The Delusions of Dreamers

Seventeen

"I..." Satine's eyes bored into his, the moonlight playing on the planes of her beautiful face.  "I want to tell you what happened to my parents.  I've never told anyone before, but I want to tell you."

For a split second, Obi-Wan was at a loss for words.  "Alright," he finally whispered.

The duchess seemed to struggle for a moment, and then she released a shaky sigh.  "They were assassinated.  Right before my eyes.  I was with my sister, Bo-Katan when it happened, and we were both around eleven years old.  It was late at night, and we were supposed to be in the safe room, although we didn't know why at the time.  But my sister and I were curious, so we decided to sneak out, and we hid in an alcove near my parents' room." She closed her eyes then, her long eyelashes resting against her cheeks.  "We heard voices inside the room and peaked through one of the vents.  There were Mandalorians in there, standing over my sleeping parents with blasters aimed at them.  They woke my parents up and demanded that they stop pushing for peace.  My parents were pacifists, too.  I'm not the first one." Obi-Wan nodded, squeezing her hand.

"My parents were brave, and they refused.  So the Mandalorians simply shot them, right in front of me.  Bo-Katan and I were too shocked to do or say anything.  We just sat in the dark hallway, watching as my parents—" She choked on her tears then, her face contorting into a pained expression.

"That's terrible, Satine," Obi-Wan murmured as he pulled her closer to his chest.  She just sniffled.

"After that night, Bo-Katan swore that she would avenge them.  She swore that she would hunt those Mandalorians down and give them a painful death.  And she did, eventually.  But I swore that I would avenge my parents by honoring their beliefs as the new Duchess of Mandalore." She seemed to harden a little bit in Obi-Wan's arms.  "You see, no one knew that I saw what happened that night, and I had to arrest the assassins myself because no one else cared.  More than half of the nobles were neutral or were in league with the people who killed my parents.  And those nobles tried to manipulate me, seeing as I was at such a young age, and I would obviously need an advisor before I was of age.  Well, I played their little game, but one by one, I framed the nobles who were against me and got them thrown in prison.  I turned them against each other until there was no one left.  That's when I was finally able to arrest the assassins and construct a new court full of people who supported peace.  Of course, Bo-Katan infiltrated the prison shortly after and murdered the assassins.  I haven't seen her since..."

"Wow," Obi-Wan breathed.  No wonder the duchess was so passionate about peace.  No wonder she was so hesitant to trust and so hard on the outside.  "I'm glad you told me, Satine.  And I believe you made the right decision."

"You do?" she sniffled, gazing up at him.  The Padawan realized just how close they were, then, even though he should probably be focusing on more important things.

"Yes," he reassured her, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.  "I want to make a joke right now to make you feel better, but I can't think of one..."

Satine giggled.  "You, Obi-Wan Kenobi, don't need a joke to make me feel better."

"Well, then what do I need?" he rasped, his eyes flickering to her soft lips.

Something in the duchess changed, and it felt like she had suddenly melted like butter in his hands.  "I..." Her eyelids fluttered as her sky blue eyes roved over his face, and her pink lips parted, opening doors that should stay closed.

Their foreheads were glued together.  Their noses were brushing up against each other like butterflies.  Their bodies were melded together perfectly.  There was just one more thing that had yet to touch.

He could feel her warm breath against his face.  He barely registered the golden locks of hair tickling his cheeks.  What was he going to say? What was he going to do? What did he want to do?

Kiss her, he thought with such clarity.  I want to kiss Satine Kryze.

Slowly, he inched his lips closer to hers.  Closer and closer, until they were only a breath away.

"Satine," he whispered.

"Mm?" she hummed, her perfect lips pressed against each other, her eyes closed and her eyebrows raised high, waiting.

He was about to meld their lips together when a voice demanded his attention in his head. 

No.

It took all of his willpower to lean back, and he bopped her nose with his finger.  Her eyes mirrored his disappointment, and he flashed her a fake smile.  It is not the Jedi way, he told himself.  It is for the best.

"How would you like to sleep under the stars tonight?"