Obi-Wan sat on the floor of Padmé's apartment with his eyes closed and his senses attuned to the Force. He'd already tried several times to see what the Force might reveal to him about the assassin, but even after five days with their new charge, the man remained a mystery, aside from what Padmé had described to them. He had a theory, though he wasn't eager to share it with her. The Sith were a Jedi's responsibility, after all.
He was almost certain Darth Maul had a hand in the recent assassinations. He'd been quiet, even invisible, for ten long years. His defeat on Naboo may have taught him to be more cautious regarding the Jedi, but Obi-Wan knew he'd been too devoted to the revival of the Sith to give up completely. Ten years was a long time to wait and a powerful servant of the Dark Side could easily shield someone from a Jedi's senses. It would explain why not even Grandmaster Yoda had foreseen the attacks.
But Obi-Wan could feel such anger directed toward him during his meditations. It was a festering, vengeful anger, and it was familiar to him. Even if Maul had nothing to do with the murders, the Jedi knew their business was far from over.
He wasn't confident enough to risk admitting to himself he wanted Darth Maul brought to justice for reasons aside from the safety of the Republic. He had to guard himself, every day, from the desire for revenge for what was done to his master…the only father he ever knew. He knew he would be satisfied if Maul were captured…but he had to credit it to justice, the deserved punishment for the threat he'd posed to the Republic. It couldn't be about revenge, regardless of how much he wanted to do unspeakably awful things to the Zabrak fiend who stole his master from him.
There it was again, the creep of the Dark Side. No, he was a Jedi. An arbiter of peace, no matter his personal pain.
Although he was confident in his theory, Obi-Wan wasn't sure he wanted to tell Anakin. The young man was a talented and admittedly powerful Jedi, but didn't share his master's fondness for discretion. Whenever Obi-Wan wanted to negotiate their way to an end through persuasion or well-mannered guile, Anakin preferred a more direct approach, which almost always meant running straight through their obstacles, lightsabers ablaze. He seemed to care more about getting the job done than avoiding unnecessary conflicts and it tended to lead to reckless behavior. It was common among the younger Jedi, that feeling of invincibility, but most of them would eventually grow out of it. Unfortunately, that moment seemed far away in Anakin's case.
Obi-Wan pulled himself from his meditation when a quick pang from the Force warned him there was someone close behind him. He whipped his lightsaber hilt from the hook on his belt and rolled out of the way, back to his feet, just as a blue blade swung down at where he'd been sitting. He smirked and ignited his own blade.
"Oh, good heavens!" C-3PO exclaimed from the far corner of the room, "Master Anakin, what are you doing!?"
"Quiet, Threepio!" Anakin hushed the droid harshly, brandishing his lightsaber in an aggressive stance.
"Did you really think you could sneak up on me while I was attuned to the Force?" Obi-Wan asked.
"I thought you might be distracted," Anakin muttered in reply.
"What would you have done if you were right?"
"Don't worry, Master, I don't plan on killing you any time soon." Anakin jabbed at him, but he easily parried the attack and swung his lightsaber at the padawan's midsection. Anakin jumped back in time to dodge it and grinned at him, obviously enjoying himself.
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow at his apprentice. "Any time soon, eh?" he asked, "If that's supposed to be a joke, it's in poor taste."
"You're the one who told me you'd recommend me for the trials if I could beat you in a fight," Anakin reminded him.
"You make it sound like a guarantee! I told you it was a goal, nothing more," Obi-Wan reminded him, circling around to keep pace with his padawan's footing, "you're the one who chose to see it so. I allowed it because I want you to be prepared for dueling a Sith, but if you're going to use it to try slicing my head off…"
"So, you're not going to honor your promise?" Anakin demanded.
"Promise!" Obi-Wan paused to at least show he was considering it. Anakin's skills with a lightsaber had improved fast, but were still unable to match his own. That didn't mean he couldn't get lucky, long before he was truly ready to face his trials. The padawan's challenge called for a more…tactical answer. "Well, if you can impress me, it's a possibility."
Anakin leapt forward, bringing his blade down with the added momentum of his jump. Obi-Wan whipped his lightsaber upward to catch it. The two energy beams collided loudly and sputtered with the continued contact as Anakin tried to overpower him. "You know I'm ready," the younger man insisted, staring his master down over the glow of their sabers, "are you afraid I'll show you up?"
"Your overconfidence is deafening," Obi-Wan grunted, "but I can say I'm proud of your progress." He shoved the younger man backward and circled around to his left. "When we first started our sparring sessions, I would've heard you coming hours ago."
"Alright, enough playing around," Anakin declared, "prepare to be impressed!" He set himself in an aggressive stance and the cocky smile Obi-Wan had grown accustomed to seeing on his face appeared. The padawan rushed forward and swung at him, but the experienced Jedi Master recognized it as a feint and moved to the side. He brought his own lightsaber up to intercept Anakin's just as the young man redirected it.
"Good!" he exclaimed.
Anakin didn't pause to acknowledge the compliment, but Obi-Wan could see the smile on his face grow just slightly. The apprentice pivoted to attack again, this time much faster. Obi-Wan blocked it again, less than a second before another swipe. Anakin had truly gotten faster and craftier since they'd started the unorthodox training technique, but so had Obi-Wan. The Jedi Master managed to parry each of his trainee's blows, but had little time to strike back, not that it was his intention. It was apparent to him that the young man had been practicing on his own time. He wanted to see that determination purely as a sign of Anakin's devotion to eradicating the Sith, but he knew it was also a matter of pride for him.
Pride was one of the relatively few things Anakin struggled with, at least when it came to the more spiritual side of his training. He often saw some tasks as beneath him, which meant he missed out on more than a few lessons. But that, too, was a common attribute of his youth. It was a shortcoming he once had himself, although he'd grown out of it much quicker than Anakin. Obi-Wan allowed one of Anakin's attacks to slide closer to him, only because he meant to duck under the younger man's blade. From there, he kicked and swiped his apprentice's leg out from under him, sending him onto his back with a hard thump.
Anakin grunted and rolled away from him in order to scramble back to his feet. "Would it kill you to fight clean?" he demanded, obviously annoyed and embarrassed by the fall.
"In a real fight? Yes." Obi-Wan lowered his lightsaber just slightly, allowing his muscles to rest briefly. "You should never go into battle expecting a fencing match," he explained, "a Sith will use anything and everything to get the upper hand. While I don't want to encourage you to fight like a Sith, you should never be afraid to do what you need to in order to keep one from forcing you on the defensive. Once you're stuck defending yourself, it's very hard to get out of, especially with how furiously your enemy will come after you. Eventually, you'll tire and that'll be the end of you."
