And I'm ready to suffer and I'm ready to hope

[neverbeenpatient]

They’d found him. Somehow... they’d found him. Siri might have thought he was dead... if not for the fact that she would have known. Would have felt it. She was absolutely certain of that. Of course, there was the possibility that she was slightly unhinged, but she clung to the certainty that she would know if he had died with a desperate stubbornness.

He was alive. He had to be.

And the others had indulged her; they wanted him to have survived almost as much as she did. So they looked for him. And searched, and turned over every kriffing rock they could to try and find where it was that Anakin... Lord VADER had imprisoned Obi-Wan. On his master’s orders, or some twisted sense of revenge, she didn’t know. Maybe both. But the Sith had put him in prison, in the highest security facility that existed, currently.

When Vader had made a seething off-hand comment in the middle of an argument with Padmé in regards to Obi-Wan contradicting everything that he’d said before, everything they’d been told, it had been almost too much to hope that that was the truth. That she was right. It didn’t matter; they worked all the harder to hunt down traces of where he’d been taken. And even once they’d located him, it had taken time. Time to plan, to research and learn everything they could about the cage they’d trapped him in.

It had taken them too kriffing LONG.

She insisted on being the only one who went in. Some of them weren’t able to lay as low in this new life they’d carved out in the wake of the Empire’s creation; Padmé had it the worst, given she still served in the sham that remained of the Galactic Senate and dealt with the Sith Lord wearing her ex-husband’s face on a regular basis. Siri had to, and Ahsoka; it was dangerous to be a Jedi, now.

She would take this risk alone. She had to.

Since the destruction of the Order she had learned how to hide herself, to conceal her Force presence so completely she didn’t even register to other Force sensitives, and innumerable other skills (not all of them Force-related) that had been a necessity in the galaxy they were left with. She wasn’t the same person she was before; none of them were. She wasn’t sure there was anything left of that Siri. Not anymore.

She had concealed her Force presence entirely; she couldn’t risk leaving any trace of herself that might give them away. The Mandalorian armour was still vaguely uncomfortable, still wrong-feeling, but another necessity; the helm hid who she was and distorted her voice enough to lessen the chances of recognition even more. Force, let him be all right. Let him be here.

PLEASE.

She stalked down the prison corridor, blue eyes scanning the cell numbers as she moved. They were running out of time. There. Holstering her blaster (it was almost as comfortable in her hands as a lightsaber, anymore; it had bothered her, in the beginning, but it was just another necessity. A way of life), she drew to a halt. “7213. Got it. Open the door, Artoo.”

The door hissed open in response and she slipped inside, her hand lingering near her blaster; this could be a trap. Vader could know, the Emperor could KNOW, this could be a trap... but there was no hesitation in her footsteps.

For him she would face anything.

Comments

[beforethedarktimes]

He should have seen the signs. In retrospect, they were clear as day, and even then he'd seen some of them. Anakin had always been ... troubled, more ruled by his emotions than most. Obi-Wan had believed that with time Anakin would grow past it, as Obi-Wan himself had; maybe with the proper guidance he could have. He had seen the darkness in Anakin for a long time, but despite of that and because of everything that he had seen, Obi-Wan had believed in Anakin. Perhaps he should have said so more often.

That belief in his former padawan had left Obi-Wan without his defenses when Anakin-- Vader and Palpatine had made their move. Before Obi-Wan was even aware of what was happening, he had a lightsaber at his throat and a view to watch the galaxy as he knew it come to an end. A thousand generations of peace, gone in a day. They'd hardly needed to do anything to him after that. How could they given what had been lost already, and all because of his inability to stop it.

In fact, they didn't. They left him in a small, dark cell, with no company but his thoughts. The same, unending dark thoughts that tore him apart every waking moment and smothered him in his sleep until he woke up gasping for breath. For a time -- he wasn't sure how long he'd been here -- his failures and the deafening silence had broken him. He wondered often why they left him alive. He wanted them to kill him, to simply end it. Eventually, after what felt like years, it became clear that that wouldn't happen.

