The first hours in prison.

Chapter 15

"Obi-Wan."

Anakin's fingers twitched nervously as he struggled to remain calm. His Master stared unseeingly toward him, his jaw tense, his posture stiff. His hands were still wrapped in bandages.

"Who did this?" he asked cautiously, his throat tight.

Obi-Wan's face darkened and his hands clenched into fists briefly, but that was all the reaction he gave.

Pursing his lips, Anakin shifted uneasily on his feet. He didn't know what worried him more, the silence or the fact that Obi-Wan was like a ghost in the Force. He scanned for the usual signs of a Force-suppressant collar, but found nothing. Obi-Wan shielded from him.

Swallowing hard, he took a step back, putting a little distance between them in this tiny cell. "The two lower beds are still vacant...," he finally murmured, "The one to your left is under mine, the one on the right has none above it."

Obi-Wan's eyes twitched briefly to either side, probably more a reflex than really serving any purpose. Then, without paying further attention to Anakin, he slid over to the right-hand bed and sat down.

The orange of the jumpsuit made him look paler than he usually was. But Anakin knew that it was not only that. There were lines on his friend's face, the shallow breathing and the way he held himself.

He is in pain.

"I'm sorry..." he whispered, backing away fully now, "I... I'd better let you." Averting his eyes, he heaved himself back up onto his bed.

And then the light went out. Bedtime. The cell was filled only with the reddish glow of the laser shield, and when Anakin looked down at Obi-Wan again, he found that he still hadn't moved. His milky eyes glinted in the dim light. Anakin's heart contracted painfully.

What have I done?

It was minutes, or perhaps hours, before Obi-Wan finally retreated completely to the bed, but he did not lie down. Instead, he pulled his legs in, leaned against the wall, and continued to stare at nothing.

He didn't sleep.

Anakin felt helpless. He knew that prison was changing everyone - and it scared him what would become of them both. A sinking feeling in his stomach, he turned over on the hard mattress and tried to get some sleep.

He found maybe 3 hours of sleep before the light was rudely turned on in the cell. Groaning, he sat up and found that Obi-Wan was still sitting there just as cramped as he had been that evening.

"Did you sleep at all?" he asked as he climbed down from the bed and busied himself with putting on his shoes.

Anakin didn't expect an answer, but was still surprised when he got one.

"What's it to you?" grumbled Obi-Wan softly, his voice raspy.

He paused what he was doing and looked up, blinking. Obi-Wan had turned away from him, his face turned toward the laser shield. "Nothing... I guess."

Somehow, he had never imagined that he would one day be uncomfortable in his Master's presence. Of course, he had pushed Obi-Wan away time and again, made it clear that he didn't want him there, but still - his friend had always been there somehow. And now Anakin suddenly found himself on the side that had been pushed away.

It hurt, even if he would never have admitted it to himself before.

How had I ever treated Obi-Wan - or any human for that matter - like this? No one deserved that.

He sighed and finished putting on his shoes. "They'll be coming to get us for breakfast in a minute. You should get ready."

Not that there was really much to do there. Besides their beds, there was just a small sink and toilet in the cell.

Obi-Wan slumped his shoulders at that and gave a snort before swinging his feet over the side of the bed, continuing to barely acknowledge Anakin's presence. He felt around with his feet for his shoes, but they were a good distance to his left.

Anakin pressed his lips together, thinking for a moment about leaving Obi-Wan to his own devices. But guilt took over, and with a swipe of his finger, he moved the shoes with the Force so that they bumped gently against his friend's feet.

His master went rigid, teeth clenched, his fingers clawing into the edge of the bed. He then finally expelled a breath and leaned forward, gripping the shoes.

"Thank you," he muttered softly, and proceeded to put the shoes on.

Consciously, Anakin chose not to answer. Instead, he watched through their cell opening as the guards took the first prisoners from their cells. It would not be long now.

Although the laser shield confined them to this tiny room, it also protected them. Anakin was sure that everyone in the prison knew about the Jedi newcomers. They were probably already rubbing their hands together.

Even if Anakin didn't want to admit it to himself, he knew that Obi-Wan and he had to stick together to survive here. The question was whether his master could ever trust him again - or even wanted to.

With a hiss, the laser shield deactivated, and two clones waited for them on the floating platform. "Skywalker and Kenobi, come out," one of them ordered in an authoritative voice, but at least Anakin could sense no malintent in either man.

Having no other option, he finally stood up and moved to join the two guards on the platform, only to find that Obi-Wan had not followed.

"Kenobi, the order applied to you as well. Come on get up," the man repeated himself, growing impatient.

It was not Obi-Wan's way to protest unnecessarily in such a situation. That had always been Anakin's territory.

Frowning, he watched as the man finally started moving toward the cell exit with scurrying steps and a hand on the wall to guide him.

It wasn't until Obi-Wan came to a stop next to him that Anakin realized what was going on. A thin layer of sweat stood on his friend's forehead and his breathing came shallower than normal.

How did I miss that earlier?

Previously, he had thought it was just pain plaguing the other Jedi, but as he now saw, it was also illness.

"You should see a doctor," he whispered softly, so the two guards wouldn't hear.

