FORCE OF NATURE ( A. SKYWALKER ) [2]

III.

Beads of sweat trailed down Layna's temple as she sprinted to the parking lot, following closely behind the blonde Padawan who was just a tad faster than she was. Her eyes of dark brown closed momentarily as she attempted to sense Obi-Wan's presence, and visibly paled when she felt his presence grow farther and farther. They needed to hurry.

"Over here!" Anakin rounded a corner, with the younger girl following suit and she exhaled out a sigh of relief upon seeing the various parked speeders in the parking lot. Her older friend did not hesitate to climb into a yellow colored speeder nearby, and she'd normally stop to consider her options before borrowing a stranger's vehicle but she knew that there was no time to do so this time.

She hopped onto the yellow speeder, taking the seat beside Anakin and buckled herself in. Glancing to her left, she was met with Anakin's piercing ocean blue gaze and gave him a nod, which he returned. The Padawan then started up the speeder, backing up once it started up and exited the parking lot in a swift motion.

Layna definitely had no problems with flying, but this is probably the first time she has actually attempted to fly with Anakin as the pilot. She knew just how skilled the boy was with piloting, she has seen first-hand during his last podrace ten years ago. With such speed and mastery of the controls, Layna knew he could catch up to that droid immediately.

Layna felt the strong winds slap against her face, her hair whipping wildly in the wind as they zoom past the other cruisers stuck in traffic. She kept her eyes on the man holding onto the retreating droid, hoping that the auburn haired man would hold on just a little longer.

Anakin sped through the air, managing to avoid the other speeders hovering nearby as Layna kept a close eye on the bearded man, who was around a hundred feet away. She let out a gasp when the droid suddenly exploded, causing the Jedi Knight to fall from where he was flying. "Hurry, Anakin!"

Layna watched as Obi-Wan hurtled downwards, an anxious expression on her face as she worried for her old friend. She lurched to the right as Anakin swerved abruptly, towards the direction of the man plummeting a hundred feet through the air. She breathed out a sigh of relief when Obi-Wan landed on the back of the speeder, holding on tightly as Anakin continued to maneuver at high speed.

"Are you alright, Master?" the younger Jedi asked the man who plopped down onto the seat next to her. Since the speeder was only made for two people, Layna was practically pushed up against Anakin's side when the bearded man took the other vacant seat.

Obi-Wan nodded in reply, his gray-blue eyes peering over at the nineteen year old Padawan. "What took you so long?" he asked Anakin, whose lips twitched upwards into a smirk.

"Oh, you know Master, I couldn't really find a speeder that I liked," Anakin responded, causing Layna to roll her eyes. Her dark eyes found the speeding vehicle of the assassin, who was attempting his escape and pointed to it as Anakin continued to drone on about the vehicle they borrowed. "There he is!"

"If you spent as much time practicing your saber techniques as you do your wit, you would rival Master Yoda as a swordsman!" Obi-Wan practically shouted as Anakin increased the speed of the vehicle even further, the young girl growing to enjoy the feeling of the winds whipping against her.

"I thought I already did?" she heard Anakin ask, and she couldn't help but let out a loud laugh, turning to the older boy with an amused smile on her face. Anakin glanced over at the brunette for a few seconds, before turning his attention back to piloting the yellow speeder.

"As if," she reached up to pat his shoulder, grinning at the blonde boy as he shook his head with a faint smile on his pink lips. She felt her pulse pick up as Anakin maneuvered through the Coruscant traffic with such speed, a grin making its way onto her face as she enjoyed the feeling of having the wind whipping against her and her heart rate accelerating due to the adrenaline. Glancing to her right, she bit down on her bottom lip upon seeing the expression on Obi-Wan's face, knowing that the Jedi did not quite enjoy flying, at all.