I read quite a few stories highlighting the bond between Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon on this site, but all of them had something happen to Obi. SO, I decided I'd do one where something happened to Qui-Gon. Enjoy! Oh, and if you seeitalicized words in quotes, it means they're talking through their Master-Padawan bond.

P.S. Many thanks go to Katieelessar for her help in preparing this story for publication on this site! Thanks for all your help and support in both this story and my other SW FanFic!

Obi-Wan Kenobi sat silently in the waiting room in the Temple med center, waiting to be allowed to go back to see his Master, Qui-Gon Jinn. Qui-Gon had been exposed to a potentially fatal virus on their last mission, and had fallen sick their first night back.

He closed his eyes and thought back five days, to that night. He had been awakened by the sound of retching. He'd jumped out of bed, tossed on a tunic, and ran to the refresher unit- which was where he found his Master, sitting back weakly against the wall. Qui-Gon had heard his apprentice approach and looked up at him. "No, Obi. Don't come… any closer. It's too… too… dangerous," his Master had managed to say before passing out. Obi-Wan had run for the protective mask he'd brought back with him from Bandyniidor, and then run back to his Master. He had picked him up, using the Force to assist him, and carried him to the med center.

While Obi-Wan was thinking about these things, Mace Windu and Yoda came into the waiting room from visiting Qui-Gon. Obi-Wan didn't even notice, he was so deep in thought. Mace and Yoda walked up to him, and Mace laid a comforting hand on his shoulder, snapping him from his reverie.

"Oh, Master Windu, Master Yoda! I'm sorry, I didn't see you there," he apologized.

"All right, it is. Concerned for your Master, you were," Yoda reassured the young man.

"How is he?"

Mace and Yoda looked at each other. Then Mace sighed. "There is no difference. He is in the same condition he was in when you brought him here five days ago," he admitted. "Unresponsive, fever-ridden… the medics are beginning to run out of things to do for him."

"Can I see him?"

"See him, you may, but put on protective gear, you must. Want another sick person on our hands, we do not," Yoda admonished the eighteen-year-old Padawan.

"Of course. Thank you, Masters. May the Force be with you," Obi-Wan quickly said, bowing, before rushing off to go put on the protective gear.

"The boy seems eager to see his Master," Mace observed after Obi-Wan was out of earshot.

"A special bond, they have. Part of Obi-Wan's family, Qui-Gon has become," Yoda replied. "The strongest Master-Padawan bond I've ever seen, they share."

Obi-Wan sat in a chair next to his Master's bed. He was talking to him, and, though unresponsive, he seemed to sense Obi-Wan's presence through their bond. Through the bond, he was able to respond to Obi-Wan's words.

Obi-Wan talked steadily about the things that had happened in the five days since Qui-Gon had been admitted, Qui-Gon answering him through their bond. He mentioned that he had been called upon to teach a class in lightsaber techniques one day, when the teacher was unable to make it, as he was well known among the Padawans as the most skilled of any eighteen-year-old thus far. It had gone well, and the students wanted him to come back and teach them again. Qui-Gon's amused laugh rang in Obi-Wan's mind. Upon hearing that, Obi-Wan stopped talking suddenly.

"Padawan, what is it?" Qui-Gon's concerned voice suddenly said.

A tear squeezed from Obi-Wan's tightly closed eyes. "Master," he choked out, "You are truly my best friend. You have been my guardian these past five years, and you're more than just a Master, a mentor, or a teacher, even though you are all of those things. You're like a father to me! If you die, I don't know what I'll do!"

"I will always be with you, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon reassured him. "I feel the same way about you, Obi. You are like the son I never had."

"Thank you, Master. Hearing you say that means a lot to me. Oh, I brought something for you," Obi-Wan suddenly remembered. He took a small object from his pocket and put it in his Master's hand, closing his teacher's hand around it.

"Why, Obi-Wan!" Qui-Gon exclaimed in surprise. "This is…"

"The Force-sensitive rock you gave me for my thirteenth birthday, not long after you chose to take me as your Padawan," Obi-Wan confirmed. "It's my most treasured possession, and I want…" His voice trailed off as he noticed his Master's limbs beginning to seize up, and his body beginning to tremble. "Master?" he asked worriedly.

"Padawan, get a medic, quickly," Qui-Gon's pain-filled voice gasped in his head. "Something's… wrong!"

Obi-Wan jumped up and ran for the door to the room. When he got there, he yanked it open and shouted down the corridor, "Somebody, help! Qui-Gon's having a seizure! Please, help!"

Seconds later, three medics ran into the room and surveyed the situation. Then the lead medic started ordering the other two around.

"Chymera, get me 60 units of prchysyn, stat!"

"Straight away, boss."

"Strsmyn, I need 1000 units of mchryphin in IV form on the double!"

"Right away!"

"Medic Tymaea, what is it?" Obi-Wan inquired, noticing the grim expression on the medic's face. Medic Tymaea sighed.

"I can stop the seizure and give him an IV drip to prevent future seizures," she began slowly, "and I can help with any pain he may feel, but his seizure indicates that he has entered the advanced stages of his illness. In other words, I'm afraid he doesn't have much time left."

Well, I hope you enjoyed it! Chapter 2 should be up soon! I just have to write it first...