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Obi-Wan made his way down the hallway of the Temple, admiring the way the sun was shining through the windows and falling warmly on the tiled floors and sturdy columns. He always liked this time of day at the Temple, when the brightness of the sun had shifted to a warm, sticky gold, imbuing the already beautiful space with a reverent glow.

He noticed with a soft brush of nostalgia that it seemed busier than it usually was these days, with so many masters, and even padawans, away at war. But today, for one reason or another, the hallway seemed bustling, and Obi-Wan saw more than a few familiar faces as he made his way to the training rooms.

As he rounded the corner, he heard a familiar voice and smiled to himself, peeking around the door but doing his best to keep out of sight.

Anakin had volunteered to teach the initiates today. They were at the Temple for a brief respite while the 501st and 212th were granted shore leave, and the Council had decided to take the opportunity for some much-needed repairs to the Resolute and the Negotiator. So, while both their men and their ships were out of active duty, Anakin and Obi-Wan had miraculously been granted reprieve, too.

Obi-Wan had been surprised by Anakin's uncharacteristic offer to teach, but then again, Anakin had been in a good mood lately (as good as anyone could be in a time of war, that is).

Obi-Wan had been in a good mood lately, too.

This thing between them was new. It wasn't something Obi-Wan had ever expected, and while it filled Obi-Wan with a slew of conflicted emotions, the strongest, to his surprise, was a bright, unreasonable joy.

The war had changed them both. Perhaps it had made them more amenable to bending the tenets of the Jedi Code. Perhaps it had made them closer, forging the intimacy that could only come from placing your life in someone's hands on the battle field again and again. Perhaps it had made them both lonely.

Perhaps it was all the above.

But of the many lessons the war had taught Obi-Wan, one in particular was this: in a time of war, you have to take the good things where you could find them.

And Anakin was a very good thing.

Obi-Wan chanced another look around the corner, and was greeted by the warm sight of Anakin, seated on the floor of the dim training room with his eyes closed, surrounded by a gaggle of younglings in the same pose. He'd been introducing the initiates to their early saber forms, but apparently that part of the lesson was done, and Anakin had moved on to a meditation.

Obi-Wan smiled to himself at the irony of Anakin Skywalker teaching anyone how to meditate.

But he appeared to be fully immersed in the job, and the younglings were following along with the all the endearing seriousness of a small child mimicking someone they desperately admire, their eyes tightly shut.

"Now," Anakin began speaking again. "Take another deep breath with me -"

The room filled with a chorus of exaggerated breaths.

"-and let it go," Anakin continued. "Reach for the force around you. Pay attention to what you feel. Can you feel it anywhere in your body? Can you feel any of your classmates in the force?"

The children, young as they were, were wise enough to know the questions were rhetorical.

"Focus on the present moment, and try to clear your head of any other thoughts. I know it can be hard, at least it always is for me. My master once explained it to me like watching a river. The river is always in motion, always changing, but you can find tranquility in watching it flow. Imagine each thought like a leaf, floating down the stream. You acknowledge it and then you let it pass."

Obi-Wan felt an overwhelming swell of fondness as he watched Anakin. He'd had many opportunities to witness Anakin's talents on the battlefield, in the salles. But he'd rarely gotten to see him like this.

The room was hushed, now. Obi-Wan could feel the stillness in the force, too. The younglings were unpracticed, their meditations clumsy, but they'd still managed to settle into the force enough to create the special sort of peace that only came from group meditation.

Part of Obi-Wan felt tempted the join, to sink himself into the soft glow of peace and companionship. But in truth, he was enjoying watching just as much.

After a while, Obi-Wan couldn't resist giving Anakin a small brush in the force. It was featherlight, so as not to startle him, just enough to let Anakin know he was there.

His touch was met with a rush of warmth from Anakin. He reached back, rubbing affectionately against Obi-Wan, wrapping around him in the force. Obi-Wan allowed the enthusiastic greeting, letting them stay entwined as Anakin slowly drifted up from his meditation.

"Alright," Anakin said with a clearing of his throat. "Now, start to come back to your awareness of the present moment, of your body. Wiggle your fingers," he instructed, and the roomful of younglings complied, raising little hands in the air. "Wiggle your toes, and take another deep breath with me."

The room was again filled with the sounds of small breaths.

"Very good. Now, open your eyes."

Anakin, and the initiates, blinked back to life. His eyes found Obi-Wan, where he was now standing in the back of the room, out of the way.

"That was very good. Thank you for letting me teach you today," Anakin said, sounding a bit bashful now that he knew Obi-Wan was watching.

"Thank you, Master Skywalker!" the younglings echoed.

Anakin dismissed the class and the children slowly filtered out, several greeting Obi-Wan with clumsy bows as they passed.

Once the room was empty, Anakin approached him.

"Obi-Wan," he said with a wide grin. "Why didn't you tell me you were here sooner?"

"Ah, well, I didn't want to make you nervous." Obi-Wan said. "And, I was enjoying observing," he added truthfully. "You did well, Anakin."

Anakin flushed at the praise, his smile going shyly tight-lipped and pleased. "Thank you, Master," he said with a nod that was almost a bow.

When they'd begun...this...Obi-Wan had drilled into Anakin the importance of concealing it from the rest of the Jedi, of keeping it discrete at the Temple. Anakin, being, well, Anakin, had responded with delight at the shared conspiracy, putting on a mischievous, forced formality that Obi-Wan presumed was fooling exactly no one.

Obi-Wan found it so charming he couldn't bring himself to care.

But it perhaps made Obi-Wan a hypocrite, then, when after only a brief glance towards the door, Obi-Wan crossed the few steps between them to drag Anakin into a small alcove in the back of the room, and pulled him into a deep, claiming kiss.

Anakin startled only briefly before responding eagerly, tangling his hands in the fabric of Obi-Wan's robes, leaning into the palm that cradled Anakin's face. Anakin was warm and close and Obi-Wan couldn't help himself from licking into Anakin's mouth, sliding his lips against his and relishing their plush softness.

His bright, ridiculous, brave, complex Anakin.

When they parted, after a few long moments, they were both breathless.

"What was that for?" Anakin asked dazedly, leaning his forehead against Obi-Wan's with his eyes still closed, sounding not at all displeased about it.