Chapter Text
"Have you noticed the shields are still up?" Obi-Wan calls irritably, over the comm.
Anakin hastily fires at the controls from his fighter. Of course, he noticed, but there's something... Something's humming at the edge of his senses, something strange shifting in the Force that he can't make sense of. In the middle of a space battle to reclaim Coruscant he can't let himself get distracted by it, but it's growing with each passing moment.
The laser bolt tears through the shield, and they fly through barely in time before the blast doors slam closed over the hangar.
Anakin scrambles from his fighter – and Obi-Wan very dramatically leaps out of his – and they swiftly cut through the droids together. They're barely finishing when the Force surges, like a shockwave's running through it.
One moment, they're in the hangar alone together, and the next – four figures are materializing out of nothing, sprawling in most undignified manners in the middle of the floor.
"What in the blazes is going on?" Obi-Wan asks, first to find his voice, as they stare at the four figures.
All of whom are simultaneously pushing themselves up, and they all look – Why do they all look so much like Obi-Wan?!
The youngest has a padawan braid, but he looks very much like Obi-Wan did when Anakin first met him. The second one looks like Obi-Wan... at the beginning of the war, when he still had that stupidly long hair. The third looks distinctly older than Anakin's Obi-Wan, and the last one... looks like Obi-Wan with white hair.
What –
What's happening?!
"Who are you?" the padawan demands, looking between the others, eyes widening as he presumably realizes just who they all are.
"Anakin?" the second youngest asks uncertainly, and Force, he sounds exactly like Anakin's Obi-Wan.
And why are the oldest two staring at him now, like they're seeing a ghost? For that matter, why do their Force presences feel so strange? The second eldest's is strangely wild, though in some ways, it's... it feels like he's half-way blocked off from the Force. And the eldest's is sharp and cutting and icy in a way Anakin's never felt in Obi-Wan before, even when he's angry. He feels hard.
"... Obi-Wan?" Anakin echoes, warily. How is this even possible? How did they get here? Because it very much looks like four versions of Obi-Wan from various points in time just randomly dropped from... nowhere.
"Yes?" they all ask, at once.
Okay, they definitely have a problem.
"How did you get here?" Anakin's Obi-Wan asks.
"Where is here?" the padawan asks, incredulously.
"This... is the Invisible Hand," the oldest Obi-Wan says, slowly.
"This is the past." The second oldest sounds strangely shaken.
"You time-traveled," Anakin realizes. It sounds so stupid to say out loud. So unbelievable. But the Force is capable of anything, and it's obvious that somehow, in some way, it brought them here.
"That's impossible," Anakin's Obi-Wan protests.
"You're a Knight." The second youngest Obi-Wan is staring at Anakin now, and the rain of all their presences all around him is... practically too much. There's something about being with Obi-Wan that's often... smothering, for as much as he enjoys it. And now there's five of them. It's like he's drowning in a room of water, not necessarily in a bad way, but it's overwhelming.
"I am," he agrees, and the ship's floor beneath them jolts violently, shaking him back to the present of the battle which they need to be fighting. This mess will have to wait, for as much as he doesn't want it to. Otherwise, they'll fail their mission, or the entire ship will be destroyed before they get off.
"Who are you?" the padawan asks. It takes Anakin a moment to realize why he's even asking such a question. Of course, he wouldn't recognize Anakin. What point in time is he even from? They'll have to talk about it later.
"I am Anakin Skywalker. But we will have to speak later. Before the ship is destroyed."
"What's happening here?" asks the second youngest Obi-Wan.
"The Separatists are attacking Coruscant. They kidnapped the Chancellor," Anakin's Obi-Wan explains.
The older Obi-Wan's heads snap to look at each other, a look of... something dawning on both their faces at once.
"We'll handle the Chancellor," the eldest says. Why does Anakin not like the slight edge in his tone? It's unsettling, even if he doesn't really understand why. Everything about this older version of him is unsettling, for some reason.
"Grievous and Dooku are here. If we split up, you will have a better chance," the second eldest agrees, immediately. There's a look burning in his eyes, of vengeance. It catches Anakin completely off-guard. Obi-Wan looks like that when he's fighting much of the time, but it's never so open and wild.
"Very well," Anakin's Obi-Wan concedes, a little reluctantly, and they split up, taking off through the halls. The older two are going to find Palpatine, and Anakin and the younger three are going to the bridge to find Dooku and Grievous.
