Qui-Gon frowned as someone knocked on his door. He smiled when he sensed who it was through the force. "Good morning, Padawan Skywalker, "Qui-Gon greeted, as he opened the door.
"Good morning, Master Jinn, "Anakin smiled, holding a food container. "I heard Obi-Wan was sick, so I made him my mom's soup!"
"Oh, the famous Skywalker soup," Qui-Gon chuckled. Famous it was through the temple. Whenever a youngling, padawan, knight, master, and even Council member got sick, Anakin would make them a batch of his mom's soup. It worked leaps to earn him a way into the Jedi's heart and Master Plo could not be prouder of his padawan. "I can't wait to taste it!"
"Sorry! This is for Obi-Wan," Anakin giggled. "He is sick and needs it."'
"So, I can't have a taste?" Qui-Gon pouted playfully.
"Unless, you get sick," Anakin replied with a mischievous smile.
"Oh, the woes of being healthy," Qui-Gon joked, opening his door further. "Come in, I'm sure Obi-Wan will love to see you."
"Thank you, " Anakin stepped in and skipped to Obi-Wan's room. "Obi! I'm here!"
"Come in! "Obi-Wan called out, before coughing." Hi, there, dear heart," Obi-Wan smiled fondly at the young padawan. "Hi Obi!" Anakin smiled, he had truly missed Obi-Wan. How could he had ever thought of him as an enemy? He was kind and bright in the force, and he loved Anakin so clearly. "I made you soup!"
"Thank you, dear heart," Obi-Wan smiled, force humming in fondness and pleasure. His friend was so kind. How could someone so young go through so much and still maintain such a kind heart? "I'm sure it will be tasty."
"Of course, it will! It's my mom's recipe!" Anakin exclaimed, puffing his chest. "Oh! I also made you some pita bread! But don't go telling anyone, I haven't done it for anyone else!" Anakin smiled as Obi-Wan laughed, force shinning brightly.
"Thank you, dear heart," Obi-Wan smiled fondly. "I feel special."
"You are," Anakin replied, with not a single joking undertone in his voice. "You are kind, smart, loyal, strong, and my favorite person! I want to be half the man you are when I grow up!"
Obi-Wan looked at Anakin shocked, before smiling, melting in the force with fondness and joy. Anakin had always had a way to make Obi-Wan feel better, ever since he had met the young boy.
"I'm not that good, dear heart," Obi-Wan said softly.
"You are!" Anakin insisted with a small glare. If there's something Anakin had hated in both timelines, was Obi-Wan's lack of care of himself and his lack of confidence. "You have four padawan beads!" Anakin pointed at Obi-Wan's red, yellow, orange, and green beads on his padawan braid. "When most padawans barely get two, with luck and effort they might achieve three. You are already being known as a great negotiator! Not to mention, how everyone knows they can come to you and trust you. You are incredible and don't doubt it for a second!" Anakin pouted to emphasize his point.
"Got it, thank you, dear heart," Obi-Wan smiled, gratefulness and adoration seeping out into the force.
"You are welcomed! Now help me with my Literature & Poetry homework!" Anakin demanded, earning a fond chuckle from his friend. "I still don't know why I signed up for that class! It's so boring!"
"Because your mom likes the pretty words," Obi-Wan chuckled.
"Right," Anakin sighed. "Useless, pretty words. At least in coding everything has a use and function."
"The same goes to poetry and literature," Obi-Wan scolded him gently, making Anakin smile, as it reminded him of how his Master Obi-Wan would scold him and then go into full lecture mode. Anakin could not believe there would be a time he would missed his master's lectures. "Each word means something and expresses something, be it a feeling or a philosophical inquiry. All together, the body works harmoniously."
Qui-Gon smiled as his padawan taught Anakin a lesson. Obi-Wan will make a great master one day.
Anakin kept visiting after his lessons every day, even after Obi-Wan healed from his flue. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon loved having him around, they were even invited to have dinner with him, Master Plo and Shmi. Which they gladly accepted. Unfortunately, they had to miss the last dinner, because they had an important mission in Naboo.
