There you go, another one :) I really hope you'll like it. Thank you all for your lovely support, it encourages me to write more! lots of kisses xoxoxox

There were times when Obi-Wan wished he wasn't linked mentally to Anakin. It took away some of his privacy and for some reasons, Anakin seemed to enjoy just barging in his head whenever he wanted. Also, the boy was loud, making Obi-Wan miss the time when there was just peace and quiet in his mind without the need for shielding it. He hated being disturbed in his meditation time or during an important Council meeting. And he especially hated the times when Anakin forgot to put up his shields when he... well... engaged in some pretty naughty business with Padme.

But there were also times when Obi-Wan thanked the Force he was sharing his mind with the boy. Like today.

Obi-Wan looked at his cockpit again, or rather the piece of junk metal it had become in the past minutes and sighed. The front of it was completely crushed, the glass was shattered in a thousand pieces which were spread everywhere and the fire ignited by the explosion was still cracking slightly, leaving a small trail of smoke into the sky. Blast. He was coming back from a mission when the hyperspace ring he used decided to give up. One of the large stabilisator failed when he engaged at lightspeed, sending him in another direction. By the time Obi-Wan figured out how to stop the ring, he was already far away in the outer rim. Unfortunately, his maneuver to stop it made his cockpit's main generator explode, sending him straight down to the nearest planet. He did his best to land the ship, but it crashed inevitably. He was lucky enough to eject himself from the seat before the flaming ship made contact with the rock and exploded. The fall had been rough on him, though. Disoriented, he had hit a large rock with his left side before swiftly falling on his back. Now he was stuck on what seemed to be an inhabited planet, his cockpit unflyable and his long-range transmission broken to pieces. If he didn't have Anakin to count on, he's be in deep poodoo right now.

Burying his anger deep within his heart, he sat on the rocky ground near what was left of R4. The poor droid. He really hoped that Anakin would be able to repair it. As he felt the adrenaline slow down in his body, he closed his eyes to scan for any injuries. Yes, there was pain, but Obi-Wan accepted it as a friend, thanking it to warn him about his injuries. His left arm was broken due to the fall, but he could cope. Lucky for him, he had decided to put the armor he wore during the Clone Wars. While the arm pieces protected them from most of the damage, the solid material would also help the broken bone to stay in place until he could have better medical attention. Slowly, he took a deep breath and frowned at how unsatisfying it was. Trying again and coming to the same results, he came to the conclusion that the planet's air was very thin. Unclasping a compartment in his belt, he grasped the small rebreather and put it in his mouth, letting a small moan of relief as much needed oxygen made its way to his lungs. His weight also felt like it wasn't, well, complete. Obi-Wan has never been very tall, but he had his share of muscles to carry. If gravity was playing tricks on him, maybe his destination was more of a dead rock than a planet...

Looking up at the sunset in the sky, Obi-Wan wondered where the blast he was. The stars alignment told him he was not far from Felucia. He had reached through the Force, searching for any life-forms, but found nothing. It was good, in a way. The last thing he needed right now was any kind of predators. But no life-forms also meant close to no rescue plan if he didn't reach Anakin. Concentrating, he prayed the Force that Anakin was listening. Oh Anakin, please be there...

"Anakin, do you copy?" He called, hiding his desperation.

It took some time, enough for Obi-Wan to feel a shadow of panic building inside his heart, but Anakin finally responded back. "Yes, Master, what is it?" The boy joyfully asked, completely oblivious to the gravity of Obi-Wan's circumstances.

Obi-wan let out the breath he was holding. Thank the Force, he wasn't alone. "I'm in a bit of a situation here. My cockpit crashed, I need help. I have no ways of communication beside our bond." He said, relief overcoming the panic in his pounding heart.

He could almost feel Anakin's heart skip a beat, even if the boy was far away in the galaxy. "Are you injured?" The younger Jedi asked, concerned.

Obi-Wan looked down at his left arm. He felt it pounding in pain within his armor. "No." He lied. "I'm located on a planet situated at the East of Felucia. Its surface is mostly rock and there is no sign of any life whatsoever. I'm afraid that's all I can tell you, for the moment." He added, looking at his surroundings. The night was slowly falling and the air was getting chilly.

