Hiding in the shadows of an intersecting corridor, Cody watched the approach of the Royal Guards. They patrolled that section of the cruiser with an almost programmed regularity. Twice every standard hour the pair of them marched along that single corridor, pausing long enough to glance into the detention room where General Kenobi was being held on the half-hour mark. When a full hour had passed they slipped into the room and administered whatever drug was keeping him in the state of false death. Cody didn't know exactly what the drug was, but he was certain that it was interfering with whatever bond he and General Skywalker possessed or else the younger Jedi would have already appeared.
It was their half-hour patrol so there would be no drug. Whatever the drug was, it was halfway out of General Kenobi's system.
Retreating so that they would not see him as they passed, Cody disappeared once again into the shadows. The instant that they stepped beyond him, he moved out into the corridor, pulling out two blasters from his belt. Without so much as a sound, he drew them up and fired into the base of their skulls below their cowls.
The Royal Guards dropped without so much as a sound.
Replacing his blasters, Cody quickly dragged the two dead guards into the corridor where he had hidden himself. The shadows were not as concealing as he would have liked, but it would do for the time being. He only needed a short amount of time to secret General Kenobi off the cruiser. And while he still didn't have the code to open the room, without the threat of the Royal Guards hearing, Cody used his blaster to blow out the panel. The door slid open silently revealing General Kenobi still in a sprawled heap.
Originally, Cody had meant to abide by his orders and leave the Jedi to his fate. As much as he had disliked the order, it was still an order and he was duty bound to obey it. Until he had seen the HoloNet report of what was happening on Coruscant while they were between hyperspace jumps. What he had seen and shown him that he couldn't trust that General Skywalker would keep Emperor Palpatine from killing General Kenobi.
So he had taken it upon himself to break with protocol and give General Kenobi a chance to save himself.
The only comfort that Anakin took during his long trip to Mustafar was the knowledge that while he was traveling further and further away from Coruscant, Obi-Wan was becoming ever closer. And then, once he had finished with the Separatists, he could return to Coruscant and revive his lover. It was that simple fact that Anakin focused on. Better that than the mostly empty promises he had received from Palpatine.
Anakin allowed R2-D2 to handle the bulk of their navigation, grateful for the time to just sit. He had feared Obi-Wan going to Utapau on his own, he hadn't thought it would create such a chain of events. Anakin had known on a level that he did not want to acknowledge that Obi-Wan could have been killed. They had both lost to Grievous in the past and Obi-Wan was notorious for getting into trouble on his own. It had always just been a joke, though, because Anakin had always been there in the end to save him.
Of course Anakin hadn't quite figured out how he was going to get himself out of his own predicament either. The easiest thing to do would be to kill Sidious once he had learned all that he could from the Sith lord. Except that Anakin wasn't sure that he could defeat Sidious. Even if his skill with a lightsaber were greater than the older man's, Sidious knew things that he didn't. Sidious had been trained in all aspects of the Force while Anakin still knew only of the light. It didn't matter. In the end, Anakin would do everything he must in order to ensure that there was peace.
Anakin awoke with a start, sitting up straight in his bed as he sucked in lungfuls of air. The dream had terrified him. Obi-Wan being attacked and him once again unable to prevent it. Obi-Wan had died a second time because he hadn't been strong enough or fast enough. There was a sick churning in his stomach as Anakin fought to banish the vision from his mind.
His actions somewhat jerking, Anakin climbed out of his bed. He padded across the room, his footsteps the only sound and even those were muffled almost entirely. He purposely kept the lights in the common room off so that when he palmed open the door to Obi-Wan's bedchamber only a small amount of moonlight seeped into the room. With the added moonlight already casting a silver glow upon the room, Anakin could clearly see Obi-Wan as he sleep peacefully upon his own bed.
After so many months, Obi-Wan was once again sleeping in his own bed. Safe from that lunatic of a woman who had meant to make a gift of him to Dooku.
