffed Wookiee. Sahrea sighed dejectedly, tucking a lock of hair behind her daughter's ear.

"How about this?" Shan started. "You go lay in with your father for now. I'll go scare off the big bad Jawas and come join you. Does that sound ok my love?" Coda face lit up. "Ok!" she responded, throwing her arms around her mother. Sahrea put a hand to her cheek.

"Good. Now go, you womp rat." Shan jested, mussing her daughter's hair. Coda giggled and darted off through the rest of their darkened home. Sahrea stood up slowly before entering into the hallway. She toed carefully though it, being mindful not to trip on anything until she made it to the kitchen.

As she did, Ender woke himself out of standby mode. He wheeled over to his master and uttered a long string of beeps to her, concerned as to why she was out and about at this late hour.

"No, I'm alright little friend." she said as she pulled on a pair of shoes. "I'm just going to scare off some Jawas." she stood up and plucked a staff from its spot against the wall. Ender told her that he would come if she needed him. She smiled.

"Thank you, but it's no big deal. And besides, those little scavengers would eat a mouse droid like you for lunch." she told him with a smirk. Ender agreed wholeheartedly and gladly went back to his spot in the corner. However, he did not go back into standby mode.

Sahrea pressed the panel by their front door. It slid open, blasting the Gray with a breeze of chilly desert air.

Beyond their home was an endless expanse of sand that became a blanket of star laced navy at the horizon. It was silent with the exception of the Jawa's sandcrawler, which was the size of a toy at this distance. Despite this, Sahrea could still hear the clangs of the giant metal fortress sailing over the dunes.

Gripping the staff in her hand, Sahrea stepped out into the night air. The chattering of Jawaese caught at her drums. She turned towards their vaporators, She spotted the thieves poking around at one of the panels.

"Hey!" she shouted, stabbing her staff into the sand. "Get away from that you dirty little nuisances!" Her voice echoed starkly in the emptiness. The Jawas stiffened immediately. They turned their glowing yellow eyes on her. They threw up their hands in panic, spitting out long strings of Jawaese.

"I already had to replace the condensation module twice this rotation! Now get!" Shan didn't even have to lift a hand. The hooded creatures took off in a babbling fit. Sahrea sighed, her eyes feeling heavy.

A large yawn overtook her body, forcing her to take a deep inhale. She watched as the two pesky Jawas joined a group of their own kind. The odd scavengers all mulled over what they 'found' before heading off back towards their sandcrawler. Sahrea stood there until they were all back inside and her vaporator was safe from any sticky fingers.

She went back in and locked their door. She stuck the staff in the corner as she gave yet another yawn. Ender beeped quizzically to her.

"Its ok. They're gone." she told him. He gave a relieved whirr before falling back into standby mode.

Relying more on muscle memory and less on her weary brain, Sahrea followed the familiar path to her bed. She flipped up the still warm blankets and snuggled back down.

Coda, who was sprawled out in the middle of the bed, reached out for her mother in her sleep. Shan readjusted her so she wasn't taking up half the bed and wrapped her daughter in her arms.

Obi-Wan shifted closer to his girls and dropped a hand on his wife's hip. He opened his eyes and pressed a kiss on Sahrea's forehead. She smiled in response and reached for his hand. She interlocked her fingers in his as all three fell back asleep.