Paul saw Sidra in his dreams just as clearly as he had seen her that evening.

He still saw the battle that lay ahead and the terror that scared him so. But in contrast to that, he saw the Jedi he had met that day with Spice-laced eyes.

Her black hair sat in curls with pieces tied out of her face. As the sun set over the sand, Sidra turned to smile at him, her cheeks bunching into soft, pink loaves.

Even in his dreams, Paul's heart raged in his chest. Sidra Chihari looked at him like he was the only one who mattered on Arrakis, in the galaxy, and throughout the whole universe. He wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and be together without the worry of something tearing them apart.

But nothing came easy, and Paul's dreams made sure to show him that.

With the terror and war that he saw, he felt Sidra's pain. She suffers through so much loss that Paul couldn't see. He sees her come to him injured, crying and pleading for his help.

'Please, Paul, they killed everyone... there's no one left,' she said to him in Chakobsa.

Paul woke up with an urge to see her. The sight of her covered in blood made him panic, and while his mother slept next to him, Paul got to his feet.

The darkness in the sietch seemed irrelevant in the moment. Paul's legs moved on their own, leaving his cushioned futon. But when he stopped and thought about his mother behind him, Paul looked over his shoulder.

The state of Lady Jessica's sleeping figure made him realise how foolish he was being.

Sidra was fine. Everyone was asleep, and if something was wrong, the Fremen would have alerted them. The thing with Paul's dreams, is that there was still a doubt in their truth. To him, they were still just dreams, and not everything he saw could be a near future.

His shoulders relaxed and the drowsiness kicked in. It was the middle of the night and Paul had an exhausting collection of days. Not only him, but Sidra surely had, too. He didn't want to disturb her for his so-called 'visions'.

Paul was already bitter towards the Bene Gesserit for their shaping of his birth. His mother had always held a guilty face when the Reverend Mother subjected him to their tests. His dreams were said to be apart of the Bene Gesserit's power, as well as his use of the Voice. But Paul couldn't be bothered clouding his mind with these thoughts. 

So, he laid back down and hoped his dreams would only hold Sidra Chihari's beautiful face.

---

The next morning, the Fremen prepared for a ceremony. Sidra was given some breakfast and a dribble of water, which she appreciated. 

Water was scarce throughout the desert, and for the Fremen to give her some was a great honour. But she hoped it was because she wasn't a threat, and not because of their supposed prophecy. Sidra would hate to think that the Fremen were wasting their water by prioritising her over others.

Dressed in her stillsuit and with the nose tube on her lip, Sidra followed the Fremen out of the sietch. Stilgar led the party, while a group of woman huddled around Lady Jessica Atreides.

'Sidra Chihari, your grace,' she had introduced herself to the woman that morning. 'I'm sorry to hear about your husband...'

'Thank you, but I'm afraid that I have nothing on my mind a part from the ceremony today,' Lady Jessica had replied with barely a smile. 'Paul tells me that you're a Jedi.'

'Yes, ma'am. But I am just a learner. My Master is... hopefully in search of finding me.'

Sidra was careful on what she told the wife of the deceased duke of Arrakis. She didn't want to upset her with the mention of his murderers, nor did she want to say that she was working with them. So, Sidra left the conversation there, and the frowning Atreides was swept away by Fremen women.

The desert was hot, as it always has been. Much to Sidra's relief, the Fremen didn't head out into the sand. They went around the rock formation that was their home and made sure to hover in the shade. The ceremony would be held in a small cave, where the Fremen's religious leaders awaited.

Sidra squinted out to the desert and wandered how many sandworms were lingering below the surface. Her first encounter with Shai-Hulud, as the Fremen called them, had been distressing. But she was interested to know how the Fremen lived amongst them, as well as worshiped them.

'Can I ask what this ceremony is for?' Sidra said after a while. Chani, who she was growing a great liking to, was beside her, while Paul Atreides hovered behind them.

'Our Sayyadina is ageing, and we're in need of another. But the ceremony requires The Water of Life; a poison that sits in the belly of Shai-Hulud. 

Not everyone is able to survive this, but if they do, they have been chosen to hold the wisdom and knowledge of the tribe,' Chani explained and Sidra was listening intently, until the young girl scoffed. 'Or so they say.'

'You don't believe in it?' Paul asked, making the two look over their shoulders. Chani had almost forgotten that the boy was there, but Sidra had been aware of his presence ever since they left the sietch. 

Chani sighed and turned back to the front. Sidra was slower in this action, as Paul's stare lingered on her. She saw his Adam's apple move up and down as he swallowed, before Sidra forced her head to turn and listen to more of Chani's explanation.

'Stilgar has always been one for religion. He's from the south, where they believe this is how they've survived so long. But I've had my doubts...'

Sidra pondered this while looking up to the head of the group. She saw Naib Stilgar, who was speaking in mumbles to one of the women around Lady Jessica. While everyone walked, Sidra called to the Force to stretch her hearing. She knew it was rude to use the Force in this way, and she could already hear Master Obi-wan's scolding in her head.

'A Jedi does not use their power for their own benefit, no matter the temptation.'

