#Ventress can’t hide her good side from Obi

[30somethingontumbler]

Anyone ever get an inspiration for a fic then you start outlining that fic but have trouble because you have been living with this world in your head for so long that it has so much back story involving background characters that you have to write one shots for all the background relationships or you won’t feel like your main story makes sense? Yea me neither. On a completely unrelated note here is an AU one shot about Obi-Wan Kenobi and Asajj Ventress. Enjoy!

Obi-Wan Kenobi met Asajj Ventress on his first day working at his grandfathers law office, and she took and immediate dislike to him. Obi-Wan had absolutely no clue what he did wrong within five minutes of meeting the absolute goddess of a woman to anger her so greatly that she spent the next six months insulting his intelligence at ever chance she could get. He tried to make peace several times, but every kind gesture was met with her believing he had some nefarious motive or a snide remark. He brought her a cup of tea “If you are trying to poison me at least put it in alcohol” she would sneer.

When he offered to help her after finishing his paperwork early, “aren’t we just a little over achiever, kenobi I prefer that my reports be legible.”

If he complemented any part of her appearance “trying to get into my pants won’t make me like you Kenobi”

Of course her hating him had not been enough to keep Obi-Wan from developing a massive crush on a women who refused to even use his first name. No one could call Asajj Ventress a pleasant person but he had noticed little things about her that spoke of the kindness she hid from most. She always had a complement for the cafeteria staff and alway had time to advise Padme, the sweet undergrad who worked at reception, on her never ending boy troubles. For every glare he received she had a smile for the young mail room employee, and Obi-Wan envied every one. She was also absolutely stunning, tall model like build, her dark skin speaking to her mixed Israeli and African heritage, her choice to keep her hair buzzed spoke to her individuality along side the tattoos he had glimpsed under her sleeves. He spent every day sitting across from her at their shared desk space falling harder for a woman who had nothing but animosity for him.

Finally though after months of hatred obiwan was sure they had a break through! They had spent all weekend Friday through Sunday digitizing 10 years worth of information for a case, even going so far as to sleep at the office Saturday night. They had spent an almost full 72 hours together and had actually spoken to each other, he had talked about his worries about his brother who had just become a father days before at only 17 to a premature little girl, and his fear of wether or not his tiny niece she would make it, she had in turn spoke about her own troubled family and being raised in a Cult. They had shared vulnerable parts of themselves and when they left the office on Sunday she finally smiled at him, just a small one but it had been progress, and felt maybe at the very least they could be friends.

On Monday however he realized that would not be happening, he arrived a bit later then normal having stopped to get a tea for himself and a cubano for Asajj something he had learned she loved after the weekend of bonding. Only to be met with a cold glare and a snide remark about poison. But this time he would not let it slide off, he thought they had made progress, he would not be returning to this venomous back and forth.

“Asajj, I would like to know exactly what I have done to make you think I am out to get you?” He said placing the cup on her desk when she refused to take it from him. “If I made some horrendous blunder of etiquette I apologize, but I thought we had made some kind of progress last over the weekend I thought we might be able to be friends.”

She let out a cruel laugh before leaned forward and glared at him as he took his seat at the desk across from her. Do you know how long I have worked in this building Kenobi?” She said coldly then continuing without allowing him to respond. “I started out down stairs in the cafeteria, cleaning tables right after graduating high school and moving to this city, in my sophomore year of college I moved to the mail room,” she stood from her side of the desk and began slowly walking to his side. “After starting law school I made it upstairs to the reception desk, then finally after working full time and busting my ass in school I get this job under Doku, and opportunity to prove myself so that as soon as I complete the bar I have a chance to work at one of the best firms in the country, only to find out after working all this time that I have been competing for my future against his grandson.” She spit the words at him like they left a bad taste in her mouth. “So no Kenobi I don’t believe we will be able to be ‘friends’”

“I don’t understand what you are talking about Asajj?” He said fully confused. “I am not after some paralegal job, working for my grandfather”

“Then why work for one of the biggest firms in the country?” She spat at him leaning in closer.

“Because a masters in education is evidently not enough to get a job in administration at a public high school,”Obi-Wan replied tone dripping with annoyance “I am a 12th grade history teacher Asajj. I am here for no reason other then to get the experience I need to actually become a vice principal and maybe someday be able to actually make a difference!”

Asajj seemed to have been stunned into silence, simply turning and sitting back in her chair at her side of the desk.

“Well I apologize I guess, I was misinformed it seems.” She said finally after sitting in silence for a moment

“Who even told you I was related to Doku?” Obi-Wan asked having made sure that his relation to the boss had been kept under-wraps.

“Savage mentioned it this morning” she said gesturing to the one of the paralegals who worked under Sheeve Palpatine one of the other partners in the firm, “he mentioned how cruel it seemed to dangle the possibility of promotion in front of me when nepotism would always win out in the end.”

Of corse it had been Savage Oppress, Obi-Wans Savages Brother Maul had gotten in an accident after driving drunk that had put Obi-Wans Father in a coma for 15 days and Maul in jail for six months. Savage had held a grudge ever since. Now it seemed he had used Ventress to get back at him.

“I took a year off from teaching to get the admin experience I need to move forward in my field, have no interest in a job in Law,” he said making a point to look her in the eye, “and even if I did with your un wavering work ethic brilliant mind and razor sharp intuition I would have absolutely no hope of beating you, nepotism be damned.” And with that he looked down to his laptop and continued his work.

“Flattery will get you no ware Obi-Wan” she said after a moment.

“Ah but it already has” he said looking up from his work once more, to see confusion on her face, “that my dear Ventress is the first time you have used my first name” he smiled at the small flicker of a mail that lifted the corner of her extremely luscious lips. “For now I will consider this a success, and a first step.”

“A first step toward what?” She asked suspicion in her eyes.

“That my sweet beautiful Asajj” Obi-Wan said standing and rounding the desk to lean into her space, “is my little secret”

He lingered for a moment relishing the gentle blush that colored her cheeks at his use of the endearment before straightening and handing her coffee to her again. “You should drink that before it gets cold”

“Why does it feel as if we have simply put one game away for another,” she said bringing the coffee to her lips.

Obi-Wan simply gave her a knowing smile before walking back to his side of the desk and continuing his work, more determined then ever to win the trust of the woman across from him.

This is the start of what will probably be several one shots in the same universe with several different characters and couples. I don’t know exactly what it will become, I have lost control of this project and now the AU is writing me.

[phoenixyfriend]

Fake Sith TCW Trio

I have another fucked up time-travel AU! Who’s surprised? (Nobody.)

So like. Have you guys read that one fic where Luke and his students go back in time and pretend to be Sith Lords and are super hammy about it? (Sith Lord Swell by AMournfulHowlInTheNight)

This AU has contributions by @atagotiak, @the-lunar-system, @purronronner, @gelpenss, @creepingthroughthistidalwave, and @thisarenotarealblog.

I want TCW trio (plus Rex and Cody) to go back to several years pre-TPM and, since the Council DEFINITELY won't believe them about the Sith being back... they'll force the issue.

Anakin is weirdly excited about things and building up their backstory.

Anakin: Okay so I can definitely be a Maul type, with the unhinged ranting and manic laughter, Obi-Wan can be the whole Refined Rich Guy type like Dooku, where you can't even tell he's evil until he starts talking about getting out the eyeball scoops, maybe toss in a bit of mad science stuff? Ahsoka could play up like Ventress OR, oh oh, she can be the Light Side Child we need to PROTECT who's publicly begging us to return to the Light after our big dramatic Falls where we murdered like eighty people to save her, and-- Obi-Wan: Why are you never this enthusiastic about actual undercover missions. Ahsoka: Did you just have all this ready to go, or...? Anakin: WE COULD GET YELLOW CONTACT LENSES FOR ME.

Obi-Wan: How's my evil laugh?

Anakin going “Okay.. so if any of us need to murder someone to sell the bit it should be me, I think I could handle it the best. Why? No reason.”

Obi-Wan: I'm not sure a complete Fall could come from protecting Ahsoka, really-- Anakin: No, no, it could.

Obi-Wan: Surely you’d hold back because you realize neither of us want that for you. Anakin: Uh. Sure. Definitely.

Obi-Wan points out that none of them can channel the dark side to Prove they're Sith and Anakin just goes "Okay, give me like two seconds to stew in my negativity and--right, you can stop staring in horror, please."

Anakin rambles on that they can TOTALLY make the galaxy a better place while playing at being Sith! He's got a whole LIST of slave empires to "take over" and disassemble!

Anakin has a whole excited spiel about how EVIL soldiers and assistants are minions, in this case partly because Cody and Rex are too good at what they do to be mooks. Cody could pull off evil minion very well. Facial scar? Looks good in black? Quietly competent and sarcastic?

He also pushes for Obi-Wan to lounge in a fancy throne with a glass of wine while Anakin stalks the shadows and Ahsoka hangs out on the window ledge. The disaster lineage is dramatic, okay, Anakin’s just leaning into it, he’d appreciate it if everyone stopped looking at him like that.

Qui-Gon, surprisingly, ends up a skeptic about all of this. Everyone is freaking out about the Sith and he’s like “y’know I’m not even sure they’re darksiders.”

Some Jedi, possibly Qui-Gon for his conspiracy board, gets in a real risky situation and one of the Fake Sith saves them, but also panics and kinda drops character for a bit.

Jedi: You saved me! Why’d you do that? Anakin: I uh... just wanted the pleasure of killing you myself?

"You saved me. Why?" "Mmmm. Jedi." [walks away]

Qui-Gon: [trying to figure out what is up with these people semi-competently (from his perspective) pretending to be Sith] Dooku: [trying to protect Qui-Gon from Sith influence]

The gang is the most successful at pretending to be Sith to Dooku. Sure, they’re not gonna punish him for something he hasn’t done, but it’s not hard to act menacing and angry around him.

(They really do have so much fun irritating the heck out of Dooku. He hasn’t Fallen yet, but they want to keep an eye out.)

At some point, future Obi-Wan definitely drops that little tidbit of "What, you didn't think the Banites were the only Sith running around did you? You... didn't even know about the Banites. How... disappointing."

They REGULARLY use Ahsoka as an excuse to be marginally less terrible. They claim that if Ahsoka pouts, they stop. ‘Soka also uses them as an excuse for why she’s a lil feral. (To be fair, that one is accurate. She was already a lil feral before but it’s not like they did anything to stop it.) Ahsoka gets her "breaking into people's offices" jollies by bugging Nute Gunray's office.

The Jedi keep trying to Rescue Ahsoka.

Rex and Cody end up in real beskar, there's a whole Thing with Mandalore and Jango and Satine.

Obi-Wan is CONSISTENTLY worried about Anakin Falling for real, which... hey, at least he knows to be worried about Anakin Falling. Step up from canon, really.

Anakin is WAY too into killing the Hutts but like. It does... technically sell the bit.

Obi-Wan: Sure, I’m not sad that they’re dead, especially because we’re not connected to the Republic, so we don’t need to worry about starting a war and all that. But. Anakin is disturbingly cheerful about this. Rex: Wasn't he a Hutt slave? Obi-Wan: Well yes, but-- Rex: I'd kill Nala Se if I could get away with it.

Cody and Rex are very supportive of Anakin's murderous intentions.

Obi-Wan does understand anger, even killing someone in anger. Like Maul (the first time at least) and D’nar and a few others. All the same, like... y’know. The level of bloodthirst from the others is a little off-putting.

At one point, Anakin accidentally addresses young Obi-Wan by name, despite never having met before, and to cover it up, he... panic-flirts. He panics, and so he flirts, with young Obi-Wan.

(He will later blame this on old Obi-Wan, because he had to pick up the habit of flirting with the enemy from somewhere.)

Anakin vaguely implies that he's a wee bit obsessed with young Obi, and that the padawan should "get used to being the target of a dark-sider's interests," because he’s scrambling for Ominous Shit and, well, future Obi-Wan was pretty frequently a fixation point for darksiders, right?

The second he gets out, he just starts screaming into a bucket while Rex pats him on the back.

For the next however many terrible months, possibly years, he has to keep up the act while having an ongoing meltdown about how That's My Dad As A Twenty-Something.

(It doesn't help that young Obi-Wan reflexively flirted back.)

Old Obi-Wan, meanwhile, is just very "you dug this hole yourself, padawan."

There is an argument at the beginning about Obi-Wan’s outfit. If he’s gonna be a Sith, he can’t just go around in beige, but he’s like “I like this and it’s comfy.” Sure, he’s changed clothes for undercover stuff, but that’s always been temporary, y’know? He likes his beige.

We have a number of options.

My first instinct? Beige linen three piece suit, like a southern lawyer. "Now I may just be a simple Outer Rim force adept--"

And, of course, you can TOTALLY make the beige sinister: he’s impersonating a Jedi! Jedi impersonation would also explain why nobody has a red saber.

“Sure is good that the Jedi don’t seem to realize most of the galaxy doesn’t know red sabers are different and bad.” “Shhhh, stop poking holes in our story where a Jedi might overhear.”

Like.... if you do enough doublethink, it works! How would a Sith hide? In plain sight. Also, it’s a GREAT way (if they were actually assholes) to try to slander the Jedi name.

(Anakin and Ahsoka still think he could stand to put a little more effort in. Add a splash of color, for pity's sake!)

Though tbh part of me is like “What if Old Obi wore, like... a split skirt suit...” Victorian womenswear inspired because he misses his robes, but he has to look Professional, and like he's MOCKING Jedi instead of BEING one, so he wears a vintage-y split skirt thing over his leggings. Ends up looking a lot like what Ventress had for a while, but Beige. I also keep wanting to put him regency menswear.

Anyway. Obi-Wan’s wardrobe aside...

Anakin builds up his Tatoo accent again. It helps him with the (mostly true) "slavery helped me fall" backstory.

Either Cody or Rex offhandedly mentions being made to serve them (the Fake Sith) and now the Jedi are somewhat concerned about brainwashing. Are these Mandos the victims here?

“No like. Literally made for this. In a lab.” This is even more horrifying. So...

On the one hand good! The Jedi should be scared about Sith! On the other hand... it makes the Jedi more determined to stop them, specifically. They keep on getting in the way, just, all the time, and they’re not investigating the actual Sith problem, which is decidedly not great since the Team doesn’t actually know who’s a real Sith right now, except Maul, and who even knows where that guy is.

Obi-Wan, at some point: Do you think we've succeeded at this ruse... a little TOO well? Anakin: I don't follow. Obi-Wan, gesturing at the truly obnoxious amount of wealth they've collected, including "trophies" of their kills: Really? Because I'm a little worried! Anakin, planning out a battle to take on Nar Shadda: ...I'm not.

"How many people do we realistically we need to take over Hutt Space? Apparently... five."

(Mostly because Anakin is ridiculously op.)

ANAKIN AND YOUNG OBI GET KIDNAPPED BY PIRATES TOGETHER. It's tradition.

Anakin: Okay, so, I need to get really angry about something to pass as a Sith... time to think about my WIFE and how I'll NEVER SEE HER AGAIN.

Since Anakin’s life never goes as planned... this does not work. Instead of getting properly angry, he makes himself sad. There are tears. There is wailing. There’s a distraught rant or two. Young Obi ends up awkwardly trying to comfort him.

“Oh no, this… Sith?? Is crying on me. What do I do???”

Later on, when the Council wants intel: "So... one of the Sith cried on me about his wife. I think she's dead? He wasn't very clear about it but it, uh... it sounded like it might have contributed to his Fall. Also the relationship was a little unhealthy? He basically worshiped the ground she walked on and kept ranting about how he would have given her the galaxy on a platinum platter of she'd only asked, but that might be new and inspired by the Dark."

One of the random Jedi is REALLY good at detecting the truth Through The Force, and asks Anakin how he Fell...

Anakin just. Tells the Tuskens story.

They don't get pinged as lying, but oh boy does old Obi have a LOT of questions for Anakin once they're in private.

There are other things happening to help sell the ruse. Some of them are necessary! Some of them are... not.

Obi-Wan: What's the best way to show we're rich and kind of evil, but like... classy about it? Anakin, immediately: I sit on the floor next to the throne, leaning against it, and you call me pet names while stroking my hair, and then when you need something killed I get to do it for you and then I go back to the floor and you thank me for the directed violence, and then you go back to Negotiations with criminals while I’m sitting there covered in blood. Obi-Wan: ...is there something you want to TELL us, or...?

"You're all going to get a glimpse of something normally kept hidden about me." "Anakin, you don't have to do that." "No, I'm gonna."

(Anakin has decided hes going to peel his kink tomato to sell this ruse, and the others are slightly uncomfortable with that.)

Anakin: Okay, I cannot keep flirting with you. Young Obi: Wait, what? But that's the best part of any time we run into you! Anakin: You look WAY too much like my Master did when I met him. Obi: O...kay? If someone looked like my master when HE was young, I'd-- Anakin: My Sith Master half-raised me. He's basically my dad. Obi: ... Anakin: What's that look for? Obi: I mean, you spend a lot of time lounging at his feet, and, like, given how much you hate slavery, I... kind of assumed it was a kink thing? Anakin, brightly: Oh no, I just have a LOT of trauma. And neuroses. Snips says they’re neuroses.

Young Obi is a little upset because he was actually getting REALLY into Flirting With The Enemy and was hoping it would go somewhere. He mopes to Qui-Gon about it. Qui-Gon isn't sure whether to be proud about Obi breaking rules, or worried over Obi-Wan falling for a Fake Sith.

(As Tia put it: "You enjoy making young Obi-Wan have a completely unrequited crush on Anakin, don’t you?")

Fortunately, one of those attractive Young Mando boys very kindly helped him tape up his ribs this one time, and has thus caught his eye...

I feel like having Cody date Young Obi would court an entirely different kind of (internet) drama because clone ages, but whatever.

Also please imagine an element of "so I'm dating the genetic identical of my boss... who's dating the man I'm a genetic identical of..."

(It's probably not actually Jangobi but man would that be funny and also stupid.)

Somehow Young Obi figures out that the "Sith Master" is a future him before he realizes that they're not actually dark. In his defense, Anakin was pretty convincing. Especially with the wife rant. It makes HIM more obsessed with Anakin, in a reversal of the implied earlier dynamic, which is all kinds of weird. Less romantic but like. Still weird.

"Future Me Scares Me" with Extra stupid. "Future Me Annoys Me." "Future Me acts like grandmaster Dooku, but more sass." "Future Me raised a really hot evil guy that refuses to bang Present Me." "Future Me might be a Sith, but I'm getting more and more convinced he's just fucking with us all." "Future Me is really rocking that beard, and I can't BELIEVE we figured out a way around the babyface."

"I’m kinda concerned about the whole evil thing, but I’m also glad that I know I’ll stay hot as I get older."

Quinlan approves of the priorities.

Also a lot of interactions with older Obi are very Anakin: [does/says something deeply unhinged] Obi-Wan: So, do you want to…. Talk about that? Maybe? Anakin: What’s there to talk about?? I’m fine, everything’s fine! Anyways how about those plans for tracking down Maul?

Anakin later, like way after the ruse is lifted, just blankly tells everyone that he did Fall, once, and Older Obi made him get therapy about it after the truth came out between the two of them a few months into the Fake Sith thing.

Where'd they find a therapist? I'm sure there's one SOMEWHERE around. Denon and Herdessa are close enough, and they've done enough "your criminal empire now belongs to me" that they can pay well. They make sure to find one that takes confidentiality real seriously.

It's all very "we need some more time to unpack all that."

Therapy helps get Anakin to figure out Sheev’s whole deal. They don't necessarily figure out he’s a Sith from it, but they figure out he’s sketchy and they need to look into that more. Obi-Wan probably already thought he was sketchy, but the whole active gaslighting campaign was a little surprising. They realize that he kinda benefited a lot from a lot of Sith plots and they still probably don’t think he’s a Sith but Obi-Wan is definitely starting to think he’s working with one.

"Okay, we're already bugging Gunray, should we bug Palpatine just to be safe?"

They get away with a lot of slicing because Anakin is a technical genius from twenty years in the future.

The reasons they're so good at Taking Over Hutt Space: 1. They know parts of the future. 2. They have superpowers and FAR less reason to not use them, now that their actions aren't going to reflect on the Republic. 3. They have Cody and Rex, who are two of the greatest military minds in the galaxy, and know EXACTLY how to wage a war that covers a solid third of the galaxy, starting from a position of relative weakness. 4. Anakin's charisma is scary high, and his knowledge of slave culture means they gain a lot of trust from the people they free, and they just... keep acquiring volunteers for the army they didn't plan to have. Obi-Wan doesn't know what to do. He thinks they might have started a cult?

In his defense, Dooku sort of started a cult, and Komari got kidnapped by a cult, brainwashed into joining it properly, and then took it over as head figure of said cult. It's practically tradition!

Comics Vader is the central figure of like three different cults, it was really just inevitable.

Anakin: Aw, don't worry master, it's not a cult, it's a revolution! Ahsoka: They're worshiping him, though. Anakin: ...it's still a revolution! Just... with some misunderstandings.

Also, if they got wind of people trying to keep people from being able to leave and other culty stuff like that, they’d probably put a stop to it pretty damn quick.

Names! Time for names. As per usual, it's easiest to keep track of Obi-Wan's alternate Older Self by just calling him Ben.

Darth Ben.

Ahsoka: You should be Darth Boring. Obi-Wan: I can still make you run laps, you know.

Anakin: The Force is telling me to call myself Darth Vader. Obi-Wan: ...why? Anakin: I dunno, but it sounds cool, I'll run with it.

Someone: Ben has all the answers; we shouldn’t question him, ever. Ben: One time I lost a planet, and a five-year-old found it for me.

More options: Going with the "evil word with the prefix 'in' chopped off" that we get with Sidious and Vader: Darth Surrectus (as in insurrection) Just random Latin words: Darth Temporus (time) Darth Commenticius (fake)

Anyway, back to Nonsense:

Maul goes after young Obi early, because the Fake Sith are really invested in this one random Padawan (Sidious is saying he might be a cousin of the false Sith Master? They do look similar enough) so someone needs to investigate. Naturally, Anakin shows up with some wild screeching to fight Maul, and when someone questions why he got involved it gets very "Kenobi is MINE!" and like. Okay. So.

Anakin means it in a very Sith "to toy with" and "to torture" way, or the ‘my chosen opponent!’ way, just the same kind of Obsession as Maul had with Obi-Wan in the original timeline. Unfortunately, Anakin’s a weird-ass person who flirts with Young Obi against his own better judgement, so there's some awkward "Like... your boyfriend?" from young Obi. Anakin just screeches in SOME emotion that nobody wants to interpret, and couldn't even if they wanted to, and starts whacking away at Maul again.

(Anakin hasn't explained the "you look exactly like my dad, sorry, it's just too weird" thing yet, and he is HAVING MANY REGRETS.)

There's definitely at least one instance where a person asks Anakin if he's planning on dating That One Jedi Twink, or at least banging out the tension. At that point in time, Anakin doesn't actually know who the fuck they're talking about, because "Obi-Wan + Twink = Does Not Compute" for dear, dense Ani, and instead he just ends up ranting about how he is LOYAL TO THE MEMORY OF HIS LATE WIFE, how DARE anyone so much as INSINUATE that he would TARNISH HER PERFECT MEMORY and UNWAVERING KINDNESS and WHOLESOME BEING, and the person who asked doesn't end up lightsabered but they do end up with a LOT to tell whoever they're reporting to.

Young Obi-Wan definitely hears Anakin mutter the phrase “something to discuss with my therapist later” a few times, and he’s a little bewildered because darksiders definitely don’t seem like the type of people to go to therapy. They’re the type of people to need therapy, sure, but not the type to go to therapy.

I think it would be very fun for Young Obi to continue sighing over Anakin (who's pretending to be fine with it and even flirting back because he's in too deep to stop and hasn't worked up the courage to explain the elephant in the room) while Anakin is covered in grease and infodumping while having a slightly manic hyperfocus on engine repairs while the two of them Somehow got stranded together in the middle of bumfuck nowhere (it's Plagueis's doing, he finds the interactions between THESE two in particular to be the most informative regarding the fake Sith).

Anakin, at some point while stranded with young Obi-Wan, and having actually started unpacking some stuff in therapy, though he’s def still got a ways to go: I’m pretty sure Ben cares about me. He acts like he cares, like he’ll do stuff like put extra blankets in my quarters in the spaceship because I get cold real easily or track down those droid parts I need for a project and he always has my back in a fight but y’know it’d be nice to hear him say he loves me once in a while. Especially because we kinda had a rough start and idk I don’t think he wanted me around at first.

And uh. Obi-Wan definitely relates to that a bit too much, y’know?

I want to say that Young Obi ends up mentioning All That to one of the clones or Ahsoka later, because they seem probably invested in Anakin's well-being, even if Ben is, well, a Sith, so Obi-Wan's a little worried the man's affection really is fake, but at least Ahsoka...

(Ironic, given what Anakin's actual eventual Sith would-be-Master was like.)

Young Obi mentions Anakin’s most recent rant to Ahsoka, and she just goes "Wait, is that why Skyguy likes to sit by the throne and get called pet names?" "Uh... I don't... know... but it sounds like all of you have a LOT to unpack there, Miss Apprentice."

Later on: "Master Kenobi, you need to tell Skyguy you love him 'cause apparently he's been having a lot of emotions about you not telling him you care and he's been talking to mini-you about it whenever they get stuck together and--"

Young Obi-Wan is just constantly the "Now we don't have time to unpack all of that" John Mulaney gif. Anakin in particular is a mess, and young Obi-Wan slowly goes from "I want to date that" to "I want to study that" about him.

Obi-Wan gets stuck somewhere with Ben, tries to small talk, gets on the topic of Vader, and spills the drama. He gets an awkward “Thank you for bringing that to my attention.”

It’s followed by a fairly frustrated “I try, but Anakin refuses to communicate his needs to me, and it feels like I’m always falling short.”

At least one member of the group is in therapy, probably all of them, but they’re still using young Obi as a sounding board for all this stuff. On the bright side, this is probably good for impressing the importance of good communication on Obi-Wan.

Good for Obi-Wan! And... whatever Padawan he eventually has.

As for baby Anakin, who is approximately age four, I want to go with "Anakin decides to be his own uncle, and Shmi just rolls with it because fuck it, she’s not a slave anymore, and a Fake Sith is a solid defense against anyone trying to re-enslave them."

[This is a backstory I've had them use before (see here and here).]

Seeing Big Ani and Little Ani in the same space might be what finally pings the "oh shit, that's future me" thing for Obi-Wan... you know, if he’s ever allowed close enough to see Little Ani in the first place.

Little Ani stays with the fake-Sith and is sorta jointly trained by all of them, and young Obi-Wan teaches little 'Soka at the Temple. Ani and 'Soka still end up friends somehow, but it is fairly different.

Every time little Ani addresses Old Obi as "Dad," it's just like ten kinds of awkward. The one time someone tried to explain that Ben wasn't his new dad, Shmi glared them down. She is of the opinion that, all the gods be damned, Ani deserves to refer to the most mature man in his life, who raised another him in another timeline already, as a father.

Ani doesn't NEED a father, Shmi herself is more than enough, but he does deserve to have this if he wants it.

An alternative conclusion to the time travel is uh. So the Mandalorians are genetically identical (give or take a hair gene) and really resemble Jango Fett, though whether anyone notices that is up in the air. Then the three ‘Sith’ (two fake Sith and their morality chain tag-along) have three younger, identical copies show up….

It could be really weird cloning shenanigans. Now, it makes no sense that they’d make clones, and stagger their production like that, and leave them as babies on various planets for Jedi to find. IDK what reasons Obi-Wan would come up with for that, but it’s a fun little detour before he gets to time travel.

There's a really painful moment (for the audience, who know about canon Vader) where someone tries to convince Ahsoka to leave the Sith and she's just like "no way, they'd never hurt me!” Then she clarifies that “someone has to keep them from doing stupid Sith shit whenever they get bored, you know?"

A bunch of Jedi probably think she’s delusional, but the few that have seen her get into trouble that is legitimately too much for her, which isn't often, have then seen Anakin show up like the devil himself to save her, and it's like. Oh. This is why she isn't scared of them hurting her.

We’ve discussed how Anakin does get concerningly in character with the fake Sith thing. However, Anakin and Ahsoka are, just once in a while, surprised by how Ben gets sometimes when playing the bad guy.

After all, he stabbed a dude with a fork and threatened to eat him during his time as Hardeen…

He has the same dramatic streak as all the rest of the lineage. He can be vindictive and creepy and scary as fuck.

HOWEVER:

Obi-Wan: I know I'm supposed to be playing at evil right now, but how do we feel about me making that evil a little... fruity? Ahsoka: Fruity, master? Anakin, who knows where this is going: [buries face in hands] Obi-Wan: You know, the... [limp wrist] Ahsoka: ... Obi-Wan: I mean, I'm already bisexual and well-groomed, I can play it up.

What’s the point of being evil if you can’t be flamboyant?

Anyway, I had to put in a lot of thought for what to do with Rex and Cody, because there's a solid place for them in terms of strategy, but it doesn't do much to give them independent narrative arcs, and 'young Obi-Wan has a crush' isn't much of an arc, you know?

So, basic info first: Cody, Rex, and Anakin all hold the rank of General in this AU because, like... who else is gonna. Ahsoka remains a commander because everyone declares her Baby, and also to keep up the "I'm a morality chain" ruse.

Cody maintains a very stern and unyielding public persona, but the second they're behind closed doors, he's roughhousing with his little brother.

Rex has some fun pretending to be a sadist whenever he and Anakin have to team up, because hamming it up as an evil bastard in front of Jedi is actually really fun... but usually, he's a competent fucking professional.

Because here's the thing: someone has to be.

They both kind of hate the army they've gotten, because these people don't even have proper trigger discipline, let alone any actual discipline.

This army? Tragic. They hate it. Give them the clones.

They have to be drill sergeants for months before they have anything worth sending onto the field.

I think that might be how/when they end up reaching out to Jango. Like, the first inroad is absolutely "we're your clones from the future and you were a Shit Dad so you owe us," but then they actually talk him around into letting the Fake Sith hire him. He brings along all the Mandalorians he can get to answer his calls, and on suggestion from Those Mando Twins, joins the army Ben doesn't even want.

Darth Boring doesn't want an army! Unfortunately, Cody thinks that's stupid as hell, and is overruling Ben so they can actually work on this 'cleaning up the galaxy of slavery' thing with actual resources.

Cody and Rex are super competent, and it shows in their horrified disdain for the state of their troops.

Rex: Fucking natborns. Anyone who isn't in the know: What's a natborn? Rex: [leaves without answering] People: WHAT'S A NATBORN???

(I'm assuming that the word smush is harder to parse in Basic.)

I think young Obi-Wan's new crush on Cody should also be unrequited. Cody's just like... bemused. Very "Okay, then, that sure is an Affection you've decided on."

Cody and Anakin both: Sorry, it’d just be too weird. Obi-Wan: Why would it be too weird? Cody and Anakin: Reasons.

Rex has to deal with the "whyyyyy" from both his brother and his (former?) General.

Young Obi-Wan just likes cute boys that fight good! Is that so wrong???

Ahsoka: So since we're not officially Jedi anymore-- Obi-Wan: We're still Je-- Ahsoka: Can we date? Can I date now? I want to date someone before we go back to the Code. It's a classic life experience for most teenage girls, and I want to Have That Experience before we're back at the Temple. Obi-Wan: You're not... you can date, Ahsoka, that's not actually banned by the Code. I mean, you'd have to keep it casual, but-- Ahsoka: I CAN DATE!!!

(Great priorities, Ahsoka.)

An idea I'm toying with is that one of the clones ends up Legally Engaged to Satine for political reasons, and young Obi-Wan is just like ???? because not only can he not date the hot boys, but one of said hot boys has become Mr. Steal Yo Girl.

Young Obi-Wan is suffering, and Quinlan is the worst friend ever because Quinlan is laughing at him.

There is obviously the question of

"How would Satine ever end up agreeing to that, given what their public personas are like and all that? She puts duty ahead of personal feelings but all indications are that it’s a terrible decision both ways." (as stated by Tia)

Which, yes, I forgot to actually say that I was imagining Jango had declared "those twins" his heirs after telling people they were his younger* cousins. Because reasons.

* Jango is about 27 when they land in the past, and I’m going to say the accelerated aging ended after hitting physically twenty because no, I don’t want to deal with that. As far as anyone knows, Cody and Rex are about five years younger than Jango. They’re less than year apart, which isn’t very visible, and most people assume they’re identical twins (except Rex’s hair), and that Cody just looks slightly older because of the scar.

Darth Boring had convinced Satine that the way to keeping Mandalore peaceful was to work with Jango (because Darth Boring, which is not his actual title but it is what Ahsoka insists on calling him in private, has a vested interest in keeping Mandalore and all interested parties calm), and he... maybe accidentally set up a political marriage between her and one of the clones.

It wasn't on purpose! Satine never married in his timeline, okay, he didn't expect her to ever get married here, either! He didn't even suggest it! This just happened!

(I want to say that Cody would be more competent at having a political marriage? But IDK.)

Do I do the Satine thing? It has potential, but also it's a bit of a cop-out. Do I have Cody be a diplomatic representative for their pseudo-Sith empire? He could be, but I think he'd hate it. Do I have Rex date one the Chaos Entities (Anakin or Ahsoka), or is that too repetitive with my other works? THERE'S JUST TOO MUCH GOING ON.

Part of me wants Quinlan to get a crush on Cody, and the crush gets bigger specifically in response to the fact that Cody refuses to take him seriously and/or just doesn't give him the time of day.

Based on their one interaction in TCW, they probably let get along ok. Cody maybe likes him back, buuuuuuut internally he's just a little "you were tolerable at almost-forty; early twenties you is obnoxious."

Just imagine the absolutely puppyish attempts at gaining approval and Impressing The Hot Mando General. Quinlan keeps having vague daydreams of seducing someone to the side of the Light. He really leans into the bodice ripper fantasies of saving someone evil with the power of love! (And also the power of really good sex.)

Bant looks at Quin and Obi and wants to throw them both into the nearest pond because they're idiots, but on this topic they are the same flavor of idiot. She considers calling up Reeft and Garen to help her knock some sense into them.

Quinlan: Can I volunteer to go undercover to the Sith? The Council: No. Quinlan: ...what if I-- The Council: No.

Tholme tries to get Qui-Gon to commiserate over their Padawans getting obsessed with Hot Sith Boys, but Qui-Gon just finds the whole thing funny. He knows from the chats he has with Ben that Anakin feels so completely, utterly, incredibly awkward about all of this.

(Ben continues to hold to "Anakin brought this on himself.")

(Ben also “kidnaps” Qui-Gon a lot.)

Also, hey, at least Quinlan isn’t actually into hot Sith boys! He’s into hot Sith minions which is... probably a step up. At least Cody’s not a Sith himself!

It's a step in some direction but Tholme has no idea which one.

(Quinlan sees Cody in dress uniform once and just keeps the mental image for Ages. It’s in his dreams. Sometimes said dreams overflow to Tholme via Force Mind Magic and Quinlan wakes up to someone smacking his face with a pillow.)

Arguably, Quin's also a lot more romantic about his crush than Obi-Wan is, in this case. Quinlan: I want to save him... Obi-Wan: Hey, hey, cute boy. Look at me. Let’s bang.

Cody: There are currently two future Jedi generals having some form of absurd romantic fixation in my direction. I don't know how to feel about this. Rex: Bed them. Cody: ...I'm not saying that's not eventually an option, but one of them is the younger Kenobi, and I'm not sure I'm comfortable with that. Rex: Pat him on the head like a tooka and then bed his friend, it'll be funny.

I think the Quinlan thing and also general exasperation of leading an absolutely useless army can function pretty solidly as the basis for Cody, but I have another idea for Rex now.

Komari is currently brainwashed in a cult, yes? So.

I keep bouncing around back and forth on what to do with Rex, but part of me suddenly really likes the idea of, after Team Fake Sith finds and dissolves the cult (as one does), and takes Komari into custody (because she's dangerous and deeply unwell), Rex kind of ends up her touchstone to being a decent person. He’s not a morality chain, and it’s not really a redeemed-through-love thing, just This Is A Solid Dude who doesn't pity her or thinks she's irredeemable (however you choose to define such a thing), but actually relates to the kind of conditions living like that can involve, and just kind of...

I don’t know. I think Rex's arc in this AU could be very heavily grounded in something to the effect of "You're not the worst darksider I've met. You're not the only person who was in a cult. You're not even the only former Jedi I know that's committed awful, horrible crimes. My question is just this: What are you going to do moving forward?"

Later Anakin: Wait, who do we know that was in a cult? Rex: What did you think Kamino was?

(Rex isn't as chill as he'd like her to think, but he's trying, and she's fairly reliant on the Force to understand emotions, and is currently in nullifying cuffs, so he can bluff.)

Komari needs someone solid and dependable to rely on for at least conversation, and I think Rex needs to feel needed.

I’m not sure if it’d be romance or friendship, but I think there's a solid basis to work with, potentially.

Per Tia:

One thing about Rex and shipping is like. If you want to do Rexwalker again that's fine, but if you're worried about repetitiveness but still want to like. Ship him in a non-political-convenience way. Rexsoka here actually would be different than your other stuff.

I'm trying to figure out if I can make it work because Ahsoka thematically fits very much into a little sister shaped hole here? She feels younger than in other works, despite not actually being younger than she is in, say, Commander Buir. In those other fics, she has some time alone to function and prove herself independently of Anakin and Obi-Wan.

I usually pluck Ahsoka out at sixteen if I'm pulling her from TCW, so she's got most of her competence but hasn't gotten quite all the trauma yet. Commander Buir, in particular, also has baby-shaped Anakin for contrast.

That said, I can see a decent source of narrative conflict in her wanting to experiment with romance and all that, and Anakin trying to tell her she's too young.

A year into this whole time-travel mess, she wants to give the dating thing a shot, and it spirals into "You were only two years older than me when you got married!"

I think I could build a plot out of Ahsoka wanting to do these things, and Anakin as an audience insert not quite processing that she's old enough to make these decisions. If she's choosing to date Rex, whose age works out as being close to hers when one takes into account Kamino fuckery, and whom she trusts absolutely, it’s arguably extra weird for Anakin to be upset with it.

"Senator Amidala was five years older than you, and you married her when you were nineteen and had only really known her for a week! I can go on a date with a guy we both know is one of the most trustworthy people alive if I want, Skyguy!"

I can definitely see Ahsoka getting annoyed with Anakin being overbearing and controlling at some point before that unrelated to romance, too. It’s not exactly a new fault of his.

My god, just imagine someone snidely asking Anakin "where's your little shadow?" and Anakin, being Himself and also a Fake Sith, has an emotional breakdown about how Ahsoka yelled at him for micromanaging her and not trusting her to make her own decisions in life and so she got herself a multi-month solo mission from Ben that Anakin isn't allowed to know any details about, and--

It's another one of those "oh, you have PROBLEMS problems with your mental health" incidents for the Jedi to add to the file, because Anakin having emotionally charged rants about his issues at seemingly terrible times is how they get a lot of information.

Some of the rants are planned.

Many of them, actually.

They want the Jedi to know these things.

Just, well. Anakin.

He really is a little Like That.

On that note, I'm low-key imagining that Anakin gets put on mood stabilizers by the therapist in this context, and he's doing good! He's handling his issues! He's--been captured with Obi-Wan the Younger again and his medication was confiscated.

Anakin is... not great. He's a little out of practice managing his unmedicated self, and when adding withdrawal symptoms onto that... poor Anakin.

(Poor Obi-Wan.)

I think it would be best if Anakin makes a bunch of ominous blustery comments at their captors about how they won't like what's coming to them if they take his belongings (AKA the fanny pack that has his backup pills), and then Obi-Wan just gets to watch Anakin get more and more erratic, because like. Yes, Anakin is using the Force to compensate, but unfortunately he's mostly cut off, and the stress of the situation is pushing him away from depression and into the beginnings of a manic episode.

Anakin is aware of his issues to the point where he's mostly managing, and he keeps asking Obi-Wan "would it make sense for me to [slightly deranged, very impulsive action]," and Obi-Wan realizes he's being the morality sounding board for the Hot Sith because ??? reasons?????

Eventually, Anakin does flop back in bed and dramatically throws his arm over his eyes, and says he needs his meds back, he's absolutely going to lose it, and Obi-Wan tentatively asks what kind of medication. There are levels to worry about. Mild allergy medication is one thing, but heart medication that needs to be taken every four hours is another, you know? He wants to know how much panic is appropriate.

Anakin lets him know that it's Psychiatric In Nature. Obi-Wan suddenly realizes that he really, really, really doesn't want to know what a properly erratic, unmedicated Anakin is like.

(An unmedicated Anakin really isn't nearly as bad as Obi-Wan fears. Anakin's been dealing with this for a while, and knows what his issues are and some of how to deal with them. He'd need to be running on no sleep and higher levels of stress, or to have been drugged with something meant to increase his aggression, to really lose his shit and do something worthy of Vader. RotS levels of stress and sleep deprivation is required to pull RotS levels of manic paranoid delusion.)

Tia asked:

How long does it take the Jedi in general to catch on to how like. They have opportunities. But these Sith never seem to harm any Jedi. And it’s not just like, the past timeline parts of the disaster lineage. They probably get opportunities to hurt other Jedi. Ones that are less skilled at saber work. And more importantly ones that they don’t seem weirdly interested in."

I'm not sure, really. The Jedi don't spend as much time in the Outer Rim as they could, and that's where the Team operates, so actually running into them by accident is unlikely for anyone other than Shadows.

Fortunately, it's really easy to toy with Shadows with the excuse of "I want to see how long it takes before you Fall with us."

I do want like... okay. Here’s the mental image:

Qui-Gon calls them out on being Fake Sith pretty quickly, so Ben just sort of eyes him, dramatically, and orders out "Leave us" to all non-team people. The threat of torture is implied but not stated. He gestures with wine to keep in character. He definitely makes sure Young Obi-Wan is ushered out, so it's just five time travelers, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Ahsoka's immortal force birb.

"...so, what's the reason for the farce, Obi-Wan?" "How in all the hells did you figure it out so quickly?"

(Qui-Gon cheated a bit. He could feel the broken training bond that was never properly severed due to Traumatic Death Of A Master on Ben's end)

Ben didn't realize he'd feel it! Young Obi-Wan can't feel his older self or a training bond with Anakin or Ahsoka, so why could Qui-Gon?

IDK if there would be anything on the level of crying and hugging it out, but I think it would be very funny if, every time young Obi and Anakin are getting captured by pirates or something, Ben and Qui-Gon are just having a nice afternoon tea and checking their watches to see if their respective walking bundles of neuroses are done with their adventure yet.

The Council is So Done, because Qui-Gon continues to insist that they're Not That Bad, but every time anyone other than Qui-Gon brings up the friendship, Ben laughs and makes a comment about how absolutely gullible Master Jinn is.

Obi-Wan is skeptical of his own experiences with Anakin, at least, if only because he's skeptical about Anakin's everything.

"I don't know if Vader is telling me the truth. I don't know if he's telling himself the truth. I don't think he's a great source of information even when he thinks he's being honest."

