Archive: Yes
Archive Date: June 25, 2001
Author's Webpage: http://diana.slashcity.com
Notes: This series totally ignores any of the Jedi Apprentice
books. Obi-Wan is 3 years old at the start of this chapter.
Pairing: series -Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan; this story - pre-slash
Rating: G
Series: Children of the Temple # 8
Summary: Changes in Obi-Wan's life lead to new friendships
Master Sanjeev entered the Nursery and headed towards the alcove where the toddlers' beds were located. He found a forlorn-looking child sitting on his bed, a stuffed toy clutched in his hand. Knight Trellin sat beside him, talking quietly, while a little girl perched on the other end of the bed, eyeing Obi-Wan with a combination of curiosity and empathy. Trellin looked up with a speaking look as Sanjeev entered.
"Here's Master Sanjeev, Obi-Wan," Trellin said with gentle forcefulness, encouraging the little boy to stand up. Obi-Wan did so reluctantly, staring down at his feet and not up at the pre-Initiate master.
"Good morning, Obi-Wan," Sanjeev said, stopping a few feet away from the child. "Are you ready?"
Obi-Wan looked up at him now, his blue-green eyes washed with unshed tears. "Guess so," he said half-heartedly.
"Good, because we have a lot to do today." He held out his hand to the child encouragingly.
Obi-Wan turned and looked at the younger child still curled up on the bed. "Bye, Sheshan," he said heavily.
She cocked her head at him, rainbow colored hair cascading over her shoulder. "Why sad, Obi?" she asked. "Only goin' little far."
"I won' be able to play with you 'nymore, Sheshan," Obi-Wan said, blinking back his tears.
She grinned at him. " 'Course you will, silly Obi! I be comin' next year."
"A year's an awful long time," Obi-Wan said mournfully.
"Yes, but think of all that you will be learning this year," Trellin said encouragingly. "You'll be able to show Sheshan everything when she moves up next year."
Obi-Wan turned to the Nursery worker, and now the threatened tears fell. "Miss you, too, Trellin."
Trellin stooped and hugged the little boy. "I'll be here, Obi-Wan. Anytime you need me. And I'll always be here, too," she said, touching his chest above his heart. "You know that you'll be able to feel me in the Force."
He blinked back his tears. "Just like Kish and Ma-Jinn? For always?"
"For always," she said, wiping his eyes and then kissing his cheek. "Now go on - Master Sanjeev is waiting."
Obi-Wan nodded and gave her a last hard hug, then bravely turned to face the pre-Initiate Master. "I'm ready."
Sanjeev held out his hand again and Obi-Wan slipped his smaller one into it, allowing the master to lead him into the hallway. "First we'll get you settled in your cubicle," he said briskly, knowing from past experience that activity was the key to getting past the initial upsetting changes. "Then we'll go to Stores and get you measured for your new uniforms."
"Un'form?" Obi-Wan said, brightening visibly as he looked up at the master. "Like Ma-Jinn's?"
He smiled, recalling from Obi-Wan's records that the boy was already Bonded to the formidable Knight Jinn, who was also a regular visitor to the Initiates' wing and a favorite storyteller. "Very similar."
" 'Kay," Obi-Wan said. "Don' mind being 'nitiate if I can wear a uniform."
Sanjeev managed to smother a chuckle, knowing it would upset the child's dignity if he thought he was being laughed at. Instead, he looked down at the toy clutched in the child's hand. "I don't believe I've met your friend."
Obi-Wan looked down at the toy in his hand, and a smile curved the child's lips. "It's Jinn-doll," he said proudly, holding up the stuffed toy for the master to see. "Kish made it so I wouldn' miss Ma-Jinn so much when he's gone."
Sanjeev could see that the cloth body was dressed in a Jedi Knight's garb and that brown yarn like hair decorated its head, and that it was obviously the child's favorite possession. "You're very fond of Knight Jinn, aren't you?"
" 'Course I am. He's the bestest knight in the whole Temple." Obi- Wan lovingly smoothed the tumbled hair of the doll. "I miss him dreadful much when he's gone," he added sadly. "Been gone long this time."
Sanjeev raised an eyebrow in surprise. He had heard that Jinn and his apprentice had arrived back in Temple late the previous night and, considering the fact that they were Bonded, he would have thought that Obi-Wan would sense the master's presence. A gentle prod at the child's mind revealed the presence of strong shields and a signature he recognized with surprise as being that of Master Yoda. It appeared there was a mystery about his newest charge that he hadn't been let in on, one that he intended to know about before the day was over.
