Hey guys, thanks again for the reviews!
No Anakin in this chapter, only Obi and some Qui-Gon.
Hope you like it!

disclaimer: i do not own star wars or any of the characters. I do own the DVD of he phantom menace^^

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Chapter 3

Obi-Wan was thrown roughly in his cell. The droids left, only one small candle lighting his prison, barely enough to see the wall on the opposite. The cell was different from the one he had been in and Obi-Wan had no idea were he was exactly, for he had been unconscious by that time. The Viceroy had asked where the Senator was, but when Obi-Wan hadn't answered, he hadn't asked anymore. Obi-Wan's whole body was covered with blood, mostly from his back, which had been torn open by a whip. He hadn't uttered a single word. Of course Gunray hadn't liked that and he had ordered to continue the torture, till he had realized he was killing the Jedi. Furious, he had told the droids to bring him to his cell, after muttering in his ear: you will speak, Jedi. One of the droids had hit him hard at the back of his neck and Obi-Wan had past out, only to woke up again when he had hit the floor.

He lifted his head, blinked a few times in order to let the world stop spinning and tried to get up. His body protested and he only managed to get his back right up against the wall. He winced when the wound touched the cold stone, but ignored the pain. He closed his eyes and struggled to find his inner center. Without the Force it was far more difficult, but at last the calmness floated through him. He gave in to his exhaustion and drifted into sleep.

-

Obi-Wan woke up from the cold, not because he had rested enough. Not at all. He shivered and opened his eyes. The world was still black around him. He suppressed the panic darkness always brought with it. You're not blind, fool, he snapped silently at himself. The candle has just gone out. He shuffled slowly to where he thought one of the walls was, his hand stretched out so he wouldn't bump into it. When his hand touched the cold stone, he sighed in relief. He had never liked darkness, not without the comforting presence of the Force. Without that he was blind. It definitely wasn't comforting now. He put his back against the wall, like he had done the previous night. His body still hurt, but he could live with it.

Obi-Wan heard a small sound and turned his head in that direction. His muscles tightened when he tried to pierce the dark with his eyes. Only a small light... The Force seemed to like him, because the doors opened and a droid came in, bearing a candle with him. Suddenly everything was too bright and Obi-Wan closed his eyes. After a few seconds he slowly opened them again, blinking. Finally he could make out another droid entering the room. It grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet. Obi-Wan grunted when the droid almost broke his arm while he put handcuffs on him.

"I can walk myself," he said and he tried to pull his arm out the grip of the mechanical hand.

"Move," was everything the droid said and he waved with his blaster. Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and snorted. The Viceroy had still a lot to learn about hospitality.

The droid dragged him along a small path trough the rocks. They passed a cave as big as the one the factory was in and one where Anakin surely would have bumped his head without ducking. For once Obi-Wan didn't care to be small. After a few turns he didn't know how to get back. The surroundings looked the same everywhere. He had to find things he could recognize, or else he would be completely lost.

After another hundreds of turns, they stopped in the middle of a tunnel. The droid touched the wall with his blaster and a secret door opened. Obi-Wan had to admit the room was well hidden. The droid pushed him inside and followed. He immediately recognized the room as the one he had been in yesterday. Or at least what he thought was yesterday. He couldn't really say he was glad to be back. Blood, his own, still covered the whip hanging at a hook on the wall. They could learn something about hygiene, too.

The droid pushed him in his back and took him to the middle of the room. He clung Obi-Wan's manacles to a chain was hanging down about two feet above his head. Obi-Wan didn't like this pose, feeling unprotected with his hands in the air. The droid walked back to the door and took position on the right side. Obi-Wan turned around, inspecting the rest of the torture-chamber. There was not only hanging a whip, but he saw staves which could cause pain by using electric pulses. He even saw an old fireplace, with logs ready to be lit. Wonderful. He turned his face to the droid again and closed his eyes. This time finding his center was more easy. The Viceroy would torture him again, but he would suffer it till the Jedi came. If they came.

