"News of Skywalker you have?", Yoda asked. Obi Wan shook his head. "No. I haven't contacted him or Ahsoka in some time." Yoda narrowed his eyes. "Mindful we must be. Know as much as we can we must."
"You're right master. If something happens, we have to learn about it." Obi Wan was about to leave to call Ahsoka once again. "Want to be here, you do not.", Yoda remarked. "Be with them you think you should.", he stated.
"Of course I do.", Obi Wan admitted. "Why come back you have then?", Yoda asked. Obi Wan frowned. "You told me to come to Hoth, master. I had the chance now, so I did as you said before."
"Do what the force tells him to do, a jedi must. Talk to your friends, then go to help them you will.", the grand master instructed. Obi Wan struggled to hide his smile. "Yes, master.", he said and left the room.
He hated to just sit around in meditation, while something might be happening to his friends. Now it turned clear to him, how much he had actually been worrying about them. Maybe the Emperor had found out about Anakin.
Or maybe Ahsoka had been spotted by soldiers. There were so many things to go wrong that Obi Wan could think of. He rushed to pull out his comlink and contact Ahsoka. But instead of her, it was Anakin who appeared.
"Why do you have Ahsoka's communicator?", Obi Wan asked. "Because she didn't want to take it to Coruscant.", he only replied. Obi Wan's eyes widened. "Coruscant?!", he called out.
"What are you thinking? What if she's seen?", he demanded. "Did you hear the Emperor's announcement?", Anakin murmured, clearly plagued by similar thoughts. Obi Wan shook his head.
"He needs a replacement for me. He pretended to forgive all force sensitives in hiding, and invited them to Coruscant. Ahsoka was determined to get to him and in doing so, help to assassinate him."
Obi Wan froze. He must have misheard. "Ahsoka wants to oppose Sidious? Anakin, she will get killed!" Anakin shook his head. "She knows, what danger she put herself in. And she won't confront him naively."
Obi Wan narrowed his eyes. "I wouldn't be so sure. She is rather reckless." "But not stupid.", Anakin countered. "She wants to earn his trust, or what ever it is he gives his henchmen. She never spoke of killing him herself."
"She mustn't. You are the chosen one, Anakin. You will have to destroy him." Anakin frowned. "It's hard to believe the prophecy, after all that's happened. But I would certainly like to kill that lying snake."
Anakin's threatening words stung Obi Wan, who had to remind himself, that Vader was not gone yet. "Well...can you contact her? What if something goes wrong?" Anakin shook his head.
"No, she's out of reach. I'm worried as well, Obi Wan. But she left, knowing what expected her." "Letting her go was one of the most irresponsible things you've done since I met you.", Obi Wan hissed.
"She's not a child, Obi Wan. I warned her, but it was her decision to go anyway." Obi Wan threw his hands in the air. "This is ridiculous! You might as well have stayed, it would have been easier than this."
"I told her the same. She said she didn't have a family she had to be with.", Anakin replied. Obi Wan sighed. "She had to become as stubborn as you, didn't she? You know, she will never return, right?"
Obi Wan tried to shut out the sorrow with dry sarcasm. "I know it's unlikely.", Anakin mumbled. "Yoda has just given me permission to go and help you two. I believe I should go to Coruscant, to have an eye on Ahsoka."
Anakin's eyes widened. "You'd be in the same danger she is in. You would do no good there." "There must be something I can do.", Obi Wan insisted. Anakin thought for a moment.
"If you're that desperate to do some jedi welfare, maybe the rebels could need you. I'm certain they are currently working at the death star's destruction, surely they'd like to count a jedi master to their forces." Obi Wan nodded.
"Then I'll do that. I'll find out where they are, it shouldn't be too hard. Nuha and Thral must still be there." Anakin nodded. "Don't underestimate the station's security. The Emperor really does not wish it to be damaged."
"If you should hear anything of Ahsoka, please tell me.", Obi Wan finished the conversation. Anakin nodded. "Of course." Obi Wan decided quickly. "We are on Hoth.", he suddenly bursted.
"All the jedi are hiding here, I'll send you the coordinates. You need to come here, Anakin. Soon." Anakin didn't reply and only stared at him, but Obi Wan said nothing. With that, Obi Wan put his comlink away.
"Did Sola tell you why she left?", Jobal asked, her voice filled with concern. Padmé slowly shook her head. "Every time, we told her to be with her family, she refused to leave her home. Today she just packed her bags without a word.", Ruwee said.
