#It swore to bring down the Sith and so help it | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

murdockussy · 2 years

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Im neck deep in Sith!Obi so maybe some of that? Xreader…Putting reader in her place 🥹

Writing this has me in a deep Sith! Obi-Wan hole that I never want to leave. I love this request and I hope you enjoy it!!

(Head to my masterlist to read more about requests :))

Nothing Like You

Warnings: Fighting, choking, death references, sad Obi but he's hot when he's angry

Words: 4,700 ish

There was only one way to describe you felt – cold. Though not like the chill you’d feel as a cool breeze blew against your skin, or the icy metal of your lightsaber handle after being untouched for hours on end. No, this was different. This was the kind of cold that created an echoing tremble beneath your bones, that caused your mouth to run dry as you continued on your journey. The constant chill that ran through your spine stemmed from no relation to weather, but a place of unease – of fear.

Years before now – back when you were only approaching your trials for becoming a Jedi Master - there had been rumors sparked about a troubled Padawan and his loyal Master. It was believed that the Padawan - Anakin Skywalker - had been clouded by a darkened influence, his beliefs contorting down an immoral path Jedi swore to never go down. It was said that his Master - Obi-Wan Kenobi - had tracked the boy down to put an end to his disorder, thought what was to follow remained a mystery to all.

Some believe that Kenobi never made it – that Skywalker was too well hidden for him to find. Many suspect that the Master is still seeking out his Padawan. Others till this day often debate over the idea of Kenobi succeeding, only to cut his life short afterwards from guilt. Either way, the Jedi Order and the Republic remained stable, people still enduring their peaceful lives within the temple.

However, all began to change when a handful of your fellow Council members began to disappear one by one, not a word spoken or a trace left behind, which led you to where you were today.

It had been close to three days since you left the temple, yourself as well as other Jedi recruited individually to seek out the missing personnel. Given the little information you had on the issue, you all jumped to action with no guidance or direction, your only navigation being your gut feeling and the Force.

For the first two days, you’d flown from planet to planet in hopes to communicate with any available resources, any allies of the Jedi, to gather information, only to be let down by almost everyone's unfamiliarity with the situation. With no lead, you jetted out to deeper space, little hope to be found until you felt something – a sudden yet powerful disturbance within the Force – you instantly following the path it was leading you across.

The pull led you to an unknown planet, your ships navigations reading the terrene as completely vacant, and the closer you flew towards it, the more a feeling of restlessness began to expand inside you, growing wider in mass as you drew closer.

Dipping into what looked like a lifeless valley, the grounds beneath you were paved with red lava, the rivers of it a glowing blur as you skimmed just above the surface, you taking in the vast charcoal mountains surrounding you as you continued to peruse the draw of the Force. Your commute came to a stop as you reached a dead end, your pull taking a final tug as you landed your spacecraft atop of a flat cliff.

Switching off the engines, you shook the overwhelming feeling of nerves as you tugged your robe over your shoulders and grasped onto the handle of your saber, the weight of it resting in your palms bringing you a slither of comfort.

Stepping out onto the land, you couldn’t help but be somewhat appreciative of the sight before you – a volcano like mountain standing tall, you unable to see anything above it besides the dim smokey skies, trickles of raging lava cascading down the sides bringing light to the inky structure. At the base of the abundance was a hollow opening, a cave engulfed by darkness.

Igniting your saber, you held the weapon in front of you, your blade illuminating the walls of the cavity as you hesitantly entered, the sight of your ship growing faint behind you.

The further you trekked, the worse your emotions grew, your anxiety peaking as you walked, the sounds of your boots crushing rubble beneath you mixing with trickles of water in the distance echoing around you, your eyes constantly averting from left to right. Something definitely was off about this place, and you were certain that whatever it was would not be good news.

Your tour felt never ending, the sights around you remaining the same as you walked, and at one point you considered the possibility that you’d somehow got yourself caught in a hallucinative loop. That changed, however, when the acoustics around you grew quieter, you spotting a door like structure carved into the stone ahead. You approached it with caution, you switching the angle of your lightsaber to take in the mysterious carvings on the surface of the entrance, it portraying symbols that were unknown to you.

Before you had the chance of attempting to decode the message, the wall slid backwards, you jumping at the sudden movement, pulling your weapon close to your body as you changed your stance, preparing to attack. Met with nothing but silence, you relaxed slightly, your stance still defensive as you proceeded towards the door, your fingers pressing against the crack in the surface, the rock swinging open.

Stepping beyond the door, you were met with what seemed to be a second cave, the circular room larger in width than in length, the space illuminated by the dangling torches hanging from the wall's surfaces.

Passing beyond the doorway, your head tilted to take in the multiple hallways stemming from the room, you were oblivious to the closing of the door behind you, the thud of the frame closing causing you to spin with an audible gasp. Your back to the room, you frantically darted your eyes around the doorway, confused by the lack of presence you anticipated to be there – though something lingered in the air that caused you to feel nervous, a certain darkness that added to your weighty unease.

As you attempted to spin yourself back around to explore the cave, a sudden pressure snaked itself around the entirety of your body, a tightness on your neck causing the air around to become difficult to inhale. Your body grew limp, blood running cold as your feet disconnected with the stone floor beneath you, fear prickling across your skin as you levitated. Instantly you recognized the power being used against you – the Force – though not the kind you’d harvested for the entirety of your life. Whoever your new opponent was, they were completely surrounded by darkness.

Using all you might, you fought for air as you attempted in every way possible to break free from the Force hold, your body remaining stiff as you gradually were dragged slowly through the air away from the door, the movements coming to a pause once you were center of the room.

Your hand began to unwillingly loosen on your weapon, the blade of your saber lowering back into its handle before being pulled forcefully from your hand, a soft clap of the metal meeting with fabric sounding from behind you. Your eyes began to water, your mind feeling light as you continued to fight for air, your voice strained as you pushed out a soft plea, “...Put me... down”

The pressure surrounding you suddenly dissipated, your heightened body falling to the floor, you landing on your side before lifting yourself into a kneeling position, your hands resting on your chest as you remained doubled over gasping for air.

Your fuzzy brain regained its focus, your vision clearer from the oxygen flowing into your lungs once again, you only just taking notice of the shadowed figure in the corner of your eye. Raising your body into a standing position, you turned to face the person before you, the silhouette of a body seated on top of a colossal charcoal throne, their face shielded by the hood of their black robe, one of their legs bent resting on the seat in front of them while the other placed itself onto the floor, their foot tapping on the stone surface of the ground.

Your stomach dropped at the sight. You could feel the rage, the darkened power radiation off them as they sat smugly, spread out on their throne, you coming to a swift understanding of why you’d been feeling so anxious – the answer was seated directly in front of you.

Out of instinct, your palm opened as you attempted to drag your weapon back to you, only to be met by a strong resistance, you spotting the gloved hand of the person gripping the hilt of your saber, you switching to a less abrasive plan of action – you'd have to talk your way out of this.

“Who are you?”

You were met with a response of deep laughter, your patience beginning to wear thin as you took a step closer to the hooded figure.

“I asked you a question, show yourself!” you called, the echo of your choice swimming between the walls of the room.

The figure slowly adjusted their position, both their legs now touching the ground beneath them as their posture turned upright, their free hand steadily inching its way to their hood before pulling, the fabric of their disguise falling behind their head revealing their face.

Your eyes widened as you absorbed features of the man. His hair long, loose pieces falling against his forehead. On his left cheek, a permanent scar, a single line of deep reds and purples dripping from his cheekbone through to the edges of his lips. Though what stood out most of all was his gleaming eyes, the rings of his orbs a vibrant yellow hugged by a red horizon, a chill running down your spine as you caught them staring directly into yours.

He watched as you stalled, fear striking you. It had been so many years since you’d heard of a Sith, let alone encountered one.

“You’re afraid” The voice taunted, his eyes never leaving yours, “by my understandings, that isn’t very Jedi like, now is it?”

You dismissed his words as you attempted to restrain your emotions, not wanting him to read your sentiments any further. For a second time, you attempted to lure your weapon back to you side, your trial resisted against once again, his strength even stronger this time.

“If you wish for your weapon, all you have to do is ask” he smugly joked.

“What do you want from me?” you asked, your voice sturdy, you beginning to move closer to the throne the man sat atop of, mentally creating a plan of action.

“What makes you think I wanted you? You are the one who came to me, after all”

“The Force led me here, though I see now that it wasn’t the Force. It was just you, wasn’t it?”

“Smart little thing you are. However, still so foolish to fall into my trap, just like those before you”

Alarms began to ring in your mind at his words, you starting to connect to missing puzzle pieces.

“This is something you do often, falsely lure people in?”

“Not just people - Jedi. Though only the weakest of them seem to fall for it”

Suddenly it clicked, the disappearances of the Council members now making sense. They we’re bought here under false pretenses, just as you had been. But now one question remained – where were they?

“Whatever trap you think you have me in, I will not fall for it”

“Don’t be so naive. You know within your pathetic, hopeful little heart that you’re already trapped. But you should be proud, so far you’ve survived longer than the rest did”

“Where are they?”

“They’re gone” he said, raising his hand above him with an open palm, the sounds of rattling metal appearing from one of the hallway exits beside you, “Returned to whatever pathetic afterlife they believe in”

You caught the movement from the corner of your eye, your attention turning towards it. Your stomach dropped as you caught sight of the levitating pile of weapons, memorable lightsaber hilts piled together, some destroyed, burnt and broken, others completely intact – they belonged to your fellow council members, and you realised in that moment that they truly were gone.

“Don’t be so sorrowful. Their deaths we’re quick, practically painless – some of them, anyway” he scoffed, a small smile pulling at his lips as he gawked over the stack of weapons.

You took the small chance you had while the Sith was distracted to take back your saber, the resistance no longer there as you pulled it towards you through the Force, the metal flying through the air before landing in your palm, a wave of ease flowing through your veins as you gripped it with all your might, igniting the flaming blade.

Too late to stop your movements, the man threw the sabers back into the room they appeared from, the crashing sounds of them colliding with the floor causing you to jump, his face devious as his attention diverted back to you, his posture tightening.

“Smart move. A courageous thing you are, such a shame for you to go to waste”

“You won’t kill me” you spat, your legs spreading as you adjusted your stance, preparing for any form of attack.

“You weren’t exactly who I wished to have here in the first place, don’t be so egotistic”

The man stood, his frame appearing larger than yours as he stepped away from his throne, his direction aiming towards you. You side stepped, your legs slowly carrying you in the opposite direction of the man, him following pursuit, the two of you circling around one another from a distance.

“I’m not the one here with an ego issue”

A laugh erupted from the man, his prefect teeth flashing you a smile you’d believe to be genuine, friendly even. In the moment, you took a small slither of appreciation for the man's looks, his handsomeness shining through his dishonorable demeanor.

“You remind me of myself. I used to be as likeminded as you are, brave, daring, lig-”

“I am nothing like you. We are not the same”

His arm extended in front of him, gloved palm rotating to face you, your body stopping in its tracks. A sudden tight grip wrapped itself around you, squeezing you together from the neck down, a pressure on your throat lightly tightening, but you we’re still able to breathe unlike the last time.

“Do not interrupt me!” the man howled, his arm reached out as he stormed towards you, your heart beginning to rapidly beat.

He came to a pause a few feet away from you, his Force hold remaining strong as he stepped to the side, him now circling around you figure as his eyes raked your body up and down, watching as you attempted to fight against his grip.

“Your eagerness is intriguing. If I kill you now, your power goes to waste... but I can’t exactly let you walk out of here free, can I?”

“Let go of me” you responded, ignoring his question.

His body slowly passed your front, his eyes starting at your feet before working their way up to your face, you losing sight of him again as he worked his way behind you.

“I can give you a choice, a change of freedom” he said, you falling silent, him taking that as a que to continue.

“Either I kill you now” he spoke as he stepped forward, his voice appearing now directly behind you, his breath fanning over your ear sending chills down your spine, you lips parting in shock. “Or... you join me” he cooed into your other ear.

“No!” you spat, your head twisting to the side to face him, a smirk forming as he watched you struggle harder against his hold.

“Show a little appreciation, young one, you’re the first that’s even gotten the chance to make it out of here alive”

“I would rather die than to become a Sith, to become someone like you!”

To your complete shock, his hold around you faltered at your words, his smirk quivering. You took his bizarre reaction to your advantage, you continuing to throw insults his way.

“To be your apprentice would be worse than death itself. You are no leader I would live for!”

His features turned sour, yet his hold grew loose, you ongoing with your words.

“To have you as a Master would be a dishonor!”

A small whispered “No” escaped through his tight frown, his scorching eyes clouded with painful thoughts as he watched you. You took your chance at his distraction, your closed fist opening slightly as you used all your strength to knock the man beside you with the Force, his body stumbling backwards as the hold you were trapped in completely disappeared.

Without a second thought, you charged at the man, your ignited saber swinging towards him, him reflexing away at the last moment as your blade swooshed beside him.

With a twirl, he pulled his own weapon from his hip just in time for your second attack, his blade shooting forward, the flaming sword colliding with yours, the block just centimeters away from his face.

Your eyes widened at the blazing colors before you, you stumbling away from the man in pure shock. He stood, chest heaving as he watched you with fury, yet you couldn’t seem to care for the moment, you completely in a trance as you stared at his sword, mind moving at a rapid pace.

What was once blue now flickered with streams of red flowing from the base to the tip of the blade, the swirling colors dancing around one another, almost as if the red was a growing infection within the weapon.

Your mind flew back to the many conversations you’d had about a well-respected Jedi, one who was kind, yet skillful. Determined and hopeful, who’s vibrant blue saber was unforgettable on any battlefield. Who succeeded in his ways of becoming a General, coming forth to the Council just as you had. Who cared for his people so deeply, enough to lay his life on the line to stop his beloved Padawan – someone he considered to be a brother - from choosing a life of darkness. The realisation dawned on you, the mystery so many before you had yet to solve now standing before you.

The colorful blade of his weapon cascaded back into its hilt, his wide stance pulling together as he relaxed, him taking a step towards you.

“Ahhh, and there it is. You know”

“You... You’re Obi-Wan Kenobi”

Taking another step forward, he spoke again, “That name is just a ghost of my past, now I am only what remains”

Confusion aside, you couldn’t help but let the anger bubble deep inside you, your words pouring from your mouth before you had the chance to stop.

“They praise you, speak so highly of your dedication to the Order! Everyone holding you on some sort of... pedestal, but they are wrong! You’re no role model, you’re nothing like how they make you out to be!”

“You know what they say; never meet your hero's”

His smugness fueled your emotions, you holding your saber in front of you, the tip of it pointing towards his chest as you continued.

“How could a Jedi as honorable as Obi-Wan Kenobi turn into such a disillusion? You we’re atop of your game, you were a General, a member of the Council, you-”

“The Jedi Council were mindless! And they remain to be that way!”

“The Council aren’t the cause for this, you are!”

The shout of your words caused something within the Sith to snap once more, his smug tone turning cold as he pushed you backwards through the Force, your saber remaining ignited as it catapulted towards him, his own switching on to blaze with light, him holding both weapons in his hands.

“They made me the way I am!” Kenobi spat, you stumbling backwards as he chillingly creeped towards you, his voice rising as he continued, “They’re deceitful, selfish!”

“You hold so much anger towards them, enough to murder them with cold blood. There’s a cause” you stated, slowly pacing yourself away, you cautious to not push his buttons too far as you spoke, “Could it be guilt? A small part of you still regretful for turning against your own?”

“I don’t feel any remorse for your kind, their lies and dishonesties we’re the cause of their deadly fate, it was just a matter of time before they met it”

The glow in his eyes intensified with the colorful reflection of both sabers in his hand, his darkness seeping through now more than ever as he stalked you down like prey, you maintaining your distance as you both circled around the room.

“Someone as generous as the legendary Obi-Wan would not act in such vile ways over just lies-”

“They’re untrustworthy! They speak of the Sith in such negative manors, withholding from teaching the strength we hold, forcing those who feel it to reject it! They fear our power, the fact we’re stronger than any Jedi!”

“Yet you we’re one of them, one of the best members the Council ever had”

“The Kenobi they speak of is dead! Your people rejected the boy, rejected the truth that was stood directly in front of them! Their delusions and self-indulgence have consequences that we’re far overdue till now!”

His shouts ricocheted off the cave walls, your eyes squinting slightly from the pain that formed inside your ears. He was furious, chest rising and falling at a quickened pace has he grew closer to you. You knew you were now within dangerous waters, you getting somewhat of a breakthrough at his confession, his emotions pouring through the cracks he never meant to open, yet you went ahead with your questioning, working with a lack of plan as you continued.

“The boy...” you spoke calmly, his head tilting lower as he listened to your words, “They rejected him, your Padawan – Anakin Skywalker?”

“Don’t speak his name!”

Pain was evident in his voice, his angered gaze softening for just a moment, and suddenly it all made sense – his turn on the Jedi Order, on the Council, why he was killing the people of his past one by one.

“What you’re doing isn’t for your own sake, this is all for him. They rejected him, and now you’re seeking revenge, aren’t you?!”

Your breath was knocked from your lungs at the sudden drag of your body, your back colliding with the floor as you toppled over. Your arms were pulled from your sides, a nonexistent presence holding them out extended beside you, pinning you to the cool floor, you unable to lift yourself up. Fear slid its way through your bloodstream as the man marched towards you, him stepping over your body, his frame taller than ever as he stood with his boots on either side of your torso, the blades of the lightsabers now crossed dangerously close to your neck.

“You think you’re so wise, don’t you, little one? Attempting to use my past against me, to lower my guard?”

His body shifted, his legs lowering, knees moving one by one to rest on the floor beside you, his back arching slightly down as he now kneeled hovering above your stomach, his body dominating yours as he lowered the weapon just inches from your skin, the heat of the overlapped blades causing your neck to grow uncomfortably warm.

“You’re more naive than I thought. You believe your words can hurt me? I killed my Padawan, watched as the life drained from his body, and guess what, I'm going to do the same to you”

Your body drew cold with terror as your pulse began to catch in your throat, you fighting with what power you had to press your neck away from the blades.

“Oh, you’re scared? You should be”

“Don’t... don’t do this”

The man scoffed, his face lowering as close to yours as it could be without the sabers making contact with his chest, your stomaching beginning to churn with something different, something non fear related.

“Do you really think I'd let you walk out of here and return to your Jedi scum ways? You know your options, so choose”

Sudden images casted across your mind, a vision of yourself beside the man on the throne. You looked different, barely recognizable to who you were today. Your clothes were darker, more fitted, less layered and simpler. Your hair was longer, cascading across your chest, free from its usual pushed back look the Council made you wear. Your eyes were glowing, warm colors identical to the man sat beside you.

Yet of all the differences, one thing struck you the most – your smile. It was genuine, the brightest you’d seen it after so many years. It stretched out across your pink flushed cheeks as your head tilted to look at the Sith below you, his face turning to meet yours, your joyous features spreading onto his face. You we’re happy, truly happy – something you hadn’t been in a long time.

Your attention was drawn back to the present at the sound of the weapons being switched off, the humming coming to an end as the man pulled the handles away from your neck, him reattaching them to his hips as his face remained unreadable, the angered expression gone.

“You’re-”

“No!” you interrupted, your voice stern as you spat, “You can’t trick me, lure me into the darkness with false predictions!”

“I didn’t do that”

“You expect me to believe you, out of all people, you?! I won’t give in to your lies, get out of my head!”

His body swiftly shifted, his hands falling besides your head as he remained kneeling above your torso, the anger from his eyes pouring into yours as he glared at you, his breath hot across your face as he spoke.

“If I was in your head, you’d know. But I saw them too. That was not me, young one, that was the Force”

You remained silent, your breathing unsteady as you pondered. As much as you wanted to deny it, you knew within yourself that the Sith was right, that he wasn’t the cause of the image projections in your mind. Yet you refused to accept it, option for silence over a reply to his words.

“Refuse all you want, but you know the truth” he spoke, his body shifting as he raised a palm from the floor, it smoothly drawing closer to your face until it made contact with your skin, his gloved fingers delicately tracing from the edge of your temple to the base of your jaw.

“Your whit and courage can be put to so much more use. In the Council you have to fight to remain equal, but here, you won’t have too. Isn’t that what you want?”

The eye contact you maintained with the man wavered, you looking below his face before his fingers pinched your chin bringing your gaze to meet his once more. Your face was now mere centimeters from his, an electricity in your lips forming at the close distance between his and yours, his voice falling deceivingly sweet as he cooed.

