Chapter Text
“Thank you so much, Master Kenobi,” Ahsoka’s voice said from around the corner. “I’ve been so conflicted, but I knew you’d be able to understand.”
Obi-Wan’s quiet chuckle rang through the hallway. “Of course, young one. I remember my first love well. So please, tell me what’s troubling you.”
Anakin paused in the doorway, but Ahsoka and Obi-Wan were still talking in quiet conference, heads bent toward each other.
Why was his padawan asking advice from his master? Why wouldn’t she ask him?
“It’s a little embarrassing, but… How did you know you wanted to stay a Jedi rather than pursue the relationship?”
Obi-Wan gave a small whistle. “That’s quite the heavy question to start with.”
Ahsoka shrugged. “I love her. I just… don’t know if it could ever work out.”
“There lies the trouble with romantic entanglements,” Obi-Wan noted dryly. “We never can be sure. It’s a leap of faith as sure as any other.”
She sighed. “I was afraid you’d say something like that.”
“For me, it boiled down to where I felt called to be. Had I left the Order, I would not be here to answer your question, young padawan.”
Ahsoka laughed. “You can’t expect me to believe your purpose is to give me love advice.”
“No, but I was called to remain. I could have left any number of moments, but none of them were the right one.” Obi-Wan touched her shoulder and gave her a warm smile. “Search your feelings, and you will discover the truth. Even leaving the Order can be an act of the Force.”
She sighed, but it seemed lighter than before. Was that really all she needed to hear?
Ahsoka turned to leave, and they finally noticed him.
“Oh, Master! When did you get here?”
Anakin waved a hand. “Just a second ago. I didn’t want to interrupt.”
He wasn’t going to say anything.
“But Snips, why didn’t you come to me about this?”
Kriff it all.
Ahsoka seemed puzzled by the question. “Why didn’t I… But why would I come to you, Master? You’ve never been in love, and Master Kenobi has.”
Anakin twitched. Never been in love? He was married! “I’ve been in love,” he insisted.
Ahsoka exchanged a dubious look with Obi-Wan. Anakin bristled.
“Sometimes,” Obi-Wan hedged, ever the diplomat, “it can be hard for a padawan to go to their own master about some matters. I know I never discussed love or anything like it with my own master. I instead discussed things with my peers.” Obi-Wan gave Ahsoka a fond and doting smile. “Well done not making my mistakes, Padawan.”
Ahsoka preened under his attention.
Anakin didn’t like that either, but he couldn’t fault her for it. Obi-Wan gave compliments so rarely, they were always wonderful to receive.
Anakin shook his head. “I was actually looking for the two of you. We just got new orders from the Council. Time to go.”
“I’ll go ask Rex to fill me in,” Ahsoka said with a bright grin. She ran off before Anakin could so much as agree.
Anakin huffed. “I know she isn’t intimidated by me. Do I really seem so unknowledgeable?”
Obi-Wan closed the distance, giving him an assessing look. “Not unknowledgeable, no. Inexperienced, maybe.” He clapped him on the shoulder. “I wouldn’t worry about it. She adores you, you know.”
“I know,” Anakin grumbled. “That isn’t the problem.”
“It isn’t?”
Anakin heaved a sigh. “Does it really seem like I’ve never been in love?”
Obi-Wan blinked. “That’s what’s bothering you?”
He nodded. Anakin was married, but he didn’t seem like he was in love? What were they seeing that they couldn’t see his feelings for Padmé?
Obi-Wan leveled him with another assessing look. “Do you want me to be honest?”
Anakin grimaced. “Isn’t that already an answer?”
“Not a complete one.” Obi-Wan’s hand squeezed his shoulder. “I think, as someone who knows you well, you have been infatuated, but I don’t think your feelings have developed to love. I could be wrong, but that would be my guess.”
Anakin’s brow furrowed. Infatuated? That couldn’t be right.
Could it?
“You mentioned new orders?” Obi-Wan prompted.
Anakin filled him in as they walked in step back to the bridge. Ahsoka waved when they arrived; their men saluted; and Anakin wondered for the rest of the day: Do I really know what love is?
