Ani's P.O.V.

Since I've arrived at Yavin 4 to be trained by Master Skywalker, I have learned more than I ever have in past years. In the years with my parents we were always running and hiding, they'd teach me what they knew but it became harder to remember as I get older. However, since I've been here training with Ben, I've learned a lot about the leadership and battle strategies of the Jedi and Mandalorian. I've practiced many hours on how to use the force to my advantage and to fight and use a light saber in combat with Ben. Yet, in the past few years, I feel as if Ben and I haven't learned more of anything. It might be because when I practice and train it's only with him and I know all of his moves. I do hope we are growing even if I don't feel like I am; I know I have to have faith in the force. If I wasn't doing what's right, Master Luke or my grandfather would have spoken to me about it already. However, I don't think Ben is thinking the same way as I do, even with most of our time spent together.

The air feels different around Ben when we train now; I don't know how to describe it, but I feel something disturbing in the force surrounding him. It's been months since he's mentioned leaving the Jedi temple, but the sense of something off about Ben since that day. We have mostly trained by ourselves, even with Luke being back with his newest Padawan. Master Skywalker has been so focused on the rest of his students he rarely comes to help us. Not only that, but they have built bigger housing for the newer students. Leia has left since he's been back, and Han still hasn't come to visit us this year yet. I've mentioned my concerns to Luke about Ben and he's acknowledged it, informing me he'll deal with it, but I haven't seen him do anything about it yet. I've grown nervous over the past few months from the loneliness Ben and I have come to know.

Whenever I feel the loneliness, I go to my father's grave and feel his and my grandfather's presence, but I know it's not enough to settle the feeling in my soul. I know it must be dreadful for Ben having to wait around until his parents get back to feel their presence. I've tried to get his mind off his parents being gone and the thought of Luke being distracted with the other students, but I know I only make it worse. I know whenever I try to make him feel better, he only gets worse because he can sense my loneliness of not having a parent figure. He's all I have though, so I have to make this work because we have nowhere else to go and no one to turn to. He promised me he will stay with me. I feel as if it's my responsibility to at least try to distract him from the lack of his parents in his life right now.

Heading to Ben's tent with a plate of fruit, I glance around and watch the younglings chatting with one another around a firepit. All of them have bigger huts and more things for their training than Ben and I ever did at their age. I have talked little to them since Ben and I have different training sessions than them, but they all seem nice. It's late and Ben's probably about to go to bed, if not already, but I wanted to check on him before he is. I lift his hut's tarp and walk inside to find him lying in bed with his eyes wide open. He seems to be in deep thought and doesn't notice I've come in yet. Coughing loudly, I smile his way when I catch his attention. His eyes meet mine and he smiles at me in return but it doesn't reach his eyes. I peek down at the plate of food in my hand before staring back at him shyly and announcing, "I come with sustenance..."

"Thanks, but I'm not hungry."

"Oh, really." I roll my eyes and walk towards his bed with the food, anyway. I scoot his legs over so I have a spot on his bed and he sighs while sitting up in response. I put the food between us and take a piece of the sliced pear I cut up moments ago. Popping it into my mouth I say with a mouth full, "You ate little earlier, please, have some."

"You're lucky I like you..." Ben teases with a smirk before picking up a few grapes. Grinning, I shove his shoulder lightly while swallowing my food before adding to his comment, "... And you're lucky you're my best friend. You'd probably starve without me."

"Oh, I'm sure of it." Ben chuckles as he grabs a few more pieces. I take some oranges and think of his parents, I wanted to ask him if he's heard any news on them but I didn't want to ruin his night by asking. Just as I try to think of something else, Ben sends me a look and I know he senses what I'm thinking about. I sigh and lean over his legs to recline on his bed, we both make expressions at one another until I can't take it anymore and I have to speak up, "Don't do that to me, you know why I want to ask. I miss them too. I don't have anyone else who cares about me..."

"What does that make me?" Ben ask playfully and I roll my eyes in response. His eyes falls to the plate of food and the humor in his gazes slowly dies. "Besides, it won't matter for long..." Ben mumbles while popping a few grapes in his mouth, "I can sense they won't be coming back soon."