"I'm sure she missed her daughters.", Padmé suggested. "I don't know.", Ruwee murmured. "She seemed pretty upset.", Jobal agreed. "You worry too much.", Padmé stated calmly.
Her glance wandered out of the window. Anakin had received a call from Obi Wan earlier, and seemed to be in deep ruminations before the twins had taken his minds off whatever Obi Wan had told him. He was in the gardens with the them.
All three of them were laughing and fooling around, just the way Padmé had imagined when she was on Thyferra. Her family was back together now, it seemed that what had broken two years ago was repaired.
But she knew it wasn't completely. Anakin still carried a deep sadness within him. So deep, not even she knew how to help him. "Dad?", Padmé asked. Ruwee nodded.
"How would you feel, if you thought Mom, Sola and I died, and someone told you it was your fault?" Ruwee frowned. "Where is that coming from Padmé?", he asked.
"If you thought that for a long time, would you ever completely heal?", Padmé continued. "That's hard to say.", he replied. "But I don't think so."
Silently, Padmé watched how Anakin tried to get Leia off his shoulders, while she was holding her tiny hands before his eyes. The sight warmed Padmé's heart, as her father's words let her eyes turn glassy.
She blinked the salty tears away, as quickly as she could. "What's wrong, Padmé?", Jobal demanded, sensing that there was more to her daughter's curious question. "A lot has happened.", she only replied.
"Excuse me.", a voice suddenly said. Padmé twirled around to see Breha in the door frame. "The danger passed, did it not? I can call Bail by now." Padmé frowned. "It might be safe.", she admitted.
She knew how badly Breha wanted to talk to her husband. She had locked herself away in the past days, reviewing the little footage there was of her funeral. She had been portrayed as a traitor in the media, and Bail as a fool for trusting her.
"I assume it's time.", Padmé concluded before turning back to the window. "Soon, you can return to Alderaan. The Emperor won't live for much longer."
Sidious was the one responsible for what had happened to Anakin, and she hated him with every fibre of her being for that. Padmé knew that a part of Anakin would hardly return, after years of physical and mental torture.
"I hope so.", Breha said quietly. Then, she broke down. Tears began streaming down her pretty face. "Only last week, we finally decided to adopt a child.", she sobbed. "You will.", Padmé promised as she rushed to the other woman.
"He will wait for you, Breha. This whole nightmare is going to be over." Breha pressed her mouth and eyes shut and only nodded. "The Emperor will pay for what he has done to each and every one in the galaxy.", Padmé snarled quietly.
Anakin carried the exhausted twins inside again. Both of them were in desperate need of a nap. It was Padmé who came towards him in the hall to take Luke off his arms. "Breha is going to contact Alderaan.", she informed.
Anakin arched a brow. "Unwise, but not suicide anymore." The two walked together silently, while Anakin was ruminating about what to do with what Obi Wan had said to him.
It was only when both of the twins were tugged in bed when Padmé proved her intuition. "Whatever Obi Wan said, it's bothering you.", she stated. "Yes.", Anakin admitted. "It came out of nowhere."
Padmé frowned. "Spit it out.", she demanded. "He told me to come to Hoth. He told me to confront the council." Padmé's jaw dropped slightly. "You mean he told you where the jedi are." Anakin nodded.
"There are ships here.", Padmé said, much to Anakin's surprise. "You think I should go?", he asked. "Don't you think so? It means they finally trust you again. And surely, they will help you to finally kill Sidious."
Anakin could see the sparkle in her brown eyes that he loved so much. "Yes, maybe. But opposing them, after everything that's happened..." Padmé framed his face with her hands.
"Even they have to consider the change in you by now. It's time for you to discuss what really happened." Pictures of the fateful day two years ago crawled up in Anakin. "I slaughtered them, that's what happened."
Padmé shook her head. "Even Obi Wan was able to see over that, to think about the why." Anakin frowned, as the shame overcame him once again.
"What if they claim the twins?", he murmured, for it was his first thing he feared after Obi Wan had told him to come to Hoth. "They already have.", Padmé replied. "Obi Wan wanted to take them from Thyferra before the troopers took them."
Anakin sighed. "But they're right. Luke and Leia are children, better off with the jedi than with a murderer like me." "Don't say that!", Padmé called out. "You're their father, they love you.", she insisted.
"All three of us need you, Anakin. Never doubt that." The statement was like a punch in the face. "Even though almost killed you? All of you.", he asked barely audible. The beautiful sparkle in her eyes was swallowed by sadness.
