Chapter 40: Roots

"That was bordering on an unmitigated disaster," said Obi-Wan's Grandmaster, his face wrinkling with distaste as their lineage piled into Qui-Gon's apartment, save for Yoda, who had elected to confer with the Council, "Giving the Sith near free reign to batter around our Knights and their students. Padawans openly questioning the strength of the light against the dark. Force, C'Baoth and his utter arrogance threw away an assured victory, a master of his caliber should have not made such a mistake."

Obi-Wan wasn't quite sure how assured it actually was, he had noted that entire session Siri had not used that ability she had used on Qui-Gon and him on Naboo, to afflict their minds with sights and sounds not there. She wasn't playing all of her cards, good hunch she hadn't been even on Naboo. There was so little about the Sith that the Jedi knew these days, and he wasn't honestly sure he wanted to know it all. If he could stomach any more horrific knowledge bought at terrible prices to Siri's soul. Still... he had become more adept at reading Siri, enough to pick up when she is surprised and has to take effort to lock herself down. Master Allie had caused that. There had been a brief conflict there, at least until the Jedi Master opened her mouth and condemned Siri. Then it was gone.

Another possible avenue towards helping Siri, had Master Allie taken a more peaceful, understanding, Jedi approach, was gone.

He sat down slowly, sighing as he adopted a light meditation, enough to start slowly releasing his built up emotions from earlier to the Force, but not deep enough to not pay attention and converse. "I voiced my opinion that it was a terrible idea to begin with. Allowing and even encouraging her to use the Dark Side sets back so much progress."

"Grandpadawan, I mean little offense to your efforts, but your progress was undone the moment the Sith left the cell without agreeing to turn away from the Dark Side," said Dooku in a soft voice.

Obi-Wan looked away for a long moment. "Not all of it, I know I made some impact, but with her having the Dark Side again, its difficult to see. Interacting with her for more than a few minutes can be... rough with her attitude."

Dooku hummed. "Do not forget that your safety comes first before anything else, Grandpadawan, we've been over this before. If you do not consider the situation or the Sith's immediate outlook manageable, then get away from it. I do not in particular think you should approach the Sith after that for the remainder of the day. I can practically smell the stench of the dark from here."

Obi-Wan sighed. "Yes Grandmaster."

"Her."

Obi-Wan blinked and looked over to see Anakin giving Dooku an unreadable look from the floor next to the table, it was strange to see something he couldn't figure out on one so young. Qui-Gon was sitting next to him, preparing the four of them tea, but slowly set his packets down to give the boy a curious look.

"Pardon?" inquired Dooku.

"Almost everyone but Obi calls her 'it' or 'Sith'," said Anakin, "She might be a Sith, but she's still a person."

He paused briefly to amend. "A really scary person."

Dooku stared at Anakin for a long moment, the boys chin tilting up to meet the gaze with unwavering intensity, not budging, before Dooku huffed, "Your padawan indeed Qui-Gon. I can already see him carrying on your legacy of taking in all manners of strays."

Qui-Gon's mouth twitched with amusement. "I've always chosen to take such comments as compliments."

"I'm sure you have," remarked Dooku before frowning subtly, giving Anakin a considering look, "You are of course correct. Siri Tachi is a person. To imply otherwise is to objectify in a manner unbecoming of a sentient, let alone a Jedi."

He shook his head and rubbed his face tiredly, hugging a bit and muttering darkly under his breath, "Looking in a mirror."

Obi-Wan wisely chose not to comment. He had been there when Siri had given her warning to Dooku after all. Everyone has their own inner darkness, him, Dooku, Qui-Gon, even Yoda. He cherished his Grandmaster, but he wasn't blind to the man's faults anymore than he was to his own. One wouldn't normally think that such an accomplished Jedi Master could fall, but, that wasn't reality. Anyone could fall. Anyone could be changed and warped; case and point being how radically different Siri had become.

The warning is something he appreciates from Siri, regardless of the crude, cruel, and crass way she tended to give them. Because she did give it, did care enough about him to try to offer aid. She still is so very fallen, but the point was she was still trying to help, in her own dark manner. That mattered, that mattered so unbelievably much.

"I think the session went about as much as expected," offered Qui-Gon, resuming his tea preparations, "Considering my own experiences fighting her alongside Obi-Wan. Most combatants got off easy."