Anakin could tell Obi-Wan the full and complete truth, and Obi-Wan would worriedly put a hand to his forehead and start doing tests for hallucinations and paranoid delusions. In his defense, this is a very reasonable assumption to make with an individual like Anakin. It's just also not accurate, this time. I don’t know if Anakin hallucinates in canon without a weird inciting incident like Force Nonsense or getting drugged by the enemy, but paranoid delusion is pretty much all of RotS.

"I’m your time-traveling padawan who’s pretending to be a Sith to catch some other Sith who’re going to start a galactic civil war and those Mandalorians you like are from a clone army based on a template of Jango Fett made to serve the Jedi (because that’s totally something he’d sign up for), and one of the Sith is your grandmaster but he doesn’t seem to have fallen yet, it’s probably fine," is hard to believe.

Honestly, even if he seemed stable before saying that, which he doesn’t, it’s all real far fetched. There's a lot going on and Obi-Wan wouldn't even begin to believe it without evidence.

I've had it in my head that he and Bant and Quinlan have been gossiping about the mess for months if not years about these idiots, and at one point it became common knowledge that Ben was a Kenobi, and Bant convinced them (since the two were among the most likely in the entire Order to encounter the Fake Sith) to get a DNA sample, probably hair or blood since that's easiest so they can figure out HOW these two are related, if they are, and then there's a whole big thing.

Bant: No, no, this must be contaminated, it's coming up as Obi-Wan! Are you sure you didn't accidentally grab some of your own hairs? I know it's a little long for most of your hair, but the braid-- Quinlan: Wait, they keep claiming stuff about cloning, right? Maybe someone's a clone? Check for artificial telomeres! Bant: ...okay, so, there aren't any artificial telomeres, but the ones from apparently-Ben are... a lot shorter... um... I don't know what to do with this. It's like I have two samples from the same person, twenty years apart. Quinlan: Obi-Wan, what's that face? Why are you-- Obi-Wan: Vader told me he was a time-traveler. I thought it was the fever talking, but...

That’s how he finds out that Ben is future-him before finding out about how he’s not evil!

"Master Jinn... I think... I think the Sith controlling the Outer Rim is me from the future." "Oh, you finally figured it out?" "I AM HAVING A CRISIS HERE."

Obi-Wan, after a few hours of dazed realization, runs screaming to Quinlan and Bant like 'GUYS GUYS THIS EXPLAINS WHY VADER KEPT SAYING IT WAS WEIRD AND THAT I LOOK LIKE HIS MASTER AND THAT IT WOULD BE LIKE DATING HIS DAD.'

You know, the important stuff.

I think Qui-Gon tells him that Ben isn't evil because, like, That Sure Is A Crisis Obi-Wan's Having. He could hold off for shits and giggles, sure, but Obi-Wan’s on the edge of something Really Concerning, mentally. Best help calm him down on at least one or two things.

Obi-Wan’s maybe still a little skeptical until he confronts them over it. Because their Sith act was real good and also like. Maybe Qui-Gon just wants to believe the best of his Padawan, y’know?

Quinlan runs into Ben before Obi-Wan does, after this whole mess, and gets to observe as money changes hands and people act like sore winners about bets made for When Does Obi-Wan Figure It Out.

Anakin was saying 'soon' because he really didn't think the fever-fueled rant would be discounted as easily as it was.

Cody was of the opinion that it would take at least a few more years since they're actually pretty damn good at this whole schtick.

Quinlan: Wow, he's... going to be really disappointed that you have such a low opinion of his intelligence. Cody, gesturing at Ben: Experience. Darth Ben: ಠ_ಠ

Cody just rattles off some of the Extremely Stupid Shit that Ben's done in their time working together.

Rex cheerily offers up "You didn't even realize General Skywalker was married, sir! And they weren't subtle!" "I knew they were together, I just didn--" "Everyone knew they were together, sir. Everyone."

(Rex had the lowest opinion of their deductive capabilities. He claims it would have taken until Baby Ahsoka showed up at the Jedi Temple.)

-Once Obi-Wan accepts that they're decent people after all- Obi-Wan: Wow, Anakin, you're real good at acting unhinged! Anakin: Haha. Yeah. Thanks?

[siennahrobek]

Fic Idea Masterlist

Who He Is – Qui-Gon Jinn, right before the Naboo mission, is tossed forward in time where he meets a young Togruta padawan right off the coast of a battle. As she brings him to the base to meet with the High General, he talks a bit about his own padawan. (Time Travel)

Bending Jedi – The Jedi can bend the four main elements they have been keeping these specific abilities hidden away from the populous when they can, as people tend to fear them with what they can already do, the discovery of bending in Jedi would breed more distrust and fear. But the war has made that too difficult, as the Jedi are desperate to protect, and the clones are the first to discover the Jedi’s abilities, more than what they were told in their training. (Bending Jedi Avatar-Style)

Together Twins – An attack on Polis Massa forces Obi-Wan Kenobi to flee with both Luke and Leia Skywalker.

Chances – Trading their silence and obedience for the clones’ freedom at the end of the war, the Jedi find themselves nearly shunned and hated with the intense anti-Jedi sentiments that run rampant due to Palpatine’s influence. The clones refuse to accept this.

Order & Academy – After being rejected by Qui-Gon Jinn, initiate Obi-Wan Kenobi finds himself forward in time during that of the height of Luke Skywalker’s Jedi Academy. (Time Travel)

Third Systems Unprepared – During the explosion where he received his iconic scar, Commander Cody’s chip was knocked around to the point of disuse. When the Chancellor calls on Utapau to Execute Order 66, Cody has no idea what it means, therefore unable to send the orders to the rest of the 212th Attack Battalion and much of the Open Circle Fleet. It changes a lot.

Reverse Psychometry – After coming back from his stint with the Dark Side, Quinlan Vos spends some time with Obi-Wan Kenobi and touches his cloak with an ungloved hand. Instead of his psychometry giving him flashes of the past, he’s fairly certain it gives him a flash of the future. One where Obi-Wan’s grief is overwhelming, everyone is dead, and Anakin Skywalker burns without his limbs. (Reverse psychometry)

Kamino Investigation – Instead of chasing Jango Fett off Kamino, Obi-Wan Kenobi stays on planet, giving the tracker to another nearby knight, while he investigates the clones and the events surrounding them.

Space Survival – An explosion goes off on the Negotiator, which is in low orbit over the Republic world for repairs. Obi-Wan Kenobi is aboard and holding as much of the ship together as he can for the evacuation of the wounded.

Bracca Detour – Upon an accidental detour to Bracca after being sent to Tatooine for exile with Luke, Obi-Wan Kenobi finds Cal Kestis.

Lothal AU – Owen Lar’s disbelief and mistrust of Obi-Wan chases him away and the Jedi leaves with Luke (or Leia), eventually finding himself on Lothal where he befriends the Bridgers.

Bit Age Swap – Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker has no intention on taking a padawan just as the war is starting, despite being a knight for nearing a decade until his master, Mace Windu, comes to him with an orphaned padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi, whose Master died on Geonosis and is determined to fight in this war, whether the Order likes it or not. Skywalker quickly discovers there is more to padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi than first meets the eye. (Smidge of Age-Swapping)

Din Djarin Au – With the Sith and Separatists defeated, Obi-Wan Kenobi and the 212th are finishing the last of the battles against the droids and stubborn Separatist leaders. It is on a planet, during one of these battles, where the droids are invading a city, that General Kenobi rescues newly orphaned and force-sensitive Din Djarin.

Stay Out of it – Obi-Wan and the 212thare in bound to Coruscant for a few days’ rest, refuel and new orders when Anakin and Padme’s marriage comes to light. And then, Obi-Wan can’t get back to the front quick enough.

This is Different – Coming back from Melida-Daan has proven more difficult than anticipated for Obi-Wan Kenobi and it only gets worse when he wakes up, decades later, only to be found – and accepted – by a monstrous Sith Lord, who seems to have some odd soft spot for him. (Time Travel)

Lineage Reconnection – Obi-Wan brings it upon himself to contact Qui-Gon’s lineage and friends to inform them of the news of his death. Yoda does what he does best and meddles. At least, it appears this time, it worked for the better of everyone involved.

Back with Hope – Obi-Wan Kenobi, a while after Order 66 finds himself back in time, reliving events. He doesn’t entirely know where to start with changing things until something changes for him. The Jedi receive a call from an unknown source – it is tiny clone children calling for their only hope – Obi-Wan Kenobi. (Time Travel)

Undying – It is on Bandomeer when Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn discover that the former cannot die, and it is used to their advantage. Obi-Wan keeps his secret, even after Qui-Gon’s death, until he can’t anymore. It is the revelation of the Chosen One prophecy that his purpose is revealed – as a Guardian, Obi-Wan Kenobi cannot die until the Chosen One has brought balance to the Force.

Lineage Last – Anakin and Ahsoka both leave the Jedi Order after she is accused – and proven innocent – and although Obi-Wan understands, the fact that he they left, and he is the last of his lineage doesn’t hurt any less.

Amor – Obi-Wan has been to war before; no one needed to convince him to wear at least some armor. Now how much, that is a different story.

Canon Switch – Anakin Style – After saying something he would come to regret; Anakin Skywalker finds himself in a universe where Obi-Wan had died on Naboo... and Qui-Gon had lived. It is not nearly as he dreamed it would be. (Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence – Time Travel)

Canon Switch – QuiGon Style – A heartbroken Qui-Gon survived Naboo while his padawan did not. Barely surviving for the next ten years, Qui-Gon finds himself in a universe where the opposite is true. (Time Travel)

Dooku Set Up – Tired of Palpatine’s schemes, Count Dooku thinks of defecting when the master Sith Lord is killed. Someone is setting him up and Dooku reaches out to the only person he desperately hopes can help - his grand padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Extra Weird Jedi – The Jedi end up being different than the clones had expected. More odd, dangerous, intriguing. The Kaminoans had told them one thing, the populace’s view of the Jedi. But up close, working with them? It’s so much different.

Baby Counselor – Obi-Wan Kenobi is the youngest member of the Council and is known a bit as the Council baby – at least with other masters – and those on it, are not afraid to treat him that way. It just a tad changes things.

Crechemaster Obi-Wan – When the war comes to an end, Obi-Wan Kenobi decides to become a creche master while Anakin and Padme expect their first child. But when the Senator dies of a cause that is no one’s fault, Anakin is left bereft and leaves his children behind. Obi-Wan takes Luke and Leia into his creche clan.

To be Chosen – Jedi Luke Skywalker is thrown back in time to that where the Order still exists. Finding he cannot go back; he constructs a new life and home into the Temple. Several years later, even though Master Yoda tries to keep a specific initiate away from his sight, Luke encounters him anyways and thinks, perhaps he and Obi-Wan were linked, always meant to be. Perhaps it was Luke’s turn to give back to his master. To be Chosen. (Time Travel)

Kamino Defense – Peace is restored after the war, although the work isn’t done. In response to the controversy surrounding his padawans marriage to Senator Amidala, Obi-Wan accepts a post to protect the clones and their young from power hungry warlords and greedy businessmen on Kamino while the Senate debates what to do with them.

Burned Deep – A thousand years ago, the Jedi chained themselves to the Senate and Republic and dismantled their military as a show of good faith. Now the Senate controls the Jed strictly to keep them from taking over. The Temple becomes a beautiful cage, their stringent parameters for missions a leash. In this world, when the war begins, Jedi are let loose as more of attack dogs than Generals. (Alternate Universe – Canon History Divergence)

Jumping Ages – In an attempt to use what she thinks is a Sith weapon, Ventress just ends up causing some chaos for Obi-Wan and the crew as he ends up popping in at different ages and stages of his life over the course of an unknown amount of time. The only one who doesn’t seem to be rattled is Cody. (De-Aging/Age Regression)

Padme Lives – After surviving Order 66, Padme is forced to hide away with her children, leaving Obi-Wan free to find surviving Jedi and learn about the clones’ predicament.

We Are Burning Stars - Instead of on a faraway planet, fighting the last battles of the war, Obi-Wan Kenobi is walking aside his Commander in the Jedi Temple when Order 66 hits.

Revolving Suns - Raised by Obi-Wan Kenobi, teenaged Luke Skywalker finds himself back into the Clone Wars while General Kenobi falls into an unexplainable coma.

[nevertheless-moving]

Suicidal Misunderstanding XXV

Part I - - - - - - - - - - Part XXII - - - - Part XXIII - - - - Part XXIV

Star Wars Time Travel AU #27

The nature of the Jedi Temple was such that years could pass unnoticed within the ethereal, eternal walls—and then a number of factors would converge simultaneously, and wreck all that.

In this case, dawn, rumors, and Quinlan Vos were all meeting in an abrupt and tremulous clash. 

Rumors and daylight, of course, were well known for their power to occupy multiple spaces at the same time. Quinlan Vos’s apparent ability to do so (for nothing else could explain his gentle but thorough interrogation of padawans in the sallies, his generous provisions of drinks for over-wrought nocturnal jedi, and his unauthorized access to closed off personal quarters, all in an impossibly short period time) was far more inexplicable, and therefore technically admirable.

Master Gallia did not feel admiring at the moment. She felt tired.

“Where. Is. Obi-Wan?” Quinlan repeated.

Adi Gallia danced around him, continuing on her stroll of the temple grounds. She released a flash of irritation into the force—of course Masters Koon, Windu, and Yoda all were shipped off for their own (admittedly grim) assignments, leaving her responsible for ‘local’ issues. She had accepted the possibility of intense political fallout, of course. She was prepared to soothe the worries of those still in-temple, who were just starting to pick-up on the certainly-not-an-evacuation. She had been less ready to deal with an incensed psychometric interfering in matters beyond his understanding.

“Classified,” she repeated, as neutrally as ever.

“Do you really want to have the rest of this conversation in front of the whole Order?” he hissed. “I went to his quarters, I felt—” Vos shuddered.

Gallia sighed, tension headache growing. “Come with me.”

She glided serenely to her personal office space, Vos trailing her like the irritable shadow he was.

The door clicked.

“I know he tried to kill himself,” he said bluntly. The Councillor winced slightly; even knowing the context didn’t change the very real and tragic brush with death. “I saw Skywalker see it.” 

Master Gallia didn’t reply—there was no point in denying, and every point in gaining information. 

“Do you know what Obi-Wan felt?” he asked manically.

The Tholothian Master took an involuntary step back. Part of her thought it would be more expedient to simply bring the man into the fold, but another part hesitated at trusting the already thinly stretched secret to a man who was, by Master Kenobi’s own admittance, far closer to falling than anyone realized. It was scarcely his fault—shadow work was dangerous, even when the galaxy wasn’t in the grips of a Sith-engineered galactic war, but still—

“Nothing!” he cried, slaming his palms on her desk in an alarming loss of control. “A brief feeling of panic when his hand was on the vibroblade and then fucking serenity as he tried to stab himself in the heart!”

“Master Vos—” she tried to say placatingly, but he was having none of it.

“Please,” he begged. “I know I can get through to him, just tell me where he is.”

“Quinlan Vos—you’re just going to have to trust the High Council to have Master Kenobi’s best interests in mind.”

He stared at her for a moment, then narrowed his eyes. “You lost him, didn’t you?”

“Quinlan—”

The Kiffar barked out a laugh, pointing a finger in outraged accusation. “He woke up, half the galaxy felt that—and then he ran off, and now he’s somewhere, hurt, and the Council can’t spare the resources or the pride to help him!”

She hesitated—that was the cover story, one that would conceivably spread; but it felt deeply cruel to leave the Kiffar floundering in it. If only he was slightly less angry...

Vos took a deep breath. “Fine,” he said shortly. “The Council wants to keep his status under wraps—that’s fine; he wouldn’t want everyone knowing he’s vulnerable, anyway. Just give me what you have, and I’ll track him.”

Adi Gallia drummed her fingers on her rattled desk for a moment, before letting go of a half-truth. “We suspect he’s going after Count Dooku,” she said finally, suppressing any guilt she felt for the half-lie, or for causing Quinlan’s expression to twist tighter, when she could so easily relieve him of his burden.

“And?” he pressed.

Adi looked away. “Knight Skywalker’s with him, in some capacity,” she grit out.

Quinlan snorted. “Obviously.” Gallia’s lips tightened. 

“Is that it?” he asked exasperated. “You’re not going to even give me his file?”

“You don’t have it already?” she asked drly.

“I’ve got the bathashit official one you gave to the Chancellor,” he admitted, immediately and unrepentantly. “Where you all but threw him under a moving speeder,” he added hostily. 

Master Gallia winced. “Master Vos,” she tried again. “The Council has a plan. I regret that I cannot tell you it, but I beg of you—have faith in us for a little longer—don’t go after him.”

Quinlan’s expression tightened. “Is the plan for the good of Obi-Wan, or the good of the Council? Because sure, I know which Obi-Wan would prefer, and so do you—and I. Don’t. Agree.”

Gallia rubbed her temples, skull throbbing with tension. “And that’s why I can’t trust you with anything else,” she admitted, completely honest.

Quinlan nodded sharply. “May the force be with you, Master Gallia.” 

“And with you, Quinlan Vos,” she replied sadly. 

Quinlan stalked out, and Gallia took a brief moment to pity the both of them before returning to work.

- - -

Ventress skulked in the corner of a dingy bar, cursing Kenobi once again. A few hours on this miserable planet and all she had were rumors to go on. Obviously something had happened to the golden boy, but the underworld seemed even more puzzled than the kriffing Jedi. It was only a matter of time before the public caught wind, and then the gossip would become hopelessly entangled with the actually important whispers.

Sneaking into the Temple itself would be a worthy test of her skills—but if she was captured...well needless to say there would be no aid from Dooku. Had she not felt the Negotiator’s presence during the flight she might have believed this were some irritating test of her Master’s but this...

The Dathomori grimaced into her drink. If nothing else, Kenobi was a fearsome adversary—anything that could have riled him—possibly defeated him once in for all...Ventress hated to admit but she might be out of her depth.

“Is this seat taken?”

She looked up in irritation at a human male with a cocky grin, a gold face tattoo, and skin as dark as hers was pale. The idiot was already pulling out the seat, apparently utterly oblivious of her open contempt— not to mention the chill of the dark side she was deliberately projecting around her. 

“Yes,” she snapped. “Now leave, before I remove you. Violently.”

He grinned wider, leaning in. “Oh don’t be like that. Now, what’s a beautiful woman like yourself doing in a place like this?”

The fool then had the audacity to reach over, lightly brushing her hand. She grabbed the wrist, pinning it to the table. “Do. Not. Touch Me. You vile worm.”

“Aah! Okay, okay!” he babbled in panic. “Sorry, my mistake, thought you seemed hot and a little lonely, that’s all, miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take, you know? Wasn’t trying to cop a feel or anything I swear! I’ll go now, promise.”

She felt an odd tingling sensation run through her, starting at the single point of contact between them. She frowned, unable to classify it. He smiled charmingly. and she released him as if burnt. 

“You’re a Jedi,” she hissed, hand dropping to the sabers beneath the table. The tingling sensation faded. “What was that?”

The open panic disappeared, wholly replaced by the earlier smirk. “And you’re a Sith.” He flexed his hand before tucking it into a pocket. “Nothing to worry about. Just needed your help with an investigation.” He stood, bowing mockingly. “Thank you for your time.” And then he was gone, fading into the shadows. 

She leapt to her feet, running outside and snagging him from his hiding spot behind a crate. 

“What sort of Jedi shadow walks?” she asked, pressing him to the wall at bladepoint, careful not to allow any other point of contact between them. He looked at her as though she were an idiot, and her cheeks heated slightly. 

“You do realize I have to kill you now, right?” she snarled. “Can’t exactly have a Jedi Shadow telling people where I am” 

“You’re not my mission, darling,” he replied, flashing teeth. “Far as I’m concerned, this never happened.”

She narrowed her eyes, digging the tip of her knife into his throat. The Shadow looked deeply unconcerned. “But you thought I might be?” she questioned slyly.

He shrugged. “Sith Apprentice, half a galaxy away from the front off the war? Figured you might be up to trouble, yeah. Fortunately for both of us—as I’m sure an actual fight would be a massive and mutual inconvenience—whatever trouble you’re here for has nothing to do with me. I’ve got bigger fish to fry, you’ve got bigger fish to fry. I’d offer to buy you a drink but I’m fairly certain you’d throw it in my face so...”

He delicately pressed a finger to the knife at his edge. Bemused, she allowed him to push it away.

“And you got all that from touching my hand,” she asked incredulously, curious of his power despite herself.

He waggled his digits playfully. “Magic fingers.”

She scoffed. “Even if you were a psychometric—” She cut herself off, eyes flickering to the face tattoo. 

“Kiffar,” she breathed. “Of course. My gloves—but it was just a moment, what—ah.” She smirked. “Kenobi. You just wanted to know if I had been around him.”

“And now I know you haven’t.” He shrugged. “Anyway, have fun on Coruscant; good luck not getting arrested.” 

He started to amble away at a deceptively casual stroll. She fell into lock step.

“You’ve lost him,” she accused.

He shrugged. “Sure, why not,” he agreed mildly. She narrowed her eyes. 

“Some of the Jedi fear their golden boy might have fallen,” she guessed with absolute confidence, but neither his face nor his force presence gave anything away—and she was following him to a secondary location like a fool. 

Ventress lunged but the Jedi was dancing backwards, slipping into a nearby shadow. He fell into it sideways—completely, but crudely. She wheeled around, scanning the perpetually dim alleyway. One shadow grew darker—she threw a dagger and a patch of dark detached, hissing and bleeding a satisfying scarlet.

“Is there a point to attacking me,” he asked impatiently, saber finally appearing in his hand, though it stayed unlit. “I already told you that I don’t care what you’re doing here. What possible advantage could you gain in picking a fight with me? Even if you win, don’t you think the Jedi would notice if a shadow went missing on Coruscant?” 

“You really have no problem letting a Sith run around your precious Core world?” she asked skeptically, throwing another dagger. He dodged it, and it lodged itself in the brickwork. A random passerby immediately stole it—kriff she hated this world— but Asajj couldn’t chace after the parasite now, because the Jedi was throwing a—rock?

The window behind her shattered as she dodged the wild shot, and an incoherent roar spilled out, along with foul smelling water, and eye stalk, and the first few of what looked many tentacles.

“Oh you play dirty,” she breathed, reluctantly impressed. He hit her with a two fingered salute, disappearing again, this time by swaggering slowly around a corner. And then she had to focus on fighting a pissed off Dianoga whose tankhome had just been vandalized.

By the time she mortally wounded the garbage squid, the trail for her first and best lead on Kenobi had nearly gone cold. 

Nearly.

Part XXVI

[zelenacat]

When We Were Young- Chapter 27- An Obitine Story

The first place Satine checked was her bedroom, it was empty save for a note. The Duchess fell to her knees and wailed. She pulled at her hair, threw chairs across the room, paced, Obi-Wan found her in her quarters an hour later.

“Satine!”

“Maul took them,” the Duchess’ throat was raw, “he took our four eldest.”

Obi-Wan froze for half a second.

“Mandalore was attacked, we should get you out of here.”

“I’m not leaving until my people are safe,” Satine stood, “I have speeches to make.”

“Satine-”

“Come with me,” the Duchess ordered, “some things will leave with you.”

Servants moved out of her way when she passed, but Satine didn’t care how terrible she looked. Stalking over to the safe, Satine opened it and pulled out her children’s birth certificates, a bag of kyber crystals, and a tiara from King Zagreus the Second of Zygerria.

“These should be brought back to coruscant,” Satine swallowed, “guard them as you would guard Jynn and Lyra.”

The Jedi opened his mouth to speak, but Satine hushed him with a kiss.

“Jynn and Lyra may one day be all you have left.”

And with that, Satine left, walking briskly and then running once she rounded a corner. First she found Parna, who led her to where the servants were hiding. Satine freed them.

“Go home to your families,” she announced, “they will want to know you’re safe.”

Parna organized the guards to help escort people home, while Satine looked for the Prime Minister. Jaru Djarin was sitting up against the wall, locked in her office, with her eyes closed.

“Jaru,” Satine whispered, growing louder, “Jaru are you alive?”

“Satine,” the Prime Minister mumbled, “come.”

The door opened and the Duchess stepped inside, it smelled awful, like the kind of place rats lived.

“I need you to help me broadcast a speech.”

Jaru sighed, “Help me up.”

The Duchess and her Prime Minister limped through the empty castle, every move of theirs was as loud as thunder rumbling.

“What will we say?” Jaru’s garbled voice questioned.

Satine groaned, she hadn’t thought much about that.

“Mandalore has been used and deliberately attacked with no provocation,” the Duchess found herself saying into the camera, “we have no choice but to join with the Republic and defend ourselves. Please stay in your homes until we are able to address you again, thank you.”

After the camera cut off, Satine made her way to the landing, where a battalion of clones were stationed under Ahsoka, who felt her presence immediately.

“Momdalore!”

Satine collapsed into the Padawan’s arms.

“I heard,” Ahsoka whispered, “I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you here?” Jaru asked a clone.

“Protection,” he answered.

Satine straightened, “The Prime Minister and I are grateful for your help, please make sure our curfew is enforced.”

“You heard the Duchess,” Ahsoka commanded, “go keep Mandalore’s citizens safe, I will stay with the Duchess and her Prime Minister.”

Ahsoka helped Satine and Jaru to a conference room and then retrieved the Duchess’ comm device.

“Call Countess Wren,” Satine sighed, “we should start with her.”

Ursa was stone faced until she was informed that Tristan had been taken, then, she broke down into tears.

“We’ll keep our district safe, Satine,” Alrich Wren promised, “just make sure he’s alright.”

“I will.” the Duchess promised.

Then the Counts and Countesses of Mandalore were called, all of whom had heard the news and prepared for the defensive.

“Satine?”

Bo-Katan, who stood in the doorway, grimaced when the Duchess looked up. Ventress behind her made a disgusted sound.

“They were taken by your replacement,” Satine growled, “you should help get them back.”

“Who?” Jaru asked.

A beat of silence followed.

“Korkie and his friends.” Bo answered.

The Prime Minister put her face in her hands, “Dear God.” 

“The pirates and bounty hunters need to be paid.” Ventress added.

Satine stood, “Sloppy business not paying them in advance.”

Bo-Katan’s eyes narrowed.

“We don’t have any money in the budget for this.” Jaru mumbled.

“Palace defense?” Ventress suggested.

The Prime Minister shook her head.

“I’ll pay them,” the Duchess decided, “out of pocket. I need to call the bank.”

The bank began converting the required amount of credits into cash, and after a quick signature, Bo-Katan and Ventress took over the distribution.

“Your Grace?”

“She was taken,” Satine frowned, without looking up, “Mara and the others were taken. I’m sorry, Boba.”

“Well,” the bounty hunter’s voice changed, “what’s being done to bring her back?”

Satine swallowed, “I’ll ask the Jedi Council for help, now that we’ve officially joined their side it shouldn’t be too hard.”

“I want to help.”

“I want everyone to help.” Satine countered.

Boba Fett knelt down.

“Your Grace,” he whispered, “we’ll get your children back.”

“Of course we will,” Satine agreed, “help me stand, Boba.”

He did and the Duchess sent him to find Khaami and Parna.

“Hello, Duchess.”

“Master Yoda,” Satine sobbed, “Darth Maul has taken my children.”

“Hm,” the Jedi stroked his beard, “bad this is.”

“Please help me get them back.” Satine begged.

“Do you know where he’s taken them?” Master Windu asked.

“No, he just said in his note that this was retribution.”

“He left a note?” Master Mundi inquired.

Satine nodded.

“Why didn’t you leave with the Jedi transport?” Master Windu questioned.

“I can’t leave my people.” Satine responded.

Master Yoda thought.

“Obi-Wan has our most important possessions,” Satine offered, “and the kyber crystals from Concordia.”

“Study those, we shall,” Master Yoda stated, “but meditate on this problem, I must.”

“Master Yoda?”

The Jedi looked to the Duchess.

Satine’s voice broke, “My children are all I have.”

Master Yoda nodded and the comm line went quiet.

“Satine?”

The Duchess turned her head as Parna entered.

“Let’s get you ready to face the public.”

Parna was gentle and kind, helping her lady shower and dress. Then she brushed her hair and braided it.

“Your locks are growing out again.” Parna observed.

“Really, I hadn’t noticed.”

Parna tilted Satine’s head upward.

“I know it’s hard without the children, but the Jedi will help.”

“If Master Yoda consents to.” the Duchess countered.

“He has a soft spot for you, I’m sure.”

Ahsoka poked her head in.

“Momdalore,” Ahsoka began, “there are cameras here to see you.”

“It figures,” Satine mumbled, “they need to know.”

“There,” Parna announced, “finished.”

Satine looked at the braid in her hair, it came down to her shoulders. Her face was pallard and her eyes gaunt.

“Momdalore?”

“Escort me.”

The walls were lined with servants all whispering, none of them stopped when Satine passed, and that was what worried the Duchess most. At least some of them had the sense to curtsey.

“Her Grace, the Duchess of Mandalore.”

Satine stepped out onto the foyer and took a seat at the place that had been set up for her. Ahoska stood at her side.

It took a second for Satine to remember why she was there, “Questions?”

One brave reporter stood.

“We know the Count betrayed us and we have allied with the Republic, but what happened in the chaos of the palace last night, and what happened to the weather monitor?”

Satine almost spilled all her secrets at that moment, but fortunately Ahsoka spoke.

“Count Dooku tried to frame the Duchess and kill her, the audio recordings have been released.”

In the stunned silence, Satine cleared her throat.

“My nephew and his friends, including Tristan Wren, were taken as prisoners by the count’s apprentice,” she swallowed, “we have asked for assistance from the Jedi.”

The room burst into noise but Satine couldn’t hear anything.

“Let’s get you out.” Ahsoka whispered.

Parna helped Satine stand while Ahoska quieted the room for a couple minutes more.

“You need sleep,” Parna whispered, “rest.”

Up in her room, Padme commed Satine.

“We saw your broadcast,” she smiled sadly, “Master Yoda has agreed to send a rescue party.”

Satine burst into tears.

“Jynn and Lyra want to see you.”

Wiping her eyes, Satine saw her daughters in Padme’s arms, asleep.

Satine swallowed, “They’ve gotten so big.” 

“Five months.” Padme commented.

“Five whole months.” the Duchess nodded.

Lyra sighed, Jynn gurgled.

“Your Lady Mother misses you.” Satine whispered.

“They miss their mother too,” Obi-Wan frowned, coming into view, “some days they won’t sleep at all.”

“Who is in the rescue party?” Satine found the courage to ask.

“Multiple of Tyra’s Padawan friends,” Obi-Wan answered, “Quinlan, Master Mundi, and Anakin.”

“Not you?”

Obi-Wan sighed, “Maul hates me, if I go, it would give him an excuse to kill the children in front of me.”

Satine gave a shaky breath.

“Don’t worry, Darling,” Obi-Wan braced a smile, “we’ll get them.”

Satine nodded, hoping with her whole heart that was true.

“You just rest,” Padme commented, after a silence, “you look like you need it.”

“I do.” Satine agreed.

The Duchess slept till evening when the comm call finished. By the time Parna woke her, she was informed that the heads of the eight clans were all here requesting a meeting.

“And Khaami is going to stay with her family,” Parna added.

“Good,” Satine sat up, “help me with my hair.”

In front of the throne sat a circle of chairs. Count Awuad, Countess Bralor, Countess Eldar, Count Mudhorn, Count Rook, and Countess Saxon were all present. Count Vizsla’s father, Tarrei, had joined Death Watch a month ago, Satine had almost forgotten. What Satine was not expecting to see was Alrich Wren leading his clan.

“My wife is unwell with the news of our son,” he explained at Satine’s question, “she’s miserable.”

“This is a terrible crime,” Count Mudhorn growled, “you would think Tarrei-”

“Death Watch assisted us last night.” Satine frowned, unable to hear anything negative about Bo-Katan.

“Yes,” Countess Bralor nodded, “because they wanted the Count, when the Jedi took him they were upset they didn’t get shots at him.”

“However, Asajj Ventress spat in his face.” Countess Saxon remarked.

“The Count, Dooku, I mean,” Satine began, “said he had friends in Death Watch, my guess is it would be Vizsla.”

“That would make sense,” Count Awuad agreed, “my spies just told me that your sister might face mutiny.”

Satine sighed, “That would be unfortunate.”

“It would, but there is more news,” Count Awuad straightened, “the Vizslas now believe that the children taken belong to you.”

The Duchess went stoic as stone.

“A dangerous rhetoric if true,” Countess Eldar prodded.

“But there is no need to worry about that then,” Satine forced a smile, “I have no children.”

“No,” Count Rook agreed, “but he did take Mandalore’s heir.”

Satine’s comm rang, it was the Jedi Council.

“We have decided upon our rescue party.” Master Windu announced to the room, “three Jedi Masters, will accompany five padawans to save the children.”

“That seems like a large group.” Countess Eldar observed.

“It is needed,” Master Mundi responded, “I will be leading the effort, which will take place on Mustafar.”

Satine grew cold.

“Mustafar?” Alrich Wren asked.

“Yes,” Master Secura nodded, “that is where the children have been taken.”

The room silenced, a fire planet known for cruelty.

“Is the Count proving useful?” Countess Saxon asked.

“He is.” Master Windu did not elaborate.

“Padawan Tyra, the one you sent here for protection who has now been captured,” Satine began, “informed me that Count Dooku’s Master has a son. His name is Je’er, and his mother is Oana Shields of Harran, from Naboo.”

“Interesting this is,” Master Yoda spoke, “good spy, Padawan Tyra is.”

That brought Satine some comfort at least, knowing that the Jedi had faith in her daughter's skills.

“The rescue party will leave tomorrow,” Master Secura offered, “you may rest easy on that.”

“Thank you,” the Duchess swallowed, “Mandalore looks forward to helping you more in the future.”

“Now,” Count Awad sighed, “for our Death Watch problem.”

It was decided that if Sabine Wren had any connections left to Death Watch, she should use them. Ursa loathed to let another child leave her, and therefore made her husband go with their daughter.

Satine spent the next few days organizing an optional armed force regiment, with incentives to join, of course. She also met with food experts to talk about rationing and spoke with the Head of Mandalorian Trade. 

The Duchess was in a meeting with her seamstresses about reducing fabric consumption when Parna burst in.

“Satine!”

The Duchess stood, sensing important news.

“Padawan Tyra is in the med bay.”

Satine ran to the make-shift hospital in the palace, she was glad to see both Hera and Doctor Quial present, but gasped when she saw their patient. 

“Your Grace,” Khaami whispered, appearing at her side, “please sit down.”

Shaking violently, Satine fell into a chair and began to sob.

“Your Highness?”

Satine swallowed and looked at the boy standing in front of her, “You must be Je’er.”

He nodded and knelt before Satine.

“Your Grace, I’m sorry I couldn't free the rest of your children,” he began, his voice low, “but they are all kept separate, and I couldn't let harm come to Tyra.”

Satine glanced over at her daughter, “What happened?” 

“My father electrocuted her,” Je’er did not lower his eyes, “she has second degree burns, but she will live.”

Satine fell forward and hugged the boy.

“Thank you, Je’er, thank you so very much.”

Je’er breathed a sigh of relief.

“If it’s alright to ask, will you help me get to Coruscant, I need to testify in front of the Jedi Council?”

“Of course,” Satine stood, “do you need food, water?”

Je’er winced, “Sleep, first.”

“Khaami,” the Duchess turned, “give this young man a nice room.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Satine then stepped into a quiet conference room and called her favorite Jedi.

“Obi?”

“Satine, I-”

“I have the Sith Lord’s son, he rescued Tyra,” Satine blurbed, “he wants to testify in front of the Council.”

“Good, this is,” Master Yoda spoke, “collect him tonight, Master Kenobi will.”

Satine blushed, realizing that Obi-Wan was likely in a meeting, “Thank you, Master Jedi.”

Once she hung up, the Duchess came back to her seamstresses, whom Parna was entertaining.

“Good news, Your Grace?” Waldie asked.

Satine finally allowed herself to smile, “Wonderful news.”

“That’s needed in these times.” a seamstress ventured.

“I agree,” the Duchess nodded, “Parna, I think we can repurpose some of my old gowns.”

The Lady nodded, “Should I bring some of the older ones down?”

“Please.”

Khaami came in as Parna left.

“A word, Satine?”

They made their way halfway towards the landing pad before Khaami spoke.

“I posted Gorg outside his room.”

“Protection?”

“Or in case of aggression.” Khaami answered.

“My Ben is coming to collect him,” Satine bounced on her heels, “he’ll be here tonight.”

Khaami grinned, eyeing her lady evilly, “You’re so giddy around him, you always have been.

The Duchess blushed, “Sometimes I still feel like we’re seventeen.”

Khaami snorted, “Yes, with six children.”

Satine sighed, “If Master Qui-Gon would’ve known we would have six children, he would’ve made our lives hell.”

“In a loving way, I’m sure.”

“Most definitely.” the Duchess agreed.

When Obi-Wan finally arrived, Satine was with Tyra in the med bay. She had woken up and was talking, but she had painful-looking white bulbs all over her arms and legs.

“At least I still have my hair.” Tyra joked with a wince.

“I’m just glad you’re safe, baby girl.” Satine smiled, “you know, it was a wonderful surprise when you were born.”

Tyra’s eyes watered, “Really?”

“Oh yes,” Satine placed her hand in Tyra’s, “I joked that I made such a mess I would need two towels.”

“But you really did need two.”

“What a lovely story.”

Satine turned and threw herself into Ben’s arms.

“It’s good to see you too, Darling.”

The Duchess kissed her Jedi until Tyra groaned.

“Uh, Dad, Lady Mother, I’m right here?”

Obi-Wan came to inspect his daughter, frowning at her injuries.

“Be nice to Je’er, Daddy,” Tyra warned, “he’s my boyfriend.”

Ben blanched, “A Sith-spawn?”

“Obi, he saved her life.”

The Jedi sighed, “Alright, Tyra, for you.”

Satine led Obi-Wan to where Je’er was sleeping. The poor child was thrashing in his sleep.

“Je’er!”

Obi-Wan gently shook the boy awake.

“You’re Master Kenobi.”

“I am.”

Je’er swallowed, “My father’s name is Sheev Palpatine.”

The room grew heavy with silence, and boils appeared on Je’er’s skin.

“Stay calm,” Obi-Wan ordered, “stay calm and they’ll go away.”

It worked.

Satine’s head spun, “Sheev? The Chancellor of the Galactic Senate, a Sith Lord?”

“We’ve been suspicious for a long time,” Obi-Wan explained, “but we’ll need this boy’s testimony, and his blood.”

“Take him then,” Satine urged, “quickly.”

Once Obi-Wan left, the Duchess stood staring at the sky for a minute longer. Her children were out there somewhere, three of them imprisoned. That Sith Lord was terrible, keeping them separate from one another. What did he want from them?

“Satine,” Khaami appeared, “I have the Prime Minister on the phone.”

Jaru Djarin suggested that Satine go to parliament and speak to the lords, because, as usual, they were very disgruntled and consumed by nonsense.

“I’ll go tomorrow,” Satine assured, “will you come with me?”

“Unfortunately,” the Prime Minister sighed, “I’m giving a press conference just as parliament begins.”

Satine nodded, “Good luck.”

“Thank you.”

Satine was in a fitting for tomorrow’s event, an old court dress reminiscent of Queen Mara’s style, only in Kryze colors, when she asked Waldie what time it was.

“Six in the evening.”

Satine said nothing, but her stomach rumbled.

“Your Grace?”

The Duchess lowered her eyes, “I forgot to eat today.”

“Forgive me, Satine,” Waldie began, “put you’ve lost much weight since the Count’s first visit.”

“Stress.” the Duchess sighed.

Waldie swallowed, accepting the answer even though she didn’t want to.

“Should I have Parna bring food to your room?” a seamstress questioned.

Satine hesitated, “A light dinner please, it would be good for me.”

Khaami came to retrieve Satine when her fitting was over.

“I just talked to Gorg,” she whispered, “he’s filing for retirement.”

“Now,” Satine gasped, “but-”

“I know he knows,” Khaami’s voice was low and understanding, “but he has been unwell even though he’s physically healthy.”

“PTSD?” Satine asked.

“He’s been having nightmares in the barracks,” Khaami frowned, “he’s terribly embarrassed.” 

The Duchess balled her fists, “That God-awful Count and his apprentice!”

Khaami agreed, “I just wanted you to know.” 

“I’d love to honor him somehow, a pension perhaps,” Satine decided, “seeing as he doesn’t like big events.”

The lady smiled, “That’s a good idea.”

“Come with me,” Satine hooked her arm through Khaami’s, “I need someone to make sure I eat.”

Parna was laughing with Jaym outside Satine’s door when the Duchess and her lady arrived.

“What’s this?” Khaami grinned.

Parna snorted, “Jaym has a strange sense of humor.” 

“Does he?”

“Apparently,” Jaym shrugged, “most people don’t think I’m funny.”

Parna grinned, “You’re hilarious, Jaym.”

Satine turned to Khaami and raised her eyebrows.

“If you like, Your Grace,” she began, “I could make preparations for what we discussed and Parna could eat with you.”

“I would love that.” the Duchess replied.

Satine ate cheese and bread that night, the whole platter that was offered to her.

Parna patted the Duchess’ head, “Good girl, Satine.”

“Thank you.” Satine replied with a giggle.

“Should I help you dress for bed?”

“Please, Parna.”

As Satine lay in bed that night, she had no idea what was going on somewhere else in the galaxy, on Mustafar. Obi-Wan had commed her saying he and Je’er had made it, but when the Jedi Council come out of a meeting to find Mara Supreis and Tristan Wren in the med wing, along with three of the five padawans.

[crispyjenkins]

B U I R, continuation of the last fic? Padawan Obi and master Dooku are freakin great. Would like to see more of jango being a disaster & a himbo for one (1) man

(my kid enabled me and i’ve been writing this between packing/moving the last week and i don’t know when i’ll be able to start something new (tonight? tomorrow? next week? lord knows), so i’m very sorry to the quinobi anon, yours is next, i promise!!

imagine that one Stiles/Malia cuddle that literally will not stop looping through my brain even though i haven’t watched teen wolf

warning for minor blood and injury, minor descriptions/implications of torture. takes place maybe three years after the last!) 

  It’s a little uncomfortable, trying to sleep against a wall while also trying to keep your sort-of-love-interest's headwound elevated on your own lap, and whatever remains of Obi-Wan’s internal clock protests to the surely late hour should they have been on Coruscant.

  Which they’re not, of course, because Obi-Wan has apparently run out of brownie points with the Force, and all his bad luck is catching up to him all at once: getting kidnapped by the Daan for ransom is one thing, getting his shuttle knocked clean out of the sky over Odos and barely managing to protect his fellow passengers in the crash is another entirely. A concussion and a Force-suppression collar later, Obi-Wan had been thrown in a clinically-plain but entirely-dark cell with a barely-conscious Mand'alor that he hasn't seen outside of holocomms since Concord Dawn.

