A/N: Oh look I finally updated! I must confess that my mind has drifted to other fandoms and I ended up doing some reading and writing for those instead of focusing my attention here (oops), plus school and work and life gets in the way, you know how it is :/

I updated the cover since I last updated, as I'm sure you've noticed by now. I'm rather proud and fond of it, even though it's not perfect, I'm decently happy with it for now.

AtS has reached 2k and I couldn't be happier for that. I wouldn't have gotten here without you guys so THANK YOU! It makes me extra sorry for the upcoming angst (hehe), but I promise it will be worth it in the end.

May the Force be with you!

--

By the time Azel reaches the palace the air has grown into a biting cold. She holds her arms around herself until she is in the semi-warmth of the elevator.

The rest of the way to the room is uneventful. Inside it's much warmer but the comforting temperature does little to coil the ice in her heart with the thought of Arrin captive.

Azel ransacks the room, neatly of course to avoid Obi-Wan's questioning, and picks apart every which place Obi-Wan would keep the comlink.

On his person, her mind supplies after a short time of searching.

Kriff, she should've thought of it sooner.

She will have to lift it off of him, which isn't a problem. The problem is finding the heart to deceive him in such a way. She hasn't pick-pocketed since she was a girl who just lost her mother, and that is not a person Azel wants to relive.

She sighs, deciding that it's her only option.

However, she may not see him until the ball this evening so she might as well pass the time by finding something to wear. The closet is massive and has several pieces of clothing from casual to ballroom elegant. Azel browses the dresses in search for one she likes, and instead finds a few. She's never had a reason to wear a dress before and it excites her to finally have the chance. She pulls out three different color and style dresses to try on, loves all three of them, and settles on one after contemplating for longer than necessary. It's nothing over the top, just a royal blue gown that fits her curves and loosens around the waist to fall freely; there is a slit at the bottom where her leg is exposed up to the thigh. She pairs it with black heels and trips three times when she decides to try them on. It takes almost as long as it did to choose a dress to walk in them without stumbling like Arrin when he drunk too much.

She changes out of the dress and shoes to save for later and puts away the discarded dresses when she feels it... that pull. The one she's felt a few times before but never had the chance to act on.

She follows the feeling and knows what it leads to before finding it. Hidden in the closet is the brown wooden box that Obi-Wan carries with him. Azel never had a chance to look inside and wonders if now is the opportunity, but this is Obi-Wan's personal chest. Is she invading his privacy? Is this wrong? Most certainly.

Does she open the box anyway? Absolutely.

How's that old saying go? Curiosity killed the Jawa? She brushes the wives-tale aside.

She opens the box quickly, like ripping off a bacta-patch, and stares at the object inside it.

There lay a weapon of a Jedi, a weapon Azel saw with her own eyes only once in her life, a lightsaber.

Her confusion outweighs her awe. Obi-Wan never discussed the weapon in all their training, and she assumed it's because it's a weapon that draws attention so there wouldn't be a point in teaching her about it.

Even now her theory remains, but as for why Obi-Wan keeps it in a top secret mystery box is unknown to her.

The Pull is back, and she now associates the Pull as the Force trying to lead her somewhere, in this case, it wants her to pick up the lightsaber. She's never held one before, and in all honesty, she can't say she's never wanted to.

A sudden child-like giddiness consumes her as she reaches for the hilt, she's about to hold a lightsaber! How kriffing exhilarating!

The feeling dissolves instantly when her fingers first make contact with the cool hilt because instead of lifting it from the box, she is thrust into another blasted Force-vision.

Oh come on, she growls to herself as the world shifts around her.

The first thing she notices is it's hot, more so than the dry heat of Tatooine. It's hot like standing in front of a fire at just the right distance to not burn you, but close enough to feel the danger of bursting into flames.

A half-second after that, she realizes she recognizes the place. It is the same burning planet that she dreamt about not too long ago.

This feels real, different from the dream and similar to the Force-vision in the Temple. If she didn't know any better, she'd say she teleported herself here. The heat, the smell of ash and flames, the feeling of her body standing tall on the elevated, blackened ground, it's solid--it's real.

