Part 2
Chapter 1
Arl, Dooku, and Quin arrive back to an empty meeting room, which was exactly what they expected so that is good. They take a moment to just be thankful they are back before Quinlan feels like he is going to puke, Arl grabs the bin in the corner as he takes a seat and vomits up the lunch he ate.
"Note to self, shielding good but not full proof." Arl says, Dooku chuckles, Quin did not hear her but glares anyway. "Come on Quin, we better get you down to Terza." She tells him, he nods but gestures to the bin, Arl rolls her eyes, "Yes you can keep the bin, lord knows no one else is gonna want it before it's washed." He glares again before puking once more. Dooku and Arl lead him down to the healer's wing where they find Obi-Wan in the middle of sneaking out.
"Oh my gods, you're back!" He cries with delight, then Quin throws up again, "That can't be good, HEALER TERZA!" He yells, the woman comes running.
"I am going to deal with this then we are going to have a long conversation about how you are still supposed to be in bed!" Terza says to Obi when she arrives. "What is wrong with him?" she asks the other two as Arl and Terza guide Quin to a bed.
"Exposure to dark energy with insufficient shielding after a particularly nasty brand of torture left him particularly susceptible to it, you should have seen him before he learnt the shielding." She remarks as Terza guides her and Quinlan into a room.
"What happened to you?" Dooku asks Obi-Wan.
"Xan shot me in the leg with a blaster." Dooku's raises his eyebrows. "Accidentally, I scared the fuck out of him, also accidentally, we were on the run from some terrorists we had pissed off…"
"Let me guess, accidentally?"
"No that was most definitely on purpose." He says with a grin, Dooku sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose despite the intense amusement he feels.
"How healed is it?" Obi-Wan puts his hand out and tilts it side to side, Dooku rolls his eyes, "You can go but Arlie will come by later to heal it."
"You are my favourite Grand-Master!" Obi-Wan tells him.
"I am your only Grand-Master, idiot." Dooku tells him with a happy smile.
"Okay, I don't know what the hell happened while you were gone, but you smiling is weird."
"What I can't express happiness?"
"I was wrong. The smiling isn't the weird part, it's you having happiness to express." Dooku laughs at his words, "I'm going to go tell my beautiful lover that his Master is back and the past broke him." Obi says before turning to walk out, "Oh and Dooku?" It actually takes him a moment to remember that is his name.
"Yes, Little Obi?" Obi-Wan gives him a wide toothy grin.
"I'm glad you're all back." He says before disappearing around the corner.
"So am I." Dooku says quietly to himself before moving to catch up with his partners. (Did he just say lover?)
It's a week before a meeting can be called with all in attendance, not wanting to tell the story more than once, Arl and Dooku spent that time with Quin in the healer's wing. Quinlan was fine after three days, but Terza is extremely paranoid, yet had not noticed his deafness. The trio had requested none come to see them until the meeting with no real explanation beyond, time to deal.
"You are not leaving again." Mace tells her, no room for argument in his voice, as he hugs her the second she enters the room, she hugs him back tightly.
"Wouldn't dream of it Master." She tells him, lots of hugs and greetings later, everyone is seated at the table.
"So, what was it like?" Garen asks after a few moments silence, Dooku and Arl were translating through the bond for Quin.
"Felt like we never left this place." Quin jokes, Arl snickers as Dooku laughs, everyone else looks confused.
"We watched the end and the beginning of an era, it was both heartbreaking and breathtaking." Arlie tells them honestly.
"We were wrong about our timeline too, we weren't 100 years before the third sect died off, we were three weeks prior to it." Everyone looks fascinated, knowing that means they watched it happen.
"I am just glad you are all back, I did not want to be lighting anyone's pyre." Micah tells them, everyone nods their agreement except the trio who just appear to be very sad…no, they're grieving.
"Who'd you lose?" Tholme asks when he realises.
