Summary: Workers in Coruscant's oldest profession get an
unexpected glimpse at what happens between two jedi when
passion disturbs serenity
Notes: My thanks to betas cwolfe and flippant lizard who were
patient and kind with their comments.
Disclaimer:I don't own them. George Lucas does. OK?
Feedback: Yes please particularly comments on plot, character,
language, pacing etc to help my writing improve e-mail me at
yinkawills@h...
Coruscant's oldest district, the Pleasure District, was quiet.
Unlike other areas in the lower levels dedicated to the erotic
arts, it had no vids, eroto-droids, holoporns, audio-sex
booths. It's streetwalkers were all sentient beings, rather
than the standard mixture of sentients, bots, droids, and sims.
Its streets were winding and narrow with few aerial walkways,
building were of a kind that had been long replaced with tall
metal and plasteel. Made of local wood and stone from the days
before the planet was entirely covered in buildings, the
streets were cramped, the air - with relatively little
artificial additions- smoky, the lighting fossil fuelled. The
latter part was due to the local authorities shrewdly realising
its tourist potential as a place that evoked a bygone era.
Tourist could come and see the pleasure boys and girls - all
licensed- seeking trade, visit the hundreds of establishments
and rent rooms by the standard hour, glimpse what it must have
been like centuries ago when times were wilder,
grimier,riskier.
Tonight, the boys and girls were still waiting patiently for
the passing trade to start appearing. A small group of them
were huddled, bored, near one the countless funhouses.
"Fracking hell. It's dead tonight" a tall, green skinned
R'uvisan waived one of his many arms irritably.
"Deader than that trick you had last night, R'urr" said a
tall, violet-eye humanoid woman, leaning against the wall of
the building. The others burst into good natured jeers and
whistles, and the R'uvisan gave a mock growl in response.
"Yeah, it was bad, that one. Smelt like bantha poodoo! Nearly
sent it over to you, Serna" more whoops, whilst Serna, pulled
on a smoke-filled irstick, and pulled her very expensive
xoxskin jumpsuit tighter around her body.
"Well, if things don't pick up, might have to go looking for
it" Serna quipped, and her listeners, shook their heads, and
shuffled their feet, muttering.
They all saw the young human male who came round the corner
just then, and Serna straightened up expectantly. Business?
As he continued walking towards them, she eyed him expertly
and quickly revised that opinion.
He was young -adult but young, maybe 25 standard years, and
under the old lighting system that illuminated the streets,
though his head was bare, it was hard to tell just what colour
hair he had exactly.
His face was beautiful, all high cheekbones, square chin,
aquiline nose, and his mouth had a sensual curve, that
complimented the sensual walk that ensured all eyes stayed upon
him. What they could see of his clothes under the dark cloak
suggested garments cut tight enough to emphasize a slender,
well-muscled body.
"Frack" Serna murmured. He was sex on legs. Even more so when
she noted, as he drew nearer to her, the expression in his
eyes. A kind of innocent knowingness. He didn't look like he
was a tourist, looking for excitement. But he didn't look like
an experienced pleasure worker either. What the frack was he
doing here?
Somehow, he could sense that Serna was the one to talk to,
because he walked up to her to pose the question.
"Um, excuse me. I want to stay out here, tonight. Would that
cause a problem?"
Now that he was close, and his face caught the light from the
front window of the nearby hotel, she could see his eyes. A
kind of crystalline grey-green, as stunning as the rest of the
package. And the voice!
"Why, are you looking for some fun?" that was Neffri, and
Serna just knew that her next comment would probably be
something crude enough to scare away what was obviously a
virgin as regards their line of business. And a virgin could
draw in a lot of trade on a quiet night like this. She moved
swiftly to put the stranger at ease.
"You can stay with me. It won't be a problem. You won't have
to do anything you don't want to do" she made her voice as
reassuring as possible, which was quite something as she'd paid
over five hundred credits for expensive sonic surgery to ensure
she had a voice that could launch a thousand wet dreams.