  And some part of Obi-Wan is thankful for the excuse to see the real Jango again, not just the fuzzy holos that barely passed recognition and had to be viewed in private, but most of Obi-Wan is livid that this had only been made possible by the both of them getting snatched by the beginnings of a separatist alliance in the mid rim. 

  Livid that Jango has been here days longer than him, the passage of time marked in fist-shaped bruises and a bleeding lip — and Obi-Wan can't do anything about it, not cut off from the Force as he is.

  The single door on the other side of the durasteel bars slides open, spilling harsh white light into the room and sending a nauseating pulse of pain through Obi-Wan's head. The Rattataki nightsister that had dragged him out of the wreckage of the shuttle all but bounces up to the bars, smile cruel in its delight. Force, but she can't be more than twenty-four standard, and already she has two red 'sabers at her hips. 

  “Well, isn’t that sweet,” Ventress purrs, and Obi-Wan is far too tired to deal with her posturing. He elects to ignore her, letting his head sag into the corner all while giving Jango's wrist a harsh squeeze to surreptitiously wake him, careful to keep his free hand curled around the back of Jango's neck to let him know they're not in immediate danger, but to be wary. 

  The Mand'alor stirs, and he had been raised a soldier, he knows better than to give himself away immediately. Instead, he keeps his muscles slack even as he takes in the situation, the breathing of a third person in the room, the slow, steady brush of Obi-Wan's thumb over his pulse. 

  "You can ignore me all you like, Jedi," Ventress says, certainly sounding at ease in her upper hand. "When my master arrives, your tongue will quickly loosen."

  Obi-Wan simply grunts, glaring at her for all the good that will do. "I do hope he's not quite so young as yourself," he drawls, as Jango carefully shifts and tests his aches and pains. "You'll have to forgive me for finding it difficult to fear one younger than some padawans."

  Ventress hisses, one hand grabbing the bars to pull herself closer. "Not all can be so perfect as you, young Master Kenobi." Jango twitches against him, and Obi-Wan doesn't need the Force to feel his rage. "I do look forward to my master showing you what real power is."

  "Well, then I hope he arrives soon, before you manage to bore us to death."

  "Obi-Wan," Jango murmurs in warning, stupidly alerting Ventress to his wakefulness. 

  To his credit, Ventress doesn’t even look like she notices, lips curling back as she waves her hand and the barred door slams to the side. It’s a careless use of the Force, Obi-Wan thinks, which is a shame because she certainly isn’t lacking in skill, though perhaps this isn’t what he should be focussing on.

  Slinking into the cell followed quickly by two magnaguards from the hall, Ventress uses that skill to effortlessly grab Jango with the Force and drag him off of Obi-Wan, flinging him across the room into the arms of one of the magnaguards. The other shoves its electrostaff into Obi-Wan’s face to stop him from scrambling up to follow, Ventress leering over Obi-Wan with her fingers gliding over her ‘saber hilts.

  “My master warned me of your wayward words, Master Kenobi, you are foolish to think you can use your powers against me," she hisses.

  Maker, at least she's earnest. "I didn't think you'd be so quick to forget, darling," Obi-Wan says with a disarming smile, "that you've already made sure I have no powers to speak of."

  Over Ventress’ shoulder, Jango jerks in the droid’s arms with a desperately angry frown aimed right at Obi-Wan, and he’s probably right: Obi-Wan really should stop antagonising their captors. It’s difficult, though, when the bleary half-light through the open door frames the fresh split at the corner of Jango’s lip, that Obi-Wan is helpless to remedy.

  Ventress snarls at him and grabs the suppression collar underneath his chin, pulling just enough to make him grunt in pain as she forces his head up to look at her; Jango doesn’t make a sound, but yanks against the magnaguard’s grip with enough force that both he and the droid stumble. Ventress pays them absolutely no mind as she leans right into Obi-Wan’s face.

  “You will learn to fear us,” she whispers, sibilance bouncing around his mind like the spots that start to dance at the edges of his vision. “We have some more questions for his honor, but you get to sit here in the dark and reflect, perhaps you should meditate, Jedi, on the fate that awaits you at my master’s hands.”

  Obi-Wan has just enough leeway to suck in a breath, and uses it to murmur back, “I’m starting to wonder if you even have a master, with the way you hide behind his ‘power’.”

  With a ferocious snarl, Ventress yanks him clean off the floor and into the air by the collar, his surprised gasp cutting off into a wheeze as his head snaps back. Jango barks something at Ventess, though Obi-Wan can’t hear exactly what over the roar in his ears.

  He scrambles at Ventress' wrist in an attempt to pull himself up enough to just kriffing breathe, to take some of his weight off his neck, but it's been days since he's eaten, and his toes barely brush the floor, and Ventress knows exactly how to manipulate his body to make it hurt. Force, he can hear Jango's voice, low, dangerous, edged in panic, and he can't make out a single word. Instead, Obi-Wan curses his height that he normally doesn't mind, for the way someone at least five years his junior can hold him so powerless so easily. 

  And then after an eternity, after the world starts to grey and Obi-Wan almost feels like his neck will break, she drops him, oozing smugness as he crumples to the floor and barely manages not to smack his head against the durasteel; he lacks the strength to save his knees from the same fate. He chokes and coughs on the frigid, fake air, nearly retching at his lungs' attempt to suck in all his missing oxygen at once, and he's vaguely aware of Ventress saying something to him, probably gloating. He focuses on just keeping his head off the floor.

  Endlessly gentle hands brace his ribs and the back of his neck as they maneuver Obi-Wan up from his stomach to the closest wall, and Obi-Wan knows to trust these hands, that the hurried murmur cutting through the din is not Ventress, that he should probably listen to the owner of those hands. 

  Jango presses two fingers under Obi-Wan's jaw and checks his pulse, his holo-fuzzy face only coming into focus when the bars slam back into place and the door glides closed on the other side of the room. 

  "You with me, ner ca'tra?" Jango asks, tilting Obi-Wan's chin up until he nods. 

  Chest still jerking but forcing himself to calm, Obi-Wan looks around Jango's shoulder to the door, finding with relief that both Ventress and the magnaguards have left them in the dark once again. "Ar-Ar you alright?" he coughs, voice sounding as rough as it feels.

  Jango sighs sharply and drags his hand up to push Obi-Wan's loose hair back from his face. "Force preserve me from jetiise suicidal selflessness. I'm fine, kih'jetii, I'll pretend you asked because you've gone stupid from oxygen loss."

  Obi-Wan laughs, though it still sounds like a gasp, and lets the Mand'alor pull him gently into his shoulder. 

-

  "Padawan," Yan says softly, side stepping in front of the Neimoidian senator that had been talking his ear off for the past hour. Obi-Wan relaxes immediately as his master blocks out the rest of the room, the sounds and the light and the people, and he's never so thankful for Yan's height than he is when chill creeps over the back of his mind and digs its claws into his temples.

  It's easier now that he's older, he has more control, has a better understanding of the Unifying Force, and under Yan's tutelage, his shields certainly aren't lacking. Visions are rare, Obi-Wan mostly gets jabs and encouragement from the Force these days, and even in dreams, events are rarely clear enough to preemptively act upon. 

  But sometimes it's like this, ice starting just where his spine meets his skull, swiftly growing under bone and frosting over gray matter, crystalising his mental shields until they're brittle enough to shatter. He's been under Yan's care for more than half his life now, his master can feel a vision coming on almost before Obi-Wan does, and if it weren't for the crowded ballroom around them, Obi-Wan would sob in relief when his master gently settles two fingers on his temple and supports his mind from below. 

  Obi-Wan chases the flashes of colour and pictures, the vague senses of warmth and rain and contentment, before rock explodes and durasteel rends. Amorphous screams slam against the inside of his skull, and he leans harder into Yan's hand to combat it, to prop himself up until he can reach out and try and catch those will-o-the-wisps of answers, of hints of where or when these flashes will matter. 

  "Soon," he mumbles, feeling Yan move slowly and methodically over the cracks in his mind, patching them with care. "I don't... A terrorist attack, Master Yan, I don't—"

  "Easy, padawan," Yan soothes back and sets his free hand on the other side of Obi-Wan's face, like he used to before Obi-Wan had learned enough control. "The details matter not."

  He lets out a harsh breath. "The details matter not. The details... Desert. Refugees. Claw marks, master, and..." Obi-Wan frowns, pinching his brows together in confusion. "The... the stolen armour. From before."

  Yan rumbles unhappily. "Are you sure, Obi-Wan?"

  "I'm sure," he whispers. "I would know that armour anywhere."

Mand'alor —  “Sole ruler”, contended ruler of Mandalore. ner ca'tra — “my night sky”, intimate term of endearment  jetiise —  “Jedi” pl., sing. jetii kih'jetii —  “Little Jedi”, usually offensive but the relationship between Mandalorians and Jedi are better in this ‘verse so

[magicalforcesau]

Dancing With Ghosts in Your Garden~ Chapter 13 - Year 2: September

(ao3 link)

King’s Cross station was buzzing with life just as it always was. Crowds were pulling in all directions, making it difficult to follow a specific current. Still, Anakin and his mum navigated the onslaught of people with practiced experience that came more from Shmi’s instincts rather than Anakin’s. It was for this reason that he allowed her to hold his hand as she swam them upstream until they arrived between platforms 9 and 10.

“Now, mum, this is difficult for me to say, but I’m the chosen one now. I’ve got a reputation to uphold. So, while I don’t mind holding your hand, I don’t need anyone else thinking their chosen one is a wuss.”

She raised her eyebrows at him, “Is that so?”

“It’s a shame, it is.” He said with a nod, “We had some good times.”

Shmi snorted, “Who does Spider-Man love and protect more than anyone else in the whole world?”

“His Aunt May.” He said, surprised that his mother would even doubt him knowing that, “Who’s like a mother to him. During the clone saga arc of the Amazing Spider-Man comic run, Aunt May died! Well, we all thought it was her, but-”

“-Exactly,” She smiled, “And would you call Spider-Man weak?”

“Of course not,” He scoffed, “He can take down the entire Sinister Six all by himself!”

“Anakin, even heroes are allowed to love their mothers. Only a fool would brand you weak for that.”

And with that, she clasped Anakin’s hand tightly and led him through the brick wall that divided his two realities. He couldn’t really find much else to say on that, because she’d bested him in his own language. He might have pondered about how unfair this was, but was far too distracted by the tingly feeling that permeated through him as he caught sight of the Hogwarts Express again.

When he tried to push further into the crowd of wizards, who all said their goodbyes to their parents before getting aboard the train, his mother’s grasp tightened a bit.

“Mum?” He looked up at her to see that her eyes were teary, though she ran her arm along her face in a quick attempt to hide this. “What’s wrong?”

She knelt down to be at his level, “Nothing’s wrong, dear. It’s just… Don’t try to grow up too fast on me, okay?”

He wanted to make that promise, but everyday Anakin learned something new about who he was and what he could do. Even just doing his homework this summer made him feel inspired by his own gifts. He could see in his mother’s eyes that she saw the same thing. Still, he wanted nothing more than to take that melancholic look from her. 

“I told you I’ll never grow too old for you, mum, and I meant that. Even when I save the world, I’ll still love you.”

She brushed his bangs, which had grown a bit longer, out of his eyes and kept his face between her hands, “I know, my darling, but you know I worry.”

“But why?” He had to try one more time. He really believed that his mother might share more about her experiences in the wizarding world with the prophecy becoming public information. He was wrong on that account. 

Instead, she just seemed to only grow sadder. 

“Ani, the only thing harder than being the chosen one expected of all this responsibility and heroics, is to be the mother that must let her child fulfill that.”

He blinked, “I’ll be safe, I promise.” 

“Do not make promises you cannot keep,” She sighed.

“I can try.” He said quietly.

“And I’ll hold you to that,” She smiled and stood back to her feet, “I look forward to hearing of all the safe adventures you embark on.”

He returned her smile, though couldn’t help but notice that she still seemed quite forlorn. He wished they had more time to talk about it. He still wished he could bring her with him, try as he might to seem like he didn’t.

Behind her, some of his classmates waved excitedly at him and whispered amongst themselves to their parents, likely saying exactly who Anakin was. He smiled back and then looked back to his mother’s curious eyes.

“And remember those who chose you before this prophecy did.” She said.

“How could I forget- Oh, hey Ferus! Good to see you!” He cut himself off to wave to an older student that regarded him from across the platform.

His mum kissed his forehead and he didn’t resist too much for her sake (or that’s what he told himself), “I love you, Anakin. I’ll see you again soon.”

“Love you too!” Anakin chirped and then turned to the train, still awestruck at how magnificent it truly was. Sometimes, he struggled to realize the fact that this got to be his life. 

He turned around once more on the edge of the train, waving proudly at his mum. 

It was going to be a great year.

***

Rex had to resist rolling his eyes in good nature over his best friend’s obvious liking to the sudden stardom he’d risen to. He could understand why, on some level, everyone had taken a sudden interest in Anakin. The chosen one prophecy had existed longer than any of the other orbs in the Ministry of Magic. Valorum, the Minster, himself, did an entire exposé where he discussed just how untouched the prophecies had been for the past millennia. 

And sure, it did sound rather incredible what was going to happen, if anyone ever got around to deciphering what it meant. To Rex, Anakin was always going to be just Anakin- his best friend and co-conspirator, whose tongue turned fat whenever talking to a certain Gryffindor third year girl.

Speaking of such, Anakin was going to have a conniption when he noticed Padmé and her group of girls were in the compartment just across the way from the one Rex chose. Since he already knew he was going to ask, he claimed Echo and Fives’ extendable ear in an attempt to listen in. 

The engine on the locomotive let out one final warning call, alerting any stragglers to get their bums into high gear lest they miss the train altogether. Rex had never known anyone to do so, but Fives and Echo allegedly had a classmate their first year who missed the train and no one ever saw him again. 

Whether or not that was true or just a means of them getting him out of bed early, was debatable. Hogwarts was full of strange urban legends.

Finally, Anakin meandered his way down the aisle, stopping to talk to every single person who called out to him. This time, Rex did roll his eyes, especially as Anakin was even conferring with Asajj Ventress, who was nothing but nasty about him the previous year. 

Really, he hoped all of this wouldn’t get to his head.

Surprisingly enough, when Anakin walked past Padmé’s compartment and into the one Rex occupied, he offered little more than a polite greeting after the girl said hello. Instead, he sat down across from Rex without much explanation. He didn’t even look the least bit flustered after encountering Padmé of all people.

“Rex!” Anakin said cheerily.

“I’m sorry, are you daft?” Rex shot back with a questioning look.

“What?” His friend stared back blankly.

“Are you daft?” Rex repeated slowly and then leaned forward to whisper, “Do you not see who’s right over there? I thought you would be over the moon right now! In fact, why aren’t you over the moon right now?”

“Because I’m over all of that,” Anakin waved off, “Is Padmé the most beautiful girl in the entire world? Yes, but I’m gonna be busy with all of this world-saving I’ve got to do.”

“Oh brother,” Rex leaned back in his seat, “You’re kidding me.”

“I’m serious!” Anakin squeaked and then leaned forward to shut the compartment door so they had more privacy to discuss this, “She’s still the love of my life, but I’ve made my peace that I can’t have her.”

“Okay, so you’re giving up.”

“Not giving up.” Anakin said, “Heroes don’t give up.”

Rex’s frown deepened as he considered the cocky Gryffindor across from him, “Kinda sounds like giving up to me.”

“My mum got me thinking about Spider-Man.”

“You’re losing me, mate.” Rex groaned. 

“So,” Anakin sat up, “Superheroes can’t have girlfriends or boyfriends, because then the villains use them as a pawn to get to the hero. I already have my mum! I can’t risk having anyone else that Dooku could use to foil my plans of foiling his plans.”

“Why the bloody hell would Dooku care about a tween romance?” Rex asked, “Particularly a one-sided one?”

“Because that’s how bad guys work, Rex!” Anakin insisted, “Trust me on this, because I’m an expert.”

“Because let me guess, you’re the chosen one.” Rex returned.

“Well, yeah, but mostly because I’ve done my homework on that account.”

“If by homework, I’m sure you mean watching copious amounts of television.” Obi-Wan drawled as he leaned against the now-open compartment. Even as a prefect, he was the only student fully dressed in his robes already. Rex was unsure how he didn’t notice him standing there. 

“You don’t even know what television is!” Anakin countered in a high-pitched voice that drew the girls’ attention from across the way. He sat back and grimaced at their muffled giggles.

“I do so.” Obi-Wan said, “I just don’t understand the full logistics of it.”

It was true, most wizards didn’t know much on the technological aspects of the muggle world. From what Anakin told Rex about television and electricity, it all sounded very exciting and thrilling. They were clearly missing out on something pretty great and Satine gave great indication of this too, even if her idea of exciting programming probably wasn’t the same as Rex’s.

“Please tell Mr. Chosen One that giving up on love simply because an orb decided to glow for him is utterly ridiculous.” Rex said.

“If anything, Obi-Wan would support my decision to side on the airs of rationale.”

Obi-Wan snorted, “Perhaps, if you were considering this on a school-level, but not to become a hero in tights.”

“I would look good in tights.” Anakin argued, which only told Rex that he likely had a version of his own superhero image sketched out somewhere. If someone was going to see it, it was going to be Rex.

“No one looks good in tights.” And Obi-Wan said that like he unfortunately had experience on this matter, “Anyway, remain in your seats, boys, we’re heading out soon.”

When he shut the door behind him, Anakin scowled, “Why would you tell him about my plan to sacrifice love? I don’t want it getting around!”

“Who’s he going to tell?” Rex asked, “My brother? Satine? Those are the only people he talks to.”

“Yeah,” Anakin said, “You have a point there.”

Rex caught him sneaking a small wave in Padmé’s direction.

***

When Obi-Wan finally entered the compartment he usually shared with Cody and Satine, he dropped down into his seat with a sigh.

“Mate, the term hasn’t even started yet.” Cody teased, “Don’t stress me out with your stress.”

“On the plus side, no potions for you this year.” Obi-Wan smiled, “As for me, I just didn’t sleep well last night, which is strange, since it’s usually my best sleep of the summer.”

“I know the feeling.” Cody grinned, “This season of Quidditch is going to be insane! It’s going to be Gryffindor’s big comeback year, I tell you, and here’s why:”

Obi-Wan allowed his best friend to go on his lengthy rant about just why Gryffindor was going to pull through that year, which included the fact that Rex was going to try out and show up all the other second year tryouts, especially with how hard Cody trained him that summer. Other than that, he lost Obi-Wan in a lot of random dribble that didn’t really register, considering Cody was still trying to be vague about his plan.

“Can’t exactly squeal the goods to you, mate. You are technically a House Cup champion, after all.”

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes, “Yes, of course, well, get your rants out now before Satine joins us. You know she’s not nearly as keen to listen to this as I am.”

“Where is she, anyway?” Cody asked, “I’d hate for you to be the only prefect with a stick up their bum this year.”

“Rest assured, she’s in the restroom getting changed.” He said, “Not without teasing me for arriving dressed in my robes.”

“It is hot outside, you know.”

“And you know that the clothes my parents would have me wear would have me teased forever.” He retorted.

“Yeah, you can’t afford that after the-”

“-Pajamas, I know. Satine mentioned it in about seven letters this summer to remind me. Anakin hadn’t even seen them and mentioned them too. I swear, you all need new material.”

“And so do you,” Cody snorted, “New clothing material, that is.”

Obi-Wan groaned, “That was pitiful.”

“Really? Because I found it quite funny.” He said, “Not as funny as Ventress’s face is going to be when Gryffindor takes the house cup and shakes up the entire division by-”

Obi-Wan was more than happy to allow him to continue, letting his eyes drift to peer down the aisle of the train, catching a glimpse of Satine as she walked their way, robe in hand. When they’d been to Diagon Alley just a couple weeks prior, he’d of course noticed that she’d… Matured over the summer. However, seeing her in the uniforms that she wore practically every day was something of a divine intervention.

She always carried herself with confidence, but it seemed like the rest of her caught up to such a bold nature. He suddenly found himself feeling very childish in comparison- all skin and bones- while she no longer looked like the young girl that occasionally had him flustered. He couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious about how starkly different they seemed now.

She looked sophisticated, wise beyond her years, and utterly brilliant.

Her legs looked like they went on for days.

He shook his head, trying to bring himself back into the present, but only found his face grow red as she drew nearer.  He wasn’t even sure if Cody was still excitedly talking, as the boy only would go on until he was stopped. He never ran out of things to say about Quidditch.

Whatever spell he’d been under broke the moment someone whistled as Satine walked by, causing her to turn to them and spit back in retaliation. Obi-Wan felt himself see red for a different reason entirely. It seemed as she passed, even more people took notice of how much she’d transformed over the summer. 

And many of the boys, including the seventh years, liked what they saw. 

Obi-Wan did not like the way that made him feel.

“Can you believe the utter buffoonery?” Satine groaned as she sat down beside Obi-Wan, cutting Cody off from his rant about defensive measures in overtime. 

“Can you be more specific?” Cody asked without missing a beat.

“These… Arseholes are acting like they’ve never seen me before.” She said, adjusting her skirt and then looking at Obi-Wan, which he averted his gaze immediately, “It’s like they all woke up with their heads on backwards.”

“It’s extremely inappropriate.” Obi-Wan found himself agreeing with a little too much enthusiasm that drew a cocked eyebrow from Cody. “She’s a person for God’s sake! Not to mention a prefect. It’s like you’re some kind of walking carnival act for them to gawk at.”

“It’s just because they think you’re hot now.” Cody said with a shrug, “They’ll get over it.”

“That doesn’t make it right.” Satine said. “And I haven’t gotten hot. I haven’t done anything!”

“Exactly!” Obi-Wan said, and cringed as Satine glared at him.

“You don’t need to always be so agreeable, you know.” She snapped.

“Well, what would you rather I do? Hoot and holler like some sort of invalid?” He retorted, opening a book on his lap to hopefully distract from how red his face was, “For the record, I’ve always thought you looked quite fit. Didn’t you, Cody?”

Cody, who had been staring very intensely at the candy cart, snapped back to them, “Oh- er, yes, sure.”

“Very convincing stuff, boys.” She grimaced, “Thank you.”

Obi-Wan sighed, “Yes, well, I still maintain that they’re all idiots.”

“I’m sure you do.” Cody said.

It was going to be a long train ride.

***

Ventress glowered as she watched more students gather around Skywalker’s compartment, asking eager questions about what he’d done with his summer. It was pitiful to see how the masses swarmed to their newest morsel of gossip and intrigue like they were quite literally dependent on it for sustenance. They would suck the life out of Skywalker until he had nothing else to give, turning on him in seconds flat. In a way, she knew what that felt like better than anyone- to be used.

Her culture, her people, was familiar with it. It was engraved in their history to be cast to the sidelines in favor of a more civilized age. They were marked savages, heathens, monsters while the filth known as muggles got to parade about and mock them with pointy hats, cartoonish movies, and stereotypes that only fueled the fire of their isolation.

Relegated to the castle that approached from over the hill- not allowed to flaunt their gifts amongst the whole world, to display dominance. It was vile. 

Wizards, after all, did the proper thing if their child was born without magic. They didn’t allow them to go and ruin someone else’s culture. Ventress always believed in nature as opposed to nurture and all the nurture in the world couldn’t make a muggle-born an actual witch or wizard. It just wasn’t possible.

She knew how people saw her. Her bone white face, icy blue eyes, and close-cropped white hair made her stand out in a crowd. While her family never spoke of it, she represented the witches of olde- not nearly as posh and significantly more malicious than what proper wizards prefer to display at the surface. 

Where muggles would have thrown her to the gallows, the elite purebloods took her in. 

Skywalker was a fool for believing he was lucky. In fact, the stark realization between how people treated him now vs. the year before (when no one cared or knew that he existed) would have been startling to anyone with a working brain. However, the little second year just continued to eat up the fact that he was chosen.

Ventress knew something about that as well and considered, as she absently doodled in the top corner of the open spell book on her lap, how it wasn’t always what it was cut out to be. 

“You think he’s going to be a problem this year?” Faro Argyus asked as he leaned back in the seat opposite to hers. 

Faro always looked like he smelled something bad. To his credit, this time might actually ring true. 

She sighed, unsure when she agreed to having him sit in her compartment at all, “If you truly believe some snotty little second year is going to pose any true threat to you, Argyus, perhaps you aren’t as tough as you believe you are.”

He growled, “I’m not talking about Quidditch.”

“I never said that you were.” She leaned on her hand as she looked at him.

His face needed work, but he was quite chiseled otherwise and even Ventress could appreciate that. Luckily, he was about as smart as a forest troll, so he never exuded much critical thinking. If he did, she believed the sky would truly open up and rain pigs on them all.

“To answer your original question,” She added and folded up her book nicely, “I think Skywalker is a walking problem in general.”

“I wish he’d start up that cheating ring again.” He huffed and shifted in his seat, “Maybe come up with one that’ll take care of NEWT’s.”

“That wasn’t even him.” She rolled her eyes, “That was the muggle-born from Calgary.”

“Figures.” He sniffed, “Only a muggle-born would get caught.”

“Thank the maker he’s gone.” Shu Mai, a Gossam sixth year with deep gray and wrinkly skin and a long head that curved up, said tactly, “Their lot is lucky they go here at all. If they blow their chance, that should be it.”

Ventress glanced down the aisle to where the incessant do-gooder, Kenobi, and his muggle sidekick, Kryze, shooed away the gathering crowd, saying something of it being against safety measures to be up and standing on a moving train. 

Before they, themselves, moved to sit down, they were stopped by a Ravenclaw named Fenn Rau, who seemed quite interested in talking with Kryze about something indistinct. Whatever it was, it made Kenobi’s face go intriguingly dark in a way that Ventress believed suited him. He should tap into it more often to unleash the power that he was truly capable of. However, that was just her opinion. 

“Seems Skywalker isn’t the only one gaining more attention this year.” She said and kicked Faro in the shin as she caught his stare lingering on Kryze, “Have you any self-respect?”

“Pretty packaging, that’s all.” He shrugged, but glanced back, “If Kenobi gets a good shag out of her, I’ll get why he’s put in so much time.”

“You’re swine, Faro.” Shu Mai accurately assessed with her heavy-lidded eyes.

“And I’m okay with that.” He said. “Actually, there’s plenty of hot merchandise up for sale this year.”

“I don’t remember asking you to sit with me.” Ventress fired back.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. You’re on the list.” He winked.

“Come anywhere near me and you’ll be turned into an actual piece of merchandise to be immortalized in some generic department store.” She fired off.

Faro blinked, trying to process that, before listing off the many girls he’d taken notice of this year. Shu Mai also looked like she regretted her choice of seat, but that was what happened when your friends were all upperclassmen and graduated already. Ventress thought she would suffer a similar fate, but realized instantly that she was above the sentiment. 

Night was approaching outside of the train as stars began to break up darkness’ monotony. Away from all the bustling towns and cars that polluted the sky, they were afforded only a clear display of night as it was intended. 

Perhaps, the state of affairs would be just as transparent. 

Soon.

***

The train hissed into Hogsmeade station and Anakin and Rex looked up as prefects started opening compartments looking for first years.

“Oh yeah! The boats,” Anakin thought back to his experience the previous year, “That’s just for first years right?”

“Yep, Fives told me they make the rest of us walk, but with the look Echo was giving him I’m assuming that’s not true,” Rex told him as he stood, pulling his shoulder bag off the rack above him.

“I certainly hope not,” Anakin had walked partially to Hogsmeade last year and it hadn’t gone very well at all, “And I doubt they’ll let us break off to use the tunnel.”

“That tunnel was practically longer than walking,” Rex shook his head.

“Hey you lot? Planning on riding all the way back or are you coming to school?” Cody popped his head in waving at the two of them to follow. It seemed Anakin and Rex weren’t the only 2nd years who weren’t sure how they would be traversing to the castle this year, as many of them flocked towards any older students they happened to know.

Anakin ducked as a trunk soared over their heads and slotted itself neatly onto a cart pushed by an old witch Anakin hadn’t seen before. In fact there were several carts all loaded precariously with trunks and rucksacks. One was filled purely with empty owl cages, seemingly having let all their owl friends free. Anakin hadn’t gotten a cage for Artoo yet, but he knew the owl would have no trouble finding Hogwarts as it was his first home after all. He made a note to check up on him later.

“They’re volunteers,” Cody said suddenly and Anakin looked up to see him waving at a few of the older witches and wizards, “Hogsmeade survives off business from the school, although you two aren’t allowed in yet,” He reminded them with a stern look, “Every year they help get our things to the castle so we don’t have to try and squeeze them into-” He didn’t need to finish, and if he did Anakin didn’t hear him. Carriages, pulled by seemingly nothing were dotted along the road, waiting for students to file in. Cody hardly blinked as he grabbed the edge of one and swung on up.

Rex beat Anakin to the edge of the carriage climbing up with a little more caution and a lot more interest than his older brother. Anakin made to follow when someone called his name from behind.

“Skywalker!” A 7th year was calling for him. He was fuzzy on the name, but what did it matter. 7th years ruled the school, in more ways than even his former mentor could. The boy was waving him over, he wanted Anakin to join him and his fellow 7th year friends.

He flicked his gaze back to where Rex was laughing at something Cody had said. Surely Rex wouldn’t miss him, it was only a short distance to the castle after all. He made up his mind and hurried over.

“The name’s Ozzel,” The boy stuck a hand out and Anakin shook it, “Glad to have you, Chosen One,” Anakin felt pride swell like a balloon in his chest as he climbed the steep steps into the carriage.

“Ey, Chosen One!” He ended up being sandwiched between Ozzel and a Hufflepuff girl he didn’t recognize. Across from him was a Hufflepuff boy and two Slytherin girls. He sat as tall as a 12 year old boy could and happily answered a few of the questions he was most often getting asked. Things about the beast that had plagued their school just a year prior or about vanquishing Dooku. When they were finally satisfied Anakin glanced over his shoulder, he’d missed the good view of the castle.

They all stepped off the carriage and waved goodbye to Anakin before looping around the back to enter the Great Hall. Anakin moved to enter as well, but a large hand grabbed his shoulder to stop him. Looking up he was greeted by the stern expression of his least favorite professor.

“Go this way and you’re going to get yourself trampled,” Anakin wrinkled his nose, trying to figure out what on earth Windu was on about as it seemed a little early in the semester for riddles. Windu sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose with his opposite hand, “The carts are pulled by thesterals,” He took Anakin’s hand and brought it forward until it hit something fleshy and cold. Anakin yanked his hand back in shock.

“But, what? They’re invisible!”

“Invisible to some, not all,” The Professor put his hand on what Anakin could only assume was the creatures neck, “Only those who have seen death first hand can see them,” Anakin was just about to ask if Windu could see them when he heard Rex call his name angrily from behind him.

“Where did you go?” He crossed his arms, “Figured we lost you at the station or something.”

“Sorry Rex I-” He thought for a minute before continuing, “I just saw a friend I wanted to say hi to,” Rex didn’t look convinced, but still waved for Anakin to follow him into the Great Hall.

“Sure you did.”

***

The sorting ceremony went on without a hitch as it typically did. It was nice not to have the stress of watching to choose a mentor. Obi-Wan had quickly eaten through the main course of dinner. Meals at Hogwarts were always so warm and inviting, definitely a great way to welcome back students for the year. He was, as usual, a little more interested in the desserts, but before he could grab a second slice of pie a hush drew across the Great Hall.

He turned and gazed up towards the teacher’s stand to see Headmaster Yoda raising his hands in the air, asking for silence.

“Welcome you, I do, back to Hogwarts,” He hummed as the remaining chatter died out, “Many announcements to make, I have,” Many students groaned at that, desperate to have the night to catch up with friends. Yoda was always one who could sense such notions though so he smiled, eyes glinting, “Leave those for later, I will. All but one,” He extended out his hand and an adult, who was sitting at the Professor’s table, stood up. Obi-Wan didn’t recognize the man. He was green, clearly aquatic in nature, with long tendrils extending from his head like hair, “Your new DADA teacher, this is, Professor Kit Fisto.”

The Great Hall all clapped politely, before slowly the atmosphere drifted back towards the meal. The new professor sat down and the Headmaster turned to talk with Mace Windu at his side.

“Kit Fisto,” Satine considered the name, “I haven’t heard of him, haven’t read of him… What about you Ben?”

Ben looked away from her for a moment pondering, “Not that I can recall.”

“So that’s a no then,” Satine sighed. There was very little he couldn’t recall after all. Professor Fisto was probably another retired auror, but before he could continue down his line of possibilities he was nearly shoved to the side as a Ravenclaw 5th year squeezed his way between him and Satine. Obi-Wan had to blink a few times just to make sure that this indeed was reality, while the boy stuck his hand out to Satine.

“Nice to see you again, Satine,” He greeted her, and because Satine was always polite she shook his hand.

“Fenn Rau was it?” Satine asked and Obi-Wan felt like his eyes were glued on their hands until he let hers go, “I helped you with your charms paper last year right?”

“And I’m forever grateful,” His voice sounded awfully cheery to be talking about homework, Obi-Wan thought. Surely he and Satine were the only ones who truly appreciated a good paper. As if just now feeling Obi-Wan’s eyes on the back of his head Fenn turned to shake hands with him as well.

“Of course, I don’t want to leave you out of the loop either, Kenobi,” The boy smiled as Obi-Wan took his hand and gave it a firm shake, not unlike his father’s, “I’m excited to work with you as well, as one of Ravenclaw’s newest prefects,” it was only then that Obi-Wan saw the glint of a prefect’s badge sitting atop the 5th years robes. Perhaps it would be a long year after all.

***

They had all thankfully been given the opportunity to catch up with their friends- exchanging summer anecdotes, talking about the upcoming year, speculating about the mystery that was their new DADA professor. Regardless of their various experiences, everyone could steadily agree that it was good to be back.

Because of the various security breaches from the previous year as well as the actual monster that nearly destroyed the school and those who inhabited it, parents and guardians had justifiable reason to be concerned for the incoming school year. Headmaster Yoda’s answer to this had been to implement a conference day. This allotted time for concerned parents to meet with their child’s professors, view newly implemented security measures, and assuage their fears.

“Safe, our students should feel.” Yoda had announced from his propped podium at breakfast. All of the students were haphazardly mixed together as they always were for meals that were not dinner. Even in the midst of the excited chatter full of catching up from summer break, everyone stopped dead when Yoda began to speak.

Anakin didn’t know what it was about the little green wizard, but he sure knew how to command the room. 

“Welcome, all parents are.” He said firmly and cast his bright green eyes across the entire student body, “All blood types, of course.”

He had been, of course, referring to the muggle-borns, which was surely the question on everyone’s mind. This meant, to the shock of many, that muggles would be allowed at Hogwarts for the first time since its opening. As guests, sure, but it was still a big deal. Despite growing up around muggles his entire life, Anakin could see how this would bristle people. They didn’t know or understand magic. This school was meant for wizards only. Muggles could get hurt on the grounds and no one wanted to see that. 

In lieu of this announcement, the student body didn’t fall into that comforting sense of easy camaraderie that made the castle feel like home. Instead, the knowledge that their parents would be invading their spaces to inspect and essentially deem Hogwarts fit for them in a week’s time, made it very difficult to relax at all. 

Even Anakin was a bit worried that his mum might learn of the more dangerous events from his first year. She certainly would not have enjoyed hearing he was kidnapped for a brief period of time or that nobody notified her immediately. 

Despite how low he felt at one point in the spring, Anakin couldn’t imagine being anywhere else but at Hogwarts. His recent surge in popularity was proof of his belonging. How else was he supposed to protect his people if he wasn’t trained to do so? They needed him and he liked the concept of them needing him. 

Obi-Wan was probably the only student not at least a little on edge, which Anakin found more peculiar than anything else. After his potions class, which afforded him the chance to visit one of his favorite professors, Anakin slipped away from the crowd of chattering students to find his mentor calmly shepherding some new first year Ravenclaws. Of course, he was still incredibly diligent about his job- taking care to make sure they got on their way without getting lost. He just lacked that rigid demeanor that every other student seemed to carry with them or in Obi-Wan’s case, the kind he carried most of the time anyway. 

Anakin sighed as he considered the new students. It was hard to believe that it had been an entire year since he was in their shoes. They were so young, so unknowing, so naive. They could learn a lot from him.

“Did you need something, Anakin?” Obi-Wan looked over at him. 

“Oh, I was just seeing if you needed help rounding up the little kids.” He said casually, “Seeing as I probably know this castle better than most at this point.”

Despite the quirk that pulled at his mentor’s usually serious mouth, Anakin knew Obi-Wan couldn’t exactly contest the point with all of Anakin’s misadventures through the secret tunnel system. 

“I’m sure you heard that the tunnels are open for public transit now.” He said, “And are guarded at all times by enchanted suits of armor so as to prevent any mischief.”

Anakin did hear that, but he didn’t appreciate the way Obi-Wan took care to cast an accusatory look at him when he said the word mischief, even if it wasn’t entirely misplaced. He also didn’t voice his obvious disappointment that the tunnels were no longer just his little secret that he shared with Palpatine and Rex. With everyone knowing, they basically just became additional glorified hallways. 

“Well, everyone should be thanking me for finding them quicker ways to get to and from class then.” He said with a nod.

Obi-Wan opened his mouth to answer with what would no doubt be a well-timed sarcastic reply, but was cut off by a loud “WOOP” and cheer of Anakin’s name by a third year Ravenclaw named Jax Pavan, who was merely passing by. This was soon followed by his friend, a Hufflepuff named Tru Veld’s, own loud acknowledgement of Anakin. 

“Hey guys!” Anakin waved and beamed at them. 

“My my, you’ve certainly gained some instant popularity.” Obi-Wan said once the boys passed down the moving staircases. 

Anakin shrugged like it wasn’t as big of a deal to him as it was. After all, he’d never been popular before. Hearing Obi-Wan admit it made it feel like he had pop rocks in his stomach. It was confirmation.

“Well, word does travel fast.” Anakin said with the wave of a hand at another passing fan, “I am just choosing to embrace that fact for once.”

“As long as you don’t allow it to interfere with your studies.” Obi-Wan said sternly, “Even chosen ones need to pass their classes.”

“We’re not even through the first week of school and you’re already lecturing me?” Anakin complained, “You’re worse than Windu.”

“Just because I’m no longer technically your mentor doesn’t mean I don’t have your best interest in mind.” Obi-Wan said with a shrug.

“Oh, that’s right, so that means I no longer technically have to listen to you anymore.” Anakin puffed out his chest in pride at deducing that one. 

“I’m still a prefect, Anakin.” He deadpanned, “The only thing that’s changed between us is I am now in the jurisdiction of being able to give you detention should you require it.”

He remembered his detentions with Windu with the disdain of someone that was never going to get those hours back. He really did not want to repeat the same strokes and end up there again. Plus, he quite liked having Obi-Wan as his mentor. While innately powerful and necessary to the fate of the universe, Anakin still couldn’t quite figure out how to scribe the perfect essay.

“I suppose it would be quite lame if I don’t score high marks.” Anakin reasoned, “Being the chosen one and all.”

“If I’d known a prophecy would have gotten you to do your homework on time, I would have taken up poetry at some point last year.” He said.

“You’re telling me you haven’t been reading that goofy stuff this entire time?” He asked.

Obi-Wan cracked a smile and gestured his hand out, neither confirming nor denying this. He wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest. Obi-Wan was always discussing archaic books with Satine or Qui-Gon, “Now, Mr. Chosen One, I highly recommend you see your way off to your Defense Against the Dark Arts class.”

His uniform was pressed and perfect as ever- complete with a prefect button shining from being recently polished and shoes that endured the same fate. There wasn’t a hair out of place on his well-sculpted head and there didn’t appear to be any tension gripping at his form. That being said, Obi-Wan had clearly gone through a bit of a growth spurt over the summer and was even taller than he was last year, making him appear longer and lankier. 

However, Anakin liked to think he could read him pretty well and saw none of the usual signs of unease: no tight frown, clenched jaw or hands, red ears, or intense calculative stare. Instead, he just seemed full of pure duty and focus. 

Yes, Obi-Wan was far too serene for someone that stood a lot to risk with being ripped from school after the parent conferences. Everyone knew he was in the running for Head Boy and Anakin didn’t even fully understand the significance for such a title besides the fact that it was a big deal to wizards. 

“But what about the first years?” He complained, “You might need my help.”

“Professor Fisto might be new, but he’s no fool. He’d never believe I require the assistance of a second year to accomplish such a feat. Besides, I think I can handle escorting a lost child or two. I certainly had no issue getting you to class.”

Well, Anakin had fallen down a staircase on his first day, but he’d had worse days in the past.

“You know, you seem awfully chill.” Anakin finally accused him with narrowed eyes and an outstretched pointed finger.

“I’m always chill!” Obi-Wan objected with a slight crack in his voice, but even the word chill sounded foreign coming from his mouth. Perhaps, this was because it was not usually a word so readily used to describe him. 

“One, no you’re not.” Anakin countered, “And two, everyone in school is freaking out about their parents coming and pulling them out of Hogwarts. I figured this would have you written all over it as far as panic attacks go.”

“Contrary to popular belief, I see no reason for concern,” Obi-Wan said simply and earnestly. 

Still, Anakin stared at him for a long moment to try and look for any of the indicators that he was lying. He didn’t know exactly what to look for with the ever-trained Obi-Wan, but he’d seen enough cop shows to know there were always tells.

He placed a hand on his shoulder, “Anakin, I appreciate your consideration, but really, I’m alright. I do not believe my parents would see any place as a better fit for me than Hogwarts. After all, my family has been in attendance since the first generation of students.”

“Your family is that old?” Anakin couldn’t even trace back to his grandparents on either side, let alone know what his forefathers were doing back in their day. Based on his minimal impression on Obi-Wan’s family, he couldn’t decide if that was a positive or negative thing.

“It certainly has its legacy.” He said instead, but shook his head before devolving into what would surely be a very robotic history lesson, “And besides, my parents are far too busy to just drop everything for a school event. They’ve got much to keep up with the family business.”

That would explain why the Kenobi’s were never at any Quidditch matches, but Anakin had never made such a connection until now. While the sixth year prefect didn’t sound or seem the least bit sad over this, Anakin still felt a bit bad. Even if he was nervous about what she might say should she learn of his incident with Dooku, Anakin was still excited to show his mum his bunk, classrooms, and Quidditch locker. 

Even if he was grown up, he still liked having someone who took the care and time to worry about him. Absently, he wondered why Obi-Wan wouldn’t want that too. 

As he stepped foot into DADA, which would conclude his day, he shrugged off the concern, realizing not for the first time that Obi-Wan was a great deal older than him. Perhaps, worrying about such frivolous matters wasn’t in his coding.

***

“Are we sure bringing all of the parents on property is such a good idea, Headmaster?” Mace Windu asked from his position across from Yoda. As usual, Gryffindor’s head of house never opted to sit, though Yoda always offered it to him. Sometimes, he believed that the former auror liked having him crane his neck even further to look at him. However, the wiser part of Yoda understood that Mace was simply always on the move. 