"What makes you say that?" I claim confused and fidget with the sheet covering him, "You're their son, Ben. They might not come for me but... They'll come back for you."

"I... I just don't see that happening in the near future, but that's alright..." Ben thinks out loud while studying the food then to me. Smiling in sorrow, he then taps the bottom of my chin and mumbles, "I have you."

"Yeah..." I beam and can't help but look down, blushing. Luke has always expressed not to let our feelings impede decisions and our actions. Somehow our friendship feels as if it doesn't count for that rule. What we have together is an exception, and I know it's wrong to think that way. But by the end of the day, the only physical thing in this world we have is each other, and without Ben and I's friendship, we both would truly be alone. When I glance up from the food, I see Ben staring at me with something in his eyes, smiling as I put a grape in my mouth I demand, "...What?"

"Do you trust me, Anakia?"

I nod curiously.

"Good..." Ben sighs while peeking out the tent's curtain mumbling, "I... I won't ever let anything happen to you. You'll always be safe with me."

"I know." I groan dramatically and fall into my back on top of his legs. "What could possibly happen to me though? This is the safest place I've ever been in my entire life." I chuckle before pointing at him and commenting, "... And falling into the ditch doesn't count as danger. That was our fault to begin with."

He laughs, and it only makes my smile widen, I must have done something right tonight even with the loneliness that hangs around us. After a moment of watching him pick at the fruit on the plate, I get up and stand beside where he's sitting. Putting a hand through his thick hair, I grin whispering, "I'm going to bed now, you should too. I want us to work on our combat more tomorrow..."

"Like it would even help us," Ben mumbles sarcastically as he puts the plate beside his bed, I roll my eyes at his attitude and turn away. Before I'm out of his reach, he grabs my hand and suggests in an easier tone than before, "Why don't we skip training tomorrow, my uncle won't notice... And we can spend the day on the lake. You can wear a dress my mother got you and we'll take a basket of food out there... Like old times."

"Ben..."

I whisper with a smile that grows on my lips. Some of my favorite days were us spending the day on the lake together. I miss going there in the newest dress Leia got me and having Ben pretend he wasn't appreciating it on me. I miss taking whatever food we wanted that day and pigging out on the shore and throwing the foods into the air and cutting them up with the purple saber his dad got us. Things are different now though, we can't just take as much food as we wanted now because of the other Padawans. The dresses don't fit me anymore, and Leia hasn't brought me one in a year now. Knowing I can't give him the answer he wants, I tilt my head and give him the benefit of the doubt.

"One of these days we'll do it, okay? We can't tomorrow, though. Maybe in a week... I'll fix up one of my old dresses to fit and I'll gather up fruits in the forest... Then we'll go. I know you miss it but these things change-"

"-Change in a way where Luke doesn't notice us anymore?" Ben blurts out as he watches me walk to the door, I can tell he's not happy with all these changes. I turn back around when I hear that and he lays back on his bed just as I say with a positive attitude, "Hey... I feel we're getting better, even if Luke's not watching us anymore. We learn from each other." I'm about to leave when I hear him asks in the dark, "Don't you wish we could be better... Stronger, like our grandparents were?"

"I believe we'll get there one day." I sigh, knowing we both haven't felt tremendous growth in our force or combat skills in almost a year. Glancing back at him knowing I can't leave him here like this, I say one last thing to him, "We just have to faith as they did at our age. We'll become great Jedi just as they were, you'll see..."

~A Month later~

"Anakia! Wake up! Now! Anakia!"

Waking up from Ben's loud voice, I sit up in the dark as I feel myself being picked up by someone. I can sense commotion in the distance but still feel the depth of sleep clouding my mind. As my eyes adjust to the dark, I look at who's holding me and find myself against Ben's chest. Rubbing my eyes as he rushes us out of my tent, I yawn out, "What's going on?"

