Sorry it took so long to update- coursework is finally out of the way! :D Now I only have to read 154 sonnets... -.- still, I should hopefully update faster next time round. This chapter was fun to write, though I think the ending might be a bit too fluffy DX I'll let people be the judge of that. Again, thank you to everyone who favourited, reviewed and followed my story! ^^
Smile888- Haha, I agree, I wish I could fit that in somewhere! I love the idea of baby Anakin being lured to the dark side by cookies XD Thank you for reviewing ^^
Morana- Thank you so much for reviewing! I'd read a lot of stories with Anakin going back in time and being turned into a child or even Obi-Wan being turned into a child, but all of those were in the Vader story line; I thought it'd be interesting to do it before that when they're relationship is still good :3
Crimson- Thank you for taking the time to review! ^^
Disclaimers- Still don't own anything. Which is a pity- I kind of need the money.
Anakin had been in the temple for little more than three days before the news of his transformation had spread through the place like wildfire. It wasn't really surprising; enough people had been told the news and had seen Anakin himself for it to spread to practically every Jedi under the temple roof. It was little wonder it got round so quickly, it was hardly minor gossip. An unknown Sith had somehow magically turned the Hero with No Fear into a three year old. People were bound to talk about it, even Jedi, who weren't exactly famous for gossiping.
Obi-Wan had known that this would happen, but the thought hadn't even crossed Anakin's mind. He didn't notice the glances and stares that they gave him; even the older, more experienced Jedi Master's couldn't help but let go of their discretion and look at the child who, by all of the laws known to them, should have been eighteen years older.
Anakin was practically oblivious to the looks he was being given as he sat in the corridor, leant up against the wall. He had always been looked at by other Jedi, so although it wasn't the most pleasant of experiences, he wasn't particularly offended or surprised to feel everybody's eyes making their way to him. All he felt was boredom and irritation that his master was taking so long. He looked longingly at the door, wishing Obi-Wan would just hurry up so they could go. Plus, he was curious to find out the results. That'd be interesting.
He heard the door open and he jumped to his feet for the fifth time in the past ten minutes. The youngling beamed as he watched his master bow, then step out into the corridor. The Jedi spotted his padawan coming towards him and graced him with a smile, though he didn't fail to notice the passing Jedi's gazes move from Anakin, to him and then to the floor. He sighed. Anakin had always generated unwanted attention ever since his arrival when he was nine. There were already stories about him before he was even properly initiated, so naturally, the Jedi were going to be curious and people would want to steal a glance at the Chosen One. At first it had bothered him, but now the boy seemed to brush it off as though he barely noticed, which, when the Jedi thought about it, was rather sad.
"Obi-Wan!" the man looked down his padawan's demanding voice, a small hand tugging at his sleeve, "what'd they say?"
"Can I not have even a moment to think, Anakin?" he sighed, though there was some amusement in his voice.
"No," the youngling said, dragging his master along the corridor, "Come on!" he whined, pulling harder on his sleeve, "what'd they say?"
"Oh, nothing that I didn't already know," Obi-Wan said with a casual shrug as they made their way down the corridor.
"Tell me!" Anakin ordered, grabbing his hand in both of his, apparently trying to yank the whole thing off.
"Just that you are the most tiresome and demanding padawan that has ever graced this temple," the Jedi smirked, laughing as an indignant, "Master!" filled his ears.
"All right, all right, I'll tell you," he soothed, still chuckling as the less than impressed youngling glowered up at him, "though wouldn't you prefer to be told in private?"
"Don't care," Anakin shrugged, "Just wanna know, Master!"
Obi-Wan shook his head, "All right, I'll tell you. First off, your midichlorian count hasn't changed- yes, I know that was never going to be likely," he said, noting the youngling's eyes roll in exasperation, "but you did say you wanted to know what they told me."
"Next one," Anakin demanded.
"Padawan, what do we say to people when we want to know something?" the Jedi asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Tell me!" Anakin chirruped.
Obi-Wan sighed, "Politely, Anakin?"
