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The last time Obi-Wan had seen children look the way these three did was when he'd looked that way himself, back on Melida/Daan- frightened to the core and grasping for bravery; refusing to show fear in the face of an overpowering adversary. The children on Melida/Daan had looked like that for generations. Many of the children on Tatooine had had that edge. Children on Alderaan were not supposed to look like that.
He'd never seen brothers look so alike before. He'd thought they were triplets at first, but he could see that one of them- the one flanked either consciously or subconsciously by his other brothers- was slightly younger. Still, the face was identical, down to the last detail. When these three grew up they would be indistinguishable.
"Why do you wanna know our names?" The one at the front seemed to have been elected the spokesman. He hit Obi-Wan with an unfriendly glare. Obi-Wan could tell by the way he held himself that the metal in his hands would do some serious damage if he got too close. He eased back a step and kept his hands in front of him.
"Well, I can't very well call all three of you 'boys', can I?" he replied with a smile. "Are you lost? I can help you find your family if you need."
"Find another pathetic life form, Master?" Anakin's cheerful voice preceded him around the corner. Obi-Wan sighed admonishingly.
"Anakin, don't be rude." He nodded at the boys, who hadn't moved an inch. "I'm trying to calm my friends down."
"Oh!" He took in the sight of the boys. "Sorry Master. Uh, hi. My name's Anakin Skywalker, what're yours?" The children remained stubbornly silent.
"That is what we're trying to figure out," Obi-Wan told him, his eyes never leaving the boys.
"Are you Jetiise?" The second older one asked, earning himself a look from his younger brother. Obi-Wan blinked.
"Mando'ade?" he asked.
"Nayc," the first one replied. "Vode." He said it like a title, not a noun.
"Ni Jetii," he confirmed. "Su'cuy, vode. I promise neither Anakin nor I will harm you, we only want to see if we can help. Would you like to go back to our ship and-"
"No!" The spokesman took an aborted step forward. "No ships. We're not going back to Kamino."
"Kamino," Anakin repeated. "Is that your home planet? What's it like?" Obi-Wan suspected Anakin was playing up his 'friendly fellow youngling' act to put the boys at ease, but luckily it seemed to be working.
"Wet," the second twin replied. "It's all ocean and it's always raining."
"When did you leave there?" Obi-Wan asked. He sat down on a slightly rickety stool at the mouth of the alley, motioning for Anakin to sit on the low fence across from him. "And why don't you sit down? You must be tired." Sharing a series of loaded glances, the three finally conceded. A few more, and the spokesman turned back.
"About a year ago I think."
"Will you tell us your names?" The simpler the question, the more likely he was to get an answer.
"Do you swear you won't take us back to Kamino?" the spokesman asked. He looked Obi-Wan gravely in the eye. Obi-Wan met his gaze and felt the Force move. This question, he sensed, was truly a matter of life or death.
"I give you my word, I will not return you to Kamino." Something in all three of the boys seemed to unfurl. The spokesman nodded solemnly.
"My number's CT-27-5555. This is CT-21-0408 and CT-24-3972. I'm called Fives, this is Echo, and this is Dogma." He gestured to his twin and then the younger one. Obi-Wan shared a quick glance with his padawan. Anakin looked as worried as he felt.
"And your numbers," he asked tentatively, "are those your official names?" They nodded. "Did your family give them to you?"
"No," Fives answered, shaking his head. "The Kaminiise give us our numbers. We all pick our own names." Obi-Wan didn't know if he was more worried by the present tense or the implication that there were more children out there like these three.
"How many other people are in your family?"
"Lots," the youngest one- Dogma, he remembered- piped up, speaking for the first time. "Nala Se said there's a million of us now."
"A mil- how?!" Anakin exclaimed. "Nobody can have that many babies!" Obi-Wan's mind was racing. Three children, totally identical but for their ages, assigned numbers instead of names. Children who were so afraid of their home planet that they refused to go back. Children who claimed, without even a hint of deception in the Force, that they had one million siblings.
