"AV-2313 to command—we are closing in on the pod."

An operator in the pit held a key on the control console. "Proceed with the tractor beam."

Grand Moff Tarkin walked into the bridge of the flagship, hands clasped neatly behind his back and his lips pursed together into a grim line. Some of the crew onboard had gathered to watch the small carrier retrieve the pod, peering out of the viewports in curiosity as bright blue streaks attached themselves to the grey capsule and drew it into the bay.

"Pod successfully recovered."

"Very good," the operator said as the doors closed on the small carrier. "Prepare to receive the welcoming team. Please acknowledge."

The pilot went silent.

The operator held the key again. "Repeat, prepare to receive the welcoming team. Please acknowledge, AV-2313."

More silence. Tarkin narrowed his eyes. "Is there a problem?"

Before the operator could answer, the comms chirped to life again. "Sir," the pilot started. "The pod is empty."

"I beg your pardon?" he bit out.

The pilot hesitated. "There's armor at the bottom of the capsule, but no one's inside, sir."

That got everyone's attention. Every eye in the room turned to Tarkin, and he set his jaw. "Bring it aboard the ship," he said. "We will send the pod and its contents to examination."

"Yes, sir."

After the comms went dead, he turned with a strained, impassive expression. "Resume your stations, gentlemen. We shall find Lord Vader soon enough."

Tarkin walked down the narrow pathway again as the crew returned to their work. An officer fell in step beside him.

"Sir," he said. "We've just received a transmission from the Emperor. He has requested Lord Vader's presence at the new base immediately."

Tarkin halted at the turbolift. "May I ask why?"

"He wanted to discuss something with Lord Vader personally," the officer hesitated. "Do you think he knows, sir?"

Tarkin didn't answer.

Once the flagship entered the system, Tarkin stepped onto a shuttle and sat in one of the seats in the back, slinging the harness over his torso as a few troopers marched up the ramp to sit in the cockpit. The sounds of harnesses clicking into place resounded, and the bay door slowly rose.

"AV-6165, you are cleared for take-off."

The pilot flipped a couple of overhead switches before tapping the comms. "Copy that."

Then, the shuttle was deployed into space, and Tarkin prepared himself to explain Darth Vader's absence. As long as he remained in a high place of command, Tarkin usually felt satisfied with keeping his personal criticisms of Lord Vader to himself—however, were his position to be challenged, he would offer no support.

The security cam's had rather conveniently gone dark during the time of the incident—but Lord Vader was found to be missing shortly after his former Padawan escaped custody. It didn't take long for him to put the pieces together.

He only needed proof.

A small beep came from the comms once the space station came into view. "Approaching shuttle, please identify yourself."

"This is AV-6165," the pilot replied before clicking a few buttons on the control panel. "Requesting a landing pad in hangar 2-A. Transmitting the clearance code now."

There was a brief pause on the other line.

"You are cleared for entry."

The shuttle eased into the hangar, wings folding up once they touched down. Smoke spat from the depressurization pipes as the bay door lowered, and Tarkin walked down the ramp to find four Royal Guard members at the bottom, their crimson robes sharply standing out among the rows of troops that lined the hangar.

"Where is Lord Vader?" one of them asked pointedly. "The Emperor did not ask for you, Grand Moff."

"I'm well aware." Tarkin looked around the hangar with narrowed eyes. "Lord Vader was unavailable. I'm here in his place."

The guards stayed silent for a moment, their red masks all turned toward him blankly, skeptically, before they parted through the center, electrostaffs held at their sides.

"This way."

They escorted him down the long, polished halls of the space station, passing by the occasional few troopers and areas that were sealed-off for construction. Once they reached the throne room, Tarkin kneeled, tipping his face to the ground as the guards resumed their stations around the room.

"My lord," he said.

The Emperor's throne turned around leisurely. "My old friend," he greeted. "What a surprise it is to see you here. Please, stand."

Tarkin obeyed, clasping his hands behind his back once he rose to his feet. "My sincerest apologies for appearing before you without proper notice."

