I talked to my Master after breakfast. I decided to go for the direct approach and asked him how he became Qui-Gon's padawan. He said that it was a long story and that it would bore me. Somehow, I don't think it would. I know that padawans are chosen before the age of thirteen and that if they are not chosen by their thirteenth lifeday then they are sent away, never to become Knights.
Staring at my Master's shut bedroom door, my curiosity grows. The door opens minutes later and my Master sits on a chair across from me. He asks me if I really want to know and I say yes. So he tells me.
I am shocked at what I hear, it was not what I was expecting. As my Master continues on with the story of becoming a padawan, I see that the Qui-Gon I knew was different from the one Obi-Wan knew before becoming a padawan.
How could Qui-Gon reject Obi-Wan as a student? How could the Jedi send Obi-Wan away to be a farmer only four weeks before his thirteenth birthday? I am momentarily grateful that I did not have to experience this.
My Master talks about Bruck, how Bruck would find ways to anger him. This is new, I never thought my Master is capable of being angry at anyone. He can be so calm.
I listen with rapt interest as he described the ship iThe Monument/i, that was taking him to Bandomeer. He talked about his run in with a Hutt and winding up in the medbay.
This is a lot to take in. To imagine my Master in this situation is hard to see. Will I be so different when I am older then I am now? Underneath my Master's mask, I have found something that I didn't think existed. My Master had his own struggles and now I believe that he still does have struggles. Training me is not easy, I admit that I make it hard on him. Now I am beginning to regret giving him a hard time.
My Master tells me how surprised he was when he saw Qui-Gon in the medbay and how crushed he felt when he learned that Qui-Gon still hadn't changed his mind. Qui-Gon was on a mission for the Senate, that was all.
I am still stunned on how Qui-Gon kept tossing Obi-Wan aside. How could Qui-Gon choose me to be his padawan so readily, yet push Obi-Wan away? I don't understand. A part of me doesn't want to believe it, but I sense the truthfulness in my Master's words.
I find out that the ship they were on were attacked by pirates, and how my Master managed to land the ship. Well more like crash landed. I wonder if this is the reason why my Master hates flying?"
I listen as he talks about his fight with the Draigons, and how well Qui-Gon and my Master worked together.
I learn that Qui-Gon had an apprentice before Obi-Wan. His name was Xanatos. My Master doesn't go into much detail, but I let it slide. I just want to know my Master better.
As my Master tells me about their escape from the mines, I see a twitch in his lips as he pauses momentarily. He tells me how he was willing to sacrifice his life in order to help Qui-Gon to escape and save the miners. I stare wide eyed at him as he explains how Qui-Gon figured out a way to open the door without my Master sacrificing himself. How Qui-Gon had called Obi-Wan padawan and how Qui-Gon finally accepted Obi-Wan as his padawan.
My respect for my Master has gone up. Now, when other padawans pick on me about how different I am from them, I'll just think about all the trouble my Master went through to become a padawan to Qui-Gon.
I look into my Master's eyes and see them wet with unshed tears. I walk over to him and hug him, he hugs me back.
I will work harder on controlling myself. I won't let anger take control of me. If my Master could do it then so can I. I won't fail him.