He was alive. Shackles bound his hands, and a sith torture mask held his focus in bay, but he was alive. He could waste away, or he could spend whatever time he had trying to make things right. No matter how utterly impossible that might seem.

The torture mask made it exceedingly arduous to draw on the force. Larger things, such as reaching out to move objects or touch minds was beyond him, but smaller things? Difficult, but not impossible. He did what he had before, when he had been held captive by Ventress. He reached out, and sustained his focus. A small, steady push. But instead of a pipe in the ceiling, he began with the manacles on his hands. It took what felt like days, but eventually, the small chain linking the cuffs together snapped.

From there, his focus moved to the door, to the small mechanisms that he could feel inside of it, only pausing whenever food was pushed through the small slot in the door. He began to time his days by that, gaining a sense of time through the regularity of it. One day, he heard the footsteps early. He quickly lay down, turning away from the door. Then it hissed open. He stayed as still as possible as he heard the footsteps grow nearer.

[neverbeenpatient]

The darkness that permeated this prison made Siri’s skin crawl, and she had to quell the desire to free more of the prisoners that were being held there. No, she was there for one reason, and one reason only. And that reason lay on the narrow bunk on the far side of the small cell. She would know him anywhere, and the sight of him, his back to her, made the tension that had been sitting in her chest since they had first learned of his location released just a little. Thank the Force. Glancing over her shoulder as the door hissed shut behind her, she closed the space between the cell door and his bed slowly. She didn’t know what had been done to him during his incarceration, and it was better to tread carefully.

But she didn’t have the time to be truly careful. And it was Obi-Wan. No matter what had been done to him, no matter how he might have changed, he was still Obi-Wan. She needed to avoid drawing attention to herself, to his cell. To his escape. Fighting her way out with him wasn’t the sort of subtle she was going for. So she couldn’t waste any time.

Kneeling down beside the bed, she reached out and touched a gloved hand to his shoulder.

[beforethedarktimes]

He heard the door close behind his visitor and felt a nervous knot forming in his gut. It was an effort to keep his sides rising and falling naturally, as though he was asleep. The heavy, armored footfalls grew closer, but not close enough. Not yet at least. He couldn't feel any sort of impression in the force from the intruder, but given the torture mask, that was to be expected. The end result is that he couldn't be sure that whoever is approaching him isn't simply an orderly or a nurse.

Despite all that he had gone through, he'd still rather make sure that they deserved it when he whipped around to clap them on the temples. If he could get their access codes, there's a chance that he could escape before the alarm was raised. From there ... his plan was much more nebulous, but anything was better than here.

[neverbeenpatient]

Whatever reaction Siri was expecting, it wasn’t... THAT. Although she wasn’t entirely surprised, even though his actions caught her off guard. She was wearing armour, disguised to the hilt so as to not reveal that there was a Jedi breaking into the prison. It made sense. Didn’t changed the fact that he kriffing clapped her on the temples, but it made sense. His blow to her head was mostly absorbed by the helmet of her armour, but it still sent her reeling, knocking her back and sending her sprawling to the floor.

[beforethedarktimes]

He felt less bad about it after seeing the Mandalorian helmet. Whoever she was, she was off balance, and that gave him the opening that he needed. If it came to a fight, he wouldn't be able to win it, not in his current condition. His only option was to retrieve her passkey, and use it to lock her inside. He rolled onto his feet above her and dropped, driving down towards her chest to knock the wind out of her while he went for the passkey on her belt.

[neverbeenpatient]

His blow forced the breath from her lungs and she felt something crack in her chest; her ribs, again, and she choked back a wheezing cry at the sharp stabbing throb of pain. Kriffing hells. He would come up empty; there was no passkey on her belt. Her passkey was in the form of a certain R2 unit that had hacked into the prison undetected. She fumbled with her helmet, desperate to remove it, show him that she wasn’t there to harm him. Let him know she was a friend. Shoving it off and away with unsteady hands, plaited blonde hair falling free, she stared up at him.

