Chapter 19 - Alive
As the months passed by, Anakin took in the changes around him. His children were soon to be born. Twins, as him and Padme had found out about 8 weeks before. The jedi knight still couldn't decide what to do with his future. After over half a year, their teams they hadn't found a lead on the Sith lord. Master Yoda and him had been the only ones who had ever felt his presence. And of course, Obi-Wan. But his friend hasn't woken up yet. Anakin's fingertips itched to go outside and join the hunt. However, he couldn't bring himself up to leave his master's side. The darksider hadn't tried to attack him again but he always got a queasy feeling in his gut, as soon as he left the healing halls.
Anakin had used the time at the temple to train with Ahsoka or even teach the younglings in combat. The kids cheered as soon as they knew that they were to be taught by no one else but the great 'Hero With No Fear'. His mind finally began to mend itself after being absent from the battlefields. It did him good. After years he managed to sleep a night through. The training bond between him and Ahsoka had never been that strong. He even spoke with Satine sometimes, if only to update her. Padme and the duchess were staying in very close contact, as the past events had welded them together. Anakin knew that his wife needed someone to talk to besides him so he was glad that Satine filled that spot.
Yet, something was still missing. Obi-Wan. The medics had removed the brace around his head together with the bandages at some time. On physical aspects, the injuries were fully healed, leaving only a large, angry red scar on his head behind. They had even replaced the ear, to an outsider it was nearly impossible to tell the difference. The surgeons really outdid themselves.
With the hair slowly growing back, Obi-Wan started to look a little more like himself. The only step that was missing, was that the man had to finally open his eyes. During one of their tests, Master Che even detected an elevated brain activity a few days ago. The signs for waking up were definitely there, so Anakin had almost camped inside the hospital room, much to the head healer's dismay. Ahsoka joined him every now and then, also bubbling up with anticipation. Even though this all were good news, Master Che had warned them that if Obi-Wan would wake up, he had a long and rocky road of recovery ahead of him. His body had to relearn almost everything after the long time in a comatose state. Disabilities were still a possibility, as well as memory loss or other cognitive problems. Anakin wouldn't let it pull him down and rather focus on the bright side.
He was sitting on that blasted plastoid chair for hours now. He started to hate it. As far as one could hate a mere object, of course. 'Kriff the code', Anakin mused. He would never find peace on that poor excuse of a sitting furniture. The temple really needed to invest in some more comfy chairs in the hospital.
Stretching himself slightly, Anakin let his eyes drift shut. His back would kill him for that later, but he didn't care right now. He was tired so he decided to take a nap.
His awareness returned slowly to him. He picked up some beeping noise in the background seemingly growing louder and more frantic every second. It was accompanied by a rattling sound. He couldn't pinpoint neither of both disturbances. Thinking straight was nearly impossible as a splitting a headache pierced through his skull. Breathing was hard, almost suffocating. He just couldn't bring a decent amount of air into his lungs. Something obstructed his throat he realized.
As the panic started to set in, Obi-Wan ripped his eyes open with much effort. The light was blinding and almost burning for his irritated eyes. He couldn't make out much around him, vision completely blurry and obscured as his eyes began to water. The jedi master tried to take another breath in but again to no avail. Had Dooku done something to him? Where was he? The panic and fear finally got the better of him. He started choking on whatever was in his throat. As he tried to lift his hand he merely succeeded in a twitch with his fingers.
Suddenly there was a figure over him, apparently trying to rouse his attention. He shifted his burning eyes and tried to see something, Obi-wan only recognized a large humanoid frame clad in dark robes.
'No. No. No!' Everything inside of him started screaming. The Sith was still there. Right in front of him. Something started to prod on his muddled mind through the Force and he immediately withdrew. He would never let another Sith inside.
The man said something but Obi-Wan's hearing was too overwhelmed by the loud buzzing sound that started to quell up. He tried to shrink back from the figure but his body failed him.
All off a sudden more persons were around him, this time dressed in white and beige. Something was pressed inside the crook of his arm before he succumbed to the darkness again.
He didn't know how long it took him to wake up again. This time his breathing was lighter, although his throat hurt like hell. As he opened his eyes, he realized that the lights must have been dimmed. His vision was mostly clear now, but it didn't do anything for the pain he felt all over his body. Finally, taking in his surroundings, he recognized a patient room in the healing halls. Obi-Wan was lying in a hospital bed. As he managed to roll his head to the side, he caught a glimpse of the many tubes running in and out of him. There was still the beeping noise in the background which he now assigned to the sound of a heart monitor.
He let his gaze shift over the room until it got caught on two sleeping figures. Anakin and Ahsoka were slumped against each other on the plastoid chairs. Obi-Wan smiled, they looked so peaceful.
