Saga An Old friend (Obi-wan, Inter trilogy) Author's note July 5, 2007

Title: An Old Friend
Author: Jturtle
Characters: Obi-wan, maybe others
Genre: short story angst
Timeframe: Intertrilogy
Summary: Did Obi-wan ever learn to communicate with Qui-gon after Episode III?
Author's Note: This will hopefully be my first story that consists of more than one post. Updates should be fairly frequent.

Now on with the show!

---

Obi-wan was devastated.

What did a person do when all the light in the universe seemed to have been brutally extinguished? His ?brother? was as good as dead, his surrogate family had disappeared, and his life had all around been lifted up, shredded, and thrown back down around his ears.

Where had he gone wrong?

Was Anakin, no, Vader he corrected himself, doomed to fall or was it his own failings as a master that lead him to this?

He couldn?t describe the guilt that encroached upon his very spirit. He knew that he had had a fault in Anakin?s turning. What could he have done differently? Not that it mattered; he would never train another apprentice even if the Jedi Order was still intact.

His thoughts turned to young Luke, now only several weeks old. Anakin?s son. Vader?s son. The boy that Owen Lars had forbidden him to see, ever. So for now that solved the dilemma of Luke?s training. And when the time came that they couldn?t put it off any longer?who knows what might happen. As Yoda would say, ?Always in motion the future is.? Who knew? They could all be dead by then.

He stopped this pessimistic thought process as soon as it began. It was not wise to ?what if?? the worst possible scenarios. It was not the Jedi way.

He tried desperately to remember times when things had not looked so bleak, both literally and figuratively. The sands he was looking out at starched for miles around without a break in the dull pall of the landscape.

Obi-wan remembered during the war, fighting with Anakin by his side. Those had been tumultuous times but they had always been together, side-by-side, and for what they had never doubted was the right cause. Was it the right cause now, in hindsight, who knew?

And farther back, before the war even started. Training the boy had certainly not been easy but it had always been a joy. He had been very proud of his padawan and he had loved Anakin very much even if the boy had not seen it.

And then his own apprenticeship. He had loved Qui-gon like a father. Even though his master had been undemonstrative and, to outsiders a stiff man, Obi-wan still knew, deep down, that Qui-gon had cared deeply about him.

Then possibly the most carefree times of his life had been his days in the creche rolling around with Garen, Bant, and Reeft. Those had been the most happy and most definitely silliest time of his life. Sometimes, even as a master, he had wished he was back there in his days as a youngling. Except now the creech was a bloody morgue?

He sighed and reminded himself for the umpteenth time that Jedi do not rage against what is already done and in the past.

Again his thoughts turned to his fallen, former apprentice. He wondered if what Padme had said on the brink of her death was true. ?There?s good in him still, Obi-wan. This I know?? Was it true? It certainly had not seemed like it when they had fought over the fiery melting pits of Mustafar. But now he risked one small shred of hope.

And then there was what Yoda had said the day the twins had been separated. He had spoken of Qui-gon learning the path to immortality. That Obi-wan could learn to commune with him via the Force. And that outlined his other thin strand of hope.

He had no idea which was more probable, Anakin possessing light or Obi-wan himself learning to communicate with the dead. However he would hold on to both ideas as they were all he had to live for aside from the tiny bundle of joy that was Anakin?s legacy to the galaxy.

 

Very nice start! I look forward to seeing where this goes!

 

Sad, but lovely post.

if you continue please PM me.

 

Wonderbar Padawan!

This looks to have a very interesting plot! I can't wait to see where you take this! It's off to a great start, plus I get sneak previews! Again, awesome job!

~Jen~

 

The next post should be up in a couple of days.

Thanks for the reviews guys.

VaderLVR64: Thanks

Gkilkenny: Will do.

BottledUpInside: Thanks again as always for the beta, master. Wonderbar? What's wonderbar?

 

Very nice beginning.

You've captured Obi-Wan's emotions so vividly



I am glad to see he is determined to survive for Luke.

If you have a PM list, please add me

Great job on this

 

Nice beginning...I look forward to see where you go with this.

 

KELIA: You're added. Thanks for the nice comments.

Valairy_Scot: Thanks!

---

The next post is a flashback to the end of TPM. It's also from Qui-gon's point of view in first person.

[i]I could feel the air swirling around the generator room in The Palace of Theed. It felt so cold even though I knew only moments ago it had been a little too warm for comfort and had been especially warm for beings who were engaged in the sacred dance of a battle to the death.

A double-bladed red lightsaber crashed against a solitary blue one as the dark cloaked Sith and the skilled Jedi apprentice entangled swords once again. The two appeared to be evenly matched as the swords clashed together with neither one gaining any vast advantage.

