A/N: Again, I'm sorry for the slow update. It's a hectic life being a third year university student.
Chapter Sixty-One – Reunion.
The Force was preparing. He could sense it and he knew what it was preparing for. He too was preparing. He had been doing so for the past twenty years. For a final confrontation with Darth Vader.
For the first time, Obi-Wan understood what Mace Windu had been able to see in the Force. Destiny was a single point in the middle of the strands. He could sense it growing. The closer he came to Vader, the more the Force buckled.
As he had made his silent way through the station's hallways to shut down the tractor beam, he had concentrated. He could almost see the tendrils of the Force coming together as Luke and Leia reunited. He had almost been able to see himself and Vader coming together, the point increasing as the distance closed.
Obi-Wan was walking towards his destiny, he knew. He was as he had always known he would be – calm and resigned. Qui-Gon had taught him that at a very young age. He in turn had taught Anakin. But there was little of Anakin left in the creature he was heading towards.
The creature in the black armour was a Sith. The evil that had killed countless of innocent people; men, women, younglings, his friends and colleagues, Padmé.
Sabé.
Mara.
Although Obi-Wan did not let their deaths taint his judgment, he did not forget. He could not deny that they were on his mind as he rounded the corner, lightsabre in hand.
Vader stood in his path, a dark, threatening presence. His sabre was already activated and glowed a bright ruby-red in the darkened corridor.
Still so impatient, Obi-Wan inwardly sighed. He activated his own weapon and continued walking.
Vader was the first to break the silence. "I've been waiting for you, Obi-Wan. We meet again at last."
Obi-Wan chose not to comment. He did not wish to be influenced by memories of the last time he'd been in the same building as Vader.
"The circle is now complete," the Sith Lord went on. "When I left you I was but the learner, now I am the master."
"Only a master of evil, Darth," Obi-Wan said. The sabre blades clashed together and the point of destiny grew its brightest. In its middle, the centre was calm. Obi-Wan reached into the centre, letting the tranquillity wash over him. The impression of Sabé's presence was stronger here than ever. It comforted him. He could even imagine that she might be directly beside him now.
Vader sensed nothing of the anxious spirit woman nearby. He sensed nothing of the imprint of destiny that Obi-Wan saw. All he sensed was his power, growing as the Dark Side of the Force wrapped its shielding around him. His attacks became more aggressive, causing Obi-Wan to concentrate fully on defence. He smirked beneath his mask. "Your powers are weak, old man."
But Obi-Wan was unfazed. "You can't win, Darth. If you strike me down I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."
Vader had never much liked the former Jedi Master's penchant for cryptic metaphors. It seemed to him to be pointless and a waste of time. "You should not have come back," he growled.
Sabé watched as the two battled their way down the corridor. Qui-Gon had disappeared, gone to ensure that Luke, Leia, Han and Chewbacca had made it away from the detention level. She had been left alone, so she stayed by her husband's side and offered whatever scrap of sensed encouragement she could.
The battle continued onwards until they ran out of corridor to move down. They had reached a blast door through to the hangar and Sabé noted that the Falcon was still docked, guarded by a squadron of troops. At the sight of the duel, the troops hurried over to offer their assistance. Sabé saw R2 and 3P0 leave a nearby alcove and head towards the ship. At the same time, the humans and the Wookiee appeared from their hiding place.
Luke caught sight of the duel and muttered, "Ben?"
At this, the Jedi Master glanced over and saw that they had made it to safety. Sabé wondered what he would do now and whether he was still up to making daring escapes.
Then a voice spoke to her mind. It's time. It was neither male nor female and seemed both in her head and everywhere. Sabé realised at once that it was the Force. She also realised that somehow she knew exactly what to do.
She stepped forward and held out her arms towards the duellers. Obi-Wan turned his gaze on her. This time there was no doubt that he saw her. He smiled, looked back at Vader and closed his eyes. Vader's blade cut right through him with one sweeping arc.
Sabé could not help the gasp that escaped her lips and she squeezed her eyes closed. Hands took hold of hers, solid and real.
She opened her eyes. Obi-Wan stood before her. He looked exactly as he had the last time she had seen him through her living eyes, as handsome and noble as the day she had married him.
They stared at each other. Then Obi-Wan pulled her into his arms and held her to him. Neither spoke. They did not have to.
Luke, however, let out a devastated, "No!" His attempted shots at Vader's departing back thankfully did not hit their target. Not only would he have killed his own father in his rage and pain, but he would have set himself on the path to the Dark Side.
"Come on! Luke, it's too late!" Leia screamed at him.
"Blast the door, kid!"
Luke finally saw reason in the shouts of his friends and turned his aim on the door's control panel. The door slid shut, cutting Vader and the summoned back-up troops off from the docking bay. His shots at the remaining stormtroopers were wasting valuable time and Obi-Wan saw fit to intervene.
"Run, Luke, run!"
The angry young man took the hint, although he did not entirely understand how and why he had heard it. He hurried inside the ship. Engines firing, the Falcon took off and rocketed away from the space station.
Sabé and Obi-Wan watched it go then turned their attention back to each other. Sabé spoke first. "Hello." The word seemed impossibly small and meaningless.
"Hello." He smiled and added, "Are you following me? People will talk."
She laughed and burst into tears, burying her head in his shoulder. "Let them talk."
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A/N: I'm sorry for the shortness of this chapter, but carrying on with the destruction of the Death Star completely altered the tone and I wanted to keep this focussed on their reunion.