Before - Legends Jedi Snapshots *New story 15/06/06* 'These Boots Were Made For Walking'

TITLE: Angel Wings
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA-ish
CHARACTERS: Jemmiah Gleshan & assorted original characters.
SUMMARY: Jemmiah's world is turned upside down when her family are kidnapped by pirates.

*sniffle* One of my faves but very difficult to write and indeed read...

****************


Todd Gleshan rustled about in the crisp white sheets of his bed and looked over at his little sister.

"If Mamma finds you still dressed when she comes in to check on you she will be very upset." He smirked, hoping to see some kind of fight.

"Go to sleep, pooh-brain." Jemmy mumbled back at her big brother.

"You'll get your hide tanned for sure." He crowed.

"Will not. Mamma loves me!"

"She likes me better."

"Does not!"

"Does too! You are ugly and horrible!"

"At least I don't smell!"

"I do not smell!"

"Yes you do! All boys smell!"

"Ugly-Ugly-Ugly-Ugly!"

"I may be ugly now but one day," she growled at him, "I'm going to be beautiful and everyone will like me and nobody will like you! You're so horrible, I wish you were dead!"

Todd looked smug, knowing he'd succeeded in getting to her.

"I'm her favorite because I do what I'm told." The airy voice came back.

"You're just a big suck-up." Jemmy yelped angrily.

"I'm still her favorite. She doesn't even like you. I heard her telling Mrs Dinfler just last week on the holocom."

Jemmy blinked. This was a lie.

Wasn't it?"

"How do you mean? How doesn't she like me?" the girl demanded.

"Because," Todd turned to face her, wavy hair sticking out all over the place in utter disarray, "Pappa was on his way home to see you for your birthday when he crashed. He tried to get back specially. So it's all your fault that he's dead. And mamma hates you for it."

"That's a lie!" Jemmy screamed, taking off a shoe and aiming it at her elder brother with surprising accuracy. It hit him on the head before bouncing onto the floor.

For all of three seconds Todd looked stunned, as if considering whether or not to burst into tears. Then the natural progression to waterworks followed as he quickly gave in to his habitual howling.

"Put a sock in it, stinky!" Jemmy shouted. "You'll have Mamma in here!"

He'd howled something incoherent interspersed with hiccuping and snuffling, then started to cry once again.

"You are useless!" Jemmy was on the point of taking off her other shoe to throw at him when light suddenly flooded into the room, causing them both to recoil.

"What is going on here?" a sharp, female voice cut through the air. Todd jumped backwards a little and grabbed the sheet that covered him whilst Jemmiah regarded the tall figure of her mother with wariness.

Thena Gleshan surveyed the scene before her and thinned her lips in annoyance.

"What are you doing with that shoe?" she pointed at Jemmy.

"I'm getting ready for bed." Jemmiah answered as innocently as she could manage.

"And why are you NOT already in bed?" she asked. Jemmiah could see her eyes narrowing even in the dark. "Your brother is already in bed. I told you over an hour ago to get changed!"

Jemmy scowled at Todd, who sniffled quietly to himself.

"She hit me!" he rubbed at his eyes. "With her shoe!"

"Tale-teller!" Jemmy stuck her tongue out.

"Look, mamma?and my head's all sore." He pointed at the bruise.

Thena activated the lights and crossed over to her son's bunk, bending over to look at the purple mark on his forehead.

"Oh, hush now honey." She kissed the offending lump gently. "It'll be fine. I'll put a cold cloth on it for a few minutes and it won't hurt so bad."

She turned round swiftly to glare at the unrepentant face of her daughter, set as it often was in that familiar, stubborn expression. The one that Thena had seen as a child every time she looked into the mirror, staring back at her?

"Did you hit him with your shoe?" she asked bluntly.

Jemmiah considered lying but decided that it would be in her best interest to come clean. Better to have her mother angry with her than disappointed as well.

"Yes, mamma." Sh

 

Awwwwwww!!!!! You've gone and made me cry, Jem!!

You're right... this one is good, but must have been horrible to write!!

 

So that's Levinstowe...

I didn't like Todd too much, but I still feel sorry for him. And especially for Jemmy and Thena.

 

I can't decide who is more horrid, Merdan or Levinstowe. ALthough Levinstowe is more of a monster then a human,

No wonder Jemmy blames herself about so many things...

 

TITLE: Chariot?s of ?Ire? Part 2: Embarrassment
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jemmiah Gleshan, Mace Windu, Dimallie Melbra
SUMMARY: Return of the killer sports day...

**********

Here we go again, thought Qui-Gon Jinn.

He?d seen Yoda shuffling his way across the floor towards him, tapping the floor with his stick with every step he took. Another lecture, he guessed. Yet one more futile attempt to persuade the tall Jedi that now was the right time to take another padawan. Another young life to shelter, and nurture and teach the ways of the force.

Another Xanatos.

Qui-Gon had just completed his enforced half yearly visit (certainly not a pilgrimage) to watch the young initiates training and showing off their prowess with the lightsabre, knowing fine well that whilst he was watching the combatants, Yoda would be watching him. His former master knew exactly how Qui-Gon felt about the idea of taking a new padawan.

