Disclaimer: Star Wars belongs to George Lucas. All of us are merely playing in his sandbox. I make no money off of this fic.

AN: Because of certain reasons, I'm going to start posting an alternate version of the story "Under the Setting Sun". This is the story the original version of "Under the Setting Sun," the way I envisioned it. I don't know much of that is left, because it's been a long time since I came up with the story. However, it will include scenes from that original version, in addition to new material I've written.

The first two chapters will start out somewhat similar, but things will quickly become different from there. The two stories will be distinguished by their titles. This is not a replacement for the version Andrea and I are working on, and I will continue to work on that when time allows it. Occasionally the stories will share certain scenes, both for the plotline and out of necessity (because I won't write some scenes over again). Consider them two alternate universes taking place at the same time. :)

Chapter 1 - Destiny's New Path

Two of Naboo's moons shone down upon the gardens of Theed palace. Obi-Wan was well aware of the glances from the other Jedi present. He had failed miserably. Not only had he let that psychotic Sith slay his Master right before his own eyes, he had been too weak to stop him from escaping. The saber burns of his own injuries still stung, but it was nothing like the pain in his heart. He felt that pain stab even deeper as Qui-Gon's funeral pyre was lit.

He took a sharp intake of breath, in order to hold back all the emotions threatening to spill out. Obi-Wan stood at the pyre until the last cinder went out. Qui-Gon was gone. He was deemed unworthy to be knighted. Some other Master would now complete his training. And Anakin…Force only knew what would happen to him. The others soon retreated back inside the palace, including the Masters on the Council. Obi-Wan didn't follow them. He remained outside in the crematorium, watching as the flames consumed Qui-Gon's body. He didn't notice the person silently observing him, pondering whether or not to show herself.

It wasn't until he heard her voice that he realized he wasn't alone.

"Obi-Wan?"

Obi-Wan turned around. "Siri? What are you doing here?"

Siri Tachi was the last person Obi-Wan expected to see. She was recently knighted after an assignment, and was scheduled to go on an undercover mission soon. Why she would be here, Obi-Wan didn't know. However, he couldn't say he wasn't glad to see her, in a way.

"I was on Coruscant when we got the news. I came with the Council," Siri explained. Obi-Wan digested that. He could only imagine what she was feeling.

"Qui-Gon…I can't believe it." Siri shook her head. It was only a few days ago that Qui-Gon Jinn was still alive, and still very much a father figure to Obi-Wan. And now he was gone. She remembered the kindly old Master. He was almost like a father to her as well, even though he disapproved of the relationship she had tried to forge with Obi-Wan. What would they do now without him?

"Are you all right?" she asked.

Kenobi subtly shook his head, averting his eyes from her gaze. "I'm not all right," he said, voice barely masking a world of pain.

Obi-Wan turned away, staring once again at the funeral pyre. "I failed him, Siri. I couldn't save him, and then I couldn't fulfill the promise I made."

Siri had heard about that, the promise Qui-Gon made Obi-Wan commit to on his dying breath. No doubt Obi-Wan was feeling the guilt of not fulfilling that promise, even if the circumstances were beyond his control.

His companion knew she was threading a thin line, but she decided to go ahead anyway. "I don't think that was fair of him, to ask you that on his deathbed," she remarked.

"It doesn't matter. Yoda won't let me train Anakin," Kenobi shook his head. "It's because of Qui-Gon. I couldn't save him, and so the Council thinks I'm not fit to be a Knight yet."

Siri frowned at that. Not fit to be a Knight? That was preposterous! The Council couldn't possibly expect him to defeat a fully trained Sith Lord. No, they couldn't be that foolish. There had to be something else going on, but what that was, Obi-Wan clearly had no desire to express.

Siri listened sympathetically as he continued. "He's all alone now, Siri. No friends, no family, no Jedi Master to warrant his training. Unless someone stands up for him, he's in danger of being sent back to Tatooine. They have slavery there, Siri. He was a slave there."

He had been resentful at first that Qui-Gon would choose this boy over him. But now that Qui-Gon was gone, he realized the truth. Qui-Gon was not trying to replace him. He just saw an enormously talented boy in need of some aid and acted impulsively. And he could see it in the boy, the reason Qui-Gon wanted him to train so badly. The boy was the Chosen One. Anakin had massive potential. But that potential would never be accomplished unless he had someone to support him.

"I will train him then."

Obi-Wan turned sharply to her. "What?"

"I will train him. If it's that important to you, I will train him."

Obi-Wan couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Are you serious?"

"I was going to go on a mission to infiltrate a slaving ring. I guess they'll just have to find someone else to go in my place," Siri stated off-handedly.

Obi-Wan still wasn't convinced. "Siri, you've only just been made a Knight," he protested. "Do you really think you're ready to train a Padawan?"