He settled for saying, soothingly, "I'm sure you'll see him soon," then led the child into the dorm room that housed the pre-Initiates, the Temple children aged three to five. He located an empty bed in the middle of the room, a good location for a new child so that he would quickly make new friends.
"This is your bed, Obi-Wan, and this is your cubby." Sanjeev opened the door on a cabinet next to the bed to reveal a set of drawers and a place for hanging clothes. "You'll be responsible for keeping your bed neat and your cubby in order, and we will show you how to do that. For now, why don't you put your doll on your bed and we'll go get your new clothes."
Obi-Wan reluctantly set his doll on the bed, carefully propped up against the pillow, and followed Sanjeev back into the hallway. The Quartermaster's office was right around the corner and Obi-Wan eyed the orange-skinned Quarren knight who ran it warily, his eyes appealing to Sanjeev not to leave him.
Knight Jril Batil's turquoise eyes twinkled at the boy and his tentacles quivered with amusement. "I haven't damaged an Initiate yet, young one," he said in amusement, taking out his measuring tape, and Obi-Wan relaxed enough to allow the knight closer. Quickly and efficiently, he took Obi-Wan's measurements, then tapped at his datapad.
"Just as I thought - we have one set already made up in your size - ah, here it is!" He shook out the dark-blue tunic and pants and held them up for Obi-Wan to see. "What do you think, young one?"
"Are they for me?" Obi-Wan asked shyly.
The amphibious knight's tentacles danced in amusement again. "Well, they certainly aren't for me! Try them on."
Obi-Wan shed his one-piece Nursery jumper and eagerly pulled on the pants and tunic, allowing Sanjeev to help him with the drawstring tie. "It fits!" he said excitedly.
"Good," Knight Batil tapped at the datapad. "I'll have three more sets worked up." He assembled other items Obi-Wan would need, found a set of boots that fit, and then pulled out a bin containing sashes and looked over at Master Sanjeev.
"White or blue?"
"White," Sanjeev replied, smiling down at the boy. "He's been claimed already - by Knight Jinn."
"Ah!" Batil said, amused again. "I remember him well - my master could barely keep him in clothes. Thought the boy would have to run about naked if he didn't stop growing." Obi-Wan giggled at that image as Sanjeev expertly tied the sash around his waist. "Proper little Jedi you look now."
Obi-Wan flushed a little with pleasure and touched the blue tunic with reverent fingers. It was strange to have something new to wear that was his entirely. In the nursery, all the clothes were shared around since the little ones grew too fast to make it sensible to have their own clothes. He smiled happily at the soft, short boots on his feet - they weren't quite the same as his master's, but if he squinted as he looked down, he could swear they looked similar.
"I'll send the rest of his uniforms when they're ready," Batil promised Sanjeev. The master nodded in response and ushered the boy, carrying an armload of underclothes and nightshirts and stockings, into the hall.
At the doorway to the pre-Initiate dorm, Sanjeev paused. He sensed under the boy's shyness and rare smiles that he deeply missed Qui-Gon and Sanjeev decided to contact Knight Jinn to arrange a visit, but he didn't want Obi-Wan listening in if there was a problem. "I've got to check something - you go ahead and put these in your drawers, and I'll be back to take you to lunch in a moment."
Obi-Wan nodded obediently and headed towards his cubby. As he approached his bed, however, he saw that two strange boys were standing by his bed, and that one of them had his doll in his hand.
"Hey!" he yelled. "That's mine!" He dropped the clothes on the floor and ran over, intent on grabbing his toy back.
To his surprise, the boy holding it - a slender, blue-skinned boy who appeared to be a year older than Obi-Wan - looked frightened and dropped the toy on the bed. The other one, a dark-haired boy who appeared a little older, turned to glare at Obi-Wan.
"Vicoro wasn't hurting nothing!" he said hotly, balling up his fists and looking like he was going to hit Obi-Wan.
Obi-Wan halted, uncertain about what to do. He wanted his doll, but he didn't want to get into a fight. "It's mine," he said stubbornly. "Shouldn't touch somethin' that don't belong to you."
"Sorry," the first boy, Vicoro, said in a soft, clear voice as he rapidly blinked his large eyes. "I've never seen anything like that before."
