Chapter 28 – Endings

Author's Note: I expect this ending was pretty much a given... Lol. There's one chapter left that ties up all the loose ends, but if you want to pretend that the story ends here, you can do that, too. The last chapter is... well, it's very, very different from the kinds of endings which I normally write, but it's the only one that really fit, y'know? I hope y'all like it! I know I do, no matter how bittersweet it may be. ^-^

~ Amina Gila

Dooku sits in the back with Ventress as Skywalker and Kenobi fly one of the shuttles towards where the Dark Side seems to be strongest. They don't know exactly where the nexus is, but it's not difficult to find, not when it screams of everything Dark in the Force. Tano chose to stay behind with Offee, so they could get Plo Koon's injuries treated the best they can with their limited medical supplies.

Ventress is mostly unconscious for the first half of their trip, but she returns to consciousness eventually, pushing herself upright as best she can and tilting her head back to look up at him. "Dooku," she states flatly, and from the way she says it and the clear blueness of her eyes, only a lurking shadow in them, Dooku knows that he is, in fact, talking to his once apprentice.

"Ventress," he returns neutrally, studying her.

"I guess I messed up," she admits grudgingly, scowling down at the floor, fidgeting about as much as she can with the Force-restraints on her wrists. "Sidious is – he's in my head, and he won't leave, now. I thought… that he would, that he wanted to help me… but he lied."

"He lies," Dooku replies quietly. "It's what he does. He's good at manipulation." He tries very hard not to think about how those same tactics were used on him. It doesn't matter anymore anyways. It's in the past. Sidious is dead, and he's not. "You should not feel bad that you feel into his trap. I have yet to know someone who has managed to outwit him." Even himself. He had thought that he was being careful with Ventress, hiding her power level and abilities so that she could help him one day destroy Sidious.

And look how that turned out?

She huffs out a breath and rolls her eyes but doesn't say anything immediately. "If – if you have to kill me to stop him… just do it. I would much rather that he be gone permanently."

"I hope it does not come to that," he admits. "I do not think it will. I – I apologize for what happened, for when I abandoned you and left you for dead. I was following Sidious' orders, but… that does not make it alright. You could have died there."

"I nearly did," she tells him, and there's a tinge of anger in her voice. "I – I nearly did die there. I barely managed to get away in time. I went back to the Nightsisters after that."

He nods, slightly. "I do not begrudge you your anger," he assures her. "I know I deserve it. But I just wanted you to know that I am sorry for what I did, and if you would ever be interested, the Sith Order would welcome you."

Dooku doesn't know if his words mollify her, or if she'll ever consider taking him up on his offer. He doubts it though, and he can't blame her for that. He wouldn't want to join him either if he was her. But he needed her to know, if only because her feelings against him give Sidious fuel. If she wants to help them, then it will be that much easier to cast Sidious out and destroy him utterly.

They reach the nexus, which is, unsurprisingly, located inside a cave. In the center, lies a large, roughly cut stone that almost resembles an altar. Knowing the Sith of old, it probably was an altar, but Dooku doesn't let it concern him, pushing Ventress forwards, so she can climb onto the center where the Dark Side is strongest.

This next part is what's dangerous. They have to keep the Force restraints on her so that Sidious can't simply escape from her body, but it could also kill her. Dooku doesn't know what will happen, because the information which he found wasn't detailed enough to explain all of these things. It's really a matter of trial and error, and in the end, he doesn't even know for certain if the ritual they have will work. It should. He feels like it will, but there's no certainty.

They each stand around the rock, an equal distance between them. Dooku doesn't even need to tell them to delve into the Dark Side. As they tap into it, together, he can see the yellow bleeding into their eyes. He knows his own will look similar. They work in sync, all of them reaching out to one another through the Force and letting their consciousness' link, forming a circle of power between the three of them.

Dooku – and probably Kenobi too – is more than a little taken off guard when he senses the sheer enormity of Skywalker's power. Even on the outside he feels powerful, but here, where his shields are lowered, allowing them to share their power for this ritual, it's something else entirely. It takes a certain kind of will to be able to harness and control such power and knowing what Dooku does about the future they could have averted… he can easily see how the boy could have fallen under Sidious' sway. No person should ever be forced to bear such a burden, and it's not one any of them can take away from Anakin, because the Force is such an integral part of him; it literally makes up half of his body.

