Chapter Seven

They did not speak—there was no reason to, and discomfort from the awkward exchange in Kenobi's quarters lingered. The boy gave him a few careful glances, perhaps on the verge of speaking, but he stayed silent. Probing would have been useless; Kenobi would immediately notice. Qui-Gon did not think he would appreciate a second invasion of his thoughts.

The door opened with a metallic swish. Qui-Gon walked inside, Kenobi at his heels. Anakin stood looking out the window, hands clasped at his back. He was dressed in full robes, black cloth and tooled leather in abundance, his light saber clipped to his belt, slung against his outer thigh. Qui-Gon arched an eyebrow at the intimidating regalia. Anakin just couldn't do things halfway. "Anakin?"

When he turned, his face was impassive. "Qui-Gon." He looked past Qui-Gon and down a few feet, nodding to Kenobi. "You must be Obi-Wan." The casualness of his words surprised both Qui-Gon and Kenobi, although Anakin's tone did not help put Kenobi at ease. Still, the effort was noted.

"Master Skywalker." Kenobi bowed respectfully.

"Why don't we sit down?" Qui-Gon suggested, directing Kenobi toward the couch. Anakin shot him an intense look, nigh unreadable, but followed his lead.

Kenobi sat with his hands tucked neatly on his lap, waiting for either of the two adults in the room to speak first. He so clearly bowed to his superiors, at once acknowledging his role as a Padawan Learner and obeying Yoda's—and indeed the Jedi's teachings—to observe, to know, to gauge with the Force and be but a silent onlooker. There was too much intelligence in Kenobi's gaze for Qui-Gon to mistake his silence for fear or hesitation. Or even awe; Anakin did tend to inspire far too much of that, especially in the last few months.

Anakin finally took his own seat, staring at Kenobi almost as unflinchingly as Kenobi stared back at him. There was something in Anakin's manner, though, something that wasn't to be found in Kenobi's. It was unreadable, something private, and Qui-Gon's better instincts told him not to interrupt. Anakin had to be the one to speak first, to take and establish control. Qui-Gon was officially out of place here—he was no one's master, and he had no apprentice. Perhaps this was what Qui-Gon had needed to truly realize from the moment Anakin passed his trials. He'd failed; he knew that now, he'd failed by never letting himself acknowledge why he so missed Anakin by his side, missed the familiarity of the faded training bond. Now he knew, watching Anakin face his Padawan, that Anakin was grown up.

Qui-Gon sat back. He was but a silent onlooker. A fly on the wall.

"How are your Forms?" Anakin asked.

Kenobi pursed his lips in careful thought. "I am well-trained in Shii-Cho—"

Anakin waved his gloved cybernetic hand dismissively. "As is every other youngling and Padawan in the Temple. Which do you prefer? If I'm going to train you, I need to know my… my Padawan's strengths."

Kenobi tried again. "Ataro."

Qui-Gon was impressed. Many Padawans dove headfirst into Ataro, admiring its flashy, Force-guided movements, but when even if they learned its flips and sprints, they could not dedicate themselves to controlling the offensive anger it evoked. For Kenobi to continue with Ataro under Yoda for as long as he had, for him to favor it, was surprising, not to mention indicative of what Qui-Gon already suspected: Kenobi was fit for significance. But it was foolish of him to have even entertained the notion of Kenobi being the same as the others his age. It was bias, he now recognized, that kept him from seeing Kenobi's true potential.

This was the other child of the prophecy, the other side of the card. He had just as much claim to the title of Chosen One as Anakin. Qui-Gon's fondness for his former Padawan overrode his faith in Yoda, in the prophecy, in Kenobi himself.

It was as if the Force had illuminated the picture before him; Anakin, sitting stiffly, trying to block his physical pain and sense Kenobi—Obi-Wan—who met him with the ingrained respect and contemplation of a pupil.

Qui-Gon wondered if either saw it as clearly as he did. Doubtful. They were too wrapped up in the past. Obi-Wan expected The Hero With No Fear, and Anakin expected a rival, but each unknowingly behaved as befit them. It was quite ironic to watch.

"Master Jinn is very proficient at Ataro," Anakin stated. "It's never been my Form of choice, despite how many countless hours he had me running up walls and jumping Sai's over his head."

"Anakin seems to think it is wasted Force energy," Qui-Gon put in softly, knowing it was just the push needed.

"Do you, Master?"

Anakin visibly started. His eyes widened and he stared at Obi-Wan as if he'd suddenly revealed himself to be a shape-changer. Qui-Gon felt such bemusement, remembering the first time Kshar called him 'Master' as a Padawan, and to compare that shock with the ease he felt around Anakin, or in the beginning with Xanatos… Soon Anakin would answer to Master as easily as he would his own name. "Yes." Anakin recovered quickly. "Using the Force to propel acrobatics is usually pointless; you could be saving up all of your energy for precise attacks."

"He prefers Djem So," Qui-Gon supplied, feeling as though he was mapping out a course for Anakin and Obi-Wan's conversation to follow.

"I know, I see it on the HoloNet all the time. Everyone does. Shien is about offense…" Obi-Wan started tentatively. "I've just used defensive Ataro maneuvers in the training rooms." He seemed to shrug off his training, relegating it to worthless because he'd never faced a real enemy.

"You don't like offensive tactics?"

"I—Master Yoda said my strengths lie in my agility. When he discovered I was all right in Ataro, we focused on that." He answered the question and yet did not. Curious. There was something of a politician in Obi-Wan, something well-suited to negotiations and diplomacy.

The possibilities made Qui-Gon regret having to leave so soon.

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Thanks to Catrina and Trey for the beta. For the record, Kshar is the name I've delineated for Qui-Gon's first Padawan Learner. We know about Xanatos and Obi-Wan, but there is no by-name mention of his first in the EU.