"Don't worry Master, I'll go to Felucia and track you from there. You do your best to stay alive, alright?" Anakin commanded, his voice tone bossy with a hint of sarcasm.

Obi-Wan nodded, a small smirk forming at the corners of his lips. "As I always do."

In Padme's quarters, Anakin dropped the datapad he was reading. Rising up from the couch, he went to the babies' room where his wife was putting Leia to sleep. When he got there, the two babies where already sleeping and Padme was looking a them in their cribs, smiling. Anakin thought it was a good time to practise communication through the new bond they had just formed. If the babies were sleeping, Anakin had no desire to wake them up.

Sneaking behind her, embracing her with both of his arms, he gently placed a kiss on her cheek. "Hey there honey." He whispered through her mind, gently enough to avoid scaring her.

Padme turned in his embrace to face him, placing her arms around his neck. A small frown appeared on her forehead as she concentrated to answer him. She was still getting used to that new connection in her head. "Well, hello my handsome Jedi Knight." She said, looking at Anakin's face, not sure if she succeeded or failed.

But Anakin smiled and gently caressed her cheek with the back of his hand. "You're getting better at this. I'm sorry but I must leave. Obi-Wan is in trouble. Again." He said, shaking his head at his own statement.

The smile on Padme's face disappeared. She hoped nothing to bad happened to her friend. "What happened?" She asked, concerned.

"His cockpit crashed and he's stuck on a planet. I'm going to go and pick him up. I should be back by tomorrow." He said, bending to kiss her lips.

As he went back to their shared bedroom to pack one of two thing for his trip, Padme followed him, alerted. Knowing Obi-Wan, she knew when the man was in trouble, it was never by halves. She still remembered the time she went to pick him and Senator Organa on that forsaken planet of Zigoola. He seemed so broken, both physically and emotionally, that she had been afraid to even touch him at the time. And the man had had the guts to tell her that it wasn't that bad! Reckless Jedi. Hushing those bad memories away, she went to join Anakin by the closet, where he was packing extra clothes. "Is he injured?" She asked in her normal voice, now that the babies were safe from the sound.

Anakin clacked his tongue. "Of course he is. He told me he wasn't but he was obviously lying. Injuries had always been at the last of his priorities. But I feel that it isn't that serious." He said, knowing all too well Obi-Wan lied to him earlier.

He made his way to the apartment's main door, stopping to kiss his wife one last time. "I have to pass by the Temple to get him some clothes and medical supplies. I'll keep you in touch." He said, turning to exit the room and closing it behind him.

Padme smiled. Oh, Anakin, always up to the rescue. "Be careful." She said to the door.

Anakin didn't waste any time and jumped into his personal cockpit. Securely installed in the nose of the small ship, Artoo beeped happily at the sight of its master. Anakin smiled, taking the commands and flying into the Capital's heavy traffic. "Let's get home, Artoo. We have so save Obi-Wan's ass again." He joked, firing up the engines.

Coruscant's traffic was really busy as usual, even with the night slowly setting on the horizon. Since Anakin didn't have any time to waste, he zigzagged his way to the Temple, owning him several curses from the nearby drivers, not that he cared. He was a very skilled pilot and if he sensed that he would put anyone in danger, he would slow down.

As he was getting closer to the tall proud building, he hit his comlink button, calling for Master Windu. Seconds later, the tall Jedi Master appeared in the center of his cockpit control board as a blue hologram.

"Master Skywalker, how can I be of assistance?" He asked, his usual serious look painted all over his face.

Anakin bowed his head to him, out of respect. "I just received a distress call from Master Kenobi through our shared bond. His cockpit crashed on a planet near Felucia, he isn't sure which one. He appears to be mildly injured but safe otherwise. I request your permission to go and pick him up." He said, still concentrating on the road.

Right beside Master Windu, Master Yoda appearded in the hologram, a large grin on his green face. "In trouble again, Master Kenobi is, hmm? Our permission, you have, young Skywalker. Pick him up, you may." He declared swiftly.

