A/N: Thank you to everyone who gave feedback on the last chapter. It means a lot to me, and I know I say that every time but that doesn't mean I don't always mean it 100%. Your continued support really helps motivate me to push through when I'm having writer's block (which I did majorly with this chapter), and always makes me excited to post a new chapter and find out what you all think of it :)

CHAPTER ELEVEN: A STRANGER

"Anakin Skywalker is a name that all beings across the galaxy are familiar with. The Hero With No Fear has saved countless lives during his service in the Clone Wars as a Jedi General of the Grand Army of the Republic. However, it appears that Skywalker's time with the Jedi Order may be at an end, if this footage from The Door to the Afterlife, a popular nightclub for the wealthy citizens of Coruscant's upper levels, is anything to go by.

"The footage shows Skywalker engaged in conflict with Amoor Dadelanius, a diplomat from Yavin 8, a minor moon orbiting Yavin Prime. It is unclear what caused the incident between Dadelanius and Skywalker, however in our exclusive footage Skywalker reveals that Dadelanius was seemingly involved in a Separatist plot. Specific details of this plot, and of Dadelanius' sentence, will be revealed during his trial, although a court date has not been set as of time of broadcast.

"However, what is even more shocking than the revelation of another Separatist traitor threatening the security of the Republic is Skywalker's next words, which confirm that he is likely no longer a Jedi, and is instead working for Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. It is as of yet unconfirmed whether Skywalker has truly left the Jedi order or what he nature of his employment with the Supreme Chancellor is.

"All we can hope for now is that Skywalker continues working for the good of the Republic, because in this time of crisis, we need the Hero With No Fear more than ever."

The holo-net broadcast finished but Padmé did not turn off the holo-device in the centre of the low table. The news continued to play – the broadcast about Anakin had been the main story of the evening, of course, but there were still endless occurrences across the far reaches of the galaxy that needed to be brought into the comfort of everyone's living rooms. Padmé didn't hear a word of what they said, though. She was too much lost in thought.

What worried her wasn't the broadcast itself – she knew all of that was inevitable. The holo-net had reported on Anakin's exploits as the Hero With No Fear regularly, so it only made sense that now he was no longer a Jedi that he was even more of a target for gossip. Thankfully news of their marriage was not yet widely known outside of the Jedi Order and a select few in the Senate (the Chancellor included). Whilst it was not a secret, of course, and Padmé would gladly tell the entire galaxy that Anakin Skywalker was her husband and how much she loved him, she was thankful now that there was no media attention on that, making a difficult time even more so. No, what worried her now was how exactly the Chancellor was going to use Anakin, especially after this holo-report. Padmé knew that Palpatine was shrewd enough to employ the report to his advantage. Anakin had a reputation across the galaxy as an incredible warrior, and now the secret was out that he was working for the Chancellor, Palpatine would surely use this to strike fear into his foes. Padmé even wondered if this hadn't been his intention all along.

And Anakin, oh Anakin. He could have such tunnel-vision about things. He only wanted to focus on the good parts of anything, this job especially. That it was a way to find pride in himself after having his identity so unceremoniously stripped from him. That it was a purpose. That it was a way to make her proud, although she had told him countless times that she would be proud of him no matter what he did as a job, that rank and status did not matter to her at all. Honestly, and this was something she would never, ever tell him, she thought this job was also a way for Anakin to hold on to what he could of being a Jedi. He could still use his abilities, he could still be doing good for the Republic. He didn't have to truly say goodbye to that part of himself, even if he would never admit that he did not truly want to cut those ties.

Padmé wondered how she would broach these thoughts with her husband, as he was so sensitive to any criticism from her about his job with the Chancellor. She was glad that he had uncovered that Separatist traitor, Harckonen, but she wondered what Anakin had really gone to that night club to do, and what he would be asked by the Chancellor to do next.

These thoughts agitated her, and before she even realised what she was doing Padmé found herself on her feet and pacing the expanse of the living room. She always did this when she was really stuck on a thought – often Bail Organa would enter her office in the Senate building and find her on her feet, pacing back and forth in front of the window, trying to work out an appropriate solution to some political issue or other.

But Padmé did not know what the solution to this problem was. The more she voiced her concerns the more she felt like she was creating a rift between herself and her husband. She wanted to be supportive, she wanted this job to be a positive thing with no dark shadow, but truly she was worried for her husband, and that holo-news report had only increased that anxiety. Palpatine was not to be trusted. She knew enough about him and the way he operated to know that what was on the surface was never the true story. Uncovering Separatist plots was one thing, but Padmé knew there would be more that Palpatine would expect of his new head of security. A man like Palpatine had many enemies. A man like Palpatine did many things to stay in such a position of power.

