A/N: I don't know if Annihilous had been used for Sith in the universe but for the sake of this story let's pretend it hasn't.
-
Now (2 BBY)
It's cold. His limbs are numb and frozen in place. He doesn't know where he is, all he knows is that it's dark and he feels... afraid.
Everything about the room is heavy, like the weight of a thousand negative emotions are resting on his shoulders. The most prominent being anger.
The room ignites in a red glow. It's coming from the laser blade swinging towards him by a blurry figure.
Before it strikes, the scene changes, and he is somewhere warm and sunny. Obi-Wan has to squint against the bright, yellow sun. He'd move his hand to block out the rays if he could move at all.
He doesn't dwell on it too much because there's a girl with long, dirty blonde hair and blue eyes standing before him. She is tilting her head at him and a soft smile is playing on her lips. Her hand reaches up and cups his cheek, it's warm and tender like everything else about her features. He doesn't know what she is smiling so fondly about, but for some reason, Obi-Wan hopes it's because of him.
Her expression is just as warm and inviting as the atmosphere. Everything is gentle and loving, the exact opposite of whatever place he just came from. He has a sudden urge to protect her from whatever it was, but it's pushed to the back of his mind the moment the girl leans in and places her lips against his.
He may be stuck in place, but he is alright being stuck like this. Her lips are soft like he imagined they would be, and oh so careful like she's afraid he might break if she presses too hard.
Obi-Wan has never felt so safe before, and this girl he has never met but somehow knows all the same has everything to do with it.
It's strange but nothing else matters now. She is here, and she is a beacon of light--her rays of sunshine burn away all the fear and warm the darkness with her loving embrace.
As she pulls away and looks into his eyes wearing that same fond smile, Obi-Wan knows without a doubt that he is home.
Obi-Wan blinks lazily awake, the effects of the dream linger even as he squints against the light. It reminds him of the dream, except this time when he moves his hand to shield his eyes it's not restrained at his side.
"Welcome back, General Kenobi."
He blinks again as his eyes finally begin to adjust. The room isn't as bright as he thought but it's clinically white with pale blue accents and the smell is sterile enough to sting his nose. He turns his head and finds the source of the voice in an older woman dressed in white robes with short auburn hair. He thinks she fits in well with the room. Her presence is serene but it's off-putting like the calm before a storm.
Nothing like the girl in his dream.
"Who are you?"
"I am Mon Mothma. You could say I am the director of this operation."
"Operation," Obi-Wan mutters and then remembers the ship with Han. "Yavin four," he says. "Hidden rebel base."
Her lips go thin. "I see Captain Dameron has no qualms about his loose tongue. He and that Solo boy are nothing but trouble. Bright as they are, they can turn even the most joyous day into a destructive one."
Obi-Wan watches her carefully. "They saved me."
"Yes, and I let them." At his frown, she continues, "I understand your memory is entirely missing. Our doctors here are good, they said in time your memories will return, but for now, feel free to freshen up and get dressed. Come find me in the war room after and we can discuss the circumstances of your rescue."
When she stands she straightens out her robes with an elegant brush of her hands before giving him a weary smile and excusing herself from the room.
That was odd, he thinks.
Obi-Wan takes the time to really examine his surroundings now that he is feeling awake and well enough to process new information. He didn't fully appreciate how terrible he had felt during his rescue, now he feels refreshed and present.
He climbs out of the small medical bed and goes over to the other door in the room, the one Mon Mothma didn't exit out of, and finds the fresher as he suspected. There is a pile of dark clothing laid out for him, not the robes he had been wearing before. It feels wrong wearing anything but the robes, he isn't sure why, but he doesn't bother pondering it for too long.
In the mirror, Obi-Wan both recognizes and feels startled by the face staring back at him. He knows it's him, he remembers what his face looks like but it hasn't aged. He's been under ten years, right? Shouldn't he have aged?
He remembers the comment Han made that he didn't age a day. The boy was right. Obi-Wan doesn't understand the complexities that come with carbon-freezing but he never thought it would be used to stop the aging process.