He had been the most uneasy about the decision to open Hogwarts’ doors to the parents, feeling that they were simply opening their dirty laundry to those that might blow it out of proportion.

“Their children live here for the greater part of the year, Professor Windu.” Sheev Palpatine said carefully, “Should they not feel secure in that decision?”

Mace bristled, “I understand that, Professor, but hosting guests feels a bit like welcoming trouble into our lair so soon after we’ve just increased security.”

“And you believe the parent of one of our students is capable of evil?” Palpatine asked, still maintaining his persistent sense of calm that was often needed in these weekly meetings. 

“One of our own was capable, Sheev.” Windu shot back, “No one is above suspicion.”

“I can’t completely disagree with Mace.” Qui-Gon voiced for the first time. Though this was his first year as Ravenclaw’s head of house, this was not the first meeting he’d attended. It only seemed natural now.

Windu, just as everyone else, seemed surprised by this.

“It’s been known to happen every once in a while.” Qui-Gon smirked at the beguilement of the room, “We aren’t entirely sure who we can and can’t trust. One thing was made clear from last year: Anakin Skywalker is the chosen one, which means attempts on his life will be made.”

“Exactly,” Windu nodded firmly, “We don’t know who Dooku’s got working for him. It could be anyone.”

Unfortunately, they didn’t know much about Dooku’s plots for evil in general. After a relentless search that spread across the entire summer and alerting all aurors to remain on the highest level of awareness since the darkest of ages, it seemed the outed Sith lord who called himself Tyranus had disappeared into the shadows.

Yoda knew it was only a matter of time before he showed himself once again. 

Professor Shaak Ti sighed, “Of course I care for the boy’s safety, but is this school not the safest place for him? I’m sure you’ve all heard the rumors. If enough parents pull their children from Hogwarts, we don’t have a school.” 

“And think of the poor muggle borns, who would otherwise have nowhere else to learn magic.” Palpatine said.

“I understand that fears must be assuaged,” Qui-Gon said, “If we lead with fear, we’ve got no true ammunition towards the building Sith offense. We simply do not have the luxury of denying that a darker time is approaching and we must do everything in our power to prevent it.”

“Including gaining the favor of the parents, most of whom, Hogwarts is their alma mater as well.” Shaak Ti said. 

“Why can we not hold these conferences in the office space in Diagon Alley as we’ve done when there were concerned parents before?” Windu asked. 

“Comforting, transparency can be,” Yoda said firmly, “Unsettling, secrets are, but correct, all of your concerns are as well. Prepared for the worst, we must be.”

“And how do we do that if we swing our doors wide open?” 

“Preemptive actions, I have taken.” Yoda nodded, “On duty, officers from the Ministry of Magic will be.”

Former aurors, the toughest of which, rarely fully retired if they hadn’t fallen on the job. It had thankfully been a fairly peaceful age up until the previous year, meaning there were more surviving aurors than in the history of the Ministry. Some went into teaching, as Dooku and Windu had, but most went into security for the Ministry or freelance. Yoda had been sure to nab the best of the best to preserve and protect their school in this uncertain time. 

“Headmaster, as much as I support the notion of protecting our students, that might further instill the notion of fear in the parents.” Palpatine offered.

“Undercover, they will be. Unseen, unless necessary.” 

Yoda prayed they would not be.

***

Satine truly didn’t have the time of day to be nervous for parent conferences. That was due to the fact that she was far too busy being absolutely elated over the whole idea. She’d done extensive reading on the history of Hogwarts (from none other than Hogwarts: A History) and in all its time of schooling, muggles had never set foot within its gates. This meant that even when something as tragic as a student death happened, the parents were not permitted on the grounds to retrieve their child if they were of muggle descent. Such rules changed to simply stating that no parents could step within Hogwarts, but were often danced around by pure and half-bloods, whose parents sometimes came to the Quidditch pitches to watch their matches. 

While she never did (and wouldn’t ever) play Quidditch, she wouldn’t have minded an excuse to drag her mum to at least see the school her daughter had been dedicating time to. Even the graduation ceremony had always occurred in a field discrete enough to shroud the outline of the castle in the distance. This meant that it took a great leap of faith for muggles to send their children away to a school they’ve never so much as seen. Luckily, Hogwarts was extremely reputable and in Satine’s case, witches and wizards were very convincing.

She smiled fondly at the memory of when she first received her letter.

“Did you hear they’re pushing back Quidditch tryouts this year?” Cody complained around a mouth full of eggs. 

“You might have mentioned it once… twice… or what is it, Satine?” Obi-Wan turned to her wryly.

“I’d say we’re rounding on the fifteenth time.” She answered after some thought. “This morning.”

Both laughed, but Cody was far too cross over the matter to join in on their jest. Instead, he continued muttering under his breath about the injustice of it all and how this was going to set them back significantly.

“A load of hogwash it is.”

“It’s only for a week.” She offered as the owls fluttered through the windows, carrying the first batch of letters from home for many expecting witches and wizards. As a carefully sealed letter fluttered in front of her, thanks to her faithful and beautiful snow owl, Copikla, many others followed for the students around her. She gently ran a finger along the belly of the fluffy bird as she used her other hand to peel open the envelope.

She grinned at her mother’s beautiful cursive handwriting and felt an immediate sense of warmth wash over her as someone would when ingesting a pepperup potion. Hogwarts was definitely her home, but sometimes she did yearn to have her two worlds come together- or at least, the better parts of both. 

“I think my mum is just as excited as I am to have her at Hogwarts.” She said brightly, still scanning her eyes across the page, “You know, to finally get the chance to see everything I’ve been dribbling on about for years.”

“You? Dribble on? Never.” Obi-Wan teased as he opened his own elegant envelope, which was naturally enclosed with a green Kenobi family crest sealed at the back.

“My dad would have loved to see our tryouts! Show the parents what the kids are really doing out there!” Cody grumbled as he read his own letter, which was written in much choppier and hurried script, “Now, all he’s going to want to talk about are my grades.”

She wasn’t even sure how he read his letter with how much his burgundy old owl, Fox, crumbled the page.

“You’re not worried he’ll deem Hogwarts unsafe?” Satine asked, “Even I discussed with Qui-Gon a contingency plan where he assures my mother of my safety here. He’s quite convincing in that manner.”

“Hell no!” Cody barked, “When I told my dad about the Zillo Beast, his first question was asking if I fought it myself. I suppose my older brothers have already given him enough heart attacks at this point for him to be too bothered.”

“Your dad would light this place ablaze if anything happened to you and you know it.” She said firmly, “He just knows you’re capable of handling yourself.”

“And he’s right.” Cody said, “I’d just rather show him that on the Quidditch pitch and not in a one-on-one conference with Windu.”

“I think they’re worried the muggle parents might see their children getting knocked several meters to the ground without any safety net.” Satine said, “Need I remind you that your sport has literally seen people dead?”

“Not in like… Three years.” He counted on his fingers, “And even more so at Hogwarts!” 

“Ah yes, so comforting.” She rolled her eyes and turned to Obi-Wan, who’d suddenly fallen incredibly silent throughout this line of conversation, “I’m sure you don’t mind Quidditch being pushed off a bit, do you?”

He didn’t answer, though. Instead, he stared intently at the neatly unfolded piece of parchment in his hands, reading over and over the printed words as though he was having a difficult time understanding. This, of course, was incredibly unlikely since Obi-Wan was easily the fastest reader at Hogwarts. He even gave Qui-Gon a run for his galleons. 

“What’s their excuse this time?” Cody asked, though not without a careful edge to his voice, “Is the Wizengamot physically holding them captive? Or did a hoity toity banquet just spring up from nowhere? Perhaps they’re planning on falling ill that day?”

They’d grown used to a whole array of ridiculous and equally dismissive excuses for the Kenobi’s lack of involvement. Usually, Obi-Wan never seemed to mind much and would even play along to any jokes on the matter. However, he still sat completely unmoving, eyes unblinking and staring so hard at the paper that Satine felt he might burn a hole straight through the center.

She and Cody exchanged a worried look and she slid close enough to Obi-Wan on the bench to glance over his shoulder and read the letter for herself.

It wasn’t an extensive letter, contrary to how long it seemed to take Obi-Wan to read or fully comprehend, but Satine drew in a sharp breath.

“What is it?” Cody asked, dropping all pretenses of humor, “Is someone dead?”

“They’re… Coming.” She said slowly with every bit of disbelief that she felt ringing through her head. “They’re coming to the conferences.”

And there was little more that needed or could be said after that. All three sixth years sat and ruminated over what this could mean or why they were choosing now to show up. Obi-Wan’s father had been the prosecuting attorney on the Zillo Beast case, declaring the beast to be killed, but while he had delivered a scathing speech on the safety of the students being at risk, hadn’t said much on the matter since it disappeared.

In fact, as far as she knew, the search parties for the beast had stopped. It created a sickly feeling in the back of her mind, like either they’d done something to it in secret or the reason for its being left alive was to serve a different purpose. Either way, 97 meter-long creatures don’t just disappear easily and surely the muggles would have reported something by now had they taken notice of it. 

Her worry for the beast did not compare to her concern for Obi-Wan, who always acted differently around his parents- like he was trapped in a crafted disillusionment. It wasn’t his fault, of course. They were his parents; while Satine always tried to hold her tongue on her growing distaste for his family, sometimes they made it very difficult. 

“Ben?” She dared speech after a long moment of silence between the three of them. 

He had placed the parchment down, but his mind was going at a rapid speed, and if she had to guess: was calculating every second of the next week.

“If you’ll excuse me,” He said in an even tone, “I’ve much to prepare.” 

He swung one leg followed by the other over the bench, collected his belongings, and swiftly moved down the center aisle and towards the door before Satine or Cody could say anything else on the matter.

Cody sighed as he leaned on his forearms, “Good luck with that.”

She frowned, “And why is this solely my responsibility?”

He nodded towards the crest on her robe, “You see him a whole lot more than I do, mate. We both know that he’s going to be avoiding meals.”

That thought soured her spirits even more and she sighed deeply, causing the side bangs that framed her face to billow briefly in the air, “I suppose I’ll be taking his meals to-go for the week, won’t I?”

***

“AWE MAN!” Anakin exclaimed loud enough to echo through the emptying Great Hall. He slammed the fist that was not holding parchment onto the table. 

Artoo, who had been among the last of the owls to return with a letter, fluttered in surprise and concern at the outburst, to whom Anakin immediately placated with a gentle pat on his head.

“Sorry, Artoo,” He grumbled sullenly, “It’s not your fault.”

“What’s wrong?” Rex asked. He’d already begun to gather his things to start moving out of the Great Hall and on towards their Charms class, which already wasn’t the best start to Anakin’s day. 

Anakin sighed and moved to follow him, watching Artoo fly off with the other owls towards the owlery to harass the ever-sensitive Threepio, “My mum can’t make it to the conferences.”

“And that’s bad news?” Rex looked at him quizzically, “Me and my brothers are afraid of what the professors are going to say to our dad. Not having him come would cure all of our headaches.”

“The term just started!” Anakin protested, “Even I haven’t fallen behind on homework yet.”

“Sure, but you really think Windu is keen on keeping his trap shut about the antics from the previous year?”

“Maybe,” Anakin shrugged, “I think he still feels sorta bad for making me think he was going to kill me.”

Rex considered that and nodded, “I’m just saying, I love my dad dearly and wouldn’t trade him for all the galleons in the world, but mixing parents and professors just seems like a disaster waiting to happen.”

“I can’t believe they’ve never done conferences before.” Anakin said, “What if a parent is worried their kid is failing?”

“They have them off-site sometimes if pre-arranged by the parent.” Rex explained, “Or if a child is being particularly rambunctious. Fives told me Sebulba’s parents have met with the Headmaster.”

“A lot of good that did.” He muttered.

They moved past the slippery Dug, who was currently taking to firing enchanted spit balls at passing students with Ody and Groff. A few girls vocally complained while some boys retaliated with crumpled paper balls. If he were in better spirits, Anakin might have involved himself, but was far too sullen over his mum being unable to come.

As they took their seats in Charms, Rex turned to him, “So, why can’t she come?”

“Work.” Anakin twisted his face into one of disgust, “For the foulest person on the planet.”

“I thought that was Dooku.”

“Dooku is the worst person on the planet,” Anakin explained, “But Watto is all-in-all just vile and disgusting. Inside and out.”

“And your mum works for him?”

“She says she does it to put food on the table, but she’s the best waitress around. I’m not sure why she needs to stoop so low.”

Rex sighed, “Well, I’m sorry she can’t come, mate. Maybe a different beast will attack the school this year and they’ll hold these sorts of meetings again.”

“I hope so.” Anakin said and then gave him a wry smile, “And if that happens, you know who to call.”

“Headmaster Yoda.”

He thumped him, “Me, you ninny!”

Rex rolled his eyes, “No offense, mate, but I’ll hold off on turning to you until you at least grow tall enough to look our enemies in the eyes.”

“Then why are you calling Yoda?” Anakin asked.

“Big personality, I guess.”

***

“Tell me whose brilliant idea it was to schedule the first Apparition class the night before Parent Day.” Cody yawned as all of the sixth years piled into the courtyard. The air was still muggy, even without the added presence of the sun, and crickets could be heard whistling in the grass surrounding them. 

“And at midnight,” Satine matched his yawn with one of her own and he wasn’t shocked to see she was cross. It was no secret that his friend didn’t do well with being awoken beyond her own readiness. Even that was pushing it, “I thought we were through with this malarky first year with Astronomy.” 

“It’s the only time we were guaranteed a free slot in our schedules.” Kenobi, easily the freshest looking and the only one dressed in uniform, supplied. It was quite likely that he wasn’t able to sleep anyway with the impending conferences in the morning. 

“Don’t they understand the concept of beauty rest?” Ventress scowled as she trudged not far behind them- hair askew, makeup smeared, and bags under her eyes making her sockets look hollow.

“You’ll need more than sleep.” Cody grimaced, which earned him a sharp glare.

“Do try to avoid poking the beast.” Kenobi jested dryly, “Particularly at feeding hour.”

“If either of you were to accidentally apparate into an active volcano, that might just make my year.” The pale witch spat and then scoffed as Professor Windu moved through where she and Cody stood briskly taking the center of the courtyard. “And you can bring him with you.”

“He doesn’t look any more pleased about it than you do,” Satine said, but then frowned as she took another look at Ventress, “Well, maybe not.”

“What good is it that you even take this course?” Ventress twisted up her face in disgust at Satine, “Hadn’t you muggles fancied yourselves too good for convenience in your plaything means of transportation?”

“Are you referring to planes, trains, and automobiles?” Satine rolled her eyes, “Operating those require a great deal more skill, I promise you that.”

“Oh, I’m sure, Duchess. Why not go learn to operate those instead?” She grumbled with crossed arms, “And spare us of your pointless lectures and comparisons.”

“I’m going to consider myself grateful that we haven’t shared classes in a while,” Satine sighed, too tired to take the bait, though Cody did notice she sidestepped that line of conversation. Unlike Ventress, the prospect of learning to pilot a vehicle was incredibly interesting to him. If Kenobi weren’t intent on brooding at the horizon, it would have interested him too.

“Alright, class, I know it’s late, but this is the only time we had for our first lesson.” Professor Windu explained.

“Does this mean not all of these classes will occur at such a late hour?” Lyra Prime asked from the corner opposite to them. Upon looking around, Cody noticed that no one was particularly enthusiastic about being out so late. He knew a couple of second year Gryffindors that would jump at the prospect, but he guessed this is what growing up looked like: pure exhaustion.

“Not all of them will,” Professor Windu said, “Nor will they occur as regularly as your normal classes. I do not want to detract from your studies with this course.”

“Just from our sanity,” Cody murmured to Satine, who nudged him in retaliation. 

“Tonight, we won’t be doing anything crazy. I know we’ve all got a busy day tomorrow, but one thing you’ll learn quickly outside these walls is that life doesn’t wait for anyone. Ever.” Windu, even if tired, had the uncanny ability to sound like he was delivering the final remark on a rollercoaster of a court drama. 

Cody wasn’t that disappointed about being here, really. Once his eyes blinked awake a bit more and he got used to it, he would likely be happy. He’d been excited to apparate since he first came to Hogwarts, after all. Most of the attendees were, save for possibly Ventress, who wouldn’t be excited for anything that didn’t involve dismemberment. Or at least, that’s the conclusion he’d drawn.

Of course, Windu sure had a way of sucking the excitement from the air.

“Where are we going tonight, Professor?” Eeth Koth asked.

“There will be no apparition tonight, Mr. Koth. These first few sessions will be about determining if you can handle the responsibility of apparition. Then and only then, once you showcase your knowledge and respect for the law and the intricacies of it, we’ll practice.”

“This class might as well have been run by you.” Cody said to Kenobi this time, “This is going to be boring as all hell.”

Kenobi only shrugged, likely not bothered or surprised like many of the students were. Cody was just irritated that this was going to be yet another thing he had to study for this year. His dad was definitely going to have questions about that.

“Everyone pair up!” He was unsurprised to turn and find Satine had already claimed the somber Kenobi for herself. 

He frowned as he looked at Zeb. “Why are you taking this now? You took it last year.”

“Doesn’t mean I passed,” The purple Lasat said gruffly, “Wanna partner up?”

Cody sighed. Sometimes, being in a group of three did have its disadvantages.

***

Obi-Wan probably would have signed up for the setup taskforce for “Parent Day” without the obvious obligation of his own parents’ imminent attendance. Such a team took care to assist the professors in making the school not only sparkle for its guests, but appear as safe and functioning as possible.

Well, as possible for a magical school. He noted that they kept the moving staircases as well as allowed the ghosts to wander about. However, he wasn’t sure there was much that could be done about them anyway. Most of the parents would have presumably gone to Hogwarts as children and knew what to expect. He supposed they just needed to see that the attack of the beast hadn’t left any glaring scars. 

He wouldn’t be mentioning to any of them that he still sometimes subconsciously felt the way the astronomy tower shook that fateful day the Zillo Beast escaped.

He really wouldn’t be mentioning that day it escaped to his parents.

“I’m sure you know by now that breakfast doesn’t begin for another hour.” Qui-Gon said the morning of the event. 

“Would you believe me if I said I had first patrol?”

“No.” Qui-Gon said with the barest hints of a smile. 

Obi-Wan had risen before anyone else in his house to get a headstart on the day- performing any last minute touch-ups on his section of the boys’ dormitory in the event that his parents wanted to see how Obi-Wan’s been managing. He was grateful that he’d learned long ago how to contort his more frivolous belongings so they were unnoticeable in his trunk. Still, just to be safe, he moved them over to Cody’s dorm so as to make the optimum impression.

Besides, Obi-Wan hadn’t slept too well all week and was of much better use preparing. He thought about what they would talk about and tried to prepare for every possible situation. They were brief and concise people just as they were busy. He had his doubts that they would stay the entire day, which truthfully, he was betting on. 

He gestured to the towel that was in his hand, “I just figured I would get the jumpstart on taking a bath to prepare for the day.”

“And why do I gather the suspicion that you won’t be at breakfast at all?” Qui-Gon asked with crossed arms.

“Because I’ll eat later.” Obi-Wan waved him off, “You’re up early too.”

“You know I don’t sleep.” He was teasing, but there was definitely some truth to that statement. For an optimistic moment, Obi-Wan considered if this was where he adopted this bad habit. To be fair, Obi-Wan had been eating at least semi-regularly through his focus. Somehow, plates of food just ended up near him that came from seemingly nowhere. Of course, Obi-Wan had his theories, but not much time to ponder them. 

“Like everyone else, I’m simply trying to put my best foot forward and impress my parents today.” Obi-Wan answered the unasked question in Qui-Gon’s eyes, though it felt a bit like he was guessing at it, since without a trace of natural sunlight, it was difficult to tell in merely candlelight. “And what of you? Are you afraid for the fate of the school?”

Qui-Gon frowned, “No, because I imagine most halfblooded and pureblooded families would still allow their children to attend.”

“That result would play straight into the Sith ideology.” Obi-Wan sighed and felt a new form of panic settle over him at the thought of Satine’s mum not allowing her to continue going to school at Hogwarts. He loved school, but he would love it a great deal less without her.

“Well, welcoming muggles through our doors certainly isn’t.” Qui-Gon said with a firm nod and placed a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder, “Keep your chin up, Obi-Wan. The only thing your parents should discredit you for is perhaps your sleep schedule.”

Obi-Wan shifted, “They don’t discredit me. They are just quite particular in their vision for my future. They just want what’s best for me.”

“As parents should,” Though it seemed like Qui-Gon was walking on eggshells and it was not for the first time in this line of conversation, “Just be sure that you are also being mindful about what’s best for you.”

Obi-Wan didn’t quite understand that. He was always trying to secure himself a successful future. He wouldn’t describe himself as solely self-serving, but he did think a lot about his life going forward and how he would try to make his parents proud. Their pride always felt good and allowed him to know he was doing something right. 

“I will, sir.” He said with a nod, and backed away to head towards the prefect bathroom as initially intended, “I might bring them by your office later.”

“I would like to finally meet the parents behind one of my favorite students.”

“One of?” Obi-Wan teased, “Satine isn’t around, professor.”

“At this time of morning? I know.” He snorted.

***

At exactly twelve noon on the dot, the harmonious bells gonged from their respective tower, alerting both students and faculty that Parent Day was to begin. Because there was no excuse to be tardy with the help of magic, the parents appeared from seemingly nowhere just as the doors to Hogwarts swung open.

Prefects, expectedly, still had their duties even with the sudden influx of adult supervision. Unlike most afternoons, students were required to sit with their houses in the Great Hall so as to make the process of parents finding their children easier. Prefects, meanwhile, stood aside and took on the task of guiding the befuddled muggles where they needed to go. 

Satine took her tasks quite seriously and was sure to pass a sharp glare to shut up any smarmy student that tried to make fun of the awe that filled the muggle parents’ eyes. It was preposterous, really, because every student- regardless of lineage- was awestruck at one point or another when they entered the Great Hall for the first time.

In fact, even the wizarding parents had that warm glow in their gaze as you might when walking down memory lane. Hogwarts had once been their home and for a brief moment, Satine wondered if they saw themselves in the students that sat at their respective tables- or if they noticed all that had changed. 

She wondered how she would feel when she returned after graduation should she have any children of her own.

They certainly wouldn’t be little bastards like Sebulba, who fancied himself something special now that he was a fourth year.

“Sebulba, if you don’t get that tongue away from Tiplar, I will be confiscating it.” She scolded.

“Is that a threat or a promise, Kryze? I’m not usually one for blondes, but Sebulba likes what he sees.” He waggled what she assumed would be eyebrows, but they couldn’t be seen beneath the goggles he wore over his eyes. 

“I’d say such disrespect warrants 5 points from Slytherin.” Fenn Rau said airily as he appeared next to Satine. She turned in surprise to find him at all, actually, but was even more startled by the gust of wind to her right. 

“More like 10 points from Slytherin.” said Obi-Wan, who had his fists balled at his side, “And should you continue this flagrant disrespect for personal space and authority, I will have no problem extracting you from this event in front of your parents as well as explain to them why Slytherin is falling behind in the house race.”

“Funny, I’d always known you to be the gentler prefect, Kenobi.” Rau said with a smile at Satine, “Not that it wasn’t deserved, of course.”

“I take the treatment of my fellow prefects very seriously.” Obi-Wan said sternly and if Satine didn’t know better, she’d say his chest was puffed out a bit, but he never kept his eyes off Sebulba, who looked like he debated on saying something else until he caught the intensity of Obi-Wan’s glare.

Sebulba snapped his trap shut so fast it made a clicking noise that she’d never heard, but Satine’s focus was more trained on the venom that seemed to pour from every feature of her best friend. She’d never seen him behave like this before and couldn’t quite explain what it was. There was tension, of course, which she expected from him on such a day, and disgust, which Sebulba obviously warranted. There was also protectiveness, which part of her naturally batted against, because she could discipline a simple sleazebag on her own and certainly didn’t need his interference. However, a smaller and more elusive part of her welcomed it.

He stared at Sebulba until the suddenly shy Dug had the good sense to turn away and duck his head down to avoid Obi-Wan’s silent fury. Satine led them a few meters away by gently tugging him on the arm from Rau and Sebulba. 

“You know,” She kept her voice low, “I could have handled that myself.”

“I am aware of that. Perhaps, I was merely sparing Sebulba from your wrath.” He replied rather cheekily, which she was surprised as she expected him to be reticent today of all days.

“Is that all?” Still, she had to play along, “Need I remind you that I’m a pacifist?”

“Not when you remind me every day,” He quipped, “But you are also quite ruthless when you wish to be.”

“I thought you liked that about me.” She dared.

“I do.” He said immediately and then reassessed his approach, “Just because you can handle something does not mean you should have to.”

That familiar fondness tickled at her chest again and she found she couldn’t look at him for much longer without flushing completely red. He wasn’t looking directly at her either, which made for an easier task of diversion.

“I suppose chivalry isn’t completely dead then.” She said.

“Especially when prats like Sebulba are involved.” He said.

“So?” She pressed, “Just felt like blowing off some steam?”

“Something like that,” He flickered his gaze to her before casting it back to the masses that still poured through the building, likely trying to spot and see if anyone needed assistance. Despite the overwhelming sense of uneasiness that plagued the school for the week leading up to the event, children seemed overjoyed to actually see their parents so soon. Even the gruffer students, like Zeb Orrelios, who played tough during the day, ran into their mother’s arms and allowed themselves to be enveloped without question. 

She noticed Obi-Wan’s gaze was fixed on a rather touching display between a young Hufflepuff first year and his parents and how elated they seemed to all be together in that moment.

When he felt her stare, he snapped his eyes forward towards the door and nodded with a little smile on his face. She followed where his gaze had fallen and felt her own mouth twitch into a grin. A woman strutted in, long and lean just like her, and held herself with a confident strength that was so binding that not a single wizard likely deemed her a muggle. 

“Mum!” She moved at her own accord, letting Obi-Wan fall back as she pulled the taller woman into a tight embrace. It had only been two weeks since she’d last seen her, but she always missed her mother.

“Hello, darling.” 

“I’m so glad you’re here.” Satine said, feeling quite like a first year as she said it. 

“You were right, Satine, this place is fantastic.” Her mum said after they separated.

It always baffled Satine how her mother could maintain such ethereal beauty at all times- all the while maintaining a strength that she longed to possess. One did not raise their three children (including an actual witch) on their own for the past seven years and not be a force of nature.

“Isn’t it?” She beamed, “I’m looking forward to showing you everything!”

“Let’s get this over with.” A voice that was teetering on the edge of a whine said from behind them. 

She was so distracted by the joy she was experiencing from seeing her mum that she almost missed the second and shorter figure that lingered behind her. 

Satine cocked her head to the side in confusion and met the scrutinizing glare of eyes that always reminded her of green tea in color. However, while they used to be as bright as the rolling fields of the countryside in a fresh spring, there was something menacing about them now.

“Oh, you’ve brought Bo.” She tried not to sound disappointed, though internally cringed at how clear she had failed at that account. It wasn’t that she disliked her sister. In fact, the two used to be incredibly close as children. It was that Satine really did not feel like spending the entire day under intense judgment, especially when her kid sister decided she disliked nothing more than magic.

“I did.” Her mother said warily, which sounded like a warning for the both of them to get along. In Satine’s defense, she always tried. “With your brother away at university, there was no one around to stay home with her.”

“I’m not some dumb dog that needs to be watched,” The fiery-haired tween grunted with arms crossed over her chest, “I’m going to be 13 next month! I’m practically an adult.”

“I’ve not forgotten.” Satine said carefully, “Though I still can’t believe how much you’ve grown.”

“An easy thing to miss when you’re busy spending all of your days playing voodoo in this cold castle.” Bo complained and looked all around her, easily the only person to ever walk through Hogwarts for the first time and be unimpressed. “What kind of name is Hogwarts anyway?”

“Behave, Bo-Katan.” As beautiful as Ruusaan Kryze was, she was also formidable.

“It literally means pig pimples.” It was a shame Bo was as unrepentant as ever. 

They hadn’t seen much of each other over the summer, save for the final two weeks when Bo returned from summer camp. However, she had been determined to spend as little time with Satine as possible, making it clear where she stood on her feelings. 

“Always a pleasure.” Satine muttered and turned, surprised to see Obi-Wan had approached them again and was suddenly relieved for the distraction from the rising tension that Bo-Katan brought with her wherever she went. However, she was amused to see that Obi-Wan seemed a bit antsy for some unforeseen reason. 

She placed a hand on his arm and smiled, “You remember my friend and fellow prefect, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Mum.”

Something sparkled in her mother’s eyes as she clasped Obi-Wan’s outstretched hand, “It’s good to see you again, Ben.”

He smiled sheepishly and nodded, “And you, Ms. Kryze. I hope you’ll find Hogwarts fit to your daughter’s exceptional talent.”

Her mother laughed, “Oh, I’m sure I will. Satine speaks very highly of Hogwarts, adventures and all.”

“And of you.” Bo commented and looked Obi-Wan up and down as though she was ready to go in for the kill. Satine would not put her above doing so. “Though I don’t see what’s so great about you that warrants droning on and on in her diary-”

“-Anyway!” Satine gritted and fixed Bo-Katan with her most lethal stare, “Let’s proceed with a tour.”

“Er, yes.” Obi-Wan said, clearly befuddled by the change of pace and hopefully not by the way Satine looked like she swallowed a jalapeno every flavor bean. However, he recovered and smiled genially at Satine’s mother, “I will see you all later for dinner.”

“Ah, you’re not coming along? Satine says you know this castle inside-out. So much so that you made a map!”

“Right down to the murderous slaughter chambers, no doubt.” Bo muttered, but was silenced by a warning look in her mother’s eyes. 

Satine and Obi-Wan exchanged an uncomfortable stare, before laughing awkwardly as if what Bo-Katan insinuated was so ridiculous. To be fair, the year prior, it would have been, but with Dooku recently outing himself as a Sith lord as well as an actual Sith temple that lay decimated below, it wasn’t completely out of the question. Who knew what lay within the walls of Hogwarts that they hadn’t yet uncovered?

“I may have made the map, but I’m sure she’s also mentioned some of my questionable artistic choices.” He smiled at Satine, who shrugged. 

“It needed to be made known.”

He sighed, “And anyway, as much as I would love to attend, I must stay on guard for my own fam-”

“-There you are, Obi-Wan.” Mrs. Kenobi briskly stepped through Bo-Katan and Satine’s mother as though they were merely French doors that meant to be parted at her will. As always, she was dressed like she was attending the funeral of a very high-ranking politician. Her mood did not look much cheerier in comparison. 

“Yes, we made the mistake of checking Slytherin’s table first.” His father, who matched his wife in demeanor and in maudlin fashion choices, trailed behind with the airs of constant disappointment clinging to him. Of what, Satine could and would never understand so long as she lived.

“We had assumed you would be with Ventress, but it seems she’s already off with her parents.”

“An easy mistake to make,” Obi-Wan cleared his throat and Satine could once again see that tightness return. Had they been in a different setting, she would have reminded him to take a breath.

“More like wishful thinking.” His mother said dryly before finally seeming to notice that Satine and her family were even present. “After all, you always manage to surprise us with the company you choose to keep.”

“In all fairness, times are changing.” Mr. Kenobi drawled and Satine noticed he clutched his serpent-headed walking stick a little tighter. “I think it’s wonderful that Obi-Wan has diversified his entourage lest he not be branded as bigoted in these… Judgemental times.”

“Funny, that’s not the word I would use for it.” Satine said.

“Entourage?” Bo-Katan asked at the same time. 

“Indeed, we also take care to have a muggle or two in our artillery.” Mrs. Kenobi nodded as though neither Kryze girl had ever spoken, like this was a box that needed to be checked, “Of course, we befriend muggles of royalty or status-”

“-But muggles no less.” Mr. Kenobi sniffed and looked at Satine’s mother, “Seeing as Hogwarts has all but tossed the concept of privatization and prestige into the rubbish, I cannot place blame with Obi-Wan for having limits in who he chooses.”

“It seems to me that this dusty school needed a bit of change,” Satine’s mother raged.

“Mum-” Satine tried to cut in, but there was no use in stopping a Kryze woman when she was already lost to the throes of her own determination.

“-Because my daughter is anything but a token to be claimed like some sort of tax deductible. If you wizards even have taxes, that is,” She said, “I might not know everything about your culture, but make no mistake-”

“-But you, yourself, already have one on your hands, you see,” Mr. Kenobi said plainly, “Magical children born of the muggle world are just that by definition, alone.”

Mistakes.

“Father!” Obi-Wan cried out. 

“That’s not to say they don’t have their strengths.” Mrs. Kenobi added calmly, “I’m sure Saline-”

“-Satine.” Obi-Wan corrected with gritted teeth.

“Is very gifted for her type.” She said in what Satine could only assume was meant to be genial, “But what my husband says is true. You never meant to have a witch for a daughter, correct?”

“You cannot plan for something you do not know of.” Satine’s mother said, “But I’ll have you know, Mrs. Kenobi, that my daughter- the alleged mistake that you claim was never meant to exist, not only is gifted for her type, but is the top of her class. Neck and neck only with your son in terms of merit, isn’t that right, Satine?”

“It is.” Satine was suddenly wishing she wasn’t here right now, because as satisfying as it should have been to see her mother drive the Kenobi’s into the dirt (metaphorically speaking), the necessity for this conversation made her mouth feel dry.

This made the Kenobi’s flounder if only a little bit in shock, and looked to Obi-Wan for confirmation with a mixture of outrage and the clear attempt to cover their shock. Obi-Wan, of course, nodded in agreement with Satine’s mother. 

“Well, times certainly are changing.” Mr. Kenobi repeated in a dry tone. “Congratulations, my dear.”

It sounded as hollow as it felt.

“Yes, certainly… A victory for your people.” Mrs. Kenobi’s smile was so tight that Satine truly believed it would tear her face in two, “But we did not come to scrutinize over political differences.”

Satine clenched her teeth. “Political differences” seemed like a rich way of saying that the Kenobi’s believed Satine didn’t have a right to exist while Satine’s politics included just wanting to exist in peace.

“Oh really?” Satine’s mother asked, likely thinking the same thing. 

“We’re here to see Obi-Wan’s chosen mentee.” Mr. Kenobi nodded beyond all of them and towards Gryffindor’s table, where Anakin Skywalker sat alone.

Satine doubted the word chosen was accidental. 

***

Cody had all of his brothers lined up from oldest to youngest, just as his father preferred for the sake of remembering names. He took care to ensure that each was showered, dressed, and fed so that there was no messing around. Jango Fett, while a carbon-copy of each of the boys (but older), had a much less relaxed and more serious demeanor. The only one who fared like him in terms of personality was Boba, who Cody was shocked to see in attendance alongside his father, Hevy, and their eldest brother- who they called Ninety-Nine.

He supposed this made sense. There were four of them presently still in school and only one of Jango to attend all teacher conferences. It was enough to make Cody’s head spin. He just wondered who he was going to get. 

Worst case: Boba, best case: Hevy.  

Boba stood taller than their father- the only one to accomplish such a feat- with dark wavy hair that framed his sharp face and hung above his shoulders. He was easily the most muscular of their group, which was saying something, and always wore his military uniform whenever he could muster. He was the person that most professors turned their heads at, seeing as everyone believed Boba would involve himself in less legitimate dealings as an adult.

He noticed Hondo’s jaw drop in awe at the sight of Boba, which was proof enough of his reputation for smuggling. 

Hevy was the broadest and who Cody reckoned he looked the most similar to; though Hevy always sported a five o’clock shadow that Jango couldn’t stand. Cody wasn’t much for facial hair, even if he teased Kenobi about being able to grow a full beard while his friend could not.

And Ninety-Nine, their eldest and most revered brother, stood shortest- in part to the hump that caused him to slouch and require a cane- however, this did not stop him from walking the proudest towards his little brothers. Ninety-Nine was the best of them, in Cody’s humble opinion, with enough kindness to cover cities and a loyalty that would have made any Hufflepuff proud. He was wise as a Ravenclaw should be, braver than himself and all his other Gryffindors, and ambitious as the best of Slytherin house was. 

There was just one thing: Ninety-Nine did not have magical abilities. 

“Brothers!” Ninety-Nine was the first to greet them, a lopsided smile coloring his face, which could only move on the right side. He pulled Rex into a gentle hug first, “I’m so proud of all of you. The best of Gryffindor house!”

“Wait til you talk to their professors before you say that, mate.” Hevy grinned devilishly, tugging both of the twins into a headlock that made Boba roll his eyes disapprovingly.

“Uncle! Uncle!” Fives begged while laughing.

“Yeah, let us out of these meat sticks you call arms, Hevy.” Echo added, “There’s a reason that’s your nickname and isn’t because you’re teeny weeny.”

 “Boys.” Jango said sternly and each of them fell into line, including Ninety-Nine at the end. After pacing back and forth, inspecting each of them for missing or forgetting anything, he nodded, “At ease.”

They all dropped into more casual positions and Cody smiled at him, “Oi, Dad, I didn’t know you’d be bringing the whole team.”

Jango cracked a smile, “And let three of you get off easy? I think not.”

“Not when you lot are releasing beasts and tracking down Sith lords.” Hevy said.

Ninety-Nine nodded eagerly, “I heard you were at the heart of all that, Rexy.”

Rex grinned, likely happy to have some attention, which Ninety-Nine always had ample amounts of, “My best friend, Anakin and I, were.” 

“That’s me.” Anakin’s blond little head had popped somewhere in the midst of their huddle without anyone noticing. To be fair, the kid was small and their group was big. It was easy to forget who was and wasn’t a Fett sometimes. “I’m Anakin Skywalker.”

Jango and Ninety-Nine took care to shake his small hand while Boba nodded at him appraisingly. 

“I’ve read the news about you.” Ninety-Nine said, “Boy is all over the Daily Prophet! Never imagined my little brother would be tied in with the chosen one.”

“That he is.” Cody said, “These two get into more trouble than even the twins.”

“Hey!” Echo protested.

“Yeah, I resent that.” Fives added, “We had an off year. We hope to reclaim the throne again soon.”

“You can have it.” Rex sighed, “Last year was exhausting.”

“Alright, alright, enough of the chatter. We’re here for a reason and that’s to talk with all of your professors.” Boba said, “We’ve got to make sure your heads are not up in the clouds.”

“Cody.” Hevy crooned and the twins laughed.

Cody glared at him, “My head is right where it needs to be.”

“And it’s bigger than ever.” Rex teased with a smile.

“Careful, I’m the deciding factor that puts you on the Quidditch team or not.” Cody warned. 

Rex had the good sense to slink back at that. Yeah, Cody wasn’t being entirely serious, because he knew Rex could play better than any of the new prospective kids that would be trying out, but he needed to humble the kid out every now and then. 

“Don’t listen to him, Rex.” Ninety-Nine smiled softly, “He would love to have you play.”

***

It wasn’t enough that Anakin’s mother wasn’t able to make it for Parent’s Day, but having to witness the intensely jovial reunion between all of the Fett’s was a lot to take in. He supposed it was for the best that his mother not confer with Windu about Anakin’s dealings of the previous year, but he still yearned for that sense of family atmosphere that everyone else got to have.

Then again, he would have time to reacquaint himself with the castle, perhaps seek out the coat of arms that would be guarding each tunnel. He figured Palpatine would allow him to hang out in his classroom if need be. 

Just as he was about to get up and remove himself from the fuzzy feelings that swirled around him, he was faced with the intimidating presence of the Kenobi’s, who strangely enough, looked at him with welcoming smiles.

“And you must be the wonderful boy our son has told us so much about.” Obi-Wan’s mum said brightly. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

He’d technically met them before, but perhaps, he’d caught them on a bad day. Everyone had those. He wasn’t too nice if he found himself eating a bad burrito or chili cheese dog. Who would be, anyway?

“Officially, that is.” His father corrected with mirth in his eyes, “I do apologize for any rudeness from our previous encounter. I have no excuse for our curt interaction, but I assure you, we meant no malice towards you.”

Anakin’s eyes flickered to Obi-Wan’s, who was standing off to the side and looking very out of place in this circumstance. In fact, he kept studying his parents as if they’d gone mad. Still, Anakin didn’t want to be impolite and reached out to shake their outstretched hand. 

“I’m Anakin. I was Obi-Wan’s mentee last year.”

“You sure were.” Mrs. Kenobi’s smile widened and it looked new on her face, but Anakin was happy to have put it there. She was a great deal less scary when she smiled and while his father did remind him of Dooku in appearance, seemed significantly friendlier as well. “I see what our son saw in you.”

“Yes, we’ve certainly heard of all your various talents.” He said.

“You did?” Anakin smiled hesitantly, “Did he tell you about Dooku?”

“Oh, you know Obi-Wan. He’s so stoic and shy.” His mother said, “We had to do a little digging of our own, but my my Anakin, you are something of a prodigy.”

He’d never heard that term to describe him before, but it made him light up with excitement. These upstanding, high-end, practically royal wizards noticed him. And not only that, saw his merit. Plus, this meant there were newspaper articles about Anakin floating around. 

“I am quite proficient in charms.” He admitted, though he didn’t want to sound too full of himself. 

“You would make a damn good auror one day,” Mr. Kenobi said excitedly, “Especially for conquering such odds last year,” He sat down beside Anakin at Gryffindor’s table, which made Obi-Wan’s eyes widen even more. It made him look a bit like a cartoon character in the moment. 

“I would love to meet your mother. She’s a wizard, no?” Mrs. Kenobi said, “To tell her what a magnificent and brave little boy she has on her hands.”

“Er, I hate to interrupt, but my head of house really was eager to meet you two-” Obi-Wan began, but was cut off by Anakin.

“-My mom isn’t here.” Anakin said glumly.

Mrs. Kenobi quite literally clutched her pearls in surprise, “Heavens! That’s awful. Is she alright?”

“She’s okay.” He said quietly, “Just working.”

“Working?” Mr. Kenobi said it like it was a foreign word, but then again, Anakin knew they were rich. Perhaps, there was very little work to be done even if you owned your own law firm. 

“She works at a small pub beneath our flat.” He said, “Anything to pay the bills, I suppose.”

“So, who’s going to attend your conferences in her place?” She asked.

Truthfully, Anakin hadn’t really thought of that bit. He’d been so wrapped up in the fact that his mum wouldn’t be present that he hadn’t considered that his professors might not love the lack of interaction on Anakin’s behalf. Headmaster Yoda had seemed quite passionate about it.

“No one, I guess.” He shrugged.

“Oh dear,” Mrs. Kenobi placed a hand on her husband’s shoulder, “That is simply not acceptable.”

“Indeed,” He said, “We will go in her place.”

“But what about-” Obi-Wan started.

“-Not everything is about you, Obi-Wan.” His mother placed two hands on Anakin’s shoulders, “This poor boy is new to this world and is likely very frightened of all the changes happening around him. You are top of your class and do not require the same level of concern. Do you not have prefect duties?”

Obi-Wan frowned, “I mean, I could patrol but I do take NEWTS next year and-”

“-It’s settled then.” Mr. Kenobi grinned at Anakin, “We will oversee your meetings to ensure you are receiving the proper levels of attention.” 