“Obi-Wan.” It was an agonized, breathless gasp of his name, half terrified that he wouldn’t recognize her.

[beforethedarktimes]

There was a moment of panic when he discovered the absence of the passkey. She must have come with someone else, someone who would be waiting outside. Then her voice froze him where he knelt. He knew that voice; he'd known it for years, and he couldn't forget it.

"Siri?"

It didn't seem possible. He'd seen the temple burning, Palpatine had been sure of that. He'd felt so many other Jedi scream out in pain before suddenly falling silent, all over the galaxy. He'd thought that he'd lost her too ... Somewhere, he knew that others had survived, they must have. But he would have thought that they were in hiding, evading Palpatine's purge. Yet here she was in the proverbial heart of darkness.

He pulled his knee off of her chest. "I'm sorry, I ..." He stopped himself and glanced towards the door briefly before looking back to her. There were a thousand questions in those eyes, and he had time for none of them. "Are you alright?"

[neverbeenpatient]

She coughed and winced, breath rasping in her throat. Force, she was going to be feeling that later. But he recognized her. He’d said her name. Relief, so sharp it hurt, welled up in her chest. He knew her. And given the Sith torture mask that hide his face, that he was able to react the way he had... was almost a relief. He was responsive, aware. Able to fight back.

How long had he been made to wear it? She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

There was a brief flicker of something resembling a smile as he removed his knee from her chest and she pushed herself up onto her elbows with a hiss, her eyes on him. “I’m fine, Obi-Wan.” She’d had far worse. “I need to get that mask off of you.” She wouldn’t leave it on him a moment longer. She couldn’t.

[beforethedarktimes]

Underneath the mask, he'd certainly seen better days. He was paler than she remembered him, more gaunt as well thanks to the influence of the dark power imbued within the mask. Once it was off his face, he breathed in a deep gulp of air, and for the first time since the mask had been forced on him it tasted fresh. It would be some time before he was anything resembling his usual self, but he already felt better than he had in ... weeks? Months? Another question he was going to have to ask when they were somewhere safer.

He ran a hand through his once neat hair, which was now as messy and unkempt as the wild beard that covered his mouth. He looked at her, at her eyes, and he could see the pain and relief. He could feel it. He could feel her. She was alive and well, despite everything she had been through. He hadn't failed completely. The thought seemed to sap the meager strength he had left in his limbs. It filled him with the desperate need to hold onto her, as if she'd simply slip away if he didn't.

[neverbeenpatient]

Siri flung the mask aside with disgust. It felt vile, resisting her touch, clinging to the Jedi beneath like a living thing. It was horrific, a violation in every sense of the word, and she wanted it as far away from him as possible. If she could have burnt it to a cinder she gladly would have.

Her heart broke once it was off and she could finally see his face. Oh,Force. He was so... pale and drawn and gaunt, his hair and beard unkempt and messy, and it absolutely broke her heart. She should have been here sooner. Force, she should have been here sooner.

The desire to touch him, to hold him as tightly as possible for a very long time, was almost painfully intense... but they didn’t have the time. She needed to get him out of there, back to her ship, and back to the rest of their motley little collection of rebels. Before someone realised what was happening. There was a faint beeping coming from the helm lying temporarily forgotten on the floor a few feet away. “We need to go. Our windows closing.”

[beforethedarktimes]

She was here at all. It was more than he had expected, and he'd tell her that the moment they'd actually finished saving him. For now, she was right. They had to move; even if she was as careful as humanly possible, it was only a matter of time before someone noticed something was wrong and their odds of escaping grew dramatically worse. There would be time to catch up later, presuming of course, that they pulled this off.

Obi-Wan nodded, steadying himself with a hand on his cot and pushing himself to his feet. "Lead the way." He said, holding out a hand to her, even though it was fairly obvious he was barely holding himself up.

