A/N: Hey, guess who's writing yet another Obi-Wan migraine fic?
(Hint: it's me. I'm nothing if not consistent.)
It was raining. It didn't rain a lot on Coruscant, even less so during the day, but when it did, it brought a different sort of beauty to the city-planet. There was less traffic outside, almost less life outside, and the Force seemed to sigh in relief as water fell from the skies.
Obi-Wan Kenobi glanced out the window again then back at his datapad. It was just beginning to rain when he, Anakin, and Ahsoka returned from Naboo, about an hour ago. The trip put him severely behind in all the paperwork he had to do for the Council and for the war, and he had at least fifty papers to grade for the History class he was teaching. The headache brewing behind his eyes pulsed, and he rubbed absentmindedly at the side of his head, blinking at the screen in front of him. He leaned his head back, allowing his stiff neck to stretch slightly, before sitting upright again.
There was so much to do. Usually he was pretty well-organized and was able to stay on top of his work, but now everything was piling up and he had almost no idea how he was going to finish everything. He breathed deeply, closing his eyes momentarily and pressing his hand to his temple.
"Tea," he murmured and then yawned, standing up and blinking to clear his vision. Blast, he did not need a migraine now, of all times. He had no time for this. If he was just beginning to get the migraine now and it already was bothering him this much, he would be pretty much incapacitated within the next half hour. Maybe he should cancel all the meetings he scheduled for the rest of the day, but that would result in even more work than not cancelling them. It would all just pile up if he stopped.
Obi-Wan heard the front door of his apartment open suddenly. Ahsoka, he realized dimly, when he quickly reached out with the Force. He moved out of his room to find her standing in the doorway.
"Hi, Master Kenobi," Ahsoka smiled, waving a hand awkwardly.
"Hello, Ahsoka," he responded, walking towards her. "Was there something you needed?"
She frowned and glanced around the room quickly. "I was wondering if Sk—Master Skywalker might be here, but it doesn't look like he is," she mumbled.
"No, he isn't," he answered, then frowned. Ahsoka was blurry. Wait, actually everything was blurry. That's probably not good, he thought dimly, realizing that his ears were ringing slightly. "I'm not sure where he is," he said, but he could barely hear himself now. His own voice sounded far away, distant. The only thing he could hear very well was the sound of the rain drops.
"Okay, Master," she responded.
"I…" He really needed to sit down at some point, but there was so much to do and no time at all. He looked towards the front door again, trying to ignore the bright lights slamming into his vision. "If I find out where Anakin is, I'll let you know," he said.
She nodded. "Thanks," she smiled, turning around and leaving.
Obi-Wan counted slowly to five after he heard the front door close, keeping his eyes closed. When he reached five, he opened his eyes slowly, wincing. Nausea immediately curled in his stomach, and with a speed he didn't know he could achieve at the moment, he raced into the refresher and crashed to his knees before the toilet. He retched and then vomited, collapsing sideways when he finally finished. The refresher spun around him, almost lazily. He rested his head on the cool tile floor, closing his eyes again.
Sleep was definitely out of the question, but maybe he could just lay here for a few seconds before…doing whatever it was he was doing. It was difficult to think clearly. Obi-Wan waited a few more seconds then pulled himself to his feet, immediately pressing a hand to the wall for support. After flushing the toilet, he stumbled out of the refresher and back to his room.
Obi-Wan stood at the doorway, a hand tightly gripping the doorframe as he closed his eyes and reached for the Force. Using the Force like this, to stave off illness or exhaustion, is generally frowned upon by the healers, but there was no choice. There was too much at stake.
He opened his eyes, ignoring the nausea and pain that continued to assault him, and sat down at his desk.
"I know you like the reverse grip, Snips, but you can't rely on it all the time," Anakin sighed. His padawan glared at him, then carefully rotated her lightsaber into a forward grip.
"I'm just more comfortable with using the reverse grip," she countered. She took a deep breath then began the Form V katas slowly as Anakin watched.
