Chapter Text
Chapter 15; Old Wounds
Ben had been given an apartment room in the Temple, one meant for Jedi Master-Padawan duo’s.
It was not in the guest wing, meaning he had likely been assigned this apartment for permanent use. The Jedi seemed to have allowed Ben to slip away for the day without too many questions– Jaster’s doing, no doubt. The Mando always expected Ben to flee when questioned. A fair assumption considering his track record, though Ben did not know how to feel about it.
With the remainder of the day free, Ben had already decided what he should do. Obi had to nap for a few hours and in those hours, Ben decided that it was about time to help Obi get used to the water and maybe even the initial basics of swimming.
What better place to do that than the Room of a Thousand Fountains.
It had rivers and lakes where all Younglings learned to swim and it was a safe environment to teach Obi. Best to make the experience comfortable since the boy did have a traumatic experience.
Unlike Ben, Obi did not have a Mon Calamari sibling to drag him along on her swimming trips to get used to being in water. Ben had to teach Obi how to swim and how to accept that he would sometimes have to be in water.
They would start in the shallow waters, where Obi could crawl and walk without being able to be submerged. It would be a good place to start without having to plunge in the deep immediately. Baths had been going well so it was time for the next step.
It was a good way of distracting Ben from the worries of being on Coruscant. Between the Sith in the Senate and the fact that Jaster wanted to bring the Jedi Council in the loop of Ben’s quest, Ben was uncomfortable to say the least. Sure, the Temple was still safe at this time, but Ben was antsy.
The distraction would be welcome.
Obi did not really agree.
When they got to the Room of a Thousand Fountains, he got really quiet. Ben kept sending him waves of comfort but it was clear that Obi was not liking the shallow water Ben was carrying him towards.
“...Didi?” Obi quietly asked, clinging to Ben.
“Yes, Mha-iŕi?” Ben asked, calm as Obi stared at the water with fear.
Obi fell silent, not speaking as he clung to Ben. Still, Ben set Obi down on the dry grass next to the shallow water. Then Ben stepped into the shallow part, water not high enough to swallow his feet entirely, making it perfect for his purpose.
Sitting down in the shallow water, Ben smiled at Obi, continuing to send him positive emotions. Then he played with Obi as if nothing was wrong. Ben never tried to coax Obi into the water or encourage the boy to join him.
They spend some time like that, and eventually, Obi starts to look at the water more curiously than scared. Ben was close to cheering when Obi reached out and touched the water with his fingertips from his spot on the shore.
Counting that as a win, Ben called it a day.
After a quick nap for Obi while Ben took a shower and changed, the two ventured down to the messhall.
As expected, there were no Younglings Obi’s age there. They were all in the Creche until they reached Initiate age. Which also meant that the attention of others was drawn to them almost instantly.
Still, Ben fetched food as if he had never left the Temple before settling down in a more quiet corner.
“Diunai!” Obi cheered. At the term, Ben glanced up to see Plo Koon approach their table followed by Kal and Jaster.
“There you two are. The others thought you might have gotten lost.” Plo mused.
Translation; The others thought you were lost, but both of us know better.
Narrowing his eyes at Plo for a moment, Ben hummed, “Nothing so dire. We spent the day away from the apartment.”
“Mind if we join you?” Plo asked.
“By all means.” Ben smiled at the Master as he sat down.
Jaster walked over to Obi’s side and pulled his buy’ce off to greet the boy with a Keldabe kiss. “Su’cuy, Ob’ika.” He smiled, then moved over to Ben and pecked his cheek, “Ven’riduur.”
Ben send the Mandalorian a sour look but couldn’t help but smile at his antiques, “How was your day, cyare?”
“Productive.” Jaster hummed, “How about yours? I heard you brushed Mij off.”
“I reminded him of our agreement, yes.” Ben agreed. “Our day was fine, vor’e.”
“Jate.” Jaster smiled.
They ate while having light conversation. They avoided heavy conversations or referring to the upcoming meetings, choosing to keep the mood from turning sour.
Despite that, by the end of dinner, when Master Koon stood to take his leave, he couldn’t help but turn to Ben before bidding his goodbye.
“I hope you do feel comfortable to share more of your journey during our meeting tomorrow.” Plo’s goggles pinned Ben into place with his stare.
“I don’t suspect it is relevant to the topics we will be discussing then.” Ben smiled sweetly. “Good night, Jetii.”