"I was trying to sleep," Obi-Wan yawned, blinking his eyes open. "It's very difficult to you when someone is staring at you from the doorway."
"I'm sorry, Master," Anakin murmured, bowing his head.
Raising himself up so that he reclined against the head of the bed, Obi-Wan held a hand out towards Anakin. "There is no need to apologize, my young Padawan. Come here."
Anakin's feet were moving before the words had even been silenced upon the air. He lifted his left hand, clutching at Obi-Wan's fingers as soon as he was close enough. His breath was shaky and he didn't put up any resistance as Obi-Wan tugged him down onto the bed.
"You were projecting quite loudly, Anakin," Obi-Wan said quietly as the younger man settled down next to him. "What troubles your thoughts this night?"
"I tried meditating earlier while you were in the healer's wing," Anakin whispered, afraid to break the peace of the night with loud noise. "Ever since we've found you I've been trying to find a way to release my fears into the Force like I know I should. Only I can't. I'm more afraid now than I was when we thought you were dead."
Reaching across his body, Obi-Wan lightly took hold of Anakin's padawan braid between his thumb and forefinger. "I heard from Ki-Adi-Mundi that you threatened to leave the Order when they first assigned you to him. That you nearly pulled this—" Obi-Wan gave the braid a light tug for emphasis "—from your head as you shouted and cursed. I must admit that I'm surprised you kept your hair short as it is since it usually requires me pestering you for days on end to keep it cut."
"I wouldn't give you so much trouble if you'd just shave that wretched thing off your face," Anakin teased, fighting desperately to keep the smile from his lips. "It makes you look old."
"I am old."
"Thirty-six is hardly old."
"I'm nearly thirty-seven."
Grinning now, Anakin leaned fully against Obi-Wan's side. They spoke softly for some time, Anakin informing Obi-Wan of all that had happened while he had been gone. At some point Obi-Wan covered him with the blanket and a short time after they both laid down, Anakin curling himself around Obi-Wan as he began to doze. Obi-Wan turned his head towards him then, nuzzling Anakin's hair and sighing deeply. Allowing his own voice to drift off, Anakin used the pretext of sleepiness to press a kiss to Obi-Wan's bare shoulder.
Once he realized what he'd done, Anakin stayed perfectly still, fearful that Obi-Wan would wake up. Obi-Wan merely sighed, snuggling deeper into the pillow. Once he was certain that Obi-Wan would stay asleep, Anakin relaxed as well, finally calm enough to drift off to sleep himself.
Anakin had far too much time to think. It would take more than a standard day for him to reach Mustafar from Coruscant. A standard day alone with only his own thoughts and the inane ramblings of R2-D2 to keep him company. Normally he didn't mind the droid's company—Artoo was a gift from Padmé after all –but Anakin only wanted the silence. As much as it pained him, he knew that he needed to remember these things because if Palpatine was wrong, and they couldn't bring Obi-Wan back to life, Anakin would be the only one with those memories. He would be the only one left alive who would remember Obi-Wan smiling, laughing, relaxed, peaceful, passionate, sated, and so many other emotions that resulted from such mundane events. There was undoubtedly a huge amount of holofiles on the two of them in the HoloNet databanks, but not everything would have been recorded. It was those things Anakin knew he had to remember.
Just in case.
For the second time that week, Anakin woke to find himself in an unfamiliar bed with a warm body pressed up against his own. Unlike the last time it had happened, though, his thoughts didn't automatically stay to Padmé. This time Anakin knew that it was Obi-Wan he was waking up next to. And he was relieved to feel the slight shift of his chest every few seconds, evidence that the older man was still breathing. Anakin shifted just enough so that he lay with his head resting over Obi-Wan's heart and he could hear the constant thumping as it pumped blood throughout his body. Anakin wasn't quite sure how he'd come to be lying so far down on the bed when he distinctly remembered falling asleep with his head on the pillow, but he chose not to question it.