"How so?" inquired Dooku, "You haven't enlightened me to your opinion of the battle on Naboo as of yet, despite my multiple inquiries as to the subject."

Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow. "I've been busy with helping Anakin catch up to his peers, getting my liver cloned to replace the one Siri destroyed when she ran me through, the Council screaming at me for my 'gambling problems'..."

"Betting the entirety of your mission to escort the Queen to Coruscant on a podrace was one of the most irresponsible things you have done in a very long time Qui-Gon Jinn," stepped in Dooku sternly, a warning tone in his voice, "As was encouraging young Skywalker to participate in such a dangerous event. Force Qui-Gon, you are lucky they didn't censure you, that dealing with the Sith-Tachi," he corrected without missing a beat, "Is more important to them. No, censorship is the least of your worries. Qui-Gon, they could have revoked your mastership over such an outrage."

Qui-Gon closed his eyes and sighed softly. "I did as the Force wills, Master."

"You've been making that excuse since you were a young padawan to try and get away with everything," said Dooku, exasperated.

"S'not like I haven't raced before," chimed in Anakin, "Watto had me racing since I was old enough to see over the wheel, and I didn't even crash this time!"

Dooku closed his eyes for a long moment. "And how old were you when you first survived a podracing crash?"

Before Anakin could respond Dooku held up a hand. "No, never mind, I do not believe I wish to stomach the answer."

Anakin just shrugged. "I was used to it."

"That's never an excuse to give for something immoral," said Qui-Gon softly, "I do regret that you were put in danger, but I will always try to do as the Force wills me. You needed to be brought to the Temple, we needed to get off Tatooine and to Coruscant with the Queen, and this was the only path I saw open to us quickly."

He rubs his face tiredly, "Had we delayed, and Siri found me alone without the ship to flee onto, I'd be dead without question."

"You believe that, truly?" posed Dooku.

"Master," said Qui-Gon, "I don't believe you understand truly how conflicted she was on Naboo. She could have disposed of us both with ease on the walkways. Its a coincidence if we fall and land on another walkway, or she tosses us down a walkway rather than far off the edge to plummet to our deaths, once or twice. But the sheer number of times it happened?"

He shook his head. "We couldn't have given her a better arena unless we had fought her on Korriban itself. Looking back, there is no reason the battle should have lasted as long as it did."

Dooku huffed. "Let that be a lesson on letting your opponent choose the battlefield, young Skywalker."

"You're not always going to get to choose though, are you?" asked Anakin, "Someone could get the drop on you."

"Quite true," agreed Dooku, "But when the obvious stands right before you, don't give them what they want, stop and think before you act."

"I'm not really good at that," admitted Anakin, "I kind of always just go with what I feel."

"That, young one, is what Qui-Gon is for," answered Dooku with amusement.

"I don't know Grandmaster," said Obi-Wan, glancing at Qui-Gon teasingly, "I'm not sure he ever taught me that lesson."

"Imp," said Qui-Gon, good natured, "It is not my fault you do not hear and listen."

"And now you know my pain," said Dooku, trying to see so solemn, but giving off an air of amusement, the twitch of a lip, "Sometimes I think Qui-Gon was off in his own reality the entirety of his apprenticeship."

Qui-Gon huffed. "Beset on all sides, whatever shall I do?"

"Help me with my homework?" offered Anakin.

That got a laugh from the room, easing out of the tense subject of Siri and the Dark Side. Obi-Wan watched as Qui-Gon settled in next to Anakin and slowly guided the boy on writing basic. It was one of the subjects he struggled with, but between the three of them, they'd manage. Though, he and Dooku were constantly pulled into meetings about Siri and had missed a large portion of the starting weeks/months of Anakin's beginnings in the Order. Apparently though, Anakin liked him enough to give him Obi as a nickname. He had thought about calling him Ani in return, but... he always sensed a ping of longing and deep worry when Qui-Gon did, about the boy's Mother if he guessed. He had brought up that subject up to Master Windu once, only for him to be told the boy needed to learn to let go. He didn't particularly think this was the way to teach that lesson while the woman suffered in slavery, but, it wasn't his call to make. So he made a point not to call him that, if only to not remind the boy of her. He hadn't seen Anakin and Dooku interact enough to get what they thought of one another yet. Dooku seemed open enough, trying to pass down advice...

