ATCRW – Thanks so much for being a great reader of this tale. LOL about it being "bad" when you "get" somebody. I am sorry but I can't be nice to Padme. It is not in the cards but we have a few chapters yet.
Author's Note: Another slow one, as I promised, but necessary to set up the situation. I thought I would provide a wee spoiler by revealing future subtitles. They are "The Sith Revealed" (5), "Birth" (6), "Dark Lady Rampant" (7), "Duel of the Fates" (8), "Dark Lady Triumphant" (9), and "Eternal Queen" (10).
A Twist of Fate 4: Decisions, Loyalties
Anakira had stormed out of the Council meeting. She knew they didn't trust her and this was the proof. They had made her a member of the Jedi Council, as the status granted her by the Chancellor's favor and assignment made necessary but they had not made her a Master. She felt the unfairness of it turning like a worm in her gut.
As much as she held Obi-Wan dear, he was part of that. He could have taken her part more ardently. All he did was tell her the Council had given her a great honor for one her age and would make her a Master soon enough. She was the Chosen One. What did age have to do with that?
The worst betrayal came after the Council was over and he came to her. She was expecting him to tell her how he disagreed with the Council and how they should have made her a Master. Instead, he asked her to spy on the Chancellor because her position gave her a good opportunity to do so.
If they thought they could use her as a pawn, they were wrong. Her allegiance was to the Republic. Only a strong Republic could bring peace to the Galaxy. She was a war heroine and often enjoyed the thrill of battle, especially when she was in the cockpit of a fighter but she was tired of the constant fighting and the destruction wrought by war.
She loved the freedom of whirling through the vacuum of space and executing intricate maneuvers. She loved to tease Obi-Wan about being a timid flyer. He was better with a lightsaber, barely, but she was by far the superior flyer.
Bail attempted to talk to her in the days leading up to her departure but she refused to speak with him. He would not dare tell their secret or try to take the babies from her now that he knew her power. He was just a politician from a pacifist planet, after all, and she had nothing left to discuss with him. She thought she had made her point quite eloquently.
The night before she was to leave with Palpatine, Obi-Wan came to her room to bid her farewell. She was still a bit frustrated with him for not taking her side with the Council but she would not see him again for some time and there was a war no. No father or brother could have been dearer to her and, what if the Jedi Council sent him on a mission alone, without her there to save him? Her main fear about this assignment was that he would not be there when she returned. After her separation from her mother, Qui-Gon's death, her mother's death, and the deaths of those she knew in the war, the young Jedi had become hypersensitive to the fear of losing those she cared about. She made a fierce vow that she would, at least, never lose her babies.
"Anakira," said Obi-Wan, "I sense you are troubled I don't like the idea of you in the company of Palpatine in such a state of mind. Be careful of him."
"We have already been over this, Master," she sighed and, in a half-joking tone, continued, "and I am tired of discussing it. What I don't like is the thought that you will be sent into something you can't handle by yourself. After all, I have saved your life nine times."
Obi-Wan grinned and there was a twinkle in his eyes as he responded, "Actually, it is eight by my count, Ani, but well done indeed." He put his hand on her shoulder and said, "I have faith in you, my Padawan. Have some faith in me. I will still be here when you return, I promise."
She smiled and said, "You always keep your promises. Well, I promise you can always rely on me to rescue you. I am grateful for your teachings, Master. I know I don't say that enough."
As he left the room, Anakira thought that, as much as she cared for Obi-Wan and as much as she loved most aspects of being a Jedi, her first loyalty was to her unborn children and the Republic before the Jedis. If there was ever a conflict in her loyalties, she knew which came first. She did not know that this was the last time she and Obi-Wan would meet as friends and, that the next time they met, she would have broken all vows; to him, to herself, and to the order.