The Emperor waved him off. "You seemed troubled, my friend," he said. "Where is Lord Vader?"

"That is what I wished to speak to you about, my lord," Tarkin paused. "Lord Vader has gone missing. We suspect that the rebel Ahsoka Tano might have had a hand in his sudden disappearance."

The Emperor hummed. "This is troubling."

Tarkin nodded in agreement. "I would like to ask for your sanction to open a full investigation. We must get to the bottom of this—"

"Now, now," the Emperor said, "you needn't worry yourself. I will send a team out myself to look into this matter. Rest assured, my friend—no stone will be left unturned."

"Yes, my lord."

»»««

"Leaving so soon?"

Ahsoka nodded at Leia as she and Bail walked into the landing platform. "I'm afraid so," then, brighter, "Kix finally discharged him."

"I could've been out two rotations ago if it were up to me," Skywalker complained.

"That's because you have no regard for your personal wellbeing," Kix called from the ship where he and Rex were loading supplies. "You're lucky I'm letting you out of my sight this soon, sir."

Skywalker grumbled under his breath and tugged on his sleeve.

Wearing normal clothes again still felt strange to him. They remained all black, a dark cloak loosely draped over his shoulders to give him some semblance of familiarity. His hair had already started to grow back after an extra couple of rotations in the bacta tank—slowly, of course, but any progress was good progress to him. (However, this was not before Rex made some harsh comments on his coiffure during the war—"But it looked like a mop, sir," stood out the most.)

His new cybernetic prosthetics were far more comfortable than the ones in his suit—they didn't burn when he moved or feel stiff around the joints. He still walked with a slight limp, but Kix told him it would go away in time.

Rex briefly regarded him as they passed each other, Skywalker walking toward the ship while he went to grab another crate. Kix casually leaned against the ship's frame ahead of him.

"Your form is getting better."

Skywalker peered over his shoulder to be sure that Rex was far enough out of range. "Do you have it?"

The clone reached into his backpack and drew out Ahsoka's old lightsaber. "Here you go, sir."

Skywalker took it with the slightest smile, latching it to the back of his belt where it could be hidden behind his cloak. "Thank you," he said.

Kix gave a soft nod in response. He walked down the ramp when Rex returned with another small crate of rations and set it down inside. When he looked up again, he noticed Bail approaching the ship.

"Gentlemen, I don't know why you insist on loading up yourselves," he said. "I have plenty of people that could do this for you."

Kix shook his head, wiping his face with his sleeve. "Oh, it's all right, sir. It's been a while since I've done any work like this."

"Force knows you need it."

Kix's face scrunched at Rex's words. "You're one to talk."

Rex pretended like he didn't hear it. He instead turned his attention to Bail. "The supplies alone are enough to warrant our gratitude, sir. The least we can do is load them up."

Bail gave a hesitant look but relented, placing a hand on Leia's shoulder when she and Ahsoka walked over to the ship. Rex and Kix slipped past them to load up the final crate.

"Thank you again, Bail," Ahsoka said, "I owe you many debts."

Bail shook his head. "None of that," he insisted. "You're family, Ahsoka. It was our pleasure."

Leia hummed in agreement. "You'll come back again soon, right?"

Ahsoka nodded, smiling as she pulled her into a tight hug. "Try to stay out of trouble while I'm gone," she said lightly.

Leia smirked to herself. "No promises."

Ahsoka let go and looked between the two fondly, a content, peaceful expression on her face that Skywalker hadn't seen since she was a Padawan.

"That's the last of it," Kix said after they finished loading the crate, and Ahsoka gave him a kind squeeze on the shoulder.

"I don't know what we would have done without your help, Kix. Thank you for everything."

The medic nodded. "Just doing my duty, Commander."

After a moment, Rex sighed. "We should probably get going," he said. "I imagine they've doubled down on hyperlane security since we last took off."