Anakin had a good heart, she knew that. He was a good person. But, and this had worried her even before he had taken the position working for the Chancellor, Anakin could be blind to Palpatine's faults. Because Anakin viewed the Chancellor as a father-figure, he could not, or would not, accept that his friend and mentor had failings.

Padmé didn't need to wonder where Anakin was now – she knew he would be with the Chancellor. She did wonder, however, what they were discussing, and what Anakin's reaction to being on the holo-news would be. She knew he did not like publicity, although he had never eschewed it as much as she knew Obi-Wan did.

Eventually Padmé gave up waiting for Anakin. It was so late at night now – well, it was not even really night anymore, but early morning, she supposed. She had dismissed Dorme and C-3PO a few hours ago so was completely alone in the apartment and completely exhausted.

She retired to her bedroom and began taking off her dress. It was one of her favourites, deep blue with fine silver embroidery of good luck symbols from Naboo on the bodice. She traced the swirling pattern with her finger. She felt like the dress was appropriate given the circumstances. They could all use a bit of luck right now. Suddenly her mind flashed to the conversation she had had with Anakin the other night about the latest of his nightmares. She tried to ignore the chill that ran down her spine and remained in her belly.

I won't be scared, Padmé tried to assure herself.Not all dreams come true.

Unfortunately her assurances to herself brought her little comfort. She would never admit it to Anakin but she was scared. She had been the first time he had had the nightmare and that fear had only mounted as the dreams had continued. She remembered what had happened to Anakin's mother. The chill in her belly worsened.

Padmé changed into her favourite loose white nightgown, forcing herself to be braver. Finally, she sat down at her vanity and began taking off her makeup, so tired now that her eyelids drooped as she wiped away her soft pink lipstick. Just a few more minutes and she would be in bed. Just a few more minutes…

And then, suddenly, Anakin was home. Padmé had been so tired that she had not heard his speeder land, so tired that she had not heard him calling out her name as he walked through the apartment. She woke up, however, when his flesh hand brushed her cheek, when his lips touched hers in a kiss, when she stood up so he could wrap his arms around her.

"Ani," she whispered against his lips. "You're home."

"I'm sorry I'm so late," he replied, kissing her again. He looked as weary as she did.

"I saw the holo-news report," Padmé said. She watched Anakin's expression change. He somehow became even wearier.

"Padmé , I-" Anakin began to protest what he was sure was going to be some sort of interrogation into both his actions and Palpatine's motives from his wife, but Padmé 's soft voice stopped him.

"Ani, I was worried about you. Are you alright?" It was the truest approximation of her feelings.

Anakin's jaw un-clenched. His shoulders relaxed. A hint of a smile touched his lips at the warm thought of his wife's loving concern for him. "I'm alright."

Padmé nestled her head against Anakin's chest and his chin came to rest atop hers. The dark folds of his robe covered the white fabric of her nightgown as his arms remained wrapped securely around her. There was so much she wanted to say to him but she did not know how, nor did she have the energy. For once Padmé was lost for words. All she could manage was: "what happened?"

Upon asking the question Padmé felt some of the tension return to Anakin's posture. His arms fell to his sides and he looked away, out through the transparisteel window at the slowly lightening sky. "I was investigating something for the Chancellor."

"What were you investigating?" Padmé moved in front of the window so that she would be in his view again. This was an opportunity to assuage her fears.

Anakin looked at her again, then shook his head. "I can't tell you, Padmé . I'm sorry, but the Chancellor has asked me to keep the specific details of my work confidential."

"I understand," said Padmé , but something about Anakin's words did not feel right to her. He suddenly felt very far away, even though he was standing right next to her. "But what happened at that nightclub isn't a secret, Anakin – it's all over the holo-net. What caused that man, Dadelanius, to fire at you? The holo-net said he was a Separatist; is that why you were there?"

"I wasn't there because he was a Separatist, I just found that out when I confronted him," Anakin explained. The rest of his words seemed begrudging. "He opened fire on me because I told him that I worked for the Chancellor and he was trying to resist arrest. I can't tell you any more than that."

Padmé frowned. It was clear that she would not get the answers she sought. She decided to change course. "That weapon you were using – what is it? I don't think I've ever seen anything like it before."

Anakin took the darksaber from his belt. Standing back from her a few paces, he ignited the weapon. It glowed in his hand, deceptively beautiful.

Padmé was in awe. "Is that… a lightsaber?"

Anakin deactivated the weapon and returned it to the safety of his belt. "No, it's called a darksaber."

