Chapter 1

So, I planned to update this story once a week, but then I went and wrote three chapters since yesterday. I thought I would just post one now, so enjoy :D

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Pink ranger 13: thank you soo much. I really appreciate it!

Kondoru: Thanks! That's a huge compliment!


Obi-Wan sat on a hill overlooking a small home in the middle of the desert. A child was seated in the sand, playing with self-made toys while his uncle was working on some stuff. Of what he was doing, Obi-Wan didn't have a clue. They were moisture farmers. It was a common job among the people on Tatooine. He watched the child every day, seeing how he was doing and if he was okay – if he was still there – and he didn't mind at all.

Obi-Wan had been sitting there for what felt like forever, careful to stay out of sight so that he wouldn't be noticed. It has been going like this for 5 years. Ever since he brought the child to his family. He made sure not to get too close, but it was hard. This was the last part he had left of his former apprentice and friend.

Tatooine's twin suns had already started to set by the time Obi-Wan left to go back to his own 'home'. If you could call it that. It was a small space hidden in the rocks. He walked back, not minding the silence and duration of the walk. He never thought he was one of those people who could truly live in exile, but he managed. He found it quite alright actually. He deserved it, after he'd failed as a Jedi. He had a lot of time to think about what had happened and how things could've gone differently.

=O=

By the time Obi-Wan arrived the suns had fully set, only casting a faint orange glow on the now otherwise dark and endless sandy plains. He was just about to enter when he saw a person waiting near the entrance. His steps faltered. The person wore a cloak with the hood up. The dark glow from the passing sunset making it impossible to make out anything other than the fact that it was a person of some kind. He pulled his lightsaber from his belt and held it in his hand defensively, not knowing what to expect. He approached cautiously, taking slow and careful steps. He used to Force to see if he could sense anything. This person was Force sensitive, that he could feel. He probed at its mind, only to find that the shields that were in place suddenly came down and a familiar Force presence took its place. He couldn't believe it. The person took off her hood and turned around.

There she stood, no longer a teenage former Padawan but a young Togruta woman. Her lekku had grown longer and her montrals stood higher. Obi-Wan knew it had been five years, but she looked so much older. Yet when he thought about it, he probably did too. They stared at each other for a few seconds before the woman's face revealed a smile.

Obi-Wan spoke first. "It's so good to see you Ahsoka," he said, taking a few steps forward and putting his lightsaber back on his belt.

"Same goes for you master," Ahsoka said, her smile growing wider.

They pulled each other in a short hug. It wasn't something they would normally do, ever. But after everything that had happened – no matter that they didn't know the details about each other's lives yet – they felt like this was the right thing to do.

"I can see you have seen and been through a lot," Obi-Wan said, again looking at her. Who could blame him, Ahsoka's clothes looked very obviously worn out and her face looked weary.

"I could say the same for you, master," Ahsoka said. She knew she looked older and wearier, but it was very obvious from just seeing him that the last 5 years had taken a toll on him. It looked like he had been through more in these 5 years than in his entire life before them. And that was saying a lot, knowing how Obi-Wan was during his time within the Order.

"That's also why I'm here," she said after that. "I haven't spoken to anyone since the Empire rose to power. I have no idea what happened. To anyone. You are the first person that I know is alive. And I just... I would like to know what happened," she finished.

Obi-Wan looked down for a second. "Let's get inside," he said then. "It's not safe out here at night and you must be exhausted from your travel. Do you still like tea?" he asked as he made his way inside and signaled for Ahsoka to follow.

Ahsoka did as he instructed. She answered his question about drinking tea, taking notice of the fact that he hadn't said a thing about what happened and questioned if he would tell her. What happened must be hard on him, for him to not say anything at all. She would let him get settled for a while. She did show up unannounced after all.

They drank tea in silence, both just enjoying having familiar company that they could trust. Ahsoka thought it was nice, having the familiar Force presence of master Kenobi around. His entire presence radiated with calmness and reassurance. Something she hadn't felt and had in 5 years. But after 15 minutes of silence she got too curious. She couldn't help it. One could not train years under Anakin Skywalker and discover the art of patience. His skill in patience was even less than none. Thinking about that made her think even more of the faith of her former master.

"Master, what happened? Surely you must know more than I do. I have been dying to know if any of my friends survived." Ahsoka looked down. "Especially Anakin," she added softly.