"Everyone." Arl says quietly looking haunted, then she smiles brightly, "Except Tyranus' adopted daughter." Dooku rolls his eyes as everyone else looks shocked to high hell.
"I thought you lot had rules in place to prevent becoming attached or involved." Mic asks.
"We did." Dooku tells them.
"And?" Adi asks.
"We broke them."
"Of course you did." Depa tells them.
"I did not actually adopt anyone though."
"C'mon Ty, you so did." Quin tells him.
"Oh shut up asshole." Dooku tells him with a smile.
"Okay when did Dooku get feelings?" Obi-Wan asks, the trio laugh.
"I told you, didn't I? You're not doing you correctly."
"You also told me that everything was staring at you while looking dubiously at a fucking rock."
"Coming from the man that stood on top of a building howling at everything with a thirteen-year-old." Arl tells him.
"You threatened said thirteen-year-old within an hour of us getting back there."
"Yes, I had paranoia issues, I know."
"And I issues with letting go and having fun every now and then."
"And me with being serious when the situation calls for it." Quin adds, everyone looks at them surprised.
"Well you three sound like you had a hell of a time." Mace tells them, Dooku smiles as Quinlan responds,
"It's amazing what going home can do."
"So, did you work out the third sect we need?" Tahl asks, Arl laughs.
"Oh we worked out a lot more than that my dear, we fixed the old order. Or so we hope. The three of us, with the help of an ancient Master who did not actually know he was helping us with it, gods bless Halvi, anyways, we've got a whole refit of the order worked out. We can save it, make it better and stronger than before, and save reality along with it." She tells her.
"That may not be as easy as you think." Plo tells them, Arl frowns.
"What happened?"
"Senator Palpatine of Naboo is missing." Valorum responds.
"How do you lose a Senator?" Dooku questions.
"Mock later Ty, what happened?" Quin asks, which was a jarring change for the rest of them but they learnt how to roll with the punches long ago.
"We do not know, he entered his office one day and did not come out, that was a week ago. We were hoping your tracking skills would enable you to find him when you returned." Mundi tells him, he is quiet for a moment too long as Arl relays what was said, there were too many people for Quin to properly listen through the force, he had only been at it four weeks after all.
"If I can get access to his office then it is likely but depending how much time he has spent Sithing in there, I may not even be able to enter the room."
"Why?" Bant asks looking worried.
"Because it's his weakness." Obi-Wan says, Arl frowns at him.
"Every sentient being has a weakness Obi, this one we can turn into a strength."
"How so?" Dooku asks, she spins her chair to face him, she was beside Quin who sat beside Dooku so technically now she was facing the both of them.
"He is sensitive to Dark energies, if Wrath ever takes over another one of us, you'll feel it. Not to the extent of our first trip through time…"
"Gods do not remind me of that."
"…but enough for you to notice."
"Or if Maul shows up, little fucker can hide in the force and in the shadows all he wants, but his whole presence radiates darkness, I could always tell." Quin tells everyone.
"Anything else we should know?" Kit asks, Quin nods.
"When torturing Arl, do not let Dooku hear her scream. He tends to make labs explode and set buildings on fire with himself and everyone else inside it."
"That's how we got out?" Arl asks incredulously, Quin nods.
"Yeah he snapped, like Eran level snapped only with more power behind it, he was so panicked about it which made things worse and he couldn't get control so he knocked himself out."
"Yes, that sounds like an idiotic thing I would do." Dooku says self-deprecatingly.
"Then Arl panicked, something about Vader I didn't really hear it over the fire, then she blocked our memories. Not permanently, but enough to get us to help. Or so she planned, I think you over did it." He tells her, she looks at him shocked.
"Yes, sounds like an idiotic thing I would do."
"What is eran?" Saesee asks, Dooku looks sad.
"Eran would be my so-called adoptive daughter, she is also the Jedi that waged war against the Sith and the one that had this temple set up. In reality, she was a good friend of ours, one who lost everything very quickly, snapped, killed all of the foes with the force, got herself back and swore to prevent anything like that from happening again."
