| Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan waited patiently for their charge to say goodbye to
his guardian of nearly 5 years. "Tierza, why do I have to go?" the young
boy asked plaintively. "I want to stay here." "Now, Irneh," Tierza said, crouching down so that she was at eye level with the humanoid boy, "you've always known that you were going to have to go to Coruscant eventually. You need to be trained." "Aren't you coming?" Irneh pleaded, wide eyed. "No, Irneh. The Jedi will go with you. You will meet your mother there. I know she will be glad to see you," Tierza assured. "Be strong, Irneh. I will see you again." Tierza stood and backed away from the sad little boy, forcing herself to smile reassuringly at the boy that had been her son in all but body for the last five years. Tears filled Irneh's eyes, but he held them back and turned to the Jedi. Obi-Wan smiled down at him gently and guided him into the ship with a light touch, leaving Qui-Gon to say their farewells. The reluctant boy followed Obi-Wan to his cabin, looking in at the large, empty room fearfully. "This is your room," Obi-Wan said. "All to myself?" Irneh tried hard to conceal his fear of being alone, but to Obi-Wan it was clear as day. "If you like," he whispered conspiratorially, "you can sleep over in mine." As he had suspected, Irneh's eyes brightened at the thought of company without his having to admit his fear. "Yeah!" he exclaimed. "That'd be fun." Obi-Wan smiled at the boy and looked up to see his Master. "Why don't you settle in, Irneh. I'll see you tonight." He ruffled the boy's hair and stood to walk with his Master. "He is older than I expected," Obi-Wan said after awhile. "It is safe to train telepaths at a much older age than Jedi," Qui-Gon commented. "It is the thoughts and emotions of others that they must learn to control, rather than their own. That being the case, it was a wise move for Senator Yalni to wait for her position to become secure before sending for her son." "Do you ever wish Jedi were allowed to have children?" Obi-Wan asked curiously. "No," Qui-Gon answered, surprised. "Do you, Padawan?" "No," Obi-Wan said after a thoughtful moment. He shrugged. "I could not have children with the one I desire in any case." Qui-Gon raised an inquiring eyebrow, but, seeing his apprentice's discomfort with the subject, did not press the issue. Irneh poked his head tentatively out of his room and edged into the hallway. He hadn't had many things to put away, and his room was very empty. To a telepath, especially one without shields, the whole ship felt empty. He could sense the captain and the few crew of the small vessel, but they were all very focused and, to his developing senses, distant. Just up ahead, though, he could sense the Jedi. They were much more apparent to his senses, so he found himself the most comfortable with them. Following the quiet hum of their thoughts, Obi-Wan's in particular, Irneh found himself in the ship's small lounge. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan sat at a table near the window, conversing in low voices. Irneh tilted his head and listened to what they were not saying, rather than what they were. Of course, since he was untrained, he couldn't sense distinct thoughts. But he could get a very clear picture of emotions, especially emotional connections. The connection between Obi-Wan and his Master, Irneh found, was unlike anything he'd ever seen before. It was more complex, more intertwined and, somehow, incomplete... They noticed him then and, with a smile, motioned for him to join them. "We were just wondering," Qui-Gon said to him, "whether your training would be anything like ours was." "Tierza says I'm going to have to learn how to listen to people," Irneh said. "Except not just on the outside. I have to listen to their inside, too." "That's a lot like what we do," Obi-Wan said. Irneh kept a doubting expression off his face long enough for Obi-Wan to add, "but we listen to ourselves." Irneh smiled then, because that felt much more right to him. If they listened to each other, he figured, their bond wouldn't feel so unfinished. Qui-Gon sensed the emotions running through the boy and wondered briefly what it was about his Padawan's statement that had evoked them. "How did you meet?" Irneh asked tentatively. Obi-Wan looked surprised by the question, but answered easily enough. "When I was nearly too old to be a Jedi, Qui-Gon took me as his Padawan." Qui-Gon chuckled a little at the extreme oversimplification and elaborated, knowing that, as a telepath, the boy would be curious about relationships. "I didn't want to take another Padawan at the time. I had...made some mistakes with another. I didn't want to ruin another Jedi." "I wouldn't want any other Master," Obi-Wan assured Qui-Gon. "But your bond was too strong," Irneh interjected, continuing the story. Obi-Wan glanced over at him, eyebrows raised a little. "Yes. Still, we would have gone our separate ways, but, as fate would have it, our ways lay in the same direction." "I have a feeling," Qui-Gon commented wryly, "that Yoda had more