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Ben was relieved to finally make it to the safe house. Into the backroom. He wasn't entirely certain they could trust Tala, but at least she got them out of there. At least Leia was temporarily safe. Leia was right, they had to trust once in a while. But that didn't mean all caution had to be thrown to the wind.
He didn't pay much attention to Tala talking about the way the Path worked, about what they did. Once he got Leia safe it probably wasn't going to be something he ever would need as he'd be right back on Tatooine looking after Luke. Doing nothing else.
But the writing on the wall, from all those who passed through there, caught is eye. The Jedi Order symbol, writings from others. Few actually signed their names. It looked like most went with their soulmarks, even, if it was simple enough.
A certain one caught his eye and he stepped towards it shakily. There it was, their soulmark. Crossed lightsabers with what Quinlan called the 'Vos stripe' over top. They had practiced for ages as younglings to be able to perfectly replicate it.
He touched the wall reverently. “Quinlan was here.” He smiled, reading over the words Quinlan had carved into the wall. The reason he'd signed the wall with his soulmark.
“Oh, yes, he smuggles younglings from time to time.” Tala smiled.
Ben smiled back at her then turned to read the message Quinlan had written.
“What does it say?” Leia asked.
“Only when the eyes are closed can you truly see.” Obi-Wan smiled wider. It was such a Quinlan thing to write. Reminding him of what was important.
“See what?” Leia asked, frowning.
“The Way,” Obi-Wan answered, knowing she wouldn't understand.
He pulled out a knife and started carving his own message. When he finished, he carved their soulmark as his signature as well. He smiled at his handy work, then placed his hands on the wall, on the messages, concentrating on some images and emotions he wanted to convey.
Before he could finish, he sensed Anakin. A sharp wave of fear rose and threatened to overtake him. He took a deep breath and pulled away from the wall to confirm that it was Vader. That Anakin had truly come after him as he had expected. As he had known. He panicked, but knew that he had to face Anakin.
He had to try to protect Leia. And Tala, even if he was terrified of the monster he had created. Even if he was so out of touch of what it meant to be a Jedi. He still had to try.
In the events that followed, he forgot about the marks on the wall. The hope, the joy that his soulmate had survived. It had been a fleeting moment, overcome by fear as Vader arrived. He was pretty convinced he had dreamt that when he thought about it afterwards. His soulmark lay as dull and lifeless as the rest of his skin on his shoulder as always, and it would stay that way. Because as much as he was regaining his faith and hope, he had to be realistic, and there was no way Quinlan was actually alive.
.
Quinlan heard what happened to Tala and had to make sure everything was cleared out of the safe house. He was devastated that she was dead. He didn't hear how, those rumors hadn't reached him yet. He only heard over the usual communications about the death. The rumors would come with his next stop on the path, as they always did.
He snuck onto the planet, noting the heavier Imperial presence and easily ignoring it as usual. From there it was a quick investigation of the safe house, removing everything from the remains he could. The Imperials weren't as thorough as they thought they were and they had missed some rather important secrets.
It was only towards the end that he looked over the wall, smiling fondly at all the messages of those he helped. He touched the wall and got their hope, their worry, their fear, and their love, and then he saw it. An additional message, under his own. In a previously untouched space. People normally were reverent of that message and wanted to let it stand alone.
He tilted his head curiously and walked over to read it.
It is never too late to do what is right.
Quinlan nodded. Good message. He looked to see who left it and he dropped the bag he was holding with a soft gasp. Underneath, was his mark. His soulmark. Perfectly carved. With the little extra line Obi-Wan had never trained himself out of drawing into the hilts of the lightsabers. Obi-Wan was here. Obi-Wan was still alive.
Quinlan smiled and pressed his hands to the wall. He closed his eyes. Obi-Wan was lost, but now was hopeful. He was protecting a little girl- Leia- and she was Bail and Breha's and Anakin and Padme's. He didn't know what to do, had lost hope. Didn't do the right thing. Doing better now but nowhere near who he was.
