Ethics, Tuesday, April 21, 2015

[sith_happened]

If you thought a little thing like weeks of unrelenting trauma was going to stop your final exam, you didn't know Anakin very well. He at least look vaguely sorry about it between texts on his comlink (that was only half to avoid talking to Obi-Wan).

Smooth, Anakin. Very smooth.

It was Obi-Wan who cleared his throat and began speaking after the exams had been distributed. "It is traditional for this class to end in a written exam," he said. "No choice listed on these sheets is wrong--" though he and Anakin might disagree about which ones were least wrong, ahem, "--as we are primarily interested in your reasoning. Please be thorough."

"And legible," Anakin added. He coughed. "And if anyone feels the need to talk about this weekend, or last, for that matter, we're around after class."

Comments

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"But you're talking," Anakin said softly, "so that's better than just sitting on it all, right?"

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"I'm not certain how helpful it is," Obi-Wan muttered.

If he had at all figured out how to let this go into the Force, as he by all rights should, they wouldn't even have to have any conversations.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"Me either," Anakin said. "It's a thing around here--they always want to discuss everything to death. Not like how we ever were."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

And they had been the pinnacles of emotional health.

Ahem.

"Your granddaughter was rather insistent about it as well," Obi-Wan said. "I felt we'd already discussed the important parts."

Which is how things like Satine wound up blindsiding Anakin, Obi-Wan: your communication skills.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"With her or with each other?" Anakin asked.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"With you, yes."

He'd more or less said what his trouble was, there'd been some crying in the early days... for him, that was a lot.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

Anakin gave him a tiny smile. "And we're fine."

Or something.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"Better, at least," Obi-Wan said.

Vaguely.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

Anakin chewed on his lower lip, prevented from doing anything too demonstrative or ridiculous by a classroom full of students.

"Oh."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

Anakin still had absolutely no idea how hard it was to juggle the parts of him that badly wanted their old friendship back, and the parts of him that were obsessed with what tragedy that friendship had led to in the first place, did he?

... And he'd act like he hadn't seen what Anakin's expression was doing right now, before it got to him.

"I told her these matters take time," he said.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

Anakin nodded. "Yeah, I get that."

Well, he sort of got that.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"Good," Obi-Wan said.

He exhaled.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"I am sorry that the weekend caused you pain," Anakin said softly.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"That is hardly your fault, my friend," Obi-Wan said.

And if he was admitting that it had hurt, well, so be it.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

Anakin smiled softly. "I know. I still don't like to see it."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"Well, what's done is done," Obi-Wan said, before Anakin's smile might convince him to smile back, which was suddenly something of a risk. "Hopefully, the island will cease conjuring up trouble for some time in the future."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"Don't count on it," Anakin said. "Graduation's generally a...thing."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

Obi-Wan let out a sigh. "Of course."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"If it helps, it's mostly directed at the graduating seniors," Anakin said.

How would that help, Anakin?

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"You may want to be more specific about what happens, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, who was not at all relieved they were off the topic of Satine now, really.

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"It depends on the year," Anakin said. "One year we had a Viking invasion, another time aliens came and blew up the school...my year the giant inflatable gremlin gained sentience and tried to kill us."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"Someone blew up the school?" Obi-Wan said, raising an eyebrow.

... All right, showing a bit more consternation than that, actually. "And you didn't care to tell me about this sooner?"

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"No one we know," Anakin said, "but...yes. We rebuilt."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[saddeserthermit]

"Any chance of such destruction happening this year?" Obi-Wan said. "Perhaps I should come armed..."

Re: Talk to Anakin or Obi-Wan

[sith_happened]

"I always do," Anakin admitted.