It was NOT an option.

He couldn?t risk it. Xanatos had betrayed him. He?d chosen to overlook the faults that his former apprentice had, and in hindsight there were many, with the result that the once promising young student had turned. It had been his fault, Qui-Gon reflected. He?d spoiled him, cosseted him. Ignored the devious and manipulative side of his personality. Invested so much time and love. Instead of correcting him for his mistakes, Qui-Gon praised him. Everyone had seen it except for him, and now he felt the shame so deeply that he could never take the risk that a further apprentice might not let him down in the same, heart-crushing way. Yoda could nag until he turned blue in the face. Qui-Gon would not be dissuaded.

There had been one boy, a near thirteen-year-old youngster that had somehow caught his eye even though he had refused to let himself be swayed. His rejection of the boy had pained him, but it had to be done. Better the Agri-Corps or some such institution than a clouded, uncertain future with a master who might fail him. It was easier and less traumatic to refuse him as a padawan now.

And yet the boy stayed in his mind.

Obi-Wan. That was the boy?s name.

He received Yoda?s expected lecture without really listening. He knew that they were considering making him take another padawan, and by announcing the intention they hoped it would force Qui-Gon?s hand into choosing for himself. Well, he would not be blackmailed

I can?t chance it, Qui-Gon thought. I can?t set myself up for another fall.

He shook his head, and looked at Yoda.

?I shall NEVER take another padawan.?

************

A YEAR LATER:


?Master!? Obi-Wan yelled excitedly as he ran through the doorway of the apartment. ?We?ve been invited to take part in the annual Master/Padawan sports day!?

Qui-Gon Jinn?s head snapped up so swiftly that Obi-Wan was surprised that his master?s neck hadn?t broken. Blood seemed to drain from his face at an appalling rate, leaving the young padawan wondering what he could possibly have said to cause such a drastic reaction. He did not want to offend Qui-Gon, especially as events in their not too distant past had put a considerable amount of strain on their bond, and Kenobi hoped he hadn?t said anything that would prove detrimental to their reastablished relationship.

Jinn stared off into space, seemingly in a world of his own. Although Obi-Wan could not understand, he was in fact reliving the last ghastly time he had participated in the sports day. Xanatos had done him up like a Corellian Kipper?

?Master?? Obi-Wan swallowed, timidly trying to reassure himself that he was not going to be on the next flight to Bandomeer, ?I?m sorry if??

?That?s alright.? Qui-Gon nodded, switching his attention back to his concerned apprentice. ?I think it?s a perfectly reasonable suggestion.? Obi-Wan didn?t think his master looked too convinced but said nothing. ?You might want to invite Jemmiah. I?m sure she would like to watch. It might make her feel less intimidated with her new surroundings.?

?Yes,

 

?I am NEVER taking part in this thing again. EVER. May the Sith strike me down if I do!?

Hmmmm... Haven't I heard that somewhere before Qui-Gon?? Oh! That's right! You say it EVERY year that you compete!

But you're supposed to follow it up with; 'And this time I mean it!'

 

Title: Keeping Secrets
Author: Mouse
Timescale: pre-JA
Characters: Qui-Gon Jinn and Xanatos
Summary: A quiet evening in becomes a hotbed of political and psychological discussion.


A huge thank you to Leona for reading this over for me. Anyone needing any clairifaction check out my mini-fic Nightmares Can Come True

*~*~*~*~*

?Master, what are you thinking about? You seem quite melancholy this evening.?

Qui-Gon looked up from the datapad he had been pretending to read and looked at his padawan. A crystal blue gaze stared back at him with a questioning look.

?Nothing padawan. I was just??

?You were just what, Qui-Gon? Thinking about things you were forced to do and will feel guilty about for the rest of your life??

?I was just thinking about those that are not able to live in the temple and how they live their lives.?

He watched as the questioning look came over his padawan?s face.

?Why should we think about them master? They don?t live in the temple and they can?t. In the end they are just faces in a crowd and most don?t even care about us.?

?But we are Jedi padawan, defenders of the galaxy and protectors of the innocent. We do what we do because it?s right, not for the recognition. The only reward we should want is knowing we did the right thing in what the Force told us to do.?

His padawan stood up and began pacing around the room. Qui-Gon could tell that something in his response had gotten the young man to thinking.

?But master, why should that be our only reward. We are out there risking our lives and most of the time we are never thanked for it. Other times most are unaware that we had even been involved in the first place! Even worse, we finish righting a wrong and are chased off planet. We are Jedi! We deserve more. We deserve better!?

?Ah padawan, do you really think that we should do what we do for personal gain? You try to hide it from me, yet it still escapes though your words.?

?But again padawan that is not what we do nor what we should want as Jedi.?
?Why not master? Don?t we deserve something? Especially for all that we do??
?If it is the will of the Force then we will receive something for all we do. But what about those that are not able to give us more then recognition.?

Qui-Gon watched as his padawan stopped a moment in his pacing and thought about it. At least he was taking the time to think about other for the moment.

?Do they really count master??