The youngling puffed out a weary sigh and forced out a long drawn, "Please."
"And now..." Obi-Wan waved a hand, indicating his padawan to go on.
Anakin could not have looked more unimpressed and he sighed again, rolling his eyes dramatically, "Please tell me what they said, Master," he drawled.
"There," Obi-Wan smiled, "was that so difficult?"
"Yes," Anakin grumbled, scowling, "come on, Master," he pulled at his robes again, "please?"
Obi-Wan smiled down at him, "All right, padawan, though I'm afraid you won't find it all that interesting. They told me that your understanding of Basic is only a little better than a youngling your age, though your Huttese is perfect. You show intelligence far higher than an average three year old," he rolled his eyes at the smirk on his padawan's face at that piece of news, "and the speed of your reactions are abnormally fast, even for a Force sensitive."
Obi-Wan didn't think that children so young could look so incredibly smug, but Anakin was certainly proving that presumption wrong, "Padawan, I told you these results to inform you, not to feed your ego."
Anakin merely shrugged and stuck out his tongue at him.
"How did you ever get to be so rude?" the Jedi shook his head, "Where did I go wrong with you?"
"You didn't," Anakin piped up, now smiling up at his master, "you're rude too, Master. You're just more..."
"Subtle?"
The youngling nodded.
"Still, my subtlety hasn't stopped you from being one of the most ill-mannered padawans I've ever met."
"Nope," Anakin grinned, "'m the best padawan you've met too."
Obi-Wan smirked and shrugged, "Hm. Debatable."
"Is not!" Anakin yelped, his eyes growing round.
"Are you quite sure of that, Anakin?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes!" Anakin cried, offended, "course I am!" he pouted.
"Oh really?"
The youngling scowled, "Yes," he grumbled.
"Would you care to tell my why you're the best out of all the padawan's here?" Obi-Wan asked, amusement seeping into his voice.
Anakin thought for a moment, "I'm the nicest," Obi-Wan snorted, "I am nice!" he protested, "just not to you. Fine, I try hardest."
The Jedi paused to consider that for a moment, then smiled, "Hm. You may actually have a point there, padawan."
The boy smiled triumphantly, seeing his master's admittance as a victory. They carried on in a pleasant silence until they reached their apartment, "Now, I need to go and inform the council about these results," he grinned at the look of mingled horror and disgust on his padawan's face, "you don't have to come if you don't want to. Will you be all right here on your own?" the look changed from trepidation and revulsion to one of disdain. He wrinkled his nose in irritation and opened his mouth to protest, before his master cut in, "it was only a question," he said, holding up his hands in defeat, "I was just checking," he opened the door for the youngling, "please try not to break anything whilst I'm gone, Anakin."
The boy grinned as he went inside, "I will!"
"You'll try not to break anything or you will try to break anything?"
Anakin happily chirruped, "I will!"
Obi-Wan turned from the door and shook his head, wondering where on earth he could have possibly gone wrong with him.
...
Obi-Wan was slowly walking back to his his apartment, one hand absently stroking his beard, a frown etched onto his brow. The meeting had taken longer than he had expected, having discussed more than his padawan's test results. Anakin's predicament brought up more complications than he would probably ever realise. The Council's main concern was news of this reaching the public. The entirety of the Jedi temple knowing of Anakin's transformation was one thing, but the whole planet knowing was another matter.
Obi-Wan shared the council's concerns in letting Anakin's change being known to the public. First off, the Jedi would be most likely be hounded night and day and almost everyone would want to see his padawan though the boy could take masses of Jedi glancing at him, he doubted he could take the eyes of Coruscant watching his every move. Also, the public's hero being turned into a vulnerable child wouldn't exactly do morale any good, something which they desperately needed for the war, but what concerned him the most was that his padawan could be put in danger if news were to get out. The boy had a surprising number of enemies and the Jedi was sure that they would be more than happy to take their chances in avenging themselves on their now helpless nemesis. Though they hadn't heard any news, there could already be a bounty on his padawan's head, a thought which made his heart pump ice.