Anakin nodded. "Understood, Masters. May the Force be with you." The hologram disappeared as Anakin docked his cockpit at the Temple. Jumping out of it, he turned to Artoo, "Join me in the main hangar, we'll take my ship. I'll see you in 15 minutes." On this, he half walked, half runned to their shared quarters.

When he got to his former Master's bedroom, it was spick and span as always. Nothing on the floor, nothing on the desk, the bed neatly made. Even in his habits Obi-Wan seemed to always be the perfect Jedi. Anakin shook his head and opened the wardrobe door, picking spare clothes and robes. He also stopped at the 'fresher to grab the medical pack: he wasn't sure he installed one yet in his new ship. Better be safe than sorry…

As he closed the bag and made his way back to the door, his eyes caught something in the kitchen: his bottle of Coruscanti Brandy. A small smile appearded on his lips as he went to grab the bottle. So much memories were trapped in it. He usually was the one to get drunk, his former Master staying well away from any alcoholic source. With reasons: Obi-Wan was a very poor drinker and lost completely control of himself under its influence. He remembered that one time he actually had to drag Obi-Wan to bed, piss drunk, while the man mumbled something about Master Secura and her "tight ass".

Oh and why the kriffing hell not? Going to Felucia was quite a long voyage, the planet sitting far in the Outer Rim of the galaxy. He didn't see why he couldn't enjoy a good glass on the way back, once Obi-Wan was safe and secure. Smiling to himself, he put the bottle in the bag and got out.

Sometimes, Anakin missed his old ship, the Twilight. He hadn't seen it since Obi-Wan crashed it on Mandalore. He always loved to work on it and he had shared so many memories in it with his former padawan, Ahsoka. Oh Ahsoka, he truly missed her right now. He hadn't got any news from her since she left the Order. Anakin often wondered what she was doing, where she was going… Anakin swallowed his greef. As much as he missed his former Padawan, he didn't have time for that right now.

Taking the commands, he gestured to open the hangar's main door and took off into the night sky. Once he reached the planet's orbit, he punched Felucia's coordinate and engaged into hyperspace.

At the other side of the galaxy, Obi-Wan was glad to see that his spare compartment wasn't as damaged as the rest of the cockpit. He had stocked some emergency supplies there before leaving for his mission. Even though his medical kit was destroyed, at least now he had water and several ration meals at hand. His waiting time seemed way less grim now.

When his control board told him he arrived at his destination, Anakin disengaged the hyperdrive and got out of hyperspace. In front of his eyes, he could see Felucia with its vibrant blues, greens and purples. The planet itself was like a big living organism, full of giants carnivorous plants and skin textured floors. From outer space, it was a beautiful sight. But anyone choosing to visit it without knowledge of its biological life would likely be killed within days. Walking on it was like being a piece of steak in the cage full of lions. Except in that case, the lions were enormous plants ready to devour your skin.

Punching a well known code on the board, Anakin swept the horizons for others planets. After a while, the screen showed him several smaller planets surrounding Felucia's sun. Fortunately, Obi-Wan had told him that his landing planet was a big piece of rock without any life-forms, so his researches were narrowed to 3 planets.

"Great!" Anakin said aloud to himself. "At this rhythm, we'll be home quicker than I thought." Behind him, the little blue astromech droid beeped happily.

But his joy was cut short when his board buzzed in a very familiar way: one part of his screen was flashing red while producing an annoying loud beep. Anakin's senses became sharp, as this alarm was not to be taken lightly. It was a distress call coming from another ship nearby. He pushed on the radio transmitter, listening to any plea that could have been sent.

"..."

That's all Anakin could pick up. Static. He guessed that whatever happened to that ship knocked out their main transmitter. Anakin had a choice to make. He could either refuse the call and go on with his search for Obi-Wan or he could intervene. But there was no way to know if anyone was alive there. The distress call could have been pushed by anything, sending an empty call. On the other hand, the situation may be critical and immediate help could save lives.

When there was still no answer, he tried to contact the ship himself. If they indeed sent the distress call by accident, they would certainly tell him. "This is Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker. I received you call, what's your situation?" He asked through the mic.

"..."