The young man nodded, barely noticing the attempted audio
seduction, his eyes moving around the streets as if searching
for something. As he moved to fall in with her, she wondered
just why he was there. Runaway? Lover's tiff? Somehow, he
didn't have the air of someone looking for kicks.
/Frack!/ she thought /If he was mine, I'd chain him to the bed
before I let him out without me. He's a walking invitation,
this one/ She put out her hand, cautiously, to touch his arm.
To her surprise, she felt muscle under the cloak, as he tensed
slightly.
"I'm Serna.
He hesitated slightly, before responding, voice low "I-I'm
Ben. You can call me Ben"
/Uh-huh/ Serna thought. Right. *Ben*. "Well,..Ben, you're
welcome to spend as long as you want. Play, don't play,
watch...your choice"
He flashed her a smile, and she could have sworn her body
temperature rose two degrees in response.
/Oh yes,/ Serna thought, as she took her new friend's arm, and
drew him gently over to introduce him to the others, this one
should be very good for business. Very good.
By the 25th Hour, the streets had been transformed.
Serna's instincts were correct. As if from nowhere, clients
started appearing. From round the corner. From the top of the
street. In a small, but steady stream.
Most of them approached Ben, where he stood against the
wall,one leg bent, cloak over one shoulder. His gentle refusal
then steered them toward the others, and there was much good
natured banter from the likes of R'urr, Neffri and Vix as they
took over. Serna herself became very busy indeed. And the
clients seemed in a generous mood as well.
It was turning out into an altogether profitable evening, and
Serna would have been quite content, if her seeing ahead senses
didn't tell her that things were not to remain as uneventful as
they had been. Ben seemed tense. As if he was waiting for
something, or someone.
When that someone finally arrived it was late. About the 28th
hour.
There was a lull, so most of them were looking when the tall
figure appeared from around the corner, and began walking in
their direction.
The man was big, very big. And powerfully built. Serna could
see the wide shoulders under the long dark cloak that he wore.
He moved lightly for a man of his size though - his approach
was noiseless despite the tall boots - and he had a flowing
mane of hair that fell over his shoulders. Something about him
was disturbing. His face was still in shadow, but something
about his aura spelt danger.
Serna instinctively glanced at Ben and saw that he had moved
to stand upright, and was looking in the direction that the
stranger was heading from. The tension in the young man's body
was apparent even from some distance away.
/What the frack is going on here?/ Serna wondered, and then,
as the man moved closer and she got a good look at him from the
streetlight, she froze. He was beautiful.
Noble forehead, heavy brows, a square jaw covered in a close
beard. His nose had been broken at some time, that was
apparent, and his mouth was firm. The eyes were blue, deep,
piercing, the kind that laid a soul bare. They swept over her
R'urr, Neffri, Vix and the others as if looking for someone.
And stopped dead when they reached Ben.
Serna saw the big man's hands - huge, powerful looking -
clench and unclench once. And then he swept past her, to stop
in front of the youth. "What are you doing here?" the big man's
voice was deep, a low rumble from a massive chest. The question
was addressed to Ben, and Serna was nonplussed to see the
formerly courteous face harden into a taunting insolence, as
the young man leant back against the wall casually, bending one
leg to proper himself up.
"You said I was behaving like a whore. Well, who am I to
argue?"
The big man's huge fists clenched and unclenched at his sides
again, whilst he stood, legs apart in front of the youth.
A hush had settled over the workers on the street. Most of
them were too far away to hear the exchange, but the chill
atmosphere generated by the two made it clear something was
wrong. Vix was shuffling from one foot to the other, the red
crest on his head starting to raise and stiffen, a sign of
tension. Serna decided it was time she took charge of the
situation.
"Looking for something, Ser?" she used the honorific
carefully. Something was definitely not right. Unlike Ben, the
big man's face was impassive, but the tense way he held his
body, and her looking ahead senses told her he was anything but
calm.
Ignoring her, he spoke again to Ben.