“Oh, thank you.” Anakin said, shocked, “I couldn’t ask you to-”

“-Nonsense.” He said, “Don’t mind Obi-Wan. He will be just fine. Right, my boy?”

Obi-Wan nodded curtly, “Right.”

“We are so proud of you for aligning yourself for this boy in need, my dear.” His mother said to her son, “You’ve done well.”

Strangely, Obi-Wan didn’t look like he had.

***

“Well, there goes the neighborhood,” Madame Ventress hissed to her daughter as both sauntered past Professor Qui-Gon Jinn’s office. It appeared he was currently in the midst of a meeting with that wannabe heiress Amidala’s family. Seeing as both Qui-Gon and Padmé were of pureblood descent, she knew her mother wasn’t referring to them, but the myriad of muggle families that were galivanting around the school like they owned the place.

Like this was some play place for them to mingle and take pictures as tourists. It was sickening to someone like Madame Ventress, whose family line extended through the earliest days of Hogwarts and cared a great deal for preserving its integrity.

Asajj Ventress, on the other hand, cared not for the trivial aspects of tradition. Infused in tradition was hypocrisy and she was learning more and more that the two could not be stripped from each other. 

“I think we can agree it’s been on a downhill slope for quite some time,” She offered in her own raspy voice. “Ever since they allowed muggle-borns to come to this school.”

“Indeed,” Her mother rolled her eyes at the thought before her frown deepened as they passed Dooku’s old office. Ventress caught her mother’s eye in curiosity, intrigued to find interest rather than loathing there. Publicly, everyone called the old fart crazy. It was hard not to. To throw away an entire career of fighting off dark wizards to simply become one? In his old age? It felt a little too late.

“What is it?” She asked her mother when they stopped walking. She was staring at nothing more than a closed door, after all. Sooner or later a professor or fellow prefect will find them here and have suspicion, even if it wasn’t necessary. 

After a long moment, she answered, “Regardless of his improper methods, perhaps he was not as crazy as the papers made him to be.”

“Is that so?”

“Times are ever changing, my dear,” She said slyly, “It is prudent that you always find a way to remain on top of them, before they occur, so as to be a visionary of them. That is our family’s way.”

It was true as it did remind her that even in her mother’s picturesque view of Hogwarts, where muggle-borns were deemed abominations and muggles were banned, that not even Ventress, herself fully belonged to that future. 

Not unless she took her mother’s advice in a direction of her own course. 

“I believe Professor Palpatine is waiting.” She said.

“Yes, of course, I do enjoy that man. That’s a proper example of a decent professor. I look forward to hearing that you have excelled to top of your class.”

Close, but Ventress wouldn’t be bringing that up right now. The iron gate of disappointment would have to clamber shut on her fingers another time, because they had meetings to attend and appearances to keep. 

Another day in the life of pretending to be someone she wasn’t. She cursed the putrid muggles that walked by her. How dare they invade her space? It wasn’t a space she even fully fit in its entirety, but it was still reminiscent of something tangible without their grimy little fingers getting in. Seeing them felt like a scathing reminder.

Perhaps, this was a good thing after all. 

***

“I can’t believe you even want to go to this school!” Bo-Katan’s loud voice echoed off the bathroom walls of the prefect bathroom. Satine had decided it was the safest place for her sister and her mother to let out any other grievances that they had. “You’re not even wanted here!”

“Not everyone is like them!” Satine huffed, though she was also reeling from the encounter with the Kenobi’s, “Ben’s not like that.”

“How would you know?” Bo countered, “You’re too busy going moon-eyed over him to notice much else about him. These wizards are bad news.”

“Now, now, Bo,” Satine’s mother placated, “There are good wizards as there are good people.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Bo rolled her eyes, “You heard them! They don’t think Satine belongs here either.”

“That’s not for them to decide and it isn’t for you to decide.” Satine gritted, “The point is I do belong here, because I believe so, and I’ve proved that by being top of my class.”

“You don’t have anything to prove.” Satine’s mother said, “You are allowed to just be.”

Satine could feel tears filling her eyes, but she shoved them down, refusing to give her sister the satisfaction of seeing her waver in her conviction. Instead, she took a deep and calming breath before saying, “To them, I do. And I always will. But in the muggle world, I’d be hiding. So, if I had to choose between hiding and proving, I will choose the latter every single time.”

Bo-Katan frowned, “Hiding? Like being a human is such a pitiful thing? Sorry we’re not all born exceptional, Satine.”

“I never said that,” She glared. “Because regardless of magic or not, I’m still human and at least I know how to act like it.”

“Alright, that’s enough.” Their mum stepped between them, “I’ll have no more of this bickering. You two used to be so close and your father would be so sad to see you no longer get along. We cannot change who we are or how we’re born, but we can change how we act. Now, I want you two to stop acting like those stuffy arseholes got to you, because they aren’t allowed to. Kryze women do not back down especially in the face of adversity. More importantly, they stick with their own. They protect their own.”

“Yes, they do.” Satine said firmly.

“Bo-Katan?” Their mother nudged her. 

Bo ducked her head to the side and didn’t give a committed answer, however, they were running late for the remainder of the meetings, and it was just going to have to do. 

***

Qui-Gon wasn’t quite shocked that Obi-Wan’s parents didn’t show for their meeting with him, but he was a bit befuddled to see them trailing Anakin Skywalker as they walked towards the hall, chatting it up quite fondly with none other than Professor Palpatine.

“Mr. and Mrs. Kenobi!” Qui-Gon forced a smile as he fought to catch up with them, even jogging to show for it. “I’m sorry to have missed you.”

Qui-Gon hated the politics that came with operating these sorts of events, but as head of house, he officially needed to be ensconced in them. Their wizarding world was ever-changing in a constant back and forth between different ideologies. Qui-Gon, of course, held his own, but knew he needed to behave a certain way to placate the less accepting lot of parents that would surely be expecting special treatment.

“And you are?” Mr. Kenobi asked slowly.

“Ah, yes, this is Ravenclaw’s new head of house, Qui-Gon Jinn.” Professor Palpatine explained warmly, “As we’ve discussed when speaking of Anakin’s brave heroics, Dooku’s unfortunate career change did leave us with an empty position. Luckily, Qui-Gon is more than up to the task of stepping in.”

“Hm, well, hopefully he doesn’t make it a continuing trend.” Mrs. Kenobi said archly, “What class do you teach, Professor Jinn?”

“Muggle studies.” He answered, but it was clear it had been the wrong one.

“Oh my... Things certainly are different from when we were in school, aren’t they, Professor?” Mr. Kenobi said, though he looked like he was a good generation older than his wife. In fact, he looked old enough to have been in Sheev’s year- whatever that was.

“That they are.” Palpatine said in good nature, “However, with the expansion of muggle students, there is a need for wizards to see how the other side lives.”

“I suppose there is validity in that,” Mrs. Kenobi debated, “Just makes me question where our donations are going.”

“I can understand those concerns, but I assure you, Hogwarts always has the best intentions for each of their students.”

As Qui-Gon’s eyes landed on Anakin, who just seemed like he was trying to keep up with this line of conversation, he couldn’t help but question that expression. Was having Anakin mixed in with all of these adults that were desperately grabbing for his attention the best for him? And did they really put their students' interests forward or the interests of the school as a whole? It was all so complicated, but now was not the time to bring up such matters.

“I only wanted to say that you have much to be proud of.” Qui-Gon said, “Your son is absolutely brilliant as he is kind and strong.”

“Yes, well, Kenobi’s settle for no less than the very best.” Mr. Kenobi said brusquely, “It is good to hear that he is meeting expectations.”

“And where is Obi-Wan?” Qui-Gon asked.

“Serving his duties as prefect.” His mother answered sternly, “No use in slacking for our account.”

“The prefects were dismissed from duty for the rest of the evening.” He said, “That’s why all professors are fulfilling these tasks instead.”

As they caught a glimpse of two of the Fett boys play-wrestling at the end of the hallway, Mr. Kenobi snorted, “Yes, and what a good job they’re doing.”

Qui-Gon bit his tongue and smiled. It seemed that was the best he was going to get from them for now, but didn’t see why Anakin needed to be with them too. Still, the boy didn’t seem bothered in the slightest, smiling brightly up at him.

“We were just talking about the Quidditch season and how Gryffindor is going to make a major comeback!”

“I would love to see you play sometime.” Mr. Kenobi said, “Seeing as you were scouted as a first year, no less.”

“So was Obi-Wan, right?” Anakin asked.

“Indeed, but Obi-Wan isn’t nearly as gifted as we’ve heard you to be.” Mrs. Kenobi said, “Though he does do what he can in a match. Shame the poor dear just doesn’t have a knack for it the way his father did.”

Anakin nodded sagely, “I’d love to show you some of my moves sometime.”

“What broom do you fly?” Mr. Kenobi asked.

“Uh, a brown one?”

Each of the adults save for Qui-Gon laughed, though he suspected Palpatine’s was inauthentic, and Anakin blinked up at them in confusion.

“Anakin uses one of the school issued brooms.” Qui-Gon explained, though he didn’t see what was so funny about not having the money to acquire something fancy. It certainly didn’t make the player.

“Oh, you’re serious.” Mrs. Kenobi said.

“And yet, Anakin is still the best beater that Gryffindor has ever seen.” Palpatine smiled, “He has even deflected shots with his eyes closed.”

“Now that I really must see.” Mr. Kenobi said.

“Great!” Anakin chirped, “Our first match is in November! We play Slytherin, of course.” 

Qui-Gon felt something twist in his stomach at the smiles exchanged by the Kenobi’s. Just what did they have in mind? And where was Shmi? Perhaps, he’d been wrong to assume that the risk on Anakin’s life would be solely that of an external force. 

Perhaps, it would be someone close and disguised as a friend.

***

Obi-Wan, for his part, was glad to see Parent Day finished. This was coming from someone who hardly had any interaction with his parents, which was likely for the best. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment that they didn’t get to talk to Qui-Gon. Surely, they would be impressed when he told them of his accomplishments. 

He’d figured out pretty quickly that the additional parents that “roamed the halls” were not parents and actually guards of some kind. Maybe, they were from the Ministry. He was unsure of their exact position, but was excited for their presence all the same. This, he was not surprised about. However, he was pleased to note that they weren’t necessary. No physical violence broke out during the entire course of the day, proving maybe that they could all get along for the right reasons. 

Emotional and verbal clashing did happen and he was ashamed to say that his parents took their fair share of cheap shots in this regard. He still cringed at what they’d said to Satine and hoped terribly that she didn’t believe he felt that way. 

They were dated views coming from pure ignorance, but his parents were powerful and capable. It was crushing to see that they didn’t always use that power for good.

And what was up with their interest in Anakin? Surely, it was because of his newly anointed glory that was already going to his head. They’d dropped Obi-Wan for him quicker than they could think of it. 

They had really told Anakin he would be a good auror. 

Did this mean they would think the same of him? He hadn’t told them of his plans yet, hoping to concoct a careful and calculative method to breaking this news. Then again, Anakin had no such responsibilities to uphold a family name. It wasn’t the same and it never would be. 

He’d done the honorable thing and attended each of his conferences alone, save for seeing Qui-Gon. He didn’t quite have it in him to explain what had happened- that his parents had all but came with the intention of being Anakin’s guardians vs. Obi-Wan’s. All of his professors were incredibly confused by Obi-Wan attending alone, claiming that it defeated the purpose, but most carried on anyway.

He had a stack of notes in the event that his parents asked for them, but doubted they would. Last he saw them, they were watching Anakin excitedly tell of how he discovered his prophecy, which to Obi-Wan, was information better kept to the chest. However, it was Anakin’s fate and the boy could do what he wanted with it.

No, he refused to feel any sort of jealousy or resentment towards him. It wasn’t Anakin’s fault that his parents were fawning all over him and it certainly wasn’t Anakin’s fault that Dooku had seen him fit for attack. 

Though, as Qui-Gon came into view and rested a fond hand on Anakin’s shoulders, proudly releasing a laugh of his own at something silly the boy must have said, Obi-Wan still felt a knot grow in his chest. It was pitiful of him, he knew, but he still couldn’t help but feel a bit left out.

He was distracted briefly by one of the secret “guards” who walked briskly by him, knocking into him a bit and stumbling, dropping their wand in the process. 

“Oh here, let me help you.” He offered. 

Obi-Wan leaned over to pick it up for them, but met bright blue eyes. These were not of the lovely variety, though, like he might say about Satine’s. These were artificial and something he’d only ever seen from a textbook.

They were enchanted.

“Are you alright?” He asked dumbly.

“Ayy-o-siss-ssah.” Was hissed back at him before he was launched across the room from a bolt of magic that exploded from her hands. He’d seen that once before from none other than Count Dooku. Although this witch did not speak of any magical words or phrases. She didn’t speak at all; just continued to hiss in a language that Obi-Wan heard from Anakin’s lips once before.

She was human, that much he could see, with rich brown skin that reflected brightly from beneath her dark cloak. 

He hit the back wall with a thunk, but wasted no time in whipping out his own wand to stop her.

Even in his stupor, he noticed a dark and ugly ink-pressed mark embedded in her wrist. His research told him exactly what it meant.

The Sith emblem.

“EXPELLIARMUS!” He yelled and fired back a volt of red energy towards his attacker, who ran at full speed towards where Qui-Gon and company sat. In more of a sense vs. pure knowing, Obi-Wan knew she was going after his mentee and would not allow it.

Luckily, whatever crack of magic he released at full force had drawn a bout of attention, and the enchanted witch went flying as well. Qui-Gon leapt to his feet and stepped in front of Anakin, guarding him of whatever danger would come to them. Obi-Wan’s parents, meanwhile, launched over to where the attacker lay unconscious on the floor.

“What is this nonsense?” His father asked.

Upon closer inspection, Obi-Wan realized the ink on her wrist looked fairly fresh in nature, like the wounds of the tattoo hadn’t yet healed in full. It was easier to tell when she wasn’t firing lightning at him. 

Everyone’s eyes flicked to Obi-Wan, whose head hurt terribly and was trying to play back the previous events back. It all seemed to happen so fast. Satine and Cody lingered on the side, clearly ready to launch themselves at him when afforded the proper chance. 

Headmaster Yoda came onto the scene with a briskness Obi-Wan had never seen from the old wizard, who usually used a cane. In this case, gone was any limp he previously had, and it was replaced by vigor and strength.

“Okay, are you, young Obi-Wan?” He asked with kind green eyes that Obi-Wan was at level with from where he sat.

“I’m alright,” He said, “But I don’t believe she was acting on her own accord. Her eyes glowed as though she was enchanted.”

“Please leave this to the proper authorities.” His mother said. “You could have been killed!”

“Brave, he acted.” Yoda defended. “Dangerous, this was. Close Dooku must be.”

“How did that happen? Did you not account for this? Surely you knew there were risks to opening the school all willy nilly.” Mr. Kenobi asked harshly, “Number one being that these children are not safe here. What kind of operation are you running, Yoda? Do you not know that you have a hero in your midst?”

“Investigate this matter closely, we must.” Yoda said.

“Closely? Like hell I’m leaving this to you alone. You’ll be hearing from the Ministry of Magic directly. You won’t be able to move or breathe without someone knowing exactly what you’re up to, Yoda. I swear to you. You will not continue to put these children in harm’s way.”

And he turned on his heels and marched out of the room, letting the limp body of the attacker drop like a sack of potatoes. For a moment, all that could be heard was the distant clicking of his shoes. 

“So much for a quiet year.” Anakin sighed. “I thought I’d at least make it through one month without something weird happening.”

***

Because the secret tunnels allowed students to traverse all over the castle to places they never could before (within reason and with supervision), it was hardly fair that Ravenclaw’s common room was the only one without a secret door. Evidently, it had to do with how the tower, itself, was built.

Still, because of this imbalance, so long as quiet hours were not in swing, students were allowed to bring one friend from a different house within the common room. This was incredibly convenient, because it allowed Obi-Wan and Satine to bring Cody in as their plus 1 while the star Quidditch player helped the limping Obi-Wan back to their dorm.

After the surprise attack and the Kenobi’s threats against Yoda, everyone had essentially dismissed themselves without much show. Qui-Gon, who feared there were other secret op’s hiding within the castle, teamed up with the other heads of house to scope the grounds. First, he escorted Anakin back to his room, of course. The boy’s safety was to be their top priority. 

Satine had bid her mother and sister adieu and promised that no, this sort of thing did not happen every day. Wizards were either incredibly passive or over dramatic when it came to near-death experiences. She, of course, was quite shaken by the whole ordeal.

She hadn’t even seen it happen. Cody was the one to draw her attention. He and his brothers had been stuffing their faces with cauldron cakes- Hevy making a comment about how he missed the food most of all at Hogwarts, when the flash alerted everyone. Satine had been busy explaining how the ceiling’s weather changed to her mother and unimpressed sister when Cody practically dragged her to the Great Hall doors.

Naturally, Obi-Wan insisted he was okay. Madame Nema wasn’t called onto the scene, but everyone seemed much more concerned about an enchanted secret agent, who actually was employed by the Ministry and had no recollection of the previous events, than they were about Obi-Wan. 

“What’d they even look like?” Cody asked curiously, after Obi-Wan sat back onto the couch with a weary sigh that marked being a little less than okay. Cody took his position on the floor, which Satine guessed was common for him in his own dormitory. Despite it being nice to see her mother, she was relieved they were back in the comforts of their room, where no one could infiltrate their privacy. 

“What did what look like?” He returned. 

“The eyes.” Cody shivered, “Boba’s told stories of enchanted witches. That’s some dark magic right there.”

“They were like the prophecy orbs from the Ministry of Magic.” Obi-Wan explained, “Only smaller, of course, but very bright. I felt like I was going to get sucked up if I stared at her for too long.”

“Surely, you’ve already guessed what this means.” Satine said, the crackling fire sounding crisp from behind Cody.

“Dooku has connections inside the Ministry? Yes, I did contemplate that as I was flying backwards from her sudden bolts of lightning.” He deadpanned, “Forgot about it though until you just mentioned it.”

“So what good is your parents involving more Ministry agents then?” Cody complained.

“I don’t know,” Obi-Wan scrubbed a hand over his head and Satine was trying to decode if this was exhaustion a concussion that was plaguing him. “But what I do know is that they are very keen on protecting our resident chosen one.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” Cody said cautiously.

“It’s not!” Obi-Wan defended immediately, sitting up straighter instantly, “Of course it’s not. I just mean that they hadn’t expressed nearly as much interest in him when he was just a mischievous little Gryffindor boy. That’s all. Perhaps, their additional support and connections will bring us to the bottom of things sooner.”

Obi-Wan must have been feeling awful, because he never complained about his parents, even in an indirect fashion such as this. That being said, he certainly had a point. While she had been busy thinking about the terrible implications and insults they’d thrown her way earlier, she had briefly considered that they were not here for Obi-Wan, alone.

“I take it conferences didn’t go as planned for you.” Cody said.

“Obviously not,” Obi-Wan snorted, “But I mean, Anakin is younger and likely needed a presence there for his conferences more. Qui-Gon said he contemplated on stepping in too.”

Satine sighed. The moment of his brief rebellion had since passed just as quick as it came. 

“I would really rather not uncover a slew of dark secrets about yet another professor, that’s all.” She said, “That’s my bar for the year and yes, I understand it’s quite low.”

“Well, I intend to aim high,” Cody said, “I explained my Quidditch strategy for the year to my Dad and he seems pretty confident we’ll pull through too.”

“Ah, so you were able to detract the stoic Jango Fett from just studies.” Obi-Wan teased.

“It helped that Ninety-Nine was there. Having him around always makes Dad a little softer.”

“I can’t say the same for my sibling.” Satine complained, “Though it feels a bit daft to moan and groan about a petulant little sister though when Ben was quite literally abandoned and left for dead during his conferences.”

“It wasn’t my parents’ fault I got blasted.” Obi-Wan said, “And besides, your sister really did not seem to like me or much of anything.”

“Don’t take it personally, mate.” Cody laughed, “When Bo-Katan met me, she told me I had a very square head and that it didn’t suit me.”

Satine and Obi-Wan both burst out into a much needed fit of laughter, unable to control themselves at the visual of the conversation. Satine could picture those very words coming from Bo’s mouth and while it mortified her then, she had to admit it was quite funny, especially since Bo had been 9 years old at the time.

“Well, you do have a square head.” Satine said finally.

“But it suits me!” He said defensively, which caused the three of them to slip into giggles again. “Hey, at least my head is in working order. How hard did you hit that wall earlier?”

Obi-Wan frowned, “Not hard enough to forget that horrible marking that was on that poor girl’s arm. I doubt she consented to that being placed there.”

“The plan had likely been to have her kill Anakin at the party and become unenchanted afterwards.” Satine said, “Which is a horrifying thought.”

“Luckily I was there to take the blow.” Obi-Wan said earnestly and Satine couldn’t help but fix him with a glare to show just how little she agreed with that statement.

“I’m glad Anakin’s okay, but I would also prefer if you could be okay too.”

“I second that notion, mate.” Cody clapped him on the shoulder and Obi-Wan winced, “Maybe you should see Madame Nema.”

“Oh no, absolutely not. I’ve just got some bruises!”

“Oh really? Take off your shirt!” Satine argued and instantly regretted her words as she was returned with a very flustered expression from Obi-Wan and a cheeky one from Cody, “You know what I mean! Prove it’s just a bruise or two.”

Obi-Wan gaped, opening and closing his mouth, before shutting it all together in astonishment that Satine also felt to her very core. Had she really just said that like it was nothing? Was she not supposed to be in Ravenclaw? Actually, wasn’t she supposed to have an active brain in general?

Cody chuckled, “Well, I better go then.”

“F-For what reason?” She stammered and grimaced at her hesitance.

He smirked, “For one thing, it’s almost curfew. Also, I really don’t need to see anything I shouldn’t.”

“Oh bugger off!” Obi-Wan scowled, but his ears had turned a bright and shiny red that Satine couldn’t help but be charmed by.

Internally, she asked herself a question that had been recited through her mind a few times that summer. What if she just went for it? She suspected he didn’t know in full what her feelings were, which put the ball metaphorically in her court. This was fine, because Satine wasn’t sure what she would do if it were the other way around. 

Once Cody did leave and it was just the two of them in front of the crackling fire, sitting far closer than most friends do, and facing each other, she swallowed.

“Here, let me check and make sure you don’t have a concussion at the very least.”

He sighed heavily, as though allowing her to quickly inspect him would be the hardest task in the world, but was obedient when she gently took his face in her hands. She tried desperately not to think about how soft his face was or how fixated he seemed to be on her eyes. 

She raised her wand, reciting “lumos” to bring it to aglow, “Now, follow the light.”

He did as he was told- bright eyes following the tip of her wand with little struggle. 

“What’s 7x7?”

“49.” He answered quickly.

“What’s my favorite color?”

“Blue.” He said.

“What was the last thing we learned in Charms last year?”

“How to make a teacup grow legs.” Ben said, “And yours tried to attack me.”

“It was a smart teacup,” She smirked. “What’s your birthday?”

“Nice try, Miss Prefect.” He smiled and pulled away to give her best mock-glare, “You’re going to have to do better than that to figure out what my birthday is.”

“Hm, bold of you to assume that was my best.” She said, “Though I suppose this does mean you don’t have a concussion.”

And yet, neither of them moved for a long moment.

“Ben-”

“-Yes?” He asked, earnest as ever. “What is it?”

Her tongue went dry as they met eyes and she thought, not for the first time, how brilliant his gray-blue eyes looked when reflected in firelight. Her sister was crazy to believe he was nothing special to write about. Then again, Bo didn’t know him too well.

“There’s something I need to tell you.” She was stalling, because how does one just come right out and say it? How do you take that leap over the edge, even if you know how the other person feels? What if it didn’t work? What if they hated each other after?

No, she could never hate him. She would always-

“Does this have to do with the diary your sister mentioned?” He asked and for some reason, this deflated any of the build-up that was causing her heart to slam against her chest cavity with increased enthusiasm.

“N-No!” She raged, “And don’t go thinking you’re hot to trot simply because I may have mentioned you there.”

“I would never.” He smiled, “Though I suppose if I were keeping a journal, I’d write about you as well.”

“Well, you better!” She said angrily, “I’m your bloody best friend, after all.”

“Yes, you are…” He reached between the minute chasm of space left between them and took her hand in his, causing any other previous thoughts to short circuit. She couldn’t seem to stop flickering her gaze between their joined hands and the intense look in his eyes as he practically beckoned for her attention.

As if it could be anywhere else right now.

“And I…” He took in a deep breath, “I wanted to apologize profusely for what my parents said earlier. It was wrong and quite frankly, embarrassing. I’m even less proud of the way I didn’t step in more.”

“Ben-” She wanted to say some version of “No, it’s not your fault that your parents are terrible hypocrites.” but he didn’t allow for it.

“You are the furthest thing from a mistake or an accident or whatever other crude language they could ever try to use to describe you,” He said, “And you don’t have to be the brightest witch of our age for that to be the case.”

“Even though I am.” She couldn’t help but add in.

“You are,” He smiled brightly, “You’re absolutely brilliant in every meaning of the word. I just meant to say that even if you weren’t, you just being… You…  is what makes you great and well, I don’t think I would have made it this far without you.”

“I’m not sure about that,” She murmured quietly, “You are, after all, my only true competition.”

“And I’m honored to be anywhere beside you.” He said it like it was a prayer and once again, she felt like the ability to breathe was no longer something she could do, “You’re not a mistake. You’re a miracle.”

Satine swore her heart was going to explode. 

He gave her hand a nice, affirming squeeze, before realizing how close they were sitting and getting up to his feet. He turned back to her with hands now in his pockets, seeming like he was unsure of what to do with himself from there. 

“If you think,” She cleared her throat as she got up to follow him up the stairs, “That all of that nice stuff is going to make me forget about checking you tomorrow for further injuries, you’re sadly mistaken.”

“I would have it no other way, my dear.” He smiled roguishly, “Just do try and refrain from asking me to strip again.”

She tossed a book at him and he dodged it, laughing merrily.

***

“Have they concluded initial questioning?” Qui-Gon asked as he and Mace Windu walked side-by-side to the dungeons, where the secret assailant was being kept for questioning. He winced as he heard her panting for breath echoing off the walls. He certainly didn’t have the stomach for some of the more medieval tactics of acquiring information. It was the seedy part of the job that often went unmentioned at career fairs.

“Just about,” Mace said sternly, his eyes like stone as he kept his gaze forward. It was strange seeing him in this environment, even if the man was always a little stoic. It was like he was slipping back into that role before his very eyes.

“And?” Qui-Gon asked after a meaty pause. Was this really the time to mince words?

“And I’m not cleared to release sensitive information,” Windu said pointedly.

“Why call me at all then?” 

Something in Windu’s profile shifted- whether it be the intensity of his furrowed brow or the increased tightness of his jaw, Qui-Gon was unsure. However, it was easy to see that he was uneasy about something specific

“You’ll see.” He said instead.

“That’s very comforting, thank you, Mace.” Qui-Gon drawled, “Anakin’s life was at risk again, you know, and while I disagree with the Kenobi’s for being so…”

“Dogmatic.” He helpfully supplied, “Nosy? Sniveling? Spoiled rotten?”

“Anyway,” Qui-Gon carefully sidestepped, “Are they so wrong for being upset? We opened our doors to this madness and have the audacity to be surprised it came in?”

“It’s all very suspicious, I’ll give you that.” Windu said.

“Suspicious? It’s obvious.” Qui-Gon sighed heavily, “Dooku is at it again.”

“Well, we never were under the impression that he would stop, not while he still lives uncuffed.” He said darkly and then flashed Qui-Gon what was an honest attempt at sympathy, “It’s not your fault he runs free.”

“It matters not if it is or isn’t. We must get to the bottom of this,” Qui-Gon strutted into the chamber where the attacker was being held, “We must find out how to best protect Anakin and the rest of the students.”

“Join us, you have.” Yoda greeted them from where he was perched in a stone seat beside Minister Valorum and across from a drenched woman with tan skin, who was promptly cuffed to the table between them. To her right was Coleman Trebor and to her left, a large fluffy Talz auror whose two sets of beady black eyes were regarding them with question. It wasn’t often that professors were drawn into private investigations, after all.

“Foul Moudama, this is Qui-Gon Jinn.” Coleman Trebor explained.

At the mention of his name, the furry white auror nodded sagely in understanding, which was not the least bit of a comforting gesture. He supposed there was a reason he was the teacher of small children and these two were designed to hunt bloodthirsty villains.

“And Qui-Gon,” Trebor turned his long, scaly head towards him again, “This is Deena Riss.”

Qui-Gon recognized her, of course, as the cloaked assassin that had attempted to murder Anakin Skywalker earlier that evening. He’d only truly seen her unconscious before, but upon first impression, noted that she didn’t look the least bit aggressive or malicious. In fact, he could only describe her as befuddled and confused.

He nodded and took the empty seat beside Yoda and folded his hands in front of him. Qui-Gon was a patient man. He always was. He never let his feelings get the better of him. Did that mean he had any tolerance towards someone who could be so brazen as to step into this castle and try to take the life of a twelve year old boy? No.

She was still panting, clearly still recovering from whatever waterboarding they’d done to her to try and get information from her.

“Why did you do it, Miss Riss?”

She looked at the two aurors beside her, who seemed more tired than anything else. Qui-Gon was surprised at this. Was it not their whole job to be here right now? To investigate this case?

“I don’t know.” She swallowed, leveling him with her dark brown eyes, never once wavering from her stance. Headmaster Yoda kept his wand outstretched, a white tip aglow on the end of the small wand. If she were lying, it would glow a sharp red.

“Who are you working for?” He tried again.

“I don’t know.” She answered with just as much confidence and even more diction. He turned to see the white light.

“Who are you?”

“I’m an officer for the Ministry of Magic,” She said and no matter how exhausted she likely was from the countless attempts at getting her to spiel something different, she spoke the words verbatim without any hesitance. They were the truth, “I would lay my life down protecting those who cannot. It’s what I signed up for years ago and it’s what I continue to do. I can’t stay away from the job, because I love doing it. I love keeping people safe. That, whatever happened, was not me.”

“Why did you betray your post?” He asked. 

“I didn’t.” She said and then bit her lip, “As far as I know, I didn’t.”

He was surprised to find the tip still white, but then again, the spell was designed to read the truth of the speaker. If for example, Deena Riss truly believed the sky to be green and the grass to be blue, it would show no indication of a lie.

“These are the sorts of results we’ve been receiving too.” Trebor said and Modama merely grunted. Qui-Gon wasn’t sure the latter spoke English, but he felt the sentiment all the same radiating off of him.

Qui-Gon looked back to Deena Riss, “Tell us about your day.”

“I already told them,” She sighed and rubbed her temples. Qui-Gon startled when he noticed the mark on her wrist, “I can’t even remember my week, let alone my day.”

“What do you mean?” He decided to come back to the tattoo, which looked as painful to receive as it was ugly. It clearly hadn’t been done by wand, but by needle and not from a professional’s hand.

“I mean, I don’t recall ever accepting this job in the first place! I don’t remember getting this stupid tattoo! And I don’t remember ever agreeing to any hit target. Seeing as that’s never been my thing, I’d say I would.”

“I’d say you would too,” Qui-Gon furrowed his brow as he looked over to a calm and understanding Yoda.

“So, no matter how much you try to get me to say otherwise, there isn’t anything to say. I am Deena Riss and I have a perfect record supporting my name. I refuse to let this define me when that wasn’t even me doing it.”

“So, who do you suppose it was?” Qui-Gon asked. He didn’t mean to sound like he didn’t believe her. While a perfect history didn’t mean someone was innocent, take Dooku for example, Yoda’s truth detector didn’t lie. 

“All I can tell you is that there was this sinister voice… It was all I heard… And it was haunting me, caging me inside. I was trapped and I could never be sure for how long. I could see the things I was doing but only in small blips… Like my psyche was trying to fight what was happening though none of it was detrimental. Just, talking to some of my coworkers or taking bites of breakfast. I wasn’t strong enough to ward it off. And strangely, it was in the form of a song, but I couldn’t tell you the tune to save my life.”

“Was it a male or female voice?” Windu asked.

“Male at first, but later female.” She shivered and it was a very visceral and real reaction, “The male voice was leathery and thick… Booming… Power… The female voice was shrill and daunting, going out of its way to keep me from escaping.”

Qui-Gon stroked his beard, “So, Ms. Riss, what is the very last thing you remember before waking up today?”

“I was leaving work,” She thought back, “A security job for a buyer that was meeting a collector. He was buying something valuable, but I wasn’t privy to what. It was commissioned straight through the Ministry, you can check for yourself, and was completely legit.”

“Do you remember this man? Any details?” Windu asked more urgently with a hand pressed to the table as he leaned over Qui-Gon. His presence was heavy with frustration and even more so in fear. 

“Well, the buyer was Rish Loo, some Gungan collector who liked to pawn off different types of strange artifacts. He’s got family in the Ministry. It seemed like an easy and quick gig, but I don’t remember anything beyond stepping foot in that pub.”

“Nothing about the seller?” Qui-Gon asked.

“He wore a cloak and was selling jewelry,” She said dejectedly and pleaded with him, “I’m sorry, that’s all that I know of him.”

Qui-Gon stared at her for a moment longer, reading the desperation in her eyes. This woman was lost, that much he could confirm. She didn’t know what her greater purpose in all of this was or if there was one. Whether she was merely delusional or something even more terrifying had yet to be determined.

“A word, Qui-Gon?” Yoda finally spoke again and he didn’t seem nearly as perplexed as to what was going on. Qui-Gon, without taking his eyes off Deena Riss and more importantly, the tattoo on her arm, slowly backed out of the room in tow of Yoda. 

“That mark, Headmaster-”

“-Sith symbol it is,” He whispered in a low gravelly voice. Qui-Gon leaned against the wet stone wall to his left in order to make looking down at the small Headmaster a little easier on his back. He took a deep breath in, not once appreciating the damp and moldy smell that the dungeons always seemed to hold.

“You don’t just get those on any corner,” Qui-Gon pointed out.

“Done by hand, this was,” Yoda nodded, “By Dooku.”

“Or one of his followers. But for what? Free advertisement? She gave no indication to knowing what it was.” He said, “What is her place in this?”

“Fulfilled, it is,” Yoda said curiously, “Gone, the artifact is.”

Qui-Gon’s eyes widened, “You believe that artifact the seller- Dooku was in possession of was cursed to possess its holder?”

“Line up with Obi-Wan’s statement, it does,” Yoda nodded gravely, “Blue eyes, mindless movements, foreign voice.”

Qui-Gon made the mental note to check on Obi-Wan, “And what if she’s just playing into our assumptions, Headmaster?”

Yoda waved his little wand around, which was the only wand Qui-Gon had ever seen be only 6 inches, “Fabricate, this does not. Back her story, her co-workers have.”

“And she’s been acting completely normal all week? What about Rish Loo? The buyer. Can we not ask him?”

A dark look crossed Yoda’s face in the shadows of the gray dungeon hallway and Qui-Gon already knew the answer. “He was found dead?”

“Reported by Deena, he was. Killed by his seller, he was.”

“And how do we know he wasn’t killed by her?” Qui-Gon asked.

“Checked her wand, they did. Killed by the killing curse, he was.”

Qui-Gon ran a hand through his long hair in disbelief, “Dooku’s made his first kill then.”

“That we know of.” Yoda reminded him.

No, that certainly didn’t sit any better. And more frighteningly, that there was an artifact that could possess its holder into apparently trying to blindly murder Anakin Skywalker, lost somewhere in the castle. It couldn’t have gotten far if it wasn’t on Deena. Unless she’d dropped it, whatever it was. 

Or it had been taken off of her in the chaos of the Kenobi's outburst against Yoda. He had to admit that even his focus wasn’t on the unconscious girl during the skirmish. 

“We need to find that artifact,” He said.

“Indeed,” Yoda nodded, “Figure out who has it, we must.”

That sat even worse with Qui-Gon as they walked back into the chamber. He sat defeatedly down in the same seat he’d occupied prior, looking at Deena Riss with new resolve. She was nothing more than a pawn in this whole setup and her name would be dragged through the mud forever. Dooku, it seemed, committed more than one murder that day in his own way.

“What was the voice telling you to do?” He asked, “Was it telling you how to kill Anakin Skywalker?”

It felt like a sick question to ask, but he needed to know in the event that it might provide a clue or two in how to protect and prevent such an incident.

“Skywalker?” She frowned and shook her head, “It wasn’t about Skywalker.”

“Then who?” Qui-Gon asked. 

***

“You wanted to see me Headmaster?” Obi-Wan asked as he cautiously entered Yoda’s office. The boy had a way about him that didn’t want to inconvenience anyone, even if he’d been invited. Yoda’s heart squeezed at the thought of such a thing being possible. How one could turn down the inquisitive mind of a child, he didn’t know.

“Young Obi-Wan, indeed.” He took a calming sip of some of the tea Kit Fisto had gifted him with after getting the position as the new DADA professor. It was supposed to be made solely of properties from the ocean and have the relaxing sensation of sea spray and a warm day at the beach. Yoda didn’t know about all of that, but he’d take any help he could get at this rate.

Obi-Wan took a seat, his knees bending up towards his chin as he’d chosen a seat geared more towards people Yoda’s size. It wasn’t as big of a problem when the boy was in his first formative years at Hogwarts, but now he was stretching out a great deal vertically. Yoda absently wondered why he never changed his chairs to fit his guests more often. 

“Wanted to check on you, I did.” He said.

“Oh, my head is much better now,” He confirmed, “Nothing more than a big bump, it would seem.”

“Good to hear, that is,” Yoda pointed his cane at him, “Interfere with your big brains, we don’t want to.”

“No, my grades will not slip as a result of this,” He chuckled when he said it, but Yoda had a nagging suspicion that he’d said it before to someone else in a more serious tone of voice. 

“Emotionally, I wanted to check on you.” Yoda amended his previous statement.

“I’m alright!” Obi-Wan shifted, “It’s Anakin who should be worried, I suppose, seeing as presumably Dooku is out for him again.”

“Indeed, he is.” Yoda sighed, “Stop overnight, the dark side does not. Fester, it does. Hide under rocks, they will. Before coming out, they do.”

Obi-Wan nodded, “I’m surprised I’ve not spoken to the aurors by now… Given I was the only witness to the attack and based on my parents’... Reaction.”

He was trying to find the words to apologize without completely betraying his family, but Yoda wanted no such thing from the child. It was not his place or fault to mend anyone’s fences but his own. He raised a three-fingered claw and leveled with him, “Moved to hunting Dooku down, they have.”

“Oh,” Obi-Wan actually seemed disappointed by this, which he supposed did make sense given his field of study for the future. 

“Give them your words, I will.” Yoda said hopefully, “Remember anything, do you?”

Obi-Wan frowned, “Sir… It was strange. That girl… I know I mentioned that she was surely possessed, just based on her glowing eyes, but she was speaking parseltongue.”

Yoda considered this, “Sure, you are?”

“I remember it quite clearly from when Anakin passed out last year.” Obi-Wan said with confidence, “I know what it sounds like.”

It was a bit difficult to miss, Yoda had to admit, but it made the entire puzzle more daunting. Why could she speak parseltongue? Unless, Dooku was a parseltongue all these years and never showed it? He did have some royal blood in his family lineage that could do to be explored.

“Notice any odd… Items, did you?”

“Items?” He furrowed his brow in thought.

“Jewelry, trinkets, toys…”

“Besides the tattoo?” Obi-Wan asked.

“Mhmm,”

“Not that I can remember.” He admitted, clearly disappointed that he wasn’t offering anything of notation at the moment. “I was a bit distracted.”

“Acted quick you did,” Yoda commended, “Brave, you were.”

“Thank you, Headmaster, but I believe I only did what anyone else would.”

“What not many could, you did.” He said firmly.

***

Satine quite missed having classes with her friends. She’d taken for granted how nice it was to have Ben, Aayla, or Stass to talk to in between. Perhaps that’s why she hadn’t minded that Fenn Rau had started tagging along between her History and Charms classes. He said he had class in a similar direction and would love to learn a thing or two about how she went about patrolling, so she agreed with an easy shrug. She wasn’t too keen on being any sort of mentor like she had been last year, but she didn’t mind having him along to observe.

“You seem like the type to enjoy a cup of tea,” Fenn suggested.

“I do,” She agreed, as she turned to take them the long way to the Charms classroom. He took note rather quickly, as she expected any Ravenclaw would.

“Perhaps you can give me a few recommendations,” He was smiling rather brightly at her. At least one of them was a morning person. 

“Everyone has a different taste. What I like isn’t necessarily what you’ll like.”

They turned around another corner and his hand bumped into hers on accident, “Now I know this isn’t the fastest way to Charms. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten the way?”

“Of course not,” Satine scoffed, “As prefects it's important we keep track of all the hallways,” Satine explained, “We can’t check everywhere between classes so I’ve taken to making sure my path to class is unpredictable.”

“That’s very Ravenclaw of you,” He chuckled, his hand bumped into hers again. Perhaps, she was walking him too close to the wall. She moved her hand up to grasp the strap of her bag, “I’d expect nothing less from the best in her year.”

“Ben’s actually at the top right now by about half a point,” She corrected, although she counted the two of them to both be at the top, she didn’t want his own hard work and effort to be ignored.

“Speaking of ‘Ben’,” Satine nearly paused, it was always odd to hear anyone other than herself call him that, “I’ve been meaning to ask why do-”

He never got to finish his thought because at that moment they rounded the corner to see what looked to be every girl in the school and a fair few others. Everyone was talking at once, so much so that Satine couldn’t make anything out. She stood on her tiptoes to peer over the crowd and to a mixture of shock and horror, saw her two friends, Stass and Aayla, at the center of attention.

Breaking up large crowds of students was Satine’s specialty. She made short work of waving away students and threatening to dock house points. Rau finished scaring off a few 5th year girls while Satine finally made her way to her friends.

“What happened?” Aayla looked impossibly flustered, which didn’t bode well for someone who was a hard egg to crack.

“Professor Fisto asked her to stay after class,” Stass answered sagely.

Perhaps, Aayla had just gotten into some trouble, but that didn’t explain the crowd, “Did you do something wrong?”

“No I did something right,” Suddenly Aayla’s eyes were twinkling and Satine had even less of a clue to go on.

“Professor Fisto wanted to congratulate her on getting the highest grade on our pretest,” Stass explained.

“He told me I had great promise,” The purple blush coating Aayla’s face seemed to grow at the thought.

“He asked her what she wanted to do after graduation-”

“And then I asked him what he did-”

“He was on the team of wizards that explored the Mariana Trench,” Satine wasn’t sure why this information was so interesting to nearly half the school, but she could see why he’d been selected to be the new Dark Arts professor. The unexplored portions of the ocean surely contained unexplained dark magic.

“So he’s qualified,” Satine said slowly.

“Oh Satine,” She’d forgotten Rau was still here, “Women love a mysterious man.”

