Warriors in Exile (2/?)
Title: Warriors in Exile
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: All of "Buffy," and all of "Star Wars" through Episode III.
Summary: After the final battle with the First, Buffy walks away from the Scoobies to start a new life. Imagine her surprise when a group of Jedi exiles arrive at her door a year later.
Disclaimer: Joss owns "Buffy," Lucas owns "Star Wars," I own my laptop.
AN: Thanks to everybody who's responded to the first chapter of this fic! I really appreciate it. As always, many thanks to revdorothyl for betaing for me!
Made by skylar0grace
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chalk this night up for top forty weird list. Not sure if it breaks top twenty yet; definitely not the top ten, Buffy thought to herself as she led the way back to the ship. The more she thought about it that way, the more it seemed like a sad commentary on her life. “Get what you need right now, and we’ll come back during the day,” she told him as they boarded the ship. “Tell me what you need help with, and I’ll help carry,” she offered. Ben nodded and made his way to the back of the ship. Buffy had to keep herself from gawking at all the shiny gizmos and gadgets. Oh yeah, the little weirdo would definitely have a field day in here, she thought with a sad smile as Andrew came to mind once again.
“We don’t have many supplies with us,” she heard Ben’s disembodied voice say. “We left in a bit of a rush.”
“I can imagine,” she said quietly. She had seen the exhaustion in everyone’s eyes, especially in Olee’s and Ben’s. Their looks were similar to the one she was sure she had worn during those last days in Sunnyhell, when she not only had the Scoobies to look after but all those Potentials as well. Oh, she knew that exhaustion very well.
Leaning against a wall, she reflected on her new visitors. Most of the kids seemed OK with whatever had happened, but only time would tell. She should probably corner them soon and see if they needed someone to cry on. She had only known these people for maybe an hour, tops, but they didn’t seem like the touchy-feely type. Olee and Ben seemed to be postponing any feelings until they had achieved some stable environment for the little ones, but the other girl--the red demony looking one--looked like she was still in shock. Biting her lip, Buffy was considering her options with that girl when Ben reappeared.
“I have everything we’ll need,” he told her, his jaw set. He wasn’t bad to look at, Buffy admitted to herself, although he was a bit too formal for her taste. He was about medium height, with reddish-brown hair and piercing blue eyes that seemed to be trying to read her very soul. Even under all the layers he was wearing, she could tell that he had a nice body on him.
“Good,” she told him as they shut the ship up. “The faster we get back, the better.”
“I don’t understand what you meant by the first rule of the house being ‘don’t die’,” he told her. Before she could come up with an answer, her spidey senses went into overload.
“Get behind me,” she snapped as she drew her sword.
“What…?”
“Just do what I say for once, Ben!” she yelled as she caught sight of the demon that had triggered her senses. Just her luck: It was with two vamps. Growling with irritation, she advanced towards her opponents, feeling no real desire to play with her prey before the slayage ensued. She was tired, she had to deal with the logistics of housing a ton of people, as well as getting them integrated into Earth life, and she still had to do her damn reading. I hate my life sometimes, she thought sourly.
Obi-Wan’s eyes widened with shock as he saw the petite woman draw her sword and stalk towards those…things with an ugly look on her face. He didn’t know what they were, but they felt wrong to him. Before he could turn on his lightsaber to help her, she had already decapitated one of the two humanoids and he watched in shock as it turned to dust.
“You going to sit around, or are you going to show me what this Order of JuJu taught you?” called the woman as she began fighting the remaining humanoid and the thing simultaneously. Shaking his head at her butchering the word “Jedi,” Obi-Wan flicked on his lightsaber and joined the fray.
“Decapitation is normally the best way to deal with the uglies,” she called out as she kicked the remaining humanoid out of the way and plunged a piece of wood into its heart. It too turned into dust, and she returned her attention to the thing. Obi-Wan, taking her words to heart, went for the head, easily lopping it off. The smoking pieces fell, leaving Buffy stunned.
“Can I have one of those?” she eagerly asked, pointing at his lightsaber. “So much neater than the hack and slash.”
“No,” he answered, recoiling at the smell of the dead beast. Buffy scrunched her nose, but knelt beside its head, studying it for a moment before grabbing a device from her pocket and setting the thing on fire. It flared up instantly, releasing the foul stench of burning flesh, which, unfortunately, was all too familiar with him. He swallowed the nausea and the memories that came with it as she knelt, watching the body quickly turn to ash in silence, the flames casting an eerie glow on her face.
“Let’s get moving,” she said, straightening and grabbing a spare cloth from the back of her pants to clean her sword. “Don’t know what other nasties are hunting us right now.”
“What was that?” he asked, doing his best to keep up with her. Although she was shorter than him by a good six inches, she still walked significantly faster.
