Chapter 34: Lost One

For two days, Anakin Skywalker had been sequestered away with Qui-Gon and Master Yoda, and he was finally beginning to feel like himself again. After what had...happened with Padmé, when he was in his right mind once again, he had left the Senator's bed in a hurry and rushed himself as quickly as he could to the Jedi Temple. Qui-Gon was fast asleep when his young Padawan had thrown himself upon the bed, jolting the Master awake with his nervous, frantic cries and pleads for help. Anakin was lost, and he needed guidance to find the path again.

Qui-Gon had listened attentively as his student retold the events of that night. How he had gone to Padmé that evening because he had missed seeing her, how he could feel immediately that something was very wrong, how they had fought about Obi-Wan, how he had connected herself to the Senator's feelings to find that the Sith Lord Kenobi had been there first. After that, it was a bit of a blur, but Qui-Gon understood that the influence of the Sith had pulled the two towards intimacy, which they rushed into with frantic abandon. It wasn't that he didn't want it, Anakin had explained. It was that he felt compelled. Were the Senator to offer herself to him, he confessed he would have taken the opportunity gladly, but that wasn't what had happened. Padmé had been coaxed into a mindless lust by the soft accented drawl in her mind, and, linked to her, Anakin had been pulled in with her.

It felt wrong, and it wasn't what Skywalker had wanted, and though the tampering was in Padmé's mind, not his, Anakin had felt that the Sith Lord now had even easier access to him, if he so wished it. He needed help to keep Kenobi out, because Anakin knew that he would face him again. He had seen it through the Force, on a planet bathed in red, a red blade clashing against a blue and the Dark Side a swirling tempest around them.

Qui-Gon knew when he was out of his depth, and Anakin's troubles were beyond his skill to aid. Throwing on his robes, he commanded his Padawan to wash while he made arrangements, and fifteen minutes later, Master and student were on their way to Yoda's personal quarters. It didn't take Yoda long to begin asking Anakin questions that Qui-Gon didn't fully grasp the meaning of, questions about the control of his anger, the management of his emotions, and while these things seemed like normal questions given the problem, Anakin and Yoda had clearly talked about this before. He finally realized that his student and the Grandmaster had been working together in order to turn the tables on Obi-Wan Kenobi, attempting to get into the Sith's head and slowly corrode his control to reveal his true colors. Anakin had been at the heart of Obi-Wan's fall, after all, and it was through him that the Sith was the most raw, the most temperamental and the most dangerous. But in this, he was also the most vulnerable. If they could control how and when the Sith had his violent outbursts, they could defeat him.

And the next few days were like that, Anakin and Yoda working on carefully placed loss of control, only to quickly reel it back in. It was, in a sense, the ultimate control over the emotions, when they were permitted to run free for only a moment without inviting the Dark Side, and then quickly capped, the Jedi maintaining peace whenever it was desired. Qui-Gon had learned how to help Anakin achieve this sense of peace, as Yoda deemed it dangerous to do alone, and Skywalker leaned heavily on his Master for support. The Padawan loved and respected Qui-Gon, far beyond the normal bond of teacher and student, and while Yoda did caution the Jedi to remain vigilant of their attachments, the Grandmaster did not discourage it, insisting that it was important to find light in these dark times.

Now, the three Jedi sat on a comfortable rug on the floor, Yoda's three-toed feet clasped together as he observed Jinn and Skywalker. "Clear, your mind is," the Grandmaster rasped, and Anakin nodded.

"Yes, Master."

"Understand, do you, what has happened to the Senator?"

"I'm not sure," Skywalker mused, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "I know Obi-Wan was in Padmé's head, but...I didn't feel his presence."

"Obi-Wan's presence, we cannot sense. Provoked, he must be, to feel the Dark Side in him."

"Can he control people from far away?" Skywalker asked, and Yoda frowned.

"His ally, is the Force. Possible, anything is."

"That would be very bad, if he could control people from across the galaxy," Qui-Gon mumbled, but Anakin shook his head.

"I don't think that's what happened. I know we can't sense him, but...when he was in my mind on Geonosis, it was different. I could...feel him in my mind, it was like something was crawling inside my head. I didn't feel that this time. It was just his voice. Much more like the mind trick than actual mind control."