His beard and hair are untrimmed and could use some maintenance, and his mouth still feels like chalk, he imagines he doesn't smell too nice either. Taking a shower is his first priority, then he can worry about trimming his unruly hair and finding a toothbrush.
--
Turns out he had to ask the nurse droid for a razor and other toiletries. The droid also released his medical file to him. Obi-Wan wanted to see for himself what condition his body is in after being frozen and not aging for ten years.
Except everything is functioning the way it should and his body is perfectly healthy, if not a little weak from no use. They did drop him into a bacta tank for a few days to ensure his body heals properly. And of course, there is the situation with his memory which bacta tanks can't cure but the doctor wrote down it will return with time. Just underneath that it says he is free to be discharged when he awakens.
He asked about his robes and the droid said they are being laundered and will be available this evening in his quarters. Since Obi-Wan has no idea where that will be, he thinks it's a good time to find the war room and this Mon Mothma.
Naturally, he gets lost. He doesn't recognize a single face that passes by, and each one either ignores him or stares at him and Obi-Wan can't decide which is worse.
Sucking up his pride, he asks the next person that tries to scurry by. He looks uncomfortable at Obi-Wans question, then looks over his shoulder at his pilot buddies as if asking for permission that none of them give (they look just as put-off), before turning back to him. "Just down there," he points, "and to the right."
"Thank you," Obi-Wan says, pretending like that wasn't the most awkward encounter he's ever had. Granted, he doesn't remember any of his previous ones.
The war room is exactly that--but it's too massive to be considered a room per se. There are machines and monitors everywhere, people sitting and standing in front of them, others scrambling around, there are glass screens highlighted in blue writing and a center console where the woman in white is standing next to a tan man in deep blue.
Everyone either stares or looks away quickly. It's making Obi-Wan feel uneasy.
When he is close enough to the pair, he can hear them talking in whispers. He hears his name being mentioned before he loudly clears his throat.
The two jump from their personal bubble and look towards him. The woman smiles and Obi-Wan can tell it's completely forced, the man, however, actually looks pleased to see him.
"Obi-Wan! Old friend." He outstretches his arms and walks around the large holotable and brings Obi-Wan into a hug. "I'm happy to see you're back."
Obi-Wan stands stiffly during the hug, although it is brief. When he pulls away the man gives him a sympathetic look. "I understand you don't remember me. We served in the Clone Wars together. We're friends."
Obi-Wan nods. He was in the Clone Wars? "Well, then, it's nice to see you as well."
"My name is Bail Organa. I'm the senator of Alderaan. I understand you've met Mon Mothma."
"I have," Obi-Wan gives her a skeptical glance.
That's when he sees it, just over her shoulder on the clear monitor with blue writing.
Obi-Wan rushes around the holotable and stops a foot from the image.
It's her, he thinks. The one from his dream. Of course, it's hard to tell with the picture being in different shades of blue, and it seems that her hair is a deeper color, but it's definitely her.
He reads the text below the image: Rebel traitor, warlord, Imperial Lieutenant, Commander, and personal liaison of Emperor Palpatine, in co-command with Darth Vader, renowned Sith Lord.
Obi-Wan frowns. Now that's a rap sheet if he's ever seen one. It surprises him and tugs at his heart and his stomach does a weird flip. It's not right, something tells him. He doesn't know why but he does know the girl in his dream was nothing like this.
It can't be true.
It can't be.
A wave of Deja Vu hits him.
"Who is this?" He asks despite the name being written directly above the image: Azelynn Skywalker aka Darth Annihilous.
When he doesn't get a response, he turns around to see Mon Mothma staring at him blankly, and Bail looking around the room. "Come, let us discuss things in my office. It's a bit more private there."
That's when Obi-Wan notices the stares again. From average workers to people that appear to be in higher ranks, and those close enough to hear the conversation pretending to be looking at files, seem to be leaning their heads in closer.
The three of them leave down a different hallway and into a large office. It's simple, warm, and void of windows but there is a fireplace, table, and bartop in the corner along with an elegant metal desk and matching chairs.
"Have a seat, please." Senator Organa says.
"Is someone going to explain to me what I am missing here?"
"It seems that you are missing quite a bit." Mon Mothma mutters.