Except the only one they find on the bridge is Grievous.
"Hello there," Obi-Wan greets, lightly.
Grievous slowly looks between all of them, and if the situation weren't so serious, Anakin could almost have laughed at the utter confusion he's radiating. "What Jedi treachery is this?" he hisses.
"You're shorter than I expected," Anakin tells him lightly by way of answer – maybe they'll finally have a chance to stop him, though. There's four of them here.
"Jedi scum," he snarls, "You all have come to die." Igniting all four blades, he lunges at them.
The battle is over almost faster than Anakin expected. Against all four of them, Grievous doesn't stand a chance, even if he nearly kills padawan Obi-Wan twice.
"That's two more times, Master," Anakin comments, a little smugly, stepping away from Grievous'... sparking pieces, "That makes it twelve."
"It was nine before," his Obi-Wan retorts, "And you did not save me."
"I saved him, who is you."
"What are you talking about?" asks the padawan, mind blown.
"He is counting the number of times he saved me, not you," his Obi-Wan retorts.
"... I am only aware of four times," the second youngest Obi-Wan interjects.
"When are you from?" Anakin asks. It must be before the war, because they've been squabbling about Cato Neimoidia ever since it happened at the beginning of the war, and the first four times were before that.
"We were tracking the assassin after Senator Amidala. I... fell off the droid and landed here."
Anakin chokes on a laugh. He remembers that very, very clearly. Obi-Wan crashing through Padme's window – literally – is not something he could forget. "Ah."
"Master Qui-Gon and I were fighting that Sith," the padawan volunteers, "And he threw me off a ledge. I landed... here."
Oh. It was all so long ago, it's hard to believe he's looking at version of his master who's from so far back. He doesn't even know how that was all going to play out, or –
"What happened after that?"
"Qui-Gon was killed," Anakin's Obi-Wan offers, "We trained Anakin."
"I still cannot believe you're a Knight," the other Obi-Wan continues, oblivious to the shock on the padawan's face. He just found out Qui-Gon's going to die, after all, but for the others, it's a long-accepted fact of their lives. "How long have you been one?"
"Three years," Anakin answers distractedly, gaze jumping back to the padawan. He should... say something to him, maybe, but he doesn't know what. This version of Obi-Wan doesn't know him, and he's been acting... strangely cold. Not that that's a surprise. He's from before he knew Anakin, after all, and the way Obi-Wan spoke of him then is something Anakin prefers never to think about. "I was Knighted right after the war broke out. Which was... days after when you're from."
"War?" the padawan asks, confused.
"Your investigation led to Geonosis," Anakin explains, for the benefit of the second Obi-Wan, before filling him in briefly on the rest of the details of how the war broke out.
"We need a way to do identify each other," his Obi-Wan interrupts.
Right. And he has no idea how they'll pick distinct titles for each. "We'll have to ask the other two what they think about that, too." It's only fair for them to choose their own names, right?
It's then Anakin suddenly senses something wrong. And it feels like – Palpatine. He's –
A shockwave runs through the Force, almost as though something of the balance between Light and Dark is shifting a little, but what stands out most clearly is that his bond with Palpatine is shattering.
What?
He – he just –
No, he can't be dead, but he clearly is, because Anakin can't feel him, and it's... What? How could that've happened?!
"Are you alright?" the second youngest Obi-Wan asks, frowning, touching his shoulder.
"I – the Chancellor..."
"What?" his Obi-Wan is hovering closer now.
"We're too late," he manages to get out, shakily. It doesn't feel like it could be real, that Palpatine – his friend – could have just died, but they need to move.
He operates purely on automatic, the way he usually does in battle, as they go in search of Dooku and the other two Obi-Wans. Dooku is already gone; he must've fled the ship sometime when they were fighting Grievous, leaving his forces to be destroyed.
For having just failed their mission, the oldest Obi-Wans look surprisingly unperturbed, unless it's just that Anakin's too... overwhelmed to process it right now. That wouldn't be surprising.
He was so, so scared when he heard Coruscant was attacked. If they lost that battle, the war would be over. He'd have lost everything they fought for, and the countless casualty numbers would be... pointless. Obi-Wan told him the Jedi were protecting the Chancellor, but Anakin was worried for him, anyway.
"We were... unable to save him," the white-haired one says, and he... Anakin has no idea why something about that feels... off. Maybe he's overthinking it.