“By my side, you can be happy, just like you were in the vision. There’s a darkness within you. It’s there whether you wish to accept the facts or not. Allow it to overtake you, bask in its power. Join me, let me help you... We can be free, together”

There was a beat of silence once the whispered words fell from his mouth, the two of you unmoving as you allowed his offer to sink within your skin, your answer becoming clear, him catching a glimpse your decision through the brisk twinkle in your eye. Sucking in a sharp breath, his head dipped, his lips barely grazing yours, him waiting for you to lock in your fate, and without a second thought, you did, a powerful yet blissful wave of darkness dancing down your spine as your lips made contact with his.

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sepublic · 2 years

Note

Speaking of Ren, how do you think he and the rest of the knights came into the service of Sidious? They seem none too thrilled about the Sith in crimson reign, with it even being noted groups like them were victims of the force sensitive purges Palpatine ordered

Given how the Ren simply exists to consume and doesn’t apologize for its existence, doing whatever is necessary to survive... Be it death or destruction... I have to imagine that by the end of the day, the Knights of Ren swallowed their pride and swore fealty to Sidious to survive. It’s not fun, but the Ren is the Ren.

This does get me into a bit of speculation and even a theory I have about the upcoming Hidden Empire series, and how I think all of this may tie into The Rise of Skywalker, bless those writers who perform the unenviable job of actually fleshing out the Sequel era’s story and even making it poetic at times. I think Hidden Empire will not only explain how the Knights of Ren came to serve the Sith, but also give more explanation as to Palpatine’s survival...

First off, I want to bring up Momin; Another Sith like Palpatine. He visited a wide variety of locations (such as the one depicted above), and then built a super weapon that would slow down time, freezing its victims in the eternal moment of their demise and suffering; A way to prolong the dark side and grant it immortality in a sense, as befitting Momin’s unique take on the Sith ideology. Alas, his machine backfires thanks to the Jedi, bless them, and Momin mentions specifically that he lost control of the energies of his machine when it backfired and vaporized him, leaving just his helmet behind.

So I believe that’s the explanation as to how Momin’s spirit survives in his mask, countless years later for Palpatine to find; Time slowed down Momin’s death instead, granting him a twisted form of immortality, not too unlike what Darth Sanguis achieved. And we know Palpatine interacted with Momin’s spirit before passing the helmet down to Vader...

Why is this relevant to the Knights of Ren? Well, the Archivist explains that Qi’ra’s attempted rebellion against Palpatine is ultimately a tragedy. And Qi’ra’s plan hinges on uncovering a legendary artifact that the Archivist is familiar with, an hourglass found in a location identical to one of the places Momin visited in his travels. And it’s the Knights of Ren who visit this place with the Archivist, claiming the hourglass at the cost of their comrade Bazzra.

Not only that, but earlier in the Knights’ storyline for this conflict, they infiltrated Vader’s castle through the same room where Momin opened a convergence in the force and died a second time; The aforementioned Bazzra sees a vision of Momin’s decapitated head, still alive. It’s a fun Easter egg and continuity nod, but I also have to wonder if it serves as a reminder and a hint as to what forces Qi’ra is working with here; What energies, perhaps not unlike the ones Momin lost control of.

He did dabble in the flow of time and whatnot, using the world between worlds and of course his failed superweapon as a means of accidental immortality. And an hourglass is of course an item that invokes the process of time in its function, so presumably this artifact that Qi’ra needs is related to time in some manner. We know this artifact’s location helped inspire Momin’s attempt to freeze time and preserve victims in eternal agony, only for that to backfire on him; Allowing Momin’s spirit to last and even possess living vessels...

And we know the Knights of Ren join Palpatine. That Qi’ra fails. And notably, Ren the character warns the Archivist that he and the Knights of Ren are done dying for her; They took this cause on for the sake of survival, so what’s the point if they all die taking down the Sith? And from a meta standpoint, what’s the point of this artifact if it accomplishes nothing in the end? Well... Maybe it does play a role;

I think this hourglass has the power to mess with the flow of time, slow it down, freeze it, etc. Momin studied it to figure out how to preserve everyone in their eternal moment of agony, but his research ended up doing that to himself; But he lived as a spirit who could possess bodies. By the time of Crimson Reign, Qi’ra hopes to use this hourglass to trap and freeze Palpatine, physically, in time. However, the Knights of Ren are instrumental in acquiring this hourglass and know about it themselves.

They’ve already lost two of their own -Fyodor and Bazzra- to Qi’ra’s cause. And we can guess that by the time they fight Luke Skywalker on Elphrona, Marinda and Massif die as well. I speculate that the deaths of Marinda and/or Massif will act as a last straw for Ren, who will opt to save the remaining Knights by siding with Sidious instead. They’ll betray Qi’ra, giving the hourglass to Palpatine, and/or sabotaging Qi’ra’s plan so it doesn’t function quite as intended, similar to Momin.

So instead of physically trapping Palpatine in frozen time, the hourglass will instead preserve his soul, as it did Momin’s; So that when he does die on the second Death Star, he becomes a timeless ghost similar to Momin... And is thus also capable of inhabiting living vessels to survive, hence the degraded clones he uses on Exegol. Of course, it’s not quite perfect and perhaps the hourglass only buys Palpatine a second chance, some more time (haha) before his inevitable death, which leads to some urgency in him seeking Rey as a new and permanent host.

(That or Palpatine killed Darth Noctyss and assumed her curse as a means of twisted immortality; We never find out what happened to her, and it would provide another explanation for how he managed to survive.)

Because he’s in a good mood and whatnot, Palpatine spares the Knights of Ren and welcomes him into his ranks. Maybe he negotiates the idea beforehand with them directly, maybe through Ochi of Bestoon, who is playing both sides between the Empire and Crimson Dawn and like Sidious’ survival, also debuted in TROS. Maybe it’s a spur of the moment offer by Ren that Palpatine accepts, or even an honest mistake with the hourglass that in cruel humor, Sidious labels an ‘offering’ by the Knights of Ren that he cherishes.

Maybe they don’t betray Qi’ra at all, and they simply swear fealty to the strongest after it slays their previous master, like they later do with Kylo. Maybe the Knights of Ren flee when Crimson Dawn is taken down, and years later, a desperate Palpatine employs their services; And the Knights of Ren consider the Jedi to be an even greater threat to their existence than the Sith. Who knows? Regardless, I think if we look at how their Ren philosophy operates... It makes a sad amount of sense that if pushed into a corner (such as by getting themselves so deeply involved in a direct attack), the Knights of Ren would ally with an enemy and serve them to survive. The Ren kills to live after all, what’s fealty to someone stronger?

Ren does mention a ‘master’ finding something for them to do shortly before Ben’s betrayal of the Jedi Order. He could be referring to the dark side as a whole, but it’s possible he means Palpatine; And that the Knights of Ren are aware of their and Snoke’s mutual subservience to Sidious, hence why they accept Snoke’s recommendation of Kylo, when they otherwise wouldn’t have given him the chance. I am curious as to this pre-Kylo relation between Snoke and the Knights of Ren that even comes with a bit of respect and acknowledgement from both sides, but that’s another story for now.

But yeah; I think Crimson Reign and Hidden Empire will flesh out and properly explain the mechanics of Palpatine’s survival that was revealed in TROS, alongside the Knights of Ren and their subservience to him, also shown in that film. The Knights of Ren and this hourglass will play a major role in this untold story, thus making Palpatine’s resurrection feel more earned as the culmination of an arc and characters’ efforts, a meaningful story in itself, rather than the lazy writer’s asspull it started off as.

#Star Wars #knights of Ren #Ren #sheev palpatine #Darth Sidious #Momin #qi’ra #crimson reign #hidden empire #ask #reply #speculation #theory

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r1-jw-lover · 7 months

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Just a question. I want to make a fic about the first Jedi and his disciples before Disney gets the drop on me. I'm only familar with disney canon and I haven't watched Ashoka so tell me if I got anything wrong.

The basic idea was that the first Jedi is basically a wandering Gautama Buddha and his disciples were basically the Eight Bodhisattva. Manjushri is known for his kindness and wisdom. Guanyin is kind and compassionate. Vajrapani is strength and protection incarnate. Maitreya is prophesized to bring balance to the force. Ksitigarbha swore to save evryone in the galaxy no matter how evil and no matter what it costs her and I don't really know much about the rest. Might even toss some characters like Sun Wukong and other buddhist associated characters.

The intent is to make the first jedi a real larger than life figure. God's amongst mortals who would make any other force user look like a joke. Yet also make them suprisingly human in that the first jedi just wants to help people and comfort them and doesn't want to use such powers in the first place for violence.

I also want to play around with the first sith and portray them as Eldritch abominations and monsters who feed of the weak and oppressed.

Hello there. First off, I just want to say that I LOVE your fic idea and I would personally love to see you write it down.

However, I am no expert in Buddhist lore so I can't comment on the accuracy of the details you have written out. I live in a multi-cultural, multi-religious country so I know the general concepts of Buddhism, but just the basics. Sorry to tell you but I'm the wrong person to ask this question.

A blog I can recommend you to ask this specific question you have is @/writerbuddha who talks about Star Wars and Buddhism.

The only thing I can advise you is to do your research thoroughly. And if you ask me, you don't have to watch Ahsoka in order to start your fic.

That's all I have to say. Have a great day ahead, and may the Force of Others be with you.

#answered asks

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kashimos-hajime · 3 years

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darling, dearest, not quite dead | o.k.

summary: twenty years. you have loved obi-wan for twenty years and the minute he comes back from what seems to be the dead, he wants your help to kill the supreme chancellor. then again, it seems almost like him to ask you to do this with him.

WARNINGS: swearing, brief death, mentions of injuries, sexual tension, angst, fluff, obi-wan is being annoying and y/n is being annoying right back, matching energies for our otp ❤️, questioning morality, crying men, happy ending!!! pairing: sith!obi-wan x fem!jedi!reader word count: 15.5k

a/n: i have no excuses ndklnsf i love him :) crossposted on ao3!

contritus | latin: broken, crumbled, worn down, crushed

Master Windu always said that a single moment defines a battle.

The moment Obi-Wan sinks his lightsaber through you, you realize that this is that moment.

It’d been a mistake—the marauder had thrown Obi-Wan forward and you’d been in his way. The Masters were too far, they were caught between giving up a Jedi holocron or their lives.

You had begged him not to give up the holocron. Your life was nothing—nothing—

It’d been a fatal mistake. You know it the moment he spears right through you.

“Obi—Obi-wan?” Your voice, soft as a whisper as you grab onto his wrist and his eyes, so very blue even in the light of his saber, widen as your fingers dig into his skin.

It’s a peculiar sensation, glowing, blinding, yet curiously numb as he chokes out your name and retracts the lightsaber. The hunter lets go of your shoulder and you fall forward, gasping at the shrivelled fabric melded to your skin as arms take you and you realize it is Obi-Wan who holds you tight just as the whomsh of another lightsaber swings overhead. Craning up, you see a decapitated hunter, Master Windu, and Master Qui-Gon.

The body falls and so do you. Your friend falls to his knees, cradling you close and you shiver as he keens over you.

The Masters look down upon their Padawans and Obi-Wan’s tear-stained face raises wretchedly to glower at them.

“Master, I—Do something—“

Oh, sweet Obi-Wan. Pleading as he holds onto you and you simply turn your head into his robes. You don’t feel any pain but you are shivering as he grabs onto your hand, holds it against the burns on your stomach.

“Bring her to the ship, Obi-Wan.”

“I’m so sorry, darling,” He looks down at you, at his young face, and you smile. Maker, you love him. “I didn’t—“

“Oh, hush, Obi,” you breathe, reaching weakly for his face. Your fingers barely brush his smooth chin before the strength leaves your arm and it falls back again. He catches your hand, gently lowering it to the ground before twisting and scooping you up with an arm underneath your knees. “You’re always so dramatic.”

“If it takes my dramatics to keep you awake, I will do what I must,” he says as he follows their Masters back to the ship. Master Windu speaks into his comlink and Obi-Wan’s grip on you only intensifies when the Padawans catch him calling for medics to be waiting when they land back on Coruscant.

They catch ‘critical condition’ and ‘uncertain odds.’

“You’re going to be alright, dearest” Obi-Wan whispers and you look up at him. Then, you smile again—he’ll be the last thing you see, won’t he?

His arms are so warm and you feel your eyelids growing heavier as the gentle sway of his steps begins to lull you to sleep.

You can hear him calling your name.

You do not wake up until both Obi-Wan and Master Qui-Gon have both disappeared.

You wake up and everything changes.

They tell you that Obi-Wan left the Jedi Order and Master Qui-Gon had offered his life to save you. It’s an ancient Force skill with the ultimate price.

The guilt is what eats you alive, and without your other half—Obi-Wan was more than a friend and just shy of a lover—you want to leave the Order yourself and find him.

But you don’t.

You persevere. You had forgiven him. It is, you believe, what Obi-Wan would’ve done.

What Obi-Wan would’ve wanted for you.

It is… the Jedi way.

You become a Jedi Knight in his and Master Qui-Gon’s memory. The Council trusts you, believes in your strength to return after what should have been your death. You become their top agent, true above all else.

You escort the Queen of Naboo, you land on Tatooine, you find yourself a Padawan. You do everything you can to keep his memory alive in your heart.

You do not speak of the dreams.

In your sleep, you feel the lingering presence of Obi-Wan Kenobi, his terrified screams, the untamed rage in his swings. Instead of blue, everything flashes red, and when you reach for him, he pulls away.

He’s out there… somewhere. You wonder if he knows you’re alive or if he left before he could know.

You are on Coruscant in your rooms when you get your answer. The Clone Wars are beginning to wear on them all, you are a Jedi General with an old Padawan who’s found himself an apprentice of his own, and life seems… not easy, but not complicated. There is no time to think of much besides the war and although you barely sleep these days, it’s better being so exhausted you can barely even dream.

“So he was right.”

Every inch of you stiffens as you whip around, pulling out your saberstaff from your belt with a practiced flourish and activating it. The yellow plasma hums and you narrow your eyes at the intruder.

“Jedi Sentinel, one of the youngest-made Jedi Knights in the Order, yet, held in such high esteem,” he continues. His eyes, glowing yellow in the shadows, pin you down and your grip on your saberstaff only tightens as the Sith steps out into the light and your breath catches when you stare into the face of a man you thought you’d lost. “Master Windu must love you, dearest.”

Obi-Wan, older, with his strong jaw covered in a beard and long hair raked back, stands in front of you with a smirk. A scar fractures his face, crossing his nose and digging into his cheek, but it only serves to amplify his looks. He’s handsome, still. Handsomer, even.

Mature, civil, cold.

You remember Master Windu once said he could’ve been the greatest negotiator the Jedi Council had ever seen and you, the greatest fighter.

He, the calming hand. You, the fist.

Now, it seems, that they each are both.

In black armour and a hood tugged over his head, he regards you as he descends down the small flight of steps into your sitting area and you swallow, twirling your staff so it points down along the length of your arm—a show of peace, for now.

He hasn’t pulled out his own lightsaber you see hanging at his hip. It makes you uneasy.

Is it still blue? Red, now?

All you know is that he is everything you swore to fight against.

“Sit.” You don’t even recognize your own voice when you speak, quiet and rasping as you deactivate your saberstaff and join him at the couches. Sitting across from him, you watch as he smoothes his hand over his robes and does so, pulling the hood off his head. “Is there any name by which you be called, or are you still Obi-Wan?”

His eyes snap to yours at the name and you meet him head on, your chest swelling in pain. How desperately you want to touch him, make sure this is all real, you cannot even begin to describe.

Obi-Wan, a man you had loved since they were mere children in the Jedi Temple—childish love that had matured in something wretched, something forlorn—lives in his eyes. You see it then, for a split-second, when you had said his name.

But then, it had been swallowed up by whatever sits before you now.

“Darth Contritus.”

“Catchy.”

“Hm.”

“I won’t use it.”

Silence. You look out at the balcony and note that the door is cracked open before glancing at Obi-Wan before you again. He looks at you intently, as if he’s trying to figure out a puzzle, and you sense something stirring with him—it’s powerful, negative—and you clench your jaw, hands folded in your lap.

“What’s true, then?” you prompt after a while of his glaring. You feel bare before him after all this time and your stomach flips as he blinks, looking up from where he’d been trailing his gaze down your body, to your scarred hands, you know.

You can feel him everywhere.

“That you live,” says Obi-Wan—Darth Contritus, you should say, but you refuse.

“I do,” you agree. “And you would’ve known that had you stayed on Coruscant.” With me, you want to add but he hears it anyway. You know he does. “It’s been a long time, Obi-Wan. What is it, twenty years? More?”

“Obi-Wan,” he echoes wryly. “It’s been just as long since I heard that name. You should watch yourself lest you say that in front of the wrong people.”

“Well, you’ll always be Obi-Wan to people who loved you, hm?” Your chest tightens and you find his eyes again. His eyebrows furrow inquisitively as his hand brushes over his chin. You want to scream.

You want Anakin to barge in here, ask for advice from his former Master. Or, maybe, have the Senator of Naboo herself summon you. Have anyone demand your presence as they have for what feels like the past year with late night meetings and delegations.

But there won’t be. You know this.

On this nights of all nights, Obi-Wan Kenobi finds you alone and your heart wilts in your chest.

Love. It weighs like a bantha between your shoulders. You once felt like you could fight a dragon with love, and now, it tears you apart slowly, limb from limb.

Loved.

You cannot linger. “Why are you here? If you were here to kill me, you would’ve tried already.”

“Only tried?” he mocks, leaning back into the sofa. Your arms stiffen and he smirks. “Dearest, I would’ve succeeded.”

“And there’s that signature Kenobi smugness. It’s a relief to see that some things don’t change,” you shoot back. “I’m not the same girl and you…” You laugh weakly. “You are not the same boy.” His hands shift on his knees and your eyes dart to the movement. Long, agile fingers dig into his knees and when you look at him, your gut clenches. “What do you want from me, Obi-Wan?”

“I need your help.”

That surprises you. Your chin jerks up to meet his eyes and he has that arrogant smile, that faint smirk that makes your stomach flutter even now.

You can’t remember the last time you felt this way—

Stop. You can’t think of that, you chastise to yourself. He is everything you are fighting against—everything that a Jedi cannot be. He isn’t the Obi-Wan you love anymore.

Except he is.

He always will be.

“With what?”

The fact that you do not outright deny him is proof enough.

“If I told you I know who the Sith Lord orchestrating this whole debacle was and wanted to destroy him with your help, what would you say?”

“I would say that you want something in return for my help. I would say it’s been years since we’ve last seen each other and the first time we discover the other is alive”—your voice is dangerously bitter—“all you want to ask is a favour.”

He chuckles. There is a trickling trail of cold dread in your stomach. “Oh, dearest, you haven’t lost your wit.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Call you what, darling?” He’s playing coy, but the predator in his eyes does not falter as he rests an arm along the back of the couch.

“You know what.”

“Enlighten me.”

“Obi-Wan—“

“Darth,” he cuts you off coldly, “Contritus. Obi-Wan is dead and I am finished entertaining the thought that he is anything otherwise.”

“I refuse to believe it.” You stand, smoothing a hand over your overtunic and turning your back to him. It’s foolish, you know, but you want to know if he will attempt to strike you down for refusing him—if there is a list of people he wants to turn, wants to help him achieve more and more power. Walking around the couch, you step up out of the small pit. “Find someone else.”

You take not one more step before you feel the faintest rush and your hand shoots to your saberstaff, activating it. Whipping around, you block his swing, their blades clashing in blinding white. Red meets yellow and you feel the hum of plasma in your bones as you stare up at Obi-Wan. He pushes down on you and you grit your teeth, digging your feet into the ground and shoving him back, your boots sliding along the floor with the force of his own strike. Energy fizzes in your bones and you’re breathless.

Just his presence so close to yourself again makes your nerves burn. Your senses are overloaded, memories flooding your brain and you stiffen when he lets out a soft laugh.

“You haven’t changed a bit.”

His lightsaber is burning so brightly you feel tears spring to your eyes and there is a swelling in your throat as you snap apart your lightsaber into dual blades, reversing the grip with a twist of your wrists. Obi-Wan’s eyes widen nearly imperceptibly and you raise a blade up in a defensive position.

You had spent years training in Niman and the Shien variant, convincing Master Windu to train you in Vaapad despite the temptation of the dark side, mastering them to fill the void inside you.

You’re not about to let the man who caused it to strike you down.

