Not even in his most vivid nightmares had Anakin ever thought to be leading an army into the Jedi Temple. The Temple was his home. It was where he had always felt the safest, where he had learned many of the lessons that had made him into the man he was. A man who ultimately betrayed every oath he'd ever sworn, save one.
Anakin's vision was clouded with tears as he left behind the body of Master Ti. She had never been anything but kind to him and now he had gifted her with her death for the simple fact that she had been inside the Jedi Temple. His new Master had been adamant that all the Jedi must be killed for they were a threat to the Republic and everything Anakin meant to do. They would tell him that Obi-Wan had become one with the Force and that his fate should not be altered. Those, however, were the beliefs of beings incapable of love.
"Why do the Jedi deny themselves love?" Anakin demanded of his master as they walked side by side through one of the upper levels of the Temple.
Even as he groaned at the topic, a smile curved Obi-Wan's lips. "This again? Have we not discussed this enough to satisfy even your endless curiosity, my dear padawan?"
"What about that? You say that I am dear to you. Does that not mean you love me?" Anakin pressed, spinning himself about so that he walked backwards directly in front of his master.
Reaching out, Obi-Wan grabbed hold of Anakin's shoulders, stilling him. "I have known you for ten very long years, Anakin. Yet I can still remember my first sight of you, trudging over a sand dune behind Mater Qui-Gon. I was jealous of you at first, did you know that? My master was utterly infatuated with you and I didn't know what to do about it because I'd never had to deal with something like that before... But then I watched you. I saw how brave you were trying to be, both on the ship and before the Council. How could I be jealous of a little boy whose only dream was to one day be a Jedi? Even then I supposed I cared for you. But loving you? No. That came later."
Anakin had never leaned exactly when Obi-Wan's affection had turned to love. But he did know that Obi-Wan had loved him. That was something that Anakin would never question. Obi-Wan had made certain that he knew. It had been whispered at first, spoke aloud after a time, and gasped in the aftermath of passion on a panting breath. Whenever possible, Obi-Wan had always assured Anakin that he loved him.
Obi-Wan was unlike other Jedi in that respect. In all other aspects Obi-Wan remained true to the Code. He was everything that Anakin had tried to be. And failed.
"I'm sorry, Master," Anakin whispered as he stalked through the abandoned corridors of the Jedi Temple. "I'm sorry that I could not remain true, but I refuse to lose you."
The Force that swirled around him was a dark and sickly thing. It was like a slime, forcing its way into every part of him. In it he could find no trace of Obi-Wan, not even the barest flicker. Even when separated, Obi-Wan had always been able to offer him comfort, to soothe his mind and heart. All Anakin could find at that moment was ice. Jagged shards tearing into his flesh and producing the tears that filled his eyes.
"How do you wish to proceed with the younglings, sir?"
"I'll handle it alone," Anakin murmured, glancing briefly at the clone trooper beside him. "I know where they'll be."
Separating himself from the army, Anakin moved towards the turbolifts. Like all other Jedi, Anakin knew where the younglings were. All Jedi know that the younglings were to go to the Council room if the Temple was under attack. The Council room was the safest place in the entire Temple. With all of the expansive staircases and turbolift banks, one had to know where they were going in order to reach the Council room atop the Temple's central spire.
Never in his thirteen years as a Jedi had Anakin thought he'd be using that information to his advantage.
"Would you please stop fidgeting," Obi-Wan chuckled as he and Anakin rode in the turbolift up to the Council room. "You have nothing to be nervous about."
"That's easy for you to say. Your trials came and went without you even being aware of it," Anakin burst out, tugging once again on the glove that covered his robotic arm. He hadn't realized the implications of his words until he felt the ripple of pain they caused Obi-Wan. "Fierfek! I'm sorry, master. I didn't even think."
Obi-Wan's smile was more forced this time. "I cannot fault your observation. In little more than two standard days I went from being a padawan to a Jedi knight with a padawan of my very own. I was quite terrified of you for the first few weeks, wondering if I'd made the right decision. I had no idea what I was doing."
"You faked it rather well then."
"Yes well had I known what a reckless pilot you were to become I would have insisted you be apprenticed to Master Tiin," Obi-Wan countered, his smile far more genuine. "He, at least, would have enjoyed your antics."
Turning to him fully, Anakin made sure that he had Obi-Wan's full attention before he spoke. "I would not have wanted a different master. Not even Master Qui-Gon."
The turbolift came to a stop then so Obi-Wan's hand, which had been reaching towards Anakin, returned to his side. "I wouldn't have spent these last years any differently, either. And I am certain that the Council will allow you to begin your trials."
That day was no so long ago that Anakin couldn't still remember the pride he had seen in Obi-Wan's eyes when the Council had at last deemed him ready to begin his trials. A day that would never come for the little ones currently hiding in the Temple's highest room.
"Master Anakin," the bravest of them gasped as he emerged from behind one of the chairs. "There are too many of them. What are we going to do?"
One by one all of the other younglings poked their heads out, relieved to see the greatest Jedi of all. Each of them believed that they were safe. Tears in his eyes, Anakin pushed all thoughts of conscience from his mind as he activated his lightsaber.