The question that was most pressing to the Council was did the authorities need to know, something which they were still debating. They needed discretion, something which couldn't really be achieved with the entire senate knowing, yet if they were to find that the Jedi were trying to hide something this important from them, then there was a good chance that they may take offence. Besides, there was always still a chance that word would get out with or without their informing the authorities. Jedi did leave the temple and have friends outside it after all and Anakin's own friends would doubtless want to know what had happened to him, not to mention the 501st Legion. This issue was made all the more complicated by his padawan being friends with one of the most powerful politicians in the galaxy: Chancellor Palpatine.
Anakin wouldn't see any problem in letting him know, Obi-Wan knew that and the youngling would probably get offended if he wasn't allowed to visit him. But the reality was that the council didn't trust Palpatine and in all honesty, neither did Obi-Wan, or at least, he was most definitely more wary than his all trusting padawan. If Anakin wouldn't be able to understand at twenty one their worries concerning Palpatine, then there would be no way explaining to him now he was so young.
The Jedi Master was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he when he reached his apartment, he almost stepped on Anakin. He stumbled into him, then made a hasty retreat at the loud squeak by his feet. Anakin was nearly pressed up against the wall, clearly trying, and failing, to hide something behind his back.
"Hello," Obi-Wan said, raising his eyebrows.
"Hi," Anakin smiled nervously, waggling his fingers in a wave.
"Padawan... would you care to tell me what you're doing out here?"
"Er..." the youngling thought for a moment, then shook his head, "no."
The long suffering Jedi sighed, "Anakin, I was being polite. I'm not actually asking you tell me, I'm telling you to."
"Oh," Anakin fidgeted for a moment, before stepping aside to reveal what looked like a mish-mash of droid parts.
Obi-Wan frowned, looking at the parts and then back at his padawan, "Anakin... why do you have all of these parts with you? And where did you get them from?"
Anakin said nothing for a moment, thinking, "I got bored. Got them where the droids get fixed."
"You mean you stole them?" the Jedi asked, folding his arms across his chest.
Anakin huffed out an exaggerated sigh, "Didn't steal people!" he exclaimed, rolling his eyes, "just parts! They don't need them!"
"Are you sure you won't get hurt? These aren't toys, padawan-"
"I know!" the boy snapped, glowering.
"Anakin," the sternness in his voice watered down the glare into a sulky pout, "Do you think you're still capable to fiddle with droid parts? You are quite young now, padawan."
The youngling caught the concern in his master's voice and his pout faded away, "I'll be fine," he said, smiling up at him, "I can do it. I'll be safe, promise."
The Jedi gave him one last look before sighing, "Alright," he conceded, "just... be careful."
"Yay!" Anakin grinned up at his master, before scooping up all of the parts in his arms and marching back inside, his master following. He headed to the middle of their living room where a large pile of droid parts lay scattered on the floor.
"Anakin!" the boy turned around, his eyes round
"You said I could!" he protested, dumping the heap in his arms next to the larger one.
"I didn't know you had an army of droids in parts here!" Obi-Wan exclaimed, staring at the oily pieces of metal and and wires and Force knew what else lying on his living room floor, "Force, Anakin, did you bring up half of the repairs centre?"
"Only a quarter," Anakin mumbled sulkily.
"Anakin-"
"I'll clean it up!" the boy rushed to his side and began to pull on his leg, "I'll make it clean once I'm done, I promise! Please, Master," he pouted, the action making the Jedi roll his eyes, "Please. I'm bored."
Obi-Wan ran a hand down his face and groaned, "Oh all right, then. But if you do not clean this up once you are done Anakin, there won't be another droid part in this apartment again, do you understand?"
Anakin grinned and nodded vigorously, before dashing over to the heap of bits and pieces. With a sigh, the Jedi sunk into the sofa, watching with a tired smile as his padawan began to play about with his newly found toys. They always had been toys to him. The boy had a mind for mechanics like Obi-Wan had never seen before. If he didn't have such skill with the Force, he would have made an easy living being a mechanic, or even an entrepreneur. He certainly had enough intelligence for it.
