Chapter Fifteen: Conflicts and Consequences
While Anakin was chafing at having to stay on Naboo and not go to his mother, Obi-Wan was having a very tough time on Kamino. The Jedi Knight swore as he was forced to fight the bounty hunter he'd come to pick up for questioning and thought that it was a very good thing that his Padawan, Syra was not here to see his master get his butt kicked. Finally, when Jango and his son Boba had escaped on their ship, Obi-Wan attached a tracking device to their hull and flew off after them in his starfighter.
He groaned as he was engaged in a vicious dogfight in the middle of the asteroid field surrounding Geonosis. "Bloody seismic charges" he growled as he dodged debris from the latest explosion. Getting ahead of his target he found himself the focus of intense laser fire as well as a couple of missiles. Swerving round an asteroid he had an idea.
"Jettison the spare parts canisters R4" he snapped to his droid. R4 beeped in acknowledgement and did as ordered. A few seconds later the pursuit vanished and Obi-Wan was free to track where his prey had gone to. He followed Jango down onto the world of Geonosis, a planet inhabited by insect like beings that lived to build weapons of mass destruction and sell them to the highest bidder.
Obi-Wan quietly landed his ship in a canyon and got out. He looked round before cloaking himself with the Force to hide his presence and then quickly and quietly made his way up a nearby path which led into the catacombs.
He softly walked along the paths, before hearing voices. He pressed himself against a wall and spied on the meeting. He counted several important members of the Republic, including the head of the Banking clan, the Techno Union guild, and the Trade Federation. He pressed his lips together and hissed quietly in annoyance. This looked like a meeting whose members were getting ready for war if the talk of battle droids was any indication. He quietly left down the same path that he'd come up and ran to his ship.
"Come in Harry" he said into his long range transmitter, which sparked and then died on him. Growling, he tried the short range one, and tried to contact Harry on Naboo. He didn't get a reply though.
"Odd, I could have sworn he said he was going to Naboo" he muttered. Thinking quickly he widened the range and picked up Harry's tracking signal from Tatooine. Frowning he muttered, "I wonder what he's doing there" before hurriedly composing the message that he needed to send to Coruscant. He was almost finished when he spotted two destroyer droids heading towards him at top speed. Igniting his lightsaber he tried to fight them but was captured. The last thing he thought before he was knocked out was that he hoped that Harry would get the message and act on it before it was too late for the galaxy.
Earlier on...
Back on Naboo James, Lily, Padme and Harry were sleeping peacefully in their beds in the lakeside retreat, enjoying the chance for a sleep in, when a low humming woke them. All four woke and ran outside, with Harry in the lead in case it was a trap. It wasn't of course, and they watched helplessly as Harry's beloved ship took off, with Anakin on board, heading for outer space. James, Lily and Padme looked worried as Harry let out a deep growl and spun back round to go inside, practically vibrating with anger.
"Uh Harry, are you alright?" Padme asked tentatively. Harry had had a hard time convincing her to use his name but finally succeeded. Harry turned to face her, and by default his parents as well, as they'd followed Padme and himself inside.
"No I'm not alright Padme. Anakin has just flown off to attend to a personal matter in the middle of a mission, turning his back on his mandate to protect you, and leaving me here as the sole person in charge of security. Turning round to face the open balcony he growled again as he added, "And he took MY ship!"
Padme looked undecided for a minute before saying, "Then we should go after him Harry." She found herself the focus of an intense, penetrating gaze for a few seconds before Harry shrugged. "I cannot in good conscience allow you to go Senator but if you were to take your ship, I would have to go with you."
"Us too" James interjected. Padme looked at them and then back at Harry. Her look hardened and then she headed for the hangar bay where her ship was kept. Minutes later they were on their way.
"Which direction Harry?" Padme asked. Harry thought for a moment before remembering Anakin's recurring nightmares regarding his mother. "Tatooine, he's been having nightmares regarding his mother for the past few weeks. He'll have gone there."