Like the final puzzle piece had been slotted into place, Satine shook her head, “Fenn, why don’t you go on to class now,” Rau seemed disappointed by the dismissal, but did as she asked without complaint.

Once he was out of earshot she turned and hissed at her lovestruck friend, “He’s a professor!”

“For only 2 short years!” Her eyes were sparkling with delusion and even Stass rolled her eyes, “Once I graduate, we’ll bump into one another during a routine trip to Diagon Alley. He’ll ask me what I’ve been up to and then he’ll tell me he always knew I’d go on to great things,”

“Perhaps you did hit your head a little too hard during last year’s Quidditch season,” Stass put a hand on their friend's cheek to check for a fever presumably, but Aayla batted her away.

“It won’t be love at first sight! It will take a few more chance meetings,” She stood then, rising from the window sill with too much purpose for something like this, “Then he’ll ask me on a date and it. Will. Be. Wonderful!” She declared.

“Aayla-” Satine started, but Aayla shook her head, clearing it from the clouds.

“I know, I know, but a girl can dream,” She tilted her head back towards the DADA classroom, “Besides, I don’t mind admiring him from afar.”

Stass gave Aayla’s shoulder a quick sympathetic pat, “Well I quite prefer my head to sit on my shoulders.”

***

The last person Obi-Wan was expecting to see on his evening patrol was Fenn Rau. It wasn’t uncommon for prefects to switch with each other, but Fenn Rau looked almost disappointed when he came into view. Obi-Wan felt his teeth grit together so he supposed the feeling was mutual.

“Oh, Kenobi,” Rau greeted with a wave, “I thought Satine was patrolling tonight.”

He hadn’t been completely off base in his suspicions, “Satine wanted to catch up on homework this evening,” He would certainly not be disclosing any more information.

“That’s a shame,” Obi-Wan didn’t think so. Rau scratched the back of his head, both of them strapping in for a rather awkward patrol, “I’m surprised she wanted to switch with you, she’s never seemed like a morning person.”

“And how would you know!” Obi-Wan thought rather bitterly.

“She should have asked to switch with me. I had a mid,” Rau laughed, but Obi-Wan was hard pressed to hear it over his own heartbeat.

“Let’s get on with this shall we,” He gritted out instead. Rau seemed a little taken aback, but followed after him as Obi-Wan turned.

The silence following was blissful. Only the echo of their shoes on the cobblestone and the snoring of portraits to be heard. It was a grave error then, when Obi-Wan decided to ruin it with his own morbid curiosity.

“Why were you trying to patrol with Satine?” He had to ask, it was practically eating away at his heart. Rau fell into step beside him at the opportunity, though Obi-Wan quite wished he’d stayed trailing behind.

“Well you know...” But he didn’t know, and as if sensing this Rau sighed, “I just want to get to know her. We’re both prefects,” Obi-Wan liked that answer, but it didn’t sit quite right.

“I haven’t seen you trying to get to know any of the other prefects,” Obi-Wan pointed out. Rau looked a little uncomfortable, like he was being interrogated, but if Obi-Wan was wanting to interrogate him, he was sure he’d do it in a more professional way.

“What about you?” Rau asked suddenly and Obi-Wan almost faltered in his gait.

“What about me?” Obi-Wan countered, fiddling with the watch on his wrist, “I’ve already gotten to know my fellow prefects.”

“Yeah, but I always see you around Satine,” He pointed out and Obi-Wan scoffed, waving a hand.

“We’ve been friends since first year, it just so happens that we both became prefects,” Rau seemed to inspect him slowly.

“So you’ve been friends since first year,” He repeated slowly and Obi-Wan nodded.

“Of course, best friends,” He confirmed, “Satine, Cody, and myself.”

“I see.”

They lapsed back into silence. Obi-Wan thought once again he should enjoy such quiet, but there was something about the way Rau looked like he was mulling something over that unsettled him. A nagging sort of voice, one that sounded a little too much like Satine, told him he may have missed something important about this conversation. He would have to dissect it later, but for now they wandered through the dark halls of the castle together under moonlight.

***

“It’s finally Saturday!” Cody roared, practically standing on the Gryffindor table as he made his announcement to the entire house. Though Anakin figured he was loud enough for the whole Great Hall to hear, “Quidditch tryouts are today! If you wished there was more time to practice, tough luck! You should have been practicing over the summer,” He paused though as he gazed in scrutiny across the table, “Although, muggle-borns don’t you fear, there will be special consideration for those of you who had nowhere safe to fly over the summer.”

Anakin would rather he just shut it and give this speech out on the field. He was hungry and the food seemed to refuse to appear anywhere it might be stepped on. Rex seemed to have the same thought as he exchanged glances with Anakin. Luckily for both of them, the screech of a particularly loud owl cut off any more that he’d have to say as mail started being dropped all around. Cody dodged an owl going straight for his head, before finally dropping into his seat.

“Woah! Look at that!” Rex pointed up and Anakin followed the motion to a pair of beautiful tawny owls carrying a long thin package. It was near obvious to guess what it was by shape alone.

“Who got a new broom?” Anakin considered as they passed overhead, he did not expect the clatter as the broom was dropped onto silver plates right in front of him, stopping near all conversation in the Great Hall as they all looked over to Gryffindor table.

“Uhhhhhhhh,” Anakin and Rex both looked at one another and then the confused Gryffindor’s across from them. When no one made a move to grab it, Anakin shrugged and pulled it towards him. It’s not like he hadn’t seen anything more dangerous than a mysterious broom. He flipped it over and dropped the handle in shock. His name was written in very well-manicured green script, so he wasted no time ripping it open.

For a moment everything was still as the beautifully polished piece of wood slid out of its wrappings before someone gasped and then everyone was talking at once.

“It can’t be-”

“-Just came out!”

“Firebolt Supreme!”

Anakin, himself, was shocked at the turn of events. This obviously hadn’t been sent by his mother, as this much money could have possibly gotten them a whole new apartment and then some.

“It came with a card,” Cody was looking at him with an unreadable expression, one of those tawny owls sitting primly on his shoulder as if they were old friends. Anakin took the card from his outstretched hand, the green seal… He’d seen it before.

“We couldn’t allow such a special boy to ride around on a plain broom. We look forward to seeing it in action. -The Kenobi’s”

His first thought was perhaps Obi-Wan had suggested such an idea, but why did Cody seem so surprised then? He supposed he remembered discussing brooms with Professor Palpatine, but could they really have just decided to do such a nice thing for him?

“Do you think it’s real?” Rex asked as he tentatively touched the handle with one finger. 

“It’s from the Kenobi’s!” Anakin said much too loudly, causing the surrounding crowd to whisper amongst themselves, “I doubt they’d buy a fake,” His hands itched to grab it though, “Guess we should try it out though, yeah?”

***

“Did you know?” Satine asked as the Gryffindors barreled past them, Anakin holding his new broom over his head in excitement. Cody passed by too, clearly needing to make sure his Quidditch team didn’t get themselves killed, but he sent them a sympathetic look all the same.

“No,” Ben answered simply, nodding at Cody as he left the Great Hall.

“How could they just-” She started, but Ben shook his head.

“They can spend their money however they’d like,” He sounded neutral on the matter, but Satine could see that he was not, “Anakin needed a new broom eventually.”

But Satine disagreed much more about the circumstances than the turnout.

***

“Alright recruits!” The hype over Anakin’s new broom had died down just in time for tryouts and Rex clutched his own Cleansweep 15 tightly. He’d been trained quite brutally this summer in hopes of making it on the team, but he knew Cody wasn’t going to go easy on him.

Anakin was standing a little too proudly next to Fives and Echo, who would also be starting on the team this year. It was a relief not to see Krell and word on the street was he’d skipped town and gone to a different wizarding school this year. Good riddance.

“We’ll offer tryouts for every position, even if there aren’t any openings,” Cody announced, “If you’re better than what we’ve got, you’re in, they’re out. Sound good?” It probably didn’t to anyone already on the team, but everyone nodded anyways and tryouts began.

Rex had picked very carefully the position he would fill. He could play anything as he often reminded Anakin when asked, but given the current openings on the team, and the current players it only made sense for him to try out for-

“Potential Seekers, line up!” He fell into place with practiced ease. Yes, Seeker was his best chance at getting picked. He had exceptionally good vision and was good at strategizing on his own. He’d won a fair few games back home as seeker and he was pretty sure he could dish out whatever Cody would serve.

The Seeker’s tryout was tricky. Cody released 3 snitches, you only had to catch one, but you were allowed to catch the others if you happened to see them first. There were about 10 of them trying out, all different years, and the 7th years definitely looked frustrated enough to knock him clear off his broom if he got in their way. He supposed if he’d failed to get on the team 5 times he’d be pretty mad about it too.

They all flew up into the air, spaced enough apart and clearly trying to find the best vantage point. They weren’t allowed to touch the snitches right away having to wait until the whistle blew to go after them. This meant that if Rex could keep his eyes on at least one, he’d be good to go.

They stayed frozen in the air, Cody watching them all carefully, before the whistle sounded and everyone burst into action. If he’d learned anything from Cody’s rambling, it was sometimes best when you were small to let the bigger members pick each other off. So Rex kept his speed fairly neutral as two 7th years crashed into each other, spinning out and crashing to the ground. He sped forward, snatching the snitch they’d been after with well-practiced ease. He held it up for his brother to see before putting it in his robe pocket, he would not be taking the easy way out.

Looking around the arena, it seemed like maybe one other snitch had been caught, but the way everyone was just hovering and searching, it wasn’t over yet. Everyone was searching pretty high up, even the two 7th years who had crashed had managed to make it back up into the air. Given the amount of eyes on the field right now, Rex could guess if it was so high up it would have already been caught so he casually let his broom flutter lower and lower as he circled close to the ground.

He was lucky, no one paid him much mind, clearly thinking because he’d already found one that he was giving up. He weaved between the Quidditch hoops before finally his eye caught a gleam of gold. The final snitch was hovering at the base of the Quidditch hoop on the opposite side of the field. If he rushed to it, someone with a faster broom could beat him there, so instead he slowly drifted around, weaving on his broom like he was being flippant with the whole thing. When he was close enough though with no one tailing him, he put on a sudden burst of speed snatching that golden spec out of the air and pulling up before he slammed into the bleachers.

Cody blew the whistle.

“That’s three! Everyone get back down here!” Cody was quick to go down the list, giving tips and suggestions to each individual. The older students looked rather annoyed, but the younger they got, the more receptive they seemed to be. Rex thought it would be stupid to blow off Cody’s advice. If there was one thing he knew about his brother, it was that he wanted everyone to learn how to do their best.

Soon enough the tryouts were done and Cody was announcing who would be joining the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Rex could hardly listen past the beating of his own heart. He knew he deserved a spot on that team, but had he shown himself worthy enough? He thought so.

“And our additional Seeker,” Cody looked up from his notes, addressing the crowd and not even looking in his direction, “Will be Rex Fett, for showing ingenuity and aptitude that no one else did.”

“Playing favorites again,” Someone behind him hissed, but Rex dared not turn around. He knew his brother had gotten crap about letting both Fives and Echo on the team- he’d heard from the twins that it was best dealt by ignoring it, lest it get out of hand.

“Rex will be our back up, for Moteé,” Cody confirmed and Rex looked at him in shock. Back up? He knew he was still young, but he thought- “That’s all for now. Dismissed!” Rex waited for the crowd to disperse and disappear into the locker rooms before he approached his brother.

“Cody-”

“Rex! You really-” Cody smiled at him, but Rex shook his head.

“Me? Back-up? Seriously?” Rex asked, “I know I’m only in my 2nd year, but Anakin-”

“Oh,” It seemed to dawn on Cody then, “Anakin’s a special case, Rexy. He’s a natural, and we need talent like that on our team.”

“So I’m not good enough for you then?” Rex shot back, “What was the point of training me all summer then?”

“You’re plenty good Rex,” Cody frowned.

“Then what am I lacking here?” Rex questioned, throwing his hands up, “A prophecy? A rich friend? What is it, oh lord of Quidditch?”

“See here Rex,” Cody jabbed a finger at him, “I’ll be having none of this if you want a spot on this team. Fives and Echo waited their turns just like you will; especially if you keep this up. So what will it be? There’s still time to call the other guy back.”

“Whatever, Captain,” Rex summoned his broom and stormed off towards the locker rooms.

***

Cody was stewing over his interaction with Rex, so much so that he almost got beaned in the head by Ventress’s broom. She’d “accidently” adjusted its position too close to his head, but it seemed like getting his attention was part of it.

“Kindly vacate the field before I have you dragged off, Captain,” She sneered. Ventress had been crowned captain at the very end of last year’s term. Although Cody didn’t like her personality, he wouldn’t deny that she was the best choice for the position.

“Make sure your new recruits know the rules,” Cody ducked to avoid her broom again, flashing her a cheeky grin, “I’d hate to see Slytherin flagged on the first play of the year.”

“Don’t worry your pretty head,” She scoffed, “Slytherins are all familiar with Quidditch, long before their letter,” A clear jab towards muggle-borns, though it was untrue. Whether Ventress admitted it or not, there were muggle-borns in Slytherin, “Might want to make sure your team doesn’t fall apart, what with your pet beater.”

“Jealous?” Cody teased, “Anakin’s got pure talent, and you’ve got what? Scare tactics?”

“Slytherins are built on ambition, you know,” She reminded him before practically walking through him to stand at the head of her team.

The Slytherin tryouts were much different than Gryffindors, Ventress and the Captains before her tended to look for who wanted it the most, who would do whatever it took to win. She hadn’t been wrong about Slytherin's ambition. That’s what made Slytherin the best rival to Gryffindor’s bravery on the field, not that Cody would be caught dead admitting to it.

Normally he’d be more interested in watching the new recruits, but instead he took his time cleaning up in the locker room. Cody had always thought being Captain would be a cinch. He’d read every book, every manual. He knew every rule and practically every strategy. It turns out though, that there was a lot more to being a good Captain than just strategy and knowledge, just as there was more to the game then tossing around a couple balls. His team had a lot of promise. If he could get them to all come together like cogs of a clock, he knew they’d be unstoppable.

***

With the graduation of Galen Erso, Ravenclaw team had passed the torch of captain onto the completely obvious choice of Eeth Koth. He wasn’t the only one who wanted to be captain, but he was the logical choice and Obi-Wan had no qualms in voting for him. Perhaps, it was the Ravenclaw in him or his own distaste for Quidditch, but either way he didn’t mind not having any more added responsibility. He felt he was maxed out on such things. Others though perhaps wouldn’t feel the same. His parents hadn’t even bothered sending him an owl about this, knowing already that he wasn’t as talented as they would like. 

Ventress, however, had been giving him a rather superior looking smirk for the better part of a week.

“Can barely cut it on the field, Kenobi?” She bared her teeth into what he’d come to know as some sort of sadistic grin.

“Congratulations on the title,” He’d said in response. He wasn’t looking to pick a fight, however… “I’m sure there’s no one better to offer the warm and welcoming teamwork that Slytherin’s so often lacking.”

Her teeth nashed together in a snarl, “See to it your team looks up from a textbook long enough to offer a real challenge.”

He wasn’t sure what had gotten her so enthusiastic about her new position. Ventress had always liked Quidditch because of the ability to knock people out without getting into trouble. In a way it’s what made her a fabulous beater. She’d never shown that same concern towards gaining the title of captain. He wondered what it would be that finally captured the true essence of her Slytherin ambition, besides the aim to tear everyone around her to the ground.

A loud and jarring bang sounded, startling all the occupants of Ravenclaw’s locker room. Obi-Wan barely reeled himself back from hurtling a jinx as he connected Eeth’s outstretched wand with the shit eating grin on their new captain’s face.

“A heart attack Koth!” Aayla shouted, “That’s what you’re gonna give us!”

“Ah come on,” Eeth lowered his wand, stowing it back into his Quidditch robes, “How else am I supposed to get your full, undivided attention?”

“Maybe some way that doesn’t make it seem like we’re about to get attacked,” Nadar suggested without even looking up from his potions essay.

They moved swiftly from the locker room. Ravenclaw’s tryouts were often quite boring, usually some sort of simple tests through each position, occasionally even a test of knowledge as that was their strength. This year it seemed quite the opposite with how Eeth was marching excitedly past Slytherin’s team.

“I’ll just get everything set up!” He announced cheerily, “Why don’t the rest of you get to know our prospective teammates?”

Obi-Wan really didn’t have much intention on making small talk. In fact, he considered just offering a hand to Koth as he hauled over the trunk himself, but the sight of someone stopped him cold.

“Rau?” Sure enough the 5th year prefect had seemingly taken a sudden interest in Quidditch and was standing alongside his fellow hopefuls.

“Hey Kenobi,” Fenn greeted with a wave as he walked over to meet him, “Got any last minute tips for a friend?” Obi-Wan wasn’t sure they were friends, but he didn’t bother correcting him or answering his question.

“Why are you here? You’ve never tried out before,” He asked. Rau just shrugged, though his eyes betrayed him slightly, drifting towards the audience.

“Well, it looks pretty fun,” He shrugged, but when it was clear Obi-Wan didn’t buy it, he added, “And I hear women are often impressed by a man in uniform,” He grinned. Obi-Wan squinted trying to follow his gaze into the audience. What girl was so worth it to join something because of a simple crush?

A flick of blonde caught his attention. Satine.

She waved as if knowing she was being scrutinized and Rau waved back much to Obi-Wan’s sudden feeling of horror. He tried to swallow down the green feeling rising slowly in his chest. Perhaps, he’d misunderstood.

“Look I know it’s probably awkward for you. You being best friends and all,” Rau scratched the back of his head, “but Satine’s hot,” Rau shrugged, “I thought maybe you were dating her after all, like the rumors said, but then you said it yourself, you’re just friends,” He laughed, though Obi-Wan was hard pressed to hear it past the blood rushing through his ears.

“Why are you interested in her anyways?” He heard himself say a little more aggressively than he should have and Rau tilted his head, scrutinizing him.

“Are you- Do you like her?” He asked and Obi-Wan shook his head in panic.

“No, of course not!” Eeth decided at that moment to blow the whistle, calling everyone back to the center, but Rau got one last word in.

“No need to worry mate, I’m not interested in breaking her heart,” He patted Obi-Wan on the shoulder before moving to follow the crowd. Obi-Wan was frozen for another moment, heart beating too fast, green gnawing on his insides.

Rau was talking about breaking her heart as if it had already been won. A glance up to the stands revealed Satine once again and he frowned. Satine had always had a distaste for Quidditch, but she was here to watch the tryouts. Could it be that she was here to see Rau’s performance? Would she be won over if he managed to perform admirably? It went against everything he knew about Satine, but sometimes she did seem like a box of puzzles- wonderful, if not occasionally frustrating. Perhaps, he didn’t know everything about her after all.

“Kenobi!” He was shaken from his thoughts by an annoyed looking Koth, “What’s got you all petrified? Get over here so we can start!”

He lined up, bad luck had him looking directly in Rau’s direction and it just made it harder to focus than it should on what Eeth was saying, even if it was just a lot of fluff.

They ran the seeker test first. Koth had hidden a bunch of rocks around the arena. They gave off an unnatural shine and you had to find 5 to be considered. Next was the beaters, they were to hit bludger sized balls into a stack of bottles and would be judged on accuracy. He’d gotten the idea from muggles apparently and if he was less likely to blow his top on a certain unsuspecting 5th year for some reason, he’d be much more interested. There was no need for a new Keeper as they already had himself and Nahdar, so they moved on to the Chasers.

Obi-Wan got into position, hovering in front of the golden rings at the end of the field. Evidently, Koth couldn’t think of anything better to test a Chaser’s skills than by scoring. Either way his job was quite simple. Block the hoops, prevent them from scoring. The first few students to try were younger, struggling to stay on their brooms and throw the ball, but one of them had been smart enough to attempt a fake out, which would be noted by their Captain as potential. The next few students had gotten good at flying and managed to score a few goals on him using quick wit and strategy. The air seemed to change, however, when Fenn Rau fell into position in front of him.

“Don’t go easy on me Kenobi,” Rau winked, “I’ve got to make a good impression,” He should have been talking about the try outs, but Obi-Wan caught his glance into the audience and he bristled. No, he certainly wouldn’t be going easy on Rau.

It was a bit of a blur. Rau tried to score, but Obi-Wan was always there to block his shots. Rau had clearly been practicing and studying strategies because loathe Obi-Wan to admit it, he had the skills. Obi-Wan, however, had 5 years of practice under his belt and a best friend who would constantly feed him tips. He used everything he had to make sure Rau never got a single point out of him and after time was up Obi-Wan had his teeth gritted, head throbbing a bit from a few furious headbutts, and not quite enough air in his lungs. Victory tasted sweet though as Rau, looking shocked at his defeat flew down to make way for the next contender.

When he landed, he stumbled just slightly before straightening up. He’d never felt so accomplished after running drills, or even during a game. His exhaustion was worth it to save Satine from the plight of having her heart stolen by some wannabe jock.

“Alright, I’ve got the results!” Koth announced and Obi-Wan let his attention fall. His eyes caught the glimmer of Satine’s hair. It was a unique shade he’d always thought, so light and airy, like sunshine. His brain rather unhelpfully provided that it was rather soft when it brushed his skin on occasion and how it would probably feel so nice to tuck behind her ear when it fell into her eyes.

“And our back up chasers will be,” Koth was continuing, but it didn’t matter. Obi-Wan had done his part and sealed the fate of the 5th year prefect, “and Fenn Rau!” Obi-Wan’s head snapped to look at a very surprised looking Rau. He cheered alongside his new fellow teammates. He grinned up at the bleachers once more while raising a fist and Obi-Wan’s grip on his broom threatened to snap the poor thing in half. He was hardly concerned about such material possessions when he imagined Fenn Rau brushing Satine’s hair back after a Quidditch game. He turned slowly, letting his teammates pass by him until he was standing next to Eeth Koth, the last two Ravenclaws on the field.

“You picked Rau?” He asked, trying to capture some of the fake politeness he had become rather masterful of, “He couldn’t even score a point.”

“Yeah, he couldn’t,” Koth agreed, “But only because he pushed you to your limit! I’ve never seen you play so spectacularly! Had to have that kind of motivation on the team,” Obi-Wan nearly dropped his broom, dumbfounded.

“You let him on so what? He could be the team pet?” Obi-Wan spat and Eeth looked at him strangely.

“Certainly you saw that he knows what he’s doing. He’s got good tactics and a good head on his shoulders,” He looked at Obi-Wan pointedly, “I’m sure you could learn a thing or two from him. I’m here to see potential and thanks to you, I found possibly one of our best future Chasers right here!”

Obi-Wan didn’t have it in him to return any such gratitude.

***

Dear Mum,

Fine, I’m breaking the ice and writing to you. Obi-Wan says it’s rude that I still haven’t responded to your letter about not coming to Parent’s Day and he rarely lets up on this sort of thing. It’s like he’s been programmed to act like an eighty year old man even though he’s like 16. I mean, you’ve seen him. He tucks his shirts way too tight to be comfortable. Anyway, I guess he is right in a way, because I did have good news that I wanted to share with you: I got a new broom! Not just any broom either, but a Firebolt Supreme! And it flies SOOOOOOOOOOO fast and high! Before you ask, the Kenobi’s got it for me after Parent’s Day (they filled in when SOMEONE couldn’t make it), because they were pretty pressed that I was still using the school’s brooms.

Not that I NEED the edge, but it definitely feels like I’m no longer playing with a hand tied behind my back. It’s crazy how they make brooms that fly differently. I wonder if it’s different from cars that move faster? I didn’t realize magic was so complicated, but apparently, magical engineers do exist.

Also, Rex made the team too! He’s been pretty quiet about it. I guess he’s just trying to let it all sink in. I know I was pretty amazed when I made the team too. He’s just going to be a backup though, but Cody says that one day he’ll get to start! That’ll be fun, because I feel like Rex and I are a team within the team as it is. 

I haven’t just been hanging out with Rex these days though. I’ve been welcomed into the older, cool kids crew across all the houses. They say I’ve got a big personality to make up for what I lack in height, but I just say I’m due for a growth spurt. Patiently waiting for that to come still. 

I’m trying to distance myself between Padmé, the girl I used to like, because I don’t want her to get the wrong idea. Falling in love with me would be a big mistake and it’s already been proved as a theory! Some hypnotized witch snuck into the school during Parent’s Day tried to kill me. Obi-Wan stopped her before she could even get the chance and I didn’t even realize he’d have it in him to react like that! His parents blame Yoda for her sneaking in, which kind of makes sense since he runs the school. I’m not too worried about it, honestly, because I’m the Chosen One. I can’t die without doing all the things the prophecy says. THAT’S why I’m glad I’m keeping distance between me and Padmé. I don’t want her roped into all of that. Superheroes’ girlfriends are always used against them.

Before you worry too much, I’m totally fine! Everyone is running around like crazy trying to figure out how this even happened. They were bragging about all the security they set up, but I think they forget that Dooku (who is definitely behind this, let’s be real) used to work here for a really long time and probably knows his way around.

That’s about it on what’s been going on around here. School is school and Windu still isn’t a big fan of me, but even he can’t deny that I’m the best in his class. Obi-Wan says my marks are better than last year’s already and I should keep up whatever I’m doing. I try to tell him that heroes can’t fail, but he doesn’t really buy that as an answer. Write back when you can. I still love you!

~ Anakin

[bi-naesala]

Hunt for the Jedi

After becoming the Emperor, Obi-Wan sends his most trusted men on a hunt across the galaxy. The prey? The surviving Jedi.

((Part of the Sith Obi-Wan AU))

Can also be read on AO3

(TW : VIOLENCE, BLOOD, DECAPITATION)

Despite the attack at the Temple being a success, there are some Jedi who managed to escape with their lives still intact. This is nothing the new appointed Emperor hadn’t predicted already, however, which is why as soon as he rises to power, he creates a special force to take care of this deal: the Inquisitorium, made up of force sensitive user who share the anti-Jedi sentiment. Most of them are young, the same young people who have been disappointed by the state of the Jedi Order - Maul is pretty sure he saw Oiffee around - and others who have been charmed by Obi-Wan’s ways. This must be Kenobi’s greatest strength: the ability to draw people to his side without the use of coercion or torture.

Even Ventress has joined their ranks, which shook Maul a great deal when he first found out.

 “Patience,” Obi-Wan tells him when he comes to him hateful and spiteful, demanding revenge for what she did to Savage. “You already got your revenge against Sidious. You’ll get this in good time too.”

Maul growls at him, something he hasn’t done for a very long time.

“I don’t want to wait! She needs to die!”

“And she will,” Obi-Wan reassures him, resting his hands on Maul’s shoulders, “But at the moment we need all the allies we can get. Once she’s no longer useful, we’ll make an example out of her.”

Oh, so that’s Obi-Wan’s plan. Maul should’ve known: he never leaves anything to chance; he always has a plan for every single one of them. Even though he still isn’t happy with this, he knows better than not to trust that Kenobi will maintain his word - he did it already.

“Fine, but I sure hope you weren’t planning to make us work together,” he threatens. “If I see her around, I won’t care about waiting.”

“Of course,” Obi-Wan replies, not worried at all by what he just said. “Besides, I’ve already devised a plan to deal with the remaining Jedi.”

That’s good, Maul thinks: finally a way to put his skills to use, something he got to do only recently, once he got out of hiding. He’s enjoyed it of course, but he also needs more.

Still, nothing would’ve prepared him for Obi-Wan’s next words.

“You’re going to work with Cody.”

 This is unexpected, though Maul supposes it actually isn’t that much: Kenobi excluded, since he’s required to be the Emperor so he can’t busy himself directly with these matters, they’re the two most qualified people for the job. It’s weird that Skywalker - or Vader as he calls himself now - hasn’t been mentioned, probably because of Amidala’s pregnancy - aren’t the twins due soon?

Still… Cody, eh?

The two of them still haven’t had the chance to work together, since Maul was supposed to still be hiding, but now they have to, Maul as the appointed Grand Inquisitor and Cody as head of the Army - of course Kenobi was going to promote him.

As of now, their only interaction has been the night of “celebration” spent with Obi-Wan after the official fall of the Republic, and it’s safe to say that they didn’t really pay that much attention to each other, more focused on their mutual partner.

Oh well, this is surely going to be interesting.

  That sentiment of curiosity leaves Maul immediately as soon as he and Cody actually get to work: they’ve already had their bickering as they’ve tracked down the remaining Jedi or any kind of deserter, yet despite this it’s been mostly… well, not fun because Maul would rather die than to admit anything positive about his… How is he even supposed to call him? Co-worker? Lover of his lover? Ugh, it’s so confusing.

Anyway, even though he wouldn’t say that it’s fun it’s definitely… something adjacent to it.

He certainly appreciates Cody’s tactical mind, although he would also like to say that he has had his own genial moments as well. He can’t wait to get his hands dirty and, unexpectedly, he feels the same coming from Cody; after coming back from what Maul supposes was his last confrontation with one of his “brothers” - he doesn’t know the details since Cody told Kenobi, not him, about this - he seems eager to get some work done. Is this his own personal way to forget that he once shared a bond with the people they’re hunting down? Maybe; Maul doesn’t care. It’s not his business.

 Still, even to this day, Maul is still unimpressed with him. He still doesn’t understand why Obi-Wan would be interested in someone like him. The time they’ve spent planning and preparing for their attacks certainly hasn’t helped but that might be more due to the fact that Cody doesn’t fear him, thus when discussing tactics isn’t afraid to call Maul out on his bullshit, something that he, of course, doesn’t like.

If he’s so willing to interrupt him each time, then he should go hunting Jedi down on his own, see what he cares.

Despite wanting so bad to tell him off, Maul holds his tongue - many times. You could say that he’s doing it for Kenobi; he knows that there must be a purpose behind him deciding that they should work together, and he’s sure that he’d be happy if they try to get along, no matter how hard it may be.

 Everything changes, however, when he sees Cody fight.

  If there’s a thing about the Jedi that Maul has to give to them, is that they’re good at hiding, but even that isn’t enough. As if they could ever escape from their destiny.

“I hope you’re ready,” Maul tells Cody. They’re both standing in the ship’s control room, working on their strategy one last time before commencing their hunt. “I won’t be slowed down, so you’ll better keep up or you’ll be left alone.”

Cody narrows his eyes at those words, but his expression soon turns challenging.

“If you have enough time to make these statements, maybe you’ll be the one left behind after all,” he retorts, making Maul greet his teeth. Who does he think he is?! He is nothing. He should bow down to him…

Huh, they’re approaching their target.

“I suggest you prepare for landing, sir,” Cody says then, clearly mocking him. Maul shoots him a dirty glare but refuses to take the bait.

He’ll surely show him on the battlefield who is superior.

  This should enrage Maul, make him see completely red, and yet… it doesn’t, despite the fact that he’s pretty much eating his own words.

He just really wasn’t expecting to assist to such a way of fighting on Cody’s part: he would’ve expected any clone to prefer fighting with their trusted blasters - useless weapons, truly - but not Cody; where he truly shines is in hand-to-hand combat.

To Maul’s surprise, he manages to go toe to toe even against Jedi and come out victorious. What impresses Maul the most - besides the force with which he body slams people, or how hard he kicks - is that he’d often manage to snatch the lightsabers out of the Jedi’s hands, only to use them against their own owners.

Now Maul is starting to see what Obi-Wan sees in him.

 There’s a fire inside him, a fire that’s so well hidden under a proper façade that Maul has noticed it only now, but it’s there, and now Cody has a chance to let it all out.

Maybe Obi-Wan was right when he said that, under certain aspects, they’re similar.

It certainly contributes on making Maul curious about Cody. Did they teach him how to fight like this on Kamino? Did he have to attend to some secret special class that his brothers weren’t privy of? Or does he have to thank Kenobi for these displays?

These questions don’t even boil down all the things he now wants to know about him. Maybe when this is over he’ll ask him for a sparring match, curious to test his skills against his, though he’d surely prevail. Still, he wouldn’t mind seeing for it himself.

 Things have… changed, between he and Cody: what has started as a very rocky partnership has become something different, even though it’s hard to say where they exactly stand towards each other. They clearly respect each other more, as Cody hasn’t been the only one making a show of his skills.

It makes hunting down Jedi together more bearable.

Maul has been looking towards this for a long time: finally, he can hunt down and destroy the Jedi, just like he’s been raised to do. Of course he was going to do it in the most brutal way possible.

He wonders if Cody can sense the fury in the way he twirls his staff, if he can sense the rage he feels whenever his eyes lay on a Jedi, if he can sense the savage satisfaction when he ends their life.

 Look at him, wondering if Cody pays attention to him like a fool. And yet, he can’t stop doing it.

 He could easily slip in his mind and gather all the info he needs on the subject… except that for some reason, he doesn’t dare.

In order to justify this, he keeps telling himself that it’s just because Cody must be trained in sensing if someone’s inside his mind and he’d get suspicious if he found Maul rummaging through his thoughts. The truth, however, is that… He doesn’t even know it. He supposes that he respects him too much to do it. That’s it. Nothing more.

Who is he kidding? Of course there is more, and Maul can’t help but to curse himself for having fallen for this obvious bait.

 Was this Kenobi’s plan all along? Maul doesn’t doubt it not even for a moment: everything’s possible when it comes to that impossible man, he’s learned.

He supposes he’ll just need to wait and see how things move along, but one thing is sure: sooner or later, he’ll make his move.

  Maul surprises himself with how patient he’s being about all this. Even with all the Jedi they have caught and killed, he still hasn’t given in the euphoria, focused on doing a good job until the end; he won’t rest until he’s found all the Jedi.

His self-control is about to encounter its greatest challenge, however. We shall see if he’ll manage to resist this time…

 If there’s a thing that is certain, is that this Jedi hunt still hasn’t sated his thirst. They have met many adversaries, but most of them were either escaped younglings and padawans, or old Jedi, nothing that would really test Maul’s skills.

This, however, might change soon, because they have received intel about another Jedi survivor, but this one isn’t like the others: Jaro Tapal, tactical genius and a force to be reckoned with in combat. When the order to kill the Jedi had been issued he had managed to escape; they had gotten only his padawan, who is now undergoing some… constructive therapy. He’ll join their ranks soon, though the timing could’ve been better: imagine if they had send him to bring Tapal down.

Oh well, at least this gives Maul a chance. He can’t wait to see the life abandon his eyes.

 It certainly speaks a lot about how things have changed between him and Cody that, as they’re preparing for landing, they’re not snarking at each other like they used to do.

The atmosphere is still quite tense, but for a different reason than the usual. Is it worry? No, it can’t be. Maul is confident in his and Cody’s abilities. Tapal might be a mighty Jedi, but he must also be weakened by the months spent on the run.

Underestimating the enemy, however, is a grave mistake, something that neither Maul nor Cody wish to make; nothing is more dangerous than a cornered animal. They’ll have to be careful.

 Still, he hates this silence. He can’t believe he’s saying this, but it’s making him miss the old times, when they’d bicker and bicker until it was time to get things done.

Eventually he can’t take it anymore, and he snaps at Cody.

“Say something, damn it!”

Cody tenses, immediately turning to look at him with narrowed eyes.

“What am I supposed to say?”

“I don’t know! Something!”

“I am focusing on the upcoming battle,” Cody immediately replies, sharp tone, “You should do the same, if you don’t want to get your shebs kicked.”

Maul has no idea what “shebs” means, but he’s sure it mustn’t be anything nice. He growls, stomping towards Cody until they’re face to face - metaphorically, since Cody is unfortunately much taller than Maul, but he won’t let himself get intimidated by this minuscule detail. Of the two, he’s the one with true power after all.

“Watch your tongue,” he threatens immediately.

The tension is high, very high. They both feel like if they don’t do something immediately, things are going to escalate; in which way it will happen, however, they have no idea.

 All it takes is for the control panel to signal that they’ve reached their destination for the spell to break.

Maul has no idea where that came from; thinking about it now, it almost seems like it wasn’t actually him speaking, but someone else who has his same features.

Is it worry what caused this? Is he really worried? He doesn’t know, which only serves to irritate him further. He never liked to deal with these things.

He can at least harvest this rage, keep it inside to unleash it on Jaro Tapal. With his fury by his side, he can prevail.

 … There’s something else, however, isn’t it? No matter how much Maul can’t deny its existence and ignore it altogether, there’s a feeling that wasn’t there before, something that grew the more time he spent with Cody: he won’t let the Jedi lay not even a hand on him.

This is something he used to feel only for Kenobi, this sort of twisted sentiment, a desire for Cody to become his, because that’s all this is about to Maul: belonging, having. He wants Cody like he has Obi-Wan, and he wants him badly.

 He grunts, shaking his head.

Not now. He needs to focus on the upcoming battle, he needs to focus on the Jedi.

If they manage to bring the famed Jaro Tapal down, it will be a heavy hit for the few remaining Jedi. Their moral would be destroyed, their hope tarnished. They might even get new people to join their ranks if they finally understand how much powerful the Dark Side is: if not even Tapal can survive against it, who can?

 His focus gets shattered once again when his arm gets grabbed by Cody. Maul’s first instinct is to put his lightsaber at his throat, roaring at him to never touch him again, but he holds back for the sole reason that he doesn’t mind it as much as he thought; his hold is strong, grounding. It makes Maul understand why Obi-Wan might like having his hands on him all the time.

“Hey.”

“What?” Maul replies, trying to keep his tone even despite the fury of emotions that is boiling inside him.

For a moment, he senses hesitation in Cody; this must be the first this happens: he’s usually so sure of himself - and arrogant, Maul would add, but maybe that’s just because he doesn’t bow down to him like everyone else does - that it feels weird, seeing him without knowing what to say.

“What?” he repeats, then. He could easily snatch his arm away from Cody’s grasp, but he still doesn’t.

“Just…” Cody begins, now looking more determined, that kind of determination that one has after they have taken an important decision, though Maul isn’t privy to what this decision is exactly, “… Be safe.”

For a moment, Maul doesn’t know what to think: did Cody, General Cody head of the New Army of the Empire, just tell him, Grand Inquisitor Darth Maul, to be safe?

 He doesn’t know… Wait.

His heart… It’s beating so fast.

It feels like it’s going to burst out of his chest, bleeding and pulsating.

Maul doesn’t know why it’s behaving like this, but he knows that he doesn’t like it. It makes him feel weak and vulnerable, open, exposed.

He hates it.

 He shakes himself away like he’s been burned, eyeing Cody with fury.

“I don’t need these useless words,” he hisses, seething in rage. How dares he to make him feel like this?

Nothing transpires from Cody’s face at those words, which only succeeds in irritating him further; why can’t he say something, anything?!

He gets up with the intention of leaving the cockpit to find a quiet place where he can meditate, foster his anger even more. And yet, as he’s about to exit, he stops, gritting his teeth; this doesn’t feel right, this doesn’t feel right at all!

A sigh leaves his mouth, and with it, part of the rage he felt leaves his body as well. This is stupid, so very stupid, and yet Maul can’t help but to turn his head towards Cody, observing him; to his surprise, he’s giving his back to him, eyes fixed on the ship’s controls. He appears so distant now, despite the fact that they’re just a few steps away.

It feels that all the progress they’ve made all this time has vanished in thin air, and despite telling himself that it doesn’t matter, Maul can’t stand for it, thus, with an immense effort on his part, he brings himself to speak again.

“You too… Be safe.”

 He leaves before Cody has to occasion to say anything, missing the sudden way he turns around, watching Maul go with a surprised - and hopeful - gaze.

  As the make their way towards where they know Tapal is constructing a base - admitting that we can call an amass of rocks in a backwater Outer Rim planet a base - they begin to suspect that the intel they got might be faulty: there’s no sign of sentient activity, besides, who would make camp here, at the end of the road, against the mountains, with the only way to escape being the same you have to walk to get there? It seems incredibly stupid, and certainly not something a “tactical genius” like Tapal would do.

It’s only after the entire squad - yes, they didn’t go alone, but brought some troopers with them, just in case - have completely entered the inlet, that they realize that this is obviously a trap, and they’ve fallen right into it.

 They are immediately proven right when a voice comes from behind them.

“Empire scum!”

They all turn around immediately, and behind them, a tall, imposing lasat male stands. He must be Tapal. How foolish of him to show himself to them like this; trap or not, he should’ve stayed hidden.

Maul and Cody immediately walk through the front. Despite Cody wearing his bucket - blacks suits him way better than his old colors - Maul can feel his trepidation even without looking at his face. He feels the same.

He’s about to address Tapal - to challenge the fool - when the Jedi speaks again:

“We only want information. I’ll grant you your life if you surrender and help us.”

“Still a Jedi through and through,” Maul hisses, hate echoing at every word. Who does he think he’s going to please acting like that? It’s not going to help him… Wait. Did he say “us”?

As if to confirm Maul’s suspicions, soon Tapal is joined by two Jedi… no, they look like padawans. They aren’t the only ones that show up; he doesn’t even need to turn around to see them: he feels them in the Force already. But who does he feel? All the other Jedi that have them surrounded, emerging from the mountain side.

They have really trapped them.

 How were they supposed to know that Tapal had managed to find not only just one survivor, but an entire group of them, when the intelligence they have gathered has shown nothing of this?

In the end it’s their fault. They did what they weren’t supposed to do: underestimate the enemy. They should’ve known that Tapal would’ve tried to pull something, which apparently translates into creating a small rebellious force. Smart on his part, but it’s not going to work, not with the small number of people he’s managed to amass.

Despite this, however, they do outnumber Maul, Cody and the small squad of troopers they’re leading, this already without taking in account that they’ve cut any possible escape route, meaning that even if they’d want to retreat, they’d still have to carve a path. Sure, they could escalate the mountain wall, but that would be suicide.

 A crooked smile appears on Maul’s lips: finally, finally, an occasion to prove his power.

He exchanges a gaze with Cody, gaze feverish, and he knows that the other feels the same sort of trepidation he’s feeling.

“Tapal is mine,” he says then, “You can take out the others.”

Cody nods, and then he’s immediately barking orders, loading his blaster and taking his first shots.

“Charge!”

 It all happens in a flurry. Maul barely feels what’s going on around him, brain entirely focused on Tapal. He’s had the courage to ambush then, surrounding them in what the fools think will be their resting place; oh, he understands nothing then.

He takes a running jump, reaching Tapal’s position. He has to give to him: he’s not hiding behind the people he’s riled up against them, instead he’s taking part directly into the action. Still, a courageous fool remains a fool.

Their sabers clash with a loud noise.

“You still face me head on, I applaud your courage,” Tapal says, voice deep but tone neutral. It makes Maul’s blood boil in his veins with his fake calm. As if Maul can’t sense his exhaustion, his fear.

“Save your nice words, Jedi,” he hisses. “No matter what tricks you use, the power of the Dark Side is too strong for you!”

“You say so, and yet I’m the one who trapped you!” If Maul been slower, he wouldn’t have dodged the kick that Tapal sends his way in time, but he manages to do it, jumping and lending a few feet away.

He lets out a scream of pure rage. The time for words it over.

We shall see who’ll come out of it victorious.

 He puts his all into his fight, exchanging blows with Tapal. He’s obviously putting up more of a challenge than any other Jedi did, and Maul loves it; no matter how hard he gets kicked, the manic smile on his face doesn’t falter at all.

