Look Who’s Back

[hadthehighground]

Who:Obi-Wan Kenobi and you
What: Back from hiatus torture extra testing.
When:Day 30
Where: Common Area
Warnings: None that I know of.

Having been gone for about a week, Obi-Wan Kenobi was finally back in the common areas again. He hadn’t told anyone, but he had volunteered for extra testing. Was it out of curiosity? An attempt to find favor with their mechanical captor? A chance to relieve boredom? Or an attempt to put distance between him and Anakin again? Probably all of the above in varying degrees.

It didn’t much pay off though. The Jedi was exhausted and flustered, and looked like it as he sat on one of the sofas. He had returned to his room to find LACUNA had left him a prism crystal. Not what he was hoping for but he couldn’t say he was surprised. He could swear the computer hated him. The feeling was becoming mutual.

He’s turning the crystal over in his hands, looking at the little bit of light that refracts from the room’s lighting. It’s pretty at least, but it didn’t do him any good.

It’s also a bit depressing to note that he has fallen behind on cleaning for essentially nothing. It’s been a month now and he was no closer to finding a way out of here than the first day. Not to mention this place was starting to feel claustrophobic. Such conditions wasn’t good for anyone’s mental well being. Being in prison and a slave labor camp was arguably better than this.

So here is one downtrodden Jedi if anyone cares to approach or talk to him.

Comments

[ashla]

She followed, figuring it didn't matter who's room they went to, they would be much of the same in 'comforts'.

She came in and took the end of the bed, folding in on it with her leg under her, the other off the side. she rested her hands on her knee and leaned a little.

"A lot sure has happened for me as well. You realize I'm almost as old as I think you are right now?"

[hadthehighground]

"Has it been that long? I admit I'm not as good at judging the ages of Togruta," he said a bit sheepishly.

He had thought she was a little bit younger than him still at least.

"Anakin he's... he's not who he used to be."

[ashla]

She smiled faintly to the comment, a pull at her lips as she said simply. "Thirty three. It's been.... years. I reached out for Anakin, for you. For Master Yoda or Plo Koon. Anyone, but the Force felt so empty. You were all gone."

"And yes, I've learned more about Anakin." Hes the Emperor's pet now.

[hadthehighground]

"Not quite my age then," he said with a dry chuckle. He's 38 now after all, but it was close.

There was then a grim pause.

"What happened with the clones... he was part of it. He turned to the Dark Side and slaughtered all the Jedi in the temple."

[ashla]

"Closer than it was before." She pointed out, and wanted to keep it clear that... a lot has happened that he might not know about.

She took a slow breath as Obi-wan confirmed what she had thought she had learned herself. The temple, all of it, was Anakin. She closed her eyes and nodded. The road to Vader must have come shortly after that. "And he's kept up that hunt since then."

[hadthehighground]

"So he survived," Obi-Wan said quietly. It was a shock to see Anakin here, and so the thought that he survived beyond Mustafar was still startling... but not as much as it could have been.

"I'm so sorry."

He feels like he failed in every way possible.

[ashla]

She opened her eyes again, looking to the apologizing man.

"There was nothing you could have done at that point. It was Palpatine. He had his fingers into everything, and now he's Emperor of his own empire. the empire rules everything. Even Darth Vader, who I just... I-- ... before coming here I discovered that Anakin is behind the mask."

"He's still in there, but I don't think I'm strong enough to reach him."

[hadthehighground]

She didn't understand, she didn't know why he was apologizing.

"I tried to kill him, Ahsoka. He shouldn't have survived, I don't know how he could have."

But what she said, it reminded him of Padme's last words as well.

"Neither am I."

He had tried, and he was still trying. But nothing he did, none of it seemed to make any difference.

[ashla]

She stopped at that, eyeing him. It had to take a lot of a Master to try to kill his apprentice, especially as close as these two had been. "I'm sorry." She said softly in return, blue eyes sadly looking him over.

"Everything's a bit of a mess, isn't it? And here I thought I was alone in the universe." She let out a deep breath, shaking her head. "Is he still.... is the Anakin here still on that path?"

[hadthehighground]

"Walking the path of light has become a lonely one," he said with a slight nod. "As far as I knew, Master Yoda and I were the only ones that survived. We both went into hiding on separate planets."

