[Yet another delayed chapter... I've been busy and uninspired. Yeah, sad isn't it? Oh well, here's another one of those overly emotional dramatic chapters. In responce to a question on the lovely review page, Obi and Ami are the same age as they are in Phantom Menace since this does take place during and immediately after. Not a good answer, but... I tried. ^^;; Please keep reviewing! All those nice comments are what keeps me working on this. ^_^]



Silence surrounded Obi-Wan as he stared out into the vastness of space. Time had passed, but he didn't know how much. He wasn't really paying attention to anything except his haunting memories. Nothing else really mattered to him. The gracious queen had been kind enough to give him a proper escort to the jedi council. He wasn't in good frame of mind to be piloting a ship of his own. He would just end up getting himself killed. But, perhaps that's what he wanted. In order to keep the young queen from attending the meeting with him, he had to agree to accept her escort. There were times when he both admired and loathed that young queen, but of course the loathing wasn't serious. His true, burning hatred dwelled against only one individual.

He remembered the many times when he would be standing in a starship next to his master. It was usually at such times when that trademark elusively bad feeling would come over the young Obi-Wan. His master would often laugh, then realize that perhaps something was truly out of place. With lightsabres drawn, they would carefully search out the source of the problem. It was usually a quickly resolved matter of attacking the enemy and piloting the ship to its proper destination. Oh, how he missed those times.

Their first meeting had been aboard a starship. He was quite young at the time he was brought before the jedi council. They tested him and found him to be strong in the Force and a very fast learner. They claimed they knew of the perfect jedi knight to train such a boy, however, he was about to leave for a diplomatic mission. They immediately began the necessary contacting measures and told the young boy which ship to get aboard and to ask for a man named Qui-Gon Jinn. The copper-haired lad nodded and followed his given instructions. He stepped aboard the grand ship and in his yet-to- be tamed accent he asked for his new master. A long-haired man with a kind smile came forth and properly introduced himself. He seemed pleased with his new padawan, yet something danced in his eyes that the young boy didn't understand. Still, with complete admiration for the jedi knight, the boy smiled revealing the empty space where his two front teeth should've been. Qui-Gon gave a little chuckle at the sight of the boy. The boy wasn't quite sure what was so funny, but he was content in the fact that his master seemed happy. He listened attentively to his master and believed every word he said - a character flaw he never managed to let go of.

"Sir, we've landed." the pilot said, awakening Obi-Wan from his memories.

"Thank you. Please tell the queen I can't thank her enough for her kindness and that I will be returning to Naboo as soon as I can." Obi-Wan stated through his soft accent.

"I will tell her, sir." the pilot replied.

With a quick bow, Obi-Wan exited the ship and silently pondered about the upcoming meeting with the council. He had a plan in mind. If Qui-Gon had deceived him and had convinced Amidala to nearly deceive him, how would he know if the council was against him or not? "If I know Qui-Gon is alive, surely they will know. However, if the queen hadn't confessed, I would still believe him to be dead. I would report to the council and tell them of Qui-Gon's tragic death. And what would they say to me? Would they tell me he was alive or would they offer their sympathy and keep their thoughts to themselves? If I came before them with my sorrow scars, would they tell me and take away the agony of mourning or would they lie to me and keep me lost in grief? We shall see... we shall see." he thought with a slight smirk. Perhaps it was the dark side that inspired him to question, or perhaps it was the simple betrayal of a father to a son.

He walked into the meeting chambers with heavy footsteps and forced tears. With a sigh, he took his place in the center of the room and bowed before his elders. They all exchanged a quiet gasp at the sight before them. A jedi with emotions? How strange indeed.

"Masters, I come before you in the midst of a grave tragedy. I am truly sorry my master was unable to attend this meeting, but I do hope you will all allow his soul to rest in peace." Obi-Wan said softly as he forced a few more tears to fall from his no-longer-innocent gray-blue eyes.

"What has happened?" Mace Windu inquired.

"Master and I were fighting against the Sith lord. We were seperated by the security curtains near the generator. Oh Masters, if only I'd been just a little faster. Qui-Gon fought against the Sith alone while I was trapped behind the curtain. He fought bravely, Masters, and I suppose for a jedi he died honorably. The Sith's lightsabre pierced straight through his midsection. I avenged his death. I fought against the Sith with everything I had. I was able to cut him into and watch him fall into the abyss. I rushed to my fallen Master's side. He instructed me not to train the boy. He said I would become a great jedi knight, but not to train the boy. He then asked that I leave him, for the Force would be taking him soon. I followed his final instruction, and I left." he stated.

A thought was exchanged between each member of the council. The thought was so clear that perhaps even young Anakin could've picked up on it as it passed itself from mind-to-mind. Qui-Gon isn't dead. However, they intended to keep this fact to themselves since they truly didn't know where Qui-Gon was and what he was planning.

"We are terribly sorry for your loss, young Obi-Wan. We will miss him terribly." Mace said gently. He studied Obi-Wan carefully. Although he had a look of madness, there was certainly a method to it. Darkness seemed to have caught Obi-Wan in its dangerous web of deception.

"You'll miss him terribly?" Obi-Wan asked.

The council members nodded with sympathic expressions upon their faces.

"Yet you know he is alive. You lie just as Qui-Gon did." Obi-Wan stated coldly, "Qui-Gon faked his death in order to take Anakin to his mother so he could be trained without fear present."

"We shall send someone to retrieve him then." Mace said.

"Send me." Obi-Wan replied.

"Darkness in you there is. Send you we will not." Yoda said in his usual tone of varying pitches and noices.

"Qui-Gon was my master. He betrayed me. Whatever darkness dwells within in me, he put it there. I should be the one to confront him. It's my battle, no one elses." Obi-Wan stated.

"Now, Obi-Wan, it doesn't have to be like this. We will have him brought before us, and you will have the opportunity to confront him then. It's too dangerous to send you in your current state of mind. The dark side already has a hold on you; we can't allow you to slip any further." Mace said.

"No, I won't allow that." Obi-Wan said, his tone no longer soft and proper, but instead, cold and bitter. "I don't want to see him brought before you like a prisoner before a jury. I don't want to confront him as though this were a trial. I want to face him as he faced me. He looked in my eyes and lied to me. I want to be able to look straight into his eyes when I tell him the truth. He watched pure horror and grief dance in my eyes, and I wish to see the same in his. If that's the will of the dark side talking, then so be it."

"Send someone else we shall." Yoda stated firmly.

"No, Masters, I will go. Don't try to stop me." Obi-Wan said, allowing the dark side to take over a little bit more. He gave a nearly mocking bow and exited the council chambers in search of a ship.

"Should we stop him?" Mace inquired.

"No. Chose his destiny we can not. Allow him to go.... we shall." Yoda said, in a troubled tone.

Obi-Wan quickly wiped away the false tears. A confrontation was about to occur, and somehow that fact made him smile. Darkness was all around him, and for once he welcomed it. If a father could betray a son, just how bad could the deception of the dark side be?