So many impressions. Obi-Wan had always been good at ensuring he left some sort of message for Quinlan when he could, just by pushing those things onto walls or objects he knew Quinlan would be touching. Quinlan savored the feeling of being the closest to his soulmate that he had been since the war. Since sometime partly through the war when constant missions had drawn them apart unwillingly.
He was just getting the impression of two suns rising over a desert planet when he was hit by the wave of fear. It was so strong, he was surprised it hadn't ruined Obi-Wan's careful layering of his impressions. Anakin, Obi-Wan's impression told him. Vader, Obi-Wan corrected himself. Still, Vader and Anakin were the same.
He didn't want to face the monster he had created. The reason the Jedi were dead. The reason he had no hope. The person he had thought he'd killed when he had thought he couldn't kill his own son. The monster who was now immersed in the Dark side, who everyone feared.
Then the echos cut off. Quinlan pulled away, sadly. Anakin had turned into Darth Vader. The Sith of nightmares. Quinlan had several brushes with him, but had never actually confronted him, and now he was glad he had avoided it thus far. That he had been able to avoid learning Vader's true identity. He and Obi-Wan had raised their padawans together. No matter what anyone assumed about Anakin's upbringing, he had a direct hand in it. Anakin was his son as much as Aayla was his daughter.
He wouldn't be able to kill Vader either once he realized it was Anakin. He would rather sacrifice himself, or distract, anything to save as many as possible without killing Vader.
Quinlan shook his head and rubbed his shoulder where his soulmark was. It was time to visit his soulmate. To reunite. Tatooine would be a good base. Would Ben be willing to run a safe house? Quinlan got the sense he was protecting something, but if it looked like he was contributing in some way, it would be better for them all, probably. He'd learned a lot about the best ways for people to hide in plain sight over the last ten years.
He finished collecting everything and got it all into his ship. Yes, time to visit his soulmate. He sent a message to the network that he was investigating a new safe house to replace Tala's. Thankfully, ten years out, they could spare him. They had plenty of people involved in the Path to take care of those who needed help. They had plenty of people to rush to the aid of those who needed it.
It wasn't like when he started smuggling younglings out of the Temple and hoping for the best. Stumbling across safe houses, trying to find the best places to hide the younglings. Now he just had to worry about getting the younglings to those who were best suited to finding them a home on whatever planet they ended up on.
Now, there was space to go find his soulmate. Space to breathe. Space to figure out what they wanted to do now, reunited after ten years. Ten years.
He had known Obi-Wan had survived the initial purge. Order 66 (don't think about it, don't think about that moment, that minute, that hour, that day, that week that...). After all, Obi-Wan was the one to warn everyone away from the Temple, to give them all hope. (but apparently forgot to keep some for himself.) Obi-Wan was public enemy number one for the Empire for all these years. But over the last few it seemed like no one was looking for him. Except, apparently, Vader(Anakin, Ani, not the little boy they had raised).
Quinlan knew that if the Empire ever caught Obi-Wan one of two things was going to happen. It would be all over everywhere, and his body, or his execution would be shown everywhere for weeks on end. The Empire would want to kill that hope dead. Obi-Wan was the greatest beacon of hope left for the Jedi.
But they could also use that hope. Not mention Obi-Wan had lived at all, use any mention of him to capture others, to lure them in. To use his death to crush them in the moments before their own deats.
Quinlan thought, with the way the Empire operated, the second was far more likely. Even with Vader's grudge (he'd heard rumors of it but never understood why Obi-Wan and oh, Force, it made so much sense now), they would be more likely to keep it under wraps to crush everyone.
Either way, Obi-Wan was actually alive. He was on Tatooine. Quinlan was going to see his soulmate again. His soulmate who had thought he was the last Jedi left. They were going to have each other.
