Part VIII
Obi-Wan was instantly on edge when he awoke alone. His whole body tensed as he scanned the room for somewhere to hide. He was too exposed lying on the bed. Unfortunately, the room offered no obvious hiding places, only solid pieces of furniture when recessed areas would have been preferred.
"You've woken," the woman said rather obviously as she entered the room.
Whimpering slightly, Obi-Wan scooted backwards, pressing himself against the wall. "Where's Anakin? I want to see Anakin."
"Anakin is outside at the moment," she told him, half-turning in the doorway. "He and my husband are trying to put together something that will remove the collar you're wearing."
Obi-Wan's hands immediately went to his throat, feeling the metal that encircled his neck. He struggled to swallow the panic that filled him, his hands dropping down and clenching on his thighs. "I need to see him."
The woman hesitated a moment before nodding her head. "Very well. Would you like to go to him or should I fetch him?"
"I would like to go myself," Obi-Wan decided, nervously biting the inside of his cheek.
Her smile was comforting and reminded him somewhat of Anakin's. Before helping him from the bed she informed him that she was Anakin's mother, Shmi. Placing his arm over her shoulders, Shmi allowed Obi-Wan to lean on her as much as was necessary. With each step that he took, Obi-Wan was forced to rely on her more and more. He had not realized before just how weak he was. Admittedly he knew that he should have realized it as it was the first time he had been out of the bed and also the longest he had remained conscious. At the moment, though, his only concern was that he be reunited with Anakin.
Out in the courtyard, Obi-Wan caught sight of Anakin almost immediately. He was pacing about in the entrance of the maintenance room, tinkering with an object he held in his left hand. A moment later he looked up, his eyes searching out and finding Obi-Wan instantly. The thing in Anakin's hand was forgotten, passed off to the man standing next to him, as he hurried across the yard towards Obi-Wan. Feeling the same desperate need as Anakin, Obi-Wan allowed his arm to drop from Shmi's shoulders then took several wobbly steps towards the other man.
"You should still be resting," Anakin said as he slipped his arms around Obi-Wan. "It's too early for you to be out of bed."
Obi-Wan clutched at Anakin's sides, his forehead pressed into the crook of the taller man's neck. "You weren't there."
The accusation, quiet as it was, made Anakin's chest tighten painfully. He hugged Obi-Wan tighter, touching his lips to the older man's temple. "I'm sorry. I thought you'd be asleep longer."
Obi-Wan turned his head to the side, his lips brushing against Anakin's. Anakin was momentarily thrown off, aware for the first time just how close Obi-Wan's lips were to his own. He did his best not to react to it, not wanting to upset Obi-Wan. He had been through too much and didn't need to think that Anakin was pulling away from him. Most importantly because he wasn't. Despite Obi-Wan's best efforts over the past ten years, Anakin had never been good at dispersing his emotions as the Jedi were trained to do. He loved Obi-Wan and so he let his instincts guide him and lightly kissed the corner of Obi-Wan's lips.
It felt strangely right, Obi-Wan's lips against his own. There was a solidness to them beyond the dry, cracked texture that atmosphere of the desert planet had given them. Having been kissed by a barmaid on Klaxton 9, Anakin knew the too-soft feel of female lips, the delicate texture awkward to him.
"I have no intentions of leaving you," Anakin whispered, rubbing his cheek against Obi-Wan's stubbled jaw. "I'm trying to make something that will get that thing off your neck. It might help with your memory."
Still keeping his hands on Anakin's hips, Obi-Wan pulled back so that they were face to face. "I want to help."
Anakin smiled fondly at him. "Unfortunately, you've never been very good with electronics, Obi-Wan. That scar on your left wrist is actually an electrical burn."
"Oh."
"You could come sit with me if you want, though," Anakin offered, feeling Obi-Wan beginning to tremble. "It's cool in the workshop and there's a bench you could sit on."