"Fight it, can you?" Yoda asked, and Anakin bit his lip and looked away, thinking for a moment before he turned back to the Master.

"I think so. Not with..." He swallowed hard. "Not with Padmé, I'm...too attached. Another Jedi needs to be assigned to her. She needs help, and it needs to be a good one."

"A Jedi in the Senate, we must have," Yoda agreed, his ears perking up. "Long ago, a Jedi, Obi-Wan was. Then, search for the Sith, he was tasked with. Found them, he did. Both, before he fell." Yoda groaned, closing his eyes as he thought. "Believed, Obi-Wan did, that Sith control the Senate. If correct, he was, than in danger, we all are." He pointed one of his three fingers at Anakin. "Explains Padmé's state, it does."

"...why would the Sith want her?" Anakin asked, his voice tight.

"Know that, I do not. Clouded, the Dark Side has made our visions."

"This changes a great deal," Qui-Gon said softly. "For those without the Force, there is no protection from the Sith. But we need to be out fighting a war. We can't stay here, because Obi-Wan's out there. We can't leave, because there may be a Sith in the Senate..."

"It's hard to find the right path, Master."

"Jedi, there will always be, in Coruscant. Observe the Senate, we will. Skywalker." Anakin sat up straighter. "Powerful you are, in the Force." The teen smiled until he found Yoda's stick pushed against his chest. "But attached, you easily become. Dangerous, it is, for a Jedi. Know this, you do. Controlled by the Sith, you were. Twice, because of attachment. Because of anger."

"...I know. It won't happen again."

"Strong, you are, Skywalker. But stronger, you are, with Qui-Gon. In pairs, Jedi work. In groups, we grow. Together, strong we are."

Anakin grinned brightly, his Master giving him a sidelong glance, his lips turning up in a small smile. "We'll pass on what we learned here to the others," Qui-Gon said, taking Anakin's hand when the boy jumped to his feet and allowed the Padawan to help him up. "The more we learn about the Sith, the worse it gets."

Yoda shook his head. "Long we have waited, and stronger, Obi-Wan has grown. Wait, we do. Patient, we are. But study, Obi-Wan does. Stronger and stronger, he becomes. The diligence of a Jedi, he has. Stop him, we must."

Both Jedi nodded, and they swept out of the room, leaving the tiny Jedi to his meditations. The door had barely shut behind them when Qui-Gon grabbed hold of Anakin's braid and pulled it so hard he was knocked off balance.

"Ow, hey!"

"I knew you had feelings for the Senator, but like this?!"

"Look, I said I was sorry! I am! Really, that's not how I wanted to take her!" Qui-Gon rolled his eyes when Anakin shut his mouth, his complexion turning fierce red. "Well it doesn't matter, I can't go to her now! If Obi-Wan doesn't know what happened between us, than someone does! I can't drag her into the Jedi's battles, not if it puts her in the sights of a Sith Lord!" Anakin crossed his arms. "Sith Hells, I bet you didn't go around pulling Obi-Wan's hair when he went to bed with his woman."

"He never went to bed with her, all his sessions were done in caves."

"You know what I meant!"

Qui-Gon sighed. "Obi-Wan was discrete, he never told me about what he had done, and I never managed to catch him in the act, though I did try."

"So...you don't want me to tell you?"

"No, I do..." The Master sighed. "You aren't like Obi-Wan, thank the Force. When you felt there was a problem, you came right to me and..." Qui-Gon closed his tired eyes. "Obi-Wan didn't, not in the end. If he came to me, or anyone, instead of dealing with it himself...maybe he wouldn't have fallen." The Master smiled. "I'm glad you came to me, Anakin."

"...you still pulled my hair, though."

Qui-Gon shrugged. "My Master pulled my hair when I came home far too late and smelling of women. And it happened far more than once. I never had Obi-Wan's sensibility for keeping silent. I was much more like you."

"And now you sit on the Council!" Anakin's entire body tensed, shaking in excitement. "I just can't believe it!"

"Neither can I..." The Master looked at his excitable Padawan, a slight smile on his lips. "Will you see Padmé again?"

"...I want to," Skywalker sighed. "I really do, I...loved what we did, even if I didn't go there for that."

"Do you love her?"