Qui-Gon couldn?t believe the words coming from his padawan.

?Of course they count. Again they are why we do what we do. If it weren?t for them most likely all of our time would be spent in study.?

A look passed over the bright blue eyes that Qui-Gon wasn?t quite sure he could decipher.

?I didn?t mean it that way master,? he padawan quickly backtracked. ?It?s just that they have no midichlorian count and no matter what they will not be able to live here at the temple.?
?Ever??
?Of course master. Who ever heard of a non-Force sensitive user living in the temple??
?What about the wives of An-Paj? They live here and are not Force sensitive.?
?But they don?t count master.? He protested.

?Why do you keep insisting someone doesn?t count padawan? Haven?t you been listening to me at all? Everyone counts. There is a reason for everyone.?

?Of course they count padawan. They?re his family. Don?t you think family should be allowed to live together in the temple??
?That is a special circumstance master. But normally, no not unless they are able to use the Force.?

?Are you so heartless padawan to keep a family split up??

?If one Jedi was allowed his family, then wouldn?t everyone want one??

?I have a family padawan that should be here with us.?

?If that were true, then why are we taken away from our families at such a young age to be trained??

?I have a daughter.?

?Everyone would want to get to know their true families better. To know

 

LMAO!!! Ah... so the famous stomach pump incident...


Ooooh... that one brings up a lot of questions, Mouse! Either I'm totally overlooking the answer, or I'm gonna have to wait for these things to be completely reposted! Either way, can't wait!

 

Oooooh...some nice Xan and Qui introspection there! I loved how Xan's self-conceit and lack of respect for other beings began to reveal itself during the conversation. And Qui's inner thoughts interspersed with their dialogue was very effective!

Excellant snapshot Mouse!

I also have a new Snapshot!

*********

TITLE: Toy Story
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jemmiah Gleshan and Dex Berlingside.
SUMMARY: When Qui-Gon attempts to get Jemmiah to tidy her room he gets a little more than he bargained for!


"Jemmiah?"

"No! I can't believe you're even suggesting such a thing!"

Jemmiah stood infront of the entrance to her bedroom, arms splayed across the doorway to stop any unwanted visitors from getting past her. It was a futile gesture of course because her current adversary, namely Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn (with whom by the grace of the council she lived) was both taller and far more stubborn minded. Coupled to the fact he was able to use the force and could most likely drag her away from her one-woman protest, no doubt the inevitability of the situation must have had the resolute and daring master quaking with laughter inside.

To his credit he showed nothing of the sort.

"I'm only trying to get you to see reason." The man stopped in his tracks, folding his arms to show her that whilst he wouldn't back down neither was he about to barge in on her private room regardless. "How old are you? Eleven?"

"You know how old I am." Jemmiah sulked, matching his own stern gesture frown for frown. "It was my birthday two days ago!"

"It was a rhetorical question."

"It was a stupid question, more like." Jemmy muttered under her breath, recoiling a few paces back as Qui-Gon's expression hardened noticeably. "I'm sorry, but you're not going to get me to change my mind. I'm not throwing out all my toys! Ennn-Ohhh spells 'no'!"

Deciding to overlook her flippant disrespect for once Qui-Gon returned straight to the jugular of the matter, something Jemmiah was doing her darndest to distract him from. It seemed to him like a reasonable suggestion: why not cut down on the amount of toys and stuffed animals she had cluttering up her bedroom? By nature a tidyish person, Jemmiah's private lair had begun to show signs of a toyland take-over. None of it was particularly her fault because apart from the rather evil looking plasti-duck she'd insisted keeping on her bedside table; all of her personal belongings had been gifts. Soon there would be no room left, and it was up to him to get her to see the truth:

It had to stop.

"Take that look off your face young lady." Qui-Gon's blue eyes bored down onto her, making her squirm uncomfortably. "What is it I have said that you don't agree with?"

"All of it!" Jemmy grumped back at him. "You want me to get rid of all my toys! I can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because it?s?it's?horrible! They mean a lot to me! They were given to me by lots of different people?and throwing away gifts is a terrible thing to do!" Jemmiah's lower lip pouted comically at him. "I mean, you wouldn't throw away Master Yoda just because he's getting on in years and a bit moth-eared, would you? So how's it any different to my toys?"

"Because," Qui-Gon inchined forward a fraction, "they are taking up lots of space that you could be using for other things. You don't need half of them. All they do is just sit there on the shelves and?" he peered past her shoulder and into the room, "?on the floor, inasmuch as I can make out!"

Jemmiah stood on her tiptoes as if to bar his view.

"Besides which I thought you kept saying," Jinn continued doggedly in an attempt to confuse her with pure logic and rationality, "that you were a big girl? That you were grown up?"

"I am!" Jemmy looked up at him with large, wounded and paradoxically childish eyes.

"And holding onto childish things is a grown up thing to do?" Qui-Gon rejoined. "There are plenty of places who could use them. Places for sick and orphaned children?"

THAT was below the belt,

 

LOL!!! Oh wow... That SO reminds me of my house... Except I'm the one telling my mom to throw stuff out..