He heard the door open and looked up. Gunray entered, followed by five droids. One of them took position at the left side of the door, the others were still standing behind the Viceroy, who walked to Obi-Wan and stopped just out of reach. Still afraid, Obi-Wan thought. He snorted. The Viceroy could better be afraid of his 'friends'. He had no idea where he was trapped in, how Dooku used him. It made Obi-Wan almost feel pity for him. Almost. Gunray had done to much worse to deserve pity.

"Jedi, I hope you had a good night?"

"Wonderful, it couldn't really be better. The floor was a little bit cold, though. You could do something about it. A bed, perhaps?" If he had to learn them something about hospitality, he'd better start now.

"You're not in a position to make jokes, Jedi," Gunray hissed.

"Then why do you ask?" Obi-Wan countered. The Viceroy brought his head close to Obi-Wan's. He stepped a little further away, as far as the chain allowed.

"Where is senator Amidala?"

"Like I said, I do not know," Obi-Wan responded. It was true, he didn't know if Padmé was on Naboo, or followed Anakin to Tatooine.

"Don't lie, Jedi," the Viceroy said. Obi-Wan had to stop himself from rolling with his eyes.

"I know you know," Gunray continued, "and you will tell me!" He mentioned with his hand the droids.

Obi-Wan at first didn't feel pain when the whip touched his flesh. But then it came in all it's agony. Not only his back, but his hole body seemed to burn. The droids didn't only use the whip, but the electric staves and the fire as well. They even just hit him with their mechanical hands. Obi-Wan lost every track of time. Pain ruled his senses, burning out every thought except one: let it stop! He didn't make a sound.

Suddenly it stopped. Obi-Wan vaguely heard someone say something. Gunray- flickered through his mind. Something hit him in his face and made his heads spinning. He heard a strange hiss- Obi-Wan couldn't place it. It sounded mostly like a snake, a reptile which didn't exist on this planet. Could they have imported one? Why would they? It was silent now, lovely silent. Obi-Wan would liked it if he only didn't fell so cold. It was ironic. He felt like he was freezing to death and at the same time he felt like his body stood on fire. Really, how strange could things get? Now he felt hot again. He preferred the cold, he decided. Yes, the cold was fine. The heat was just too hot. It made him feel the pain more, which burned, too. Cold would be so fine...

A splash of water hit Obi-Wan's face, leaving him gasping for breath. He opened his eyes and looked at the face of Gunray. His eyes narrowed, both to get his vision sharp again and to be able to look in the direction of the Viceroy. Not the most beautiful face to wake up with, he thought.

The Viceroy had gotten some confidence out of somewhere, because he was smiling evilly.

"Had had enough, Jedi?" he asked. Obi-Wan did no respond. He had to concentrate hard to understand Gunray's words at all. Luckily he felt cold again. Another hit and he had to blink a few times before he could see clearly again. Blackness was entering his vision. He tried to let go of his pain, enter the peace of unconscious, but the Viceroy had other plans. The water mixed with the blood on his face, stinging in the cuts.

"Tell me," Gunray hissed. "Where is she?"

Somehow Obi-Wan managed to stare coldly in the eyes of the Neimoidian.

"I will make you scream, Jedi!" Gunray spat. "Continue!"

-

Pain. An everything consuming pain. Obi-Wan tried to let go, except it as a sign of his body, let the Force resolve it. The Force didn't respond. How much he tried, the pain didn't go. As an tornado it rushed through, burning in his veins. His skin was on fire, his arms, his legs, his back, every single spot. But he did not scream, he wouldn't give the leader of the trade Federation that pleasure. He wouldn't. He concentrated on that thought. Don't scream. Don't scream.

