“…I’ll
have to thank Kix, I imagine he was the one who taped the cover over
the drip?” A soft voice croaked and Qui-Gon almost dropped his
datapad from exhausted surprise, looking into drowsy green eyes.
“You’re
awake.” He said needlessly before putting the pad aside and sitting
up more in his chair. “Yes, Kix did. I…” Qui-Gon wasn’t sure
what to say to this man.
This
man who knew him. Who looked like a adult version of his padawan. Who
was currently being treated for dehydration and sunburns, showing
mental strains Qui-Gon had only seen in hard-weathered veterans until
the Clone wars had begun.
“Its
alright, this is a very strange situation.” Obi-Wan hummed then
licked his lips. “…There wouldn’t be anything to drink would
there? I know the drip is doing some of the work and I can smell
bacta but some water would be nice.” He looked up at Qui-Gon with
those pretty green eyes and Qui-Gon smiled at the familiarity of it.
“Of course Obi-Wan, I’m afraid it will only be a little bit, Kix
claims you will need time to adjust to it so not to make yourself
sick.”
He got
up and fetched cup with a straw in it that he put on the table beside
the bed, carefully helping Obi-Wan sit up by levering the bed.
“Do
you feel well enough to hold the cup?” He murmured, watching the
redhead honestly think it over before shaking his head. “Alright,
here.” The Jedi master held the straw to Obi-Wan’s lips, watching
him carefully suck the water down until it was gone.
“Thank
you.” The older man was gratified to hear Obi-Wan’s voice sounded
stronger.
“Always
Obi-Wan. I…can call you Obi-Wan can’t I?”
“As
long as I can call you Qui-Gon.” The copper haired master chuckled,
hands resting in his lap. “I imagine you’ve informed the council
about me?”
“Yes,
once Kix had you suited here I took contact with them. I was…unsure
of how to proceed.” He hesitated.
“Hmm,
I can imagine, its not often a dimension traveler drops in
unannounced, especially not escorted by sith magic.” The younger
one snorted. “Honestly, what was that man thinking.
Ancient sith magic from bygone ages, he could have brought anything
to this galaxy, a ancient
horror from the wild spaces, a black hole, a deathly sith bent on
galaxy destruction or even a unstable Jedi…or a fruit stand for all
he knew.”
“Dooku
always enjoyed experiments.”
“Well
so do I but I know about taking safety precautions. And my
experiments only ever endangered me, unlike the strays you insisted
on taking in. Honestly that nexus cub you brought to the temple…”
Qui-Gon
felt as if his heart could burst. But he reigned it in with all the
stoic Jedi calm he could, only giving Obi-Wan a bland smile. “Live
in the moment Obi-Wan.”
Obi-Wan
snorted then focused on him. “…I noticed your reaction to me, I
would assume this means I’m not…among the living here anymore.”
The
older man sighed then shook his head. “No. You…perhaps you went
to Naboo?”
“…Ah,
we traded places then. In my world, you died. I was knighted after
killing the sith apprentice and Yoda severed my braid. In this
dimension I died…and so the net sprawled on without me,
fascinating.” Obi-Wan mused.
“Not
exactly what I would have called the occasion.” Qui-Gon forced a
lightness to his words only to get a brittle smile from the redhead.
“No, not what I would really call it either when you died…I was
very lost. A fresh knight with a ten year old padawan and no where to
turn to when I didn’t know what to do.” He chuckled quietly.
“…I
left you with Anakin then.” Qui-Gon sighed.
“Indeed.
I imagine the council wants to meet me?”
“We
are going to Coruscant, the ship moving in hyperspace as we speak.
Yoda was…instant that we come straight to them.”
“I
was always fond of the old troll…it would be nice to see him…its
also nice to see you Qui-Gon, its been…many years since I saw you.”
“How
many, how old are you Obi-Wan?” Qui-Gon had tried to determined
that himself but it was not easy despite the start of grey in the
others hair.
“Thirty
nine. I aged well.” He teased the older man. “But then again, so
did you. You don’t look much older then last time I saw you despite
at least ten years having passed.”
“I
come from a long lived race, you know that Obi-Wan.” He chuckled
tiredly and leaned on the bed a bit, smiling softly at the memories
their conversation provoked. Soft memories from a bygone age that his
padawan and he had shared.
“…You’re
not really my Obi-Wan.” He sighed.
“And
you’re not my Qui-Gon.” Obi-Wan smiled. “But we are someones
Obi-Wan and someones Qui-Gon, so we could try to be friends at
least.”
“Friends…I
like the sound of that.” Qui-Gon sat up and offered his hand to the
other. “Qui-Gon Jinn, Master Jedi.”
“Obi-Wan
Kenobi at your service, also a Jedi Master.” Obi-Wan grasped the
hand, grinning softly as he held onto that large hand. “A pleasure
to meet you.”
“The
pleasure is all mine.” The tall man chuckled, squeezing that hand
in his own.
The
Force seemed to hum in pleasure around them and for the first time in
what felt like years, Obi-Wan felt honest to Force safe.
()()()
“You
know. I haven’t been back here since every Jedi in my own galaxy were
brutally murdered.” Obi-Wan said almost casually as the stood on
the steps of the Jedi temple, staring up at it with his shields
raised as high as he could.
Qui-Gon
froze at the reference to Obi-Wan’s own dark galaxy and looked slowly
at the almost to casual looking Jedi Master behind him.
