Well, i'm back and the monitor is working again....so life's looking up! I'm on holidays so i'll be finisishing this story when i get the time. The updates might appear a bit slower because i've come to the end of my stockpile of already-typed-out-chapters and i'm doing them on the run now.
So enjoy this next chapter, I made it extra (well, not really) long just for you guys!
****Pictures hanging in a hallway
And a fragment of this song
Half remembered names and faces
But to whom do they belong
- The Windmills Of Your Mind
****It was about 2 hours later that the boy started showing signs of life. Qui-Gon had been reading the map and several towns were circled to where the big auctions were held. He heard the groan from his cabin and went straight into the medical ward. His charge was trying to wake up, his eyes fluttering, his breathing becoming laboured. Qui-Gon had no doubt that the boy would be in great pain when he fully awoke so he went to the cupboard and was shuffling through it, trying to locate the painkillers when he heard the whimpering.
Startled, he turned around and say the boy staring at him in fear, the blankets wrapped around his frail body, his eyes just above the seam, trying to hide in the white material. Qui-Gon made a move to walk over and stopped when the boy tried to withdraw into the wall, his eyes showing white.
"It's ok, I'm a friend. I won't hurt you…."Qui-Gon tried to calm the boy, he held his hands out, palm upwards to show that he had no weapon and stepped forward slowly. The boy stared back, transfixed by fear. He pressed himself further back and whispered, "Are you my new master?"
Qui-Gon bit back his anger at the slave-lord, having scarred this boy so physically and mentally. "No. You are no longer a slave. Yes, I bought you but you are free to go your own way." When the boy didn't say anything Qui-Gon tried to continue the conversation, "What's your name?"
"910"
Qui-Gon blinked (That's his name?), "Is that your name?"
"Yes," a whisper, the boy wasn't meeting his eyes.
"Your parents called you that?"
"It is my slave number."
"No, what is your name?"
"Name, slave number!! Does it matter???? It doesn't matter what I'm called, my right of having a name, having an identity was wrenched away from me when I became a slave!!" The boy stopped suddenly and when he realized what he had just said a look of horror and complete terror came over his face. Any remaining colour drained from his face and he instinctively curled up and placed his arms in front of his face.
"I didn't mean to! I'm sorry master! Sorry master! I didn't realize what I was saying, I'm so sorry! Please don't! Please don't…..i'm sorry!," the boy had his eyes screwed up shut and when Qui-Gon placed his hand on the boys arm he found he was trembling violently. The boy flinched under his touch and kept on whimpering, "Please don't! I'm sorry…..i didn't mean to. I swear! Please, please, please don't beat me!! I'll do anything, please don't. I'm really sorry, please don't beat me!" Qui-Gon jerked his hand back as if he had just touched an red-hot iron, (You think I would do that???)
"It's ok, I'm not going to harm you. I am a Jedi, I would never harm you." Qui-Gon pushed his argument while making soothing noises, "So whats your name? I do not want to call you by a number, it's inhuman."
The boy looked up at him, distrust and fear swirling around in their depths. He licked his lips and stammered, "R-R-River."
"That's a nice name, River." Qui-Gon put his hand on the boys arm trying to cover the boy in an aura of caring, healing and loving. The boy shivered and withdrew his arm. Qui-Gon tried a different tactic, "So River, are you hurting?"
"Hurting?"
"Yes. Are you in pain? The wounds you sustained are severe. I have some painkillers if you want them…."
River was confused (Why is he caring so much? I'm only a slave.) "Yes master. I am a little bit sore. It will not stop me from doing what you order though."
Qui-Gon nearly screamed at hearing his title being used in such a fashion. He had come so used to hearing it from Obi-Wan for this boy to be using it like this nearly broke him. While trying to keep his calm he said, "I am not your master. You might not have heard this before but although I bought you, you are no longer a slave." With this Qui-Gon handed over the 'resume' to the boy and gently removed his collar. This also he put in the unresisting arms of the boy.
"W-what?" River didn't understand. "You are not my master?"
"No" (How hard is it for him comprehend this idea? Will Obi-Wan be so 'trained' like this? Whips in the soul, that's what they've done with this boy. Squashed all sense of independence. It's sickening.)
"Then who owns me?"
"No one does. You own yourself. You are free to do what you want." Qui-Gon tried to take this slowly.
"Where will I go?" The voice was sad, quiet and totally lost.
Qui-Gon felt pity stab his heart and he heard himself saying, "You are welcome to stay with me. I'm making it perfectly clear that you are free to come and go when and where you like." (Obi-Wan is right about me picking up strays) he smiled wryly.
River stared down at his slave collar and then rubbed his neck where it had been. It felt so weird feeling skin there instead of the thick leather and iron that he had become so used to. He felt lighter, not only physically but mentally. (I am free. I am free!) Suddenly he felt incredibly tired and before he could stop himself he had closed his eyes and fallen unconscious once more, the collar and papers sliding out of his hands.
Qui-Gon caught them before they hit the floor and gently arranged River into a more comfortably position. (I guess the excitement was too much for him….). He looked down at the sleeping boy. (Why do they always look so innocent asleep?) and almost broke down. Looking at the strange boy in front of him he was bombarded with images of Obi-Wan sleeping peacefully, by his side. Night after night, he had taken that boy for granted and now he was gone. (Maybe forever).
He left River sleeping peacefully and went to his bunk where he lay awake for the rest of the night, anguish and pain slowly eating away his heart.