“A lot has changed. My answer is final.”

“You don’t even know what I want.” Curse him for being so relaxed, red saber burning and hissing and crackling yet loose in his experienced hand. “Dearest—“

“Stop it.”

“Darling, is finding the Sith Lord not the Council’s priority?”

“I won’t work with you.”

“Why?” The question is abrupt, and your eyebrows furrow together quizzically. It’s genuinely asked, you realize, and your grip laxes as he deactivates his lightsaber and clips it. “You can clearly match blows with me. I won’t get the jump on you as easily as some of the other fools in the Order.” You wonder if that’s difficult for him to admit. The Obi-Wan you’d known didn’t find it hard to admit, but…

But still. Still, everything’s changed.

“Is it, I wonder, because you care for me?”

Your stomach rolls and you don’t know if you should be ecstatic or terrified that he’s right.

“Obi-Wan—“

“Or because you still think of our time together?”

“There was no time. We were Jedi—“

“Temptation frightens you.”

“I’m not afraid.”

“Now, now,” he says, walking over to you smoothly and tilting his head. He offers a crooked smile and your lips part as you suck in a sharp breath. You drop your own guard unwillingly, lightsabers shutting off with a whomsh and he gently pushes your arms down. You let him—you do.

You can feel every molecule of his being coming closer, the smell of soap heavy in your nose as he stops before you. Maybe it’s because your heart is racing as he nears and you don’t even know if you’re breathing, or if it is because the love you once felt for him is roaring to life, consuming you until you are nothing more than starfire. Either way, you don’t want to know.

“We both know that the memories we share still… haunt you here…” His fingers brush over your temple and your eyes flutter shut. His touch is so soft, so tender, that you feel a part of you break. His hand trails down your jaw, down your neck, fluttering over your tunic and exposed collarbones and you know he feels you swallow. You know that he can feel every inch of you as intimately as if they were the same being. “And here…” He presses fingers to your sternum, right where your heart is. “Here is where your true desires lie.”

“I have no desires,” you grit out, pulling back but he grabs your arm before you can escape from his reach. Your head snaps up from his firm hand to his burning eyes and you are incinerating from inside out. “The Jedi—“

“—don’t give a damn about what you are or what you want. They only care about what you can do for them—“

“And that’s any different from the Sith?” You rip your arm free and immediately regret it for a flashing moment. “Get out of my sight.”

“Or what?”

“What do you mean ‘or what’?” you snap, holstering your lightsabers with twitching snarl at your lips. “You said it yourself, you are no longer Obi-Wan Kenobi, I don’t love you, and I am done with this game.” There is pleasure in the way his facade seems to crack then before attempting to repair itself and there is a surge in your bravery as you shove your face into his. He can’t quite fix the breaks you’ve smashed in his mask. “Go. Or this time, I’ll cut you down.”

“Hm.” His eyebrow quirks as he stares at you intently, curiously. Those eyes are nothing like the blue you had once known. “I’d like to see you try.”

Your eyes burn but you do not blink.

“Leave. Me. Alone.”

“My, my. Such anger from the Council’s prized hound,” he murmurs mockingly into your ear as his fingers brush your jaw again and there is that cocky, sickening smile in the blonde of his beard. Your lips pull into a snarl and you jerk your head away, turning around. You detest this new man before you, yet you can’t even bare to see him go. You feel like everything inside you is peeling. “Anger suggests feeling, dearest. Temper that the next time you wish to convince me that you no longer care for me.”

“It’s a bold claim that I could care for someone who is everything I fight against.”

“One you didn’t deny,” he replies evenly. “Goodnight, Jedi.”

You wait until you’re sure he’s gone—when you can on longer sense his presence and your heart comes down from your throat.

You crawl into the bed and bury your face into the pillow before screaming out against every injustice in the world.

If Anakin notices anything the morning after, he does not say it. Instead, he simply says “Master” in his cordial tone as he always does and you, for the first time in a very long time, since he was a boy even, look at him and your bruised heart is listless in your chest, a puppet with cut strings. You hold his face in your hand and look at the man you’ve trained, raised from the ground up, and truly feel the life that’s passed you by.

“Are you alright, Master?”

“Fine. Just tired,” you murmur quietly. “I’m just… I’m so proud of you, you know that?” Your old Padawan regards you and you know what he sees as he nods against your palm and you let him go. He sees a mother, a sister, family.

You can only hope that he knows you feel the same way. Your son, your brother, the one thing left you know you can rely on.

“I know. I promise, I won’t let you down.”

“You could never,” you assure with a gentle sigh and when he looks at you with that hope in his eyes, it reminds you torturously of Obi-Wan when they still had hopes for their own future. Together. Together. The word aches everywhere. “You know you could tell me anything, Anakin, and I would never care for you less.” Anakin’s expression flickers and your eyebrows twitch together before he gives you a tiny, boyish grin.

“Of course. And you, as well. I am here for you, Master.”

You give him a plastic facsimile of a smile before squeezing his elbow. “I know. Come on. The Council is waiting.”

They send you to a warm moon that reminds you of Naboo. Yavin 4, outer rim.

At least it isn’t Hoth, or Maker forbid, Alzoc III.

There’s a Separatist chapter lodging in the jungles of the moon, causing enough trouble to warrant the Jedi’s attention.

You think your old Master notices your distracted disposition and sent you somewhere easy to work out whatever’s bothering you with a good droid slicing. Master Windu has always been attuned to your emotions, long before everything with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan happened. It’s why you were his Padawan.

He had sensed the darkness in you the moment he first saw you, or maybe he foresaw it.

You don’t know.

You land your starfighter in the brush where it’ll stay hidden enough before jumping out and landing in the soft dirt quietly. You’ve shed Jedi robes for a sleeker outfit more fitted for the jungles. With tan sleeveless tunic tucked into darker brown pants, your boots shift in the soil as you skirt into the fronds and head in the direction of the fortress.

There is nothing complicated about this.

It’s arduous, yes. Dangerous, monumentally. But it isn’t complicated. Training Anakin is more complicated than destroying a Separatist branch. Deciding between sleeping in Obi-Wan’s quarters or your own when they were just mere Padawans was a harder choice than deciding whether or not you swing left first or right.

It’s all instinct, second-nature and nearly your first. Soon, the fortress stops screaming from blaster fire and droid whining. You slash the head off the last droid, let its head roll at your feet and whirl around when you sense another presence behind you.

And there he stands again, a ghost you can’t shake.

It disrupts you to your very core. There is the smell of smoking metal and something worse as he tilts his head, amused. You clip your saberstaff with a practiced twirl, kicking a droid’s head away with a swift swing of your boot.

He’s leaning against the wall, all sleek and handsome, you’re sweating with oil smeared across your cheek.

How romantic.

“I told you to leave me alone.”

“And I knew you just couldn’t stay away,” he retorts. “I wasn’t aware you’d be here until I heard you destroying those poor droids.” His voice is dripping with scathing sarcasm. “My, my, Jedi, you’re a sight.”

Joining him by the wall, you tentatively lean back against it as he turns onto his shoulder, regards you with a keen interest.

“You’re infuriating,” you admit quietly, refusing to look at him. You instead stare at the black leather of his boots, the way he’s crossed his legs at the ankles as he did when he was still by your side. Just more proof Obi-Wan’s there, torturing you with those tiny glimpses. “Why were you here?”

“There’s a factory here, over in Massassi Valley. I arrived to check in on their progress before I was alerted of a gorgeous Jedi with a yellow saber. Hm.” Your eyes flutter to his face and he smiles faintly. “Three forms.”

“You noticed.”

“How could I not, dearest?” He pushes off the wall with a smirk and, against your own will, a smile begins to pull at your lips insistently. “You’re just oh, so talented.”

Stubbornly ignoring the twitch, you follow him. “I told you not to call me that.”

“Oh, I apologize. Sentinel, then. Formalities, and such.”

“And I know you didn’t mean that apology.” They step over a droid body and make their way through the fortress, following the trail of droid bodies. You’ve rigged the place to explode and you know you could leave him to rot if you wanted but…

But he wants something from you, and if you can convince him to give you the Sith Lord without something in exchange—

“And I still wish to talk to you about our negotiation. We never finished before someone lost her temper.”

“Don’t test me, Obi-Wan. I don’t need to remind you the importance of warming up before a battle,” you warn and he lets out a sharp exhale, a hint of a laugh, and your smile grows as you lower your head, trying to hide it away from him. “And I think losing my temper is fair when I’m around such atrocious company.”

“Oh, now I know you aim to wound me.”

“Am I hitting my mark?”

“Not even close.”

Jumping over the railing of the building, they traverse in silence up a short hill before you turn around and pull out the detonator. With a simple press of a button, it goes up in flames and debris, caving in from the inside out and destroying any droid not alerted already by your little dance with your saber.

Job done. And there’ll be a million more like it in differing sizes and magnitudes. Dropping the detonator to your feet, you smash it to bits with a sharp stomp.

How many more factories can they blow up? How many droids can they kill?

All of it means nothing if you don’t kill the mastermind behind it all.

Eyes closing, you curse whatever deity pulls the strings and tell yourself that it’s just what you have to do. There are no clean hands in war. Just dirty ones and dirtier ones.

So be it.

Turning to Obi-Wan, your eyes flutter from his dark robes to his face.

“You wanted my attention, you have it.” His eyes squint a bit at your choice of words and you lift your chin up, refusing to back down in his overwhelming confidence. “Talk.”

“Now you want to listen to me?”

“Don’t waste my time.” Your boots shift in the soft dirt, leaves bending beneath the ball of your feet and you look at Obi-Wan, really get a good look at him for the first time since he’s thrusted himself back into his life. You wonder if you look at him the same way he looks at you. Then, you ponder if he notices that he stares at you like he’s seen a ghost or if he believes that no one can read him anymore.

But you still can.

You can rip the pages out of a book, but it does no good for someone who has memorized every single page and simply flips through for the memories.

“The Sith Lord, his name is Darth Sidious,” he says, tucking his hands into his sleeves. “He rules the Republic secretly, taking senators under his control with a simple word. The apprentice, on the other hand, was Count Dooku.”

“Count Dooku? The Jedi who retired.”

He nods. “The same. That is, before I killed him and took his place.”

“Killed him,” you repeat. “You killed a Jedi.”

“A Sith Lord,” he corrects.” It was of no consequence. He would’ve caused you more trouble sooner or later.” It’s the flippant way in which he speaks that sets you back as he turns to head deeper into the forest and you follow him for lack of nowhere else to go. This is the way to your starfighter, something he seems to realize.

“Obi-Wan, you can’t just say that.“

“How many times do I need to remind you that—“

“Well, I refuse to use that name.” You plant yourself right in front of him and his eyes widen, eyebrows rising as he looks up at you. Clenching your jaw, you wish you could somehow reach into him, pull the Obi-Wan you know out so you could just hold him again— “It’s cursed, and wretched, and wrong.”

“This again?” He tries to walk around you but you grab his arm. He freezes, rigid, under your grip and you try to pull him back.

“You know I’m right. You only correct me when I start questioning your morality—something I thought Sith don’t exactly doubt.” Your eyes narrow. “I thought you all believed you were evil and relished in it.”

When he rips his arm out of your grip, he tears a piece of you with him. “Don’t make me regret my decision to come to you.”

“Regret it, then. See if I care.” You start to walk back down to the wreckage of the building and you hear a loud sigh.

“Where are you going?”

“Anywhere where the air isn’t tainted with your presence. I’m not wasting my time when there is a war going on.”

“Tainted?” His voice rises as he walks down the hill after you. “If I was aware that the Jedi have made you so marvellously childish, I wouldn’t have come at all.” Stopping in your tracks, your eyebrows shoot up your forehead and you whip around, pinning him with a glare.

“What do you mean come? You said you were here already.” Before you know it, his mouth opens to argue but no words come out and you know you’ve caught him.

So you get under his skin as much as he gets under yours.

Good.

“You were following me.”

Dryly: “An astute observation. Now, will you help me kill a Sith Lord or not?” He stops in front of you and you tilt your head. His lips are twisted in an impatient scowl as you look over your shoulder at the ruins of the Separatist chapter.

Then, you cross your arms and sit down on the hill. You glance up at him, cock your head as a silent invitation for him to sit next to you. The sun is just beginning to set on the horizon, painting the sky a wondrous purple-orange. When you look at Obi-Wan, the orange ignites the gold in his eyes and sets his hair aflame. He stares out at the sky, legs crossed and hands on his lap. The perfect meditation posture.

“You haven’t succumbed to the dark side, have you?” you ask quietly, voice cracking, and he blinks, looking at you.

“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.” Then, his eyes are on the sky again.

You search his side profile. He seems so normal. So… like himself. It scares you yet brings you relief.

“Never mind.” You draw your legs up to your chest, rest your arms atop your kneecaps. “The Sith Lord, Darth Sidious. He taught you… whatever it is that’s so enticing about the dark side.”

“Oh, if only you knew, dearest,” he sighs. “But yes. I’ve no interest in seeing his reign continue.”

“But… shouldn’t your goals align?” you ask, confused. “It is the goal of the Sith to destroy the Jedi.”

“Not all Jedi,” he corrects. “Perhaps some exceptions can be made.” Again, his eyes flicker to yours and your eyebrows knit together. A delicate frown mars your face. “You. Your old Padawan. You join me and together we can rule the galaxy ourselves. We could keep him because I know how much he means to you. Personally, I find him endearing.”

Shock shoots through you like cold fire. “What? No. No, that’s not how this works. We do this for the Republic. Not to replace one dictator with another.”

“Why not?” he laughs. “We’d have no rules, or, perhaps, it’d be by our own design. We could have the power to shape the galaxy however we wish.” He leans over. “I know you want that as much as I do. I don’t see why we shouldn’t take the Senate for ourselves.”

“Because that’s wrong! Because democracy—“

“—has worked so well?” he asks dryly. “Look at the Trade Federation. The Separatists. Your democracy has failed you twice in the past ten years on a scale tantamount to the largest volcano on Mustafar erupting.”

“Then we amend what goes wrong. That’s how this works. We try and try. We do it until we get it right, even if we never do.”

“That is a fool’s play.”

“I’d rather us be the fools than the king,” you snap. “At least fools know where they stand.” You get up, turn to ascend up the hill again and you dust off your pants, dirt flecking off the fabric. “As for us…” You scoff, shaking your head and you can hear him getting to his feet as well. “I can’t believe I ever humoured the idea that there could ever be an ‘us’ again.”

“That idea could become reality if you would just join me.” His voice is harsher than a serrated vibroblade as he falls into step beside you. You hate how easily he catches up but you refuse to acknowledge him as you stride back to your ship. “Think of it. There wouldn’t be a single thing separating us again. Not death, not the Sith, not the Code. We could finally be together. I’ve thought of nothing else since I learned that you were alive.” You bite your lip, eyes resolutely staying forward despite his words seeping into your conscious. “I know that’s what you want. Without the Code, we could flaunt our love. I could cherish you as you deserve, darling. Don’t you want that? Don’t you want to be with me, too?”

And something—something about how brutally honest those words are just hits you like a speederbike and you stop in your tracks for the second time that day. Obi-Wan stops a few paces ahead and you pin him with a sorrowful stare.

“So. That’s what this is about.” You let out a short, incredulous breath. “Not… not power. Not even some delusion that you can rule the galaxy better than the Senate. You just want me.”

His eyes widen before they narrow into a glare and he storms down the hill, shoves his face into your space and you swallow the rock in your throat.

“Yes,” he growls, nose-to-nose. “Is it so wretchedly inhumane of me to desire you?”

Your heart stops in your chest and you cannot answer right away.

Can’t. Won’t.

There doesn’t seem to be a difference. All you know is that you can’t breathe.

And when you remember how, all you can smell is him, feel him so close to you that you can’t imagine ever forgetting him.

“No.” The word, so fragile, so short, flutters past your lips and Obi-Wan reels back like you had punched him. “No, I don’t think it’s inhumane at all to love.”

“It is all I do this for,” he whispers furiously as if you hadn’t spoken, eyes searching your own. You reach to touch his tunic but he grabs your wrist so tightly that you can’t break out of it. “Let me make that very clear that it is because of you that I am like this.” His lips twist into a snarl. “You haunt me and I let you because I take a sadistic pleasure in wanting what I cannot have. Do with that what you wish.”

Your heart drops into your gut as you wrench your wrist out of his grip and their eyes meet in dark, ferocious anger as they linger in the heat of it.

Then, before you can question what he means, he draws back and all that anger, rage, grief, melts to a mask of diplomacy. No tension in his face, no feeling. He’s a blank slate as he clears his throat, regards you with an impassive gaze that somehow hurts more than his ire.

“If you do intend to help me,” he finally says icily, “join me on Coruscant. You will receive specific details on your terminal.”

Shaken, you watch him disappear into the jungle. Your legs give in before you can follow and as you fall to your hands and knees, you wonder if you cry for him and the fate you’ve tied him to or cry for yourself and the guilt that begins to eat you alive.

“I’m so glad you made it back safely. As for the Council hearing, that couldn’t have been easy.”

“Thank you, Padmé, and it wasn’t, but… we made it through. What’s done is done when you’re dealing with the Sith. Now that we found the name of the Sith Lord, maybe we can narrow down our serach.”

“Master Windu must be pleased with your work.”

“Have you met him? Nothing pleases him. Ever.” You sip on your tea politely but it tastes like nothing on your tongue. Padmé frowns faintly at your tone, not besmirching her beauty in the slightest as Anakin walks in. Looking up, you set down your cup. “Anakin.”

“Ahsoka told me I could find you both here. What are you doing on the terrace?” he asks with a glance at you, then a softer one at the Senator. Concern masks his features. “It’s cold at night.”

“You know, sometimes ladies need moments to ourselves,” Padmé teases, standing. You lean back into your chair, watching in amusement at the way Anakin’s expression completely melts when she walks past him. If he couldn’t be any more obvious. “How’d the research go?”

“Fine. Ahsoka asked me something that I couldn’t answer so I just wanted to ask you about it, Master.”

“Me?” You sit up. “What could I possibly know that you don’t?”

“Well, she heard of a name and it was before my time, so I thought you could help.”

“Calling her old when you want something, Ani?” Padmé calls from inside as she sets something down on the table. You get up yourself, letting the droids take care of their dishes as you join your friend inside. “Now, that’s classy.”

Stifling a laugh, you enter the apartment and glance over your shoulder at your old Padawan learner. “Ask.”

“Well, she was looking through the libraries and came upon a name. It’s popped up in our database now that we know the name of the Sith Lord. The Rule of Two demands an apprentice, and if we’re right, it could be him.” Your heart drops in your throat as you sit down and Anakin clasps his hands behind his back. His eyes are solemn, his lips set in a frown. Padmé’s eyes rest on you in concern and you know that your silence is just as troubling as anything.

“What name?” you ask, so quietly you’re not sure you’re audible.

“He was a Padawan at the same time as you, Master.” Your throat tightens and you pray to the Maker he doesn’t say what you think he will— “Obi-Wan Kenobi. He simply… disappeared. Not even the Council could trace him.”

“Anakin…”

“Did you know him?” Padmé asks curiously and your eyes dart to her.

“I did. He was… he was my best friend. His disappearance…” Broke me. Killed me. What else is there to say? “It was a great loss to the Order. He was the best of us. I wasn’t even aware that he was alive.” The silence that follows nearly chokes you and you sweep your gaze from Anakin to Padmé until you realize you can no longer bare their interrogating stares. Standing, you bow to the Senator and excuse yourself. “Goodnight, Senator. Forgive me but the war means little sleep for me. I must meditate on this.”

“Goodnight,” Padmé calls, the frown evident in her voice as you turn, leaving the apartment as quickly as you can.

You reach the elevator and step on just as Anakin catches up to you and you flash him a false smile, stepping aside to make room for him beside you. He lets out a breath, glancing at you. The doors close and he looks at the buttons, clasping his hands in front of himself before pressing the ground floor just as you did with a decisiveness one can’t fake.

That Skywalker swagger. Must be.

He steps back into line beside you. “Are you alright?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“In all my years under your tutelage, I’ve never seen you so affected. You’re steadfast, Master.”

“Did I miss ‘Compliment Your Elders Day’ in the calendar?”

A scowl. “And you deflect with sarcasm.”

“As all the best do.”

“Master.”

“Anakin,” you censure. “I’ll be fine. It is you who can confide in me, not the other way around.”

“Well, I don’t think that’s fair,” he replies stubbornly. “I hardly know anything about you and I’ve known you far longer than I haven’t.”