Obi-Wan had to stop himself there, the memory of how his master had been exhausted and defeated too real in his mind. He couldn't bear his apprentice making the same mistake. He had to be aggressive, yes…but wisely so. Even then he didn't know if he could impart that wisdom on Anakin. He'd been greatly helped by Qui-Gon, somehow, during his notorious fight with Darth Maul…but how could he explain it without sounding insane? He wanted Qui-Gon's guidance again, to teach Anakin in a way he hadn't been able to replicate to his own satisfaction, but how could a dead man help him?
"Right," Anakin muttered in response to the lecture, bringing his master back out of his thoughts.
"But that's not the only thing you need to guard against," Obi-Wan continued, pushing his longing to see his own master again far in back of his mind, "because when you're against someone as in touch with the Dark Side as a Sith Lord, you'll feel it. It will try to work its way into your mind and drive you to anger. If you kill in anger, you will lose yourself, and you might not always find yourself again quick enough to turn back."
"So what're you saying?"
Obi-Wan shook his head. "The same thing I've been saying since I began training you, the most basic lesson a Jedi must learn: keep control of your emotions or your emotions will control you—and a little humility wouldn't hurt."
"Alright, I get it," Anakin replied in a half groan.
"Then, prepare yourself," Obi-Wan stated. Without further warning, he launched himself forward and took the offensive. Drawing on the power for the Force, he attacked rapidly, while still maintaining control of his blade. He doubted he could ever make Anakin feel the overwhelming terror he did when he fought Maul all those years ago, but he could at least show him a hint of what he was against physically.
There was no established training method for preparing a padawan to face the Dark Side. Without any way to simulate it, Anakin's first test of his resistance to its temptation would have to be in the midst of a fight against one strong in it. Although he was confident in his apprentice's strength in the Force, he wished he had some other way to test his devotion to the Light, some way to further prepare him for the Dark.
But no such thing existed in the Jedi Order. The Council was devoted to its traditions, and they were traditions that went back a thousand years, to a time when the Sith were first thought to be destroyed. They were aware of their mistake after the appearance of Darth Maul, but old habits die hard, and no master had yet stepped up to suggest a new regimen for the Order as a whole.
Anakin was able to defend himself marvelously, blocking or dodging every attack Obi-Wan could throw at him. But he knew from experience that all it took to tip the battle was one mistake. He would distract him somehow, throw in a little of the chaos a real battle would bring. Obi-Wan spun away from Anakin and drew on the power of the Force. He flicked his hand in the direction of the rug his apprentice stood on. It whipped out from under him, but the young man was quick enough to jump backward.
He rolled away and came back to his feet, grinning. "You're going to have to try harder than that," he stated haughtily, "I can kill terentateks, remember?"
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and slashed at him clumsily, leaving his shoulder open. Don't do it, he thought to himself. Unfortunately, Anakin responded by immediately going for the opening. Obi-Wan effortlessly turned his torso to avoid the stab and pivoted to Anakin's side, where he put his lightsaber blade to the young man's clavicle.
"Yield," he commanded.
Anakin looked at his master, then at the blade in front of him. "But…no, I had you!" he exclaimed.
Obi-Wan shut his lightsaber off and put it back on his belt before folding his arms. "Overconfidence is a weakness," he replied, "once you showed it, it was easy to trick you into a misstep. I don't expect you to keep yourself from feeling emotions like pride or fear, but you can always keep it from showing on your face and in your actions. If you don't, your enemy will know exactly what to do."
Anakin sighed and put his weapon away. "Sorry, Master," he grumbled grudgingly.
Obi-Wan smiled. "I don't want you to be sorry, I want you to learn from it," he said lightly, "besides, you did very well."
"Next time you won't see it coming," Anakin replied, one corner of his mouth twitching at that cocky grin waiting to come back.
"What did I just say about overconfidence?" Obi-Wan glanced at the door when someone knocked urgently.
Anakin went to answer it, and once the door opened fully, he was greeted by a man dressed in an unremarkable brown tunic and grey cap, one of the senator's disguised guards. Behind him was a young woman who looked uncannily similar to Padmé, and Obi-Wan realized he recognized her, even after a decade. The man held a pistol in his hand, with his finger resting just above the trigger, while the girl stared in surprise at Anakin.
"Master Jedi," the guard exclaimed in surprise, bowing his head quickly while his finger left the trigger, "I thought I heard a struggle. Is everything alright?"
Obi-Wan turned his head to cock an eyebrow at his apprentice. "Yes, everything's fine," he replied, "just an unexpected sparring match."
When he looked at the guard again, he could tell the man didn't quite understand his meaning. Despite the puzzled look on his face, he lowered his blaster. "I see," he said, "I'm sorry to have disturbed you, Master Jedi."
"Not at all," Obi-Wan replied, smiling appreciatively, "your vigilance is commendable."
The guard gave him a quick nod, accompanied by a half smile. "Back to my duties, then." Without waiting for a reply, the guard started back down the hall while the girl remained.
Deftly, she holstered a holdout pistol Obi-Wan hadn't spotted. Although Padmé no longer had a whole host of handmaiden doubles, it was clear she kept at least one of the best. He remembered this former handmaiden as smart, quick, and loyal. If only he could remember her name.
"I…didn't know you'd be here," she murmured nervously, her gaze set on Anakin.
"Well…here I am," the padawan replied, clearly unsure what to make of her…'greeting'.
The girl's face fell. "You don't remember saving my life." She recovered quickly by putting on a shallow smile. "I'm Fé," she continued, "I don't blame you for not picking me out of the group, but you saved my life from a droid in the palace."
Anakin's face lit up. "Oh, right. My first time shooting a blaster. It's nice to see you stuck around."
Fé's smile wavered. "Right…" she cleared her throat and finally turned her attention to Obi-Wan. "I've been quartered in the apartment next door," she told him, "I'm helping to coordinate the guards, so if you need support, let me know."
Obi-Wan nodded his thanks. "I'll be sure to."
With a final glance at Anakin, the young woman took her leave of them and the door slid closed. The Jedi Master decided to hold his tongue about what he'd noticed during the exchange. "We ought to get back to our duties as well," he said, gesturing toward the parlor door. "Do a quick round of the apartment. I'll check on the senator."
Anakin nodded and started toward the door, but stopped when the door to Padmé's bed chamber slid open. She emerged from it, visibly distraught, and came to sit on the parlor's centermost sofa. Obi-Wan could see she was trying to calm herself.
"What happened, Senator?" he demanded, rushing to the chamber door. He took a quick look inside, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He looked back at her.
"Are you alright?" Anakin was already by her side.
Padmé looked up at the Jedi Master. "I'm sorry, Obi-Wan," she said, shaking her head, "I shouldn't have become so emotional."