“The big and ugly was a demon, not sure which kind. I just see ‘em and slay ‘em. The human-like dudes were vampires. I’ll explain more when we get inside. I just don’t want to have to deal with any more right now.” He nodded, wondering again what type of world Master Windu had sent him to.
Entering the house, Buffy made sure she had put away her sword before turning to face Ben. “Let’s sit down,” she told him, making her way to a couch and collapsing into it. “I can’t stand up much longer. Long day and all that good stuff.”
“You said you were going to explain to me what was going on.”
“As I said before, those were vamps and a demon, and as for why they were here, I’m their favorite hunting toy. Bear with me here, I’m not very good at the splainy bit,” she told him, lifting her arms and stretching. “Used to be there was this one girl, born to fight the darkness and all that. She got supercharged by a group of men without her consent, giving her speed, strength and healing beyond most humans. When I say 'used to be one' girl, it’s because almost a year ago we changed the rules of the game and made it so any girl who might’ve been a Slayer, had they been called, actually became a Slayer.”
“What?” he asked, slightly confused.
She sighed. “I told you I was no good with the explaining part of this story. Basically, instead of just me, myself, and I fighting against the forces of darkness, we now have an army of hyped-up teenaged girls kicking evil’s proverbial ass.”
Obi-Wan nodded, still a little unsure of what she was talking about. She continued talking, her face taking on a sad, nostalgic look. “I was Called when I was fifteen, so I’ve been doing this for almost a decade now. Oh, God, I feel old. Anyhows, I decided I needed a break after fighting for so long, so once we had finished dealing with that last apocalypse, I decided to retire and return to college to finish my degree.” There was more to that story than what she was telling him, he was sure of it, but her guarded face told him now was not the time to pry.
“What about you?” she asked, turning to face him, hazel eyes serious. “I got the part about you being refugees, but something major happened. Something happened that put that girl in the state of shock that’s she’s in. It was someone close to her, wasn’t it?” she asked, thinking hard. Now that she thought it, it made sense. She was sure she had that look on her face after she killed Angel all those years ago.
“How did you…?” he attempted to ask before he was cut off.
“I’ve seen a lot in my time,” she answered, looking tired and older for a brief moment. Obi-Wan wondered exactly what she might have seen in her years fighting to give her the look that Masters Yoda and Windu had at times. “Again, what happened? I’m not trying to pry, but I want to know at least some of what I’m getting into with taking you folks in.”
“He was her master,” Obi-Wan replied softly, looking down at his hands. “In the Jedi Order, a Jedi takes a Padawan in order to train them in the ways of the Force. The Master many times becomes a sort of parent and sibling to the Padawan, someone they can turn to with problems. Anakin and Ahsoka, because they were fairly close in age and had similar temperaments, were incredibly close. She refuses to talk about the events in the Temple and has shut everyone out, making it almost impossible to help her.”
“Look, if it’s too painful to talk about now, I’ll let it be, but it’s best if you spill sooner or later.” Look at me, giving advice on how to deal with problems, Buffy thought to herself wryly as she watched Ben sit on the couch, deep in thought. The Gang would get a kick out of this.
“Olee and I had just returned from a vital mission,” Ben started suddenly, startling her out of her reverie. “I don’t know how much you know of Galactic events…”
“Benjy, this world believes itself to be the only one capable of supporting life. You say 'Galactic' and it leads to no bell ring-age,” Buffy told him, moving to the kitchen to make some cocoa. “Hey, I’m making hot chocolate. Want some?” Ben nodded and followed her to the kitchen island and perched himself on a stool, while Buffy grabbed the milk out of the fridge. “I don’t need in-depth; just give me the Cliffs Notes version.”
“Cliffs Notes?” Ben asked, a confused look on his face. Buffy shook her head and silently reminded herself to keep pop culture references to a minimum as she took out the coco powder and marshmallows.
“Short, sweet and to the point,” she clarified, heating the milk in a saucepan and popping a marshmallow in her mouth.
Obi-Wan nodded and continued with his story as he watched Buffy prepare the warm concoction. “Jedi were the defenders of the Galactic Republic, an institution that spanned hundreds of star systems.”
“Wait up. Hundreds?” Buffy interjected, a stunned look on her face. Obi-Wan chuckled softly at the look and continued.
“Yes, hundreds of systems. The Republic governed for thousands of years, but recently many systems were dissatisfied. Those systems joined an organization called the Confederacy of Independent Systems, led by a former Jedi, Count Dooku. What few people realized was that Dooku was more than a former Jedi: he was a Sith Lord and apprentice to Darth Sidious.”
“What the hell is a Sith Lord?” Buffy interjected again, placing a mug of brown liquid with white lumps floating in it in front of him. He picked it up and gave it an experimental sniff. Deciding that it wasn’t poisonous, he took a small sip and let the warm, sweet drink wash over his tongue.
