A/N: See Chapter 1 for standard disclaimers. Thank you for your great replies. They have kept me motivated. Here is the next offering. I hope you enjoy.
Chapter Nine Reunited
Qui-Gon looked up at his Padawan and saw a look of horror on the young man's face. I must proceed carefully; he is not thinking clearly, he is reacting in anger. "Obi-Wan please listen to me. I know how terrible you feel, but I can prove that I am Qui-Gon."
Obi-Wan's face clouded again. This time the Master did not pause, "I will tell you something no one else knows or could ever find out." He watched a look of doubt pass over the young face and he exhaled with relief at the small nod of acquiescence.
"The first time I called you Padawan was in the mineshaft on the planet of Bandomeer. We were trapped down in one of the tunnels with a bomb ready to explode when you offered your life for mine and all of the people on the planet." Qui-Gon hesitated afraid to look at Obi. Then he continued, "What was never put in the reports was that I told you I would not allow you to sacrifice yourself and I would use the Force to neutralize the collar. Do you remember what you told me? Qui-Gon paused again, licked his lips and continued, "You said, 'You won't be able to. I know I can fight you and win. Maybe, just this one time. But this time I am right, and you are not.' You and I are the only ones who know what was said in those tunnels and how you helped me to realize you were my future."
Obi- Wan shaking his head no, fell to his knees in front of Qui-Gon. "No, this is not real," he sobbed. "You can't be my Master, he's dead."
Qui-Gon, his heart constricting, detested Jenna for the pain she had caused his light. Gathering Obi-Wan in his arms, he gently rocked his Padawan and tried to calm him with soothing words.
Pulling himself out of Qui- Gon's arms he said, "If you're my Master, then tell me, why can't I feel you in the force? Why is the bond dead?"
Qui-Gon sighed and thought; well at least he is willing to listen to me now. He pulled the top of his inner tunic away from his throat and pointed to the metal band around his neck. "I guess this is the reason. It's Jenna Zan Arbor's parting gift."
Obi-Wan gaped, in surprise at the Force collar. He looked at Qui-Gon and said, "What do you mean parting gift?"
"Pad….Obi-Wan," he said remembering Obi-Wan's demand, not to be called Padawan almost too late. "It's a long story. We need to find somewhere less public than the middle of the terminal to have this conversation. I understand you're looking for a ride back to Coruscant. I just happen to know a ship that's going in that direction. I'll explain what happened and then you can make the decision whether or not to believe me."
Obi-Wan looked unconvinced and touched the Force. The warmth swirled around him. The Force told him there was nothing to fear; he was in no danger from this man. He stood up offering the other man a hand to get to his feet. Qui- Gon hesitantly accepted the offer of assistance. Once Qui-Gon was on his feet he studied his Padawan and noticed something missing, reaching out his hand, he quickly dropped it back down to his side. It was gone; Obi- Wan's braid was gone. His boy had been knighted and he had missed the most important celebration of both their lives. If I ever find Jenna she'll be sorry that she took something so important away from both of us. I'll make sure she will never again escape.
He turned and started back toward the cargo docks, Obi-Wan falling into step behind him. This feels right now all I need is to get this collar off and everything will go back to normal. Both Jedi walked back to the cargo ship in silence, each lost in his own thoughts. Once at the ship Qui-Gon called out to her Captain. "Dakota, I'm back and I've brought a fellow passenger with me."
Dakota, standing at the top of the incline, surveyed the pair. The one he called Obi-Wan looked like he was ready to bolt. She noticed that Qui didn't look too sure of himself either. "Welcome to Moondrifter," she said, as Qui-Gon led his friend up the ramp.
Qui-Gon came to a stop at the top of the ramp and said, "Obi-Wan Kenobi meet Dakota Rains." Dakota stood back to allow the two Jedi to enter the ship, smiling when Obi-Wan extended his hand and said, "I'm honored to meet you Mam." Dakota was impressed with him; it wasn't often that she encountered someone with manners.
"Dakota," Qui-Gon said interrupting her reverie, "I promised Obi-Wan I would explain what happened and then he could decide if he wanted to join us on the trip back to Coruscant. May I use the galley?"
Before she could say yes or no, Qui-Gon had already hurried toward the back of the ship. She watched as Obi-Wan set his bag down just inside the door. Smiling sheepishly he followed behind her, listening to her mutter about Qui-Gon's failure to wait for an answer.
