Disclaimer: All characters you recognize belong to the Great One. Other than that, they are mine. I am making no profit off of this.
Summary: At the age of twenty, Obi-Wan Kenobi returns to his homeworld to discover the ancient power of his royal bloodline.
A/N: Before anyone shoots me, yes! This is KrystalBlaze. A while back, Jerikor and I decided to go our separate ways, and have created new usernames to reflect this. I'm still going to post my vignettes on that account, although once we hit fifty stories and four years, we've decided we're going to retire it. It's been a good account, but it's time to move on.
Thanks to: Jerikor, as per usual, and Jaxxwho has become my superb beta-reader.
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Silhouetted by Light
By: GraySkyeMourning
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Nineteen years earlier…
Keliso was almost directly below them. Through the window of the transport, the planet gleamed blue and white. The white was obviously cloud covering, and when the clouds did shift, Qui-Gon Jinn could see patches of brown, signifying land. Most of the planet was water, small, and the patches of land were sparse little islands, almost invisible if you weren't looking for them. He wondered vaguely which one of them was Harken.
Behind him, his fifteen-year-old apprentice was meditating fitfully, his eyes often fluttering as if he longed to just stare out at the jewel of a planet. Qui-Gon sighed, and decided perhaps it was time for Xanatos to end it all together. The boy had been trying for the last three hours to delve completely into the Force and had come up half-short. It was a lesson for another day, and besides, they would be landing soon.
"Padawan," Qui-Gon said, and after a moment Xanatos's startling black eyes were looking up at him in confusion. "We'll be landing in about twenty minutes. Go ahead and gather your belongings."
Xanatos stood fluidly. "I'm sorry, Master, my mind was elusive today," he said flippantly. "I've always wanted to learn how to test a child."
Qui-Gon grinned. "Believe me, Padawan, it's not something that's entirely impressive." He moved about the room, picking up his datapad and the extra clothing he had shed on their two-day trip. "Most of the time, the child is not even Force-sensitive. I don't know how this time will exactly work out, and if the child does prove worthy, then there is the task of taking him away."
Xanatos shrugged, following Qui-Gon's motions. "Do the parents make a fuss about it?"
"Again, most of the time," Qui-Gon said. "It's one thing to com the Jedi and ask them for a testing, but it's another thing entirely to let their child go."
Again, Xanatos shrugged. "Well, they should want the kid to have a better life." He drifted over to the window and gazed down at the planet as they descended slowly. "There's too much water," he said after a moment. "Communication must be hard between the islands. You're sure the pilot knows we're going to Harken?"
"From what I know of, I'm sure," he said with a small smile. He came to his apprentice's side. "I want you to remember that taking this child is an important event in the parent's life, and that it will most likely hurt them. If they do latch onto you and try to change your mind and weep, remember that this is probably the better life for the little one."
"'Little one?'" Xanatos asked with a laugh. "Did you call me "little one" when you took me, Master?"
Now Qui-Gon laughed. "Actually, most of the time I called you, "be quiet." You were a noisy thing; did I tell you?"
Xanatos made a move to punch his Master in the arm, but Qui-Gon stepped nimbly away. At that moment, the pilot's voice came through the com unit. "We'll be landing in ten minutes."
The apprentice let his arm drop, and then crossed them. He favored his master with a condescending look, as if he pitied him. Then he rolled his eyes.
"Time to get going, Padawan," Qui-Gon said, and moved for the door.
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"What a pretty tree," Xanatos said, pointing at the splintering willow and the ones beside it. "It looks just like the trees we passed five minutes ago, and just the ones five minutes before that."
Qui-Gon had to work hard to hide his laughter. What Xanatos said was the truth: the landscape was barren, the cluster of trees a dark spot on the horizon. It intrigued Xanatos that something could survive in such a landscape, but was quickly put down when he found out all were the same, and all seemed to be splintering and dying.
"Maybe they're going through a drought," the Jedi said, watching the mountains and dirt pass by. The groundcar went quickly on the deserted road, and ahead Qui-Gon spied two roads branching off from the main. The driver took the one on the right, and they were headed toward the mountains. Qui-Gon hoped it would be slightly greener, for merely the fact it would be a nice sight for his red-borne eyes.
"I hope not," Xanatos said seriously. They had passed a handful of shacks that were inhabited, and he was loathed to imagine their lives without water. It fascinated him, though. How would those residents battle the drought, and would they survive? This island was not like Coruscant, with only one large city, and that was to where they were headed. Where would these nomads get their resources?
The sides of the road now were branded with trees, and grass spread on the ground. As they continued, the flora continued to grow, and more housing complexes lined the road. There was more traffic here, too, and soon it seemed like a watered down Coruscant, although more homely.