“A Sith is someone who uses the Force for personal gain at the expense of others,” Obi-Wan explained, trying to think of a way to phrase it in terms she would understand. “Sith crave power more than anything else and will destroy anyone or anything that stands in their way. Until fairly recently, Sith were thought to be eliminated…”
“But not so much,” Buffy interjected, sitting down across from him. “So these Sith guys are the Big Bads of your world. That makes sense.”
“Yes, they are the ‘Big Bad’ as you would put it. As it turns out, Darth Sidious was the leader of the Republic, under the alias of Palpatine. Using his political power, he manipulated events until civil war was inevitable. Using the excuse of war, he accumulated more and more power, all under the name of preserving democracy.”
“Wow, like the Mayor, but galactic sized,” Buffy muttered as she sipped her drink. “He was a leader of this town I lived in, and he used it as a method to channel power so that he could Ascend to a demon and destroy the world,” she added when she saw Obi-Wan lift his eyebrow.
“I’m not sure that example is analogous to the situation, since I doubt Palpatine would be interested in completely destroying the galaxy for the sake of destroying it. During the war, the Jedi were relied upon as commanders and generals of the Army of the Republic, at great cost to our lives. Our numbers, small to begin with, began to dwindle further and caused our resources to be stretched thin.”
“That’s nice for setting the scene, but that tells me nothing about what actually happened.”
Obi-Wan sighed. He really didn’t want to talk about this part. “Anakin Skywalker was a young boy we discovered on a mission about thirteen years ago. My Master at the time, Qui-Gon Jinn, was sure he was the Chosen One spoken of by a prophecy. The problem was that Anakin was too old by the Council’s standards to be admitted to train,” Obi-Wan explained, wondering why Buffy had a deadly look on her face as soon as he mentioned the words “Chosen One” and “Council.”
“The Council eventually allowed the boy to train, and Qui-Gon took him as an apprentice.” Obi-Wan tried to keep the bitterness out of his voice when he mentioned the events that led up to Anakin being admitted to the Order, but he was sure Buffy heard it anyway. The girl was too perceptive when it came to these matters.
So many unresolved daddy issues, Buffy thought as she watched Ben’s face, which was studiously trying to avoid any sign of emotion. Oh, this is going to be fun to deal with. That and the fact that most of them act emotionally repressed to begin with. Fun times.
“The actual events are too complex to fully get into right now, but Anakin was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force with the promise that it could help save his wife from death during childbirth. Palpatine was able to manipulate Anakin’s fears and turn him against the Order. One of the first acts Palpatine ordered Anakin to do was attack the Jedi Temple and murder all Jedi in residence.
“Olee and I had just returned from a mission and arrived at the Temple moments before the attack started,” Obi-Wan continued, pictures of that night flashing before his eyes…
“What’s going on?” Obi-Wan shouted at a Jedi who ran past him. It took him a moment to recognize Even Piell, a senior member of the Council.
“We’re under attack by the clone troopers,” the Lannik replied grimly. “They’re being led by Anakin Skywalker.”
“What?” Obi-Wan exclaimed, activating his lightsaber and making to follow Piell before the diminutive master raised his hand to stop him.
“No. Go, gather the younglings that were sent to the Council chamber and evacuate them. Take the passageway behind the memorial statue: It should lead you to a secret transport that you can use to get off-planet. Try to contact Master Yoda and let him know what happened. Go now!”
Obi-Wan and Olee took off running against the tide of Jedi Knights and used every shortcut through the Temple that they knew of in order to reach the Council chamber. When they arrived, they were shocked by the sight in front of them. Anakin standing was before the chamber doors, fighting his own apprentice. Even from the distance at which the duo stood, it was clear that Anakin was merely toying with Ahsoka, playing with her as if for some sick amusement.
Raising his hand, Anakin began to choke the girl, causing her to fall to her knees and let go of her lightsaber. This snapped Obi-Wan out of his reverie, and he stalked towards the fallen Jedi.
“Let her go, Anakin,” he ordered as he motioned for Olee to gather the younglings. She looked like she was about to protest, but she set her face and edged towards the door.
“Who are you to tell me what to do, Obi-Wan?” Anakin asked, turning his face towards the Jedi Master. Looking at his eyes, Obi-Wan’s breath caught for a moment. Those yellow eyes were mirror images to the eyes of the Sith Lord he had killed all those years ago on Naboo.
“She’s a child, Anakin! She’s your friend! She, at least, deserves a chance to live,” he told Anakin as they began circling one another, while Ahsoka lay forgotten on the ground gasping for breath. Out of the corner of his eye, Obi-Wan saw Olee reach the door and open it. At that point, seeing Obi-Wan’s attention divided, Anakin chose to attack. Obi-Wan easily parried the blow and settled into the defensive motions of Soresu, content to keep Anakin distracted for a moment.