This was real for people, her mind reminds her. She remembers seeing her brother, Obi-Wan, and a pregnant woman in her dream.

But as she looks around, she doesn't see any of that. Instead, she's in a different setting, standing high on the ground over a massive river of lava. Certainly explains why it feels like my face is going to melt off.

She sees two figures floating upstream on some type of raft and dueling each other with blue lightsabers.

They grow nearer, and once they are locked in a hold, one of them jumps backward and lands steadily on his feet next to Azel. With a start, she realizes it's Obi-Wan. He's out-of-breath, sweaty, and robes are covered in grim and ash. She looks to the man still on the raft and finds Anakin, not looking much better.

"It's over Anakin!" Obi-wan shouts over the noise of a nearby lavafall. "I have the high ground," Obi-Wan spreads his arms wide, wide enough to bump Azel but instead they go straight through her.

"You underestimate my power," Anakin says, his voice deep and dark. He looks different than he did in the Temple Force-vision. He looks raw but powerful. While in the Temple, he appeared angry, yet controlled.

"Don't try it," Obi-Wan warns like he can see what Anakin is planning to do.

With a yell, Anakin leaps off the raft, flipping himself through the air above Obi-Wan. Before Anakin has the chance to attack airborne, Obi-Wan moves first, successfully cutting away at both Anakin's legs and an arm. The former Jedi falls to the ground in a stumped heap and nearly slides into the lava before he catches himself with his remaining mechanical hand.

Holy kriff! Azel can't believe what she is looking at. She stares in horror with wide-eyes at the defeated form of her brother and the torment on his face. She then looks at Obi-Wan who appears equally as pained.

How could he? Did he really just do that?

Did he really just de-limb her brother?

Obi-wan deactivates his lightsaber.

"You were the chosen one! It was said you would destroy the Sith not join them! Bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness!" Obi-Wan's voice doesn't hide the pain he is feeling. He turns away and moves to higher ground, picking up a familiar weapon--the weapon showing Azel this memory. Because that's exactly what this is, a memory.

Obi-Wan turns back around, prepared to speak or see what will become of Anakin, and instead, the crumpled Sith spoke first.

"I hate you!" He growls it with raw anger and pure hate that even Azel flinches at his words. His bizarre yellow eyes glaring holes into Obi-Wan's form. If looks could kill...

"You were my brother, Anakin. I loved you." Obi-Wan replies with a trembling voice, making Azels heart clench

Suddenly, Anakin sinks so far down the hill that part of his leg catches fire, and then his whole body is engulfed in flames. His cries are of agony, and Obi-Wan just watches him and looks away before walking off.

Azel stares at his back in disbelief.

At least show him some mercy and kill him quickly, Azel is screaming in her head. How could Obi-Wan leave him like that? After their history together--their life together--Obi-Wan is leaving him to a painful and slow death.

But he isn't dead, she reminds herself.

The memory fades quickly after that, and Azel opens her eyes to the closet ceiling.

She sits up, noticing the box sitting open beside her, and that Anakin's lightsaber is held firmly in her grip.

She doesn't know what to think. She can't believe that Obi-Wan left Anakin there to burn. They have so much history, he could've shown him some kind of mercy.

Azel grips her fingers around the weapon tighter. This was her brother's weapon, and now it belongs to her. Obi-Wan can't have it back.

"Azelynn?" A voice calls from outside the closet. She moves quickly to place the weapon back inside the box and hide it where she found it. She pops her head out the closet door and sees Obi-Wan standing near the front door. He smiles at her warmly. "Bail is having me fitted for the ball, I just wanted to see if you made it back alright."

She forces a smile. "Yeah. Just finding something to wear tonight."

"Good. I probably won't see you until then. Just meet me on the fourth floor in an hour."

"Okay," she replies and watches him turn and leave the room.

She sighs and slumps against the closet wall.

This is going to be a long night.

