His head was foggy - a familiar sensation to him but only when he was around certain company. His limbs were acting as personal paper weights as he struggled to open his eyes. Instead, he remained swimming in his own unconsciousness as strings of words poured over him.

Obi Wan, have you done as I asked -

I can not interfere with the ways of the force -

I'll do what I must, Obi Wan -

I've seen what I become and I cannot let that happen -

Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi Wan Kenobi -

Don't worry, I'll keep and eye on him -

Your focus determines your reality -

General -

Feel, don't think -

Master Kenobi?

Beware... your... heart...

OBI WAN -

"- Obi Wan? C'mon, I need you here..."

His heavy eyelids cracked open.

Even in the cramped cell, his pupils strained to adjust to the meagre lighting. Trying to move his arms was a fruitless effort, deemed so by his energised restraints. Adding to this, he could feel little sensation flowing back into the rest of his body. But upon waking up, his brain had started to chug away at recollecting the events leading him to his new, grossly humble abode. Shilli… The ship… Traitor…

"Finally - took your time to come around," The voice came from beside him. He lolled his head forward to get a better view of Anakin Skywalker, hands strung up either side of him suspended mid air by coils of blue light. Of course he's here, he thought, equal parts annoyed and thankful for his presence.

"Now that I have, I'm not sure if I would've preferred to stay unconscious," he replied, scanning their surroundings. In front of them was a double doored ray shield. Its red glow was their sole light source.

"I wouldn't judge," Anakin huffed back. "I've tried the locks already - anything other than the randomised code and it electrifies the restraints."

"I can only assume they've been ready for us for a while then," he mused, thinking back to Vance. Anakin grunted in response.

"Yup," he ground out. "Had us on a string the whole time, that shady…"

The fact that neither of them had been able to sense any dangerous intent from her deeply concerned him. Only Anakin was vaguely clued in during their last interaction - like the iron wall of her facade had suddenly become a curtain to draw back. But by then it was obviously too late. His mind rushed through protocol in an order of priorities.

"What about Ahsoka?" He said stiffly.

Anakin looked away, head dipping to his chest in a collision of frustration, concern and… defeat. None of which was a good sign.

"I don't know what happened… but I can sense that she's close," he sighed, clenching and unclenching his fists. The statement left little room for much hope.

"The clones?" Obi Wan asked gently, changing the topic to something more constructive. His men had suffered more than any of them in the past 48 hours. He had hoped that they may still be alive for the Nexus Route intel but he doubted the quality of their treatment all the same.

"Different barracks about two blocks down. From what I saw, they're in rough shape, but they've seen worse," Anakin affirmed, his unbridled confidence in his men mirroring that of himself. He looked back to Obi Wan, still dwelling on the fate of their Padawan but relaxing into the motions of sharing intel.

"Barracks?" Obi Wan pushed. From the vibrations he felt around them and the gentle roar of engines, he had assumed they were on a ship.

"From what I can guess, it's a modified cruiser for prisoners of war. It makes sense. Means that they can jump from system to system and conduct interrogations in hyperspace without being tracked."

"You seem impressed."

"Tech's tech. Separatist or not, it's a smart move," he conceded.

"It seems like we've been lacking in those recently..."

His sense, although clouded, started sparking at him, nagging him to turn to the door. Anakin's head had already whipped around to face the two commando droids at the ray shield. One stood next to number pad, eyes lighting up as it received the newly generated code. Hanging between them was a familiar silhouette, almost camouflaged in the red light. He felt himself lean forward with Anakin, but both knew who it was. As the shields flickered off, Ahsoka was dragged into the room as they set up her restraints.

"Ahsoka…" Anakin called out, leaning down for a better look at her condition. "Hey, Ahsoka, come on. You've gotta wake up."

She groaned sleepily in response.

Although Obi Wan saw Anakin rolling his eyes, within the force he sensed him lighting up the room.

"Snips, now is not the time for a sleep in!" Anakin hissed more desperately as the droids finished setting up the device.

Obi Wan watched as the Padawan strained to lift her neck, fighting the fatigue her body had already surrendered to. He suspected she may have suffered a concussion and that Anakin's pestering was not only keeping her awake but possibly keeping her alive. So he didn't interrupt as he encouraged her to fight back, no matter how ridiculous her chances were.

To his surprise, she managed to push back against the droid as it clasped her arm, tightening its grip. Anakin suddenly fell silent, closing eyes as his hands balled with focus. The droid's arm peeled open and slowly hovered back. Obi Wan's surprise suddenly outweighed his cynicism as Ahsoka yanked her arm away, dragging the other one with her as she threw a weak kick towards the restraints below Anakin's feet. The other droid pushed her down, kicking the back of her knees. Obi Wan lifted his hand, attempting to help Anakin hold it in place but his former student had other plans. In a pulse of anger, he clenched his fist, crushing the droid's head.

"Wait-" Ahsoka had barely mumbled before a blinding current zapped the two of them, breaking their focus with pain. By the time it had ceased and he had caught his breath, the droids were gone and Ahsoka was strung up beside them.

The three of them breathed as Ahsoka regained her clarity.

