A/N: Okay, so I know I already posted a chapter today, but it snowed at my house and I built a snow D-O and so now I'm really happy.

Enjoy!

Obi-Wan paced back and forth as I sat on my bed.

"Obi-Wan, all I'm saying is Anakin needs to learn to let go of his fear. He-"

"Oh, I know he has a lot of fear, Drinna, but what I don't understand is why you let him attempt to rid himself of it on his own! You should have known better!" Obi-Wan said, exasperated. He threw his hands in the air and turned to face me.

"Some people hide their fear deep, Obi-Wan. You know this! Anakin needed to see that, too. I didn't think it would be so deeply rooted in his core! You know how hard it is going to be, which is why I need to keep doing this with him. Obi-Wan, please," I pleaded. "If he really is the Chosen One, he needs to bring balance to the galaxy. But if he doesn't have balance within himself, that won't be possible."

Obi-Wan began his pacing again, slower this time. I sighed and looked at my hands. Obi-Wan could be so stubborn sometimes.

Obi-Wan sighed and stopped pacing.

"Alright," he said softly, moving to sit by me. "You can continue working with Anakin, but I'd like to be there, too. I am his teacher, after all," he said wryly.

"I know, Obi-Wan. Which is why I wanted to pitch the idea to you before I got any farther. You know I would have gone along with it regardless of your approval, but I wanted to let you know what I thought."

Obi-Wan huffed and shook his head, smiling at me gently.

"I appreciate the thought," Obi-Wan said. I chuckled. "Though I hope next time you won't put the younglings in danger like that."

"I had it under control!" I protested. "Except for… nevermind."

"Except for what, Drinna?" Obi-Wan asked, scooching closer. "Drinna, what happened?"

I opened my mouth and closed it, shaking my head. I refused to look at Obi-Wan. If I did, I would spill. I had seen something and I didn't want it to come true.

"Drinna, I need you to tell me, especially if it is about Anakin." When I didn't respond, Obi-Wan reached out and gently grabbed my chin. "Drinna, please," he whispered, pulling my head gently to face his.

His eyes were locked on mine, searching. They shone with a… light. Comforting. I hadn't noticed their color before… a beautiful gray-blue.

Beautiful?

"Alright," I replied, merely a whisper, shaking my head to get rid of the thought. "But it'd be easier to show you."

Obi-Wan nodded and took my hands, closing his eyes and breathing deeply. I sat there for a moment, just looking at him. His auburn hair had been slightly mussed in his distress. He'd been growing it out for some time now, and it was at a nice length. He had grown a beard, too, which was much different from when we were both Padawans.

Now I was the only one that was a Padawan, at twenty-three.

Of course, Obi-Wan had been twenty-five when he became a Knight, but it still felt odd to not be on the same level as him. To know that he was… no. I wouldn't be jealous. That was not the way of the Jedi.

"When you're done staring," Obi-Wan said, smirking. "You were going to show me something?"

"Right!" I cried, giving his hands a squeeze. I took a deep, calming breath and focused, allowing the Force to flow through me. I felt it connecting Obi-Wan and myself and I reveled in the calm that Obi-Wan exuded.

Drawing upon my memory, I allowed it to show through Obi-Wan's open mind.

Anakin was older now, though he still had his Padawan braid. He had a blue lightsaber ignited in his hands, fury etched on his face. His fear had come true. His mother was dead.

And his eyes were a blazing yellow, like the tales I'd heard of the Sith. The eyes matched the Sith's, the one who had killed my Master. The one who wanted to kill me.

Anakin slaughtered the creatures who had killed his mother, not resting until they were all dead.

I lurched away again, gasping for breath. A thin sheen of sweat trickled down my forehead and I wiped it away, falling back against the bed.

"Drinna?" Obi-Wan asked, shaking me gently. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I replied, attempting to sit up and falling back on the bed, exhausted. "I've never done that before."

"So it would have been easier to tell me?" Obi-Wan asked with a chuckle.

"Probably," I responded. "But I wanted to see if it would work."

Obi-Wan shook his head and stood up.

