any prompt, I just want Padme and Obi-wan friendship
Hi Coalmine!! Thank you for this prompt! I love Padmé and Obi-Wan friendship!!
20. “You broke another mirror and you’re turning into something you’re not” : post-deception arc padmé and obi-wan feels
Padmé sees the dark circles under Obi-Wan’s eyes when she invites him and Anakin and Ahsoka over for dinner. Anakin seems to have not noticed them, or to have acknowledged Obi-Wan at all.
The dinner is completely normal except for the fact that Anakin and Obi-Wan don’t talk to each other. Anakin won’t even look at Obi-Wan. Even Ahsoka is subdued around him. Padmé knows the reason why of course. She was there on Naboo. She was there when Anakin grew cold and distant in a rage-filled way. She knows that Anakin is still not over Obi-Wan faking his death. She also knows that Obi-Wan is not sitting easy with what happened. She suspects no one has reached out to him to find out how he’s doing.
She takes matters into her own hands and demands Chee Chee Berry Cake. She sends Anakin and Ahsoka out into the Coruscant nightlife to find some. It’ll take them at least a half-hour, maybe more.
She offers Obi-Wan the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea. She’s not great at making tea. Usually, Teckla does that when Padme is in a tea mood. So she has the necessary fixings, but not the know-how.
She leans against the counter as Obi-Wan begins to make his tea.
“My aunt used to have a saying, ‘broken mirrors lead to broken windows.’ It took me a long time to understand it.”
Obi-Wan turns around to look at her.
“Mirrors are the things on the outside. You look in the mirror and you see messy hair, lines on the face. Or you see a bright smile and the perfect outfit. It’s exterior, and a only a reflection of the truth. Windows are interior. It’s what’s going on in your soul. If the outside is broken, so is the inside.”
“You’ve got dark circles under your eyes. You haven’t been sleeping.”
Obi-Wan smiles in a way that holds nothing but sadness. “I’m fine, Padmé.”
Padmé huffs. “Obi-Wan. We’re friends. And I can’t help fix this mess with you and Anakin unless one of you opens up. Anakin’s not talking about it.”
“Well, neither am I,” Obi-Wan says with attitude. He doesn’t look at her as he finishes making his tea. Padmé stays quiet as he does so, giving him time to open up and talk. He’ll do that. Anakin too. They’ll grow tired of the silence and finally open up. But Obi-Wan isn’t doing that.
“You broke another mirror, and you’re turning into something you’re not,” Padmé says quietly.
Obi-Wan takes a sip of his tea and doesn’t take his eyes off the stove. “I think I broke more than a mirror. Anakin doesn’t trust me anymore and never will.” Obi-Wan turns around then and there’s a touch of heartbreak in his eyes. “I’ve got a reputation for being indestructible. No one was going to believe I got picked off by a sniper on Coruscant unless Anakin thought I was dead. And we both know he can’t act.”
“You don’t think you could’ve left a note?”
Obi-Wan shrugs. “I should’ve. Should’ve made a dozen different moves, but I didn’t. And now I have to deal with the consequences.”
“Not alone though. I’m here, Obi-Wan. We’re still friends.”
He looks away and takes another sip of his tea. “When you sent Anakin and Ahsoka away, I thought you were going to lecture me. Express the same anger as anakin.”
“I don’t see how that would help.”
“I just want a chance to explain things to Anakin, to Ahsoka, but they won’t listen. I didn’t want to lie. I didn’t want to do the mission. But it got us close to Dooku. We saved the Chancellor.”
Padmé can’t help but notice the way he repeats those accomplishments in a monotone voice, like he’s repeating what’s been said to him, not what he really feels. She notices he does that a lot. She’s not sure she’d ever actually notice if Obi-Wan’s windows broke. She wonders how many have broken already in his life and he’s just hidden it behind mirrors.
“I didn’t–I didn’t realize how much Anakin cared. I–After Kavado…I don’t think I really recovered.” His words are said with a broken quality that Padmé has never heard in his voice save for once, after Qui-Gon died.
She moves to his side and lays a hand on his arm. “Anakin never talked about it. Never heard much from the Jedi on it either.”
“Mission went wrong. We all got captured. I should’ve been there for Anakin. It was a slaver’s compound. But I couldn't–I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t help anyone. For all my–I was nothing. Anakin had to save me. I wasn’t there for him like I should’ve been.” His voice is shaking now, and he’s leaning into her touch.
“Can I hug you?” Padmé asks softly.
Obi-Wan leans toward her but doesn’t answer. But he does put his mug of tea on the counter, and she thinks that’s his answer. She wraps her arms around him. It’s been a while since she’s hugged him, but he feels too thin. All muscle really. More so than Anakin.
“Obi-Wan, you can’t save Anakin from everything.”
“He’s my padawan,” comes the muffled words.
“So trust that you trained him well. He’ll come back. He likes to stew, you know?”
Obi-Wan nods against her shoulder. Then he pulls away with a frown and looks at the tea. “The tea...”
“I only have decaffeinated.”
Obi-Wan turns to her with a look of affront.
“I have a spare room. You should sleep. I’ll keep Anakin and Ahsoka occupied.”
“Can’t stay here.” Obi-Wan hasn’t pulled out of her arms, and Padmé knows he’s tired, sleepy.
“Something’s wrong with your rooms or you would’ve been sleeping there.”
Obi-Wan shrugs. “Hard to sleep since Kavado.”
She wonders if it’s nightmares or if it’s the fact that he’s alone at night.
“Easier to sleep on the cruiser.”
She thinks that answers her question. It’s always a guessing game with Obi-Wan. She can read him better than others, but he still keeps so much hidden she’s never really sure about anything.
“We’ll all still be here when you wake.”
Obi-Wan doesn’t protest as she turns and guides him to the spare bedroom. He pulls away and turns to her.
She smiles. It’s nothing she wouldn't do for any friend of hers. Nothing she wouldn’t do for Obi-Wan again, no matter how many times he forgets that they are friends.