"What happened?" Anakin asked for him.
"I just received word from Chancellor Palpatine," the young woman began, her voice suddenly much more controlled.
Aside from the way she was wringing her hands, all other signs of her earlier distress had suddenly vanished. Obi-Wan noted her studied control of her emotions. Had she been born Force-sensitive, she could've made a disciplined Jedi Knight, and perhaps a real asset in training Anakin to have that same degree of control.
"There was an attempt on Senator Organa's life," she continued, "luckily, the charges were found and disarmed before they could go off." She shook her head again. "Bail is a close friend of mine, as well as one of my closest political allies. I don't want to imagine what it would've been like to lose him." Padmé looked up at Anakin, who gave her the most discreet of nods, but not discreet enough to escape Obi-Wan's notice.
"Is there something you two wanted to tell me?" he asked.
"There's…a plan," Anakin stated hesitantly.
Padmé nodded. "Let me…explain a little before we jump into that mess," she proposed.
"Alright."
"I've had my suspicions for a while now, but I believe the Separatists as a military force aren't really gone, and that they're trying to eliminate their enemies in the Senate before they come back to the forefront," Padmé told Obi-Wan matter-of-factly, "these would be senators who are willing to act for the good of the Republic, despite the political consequences. Many of the people this assassin has killed were among the senators who supported Naboo during the Invasion. There weren't enough of them then to force military action, but once word spread that a Jedi Master had been killed, people began to realize how seriously they should have taken it. The number of strong senators grew. But after these assassinations, their numbers are dwindling again."
"Yes, I noticed the trend myself and had a similar theory," Obi-Wan stated, "but that can't be all you wanted to tell me."
Padmé shook her head. "If we're right, we know who might be next on the list," she continued, "not all senators who supported us during the Invasion are dead, and I don't want to see that change. The only person we know for certain he wants to kill, other than Senator Organa, is myself. We need to use what we know to capture the assassin."
Obi-Wan knew where that was going. He folded his arms and glared at Anakin. "You knew about this?" he demanded, "why didn't you tell me?"
Anakin returned his gaze confidently, rather than shrink back from his scolding look. "Because I knew you'd react like this," he replied, "but hear her out. She has a good point."
Obi-Wan sighed and put a hand to his beard. "Go ahead, then," he murmured.
"Regardless of whether I'm right or wrong about the Separatists' involvement, we know one thing for certain: the assassin wants me dead," Padmé continued, "we can use that to draw him out. We'd know he was coming so we'd be ready. We can capture him and use him to find out who's really behind these assassinations, if he isn't working on his own."
"So we stick you on a hook and go fishing?" Obi-Wan asked. He'd tried not to sound too sarcastic, but it wasn't easy. "I'm not saying it won't work, but it never turns out well for whatever is dangling on the end of the line. It goes against our directive."
"I said the same thing," Anakin interjected, "but let's face it: as long as Padmé—I mean, Senator Amidala stays hidden, he's going to keep killing other people. We're Jedi. We're supposed to stop that from happening."
"And in exchange we sacrifice the safety of the one we were told to protect?"
"You wouldn't be sacrificing anything," Padmé assured him, "when it comes time to expose my location, it'll be all my own doing. I'll send a request for Alderaanian brandy straight from the terminal in my bedroom under my own name. It would give the impression that both Bail and I are here and it'd be an opportunity an intelligent killer wouldn't ignore. If the assassin can't trace that, he's not as good as we thought he was."
"There's a chance he'd see through the trap," Anakin contributed, "but even then…"
"He'd have to come to us to get to me," the senator finished for him.
"You must know I can't consent to this," Obi-Wan grumbled.
"I thought you might say that," Padmé replied. She smiled. "So, I made it so you don't have to consent to it. I already sent the message."
Anakin's eyes went wide. "What?"
"It's going to happen and neither of you had any hand in it," Padmé explained slyly, "your consciences are clear."
Despite his frustration, Obi-Wan had to admit Padmé's scheme was the quickest way to draw the assassin out of the shadows. He nodded slowly to himself, then looked up again. "Alright. Anakin, take the senator into the office. There aren't any windows or exterior walls, so we won't have a repeat of last time. He'll have to come inside if he wants her."
Anakin grinned. "Yes, Master."
Obi-Wan looked to R2-D2, who sat in sleep mode toward the corner of the room. "Artoo," he called. The droid whirred to life and bleeped at him inquisitively. "You'll stay here and monitor the sensors. I'll alert the guards outside and return here shortly." He turned back to Anakin. "Make note of any vents or rubbish chutes large enough for a person—no, make sure even a mouse droid wouldn't be able to get in. I don't want to take any more chances than we already are."
Anakin dutifully bowed his head to his master before he took Padmé into the next room, but his master managed to catch the look of excitement in his eye. It was predictable Anakin would be eager to try something so bold; it was something that both impressed and irked Obi-Wan about his apprentice.
…..
Only half an hour had passed before the chime at the front door sounded. Obi-Wan looked up from the place he'd concealed himself behind the sofa and stared at the door. Perhaps whoever Padmé had sent the message to had actually decided to send her Alderaanian brandy. That, or the assassin was trying to get them closer to the door. He remained where he was, watching it warily. The chime sounded again. He realized it wouldn't do to have an innocent worker pulled into a dangerous situation like theirs. He proceeded to the door and opened it with his hand near the hilt of his saber.
A young, near-adolescent boy with dark hair and tan skin stood carrying a tray with a bottle of liquid and two metal drinking glasses. The boy smiled pleasantly at him and offered the tray to him. "Brandy for the senator, Master Jedi," he said.
Obi-Wan gently pushed the boy back a step so he could look into the hallway. Satisfied they were alone, he looked down at the tray.
"Is something wrong?" the boy asked, "did you need more glasses?"
Obi-Wan shook his head. "No, this is fine," he replied. He picked up one of the glasses and looked under it, then inside it before doing the same with the other. Finally, he checked under the bottle itself. He looked back at the boy. "Who told you to bring this here?" he asked.
The boy shrugged. "I'm just trying to get paid," he stated, his smile dropping slightly.
Obi-Wan nodded while discreetly giving the boy's clothing a quick look over. Something didn't seem right. He couldn't figure out what it was, but something just wasn't as he'd expected. Nothing looked, sounded, or smelled out of place. Perhaps it wasn't his physical senses that were warning him. Before he could look deeper into the Force's warning, the boy shoved the tray toward him.
"It's late, Sir," he said, "can I please go home, now?" Obi-Wan took the tray and nodded. The boy backed up several steps, then started down the hall. He caught him glancing back furtively once he'd put a considerable distance between himself and the Jedi. No, something was definitely not on the level.
