Injured troopers flooded the Infirmary, stretching the Resolute's capacity to the max. Any lull or retreat would only bring more troopers in need of more intensive care, but so far no respite had come.

Adrina and Maelle's eyes met above a patient. The Resolute had jumped to hyperspace. Wordlessly, they continued working. Master Windu had said there was trouble in the Ryloth system, but 'trouble' seemed to be a mild description of a full-scale Techno Union blockade and planetary occupation. The sheer number of casualties corroborated the severity of turmoil.

Concern for the Twi'lek's rose in Adrina's mind as she moved to the next patient. Admiral Yularen. Blood wept from his clotting head injury as he lay unconscious. Command staff flanked him in similar states.

If this was the battering the Republic was suffering, she shivered to think of the suffering the occupation wrought. The Council tasked Anakin with breaking the blockade in advance of Obi-Wan returning with his troops and fresh supplies from Coruscant - a tall order.

And now they were retreating.

Word came that the Defender was being evacuated onto the Resolute. Adrina sent Maelle to the hanger to oversee the transfer of wounded. An annoying something niggled at the back of Adrina's neck. Evacuating a heavily damaged Star Destroyer was the prudent decision, but something else was afoot.

The Defender's wounded poured into the Infirmary, setting off another flurry of activity.

She wouldn't have an opportunity to breathe until the occupation of Ryloth was ended.

0

Adrina tipped her head back and smiled. Digging her fingers into the loamy soil, she allowed herself to be swept away in the serenity of the Room of Thousand Fountains, the stream's gently flowing water tickling her bare feet and spiriting away the stress and anxieties of the war.

She exhaled a sigh. After several long months in the Outer Rim, the peace of the Temple - her home - enveloped her in its warm embrace. She had been away far too long. In the morning she would report to the Infirmary, but for now, she would make the most of the reprieve.

"There you are."

Adrina greeted Obi-Wan with a smile. She patted the ground next to her and invited him to join her in dipping his feet in the water.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Perhaps another time," he said. "Have you heard from Anakin?"

Adrina raised an eyebrow. "We both know where he is. I doubt anyone sees him until the morning."

"I've been signaling him all night," Obi-Wan grunted as he brought a hand to stroke his chin. "The Council has need of him."

"It's been months since he's been on Coruscant," Adrina reminded him softly.

Obi-Wan sighed. "Yes, I suppose it has been. I understand. But…"

Adrina gently touched his arm.

"They can still do the right thing." Obi-Wan's voice carried more confidence than Adrina felt the situation warranted, but she merely nodded in response.

"Try signaling him again," Adrina suggested. She tilted her head at him, observing him as he signaled Anakin with no response. Tension radiated from him. "When was the last time you took a moment for yourself, Obi-Wan?"

Obi-Wan blinked, frowning. "I meditate daily."

Adrina leveled him with a chastising look.

Obi-Wan crossed his arms. "What?"

Adrina gestured to the open spot beside her. "Why don't you join me? Just for a moment."

"Oh, no, I don't want to intrude," Obi-Wan said quickly. "I need to track Anakin down, anyway."

"You're not intruding," Adrina said quietly. She didn't think he ever could. His presence was always soothing, steadying. "Besides, unless you are going to barge into Senator Amidala's apartment, there isn't much else you can do to contact Anakin." And Obi-Wan wouldn't be doing that.

Color tinged his cheeks. "I'm worried about him," Obi-Wan admitted. "And he won't like what the Council is going to ask of him." He slowly folded himself onto the ground beside her.

Adrina's brow furrowed. "What are you going to ask?"

"For Anakin to convince Senator Amidala to spy on a fellow senator, who the Council believes is a Separatist spy." Obi-Wan sighed.

"No, he won't like that at all," Adrina snorted.

"Especially when he learns that Senator Amidala and this presumed spy used to be….involved. At least, some on the Council believed they were."

Adrina grimaced. The evidence against this senator must be damning indeed if the Council was going to this length to convict him. There was once a time when the Jedi would not have been tasked with ferreting out spies. Wistfulness swelled up within Adrina and she shoved it aside.

"Are you referring to Senator Clovis?"

Obi-Wan blinked.

Adrina shrugged. "Rumors were all over the gossip columns for a time, not long after she became a senator. They entered at the same time, you know." She never believed the rumors though. Padmé Amidala was altogether too altruistic to be interested in someone as mercenary as Baron Rush Clovis.