This is what he’s trained for, the reason of all his pain and anguish. It’s time to show everyone - and himself, though he refuses to admit he even needs this in the first place - that it hasn’t been in vain.

If only he’d manage to get even a small opening…

 He has no idea about what is happening around them, having singled in Tapal entirely. The fact that he doesn’t need to pay attention is a testament to how well trained his squad is, or else he bets some young padawans - someone who wouldn’t know how sacred duels are - would’ve tried already to barge in to change the fight to the Jedi’s benefit.

Still, he doesn’t have to wait for long before feeling the pain and death around him. It’s a marvelous sensation that reinvigorates him, gives him strength.

A fleeting thought passes through his mind: it’s a shame that he doesn’t get to see Cody in action this time, but he can’t afford to get distracted, or else he’d be the one giving Tapal an opening, which would be shameful on his part. As soon as this thought arrives, he immediately pushes it down, this isn’t the time for that!

What he didn’t expect was for Tapal to catch it as well. Has he been projecting this hard?

“Even you are able to feel love,” he breathes out, clashing his staff against Maul’s. It takes him all his strength to parry it, with the result that they’re now locked into a contest of might. Given their tired state - how long has the fight been going on? - it’s obvious that this will be their final move: the one who manages to knock the other out of balance will win.

“Shut up!” Maul exclaims, gritting his teeth. How dares he spout this kind of nonsense? What does he know about him? Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Why would he even presume to know him, his feelings? He’s just a Jedi fool!

“I can feel it in you,” Tapal insists. “You are capable of loving, despite your efforts not to.”

He’s pushing, but Maul keeps resisting. Endure the pain, endure the fatigue, endure everything; he’s been living like this since he has memory of it, he won’t stop doing it now, not when he’s so close to victory. He can’t afford to lose, not when it would disappoint Obi-Wan, not when it would disappoint Cody, not when it would disappoint… himself.

“I said shut up!”

He pushes back this time, making Tapal grunts.

“Even if you deny it, the evidence is there. You aren’t a good Sith…”

 He…

Did he…

He said…

 There’s nothing human in the way Maul screams, putting all his rage and anguish and fear and spite in it.

He is a good Sith! He’s defeated countless Jedi by now, he’d killed his own Master! Everybody fears him! Does this sound like a bad Sith?!

“And what do you know?” he hisses, determined to respond in kind. “Didn’t you lose your padawan? That’s right, he’s with us now. Maybe you’ll see him soon in the afterlife…”

At those words, Tapal hesitates; hearing news of his padawan must have shaken him. Such weakness.

Deciding to take a step from his old book and taking advantage of this moment of imbalance on Tapal’s part, Maul pushes again, then with a fast movement he takes the metal edge of his staff and slams it against Tapal’s head, making him waver a few steps back. Heh, they all fall for it.

Using that moment of weakness, Maul moves immediately, running Tapal’s torso with his staff, grinning at how he grunts, realization of his loss evident in his eyes.

He tries to keep himself up with all his might, but eventually he falls to his knees, right in front of Maul. Oh, the power rush feels so good, and Maul can’t stop smiling for it, admiring his handiwork; Tapal’s having difficulties breathing. He looks like he’s trying to say something, but he can’t.

Well, Maul decides to help him, in order to honor their duel: it’s with the utmost satisfaction that he raises his staff again, and with a decisive move, he beheads Tapal, whose head begins to roll in the dirt, stopping not too far from the body, which has now fallen on the ground completely.

  A quiet chuckle erupts from Maul’s lips, but soon it turns into something more, something louder.

He did it, he truly did it. Most importantly, he did it alone: sure, he wasn’t actually alone, but he took on Tapal single-handedly and he’s defeated him. Nobody else was here to help him in the duel, not even Kenobi.

This is his victory and only his.

 It’s only now, noticing the silence surrounding him, that he finally allows himself to look around.

All the other Jedi are dead, along with great part of the troopers, but this isn’t what matters: standing tall, surrounded by dead bodies, there’s him, Cody.

At some point during the fight, he must’ve lost his bucket, because not only he’s not wearing it now, but Maul doesn’t even see it in his immediate vicinity. He can’t help but to be happy about it: the black armor fits Cody like a glove, but Maul wouldn’t say he’s fond of the bucket at all; he’d rather look at his face than that emotionless thing.

He’s still wielding the beskar staff Kenobi has gifted him as a prize for Mandalore’s successful invasion. Maul remembers being skeptic and perplexed when it happened, not understanding of what use such a refined weapon could have for a clone, but now he knows, he knows well. It’s the most appropriate weapon for someone like Cody, a fitting instrument of death. He’s holding it tightly, posture still rigid, as if he’s expecting other Jedi to show up, but Maul can feel the Force, he knows that they’ve eliminated everyone.

It’s then that he notices that he’s covered in blood; well, it isn’t something that unheard of, when it comes to Cody, since the beskar staff is a blunt weapon unlike lightsabers, but there something about him being covered in blood now of all times, looking beautiful in his carnage, that makes Maul feel dizzy.

 He wants. He wants to taste him so bad.

 He approaches him with long strides. Cody doesn’t even notice him, busy as he is catching his breath after the long fight. Maul doesn’t care.

The force he uses to grab his face and crash their lips together might be exaggerated, but Cody replies in kind, pushing back against Maul immediately; he’s not even the least bit surprised, which does irritate Maul a bit: he hoped he could’ve taken him by surprise, but like this it seems more like he’s seen it coming already. Thinking about it, he’s not that wrong. Maybe it was just a matter of time…

It hardly matters now, not when Maul can taste blood on Cody’s lips, unsure if it’s their enemies, Cody’s or his, with the aggressive way they keep kissing, all tongue and teeth, exactly how Maul likes it.

There’s a loud clang, informing him of the fact that Cody has dropped his staff, using his now free arms to circle Maul’s waist, pulling him closer. Being enveloped in his arms feels good, better than Maul thought it would ever fill; normally he isn’t fond of such things, Obi-Wan knows it well: it makes him feel soft, which in turn makes him feel weak, and he doesn’t like feeling weak. With Cody it’s different: there is the fact that he’s taller, that’s still annoying, but for once the feeling that spreads inside Maul isn’t one of rage. It’s like they were meant to be like this. He doesn’t know why he feels like this, but it’s also true that at the moment he’s not really in the mood for some self-reflection - when is he ever?

He cups Cody’s face in his hands, keeping him close in the kiss. He should’ve taken his gloves off, because then he would’ve been able to feel Cody better. How would the bite scar or his cheek feel against his bare fingers? Maul can’t help but to wonder. If he remembers correctly, one of Cody’s brothers - why he insists on calling them that is beyond him - gave it to him, before Cody himself had to kill him. What would Maul make him feel if he touches it? Would he remember? Would he suffer? Would he be angry? So many possibilities, and yet…

 They pull away at the same time, eyes blown wide at the realization of what they’ve just done. There’s silence around them, which is good, because if even one trooper tried to utter a word about this, they’d all be dead.

“We still have to report back,” Cody states, clearing his throat. He bends down to take the beskar staff, and Maul isn’t ashamed at all in the way he checks him out as he does so - what? They’ve kissed already, this shouldn’t be weird.

He extends a hand, reaching into the Force, and in a moment Cody’s bucket, lost in the rabble, shoots up towards him. Maul grabs it and hands it to Cody, but not before leaning closer, licking a vertical stripe along Cody’s lips.

“This isn’t over,” he says, voice sounding more like a threat than anything else, but it still brings as smile to Cody’s face. He nods, before putting his bucket back on. Shame.

 With that, the two walk back towards the ship, trusting the rest of the crew with the cleanup process. Now the have to report back to Kenobi, to announce their victory, then… Then who knows.

The trepidation Maul is feeling right now is unlike any other sentiment he’s ever felt. He can’t wait to see how things will evolve from now on.

Oh, the face Obi-Wan will make when they come back to him… It’s going to be so good.

[the-writing-mill]

Whumptober Day 04 - Human Shield

“Not another step, Kenobi,” Ventress hissed, lightsaber humming so close, Cody swore he could feel it shocking his blacks, “or you lose this clone as well.”

Cody watched his general appraise the situation. Both sides had been whittled down so that Ventress had to retreat or die and they were going to win the battle, but with too few forces to be able to chase Ventress down. Especially since he, Obi-Wan, and a few brothers had been separated from the rest with Ventress into a crashed ship. Half of their small squad was down for the count, and Cody wasn’t sure they would all get back up. That left him, Obi-Wan, and six other brothers against Ventress, who had him, weaponless and with a dislocated shoulder, pinned to her chest and her lightsaber at his neck.

But with him being held hostage, Ventress couldn’t move very quickly.

It would be easy. The last six brothers already covered 240 degrees around them. Obi-Wan was in better condition than Ventress.

They didn’t have the resources to chase her, no. But the lack of mobility was a mistake on her part. And if he was going to go marching far away, this was a good way to go. Over a year past the average life expectancy. For the sake of killing one of the Separatists’ best killers.

He saw his general’s eyes flicker back over to meet his through the helmet. Cody would have nodded if he could.

“You realize, Ventress, my dear, that you don’t have the best track record with hostages?” His general finally drawled, voice purposefully even.

Cody can imagine the steely look in his eyes, the one that he hides beneath whatever act he’s putting on over his, well… not anger, since Jedi don’t get angry.

He heard his brothers shift their weight just a bit, saw Longshot hold his blaster just a little more aggressively next to their general.

“I don’t think you and your clones are in a very good position to critique my combat strategies, but perhaps you’ve finally realized that your mouth is the most competent thing about you,” Ventress snarled.

In a moment, he saw his general use the hand not holding his saber to sign at him.

Drop

Cody did so immediately, letting all of his muscles relax and making his legs give out. Not questioning the order.

Ventress was pulled down a bit but didn’t bother to slice his neck for the action.

No, she was far too busy trying to keep her balance and moving her saber to block his general.

Cody rolled out of the way and dashed over to longshot, taking the backup hand blaster out of the other’s leg holster.

They all shot when they could, used to their general’s movements, and fired freely once Ventress disengaged and started running down the hall freely.

Then the kriffing sith jumped out of a hole in the crashed ships’ wall, and their general ordered a retreat.

Back at camp, once everyone had been checked over by medics, once the dead had been counted and buried, once the general gave another rousing speech about duty and how they have saved yet another planet from Separatist tyranny that lifts the mood so the men will celebrate, Cody and Obi-Wan retreated back to the tent they were sharing for an office and started on the basic paperwork.

Or at least, that was what they would usually do.

Instead, Cody stayed standing by the tent entrance, bucket still on.

He saw Obi-Wan sigh before clearing off a space on his desk and sitting down, elbows on the desk, hands clasped, chin resting on his hands.

“What’s wrong, Cody? You’ve been… tense, since we dealt with Ventress,” his jedi implored.

Cody stalked forward, tore off his helmet, and nearly slammed it onto Obi-Wan’s desk.

“I don’t think I’d call that “dealing” with Ventress, sir,” he said brusquely.

“What do you mean?” Obi-Wan actually looked confused at that.

“I mean you could have finally killed her, sir!” Cody spilled out, “With me as hostage, she was practically immobile! Surely you noticed you could have ordered the others to shoot, distracting and injuring, then gone in for the kill yourself!”

Obi-Wan looked taken aback, almost horrified, at that.

“Yes. Yes, I could have done that,” he said, quietly, softly, “And that would have killed you, Cody.”

“And how many of my brothers are going to die because you didn’t kill her today, sir?!” Cody asked, internally horrified at critiquing and yelling at his superior as soon as he said it, but unable to stop himself, “I am here to serve you and the Republic, general. If that means dying to stop the Separatists, then so be it. You should know that by now. You should have- I should have-“

Cody broke himself off from his rant, unsure of what he was saying anymore, or what Obi-Wan’s carefully neutral face meant.

“Cody?” the general said, soft, “did you want her to kill you?”

Oh.

No, that wasn’t what he meant. It really wasn’t. But his general had every right to think that.

He saw Obi-Wan glance at the other chair and Cody complied with the request, grabbing the chair and sitting across from his general. Willing himself to calm down.

“No. No sir, I was not hoping to die. But I was… I have always been willing to die, for the sake of the Republic.” His general understood that, right?

“I know, Cody, but sometimes, in hard situations - and what is war but hard situation on top of hard situation? – there is not good answer. And certainly no right answer. Please answer me honestly, would you prefer to serve under a general who will order your brothers to fire on each other, or one who doesn’t?”

Cody flinched, he’d heard stories about some of the non-jedi generals. About their lack of care for his brothers and their lives.

“Of course I don’t want a general who does those things, but in this case-”

“It’s different?” his general cut him off, “Or it’s worth it?”

Cody didn’t bother hiding his face. Whatever emotion he was showing was more easily understood through the force by the being in front of him. Obi-Wan sighed.

“Where’s the line, Cody? What counts as too far, for the senate, for the war, for who I am as a jedi? Should I not bother to block a tank’s shell from hitting a squad because I could instead run closer to Grievous? Should I make battle plans that risk friendly fire in every encounter?”

Cody rolled his eyes, he knew that his general would never do that. Most of the non-jedi generals wouldn’t either, those risks were inefficient use of resources.

“Should I send in Waxer to scout with a comm, on a mission where he can get valuable information but likely won’t be able to escape? That would let us make battle plans that cost far fewer lives, and only cost me one of your brothers,” the general said in a hard tone. Cody couldn’t help bristle at that hypothetical.

“There is no perfect answer to most battles, Cody. You know that, right?”

“Yes, sir. I do,” he replied evenly. It was true. There was a reason he had made it up to marshal commander.

“Then please, Cody, in the interest of us being able to make imperfect decisions that we can still live with, please never ask me to kill you again,” his jedi begged, tone letting a bit of desperation in.

And that felt like punch to Cody’s gut. No wonder Obi-Wan had looked horrified earlier.

“Sorry, sir. I just…” Cody trailed off, not able to figure out what to say. Not able to tear away from Obi-Wan’s pleading eyes either, so he watched them softening, a little nod, empathetic.

“I don’t want anyone else to die,” he choked out, trying to maintain some composure but largely failing, “and it seems like we’re never enough and I just want for this war to be over without losing any more brothers and I’m not sure what I’m willing to do, but dying’s easy. We’re really good at dying so if that’s what-“ Cody shut his mouth to stop himself from sobbing.

Obi-Wan reached out towards him before aborting the gesture, uncertainty on his face.

Cody let out a broken laugh at that, “don’t worry, sir. If it was Rex, he would have had me in a headlock by now and wrestled me to the ground. Wouldn’t have stopped hugging me for an hour,” Obi-Wan breathed a laugh through his nose at the image then slowly put a hand on Cody’s arm. It was stable and grounding in a way Cody would have bet alcohol on it being some sort of force technique. He took a deep breath.

“I don’t want to die, sir. And I won’t ask you to kill me. I promise. I just can’t always figure out how to win without dying.”

“Cody…” the hand squeezed lightly as Obi-Wan thought of what he wanted to say, “I’m so sorry.”

For Ventress today. For Ventress everyday. For the war. For the brothers he had lost and would lose. For how much all of this was hurting him. For neither of them being able to fix it. There were a lot things his jedi was apologizing for. And Cody couldn’t find anything right to say in reply.

Instead, he just bent his head and lightly rested his hand on top of Obi-Wan’s on his arm, keeping them there in silent vigil for everything gone wrong.

[gffa]

SOME INTERESTING FACTS FROM ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT STAR WARS 2017:  Which is obviously in that sort of nebulous area where this is potentially canon, but it hasn’t shown up in a story, and the book says some of it is still Legends, so I would treat it cautiously.  But it’s some interesting details on what may be considered canon, though, as always, this disclaimer from the back of the book is important:

ANAKIN SKYWALKER: - Still potentially fudging whether he was born on Tatooine (and no word on whether Shmi was born on Tatooine or was sent there when Anakin was three), but confirmation that he was 14 when he got his first lightsaber during a trip to Ilum!  And I suspect he probably was born on Tatooine, because Ahsoka’s “homeworld” is listed as Shili and Obi-Wan’s “homeworld” is mentioned to be Stewjon here, despite that they both would have grown up on Coruscant. - Shmi was captured by pirates as a young girl and sold into slavery--not believing this one unless it shows up in a story or is confirmed by someone in the Story Group, but it fits REALLY well with my headcanons for her. - Vader eats through a tube in his private chamber, confirmed.  Floats in bacta chamber on his Minecraft Castle of Sadness on Mustafar while he meditates, which is part of Sidious’ plan to keep him tied to the dark side.  OH ANAKIN THIS IS SO SAD AND TERRIBLE, WHY. OBI-WAN KENOBI: - Another confirmation that the “Stewjon” thing is still in place.  SIGH.  But, okay. YODA: - I can’t even with that gimer stick. - Yoda’s been training Jedi since he was at least since he was 100 years old, which begs the question of just how his species ages, like, is 100 about the time he would be taking a learner on?  Does that mean that his childhood was basically 50-75 years long?  It’s an interesting question for what his species’ development is like and how it’s probably not really analogous to humans’. - TRAINED 20,000 JEDI, I can’t even comprehend that, but it’s making me sad for how much he’s lost over the course of his life. AHSOKA TANO: - Her montrals can use echolocation up to 25 meters/82 feet!  That’s a really good distance, she’d be AMAZING at hide and seek as a youngling in the Jedi Temple! DEPA BILLABA: - I can’t remember if it was anywhere in canon that Depa was Mace’s Padawan, I think it was probably mentioned in the Kanan: The Last Padawan comic?  But it’s also mentioned here--though, no word of Mace’s Master.  (I got the impression that Cyslin Myr was a temporary teacher for him, but it was carefully worded to be vague in the Mace Windu: Jedi of the Republic comic.) MISC.: - The Inquisitors are not Sith!  While they have the yellow eyes, that seems to be more of a pure dark side thing, rather than specifically a Sith thing.  This is why Dooku and Asajj Ventress (though, she never completed her training) don’t have yellow eyes, but Maul and Savage and the Grand Inquisitor do.

[lurkingcrow]

I should be finishing a whole heap of ficlets, but it’s been FOREVER since I participated in some high quality crack. So, I thought it’s time to bring out a concept I have been teasing @generallkenobi with. Now certain friends (*cough* @resistancepilots @asokatanos @aifsaath @forcearama @albaparthenicevelut etc) might read the following words with trepidation, but bear with me:

Sith Anakimono.

Imagine if you will, a universe where Knight Kenobi and Padawan Skywalker are unexpectedly lost on a mission, and find themselves stuck on a planet/in an ancient temple with a bevy of Sith ghosts for company.

It’s bad. There’s no way out and they are surrounded by Darkness. And Obi-Wan? Obi-Wan has lost so much, he is NOT going to lose Anakin. He will do ANYTHING to protect his Padawan, no matter the situation.

And of course, that’s the crack the Sith Ghosts use to get in.

Anakin NEEDS him. Its not wrong, not for the sake of HIS Padawan. HE can take it. HE can protect the boy. It is his DUTY, is it not ,to face it?

And of course these aren't Banite Sith Ghosts. They look at Obi-Wan in mock astonishment: “Why the goal of a Sith is not evil, it is power, power to be FREE, to do whatever one DREAMS of. And is not your dream a noble one little Jedi? To protect your apprentice?"

And even Obi-Wan Kenobi, stalwart of the Light, has his flaws. And bit by bit the ghosts chip away at him. 

“Can you REALLY protect the boy as you are now?"

And well, it’s been ages, here in this Dark place, and Anakin is all he has left, the bright light in his days. And Anakin has been trying so HARD -  it is not easy, and only the small boons Obi-Wan wins from the ghosts have allowed them to survive.

In the end it is Anakin, shivering, his eyes dull, his face gaunt, hiding the evidence of illness just so Obi-Wan wouldn’t worry, that breaks Obi-Wan.

If it will save Anakin, he will Fall.

And so he does.

.

Of course, as a Sith, Obi-Wan laps up knowledge like water - after all he has made his decision.

(the Sith Ghosts are pleased beyond measure, he is such a GOOD pupil)

Anakin though, Anakin is worried. But Obi-Wan looks at him and smiles gently and tells him that  he is worth it.

And that? That pretty much seals the deal -  the Chancellor was WRONG, and Obi-Wan has chosen ANAKIN over the council, over the Jedi, over EVERYTHING. 

For that, he will follow his Master ANYWHERE. Even into the Dark.

Besides, if the Sith are all about freedom, maybe they WILL get around to freeing the slaves one day, together...

And thus is born Darth Solence and his Apprentice Vader

.

Now over time their codependence just grows. And as Obi-Wan is freer with his affections Anakin grows more used to that level of attention.

It becomes a feedback loop

Which means, by the time of the Clone Wars, there are a pair of irrationally Attached Sith roaming about who COULD destroy/conquer the galaxy but can’t be bothered and are FAR more concerned with more immediate matters.

Like each other.

Or the shortage of Anakin’s favourite conditioner. He almost committed genocide, until it was brought to his attention that there WAS sufficient supply but it was being hoarded by some high up person in order to artificially raise the price and... well this when the galaxy learns that anti-corruption measures are best enforced rather than having Lord Vader take the crusade into his own hands.

( Much later certain elements take to “aiming” Lord Vader at sources of corruption/slavery/other horrors through similar efforts. Lord Solence knows, but is too amused by it all to intervene. Besides, Obi-Wan LIKES Anakin all bloody and feral and flushed with victory...)

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves here. By the time of AOTC the galaxy is only hearing rumours about the very charming Sith and his overgrown Murdercat of a partner.

The description is rather accurate. Anakin brings Obi-Wan all sorts of bloody presents, has been known to knock ancient Sith artefacts off high ledges and go around marking people as : “Mine” “Mine” “Mine” *hiss* “Not mine!”.

 Perhaps more pertinently however is his habit of lounging on his Master’s lap demanding head pets or lurking behind said Sith to unnerve those seeking an audience with the dread Lord Solence. 

Obi-Wan thinks Anakin is ADORABLE.

(It’s why again, much later, he smiles indulgently as Anakin singlehandedly decimates Zygerria -literally decimates the message needs to get out about how unwise it is to run a slaving empire after all and Obi-Wan is a believer in efficiency- and why part of Nal Hutta BURNS for Anakin’s brithday one year.)

Obi-Wan will do anything for his boy.

 His boy.

Not Sidious’.

Because that? That is what seals Palpatine’s fate. 

A number of incidents reveal that the Chancellor has taken an interest in the new elements in play. And in Lord Vader in particular.

He wants Anakin. And Anakin? Is Obi-Wan’s. Full stop.

This simply Will Not Do.

Lord Solence is out for more than blood. He is out for complete and utter ruination.

And this is how the Jedi Order, and the Republic ends up getting the unasked for assistance of a pair of mad Sith Lords set on ridding the galaxy of the Line of Bane.

.

There are many tales about our codependent pair. 

For a start, yes, of course there are pancakes.

Pancakes were Obi-Wan's bribe of choice all the way through Anakin's apprenticeship. And you can bet that Anakin loved every bite.

Of course, eventually puberty hit, and  Anakin began implying he'd accept something else. But Obi-Wan seems to completely miss the hint  and ask if he meant he wanted waffles instead. 

His continued lack of clue causes Anakin's frustration to grow. Along with his power. And Anakin decides that the only way to make his intentions clear is to be strong enough to MAKE Obi-Wan accept them, as a full fledged Sith Lord.

And then one day, he completes a difficult and dangerous mission, one that challenged all his skills, one that was a WORTHY trial for a young Sith.  And high on his victory he grabs Obi-Wan by the shoulders and kisses him full on.

Obi-Wan just smiles, reaches one hand up and with barely a moment’s movement severs the braid Anakin had kept for so long.

 “Congratulations LORD Vader. I was wondering why you would act. Sexual frustration is a powerful motivator, is it not?"he purrs and Anakin is about to settle in for an EPIC pout until Obi-Wan pets his hair, kisses him again and informs him that  he only Kisses those WORTHY of standing by his side. He wants a PARTNER. He knew Anakin would get there one day, it was just a matter of WHEN. Anakin SWOONS.

(While Anakin will ALWAYS be HIS Apprentice, Obi-Wan was not about to sleep with someone under his tutelage - he likes his partners VERY willing and knowing Anakin COULD kill him if it came to it? Super hot.) 

.

And then there is the time they decide to thwart a certain plan to silence Senator Amidala of Naboo... And discover she has it covered. With a blaster.

Pointed at them.

While she spits out a series of breathtaking insults against the CIS, Count Dooku and his assasins (which she assumes they are).

The boys are impressed,

There may of may not be hearteyes involved. 

There was... definitely some cringing and identity reveal.

( Obi-Wan lowers his hood, red eyes gleaming and smile wide  “It's lovely to see you again, milady - I can assure you we mean no harm" *suave hair flick*  She stutters. Padme never stutters "Ob...Knight Kenobi? You're alive!? But that means... Ani????"t  *said man removes his hood, grinning* "Ani, you've.... grown" “So have you. Grown more beautiful... for a Senator I mean”) 

.

The first bunch of flowers turns up within an hour of her getting back to Coruscant.

 A few days later Padme finds a bloodied Nate Gunray tied up with a giant bow outside her apartments. A box of chocolates and a datachip containing crucial intel are stuffed in his hat.

( Anakin was originally torn between being smitten and outraged that she was pointing a blaster at HIS Obi-Wan. On the other hand, this is his Master, and he is obviously in no danger and, ooh that is his impressed beard twitch!  Anakins' brain begins to put together the possibilities and HE nearly gets shot. A quick discussion afterwards and a reaffirmation that “What’s mine is yours and what’s yours is mine” and the boys decide upon a joint wooing. Given that in this universe Anakin doesn’t have the padawan cut, and Obi-Wan is wearing colours other than beige, Padme is doomed.)

This mission is also the point in which they reestablish contact with Jedi Master  Plo Koon, who was assigned to protect Senator Amidala alongside his new Padawan, Ahsoka Tano.

The boys think Ahsoka, who back talks to them like they AREN’T a pair of Murderous Madmen, is wonderful.  They totally want to steal her. Except they’re kind of fond of Plo, who remembers the Jedi they once were, has taken a more conciliatory approach to these Sith than the rest of the Council might approve of.

("Master Plo, you appear to have acquired a pair of Sith shadows." "They followed me home. Can I..." "No. You may NOT adopt the Sith reigning destruction and mayhem across the galaxy!" "But little 'Soka likes them! )

Plo, Ahsoka and Padme form an unofficial alliance. Anakin and Obi-Wan are undeniably Dark, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be convinced to work on the side of good! Also, they’re not sure just how much of the offer to grant Padme the galaxy on a silver platter was actually a joke...

Ok, that’s it for the moment! There’s plenty more to play with because you KNOW that the boys are going to completely ruin Palpatine’s plans in the most spectacular fashion, Dooku is going to have to deal with Obi-Wan’s complete and utter disdain ( "He claims to have loved Qui-Gon and yet he serves the man responsible for his death?? How very Sith rolls eyes"), Ventress is out there to induce Anakin’s jealousy (”Don't worry pretty boy, I like my men a little more... obedient") and just generally the tale of Sith Anakimono who has NO shame and an EVEN MORE attentive Master...

:)

[425599167]

Do you have any advice on writing Barriss? I got recommended you as the person to ask, because I was thinking about writing something with her.

Really? Alright, here are some guidelines for her and the other canon/legend characters I’ve included. Let me know if it helps.

Barriss:

Barriss embodies every contradiction and failing of Jedi philosophy. Pacifism when convenient, fear of the dark side despite fear being considered a path to it, all of that. Training her whole life to become a Jedi has left her mired in that mindset and she can’t see her way out, because she’s stopped wanting the thing she’s always wanted, and that would make all her efforts “pointless”.

Barriss is completely self-aware. On some level, she knows about #1. And it gnaws at her. Constantly. The reason she’s seemingly the first Jedi to have doubts about the war and act on them is because the contradictions became too much.

Barriss is resourceful. Combat-wise, she is scarily good at using the environment to her advantage, either through improvised weapons or use of terrain. This was obvious in her fight with Ashoka, hiding behind industrial machinery, creating distractions, and then the steam trick. This was also noticeable on Geonosis: it was her initial idea to use the enemy’s own tank against them. Depending on how much control the brain worm had, using shards of broken equipment may have also been her idea. Being weirdly proficient at combat is just another thing about herself that confuses and worries her.

Barriss isn’t dark-sided. Alignment in the Force is usually treated as dependent on intent, not consequence, that’s why dark sides rely on emotions like anger and hatred. Killing alone isn’t what draws on either side of the Force, motivation determine that. Barriss does not want to be what she is. She still killed those people, and has to be held responsible for it, but there wasn’t any real malevolence behind it, just fear and desperation. That’s not darkness on its own.

Barriss is highly intelligent, arguably the smartest padawan we see, probably one of the smartest people in the Jedi Order. Her memory is keen, and with adequate prep time, she can come up with detailed and extremely effective strategies. Improvisation isn’t her forte, but she can at least adapt fast enough to accomplish her goal. The only reason her plot failed, even after things started getting beyond her control, was because she let Ventress live and kept her sabers, which could charitably be interpreted as an act of self-sabotage.

Barriss is isolated. Sure, she gets along enough well with others, but Ahsoka was probably her only actual friend. Her self-image revolves around what (she thinks) Luminara thinks of her, and has no other role models. She hates being touched, but needs to be hugged.

Barriss is self-loathing. She’s a murderer and a hypocrite and she knows it. It’s important to note she considered herself those things before the bombing due to her participation in the war. She also has no idea what to do about it. No matter what opinion people have of her, in-universe or out, no one hates Barriss more than Barriss hates Barriss.

Ahsoka:

Ahsoka doesn’t like being jerked around. Attempts to manipulate or use her in any way really irritate her, especially after the events leading up to her leaving the Jedi. Any kind of foul play or indication of such will immediately tick her off. 

Ahsoka doesn’t like being alone. She was raised in a communal setting, and throughout the Clone Wars, there probably wasn’t a single day that went by without her interacting with Anakin, Obi-Wan, R2, other Jedi, the clones, or Padmé, all of whom were practically family to her. Now she doesn’t have them. At best, she knows they’re alive but can’t reach them, at worst, she knows or believes they’re dead. She’s getting new people in her life and mending her relationship with Barriss, but it’s difficult.

Ahsoka won’t hesitate. Her development didn’t just teach her restraint, it was gaining experience so she knows what to do immediately when split-second decision making is required. She’s a survivor, and will kill people if they’re a threat. Killing isn’t her go-to option, but if her opponent has to die for her or her friends to live, it’s the end for them.

Ahsoka is tough. Should go without saying at this point, but she’s extremely strong and is an experienced soldier and survivalist. She can whether harsh environments, and use weapons other than her saber with a reasonable degree of skill. The destruction of the Jedi and the Republic shook her, but she kept going. She hurts, but she endures. Somehow.

Ahsoka learns from her mistakes. She has combat experience both in space and on the ground, in infiltration and direct attack, some of which nearly killed her and those around her. Every lesson about what it means to be a Jedi, or a leader, she is paying attention and learning, even if she doesn’t get it right away.

Ahsoka is much like Anakin, except better. As her master, he’s had more of an effect on her than anyone else, acting as her primary role model. And she’s better than him. She’s less arrogant, more in control of her emotions, less aggressive, more self-reflective, and isn’t possessive of the people she cares about like he is. 

Thrawn:

Thrawn is a static character. That’s not a criticism of the writing behind him, Thrawn’s lack of personal development is the reason he’s a villain and the eventual cause of his death. He has immense intelligence, but never, not once at any point in his life does he commit any of it towards becoming a better person. He’s completely certain he’s thought everything out and chosen the best option. Throw whatever impassioned speech you want at him about the evils he’s committed, he won’t change. Rukh killed him because he kept the Noghri enslaved, even when he had all the power in the Empire and could’ve freed them, could’ve stopped compromising morality, could’ve stopped lying to himself, and he didn’t. 

Thrawn is a master of psychological warfare and counterintelligence. He understands others easily, but that skill is completely dedicated towards finding ways to bring them down, often by feeding them information which will cause them to act in a way that furthers his plans, or simply causes groups of enemies to lose cohesion because they don’t trust each other. He doesn’t just anticipate his enemies, he makes them do what he wants. Also the art thing is over-exaggerated. If you can come up with an interesting way to include it, great, but it’s really the least interesting or menacing thing about the character.

Thrawn has just enough noble qualities to make people think the Empire is something worth fighting for. While the xenophobic higher-ups in the Empire may loathe him, one of his greatest strengths is how he’s seen by people who serve under him. He values the lives of his soldiers, and won’t waste them. Through his skill as a strategist, he gives them hope of victory. He respects their work, and they know it. And it’s not an act. Vader is feared, Thrawn is respected. Palpatine controls, Thrawn leads.

Thrawn is only as evil as necessary, but he’s still Evil. Don’t ignore that.

Thrawn is alien. While he may be closer to human than many Star Wars species, he has an uncanny-valley creepiness to him in contrast to more overtly terrifying villains like Vader. One thing I wish Rebels had kept was that his eyes don’t have pupils; I understand it was so the audience can see where he’s looking, but not being able to read him would work in the show’s favor. Don’t show his inner thoughts unless it’s absolutely necessary. Keep his exact mindset and motivations unknown to everyone, including his allies. With Ahsoka, despite being non-human she still acts and emotes like one, and her alien features correspond to human ones i.e. hair and eyebrows. The audience is intended to treat Ahsoka like a human, while they should be given reminders that Thrawn is definitely not.

Talon Karrde:

Karrde honors his deals. If he says he’ll do something, he’ll do it, even if he does so at a loss, and he won’t pull any exact-words bullshit to wriggle out of it. He’s a good foil for Hondo Ohnaka.

Karrde is fair. His employees are paid well, and there are significant benefits to working for him, especially in comparison to other criminals. The agreements he makes with people that are mutually beneficial, and he’s open to renegotiation. Still, that’s all it is: an agreement. Working with him doesn’t make him your friend.

Karrde came from nothing. It’s never established in Legends, but I think this guy grew up poor, and now that he has considerable funds at his disposal with more coming in, he wants the bestest, highest-quality ships and equipment and supplies. For himself, and for the people who work for him. Looking down on him for being a smuggler is one of the few things that can get under his skin. Brings back memories. 

Karrde is nondescript. He’s got a lot of money, but nothing about his appearance and residence are ostentatious. It’s all part of keeping a low profile, not drawing more enemies by showing off his success.

Karrde keeps calm. Even in dire situations, the guy keeps a cool head and tries to see his way out of it. He’s in complete control of his facial expressions and body language, and gives nothing away. In Legends, he was able to keep out of Thrawn’s clutches for a while, and his abilities should reflect that.

Karrde tries to act True Neutral, but he’s actually Neutral Good. He doesn’t like people knowing this.

Oh boy, do I have thoughts on Revan:

Revan is not good or evil. In my opinion, it’s best when “Revan the Prodigal Knight” and “Darth Revan, Lord of the Sith” are only a hair’s breadth different from each other. Close enough you wouldn’t be able to tell which is which until you’ve had a very long discussion. My “light side” Revan holocron has not lost a step and is still one of the baddest (ex)meatbags in the galaxy. If they’re being written as a perfect hero or a remorseless monster, you’re missing a lot of opportunities.

Revan thinks in the long-term. The extreme long term. It wouldn’t be unusual for them to lay groundwork for objectives which are years, decades, or in the case of my Revan, centuries away. This is also a factor in how their sense of morality got warped, willing to sacrifice millions if it means the galaxy will still be populated in a thousand years. That big-picture thinking lets them shrug off the “small” stuff. Like the trail of corpses they leave.

Revan is a polymath. Much of what makes them so improbably hypercompetent is that, unlike many characters, they are not overspecialized either in skill or general knowledge. They don’t know everything, but they can be considered to have taken a 100-level course in basically any subject you want to bring up. They’ve canonically shown knowledge of strategy, tactics, politics, history, economics, sociology, linguistics, and multiple fields of engineering ranging from functional to expert, in addition to detailed understanding of the Jedi and Sith.

Revan is pretty laid back most of the time. They’re probably the least dramatic Sith… for however much that’s worth, and are pretty forgiving. While Malak was giddily prepping the stage for their climactic final duel on the top deck of the Star Forge, Revan was probably standing alone in the elevator during the long ride up the megastructure, humming their own made-up theme music or something. Among Star Wars characters, they have one of the more deliberate senses of humor, intentionally making jokes rather than incidentally doing things the audience might be amused by. Even when explaining something deeply philosophical, they speak with a casual tone and vocabulary you’d expect of an average person. They know bigger words, in several languages, but if the intent is communicating a point to people, there’s no need to act sophisticated. They’re not overly polite or sesquipedalian, and they’re not reserved about profanity.

Revan doesn’t depend on the Force. I have no love for Kreia, but this is consistent with what you might expect from her training. While stronger with it, Revan is fully capable of fighting without supernatural aid, or lightsabers for that matter. In-game, they show skill in using vibroblades, blasters, and various explosives, and the game allows the use of advanced cybernetic implants. Even after becoming a Jedi again, Revan is the one operating the gun turret and regularly shooting down whole squads of fighters. They’re also capable of talking their way out of most situations either through negotiation, bribery, lies, or threats, to the point where a high persuade skill is arguably better than the mind-trick power. For all the jokes about how most players approached the final battle with Malak with mines, to me, it’s completely in character for Revan to have been using grenades and mines both out of practicality, and to mock Malak with the fact he’s getting a taste of his own medicine by getting blown up from a distance.

Revan doesn’t care for your rules. This isn’t some juvenile “rebellious” attitude. It’s logically picking apart constraints and flawed processes, not for the sake of doing so, but because they are wrong, Revan can prove it, and they are superior to those who refuse to address their own mistakes as a result. No one and nothing is above criticism or ridicule, ever. And that includes Revan themself. They can take (useful) criticism.

Revan is a control freak. Their core flaw is immense confidence in their own superiority over everyone driving them to control everything because they can clearly do it better than anybody else can. People don’t often pick up on this because a) it’s a fun and necessary part of the game and b) Revan usually does do a better job than everybody. This behavior is obvious as a Sith, but even as a Jedi, Revan is someone who takes it upon themself to solve every single problem they encounter. Revan was the only one who could stop the Mandalorians. The only one who could save the Republic. The only one who could control the Star Forge. The only one who can beat Malak. You could make jokes about how everyone else in the galaxy is too incompetent to do anything right, or you could see various unnecessary sidequests as examples of Revan needlessly inserting themself into every situation they come across to exercise their power, benevolently motivated or otherwise. Revan didn’t need to hunt those bounties on Taris, or become swoop champion on two planets, or literally beat every professional pazaak player in the galaxy at their own game, or decide the outcome of the Sunry trial, or do every single thing possible to get prestige on Korriban when half would do, or hunt down and kill that woman’s fuckbot. That last one didn’t even have any reward, but they do it all anyway. The ultimate end of a light-sided Revan’s character development is to give up on this mindset, summed up with one really underrated line in the tomb of Naga Sadow, directed at Sith who consider themselves so much better than other people and think you should, too: “I don’t believe you. I don’t feel superior to anyone.” If Revan is dark-sided, they never learn when to quit and the entire galaxy suffers for it. Even if you’re writing them as light-sided, those are tough habits to break.

Avoiding pronouns is surprisingly easy and I recommend doing so.

[comic-movieheroesranked]

Cinematic Comic Characters Ranked! (Year 2008) Part Three

Wow, I just want to say that 2008 really stepped it up when it came to comic movies released. Granted, a couple weren’t the best but overall this year was one of the best out of the bunch. The Dark Knight and Hellboy II: The Golden Army are the only sequels this year, while The Punisher: War Zone and The Incredible Hulk serve as reboots. Star Wars: The Clone Wars serves as a prequel and we also see the debut of Iron Man, Speed Racer, The Spirit and Wanted! Lets start off our largest list yet! Here’s #40-21!

*SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THE MOVIES HIGHLIGHTED ABOVE*

40. Lucias Fox (The Dark Knight)

"Consider this my resignation: As long as this technology is at Wayne Enterprises, I won't be."

Lucius Fox is still running Wayne Enterprises by day and creating the latest technology for Batman by night. His recent work in sonar helps Batman in his mission to retrieve Lau from China and also in the end to hijack every phone in the city to spy on the Joker. It's nice to see Lucius isn't blindly loyal to Bruce as he threatens to quit as long as the technology is still around, but his worries are put to rest when the technology destroys itself after capturing the Joker.

39. Pekwarsky (Wanted)

"I want you to live."

I don't know if Pekwarsky is a real priest or just uses it as a cover, but if he isn't bluffing then it's pretty ironic that he makes bullets for Cross as a little side job. He knows all about Sloan's corrupted ways and helps Wesley discover the truth after he kills Cross. He wants Wesley to honor his father's dying wish and leave the assassin life, but doesn't argue when Wesley refuses.

38. Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (The Incredible Hulk)

"As far as I'm concerned, that man's whole body is property of the U.S. army."

Betty's arrogant father, who wants the power of the Hulk to be a military weapon for the U.S. army and starts a witch hunt for Bruce once the man goes M.I.A. Hardly anything would stop this man from his quest, barely even his own daughter. It's his drive to capture Bruce that ends up aiding Emil's transformation into Abomination so he really should take some blame on the attack in New York. In the end, he gets saved by the very thing he despises, Bruce.

37. Mom and Pops Racer (Speed Racer)

"I saw my son become a man."

Pops used to be a big time racer and often goes head to head with his sons, first Rex and then Speed once he's 18. At the end of the day, though, Mom and Pops still end up supporting Speed in everything he does. We even get to see Pops kick some major ninja ass.

36. Ellen Dolan (The Spirit)

"You're in love with every woman you meet, Mr. Spirit."

Ellen Dolan isn't just the new flame of The Spirit, she's the best surgical doctor Central City has. She ends up arriving to several crime scenes to help out victims and even The Spirit himself, even if he tries to deny any help. Even though they're clearly dating, The Spirit just can't help himself when it comes to flirting with the ladies and MAYBE  that has to do with Ellen letting it happen and forgiving him right away every time it happens. Maybe she's into it, but one day she's probably going to skip throwing operation knives at walls and go straight to throwing them at The Spirit himself.

35. Asajj Ventress (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

"Typical Jedi scum!"

Ventress is a sith lord working for Count Dooku. She's the one that originally kidnaps Jabba the Hutt's newborn son and then stages it to make it seem like the Republic were the ones behind it. When she's ordered to 'rescue' the baby, she fails to defeat Anakin and Ahsoka even after using her cool mind control powers on Rex. She finally goes head to head with Obi-Wan Kenobi but proves to be no match for the experienced jedi.

34. Frank Castle/The Punisher (Punisher: War Zone)

"This is just the beginning."

Yes, this is the lowest the main character of a film has been ranked. Even though I think the first Hulk was worst, to be fair, this version of Frank Castle just doesn't deserve to be placed higher than the rest of the list. This rebooted/sequel version of Castle felt like a parody of the first Punisher and man was it a  bad one. He was so slow in his movement and he had the emotional capacity of a brick wall. If it weren't for Jigsaw and Looney Bin Jim getting on my nerves, I don't think I would've rooted for him. And the Punisher is one of my favorite characters, maybe that's why he's so low, but damn it was just such a downgrade from his appearance in 2004.

