Anakin followed his master, about two steps behind and to the side, as Obi Wan had instructed him. The youth had been inside the Temple before, to be tested by the Counsel. This time they were in an entirely different area, and it seemed very easy to get lost in a place so large.
Obi Wan led the way through turns and turbolifts, and Anakin couldn't help but wonder that the man could maneuver through the halls so easily without sight. He kept up with difficulty, his master either not knowing or not caring that his stride was much longer than the Anakin's.
Anakin's pack slipped a bit from his shoulder. He fumbled with the strap and hurried to catch up, only to barely prevent himself from colliding into the man's legs when he stopped suddenly.
At first, he entertained the notion that Obi Wan had stopped to give his apprentice a chance to keep up, but realized the break in his stride was due to another person altogether.
Anakin stared at the being before them. Living near the Mos Eisley spaceport, he had seen and interacted with many non-human species, yet he'd never encountered one like this. He almost asked his master "What is it?" before his sense returned and he wisely chose to keep silence.
"Obi Wan, you're back! I'm so glad you're safe." If the gentle, feminine voice was proper indication, this being was female.
"Bant," Obi Wan's voice faltered. He held out a hand, palm out, and the being pressed her own webbed hand flat against his. To Anakin it seemed like a handshake of sorts, the kind that friends share.
"I heard about Master Jinn." Bant's large silver eyes seemed to shimmer with emotion. Anakin wondered if Obi Wan could tell. "I'm so sorry."
His master nodded but was quick to brush the sentiment aside. "I…I was just bringing Anakin to get settled into our quarters." He removed his hand from its flat position against hers and settled it on Anakin's shoulder.
One silver eye swiveled to the boy, while the other stayed on her friend. "Anakin?" her voice betrayed confusion, but she recovered quickly enough, smiled, and held out a hand for the more common handshake greeting. "Hello. I'm Senior Padawan Bant Eerin. And whose padawan might you be, little one?"
Anakin shook her hand vigorously, pleased to finally be acknowledged in the conversation. He decided he liked Bant. She seemed kind. And once you get over the surprise, her domed head, reddish brown skin and large silver eyes were actually sort of pretty. Not Padme pretty, but nice all the same. He was about to reply to her question when Obi Wan interrupted.
"He's my padawan. We met while on the mission," the young man informed her. "I was knighted after my master…became one with the Force."
Bant again looked confused as she took in this information. She seemed worried for her friend. Anakin wondered that this Jedi could be so emotional when his master was…not. He didn't even seem to care as much as Anakin did that Qui Gon was gone.
Though Bant obviously did not understand all that had happened, she didn't seem inclined to pry further. "Well, I actually came to see if I could help you clean out Master Qui Gon's quarters. It was difficult for me to do after losing Master Tahl. I thought perhaps you could use a friend."
Obi Wan merely nodded in response.
Bant knelt beside the boy and placed a webbed hand on his shoulder "While we're at it, I can help you get settled in. Does that sound okay?"
Anakin grinned at her and nodded. "Thanks!" And he meant it. This stranger, at least, made him feel like maybe someone besides Qui Gon actually wanted him in the Temple. The Jedi Counsel had been clear in their rejection the first time he visited the Coruscant. Obi Wan had been cold and distant from the beginning.
It made Anakin's insides ache for his mom's warm hug, or even Qui Gon's smile and reassuring words. He missed them both intensely. Bant's immediate acceptance gave the boy hope. He would make them like him, even Obi Wan. He had to become a great Jedi, like he promised his mother he would be. Like Qui Gon always believed he could be.
Walking into the Jinn/Kenobi residence was more difficult than Obi Wan had anticipated. He no sooner accessed the door before his master's familiar earth and sandalwood scent greeted him, stirring up memories that he didn't feel capable of reviewing just yet.
The apartment was almost alive with his master's presence. Qui Gon's datapad was right where the elder had left it, on the cushion of the armchair. That particular armchair was one his master usually sank into after the conclusion of a tiring mission.
The thermostat was still set at 73˚F/23˚C, the temperature his master felt most comfortable. Obi Wan found it a bit too warm for his liking, but never mentioned as much to Qui Gon.
The mat in the corner by the window was his master's meditation area. Often, he'd leave the window slightly open while meditating, allowing the thrum of Coruscanti traffic and the cool whisps of air to enter the room.
Bant clasped his shoulder, bringing him back to the present. She had been right. Clearing out his former master's room would be difficult, yet unavoidable since Anakin needed a place to sleep. "Will you be moving into Master Qui Gon's room?" she inquired.
Obi Wan considered for a moment. While he may be expected to occupy the Master quarters, in truth he saw little reason to do so. Both Master and Padawan quarters were of equal size, and he was already accustomed to the layout of his own room. Briefly imagining himself waking up groggily and walking into a wall where his door used to be, he made the decision. "No, Anakin can have that room. Less things to move around that way."