But Master Obi-wan wasn't around and if Ahsoka was here, she would do the same. Their curiosity was usually in-sync, but Master Anakin wasn't as traditional as his friend.

'Make sure you don't make it obvious.'

The thought of Ahsoka and their Masters made Sidra realise how much she already missed them. But her ears were tuned into the conversation ahead, and Sidra pushed her desires away for the time being.

'If she accepts The Water, then she could be the mother in the prophecy,' the Fremen said in their language. 'An off-world mother and her son arrive on the eve of retribution. And with them, an off-world warrior, the messiah's mind to his voice.'

'We will be in paradise soon. I can feel it.'

Sidra felt the hairs under her stillsuit stand up when Stilgar looked over his shoulder. His Fremen eyes met hers, before they shifted behind her, where Paul was climbing through the sand's incline. Stilgar then smiled, almost as he if knew Sidra was listening from her distance, before turning around.

---

'Now, remember what I told you. The worms can hear footsteps on the surface. The walk I showed you mimics the sounds of the desert.'

In a carrier ship, Luvis was making some last minute confirmations. Ahsoka, Obi-wan, and Anakin were strapped in to their seats, while a Harkonnen piloted the ship.

Everyone, besides the Harkonnen, were dressed in Fremen stillsuits with their weapons on their belts. Luvis had a knife, not a Crysknife, as the Harkonnen would never allow anything of the sort in Arrakeen. 

The Jedi had their lightsabers, as well as some water pouches. Unlike Luvis, whose Fremen heritage assisted in his adaption to the desert, the Jedi would need extra supplies.

'How do we know which tribe they were from?' Anakin called over the ship's engine. 'Aren't there hundreds across the planet?'

'We will start where the attack happened,' the Fremen said from beside Obi-wan. 'It is likely that the tribe inhabit one of the surrounding formations.'

'Likely?' Ahsoka repeated, an eyebrow raised.

Luvis looked at the Padawan beside him. He looked hesitant, but Obi-wan and Anakin sensed that there was more to Luvis' silence. They noticed his forever shifting eyes when a Harkonnen was near, and they could only imagine how they treated him when the Jedi weren't around.

While it seemed that Luvis was helping the Harkonnen and their associates, there was still a loyalty to the Fremen.

'This is as far as we will go,' the Harkonnen said from the cockpit.

The Jedi craned their necks to peer around the pilot's bald head. The windshield showed more of the desert that was nothing but sand. Another carrier ship hovered nearby with its landing ramp dispatched from its hull. Clones of the 501st could be seen dropping out of the ship, where the fall was cushioned by the dense sand.

The 501st had swapped out their white armour for the last of the stillsuits, meaning their dark hair and copied features peaked out from the stillsuit's masks. This meant that only a handful of the army were able accompany their generals. 

Captain Rex had decided to stay in Arrakeen with the rest of the 501st. This wasn't ideal, but with the Harkonnen being so indifferent to Sidra's rescue mission, Anakin had thought it was best to leave his right-hand man at the complex.

Obi-wan was the first to stand, but he waited for Luvis to head towards the back of the ship. The landing ramp lowered, allowing the heat of the desert to blast their faces. It made the Jedi remember to grab the masks that hung around their collars and put it over their mouths.

One by one, the Jedi followed Luvis out of the ship. The ship's engines were loud as they dropped, but dulled once their feet thudded against the sand. From the first contact, the Jedi worried that their arrival had alerted the worms below. But when the two carrier ships left and Luvis stayed silent, they were put at a momentary ease.

'We will head north first,' Luvis explained while wrapping some beige rags around his head and neck. 'Gather your men, and we will set off until midday. We will rest, as the heat will be at its worse. And remember, walk like I told you.'

Before they left Arrakeen, Luvis advised the Jedi and clones to wear wraps to keep the sun off their heads and necks. The Masters and Padawan did this, before looking at each other through squints. Besides their off-world eyes, the Jedi looked like proper Fremen out in the desert.

Anakin called for the 501st that had dropped a few metres away. In a series of unrhythmical steps and drags of their feet, the clones clumsily made their way across the sand.

Ahsoka tried not to laugh at the way the clones wobbled and held their arms out to balance. It was like watching younglings on a tightrope.

To see one of the most lethal clone armies struggle to walk in the sand was near hilarious.

While Anakin addressed his team, Ahsoka looked to her right, where Master Obi-wan stood. Wth the wraps around his mask, Ahsoka could only see his blue eyes squinting from the sun. The wrinkling of his skin could have been from the brightness of the desert, but Ahsoka knew it was more than that. She knew that he was worried for Sidra despite his belief in her survival.

The truth was that Obi-wan was not afraid of how the Fremen would treat Sidra. He was afraid how she would be treated by the Harkonnen when they found her.

Would she be questioned for their whereabouts? For information on their technology? Their weaknesses? Obi-wan didn't want to put his Padawan through that.

'Master Kenobi,' Ahsoka called through her mask, and the man turned to look at her from the far-off dunes. 'We'll find her. I can sense it. Don't worry yourself.'

Her reassurance was appreciated and even if she couldn't see it, Ahsoka sensed that a smile was on Master Obi-wan's face.