"Good evening, Master," Anakin nodded to Obi Wan as he fell into pace beside him. They both had gone through numerous debriefings on their accomplishments in the Outer Rim and only found time to address each other late into the evening.
Obi Wan recognized the upbeat tone of his former padawan's voice, and turned to gaze at him suspiciously. "This is the happiest I've seen you in a long time, my old friend," he noted.
"Five months could be a long time, yes," Anakin agreed cautiously. He had no intention of telling Obi-Wan of Padme's pregnancy until it showed. They continued to walk slowly through the large library of the temple.
"Longer than five months," Obi-Wan countered. "I think this is the happiest I've ever seen you." Anakin's eyes shifted to gaze at his feet.
"I'm happy to be home. To be with Padme." Anakin's voice dropped considerably when he stated the second sentence. Obi-Wan squinted at him, trying to pick out what it was.
"It's more than that. I can feel it," he said, looking forward again.
"Perhaps your senses are not how they used to be." Anakin and Obi-Wan had always teased one another about their feelings of the Force, and whose was better, so he took advantage of that now, and tried to make a game of it.
"Or perhaps you're hiding something from me." Anakin lifted his chin and turned to face Obi-Wan. "Tell me what you're hiding, Anakin," the Master said without turning to face him. Anakin could feel the warning tone in his friend's voice.
"I'm hiding nothing from you, Master. I don't know what you're talking about." Anakin stopped walking and turned to the glowing blue wall, suddenly finding an unexplainable interest in one of it's hidden files.
Obi-Wan brought a hand to Anakin's shoulder. "I will find out what you're not telling me, be it concerning me or not. And I cannot promise I will keep it from Masters Windu and Yoda." With that, he allowed his hand to fall to his side and began walking again.
Sighing deeply, Anakin turned to resume walking with Obi-Wan. Having him discover the newest secret between the couple had less consequences than the Jedi Order discovering their first. "Master," he moaned, rolling his head. "Wait."
Intrigued, Obi-Wan stopped and faced Anakin again, turning his whole body with him this time. He stared in anticipation. Anakin sighed again and looked down at his feet.
He shrugged his shoulders before mumbling, "Padme is... with child."
"I presume it's yours?" Obi-Wan smiled, pleased that he had gotten it out of the boy... man... and resumed his walking.
Anakin turned with him and kept a slow pace. He nodded, then, without even thinking his words over in his head, he added, "I must admit, Master, I'm a little taken back. Although, to Padme, I seem sure this child is a blessing for us, I have other thoughts."
Obi-Wan nodded in understanding. "Of course you could see it as a curse. She will lose her job, and if the council were to discover you were the father, and unearth the secrets behind it, you would too. But, Anakin, this child can not be raised by Padme alone, and if the wars continue as they are now, you will find it difficult to be a suitable father. Your role as a husband to her has only survived as long as it has becau-"
"She loves me, and I feel the same for her," Anakin cut him off, "When we wed, Obi-Wan, we knew the consequences. Every marriage has it's faults, and ours are our jobs. I only fear the coming of this child because.." Anakin faltered at the sight of an approaching Mace Windu.
The master slowed his pace as he came upon the two and fell into pace beside Obi-Wan. Anakin nodded respectfully towards him, then looked forward, trying to cover his thoughts and feelings.
"Anakin," Mace addressed the young Jedi knight with and apparent edge in his voice. "I wish to speak with Master Kenobi of the affairs in the Outer Rim. I understand you have mixed feelings of this conflict and request we speak of it later, but for now, I hope you will understand my need of privacy."
Anakin fought back rolling his eyes and plastered a fake smile onto his face. He wasn't done with his conversation, and did not want to leave Obi-Wan so early without first sorting out his own thoughts. Obi-Wan recognized this and turned to Anakin to speak again.
"We will speak later. For now, I advise you go to your friend and inform her of my understanding. I assume she'll like to know. Tell her that I wish to do all that I can to protect her and her husband and wish them luck with the birth of their child."
"Yes, Master," Anakin bowed to the both of them and dismissed himself, veering to the left towards the nearest exit of the giant temple. A slight hint of annoyance crept inside him, directed towards Mace Windu.
I know this was really short, but I was just so anxious to get back to writing about Anakin and Padme together.
REVIEW. It's the best thing you could ever do for me. Just say, "Hey, I like it," or, "Hey, this really sucks." I don't care, I want your feedback. Tell me what I need to work on.