Quinlan was tired of being strong, tired of holding himself together. The days had blurred into weeks into months into years. He had never fully dealt with Order 66, the death of the Jedi Order. Never fully dealt with the loneliness, the fear, the pain. The trauma of Order 66 (don't think about it don't think about it don't think about it), of sneaking onto Coruscant and smuggling out the younglings who had escaped, thanks to Dex's help. Those early days where he barely knew what he was doing, when he suddenly was the Jedi younglings were looking up to and latching onto because he was their savior.
But most of all, he was so tired of holding it all back. Of avoiding it for fear of the Dark side. He never was safe enough to deal with it, never had enough of an anchor. Never even enough time to even think about working through it. But if he was setting up a safe house with Obi-Wan... maybe it would be enough. Even if Obi-Wan wouldn't help.
Quinlan tried to meditate along the way, as much as he did these days to keep the Dark side away. He had to release the pressure, carefully. Not enough and he would easily Fall. Too much and he would be buried under repressed feelings of fear and suffering and anger. Easy to turn to hate and the Dark side.
And then he was on Tatooine. It had been three months since Tala's safe house was destroyed, and shortly after, she died. Quinlan took a deep breath as he paid for his parking, secured everything, and then it was time to figure out where Obi-Wan was hiding.
It took him a bit, but he ended up stumbling across the man himself, feeding an eopie a snack. Quinlan hesitated, then took a step forward, tentatively nudging Obi-Wan in the Force as a greeting.
Obi-Wan stiffened, then turned to face him. His eyes widened, his jaw dropped. Then a smile overtook his face.
“Quinlan.”
“Obi-Wan.”
They met in a hug that did not separate for several minutes, both crying into the others shoulder. Neither would ever admit to that to anyone except maybe each other. They had been alone for so long, and now they had found each other once more.
Obi-Wan pulled away first. “You're alive... and you're going gray.”
Quinlan huffed, wipping his face. “So are you. I think the stress of the last ten years is getting to us.” He beamed. “I knew you survived the initial chaos, but I wasn't sure if you were still alive or not, and then I got to Tala's safe house and I knew you were alive. I'm so happy you're alive.”
“Me too Quin, me too.” Obi-Wan leaned his head on Quinlan's. “I didn't know that anyone besides Yoda and I survived. We didn't look too hard in the Temple but the areas we saw... there were no survivors. And you know what soulmarks do... they fade if there's not enough contact from a soulmate whether through death or otherwise. I almost didn't want to believe that you were still alive. That there was any possibility of that.”
“It's okay. You've had greater concerns. I heard talk about 'that Skywalker kid'?”
“Oh, Luke. Right. I go by Ben, these days. Obi-Wan is too distinctive. And yeah. Anakin and Padme...”
“I already knew; you were thinking of Leia as her adoptive parent's kid and her biological parents' kid. I'm glad that you've at least had something you're doing besides wallowing these days.”
“I'm getting better now. I just needed to be reminded,” Ben assured him. “And your message helped a lot. I lost faith in everyone including myself. But here is not the place to talk. I take it you're following me home?”
“As if I'm abandoning my soulmate the day I find him. I'll do that next week. If things don't go well.”
“If things don't go well?” Ben resumed preparing to leave.
“We're down a safe house. You're already here. With Luke, I understand why you wouldn't want to be a stop on the Path, but... Tatooine isn't a bad spot for it. You could be doing more without doing much to endanger Luke.”
Ben wanted to protest that a safe house near Luke would draw attention to him. But this was Quinlan. He considered all the angles. A safe house, here on Tatooine, would mean it would be easier to get Luke, and Beru and Owen too, off of Tatooine if it became necessary.
Yes, there would be scrutiny brought to the farmers around, if the safe house was discovered. But at the same time... Why would Owen and Beru be involved? The only problem was Luke's last name. But then, he did use Lars, especially on official paperwork.
And Tatooine, with its rough crowds... someone who fled to Tatooine would probably hide out and flee from the same city almost immediately. But where Ben had moved... it wouldn't be an issue to receive them from one city, and have them flee from another. Or be picked up in the middle of the desert. Tatooine space traffic wasn't monitored, even with the Empire's reach.
