Reunion

"Will you please leave me alone?" Annika asked. Her eyes were warm and inviting, despite her cold look. Seiyaku folded his arms and smiled. "But I don't want to leave you alone. I like being in your presence. You're my future wife, remember?"

Annika's mouth dropped open and she marched up to him. "Listen here, buddy," she pointed her finger at Seiyaku's chest, "I'm spoken for, got it? SPOKEN FOR! I'm already engaged to someone! Get used to it!"

"You're so pretty when you're angry," he said softly.

Annika sighed dramatically and threw her arms in the air. "You're hopeless!"

"Hopelessly in love with you."

"How can you be 'in love' with me? You don't even know me!"

Seiyaku smiled down at her. "I just am."

"Oh boy. Well, you're delusional. Besides, I'm FURIOUSLY in love with Obi-Wan and there is NO WAY that I'll ever leave him!" Annika nodded her head triumphantly and continued to pace the floor of the ship's hangar. Her footsteps were heavier than normal and her heart pounded fast. Who does this jerk think he is anyway? she asked to herself. Seiyaku leaned against a wall and waited with her. Annika would stop and glare at him occasionally.

Obi-Wan had been gone over a month and in that time, Seiyaku had followed her around like some sort of lovesick teenager. Several times Annika found herself running and hiding from him. After the birthday party on Bakura, Seiyaku decided to move to Coruscant in an attempt to win Annika away from Obi-Wan. When he was sent on a mission with Anakin, Seiyaku took the opportunity to pitch woo in Annika's way. He had tried sending her flowers, buying her jewellery, and writing her love poetry. None of it worked. Annika completely rebuffed him, and she made it perfectly clear that she had no intentions of even allowing Seiyaku a chance.

"If I were you," Annika said, "I would make myself scarce. Obi-Wan will be here any minute."

"I hardly think he'll let his human side overtake his emotionless Jedi side."

"Obi-Wan has an incredible grasp of his emotions, thank you." Annika turned her back to Seiyaku and put her nose up in the air.

"Will it make you happy if I left for now?"

"Yes! Very happy!"

Seiyaku kissed his fingertips and placed them against Annika's lips. "Then I will go... for now." He turned and waved over his shoulder. "See you later, sweetheart."

"Stop using terms of endearment towards me!!" she yelled after him, but he just laughed and turned the corner.

Annika rolled her eyes at him and continued pacing. Obi-Wan's ship was late. That in and of itself wasn't bad, but it had been a month and Annika wanted to see him very badly. Her arms ached to hold him. Annika looked over at the fighter ships that sat in the corner and sighed wistfully. Obi-Wan loved to work on them. Mechanics bored Annika something fierce, but she could sit for hours listening to him explain repulsor lifts and warp engines.

Finally, a ship came into view and started its descent into the hangar. Annika squealed and ran over to the landing site to wait. She shifted her weight nervously from foot to foot and fidgeted with straightening the pleats in her skirt.

She could hardly contain her excitement, as the landing pad seemed to take slower than normal in lowering.

"Come on, come on, come on," she said waving her hands in the air. When the ramp touched the ground, and Annika saw Obi-Wan walk out she hopped up and down. She ran up the ramp and jumped into his arms, causing him to drop his bag.

"I'm glad to see you too!" he said, laughing.

"Did you negotiate the peace treaty?" Annika asked between kisses. Obi-Wan nodded.

"Knock it off, you two," Anakin said walking out of the ship. Annika thought he was being funny, but she could see he was frustrated and in a very foul mood. He skulked past them, dragging his bag on the ground.

"What happened?" Annika asked Obi-Wan.

"It's a long story."

She frowned and kissed his cheek. "You know, I'm getting used to the beard. It's becoming."

Obi-Wan smiled, looked to the entrance to the hangar and sighed. Annika looked over.

"SEI... YA... KU!!!" she yelled, "What are you doing here? I thought I told you to get lost!"

"Well, I was thoroughly lost until I was found by a very angry Padawan. I thought I'd let Master Kenobi know that his student knocked over one of the statues, muttered some very foul language, and then stomped off."

Obi-Wan frowned and sighed heavily. He looked over at Annika, but she was already bending down to pick up his bag.

"Go after him," she said, "I'll take this." Obi-Wan kissed her one more time before rubbing his brow and walking after Anakin.

Annika swayed over to Seiyaku. "I'm sooo glad he's home!!"

"Bully for you. Just remember, I plan on nicking you, so don't get too attached to him."

"Whatever! You have ZERO chance!" Annika said as she formed her long fingers into a circle. "Did Anakin really do those things, or did you just say that to make Obi-Wan leave?"

Seiyaku feigned shock - he placed his hand on his chest and gasped. "Why, Your Highness, how can you think such a thing? However," he said returning to his normal cadence, "I told the truth. Your semi-stepchild threw a temper tantrum in the courtyard."

Annika frowned and looked at her feet. "I wonder what happened?"

"I'm not sure... but sometimes, that kid gives me the creeps."

"How so?"

