Happy Saturday reading! Reviews are appreciated.

Chapter 3

When Obi-Wan returned to his quarters, he felt like a deflated balloon. All the air was sucked out of him as soon as the front door shut. Although he had enjoyed his evening with Anakin, his morose attitude had spoiled most of the time they had had to really talk. He missed his best friend. He shouldn't, but he did.

And as he walked around the room, the feeling only grew. He saw little reminders of when Anakin still lived in the same quarters. The stain on the carpet that never came out. The dent in the wall. The smell in the kitchen they could never pinpoint. He smiled at all of these. At the time, they had been annoying, but now they were the stuff of memories and anecdotes. Something to share and laugh over.

Except Obi-Wan didn't have anyone to share them with.

Why did I have to be such a boring old man tonight, he wondered. Anakin probably couldn't wait to get away from me after that speech about him and his need for action. There's nothing wrong with being an active person, after all. But for some reason, my worry for him, about him, only grows despite my best efforts to release it. Maybe I should try to meditate again.

Obi-Wan shed the loose-fitting shirt he had worn to dinner and settled into a crossed-legged position on a meditation pad. Lately, he had been having trouble when he tried to meditate. He couldn't find his center. He couldn't relax enough to reach the meditative state. And, of course, the more times it happened, the harder it became the next time he tried.

This session was no exception. His mind began to wander immediately. He thought back to a story Anakin told Dex over dinner. It was one of the funnier moments from their experience in the Clone Wars. And suddenly, Obi-Wan felt his pieces fall into place. He achieved the center he needed for meditation. He breathed deeply and let the sensation pass through him.

After several hours of communion with the Force, Obi-Wan emerged refreshed and more content than he had felt in months. He made a trip to the 'fresher and got ready for bed.

Once he was settled on his pillow, his mind started to play tricks on him-or so he thought. He could see Anakin sitting in his own quarters, watching something pointless on the HoloNet. But no, he wasn't alone. He smiled at someone and reached up to take an offered hand. Before Obi-Wan could identify who the other person was, the scene shifted, and he saw Anakin alone again.

This time, though, he was bleeding. He was hurt, and he was alone. Alone on some distant planet in the Outer Rim. And the war raged around him. Surrounded by other beings, but truly alone. Obi-Wan instinctively called out to his apprentice and startled himself awake.

The peace of his meditation was almost entirely dissipated by the memory. Because that's what it was-a memory of Anakin one of the many times he was hurt during the war. Obi-Wan had found him, of course, and he had healed. But the image of him all alone had stuck with Obi-Wan for the remainder of the conflict. And now his subconscious was replaying it again.

The first image of a happy Anakin was almost entirely forgotten in the wake of the terror of the second. It wasn't a memory that Obi-Wan could claim. Perhaps that one was just a dream, he thought. He shifted into a more comfortable position and fell back into a dreamless sleep.

Anakin awoke in the morning feeling sluggish. He didn't have anything demanding his attention-like battle droids or perky Padawan-and he rolled over thinking he might just sleep in a little. No hurry to the day.

After a cold breakfast that was better than what they ate on the battlefield most days, but not nearly as good as what Obi-Wan could whip up, Anakin took a long, hot shower. He loitered in his bedroom in just a towel, fidgeting with a piece of droid he had found after several years of it living under his bed. Sitting on the edge of the bed, his legs still wet from the shower, he absently pushed his wet hair back from his forehead and entertained the idea of a haircut.

Make life simpler if I didn't have to wait for my hair to dry, he reasoned. But his thoughts moved on into other frequently-traveled routes. Maybe he'd look up some old Padawan friends today. Maybe teach that advanced lightsaber techniques class he had been contemplating. Or maybe he'd go to the pod races being held on one of Coruscant's moons later this afternoon. It wouldn't be nearly as large a race as they had on Tattooine, but he might enjoy it anyway.

He remained bent over his mechanical so long that his hair did dry on its own. And his back got a little stiff. Stretching up, he heard several pops along his spine. Tossing the parts and tools aside, he lay back on his bed with his hands tucked under his head. And promptly fell back to sleep.

Anakin had a dream that someone was calling his name from very far away. Only it wasn't a dream. It was Obi-Wan at the front door. He was too polite to walk around the apartment looking for Anakin even though he knew he was home. So he waited and called.

Anakin rubbed his face and squinted at the sunlight. What time is it, he wondered. The chono on his bedside table said 11:30. Force, he thought, I haven't slept this late since I was fourteen. He swung his long legs over the side of the bed and hoisted himself up.

"I'm coming!" he called back to Obi-Wan. He smacked the top of his mouth with his tongue and grimaced at the taste. With sluggish steps, he made his way to the living room.

Obi-Wan stood with his arms crossed as usual, but he had a rather big grin on his face. "I was wondering if you had heard me," he teased. He looked Anakin up and down. "Are you ill, Anakin?" Why else would he look like he just rolled out of bed at this hour? And what's with the towel?

Anakin was just remembering he was dressed only in a towel at that moment too. "Um, uh, no. I got up earlier and showered, but I must have fallen back asleep for a couple-three-hours." He chuckled at himself.

"Well, that explains the hair too," Obi-Wan observed drolly. "Come on, get dressed."

Anakin looked up at Obi-Wan with his hand midway through his unruly locks. "Why? Where are we going?" He was instantly alert after years of battle readiness.

"It's a surprise," Obi-Wan replied. "Now, get dressed. And you don't need to look like we're taking on a droid battalion. This is a fun mission."