"I don't like it," Obi-Wan said, rubbing his beard. "But we need Senator Amidala's help and she has already refused Master Yoda."

Adrina pinched the bridge of her nose. "What a mess." She sighed. "She spoke to me, you know. On Naboo."

"On Naboo? There was time for that?"

Adrina cracked a wry grin. "That's what I told her, but she was insistent." Senator Amidala was nothing if not tenacious. Adrina had to admit she and her brother could be suited - under different circumstances.

They fell into companionable silence. The melodious flowing water soothed frayed edges.

"I don't blame him, you know," Obi-Wan said at length. "I know what that kind of mission is like. Those feelings… I would understand if he left."

"What happened on Mandalore?" She asked softly. She immediately shook her head. "You don't have to answer that. It's none of my business."

He surprised her by slowly removing his boots, rolling up his trouser legs, and gingerly dipping his bare feet in the stream. Obi-Wan sighed, but offered her a ghost of a smile. "It's alright, my friend. I daresay you've earned the right to ask me anything." His eyes glazed over as he stared into nothing. He was quiet for several minutes as he waged an internal battle. Finally, he said, "As you once guessed, I developed... feelings for Duchess Satine over the course of our assignment."

Well over a decade later and pain still rang clearly in his words. Adrina's throat constricted. "Those feelings are natural, Obi-Wan," she whispered when he grew silent. "Don't ever be ashamed of them."

"Indeed," Obi-Wan agreed.

"Did she know?" Adrina ignored the discomfort beginning to broil in her stomach. She must have forgotten to eat.

"Yes, I believe she did." Obi-Wan nudged the water with his toe. He so rarely offered up personal details; Adrina knew this had to be painful. "And I believe… I believe she may have felt the same."

"But you never spoke openly to each other about your feelings."

"To anyone," Obi-Wan murmured. Adrina felt the depth of the honor he had bestowed upon her. He sighed. "Had she asked, I would have left the Order."

That sickening feeling in her stomach grew worse, but she continued to ignore it. She licked her lips. She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't find the words. She looked out over the water, thoughts unaccountably jumbled.

"I used to wonder, sometimes, if I made the right decision. If I should have left anyway. If I would have been happy on Mandalore - with the woman I loved, but no longer a Jedi," Obi-Wan confessed, staring off at a distant nothing.

"Surely that's only natural," Adrina murmured. "You love her."

"And I walked away."

Adrina inclined her head. "So did she."

Obi-Wan made a brief hum of reluctant agreement.

Adrina pressed her lips together. Finally she said, "I can hardly pass any kind of judgment."

"No," Obi-Wan said, "But you can, perhaps to a degree, understand."

Adrina nodded. And she could. She wanted to ask what stopped him - what prompted him to remain, why he had turned away from Duchess Satine - but the words clogged her throat.

"I am a Jedi," Obi-Wan said softly, as if sensing her questions. "It is… It is who I am. Perhaps Satine loved me, as I… as I loved her, but…" He closed eyes and breathed deeply.

"But you are a Jedi," Adrina finished what Obi-Wan could not say. "Jedi put others before themselves." She understood. Her father hadn't, but she did.

Obi-Wan sighed heavily. "Yes. I wonder if that's why she never asked. I thought once she was going to, but she never did."

Adrina allowed a few moments of silence to comfort them before murmuring, "Sometimes I wonder if I should have left with my buir - if that might have prevented all this."

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "That's utterly ridiculous."

Adrina threw him a mock glare. "I know." But she sighed.

"The 'what could have beens' will eat us up if we let them," Obi-Wan said. "We shouldn't dwell on the past." He shook his head then glanced at his companion. "Thank you for listening."

"Anytime," Adrina whispered, locking eyes with him. An odd fluttering sensation took hold of her intestines. "I'll always listen to whatever you need to say."

0

After the often frantic rush of battlefield medical care, the steady stream of non-critical patients through the Halls of Healing seemed like a slow crawl. Even Maelle quietly commented on the stark difference. Neither would complain, though.