"There's just something about him. I can't put my finger on it." He looked back at Annika. "Why? Do you feel it also?"

Annika shrugged and started walking back to the quarters she and Obi-Wan shared. Seiyaku trailed along beside her. "I don't know. Anakin definitely has issues he needs to deal with, mainly his temper. Obi-Wan tries so hard... he's with Anakin more than he is me."

"That's a shame."

Annika laughed. "I'm used to it. And I understand it. There was a time when I didn't. Believe it or not, I used to be very selfish!"

"Used to be? Is that why I saw your friend Ippin chasing you with a big stick, yelling something about eating all of her candy?"

"Oh," she giggled. "Well, I guess I am still selfish. But only sometimes!"

Suddenly, Seiyaku stopped and put his hands in his pockets. "Annika?"

"Yes?"

"I know you think I'm bothering you just to be a pain, but I'm not. I really am in love with you. And before you say I'm not, Miss Senshi of Love, let me just tell you that I don't understand it either. I used to sit and daydream about you when I was a child, I'd watch the holovids of your parties over and over." He looked over at some of the shrubbery. "It's a feeling I have - a feeling that I'm supposed to be with you - to love you and keep you safe. And I know that Destiny's messenger told you that Obi-Wan is your love, but I refuse to believe that! Otherwise I wouldn't feel this way."

Annika blushed and blinked back tears. "Seiyaku," she whispered. Before she could say anything else, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"It doesn't matter, I suppose," he said, switching back to a light-hearted smile. "I'll win you in the end."

"I am NOT a prize to be won!" Annika punched his arm and quickly walked in the opposite direction.

He watched her for a minute before sighing. "It's not winning that worries me... it's the thought of losing you that does."

By the time Obi-Wan got back to his room, it was night time on Coruscant. His whole body ached from tension and worry, and he wanted nothing more than to go to sleep.

"Annika?" he called, shutting the door behind him. She didn't answer. "Annika? Are you here?" Still, she didn't answer. "She must be asleep," he whispered. Obi-Wan sighed and turned on the lights. The room was in disarray - tables were over turned, the sheets were half torn off of the bed, and there was broken glass all over the floor.

"Annika!" Obi-Wan yelled. He searched the room for her Force signature, but it was gone. There was a large black, circular scorch mark on the wall next to the bed. Obi-wan ran his hands over it - there was still an energy running through it, but he didn't know what it was. It gave off a familiar odour. It was ozone. There was only thing that could make that kind of energy and that smell.

A time hole.

Obi-Wan ran across the Jedi Temple and right into Seiyaku. He didn't even stop to look back at him. Seiyaku got up and followed him to the Room of a Thousand Fountains, and then behind the waterfall that led to the secret headquarters of the Sailor Jedi.

Seiyaku walked in to see a very worried Obi-Wan talking to Yukiko.

"Aisu," she said, "go get Ippin. Tell her it's an emergency."

"What's going on?" Seiyaku asked. Obi-Wan sighed.

"Annika's gone."

"Gone? What do you mean?"

"I don't know."

Ippin's bare feet slapped against the stairs as she ran down them. Her pale orange nightgown brushed the floor, and her hair was wrapped up in a scarf.

"Ippin," Obi-Wan said, "Will you follow me, please?"

She nodded. Obi-Wan, Ippin, Yukiko, and Seiyaku jogged back to the room where Annika was supposed to be. Ippin rushed over to the black area and touched it.

"It's definitely a time warp, but it's not mine."

"How is that possible?"

"I don't know... I would know if someone tried to hijack my power, and no one did."

Obi-Wan sat down and thought for a minute.

"Is there anyway for you to find out where this warp originated from?"

Her eyes drooped and she looked at the floor. "No."

"Well," Yuki said, "there's always the possibility that it was the Sith. They hate the senshi, and we know that they someone got into the Temple a few months ago."

"So this mark could be a fake? Planted to throw us from their trail?" Ippin asked.

Obi-Wan stood up and started searching through the debris on the floor. "There should be some sort of evidence either way. The condition of the room suggests a struggle."

Seiyaku joined him on the floor. "What are we looking for, mate?"

"Anything that looks out of place."

"Er..." Seiyaku said. His scratched his head and started at the mess. "Is there anything in particular we should look for?" Obi-Wan didn't answer; he just kept searching. Yukiko and Ippin started rifling around in piles of clothes and overturned books.

"Do you think she had time to transform into Sailor Bakura?" Ippin asked. Yukiko merely shrugged.

Seiyaku picked up a very long and dangly earring. It was silver with several strands of obsidian beads falling like a waterfall.

"Since when did Annika wear these?" Seiyaku asked.

Obi-Wan grabbed the earring and held it in the palm of his hand. Suddenly he closed his fist around it. "Lamia Valentine," he said through gritted teeth.

A back room in the deserted casino, Loaded Dice, Coruscant. Ninth level. She downed another Subterranean Slug before scratching the back of her neck with a blaster. The room smelled like the fresh charge of a time disruptor because Dante loved to play with it.

