Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars. I just wish I did.

This story will be my first angst/hurt/comfort story. It takes place shortly after Obi-Wan and Rilla become Qui-Gon's Padawans. They are 13 at the time. The story will revolve around Rilla and explain how she got the scars mentioned in chapter 3 of Troy and Rilla. I didn't do my usual disclaimer because I felt that it didn't fit with the story, as my other stories are pretty light-hearted. Also, I dedicate it to my sister, who enjoys these kinds of stories. I hope you enjoy it!

~ = personal thoughts

/ = bond speech

Scarred...

~I can't sleep~ Rilla Kenobi thought to herself. It was about one in the morning and, no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't get to sleep. ~Maybe I'll go for a walk. That's sure to help~

She got up and crept quietly out of the room she was sharing with her brother, Obi-Wan. She tip-toed past their Master's room and headed towards the door of the small cottage they were staying at during the mission.

They had come to the planet Cathar to help with peace negotiations between two rival clans. Tahl Uvain was there as well. The tribe that had called for the Jedi to help seemed quite ready for peace, while the other clan was a bit unsure. Rilla has noticed that one of the respected members of the second clan, Zena, seemed particularly hostile towards the Jedi.

Rilla walked out of the cottage, barefoot and without her lightsaber, and started towards a small pond she had noticed earlier that day. The full moon provided plenty of light, so she had no trouble seeing even without her night vision. The pond was a pretty good ways away but not so far that she would get lost trying to find it.

Reaching the edge of the town, she started to run through the tall grass. It was just a little shorter than she was, but then, being only 4'8" that wasn't saying much. She knew she would grow at least a few more inches, given the fact that Livians grow until they are eighteen years old.

She soon reached the pond and sat down on the bank. Looking at her reflection, she began to think about the mission. Pretty soon her thought drifted to the hostile clan member, Zena. While the Cathar hadn't said or done anything outright to them, her dislike of Jedi had been obvious just by the way she looked at the four of them. ~I wonder what her deal was~ Rilla thought absently.

Just then she heard the grass rustle behind her. Jumping up, she looked around. "Who's there?" she called. No one answered but she could still feel whoever it was through the Force. She just didn't know where they were. She suddenly wished she had brought her lightsaber. Having only been a Padawan for a few months, Qui-Gon hadn't had a chance to take her and Obi-Wan to Ilum to find the crystal they needed to build their own lightsabers. In the meantime, they were using the ones Master Yoda had given them. ~It doesn't matter who gave it to you, dummy, because you don't have it~ she thought, giving herself a swift, mental kick.

Just as she was beginning to think that she was merely sensing some wild animal, Rilla heard quiet chuckling coming from somewhere in the grass directly in front of her. She was about to move forward to see who it was when a female Cathar stepped out into the moonlight. Rilla immediately recognized her.

"Well, well, well. What are you doing out here all by yourself, little Jedi?" Zena asked.

"Oh nothing. Just couldn't sleep so I decided to take a walk," Rilla replied. She was beginning to have a very bad feeling. And she knew that whenever there was one of those, it meant that trouble would follow shortly. "Actually, I'm beginning to feel tired now." She started to back away, "I guess I'll head back now..." she turned around and had taken no more than two steps when she felt sharp claws dig into her back. Whirling around, she found Zena right behind her with blood on one her claws.

"What the heck is wrong with you?!" she demanded, still backing away but not turning her back again.

When the Cathar didn't respond, she realized she was in big trouble. Rilla turned around and raced off, Zena close behind her the whole time. /Master! Obi-Wan! Help/ she shouted through the Bond.

Behind her, Zena growled, "Don't even bother screaming, little Jedi. No one will hear you."

"Fantastic," she muttered under breath.


"Where is she?" Obi-Wan asked for the hundredth time.

"Once again, Padawan, I do not know," Qui-Gon Jinn replied.