Skywalker followed Ahsoka into the cockpit after she bid everyone one last farewell, sitting in the seat behind hers with a soft huff as they waited for Rex to finish saying goodbye to Kix. As the bay door rose, the captain settled into the co-pilot's seat, and Ahsoka silently keyed in some coordinates that Skywalker couldn't quite make out.

Then, the ship lifted from the ground.

The two remained suspiciously quiet on the journey. Ahsoka's shoulders were stiff. Rex's eyes were unenthusiastically fixed on the sights in front of the viewports.

Skywalker watched them skeptically.

"Where are we going?" he asked once they broke through the atmosphere.

"Oh, you don't have to worry," she said, her tone a little too restrained for his liking. "Besides, you need to rest. Remember Kix's orders?"

Derailed. He narrowed his eyes at her. "Not until you answer me."

She hesitated. "We'll wake you up when we're close."

Skywalker bit his tongue to keep himself from spouting the words that pressed against his teeth—instead, he shifted in his seat to get comfortable, deciding that he would find out soon enough.

As his eyes slid shut, the faint murmurs of his traveling companions filled his ears—far too quiet for him to hear, but enough to create background noise. He begrudgingly allowed himself to fall into a light slumber.

»»««

Scorching suns beamed down to the sand of Tatooine, the planet's dry air laying stagnantly in the atmosphere and absorbing any life it could reach. The Dune Sea, vast and forlorn, split through the planet's surface—an area once rumored to be a real ocean by planet natives, now only treated as a nuisance—nothing but sand for klicks upon klicks without any foreseeable end.

Obi-Wan Kenobi hit the ground. Hard.

He sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth, rolling to the side a millisecond before the Tusken Raider slammed his gaderffii into the sand. A group of Jawas stood on top of their Sandcrawler, safely watching the fight from above ground.

"Bu'wacha," one of them yelled down. Attack.

Obi-Wan huffed, forcing himself to his feet. His eyes flickered to the three other Raiders that surrounded him. "What do you think I'm trying to do, my friend?" he asked in Jawaese. "Worry not. I have it under control."

The Jawas gabbled incomprehensibly at his words. Obi-Wan watched his opponents, his narrowed, calculating eyes bouncing between the four of them. One of the Tuskens snarled and charged toward him.

Obi-Wan moved to the side, grabbing onto the gaderffii and yanking it away. He tipped the end of the staff up sharply and struck its face, causing it to tumble backward.

Two others rushed toward him. Obi-Wan whirled around to gain momentum, hitting one of them before swinging at the other. Once, twice, thrice. They both fell to the sand alongside the first.

The final one growled at him, raising its weapon before charging. Obi-Wan spun the staff in his hands and swept its feet out from under it. The Raider fell to the ground.

The high-pitched whoops of Jawas filled his ears. After waiting a moment to be sure they were down, Obi-Wan puffed out a breath, kicking the gaderffiis away from the Raider's grasp. They were contained, certainly, but not dead. They would be up in a few minutes.

The band of Jawas came down to meet him at the bottom of the Sandcrawler once he returned.

"Taa baa," one of them exclaimed.

"You're quite welcome," Obi-Wan said. "Now. My payment?"

The Jawas scrambled to grab the piece he had asked for. One came forward to offer it to him, and Obi-Wan took the part from its hands with a grateful smile. "Goodbye for now."

With that, he departed, trekking through the unrelenting suns and heavily malleable sands to get back to the Jundland Wastes. At some point during his journey back, he tied a strap onto the metal piece and strung it over his shoulder.

The path itself wasn't a very long one—but with the scorching heat and the prolonged squinting, an hour easily stretched into a lifetime. By the time he reached the Wastes, he felt exhausted—both from the journey and his encounter with the Tuskens earlier.

He walked the upper path of the gorge that ran up to his house, wanting nothing more than to get home and relax—

Then, a presence in the Force hit him—so painfully and unmistakably familiar—and Obi-Wan stumbled. His back pressed against one of the boulders, the metal piece clanking against the sandstone as he reeled in hollow breaths, his mind spinning.

He tried to steady himself.