He frowned as his thoughts turned, as they always had as of late, to Siri. He wondered if the concept of lineage even still held meaning to her. Did it matter if it did? Anyone worthwhile she'd share that with was gone. He wasn't sure what Sith as a whole thought about the notion, but Siri especially wouldn't even think of such a thing with Sidious. It was sad to note and predict, that when she turned away from the Sith, she'd probably never be allowed to take her own apprentice. At least not from the ranks of a Jedi.

He blinked when he felt a nudge from the Force about that thought, a whisper of promise, a name in its currents he just couldn't quite grasp at. His face schooled back into a passive look as he leaned his head back on the couch, staring up into the ceiling. The future was always in motion, he'd seen enough of his own dreams or visions or notions from the force fail to come to pass before. The thought of Siri with an apprentice though... was interesting he supposed. If she got one... he wondered how'd they survive all that sass and sarcasm.

He smiled a bit at that, a soft chuckle escaping his lips.

"Care to share, my Grandpadawan?" inquired Dooku.

The thought of Siri with an apprentice might give him a stroke, so Obi-Wan waved his hand. "It's nothing..."

Dooku narrowed his eyes, a knowing look on his face...

Before he could pester, there was a tap tap tap on the door, from a stick if that sounded right. Obi-Wan turned his attention and felt Yoda at the door. Obi-Wan got to his feet and went over, opening the door. "Hello Master Yoda."

"Obi-Wan," the little green being replied, ears flickering as his eyes took in the room, a pleased look on his face, "Mmm, rare it is, to see all of a Lineage in one gathering."

"It never lasts," mused Dooku, "Were it not for the circumstances at hand, one of us at least would be out on a mission."

Yoda grunted in acknowledgement, waddling in and plopping down on the side of the table adjacent to Qui-Gon, a soft sigh escaping his lips, "Tiring, meetings are. Have a spare cup of tea, do you?"

"Of course Grand Master," said Qui-Gon, getting up to retrieve a spare cup and pour it.

"Careful Master Yoda," teased Obi-Wan, "It almost sounds like you're admitting to getting old."

Yoda harrumphed and waved his stick. "When almost nine-hundred years you reach, see how handle duties of a Grand Master, you do."

Obi-Wan smiled. "Fortunately for me, I'll be resting in the Force well before then."

"Hmph," grunted Yoda, taking a sip before sighing again, "Old am I, admit it I do. Very old for my kind. Turn over the duties of Grand Master within your lifetime and pass on, I will."

Obi-Wan swallowed thickly at the notion of Yoda retiring, let alone dying. "Surely not."

"Pass all things do," said Yoda, "Death is a natural part of life. Rejoice for those around you who transform into the Force. Mourn them do not. Miss them do not. Attachment leads to jealously. The shadow of greed, that is."

"Of course Master Yoda," murmured Obi-Wan.

"You... want people to be happy when someone they care for dies?" asked Anakin, incredulous.

Dooku have him a disapproving look. "It is rude to speak to one's elders in such a tone."

Yoda waved him off and turned his attention to Anakin. "A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind. If ache from death we do, weaken our dedication it will; fill us with grief and suffering, detracts from our connection to the Force, that does. A life passed on, a life that no longer suffers. We rejoice that their service is done, that rest in the arms of the Force, they do. That one day, see them again, we will, even if not as we are. Luminous beings we are, not this crude matter."

Yoda's ears flickered when Anakin didn't reply, a look of confused disagreement on the young boy's face. "Told you once I did, see through you, I can. Afraid are you. Named must your fear be before banish it you can. Warned you already I have, fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering."

Anakin looked down, lips tight, fists clenched, saying nothing.

"A great trial for you, understanding and accepting this will be," said Yoda sagely.

Obi-Wan pursed his lips. He didn't want to counteract Yoda, not even if the audience was only their own lineage, but that was a harsh lesson and delivery for someone just starting on the Jedi path with the background that boy had. If he were the boy's Master, and thankfully he wasn't, he'd try to ease him into the concepts of the Jedi Order. The boy still had a few years before he'd be mission ready to begin understanding and adapting. But again, not his Master, that was Qui-Gon's job, he had his hands full with Siri.

Not that he hadn't been shying away from that duty since she got out of her cell. He just... didn't know how to pull her away when she was actively entwined with the Dark Side. Just how had Master Ur-Manka done it?

"Mmm, young Kenobi, tell me, what think of Tachi's matches, did you?" inquired Yoda.

