Chapter 26 – Knighting

DISCLAIMER: We do not own Star Wars, even if we wish we did. xD

Author's Note: In which Ahsoka calls out the Council, gets Knighted, and talks to Obi-Wan about the present and future. :P

We're releasing this chapter early, because we might not have enough time on Monday. Enjoy! :)

~ Amina Gila

The sound of the apartment door closing jars me awake. I slowly open my eyes, confused for a moment as to why I'm not sleeping on a spaceship with Luke or Leia nearby. Right. I'm home. Instead, I'm lying in an awkward position on the couch in the living room, with Anakin standing just inside the apartment door. How did he get out without waking me up? Was I really that exhausted last night? I guess it wouldn't be too surprising.

"So, you're finally awake, Snips?" he questions teasingly.

"It's not that late," I retort, glancing at the window to see the angle of the sunlight streaming in. Okay, maybe it is. It's probably like midmorning by now.

"Well, there's a Council meeting to attend within the hour, so you need to hurry," he replies, "Oh, yes, and I thought you may want these?" He holds up my two lightsabers.

I swing my legs off the couch and stand up slightly unsteadily before walking over to him and taking the blades from him. I do my best to ignore how odd it feels to suddenly have a much smaller body. I'd kept growing in the future, but I'm still the same as I was now that I came back here. I'm not certain why the lightsaber wound Vader gave me time traveled, while the damage I endured from the lightning assault did not. Perhaps it was the Force's way of conveying that yes, I did time travel, and no, I'm not crazy.

I ignite them, watching as the green blades hiss to life. The very sight brings so many memories. They remind me of those days I still considered myself a Jedi. Not anymore, but they're still mine. They're a symbol of my promise now. To stay and help my brother. I deactivate the blades, clipping them to my belt. "Thank you, master," I state softly.

"You're welcome, Ahsoka."

Before long, I find myself standing in front of the Jedi Council. The same members who were on Coruscant yesterday are present. They are sitting in their usual places in a semicircle.

"Disturbing visions you have had, Obi-Wan has told us," Yoda begins.

I nod mutely as I glance between the Council members. Master Plo might have hurt me badly, but right now, I'm just grateful to see him alive. They've been dead for way too long. The six months I spent in the future have certainly decreased my resentment towards them, even though it's not all gone. If the chance arises, I may just give them a word or two about what they did to me. Situations like that – not even using the Force, just blinding following the Senate or their own arrogance – is what led to their downfall, and they need to hear it, whether they'll like it or not.

"Are you certain it was time-travel?" inquires Windu. He doesn't believe a word. What happened to those speeches about me acting like a Jedi Knight I heard just yesterday their time, again? Yes, this is why I neither trust nor like the Jedi Council. And that will never change.

"I have proof," I retort, raising my now-healed arm, but the scar is still visible, "You all know I didn't have this yesterday, and I wouldn't have done it to myself. There's no way this could have appeared from only a vision." No one can argue that. Maybe it is actually a good thing Vader cut my arm in the fight, or I wouldn't have any real proof. Silence settles over the room for a long moment.

"What did you see?" inquires Plo gently.

"The Sith created an Empire out of the Republic and destroyed the Jedi. Only a few were still alive twenty years later. The Sith have a lot of influence over the Senate. No one beyond everyone right here can know about this. No other Jedi, and certainly no non-Jedi."

"Not even the Chancellor?" asks Anakin. I can hear a hint of surprise in his tone.

Rage burns through me at the very mention of his name. Just how much influence has he had on my master without anyone realizing it? It explains why Palpatine always made me wait outside his office, unlike most people would do. I'd wondered for years, and now I finally know. "Not one living being beyond the Jedi Council can know," I retort, my voice raising slightly. I only hope no one sensed the sudden surge of anger, but from Anakin's confused expression, I'm pretty sure he did.