“Good night, jaieh.”
Master Koon bowed, then gracefully left, leaving Jaster and Ben to watch him go.
Even as he left, Ben’s eyes remained sharp. He was on guard, Jaster realised. He was not exactly openly hostile but there was definitely a wall up somewhere within Ben.
Jaster frowned, “...What was that about?”
“I am waging a polite war.” Ben muttered, “Master Koon caught onto something I would rather not talk about and he seems unwilling to let it slide. He can be quite determined in that way.”
“He seems kind.”
“He is, and I truly believe he means well.” Ben agreed easily, “But kindness too can be wielded as a dangerous weapon.”
—-------------------------
Sadly, the next morning meant that it was time for the much dreaded visit to the Medical Wing.
Ben had resigned to his fate the moment he and Jaster were approached by one of the Healers who requested them to join her for their meeting with Healer Che. Jaster was kind enough to join him and Obi, knowing both were uncomfortable in medical bays of any kind.
Admittedly, the Medical Wing was a lot more comfortable than most Medbays Ben had been in. Especially the Youngling section– where Obi would get his medical check– was decorated to be soothing and calming.
Jedi Healers were able to help their patients better thanks to their connection to the Force, Healer Che in particular was a very competent Healer and had always and will always hold Ben’s respect.
He knew he was not an easy patient, and he knew Obi would not be an easy patient either– but Che never let that stop her from doing her work. It was hard not to respect her.
It seemed that Healer Che had been getting along with Mij on a professional level quite nicely. They were talking about Ben’s case when Jaster, Obi and Ben arrived.
“Goodmorning, Ben.” Che’s smile was a tad too polite for Ben’s liking, causing him to narrow his eyes at the woman.
“Is it?” Ben couldn’t help but ask, looking between Mij and Che hesitantly.
“I am hoping it will be.” Che replied.
It was effective to calm Ben down enough to admit, “So do I.”
“Then let's keep this a good morning.” Che nodded, willing to set aside his discrepancies from his first visit to her domain.
Once the tension of the initial contact seemed to pass, Ben was able to get a bit more comfortable which also reflected in Obi remaining calmer.
“Alright, let's get the basics out of the way first.” Che moved to her desk to fetch a datapad, “B’ur Mij Gilamar is your Mandalorian Healer, he has started his own casefile for you and Obi. We have combined them and are actively discussing them so we can help you two the best way we can. I do believe this is Mand’alor Mereel, do you wish for him to leave for this examination?”
Ben was all too quick to reply, “I would like Jaster here.”
Che nodded, “Very well. We will be discussing sensitive topics. If your answer changes at any point feel free to say so.”
The rest of the medical check-up went surprisingly well. Obi threw a tantrum, one which Ben helped him through by staying calm and keeping him from attacking the medics. They took bloodwork, asked about vaccinations and recent injuries. Che insisted on looking at some of Ben’s scars, particularly the sensitive scar around his throat caused by a shock-collar decades ago.
It took a good two hours before they were let off the hook, and Ben was quick to bid his goodbyes and flee the medical wing before they changed their minds.
“Well, this was something. Thank you for being swift.” Ben nodded to the medics, bee-lining for Jaster to take his hand and pull him along. “I am sure I will be seeing you two soon enough so we shall leave you for today.”
Jaster laughed as he let Ben drag him along. “Where to?”
“Lunch, we’ll pick some food up and eat it elsewhere. I don’t think either me or Obi want other beings around right now.” Ben admitted.
“Do you want me to leave?”
“What? No. Why would you ask me that?” Ben frowned at Jaster as they walked, his hand still squeezing Jaster’s.
Jaster smiled a bit hesitantly, “Well you said you and Obi wanted to be alone.”
“I said ‘other beings’.” Ben clarified, “You are not ‘other beings’.”
Jaster’s smile relaxed a bit, his hand tightening around Ben’s as they walked. “Let’s get some food then.”
—---------------------------
After hiding in the Room of a Thousand Fountains for the better part of the afternoon, it was finally time for the dreaded Council meeting.
Rather than the Council meeting room, the meetings with sovereign leaders were usually kept in an alternative room where the Councillors and the sovereign leaders and their party could comfortably sit.
It was a large hollow round table with the capabilities of projecting a hologram in the hollow middle of it should there be need for it. Half of the table was reserved for the Jedi Council, the other half for the sovereign party.