Aaaaaand now they were back on that subject again. "I think that her time in the cell did very little to detract from her in the long run. She's just as efficient and deadly now as she was months ago."

"Mmm," hummed Yoda, "Still holding back, was she against me?"

So he had noticed. "In a way. She wasn't fighting to kill, and she wasn't showcasing some of the abilities I saw on Naboo."

Yoda nodded thoughtfully. "A Sith she is, but not in the truest way. Felt that darkness from Coruscant from Naboo I did, much worse could she be. Yet, still far stronger, would Sidious be even if fully lost, Tachi had been."

He sighed. "Much work do the Jedi have, to be prepared for this threat. Useful young Tachi will be in this, I feel."

"So these are to go on then?" asked Dooku.

"Go on they will, but carefully monitored they will be," answered Yoda before grunting with displeasure, "More work do the Jedi need if better than most at Soresu a Sith is."

Obi-Wan can't tell if that's bias against the Sith, or irritation with his fellow Jedi.

Dooku scoffed. "Surely you realize its not just Soresu? I did not have enough exposure to her nor the opportunity to watch critically, but I do now. Makashi is weaved into her movements even if she is not actively using the style. Throughout the majority of that session, not a single saberstroke was wasted save against you."

He rubbed his chin. "Unless she is facing a vastly superior opponent, there are very few forms that would work against her... perhaps..."

"Djem So, yes, a very skilled Djem So practitioner would best and overwhelm her defenses," said Dooku, looking pleased at the conclusion, "As would a more skilled user of Makashi such as myself, and I think Master Windu's Vapaad would defeat her as well. Of course, a more skilled and powerful master of the Force could defeat her as well. C'Boath should have showcased this."

"Only once," said Obi-Wan softly.

Yoda's ears flickered, looking to him, the question unasked but obvious.

"Something Siri said in the cell, that Sith are about changing and adapting," said Obi-Wan, "Anything you beat her with she will try to learn a way around."

"Changing only in regards to power," said Dooku with disdain, "And overcoming whatever may be in their way for attaining more of it."

"If that was the sole case, neither I nor Qui-Gon would be here right now," said Obi-Wan, chin tilting up a bit.

Dooku sighed and waved a hand. "Aside from her attachment."

"A pot you are to her kettle," teased Yoda.

It took Obi-Wan a moment to translate to 'pot calling kettle black' before he chuckled. Dooku scowled at that, sarcasm dripping to the point of near venom. "Yes, forgive me for favoring my lineage, which is, to be frank, a failing most Jedi have."

Yoda gave him an unamused look. "A failing, I said not, so long as consume you, it does not."

Dooku's face turned shrewd. "Tell me then, what does one consumed by attachment look like, my vaunted master? Let us turn this into a lesson for young Skywalker."

Yoda harrumphed. "Changed from your padawan years, you have not."

Dooku smiled sharply in response. "We are waiting."

Yoda slowly shook his head. "When attachment matters more than the person themselves. Law, duty, compassion, logic, trust, when all of these and more fall away, when they matter matter no more. When betray yourself, when betray the one attached to, when betray everyone for the attachment you do, then consumed you are."

Obi-Wan kept an eye on Anakin as Yoda spoke, watching the way the boys shoulder's stayed hunched, face a mask, emotions practically signalling that he saw this as anything as but a lesson, more like a personal attack. He resolved to give Qui-Gon a nudge later to try and find a better way to convey the lesson. Albiet, neither of them were exactly the perfect ones to teach it. All of them perhaps leaned more towards being influenced by their attachments rather than their responsibilities. Though when push came to shove, they would do their duty without question.

He cherished Siri, but if she became that yellow-eyed monster again, he would let her go.

Though he would do his best to prevent that, speaking of which...

"Master Yoda," he asked, "Has my request been granted?"

Dooku's head turned his way. "Request?"

Yoda grunted, frowning at Obi-Wan. "Considered it the Council has, sure are you?"

"I am."

Yoda sighed. "Granted it is, move to the apartment next to Tachi, you may."

Dooku pinched his nose and sighed.

Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow. "So eager to be off our couch padawan-mine?"

"No, but I have been remiss in my duties," admitted Obi-Wan, "I need to start on her again, the longer I wait, the deeper back into the Dark Side she will burrow."

