Fallen

4.

 

She was simply stunning. The sapphire blue dress she wore was breathtaking. The bodice laced all the way up her back and was fitted, leaving her shoulders bare, and showing off her figure. The skirt flared at her hips and was made of some flowy material, swirling around her long legs when she spun.



He was not ashamed to say he had been watching her all night – he certainly wasn’t the only man in the room who couldn’t keep his eyes off her. Her hair was swept up, sleek blonde curls escaping to fall around her face and the nape of her neck. He was fairly certain her feet would be quite sore by now; he had seen her dance with at least four partners in the last hour.



Of course, he wasn’t worried. He told himself it was because if she found someone – a good man – he would be happy for her, which was true, but deep down he knew she would never find anyone else, if only because she was never looking. Allowing himself to wonder why seemed mostly pointless.



The song ended; she smiled brilliantly, curtsied politely and promptly excused herself, expertly dodging a handsome young politician who seemed to be headed in her direction.



He chuckled softly; she certainly knew how to take care of herself. Confident in that, he turned his attention to scan the rest of the room. His job here was two-fold, as always. A jedi or two were usually required to attend these sort of diplomatic functions for security – but also partly because it looked good for the Order. It was important to keep up social relations with the Senate... and it bored Obi-Wan to death.



However, there did seem to be one bright spot.



He made his rounds, including the obligatory small talk with a few Senators, and with the party beginning to wind down, he found himself looking for Aala again.



Strangely enough, he didn’t find her on the dance floor. And when he didn’t see her anywhere else in the room, he reached out with the Force. His senses led him to a set of doors at the back of the room that opened to what he assumed was a balcony.



For whatever reason, he made sure no one was paying him any attention, then slipped outside.



Aala was leaning against the low wall, staring out at the city. Thankfully, she was alone on the balcony.



“Hiding?” he questioned, a wry smile on his face.



She turned at the sound of his voice, and smiled warmly when she met his gaze. “Yes, but you found me.”



“I can leave,” he gestured to the door, “if you like.”



“No,” she reached out to grab his arm. “Actually, I need you.” She said dramatically.



He grinned. “You ‘need’ me?”



“You’re my only hope.”



“Oh?”



“Well, it’s a long story...”



He shrugged. “I’ve got all night.”



“I’m glad to hear that.” Her eyes sparkled. “See, Padmé gave me this lecture this morning about not having enough gowns and not, I don’t know, fulfilling my beauty potential, or some such nonsense. So, she insisted I attend this thing and she picked this dress out herself,” Aala picked up her skirt and twirled, showing it off, “and made me wear it.”



“I must thank her the next time I see her.”



“Flatterer.” She laughed. “Anyway, she let me borrow Ellé,” Aala turned again, displaying the intricate laces and knots holding her dress together in the back, “for obvious reasons, but now there’s been some sort of emergency and, well, I’m stuck. They abandoned me.” She shrugged. “There’s no way I can get out of this dress myself. So,” she moved closer to him, and lowered her voice, “I need to ask a favor.”



He waited, a glint in his eyes.



“Will you help me get his dress off?”



“Here?” he pointed to the ground, feigning ignorance.



“Nooo... preferably at home.”



“Hmm,” he pretended to think about it. “What’s in it for me?”



“You’re a Jedi! You act without thought of reward or self. Besides, I can barely breathe and my feet are killing me. I imagine I’ll be quite agreeable once I get out of here – and this.” She smoothed the fabric cinched around her waist.



He couldn’t resist a little good natured teasing. “Oh really? It looked to me like you were enjoying yourself out on the dance floor. The belle of the ball.”



“Oh please,” she rolled her eyes then paused. “You’re not... jealous... are you?” She looked up at him innocently.



“Of course not. I have no reason to be.”



She smiled. He could be quite charming when he wanted to be.



Leaning in, he whispered, his lips close to her ear.” Just make sure to save the last dance for me.”



Their eyes met and for a moment, he thought he might like to kiss her.



“Give me 15 minutes,” Obi-Wan said, straightening, “and I’ll have you out of here.”



