A/N: Hullo everyone, and welcome to The Aftermath! This is another Obi/Siri fic. I'll be updating Away later on this week, but I wanted to start something fresh for the summer.

Disclaimer: Characters belong to Lucasfilm and Scholastic. The rating is for violence in later chapters, including disturbing conversations.

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It couldn't be him.

It couldn't. He was smiling. Laughing. I hadn't seen Obi-Wan smile in three years.

He stood at the bottom of the ramp, wrapped in a hug with Garen and Bant. Tears streamed down their faces, purging their minds of the impurities of the pain they had suffered. They were happy to see each other alive.

The other passengers walked passed me. I remained there, staring, transfixed. A breeze made me pull my robe tighter around me. It irritated the cuts on my face. It stung my parched lips. I pressed them together, apart, together again. I breathed deep breaths for the sake of breathing. I hadn't slept in over 30 standard hours. Every one of my muscles ached from exhaustion. I trodded down the ramp way as the braces on my legs gave me an erratic, slow movement. He saw me. He stopped smiling. He looked puzzled, like a small child.

Garen and Bant stepped away from him, exchanging a smile with one another. I was only three feet from him when he stretched out his arms and lunged toward me. I collapsed into them, clutching onto his shoulders as though he'd disappear if I didn't. Violent sobs shook my body. I buried my head under his chin, lost in the safe oasis of his embrace. I don't remember what he said. But I remember that every word, whether three or three-thousand, passed in warm, steady eons. My legs couldn't support me anymore, and he tightened his grip around me as I started to slip. He picked me up, holding me, reassuring me.

"It's over, Siri. It's over. You're home."

The next hour passed by in a blur. I remember being carried in his arms, going in and out of sleep. I protested when I realized that he was laying me on a bed in the Healers'. I sighed, reaching out for him. He gave me a sad smile and gripped my hand.

"The Healers need to look you over."

"Obi-Wan, no -- please -- just stay."

He furrowed his brow. I never acted like this.

"I'll stay. Don't worry."

The Healers put me on an examing bed giving enough comfort for me to fall asleep from time to time as we waited. I was by no means the only Jedi who needed to be examined. Eventually, Healer Cleye and Healer Pol'ne arrived. I groaned inwardly as they started to remove the makeshift braces and bandages on my legs. I heard Obi-Wan stifle a gasp as he looked at them. They were gnarled, missing pieces of flesh and muscle. In some places, the deep, wide cuts were barely above the bone. Tears filled the corners of my eyes as they were exposed to the air. They felt raw and gutted. The Healers exchanged hushed and low sentences with each other.

A pause filled the room. I looked to Obi-Wan. He squeezed my hand harder.

"Well," Healer Cleye awkardly began, "How did you get those braces on there is the first place?"

I drew in a breath. "I used some leaves and branches that I could find. I fastened them as tight as I could with a bunch of wild straw."

Healer Cleye nodded. "There is considerable damage, but they will heal. What other injuries did you obtain during Sullust?"

"None," I lied. "They were injured just before the news of Palpatine's death reached us. I just have some cuts and bruises."

I looked toward Obi-Wan. He knew I was lying. His eyes bore down into mine. I looked away quickly.

"We're going to get you into some bacta casts, and you should be free to go in a few hours. Can you have someone stay in your quarters with you?"

I bit my lip. "Obi-Wan?"

"Of course, Siri. You don't even need to ask." He smiled, but still gazed at me suspiciously. Thankfully, the Healers left at that moment to get the supplies they would need.

I sighed. I knew he was still staring at me.

"Siri, please tell me what happened." He sat on the edge of the examing bed and placed his arm around me.

My eyes watered. "Not here. When we get to my quarters, we can talk."

Satisfied, he kissed my forehead.

I smiled. "You're being rather affectionate."

His eyes widened, and he immediately looked down at the floor, embarassed. He blushed. The powerful Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi actually blushed. "I missed you. I missed all of us."

"You're certainly not cuddling with Master Windu," I pointed out. He grinned.

"Maybe I missed you differently."

"Differently?"

"Yes, differently." He focused his eyes on some far away spot in the room, suddenly serious. "Sometimes, I feel that my Force-bond is different with you than with the rest of the Jedi."

How long had he been wanting to say that? As long as I had? My voice grew disturbingly soft. I wasn't sure of what I was saying, but I was saying it. "Sometimes, I feel the same way." I curiously looked up into his eyes. I wanted to see his reaction. Ol' Oafy definitely looked shocked. He started to say something, right as Cleye and Pol'ne walked back in.

I gasped in surprised when they each took one of my legs into their gentle hold and began to set the bandages. Obi-Wan and I looked at each other for what seemed to be the first time.