If there was one constant in the galaxy, it was where to go if you wanted to find Anakin Skywalker. Zelina and Obi-Wan were two sources of information, though considering neither of them knew where he went, that only left one person to go to.

Padme.

Despite Yoda's not-so-subtle insistence that Obi-Wan look for and confront Anakin alone, Zelina had refused to be left behind as Obi-Wan sought out Anakin. At the very least, she demanded to be allowed to go see Padme, her concern for the woman stemming well beyond Anakin's recent fall and Obi-Wan's assigned hunt.

Always the good Jedi, Obi-Wan was resistant, wanting to follow orders and not wanting to provide a way for Zelina to follow and potentially stop him if Padme did reveal Anakin's location. Zelina, however, was a weak spot for Obi-Wan, and a negotiator in her own right, not to mention steadfast and unwavering in her determination, which seemed to only grow in strength the longer she had to think over everything that had happened.

Obi-Wan wasn't entirely sure what was going on in her head, but whatever she was telling herself, it was riling her to action in defense of Anakin at the same time it seemed to torment her more and more the longer she dwelled on those thoughts. That singular purpose had become focused on being allowed to see Padme and, knowing that the younger Jedi would do everything in her power to go see the Senator no matter what he did, and getting the inkling that perhaps it could end up proving fruitful for his job, Obi-Wan had relented.

So it was that when Obi-Wan went to question Padme, he did not go alone. In fact, Zelina was the first one inside, the Senator on the brink of tears when she saw Zelina approaching her.

The two embraced, much as Satine and Zelina had embraced aboard the Tantive IV, though with more tears, and Padme whispering something to Zelina that made the young Jedi tremble with a fresh batch of barely repressed sobs. Zelina murmured something in response, but by then Obi-Wan had approached, and the two's brief conversation was instantly hushed.

Already keeping secrets, then...

Obi-Wan allowed Padme a brief hug before he officially shattered her world. Ironically, he found himself trying to extend Padme the same curtesy he'd momentarily been scandalized Zelina had tried to extend to him back at the Temple's security room. "Padme...we need to talk," Obi-Wan said seriously, not missing how the two women had not yet let go of one another, and seemed reluctant to do so even now.

"Considering everything that's happened, I'm guessing this is about Anakin?" Padme asked, her regal, politician's voice already starting to come out even though Obi-Wan had hardly breached the topic. Not a good sign. These two weren't going to make this any easier on him, were they?

Obi-Wan nodded grimly. "When was the last time you saw him?"

"Yesterday," Padme said promptly, straightening.

"And do you know where he is now?"

"No."

The response was just as prompt, like a reflex, delivered with that same cool, unwavering politician mask. Obi-Wan saw Zelina's gaze slide slightly towards Padme, but she said nothing about the woman's blunt evasiveness. Zelina had made her stance on all of this quite clear back at the Temple.

"Padme, I need your help," Obi-Wan said patiently. He saw a flicker of hope spark in Zelina's eyes, and he hated to have to douse it so quickly. "He is in grave danger."

"From the Sith?" Padme asked, almost in a scoff, though there were serious notes of concern in her voice. She was close enough with Anakin, surely she'd realized something was wrong?

Obi-Wan hesitated to answer, his desire to spare her the truth as long as possible causing his words to linger on his lips before he could finally say them. "...From himself."

A heavy silence fell over the room at his proclamation, and Zelina's grip on Padme's arm became firm, protective. "You should probably sit," she murmured to the Senator, who looked at Zelina with a flash of fright at the dark turn the conversation was taking.

Obi-Wan waited patiently for Zelina to lead Padme to the couch before he spoke again, halting between words as he struggled to say the truth he had yet to fully accept himself, one that he and Zelina were both still struggling with. "Padme...Anakin has turned...to the dark side."

Anger quickly fell across Padme's features, though Zelina's firm grip kept the woman from springing to her feet as she threw her words accusingly at Obi-Wan. "You're wrong—how could you even say that?"

"It's true, Padme," Zelina said softly, instantly drawing the other woman's attention.

"Zelina..." she said quietly, but Zelina only shook her head and continued to speak.

"I don't know what happened, but sometime between when I left for the Temple and the attack, Anakin fell to the dark side. I was there, Padme—he spearheaded the attack."