On top of that. If they didn't get a tracker on the ship somehow, who would think anyone was willingly going to Tatooine? Especially with younglings. It was a good cover. They could make it work.
There was just one problem.
“Well, I think it would work. But we still have to convince Beru and Owen. They love Luke like their own and they deserve a say in something that affects his safety.”
“That's fair. Let's go, then. If you're up for that?”
“I think I'd be up for another fight with Vader, with you at my side.”
Quinlan glanced at him. “Vader? Not Anakin?”
Ben closed his eyes tightly, voice choking up. “He told me himself that there is no Anakin left, that he killed that part of himself. Only Vader remains. The only good thing about that fight is that he told me it wasn't my fault. I think he was trying to make me more emotional, strengthen his control on our fight.. but it just absolved me of my guilt and I was able to think more clearly. I left him, again.”
“What do you mean?”
“I... I thought I'd killed him. On Mustafar. I had to fight him, our son. I had to... he leapt at me, was going to kill me, and I didn't think, I cut off three of his limbs and then he caught fire and I thought he was dead and I left him there.” Ben's voice was thick with tears. He didn't think he could ever get over what he had done to his son. It was worse now, knowing that Anakin had actually survived that, alone, suffering. He should have dealt that final blow. But he couldn't. It was a mercy, and it was his son. He didn't want to be merciful to the murderer of younglings, but he also didn't want to kill his son.
Quinlan wrapped Obi-Wan in a hug, kissing his temple. “I'm sorry Obes. You shouldn't have had to face him in the first place. I wish I could've been there. Maybe we could have talked him around together.”
“Maybe... he was pretty far gone by then. I'd just seen him choking Padme.” Ben shook himself. “But we should deal with that in the privacy of my own place. Let's go give Beru and Owen a visit. Even if we don't propose the safe house to them now, I want to give them a heads up that you're here and will be around for... how long?”
“A week if the safe house doesn't work out, probably a month or two to help you get everything in order otherwise. And either way, we're soulmates. You're my home base.”
“Aww, so sweet of you,” Ben teased. “Where was your home base before?”
“My ship. I didn't have one.” Quinlan shrugged, a bit uncomfortable.
Ben frowned. “How lonely have you been? Are you getting enough touch?”
“I've been pretty lonely. It's hard being the only adult, to be the one making the decisions most of the time. But it's a necessity right now. But with younglings it's not been too hard to keep up on touch. They're always so scared that a cuddle pile is just what they need. But I missed you and your cuddles of course.”
Ben chuckled. “Of course you did. You have everything you need for overnight? I'm not coming back until tomorrow.”
“Yep, I do. I know how to survive off of nothing if I have to.”
“Good, let's go.” Ben climbed onto his eopie. Quinlan joined him. Neither wanted to get a second eopie at the moment, though if they got the safehouse established it would be a necessity to have multiple.
Quinlan took the opportunity to snuggle up to his soulmate, pleased by this turn of events. This was a great way to remind himself he was no longer alone. And he could not wait until later when they touched each others soulmarks and watched them come alive with glittering colors once more. Very few people knew about their soulmarks, and even fewer knew they were actually soulmarks. Most believed it was some dumb thing they had come up with when they were padawans and stupidly got a tattoo of it. At least before the war and the Empire.
They chatted about lighter topics; funny things they'd seen over the years, what Dex was up to. Ben loved talking about Leia, about how he told her to pretend that he was her dad and she said he was more like her grandfather.
“That's scarily accurate.”
“I know. I kind of am her grandpa and the look she gave me there was priceless. She is so intuitive about what people are feeling. She knows how to cut right to the heart of their insecurities.”
“Sounds like someone to keep you on your toes. I'll have to get in contact with Bail. We could use some contacts like him. Might even help keep Leia out of trouble.”
“Well, she would want to help the people who helped her so well.”
Quinlan didn't respond as they had arrived.
Owen met him. “Who is this? Not more trouble?”