"Let go of the memory, Anakin. I beg you. You didn't mean to." Slowly, Anakin nodded. "You're right. I should go." Padmé rose onto her tiptoes to plant a soft kiss on Anakin's lips.
"Don't worry. The twins will stay here with me until your return. And soon we can just be a family." The warmth Anakin felt pulsing from his wife left him speechless, but a smile curled his features.
"I love you.", he whispered. "I love you too, Anakin.", Padmé replied before sinking into his arms. The realization that he had to leave her behind again, was shoved to the back for the moment.
Ahsoka knew about Maul. When he had appeared out of nowhere a few years ago, Obi Wan had told her how he had defeated the zabrak on Naboo many years earlier.
Ahsoka stare wandered to the claws at the ends of his chrome legs, that made a clanking sound whenever he made a step. Ahsoka noticed the guards that began marching behind them, whenever they had passed.
When they stepped before Sidious, Ahsoka felt like she was suffocating. The dark force she felt vibrating through the air, originated from Sidious, was thick, almost solid, and stole the breath from Ahsoka's lungs.
"Maul.", Sidious snarled. "Our last encounter should have thought you better than crawling back to me." Maul dropped onto his knees, and put his lightsaber down before him.
"I never meant to fail you, master. I didn't realize my betrayal, but I promise I will not make a mistake a second time. I beg you, take me back. Kenobi might have weakened me, but I will have revenge for my legs."
Sidious cackled quietly. "Kenobi is already dead. It was Vader who killed him. He was a worthy apprentice, not like you, who was defeated by a mere padawan." Ahsoka saw the fury that burned in Maul's yellow eyes.
That Obi Wan was dead, meant that he would never kill him, which he surely urged to do. "And you, jedi child.", Sidious snorted. "What did you promise yourself of coming here?"
"I am no jedi.", Ahsoka spat. "Haven't been, since long before the empire took over." Sidious narrowed his eyes. "I was instructed by Vader, before he became your apprentice.", she added as a reminder.
A smirk curled Sidious' grey mouth. "Tempting. And yet I could swear he had told me about how he killed you." A shiver went down her spine. "He wishes. I managed to fake my death on Geonosis, it fooled him easily."
Sidious nodded slowly. "Carelessness indeed was one of his many flaws. As was lack of precision." Ahsoka swallowed the sarcastic remark that was at the tip of her tongue. Anakin had said that this lie would win Sidious interest in her abilities.
"He taught me to veil my traces. It wasn't hard to deceive him." A shiver crawled down her spine as Sidious cackled.
"Both of you will stay alive for now. Maul, you have the chance to prove your strength. And you, jedi child, will be able to prove both your worth and loyalty." Ahsoka was filled with relief. For now, her goal was that she survived.
Sidious turned to one of his guards. "Drop weapons in there. The last survivor will be trained as well." The guard bowed deeply and the Emperor walked away. "Master?", Maul called out.
"You have thought me the rule of two. How can there be more than one acolyte?" Sidious only made a throwing away gesture with one hand.
"That law was enabled a millennia ago, designed to make the jedi believe the weakened sith were gone, in order to protect our teachings. We don't require that protection any longer."
Maul's eyes widened, and Ahsoka couldn't hide her surprise either. Anakin had told her what the law meant, and how important it was to the sith. She couldn't believe what she had just heard.
Sidious plans were far worse than expected, he wanted to create a whole regime of sith warriors. And by coming here, Ahsoka had become a part of it. If Sidious would achieve his goal, the galaxy would never be the same.
The scars that, two years of a single sith ruling, would inflict on the galaxy were great enough, It was unimaginable what would happen if hundreds of them appeared to oppress the people that were already living in fear.
Silently, Ahsoka swore an oath to never let it come as far. She needed to earn the Emperor's faith quickly, to move around freely and help Anakin to kill him. Slowly, the crooked figure of Palpatine left Maul and Ahsoka behind.
As soon as he was out of sight Maul grabbed Ahsoka's neck and slammed her against the wall violently. "You are scum!", he hissed. "You were a jedi, you no nothing." Ahsoka merely stared, while her eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
Two of the red cloaked guards made a smooth movement and suddenly held their weapons at Maul's head. His eyes flicked to the sides before he decided to let go of Ahsoka.
She hid how badly she needed the air, and tried to keep her panting in control. Maul made a noise of rage before swirling around and leaving with a quick step.