"And you are?" Siri countered.

"It's not that simple, Siri. If it was, they would let me train Anakin," Obi-Wan pointed out.

"That's different. They might not feel you're ready because of Qui-Gon. I'm not sure you are either."

Obi-Wan looked sharply at her.

"Don't get me wrong, Obi-Wan. You're a great Jedi, regardless of what happened with Qui-Gon. The talent is there, I have no doubt of that. But are you really in the right mindset to train a Padawan?" Siri questioned. "You need to grieve, Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon was a great man. He was almost like your father. That's not the type of thing you get over right away."

Obi-Wan realized she had a point. He was not anywhere near the right mindset to take on a Padawan, even if the Council allowed him to train Anakin. His morose mentality wasn't going to inspire the boy, and it sure wouldn't do him any favors.

Maybe this was for the best…

Siri could see that he was still unsure. "I'm a Knight, Obi-Wan. That counts for something," she said. "I have more experience than you, and it just might give me the edge I need with the Council. If they're going to give anyone the right to train him, it'll be."

"You really think they'll go for that?"

"They'll have no choice. I'm not going to let them do this to you, Obi-Wan. You deserve better than to live your life full of guilt because you didn't fulfill your Master's last request. And if what you say about Anakin is true, then I can't let them do this to Anakin either."

Obi-Wan considered that. It was an intriguing idea, one that was tantalizing in its potential. But still, he couldn't help but feel that Siri was ignoring the more realistic aspects of their situation. Adi Gallia was a tough Master to train under, tougher than Qui-Gon in some respects. Obi-Wan held little doubt she would allow Siri to undertake this option without some strong protest on her part. And if the Council sided with her…Then there was Master Yoda to deal with, and Master Windu.

"What if the Council doesn't approve?"

Siri gave a cocky half-smile. "Then I'll just assume the title of Jedi Master", she answered. Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow.

"Very few people have assumed the title of Master in history, Siri. Jorus C'baoth is the only one."

"And the Council let him get away with that, didn't they? He didn't even have a good reason for it. At least I have a good reason for it."

"This is crazy…" Obi-Wan shook his head.

"It is. I was only joking, however," Siri stated.

"I know."

"Is there anyone else who can take him?" Siri asked.

Obi-Wan thought about it. "Hmm...Master Drallig, possibly. But he's all the way on Coruscant. The Council won't allow Anakin to come with us. Besides, he already has his eye on another student."

Siri sighed. "Then it'll have to be me."

Obi-Wan shook his head. "This is insane…"

"It is. Does that mean you don't want to try it?" Siri asked.

"No. Anakin deserves better." Obi-Wan almost smiled. Almost. "Let's go for it."

"Exactly the response I wanted to hear." Siri said. She too almost smiled, but there was no getting around the situation that brought them to this. It came out more like a twisted grimace.

They lapsed into an awkward silence, watching as the flames consumed burned over what was left of Qui-Gon's body.

"Obi-Wan…"

He turned to look at her.

"Do you want to…talk about it?" Siri asked.

"No," Obi-Wan responded shortly.

"Okay," she replied, not wanting to test his patience.

"I'm sorry," Siri uttered quietly, wishing she could get closer to him. Obi-Wan really needed a shoulder to cry on. She subtly linked her arm with his, resting her head on his shoulder.

Obi-Wan made no reply, though he did not pull away from her affection. They stayed there until the flames finally cooled over the ashes.

Anakin was still awake when Obi-Wan came to visit him. He knew he should have gone to bed already; the Queen – Padmé – told him so, but he couldn't get over what happened tonight. Qui-Gon was gone. He'd known the Jedi was dead, having been killed by that thing the Masters called a Sith Lord, but it hadn't really sunk in until he saw the body lying there on the funeral pyre. Qui-Gon was gone and he was left stranded in a strange place with no one but the droids and Padmé to keep him company.

He was alone.

And now Obi-Wan was coming to talk to him. Anakin wondered what the Padawan wanted with him. He knew the Padawan was broken up over Qui-Gon's death, but he didn't really know him that well. Somehow, Anakin didn't think Obi-Wan liked him very much. But Obi-Wan had been acting nice to him recently, so maybe he was wrong.

Obi-Wan stepped inside and gathered Anakin's attention.

"I already know what you're going to say. I'm not going to be a Jedi, am I?"

The boy walked away looking distraught. Obi-Wan's heart went out to him. He looked so sullen, so disheartened. This was not the Anakin Skywalker he had met a couple days ago. Hopefully the upcoming news would prompt that boy to make reappearance.

He nodded towards the Jedi waiting outside, prompting Siri to make her move.

Anakin heard footsteps behind him. He turned around to see Obi-Wan coming towards him with a blonde haired woman of about his age.

"Anakin, this is Siri Tachi. She's my very close, personal friend," Obi-Wan introduced his companion.