Blast it. Pushing the communication button, Anakin tried again. "This is Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker boarding the Cassiopee, I just received a distress call coming from your ship, are you in need of assistance?" He asked again, his voice tone more insistent than the first time.

"..."

He had a bad feeling about this. Biting his bottom lip, Anakin reached for his Master. "Master, are you there?"

When Obi-Wan answered, he sounded much more closer than several hours before. "Yes Anakin?"

"Are you injured?" Anakin asked seriously, still staring at the flashing red light.

He could feel his Master's annoyance through the Force. Of course, the stubborn Negotiator wouldn't acknowledge his wounds, like he always did. "I told you Anakin, I'm not."

Anakin suppressed a laugh. His Master was so predictable sometimes. "Ok yeah sure Master, now tell me the truth. I know you are injured, no one could possibly survive a crash from such a small cockpit and get away unharmed. My question is: are you badly injured?"

A pause. "No Anakin. I think my left arm is broken but I'm certainly not in danger." His Master answered, defeated. Anakin sometimes wondered why Obi-Wan was so stubbornly trying to hide every injuries he gets. Afteral, it was not a crime to ask for help. Still, Anakin felt some weight lift off his chest. If Obi-Wan really was alright, it would make his decision way more easy to take.

He turned to Artoo and commanded him to put the ship on standby. The Astrodroid took no time in getting in action, and the ship came to a stop. Closing his eyes, Anakin reached for Obi-Wan again. "I'm receiving a distress call from a ship nearby, but the message is empty, full of static. I have no way of knowing if they are still alive or not. Should I go investigate? Can you hold up for a little longer?"

Anakin felt his Master's anger rage through the Force. "Are you kidding me, Anakin!? Haven't I taught you anything all those years? Of course you go and investigate! We Jedi shall never put our lives before the others. Now go there and look for survivors. Keep me in touch." Obi-Wan scolded, a hint of concern in his voice. An empty distress call could not mean any good. Either the ship was destroyed so badly it couldn't send the message properly, or the passengers were so injured they couldn't send the message properly.

Anakin nodded, taking the commands to fly to the ship's destination. "Will do, Master."

Anakin followed the destination set on his command board for an hour or so. As he arrived there, nothing had prepared him for what was waiting for him. His mouth gasped open in front of the sad sight in front of his eyes. Dear Force…

The ship in front of him was destroyed beyond repair. It was not even functioning, just floating around in the natural vacuum of space. Anakin was relieved to see that there wasn't any major hole in the structure, but he could see some cracks were it was losing oxygen fast. If there was any person in that ship, Anakin better go in there and save them fast. Reaching through the Force, he scanned it for any sign of life. There was something, but it was very weak. Kriffing hell.

Carefully, he docked onto the side of the damage ship, grateful that he could enter safely. At least that door wasn't as damaged as the rest. Placing Artoo in command, he pushed the door open, revealing the ship's command center. The sight made his heart sink in his chest and he used much of his self control not to let out a loud gasp.

"Holy shit, Master..." He whispered through the bond, not a hundred percent willingly.

"Language, Anakin..." Obi-Wan said matter-o-factly.

Anakin growled. To hell with procedures and respect! "Don't you language me, Master! This is bad, this is very bad!"

It was bad, indeed. In front of his eyes was a dozen of lying bodies of female humans and twi'leks. To Anakin's surprise, they were all wearing some sort of... uniform, if he could call it that way. In fact, it was more like several pieces of red material hanging loosely around them, barely covering them properly. They all had some sort of skirt, more like two long pieces of dark red material hanging on their hips by two ropes. The thing looked so fragile, Anakin felt a single pull on it would tear it apart. Their tops looked like one of Padme's bra in her lingerie collection. Anakin has never seen this kind of attire before. He carefully adverted his eyes as a basic show of respect to the poor females.

Not only did they all looked half starved, their skin all showed signs of abuse, some more recent than others. Who could have done such a thing? When Anakin looked at one of the walls, he noticed a blaster shot damage. He traced his fingers in the black mark, recognising the weapon. Closing his eyes and concentrating, he reached through the Force and could see a glimpse of what happened. Pirates. The ship was attacked by pirates. Anakin sighed. When pirates attacked, they rarely left anything behind…

Turning back to the females, he scanned for any sign of life. A lump caught in his throat as he realised that all the ladies in front of him were dead. Murdered by blaster shots, every single one of them. He still could sense a sign of life, but it wasn't coming from them. It was coming from deeper in the ship, more at the back of it. Sending a silent prayer to their souls, he left to investigate the other rooms.

