Part 4

Qui-Gon took Anakin to one of the many terraces surrounding the Jedi Temple. It was mildly crowded, and Qui-Gon was greatly aware of the questioning eyes which followed them as they made their way to a low stone bench in one secluded corner of the terrace. Anakin clutched at his hand, gripping it tightly. "Are you all right, Ani?" he asked the boy in a low voice.

Anakin nodded. "They always stare at me," he said quietly. "I don't like it, Master Qui-Gon," he admitted.

Qui-Gon chuckled. "I imagine they are staring at me as well you, Ani," he said. "After all, it was but only yesterday that I left my room for the first time since my injury. As for you..." he laughed again, a mild amused laugh. "Here we are together.., the Jedi Master who fought off death itself and the boy he was willing defy the Council to train. We make quite a pair, you and I."

"I guess so," Anakin said, a smile starting to warm his own small face. "It's very pretty here," he said, looking around the terrace. It was a park of sorts, graced with statues and small water fountains, and in the center was a flourishing botanical garden. Many different plants were blooming there and it was, indeed, a lovely sight to behold. They both fell silent as Anakin continued to explore with his eyes.

Finally he turned to Qui-Gon, a questioning look on his face. "Qui-Gon?" he asked hesitantly. "Will Master Obi-Wan and I ever be as close as he is with you? Will we ever be friends?"

It was an innocent, youthful question, but one full of doubt and sorrow. Qui-Gon smiled sadly, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder. How the child reminded of Obi-Wan when he was young--so impatient, wishing things to happen quickly rather than letting them take their course. Of course, Obi-Wan would deny ever having been that way, even if it was still one of his weak points. This brought a
happier smile to Qui-Gon's face, and he chuckled softly.

To Anakin he said, "Obi-Wan and I were not always such close friends. There have been times when we could hardly get along with one another, especially in the beginning of his training. It took time for us to become accustomed to one another."

"As it will for he and I?" Anakin added thoughtfully. Qui-Gon nodded. "But it has been a year since he began to train me. Shouldn't we--?"

His question was cut off by Qui-Gon's soft laugh."Yes," he mused aloud. "You are very much like Obi-Wan, Ani. So impatient." He took Anakin by the shoulders, turning him so that he faced out over the wall behind them. "Tell me what you see below us, Ani," he said, a memory stirring in his brain.

Anakin looked. "A fountain," he replied hesitantly, not sure where Qui-Gon was going with this.

"It's the biggest fountain in this complex," Qui-Gon told him, the smile on his face growing bigger with the memory that particular fountain evoked. "It's large enough for grown adults to swim in."

Anakin's eyes widened. "Really?" he asked. "How do you know?"

"Once, when Obi-Wan was slightly older than you are now, our relationship was not so friendly. There were many tensions between us, and neither of seemed to know how to come to terms with them. He was quickly to that age when a boy believes he knows than his master, and I was struggling to dissuade him of this without killing him outright." This Qui-Gon said with a wry grin. "One night, I was awakened from sleep by the Force and immediately knew something was amiss. Obi-Wan was not in his bed, and I became angry with him for being gone. I searched for him, and eventually found him-- swimming in the fountain below." Again, Qui-Gon chuckled, recalling the frozen- deer look on his young padawan's face when he realized he'd been caught.

"Did you punish him, Master Qui-Gon?" Anakin asked.

"No.. I did not," admitted the master.

"You didn't!?"

"He did not," reiterated a voice from behind them. They both turned and found Mace Windu behind them. "As I heard it," Mace continued, "Qui-Gon here stripped down to his under clothes and joined your master in the fountain." Anakin looked from Mace to Qui- Gon to the fountain and back to Qui-Gon in silent, questioning awe.

"It's true, Ani," Qui-Gon admitted sheepishly. "When I found Obi- Wan there, I was reminded of myself at his age, and I knew I couldn't punish him for something I would have done had that fountain not been constructed years after I finished my training." he grinned at the boy. "That night helped to break down the barriers and strengthen the bond between us."

Mace just laughed. "And got you both in trouble with the Council, as I recall."

"True, our indiscretion did not go unnoticed *or* unpunished, Ani," Qui-Gon told the child. What both he and Mace failed to mention, however, was that the Council had been behind it all-- using the Force to give Obi-Wan the idea of a midnight swim *and* to wake Qui-Gon up, knowing he would discover his padawan. Had they known what Qui-Gon would do upon finding his student, however, they
may not have done so, despite the results.

Qui-Gon and Mace watched Anakin as he explored the garden. Shortly after Mace's-arrival, Anakin excused himself, allowing the two masters to talk.

"So... how'd you find us?" Qui-Gon asked.

"It wasn't hard; everyone was talking about it. Seeing a dead man walking around in broad daylight tends turn heads."

Qui-Gon groaned. "First I've lost the ability to use the Force and now I'm dead."

Mace chuckled. "Oh, you've heard that one, too, eh?"

"Obi-Wan brought it up yesterday. He should have known it wasn't true, Mace, but he still had to ask."

"We've all been wondering why you've been so ill. The healers could tell us nothing except to say that you'd recover in your own time. No one knew how to take that," said Mace.

"Vague... "Qui-Gon said, shaking his head. "I can imagine how that would upset some people." He looked back at Anakin, who was now gazing over the wall, staring at the people on the streets below. "I can't tell you much more than that, I'm afraid," he informed Mace. "I was ill, and now I am not. I wish I could tell you that I have fully recovered, but that I do not know, either. All I know is that I can no longer bear to be alone." He stood, as if to join
Anakin by the wall. Mace grabbed his arm urgently.

"What do you mean by that--cannot bear to be alone?" he asked.

Qui-Gon sighed. "I can't explain it, Mace. I don't understand what's been happening to me."

Nodding, Mace said, "I don't expect you to, but the least you can do is clarify what you are saying. Try and make me know what you know... as little as that may be."

Qui-Gon shook his head, as if to focus his thoughts. "When I am alone, I feel... unsafe. That's the only way I can understand it. I find myself needing comforting, needing to feel loved." he fell silent now, thinking of his visions of Shmi Skywalker. He was not ready to share those visions with anyone else, let alone a member of the Council.

"Such emotions are new to you?" Mace asked.

"Yes, they are new feelings. I cannot rid myself of them."

Mace studied Qui-Gon thoughtfully. After a fashion, he rose from the bench where he was sitting and pronounced, "Perhaps you are trying too hard to be rid of them. You should be seeking to understand what is causing those feelings." With that, he excused himself.

Qui-Gon chuckled to himself as he watched Mace leave. Understanding those feelings was not going to be easy. Pushing these thoughts from his mind, he approached Anakin. They continued to talk for a while--Qui-Gon asking the boy to tell him what he thought of his new home.