There was a sagely nod from the Yoda, Dooku merely took a mocking tone, "Well, at least you didn't move in with her."

Obi-Wan sputtered, scandalized. "Grandmaster!"

That got a laugh out of the masters before a comlink beeped, Anakin's, the boy fished it out, and relief shone across his face for a moment before he hid the look. "It's Mister, er, Chancellor Palpatine."

Qui-Gon frowned. "Again? I don't know why he keeps asking for these visits."

Dooku gave him a unamused look. "I think its a good thing for young Skywalker that our esteemed Chancellor has taken an interest in his career as a Jedi. As it was with you and Valorum, having a working relationship with the leader of the Republic could be beneficial."

"Or get us dragged into one disaster of a mission after another," said Qui-Gon, sighing, "But we can't very well refuse the man. Alright, put away your homework Anakin and we'll head over."

"Yipee!" exclaimed Anakin, rushing off to do so.

Obi-Wan frowned a little. Awful quick to want to get away from them. He glanced at Qui-Gon who merely shrugged, not phased, and resumed sipping tea now that the homework session was done for the moment. Obi-Wan pushed the thought away for another distant time, Siri was his responsibility, Anakin was Qui-Gon's, unless his old Master started pulling some of the crap he had done early on in Obi-Wan's own apprenticeship, then he'd need to give his master a stern talking. This would be Qui-Gon's third padawan, he will be able to integrate Anakin into the Order, far more than Obi-Wan could hope to.

He shook his head and rose to start packing. As a Jedi he didn't own much, but there were a few little tokens he had picked up, or a rock he had been given, that needed to go into a bag before he moved. Maybe a few plants he could convince Qui-Gon to part with...

Sidious waits patiently as Young Skywalker keeps rambling about what he witnessed earlier in the day. "It was crazy. She fought for hours, and didn't even look tired until she had to go against Yoda."

He wasn't particularly surprised by that outcome in the slightest. What hope could the common trash of the Jedi Order have against a Sith?

The boy's shoulder's slumped a little, and he looks scared. "They keep saying I'm some kind of 'Chosen One' whose supposed to destroy the Sith and bring balance, whatever that means. But how am I supposed to be able to fight that when she's just a Sith padawan and she can beat so many Jedi? Her Master has to be even stronger! How am I supposed to win alone?"

He resists the urge to snap at the boy and say 'Apprentice' not Padawan, but reigns it in. This fear is good. If he were actually trying to comfort the boy, he'd tell him that nowhere in that silly Jedi Prophecy did it say that Skywalker had to do it alone, but he's not, is he? Enlarging vulnerabilities that the Jedi overlook or create is going to be so childish easy it almost feels like he's cheating.

"Well my boy," Sidious says with a frown, "It does seem a bit unfair to put such pressure and responsibility on any one person."

Anakin nods, swallowing thickly. "Yeah. I mean, he's a bad guy, I want to stop him, but..."

Oh Skywalker, it would be decades before he was close to ready, even with his absurd strength in the Force. There were to many traumas and weaknesses and faults the boy had to work through before he'd be mentally ready for that. If the boy never received treatment or therapy for half of them? Well, that wasn't Sidious problem now was it? Jedi were so ignorant and detached from those beyond their walls. What was their interactions with the few slaves they did end up freeing in this day and age? Pass them on to a program or a planet like Aldaraan that dealt with them; speaking of which, he had an assassination to order after he was done here.

Bail Antillies had his chance to retire quietly, he'd foolishly passed it up on some misguided and foolish sense of duty. Honestly, what did one Force-Null little senator think he'd be able to do against the machinations of the Sith except die?

He refocused on the boy, leaning forward to whisper conspiratorially. "Between you and I, its my personal opinion that they are passing on the problem for a younger generation to handle rather than doing the responsible thing and seeking out this Dark Lord themselves."

He shook his head and sighed. "It is an unfortunate, and frequent thing, where many but the few truly responsible elders push aside a problem for another day and another person to handle. Even in the Senate, there is so much corruption and bureaucracy, it'll be half my term working through it before I can begin to make any progress at all on what was left for me to deal with."

"Is it really that bad?" asked Skywalker, wide-eyed and so naive.

"Yes, unfortunately," said Sidious, "Why, look at what young Tachi revealed in the first questioning session. Slavery is supposed to be illegal within the Republic, and yet some of our senators, who are supposed to represent our finest qualities and morals, were mired in filth."