“I
found bodies all over the temple. All ages, initiates, padawans,
knights, masters…even the corps members. Youngest to oldest,
slaughtered in our own home.” Obi-Wan’s voice faded away and he
looked down, a tremble going through his shoulders.
It
wasn’t even a conscious thought as Qui-Gon stripped his robe of and
wrapped it around the copper haired man, Anakin watching them from
the top of the stairs. He rubbed at the others upper arms. “Deep
breath Obi-Wan, release what you can into the Force…this must be
difficult, I can’t even begin to understand how difficult it must
feel. But I’m here and every other Jedi in the galaxy is here.
Just…reach out.” Qui-Gon murmured.
The
green eyed man looked up at him with a distant, almost lost
expression on his face then did as told, reaching out to all those
brilliant lights out there, eyes closing as he felt them, there
…alive …brilliant points in the Force.
“…I
haven’t felt another Jedi like this in so long…I’d forgotten what
home felt like.” He whispered to Qui-Gon.
“If
you need to lean on me, do it. You deserve even a small break.” The
ramifications were hitting Qui-Gon full force. A Obi-Wan Kenobi from
a different dimension where the Jedi order had been murdered in their
own home, oldest to youngest. Force, what had happened to the very
youngest of their order, the toddlers and babes?
He
didn’t dare to entertain that thought to long as he slowly guided
Obi-Wan after him up the stairs and into the temple, feeling the
other clench his hand into Qui-Gon’s arm often as he did, his hands
hidden by Qui-Gon’s larger robe with the sleeves covering them up.
Obi-Wan even lifted the hood to hide, his expression pale as he took
in people and places and through the mans impressive shields, Qui-Gon
sometimes caught the pain the other was barely keeping in and
releasing.
Anakin
kept shooting the man looks too, his brows furrowed as he was
obviously catching onto what the other Jedi was doing. Then again,
Anakin was a supernova in the Force. It had taken Qui-Gon years to
teach Anakin the same kind of finesse with the Force that he had
managed to teach padawan Obi-Wan, Anakin’s own powers and his
upbringing being a additional hurdle, not to mention Qui-Gon’s
overpowering grief at the time.
Sometimes
the only reason he got out of bed those first few years was Anakin
and then the mindhealers he had finally sucked up and visited.
‘Should
have done that way before I even meet Anakin.’ Qui-Gon thought
ruefully before squeezing Obi-Wan’s hand and settling into a lift
with the two. “How are you holding up?” He murmured quietly, his
voice a soothing rumble.
“…I
keep seeing corpses on the ground one moment and then remembering I’m
not in my own dimension anymore. Does that answer you?”
“In
a way. It does tell me you might need the mindhealers as much as I
did.”
“You
went to the mindhealers?” Obi-Wan looked up, his stoic face falling
away to shock. “I tried so hard to convince you in my own dimension
that you needed to go to one.”
“Yes,
yes you did…and I went after your death. I was…very lackluster.”
Qui-Gon sighed.
“What
he means is he was very depressed and I think the only reason he
sometimes got out of bed to eat breakfast was because I was there.”
Anakin piped in ‘helpfully.’
“…Yes
that.” Qui-Gon grumbled then looked back to Obi-Wan when the other
squeezed his arm.
“I’m
glad you finally went. Master Yoda said you should have gone there
way before I became your padawan even. I’m glad there is a version
that exist that did.” He gave the other a careful smile, corner of
his lips curling up.
Qui-Gon
returned the smile.
Of
course they couldn’t remain in the lift forever and made their way to
the council chambers, Obi-Wan growing tenser for every moment as his
breathing speed up and when the doors finally opened, Obi-Wan’s
shields wobbled as a
image leaked through the until now durasteel tight shields.
This
chambers, yet not it, full of little bodies of all races on the
floor, unseeing little eyes of initiates as Yoda knelt by one.
Qui-Gon
cursed in Huttnese as he felt the other gasp for breath, ignoring the
roll of confusion and horror flickering through Force, grabbing the
other my the shoulders. “Obi-Wan breath.”
He demanded as Anakin leaned against the doors of the chamber, face
pale and eyes wide in horrified surprise.
“Can’t…can’t…”
Obi-Wan wheezed and glanced up at Qui-Gon, a glazed look entering his
eyes as his knees started to buckle, his shields going ever more
chaotic, glimpses of war and pain and death
escaping him as he started to broadcast.
“Then
sleep.”
Qui-Gon wove the Force compulsion into his words and caught Obi-Wan
as the mans eyes rolled into the back of his head, not offering even
a token protest as he collapsed against Qui-Gon’s larger bulk.
There
was a stunned silence as Qui-Gon held him, everyone trying to absorb
what had happened.
“Not
the best place to meet our new guest this would appear to be.” Yoda
stood slowly from his chair, hobbling over to them to peer up at
Qui-Gon. “Much this Obi-Wan Kenobi has experience.” The green
Jedi looked to the council room, eyes on the floor. “Much he has
seen. Pain he has gone through. Perhaps to your quarters a safer
place would be.” The Grandmaster looked up at Qui-Gon as Depa was
talking softly to Anakin, carefully coaxing the young knight to stand
upright despite not looking much better herself.
“I…Yes.
I’m…starting to realize just how bad the war got for him.”
Qui-Gon tightened his grasp around the other man. “…He’s going to
need a lot of help.”
“Usually
so, for war veterans.”
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