“She’s a Jedi, and they all must die if the Republic is to be preserved,” Anakin replied, completely serious and with a deadly look in his eyes. “It’s the Jedi’s fault we are fighting this war and losing.”
“Anakin, regain your senses!” Obi-Wan shouted, twisting out of the way of a vicious thrust to his midsection. Obi-Wan was at an advantage here in the corridors of the Temple; the limited space made it hard for Anakin to accurately execute his Form V, while still allowing Obi-Wan to tire him out. Jab. Thrust. Parry. Force push. On and on the two went in their deadly dance, the glow of the clashing lightsabers illuminating the dim corridor. Finally, Obi-Wan decided to end it.
Making sure his gaze never left Anakin, he used the Force to shove the younger man against a wall, too quickly for him to react. Anakin hit the wall with a sickening “thud” and slid down unconscious. Obi-Wan walked towards him, lightsaber raised in preparation to strike Anakin, when he heard the familiar thumps of boots on the corridor. Turning around, he saw a group of four dozen or so clone troopers approaching, their white armor contrasting with the smoke in the air.
“Freeze, Jedi scum,” barked the lead trooper as the group trained their guns on Obi-Wan. Outnumbered nearly fifty to one, Obi-Wan did the only sensible thing he could do.
He ran.
“I was able to make it to the shuttle without alerting any of the clone troopers to its existence,” Obi-Wan continued as Buffy listened, their drinks long since finished. “We met up with Master Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn, along with Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan. Master Yoda went to confront Palpatine, who had since declared himself Emperor, while Qui-Gon and I battled Anakin. We managed to defeat Anakin, but Yoda was unable to kill the Emperor.
“We met again on an asteroid called Polis Massa, where Anakin’s wife Padmé gave birth to twins. She had gone to see Anakin, and Qui-Gon stowed aboard her ship. In his anger at thinking she had betrayed him to his former Master, Anakin nearly killed her. Padmé died soon after her children were born, her heart broken.” Obi-Wan blinked backed tears at the memory of the Senator’s passing. In his memory, she was still the defiant girl-queen who had taken on the Trade Federation with nothing more than a dozen troops, two Jedi, an army of Gungans, and her determination. They would speak whenever he was on Coruscant, and he considered her a good friend.
“After Padmé’s death, we met for the last time. Because we did not want the Emperor to sense the infants’ presence, we split them up, with the son going with Qui-Gon to Tatooine to live with Anakn’s stepbrother, and the daughter going with Senator Organa to live on Alderaan. Master Yoda chose to go into exile…”
“And you were chosen to babysit,” Buffy broke in, a small smile on her face. “Thank you for telling me this,” she added, a more serious look on her face. “I’ve been through a lot, and I know how hard it can be to let others in after something’s happened.” They sat in silence for a moment longer before Buffy looked at the clock.
“Jesus, didn’t realize it was this late!” she exclaimed, starting up off her stool. “Look, I’m going to bed. Do you need anything right now, or you good? I mean, I think I may have some random guy clothes hanging around that could fit you, although I’m not too sure and now I’m babbling and I’m going to shut up now.” Obi-Wan watched her ramble on, unsure of what she meant.
“I am perfectly fine,” he reassured her as they started up the stairs. He was about to enter his room when she called out to him.
“Oh, what do you all like for breakfast in the morning?” she asked.
“Since we are unfamiliar with your food, I’ll leave it up to your discretion,” he told her. She nodded and entered her room at the end of the hall. Obi-Wan opened the door to his and barely took in any of the décor; all he cared about was the bed in the center of the room. Barely conscious of what he was doing, he stripped off his boots and outer tunic and collapsed into a dreamless sleep.
~*~*~
What did I just get myself into? Buffy asked herself as she brushed her teeth. She was sure she had lost her senses back in the clearing, when she invited those people to live with her. Years of living on the Hellmouth should have taught her better, but apparently not.
Even though the group set off her spidey senses, it wasn’t in a bad “evil being bent on destroying the world” way. It was more like when she was around another Slayer, only stronger. Rolling around the problem in her mind as she finished getting ready for bed, Buffy decided she did the right thing in taking the group in. The kids needed someone in their lives who wasn’t completely emotionally repressed, and something had resonated in her when she had seen Ahsoka. But, deep down, that wasn’t the real reason she had let them into her home.
I’m lonely, Buffy thought as she lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling. Throughout her life, Buffy had always lived in close contact with those she considered her family, both by blood and by choice. She had always had someone to talk with when she needed to, always had someone who would listen to her problems and help her deal. Now that she was living on her own, she realized how much she missed that closeness.
Buffy blinked back the tears that came to her eyes when thinking about the old Scooby gang. I won’t cry for them, I won’t, she told herself as she hugged Mr. Gordo closer to her and felt Darci jump on the bed and lie next to her. With these conflicting thoughts in her head, she slowly drifted off to sleep.