Ben chuckled. “This is Quinlan Vos. He is my soulmate. We weren't sure the other was alive, and we did not know where to begin looking until recently. Quin, this is Owen Lars. Ani's stepbrother.”
Quinlan grinned. “Nice to meet you!”
Owen sighed, glancing between the two. He noted the way that Ben was happier. He had seemed less uncertain, more settled recently, but not truly happy if he wasn't talking to Luke. Not until this moment.
Quinlan snagged Ben's hand happily, giving him a soft look that did not match the mischievous air he had about him, despite his age.
Owen decided to hear them out. If he was going to give Ben a chance, Ben needed to be happy or anything he did with Luke was not going to work. At the very least he wanted to know if Quinlan was bringing any danger to them.
“Nice to meet you too. Why don't you join us for dinner? Beru always makes too much.”
“That would be wonderful, thank you Owen.” Ben beamed at him gratefully.
Owen led them to the kitchen. Quinlan and Obi-Wan were still holding hands when they arrived.
“Two more for dinner, Beru,” Owen said, already going for the dishes to set out the plates. “Ben and his soulmate, Quinlan.”
Beru turned and smiled at them, wiping her hands. “I didn't know you have a soulmate! Nice to meet you, Quinlan, I'm Beru Lars.”
“And I'm Luke! Hi Ben!” Luke waved and plopped down at his chair when he ran in. “Who're you?”
“I'm Quinlan Vos. Nice to meet you, Luke.” Quinlan smiled at the child, noticing all the similarities and differences to what Anakin had been like at that age. He held in a sigh, not wanting to bring the mood down. Not wanting to ruin Ben's mood when Quinlan was getting the impression Ben hadn't been truly happy in a long time.
“I wasn't sure he had survived, and Jedi are often rather private about soulmarks.” Ben paused, then shook his head. “We were private. If one of us had a soulmark in a mostly unnoticeable place, there was a decent chance of never finding our soulmate. So, there was no reason for you to know.”
Beru nodded. She was always the one intrigued if he mentioned Jedi teachings around them. Owen was uncomfortable, understandably so. Ben did try to avoid using words like Jedi and lightsaber, keeping it to vague terms to avoid drawing trouble to any of them.
They had some idle talk about different things. Quinlan tested each utensil with a light touch before actually using it, grateful to not have to use his gloves. With the fear and suffering that permeated the galaxy these days, he had to wear his gloves more often than not. It was too difficult to filter everything out constantly. Too overwhelming. It was always nice to not need to wear the gloves.
“What is it that you do these days?” Owen asked.
Quinlan tilted his head, checking with Ben. Ben nodded.
“I make sure younglings aren't in danger from the Empire by rescuing them from dangerous situations. I maintain a network of safe houses and helpers.”
Beru was instantly intrigued, while Owen got more uncomfortable. “Really? Is that how you reunited with Ben?”
“Not quite, while I was rescuing my friend's daughter I noticed his message left in the wall of a safe house, with our soulmark. I left a message and some... code words so he knew where to look for me if he ever made it back there.”
Quinlan nodded. “Unfortunately, that safehouse is no more, so I had to pack up the remainder of our important documents and such, and I saw it. And now, here I am.”
“What are you going to do without that safe house?” Beru asked. “Make a new one?”
“That is my plan, yes,” Quinlan agreed quickly. “It's just a matter of finding the right people and making arrangements.”
Owen frowned. “You're not thinking Ben...?”
“Oh, he is, but considering Luke, it is up to you.” Ben was quick to assure him. “You don't have to be involved at all. For all many will know, people will wander off into the desert and die.”
“I would love to be involved, especially since a safe house connected to such a network means we can get Luke to safety far easier than three months ago.”
“I don't like it Beru,” Owen protested. “They weren't able to rescue Shmi, they did nothing to help Anakin; they're the reason he's dead! I don't even want Ben teaching Luke anything, and I'm still not that happy to let him be around all that much. Now we're talking a safe house? Here? That'll put us all in further danger.”
