Author's Note:
musicis4ever, glad to hear you liked the chapter. Here is the next one.
SummerLeanne, actually, we "put the characters' masks on" and perform the dialogues ;-)
Tatooine evening was sultry, the night was rather warm, however by the early morning the air at last became cool, and even cold. The sunrise had already lightened the desert some time ago, but it was still rather dark in city houses because of huge dust clouds everywhere around Mos-Eisley. Harsh night buzz of pub orchestras, drunken shouts, spaceport maintenance works, and all-around showdowns had disappeared; the sounds of the citizens' dull morning pottering about took its place. Perhaps, it was the quietest time of Mos-Eisley slums day except for scorching afternoon.
Obi-Wan was tiptoeing his way through the living room to Qui-Gon's place. All the night Kenobi could not sleep well, feeling his Master getting better, and short time ago he sensed in the Force that Jinn had awakened at last. Now the Padawan intended to talk to Qui-Gon immediately. It was not clear how soon would Shmi learn her charge was in conscious and when there would be a chance for Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon to talk in private, too. Kenobi wanted the news to be told the Master directly from his own first.
The floor was hard and cold, and omnipresent sand on it was pricking Obi-Wan's bare feet (he left the boots in his room for most quietness). In fact, there was not much to tell Qui-Gon. They were relatively in safe for the nearest time, but after that they would have to search the way out from Tatooine quickly. Shmi, the only person who suddenly helped them, seemed to be a true friend… well, perhaps, the Master should remember her if they had met earlier.
"And if not?" a thought menacingly ran through Kenobi's mind. Of course, it was a little chance that Jinn did not know Shmi, but she somehow had heard about him… Anyway, after the evening conversation Obi-Wan was sure Shmi was not just a desperate slave: she behaved and reasoned as if she was familiar with the Jedi Order. The question was, in which way? She could hardly be even a Force-user—neither Kenobi sensed so, nor a person with such a talent would allow to enslave her. Maybe, Shmi was one of the volunteers who helped the Jedi to keep peace all over the galaxy; however, it did not explain why had she been so informed about Qui-Gon and so concerned with his life. At last, how had she actually become a slave, being linked with the Order, and why she refused to tell about this?
The present conversation could answer some of these questions. Kenobi stood before the door of Qui-Gon's room (may it did not squeak!). He sensed pulsing waves of his wounded Master presence in the Force. But he could also hear something inside. Something, he could not explain.
"I can't believe this!"
"Please stay calm—"
"But it's absurd!" Qui-Gon repeated stubbornly. "You call this an appropriate Test Mission? Not to tell I think me and my Padawan need some more time before—"
"Calm down, Knight Qui-Gon Jinn!" Master Giiett stopped him loudly; the other members of the Council did not object this.
"Call absurd, the decisions of the High Council, you must not," Yoda said, meeting Qui-Gon's sight. "Trained for a long time already, your Padawan has been. Time for Tests has come."
"Listen to the Council, Qui-Gon," the male Jedi joined the Grand Master sincerely. "It's always difficult for a Master to decide when the first Padawan's training is complete. We pay great attention to every such case, so that you could rely on our opinion."
"But I cannot! Perhaps, you've missed something," Jinn did not give up. "My case is a special one! We had only two years to spend together… Master and Apprentice usually get used to each other for many years, you know. Our training bond yet isn't as strong as it normally should be and—"
"Knight Qui-Gon!" Micah Giiett interrupted him, but it was useless.
"…and I think it would be enough for such a delicate mission," Qui-Gon ended anyway.
Master Giiett looked daggers at him:
"You know it isn't true, Jinn." He said rather quietly, but strictly. "Don't try to show us you're unaware that your… connection is even stronger than… than it is assumed to be."
Those words made Qui-Gon silent at last. Then, he irresolutely tried to resist:
"I've never heard of any limits on a training bond," he started dryly and discontentedly. "My goal is to establish the closest contact with my Apprentice, to have our feelings, emotions, and thoughts connected tightly. This allows us to exchange anything and to act—"
"…to act as a whole." Master Giiett completed the well-known Jedi training principle. "It's indisputable. Debating with you has always been impossible."
"Nevertheless, behind words, hide the main point, you must not!" Yoda said with warmth. "Become a great Master and trainer, you can: talent you have. But of going astray, beware!"
"You'll agree with us when you consider your behavior carefully," Micah promised Jinn.
Qui-Gon murmured something doubtfully, but the Masters ignored that.
"Now you have some files on the mission to explore." Giiett gave him a small data-chip and a folder of papers. "This information has just been delivered, so secure it and return to the Archives when you're finished."
The young Knight understood that the session was over. He bowed with expressive ceremonial, demonstrating his displeasure, and left the Council Chamber quickly.
It definitely was his defeat. And Qui-Gon understood its reason, exiting the Chamber. Having foreseen the intention of the Council to assign the Test Mission for his Padawan, Jinn had been ready to dissuade them from doing so by appealing to the training bond imperfection and to the technical details of the mission. The straight hint of his slyness, the vagueness of the mission along with its delicate kind and obvious technical simplicity—all this was pure surprise for him. Unfortunately, he was already out of time and it seemed that there would be no more chance for Jinn to talk to the Council again.