"If you break that," she said over her shoulder, "you're the one who will answer to Mistress Oame."

With a devilish grin on his pale-blue-skinned face, Dante swivelled the device around his finger several times before laying it on the bar. He brushed a strand of silvery white hair out of his eyes and sat down on a stool beside the beautiful brunette.

"I suppose they know by now," he said.

Kyuu laughed and mixed herself another drink. "Of course they know. The mark left by the time disruptor would've thrown them off. Not to mention the earring."

"Where did you get this thing anyway," Dante asked while he ran his well-manicured fingers over the trigger.

"It's on loan from Knight Eckland." Kyuu climbed on top of the bar and kicked full bottles of alcohol onto the floor. "I wonder if those machines still work?" she asked, gesturing to the rusted slot machines. She hopped down and tried to make her way over to them, but she was drunk and tripped on her own feet, and fell face first onto the floor.

Dante lazily walked over to her, straddled her hips and removed the half-empty glass from her hand. "You shouldn't drink. It's bad for you."

She looked into his eyes. "Do you realise if this plan fails, and something happens to her, I will be killed? Very slowly, and very painfully, killed. So forgive me if I choose to not think about that possibility for a while."

He lowered himself onto her and rested his weight on her hips. She winced. "You're heavy. Get off of me."

Dante smiled. "It won't fail."

Kyuu ran her fingernails along Dante's red vinyl pants, and he watched with piqued curiosity. His eyes moved from her advancing fingers to her hazy eyes. "I thought you were married," he said.

"I am."

Dante leaned down and slammed his lips onto hers.

Planet Coruscant, thirteenth level...

Seiyaku sat next to Obi-Wan Kenobi in the speeder, turning a coin around in his fingers. Looking over at the three senshi that were also in the taxi, he began to doubt his presence on the mission. It was true that he was a highly-decorated military officer, but he was not a Jedi, nor a Knight. Honestly, he was surprised when Obi-Wan agreed to let him accompany the senshi to club Selket to confront the vampire, Lamia Valentine. And when the taxi stopped, Obi-Wan turned to him.

"Be careful in here. Trust no one. Stay close," he said. Seiyaku nodded.

He followed the senshi and the Jedi, hoping that his many years of military training would prepare him for facing a vampire. The doors swung open to reveal an empty room. There were ladders and dropcloths scattered in places and, Obi-Wan noticed, a big hole in the side of a wall.

Yukiko was physically uncomfortable in this place, and she shuddered at the thread of darkness that flowed through atmosphere.

"Are they closed down again?" Ippin asked.

"Of course not, we're simply remodelling," said a voice behind Ippin. Startled, she stepped back onto Xarae's foot.

The voice belonged to Akira Takahashi. He had one hand in his pocket and the other hand cusped a large white rose, which he tucked neatly into his lapel.

"I'm glad you could return, Master Kenobi. Of course I am sorry to see the Bride is not with you."

"Where is she?" Obi-Wan asked, directly. He confidently strode up to Akira with his hand on his lightsaber. Seiyaku noticed that Obi-Wan was calm and collected - a lot different than he would be if his girlfriend was kidnapped by vampires... again.

Akira raised a wonderfully defined eyebrow. "Who?"

"Annika. Where have you taken her this time?"

He laughed. "My dear Jedi, don't tell me you have lost her again?"

Obi-Wan frowned - Akira had no Force aura and it was impossible to tell if he was lying. "Where's Lamia?"

Without warning, a beautiful song started to play on the piano that still stood on the stage. Shrouded in shadow, it was difficult to see who the musician was, but once she began to sing, Obi-Wan knew.

"At last... my love has come along... my lonely days are over... and life is like a song..."

"I have such a soft spot in my heart for Earth songs," Lamia said. She snapped her fingers, and a spotlight illuminated her figure. She wore a long, black nightgown, and black high-heeled shoes. Her hair was unchanged - still black and curly - and her lips were still blood red.

Lamia smiled as her long, gentle fingers glided over the keys and she when she stopped playing, she sighed wistfully. Seiyaku watched her take a drink of what he hoped was red wine, before she got up and sashayed over to Akira's side.

"Isn't it a pity? Annika has run away from you again. Don't worry, when she shows up at my door, I shall take good care of her."

"Do you honestly think we are buying your innocent act?" Ippin asked.

"It is no act, Sailor Brat, the Bride is not here. Please, feel free to search."

Seiyaku was studying Lamia intently. He had the feeling there was something missing, something he should have noticed. Lamia winked at him.

"I do love a man with black hair," she whispered.

"Sorry, but, I've already got someone," he explained.

Obi-Wan shot him a warning look.

"What's this?" Lamia asked with her Hungarian accent trilling beautifully out of her mouth. "A love triangle? Such an old cliché."

Seiyaku shrugged. "Aren't you a member of the cast? Doesn't that make us a love square, or rectangle?"

"Aa... humour." Lamia glided over to him and took his hand. She turned it over and ran her red fingernails over the carefully-etched lines in his palm. "You have strength, I see. Also stamina," she said, winking at him. "I see... fatherhood in your future as well." She stopped. She pulled his palm closer to her face and frowned. "So you're the other one," she whispered.