Follow my lead, Dooku doesn't need to say. They know already, can sense his intent in the Force, and they follow him, trusting him not to lead them astray, trusting him to guide them and show them what must be done. If Qui-Gon was here… Dooku thinks that he would be very pleased to see them working together in this way.

The ritual is complicated, and it takes all of Dooku's focus to direct their combined power in the correct way, reaching out to Ventress' body and locating Sidious' spirit within her. He fights them, of course, but the whirlwind of raw power is too much for him to stand against, especially when his own powers are bound within a mortal body.

There is a struggle, brief but no less fierce than if it had gone on for an hour. Sidious struggles, pushes back, and then… he shatters, disappears. All resistance vanishes as his spirit is destroyed and crushed entirely under their combined strengths. What Sidious did, keeping his soul alive, is unnatural, something entirely of the Dark Side, and only through the Dark Side can it be destroyed. But that, Dooku supposes, is the danger of the ritual, because it is not impossible that the person using the ritual can be possessed if they're not strong enough.

Everything stills, settling as the ripples in the Force subside, and Dooku opens his eyes, freezing when he sees Ventress. She's – she's dead. She shouldn't be dead, so why is she? Did something in the ritual go wrong, or was this Sidious final attempt at getting revenge? Does it even matter?

Her blue eyes are staring sightlessly up at the rock ceiling over their heads. After a moment of silence, Dooku reaches out to close them, taking the cuffs off her wrists. Her hand flops limply down next to her, and he feels a sharp pang of grief. Yet another apprentice who has died before him. He failed her. He abandoned her, and he never got the chance to make it right. He had hoped that he could, that in time, she could forgive him, but now… that will never happen. It can never happen.

"If – if you have to kill me to stop him… just do it. I would much rather that he be gone permanently."

It makes him wonder if she knew, or sensed at least, that she might die. He tries not to think about it too deeply, trying to balance out the feelings of grief so they don't overwhelm him. Ventress' death is as much his fault as it is Sidious'.

"I'm sorry." Anakin's voice is quiet, sympathetic. "It's not easy to watch your apprentice die in front of you. I – on Mortis," he continues before Dooku can ask how he could possibly know that, "Ahsoka… died there. Technically. The Son killed her, but the Daughter brought her back. I don't think I could ever forget how that felt." When Dooku glances at him finally, Anakin's eyes are fixed on Ventress' body, some unfathomable emotion in his eyes.

And he doesn't know what to say to that, to the confession, but… he can't deny that it helps a little to know that Anakin understands. Maybe, instead of Dooku helping him, they can help each other. After all, isn't that what masters and apprentices do?

**w**

They give Ventress a brief funeral, lowering her body into a lava river and standing there while she burns, before leaving. Anakin knows that Dooku took her lightsabers with him, but he doesn't comment. Nor does Obi-Wan. The mood is somber and subdued as they board the shuttle and contact Ahsoka. She and Barriss are in the other shuttle with an injured Plo. They're en route to Coruscant which is closer to Mustafar than Mandalore is, and Plo needs medical aid sooner rather than later.

While Obi-Wan will need to return to Mandalore, it doesn't have to happen now. They can get Plo tended to first, as well as appraising the rest of the Council as to the most recent developments with respect to Sidious' defeat and destruction.

After the ship makes the jump to hyperspace, Anakin goes to rest in one of the cabins. But when he rests, he dreams. He sees flashes of other times and places, mostly meaningless blurs, but he can still pick out a few voices. And moments.

"I have seen what I become, and I cannot let that happen."

"I have failed you, Anakin."

"You were the Chosen One!"

"I hate you!"

"You cannot run, Obi-Wan."

"What have you become?"

"I am what you made me."

"Now you will suffer, Obi-Wan."

"I am not your failure, Obi-Wan. You didn't kill Anakin Skywalker."

"Goodbye… Darth."

