Saga To Count the Stars - Qui-Gon, Shmi - Prequel Rewrite Entry

Title: To Count the Stars
Author: UnderCoverJedi
Characters: Qui-Gon, Shmi
Written for the Prequel Rewrite Challenge. This was the challenge:
Your challenge for this time is to do a missing scene with Shmi Skywalker and Qui-Gon Jinn. The field is wide open as to the topic, but let's try and get that hint of intimacy in, whether or not it's romantic, is up to you, but they had to have interactions more than just what they showed in the films and they seemed to feel comfortable with each other.



To Count the Stars



?Is he asleep?? Qui-Gon asked when Shmi finally appeared. Behind her, the bright lights of her home surrounded her in a nimbus that lent a gentle glow to her dark hair.

?Yes,? she replied in her soft voice as she moved away from the light and closer to him. ?Finally,? Shmi added with a little laugh and a small shake of her head. ?I didn?t think he would ever fall asleep.?

Qui-Gon smiled fondly in memory. He could well recall the excitement of a boy and his reluctance to go to sleep. ?My Padawan was the same way,? he confided.

Shmi sat down on the ledge beside him and turned her gaze up to the same stars her son had asked about earlier. ?Anakin loves to come out here and count the stars,? she said, folding her hands in her lap. ?He always has.? Shmi laughed softly. ?Though he?s never quite counted them all,? she added with a shake of her head. ?He?s too impatient.?

?He told me that he wants to visit them all,? Qui-Gon remarked, pointing up into the dark Tatooine sky. ?I think he just might do it.?

?He?ll do it,? Shmi said confidently. ?I don?t know how or when?but he?ll do it.?

?He?s very special, your boy.?

?More than you know.? Shmi sighed quietly and for the first time, Qui-Gon saw her exhaustion and worry.

?I?ll watch over him,? Qui-Gon promised and her gaze flickered up to meet his. ?If I get the chance, I?ll keep him safe.?

?I know you will,? she said. ?He?s meant for more than this, you know.? She gestured around them, the tiny hovels that were pressed together so closely. He could hear the voices of the slaves, their laughter and the isolated shouts of anger. From somewhere at the end of the alley, he heard a sharp slap and then a woman cried out in pain and fear. He closed his eyes, wishing he could change things.

This was what the boy heard every night of his life, Qui-Gon mused. It was a wonder that he was still so warm and giving. A miracle, he thought, a miracle brought about by the love of his mother. ?You?re meant for more than this as well,? he observed softly.

Shmi looked surprised for a moment and then smiled sadly. ?Hardly,? she countered. ?I am what you see, no more or less. A slave, a useful one perhaps, but still just a slave.? When Qui-Gon would have offered a protest, she simply shrugged. ?It?s all right,? she said. ?For myself, I am used to my life.? Shmi glanced inside. ?It?s Anakin I worry about?what will become of him if something should happen to me.?

?Or if you?re sold away from him?? Qui-Gon guessed.

Shmi laughed. ?Oh, I don?t think Watto will do that,? she replied.

?He doesn?t strike me as particularly?kind,? Qui-Gon observed.

?He?s more bluster than real fury,? Shmi said. ?He likes to talk big, but most of the time?? A shadow flickered across her fact. ?Most of the time, he?s all talk.?

There was a wealth of pain and anger in her words and in her eyes. He wanted to ask, but there was something in her face that forestalled his question. ?What you said about there being no father, could you explain that a bit more to me??

Shmi glanced up at him from beneath her lashes. ?Thinking that I?ve lost my mind are you??

Qui-Gon smiled slightly and shook his head. ?I know better than that,? he answered. ?I was just wondering what you meant exactly.?

Looking up into the sky once more, Shmi said quietly, ?I used to pray for a child of my own, you know.?

He remained silent, sensing that she would tell her tale in her own time and way.

?I prayed for a child,? she said again. ?And then one day I saw

 

That was a superb response, congratulations for winning the colors.

 

Congrats to winning for this very touching story.

 

Nice explanation of things.

 

That was wonderful!

I how open Shmi was with Qui-Gon.

?I am a slave and I have learned to accept my destiny. I?ll never leave this planet.?

How tragic that she had to be right about that



Great response to the challenge and congrats on winning