"What?" Seiyaku asked.

Lamia waved her hand in his face and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. Seiyaku's eyes lit up.

"Er... Obi-Wan? May I talk to you for a moment?"

When he was sure they were safely out of earshot, Seiyaku said, "Her ears aren't pierced."

Obi-Wan looked back at the Vampire Queen and then back to Seiyaku. "The earring we found could not have come from Lamia's ear. She's telling the truth. At least a version of it."

Seiyaku frowned. "Listen, mate, there's something suspicious about all of this. If they took her, why would they still be here?"

"Perhaps to make us think they are innocent."

"If it was a some sort of time hole, maybe Annika was taken to the future?"

Obi-Wan shook his head. "I doubt it. Any time that..." he trailed off. "Come on, let's go." He walked up to Lamia. "Sorry to have bothered you, then," he said. "Let's look elsewhere," he said to the senshi.

Lamia laughed. "Come back anytime!" she called rather cordially.

Once back inside the taxi, Obi-Wan leaned forward. "Any time that Annika is in any sort of future-threatening danger, our children disappear, but I saw Lys and Lysthea before we left. So, I seriously doubt that Lamia had something to do with Annika's disappearance. Surely, they would've begun to brainwash her again and her future would be gone."

Yuki nodded. "That's true, but what if they are only trying and haven't succeeded? Annika is a lot stronger now than she was then. It might be that she is resisting."

"I don't think so. Seiyaku noticed that Lamia doesn't have pierced ears."

"The earring we found didn't belong to her," Xarae voiced what they had all realised.

"Exactly," Obi-Wan said, "So, it didn't fall out of her ear."

"It was purposefully planted?" Ippin asked.

"I think so, yes. But not by Lamia. Why would she drop something that seemingly implicated herself? Someone wanted us to think it was Lamia."

Ippin leaned back and sighed. "What still bothers me is that time warp scorch. It was so strange. It was definitely Time, I could sense it, but... it felt odd."

"Well," Seiyaku said, "Are you the only Guardian of Time?"

She nodded her head. "Yes, in this galaxy. But why would a Time Guardian from another galaxy help kidnap Annika?"

"Wait a second," Obi-Wan said. "Remember when Kyuu tried to steal the power of the First Realm? Oame stopped her, but not before Kyuu mentioned something about a Time Guardian - Knight Eckland." He thought for a minute longer before musing, "It almost has to be."

"Has to be what?" Yuki asked.

Obi-Wan leaned forward again and used his fingers to count off his evidence. "One - whoever planted that earring, had to know of Annika's past with Lamia, and no one outside of the Temple has that knowledge. Two - the time 'thing' on the wall could only have been caused by someone with access to Time. Three - Knight Eckland works with the Haven in the future. Four - Oame would kill anyone who hurt Annika, so it wouldn't have been her. Five - Tera is dead and Nitika is at the Temple. That only leaves one person."

Yuki gasped. "Kyuu. But why? What would she have to gain?"

He shrugged. "I'm not sure. But as it stands, Sailor Concord Dawn is our prime suspect."

Dante pulled up the collar on his long black coat and started walking down the street through the throngs of people. No one paid attention to him; they were all too busy with their own agenda. So, it was rather easy for him to slip through the doors of Selket unnoticed.

Akira sat at a table looking over ledgers, but the person Dante wanted to see was sitting at the piano, talking to a blonde girl. His boots, despite their heaviness, were quiet as he walked up to Lamia. The blonde girl stopped smacking her gum and looked at him. Lamia turned her head slowly and stared at Dante.

"May I help you?" she asked, sweetly. Lamia was always ready to help a gorgeous man.

"I believe I have something you want."

She smiled. "Humour me."

Dante reached into his pocket and pulled out a lock of pinkish white hair. He tossed it onto the piano keys. "That's what I have. And I'm willing to make a trade."

Lamia's one goal in life was to find the Bride, so she instantly knew the hair belonged to Annika. She closed her fingers around it and decided to play a game with Dante.

"How do I know this is hers? It could've come from a doll."

Dante shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. "Fine. If you don't want her, I'm sure someone else will."

"Wait," Lamia said. "Say this is authentic. What is your asking price?"

"A simple trade - a human for a human. I need a child."

Lamia exchanged glances with Akira who had now joined the impromptu meeting. "A child? I'm in that sort of business. I suggest you try one of the other shops along this street."

"I need a specific child," Dante said. He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a picture. "Here. This is the one I want."

"This is a child of one of the senshi."

Dante's gaze never wavered in its intensity as he stared at Lamia.

"Why do you want her?"

"Why do you care?" he asked in return.

"I don't." Lamia turned to the blonde girl. "Toy," she said, "Go retrieve Lorelei."

"Sure!" Toy said with an accent that made the word sound like 'shoe-uh'.