Obi-Wan resists rolling his eyes but can't keep the exasperation from his voice. "Start with who you people are and why you saved me?"
Bail launches into a brief explanation of who the rebels are and why they exist. He leads into who Obi-Wan was as a Jedi and everything else that Bail knows about him.
"Why was I in carbonite?"
"That's a bit more complicated to answer."
"You can tell me my life story but not why someone wanted to freeze me for eternity?"
Bail gives him a brief explanation about Darth Vader and his hatred towards Obi-Wan. The reasons he was in Vaders hands and why he would want him as a trophy.
"Your friends are the ones who saved you. It wasn't the rebels." Mon Mothma inserts. Obi-Wan almost forgot she is there. "We had a smoother strategy to go about things. However, now that you're here, we could use your help."
"My help?"
"That woman you saw on the screen. She is a great threat to every living being in the galaxy. We could use the help of a Jedi to draw her out."
"What do you mean?"
"She is responsible for the deaths of thousands of people and counting, as are the other two she is in league with, but we aim to arrest her first. It will disrupt the Empire and even the playing field for us in bringing them down and providing peace to the galaxy once more."
Obi-Wan examines her blank expression and receives nothing telling. When he looks at Bail, he sees a strange expression as he watches Mon Mothma. Obi-Wan frowns.
"And how exactly would I draw her out?"
"Oh, your presence will be enough." She says it as simply as if she were asking for a cup of tea.
"So, I'm bait." It's not a question.
"If it's easier for you to understand in such a lewd terminology then yes."
"No," Obi-Wan rejects.
"I assure you you will not be harmed."
It's not me I'm worried about. "And what about her?"
"If she comes willingly, she will not be harmed either."
Obi-Wan looks over at Bail again who is still not meeting his gaze. He gets a strange feeling in his stomach. Hesitantly, he asks, "what am I expected to do?"
"I'll leave you more details in your room. Ultimately, you will get her attention and she will come to you."
Oh is that all? "Her attention how?"
"I'll leave that up to you. As long as you're out in the open, we will guarantee your safety and her safe capture."
"And if I fail? If she captures me instead?"
"I'm certain she will cause you no harm, but if it makes you feel better I don't think it will come down to that."
Obi-Wan furrows his eyebrows. They're still not telling me everything, he concludes in his mind. It makes it difficult for him to want to help when they're not being forward.
Besides, why would they want him to help capture someone who wouldn't do the same thing to him? Someone who wouldn't cause Obi-Wan harm let alone put him in harm's way? He doesn't like this at all.
"How are you certain?" He decides to ask.
Something flickers across her eyes that resemble irritation but it is gone as quickly as a ship jumping to hyperspace. "I simply do."
Mon Mothma stands and wipes her hands down her robes to smoothen them as if the silky texture wasn't already smooth enough. Obi-Wan wonders if it is a nervous habit. She levels him with a no-nonsense expression that makes him wonder if it's usually reserved for Arrin and Han.
Bail stands too, but he can't do much from behind the desk but he puts his hands up in a calming gesture. Oh yeah, he knows this look too.
She notices, but the expression doesn't leave her face and her voice sounds strained when she speaks.
"You will do this for us, or we will be forced to put you back where we found you. As I said before, further details will be waiting in your room."
With a flick of her robes, she is out of the room, leaving Obi-Wan with Senator Organa.
Obi-Wan blinks up at Bail, "and what do you think of all this?"
He hesitates. It's enough.
"You knew her." Obi-Wan deadpans.
Bail looks grim. "As did you."
"Why won't she hurt me?"
"You'll have to ask her that when you see her."
"You're certain that I'll go."
"I'm certain that you know she has answers for you."
Obi-Wan pretends to ponder on that as if Bail isn't exactly right. He has a chance to meet her, so of course he is going to take it. But to allow the people who wish to imprison her to come near her? Someone who wouldn't do the same thing to himself? The more he thinks about it the more it makes Obi-Wan anxious.
Too many questions, not enough answers.
"I need to show you something," Bail blurts out and pulls something out of his desk. He moves to the large table on one side of the room that has a holopod sitting at the center. Bail sticks the object into the side of it--it's a message drive, his mind supplies. Then there is a flicker of blue and a face shows up out of the holo. It's her, but also not. She looks younger, different, almost like in his dream.