Padme nodded. "Right. Course set for Tatooine." The sleek Nubian spaceship jumped into hyperspace, following the course set by Harry's wayward Padawan.
On board the Marauder Anakin was focused on one thing and one thing only, finding and saving his mother. He'd felt Harry's anger when he'd seen the Marauder taking off and felt guilty for turning his back on his duty but he felt he needed to save his mother first.
'I promise Master, when I've saved her I'll return and face any punishment you see fit to impose but until then I need to do this. I'm sorry' he thought, sending it over his bond with Harry. He didn't know if it had been received but felt a bit better for having sent it anyway.
On board Padme's ship there was a tense silence. Padme was piloting the ship, while Harry sat in the co pilot's chair, fuming to himself, and attempting to release his anger to the Force. It wouldn't do to catch up to Anakin and then promptly kill him. James and Lily kept silent because they didn't know what to say. Over the four years that they'd been part of the Jedi Order they'd come to know something of the rules governing Master/Padawan relationships, as well as the rules about missions. They knew that Anakin had done something serious here but didn't feel happy about speaking to Harry about it. This was a side of him that they really hadn't had much contact with, the pissed off Jedi Master side, and they were honest enough with themselves to admit that they were more than a little intimidated by Harry at the moment. The fact that he kept growling at odd intervals didn't help. Finally after a few hours they arrived on Tatooine.
Harry took over here and guided the ship down to where he sensed the Marauder was. He found his ship outside a small moisture farm and landed Padme's ship next to it. As he walked down the ramp, followed by Padme, James and Lily a young man came out to meet them followed by an older man in a hover chair.
Harry extended his hand in greeting. "Hello, I'm Harry Potter, Anakin's Jedi Master. This is Padme and my parents, James and Lily Potter. Where is Anakin?"
The man shook Harry's hand firmly before replying, "I'm Owen Lars, and this is my father Cliegg Lars. Anakin went after his mother, a few minutes ago. Shmi was captured by Tuskens about a month ago and Anakin didn't want to accept that she's probably dead by now. He took off on my speeder."
Harry nodded tersely before saying, "I'm going after him. Could Padme and my parents please stay with you until we return?"
At Owen's nod Harry turned to his companions. "Stay here, you'll be safe. These are good people. Don't stray from the farm. I'll see you later, with Anakin."
With that he turned away from them. A second later he had transformed into Goldshadow. The Griffin shook itself and then took to the sky, heading off in search of Anakin. James, Lily and Padme watched him go before heading inside with Owen and Cliegg to meet Owen's girlfriend, Beru.
Anakin had located the Tusken camp where his mother was being held and had used the Force to enter unseen. A swift circle with his lightsaber cut a hole in the wall of the hut where Shmi was located and he entered to find an appalling sight.
Shmi was tied to a wooden rack-like construction and she looked terrible. Using the Force, Anakin could sense that his mother was dying. Hurriedly he untied her and then spoke to her. After about 3 or 4 minutes where Anakin desperately tried to heal her with the Force, Shmi Skywalker died, after telling her son that she loved him. At this point, Anakin lost all sense of right and wrong.
Gently closing Shmi's eyes, he breathed in and out, trying to control the maelstrom of emotions that were boiling inside him. He could feel his master's presence drawing closer but didn't care overly much. Angry now and wanting revenge, the Jedi Padawan started killing all the Tuskens in the camp, starting with the guards outside the hut he was in.
Harry flew closer, mentally groaning as he felt the Dark Side emanating strongly from Anakin, and the deaths of the Tusken Raiders. He pumped his wings harder hoping to get to his Padawan in time to save some of the camp from death. Landing he transformed back into his human form and jumped into a scene of carnage. Up ahead of him he saw Anakin swing his lightsaber at a defenceless Tusken Raider who looked like it might be a child, judging by the size. Shaking his head he swallowed to force down the bile that had risen in the back of his throat and yelled, "ANAKIN SKYWALKER! STOP THIS IMMEDIATELY!"
A couple of Tusken Raiders ran up to Harry, and the Knight immobilized them with a quick spell, not hurting them, just making sure that they couldn't hurt him. He did the same with any other Tuskens that came to attack him as he made his way over to Anakin.