to do with that than fate." Obi-Wan grinned and continued. "Even though we were not Master and Padawan, we were drawn to each other. By the time my Master's mission had reached its end, he knew I was to be his Padawan." Irneh's face twisted into a childish scowl. "There's more, isn't there?" he prodded. Their story didn't explain much of the bond he felt between them, especially not the broken part. "That is all," Obi-Wan told him. "No, there's more," Irneh insisted stubbornly. Then he remembered one of the talks he'd had with Tierza when his abilities had begun to manifest and he'd been confronted with some very confusing thoughts and feelings. "How old were you?" he asked Obi-Wan. "Nearly 13." Irneh nodded as if that explained everything. Tierza had said that would be too young for the type of bond he sensed to begin forming. It must have grown slowly. He considered not mentioning the things he sensed about their bond. After all, Tierza said that lots of people liked to keep their feelings inside and would get angry or scared if he brought them out. But the Jedi didn't feel at all scared, and even less angry. He wasn't sure they could be scared. "You're not whole," he said simply, looking first at Obi-Wan and then at Qui-Gon. It felt good to do this. After all, Tierza had said he'd be doing this for people when he got home, after his training. Qui-Gon regarded him intently. "What do you mean, Irneh?" "There's a bond between you that isn't finished," Irneh said, struggling to put into words what he sensed so clearly. "It's like you're reaching out to each other, but you keep missing." Obi-Wan glanced at his Master in surprise and found Qui- Gon as startled as he was. "If you stopped hiding from each other, you probably wouldn't miss," Irneh mused. There was a moment of silence and then, with a bright impish grin, Irneh jumped up from the table. "I'm going to my room. Don't worry, Obi- Wan, I don't need to sleep over. I'm not afraid anymore." That wasn't entirely true, but Irneh didn't want to get between Obi-Wan and his master right now. Tierza had said he's have to make sacrifices when he came back after his training. "Master..." Obi-Wan trailed off uncertainly. "Come with me, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said, rising. "This is something better handled in a private arena." Obi-Wan followed his Master to his quarters, trying not to allow his nervousness to overtake him. By the time he reached Qui-Gon's door, he had lagged several steps behind and his Master was already inside. Taking a deep, steadying breath, Obi-Wan stepped into the room. Qui-Gon was standing, waiting for him. He looked calm, relaxed, and Obi-Wan wished he had that kind of peace. "Padawan," his Master said gently. "Relax. It's okay." Qui-Gon reached out and stroked a thumb tenderly down Obi- Wan's cheek. With that touch, Obi-Wan could restrain his emotions no more and he realized with joy that Qui-Gon, too, had surrendered to the passion, the love that he could feel between them. His body moved without conscious thought and he reached for Qui-Gon with hands and lips and heart. The touch of his Master's lips against Obi- Wan's was sweeter than he had imagined. The slick tangle of lips and tongues continued until Obi-Wan was forced to break away, breathless. Taking a moment to catch his breath, Obi-Wan's hands moved to strip Qui-Gon of his robes. They fell away as if designed for it, even the boots coming off smoothly. The Padawan was aware, at some level, that he is also now nude, but his attention was riveted by the planes of his Master's body. One of his hands went to Qui- Gon's hip, and the other to brush over the tight peak of a nipple. Every touch, every brush of skin against skin deepened the bond between them. At once, both of the Jedi were overcome with the need to touch more. Qui-Gon led Obi-Wan to his bed and drew him down so that the entire length of their bodies were pressed together. For a moment they were still, enjoying the slow burn of their desire, savoring the heat of each other's skin and another deep, exploratory kiss. After long moments, the urge to move overpowered Obi-Wan and he felt, through their intensifying bond, that Qui-Gon felt it also. Obi- Wan began to thrust urgently, his cock rubbing against his Master's thigh, and the other Jedi mirrored his movements. Arching up, the younger man pressed his cock more firmly against Qui-Gon and bent his head to take a nipple between his teeth. The action tore a moan from Qui-Gon and the sound inflamed Obi-Wan even more. Still suckling his Master's nipple, the Padawan shifted his loins so that their cocks came into contact. Releasing Qui-Gon's nipple to nibble at his neck, Obi-Wan began to move faster, more eagerly. Both men could feel their climax building, the Force growing strong around them. Together, acting and moving as one, Qui-Gon and Obi- Wan seized that power and used it to silence their cries even at they found release. Clinging to each other in the aftermath, Obi-Wan smiled at his beloved and treasured the smile he got in return. Truly, their connection was complete now. |