Padme had paled considerably at Zelina's soft spoken words, reaching up to gently tap at the thin white scar on Zelina's cheek. "You didn't have that yesterday."

Zelina grimaced. "I...I got that from Anakin," she whispered. Padme recoiled as if Zelina had struck her. Obi-Wan didn't interfere, curious to see where Zelina was going with this, and to hear more information of what exactly had happened.

"No, Anakin wouldn't do that, he—" Padme started to protest, but Zelina caught the woman's hand and interrupted before she could rant for too long.

"It was one of a few injuries he gave me, though he did it in the process of making it look like I'd died so the 501st would pass over me and I'd survive," Zelina added, and Padme relaxed marginally.

"Then how could he possibly have turned to the dark side?" Padme challenged. Zelina, however, was already shaking her head.

"Make no mistake, he has turned. I saw it up close, Padme. He tried to convince me to turn as well. He was talking about...about the Jedi being corrupt and needing to be destroyed, reshaping and fixing the galaxy, overthrowing the Chanc—Emperor. He was excusing genocide so flippantly..." Zelina shook her head, as if trying to get rid of the nightmares. "He was steeped in the dark side."

"He killed...he killed younglings, Padme," Obi-Wan added softly, aware that Zelina was, despite everything, pulling her punches. Zelina still believed Anakin could be saved, so she was holding back in her explanation of the severity of what Anakin had done—what he'd become. "I saw the bodies—he was the only one who attacked with a lightsaber."

"It's a lie!" Padme nearly shouted, rising sharply from her seat, even if it was only for a moment. Her face was picturesque horror as she glanced between Obi-Wan and Zelina, as if hoping one of them would pull her from the nightmare they had been unable to wake from themselves. "He could never...he could never...not my Anakin..."

Padme's gaze turned to Zelina, looking for some sliver of hope to hold to. Obi-Wan was supplying her with none, and as much as he wanted to believe Zelina's theory, he had to face the facts. Unfortunately, while he did not believe that Anakin could be saved, Zelina still clung to hope for a reason that escaped him even now.

Was it the love she had for him? Was that really enough to attempt to turn a blind eye on all of this? Or was there something more that Obi-Wan just didn't know about?

"It's true," Zelina confirmed quietly, and the woman collapsed back to the couch in shock. Zelina quickly covered Padme's hand with her own, giving it a gentle squeeze. "But I don't think it's too late. I think he can still be reasoned with—"

"Reasoned with?" Obi-Wan asked incredulously. "Zelina, he just committed genocide, he killed children, he attacked you! Did he listen to reason in the temple? Or before then? He's gone too far, and you know it. He's dangerous, to himself and everyone around him. There's nothing we can do—he's chosen his path, and we all know how stubborn Anakin can be. There is no reasoning with him, not now."

Some of the words pained him to admit it, but he couldn't get the bodies out of his head, the horror that his closest friend and brother had a crucial part in.

Zelina finally looked at Obi-Wan again, a fire in her eyes. "I will not abandon him," she said fiercely.

The two Jedi stared at each other in tense silence for several long moments.

Zelina...I wish I had your faith, and your determination...but this time, you're wrong. It's too late. And your devotion is going to get you killed if you're not careful.

Taking a deep breath, Obi-Wan turned his attention back to Padme. "Padme...I must find him."

Padme glanced between the two Jedi, a fresh wave of horror falling over her face. "You're going to kill him, aren't you?" she asked in a frightened, accusing tone. No...no, it wasn't a question. She already knew.

It was like she was seeing if Obi-Wan could even bring himself to say it.

Obi-Wan took a deep breath, preparing himself to say yes, yes he was going to kill...

Don't make me kill Anakin. He's like my brother.

No...he couldn't even say it.

"He has become a very great threat," Obi-Wan eventually managed to say. Even then, it was clear in his voice that he was trying to convince himself just as much as he was trying to convince these two women that Anakin was a threat that needed to be dealt with. He was failing just as miserably at both, too.

Padme shook her head, eyes casting downwards towards her abdomen, a flicker of a hand motion towards the rounding section of her body barely restrained by Zelina, but enough of a movement to catch Obi-Wan's gaze.