"Hi."

"Hi," Siri greeted.

"Nice to meet you," Anakin stuck out his hand like his mother taught him.

"Nice to meet you, too." Siri was impressed by the boy's politeness.

"Anakin, we have some important news for you," Obi-Wan stated.

The young boy waited anxiously. This was it, he assured himself. They were going to send him back. After all he'd done to try and become a Jedi, they were going to send him back.

He had failed his mom…and Master Qui-Gon too.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan knelt down in front of him, "Siri has agreed to take you on as a Padawan."

Anakin stared at the two Jedi.

"Really? Are you serious?"

"Absolutely," Siri assured him. The wonder was evident in his voice.

"Wow! I thought I'd never get a chance to be a Jedi." Suddenly he noticed the Padawan braid behind Siri's ear. "But…what about your own Master?"

Obi-Wan and Siri traded glances – Obi-Wan hadn't expected the boy to be that astute.

"Don't worry about her. We'll handle that," Siri told him. She was surprised he had caught that. Although she had already been made a Knight, for reasons due to being involved with various missions, she had yet to have a formal Knighting ceremony. As a result, the braid was still attached to her. Clearly he had already picked up on some things from his time hanging around Qui-Gon. Or perhaps, it was a result of making the connection between Obi-Wan and their shared trait. Either way, she was pleasantly surprised that he was that sharp.

Siri knelt down to his level. "Anakin, I can't promise you that I'll be like Qui-Gon. But I'll try to train you to the best of my abilities. You will be a Jedi, I promise."

"So, what do you say?" Obi-Wan asked. Siri held out her hand.

"I…" Anakin hesitated for the briefest of instances. "I accept."

Obi-Wan and Siri smiled.

"Good. Now give me a hug," Siri stated.

Anakin leaned into the woman's open arms, feeling compelled to trust her despite having just met her. There was something about Siri Tachi that made him feel safe. She reminded him of his mother, in that way.

Over the boy's shoulder, Obi-Wan and Siri looked approvingly at each other, each giving the other a faint nod.

This was going to work. It was going to work and Anakin would be trained into the Jedi he deserved to be.

Siri waited impatiently outside of Master Yoda's chambers. She had insisted on speaking with him, Master Windu, and her own Master tonight. The events of the last few days swirled in her head. A Sith, the first one in over a thousand years, had appeared. A Zabrak, from the sound of it, who matched Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon in every aspect of Jedi training. He had murdered Qui-Gon Jinn right before Obi-Wan's eyes and then fled, after delivering a minor injury and defeat to Obi-Wan. At his Master's dying request, he had asked Master Yoda for permission to train the slave boy, Anakin. Qui-Gon believed the boy to be a child of prophecy. The Chosen One. The one who would save them all from the Sith.

But most of the Council considered the boy too old to begin training and feared the raw power they sensed from the child. Siri did not fear him though. In fact, she'd felt connected to Anakin the instant she'd met him. How could the Council suggest they send him back to Tatooine? Back to a life of slavery, where he would know nothing but a life of misfortune and cruelty? The boy's mother had given him up to spare him of that existence and Siri would be damned if she'd let a mother's sacrifice be for naught.

Once Master Yoda had denied Obi-Wan's request, she knew what she had to do. She felt badly that Yoda had said Obi-Wan was not yet ready to become a Knight. She felt his sorrow, grief, and shame. She wanted to be there for him, but he had already shut her out. She, on the other hand, was already a Knight, and a successful one to boot. All she needed was to play her cards right and she would be able to take Anakin as her Padawan. Adi was the biggest obstacle. If her former Master decided to put up a protest, it could be a big wait before she was allowed the privilege to train Anakin. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that. Adi had to know Siri well enough that she wouldn't do something like this unless it was absolutely necessary. Finally, she was admitted to Yoda's chambers and took a seat on a round, meditation pad. Directly across from her was Master Yoda. To his right was Master Mace Windu and on Yoda's left sat her own Master, Adi Gallia.

"Siri, tell us why you have gathered us here at this late hour?" Mace requested of her.

"Masters, I have a greatly important matter to talk to you about," Siri said.

"Go on," Mace said.

"Masters, I request permission to train the boy, Anakin Skywalker," she said frankly.

The Council members exchanged glances of disbelief. Hadn't they settled this already?

"How did you find out about that?" Mace asked.

"Obi-Wan told me," Siri replied. Mace sighed in a weary breath. He was getting tired of dealing with this.

"The boy will not be trained, Siri," Mace replied.

"And why not?" Siri demanded.

"We have already given Obi-Wan the reasons why he will not be trained. He is too old, too angry. It will be very difficult for him to unlearn everything his mother taught," Mace said, in tones of strained patience.

"Great danger I fear in his training," Yoda nodded.

