Author: TemporaryUniverse
WC: 1035 (Total 4408)

Final Chapter!

Obi-Wan groan turned into a cough as he opened his eyes. He was in a Senate office… staring up at the elegantly decorated ceiling. Why was he…? What had happened?

"General Kenobi?" Someone said. He turned his head, wincing at the memory of pain that disappeared as soon as he noticed it. It was a clone trooper, one of the Coruscant Guard, judging by the red of their armor.

"What—" His voice came out as a rasp, and he cleared his throat. "What am I doing here?"

"You collapsed in the hallway, sir. The Chancellor had you moved here. A doctor has already looked you over, he says it's just exhaustion."

"The Chancellor…" He vaguely remembered talking to the man. Something felt off, like he'd forgotten something important. A piece was missing but at the same time everything seemed to line up and it wasn't making sense. He needed to tell… needed to… His head throbbed as he sat up.

Force, it was so loud. The Force was so loud, bombarding him with impressions and emotions from the people nearby. He tried to raise his shields to shut it out and was stunned to find them completely gone.

Oh.

That would explain it. His shields must have fallen while he was talking to the Chancellor, leading to him passing out. He concentrated for a moment and built up a flimsy barrier. It wouldn't keep everything out, but it would do for now. He was too tired to rebuild them entirely.

When that was done, he rubbed his forehead and reached for his comm. It was missing from his belt. He must have left it at the Temple. That and his lightsaber, it seemed.

"Do you have a comm?"

"Yessir."

"May I borrow it?"

"Of course, sir." The trooper handed it over.

Obi-Wan hesitated for a moment, debating who to call. Normally, it would be Anakin, but he wasn't on planet. He needed someone who wouldn't judge him for his terrible decisions. Or at least, not judge him too much. Someone who wouldn't be irritated by getting a call to come collect him.

He dialed. The call immediately picked up.

"Windu."

"Master Windu, it's Obi-Wan. Are you busy?"

"I just got out of a Council meeting. What do you need?"

"I'm at the Senate…"

"I didn't think you were supposed to leave the Temple," Windu said sternly. At Obi-Wan's guilty silence, he sighed. "Obi-Wan… What happened?"

"It's my shields. I don't think, um, I don't think I can make it home."

"I'll come get you. Give me fifteen minutes." Obi-Wan slumped in relief.

"Thank you, Master."

"I've told you to call me Mace. See you soon."

The next quarter hour was spent making small talk with the trooper, Commander Thorn.

At last, the door opened, and in came Windu, his cloak swishing around his ankles. He made a beeline for Obi-Wan.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Windu gave him a skeptical look. "Really, I am. Some meditation and I'll be good as new." He felt Windu's steady presence brush against his weak shields. Another layer of Light wrapped around him, bolstering his mind and his headache eased.

"Master Che is not going to be happy with you," Windu said.

"I'm trying not to think about it," he replied drily.

A comforting hand landed on Obi-Wan's shoulder.

"Let's get you home."

Obi-Wan nodded to Thorn as they left, "Thank you, Commander."

"Just doing my job, sir."

Windu led him through the halls, his hand never leaving Obi-Wan's shoulder. Obi-Wan breathed a sigh of relief as they exited the building and the strain of being around so many people lessened. They got into the Temple-issue speeder, Windu behind the wheel. He mercifully didn't question Obi-Wan at all as he drove, which was exactly why Obi-Wan had called him. They made it back to the Temple with little incident other than having to watch out for a few reckless drivers.

Despite Obi-Wan's half-hearted protests, Windu accompanied him all the way to his quarters, insisting it wasn't a bother. They stopped just outside, and Windu lightly touched his arm to draw his attention.

"You really should go see Master Che."

"I'll see her tomorrow."

"Obi-Wan…"

"I just… I can't right now, Mace." He was tired and all he wanted was to sleep the rest of the day away, not get poked and prodded by the healers. "Thank you for the ride."

"Take care of yourself, okay?"

With a nod of acknowledgement, he waved goodbye to Windu and went in. As soon as the door closed behind him, he sagged, scrubbing a hand over his face. The exhaustion was hitting hard. Now that Windu was gone, his headache was back, too. He shucked off his cloak and boots, putting them neatly in their places.

He thought about going to bed but knew that if he didn't get his shields back to full strength, he would be plagued by nightmares. Mediation it was.

As he passed by the table, he noticed his comm sitting there innocently, blinking from a missed message. He nearly ignored it, but what if it was something important?

The message was from Bail.

"Obi-Wan. Giana told me you'd been by today, I'm sorry to have missed you. Let me know when you're free, I'll come visit."

It was odd, to be friends with a senator, but stranger things had happened. He supposed shared near-death experiences would do that. And Bail was the good sort, the most selfless politician he'd ever met. If only they all could have the same solid moral compass.

He sent back a quick reply, letting him know that anytime tomorrow would be fine. Bail was busier than he was.

That done, he returned to his mission. Constructing his shields.

He sat cross-legged on his meditation mat and, with the ease of decades of practice, sank into the Force.

The next hour was spent assembling the layers of walls around his mind, building each one from the ground up. It was difficult work, and by the time he was too drained to continue, they still weren't quite where he wanted them to be. He'd fix them later, but for now… Sleep.

He at least made it to the couch before passing out.

The nightmares came anyway, and this time, the Darkness seemed stronger.

And that's it! Is this eventually a fix-it? Up to you. I don't have anything more.

Thank you to all who read and commented, you're amazing!