Chapter 26 An Unbreakable Bond

Padme's parents were waiting for her in the front room, "Mother and I are going to go now, dear." Ruwee said.

"Oh, yes; everything seems to be under control now, Dad; thanks for staying." Padme replied.

"If you need anything, Padme; anything at all, please call us." Jobal told her.

"I will, Mom." Padme assured her.

She hugged them both and watched as they walked out to their speeder. When she turned around, Boba was watching from the hallway entrance, "What?" Padme asked.

Boba shook his head, rather sadly, Padme thought, "Nothing." He said and turned back toward the kitchen.

She walked back down the hallway to where Zak was, sitting once again, in front of the door, "I'm sorry, Zak." She began.

"It's alright, Lady Padme; I understand." Zak replied.

"I didn't trust you and I should have; I'm sorry." Padme went on.

"I know; and it's alright, really." Zak answered.

"No, it's not alright; things could have gone very wrong. The next time you tell me to do something, I'll listen, I promise." Padme said.

"Alright." Zak replied.

"Alright; I'm going back to the kitchen. Call me if you need anything." Padme said.

"I will." Zak answered.

"Right." Padme said, nodded and walked back down the hall.

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"How are you feeling?" Anakin asked when the door had slid closed completely.

Obi-Wan struggled to sit up; Anakin put his hand behind his back to help.

"Tired, strung out and foolish." Obi-Wan answered.

"Foolish? Why?" Anakin asked as he reached for the pitcher Padme had left on the floor. "Blast, there's no glass."

"I thought I was stronger than this." Obi-Wan replied. "That's alright, I'm not thirsty."

"Stronger than what? You had to watch yourself try to kill me, Obi-Wan." Anakin said. "And you haven't had anything since yesterday; you need to drink something."

"I should have been able to control my emotions better than that." Obi-Wan answered. "And really, Anakin; I don't want anything."

"I don't care what you want…Zak?" Anakin called out.

The door slid open and Zak stood in the doorway, "Run back down to the kitchen and ask Lady Padme for a glass." Anakin said.

"Yes, Master." Zak replied.

"That won't be necessary, Zak." Obi-Wan countered.

"I think it is." Zak answered and closed the door.

"Oh great; he's becoming as defiant as you were." Obi-Wan said.

"He only wants what's best for you, my brother." Anakin explained. "And in this case, he and I are right."

Obi-Wan sighed, as usual; knowing this was an argument he could not win.

"Now, where was I? Oh yes; you're not a droid, you have feelings; and what you had to see…I'm sorry." Anakin continued.

"Don't be sorry, Anakin; this needed to be done. I just should have been able to handle it better." Obi-Wan told him. "I thought I could."

"Well, you did; at least you handled what I would have done. It was what you would have done; what Vader would have forced you to do that you had trouble dealing with." Anakin answered.

"I should have been smart enough to see the difference between you and this Vader." Obi-Wan said.

"I gave you too much at once, Obi-Wan; I didn't intend to unleash all those old thoughts and memories on you." Anakin replied apologetically.

"That was a bit of a shock; so it wasn't intentional, then?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Absolutely not; the deal was the nightmare, not those stupid feelings I had when I was younger." Anakin replied. "The last thing I wanted to do was saddle you with the idea that you weren't a good mentor and friend."

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When Zak walked into the kitchen, Padme was rinsing breakfast dishes and Boba was placing them in the washer.

"Master Anakin said I he wants a glass." He said.

"Oh, of course." Padme answered and reached up into the cupboard, pulled one off the shelf and handed back to him.

"Thank you." Zak said and turned to leave.

"Zak, I'm sorry I pushed you." Boba said.

"It's alright." Zak answered and walked out.

"He's mad at me, isn't he." Boba said to Padme after Zak had gone.

"No, not mad, disappointed, I think; with both of us." Padme replied. "He was supposed to keep everyone out and we caused him to fail by barging in."

"Oh." Boba said quietly; and privately wondered why he suddenly cared what this Jedi boy thought. Because he's your friend, Boba, he reminded himself.

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"I guess I was supposed to see all of that too. Sometimes, Anakin, the Force knows what's best." Obi-Wan said.

"Maybe; I just wish you'd been more prepared." Anakin replied just as Zak knocked and opened the door.

"I'm sorry, Master; but I really think Master Anakin was right this time." Zak said, handing him the glass.

"I know, Padawan." Obi-Wan answered. "Now go out for a little while longer."

"Yes, Master." Zak replied and left.

"So what happens now?" Anakin asked.

"I don't know; should something happen?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I don't know either; but it seems that something should after all that." Anakin answered.

"Well, do you feel any differently?" Obi-Wan asked.

Anakin paused and thought for a long time about that before answering. Obi-Wan waited patiently, pouring a glass of water and drinking it to give Anakin as much time as he needed to work through it.

"Yes," Anakin finally replied, "I feel…clean."

"That makes sense. There are no secrets between us; you have shared everything." Obi-Wan said, nodding.

"I know and I think it makes us…" Anakin concurred.

"Stronger, yes, I feel that too." Obi-Wan finished.

"Palpatine was right about one thing." Anakin said.

"What was that?" Obi-Wan asked.

Anakin smiled broadly. "I have become the most powerful Jedi; but he was wrong too." He answered.

Obi-Wan looked at him curiously.

"He didn't know I'd have to have your help to do it." Anakin finished and then became very serious. "I would have fallen without you; you know that, don't you?"

"Do you really think so?" Obi-Wan asked.