“Oh, that makes me feel great about myself.” The sarcasm drips through your words. “We work well together, Anakin. That’s all that’s mattered.”

“Whether we work well together or not isn’t the point. I’ve know you for years and you’ve never told me anything about yourself.”

“Well, you know I was born on Corellia. I like flying. You know how I fight, which is far more intimate than most people know me,” you list off the top of my head. “You know how I take my caff, that I drink often, even though unofficially, the Jedi don’t condone excess consumption of alcohol.” At Anakin’s skeptical gaze, you sigh. “Look, it’s not just you I refuse to speak of it to. No one except the Council knows about Obi-Wan. He’s… he’s not supposed to exist, in a figurative sense. He was supposed to be wiped from the databases.” Anakin’s expression scrunches up in confusion and you drop your gaze. “There was a situation. It was handled, but there was a whole mess that came along with it. A Jedi died—“

“I saw. Ahsoka showed me the death certificate of a Master Qui-Gon Jinn a few days after Obi-Wan Kenobi’s recorded documentation regarding him leaving the order. The reports speak of a mission with you and Master Windu, as well as Obi-Wan and Master Qui-Gon.” Hearing the Jedi’s name makes your guts twist and you look up at the elevator lights signifying their level. They still have so far to go. “What happened that day?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Master, trust me. You know me better than anyone. If Obi-Wan Kenobi is the Sith Apprentice we’re searching for—“

“Anakin, I am warning you. Do not mention Obi-Wan’s name again.” Your cold tone knocks him off and you know it’s because you never use that tone against him. You instantly regret your words and you sigh, eyes fluttering shut. Chewing your lip, an apology already works its way into your mouth. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lash out at you.”

The doors open at last and you begin to leave.

“I’m starting to sense he was more than your friend, Master,” Anakin murmurs, grabbing your forearm, stalling you, and you look at him wretchedly. A mirthless smile works its way onto your face and your heart wilts in your chest as you gently pull out of his grip. Anakin’s eyes widen and you can only look at him in apology.

“Anakin… what lies between you and the Senator?” you ask and he jerks back as if you’ve slapped him.

You might as well have as he stammers, “Nothing more than friends.”

Your smile only grows unhappily. “Then apply that ‘friendship’ to what was between Obi-Wan and I, Ani, and you have your answer.”

You sit on top of the building, knee jiggling as you wait. You could meditate, eat, pass the time any other way besides watching the speeders, but you don’t. You feel nauseous, cold.

You hadn’t told anyone of your meeting here, as Obi-Wan requested and yet, you fear Master Windu might’ve caught on to your lies.

The Jedi Council actively search for the very man you’re meeting and you can’t help but feel like sniper sights are aimed at your back every time you leave your apartment.

“Hello there.”

You whip around to see a cloaked figure emerge from the shadows. Obi-Wan stands there, dressed in black and a dark bloody maroon. His hood off and his hands in open display, he stands there until you face forward again, taking that as an invitation to come closer.

“I trust you’re well?”

“Let’s skip the pleasantries,” you utter quietly, clasping your hands. He climbs over the railing, sits beside you on the balustrade with a quiet sigh. Their feet dangerously close to the edge of the roof, he glances at the traffic and you stare at your boots. “Let me make something very clear: I want to help, no matter your own motives. I swore to keep the peace and that is what I’ll do, but after this, our arrangement is done.” Your eyes find his and you hope the coldness in your tone is mirrored in your gaze. “I never want to see you again. Let me be a ghost and you can be mine.”

Obi-Wan’s lips curved into a handsome frown. You look back out at the skylanes.

Quiet.

He must know you mean it this time. That there is no coyness, no game—you aren’t out to play hard to get. You aren’t acting like you don’t know what you’re saying. No, you’re well, and truly, done. Sick of it. Finished. Whatever synonym that can be concocted, it is what you are. Even if you do love Obi-Wan, you wish you had died that day. It would’ve been much better than this.

An odd twenty years later, and sometimes, your stomach still aches from old scars.

“Am I understood?” you finally inquire softly.

“Yes.”

“Good. Now, let’s get to work.” You draw your hands up your thighs, set your spine straight and look at your new partner-in-crime. “What’s our first move?” He stares at you for a moment, pale yellow eyes searching your face, but when you merely arch an eyebrow in prompting, he blinks and pulls something out of his pocket.

“Well, considering my Master hasn’t recognized that I intend to murder him in cold blood yet, we must move quickly. Have you deduced who Darth Sidious is?” You look at him and he sighs. “Who has always rubbed you the wrong way, no matter what everyone else said?”

You roll that question over in your head for a moment. “I’ve never liked how Chancellor Palpatine has attached himself to Anakin,” you confess. “If anyone, he’s painted himself the saviour of the Republic and the Council don’t trust him.”

“For once, the Council is right.” You frown at his bitter tone. “And your intuition never fails.”

“So the Sith Lord is Chancellor Palpatine, the most well-guarded man in the galaxy.”

“Yes.”

“And you do realize that a Jedi killing him portrays a certain… image, don’t you?”

“Oh, I know. I’ll do it. What I need is for you to get me access to his rooms.” Eyebrows shooting up, you rest your chin on your clasped hands, your elbows digging into your knees. “You said it yourself: your old Padawan learner is off mingling with the Supreme Chancellor himself. I assume you’re close with the Skywalker boy.”

“I am.”

“He’s powerful in the Force, that one,” he comments.

Quietly: “I know.” Sighing, your eyes find Obi-Wan’s. “So you want me to manipulate Anakin to let us in.”

“Manipulate is a strong word.”

“Didn’t realize you had such an aversion to using people to your own means.” The light of the city reflects off his eyes, cloaking his face in half light, half shadow. It only amplifies the arrogance of his smirk, the arrogant cock of his eyebrow. Your gut clenches and your thighs press together as he leans over.

“I have a strong, strong inclination for the consensual, darling.”

“So witty, as always,” you breathe. “As if the last time we spoke had no consequence.”

“Oh, it doesn’t. Not for me at least. For you, on the other hand…” He clicks his tongue. “I can feel the guilt inside you, twisting your every thought.” He chuckles. ”It’s funny, really.”

“My torture is your amusement?”

“Ah, no, never,” he corrects. “It’s a bitter delight that you never realized your hand in all of this. This situation, this war, this… conundrum of the heart. It’s… sick,” he acknowledges, “but after years of my own guilt consuming me, it’s almost… comforting to see you suffering like me.”

Your gut convulses at his words. “You think I didn’t suffer in your absence? That I didn’t dream of you every night for years?” His eyes study your face that begins to crumble underneath his stare.

“I think we are alike in our agony.” He flips the device he pulled out earlier over in his hands, activating it with a simple press of a button. “Do you know why I want to kill the Chancellor?” A soft voice begins to emit for the device and he hands it over to you with a faint smile. “Take it.”

“What will you do? Spin your tragic tale?” you inquire without any bite. You mean it—tales are tragic when it comes to their lives so interwoven with one another and as they sit on the edge of the balcony, overlooking a city still alive despite the war raging, the night edging in on all sides, you hold the device to your ear and swallow when you hear Darth Sidious’ voice, vile and old. It sends a shiver up your spine.

“She hangs in the balance, young one. Join me, and I will ensure that she lives.”

“A tragic tale,” he echoes. “Yes, perhaps it is.”

The recording scratches, skips forward. “She’s dead, Obi-Wan. I’m sorry for your loss but you can avenge her. Use that lust for vengeance for more than grieving a girl dead before her time.”

You lower the device from your ear. You don’t want to hear any more of his manipulations. Those brief glimpses had been enough to make your stomach churn. “You don’t need to say any more.”

“He cloaked you from me. For years, I kept seeing your eyes,” he continues distantly. He leans forward on his knees, almost leaning into the wind and you clutch onto the cylindrical device tighter. “I remembered what it felt like, feeling your lifeforce ebb and disappear by my hand.”

“But you found me,” you try and he chuckles darkly, looking out at the skylanes. Two speeders nearly collide and his lips twitch into a mirthless grin.

“Indeed. When I was looking for the boy.”

“Anakin?”

“Hm.” He looks at you again. “The Chancellor wants to replace me with him now that he’s all grown.” Then, his eyes drift, rich in drive, zeal, the spirit of a warrior, the soul of a man who refuses to falter. “I suppose that’s another reason why it’s time to deposit the tyrant. I don’t intend to die so easily.”

In a moment of irrational, or perhaps even lack of, thought, you reach for his clasped hands and hold onto him. He doesn’t rip himself away immediately and in fact, his eyes seem to fixate onto yours deeply as you slip your hand between his.

“I’ll be there,” you promise him, not daring to look away, not wanting to for a second. It isn’t the most romantic thing in the world—you could’ve promised that you’d protect him, that he won’t die because you’re there, that he won’t ever be harmed again, that ‘it’ll be okay’—but you’ve always been practical, just as Obi-Wan was. Is. The only thing you can offer is the truth: “You won’t be alone.”

Then, he lifts one of his hands and rests his palm on your knuckles, and your heart, thudding like thunder in your chest, hitches. You suck in a cold, clear breath and squeeze his hand gently.

“Thank you.” His fingers brush over your skin and electricity dances up your arm as he watches you softly, gaze falling from your eyes to your lips. The gauzy glow of Coruscant softens his features and a shuddering sigh leaves your lungs as he leans forward.

It’s a moment where you think no, I shouldn’t, I can’t, I won’t, I won’t, I won’t before your heart, screaming to meet his, shuts up whatever rational voice echoes in your head and you close the distance. The instant their lips meet, a hand lifts from yours and shoots to your jaw, cupping your face and deepening the kiss. You set down the device blindly, holding onto his neck. Their hands spring apart and your other hand rakes through his hair, fingers twisting in auburn locks as he holds your face, burns himself into your mouth.

You barely remember when your eyes closed.

All you know is that the smell of him, the taste, it’s all so familiar yet there is the hint of something darker, smokier leading you deeper into his influence. One of his hands spreads across your neck, thumb brushing over the front of your throat and the underside of your jaw as you scoot closer towards him and he chuckles, nose wrinkling at your insistent kisses but submitting all the same.

Your mind is blank, razor-focused on one thing and you don’t even remember your own name before your lungs screech for air and you suck in a deep breath through your nose, tearing yourself away despite their lips nearly refusing to part. Your mouth opens and inhale sharply, hands pulling through his hair. His chin tilts up and you blink, looking at him through the fuzzy dots in your vision and the gleam of his golden eyes, arrogance and tenderness in its very definition, douses you in cold water.

Jerking back, your hand flies to your lips, fingers brushing where he had claimed you moments before. Your thoughts are a scattered whirlwind and you swallow. Your breaths come rapid, your heart beating everywhere at once as you spin around, climbing over the balcony and back towards solid ground. Obi-Wan twists, confusion marring his face as he gets up and you whirl around. You feel like he’s set you on fire after a long winter left out to the elements and you’re incinerating.

You’re burning from the inside out. You’re thirsty, yearning for something to feast on. Your fingers itch to rip off clothes, slash apart a droid, do anything to work out the energy that’s beginning to fizzle in your chest.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” you whisper, voice cracking, and you look up at him forlornly. “I shouldn’t have kissed you.”

“Why not?”

“Because—because—“ Yet with every second, you find your logic failing as you look at him. His hair is dishevelled—your doing—and he runs a hand through the golden strands as he waits for your answer but you’re starting to think you don’t have one.

After all, no one will ever know besides them.

That’s what you told yourself when they were Padawans. You fail to think of any difference now.

Obi-Wan stands there expectantly and your hands rake over your head, glancing around. There is no one but the sound of late-night traffic and the night.

Eyes sliding shut, you feel something inside you give like a fragile foundation finally slipping in the sand.

His kiss is like a toxin, still scorching through you, and something inside you tightens as you open your eyes again and see him standing there, expression so much like the old Obi-Wan that your heart aches.

Your hand drops. You look at Obi-Wan in his dark robes, and decide.

You can’t take it anymore. You will love a ghost. You’d rather do that than die lonely.

Walking over to him with a decisiveness you feel like you’ve lost since he’s crashed into your life, you take Obi-Wan’s face in your hands and pull him into your kiss.

He kisses back immediately, his hands finding your jaw and your eyes squeeze shut as your hands slide down his neck, find his shoulders and their lips meet again and again, drunk off the mere touch of their bodies. You find the buckle of his belt, undoing it with ease and the clank of his lightsaber hitting the ground along with the rest of the leather makes you grin against his persistent mouth. He kisses the corner of your mouth before nudging your chin up with his nose. His hands slide down your shoulders, hooking on your robes and sliding them down your arms with a slow, seductive intention that sends shivers up your spine.

Letting your arms drop, you let him guide the robe to a pool around your feet before breaking the kiss to look down at your belt but he grabs your jaw, tilting your head up and their mouths slot together again. With his free hand, he undoes the buckle with practiced ease and your lightsaber joins his on the ground before they sink to the floor in unison, their knees against cold stone, their lips never parting. A fire scorches between their mouths and you know that you have never felt more at home than the moment Obi-Wan’s hands find your waist.

His hand slides to the small of your back, scooping you up and lying you flat against the pavement as you find the waist of his trousers, tugging down insistently. Their breaths mix in desperation as their foreheads press together. Their lips part just enough for you to look down and he kisses your brow, your cheeks, cranes his head to find your ear as you run your hands over the front of his pants, feel something warm and hard against your palm.

A quivering sigh against your neck makes your stomach flutter as the hand on your back slides to your hip, squeezing the flesh there. Boots sliding along the ground, you let out a tiny whimper when soft lips suck on the flesh of your throat, teasing you with tiny nips. His hand goes under your long tunic, finding the hem of your trousers and a warm index finger traces the rim, tip gently brushing along the sliver of bare skin there.

Your breath hitches in your throat. Your hands trail up his sides and wrap around his back.

Their foreheads are still pressed together when his eyes flicker from your body to your face.

“Are you sure?”

You bite your lip and nod. “Yes. I’m—I’m sure.”

“Stop me. Don’t be afraid,” he whispers. Your fingers dig into his shoulders as his cold skin meets the warm flesh of your thighs.

“I’ve never been afraid of you, Obi-Wan,” you murmur achingly, eyes beginning to sting. His eyes flash to yours and you smile to yourself, slithering a hand to his face and cupping his jaw. Your thumb brushes over his lips. “Even after all this time, I’ve only loved you until I’ve hated you and… I have never stopped caring about you. I became a Jedi in your honour, you know? I did what I thought you would’ve done, because you are good, Obi. I know it.” You tilt his head against yours. Their noses clash and their lips brush, and you can’t help but close your eyes as your fingers card through his hair. “You’re still in there and I will never be afraid of you, but I am afraid for your future. For ours.”

“Ours?” he echoes and you nod against him.

“Ours.”

“What—what do you mean?”

There it is. That split-second of hopefulness in his voice, the sound of the first sun after the darkest winter. You’d give anything to pull the sun out of the shadows. Even the Jedi Order.

“Ours if we make it through this. Ours when I renounce the Code and join you.” Curling your fingers in his hair, you feel your heart splinter into two, wilt like a flower in the winter rain and when the first droplet lands against your nose, you know he’s struggling to hold his tears in.

Your eyes open. Pressing a brief, soft kiss against his mouth, you gently brush his tears away.

“I will leave the Order for you if you leave the Sith for me. When we kill the Chancellor, we will disappear and live the life we deserve. That’s what scares me.” His eyes search yours and you smile, his beard tickling at your palms. He raises his arms until his elbows are by your head and he props himself up, lacing his fingers atop your head and shielding you from the world. His body pressed against yours, you can’t help the tentative smile on your face.

“Why?”

“Because we’re so close to it,” you tell him. “Because, for the first time, it seems so real. We’re just within reach.” You sigh, studying his face, his scar, the shape of his eyebrows. All tiny things, yet they mean the world to you.

“What happened to never seeing me again?” he asks in a faux smug airiness and you wrinkle your nose, wrapping your arms around his neck as you sniff, trying to ignore the burning in your eyes but when you look at Obi-Wan, you swear you can see the first hint of blue in his eyes. The first hint of day breaking through the night.

“A kiss or two changed my mind.” You tilt your head to the night, letting the bracing wind take your tears away. You think nothing of this night has been romantic, from what’s been said to what’s happening now.

Yet, you wouldn’t change a thing from this.

You’d rather have this mess than a fantasy—have this broken man silently letting tears slip down his face than anything else.

Tears smeared all over his cheeks, Obi-Wan sniffs and tries to clear his throat but fails miserably as you draw your hand across his face. He cradles your face in one of his own hands, swiping a thumb beneath your eye and you smile.

“I love you,” he whispers hoarsely, quietly, and you lift your head up to kiss him softly, again, assuredly. “Please. Please don’t wake me up.”

“I’m alive, don’t worry. This isn’t a dream.” You tilt your chin up to kiss between his eyebrows and the delicate scrunch of his brow makes you warm. “And I love you, too.” His hands holding your face begin to tremble as if he’s afraid that one moment, you will disappear like a ghost but you let your hands drop, press palms against his knuckles so that he steadies and smile up at Obi-Wan. “I’m here.”

“So many of my nightmares end like this.” His voice breaks as he ducks his head into your chest, forehead to your heartbeat. “I don’t want to wake up. I never do.” You wonder if he hears the distinct shattering of your heart at his words.

Folding your fingers over the spaces between his, you draw his hands away from your face and press a long kiss to his fingers.

His grip only tightens as he lifts his head again and rests it on your shoulder. Their hands part only for you to wrap your arms around his chest and for his to bend around your head again, sheltering you from the world around them.

The traffic is quieter now, nothing but your heart and his beating in tandem and the soft breaths that come only after tears are shed. His weight is suffocatingly warm and you bury your face into his neck, let his beard tickle at your eyes.

“This is real, Obi-Wan.”

You never want to leave him again.

“Anakin, let me begin by saying that you cannot interrupt me in the middle of me talking.”

“Do you think I’m six?”

A levelling look. A loud sigh.

“Okay, fine. I won’t interrupt you.”

“You better not.” You slip your hands into your sleeves, perching on the balustrade of Padmé’s balcony. It’s the only place you can think of that you trust to be completely absent of eavesdroppers. “First: Obi-Wan’s alive.”

Anakin’s eyebrows shoot up and he frowns faintly. “I thought we established that.”

“And I know for certain he is the Sith apprentice we’re searching for.” Guiltily, you lower your eyes to the ground as Anakin approaches, the frown ever growing. ”I met with him. Multiple times, actually.”

“Master—“

“He came to me first,” you say, holding up a hand. “I didn’t know until he came to me and I met him again on Yavin 4. Again, he followed me there.”

“Sounds like you have a fan.”

Sending him a wry look, you sit upright. “Funny. But I met him two nights ago.” Because all of yesterday was spent in my own apartment, trying to reconcile the possibility of a future with the man I’ve been in love with since I was sixteen. But that’s neither here nor there. “He told me what he wanted.”

“Which is?”

“Anakin…” You raise your gaze to your old apprentice and sigh, standing up. A thoughtful expression is etched onto his face. At times, you can’t help but think maybe you should’ve exercised or demonstrated more patience with him. It seemed like you only exacerbated his natural proclivity for recklessness. Other times, like now, you think you did a pretty damn good job. “Chancellor Palpatine is the Sith Lord we are searching for.”

Anakin’s countenance drops and his mouth opens, trying to argue but you quickly continue.

“No one can know better than his apprentice,” you tell him. Reaching out for his shoulder, a cold feeling settles in your gut when Anakin jerks out of your reach, brushing past you with a stony expression. “Anakin—“

“How do we know you can trust this Obi-Wan?” he points out. “He could easily be using you, manipulating you to get what he wants.” Turning to watch him go, your eyebrows knit together. “Master, whatever you think he feels for you, he could be lying.”

That stings. It stings more than you thought it would and you saw it coming from miles away.

“Have you not stopped to consider the same thing applies to the Chancellor? Anakin, I know you and the Council have never seen eye-to-eye regarding your relationship with Palpatine, but Obi-Wan isn’t lying.”

“How do you know?” he repeats.

“I just do.”

“That’s not good enough! Have you told anyone else about this?”

You shake your head.

“Oh, great. So we’re going off the Sith Lord’s apprentice’s lead. That’s real trustworthy.”

“Anakin, if you don’t trust him, trust me.”