"...no." Anakin ran a hand through his hair. "I like her A lot. But love...is a bit strong. I know something's manipulating me, I felt it that night. Master Yoda helped me sort through that." He stood tall, his chest puffing in bolstered strength. "I know Jedi can't have relationships like that, but..." He cleared his throat. "If anything happens between her and me, it won't be because of some Sith."

"I suppose that's all I can hope for..." He sighed and hung his head, looking around the vast, empty hallways of the Jedi Temple. "At least you aren't an indiscriminate womanizer like Quinlan..."

"But he really has fun, Master. And he's on the Council!"

"...he's perhaps not the best example." Qui-Gon's eyes darted around the halls, and he froze in his steps, Anakin walking along and prattling on and on for a good ten paces before he realized that his Master hadn't moved.

"You alright?"

"All the Jedi are here in the Temple, the place is completely filled." He gestured widely with his hand. "So where is everybody?"

Anakin looked around the hall, and it was, in fact, empty. Not a single Jedi was in sight. Skywalker felt a deep pit form in his stomach, the Force quivering around him. "Something's wrong..."

"I feel it too. Let's go."

They had to pass through nearly the entire Jedi Order, from younglings to Masters, to get to where the Temple Guards stood standing in a long line in front of the Archive. Nobody was allowed to pass by, and while the Jedi complied with this rule without complaint, it didn't keep them from gathering before the massive hall of collected knowledge and talking about it. By the time Anakin and Qui-Gon had reached the line of guards that stood before the currently restricted Archive, they had pieced together a vague idea of what had happened. Somebody had broken in and stolen something from the depths of the Archive.

From where, though, the Jedi didn't know. Many of them suspected it was a Sith that had infiltrated their ranks and taken something from the Forbidden Archive, a wealth of Dark Side knowledge. Others still thought this was another prank by a particularly clever and mischievous Padawan. After all, many were old enough to remember the last time this happened, and Quinlan Vos had gleefully sat at the middle of that one. But regardless of where they stood on the matter, many Jedi believed it was Ahsoka Tano that had done it. She had come back touched by the Sith Lord Obi-Wan Kenobi on Christophsis, commanded to do his bidding and attack the Jedi, and if it wasn't that, the inherent troublemaker Quinlan was her Master. Regardless, it didn't look too good for the Togruta.

The Temple Guard stepped aside to allow Qui-Gon to pass by, but they tried to keep Anakin from entering. They were commanded to allow the Council by, as the leaders of the Order had a great deal to discuss and investigate, but they had said nothing about the Padawans of the Masters. A withering glare from Qui-Gon settled the matter, however, and they allowed Skywalker to pass. They weren't about to argue. They tried before to keep Luminara and Quinlan from bringing their Padawans in, and all they got for it was a headache.

When Anakin saw Barriss and Ahsoka standing away from the gathered Council, he rushed over to greet them, the two girls looking worried and somber, but both smiled when Skywalker approached. "Feeling better?" he asked, and Ahsoka frowned, crossing her thin arms over her chest.

"I wish I was still unconscious. They're blaming me for this!" She grumbled, shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "Master Vos hasn't left my side since we returned, he's already said I'm innocent!"

"The Council agrees, Ahsoka," Barriss said quietly. "They never suspected you to begin with."

"But the other Padawans, they-"

"Who cares about them," Anakin said, waving his hand in a dismissive gesture. "Padawans don't know anything, and you know they never stop talking."

At that, a sly grin spread across the Togruta's face. "I know. They're talking about you, you know. Something about a Senator..."

"Sheesh, Snips, what did I just say! We don't care what they think!" Anakin cried, his face red as he looked to Barriss for support, but the young Mirialan was just giggling haplessly. His friends were no help at all.

"I care," Ahsoka drawled. "I believe it."

"...w-well..."

"Oh sweet Force, you did it!" she squealed, her voice echoing around the uncharacteristically empty Archive, and the three looked to the group of Masters, but the only one who paid them any mind was Quinlan, the Kiffar shooting them a flash of a smile and winking, giving them a thumbs up before he turned his attention back to the others. "I had a bet with my Master that I just lost, thanks to you!" She punched the much taller Padawan in the arm with far more strength than Anakin thought she had.

"Wait, you bet on this rumor?!"

"It's not a rumor if it's true!"