"Nevermind that, we have to go-"

"Go? Go where-" As I pull my hands away from my eyes, I see the Jedi temple and the huts that surround it on fire. The buildings collapse and flames go up high as it burns everything inside. My eyes go wide in horror at the sight, I look down to find younglings laying in the field dead. I push myself off of Ben, but he holds onto me tighter as he walks in the opposite direction of our home. I shove him harshly to get out of his grasp, but his hold on me hurts now from struggling against him. When I realize he won't let me go, I use the force to pull us apart. He lets go of me and we both fall to the ground yards away from each other. Just as I stand up on my feet I see him on his as well, our gazes meet through the distance I just put between us. I look around me in confusion, I feel the loss of lives in my heart as I become completely aware of my surrounding and I cry out to him, "Ben, what's happening! Who did this?"

He doesn't answer me, I see his expression torn between anger and conflict I've never felt in him before. My eyes look at him then terrified, I cover my mouth in horror at the thought of Ben having to do something with this. I move my hand to my side to grab my light saber, only to remember it's still in my hut. I glance at my home and it seems to be the last building standing around the others that are in flames. I look past him to the Jedi temple and let out a wail that I can't hold in anymore. Another home, another life of mine taken from me. I've tried so hard to keep this one, only for it to be gone in minutes. I fall to my knees and stare back at Ben howling, "Where's Luke? Did you do this?"

"Anakia, listen to me..." Ben finally speaks up to me but stops when he looks at something behind me. His face hardens when he stares directly at what's behind me and demands loudly, "You know what the bargain was. She is not to be harmed, she's mine to deal with. We will bring her with us but she is only to be my concern."

I watch him in utter confusion before turning my head to see who he's talking to. I jump up at the sight of six men dressed in black with helmets covering their faces. I back away from them in horror as they slowly get closer to me. I turn back to glance at Ben, only to realize he's also wearing a black uniform similar to theirs. Shaking my head, I look at Ben in disbelief of what I'm seeing; I don't believe what's happening in front of my eyes. I scream out to him in misery, "Why would you do this to our home! How could you? Ben, why? Please-"

Two hands suddenly grip my arms violently and I try to fight them off me. I scream and shove the men away from me, but I'm no match for all six of them surrounding me. One of them shoves me to the ground and when I peer up, Ben is above me, staring down at me. He grabs me by the arm and lifts me up like it's nothing. Just as I stand on my feet again, I turn Ben by the shoulders so he's between me and the other men. I hold on to his arms, all shook up from what has transpired. I study his black attire to his face and let out a whimper in defeat, "Ben, please, where's Luke? We can fix this-"

"There's no going back..." Ben whispers to me as he sets a hand on the back of my neck lightly, "Ani-"

I raise my wrist and with the force, a saber from one of the other Padawans flies into my hand. Before I can activate it Ben waves a hand over my head and I can feel my body go limp in his arms. I can feel him pick me up just as I go into a deep sleep again.

~A few days later~

I feel as if I'll never stop crying. My eyes are sore, my cheeks and nose throbbing pink. They have locked me in a room for days with nothing to do but to rethink what has happened. The only thing in this windowless room is the bed, a toilet, and myself. A stranger will slide one meal a day to me from under a metal flap on the door. I don't have the slightest idea of where I am; I woke up in this metal room after Ben knocked me out with a type of force I've never seen before. I haven't seen Ben since the night he pulled me out of my hut either. I lay curled up in a ball on the bed as I wait for my fate. Every time the thoughts of Ben, his family, and my home come to mind, the tears in my eyes fall uncontrollably all over again.

Everything I've loved in the past seven years gone within the time of one night, all by a boy who promised we'd stay together. Yet, here I am, alone without him, and it's his doing. I hope Luke is looking for me or is even alive, I'm not sure about anything anymore. No one has told me anything about what had transpired the night Ben took me. I can tell that I'm not on Yavin 4 anymore by how the atmosphere feels, but I can't think of a planet Ben would take me to. I seem so lost on everything I believe is real, all I want is to get clarification and somewhere safe. At the moment, I don't know how I'll get either of those things. I hear someone shifting behind the only door in this room and I glance up, thinking it will be my meal for the day. Instead of the metal flap opening up, the door slowly opens instead. Seeing Ben entering the room, I stand up abruptly and run to him as he shuts the door behind him.