As he went down a small dark corridor, following the small light in the Force telling him someone was still alive, Obi-Wan reached out in his head. "Have you found anything, Anakin?" He asked, concerned.

The younger Jedi sighed, shaking his head. "Not yet, Master. Everyone I encountered is dead. There is still something, though. The Force is telling me someone is still alive." Anakin answered, holding tightly to that last hope of life. Yes, he was a Jedi, but he wasn't invincible. Sometimes the sight of so many dead bodies still pierced his heart. Of course, he had witnessed many similar situations through the war, seeing several dead bodies all layered on the ground. But they were mostly Clone Troopers and battle droids. The droids were soulless and programmed to destroy and kill, making it difficult for anakin to feel any sympathy for them. It had been difficult to see many of his Clone Troopers die, but most of them wore mask, hiding the pain and the desperation on their features, hiding most of their identity. This was different. This was pure cold murder against innocent blood. Anakin could see their faces, their identity and feel their desperation, their fear. Closing his eyes, he felt like he would never forget them.

The small light in the Force led him to a door at the end of the corridor. Anakin opened it, gesturing two fingers in front of it. The room was dark, but he could still see two other females lying close to what seemed to be their bunkers. Such a waste, Anakin said to himself. They obviously tried to hide, but it was very difficult to escape from pirates.

The life light was coming from the one lying on the left of the room. Anakin wasted no time and kneeled beside her petite form, searching for injuries. As the girl was wearing the same uniform as the others, barely covering her, Anakin was very careful as to where he put his hands. She received the same blaster shot as the others, but the pirates had missed her heart by merely inches. The wound was badly burned, but at least it didn't bleed. Her breath was very small, not big enough to fill her lungs. She probably lost consciousness from the lack of oxygen. Anakin reached for his belt where he kept that special rebreather they usually used underwater and put it between her lips. At least now she would breathe better.

After removing his own cloak to cover up the poor girl, Anakin reached for his Master through their bond. "I found someone, Master. I'll bring her on the Cassiopee with me and attend her wounds. When she wakes up, maybe she'll be able to tell us where she's from and what happened..." He said, carefully lifting the woman with the Force.

"Of course Anakin, very proper. So this means I'll see you soon?" Obi-Wan asked.

Anakin shot a last glance at the dark room and nodded, "Yup. Give me two hours tops."

Making sure the woman was steady in the air, Anakin rushed with her to his ship, where Artoo was waiting for him. Opening the door to the bunkers, he gently installed the woman on one of the beds, leaving his cloak around her to give her a little privacy. But when the ship's light made its way to her gentle features, Anakin cursed under his breath. She was in worse condition than he thought, skinnier and her skin full of bruises.

After she was securely installed on the bed, Anakin rushed back to the control panel and punched the coordinates of his first target: an abandoned planet not far from Felucia. As the ship rumbled to life and flied to its destination, Anakin went back to the injured woman, grabbing the medical pack on his way.

Entering the bunkers again, he found the gentle form trashing around slightly in his cloak, her eyes still closed, her small hands reaching for the device in her mouth. Very careful not to frighten her, Anakin sat on the edge of the bunk bed, gently placing his much larger hands over her own, taking them away from the much needed device. If any damage has been done to her lungs, she would need it. Placing her hands back on her sides, he gently hushed her whining, telling her everything would be okay. Looking down at her chest, he tucked his cloak aside to look at her wound again. Unfortunately, there was little he could do for it. He could place a cold bacta compress on it, but she would need a healer's attention. The burnt skin would have to be removed under surgery and if it was too deep the skin would likely have to be replace. A very common surgery, but something Anakin couldn't do by himself. Looking at her face and arms, he told himself that the bruises and small cuts could easily be treated with bacta cream. This, he could take care of.