"What madness is this? You will return to our quarters at
once" Serna could hear the sibilant noise that Neffri made when
she was alarmed, and her fight or flight response was starting
to kick in, she could feel the uneasy stares the others were
exchanging between themselves, but all her attention was
focussed on the two men, and the drama being played out between
them.
A father come to drag an errant son back home? She wondered.
"This is my night off. And we're not at the Temple now. I'm on
my own time, and I'm staying here." Ben's voice was insolent.
His tone and body language said Frack You!
/Temple?/ Serna thought, confused. She'd never see any priests
remotely like these two.
Even as she wondered, the big man moved towards Ben until he
was standing only a handsbreath away. His whole stance was
menacing. His voice, when he spoke, even more so.
"You.Will.Do.As.I.Say." each word, carefully enunciated sent a
chill up Serna's spine. The big man was scary. He looked like
he wanted to do Ben some serious damage, even as his face
remained expressionless. The contrast between the menacing air,
and expressionless face was more frightening than if he'just
shouted.
"Hey, Ser," Serna pitched her voice at its most soothing and
seductive. "No need for any trouble" even as she spoke, she
made hand signals, letting R'urr, Neffri and Vix know that
there might be trouble, and they started moving forward.
Suddenly, the big man turned his head, glancing at Serna very
briefly then flung out one hand in a negatory gesture.
Serna, Vix, Neffri and R'urr froze, unable to move, it was as
if invisible bands had clamped down on them.
"What the frack!-" R'urr howled, whilst Vix' crest was fully
raised now. Neffri's hissing was pure snake.
Only Serna remained silent whilst angry, excited voices
exclaimed around her. As the big man's hand had moved, his
cloak had fallen open for a few seconds, and she'd glimpsed the
weapon hanging at his waist. There was only one set of beings
who carried weapons like that, on Coruscant or anywhere else,
and who could use unseen forces to freeze them in their tracks,
and if he was one of those, trying to take him down was
pointless.
"Please, Ser.." Serna put her best voice forward. Ordinarily,
most beings with audio capacity would have responded favourably
without even understanding why, but this one barely noticed.
"Making a choice like this will not solve the problem" the big
man's voice was harsh, and Serna saw Ben's head whip back in
response.
"Surely, according to you, I am the problem?" the sarcasm was
enough to make all those in immediate earshot wince.
The two men were facing each other, breathing accelerated.
Tense enough for matters to explode into violence, by the way
their bodies were braced. The big man had the deadly air of a
seasoned warrior, and Ben despite his youth and tight
fashionable garb had unconsciously fallen into a posture that
indicated he would not be a pushover in any fight.
"This foolish attempt at rebellion ends now. Your petulant
manner could have caused grave offence to our hosts-"
"Except that one of our hosts was too busy trying to get you
into her bed to notice anything I happened to say or do."
Serna saw the big man stiffen at the words, and the audience
of watching pleasureworkers all drew a collective mental
breath.
Ah.
The older man growled out a response.
"What foolishness is this? You've attended enough of these
affairs to understand the importance of appearing to be
sociable." The tone was scornful, Serna felt her own spirit
quail at it, so what effect it would have on Ben she could only
imagine.
The youth's voice was low, causing everyone to strain to hear
it. "I saw you with the diplomatic attache. She was flirting
with you"
"She was asking me questions. About the Order. About our
work"
"It looked like she wanted a personal demonstration"
"And you thought I was going to provide one?" the big man's
voice was soft, but there was still steel underneath.
"You looked as if you weren't averse to the idea" Ben moved
his arms as if to wrap them around his body for comfort.
Again, the watchers - with no choice but to be spectators at
what should have been a very private encounter, drew a
collective mental breath.
Uh.
The big man actually did draw a deep breath, as if steadying
himself. Serna's senses felt the anger and another undefinable
emotion radiating off him like heat, even as his expression
remained impassive.
"This- fancy of yours Obi-Wan is absurd. I would not
compromise our work that way. And she is not my type."
