Title: Double Vision
Timeframe: Pre-RotS
Characters: Obi-Wan, Siri, others
Genre: drama/romance/AU
Notes: This is growing to be a fairly long story – a lot longer than I'd originally set out to write.

All of the usual disclaimers apply. No profits for me!

Chapter 1

Siri Tachi cruised through the traffic grid of Coruscant, reveling in the wind that blasted her face and whipped through her blonde hair. She had deliberately chosen an open-cockpit speeder for her journey from the spaceport to her home so she could feel this sensation again. When the spires of the Jedi Temple came into view, she couldn't help the wide grin that took over her face and the elation that gripped her heart.

Home. After months of slogging through the jungles of Kashyyyk with only clone troopers for company – they weren't bad company, just a little too focused on all things military – it would be good to see some familiar faces. After witnessing so many brutal slayings and wanton destruction, it would be refreshing to find some reminder of innocence and joy. She would make it a point to watch some of the youngling training sessions during her time home.

Not long ago Siri would have snorted at the thought of observing the children's sessions. Pointless, she would have called it. There was too much for an important Jedi Knight to do than to just sit and watch exercises that she had already been through. She remembered the last time she found Obi-Wan seated on the edge of the training field, watching as Master Drallig led the children in exercises. It had been a few days after the Battle of Geonosis, and as she approached him, she felt the need to lighten his mood.

"Trying to reclaim your youth, old man?"

Without taking his eyes off the field, his reply was soft, "This is our future, one of the reasons we are going to war. Yet that very thing may be what destroys them all."

"You're even starting to sound old," she teased, dropping to the grass next to him. "Hey, we won the first battle."

"But at what price? How many of our friends died? How many of the clones died?" He let out a breath. "The battle would not have ended the way it did without those troopers, but is it right to bring beings into the world for such a purpose?"

Obi-Wan looked at her directly, and she could see the conflict darken his eyes. An old, familiar feeling came alive in her, and she had to resist the urge to lift her hand and stroke the side of his face. All she could offer him was words.

"Your upbringing and your soul demand that you ask such a question," she said. "As horrible as the thought may seem to us, those clones – those men – were created and raised to fight. Their creation wasn't necessarily a good thing, but here they are. And their souls demand that they fight for the given cause, which fortunately happens to be our own. Now that they are alive, would you deny them the chance to fill their duty?"

He simply nodded, absorbing her words. The two sat in companionable silence for a time before Obi-Wan stood up. In a gesture that was gallant yet came naturally to him, he offered his hand to help her up and, in a teasing tone, said, "If I'm getting old, you're not far behind, Master Tachi. Only a few years separate us."

Siri smiled and accepted his help. As their hands touched, warmth spread through her body and feelings that she had carefully kept buried simmered and threatened to spill over into her heart. As soon as she was standing, she let go of his hand and tried not to look at his face. She could sense the same struggle in him, so they bade farewell and walked in opposite directions.

Yes, she thought with a grim face, separated by only a few years. And an ages-old, rigid code.

Obi-Wan. It would do her a lot of good to see her friend. His serenity was just the thing she needed now. That and maybe a chance to knock him off his feet in the sparring room, she thought grinning. She stretched out her feelings through the Force to see if she could sense his presence.

BAM! It hit her like a charging bantha. Obi-Wan was home, all right. In fact, his Force signature had never been so strong. Finding it so suddenly was like getting hit in the stomach. Unprepared as she was, Siri had to catch her breath.

I have a bad feeling about this, she thought.

Sensing other beings in the Force was a subtle art. It took years of training, strong focus and a special bond to be able to find a specific person. Though she and Obi-Wan had decided years ago to bury their deeper feelings for each other in the name of duty, they still worked together and were based at the Temple. Siri never claimed to be a perfect Jedi, and in her more needy moments she would often seek out the comfort of his presence in the Force. In it, she could find a subtle glow that offered its gentle warmth, like sunlight filtering through the trees in the forest.

That's why this not-so-subtle burst of light was so startling. Not to mention that it seemed to be slightly off. Discordant, Siri thought. Something has happened.

She set the speeder down on a landing pad at the temple and jumped out, rushing toward the door. Just as she was about to cross the threshold, she ran into a brick wall. Or what felt like one anyway. "Oof!" Her bottom hit the floor with a thud.