"This will be a serious loss to the Republic, especially with Dooku still out there," muses his Obi-Wan.
"Dooku escaped?" the second eldest asks, startled.
"Yes, why?"
"Anakin killed him before."
Wait, he defeated Dooku in the other timeline? This means... they really have no way to know where things will go from here, especially with Palpatine gone.
They need to keep moving, though, to get off the ship before it's destroyed completely. They can talk later.
***
Landing the ship was a good distraction from what happened, and with so many Obi-Wans to focus on, he... tries to stay distracted. He'll think about Palpatine later.
"Alright," Anakin says with mostly feigned cheerfulness, turning back to them, "You all need names."
"I'll go by Ben," the two oldest Obi-Wans say in unison, then stop to blink at each other.
"... That is what I mean." And why would they pick that, the same second?
"Kenobi, then," the second oldest decides.
"Which of you is Obi-Wan, then?" Anakin can't help asking dryly.
The other three look at each other.
"You can call me Master," his advises.
"I'm still his master, in my time," the second youngest argues.
"Then perhaps I should use Obi-Wan," he muses.
"Then what would I use?" objects the youngest, "You are not calling me padawan."
"How about... General?" Anakin suggests, turning to his Obi-Wan. It sounds stupid, but it's literally the best he can come up with right now.
"Fine," he concedes, grudgingly.
So, that means... in age order they have Ben, Kenobi, General, Master, and Obi-Wan.
Well... this is weird. More weird than can be put into words, and he'd like to know what happened with the two oldest ones. They're so... different, and he can't say it's in a way he likes.
"Master –"
"Yes?" Master and General ask.
"... We just chose names."
"I still cannot imagine you calling me such a title," General grumbles.
"Should I call you Master General then? And Master Master?"
"That sounds terrible," Master tells him, flatly.
"For once, I have to agree," General replies, dryly.
Obi-Wan is looking at him like he's thoroughly lost his mind.
And Anakin has no idea why he senses a strange flare of... longing from Kenobi and Ben, as they're watching them.
"We'll have to find some way to keep your names straight, or we will not be able to accurately count which of you I've saved more," he adds, lightly.
General huffs.
"The audacity," Master complains, "You have clearly lost all respect since your Knighting."
"I believe we are perfectly capable of functioning without your help," Obi-Wan interjects, irritated.
"This once, I can agree," Ben interjects, though he sounds more amused, "I have survived a long time without you."
Something about the words suck all the humor out of it. "What... How long has it been since now, when you're from?" Anakin asks. He can't even imagine what that would be like.
"Nineteen years."
Nineteen – "So that is why you are such an old man," he says, flatly.
A nearly incredulous laugh escapes Ben. "That is the first thing you have to say?"
"You have white hair. ... Why do you have white hair? You should not have aged that much." That literally does not make sense.
"I would say Tatooine is not the most pleasant place to live," Ben replies. He's looking at him with a strange... intensity that Anakin doesn't understand. Obi-Wan has never looked at him like that before.
Wait... "Tatooine?" Anakin echoes, frowning, "What do you mean?"
"It's a long story," Ben says, "And not all relevant, but I've been living on Tatooine for many years."
Anakin winces in sympathy. "It's not a pleasant place to be." Though he still can't fathom how that could've happened.
"When are you from?" Obi-Wan asks the last one.
"Ten years," Kenobi replies. His gaze has been almost unnervingly focused on Anakin this whole time, too, even if he seems strangely... distant.
Something about Ben's expression shifts slightly, turning almost... colder. "From when?" he asks.
Kenobi glances at him, expression tightening. "... the moon of Jabi'im. We – you won?"
"Yes," he replies, tone clipped, "But we should have seen years before that he was already gone."
"...What are you talking about?" Anakin wonders. It feels significant, and strangely personal, even if he can't say how.
"The galaxy did... not go a good direction, in the future," Kenobi responds, shortly. What does that mean? He very much doesn't like the sound of it.
"Meaning?" General prompts.
"We may have defeated the Separatists, but not the Sith," Ben explains, "I was one of the last Jedi, living in exile, waiting for the chance to destroy them."
"The last of the Jedi?" Anakin repeats, eyes wide. "How is that possible?" It... shouldn't be. It's not. It...
"It doesn't matter," Ben assures, though Anakin can't find it in himself to be remotely reassured by him. Something about the oldest is too... cold, and he doesn't like it. It's unnerving. Anakin hasn't felt that darkness in anyone – except Dooku – before, and he'd much prefer to not think about it. "The Council and I will address it."