“Deal,” Aala answered, her blue eyes shining. “To both,” he heard her whisper as she watched him walk away.



*



If nothing else, he certainly had a new respect for handmaidens. Not only were the laces difficult for his calloused fingertips, it seemed nearly impossible for Aala to actually stand still for more than 5 seconds.



Almost on cue, she squirmed under his touch, her hand coming up to rub at a spot on the back of her neck.



“Aala, darling,” his breath stirred the wisps of hair behind her ear as he leaned closer, holding her shoulders in an effort to still them. “If you don’t stop wiggling, this’ll take twice as long as it should.”



“Well, stop breathing on me,” she complained. “It tickles.”



He chuckled going back to work on her dress, nearing the halfway point.



“Besides, I thought you said you had all night.”



“I did, but now that we’re here I really think there are better ways we could be spending our time.”



She turned her head flashing him a knowing smile, and he winked. Clasping her head in his hands, he turned her away, “Now don’t move.”



She rested her forearms on the door frame and arched her back drawing his attention to the span of smooth, pale skin. “At least you’re not wearing anything underneath,” he muttered picturing complicated corsets with millions of tiny hooks.



“Nothing would fit.” She grumbled.



It was almost an entire two minutes she had managed to stay still when Obi-Wan’s fingers slipped from the tight knot he was struggling with. “Blast,” he muttered under his breath.



“Oh, wait!” Aala suddenly turned to him, holding her loosening dress to her chest. “We never danced.”



Obi-Wan paused. “Don’t tell me you want me to lace that thing back up.”



“No,” she smiled. “Here, just -“ she pressed her lower body close to his, “hold me close,” she finished, moving her arm from between them and pulling him into a tight embrace.



He gave her a look that plainly said this wasn’t exactly what he’d had in mind. “There’s no music.” He pointed out.



“Please? I promised.”



He sighed, wrapping his arm around her. “Alright.”



Silence fell around them like a warm blanket, comfortable and calming. Aala pressed her cheek against his shoulder, her arm around his waist. They swayed gently, not really moving, her dress was in too precarious a position for any real dancing.



He pressed one hand to her lower back, where the laces were still tied, to help keep her body close to his. The other hand he let drift across her back and up to her shoulders. His thumb swept across the nape of her neck, then dipped lower, following the line of her spine. Her skin was unbelievably soft and he couldn’t help but briefly wonder how many other men tonight had done the same thing, had the same thoughts. He dismissed the idea just as quickly. It really didn’t matter.



Accidentally, his fingers brushed against the long scar that started in the middle of her back and wrapped around her body, ending, he knew, just below her belly button and she flinched. Her head snapped up and she looked at him and he knew she was biting her tongue. The scar and the accident bothered her more than she would admit, and she didn’t like to talk about it, but her agitation disappeared as quickly as it had arose. “Sorry,” she mumbled, chagrined, “it tickled.”



He pressed his lips to her temple and guided her head back to his shoulder. “It’s alright.”



Feeling her relax again, Obi-Wan took a deep breath and counted himself lucky one more quiet night could be spent with this woman in his arms. He closed his eyes and let his fingers drift together over the tight laces at her waist, deftly continuing to untie them.



“What would Master Yoda say if he knew you were using the Force to undress me?”



Obi-Wan let out a low chuckle. Lifting her head again, she met his eyes.



“I didn’t know you were paying attention.”



She smirked, clasping her hands behind his neck. “A girl tends to notice those kinds of things. It’s not every man that can literally undress you with his mind – wait – I think that’s...” She took a step back, grasping the material at her hips, and shimmied, tugging the dress inch by inch down her body.



One more lace, he knew, and the dress would have slipped off, but she simply lacked the patience for that. He was beginning to wonder if there wasn’t some other reason her borrowed handmaiden had to leave her so suddenly.



“There!” With a flourish, the dress fell past her hips and she whipped it back up again holding it against her body. “I better hang this up.” She turned to go into the bedroom and he got a very nice view of her backside, barely covered in a scrap of lace.



She turned her head just as she entered the room. “Coming?”