"I can't..." Padme whispered, but Obi-Wan wasn't entirely paying attention, even as he rose from his seat. He was doing a quick once-over of the Senator in the Force, a once over that quickly revealed the truth to him, and made his task so much more difficult.

"Anakin is the father, isn't he?" he asked softly. Padme wouldn't look at him, and when he shot an accusing look at Zelina for not telling him, the other woman looked completely unapologetic. She was one to be a stalwart keeper of secrets if she believed it wasn't for her to tell, so should he really be surprised. Obi-Wan rose to his feet, trying to ignore the pain in his chest as he desperately fought not to think of how now, killing Anakin would also mean leaving Anakin's child fatherless. "I'm so sorry..."

Obi-Wan started to leave, wanting to end the conversation now before it could grow any more painful or complicate his already difficult situation any further. However, he paused when he realized he didn't have a tail this time. Turning, he saw Zelina still sitting on the couch with Padme, hand still clasped with the Senator's to give her a sense of comfort and stability.

"Zelina," Obi-Wan called. The girl was intent on saving Anakin...surely she'd want to continue the search with him?

...unless she was going to do something rash, as he'd been suspecting in the back of his mind ever since she insisted coming to see Padme with him.

Zelina glanced up at him. "Go on...I'm going to stay with Padme for now." When Obi-Wan moved to protest, Zelina spoke again. "Yoda doesn't want me interfering in your investigation, right? I'm letting you off the hook—go."

She's definitely up to something.

***********************************************

Zelina watched Obi-Wan leave, hyper aware of the fact that he did so with no shortage of suspicion. Still, she held her tongue until she other Jedi's ship was disappearing on the horizon.

"We have to find him, Padme," Zelina said in a sharp tone, squeezing the woman's hand yet again. "He can still be reasoned with. It won't be easy, but if we find him first, we might stand a chance."

"Has...has he really gone to the dark side? I could tell something was strange about him when he came to the apartment not long after the attack on the Temple, but I would have never guessed..." Padme trailed off.

Zelina nodded. "I would have never believed it if I hadn't seen it for myself. Although..."

Zelina looked away, the guilt that had been plaguing her ever since she'd woken up continuing to grow in strength. This was her fault...the blame rested squarely on her shoulders. How long had she been warned about this very moment, and yet she still failed to save her friend from himself.

"Zelina? What is it?" Padme asked. When Zelina didn't answer, the woman shook her, though only enough to catch the younger woman's attention. "Zelina, this is not the time to be keeping secrets—tell me."

Zelina let out a shaky sigh. "It's not like it didn't happen without any warning. There were plenty of signs, going all the way back to before the war. We just chose not to look...or at least chose not to do more."

"You're not blaming yourself for all this, are you?" Padme asked in exasperation.

"Well, there is a lot you don't know that would put quite a bit of the blame on me, Zelina murmured, unable to look her in the eyes.

"This isn't your fault, Zelina—"

"I knew this was going to happen."

"...what do you mean?"

"I mean I..." Zelina sighed, rubbing her hands over her face in agitation, stuck between wanting to scream or cry. She'd been fighting the urge to sit in a corner and just check out for a while ever since she'd woken up—part of her wished Anakin had killed her back in the Temple. It would have made things so much simpler for her if he had. She wouldn't have to go through all...this. "I've been warned about Anakin's darkness for years, Padme. Not just from other people, I mean from the Force itself. I received...so many visions, blatant pleas to help Anakin with his darkness, to do something about this web that we just found ourselves tangled in the middle of. Years of clear warnings, Padme. My very first clear vision was before this war and it blatantly told me Anakin was going to fall to the dark side trying to protect you and..."

Zelina choked off, burying her face in her hands as a fresh sob made it past her apparently renowned control.

She felt hands gently grab at her wrists, pulling her hands away from her fist as Padme attempted to reclaim her attention.

"Hindsight is a curse, Zelina. If you spend all your time thinking about what could have been and looking at situations with knowledge you didn't have then as if you should have immediately jumped to the solution, all you'll do is drive yourself insane," Padme said gently. "You can't blame yourself—you did the best with what you knew at the time, and you're still trying your best now, I assume?"