[neverbeenpatient]

She took his hand, but she didn’t let him help her to her feet, he was barely holding himself up and she refused to hurt him more; she wanted the contact, that was all, the reassurance of his hand in hers. Rising gracefully to her feet (the armour disguised the wince, fortunately; she didn’t want him to know that he’d managed to actually injure her in his attack), she picked up the helm and settled it one handed over her head. As it sealed itself to her armour she let go of his hand and slid her arm around his waist, supporting as much of his weight as he needed her to.

“Open the door, R2,” she said quietly, unable to hide the relief in her voice as she contacted the droid. And he heard it, making an excited series of trilling beeping sounds as the door hissed open.

[beforethedarktimes]

He appreciated that. The contact, and the fact that she didn't pull him over as she very easily could have.

As she shifted to help support him, he draped an arm over her shoulders, hopefully making it somewhat easier for her to move with the added weight while freeing up her arm. The door hissed open and he was greeted with another familiar sight. Obi-Wan smiled, reaching out with his free hand to pat the top of the astromech.

"It's good to see you too, old friend." He replied. Despite himself, he couldn't help but smile for a moment before returning to the task at hand. "There'll be time to catch up later."

[neverbeenpatient]

With his arm around her shoulder it left Siri better able to reach for her blaster if it was needed. She would rather it wasn’t; making it out unseen was the goal for this particular mission. But she knew their luck. And it hadn’t improved much since the Republic had fallen. So she was prepared for them to leave in a louder fashion than they’d entered.

That little gesture, Obi-Wan reaching out and patting the top of R2 with his free hand, made her grin underneath her helm, sharp and relieved. He was really here. The desire to embrace, to hold him tightly and never let go, welled up in her chest again with an intensity that took her by surprise. That could come later. Once they were back to the ship.

R2 bounced excitedly under his hand, before turning and rolling away, taking the lead. But not without giving her a look, as though he knew what she was thinking. “Don’t start,” she muttered fondly at the droid. He tootled cheekily back at her, as they followed him down the hall.

[beforethedarktimes]

Avoiding confrontation was ideal, but at least one of them should be able to do something about it if they couldn't manage that.

The little exchange was a welcome bit of normalcy in the middle of the omnipresent darkness, and again, a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. He had told himself over and over that not everything was gone, that even Palpatine couldn't have managed a complete victory. Seeing it with his own two eyes was another thing entirely.

He hobbled alongside Siri, past row after row of cell doors. He'd forgotten how many were down here, and even though he was still weak from the torture mask, he could feel the faint flicker of a living being within many of them through the force.

[neverbeenpatient]

That little smile was good to see, and she breathed a little easier as they moved through the prison, R2 leading the way. She was still worried, Force, she was worried; he was too gaunt, too bony, and she didn’t know how long he’d worn the torture mask or what side effects would come of wearing it for any length of time. But that little smile... was a relief.

R2 chirped back at them, and she knew the droid was worried. “We’re right behind you, R2. Just keep the security cameras busy.” He made a rude noise at her, sounding insulted, and she laughed. “I know, I know, you know what you’re doing.” She was just... tense. It wasn’t every day that she broke an important prisoner out of the highest security prison in the Empire.

And failure wasn't an option.

[beforethedarktimes]

He's inclined to agree, and not solely because he's the prisoner in question.

He'd only seen small parts of the prison on the way in, but if Vader had deemed it fit to hold him, it wasn't too great a leap to imagine the layers of security that must be in place. She'd more than likely risked life and limb just by coming within miles of the prison, and hear she was inside of it for his sake.

"Watch behind us." He rasped. "The patrols come this way around now." He couldn't reach out far enough that he could feel them in the force, but he knew they were out there, around some corner or down some stretch of corridor. He forced himself up a little straighter, picking up his pace. He had no intention of being the dead weight that dragged both of them down, no matter how weakened he was.