"That was how the Order split?" Bellan asks, Arl shook her head.
"No, it was already split. That was how the third sect died."
"What was the third sect?" Tahl asks desperately needing to know, Dooku looks at Tahl before snapping his fingers at Arl and pointing back to Tahl, Arl's eyes widen.
"Right, history. The artefacts, the documents, the ones written off as fake. Do we still keep them?" Arlie asks, Tahl nods.
"They should still be in the archives just in a box in storage."
"Brilliant, um anyway third sect, the Masters of the Force. They stayed true to the beginnings of The Order Of The Force. The fact that they died off and the order split to begin with is why Ty and I planned to do things differently, we need something that will last."
"Okay, but now we have the same problem we had with the Sith before their little reveal, we have no one to teach other's to be these 'Master of the Force'." Adi reminds them.
"I can." Arlie tells them, Xanatos sniggers.
"And on this day, no one was surprised."
"So what's your thing? Jedi are all about peace, Sith are about freedom and protection, what are you?" Garen asks, Arl smiles.
"We protect the order while you protect the galaxy."
"You need a name." Bant tells them, "For the history books." She clarifies.
"The Custos." Arl says after a moments thought.
"Poetic." Quinlan tells her, she smiles.
"Ch'blanc for guardian." Dooku translates with a smile.
"And Ch'blanc is?" Bant asks, but it is Tahl that answers.
"The Ancestral Language."
"Yes, we can get a real translation for that document now, not that it would really change it all that much."
"How goes the Sith training?" Arl asks her formerly brother-padawan turned favourite Sith Apprentice.
"His eyes glow now." Micah says with very forced cheer, Garen hides a smile.
"Master…"
"I know! I'm trying. And I am proud of you, really, it's just…a lifetime of brain washing to get past."
"Yet the rest of us acclimatised a month ago." Depa teases, Mic glares.
"Yes well I have other stuff going on too you know! Seriously, one padawan 13'000 years in the past, another training to be a Sith Apprentice by…an old friend who is a Sith Lord, my other best friend is only leaving the library when physically forced to, my Padawan's mother either nervous cooking too much food or nervous knitting me jumpers. Not to mention my partner running himself into the ground trying to find his brother, his nephew doing the same. A good friend attempting to drag them both out of it as I take over being Master on call for the first Padawan's little brother who decided the best way to deal with his fear of his sister not coming back was being a little twerp!" Micah rants, everyone falls silent.
"Master when was the last time you meditated?" Arl asks worriedly, she'd only been gone a month but damn did things fall apart quickly.
"I don't remember." He says rubbing his forehead with his hand in an effort to relieve the constant headache he's had the last month.
"Slept?"
"I got an hour last night." He says defensively, if he's counting that as good though she is even more worried.
"Ate?"
"Uhhh, I don't remember that one either."
"Took a break of any kind?" Dooku asks sharing his partner's concern.
"I haven't had the damned time!" He snaps, everyone in the room looks extremely guilty under Arlie, Dooku, and Quinlan's accusing looks, hell even the Chancellor does!
"All right then. Mace, Obi-Wan, you are taking three days off of the case unless something urgent is found, no arguments or I will beat you both until Terza makes you take that time in the healer's wing. Mic, you're taking three days off of everything, Tyranus, you and Xan are going to be helping Quinlan with his investigation. I will deal with my mother and…the little twerp." Arl dictates.
"Arl, as nice as that would be, we are already down three council members, we can't lose another." Adi tells her.
"Actually, I'd been wondering about that, where is Master Ti?" Everyone looks super depressed.
"Oh gods, what happened?"
"A boulder was pushed off of a cliff onto her. We caught the guy but…" Depa explains, Arl swallows hard and nods.
"Well it has been a year and a half since Piell and Poof stepped down. You need their replacements on and caught up, if the council will permit it, I can temporarily take over Mic's duties."
