Author's Note: My gratitude to: amber75, Majestik Moose, KenObi-Wan, Barranca, Jacen200015, MOWK38, Jedi Ani Unduli, Rissika, TamsynDell, XANI and Osprey Eamon for your gracious comments.

It was a rare privilege for an outsider to be granted an immediate private audience with Master Yoda, but Xanatos knew that the sage old dignitary's curiosity about the notorious former Jedi's sudden appearance would grant him swift unfettered access.

Seated also in the otherwise empty hallowed Council chamber was Mace Windu who studiously eyed the Telosian with cautious suspicion.

"Why are you here, Xanatos?"

"Just politely soliciting an exchange of pertinent classified information."

"And why should we possibly have any particular interest in anything that might concern you?"

"Because..., Master Windu." The piqued noble stressed the honorific with a hint of sarcasm. "For the past few cycles, I've been surreptitiously sheltering one of the Order's most sought after and invaluable lost assets."

Xanatos deftly moved to one side as Ben warily took a step forward and doffed the concealing cowl of his ebony cloak.

The two masters looked at each other slack jawed with identical stunned expressions of bafflement which melded into bona fide relief.

Still dubious, the tall Jedi councilor inquired askance, "What trickery are you up to?"

"No chicanery involved," the noble openly attested. "We're aware of the sensitivity and secrecy of the issue at hand. Ergo, the purpose of this discreetly confidential meeting."

Yoda took note of the lack of recognition in Ben's eyes at the presence of his Jedi elders. "Know us, you do not, do you, young one?"

Surveying the kind wizened face, the knight sadly shook his head. "I'm sorry. I honestly don't recognize either of you."

"His mind's been wiped clean," the Telosian informed. "He's been attended to by the most elite mind healers in the galaxy, who're at a loss as to how to reverse the damned cerebral operation." Elucidating further, "We're here for answers. Specifically, the intricate details of the mission he was assigned to before he went missing."

"You are in no position to dictate demands, Xanatos. With your prior history, you can't expect us to trust you."

"Gentlemen," Though his patience was wearing thin, Xan civilly maintained, "If you have no intention of being forthcoming and the prospects for mutual cooperation are nonexistent, then you leave my friend and I no recourse but to depart in pursuit of our own investigation."

Mace Windu arose, the stern timber of his voice commanding, "Knight Kenobi stays."

Ever defiant, the infamous fallen Jedi overtly caressed the hilt of the lightsaber by his side. "Not if I have any say in the matter."

"Stand down, Xanatos," the council member pointedly warned. "Don't turn this into an incident, you'll live to regret."

The noble chuckled at the challenge. "Don't try to intimidate me, Master Windu. You may possess a sterling reputation as a renown swordsman, however, I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a pansy pushover in the dueling department by any standard."

"Stop this grandstanding, both you will," an exasperated Yoda ordered, aggressively pounding his gimer stick on the immaculate floor.

"XANATOS," came the forceful booming baritone from across the room. All eyes turned to see the imposing figure of Qui-Gon Jinn standing by the Council chamber entrance. "I had to see for myself if rumors claiming you were spotted in the Temple corridors were true." The Jedi master's gaze riveted on his scandalous former apprentice, then drifted to fixate on the fellow companion by his side.

"Obi-Wan?..."

Ben quickly deduced that this arresting individual must be both he and Xan's previous mentor. Logically, he thought, it should not be an arduous task to recall at least a miniscule aspect of the man who had played such a dominant role in his life. Thus, the determined knight began to intensively focus his total concentration on Qui-Gon's leonine features.

Tremors started initially in Ben's hands. Then, a flash of blinding white light seared his vision before a sharp burst of pain erupted in his head.

Without warning, the young man cried out in distress, startling those around him, before his convulsing body crumpled to the ground.

"Obi-Wan...Obi-Wan...," a concerned Qui-Gon summoned in a muted masterly tone, but to no avail.

"He won't respond to that name," Xanatos explained as he crouched down next to his friend, coaxing him to consciousness. "Ben...Take it easy...Just breathe."

"What made him collapse?"

"Vicious backlash from the infernal mind-wipe. Anytime he tries too hard to access his memories, he's subjected to fits of seizure."

"Mind-wipe?...Why is it not surprising to find you mixed up in all of this Xanatos."

"Oh...I'm up to my elbows in this treacherously evil enterprise, Master Jinn. Only not quite the way you think."

"Spare me your innocent victim routine. You won't fool me into believing you're not somehow responsible for this atrocious situation."

"Enough." Ben snapped, rousing from his debilitating faint. Rubbing his throbbing forehead, he gingerly got to his feet. "Xan is in no way to blame for my egregious condition. Let me make it perfectly clear that he is not my arch nemesis and his actions towards me have been nothing but altruistic ever since he liberated me from the cruel bonds of slavery."

