Inheritence

Chapter 4 - Deception

Author's Note: Welp, this chapter is the beginning of the very angsty part of the fic. :D I hope y'all enjoy Anakin and Rex's friendship, and try not to kill me for what Anakin did to Ahsoka. :')

To hiep16: I know this was supposed to be about Ahsoka being a Sith... but somehow, Anakin kinda took over. To be fair, we needed to establish more about what was happening with Anakin to build up to ROTS. ^-^ I hope you enjoy! :)

~ Amina Gila

Anakin had a bad feeling about this from the start. He didn't understand why. He hadn't, until his greatest fear became real. Until the sniper who was shooting at him and Obi-Wan – why out here on Coruscant? – somehow manages to score a hit on Obi-Wan. Until Anakin took him back to the Temple, only to hear...

He feels strangely disconnected from his body right now, not exactly an uncommon feeling. Everything is numb and void and empty. There's nothing. Obi-Wan is... he's gone. Just like that. The only father Anakin's ever truly known.

He doesn't remember the funeral, really, but Padme and Duchess Satine are there. So were a few others, but they were the only two Anakin took note of.

Now...

Anakin stumbles into his apartment, nearly collapsing as the door hisses shut behind him.

He can't... it's too much. It doesn't make sense. Obi-Wan was there, hardly any time ago, and now he's – he's gone. Like Qui-Gon. Like Hardcase and so many of Anakin's friends. Like... his mother.

It feels like the world should stop turning if this is really real, and it should because his master, his best friend is gone. It feels like a dream. Like some terrible nightmare he's going to wake up out of, and Obi-Wan will be there to laugh at him for thinking he could've been killed by a single sniper, and lecture him for being so torn up over it, because this isn't the Jedi way

Obi-Wan had been the one to suggest they split up, and Anakin listened. He wasn't even able to catch the assumedly bounty hunter. It should've been Anakin instead. It shouldn't have been Obi-Wan. All this time, he was the only one who was always there.

Anakin wants to cry. He wishes he could cry, but he feels too numb, and the pain runs too deep.

He reaches into the Force, nudging outwards, instantly overwhelmed by the feel of his former master permeating the apartment. This doesn't make sense. He can't be gone. Anakin should've taken the shot instead.

If he'd been fast enough, this wouldn't have happened. Obi-Wan would – he'd be here.

Anakin isn't sure how long he sits there, staring at a fixed point across the room without seeing it. It could be minutes. It could be hours. He doesn't even know.

He doesn't remember falling asleep, only waking up what couldn't have been more than a few hours later, if even. It takes a moment for the events of the past day to settle in, along with the crushing, overwhelming pain and confusion. His every thought is screaming with denial because that's not possible, but as much as he wants to deny it, he saw it happen. He carried Obi-Wan back to the Temple, and he saw – he saw his funeral. Like he did Qui-Gon's years ago. Like he did his mother's, at the beginning of the war.

He should probably get up and do something, but he doesn't have the energy to. He couldn't even if he tried. At least, not until the Council calls him with the information about Obi-Wan's killer. They've found him, apparently, and Anakin could probably have stayed in outright denial until that moment.

Then, the only thing Anakin feels is a cold, icy, blinding rage, because this man – Rako Hardeen, they'd said his name was – murdered his master. Anakin wants to kill him. He imagines how satisfying it would be to wrap his hand around the man's neck and crush it, but – but he's supposed to take him to prison, and Anakin knows that's what Obi-Wan would want him to do. Anakin pulls himself to his feet. He doesn't feel empty anymore, not with this rage burning in his veins, but he doesn't trust himself to keep it together, and even if it's unusual, there's one person he can always go to for help.