[neverbeenpatient]

Siri would risk worse for him. He was getting free of that prison even if she had to buy him the time to guarantee it. That particular... contingency plan she’d kept to herself. Not even R2 knew; he probably suspected, though. The droid was far smarter and craftier and observant than anyone usually gave him credit for. She knew better, of course. And she knew that he would see Obi-Wan safely to the ship, no matter what happened to her.

She frowned as she felt him shift beside her, standing up a little straighter, picking up his pace. He was pushing himself harder than he needed to. R2 spun around, his series of beeps chiding them both; because of course he was watching behind them. And so was she, as much as she could.

[beforethedarktimes]

'Harder than he needed to,' was a matter of perspective. Exhaustion seemed like a small price to pay if it meant both of them escaping ahead of the next patrol.

"You'll have to forgive me, R2." He attempted to placate the droid's ego, something that would seem strange to him if it were any other droid. R2 had been around long enough that his moods are as familiar those of any old friend. Siri for example, wasn't often silent unless she was contemplating something, and in many of those instances, it was something she knew he wouldn't care for. He didn't need to hear her thoughts to know what in this context.

"How much farther do we have to go?" Obi-Wan asked, trying to break the silence and keep them both focused on the door.

[neverbeenpatient]

Siri huffed a soft laugh as Obi-Wan tried to placate R2 and his ego, and R2 made a vaguely reassuring and forgiving series of beeps, wheeling around to prod him gently before turning back and taking the lead. She’d become rather fond of the droid since everything had gone to hell. And he’d taken to keeping her company when she couldn’t sleep. Which was all most of the time, anymore.

She was silent less because she was contemplating something and more because she was focused on the task at hand - getting Obi-Wan out of kriffing prison, preferably without having half the Empire after them. There was nothing to contemplate about the contingency plan; he was getting out of prison. That was all there was to it. “Too far,” she muttered. “This place is a kriffing maze.”

[beforethedarktimes]

They were getting out of here, and if she voiced it, he would tell her that

Obi-Wan glanced around the seemingly endless dimly lit corridors and ray-shielded doors. She was right. The prison was a veritable labyrinth, and that only added to the mounting sense of unease clouding the relief of being out of his cell. Too many angles to cover, and too many potential wrong turns to make if they're forced to run.

"R2." He started, glancing around. "How difficult would it be for you to access the prison's command system?" Since they hadn't been buried under a platoon of guards the moment they'd stepped outside of his cell, he assumed that the astromech was already plugged into their security system.

[neverbeenpatient]

Which was why she wasn’t saying anything. Hadn’t said anything to anyone. There was no need for anyone to know save her. It wouldn’t come up unless it was necessary, and by then she would already be doing it.

That was part of the reason she’d brought the droid with her, aside from his skill when it came to hacking everything under the kriffing sun. He was her navigator, making sure they’d found Obi-Wan’s cell without any difficulty. But it would be more difficult getting out again, especially if they were forced to run.

R2 wheeled around letting out a series of beeps and whistles, sounding a combination of amused and a little bit cocky. With just a touch of boredom. She grinned. “He’s already there.” She hadn’t asked him to, but R2 had entrenched himself in both the security and command systems. He was nothing if not thorough.

[beforethedarktimes]

Not if he could help it.

Obi-Wan smiled at that little revelation though. If someone spotted them, suddenly they had more options than run or fight, which suited him just fine. "I never should have doubted you." He'd have patted the droid on the head again if he was in reach.

They had a safety net at least, or at least as much of one as they could have in this situation. It took some of the edge off of the worry that he felt every time they turned a corner, and let him focus on just moving ahead.

[neverbeenpatient]

She was quite determined; he would have a hard time stopping her. If R2 even let him. Although the droid would probably be as put out with her as Obi-Wan would be.