Skywalker's face darkened, so much anger bubbling inside so young a body. It was intoxicating. Tachi had best tread carefully, because he is tempted, so tempted, to simply be done with her and focus everything on the boy. "Sometimes, I think our government has failed its purpose, that it does not work as it is meant to."

"Well, maybe it should be changed and made to work," said Skywalker, a furious scowl on his face.

"I don't necessarily disagree with you," said Sidious, "But it is easier said than done. The last time the Republic undertook truly massive changes was roughly a thousand years ago after a devastating war."

Skywalker crossed his arms and slumped a little in the chain, feet coming up to kick the desk in youthful frustration. "It's stupid. Even when they do changes, they don't fix the right problems. Mist-Master Qui-Gon's been teaching me to read, I went to the Archives and looked up a bunch of stuff. The Hutts have been around a long time, maybe even longer than the Republic. They've owned slaves the entire time..."

He began counting his fingers. "Twenty... twenty-five, thousand? Thousand. Twenty-five thousand years of slavery in Hutt Space. That's so long, that's so many people enslaved."

If its one thing Sidious could respect about the Hutts, it was their enduring way of life, letting nothing get in their way as they kept the weak of the galaxy crushed underneath. "But to the Republic, and the Jedi, if its outside their space and thus not their problem."

Anakin fidgeted a little. "The Jedi did beat the Zygerrians, once, that was wizard to read. But then they didn't keep an eye on them. They're stupid If they think those sleemos don't still do it where people can't see."

He looked away. "There were Zygerrians at pretty much every slave auction I ever saw."

Oh yes, he was quite right on that. Sidious had bought a few enslaved Jedi from them before for his apprentice to play with. Just as Plaguies had done for him. "It is unfortunate that those with power did not use it to the fullest in such a situation, I suppose it requires the right person with the right wisdom and willingness to do what must be done."

Anakin nodded, thoughtful. "Yeah, I guess."

So easily moldable, it was oddly disquieting that it was so disgustingly easy. He hid a frown and toyed with the feeling. He should be elated that Skywalker would almost assuredly fit the role Sidious intended for him.. yet...

Anakin scratched his head. "I don't get their attachment thing."

Sidious blinked, refocusing and taking a moment to identify the sudden topic change. "The Jedi's?"

"Yeah," said Anakin, "It's just... if you really love and care for someone, you'd be willing to do anything for them, right?"

Careful careful careful, Sidious takes a moment to consider how to answer, calculating potential consequences to certain responses if Skywalker happens to mention them to any Jedi. "Tell me, would you break the law if it meant saving your mother from slavery?"

Anakin opened his mouth the beginnings of a 'yes' escaping his lips before hesitating, looking absolutely grieved by the question. To soon for it then; if push came to shove the boy absolutely would, the Jedi hadn't indoctrinated his harsh past out of him yet, but to admit it aloud to others? That he'd kill, destroy, and do so much worse? He wasn't quite ready.

"Ah, but even before that question, we should ask, whose laws are we talking about?" inquired Sidious, watching Skywalker's eyebrows furrow in confusion, "The Republic's? Or the Hutt's?"

Anakin's face darkened, and oh it was delightful to feel that ripple of anger and hate once more, he was so easy to egg on. "Hutt Law I'd break in a heartbeat. The sleemos are all hypocrites anyway, they break their own laws every day!"

Disregard for one set of laws could lead into disregard for another. Or that they were beneath him to follow. "I suppose it all depends on your point of view."

"Wacha mean?" asked Anakin.

"What is good or evil is entirely based upon one's point of view," explained Sidious, "As foul as they are, to the Hutts, their way of life is only natural. They most likely look upon us as we look upon them."

If the slugs weren't so filthy and disgusting, they'd be almost tolerable with their lifestyle.

Anakin scowled. "It doesn't make it right."

"No, it doesn't," he said in a placating manner, "You will find that in our galaxy, many things that should be, are not."

"It should be made right," said Anakin, scowling, "Biggest problem in this galaxy is no one helps eachother."

Right on the first half, making it the way the Sith desire, wrong on the second, but the boy would get there, all to easily. Again, there was that twang of disquiet at the notion, why? After the trial that was Tachi, he thought he ought to be pleased at such a simple undertaking...

Ah.