Adrina worried about Maelle. She could not fault her assistant's work. Indeed, Maelle competently executed her duties - going even above and beyond the standard of care for her patients. But, even after months, remained withdrawn and tentative. Although her bedside manner could not be faulted, she never socialized with the troopers outside the Infirmary. She ate her meals either alone or with Adrina, and would otherwise spend her time working or in her quarters. Maelle had always been a shy child, but her sparkling wit and clever mind had retreated behind an impenetrable wall since Geonosis.

Then Adrina received an agitated message from Anakin to meet him at Senator Amidala's apartment - alone. She frowned. Obi-Wan had mentioned that Anakin had indeed managed to convince Senator Amidala to assist the Council and that she and Anakin were en route to Cato Neimoidia as part of their operation. That had been nearly two days ago. With only minutes left on her shift, she quietly made her excuses to Master Che, who waved her away without concern.

Clearly alerted to her coming, Senator Amidala's security led her to the turbolift. Anakin met her at the turbolift doors inside the Senator's apartment. Anakin hastily ushered his sister into the apartment. Padmé lay on the couch, one hand on her stomach, the other arm thrown across her eyes.

"What happened?" Adrina asked, walking quickly to Padmé's side. She knelt beside the sofa. Padmé offered Adrina a feeble smile and started to push herself up on her elbow. Adrina helped her into a sitting position, arranging Padmé's skirts as she swung her legs over the edge of the sofa.

Padmé's deep purple gown surprised Adrina. Strapless and entirely backless, the gown clung tightly to every curve of her body. With a necklace drawing attention to Padmé's cleavage, certainly the ensemble enticed her prey.

"She was poisoned," Anakin bit out, running a hand through his hair. He sat close beside Padmé, who - Adrina did not fail to note - tensed and leaned slightly away.

"With what?" Adrina asked.

"I don't know," Padmé sighed. "Rush gave us the antidote and it does seem to have helped, but…"

"But she isn't completely healed," Anakin growled.

Adrina raised an eyebrow and requested a detailed recounting of the poisoning. Padmé seemed happy to allow Anakin to answer while Adrina did a quick examination of Padmé, although Padmé grimaced every time Anakin snarled Rush's name. Adrina frowned. Indeed, Padmé seemed entirely uncomfortable with the whole thing. No, she seemed entirely uncomfortable with Anakin.

"I've got an idea about what poison you were dosed with," Adrina told Padmé. "I'll need to run some tests to confirm. You're weak, certainly, but I don't see or sense anything that makes me think the antidote didn't do its job. Some poisons, even with the antidote administered in a timely manner, take some time to recover from." Adrina stood.

"Look at her," Anakin protested. "Something is wrong!"

Adrina had her suspicions about what exactly ailed Padmé, but sharing those suspicions with Anakin would benefit no one. Pale, tense, and weak, Padmé shrank into the couch. But where Anakin saw a failed antidote, Adrina saw heartbreak. Padmé's eyes pleaded with her.

"Anakin," Padmé entreated with a wobbling smile, "I'm fine. You need to get the hologram to the Council. They have to know about the droid foundry. Go, please."

"R2 can go on his own," Anakin insisted, pulling Padmé closer.

Padmé placed a hand on Anakin's chest, gently pushing him away. "But we can't take the chance of Lott Dod's associates intercepting him. That information is vital to the Republic."

"Go," Adrina echoed softly. "We're perfectly safe here. I'll do a more thorough exam while you report to the Council."

"Yes, please," Padmé nodded at Adrina.

Pursing his lips, Anakin reluctantly stood. "Alright. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Adrina gently led Anakin to the turbolift, R2 trailing behind. She kept her smile serene. "Don't worry, Ani. She's in the best hands."

"I know," Anakin muttered, casting a glance over his shoulder at Padmé. "I'm just worried about her."

"Understandably," Adrina nodded. "But leave the worrying to me. You go save the Republic." Adrina pressed Anakin into the turbolift, waving as the doors closed.

C3P0 shuffled in with a tray of refreshments. Padmé thanked the droid and bid him shut down for the evening as she accepted a goblet. The droid retired with surprising grace.

"Thank you, Adrina," Padmé said quietly. "I know… I know this is not what you would prefer to be doing."

Adrina frowned at her. "We may have our disagreements, but I am a healer and you are in need of help. That will always be more important than any personal differences."

Padmé exhaled. Some of the tension eased from her body. She rubbed her forehead wearily.

"I think that we should get you out of those clothes and clean before we proceed any further," Adrina said. She nodded towards the door towards Padmé's private quarters. "If you need assistance in the shower, I am at your disposal."