“I do trust you, Master. I’m just afraid that your mind is clouded.” Anakin’s eyes meet yours and a lightning current shoots down your spine at the graveness in his face. He looks much older than his years and you’re more than aware that the longer this war continues, the more exhausted they both will be.

“Anakin…” Then, you remember the weight of his secret. You wonder if that adds to it—if the burden of carrying the love for a certain senator drags him by the ankles. You understand that. You just wish Anakin knew that you would understand.

“I’m sorry, Master, but what does he want? This can’t be out of the goodness of his heart.”

“He wants to kill the Chancellor. That’s it. The Republic won’t fall beneath the weight of this war.”

“That’s it? That can’t be right. He must want something in return—“

“In return, I leave the Jedi Order,” you cut him off quickly, trying to rip the band-aid off. It doesn’t work because the colour drains from Anakin’s face and your heart wilts in your chest. Regret knots in your chest as he walks up to you and opens his mouth to argue, hands reaching for your shoulders. You raise your hands, stopping him. “It’s a done deal. I’m leaving on my own accord.”

“Master… you can’t. You can’t just—“

“You and I both know it’s more than possible,” you shoot back. Your words come out cold, flat, and you wish he could’ve found out any other way, but life is rarely, if ever, perfect. Anakin’s blue eyes search your face for answers you do not have and it must be something in how you say it but realization soon dawns upon him.

“You love him.”

“He loves me, too,” you reply quietly. “It is, I assume, not dissimilar to how you feel for Padmé.” You smile faintly and reach up, cupping his face. “I’ve never been blind to that, Anakin.” Sputtering, your old friend tries to come up with some excuse but you merely shake your head. “Once this war is over, Obi-Wan and I will leave Coruscant. That was our deal. And we need your help to do it.”

“My help?” The words come out strangled and you nod. “How?”

“The Chancellor trusts you. Get us into his office, and we will do the rest. You can leave the room, deny responsibility, do whatever you need to. The Council must not connect you to this.”

“But—“

“Anakin, you have the potential to be a great Jedi Master, if not the greatest. With my spot on the Council opening up, who knows? Your part in this may push you in the right direction.” Glossy azure eyes fix on yours and you hold Anakin’s face in your hands before resting your palms on his shoulders. “I’m more than willing to do this if it means this war ends and don’t worry. You’ve grown into a great Jedi. Greater than any other I’ve known. There’s no more I can teach you that you won’t learn yourself.”

“It doesn’t feel like it, Master.”

“It’ll always feel like that. We never stop learning, but that’s how life is. Don’t worry.” You squeeze his shoulders. “There won’t ever be a goodbye between us, Ani. Only a temporary parting.”

“But you’re leaving.” And just like that, he is nine again and you are twenty-five, crouching in front of a young blond boy from Tatooine as you tell him you will be his Master, prove your own Master wrong. Newly made Knight and desperate to please, you were determined to give Anakin a life he didn’t have to worry about never seeing his mother again, nor money, nor hunger. Pain, anger, fear.

You know you failed.

Still, you tried. That, you decide, must count for something.

“And you are staying. I have never, never, wanted to leave you Anakin, but I believe in you. I know you are the change the Order needs and if I can’t be here to see it…” You hum thoughtfully. “Maybe one day. One day we will return and I will see you as the Master I know you can be.”

A weak attempt of a smile on Anakin’s part.

“I’d welcome you back with open arms, Master. No matter what.”

You force a grin onto your own face and pull him into your arms. Immediately, he embraces you and you hold him tight, eyes closing. His face buries into your neck and you cradle the back of his head like you did when he was younger, a boy tainted by nightmares, and you know soon, you won’t be able to do this again. Hug your family… hug someone who has become your son when he’s scared.

“I’ll help you,” he finally whispers into your shoulder and your arms tighten around him. His voice may be muffled but it doesn’t manage to stop the everflowing sadness. “Just tell me when and where and I will be there.”

“Okay.” You draw back and hold his face in your hands, smiling still. Your eyes refuse to shed the tears burning there so instead, you just… stand in his presence for a moment longer until they have to part.

“Darling.” Obi-Wan stands when he spots you approaching their meeting spot on the roof again and you stop in front of him, pulling your hood down. “And your old Padawan?”

“He’ll help,” you murmur. “He’ll alert us through the comlink when he’s in position, then this assassination attempt will go through.” Disgust curls at your tongue and you shake your head. “I still don’t like this plan.”

“Why?”

“Because it seems too easy.” You cross your arms over your chest. “We just go in there, you cut off his head, and what? How do you explain this death? The fallout of this will be torrential.” Looking out over the city, you sigh. “What will we say?”

“Say that I was his assassin,” Obi-Wan says, joining you near the edge of the roof. “The Jedi tried to stop me but were too late.”

“That still paints us as failures.”

“Then what will you have me do? There is no alternative that doesn’t paint the Order as murderers. I know that isn’t what you want.” His eyebrows rise. “Is it?”

You scowl. ”No.” Thinking, you add on, “Couldn’t we say we struck you down? Eliminate the threat all together.” Eyes lighting up, you look at Obi-Wan. His eyes, a strange mixture of gold swirling with blue, squint in confusion. “Obviously, you won’t actually be dead, but I think people won’t think twice looking at you if you’re supposed to be dead. The Jedi Council said so.”

Realization: “Ah. Faking my death.”

You nod. “Exactly. If we settle on some planet and someone recognizes you, well, that’s impossible. You’re dead. The Jedi are very rarely wrong.”

“You’re quite clever, you know.”

“It’s honestly a wonder you haven’t thought of it yourself,” you reply. He smirks and you roll your eyes as he gently takes your shoulders and places a tender kiss upon your forehead. Something inside you melts at the touch. His nose presses into your scalp and their eyes close before you pull back and take hold of his hand. He’s warm to the touch.

Raising your other hand to flit over the scar crossing his face, you feel the sunken edges carefully. His eyes flutter shut and you run over his nose. It’s caused a small chasm in the structure of his face but you find that you can’t fault him for it. It’s become a part of him—a mark of his history. It may be a mistake in some eyes—not fast enough, not strong enough, not good enough—but to you, it’s simply a reminder that Obi-Wan is human. That he’s alive.

He’s alive. You still marvel at that. “You’ll have to tell me the story of this some day.”

He smiles and the scar stretches with it. It’s somehow endearing. “Some day,” he agrees. “As well as many others.”

“Sounds like a date.” You squeeze his hand just as the comlink beeps and you grab it from your pocket. “Anakin?”

“I’m ready. Ahsoka’s speaking to the Council as we do.”

“Ahsoka?” Obi-Wan questions.

“His Padawan,” you explain quickly. “Good. Keep your link on. We’ll mute ourselves from here on out.” Sending a nod to Obi-Wan, the two begin the plan. Clipping the rope to their waist, you wrap the end around a pipe, giving it an experimental tug as Obi-Wan looks over the edge of the building. Soon, they’ll be scaling down to the maintenance room and managing a way into the ventilation system.

“You know, if I thought we were speaking to the Council of this, I would’ve packed my fancy robes,” he calls dryly and you shoot him a glare to be quiet but he merely tips over the edge of the building and you suppress a groan,. The height makes you a bit woozy but you turn your back to the ground, grabbing onto the rope and slowly lowering yourself until they’re scooting down the side of the building together.

“Master Windu trusts my judgement, and better than we tell them when they can’t stop us,” you retort. Swinging out of the way of a window, the two glance at one another. “Sorry I didn’t tell about that. Didn’t think it was quite so imperative, what with the fact that we’re overthrowing a dictatorship tonight.”

“I don’t mind. At least I found out before Master Windu showed up out of the blue and decided to splice me in half for being anywhere near your vicinity.”

You barely contain a retort as they continue down.

Are you really doing this? Are you about to assassinate the Supreme Chancellor with a man you long thought dead?

Yes, a quiet voice replies, you are. And then, you will run.

They manage to crawl into the vent, him first, you second, and you’re stuck trying to avoid staring at Obi-Wan’s ass as they inch forward towards the Chancellor’s office. It’s not the most dignified position to find a Jedi and a Sith apprentice in, but alas—one must do what they do to rid the galaxy of tyranny.

Besides, you’re pretty sure the arrogance radiating off of Obi-Wan means about a million jokes will stem from this.

They stop when they are just above the office, Obi-Wan crawling over the tiny gap and turning around so they can both peer down the vent. You manage to unhook your saberstaff, breaking it into the two separate sabers, clutching each in tight hands as you listen in on the conversation below.

You aren’t even aware that your nails are digging into your thumbs before a gentle hand brushes over yours.

Relax, Obi-Wan’s voice orders gently in your mind. Remember—I do all the dirty work.

That doesn’t omit my part in this, Obi-Wan, you shoot back but your fists relax anyway and his hand withdraws. Everything inside of you is tense when you hear a voice.

“Anakin, what a surprise. What brings you to my office at so late an hour?”

“I wanted to talk to you about these dreams I’ve been having. I… I trust you and I’m not sure if it’s real or not.”

Just a little more.

Obi-Wan, are you sure he’s the Sith Lord?

Why are you having doubts now of all times? Your eyes flash to his and he glares back. I’m sure. I wouldn’t lie to you.

A sharp nod.

You spot Anakin’s figure approach and then the Chancellor, meeting just below and your fingers tighten around your sabers.

“What dreams?”

“Dreams of the Sith Lord that caused this war.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I believe I know who he is.”

The Supreme Chancellor’s eyes shoot up and he regards the Jedi Knight with a strange mix of confusion and suspicion.

“I’m sorry, Chancellor Palpatine.”

Anakin’s eyes flash up to the vent and Obi-Wan sends you a nod. You send your sabers into the grate, melting it off its hinges and letting the metal clamor to the ground before Obi-Wan jumps out, landing behind the Sith Lord who whirls around.

Activating his lightsaber, Obi-Wan stares at his former Master with a cruel snarl to his lips. You jump after him, twirling your yellow sabers as you stand behind him.

The contrast is near blinding.

“General Y/L/N.” The Chancellor has never sounded more unforgiving as he looks from you to Obi-Wan. “I believe you have a job to do. Kill this assassin.” You stare at the man who’s feigned warmth and kindness to the entire galaxy and you wait for his head to start rolling but when Obi-Wan doesn’t move, frozen, knuckles white as he clutches onto his saber, your eyes dart to his form.

“Obi-Wan,” you whisper. His gaze snaps to yours and for a moment, you don’t even recognize the man behind it. His golden eyes peer at you curiously and then he twirls his saber with a practiced motion, turning back to the Chancellor.

Palpatine frowns.

The vibrating hum of another lightsaber igniting joins the buzzing symphony and Anakin raises his blue lightsaber with a harsh, cracking expression upon his handsome features.

“By Jedi law, you must arrest me. Surely you won’t let him murder me in cold blood, Anakin,” Chancellor Palpatine says, glancing back at your old Padawan and hesitation flickers across his features. “Surely your Master taught you better.”

Anakin’s eyes flicker to yours. You are silent in return.

“This is treason.”

“What you have done to the Republic is treason,” you correct icily. “You do not deserve the luxury of a fair trial.”

It happens so quick. Palpatine reaches into his robes and there is a flash of red before the smell of burning flesh rises. A hand drops to the floor with a sick slap and a lightsaber rolls. Anakin sticks out a hand, letting the hilt fly into his hand and he deactivates it with a quick flourish as Palpatine keens over, clutching at his stump of a wrist.

Obi-Wan raises his lightsaber from the Chabcellor’s arm to his neck.

“I am finished with your manipulations, Sidious,” he murmurs lowly, and then, with one great, unfaltering swing, he decapitates the Sith Lord and lets the head roll.

There is no blood. The lightsaber burns too hot for there to be any and you can only smell the shit and piss as an old man dies.

Obi-Wan’s harsh pants are the only sound as the body drops and you deactivate your lightsabers. Anakin does the same as you step forward, placing a hand on his shoulder and another on the trembling fingers that wrap so tightly around the hilt of his saber.

“Obi-Wan.” His name passes by your lips softly, like a caress, and he drags his gaze from the dead Chancellor to your face. “It’s over.” Eyes fluttering shut, he lets you pull him tight against you, their foreheads knocking together as his lightsaber deactivates with a whomsh.

Your name passes by his lips in a soft breath and he cups your face just as doors open and he springs away from you. You grab his hand, tugging him behind you just as Master Windu and the rest of the Council walk in, and his hand tightens around yours as Anakin pivots around.

Ahsoka steps out, panting, her eyes wide.

“I tried to stop them—“

“Ahsoka, please.” You step forward, letting go of Obi-Wan’s hand but he tugs you back. Glancing at him, you smile. “Let me handle this.” His eyes search yours and you give him a nod of assurance before he finally lets go and you step towards the Council, past Anakin who wants to speak but you grab his arm gently, stopping him. “Master Windu.”

“General Y/L/N. Would you care to explain why the dead Chancellor’s body laid at your feet?”

“He was the Sith Lord orchestrating the war. Doubt there’s any other reason.” You meet your old Master’s eyes. “Master Windu, know that this is all my doing, and mine alone. Anakin had no part in this and neither did Ahsoka. She just found out and told you about our plot. I don’t want them to be punished.”

“That remains to be decided.”

“‘Our’?” Kit Fisto inquires.

You sigh, eyes fluttering to the floor. “Obi-Wan and I. It was our plot, together.”

“With the Sith, you conspired?” Yoda questions and you open your mouth to argue but you catch Ki-Adi’s shaking head and something inside you sinks.

“Look, he was manipulated. He’s not Sith. Not anymore. That man”—you point at Palpatine’s body— “was the Sith Lord we were all searching for and Obi-Wan led us straight to him.” Stone-cold silence. Your shoulders fall and the adrenaline that had burned through you drains away, leaving you oddly exhausted. “I understand if you wish to charge me with any crime against the Republic. Sedition or otherwise.”

“Obi-Wan is the one who killed the Chancellor, Master Windu. Master Y/L/N had nothing—“

“Anakin, don’t,” you cut him off quietly. “It’s not worth it to pretend otherwise.”

Anakin’s frustrated glare meets yours but you only smile at him and shake your head. Facing the Council again, you wait for one of them to speak. Master Windu’s unimpressed glare goes from Palpatine to you, and you only look at your former Master with raised eyebrows.

“What proof is there?”

“Nothing more than my memories, Master Windu, and a few recordings,” Obi-Wan speaks for the first time and eyes dart to the man as he steps forward into line with you. “I will submit those if you need them. Attempt to arrest me, however, and I will not go willingly. I’ve renounced the Jedi Order, as well as the Sith way. That, I can assure you of.”

“Master Yoda, your thoughts?” Master Windu asks, turning to the Grandmaster. A hand presses against the small of your back and you turn to Obi-Wan who watches with a stony glare. However, when he turns his gaze in towards you, something softens and you step closer to him.

“Upon the former Padawan, the dark side still lingers. Unsure of what to make of it, I am,” he admits and your hand finds Obi-Wan’s back, your other hand hovering by your lightsaber. No matter what, you are not leaving him alone in this.

“However this looks to the Republic is my greatest concern,” Ki-Adi murmurs. “To see a Jedi Master conspiring with the Sith—”

“Then manipulate the truth,” you argue. “That has never stopped the Jedi before. It didn’t stop them from completely erasing what happened twenty years ago and it can happen again.” Your hand drops from your saber and you send Master Windu a pleading look. “Say Obi-Wan was struck down, say he escaped, say anything but what happened. The only truth that needs to come out is that Chancellor Palpatine orchestrated the Clone Wars and with him gone, we might be able to find some semblance of peace again.”

The Council look at one another. Anakin and Ahsoka, standing side by side look to you.

War is rarely that simple.

“I forfeit every right, privilege, and rank I have achieved in the Grand Army of the Republic. I renounce my status as a Jedi Master.”

“You understood that you are barred from the Jedi Order henceforth?”

“I understand.”

Master Windu’s expression softens for his old Padawan and you could’ve sworn there was something darker, something breaking, as if he himself felt for you turning to someone else for the help he could not give.

You want to tell him it has never been his fault.

You don’t. Instead, you ask one last time for your own sanity: “And Obi-Wan? What of his records?”

A bitter, coy smile resides on his face: “Who?”

Satisfied yet curiously empty, you walk out of the Jedi Temple, to where Anakin, Ahsoka, Padmé, and Obi-Wan await. There are tickets and bare necessities for them to make a fresh start in a bag slung over Obi’s shoulder. There’ll probably be a speeder waiting for them at the base of the steps, waiting to take them to their new transport arranged courtesy of the Senator of Naboo herself and then… then who knows where to next.

You suppose that’s part of the excitement of it all.

You feel naked, stripped bare. You no longer wear the tan neutrals of the Jedi. Instead, a leather vest covers you, a shirt tucked into brown pants and paired with Obi-Wan, they look nothing more than smugglers. A cloak is draped over your shoulders and clasped at your throat, one you tug closer around yourself as you approach.

Obi-Wan extends a hand to you and you take it numbly, letting him kiss your knuckles.

“Are you alright?”

“Fine.” You squeeze his hand and he nods. “Wait for me at the bottom?”

“Always.” He lets go and his eyes turn to the others. “I appreciate your aid.”

“Thank you, Obi-Wan.” The words sound strangled coming from Anakin’s mouth. The two look at one another and you think, in another life, they could’ve been good friends. “Take care of her. Please.”

But that is not how it is now. Instead, Obi-Wan merely dips his head again, once to Anakin, and then to Padmé and Ahsoka before climbing down the steps of the Jedi Temple.

You watch him go until he is out of sight, your eyes lingering even after, before you turn around to feel Ahsoka launching herself into your arms. Eyebrows shooting up, you embrace the Padawan tightly, eyes closing shut and then two more bodies pile in closely.

Shaggy hair and floral scents—Anakin and Padmé.

“I’m going to miss you all so much,” you whisper, raising a hand to cradle the back of Anakin’s head and another to hold onto Padmé’s shoulder. “You don’t understand how much you mean to me.”

“If it’s anything close to how much you mean to us, I might have some idea,” Padmé says. She kisses your cheek, a tiny blush on her cheeks. “Stay safe, Y/N.”

“I will. And you, too. Make sure this one over here protects you,” you say with a sharp nudge to Anakin who winces, running a hand through his hair with a brash grin. Ahsoka, with her arms still around you, looks up and you rest a hand on her shoulder. “And you, little one, make sure you take care of your Master. He’s a lot. Make sure he’s not too in over his head.”

Ahsoka laughs much to Anakin’s irritation and even Padmé breaks a smile, poking the Knight teasingly. “I promise, Master.”

“I think,” you correct with a sombering smile, “that you should get used to calling me Y/N. I’m not a Jedi Master anymore.” Ahsoka’s expression falters and you squeeze her closer, cradling her head against you. Anakin’s downcast face catches your eye and you look up at him, finding blue eyes watching.

“You will always be my greatest teacher,” Anakin murmurs. “I just wish there was another way.”

“But there isn’t, and I’ll miss you more than you know, Ani,” you reply. “You will never fail to make me proud.” Letting go of Ahsoka, you reach forward, hugging him tightly once again. His arms wrap around you and he seems to sink against your frame, shoulders dropping, head buried into the crook of your neck and you close your eyes, knowing the torment that rips him in two. Patting his hair, you let him hold you as long as he needs to.

It’s not until Padmé touches his arm gently that he remembers to pull away and you cup his face, brushing your thumbs over the apples of his cheeks. Then, looking into his face, a face you’ve seen everyday for the past decade and now a face you don’t know for how long you’ll have to wait until you see again, you can feel two hands take your heart and tear it like paper, into uncountable bits.

Tilting his head down, you press a kiss to his brow. Then, with one final squeeze to Padmé’s hand and a squish of Ahsoka’s cheeks which she takes only because you don’t know when they will see each other again, you pull away.

“I’ll be okay, guys.” Trying to joke, you force one last smile upon your face. “You can at least look like you’ll see me again.”

“We’ll see you again,” Ahsoka decides. “The Force wills it so.”

“I hope it does.”

You pull your hood over your head and turn around, descending down the steps and leaving your old life behind.

They nestle between two ginormous crates. The captain’s paid to turn a blind eye in exchange that they take up minimal space and don’t cause problems. That’s easy for them—they’re heading to Tatooine and from then, who knows? Maybe somewhere cooler, wetter, snowier. They’ll decide when they want to.

You rip apart a piece of bread and hand it over to Obi-Wan, resting your head on his shoulder. Your arm is looped through his and he takes your offering, swishing it down with spotchka. You chew on your own piece, their fingers interlacing and their boots knock together playfully.