Captain Rex was still pacing.
Anakin wished he could say something, but the squadron had missed check-in, and obviously Rex was worried about his brothers. Nothing Anakin could say would assuage that.
Obi-Wan paused beside Anakin. “Oh, dear. Has he stopped at all since I left?”
“Nope,” Anakin said. “I wish there was something I could say, but nothing’s helped so far.”
When Anakin looked up, Obi-Wan’s face had melted into a look of such warm and unguarded compassion that Anakin didn’t know what to do with.
“I’ll speak with him. Give me just a moment.” He gave a light pat to Anakin’s shoulder as he caught Rex’s attention.
They spoke quietly, but Anakin could still hear them if he strained a little and used the Force.
“Hello, Rex. Have you slept at all since yesterday?”
”No, General Kenobi, sir. I can’t sleep, not when I… I need them to check in, and then I can rest.” Rex sounded stubborn and exhausted.
Obi-Wan touched his shoulder. “I know you’re worried for Cody, but you know he’d want you to take care of yourself. He’ll only be cross with you if he comes back and finds you dead on your feet, you know.”
Rex actually managed a small laugh. “He would at that.” His smile fell. “He never misses check-in, sir. Never.”
“He has failed to check in with me before, actually. It’s vanishingly rare, but it has happened. I’m sure his comms were destroyed, and he’s on his way back now. He’ll be home safe before you know it.” Obi-Wan’s smile was all reassurance and certainty.
Rex slowly, gradually unwound, the tension leaving his shoulders. “You’re right, sir. Of course you are. I’m sorry for losing my head, sir. He’s… He’s my best friend.” Rex let out a heavy breath and straightened back up. “But you’re right. I need to keep going. It’s what he’d want. I’ll go get some rest. You’ll…”
“I will comm you at the first sign of him, you have my word.” Obi-Wan’s words carried the weight of a vow.
Rex smiled, still weaker than usual, but warm and genuine. “Thank you, sir.”
Anakin gaped at Obi-Wan after Rex excused himself.
”How did you do that?”
Obi-Wan sat down across from him and crossed his legs. “How did I do what?”
“That,” Anakin said, gesturing after Rex, “comforting him! Convincing him to rest! How’d you do it?”
Obi-Wan leaned back. “I don’t know. But Cody is a dear friend of mine as well. Hearing the reassurance from me may have been more believeable.”
“And that!” Anakin pointed at him. “I thought he was worried about the whole squad!”
His eyebrows rose. “Well, certainly, a little, but Cody’s his best friend. Of course he cares more about him than the others.”
“Sure, but aren’t the others his brothers, too?” Anakin asked. “I feel like I’m missing something here.”
“You might be. When I’ve talked with Cody, I was under the impression that ‘brother’ is something more akin to ‘comrade.’ Then they have batchmates, which is closer to what we consider ‘brothers.’ But then there is ‘best friend.’” Obi-Wan paused, pressing his hands together.
”Does it mean something different to the clones?” Anakin asked.
Obi-Wan nodded. “Best friend is… It is a superstitious acknowledgment of attachment. It is only used for the one with whom you would spend your life after the war finally ends.”
Anakin frowned. “What?”
Obi-Wan sighed. “Romantic attachment, my friend. It is considered bad luck to exchange words of love when any day could be your last, so they replace ‘lover’ with ‘best friend,’ and solve their problem.”
Anakin blinked slowly. “Best friends means…” He froze. “It always means that?”
“Yes,” Obi-Wan answered. “Best friends also grants them unofficial next of kin status as far as the clones are concerned.”
“Then—Rex and Cody, and Fives and Tup, and—but how does that work?”
Obi-Wan considered him thoughtfully. “When Cody gets back, you should ask them. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind telling you. They trust you.”
Anakin felt off balance. How many of his men were in relationships with each other?
How had he never noticed?
“I’ll do that,” he mumbled. “After they’ve had some time alone. They deserve a moment’s peace together after this.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Obi-Wan agreed, and his smile was proud, filling the Force with its warmth. Anakin let himself smile back.