"A shower does sound heavenly," Padmé admitted, slowly standing. "I think I can manage fine on my own. But thank you."

Adrina waved her thanks away. "Call me whenever you are ready."

Padmé disappeared into her private quarters. Adrina drifted towards the window wall and gazed out over the twinkling Coruscant skyline. Something more than Lott Dod's treachery had transpired. By the sound of it, Padmé succeeded in proving Rush Clovis' treason. Although that doubtless nettled Padmé, it wouldn't account for her body language towards Anakin. Adrina crossed her arms. Anakin, though, would not have been pleased to see Padmé thrown together with her old beau. She could well imagine how he had acted.

"I hope you don't mind my more informal attire," Padmé greeted when she returned a few minutes later wearing a flowing white nightgown and midnight blue dressing robe.

Adrina laughed. "Considering many of my patients are wearing next to nothing but their skin, hardly."

Padmé smiled.

Adrina gestured to the couch. "Why don't we sit?" Padmé tucked herself into the corner of the couch, legs drawn up, and hugged a decorative pillow to her chest. Adrina felt a flash of sympathy. "I think we both know that the antidote was indeed perfectly effective."

Padmé nodded, hanging her head. "Yes," she whispered.

"Would you like to tell me what happened?" Adrina prompted gently.

"I'm embarrassed," Padmé admitted. "And...a little ashamed." Adrina waited while Padmé fingered the gold tassels of the pillow. "You were right. I knew you were right all along, but… this whole business with Rush Clovis really highlighted my own folly." Padmé reached across and snagged a pastry from the tray C3P0 had left. A crumb fell from the pastry as she gestured towards the refreshments. "Help yourself, please."

Adrina accepted a glass of Dressellian prune juice.

Padmé continued after a deep sigh. "My handmaidens are more than servants, as you know. More than decoys, even."

Adrina blinked at the abrupt change of topic but nodded.

"They are bodyguards above all else. The selection process is rigorous. Many applicants - even if they are near perfect doubles - fail early in the process. Naboo may be pacifistic, but we are not helpless or weak." Padmé sipped her juice. A ghost of a smile crossed her lips. "And I competed with them in the selection, unbeknownst to them. And I finished, nearly top, on my own merit. Over the years, I have been in a number of dangerous situations - situations in which my life was very much in danger. Not just when someone is trying to assassinate me."

Adrina nodded. "It was obvious to me, when we were retaking Theed, that you were well-trained. You are more than capable of taking care of yourself."

Padmé threw up her hands. "Thank you!"

Ah. So that was the source of her conflict with Anakin. "I take it that Anakin suggested the opposite."

Padmé slumped back into the couch with a sneer. She took an aggressive bite from the pastry. "He didn't want me to help the Council because it could be dangerous. I could be hurt." She snorted. "Of course it's dangerous. But Rush was my friend once. Someone had to prove he was innocent. And we both knew there was no one else who could do the job. Not like me. Of course, it turns out he wasn't innocent, but…"

"So you agreed to help the Council out of spite?" Adrina fought to keep the smile from her voice.

Padmé pursed her lips. "He dared imply I couldn't handle the mission. Then he said he wouldn't let me. I will not be coddled or treated like a fainting moon daisy. And I certainly won't be dictated to. We are supposed to be partners." Venom laced every word. "And then on the flight back, when he wasn't brooding and glaring at me, he ranted about how he knew Rush wasn't to be trusted, he knew something like this would happen, how could I have accepted the mission. He talked to me like I was a child. A child, Adrina! The gall of the man." Padmé ripped into her pastry with a frustrated snarl.

"Anakin is very protective," Adrina said quietly into her drink.

"I don't need another bodyguard," Padmé snapped. "I need a partner. Someone to treat me like an equal."

Adrina held her hands up. "Peace, Padmé. All I meant is that Anakin was justified in his concern, not his misplaced chivalry."

"Of course," Padmé agreed with a frown. "I'd be offended if he wasn't worried. But this went beyond that."

"Did he know you two had been involved?"

Padmé nodded. "That didn't help any. Clovis and I… the tabloids greatly exaggerated reality, as they do. We went on one date, and it wasn't even a very good one. It was my decision to keep things strictly professional."

"Jealousy."