"Master?" The Jedi blinked, his reverie broken by the youngling's voice.
"Hm? Yes, padawan?"
"What'd they want?" Anakin asked, his fingers turning slick already with oil, "the Council?"
Obi-Wan waved a hand, "Oh nothing of interest."
Anakin's brow furrowed, "Can't you say?" he asked, tilting his head in thought.
The Jedi smiled gently. Even as a child, his padawan was hard to fool, "We were discussing whether to tell the senate about you."
"Oh," the youngling turned back to his pieces, frowning in concentration whilst his master patiently waited, knowing the child wasn't done, "why not?" the boy looked up at him again, "am I a secret?"
"Not necessarily, no," Obi-Wan replied slowly, thinking about just how to phrase what was quite a complicated issue, "but if we had to tell the senate, then there would a be a chance the whole planet would know. And I did not think that you would want that," the youngling shook his head, "it's difficult, because we don't know whether they need to know or not. After all, you did tell us that there is yet another Sith that we previously didn't know about."
"Tell them that," Anakin said, brightening.
"You think we should lie to the entire senate, Anakin?"
"No..." the boy thought for a moment, "just... tell them one thing and not the rest."
Obi-Wan smiled, "Perhaps. But what if they found out about you? Don't you think they would be less inclined to trust us if they found out we left out certain important truths?"
"But you're Jedi," Anakin piped up, "you're good."
"Not everyone in the senate thinks that way, Anakin."
"They should," the boy smiled, "you should say. They'll listen to you. They know you're good," he didn't notice Obi-Wan's smile, his blue-grey eyes lighting up, the younglings own eyes fixed on a particularly interesting droid arm. He felt the warmth soak through their bond and he smile, "tell them you don't know where I am, but I told you about the Sith before I went away," he beamed up at his master, pleased with his fantastic plan, "I'm a padawan you're looking after when someone's away."
Obi-Wan stared at the small boy with raised eyebrows, "Anakin, it worries me how good you are at lying."
The boy grinned and shrugged, "Story telling."
The Jedi allowed a grin of his own, "Call it what you like, but you're very crafty, my young padawan."
"'m useful!" Anakin piped up, looking rather proud of himself.
"Yet at the same time, you're such a nuisance," Obi-Wan teased.
"Am not!" the boy pouted, "'m very useful."
"Is this wonderful display of robotics," the man waved a hand at the mess of wires and metal, "an example of your usefulness?"
"Yes!" Anakin answered defensively.
"And who exactly will benefit from this mess?"
Anakin paused, "I'm fixing stuff, aren't I?"
"Things that don't actually need to be fixed, Anakin," Obi-Wan smiled gently.
"If it's broken, needs to be fixed," Anakin said simply.
"It doesn't mean that anyone will benefit from it though."
The youngling rolled his eyes, "It's broken, it needs to be fixed," he said firmly.
Obi-Wan could see this conversation taking a repetitious turn, "Alright, padawan," mollifying his padawan tended to be easier when he was being particularly stubborn.
"Still don't believe me," Anakin frowned at him, before shrugging and turning back to his work, "doesn't matter. 'm still right."
The Jedi shook his head, "Stubborn padawan."
The boy stuck out his tongue, "Stupid master."
"A differing opinion has nothing to do with intelligence, young one," the man lectured gently, "Otherwise you would have to consider the general population of Coruscant as being stupid."
"Might be," Anakin pointed out.
"Yes, they might. But it wouldn't do anybody good to presume so."
Anakin plucked out an arm from the middle of the pile, oddments scattering everywhere, making the boy's finicky master wince, "You're not stupid, Master," he said, examining the object with great interest, "not really."
Obi-Wan chuckled, "Why, thank you, Anakin."
Anakin looked up to give his master a big smile, before his attention turned back to the arm; he began to play with it, his brow furrowed in concentration. The Jedi watched him for a time, smiling a little to see the child pull off the metal casing and examine with fascination all of the wires within. He didn't know how long they were like that, both of them sat in a comfortable silence, broken only by the sound of Anakin's small fingers scrabbling with the arm.
