You are my heart.'
He saw her chest rise and fall. Color rose in her face. 'You are not speaking of friendship,' she said.
'I am speaking of something deeper. I am speaking of everything a being can give another. This is what I offer you. I offer myself.'
He could not have spoken plainer. Hard words to say, but they needed to be said.
Another being would have taken a step, sat, moved, spoken. She was perfectly still. He waited, counting his heartbeats. He had taken a decisive step. It would put their friendship to the test.
He was willing to take the risk. At last he had known himself and his feelings. He was not sure of hers. In that moment of revelation he had understood all the tension between them over the past months, all the misunderstandings and irritations. They all had one root. Somewhere inside he had known his feelings for Tahl had deepened, and yet he was reluctant to face that. Back in the hall, the certainty of it had felt like sweet relief.
But now he was not so sure. Tahl appeared flustered, but that could be for any number of reasons.
'If you do not feel the same, I will step back into place and be your friend again,' Qui-Gon said. He was a man comfortable with silence, but not this one. He would never want to cause Tahl distress.
'No,' Tahl said with sudden warmth. 'Do not step back. Let us step forward together. I feel as you do, Qui- Gon.'
He took a step forward at the same time as she did. She placed her hand in his.
'I did not know it until this moment,' she said. 'Or maybe I did.
Maybe I've known it for some time.'
He felt her fingers, warm and strong in his. 'I pledge myself to you, Tahl.'
'I pledge myself to you, Qui-Gon.'
They stood, not moving for a moment. But both of them were now conscious of what waited for them outside the door.
'I must go to the meeting,' Tahl said. 'Yes,' Qui-Gon agreed.
'We are Jedi. Our life together will be full of separations.'
'Yet we will have one life, together.'
'Yes.'
'When you return, we shall escort the twins back to Coruscant,' Qui- Gon said.
'Unless the government asks for our help,' Tahl amended.
'Yes, unless we are asked officially to stay,' Qui-Gon agreed.
'Whatever decision we make, we will be together,' Tahl said.
'Yes,' Qui-Gon agreed. 'At last this is clear.'
Chapter 18
Obi-Wan waited outside the door. He couldn't imagine why Qui-Gon had asked for privacy. What could he have to say to Tahl that his Padawan could not hear? Obi-Wan tried not to resent this. Whatever decision his Master made was undoubtedly the right one. Yet he still felt left out, sitting on the stairs outside the closed door like a child.
At last the door opened. Qui-Gon saw him on the stairs and walked toward him, Tahl at his side.
'Tahl will go to the peace meeting,' he told Obi-Wan. 'We will wait for her here with the twins. When she returns, if the official government of New Apsolon does not request our help, we will escort the twins off- planet as they wish. We will monitor the situation from the Temple, and return if we are asked.'
Obi-Wan nodded. He had known this before they had gone into the room.
So why did Qui-Gon seem different? The hunted look on his face was gone.
Something profound had changed inside that room.
'We are not leaving a stable planet, but at least we can bring the twins to safety,' Qui-Gon said. 'That was the initial goal of the mission.'
'And we will leave with negotiations in place, I hope,' Tahl said.
Balog appeared. 'It is time.'
Tahl nodded. 'I am ready.'
She did not say good-bye to Qui-Gon or Obi-Wan, but walked out with Balog. Qui-Gon watched until the door closed behind them.
With the dawn came activity. Roan's body was removed, accompanied by Manex. Arrangements were made for the Supreme Governor to lie in state before his funeral. The twins went to their quarters to rest before packing for the journey to Coruscant.
Qui-Gon arranged for a morning meal. Obi-Wan was grateful. It had been a long night, and his appetite had returned. He ate everything on his tray and watched Qui-Gon sip his tea and have a few bites of bread.
'Are you worried about the meeting?' Obi-Wan asked.