Great job, Jem!

 

LOL!! I loved the fact that Dex wanted in on how Jemmy hid all of her toys! And I cracked up at the thought of a confused Qui-Gon searching everywhere for a hint of a toy.

It reminded me of the waiter from the movie Victor/Victoria searching through the salad desperately wanting to disprove that there was a bug anywhere near it!

 

TITLE: Size Matters Not
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Jemmiah Gleshan, Dex Berlingside
SUMMARY: Jemmiah perfects the art of twisting a certain Jedi master around her little finger...
NOTE: Set at various times, starting post snapshot 'From Little Acorns' and ending just before A Night to (Almost) Remember.'

********


"Master Jinn?"

Qui-Gon looked across the table at the ten-year-old, who in turn regarded him with a devilishly bright and cheerful smile; a smile that meant that she was no doubt after something. The master had been about the galaxy long enough and known enough women in his time to be aware that females would use all their wiles and allurements to get whatever it was they were after. Whenever Jemmiah was so utterly polite and attentive Qui-Gon knew that, whatever it was she was after, it was bound to be something that he wasn't going to like?

"Yes, Tangles?" he replied, the spoon in his hand hovering just shy of his mouth. "What is it?"

"I was hanging around some of the kids in my class at school today?" she continued, pausing so that he might recognize that this was leading up to something.

"Yes?" Qui-Gon smiled inwardly, waiting for the inevitable begging and pleading to start. "And what did they have to say for themselves?"

"Not much. A lot of them have started to wear make-up and stuff?" her eyes caught Qui-Gon's and she could see instantly he had already decided against whatever she were about to suggest.

"Absolutely not." Qui-Gon replied, cutting off any further conversation on the matter.

"Not what?"

"You were about to suggest that it would be a wonderful idea if I let you wear make-up to school. The answer is no. You are too young." The jedi looked down at the bowl of nasty, green looking soup that Jemmiah had made earlier that day. It tasted very good, but the truth was he never knew exactly what she had done to it, or whether he had cause to be afraid there might be some foreign body in it, especially in light of what she had done to the erstwhile Sophie Digwurt.

"But all the other's are doing it!" Jemmiah let her spoon fall back against her bowl with an outraged clatter.

"Do you want to be a nerf, and follow the rest of the herd?" Qui-Gon asked her pointedly. "Jemmiah, you are simply too young. Painting your face to make yourself look grown-up, at your age! It's ridiculous and unnecessary!"

"It'll stop me from being picked on." Jemmy groused. "I'll be the only normal one there! Awwww, go on Master Jinn! Please!"

"Tangles, I'm sorry. The answer is no."

"Not even a little nail varnish?" Jemmy wheedled, holding out her fingernails. "See, it's clear! And it's all the fashion right now!"

"Jemmiah?"

"You can hardly see it!" Jemmy sighed, rapidly beginning to run out of arguments. "Oh, please!"

"If you can hardly see it then what's the point in wearing it?" countered Qui-Gon, making an examination of her fingers. It was true; even he had to admit it. Unless the light struck the varnished surface in a certain way you could hardly tell she was wearing any at all. Even then it gave the mildest hint of a rainbow, pearlecent surface - hardly the most garish thing in the galaxy. If it would keep her pleased whilst not compromising his own principles, Qui-Gon was prepared to relent slightly if only to show that he wasn't completely inflexible or deaf to her pleading.

"Very well. I think that's acceptable. But that is all!" he cautioned her with a raised finger. "I do not expect to see you with any make-up until you turn fifteen, and even then I'd better be able to hardly see it, as you so eloquently put it!"

Jemmiah stood up and leaned across the table, giving him a small hug.

"You're wonderful." She grinned.

"You mean I'm an idiot?" Jinn muttered under his breath. It was nail varnish today, but what would it be tomorrow? The worrying thing with Jemmiah was he could never quite tell?

*****

"Master Jinn?" Thirteen year old Jemmiah batted her eyelashes up at her co-guardian with all the

 

TITLE: The Bigger Fish
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: Pre-JA
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Dex Berlingside, Quirida-Xac Montal
SUMMARY: Qui-Gon learns the hard way that fishing is not as relaxing as it's supposed to be.

*********

"It never ceased to amaze me," Quirida-Xac smiled benignly at the occupants of the little boat, watching as their faces reddened with every movement of lactic filled muscles, "what it is about a simple activity such as fishing that causes so much stress and strain."

Qui-Gon stared up at him as if the man were completely mad. But then again he couldn't be that mad: he was the only one of the boat's three occupants who was doing precisely nothing in the way of work.

"I mean," he waved his hands around expansively, "take you, young padawan Jinn."

"Me sir?"

"Yes. You like fishing. I heard you tell Dexter this morning that you found it a pleasant mixture of challenging stimulation and pleasurable relaxation."

"I did sir." Qui-Gon felt the sweat begin to pour off his Sunkist face.

"And yet I saw you some twenty minutes later protesting that the whole thing was a waste of time, throwing your rod into the bushes and storming off in a big sulk."

Qui-Gon's face reddened further still, only this time it had nothing to do with his exertions.