Bail plays the message.
"Obi-Wan, if you're seeing this message it means something went both very right and very wrong. It means that my plan worked, and you've been free of the carbonite, but it may also mean that I am dead.
"I want you to know how sorry I am, for everything." Her voice starts to break and she pauses to gather herself. "I never wanted this for you, no matter how angry I was at you for keeping what you did from me. At that moment I blamed you, I hated you, but I never wanted to hurt you. I should've done something more to keep them from taking you, I should've listened to you." She runs her hands through her hair before looking back up at him. "And I want you to know that I don't blame you for keeping it from me, and I don't want you to blame yourself. I know you so I'm certain you will, but I also know you're a good man, Obi-Wan. I want you to know that I understand, and I forgive you. I just hope you can forgive me."
She wipes her cheek now and looks down for a deep breath as if steeling herself for the next part. When she looks up again it's with a new determination. "What I am about to do is likely what will kill me. But if it means freeing you then I don't care. I'll do whatever it takes. I owe you that much.
"All that I ask is that you move on, live your life in peace and free from the burden of me. Take care of Luke, and...and Han for me." She smiles gently, her eyes are glistening even in the hologram. "May the Force always be with you, my love. I'll see you in another life." She stops the recording, and her face disappears.
Obi-Wan stopped breathing at some point.
"Are you alright?" Bail asks. Obi-Wan takes a shuddering breath and realizes his cheeks are wet. He wipes them on the back of his sleeve.
"I don't--I don't understand." He isn't sure if he's talking about the message or his tears. "She's clearly not dead, and I don't remember anything she spoke of."
Bail gives him a sympathetic smile. "I'm showing you this because I am hoping you will go for the right reasons."
Right reasons, Obi-Wan's brain echos. What are considered the right reasons here? He doesn't want anything to happen to the one person he is partially remembering. After all, she isn't guaranteed safety the way Obi-Wan is. What will they do to her if she doesn't come quietly? What will they do to her if they detain her?
This isn't right. Something more is going on here, and Obi-Wan is feeling this ridiculous need to protect her instead of fear her.
If anything, Bail is right, he needs to find her for answers.
Obi-Wan's 'right reasons' are different from Mon Mothma's right reasons, and it sounds like Bail stands with him on that.
"I see," is all Obi-Wan says.
"Come, there is something else."
"I'm not sure I want to see anything else," Obi-Wan mutters as he follows him back to his desk.
Bail smiles and pulls something else out of the same drawer. It's a thick, silver device with gold and black embellishments and a thinner part towards the top.
"This is yours," Bail says and hands it to him. "Azel was holding onto it and asked me to make sure you got it back."
It's heavier than he expected and it feels right holding it in his hand and then in both. Heavy as it may be, it's balanced and fits his grip perfectly. One side has a hole in it and he looks inside--
"Don't!" Bail bursts loudly and Obi-Wan jumps back. Bail for his part actually looks horrified. "Don't hold it like that." He comes around the desk and adjusts the object in his hand and points the hole outwards. That's when Obi-Wan sees a button.
"Is this a blaster?" He wonders.
Bail coughs but it sounds more like a failed attempt to hide a laugh. "No, it is a Jedi's greatest weapon. Turn it on."
Obi-Wan presses the button. A blue blade wooshes out of the hole and hums in place. It changes the weight and Obi-Wan has to adjust his grip again, but it is still perfectly balanced. He moves it around and each time he does the sound makes a bizarre wooshing-hum.
"Oh," he says dumbly.
"It's a lightsaber. You don't remember?"
"No."
"It has the power to slice through almost anything." Bail reaches over and deactivates it. The blade retracts with a sharp woosh like the hilt is sucking up the power. Obi-Wan stares at it.
"What exactly am I meant to do with it?"
"Protect yourself, if necessary."
Obi-Wan frowns. "You think Azel would-" Bail is shaking his head.
"She may not, but the people around her might."
Obi-Wan blinks down at the weapon. He hasn't the slightest idea how to use this thing, even if he needed to protect himself he wouldn't stand a chance.
