Obi-Wan Kenobi could easily, if prompted, outline the three worst days he had ever had. The first was, of course, the day he watched had Anakin die – the fact that Anakin had not, in fact, died that day did not change the fact that Obi-Wan would have that image burned into his eyelids for the rest of his life. The second worst day, then, would be when Qui-Gon died, and Obi-Wan had lingered so dangerously close to the dark. Following a pattern and coming in at third had to be the day Satine had been used as bait to draw Obi-Wan to Mandalore, and then murdered before his eyes. They were three days that Obi-Wan remembered as if they were yesterday, and he sincerely hoped nothing would ever happen to give him a new top three.

There was now, however, a day that Obi-Wan would probably in the future claim as the fourth worst day of his life, and as it happened that day was today.

It wasn't just the fact that the Chancellor was the Sith Lord, and the Sith Lord was the Chancellor. Palpatine, Sidious, Sidious, Palpatine. No, rather it was the thousands of smaller truths that were born from, and could be connected back to, this one truth.

An example: Sidious had trained Maul, who had killed Qui-Gon and Satine. Again, the second and third worst days of Obi-Wan's life, respectively. Then, Sidious had trained Dooku, who had pretended to kill and proceeded to torture Anakin, leading to the actual worst day (few months) (or, entire year) of Obi-Wan's life thus far. Obi-Wan had known that Sidious had done these things, had looked upon the idea of a powerful Sith Lord with that name lurking in the shadows of every recent galactic disaster, but here was the thing, the new information that was so difficult for him to manage: Obi-Wan knew Sidious. Obi-Wan had been around Sidious. In his actual presence. Together in a room many times with a man who was perhaps the greatest liar the universe had ever seen.

It felt, and this was barely an exaggeration, as if the planet were crumbling from underneath him. The Sith was the Chancellor. The Sith controlled both of the two warring governments. He had influence over the banks, over the militaries, over trillions of lives spread across thousands of planets...

How could this be possible...

And he wasn't through realizing things. Thoughts flooded through him, revelations, pieces of the puzzle fitting together.

Especially, there was Anakin. Where even to begin. On Naboo nearly thirteen years ago, where the newly appointed Chancellor had applauded both he and Anakin for their bravery and heroic deeds. Then on Coruscant, meeting with the Padawan, encouraging in him ideas that went against the Jedi's grain. Obi-Wan had always thought it strange, but he had never...there was no way he could have known, but he should have, somehow he should have...

He knew now for a fact that what he had told Padmé was true. That Sidious, that Palpatine would have stopped at nothing to take Anakin for his own. He would have tried to get Anakin over to his side no matter what. The heavy weight of that knowledge was terrifying. Sidious really did think Anakin belonged to him.

Fortunately, Obi-Wan knew better.

Because he knew something Sidious didn't, and couldn't because Sith Lords only dealt with anger and hatred and fear:

They had love on their side, and love always wins, in the end.

They told Yoda and Windu first. It was with them that Obi-Wan had had the most personal discussions about the Sith; Yoda had the personal connection to Dooku, and Windu had tried so hard to help Obi-Wan destroy Maul. It was they who Obi-Wan most looked up to, who he trusted with this information. They were the two most revered among the Jedi ranks, experienced and wise beyond measure. They, Obi-Wan hoped, would know what to do.

Still, it frankly amazed him how they could manage to keep their composure in light of the most devastating of revelations. In fact, neither of them moved an inch, except to look at each other with completely neutral faces. For only a moment, Obi-Wan wondered if they had even understood him correctly.

The Force was so rich within this room that Obi-Wan felt hyperaware of his own inner workings, afraid they might be reflected back to the others as if bouncing off a mirror of the Force. And how could it not be? Windu, Yoda, and Anakin all in a room with him. It made Obi-Wan feel rather small by comparison, but also just a bit glad. Sometimes, he thought, being so sensitive to the Force might hinder rather than help. To constantly hear in one's mind the voices and thoughts and feelings of others...he wasn't sure he would be able to handle it.

Finally, Windu and Yoda seemed to come out of their own, entirely private discussion, focusing back on Obi-Wan and Anakin, the latter of whom seemed lost in his own thoughts and fears.

"I only wonder," Windu said to Anakin, "How it is you didn't discover this until now. You've been here for three months. Surely you must have seen his face somewhere. HoloNet broadcasts, news programs..."

"He doesn't look the same," Anakin said quietly. "If you saw him as Sidious, you would understand. He changed everything about himself, even his voice." He looked at the ground, avoiding anyone's eyes. "I'm sorry."