"I don't know if the Jedi condone gambling, Ahsoka," Barriss said, but the Togruta scoffed loudly.

"That's not what Master Quinlan says."

"Master Luminara...respectfully disagrees on the matter."

Ahsoka laughed. "Yeah, next thing you know, she'll be saying that drinking isn't alright either."

"No, it is," the Mirialan mused. "But not in the excess your Master engages in."

"Hey! In the time I've been his Padawan, he's only been drunk five times!" Ahsoka held up her hand, her five fingers splayed for emphasis. Barriss was not impressed.

"And how long has that been?"

"Three weeks!"

"Ah," the Mirialan drawled, raising her hands before her in a placating gesture, but she smirked sarcastically. "I apologize. My mistake."

"Anyway, we aren't here to talk about that!" Ahsoka said, pointing at Anakin. "We're here to talk about how Skyguy put his...lightsaber in a Senator!"

Anakin nearly choked, his face bright red as he coughed as Barriss gasped, her small hands flying up to cover her mouth. "Ahsoka!" she chided. "How could you even-"

The Togruta shrugged. "That's what my Master said. More or less. He used...different words to describe it." She paused. "In great detail."

"He wasn't even there!" Anakin cried, his voice rough and raw from coughing, but the young Padawan Tano just grinned.

"Master Vos says it's very important to know how all that works. He didn't need to be there to know what happened, Skyguy." She rolled her eyes. "Even I know what happened, I've studied human biology." She answered the other two Padawans' questioning looks with a shrug and a quick, "There's just so many of you, I wanted to know why."

"Well, you suit your Master, that's for certain," Barriss sighed, but Anakin simply became more flustered.

"We aren't here to discuss my mistakes, we're here to find out what happened in the Archive!"

"We aren't going to find out," Ahsoka drawled, pointing to the Masters, who seemed to have devolved into less than polite discussion, with the Kiffar rogue leading the wild charge against an equally frustrated Mace Windu. "They are."

"How can they solve anything like that?" Barriss asked, shaking her head. "Master Luminara says that being unattached lends itself to clarity, but they are so...frustrated."

"How can you not be?" Skywalker sighed, looking around the Archive. Everything seemed in place, at least. "Everything is falling apart, how can we stay removed when the entire galaxy suffers?"

They were silent for a moment, each quietly contemplating the question when Ahsoka softly said, "Master Quinlan says a Jedi's true strength comes from how deeply we feel. We know we're all connected, we suffer when others do, we feel their pain and their sorrow and their joys and...well, all of it. Without empathy for others, we wouldn't be Jedi."

"Master Luminara says our strength comes from being able to let go when the time comes," was Barriss' solemn response. "Most can't do it, but it keeps us from seeking revenge, feeling hatred that prevents our ability to connect with others."

Anakin was silent, quietly contemplating the opposing, but not dissimilar opinions of his friends' Masters. "Master Qui-Gon," he said softly, "hasn't really said. He just...says we must trust in the will of the Force and follow it, no matter where it takes us."

"Even if it leads to the Dark Side?" the Mirialan asked, and Skywalker found two pairs of bright blue eyes staring at him. He tried to swallow the lump in his throat, but found he could not.

"...the Force won't lead us to evil, we just need to recognize what reaches out to us."

"But what about the Sithkiller?" Ahsoka asked. "The Force led him to hunt the Sith, didn't it? It led him to the Dark Side."

"It's not the fault of the Force that Obi-Wan Kenobi wasn't strong enough," Anakin hissed. "But we are. We just need to trust in the Force and everything will be alright." He sighed. "Look, it'll be alright if we just follow the will of the Force. Now, since we are here to talk about what happened, what happened? What was stolen? And how are they going to find who did it? Basically every Jedi in the Order is here right now!"

"From what I understand," Barriss said, folding her hands in front of her, "the thief broke into the Holocron Vault."

"...isn't that the most guarded place in the Temple?" Anakin asked, and little Ahsoka scoffed beside him.

"And they thought I did it..."

"The rest of the Order doesn't know the details yet, and you know how facts become rumors as the tale is retold." Barriss smiled when the Togruta became petulant.

"You wouldn't be so easy-going about this if you were the one accused."

"Perhaps not," the Mirialan smiled. "But I would also trust my Master to show others her wisdom. She would know I was innocent. She wouldn't make a joke out of it like someone's Master..."

