Before - Legends Waiting Away the Snow (Obi/Qui vignette; Qui-Gon reacts to Xanatos' death)

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Title: Waiting Away the Snow (best I could come up with )
Rating: G
Summary: Qui-Gon reacts to Xanatos' death. Or, I decided it was about time I wrote a straight-out Obi/Qui thing.
A/N: I blame all the readers on my L/M Temperature series for any and all connections to temperature and weather in this vignette. I think my writing style in this is kind of unusual - I did an experiment to see if different fonts affect my writing, and apparently, they do. I used an old-style font while writing this one. Also, this is quite unbeta'ed.
A/N2: Keep in mind this follows EU canon as far as Xanatos and that whole bit.


Feedback is, as always, treasured.


*~*~*


It was snowing on Coruscant. It wasn?t an event that happened often; strict weather controls made it rare. But weather has a mind of it?s own, at times, even on a city-planet. It dipped below freezing that night, despite the sun-mirrors in orbit and the attempt by every technician to keep it warm and temperate. Nature would have its way, even if only sometimes.

The next morning, minutes after dawn, some snow was still falling. Little pieces of white fluff whirled in crazy patterns down the sky, smashing into the windows in towers, and a very few even making it down to what passed as Coruscant?s surface.

Qui-Gon watched it all from the window. His silvering hair wasn?t drawn back, as it usually was, but was simply thrown back over his broad shoulders. He rested his chin on his fist, elbow on the windowsill. His cloak was tucked snugly around his body, but he was barefoot. To all appearances, he was thoughtful, contemplative, and could have been meditating on the random nature of snowflakes, their short lives and the effect they had on the thing surrounding them, and comparing it to the Living Force.

Obi-Wan knew better. There was a faint tension around his dark blue eyes, his loose hand, lying on his thigh, was abnormally still, and most of all, his mind was quietly disturbed. Normally Obi-Wan ?heard? Qui-Gon through their bond ? gaining more impressions than anything else, sometimes emotions. Qui-Gon could be intensely focused, of course, but most of the time he opened himself up Force, drifting within it, and his thoughts were as wild and unpredictable as the Living Force.

Qui-Gon had taken the lone chair in the small living room the two shared; Jedi living was indeed spartan. Obi-Wan walked away from the entrance to his bedroom, past the couch that he swore must have been set there a hundred years past and never moved, until he was beside Qui-Gon. His Master didn?t react, letting Obi-Wan know that for now, he preferred silence.

And so Obi-Wan knelt on the floor, at his Master?s feet, hands on thighs in a classic ready but meditative posture. He wore only loose sleep clothing, and was barefoot as well. He was fairly sure he was going to regret not putting on socks, for the floor was cold and hard, but he would live. He put away the chill of the air, the coldness of the floor, and instead focused on Qui-Gon.

His Master had relaxed slightly at Obi-Wan?s presence. The tension around his eyes was a little less; his hand a little less purposely still. It was curious, but a relief to Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon had taken him back as his Padawan, but some nervousness and anxiety still remained in Obi-Wan?s mind. He was fairly sure they would pass in time, and had chosen not to bother Qui-Gon with his insecurities. Qui-Gon was not, after all, the type of individual to be flighty in decisions. His choice was made, and he would stick by it.

Qui-Gon moved slightly, raising his chin briefly from his fist, and relaxing his hand so that his chin would rest in his open palm. The sun was still rising, and new blades of light hit his face, highlighting fresh gray hairs, and yet, at the same time softening the man?s features, the sharp, intense planes of his face, passing over flaws. He was aging, and it was a strange thing for Obi-Wan to see. He was young,

 

That was lovely. I liked how you focused on Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan's postures and gestures, giving more detail into their inner thoughts (abnormally still - especially). I'm glad that you had Qui-Gon explain about why he was grieving and his motivations. It's a good way to deal with grief and a good way for Obi-Wan to deal with it as well. I liked that you didn't make light of Xan's mistakes and fall but that you filled his character out.

All in all, a great job!

 

Oba!

Awww! How sweet, it was so... awww! And it... awww! I just... aww!

This was my favorite part:

Qui-Gon smiled, and it was a smile of heartbreak. ?You already are,? he whispered, and his eyes shone. He gently let go of Obi-Wan?s arms. ?My gift,? he murmured.

Oba, I hate using sweet to describe a fic (although I've done it), but this fic is just that- sweet! The emotions were just so on-key and so simplistic at the root that I could relate to it! Very beautiful, dear, great!

-Krysté (<-- only for you. )

 

That was so beautiful obaona . I love that you expressed Qui-Gon's feelings for his dead apprentice so emotionally.

?My gift,? he murmured. I believe that is truly how he felt about Obi-Wan.

 

That was wonderful!

 

Just wonderfull

 

That's the way Qui should be portrayed... human. 7

 

I loved it!

And I liked immagining snow on Coruscant.

 

Snow!! Hoooray!!

But apart from snow, a marvellous piece! Wonderfully done!