It's not him, he reassured himself. It isn't him, it couldn't be him—

Obi-Wan clenched his hands into tight fists, forcing himself to look down right as a small herd of Tuskens ran toward the mouth of the valley. His eyes landed on the group below him.

It was him.

Two figures walked beside Anakin—a togruta that looked a little too familiar for his liking, and a human he couldn't quite recognize from where he stood.

Then there were voices in the gorge. He strained to listen.

"This is why he said to be careful in the Wastes!" The togruta shoved Anakin. "I told you we should have gone the other way, but no, you just had to pull the former residency card—"

"It's not my fault you wanted to come back to this carcass of a planet."

"You said you knew the way!"

"I said I could get us over here. I never said that I was updated on every karking settlement in the district. How was I supposed to know there were Tuskens?"

"If you don't know whether or not the place we're going is safe, don't tell me you—"

At some point during their exchange, their voices faded under the sound of his heart pounding in his ears. He pressed his back against the sandstone again, trembling hands making their way to the lightsaber hooked onto his belt—the one he always carried but never reached for—and clutching it tightly.

He breathed in and out, forcing his grip to loosen.

Only three people knew of his location, which meant their presence couldn't be a coincidence. Someone told them.

Find out who has been compromised.

Obi-Wan puffed out a breath and tried to shake the tension out of his hands before taking a few steps back.

Once he got a good enough start, he broke into a sprint, gravel and sand grinding underneath his shoes as he sprung from the cliff. He ignored the surge of nausea in the pit of his stomach, tucking his knees into his chest and spinning in the air once, twice, before landing in front of the small group with a resounding smack.

The human stumbled back in surprise, and Anakin sucked in a sharp curse when Obi-Wan ignited his lightsaber, swiftly swinging it up to his neck and wrapping an arm over his clavicle to keep him in place.

Ahsoka stepped forward with wide eyes. "Wait, stop," she said quickly. "Master Kenobi, it's us!"

Obi-Wan heard steel and shifting plastoid behind him, followed by the familiar clicking of a pistol being set to stun.

"Sir, please drop your weapon."

That voice. A clone, then. He gave a side glance to the man, finally paying mind to his scattered pieces of armor—501st paint, chipped but distinct, barely vibrant enough for him to recognize it.

Obi-Wan swallowed harshly. "How did you find me?"

"I'll explain everything. I promise." Ahsoka took a cautious step forward. "Just put the lightsaber down."

He shook his head. "You're on my territory. As far as I see it, you are in no place to make demands." He narrowed his eyes. "Now tell me—who gave you my location?"

She hesitated. He pushed the saber closer to Anakin's neck.

"Bail Organa," she blurted. "Bail Organa told me that we could find you here."

Of course it was Bail.

"What business do you have with Bail Organa?"

"We're forming an alliance against the Empire," she explained quickly. "We've worked together for years. We just came from Alderaan."

At her words, Obi-Wan faltered slightly.

Leia.

Ahsoka took a small step forward. "We're trying to get away from the Empire. We need a place to lay low for a while."

"And why would Darth Vader need to get away from the Empire?" Obi-Wan asked sharply. Ahsoka opened her mouth to answer, but he shook his head. "No. I want to hear it from him."

Anakin narrowed his eyes. "Sanctimonious."

"Murderer."

He grimaced, baring his teeth. "I left."

"A deserter, then," Obi-Wan paused, looking over at Ahsoka. "I'm sure you can find another planet to hide on. This one's quite occupied."

"You can't claim a planet."

"I think I already have."

"Obi-Wan," she said firmly. "We came here to see you too."

Anakin grumbled under his breath, "Speak for yourself."

Obi-Wan pushed the phasma blade closer and scowled. "If you're running from the Emperor, I'm sure you have quite the bounty on your head, Anakin," he said. "I'm tempted to turn you in at the outpost in Mos Eisley. I can't imagine how generous the payment would be for returning a rogue dark lord. Maybe I'll get enough credits to retire somewhere more pleasant."