"A darksaber?" Padmé turned the unfamiliar word over in her mouth.

"It's a Mandalorian weapon. Kind of like a lightsaber, yes. It still uses a kyber crystal but it's a little… different."

"The Chancellor gave that to you." It was not a question from Padmé , it was an acknowledgement of fact.

"Yes." Sensing something unspoken in her demeanour, he continued. "It's an amazing weapon, Padmé ."

Padmé hesitated before speaking. "You don't think it's a rather powerful weapon for someone in the employ of the Senate?" she asked, knowing that she was stepping onto thin ice as she did so. "Everyone else has, well, blasters."

Anakin narrowed his eyes. "A blaster? I think my abilities are a bit beyond a blaster, Padmé . The darksaber is a weapon much more fitting for me."

And with it you would make a terrifying adversary to any of Palpatine's foes, thought Padmé . Whatever will he have you do?

The conversation was over. There was nothing more to be said, at least not now. Padmé walked past Anakin and sunk into the plush comfort of the bed without another word.

Anakin undressed and joined his wife in bed. There was a moment of silent tension before Padmé drew close to him once more.

"Just be safe, Ani," she mumbled, her voice light, on the cusp of sleep taking her. "Just ... be … safe."

"Always, my love. You have my word," Anakin murmured, some of the tenderness returning to his voice. He pressed a kiss to her temple as he felt her breathing slow as she fell asleep with his arm around her.

He lay there for a little while, not as tired as he had been before. He thought about his wife's words. A blaster? That was practically an insult; his skills were so far beyond the use of a blaster. The Chancellor had given him the darksaber for a reason – with it, he would continue his destiny of vanquishing the enemies of the Republic.

She would see. They all would.

OOOOO

Mace Windu awoke to find himself unexpectedly on the floor. Even more unexpected was that his saber was on the floor next to him. It was obvious that something must have happened to him the previous night, but he could remember nothing more than coming into his chambers and going to bed like he always did.

He suddenly recalled that Master Yoda had found himself in a similar situation after the strange vision he had had about Skywalker, so Mace went straight to seek the wise old Master's counsel.

It was a brief discussion, however, as even using the Force to meditate on the previous night's events amounted to nothing. Yes, Mace must have had some sort of vision, probably similar to the ones the other Jedi had discussed, but unfortunately, as the details of whatever the vision had been about were lost, they could not be entirely sure.

"Concealed, the vision is," Yoda ruminated.

"Concealed by who?" Mace frowned.

"A mystery, that remains. The answer, soon, we must find out."

"How?"

"To have only a single vision, unlikely, it is. When more visions we have, discover the secret we will."

"And you're sure we'll have more visions?" Mace asked.

Yoda nodded. "These visions – a message in them meant to discover, there is. Whatever is causing them, whoever is sending them, unless we have the answer, stop they will not."

Mace hoped that the old Master was right, and that they would keep receiving the visions until they worked out their meaning. He knew the visions must be a sign from the Force. He just hoped they were from the right side of it.

OOOO

Ahsoka held her lightsaber in her hand, eyes closed, waiting for the fight to begin. She would sense it when it started. She was one with the Force. The Force was one with her.

Suddenly her opponent ignited their blade. It was a streak of blue through the air and then it was crashing forcefully against her own.

Ahsoka leapt back, her green blade coming up behind her head fluidly before crashing back down on Obi-Wan's. With one hand Obi-Wan used the Force to repel Ahsoka, but she agilely leapt forward, their sabers meeting again.

Ahsoka struck again but Obi-Wan dodged her attack, crouching low to avoid the swing of her blade. He used the Force to propel himself back a few paces, but Ahsoka was there instantly, leaping forwards to join him. Their blades crashed against each other again, the sound filling the air of the training arena.

They fought ferociously. Every time Ahsoka gained some ground, she was pushed back again by the strength of her opponent's defense. Over and over their blades struck against each other, green and blue blurs flashing through the air.

They had started in the centre of the arena but the duel edged them further and further to the right as they both gained and lost ground repeatedly. Near the wall of the arena now, Ahsoka took a chance. In a split-second she turned around, Obi-Wan now behind her, and then, with a running leap, used the Force to jump, propelling herself off the wall and nimbly up and over Obi-Wan. Her blade, held in the backward stance she favoured, connected with his as he held it aloft, defending himself from any downward attack. She landed behind him and was about to take the final mock strike at his back, a thrilling sense of excitement inside of her at the thought of besting Obi-Wan Kenobi in a training duel, but Obi-Wan suddenly gripped his saber with both hands, held it behind him over his left shoulder and met her strike, before whirling around to face her, his blade a blur, striking so fast Ahsoka could not keep up.