-

Arriving at the ballroom is eventful in and of itself. Azel has to call upon the Force to help her balance in the heels. She holds the side of her dress that doesn't have the slit to keep it from dragging and catching her feet. Once she exits the elevator, she is pointed in the right direction by the guard stationed outside the elevator doors. She can hear music and voices as she walks down the corridor to a set of grand stairs that lead down another level to the ballroom.

She pauses at the top and takes in everything there is to see of the party two flights below.

The ceiling stretches to at least the sixth floor and holds portraits of people (with Alderaan origin, no doubt) that remind Azel of how the old churches and colosseums used to do it. She remembers seeing them in galactic history holobooks not too long ago. Those old paintings are so full of detail they resemble photographs more than genuine art, but looking upon this ceiling now she knows how real it all is. Some people in the galaxy have a true talent to create beautiful things.

Azels eyes drift to the dark-blue drapes hanging between the white, pillar-like columns against the walls, presenting the room with an elegant yet comfortable atmosphere. The columns and curtains alternate between white and blue, both touching the floor and standing high to hold the artistic ceiling.

On the far wall, there is a small section bare of the decorates where double-glass doors are wide open letting in the cool breeze of night. Azel watches a couple walk out the doors, arms linked, and assumes it's a terrace of some kind.

The band is playing on stage, which is against the wall on the right, and the nearby guests are happily dancing along in a familiar fashion. Azel recognizes the dancing style as the one Obi-Wan taught her back on Draenor.

There are dinner tables on the opposite side of the stage and dance floor where more people are sitting and conversing; waiters and waitresses are dressed in all white and carrying trays of food to and from the guests that are sitting there. Other guests simply stand near the bar next to the patio door to enjoy their beverages, while a few wander in and out of the nearby exit.

Azel begins walking down the stairs, summoning the Force to give her balance and not trip on her way down. Once she reaches the first landing, people start to notice her. She gulps once she sees it's more than just a glance and more than just one person. Am I not dressed properly? Azel panics to herself. She scans the ballroom for someone she knows, anyone at all, but is out of luck.

Just as she is about to look to her feet and continue down the steps, she spots a familiar face and sighs with relief.

Obi-Wan is speaking to someone at the bar top with a drink in his hand. He is dressed in a prominent blue (matching Azels dress), taking a sip of his drink, and nodding along with whatever the stranger is saying. From what Azel can tell, he appears awfully bored.

As if he senses her presence, which she assumes he does, Obi-Wan turns his head and meets her gaze. Their eyes lock for what feels like hours, but could only be seconds, before Obi-Wan turns back to his companion to mutter something and crosses the ballroom towards Azel.

Azel mirrors his movements by walking down the final flight of stairs. When she reaches the bottom, Obi-Wan is there giving her a warm smile.

"Hello there," he greets with his usual gentle and kind tone.

"Hello there," she mimicks nervously and shifts her weight. People are still staring.

Obi-Wan catches on and glances at the others, who look away once he catches their eye. He steps closer to her. "You look beautiful, it's why they can't take their eyes off you."

Azel felt her eyes widen and a blush rise to her cheeks faster than ever before.

"Oh," she says, barely looking him in the eye. "Well, uhm--" she clears her throat. "I wasn't sure." She brushes a place on her dress for something to do.

"Your shields are slipping," he warns without malice. Azel immediately tightens her shields. "You have no need to feel self-conscience."

Azel bites her lip and examines him. His blue eyes stand out immensely, and she notes that she has never seen him in anything other than tans and browns. The dark blue color really suits him, and she admits that it's a shame he doesn't wear it more often. His skin looks a bit paler, but the blond of his beard hides that, and of course, his eyes draw all the attention. His hair is combed and tied at the back of his neck for a more clean and civilized appearance.

Really, it should be him that everyone stares at.

"You changed," she mutters without realizing it and instantly wants to facepalm. She's never been good at complimenting handsome men.

"As have you," he smiles with amusement.

"I mean, you look good," she tries to correct.

Obi-Wan's smile is big and Azel thinks she sees a tint of pink on his exposed cheeks.

"Shall we?" Obi-Wan holds his arm out to her which she takes comfortably.