"What could possibly be more pleasant than Tatooine?"

Obi-Wan found no humor in Anakin's words.

He took a step to the side but the lightsaber remained in its place. He craned his neck to look at the other two. "Well, while I must admit it is good to see you Ahsoka, Rex, I'm afraid I have to ask you all to leave—" His narrowed eyes turned back to Anakin— "as he is not welcome here."

"Rather bold of you to assume I even want to be here," Anakin spat. "They didn't even tell me where we were going until we entered the kriffing system, much less that you were here."

Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes. "And I thought that I would be able to elude you on this planet. Though, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. You do excel at appearing uninvitedly, don't you?"

"Leave it to you to preach about propriety," Anakin jeered. "I had hoped that the suns melted the last of your complacency, but it seems to be unfortunately intact."

"Come now. You sound bitter."

"You're a coward," Anakin hissed, daring a small step forward. "You left me to die."

Obi-Wan shook his head, his grip on the hilt tightening. "You died long before I ever got to you, Anakin."

Ahsoka looked between them, confusion pooling in her wide eyes. Her hands moved to hover above the two sabers fastened to her waist, the action subtle, but not enough for it to go unnoticed. Obi-Wan kept a close eye on her.

"You're lucky I don't report the two of you as well," he said. "Aiding a fugitive is an Imperial offense. If you get caught with him, you'll be executed for treason."

"We know the consequences, sir," Rex said, his pistols still turned on the back of Obi-Wan's skull. "We've avoided execution for over fifteen years."

Obi-Wan tilted his head. "You seem rather proud of that, Captain."

"Just another day with my head intact."

Obi-Wan didn't respond—instead, he glanced over to Anakin again, ignoring the fact that simply looking at him was enough to make his stomach want to churn. Though his blue eyes held little resemblance to the ones he saw on Mustafar, Obi-Wan noticed a small, nearly indistinguishable ring of gold surrounding his pupils.

"I should've ended this on Mustafar," he said, hyper-aware of the quickening thrum of his pulse. "I should kill you right now."

Anakin gave a crooked, humorless smile, but he didn't say anything.

Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes. "What?"

"Nothing," he replied, "I just don't think you have it in you."

"Are you so certain?" Obi-Wan jeered the saber impossibly closer to Anakin, and Ahsoka made a sharp noise of protest from behind him. "I would still sleep peacefully tonight if I destroyed what little is left of you."

He wouldn't. But he's never slept peacefully. Not after Maul. Not after Satine. Not after Mustafar. Adding another reason to the list wouldn't break him.

Anakin's lips curled into a disdainful scowl. "You're still bound by your virtue."

"I'm not bound by anything."

"Everyone is bound by something," Anakin said. "Your anger toward me isn't strong enough for you to break your moral code."

"The only 'code' I followed was the Jedi Code—but since you've slaughtered the last of us, the customs hold no authority over me anymore," Obi-Wan said. "You're at a disadvantage, my old friend. I would suggest that you stop pushing your luck before it runs out."

"And I thought you didn't believe in luck."

Obi-Wan scowled.

"If you want to, then do it," Anakin challenged. Ahsoka shot him a disapproving look. "Kill me. Show them just how honorable the Jedi were."

"Don't think that I won't," Obi-Wan said.

A beat passed. Anakin narrowed his eyes.

"Then do it,"he repeated. "I won't fight back. You want a chance to bring me to justice? To give me what I deserve? Here it is."

He extended his arms to his side to prove his point.

Obi-Wan studied him closely, unable to suitably pinpoint the emotions whirling in the Force around Anakin—the closest he could guess was an odd mixture of foolhardiness and contempt.

"What game are you playing?"

"No game," Anakin said. "I'm tired of running. And how fitting it would be for the Master to kill his apprentice."

Obi-Wan let out a breath in disbelief. "I must say I am tempted," he said, "but I don't want to clean up the mess."

"I'm sure the Tuskens would gladly take care of that part for you," Anakin said dismissively, almost smugly. He saw right through the excuse. "What's stopping you?"