Dakota and Obi-Wan entering the area, found Qui-Gon had wasted no time in gathering the ingredients for tea. He set the water to boil on the small heating unit and sat down in the chair farthest from the door. Obi-Wan carefully perched on the edge of the only other chair opposite him. Dakota considered leaving the boys alone but her curiosity got the better of her and she remained standing where she was.
Qui-Gon looked at his Padawan; no he mentally corrected himself, Knight. He cleared his throat and said, "I've always told you the beginning is the best place to start. Here is the beginning of what I remember. I left you with the parts for the Queen's transport and headed back to Mos Espa to collect Anakin. We were leaving the city when I felt a disturbance in the Force. I couldn't place the feeling. There was danger mixed with something I had not felt previously. Leaving Anakin to say his goodbyes, I went to investigate. When I saw him, I was confused. He looked exactly like me; even his clothes were like mine. I let my guard down and was attacked from behind by someone using a drug. The first time I awoke I was chained to the floor of a ship's cargo bay with a woman goading me. I have pieced together enough information to know the woman was Jenna Zan Arbor."
Qui- Gon was interrupted by the shrill whistle of the water coming to a boil. Dakota wordlessly walked over to the unit, removed the water from the heat, and went about finishing the tea. She glanced at Qui-Gon willing him to continue his story. Qui-Gon looked at Obi-Wan across the table trying to determine what the young man was thinking. Realizing Obi would not comment until the story was complete, he drew a shaky breath and continued.
"I was kept drugged and chained to the floor except for the few times she got around to feeding me. I had no access to the force. The two times I came close, I called out to you and she caught me; as a punishment she sent bolts of electricity though my restraints. I was informed that I wouldn't be missed because she had replaced me. The next thing I remember coherently is waking up in Dakota's droid closet. I still had no access to the Force, but at the time I was blaming it on the amount of drugs in my system. It wasn't until the collar was brought to my attention that I understood why I was unable to reach the Force. I tried contacting the Temple to let them know where I was and get help. Someone at the Temple informed me I was dead. That's when I struck a deal with Dakota to get back to Coruscant," Qui- Gon finished his story and took another sip of tea.
Obi –Wan's face was unreadable. Qui-Gon had no idea what his student was thinking and that demoralized him more than losing the Force. Obi-Wan stared at the man that claimed to be his Master. Standing up he looked at Dakota and said, "This is a lot of information to digest. Is it possible for you to delay take-off for a short time while I meditate on this information?"
She nodded mutely and led him to one of the empty cargo bays. "This is the best I can offer as a quiet place to meditate. I can delay the departure by five hours but no more. I wish you success in trying to find out the truth." Ignoring the haunted expression in his eyes, she turned around and headed back to the galley where she found Qui-Gon sitting with his head buried in his hands. She walked across the floor to stand behind him and reaching out, she put her hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her with fresh unshed tears in his eyes. "Kota what am I going to do if he doesn't believe me?"
Kneeling in a meditative pose, Obi-Wan centered his thoughts and let the Force wash over him, its energy pulsing, its waves crashing in, on, and around him. It sang the rightness of being on this ship at this time. He needed to know which to trust, his eyes or his heart. He wanted to believe this Qui-Gon. Oh yes, I want to have my Master back. Qui-Gon said he was taken captive on Tatooine. I must try to find out if that's true. He methodically sorted though the events up to Qui-Gon's death.
Obi- Wan was beginning to recall little things he had pushed to the back of his mind when his Master died. The sloppy saber skills, no communication though the bond, Qui-Gon unsure of himself with temporary bouts of panic, his betrayal with Anakin, and the fact he never said goodbye. He saw all of those things, why did he ignore them when even the Council had noticed that his Master was not his usual self. He reached back into the Force and asked one simple question. Is this Qui-Gon my Master? The answer was instantaneous and the sweetest thing Obi had ever heard.
Rising from the position his body had held for more than three hours, he made his way back to the galley. He stood in the door and looked at the distraught man sitting in front of him with his head in his hands. Dakota looked up and saw Obi-Wan beaming fondly at his Master. She reached out and touched Qui-Gon's hand to get his attention and gestured to Obi-Wan. Squeezing Qui- Gon's hand she stood up and walked away to give them some privacy.
Obi- Wan swallowing the lump in his throat, stands for a moment and then strides purposefully across the floor to stand in front of Qui-Gon. Eyes moist with joy Obi-Wan reached out and pulled his Master into a tight embrace. "It's good to have you back with the living my Master. When you died or the other one died, I told myself I should have told you how I felt about you Father. You are my family and my grounding to the path of light. You are the most important person in my life." Pulling his face away from Qui-Gon's chest slightly he said, "Master the next time I tell you I have a bad feeling about something, by all that's holy, in the future, you better listen to me.
