𝗙𝗔𝗨𝗟𝗧𝗦 | anakin skywalker

✰ 81: reconstruction

Obi-Wan Kenobi woke up with a start, catching his breath as the two clone soldiers standing over him were alerted to his presence.  The sudden onslaught of pain in his head made him inhale sharply and lie back down, as one of the clones, Tech, began scanning him with some kind of modified device.  Obi-Wan shut his eyes again.

"How long...?" was all he managed to get out.  He opened his eyes slightly, squinting under the light.  It must have been early morning, with the sun so far to the side of the planet.

"Too long," replied the second clone— a blurry figure he recognized as Captain Rex. "The whole night." He turned to Tech. "Let the other Jedi know General Kenobi is awake."  Tech nodded, then walked off.

"What have I missed?" asked the Jedi Master, pushing himself slowly to sit up. 

"The Sith Lord is dead," said Rex.  "They've told the Senate.  They don't have any news yet, but they brought evidence.  I'm hoping it convinced them."

Obi-Wan took a deep breath, grounding himself.  Searching for any disturbances that might tell him if something had gone wrong.  Of course, the entire environment felt unsteady.  Unnatural.  But nothing was wrong, and it all seemed to be balancing, for now.  He didn't sense Palpatine in their vicinity— the Sith Lord was truly dead.

As he let his breath go, his two Padawans walked into the room, grateful looks on both their faces.  They seemed glad to simply see him awake, let alone alive.  He hoped they had gotten along well without him.

Without any words, Akya threw her arms around her master and held him tight, but gently, afraid to over exert him.  She stayed there for a minute or two, and he kept his arms around her, as well.  They didn't need words.  Obi-Wan knew now— she had been the one to kill the Emperor.  She was trying to say sorry to Obi-Wan, as if she'd done something wrong.  But Obi-Wan, in their silence, assured her she'd done the right thing simply by squeezing her a little tighter.  She'd gotten rid of the threat.  She'd protected everyone. She'd saved Anakin from falling deeper into the dark.  And that was something she should never have to be sorry for.

They came apart, but Obi-Wan kept his hands on his Padawan's shoulders.  "I am very proud of you," he said to her. Then he looked up at his other Padawan.  That boy was still residing inside him, though he was now many years wiser, more scarred, more dangerous.  More loved,  too. "Both of you," he completed.

"You taught us everything we know," said Akya.

"But you have also taught each other," he said. "And that is something a master can only dream of."

Both of them smiled simple half-smiles.

"Do you have news from the Senate?"

Akya shook her head. "We haven't contacted them," she explained. "I thought it might be better to wait. Give them time. In the meantime, we can collect more evidence to show them Palpatine's true nature. Some of them aren't happy with the verdict."

"That sounds like the best course of action," replied Obi-Wan. "How is Ahsoka?"

"No change," said Akya.

"And.." He paused. "How are you both?"  He didn't really mean anything by it— he didn't care if they answered as a couple, as individuals, physically or mentally— he just wanted to know if anything was wrong.  Though he wasn't physically ready for any sort of exertion, he wanted to be there for them, big or small, because he cared about them.  Even though he wasn't supposed to, he loved them.  He wouldn't be able to bear it if he lost them.

Anakin and Akya glanced at each other, then back at Obi-Wan.  "Alive," Anakin answered.  "Injured, scarred. But alive."  Akya nodded in agreement.

"I suppose that's better than dead," said Obi-Wan, not sure what else to say.

"Sirs," said a voice, and all three heads turned to find Hunter stepping through the door to the chambers.  "Tech wanted me to let you know that Commander Tano is awake."

"Thank you, Hunter," said Anakin.  Hunter nodded, then left the room once again.  Anakin turned to his wife, asking a silent question. 

"You go," said Akya.  "I'll be here."

Anakin nodded, then gave a smile to both of them before leaving the chambers and heading into the main part of the ship, where Ahsoka rested on a bench on the side of one of the walls.

"You could have gone," Obi-Wan told his Padawan. 

"That's alright," said Akya.  "I wanted to talk to you." She looked down at her fingernails, and he waited patiently for her to be ready to speak her mind. "The Order," she said simply.  "I want to rebuild.  I want to help you."

"What makes you think I am the one in charge of it?"

"You're the highest ranking Jedi alive," she shrugged, her lips curling into a half-hearted smile.  Obi-Wan did not laugh, nor copy her facial expression.  Instead, he looked away from her face, and her smile faded away, her face scrunching in confusion.

"Not exactly," said Obi-Wan.

"What?"

"Master Yoda was with me on Coruscant when we retired the coded message luring Jedi to the Temple. When we went to find Anakin, he stayed here and planned to take care of Palpatine. He was not successful."

Akya was left speechless at the news, pausing before being able to say anything else. "Do you know where he is?"

Obi-Wan shook his head.  "I spoke with Bail Organa, who had escorted us back to the planet," he began.  "This was just after we brought Anakin back.  You weren't conscious just yet.  Yoda had left him, saying he needed to go into exile. That he failed."

"But Palpatine was too powerful for any one Jedi.  It was never his fault."

"Perhaps Master Yoda is giving us an opportunity," said Obi-Wan.  Though Yoda had left because he believed he had failed, Obi-Wan was quite sure that he had known something they didn't— perhaps he knew something they would never be able to see.  Master Yoda always did have a great gift of sight, and when he made a large gesture, he had good reason.

"Opportunity?" Akya repeated.

"To do this on our own," said Obi-Wan.  "Perhaps he knew that it had to be us."

"You think so?"

"Even if I didn't think so," Obi-Wan said simply, "Master Yoda is far into the Outer Rim on a planet who-knows-where, and he does not seem to want to be found."

"So we do this on our own," said Akya, looking down at her hands.

"Yes," said Obi-Wan. "Like most we have done since the deaths of the Jedi, this too will be on our own."

Looking for other Jedi would be apart of the plan eventually.  But if they made that the first step, they would never get anything done.  He knew there was other Jedi out there.  They couldn't be extinct.  They couldn't be the last of the Jedi.  But looking for them would take time, effort, and energy that they didn't have right now.  He would let the Senate focus on rebuilding the Republic, Empire, whatever they wanted to call it.  But Obi-Wan knew that he, Akya, Anakin, and Ahsoka needed to focus on rebuilding themselves.

a.n:

omg me core when i forget to publish for a week! I'm so sorry

okay as a Christmas present I'll give you two ♡

love you all don't forget to vote

molly