"It's – alright," Anakin concedes finally. He has to trust Ben on this, even if he doesn't understand or like what he's being told. Ben may not be... his Obi-Wan, but he's still an Obi-Wan, and Anakin can trust him. Even if he's afraid to.
They leave it at that for now, as they ride back to the Temple. He won't be able to stop at the Senate now – something he's admittedly feeling a bit... impatient about, because it's been so long since he last saw Padme – but he also wants to be with these... Obi-Wans when he has the chance. And besides, going to the Senate will be a direct reminder that Palpatine is gone, and he's not ready to confront that.
What really catches him off-guard is the sharp flare of longing and grief – and bitterness, especially in Ben's case – when he and Kenobi arrive in the Temple hangar. They're looking around like... they haven't been here in a very long time.
"Are you alright?" Anakin queries quietly. Of course, they haven't been here, if they've been on Tatooine. But still, that sounded so unreal to him he never stopped to consider exactly what it might mean.
"It has been a long time," Ben says, laying a hand on his shoulder. Something about it takes him a little by surprise; Obi-Wan doesn't... touch him frequently, and he never just lingers in the moment the way Ben is doing now.
"Years," Kenobi agrees.
"And you couldn't... come back here?" He doesn't fully follow, or maybe it's that he doesn't want to.
"There was nothing to come back to," he replies. "The Sith overtook everything."
Everything, Anakin wants to ask. Does that include you? But he holds it back, because it's so outlandish and unthinkable. Obi-Wan definitely does have a darker side, and maybe even a darker streak, but he could never join the Sith or actively... any of that. "How could they have?"
"As I said, that's a story for another time. It no longer matters. It won't happen," Ben replies.
"How do you know?" he asks, bluntly. Dooku's still out there, after all.
"Too much has changed," Kenobi answers. Why does he get the feeling there's something they aren't saying? "But we should go speak with the Council now."
Anakin watches as they head off, though Obi-Wan lingers behind, likely... fully absorbing everything that's changed with him. "What?" he asks, irked, probably sensing eyes on him.
"I know it is... not easy to have lost your master," he offers, finally.
Obi-Wan only nods stiffly, not that Anakin expected him to say anything more. He doesn't know what could be said at this point, anyway. Not so soon.
For now, they probably need to catch up with the others.
***
Of all the things that could go wrong – aside from that Palpatine's dead – Anakin never expected this to happen. He found out he was going to be a father, only to promptly have a nightmare about Padme that night.
He can't get it out of his head. He can't stop... seeing it. It's just like with his mother, and he has to help her. Somehow. And... unlike before, at least he knows someone who can help.
Ben and Kenobi are from the future. If something happened to Padme, they'll no doubt know about it. Considering how dark the future is, Anakin would... be more surprised than not if that went badly, too.
That doesn't stop his fear at asking, though, because he doesn't know what he's about to hear. "Can I talk to you?" he asks, shifting.
"Of course," Kenobi replies; something about him seems less closed-off. If anything, he's looking at him with much the same intensity Ben is now, and Anakin doesn't know what to make of that.
"What is it?" Ben asks.
They must already know about him and Padme, so he shouldn't have to fear their reaction. Hopefully. Even if they aren't his Obi-Wan, that doesn't mean he's looking forward to what they might say if they didn't know anything about. It's inevitable, though. Everything about that is about to come out. "It's about Padme. I... what happened to her in the future?"
They exchange glances, and his fear instantly skyrockets. "Why do you ask?" Ben inquires.
"I had a vision," he answers quietly, "I... want to know if she'll be alright."
"If it's her time, you must let her go," Ben replies.
"She... died," Kenobi answers after a pause. "But I cannot say why, or what caused it."
She's going to die? He couldn't tell for certain in his vision, but he knew it was something bad, and hearing them confirm it is – He can't let this happen. But he has no idea what to do. But there's one more thing... "What about my... my child?" he asks. They must already know, right?
"They survived," Kenobi assures, after a moment's hesitation.
Wait – "They?" Anakin repeats, eyes widening.
"You had twins," Ben speaks up.
Twins. He's going to have twins. (And he doesn't even know if their mother will be around to see it, to raise them.) "You knew them?" he asks, instead.
"Yes," Kenobi agrees, a strange hint of fond amusement in his voice, "Leia was more of a headache than you."