Qui-Gon chuckled and felt a surge of excitement at Obi-Wan's use of the name Father. He tightened his embrace and ignored the tears that streamed down his face into Obi-Wan's hair. "My Kobe, my light, you have been given back to me." His breath catches as he tries to quiet the tears of joy, "I want you to always know that while you are not physically my offspring, you have been and always will be the Child of My Heart. I could not have asked for a better son," he said as he placed a kiss on the top of Obi-Wan's head and ruffled his hair.
Sensing Dakota standing around the corner, he removed himself from the confining arms of his Master. Obi- Wan looks at Qui- Gon and stated, "If we're going to go home any time soon we need to inform Captain Rains. I will be joining you on your trip to Coruscant. There had better not be any mechanical problems this time or we will just drift home. The mechanic, Obi-Wan, is on vacation this journey." Qui-Gon laughed and wondered what the story was behind Obi-Wan's remark. Leaving that question until later he followed Obi-Wan down the hallway in search of Dakota.
Dakota racing down the aisle, jumped into her seat just ahead of their arrival in the flight cabin. She wouldn't admit to anyone that she had been standing around the corner listening to the progress being made between the two men. Rushing, she entered the necessary coordinates for the trip into the Core Worlds. She wanted them to believe she was busy; not knowing the young Jedi was aware of her surreptitious lingering in the hallway. She looked at Obi-Wan and saw the young Jedi grin. Blushing, she turns away from his knowing glance as Qui-Gon says, "Kota, Obi will be joining us for the ride home. Would you like me to get more provisions?"
Dakota looked at Qui-Gon oddly for a minute. This was the second time he used that name for her. She would ask him about it later. "No Qui, I'm prepared this time for the amount of food you consume. I bought extra." Qui-Gon flushed at her comment. Obi-Wan, glancing at his Master questioningly turned around to get his bag from the doorway and raised the boarding ramp.
"Master," he called out, "Could you come here a moment?" He followed Obi- Wan back to the cargo bay where the young Jedi meditated earlier. Setting the bag down on the floor, he began to rummage through it. "Master, thirteen years ago, I gave you mine and you took care of it until you could give it back to me. Now today, I am returning yours to you. I have cared for it like it was my own." Not finding what he was looking for he turned the bag over and dumped it contents on the floor. On the top of the pile of clothes was a long box wrapped in silver paper with a white card on top.
Qui-Gon looked at the silver wrapping on the package and immediately knew what was in it. The first question is, if Obi-Wan has it, why hasn't he opened it? Secondly why did he bring it out here? "Obi- Wan what is that doing here?"
Obi-Wan looked at Qui-Gon, drew a deep breath, exhaled from between clenched teeth once before reaching out and picking up the package with shaking hands. He didn't have to open it without Qui-Gon after all, but that drove home the fact that the one person he wanted at his Knighting Ceremony had been absent. Obi looked up though hooded eyes watching the sadness and regret reflect on his Masters face.
"It was for you Kobe, why didn't you open it?" Qui-Gon asked amazed. All the other gifts he had given to his Padawan; Obi-Wan couldn't wait to open, why had he not opened this one? Then it hit him; it because of what the gift signified.
Obi-Wan shook his head and said, "Master it was the last gift you were ever going to give me and I couldn't bring myself to open it. I'm not even positive how it got into my bag. That is, unless my pesky Padawan put it there."
Qui-Gon jerked his head up, startled by the idea of his Padawan having a Padawan of his own. How did that happen I wonder? He is far too young and too new a Knight to have that kind of responsibility. This was something he would look into later. Right now he needed to concentrate on the here and now. "Well Obi-Wan, I'm here now. What do you say you open it?"
Obi-Wan sat down and placed the heavy box in his lap. Carefully so as not to damage the wrapping, Obi-Wan turned it on it's end and slit the paper. He looked over at his Master and saw amusement sparkling in the sapphire blue eyes. He focused again on the package in his lap, removing the paper, folding it up, and setting it aside, Obi-Wan gasped at the beauty of the wooden box. It spanned three hands in length and was carved from the golden wood of the Jaffi tree. The symbol of the Jedi order was inlaid in black on top of the box. He swallowed a few times and then opened the wooden box. There lay a green card on top of a purple velvet covering. Obi-Wan picked up the card, written in his Master's strong firm strokes and read the poem.