They had both been awaken by Rilla shouting for help through the Bond. Unfortunately, they hadn't been able to reach her since. Unsure of what might be going on, they had awaken Tahl and, together, the three had begun to search the fields surrounding the cottage.

"Boys, over her!" Tahl Uvain called. They rushed over to her. She was next to a small pond. Looking up as they stopped next to her, she said, "Look at this."

On the ground in front of them were drops of purple blood.


Rilla ran faster. Every so often, Zena would get close enough to dig her claws into either her leg or her back. She was beginning to feel dizzy from losing so much blood but she kept on running, knowing that if she stopped, she would die.

Spotting a cliff up ahead, she ran towards it hoping that she would be able to jump high enough and climb to the top quick enough that she could either lose Zena or at least hide from her before she reached the top.

Reaching for the Force, she jumped with all her might and managed to grab a small outcropping a good ways up. Zena growled at her from below before climbing up after the Padawan. At one point, she got close enough to sink her claws deep into Rilla's ankle. Rilla then kicked her hard in the face with her other foot, causing Zena to lose her grip and fall back to the ground.

Knowing that the Cathar wouldn't give up so easily, she climbed as fast as she could. Reaching the top, she pulled herself over the edge and raced into the grass. Stopping, she crouched down to hide, using the Force to help her catch her breath and quiet her breathing.

Not long after, she heard Zena reach the top and run past her, only to stop a little farther away. "I know you're close, little Jedi. Do you think I can't smell your blood?" Knowing that the Cathar were feline, Rilla wasn't surprised by this but it scared her none the less.

Using the Force, she caused the grass a little farther away to rustle. She could hear Zena pounce instantly on that spot. Taking advantage of her momentary distraction, Rilla shot up and raced away, knowing full well Zena would be close behind.


Obi-Wan was running through the fields, following his twin's blood trail. Qui-Gon and Tahl were directly behind him.

They came to a stop at the bottom of a cliff. Surveying the rock wall, Obi-Wan quickly spotted the blood smears on the wall.

Turning to the Masters, he said, "She went up." He then started climbing, the other two right behind him.


She could almost see the town ahead of her when Zena pounced on her from behind sending her crashing to the ground. Rilla groan weakly, blood loss was starting to take its toll on her. As Zena raised her claw for another strike, she focused on the Force before screaming as loud as she could, using the Force to amplify it. At the same time, she dropped her mental shields, sending all the pain and fear she was feeling to anyone who had a bond with her.


Obi-Wan felt it the moment his sister's shields dropped. Tearing off in the direction he felt his sister's weakening Force presence coming from, Qui-Gon and Tahl close behind him, he sent across their twin bond /Hang on just a little longer. We're coming!/


/Hang on just a little longer. We're coming!/ Rilla couldn't have been happier to hear her brother's words. She didn't have the strength to send anything back but she did smirk since she was facing the ground. Her mind began searching for ways to stall Zena.

"Why are you doing this? What did I do to you?" she asked quietly, turning her head a bit so she could more or less see the Cathar.

"It's nothing personal, child," Zena replied, running a single claw down the Padawan's arm, cutting it deeply. "It's merely because you're a Jedi. I figured you would be the easiest target out of all the others."

"So, you hate the Jedi. Why?" Rilla asked. Though she was rather insulted by being considered the weakest of everyone else, she let it go.

"Because it was a Jedi who killed my husband," Zena growled.

"Well, if he was killed by a Jedi then he must have done something really bad," Rilla snapped back. She quickly regretted it, as Zena instantly swiped her face, leaving deep gashes across the right side of her face. ~That's gonna leave a mark~ she thought.

"My husband did nothing wrong!" Zena roared. "That Jedi killed him for no reason!"

"Very well. Say I believe that." Rilla said, trying a different stalling technique. "How are you better than that Jedi was if you kill me?"

Zena actually seemed to consider this for a moment. Then she smiled darkly and slashed Rilla's arm again before saying, " I see what you're doing and I won't work."