Chapter Three
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: All of "Buffy," and all of "Star Wars" through Episode III.
Summary: After the final battle with the First, Buffy walks away from the Scoobies to start a new life. Imagine her surprise when a group of Jedi exiles arrive at her door a year later.
Disclaimer: Joss owns "Buffy," Lucas owns "Star Wars," I own my laptop.
AN: Thanks to everybody who's responded to the first chapter of this fic! I really appreciate it. As always, many thanks to revdorothyl for betaing for me!
Made by skylar0grace
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chalk this night up for top forty weird list. Not sure if it breaks top twenty yet; definitely not the top ten, Buffy thought to herself as she led the way back to the ship. The more she thought about it that way, the more it seemed like a sad commentary on her life. “Get what you need right now, and we’ll come back during the day,” she told him as they boarded the ship. “Tell me what you need help with, and I’ll help carry,” she offered. Ben nodded and made his way to the back of the ship. Buffy had to keep herself from gawking at all the shiny gizmos and gadgets. Oh yeah, the little weirdo would definitely have a field day in here, she thought with a sad smile as Andrew came to mind once again.
“We don’t have many supplies with us,” she heard Ben’s disembodied voice say. “We left in a bit of a rush.”
“I can imagine,” she said quietly. She had seen the exhaustion in everyone’s eyes, especially in Olee’s and Ben’s. Their looks were similar to the one she was sure she had worn during those last days in Sunnyhell, when she not only had the Scoobies to look after but all those Potentials as well. Oh, she knew that exhaustion very well.
Leaning against a wall, she reflected on her new visitors. Most of the kids seemed OK with whatever had happened, but only time would tell. She should probably corner them soon and see if they needed someone to cry on. She had only known these people for maybe an hour, tops, but they didn’t seem like the touchy-feely type. Olee and Ben seemed to be postponing any feelings until they had achieved some stable environment for the little ones, but the other girl--the red demony looking one--looked like she was still in shock. Biting her lip, Buffy was considering her options with that girl when Ben reappeared.
“I have everything we’ll need,” he told her, his jaw set. He wasn’t bad to look at, Buffy admitted to herself, although he was a bit too formal for her taste. He was about medium height, with reddish-brown hair and piercing blue eyes that seemed to be trying to read her very soul. Even under all the layers he was wearing, she could tell that he had a nice body on him.
“Good,” she told him as they shut the ship up. “The faster we get back, the better.”
“I don’t understand what you meant by the first rule of the house being ‘don’t die’,” he told her. Before she could come up with an answer, her spidey senses went into overload.
“Get behind me,” she snapped as she drew her sword.
“What…?”
“Just do what I say for once, Ben!” she yelled as she caught sight of the demon that had triggered her senses. Just her luck: It was with two vamps. Growling with irritation, she advanced towards her opponents, feeling no real desire to play with her prey before the slayage ensued. She was tired, she had to deal with the logistics of housing a ton of people, as well as getting them integrated into Earth life, and she still had to do her damn reading. I hate my life sometimes, she thought sourly.
Obi-Wan’s eyes widened with shock as he saw the petite woman draw her sword and stalk towards those…things with an ugly look on her face. He didn’t know what they were, but they felt wrong to him. Before he could turn on his lightsaber to help her, she had already decapitated one of the two humanoids and he watched in shock as it turned to dust.
“You going to sit around, or are you going to show me what this Order of JuJu taught you?” called the woman as she began fighting the remaining humanoid and the thing simultaneously. Shaking his head at her butchering the word “Jedi,” Obi-Wan flicked on his lightsaber and joined the fray.
“Decapitation is normally the best way to deal with the uglies,” she called out as she kicked the remaining humanoid out of the way and plunged a piece of wood into its heart. It too turned into dust, and she returned her attention to the thing. Obi-Wan, taking her words to heart, went for the head, easily lopping it off. The smoking pieces fell, leaving Buffy stunned.
“Can I have one of those?” she eagerly asked, pointing at his lightsaber. “So much neater than the hack and slash.”
“No,” he answered, recoiling at the smell of the dead beast. Buffy scrunched her nose, but knelt beside its head, studying it for a moment before grabbing a device from her pocket and setting the thing on fire. It flared up instantly, releasing the foul stench of burning flesh, which, unfortunately, was all too familiar with him. He swallowed the nausea and the memories that came with it as she knelt, watching the body quickly turn to ash in silence, the flames casting an eerie glow on her face.
“Let’s get moving,” she said, straightening and grabbing a spare cloth from the back of her pants to clean her sword. “Don’t know what other nasties are hunting us right now.”
“What was that?” he asked, doing his best to keep up with her. Although she was shorter than him by a good six inches, she still walked significantly faster.
