Saga Fire and Ice (Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padme, ROTS AU--Updated 12/28)

Title: Fire and Ice

Author: talesofyesac

Timeframe: ROTS AU

Characters: Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padme

Summary: Anakin wins the duel on Mustafar but doesn't kill Obi-Wan. Along with Padme, Obi-Wan finds himself living in a chaotic world where the man he thought he knew has become the thing he swore to destroy. Can Anakin be turned back? If so, what then?

Disclaimer: As much as I wish I had actual rights to these characters, I'm just not that lucky. I am, however, lucky enough to get to play with them when I write stories such as this one.

Hi, everyone! So, I'm not entirely sure if I've posted this correctly. I've done my best to read the rules, but I do fully admit that I might have missed something. If that's the case, let me know and I'll try to fix it. But on to other stuff: I've been hanging out here for a while reading lots of other fantastic stories on these boards, so I figured I'd take a shot at posting mine and see if I could get some feedback (I welcome constructive criticism--if you want to critique my writing with the motivation of making it better, I'm all for that). This story was originally posted over at ff.net, but I'm going through it again and fixing minor errors, tweaking descriptions, etc. Anyway, thanks so much for taking the time to read this! Please enjoy!

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It's morning. The rays of the sun are just barely beginning to sneak through the blinders to spill onto the bed in a warm golden glow that's slowly creeping in to light the room. Under the covers, where skin meets soft sheets, it's pleasantly warm and cozy?the same feeling permeates the room itself, aided by the favorable temperature that it has been warmed to by the first vestiges of sunlight. Even the air smells of sunlight, if that even truly has a smell. Freshness, perhaps... at the very least, it has the sense of a lazy, relaxed morning. The situation should be comforting. Perhaps it would be, if it didn't signal the start to another day.

The seventh day since the world fell apart.

Obi-Wan doubts that it will ever again be just another day.

As much as he wishes otherwise, the morning sun has woken him, and he knows that he should get up. Avoidance has never accomplished anything. Best not to save for later what he can do now. Qui-Gon might have told him that once, though he can't remember if it's a saying his master made up or if it's some wise adage by someone like Yoda. It hardly matters anymore, now that it's nothing more than a principle of an extinct Order.

It's been seven days since the Jedi Order was destroyed. There should be an impossibility in that statement, but the situation?the very room that he's in?proves that it is true.

"Time to get up, Obi-Wan."

He works not to wince. If the room he's in isn't proof enough of his failings, that voice certainly is.

"Come on now, I need to change your bandages."

There's no point in ignoring the command?it's not as if he's in any position to fight, injured as he is. Even if he weren't hurt, his lightsaber has been taken away and, worse, he's been cut off from the Force.

The thought alone makes him shudder. Without the Force, he feels as bereft as a man who has lost a limb. Anakin could attest to that, but at least he'd had a prosthetic. Obi-Wan is hardly as lucky?there is no prosthetic for the Force. It's something he's had since birth, and without it the world seems to have suddenly gone quiet, irrevocably and eerily so. The feeling is maddening. This entire situation is maddening, more so because of his inability to do anything but what he knows will eventually have to happen anyway.

Giving into that inevitability, Obi-Wan rolls over and faces the owner of the voice.

Anakin favors him with a soft smile. "Good morning." His voice is a pleasant rumble, indicating that he's genuinely pleased to see Obi-Wan awake. "How's it feeling?"

By "it" Anakin means the large lightsaber burn on Obi-Wan's right shoulder and down his side. The wound is a deep, deep slice, the initial blow having burned down to the bone. It's serious enough that even bacta patches are

 

How'd I miss this over at ff.n? Wow - that is really some post-turn, non-suited victorious Vaderkin and I find the mix of personalities very realistic.

And poor Obi! He's lost everything except this outward shell of the boy he raised to knighthood, wondering if a spark of that boy remains inside, needing only the right breath to breathe the ember into a spark.

Very well done!

 

An absolutely fascinating beginning! I can't wait to read more!