Rilla just groaned.

"You're going to die, little Jedi. And then the Jedi will understand how I felt!" she continued, raising her razor sharp claw to deliver the final blow.

Rilla closed her eyes and waited. But the blow never came. Instead she felt a hand gently raise her head and a frightened voice ask, "Hedgehog?"

She opened her eyes at the familiar nickname and unfocused brown eyes met terrified and concerned blue ones. "Hey, Obi. What's new?"

Obi-Wan chuckled weakly. He gently wrapped his arms around her and said, "Everything's okay now. Master took care of the Cathar."

Upon seeing the danger his Padawan was in, Qui-Gon had thrown himself through the air and tackled Zena. He was currently standing over her with his lightsaber at her throat.

"I've got this Qui-Gon," Tahl said. "You get Rilla to a med center."

He nodded and walked over to his Padawans. Putting a hand on Obi-Wan's shoulder, he gently pulled the boy away from his sister. Picking up the injured Padawan, he looked at Obi-Wan and said, "Get on my back, Padawan. This is going to be a quick trip."

Obi-Wan did as he was told and soon the three were racing across the savanna towards the town, Qui-Gon using Force enhanced speed.

Upon reaching the med center, Obi-Wan had hopped down and walked quickly along side his Master. They quickly found a nurse and, after looking over Rilla and having some other nurses take her away, she said, " There doesn't seem to be any internal damage." Looking up at Qui-Gon, she continue, "We are short on Bacta and, since her injuries are only life threatening if not treated immediately, we'd prefer to use stitches instead."

Qui-Gon nodded his understanding, "So long as she lives, that is fine."

The nurse nodded, "She's going to need more blood, that's for sure."

"Then you'll need mine," Obi-Wan said, speaking up for the first time since arriving. "We know that we have the same blood type, so that will be the fastest way to get what she needs."

The nurse nodded again, "Very well then. You'll need to come with us for a few minutes so we can get the blood and then you may rejoin your Master." Obi-Wan nodded and followed the nurse.

Obi-Wan returned shortly after, drinking a juice box and munching on a cookie. After about an hour, the nurse came back and told them to follow her. "We were able to stop the bleeding and stitch her up fairly easily. Her body accepted her brother's blood without any problems. I must warn you, though. Many of the cuts were very deep and cut straight down to the bone. She won't be able to do much for a few months at least. There will also be a lot of scarring, especially on her back and arms. The cut on her ankle was one of the worst and she may end up with a permanent limp but, other than that, so long as she rests and does what she's told, she'll heal just fine. As soon as she's strong enough, I'll arrange for her to be transported back to Coruscant." She stopped outside of a room. "This is her room. She's still asleep but should wake up soon."

Qui-Gon thanked her and the Master and Padawan walked into the room. Rilla was sound asleep, as the nurse had said, and didn't so much as stir when they both sat down and each took one of her hands.

Obi-Wan leaned down and whispered in her ear, "Everything will be alright now. You're safe." He then kissed her forehead.


Rilla woke up to the sound of a machine beeping. While the last time she remembered was her Master picking her up, she knew exactly where she was. ~Great I'm back in the med center~

She heard a soft chuckle and opened her eyes. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan were both standing over her. She realized that her shields had collapsed and that they had heard every word. She gave them both a sheepish grin.

Qui-Gon smiles before repeating everything that the nurse had told them. He concluded with, "And I expect you to heal as much as your body will allow so you had best do as your told."

"Yes, Master," she said. She was only 13 and yet she already had a reputation in the healers ward as being one the most frequent and most difficult patients.

She then fell silent for a few minutes, considering what her Master has just told her. When she spoke again, she had a slightly joking tone in her voice, "Well, maybe now people will take me seriously on missions."

Qui-Gon laughed, "Maybe they will."

Rilla looked at her bother. They both smiled. Rilla may be scarred but the two were happy just to have each other.