"Ana-". As he tried to speak to them, the jedi master didn't even get a word out before he was caught in coughing fit. At least that seemed to wake both of them, because Anakin was at his side in an instant. A glass of water was pressed gently to his lips and the soothing liquid poured down his raw throat. He only noticed now how thirsty he really was.
After the glass was emptied, Anakin sat it aside. His former padawan shot him a small smile.
"I see you recognize me now, master. You scared me."
Obi-Wan furrowed his brows as he tried to put the pieces together. The figure. Dark robes. Not Dooku. Anakin. His eyes widened. "Force, Anakin I'm…", he started with a raspy voice before the man in front of him started to vehemently shake his head.
"Kriff, Obi-Wan", Anakin interrupted him, "you have nothing to apologize for. You were completely out of it. Master Che had to inject you with something because you panicked. After that you simply fell asleep for a few hours. I'm just glad you're awake now."
Before he could react, strong arms looped around him and engulfed him in a hug. Ahsoka followed not soon after.
"Whoah, watch the…tubes", Obi-Wan startled, but stopped dead in his tracks as he felt cold tears on both of his shoulders.
Despite the movement hurt, he managed to lift his hands a few centimeters that he was able to put them on their backs.
His brain was still working rather sluggishly, so Obi-Wan needed a moment before he finally understood. He studied Anakin's and Ahsoka's faces. It wasn't often that he saw them crying. Both looked like they were about to have an emotional breakdown. Something must have happened.
"What aren't you telling me?", he asked slowly, while his eyes wandered back and forth between them.
Pulling his head slightly back but not breaking up the embrace, Anakin bit his lips and shared a glance with his padawan, who was still keeping her silence until now. She was resting her head on Obi-Wan's shoulders, tears still flowing. He then turned back and met his eyes.
Taking a deep breath, his friend began.
"How about you promise me something first?" He shot him a questioning look.
Anxiousness was slowly creeping up inside of Obi-Wan, still not knowing where his padawan was heading. He simply nodded.
"You have to try to remain calm. Master Che would kill me if I give you a heart attack after all this."
"I'm pretty sure Master Che doesn't need that excuse to get rid off you", Obi-Wan grumbled dryly, "but okay, I promise."
Anakin snorted but then turned serious again. "What's the last thing you remember?"
The jedi master hummed in thought. His head ached badly so focusing wasn't easy at all. "I think I remember fighting Dooku… he tried to invade my mind. Well, and succeeded partially…he didn't get what he wanted though. Then a stronger presence tried again later on."
He felt Ahsoka tense up beside him, her grip getting a little stronger. Obi-Wan started rubbing small circles on her back to calm her.
Anakin pulled himself up so that he was only holding the padawan now. "You felt that?", he asked bewildered.
The jedi master nodded. "It felt like I was sort of trapped inside the Force. Like being thrown inside a labyrinth that keeps changing constantly. When the second attack came, I was still weakened from before… he almost got me. I don't know what made him pull back."
"Master Yoda…", Anakin murmured, "he helped you. It nearly killed you though."
Obi-Wan's face twisted into a grimace. "I'm sorry."
"What did the Sith want from you, Obi-Wan?"
He knew that the question had been coming. Still it was hard to say it. Obi-Wan looked into Anakin's dark blue eyes. "You, Anakin. The Sith wanted you."
His apprentice's eyes widened in disbelief and the knight withdrew completely. "I made you a target. It's all my fault", he muttered.
"No, Anakin. Don't think that. It has never been your fault."
"You nearly died because of me."
"Anakin, stop", Obi-Wan said more strongly this time although his voice was failing. How much he longed to simply stand up and knock some sense into him. He knew he couldn't. Somewhere in the background he heard how the heart monitor perked up in its speed. He blocked it out. "They'll only succeed if you start thinking like that now. I'm still here, Anakin. And I won't leave your side as long as you need me."
He motioned with his hand. "Come here."
Anakin still had a saddened look on his face but returned to his master's side. He let his head sag back on Obi-Wan's shoulder, resembling Ahsoka's posture. The jedi master smiled. It reminded him so much of the times when his padawan had been younger and had woken up in the middle of the night from nightmares. Obi-Wan had always woken up from the boy's distress and had cradled him in his arms then to calm him down. Most of the times both had fallen asleep on the couch in the living room after that, Anakin laying halfway over his chest and head on his shoulder.
"You still haven't told me what exactly happened", Obi-Wan said quietly.
He felt Ahsoka move beside him. The girl looked up at him and cautiously traced something on the top of his head. It didn't hurt but felt foreign. The touch wasn't registered correctly on his skin. Scar tissue.
"Dooku damaged your brain, Master", the padawan whispered, "the medics almost weren't able to stop the bleeding in time. He also broke your skull and a few other bones."
Her bright blue eyes dimmed a little and looked at him intently. "You've been in a coma for over half a year."