The Return of Ben Kenobi- Chapter Two
Obi-wan was quite surprised by how willing Satine was to showing him around the core of Mandalore. She seemed eager to present him to the grand repairs made to the courts which suffered from the explosion by the Death Watch, the tragedy he witnessed on his last brief visit. Soon into their meander amongst the labyrinth of streets, he realised that the Duchess' palace was the beating heart powering the veins of her city.
Now he wasn't burdened with an unfortunate cause, he was able to see Mandalore in a more divulging light which revealed the magnificent extent to which it had flourished. On their saunter they talked and talked. More so Satine. The topic of the Death Watch passed like the wind. Even though it was quite literally the name of the mission it seemed too distasteful to resurface it. Instead she spoke of Korkie, meeting Ahsoka and the scandal involving Prime Minister Almec, then of Padme's visit; she seemed quite proud of the friendship they had built. But Obi-wan didn't mind listening. He knew it was healthy for her to get these things off her chest, and besides, he cherished the sleek sound of her voice.
They passed the tranquil courts, which had meticulously carved double-helix statues erupting with cascading blue water, and gone far beyond that. In fact Obi-wan had gotten so lost in their conversation that he didn't notice that he was talking about himself; something he rarely does. There was just a quality about Satine that made him feel comfortable. It was only when the Duchess asked politely whether they could turn round that he fully digested how far they had gone and for how long. "I have a meeting later on so I'd rather not travel too far. I do know an ideal place we can stop on the way back; if we have time that is." is what he recalled her saying.
"Of course my lady, lead the way and I shall follow." he replied obediently.
It was a strange route back to palace to say the least. She directed him through so many alleys and tight corners that Obi-wan was convinced they were now on the outskirts. But eventually they came to a patch of green idyllic hillside which contrasted the regimented glass look of Sundari. It must have been the last piece of wildlife left on Mandalore, even if it were very slightly artificial. This is where Obi-wan's guide stopped with a gleaming smile on her countenance. He looked to Satine as to wonder why they had halted but she simply raised an eyebrow and gestured, with her eyes, back to the surviving field of emerald. Look closer. Obi-wan pessimistically followed her line of sight, which carried him to a looming willow tree proudly sprouting from the turf. That was the moment when he remembered. His memories played out like a film before him, Kenobi and Kryze as teens under the sprawling branches. They walked hand-in-hand around it; Obi-wan helped Satine climb it; they had races to roll down the hill; watched the stars at midnight; until they finally said their goodbyes and the tree truly lived up to it's name as a weeping willow. Obi-wan was oblivious to the fact he had been stood silently spellbound for a matter of minutes.
"We can just carry on if this place brings back too many memories for you. I suppose I am more accustomed to seeing it..." she spoke in quite an embarrassed tone.
He had a painful lump in the back of his throat and his mouth had gone dry. With a difficult swallow he spluttered, "No-no its...perfect." and he gave her a reassuring smirk.
As the breeze shuddered the curtain of vines, the tree whistled and whispered. The leaves were like jewels; framing their view into the deep sky. Obi-wan slept on the spongy mattress of glass which compressed under his silky cloak. His weight sunk into the earth allowing his tense muscles to rest at ease. Slowly, he rolled his head to his right to marvel at Satine beside him. Together they had become one with their surroundings and they intently gazed into the sky to watch the galaxy churn around them. As he looked to her, Kenobi wondered what she was thinking about. Was she dreaming about him, like he was dreaming about her? Maybe not. Somewhere inside he hoped she was. Under the cooling shade of the branches they continued to chatter since they never had a proper chance to catch up on the Coronet.
"Do you remember, when we first met?" she quietly enquired out of the blue.
"I do indeed. I remember it all." he smiled to himself. What happy memories they were. Some not so happy of course, but they were all important. Not just ones of Satine but of Qui-Gon too.
"Then you must remember that one night when you asked me what my life would be like without the war on Mandalore." Satine was obviously leading to a question.
"Yes, you couldn't sleep that night, well I suppose that was nothing unusual for the time." he mused.
"Then, Master Kenobi, what do you think your life would be like without the Clone Wars?"
Somehow he wasn't expecting that. Mention of the war automatically brought unwanted tension. The thought of that kind of alternative universe sunk to the bottom of his heart. Life without the horrors of war- what an idea. But then again there would still be missions, sacrifices, loses and all those things that came with war. Would it be that much different?
"To be honest, I don't know how different it would be." Obi-wan felt that was probably not the answer she was hoping for, "A life without the Jedi Order? Now that would change things..." He thought that was the question she really wanted to ask.
"How so?" Satine continued to interrogate, wriggling onto her side slightly to face him.
You. I would have you. His heart screamed. The unsaid rattled the bars of its cage.
"Maybe I would build a family." That was a little more subtle.
"You mean you would search for your parents?" Thankfully she didn't interpret it the way he was expecting.
"Something like that. I haven't really thought about the other futures I could have had." he lied.
Perhaps disappointed, she settled back down. "Me neither." she also lied. There was a silence for a while. Neither of them had the courage to call out the other's bluff.
"You would have to wait in my quarters while I go to the meeting: if you wanted to stay for dinner." That was Satine's way of discreetly asked him to stay, Obi-wan knew her long enough to see through her, although he was certain she would deny it.
He inwardly smirked at her invitation. "I'm sure I can do that without causing to much trouble." he replied. Satine offered an unconvinced hum through her sealed smile in return. She knew him long enough to think accidentally causing trouble was one of Obi-wan's specialities.