"Actually Arl, Yarael named you his successor. That's why a replacement hasn't been brought in, you're it." Adi tells her, she looks surprised.
"I am not even technically a Jedi anymore." She points out.
"A Jedi you never were, stopped you before it has not. Jedi you may not be but a part of the order you are. On the council you have been for many years, a difference in paperwork this only is." Yoda says speaking up for the first time the entire meeting, Arl nods.
"All right then, that is one down. Even named you his successor Obi-Wan." Depa tells him.
"To be fair he is unaware I am half-Sith. Which is still a ridiculous way of putting it but it's the best description we are going to get." Obi-Wan responds.
"Never the less a position on this council you have if want it you do." Yoda tells him, Obi-Wan nods his consent.
"Mic, first name on your list for temporary replacements should one be needed is Qui-Gon if I remember correctly." Plo questions, Mic nods.
"And before you object, that has not changed." Mic tells Qui-Gon who had opened his mouth to protest, Qui glares at him, not that it does much good when Mic won't meet his eye anymore.
"A place you also do have, not just as Qui-Gon Jinn but as Darth Anarch as well." Yoda says, Qui almost looks touched.
"Then I accept the temporary position, but temporary only, no quitting on me." He says giving Mic a pointed look, Mic just laughs and holds his hands up in surrender before his smile falls and he looks to the table, Qui just looks away dejectedly. Arl debates whether to manipulate and try and help them before deciding that, for once, she should leave the situation to be sorted out by them when they are ready.
"This is going to be one hell of a ride." Quin says, Arl can't find it in herself to disagree with that, it was an apt description after all.
"Hate to ruin the moment but that is still only eleven people." Bant points out.
"We could ask Yaddle to re-join the council?" Arl offers.
"Ask you can but warning give me so that off the planet I can be." Yoda tells her after cackling, she laughs.
"What about Tahl?" Qui-Gon says looking her in the eyes, she glares at him, then at everyone who seems to be considering it.
"Nope." She says the moment Mace opens his mouth.
"Oh c'mon Tahl, we neeeeeed you!" Mic whines, she glares at him.
"It would be a great learning experience to be a Council Padawan for my final years." Bant tells her Master who glares at her.
"Traitor."
"You love me."
"Not the point."
"Please Tahl." Adi asks, Tahl groans.
"Fine."
"So that is, 9 Jedi, a Sith, a half-Sith, and a Custos on the Jedi High Council? This is what you are telling me?" Valorum asks, not surprised so much as, everything they have been doing has just become so much more serious to him.
"No, The Jedi Order this can no longer be if wish to survive we all do. Telling you we are that on a new council these beings are, the first High Council this is of The New Order Of The Force." Yoda tells them all and smiles serenely. Mic's comm chimes, he looks at it and groans before answering it.
"Giiett."
"Master Giiett, sorry to interrupt yet again, but he's set a window on fire. That is not even scientifically possible but here it is, in front of me, there's a bloody window on fire. WE DON'T EVEN HAVE CURTAINS!" Jey-Sahl Penn's voice says, Arl makes gimme motions with her hands, he hands over the comm.
"Master Penn, this is Arl speaking. Would you please put my brother on the pho…uhh…comm." Arl requests.
"Oh thank the force you are back." Penn says under her breathe as she gets the child in question.
"Arlie!" He calls happily.
"Anakin. Skywalker…" Arl begins.
"I'm putting it out I swear!" He blurts out, Arl vaguely hears the Creche Master's call of relief in the background.
"I will be down as soon as this meeting wraps up Little Brother, that room had best be in order by then." She tells him harshly.
"Yes Arleia."
"And Anakin."
"Yeah?" She could practically hear the cringe in his voice.
"I missed you Ani." She tells him in a soft voice.
"I missed you too Arlie." He replies, she really could hear the smile in his voice.