"No need to call me master Ahsoka, the Order is gone, we're equals here," Obi-Wan said. Ahsoka waited for him to say more but nothing came. She let out a frustrated sigh to which he reacted. But what he said did nothing to lessen her desperate curiosity.

"It's late, we should get some rest. Tomorrow I will tell you more about it all, I promise," Obi-Wan had said. And a promise form Obi-Wan Kenobi must not be taken lightly. Ahsoka was confident he would tell her. Tomorrow. With that thought in mind she went to her assigned sleeping space in his small rocky home and went to sleep.

=O=

Ahsoka woke up when the twin suns of Tatooine were already pretty high up in the sky. She hadn't slept this well in so long. Constantly feeling on edge and afraid someone would give her Force nature and position away to the Empire. Now, being here with Obi-Wan made her feel a lot safer. Speaking of Obi-Wan, she now noticed she was alone in the small home. She quickly got up, fighter instincts kicking in. She carefully made her way outside, and thank the Force, there he was. Drinking tea in the sunlight. It shouldn't have surprised Ahsoka. Obi-Wan was known for drinking tea multiple times a day. He turned around, making it known he'd heard her coming. He handed her a cup and something to eat as breakfast. It wasn't much, but she was used to that by now. Life on the run was different than normal life, or life in the war for that matter.

They again sat in silence for a little while. Ahsoka noticed Obi-Wan was meditating. She didn't dare interrupt him. She may have left the Order, but she still remembered the importance of meditation to a Jedi. She decided to do a little meditation herself when after another little while she got pulled out by Obi-Wan.

"Walk with me," he said. They got up. Obi-Wan picked up some rations and they were on their way. Where they were going? Ahsoka had no idea. Obi-Wan had been very vague with her ever since she got here.

=O=

It felt like forever before they got to their destination. Yes, Ahsoka was allowed to exaggerate, she couldn't feel her feet anymore! She was so glad when Obi-Wan sat down on top of a hill. She sat down next to him. Not far from their position was a small homestead. A man and woman walked around with a small boy. Ahsoka couldn't for the life of her guess his age, different species and all. She noticed Obi-Wan looking at the boy intently. She couldn't help but seriously wonder what all this was about.

After a few minutes she decided to just voice her question. He had promised to tell her stuff. "What are we doing here? Who are these people?" Ahsoka asked. Obi-Wan looked at her.

"Those are Owen and Beru Lars. And that is their adopted son, Luke Skywalker," Obi-Wan said as he looked back to the boy.

Ahsoka was speechless for at least a couple minutes. Skywalker?! What?! So many things were going through her head. Skywalker as in... Anakin Skywalker? Her former master?

"I don't understand," Ahsoka said, looking at the boy as well. "Are you saying…? Is this...?" She couldn't finish her sentences, not daring to ask.

"Luke is Anakin's son, yes," Obi-Wan said. He didn't look at Ahsoka. He just kept staring at the boy.

Ahsoka was again speechless. What the kriff? How was that even possible. Jedi weren't allowed to have any kind of relationships. And now Anakin had a son?! Who even was the mother?

The moment Ahsoka thought of that question, she knew who the mother was. "It's Padmé, isn't it?" she asked. Obi-Wan nodded. Ahsoka looked back towards the child with sadness.

Ahsoka had learned of Padmé's death a few months after the rise of the Empire. She was on Naboo at the time and it was everywhere on the HoloNet. 'Our beloved senator and former queen has passed' and other headlines were everywhere. They were already working on a statue for a memorial. She was saddened by this news, for she viewed Padmé as a friend of sorts. To know that she hadn't survived the fall of the Republic was horrible. Ahsoka had mourned her for sure.

Now this begged the question: did that mean Anakin was dead too? Since their child was here, with others. She was almost afraid to ask the question, but she had to know. "I know she passed away, but what about Anakin. Please don't tell me he's gone," Ahsoka pleaded.

Obi-Wan said nothing. He didn't know how to say this to Ahsoka. Yes, technically Anakin was gone but not in the way she thought. Yet he might as well be. He decided to say nothing. He'd explain to her, someway, somehow. He would. "We should talk somewhere else. We don't want them to notice us or anyone to listen in on this conversation," he eventually said.