 

OH! I've read this on ff.net! Still I like to see the tweaking.

 

Bail Organa looks utterly calm as he steps off the turbolift and into Padme's apartment at 500 Republica. His wife, Breha, is the same: in control of her emotions, allowing only a pleasant smile to grace the attractive features of her face. Together, they make a good team. They're controlled and poised. Unreadable.

Obi-Wan is sure that Anakin doesn't suspect them to be anything other than what they appear. Truthfully, he has no reason to but, even so, Obi-Wan worries. Whether he has reason for suspicion or not, Anakin is still clever-he didn't become such a renowned warrior in the Clone Wars just because of his skills with a lightsaber. He was an inspiring commander, a gifted strategist, and a man with a brilliant tactical mind. Even more importantly, he has the strongest connection to the Force of any Jedi in history.

Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan knows, is an opponent people underestimate at the cost of their life.

He just hopes Bail Organa knows that as well as he does.

"Lord Vader," Bail greets. There is no fear in his voice, nor is there any in his posture when he gives Anakin a courteous bow. "General Kenobi," he adds, bowing to Obi-Wan as well. There is no "master" attached to his name-not anymore. He's addressed strictly by a military title now. Anakin wouldn't allow anything else, and, thankfully, Bail appears to have realized this.

Obi-Wan merely inclines his head in acknowledgement of the greeting, unable to bow with the condition his back is in.

Anakin smiles. "Senator Organa."

Bail returns the smile before he gives his wife a nod towards the kitchen. "Why don't you see if Lady Amidala needs any help?"

"I'm sure Padme will appreciate the assistance," Anakin replies gracefully, watching Bail's wife leave. "It's kind of you to offer."

"It's kind of you to have us here at all."

The smile on Anakin's face broadens, and he gestures in the direction of the sitting area that opens onto the balcony. Obi-Wan shivers?it's the same area where he found Padme on that horrible day when he came to ask her for information on Anakin's whereabouts. He doesn't ever want to think about that day again, but his mind can't seem to let go of it, and the memories tumble over and over in his head until he's nearly sure he's going insane.

Quite honestly, Obi-Wan doesn't like that they're staying in Padme's apartments. Of all the places Anakin could have picked, he isn't sure why it had to be this place?a place so full of memories. He knows Padme feels the same way. It must be hard for her to be forced to live in the place where she'd stayed with her husband, especially when this new version of Anakin?this warped, twisted version?is playing at being that same man. It must desecrate every happy memory she has of him.

For Obi-Wan, it constantly reminds him of that day.

Sometimes, the memories are so vivid that he thinks he can still smell the burning on Mustafar, the scent of scorched sand and liquid fire. The memory of the heat is almost suffocating, closing in as he looks up into a pair of eyes that match the world he's on, right down to reds and yellows and the burning fire within. Those eyes are all wrong. They aren't Anakin's anymore, and all he can do is stare back, feeling the weight of his lightsaber in his hand as he senses the pull of what duty requires.

Then, the pain of a lightsaber slicing down his back. Hot, searing pain, so raw and it hurts, it hurts, it hurts?

"OBI-WAN!"

He opens his eyes.

Everything swims in his vision, and it?s a full moment before he's able to catch himself with a hand on the wall. The material is cool under his hand, a steady anchor as he sways a bit. Cool, cool, not like the fire of Mustafar... Just a memory, he thinks desperately, nothing more. He'll be fine.

Anakin is at his side immediately, steadying him with gentle hands on his shoulders. "Obi-Wan, what was that?" he asks quietly. There's concern in his eyes?eyes that are once again blue. Thank the Force that they're blue.

"I'm sorry," he mutters, pushing Anakin's touch away. "I'm all right."

"You're pale."

So slowly that Anakin

 

Valairy_Scot: I miss a bunch of stuff over at ff.net too. I?m not crazy about the format there. I?m really flattered your taking the time to read it now, though. I?m always amazed that people actually care to read the stuff that I write for fun.

ForceForGood: Thanks!