Anakin himself had automatically frozen for a minute upon hearing his master's shouted order. At first he was stunned, Harry rarely yelled at him so it was a measure of how annoyed he was that he had done so. After another couple of minutes however he'd shaken off his shock and had returned to his killing spree. It didn't matter that most of whom he was now killing were women and children, the Padawan couldn't see past his grief and anger over his mother's death.
Suddenly he found himself held immobile by the Force, and he was then spun round to face Harry, who was looking at him in annoyance but with a strong degree of sympathy mixed in with it. Anakin snarled at his master but Harry merely lifted an eyebrow.
"Anakin" he started, his tone firm but sympathetic, "I understand what you're going through, believe me I do, but this isn't the way to deal with it. Stop what you're doing and come with me. Don't continue down this path."
Anakin felt the Force bonds holding him disappear, and took in Harry's stance, which was alert to any movement he might make but still inviting. He hesitated before once more seeing the hut where his mother's body lay. His anger reignited and he snarled out, "Leave me alone" before turning away and heading towards the nearest hut with still living Tuskens. He felt Harry approach him, felt the Force coalesce round him to hold him captive again and he angrily lashed out with his own power, forcing Harry's Force bonds away. He turned and lashed out with the Force again, throwing Harry a good few meters to land in the sand outside one of the huts that had already been destroyed. The Padawan then entered the hut he was headed towards and made short work of the occupants. When he emerged he found Harry standing in front of him, blocking his path to the rest of the camp. Anakin blinked before he raised his lightsaber in a clear challenge. In the back of his mind he knew what he was doing was wrong but the larger part of his mind, the part that was screaming for revenge, told him that Harry was standing between him and avenging his mother. He advanced on his master, preparing to strike.
Harry's eyes hardened and his stance changed to one that was ready for battle. He still tried to defuse the situation though; he really didn't want to have to fight Anakin.
"Padawan, I don't want to have to fight you, I don't want to hurt you, but if you continue down this path I'll have no choice. Please Anakin, listen to me. Don't do this."
Anakin's response was a savage slash at Harry's midsection. Harry blocked it and then locked his apprentice's blade with his own before trying a Stupefy spell. Anakin disengaged his blade and blocked it in a show of reflexes that Harry felt fairly proud of, before ducking to avoid a cut that would have cleaved his head from his shoulders. He spared a moment to think that he'd really trained Anakin a bit too well, and began defending himself, not quite willing to launch any attacks of his own. This proved to be his downfall as Anakin made a cut to his head and then reversed his blade and dug it into Harry's left thigh. Harry went down with a muttered curse, and rolled away, before drawing his wand and firing curses and jinxes meant to incapacitate Anakin which were all blocked and deflected. Stepping closer to his master, Anakin brought his foot down on Harry's injured thigh, while keeping his blade ready to block any attack that Harry might try with his lightsaber. When his master jerked upwards in pain, the knife edge of the Padawan's hand caught him in the back of the neck. Harry blacked out.
When he came to he discovered a scene of devastation. Not one single Tusken Raider remained alive and the speeder, along with Anakin and Shmi were gone. Harry pulled himself to his feet, hissing as he put weight on his injured leg. He spared a moment to strengthen it with the Force, as well as deadening the nerves in that area so he could move with a minimum of discomfort. He quickly centered himself and transformed back into Goldshadow before beginning the flight back to the Lars farm.
Anakin had reached the farm earlier and had carried Shmi's body inside, before heading out to the workshop where he was found tinkering with the equipment. James and Lily could sense that something was seriously wrong with him, and they were also worried about Harry. Padme had gone out to attempt to talk to Anakin, and she'd discovered a few things about what had happened, allowing Anakin to release some of his emotions but not all of them. They were brought out of the workshop when Owen came running in to say, "Harry's back."