"I tried the same thing earlier…" she huffed out.

"Couldn't have mentioned it sooner?" Anakin muttered.

"How about you try making sense after two stun bolts to the head…" she snapped back.

"Is electrocution not good enough anymore?"

"Eh, you've handled worse."

"Yeah, I'm teaching you."

Obi Wan chuckled to himself. It had been eons since he'd heard them bicker like this. But as the adrenaline wore out, the tone of the conversation shifted.

"So do we have a plan for getting out?" She slowly inquired.

Anakin's shoulders tightened and he nudged their focus to the corner of the room where a device watched them. Even if they did have a plan, openly talking about it wasn't a great strategy.

"I don't know. Obi Wan, please tell me you've got a plan B."

"In all honesty, I didn't expect us to fail quite so spectacularly at Plan A…" He muttered in return.

He could feel Ahsoka shrink at the comment. It was intended to throw off anyone watching them but it suggested that he blamed her for the way things had turned out. He didn't. Still, she needed to take accountability for her actions. When they eventually make some kind of back up plan, they can't risk something like that happening again. The room fell into a contemplative silence, the sting of failure mellowing into more of an ache.

"Ahsoka…" Anakin's voice was low and hushed almost unusually steady. "What happened?"

Normally, Anakin would be the first one for hysterics. Had this happened to them a year ago, Obi Wan was certain that shame & blame would've been tossed around like a hot Jogan fruit. Listening to him now, the words were disappointed yet calm; without judgement. He briefly entertained the idea that Anakin Skywalker was in fact Mace Windu in disguise at the moment.

"I had to - " she started, her voice beginning bold and defensive but softening with the quiet. "They attacked the village. I couldn't just stand by and do nothing."

"You weren't doing 'nothing', you were following the mission," he replied, slowly to start with but gaining momentum as he went. "Without you, the Republic can't send reinforcements. Even if they do, it's too late to take back the planet by force. If you'd just stopped to think about it - "

"I wasn't thinking, okay?" She launched back, doubling down. "I can't explain it because I didn't think I just listened. It felt right. Or at least it did at the time…"

Feel. Don't think.

The sentiment rang through Obi Wan's head, a painfully familiar lesson he'd never learnt to agree with. Anakin took a breath, calming himself before attempting to soothe her, sensing that she was on the brink of spiralling.

"It's alright, Snips. I just need you to walk us through exactly what happened."

"So you left for the village with Haki?" Obi Wan prompted.

She sighed, nodding. "We evacuated most of the villagers but Kohma wasn't with them. When I went to find her, General Greivous was already at the hut. Then Haki - " She choked on the name, clenching her jaw. "- after I sensed you two in trouble, he got the jump on me."

"You held off General Grievous?" Obi Wan asked, amazed at her stamina.

"I mean, with me as her teacher, it's not that surprising…" Anakin mumbled half heartedly. "But what happened to Kohma?"

She sucked in a shallow breath. Ah, Obi Wan thought, catching on in an instant.

"She - I couldn't find her in the house. I don't think she got out…"

Grief swelled around them, gently encasing the three; Anakin's more tumultuous than either his or Ahsoka's. Their gracious host had lost her child to the Jedi and yet had so willingly taken them in as her own. She didn't deserve a fate as cruel as this. An inkling of doubt crept up on him after a quick mental review the new information.

"Ahsoka, did you check the bunker?"

She looked at him for a moment, blank faced and dumbfounded. "No, I couldn't reach it. Do you think that maybe - "

"Maybe," he said quickly. "It's just a possibility. But she's a crafty woman."

Ahsoka went slack with relief as she hung in the air. Anakin cast him a sidelong glance, the two more doubtful than they let on, but overall it had seemingly taken the edge off of their prison cell.

"So you faced General Grievous," Anakin confirmed. "But you were taken down by that little jerk?"

The moment of peace was instantly quashed with Ahsoka's sudden indignation.

"You AND Obi Wan got jumped by Vance!" She huffed. "Besides, it's not just that he got me. It's that even when he did, I couldn't sense anything from him."

An unsettling idea started to dawn on Obi Wan as he dissected the sentence.

"Ahsoka, what are you implying?" He queried. Anakin looked back to her, listening intently.

"I-I think Haki was once a Jedi…"

Anakin's serious composure broke with a baffled laugh reverberating around the chamber. The laughing fit seemed to be causing him more pain than the electric shock had earlier. Definitely not Mace Windu in disguise then, Obi Wan concluded.

"That kid? A Jedi? Come on Snips, you're killing me here," he chuckled, winding down.

A deep, regal voice echoed through the outer corridor, making Obi Wan's blood simmer like nothing else could.

"She's not wrong. Although watching your student kill you would certainly be entertaining."

Hello everyone! Man, I left you guys on that cliff hanger for a WHILE. Sorry about that, it's been hectic recently (my Grandma is quite sick so it's been a lil stressful). Weekly updates may not be a thing anymore BUT yes I am still writing this story. I hope this chapter dump gives you your Clone Wars hit for the time being. Reviews are super appreciated, thanks for staying tuned in.