 

dianethx: Thank you. I like to express my characters emotions without just saying 'Qui-Gon was sad'. It's more difficult, but I like the effect more. In my mind, having Qui-Gon explain it seemed the more in-character of the two options - he trusts Obi-Wan, after all, and he probably realizes it's a good way to deal with it, as you said. I love Xan, too, but he is a bad guy. Can't gloss over his faults. But on the other hand, he wasn't purely evil, either - at least not always. So I tried to show that. Thank you again.

Kryste: *giggles* Aye, awww. And it's interesting you say the emotions were so simple, because that was kind of the effect I was going for. Peaceful, simple, sweet. Thank you, dearest.

obi_ew: It's natural for Qui-Gon to grieve, and I think he realizes that. And I've never really seen anywhere (pro or fanfic) a piece dealing with something that must have happened, though I may have simply missed it. I think that's how he felt about Obi-Wan, too.

PadawanKitara: Thank you.

Jenny_The_Jedi_Girl: Just, hmm? Thank you.

jedi7: Yes. Qui-Gon has faults, virtues, and vulnerablities like everyone else. Anyway, thank you.

Keeper_of_Swords: Thank you. Didn't originally intend to have snow, but there you go - maybe I wrote that in because I was so cold at the time.

Burkie: Thank you, darling.

 

What a great vignette! I've often imagined Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan's relationship just like this, simple and straightforward, but with a few complicated undercurrents of emotion as well. And I have to agree that snow on Coruscant is quite the vivid image.

I don't get over to the Before the Saga board very often, but I'm very glad I stopped by today.

 

Loved it!

I liked the relationship that is developing between Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan, and the feelings behind their concious and unconcious actions.

~Bek

 

Reihla: Thank you! And yes - apparently that's the way I imagine it, too. I was nervous about writing these two characters together, in this time period, but it worked out well and I think I'll be writing more in the future. And yes - it was interesting for me to visualize snow on Coruscant. And I'm glad, too!

Bekah_K: Thank you! They are interesting characters to explore, and it was cool to just try to get a bit of outside perspective on both of them.

 

Hey Obaona!

Wow! Wow! Wow! This is absolutely marvelous!!!

That is exactly how I picture Qui-Gon! So very much the Jedi master, mastering his grief, and examining its meaning. And the interaction between Obi-Wan and him are absolutely spot-on!

Please write more Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan/Anakin/Xanatos! We really need you - you understand them so very well!!

 

fj: Thank you! This is how I picture Qui-Gon, too - obviously. He has emotion, but he's not out of control. Xan's death has been too long in coming, and he's too wise to see it as anything other than it is, I think. Writing Obi-Wan in this was cool, too - it's the youngest I've ever written him. And the two of them interact with such - fondness, I guess. That's just the way I read them.

Hehe - I'll try to write more soon. Thank you again!

 

Lovely, oba! The characterization and imagery are really wonderful. The overall tone of the vignette might be simple and sweet, but the writing techniques you use are more sophisticated than simple - conveying a character's emotions by such subtleties as tension around the eyes, or not even that his hand was still, but the kind of stillness it was. Excellent job, and very effective.

Obi-Wan smirked lightly. ?Just practicing ignoring techniques.?

?Focusing, Obi-Wan, not ignoring,? Qui-Gon said with an amusedly admonishing tone.

Obi-Wan shrugged. ?Same thing,? he said with a little grin.

Loved that part. It rang very true to me.

Didn't originally intend to have snow, but there you go - maybe I wrote that in because I was so cold at the time.

*laughs* That's my girl. Oba, do you realize that this is the first time I've ever posted on the Before the Saga board? Good job getting me over here, darling.

 

Your writing leaves me speechless. Your command of chemistry just...just...well, it overwhelms me. This vignette touched me, made me smile.

Wow!

Thank you for sharing this.

 

Gabri: Thank you! And that's actually an interesting point, I hadn't thought of it that way. I guess it's interesting to do, sometimes, just one or the other - let the story be driven by dialogue, or by the actions of the characters, rather than just driven by the author.

Hehe - I added that part because I wanted a moment of lightness, humor. And something that showed their closeness, despite what has happened to them and between them.

*giggles* And no, I didn't realize that! I tempted Gabri out of her Saga/Beyond the Saga shell! w00t!

Lurkalidth: Wow. Thank you. I'm so glad that you liked it - that it touched you. To just smile at the end - it's amazing to me that my writing did that. Thank you for reading. Just, thank you.

 

Wow, oba. I really enjoyed that. You should drag me over to the Before the Saga boards more often!

This was quite different from your normal writing style. Perhaps the coldness/font were working on your brain in odd ways. But it was a marvelous end result. Once again, your descriptions and imagery were so believable, and made me feel like I was sitting right there (gawking at Obi, of course. ). Your characterizations of the two, though, were perfect. You made Qui's grief so palatable. Excellent job!

*huggies*

 

Liana, you silly girl!

Thank you - and I shall endeavor to do so. May I recommend Heavy Thoughts by JadeSolo? 'Tis fantastic - and she's writing a new one, too! And aye, it was working on me in odd ways. And gawking at Obi? Need I remind you he's, oh, 14 in this story? And thank you again! Qui-Gon was the much harder of the two to write, for some reason. Obi-Wan I know too well - Qui-Gon is still a bit new to me.

*huggies*