Luke was oblivious to much of the conversation, eating quickly so he could be excused to go play.
Beru raised an eyebrow at Owen. “If we really wanted to keep Luke safe from evil we would have chosen to leave Tatooine and gone to a more peaceful outer rim planet. Tatooine is not the ideal place to raise a youngling.”
Owen huffed. “That doesn't mean we invite it right on our doorstep!”
Luke picked up his plate and brought it to the sink. “I'm done! Can I be excused so I can go play?”
“It's 'may I,' Luke, not 'can I,'” Beru corrected gently. “Go on.”
“May I. Right.” Luke nodded, then grinned a painfully familiar grin and darted off.
Quinlan watched him go, smiling at the memory of Anakin acting similarly, often racing Aayla to go play or do their homework. It was a fond memory, though a little tainted with the knowledge of who their little boy had become.
Beru turned on Owen again. “And we've just seen that even when we don't invite it to our doorstep that it can come for us anyways! What if she hadn't believed you about not knowing Jedi at the beginning, and insisted on seeing Luke? What if she decided to make you an example? We don't know what is going to happen and I will rest easier knowing that we have a way to get Luke away if necessary after what happened. I don't want to make sure he has a happy childhood, I want to make sure he lives to see adulthood as happy as possible, and sometimes, that means he won't be happy, but that's okay. He'll be safe.”
Owen huffed. “Fine. A safe house, as long as our involvement is as minimal as possible and it can't be traced back to us. And I don't want Ben anywhere near Luke anymore than necessary, which should not be at all.”
Ben nodded sadly. “I understand Owen. Thank you for lunch, Beru.” He stood up. “Quinlan, I think it's time to go, we have planning to do.”
Quinlan though had reached the end of his patience. “No. I won't leave. You don't know Luke? You don't know our grandson?” Quinlan hit the table as he stood, glaring at Owen. “The blame for what happened with Anakin would have to be with both of us. We raised our padawan together, like our own children. We called Anakin our own son. He sometimes slipped us and called us dads. My padawan died on Felucia to her troopers when they turned on us all.”
Ben winced. “Quin... It's okay. I've made my peace with it. It was my failing that led Anakin down his path that... that ultimately killed him.”
Quinlan turned to Ben. “He went to the Dark side and became Vader! He killed everyone in the Temple, the younglings too. That is his choice, we did everything we could to raise him better than that. Aayla did not turn out like that and you had just as much a part in her upbringing as in Ani's!”
“What are you talking about?” Beru cut in, looking between them.
Ben sighed. “I was not entirely truthful when I first brought Luke to you. I did truly think Anakin was dead, though I learned recently that Darth Vader still lives. If you want to know more, I can tell you.”
Quinlan stared at Ben. “You... of course you didn't tell them everything. You self sacrificing idiot.” He hugged Ben tightly, hiding his tears. He did not want to be so close to Luke and not know him at all. How much had Ben hurt over the years with that sort of attitude? How lonely had he been?
“I think it would be prudent to understand more. Can I start with a question? You referred to Anakin as your son, but he only ever talked about having a single master, and being a padawan?”
Quinlan sat down, pulling Ben into his lap so he could reassure himself that Ben was not alone anymore, that they were together. “It was widely known in the Temple that Ben and I are soulmates, and that we lived together. But we try to keep such bonds and relationships quiet outside the Temple. It can be detrimental for people to know how much we care for each other.”
“A Jedi's compassion is like an itch.” Owen quoted quietly.
Quinlan stared at him, then nodded. “Quite. I also was an investigator who worked a bit more anonymously, and it would have made my work difficult if I was known as O-Ben's soulmate. As such, we taught both Anakin and Aayla, who was my padawan, to only refer to one of us as master, and try to not mention the other.”
Ben decided he better contribute to the conversation. “At the Temple, all younglings were initiates. Then, at eleven, with a few exceptions, they became eligible to become padawans, apprentices of sorts. Knights or masters could choose any initiate to train as their padawan, an apprentice. Padawans lived with their masters for the most part, unless their needs were that incompatible. Masters become their padawan's guardians, and guide them to Knighthood.”