Zelina nodded, hanging her head in a brief moment of chastised shame. She still shouldered the blame, Luke's many pleas to stop Anakin from giving into his darkness echoing in her mind. Now...now she understood. Now, looking back, she realized the young man had been pleading with her to stop his father's fall...to stop Anakin from destroying everything he cared about while trying to protect it. Anakin's soul wasn't the only thing at risk right now—so was Luke's future, his fate.

It's so cold...don't let it take me, please! Don't let me die!

A shudder went through Zelina as she prayed to any deity listening that wasn't the path she was currently on.

"You said he can still be reasoned with?" Padme prompted, nudging Zelina back on track to the conversation that the two of them had started to have before Zelina's mounting guilt derailed them. Zelina shook herself so she could focus. Now still was not the time to wallow in misery and trauma—she still needed to act quickly, just as she had at the Temple.

"Right...he's not completely lost to the dark side. If he was, I wouldn't be alive—he would have killed me."

Padme paled. "Zelina, he would never—"

"Never hurt me? Yeah...that's what I used to tell myself," she murmured, unable to help a hand ghosting over her cheek. "He was going to kill me, Padme—it's not something I'm about to forget. But he didn't."

"Because he couldn't—it's you," Padme said pointedly.

"That wasn't enough."

Zelina felt the rush of fear that washed over the woman at her words, but to Padme's credit, she kept her composure. "Then why did he spare you, if it wasn't because it was you?"

Zelina hesitated. "I told him."

When Zelina didn't immediately expand, Padme leaned in. "Told him what?"

Zelina's thumb pushed slowly along the back of her hand, eyes unfocused for a moment before she brought herself to focus on the woman sitting beside her on the couch. "I told him I loved him."

Padme sucked in a sharp breath. "Oh..."

Zelina snorted bitterly. "Yeah, oh...I guess I'm hoping it wasn't just shock factor that saved my life. I have to believe...I have to believe that hearing me say it out loud was enough to snap him out of it, just enough...I have to believe that...that..."

Words from Mortis floated back to her, long forgotten in the confusion of the Clone Wars but now searing with an intensity she hadn't expected to feel from the once puzzling phrase.

"One's undoing can also be their salvation," Zelina murmured.

"What?" Padme asked in confusion. Zelina grabbed her shoulder.

"One's undoing can also be their salvation! Force, it finally makes—we have to go. We have to find Anakin, I know how to help him, I know how to save him," Zelina said feverishly, rising to her feet and taking several steps before she realized she didn't have a destination in mind. "Where's Anakin? I know you know, we have to find him now before Obi-Wan finds him, we can reason with him, we can bring him back, before it's too late!"

"Slow down," Padme said sharply, rising from her seat. "First you have to make sense, Zelina. What finally makes sense?"

Zelina did her best to snuff out the light of exasperation that sprang up at Padme's demand for an explanation. There wasn't time...

Patience. Rushing in without a clear plan doesn't always work, you can't wing this—Anakin can't afford for you to wing this. Explain it to her, get the information, make a plan, then save him, Zelina chided herself.

"Did Anakin ever tell you about a place called Mortis?" Zelina asked intently.

"No..."

"Okay, long story short, there were three beings that embodied different aspects of the Force, one the light, one the dark, and one that I guess you could say was the balance, or perhaps the Force overall. The last one was known as the Father. And the Father told me while we were on Mortis that 'One's undoing can also be their salvation.' At the time it didn't make any sense to me, but now...Padme, Anakin fell for love! Not because of love, that would just be some Jedi Order bantha poodoo they'd try to shove down our throats—he fell because he was afraid to lose what he loved," she said intently, putting her hands on the smaller woman's shoulders.

"His undoing," Padme said, the pieces of Zelina's ramblings falling into place in her minds eye. "You think that because he fell for love...he can be saved by love."

I can sense your deep love and devotion for your friend. Hold those feelings close to you, for they will be key to his survival.

"Which is why we have to find him first," Zelina said seriously. "The two women who love him, we have to be the ones to shake him out of this."

Suddenly Padme turned doubtful. "Do you really think it will be that easy?"

Zelina scoffed. "Nothing's ever easy, but we have to try, Padme. For him."

Padme's hands fell over her now prominent stomach, caressing the baby bump with protective care. Zelina dropped her hands to Padme's arms. "We can do this, Padme...please."