Obi-Wan nodded his head slightly, his lips pursed. "Sitting would be good."
Supporting Obi-Wan on his right side, Anakin led him across the courtyard towards the underground tool shed where Cleigg was working to recalibrate a spare sensor for the vaporizers. Anakin had examined the collar as best he could while ObiWann slept and had made a rough plan on how to remove it. Having Obi-Wan present while hemadee the device would be helpful since he could test it at various stages instead of only at the end. Anakin felt empty without the bond he and Obi-Wan had shared for the past decade. Being near his master and not being able to sense his Force signature was alsodisconcertingg, oftentimes feeling to Anakin as though he was looking at a phantom and not the real Obi-Wan Kenobi. Most importantly, though, Anakin hoped that be connected with the Force would help Obi-Wan's depleted memory.
Once inside the maintenancee room, Anakin introduced Obi-Wan to his newly discovered step-father before guiding him over to the room's lone bench. Anakin lingered near Obi-Wan, fingertips ghosting briefly over his shoulders. It caught him off guard when all of a sudden the fingers of Obi-Wan's left hand slid through his, squeezing lightly.
"I promise not to go anywhere," Obi-Wan murmured when Anakin returned the affectionate squeeze.
Try as he might, Obi-Wan was finding it difficult to stay in one position for any length of time. The space between his shoulder blades ached from the way he was sitting, but any other position would be far more uncomfortable. If he truly wanted to he could have retreated back to the comfort of the main house, but that would mean leaving Anakin. While he was comfortable enough aroundShmii, he wanted to stay near Anakin. Anakin was the one that he remembered, however vaguely.
Obi-Wan startled when he blinked his eyes open and saw a blonde-haired little boy standing in front of him. The boy's hair fell into his eyes as he grinned widely, a hand held out towards Obi-Wan.
"Hi. You're a Jedi too? Nice to meet you."
Obi-Wan blinked and then the boy was gone. He nearly tumbled off the bench, his whole body jerking at the boy's sudden disappearance. Obi-Wan didn't realize that he was trembling all over until he felt Anakin's hands framing his face as the other man crouched in front of him.
"You okay?" Anakin murmured, shuffling a bit closer.
Panting, Obi-Wan focused on Anakin's eyes for a few long seconds while he struggled to get his breathing under control. "Boy. There was a boy here. He asked me if I was a Jedi. What's a Jedi?"
"There's no one in here but us," Anakin was quick to assure him. "Cleigg left a little while ago to check on one of the vaporizers and my mother is in the main house. You must have fallen asleep."
Obi-Wan shook his head vehemently. "No. I saw a boy. He was about nine or ten, blonde hair. He said hello then asked me if I was a Jedi too."
"I said something very similar to that a long time ago," Anakin revealed, lifting a hand to stroke the short hairs on the top of Obi-Wan's head. "It was when we first met. I was in awe of you and your master. I'd never met a Jedi before-- they were little more than legends here --and in the span of two days I'd met two."
"My master?" Obi-Wan echoed, tensing somewhat at the title. "Have I always been a slave then?"
Anakin's eyes widened dramatically, showing the fullness of their blue colour. "A slave? No, Obi-Wan, never. Qui-Gon was your teacher, a master of the Jedi arts. Until you were betrayed by those traders you had never been a slave."
Obi-Wan was not as relieved by the information as he thought he would be. Some foul thought continued to tug at his mind, though he could not place it. These unknown thoughts made him nervous, his skin tingling. There was something very important that he was not remembering.
"You look exhausted, Obi-Wan. You should go in and rest," Anakin suggested as he rose up to his full height. "We don't have any access to a bacta tank like we would at the Temple so you must recover the old fashioned way which requires a great deal of rest."
Obi-Wan immediately shook his head, staring up at Anakin rather than the other man's outstretched hand. "No. I want to stay near you. I'll rest later, but please let me stay with you now."
