Fic: White Rabbits (Star Wars, 29/?)
Title: White Rabbits
Part: 29/?
Author: Diana Michelle (butterfly)
Warnings: Spoilers for Revenge of the Sith.
Pairings: Anakin/Obi-Wan; Leia/Han.
Rating: PG-13.
Summary: They were the heroes of the Republic.
Disclaimer: Not Lucas, don't own a thing, not making any money.
Chapter Index
Chapter Twenty-Nine -- Kenobi and Skywalker
The data on the chip was hastily tossed together, with obvious breaks between each segment, clearly created on a deadline. After the information was compiled, forty-three copies had been made.
One of these copies had been given to Luke Skywalker.
Each of the data slips contained everything that still existed to document the existence of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, the best-known heroes of the Clone Wars.
Looking back, some say that the Old Republic truly fell on the day that the Emperor regretfully announced that Kenobi had been viciously murdered for his continued loyalty to the Senate and the Empire.
For many, that was the day that the last threads of hope died.
“This is one of the few files we recovered from the Temple itself. It appears to contain formal appeals made to the Council itself. Of particular interest is this glimpse at a young Anakin Skywalker, who was to be one of the heroes of the Clone Wars.”
The recording showed a child, no more than ten and possibly younger, dressed in simple robes, hair trimmed close to his head except for one tiny braid hanging down behind his left ear. He looked incredibly solemn, especially considering his youth.
“My name is Anakin Skywalker,” he said, as though prompted. He glanced to the left, biting his lip for a moment before continuing. “I was born on the planet Tatooine - do I really need to say all this?”
“Anakin, this is for the Temple Archives. We need this on file. You can’t attend classes with the other Padawans until your formal request has been recorded.”
“Why can’t you teach me?” Anakin asked. “You’re my master.”
“Anakin, I simply don’t have time to fill you in on all the necessary background. Please, don’t make me go over this again.”
Anakin nodded, blinking rapidly for a few moments. Even from the tiny image of the holo, it was obvious that the young Anakin was fighting back tears.
“I was born on the planet Tatooine, which is located on the upper eastern edge of the Outer Rim,” Anakin said, looking forward again and talking in a fast monotone, each sentence sounding rehearsed. “I was discovered there by Master Qui-Gon Jinn, who brought me before the Council and asked that I be made his Padawan. The Council refused then, but due to exten-extenuating circumstances, I request now to appeal that decision and to be permitted the rank of Padawan Learner under Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi.”
“There, that wasn’t so bad,” Obi-Wan said, walking into the image from the left side. He was in his twenties, hair short and face beardless. “We’ll just insert that into the file in front of the Council’s acceptance holo and everything will be official.”
“And I’ll be a Jedi,” Anakin said, the hint of a smile at the corners of his lips.
Obi-Wan reached out, clasping Anakin’s shoulder gently. “You’ll be a step closer.”
The image fizzled out.
“General Kenobi is a particularly frustrating subject to study. Everyone over a certain age remembers him, but though it is well-known that he had an extensive circle of underground contacts, none of them have come forward to speak to the New Republic about this icon of our past. However, by a most peculiar set of circumstances, we managed to track down his last living relative, who agreed to speak to us, audio-only, on the condition that we not record her name or planet of origin in our formal report.”
“Yes, the Council did send us reports every so often, and my mother would watch them alone in her room, but the simple truth is that all of those records were destroyed during the Second Clone War. And he never came out to visit us himself, so I don't know what he was like.” It was a woman’s voice, calm but forceful.
“And you didn’t watch the updates?” asked a soft, inquiring male voice.
“It’s not as if I ever actually knew him,” the woman said. “And... I think I was jealous, just a little. He was the special one, after all. She was so proud of him.”
There was a soft and frustrated breath.
“He probably didn’t even know her name,” she said. “They weren’t supposed to remember their past, their family before the Order.”
There was another pause in the recording.
“She destroyed the recordings herself, when she heard he'd had been killed,” she said. “Hearing that… it ruined her. She died two years later, and his name was the last thing she ever said.”
“I’m sorry to bring up bad memories,” he said.
“No, it’s not your fault,” she said. “I just… I try not to think of him, and even now I would prefer to believe that he had died back then.”
“Knowing about his involvement in the Rebellion against the Empire doesn’t change your opinion of him?”