I looked on in a helpless kind of despair. Obi-wan?s face showed rage and revenge without a hint of the calm serenity that should have been there. Where had my level headed padawan gone? I watched closely as he drew more and more on the darkside without appearing to be aware of such an action on his part. He was completely focused on the moment. Now he understands? How ironic.

I would have laughed but as I finally turned my attention back to my critical condition, I realized that any such action would be quite impossible.

I was dying.

And with so much left undone.

I wanted to see my padawan knighted. I had hoped to train Anakin, a boy that I believed to be the Chosen One. I had left so many things unsaid between Obi-wan and myself, and now I desperately wished that I had not. I wanted to tell him how proud I was and now it looked as though I would never have the opportunity.

They say your life flashes before your eyes right before you die. I think mine did. but not as images. It was as though I relived all the emotions from my life again.

Love and attachment seemed to be very prominent themes. So much for no attachment, huh? My love for Tahl, whom I had lost very recently. My love for Xanatos who had ended his life of his own volition. And indeed, my love for Obi-wan whom I could no longer see battling the Sith.

And my attention snapped back to reality.

The Sith was dragging his now single-bladed lightsaber on the edge of the abyss in the center of the room. Rather suddenly, I felt an influx in the Force as it gathered around Obi-wan. He used this to jump out of his perilous hanging position and rapidly cut down the Sith Lord.

I belatedly realized that the latter action was preformed with my own lightsaber.

As Obi-wan dashed towards where I was lying I remember earlier experiments with the method to retain ones identity once passed in to the Force that the Ancient Order of the Whills had perfected long ago.

Now was the time to find out if the long hours of research and meditation would benefit me at all. But I had to take care of as much of my unfinished business as I still could while I was living as I might not get another chance to.

?No,? Obi-wan choked out.

?Obi-wan,? I said drawing his attention, ?Obi-wan, you must train the boy.?

?Yes, master,? he said tears running down those boyish checks.

?He is the Chosen One. He must be trained.? I reached up to brush my padawan?s jawbone.

?Train him.?

?Yes, master?

And his tear streaked face was my last sight among the living.

Here it comes, I can feel the Force calling and I answer. I do not fight because it is my time.

As I learned I hold on to the memories, slowly going through my life. These memories make me, me, therefore it is crucial that I not let go, do not let my soul dissipate into the millions that have gone before me.

I am not sure when I actually joined the Force. There was no bang or sudden realization. It happened very gradually. However, I could still think independently so I must have had success somewhere along the way.

I could also sense what was going on around me. Around me was the best way to describe it. It was like being in and around everything at the same time. Yet I was not overwhelmed.

I was at peace.
[/i]

 

Wow, amazing work so far! I really loved how you captured Obi-Wan's emotions in the first chapter - his guilt, his pain, and his determination to make things better for Luke.

The second part, the flashback was also incredibly touching. I especially liked Qui-Gon's reliving of his emotions before he died.

I'm quite honoured to have you as my beta, even as a temporary one!



CrazyAni

 

Thanks for the PM
Qui-Gon's POV was so good lets hope he can contact Obi-Wan and tell him how much he loved him.

Great post.

 

CrazyAni: Thank you! And it's my pleasure.

Gkilkenny: Thanks! I'm glad you liked it.

 

another lovely post!!!! The emotions that were captured in this were wonderful! Great job!!!!!!




~Jen~

 

BottledUpInside: Thanks master!

Here is the next post and it is back to Obi-wan's POV.

---

Obi-wan knelt in the center of his floor. In the middle of the cleared space he held the traditional Jedi meditation pose, but his face showed anything but a calm or serene expression.

A better way to describe his expression might be harrowed or even frustrated.

Yoda?s advice was not as easy to follow as he had made it sound, the figure thought sardonically.

[i]Relax. [/i]

Well, did Yoda have [i]any[/i] idea how hard that was in his current state of mind? He felt guilty and frustrated and at the same time he was desperately trying to reign in his anger at the universe in general. Where had everything gone so far off track? Was it when Qui-gon died? The Clone Wars started? Anakin?s turning? He certainly had enough to be angry about.

A Jedi however, was supposed to let go of his anger. This brought him back to his present situation. He had to relax but it seemed like he had not had this much trouble focusing on his meditation since he was a youngling.

He felt like he had to [i]do[/i] something.

He wanted to talk to Qui-gon again which meant he had to sit still.

Back at Polis Massa Yoda?s advice had seemed almost comically easy. The basics of it had been to relax and have the desire to reach his goal. The latter was certainly the easier part. How does one relax at the same time one has a burning desire to commune with the ?other side??