"Master Vos likes to have fun!" the Togruta shouted in defense of the Kiffar. "Especially when things get bad!"

"We know..." Anakin groaned, looking over at the congregated Masters again to find Quinlan laughing at what looked to be the expense of a furiously blushing Shaak Ti."I had thought the Holocron Vault was only accessible by Masters."

Barriss nodded. "I believe that's correct. It greatly limits who could have done it. Our Masters should have solved the matter by now."

"I don't understand," Ahsoka mused, her hand resting on her cheek. "What could a Sith want with a Holocron? They can't open it, can they?"

"An important question, that is." The three Padawans gasped and turned around, seeing nothing for a moment before they looked down at the bemused face of Grandmaster Yoda. "What think the Padawans, hmm?" The little creature chuckled, and the three friends looked between each other. Nobody said anything, but Yoda remained silent, indicating that the question was not, in face, rhetorical.

"Maybe," Ahsoka began, the youngest and most bold of the three, "they believe that Obi-Wan can open it since he was once a Jedi. Maybe he still believes he can open it. I mean, he hasn't been gone that long, not really. Maybe he still feels the Light Side of the Force."

Yoda hummed, his big eyes closed in thought. "Possible, this is."

Encouragement from Yoda made Barriss step forward, head bowed. "Perhaps they found a way to open it. If they have a Jedi working for them, than they may have convinced them to open it as well. Or, more likely, they were compelled to do so."

Yoda nodded. "Astute, you are. Yes, could be."

All eyes turned to Anakin, but the boy said nothing, his index finger pressed to his chin and his lips pursed in thought. Finally, he whispered, "This is exactly like everything else they've done. All of this was done to spread confusion and make us doubt ourselves and each other. It's just an added bonus that they're depriving us of knowledge." Smiling, Yoda tapped his stick on Anakin's stomach.

"Correct, you are, young Skywalker." The Master slowly hobbled past them, waving with his free hand for the trio to follow. "Come, Padawans. Share with the Council, your insight. Valuable, are the opinions of all. Not just the wise, but the young. On the outside, you stand. A new perspective, we must have."

They walked next to the tiny Grandmaster, quiet and nervous, and when they approached, the Masters all bowed to the old, wise Jedi, but their eyes appraised the Padawans as if they were judging them. Standing silent, the little creature tapped each of the Padawans in turn, the teens repeating what they had said earlier. When they had finished, Yoda stood beside them, a soft smile on his old face.

"A lesson, this is. For all of us," the Grandmaster said, tapping his stick beside the Padawans. "Good ideas, are these, Padawans. To be considered, they must. But information, you are missing. Correct, you are, about the Sith and the thief. But incorrect, you are, about why."

Anakin sputtered, "But, a Jedi holocron-"

"Stolen, Jedi holocrons were, yes. Three, they were." Yoda frowned. "But for Jedi holocrons, the objective was not."

"Wait, how are we supposed to answer your questions when we don't have all the information!" Ahsoka cried, and Yoda gave a satisfied grunt, pointing his stick at the Togruta.

"Masters. An answer, have you, for the Padawan?" No Master moved. The trio of learners looked at the Council, and they seemed...scolded. Like they had failed the Grandmaster in some way that the Padawans didn't understand. "Narrow, is our sight. Strive for the bigger picture, we must. Master Vos." The Kiffar perked up. "Examined the lightsaber, have you?"

"...not yet, Master. I've been too busy teaching."

"Today," Yoda said firmly. "Be with you, I will. Understanding, we must have." Quinlan nodded, and Yoda closed his eyes. "A victory for the Sith, this was. Sense their influence, I cannot. Capture Obi-Wan, we must." The Masters quietly nodded, and they began to leave, but Anakin was confused. That couldn't be it.

"No, wait!" Skywalker cried, and all the Masters turned to face him. "I don't understand. There are hundreds of Masters, do you know who did it?"

It was Qui-Gon that stepped forward. "We know who, yes..."

"Who?" His Master did not answer, and Anakin sighed. Qui-Gon would tell him soon enough. "Alright, why."

"We don't actually know why, Anakin..."

"No, we do," Quinlan said sharply. "He did it for his Sith Master!"

"There was no Dark Side in him, Quinlan, he isn't Sith!"