"I thought you believed that impossible," Anakin tells him – even if he isn't much in the mood for joking right now. He can't help it.
"I did," he throws back, "Apparently, it was."
"Luke was not much better, in the little time I was with him before coming here," Ben interjects.
"You... didn't know them at the same time?" That doesn't make sense. Right?
"They weren't raised together. We had to keep them hidden," Kenobi replies, a shadow crossing his face.
But... what happened in this future? He wants to know more, almost as much as he doesn't. "Where was I?"
Neither of them answers for a pause too long, a strange mixture of pain, longing and bitterness – and in Kenobi's case, guilt – coloring the Force around them. "You were gone," Ben says, finally.
Gone? As in... lost in whatever happened with the Jedi? He has no idea how to feel about the fact that, if not for the time travel, he would've been dead, maybe even before his children were born.
"But it doesn't matter anymore," he continues, "That will not happen now."
How do you know, he doesn't ask.
"Your relationship with Senator Amidala will be discovered," Kenobi comments.
As though that's even his concern right now, but... It only occurs to him then that they obviously never told the Council about it, even though they knew. Not that it much matters anymore. "How can I stop it?" Anakin asks, focused on Padme's possible death more than anything else right now, "How can we know it won't happen?"
"You cannot stop death, Anakin," Ben replies, "It is a natural part of life, ordained by the Force itself."
"You don't understand," Anakin tells him, frustrated. He's struck by how familiar this scene is – him trying to convince Obi-Wan of something, but his master won't as much as hear him out. "I have to help her. I can't fail her. She deserves to live the life she's looked forwards to."
"No one's arguing that, but it may not be a choice you can make," Kenobi reminds.
"I have to do something," he replies – it reminds him so much of what happened with his mother, only this time, he doesn't know what the 'something' ought to be. At least with her, he did. But he still failed her.
"I see no reason she would die now," he adds.
He shakes his head. "I don't either, but I saw it."
The other two exchange glances, almost as though... He doesn't know, but it feels like they're communicating about something of the future – something major – that he has no knowledge of.
"If something is truly wrong her that no one has noticed, perhaps someone adept at Force healing would notice," Ben muses, finally.
That would mean bringing Padme to the Temple, and he knows she wouldn't want to do that. But if he could find some way to convince her... "I'll talk to her," he says finally, because that's all he can do.
Ben unexpectedly touches his shoulder again, and something about it is... He doesn't know. "The desire to stop death could easily lead to a dark path, and I don't want to lose you to that."
The words catch him equally by surprise, because Obi-Wan's never acted like he's afraid of... losing him?! It doesn't... make sense, anyway, because most of the time, Obi-Wan very pointedly tries to keep them apart from each other. Anakin never faulted him for it, because he knew it was his master's way of trying to stick to the Code.
"You won't," Anakin promises, anyway.
"It has been years. I do not want you to get hurt," he replies.
Anakin nods, excusing himself after that. He needs to talk to Padme, and he wants some space to think.
***
Master and General are presumably busy elsewhere, when Anakin unexpectedly runs into Obi-Wan. The padawan seems to be brooding based on the emotions he's radiating, and how he's... pacing around doing nothing in particular.
"So, the Council agreed to your training?" he comments, eyeing Anakin.
The question startles him, and he doesn't care to dwell on any of that right now, but... "Yes. It was Qui-Gon's last wish."
"They seem close to you," Obi-Wan notes. He's upset, though Anakin can't say why. It could be anything, not that it's even surprising, considering everything that's happened to him recently. Ending up in the future, in a different time, where nothing is like you remember it, would be hard for anyone.
"We... were," Anakin replies, slowly. Even if never as much as he once wanted. "How are you... doing here?" It's strange seeing him with a padawan braid.
"It's different," Obi-Wan replies, shortly, "Hardly any Jedi are here."
"Most are out on the front." Or dead, he doesn't add. It's implied enough as is.
"And all the younger padawans only desire to hear about how I killed Maul. That is... the Sith from Naboo?"
"Yes," Anakin replies. He knows how the younger Jedi all looked up to Obi-Wan – he was seen as the Sith killer, and that was a big thing when Anakin had first become a padawan. He remembers that. Obi-Wan... hadn't like it. Anakin certainly didn't. The expectations for them both were insane. And unfair. "But you should know that Maul is not dead."
"What?" Obi-Wan demands, gaze sharpening.