He smiled. That was it. Where was the challenge? The thrill? The struggle? All of Tachi's apprenticeship had been a back and forth, to pull her into the Sith, to chip away at her Jedi beliefs, the unexpected danger and chance of almost losing her to Ur Manka, to keep her a Sith despite that failure of her first sacrifice, to force her to submit to his will and keep her in check, to figure out how much power and knowledge to teach or reward her with. All of that and more. Not to mention this current 'escapade' of hers was bound to be as infuriating as it was fascinating, like watching a speeder wreck if he's honest.

His eyes turned to this pitiful piece of slave trash sitting across from him. What was this boy in comparison? Where would the challenge be? All he had to do was wait and the boy would come to him session by session to slowly be converted over time as Sidious planted his roots deep into his psyche and mind; he wasn't even sure if he was going to need compulsions, he still would use them of course. At best, Qui-Gon Jinn's unorthadox approach to being a Jedi might serve as a roadbump, but even then there was the possibility the Jedi might hasten things instead. Sidious had already done his re-study of Jinn; he wondered how long it would be until the foolish Jedi Master started seeing shadows of Xanatos in Skywalker, especially with how fixated the boy was on his mother, as Xanatos had been with his father.

Jinn might end up making Skywalker's conversion even easier. He wondered if he could turn Jinn into Skywalker's sacrifice...

"Mr. Palpatine?"

Thoughts for later; Sidious refocused. "My apologies, I was lost in thought. It's so rare to find someone in this day and age with the kind of outlook you have," and the combination of abuseable weaknesses and his raw power, "You are a very special young man."

Skywalker practically preened, beaming and happy for such a trifle little compliment. It was sad really. If he offered the boy an army to rain death on the Hutts and a pat on the head for a 'good job well done' afterwards he could probably make Skywalker literally eat out of his hands. Like he had been starting to do with Maul before Tachi had usurped him, he could chain Skywalker to him through twisted loyalty. Throw him a bone every once and awhile, and Skywalker would be his loyal obedient pet.

Until the boys power grew to the point where it was uncontainable of course, it was the child's main redeeming feature. As much as he craved that power for the Sith, if Skywalker could, just by default of growing older and stronger over time, defeat Sidious with hardly a struggle, it seemed distasteful. No Sith should be able to kill their master without careful planning and great effort. Creating or taking advantage of a weakness. Their ultimate test. Skywalker would surpass Sidious eventually simply by existing. No planning could get around Skywalker just being able to snap his fingers and break Sidious's neck at whim.

When the meeting was all said and done, the Jedi's lessons undermined, and Skywalker steadily becoming more under his thumb than before, Sidious stood at the window of his office. He stared across the Coruscant cityscape at the Jedi Temple, lost in thought. Perhaps the most important thing Skywalker had revealed today was that Tachi had disclosed the Veil of the Dark Side to the Jedi. To say he was displeased was an understatement, it had taken great effort to push that to the back of his mind until Skywalker left, and was taking equal effort not to explode in rage now.

He contemplated the dangers and possibilities with ice cold calculation. Could the Jedi figure out a way around it now that they knew it existed and was blinding them? It seemed unlikely, but complacency was the Jedi way, not the Sith way. Aside from directing it, he had not experimented or changed the Veil his entire existence as a Sith. It was just there, the perfect tool to be used. He wondered if he could expand or empower it, not to mention modify it to block Tachi if need be. What other alterations could he do to it?

He supposed he'd have to see.

He frowned, his lips pursing, at another implication. If she had revealed the Veil, a tool he'd thought she'd keep under wraps for her own benefit... would she reveal Talson Fry and the plans for the Expeditionary Battle Planetoid platform? His eyes narrow dangerously at the thought. After the Jedi were destroyed, the superweapon would keep the Galaxy in line while he was freed at last to explore and experiment unrestrained into the depths of the Dark Side. It was a key piece of his plans. He would tolerate no danger to it. He contemplates his potential course of action. The bond to Tachi is still there, which is a curious thing that she hasn't done anything about it yet. She almost never uses or acknowledges it, perhaps it's slipped her mind. He could use it to preform a Memory Rub and wipe it from her. Though there were dangers to this as she would assuredly fight him on it, and he did not want to destroy her mind. He'd stay his hand for now, but if he thought she'd become a threat to the Expeditionary Battle Planetoid platform he would act.

He hummed to himself, "I think it needs a shorter and more impactful name..."