"I have much to think about," Obi-Wan says, that's when a yawn is released unbidden.
"You need to rest."
"Ten years isn't enough?"
Bail chuckles. "You were frozen in time, that's not quite like sleeping, everything about you from your moments prior was put on pause. It's taxing on your body.
You're lucky to be alive. Nobody expected you to be. You're a bit of a medical anomaly."
Obi-Wan gives a tight-lipped smile, deciding to keep that information tucked away for later.
That's when the exhaustion starts to weigh on him. He feels his limbs grow weaker and his mouth feel dry. He needs water, and probably some food while he is at it.
"Where can I find food?"
"Take a right outside of my office, follow the hall to the first left and you will enter the main cafeteria."
Obi-Wan nods and resists the urge to bow for some reason. "Thank you."
He leaves, still with more questions than answers.
The cafeteria is lively, many pilots and rebels are scattered about, lined up for food, sitting together at the tables, and loitering around simply enjoying each other's company. It makes him feel nostalgic for yet another thing he doesn't remember, but he guesses he's been around this atmosphere before.
He is about to stand in line, thoughts lingering on how he is going to pay for a meal when he sees two familiar faces and another he doesn't recognize. Obi-Wan sighs with relief.
He approaches Arrin and Han. Han is scowling, but Arrin-- "You're a real piece of work, Andor."
"Me? You're the one who stole my droid!" The man, Andor, replies. He has a different accent than Obi-Wan has ever heard before (that he knows of).
"We needed him. We wouldn't have made it without him."
"On the rogue mission you had no business appointing to yourself."
That's when they notice Obi-Wan. All three of them look over as he stopped a few feet away.
"Is this a bad time?"
"No," Andor says. "I was just leaving." He gives Arrin and Han another glare before he shoves his shoulder into Arrin as he walks away.
Obi-Wan looks between the pair. "Are you two alright?" He looks Han over in particular, wondering what special relationship he has with Azelynn that she would ask Obi-Wan to look in on him (and someone named Luke, but one step at a time).
He is rather young, his mind supplies. Ten years ago would put him at barely double digits. Luke could be the same.
Arrin sighs. "That is Cassian Andor, infamous spy for the rebels. I borrowed his droid to rescue you. He didn't appreciate it."
"In Arrins defense, he wasn't supposed to be back for another day." Han chimes in. "He would've never known the droid was gone."
"Doesn't matter. It's just another reason for Mon Mothma to write me up for misconduct."
At the mention of her name, and the way Arrin said it, Obi-Wan feels the pull to ask what he's been thinking since he met her in the medical bay. "What is her problem?"
They both look at him funny. Han with his eyebrows raised and Arrin looks around nervously before pulling Obi-Wan to a secluded corner. Han trails behind.
"Why do you ask it like that?" He whispers.
Obi-Wan gets a feeling it might be a bad idea to tell them about his newly appointed assignment, so instead, he goes with, "she seems pretty angry that you saved me."
Arrin sighs. "Yeah. The assignment to save you didn't come from her."
"What do you mean? She said you went rogue and that she had her own plan."
Arrin scoffs. "Yeah, her plan was to leave you in carbonite until a quote-on-quote safe extraction was possible."
"Meaning it would never happen," Han concludes.
"I should've listened to Azel from the beginning. If I had none of this would've happened."
Han places a hand on his shoulder. "Probably," Han says. Arrin glares at him. "But what's done is done. We accomplished the mission."
"At what cost?"
Han hesitates. He looks much older when he is serious like this. Obi-Wan can tell he has seen things someone his age should never have to. The boy is wise beyond his years and Arrin is looking at him sadly as if he is realizing it as well.
Arrin turns away first and runs a hand over his face and turns back to Obi-Wan.
"We had some help finding and extracting you. It wasn't from the rebels."
Obi-Wan can't wrap his head around one very specific part in all of this. "Why? What's so special about me? You risked your lives and now your jobs to save me."
"You're our friend," Han says and his voice sounds small. "You're Azel's--"
"Shhhh," Arrin cuts him off. "Not so loud."
Han actually looks dejected at that. "It's hardly fair. We shouldn't have to tip-toe around her name."