"I know so; look what happened to me every time you weren't there. If you hadn't been there at all…I… Palpatine would have had me a long time ago…and…everything would have been lost." Anakin said, choking on the last few words.

"I gave you everything I could, Anakin; and it was enough in the end." Obi-Wan told him.

"What you gave me…I…you gave me everything you had, Obi-Wan." Anakin replied. "Every last thing; you held nothing back from me. I just wish I had recognized that and appreciated it when I was younger."

"Well, it doesn't matter; you did what you were supposed to do; you destroyed the Sith. And now you have a wife and two beautiful children." Obi-Wan said.

"But I'm not a Jedi; that still bothers you." Anakin knew.

"No, it's not…it's just that you have so much to offer us. I don't begrudge your marriage, I want you to be happy, but…" Obi-Wan began.

"I know; you miss not having me around, but I will come to Coruscant often; there are many things that the Council wants from me and I want to share everything I have learned and will learn with them. And you are always welcome here. You are like my brother; and nothing can ever change that. Palpatine tried, but in the end, he couldn't destroy that." Anakin assured him.

Obi-Wan could not reply so Anakin continued.

"We are connected; we have been for a long time. The Force threw us together and now, now that you know my thoughts and my feelings; now that you have seen my darkest secrets, that connection is so strong, I don't think anything can ever break it. I love you, Obi-Wan, you are my brother." He said. "And because I have shared everything with you, and you have not turned away from me in disgust, I know how strong your love is too; it's unconditional."

They both felt it then, and were overwhelmed by it, a powerful feeling of friendship and brotherhood, and a love no longer inhibited by secrets and lies. It radiated from both of them and for a short time, they were unable to move or speak.

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Zak was standing in front of the door when he felt it, and it nearly bowled him over, it was that powerful, and he had to lean against the wall to prevent himself from falling down. He had never in his young life experienced a love that strong; it took his breath away. It finally overpowered him and he had to sit down.

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Padme was in the children's room with the twins and Gemma. The twins had been amusing themselves and Gemma by making their toys dance in the air. Suddenly, the toys fell to floor and the twins looked at each other, stood up and walked over to the hallway. Curious, Padme went over to see what they were looking at, but all she could see was Zak sitting by the door. The twins started down the hall and Padme followed until they stopped in front of the room where Obi-Wan and Anakin were.

"What is it?" Padme asked.

"Can't you feel it?" Zak asked breathlessly.

"No; what is it?" Padme asked.

"Oh, then it must be coming through the Force." Zak concluded.

"What?" Padme asked.

"Love; powerful love." Zak answered.

"Through the Force, you felt this? Coming from…in there?" Padme asked.

"Yes." Zak replied.

"What does it mean?" Padme asked.

"I don't know." Zak told her.

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In the capital of the Republic, an old Jedi Master stood watching a practice session in progress when he suddenly dropped his gimmer stick. The other Master standing with him turned his dark face downward and stared in concern until he, too, felt what the older master had felt.

"What is it?" Master Windu asked.

"Love it is, Master Windu; powerful, and pure it is." Yoda answered.

"Where is it coming from?" Windu asked.

"Mmm…better to ask who than where." Yoda told him.

"Who then?" Mace asked.

"The Chosen One." Yoda answered.

"Skywalker?" Mace asked.

"Yes, found himself he has." Yoda answered. "Forever will it change him; forever will it change all of us."

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"And now, Anakin, you have found what you needed." Qui-Gon said.

"Love?" Anakin asked.

No, Anakin, the love was always there. But trust, Obi-Wan has trusted you for a long time, but you have never completely trusted him...until now." Qui-Gon answered.

"I don't understand." Anakin replied.

"Your love and Obi-Wan's love for you were always there. But until you trusted your brother completely, his love could not reach you and your love could not come out. So you see, it was the trust that you needed to find." Qui-Gon explained. "And that is why you had to share everything with him, including all your memories and all the feelings that went with those memories. When you knew that Obi-Wan could accept everything you felt and everything that you had done or may have done if you had joined Darth Sidious, then you could trust him."

"But it nearly killed him." Anakin objected. "How could that be right?"

"Maybe that was supposed to happen too." Obi-Wan suggested.

"Why?" Anakin asked.

"Never once, Anakin, did you ask me if what you would have to do was dangerous; and in doing so, that made what you did a completely selfless act of love. You weren't thinking about what it might do to you, all you were concerned about was helping Obi-Wan." Qui-Gon told him. "So now, you know two things that you did not know yesterday; trust and what is truly meant by selflessness."

"But I've always done that, Qui-Gon; I've taken chances a lot of times to help him." Anakin argued. "Why was this different?"

"In all those other times, Anakin; you were always confident that you could pull it off, so to speak; this time, you didn't know, did you, if you would die trying to save him." Qui-Gon answered.

"Well, I…no; I guess not." Anakin admitted.

"So you see, you were willing to sacrifice your own life to save your brother. That, Anakin, is true selflessness." Qui-Gon explained.

"Qui-Gon, you told me…" Obi-Wan started.

"Yes, I was not entirely honest with you, I admit. But if I had been, you would not have given me leave to bring Anakin to you. You, my apprentice, have always been selfless; and you would not have allowed Anakin to help you if you thought he might die in the process. Anakin needed to do this; not only for you, but for himself, for the Jedi Order and for the Republic." Qui-Gon said. "This is also part of his destiny."

"Wait a minute; I can't go running around the galaxy anymore. I don't even want to; I have a family." Anakin protested.

"You don't have to. But what you must do is teach what you have learned to the rest of the Jedi." Qui-Gon told him.

"How?" Anakin asked.