Ahsoka didn't take his silence to her question all too well. It could only mean one thing. Anakin was gone. Grief overtook her. She should've seen it coming. His Force signature had been gone for a long time now. All the evidence was there, but she had never wanted to accept it. Without saying a word, Ahsoka got up to follow Obi-Wan to someplace more secure. She would finally find out the truth.

=O=

They settled down a short walk from the Lars Homestead when Obi-Wan began his story.

"You probably know Palpatine is the Emperor. But that's not all there is to his story. Palpatine was the Sith Lord we'd been looking for, and we figured it out too late. Apparently, he'd been grooming an apprentice within the Jedi Order. Unknown to said knight and to us. By the time both had figured it out, it was too late. One of our own betrayed us, turned to the Dark Side and slaughtered many. He led the attack on the Temple with the clones. Every single one of the Jedi present were killed, even the younglings."

Ahsoka flinched at that. Who could do such a thing? Younglings, so innocent. They should've gotten a chance to escape or to be raised differently, but what did her opinion matter anyway. This happened 5 years ago, they were long dead. Worrying about their faith was useless now.

Obi-Wan continued "Palpatine issued Order 66. An Order put into the mind of the clones to make them kill any Jedi on sight. That's how all the Jedi on missions died." He took a deep and shaky breath; this part was still hard on him. "Cody issued his troops to fire on me, almost ending my life. Had I not fallen in the water I would not be here. I thought the bond I had with the clones was good. Nothing like you and Anakin had with yours, but good anyway. Guess I was wrong." He closed his eyes for a second.

Ahsoka could tell this was very hard on Obi-Wan. She decided to make it a little easier about sharing her experience. "I know what you mean. The 332nd attacked me as well. I was fighting Maul on Mandalore and suddenly we were being shot at. I barely escaped. I stole a small ship and planned to go back to Coruscant but couldn't because the ship was broken. I made it to Onderon where I learned of what happened, but only in vague detail. Looking back, I was lucky. I probably wouldn't be alive if I had gone back to Coruscant." Ahsoka sighed. "How did none of us notice what Palpatine was doing? How did we not see that he was a Sith? How did we let this happen?" she asked, not really expecting an answer.

"We were so busy with the war – that he orchestrated as well. He played both sides on it – we had no idea what was really happening. We were so blind. The Order could never get back up from this failure. But okay, back to what you wanted to hear. I went back to Coruscant and met up with Yoda. We got to the Temple; it was abandoned. The feeling of death strong in the Force. By checking the security footage, I knew who the traitor was. I followed him to Mustafar where we dueled. The fight took a lot out of me, physically and emotionally. But I won, or so I thought. The fact that Darth Vader roams around the galaxy says enough." Obi-Wan finished his story with a heavy heart. Regret radiated through the Force and he knew it. He knew Ahsoka would pick up on it.

All Ahsoka could think was how this was an awful story. She couldn't believe Obi-Wan had to go through that. At least she now knew that Master Yoda was also still alive. Well, he'd been alive back then. Still, one question remained. Who betrayed the Order? The Republic? "Is Darth Vader Palpatine's enforcer? Is that him? The knight that fell?" she asked carefully.

Obi-Wan didn't look at Ahsoka. She deserved to know, but didn't know if she could handle the truth. "Yes, Darth Vader is the fallen Jedi Knight, but I don't think you want to know who he is, Ahsoka," he said.

Ahsoka didn't understand. She presented that with anger. "I do want to know! I had friends in the Order still! They're gone! Anakin is gone! I want to know who did it! I will avenge them!" she almost screamed.

"I don't want to ruin the image you have of him. I don't want to ruin your friendship with him," Obi-Wan said, still not looking at her.

Ahsoka thought hard. So, she was obviously friends with this Jedi. Obi-Wan said he was a knight. She didn't have many friends who'd become knights. There was only one really and he was…

Her thoughts trailed off. No. It couldn't be. Obi-Wan said he was dead. But on second thought, he didn't. he hadn't said anything when she had asked. Tears immediately welled up in her eyes. "No, it can't be him. Don't tell me it's him," she said, trying to keep it together. She heard Obi-Wan sigh. He put his hand on her shoulder.

"Anakin fell to the Dark Side. He became Darth Vader."


This was chapter one! I can't say for certain when I'll update next, tho. In the meantime, please don't hesitate to leave a review. I always aprreciate feedback :)