It had to be done. The Jedi were a treat and had to be purged from the Republic before they could stop him and his new master. The Jedi had always tried so hard to keep him and Obi-Wan apart. They had sent Obi-Wan to his death. Anakin had given them an alternative. He had volunteered to go to Utapau himself once it had been discovered that Grievous was there. Skilled as Obi-Wan was, the fact remained that Anakin was better fighter. He would have been able to defeat Grievous. At the very least they should have sent Anakin with his former master. It had been a great risk on the Council's part to send a single Jedi to face a foe who had already killed several. The Council had distrusted Palpatine's opinion, though, and as a result Obi-Wan was dead. And along with him the rest of the Jedi Order.
Not for the first time Anakin found himself wishing that he had been able to convince Obi-Wan to leave the Order. Granted, he had never been very serious in his attempts, but he had broached the topic more than once. One too many times in the past he had nearly lost Obi-Wan to forces beyond his ability to control. Jabiim had been the worst because on Jabiim Obi-Wan's death had temporarily been a fact and as a padawan Anakin had been unable to do anything substantial about it. More than once he had come close to leaving the Order if only to finally have the ability to search for his master's body. The thought of leaving Obi-Wan to rot in that endless swamp had made Anakin physically ill.
On Jabiim there had been no indisputable proof that Obi-Wan had been killed and for a brief moment Anakin wished that it was true again. To have lost Obi-Wan to an unknown fate was far better than seeing the vivid proof of his death. Because Obi-Wan had come back from Jabiim. True he had been injured and exhausted, but he had still come back.
Stepping out of the turbolift on the main floor of the Temple, Anakin once again felt uneasy at the sight of the bodies littering the cool marble. It sickened him that most of the bodies belonged to padawans and younglings, the bulk of the Jedi out fighting on various planets.
"Sir, all of the Jedi in the Temple have been disposed of," the clone commander announced as he fell in step with Anakin.
Anakin nodded his head, not trusting his voice. He had to get to Padmé. She would help him make sense of everything and simply being close to his child would comfort him. They were his hope, proof that it was possible for him to create something good. It was all that Anakin had to hold onto at the moment as he was floundering in so much darkness.
"Remain here until you are contacted with new orders," Anakin ordered, already moving towards the exit. "I must return to my master."
The clone commander raised a hand in salute and as he did so Anakin caught sight of the communication device attached to his wrist. Palpatine had studiously kept him away from any such long range comlinks. For what reason Anakin hadn't quite reasoned, but he resented it. So Anakin ordered the commander to hand over his long range comlink.
Moving away from the gathering troops, Anakin began trying to hail Commander Cody. He was the only one who was likely to give him a straight answer as to how Obi-Wan had been killed. Anakin also meant to charge the man with returning Obi-Wan's body to Coruscant. If Palpatine's spells were to work, his body needed to be preserved. Needed to be kept safe.
Attaching the comlink to his own wrist, Anakin scanned the frequencies for the leader of Obi-Wan's squadron. There was a flickering as the holographic form took shape from the center of his palm, then suddenly standing there was an all-too familiar image. "Commander Cody?"
"General Skywalker," the commander nodded. "I had thought to hear from you sooner."
"So it's true then," Anakin murmured, sucking his lower lip in between his teeth.
"It is. General Skywalker was killed by a combination of a blaster bolt to the chest and the fall into the sinkhole," Commander Cody explained. "General Grievous is in possession of his lightsaber, but we were able to regain possession of his body at Chancellor Palpatine's orders. He is being returned to Coruscant as we speak."
Anakin felt his entire body slump, relief filling him. Palpatine was keeping his word. He would return Obi-Wan to him and in the end it would all be worth it.
insert a scene of Obi-Wan and Anakin "taking comfort" from each other during the wars. it can be found reinserted on my site.the most important bit of this is scene goes:
"I won't leave you. Not if I can help it," Obi-Wan panted, gasping the words against Anakin's cheek.
Pulling back so that he could see Obi-Wan's eyes, Anakin kissed him tenderly. "I'll hold you to that."
Scowling, Anakin swiped at the tears that had escaped his lashes. Anakin knew that Obi-Wan had done all that he could to keep his promise. Obi-Wan was a man of his word, and, more importantly, Obi-Wan loved him. That was something Anakin had never held in doubt. And it was because he loved Obi-Wan just as fiercely that he was willing to destroy the Jedi Order. Once he had assured Obi-Wan's well being, Anakin would track down Grievous and kill him. Then Palpatine would restore order to the Republic. Everything would be as it had been so long ago, before the Trade Federation and the Separatists.
Climbing into his speeder, Anakin leaned into the high-backed seat. He knew that he should return to Palpatine. The Sith lord had much to teach him in the ways of the Dark Side. He had to teach him how to save Obi-Wan and Padmé. That was why he was doing this. He may have lost his mother, but he wouldn't lose either of them.
As he was reaching towards the ignition, Anakin was brought up short. It had been brief, but he was certain that he'd felt it. A slight tug, almost imperceptible, but there nonetheless. He'd felt Obi-Wan.
In the bowels of one of the Republic star destroyers, the body of Obi-Wan Kenobi lay sprawled on the floor of a detention room. The door to the room opened and in strode one of the Chancellor's red-robed bodyguards. Without a word, the figure knelt next to the still form of the Jedi Master, producing a syringe from within its robes. Positioning the head so that it had better access to the general's throat, the red figure plunged the needle into Obi-Wan's jugular, releasing the purple liquid within.
Obi-Wan's fist clenched momentarily before his body became lax once again. Still as death.