Obi-Wan leads them to the bar to get her a drink. Azel orders and only moments later a short glass filled with a green liquid is sitting before her.

"Come with me," Obi-Wan says as she takes a sip. "I believe someone has been dying to see you."

Azel frowns at Obi-Wan's amused expression but follows him outside.

She was right to assume that the doors lead out to a patio or balcony of some sort. It is much larger than she imagined and overlooks a massive garden with hedges lining a pathway through it.

She doesn't have much time to admire it, however, as something attacks her at the waist.

Azel lets out a gasp as she is pushed back a step, and moves her drink away from her body to keep it from splashing over.

Looking down, a brown curly head is hugging her tightly. The girl looks up with big brown eyes and a contagious smile.

"Hi, Azel!" Leia greets.

"Leia!" Leia jumps back at the scolding tone of her mother. "As difficult as it can be at times, that is not how a Princess greets her guests."

Breha and Bail are standing side-by-side, dressed elegantly in blues, and wearing two different expressions. Bail looks as amused as Azel feels with a big smile on his face, and Breha is giving Leia a pointed look.

"Sorry, Momma," Leia apologizes and then turns to Azel, "sorry, Miss Azel," and curtsies.

Not wanting to get her in trouble, Azel responds with a curtsey of her own. "Princess," she greets and gives Leia a wink that makes the girl giggle.

"I believe it's time for dinner, and then you will be off to bed," Breha tells her now pouting daughter before ushering her off inside.

"Goodbye, Miss Azel and Master Kenobi," Leia waves to them as her mother brings her inside. Bail trails after them, but stops to look back at Azel.

"She is very taken with you," he informs her with an unreadable expression.

"I'm flattered," she says kindly and is suddenly overcome with thoughts of Han. "I'm just good with kids, I guess."

"Quite," Bail says and then nods to Obi-Wan before walking inside.

Azel frowns after him. That was weird.

"Ready for dinner?" Obi-Wan asks beside her with his arm offered out once more.

Deciding to ignore Bails strange behavior, she takes hold of Obi-Wan's arm and walks inside to an open table.

Dinner went by uneventful. The two of them made casual conversation with the other guests at their table and eventually broke off into their own private conversation. Obi-Wan becomes very lucid when he is drinking and started talking animatedly about his adventures during the Clone Wars. They kept to whispers, of course, they don't need curious ears to hear them.

After dinner, people began standing up and heading to the dance floor.

"Let's dance!" Azel exclaims and pulls Obi-Wan to his feet before he can protest.

"Azelynn please--" he pleads, but it's a half-hearted attempt because he is grinning ear-to-ear much like her.

They reach the dance floor with smiles on their faces and Obi-Wan immediately pulls Azel into the appropriate position for the elegant dance.

After a few beats into the dance, Azel drops her head to Obi-Wan's shoulder like it is the most natural act in the galaxy.

"Do you recognize the song?" Obi-Wan asks her, his voice gentle in her ear.

Azel listens more intently and smiles. "We've danced to this before."

"Yes," Obi-Wan confirms, absently running his thumb to and fro at its place on her back.

The memory struck Azel like cold water on her skin, washing away all the alcohol-induced haze, to remind her who else was with them that night.

I need the comlink to reach Han, she reminds herself.

She doesn't understand the guilt she feels upon having to deceive Obi-Wan when he did the same to her, and for the same reasons. He wanted to protect her, and right now she has to protect him.

Once she finds out if Arrin truly is in the hands of the Empire, Obi-Wan can't know she knows. He will stop her, and if he can't stop her then he will go after her.

Azel needs to find that comlink, and she knows it's on Obi-Wan's person, the problem is figuring out where.

It's a good thing she drank enough to play tipsy.

Azel starts dragging one of her hands from around his neck down his chest, purposely over his breast pocket, in hopes of feeling something. When she passes by without feeling a thing except for toned muscles, she lets her hand fall down his stomach and around his waist to his back. All of which is completely toned and Azel has to actively remind herself to stay focused.

She pulls her head back to look at him and sees he is staring at her intently. His breathing has picked up and his pupils dilate, she can't imagine her reaction is any better.