Obi-Wan's eyes went wide. "You never seen a doll?" he asked, surprised. "Not even in Nursery?"
The other boy put a hand on Vicoro's shoulder protectively. "We came to the Temple two years ago," he said defensively. "We weren't in the nursery - we were Prins right away."
"Prins?" Obi-Wan asked, confused. "What's that?"
"Pre-Initiates," the boy said, rolling his eyes. "Don't you know anything?"
"Obi-Wan just moved up from the Nursery today," came a grave voice behind them, and they all swung around guiltily to see Master Sanjeev standing in the doorway. He gave the older boy a stern look. "And Pedr, you know better than to tease a new student."
Pedr flushed and hung his head but said, defensively, "Well, he yelled at Vic for touching his stupid toy!"
Sanjeev moved closer, seeing that both Vicoro and Obi-Wan were near tears from the confrontation. "It is a very special toy, Pedr, given to Obi-Wan by his Searcher, Knight Meduri."
Pedr swung around to stare at Obi-Wan, eyes widening. "Kishara Searched you? Stellar! She Searched me and Vic, too!"
"Really?" Obi-Wan said, brightening at the common bond. "Sheshan - my best friend in Nursery - was Searched by her, too!"
"Sheshan was with us!" Pedr said, grinning. "Guess you're not so bad if Kishara found you."
Obi-Wan picked up his doll and held it out to Vicoro. "It's okay," he said, trying his best to be brave as he offered to share his only possession. "You can look at it. I don't mind."
Vicoro ran long fingers over the doll's hair, his large eyes bright with wonder as he hummed in wonder. "It's beautiful."
"So's my master," Obi-Wan said proudly. "Even beautifuller than my doll."
Sanjeev cleared his throat to get their attention. "It's time for mid-meal, boys. Why don't you help Obi-Wan put away his clothes, then you can show him where the dining hall is?"
Vicoro carefully set the doll down on the bed and the three picked up the clothes Obi-Wan had scattered in his rush to defend his possession. They were quickly stored away and then the three boys headed down the hallway to the dining hall.
Obi-Wan was startled by the noise in the large room as they entered, but the other two didn't pay any attention as they headed towards a table on one side of the room. Vicoro and Pedr took their seats and Obi-Wan hastily sat down in the empty one to Pedr's right before anyone else could take it.
"Is it always so loud?" he asked.
Pedr grinned. "At mid-day? 'Course it is! Everyone's hungry!"
"It's quieter in the morning," Vicoro ventured. "I like morning- meal best."
"I like last-meal best," Pedr said with a decided nod of his head. "'Cause that's when we get dessert."
A padawan sporting a long braid set plates in front of the three boys and Obi-Wan looked up at her with shy thanks that made the girl grin and ruffle his hair before heading to the table across the room. Obi-Wan saw that the children sitting over there were older, wearing light blue instead of dark, and a couple even had lightsabers clipped to their belts.
"Are they Initiates?" he asked Pedr, already discerning that the Lorridian boy knew just about everything.
Pedr had just taken a bite of his meat pie but he nodded and said, when he had cleared his mouth, "Yep. An' I'm gonna be one next year."
Vicoro looked stricken at that and stopped eating to clutch Pedr's sleeve as if the older boy might vanish at any moment. Pedr covered his friend's hand with his and said, softly, "It's okay, Vic. I won't be far 'way and we'll see each other ev'ry day."
Hesitantly, Obi-Wan said, "I could be your friend so you don't be so lonely."
Pedr gave Obi-Wan a bright smile, then looked back at his friend. "See? Obi-Wan'll look after you. He's nice 'n quiet like you. 'Kay? 'Sides, you're getting a master, 'member?"
Obi-Wan looked interested in that information. "Really? Who?"
"Knight Vicash," Vicoro said, a slight flush tinting his blue skin.
"He's Caamasi," Pedr added helpfully. "Telepathic like Vic, and a Scholar/Diplomat. It's a good match," he added, sounding so like Master Arlina, the headmaster for the Initiates' wing, that Obi-Wan laughed in surprise.
"Wow!" Obi-Wan said admiringly. "How'd you do that?"
Pedr shrugged. "It's just something my people can do. So who's your master?"
"Knight Jinn," Obi-Wan said proudly. "War- warr-your dip- dip- "
"Diplomat," Vicoro said helpfully. "I seen him. He tells us stories sometimes."