He was about to clean her chest wound when the woman suddenly woke up, completely panicked. Surprised to see hands so close to her body, she jerked away from Anakin only to meet the wall behind her. Probably thinking she was trapped, her eyes grew wide, her breathing became ragged and she threw the rebreather out of her mouth. Taking the situation in hand, Anakin caught the rebreather in mid-air and tried to calm her.

"Hey, hey, it's alright, you're safe..." He said, reaching out to steady her.

But when she saw his arms towards her, she panicked even more and tried to get away. Unfortunately for her, her sudden moves woke up the pain in her chest and she had no choice but to stay in place, whimpering from the pain. Anakin sent some reassuring waves through the Force, and the woman calmed herself. As she seemed to breathe just fine, Anakin placed the rebreather aside, just in case. When he looked back at her, she was looking at him with lightning in her eyes.

She obviously doesn't trust me, Anakin told himself. For a moment, he wondered what kind of situation the woman was. Maybe official introduction would be a good start. "I'm Jedi Master Anakin Skywalker, but you can call me Anakin. May I ask your name?" He gently asked.

She hesitated. She looked at him from head to toes, still not speaking. Okay, she really doesn't trust me, Anakin thought. After a minute of consideration, she handed him her right arm, turning it to reveal her wrist, where some sort of code was tattooed. When Anakin didn't seemed to understand, she sighed and rolled her eyes, pointing the code with her left fingers.

"CT-9845" Anakin read. "Lovely name..." He joked. The lightning in her eyes doubled. Pointing to the medical supplies he had prepared, he spoke again seriously. "You seem to be badly injured. If you don't mind, I'll attend your wounds as best as I can until I can refer you to proper medical attention." He said while grabbing a cleaning gauze and make his way to her chest. But his hands were pushed away.

Anakin sighed heavily, his patience growing weak. He just wanted to help her for Force's sake! He swallowed his irritation and kept his voice tone as calm as possible. The woman was obviously frightened. "Look, I understand you're afraid, but these wounds won't heal by themselves..." He tried again but he was once more pushed away. Looking up at her, he accepted her refusal, for now. I'm going to need Obi-Wan's negotiating talents on this one, he told himself while placing the gauzes aside.

"Can you at least tell me where you're from? What you were doing this deep in the Outer Rim? Maybe I could help you?" He tried, but was met by silence from her. She was still looking at him like an enemy, a threat.

Anakin tapped his foot on the floor impatiently. Usually, rescued people were more inclined to accept help. "Have you lost the ability to speak?" He ask, knowing it was indeed a possibility. But she denied, shaking her head.

Anakin looked down at his feet. He was running out of options here. He had rescued countless of individuals in his life. This distress call was not the first and certainly not the last. This woman had been part of a mass murder by the Outer rim's pirates. In order to help her, Anakin would need to know who she was, where did the ship came from and who where the other females accompanying her on the ship. "Look, I just want to help you. You were obviously in a bad situation and unfortunately you are the only one who can tell me where you ship was heading..." He said, playing with the bed's covers with his fingers.

He heard a small gasp, and when he lifted his eyes to meet hers, they were full of worry. Oh, blast. She didn't know what happened to her friends. Anakin pinched his lips sadly. He knew the news he was about to give would hurt her. "Unfortunately, you were the only survivor I found on your ship. I received your distress call and I came as fast as I could, but it was too late. I'm terribly sorry."

That's when he really heard her voice for the first time, as she let out a loud cry, putting her hand on her mouth and tears flowing her cheeks. Anakin felt the pain and grief pulse through the Force as the woman in front of him wept desperately. Anakin bowed his head and lifted himself from the bunk bed. "I'll leave you alone. If you want to talk, I'm not far." He said, leaving the room as sharp cries escaped it. Closing the door, he let the woman grieve in peace.

When he was back at the control room, he was arriving at his first destination. Punching several buttons, he scanned the planet for any source of life, but nothing came up on the screen. Obi-Wan wasn't there. "Well Artoo, let's got to the next one..." he whispered more to himself than to the little droid behind him.