He sees it. Flashes of fire. Of pain. Of betrayal. Of suffering. He sees impressions of two men broken, men who had – and even did, still then – meant the world to one another. And who still do. Because Anakin can't imagine a life without Obi-Wan. He can't imagine any world where his father isn't always at his side. He doesn't want to have a life like that either. Being separated from Obi-Wan for an extended period of time would destroy him slowly but surely. He thinks it would destroy the both of them.

They can't exist outside of each other's orbits.

He wakes up, breathing heavily, tears glistening in his eyes and spilling down his face. It takes him a few minutes to get himself under control again. If he had any questions or doubts about whether or not Sidious was the cause of this, they're gone now. Sidious is gone, completely and utterly. There's nothing left of him which could be triggering this, so then, what is? Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to face this – whatever this is – if he had answers.

He doesn't look up when the door opens; he can feel who it is anyways, and he doesn't know how much he actually wants to talk right now. At least it's not Obi-Wan. He doesn't think he can look at him after what he just saw. Sure, it was only flashes, unlike usual, but that doesn't make it any less disturbing.

"Nightmares again?" Dooku asks, stepping into the cabin and letting the door close behind him.

Anakin nods mutely. "It was… different, this time," he tells him slowly. "Vaguer. More… distorted. The images, I mean. I –" He cuts off, shaking his head and sighing. "I don't know why it keeps happening."

"What did you see?" Dooku prompts when he doesn't say anything more.

"Me – Vader, rather – and Obi-Wan," he answers, forcing his voice to remain steady. "Hurting each other." Fire. Lava. Burning. Pain. Screaming. He doesn't say that though. He doesn't think he even can.

"May I sit?"

The question is surprising, for some reason, and he meets Dooku's eyes, nodding, watching as the Count sits on the bed, not exactly right next to him, but not not next to him either. For a moment, he doesn't say anything. "I have a theory," he says at last, hands clasped together. "I don't know what all transpired on Mortis, but I am currently theorizing that you were shown something of the future. Your mind was later wiped, but the memories still remain, albeit buried. When Sidious tried to invade your mind, that shook the barrier loose. I – If I am right, I don't know what we can do to rectify that, if anything."

"You mean this might just keep on happening?" He tries to keep the misery from his voice, but he doesn't think he fully succeeds, especially not when Dooku shifts closer, brushing their shoulders together in a quiet gesture of comfort and support.

"I don't know. It's possible."

"Not necessarily," answers another voice, and Anakin – and Dooku, too, though to a lesser extent – jumps as Qui-Gon's Force ghost materializes in front of them. They haven't seen him in a while, and Anakin had… well, forgotten is the wrong word, because he knows that the dead Jedi is still around, but that's the idea. "Dooku is right," Qui-Gon continues without preamble, not even bothering to say hello. "The Son showed you something that you should never have seen. Sidious tampering with your mind has shaken lose the block that the Father put in place."

"Is there anything we can do?" Anakin asks, a part of him desperately hoping to get an affirmative. Because why else would Qui-Gon have shown up, now, so suddenly, if not to offer some aid or advice?

"There is something you can do," the Force ghost replies. "If you want to tear down the blockage, you can, and you'll remember everything that you saw about the once-future. If you want to repair it, so that you will never remember or see any of those things, you can do that, too. The choice is yours."

"I'll still know what I've remembered already though, won't I?" He thinks he already knows the answer, but he has to ask anyways. If there's even a chance that he won't have to remember… what he just saw, he'll take it.

"Yes," Qui-Gon confirms after a brief hesitation, "But the memories may not have nearly as much clarity as they do now."

"I don't want to remember," Anakin says firmly, as much to the Force ghost as to Dooku. He turns to the Count, looking to see his reaction.

"It's your choice," Dooku reaffirms. "I can't, and won't, tell you what to do."

"Okay," Anakin whispers, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. He reaches out with the Force, delving inwards, into his mind. He doesn't exactly know what he's looking for, but he'll know when he finds it. Besides, the Force is guiding him.

It doesn't take him long, or at least he doesn't think it does, before he touches something in the back of his mind. It feels almost like a wall, and when he cautiously presses up against it, he can feel it vibrating with feelings, with memories. And he can feel – and sense – the gap in it where it's cracked open. It would be so easy for him to tear it down, so he remembers everything. But he doesn't. If what he's already seen is only a time fraction of the horrors that are in there, he doesn't want to remember. Preferably ever.