"Somehow, he survived. Ahsoka is on Mandalore now, dealing with him."
"... Ahsoka?"
"She was my former padawan," he explains. She's... back now. That's still hard to believe. Anakin always wanted to think that Ahsoka would eventually come back, but it was just a hope, not based of any form of realism. She shouldn't have to fight in a war, but she... did. They all survived it, somehow. He can only hope they'll make it out in the end.
"You trained a padawan already?" he repeats, "You are still younger than me."
"I did not finish her training. She... left," Anakin responds. Not a story he wants to get into, so he's grateful when Obi-Wan doesn't ask.
"I could assist the other Jedi handling him," he offers, likely assuming that they'd sent more than Ahsoka. Anakin knows she's capable, but he's worried about her. Maul killed Qui-Gon. He doesn't know if she'll be able to handle him completely on her own.
"Maul wants you dead," he cautions, "He has been after my master for a long time."
"We'll deal with him," Obi-Wan replies. There's that look in his eyes now, that look screaming for vengeance. Sometimes it scares Anakin to see how much he can see that in his master, if he's actually paying attention. When he was young, he'd... admittedly worshipped everything Obi-Wan said or did, but now that he's older, he can see things a little differently than he once did.
"One more thing," Anakin interjects, before he can leave, "Mandalore is not what you once knew. Maul killed Satine and has been ruling in the shadows ever since."
"She's... dead?" Obi-Wan echoes, shock flaring into the Force around him.
He nods. "The galaxy has... changed much from the time you are from." And most of it, he can't say is in a good way.
"I'll speak to the Council," Obi-Wan decides, shortly, before he heads off down the hall. Perhaps him going to Mandalore would be for the best – at least it should give Ahsoka a better chance at taking down Maul.
Though Anakin doesn't know what to do about Dooku, or why the oldest versions of Obi-Wan seem so certain that nothing else could go wrong. But this once, he can't help thinking... maybe they're right. The future he can sense now doesn't feel nearly as dark as the one he was sensing before.
***
He does talk to Padme about it, and she still doesn't seem very inclined to agree, but after he briefly tells her a little of what the oldest Obi-Wan said, she... agreed. It means their marriage will come out, though, very soon. He doesn't care truthfully – he's tired of living a lie – but he's not ready to face the reaction of multiple Obi-Wans.
Especially not when General and Master are the main versions of the five that he's really comfortable around. The youngest one doesn't know him and reminds him too much of how Obi-Wan treated him before he'd become his padawan. And the older two... He really doesn't know what to make of them.
If Anakin's being completely honest, he simply finds being around them unnerving. They're from the future. They know things he never will know of what could've happened if they hadn't come here. Anakin doesn't know them, so he has no idea how to go about... being what they would want him to be.
It's late in the evening when Anakin finally goes in search of the Obi-Wans and discovers General and Master in his – now their – room together. Because somehow, for some reason, General was actually willing to let the time-travelers there. Anakin will have to ask for details about that on a later date, because he can't imagine any of the Obi-Wans being willing to share their room.
Not that they'd outright refuse, but still.
"What have you done to the walls in here?" Master is asking, when Anakin steps into the room. He's mildly surprised he's in here, given that none of the Obi-Wans seemed particularly close with each other.
"They were repainted," General replies flatly, giving him an odd look.
"They looked far better before, and the painting job is purely amateur," he huffs.
"Since when did you inspect painting jobs, Master?" Anakin interjects, dryly.
"I did not need to inspect it to notice its flaws."
"Did you really believe I did it on my own?" General throws back, "If it bothers you so severely, take your complaints to the droids who do it."
Something about their bickering seems more annoyed than the playful kind he and Anakin do all the time, though it's almost hard to say given that Obi-Wan very often sounds annoyed for no apparent reason.
Master huffs, scanning the room again. "Do you not know how to keep anything remotely organized anymore?"
"This is perfectly organized," General retorts, irked, "You have very little knowledge as to how much work being on the Council entails."
Do they really need to have a squabble about this? Anakin can't help feeling a little uncomfortable now, because well... that always tends to happen when Obi-Wan is annoyed, even if it's not as him. Unless it's something he can tease him about.
Master moves a little further into the room, shuffling around some of the datapads and other... mess stacked in haphazard piles.
"I'm inclined to agree with Master," Anakin interjects, "Can you not even take your used glasses out?"
