Here's another angsty one-shot. Major AU. Anakin and Padme raised the twins. This is a short scene of Anakin and Luke eating cookies and Anakin finally has to tell Luke the truth...

You were wrong, my brother…

Anakin Skywalker stood in front of the cooling unit, metal hand on the top of the door, other hand scratching his head. There was nothing to eat, nothing to drink, or at least nothing he wanted to eat or drink, but it was a habit he could not break. He was one of those people who could not help but open the cooling unit at least once every hour, stand in front of it, try to find something appealing, and then walk away completely unsatisfied. It annoyed him, but he could not for the life of him figure out how to stop.

"Father, I have mom's cookies out here!" Luke's voice carried a great deal. Anakin smiled and shut the door. Cookies it was.

He stepped out of the door onto the balcony of the second story of their home. Luke looked over his shoulder and grinned at his dad. At sixteen years of age, he was the splitting image of the Force's Chosen One. Dark blonde hair, deep blue eyes, and a boyish ruggedness about him that made many young women sneak second glances whether they wanted to or not. Right now, he was seated in a cushy chair, holding out a peanut butter cookie to his dad. Anakin took a seat next to him and snatched the cookie out of his grasp. "Thanks, Luke."

"You're the only person I know who's always hungry," Luke retorted.

Anakin chuckled, but he couldn't prevent the remark from echoing in his mind. It was a different voice, a different time. Deeper, with a clipped accent that was both formal and teasing at the same time.

You're always hungry, padawan.

Anakin shut his eyes, wincing slightly. It had been sixteen years, but the wounds were still fresh and the memories still strong. Luke noticed and stopped smiling. "Is everything okay, father?"

He opened his eyes again to look at his son. Blue eyes stared back, concern and love swirling around in them. Luke still didn't know the truth. "Yeah, just an old memory."

His son nodded in understanding. "Of Master Kenobi?"

"Yeah… Master Kenobi…" When will you start calling me Obi-wan? I am no longer your master, you know. His smile was a sad one, laced with regret. "Obi-wan."

"I wish I could have met him," Luke said, absently devouring another cookie. "He seemed like an awesome Jedi."

Anakin smiled at that. "He was. One of the best."

Luke stopped chewing and gave him a curious look. "Father… you knew him well, didn't you?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, because whenever I used to ask you for a story, he was always in it. You never really talked about anyone else." Luke paused and looked away, fiddling with his fingers. "And you were always sad."

Anakin made no comment to Luke. They both sat there, eating cookies, looking out over the scenic landscape of Naboo, but only one of them was actually observing the scenery. Anakin was suddenly consumed with grief and regret. Finally, Luke stood up and walked over to the railing, leaning on its smooth surface. "Did you see him die?"

The question was so quiet, he almost missed it. Did you see him die? Anakin swallowed and kept his gaze firmly fixed on a point in the distance. He supposed it was about time this conversation rolled around, but he wasn't the least bit ready for it. Did you see him die? He blinked. "Yes."

You underestimate my power.

Don't try it!

A blind leap fueled by anger and desperation, a man duty bound to kill his son, a killing stroke halted by compassion, and one that would stop at nothing…

Anakin tried to calm his breathing, but it wasn't working very well. Luke sensed his father's grief and caringly chose to not look at him. Instead, he looked out over the rolling green hills and tried to imagine what this man Kenobi had looked like. His father had never truly talked about him. Stories didn't count. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Who was he, father? Who was he to you?"

Silence. For so long that Luke feared his father had stopped breathing for some reason. But he answered eventually. "He was the father I never had."

Luke smiled, trying to forget that his father had just told him that he'd seen this man die. He wanted his father to remember something happy. "What did he look like?"

Anakin's smirk went unnoticed. He appreciated his son's efforts to get his mind in a happy place, but unfortunately it was not likely to happen. "Not like you imagine, I'm sure. He was relatively short…" No, you're just unusually tall, my former padawan. "And he grew a beard shortly after I became his padawan, whether it was to make him look older or to make him feel dignified I will never know. He had reddish hair. And the most unusual eyes you would ever come across."

