"Disappointing," Master Yoda said.
Obi-Wan had started preparing before the dawn. Asajj had slipped out with one final kiss, leaving him alone to watch the pre-dawn glow. He didn't have time to sit and stare at it and clear his mind. He had to prepare what to say, and perhaps more importantly, which favors to call in. A few quiet holocomm calls, and he made sure that she had a clear way.
Later in the morning, Asajj Ventress would present herself to the Senate as Empress of Rattatak. Her shabby clothes would draw stares from the other senators. She would not look the part of a diplomat or an Empress but instead a smuggler someone let in by mistake. But she would approach them with the same humbleness, and offer the Senate at large the surrender of her planet and her people. In the hallway she would pass the recently deposed former High Chancellor Palpatine. They would share a long glance and she would struggle to keep her face straight. But under the benevolent gaze of the new Chancellor Bail Organa, she would bow low, and beg for mercy, but justify the need for mercy: there was an extensive droid factory on Rattatak, and its resources and intelligence would be the Republic's. A motion to accept her surrender would be proposed by the senator from Chandrila, and carried by the human senator from Naboo (who would be in the senate, a rarity these days, and understandably hidden behind the heavy makeup that seemed to be traditional). The resolution would easily pass. Then Asajj would be on a Republic cruiser with a small attachment of clone troopers before there was even time for her to grab any lunch. It would be the start of an uneventful trip wherein the troopers would be amazed at how pleasantly quiet Ventress was, and would not know what to make of her, a traitor yet now on their side, a warrior who had slaughtered their brothers by the hundreds but was now eating in the same mess hall; they would not figure it out by the time they arrived on Rattatak.
But that would be later.
Now Obi-Wan was standing before the Council. He had called them together because they would find out one way or another; Ahsoka would have turned to either Plo Koon, who was on the Council, or Barriss Offee, who had enough love of regulations to be properly shocked and report his behavior. His own seat in the large room was empty - instead all eyes were fixed upon him as he stood in the middle. He confessed everything. He acknowledged his attachment, emotional, carnal, intellectual, and apologized for it in humble repentance. He avowed his fallen status, and offered his resignation from the Council - at least a temporary hiatus as he found his way back to the path.
"Disappointing," Yoda said.
Obi-Wan was not sure whether the Jedi Master said this because Obi-Wan had strayed from the Code, or because he acquiesced so quickly in the face of adversity and did not fight to keep his love.
"You are dismissed, Master Kenobi. We must deliberate whether to accept your resignation from the Council, and what sanctions may be appropriate."
He bowed low, turned, and left.
Ahsoka was waiting for him just outside the doorway, biting her lip and looking pained. Truthfully, at some point during the night, her anger had waned. She had tolerated, or even tacitly approved, of Anakin's relationship with Senator Amidala. And she had felt no bitterness or anger still clinging to Ventress. The awful possibility of true love was one she couldn't ignore. If Obi-Wan was right - if what she had seen was genuine - then she realized it was petty of her to deny one Master what she had encouraged in another Master. Besides, hatred was unbecoming for a Jedi. It was a chance to prove that she was ultimately better than Ventress, and that was appealing.
She was about to speak when he cut her off by bowing low. "Ahsoka - last night, you were completely right. My selfishness has hurt you, and your progress as a Jedi. I betrayed your trust. I can only hope that you will accept my forgiveness." There was a deep undercurrent of sadness, though Ahsoka couldn't place why.
"I... I didn't..." She gulped solidly. "Sure. Yeah. It's okay."
He straightened and gave her a small relieved smile, and she saw the look in his eyes. He had surrendered the thought that he deserved happiness, and sacrificed it for duty. There was no struggle, no want, no seeking desire anymore. There was simply resignation that his life would be serving others - always someone else, and never himself. A forced selflessness. He had given up.
And her heart sunk.
Despite her hatred of Ventress, for a moment she wanted nothing more than to yell at him to chase her down, to fight against the chaste Jedi lifestyle and do something that made him happy, something dramatic, something showy - more than just powdered donuts at Dexter's Diner. But the words choked in her throat even as she reached out to grab his arm in a sympathetic manner.
Something was gone even in that simple touch. Before they had been friends through the mutual connection of Anakin, and the void he left behind. Now there was something dead and clinical about it. Merely Master and Padawan, student and teacher.
Later Ahsoka would find a quiet corner and sob about the intangible something she had accidentally killed. There was no way Barriss would understand her approval, not when she tried to explain it. Perhaps Plo Koon would understand, or would at least have been able to watch her cry and help her, given the fact that he was the closest thing she had to a father. But he would feel indebted to try to fix the situation, to talk to Obi-Wan and try to convince him. But some things could not be so easily fixed.
"I understand you've been having trouble with set twenty-six of Jar'Kai, utilizing your shoto. If you would like some help, I can look at your form...?" It was a friendly offer, but one that was merely what any Master would extend to a Padawan.
"I'd appreciate that, Master Kenobi, thank you," she said, because there was nothing else to say.