Obi-Wan squared his jaw in response and shook his head, his fingers curling up.

"You're almost falling over, you know-" Anakin argued again in a hushed voice, but he was rudely interrupted by his friend.

"No," Obi-Wan hissed angrily, fixing him with those milky, bloodshot eyes. There was fear, well hidden by a neutral expression, but Anakin knew his master too well to let such a thing escape him.

"Hey," one of the guards interjected, "I didn't give you permission to talk."

Anakin left it at that.

Shortly after, their platform began to move and they were finally escorted into the large dining hall. As soon as the large doors swung open, an oppressive silence settled on the room.

"So much for attracting as little attention as possible," Anakin grumbled, finding himself facing several hundred pairs of eyes. It was as if they had been waiting just for them. He stretched his back and glared back angrily. It didn't take a genius to know that they had just entered the lair of the Gundarks. As for who was the leader here - that remained to be seen.

The doors were closed behind them and the slamming sound burst the silence like a bubble.

Many prisoners averted their eyes again, focused back on their food. Others, however, continued to study them both. Their eyes wandered first over Anakin and then over to Obi-Wan. A sardonic grin followed, a flippant whispered comment to their tablemates - and a laugh.

I don't like this.

It was clear which of the two of them they already considered the easier target. Obi-Wan seemed unimpressed by it all, but maybe he just hadn't noticed, as absent-minded as he seemed to be.

"Come on," he nudged the man with his arm, "Let's get something to eat."

Obi-Wan pursed his lips and abruptly pulled the touched arm away.

"Woah, hey," Anakin tried placatingly, "I won't hurt you."

His words seemed to have no effect as his Master instead stepped back a bit, holding his arms defensively in front of him as if Anakin were a threat.

"Why should I believe you?" he growled, his eyes glistening with unshed tears, "...have you ever once told me the truth?"

And again, the attention of the room was on them. Anakin let his eyes wander briefly before focusing on his counterpart again. "I don't think this is a good time to discuss such things," he replied as calmly as he could.

Obi-Wan screwed up his face in disgust. "You expect me to trust you when, conversely, you never could...," his voice was sharp as a knife, "...how naive do you think I am?"

There was an anger that burned dangerously under his friend's skin.

"Obi-Wan, please... we need to work together here."

"We?" asked Obi-Wan incredulously, lowering his hands, "We don't have to do anything. I don't want your help, Anakin."

Anakin swallowed around the lump that had settled in his throat. "And what if I need you?" he breathed.

Obi-Wan laughed scornfully in response. "Suddenly you need me?" he snarled, "For years I held out my hand to you and you slapped it away... I thought well, give the boy his space... just be there when he needs me."

He puffed and lowered his head for a moment. "...And then I had to learn that you trust even someone like Palpatine more. That I'm apparently not worthy of being part of your life as well..."

"...Obi-Wan..."

"...No, you've rarely showed more than hatred for me," his master continued, snorting, "...and I was foolish enough to think we were friends... tell me, what stopped you from ending it?"

He took a step forward, giving Anakin a good look at his disfigured face.

"I...," he started, but the words stuck in his throat.

"I what, Anakin?" hissed Obi-Wan, this time pushing him back ungently so that he almost stumbled, "If I've been such a drag on you, why don't you just get rid of me, huh?"

"...I don't want to kill you."

"Well maybe you should have!" barked Obi-Wan back, his chest rising and falling heavily before he slowly calmed down again and added in a whisper, "...then at least I'd get to see one of the few people who cared about me again... wouldn't always have to feel like I was out of place and unwanted."

The words made the hair on the back of Anakin's neck stand up. "...I didn't want that."

I don't remember what I wanted at all.

"Stop lying, Anakin," Obi-Wan huffed out, through clenched teeth.

Desperation spread through him. "Please, give me another chance."

He decided to take a step toward Obi-Wan and hold out his hand. A mistake, as he had to realize too late. Something changed in his friend's face and Anakin had perhaps a millisecond in which to detect Obi-Wan's right arm begin to move.

A blink later, the fist painfully met his temple, snapping his head to the side. Even in his weakened state, Obi-Wan had one hell of a hook.

But it didn't stop there.

Dazed, Anakin didn't register until it was too late how a body - Obi-Wan's body - collided with his, knocking him to the ground.

And then the next fist hit - and the one after that. He lost track.

It probably took no more than seconds for someone to tear Obi-Wan off him, but to Anakin it felt like an eternity. He tried to let out a breath of relief, but the blood in his mouth clogged his throat. Coughing, he tried to open his sticky eyes, but he couldn't manage more than opent them a bit. With blurry vision he saw Obi-Wan being dragged out through the doors and he wanted to ask where they were taking him, but he produced nothing more than a groan.

There were voices he couldn't place and it was getting harder to concentrate.

So he closed his eyes.

Sometimes I think I could really use a beta just to share my thoughts. And then I remember that I'm quite a chaotic person :D and no one should have to deal with my sometimes very random ideas.
Welp, hopefully you enjoyed the chapter anyway, let me hear your thoughts and I hope you're still around for the next chapter.
Happy Halloween! (If you celebrate)