"The fish weren't biting, I presume?" Quirida-Xac asked as he lay back and watched the two boys as they pulled repeatedly in the oars.

"The fish WERE biting," Dex grumbled, "they were just too smart for him."

"I resent that!" Qui-Gon shot the younger boy a sideways glare.

"Aww, c'mon Qui! They were all floating around in the background laughing at you." Dex wiped at his face with a sweaty hand and nearly dropped the oar.

"I was doing fine until that stupid pike turned up." Qui-Gon snapped. "It scared all the other fish away!"

"No, it was because you are just a rotten fisherman." Fourteen year old Berlingside grinned.

"I am not!"

"Yes, you are! You just can't admit it!"

"Not true!"

Quirida-Xac smiled as he lazily closed his eyes.

"I rest my case." He smirked. "See how relaxing fishing is?"

This time Dex was the one that eyed his master who was sitting, tunic opened to the chest and his full head of wavy hair blowing gently in the breeze with every stroke the boat made.

"YOU look fairly relaxed, master." Dex observed.

"Thank you, young Dexter. I feel very relaxed." Quirida-Xac grinned lazily.

"Sure you don't want to change places for a while?"

The master opened one blue-grey eye and fixed it upon the golden haired padawan.

"Oh, no. No, no no no no no!" He shook his head. "That would never do. I'm thinking of you two really. I have your best interests at heart."

"How would that be, master?"

"Because I am strengthening your muscles with all this exercise and fresh air." The man took a deep, enraptured breath. "There's nothing like the lakes of Korrassi. Beautiful place, don't you think?"

"I might be able to enjoy it more if I could concentrate on the scenery and less on the rupturing of my vertebrae." Dex answered hopefully.

"You'll thank me for this one day." Quirida-Xac grinned infectiously. "Maybe not today?"

"Too right." Qui-Gon groused.

Quirida-Xac raised a single eyebrow, the smile still very much on his lips.

"How big was that fish you nearly caught, Jinn?" he asked curiously.

"If you believe him, it was twice the size of your average Gabali pitch and as wide as a Bantha." Dex grimaced as he pulled the oars.

"It was massive!" Qui-Gon shot back testily. "It was way bigger than the one that you managed to catch."

"At least I managed to catch one."

"A crèche baby could have reeled that in?even Mace could have reeled it in!" Qui-Gon pronounced smugly.

"Size isn't important, is it master?" Dex looked to Quirida-Xac for guidance. "I heard Master Shellac say that to Master Sheedi last week."

Quirida-Xac decided to make a hurried inspection of his fingernails.

"Padawan Jinn, I think you've done enough hard work. I will be taking over the oars from you. I thi

 

TITLE: To Dance In Sunlight
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA period
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Jemmiah Gleshan
SUMMARY: An unexpected dilema hits the Jinn household.

**********


Even though she was not a Jedi, even though she had not the slightest force ability she could tell he was nearby.

Muffled voices came from next door, wordless half-whispers that she couldn't make out. It didn't matter what was being said. She knew they were talking about her.

Everyone talked about her, it seemed. Behind her back. Discussing what was best and planning her life. Making decisions?

She could hear the deeper of the two voices drawing nearer and realized that he was heading for her room.

That was something she could well do without right now.

The footsteps halted, the hand on the other side of the door hesitating for a moment before knocking gently a couple of times.

Her only answer was to throw herself face down on her bed and pull the blankets over her face.

If that didn't let him know how she felt then he was the most useless Jedi in the entire temple, she thought miserably.

For a further half minute there was no answer and she thought he might give up and go away but that turned out to be a false hope. Underneath the covers she could hear her door slide open.

"Jemmiah." The voice said softly.

She didn't reply.

"Jemmiah, please speak to me." Qui-Gon spoke again.

Not a chance. Jemmy just pulled the blankets further over her, almost smothering herself in the fabric. She didn't particularly care if she did suffocate.

Qui-Gon moved closer to the swaddled figure on the bed. He knew this was not going to be easy.

"Please come out from under there."
"Go away."

She felt the hand rest on her shoulder through the covers but couldn't bring herself to shrug it away. She was angry with him, angry with everyone, but most of all she was angry with herself for daring to hope that everything would work out OK. She should have known.

Nothing ever worked out for her.

"It's very difficult having a conversation with a shapeless lump on top of a mattress." He said finally, taking in the many mixed and unshielded emotions that seemed to exude from her. "And you're too old to hide under the bedclothes."

Jemmiah threw the bedcovers back and glared at him.

"I'm not hiding."

"That's better." He said softly.

He remained silent for a while, trying to think of what to say next, wondering if he would find the words. Then she saved him the bother.

"I don't understand." She whispered. "What have I done?"

"Done?"

"Why am I being sent away? I must have done something!"

"You haven't done anything?" Qui-Gon began.

"If you tell me what it was then I'll try and put it right. Have I misbehaved? I can be good if I put my mind to it. I can!"

"You don't understand." He shook his head.

"Have I upset someone?"

"No."

"Did I break something?"

"No, no?"

"Then what? How can I make it better if you won't tell me?" She began to wail.

