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[VIDEO]; UN: [USERNAME NOT SET]

[demonicbeauty]

[It takes Ariadne a good, long time to make this call. Mostly because she's debating with herself. Back home, she could see all the possible outcomes of her actions much more clearly. Back home, she knows the rules, both of society and of the physics in the universe. Here, things are never as clear.

Ultimately, though, Ariadne knows she needs to rely on her instincts first. And her instincts are to protect at all costs.

Even if that cost might be a friendship.

So she makes the call, sitting on the floor of her soon-to-be herb shop, before a large bay window that came over from Deerington. Her hair is down, loose around her shoulders in gentle waves. Like she's only just woken up from a dream.]

Obi-Wan. I...I think we need to talk. About Anakin.

[jedies]

[ why can't anyone give him good news . . . ]

What happened?

[demonicbeauty]

Well...

[She sucks in air between her teeth, looking entirely unsure of how to even begin.

This isn't a conversation she planned on having. Ever.]

As far as I know--and I definitely don't know it all--it began when I last spoke to him on the network.

I, uh, think you can find that conversation if you search back. It was September fourth or so.

[jedies]

[ he sighs. ]

Go on. What did he do?

[demonicbeauty]

Nothing. Exactly. To me, that is.

[She shakes her head, trying to find a way to be coherent.]

After our conversation, I mentioned to Dean that Anakin didn't seem to like him. Dean offered to give Anakin a scolding or something, but I told him not to.

And then a few days ago, Sam--that's Dean's brother--made the same offer. To scold Anakin for the way he was treating me.

[And she'll just...avoid talking about Anakin's mate all together, if possible. But it may not be possible.]

And then...I just received a third offer. From Maul.

[jedies]

[ okay. not as bad as obi-wan was picturing though not great. ]

Putting that aside . . . how do you feel about it?

[demonicbeauty]

Oh, I'm not the sort to ask others to fight my battles for me.

Although I didn't really think it was exactly a battle until...

[Ariadne makes a vague gesture.]

Well. I assume you saw what Maul had to say on the public network? About Anakin...killing someone?

[jedies]

I did. A man named Flynn, I believe.

I also know that this month had some kind of rage-induced atmosphere. Many people were affected.

[demonicbeauty]

Yes...

[Not a terribly good excuse in Ariadne's book. But then, she finds the idea of killing--even justified killing--utterly repulsive. There's always another way. There's always another way.

Still, she sighs, gathering her thoughts carefully.]

Obi-Wan, you've told me about the Force many times. And I will admit, I haven't always understood.

But...Maul is concerned about Anakin falling to...the "Dark Side."

[jedies]

[ ah. that is a tricky topic. ]

There have been signs. I am working with Anakin to dispel what is troubling him.

[demonicbeauty]

[Ariadne is quiet a moment. For all of her pixie-like energy, her next words are chosen very carefully, spoken softly and with a sense of gravity that she doesn't usually possess.]

Obi-Wan. I'm going to need to hear more than that.

Because of some great, cosmic joke...my face is setting him off. I'm stuck in this, whether I want to be or not.

But I do want to be. Because Anakin is my friend and I care about him.

[jedies]

[ yes. that part is especially troubling. obi-wan knows why and the implications there . . . cannot be avoided. ]

What would you have me do?

[demonicbeauty]

Just tell me the truth.

What's going on?

[jedies]

[ obi-wan exhales quickly. ]

Padme is . . . romantically involved with Anakin. Enough that they had children in secret.

And I believe Anakin was having visions of her death.

[demonicbeauty]

[Ariadne is able to breeze by that first part without a thought. Under other circumstances, she might at least pretend to be surprised, as if this were startling, new information.

But she finds she can't do that. She respects Obi-Wan too much to lie to him like that.

So she moves on to the second part.]

And you mean to train his mind? To try to wipe away the visions?

[jedies]

[ he shakes his head. ]

All I can do is remind him that visions are unpredictable and generally unreliable. Visions can be implanted. False.

I suspect another person's hand in them. Palpatine. And while he has acknowledged that Palpatine may not be good, I fear the damage and fear has dug itself deep.

[demonicbeauty]

Obi-Wan...

[There's a sense of "you should know better" in her tone there, although she doesn't say it.]

This isn't something that can be intellectualized. Loves lives in the heart, not the head.

[jedies]

I am aware. But he has to open up to be helped.

I cannot force him to accept it.

[demonicbeauty]

[He's right about that. But in her experience, some sense of commiseration is often very good at getting snarly males to be less...snarly.]

Have you considered talking to him about Sabine?

I mean, the way you talked to me about her.

[jedies]

[ he sighs. ]

I have spoken to Anakin about Satine many times. It is normal to have feelings of fear and sorrow. But he will not confide in me.

[demonicbeauty]

Is it, though? Normal to feel that way?

[She frowns.]

The way you talk about the Jedi, it sounds as if they treat those feelings as dangerous and bad. Something they discourage feeling. And if you discourage a feeling, that means you don't get a lot of chances to see it expressed in the right way.

[Ariadne sighs.]

I'm not a Jedi. And I'm not a snarly male either. I've never been in love and I've never been loved. Everything I know, I know from seeing it.

[jedies]

[ his frown deepens. ]

We have powers that could be used to hurt others. As witnessed quite clearly by Maul and Savage. Love is a part of the Jedi, but we choose to be selfless with it. Even feelings like anger, sorrow, hate . . . we are allowed to feel.

But if we let those feelings control us and drive us to do unconscionable things, then we are no better than animals. Love is not an excuse to hurt someone. Hate is not an excuse for violence. Sorrow and pain are not excuses to lash out.

My masters have loved. As have I. And that love is still within me.

We do not discourage feeling. We encourage peace.

[demonicbeauty]

And what better way is there to demonstrate peace than to talk about your own struggle with the exact same emotions?

[These Force-users are so frustrating.]

Maybe what Anakin needs more than a teacher is a friend.

[jedies]

Which I have done. As I already stated. I did not tell him my struggles in order to lecture him.

[demonicbeauty]

[Ariadne is...skeptical. But she lets it go.

And breathes out a long sigh.]

What if the worst should happen? What if Anakin falls to this Dark Side?

What should we expect?