Anakin stood in the doorway, hand curved around the frame. The room was dark, still. His Master was huddled in the center of the sleepcouch.
Obi-Wan's eyes were closed, fists under his chin, as if a great chill were sweeping through the space. He was snoring softly.
Anakin stepped into the quarters. It was unusual to find the man this way, dressed only in slightly tattered trousers, sleeping through the ship landing. The Master he was accustomed to would be fully clothed and groomed, watching his apprentice's progress from a short distance, arms tightly crossed.
Observing him, offering small pointers in a balanced tone.
Anakin frowned, walking closer. He had galvanized his shields during the quarrel, but lowered them a fraction, sending a questioning probe through the Force.
Obi-Wan stirred, a sigh slipping from his lips Scant seconds passed before he turned and looked, half-lidded, at his apprentice. "Anakin?"
The instant alertness actually relieved the boy. Some things'll never change. "Master, we've arrived."
A strip of shadow lay across Obi-Wan's sleep-creased face. "Oh…" He rose quickly, swiping dangles of hair from his azure eyes. "Oh, yes. Good."
His voice was thick, husky, hurried. Anakin studied him with a focused expression.
Obi-Wan glanced up. "What's wrong?"
The Padawan detached from his worry, loosening his posture. "Nothing."
The Knight nodded, a little unsettled, then gazed out the room's small window. He saw the lush forestry of Diahalla Vi spread out, a jade collage of clustered leaves and bushes. A smile touched his lips.
Anakin watched his reaction, a buoyancy lifting his own heart. After this barren year in their lives, it was wonderful to witness the Master in a moment of soft, pure happiness. "It's really beautiful." He said, when the push of silence became too much.
Obi-Wan drew away from the scene. "It looks…exactly the same as I remember it." His cultured voice was wistful.
Anakin titled his head. "You've been here before?"
"Once." Obi-Wan confirmed, reaching for his tunic, the muscles of his stomach highlighted by the muffled glow of the outside sun. He wrapped the off-white layers around his lean abdomen. "I was a bit older than you."
Anakin tried to picture his Master as a pimply-faced, gangly teenager, but to no avail, laughter constricted in his throat.
Obi-Wan must have sensed the stray musings. A brow arched in quizzical amusement. "Is it so unbelievable that I was your age at one time?"
"Not unbelievable."
Obi-Wan gave a satisfied nod, a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
Anakin allowed a grin to break out. "Just humorous."
The older Jedi chuckled. "I would pretend to be offended, but you're the one who's currently in the, as you say, humorous stage." He punned dryly.
Anakin gave a non-committal shrug. "That's okay, Master." The youth replied in his less elegant, outer rim accent. "Because I'm sure you weren't close to being as attractive as I am."
Obi-Wan laughed, exasperated. "Or as conceited." He was bending down to retrieve his boots when he was compelled to stop, taking a breath.
The humor drained from the shabby room. "Master?" Anakin's hand neared his shoulder.
Obi-Wan wiped at his forehead and stood. "I'm fine…I just… wasn't as awake as I thought."
Anakin suddenly felt uncomfortable. "I'll go gather our supplies."
Obi-Wan inhaled again. "Okay. I'll help you in a minute."
The apprentice's eyes lingered on him a split second more. Then he departed to collect their packs and canteens.
Obi-Wan switched on the lavatory lights, grunting unhappily, and a bit painfully, as the glare met his unadjusted eyes.
His gaze darted to the mirror, but before he could get a good look at his bedraggled appearance, made worse by the ugly florescent cast of glow rods, they fell.
"That's definitely for the best." He muttered to himself.
Heat continued to radiate in his face, seeping into his neck and shoulders, disguised as a dull cramp there. Obi-Wan rubbed at the tightened muscles. He felt as though the fairly slack rim of his tunic was strangling him.
His hand dropped to rest on the sink's dust-coated faucet. He watched as tremors shook his cold fingers.
Anakin's voice pierced the silence; he called from a near distance. "Master, are you coming? "
Obi-Wan refused to believe he had been startled by the less than shrill octave of the summons. He took a breath and wiped his eyes. "Yes." The thinnest stream of frustration rushed unfiltered into his reply. The Knight cursed himself silently for the sloppy disregard to Anakin's feelings and he hurried to meet the boy.
It's not his fault. He admonished, kneading the coiled tenseness at the base of his neck.
Anakin was standing in the vessel's humble main room. Their small, brown travel bags were opened, items strewn across the table.
Obi-Wan surveyed the jumble of supplies, pursing his lips to quell an amused smile.
The flustered apprentice, always attentive (and well aware) of his Master's mannerisms, frowned. "I can't figure out what to bring. Usually we'd be allotted more luggage."
Obi-Wan scratched his chin. "Well, where in the Universe did you find all this?"
Anakin shrugged. "I saw that all you had were packets of dried food and water and blankets…"
"Is there something wrong with that?" Obi-Wan questioned, not irked, but curious.
"No…I guess not."
The ginger-haired Master's hands went to his hips. "But?" He persisted knowingly.
Anakin allowed a smile to creep onto his face, as he slowly realized his mentor was completely unperturbed. "But I thought we might like some more comforts."
"Like?"
"Like food that can actually be chewed."
Obi-Wan shook his head in long-suffering humor, running his fingers along the scattered objects. He selected a gleaming steel container, unscrewed the cap, and sniffed the beverage. The rich, brassy scent of liquor filled his nostrils. He took a sparing sip, then grimaced, throwing it back on the table. "Sooner or later, every Jedi gets used to the sometimes unpalatable cuisine." He assured the youth.
"Yeah right." Anakin sniggered.
Obi-Wan glanced at him with a roguish grin. "Well, the 'later' is a better prediction. In my experience, at least." He grabbed two canteens, sliding one into each pack.
Anakin looked uncertain. "That's all the water we're taking?"
Obi-Wan nodded. "No use adding weight where it's unneeded."
"But, Master…" He debated finishing, sure he would sound stupid. "Won't we need… more?"
"Of course. But where do you think it comes from in the first place?"
The boy just stared at him, at a loss to answer.
Obi-Wan piled tasteless energy bars beside the canteens. "Nature. As do all things. I'll show you when the time comes---Did you empty the ship's cabinets?" He wondered, dumbfounded.
Anakin laughed, a good-natured flush brightening his cheeks.
I actually forgot, amid the start of school and everything, to update this with the new material. L Next post will be sooner. Thanks for the replies, guys. -LuvEwan