R2 tootled back a very clear No, you shouldn’t have before wheeling about airily, and Siri shook her head. How had she ended up in charge of a group consisting of a former Jedi Padawan, a former clone trooper (still a clone, no longer a trooper), a Queen-turned Senator, and an R2 unit with more personality than should fit in a droid his size?

There were others, of course, but most didn’t spend as much time on her ship as that lot did. The Organas (primarily Bail, but Breha refused to let him do it alone). Dex. Bultar Swan. Dex’s diner was an amazing source of information, and if he didn’t hear it there the Besalisk could find it out. Her fellow Jedi was another of her primary sources of information. Especially when it came to Force sensitives and other Jedi that had survived the purge.

Her arm around his waist tightened gently, just a little, and she looked over at him. She could sense his worry. “I did come here with something resembling a plan, you know,” she told him softly, gentle teasing apparent even with the altered sound of her voice.

[beforethedarktimes]

"And here I was beginning to wonder if we were trying to find the front door." He replied with a small, tired grin. The intent is there; the familiar rhythm of their back and forth was a strange sort of comfort. Unfortunately, he wasn't exactly at his best.

"I suppose it is somewhat better than my plan." He shook his wrist, jangling the loose chain from the binder still clamped around his wrist. "Sorry about that again ... I wasn't exactly expecting friendly company." Much less rescue.

[neverbeenpatient]

“That’s always an option,” Siri retorted, appreciating the intent, that there was something like their usual banter in the exchange of words. Even though he wasn’t anywhere near his best... it was still a good sign. They couldn’t get back to her ship fast enough. “I prefer an out of the way side door.”

She frowned, even though he couldn’t see it under the helm. “You did what you had to, Obi-Wan. You don’t have anything to apologise for,” she told him quietly, glad that it seemed she’d been able to keep her extent of her injuries from him. Her gaze fell briefly on the binders on his wrists. Even though the chain was broken... she still hated the sight of them. “I’ll get those off of you as soon as we’re out of here.”

R2 let out a sharp flurry of beeps in warning, only moments before footsteps began echoing faintly down the corridor behind them, and Siri swore sharply under her breath. Of course they couldn’t be that fortunate. With the way the prison was set up, it was hard to tell where they were from sound alone. Sound carried oddly, there. But, unless whoever it was took a side corridor... they would eventually happen upon the two Jedi and their droid. The three of them couldn’t move fast enough to avoid it. Closing her eyes for a moment, she calculated the exact distance from where they were, back to their ship. Or as exact as she could manage, with the maze.

“Kriff...” she muttered. She was certifiable. “We need to be absolutely silent. Stay close R2. You’re going to have to get us back.” All of her focus would need to be on what she was doing. Not navigating the corridors. He responded in the affirmative, rolling back to settle immediately in front of them, and she exhaled slowly, gathering herself...

Before cloaking the three of them in the Force.

[beforethedarktimes]

"That works too."

His expression was much more visible; the sort of sad grin someone makes when laughing at themselves. "It isn't every day I nearly concuss my rescuer." He followed her eyes down towards the binders, but before he could respond came R2's warning. He could feel Siri tense, ready to move.

"Wait." His hand gripped her shoulder. "Artoo, open the nearest unoccupied cell door."

When he heard the pneumatic hiss of the door opening, he jerked his head towards the vacant cell. "We'll lose less time finding our bearings later."

[neverbeenpatient]

Siri shook her head. “We keep moving.” She wasn’t particularly keen on maintaining the cloak all the way back to their ship, but she knew she could do it. She would be exhausted, later, of course; it was kriffing taxing, but it wasn’t the first time. And it wouldn’t be the last, no matter how she tried to keep her use of it to a minimum. On the upside, at least, she might actually manage an hour’s sleep. “We can’t afford to linger.” The window she’d mentioned before wasn’t the patrols, or the guards, but the complete time frame they had to get in, and back out again. Waiting to see where the footsteps were going wasn’t an option. “You’ve been here long enough, and R2 knows the way.”