A few moments later, Toy returned with a beautiful, brown-skinned woman. Dante noticed a strange glow to her eyes and her hair was tied up with a blue bow. Lamia handed her the picture.

"Bring that child to me," Lamia instructed.

At first, Lorelei just glared at it, but then she held it to her face, and breathed in the scent. She closed her eyes and rubbed it all over her face, before she put it into her mouth and ate it. Dante watched coolly as her form switched from a lithe young woman into a small, white dog, which then turned and trotted out of the door and onto the street.

"Come back in an hour, when the morning is here. Bring the Bride with you."

Outside the club, sitting in an unassuming speeder, and disguised as common thieves, Obi-Wan sat with Seiyaku listening to the conversation going on inside. Seiyaku had taken the chance earlier to leave a small transmitting device hidden under a table. The charge would wear off after a standard day, so Obi-Wan and Seiyaku shook hands when they heard what they were hoping to hear. "I'll alert the senshi to keep a close eye on the children, and we'll wait here until morning."

Seiyaku nodded and waited for Obi-Wan to tell Yuki about the danger to the kids. When he put the communicator back into his pocket, Seiyaku turned to him.

"I want to thank you. For letting me accompany you."

"Well," Obi-Wan said, "You can't well be a worthy rival if you have no idea what you're doing."

Seiyaku knew that Obi-Wan didn't like him, and if the roles were reversed, Seiyaku would've punched Obi-Wan's lights out long ago. Such is the way of the Jedi, he thought.

Yukiko corralled the children into the playroom and told them to play quietly. Sai pouted.

"But we were having so much fun outside!!" she wailed.

"Yeah! But we can fun in here too!" Aisu said as she hopped around the room.

Niji and Sagiriko ran over to the dollhouse and began taking turns feeding the babies, while Kleppa sat on the floor drawing pictures of fish and space ships. Aiko and Sai had made their "Super Secret Clubhouse of Interesting Things, Various Topics, and Marvellous Sundry" out of blocks, pillows, and a big green blanket. They climbed inside and gave each other the super secret handshake.

"Okay, me first!" Aiko said. "Let's sneak out!"

"Good idea! I second that motion!" Sai materialised her wand and twirled it. "Ready?" She tapped her wand into the air and they both were transported from the "SSCoITVTaMS" and out to one of the orchards on the Temple grounds.

"Hmm," Sai said. "We're probably going to get into trouble for this."

Aiko shrugged her shoulders. "Probably."

"Quick then, let's run around and play before we get caught!"

"Okay!"

They ran around the large trees playing 'hide and seek'. Sai was forbidden from using magic to find Aiko, making the game more even.

"One... two... three... four..." Sai counted while Aiko hid.

The little blonde girl ran and hid behind the fourth tree in the fourth row, because four plus four was eight and eight was an interesting number.

"Ten... eleventeen, eighty-nine, purple, seven..." she still counted.

Aiko giggled and crouched down, and a little white puppy bounded up to her.

"PUPPY!" she yelled as quietly as possible. "Where did you come from?" Aiko picked up the little dog and cuddled it close to her chest. It was wriggly, as puppies normally are, and it slipped from her grasp and ran deeper into the orchard. Aiko ran after it. "Wait!" she yelled.

Aiko followed the puppy until she looked around and realised she was lost. "Uh-oh." She started to worry and shake. "S-Sai? I'm hiding right here! I give up!" she yelled. The puppy wandered up and licked her ankle.

"Puppy! At least you're here and you'll keep me company!"

The dog took a few steps back and its shape changed into a young woman. She quickly grabbed Aiko and ran.

"Ready or not, here I come!" Sai yelled.

Kyuu stirred a bowl of porridge after dumping a dish of sugar into it. She had no idea about what kind of food Annika ate, but she figured it would be cavity-inducing. She poured a cup of tea and carried them both to a heavily Force-locked door. Kyuu keyed in her password and the door sprang open.

Annika was lying on a bare cot with her hands tied behind her back, and her transformation brooch was gone.

"I brought you some food," Kyuu said. "Don't worry, it's not laced with anything."

Annika turned up her nose. "I don't trust you."

Kyuu took a bite of the porridge and swallowed it. "See? Still alive." She sat the bowl and cup on the floor.

"You're not going to get away with this, Kyuu."

"I already have, Your Highness."

Annika sighed and sat up. She scooted her body against the wall and frowned. "Kyuu... it's not too late. If you untie me and give me back my crystal, I can help you. You can fight with us instead of against us. I promise that you won't be punished!"

"I'm not in the mood for your sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows today. Are you going to eat or not."

"Not."

Kyuu shrugged her shoulders and turned to leave. "If everything goes according to plan, you'll be out of here in an hour."

"Where am I going?"

"Someplace familiar." Kyuu shut and locked the door behind her and waited for word from Dante. She wasted some time by shooting the levers off of the slot machines and drinking Corellian Suicides. Dante walked in the door and took the glass from her.

"Didn't I tell you to stop drinking?"

Kyuu jumped into his arms and kissed him passionately. "I've missed you. Good news?"