"There was no time," General grumbles, scowling at whatever Master is doing, "You are going to damage those datapads if you're not careful, and then, we will lose the data needed for half the war."
Master scowls back at him.
"Shouldn't you be able to speak most peaceably with another version of yourself?" Anakin can't help but ask. He can't imagine what meeting another version of himself would be like, but... he thinks he would like to. It would be someone who would... understand everything of him, without him having to say anything. The same way his mother used to, just more personally.
The other two glance at each other and scowl, before turning to Anakin again.
"We are not the same," they both clarify, at once.
Anakin nearly chokes on a laugh, even if he doesn't feel any real amusement.
"Why are you here?" General asks.
"I'm wondering if you've... heard anything from Ahsoka," Anakin replies. And that he just wanted to... see them again, after spending so long with the other three versions who he's not remotely comfortable around, but he doesn't know how to say any of that.
"Who's Ahsoka?" Master asks.
"Not recently," General replies.
"She... was my padawan."
Master gapes at him. "You had a padawan?"
He doesn't know why it just occurred to him now that Master doesn't already know about it. Of course, he doesn't. He couldn't. He just came here, and he's from when Anakin was still a padawan. He doesn't know anything about Ahsoka, even if she's been a part of Anakin's life for years, and it often feels like she always has been.
Even if she did walk away. Even if she did leave.
She's always been right there with him.
"Yes, I did," Anakin confirms, "But she... left the Order. It's a long story."
"How is that possible?" Master demands, "You couldn't have been Knighted that long ago."
"It was right after when you're from, and I got – I got Ahsoka a few months later."
"How old is she?"
"Seventeen, now. Almost eighteen."
"That is old," Master protests fiercely, "That is too old."
"Take up your argument with him," Anakin replies, smirking, pointing to General. "He's the one who thought it would be funny."
Master immediately turns to face him and – uh oh. Oops. Anakin didn't mean to set them out on each other. That was a mistake. "How would that be amusing?" he demands grumpily. It's perfectly obvious that he's still stuck in the past, not wanting to believe Anakin could... grow up in the future. Which he somewhat understands, though it's still admittedly frustrating.
"Contrary to your belief, he is no longer a padawan," General throws back.
This is not happening. "Don't start arguing with yourself now," Anakin warns, eyeing them warily.
"I believe it may be late for that," Master replies.
Anakin huffs out a quiet sigh. He's... strangely exhausted right now. More so than he usually is, even after battle. He's not sure why, but it's what it is.
That's when he notices his own Obi-Wan eyeing him. "Are you alright?" he asks finally.
No. Not at all. But he doesn't want to talk about it. "I... am fine," he replies, quietly.
"You are no better at lying," Master interjects, dryly. He's hovering over him the same way Obi-Wan always did back when he was a padawan – Anakin could never forget what that was like, even if it was starting to fade from mind. He didn't truly realize how different things with his master are now until he sees both of them. There's... good and bad aspects to both.
"Much has happened," he replies, after a pause. He still can't believe that Palpatine is dead. Or that Padme could... Yeah, he still needs to deal with that. And he could be thrown out of the Order any day now. So yes, there's too much going on. Not to mention Ahsoka being on her own out there, fighting Maul.
"... Such as?" he prompts.
"Palpatine – the war, everything. I do not know what will happen now," Anakin replies, frustratedly. It's not as though he can tell the other problem.
"Ben and Kenobi seemed quite confident that the future could be avoided now," General muses.
"They have never explained why they are so certain, have they?" Anakin asks. It's not that he doesn't trust them. He just... doesn't. They're keeping things from him, and he knows something else happened that they haven't told him about, and he doesn't like it.
"In minimal detail, though the Council believes there is more they are not saying," General replies.
"I have noticed it, too," Anakin admits, "And I don't like it."
"I don't either," he agrees.
"I can't imagine what it could be," Master murmurs, crossing his arms.
"I was talking to them earlier," Anakin blurts, and he has no idea why he's saying this or even what he's trying to say, "But Ben, especially, is..."
"What?"
"He reminds me of – of..." He doesn't know how to voice what he's trying to. Some of dark iciness reminded Anakin of Dooku, in a way he can't really explain. And even when he was being... affectionate, it was somehow more unsettling than anything else. "I do not know what to think of them or why they are so different," he finishes, lamely.