Takianna: Sometimes I?ll get bored and go back to look at my past stories. Unfortunately, I always find errors (I suppose that?s my own fault for being too busy to get a beta), which leads to a re-write like this.

 

This is interesting, so Vader isn't hidden behind a black helmet and suit.
I hope Obi-Wan isn't fooling himself. I hope Bail is on his side and not the empires.

I wonder what Padme thinks about Anakin now.

Good story.

 

I've always wanted to read a good post-ROTS story dealing with the ramifications of the Sith takeover. This is it - up close and personal.
And so very real.

No character is "overboard" or cardboard. Each is complex and, well, real.
Public and private faces. Clinging to remnants of the past while living in the present and thinking of the future.

 

Valairy_Scot: I think making complex characters is the key to an entertaining story. If they?re one dimensional, they either end up being mary-sues or just really badly done (or both). I?m very glad you?re enjoying the story so far, though. Thank you so much for taking the time to read!

Gkilkenny: Nope, no black suit! I always thought that was such a waste of a good-looking guy. Obi-Wan?s going to have some working trying to figure out exactly what he thinks, but Bail is on his side. As for Padme?well, this next bit should explain a little more about her point of view.

 

Padme is very, very pregnant. Quite honestly, Obi-Wan isn't really sure how she managed to prepare to have company when her stomach is so large. However she did it, it couldn't have been comfortable, and he has to admit that he's secretly very happy men don't have to go through this sort of thing.

The ability to cope with pregnancy is only one of the many reasons that Obi-Wan admires Padme. He's never much cared for politicians, but watching her strength, her drive, and her sheer will to accomplish her goals while still maintaining morals?it forces him to admit that she's not like most other people in her profession. Even in the ways that she is like her colleagues in the Senate, she's still somehow different in the ways that would make Obi-Wan dislike her. However, like most other politicians, she has a frightening aptitude for presenting a flawless emotional mask, and even if she doesn't use that mask to deceive people for her own gain, she's still unreadable. It's impossible to tell what she's really thinking when, as she's doing now, she presents a calm, happy facade to the world.

"We've enjoyed your company very much," she tells the Organas. "You'll have to come again."

Ever the gentlemen, Bail smiles and gives her a formal bow. "We thank you very much for your hospitality."

"I think it's I who should be thanking your wife for her help in the kitchen." Padme shoots Bail's wife a quick grin. "I'm not as mobile as I was a few months ago."

Even Anakin looks amused by that. "But as beautiful as ever," he quips. There's genuine humor shinning in his eyes, and if he could just be like this?like the Anakin that Obi-Wan knows?then maybe things would be all right again. "Thank you for coming, Senator Organa,"
Anakin says, though his gaze lingers on Padme for as long as possible before he turns to Bail. "I'm sure that the Emperor will be in touch with you."

Bail merely nods. "I look forward to it."

A lie, but Anakin doesn't seem to detect it, leaving Obi-Wan torn between the tragedy of the fact that that's all that matters now and relief that Anakin didn't notice anything.

"Thank you again for having us," Breha says as she steps forward and gives Padme a quick hug, her touch lingering, almost as though she's hesitant to let Padme go. Does she know just how much danger Padme could be in? Obi-Wan wouldn't be surprised if she did. She's every bit as perceptive as Bail, and no doubt her husband has apprised her of the situation. "I trust we'll see you again."

Padme smiles. There's something inscrutable in her gaze--something almost determined. Whatever it is, it seems nearly out of place in the situation, odd in a way that Obi-Wan can't quite define.

"You will," she says quietly, giving Bail's wife one final nod before Breha turns toward the door with her husband.

No more pleasantries are exchanged, and Bail and his wife leave quietly. Obi-Wan is able to glance just far enough beyond the door to see that they're being escorted by a droid to their ship on the landing platform. It would be nice to be able to go outside again, he thinks, out where the cool night air could smooth over his skin and soothe some of his frayed nerves. Since coming here seven days ago, he hasn't been outside, and he finds that he misses it. Part of him?the foolish part that he's long since learned not to act on?wants to slip out the door behind the Organas, just so that he can feel the fresh air.