The soft hum of his blue lightsaber echoed off the walls, illuminating the valley as the suns began to set.

Anakin eyed him. "You have the upper hand. Use your advantage."

Obi-Wan hesitated.

"Look around you," Anakin scowled. "The Jedi are gone because of me. Doesn't that make you angry?Don't you want to kill me?"

"Of course I do." Obi-Wan's hand twitched, knuckles turning white around his tight grip. "Every day in this desert is another I spend trying to come to terms with the fact that I couldn't see it sooner."

Anakin stepped forward. "So kill me."

Obi-Wan shook his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts. "I gave up everything for you, Anakin," he said. "To raise you, to teach you, to guide you. I spent the entirety of my young life trying to keep you out of trouble."

Another humorless laugh. Broken and dry.

"And look where that left us—" Anakin gestured around weakly, pitifully— "right back on the same Force-forsaken planet that we started on."

A heavy beat of silence passed. Rex's blasters were still trained on the back of Obi-Wan's head. Ahsoka looked increasingly nervous with nearly every other word that Anakin uttered. Anakin was beginning to sweat from the heat emanating from the lightsaber.

"If you want to kill me, then just kill me," Anakin said finally, less of a challenge, more of a request. "I have nothing left to lose. End the suffering for both of us."

At his words, Obi-Wan felt a shift in the Force around them. Darkened, broken ripples of energy emitted from Anakin and into the dimming atmosphere. Pain, misery, grief, drawing, stretching, fluctuating into the sky as the two moons began to rise. Intense, but pointedly suppressed.

End the suffering, he mused, but at what cost?

Obi-Wan shook his head. "No," he decided. "I won't humor you."

Ahsoka subtly let out a breath as he deactivated his lightsaber and hooked it onto his belt. "Thank you."

Obi-Wan gave an impassive nod, dimly registering the distant shrieks of Tusken Raiders that echoed off the sandstone walls of the gorge. Rex turned his pistols toward the noise.

"I thought we got rid of those things," he grumbled.

Obi-Wan looked between the three of them and sighed. "We have to move," he said. "Frightening them only does so much. They come back in larger numbers."

"We?" Ahsoka repeated. "Does that mean we can stay?"

"No," he said, and she deflated slightly. "However, I'm not going to leave you here to fend for yourself. I'm not that uncivilized. We can further discuss this matter at my hut."

Besides the brief, hushed scolding Anakin received from Ahsoka, the walk was rather silent—a million unanswered questions hovering in the air, but none of them daring to breach the surface. By the time they finally reached the sandstone hut, the suns in the sky had already been replaced by the moons.

Obi-Wan entered first, not bothering to see them in properly. He walked up the small flight of stairs to his ventilation unit and detached the part the Jawas gave to him from his back.

"This is..." Anakin trailed before settling on, "Quant."

"Ne'johaa," Rex snapped from the other side of the room, and Anakin let out a long-suffering sigh.

"I wasn't trying to—"

"Bail sends you his regards," Ahsoka interrupted, clearly to keep Anakin from talking further. She leaned on the sandstone doorway across from him.

Obi-Wan looked up and offered a small smile. "It has been many years since I've seen him. Is he well?"

She returned the smile. "He certainly has his hands full, but he's well."

"And his daughter." He kept his eyes glued to the unit, forcing his hands to keep working so he didn't seem suspicious. "How is she?"

"Annoying."

Obi-Wan snapped his wide eyes over to Anakin, and Ahsoka let out an exasperated breath. "Anakin—"

A shrug. "He asked."

Ahsoka stared at him blankly before turning back to Obi-Wan. "She's doing great, Master Kenobi. Thank you for asking."

Obi-Wan swallowed nervously and hurried to finish installing the piece. "I'm sure you've traveled a very long way. Where is your ship?"

"It's safe if that's what you're asking," Anakin said from the living area. "I made them hide it. They didn't do enough research before coming to this wasteland."