"You know what she's done."
"She did what she needed to do. You know that."
"Can someone tell me what is going on?" Obi-Wan bursts. Two startled pairs of eyes land on him. Obi-Wan sighs and tries a softer approach. "I've stepped into a world I was once a part of but I have no clue where I fit into it."
Han gives him a tight smile and his brown eyes are glistening, or maybe it's a trick of the light--but Arrin dares to look hesitant. "What do you want to know?"
"I want to know who she is."
He doesn't need to elaborate, they both know who he is talking about.
It's Arrin who speaks. His tone is lowered and he steps closer into the little circle they've formed. "Azelynn Skywalker," he whispers, "was my best friend. She's Han's friend, and you were her mentor."
"Mentor?" That doesn't sound right.
"If that's what you would call it," Han mumbles. Arrin elbows him in the ribs.
"You were teaching her the ways of the Jedi. I didn't always know that part though."
"I did," Han all but sing-songs.
"What happened?" Obi-Wan wonders.
"It's a long story, but to sum it up, you were both lured and trapped by the Emperor and Darth Vader. They forced you into a carbonite chamber and you've been frozen ever since. Don't ask me why, I still don't understand all of it myself."
"You would if you asked Azel," Han mumbles.
"That's too damn dangerous and you know it."
I can ask her, Obi-Wan thinks to himself.
"What happened to her?"
Arrin sighs. "She lost her way after they took you. She was here for a while but then she went off on her own. She never felt right being here, she felt like the rebels were wasting her time instead of helping her get to you and Vader. Looking back now, I have to agree with her, but I didn't at the time and now I regret it.
"She took matters into her own hands and went to Vader. She never came back. We didn't know what happened for the longest time until we got word over a year later of a new Sith Lord rising to power. It wasn't long after that that we discovered it was her.
"My guess, she went to get you and he turned her. I don't know how, or why, but they did."
Han is shaking his head. "I don't believe that. Azel would never. She's strong."
Obi-Wan raises his eyebrows. "You think she is faking it?"
Han shrugs. "I have no better explanation."
"Are we talking about the same Empire?" Arrin growls. "It's been ten years, Han. Even if she was faking at first, no one can hold out this long. You see the things those people do. You really think Azel, our Azel, would stand for that?"
Han makes a face and glares at Arrin. "Fuck you--"
"Watch your tongue, kid--"
"When she comes back around like I know she will, I'll be sure to tell her all the faith you put into her and her plan to get Obi-Wan back."
Arrin pinches the bridge of his nose. "Fine, I'll humor you, say she is faking. Why has she waited so long to get him out?" He points to Obi-Wan.
"Maybe she didn't know where he was. They could've kept it from her until she built trust."
"And why hasn't she tried even once to reach out to us?"
"It's too dangerous. They were probably watching her."
Arrin is shaking his head. "That's a stretch, Han, even for you."
"Then where did the message come from?"
"Message?" Obi-Wan blurts. They both look at him as if they forgot he was even there.
"Yeah, an encrypted message. We don't know where it came from, but it had a well-sorted plan about when and how to get you out."
Obi-Wan is dizzy. There is a lot of information being thrown at him. He must wobble because Han and Arrin are placing a hand on either of his shoulders.
"We should get you something to eat."
"And drink," Han includes.
They sit him down at an empty table. The hall has cleared a bit since Obi-Wan came in, but it is still on the busier side of occupied.
When they return, there's a meal placed in front of him with a large glass of water. Obi-Wan downs it and digs into his food. He listens to Han and Arrin discuss other things such as missions and a planet Han was just on. He talks about how he wants to make the Kessel Run and how his ship is the fastest ever made.
"I won it off a friend," Han explains with a proud smile.
"That piece of junk won't beat a damn Bantha running from Jawas," Arrin mumbles around a bite of food.
Han glares at him. Arrin laughs around his chewing. "I'm sorry, did your X-Wing outrun the TIE Fighters when we escaped the Death Star? No? I didn't think so."
"It could've! We just had too many people."
Han punches his shoulder and steals a piece of something green from Arrins plate.