Obi-Wan waited for him to round the corner before crossing the hall to the public trash chute and depositing the tray and its contents inside. He chimed Fé's door while passing by to alert her and hurried after the boy, while trying to maintain a discreet distance from him.
He passed a man he knew to be one of the senator's guards, who was nonchalantly posed leaning against the wall. The man looked up as he passed, but Obi-Wan motioned for him to stay put before continuing to follow the boy. He stopped and pressed himself against the wall just before the door that'd lead to one of the five landing pads on that level. The boy proceeded outside and Obi-Wan watched him head toward an airspeeder.
The Jedi rushed out after him, making a little more noise than he would have liked when his boot squeaked against the slick, waxed floor. The boy spun about with a small blaster in his hand. He fired at him, forcing him to duck behind a planter next to the door. While he was busy climbing into the airspeeder, Obi-Wan took it as his chance to get closer. He rushed toward the speeder, pulling his lightsaber free as he ran. The boy started the speeder up, but Obi-Wan was already closing in. He twisted his torso and threw something small and round at Obi-Wan's feet. The smoke bomb detonated on impact, sending an irritating gas into the air.
Obi-Wan shut his mouth and eyes as he backed out of the cloud, wafting the smoke away with his free hand. Despite his efforts, he could still smell the harsh chemical odor of the smoke as a little of it managed to slip into his nostrils. He coughed and backed away even further until he could breathe clean air. By the time he looked up again, the boy was already getting away. Obi-Wan leapt into the nearest open speeder and started it up. Once he was free of the landing pad, he threw the throttle to full to continue the chase.
….
Anakin's gaze shot over to the office door when the Force demanded his attention. He heard a crash on the other side, and what sounded like a muted blaster shot. He grabbed Padmé's arm and pushed her under the desk before ducking behind the bench, and not a moment too soon. The parlor door blasted inward, sending hot debris flying into the room with deadly velocity. Anakin looked up to see an armored man step over its remains, a heavy blaster pistol in hand. He certainly matched the rough description Padmé had given them.
"You're hard to kill, girl," he said through his helmet, his voice carrying a peculiar accent. He pointed the blaster toward Padmé, who was only just visible in her hiding place.
Anakin leapt over the bench he'd taken cover behind, igniting his lightsaber as he did. The armored man backed out through the door, firing to slow him down as he made his retreat. His shocked body language suggested he hadn't anticipated the presence of a Jedi. How foolish. Anakin blocked the shots and pursued him into the central room, where he saw Artoo fallen on his back, a scorch mark on his dome. The assassin rushed out into the hallway with Anakin close on his heels. He wasn't wasting his time and effort with the blaster anymore. Maybe he wasn't that foolish after all.
Fé emerged from her room just before Anakin came to it. "Protect the senator!" Anakin barked at her as he rushed past in pursuit.
The assassin didn't even pause when one of Padmé's bodyguards rounded the corner with a blaster pistol aimed at him. The man shot at the guard before even bothering to aim, but the bolt hit home with deadly results. Anakin leapt over the fallen guard, close on the assassin's tail. He soon realized he was headed for the open air of the landing pad just ahead of them and reached out with the Force just as he got to the door. The man tried to get the door open, but Anakin held it closed, and those few seconds were enough for the padawan to catch up to him. Realizing he was trapped, the man turned around to face him.
"I know a bounty hunter when I see one," Anakin growled, "who hired you?"
"That's not any of your concern, Jedi," the assassin replied. He thrust his arm out in Anakin's direction and pressed a button on his bracer. Anakin leapt to the side just as a small three-pronged device shot out and stuck itself in the wall where he'd once been. Tiny arcs of electricity stretched between the prongs, but quickly dissipated in the grounded wall.
The man turned and blasted the nearest window, leaping out without a hint of hesitation. Anakin shoved his lightsaber in the folds of his tunic and followed him, falling freely. Despite the wind's resistance, Anakin reached out and took hold of the man's boot just over his ankle. The assassin activated his jetpack, catching them both in midair. The man grunted and looked down at him, the jetpack struggling to hold them both aloft. He began kicking at Anakin's hands. The Jedi struggled to hold on, even as the man started shaking his leg. The assassin reached out to grab the edge of a nearby billboard just as the jetpack cut out, then continued to kick at Anakin, who could only hold on for so long.
Anakin gasped as he fell back-first through the busy airspeeder traffic below. He worked to turn himself over so he could at least see where he was headed, not that it made much of a difference. The height was dizzying, and the wind's resistance as he fell made his eyes water just as quickly as it dried them out. He stretched his arms out, hoping to control the fall. He'd find something, anything to catch himself on. He wasn't going to let his life end that easily. At least, that was what he told himself.
But he knew his options were gone. If he were to be intercepted by a passing speeder, it'd probably kill him faster rather than save him. He grunted when a speeder passed him so closely that the wind tossed him away and he began to tumble head over feet. After managing to right himself again, he peered through dry eyes at the set of headlights directed at him. Another speeder was following him, matching the speed at which he fell. It positioned itself underneath him and he could see through the open cockpit that his master was the one piloting it. He reached out and grabbed the edge of the passenger's seat as Obi-Wan began to slow their fall.
"What are you doing out here?" he asked once Anakin had seated himself, "you're meant to be protecting Padmé!"
The padawan huffed and puffed to catch his breath and shook his head. "Weren't you supposed to be watching the door?" he wheezed.
"I was, until I encountered a lead that might've allowed me to capture the assassin," Obi-Wan answered matter-of-factly. He looked over at Anakin critically. "If I hadn't suddenly sensed you were in grave danger," he added.
"Was I supposed to let the assassin get away?"
"What?"
Anakin pointed upward. "We still might be able to catch him, if you're done lecturing me."
Obi-Wan let out the conflicted combination of a sigh and a groan before abruptly angling the speeder in the direction he'd indicated. "Don't take this man too lightly," he warned Anakin over the sound of the accelerating engine.
"You know me, Master."
Obi-Wan turned his head to look at him. "Yes, I do," he said flatly, "that's why I'm warning you." The airspeeder shot up over the billboard Anakin had fallen from only seconds before. The armored man had managed to get atop it and was already gone. Anakin pointed ahead and to their left.
"There, on the ledge!" Obi-Wan redirected the speeder and headed toward the man, who was running along the ledge of a nearby skyscraper. Anakin eyed the assassin's jetpack and realized it must have needed to cool down before it could be used again. He grinned. "Get in close," he told Obi-Wan.
The assassin looked back at them, then fired his heavy blaster at the speeder. The bolt struck its side panel harmlessly, but it'd gotten a little too close to hitting the engine for Anakin's comfort. He put his boot up on the edge of the cockpit and leaned toward the ledge a short distance below them.