"Within the room, this knowledge shall remain," Yoda promises. I let out a sigh of relief. There's no way Sidious can find out I know the truth.

"Is there anything more you can tell us?" questions Mundi.

I glance at Anakin, then shake my head. I know far more, but it's nothing I can say. No details. I can probably tell Obi-Wan, but that's all.

"Just one possible future of many, this is," Yoda reminds me.

"I know," I answer stiffly, "But had I not had the vision, it would have gone like that." This isn't worth arguing over. I know it would have happened, and unless I can do something to stop it, my staying in the Order may not be quite enough. I shudder at the thought.

"Reached a decision, have you, on rejoining the Order?" inquires Yoda, changing the topic. Right. That. I won't deny the surge of resentment that rises inside of me as I think about everything that happened. Whether it's been half a year or not, I haven't forgiven them for what happened, and maybe I never will, but Anakin and my mission come first.

I nod. "I have decided to rejoin. But I should make a few things clear first. I'm not doing this for you, I'm just doing it for Anakin. You're all supposed to be Jedi Masters yet you're too blinded by your own arrogance and taking orders from the Senate to pay attention to what the Force actually wants you to do. Before you threw me out of the Order, did you even look at the evidence? Did you even feel in the Force to see if I was telling the truth? Incidents like this are what caused the Jedi Order to be destroyed in my vision, and it will happen again unless you learn from this mistake."

"A mistake, we have made," Yoda says finally, breaking the long, stunned silence that settled over the Council chambers at my not-outburst. "Consider what you have told us, we will."

"You have already passed your trial for knighthood," Windu informs me. I nod again. I figured as much. "Your knighting ceremony will be today. Come to the hallway of Knighting in an hour."

**w**

Honestly, I can hardly believe this time has finally come. I've waited for this day for so long, even if I'm not as excited as I would have been if not for what happened half a year ago. The doors to the Hall of Knighthood slide open in front of me, revealing complete darkness within. As they slide shut once I step through, I use the Force to guide me to the right spot in the center of the room.

The sound of lightsabers activating fills the room, as two green, three blue, and one purple lightsaber spring to life in a circle around me. That's when I notice Anakin is in the spot Yoda normally is. I won't question it. Since the war started, masters usually knight their padawans, due to a lack of masters being at the Temple during knightings. I certainly have no complaints.

Anakin begins the knighting ceremony, reciting the traditional words. "We are all Jedi. The Force speaks through us. Through our actions, the Force proclaims itself and what is real. Today we are here to acknowledge what the Force has proclaimed." I honestly find it weird to hear him saying that, but really, I'm glad in some ways that Anakin is knighting me instead of Yoda. Yoda is the leader of the Jedi Order, and it's not the Order I'm staying for. I'm not a Jedi anymore. I am here for my master, no one else.

"Ahsoka Tano," Anakin states, signaling me to step forwards. I kneel in front of him, and the other masters lower their lightsabers towards the floor.

"By the right of the Council, by the will of the Force, I dub thee Jedi Knight of the Order," Anakin states, holding his lightsaber over my left shoulder, then moving it to my right.

With the ceremony finished, I rise to my feet and pick up my padawan braid. "Thank you, master," I say finally, holding it out to him. I can hardly believe that after so long I'm a knight. It feels strange to be back with all the rest of the Jedi, but I really miss just being here with everyone.

When I look up, he's smiling softly. "Any time, Ahsoka."

**w**

"So, what is it?" Obi-Wan inquires as I sit across from him on the couch at his apartment.

"I figured there was some things we needed to talk about," I answer evenly. I suddenly feel slightly awkward to be around him again after so long. I've long since gotten used to not spending much time around him, and it's only gotten worse after... after he broke Anakin's trust. I need to tell him more about what I saw, since I need his help and I know I can't bear the burden alone, but how am I supposed to tell him Anakin turned to the Dark Side?