"All right, we'll have a council meeting tomorrow at 8th hour, at 13th we'll have another meeting like this one for Arl, Dooku, and Quinlan to tell us everything that happened, to be caught up on everything and tell us their plan for moving forward. Until then, everyone go decompress." Mace dictates, everyone nods their agreement and so the meeting is dismissed.
Arl heads straight down to the creche, unsurprised to find her brother sitting outside waiting for her. She walks past him and over to Jey-Sahl, makes sure everything is all right now and that no one was hurt, gets a run down of his behaviour the last month, she then apologises for the trouble he has caused and goes to collect him.
"A-am I going to get kicked out?" He asks timidly, Arl smiles.
"When he had just turned thirteen, Garen blew a hole in the creche wall. Bant used to go around scaring the pants off of everyone and from what I understand, Mic was into surprise attacks on people during his time in the creche. No Ani you are not getting kicked out, but I'd appreciate an explanation. What the hell it is you've been doing, or more specifically why?" He looks to his feet as they walk.
"You'd think I'm crazy." Arl fights back the inappropriate giggle that threatens to emerge at the thought of her finding anything crazy anymore. She stops them and pulls them to the side of the hallway before kneeling down and grabbing his shoulders.
"No, I won't." He seems to debate with himself for a minute as he searches her eyes for something.
"He's quiet for a while if I react." He murmurs looking to his feet again. "And he said you weren't coming back so I was upset anyway. Mum used to say that when I asked, but I wanted to believe. It's hard to believe with him whispering all the time so I wanted him to be quiet." Arl swallows back any outward emotion or expression save for kindness and mild concern.
"He who?" She asks gently, he looks up at her in surprise.
"I dunno his name." Arl swallows and nods.
"Is he whispering right now?" Anakin shakes his head, "Coz of the fire yeah?" He nods, "If and when he starts again Anakin, it's really important you come tell me. I may be able to help." He nods again, "Okay good. Now, we are going to go see Micah, you will apologise for causing him so much trouble and then we are going to go catch up with Mum for a while because I have not seen her since I got back."
"Okay." He says with a small smile, "Arls?"
"Yeah Ani?"
"Thanks for believing me."
"I don't just believe you Ani, I believe in you, I always will." He takes her hand as they walk to her quarters.
The door is open as always when they get there, they see Mace making tea and Mic laying on the sofa reading a datapad.
"Master Giiett?" Ani calls from the doorway, the man in question looks over and smiles at him as he sits up.
"Hi Ani, what can I do for you?" He asks, the boy seems shocked that Micah isn't annoyed at him, Arl isn't, he trained Garen after all.
"I um…" he says looking to Arl who nods in encouragement. "I'm really sorry for my behaviour lately and that it kept interrupting your work." Mic smiles kindly.
"I appreciate that Anakin, I hope your sister has helped in some way and that this was the last complaint we'll be getting?" Anakin bites his lip awkwardly.
"I do too." He mumbles nervously, Mic looks to Arl who shakes her head and mouths later to him, he nods.
"Come on Ani, time to go see Mum."
"Wait, um, Master Giiett, I also wanted to say, thank you. Coz I did a lot of silly and bad stuff but you kept coming down and you wanted to help not to yell at me every time. Thank you." He says before moving to follow Arlie out of the door.
"Honey?" Mic calls once the two have left, Mace walks over with their tea.
"Yes?"
"I know Obi has dibs on that one, but can we get another Padawan?" Mace laughs.
"Sure Mic, so long as this one doesn't blow things up to win your favour." Mace replies sarcastically, they both laugh. Mic, meanwhile, smiles mischievously into his tea, he had technically said yes after all.
"Arleia, you're back!" Shmi says happily as she answers her door and throws her arms around her daughter, "I'm just on the comm desk with Cliegg if you want to say hi." Arl smirks to herself.
"I'd love to." She says pulling her brother in with her.
"Are you in trouble again?" Shmi asks the boy.
"Not this time." Arl says with a smile winking at her brother from behind their mother.
"Good boy." She says ruffling her son's hair.
"Muuum." He complains.