The way he sounded, as if he thought the Jedi might abandon him, as if he wasn't giving the Jedi precisely the information they had been looking for for years – it made Obi-Wan's heart hurt. He put his hand on Anakin's arm and looked between the two Jedi Masters. "What are you going to do?"

"Act now, we cannot," Yoda said, his eyes closed in thought and meditation. "Too important a time this is, for our Republic. If taken away their Chancellor is, backlash against the Jedi we will face. The trust of the Senate we will lose. Understand our reasoning, they will not."

"But neither can we allow him to remain," Windu said. "He must have known Anakin would give us his true identity, which means he must have a plan. Speaking of which – did he say anything you to?"

Anakin looked up, frowning. "He said..." He was staring off into the distance as if trying to see the memory itself. "I, um...he said that..." He trailed off, and didn't continue.

Windu seemed to accept that as an answer, regardless. "The peace conference takes place in ten day's time. Palpatine has said repeatedly that he will not be attending for security reasons. If we were to take action then, while everyone else is occupied, there would be less attention drawn to us than otherwise."

Yoda had his hands together, his elbows on his knees. "True, this is, but oversimple. Planning something, Sidious is. Ruling over both sides of the war, he is. Allow it to end so easily, he will not. Violence there will be at this conference, blood shed on both sides."

Mace nodded, his hand covering his mouth in contemplation, then looked up at Obi-Wan and Anakin. "We will deliberate over this further and inform the rest of the Council," he said. His eyes flicked to Anakin specifically. "You were right to bring this before us. We now have the final piece of a puzzle that's been incomplete for years. If we play our cards right, we may be able to rid this galaxy of the Sith once again."

"Hmmm," came from Yoda. "May the Force be with us all."

Later that evening, they met with Ahsoka for dinner, and telling her the truth came much easier than telling the Council.

"No way," she said with a visible shudder. "I always thought he was creepy, but oh man!" Then, she sat up straight in her chair with a gasp. "Wait – so that whole time he was away all those months – he was on Serenno? Oh, man!"

Obi-Wan had thought about that too, with a distinct chill down his spine. The famed Supreme Chancellor, claiming to take off work three entire months for his health, and there wasn't a single soul that hadn't believed it...

Anakin, who seemed to have recovered from his justifiable panic, didn't seem to know what they were talking about. "What?"

"Yeah!" Ahsoka said. "He took these few months off a while back, saying his doctors recommended it for his health. I remember some people talking about how irresponsible it was, because I mean, the leader of a gazillion people taking a vacation? but no one did anything about it. He always had everyone in the palm of his hand. I guess now we know why, huh."

"Huh," Anakin echoed, his chin in his hand. "I always thought it was weird that he would...um...complain, about having to come back sometimes when I, did certain things...but I never figured anything out. He never even gave a hint."

"Creepy," Ahsoka reiterated. "Oh man! I can't even comprehend it."

To be sure, neither could Obi-Wan. And he wasn't sure he wanted to, not if that would make it real...

Creepy, indeed.

"He's coming," Mace said, with his forehead in one of his hands as he leaned back in his seat. He had asked to discreetly speak with Obi-Wan, to cover a meeting with the chancellor that, for personal reasons, Obi-Wan had declined to attend – truth be told, he simply did not trust himself to pretend nothing was wrong around the man that had tortured his best friend.

"What do you mean?"

"To the peace conference," Mace said, lowering his hand and looking directly into Obi-Wan's eyes. "He said that it would reflect poorly upon the Republic if the leader of the Separatists attended the negotiations, but the chancellor of the Republic did not. Some nonsense about keeping up appearances and morale. I think it's obvious what they're really after."

"They're planning something," Obi-Wan agreed, frowning. "What are you going to do?"

"The only thing we can," said Windu. "Send as many Jedi Masters as are available. Prepare for a fight."

Obi-Wan did not suppress a sigh. "It will be Geonosis all over again."

"Not if I can help it."

Early evening sunlight filtered in through the blinds, illuminating them in a reddish hue. Obi-Wan watched the light on the floor, thinking, rubbing his beard. He said, "We need to let everyone think this conference has a chance to work. Even if it doesn't, even after it's over – there needs to be something to salvage from the wreck. We cannot let them know we suspect an attack."

"Agreed," Mace said. "I'll see who's available and call a strategy meeting tomorrow. And, Obi-Wan –" he broke off, looking only as hesitant as a seasoned Jedi Master would allow himself to be. "I'd like you to bring Tano and Skywalker with you."