It took him 45 minutes to get to the next planet. It was really small, so small it could almost be considered an asteroid if it wasn't so round. Scanning again for signs of life, Anakin felt his former Master being close. After a couple of seconds, the screen indeed showed signs of life. Smiling, he fired up the engines to land towards the signal.

As he came closer and closer to the ground, Anakin could see a small trail of smoke. Pinching his eyes to have a better view, he could see the form of a small crashed cockpit. Anakin's heart jumped. He found him. "I see you Master!"

Gently but swiftly, Anakin landed his much larger ship beside the junk pile that was once Obi-Wan's cockpit. When the ship was securely stabilised in the rock, he turned the engines off. He was about to run down the landing ramp, but he checked on the woman first, making sure she was alright. Gently pushing the room's door, he founded her asleep, the tears still fresh on her cheeks. she wasn't in any danger, so Anakin jumped on the landing rail to meet his Master, who was smiling gently after removing the rebreather he had in his mouth. Anakin felt a small relief when he saw no blood on his former Master. His left arm was hanging loosely at his side and Anakin remembered that its bones were probably broken.

"Boy, Anakin, am I glad to see you!" Obi-Wan said, relief all over his voice, walking to meet the taller man at the ship's ramp.

As he put his feet on the rocky ground, Anakin made his way to the crash site. "Geez, Obi-Wan. I do think this is one of your best crashes ever!" He said sarcastically. He then noticed to broken R4 and wasted no time in taking the remaining pieces of the droid. "I'll repair it at the Temple." He declared.

"Thanks, I've come to like that little droid. Now let's go home, I'm tired." Obi-Wan said, trying his best to hide his exhaustion. Sleeping on hard rock was less than comfortable.

Anakin followed his Master up in the ship, placing the remains of R4 securely under a table in the main room. Obi-Wan settled on one of the couches and took a deep breath, his back wildly enjoying the smoothness of the cushions. In no time, Anakin had brought the ship out of the huge rock and made the jump to hyperspace. Next destination: Coruscant.

Coming back into the main room, Anakin sat on the couch across the one Obi-Wan was sitting on. Smiling to his exhausted friend, Anakin talked, "Now, will you tell me what happened to you this time?" He asked, his voice full of hints about all the times Obi-Wan had got himself in trouble.

Obi-Wan opened his eyes and sighed. "Hyperspace ring failed. Engines where locked and sending me in the other directions. I would have flown in hyperspace until the ring went out of power. Had to break it myself." He mumbled, his voice croaked from exhaustion but still filling the room in a unique Obi-Wan way.

Anakin grimaced. On all the accidents scenarios, the ones happening in hyperspace where very dangerous. Once the hyperdrive was activated, there was close to no ways of stopping it. "Glad you make it out of there alive. Can I see your arm?" Anakin offered, pointing toward the injured limb.

Looking down at his pounding arm, Obi-Wan shook his head. "I think it would be better to leave it in the armour until we get to the Temple. I have a feeling that if I remove it, it'll start swelling badly." He said, laying his right hand on the rough material of his arm piece.

Anakin considered but shook his head. "Not a good idea. If it does swell up you probably won't be able to remove the armour piece at all once we reach coruscant. I have a device available for broken bones in the medical kit I brought with me. Plus, I have a feeling that you want to jump in the 'fresher as soon as you have to chance." He said, making a mental note to retrieve the medical kit from the bunkers where he left it earlier.

"You're right, I wouldn't refuse some hot water right now..." Obi-Wan said, passing his right hand in his messy hair.

Anakin lifted himself from the couch and went to sit across his former Master, careful not to hit the injured arm. Taking it gently in his hands, making Obi-Wan hiss, he searched for the small unclasping button situated under the wrist. Putting his finger on it, he looked at Obi-Wan. "Careful." The arm piece detached, making Obi-Wan moan slightly in discomfort. Putting the arm piece aside, Anakin gently rolled the Jedi Robe material to reveal the skin, shaking his head as a small blue bruise revealed itself.

"You can't seem to get out of a mission without being injured, can you?" Anakin said, letting a feathery touch of a finger on the bruise.

"At least I get the job done." Obi-Wan responded, quoting the very man beside him.