"Anakin, wait!"
The padawan leapt out of the speeder and rolled over his shoulder, back onto his feet. He ran after the assassin while pulling his lightsaber out from where he'd thrown it in his tunic. He heard the airspeeder's engine rev and looked to watch it descend out of view. He looked back at the assassin in time to see the blaster pointed straight at him. He clumsily flipped the hilt of his lightsaber around in his hand and felt for the switch, wishing he'd taken the time to put it back on his belt like it should've been.
He managed to locate the wayward slider, but not before the man fired, forcing him to dodge. He fired a second shot almost immediately after the first and Anakin scrambled to right himself before he could backpedal into the bolt's path. He was safe, but it'd been too close. He switched his lightsaber on and continued running after the assassin. Unless the man was a fool, he doubted he'd try shooting at him a third time with the Jedi weapon prepped.
After reaching the ledge's corner, the assassin did a quick pivot to round it, but stopped when Obi-Wan's airspeeder rose suddenly to meet him. The Jedi Master leapt out of the hovering vehicle and collided with the armored man, knocking his blaster pistol out of his hand. They both hit the ledge and toppled over each other and Obi-Wan managed to get a grip on his helmet to keep him from righting himself. Anakin sped up. The assassin planted his fist into the Jedi's gut, and pulled his head away from him, freeing himself. Obi-Wan recovered quickly and grabbed onto his belt to keep him down.
"You're not getting out of this one!" he grunted at him.
The assassin didn't respond. Instead, he pressed a button on his bracer and the jetpack came to life. The belt was wrenched out of Obi-Wan's hand by the sudden burst of motion and the man shot forward several meters, sliding on his shoulder, before deactivating it. Anakin ran past his master, who was only beginning to get up.
"We need him alive," he heard Obi-Wan warn him from behind.
Anakin grunted his acknowledgement and switched his lightsaber off just milliseconds before jumping after the assassin, who once again activated his rockets. He hadn't activated them quickly enough. Anakin slammed into the assassin, knocking him against the building across the way. The jetpack cut out again and they both fell, luckily landing in a lush garden positioned on an upper class apartment's extensive balcony.
Anakin's back struck the thick branch of an imported Dantooinian tree and he flopped onto his chest in the moist soil. He coughed to spit the dirt out of his mouth and scrambled back to his feet in time to see the assassin rush across the patio and burst through the adjoining apartment's glass door. Anakin ran after him, leaping to avoid the glass shards still attached to the door's frame. The man ran straight across the large parlor to the far window and paused briefly to blast it open.
Anakin reached him just as he leapt out, landing on top of a starship. It was a pursuit craft, piloted by an adolescent boy. Anakin reached for his lightsaber, only to find it missing. He slipped behind the window frame just as the starship's turret fired at him. The volley was quick, but heavy, ruining most of the furniture in the room and chipping off chunks of the windowsill. He let out a relieved breath when the ship stopped firing, but grimaced when he heard its engines powering up. He looked out the window to see it speeding upward, toward the planet's atmosphere.
"Great," he muttered.
"Anakin!" The padawan spun around to see Obi-Wan jogging to meet him. He held out a mulch-encrusted lightsaber hilt and Anakin recognized it as his own. He took it, smiling guiltily. "Don't lose it again," Obi-Wan ordered sternly.
"Sorry, Master," he replied, brushing the filth off with his fingers.
"So, he escaped?"
Anakin nodded and gestured toward the window with his head. "He had help," he explained, "some boy picked him up in a starship and took off."
"I'd assume it was the same boy I saw earlier," Obi-Wan mused, "at least now we know there are two of them."
"By the way he reacted when he saw me, I don't think he expected there to be two of us, either," Anakin added.
"I see," Obi-Wan murmured, "then we had an advantage we didn't know to exploit." He raised his other arm and Anakin noticed he was holding something else. It looked to be a rounded piece of armor, cupped as if it were meant to fit a shoulder or knee. "At least he was kind enough to leave us this," he continued.
"There's blood on it," Anakin pointed out.
"Exactly," Obi-Wan replied, "with any luck, we'll discover the identity of our slippery friend."
"So, we're detectives, now?"
"It appears so. You can thank Senator Amidala for that."
"What in the blazes…!?"
Anakin swiveled his head to the right to see a man in silky sleeping clothes approaching them, his hair disheveled after the rude awakening. He stumbled across the debris that used to be his belongings, looking like a baby animal just learning to walk. The padawan managed to avoid laughing, but he couldn't refrain from smiling.
"Ah," Obi-Wan breathed nervously, "Anakin, head back and make sure Padmé is safe. I'll deal with this."
"Yes, Master," Anakin replied, still smiling amusedly. He didn't envy him.
…
Obi-Wan sat at a terminal in the records hall, a branch of the Jedi Archives, with his chin in his hand as he watched the screen cycle through file after file, in search of their man. He'd had the blood from the armor analyzed to extract its genetic information, but the real tough part would be staying awake while the Temple's computer skimmed through every bit of information it had regarding the Republic's inhabitants. Even then, he risked the chance that their assassin wasn't registered, or that he wasn't from the Republic at all...but he didn't want to think about that, not after all the waiting he'd already had to sit through.
The Jedi Master's half-closed eyes shot open when the screen began to flash orange. "Blast," he muttered under his breath. He sighed dejectedly and tapped one of the controls to change the search parameters. If he couldn't find the man, perhaps he could find the source of the mysterious substance that'd been in his blood. The computer's results were almost instantaneous: absolutely nothing. "What?" he said aloud.
"Is there a problem, Master Kenobi?" Obi-Wan looked up to see Master Jocasta Nu, the head librarian of the Jedi Archives, smiling down at him with her hands folded over her embroidered robes. She was an older human woman, with long gray hair tied up in a twisted bun behind her head.
"Yes, actually," he replied, "I was trying to find information on a strange chemical we detected in a blood sample. It was on a piece of armor, Mandalorian in design, though not made of the same material they usually use. Unfortunately, that in itself wasn't enough to go on. I had thought the chemical was introduced by some sort of implant, but the Archive computer claims to have nothing. No planet of origin…it doesn't even know if it's toxic or not. Is it possible there's some sort of data corruption?"
"The Archive's servers receive regular and frequent maintenance," Jocasta replied, "if you can't find anything related to that chemical of yours, then the data doesn't exist anywhere in the known galaxy."
"That's impossible," Obi-Wan insisted, "it's some sort of synthetic-biological mixture of a compound. It had to have been crafted in a laboratory, somewhere. There would have to be test results, lab reports, safety recommendations, and at least something that states what it's meant to do."
"True, if it was created legally."