Finally, I settle on a totally different aspect, something I never got the chance to talk to future him about. Still, I better at least get this straightened out with him. "When everything happened... why was the Council so quick to throw me out? You all knew I'd never been anything but loyal." I might as well have said 'why did you abandon me also?' The question is definitely implied. Half a year ago, I probably would have started pacing around myself, but six months in the future of learning to control myself have changed me a lot.

"When the Council was discussing the situation, Tarkin contacted us. He demanded you be turned over to the Senate."

I shake my head in almost disbelief. I'd always expected it was something like that, but I didn't realize that's exactly how it all happened. He knows who Sidious is. He's known all along, and they were trying to get me out of the picture, trying to break Anakin's trust in the Jedi and the Council even farther. The worst part is that I know if not for my time-travelling, everything would have gone exactly as he planned, minus the part about Luke saving Vader.

"So, the Council didn't even so much as think about the evidence before they threw me out?" After so long, I should have gotten over it all, but I can't help the pain and betrayal burning through me. It's something I'll probably never get over. Not completely. "I know you weren't in full agreement. Who supported me?"

There's a momentary pause this time. "Only me. I should have fought harder."

I look away. No one else even questioned it. Given how Obi-Wan was acting, I knew he was upset about it, but he didn't say a single thing during the trial. He didn't even try to defend me, to ask why all this was happening. I finally stand up, pacing around the room much like Anakin was back then. "You knew me the best of all of them. Why didn't you trust me? Why didn't you trust Anakin?"

"Ahsoka, you know the Council isn't always right. They were just doing what they thought was best. If the Senate lost trust in us –"

"I didn't call you here to defend the Council," I interrupt, spinning around. "This is about you. I... I found some things in the future. I need your help, but I can't ask for it unless I know you trust me."

"Of course, I trust you." He seems almost insulted. Good.

My anger deflates a little and I walk over to the couch and sit back down. "I saw some things in the future, things I can't let anyone know. Just us."

"What?" he presses.

"I... the identity of the Sith apprentice," I explain finally, shifting uncomfortably and focusing my eyes on the carpet, anywhere but at him. This is going to break him. "I know who he is."

"I assume you're intending to tell me," he states.

"It was..." I take a deep breath. How am I supposed to voice this out loud? He will never see what Vader did, unlike me, but he raised Anakin. They've known each other so much longer. "It was... Anakin."

For a moment he looks completely stunned and more than a little horrified. "What happened? Do you know?" he inquires finally, sounding strained.

I look up at him for the first time. "Everyone failed him, Obi-Wan. After what happened... if not for my vision, I would have left the Order and him." I pause for a moment, considering my next words before continuing. "And you know after the undercover mission... things between both of you have never been the same. He needs to trust you. You should talk to him."

"I will, Ahsoka," he assures me, still looking visibly shaken.

"Of course, the Council and the Jedi as a whole aren't helping at all either. Those incidents... and many others pushed him closer to the Dark Side." I wince as I say it out loud, "And made him trust everyone even less. And of course, there's the whole attachment thing... I love Anakin, as do you, and despite what the Jedi think, there's nothing wrong with that. There's a major difference between love and attachment that they don't get at all, and it's making everything worse."

"In what was going to happen, when it came down to it, the only one he really trusted anymore was Padme. For some reason that I never figured out, he was afraid of her dying, and Sidious offered to help him, which was why he ended up turning to the Dark Side." A dark scowl appears on my face. "It doesn't help that Sidious has been and still is continually influencing Anakin."

"How long do we have to change things?" he asks after a long moment of silence, a concerned expression on his face.

I grimace. "Less than a year."

It's then that the feeling of Anakin's approaching Force signature suddenly hits me. We're out of time to continue our discussion for now. The apartment door swings open and he steps into the room.

"What are you two discussing? And why the long faces?" he asks with a grin.

"Perhaps we were just mourning your absence because we couldn't start eating," I quip.

"Sure, Snips, then why isn't the table set yet?"