Padmé grimaced. "I didn't help that, either, I'm afraid. I was so… irritated and angry that I...may have been… more flirtatious than needed."

"Yes, I noticed the rather revealing dress you returned in." Padmé wielded her wardrobe as effectively as Anakin wielded his lightsaber. Adrina suspected Anakin underestimated his wife.

"It did the job," Padmé sighed. "But I regret some of my actions. For that, I am ashamed."

"You recoiled from Anakin when he sat next to you," Adrina observed.

"I still love him," Padmé whispered, staring out at the skyline. "I do. I will probably always love him. But I think…" she drew a fortifying breath. "I think I need to tell Anakin we should separate, at least for a time."

Adrina hid her surprise by taking a sip of her juice.

"I don't want a divorce," Padmé continued. "But I can't be in a lopsided relationship. I trust him to do what he needs to on the battlefield, to keep himself safe and come home to me. I don't like that he's in constant danger, but I trust him." She swallowed a lump. "But he doesn't trust me. He doesn't see me as capable. Or an equal, not in the ways that matter."

Adrina placed her goblet on the table. She considered her words. "Only you can decide what you are willing to accept in a relationship," she said finally. Adrina had always thought of trust as the foundation for any relationship. Love could grow, but without trust, what good was love? Still, it was not her relationship that was in jeopardy.

Silence stretched between them as Padmé stared into nothing. Adrina was content to allow Padmé her ruminations and enjoy the quiet.

"I knew Anakin was protective when I married him," Padmé said at length. Sad determination glinted in her brown eyes. "It is good he wants me to be safe. But I have been in danger since I became Queen. Anakin needs to decide if he can live with his wife being in a dangerous profession and if he trusts me to handle myself."

Adrina nodded. It was only a matter of time before the couple faced this discussion. Anakin fell in love with Padmé's independent spirit, but protested the exercise of it.

"I'll talk with him tonight," Padmé stated. "I don't want a divorce. But we need to take a step back. We need to have the conversations we should have had before we got married." She nodded resolutely. "We need to get to know each other as adults."

"It won't be easy," Adrina said. "Anakin has lost much. And being stationed in the Outer Rim..."

"I know," Padmé sighed. She hugged the pillow tighter. "It won't be easy. But it will be worth it in the end. I'm sure of it."

"Let me take a sample of your blood," Adrina said as she stood. "I am confident that the poison is completely purged from your body, but I would be remiss to not confirm."

"Of course. I was due for a physical anyway." Padmé extended her arm and pushed the billowing sleeve back. "Thank you, Adrina."

Adrina raised an eyebrow.

"For coming tonight. Listening. Helping," Padmé clarified. "You could have let a meddroid do the job and let me talk to the wall all night."

Adrina tucked the sample in its pouch on her belt. She resumed her seat on the couch before answering. "I did a lot of thinking after our conversation on Naboo. Even if you rushed into marriage, it is still your relationship. If you and Anakin are satisfied, then my opinion is irrelevant." She cracked a wry smile. "Now, I'll stand by my statements on Anakin remaining in the Order until the day I die, but… that notwithstanding, it's not my relationship to criticize. You might even turn out to be incredibly well suited if you work through some important differences."

"Well, I'm afraid your criticisms were well-founded," Padmé admitted ruefully.

"Even so."

The turbolift doors opened and Anakin rushed out. Adrina stood, exchanging a heavy look with Padmé. "Well?" Anakin demanded.

"Calm down, Anakin," Adrina said. "She is fine."

"You're sure?"

"Anakin," Adrina gently chastised him.

He winced and rubbed the back of his neck.

Turning back to Padmé, she said, "Signal me if something changes," before taking her leave.

0

Obi-Wan pinched the bridge of his nose as he left the Council chamber. The hour had grown later than he had realized and sleep beckoned. When had he last caught a few moments of sleep? He wasn't sure - a fact for which Adrina would certainly chastise him, even though she was as guilty as he was of poor sleeping habits. Slipping his cloak and belt off as soon as the door to his quarters closed behind him, Obi-Wan sighed. He always welcomed these fleeting minutes of quiet.

Perhaps he could spare a few moments in the Room of Thousand Fountains again before he left Coruscant for the Outer Rim. Those minutes with Adrina left him feeling more at ease than he remembered feeling in a long while.