Dante threw his coat onto the floor and started unbuttoning Kyuu's shirt. "Lamia will find her, and we'll make the trade. We've got an hour."

Kyuu pouted. "That's all?"

Obi-Wan looked over at the sleeping Seiyaku and then emotionlessly turned back to watching the activity around Selket. Seiyaku joked about winning Annika, but Obi-Wan knew that one day it wouldn't be a joke. As painful as it was, Obi-Wan wanted to make sure Annika would be safe with him. So, he took it upon himself to teach Seiyaku the ins and outs of the senshi. Dealing with them was a lot different than dealing with regular shoulders, and Annika was a self-contained enigma. There was no better time to start protecting her than this moment.

And something in Obi-Wan told him not to shun Seiyaku, but he had no intentions of welcoming him. Just then a woman turned the corner carrying a small, sleeping child. It was Aiko. Obi-Wan shook Seiyaku and pointed.

"I wonder why the trade for Aiko?"

"I don't know," Seiyaku said. "How long are we going to wait?"

"Until Annika arrives."

Right on cue, a silver speeder zoomed up the thoroughfare and lurched to a complete stop in front of Selket. Dante jumped out and pulled Annika with him. She was blindfolded and her hands were still tied behind her.

"There she is!" Seiyaku exclaimed. Obi-Wan laid a hand on his arm, urging him to wait.

They watched as Dante ripped the blindfold off and Annika saw where she was. He started to walk her up to the club, but Annika threw her weight in the opposite direction. She kicked him in the knee and wrenched out of his grasp. He was quick and had her with the other hand before she got far. Dante physically picked her up and carried her in. Annika screamed for help, but no one offered to help, they minded their own business. The lacks of compassion make Obi-Wan sick. He tapped Seiyaku's shoulder, and they both stalked up to the door quietly. The transmitter they listened to earlier picked up a very sketchy conversation.

"How wonderful it is to see you again, love," Lamia purred.

"Stay away from me," Annika said. Obi-Wan smiled at the authority in her voice.

"We have a deal, remember?" Dante reminded Lamia.

The transmitter died.

"We'll wait another minute before going in," Obi-Wan said. "I want to make sure they bring Aiko out."

Behind Selket, another speeder, this one a dark blue-green colour, pulled up and waited. Kyuu sat behind the controls and smiled. She was going to get more out of this than anticipated. Why get a ransom from one person, when two is much more profitable? Princesses commanded high payoffs, after all.

Kyuu reached into her bag and pulled out a small vial of liquid. She walked around to the ventilation duct and waited for the signal. When it came in the form of her wristband beeping, she opened the vial and poured the liquid into the airshaft. And she waited.

On the other side of the building a chill ran down Obi-Wan's spine. "Let's go," he said. He activated his lightsaber and Seiyaku grabbed his blaster. They charged the entrance and found themselves standing in a smoky room. Both men pulled their coats over their mouths. Lamia and Akira lay on the floor.

"It's a sleeping gas," Seiyaku said. "I've seen it used before."

Obi-Wan pointed to a nearby open door and they both ran through it, the exited into the back alley just in time to see Dante throw Annika and Aiko into the speeder. He removed his facemask, jumped in the front seat, and Kyuu sped off.

Seiyaku quickly pulled a small baton from his pocket, flipped a switch and aimed it at the speeder. A red laser beam fixed on it, and the baton shot off. It attached to the end of the speeder.

"Tracking device," he explained showing Obi-Wan a red blinking light moving over a small data pad. "They won't be able to hide from us now."

Dante craned his head around to glare at Aiko, who was huddled in Annika's arms. He winked at her and then looked at Annika.

"If she cooperates, I won't hurt her."

"You're not going to touch her," Annika said. Aiko began to shake.

Kyuu giggled. "You know, you should be more appreciative, Your Highness. I mean, if it weren't for us, you'd still be back at Selket. It was my brilliant idea to ransom you to your family."

"Don't do me any favours, Kyuu."

Aiko tugged on Annika's sleeve and motioned for the Princess to lean down. Aiko cupped her hand and whispered, "Are they going to kill me?"

"No," Annika whispered, "I won't let them."

The speeder careened past several stalled vehicles and lowered to fly between valleys of lumpy hills. Dante folded his arms and exhaled heavily. He was anxious. His reason for travelling to the past would soon come to fruition and he would return home to Borleias. Kyuu was fun, but he wouldn't miss her; besides, he had too many girlfriends as it was.

The speeder came to a sudden stop. "Honey, we're home," Kyuu said. "Let's go, get out!" She aimed a blaster at Annika and Aiko with one hand and with the other, she pointed them toward an abandoned building.

As soon as they were safely inside, Dante shot Annika in the neck with a tranquilliser. Kyuu panicked.

"What did you do?? What did you shoot her with?" she screamed.

"Don't worry, she'll just be asleep for a couple of hours. Your boss won't be killing you yet." He threw the gun onto the bar and walked over to Aiko. "Are you coming with me voluntarily or do I have to shoot you too?" He didn't wait for an answer; he simply picked her up and carried her to another room. Kyuu plucked the dart from Annika's neck and waited.