So, he touches the crack, infusing it with his will and commanding it to seal. It does, even if slowly, and when it's closed, he pulls back to himself, opening his eyes again, and blinking against the brightness of the cabin. Qui-Gon's Force ghost is gone, but Dooku is still sitting there next to him, waiting.

"I did it," Anakin informs him. He reaches for the memories that bled through, that he saw, and he finds that Qui-Gon is right. They're not nearly as overwhelming or vivid as they were before.

"How do you feel now?" Dooku sounds almost curious.

Anakin thinks about it. "Better," he answers honestly, with a smile. "Thank you."

Dooku returns the smile with one of his own. "I'm glad. Perhaps you would like to meditate with me while we continue our journey? We still have some time before we reach our destination."

"Yes. Yes, that sounds perfect."

**w**

Ahsoka heard what happened, of course, from Anakin, right before they left the Mustafar system. He told her about Sidious, about Ventress. And maybe she should feel somewhat bad that the ex-assassin is dead, but instead, all she feels is relief. She's too relieved that Sidious is permanently gone to be too terribly bothered by Ventress' death.

The first several hours of hyperspace travel are quiet, with Barriss tending to Plo and making sure that he's alright. It's Ahsoka, unsurprisingly, who breaks the silence. "What will you do now?" she questions curiously, because they haven't talked about this yet, and it'll be important. Barriss could easily face some sort of prosecution. Undoubtedly, she will, in fact, given her actions at the Senate which led to Dooku's injuries. And a few people were killed there.

"I committed a crime." Barriss' voice is soft but steady. "I know that what I did was wrong. I knew it even then, but I let my feelings cloud my judgement. You know I'll be arrested upon my return to the Republic."

"Yes," Ahsoka concedes reluctantly, because she does know that, even if she doesn't want to think about it. All things considered, the incident itself was relatively minor, though it did nearly result in the collapse of the peace talks. It could have been worse.

"I'll face justice," Barriss answers, shrugging slightly. "I'll probably go to prison for a while. When I come out…" She trails off, something conflicted in her expression. "Do you – do you think that… the Sith could teach me? I've embraced the Dark Side. I don't know how to go back or even forwards from here."

Ahsoka reaches out to lay a reassuring hand on Barriss' shoulder before she can think better of it. "Of course," she promises. "I think you'll find that none of us Sith hold grudges against you. We know what it's like to struggle with the Dark Side. We know what it's like to make mistakes. All of us would be more than willing to help you."

Barriss nods, a little tentatively, looking away, and remaining silent. Ahsoka can feel her shame in the Force, and she doesn't know how to help her with that. It's probably something Barriss will have to face on her own. All Ahsoka can do is be willing to support, guide, and help her when she asks for it.

**w**

"What's it like to be the Nubian Senator?" Rex asks curiously. Both Sabe and Vice-Chancellor Amidala came to Mandalore after they finished up on Tatooine. Apparently, the Duchess is friends with the now-Vice-Chancellor, and she had wanted to check on her, given all of the recent developments and changes on Mandalore. Sabe ran into him while he was patrolling through the halls of the palace, keeping a tight check on security. For some reason, he gets the feeling she was looking for him.

"Different," she replies with a laugh. "It's strange to not be doing this in Padme's shadow. It's a lot of work, too. I don't know how she ever managed it."

"But you're staying?"

"Oh yes, I'm staying," she confirms. "I have nothing left to do on Tatooine, and I'm sure Padme will need moral support in the Senate over the coming months. Being a Senator was hard for her, but being the vice-Chancellor?" She shakes her head with a mixture of disbelief and fondness. "I don't know how she manages to cope with it."

"She is quite the politician… and woman," Rex notes. He won't even try to deny that he admires Vice-Chancellor Amidala, her courage, her steadfastness, her idealism, her determination to do what's right regardless of the obstacles in her path. She and his General make quite a team.

"She is," Sabe murmurs, "But that's not why I'm here."

He feels his heart beat harder, but he doesn't let it show. "It's not?"

Her answering smile is both mischievous and amused. "I had thought – hoped – that we were friends, at the very least, and maybe with the potential for more."