"Hi Cliegg, how goes the desert?" Arl asks sitting down at the desk to see the man over the vidscreen.
"Hot, and sandy." He replies with a smile, "How goes whatever mission you were on?"
"It was certainly an interesting one."
"How many injuries?"
"Among us? One."
"Among everyone else?"
"More than one." Arl replies sadly but at peace with the knowledge that she couldn't have really helped them without creating a different timeline.
"How many did you help though?" Arl smiles at the man, this timeline, last timeline, doesn't matter, he was the same.
"A great deal more."
"I'd call that a success then." She laughs.
The four of them chat for a while before Obi-Wan wanders in looking annoyed.
"Obi?" Shmi asks concerned.
"Why do people even date? Everyone is an ass." He replies, Arl winces, she knew that tone. Qui-Gon done fucked.
"What happened with Master Jinn?" Cliegg asks him, he sighs gladly taking the seat in front of the console that Arl vacated for him.
"What's a date?" Anakin asks.
"A date is when two people who like each other in a romantic fashion go do something together. Dating someone means you do that regularly and are in a relationship." Arlie replies.
"That's a surprisingly good explanation." Obi says approvingly.
"Had a similar talk with my Master a few months ago." Obi laughs.
"Which one?"
"Yes." They both laugh. "So, Qui."
"You know I've never hidden anything from him, always been up front about everything and you know how hard that is for me." Arl nods, "So, two months after he tells me this big secret he's been keeping, I find out there is something else as well." Arl grimaces.
"What?"
"He has a damned kid!" Everyone in the room freezes.
"What?" Arl repeats.
"Qui-Gon Jinn, has a daughter."
"Are you sure it's not just one of the strays he picks up? Like the bird that's been flying around the temple from his mission to Kashyyk?" Shmi questions carefully.
"Oh, that's where the bird came from. Thanks mum that's been bugging me." Arl interjects.
"Yes, I am sure!"
"Did he give you a reason for not telling you?"
"He didn't see her, her mother didn't want her having a father just to lose him when a mission goes bad. He doesn't like to talk about it."
"Can you see where he is coming from? I mean you did not tell him about your biological family."
"You try talking about stuff when you've watched your father murder your mother."
"What?!" Anakin squeaks, Obi-Wan grimaces.
"Oops."
"Anakin, Obi-Wan didn't have a very nice father originally, that's why he came to live with me and became my son." Cliegg calmly tells the boy who still seems panicked.
"Is that why I don't have a father? Because he wasn't very nice?" Ani asks Shmi, she and Arl both freeze awkwardly, Shmi looks to her daughter worriedly which makes Arl realise she's crying.
"Yes Anakin, your father was not a nice man at all." Shmi finally tells the boy.
"Did he hurt you Arleia?" Ani whispers.
"Anakin how about you, me, and mum have a big conversation later about this?" Arl suggests shakily, Shmi nods encouragement. Neither wanted to tell the boy much but he deserves something.
"Okay." He says hugging Arl who flinches at it before awkwardly hugging him back.
"Okay, now, we understand why you did not tell him Obi, but can you understand why he didn't tell you."
"Of course I can Arl, but the difference is, this is a big thing that he should have told me before we had been together for two and a half months. Before that? Sure, none of my business. But now? We made this on a whole thing of any secrets being out in the open and they weren't. He only told me when he had no choice."
"Which sucks, but why did he have no choice?"
"Her mother died, she's coming here to live with him. They have spoken before through messages very sporadically at the kid's insistence to her mother but they don't know each other well nor have they ever met."
"This woman he had a child with has died?" Shmi asks worriedly, Obi smiles.
"This was a week ago, I spent a week comforting him before getting annoyed." Cliegg smiles.
"You're a good man Obi-Wan." He tells his son who smiles.
"So, when does my niece in-law get here?" Arl asks earning a hit from Obi-Wan.
"Qui and I are not married!"
"Yet." Anakin says with a grin, Obi just huffs.