His computer terminal beeped. Obi-Wan frowned. He had half a mind to ignore the message until the morning, but he listened to his pesky better judgment and opened the computer.

"Adrina?" Obi-Wan murmured. What was she doing sending him messages this late in the evening - on Coruscant no less. Had she been in the Outer Rim, a late night - or early morning, he supposed was more accurate - was not out of the ordinary; she routinely kept long, odd hours. Knowing nothing pleasant would be relayed in it, Obi-Wan opened the message, time stamped to nearly two hours prior.

"Obi-Wan," Adrina's message began, "Keep an extra eye out on Anakin. Senator Amidala plans to have a serious conversation with Anakin with the intent to separate for a time." Obi-Wan's mouth fell open. He re-read the sentence several times before continuing. "Not a divorce, but to have the courtship they should have had before they made the hair-brained decision to get married. Your friend, Adrina."

The computer chirped before he could turn it off for the night. Another message from Adrina. "Just heard from Senator Amidala - the conversation did not go well, to no surprise. Anakin is on his way to the Temple."

Obi-Wan quickly sent his response, "I'll intercept him. Thank you, my friend," and darted from his room.

Obi-Wan adopted nonchalance as he neared the hangar. They nearly collided as he rounded the corner. "Ah, Anakin," he smiled. "Just the man I was hoping to see."

"Now isn't a good time, Obi-Wan," Anakin growled. Thunderstorms darkened his face and his whole body nearly trembled, radiating anger.

"I was hoping for a good spar," Obi-Wan shrugged with feigned diffidence. "Perhaps another time then." He nodded at Anakin as a parting farewell and began to move away. He concealed a smile when Anakin groaned and called out his name.

"Fine. Let's go."

0

Obi-Wan grunted. Anakin's blows came harder and more ferociously than Obi-Wan had anticipated. After nearly an hour in the training room, sweat slicked both men's bodies and their breath came in ragged pants, but neither relented.

"Enough," Obi-Wan finally groaned, shoving the hair from his eyes and deactivating the lightsaber. He shook his head. If he didn't sleep for an entire day after that, he would be very much surprised. His entire body protested every breath.

"Is that all you got," Anakin taunted. He bounced on his heels. Anger still simmered underneath the surface, but pain mingled more clearly.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Another day, my friend. It has been a long day."

Anakin peered at him. "You didn't really want to do this tonight, did you." Suspicion dripped from his words.

"I had a feeling you might need a good duel," Obi-Wan shrugged.

Anakin's eyes shuttered. "I'm fine."

"I know you are close to Senator Amidala." Obi-Wan selected his words with care. "I…" Could he say it? Adrina would want him to. He looked away. "I remember what it felt like when the woman I...cared for-"

"You?" Anakin interjected incredulously. "You had someone?"

Obi-Wan glanced back at Anakin with a pinched expression. "Once upon a time, there was a woman I cared for, yes." Anakin's eyes widened. "I'm only human, Anakin."

"What happened?"

Obi-Wan sighed. "I knew I could never be what she needed, so… I kept my oath."

"But you loved her," Anakin said with a frown.

"I did," Obi-Wan confirmed, folding his arms. "But love alone would not have sustained a relationship. And we had our duties to consider."

Anakin shook his head. "I don't understand. Why didn't you fight for her?"

"We didn't have a relationship to fight for," Obi-Wan said gently. "It was my decision to never speak of my feelings. I chose to keep my vow because that is who I am. Other Jedi have made different choices over the centuries - as is their right." He paused before continuing, "The life of a Jedi is not meant for everyone. The Code isn't meant to be oppressive, nor is the Order the only way to do good in the galaxy or lead a good life."

"I know," Anakin sighed. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I know."

"I may not always do a good job of showing it," Obi-Wan admitted quietly, "But I do understand. I know what it is like to be torn between opposing paths."

Maybe if he had heeded Adrina's advice years ago and been more forthcoming with his own shortcomings, Anakin would feel more inclined to share his struggles with him. But vocalizing his emotions had never come easily to Obi-Wan. It was, perhaps, his biggest failing as Anakin's Master. Where Anakin showed his affections to all who knew him, Obi-Wan wielded self-deprecation and sarcasm like a shield.

"No matter what it feels like, you are never alone, my friend," Obi-Wan stated softly. "If you remember nothing else I have taught you, remember that."