The Jedi was almost beginning to doze off before he heard a small cry. He jolted upright to find Anakin gone from his seat on the floor and jumped to his feet, "Anakin?" he turned to see his padawan sitting on the floor of the kitchen. Obi-Wan rushed to his side, kneeling beside the small boy, "Anakin, are you all right? What happened?"
The small boy sniffled, his lower lip wobbling and shook his head. A few tears spilled onto his cheeks as he pointed to the counter, where black oily hand prints could be seen against the gleaming white top. "Oh, Anakin, what did I tell you about climbing?" he admonished gently, shaking his head. Carefully, Obi-Wan pulled him onto his lap, Anakin quickly latching himself onto his front, "Can you tell me where it hurts?"
Anakin pressed his face further against the man's stomach, reach up and pointing at the back of his head. Slowly, the Jedi carefully eased his fingers through the boy's golden hair, pressing down ever so slightly. He pulled away when his padawan whimpered, the sound muffled by his robes.
"I can't feel a bump," Obi-Wan murmured, fingertips pressing gently again, "you should be fine, padawan," Anakin made a sound that seemed to indicate that he disagreed and squeezed his master tighter. The Jedi smiled, rubbing the youngling's back, "Are you not overreacting? Not even a little bit?"
Anakin peered up at his master, a look of offence and hurt on his face, "No," he murmured sulkily.
"Are you going to try another escapade with our worktops again?" Obi-Wan asked gently.
He couldn't quite make out what his padawan was saying; all he heard was some disgruntled mumbling and felt a shake of the boy's head. The Jedi's laugh was soft as he rose to his feet, one arm still keeping a firm hold on Anakin, not that he particularly needed to though; the child was clinging onto him so tightly he really could have hung there by himself. With one hand, he got out some cleaning supplies and began to clean up the oil stains on the counter, the other holding up Anakin, who seemed resolute to never again show his face from his master's shoulder.
"Why were you trying to get onto the counter, Anakin?" the Jedi asked, his arm working away furiously in the attempt to clear up the grime, "were you hungry?" he felt a nod at his shoulder, "Well then, why didn't you just tell me."
Anakin's face peeped out again, "Napping."
"I was?"
Anakin nodded and hid his face again.
"Still, if you were hungry, I wouldn't have minded being woken up. In fact really I shouldn't have been asleep in the first place."
"You're tired," Anakin mumbled, "not your fault."
Obi-Wan smiled, "Yes, but I need to keep an eye on you, as you just proved," he said, patting the youngling's back.
"'m fine," Anakin mumbled sulkily, looking up to pout at his master.
"Oh really?" Obi-Wan grinned, opening a few empty cupboards, "well, that's good. Because we need to go shopping. Lest you want to go to the cafeteria-"
"Ew, gross!" Anakin declared, scowling, "want your food."
Obi-Wan smiled, "Shopping it is then."
...
Anakin was trotting happily after Obi-Wan, the Jedi looking back every so often to check he wasn't getting in the way too much of all those passing by. He was completely in his own little world, gazing around at all the people who were so much taller than him. Obi-Wan wondered if he was still getting used to the sensation of everybody towering over him; if so, he didn't seem to mind, rather, he was more intrigued than anything else.
The boy happily strolled along, smiling every so often when his master turned back to look at him. He was busy examining the interesting phenomenon of his own feet when he walked headlong into something hard, covered with soft, thick material. He fell back on his rear with an "umph!", looking up to see-
"Hi!"
Obi-Wan turned round, his eyes growing wide. Anakin was sitting on the floor, clearly having just fallen over, smiling up at none other than Chancellor Palpatine. He quickly made his way over, bowing to the man, before reaching down and pulling the youngling up onto his feet.
"Do I... know you?" The chancellor asked, slowly.
"Chanc'lor, it's me!" Anakin cried happily before Obi-Wan could even get a word in.
A look of realisation slowly passed over the man's face, his jack slackening slightly, "... Anakin?"