He took a sip of the blue milk that Beru had quietly refilled. “This means that master-padawans have a sort of close relationship. A lot of people try to put words on it, and there's not too many that full encompass all that it is to be master and padawan. Even then, some are more like siblings, some are more like parent-child, and some are more distant. In the case of Anakin, we filled the role of parent, and it was in a lot of ways necessary since he didn't grow up in the Temple.”
“So if things had not gone the way that they were... you both would have been heavily involved in Luke's life.” Beru gave Owen a look. “As... grandparents?”
Quinlan shrugged. “Most likely. We do have that sort of role- we consider those who train one's master to be grandmasters. If Qui-Gon had survived, but O-Ben still had trained Anakin, Qui-Gon would have been Ani's grandmaster. It's a little different when it's not padawans of our padawans, but then, that would have given us even more freedom to spoil him.” Quinlan grinned at the thought, a little sad he missed out on that adventure.
Beru nodded thoughtfully.
“What really happened with Anakin?”
Ben launched into an explanation of the last few days of the war, stopping to explain terms along the way. He explained what Anakin did, and why. How he had seen the recording, and had no choice but to face Anakin. He hung his head in shame as he recounted his fight with Anakin, how he left him for dead. Quinlan hugged him tightly, offering soothing feelings in the Force.
Then, once he was sure they were still following the story, he explained what happened with Leia, how he learned Vader wasn't just alive, but he was looking for him. This had the result of helping Quinlan learn what happened, and for Beru and Owen to gain a futher understanding of what had happened with Reva and just why she had targeted Luke.
Beru cleared her throat. “Owen and I have a lot to discuss. And you two have a lot of catching up to do, so how about you stop by again in two days for dinner? I'm sure we can have a very productive conversation then, rather than an emotional one. Quinlan, are you sticking around that long?”
“I was planning on a week, if the safe house idea doesn't work out, longer if it does. A month or two in that case. Escape routes and help in the cities need to be established before I can even think of leaving.”
“The Jawas would probably help,” Ben mused thoughtfully, then shook his head. “But that is a discussion for another time. Thank you for lunch. I look forward to dinner in two days.”
Neither he nor Quinlan spoke on the way to his hut. But once they arrived, Quinlan was pressing him against the door, kissing him. Ben returned the kiss, a bit more desperately than he would care to admit.
Quinlan pulled away breathing a little heavier. “No wonder you had lost all hope if that is what you were dealing with. You lost everything and then your last link to the Jedi was denied. You had no choice but to take out your own son, and despite everything, he wouldn't back down. So you thought he was dead. And you've been in exile, scared to reach out to the Force, scared of everything, focused on protecting Luke above all else, thinking him the only hope of the galaxy... and you weren't even allowed to... give him gifts? Obes! That's horrible! I'm so sorry!” He had picked up Ben's memory of Owen returning the gift.
Ben shrugged and led Quinlan further inside. “It is what it is. I didn't have a lot to work with. Even if I hadn't given into the despair it would have taken a long time for Owen to get to the point he is now. Still would have taken years. Maybe not ten, but it would've been difficult. I am amazed you held up.”
Quinlan grimaced. “It wasn't easy. I'd left my troops behind to come back to Coruscant because things were going well, and I thought I would finally have time to really look into the Sith's identity... and then I felt everyone start dying. I was alone, it was Dark, and I wasn't sure I could ever feel warm again. It took me a couple of days to realize I had started tapping into the Dark side. I took time to deal with that and then I saw the Temple... if I hadn't seen the younglings hiding in our favorite hiding spot, I would have Fallen. I got them out and then searched for other survivors, sometimes having to dodge the clone troopers. Some of whom I knew.”
Ben hugged Quinlan. “You had to be strong for the younglings, you couldn't even think about giving into the Dark side with them needing you.”