"Let me see if I can get this straight," Sailor Asteroid said as the speeder she was in made its way through traffic, "Kyuu kidnapped Annika to use as bait?"

"Yes," Sailor Hoth said. "Kyuu and her partner really wanted Aiko, for what reason, we don't know. They asked Lamia to kidnap Aiko and as payment, they would give her Annika."

Asteroid shook her head. "That's sick."

Seiyaku turned the controls of the speeder a little too sharply, and they all tilted to the right. "Sorry," he said. "I suppose I should tell you that I'm much better at piloting ships over water than I am over land."

Obi-Wan scoffed and double-checked his safety harness. "Really? I'd never have guessed."

Sailor Aquaris scratched her temple. "I wonder what anyone could possibly want with Aiko? She's such a sweet little girl."

Sailor Hoth's blood boiled. "I don't know, but they aren't getting away with it."

"I really never learned much of her past... er... future," Sailor Myrkr said, "so I don't have any ideas either."

Sai frowned and hugged her knees close to her chin. "This is my fault. I never should have taken us out of the Temple. I'll never use magic again."

Obi-Wan put his arm around her. "No. You shouldn't have left the Temple, but this isn't your fault. We have to do our best, and everyone makes mistakes. There is no reason to live in the past- what's happened has happened. We move forward, we learn from our errors. And, Sai, you are being very brave by wanting to help Aiko. I'm proud of you."

The little girl smiled. "You think so?"

"I know so. And your magic is a special gift, one that, in time, you will be able to master. Just because you are discouraged doesn't mean you should forget who you are, or give up hope."

"Thank you, Master Kenobi."

"You're welcome."

The red blip on the data pad told Seiyaku that Kyuu's speeder had stopped, and the location was a complex of abandoned hotels and casinos. They could be in any one of those buildings. "I'm going to set the speeder down on the corner of the main area. Is everyone okay with that?"

"Yes," Obi-Wan said, "As quietly as possible."

Dante stared at Aiko. "You're going to help me with something."

"No, I'm not! Where is Annika?" She ran to the opposite end of the room and tugged on the doorknob. "Let me out of here!"

"There's no need to fight, little girl. All you have to do is give me what you took from me."

"What are you talking about? I didn't take anything! Stealing is wrong!"

"I followed you here from the future, you know?"

Aiko slid down and tried to make herself really small.

Dante crouched down in front of her. "My ship crashed on Myrkr and you found a piece of debris? Remember? When you touched it, it disappeared, right?"

She nodded. "It was an accident."

"Well," he continued softly, "I need that piece of debris. It's going to help me free someone from a type of prison."

"I want to talk to my mommy first."

He grew frustrated with Aiko's resistance. "Listen, just open your hand, it won't hurt."

She balled her hands into fists and sat on them. "No! Not until I see my mommy!"

"That's it, I've had it." Dante snatched her hand and forced it open. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, round, dark crystal. "Hold still," he ordered. She squirmed and then sunk her teeth into his hand.

But it was too late. Dante placed the crystal into her palm. A small white light poked through her skin and formed in a sphere above her hand. Slowly it gained weight and density until it became solid - a perfect, clear match to the dark crystal.

"Finally!" he yelled. He had both of the crystals, and now he could free her.

Obi-Wan took a small device out of his pocket and attached it to a wall.

"What does that do?" Seiyaku asked.

"It's a listening instrument. I'll be able to hear beyond the wall."

"I'm going to search the buildings at the far end. I'll let you know if we find anything."

Obi-Wan nodded as he monitored the sound inside the first building. Sailors Hoth, Nar Shaddaa and Aquaris went with Seiyaku. Sai and Miyuki went around to the back of the first building and Yuki stayed with Seiyaku. She had a personal reason.

"How long do you plan on staying on Coruscant?" she asked as they entered the front side of the building.

"Until I win Annika's heart."

"You know something?" Yukiko asked, "I don't appreciate you trying to ruin the relationship of two of my closest friends. As a matter of fact, I think it's downright terrible, and you should be ashamed."

Seiyaku stopped and looked at her. "I'm not trying to break them up."

"Oh?" She folded her arms and drummed her gloved fingers against her arm.

"Well, I am. But... I'm not."

"If you loved her, truly loved her, you'd let her be happy."

"So is it a crime if I think she'll be happier with me? There's no one in here, let's go on to the second building."

Sailor Hoth kept her arms crossed and followed. "So, if you're not trying to break them up, what are you doing?"

Seiyaku pushed open the creaking doors to the second building in the complex. "This will sound strange, Sailor Hoth, but I don't know what I'm doing when it comes to her. It's almost as if..." he paused and looked around at the dusty, empty room. "It's like... something wants me to be around her. I can't walk away even if I want to. Aren't you the one who's into the Force? Do you know about this sort of thing? Surely you've felt a strange pull towards someone... a pull that you can't and don't want to explain."

Yuki's mind flooded with images of Ben. She started to say something but stopped.