Time to show my acting skills, Anakin thought with a smirk, as he "stumbled" into the Healing Halls.
"Force! Padawan Skywalker!" Healer Che came rushing to the "delirious" padawan. "What's wrong? You look so pale, but I can't sense any illness!
"Crash, Tatooine, Queen, Zabrak, gold eyes, darkness, blood, so much blood!" Anakin gasped, shivering, earning panicking looks from the healers in the room. "Death." The room is temperature dropped, as the force rang in truth. "Qui-Gon will die in Naboo."
Before proceeding to "faint" in the arms of Healer Che.
"Master..." her padawan turned to her in disbelief.
"Gather the Council," Healer Che turned to her padawan with determination. "Now!"
"You knew about the return of the Sith and no one thought of telling the Order!" Master Jinn exclaimed, barely containing his disbelief.
The Master-Padawan pair had just came from Tatooine, where their ship had landed wreaked. Luckily, Obi-Wan had recalled the pod race car Anakin had told him about. He followed his memories and found it hidden. It might have been an incomplete car but it had all the parts they needed to fix their ship. Everything would have been great... if a Zabrak Sith had not decided to try and kill them!
"Watch your tone, Master Jinn," Master Windu warned his maverick friend. "We were not aware of this until Padawan Skywalker had come to us with a prophetic dream."
"Dear heart?" Obi-Wan turned to them startled.
"Yes, he was half delirious as he fainted in Healer Che's arms," Master Plo answered, ignoring Obi-Wan's slip. "He had a dream of you crashing on Tatooine with Queen Amidala, and then getting ambushed by a Sith."
"We tried to contact you," Master Depa added.
"But our communication was down," Qui-Gon sighed. "Did he see something else?" Qui-Gon frowned when the Council went silent and the force flickered in turmoil. "What?"
"See you die, he did, Grand Padawan." Yoda informed him, ears touching his shoulders.
"But the Sith did not kill me." Qui-Gon protested. "I survived."
"Not in Tatooine," Master Shaak told him gently, as Obi-Wan paled in horror. "When you go to Naboo, the Sith will follow you and... kill you. Padawan Obi-Wan would then kill the Sith in retaliation."
"I'll kill someone?" Obi-Wan gasped horrified. "And dear heart saw that?!"
"Padawan Skywalker's condition is being monitored," Master Fisto told them gently, as Master Plo's fists tightened. "The dream kept on repeating every night since. It only stopped when the Council decided to send Master Plo and Padawan Skywalker you."
"It's a war!" Obi-Wan exclaimed, shocked. "No matter how good and smart he is, Anakin is still only nine years old!"
"Do you think I want to take my padawan with me?" Master Plo glared at Obi-Wan, who had the decency of looking down chastised. "But the force wills it. Quite insistently."
"I'm sorry," Obi-Wan apologized.
"Tense, we all are," Yoda huffed. "Unsettling they were, these revelations. Meditate, we must." Yoda pointed to Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan with his cane. "To Naboo, go. The Queen, you must protect. Master Plo and Padawan Skywalker, with you, they'II go."
"Yes, Grandmaster," the Master-Padawan pair accepted, though neither of them looked happy about it.
"Master, I..." Obi-Wan turned to Qui-Gon as soon as they left the Council chamber.
"Go find him," Qui-Gon smiled at his charge, as this one rushed to find Anakin- not before hugging his master.
"You will not leave my sight during the mission, got it?" Master Plo ordered, startling Qui-Gon, who found himself on the receiving end of a glare, as soon as he had turned around. "My padawan spent weeks of night terrors, watching you die. I will not allow it to become true and have him blame himself. There will be no maverick maneuvers!"
"Got it," Qui-Gon promised with a nod, he did not want to leave his padawan either, he wants to be there for his knighting.
"Good," Master Plo nodded. "Now let's discuss our mission. We have a Sith to take down."
Which they did.