"He was controlled!" Silence fell when Yoda slammed his stick on the ground, the sharp sound echoing throughout the high, empty halls of the Archive.

"Ears, have you, Quinlan?" Yoda asked, and the Kiffar bit his lip.

"Apparently not," he growled.

"Wise, your Padawan is. Gave voice to our problem, she did. Answer questions, we cannot, if information, we do not have." The room was silent again, and all the Masters seemed to struggle with this. Barriss shifted from foot to foot, looking at her contemplative Master, and she took in a breath and held it.

"Masters," she said softly, respectfully, and the Jedi looked toward her. "You had said that stealing the holocrons was secondary. If that's true, what was their main objective?" The Masters seemed reluctant to answer, looking to Yoda to say something, but the little Master only closed his eyes and breathed deep.

"Holocrons, the Sith have stolen," he finally said. "And holocrons, the objective was." He frowned, grunting in dissatisfaction. "Three Jedi holocrons, the Sith did steal. But stole twelve, they did." The Padawans looked confused, and Yoda took in a deep breath. "In the Holocron Vault, how many may enter?"

"W-well..." Barriss stuttered. "The Masters have access, so hundreds, I suppose."

It was Luminara that shook her head. "Masters may enter, yes, but only twelve of them."

Barriss gasped in understanding. "The High Council." The Mirialan Master nodded. "...so one of you stole them?"

"No, it wasn't them," Anakin growled, his eyes lighting with understanding. "But it was one of them, it was Master Koth." One look at the Masters told Anakin he had hit the mark. He groaned, running his hands over his face He understood electronics well enough to know exactly how the wayward Master had done it. "We just elected new Masters to the Council. He may have exploited this to get where he wanted."

"That may be," Qui-Gon whispered, and the other Masters seemed to glare at him. Qui-Gon did not fail to notice. "What," he snapped. "We cannot just keep this information from them, not when they're puzzling it out themselves! You're right, Anakin. And before you say anything about it, if he's on the planet, we will find him, but we shouldn't count on it. He's long gone by now."

"Why do we even care about him!" Ahsoka cried, throwing her arms in the air. "He's already done the damage. Yes, Sith spies in the Jedi is bad, but what's worse is what he stole!"

"They can't use Jedi holocrons, Ahsoka..." Barriss said softly, placating her friend, but the Togruta would have none of it.

"Three, Jedi holocrons, Barriss, but Master Yoda said twelve were stolen." She took a deep breath, her eyes narrowing with frustration and rising anger. "There were Sith holocrons in there."

"Correct, you are, Padawan Tano," Yoda nodded.

"They weren't here to rob us of our knowledge, they were here to expand their own." Ahsoka plunked down upon the floor, resting her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands. "How are we supposed to fight them now?"

"Quickly," Quinlan drawled, sitting himself next to his Padawan and holding the borrowed lightsaber in his hands.

"...how many did they steal?"

"All of them." The Kiffar smiled at his despondent Padawan. "We'll get them back."

"Why do we even have those?" Anakin growled. "They should have been destroyed."

"Kept them, we did, in the event that return, the Sith did," Yoda rasped. "But open them, we cannot. Changed, the Jedi Order is, from a thousand years ago."

"Not that it matters anymore, since the Sith have them back now..."Anakin sighed, running his hand through his lengthening hair. "What are we going to do?"

"Return to the war, we must," Yoda softly rasped. "Trained the Jedi, we have, to defend against the Sith. Prepared, they will never be, but the tools, they have, to live. Capture Obi-Wan, we must."

"Is that the goal?" Anakin asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest, and the tiny Master nodded.

"Knowledge, he has. Knowledge of the Dark Side. Knowledge of the Sith. The identity of the Sith Master, he knows. This knowledge, we may gain, but not if dead, he is."

Anakin looked around the room at the sullen Masters, his fellow concerned Padawans, the old, wise face of the Grandmaster, and he felt a deep pain in his chest. For a moment, he felt the Force tremble as he looked upon them, their presence in the Force flickering and dying, or fading to black for just an instant. Then it was gone, but the feeling remained. Before Obi-Wan was captured, hundreds of Jedi would be dead, hundreds more worse than dead, and through it all, Anakin felt that balance, somehow, could be restored.