Qui-Gon did not like familiarize himself with mission details by reading bare materials. He was often able to get much more information from a brief talk to the person who called the Jedi Order or to a Knight who had already visited the place. By the interlocutor's manner of speech, pose, and reactions he somehow read many things about the situation and environment. Qui-Gon referred such an ability to his strong connection with the Living Force, which had already helped him many times.
Nevertheless, the Council had already performed all the negotiations, so that the files they gave Qui-Gon were the only source of information. To study them, the Jedi chose the bench at the niche in the wall of the Room of a Thousand Fountains; he hoped that many meditating Knights and sounds of falling water would help him overcome the boring reading.
The files consisted on numerous unordered sheets of reports, messages, excerpts from reference materials, and even handwritten notes. Qui-Gon had to study them all over and over again to understand rather a simple problem. On a distant planet called Thoe, the endless civil war was close to its end. Now the story was going to finish naturally: one fraction would strike the last time and then eliminate everything and everyone related to their enemies. The secret Jedi presence in both of the camps was considered a way to prevent—or to help the victims to avoid—cruelty and repressions.
Qui-Gon was now holding the last two papers: the leaflets of each fraction. The first one was of green and yellow color, the other was colored in blue and black. As Knight Jinn saw, the civil war had started because these two fractions wanted to do exactly the same things, but each one accepted only its absolute, sole power, too. An ultimate reason for confrontation, Jinn thought dolefully. Also, the poorest variant of a Test Mission.
Why did the Council do so, why were they sending Qui-Gon and his Apprentice to the mission, unsuitable for almost only this pair, who had five times less period to form their training bond? Of course, there was Xanatos, who had already reached Padawan's age and, in fact, had been dedicated to become Jinn's Apprentice since Qui-Gon had brought him to the Temple. The boy was eager to start his training as soon as possible, but it could never be a reason for the Council to make such a careless decision.
Jinn concluded that, in some way, the mess around this and the mission itself were a kind of test for him too.
Qui-Gon collected the papers together back and stood up to return to his quarters. However, right at the exit of the Room of a Thousand Fountains he suddenly sensed a familiar presence in the Force behind the corner.
"You?" Qui-Gon's voice was husky, but definitely surprised. "Traitor! When did you sell me them?"
"How dare you say so?" Shmi squealed suddenly so loudly that it could wake Kenobi up if he had not been in corridor already. "It's not me, who… You'll regret saying it!"
Having heard the direct treat to his Master, Obi-Wan could not hide anymore. Moving quickly and smoothly, at the next moment he was in the room, ready to protect Qui-Gon if needed.
Inside, he saw exactly what he had expected: Shmi hang over the narrow bed in the corner, on which weak and discouraged Jinn was instinctively trying to flatten flatten against the wall. For a moment, Obi-Wan thought with compassion how was his Master feeling now—having woke up alone in an unknown house on inimical planet.
Perhaps, that was why Qui-Gon could not help staring at Kenobi, so that Shmi noticed it and turned. Kenobi never imagined her like this: lips pursed, fingers strained, former simple gray dress sitting on her like a combat suit. However, none of these could shatter Padawan's composure—Shmi's eyes did: Obi-Wan saw terrible despair and sullen resolution in them. Kenobi felt that his choice was crucial—and drew his blue-blade lightsaber. Qui-Gon used the pause too.
"Don't touch him!" Both the Jedi shouted, one of them threatening Shmi with weapon, while another just helplessly trying to protect the Padawan.
Surprisingly, but Shmi did not lose her courage. Pragmatically ignoring Qui-Gon, who could not leave the bed, she completely concentrated on Kenobi:
"A rash action! Not a Padawan-like one!"
"If only you hurt my Master in any way—"
"And if I die, you're both dead too, you know it! There's nowhere to go for you. I'm the only person who would help you here," Shmi was throwing the facts to Kenobi's face as if she made the blows.
The doorknob stuck into Obi-Wan's back—it appeared, he unwittingly had been stepping back despite his advantage of holding the weapon. However, the Padawan had not made his decision yet, while Shmi continued being on the offensive:
"I'm your only hope. You won't allow Qui-Gon die. And he'd never accept the murder of a defenseless woman." She came so close that Kenobi had to nearly touch his own face with the lightsaber. "It's not even a choice, Obi-Wan. Don't be obstinate."
It was good for Kenobi that he could not see his Master at the moment. He had nothing to object—indeed, the Padawan knew he could neither use his weapon against Shmi, nor save his and Qui-Gon's lives without her help. He breathed heavily one more time synchronously with Shmi and turned the lightsaber off on exhalation.
"Good." She approved this to the Jinn's quiet moaning. "Now, since you're awake, go to the backyard, check the moisture vaporator and clean it. Someone said yesterday that he's a good technician."
The absurd calmness of her words confused Kenobi. It sounded like he had not threatened Shmi a few seconds ago. Maybe, it was a shrewd trick?
"There's no need in sending me away. Why can't I talk to Master now?" He asked morosely.
"Ah, stubbornness was the last thing you should learn from Qui-Gon!" Shmi said with vexation. "You'd better adopted his Sith-like resourcefulness and well-known Jedi insight: it's not of your interest to quarrel with me, is it?"
Suddenly, Obi-Wan noticed Qui-Gon vigorously nodding him from behind Shmi's back. Their training bond had already recovered quite well and Master was sending the Padawan some smooth impulses: calm down, obey her. Although he completely did not understand what it meant, Kenobi had nothing to do but groping the doorknob behind him and exit, leaving his Master face to face with Shmi.