Usually, a few representatives of the Council would be present.
This time, all of their seats were filled.
Ben sat next to Jaster, which was a choice considering all parties knew he was really part of both parties one way or another– even if the Jedi did not know the extent of that yet, they recognised Ben as a Jedi Master and an oddity within the Force.
The current Councillors were Grand Master Yoda, Master Mace Windu, Master Yan Dooku, Master Sifo-Dyas, Healer Vokara Che, Master Cin Drallig, Madame Nu, Master Plo Koon and Master Yaddle.
Back when Ben was on the Council, he served with some of them. Sure, he knew all of them, but there were a handful of Councillors seated today which he had worked with as a Councillor himself. By the time Ben had been allowed a seat on the Council, many of the current Councillors retired or died.
Against Ben’s personal preference, Obi was currently staying in the Temple Creche on a temporary basis. Ben did not like it but allowed it knowing the boy would not be happy spending the entire evening and potentially the night in a meeting.
Jaster had gained a few numbers to his party as well. He was seated with the Goran be Keldabe– who rarely left Mandalore except for when the Mand’alor requested it of them, Alor Walon Vau, Alor Adonai Kryze, Alor Mij Gilamar, and Kal Skirata.
From a historical point of view, this was one of the most defining meetings in the history of the Jedi and Mandalorian alike.
And almost no one knew it was happening.
Not the Senate, not the press, not any of the other Republican planets– just the beings currently in the room and a handful of Jedi.
The last time the two cultures had sat at the same table was during one of the many pointless negotiations during the last of the wars they were both involved in.
It seems that Ben had unwittingly influenced the matter more than he initially intended but being sat at this table now felt like a mark of the change he was trying to bring.
A time where the True Mandalorians had survived– where Jaster had survived. One where the incident on Galidraan would never occur, not as long as Ben was breathing. One where the Sith would never rise to the point they could wipe out both the Mandalorians as well as the Jedi.
What an odd potential alliance.
The Jedi and the Mandalorians.
No one would ever see it coming.
Once seated with a steaming cup of tea in front of him, Ben carefully avoided the gazes of the Councillors. He was content waiting them out. Jaster wanted to put all the cards on the table, but he did not know the finer details of Ben’s tale– the things the Jedi might catch onto.
Ben did not want to reveal himself as a timetraveller. It had not been documented well up to this point, the idea that one could travel through time. In the few cases where it had occurred and it was documented, it was usually interpreted as a vision sent to a Jedi who had yet to live through the events they witnessed.
Ben knew his case was different from that.
The Force had created his body from scratch, Obi’s existence was proof of that. Ben had a new body, but still carried the scars he had obtained during his life.
The easiest thing would be to pretend to have had a vision, but that does not explain his in depth knowledge of the Force. If he had seen and learned from the future, the Force would not consider him a Master until he went through similar trials. It would explain knowing the Councillors and a handful of other Jedi but the excuse was shaky.
If Ben just claimed to have visions that intense, he would open the door to a lot of scrutiny. So Ben had to make them come to the conclusion, mostly by not offering them answers but guiding them to where visions are the most logical explanation.
Pretending to know less would be the best option, but some already suspected Ben knew more than he let on.
Mace, Dooku, and Plo had been looking at him like he was a particularly interesting puzzle they wanted to solve desperately. All for their own reasons. Mace because of the short interactions he had had with Ben. Dooku due to Rael and Feemor’s reports. Plo because of Ben’s reaction to Plo when they first met.
Healer Che might have seen something in his bloodwork which made her curious, there had to be a reason both Mij and Che took samples despite the extent of Mij’s bloodwork tests.
Yoda, Madame Nu, Drallig and Yaddle were difficult to read. They were the oldest Councillors and had always managed to derail Ben’s expectations of them.
Sifo-Dyas was looking in Ben’s direction with interest, seemingly unsure what to make of him. The feeling was mutual, Ben had never actually met Sifo-Dyas before in his life. Despite the risk, Sifo-Dyas might be the one who would bring visions up as a potential explanation for the enigma that was Ben, he himself suffered them after all.
Once they all settled, some of the Mandalorians took off their buy’ce. Only Walon and the Goran kept theirs on, but that was to be expected. There was a silent agreement to let Jaster do most of the talking, though Ben was certain he would be pulled into the conversation too.
After all, this meeting was mostly his doing.