Knight Kenobi,
The most beautiful stones
Have been tossed by the winds of time
Washed by the water of tears of sorrows and joys
Polished to brilliance by life's strongest storms and most incredible journeys.
Your passage from Padawan to Knight has been one of milestones and disappointments, of learning and teaching. They have been the best and the worst that life can throw at you. You have remained in the light through it all, with a quiet strength, a gentle heart, and unending courage.
Congratulations my young Knight. May the remainder of your Journey be as interesting and eventful as the first part has been.
Master Jinn
He laid the card down and picked up the swaths of purple velvet covering a long piece of pear colored crystal imbedded with fourteen stones. The stones were of various shapes and sizes, the smallest one no bigger than a grape and the largest one, the size of a small child's palm. The colors of the stones ranged from brilliant red to layered black and white. One stone had no color and another was so silver it could be a mirror. The stones were imbedded in a pattern of five on top, four in the middle, and five on the third line.
Obi- Wan reached out with one finger and brushed a pale purple stone. He jerked back, startled as the little rock hums. He reaches out to touch it again and finds that it feels warm to the touch and the rock begins to hum again. Confused, he looks up at his Master in askance. "Master…I mean Qui- Gon, they sing. They're Force-Sensitive like the River stone you gave me on my thirteenth birthday."
The tall Jedi tried to hide his smile as he quoted himself from that time, "Force-Sensitive, hmm. What do you know, and here, I thought they were just pretty rocks."
Obi-Wan touched the rocks once more and listened as several notes intertwined. He settled back onto the floor and in somewhat of a trance, he began to touch the rocks indiscriminately. "Qui-Gon, how does it work? I mean I understand that each rock has a different musical note, but how do you make the music?"
"It's to help you meditate. Open yourself to the Force and it will guide you," said Qui-Gon, as he sat there listening to the music Obi-Wan was trying to create with his gift. Lost in the musical sounds, he did not hear Dakota as she walked up behind him.
"Qui- Gon, am I interrupting something?" Dakota asked warily.
"No, Kota you're not. If the auto-pilot can spare you, come and join us."
There was that name again. She needed to ask him about that. Coming over and sitting down next to Qui-Gon, she tried to keep her voice down so as not to disturb Obi-Wan. "As you can tell we have lifted off. If my calculations are correct, we will be on Coruscant in four days with a small detour on the way. I'm sorry about the short stop, but it's the best I could arrange in a short time on a small planet."
"There's no rush now. Now that Obi-wan is here with me, I find I can be a great deal more patient." Taking her small hands in his large ones, he said, "Thank you Kota, for your help. I know I put you in a terrible position and you acted with extraordinary kindness considering your fears in the beginning. You have been a true friend and….."
At that moment Qui- Gon suddenly felt a surge in his body as though his circulation had just returned, everything tingled. He could see Dakota hovering over him. Obi-Wan had just hit the most harmonious notes on his rock instrument. Qui swore for a moment time had stopped; he did not even breathe. The collar fell open and he fell back against the wall. Qui-Gon struggled to catch his breath as the overwhelming warmth pulsated though his body. The staggering concentration of the Force rushed back to him, racing through his blood with intensity, unlike anything he had ever felt, and Qui-Gon lapsed into unconsciousness.
"Master!" Obi-Wan shouted setting down the gift and crawling over to the man slumped against the bulkhead wall. He reached into the Force to check on the condition of the outwardly comatose Jedi Master. Pulling Qui-Gon's head into his lap he sighed and said, "Its ok Dakota, Qui-Gon will recover in a few minutes. He was deprived of the Force for almost two months. As the Force came flooding into his body, it short circuited his senses."
Slowly with a groan Qui- Gon regained consciousness. Obi-Wan hoisted the tall man up, braced his body with his own, and help Qui-Gon walk forward to the bunks. He gently deposited the older man on the lower bunk and pulling up the blankets over Qui-Gon, he tenderly stroked his father's cheek whispering the words, "Sleep Master."
When Obi was certain that Qui-Gon was responding to his Force suggestion, he turned and grinned at Dakota saying, "I've always wanted to do that." Leaving Dakota staring at his back, he sauntered back to the hold to gather up his personal items. He finished repacking his bag leaving his gift and Qui-Gon's saber sitting on top of the pile. I got so lost in my present from Qui-Gon; I forgot to give him back his lightsaber. Well I guess we'll finish that tomorrow he thought.
tbc