For some reason, it makes you feel like a Padawan again—stealing moments, sharing secret smiles. In the darkness only fractured by a sliver of white light, the two are lost in each other’s eyes.

Raising your head from Obi-Wan’s shoulder, you look at his side profile again, the sharp lines of his jaw, the fine ginger-blonde of his beard. His nose and his eyebags and that scar—

“You still need to tell me that story,” you murmur, and he turns his head, swallowing with a quirked eyebrow. “Of your scar. We could trade.”

“You have scars I don’t know about?” he asks mischievously, and you roll your eyes, struggling not to laugh as his lips sneak a kiss. Reciprocating, you can’t help but wrinkle your nose at the taste of spotchka on his mouth. Maker, the stuff is not your cup of tea. Obi-Wan seems to note your reaction because he pulls away, kissing your eyes and between your eyebrows before pulling back. “Not a drinker, are you?”

“Oh, I am.” You try not to pull the face that’s so desperately begging you to come out. “Just… not something I’m used to tasting.”

“Well, we still have time.” He blinks, returning to the rest of the food they have laid out in between them in their tiny tin containers, and you sigh, just watching him. With every passing moment, you just see more and more of the Obi-Wan you think he could’ve grown to be. The fissures are barely covered by dry jokes and thin smiles, but still, you can see where the dark side had shattered him in to pieces.

No matter. You suppose that this is where their life together begins. Building each other up again.

He catches you staring as he pulls a grape off its stem and pops it into his mouth.

“What is it?” he asks curiously, amused, and you say nothing, brushing hair out of his eyes and marvelling at the gentle blueness that stares back at you. “Is there something on my face?”

“No,” you whisper. “Not at all. I love you.”

He smiles. “I love you, too. This isn’t a dream?”

You shake your head. “This isn’t a dream.”

And he kisses you.

1K notes · View notes

monamourbladie-mb · 3 years

Text

19 Years Later... [Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader x reader miniseries]

19 years have passed since Y/n’s husband Anakin’s death, and she has become the leading General of the newly founded Rebellion alongside her past Jedi friend Obi-Wan Kenobi, now known as Ben Kenobi. When her children Luke and Leia Skywalker gets kidnapped by Darth Vader, the man who killed her husband; her and Obi-Wan Kenobi must come rescue her. But when she finds out who’s behind Darth Vader’s mask, the truth is something she never thought she had to prepare herself for.

——————

i’m so freaking excited for this fanfic, holy shit. i’ve had this idea since April 2020 and i decided to say fuck it since you guys seemed interested. i hope you enjoy it!!! get ready for an angst and sex train, cause it’s coming in hot 🥵 😏

Index:

prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2 [Coming soon]

Warnings: None

WC: 1.3k

——————

People say love is a forever thing. But for Y/n and Anakin Skywalker, their time together was cut short the day Darth Vader murdered Anakin almost 20 years ago on Mustafar.

Y/n remembered the day so vividly - it was the scariest, saddest, and all the same happiest day of her life. It was the day her twin children, Luke and Leia Skywalker, were born; and it was also the day the love of her life was killed.

Y/n didn’t remember much of that, between the two events. According to Obi-Wan Kenobi, he had said that Anakin was behind the attacks at the Jedi Temple, and the man behind the murder of countless Jedi. Y/n couldn’t bring herself that the man she was married to could do such a horrible, despicable act.

She didn’t believe it until she saw first hand his anger - the way his voice changed, how cold his gaze had become. He tried to sugarcoat his villainous words to her, speaking gently, “Obi-Wan is trying to turn you against me.”

But when he had noticed Obi-Wan was on the ship alongside Y/n, Anakin lost all sense of reality and tried killing her.

The last memory she had of seeing her future husband was tainted with fear - the sight of him angrily raising his fingers to choke his lover.

When she awoke, she felt her body give in and start to writhe from excruciating labor pains. The pain she felt throughout her back and belly, however, were nothing in comparison to the never-ending ache in her heart that started when Obi-Wan muttered the words, “Anakin is dead.”

Barely able to cling to life, Y/n was able to deliver two healthy children, whom she had named Luke and Leia. Obi held her hand gently, smiling testy eyed, “Anakin would be so happy to see his little family. I promise I’m here to support and protect the three of you.”

Tears from pain and sorrow streamed down her cheeks as she cradled Leia close to her breast, sobbing as her body shook.

He should be here. I should be squeezing his hand, not Obi’s. He should be holding his son, not Obi. I shouldn’t be a widow.

When she found out the truth about how Anakin died, she was even more torn apart. Anakin didn’t even get a chance to explain his actions at the Temple - he was murdered by a man named Darth Vader before he could repent. She lost her husband to a murderous sith lord.

Obi-Wan took it upon himself to take care of Y/n, Luke, and Leia and got them a home on Tattooine. He knew that Y/n was never good on her own - even though she was a Jedi, she hated being alone. So he stayed with them, helping her raise Luke and Leia with just the two of them.

Knowing they were a target from Darth Vader, Obi-Wan knew that they’d had to change their names. He changed his to Ben Kenobi, a nickname an old lover gave him; and Y/n changed her name to Cecelia Jonas, a drastic difference from Y/n Skywalker. When it was just them, they would refer to each other as their old names for old time’s sake.

Raising twins without their biological father was very, very hard. There were many nights Luke or Leia would ask about their beloved late father, causing her to get teary-eyed remembering.

Nights when Luke would play around with the droids, speaking with C3-PO and laughing reminded Obi and Y/n of Anakin.

Having a son who looked just like a young version of Anakin was no help to her healing heart. Yet, no matter what she swore to never remarry — her heart belonged to Anakin Skywalker, and Anakin Skywalker alone.

By now, it was 19 years since Anakin had died. The Galactic Empire was rising, and the Rebels rose in contradiction, hoping to defend the Galaxy.

Meanwhile, Darth Vader stormed around his Death Star ship in an angry stance, slicing anyone who dared to comment on his more-so than normal angry aura.

He crossed his arms, looking outside the Death Star, “What do you mean you lost the plans?” His breathing labored and heavy as usual. The mask wasn’t even needed for him — the cocky bastard just wanted to come off as more intimidating.

“Someone... someone had sold the plans. And now General Jonas-“

Vader grunted and raised his fist, beginning to force choke the man mercilessly, “Find me who sold the plans and bring them to me. I want their death slow and painful. And find me General Jonas, I want to have a chat with them.”

The man’s eye’s rolled back as his vision blackened, then he collapsed onto the floor, gasping for air.

Vader strutted off, his signature Skywalker strut all the more prominent and powerful enveloped in his robotic suit of armor.

Ever since his fall, Vader had one thing on his mind. Completing out his Master’s will so he would finally teach him how to bring people back from the dead.

Vader reached his quarters and shut the door, locking it using the force with a simple flick of his wrist. He begrudgingly walked to the bathroom, slamming the door shut and hunched over the sink, his breathing getting more rapid until the noise irritated him to let out a yell in anger.

He took off his black mask in frustration and slammed it down on the countertop, his hands gripping it’s sides so tightly he felt his flesh hand feel numb. He looked up in the mirror, his ear-length brown hair dampened down with sweat as he looked at himself in the mirror.

“Who the hell even are you,” he grumbled to himself, running his gloved fingers through his hair. He sighed heavily and shook his head, the memory of her gasping for air replaying in his mind as his anger grew, “It’s my fault. It’s my fucking fault you and our child are dead!” he yelled to no in but himself, tears beginning to prick his yellow eyes.

With shaky hands, he dipped into his pocket and took out the necklace he crafted for her all those years ago, smiling sadly down at it as he rubbed it with his thumb.

“This is all for you, my love bird. All of it, so I can bring you home to me.” His voice trailed as he kissed the necklace, putting it back in his pocket gently as he let out a heavy sigh, wiping his tears quickly.

Vader thrived on pain now. Once he found out his wife was killed by his own hand, he lost all sense of himself. Anakin died when he knelt and took Darth Vader’s name, but Anakin truly died the moment Palpatine uttered those words.

“It seems, in your anger, you killed her.”

“Shit husband I was,” he growled, putting his glove back up on his flesh hand after he glared at his wedding band.

It gave him a mixed feeling - he missed his wife dearly, but yet it was also a deadly reminder how much of a horrible man he was.

The separated couple went to bed in tears that night, wishing and praying that somehow, someway they could be reunited.

But the both of them knew the only way that would happen is if they died, which was out of the question.

So they laid there awake in agony, their heart crying out to be reunited with their lover once more.

#anakin skywalker #star wars #anakinskywalker #anakin skywalker imagine #anakin skywalker smut #hayden christensen #anakin skywalker x reader #star wars smut #hayden christensen smut #starwars #darth vader #darth vader x reader #darth vader x reader angst #darth vader x reader smut #suitless vader x reader #suitless vader x reader smut #suitless vader

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backhurtyy · 3 years

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so what would it take to convince you to share your thoughts on the atla star wars au 👀👀

OMG.... very little is the answer.... i have so many thoughts, so i’m just happy someone wants to read them! anyways, this got really long- like REALLY LONG- so i’m putting it down below the cut. prepare yourself for some nonsensical rambling, far too much thought into lightsaber forms, and a lot of thought about Zuko and the Force 💖

Set post Great Jedi Purge- the Empire has taken over, with Sith Lord Ozai as the Emperor and having orchestrated the entire war as Supreme Chancellor

Azula is Ozai's apprentice; Zuko was supposed to be his apprentice, however he was never as strong or as good at using the Force as Azula was. He’s still powerful, but more in how he uses the Force to help him in a fight and to find things, rather than Azula, who can use Force lightning, excels at mind tricks, etc.

So instead of taking him as his apprentice, Ozai assigns Zuko to the position of Grand Inquisitor and tasks him with leading the Inquisitiorious Program to track down the Jedi that managed to escape the purge.

He uses Jar’Kai, with dual blood red blades…. This ended up becoming the form he used because when he was young, he could never get the hang of fighting with just one lightsaber and always used a reverse grip that left him far too open and vulnerable. Piandao, who was a darksider rather than a full Sith Lord, decided to teach him Jar'Kai to see if it would work better for him, and it did. Anyways, we’re gonna come back to his lightsabers later cause I’m very into them lmao

Aang was the Padawan of Grand Master Gyatso, raised at the Jedi Temple, and uses a Saberstaff with Soresu as his primary form (I think the defensive style and analytical approach to combat translates really well to Aang’s personality and airbending as a whole... also it's Obi-Wan's primary form, and I think they'd be friends)

Anyways, Aang and Master Gyatso were on a mission when Order 66 went out. Gyatso knew Aang was the galaxy’s only chance, always believing him to be the Chosen One who was destined to bring balance to the Force, and so he told him to run. Aang didn’t want to leave him, but Gyatso used the Force to send Aang to their ship and ordered their BD unit, MO-2, to get them out of there

Aang didn’t see Gyatso fall to the troopers, but he felt it in the Force, and swore that he would do what he could to defeat the Empire

He scoured the galaxy for other Jedi and rebels for a long time, trying to hide his identity and the beginnings of the arrow tattoos that marked him as a Jedi Padawan learner all the while he’s running from the Inquisition (I imagine him as a near humanoid species, who have tattoos rather than Padawan braids or silica beads. As they become Padawans, Knights, and Masters, the level of detail on the tattoo is increased)

One day, the Grand Inquisitor catches up to Aang and shoots his ship down over an ice planet in the Outer Rim

Okay now to Sokka and Katara-

Katara and her family has known that she was gifted with the Force since she was a baby making her toys fly throughout their home on Carlac, but being able to use the Force in the Outer Rim is dangerous. They're not often found by the Jedi Order since it’s too far out, but bounty hunters, pirates, and the criminal rings in the Outer Rim have no such limitations, and Jedi are valuable

Following ATLA, someone heard about a Force user on their planet and sent pirates/bounty hunters after her when she was little, and Kya sacrificed herself to save her daughter

Basically, Katara has had to hide her abilities her entire life even though all she wanted to be was a Jedi, and it’s only gotten more dangerous since news of the purge reached them. Sokka and Hakoda would do anything to protect her, but they knew it was only a matter of time before the Inquisition found her, especially since she has very little training in terms of shielding and what not. So, they pack up and leave to join the rebellion, where they hope to find a Jedi who can train her, and end up on Hoth

They quickly settle into the rebellion, with Hakoda becoming one of its leaders and Sokka and Katara two of its best strategists, pilots, and fighters

Sokka also gets Mandalorian armor and a vibroblade because I say so

They’re out on patrol when they see Aang’s ship go down in the tundra, and Katara feels something in the Force. She knows whoever is in that ship can help her become a Jedi, and before Sokka can stop her, she’s already running towards it

Basically they bring Aang back to base and he promises to teach Katara how to use the Force- just one thing, one of his kyber crystals is broken, so he needs to go to Ilum and get a new one. Katara asks to go with him, and he agrees

Back to Zuko- he didn’t trust that shooting Aang down was enough, so he flies down to the surface to catch him, and there’s a fight between the rebels and the forces Zuko brought with him. Aang and Zuko have a Maul/Qui-Gon esque fight, and eventually Aang manages to get away

He, Sokka, and Katara all leave together, and basically they fly across the galaxy in their transport, APPA, and make it to Ilum to get both Aang and Katara kyber crystals

Katara gets a blue crystal, and Aang teaches her Shien as her lightsaber form (it’s quick, fluid, and alternates between defense and all out attacks, just like her waterbending). They spend a lot of time meditating and going through saber forms and lifting stuff around the ship with the Force and generally being a pain in Sokka's ass because when things fall to the ground, they always manage to land on his foot

(Sokka's proud of his sister and thinks it's cool she's got magic powers, but do things always have to land on his foot??? He wasn't even on the same side of the room as them!!!!)

Basically along the way they meet Suki, another rebel who’s deadly with a blaster, and the Kyoshi Warriors. I also think it would be super cool if the Kyoshi Warriors were from Naboo and were the Queen’s Handmaidens- they look harmless, but these girls are warriors and can FIGHT

Zuko’s chasing them the entire time too

They find Toph along the way too, a super powerful Force user who uses it to “see” and is also a very talented psychometric. I think she’d use Ataru as her lightsaber form since it uses the Force to enhance movements (also the psychometry is for no specific reason other than I think it would be neat and also she and Vos have similar personalities lmao)

Anyways the plot of the show continues until at some point, Azula is sent after Zuko since he’s taking too long to capture the Gaang, and they team up to stop them. Azula uses Force lightning on Aang, but Katara manages to get them out of there before the siblings can capture them. She’s a very powerful Force healer, so she manages to save Aang

Okay this is the part that I think about nonstop, which is that Zuko goes back to the Empire after that fight, but he just feels wrong. The Force doesn’t feel the same anymore, he's cold all the time, his crystals scream at him and burn his hands when he tries to use them, his eyes are aching, everything his father says makes his head pound and the Force curl around him unpleasantly, and he has no clue why (he does, he's just too scared to admit that there's always been a little more light in him than his father wants there to be)

Basically he finds out something about how his great grandfather Sozin used to be a Jedi, until Sozin Fell and killed his best friend Roku, another Jedi and also Zuko’s mother’s grandfather, and he realizes there really always has been light in him. He finally admits to himself that he doesn’t actually want to be a part of the Empire, or a darksider

While he’s on the run, he spends a lot of time meditating and finding himself in the light side of the Force and stuff, and one day he opens up his sabers and purifies his crystals

I like to think that Zuko exists as sort of a Grey Jedi, who isn’t a darksider, but will never follow the Jedi Code or use the Force the way Aang does. So when he purifies his crystals, they turn a blinding white, to show how his destiny is in his own hands now. Also, I think one of his eyes stays Sith gold, while the other is dark brown, a color he hadn’t seen since before his mother died and his father began his training

Anyways, the Gaang saves the day; Aang fulfills the prophecy of the Chosen One and brings balance to the Force by defeating Ozai. Zuko and Katara fight Azula, and in typical Star Wars/ATLA fashion, Zuko gets Force Lightning’d. And up in the skies, Sokka, Toph, and Suki wreak havoc on the Empire’s Star Destroyers, and Sokka ends up breaking his leg because someone shoots the jetpack on his armor while he's trying to escape with Toph

#i have so many thoughts.... embarrassingly many of them are about lightsaber forms and why those work for their characters #but thank you for giving me an excuse to ramble about this lmao. i’ve been sitting on it for so long #zuko with heterochromia and dual sabers rights!!!!!!#also. i just think sokka should get mandalorian armor. as a treat.#also if anyone was going to ask YES i am definitely recycling mo2 from tstltf... but i think thats my right at the author of that fic lmao #atla x star wars my beloved #zukosadragon ace writes #zukosadragon ace speaks #thenegoteator #atla x star wars #atla #star wars #long post

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fandoms-are-my-friends-1321 · 3 years

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The Element of Engagement

Okay so this was a request from @grapemartini, and it’s so adorable and perfect!!! Plus Padawan Obi-Wan is just too adorable not to write for, so it makes things even better! I hope you all enjoy it! Gif and characters are not mine.

Description: The reader and Obi-Wan are separated from their masters, and the locals aren’t to happy about the reader’s relationship status

Warnings: mild cursing, mentions of consummating a marriage, otherwise I don’t think there is anything. If there is something I missed let me know!

“Now, don’t stray to far from us. This is a planet that you are unfamiliar with, and I don’t want to lose the best Padawan I’ve ever had the honor of training.”

Jaedkha, Y/N’s master, gave a stern yet playful look towards his apprentice. Y/N nodded at him, “Don’t worry, Master. We won’t be going anywhere.” Qui-Gon and his Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi, stood a few feet away. Obi-Wan flashed a smile towards Y/N, and they returned it instantly.

Y/N and Obi-Wan had known each other ever since they were first chosen by their masters to train in the Jedi ways. Jaedkha, a powerful Zabrak, noticed their talents immediately, and knew that Y/N was the one that they wanted to train. Now the two, along with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, were on a mission together.

The relationship between Obi-Wan and Y/N had always been strong, and they always trained together. Now here they are, finally on a high stakes mission that will aid the Jedi Council. As Jaedkha relayed the plan once again to Qui-Gon, Y/N couldn’t help but notice the way Obi-Wan’s red and yellow beads reflected in the afternoon sun. Obi-Wan was thinking the same thing about Y/N, who had yellow and white beads weaved into their own Padawan braid.

The mission was simple. Find the women named Drinna, and figure out what information she had on an up and coming Sith Lord. Obi-Wan and Y/N, while still young at the age of nineteen, felt more than ready to take on this mission. As senior Padawans, the day would soon come when their masters removed their braids, and they too would become Jedis.

“Come on, the rendezvous point is this way,” Qui-Gon stated as he motioned for everyone to follow him. The two masters led the way, while Obi-Wan and Y/N lingered behind. The force energy sparked between them, and the excitement they felt inside added to it even more.

“It seems like just the other day we were still studying in a cramped classroom, and now here we are on an actual mission,” Y/N whispered to Obi-Wan excitedly as they walked a few paces behind their masters.

Obi-Wan nodded his head. “I agree completely, and once we become Jedis we will be able to go on missions like this all the time.” Y/N’s heart skipped a beat at the thought. They wanted nothing more than to remain by Obi-Wan’s side for as long as they could, but with the strict rules of the Jedi Council, their relationship had to remain at a friendly level. Still, Y/N couldn’t ignore the love that pulled at their heartstring whenever they were near Obi-Wan.

Coming out of their daydream, Y/N realized that they couldn’t see Jaedkha anymore, or Qui-Gon for that matter. “Kriff,” they muttered harshly. “Our masters have disappeared into the crowd, and I can’t make them out anywhere.”

Obi-Wan tried his best to look through the crowd, but he couldn’t see anything either. “Come on, maybe this alley way will lead to where our masters are going.” Obi-Wan grasped onto Y/N’s hand without thinking twice, and Y/N felt the heat rushing to their cheeks. Then again, it could have been the humid climate of the planet. After leaving the alley, the two discovered that they were in an open market, but Qui-Gon and Jaedkha were still gone.

A smell of vanilla and fruit reached Y/N’s nostrils, and they couldn’t help but pull Obi-Wan in the direction of the smell. “Well, we might as well have a look around until we can find our masters. What harm could it do?”

Obi-Wan swallowed nervously as his eyes darted around the area flooded with people. “I have a bad feeling about this.” Suddenly, Obi-Wan also smelled a delicious aroma, and he too was lured in by it. The two Padawans found themselves at a small shack, the sign read “Barthes Baked Goods”. Inside shelves were lined with sweets, everything from small pies to doughnuts filled with eccentric alien syrups and candies. Y/N wanted to try everything, but settled on a Krishtart, a circular pastry filled with violet and ruby berries.

