Star Wars fic: "Queen's Gambit" (22: A House Divided)

[bedlamsbard]

Queen's Gambit (227500 words) by bedlamsbard
Chapters: 23/?
Fandom: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Author Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Characters: Padmé Amidala, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, Dooku (Star Wars), Palpatine | Darth Sidious, Mace Windu, Yoda, Bail Organa, Ahsoka Tano, Quinlan Vos, Barriss Offee, Plo Koon
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Parallel Universes
Series: Part 2 of Ouroboros
Summary:

Civil war threatens the galaxy. Hundreds of star systems have declared their intentions to leave the Republic and form a Confederacy of Independent Systems.

In the hopes of securing a quick peace, the Jedi Council has dispatched two Jedi to capture or kill the leaders of the separatist movement, Queen Amidala of Naboo and her lover, the former Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Into this period of conflict have come four refugees from another universe, fleeing a devastating massacre triggered by the death of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, secretly the Sith lord Darth Sidious, at the hands of Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker…

*

Even without his boots on, Obi-Wan in full robes somehow managed to look like he should have been on the recruiting poster for the Jedi Order, if such a thing had existed. Only the expression of wariness on his shadowed features detracted from the impression.

He flipped his lightsaber hilt around in his hand so that if he ignited it, the blade would be between his body and the three Jedi clustered in the doorway. “You’re what?”

“C’mon, Obi-Wan, get with the picture,” Quinlan said. He stepped inside the cell, grimacing as the wards closed in around him, and saw Obi-Wan’s gaze move to track him. “I thought Amidala liked you for your brains, not your pretty face, but I’m starting to doubt her judgment here.”

“Padmé likes me for both, thank you,” Obi-Wan said, but after a moment’s hesitation he clipped the lightsaber to his belt and leaned down to pull his discarded boots on. “Why? Why now?”

Quinlan grimaced again, because he didn’t think Obi-Wan actually wanted to know the answer to that question; he knew and he kind of wished that he didn’t. He glanced over his shoulder at Plo Koon, hoping the Jedi master had an easy response – it wasn’t as though no one had expected that to be the first thing Obi-Wan asked – but Plo just looked as inscrutable as ever, and just as unwilling to respond as Quinlan was. His padawan shifted from foot to foot, clearly uncomfortable.

Obi-Wan straightened up, his gaze flickering between the three of them. “That bad?”