They all ran outside with the exception of Cliegg to see a weary Harry standing somewhat unsteadily on the sand. His leg was really beginning to hurt and the welcoming committee could see the nasty wound through the torn fabric of his trouser leg. Anakin swallowed hard, the memory of what had happened the night before suddenly hitting him. He quietly attempted to leave but a sharp "Stay right where you are Padawan" stopped him in his tracks. He turned round, to see Harry standing straight again, as if he wasn't injured at all. He could sense that his master was making liberal use of the Force in order to accomplish this but didn't care about that at the moment. All he cared about was trying to make the cold anger that he could clearly see in Harry's eyes go away.
"Master I" he began. Harry shook his head, stopping his attempt at apologizing. "Don't even start Anakin. I'm not in the mood to listen. You do realize what you've done don't you? You used the Dark Side of the Force to kill a camp full of beings, most of whom were innocent women and children. You refused to listen to me and then attacked me when I tried to stop you from continuing. You also deliberately disobeyed our orders to protect Padme and came here alone without clearing it with me or the Council first. And lastly, you STOLE MY SHIP!"
Anakin swallowed hard, and a quick glance round showed that Owen, Beru, James, Lily and Padme had retreated inside so they wouldn't have to witness the ugly scene between Master and Padawan. James was wincing as he went inside and once they were safely in the lounge he said, "He's definitely inherited your temper Lils." Lily nodded her eyes wide as she struggled to equate her normally even tempered son with the cold, stern Jedi Knight outside. She couldn't do it though, and realized that it was probably best to leave the two Jedi to it.
"Do you think Anakin's safe with Harry right now?" Padme asked. James chuckled briefly before replying, "Yes. Harry's extremely annoyed with Anakin but he won't physically harm him. He's just giving Anakin a well deserved reprimand from the sound of it."
Outside Anakin had to work to fight back tears; Harry had lowered his voice to that deadly tone that said he was so far beyond annoyed that it wasn't funny. The last time Anakin had heard it was the one and only time he'd decided to go underage drinking. The Padawan tried to sense his master's feelings over their bond but found it firmly shielded, which was another indication of how angry and upset Harry was. Finally Anakin found the courage to speak.
"Master I'm sorry. I just, I just got swept away by my emotions, I couldn't control them. I did try but you were in the way and then, oh Force Master, I'm sorry for hurting you, I am it's just,"
"Just that you were more interested in sating your blood lust than listening to me, and using the lessons I've taught you in order to control yourself?" Harry enquired bitingly. Tone still cold he continued, "A Jedi is in control of his emotions, they are NEVER supposed to be in control of him. To be angry is to be human, yes, but you are a Jedi! You're better than what I saw last night. Far better."
As Anakin swallowed again, holding back tears through sheer willpower, Harry stepped back from him and looked at him sternly. He knew that Anakin was close to tears, but found himself not really caring all that much. He needed to ram the severity of the situation home to his Padawan so that this would never happen again. He sighed, knowing that what he would say next would scare Anakin but it needed to be said.
"Look at me Padawan" he said, waiting until slightly damp blue eyes met his, before continuing. "I would be well within my rights to ask the Council to dissolve our bond, and then expel you from the Order for this. For a Padawan to use the Dark Side is serious, for them to attack their master is even worse. Murdering innocent beings is merely deepening the grave you're digging." He paused as Anakin gasped and began to speak, sounding slightly hysterical.
"You won't though, Master, will you? I'll make it up to you, I'll do anything you want, just please don't do that, please."
"Silence!" Harry snapped, and Anakin fell silent immediately, not wanting to anger his master any further. Harry paced for a few minutes before saying in a slightly gentler tone, though still stern and chilly, "I won't do that, but I will have to convince the Council to go along with not expelling you."
At Anakin's sigh of relief his tone hardened again. "Over the years you've made me feel a range of emotions Anakin. Pride in your accomplishments, annoyance and disappointment when you got in trouble, and also love for you as a son. Never though, have you made me feel ashamed."