"You are one of the most stubborn people I know," he said, smiling down at me. "I'll go get a healer."

"No!" I protested. "I'll be fine. I just… need a minute."

"Drinna, I know you pretty well. You need more than a minute."

"I know," I muttered, looking away and biting my lip. "But if Master Windu found out that I'd done something without getting a Master to help… besides you… he'd set back my training by months!"

"So what do you want me to do?" Obi-Wan asked, sitting back down on my bed.

"Just… stay?" I murmured. "I can't be alone in my condition and… I may need help if meditation can't fix this."

"I'd say it's mostly just mental strain," Obi-Wan commented, laying back. "You should just be able to sleep it off. But I'll stay to make sure you'll be alright, if that's what you want."

"You're a calming presence, Obi-Wan," I murmured. "Thank you."

Obi-Wan was… concerned, to say the least. After Drinna had fallen asleep, he'd removed her lightsaber from her belt and placed it on her nightstand before tucking her in her bed. He sat at the foot of her bed now, thinking over… everything.

Drinna obviously thought that the vision she had seen was important enough for him to see in person. But what it meant, Obi-Wan had no idea. He knew Anakin struggled with missing his mother, and he knew that Anakin still held onto a lot of fear, but he didn't know the extent of that fear.

Obi-Wan turned to gaze at the slumbering Zabrak. She looked… peaceful, Obi-Wan realized. It was an attribute that Obi-Wan often thought of when he looked at Drinna, but now it was highlighted in a way he could observe without her noticing.

Drinna, he knew, was concerned about his Padawan. The fear she had felt had radiated throughout the memory she had shared with Obi-Wan. It chilled him to the bone to know someone so young could hold onto so much fear. Which was why Obi-Wan insisted that he accompany Drinna and Anakin during their lessons. He needed to know for himself and report to the Council.

If he truly held so much fear, then Anakin would need to be closely watched. His studies would be held back until he could control himself.

And that could take years.

Obi-Wan sighed and turned his gaze back to Drinna's sleeping form. Her brown hair covered her face as she moved to her side. Obi-Wan reached over and brushed it out of her face, staring down at her with a soft smile.

What was he doing?

Obi-Wan jerked back and began his pacing, occasionally stopping to stare at Drinna. No matter how much he tried to tell himself to focus on something else, his gaze and his mind kept returning to the Zabrak.

She was a soft sunlight, Obi-Wan thought, like the mid-morning creeping through your shades. Drinna had certainly crept into his life. He paused his pacing to look at her again.

Her tattoos swirled softly on her skin, emphasizing the lines on her face, but telling a tale, Obi-Wan knew. She had told him once what the tattoos meant, but they had both been early in their Padawan years at that point and Obi-Wan couldn't remember for the life of him what they meant. He'd have to ask her when she woke up.

Drinna was, in a word, beautiful.

Beautiful?

Obi-Wan stopped mid-pace in confusion. When had he thought that of one of his oldest friends? He gazed at her again. Yes, definitely beautiful, he decided.

But why?

It distressed Obi-Wan to think of Drinna this way. It… wasn't normal for him. Nor for any Jedi. Perhaps he was too attached to the Zabrak. Heck, he shouldn't even be alone with her… in her rooms of all places. While Obi-Wan had the highest sense of honor and decorum, he knew it wasn't proper.

Making up his mind, Obi-Wan turned to leave.

And paused halfway to the door.

He'd promised Drinna he wouldn't leave her alone. There could be complications after the huge mental exertion she'd had.

But she needed a healer. Obi-Wan, of all the amazing things he was, was not a healer.

So Obi-Wan crossed to the bed and sat at the foot of it, refusing to look at Drinna. He shoved his feelings away, resolving to deal with them later. Perhaps tomorrow, if his Padawan didn't cause as much trouble as he normally did.

Though, Obi-Wan thought wryly, Anakin is almost always in trouble.

The sunlight filtered through my shades, waking me. I had been tucked in… my lightsaber. Where was my lightsaber?