Luke finally glanced back. "Unusual?"

Anakin nodded, deep in thought, a relaxed smile on his face even though his heart suddenly felt like lead. "Color-changing. They could be dark blue, light blue, gray, and sometimes even green. Both piercing and gentle at the same time. He drove politicians insane. They could never figure him out. I suppose it's what made him such a great negotiator…"

That man was born to be a politician, Ani, he just doesn't know it.

His wife's voice, strong and wise.

That's because he was destined to be a Jedi.

His own voice, declaring what he knew to be true.

"Was he strong?" Luke asked him, trying to decide whether he should add bulging muscles to his imaginary Obi-wan or leave him fairly thin.

Qui-gon's death, rage at a Sith, death of a loved one, grief for dying clones he never knew, a heart for an assassin that tortured him.

Despair stemming from a brother's betrayal…

He would not cry. He would not cry. "Yes," he managed. "Very strong." Stronger than most.

Luke turned so that he was fully facing his father. He took a few steps closer and then knelt down and sat on the marble balcony. "You can tell me, father. You need to tell someone. How did he die?"

Anakin sighed. A long, drawn out sigh caused by years of heartache and guilt. Years of wishing his brother was still here, still alive and sharing in the wonderful life that he missed out on. Anakin raised his head and stared directly into his son's eyes, willing himself to tell the truth even if his heart wouldn't be able to handle it. "Do you remember the story I told you about Vader?"

Luke's brow furrowed as he tried to remember. "The Jedi that fell for a little while? The Mustafar one?"

That terrible, Force-forsaken planet. He would never be able to rid his mind of that purely evil place. Only too often, he would wake up in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, his eyes still seeing the lava and his nose still smelling the sulfur. A gentle hug from Padme was all that was capable of rescuing him from his inner torment on those nights. He nodded. "Yes, that story. Do you remember what happened on Mustafar?"

"Vader fought one of the Jedi that survived the purge. He killed him. He –" Luke stopped, eyes suddenly filling with pain. "Vader fought Master Kenobi, didn't he. Vader killed him. I'm so sorry, father." Anakin nodded, but didn't say anything and that's when it came together for Luke. His eyes clouded over in denial. "But if you saw him die, then you were there too, right? Why didn't you help him?"

Anakin winced and dropped his eyes. How do you tell your son such a terrible truth? How to tell him that his father had fallen to the dark side, even if it was for only a short time? How could he… how would he… no words came to mind for a few minutes. It just wasn't possible.

In the end, eyes growing wet, Anakin decided on the simplest version he could come up with. "I was him, Luke. It was me that fell." He swallowed the tears away and took a trembling breath. "I killed him." Luke's eyes went wide in shock, but Anakin didn't see. His head was bowed, eyes closed, teeth clenched in painful memory.

A Jedi that was too young to look that old fending off another Jedi that had been too light to be that dark. Invincible defense versus lethal offense. A bond so deep that most thought it impenetrable suddenly cracking a little at the edges, fraying on each end, and then ripping entirely in two. A legendary partnership ending, brothers destroyed.

Black. Then red. Anger, hate, disgust… rolling off in waves, pounding the older man with intense force. Compassion standing steadily, refusing to give in. All that remained of hope.

A final stand-off. He had the high ground. He should've won. He should've killed him.

A killing stroke halted by compassion.

And one that would stop at nothing, driven straight through the chest of everything that was good, everything that was strength, and all that was Jedi. The Sith had won.

"No, father. Tell me you're lying." Luke's voice was pleading, choked with sudden emotion.

Oh how I wish I could. But I can't. He would be angry. "It's the truth," Anakin whispered.

Often times, the only thing we have left in this miserable universe is what we know to be true. The truth can set you free, Anakin. Never hide it.