He replayed the conversation just in case he was missing some clue.

They had spoken of what Obi-wan would do when he arrived on Tatooine. Whether he should contact the Larses first or go there straight away and things of that nature. When the conversation finally drifted to the training they had both been somewhat eager to leave the medical center before imperial forces were alerted to their presence.

Going through the rest of the relatively short conversation yielded no more clues as to what else Obi-wan could do to expedite this achingly slow process.

Better get back at it, he thought wryly. At this rate Luke will be 30 before I get this down. He settled back into the familiar pose to begin again.

After another half an hour of trying Obi-wan finally gave it up for the night. He was not going to achieve the desired level of meditation tonight.

It was then that he noticed exactly how long he had been at it by the temperature in his little hovel. It was vastly different than when he had begun. Obi-wan wrapped his cloak, which was gradually becoming thread bare, around his shoulders to keep out the cold air of a Tatooine evening.
Well, he could either go to bed or he could go out into that cold air and practice. That wasn?t much of a choice as he was already to jumpy to sit still. How could he sleep now?

As Obi-wan walked outside he noticed the splendid array of colors that bathed the night sky. The twin suns hovered just above the horizon, molten gold balls, which were approaching the finish of their daily cycle. The pink, red, and orange hues were a feast for the eyes.

He stood in the center of the space that he had cleared of rocks when he first arrived on Tatooine. The pure blue blade of his ignited lightsaber pierced the air with its low hum. He didn?t move a muscle after he had settled into the starting pose of one of the first katas he had learned after becoming Qui-gon?s padawan. One of the first katas he had taught Anakin.

He paused. The wind was still and the only sound was that of his rhythmically beating heart.

Abruptly, he began. He moved slowly through the first stages of the kata but rapidly picked up the pace.

He continued into a second cycle of the kata without pause. And into the third. And the fourth.

He gradually picked up speed all the while. In the fifth cycle it was easy to see why he had been considered one of the best swordsmen in the Jedi Order. His technique was flawless to the untrained eye and his speed was mind boggling.

Obi-wan gradually started to calm down as he exercised under t

 

I can see how frustrated it would be for Obi-Wan
everything he ever held dear to him was taken away by Vader.

How can he relax and not feel anger towards everyone
including his own Master who caused it all in the first place.

Great flowing story

I love the piece about him doing his sabre practice so believable.
Good job.
and a bit of sense of humour (Luke will be 30) by the time he gets it right

 

I loved the update showcasing Qui-Gon's POV as he lay dying. Very sad, but so realistic



Poor Obi! He's trying so hard to commune with Qui... I hope he's successful soon.

Great updates

 

*applauds*

This was a fantastic post! You've really captured how I think of Obi completely. I also really liked getting inside his head and following his thought process. Wonderful job!


~Jen~

 

Next post should be up in a few days, guys.

Gkilkenny: Glad you liked the humor as thats not reeally my strong suit.

KELIA: Oh, con't worry. He will be...


BottledUpInside: Thank you for your nice comments, master.

 

The next post is finally here!

Happy Halloween!

---

?No, no, Anakin, no??

Obi-wan jerked awake; a cold sweat bathed his body. This had been going on for at least a week. He would awake to one nightmare or another, all about either darkness or fire.

The dreams where everything was dark were not ever of specific locations or people. They were all of vague ideas or metaphors that often left Obi-wan with a lot to think about, but rarely any concrete emotions or regrets. His life seemed to have been full of dark emotions though why they were all coalescing into nightmares was a mystery to him.

The fire dreams however, were a different story entirely. They were always about Anakin?s fall and that fateful duel on Mustafar.

In the latest dream it had been he who had lost the duel and Anakin had walked away, leaving Obi-wan charred and burning on those Force-forsaken shores. Obi-wan knew he should meditate on these dreams but? he wasn?t sure he wanted to understand or be at peace with them. Maybe this was the Force?s way of reminding him that the past was never really at rest. How he wished that was true for all aspects of his life.

As always, after one of his dreams, he went outside to practice.

Practicing katas or ?sparring? with an invisible enemy had become a sort of catharsis for his life; a way to blend his past, present and future.

Practicing calmed his emotions like it never had in the past. Before it had made emotions such as aggression surge uncontrollably.

Obi-wan went on with his daily routine. After practicing, he walked inside and knelt in the middle of the floor.

[i]Today[/i] I will do it.

The phrase he thought to himself each time he began meditating was his way of satisfying Yoda?s requirement that he want to speak with Qui-gon.