Obi-Wan nodded as he took another mouthful of his food. "He tells the bestest stories." Then his face clouded over and he said, sadly, "But he's gone 'way." Suddenly it was all too much for him, and he put his head down on the table and burst into tears.
"Obi-Wan?" Pedr asked anxiously. "What's wrong?"
Obi-Wan couldn't talk; his misery at being so completely separated from his master and now away from Trellin overwhelming him. He could barely breathe through his sobs. He was vaguely aware of Master Sanjeev kneeling at his side, stroking his head and speaking soothingly, but it didn't ease the pain.
Suddenly, he felt as if a shaft of sunlight had filled him as a familiar voice said, "What's this, sprout? I come to see you on your big day, and I find you in tears?"
Obi-Wan knocked over his chair getting up and sprang into the large knight's waiting arms. "Ma-Jinn! You're home! You're really 'n truly home!"
Qui-Gon chuckled and hugged the child in his arms, kissing his cheek. "Yes, really and truly."
"You were gone so far and so long and I couldn't feel you," Obi-Wan clutched the older man tightly around the neck. "I missed you terr'bly much," he said as he buried his face in the folds of the knight's cloak.
"And I missed you, Obi-Wan." Qui-Gon exchanged a look with Master Sanjeev and said, lowly, "I don't understand. He should have been able to feel me through the bond, and he should have known when I got back last night."
Sanjeev looked grave. "I noticed that there were shields around him - Master Yoda's shields."
Qui-Gon nodded. "Obi-Wan is highly sensitive to the Unifying Force, and my master intended to shield him till he could learn to do it himself. I'll speak with him about modifying the shields somewhat so that the child can continue to sense me. We can't have this happen every time I go on a mission."
He looked down and saw that Obi-Wan, worn out from his busy morning, was leaning sleepily against his shoulder. Sanjeev smiled and ruffled the child's hair.
"Poor little one is exhausted. It's just about nap time anyway - why don't you put him to bed?"
Qui-Gon nodded. "I'll sit Watch, if that's all right with you. And then maybe the children would like a story after their nap?"
"You're spoiling them, Qui-Gon," Sanjeev said in amusement.
A tug on Qui-Gon's robe made him look downward and he saw two anxious young faces looking up at him. "Knight Jinn," the older boy said, "Is he gonna be okay?"
Qui-Gon smiled. "He'll be fine. It's just been a little too much for him, so we'll let him sleep and then he'll be better."
Pedr nodded sagely. "The littler ones need lots of sleep."
Sanjeev laughed and tousled the boy's hair. "And you don't, my Ancient One?"
" 'Course not! I'm 'most an Initiate!"
"Well, almost-Initiate Pedr, finish your meal because it's nap time. And then," Sanjeev continued over the protests, "Knight Jinn has offered to tell one of his stories." As Qui-Gon left the room with the sleepy child, he could see that plates were being hastily cleared, and he laughed softly.
It wasn't hard to find Obi-Wan's bed - the doll was a certain give- away. With the ease that came from many years' experience putting sleepy initiates and padawans to bed, he pulled back the covers with one hand. Obi-Wan stirred enough to sit on the side of the bed and let Qui-Gon remove his new boots, then crawled into bed and, grabbing his toy, snuggled under the covers.
"Ma-Jinn?" he said sleepily.
Qui-Gon crouched next to the bed and brushed back the red-gold hair. "What, Obi-Wan?"
"Don' go so far next time, 'kay?"
Qui-Gon rubbed the child's back, saying softly, "I must go where I am needed, Obi-Wan. You know that. But I promise that we'll make sure you can still feel me."
" 'Kay," Obi-Wan murmured. "Love you."
Qui-Gon kissed the child's forehead. "And I love you, sprout. Now go to sleep."
"Tell story after nap?" Obi-Wan asked, vaguely aware that something like that had been said.
"Yes. After your nap."
"Like your stories," Obi-Wan said with a yawn. " 'Most as much as Jinn-doll. An' my new boots."
Qui-Gon chuckled and tucked the covers in. "Good to know where I stand. Sleep now."
Obi-Wan didn't answer, having already fallen asleep. Qui-Gon brushed another kiss over his forehead and settled down in the Watcher's chair. And as the other children drifted in and settled down for their naps, he began sending out soothing waves of energy even as his mind worked at the puzzle that was his link with Obi- Wan. A puzzle that seemed to get even more complicated with each passing year.