"Azel--"

"Shh," she hushes him with the hand that was at his back so she could strategically repeat the feel-up to his other side. And there, the feel of a comlink over his heart. She keeps moving her hand to not give away she felt anything and lets her hand move back up to his solid shoulder and down and up his firm bicep. All the while, Obi-Wan's hands haven't moved from their place at her back and they haven't stopped swaying to the music.

They don't break eye contact, and Azel can feel her heart rate increase at the intensity of his gaze. She moves her fingers from his shoulder to move a stray hair that fell from his ponytail and tuck it behind his ear. Suddenly she can hear words in her head, they're only fragments, not the whole of the sentences.

Beautiful--

Perfect--

Everything I could--

Falling--

"Now you're the one who's dropping their shields, Master Kenobi," she scolds him gently and gives him a teasing smile in which Obi-Wan simply pales. "I didn't hear that much," she reassures him although she isn't sure why. It's not like she actually could make out what he is thinking anyway.

"Master Kenobi?"

Azel and Obi-Wan break apart like they are teenagers caught making-out. The world around them becomes more apparent like they were stuck in a bubble that has now burst.

The two of them look down to Leia, who is grinning up at them, Obi-Wan in particular.

"Will you dance with me?" She wonders innocently. "Mommy said it is okay to dance before bed."

Azel can't help the smile that creeps to her lips at how adorable Leia is and could kiss her for giving Azel a perfect window of opportunity. Obi-Wan, however, looks uncomfortable.

"I'm sure he would love to," Azel says for him. "I'll be outside," she says quietly for him to hear. Before she walks past him, she 'trips' and falls to his chest. She snuck her hand between them and snatches the comlink from his pocket before he can righten her.

"Perhaps you should revert to water," Obi-Wan suggests in her ear. Azel only giggles in reply and stealthily pulls back with her hand hidden.

"Princess," Azel nods before walking outside for the second time that evening. She glances back to see Obi-Wan struggle with Leia's height to dance with him. She smirks in amusement.

There is no one outside when she reaches the patio and approaches the ledge before looking down at the comlink in her hands.

It's now or never, she thinks to herself.

With one last glance over her shoulder, she presses the button and says, "Han, you there?"

She waits a moment with nothing happening before she tries again. "Han, it's Azelynn. Can you hear me?"

She is ready to believe that she may never know if Arrin has been taken and will have to find out the hard way. Azel never anticipated Han not answering her calls. Then again, Obi-Wan claims he has been trying to get in contact with them for a while but the signal has been jammed, perhaps it still is.

But would he tell her if it wasn't? Especially if he knows Arrin has been taken?

Not necessarily, her mind whispers.

"Azel?" A familiar voice asks through the small speaker in the comlink.

"Han!" She exclaims. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, Ben sent me to his hut until he can come to get me."

Azel pauses at that, not realizing how soon her sudden suspicions would be confirmed.

"You two have spoken?"

"Yeah, he was talking to me and walked me through what to do when they took Arrin."

Azel feels her knees grow weak and is grateful for the ledge in front of her. Obi-Wan knew--he knew, and he didn't say anything!

"So it's true. The Empire has Arrin." She says it more as a confirmation to herself than a question to Han.

"Yeah. I don't know how long it's been Azel but I miss you and Arrin. When will you and Ben be here to get me?" His voice is small and sad and it breaks Azels heart.

"Soon," she finds herself saying. "I promise you, Han. I don't have much time but, I'm going to get Arrin back and then I will come for you, okay? I just need you to stay safe for me. Think you can do that?"

"Yes, Azel."

Azel looks over her shoulder to see Obi-Wan and Leia standing in front of one another and speaking. The music has come to an end, and a new song is starting up.

"I met someone here, Han, she's a lot like you. Probably your age, too. I think you guys would be friends." Azel doesn't know where the comment comes from, but she feels the desire to tell Han about Leia.

"You're not replacing me are you?" His tone is sarcastic and playful but she can feel the underlying truth to it.

"Never. You're irreplaceable, Mr. Solo."

