^Early draft for a new piece I'm working on :)

My mind raced as I descended the stairs of the Jedi Temple. My vision was blurred by red hot tears, streaming down my cheeks. If they were because of the wind that blew into my eyes or the frustration and anger that filled me I wasn't sure. Perhaps it was a bit of both.

All I knew was that I felt powerless. In one day all my hopes had been taken from me and crushed right before my eyes like an ant beneath a boot. Not only that, but they had also taken my very own freedom. The moment I stepped outside the temple the sentinels had left me alone but there was no doubt left in my mind that there were still eyes on me everywhere I went.

I could almost hear Windu's scolding voice in my head, Plo Koon's accusing words and Obi-Wan's questioning phrases. I had to get out of there, even if it was just for one night. If I remained for even a minute longer, I was afraid I'd burst and become what they had feared me to be.

"My queen!" His warm voice made me lift my head, meeting his joyful eyes as he clapped his hands together. "Where have you been?! I thought the jedi would never let you go, -" Stefan's smile soon vanished completely when he saw the state of me. His hands dropped at his side, his expression turning worried as he quickly ran towards me, catching me and trying to hold me steady after I practically fell against him.

"Hey, hey, Lyanna." He whispered soothingly as I buried my head in the crook of his neck, taking in a deep breath and biting my lip to keep the cries from escaping. Stefan noticed the shaking of my body, placing his hands on both my shoulders and pushing me back to an arm's length. "What happened?" He wiped away the few tears on my cheek and watched as my expression turned sour.

"Get me out of here, please." I begged. Stefan only nodded, looking behind himself to the transport he had arranged for us.

"Of course, my queen, we'll leave right now." He was already pushing me in the direction of the vehicle when someone held us back.

"Lyanna!" His voice soon made me take in a sharp breath through gritted teeth, my body freezing in place and watching as Stefan lifted his gaze to his approaching figure.

"Lyanna, wait!" I could hear Obi-Wan's hurried footsteps descending the stairs towards us, his hastened breath escaping his lips. His footsteps halted a few feet away, close enough for me to hear his laboured breathing. He tried to catch his breath for a while but my gaze remained on Stefan's face. He wasn't sure what to think, I could see. His eyes darted between him and me, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Commander, it's good to see you." Obi-Wan greeted him even when his breath was still short. "How have you been?"

"Master Kenobi, it's good to see you too." Stefan smiled warmly at him, his hand remaining on my upper arm and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Sadly, I've had some trouble with the communications. I can't seem to reach Valeria from here and Finn has been trying to call me all day." I saw his gaze drop, sadness filling his eyes. A pang of guilt shot through me when I realized he was only here because of me, and that his stay here would only be prolonged. "Anyways, we've got to-"

"If you're trying to reach your husband, I'm sure they'll be more than willing to help you in the temple. Valeria is a long way from here so it's no miracle the connection is flawed." Obi-Wan seemed to have gotten his breath under control. "We can boost the signal from inside."

I could almost picture him straightening his back, folding his arms before his chest underneath his dark brown cloak. That signature inviting smile covering his face, his auburn hair blowing in the wind. Yet, I was still more than reluctant to turn to him for I could already feel the anger boiling up inside of me.

"That's very kind of you, Master Kenobi, but I'm afraid I'll have to take the queen back to her quarters first." Stefan declined kindly, pulling on my arm to guide me towards the transport. He'd noticed my silence, deducing that there was something going on between us.

"Very good, commander, I'll be coming with you." Obi-Wan said, the decisiveness in his voice making my stomach turn. Stefan's brows furrowed as he glanced back at me, the confusion almost literally plastered on his face. He'd probably expected me to be filled with joy by his company yet found me a red-hot mess.

"No, you're not." My voice was but a low growl, my eyes darkening as I clenched my fists at my side. My fingernails dug into my skin, almost drawing blood from the white flesh.

I could hear Obi-Wan let out a deep breath as he gathered the courage to speak again. "I'm afraid I must insist, your majesty." There was no single trace of either frustration or anger in his voice. "The council ordered, -"

"I don't care what the council ordered!" I turned around in a sweep, hissing the words as my jaw clenched. Obi-Wan seemed lightly taken aback, his eyes widening for a moment as they focused on the finger I had pointed at him furiously. "You are not coming with us."

"Princess..." Kenobi sighed as he inclined his head. "As I've tried to tell you, we are trying to, -"

"Don't call me that!" I stepped forwards furiously, trying to contain the fire that crackled beneath my skin. Even after that Obi-Wan remained stoic, his eyes sympathetic as he stared down at me. We were but inches apart as I glared deeply into his eyes. The tension was high, the silence pressing down on us like a ton of weight. I could feel his warm breath fan over my skin, the heat radiating from his body.

"Anyone but you." I whispered and waited for something to flash through his eyes. Any emotion, any falter in his stance that might give me a hint as to what he was feeling.

I wanted him to hurt. I wanted him to feel sorry or to feel the pain and betrayal that I was feeling. It was stupid and childish, but I couldn't keep myself from feeling these emotions.

"I'm afraid the other jedi are preoccupied with trying to stop a galaxy-wide war." Obi-Wan commented dryly. He remained stead-vast, his stoic expression looking down at me. "You'll have to deal with me, your majesty."

After hearing his mocking tone, I hissed and stepped forwards again, our chests almost touching. His own eyes narrowed in response, warning me to not cross a line I was about to. "Over my dead body."

There was something in his eyes. An apparition I hadn't seen there before, an imperfection in his otherwise perfect jedi-facade he had put up. A small sense of victory came over me, that until I realized I had to fight the urge to glance down at his lips. It took every ounce of my willpower not to do so or let the images of us back in Valeria cloud my mind. The tension was almost tangible as our eyes remained connected. Staring each other down, waiting for the other to make a move.