Padme met Zelina's gaze, the warrior queen Zelina had met as a child coming out full force, though this wasn't a physical battle that they were about to wage. "You're right. I'll have Captain Typho prepare my ship, and we'll go see Anakin."

Zelina watched Padme draw out her com link, a determined fire igniting inside the woman to momentarily stave off the fear that was seeping through both of them.

"Mustafar."

*******************************************

Even smuggling on board a Jedi Knight, and a renowned one known to be close friends with Padme, Captain Typho was not happy to be letting Padme travel to Mustafar without guards. The rumors that the Separatists had been hiding in the system were alive and flourishing, and the fact that Padme was going out there for no clear reason with only one Jedi Knight and a protocol droid was not something that eased the Captain's mind.

Padme, Zelina, and Threepio all gathered in the cockpit for the flight, Threepio taking up the pilot seat while Padme settled for copilot, Zelina a mere bystander for the time being.

Once they were underway, she wanted to take some time to herself to try and gather her wits—and decide what she was going to say to Anakin to try and reason with him again. At the Temple she'd been caught off guard, stressed and cornered, fighting for her life—she didn't have time to even think of all the warnings the Force had given her via Luke, or of the Father's warnings. She was also fairly certain if she really sat down and processed everything that had happened, then aside from the heaps of trauma she'd be dragging out into the ocean and possibly some more guilt, she might be able to find even more to argue her case.

Despite the fact they were racing towards Mustafar and a dark Anakin, Zelina felt tension bleed away as Coruscant disappeared behind her. She had the idle thought of wondering if any of the small groups that had escaped from the Temple had made it off world.

The escapees!

Zelina moved suddenly, fumbling for her com link and punching in the number that had been engrained into her muscle memory after years of battle. When it connected, Zelina didn't even give the person on the other end enough time to answer.

"Cruiser?"

There was an audible cry on the other end of the com that drew the attention of her other two companions, one that transcended definable emotions. Then, "General? You're alive?"

Zelina smiled at the welcome voice, feeling more of the tension and a few more of her worries leave her. "Yes, I'm okay, Cruiser, I got out with some help," Zelina murmured. What about you, did you guys get out okay?"

"We lost Trimmy and one of the younglings getting out, but the rest are fine and left Coruscant a long time ago," Cruiser said quietly. Zelina felt a pang at the news of even more loss, but she was glad to hear the majority were gone and well out of reach of any Coruscant forces. Hopefully they'd manage to stay out of Palpatine's grasp.

"Cruiser...you and the others have already done so much for me...but I need a favor."

"Anything, General."

Zelina turned, making sure to meet Padme's gaze so the woman would see Zelina held no ill will as she spoke. "I'm going to need you to get Rider...Commy too, probably. Keen-eye...and anyone else you see fit for an emergency extraction plan."

"Extraction, Ma'am?" Cruiser asked. Padme was looking at her quizzically, and with a light of fear flickering in her face.

"Just as a precaution. I'm attempting a...sensitive mission with a friend. In case we end up in trouble and need some assistance, I'd like to have someone standing by. For my own peace of mind, after everything that's happened."

"Where do you need us?"

"The Mustafar system. Careful, though—I don't want you registering on any scanners, so maybe just be a short jump away if you're needed rather than in the system itself," Zelina suggested.

"Consider it done, Ma'am...Whatever you're doing, take care of yourself, General," Cruiser added hesitantly.

"You too, Cruiser. You too."

Zelina ended the connection, tucking the com away as Padme watched her with a critical eye. Padme at least waited until she was sure the ship was on the right track before she rose to her feet, crossing her arms over her chest.

"What was that about?" Padme asked accusingly.

"I had the 105th remove their chips a long time ago, so they weren't forced to turn on me. They helped at the Temple, and I hadn't told them that I'd survived yet," Zelina explained.

"And the part about sending them to Mustafar?"

"If there's 501st there, or any Republic troops, I won't be very welcomed. If something goes wrong, like Anakin doesn't listen, or Force forbid Palpatine shows up...I just want to be prepared for anything. After what happened at the Temple, I think it's a smart thing to do," Zelina explained. "Besides, I told them to be at the ready, not to come into the system with us."