Qui-Gon felt his calm begin to melt.

"None of this is your fault and you haven't done anything wrong. Please believe that."

"Then what?"

//He looks upset.// Jemmiah thought. //I've upset the one person who can keep me here at the temple.//

"What can I do that will let me stay? I don't want to go!"

"Believe me Tangles, I don't want you to go either." Jinn averted his eyes to the pattern on the bedcovers.

"But you're the one who's making me go!"

"That's not true. The council have forced my hand on this."

"You don't have to do what they say!"

"I can't go against them this time."

"Why not?" She shouted. "You don't even like me, do you? Evla's changed her mind and she doesn't want me and now you're sending me away!"

Qui-Gon knew this was going badly but every time he opened his mouth he just seemed to make matters worse.

"You're mother's brother has been located. He and his wife are filing for your legal custody." He said with his eyes closed. He could sense the shock from inside her. "I'm sorry." He hung his h

 

LOL!!! to "There's Always a Bigger Fish!"

And AWWWWWW!!! To the last one!

 

TITLE:Sands of Time
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Evla Sovalla, Jemmiah Gleshan
SUMMARY: Has time run out for Jemmiah?

**********


"I'd like to know exactly what our chances are of being successful on this matter."

Gil Vedral turned his green-grey eyes from the quietly spoken Jedi Master with the neatly trimmed beard and long hair tied at the back to the smaller figure, that of a dark haired woman of middle stature and a serious expression on her face. Gil could understand that. It WAS a serious affair.

He considered his words, taking a brief sip of the caf that the woman - Evla her name was - had made for him. Caf wasn't really his thing but out of sympathy for the clearly worried lady he now faced, he had agreed, knowing that it was perhaps her only way of being helpful in a situation that was well beyond anyone's control.

"I think it could go either way in all honesty." He said finally. "I know that's not what you want to hear but I always think it's best to be as truthful as possible in situations like this. It's sometimes better to prepare for the worst just incase it does happen."

The woman looked away, plainly distressed and Gil felt a pang of sympathy for her. For both of them.

"We have to look at all the facts. What we have is a ten year old girl with no parents, no siblings and until a couple of months ago no relatives whatsoever. The reason that she was allowed to remain in the temple is because of the high regard that people have for the Jedi. The circumstances were unusual but I think in the end she was allowed to stay because it was felt she would benefit from a secure and stable upbringing rather than one we could not guarantee."

He sat back, twiddling his thumbs as he thought what to say next.

"Ideally she should have gone back to Corellia, but Coruscant has arguably the best facilities for just about everything in the galaxy. That and the fact that the young lady in question went on record as expressing her wish to stay with you. She's been with you what, a year or so now? That's all in your favor. She likes it here and she is happy."

"But?" Evla asked him bleakly.

He nodded at her. "Her uncle feels that as a Corellian she should be brought up on Corellia, with his own children. As the brother of her dead mother he has an outstanding claim on the girl. Corellian law is fairly strict on that sort of thing."

"I hardly think that Corellian law is relevant in this." Qui-Gon replied archly. "Not seeing as how Jemmiah is living under our protection on Coruscant."

"That's exactly what I have been arguing." Gil smiled gently at him. "If her uncle wants to play the patriot card, let him. I don't think that will sit well infront of a group of Coruscant judges. Corellian law is a sort of legal minefield unto itself."

Evla looked at the carpet, noticing the spot that Jemmiah had recently spilled the ink on and which she had unsuccessfully tried to cover over. She'd been annoyed with her carelessness at the time; now she would cheerfully have given over the whole floor surface for inking if it meant that this time tomorrow Jemmiah would be back permanently with her.

"Don't talk to me about Corellian law." Evla mumbled. "I know all about it. This is the same law that says that the legal age for girls to have sex is fourteen. It allows girls and boys to marry at fifteen! This is the same legal system that says proven attempted suicides are not to be resuscitated!"

"These laws that you have singled out are being looked at very carefully by the internal legal bodies on Corellia." Gil shrugged. "They are looking to do something about the legal age status. The law on suicides is as old as the planet. That doesn't necessarily make it right to keep it, I suppose. Having said that I'm not really here to pass judgement on Corellia's legal technicalities. The facts are straightforward. There is a strong argument that says that the family and cultural requirements that she would get from the Mathers family is of paramount importance. Weigh that agains

 

awwww... How bittersweet!

Great job as usual!

 

TITLE: Dear Diary
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMESCALE: JA
CHARACTERS: Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jemmiah Gleshan
SUMMARY: Jemmy's future hangs in the balance...

***********


Dear Diary,


This is it. This is what they call 'crunch time' in the holo films.

I got up this morning as usual and tried my best not to think about the fact that this could be my last breakfast time with Evla. You know, I wanted Master Jinn and Ben to be there too but I think that it might have been unbearable, for them as well as for me. Things have been really tense this last week. Up until yesterday I was able to ignore it all but after last night when our lawyer guy came round to visit, I guess that was when it started to sink in. Evla was trying to chatter away as she tied up the dishes, you know, trying to take our minds off it but it didn't really work.