Obi-Wan sighed. "If it's illegal, it could come from anywhere," he muttered, "but, still, if it's some sort of black-market biological implant, you'd think the creator would want possible customers to know where to find it." He leaned forward in his seat and manipulated the terminals controls, trying the last thing he could think of. "There might not be any names in the system, but perhaps it can trace the natural components that went into it to a certain sector of space," he murmured as he worked.
The terminal screen flashed rapidly as it once again commenced its galaxy-wide search for answers. Jocasta, having been intrigued by her fellow's predicament, watched from over Obi-Wan's shoulder. To their surprise, the search ended quickly with a view of the galactic map. A collection of planets in a distant solar system orbited lazily around its central star. None of them were habitable, but that wasn't the most vexing part of the search results.
"It's indicating this blank bit of space just beyond that asteroid belt," Obi-Wan stated, pointing at the empty area, "but there's nothing there. It claims the chemical is of planetary origin, but there's no planet."
The librarian frowned and nodded. "A puzzle, indeed," she mused, "the Jedi Archives would not have such detailed information on a system that had yet to be fully explored….and yet it isn't indicating any of those uninhabited planets as the origin. I don't see how that could be."
Obi-Wan raised his hand to touch his beard as he thought. Something didn't seem right about what he was seeing. If there were truly no planet in that spot, things would have to look much differently. "This dip in the asteroid belt," he said, pointing to it on the screen, "it would suggest the objects are being pulled toward something with its own gravitational field. There must be a planet or satellite there, somewhere."
Jocasta shook her head. "How curious. It would suggest someone had deliberately tampered with the Archive's records. I can assure you, however, that is likewise impossible. No one lower in rank than a member of the Jedi Council could have such access."
"Then we need to figure out which member of the Council erased this data and why," Obi-Wan stated.
Jocasta shook her head dejectedly. "I don't want to think it possible, but we're not left with another explanation. However, searching access logs for something that specific would take a lifetime. For all we know, the change could have been made centuries ago, by a master long dead. I would suggest asking yourself a different question."
"Perhaps the only way to know who and why would be to visit this invisible planet," Obi-Wan suggested.
The librarian smiled. "The most direct route to answers, to be sure."
Obi-Wan nodded and retrieved the datacard from its place in the terminal's port before standing up. He turned to face her and bowed his head. "Thank you for your counsel, Master Nu."
She returned the gesture. "May the Force be with you, Master Kenobi."
…
Anakin sat across from Padmé in yet another hastily-prepared apartment salon, with Artoo in front of him and Padmé's protocol droid, Threepio, just beside the sofa. Fé had left the previous building with her mistress and their Jedi guardians, and then stood leaning against the wall, examining her blaster for flaws. Anakin had caught her glancing at him every once in a while, despite both of them being busy with their respective tasks. He wasn't sure what to make of it, but decided it wasn't worth addressing.
If things kept going on as they had been, he doubted there'd be any empty apartments left for them to hide in. At least, this time they had a few more guards about. Although they were dressed in normal clothes while roaming the many halls of the building, it was always easy for him to identify the guards when they passed.
For one thing, they never looked up at him. He'd learned over the years that people tended to look at Jedi when they passed, whether directly out of curiosity or out of the corners of their eyes in guilt. He'd grown so accustomed to it that he couldn't help noticing the absence of it. Hopefully the assassin wasn't as observant.
The padawan scrubbed Artoo's outer plating with an abrasive cloth, gradually erasing the harsh scorch mark left where the droid had been disabled, no doubt as a result of a powerful electric shock. He almost envied the assassin's many toys. Still, if he had to choose between his lightsaber and a plethora of fancy gadgets, he'd keep the saber.
"Poor Artoo," Padmé mused aloud, "he didn't even get the chance to defend himself."
Anakin nodded, whisking away the last smear of char. "If he had, that assassin would've gotten more than he bargained for," Anakin replied jokingly. He reached down to bring Artoo back out of hibernation.
The droid whirred to life once more and looked around the room before chirping happily at seeing them both intact.
"Sith or not, I'd say R2-D2 is the real terror of the galaxy," Anakin continued for the droid's benefit, to which he replied with an upbeat whistle. The little rust bucket was more a friend to him than a servant, and Artoo seemed to enjoy humor in his own droid way.
"You can't mean that, Master Anakin," Threepio stated. Artoo looked at the other droid and squawked obnoxiously at him. "Of course you wouldn't be able to defend yourself," Threepio replied, "you're no more fitted for combat than I am." Artoo chattered at him. "I say!" the protocol droid exclaimed indignantly, "I don't see how you could be so unapologetically rude, then claim to be my friend in the next instant. I've half a mind to—"
"Alright, alright," Anakin interrupted him, setting the cloth aside. He laughed. "Artoo, stop antagonizing the help."
Artoo chirped happily, then turned his dome to face Threepio and squawk, a sound that carried a lot of obvious sass for a mechanical, word-less response.
"There's nothing wrong with being 'the help'," Threepio replied, "that's precisely what I was programmed to be!"
"That's enough, Threepio," Padmé interjected. She glanced at the astromech. "From you too," she added.
"My apologies, Mistress Padmé."
Anakin stood up and led Artoo toward the wall, where a power socket concealed behind a metal panel awaited them. He opened the panel and plugged the droid in. "You seem okay to me," he said, "but go ahead and do a quick system check." Artoo bleeped affirmatively and Anakin started back toward the sofa, but chose not to sit down again. He folded his arms and ignored another glance from Fé. "Obi-Wan seems to be taking his time," he muttered, half to himself.
"Do you think he'll be able to track the assassin?" Padmé wondered, "I mean, there wasn't very much to work with."
Anakin nodded. "If there's something to find, he'll find it. He might not be the fastest investigator around, but he's tenacious."
Padmé smiled. "It's not that I doubt his abilities or dedication," she explained, "but I'm fully aware detective work isn't one of the duties of a Jedi. I'm sorry I brought this on you two. Perhaps if I'd said something sooner, we might've been more prepared."
"I do wish we'd thought about it more carefully," Fé murmured from her place on the other side of the room.
Anakin shrugged, letting out a short chuckle. "If you'd given Obi-Wan more time, he would've talked you out of it and we'd be back at square one."
Padmé grinned back, coyly. "What makes you think I'd be that easy to convince?" she asked, "that's not the best quality to have in a senator."
Anakin chuckled again. "Fair enough."
Fé abruptly stuffed her blaster into its holster and left the room, saying nothing. Anakin frowned, but Padmé smiled apologetically to him.
"Don't worry about her," she said, "losing Sabé was hard for both of us."
"I'm sorry," the Jedi murmured, lowering his head, "I wish I'd been able to get justice for the three of you." He shook his head. "I should've gotten a better grip on him, or knocked him out somehow. I had him, and then I let him slip away."