"Dad I'm home!" Owen yells from the background of Cliegg's end.
"Come here son." He yells back, the ten-year-old come bounding over to the screen and notices them instantly.
"Obi! Ani! Shmi! Arlie!" He calls happily.
"Hey squirt." Arl remarks.
"You're a year and a half older than me and I'm taller than you!" He complains.
"Hey that year counts!"
"Owen, we need your opinion." Anakin says changing the subject back.
"On what?"
"Whether Obi and Master Jinn are gonna get married." Ani tells him, he grins.
"Well duh!"
"Will you guys stop deciding my life, next thing you know you'll be planning a damn ceremony and you guys have already started haven't you?"
"Yep." Arl, Ani and Owen tell him, as does Shmi, Obi glares at the latter who smiles sweetly.
"If anyone is going to get married it's those two!" Obi says pointing to Shmi and his dad, they both look shocked.
"Also duh." Owen tells him.
"We're planning that one too." Anakin tells him.
"I, uh, what?" Cliegg stumbles awkwardly.
"Please tell me you two did not continue skirting around each other the entire month I was gone." Arl pleads.
"I, okay I suppose we are doing this now. We have decided to try something but it is quite long distance so it will be slow moving. So, no wedding plans." Shmi tells the kids sternly.
"Well that one is easy to fix." Xanatos says as he lets himself into the living quarters.
"Hey Xan." Everyone says in turn, he smiles back.
"What do you mean easy to fix?"
"Well, after my father died I inherited all of his things, there's an apartment on Coruscant that I was just going to sell but it's yours if you want it. I was actually coming here to see if the lovely Shmi was interested in a job at the clothing shop I acquired."
"He died like two or three years ago, why is this only coming up now?" Obi-Wan asks.
"Obi!" Cliegg chastises, Arl sniggers at the name.
"It's a good question."
"For various reasons I've only just been able to meet with his lawyer two days ago."
"Oh that's why you bugged out straight after the mission." Obi guesses, Xan nods.
"So, apartment? Job?" Xan asks Cliegg and Shmi in turn.
"I'd love the job." Shmi tells him with a smile.
"It's yours."
"I can't accept an apartment from you Xanatos and I have no way to pay for it."
"So, when you find a job you can put away a portion of your pay if you'd like?" Xanatos suggests, there was a mirth in his eyes that Arl instantly recognised as trouble.
"How much would I be paying you all together?" Cliegg asks.
"10 credits?" Xan suggests, Arl laughs.
"Xanatos!" Cliegg admonishes.
"What? Jedi have no need for money, only reason I was even going to sell it was because I didn't know anyone to give it to. Gods know what I'd have done with the money anyway."
"Just take it Dad you know he's serious." Owen tells him.
"Son, I..."
"Okay think of it this way, a while ago something very bad happened and for some time I was a very bad person. During that time I attacked Obi-Wan, Arl, Dooku, and Qui-Gon. Think of this as my penance." Xanatos suggests.
"But Xan, you were literally under a mind control." Obi-Wan points out not even mentioning the fact that it was not this version of him that attacked he and Qui-Gon.
"Yeah that's why my penance is an apartment and not me watching over your kin for the rest of my days." He tells him, "Not that I won't do that anyway but hey, what's kin for. So, Cliegg?" The man sighs, knowing he's lost.
"We would happily accept the apartment with the understanding that we owe you so very many favours." Xan smiles.
"Only one, and it's easy to do. Have dinner with your kin at your new apartment when you arrive, and have a good time. Anyway, Master Qui-Gon was panicking about something so I have to go see him, I'll be seeing you soon I suppose." He says before heading to the door, the room being rather amused at his words, knowing why Qui-Gon is panicking.
"Xanatos." Cliegg calls, Xan walks back, "I'll expect you to be free for that dinner then." Xan smiles again before nodding and leaving.
"So that wedding." Anakin says with a smirk.
"Anakin!"