They've been in the dojo for only a few hours now. It was almost a relief for Ahsoka to be training again in the Jedi Temple, after being on the front lines for so long. She never realized that she would miss the monotony of the Jedi Temple until she returned from Naboo earlier today. She was glad that the Council allowed her to stay for a few days to catch up on her classes and to just take a short break from the war, no matter how little time it was.
She finished the kata and immediately flipped her lightsaber back to her comfortable reverse grip, quickly going through the motions of her favorite Shien kata. Anakin smiled at her knowingly then moved back a few feet to work on his own katas.
They worked in comfortable silence for a few minutes, until she turned off her lightsaber and walked to the bench for a short water break. Anakin followed, sitting next to her. "You're doing well, Ahsoka," he told her with a smile. "I know I've said that the reverse-grip is not suitable for most Jedi, but I think you might be able to do it with lots of training and practice."
She smiled back. "Thanks, Skyguy," she answered, then nearly jumped when her commlink beeped. She pulled it to her mouth and pressed a button.
"Ahsoka?"
"Master Kenobi?" she asked. Anakin raised his eyebrows and moved closer to listen.
"Anakin hasn't been answering his comm; were you able to find him?" Master Kenobi sounded somewhat exasperated. She looked up at Anakin and suppressed a giggle.
"Yes, he's right here, Master," she responded.
"Hi, Obi-Wan," Anakin said, smiling slightly. "I think I left my commlink in my apartment; sorry about that."
"I'm sorry to say this, but we're needed at the front. Both of you, get whatever you need and meet me at the main hangar in about an hour," Obi-Wan explained.
Anakin raised both his eyebrows in surprise. "Okay, Master," he responded, and then clicked off the commlink. He ran a hand through his hair and handed the commlink back to Ahsoka. "I suppose we should go get ready then," he said and stood up.
Ahsoka sighed and followed suit. "I thought we were going to be on leave, Master," she mumbled as they walked.
"Me too, Snips. Me too."
"Where is he?" Anakin asked heatedly, pacing quickly in front of Ahsoka. Master Kenobi was usually never late to briefings, but it was now a half-hour past the scheduled start-time, and he was nowhere to be seen. Cody talked quietly into his commlink and shook his head, indicating that Master Kenobi was simply not answering.
Almost on cue, the doors slid open and the elusive Jedi Master shuffled in with an apology. Judging by the dark smudges under his eyes, Ahsoka would say that he did not sleep at all last night. Jedi usually could go for a long time without sleep by sustaining themselves with the Force, but it seemed that Master Kenobi was reaching his limit. Should she say something? Skyguy certainly wouldn't, not after the argument they had last night after arriving on the Resolute.
Anakin began the briefing immediately after Master Kenobi walked in. Master Kenobi was not one to remain silent, but he did not say a word throughout the whole briefing, and by the end, even the clones were glancing at him in concern. No one said anything, however, and Ahsoka didn't know if she was supposed to say anything.
Considering that no one was responding to Anakin's plan, the briefing was quicker than usual. The clones were all dismissed, and the room slowly emptied until the three Jedi were left, standing quietly (almost awkwardly) in silence. After a few seconds, Master Kenobi turned towards the door and began to walk away.
"Wait, Master," Anakin said quietly, placing his hand on Obi-Wan's arm to stop him from leaving. "About last night…I was out of line, and what I said about…well, you know…" He trailed off, blue eyes shadowed with uncertainty.
Obi-Wan blinked slowly. "It's fine, Anakin," he answered hoarsely, then moved himself out of Anakin's grip towards the door. Anakin remained where he was, eyes fastened towards the ground, almost in shame. Ahsoka looked between both her masters, feeling a sort of wrongness erupting from the Force.
"Wait!" Anakin cried right before the other man reached the door. Obi-Wan turned slowly to face him. "It's not fine, I know it's not," Anakin persisted, walking towards Obi-Wan.
Ahsoka raised her eyebrows as the Jedi Master appeared to visually deflate. "Anakin, I don't…" he started. Then trailed off. Master Kenobi closed his eyes briefly and breathed deeply, as though he was centering himself.
"You don't what?" Anakin asked finally. Some of his previous ire seemed to creep into his voice again, and Ahsoka barely contained the urge to hit him with the hilt of her saber.