"Uh-huh!" Anakin beamed up at the man, evidently thrilled to find his friend.
Palpatine looked up at Obi-Wan, who had half a mind to simply bury his face in his hands and groan. But, instead, he gave a reassuring smile to the politician, "I cannot give a full explanation now, but I suggest you go to the Jedi Council. They will fully inform you of everything that has happened," he glanced down at Anakin, who still looked supremely happy, oblivious to the look of shock on his friend's face.
Palpatine nodded, his own gaze falling back to the youngling, who was pulling on his master's hand, "Going?"
"You need to say goodbye first," Obi-Wan whispered pointedly.
"Oh," Anakin bowed deeply, nearly stumbling over, "We're going shopping," he announced proudly to the dumbstruck Palpatine, who stared at him, bemused, "c'mon," he started to pull his master down the corridor, "bye, Chanc'lor!" Obi-Wan only had time to give the politician an apologetic smile before again he was dragged down the hallway by his padawan.
...
"Was Chanc'lor happy to see me?" Anakin asked, looking up at his master as they wandered through an isle.
The Jedi looked down at him and nodded thoughtfully, "Yes, I think so. He was just very surprised, that's all."
The youngling brightened at that, though his brow then furrowed with worry, "Will the Council get mad?"
"Not... mad. But I don't think they would have expected the Chancellor finding out so soon."
"Not a nice surprise?" the boy asked, tilting his head.
Obi-Wan allowed himself a grin, "No, Anakin, I'm afraid not."
Anakin shrugged, "They're silly anyway," he reached up and made a grabbing motion with his hands, "list."
"What do you want the list for?" The Jedi asked, taking out the slip of paper in his pocket.
"'m shopping too," Anakin said, looking down at it. He stared for a moment, before a huge smile split his face. His master's elegant scrawl had written out the list in basic with a Huttese translation beside it. He beamed up at Obi-Wan, before speeding off to find what they needed. Their list seemed to grow as Anakin continually added items of his own choice to the trolley. He continually dashed back and forth from Obi-Wan to the shelves whilst his master calmly walked on, watching the youngling run about with amusement.
The Jedi master was surprised then, when his padawan didn't come dashing to his side, arms full with some other unscripted item. He turned round and saw Anakin staring at something on the bottom shelf. The man came over, the youngling so engrossed with the thing that he didn't notice his master crouch down beside him.
His little hands were pressed against his chest, his round blue eyes fixed on an abandoned stuffed bantha. It hadn't yet been bought, probably left there by some careless child and Anakin was gazing at it with such yearning, as though he'd never seen one before. The Jedi could feel the longing through their bond and he remained silent, watching as the boy slowly, carefully, picked up the stuffed toy, examining it all sides with an attentive gaze. Obi-Wan watched as the boy reluctantly and with something close to reverence put the toy back where he found it. Anakin turned to walk away, only to walk into his master's legs with a squeak of surprise.
The Jedi gave a gentle smile to the slightly flustered boy, "Anakin, do you think you could get this on the list for me?" he asked quietly, pointing to the sheet of paper still clutched in the boy's hand. The youngling stared for a moment, thinking, before he smiled and nodded, running off to get what his master wanted.
Obi-Wan picked up the toy his padawan had been so fascinated with, rising to his feet. He stared at it, wondering why he had reacted the way he had. He stared at it for a moment, puzzled, before a thought struck him. He had never seen Anakin with a toy. Not even when he had came to the Jedi Temple for the first time, the bag he had with him which carried all that he had left didn't have anything in it close to resembling a toy. He thought back to how he played with all of those bits of machinery before, how he really had used them like playthings. How could his mother afford to give him anything as a slave? Had he ever even had a toy in his life?
Obi-Wan looked down at the bantha, sadness blooming in his chest. Jedi children never had toys, but Anakin was no Jedi child. He deserved more than a childhood of cold metal and dead wires.
...
"Master, I can do it!" Anakin was standing up on tiptoe, trying to reach the button to open the door. The weight of the large bag he had cradled in one arm made him stagger backwards, nearly falling over.
