Only Hope

Chapter One

He was so resistant to it at first. The idea of leaving Tatooine again, even just for a day let alone several at a time, was too much. The plan, after all, had been for each child to be hidden in place, watched by a man who knew the truth and would protect it all costs: one with Luke, and one with Leia.

Ben Kenobi had failed at so much – failed in so many ways that could never be reversed. He could not fail at this, his single and presumably final task: to ensure the safety of the boy. 

Knowing now that the children's father was still alive – was twisted beyond measure and bringing death across the galaxy like a plague, seemingly with no afterthought – made it all the more worse. Made the risk so much more devastating.

Old Ben could never leave this place again. The thought of it was so heavy and dark that it shook his breath, pushed his heart rate into strange and terrifying rhythms. No, he must remain with Luke. He must watch over his ward and never stray again. Death and danger lurked outside of these drifting sands, more so now than he could ever have imagined.

The truth that could never be changed? This boy's father had fallen to the dark, because of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

This boy's father had been presumed dead, at the hand of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

This boy's father was now a true agent of darkness, ever bloodthirsty for the head of Obi-Wan Kenobi. And if he were ever to discover the existence of the children...?

It would be impossible for Ben to ever try to make right his part in this cataclysm of tragedy. Keeping the boy safe, as Master Yoda had instructed, was his life's sole purpose now. It was the only thing that mattered.

And so he shook his head once more as the blue-toned form of Bail Organa appraised him from the holoprojector. Dust motes floated across the senator's shimmering countenance in the dim light of the cave that Old Ben called home.

"It's not just the boy, Obi-Wan. Leia is just as important."

"Bail, please – you must call me Ben. I have tried so hard to leave... my other self in the past."

The senator sighed. "Ben," he said, exasperation lacing his tone. "My point still stands. The boy is safe, he has experienced no risk – you've said so yourself. The Lars family have taken excellent care of him and will continue to do so."

"And the same can be said of Leia with you and Breha. Why must we seek to change that? Any alteration to the way things are creates the possibility of risk, Bail – you know that. If we remain as we are, then the safety of the children cannot be endangered any further."

"With respect, Ben, that is untrue. Leia was thrown into danger just from being in the very grounds of our home. And you would never have said such things in this past life you speak of. You know as well as I do that situations can change in the blink of an eye. You carry so much of their past, their history. I know Luke's uncle forbids you from contacting him, but I cannot say the same for my daughter."

Ben began to shake his head again but the senator continued, his voice a little softer. A little kinder.

"She needs you, old friend. There are so many things she is curious about since your time with her. You know her curiosity has always been steadfast, practically uncontainable. If she is not given answers she will search them out for herself. There are things I cannot teach her, knowledge that is not mine to share. I don't want her to learn it from anybody else but you."

"I have told you, Bail; the Force is no longer with me. I am... no teacher."

"I beg to differ. The Force has always been with you, more than anyone I have ever known. It's not a cloak you put on and take off at will. Look at it from this point of view: if Luke were to come into danger then I have no doubt you would be able to call upon the Force within a single breath in order to protect him."

Old Ben Kenobi did not respond. He looked past the senator's shimmering form and out to the over-bright day beyond the cave he called home. Hot winds whistled around the rocky outcrops and a small flock of sand-bats sheered across the horizon, silhouetted against the dazzling lower of the two suns.

"All I ask is that you try it at least once, Ben... She misses you."

"Bail, I—"

"Please. For the child of Anakin and Padmé."

The desert dust often blew into Ben's eyes, even in the shelter of the cave. It irritated his vision, requiring moisture, requiring the rubbing of a hand across the face.

But no dust had drifted into the cave this time. This time, the mere mention of the reality of who Leia Organa was to Obi-Wan Kenobi brought tears to his eyes. He said nothing.

Bail seemed to detect the surrender in the cast of his old friend's gaze. It might have been too sharp of an encouragement, he thought to himself, to say their names. But it was, and would always be, the truth.

"Thank you, Ben," Bail murmured, sincere gratitude inflecting his tone. "As I said, I have already prepared a troop of royal guards in full disguise and false identity to assume watch over Luke while you are with us. They will be on Tatooine before nightfall."

Ben – his energy exhausted by the conversation, the memories – merely nodded wordlessly.

Later that night, once contact had been exchanged with Bail's undercover guards on the main thoroughfare of Mos Eisley, Ben Kenobi climbed aboard a transporter. He settled somewhat tiredly into his seat, bound for Alderaan and a princess with many questions about her past. About the Force. About things Old Ben had avoided for so long, but which he would now face in order to honour this young girl's place in the galaxy.

Thank you so much for reading! I'd be so grateful for your vote (just click on the STAR) if you enjoyed this.

I'm not sure how often this story will update at the moment, but I imagine fairly regularly given that we have less than four weeks until the show finale!