Azel could practically see Han puffing his chest out and turning his chin up at his title. "You bet I am!" He exclaims proudly.

Azel laughs at him. "Alright, I gotta go, Han. Get some rest."

"Okay," his voice is small again like he is disappointed. "Bye, Azel."

"Bye Han," she says gently, keeping an eye on Obi-Wan who is bowing a thank you and goodbye to Leia. She hangs up the com and hides it in her dress.

It's cold out, significantly cold, but it can't compare to the cold in her body. Obi-Wan, she sighs deeply. Oh Obi-Wan, how can she ever trust him? He keeps secrets from her time and time again. How could he not tell her about this? Before it was only a simple speculation that he could know about Arrin, now she knows for sure that Arrin is gone and Obi-Wan didn't tell her.

He didn't tell her they were even in contact. Why? Why would he keep such a simple thing from her? What else is he keeping from her?

Azel notices particles fall from the sky and looks up. Small white puffs are floating gently down from the clouds, and are showering down at an increasing amount. Azel holds her hand out and catches a couple in her palm, to which the substances melt almost instantly, but not before she can catch a glimpse of each individual's different shape that makes them unique.

"Snow," a voice supplies from behind her. "I sometimes forget you aren't used to common weather conditions."

Obi-Wan is standing close behind her, and Azel tries to hold back all the things she is feeling. She is confused, to say the least. Her feelings for him are strong but it's not that simple. She can't trust him, and that alone is enough to break her heart.

Azel stares out at the garden a few stories below them and watches as the snow drifts to the ground.

"It's peaceful," she tells him. It's nothing like the rain which rages when it falls and drenches everything in its path. Snow is easy and gently lands on a surface before melting away.

Azel turns around to see flecks of the snow settle in Obi-Wan's hair and on parts of his clothing that are exposed to the sky. By the time one flake melts away, another is there to replace it.

"I've missed it," Obi-Wan admits and also stares at the falling frost.

The two of them stand next to each other, shoulder-to-shoulder, and enjoy the calm that has settled over the sky. The music plays gently inside, another slow song with harmonic violins.

"I never got to ask, did your meditations go well today?" Obi-Wan breaks the silence, but not the peace.

Azel thought back to meditating and speaking with her brother.

She grits her teeth but doesn't let on. "Yes."

"That's good, you've been improving in the Force significantly. I have no doubt you will make a great Jedi."

"Thank you," she tells him and turns away. "I think it's time I retire."

"Everything alright?" He asks with concern. The man can read her like a book, it doesn't take dropped shields for him to know something has shifted, and Azel wishes he wasn't so observant.

She nods with a fake smile. "Yeah, just tired."

"Well, here, let me escort you."

"No, that's alright. Stay here and enjoy yourself. I'll be fine." She smiles another false grin.

Obi-Wan is frowning. "If you insist," he says, "goodnight then."

He's not subtle about hiding his suspicions, and Azel panics. I won't have much time.

"Goodnight," she says and turns away.

She remains calm as she leaves, but starts running the second she is out of sight of the ballroom.

The elevator moves slower than she wants, and after what feels like an hour, she makes it to the floor of her room and runs down the hallway.

Inside, she changes back into her Jedi robes and goes straight to the closet for the box that holds her brothers' weapon. She opens up the box and pulls out the weapon. Standing with it in her hands and pointed away from her, Azel does what she's been dying to do since she first saw it--she ignites it.

The sound echoes in the closet as she presses the button, a sharp whooshing sound as the blade grows and a humming as she holds it steady. The entire room is glowing a cobalt blue, reflecting off her face. She stares at it in amazement, it's beautiful but deadly. She can feel the heat of the blade even from the hilt.

She doesn't have long to admire it as she has to act fast. She disables the lightsaber and clips it to her belt. She throws on her cloak and goes to the door. She stops.

Turning back to the bartop she decides to write a note... but what to say? Everything she wants to say can't be left to a silly letter, so she writes the simplest thing she can think of that gets the point across:

Don't come after me.

And after that, she walks out the door.

I'm coming, Arrin.

I'm coming, brother.