"Careful, padawan," Obi-Wan shook his head as he walked up to the boy, opening the door easily, "are you sure you can carry that."
"I'm helping!" the boy declared, smiling up at his master as he staggered into the apartment. The Jedi followed, his own arms laden with bags which he dumped rather carelessly on the table. Anakin set his own bag down on the floor, watching as his master began to pull out the shopping from the bags, "come on, padawan," the Jedi smiled down at him, watching the boy stare, then grin and nod. He began to pull items out of his own bag and placing them carefully on the floor.
The Jedi turned from him, unpacking and putting away all of the food. Once the bags on the counter were empty, he turned to the ones on the table, noticing his padawan's still form in the corner of his eye.
"Anakin?" he stepped round the table for a better view.
The youngling was frozen. The only noticeable movement was the rise and fall of his chest and the trembling in his hands that were clutching the stuffed bantha. He frowned as the boy continued to stay as still as stone, though his breathing grew more ragged. His concern and alarm only grew when Anakin looked up at him, tears shining in his eyes. Then suddenly, the boy started to run, almost on the spot at first, stumbling and scattering towards his master. He crashed into his legs, the force of it nearly making the Jedi fall over.
"Anakin, are you all right?" Obi-Wan asked, placing a hand on his head, "I-I'm sorry, I thought you would have liked it."
The youngling looked up at him, tears spilling onto his cheeks, sliding around the huge smile on his face, "I love him!" he cried, squeezing the man's legs as tight as possible, "thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Obi-Wan grinned, his shoulders sagging in relief. He swung the boy up into his arms, hugging him tight against his chest. One small arm wrapped around his neck, the other squeezing the bantha as tight as possible, "You scared me," he murmured, holding him fast, "I thought I had upset you."
Anakin shook his head, pulling away from the hug to beam at his master, "No," he said, wiping away his tears with the back of his hand, "my eyes are crying, but my heart's not," he beamed at the Jedi, then at his bantha, "he's the best thing ever!" he wrapped his arms around his master's neck again, "thank you, Master!" Obi-Wan smiled, holding the young boy tight. After a time, the Master and padawan slowly eased out of the hug, Obi-Wan carefully depositing his padawan on the kitchen table, the boy almost the same size as the shopping bags around him.
"I love him," he said, beaming at his bantha, a finger running delicately over the horns, "I love you, too, Master."
Obi-Wan stopped. He stood there for a moment, still and staring, yet Anakin continued to gaze lovingly at his bantha. He spotted his Master and laughed. He slid off the table onto a chair, leaning up on tiptoes til he almost reached his master's face, "Master, you're s'posed to say it back," he smiled, "has no one told you it before?" the Jedi shook his head, silent still. The padawan frowned, "Oh. Well, when someone tells you, you always say it back," he smiled up at him, "but only if you mean it,"
The Jedi nodded slowly, his eyes still on Anakin. The boy tilted his head in thought. He had always thought telling someone they loved them was a happy thing, but then again, Obi-Wan was pretty strange when it came to stuff like this. Anakin didn't blame him, not really. It wasn't his fault he had had no one tell him that he was loved before. Really, that was pretty sad. He leant up again, "you can say it now, Master."
Obi-Wan blinked and nodded, eyes on his expectant, smiling padawan, "I... I love you, Anakin."
Anakin beamed, "See? It's easy," he clambered back onto the table and started to unpack again, "it's hard for you cos you don't know how to say it. That's not your fault," he looked up at the man again, "surprise you, Master?"
Obi-Wan nodded, finally not looking so shell shocked, "Yes, Anakin, I confess, it did."
"A nice surprise?"
The Jedi looked the small boy up and down, one hand pulling out shopping, the other still latched onto his bantha. His smile was a little tremulous as he pulled the boy into a hug. The youngling squeaked a little, taken aback, before wrapping his own arms around the man's neck, "Yes, Anakin," he murmured, squeezing the boy tight, "a very nice surprise. The best I've ever had."