Guilt flickered across Padme's face. "You...have a point. I'm sorry, I guess I just...with everything happening—"

"Its okay," Zelina murmured. "Anyone who's smart will be acting extra cautious right now."

A heavy silence fell between them as the weight of recent events loomed over them once again. Knowing Zelina couldn't put it off much longer, Zelina sighed.

"How long until we reach Mustafar?" Zelina asked Padme, slipping off her cloak and folding it up into a makeshift cushion that she could sit on in the meantime.

"A few hours—why?"

"I'm going to meditate...think things over before we get there," Zelina said softly, taking up her seat on the floor. "At the very least prepare myself."

"I understand," Padme said quietly.

A silence settled over the cockpit as Zelina calmed herself as much as she could, finding herself focusing on letting the tension ease out of her muscles as much as she could, trying to find something to put her soul at ease only after she'd reached some form of physical relaxation.

Unfortunately, with her eyes closed, she could only see the destruction of the Temple, the bodies that littered the floor and fell all around her, the men of the 501st turning on the Jedi as a whole. The shouting, the blasterfire...Anakin's face, a dark shadow looming over the Temple, swallowing the innocents in the Temple whole.

No, no, no, no, no, don't think about that. If you think about that, you'll lose your nerve, you might give up before we even get there. Think of something else, anything else...

Think of the fields on Naboo...the feel of the water against skin, lying in the tall grass, looking up at the stars before there was any war, remembering the innocence of childhood...that one dream—or had that been a vision—where she'd laid in Anakin's arms, content and safe before Luke came to guide her home. Think of the day she'd become a knight, when they'd sat on the edge of the fountain together in peaceful silence. Every time he'd held her when she was weak. The day she'd built her first lightsaber and the violet blade sprang to life, an elegant weapon of her own creation...

Time lost meaning as she let herself soak in her better memories, in the what ifs and the heartfelt moments snagged between the rush and chaos of war. For what felt like a short time, Zelina managed to find herself a corner of peace away from the chaos of the galaxy.

A sob broke through Zelina's concentration.

Opening her eyes and looking over to the copilot's seat, Zelina saw Padme leaning over the console, trying to muffle the sounds she made as tears streamed down her face. Immediately, Zelina climbed to her feet, making her way over to the woman in record time. One of Padme's hands rested on her belly as she cried, a fact Zelina didn't miss. She put one arm around Padme, the other covering the hand that rested over her belly.

"Hey...he'll be there, okay? He'll listen—we'll make him listen. He'll come home, and your baby is going to have both of their parents, okay? We'll make it work," Zelina murmured in a soothing voice.

"I just...can't believe it's come to this. It was just a nightmare," Padme bemoaned. Zelina felt her heart pang painfully at Padme's words.

"And that's all it will be. It's not going to happen, okay? I won't let it. You're going to be okay, and so is Anakin. You'll see."

A silence settled over them as Zelina comforted Padme, letting the other woman cry as much as she needed to, doing her best to keep the pregnant woman calm and comfortable. Eventually, the tears subsided, and the two sat in companionable silence.

"We're almost there," Padme suddenly said. "Do you know what you want to say?"

"A general idea...you?"

"Not in the slightest. I don't think I'll know until I really see..."

"Fair enough...I'm going to get you something to drink, is that all right? I've been on Mustafar before—its hot, and there's a lot of ash, so I suggest drinking something now," Zelina said softly.

"Thank you, Zelina."

Zelina nodded, gathering her cloak off of the floor as she moved for the cockpit's exit. She'd hardly been on this ship, but it wouldn't be hard to poke around until she found a place to store the cloak and where she would get water for both of them. Almost without thought, Zelina opened one of the compartments to throw her cloak inside...

...and promptly let out a shriek that started off startled, but swiftly turned to one of barely-restrained rage.

Padme came flying out of the cockpit at the sound, but Zelina was already giving a name to what had elicited such a reaction.

"Obi-Wan?"

The accused Jedi crawled out of his hiding space as Padme arrived on the scene, his scowl unrivaled by the storms of anger appearing on the faces of the two women.

"What the hell do you think you're doing in here?" Zelina said hotly, instantly jumping into the heart of the matter.

