Office hours [all day]

[sith_happened]

Normal people would use a week off of classes as a reason not to hold office hours but Anakin had never been accused of being a normal person.

He was in his office as usual, working on ideas for his new class.

The door was open.

Comments

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

Max knew he should probably have hunted Anakin down before this. Because if he hadn't heard about what had happened to Raven yet, she was bound to tell him soon. Better the hotheaded idiot hear it from Max first.

Right?

Right.

Hence the knock at Anakin's doorframe.

[sith_happened]

Anakin hadn't heard anything yet, and it felt strange to just greet Max with a hello like a normally socialized person instead of punching him in the face.

He settled for a "Yes?" and a slightly irritated glare instead.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Got a minute?" That was it. Just keep things casual. That was totally believable.

[sith_happened]

"Perhaps," Anakin answered cautiously. It wasn't like he and Max were the types to catch a movie and a beer together. "What do you need?"

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"I think we should talk." Look at that, they'd exchanged at least a dozen words and he hadn't gotten punched! A new record.

"About Raven."

[sith_happened]

"What did you do?" Anakin demanded.

Mmm, that was nice and rational.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

Max simply raised an eyebrow. "A bit quick to accuse me, aren't you?"

Not that Anakin wasn't right to do so, but... it was the principle of the thing.

[sith_happened]

"I have a bad feeling about you," Anakin said flatly.

Based, it must be admitted, mostly on dislike, but there was a little bit of a Force-nudge there too.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"I don't know what that says about your judgment."

Max stepped into the office and eyed a chair. "Mind if I sit?" It said something that he actually paused to wait for Anakin's answer rather than just sitting.

[sith_happened]

"If you must," Anakin said, gesturing to the chair across from his desk. "What's on your mind?"

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

Max settled into the chair and took a moment to gather his thoughts before he spoke. "Has she mentioned what happened at Aphrodite's last week?"

Preamble? That was for people who's most enduring relationship trait was something other than face-punching.

[sith_happened]

"Not yet," Anakin said. "She generally shows up some time soon. I heard something on the radio and I'm anxious to get the full story."

The look he fixed Max with was asking for details.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

Well. That probably explained the lack of face-punching so far.

"It was... bad." Max cocked his head. "You know about her... other side?" That was a polite way of saying 'demon' there. Max asked because he hadn't known, and if Anakin didn't, he wasn't sharing.

[sith_happened]

Anakin nodded curtly. "I met it in the other universe," he said.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Well, I met it last week."

And while he felt responsible, Max knew that it wasn't even his fault.

[sith_happened]

Anakin reached up to rub the bridge of his nose tiredly. "What brought it out?"

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Something was wrong with Aphrodite. Karla came up with a plan," which Max hadn't raised enough of an objection to, "and Raven joined us in attempting to execute it."

"Things didn't go as planned."

Why hello there, understatement.

[sith_happened]

"You let two teenage girls come up with a plan and you're shocked it didn't work," Anakin said dryly.

Long experience with Ahsoka's plans--ranging from harebrained to suicidal--were dancing through his brain.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"Worse," Max corrected. "I let Karla come up with a plan." See? Anakin was being generous in his assessment. That must mean he was feeling friendly!

[sith_happened]

"Did she hit you with something heavy? Like a boulder?" Anakin replied.

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

Max had been trying to figure out why he'd gone along with things for a week now, and he thought he knew.

"You didn't see Aphrodite, I take it. Things were... desperate." Which was still no excuse.

[sith_happened]

"So you took two teenage girls with you to face off against a goddess," Anakin said. "What am I missing here?"

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"The lack of better options." Look, he knew it sounded lame. He wasn't entirely convinced that he was wrong, though.

Except for not demanding that Raven stay home.

[sith_happened]

Anakin sighed heavily. "Because the Force knows you three are the only ones on the island who know how to fight. Oh, wait, Raven doesn't do that. What was the plan that Karla came up with?"

[furious-maximus.livejournal.com]

"First of all, you don't fight a goddess. Not directly. And the outline of Karla's plan was pretty good. Deception. The problem was with the details."

Max scowled slightly. "Raven never mentioned the... other."