Their driver canted off on another street, skirted a corner and turned down a less inhabited road, one that was dirt. Immediately Qui-Gon felt a slight trickle ease through the Force and touch his senses. He sat up straighter, and stared intently as they left most of the housings behind and came to rest on one home that was sat alone in a field of grass and trees.
"Wow," Xanatos said softly. He got out of the groundcar, the wind immediately blowing up his raven hair. "Master, this is green."
Qui-Gon paid the driver and asked him to wait. There was a path of trampled grass leading towards the home, and they walked on that. The trees limbs were so long and ancient their leaves brushed his head as he walked. The scent of flowers met his nose, and he smiled a little. This seemed a nice place to raise a child, although the trickle in the Force caused him to think that maybe the child in question wouldn't be here for much longer.
Xanatos knocked on the door, looking slightly apprehensive. Qui-Gon felt through the Force, identifying the small strand that was the child and drawing back from the shocking light of it. He smiled again.
The woman who answered the door was young, slender with long, russet hair that flowed past her shoulder. She smiled warmly at them, her jade eyes trusting and too wide for her small face. In her arms she carried a babe, probably a little less than a year old. The child was sleeping, clutching a finger of his mother's hand and absently picking at the ring she wore.
"Come in," she said, her voice a cultured and elegant accent. Qui-Gon smiled at her, and stepped in, Xanatos following in his wake. She led him to the kitchen, and made them sit down at the table. Qui-Gon saw the toys scattered about the large home, and a feeling of dread filled him. She loved her son, and he was worried as to how she would react if he did have to take him.
Now she herself sat down, across from Qui-Gon and by Xanatos. His apprentice's eyes widened when he saw the babe's head close to his arm, and moved very delicately away, trying not to disturb the infant.
"My name is Kodal Kenobi," she said, rocking the child.
"I am Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn, and this is my apprentice Xanatos Lyrisis," Qui-Gon said in a whisper for fear of waking the child.
She laughed very loudly. "It's okay, Master Jinn," she said. "He's been asleep for the past two hours, and I'm thinking it about time for him to wake up." She rocked him even more fiercely. "So, what do we do now?"
Qui-Gon treaded carefully. "Is there a father?" he asked.
Her smile dimmed for a moment, but appeared the next second, looking slightly forced. "Yes, of course, there was a father." She looked troubled. "However, he left me shortly after Ben was born."
"Is that his name?" Xanatos asked, now looking intently at the babe.
Kodal seemed much more taken with Xanatos than Qui-Gon, and smiled very brightly at him. "Well, not exactly," she said. "His real name is Obi-Wan, but I call him Ben. It means "light" in my native tongue. I think it suits him very well." She pulled her finger away, and the child opened his eyes, blinking rapidly and sleepily.
Qui-Gon felt his breath catch. The small eyes that gazed upon his face were so strange. They seemed mixed, as if the heavens had met the sea and crashed into a storm. They held an intelligence and playfulness that made him smile and almost laugh. The child now turned his head to Xanatos, and the same effect seemed to come over the boy, for he did nothing but stare at the child for a long moment.
Kodal seemed to understand their stares, and she spoke dryly. "I'm afraid that comes from the father, not from me." She raised the baby, gripping him under the arms and pulling him up to meet her eyes. The child smiled widely, reaching out to pull his mother's nose. She seemed taken by pure joy now as her son gazed lovingly at her face. "But I won't hold that against him."
Although Qui-Gon did not want to interrupt the moment, he was aware that their driver was still outside, and their transport was set to leave in two hours. He cleared his throat. "I see he is very well behaved. May I hold him?"
She eyed him for a second, as if she could see his true intention, and then reluctantly cradled the baby into his arms. Qui-Gon held the child, offering his finger. The babe gripped with a weak hand that barely made it the entire way around. It always amazed Qui-Gon that women could bear such wonderful gifts, and it always amazed him even more that such a child could grow to be as large as he. Looking at Xanatos was like looking at the holovid that had captured the years on film.
"Will you leave us, please?" he asked Kodal, knowing she would agree. She seemed very unhappy at being separated from her child, but stood and walked into the front room. Xanatos stood and came closer to his Master, peering at the child in interest.
The child sought Qui-Gon's eyes, and held him in place. The Jedi reached deeply through the Force, focusing on the light strand that belonged to the infant. He prodded it gently, and the baby made a small sound of content, lying relaxed in Qui-Gon's arms.
"He's so tired," Xanatos commented. He watched Qui-Gon's deep look of concentration and asked, "What are you doing?"