Siri tried to restrain herself – Anakin was only a child. It's just Yoda, she told herself. He doesn't mean anything by it. He senses danger in everything. And that's if Anakin isn't trained properly. I can do this.

From across the Jedi, Adi Gallia regarded her former pupil with disbelief and an almost indignant outrage. Under her tutelage, her former Padawan had gotten herself into some strange situations, but this was beyond anything she had ever done before.

"Siri, you are still a recent Knight, barely past your trials," Adi protested. "You cannot seriously believe you are ready to take on a Padawan."

"Master, I can do this. I know I'm young, but the Force is telling me I have to do this. And I consider this boy's training the most challenging trial I will ever undertake," Siri said. "And I was trained by the best. Adi, please have faith in your training of me. I know I can do this."

"Siri, that boy is dangerous!" Adi exclaimed.

"Not in the right hands, he's not. He has ambition, a thirst for knowledge, a desire to help those in need, and great potential. Sound familiar?" Siri asked, using the words they had often used to describe her. She didn't notice the way Yoda was looking at her curiously, almost with an intrigued expression.

Mace considered her request, touching the fingertips of his hands. They didn't often have a person coming to them with such a determined request. Qui-Gon was the last one, and well...the less said about that, the better. He preferred not to think about that at the moment. And yet, he could feel the potential inside Anakin Skywalker. Could it be done? Mace wondered. Could the boy possibly be trained from a background of slavery to become the greatest Knight they had ever known? It was a long shot, but stranger things had happened in the history of the Order. Mace himself had voted in favor of training him. Though the boy needed discipline, he was not a lost cause in Mace's estimation. There was much that could be done to shape him.

"She has a point. In the right hands, he could be molded into a great warrior," Mace mumbled to Yoda.

Adi gave him a look of disbelief.

"You cannot be serious. Qui-Gon was foolish to even consider the boy!" Adi interjected, visibly incredulous at the idea.

"Master Yoda, I know that taking Anakin as my Padawan is right for me. He is only a child; one that had the misfortune of being a slave. I feel a kindred likeness with him. I can teach him, because I understand him," Siri pleaded.

Yoda contemplated Siri's request. The little Master sat in his chair, face passive and hands touching comfortable in a portrait of wisdom. He had sensed the boy was dangerous. He had said as much to Obi-Wan. But now, something was different about the way he perceived the boy and his future. He felt something in the Force, urging him to take a second look at Anakin's future - the future he had dismissed as too dangerous to gamble on. Incredibly, the feeling seemed to be focused around Siri Tachi and her training of the boy. As hard as it was to believe, she and the boy were linked in a way that marveled his ancient senses. This felt right.

"Hmm…a difficult choice you ask of us. To entrust a first-year Knight with a Padawan, an easy choice it is not. Care must be taken, with the Padawan and the Knight." Siri felt her heart sink; it was obvious where Yoda was going with this. "However, a difference in perspective I have experienced recently, stemming from this very council," Siri lifted her head, "Ready to train a student Obi-Wan was not. Ready you are. Sensed it through the Force I have. A noble thing you do for this boy, putting yourself in the place of his mentor. An easy task, training him will not be. A great gamble we take. But an opportunity to correct that, you will have. Watching you closely we will be. A great responsibility has been has been saddled onto your shoulders, Siri Tachi. Prove us wrong, you must. Granted, your request is," Yoda said. Siri was stunned, though she quickly recovered herself, smiling joyously at the green-skinned Master.

"Thank you Master," she bowed.

"Master…you cannot be serious," Adi protested, stunned almost to the point of speechlessness.

"Serious I am, Master Gallia. Felt a stirring in the Force, I have. Right this feels, when contemplate it deeper I do," Yoda said, his eyes almost twinkling. It was obvious to Siri something had happened in this short time frame. Had he felt the same thing she had?

"Respect my decision, you will, Master Gallia. And be proud of your apprentice, you should," Yoda said to Adi.

"Yes Master," she answered, though it was clear she was anything but.

"Congratulations, my Padawan. It seems you have a Padawan," Adi said, though her voice held no mirth.

"Master, I'm sorry I had to do this like this," Siri stated, "But it was necessary. I had to make sure Anakin didn't go back to that Force-awful planet." Adi paid her no mind. Siri frowned, but she knew it was to be expected. She knew Adi was upset, but she hoped Adi would understand why she had done this. She knew it would probably be a long time before Adi spoke to her again, and she was prepared to deal with that. Only time would tell whether Adi forgave her for this.

Yoda's voice brought her back to reality.

"Sorry you should not be, Knight Tachi. A great thing you do for this boy," Yoda lightly chided her, clearly praising her despite his doubts about Anakin.

"Thank you, Master," Siri bowed deeply, filled with gratitude beyond words.

Read & review, but be nice. And respect Andrea's version nonetheless. ;)