Fives was giving them the same curious, disbelieving look he had when Obi-Wan had claimed not to know who they were, but the heavy suspicious edge was fading out. "Of course they can't," he told Anakin dismissively. "We're the clones."
Exactly the answer Obi-Wan had expected, and exactly the answer he'd hoped not to hear. Sentient cloning had been illegal for as long as it had been possible, for very good reasons. Which meant that whoever had created these boys was operating entirely outside the Republic. Something stuck out at him- the way Fives had said "the clones". Not just "clones", like he had earlier said "we're brothers". Like he expected recognition.
"Fives, may I ask you something?" The boy blinked.
"Um, of course sir."
"You seem to be under the impression that Anakin and I should know who you are, but I'm afraid we don't. Can you explain why?" Fives gave him a blank stare and then huddled with his brothers. Their heads pressed so close together that even lip-reading would have been impossible.
"I don't like this, Master," Anakin muttered, frowning heavily. "They act like slaves." Obi-Wan leaned over and squeezed his knee.
"Don't worry, Anakin. We'll get to the bottom of this." Anakin looked skeptical, but the clone huddle broke before he said anything else. Fives drew himself up formally.
"We're clone troopers in the Grand Army of the Republic, sir. We were commissioned to serve the Jedi Order in defense of the Republic and its people."
=-=-=-=-=
Obi-Wan had shut off the comm and been meditating ever since the Council had finished arguing over his report, but the Force had yet to give him any of the answers he was seeking. Unfortunately, the little clones had to yet to do so either.
Talking them onto the ship had been a monumental task that Obi-Wan had finally conceded to Anakin when he had made headway where Obi-Wan couldn't. He had gone to get their ship ready for extra passengers and hope that the Council could tell him something about this million-strong army they claimed to be part of.
As he had expected, they were just as surprised and unsettled as him. Whoever had made the Jedi an army, they had neglected to let any of them know. Obi-Wan had been ordered to return to the Temple immediately, high priority.
Anakin had finally coaxed the children on board and even gotten them to accept some rations to satisfy their growling stomachs. They were strapped into the crash webbing in the cargo hold (not the finest accommodations, but their ship was built for two, not five, and it was only until they hit hyperspace) talking so softly they were almost mute. They curled closer together when he knelt in front of them, Fives once again placing himself a little in front of his brothers. It sent a jolt of pain through Obi-Wan's chest.
"Are you ready to go?" A trio of short nods. "Good. We'll be at the Temple by this time tomorrow and then Anakin and I will take you to see the Council." Their faces pinched. Obi-Wan looked them in the eyes and aimed for a reassuring smile. "I want you to know that all three of you are being incredibly brave. No one in the Temple will let anything happen to you, I promise."
He couldn't make them believe him any more than he could take the fear out of their eyes. He remembered how long it had taken Anakin to unwind after coming to the Temple, and he had already been convinced of the Jedi's sincerity. These three, as far as they knew, were heading straight into the rancor's cave, but they kept their spines straight. He'd met grown men with a quarter the courage of these boys.
He readied the ship for takeoff with Anakin brooding in silence next to him. He reached out and grasped his padawan's shoulder. "We'll help them, Anakin. Them and their siblings."
"We're not supposed to own people." Anakin's voice was quiet and hoarse. Obi-Wan gave his shoulder a squeeze.
"I know. But we will get to the bottom of this. The best thing you can do to help right now is to be their friend." Anakin nodded.
"I'm gonna go sit with them 'til we're done with takeoff."
"I think that's a very good idea." Obi-Wan settled himself into the pilot's seat and began the ignition sequence. Soon enough they lifted out of Alderaan's atmosphere and punched into hyperspace, and Obi-Wan was left with nothing for company but his worries.
Well, at least he needn't concern himself with being lonely.