As if it can sense his thoughts, the door hisses shut, effectively cutting off any escape. He won't be able to open it now?only Anakin can do that.

Anakin's hand on his arm startles him, and he spins around, finding himself inches from his former padawan. "You look tired, Master," he murmurs, his touch on Obi-Wan's arm strengthening until it becomes a grip that Obi-Wan knows he'd do well not to try to twist out of. "You should go to bed."

There's nothing malicious in Anakin's demeanor?quite the opposite, actually?but experience has proven that Anakin's temper can flare at the slightest provocation. In that, at least, he is still the Anakin Skywalker

 

I didn't get to read all of the second post, but add me to the pm list. This story is really making not like Anakin, I've never not liked him in this way before. I love it!

 

Wow! This has my attention! Great story and can't wait to read more.

 

UP!

 

Icecruncher_Amidala: I would be more than happy to add you to the pm list! However, I don?t actually know how to do that. If you or someone else would tell me, though, I definitely will!

The1stJediPrincess : Thank you! I know I?ve been a little slow about getting more posted, but college will do that, you know?

 

Anakin watches his wife. She's just come back from helping Obi-Wan, and she's changed into her nightgown, which affords him with a welcome opportunity to admire the way the fabric falls across her skin, lightly clinging to her body, accentuating all the right curves. Once, she would have moved to show that off--to show it off for him. She's not doing that now, but he's still appreciative of the enticing sight of her body covered with nothing but smooth material that shimmers like sunlight on the lakes of Naboo.

Unfortunately, he knows that the only thing he'll get to do tonight is watch. She's heavily pregnant, and while he knows that's only an excuse she's using to keep him from touching, he humors her. The baby's health is important?he agrees with that?and he'd be lying if he didn't admit that some part of him is afraid that, should he touch her, he'll hurt the baby.

The baby.

According to every medical report, the baby is perfectly healthy. Padme hadn't wanted to know anything more than that and Anakin has continued to honor that request. Everything will be a surprise.

Maybe that surprise will be just what they need.

They need something, he thinks as he scrubs his hand over his face in frustration. Something to bring them together again?anything that will smooth over the cracks in their relationship that have been present since Mustafar. Ever since that day, she won't kiss or touch him, and as much as it irks him, he's been sleeping in the guest bedroom.

He should make an effort to be more understanding. She's going through a lot, and the medical droids had told him she was showing signs of depression. It understandable for her to be acting like this, even if it isn't pleasant; the droids had told him as much when he'd taken her for a check-up after they'd returned to Coruscant.

Anakin sighs heavily as he watches from behind a glass wall as the medical droid examines Padme. They're back home on Coruscant now, where she can get proper care, but she still seems so weak, and the droid is taking what feels like forever to complete it's examination. It makes him nervous?what if something's wrong? What if--Force forbid--what if those dreams he saw still come to pass.

No.

Furiously, he pushes the thoughts out of his mind. He's changed things. After all, Yoda did say that the future was always in motion--it can be altered. That was one thing the old troll was right about, Anakin is sure. He has changed the future. He's only feeling this way now because the droid is taking so long. That's it. That's all he'll allow it to be.

Finally, after Anakin finds himself teetering on the brink of barging in and demanding answers, the medical droid finishes and makes its way out of Padme's room. "Well?" he demands, not in the mood for any circuitous talk.

"Physically, she's completely healthy," the droid explains, so emotionless, as always. It's such a parody of humanity. "Any medical problems that she is experiencing are completely caused by her mental state."

"Her mental state?"

"She is showing signs of depression."

Anakin just barely restrains the desire to crush the droid. More bad news. It's always bad news, and he's had that so much lately--too much to really tolerate it well anymore. "You will make sure that she's all right."

The droid inclines its head slightly in what could be construed as a nod. "Yes, Sir."

Its assurance is hardly enough, but Anakin is well-aware that there's nothing more he can do. For the time being, it apparently will have to suffice. "She is not to leave this room, do you understand?" The droid answers in the affirmative again, and Anakin adds, "If she needs anything, contact me. If she asks to speak to me at any time, you are to allow her to."