Anakin looked uncertain, but ultimately nodded his head. "I feel better when you're nearby as well," he admitted before turning back to his work.
Obi-Wan leaned back into the unyielding bedrock that formed the room's walls, relief palpable in every cell of his body. He felt a slight tremor as though his senses were being slammed up against a wall, but pushed it aside. At the moment he was severely lacking the energy to think about such insubstantial things.
The second of the moons that orbited Tatooine had risen before Anakin finished the device that he hoped would remove the Force inhibiting collar from Obi-Wan's neck. Obi-Wan himself had fallen asleep several hours before so Anakin had brought him back to the main house where he could rest more comfortably.
"I feel as though I am looking back in time," Shmi murmured from the doorway just as he was screwing the casing back in place. "How many times did I look in on you and see this exact same scene. Though when you were a boy it was only ever tinkering and not such serious ventures."
"I only hope that this works," Anakin sighed, stepping back from the workbench and swiping a hand over his forehead.
"It will. You're very determined to help Obi-Wan," Shmi noted as she entered the room. "And I've seen what you can accomplish when you're determined."
Despite himself, Anakin smiled. "You can rest easy, Mom. I have no intention of entering a pod race. At least not right now. I just need to get that Sithspawn collar off Obi-Wan."
"And you will. But first you need to eat," Shmi ordered, placing a hand on his shoulder as though she would guide him from the room.
"I'm not--"
Shmi squeezed his shoulder this time. "You are going to come each with us, Anakin. So go wash up then wake Obi-Wan. I doubt that the poor man has had much to eat over the past week and the both of you could use a hot meal before you start fiddling with that collar."
After a brief consideration Anakin nodded his head. "All right, Mom. I'll be in soon."
"Thank you, my darling."
Anakin watched her go, a smirk on his lips. It was strange to be at home again with his mother after having lived so long on Coruscant. One thing Anakin had been unable to forget was the sand. The sand was everywhere, gritting against his flesh. It stuck to his sweat-slick skin and generally made him feel uncomfortable. So as he passed by the kitchen, Anakin informed his mother that he was going to shower the sand off himself before dinner.
Under the cool water, Anakin sighed with relief. He scrubbed viciously at his scalp, hoping to get all of the sand out. He was itching to be clean, or at least the very least free of sand. The heat he could withstand, in truth Anakin had always preferred warmer climates. Obi-Wan had often teased him about needing extra blankets most nights even when they were on very mild planets.
"Anakin?"
Anakin was surprised to hear his master's voice. Even more surprised when he saw Obi-Wan's hazy outline through the 'fresher door. Leaving the water running, he opened the door, peering out at the copper-haired man. Instantly, Obi-Wan's features relaxed, a great deal of tension bleeding from his posture. Before Anakin could ask what he wanted, Obi-Wan stepped into the 'fresher, still dressed in his tattered Jedi trousers.
"I'm usually the one who does this," Anakin chuckled, pushing his bangs out of his face with one hand while his other came to rest on Obi-Wan's hip.
He must have said something that Obi-Wan wanted to hear because a moment later the older man's hands were framing his face and then Obi-Wan was kissing him desperately. Anakin was startled at first, unsure of how to respond. He must have hesitated too long because Obi-Wan pulled back almost immediately, shrinking himself into a corner of the 'fresher.
"I'm sorry. I thought... I thought that...." Obi-Wan stammered, looking everywhere but at Anakin.
Stepping forward, Anakin cupped Obi-Wan's cheek with his right hand, his left hand light stroking the older man's side. "You weren't wrong. We've always had a very intimate relationship. I just didn't expect you to show up like this after everything that's happened."
It was the truth. Anakin had never felt closer to another human being than he did Obi-Wan. The only falsehood was that their relationship had never been a physical one. But he'd always loved Obi-Wan, never realizing just how much until he'd thought he'd lost him.
"So it's okay?"
Anakin nodded his head, drawing Obi-Wan into his arms. "Yeah, it's okay."