“Shall we start this meeting?” Mace looked around the room for objection and when none came, he stood, “First of all, as the Master of the Temple I would like to welcome you all in our home.”
“You have a lovely home and we appreciate your warm welcome.” Jaster was honest with his praise, he usually was. “We have compiled a list of topics we wish to speak about, shall we compare and set up a timetable? I doubt one meeting will be enough.”
“That seems like a good idea.” Mace nodded.
The first hour was mostly comparing notes. The Jedi were mostly curious about Ben and Obi– as expected– but were clear that they wanted to speak of an alliance between the Haat’ade and the Jedi. It was surprising but the Jedi cited that they appreciated the ability of their Knights and Mereel’s Verde to work together.
Jedi and Mandalorians were a surprisingly good match. While they were very different in many ways, their root beliefs were often awfully similar.
The Mandalorians wanted to clear up any confusion when it came to Mandalorian Politics to ensure they would not be mistaken for Kyr’tsad– an idea Ben had brought up in a prior conversation. They too would like to know Ben’s part in the chaos of the past months and they were willing to hear a proposal for a soft-alliance with the intent to strengthen it over time.
The timetable ended up dividing the topics over two days to ensure there was plenty of time to go over the details and take plenty of time to rest between.
They would start going over Ben’s little scheme to ensure the Haat’ade were not blamed for the chaos in the Archives, then discuss the events of Jaster’s rise to the title of Mand’alor and the political situation on Mandalore. After that, the Jedi would be chatting with Ben. The only Mandalorians that would be present for that meeting were Jaster, Mij, and the Goran– for privacy sake.
The last day would be spent discussing potential alliances and how to move forwards after the events over the past month.
“Why did you interfere with the Mandalorians after the incident in the Archives?”
“I realised there would most definitely be a misunderstanding. Mandalorian Politics are often difficult to keep track of whilst outside of the loop. Much is discussed in Mando’a and since I knew not many Jedi are proficient in the language I stepped in to smooth some of the potential confusion.”
“By pretending to be on a mission.”
“It was the Will of the Force.”
It took every ounce of selfcontrol for Ben not to laugh at the expressions of the Jedi Council. They were almost unnoticeable if you were not familiar with Jedi, but Ben picked up on the twitch in Dooku’s posture, the pounding vein on Mace’s forehead, and the tightening of Plo’s claw.
“...Indeed.” Mace sounded neutral, but Ben knew better. “So you travelled to Mandalore under the guise of aiding in the investigation. Is it safe to assume you oversaw communications?”
“It is not. I only corrected some grammatical mistakes within reports, other than that I spent most of my time searching for the missing artefact.”
“The Darksaber.” Madame Nu hummed, “We were informed of its recovery. It has been housed in the Temple since the passing of Master Vizsla, its loss was devastating.”
Ben was quick to reply before any of the Mandalorians could speak their mind. “I had the pleasure to interact with the Kyber of the Darksaber and I feel the need to bring up the fact that it seems to wish to remain with the Mandalorians from now on.”
“Master Vizsla’s last wish states–”
“–That his lightsaber is to be housed within the Archives of the Coruscant Temple unless the Kyber starts to feel restless, in which case it should be returned to the current Goran be Keldabe so they may find a proper wielder. I have had the pleasure of reading a copy of Master Vizsla’s last wishes. I have also spoken with the Holocron of his student who was in charge of delivering Master Vizsla’s Lightsaber to the Temple after Master Vizsla’s passing.”
Madame Nu narrowed her eyes at Ben, “I would have to look into that.” She admitted, “But still, as the Head Archivist of the Temple I have a duty to try and protect the collections.”
“Which is why I propose a conversation topic for the meeting tomorrow where a potential information exchange will be discussed.” Ben smiled at Madame Nu’s pause, “The Temple houses a great amount of Mandalorian Artefacts– all gifted to the Archives– and I believe an information exchange might be beneficial for many reasons.”
“I shall add it to the roster. Let us get back on topic.” Mace redirected the meeting back on track, “We know some minor details of what occurred on Mandalore during your stay there, can you tell us more about it?”
“Ben spent a lot of time with my Verde while looking for the Dha’kad’au. It was mutually beneficial. It was only after we found it that I was able to establish my title as Mand’alor and we managed to defeat the majority of Kyr’tsad.” Jaster explained, “After which Ben took his leave and we contacted the Temple. You know the rest.”