Obi-Wan resisted the urge to comment on his tone. He wiped his hands on his clothes and made his way into the kitchen, grabbing a kettle from the small shelf above his oven and filling it. He peered over his shoulder to look at Ahsoka. "Caf?"

"Please."

Once it was ready, he extended a cup to her and Rex, then, begrudgingly, one to Anakin. He narrowed his eyes.

"You didn't poison this, did you?"

"Oh, I wouldn't waste my good poison on you," Obi-Wan said. The answer seemed satisfactory enough to Anakin. He took a short swig of the drink and set it back down on the table.

Ahsoka looked between the two carefully before her eyes settled on Obi-Wan. "Master Kenobi, Anakin has left the Empire."

"I find it intriguing that you try to speak on his behalf, Ahsoka," he said, turning his attention to Anakin. "Are you unable to speak for yourself?"

"I'm perfectly capable," Anakin growled. "I just don't want to waste my breath."

"Well, you've wasted your breath on far worse before."

"I'm not in the mood to be talked down to," Anakin shot back, his tone prompting a warning look from Ahsoka.

Obi-Wan's grip on his mug tightened. "You may run, Anakin, but you'll never be free from them."

"Don't you think I know that?" Anakin snapped, and a beat of silence followed his words, a heaviness in the air around them.

Obi-Wan slowly set his mug on the table and looked up.

"This path," he started, "all the death, all the destruction that followed—" He hesitated, nearly not even wanting to know the answer. "Was it worth it?"

Anakin went stiff for a fleeting moment. There was a shift in the Force as his gaze fell to his hands.

It seemed as though he wanted to answer, but every effort he made to speak was in vain. His eyes were burdened and dark, almost tormented, and Obi-Wan paused, the questions gnawing at his mind becoming too strong for him to bear.

"Did you truly think I would turn you away if you had told me the truth?" he asked. "After all that we'd been through, did you think I would ever leave you?"

Anakin barked a humorless laugh. "You followed the Jedi Code closer than anyone I had ever seen. You're the last person I could have told."

Defensive.

Obi-Wan felt his gaze soften. "I would have listened."

"You would have belittled me."

Obi-Wan frowned at his words. "Do you truly believe that?"

Anakin stayed silent. He downed the last of his caf, harshly setting the mug down before he turned to Ahsoka and Rex.

"Come on. We're leaving."

Obi-Wan sighed deeply. "The suns have already set, Anakin. The chances of you getting back to the ship unscathed are slim."

Anakin rolled his eyes. "Then what would you suggest?"

Obi-Wan hesitated, not quite wanting to answer, but unable to ignore the vexing nip of his conscience. "I suppose you can stay here for the night," he said.

Ahsoka perked up slightly. "Really?"

Kriff.

"Only for the night," he clarified. "I expect you to be gone by midday tomorrow."

She gave a smile. "Thank you."

Obi-Wan noticed a familiar glint in her eyes, and he could only hope that she planned to follow through with their side of the deal—because he suddenly got the feeling that making them leave might be more difficult than he thought.

»»««

The Emperor's throne room—lit only by the blue that emanated from the holoprojected image that stood before the throne—felt cold. Empty, even, despite the crimson-clad figures stationed across the room to surround the Emperor.

"Skywalker has finally betrayed us," the Emperor said slowly. "I trust you to find him."

The man in the holo nodded, a dark hood concealing his face. "He shall not outrun his fate, Master."

The Emperor hummed and then paused, sitting upright in his throne. "Yet I sense turmoil within you."

The man hesitated. "What will become of the Nabooian?" he inquired carefully. "Skywalker will try to find her now that he's out of your reach."

"Let him," the Emperor said calmly, dismissively. "Allow him a small victory. She is insignificant to us now."

The man narrowed his eyes. "I must object—"

The Emperor held a hand up to silence him. His mouth clamped shut.

"Patience, my boy," he said. "Let him believe that he has gained the upper hand—then you shall strike. Skywalker's arrogance is his weakness."

The man tipped his head. "Yes, Master."

With that, the connection went dead.