He hadn't even considered the possibility that Obi-Wan was awake until he felt arms wind themselves around his torso. Only the faintest hints of sunlight filled the room indicating that dawn had only recently passed and after everything that he had been through Obi-Wan should have still been asleep. Obi-Wan said nothing about their current position, instead he just allowed his fingers to drift over Anakin's naked back.
"Even though the Council would rather you stay under Ki-Adi-Mundi's tutelage for a time, I was able to prevail against them on the pretext that we needed to strengthen our bond after so long apart," Obi-Wan murmured, his voice thick with sleep. "We are apparently of some value as a team."
"As if you didn't know that," Anakin snorted, lifting himself up enough so that he could see Obi-Wan's face.
Obi-Wan smiled fondly at him, raising a hand to push his bangs from his face. "I do believe we have had many conversations about your abundant ego and pride."
"How can it be pride or ego if it is a simple statement of fact?" Anakin protested. He was silent for a moment before adding, "I wouldn't want to be partnered with anyone else. I don't trust anyone else enough to put my life in their hands."
Below him, Obi-Wan was positively vibrating. It was an odd sensation. For as long as he'd known him, Obi-Wan had always been the one in control—calm in any situation. Obi-Wan wasn't supposed to be the one so close to losing control. Yet he was. So very close.
"Master, are you—"
"I'm fine," Obi-Wan interrupted, offering up a forced smile. "I was briefly suffering from a bout of mortality, but it's passed."
"Master…. Obi-Wan. I love you," Anakin whispered, holding Obi-Wan's gaze for a moment before lowering his eyes.
"Anakin…."
Lifting his eyes once more, Anakin offered up a rather lop-sided smile. "I just, I wanted you to know that in case next time we can't find you. Or you can't find me."
Obi-Wan held him tightly, his expression utterly serious. "I will never not find you."
Once inside the escape pod, Cody carefully set General Kenobi down on the padded bench at the back of the capsule. There was another ten minutes before the Imperial Cruiser began its final jump before reaching Coruscant so this was his final chance to get General Kenobi somewhere safe. He had consulted the star charts earlier and planned to land the escape pod on Corellia. It would be easy enough for them to disappear into the mass of traders and smugglers in the various spaceports that littered the planet. And then once he recovered from the effects of the drug General Kenobi could chose their next course of action.
With everything that was going in while the cruiser was prepared for a hyperspace jump, it would be a while before anyone noticed their absence. Cody had everything planned so that the pod would disengage from the ship along with the waste. By the time anyone realized that an escape ship had been launched the jump would have already commenced and it would be too late to do anything. He and General Kenobi would be well on their way to Corellia.
Closing the air-lock, Cody backed away, seating himself on the escape pod's other available bench. He felt very strange. This was the first time he'd gone against a direct order. It was no ordinary order, either, having come directly from Emperor Palpatine himself. General Kenobi was his commander, though, and he had been trained to protect his commander at all costs. And since he could no longer rely on General Skywalker to ensure General Kenobi's safety, he would have to take it upon himself.
When the escape pod fired, moments after the garbage was released, Cody felt relieved. The pod drifted for a few moments, until the cruiser shot forward into hyperspace. Then the boosters kicked in and the small craft was propelled towards Corellia.
Obi-Wan was sprawled on the sofa, sound asleep. They'd been training all that morning—lightsaber practice –and Obi-Wan had exhausted himself. It had only been two days since their return from Riflor, but Obi-Wan had insisted on returning to their usual training schedule when they were on Coruscant. After spending several hours practicing the various battle forms, Obi-Wan hadn't even had the energy to shower before collapsing on the couch.
For his own part, Anakin had been doing his utmost to distract himself while his master slept. In the end, instead of puttering about with a droid, Anakin found himself sprawled on the floor reading a holopad. It was a text he was meant to have read years ago while still attending regular lessons at the Temple, but had always put off. Since he didn't want to risk waking Obi-Wan, Anakin gave in and read it.