He doesn't wait for an answer. Instead, he turns on his heal and marches out of the medical bay, out of the entire building, and out from under the influence of the problems that are contained within its walls. For the time being, at least, he won't have to think about the possibility of Padme's death--for now, he has something else to conce

 

What really strikes me is that one line you write about how Anakin seems to be more at home with constant activity, warfare and chaos going on. It reminds me of some of the symptoms of PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress disorder. When Padme makes that comment about how Obi-Wan is suffering from psychological damage, it just reminded me of that because -- really -- when it comes down to it, I think Anakin has a lot of psychological damage of his own from the War and what Sidious manipulated in him. He looks like he is heading for a complete mental breakdown. I only wonder if anyone will be there for him when that happens.

He is so cruel to Padme and Obi-Wan. He keeps them alive and tries to make them go through the motions of normalcy after everything he's done and everything that has happened. For Obi-Wan, it's pain through attrition: not having access to the Force or emotional release, being healed just to be attacked from time to time, making him face all the things he believed he failed at ... and Padme has to see this shell of the person she once loved and both of them sometimes see a glimpse of the Anakin they knew: which only reopens their wounds further. I feel sorry for all of them really. And I wonder if Anakin is just too foregone to ever really recover from what he has become.

 

darth_treyvah: I?ve always been convinced that Anakin was definitely psychologically affected by the war. Some of the stuff he saw?it must have been near impossible not to be. And I?d kind of characterize a fall to the dark side as a sort of breakdown, considering his logic for doing it wasn?t all that solid (seriously, he was so desperate and blind that he just accepted Palpatine?s assurances that he knew how to stop Padme from dying, and when Palpatine told him after that he hadn?t figured out how to do that yet, Anakin didn?t really seem to notice, almost like he couldn?t handle believing anything else?that?s not logical behavior). The situation Anakin has now put Padme and Obi-Wan in is, as you?ve said, very cruel, but I don?t think that?s exactly intentional. He?s not, for the most part? excluding short bursts where he gets angry?trying to hurt them, but he?s just way too focused on what he wants to notice that he is hurting them.

 

Anakin has never been a morning person. If given the choice, he prefers to sleep late and then stay up far into the night. Oddly, that is something he and Obi-Wan have in common, even if while Anakin was his padawan, his master hardly ever acted on the impulse to stay in bed. To Anakin, that's just another way that Obi-Wan refused to allow his nature to corrupt what he thought the Jedi ideal should be. He always denied himself, even in such trivial matters.

There's some satisfaction to be had in the fact that Obi-Wan has started sleeping late now.

Unfortunately, for Anakin the trend seems to have been reversed: he's certainly not sleeping late... he's not even going to bed at a reasonable hour, and when he does sleep, it's not a restful slumber. There's really no mystery to the reasons: he's long since given in and accepted the reality that the guest bedroom is to blame. There's nothing warm and inviting about it, and he loathes its failure to welcome him. But how can it? Every second he spends in it is just a violent reminder of the fact that Padme has exiled him from their bedroom--there's nothing warm about anything that reminds him of that fact.

Admittedly, the lack of sleep is getting to him. Normally, he can deal with it--war conditioned him for that, since sleep is not what one would call a priority in a war zone--but some days it's easier to cope than others. Today... does not look promising. It takes a long shower just to wake him up, and it's only after few cups of caf that he convinces himself to actually answer the summons he received and head for the Senate building. He's not particularly looking forward to meeting with Sidious, especially since he very much doubts that his new master will approve of his intention to let Obi-Wan live. He'll call it weakness, and Anakin has had enough of feeling weak.

