Work Text:
Usually, Barriss didn’t like big crowded events, but for once she was actually enjoying herself. The music was a pleasant undercurrent to the buzz of conversation. Most of the people around her were clones, bumping into each other and dancing with a distinct lack of coordination, but still having fun. She wasn’t much of a dancer, just wandering around, saying hi, and enjoying the atmosphere of the party.
She heard whoops from several people as the next song started and an undercurrent of fear and anticipation in the Force.
"Oh don't you dare look back
Just keep your eyes on me"
I said, "You're holding back"
She said, "Shut up and dance with me!”
Barriss grinned, weaving through the crowd to where Ahsoka was sitting in a chair against the wall, already exhausted even though she’d only been on her feet for five minutes.
“Ahsoka, come on, let’s go dance!”
Her best friend glared at her. “I am due in two weeks and you’re asking me if I want to dance? No, I want to stuff my face with chocolate, chug an entire bottle of wine, and sleep until I go into labour.”
“Come on, don’t be a killjoy!” She grabbed her hand and tried to pull Ahsoka out of her seat. She didn’t budge.
“You weren’t strong enough to lift my dead weight when I wasn’t pregnant, what makes you think you can lift me plus sixty pounds?”
“I’m gonna try anyway!” The effort was useless, and she knew it, but it was about the principle.
“I’m sure all of the clones would be happy to dance with you.”
“Come on, enjoy yourself! This is a party!”
Ahsoka sighed. “Bee, I am enjoying myself. I’m just perpetually miserable right now. I’m sure I’ll feel much better after the babies are born. You go find someone else to dance with.”
“Okay, fine.” She left her friend to be miserable by herself and wove back through the crowd. She almost crashed into Satine, who was being whirled around from trooper to trooper as all of them tried to get a chance to dance with her. Her hair was down, flying around her shoulders and she was positively giddy.
“Whoa, excuse me, I’m just getting flung around here!” There was a dark blush rising on her pale cheeks. “Didn’t mean to run you over!”
“You’re fine! Having fun?”
“Oh yes! The 212th is quite enthusiastic at me and Obi finally getting back together after all these years and it seems they’ve taken it as a sacred duty to make sure every single one of them dances with me.” Another trooper grabbed her hand and she whooped. “Well here I go again!”
A backless dress and some beat up sneaks
My discothèque, Juliet teenage dream
There was a large screen at the end of the hanger which had been briefly transformed into a dance hall displaying pictures that looked like they were from various stages of Obi-Wan and Satine’s lives. There was one of them much younger, Satine yanking Obi-Wan off a bar stool by his arm, presumably toward a dance floor. He still had the stupid padawan haircut that thankfully had gone unenforced during the war and had never applied to females anyway, and Satine’s loose dress looked common, so this was probably a picture taken during the infamous ‘year on the run’ that neither of them talked about but everyone else knew about.
Satine finally circled back around to Obi-Wan and a large space formed around them as they danced together. Barriss knew Obi-Wan could sing and she thought it was a real crime he didn’t more often, but she didn’t know he could dance! Both of them were singing along to the song and laughing like just for this moment, they were young again.
"Oh, don't you dare look back
Just keep your eyes on me"
I said, "You're holding back"
She said, "Shut up and dance with me!"
This woman is my destiny
She said, "Ooh-ooh-hoo
Shut up and dance with me”
More anticipation and the clones got ready to do something. What that something was she didn’t know. Obi-Wan continued the song as Satine just laughed.
Deep in her eyes
I think I see the future
I realize, this is my last chance
She took my arm
I don't know how it happened
We took the floor and she said
Suddenly everyone deserted the dance floor, leaving Satine alone in the middle of it. Barriss moved with the clones around her. Satine looked around, brow furrowed in confusion, and looked back at Obi-Wan, who now stood on the makeshift karaoke stage the 501st had for some reason with a microphone and something small in his free hand. The vocals from the song were replaced by his voice.
"Oh, don't you dare look back
Just keep your eyes on me"
I said, "You're holding back"
She said, "Shut up and dance with me!"
This woman is my destiny
He’d been walking slowly toward Satine as he sang and suddenly comprehension dawned on her face as he got down on one knee in front of her, and revealed what he’d been keeping concealed in his other hand.
A ring box.
Satine recoiled out of shock, hands flying to her mouth. Over the mic, Obi-Wan announced, “Satine Kryze, will you marry me?”
A single beat of dead silence except for the song, and then she snatched the microphone from him and yelled, “KRIFF YES!”
Obi-Wan whooped, jumping to his feet to pull his new fiancée into his arms and twirl her around. Nearly the entire battalion’s worth of troopers was cheering loudly. Barriss had to stuff her fingers in her ears to block out what sound she could when it became too much, but she grinned like an idiot watching them, until someone else caught her eye.
Red hair, quieter than the clones but still cheering, Mandalorian attire. Presumably Korkie Kryze, Satine’s nephew.
Her heart stuttered for a beat, but that was overstimulation kicking in and her brain threatening to go into fight-or-flight if she didn’t leave and go collect herself.
His eyes swept over the crowd, as if sensing someone watching him, and locked with hers. It could have been the distance, but she swore she saw a blush creeping up his cheeks.
As she turned away to go find a quiet space to recover, a chill ran down her spine, despite the heat of the room.