“Yeah. And I just kept busy after that. Before I knew it, I was the founder of the Path, which has saved so many over the time it's existed. Tala was one of my first recruits from the Empire, actually. I was protecting another group of younglings, and the Empire found us. Only, she had already realized she wasn't suited for the Empire's desires, and she let us go. I made sure to look her up when I was alone. And now she's gone.”
“I'm sorry, Quin. I didn't want her to die for me.”
“You never do. But people always want to make sure you live. You give people hope.” Quinlan sat up. “What if you recorded more messages? We could smuggle them around. Nothing huge, just sayings we grew up with. Messages of hope. I could then distribute to those along the path to pass on. No one should be able to trace it back to me and if they do, well, it'll be hard to trace them back to here.”
“You really think people will want to hear from me after ten years?” Ben paused. “Oh. They would. They were so... amazed to realize I am still alive. So willing to help me, so willing to...” He shook his head. “Right. We can consider that.”
“I like being a 'we' again, Obes.” Quinlan grinned. “I missed that most.”
“Me too.” Ben kissed Quinlan again. “And I am happy to have you around once more.”
“Wonderful. Someone to both center you and anchor you.”
Both of them jumped. Ben glared at Qui-Gon.
“Couldn't you have let me attempt to explain this first?” he gestured at the blue form.
“Where's the fun in that?”
Quinlan stared, then looked at Ben. “...Is Qui-Gon here as a ghost?”
“Yep.”
“Seriously? Why?”
“Teaching me how to be able to do that and helping me figure some other things out.”
“Would you want to learn?” Qui-Gon interjected. “Since you're going to be sticking around and all.”
“I... I guess so.” Quinlan was intrigued. “It could be good to pick up some new techniques. Especially with the Empire starting to pick up some of my usual ones.”
Qui-Gon smirked. “Good. I happen to know a few soulmate Force tricks.”
“Those exist?” Ben asked, eyes lighting up with interest. “I want to try them.”
Qui-Gon chuckled. “You two need to be totally on the same page before that happens. I was going to teach them once you were knighted and had some time to be a Knight, but unfortunately, that plan did not work out.
Quinlan narrowed his eyes. “What does being on the same page mean, exactly?”
“You need to be able to be in sync, no secrets about yourselves. As few secrets as possible kept in general from each other. Vulnerable to each other, on the same page regarding future plans, and all around able to be open to the Force with each other. There is now point in attempting to teach any of that until you are at least close.”
Ben sighed. “That is going to take a while after ten years of separation.”
“You made a good start earlier.”
“Were you listening the entire time?” Quinlan was torn between being interested and horrified.
“Of course I was. I need to get entertainment somehow.”
Ben huffed. “He's been like this since I started being able to see him. I wasn't very in tune with the Force before.”
Quinlan laughed. “That sounds like him. I'm glad you've figured it out Ben.”
“Yes, yes. Now Qui-Gon, go away, I want to see our soulmarks again.”
Qui-Gon disappeared. Ben eyed that patch of air suspiciously, wondering if he had left or if he was just giving them the illusion of privacy.
Quinlan pulled at his robes. “Okay now let's see our soulmarks and make sure they come to life.”
“Patience, Quin.” Ben stopped him and drew him in for a long kiss, getting their robes off while Quinlan was distracted.
Quinlan had a big grin after they finished their kiss. “You haven't forgotten how to be sneaky, have you Obes?”
“Of course not. I'm ready when you are, Quin.”
In response, Quinlan just reached out his hand. Ben did the same, and at the same time, they let their fingers brush the other's soulmark. They went from dull, faded, lifeless colors to sparkling bright colors, the images shimmering with renewed vigor.
“It's real.” Ben whispered. “I found it hard to believe. But you're here, and it's real. Our soulmarks...” He looked at his own.
Quinlan pulled him into a hug, pressing their foreheads together. “It's real. I'm here. We're back together, and we're going to find a way to save people while protecting Luke and Leia. A way to make the galaxy a safer place.”
“That's right. We will.”