The three Jedi masters were silently struck dumb by the surprising declaration.

"I only wish to shed some light into what led me into ending up in this fugue state to begin with. If it occurred whilst during the commission of my duties for you, then, I feel that I'm entitled to the truth."

Yoda seriously pondered for a brief span before finally nodding his assent. "Deserve it, you do." To allay the tension, he emphasized, "Know you, that this is your home."

"When we first arrived at the Temple, the idea that I was somehow affiliated was simply inconceivable to me." Ben noted with astonishment. "Now, you're telling me it's true...I am a Jedi."

"A Jedi knight to be precise." Xanatos clarified. "That's quite a sobering upgrade from lowly subservient slave."

"And you too, Xan. I take it you haven't played the part of a pampered aristocratic businessman your entire life."

"A long time ago, I used to belong to this sacred benevolent brotherhood as well, but unfortunately turbulent events transpired. As a consequence, my outlook on the universe was...shall we say -- drastically altered."

"That general summation is what I would call classic understatement," Jinn dryly commented.

Glaring, the noble retorted with asperity. "I learned at the feet of the finest double talking diplomat in the galaxy." Deftly, he changed the unsettling subject. "Let's get back to the crux of the matter, Masters. What exactly did Knight Kenobi's last mission entail?"

Mace Windu uttered a single word. "Naboo."

"You believe that all this is the work of the Sith?"

"You are to be commended for your network of informants, Xanatos. Theories of the reemergence of the Sith have lingered since the attempted invasion by the Trade Federation years ago. There's virtually no evidence of their presence, however, Knight Kenobi by happenstance came upon a lead which took him to Naboo."

The noble picked up Windu's train of thought. "Whereupon, he mysteriously vanished. Only to turn up later where my people discovered him tortured and shackled in the Outer Rim slave markets."

"Conceal the nature of his absence during our search for him, we did," Yoda revealed. "Vouch for our integral security, we cannot. Problematic leaks contributed to Obi-Wan's apprehension, of this, I am certain. "

"We need an advantage," the Korun councilman strategized while decisively eying the Telosian. "An inside track as to how a cunning Sith thinks. That's where you come in."

"Me?"

"If you're truly earnest in your efforts to aid Obi-Wan..."

An incredulous Xanatos abruptly interrupted, his outrage apparent. "Of all the bantha blasted nerve. I come within a hair's breadth away from taking my Trials when you send me on an ill-fated mission to Telos where my aspirations of knighthood are spectacularly shot down in flames and now you have the unmitigated gall to expect me to help you smoke out the Sith?"

Unrepentant, the prudent diminutive master rationalized, "Dire circumstances require unprecedented measures, they do. The same for then as it is for now, see this you must."

Amusingly shaking his head at the irony, a cynical Xan balked. "And I suppose enlisting a shady Jedi to do your dirty work is the most expedient resource you have at your disposal."

Yoda appealed to Xanatos' brethren loyalty. "Not only Obi-Wan, but the Order and the Republic will benefit as well. Your duty, it is not. But know this...," the wise prognosticator cryptically admonished the visibly unswayed former Jedi. "...inevitable it will be. With the triumphant rise of the Sith, will come the fatal downfall and destruction of us all."

Qui-Gon led the fully cloaked Ben back to his residential apartment. The young man gave a cursory glance at the Jinn/Skywalker inscription plate near the door, pausing for a moment to reflect that his name must have at one point been etched upon a similar marker.

Upon entering, the living quarters seemed quite comfortable with well worn furniture and plethora of plant life scattered about. The master could tell by reaction alone that none of the surroundings sparked any familiarity to his guest.

"This must seem like a huge departure from the splendid grandeur of Xanatos' estate."

"Compared to the oppressive slave cages I've inhabited, this place can be considered a palace."

It felt awkward speaking to someone he'd known and raised for over a decade like a complete stranger. "Well, that's understandable. Feel free to make yourself at home, Obbb...Ben, while I prepare us some tea."

Drawn to a display of holopics, the young Jedi noticed that the majority consisted of the mentor with a small blond child. "Is this your latest student, Master Jinn?," he asked when the older man returned carrying a tray laden with tea and a plate with Obi-Wan's favorite tassel cakes.

"You're a knight, now." He acknowledged with pride. "Please call me Qui-Gon. And yes. That's my padawan, Anakin. Presently, he's on a field trip, so he won't be back for a while. Which gives us the perfect opportunity for me to catch you up to speed on your background history. There's a great deal to cover, so what would you like for me to fill in first. Your early era before becoming my pupil...or should we directly delve into our master/apprenticeship period...?"

"To be completely frank, the times of greatest interest to me at the moment are your relationship with Xanatos and everything having to do with our mission to Naboo."

The Jedi Master cringed and deeply sighed, resigned to the fact that it was definitely going to be a long night.