“The big and ugly was a demon, not sure which kind. I just see ‘em and slay ‘em. The human-like dudes were vampires. I’ll explain more when we get inside. I just don’t want to have to deal with any more right now.” He nodded, wondering again what type of world Master Windu had sent him to.
Entering the house, Buffy made sure she had put away her sword before turning to face Ben. “Let’s sit down,” she told him, making her way to a couch and collapsing into it. “I can’t stand up much longer. Long day and all that good stuff.”
“You said you were going to explain to me what was going on.”
“As I said before, those were vamps and a demon, and as for why they were here, I’m their favorite hunting toy. Bear with me here, I’m not very good at the splainy bit,” she told him, lifting her arms and stretching. “Used to be there was this one girl, born to fight the darkness and all that. She got supercharged by a group of men without her consent, giving her speed, strength and healing beyond most humans. When I say 'used to be one' girl, it’s because almost a year ago we changed the rules of the game and made it so any girl who might’ve been a Slayer, had they been called, actually became a Slayer.”
“What?” he asked, slightly confused.
She sighed. “I told you I was no good with the explaining part of this story. Basically, instead of just me, myself, and I fighting against the forces of darkness, we now have an army of hyped-up teenaged girls kicking evil’s proverbial ass.”
Obi-Wan nodded, still a little unsure of what she was talking about. She continued talking, her face taking on a sad, nostalgic look. “I was Called when I was fifteen, so I’ve been doing this for almost a decade now. Oh, God, I feel old. Anyhows, I decided I needed a break after fighting for so long, so once we had finished dealing with that last apocalypse, I decided to retire and return to college to finish my degree.” There was more to that story than what she was telling him, he was sure of it, but her guarded face told him now was not the time to pry.
“What about you?” she asked, turning to face him, hazel eyes serious. “I got the part about you being refugees, but something major happened. Something happened that put that girl in the state of shock that’s she’s in. It was someone close to her, wasn’t it?” she asked, thinking hard. Now that she thought it, it made sense. She was sure she had that look on her face after she killed Angel all those years ago.
“How did you…?” he attempted to ask before he was cut off.
“I’ve seen a lot in my time,” she answered, looking tired and older for a brief moment. Obi-Wan wondered exactly what she might have seen in her years fighting to give her the look that Masters Yoda and Windu had at times. “Again, what happened? I’m not trying to pry, but I want to know at least some of what I’m getting into with taking you folks in.”
“He was her master,” Obi-Wan replied softly, looking down at his hands. “In the Jedi Order, a Jedi takes a Padawan in order to train them in the ways of the Force. The Master many times becomes a sort of parent and sibling to the Padawan, someone they can turn to with problems. Anakin and Ahsoka, because they were fairly close in age and had similar temperaments, were incredibly close. She refuses to talk about the events in the Temple and has shut everyone out, making it almost impossible to help her.”
“Look, if it’s too painful to talk about now, I’ll let it be, but it’s best if you spill sooner or later.” Look at me, giving advice on how to deal with problems, Buffy thought to herself wryly as she watched Ben sit on the couch, deep in thought. The Gang would get a kick out of this.
“Olee and I had just returned from a vital mission,” Ben started suddenly, startling her out of her reverie. “I don’t know how much you know of Galactic events…”
“Benjy, this world believes itself to be the only one capable of supporting life. You say 'Galactic' and it leads to no bell ring-age,” Buffy told him, moving to the kitchen to make some cocoa. “Hey, I’m making hot chocolate. Want some?” Ben nodded and followed her to the kitchen island and perched himself on a stool, while Buffy grabbed the milk out of the fridge. “I don’t need in-depth; just give me the Cliffs Notes version.”
“Cliffs Notes?” Ben asked, a confused look on his face. Buffy shook her head and silently reminded herself to keep pop culture references to a minimum as she took out the coco powder and marshmallows.
“Short, sweet and to the point,” she clarified, heating the milk in a saucepan and popping a marshmallow in her mouth.
Obi-Wan nodded and continued with his story as he watched Buffy prepare the warm concoction. “Jedi were the defenders of the Galactic Republic, an institution that spanned hundreds of star systems.”
“Wait up. Hundreds?” Buffy interjected, a stunned look on her face. Obi-Wan chuckled softly at the look and continued.
“Yes, hundreds of systems. The Republic governed for thousands of years, but recently many systems were dissatisfied. Those systems joined an organization called the Confederacy of Independent Systems, led by a former Jedi, Count Dooku. What few people realized was that Dooku was more than a former Jedi: he was a Sith Lord and apprentice to Darth Sidious.”
“What the hell is a Sith Lord?” Buffy interjected again, placing a mug of brown liquid with white lumps floating in it in front of him. He picked it up and gave it an experimental sniff. Deciding that it wasn’t poisonous, he took a small sip and let the warm, sweet drink wash over his tongue.