Slowly, at first, he descended into the first stages of meditation. He felt himself connect with the pure crystalline essence that was the Force. It flowed through his very being until he truly felt like he was one with everything in the galaxy.

He was the trees and the green plants growing in abundance on planets with more moisture than Tatooine. He was the pulsing stars, shining brightly in the night sky. He was the metal and machines that Anakin had had such an affinity for. But most importantly, he was the people living throughout the galaxy; going about their everyday lives.

He had never felt the Force in this way before. Maybe this was what Qui-gon had felt when he touched the living Force. Before, especially during the war, it had always been a rushed connection with very little peace if any at all.

[i]Come to you, Qui-gon will. [/i]

So he would be patient again. But this was the day; he could feel it.

As he waited, he attempted to see what else he could feel or sense while he was here.

In the Force he could sense wisps of Jedi friends, long gone. He could sense, among the living, the two voids that were the Sith Lords.

And there amongst the many beings was his old master? just as he remembered him.

He approached, or as much as one can through the Force, almost as though he believed that if he got to close, Qui-gon would disappear.

Obi-wan felt Qui-gon reach out to him as well, just as eager to meet. When they reached each other there was a brief hesitation. After all these years?

Slowly, almost gingerly, Qui-gon spoke, ?Padawan??

?Yes, Master??

 

FIRST POST!

Lovely job with this. Love seeing how Obi has formed a sort of routine to his 'exile'. Also glad that he finally found Qui!!!! Wonderful work Padawan!

~Jen~

 

His thoughts of the force were rather good, sifting through each presence and seeing the void of the Sith.

Slowly, almost gingerly, Qui-gon spoke, ?Padawan??

?Yes, Master??


I bet Obi-Wan is so nervious, speaking to his Master after all these years.
I love the update.
thanks for the PM

 

BottledUpInside: Yep he found him! Next post features the two of them

Gkilkenny: Thank you and that's an interesting thought...

 

Yay Obi finally made contact!!



How wonderful he never gave up trying.

Very anxious for the words of wisdom Qui-Gon will have for him.

Great update

 

KELIA: Qui-gon's wise words of wisdom will be up soon
Thanks!

 

Next post

---

[i]?Padawan??

?Yes, Master??
[/i]
This entire experience was so?surreal to Obi-wan. Qui-gon had died more than a decade ago, yet here he was, speaking as if it were yesterday. Obi-wan had learned all the lessons of the Jedi that there were no limits to the Force. This, however, seemed completely out of the realm of possibility.

?Qui-gon?? Obi-wan asked tentatively, unable to believe that he was really speaking to his late master.

?Obi-wan! Are you alright here? I?m?very sorry. ? Obi-wan knew, even through Qui-gon?s few words, the genuine remorse his master felt.

?I?m alright, master. Yes, I?m fine here. This place has kind of a desolate serenity. It?s peaceful: a good place to heal.?

?I?m sorry we were never able to commune before this. I know how much that might have helped you but at least we can speak now, when you probably need it the most.?

Obi-wan wasn?t sure if this was really the time that he most needed to talk to Qui-gon. Wouldn?t it have been better if he had spoken to him before, to prevent all this from happening?

Eventually, Obi-wan asked, ?Why couldn?t we speak before all this??

?I can?t explain all the specifics now but, I can tell you that passing into the Force was an incredible experience for me,? he said with a touch of humor in his voice, ?It took me a while to get used to it and I had only just discovered how to speak with others outside the Force when the war came. As you know, the war was an incredible on all the Jedi; no one was open enough to the Force for me to speak with.?

?Alright, master. Well, will we be able to do this again?? Obi-wan desperately wanted to speak with Qui-gon but all this was so new to him?

?Yes. It gets easier each attempt, padawan." Qui-gon seemed to startle over the connection they had established.

?Padawan? We?ve almost exceed the time limit for the first try. Just remember, there is always hope. Until next time??

And abruptly the connection was broken.

Obi-wan then realized just how much he had needed to hear all of that, though particularly those last words. Sometimes, during the long nights on Tatooine, when the shadows surrounded him, the past would come back to haunt him and when he woke up the next morning he would wonder just what there was to live for. Why was he going on day after day with no end in sight?

[i]Until next time. [/i]

He would wait with patience, again.

It seemed he was doing that a lot lately, he thought sarcastically.

You never know what patience is until you don?t know how long you will have to endure or if your waiting will ever come to fruition.

Either way, he now had two things that made life on this planet a little more bearable: meditation and exercises.

When Qui-gon and he met next they would speak more about Anakin and the future but for now? Obi-wan had hope.

 

mmm, a wonderful reunion. Definitly upped the anti on the characterization! As always it was amazing!

~Jen~