And the longer they were there, the more likely the possibility that someone physically looked in on Obi-Wan. Or where he should be. R2 was good, but he couldn’t hack eyeballs. The droid rolled gently against her shins, and she brushed gloved fingertips along the top of the his dome. She couldn’t ease his worry, but she tried anyway. “I know, R2.” He couldn’t see her smile, but she couldn’t help it anyway. “You’ll take care of me.”

[beforethedarktimes]

"My only concern is that if we're rushing, we may be forced to make a wrong turn to stay ahead of the patrol." Especially with him as weak as he was. "If you think it's the better option, I'll trust you." She had seen more of this facility than he had, after all.

He'd come up with a few ideas to cover their escape if they should be discovered, but all of them would be noisy, far noisier than ideal. He's just worried though about what happens to the both of them if she pushes herself too hard. He's been here more than long enough to last him a lifetime. He'd gone to hell and back in that one, dark room. He didn't want her to have to go through that same experience. Not because she came here for him especially.

But, whatever worries he may have for the future, there was no room for them. No room for doubt. R2 may not be able to see her smile, but his was a little more visible. "We'll be fine, R2. I trust you." He nodded at the little droid. "Lead the way."

[neverbeenpatient]

“We won’t be rushing.” They wouldn’t need to rush, as long as she maintained the cloak and they stayed along the edge of the corridor. She was... not confident, just... focused. Determined. Something needed doing, and she would do it. It was as simple as that. There were other options, should they be caught by any guards, just as silent as using the Force to cloak them from sight, but she was loath to use them. This was the better way.

R2 looked at her, beeping sharply, once, and then letting out a flurry of beeps and whistles, before spinning and taking the lead. She exhaled slowly and focused again, rendering them invisible as they fell into step behind the droid.

[beforethedarktimes]

Obi-Wan nodded slowly. It was a risk either way, but with her determination, he couldn't help but feel a little more confident. They've gone through ... maybe not worse, but enough. They'd make it through this as well.

He could feel her reach out through the force like a tingle of static across his skin. This was certainly a new trick. He'd have to ask her where she'd learned it once they're through. For now, he focused on the task at hand. Moving silently was difficult enough without being weakened to the point one can barely stand.

The footfalls behind them grew louder, and the faint murmurings of chatter began to echo down the hall.

[neverbeenpatient]

He nodded, and Siri felt herself relax just the slightest bit, the barest touch of tension easing out of her shoulders. She didn’t have the time to argue with him, not if they wanted to get him out of there without a fight. And even then it wasn’t a guarantee.

You had to learn quickly when the galaxy went to hell, and she had. Taught herself everything she could, everything that might give them an advantage against the Empire. Something to keep them all alive. They were her people, her responsibility, and she would be damned if she didn’t do everything she could to keep them alive. Even risked breaking into the ruined Temple to retrieve the Great Holocron before it could be destroyed. Before the knowledge that was contained within it could be used for nefarious purposes. She’d barely managed to get away, but she had gotten away; spent several weeks winding her way through the galaxy before rendezvousing with Padmé and the others. She’d wanted to make absolutely certain that she hadn’t been tracked, hadn’t been followed.

She’d needed that long to deal with what she’d seen, what she’d sensed at the Temple.

Moving silently wasn’t a complete necessity; she was silencing them through the Force as well as rendering them invisible, but it made it slightly easier on her if they weren’t making much noise. She kept them moving, slowly and silently; but she spared a little bit of herself to pour what strength she could afford to lend to Obi-Wan, reaching out to him with the Force. It wasn’t a lot; keeping them cloaked took all her focus, and all her effort, but it was a semi-steady trickle when she could spare it.

The footfalls growing louder, the sound of voices carrying down the corridor to them, made her tense, and strengthen the cloak as hard as she could. She felt the slightest tug at her trouser leg, as R2 silently let her know where to go, and she followed the little droids instruction, leading them down the right fork.