"From what Obi-Wan told me, it sounded like you did all you could."
"Then he was being generous," Anakin stated with a humorless smile, "I made a sloppy mistake. If I hadn't dropped my lightsaber, I might've found a way to disable his ship. Then we'd have him and his partner by now. We'd be investigating his employers."
"You saved my life, Anakin," the girl insisted, "then you went on to risk your own by jumping out a window. That was more than any of us could ask from you."
Anakin smiled at her. "It's not that," he replied, "it's just that I think I'm starting to see what Obi-Wan means when he says not to get too cocky."
Padmé smiled in a way that suggested she was restraining a little smirk.
"But even the great Master Kenobi couldn't catch him," Anakin added quickly, "I couldn't have done too badly."
"Well, I'm glad you're here, despite your butterfingers."
Anakin folded his arms and leaned against the armrest of the sofa behind him. "You are?" To his disappointment, she didn't elaborate. Instead, she looked toward the window, putting her chin in her hand with her brow furrowed. He leaned forward slightly. "What is it?" he asked.
"Nothing," she replied, "you're good company, that's all."
Despite her diplomatic training, he was almost certain she was holding something back. Perhaps she thought she'd said too much. Or, perhaps, that suspicion was just a result of his own sneaking desires.
Sure, he'd seen more than a few pretty girls during his time on Coruscant, but his training had always been more important to him. It was different this time. He wanted to be near her as often as he could, just to enjoy her presence. Her laugh was like the sweetest music to him, however reservedly she offered it up. She was well-disciplined in her trade, but he treasured the one or two times he'd managed to bring out a genuine smile she hadn't been expecting to show. It was starting to become his goal in any conversation he had with her. At least, when it was appropriate.
Anakin cleared his throat when he realized it'd been silent in the room for more than a few minutes. He hoped he hadn't made her uncomfortable. "Done with that diagnostic yet, Artoo?" he asked. The droid beeped cheerfully and he smiled. "Good, then I guess there's no reason to send you off to maintenance," he replied. Artoo whirred his agreement.
Anakin's attention snapped over to the apartment door when the chime sounded. He gestured for Padmé to stay where she was before hurrying to the door with his hand on the hilt of his lightsaber. Cautiously, he pressed a button on the control panel and the door slid open, revealing his master with Fé close behind him.
Obi-Wan smiled and nodded at Anakin's lightsaber. "At least you have it this time," he teased.
Anakin grimaced. "You're not going to let that go, are you?" he muttered.
Obi-Wan proceeded past him and into the parlor. "Not any time soon, no," he joked, "but I'm sure you'd do the same if I'd been so clumsy." He nodded his greeting to Padmé, who smiled back.
"You seem to be in a good mood," she observed aloud, "does that mean we have something?"
"We have a lead," Obi-Wan replied happily, "or, I guess you could call it a puzzle. But in my experience, puzzling leads always give you more than you expected. I'm sure we'll have that assassin in custody very soon." He looked at his apprentice. "I'll continue my investigation soon. For now, I have a new assignment for you, Anakin."
"What about Padmé?" the young man blurted. He immediately regretted how urgent his voice had sounded. "I mean…she still needs our protection."
"Your directive remains the same," Obi-Wan replied, cocking an eyebrow at him in a quizzical warning, "but I've spoken with Grandmaster Yoda and he's agreed that we need to make a change."
"What sort of change?" Padmé asked.
"I think it's best that you leave Coruscant," the Jedi explained, "Anakin will go with you, to keep you safe while I investigate the information I dug up in the Archives."
"I see," Padmé murmured, her voice sounding unsure.
"I'm not questioning the grandmaster's judgment, but hiding didn't work when she first came here," Anakin reminded him.
"I thought about that too," Obi-Wan replied, nodding. He folded his arms. "You two will need to leave secretly, disguised as civilians," he continued, "you'll need to avoid attracting attention to yourselves, and most importantly you'll need to keep this all between us. You mustn't tell anyone who you are or where you're going."
"No one should have known which apartment I was assigned when I arrived," Padmé pointed out.
Obi-Wan nodded again. "No one outside of the Senate."
"You can't insinuate someone in the Senate would want her dead," Anakin argued.
"I can," the Jedi Master retorted, crossing his arms, "of course, I don't want to throw accusations about just yet. All the same, not even the chancellor can know where you've gone."
Anakin folded his arms as well, arching his eyebrows. "You don't trust the chancellor?" he asked, "he's the one who requested us, not to mention he's the leader of the Republic and we serve the Republic. You can't just start doubting him because something went wrong."
"It's not that, Anakin," Padmé interjected, "a politician's life is complicated; it's not as easy as trust and distrust. Everyone has their own motives, even outside the political world, but politicians have so many connections and connections make it messier. When you know that many people, you can never really be sure who wants or knows what. Admittedly, I should have thought about that possibility from the beginning."
"None of us are without flaw," Obi-Wan continued, "it may not be the chancellor's fault, but even he can't know for certain if his people are corrupt, not until something happens. And something did happen. That's why I don't want your journey discussed with anyone aside from those of us involved."
Anakin sighed and unfolded his arms. "I understand," he relented.
"What was your plan?" Padmé asked.
"I've gotten in contact with an old friend of mine, one I would trust with my own life," he explained, "I've told her of your predicament and given her a set of instructions. You and Anakin will head to the spaceport in the morning. She will find you there."
"Aren't I going with them?" Fé asked.
"I thought about that…but the average traveler doesn't often travel with body doubles."
"I'm more than her double; I'm her protector," the young woman insisted, "who's to judge we aren't sisters?"
"We already lost one sister, Fé," Padmé reminded her quietly, "you'd be safer if you went back home to Naboo."
"But you wouldn't be," the former handmaiden argued, "I've spent most of my life by your side."
Padmé stood up and went to her to take her hands in her own. "And I love you for it," she assured her fondly, "but now it's time to think of yourself."
The Jedi master smiled warmly. "Anakin and I both know how dear your senator is to her people, and to you. We will keep her safe for you."
Fé, frowning, looked from Obi-Wan, to Anakin, back to her mistress. "I'll be sure to find you when you return to Naboo," she said, reluctantly accepting their decision."
Padmé smiled and hugged her loyal friend. "Thank you. Please take Sabé home for her family."
Fé nodded, releasing her mistress. "I'll start preparing," she stated before taking her leave.
Obi-Wan respectfully kept silent and waited until they'd completed their farewell. Once the former handmaiden was gone, he cleared his throat. "Before I forget, you'll also take C-3P0 with you."
"Me, sir?" the droid asked, sounding more afraid than he needed to be.