And with the pain, came images. The Temple, the apartment he had shared with both Anakin and Qui-Gon, the fountains. Anakin, building his own lightsaber. Where was he now? Was he save or once again in trouble?
But most of all, images of Qui-Gon appeared. Them sparring, talking, laughing. But crying as well, screaming, fighting. Not with each other, of course. But with Xanatos, Darth Maul. Their last battle. Obi-Wan felt tears coming up, but they where gone immediately again.

The pain ruled. He felt every stab, cut, push and hit a thousand times over, but he didn't scream. And when he thought he couldn't take it anymore, it stopped.

Slowly he became aware of his surroundings again. The droids still stood around him, their hands covered with blood. His blood, he knew. Hearing someone approach, he looked up.

"Tell me, Jedi," a voice said. Obi-Wan shivered. He needed all his strength to stay conscious. How could he tell anything. He didn't even fully remember what it was he had to tell. Not that he would have told the voice anything. He didn't like him. The voice apparently came to the same conclusion, because he ordered the droids to release him. He fell on the floor, his legs failing to support his weight. The stones were cold, in contrast with his body, which stood on fire again. The unconscious finally took him, the darkness giving him a tiniest bit of peace. When the mechanical foot hit his chest, he did scream. The pain exploding was just too much. He thought he heard someone laugh. Then he knew no more.

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Qui-Gon didn't knew why he hadn't contacted Obi-Wan yet. Was he too afraid that his former Padawan wouldn't want him back? Probably. Would he, after he had forced him to take Anakin as his apprentice, still love him? Or would he abandon him just like Xanatos had? No, not Obi-Wan. If there was an abandoning, it was himself abandoning his former Padawan, his last words only pointed at a slave-boy from a distant planet. Qui-Gon had wanted to say so much more to his Padawan at that time. But he just had to make sure... Stop this, Qui-Gon ordered himself. He was on Geonosis and stood close to the entrance of the Separatist's building. He had waited here so he could easier tell the situation Obi-Wan was in. And to get his thoughts together. But that time was over. The only way to find out of Obi-Wan still cared about him was to confront him. Their bond was deadly silent. Obi-Wan surely avoided touching it. Qui-Gon couldn't blame him. He knew far to well how a bond felt when someone suddenly died. Like an open wound. Sure, it would heal in time, just like other wounds.

He turned his attention to the Force-presences in the building. He could easily make out the presences of the Viceroy and his old master Dooku. The bond between them had vanished a long time ago. Of course, Qui-Gon had loved his master, but after his knighting they both had gone there own way.

He could feel Obi-Wan as well, although his force-presence was very weak, as if the boy was only slightly force-sensitive, which was not true. Obi-Wan's midi-chlorians were almost as high as Anakin's. Qui-Gon had never told him that. Only when you reached knighthood, you could ask. Not telling stopped Padawans to become competitors or becoming arrogant. It explained why Anakin was having difficulty with controlling his emotions. The Jedi Order had been expecting him to be good at everything from the beginning, him being the Chosen One and such. Qui-Gon still believed that, but it was better if the boy found his powers himself. He would be a better knight if he knew about his limits.

Qui-Gon closed his eyes and concentrated on his former Padawan. He felt his surroundings change and when he opened his eyes he stood in a dark, small prison. His own appearance made it light up in a blue glow. Qui-Gon didn't really need the light, he could sense everything with the Force, but it could sometimes be handy.

Qui-Gon looked around. The prison was empty, except for an unconscious body, chained to the wall. The body was covered with blood and wounds and there wasn't any skin left on the back. It was a miracle he was still alive.

All his doubts forgotten, Qui-Gon immediately knelt down next to his former Padawan. He quickly inspected Obi-Wan's physical state with the Force.

He noticed that except the wounds, he had broken three ribs, which had luckily not made damage on the inside.

A collar around Obi-Wan's neck prevented him from touching the Force, which explained why Qui-Gon could barely feel him through the Force and why Obi-Wan wasn't in a healing-trance. Qui-Gon gathered the Force around him and he started to glow even more. He held his hand just an inch above Obi-Wan's back and started the healing-process. He first concentrated on the broken ribs, which were the most dangerous. The work was exhausting, taking both energy from the healer and the patient and Qui-Gon could not heal them fully. They would still be weak and if his former Padawan didn't watch out, he could break them again. It was always better than not heal them at all, though.