I sat up and looked around, noticing my lightsaber on my nightstand. Falling back on my bed, I sighed happily.

Good ol' Obi-Wan.

Speaking of, where was he? He'd promised to stay. I sat up again, looking around and saw a tuft of auburn hair at the foot of my bed. I slipped out from under the covers and went to investigate.

Obi-Wan sat against my bed, head tilted back and to the side as he slept. I chuckled at the sight. He was calm. Peaceful.

I'd always liked that about him.

I shook the thought away. It was a ridiculous notion. Jedi don't feel… that. I can't feel that. Not for him. He was one of my oldest friends. Now was not the time to entertain such fanciful thought.

I moved away and grabbed my lightsaber, twirling it in my hands.

I remembered the day I'd gotten my kyber crystal. Obi-Wan and I had entered the cave on Illum together, the other younglings way ahead of us. I'd been so… afraid and Obi-Wan had been so patient. He'd waited for me, talked me into entering.

I hadn't left his side until we'd been separated by a thin sheet of ice as we crossed a lake.

I fell in.

My heart hammered in my chest, just remembering. I'd let out a shriek and Obi-Wan had rushed toward me as the ice began reforming.

A younger Drinna kicked at the ice, punching it, trying to escape. The panic was evident in her eyes. Her hearts hammered and her lungs began to burn as Obi-Wan pounded at the ice above her.

Drinna kept kicking off, trying to find some way to escape. Obi-Wan was gesturing for her to stop, shouting even, but in her panic, Drinna didn't recognize the signs.

The ice grew thicker with each passing moment.

It was getting darker, Drinna registered as her lungs began to burn. Obi-Wan's image was fainter now. Her eyes, wide and stinging in the water brimmed with tears.

She was going to die.

Somehow, Drinna's panic began to fade as her determination set in. She didn't want to die.

Let go, a voice seemed to whisper. Drinna, still struggling with her fear, listened. While she couldn't breathe in the water, she still managed to find a way to meditate, letting go of her fear temporarily.

The fear returned, however, in short time and Drinna's lungs were burning.

Let go.

Drinna struggled to calm her pounding heart as the ice grew thicker, this time around her. Obi-Wan was struggling to meditate. The exercise had never come easily to him, despite how patient he seemed.

Let go.

Drinna reached out with the Force, feeling Obi-Wan do the same. She latched onto his Force signature, feeling the air he breathed.

Let go!

Drinna reluctantly let go of her dependance on Obi-Wan, instead focusing on the Force. Obi-Wan forgotten, Drinna opened her eyes against the freezing water and saw a yellow glow from far away.

After a moment's hesitation, Drinna began to swim toward it, her movements awkward and slow. The burning in her lungs pained her, and she reached out to the Force for comfort. Even with her abilities as a Zabrak to resist pain, she was quickly starting to be overcome.

Let go.

The voice was a mere whisper, but Drinna listened as she swam closer to the light. It felt like the right thing to do. The pain was still there but Drinna pressed on.

Obi-Wan had finally sunken into meditation, feeling for Drinna below the ice. She wasn't directly below him anymore and he furrowed his brows. He reached out in the cave and felt her, steadily moving farther away. He stood to follow.

Let go.

Obi-Wan frowned at the thought. Let go? But Drinna could die. He wouldn't let her die.

Let go.

Obi-Wan reached out in the Force for answers. A tug let him know that he needed to leave. So he left, reluctantly, dragging his feet. The Force would let him know if Drinna needed help.

Drinna grasped at the yellow light, tugging and jerking back as it came free. The ice was thinner here, Drinna realized as the light faded. The kyber crystal in her glove was still letting out light, but not enough that she would be able to see.

Drinna kicked upwards, placing a hand on the ice. It was too thick to break with a simple hit.

So she used the Force, felt for the cracks and pushed the Force into them, breaking the ice.

Her lungs still burning, Drinna kicked upward.

The ice reformed.

Drinna placed a hand on the ice again and broke it. She moved upward again.

It seemed like forever until she finally broke through the ice, pulling herself up.