"Yes, you. Don't worry; Anakin will handle any trouble you run across on the way there, not that I expect there to be trouble if you follow instructions."
"Do you not find Master Anakin's methods of handling trouble…extreme?" Threepio asked nervously.
"What, don't you trust me?" Anakin teased, grinning impishly.
"Well, I…you see, in the palace…" the droid went on frantically, "I mean no offense, Sir, but I was nearly blasted to bits!"
"What?" Padmé breathed curiously.
Anakin shrugged. "Actually, that's true. It wouldn't have been so risky if he wasn't panicking with every step we took, drawing attention to himself."
Obi-Wan chuckled. "You'll be fine; protocol droids are a common sight, and Threepio wasn't in the apartment when the assassin attacked. My contact will be looking for him." He reached backward and pressed to door switch to open it. "Now, I have a few last-minute travel preparations to make for you. You ought to start packing; my contact will be waiting for you just before noon."
"How will we know her?" Anakin asked.
"You'll know her. But if you have your doubts, just ask her about the best vacation spot in the galaxy."
Anakin laughed. "Master, sometimes I think you would've been more at home as a spy."
Obi-Wan smiled. "Perhaps in another life." He turned to leave.
Anakin watched him step into the hall and the door slide closed behind him. He realized he wouldn't be seeing his master for some time, if things went as planned. But there was a question he needed to ask, one that'd been lingering in the back of his mind ever since he first saw Padmé again. Would it be wise to leave with her, before he'd gotten his answers?
"Blast," he hissed under his breath, turning to look back at Padmé. "Stay here; I have one last thing I need to know." He rushed out the door and walked quickly down the hall. Obi-Wan wasn't in sight anymore, but it couldn't wait. He started to run, hurrying around the next corner. "Master, wait!"
…..
Obi-Wan stopped and spun about when he heard Anakin's voice so soon after leaving him. "What? Is something wrong?"
Anakin shook his head and hurried to meet his master. "Nothing's wrong," he said, "at least, not immediately. I just have a question."
"Yes?"
Anakin opened his mouth, then shut it again. Obi-Wan cocked an eyebrow at him. He was hesitating, and that wasn't normal for his impulsive apprentice.
"Never mind," he blurted, "it's not important, really."
"It was important enough for you to chase me down," Obi-Wan countered, clasping his hands, "go on."
"You'll think it's out of place, with all that's going on."
Obi-Wan sighed, smiling a little. He had his suspicions, and it was those suspicions that had led him to think Anakin would be the most…well, "motivated", option when it came to bodyguards for the senator. They worked well with each other and, although it seemed Padmé had her fair share of drastic ideas, her controlled nature was a good counter for Anakin. Hopefully, some of that control would rub off on him.
"I don't think I've ever seen you struggle so much to put your thoughts to words," the Jedi Master noted aloud, "obviously, something is bothering you, and if you don't get it off your chest, how can I trust you to stay focused in your duty to Padmé?"
Anakin was pretty good at suppressing it, but his cheeks flushed visibly. "It won't distract me," he insisted, "I won't let anything happen to her."
Obi-Wan's hands unraveled and he crossed one over his chest, using the other to tug at his beard. "Ah," he breathed, "this is about her, isn't it?"
The padawan laughed incredulously. "Where did you get that from?"
"You're supposed to be honest with me, Anakin, just as I'm honest with you. I've seen the way you look at her. I'm afraid you haven't quite mastered discretion."
Anakin sighed and avoided meeting his master's gaze while he took a moment to think. Obi-Wan indulged him, allowing him time to form his response. Time was indeed of the essence, but he knew what his student was going through. His own experience with the temptations of love harkened back to his own days as a padawan learner, on mission with his master, Qui-Gon Jinn. Even to that day, so many years later, whenever Mandalore was mentioned his thoughts wandered briefly and unbidden to Satine.
"Can I really help it?" Anakin finally asked, "I mean, she's so brave, and smart...and so beautiful. It'd be unnatural of me to feel nothing, wouldn't it?"
Obi-Wan nodded knowingly. "You're only human," he conceded, "I hope you realize you mustn't pursue those feelings any further, however."
"That's what I wanted to ask about," Anakin admitted, "I know romantic relationships are discouraged in the Order, but not why. I know you've explained it to me before, but I didn't think it'd apply to me. My training has always been more important than any of that. But now that she's here again…?"
"Now that she's here again you want to know if there are exceptions to the Order's rules?"
Anakin lowered his head. "No." He looked up again. "Well…I guess I was hoping for one. But I'm determined to become a Jedi Master. That's not going to change. Give me the lesson again, if you have to."
Obi-Wan nodded. "You mustn't misunderstand. Love is a very powerful force for good, but like any other strong emotion it can be manipulated for evil. Those you love can become the Dark Side's greatest weapons against you. Even the weakest among the Sith can sense the feelings you have, and the truly intelligent ones will find a way to exploit them. To manipulate you."
Anakin shrugged. "How can I choose not to love?"
"You can't. Jedi training has never had the end goal of suppressing emotion, but learning to act in spite of it; to discipline it."
Obi-Wan tried to discern if Anakin was actually paying attention this time. Ever since he'd become his master he'd been trying to teach the boy how to control his emotions, as had the other Jedi around him. Perhaps they had chosen the wrong language if Anakin thought a Jedi was meant to act with the cold detachment of the simplest droid. He never intended to make his apprentice think he needed to strive to become inhuman.
"Love is vital to compassion, empathy, and, partially, duty itself," he went on, "without those qualities, how can a Jedi be a true servant of the Republic? Justice without love is unforgiving and cruel, and a Jedi without love for the people he serves has no true motivation to protect the innocent and keep the peace. We need only learn to act with wisdom, and to keep our attachment from controlling our actions, just as we do with our anger, to ward off hatred."
Anakin grimaced. "That isn't easy, either."
"None of it is easy," Obi-Wan agreed, "it takes practice and time. If you find yourself in danger of slipping, take time to meditate on the Order's teachings. Think about what I've told you, and remember that failing to control love is just as dangerous as failing to control fear. You've been pretty good at controlling your fear so far." He paused, pursing his lips. "I hope I've given you what you were looking for."
Anakin nodded slowly. "I think it will be enough."
Obi-Wan reached out to put a firm hand on his shoulder. "Discipline and focus, Anakin," he said, "that's what the senator needs from you now. Don't let your feelings toward her distract you. In fact, make them keep you focused on your duty…and help you control your impulse to act rashly." Anakin huffed part of a chuckle out through his nose.
"I'll do my duty to protect her," Anakin replied sincerely, "for the Republic."
Obi-Wan felt a small swell of hope his apprentice was finally starting to mature. "I have every confidence in that," he assured him, and it was no lie.