The sound of an incoming transmission ripped the tension apart, both our gazes turning towards Stefan as he stuttered and stumbled to get the device out of his pocket. "I'm so sorry, let me just get this..." When he finally had it within his grasp, he pressed to accept the call and was met with a distorted image of Finn and a smaller person.

"Finn? Finn, my love, can you hear me?" Stefan groaned as the message glitched and moved; the sound unrecognizable but the image of his infant son clear enough to make out. "Why can't this just work?" He sighed as he tapped and slapped the device.

"If you hurry, we can boost the signal inside the temple." Obi-Wan offered, his voice laced with sympathy as he watched Stefan's hopeful gaze as it appeared. "I can ask one of the troopers to take you there."

"I, we... The queen needs to, -" Stefan was afraid, that much I could sense. Finn was never one to call if there was no need. If he had been trying to contact him, it would've been for a good reason. He glanced towards me, seemingly asking for permission, his body language telling me that he was reluctant to ask but needed to.

"It's all right, Stefan." I gave in, nodding at him in encouragement. "Let them take you, I'll be fine."

"Thank you, my queen, thank you." He walked towards me, grasping my hand and placing countless kisses on the top. "I'll be back before you know it, I promise."

"Trooper!" Obi-Wan shouted at one of the soldiers nearby. He gently pushed Stefan towards him and pointed towards a particular part of the temple. "Get him to the communication centre and make sure he gets a steady connection with Valeria."

"Right away, sir!" The trooper saluted him and immediately guided Stefan towards the temple, hurriedly walking up the stairs as we watched them leave. My commander turned around for a moment, his gaze meeting mine. I could see the hesitation within his eyes but I waved my hands, signalling for him to leave.

With his absence I almost felt naked, vulnerable. Stefan had always been there during my weakest hours and always provided a shoulder to lean on. Now, I had to deal with this alone. I had to deal with him alone.

From the corner of my eyes, I could see Obi-Wan watching me, his gaze burning the side of my face. I could feel the tension rising between us again, his force aura nudging mine to get my attention. Words were aching to be spoken but he remained silent, turning towards me and waiting for me to break the silence.

"We should go." I refused to meet his eyes and instead turned towards the transport.

"Of course, your majesty." Obi-Wan's voice was as steady as ever as he walked after me. He opened the door of the speeder, offering me a hand to enter which I ignored completely. Even then he didn't make any protest, entering after me as he spoke to the driver.

"Here are the coordinates of our destination." He showed him something on his datapad. "If you're able, we'd like to use the military routes. We're in a hurry."

I could see the driver nod and heard him mutter a short approval, seeing him start the vehicle soon after and feeling the machine come to life. Sighing deeply, I let myself sink into the corner, leaning my head against the window and watching as the jedi temple disappeared from view. Against all hopes, all the worries remained.

Closing my eyes, I tried to even my breath, to control this fury that I felt building inside of me. It was wrong to feel it, I was sure. It was what had disrupted me ever since the war ended. Yet, it had never gotten this bad. It frightened me beyond believe and made me question my own sanity.

"Lyanna, I, -" Obi-Wan's voice ripped me from my thoughts, making me lift my head and turn towards him. For a short while I had been oblivious to his presence. Now, I wished he had never pulled me from that delusion. "I am sorry about what happened but you need to understand, -"

"Don't." I simply interrupted him, redirecting my gaze back to the traffic of Coruscant. Taking in a deep breath I tried to resettle myself in the backseat but found no comfortable position, not with him so close by, not with the heat from his body tangible. I glanced back at him after a few seconds, seeing his eyes watching me warily as he bit the insides of his cheek.

"We need to talk about this." He pressed on, knotting his eyebrows together.

"No, we don't." I spoke carefully and slowly, lowering my voice.

Obi-Wan took in a short breath and straightened his back, facing me fully. "You have to understand that I had no choice, -"

"Obi-Wan, for Thor's sake, can you just keep your mouth shut for one goddamn second, -"

"They had to know what happened. There is a darkness inside of you that has only grown worse since we last spoke and I fear it may be Arthas, -" He continued relentlessly, unfaced by my own protests.

The bomb that had built up inside of me exploded before I could stop it, making my vision turn bright red. "I said SHUT UP!" Yelling as loud as I could, my voice came out like the roar of thunder, the vehicle shaking with the power with which it resounded. I saw the driver tense immediately, his eyes diverting to the mirror and watching us warily, making me flinch in shame.

Obi-Wan's eyes were widened, his hands grasping the armrest tightly till his knuckles turned white. I could hear him sigh in disappointment, waiting for my breathing to slow. His eyes though remained as determined as ever. "This is exactly what we're trying to, -"

Before the fury could get even worse a loud pang disrupted our conversation, making us both duck behind the front seats immediately. I could feel Obi-Wan's hand on my shoulder, keeping me down as he shielded me with his own body. I could feel his heart hammering against my fingers as I glanced at his eyes.

He looked back momentarily, his hand waving away a lock of hair and gently putting it behind my ear as he whispered. "Are you all right?" After I nodded, he glanced back to the front seat. When we found the driver's hand loosely hanging by his side and the speeder suddenly changing direction our hearts sank.

The driver had been shot and the speeder was falling rapidly.

HIiiiyaaaa

Think I will just change the weekly update schedule to twice a week because I JUST CAN'T CONTAIN MYSELF. Sorry, I have little to do now except some covid research and working in the hospital, and I need something to distract myself before I go completely bonkers. Sadly, that might mean that somewhere mid february the updates will slow because I'll be starting in the clinic. 

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