Obi-Wan blinked and slowly shifted his gaze to Anakin. "We don't have time to talk about this, Anakin. I have a Council meeting in ten minutes," he said, then blinked slowly.
"But, about last night…"
"It's fine, Anakin," Master Kenobi repeated, then turned quickly and left the briefing room. Anakin immediately placed his face in his hands with a sigh.
"It's not fine, though," Anakin mumbled, but Master Kenobi was already gone. "I have a bad feeling about this, Snips," he said to her. "Like something is about to go very wrong and I'm not sure what to do about it."
"I hope for our sakes that you're wrong, Master," she answered.
Obi-Wan stumbled into the fresher, locking the door behind him before collapsing on the floor. It's been over two days, but the migraine persisted with a vengeance. He could tell he was nearing Force exhaustion by using it this much to keep himself upright. He felt the migraine, burning under weak shields. He started to get up again, but the movement sent a flash of blinding pain through his skull. He blacked out.
He came to moments later. His heart was racing in his chest and his vision was bright but blurry. Nausea assaulted his senses, and he swallowed down the bile rising in his throat, feeling it burn. The Force felt far away now; any time he tried to reach for it, it would slide through his grasp, like sand slipping through his fingers.
Breathe. He closed his eyes against the brightness and took a deep breath. If he could get through the rest of the day, he could maybe try to sleep this off and relieve the Force exhaustion. After a few moments, he opened his eyes, using his tenuous grip on the Force to numb the pain. Obi-Wan trembled slightly as he pushed himself to his feet, wavering slightly as his vision blurred. He opened the door and left the refresher slowly, using the Force to guide his every movement and to keep himself upright. Despite that, the pain was still present.
His commlink beeped, and he answered quickly. "Kenobi," he murmured, walking back towards his quarters.
"Sir, General Windu would like to speak to you over holoconference," Cody's voice echoed through the commlink. Obi-Wan suppressed the urge to sigh. He was hoping that he would have some time to meditate before he would delve into his rapidly growing pile of reports and paperwork for the Council and start coming up with a specific plan for their next campaign.
"Tell him I'm on the way, Cody," Obi-Wan replied, then clicked off his commlink. He straightened his shoulders and pulled on the Force again. Maybe he could meditate later today.
The negotiations, for once, were short, thankfully, but they were intricate. It ended within three and a half hours, and after a formal dinner, they left in higher spirits than when they arrived. She pretty much forgot about Anakin and Master Kenobi's disagreement by the end of it, and she was sure that on some level, Anakin forgot too.
The three Jedi along with about twenty clones were crowded into a gunship to take them back to the Resolute. Ahsoka stood next to her master, listening to the clones' conversations but not saying anything. It wasn't completely silent in the gunship, but the clones talked quietly enough for her to hear the rumbling of the engines.
Master Kenobi stumbled suddenly, and placed a hand on the wall beside him, pressing his other hand to his face. "Master?" she asked worriedly, and Anakin looked up from his conversation with Rex to Obi-Wan. Master Kenobi pulled his hand away from his face, lined with sweat and squinted at his hand.
"Oh, blast," he muttered, as some blood trickled out of his left nostril and into his moustache, staining it a darker color. Before she or Anakin could say or do anything, his knees buckled, but Anakin caught him, placing Master Kenobi's arm over his shoulders and lowering him gently to the ground. Master Kenobi's breaths were gasps now, and his eyes were half-open, as though he was struggling against the brightness of the ship.
"Hurry up!" Anakin shouted to the pilot, and she felt the ship accelerate and watched as they sat down. The clones surrounding them backed away a little, trying to give their Generals space, but the gunship was small as it was. "We're almost there, Master," he whispered.
Master Kenobi groaned in response but opened his eyes. He looked right at the small space next to Ahsoka and frowned, pressing his hand against his nose once again to stop the bleeding. He gasped a few times before speaking. "Qui-Gon?" he slurred, then his eyes rolled to the back of his head and he slumped against Anakin, who blanched.
"Obi-Wan?" he asked, but there was no response. "Is Coric or Kix here?" Anakin shouted, his panic bleeding into his voice.