She lay on the ground, clutching her kyber crystal in her gloved hands as she shivered. Despite being able to withstand the cold, Drinna was soaked to the bone. She needed to get out of there or she wouldn't survive.

Her lungs hurt from the sudden burst of air and Drinna sat up, gasping as her head spun and black spots came into her view. Drinna let them disappear before she sat up slowly, taking in her surroundings.

A sheer cliff wall was in front of her and the frozen lake was below and behind her. It was heights or potential drowning.

Drinna shuddered. She didn't like either of those options. But she needed to get out of there soon or she would die.

She felt compelled to go across the lake and stood slowly, on shaking legs. The effort of swimming with a lack of air in the freezing water had drained her, and she had little energy left. She knew she couldn't rely on the Force for strength at the moment. It would only tell her to let go.

So she walked.

The moment fear began to grip her heart, the ice began to crack. Drinna would freeze, taking deep breaths that frosted in the air in front of her. She would keep her eyes on her destination and would wait.

She was good at that.

After a minute or so, the ice would reform and Drinna would take another shaky step, fighting desperately to stay awake, to stay upright, to not let the fear overcome her.

So one trembling step after another, Drinna walked and waited, alternating as the ice began to crack behind her.

She needed to hurry.

Drinna took one step and collapsed, unable to hold herself up any longer. The ice behind her cracked some more. Panting, Drinna looked up at her destination, shaking her head to move her hair out of her face. It only clung to her more and she tried to brush it aside with her glove. That just made it worse.

Drinna sat on her knees, trying to regain the energy she had left. She was so close to safety.

The ice cracked menacingly behind her and she felt the freezing water spray at her heels.

Drinna pushed herself off of her knees, stumbling as she tried to stand and fell again. She looked at the cave mouth desperately.

Then she picked herself up and began to run.

She only made it a few feet before her legs gave out and she slipped on the ice as it cracked behind her. Somehow it never cracked below her, but it was getting closer to doing it.

Drinna slid backwards a little, scrambling desperately for a grip on the ice as she spun towards the water. Her legs kicked in the water as she ripped her gloves off with shaky hands, the skin red and stinging. She clawed at the ice and hauled herself up again, tears stinging at her eyes, the only warm part of her, it seemed.

Her legs kicked as she struggled to get out of the water, churning the forming ice so she could have an escape and not be stuck, half frozen in the water.

Too tired to stand, Drinna tucked her kyber crystal in the fold of her coat along with her gloves. The sopping material only made it harder for to get any traction, so she let her freezing hands out in the open air. That only served to make them hurt more and her hands began to tingle.

Drinna wasted no more time. She clawed at the ice, digging in with her nails and using what little strength she had to drag herself to the open cave mouth. She forced herself on and collapsed the moment she made it onto solid ground, shivering in the cold. Her coat only pressed the cold in.

Drinna sobbed as she lay there, her tears warm against her frozen skin. She couldn't feel her feet or her hands anymore and she tried to rub her hands together, feeling nothing.

Somebody walked nearby.

Drinna cried out, hoping the person would stop and hear her, help her.

Obi-Wan heard her cry. He'd meditated patiently and found his crystal, learning to be more patient in the process. Now, he felt a tug and began to walk, forgetting that he had gone that way when he had first entered the sacred grounds at Illum with Drinna.

Now he knew she was alright and he rushed to her side, slowing himself down to remind himself to be patient.

Drinna called out again and Obi-Wan resisted the urge to run. Her voice was growing fainter as she sobbed and Obi-Wan did not know if he was going in the right direction.

The Padawan stopped, reaching out with the Force. He felt he should continue on in the direction he had been going and a calm urgency filled him. He began to run and stopped just before the mouth of the cave.

Drinna was huddled there, shivering in the cold. It was all she could do to stay awake.

Obi-Wan crouched next to the girl and grabbed her hands. They felt like ice and they were bright red. Drinna didn't respond to his touch, didn't even recognize he was doing anything.

Obi-Wan scooped her up and began to run, reaching out in the Force for an exit.

They made it out of the caves of Ilum mere minutes before it closed.