"Master Tachi, I apologize." Anakin Skywalker helped her stand up. "I was in bit of a hurry."

"Anakin. You're very tall." She smiled up at him. "And it looks like you've become a knight."

His hand reached up to where his padawan braid used to rest, and he grinned. "Yep. It's finally gone. I know Master Obi-Wan says patience is a good thing, but –"

Suddenly Siri remembered what she wanted to do. "Obi-Wan! Do you know where he is?"

"Yes, he's working out, but there's something you should-"

Not wanting to waste any more time, Siri took off through door, disappearing into the depths of the Temple.

When she reached the training wing, there was no need to ask anyone where Obi-Wan was working out. His presence was a beacon that drew her to the private studio all the way at the end of the hall. When she opened the door, she saw the object of her curiosity practicing falling drills with another man, one she didn't recognize from behind, though if Obi-Wan hadn't been facing she would have sworn it was ...

Then the two circled around and she got a good look at the stranger's face - and almost fell to the ground in shock.

"What the kriff?"

Both men stopped and turned to the door, almost in tandem. Now that they were both facing her, their appearance was very striking. They were identical, right down to the golden streaks that highlighted their ginger-colored hair, though the locks of one of them reached his shoulders. Both stood at exactly the same height, with an equally muscled build, more noticeable than usual in the light workout tunics.

Siri felt her mouth go dry. By the Force, how was she supposed to be a good Jedi when there was two of them to draw this reaction from her. She shook her head to dispel those thoughts. She turned her gaze back to their eyes to look for any differences there. Sharing the same cerulean hue, one set gazed at her with open affection, while the other just stared intently, as if trying to calculate her thoughts.

Before she could speak, the one with longer, scruffier hair approached with a smile. "Siri, you're back. It's been too long." He took her shoulders and kissed her cheek. She was electrified but recovered quickly and looked at his face. "As you can see, we have a guest." He gestured at his companion.

"What-? How …" Siri couldn't find the words.

The man she presumed to be Obi-Wan grinned and said, "He's a clone. It would seem the Kaminoans are trying to branch out from the regular soldier troopers. Do you think they did a good job?" She couldn't stop herself from staring at the other figure, who looked very uncomfortable.

"I … ah-" Again, words failed her.

"Let me introduce you. Siri, this is JD-OBK1 of what may be a new clone diplomatic corps. He goes by the name Jak. Jak, this is Jedi Master Siri Tachi, a longtime colleague and dear friend."

Siri turned toward the more reserved man and was about to extend her hand, when he suddenly bent forward into a formal bow. She responded in kind and looked into his eyes. His gaze was direct, and he seemed to be looking for something. After an uncomfortable moment, he looked away.

"We're still working on relations training. He's a prototype the Kaminoans sent to the Council in hopes of securing a contract."

Siri looked at her friend. "Obi-Wan, I know how you felt about the clones at the start of the war. Doesn't this bother you? And how did they get your genes to make the clone?"

"Apparently, when I first visited Kamino and discovered the clones, I left behind some, ah, genetic material. An enterprising designer turned it into this." He looked to his genetic twin thoughtfully. "Yes, it was very disconcerting to see myself and feel another presence so similar to my own in the Force. But he's already here, so I have taken him under my wing while I'm home."

He broke his gaze and turned to her smiling. "But there's too much to tell to talk about it now. I have much to do tonight, but have breakfast with me tomorrow morning. We can talk more then."

All Siri could do was nod. She was more than a little shellshocked, and being in a room with what was essentially two Obi-Wans was wreaking havoc with her balance. Her Force sensibility was overwhelmed by the brilliance of Obi-Wan's – and the confusion of the situation. She couldn't get enough of a foothold to find her balance and sort out her feelings. Looking back once more at the man introduced to her as Jak, she thought she sensed frustration and even a bit of anger. It was too much to take in at once.

She turned to the men and gave them a nod before walking out of the room. When she was gone, the man with longer hair turned to his companion and said in a smooth, cultured voice, "So, Master Kenobi, do you think we fooled her? Did I play my role well?"

Obi-Wan Kenobi looked at the man who had been created from his own flesh and said, "Yes, you did." He sighed. A little too well.