Obi-Wan watches, amused. He isn't sure what the actual dynamic is between the two, but it puts a smile on his face. It's like bickering siblings, like how he was with... someone.
Obi-Wan frowns, unsure where that thought was going or where it came from. Does he have a sibling? That exchange feels familiar in a bizarrely warm way.
"I'm gonna turn in." He doesn't mention that he is meant for a mission in a few hours, but he needs some sleep.
"Okay," the boys say in unison. "I'll walk you back," Han volunteers.
"I guess that means I clean up after you both." Arrin grumbles.
"Thanks. You're so good at it." Han ruffles his hair, Arrin swats at him. Obi-Wan wonders why he is seeing a head of messy blond waves instead, but he brushes it aside as exhaustion.
As Han walks him back, Obi-Wan can feel the boys' anxious energy.
"What's on your mind?" He asks.
"I know they're sending you after her."
Obi-Wan stops walking. They're alone in the hallway but Obi-Wan looks around anyway to make sure. "How--"
"I make it my job to know things," he says. Something changes in his face and eyes. It's the same look from earlier that ages him far above his years. The boy who bickers with Arrin, beams over his ship, and places such high trust and loyalty into Azelynn Skywalker is gone and replaced with a man who has seen too much and knows a great many things that he shouldn't.
Obi-Wan is hit with a wave of fondness. Gone is the young boy who needed saving at a young age, and replaced with someone who should not be crossed.
Obi-Wan frowns.
Those thoughts come unbidden but they only confirm his suspicions. He knew this boy before, and he's grown up. The sense of pride that overcomes him is strange and he somehow manages to keep the smile off his face as the realization dawns on him.
"How much do you know?" Obi-Wan asks instead.
His jaw tightens. "I know Mon Mothma wants you to help capture and detain her."
"And what do you think?"
"I don't want you to," he says simply. It's the first real answer he's gotten all day. "And I know you don't want to. I don't think Mon Mothma has anything good planned for her."
Obi-Wan raises an eyebrow.
Han shrugs. "I trust my friends. She isn't what they think she is, and if you had your memories, you would agree."
They start walking again. Some people linger in the halls and wander past them, but the pair ignore them. Their walk is slow, like taking a stroll through the base. Obi-Wan is lost in his thoughts, thinking that losing his memories couldn't have happened at a worse time in his life, despite not remembering all the other instances it could've been better suited.
Han's last words linger in his head, though, and it begs a question that his memories could fill if he had them.
He doesn't ask until they reach his door.
"So, what is she then?"
When Han meets his gaze, the boy is back to looking far younger than he is with glistening eyes and a vulnerability that reminds Obi-Wan of something. Now he is certain he's seen this same expression on a version of the boy that once had chubbier cheeks and gentler features.
"Lost."
--
When Obi-Wan gets back to the room, he immediately sees his robes freshly laundered and folded on the single bed. He changes and starts feeling much more like himself despite not quite knowing who that is yet.
He rests. He doesn't dream and he is thankful for that. He could use some hours of not thinking.
When he wakes, it's to an annoying beeping on his table. It's a message. When he opens it, it holds coordinates to a moon called Jedha and a time.
He needs to leave now if he wants to be there at the scheduled time.
He knows before he gets into the X-Wing what he is going to do. Mon Mothma sees him off with a knowing smile on her face, and Bail is standing just behind her wearing something far more forlorn.
It occurs to Obi-Wan that nobody knows how this is going to turn out. Not even Obi-Wan is certain about how this will go. He has a feeling it won't go well, but he also knows it is the right thing to do.
As the X-Wing closes overhead, he can't help but notice the smirk on Mon Mothmas's face and he wonders if her reasons for wanting to imprison Azel are more personal than she is letting on.
Even more disturbing, he doesn't actively remember how to fly a ship, yet it's coming naturally to him.
It's too much. It's all too much.
He is in hyperspace when he drops his head into his hands and sobs.
--
A/N: THE KENOBI TRAILER GUYS!
With that being said, this fic will not be compliant with the show but hopefully I will have it completed before the first episode is released.
Ah, who am I kidding?
But at least this arc of the fic should be completed by then (I hope) I'm really trying here!
May the Force be with you! xo