The times Anakin took care of Obi-Wan after their missions couldn't count on both of his hands. But for all the times Anakin took care of the him physically, Obi-Wan had given him some much needed moral support. Each time he had trouble to control his anger, his fears, his pain, Obi-Wan had been there. Anakin would be eternally grateful for that.

Gently placing Obi-Wan's arm back on his knees, Anakin went to grab the medical kit, careful not to disturb the still sleeping form in the right bunk bed. When he came back, Obi-Wan had removed his top tunics, leaving him bare chest on the couch. Anakin smiled as he saw no traces of injuries there. Good.

He sat back on his spot and opened the plastic box on the small table. When he reached for a syringe containing the same strong painkiller he used for his chest wound, Obi-Wan shook his head. "Not that one, Anakin. I do not wish to be knocked out."

Nodding, Anakin went for a small bottle instead, taking two small pills from it. They couldn't suppress pain as much as the other one, but at least they didn't cause somnolence. Obi-Wan took them gladly.

The device Anakin installed on his arm was made of several durasteel sticks. They were placed in a special way, letting the skin breathe but keeping the bones in place. They were used for emergencies until better medical attention could take care of it.

"Okay, Master, all set. You should go get a shower now." Anakin declared, closing the medical box.

Obi-Wan nodded and got up from the couch. The painkillers were taking effect and even though the pain was still present, it was more annoying than acute. As his former Master made his way to the 'fresher, Anakin closed his eyes and let himself drift off a little bit.

He was woken up by steps coming back in the common area. He opened his eyes to Obi-Wan who seemed to have found his new set of clothes.

"I need a cup of tea, can I bring you anything?" Obi-Wan asked, going towards the small kitchen just behind the couches.

Anakin was about to say no when he remembered his bottle. Looking at the time, he calculated that they still had 18 hours to travel in hyperspace. A small glass of brandy wouldn't hurt. "If you look in the bag on the counter, I brought my brandy. I think I'll enjoy a glass while we're stuck here..." He said, a relaxed smile on his face.

Obi-Wan laughed and looked back at his former Padawan. "You can't possibly be serious..." He said, incredulous. His former Padawan's love for alcoholic beverage was beyond him.

Anakin shrugged. "It's just a glass Master, I do not plan on getting drunk..." He declared, removing his boots from one swift move of his legs and putting his feet on the edge of the small table.

Obi-Wan shook his head. "Anakin, you know alcohol blurs our inhibitions..."

The younger Master laughed heartily as memories flowed rapidly in his mind. "In your case Master? Yes, very much!" He said, another laugh powerfully catching in his lungs.

Embarrassed, Obi-Wan just went to the kitchen, using his right arm to put some water to boil. He then remembered that they were carrying a victim with them. "How about that distress call? Has the person talked about what happened?" He asked, turning up the heat.

Anakin felt irritation building in his heart, but chose to ignore it. "She didn't trust me enough, she didn't say a word. She seems pretty afraid. I tried to attend her wound but she wouldn't have it." Anakin answered, his gaze floating around his surroundings. He was tired too.

Obi-Wan turned back, the bottle of brandy in his right hand and a glass right beside it, flying around with the help of the Force. Obi-Wan wanted to use his left arm as less as possible. "So that person is a 'she'. I see, I'll go see her, maybe I can convince her to talk..." He said, coming back to the main room.

Again, Anakin grimaced. "Yeah, if I were you I'd wait a bit for that Master. She just learned the death of all her colleagues and, well, she's grieving pretty hard right now. Last time I checked on her she was sleeping. I think it would be better to let her res-"

Suddenly, the glass that was floating as well as the bottle of brandy loudly crashed on the floor, shattering glass and amber liquid all over it. Anakin jumped at the piercing sound, alarmed. "What the kriff?!" He shouted. It was very unlike Obi-Wan to just drop things like that. "Master, are you okay?" He asked, worried. Maybe his Master was badly injured after all…

When he looked back up at Obi-Wan, the older Jedi had a frown on his face, staring down at nothing, like someone who was trying to recall a word but couldn't put their hands on it. His breathing was becoming slightly heavier. "I… I sense… it can't be..."

As quickly as his legs allowed him, Obi-Wan rushed to the bunkers.