33. Yinsen (Iron Man)

"So you're a man that has everything...and nothing."

Why was this man so nice? I don't believe anyone deserves the kindness he showed to Tony right off the back as he basically saved his life, even though he had to implant a car battery to his chest. He helps Tony create the prototype suit to escape by saying he will join his family after. It isn't until Yinsen gets critically wounded that he reveals his family has been dead the entire time and is ready to join them in the afterlife. Like, really? We didn't deserve him!

32. Rex Racer/Racer X (Speed Racer)

"It's a mistake I'll have to live with."

The entire movie the mystery is whether or not Racer X is Speed's older brother Rex, who was thought to be dead after a horrible car crash. Turns out he is, but no one in his family finds out, as Racer X decides that it's better for them not to know. I don't get why he wears a mask when his face completely unrecognizable but hey, maybe he was going for an aesthetic. He ends up supporting his brother the entire movie as Speed brings down the corrupt Royalton and winning the two races Racer X never did when he was Rex.

31. Cross (Wanted)

"You're my son."

I had a feeling something was up with Cross since he appeared to be the main villain, yet we were getting no backstory whatsoever or any scenes with him coming up with a plan or just anything that proved he was the bad guy besides killing the assassins from the Fraternity. Turns out, not only is he good and trying to stop Sloan's corrupted ways, he's even Wesley's father and has been trying to rescue him from the beginning. Too bad he literally dies right after Wesley discovers the truth, but that's only because Wesley was the one to shoot him in the first place.

30. James Rhodes (Iron Man)

"Next time, baby."

Military General and former MIT classmate of Tony Stark, Rhodey Rhodes is obviously not the biggest fan Tony Stark. He respects him, that much is obvious, but the two have completely different personalities that tend to crash throughout the film. It doesn't help that Tony literally always causes trouble on military level and Rhodey is always left in the dark, until he finally discovers that Tony is Iron Man and helps him take down Iron Monger.

29. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

"You'll have to do better than that, my darling."

I just want to say that Obi-Wan Kenobi is so damn charming! Even when he's going up against people who are truly trying to kill him he can't help but let his charming, yet shady, comments slip his tongue. I feel like they tried to go that route with the live-action films but they didn't really pull it off like this film did. Obi-Wan teams up with Yoda and assign Ahsoka to Anakin to train, hoping the latter grows now that he's a teacher. He spends most of the film arriving just in time to clean up Anakin's mess and save his life, as a responsible master should.

28. Alfred Pennyworth (The Dark Knight)

"Some men just want to watch the world burn."

Everyone's favorite butler is back and he's still made of 100% sass. He still constantly worries about Bruce and if it were up to him, there would be no Batman, but he still offers his help whenever he can, especially once the Joker starts getting momentum in his plans. It's Alfred who gets Bruce to realize that Joker is a man that doesn't fit the mold of the average criminal, a unique breed that just does things for the hell of it. Still always trying to protect Bruce, he hides Rachel's letter-which basically has her dumping him-from him after she dies.

27. Liz Sherman (Hellboy II: The Golden Army)

"You should be running."

It's great to see that Liz has gotten more control of her fire abilities because who wouldn't be worried about her blowing up all of Hellboy's kittens every time they got in an argument? She shows her control when she ends up saving the team from being devoured by a bunch of cannibalistic tooth fairies. It's also during the fight that we learn she's pregnant with Hellboy's baby. She keeps him from the truth, worried he isn't mature enough to handle being a father. She changes her mind though when he nearly dies and has to convince the Angel of Death herself to bring him back. In the final battle, Liz is the one who destroys the Golden Crown, and therefore destroys the Golden Army, once and for all. When she quits, along with the rest of the team, she tells Hellboy that they're expecting twins.

26. Betty Ross (The Incredible Hulk)

"You zip it. We're walking."

I really liked Betty in this film. She got seriously hurt when Bruce first turned into the Hulk but still managed to jump into him with open arms because she knew right away that the Hulk wasn't something that Bruce could control. As soon as they're reunited their romance returns and Betty helps Bruce travel the country to find a solution to his problem, while also trying to avoid her father and the U.S. army. What makes Betty so important is that she's Bruce's anchor. Three times she's been able to snap him out of his uncontrolled rage just with the sound of her voice, helping him finally control his anger.

25. Silken Floss (The Spirit)

"The Octopus always finds his nemesis so distracting."

Silken Floss was probably the smartest person in Central City but for some reason just decided to take orders from The Octopus. Maybe it was the fact that he can't die or maybe it's because she truly just thinks all of this is fun. She's the only female who doesn't fall for The Spirit's charm, probably because she's gotten used to being complimented by all the dumb clones around her.

24. Sloan (Wanted)

"Otherwise, shoot THIS motherfucker and let us take our fraternity of assassins to heights reserved only for the gods of men!"

I like Sloan's character because it allowed me to witness Morgan Freeman shout 'motherfucker' in the most gangsta way possible. Besides that, Sloan is just a man with power that gets carried away. After the code he serves basically betrays him, he uses it and the strength of his assassins for his own gain until he's discovered by Cross. Not wanting to ruin what he built he ends up lying to Wesley, Cross's son, and convinces him to kill Cross himself. Too bad for him, Wesley finds out and gets his revenge, killing Sloan at the very end of the movie.

23. Padme Amidala (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)

"It is I, and the Republic, who owe you our thanks."

Padme came in late in the game but man did she show up! As soon as she finds out Anakin may be in trouble with the Hutts, she goes out on her own to try to settle things down between the Hutts and the Republic. She ends up discovering that Jabba the Hutt was betrayed by his uncle and Coun Dooku but gets captured before she can reveal the truth. She manages to send out a distress signal and then agrees to a treaty with Jabba once she reveals Ziro the Hutt's betrayal. Her little moment with Anakin was super cute and I'm glad they didn't spend too much time on their relationship.

22. Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger (Iron Man)

"Trying to rid the world of weapons, you gave it it's best one ever!"

Maybe Tony is too trusting because it was fairly obvious that Obadiah was out to get him. Ok, so I don't think anyone could have predicted that Obadiah was trying to kill Tony but it was clear that he was not his friend when it came to the company. He piggybacked off the success of Tony's father and then lead the company himself after he died. Did anyone honestly think he willingly gave that position of power away to Tony and was ok with it? It's laughable thought that he wants to steal the company when the only reason it's successful is because of Tony. Obadiah has no credit to himself, the whole movie he just tries to steal Tony's ideas. He even names his suit Iron Monger, which is barely different from Iron Man. In the final confrontation Tony proves he's smarter than Obadiah and fries him in his suit with the help of Pepper.

21. Speed Racer (Speed Racer)

"Racing is all I know how to do."

It's not surprising at all that the greatest race car driver is named Speed Racer. I mean the name is as creative as North West. But you know what would've been interesting? If Speed was actually a horrible driver or wanted nothing to do with racing because he didn't enjoy it. But it's fine, this works too. Speed himself is a little boring, his one-liners aren't that witty and his supporting team are a bit more interesting than him. He's just super bland but at least he stands up for what's right and never once considers giving up.

[dreadedloreenkid]

I want to know all of the star wars asks, but I don't think you'd appreciate them all at once... so 1-10? or all, I don't mind :)

@ct-hardcase​​ also asked me for some of these, so here goes. Sorry it’s late! Long post, so it’s under the cut.

1. Favourite Star Wars movie? (Episode 1-R1)Episode III: Revenge Of The Sith

2. Favourite Star Wars era? Rise Of The Empire, but I’ve recently been getting into the Empire (19BBY-0ABY) a lot.

3 Favourite Star Wars trilogy? (Originals, Prequels, Sequels)Look, I love them all, but I’ll have to say Prequels, even though it’s pretty even, because I have a lot of nostalgic memories attached to them.

4. Jedi or Sith? I think Sith, from the point of view that I love learning about them and their history and doctrines. The Jedi are super interesting too, especially when delve deep into the political aspect of the Order. Idk, they’re both interesting in different ways.

5. Empire or Rebellion?Well, if you’d asked me this a few years ago I would have said Empire without hesitation, but now that I know and care more about the Galactic Civil War era, I have to say Rebellion.

6. Bounty Hunter or Clone/Strom/First order Trooper? CLONE TROOPERS!

7. Rebels or Clone wars? Clone Wars

8. Favourite Star Wars book?I must confess, I haven’t read many Star Wars books; of those I have, I’d probably say Aftermath: Empire’s End? 

9. Favourite Star Wars Comic? I’ve never actually read any of the comics

10. Favourite Star Wars game? Star Wars: Battlefront 2 (the original from 2005, obviously). What an iconic game. I wish I still had a working PS2 to play it on, because I will never ever be bored of it. Empire At War is a close second, I really wish they had done a Clone Wars era edition of it.

11. Top 5 favourite female Jedi?Ahsoka Tano (who is not a Jedi anymoer and I strongly support that decision)Shaak TiAayla SecuraRey SkywalkerDepa Bilaba

12. Top 5 favourite male Jedi?Obi-Wan KenobiLuke SkywalkerQui-gon JinnKit FistoPlo Koon, 

13. Top 5 favourite Bounty Hunters?Jango FettAsajj VentressJas EmariEmboBoba Fett 

14. Top 5 favourite Sith?Darth MaulDarth SidiousAsajj VentressDarth VaderDarth Bane

15. Top 5 favourite Droids? Individual droids: -Mister Bones-C1-10P-R2-D2-General Kalani-C-3POModels: -OOM-Series Battle Droid-P-Series Droideka-HMP Droid Gunship-Vulture Droid-OG-9 Homing Spider Droid

16. Top 5 favourite Troopers? Fives (ARC-5555) Rex (CT-7567) Keeli Tup (CT-5385)Gregor (CC-5576-39)

7. Top 5 favourite Senators? Padmé AmidalaMon MothmaBail OrganaRiyo ChuchiLeia Organa (NR)

18. Top 5 favourite Republic/Rebellion shipsVenator-Class Star Destroyer (GR)LAAT/i Gunship (GR)ARC-170 Starfighter (GR)T65-B X-Wing Starfighter (RA/NR) Mon Calamari Star Cruiser (RA/NR)

19. Top 5 favourite Separatist/Imperial shipsRecusant-Class Light Destroyer (CIS)Imperial I-Class Star Destroyer (GI)TIE-series Starfighters (GI)Lucrehulk-Class Battleship (CIS)Providence-Class Star Dreadnought (CIS)

20. Top 5 favourite planets? NabooGeonosisCoruscantKashyyykMandalore

21. Where would you live in the Star Wars universe?Naboo, no question

22. Who would you be in the Star Wars universe?In terms of occupation, I think I’d be happy as a public official on Naboo tbh, nothing too fancy, but high enough to go travelling as part of diplomatic entourages. 

23. What ship would you own?I think I would like to own nice Naboo yacht, something like what Padme had at the start of Episode II; otherwise, something reliable and reasonably comfortable, like a Corellian light freighter or similar. A customised Sheathipede class shuttle or Lambda class shuttle would be nice too.

24. What Droid would you own?I’m not sure that I’d own a droid, but I guess they’re useful so probably an astromech or a repurposed OOM-series or B1 battledroid.

25. Would you have a team, or would you work alone? Well, ideally I’d love to have a team of friends that I could trust and keep me company.

26. If you where a Jedi, would you be a Knight or a Master?I think I’d be a Knight. My disdain for the Council and their dogmatic doctrines would make them disinclined to grant me the rank of master, I should think.

27. If you where a Jedi Master, would you have a Padawan?Maybe? I doubt it, but alternatively I might be able to give them a better, more honest and open view of the galaxy than a more orthodox master.

28. If you where a Sith, would you be the Master or Apprentice? Oh, the apprentice for sure. I don’t have it in me to be a Sith master; I wouldn’t be a very good Sith. I mean, I can see myself using the Dark Side maybe, but I would never subscribe to the Sith Creed or doctrines.

29. If you where a Sith Lord, would you have an Apprentice?No, given that the Rule Of Two dictates that the apprentice only becomes master by killing theirs.  

30. Married, in a relationship, or single? Well, it’d be lovely to have a hubby or two, but you know, that’s down to the circumstances. I wouldn’t actively avoid or search for relationships, though.

31. Top 5 favourite species?GeonosiansZabrakWookiesTwi’leksMon Cala

32. What species would you be? Probably human tbh.

33. What species is your type? Uhhhhh………that’s an interesting question. Do Mandalorians count as a species? But that’s just because of Jango and the clones. Maybe Nautolans?

34. Who would your best friend be?I don’t know, I’ve never thought about this sort of thing. 

35. Would you customise your ship? Someone who I trust, because I’m not very good at mechanics and engine things. If I’m honest, I probably wouldn’t customise at all.

36. Would you customise your Droid? Again, someone I trust and who knows their stuff.

37. What colour skin/eyes would you have?I really have no idea. Given I haven’t even thought about being a different species, I think I’ll have to pass on this one.

38. If male, beard or no beard?Beard if I can. Love facial hair. 

39. 1 lightsaber, 2 lightsabers, double lightsaber, or 2 double lightsabers?Look, I’d love to go for double lightsabre (sabrestaff), but I would probably end up killing myself with it, so I think in reality I would keep it safe with a single sabre. 

40. What colour would your lightsaber(s) be?BLUE! Even though in Legends canon (and possibly current canon?) blue represents a warrior, someone who about taking action, whilst green represents thinking and analysing (which is more me). I’ve also been told by online quizzes that I should have orange, but no thanks.

41. If you’re a Bounty Hunter, what armour would you have? Phase 1 Clone armour with kama, pauldron, and all that jazz. 

42. Would you customise your armour? Definitely. Gotta look snazzy.

43. What colour scheme would your armour/robes be? I’m not sure. I think white, green, and blue would look good. Although, I might go for white, purple, and black.

44. If you where a Droid, what Droid would you be? I mean, I’d like to be something intelligent but also powerful and capable of looking after itself. Maybe a super tactical droid?45. What colour would your droid self be? Purple, blue, yellow…those sorts of colours I guess.

46. Pod racing or ship racing? I don’t have a death wish, so ship racing.

47. Space battle or ground battle?? Ooh, that’s a tough question. In Star Wars there are lots of cool things about both, but I’ll go with space, because I think my naval strategy would be a little better than my surface strategy, and it’s easier to escape if it all goes tits up.

48. Would you have survived order 66?Almost certainly not.

49. Where would you go after order 66? Probably a small, peaceful world on the edge of the known regions (if I could find one)

50. What would you do after order 66? Probably just hide, maybe try to resist if I encountered a rebel cell. I think these are the sorts of things that people always say “well, this is what I would have done”, but noone really knows exactly how they’ll react until they’re actually in these situations.

51. Do you have any Star Wars Pop Vinyls?Yes! I have a Queen Amidala one.

52. Do you have any Star Wars collections?I have a lot of Star Wars Lego.

53. Do you have any Star Wars art? I have some BTS prints from Episode V and Episode VI, otherwise no.

54. Do you create any Star Wars art?Nope, can’t draw at all, never really been interested that much in the visual arts. I used to try to copy the technical drawings in Incredible Cross Sections when I was a kid though.

55. Do you like/read any Legends/non canon stuff? I loved the young Boba Fett books (the ones that took place between Episodes II and III), and I loved the storyline of Battlefront II until Disney decanonised it. There’s also a lot of non-canon information in Incredible Cross Sections that was super fascinating. Having said this, I still support the decision to redo the EU canon and clean it up, because imo there was way too much crap in the EU that was just plain rubbish.

56. Top 5 favourite Legends character? I’m sorry, I don’t know enough for this.

57. Who is your Star Wars role model? It has to be Padmé Amidala. She is resilient, skillful, intelligent, principled, and compassionate. When I was a kid I used to pretend to be her.

58. Top 5 saddest Star Wars deaths? The entire Order 66 sequence in ROTSFivesSatine KryzePadmé AmidalaHan Solo

59. If you could bring any Star Wars character back to life who would it be? Padmé Amidala

60. If you found out the Star Wars universe was real, would you move there or stay here? Stay here, obviously. Have you watched Star Wars?! Sith, pirates, bounty hunters, crime lords, totalitarian regimes, corporations that have official political representation and own entire planet systems?! I think I’ll stay put, thanks.

61. On a scale of 1-10 (1 being very little, 10 being an absolute know it all) how well do you know the Star Wars universe? 8.5, maybe a 9?

I hope those answers were satisfactory! Thanks for the asks!

[outshinethestars]

I just watched the clone wars movie and wrote over a thousand words of notes.  Because I’m committed like that.  They’re under the cut.

Anakin doesn’t want to drag a padawan into a warzone.

Ahsoka has a good idea, and it’s tech related

Rex Laughs

I think he likes Ahsoka’s lack of respect.  Also, babysitting Ahsoka is probably punishment for the laugh.

Ahsoka’s first suggestion is to better protect the men.  Also, does Rex sort of agree with her?  But Anakin overruled him? That’s… disturbingly Krellish.

There’s the famous line!

Rex forsees a life of headaches for himself and Obi-Wan.  Though  Obi-Wan isn’t quite as stuck with them as he is.

…so we know that Yoda has a history of using padawans as therapy animals, and I think it’s pretty clear that he’s sent Ahsoka to Anakin in order to teach him responsibility/have someone who compliments his personality.  But do you think Ahsoka maybe…knows? Sort of?  I mean the way she’s handling him, with all the “Nope, you gotta come up with the ideas, I will wait and learn from you.  You better be a good role model now.” I’m… probably reading too much into this.  I love angst far too much.

They are hiding in a box!  I love when I discover the sources of memes.

Ahsoka really, really wants to fight.

You know it’s bad when Anakin’s the patient one.

Rex has come so far.  What with the laugh and the questioning of General Kenobi’s orders. (this is in regards to my own headcanon/AU)  They seem to know each other pretty well.  Also he totally knows that Obi-Wan will do something incredibly stupid in two seconds.  I bet Cody made him promise to stay by his side and watch his back (because at least Anakin has a sort of functional sense of self preservation, but Obi-Wan does not).  I bet Rex feels bad now, and is terrified that Cody will kill him if something happens.  But orders are orders.

Ahsoka is REALLY good at fighting.  Like, she is SO powerful in the force tossing things around like it’s nothing.

Anakin was kind of harsh there, I mean, she did mess up, sure, but this is her FIRST BATTLE.  She’s doing pretty good for a shiny. (Of course, it’s because he’s terrified for her.  Because somehow the only one who is cognizant of the fact that a fourteen year old in a war zone is stupid is the slave boy who once competed in a deadly pod race at the age of nine.

Rex is definitely panicking on the inside.  We can’t tell, of course, but he is. (Cody will KILL him.)

Ahsoka has amazing spacial awareness.  And again with the force strength.

Anakin is really not appreciating. It’s understandable. But Ahsoka isn’t having quite as good a day as she would like, probably.

Clone Wars is the best at war.  All the death.  Though none near Ahsoka as of yet.

Why isn’t Obi-Wan afraid the tea is poisoned? Why isn’t it poisoned?  Is it?

Ahsoka sits by herself forlornly

Anakin joins her

That’s sweet but… not the tiniest bit true.  Like, I saw this in caption form before and…Does Anakin really not know Obi-Wan at all? (he doesn’t.  I really want to kill Palpatine.)

Rex praise!  (Also, he says great job to Anakin like… he’s proud of him. Like, in the way a dad or someone “above” would say to someone “below”.  Interesting.)

Why Yoda? Why? This isn’t quite as bad as Kadavo will be, but it’s pretty kriffin’ stupid.  The level of disbelief in Anakin’s voice is perfect.

Having Obi-Wan handle this sort of thing does sort of make sense in a way.

Ahsoka already talks about Rex with such familiarity.

Obi-Wan’s disgusted with making deals with hutts too.

Ahsoka bonds with clones.  Rex thinks that she and the General are hilarious, I think.

Anakin…isn’t the best example for humility, really.

Ahsoka’s first encounter with actual war. She’s a bit overwhelmed at first

Okay.  I’m probably am reading too much into this and too desperately want Ahsoka to care about clones, but.  The rock climber thing gets hit and a clone inside yells, and the next thing we know, Ahsoka’s up on front fending of blaster bolts.

Poor long-suffering Rex

Anakin, there are ALREADY people looking after the wounded.  You don’t have to tell them that.  (It shows you cares, though, which is important.)

…Servant girl… togruta racism confirmed?  Also, non-human protocol droid.  Cool.

Ahsoka likes killing things way too much.

Poor conflicted Anakin.  The baby hutt really is cute.

…so that was unfortunate.

Ahsoka’s afraid she’s too young. This could fit with some Plo Koon ideas

When did Ahsoka get to know R2?

REX IS AWESOME AND I LOVE HIM! He’s one of those people who will shoot at powerful force users.  And also be creative about force suggestion.

Okay, no.  THIS is Rex being awesome.  He hit a droid hard enough to make its head spin and proceeded to destroy them even surrounded.  Also He is so confident.  He knows he can do this.

He does not ask for help.

Ahsoka is really worried about Stinky.  Not so much about Rex?  … interesting…  I guess it makes sense to worry about the tiny, very sick child, and she figures Rex can take care of himself

Good job talking like you only care about Rex’s safety because you need him for something, Anakin.

“I hope I don’t have to learn that.”  I like the idea that Ahsoka trained super hard and is freakishly prepared for this.  She doesn’t like the idea of it being not enough, that she’s still out of her element (see 38) but she’s determined to learn more and become better.

Obi-Wan and Oddball bit is so good.  Clone panicking and apologizing for it.  Obi-Wan being understanding and reassuring and saving him.

droids really are stupid.  Rex takes advantage of this.

Obi-Wan and Ventress are dancing.  Because of course they are.

… “I tried to stay calm,focussed and everything seemed so easy” 8 maybe?

How many clones just died?  I hate this show. (except that I don’t)

They could really use a medic

Anakin is really sweet

Ooh holo med droid

I love how much confidence Anakin and Obi-Wan had in each other

Ahsoka is so unimpressed, even though Anakin’s flying really is impressive.

R2 is a war droid

Ahsoka already knows Anakin’s looks

Obi-Wan: Did you get shot down again?  Ahsoka: yes

Padme is really, really obvious. Everybody has to know she and Anakin are married

Palpatine trying to undermine Padme

Ahsoka’s really nosy.  Kinda naive?  Also she tries to be positive/cheer Anakin up.  (8?)

Leia is Padme’s daughter.

Anakin asks Ahsoka to trust him

Reverse psychology is very effective on droids even… are these assassin droids? who are presumably a little smarter than battle droids.

Anakin fights Dooku with sand

Anakin already has a lot of faith in Ahsoka

“Stinky, you watch my back” Ahsoka is adorable.

The Coruscant troopers get to be awesome.

have I mentioned that Ahsoka is awesome in this?  Because she is awesome

[throwingideasatthewall]

Clone Wars     Episode 9

     (Cloak of Darkness)

[Title     Scene!]

  Quote; Ignore your instincts   at your own peril

  Oof  

Acc  o    un   tability       Instincts

And  

Conscience

Valid

But also sounds like a vague threat to the   viewer

“Vice        Roy,”

  This       is where we’re starting off       on?

   Not the best episode

The first one to get a strike   from me

Who knows maybe it’s just a bad starting place   and they make something out of it

Er-

 “Luminara        And      Ahsoka,”

Interesting,     that is a good start

Showing that   Anakin has no control of his   Padawan

And opening the door for   New dynamics

Sounds interesting

Honestly, I don’t   know much   about     Luminara       so this      will    be    a   good        For        Her

“ under heavy guard,”

 It’s   two     people

 Face      Trial

 And       Get       Acquitted

“For    his   many        war   crimes,”

 Why   don’t   you   just   kick     this   bitch   from   society

Make   him   deal   with   himself

 What     did     the    other   prisoners      do      to   deserve          his            Company

   Oh            This character

   Also - still don’t   get the close-ups on      her face

Is this like the   second time   it’s happened?

Don’t think it happened with any other characters though  Obi wan is a glory hound

“ have you made contact with the   cruiser?”

  Good leadership           (Kinda)

              Assumed                    authority                               Kind

Good scene

But those dude’s eyes

Blink

Professional

Bull shit

Scam art       ist

I’m glad it seems to have the awareness   not to have the clones fall for this

“Generous,”

Fuck off old man

Also Luminara just called him    ‘Subtley’     a piece of work

Good for her

Dude don’t   respond to him

Don’t let him have any control   or say in your life

“Tempting   offer,”

“ I have a   gift for you,”

Snarky   little   shit

Also; I thought he was going to go for the   gag

What     have   really   been      the    tea

“Finally,”          Nope       Tone     is   already     out     the   window

 I’m   starting      to   think     it’s      a   problem     with   female   characters

  But      Lumi nara       hear      sounds     perf   ectly      fine

Maybe     it’s    just   child   female   characters...

  Nice

 Really         Like          The        Design       Going        Here

  Ooh      Sweet     columns       Here

All around the sides give it abstract   value

Like salagtites

Why   doesn’t someone   muzzle   him?

Like I know the moral reasons   why

But   if you’re going to     enable     Please   do with the utmost care to your   safety

And   at least bring some of   ear phones

So... you don’t have to   listen to this   tox

Lit      igator

On one hand   playing by your own rules

On the other hand, accountability

And   how it lends itself to vigilante justice

 “Keep moving,”

Assault’s not   cool

Hahaha

I’m sorry

WHAT

Is with the dude’s    design?

He looks like   a guy   out of an old Timey      story   book

“His locks shimmered in the breeze like   Golden sunlight,’

He looks like his name is to be      Valor   Mic   -do        -good

I’m sorry that’s enough   roasting of   his design

(It’s not that         bad)

Traitor

Commander    Gre-

“Let’s   move,”

  Right      Into     His     Ear

 Gree   doesn’t     give       a     fuck

Getting   revenge     for   getting     his      ear     talked     off

Just   tossing       him      off

   Oh       no       wait        they’re   following   him   good

    I      expect   some   treachery       to      go    down

(Specifically-)

  Senator       Commando   s

 “Rate        all   security,”

  A) he’s           a war criminal

     They   want to make a show out of him

 And show they can handle it

 It’s a propaganda move

Secondly they operate under the   enabler, “Several people dec     ided to enable him so clearly   only he’s   the problem and the   others   were just poor souls   lead astray,”

(Despite the fact that this completely   un   dermineds the ability of   choice

And paint them as well-)

Actually children does work in this   analogy

 Since they will just   do   orders      And   that’s   why   they’re   not   accountable

(Only    wish      “Uncle”       Eeroy            Was       up           There)

            If I can                twist                 that             episode                 into                 any              positive                light                 it’s             showing                 how                adults                  will                  try                   to                  use               children                   to               validate             themselves                (And                  their             bullshit)

          Don’t           let            your       overconfidence           give        Gunnar         another     advantage

   She’s a child

 Gunnery       already       has       the       advantage

   As an adult

   Sure she has a gun

   That.... expression is more along the lines of what I was   expecting

  We’re going for   dull

  Ahsoka wouldn’t really   care

 Also,       ships

Don’t look like   Republic   ships

And   intimidating   music   is   playing

What’s the scoop?

Hologram?

Sidious

Dooku??

 “Vice        Roy,”

    He’s going to escape ?

   I have already put a plan into action   my Lord

   Also cloaks just coming back in   style

 Also   glad   we’re     getting     to    see     more    of   the     other     villains

Having   focused   on   Grievous   for     hours

  * They wore it   better

  “ my best apprentice            Asaj Ventress,”

   Oh we’re getting a bit of a          re-introduction to her

    And (Kinda) an answer to who that person he was      communicating   with earlier     are

 *was

   * or silence him

   Rough

 “ Ventress,”

  I like   how they keep     the diagonal lines      On Sidious’s        face

   To make his       chancellor    persona

 That’s    good   attention       to        detail

  “ you are putting a lot of faith in an operative      that has failed us in the past,”

   Call back

  “She’s a gifted       assassin,”

Aww,      he looks so innocent     here

  Also,     complements

“ you may proceed,”

Off,       Sidious sounds pretty old in that last line

Oof

“Master,”

  “There        is no   margin for error,”

 “Child,”

Okay,     woah, woah    gross

 She supposed to be a grown woman     right?

  Because otherwise holding her to the completely Wrong standard

  That’s not how you do    over sexualization of children       If Not that that’s just a standard   tox

  Comparing a grown woman to     an undeveloped-

 Let’s just hope   they don’t go down      that lane 

“ being my apprentice,”

 Being my   sub-servient

“ I am worthy,”

 “ As you shall       see,”

 Having to prove your worth   to others

 Tox.

Ship!

 Oh

Dressed     Like    Cen      turons

 The design  in this episode     is   very     goofy

Oof

Walking   towards   a normal      clone

How     goes    the   interrogation

 Oh   that’s   an     interrogator

(Also    his   voice   sounds   surprisingly   normal)

Then   again    he   seems    to   be   special   ops    /    FBI      Degree         of   enforcing

   So           maybe      more     initiative

   “Has     Vice      Roy       cracked,”

  Yes   screw   accountability      and   making    them    deal    with   themselves    away    from   society   where    they      can’t     hurt   anyone      Or   having   faith     in   society     that      no     one     will    enable

Let’s    go   Third   degree 

Nice

The   Jedi   will   wear   him   down

🎵 The Jedi are complicit in torture 🎵

   “ your thoughts betray you, Vice Roy,”

     Aka I saw you do it

   I can sense your concern   

    your fear

    That you will lose the power        and the wealth

    Falsely accumulated!

      Also no being has authority         over others

 “ I have no idea   what you’re talking about,”

 Dude...

You hide   great many    things

Asoka’s   showing      too      much    emotion

  Also what’s the betting that Asoka breaks the trial   completely irrationally

 She’s   tapping her   fingers

The locations of their   bases

“ I am an innocent pawn       in all this,”

  Bull. shit

   You. Made. A. Choice

“ if you are merely a pawn        then who are you protecting,”

Don’t enable this

Hold him accountable

And if you stumble across the bastard

Hold him accountable

Just...   Hold people    accountable

[Also, Asoka’s there   like yes   I’m helping,”]

No one   I know   nothing

Bullshit   enabler

“Liar,        Liar,”

 Told     ya

Ahsoka

Padawan

Well     At least they didn’t      Pretend Ahsoka       Was capable of doing    bad cop good cop

   Still       a completely unrealistic   outburst

  [there’s a reason why the people in bad cop- good scenarios   are adults

 This is why

Literally applying unnecessarily emotional, mental, and physical   stress

  Instead of holding him accountable

   Bullshit,   M’lady

 Just as guilty     

Asoka just brought to a new   extreme

And what would’ve been a   good scene about     how Anakin   and by default   Obi-Wan’s     ‘abuse’      Or     lessons   to do    so

Intensified

We get a scene with     an irrationally angry       Ahsoka       That shows   unrealistic      child-   like        Behavior

More   befitting    of an adult

This could’ve been a good scene about Luminara getting slapped in the face with the things she’s enabling

And   Asoka    not   realizing     (Not   able    to   realize)   The harm    in her robotic   automated   action

        And that considering       Asoka and Anakin are both under 22               The fact that she can technically               Unfuck the situation         (at least for the next generation)                And the conscientious    decision, to not to 

 Despite all the bad   signs

     Don’t know about the toxicity   level      it’s looking pretty tox

   “ I wasn’t serious,”

    You were unrealistically unchildlike

   And, by adult standards ,  you’d be had for toxicity

But   this    is   just   bad   wri   ting

“ The only way he’ll talk is if        he’s scared enough,”

  Or if he wants to

Literally, only if he   wants- to

  Em,        perhaps I was too hasty

   Let us   negotiate

  He just   decided   to do that

 Ahsoka

[I really    hope they aren’t    going   the direction   of the last   episode

And   blaming     all the    adult problems      on the child

 Ah!

Captain

“Status      Report,”

   Good      captaining

[Weird animation with   flailing arms]

Fighters    in      -coming

 They brought   boarding ships

Hey   actually doing some thing

Prepare to     repeal   the enemy

Action

  Off

 Tough    Bastards

 Right   through     the    ship

 Off

Right   there     thing      is droids

 Neat

Ok how are they going to hold off   tanks

That requires some kind of explosive

There’s   another    gun

They    get     shot   down

 Again, explosives

Oh, immediate   fill in

 [they didn’t even take that guy      to the medic!]

Also yeah stand in the same spot with   no cover

Oof

They got   one

 [are we sure that Guy didn’t     just die from exhaustion?]

Oh, yeah cannons

Get some explosives

Lot     to go

  Seriously get explosives

  Super battle droids

  I just called him   tanks

  Whelp

 Jedi are you waiting for    Cue?

 Whelp

They’re headed for the   detention level

“Aight,”

Night buddy

“ we need reinforcements- oh,”

   That was the most disinterested      scream of getting shot

  I’ve ever heard

[are we sure he didn’t get hit by a    stun weapon?]

Also,           no,   you need more    grenades

   Throwing       bodies        at it       clearly        isn’t      helping

  Commander: I’ll need your   assistance

   Why?

Also; now you help

 After everyone’s dead

 Sat   there   listening      to   chatter      for    about    5 to 6   minutes

 “You stay here with captain Aguyis,”

   What?!

   Also,       no how    about         better idea

    You       stay      here      and      deal      with      the   negotiations

  Asoka      and the   captain go to deal      with it

    So you don’t leave a child with a     manipulative maniac

    (Not encouraging   child soldiers)

   Nor   do I think   Ahsoka     can   take  them

“ Guard      the   viceroy,”

  Guard   the     manipulative     maniac       with        no     muzzle

  [But

It’s a terrible idea!]

  Hopefully        the      captain        a     more   responsible     Guard

   OK maybe will get a look into who’s ordering Ahsoka     and their general ideals

“Master,”

   Is it Master used        just for apprentices

  Shouldn’t Ahsoka be calling her something like    my lady, or some other    high old’ medieval title

 “Lord”?

“Lordess?”

 “Mistress?”

It appears you are no situation to   negotiate Padawan

Dude...

She has

A light saber

Also this is the problem with leaving   children     with toxic     adults

Rescue

Never mind they’re going Full on   unchildlike with   Ahsoka right now

Screw   interesting   narrative

 Ack

That   ended   quickly

 There she   is

Oof

That dude is   still alive

Seriously, was that the dude that got shot over the   Coms?

How?

Whelp   

ouch

Also      no one going to         notice that?

What     have you found?”

  Some       one    noticed

  “Copy,”

  Clearly           Not

   And      she      has      the     cuff

 Guess    she liked it?

 Good for her?

Battle droids are everywhere

Guess   she likes    the radio

 Also,      Luminara       didn’t kill      those droids?

 ‘Cause there were      way more than one

 “ we have to     protect the prisoner,”

  That literally     didn’t change     any      thing

  Also so Luminara is right back where   she started

     Whole scene      was pointless

     Whelp

  How do      they stand         -?

   Also     hope     clones      get       good     health   coverage

 Again     Cannon

  Unnecessarily      dead

  Whelp

 How long does it take   her to walk?!

Also who killed all those dress setting   battle droids   then?

Think it was the authors

Could’ve done this   five seconds ago

Also, sneaking around in   vents

Off

Why   are     you     here?

This is not where   prisoner

 Is

Is it the   security   core?

[is it to ship   hyperdrive?]

Whelp

Poor

Skeletal~ *Shivers*

Droid

Sorry am I supposed to like     this   droid

[I’m trying    but it looks like a    human spine]

Whoop

There     she     goes

Whelp

See   anything

People    are   getting     massacred      and     you just switched back to everything’s all right     mode        that   quickly

Whelp

Creepy   Roomba

Engine   room   seems     clear

We’ll     lock     it   down

Seriously     everyone      went      back       to   normal     real   quickly

Shouldn’t      you      be   hauling   someone     to     the   medic

  Or     PROTECT   ING       the     Priso    -ner

Seriously     no     one     can    seem        to    keep     the consistency      and the battle scene       was over      way too quick     without any confirmation

   And I’m on guard

 Not for Ventress

 But     the     droid   things

Seriously!?

[only two of them    in that hallway?!]

 The enemy   is approaching towards the   prison level

You- do realize how much that doesn’t fit up

 [” oh yeah Joe I’m just grabbing some   donuts

  “ oh good the enemy is about to capture the very important prisoner we   have,”

    Isn’t that always how it is?

     [Laugh track]

  “We’re on our way,”

  Keep watch 327

 Ok 327   T

IRONY

Also cute

 Even       if     it        does   look   like   a           dismembered        spine

 Do you know     droids never like to be called by their   nicknames

Pretty sure that’s like calling you by your last   name

Nicknames     are   different

Beeping

Oof

Again      I   wasn’t     too   worried    about    her

I’m worried about those droids

[Though do you like the sass they gave her   in this frame]

Neat

Well...

Shit

S’up

Really   playing   around   

with the droid

S’up

Again,

Looks    like     the     last        of     them   commander

 But    I   sense   our   troubles   are   not     over

Maybe because you left a child soldier do with a     mani-

S’up

Well

Sounds like your rescue-

Nope       

Cocky Ahsoka

Don’t mind me   as my brain just slowly numbs out

[Your child shouldn’t have more cocky and   sass than your adults]

I am ready to discuss our         bargain   again

This   dude   goes   back      -and-     forth   like    a   top

Padawan       Tano     may       I   have     a   word

Why?

[if     I    leave you won’t go anywhere will you?]

 Argh

The enemy has been repealed

Why are you telling her     this??

Where is          Luminara     then?

[Seriously   how long does it take     her to walk?”]

Whelp

And, subtlety             just went out the roof

[almost     literally]

Whelp,       really   showing     off

“If it isn’t-”

 Again, child

No sass

This should be Un     knowledgeably       Terrify-       Ing

Hey, some snark

“ Skywalkers little pet,”

   If only...

    More so Skywalker’s    unchildlike abomination

    Currently

  So this is a child vs adult

  This isn’t a battle of      equals

  It’s an ass beating    waiting to happen

 “ i’ll give you a     merciful death,”

 Ahhhhhhhhh

Skip

“The Padawan,”

 The   unchildlike     semi   abomination

  That’s     not      a    child

If   so   it   would         Follow       the     rules      of   writing      a   child

 As such         I have no        Commit     -ment?     Invol     vement?

Interest?

In the   fight

It could turn something into a toaster   and I’d just have to accept that

Clones   never   help

Again,   ass-       beat

 This a     curb stop battle  

waiting to happen

Whelp     See

Also   that   Guard   has   plot   armor

Whelp       -yet

Hard     pull

You     Know-

“ Skywalker’s not here to save you now,”

 Again      she   can   just   pull     a   toaster    out     of    her     ass 

This     is     the   problem    with   breaking    the rules of   writing

“I don’t need saving,”

  COMPLETELY UN     - realistically

Seriously, movie

Children for the Woobies

Adult for a bad asses

Get it right

 Any way...

Still     repels

“Over        Here,”

She’s not getting repelled by a     literal child is she

 “Buy you a planet,”

Whatever

Heck

Oh, no she can just the phase through the doors....

My sense of   suspension isn’t really broken

But it is very   well damaged

  (Especially with      Ahsoka)

   ......

Blah blah tempting taunting whatever

 “Irony,”

    NO

Irony is when an adult, one that can be held     accountable, does something     This        is poor   writing

     With       no        investment

(You   didn’t    earn     that)

 Ventress         stick him for double irony

     (Actually      deserved        irony)

Youngling

  NEVER-

( I’m filled with so much       anger)

Argh-

Whelp

Why would you check     there

Whelp

Finally       got    there

Whelp       Heck       ed 

Blah,         Blah  

Surrender

Dude    got away didn’t he

There’s too much riding for this to be a   success

Whelp

 Bull shit

  I watched that   animation!

 She didn’t press a button!

  What?!

And they all died

That dude’s a   weakling

Whelp

Frick       That

 Heck

Whelp

There     You        Go

[Dude left behind without even a   scratch]

[Or he disappeared in a    cut scene]

Cause he’s not there

Blah     Blah

That power’s kinda of neat     though

Okay

What     are we waiting   for?

 Survival

Protecting       the   prisoner

Common       sense

Everything   running   haywire

The engine   got blown up

Shouldn’t you be   busy

Should someone be switching on the back up power

[Shouldn’t the power been off for a   few seconds?]

That wouldn’t screw with the   buttons

Also   there   he is

[I’m five seconds from calling bullshit-]

Whatever

An explosive bomb     Caused- 

[Frustrated     inhale]

 Okay-

Don’t

Gunnery

-No

I’m-

Too     Tired

 To   yell at enable(r) logic

Whatever

       [oh so yeah there clearly are explosives!]

[Fru       strated]

 .....

No

....

-

[i’m getting a damn tox     headache from this ]

Damn

  .....

Argh

Argh...

Whoah

 No

But...     

Cool

Whelp

Whelp

Tal     king

.....

OMG

What     ever

Neither     do   you

-What

Why-

Argh    -

Oh-

 Just-

Argh-

Well-

 Hmm

ARGH

 ..

 Bull shit

Alright

 ‘ superior        my       ass’

  Droids

  Right.....

Whatever

Nice fight   scene

I don’t   care

‘cause        it’s   overshadowed      by     Asoka’s   bullshit

Whelp

 What-         Ever

 Hmm 

They’ve got it all reversed      They’ve given     Luminara     all of Ahsoka’s      helplessness         (And     reactions)      Asoka has ended up with all of the     Luminara’s         Self-assured     confidence      (One of     which can be       switched     because an     adult     react     (Almost)       as much       as they wish     (Child-like      naivetè     absolutely      not)      Does    not     work   the     other         way

    That’s      what’s wrong      with this cut     scene        (Scene)

  And        It       Gets      Worse...

Count     Dooku

Whatever

Blah    blah    blah

Whatever       That’s        Cool

“I can’t dis-”

Back to this     again

Stop saying    

start doing   movie

Also   you know     what would be great?

Having     Luminara         Have         This        Con     versation        Debating        if     she     should     disobey     her     previous         handlers,         as      she     sends         a      child        to       their       very         literal         death            Giving           the        watcher          some               hope              when                she            decides                to           eventually             decides                 to               rescue                 Ahsoka

Or   the   feeling    of   dread        as     she   continues      to     follow   orders     cutting   with     Ahsoka   getting     her     ass   kicked      to   contrast       the    wrongess         of           the         situation

    Ventress,         eventually         leaving           her         out          of          pity

      The        Future          now         with a           lot          more        distance            to          cover

         If            it          ever           wishes           to       recover              ...

 Wasted potential

    It even            Has the            Line        Over stepp          ing                  Bound       aries

 Argh

    And          Gene        rational          Back          Stab...

      It      does     everyt           hing          wrong

    For           the        common         courtesy         of not           Blast         - ing              My           Ears            Off            Try  ing         To         Ma       -ke              An       abus      -i        ve              Mom         ent-               A              Nice          One

     It          Gets              No          Tox      (Though              it        Certainly         Te sts       The      Boundary)

      (Even a moral           about how       you’re expendable to           enablers...