He then put his attention to Obi-Wan's back. He sent healing-pushes through their bond and touch the torn flesh. This process took longer, but it didn't took that much of his energy. After a few minutes, Obi-Wan started to stir under his hands. He groaned and tried to roll on his back. Qui-Gon stopped him.

"Shhh," he said, trying to sooth him. "It's alright."

Obi-Wan turned his head, blinked and opened his eyes. At first they didn't focus, but then he looked in his masters eyes. Obi-Wan's usually bright, blue eyes stood dull with fever. Qui-Gon could sense he wasn't completely conscious.

"Master?" Obi-Wan whispered, his eyes widening with confusing and hope.

"Yes, Obi-Wan, I'm here," Qui-Gon answered.

Obi-Wan lifted his arm and reached out. He was holding back, as if he wasn't completely sure if it was real. Qui-Gon took his former Padawan's hand gently in his own. At the touch Obi-Wan's eyes widened even more.

"Master, how? You're..."

"Not now, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said sternly. "You need to rest."

As obedient as ever, Obi-Wan closed his eyes.

"Yes, Master," he muttered.

Qui-Gon slowly continued the healing-process and Obi-Wan's body relaxed. He seemed to be sleeping again and without knowing his body shuffled closer to Qui-Gon's. When Qui-Gon had finished, his back had skin again, though raw. Qui-Gon couldn't do anymore, however. His former Padawan's body had to do the rest. Qui-Gon quickly healed the other wounds, till the only open ones were small cuts and bruises. Obi-Wan wouldn't die now.

Looking down at his former Padawan, Qui-Gon didn't want to leave. He gently stroke Obi-Wan's cheek. He remembered many times he had sat just like this, his Padawan asleep an he watching over him and, not as many times, it was the other way around. He wanted to stay and sit here till Obi-Wan woke up. And then talk with him, laugh with him. But he couldn't. The Force was telling him to go. He had been under the living for to long already. He sighed.

"Bye, my Padawan," he whispered, so he wouldn't wake him and he stood up.

Obi-Wan, obviously not asleep like Qui-Gon had thought, opened his eyes, turned on his back and grabbed Qui-Gon's arm.

"Don't go," he muffled.

"I have to, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said, his heart stinging with every word. He would leave Obi-Wan. Again. He knelt down and placed his hand on his Padawan's forehead. He sent calm force-pushes through their bond. He would put him asleep, so he wouldn't wake up from pain or cold.

"Will you come back?" Obi-Wan asked, his voice already drowsy.

Qui-Gon closed his eyes for a few seconds. Then he looked in Obi-Wan's misty eyes again.

"I don't know," he said. It was true. He was still a puppet of the Force. "I assume I will."

Obi-Wan nodded and closed his eyes. He seemed satisfied with the answer. Qui-Gon was glad about that. He didn't want to hurt his former apprentice. The face of Obi-Wan relaxed. Qui-Gon smiled. Put on a braid and he looked exactly like he had ten years ago. With a beard, of course. Qui-Gon stood up and this time his former Padawan didn't stop him. He walked to the middle of the room. He was about to let go of his conscious self, to become one with the Force again, when he heard Obi-Wan's muffled voice.

"Master?" he said.

"Yes, Obi-Wan?" Why wasn't his former Padawan sleeping?

"I love you."

Qui-Gon wanted to run to his Padawan, hug him to death and tell him a thousand times he loved him, too. But he couldn't. The Force was pulling at him, ordered him to leave. He opened their bond as widely as possible and sent all his love and pride to his apprentice.

"I love you, too, Padawan mine," he said, "I love you, too."

He vanished.

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A/N: next chapter will take longer, i'm going on a schooltrip tomorrow^^

Please review!!!