This caused Ben, to raise his head abruptly. Even if Serna had
not been able to see his expression, the taut line of his body
spoke volumes as to his feelings. "And who exactly is your
type, Master? Why not tell me once and for all, put me out of
my misery-"
"Do.Not.Push.Me." the man he had addressed as his Master,
spoke in a tone of deadly quiet, and Vix, Neffri and R'urr made
soft whimpering noises of distress as the air turned heavy with
the charged emotions radiating from the two men.
Silence.
Serna had one of those Moments, when time appeared elastic,
when her seeing ahead sense brought images into her mind.
In her mind, like a holopic, she saw the two men, a very
fleeting image. Naked bodies entwined,the big man laying over
Ben, hair falling over both of them like a curtain, sweaty,
long limbs entangled, faces contorted in the agony of passion.
Very intense. Very real. Yet her professional senses, looking
at the two men before her in the here and now told her that no
such intimacy had occurred.
An idea came to her.
Sometimes, she could reach out to people with her mind. To
their emotions.It was part of what made her so good at her job.
With jedi, of course, it wouldn't ordinarily work, but these
two were so off balance... Shutting her eyes, she reached
tentatively for the younger one, Ben. A slight touch...
There.
Ben's taut posture relaxed slightly, his breathing gentled.
When he spoke, the tone was husky, wistful.
"I..can't cope with things as they are any more,
Master.I...don't know if I can wait till my trials. I don't
know if I can go on pretending to be this perfect, passionless,
robot" Ben's voice was anguished.
The big man stepped closer. So close that they were nearly
touching. So close that it was as intimate as touching. But he
didn't touch Ben. Merely looked down at him from his great
height.
"You don't have to pretend, Padawan. Not with me. Never with
me" The words were a caress, and their audience blinked, the
sudden reduction in tension confusing.
Again, Ben wrapped his arms around his body, as if for
comfort. The big man stopped him by the simple method of
clasping the younger man's hands in his huge ones.
"Obi-Wan. It is as hard for me as it is for you. Harder, in
fact. You have no idea how long I've wanted-" he stopped
abruptly.
Bent the leonine head, so that the unbound hair fell forward.
Closed his eyes, as if meditating.
Serna felt some kind of movement in the atmosphere, that her
seeing-ahead senses told her meant that the two were in a form
of mind communication. She had heard tales of the jedi and
telepathy. Watching the two men, she could well believe it,
especially as Ben's eyes opened wide.
Behind her, Serna could sense Vix, Neffri and R'urr moving
slightly, and noticed that the invisible constraints holding
her back seemed to have vanished. They could all have just
taken off, at that point. Got out of a weird situation, that
definitely wasn't any good for business, as a quick glance up
the street informed her. But instead, they remained, a
spellbound audience to the drama being played out before them.
"I didn't realise." Ben's voice was wondering. "I didn't know
that all those years you were-"
"Wanting you. Yes." So much suppressed emotion in the deep
voice.
The smile that broke out over Ben's face made Serna's heart
contract, with it's beauty, and light.
"Then, Qui-Gon, if you can endure, I can." He reached up and
touched the big man's cheek gently.
Vix, Neffri and R'urr gave an unconscious little groan at the
gesture - so innocent, yet so erotic.
Obviously the big man, Qui-Gon, thought so too, as Serna saw
him shudder at the contact, and then turn his head until his
lips rested against the fingers touching him.
"My heart" the endearment was quiet, and then the huge hands
reached out again, and grasped Ben's face between their palms.
He bent his head until both their foreheads were touching.
They remained like that for a few seconds, breathing deeply,
both with their eyes closed.
Again, Serna had that sense of movement in the atmosphere, and
both men stiffened as if struck by an invisible hand, and Serna
felt for a split second, a powerful, ecstatic wave of..
something, energy, light, she couldn't describe it later, only
know that it made her feel giddy and breathless with happiness.
Obviously the others felt it too.
R'urr gave that little yelp that signalled feelings of
pleasure, whilst Vix's crest flattened, and Serna knew that if
it was daytime, she would be able to see it changing colour.
"What? What was that?" Ben's voice was bewildered as both he
and the big man, Qui-Gon raised their heads to look into each
other's eyes again.