****
When Obi-Wan came to the pool of blood he was lying in had dried and had stuck to his face. (Goddammit! I really hate those guards sometimes!). He tried to sit up and gasped as his whole body locked itself in a rigid spasm. (SHIT! What the…….?) Very, very slowly he moved his arm down to his stomach and pulled up his tunic. What he saw nearly made him vomit. His whole belly was black with congealing, internal blood. (No wonder my body won't let me move….too much damage). He had seen other guards victims beaten to death. (Is this what it feels like when dying?) He thought of all those slaves that died from internal bleeding, (Am I going to die as well?) He gave it another couple of minutes then tried to sit up. Every single muscle painfully contracted, and Obi-Wan clenched his jaw to stop from crying out and screwed his eyes shut and waited for eternity while the pain went away. (Ok, ok. Go away! Go away, I won't move again, I promise). He gently lay back down on the cold floor and ran his tongue over the jagged edges of his teeth. He shut his eyes and faded off as his body frantically tried to repair itself.
****He awoke to the sound of a siren going off and groggily blinked his eyes. He suddenly realized something. His face was almost unmarked. Except for the first stunning punch they had placed all their blows below his shoulders. (Why? Why bother? They've already shattered half of my teeth…………how am I going to eat?) With the thought of food his stomach rumbled and he realized that he had missed lunch. (What would Billy think of that?) He heard the tramp of feet and unconsciously shrunk back, afraid that the guards had come back to taunt him. He remembered the blows…………..
………………..blow after blow the Hutt hit him. He was dizzy, his head was pounding. He felt like his bones had been painfully melted and were sloshing around inside his skin. Time after time, he gasped, jerked and tried to move away. There was always something stopping him. He could almost feel the blood vessels stretching, breaking, snapping. He could feel the bruises starting to form, the blood underneath the skin flowing freely where it shouldn't. He could feel his bones creaking under the stress that the Hutt's fist put them under. He could feel the pain, sometimes muted, sometimes unfortunately clear. Once again the pain………………
………………..he let go a strangled cry as the pain once more shot through him, his abdomen protesting strongly as it continued it's healing, while someone tried to haul him into a sitting position. His breathing became laboured once more and he scrunched his eyes together and concentrated on not passing out by concentrating on his breathing. As he concentrated on anything but the pain a thought struck him, (What is Hutt? How do I know what a Hutt is? Where did that memory come from?) At first he wasn't aware of someone talking but slowly it became clearer.
"456!! 456!! What happened? Are you ok? What's wrong? What did they do to you?"
(Billy) Obi-Wan thought wryly remembering his earlier thoughts, (Great. Now shes going to go all motherly on me).
"456! Can you hear me? Talk to me!! What did the bastards do to y------shit." She had caught sight of his blackened abdomen. "Can you walk?" She finished off lamely.
"Y-ywesh" Obi-Wan blinked. (I'm going to have to re-learn how to speak while missing half of my teeth).
"What?"
Obi-Wan concentrated, "Yes. Shtop, I mean, s-stop holding me like tschat----t-that". (Goddammit, this is harder then I thought), he mentally cursed the guards.
"Okay, if you say so…."Billy wasn't convinced, "Why are you speaking funny?"
"The guardsch…..teetch, zey teecth", (This SUX!) he looked at Billy's confused expression and sighed. He came to a quick decision and bared what remained of his teeth.
"Oh." Billy's face went completely blank as she looked at the jagged and bloodstained remains of the boy's teeth. (I will kill those guards!). "Well, it's the start of the moon cycle. We have to go."
Obi-Wan couldn't remember how he got from the storage room to the dorms. But the next time he opened his eyes, he was lying at the bottom of the bunks and it took some time to realize that the soft thing curled over the top of him was Billy. (What the…….? What am I doing here? What is she doing here?) As he looked around and took stock of his surroundings another siren sounded and Billy stirred on his chest. He experimentally twisted his body softly and smiled when no screaming pain entered his mind. Of course it ached, and it was deadly sore, but he could move.
He looked back down and nearly jumped in surprise, a pair of dark brown almost black eyes stared back into his own.
"Feeling any better?" She yawned and rolled off him with a 'thud' onto the floor, "Ow."
Obi-Wan grinned as she reappeared in his line of vision, a hand rubbing the back of her head, her brown/blond hair all sleep-tousled. "Yeah. I'm feeling a lot better, thanchks."
"How about your mouth?"
"Yeah, it'll get better. What are you and I doing down here anyway?"
"I didn't think I should drag you all the way up to the bunk, didn't know if you were going to make it through the night. So I dumped you down here and used myself as a living electric blanket."
"Oh. Ok." He grimaced as his stomach grumbled, "Can we have breakfast? I haven't eaten in………."he mentally counted his fingers, "20 hours."
Billy laughed as she heard his stomach complain, "Sure. You sure you up to it? Here let me give you a hand."
Obi-Wan let her help him and groaned as he felt all the soreness and ache add up, "Yeah, Trust me, I'm up to it."
The two stumbled their way out of the dormitories.
****By the way, i've never actually read the book where Obi-Wan gets beaten up by the Hutt on (where was it?) Bandomeer? Was it Bandomeer? I"ve only gathered this from what i've read off other people's stories so i apologize for all the mistakes......sorry!
Hope you're enjoying the story so far, it's still moving pretty slow although i'm now writing the preparation for the 2nd escape attempt....... SFX: [Ahhhhhhh] but it's still got a fair way to go.
If anybody wants instant action, Obi-Toture, Qui-Angst and superb plot lines go to Cassia's stories! Roz: You will go to Cassia's stories via the Find fuction *waves hand slightly* No, serioulsy she is a fantastic writer, check out her stories, you'll love them! I promise! If you don't like them i'll set you up with Obi-Wan and Anakin themselves!!! [Terms and Conditions apply].
Can someone actually tell me what happened to Obi when he was bashed up by the Hutt? How did he get away? How badly beaten was he? Etc, etc....