“This is all we will be needing,” Obi-Wan said with a smile as he approached the register with Y/N close to his side. “How much will it be?”

“It’s on the house, dearie,” the woman behind the counter said as she smiled back. “Consider it a wedding present. Have you two been together long? I can remember the first few weeks I was with my husband, Barthes. It was blissful heaven, and considering how handsome this man is, you will enjoy your time together.” The woman winked at Y/N as she stood in shock.

Obi-Wan was equally flustered. “I’m sorry, miss, but we are not married.”

“How old are you two? You look no older than nineteen, and it is tradition that all women must find a suitable husband and be wed by their nineteenth year of age. You should be ashamed of yourself. Both of you.”

The woman was no longer smiling, and her glare made Y/N’s stomach churn. As great as marriage sounded to Y/N, it went against the code they swore to follow. Plus there was no way that Obi-Wan would every want that, or so Y/N thought. Suddenly, Barthes himself emerged from behind an emerald curtain. “If you rebellious scum don’t leave now, I will be forced to report you to the courts,” he snarled.

Y/N began to panic. Their first mission was supposed to be exciting and helpful to the galaxy, not something that could end with them and Obi-Wan on trial. Then Obi-Wan’s smooth voice divided the tension in the air.

“Well, I wanted this to be a surprise, but I guess the loth-cat is out of the bag.” Obi-Wan pulled a ring from his pocket, the silver gem gleaming in the sunlight. “I promise to stay by your side till the very end, my love. This ring shall be a symbol of my commitment to you.” Obi-Wan slid the ring on to Y/N’s finger, and he placed his own matching ring on his left hand. Y/N felt a single tear glide down their cheek.

Barthes and his wife screamed in delight, and the anger they felt before was gone. Obi-Wan grabbed Y/N’s hand and started for the door. “You come back now anytime,” Barthes called to them, “And be sure to bring your future kids too!”

Obi-Wan and Y/N stepped outside into the sun, and both of them let out a sigh of relief. “That was a close call,” Y/N stated. Obi-Wan agreed, and he looked around the still crowded market. “And our master’s are still not here,” Obi-Wan added.

“That’s not quite true.”

The two Padawans turned, and there was their two masters. Both of them were smiling, and Jaedkha gave a slight wave before speaking. “It seems that you two got into some trouble, and it’s a good thing that Obi-Wan had those rings on hand.”

“I gave them to him before we left,” Qui-Gon said. “I knew that these two would have to learn to think quickly, and what better time to teach them then now.”

“I couldn’t agree more. Now, we must meet up with Drinna. Be sure to stay close to us this time.”

Jaedkha and Qui-Gon led the way, and Y/N and Obi-Wan made sure that they kept pace with them this time around. Y/N looked over at Obi-Wan as they walked. “Listen, I know that this goes against the Jedi code, but some time in the future, I wouldn’t mind marrying you for real.”

Obi-Wan considered this statement for a moment. Would it be worth the risk? What would happen if the other Jedi found out. Then again, it wouldn’t matter, because he would at least have Y/N with him. “I think that sounds wonderful, Y/N.”

Many trials and deaths laid ahead for the two Padawans, but they would at least be able to face them together. No matter how dark things seemed, or how strong of a hold the Sith Lords had in the universe, Obi-Wan wasn’t going to let anything happen to Y/N for as long as he lived.

#obi wan x reader #obi-wan x reader #obi wan kenobi #obi-wan kenobi #ewan mcgregor #jedis #qui gon jinn #Star Wars #the phantom menace #x reader #fluff #I finally finished this #and I’m sorry it took so long #but it’s done now #padawan obi wan

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thecipherlegacy · 2 years

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also (same anon), i was curious about mavasha’s background! im sure youve posted about it before but im new here so im a lil out of the loop

So, I've brought up her story in passing but I don't think I've ever made a full post devoted to it since her story/universe expanded! I am more than happy to share a bit about my beautiful lady!

Long excited rambling post below (and some Sith Warrior story, mild KOTFE and Iokath spoilers)

Mavasha grew up on the streets of Nar Shadaa with her parents, who were spice dealers and hardly ever around. Mavasha was a little street rat, constantly getting in trouble and tinkering with scraps she'd pick off speeders and broken down droids.

Around this time sith lord named Yavira commuted with the dark council, talking about how promising she felt bringing aliens into the academy would be. She agreed to take one of them as her apprentice to prove their worth. After pressing the matter and some careful deliberation they reluctantly agreed and sent off some ships to grab some force sensitive aliens, offering a reward for anyone who turned one in.

This lead to the event that sparked Mavasha's abandonment issues. Her parents sold her to the Empire. They knew she was force sensitive from the moment she was born, but always discouraged the use of her gifts. Upon the betrayal, Mavasha snapped and with her overwhelming anger and pain she killed her parents with just a flick of her wrist.

Young Mavasha was sedated and put in a cage that was on the ship to be taken to Korriban. She meets her teacher and spends a lot of her first day there being beaten senseless for mouthing off. She laughed off every attempt they made to harm her and assured them it would only make her stronger. She was tired of being treated with no respect, so set out to bring everyone talking down to her to their knees.

Lord Yavira was impressed by the street rats resilience and unorthodox methods of completing her tasks. She thought outside the box, which would always help her succeed. She watched the instructors attempt to break the youths spirit by belittling her and telling her to know her place, but she was seemingly unbreakable.

Occasionally lord Yavira would stop Mavasha in the halls to speak to her. Unlike everyone else there, the dark lord spoke to the acolyte as an equal of sorts. This instantly earned young Mavashas respect. She swore to Yavira that she was going to complete her training and become her apprentice. Mavasha was overjoyed when her efforts paid off.

Once she became the apprentice to Yavira, Mavasha was told what her duties were going to be. Lord Yavira had been keeping a close eye on Baras and his actions. She didn't trust him and noticed how every move the man made was a power play that was destroying the Empires war efforts, so she was going to aid the Empire with her new apprentice while trying to expose Baras as a fraud and a sabatour to the council.

This is the moment Mavasha and Malavai meet for the first time. Before his demotion, he and Mavasha worked together as young adults often. They grow to be good friends and respected colleagues to each other before they go their separate ways. During all her time working with the military she also ended up meeting her rival, the Republic trooper Darrina.

All of Mavasha's missions come to a stop when she finds her master dying in her chambers after an assassination attempt. With her last breath, Yavira tells Mavasha to do whatever she has to in order to stop whatever Baras had planned, and that she was the only one who could, then gave a tearful farewell to a girl she looked at like a daughter.

This leads into the main story of the SW. Baras takes Mavasha aside and tells her how much stronger she could be under his wing, intending to use up her skill before killing her. She feigns ignorance and agrees, though she wanted to destroy him there, she knew she wasn't ready.

After joining Baras she does some odd jobs for him on Korriban and receives Vette as a companion and friend.

Later she gains Malavai, who was happy to see an old peer return to battle with him. Mavasha starts some mild flirtation as distance had made her heart grow fonder for her friend.

As a lord, Mavasha seeks an apprentice to further her powerbase, so proceeds to Korriban where Hisk'ash passes his training and is taken under her wing.

(Skip past the main SW story, Baras is defeated and so on) Mavasha and Malavai get married and she rises in the ranks of the sith, becoming a Darth and earning the title of Darth Scorn by the council and eventually rises to Empress after the Emperors disappearance.

She ends up having two children (Yavasa and Rexia) and adopting one (Cathilia). When they're still fairly young Mavasha ends up going missing, this is the KOTFE expansion.

Rather than being saved by just Lana, she's also saved by a reluctant Darrina. Lana insisted that the eternal empire couldn't be defeated without her.

The two torguta women's companionship starts off extremely rocky. They hate eachother and fight all the time, but end up bonding more after Mavasha learns of her new pregnancy having survived her Carbonite prison. While Odessen is built they have discussions about their loved ones and families. They learn to get along and Darrina even helps take care of Mavasha nearing the end of her pregnancy. They end up becoming good friends in the alliance, and darrina is even known as Auntie to little baby Arreth.

When Empress Acina teams with the Alliance she and Mavasha immediately hit it off and Mavasha is glad to see a good leader rose up in her absence. At this point the poor Torguta is so tired and misses her family so much that she decides that once the eternal empire is destroyed, she would be fine with Acina keeping the title so she can focus on her family, if they were even still alive.

Most everything is the same in the KOTFE storyline here, just add a second in command with Darrina and a couple of my other OCs also join the alliance, (Talen, Nova, Vijeko, Arianness and Chasaadia to name a few)

When the throne finally gets taken and Valkorian is defeated, everyone is surprised when Mavasha turns down the power and hands it off to Darrina, insisting it should be in the hands of the alliance and she just wanted to go find her husband and daughters.

The war on Iokath expansion is when Darrina and Mavasha finally part ways. Mavasha finally reunites with her husband and wants to return to the Empire,and more specifically she wants to return home. Darrina, however, decides to join the republic, along with most of the alliance. Their parting is genuinely sweet, and Mavasha finally admits their friendship.

After everything on Iokath goes awry Mavasha finally gets to go home and be with her family. Her time in the alliance is over after that and she only leaves home to aid in the war when she's needed. She gets to see her daughters off to Korriban and introduce them to their baby brother.

And while her girls train and things get back to normal in the Galaxy, Mavasha ends up picking up another apprentice, a young chiss named S'cathe.

This is all heavily condensed and a little rambly. her story even continues from there (primarily through her children's training), but I've dumped enough in here lol

I plan to write this whole story out eventually, but I haven't had the spoons to do it. One of my goals for 2022 is to at least get the first chapter posted.

#theres so much to mavasha and her background that i just cant fit here-#i even cut stuff out so i could basically sparknote my own ocs story lol #mox's ocs #my ocs #some mild kotfe and iokath spoilers #oc: mavasha #warning this is super rambly and i feel like some of it may just not make sense or sound cringey or smth #anyway! hope at least some people will enjoy her story 😅#wish i could fit more in here but theres just so much.

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marvelstars · 1 year

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When it comes to Anakin and Palpatine´s relationship, I think we need to remember who they are narratively speaking to each other and to the story to understand what point George Lucas wanted to tell with them.

Anakin was born to be the chosen one whose main directive is to stop the Sith Grand Plan of a 10,000 years of Sith Empire and inmortality.

Palpatine is the Sith master who was able to successfully take over the galaxy and bring down the Jedi Order, the culmination of thousand of years of Sith masters plans. In fact it was because the Sith were going to win the main reason why the force created Anakin to stop them and they knew this.

Palpatine´s Sith master Darth Plagueis, when he became aware of Anakin´s birth, he was completely terrified of what Anakin could do to their plan and Palpatine always put attention to his old master fears, because he respected his power and his hability in the force. For Dath Plagueis Anakin´s propphecy was a certainty while for Sidious is was a possibility and this made all the difference.

Palpatine treated Anakin as an enemy and his prey from the beggining, he wanted to turn Anakin from possible enemy to his own asset, Palpatine was playing mind games with Anakin since we was 9 to make him lose his mind while presenting himself as a trusted father figure, with only one of them being aware the reason behind this was because Anakin was literally born to destroy his plans, so of course he wasn´t going to fail at making him fall, of course he was going to use any opportunity to break Anakin´s will to turn him. Because they are force fated enemies.

This reality, once Anakin became aware of this, sent him to a panic attack in the ROTS novel, because he realized this man he thought as a father, this man he trusted with his deepest secrets, love and ideals, this loved person was the same man behind the cilvil war, the same person he was fated to kill as the chosen one.

This is why I think their relationship was quite different to the one Dooku and Obi-Wan had, Dooku wanted to turn Obi-Wan because he was Qui-Gon´s apprentice and he missed his padawan, so having Obi-Wan around helped with his sadness and convinced him he was doing right in rebelling, creating a civil war and working with the Sith master.

Dooku didn´t want to destroy, reshape and make his everything Obi-Wan was as a person while Palpatine definitely wanted to do this to Anakin and did for many years even after his fall to the darkside, because he was just plain obssessed with seeing how much more he could get from him, the "force´s chosen one"

It gets even worse when we add Darth Plagueis noevel to the equation, Palpatine had a horrible relationship with his father and when he became a Sith he killed him along with the rest of his family, Palpatine was a deeply lonely person whose main comfort was power, so when he saw child Anakin, he proyected on him, he swore he was going to be the father to Anakin he didn´t have, because Anakin was HIS, because Anakin was LIKE him and he trusted his habilities enough to know that he didn´t need to fear him like his master did, he had plenty of time to make Anakin fall and reshape him into what he wanted for him and his Empire.

So Anakin was Palpatine´s victim/prey/slave/enemy/fated murderer/Son/apprentice all in one to the Emperor which actually explains a lot about their relationship because to Anakin Palpatine was Enemy/Sith Master/Father all in one, the difference is that Anakin, even as Vader, could not bring himself to kill him, he still loved him while Palpatine didn´t understand love the way Anakin did, for him love was possesion, so he possesed Vader.

But as George Lucas said, Vader/Anakin was the Chosen one, as a jedi or as a sith so when Palpatine went agaisn´t Luke´s life, when it became obvious a light side Luke wasn´t going to be allowed by his master, when Luke showed without a doubt how good he was, how compassive, how worthy of being called a Jedi he was, Anakin fulfilled the prophecy, destroying his master and himself because them both were Sith so both needed to be destroyed just as it was fated from the beggining.

#anakin skywalker #Emperor Palpatine #Count Dooku #Obi-Wan Kenobi #Darth Vader #the sith trainwreck #Their relationship makes a lot more sense when we remember Vader and Palpatine are force fated enemies #Had some thoughts after reading Husborth awesome meta about Palpatine and Vader/Anakin #star wars #ROTS #ROTJ #star wars rotj

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justalittletomato · 3 years

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Betelgeuse (Dad!maul x Starlight reader)

@lovelyzabrak-meadow per your request ANGST ANGST ANGST ANGST

In case anyone wants a read: @spookiifi @apocalypticwafflekitten @rogue-wonderful @always-on-tatooine @danger-xylophones @vinciwolf @hannagoldworthy @any59 @savagesbonergarage @any59 @dinsbeskar @a-dorin

For the AU where the two have 3 children, Cress who has run away, Aster whose taken a fall into the dark, and Danica the smallest whose little world is shattering evermore.

There is a current phenomena on Betelgeuse, a star in our galaxy that dims every so often. It was believed this observed behavior signals the impending explosion for the red giant. Instead scientists found its dimming was due to a cloud of debris covering its lower half. Still the planet displays a dimming light, its brilliance now obscured by a cloud.

The same can be said for Stars who find their light blocked by despair.

Years ago on a planet not too far from the red skies of Dathomir, you had stood under a blue sky of stars. There was only you and your Dawn with your audience of the galaxy above to witness as you both took your vows.

How young you had once been. That moment forever burned into your mind and the memory of his kiss forever in your soul. You never believed you could be happier than at that moment with Maul as your riddur. He vowed to love you until the last star burned out. You close your eyes and remember the kisses after and smile to yourself, that was only the start.

Not too long after the joy you thought umatched was placed beside an equal or more so joyous event. Your children, red as can be and the wonders of your shared life. How Maul had been delighted and frightened of this new change, how the two of you vowed your children would always be protected. Memories of those little ones playing and toddling and the two of you finally feeling whole with children you two would ensure to keep safe and love. Your twin stars, Cress, a ever curious adventurer and Aster, a princess who seemed to float as she walked and danced.

While Maul was overjoyed at the new additions to his life, he never had such an occasion, you could still see the anger and need to quell his revenge on those who wrong him. A determination to right what had been done. It came to Mandalore in the form of Maul’s old master and then once more in the form the Empire taking over. Your life there was finished and your children would never again see thier nursery or the plans you once had for them.

As you tucked them away into the hovering pram and ran from Mandalore, you felt numb at times but yet. Cress climbs into your arms and rests, Aster later coming along with her hair brush that Maul gladly takes.

Your life was difficult but you all had another....

Running off as the galaxy burned from each corner. Keep another safe. You had hoped it be enough, but it was not. Maul wanted to put down the Sith, convinced not only as a justice to his life but for the life now ripped from his children and you.

You often relayed to him if he set on like this he would lose, and for a time it worked.

As the years passed the children grew, your Cress as his Father’s little shadow and running behind him. Your Aster right alongside and continually demonstrating her abilities.

But that was all...no more children...it was unwise. Yet...

Danica is born 10 years after her siblings and Stars she's the most darling thing. Non forcesensetive and Maul’s grandest surprise.

He loved them and you more than anything....

Yet...

Cress has run off into the stars, he learned it all. Your past and Maul’s abhorring you both and leaving you both. You swore your heart stopped when Maul told you and perhaps it did. Your baby was gone.

Maul swore to bring him back, he’d stop at nothing to return your child. This was all the Sith, every wrong done to them...

No that is not that, let him stay away for now, it will be alright.

At first Maul leaves for some days. It is alright

A week. It is fine, Danica asks where her Father is. Only 6 and wondering if he will arrive to tuck her into bed.

2 weeks, her Aster can see the effects start to take effect. “ Buir, this is not alright.” her brown eyes changing bit by bit until the day you run into to see Aster with a shattered mirror and crying. Gold eyes like a burning Sun.

4 weeks, her bed is cold and there is no sign of Maul returning soon. This has gone on for the past year. The marks from his last appearance have faded away from your neck. You feel so lonely.

“I swear to the galaxy above to always love you,” the vow rings in your ears as you walk to the sound of your baby crying in her room. Another nightmare.

You have not felt calm in months but holding Danica helps, however tonight it is Aster who is holding Danica, her gold eyes glowing in the dark. You cover your mouth and try not to sob.

“Shh, Dani, buir needs rest too. I’ll stay with you.”

Danica whimpers, “ I want buir and daddy. Please, Aster. I want my buir and my daddy!”

You turn away unable to hear more, you slam the door to your room and bite down onto your hand as you scream.

“ I swear I’ ll protect them.” Promises and more promises broken.

Your teeth clank on metal and you see your ring. Years of promises. In a moment of hurt and pain you pull it off. “I’ll never take it off” you toss it to the ground and cover your face as your sobs shake you. “ I’ll never...” soft gold eyes look to you adoringly. A kiss to your hair. You just want it back!

“Buir, we’re always going to be together right?” Cress used to sit on your bed as you got ready. You clutch onto the vanity as you sit down. You want your baby back. “You look so pretty buir, can I brush your hair?”

How not even too long ago Cress would still do so and with little Danica who giggled all the while. I want my life back!

You are crying, tears dripping down your face.

Other times it was just Maul brushing your hair,you would tilt you head and sigh as he kissed you, “ My beloved Starlight...” If you were so beloved why did he leave you to wallow in this pain?

Your chest aches.

You take hold of the brush, gold as the Dawn you loved. With each stroke a reminder of your shambled life, your boy lost to the stars, your Aster with eyes so gold that she hides from mirrors, your Danica. You choke on your sobs.

“I don't want to be broken.” Broken. Your poor child.

You think of Maul...the usual love for him twisting, and for a time you see his reflection behind you. You grit your teeth and glare at him.

“YOU SWORE TO ME!!! YOU VOWED --” your grip on the hairbrush tightens and you don't want to see him. He left you alone! He lost your baby! He ruined everything!!! EVERYTHING!!!

The mirror shatters as the brush strikes it. You sob and toss away anything you can take hold of. “YOU SWORE YOU LOVED US! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?!!!”

You scream and sob and throw everything off the vanity. Glass shatters all over. Your heart is breaking and shattering all it once.

The reflection is all but gone. But in one shard you see it, the ring you tossed away.

You stumble over to it shaking with despair. “Maul...you promised.”

You pick it up, “ My Dawn...I cant...I cant” you collapse to your knees and scream.

-----

Aster and Angel eventually come and see you sobbing still clutching onto your ring. Your girl covers her mouth and ever so slightly her eyes glow more. Angel sends her away and kneels besides you, “ You held this in too long...rest. Right now rest.”

You gasp and sob, before letting sleep take you.

You dream of the past, where your three children sleep in your arms and your love holds you close.... “Please...” you beg, “Please give me my life back...”