Obi-Wan closed his eyes. "Why did I know you were going to say that?"

The communication center had become one of Obi-Wan's more frequent haunts during the war, perhaps second only to the bridge of a star destroyer (and sometimes both at once). Being here most often meant that either him or someone he knew was about to launch a complicated campaign in need of extensive planning. The same was true of today – the only difference was that it was possible, just possible, that this could be the last such meeting of the war.

Above the comm unit hovered a hologram half Obi-Wan's height of the relatively new space station Diligence, which sat peacefully on the edge of Republic space. It had been chosen, it seemed, by the delegation of elected representatives exclusively for its expansive conference halls and polished aesthetic. For practical purposes, however, it failed nearly every security check that would have been accounted for if the Jedi, or even the Republic military, had chosen the venue. If it was in reality the way it seemed to Obi-Wan, then the senators and representatives were of the type of believe that bad things only happened to others, not to themselves.

Around the table stood most of the Council, many of whom would be attending themselves, as well as a few chosen other Jedi Masters...and, of course, Anakin and Ahsoka. Those Jedi that communicated through holograms were on secure, private, and scrambled channels. In the spotlight, as always, were Windu and Yoda, who were addressing the group.

Windu was saying, "As you all know by now, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine has decided, against every piece of advice given to him by both ourselves and his security advisors, to attend the negotiations in person. In any normal circumstance, this would already be the highest security situation of the war. But, as each of you know, the spot we are in now goes above and beyond any precedent. Most of you have already been given specific instructions of your role at the conference. Master Plo Koon and the Wolf Pack will be situated outside the space station on star destroyers, while the rest of you will be placed at strategic locations throughout the station itself.

"Now, Padawan Tano." Windu turned to Ahsoka across the wide circumference of the holocomm table. She held herself at attention. "Because of your admirable performance protecting Queen Neeyutnee and the Senate's delegation during Naboo's Festival of Lights one year ago, the Council would like you to preform the same task at the negotiations. In the event of an attack, it will be your job along with Master Secura –" the hologram of Aayla nodded in acknowledgement – "To ensure the safe evacuation of the Senate delegates from harm."

Ahsoka bowed slightly. "Understood, Master."

Windu nodded, and gazed around the table, looking grim. He stopped his gaze at Yoda, who sat beside him in his hover chair, and then said, "Every one of us should assume that conflict will break out at any moment aboard this space station. The Diligence is equipped with a small security team, but not enough to withstand a sustained Separatist attack. According to the agreements between our respective governments, each side is allowed three large cruisers, and as such we have ordered one ship each from the 104th Battalion, the 327th Star Corps, and the 501st Legion. The admirals and clone commanders of each ship will be on standby."

"Foolish is the Senate to think that no attack is imminent," Yoda said, "Even if know they not what we have found out. Unlike any other war situation will this be. The Sith Master and Sith Apprentice, in attendance both will be. Be wary of the dark side's presence, you must."

"The Chancellor will know by now that we've discovered his secret, which is where Skywalker comes in." Obi-Wan saw Anakin look toward Windu, who seemed to have suddenly aged a few years in the past few days. He was staring directly at Anakin. "I had my misgivings about allowing you back as if nothing had happened, but I have heard arguments from Master Kenobi attesting to your recovery and behavior, and accordingly the Council feels comfortable asking this of you. You are free to decline given the risks involved, but there is a possibility that if you attend this conference, we may give Sidious a reason to reveal himself not only to us but to the public. In doing so, it would give the Jedi an easier time securing a solid transition to a new leader."

Obi-Wan couldn't look at Anakin directly. He already knew what this was about, and the idea made him sick with worry.

Anakin was drumming his fingers on the computer console. Movement helped him focus, Obi-Wan knew. He wished, oh he wished, that Anakin would say no, turn tail and march straight out of here and stay far away from the Sith forevermore. But memory or not, Obi-Wan knew Anakin. He couldn't stay away from action, and from what he believed was right. He simply could not not help people.

"You want me to be bait," Anakin said, appearing to consider. Obi-Wan could sense Anakin's nervousness, or perhaps that was just his own. "Do you really think you can stop him?"

"Powerful is Sidious. Very powerful," Yoda hummed from his hoverchair. "Deceived us for many long years, he has, but never a better opportunity will we have. About can or cannot, this is not. Defeat him we must."

"We will benefit from any insight you can give us," Windu added.

Anakin's face was concentrated. "I never fought him. I've never even seen him with a lightsaber. He has Ty – uh, Dooku, do all of his work for him." He exhaled, frowning, staring at the holodiagram of the space station as it rotated on an invisible axis. "But I want them both gone. I'll do it."