Qui-Gon pulled away from the child. "When you get older, I will teach you how to pinpoint another's life-strand in the Force," he said. "Right now I was examining Obi-Wan's."
"And?" Xanatos prompted impatiently.
In answer, Qui-Gon offered the child to Xanatos, who immediately pulled back. He looked scared. The babe reached blindly out to the boy, and tentatively Xanatos took him in his arms. Qui-Gon watched in happiness as his apprentice stared at the boy, each looking more surprised than the other. Watching his apprentice connect with another life so easily was a proud moment in Qui-Gon's life, and he smiled greatly.
"I think we should take him," Xanatos declared.
"And why is that?" Qui-Gon teased.
Xanatos shrugged, causing the baby to giggle. "He's happy, and I feel him through the Force. He's Light."
"And you're right," Qui-Gon said. "We are taking him. I need to test his midi-chlorian, however." He reached into his kitbag and pulled out a small syringe. Xanatos held the babe tighter. "It won't hurt him, Xanatos. I'm going to put him in a trance so it won't hurt."
Still, Xanatos held the baby with protectiveness. "You're sure?"
"Yes, Xanatos, I'm sure," Qui-Gon said with gentle chiding. He was slightly wary of Xanatos' connection with the babe. He would speak with him of the matter later. He placed a hand on the child's forehead, causing the child to chortle once before the trance took hold. Quickly, Qui-Gon stuck him with the syringe and took a small blood sample. He withdrew the needle and placed a bandage on the small circle that was leaking blood.
Xanatos smiled at the infant's peaceful expression, and when Qui-Gon relinquished control over the child's mind, the babe immediately grabbed Xanatos' hand and began to play with the yellow band he wore on his wrist. He allowed the child to do so, and watched Qui-Gon test the blood on his datapad.
When the results came back, Qui-Gon smiled again. "Yes, he's going to be a Jedi. How strong though, remains to be seen." He packed away his datapad and the syringe, taking his eyes away for a moment only to hear Xanatos cry out a second later.
"He grabbed my braid!" Xanatos wailed, glaring the baby who was still smiling, even though the apprentice had obviously pried away his hand.
Qui-Gon stopped himself before he rolled his eyes, and called Kodal into the room. She took her child from Xanatos and held him protectively, staring at Qui-Gon with a look of sick fear in her eyes. The Jedi knew now she was terrified of loosing her child, and summoned up the courage to tell her.
She took the news well, he had to admit. Silent tears immediately started falling from her face, and her voice shook when she requested a moment to say goodbye. She took him into another room, and the master and apprentice were left in the kitchen. When she came back ten minutes later with a bag in her hand and her tears dried, although they still gleamed in her eyes.
Xanatos took the bag without a word, and they followed her to the front of the house. She selected a few toys, and Xanatos took those, too. He handed the babe a stuffed Wookie doll, and the child giggled in happiness, clutching the thing with a strength that seemed too powerful for his age.
They stood in the doorway, Kodal holding the babe tightly. They both had the decency to look away as the mother hugged her child one last time. Her whisper came to their ears.
"Be safe, my light, my Ben. Obi-Wan. I love you."
Then she handed the child over to Qui-Gon. She spoke softly. "Take care of him, Master Jedi," she said. "Watch over him, and keep him safe. Please. He will be a Jedi. There's nothing more I can ask of you."
Qui-Gon took the words to heart, and could already foresee the days of checking in the babe's progress, making sure he was alright. Such was the weight of taking a child. He already had nine lives to watch after, and he supposed ten would make it a round, even number. He took pride in this job, and always would.
"I will, M'lady." He held the baby firmly to his chest. "I thank you for this gift to the Republic. His will be a life of service, and the Jedi thank you as well."
She nodded, tears starting on her face again. "I am glad, Master Jedi." She turned to Xanatos and smiled. "And I thank you as well, Padawan Lyrisis. He likes you very much. Please be mindful of that."
Xanatos looked taken aback, but bowed his head nonetheless. "I will, M'lady."
Qui-Gon nodded at her once more, and began to walk. The driver was looking at him impatiently, and the two quickly jumped in. The babe now began to fuss, staring out the window at his mother, keep her steady with his eyes.
Kodal waved, and she did not stop waving until they were out of sight.
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"Obi-Wan Kenobi," Xanatos said.
"Yes, that's his name," Qui-Gon said, cradling the sleeping child once more. He could feel the tremors in the ship as it started up.
"I like it," Xanatos declared, taking the child from Qui-Gon's arms and holding him. Qui-Gon shook his head, wondering how Xanatos had taken to children so suddenly. "It suits him."
"It does," Qui-Gon does. "It very much does."
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