Rex knows what she's saying even without her spelling it out clearly. It's obvious. It's implied in her tone, in the way it changes, in the way her expression shifts minutely, in the way she shifts towards him.

"What do you say, Commander?"

He meets her dark brown eyes with his own and offers her a small, sincere smile. "I would like that very much, Senator."

**w**

"What did you see?" Obi-Wan queries after Anakin finishes relating to him the reason behind his recurrent nightmares. He knows that his former Padawan saw something on the ship. He felt it, and Dooku felt it, too. The Count had checked on him, and they had spent a while in there, together, meditating.

Anakin lets out a breath, something almost haunted flashing across his face. "I… It isn't very clear anymore," he admits, "But I saw flashes of… things. Lava. Fire. Screaming." His voice drops, and he stares fixedly at the floor, seeming content to refrain from looking at Obi-Wan. They're sitting on the couch in their apartment at the Temple.

"Us," he adds after a few seconds of silence. "It was… bad."

Obi-Wan can feel as much, and a tiny, selfish part of his mind is very grateful that he didn't, and won't, have to witness whatever it was that Anakin saw that has left him so shaken. He doesn't want to think about any reality where they fight or try to kill each other. It's wrong. He reaches out, tugging Anakin against him and wrapping his arms around him, pressing a kiss to his temple. "We're okay," he promises him firmly. "We're okay, and that will never change."

"I know," Anakin murmurs, twisting around to bury his face into Obi-Wan's shoulder, winding his arms around him, in turn, and clinging to him.

They sit like that for a while, Anakin seeming content to simply bask in the contact, like Obi-Wan had expected he would. And truthfully, it makes him happy, too. He's never been inordinately prone to physical contact and displays of affection like Anakin is, but maybe that was simply the Jedi in him talking. Because he cannot, for the life of him, imagine any other place where he'd rather be than here, snuggling with Anakin.

"I love you, dear one," he finally says at last, smiling at the wave of affection and adoration he feels from Anakin before nudging the younger man to lay down next to him. Anakin complies, body relaxing on the cushions as he drops his head on Obi-Wan's lap and just lounges there, looking for all the world like a way overgrown tooka – not that Obi-Wan would ever tell him so.

Instead, he starts running his fingers through Anakin's hair with one hand, while he calls his datapad back to his other hand with the Force and begins scrolling through the information he had been researching.

"Have you given any thought to what we'll do next?" he wonders while Anakin makes sleepy sounds of contentment, and curls himself against Obi-Wan as much as is physically possible, his right arm draped across Obi-Wan's legs at an awkward angle that cannot possibly be comfortable, although it must be, somewhat at least, for Anakin.

"Mm. No, not really," Anakin replies tilting his head and opening one eye to look up at Obi-Wan for a moment. "Why?"

"I have," he answers, "In passing, anyways. And I thought… what if we go to Zygerria next? It'll take time, and we'll have to plan accordingly, but I know it was hard for you to go there and leave so many slaves behind."

"I would like that very much, Master," Anakin tells him softly, gratitude in his voice.

"And," Obi-Wan adds, feeling more certain of their path forwards than ever before, "I think I'll go to Korriban in the not-too-distant future to take my Sith trials. It's probably about time, don't you think?"

He feels more than sees Anakin smiling. "Yes. Absolutely, Darth Fide."

"You look like a sleepy tooka," Obi-Wan blurts out before he can stop himself, laughing at the horrified, scandalized look Anakin instantly gives him.

"I do not!"

"Mm. You absolutely do." He chuckles, pushing Anakin's head back down gently, and carding his fingers through his son's hair again. "I know you've been stressed. I won't be going anywhere. Get some rest, little one."

"'M not little!"

"You'll always be little for me."

Anakin huffs, but he sounds more amused than annoyed, and he only burrows even closer, radiating a peaceful, adoring contentment through their bond. "Well, I love you too, Dad," he mumbles, sounding incredibly smug.

And Obi-Wan thinks it is very, very unfair that the use of that one single word from Anakin can make him feel so fond and giddy all at once. Anakin is the other half of his heart and soul. He's the center of his entire world. His child, his brother, his best friend all wrapped up in one. Nothing, nothing will ever change that.

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