It didn't take long before Anakin's resolve began to crumble and he set the rather dull holopad aside. Incredibly bored, he stared up at the ceiling, his eyes occasionally drifting towards the couch where Obi-Wan continued to sleep.
While he was watching, Anakin noticed Obi-Wan's nose and lips beginning to twitch. Then his fingers, right arm. Anakin rolled onto his hands and knees, crawling across the short distance that separated them. Then he just knelt there, watching him. When the twitching became more severe, Anakin very gently placed his hand on Obi-Wan's bicep. It seemed to calm him somewhat so Anakin kept him arm still.
Then, without really thinking about it, he leaned forward, brushing his lips against Obi-Wan's forehead. It was a gesture he'd received countless times from his master when he was younger. He'd meant for it to comfort his master, but he hadn't thought that it would comfort him as well.
It was Artoo's twittering that roused him from his half-conscious state. They were coming out of a jump and after that it would take only one more before they reached Mustafar. Only a few more hours and the war would be brought to an end. That alone was reason enough for him to have temporarily aligned himself with Palpatine. Through Sidious, Anakin had finally found a way to destroy the Separatist leaders and bring the galaxy back in order.
Scrubbing a hand over his face, Anakin double-checked the coordinates a final time before firing up the hyperspace booster. The stars slowly turned from pinpricks of light into long streaks. Anakin watched them, almost soothed by their presence. It seemed a lifetime ago that he'd told Master Qui-Gon that he wanted to visit every planet. To be the first one to do that. At the moment, though, the only planets he was interested in seeing were Mustafar and Utapau. Palpatine had assured him that he would keep Grievous on Utapau long enough for Anakin to gain his revenge. He would kill Grievous and take back Obi-Wan's lightsaber.
It was what came after that worried Anakin because he honestly didn't know what was going to happen. Anakin had no idea how he was going to get himself out from under Palpatine's thumb and erase his existence as Darth Vader. Just thinking the name made Anakin cringe. It twisted his stomach to think of all that he had done under that name.
Anakin couldn't even be sure that Obi-Wan would even forgive him for what he'd done. He was the one who had simply stood there and allowed the whole Jedi Order to be destroyed. Anakin could have stopped Palpatine. If he had just helped Master Windu the Sith would have been destroyed at long last. With Dooku already dead, Palpatine had been the only one left until Anakin had knelt before him and pledged his life to the Sith.
Sitting back on his heels, Anakin continued to watch as Obi-Wan slept on, his body no longer twitching. He sucked his lips in, making sure that Obi-Wan was truly sleeping. Then he leaned forward a second time, curious, to brush his lips against Obi-Wan's. It felt very different than when he kissed Padmé. His lips were rougher, more solid, and the rasp of his beard was an entirely odd experience.
Obi-Wan's eyelids began to flutter then and Anakin scrambled backwards. He reached blindly for his discarded holopad, hoping to look casual by the time Obi-Wan woke fully.
"You're projecting quite loudly again, Anakin," Obi-Wan yawned, blinking his eyes open.
"I'm sorry, Master," Anakin mumbled, his fingers scratching at the edge of the holopad. "I didn't…."
"You did," Obi-Wan contradicted as he rose from the sofa. He crossed the small space and knelt down before Anakin, placing a hand on his shoulder. "And given all the stress you've been under recently, it's understandable that you're feeling out of sorts."
Anakin nodded his head, his eyes still trained on the holopad. "What if it's not just me feeling out of sorts?"
Obi-Wan sighed deeply, his breath warm against Anakin's forehead. "Then we'll deal with it as it comes."
The escape pod was just entering Corellia's atmosphere when General Kenobi began to stir. It would be a while before he was fully coherent, but he was no longer so deeply sedated. Cody relaxed against into the bench, more at ease about what was going on now that his commander was recovering.
The situation he was waking up into, though, was unlike any General Kenobi had probably ever considered possible. It went beyond what Cody himself though possible. He never would have envisioned anything that would turn General Skywalker against his best friend.