In the meantime, they discussed strategy and backup plans for an hour before eventually meandering into other topics as they waited for any word.
It took a few more hours, during which time Anakin and Obi-Wan ate dinner together, before Commander Cody finally checked in.
Obi-Wan’s relief turned him loose-limbed and almost dopey, the tension left him so suddenly.
“It is very good to hear from you, Commander,” Obi-Wan said. “You’ve had us all worried. One of us more than most.”
“Terribly sorry about that, sir. Would you believe me if I told you a large lizard ate my comm?”
Obi-Wan laughed, his delight bright in the Force. Anakin smiled to feel it.
Obi-Wan ran through the usual questions, and as the answers came through, Anakin relayed the appropriate orders to the hangar and med bay.
“Captain Rex,” Obi-Wan then spoke into his comm. “We have word from Commander Cody. He and his squad should arrive shortly.”
“Thank you, sir,” Rex answered immediately. “I’ll be down to help with the unloading.”
“That’s fine,” Anakin said into Obi-Wan’s comm. “After that, you’ll be off duty tonight and most of tomorrow, and I won’t hear any arguing.”
“And unless Commander Cody thinks some aspect of their mission was of vital import, I believe I can wait until tomorrow for his debrief,” Obi-Wan noted casually.
“Yes, sirs,” Rex said. He sounded better than he had since Cody first missed his check-in.
They really might be in love. How had he never noticed that before?
Obi-Wan ended the connection and stretched his arms over his head. “I suppose we’d better see if we need to stay up any longer. Otherwise, I don’t know about you, but I am exhausted. I think I’d like to go right to bed now that this latest excitement is over with.”
Anakin pushed to his feet and winced as he realized that yes, actually, sleep would be an excellent idea. “I am so on board with that plan.”
Obi-Wan stood as well and patted his shoulder. “Let’s see what we’re dealing with then.”
By the time they reached the hangar, Cody and Rex had their arms clasped between them and their foreheads pressed together.
The other clones were smirking or rolling their eyes, but otherwise leaving them to it.
Did everyone know?
Obi-Wan slowed their pace, walking louder than his usual near silent steps as they approached.
Rex and Cody separated, but Rex couldn’t take his eyes off Cody, scanning him for any injuries or differences since they’d seen each other last, no doubt.
“It’s good to have you back, Cody,” Obi-Wan said, his tone all fondness and affection.
“Thank you, sir. It’s good to be back.” He huffed a sigh. “Next time, I’m bringing a spare comm unit. I still cannot believe…”
“A lizard, I think you said?” Anakin asked.
Rex laughed, shocked and delighted. “A lizard?”
Cody only sighed harder.
Taking pity on him, Obi-Wan asked, “Is there anything in your report that can’t wait until tomorrow?”
“No, sir. The mission went well aside from the accidental communications blackout.” Cody shook his head. “Rex can take the next jungle planet if you don’t mind.”
Anakin snorted.
“Excellent to hear.” Obi-Wan clapped him on the shoulder. “Get some rest. Report to me tomorrow, but I intend to give you and your men tomorrow off.”
“Thank you, sir. They’ll be glad to hear that.”
“See you tomorrow.”
Anakin waved and followed Obi-Wan back out of the hangar.
They both headed to their respective quarters, and though Anakin expected to be up all night thinking about his new revelations, he fell asleep quickly.
It was a blissfully dreamless night.
It was several standard roations later when Anakin finally had a moment alone with Rex.
He cleared his throat, feeling awkward.
“Sir?” Rex asked.
Anakin tapped his heel against the ground. How exactly was he meant to broach this?
Rex’s eyebrows rose. “Oh, is this about Cody and me?”
Anakin jolted. “What?”
“Sorry, sir, but General Kenobi mentioned he’d explained some things to you and said you might have questions.”
Anakin shook his head. “Of course he did. Well, I guess that makes this easier. I did have a few questions, if you don’t mind.”
“Not at all, sir. It’d be an honor.”
Anakin crossed his arms. “Your… best friendship, what does it entail, broadly?”