"I don't know" Qui-Gon shook his head once, as if to clear it,
eyes narrowing as if listening for something.
"I think..... I think we've just bonded."
Whatever that meant, Serna thought, it could only be a good
thing, judging by the way Ben moved to lean against his
master's body, arms wrapped tightly around him, and the wide
smile that transformed the other's face.
"Gods! How? We havent -"
Qui-Gon silenced him unexpectedly by leaning down and placing
his mouth over Ben's, claiming him with a searing, devouring
kiss.
"FRACK!" Neffri moaned, and Serna echoed the sentiment. If
someone didn't break things up pretty soon, it looked like the
two jedi would do it in the street right then and there, and
she didn't think that she or her friends could survive the
excitement, if the heat generated in all of them just from
watching the kissing was anything to go by.
Clearing her throat noisily, Serna stepped forward slowly,
taking command of the situation. "Ser" she addressed the big
jedi, who had broken off the kiss (just as well, before Neffri
fainted) but was staring silently into the smaller man's eyes.
With a visible effort, the big man turned his head.
"Yes?"
Their eyes met, and Serna felt a jolt go through her. Frack,
he was beautiful! What wouldn't she give for a night with him.
But obviously, he was very much taken. "Time to take him home,
don't you think?"
There was a pause, for a long beat. Ben -who was plastered
against the big man, arms tight around his waist sighed, as his
master (Serna wish she had a master that hot) stroked his hair
gently, continuing to watch the pleasureworker gravely.
Then, with obvious reluctance, he dropped his arms, and moved
away from Ben. "Madam. I thank you for your very wise advice.
And I apologise to you and your colleagues for any alarm I may
have caused."
He ended the words with a small bow, as if she were royalty.
As if they were all ...special.
"'S okay"
"No complaints"
"What alarm? Everything's fine" this last from Neffri, who was
making purring noise deep in her throat.
"Master." Ben - no, Obi-Wan the big man had called him, spoke
up softly. His master turned his head towards him, and the
tenderness in his expression made Serna's breath hitch. "I just
need to say goodbye to my..friend" The jedi called Qui-Gon
stepped back, as Ben/Obi-Wan walked, no, slinked towards
her.
"Alright now kid?" Serna put on her toughest, most seen-it-all
voice, but the young man wasn't fooled.
Reaching out, he gave her a quick hug, causing Serna to
frantically issue a mental command to her xoxskin suit, to
reduce her suddenly raised body temperature.
Damn jedi! Whatever it was they had, it should be fracking
well made illegal! They could put a girl out of business.
She could tell he must have caught her thought, because the
grin he gave her, as he stepped back, loosening his grip, was
wicked.
"Thank you." He whispered in her ear. He glided back to the
big man, who wrapped one arm around his shoulder, holding him
close to his side.
All the pleasureworkers watching, hardened cynics by the very
nature of their profession, hopeless romantics in the secret
depths of their much abused hearts, caught their collective
breaths.
"It looks like the Force has made the decision for us,
Padawan. Let's go home" The big man dropped a quick kiss on the
young one's nose, and Serna sent a vicious mental instruction
to her toes to fracking well uncurl right now. As the two jedi
walked off, the pleasureworkers stood silent, watching them,
the last parts of their conversation drifting back over the
silent streets.
"What happens now? Will the Council separate us?"
"Not if it's the kind of bond I think it is, Obi-Wan. And if
they try to - well, this will not be the first time I have
defied them and won."
"No, indeed." the younger man's chuckle hinted at many acts of
defiance.
Serna and the others watched the two jedi until their
silhouetttes faded under the street lamps, then sighing, went
back to work. There were, after all, credits to be made, though
for some reason, everyone seemed to feel that little
bit...lighter.
Sometime later, about the 29th hour, whilst taking a short
rest in between clients, Serna felt again, that incrediable
burst of ecstatic emotion. Smiling, she pulled her xoxskin suit
tighter around her.
"Give him one for me too, Ben" she murmured wistfully. Then,
with a little shake, she went back to work.
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