Chapter Text
“I really don’t see why you’re so upset Commander,” Obi Wan said. “It’s not as if I haven’t accepted missions of higher risk before.”
Cody had pulled his General aside in the noisy mess hall of the Starfighter. They were now standing at the edge of one of the tables, directly beside Ahsoka and Anakin, who were seated with trays of various ration bars and slop.
“Sir, with all due respect…,” Cody began with a low voice and furrowed brow. Obi Wan knew that what followed would be his Commander politely insinuating his own stupidity. Obi Wan couldn’t help but smile in anticipation of the routine he knew so well.
“...You serve on the Council. You do have some say in which missions you’re assigned. I’m asking you to reconsider taking every solo-mission that comes up. It’s illogical!”
“I can’t very well ask another Jedi to take such a risk if I’m not willing to volunteer for it myself!”
“Sir, again, we need you here to lead. Your men need you.”
“Are you saying the men doubt your leadership skills?” Obi Wan raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Or is that your impersonal way of saying you’ll miss me, Commander?”
“Sir–” Cody started.
“Anyways, Cody,” Obi Wan waved him off, “you should take my volunteering as a compliment to yourself. I would much rather leave the command to you than to anyone else—trooper or Jedi.”
“General, it’s not just leading troopers that concerns me.” Cody raised his voice in annoyance. “If I may speak freely, it is just plain reckless to be deployed alone on some–”
“Uh oh…there they go again…” Ahsoka giggled and looked at Anakin.
“Oooooooo! Mom and Dad are fightinnnnng,” Anakin jeered.
“We are not fighting,” said Obi Wan sternly. “We are simply having a disagreem—wait, who would be whom in this scenario of yours?”
Anakin raised an eyebrow and looked at Ahsoka.
“Well let’s just say Cody’s not the mom here…” Ahsoka replied dryly. Anakin laughed, spitting water out onto the tray in front of him.
“I sense that you two are making fun of me” Obi Wan narrowed his gaze.
”It's not an insult or anything!” Anakin cut in. “It’s just that Cody isn’t as, like, naturally nurturing or nearly as anxious as you. He’s anxious in, like, a dad-way. You worry about us in a mom-way.”
”For the last time I am not anxious Anakin, I’m simply overworked at the moment,” Obi Wan sighed, “and if you had you both for padawans, you might become a bit more high strung as well,” he retorted. “But I’ll have you know I can be very fun and rela—”
”Hang on,” Cody interrupted. “You’re saying I'm not nurturing? Does that mean you think I don't care about your well being?”
”No! It just means you're more like, I dunno, emotionally distant?” Anakin shrugged. “But I guess, so is Obi Wan…” Anakin paused for a moment, deep in thought. “It’s hard to explain the difference… but what makes you the dad is like, you’d be the one to teach us to drive a speeder when we’re still too young, or burp at the dinner table or something.”
”So, you're saying I’m a dad because I’m distant, reckless, and have bad manners?” Cody asked, offended.
“Well, when you put it that way, it sounds bad…” Ahsoka thought. “But compared to Obi Wan, everyone has bad manners!”
Anakin laughed at that and turned to her.
“Snips, remember when Obi Wan was at that state dinner, and he told that senator she was holding her wine glass wrong?”
“Oh yeah!” Ahsoka laughed, “she looked ready to order a drone strike on him!”
“It was a champagne glass and she was ruining the drink by warming it!” Obi Wan cut in, “and I think I’ve heard quite enough of this whole ‘parent’ discussion of yours.”
”You know, I don't even get this Mom-Dad thing,” Cody said. “Obviously I only had one sort-of parent, and well, we certainly weren’t raised by him. And on Mandalore I know they usually have two parents, but both are called ‘buir’… so what’s the difference between a ‘mom’ and a ‘dad’ anyways?”
“Well, none of us really know or remember having a dad really,” Ahsoka shrugged. “And only Anakin knows about having a mom, so I guess he’s the expert here.”
”Yes!” Anakin high-fived Ahsoka across the table.
”Now just a moment!” Obi Wan stepped in. “I’m still not over this slight at my anxieties. Do you think I don’t ever loosen up? And do you know how many rules I've had to force myself to forgo working alongside Anakin all these years?”
“All I’m saying is,” Anakin slurred through a mouthful of food, “as the mom-expert here, you’ve definitely gotten on my case in a mom-like way a ton of times, and you’re obsessed with rules–” Anakin paused to swallow. “Oh! And also I remember, when I first got here, you’d sing me lullabies like, every night, and I just can’t picture Cody singing at. all. So you’d definitely be the mom here.”
“This all sounds like you’re saying I’m no fun,” Obi Wan said, crossing his arms.
“Well I think I have a fine singing voice,” Cody mumbled at the same time.
Ahsoka’s eyes lit up as she turned to Anakin with her ‘I have an idea’-face on.
“Well… why don’t we have…a contest?” Ahsoka grinned mischievously.
“Oh, I can’t wait to hear this one,” said Obi Wan, voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Ooh yeah,” Anakin sat up excitedly. “We audition them and pick who’s the best singer! Like on Intergalactic Idol!”
Ahsoka slapped him on the non-metal arm.
”No dummy!” She snorted. “A parent contest! We make them swap roles. Obi Wan does, like, dad-stuff, and Cody does mom-stuff. Then at the end of the rotation, we vote on who did a better job!”
“Ooh yeah! Great idea Snips!” Anakin and Ahsoka fist-bumped.
“I’m in,” Cody nodded seriously.
“Now hang on just a moment,” Obi Wan spoke up. “Why do I feel like this is another bad idea?”
“Oh, okay Mom!” Anakin goaded. “We won’t do it if you forbid us from having fun!”
Obi Wan rolled his eyes and sighed.
”Oh all right…I suppose it couldn’t do much harm.” Obi Wan’s mouth curled up slightly as he looked at Cody, who raised his eyebrows before grinning back at him.
Anakin and Ahsoka were too busy celebrating to notice.
”Yes!” Anakin cheered, as he and Ahsoka did their signature victory-handshake. “Best idea ever!”