"My duty—the same thing you should be doing," Obi-Wan returned. "He's a threat, Zelina, he has to be stopped, you know that. There'll be no reasoning with him."

"So you sneak aboard my ship?" Padme snapped.

"It was the only way I was going to find him, since neither of you were about to help me."

"There's a reason we're not helping you, Obi-Wan, and it's because you're wrong," Zelina said sharply. She chose her next words, even the harsh ones, carefully and with a purpose. "Did you even stop to think how this would look when we reached Mustafar? Did it occur to you that you'd be putting me and Padme in the line of fire to get your attempt to murder Anakin, that you'd be putting an unborn child in the line of fire? If we hadn't found you and you'd disembarked while we were talking to Anakin, he could have thought that we'd betrayed him, that we brought you with us to kill him!"

"I'm simply prepared to do what must be done!"

"Careful, Obi-Wan, you're starting to deal in absolutes," Zelina said dangerously, her words and tone causing him to come up short.

She'd never thought she'd find herself turning her temper free on Obi-Wan to put him in line, and yet here she was. It was just the day for that, wasn't it?

"Anakin has fallen to the dark side—he's not Anakin anymore! He needs to be stopped before he can hurt anyone else," Obi-Wan said, struggling to reign in his temper.

"He doesn't need to die, Obi-Wan, we can bring him back—"

"No, you can't, Zelina. I know you think because he spared you at the Temple that you can save him, but there are plenty of other, darker reasons for him to have saved your life—"

"I am not a fool, Obi-Wan," Zelina thundered, her voice calm despite the dangerous volume. She did, however, have to resist the urge to grab him by the front of his robes as she had done with Anakin before. She didn't want to give Obi-Wan the impression she was falling to the dark side—which she was not. Considering everything that was going on, an emotional response was perfectly appropriate right now. "Don't think that I'm holding blindly to nothing because I can't let go. I am perfectly aware of what he's done, and no, it's not excusable, but I know he can be saved. I know. I'm not saying it because I want it to be true, either, I truly know it."

"How could you possibly know, with how far he's fallen?"

"I've been being told for years to save him from the dark side, Obi-Wan," Zelina finally erupted. "The Force has told me to save him, the Father told me to save him, his unborn child told me to save him time and time again, he told me to save him, and I'll be damned if I'm going to fail because you got the bright idea to try and sabotage us!"

Zelina cooled her temper enough to speak in a quieter, but still strong voice, ignoring the thunderstruck looks she was receiving. "I have been having clear visions and warnings telling me to help him for years, telling me to save him. It's what I'm meant to do, Obi-Wan, it has to be. So yes, he can be saved, because I'm going to do everything in my power to save him, and so is Padme, and he can be reached, and I've seen him be reached. I know you have your orders from Yoda...but I have my plea from the Force. How would you feel if you killed him only to find out later that he could have been saved? Let me try to save him, let me try to do this my way, before we do it Yoda's way. Please, Obi-Wan."

"We're coming out of hyperspace," Came Threepio's pleasant yet out of place voice from the cockpit. No one reacted to his announcement, all three staring between each other in varying levels of tension. Zelina refused to back down, gaze riveted to Obi-Wan's while Padme glanced between the two almost fearfully.

"What if you're wrong? What if he can't be saved?" he challenged.

"Then I'll call for help," Zelina replied easily. "Until then, let us try, please. Stay on the ship, stay hidden. If we're successful, and we can calm him down, we'll call you over to talk with us. If we fail, we'll call for help."

"Please, Obi-Wan," Padme added, a hand resting instinctually on her abdomen. "Let me try to save my husband."

The shock was clear in his face at Padme's use of the title—since he'd been well aware that they were in a relationship, but not that it extended to marriage—but after some clear hesitation, Zelina felt him give just a little.

"All right...all right, I'll let you try. But mark my words, it won't work. This will only make things worse."

Zelina breathed a sigh of relief, feeling the ship shudder as they entered atmosphere. Instantly, she stiffened.

"Hide," she hissed, a command the Jedi Master obeyed swiftly as Zelina and Padme tried to regather themselves for the coming confrontation.

Love. Love. One's undoing can also be their salvation. Love...we can do this. We can do this.

The ship started to lower itself onto a landing platform.

Force, please let him listen to us.