So that might answer some of those questions she had. But yes, there's definitely a little bit of a different demeanor to Obi-Wan. His confidence wasn't there like it used to be. He was a bit more of a broken man.

"He is, yes. When I got here, it all happened a couple weeks ago. For him, he was still in the middle of it. He's tried to kill me a couple times since we arrived."

[ashla]

She didn't walk the path of the light anymore. Not strictly. Still light sided, but she pulled from other paths. That didn't need to be said though. The last thing she needed to see from him was disappointment in her too.

That did answer some questions, and he heart sank again as it had once before. "It's good to hear you and master Yoda go away at least. I never knew." They were all so very good at hiding if anything.

Her face twisted a bit in a frown. "I wont let him harm you here. Not if I can help it. Or Padme. He's got to learn; got to see. This isn't home." If she had to fight him again, she would.

[hadthehighground]

"There's little use in fighting here," Obi-Wan said firmly. "However, reasoning with him is just as futile, I'm afraid."

He had tried, and failed miserably.

"I don't want to see you hurt either."

[ashla]

"I'm not here to fight, but I do intend to make a few things clear." She said firmly, jaw locked a bit as she took a breath.

"But I promise I won't purposely go and antagonize him." But she will go to talk...

[hadthehighground]

Obi-Wan again nodded, this time in acceptance. Confronting him and talking to him was her right. It would have to be done eventually. Her promise not to provoke Anakin made him feel a little better.

"You may not have to," he then said. Anakin was good at getting provoked all on his own.

"But he may be more inclined to listen to you. He sees me as nothing but a traitor."

[ashla]

She would run into him sooner or later. Might as well make it sooner, right?

She may not have to, no. The man was going to be antagonistic on his own. That was fine. She wasn't one to back down anymore.

"I don't know. I abandoned him, remember? I left. I left you both. I was welcomed back to the order and turned away from it. How do you think he's going to react to that? Maybe if I had stayed, things would be different."

[hadthehighground]

“If you had stayed you might be dead,” he pointed out.

She did have a good point though. Any rational person wouldn’t blame her, but Anakin was not rational.

“No matter what he may say or think, it is not your fault. If anyone here is to share blame it would be me. As his master I should have seen this coming.”

[ashla]

She wanted to protest that, that old spark of Snips coming alive to say she might not have died. But he made a good point. She didn't make a comment, only nodded.

"I don't believe that, Master. Someone is to blame, and that someone is Palpatine, not you. Don't ever think you didn't do all you could do." She had reached out to squeeze his knee, resting her hand there a moment. "No one saw it coming, not even the other council members."

[hadthehighground]

Placing his hand on hers, he accepted her comfort, if not her words entirely. The wounds were deep and still raw. He wasn’t sure they would ever really heal.

“No, I failed him. I didn’t protect him from the threat that was right under our nose, and I couldn’t bring him back from it either.”

It was a heavy burden and guilt that he placed on his shoulders. Only made worse by the knowledge Anakin would survive their fight on Mustafar. To go on terrorizing the galaxy and any remaining Jedi at Palpatine’s side.

[ashla]

She could feel the guilt and the pain he was under. It was thick in his words. She gave his leg another squeeze and leaned there, looking up at him.

"Just know someone out there doesn't believe it's all on you. Let that be a start to your healing. If you let him down, so did I, for not seeing the threat sooner. Padawan or not, I was perceptive. We both could have noticed more. Anakin is smart though. It's not ALL on your shoulders, Obi-wan."

[hadthehighground]

He squeezed her hand back and mustered a small smile, trying to be strong for her as he nodded.

“Thank you, Ahsoka. Perhaps with us all here to help him, there may yet be some hope.”

All of the people that loved him most were here, and most importantly there was no Palpatine. This gave him a sliver of hope to hold onto, even in this dismal place.

[ashla]

She gave him a hopeful smile, drawing back to her self and leaning there, still watching him.

"Now that's more like the Obi-wan I knew. There may still be hope. We're all here now, and who knows, maybe it will change things in my future. And if not, at least maybe we can enjoy each others company now. We just have to reach him."