“It makes it worse. Some things are unforgivable, you see,” she said. “He never once tried to contact us, after the Order had fallen. If she had known that he was still alive, that there was even a chance, she wouldn’t have given up.”
There was a thoughtful pause.
“I suppose that I really do feel that he killed her,” she said. “Obi-Wan may be my brother by blood, but he was never a brother of my heart. So, there really is nothing that I can tell you about him. Nothing that you wouldn't already know.”
“The following is a brief security holo copied from the Senate archives before they were purged by the Empire. It is a rare chance to see a slightly more adversarial side of the famed Kenobi and Skywalker partnership.”
The flickering blue light of the hologram showed two figures - an older Kenobi and Skywalker, Master and Knight, walking down the corridor in the middle of a heated discussion.
“-see why it’s a problem,” Anakin said, his cloak casually draped over his arm. “You said yourself that you trust Senator Organa, and he’s in favor of the treaty.”
“Trusting someone does not mean agreeing with all their decisions,” Obi-Wan said, arms folded across his chest. “In this instance, I do disagree with the Senator and I’m not going to pretend that I don’t. You seem to forget that he asked my opinion.”
“I just don’t understand why you think it’s a bad idea,” Anakin said, glancing over at Obi-Wan. “We both want this war to end as quickly as possible.”
“It’s not as simple as that,” Obi-Wan said. He sighed, sounding frustrated. “I just… I have a bad feeling about the entire arrangement.”
“You had a bad feeling about Jailux IV, and that worked out fine,” Anakin pointed out.
“Anakin, we almost died on that rock,” Obi-Wan said, but he was smiling now. “And you may recall that we very nearly failed to accomplish our mission.”
“But we did-“
The image shorted out.
“The following short announcement by the Emperor is, of course, quite well-known, but as it does mention Master Kenobi, we thought it best to include it. Of note is the fact that after this day, the Emperor did not mention the names ‘Skywalker’ or ‘Kenobi’ in public ever again. Additionally, some younger members of our new Senate may not know that this announcement was used as part of the justification for the Empire’s ruling that species-based enslavement was to be considered an acceptable punishment in cases of world-wide treason.”
"Today, I bring you news both joyous and tragic.” The Emperor was sitting down behind his desk, the hood of his robe shading his deformed face from view. “The Jedi Rebellion has finally been fully wiped out. Unfortunately, the few Jedi who had remained loyal to the Republic were also killed in the uprising, by their brothers in arms.”
In the back, the figure of Darth Vader was visible, light gleaming off his black suit.
“As we all know, Anakin Skywalker died protecting me from a fellow Jedi,” the Emperor continued. “A hero to the last. His memory lives close to my heart.”
“Just last night, we learned that his partner, our beloved Master Kenobi, was torn to pieces by a Wookiee, possibly sent by the now-deceased Master Yoda, who we believe was the mastermind of the attempt against my life and who we know was the Jedi Master sent to Kashyyyk, the Wookiee homeworld, just days before the uprising itself occurred.” The Emperor’s words were powerful and sincere, and his voice held the slightest tinge of regret.
“We do not believe this assassin acted without the consent of his government and I can assure you that steps have been taken against the Wookiee people to prevent any more traitorous activities on their part,” he said. “If you see a Wookiee, do not approach it yourself, as they are being considered extremely dangerous. Instead, please alert the nearest Imperial base and we will take care of the problem for you. Thank you, people of the Empire, and remember that we are working together for a more secure future.”
“None of the famous HoloNet reports on Kenobi and Skywalker seem to have survived past the Second Clone War. It is uncertain whether the Empire destroyed the reports, or if this was done by an outside party. None of the well-known holos of the two of them sparring have surfaced, though we are still searching. Sadly, the simple truth is that concrete information on these two men is hard to uncover. I’m sorry, Minister, but this truly is all that we could find.”
Very little is known about what Kenobi and Skywalker were really like. Everyone who knew about the Clone Wars knew about their heroic acts, about their devotion to the Republic and to each other. No one knew what Skywalker’s favorite food had been, or where Kenobi had been born.
What was known was this: they were Kenobi and Skywalker, the last great heroes of the Republic.
In the end, that was all that mattered.
~end chapter twenty-nine~