Ahsoka tried to counter him, but in doing so, as she lifted her blade to strike, she left herself open for Obi-Wan's quicker reflexes. The tip of his blade hovered a centimetre or so away from her abdomen. She was bested yet again.

Obi-Wan laughed at the visible frustration on his padawan's face and deactivated the blade of his saber. "Leaping over your opponent is a good trick against a battle droid, but an arrogant one against a Jedi. If that had been a proper fight what would you have done to stop me simply slashing your legs off?"

Ahsoka thought for a moment. "I suppose I could have just jumped higher off the wall?"

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Never rely on suppositions, my young apprentice. The best way to win a fight is to rely on what you know you can definitely do."

Ahsoka bowed her head, conceding to the older Jedi. "Yes, Master."

Her lightsaber joined the other one she wore on her belt. With a brief wistfulness she thought back to all the times that Anakin had fuelled that sense of recklessness in her, telling her that she'd never know what abilities she had until she tried them, encouraging her to take risks to build her skills. Obi-Wan was a much different teacher. His teaching style was much more by-the-book. It was going to take some getting used to.

Obi-Wan smiled at Ahsoka's tone. She had so much of Anakin in her. "You're a talented fighter, Ahsoka. I would like to teach you more about the Soresu style, as sometimes it can be more useful to defend against an opponent's attacks than to constantly rely on attacking or counter-attacking them. However, you certainly know a lot for a padawan your age."

Ahsoka beamed. "I've had good training."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Yes, Anakin was a good teacher for you, wasn't he."

"You're a good teacher for me too, Master Kenobi," Ahsoka added. "I just need to get better at jumping higher. Then I'll win the next duel."

Laughter bubbled from Obi-Wan as the two of them headed towards the exit of the training arena side-by side.

Oh yes, she really was so much like Anakin.

OOOO

"Kill her."

Mace turned over in his sleep, mumbling "no" under his breath.

"Kill her." The voice was louder now.

"No," Mace murmured, still asleep. "I will not."

"KILL HER."

And Mace suddenly opened his eyes, wide awake. And in an instant he realised he was no longer alone.

His saber was ignited as he leapt from his bed. "Who are you?"

At first Mace received no answer from the intruder. They were tall, with pale, grey skin and red markings on their face. They wore black and red clothing. Most startling were their eyes, which were calculating, and a deep, deep red.

"I said: who are you?" Mace repeated, holding his saber up in front of himself defensively.

Unexpectedly the intruder smiled. And then, even stranger, they began to laugh. With a wave of their hand Mace's lightsaber was deactivated. "You won't need that," the figure said in a voice that was suddenly so awfully familiar. "I mean you no harm."

"Who are you?" Mace repeated for a third time.

The intruder shook their head. "Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is why I am here."

"And why is that?" Mace asked, one eyebrow raised.

"I'm here to help."

"To help with what?"

"To help you fix all that has happened, and all that will happen. To set fate down its correct path." The intruder paused, then took a step closer to Mace. Their voice became lower, strangely tantalising. "To ensure that the prophecy is fulfilled."

Mace took several steps back. "What prophecy do you speak of?"

The intruder laughed again. "Aren't Jedi supposed to be wise? Don't play naive with me, Master Windu."

"How do you know my name?" Mace interrupted.

The intruder smiled coldly. "I know all. All that has happened. All that will happen. All that could happen."

Mace frowned. "And how do you know all of this?"

The strange figure merely shook their head. "How I know it doesn't matter. What matters is that I am here to help you fix what has gone wrong, like I said. To ensure that the prophecy is fulfilled. The prophecy of the Chosen One."

"The Chosen One?" Mace waved away the stranger's words. "The prophecy of the Chosen One was misread. Skywalker is gone. He is no longer a Jedi, nor has he any desire to be."

The intruder smiled. "But what if there was a way to get him back? What if there was a way to reverse what has happened so that Skywalker returned to the Order, and the prophecy could be fulfilled? So that balance could be brought to the Force? To the galaxy?"

"And how would such things be achieved?" Mace asked sceptically.

"I can help you," the intruder said. "All you have to do is trust me."

Mace scowled. "Why would I trust you? You won't even tell me who you are! I am no fool!"

"As I said, it does not matter who I am. What matters is that fate is set back on its correct course before things are too late."

"Why? What is going to happen?"

"Terrible things." The intruder's voice was low, barely a whisper. Serpentine. "Such terrible things."

"Be gone from here, whoever you are. I neither trust you nor believe you!" shouted Mace.

The intruder smiled. "Oh, but you will. Soon."

And then they were gone.