“So
you gave him the crystal.”

Qui-Gon’s
deep voice echoed through
the mostly empty quarters of the Kenobi and Skywalker Duo, each of
them gone off somewhere else with Ahsoka having gone to find Barris
as
Ben simply
had shooed them all of with the assurance that he could handle a few
hours alone and would go find someone if he proved to get touch
starved or lonesome.

Ben
continued stirring his tea slowly and steadily, the man no more
perturbed by the echoing of an invisible voice than he would be by
bird song. “I did.” Ben hummed softly, glancing up when Qui-Gon
shimmered into view.

“Was
that wise?” The man frowned slightly at Ben.

This
was the moment Ben quietly cursed his addled state as he had
apparently spilled quite a bit of information to his old master.
Information no one but Ben should have.

Information
that would have Anakin watched with hawk eyes at all times.

And
further send him into the grasp of Palpatine or darkness at the very
least.

Taking
a small sip of his tea, Ben mused quietly on it before sighing and
looking up at Qui-Gon. “The potential for darkness is not the same
as always falling for it. And Anakin is not the same Anakin who once
knelt for a Sith master. I have done the Jedi no harm by giving
Anakin, the chosen one as you once said, one of the most powerful
crystals to ever exist.” He stated calmly.

Clearly
troubled, Qui-Gon looked away, Ben settling back in his seat to sip
his tea slowly as his old master considered the words and Ben’s
genuine belief in them.

Ben
had just settled in, having arrived back on Coruscant had been a blessing
for his old joints, the healers had fussed him away once the
council was done with him, though he knew that wasn’t the last of
the interrogation now that Ben was finally conscious.

The
healers had taken time to question him, ask him outright about things
Ben before had been confused about and then gotten a mental gauge on
him.

Ben
was now as capable as any aging Jedi master, though he still needed
tending to with his aching joints and worn down body, the man
confessing to years on Tatooine having done him no favors. So far the
healers were speculating options to help Ben overcome some of his
issues, though others were clearly permanent.

But
they could be soothed ever so slightly.

Some
through medication and others through treatment and some TLC for
an old man, who had spent a long time without enough water to
properly wash at times.

Healer
Marna had been quite insistent that Ben should regularly take warm
baths for his joints and arthritics sake.

And
a new tea had been added on the agenda for him to drink once a day,
once more for his joints issues but also his digestive system.

“Anakin
has started working on the crystals,” Qui-Gon’s voice cut through
Ben’s thought and the white haired man peeked up through his
eyelashes at the troubled master in front of him. “It’s shaping
up to be quite the weapon as he’s letting the Force guide him,
along with the materials.”

Ben
contemplated that, peering into the half drunk cup for a moment,
swirling the tea that reminded him so much of the muddy water he had
picked the crystal up from when he had been rummaging
for supplies and answers in the desert.

Tilting
his head a bit, Ben asked a question without words as he stared up at
his old master in his ghostly shape.

Closing
his eyes, Qui-Gon looked like he was sending a prayer of forgiveness
of to somewhere before he opened his mouth. “He’s still very much
a slave to his emotions Ben. What if…” He trailed off.

Glancing
down, Ben stared at the contents of his cup before raising it and
swallowing the last with one painful gulp and then setting his cup
aside on the coffee table. “Then it will happen and it was the will
of the Force as much as Sidious manipulations. Regardless, I will be
here, watching, waiting… praying,” He looked up at Qui-Gon, the
man staring back at him with a pained grimace on his face. “And I
will fall here. Still praying.” Ben smiled at him.

Dropping
down on his knees, Qui-Gon settled his hands on Ben’s thighs,
staring at him with imploring eyes, opening his mouth
but
no noise escaped him. Shuddering Qui-Gon closed his eyes and then
slowly lowered his head until it was resting in Ben’s lap, the
ghostly blue shape shuddering against Ben as he struggled against the
tide of emotions in his chest.

Slowly,
Ben raised a hand and settled it on the back of Qui-Gon’s head,
slowly stroking the long, ghostly hair, gently stirring the locks and
pressing them down as he turned his head to look at the window,
smiling faintly at
the sight of blue sky and the sun.
“My… what a lovely day it is.” He hummed softly, letting
Qui-Gon sob in his lap like a lost child, Ben’s
hand gently carding through blue hair that he could touch.