Today is the day the courts decide if I get to stay with my friends at the jedi temple on Coruscant or whether I'm do be packaged up and herded away to Corellia with my Uncle Kelik and his wife and kids. I only met him a week ago for the first time. Strangely enough he was exactly how I imagined he would be, sort of broad shouldered and larger than life. He's not tall like Qui-Gon but he's still quite impressive. He's nice enough but I still want to stay here. I want to be with Evla.

I told the court that this morning. It was the most nerve-wracking thing I ever had to do and at first I couldn't even find my voice to speak with. I chose my words carefully because as much as I want to stay at the temple I don't want to hurt my relative's feelings. The part of me that is a patriotic Corellian is secretly glad that they would like to take care of me, but most of the time I'm just plain scared because I like what I have already at the temple.

I don't need much to live on. I've never wanted much even though my uncle bought me a necklace that must have been very expensive. I think I was embarrassed to tell the truth and didn't dare to put it on incase Q-G saw it and thought I was being disloyal. I don't want to upset him either. They're just so different, my uncle's family and my jedi friends! My uncle seems to think that there isn't anything that can't be cured by throwing money at it. Master Jinn's lifestyle doesn't really allow for throwing any money at all around and I was wondering if that might not count against him in the final outcome.

See, Master Jinn being a jedi and all - he doesn't really have that many possessions. Ben seems to have acquired some clutter but I think that's because he's young, so maybe when he gets old like Master Jinn he'll not have that much stuff either. Most of these types of disputes come down to credits in the end, and that worries me because the temple only makes me a small allowance whereas my uncle is VERY well off. My aunt is very wealthy in her own right too and it seems that when I am old enough I will also be extremely rich. Right now though I'm not bothered.

I just want to stay on Coruscant with Evla and Qui-Gee.

I don't know who was more scared, me or him but he's a jedi so he hides things really well. I get the feeling he didn't want to make a big fuss before it was his turn to speak but all the same he gave me a little smile as if to say that it would all turn out for the best. I wish I could believe that. Master Jinn believes in the will of the force, that's why he is fighting my corner for me. Even so, I get the feeling he is worried that there are others who won't heed the will of the force and send me away?

I should die of misery away from Ben and my friends. They're all inside now, waiting to hear my fate, all except for Ben. He said he's stay with me because he didn't want me to be alone whilst I sat outside. Of course they asked if I wanted to go in to hear the verdict but I couldn't?I just couldn't. I'm just so scared that it won't be what I want to hear. If they decide against me I'm not sure what I'll do. One thing I won't do is cry, at least not while there are people around to see me. Either way somebody's goi

 

HOORAY!! It's about time something really good happened for Jemmy!

And I think she has Master Yoda to thank for some of it as well.

 

TITLE: Beard (part 1)
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
TIMECALE: JA - Obi-Wan is 16
CHARACTERS: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn
SUMMARY: Just what is the cause of Padawan Kenobi's sudden attack of vanity?

**************


"Obi-Wan."

Qui-Gon knocked on the door to the refresher room and waited to receive some kind of acknowledgement. How long had he been in there? And just why had a fifteen-year-old boy any reason to be narcissistic in the first place?

Lately it had become ridiculous, if faintly amusing to Qui-Gon, watching his padawan's developing vanity hit full stride. Usually a model of dignity and decorum within the temple, (although occasionally disobedient and headstrong) Obi-Wan was beginning to develop both physically and mentally in leaps and bounds. That was the part that Qui-Gon was having difficulty with. The boy was toughening up and strengthening his body with exercise and practising of Katas in the training rooms. His mind however was beginning to stray towards natural (if undesirable) adolescent fantasies, and frankly Qui-Gon was at a loss for what to do or say to keep his student's attention where it should be and not fluttering his lashes shyly at every female padawan that passed by.

Was he ever like that, he wondered? He somehow doubted it. Even if he could remember back to his first lovesick yearnings he was almost certain that Yoda would have made sure that was all they remained. Yoda had been the ultimate girlfriend deterrent. The kudos he'd received on being claimed as the troll's padawan had been instantly negated in the romance department. Well, perhaps that was just as well, as it turned out.

After all, look at how all his relationships had ended.

No, a jedi was made to be committed to the force and to the force alone. It was the ultimate master (or indeed mistress). Who needed anything else? Whilst that was probably true he recalled Obi-Wan's frustrated, hormonal reply, still wringing in his ears from the last time they had discussed the matter.

"That's why jedi frown all the time." He stated.

The more Qui-Gon thought about it, the more he wondered if the young man wasn't right. After all, why else did his friend Dex Berlingside smile so much?

"A distracted mind is an unhealthy thing." He'd informed his padawan one day, affecting his sternest voice. "You have to focus on the moment, not fritter away your time dreaming about unattainable things."

"They're only unattainable if you don't know where to look." Obi-Wan replied.

Why had that answer worried Qui-Gon so much?

A year before, Obi-Wan had been a shy, serious, determined individual who couldn't look at the top of a female stocking without his face turning into a beacon of embarrassment. He was still serious, still determined but under no circumstances could the word shy be used in the same context as his name. Somewhere along the way Qui-Gon had forgotten exactly what it was like to be driven by X-chromosomes.