"I killed him. I was a fool for but a few hours, and I destroyed everything that had saved me from my former life."

Awful silence hung heavy in the air once more. Luke said nothing. Anakin said nothing. And they sat there for a long time, the boy trying to comprehend what had just been said, and the father unwilling to offer any words of understanding, for he did not fully understand it himself. He had been trying to find a reason for why he fell for over ten years now, and try as he might, he had failed miserably.

"But you're still here, father. You're still light." His son's words shattered the dreadful silence and broke through the wall surrounding a heart that had been closed off from the world ever since that nightmare of a day. He looked at Luke and was shocked to see a smile on the young face. Luke had accepted the truth and shut it away, unwilling to dwell on it.

A smile emerged from the pain. "Yes I am. He saved me with his dying words." Simple words. Oh so simple. Yet it was what he had been yearning to hear since Qui-gon had rescued him from slavery at nine years old.

"What did he tell you?"

Anakin swallowed and closed his eyes once more. "He told me he loved me."

A seizure racked his body. The blade was still stuck in his chest, even though he'd fallen to the ground and was lying on his back. His brother stared down at him, red eyes filled with hate, hurt, and even a little confusion. The master's face contorted in pain for a split second before a blissful smile overtook it.

The Force was calling him home.

Clear blue eyes looked up from the ground and stared into the young Sith's face. "You were wrong, my brother…" A whisper almost unheard behind the churning lava and the dry wind. "I do love you."

A young man's confusion turned to agonizing realization. "Master? Obi-wan?" He fell to the side of the older man's still form, failing to hold in a torrent of tears. They hit his beard and rolled down, small rivulets that cleared away the ashy grime.

A limp hand grabbed feebly at the younger man's sleeve. "Go… go to her, Anakin. Go and… love… your children."

He was fading fast; the hand fell to the charred dirt and did not move again. The youth grabbed him and cradled him in strong arms, willing the life back into him, but finding that it was not possible. "I'm sorry, master. So sorry."

Another smile, effortless despite the pain. "You're forgiven… now go."

True to his nature, the young man did not listen. Anakin Skywalker would stay by his master's body even after the soul had been taken up by the Force. He would sit there holding his brother for long hours, the only source of light on a planet that would be forever dark. Only when Threepio came to tell him that Padme had gone into labor did he gently lay Obi-wan on the charred ground.

He stood slowly and finally wiped the tears from his face, leaving ashy streaks on his cheeks. Before turning to go to his wife, he managed a shaky smile. "I love you too, master. Goodbye."

"Father?"

Anakin opened his eyes and blinked, the image fading. His face felt wet and he reached a hand to wipe it off. "Yes?"

"Will I get to meet him?" Luke's voice was hopeful and full of youthful excitement that overcame the sadness.

He had to smile. "Of course. When you join the Force I'm sure he'll be excited to meet you."

"I want to tell him thank you."

Anakin stood up and walked over to the edge of the balcony. He took a moment to gaze at the stunning beauty that surrounded their warm home. The sun was just beginning to set and the sky was awash in vibrant colors. Pink clouds outlined in light, glowing in a purple backdrop that faded to a soft blue at the edges. It was truly a sight to behold. This had been his master's favorite time of day. He used to say a sunset could lighten up his mood on even the dampest, darkest day.

Anakin smiled as Luke walked over to stand on his left. He put an arm around his son's shoulders and squeezed gently. He didn't deserve a life like the one he had been given. "When that time comes, Luke, we can tell him together."

His son handed him another cookie. He was about to take a bite when he stopped and lowered his arm. Some might call it a trick of the wind, but Anakin knew better.

There was no mistaking an accent like that one.

You're welcome, Anakin. I'll wait for you.

Anakin laughed. A joyous sound that echoed over the valley. Luke smiled, somehow understanding what had just happened.

His father's heart was at peace.

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