Anakin looked skeptical. "Yeah, right," he said, but he quickly dressed and presented himself for the 'mission.' "Ok, lead the way, General," he said in a mock stern tone.

Obi-Wan couldn't resist an eyeroll. "At ease, soldier. We're heading for the pod races on Hesperidian this afternoon." He glanced casually over his shoulder to see the effect of his statement on his friend.

Anakin's eyes widened and began to glow. "Really?" he asked like a disbelieving child. "But you hate pod races," he pointed out.

"Yes, but you love them. And since I had the afternoon off, I thought we could go together," Obi-Wan explained. "I'm surprised you didn't have the plans yourself."

"Well, to be honest, I had thought about it . . ." Anakin said and jogged to take his place next to Obi-Wan as the shorter man strode purposefully toward the hangar. Anakin couldn't stop smiling. He hadn't looked forward to anything this much in a long time.

"Thanks, Obi-Wan. This is going to be great," he confidently announced. "I'll drive."

Obi-Wan didn't even muster a well-placed jibe at that. He just smiled softly and enjoyed the company.

The following day found Obi-Wan sitting through hours and hours of Council meetings. He tried to keep focused on the proceedings, but he kept daydreaming about the day before.

Anakin had glowed the entire time from leaving the Temple until they had bid each other a good evening and parted at Obi-Wan's door. The young man's voice was hoarse from the cheering, shouting, and taunting he had engaged in the entire time they were at the race. He had even gone so far as to spill his drink on himself when he leapt from his seat during one particularly hairy collision on the track.

"Idiot!" he pronounced. "I could have made that turn in my sleep when I was seven," he said as he brushed at the offending liquid and cast Obi-Wan a side-long glance. The Master had retained his seat during the commotion and was silently handing Anakin some left-over napkins he had tucked away somewhere.

Anakin accepted the proffered papers. "Thanks," he said absent-mindedly. "Did you see that?"

"Yes, I did. Tragic loss."

Anakin scoffed. "Fffft, yeah, 'tragic.' The biggest tragedy is that they let those nerf herders into this race in the first place. You see that guy down there?" He pointed to one particularly horny-headed little driver. "Absolutely no business owning a pod, much less piloting one." Anakin smiled in self-satisfaction at his expert commentary.

"Well, perhaps it's a family-business kind of thing," Obi-Wan offered. He truly was out of his depth here. Now show him two feuding ethnic groups and he could read their body Language like a datapad. He could pick out the aggressive members who would need pacifying from those that were deeper thinkers and would need solid arguments to be swayed. Then there were the truly wise leaders who blended into a group and were unprepossessing in the way of natural royalty or tribal clansmen. But he didn't follow the sport of pod racing, much less know anything about the intricacies of piloting the courses. he was pleased that Anakin was pleased. That was what mattered.

Anakin settled back into his seat and sipped his remaining drink. Obi-Wan continued, "Do you miss it yourself?"

Anakin looked at him, sort of startled at the question. "Um, well, nah. I got to 'pod race' enough during the war. Participating in it as a sport seems kind of silly after shooting slaloms of droids to save the lives of millions of people, you know?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "I can see that. But maybe the frivolity of it is some of its appeal."

"Oh, yeah. Just being able to prove to yourself that you can do it. But then, I've been there and done that," he grinned. Obi-Wan grinned back.

"I recall," he said. "I was thinking about that campaign over Kamino recently. The Council was discussing the future of the Clones still in incubation and training. The Senate has stopped the production of new Clones, but the Council is adamantly opposed to 'disposing' of existing individuals. Anyway, it reminded me of when we were there, and you were leading the air support." Obi-Wan paused to sip from his own drink.

"Hmm, I never thought about it," Anakin replied. "How many are there?"

Obi-Wan's brow furrowed, "How many what?"

"Clones."

"Oh!" Obi-Wan has assumed that Anakin would have been more interested in reminiscing about his war exploits than discussing the future of unknown sentients. "Well, close to fifty thousand are already in various stages of training. But, there has been some thought given to altering the training a bit to afford them more opportunities to be civilians and fit into society in different ways."

"Taxi drivers?" Anakin asked wryly.

Obi-Wan guffawed and nudged Anakin with his elbow. "Uh, no. Things like police force, fire suppression, aid workers, teachers, and the like. Civil servants that are reliable and loyal."

Anakin made a face of agreement. "Sounds good to me. Force knows there are a lot of places that are in a lot worse shape since the war." He looked back out on the pod race.

Obi-Wan was interrupted in his daydream by Mace Windu asking him a direct question.

"Obi-Wan?" Mace repeated. "What do you think?"

"Oh, uh," Obi-Wan sputtered. "I agree with your assessment, of course."

"You agree with my assessment? Well, that's good to know. However, I asked you what you would like for lunch." Mace followed this up with a good-natured smile. "Mind elsewhere today?"

Obi-Wan blushed down to the roots of his hair. "Yes, sorry, Master," he apologized, but he still couldn't help thinking that he'd rather be with Anakin than in the meeting.

"Well," replied Mace. "Perhaps we should break for lunch then. Get some air?" He stood and stretched, his posture showing he was less than altruistic in his motives for a lunch break.

"Yes, that's a fine idea," Obi-Wan agreed. The rest of the group followed suit with Mace and started moving toward the door. Obi-Wan knew just where he was going. The Gardens. He could get some exercise and clear his mind.

TBC