"Hormones are of the dark side of the force." He'd recently told Obi-Wan. "Hormones lead to trouble. Trouble leads suffering. Suffering leads to chemical suppression. Have you got that?"

"Yes master." Obi-Wan had sighed, and promptly went back to writing I LOVE SHERIA on the top of the flimsy he was supposed to be jotting notes down on for his history exam.

Qui-Gon snapped himself back to the present. He wasn't exactly focussed himself right now, amidst all the distraction of his padawan and his current paramour.

"Obi-Wan? Can you please hurry up in there?" Qui-Gon repeated, knocking on the door again with his knuckles. "We have to meet Master Berlingside in fifteen minutes and I need to get in to the fresher."

He'd expected to be hailed with either a cheery "yes master, sorry master" or (depending on how his youthful hormones were behaving) a grudging, incomprehensible grunt which could just about mean anything - and probably did. Instead however, Qui-Gon was somewhat alarmed to be answered with a long and unhappy sounding groan.

"Urggggggnnnnn." The noise drifted under the door.

"Padaw

 

TITLE: A Kind Of Magic
AUTHOR: Jemmiah
ERA: JA
CHARACTERS: Jemmiah Gleshan, Qui-Gon Jinn, original characters.
SUMMARY: Just how low will a Corellian sink to avoid hard work?

***********

"Whatcha starin' at?"

Jemmiah eyed the little kid with scarcely disguised distaste, even though he was only some four or so years younger that she herself was. There was something about kids that she just didn't like. Perhaps it was the fact that they smelled so bad. Maybe it was the way they always seemed to drool and dribble, or their instant ability to look like they'd been playing in a garbage silo. Perhaps it was their childish earnestness that so set her teeth on edge.

Perhaps it was because she had been denied her own childhood.

Why oh why oh why did Evla want to work with these ghastly creatures, Jemmiah wondered, observing the runny nosed kid as he stopped by her shoulder, breathing force knew what germs all over her. What was the appeal? And not just one - but hundreds of them! Was she out of her mind?

"The floor, kid. What's it look like to you?" The Corellian scowled, rubbing at the floor outside the crèche wing with a large, dirty cloth that had clearly seen better days.

"Why?"

Why? Now therein lay a tale?

"Because of the magic creature that's on the floor." Jemmiah replied, screwing up her face in concentration at the shiny floor tiles beneath her feet. "Can't you see it?"

The boy squinted, nose so near to the ground that Jemmiah thought he was about to topple right over into the nearby pail of water. "Can't see a 'fing." He declared roundly. "What is it?"

"It's a?floor sprite." Jemmiah answered, tying her long tangled hair back from her face and trying to remain as composed as possible. "You see, only the best jedi can see it. But you have to be quick, or it moves!"

"Really?" The little boy stared up at her with beguiling blue eyes that reminded her somewhat of Obi-Wan.

"Would I lie to you?" Jemmy crossed the wrong side of her chest with one finger. "But you see, you need the magic cloth in order to see the floor sprite. They live underneath the tiles. You have to wash the floor really quickly to reveal it?and you never know where it'll pop up next."

"Can?I have a go?" The boy held out his hand. "Please?"

"I dunno?see it's a magic cloth and you're not s'posed to go around handing them out to just anybody?"

Jemmiah saw the youngsters face fall with disappointment and actually felt sorry for him. That was the thing about kids; give them something to believe in, something magical and their imaginations did the rest. Sometimes the dreaming was better than the reward itself. She'd had so little to dream about in her life until she'd been brought to Coruscant. Perhaps it was good to let the kid have his fun?

"Okay, seeing as it's you and I like you so much." Jemmiah very gently picked up the cloth and handed it to the little boy, who turned it over so reverentially in his fingers, staring in total awe of the magical object, that Jemmiah had to stifle her own giggles. "But you have to be very careful with it and treat it right. Remember, soak it in the water first and then wring it out a little. Then put it down on the ground?yes, that's right. Now, start moving the cloth about?no, faster than that or you won't be able to see the sprite."

"Like this?" The beautiful eyes stared up at her for confirmation.

"Just like that. Hey, you're a natural with that magic cloth! I think it likes you." Beamed the Corellian.

"Really?!?"

"Oh, yeah! I think that cloth was made with you in mind?wait! Did you see the floor sprite?oh, darn! It's moved over there!" Jemmy pointed slightly to the boy's right, watching as the child whipped around to his side, staring. "Do you see it now?"

"N-nope." The child frowned.

"Well, nevermind. Keep scrubbing away with the magic cloth and you're bound to see it!" Jemmiah instructed, continuing to direct the child to the spot where the sprite had disappeared. "Thataway!"

"Whatcha doin?" Another voice said behind Jemmiah, tugging her o

 

The Beard: You would think Obi would have learned by now. But that's what he gets for wanting to look like he had a vrelt glued to his face!

A Kind of Magic: There's a sucker born every minute! And trust Jemmy to weed them out!