"I'm here, General," Kix answered as he rushed forward, opening his pack. "Do you know what may have caused this?" the clone medic asked as he pulled out his scanner.
"No idea," Ahsoka answered as Anakin adjusted Obi-Wan so his head rested against his shoulder. The blood dripping out of his nose began to drip down to his collar, she noted with concern.
"Why is his nose bleeding?" Anakin asked softly as Kix turned on the scanner and knelt by Master Kenobi.
"One moment, General Skywalker, if you don't mind," Kix answered before placing a hand on Master Kenobi's shoulder. "General Kenobi, can you hear me, sir? Please respond, sir." Kix's voice was quieter than she'd ever heard it, but Obi-Wan responded, opening his eyes carefully.
"Kix?" Master Kenobi muttered. He squeezed his eyes shut and shuddered. In the dim light, the sweat made his face look greener than normal.
"General, the scanner's saying you're having an abnormally high blood pressure," Kix explained quickly. "I would like for you to stay awake for now, General. Can you do that for me?" Kix asked, pressing buttons on his scanner. Ahsoka's heart remained in her throat, thumping loudly. She knelt next to the medic, directly in Master Kenobi's line of vision.
"I think so," Master Kenobi answered, "but if you don't mind, I'll keep my eyes closed." With an apologetic grimace in Ahsoka's direction, his eyes slipped shut, but his breaths were still uneven.
"Can someone contact the Resolute medbay, please?" Kix asked, a bit louder. Captain Rex nodded then spoke quickly into his commlink. Master Kenobi groaned at the sudden increase in volume, and Kix shushed him and whispered quietly. The ship was quiet for the next few minutes, save for the sound of the rumbling engines.
When the ship was close to the Resolute, Anakin shifted. "Obi-Wan," he whispered to Master Kenobi, who stiffened slightly then opened his eyes. "We're about to land," Anakin told him. Obi-Wan gave a short nod and shifted so he was sitting more upright. The ship landed, more gently then any gunship Ahsoka had ever been in. If she wasn't so worried, she would have been amazed.
"Stay down, General," Kix ordered when Obi-Wan began to move to get up.
"I'd rather walk out of this ship than be carried out of it, Kix," Master Kenobi responded, pressing a hand to the side of his head as his attempts to move flared the pain.
"With all due respect, General Kenobi," Kix began, "in these matters, I outrank you. Your blood pressure, on a non-Jedi, would have caused severe organ damage at this point, so unless you want at least 15 hours of bacta therapy, you will not move and wait for a stretcher to come to take you to the medbay. Once we're inside, General Skywalker will contact the Temple and arrange for your transport back to the Temple so that you can see a Jedi Healer, and then either I or the Healer will put you on medical leave for at least two weeks. You may be a Jedi, sir, but you are a human first, and the fact that this happened is telling me that you have been overworked and overstressed and you need to chill out and not worry about the war or anything for some time, and you will listen to me, or I will hunt you down at that Temple and make you listen to me, regardless of what your Council says!" Kix exclaimed when Obi-Wan began to protest.
Master Kenobi closed his eyes and sank back against the wall with a short nod. His nose finally stopped bleeding, but part of his beard was stained with blood. Ahsoka glanced at Kix, who looked absolutely stunned because High General Obi-Wan Kenobi, better known as The Negotiator, submitted to his demands without saying a single word. Anakin's eyes were still wide in desperate worry, but he kept Master Kenobi propped against him, and Ahsoka wondered if Master Kenobi would be able to even sit upright without Anakin's support.
Kix's commlink beeped twice then, and he looked down at it. "Stretcher's here, Generals," he said, looking down at Anakin and Obi-Wan. The gunship was still pretty crowded, and there was simply not enough room for a stretcher to come in.
Anakin looked around. "Rex, Cody, and Ahsoka can stay," he announced to the rest of the clones. "Everyone else is dismissed," and with that, the gunship emptied until the three Jedi and the three clones were left. Two other clones walked in with a hoverstretcher between them.