Really, he'd like nothing better than to just be rid of the man he now calls "Master". Even at his most irritating, Obi-Wan was never this bad. Sometimes he was chastising, condescending, and terrible at listening, but there was always another layer to everything he said. Whatever Obi-Wan told him, it was never with the intention of hurting him?exactly the opposite. He might have been misguided, but the things he did were always to try to make Anakin the best he could be. With Sidious, Anakin never quite knows what he's after, though he is beginning to be sure of one thing: Lord Sidious is only out to help himself. Anakin is simply a convenient tool to assist him in getting what he wants.

Anakin has never much liked being a pawn. He's never taken direction well?has never been much inclined to do it at all, really. Direction from Sidious isn't an exception.

Soon, Anakin thinks, once he's gotten what he wants, Sidous will have to be removed.

"Lord Vader."

Sidious is seated at his old desk when Anakin arrives, and as familiar as the setting is, everything else is different. There's no trace of Palpatine in the creature before him. Now, everything is laid bare. The wrinkled, nightmarish figure before him matches what Palpatine always was on the inside.

"Master," he greets, bending in a respectful bow.

Sidious waits for him to straighten up before speaking. "I have been informed that you spared the life of your former master."

Right to the point, though Anakin is hardly surprised. He hasn't been in contact with Sidious since Mustafar, but more than likely, Sidious knew that Obi-Wan was alive far before now. It's precisely why Anakin hasn't contacted him. "Yes."

"Are you certain this is a wise decision?"

"I believe it is, my master."

Sidious looks up at him through his yellowed eyes, analyzing Anakin in a way he never quite did before?at least not visibly. The way he used to be, Palaptine resembled something of a grandfatherly figure--a kindly old uncle, maybe. This man before him is nothing of the sort. His skin is wizened and grayed, and there is nothing even remotely comforting about his face.

"Do you? Or do you act on your affection for a man who betrayed your trust? Remember, my apprentice,

 

Hey, I just caught up with this story and I'm really enjoying it. It's a very interesting take on ROTS, one I hadn't thought of before. I love that Padme and Bail are working together to keep Obi-Wan informed.

But the thought of Obi-Wan without the Force makes me want to cry buckets.

Great job, can't wait for more.

 

Wonderful A/P dynamic you have here. She's trapped in a relationship she finds untenable

Your Obi is wonderfully characterized.

And your Anakin is one of the best I've seen in a long time!!

Hugs for a great AU.

I'll be keeping up with this.

 

JediMara77: I?m glad you think it?s interesting. I actually first got the idea when I started reading Star Wars stories: I figured there would be stories like this, but I could never really find any. So, I just? wrote one. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment (I?m still blown away by the fact that people are interested enough to read the stuff I come up with in my spare time)!

Jade_eyes: Thank you! I really appreciate knowing that you find the characters convincing. That?s honestly my main goal: if I can?t echo the characters in the movies, it doesn?t really feel like I?m doing Star Wars justice, you know?

 

Three days after the visit from the Organas, Padme goes into labor. At the time when it happens, Obi-Wan is in the sitting room, staring out the window at the afternoon traffic of Coruscant. Idling here is quite useless?he isn?t considering anything of much importance: merely thinking on the city that has been his home since he was very young, but there?s something oddly comforting about watching the ebb and flow of air traffic above the buildings. Coruscant is beautiful in its own way. It's a city that is exactly what it was made to be, but flawed because the beings who built it were imperfect. It's perfect in its imperfections.

Strangely, that reminds him of Anakin before he fell.

"OBI-WAN!"

Padme's voice is sharp, twisted with pain and surprise. The sound alone is enough to spur Obi-Wan into immediate action. Before his name is even fully off her lips, he's on his feet and rushing into the other room where she's sitting on a couch, the holopad that she was reading cast aside on the cushions beside her.

It's her face that cements his worry: it?s tight, pinched, and he just knows what she?s not telling him, even if he still asks.

"What's wrong?"

Slipping onto the couch next to her, he lays a hand on her arm. She's so pale, and her eyes are as wide as he's ever seen them, big and luminous, catching the light in a way that makes them almost glisten. Her skin?it attracts the light too, shinning with a thin sheen of sweat until it seems soft, almost clammy, and completely at odds with her tensed, quivering lips.