Packing up Master Qui Gon's things took surprisingly little time, in Anakin's opinion. His clothing and boots were put into boxes. His bedding was left on the bed for Anakin's use. He had some books and materials that needed to be returned to the Archives (Bant promised to do that later). There were little of anything else, and the boy was disappointed. He had hoped to get a deeper understanding of the man by seeing his room.
The Mon Calamarian padawan seemed to read his thoughts. "You thought there'd be more, didn't you?" She smiled. "Jedi do not accumulate possessions, Anakin."
"But why not?" the boy wondered aloud.
"It's part of the Jedi Code, young one," Obi Wan took up his mantle of teaching. "A Jedi is disciplined, and part of that discipline is conquering materialism. Too many possessions distract a Jedi from the Force. It can foster greed to obtain more. I'm sure you have seen on Tatooine the repulsive consequences of greed."
Anakin nodded, a lump forming in his throat as he remembered the violence, deception, and dishonesty beings resorted to when they thought they could gain from it.
Bant joined the discussion. "A great Jedi Master once said 'I wear my robe so that I am warm; I carry my lightsaber so that I am safe; and I keep enough credits for my next meal, so that I am not hungry. If the Force wants me to have more, it finds a way of letting me know.'" She then smiled kindly at Anakin and nudged the pack that carried all of the boy's meager possessions. "I don't think you'll have a problem conquering materialism."
Pleased with the encouragement, Anakin began to unpack. With Bant's help this did not take long either, yet by the end his head was bobbing with exhaustion.
"You're worn out from the long trip." Obi Wan said suddenly. "You should go to bed."
"But I'm not sleepy." Anakin protested. He wanted to stay up and talk to Bant more.
"It's unbecoming for a padawan to lie to his master." Obi Wan remarked dryly.
"Well, I guess I'm a little tired." Anakin conceded. Bant quietly exited the room, but Obi Wan waited for the child to get into bed.
The padawan relented, and climbed into the rather large bed. The sheets smelled like Qui Gon, and that caused a pang of grief to settle in his chest. "Would you…tuck me in?" he asked hesitantly.
The Jedi Knight's head tilted to the side. "Tuck…in? Is that a Tatooine expression? I'm not familiar with the meaning."
Anakin shifted restlessly. "Well, it's not hard. You just…pull the blankets up around me, and wish me good night." It felt strange, having to explain something so familiar. "My mother did it every night, she…"
"I'm sorry, Anakin," Obi Wan interjected. "Please understand. I'm not your mother. I cannot treat you as one." His tone was not harsh. Rather, he was merely stating a fact. "If you have difficulty sleeping, try one of the calming exercises I taught you on the flight here, though you are weary enough that it shouldn't be a problem. Have a good night, young one."
With that rather tepid benediction, the knight strode out the door. Anakin noted with displeasure that he hadn't bothered to turn out the lights as he left. Although, to be fair, that probably had more to do with blindness than discourtesy.
Obi Wan was right about Anakin's exhaustion. Space travel drained him in a way he had not expected. His earlier protests notwithstanding, the child could not muster up the will to get out of bed now. So he lay there and tried to sleep with the light on.
Anakin found his thoughts drifting towards his new master. Why did Obi Wan dislike him so much? And how could he ever get close to such an emotionless person? Then again, that other Jedi, Bant, seemed to be good friends with him.
How did such a mean guy get to have such a nice friend?
What really bothered Anakin was how indifferent Obi Wan seemed to Qui Gon's death. He told Anakin that it was the elder's time to become one with the Force, and that he had to accept it. Obi Wan, apparently, had no trouble pretending that the man never existed.
If he did not care for his former master, how could Anakin ever hope that he'd care for his new apprentice?
These troubled thoughts kept him up until he decided he may as well turn off the lights. Slipping out of bed, the boy stepped quietly toward the light switch, to the left of the bedroom door.
He flicked off the light and would have returned to his bed when a strange sound caught his attention. It was coming from the common room, which was sandwiched between his and Obi Wan's bedrooms. It was indistinct, and somehow did not sound like conversation.
Unable to resist his curiosity, Anakin risked a peek. His master and Bant were seated on the couch, which was no surprise in itself.
No, what Anakin found startling was the way his master's shoulders were shaking uncontrollably, his face buried against her shoulder. His strong hands clung to her tunic sleeves with such desperation, his knuckles turned white. The sounds Anakin heard were barely restrained sobs. Not full wails of grief, but shuddering, stillborn things rising from deep in his chest and dying somewhere in his throat.
Bant was silent through this, allowing the man to anchor himself to her. A webbed hand soothingly rubbed his back in small circles. She offered no spoken comfort, sensing that he needed to release his anguish, and that words would only hinder the process.
She did, however, look up and catch Anakin's eye. The boy froze in surprise, but Bant only smiled and indicated with a tilt of her chin that Anakin ought to return to bed.
The padawan did so and stared up through the darkness.
His master was not nearly as emotionless as he seemed. And if he was mistaken in that, then maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be that hard to like him.