#maul #darth maul #darth maul x reader #fem!reader #baby tomato #danica #aster #cress #cloudsdrabbles #clouds ocs #dad!maul

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yelena-bellova · 3 years

Text

Don’t Be Afraid: Poe Dameron x Solo!Reader - Chapter Twenty Nine

Chapter Twenty Nine: Trouble In Paradise

Series Masterlist

Plot: The Resistance has been chasing information across the galaxy to confirm the identity of the voice behind the mysterious radio broadcast. Meanwhile, Y/n has been keeping secrets from her loved ones that could have catastrophic consequences...

Warnings: language, intrusive violent thoughts, talk of the death of a parent, no beta reader because we die like men...

Word Count: 4.3k

A/N: GAH we’ve made it to TROS. I can’t believe we’re nearing the end of this series...Nope, I’m not getting emotional today lol. Thanks for patiently waiting for this chapter, I know it’s been a hot minute since I’ve updated. Hopefully I don’t disappoint :) --------

I’d joked as a kid that I’d always wanted to float. The concept of hovering above the ground suspended in midair had tickled me, but the reality of physics had crushed that dream quickly.

So naturally, my inner child was giddy to learn it was indeed possible.

I sat crossed legged, hands resting on my knees, eyes shut, more at ease than I’d been in a long time from seven feet in the air. Meditation had always brought me a deep sense of peace, but diving deeper into a Jedi’s way of performing the act had taken the whole thing to a new level.

“Be with me…” came a voice from the body that sat adjacent to me. The corners of my mouth lifted up slightly as I listened to Rey try her hardest while still attempting to remain relaxed and open. It was a blessing and a curse to be a perfectionist and a Jedi, you were wildly driven but also would beat yourself up generously if you couldn’t get something. That was Rey to a t. Not that I wasn’t just as devout, but I’d trained myself long enough to know that you couldn’t perfect something overnight.

“They’re not with me,” she declared with a scoff, “Ugh…”

Rey effectively called an end to our session as I opened my eyes to see her gracefully flip through the air and meet the ground. Her half of the rocks we’d been keeping in the air with us fell while I eased mine down with me, landing in a crouched position. “You’re going to get it.” “I’m not so sure I agree,” she sighed. “I haven’t figured it out either if it makes you feel any better,” I offered with a shrug, brushing the dirt from my leggings.

Rey made an objective noise, “That’s not true, you can hear your grandfather.”

“Only because he reaches out to me, I’m still not able to hear or see him by my own doing. And believe me, I’m trying…”

“It comes with time and a healthy dose of patience…” said the warming presence I sensed just a few feet away from us. “I’m starting to think it isn’t possible,” Rey stated as we walked toward my mother, “To hear the voices of the Jedi who came before.”

“Nothing’s impossible,” Mom replied simply, she had drilled that phrase into our brains so many times over the past few months that I swore it was tattooed somewhere in my skull.

“Nothing’s impossible,” Rey echoed, a small smile spreading across her face at the encouragement, “I’m going to run the training course. Are you coming?” “No, I ran it earlier,” I said, elbowing her lightly in the arm, “One day I’ll beat you but today was not that day.” Rey was such a humble person, which made it all the more entertaining to watch her try not to take delight in being the best at something. She slyly grinned at me before accepting Uncle Luke’s lightsaber from Mom and heading off towards the start of the course.

Can I go with her? Unless you need me? “No, Bee,” I smiled down at the droid, left in my custody till Poe returned, “You can go with Rey.” He happily rolled his way through the jungle, in search of his friend.

“Any word from the Falcon?” I asked hopefully as Mom and I slowly strolled back towards base.

“Not yet,” she answered, trying her hardest to sound unworried, “It may be too risky to send a comm back. I wouldn’t worry yet.”

“Telling me not to worry only makes me worry more,” I returned, clenching and unclenching my fists in an attempt to relieve some of the tension in my body.

Only a handful of Resistance personnel knew the details of Finn and Poe’s mission. Those who did understood the weight and magnitude of the information they were potentially retrieving. But as with every high-risk mission, bringing back intel meant bringing themselves back, which was a big if…

“Mom, what if it really is what we think it is?” I asked, sounding more like a curious child than a concerned commander, “Worse, what if it’s who we think it is?”

“I wish I had an answer for you,” she sighed, “But the truth is that we don’t know for certain what we’re up against. We’re anticipating and planning in the dark. We can only pray that Poe and Finn return with something that could shed even a little light on the matter.”

Light versus dark, an age old battle with a new enemy for each generation to face. But the same enemy coming back twice? Nobody could have predicted it. And while it was true, we had no official confirmation that the broadcast across the galaxy had been who we believed it to be, those who had lived through the rebellion had no doubts.

“Do me a favor and let me know when they’re back if I’m not around,” I requested, breaking away from my mother who was heading back towards the command center. I needed a few minutes to myself to attend to matters I couldn’t concern her or Rey with.

“Y/n,” she called and waited for me to face her, “I know you’re scared, but don’t feel like you need to fight your battles on your own.” If only she knew the battles I was fighting and just how important it was that nobody find them out. I hated secrets, I’d spent my entire life keeping them from those who meant the most to me. But the ones I kept now were in a new category of extreme, they were the kind that when all was exposed could ruin every relationship I had.

So I simply nodded, gave a tight lipped smile and turned back on my way.

I ended up deep in the opposite side of the jungle, far away from the training course and far enough away from base that nobody would stumble upon me. I scaled one of the large trees with ease, landing on a sturdy top branch and settling onto it. Like D’Qar, I kept a secret corner of Ajan Kloss for myself for when I needed quiet or clarity. But both places where were I faced my demons, only the ones I had now couldn’t be combatted with a lightsaber. Not yet, at least…

I took a deep breath and looked out to the beautiful horizon, inwardly beating myself up for what I was about to do.

“Ren, are you there?”

Silence.

“Ren, I know you’re there somewhere,” I pushed, trying to open the connection between us once again, “You’ve got to tell me if you know anything about what’s been going on.”

Nothing.

“This isn’t a matter of First Order or Resistance, it’s not about you or I. If this is what we think it is, both of us are fucked so if you know something, I need to know it too.” We hadn’t spoken since the evening of the broadcast, I knew him better than I wished to and knew that any threat to his rule would send him frantically searching for the culprit. Since he’d gone silent on me, I’d reached out often to try and get any information out of him I could. It wasn’t so I could use it against him, it was simply to figure out what we’d be up against. He was the only person I knew close to the dark side of the force, meaning he was the closest to answers I could get. I was toeing a dangerous line and I knew it.

As always, he didn’t answer. Once I’d served my usefulness to him, he’d dropped our frequent communication without so much as a warning. I’d spent so long trying to get as far from him as possible and now that I needed something from him, he was nowhere to be found.

Thoroughly done with myself, I groaned and leaned my head against the tree. “Resistance commander trying to strike conversation with the leader of the First Order…Well done, Solo.” Then suddenly, my mind was struck with an overwhelming pain. I was having another attack.

I stood amongst the familiar flames.

Bodies were scattered around me, their screams echoing through the air.

My usual y/e/c turned yellow as I stared down at the carnage.

Ren stood near me.

Obi-Wan did not.

“Don’t be afraid,” Ren said in an eerily soft voice, “This is who you were always meant to be.” Another scream, but it wasn’t in the dream.

I clung to the tree with one arm, the other was clutching my head to try and make the pain stop. Taking frantic whimpering breaths, I tried to remind myself that it wasn’t real. It wasn’t real. It was just my nightmare, the one I’d lived through my entire life. It was nothing more.

But then, my grandfather had never not been there.

And I’d never seen myself as a Sith.

I decided that was enough for one day, I didn’t know if there was anything else on my agenda but I’d find something. Anything to keep me out of my own head, which was becoming a more dangerous place to be with every passing day…

————

It was a few hours later, while tucked away with Rey in her corner of the base, that the day took another turn. We were going through the old Jedi texts when Nimi shouted for both of us, “Falcon’s back!”

I groaned in relief, setting my book down and leaping from my seat. Rey and Bee followed close behind as we made our way through the base, but the smoke trail leading back to the ship’s landing area wasn’t a good sign.

Sure enough, the Falcon was in flames. I stopped short at the sight, my beloved ship, my home, burning up. People were flocking to it, some to watch but most to help extinguish the fire. The Falcon was a Resistance symbol and people felt protective over it, it was a legacy.

“It’s on the fire, the whole thing’s on fire! All of it is on fire!” The figure emerging from the chaos typically sparked joy in me, but at the moment of his appearance I found little comfort in his presence. Sensing my anger, Rey stepped forward while I turned my back away from the Falcon and ran my hands over my face trying to keep calm.

“Hey.” “Hey,” Poe greeted.

“There’s a spy?” she asked, I’d admit that I forgot all about the mission in the moment.

“Really could’ve used your help out there,” Poe said loudly over the noise that surrounded us.

“How’d it go?” “Really bad actually…Really bad.”

I inhaled deeply and spun on my heels, my resolve to remain calm fizzling with every word my boyfriend said. “Really? I wouldn’t have been able to tell.” Poe’s hands readjusted themselves on his hips, “Look, you don’t understand-“ “No, Poe,” I raised a finger towards him before pointing to the Falcon, “You clearly don’t understand. What was the one rule I had for taking the Falcon? Don’t do anything dangerous!” “And you don’t understand that I had no choice,” Poe raised his voice, gesturing to the Falcon, “We had First Order on our tails, I did what had to be done.” “And pray tell, what needed to be done to my ship?” I asked, flattening my palms together and pressing my lips together in a faux smile. Poe breathed in to explain before he caught sight of Bee resting in between mine and Rey’s feet. “What’d you do to the droid?”

“What’d you do to the Falcon?” Rey countered.

“The Falcon’s in a lot better shape than he is.” “I beg to differ,” I interjected, my voice raising an octave. “BB-8’s not on fire,” Rey gestured toward the still flaming ship.

“What’s left of him isn’t on fire,” Poe’s eyes widened as he looked down at his droid.

Growing tired of the exchange, Rey cut to the chase, “Tell us what happened.” “You tell me first,” Poe demanded stubbornly.

“I asked you first and you still haven’t given me an answer,” I argued, throwing my hands out to their sides in frustration.

“You know what you are?” Rey began, a sarcastic smile plastered on her face as she stared down Poe.

“What?” “You’re difficult. Really difficult, you’re a difficult man.” “You, you are…” Poe started, letting his sentence end with a growl as he stalked off to examine Bee. Rey went to greet Finn who swept her in up in a hug

I crossed my arms and rotated my posture to speak in his direction, “She’s not wrong.” “You two aren’t exactly easy to deal with all the time either,” he fought back, not even bothering to face me as he examined Bee, “Buddy, look at you. You’re a mess.”

“I’d be a whole lot easier to deal with if you would tell me what the hell happened to my ship,” I raised a finger to him as he began to inhale, “Do not say one thing about Bee, he lost one part and Rey and I were going to fix him up before you got back.” A roar from Chewbacca, hard at work trying to help fix the Falcon gave me the answer I’d been asking for. We’d officially graduated from anger to rage…

“You lightspeed skipped?!” I shouted.

“Yeah, well, it got us back here, didn’t it?” Poe countered.

“Poe, the compressor’s down,” Rey explained, her face exposing her shock.

“Oh, I know, I was there.”

“Every time…” Finn mumbled to himself as he stood to the side of us. “You can’t lightspeed skip the Falcon.”

Poe sprung to his feet, “Actually, turns out you can.” “Does that mean you should?” I scolded. Finn, ever the peacemaker, tried to calm the three of us down. “All right, guys, we just landed, okay?” “Poe, you are never allowed to fly the Falcon again,” I seethed, “Ever.” “You can’t make that call, she’s a Resistance ship,” Poe objected, coming to stand in front of me.

“She’s my ship that I allow select Resistance members to use, of which you are no longer one.” “Okay, guys,” Finn interjected as gently as he could, “Can you two deal with your issues later and actually discuss the mission?”

Looking like a child who had just had a toy taken away, Poe silently stalked away from me with no more than a steely glare. The argument was far from over on both our ends.

“What happened on the mission?” Rey asked, changing the subject for all of our sakes as we followed Poe.

“Bad news, that’s what happened,” Poe explained with his back to us.

“No spy?”

“No, spy.”

“Can we please communicate like adults for five seconds?” I asked, pressing m hands against my mouth in an attempt to not let my fury fly free. “Did we make contact with the spy or not?” Rey asked, leaving no room for interpretation.

“There’s a mole in the First Order, and they sent us a message,” Finn explained, but Bee decided to interrupt with his own retelling of how he’d gotten his injury which caused Poe to stop in his tracks.

“You dropped a tree on him?” he asked Rey.

“You blew both sub-alternators?” she retaliated.

“No, he did more than that,” I spoke up with a humorless laugh, “He may have caused permanent damage to the Falcon, you could’ve torn the whole damn thing apart.” “Well, you know what, maybe you two should’ve been out there with us!” Poe finally exclaimed, we’d gotten to the heart of the matter at last. “You know I want to be out there with you,” Rey cried, “We both do!” “Yeah, but you’re not. You’re here training, for what?” Poe continued, sighing in disappointment afterwards as he looked between us both, “You two are the best fighters we have. We need you, out there, not here.” Silence had fallen and Poe had successfully gotten in the last word, Rey couldn’t fight any more and Finn didn’t want to. I however had plenty more to say on all subjects discussed and as Poe left us, ordering someone to get R2 into reconditioning, I went after him.

“Did you think that conversation was over?”

“Hoped, yes,” he replied, not slowing down to accommodate me. “It’s like talking to a wall,” I growled, walking double time to catch up to him, “I have told you at least ten times why I’m not on missions right now and yet you still give me shit for it.” “Y/n, you know as well as I do that things are dicey right now and we need our best out on the frontlines,” he stated as we argued through the base, “You and Rey are our best and you’re here training for something and you can’t even tell me what it is.” “How am I supposed to tell you when I don’t know what it is?” I asked, waving a hand between the two of us, “I can sense things that you can’t, you have to trust that what I’m doing is best for the long term.” “Well, then maybe don’t give me so much shit next time something happens to the Falcon on my watch when you’re not there and I’m doing what’s best for the long term.” My feet stopped but Poe’s didn’t, causing me to have to speak louder. “You really don’t understand why I’m upset, do you?” He swung a foot around and pivoted, he was visibly tired but still willing to listen. If only the sight of him didn’t fill me with so much anger…This wasn’t how his returns usually went.

“That ship is the last piece of my dad that I have,” I began, willing my voice not to crack, “I don’t have his wedding ring, his jacket, I don’t even have a picture of the two of us. I have the Falcon,” I pointed back in its direction, smoke still rising high above the trees surrounding it, “That’s it. So when it comes back in pieces, you’re right, I’m going to be upset and I’m not going to apologize for it. Because I know if you still had your mother’s A-Wing and someone so much as got a scratch on it, you’d never forget it.”

Poe kept quiet, his softening eyes betraying his hardened stare. I’d won, but it certainly didn’t feel like it. “I’m gonna go try and save what’s left of my father’s ship,” I finished, breaking into a jog back towards the Falcon before Poe could see the tears in my eyes.

————

Grease stained, sweaty and reeking of oil, I finally emerged from under the Falcon with Chewie at my side. She’d be fine, but it had taken a lot of hands to get everything repaired. Poe had done more damage than I’d ever seen done to her, it truly was a miracle they’d made it back alive.

“Can you tell me something?” I asked Chewie as I rubbed furiously at a splotch of grease on my palm, “Was lightspeed skipping really the only way to get out of whatever was going on?”

Chewie groaned his response, telling me that while he didn’t like it at all, he hadn’t come up with any other ideas as to how to survive the TIE attack.

I sighed, partially from exhaustion but also from lingering frustrations, “So do you think I’m being too hard on Poe? I mean, I’m pissed that he did this to Dad’s ship but…if it was the only way to stay alive then…”

My honorary uncle agreed that Poe had probably done the right thing, but by no means was he pleased about what happened to the Falcon. Chewie was just as protective of the Solo family ship as I was.

I hummed in reply as I thought the day’s events over, wondering how much worse it was going to get at the briefing that was only moments away. The intel Poe and Finn had brought back had been being decoded all afternoon and now we were finally going to find out what had been discovered. If the rest of the day had been any indication of how the briefing was going to go, it wasn’t going to be good.

I weaved my way through the growing crowd underneath Tantive IV, scanning faces till I found my mother. When I spotted her, there was no way to get to her. I also was in no condition to stand at the front of the entire Resistance, I’d probably have black oil stains on my skin for days. I slipped in between Connix and Snap, patting the pilot on the shoulder as I took my place.

Poe stepped forward once everyone had assembled, he’d been tucked away in the command center all day during the decoding process. Just before he started speaking, his eyes sought me out for the first time since our argument. All anger had drained from his face, replaced with concern and confusion. I furrowed my brows, silently asking what was wrong from across the crowd, whatever he’d heard had been troublesome…

“We’ve decoded the intel from the First Order spy and it confirms the worst,” he paused to look down and sigh, “Somehow, Palpatine returned.” I wished I could have said I was surprised.

Mom and I caught each other’s eye, our worst suspicions having been confirmed. It was another moment where I realized fairness didn’t exist for some people, one of them being her. My mother had already fought a war against the Emperor, she’d lost her home in the crossfire, and somehow he lived to give her more sorrow. My heart ached at the hardened, yet vulnerable, look that flashed across her face.

“Wait, do we believe this?” Rose asked from her position near me.

“It cannot be, the Emperor’s dead,” Admiral Aftab exclaimed. “Dark science,” Beaumont explained, his eyes widened with shock, “Cloning. Secrets only the Sith knew.” “He’s been planning his revenge. His followers have been building something for years,” Poe continued, “The largest fleet the galaxy has ever known. He calls it the Final Order. In 16 hours, attacks on all free worlds begin. The Emperor and his fleet have been hiding in the Unknown Regions. On a world called Exegol.”

R2 started chirping frantically from behind me.

“Exegol does not appear on any star chart, but legend describes it as a hidden world of the Sith,” 3PO translated to the group.

“There were always whispers of his hunger to cheat death,” Beaumont said with a shake of his head. I hadn’t heard of cloning having been done since the formation of the clone army decades before. It all seemed like an explanation you’d find in a children’s storybook, but it was our reality.

Mom had gone to stand next to Poe, conversing on how Palpatine had been pulling the strings since the very start of our problems, as we swallowed the information amongst ourselves. I didn’t know where I fit into any of what was going on around me, all I knew was that I needed to be at the helm of the fight. The something that I’d been training for was upon us and after hearing the details, I knew it would be uglier than I’d imagined.

“If we want to stop him, we must find him,” Maz said to the group, “We must find Exegol.” “General, Commander Solo?” Rey interrupted, I hadn’t even noticed she’d slipped away and returned, now carrying a book under her arm, “Can I speak with you both?” I nodded before snaking my way through the crowd, me and Mom followed her back to her station where she laid out one of the Jedi texts for us to see. “I know how to get to Exegol,” she said confidently.

“Tell me,” Mom urged as my eyes skimmed the pages of the dusty book Rey had poured over. “Luke searched for it, for a long time. He nearly found it. There are ciphers here I can’t read but he said to get there, you need one of these,” she pointed to a small triangular object, “A Sith wayfinder. They’re compasses that lead the way to Exegol. To stop what we both know is coming…I need to finish what Luke started. Find Exegol. Find the Emperor.” “She’s right,” I endorsed my friend’s idea wholeheartedly, “If Uncle Luke made it this far, he’s already done half the work for us. Look, it says the last place he’d been when searching for one was on Pasaana. This is our shot at stopping this.” Mom regretfully shook her head and shot us down with a single syllable, “No.”

“We don’t exactly have any other options,” I said confusedly, “We’ve got a set course right in front of us, we need to chart it.” “I don’t want to go without your blessing, I can’t speak for Y/n, but I will,” Rey said with conviction in her eyes, “I will. It’s what you would do.”

I watched expectantly as we awaited Mom’s answer, knowing that we both made too much sense for her to say no again. The good news was if she did, we didn’t technically need her permission. I owned my own ship and I didn’t need to order Rey to come with, one way or another we were getting to Pasaana.

“You two can go,” Mom finally relented, “But I hope you both understand just how critical this mission is. There’s no room for error, we have a little over one day to stop the attack.” “And we will,” I quickly assured her, “There’s nobody more suited for this task than us.” “I can’t argue there,” Mom admitted with a sigh, looking up proudly at her two Padawans, “Get what you need, you’ll leave immediately.”

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A/N: And we’re off once again...Hope everybody enjoyed this one, we’ve got a lot in store for these last few chapters. Hopefully I can still surprise you all a little lol. Let me know if you’d like to be tagged.

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