"I?it's time." Her hands clench over her stomach, and she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. "The baby?"

"I'll get Anakin?"

"No need."

Anakin is standing in the doorway, radiating his nervousness palpably through the Force?not that Obi-Wan needs to Force to recognize it. His face is indication enough of what he's feeling. More than likely, he heard Padme's shouts, and Obi-Wan is sure that later Anakin will have complaints that Padme didn't call for him, but right now he just looks scared. "Are you all right, Padme?" Slowly, their eyes lock, Padme's gaze searching, as though she so desperately wants to believe that this is her husband. Anakin echos her desperation, but in a way that's so entirely different?that is far more helpless. A fear of loss. It's always loss with him.

Obi-Wan can offer no assurance for either of them.

"Get the transport ready, Anakin," he orders as he hurries over to kneel next to Padme. "I'll get her to the door."

Anakin doesn't move at first. Every line of his body is ridged, except for the muscles of his face, which have gone slack as he gazes at his wife, as though he's trying to memorize the very sight of her. "Yes, Master," he finally replies, words only coming when he finally moves. Good. Obi-Wan was almost certain he wasn't going to.

He is also certain that Anakin has no idea how much he sounds like the padawan he used to be.

Yes, Master...

He can't think about that right now. In this moment, he needs to help Padme.

It's an effort to break off his thoughts. It always is, and he has to wonder if some day he won't be able to. Right now, in this moment, it's almost impossible, and only sheer force of will allows him to do it. If he just had the Force, everything would be so much easier, and even as he turns back to her, he craves it?craves the balance it would give him. "Everything is going to be fine."

"I?this hurts?"

"You'll be fine. I'm going to carry you to the door now, and then we'll go to the medicenter."

"All right," she murmurs, biting down on her lip hard enough that her words come out slightly slurred. Given permission, he carefully reaches down and slips his arms under her, lifting her up against his chest. She's not heavy, but the wound on his back is not completely healed, and he feels it protest under the strain.

"Everything is going to be all right," he tries to assure her again.

Maybe she believes him and maybe she doesn't, but her hand closes in the cloth of his tunic, gripping so tightly that her knuckles go whit

 

Awesome post!!!!!!!!!

Obi-wan with Anakin and with Bail -- wonderful blend of hope warring with resignation

Anakin with his new family and with Obi-wan -- terrific!!!!!! There's Lightside type feelings in there still Obi and his kids and Padme are bringing it out more emphatically all the time.

When Padme feels she can trust this reemerging side of him Squee!

Yes, you got one!

 

"Yes, Master," he finally replies, words only coming when he finally moves. Good. Obi-Wan was almost certain he wasn't going to.

He is also certain that Anakin has no idea how much he sounds like the padawan he used to be.

Yes, Master...

He can't think about that right now. In this moment, he needs to help Padme.

This is me, wibbling.


"Promise me, Obi-Wan?promise me that if Anakin's visions do come true?promise me you'll take care of my child."

I absolutely loved ROTS, but I would have loved for Padme to just have one little stinking line to Obi-Wan about taking care of her children. It would have made her death much more tolerable for me.


"Good. And Anakin. Don't give up on Anakin."

"I'm not sure I ever could."

Obi-Wan once thought as you do....


All he knows for certain is that it's possible to never lose faith while still being forced to destroy the very thing he has faith in.

In the end, if that happens, he's sure he'll end up hating himself far more than he could ever hate Anakin.

Obi-Wan and Luke have so much in common it's scary.


"Take Luke," he tells Obi-wan,

Did you intend for this line to knock me in the gut like it did? Lol...



I have to tell you that I love Obi-Wan in this story. I can hear Ewan McGregor speaking in my mind when I read his dialogue. I can't wait to read more. (and I hope Obi-Wan gets the Force back waaaah )

 

I'm enjoying this story, and hoping Padme and Obi-Wan will be able to bring Anakin back. Dare I have hope when Anakin seems to have softened a teeny bit with his children, and when he promised he wouldn't kill the remaining younglings?