Bail did not return in time for dinner. His parents did not appear concerned, and Anakin barely noticed, assuming Bail was just doing typical grown-up things, but his absence began to prey on Obi-Wan, who knew perfectly well why the Prince was making himself scarce. He had been brutally harsh to Bail, but he would make it up to him. Eventually Bail would come home, and when he did, Obi-Wan would be waiting for him.
Waiting, in fact, on the steps on the street side of the house, where he would be sure to meet Bail as soon as he returned. Anakin insisted on waiting with him, though he didn't know about the argument. They sat together on the steps, sometimes in silence, but usually with Anakin commenting on whatever random thought popped into his head. Twilight fell, and flying in on the edge of night came the fire beetles, flashing their love calls in the dark. Anakin had not seen them before, and he scampered nimbly across the lawn, catching the beetles and bringing them back to Obi-Wan, cupped carefully in his palms.
Eventually Bail's speeder pulled up the driveway and into the garage. He came around the front of the house, approaching them slowly across the grass.
"Look at these things!" Anakin enthused, holding out his hand to show the Prince his catch.
"You like them, do you?" Bail asked as he settled down on the step next to Obi-Wan.
Gently nudging at one of the beetles with his fingertip, Anakin said, "It's like they have a little star in their butts."
Bail ducked his head, chortling, while Obi-Wan struggled not to laugh. "Actually, that's a pretty accurate analogy," Obi-Wan offered. "Their abdomens are filled with gas."
"You mean, they've got gas?" Anakin repeated, his eyes sparkling mischievously. "So when they light up, that means they're farting?"
"All right, that's enough," Obi-Wan cautioned, though he couldn't contain an annoyed smile, and Bail burst out laughing.
Grinning, Anakin continued, "I wish I could fart fire!"
"I said that's enough," Obi-Wan warned through his snickering.
"If you ever ate Togorian chili, you would fart fire," Bail offered. He and Anakin both dissolved into giggles, and Obi-Wan, surrounded, finally gave in. Anakin's fit of laughter startled the beetles, who flew off into the night, winking as they left.
The somber part of Obi-Wan reflected that body functions were not really an appropriate source of humor, but the honest part of him had to concede that he had found those precise topics hilarious when he had been Anakin's age. Young padawans in particular, with more worldly experience than the initiates, had a notorious reputation for finding humor in all sorts of inappropriate places. The difference between him and Anakin was that he had never joked about those things with his master. In fact he had been with Qui-Gon for over a year before he ever dared to joke with him. It wasn't that he and Qui-Gon did not have a sense of humor, far from it. But the initial year in a Master-Apprentice bond tended to focus on setting rules and guidelines, laying the foundations of the teaching relationship, not developing friendship and casual interaction. Obi-Wan needed to establish himself as the authority in Anakin's life, all the more so because Anakin was not accustomed to deferring to his elders. Obi-Wan knew all this, and yet he had to admit it felt good to sit here on the steps with Bail and Anakin, laughing about fart jokes. Right now Anakin needed a friend as much as he needed a master, and Obi-Wan was himself still too emotionally vulnerable to want to enforce a proper distance from his apprentice. The situation was not appropriate at all, and yet he couldn't help himself. He could only trust in the Force and follow his own instincts.
When they had settled down, Obi-Wan said to Bail, "Anakin is very eager for his swimming lessons, and I'm sure you want to help teach him. When do you think you might have some free time?" Anakin leaned forward on Obi-Wan's knee, trying not to show his impatience.
Bail looked back and forth between the two of them for a moment, before replying, "I probably can arrange an afternoon off, that is, if you can't wait for the weekend. Let me check my schedule."
Anakin grinned, as Obi-Wan dryly remarked, "I'm sure Anakin will be ready whenever you are. Now, Anakin," he nudged his padawan, "why don't you go in and see about warming up some dinner for the Prince? We'll be along shortly."
Jumping to his feet, Anakin
said, "Okay. No Togorian chili, though,
right?"
"Right," Bail answered. Anakin flashed
him another grin and ran into the house.
For some time, Bail and Obi-Wan sat in companionable if awkward silence, watching the fire beetles over the lawn. Then Obi-Wan said, "I'm sorry about last night. I was far too harsh, and it was quite unwarranted."
"No, you were right," Bail contradicted. "I'm no Jedi, and I don't know the first thing about teaching a padawan, let alone raising a child."
"You know far more than you think you do," Obi-Wan assured him. "And I really do benefit from your advice and suggestions. I just need to be careful around Anakin."
"I understand." Bail risked leaning against Obi-Wan, shoulder to shoulder, and was pleased when the Jedi did not shake him off. He did not press for more, just reveled in their touch as he gazed out into the night.
Obi-Wan worried at his lower lip. "It's hard for me with Anakin." The Prince had no idea how hard, but Obi-Wan wasn't ready to go into that yet. "You were right. I was only a padawan myself, not even a month ago. It's such a big responsibility to take on, even in the best of circumstances."
"And these are not the best of circumstances," Bail quietly observed.
The grief threatened to break through Obi-Wan's shields, but he forced it back down. He wasn't ready for that, either, not by a long shot. "I don't really know what I'm doing."
Bail wanted to reassure him, to tell him that he would be a great master, but he was wary now of making any statement about the Jedi to Obi-Wan. After all, what did he really know about the Master-Padawan bond? Other than the tradition of padawans falling in love with their masters, that is. Idly he wondered if Anakin would one day fall in love with Obi-Wan. Would he never be free of rivals for Obi-Wan's heart? But then, things were over between them, now, and anyway Obi-Wan was never really his to begin with.
Nevertheless, he would support Obi-Wan in any way he could. He thought through several things to say, before venturing, "I may not know much about the Jedi, but certainly Qui-Gon did. He would not have entrusted you with this responsibility if he had not believed you were capable of carrying it out."
Obi-Wan knew what Bail was trying to do, but the problem was he wasn't sure if it was true. Had Qui-Gon truly believed Obi-Wan was the best teacher for Anakin, or had he merely prevailed upon his padawan because he knew Obi-Wan was the only person loyal enough to him to make such a rash promise? Doubts assailed him no matter where he turned, and Qui-Gon was no longer here to advise him. Furthermore, the entire Temple, while tacitly sanctioning the relationship, were suspicious of Anakin and skeptical of Obi-Wan's readiness, Sith killer or no. There was no one to support him or give him advice. No one except Bail, who was not a Jedi, but who had always been there for Obi-Wan, who unlike the rest of the Jedi had welcomed Anakin with open arms and an open heart. That thought worried Obi-Wan as much as it reassured him, but right now it was all he had to go on.
He bent his head, resting it on Bail's shoulder. After a moment, Bail rested his cheek on Obi-Wan's head. Obi-Wan sighed, releasing his anxieties into the Force. If this was all he had to go on, it would have to be enough.