"Besides," Seiyaku continued, "Annika has made it very clear that she's not interested in me. But, I'm a soldier and won't give up. They won't be together forever."

Yuki furrowed her brow and frowned. She was flabbergasted at his arrogance. "I think you're wrong."

"I'm not. He's a Jedi and has responsibilities to the Temple. He just can't quit being a Jedi, no more than Annika can just quit being the future ruler of Bakura. And one day she will have to leave Coruscant. She can't bear to be apart from him for a few months, what about when it's a few years? No relationship can survive that."

"Theirs can."

He shrugged. "I honestly hope you're right. But if you're not, I'll be there for her. That's all I want. I don't want to hurt her, or break her heart. I just want to be there for her."

Just when Yuki started to dislike him, he said something that made her reconsider. At any rate, she planned on keeping a close eye on him.

Sailor Aquaris ran into the room, out of breath. "We've found them, come on!" Sailor Hoth took off immediately, but Sailor Nar Shaddaa stopped Seiyaku.

"Er... Commodore Oji?" she asked.

"Yes?"

"Er..." she clasped her hands behind her back and looked at her feet. "If... in the future... a little girl loses one of your medals... promise you won't get really mad?"

He laughed. "The future? Okay... I guess I won't get mad."

"WOOHOO!" Sai yelped. "Come on! Let's do some rescuing!"

Obi-Wan was helping Annika to her feet when Sai and Seiyaku ran in; she was rubbing her neck and trying to talk. Yuki held up a piece of paper and read aloud.

"Dearest Dante, you were a blast, but I'm not taking the chance of Ame and Oame finding out. You're on your own. Ta. Love, K."

"Well, that's interesting," Aquaris said. "Look what I found," she said reaching down and picking up Annika's brooch.

"What do Ame and Oame have to do with this?" Sailor Asteroid asked.

Aiko watched as Dante slowly edged the crystals together. They were an inch apart when a purple rift appeared in the room. Inside the rift stood a woman. Aiko didn't recognise her, but she saw that the woman had a very large gash in her abdomen.

"Join the crystals and get me out of here," the woman said. "Now! Hurry before the Guardian finds out."

"Stop!" Sailor Asteroid yelled. Dante looked over to see a door full of Jedi. Aiko ran over to Sailor Myrkr.

"Do it, Dante!" the woman yelled.

"Kendra?" Annika asked from the doorway. The woman in the rift sneered.

"Dante!" she yelled. "Now!"

He joined the crystals, and a brilliant flash of light filled the room. When Annika opened her eyes, the purple rift was gone, and so was Kendra.

No one had time to say anything before another rift opened - this one was made up of black and pink clouds - Ame's harbinger. Dante pulled out two very large blasters from behind his long coat and aimed them at the dimension hole.

Obi-Wan ignited his lightsaber and the senshi braced for a fight.

Dante squinted his eyes and peered inside the cloudy mass. "I know you're in there, you might as well come out."

There was the familiar snap hiss of a lightsaber from within the hole. Sailors Asteroid and Hoth exchanged looks and shoulder shrugs. Suddenly a black-cloaked figure bolted from out of the rift. Dante fired his blasters, but the mysterious man, obviously a Jedi, deflected them.

"Give it up, Jedi," Dante said, "It's too late."

"Perhaps, but I'm sure Grand Admiral Thrawn will be pleased to know that I've captured his son," the figure said.

"Don't blame me, Sian. I just did what any good son would do for his mother."

Sian lowered his lightsaber. "Your mother?"

Dante kicked the lightsaber out of his hand and held one blaster aimed at Sian's head, the other blaster aimed at Sai's. "That's right. Kendra is my mother. And I've released her from her from the Veil. She's alive in the future." Dante produced a little pen from his pocket and pushed a button on it, opening a purple rift. "Now, you're going to let me go, or I'm going to be forced to shoot your daughter."

Sian and Sai shared a look. "Shoot her," he said.

"What?" the senshi yelled in unison.

"I cannot allow that," Obi-Wan said.

Dante looked around the room before looking back at Sian. "You're bluffing."

"I am? Try me."

There was a moment of silence that seemed to stretch on forever before Dante pulled the trigger.

Flowers. Instead of a laser bolt, the blaster shot out a bunch of flowers. Obi-Wan advanced on Dante, and sliced his other blaster in half. Sian doubled up his fist and hit Dante hard.

"I don't need a lightsaber to beat you. And don't you ever threaten my daughter again," he said to Dante, who was now lying on the floor, nursing a broken nose. Sian stepped on the tool that was used to open the dimensional warp and it disappeared. With one hand he grabbed Dante and with the other, he used the Force to retrieve his lightsaber. He turned to Obi-Wan.

"Thank you for your help." Then he turned to Sai. "Stay out of trouble."

"Always, Daddy!" Sai smiled.

Sian threw Dante into the black and pink hole and then stepped inside himself.

Aiko pulled on Sailor Myrkr's skirt. "Mommy? May we go home now?"

"Yes."

"Good! I'm starving!"