Tales from the Temple

Chapter 8: Late Night Conversations

Obi-Wan felt weary as never before as he slowly made his way towards his quarters. He'd just got back from a mission that turned out more demanding than he had expected, not to mention that Windu was breathing down his neck. Which meant, of course, that the first stop upon arrival was to debrief him. He was too glad to be dismissed at long last and to be on his way towards his quarters and a warm shower.

But that was not to be, as Quinlan stopped him on his way. He loved his best friend, but he had little patience for his exuberance at the moment. However, Quinlan looked uncharacteristically somber; he even ignored his poorly veiled groan as he stopped to listen to what he had to say. What he did say dispersed Obi-Wan's annoyance as genuine worry settled on his tired mind.

So, it was with bone-deep exhaustion and profound uneasiness that he opened his door and stepped into the silence of his living room.

By the time he reached his bedroom, he had already shed his robe, tabard, and overtunic, too tired to really care where they landed as he disposed of them in an unruly fashion.

He turned on the light and stopped in his tracks as he spotted a figure sleeping peacefully in his bed. A tired smile graced his lips as the figure stirred at the disturbance, and Obi-Wan slowly made his way to the bed, sitting on the edge.

"This is a pleasant surprise," he said in a gentle voice as the figure turned.

"Obi-Wan," Shaak Ti blinked up at him with a sheepish smile.

"Everything is all right?" he asked, worried, Quinlan's words echoing in his mind, asking him to go and talk to Shaak.

"Yes, don't worry, love," she said, slowly sitting up. How Obi-Wan missed seeing her rumpled from sleep. "I didn't want to be alone. I hope you don't mind..."

"No," Obi-Wan reassured her, taking a hand in his and kissing it. "Go back to sleep, my love. I go and have a shower because I'm afraid I smell worse than a bantha in the sun."

He could practically feel her reluctance to let him go as he stood up.

The hot water felt decadently good on his skin, but he made a quick job of showering and returned to his bedroom, ready for bed in no time. He gathered a spare pillow and a blanket before sitting back on the bed. Shaak eyed the items disdainfully.

"Don't you want to join me?" she turned big eyes on him.

He let out a rueful chuckle. "I'm afraid if I did that, I would not let you go again."

"Would that be so bad?" she asked gently, reaching for his hand.

"What brought this on?" Quinlan seemed to be right to worry. Shaak seemed uncharacteristically subdued and vulnerable.

"I don't know, truly," she sighed. "This mission with Quinlan left me raw... And then I saw how he embraced Luminara when they thought no one saw them..."

"Luminara?" he asked, surprised as he considered the new piece of information. "I guess it makes sense," he shrugged.

"I just wanted that." She squeezed his hand, and Obi-Wan sighed heavily, regretfully.

"Shaak..."

"I know," she cut him off. "And I understand your reasons." She really did; he knew that. "But don't you think that we are way past all that? We both know that there is something serious between Anakin and Senator Amidala. Obi-Wan, he doesn't need a good role model. He needs support. And that doesn't need to keep us apart anymore."

Obi-Wan stayed silent after that, staring at their joint hands. She extracted her hand from his then, and turned her back on him, burrowing into the covers. She wasn't dismissing him; he knew that. She was giving him space to think while taking all the comfort he was ready to provide. She was a truly remarkable woman. And patient beyond measure.

His bed was so inviting. He hadn't shared it with her in such a long time. Maybe she was right, he pondered. Anakin was in a relationship, and there was no good in trying to dissuade him from that. But he could always support him. After all, he could fully sympathize with him. And obviously, they would not be the only ones going against the Code by accepting the reality of their feelings.

He sighed.

Disposing of the spare pillow and the blanket and turning off the light, he pulled up the edges of the covers and climbed into bed, spooning behind Shaak. He pulled her close and smiled against her headtail when she went willingly.

"I will talk to Anakin," he promised. "And Quinlan, it seems."

Shaak hummed in acknowledgment.

THE END

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