"Ben, where have you been?" I let out one of the many questions in my mind. I grab onto his arms and ignore the black attire covering it. The sight of him makes me believe there's a chance of fixing what he has done. I peek up at him as he sets a hand on my waist, I see something off in his expression as he pulls me into a hug. I sigh, feeling as if this hug is an assurance that Ben's going to get me out of this situation. Pulling away from him I look up desperately pleading to him, "Where are we? What are we doing here? Please, take us home-"

"Anakia, our home doesn't exist anymore." He whispers in remorse for my suffering and it only makes my lips go thin when he adds, "You know this..."

"Why? Why are you doing this? Let's... Let's just leave this place whatever this place is... And go somewhere else, anywhere else." I blurt out from the fear of staying in this room any longer, "Ben, I'm frightened."

"Don't be, no one here will harm you." Ben still has a hand on my waist as his other goes to the back of my neck affectionately, "I guarantee you. I made a promise to you, didn't I?"

"That promise included staying at our home..." I shake my head shortly, asking again in dismay from how calm he's acting about all this, "Ben, what are we doing here?"

"I found someone else to train us. He's powerful and can show us more than Luke can." Ben explains vaguely, making me frown. He glances down at my feet before meeting my eyes again and saying in all seriousness, "He is to train me in the upcoming months... I want you to train with me."

"But Luke-"

"Luke is weak and had nothing more to teach us." Ben growls in irritation and I pull away slightly in the confusion of his feelings towards his uncle. He stares at my messy hair and pushes a strand behind my ear as he soothes himself down, "We'll become greater than our grandfathers with the training Snoke has."

"Ben... I- I don't want to be trained by this Snoke you speak of." I mumble and pull away once realizing Ben has not come here to bring me to safety but to include me in what he has started. I back until we're no longer connected and state as if there's still a chance it could happen, "I want to see Luke, I want to talk to him-"

"No! Ani, he's gone. I destroyed everything he built." Ben now shouts and I flinch from hearing his voice for the first time in this tone, "... Anakia, you will join me and train with Snoke. We will become Knights of Ren, the power of the dark side will-"

"No! Stop! I've heard enough!" I shout in horror as my back hits the wall behind me, "I will not join you, I can't. Ben, stop this, please!" My hands feel the cold wall and the thought of Ben wanting to turn to the dark side makes me run back to him sobbing out while holding the clothing on his chest, "You're better than this, you don't need to be a Knight of Ren to become powerful. You already are, Ben. We can fix this. Together, we can leave this place and find-"

"If you will not join me," Ben interrupts me like he's heard enough of what I have to say, "You will stay here until I finish my training."

"What? No-" I panic at the thought of being here alone, "You can't leave me, Ben. You promised-"

"I will return." Ben speaks over me as he grabs my wrists and pulls them away from his chest, "... And when I come back, I hope you've changed your decision."

Tears go down my face as he pushes me away harshly, his expression is now unreadable to me. I fall back a few feet away from him, from his force. He opens the door back up again and my eyes go wide at the thought of him leaving me in this cell to rot. I walk to him but he spins out the door, I then sprint to the door just as he shuts it. I hit the door hard from how fast I was running, grabbing the door handle and feeling it's locked again I cry again. I slam my fists on the door shouting for Ben, "Don't leave me here! Please! You promised me! You made a promise! Ben!"

I holler out his name uncontrollably as I fall to the ground banging on the door. It doesn't take much longer after that until I'm just crying against the door on the floor. I feel as if my heart is breaking inside me; I have no one anymore. Ben is someone I don't know anymore and his family is somewhere in the galaxy probably looking for him but not me. I feel the pain of betrayal in my mind as I'm left alone in this room to wait until who knows when. I hear the tray of food slide through the metal flap, then above me. Grabbing it, I throw it across the room screaming at the top of my lungs. Looking around the room then I grab the bed and throw it into the wall. Using the force, I crush it under pressure. I let it drop when it's unusable and turn back around to slam my fists on the door again. I will not wait until Ben turns completely to the dark side to get out of this room, neither will I join him. I will not give in to temptation, even if he's the last thing in the galaxy that I have left.