“Indeed we do.” Mace muttered, “I believe we are at the point where we talk a bit more about Master Kenobi. For that reason I propose to wrap up this section of our meeting and move on to the next point on the roster in order to go into the finer details.”
“Agreed.” Jaster hummed, dismissing his Verde. “We will discuss alliances tomorrow, get some rest and we will debrief once we are finished here.”
Half of the Mandalorians left, leaving Jaster, Mij, and the Goran as well as the Jedi Council.
They had been talking for hours at this stage and Ben had not been looking forward to this at all.
He wanted to get Obi and leave, but Jaster had made him agree to tell them part of what he was doing.
“The Will of the Force?” Plo poked, looking at Ben with annoyed amusement.
“Well it must have been.” Ben smiled gracefully, “I was guided to the Archives that night, and the Kyber called out to me.”
Half truth.
“Let’s go back to where you were found. How did you find yourself in that coma?”
“Its all a bit jumbled.” Ben mused, “I honestly don’t remember how I ended up where Master Fay and Aveross found me. The first true memories that feel real were in the Temple Medical Wing.”
Truth, but not the full story.
“We noted your confusion in the Medical Wing. You asked for beings not working in the Medical Wing.” Sifo-Dyas had not said a lot during the first part of the meeting, so it startled Ben when he did speak up.
“Is that a question?” Ben inquired.
“A statement.” Sifo-Dyas continued. “Are you prone to Visions?”
“Yes.” Ben nodded, “Though I had not had one in a very long time. They were more common in my youth.”
Ben caught Jaster’s expression, spotting a twitch of something there.
Damn Jaster and his damned ability to sense when Ben bended the truth to his advantage. He was certain he would be getting an earful after this meeting had wrapped up.
“Did you spend your youth in the Temple?” Plo asked, leaning forwards.
Ben had seen the question coming, “Perhaps, it is hard to say for certain. My visions often blur the lines of history.”
Somewhat true.
“What did you see that made you interfere?" Dooku asked, his posture not too dissimilar to Ben’s own posture– something that Ben felt complicated about with their formerly-future-history.
“The fall of the Jedi and Mandalorians alike."
The full truth.
One difficult to believe but true regardless.
The silence which followed was deafening. Silent enough to hear the sounds of blasterfire, screams and cries. The sound of marching– not that of the Darasuum Taabir, but that of enemies approaching. The buzzing of lightsabers clashing together.
For a moment, Ben felt the sharp edge of his memories. The pain that had been numb for so long suddenly returned at full force and it unbalanced Ben to the point his finer control slipped.
The Force washed around him, soothing his ache but unable to take it away. It would never go away. It might be numb most of the time, but the feeling remained even then.
The moment passed as a hand landed on his shoulder.
A tether which reeled him back to reality, stopping him from Drifting further.
Jaster’s concerned face came into view, his hand moving up to cradle Ben’s nape. “Back with us?” He asked softly.
It took another moment for Ben to get a grip on himself again, allowing him to straighten and slip back into his calm demeanour.
How embarrassing.
Clearing his throat, Ben reeled his presence in the Force closer than ever, all but vanishing from Force-perception, “Apologies. I suggest we adjourn this meeting for now. We can continue in the morning.”
Standing from his chair, Ben was quick to make his escape, unwilling to look at the Jedi or the Mandalorians as he fled the room.
—------------------------
Plo: *After Ben disappeared all day* The others thought you were lost.
Ben: *Able to read between the lines and see the comment as the accusation it is* Nothing so dire.
Plo: Hmm, indeed. (≖ ᵕ ≖ )
Ben: *Fully committed to waging a polite war* Indeed. ( ≖ ᵕ ≖)
Ben: *After the medbay* Obi and I don’t want to be around other beings.
Jaster: I’ll leave you two then–
Ben: Where are you going?
Jaster: You said–
Ben: You are not ‘other beings’, keep up.
Jaster: (๑°o°♡)
Ben: *Bends the truth as he tends to do*
Jaster: *Sends Ben a look of ‘Disaproval™’* We will be talking about this later. (¬`‸´¬)
Ben: *Pouts* I didn’t lie to you tho. ( ꒦ິ꒳꒦ີ)
Ben: *Casually drops a bomb, has a ptsd episode, flees the scene*
Jedi & Mando’s: (⚆_⚆) (°ロ° ) ( º - º ς)