"I'm just going to scan again before we put you on the stretcher, General," Kix said, pressing buttons on the scanner again. Master Kenobi didn't reply. "General?" he asked, then looked up at Master Kenobi, who was slumped against Anakin with his eyes closed again. Kix glanced at Anakin, who shifted to study Master Kenobi carefully. "Did he pass out again?" Kix asked, frowning.
Anakin shook his head. "Healing trance, I think," he murmured. "Do you want me to wake him up?" he asked the medic.
"No, it's fine. It'll be easier to transport him this way," Kix responded, as the scanner beeped. "Blood pressure is still a bit higher than it should be, but lower than it was the last time I checked. The only thing I'm concerned about is any potential organ damage that the scanner might have missed, and that fever," he concluded, as Master Kenobi was moved onto the stretcher.
About a half hour later, Kix used the more accurate scanners from the medbay to determine that there was no organ damage, and that Master Kenobi's blood pressure was back in a normal range, thanks to the healing trance. He was still deep in the trance, though Kix gave him a few hyposprays as soon as they arrived. Ahsoka glanced at Obi-Wan's slack face, his beard darkened by blood and sweat, and leaned back in her chair. Anakin sat beside her, his face blank but his Force presence clouded with worry.
"Do you know when he'll wake up?" she asked softly.
"Soon," her Master answered shortly, running his prosthetic hand through his hair.
Almost on cue, Master Kenobi shifted, his face twisting into a grimace. Anakin shifted forward, eyes wide. "Master?" he whispered. Obi-Wan's eyes opened slightly before he squeezed them shut.
"Too bright," her grand-Master muttered, instinctively covering his eyes with an arm. He groaned and pressed the other hand to the side of his head. Anakin stood quickly and dimmed the lights to almost-darkness using the controls near the door. Obi-Wan immediately moved the arm covering his eyes to his side and opened his eyes. He squinted at Ahsoka and then shifted his gaze to Anakin. "What happened?" Obi-Wan asked.
Anakin frowned. "You don't remember?" he asked, voice darkening with worry.
"I…I think I overextended myself," Obi-Wan said softly.
"Were you having a migraine? Why didn't you say anything?" Anakin pressed.
"We weren't exactly on speaking terms, Anakin," Obi-Wan muttered.
Ahsoka sighed. At times, her master and grandmaster worked so well together, but at other times, they clashed against each other so much and she often found herself in the middle of their arguments. It was utterly exhausting.
Obi-Wan must have heard her sigh because his eyes shifted to her. "You shouldn't have to deal with this, Ahsoka," he said finally.
"You're right," she snapped. "If you actually told us what was happening, Master Kenobi, then things wouldn't have been so bad. You don't know this, but you almost completely burned yourself out from the amount of the Force you were using to keep yourself going."
Anakin smirked at the sight of his Padawan berating his Master.
"And you," Ahsoka continued, turning to her master. "None of this would have happened if you paid attention a bit more and not gotten in the argument in the first place! An argument takes two people, you know."
Anakin looked slightly ashamed now, and the satisfaction that rolled through her felt good.
"Now apologize," she said to Obi-Wan and Anakin.
She watched, satisfied, as they both apologized. The three Jedi fell into silence until Kix walked up to them, datapad in hand.
"You're showing all the symptoms of extreme Force exhaustion, General," Kix explained. "The reason your blood pressure got so high was from the stress your body was going through from using the Force for so long. You could have just told us about the migraine in the beginning, sir. That would have saved you from completely burning yourself out almost to the point of permanent damage."
"I…" Obi-Wan closed his eyes for a moment. "I didn't want to worry you," he said.
"Well, you've done exactly that, Master," Anakin replied, and Ahsoka chuckled softly. "I spoke to the Council, and they decided that you should go back to Coruscant to get treated by the Jedi Healers at the Temple," he continued.
"Okay," Obi-Wan replied softly, closing his eyes again. "I…I think I'm about to fall asleep."
"That's alright, Master Kenobi," Ahsoka piped up, smiling slightly.
"Good," Obi-Wan whispered, then closed his eyes. A few seconds later, he was snoring lightly. Kix moved forward and adjusted Obi-Wan so that his head rested on the pillows instead of the headboard. The medic nodded at Ahsoka and Anakin and gestured for them to follow him.