Turning away he added quietly, "Until now that is." That was the breaking point as Anakin finally couldn't hold the tears back any longer and fell to his knees. Harry turned back towards him before walking past him and into the small house. Inside he sat down and allowed Lily to tend to his leg whilst being very aware of the uncomfortable silence pervading the room. Finally as his mother finished treating his wound he asked, "How much did you hear?"
Cliegg answered the question. "Not a whole lot. Is he OK?"
Harry smiled grimly. "He's upset and coming to terms with a few harsh truths that I opened his eyes to but he'll be OK given time."
"What truths?" James asked, half afraid of the answer. Harry stared at him and for a second a hard look entered his eyes, making James suddenly feel like he was the one in trouble. "The truth that his actions last night could very well be grounds for his expulsion from the Jedi Order. The truth that through his actions he's managed to make me feel a whole new depth of disappointment. The truth that it will take a long time to heal this breach between us and it's entirely his fault."
He would have said more but a beeping from the doorway drew his attention. "R2 what are you doing here?" he said calmly. The droid beeped at him and then C-3PO arrived beside him. "He's carrying a message from an Obi-Wan Kenobi. Do you know him sir?"
Harry leapt into action. Swiftly he took R2 back to the Marauder and plugged him into the holoprojector. That done, he played the message back, aware that Padme, James, Lily and Anakin were with him. After watching the message, and retransmitting it to Coruscant as Obi-Wan had requested, Harry had a brief discussion with Mace.
"I will go to Geonosis to rescue Obi-Wan, my Padawan will accompany the Senator and my parents back to Coruscant. It may turn into a battle on Geonosis, I don't know, but I don't feel comfortable taking the Senator there."
"Understood Harry. We'll await Anakin and the Senator at the Temple. May the Force be with you."
"And with you" Harry said before ending the transmission. Turning to face the quartet behind him he found himself faced with three mutinous stares and one subdued one. Before he could speak he found himself being pinned with a glare from James. "We are coming with you Harry" he stated firmly. Harry stood his ground and glared at his father.
"I know you used to be an Auror Dad, and I know that Mum is no slouch in a fight either but the whole point of this is that it will be a quick and quiet extraction mission. Besides, I need you to accompany Anakin and Padme back to Coruscant, and no more side trips, or turning round to follow me. I will do this alone; it will be the best way of bringing Obi-Wan home alive. No Arguments."
James and Harry locked themselves in a staring match which Harry won. James looked down and admitted defeat before stepping forward and hugging Harry tightly. "Take care of yourself" he said before taking Anakin's arm gently and beginning to tug the Padawan towards the ramp. A head shake from Harry stopped him and he let go and continued down the ramp alone. Lily hugged him as well, and whispered the same message, to which Harry merely smiled and hugged her back tightly. Padme didn't hug him but just said, "Stay safe Harry" before turning and following James and Lily over to her ship. Finally, only Anakin and Harry were left. R2 had followed Padme. Anakin swallowed and said, "You don't trust me anymore do you Master?"
Harry sat down with a sigh. "Do I trust you to take care of Padme? Yes I do. Do I trust you to stay in control of your emotions? No not particularly. You did something very serious and very wrong last night Anakin, you know it and so do I. It will take some time to heal the rift that you caused, and for you to gain back my trust again. Expect a lot of work on emotion control and anger management when I get back. Even if you hadn't done this though, I would still have gone to get Obi-Wan alone, for the reasons I stated earlier, a quick, quiet one man extraction mission."
Anakin nodded before turning to leave. Harry stood up. "Padawan" he said. Anakin turned to face him. "I still love you, don't doubt that. I'm also still highly annoyed at what happened though. Just go back to Coruscant, finish the mission, and when we see each other again we'll talk about it calmly. Go now."
Anakin nodded and left the ship, pausing in his walk to Padme's ship as he heard the sound of the Marauder's engines starting up. He watched with a heavy heart as Harry flew away without him, before turning and walking up the ramp of the other ship. Once he was strapped in they lifted off and flew away from Tatooine, with R2 and C3PO on board. The two ships parted company in the space over the desert planet, Padme headed back to Coruscant and Harry headed towards Geonosis to save his brother.