Rex hummed. “The usual things, I think? Intimacy, respect, trust, that sort of thing. Cody’s the person I’d trust with my life should I be put out of commission for any reason.”
“And that includes… Physical intimacy?”
“Sure. Why wouldn’t it?” Rex shrugged. “Not all the men go that far, but a lot do. And not all the men who do go that far have a best friend to do it with. Same as everyone else, I’ve been led to believe.”
Anakin blushed. “It’s just…” He gestured at his own face.
Rex guffawed. “Oh, is that all? C’mon, sir, you don’t choose a best friend just for their looks! I mean, don’t get me wrong, when Cody gets all serious, he gets this little wrinkle right here,” Rex touched one of his eyebrows, “and it makes him look very distinguished, if I do say so, sir, but that’s not why we chose each other.”
Puzzled, Anakin tilted his head. “How did you choose, then?”
Rex scratched the back of his head. “Well… It’s kinda like our names, sir. Sometimes, you just know. If it’s right, it’s right. And when I was first introduced to Cody, I knew right away, sir: That’s the one for me.”
“Oh, not this again,” a clone said from behind Anakin.
“Cody!” Rex’s face brightened, his smile gaining something warm behind it. His energy in the Force softened noticeably.
“General Skywalker, sir, please don’t let Rex fill your head with his romantic nonsense.”
Rex made an offended noise.
“How did you choose Rex, then?” Anakin asked with good humor.
Cody heaved a sigh. “He joined the ’fleet after I did, as you know, so early on, he was constantly underfoot, barely better than a shiny himself and too new to have any confidence in himself.”
“Don’t tell the general that!” Rex protested.
Cody waved him off. “But we spent so much time talking, and believe it or not, Rex can be funny sometimes. Since I took command, I’d laughed so little, but…” His gaze softened.
Anakin winced. There was so little room for joy and humor anymore, no place for laughter. You had to take it where you could.
“We can talk about anything and everything. We’re a similar rank, so we can discuss strategy and any worries or concerns we have. And I finally realized what had happened when I noticed how worried I was when he went off on his own on some hare-brained scheme that inevitably led us to victory.” Cody sighed. “Unfortunately, this brave idiot has been my best friend ever since.”
Anakin smiled.
Rex threw his arm around Cody’s shoulders. “All that’s true, but see Cody’s just a pragmatist. He doesn’t believe me, but I’m tellin’ you, sir, I knew right away. It’s why I was always underfoot. Had to get his attention somehow, didn’t I?”
Cody pressed a hand to his face and shoved him away with a vicious eyeroll. The Force sang the truth of his feelings, warm and fond and all-encompassing.
“Nonsense,” Cody muttered.
“You gonna get rid of me, then?”
“As if I could. You’re like a tooka; once you feed them…”
“You’ll never be rid of them,” Rex recited happily. “And they’re so cute, you wouldn’t want to anyway.”
Anakin snorted. “I think that answered my questions. Thank you, gentlemen. I really appreicate your candor.”
“Of course, sir,” Cody said, turning serious. “Not all generals would be so understanding. Many of them forbid such closeness amongst the crew. We and our men don’t take that privilege lightly. You have our trust and loyalty, sir.” He saluted, and Rex straightened up to follow suit.
Anakin blinked. “Thank you. That’s not something Obi-Wan and I take lightly either. We’ll do our best to be worthy of it.”
“Yes, sir,” Rex said.
Anakin’s comm chimed. “Sounds like duty calls. I’ll see the two of you later.”
They both said their goodbyes, and Anakin made his way up to the bridge. They really did love each other. How blind had he been? Did he really not know what romantic love felt like in the Force?
Even now as he walked, he could feel a similar warmth coming from a pair of off-duty clones he passed. How many such pairs were in his own platoon? Were there more because they assumed his tacit acceptance? Would they feel more comfortable knowing it was full approval?
He’d have to discuss the possibilty with Obi-Wan. Maybe there was some way to properly adjust their next of kin. Clones didn’t really have such a thing as far as he knew, but surely they could change it?
But before that, they’d have to handle whatever new nightmare was waiting for them.