Sometime after he fell asleep Obi-Wan was taken back to the Temple. When he woke up, he found himself staring at the ceiling of the Halls of Healing. His limbs felt like lead and though his head didn't quite ache like it did before, his mind did.
"Ah, you're awake."
Obi-Wan turned his head slowly towards the side of his bed to see Master Che standing there, brows raised. The Twi'lek Healer looked extremely unimpressed with him, and he could very easily guess why.
"Master Che," he managed, though his voice scraped against his throat and really, it just sounded like a hoarse rasp more than anything else.
The healer tsked before putting a cup of water at his mouth. Obi-Wan drank slowly for a few seconds before she pulled the cup away.
"How long was I out?" Obi-Wan asked softly.
"Almost two days," she answered. "The medics on the Resolute gave you some sedatives to help you sleep properly, and after you arrived here, I had to use a few Force suggestions."
Obi-Wan blinked. "Two days?" he asked. No, this was bad. This meant that he had even more work to catch up on; he was even more behind than he was before. How was he supposed to do anything now?
"No," Master Che said, interrupting his thoughts.
"Sorry?" Obi-Wan asked, confused.
"Let me explain this to you, Obi-Wan," she said, eyes narrowed. "The reason all of this happened in the first place is because you took on more responsibilities than you were physically able to manage. You completely overwhelmed yourself, and instead of asking for help, you turned away and tried to do it all by yourself."
"Master Che, it's really not that much—"
She laughed then lifted her datapad. "I took the liberty of doing some research while waiting for you to wake up," she explained. "You're teaching one History class and one Philosophy class, you're recording the minutes for all of the Council Meetings, including the ones that you didn't attend. You are also the High General of the Third Systems Army, as I'm sure you're well aware."
"Yes, well—"
"Your former Padawan did not write any reports on his missions since being Knighted," she continued. "You wrote all of them. Some of the older Council Members have been asking you to write their reports, too, right?"
Obi-Wan winced.
"It's ridiculous. They are certainly competent enough to write their own reports, and I already told the Council as such," Master Che declared. "Oh, and let's not forget the fact that you've been playing a significant role in Padawan Tano's training, when you and I both now that it is Skywalker's responsibility to train her," she added.
Both healer and patient were silent for about a minute before Obi-Wan spoke.
"What do you propose I do?" he asked quietly.
"No more teaching," she said. "You will write no one's reports except your own. The other Council members agreed to take turns on recording the minutes for the meetings. Your commander will take over some of your responsibilities; he certainly is more than capable of doing so."
"I…Master, I can't just—"
"Obi-Wan, if you kept going like that for a few more days, you would have died," she stated. "It's as simple as that."
Obi-Wan closed his eyes. He didn't realize things were getting that bad. "I didn't want to worry anyone," he whispered before opening them again.
Master Che softened and sat down on the chair next to his bed. "I know," she replied. "But you did. You worried Anakin and Ahsoka. You worried the entirety of the 212th and the 501st. You worried the Council. And you worried me, Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon would have been devastated to see you like this. You know that, right?"
The mere thought of Qui-Gon, over a decade after his death, immediately caused tears to fill his eyes. Obi-Wan shuddered and covered his eyes with both hands, tensing when cool arms wrapped around his shoulders. Master Che was hugging him. He couldn't even remember when he was last hugged. He melted into the hug moments later, letting out a dry sob.
"You're going to be fine, Obi-Wan," she whispered. "I'm going to help you. This won't happen again."
He couldn't seem to stop crying enough to talk, so he nodded instead and projected affirmation into the Force.
They remained for a few minutes before Obi-Wan slid back and rested back against his pillows. He felt exhausted again, despite the fact he apparently slept for two days. Master Che helped him lie back down and dimmed the lights before walking away.
"Master Che," he mumbled before letting sleep claim him. She paused and turned around to look at him. "Thank you," Obi-Wan said.
The healer gave him one of her rare smiles before walking out of the room. Obi-Wan's eyes instantly flicked shut and he allowed himself to drift for a few moments before falling asleep once again.
A/N: Thanks for reading and pleaseee review. Reviews are my lifeblood.