It seems that the Battle of Naboo ended up being the same, Anakin thought pleased, as the starfighter pilots carried him on their shoulders in celebration. Well, with some changes, Anakin corrected himself as he had noticed his new master, previous master, and previous grandmaster appear from the crowds, looking at him in pride.
Obi-Wan and Master Plo were supporting Qui-Gon, who looked worse to wear, but not a single lethal injury at sight.
"Master Plo! Master Jinn! Obi! Are you ok?" Anakin shouted, acting his part of the scared nine years-old-boy perfectly. Everyone stopped and he was allowed down to reach his family.
Family…
Why he had never seen the Jedi as his family was a mystery to Anakin? Oh, well, not really one. But just another reason to curse Palpatine for.
"We are ok," Qui-Gon answered, before groaning in pain. "Well, roughed up, but nothing that will kill us… at least not any more. Thanks to you."
"Thank you, dear heart," Obi-Wan smiled at Anakin, eternally thankful.
"You are my family, and Master Jinn is like my uncle, of course I will do whatever I can to keep you all safe," Anakin assured them, his expression and force aura glowing in a little kid's honesty and excitement. While, internally he meant a much darker meaning. "We better get you some medical help!" Anakin did not ask about Darth Maul, knowing that while Obi-Wan might have "killed" him, he was already in Palpatine's "delicate" care.
If anything Anakin now pitied Darth Maul and Ventress, after he had experienced the Sith's "hospitality".
"Pa… Queen Amidala," Anakin stuttered surprised, after leaving Qui-Gon, Master Plo, and Obi with the healers. Anakin winced as he had almost called her Palme. She is no longer your wife, Anakin scolded himself, as a dark voice added. Yet. "What can I do for you?"
Padmé did not answer but threw her arms around him. "Thank you!" She whispered in his ear. "Thank you for saving us and taking down that ship! I promise you a statue to be made of you!"
"I did not do it for glory," Anakin corrected her gently, as she released him. His angelic looks and melodic voice had caught the attention of every soldier, royal guard, medical personnel, and handmaid in the room. "Master Plo saved my mom and I from slavery a year ago and gave us a home. I just wanted to repay that kindness, giving it forward." Everyone was captivated by this kind angel. "I could not allow you… and everyone in Naboo to lose your home." Anakin corrected his slip rapidly.
Of course, in one year of acting I would slip twice in less than five minutes because of my angel! Anakin berated himself, internally.
"You are so kind," Padmé smiled enchanted by this boy. "But there must be something I could do to repay you."'
"We are friends now, right?" Anakin replied "innocently". "I was just helping out a friend!"
"What about R2-D2?" Sabé pointed out. "You like droids, right? I heard your master talking about it with Master Jinn."
Anakin almost raised an eyebrow. Almost! Look at that, Anakin thought impressed, as he showed the according expression of an excited little boy. And I did not need to do anything. The Force really works in mysterious ways.
"Perfect!" Padmé clapped her hands, catching the excited look on Anakin's face. "Sabé, get R2-D2 here for my precious new friend. Someone prepare us some tea! I want to get to know my new friend better!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Rang through the hall.
"I can't take more of your time, while you have to clean up after the war and prepare Naboo to sue the Trade Federation." Anakin internally smirked as everyone in the hall froze.
"Sue the Trade Federation?" Padmé repeated, dumbfounded .
"Of course!" Anakin replied with an "oblivious" cheer. "By the laws of The Republic you can demand the incarceration of those that wronged Naboo and demand war reparations!"
"Sabé have someone else get R2-D2," Padmé said slowly, looking at Anakin in stunned disbelief, before the woman Anakin had fallen for reappeared. "You get the council ready for an emergency session! This can save Naboo! And you!" She beamed at Anakin, leaving him breathless. Oh, how could I've forgotten how beautiful my wife was, Anakin wondered, completely charmed. "You will get that statue!"
Sorry for the deceive, my angel, Anakin thought, as he watched her leave, while being thanked by the personnel left around. And for changing Naboo's history. But I can't have you bond more with me, while I am this age. I won't have you look at me as a little boy.
The next time they meet, Anakin will be a man.
And he will make her his wife again.