Because what was coming to mind was Palpatine, and he couldn't well say that to Obi-Wan. Sometimes, Palpatine had made him extremely uncomfortable, but it wasn't often enough that it bothered him for long. But it feels like Ben reminds him of that in all the wrong ways, and he doesn't really know why. Or what happened to him, to make him like that.
"They just... make me uncomfortable," Anakin supplies finally. He hates to say it, but it's the truth.
"They are surprisingly different than us," General agrees.
"They're too Dark." And he doesn't understand why. How could they be? He knows that Obi-Wan is human like everyone else, but still, he didn't expect this.
"I suspect far more happened in their future that they have not spoken of, but it doesn't affect us," Master supplies.
"If it affects them, it affects us, too," Anakin argues, because it's true. Anything that happened to Obi-Wan – no matter what version of him – would always affect him. Obi-Wan raised him. Anakin could never forget that, could never stop caring about him or stop trying to... repay him. Which is impossible, but he's done his best. Is doing his best. Even if it feels like he's failing somehow, right now.
"It's not something we need to concern ourselves with," General assures him.
"If it were important, they would tell us," Master concurs, and this is probably the first time they've mutually agreed on literally anything. It's amazing.
"Like you always do?" Anakin objects, "I don't know I can believe that. After how many times I've had to rescue you –"
"It is not that frequently," Master gripes.
"You jumped out a window," he reminds. "I caught you."
"I caught myself. On a droid."
"That got blown up immediately."
Master huffs. "That is true," he concedes reluctantly, "But I still do not believe this is of serious concern."
Anakin eyes him. He... understands that, though he's not fully certain they believe it. He sighs softly after a moment, looking away. It's clear that Master either believes it or is just trying to make Anakin believe it. But Anakin isn't a child. He's a General himself and has gone through far greater stress during the war. "We will have to trust their judgement. I'm just not sure staying quiet is the best choice."
General touches his shoulder "Either way, the war is over," he says, "It's time for us to figure out where to go from here."
"What will happen, now that it's over?" Anakin asks, "Will we really be able to step down from what the Jedi have become used to? And what of the clones?" That's what worries him the most, because Anakin knows there are very few people who regard the clones as people. Because, truth be told, no matter how much everyone denies or hides it, the clones are slaves. Even if Rex has always said they serve because they want to.
"We must let the Council and the Senate make those decisions," General replies.
He doesn't ask what if they don't make the right choice. That... would be wrong, even if Anakin doesn't entirely trust them. He's still a Jedi.
"It's still hard to believe there was a war," Master interjects.
It'd be hard for Anakin, too, if he hadn't lived through it. "It's been three years," he points out, "A lot has changed." And it's hard to imagine what things were like three years ago. It's been about... three and a half. Exactly three years ago, Ahsoka was already his padawan.
"It's getting late," Master says finally. "We should rest."
"How will that work?" Anakin inquires, glancing between them. "You only have one room, and I don't think the arrangements will be made fast enough."
"Temporarily, we can remain here," General replies.
"What about the others?"
Either he hasn't thought far, or he doesn't care, judging by his expression, and Anakin laughs.
"Considering this is technically his room, I'll take the floor," Master offers.
"The bed's plenty big for two," Anakin objects immediately. Because it is. They're not that narrow. And he and Ahsoka often shared with a lot of room to spare.
"Absolutely not," General refuses flatly, "I refuse to sleep beside myself."
Anakin would probably find the concept mildly disturbing himself. Maybe. He's not really sure. "Then I can share with you, and Ben and Kenobi can raid my quarters."
Anakin is almost entirely certain Master is going to offer a series of vehement protests about how incredibly un-Jedi-like that is, but his own Obi-Wan seems to have changed from their separation in the war and is slightly more willing to... accept Anakin's affection.
"Very well," he agrees.
He's picking up slightly grumpy vibes from the younger Obi-Wan now. Force, please tell him he's not jealous. That's... okay. Okay, Anakin probably would be, too, if Obi-Wan was showing more affection to another version of Anakin than him, but... But it's not like Anakin could ever care about either of them more than the other. (He's not fully sure about the other three.)
When he finally lays down, sleep comes easier than it has in a while. It feels like he's surrounded by the soft touch of rain. It's peaceful, even if it's stormy.
"I love you all," Anakin murmurs quietly, feeling both their eyes on him, even if they're all already dozing off.
Neither of them responds verbally, but he feels them reach towards his Force-presence, curling around him, soft and gentle. And that says more than any words ever could.