“A Sith is someone who uses the Force for personal gain at the expense of others,” Obi-Wan explained, trying to think of a way to phrase it in terms she would understand. “Sith crave power more than anything else and will destroy anyone or anything that stands in their way. Until fairly recently, Sith were thought to be eliminated…”
“But not so much,” Buffy interjected, sitting down across from him. “So these Sith guys are the Big Bads of your world. That makes sense.”
“Yes, they are the ‘Big Bad’ as you would put it. As it turns out, Darth Sidious was the leader of the Republic, under the alias of Palpatine. Using his political power, he manipulated events until civil war was inevitable. Using the excuse of war, he accumulated more and more power, all under the name of preserving democracy.”
“Wow, like the Mayor, but galactic sized,” Buffy muttered as she sipped her drink. “He was a leader of this town I lived in, and he used it as a method to channel power so that he could Ascend to a demon and destroy the world,” she added when she saw Obi-Wan lift his eyebrow.
“I’m not sure that example is analogous to the situation, since I doubt Palpatine would be interested in completely destroying the galaxy for the sake of destroying it. During the war, the Jedi were relied upon as commanders and generals of the Army of the Republic, at great cost to our lives. Our numbers, small to begin with, began to dwindle further and caused our resources to be stretched thin.”
“That’s nice for setting the scene, but that tells me nothing about what actually happened.”
Obi-Wan sighed. He really didn’t want to talk about this part. “Anakin Skywalker was a young boy we discovered on a mission about thirteen years ago. My Master at the time, Qui-Gon Jinn, was sure he was the Chosen One spoken of by a prophecy. The problem was that Anakin was too old by the Council’s standards to be admitted to train,” Obi-Wan explained, wondering why Buffy had a deadly look on her face as soon as he mentioned the words “Chosen One” and “Council.”
“The Council eventually allowed the boy to train, and Qui-Gon took him as an apprentice.” Obi-Wan tried to keep the bitterness out of his voice when he mentioned the events that led up to Anakin being admitted to the Order, but he was sure Buffy heard it anyway. The girl was too perceptive when it came to these matters.
So many unresolved daddy issues, Buffy thought as she watched Ben’s face, which was studiously trying to avoid any sign of emotion. Oh, this is going to be fun to deal with. That and the fact that most of them act emotionally repressed to begin with. Fun times.
“The actual events are too complex to fully get into right now, but Anakin was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force with the promise that it could help save his wife from death during childbirth. Palpatine was able to manipulate Anakin’s fears and turn him against the Order. One of the first acts Palpatine ordered Anakin to do was attack the Jedi Temple and murder all Jedi in residence.
“Olee and I had just returned from a mission and arrived at the Temple moments before the attack started,” Obi-Wan continued, pictures of that night flashing before his eyes…
“What’s going on?” Obi-Wan shouted at a Jedi who ran past him. It took him a moment to recognize Even Piell, a senior member of the Council.
“We’re under attack by the clone troopers,” the Lannik replied grimly. “They’re being led by Anakin Skywalker.”
“What?” Obi-Wan exclaimed, activating his lightsaber and making to follow Piell before the diminutive master raised his hand to stop him.
“No. Go, gather the younglings that were sent to the Council chamber and evacuate them. Take the passageway behind the memorial statue: It should lead you to a secret transport that you can use to get off-planet. Try to contact Master Yoda and let him know what happened. Go now!”
Obi-Wan and Olee took off running against the tide of Jedi Knights and used every shortcut through the Temple that they knew of in order to reach the Council chamber. When they arrived, they were shocked by the sight in front of them. Anakin standing was before the chamber doors, fighting his own apprentice. Even from the distance at which the duo stood, it was clear that Anakin was merely toying with Ahsoka, playing with her as if for some sick amusement.
Raising his hand, Anakin began to choke the girl, causing her to fall to her knees and let go of her lightsaber. This snapped Obi-Wan out of his reverie, and he stalked towards the fallen Jedi.
“Let her go, Anakin,” he ordered as he motioned for Olee to gather the younglings. She looked like she was about to protest, but she set her face and edged towards the door.
“Who are you to tell me what to do, Obi-Wan?” Anakin asked, turning his face towards the Jedi Master. Looking at his eyes, Obi-Wan’s breath caught for a moment. Those yellow eyes were mirror images to the eyes of the Sith Lord he had killed all those years ago on Naboo.
“She’s a child, Anakin! She’s your friend! She, at least, deserves a chance to live,” he told Anakin as they began circling one another, while Ahsoka lay forgotten on the ground gasping for breath. Out of the corner of his eye, Obi-Wan saw Olee reach the door and open it. At that point, seeing Obi-Wan’s attention divided, Anakin chose to attack. Obi-Wan easily parried the blow and settled into the defensive motions of Soresu, content to keep Anakin distracted for a moment.
“She’s a Jedi, and they all must die if the Republic is to be preserved,” Anakin replied, completely serious and with a deadly look in his eyes. “It’s the Jedi’s fault we are fighting this war and losing.”