Windu nodded, appearing satisfied but worried, too. "If my hunch is correct, then he'll be going after Obi-Wan, as well. I'd like to fit you each with comm tracking devices that you would activate in case you manage to pin down Sidious's location. I will then proceed directly to your coordinates to apprehend him." He raised an eyebrow with a vague air of amusement about him. "I would like to recommend that you two stay together, but I don't think that even needs to be said."

Obi-Wan felt his face get slightly hot, and glanced at Anakin so he wouldn't have to stare at the smirks around the table.

Yoda brought their attention back to the matter at hand. He addressed the entire group. "Until back on Coruscant you are, assume you must that the Separatists will attack. If no attack comes, wary you must still be. The Sith are cunning, and together they may surprise us. Regardless of the outcome of these negotiations, apprehended this Sidious must be. Control over this galaxy he has had for far too long. Stopped he must be, at all costs."

Windu said, "Each of you should do your best to memorize the layout of space station Diligence before the event. The Separatist leaders have also been given a partial layout for equality's sake, but I would like the Republic forces to be the better informed. Pay special attention to the locations of the airlocks and hangar bays, as well as the main power and life support conduits."

"The safety of the Republic, our first priority is," Yoda added. "Should an attack occur, lives will be lost. Accept this we must, and move on. Stopped must the Sith be before the Republic can be truly safe. In each of your hands is this responsibility." He looked around for others to speak. When none did, he heaved a deep breath and said, "Stay here I will, to look after the temple. Experienced you all are. Masters are most of you. Believe in the Force, and you shall succeed. May the Force be with us all."

There were two days left before the conference when Obi-Wan asked Anakin to meet him in one of the outdoor courtyards after a council meeting. Anakin was already there when he arrived, leaning against the temple wall in the shade of a tree. Obi-Wan sat next to him.

"I have something for you," Obi-Wan said, pulling something from his sleeve and handing it over. "Since you'll be coming with us, you just might want to have this."

Anakin's face lit up when he took his lightsaber in both hands. "You got it back?"

"It's all yours," Obi-Wan said, grinning. He watched as Anakin examined it, making sure it wasn't damaged, rubbing off a mark on the hilt. Then, he paused, staring at it.

"They took the crystal," he said. Obi-Wan wasn't surprised that he noticed – kyber crystals were rich in Force saturation unlike any other stone. It was not an exaggeration to say a Jedi could feel their lightsaber as an extension of their arm. What Obi-Wan did notice was that Anakin's free hand ghosted over to one of the pockets on his belt and remained there. "I guess that makes sense. Red is kind of suspicious, huh."

"We can get you a temporary crystal," Obi-Wan said as Anakin flipped open the pocket cover and reached inside. "Perhaps in a few weeks we can go to Ilum, where Jedi go to get..."

Without speaking, Anakin placed his reclaimed sabre on the ground beside the small, two-inch long crystal that he'd pulled from his belt, and closed his eyes. Took a deep breath. Raised his hands, humming with the Force. Obi-Wan watched as the lightsaber came apart, each part disconnecting and floating in the air. He saw the crystal spin upwards to meet the chamber where it naturally belonged, the parts reconnect, and the casing click back into place. The entire process took perhaps a minute, and Obi-Wan's mouth was hanging slightly open in astonishment the entire time.

When it was over, Anakin looked sheepishly over at him. "I felt it calling to me on Serenno before I escaped," he explained, answering the question that didn't need to be asked. "I think the Force was telling me it was time to get out." He held the hilt in both hands and ignited it, staring up at the humming blue energy. Obi-Wan felt as though he had never seen a more beautiful color.

"You never fail to impress me," he murmured, and Anakin actually laughed.

"Sounds like we might get some action," Anakin said casually. "Don't suppose you want to practice...in a much less deadly way than the last time?"

"Only so long as you don't try to kill me," Obi-Wan replied, smiling as he stood up and took his own blade in his hands.

"You got a deal."

Then, with the sky as their backdrop their sabres clashed, blue against blue against blue.

seemed like a good time to post this…still working on the next one but its pretty sweet. still not really interested much in star wars because i get invested in the characters rather than the movies themselves, and all the characters i love are dead in the current canon. whoops!

say what you will about the last jedi…but Carrie Fisher was everything in that movie…gorgeous.

p.s. if you can think of a better way to end a scene than yoda saying "may the force be with us" PLEASE share it because i just realized how often i fall back on that