“Anakin, regain your senses!” Obi-Wan shouted, twisting out of the way of a vicious thrust to his midsection. Obi-Wan was at an advantage here in the corridors of the Temple; the limited space made it hard for Anakin to accurately execute his Form V, while still allowing Obi-Wan to tire him out. Jab. Thrust. Parry. Force push. On and on the two went in their deadly dance, the glow of the clashing lightsabers illuminating the dim corridor. Finally, Obi-Wan decided to end it.
Making sure his gaze never left Anakin, he used the Force to shove the younger man against a wall, too quickly for him to react. Anakin hit the wall with a sickening “thud” and slid down unconscious. Obi-Wan walked towards him, lightsaber raised in preparation to strike Anakin, when he heard the familiar thumps of boots on the corridor. Turning around, he saw a group of four dozen or so clone troopers approaching, their white armor contrasting with the smoke in the air.
“Freeze, Jedi scum,” barked the lead trooper as the group trained their guns on Obi-Wan. Outnumbered nearly fifty to one, Obi-Wan did the only sensible thing he could do.
He ran.
“I was able to make it to the shuttle without alerting any of the clone troopers to its existence,” Obi-Wan continued as Buffy listened, their drinks long since finished. “We met up with Master Yoda and Qui-Gon Jinn, along with Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan. Master Yoda went to confront Palpatine, who had since declared himself Emperor, while Qui-Gon and I battled Anakin. We managed to defeat Anakin, but Yoda was unable to kill the Emperor.
“We met again on an asteroid called Polis Massa, where Anakin’s wife Padmé gave birth to twins. She had gone to see Anakin, and Qui-Gon stowed aboard her ship. In his anger at thinking she had betrayed him to his former Master, Anakin nearly killed her. Padmé died soon after her children were born, her heart broken.” Obi-Wan blinked backed tears at the memory of the Senator’s passing. In his memory, she was still the defiant girl-queen who had taken on the Trade Federation with nothing more than a dozen troops, two Jedi, an army of Gungans, and her determination. They would speak whenever he was on Coruscant, and he considered her a good friend.
“After Padmé’s death, we met for the last time. Because we did not want the Emperor to sense the infants’ presence, we split them up, with the son going with Qui-Gon to Tatooine to live with Anakn’s stepbrother, and the daughter going with Senator Organa to live on Alderaan. Master Yoda chose to go into exile…”
“And you were chosen to babysit,” Buffy broke in, a small smile on her face. “Thank you for telling me this,” she added, a more serious look on her face. “I’ve been through a lot, and I know how hard it can be to let others in after something’s happened.” They sat in silence for a moment longer before Buffy looked at the clock.
“Jesus, didn’t realize it was this late!” she exclaimed, starting up off her stool. “Look, I’m going to bed. Do you need anything right now, or you good? I mean, I think I may have some random guy clothes hanging around that could fit you, although I’m not too sure and now I’m babbling and I’m going to shut up now.” Obi-Wan watched her ramble on, unsure of what she meant.
“I am perfectly fine,” he reassured her as they started up the stairs. He was about to enter his room when she called out to him.
“Oh, what do you all like for breakfast in the morning?” she asked.
“Since we are unfamiliar with your food, I’ll leave it up to your discretion,” he told her. She nodded and entered her room at the end of the hall. Obi-Wan opened the door to his and barely took in any of the décor; all he cared about was the bed in the center of the room. Barely conscious of what he was doing, he stripped off his boots and outer tunic and collapsed into a dreamless sleep.
~*~*~
What did I just get myself into? Buffy asked herself as she brushed her teeth. She was sure she had lost her senses back in the clearing, when she invited those people to live with her. Years of living on the Hellmouth should have taught her better, but apparently not.
Even though the group set off her spidey senses, it wasn’t in a bad “evil being bent on destroying the world” way. It was more like when she was around another Slayer, only stronger. Rolling around the problem in her mind as she finished getting ready for bed, Buffy decided she did the right thing in taking the group in. The kids needed someone in their lives who wasn’t completely emotionally repressed, and something had resonated in her when she had seen Ahsoka. But, deep down, that wasn’t the real reason she had let them into her home.
I’m lonely, Buffy thought as she lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling. Throughout her life, Buffy had always lived in close contact with those she considered her family, both by blood and by choice. She had always had someone to talk with when she needed to, always had someone who would listen to her problems and help her deal. Now that she was living on her own, she realized how much she missed that closeness.
Buffy blinked back the tears that came to her eyes when thinking about the old Scooby gang. I won’t cry for them, I won’t, she told herself as she hugged Mr. Gordo closer to her and felt Darci jump on the bed and lie next to her. With these conflicting thoughts in her head, she slowly drifted off to sleep.
Chapter Three