Master
Apprentice  Archive
And The Stars Swayed
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"Confer on you, we do, the title of Jedi Knight."
Obi-Wan lifted his head from where he knelt before the assembled Council, looking up into Master Yoda's sparkling eyes. It had been a difficult few days, and he was grateful for the strength and support of his Master who stood at his shoulder.
Former Master, he reminded himself, as a wave of disorientation swept over him. Overhead, above the night-darkened, manicured lawns of the Queen's palace, the stars swayed for a moment in their steady march across the sky and then steadied, and Obi-Wan blinked away the sensation. He turned at a touch on his elbow, meeting the familiar deep blue gaze as Qui-Gon knelt beside him.
The Jedi Master reached to fondle his Padawan's braid for the last time, smiling as it slid through his fingers even as he brought up the small ceremonial knife to sever it. "By severing your braid, the symbol of your commitment to me as your Master, so do I sever your vows of obedience to me," Qui-Gon said. He sawed through the hair, taking his time and letting Obi-Wan adjust to the idea even as the braid parted and began to unravel. The tie he had placed around it earlier this evening, just below his ear, kept it from coming completely undone as the final strands were cut. Qui-Gon wound the long braid and folded it into Obi-Wan's palm, closing his fingers around it and squeezing his hand affectionately. Then, he stood.
"Rise, Knight Kenobi," Master Yoda said.
Obi-Wan got to his feet, somewhat shakily, feeling lighter as if the loss of that small amount of hair could do such. He drew in a long breath, feeling it shiver through his chest. Holding himself as steady as the last few days' events would allow, he bowed formally first to Yoda, then to the two other Council members present, and finally to Qui-Gon.
"Served the order well you have, Knight Kenobi," Yoda continued, his large ears at half-mast. "Here on Naboo, especially so. Saved Qui- Gon, you did. Saved many others, as well. A Sith you have faced and overcome. Not in millennia has a Jedi done so. Proud of you, we are."
Obi-Wan bowed again. "Thank you, Master Yoda." He looked past the small Master, noticing that Qui-Gon's face had begun to pale again, the faint lines at the corners of his eyes a clear indication that the pain of his wound was returning. "With your permission, I should like to take my Mas--- I mean, Master Qui-Gon --- back to our rooms now."
"Yes, yes. Of course. Finished here, we are. The rest to be done, between you and Qui-Gon it is."
Obi-Wan knew what he meant, even as he stepped past him and took Qui- Gon's arm, surprised that the older man allowed it. Their bond still had to be severed, just as his braid had been. The thought of it burned through his heart like the Sith's blade had burned through his Master's shoulder. It had been such a near thing, but it had managed to miss heart and lungs and major arteries. Even as Obi-Wan had knelt beside the fallen Jedi, half blinded by the tears he fought back, he hadn't been certain that the wound was not fatal. Qui-Gon had certainly thought it so. But, Obi-Wan had locked their spirits together, keeping the older man hovering just this side of unconsciousness, just this side of death, suppressing his pain until the medic arrived. He was credited with saving Qui-Gon's life, and had amazed the doctors by practically healing the terrible wound by himself, with just the Force and his own strength of will. A shudder rippled through him at the memory.
"I'm all right, you know," Qui-Gon said softly as they moved back into the palace and to the quarters the Queen herself had assigned them. He had been instructed --- no, he had been ordered --- by Yoda to remain here until he was well enough to resume his duties, no matter how long that took. Anakin would be taken back to the Temple on Coruscant and given, temporarily, into the custody of the crŠche Master, until such time as Qui-Gon was ready to begin his training.
"Of course you are," Obi-Wan said, easing the larger man onto the bed before turning to close the door behind them. "And, even if you weren't, you're entirely too stubborn to admit it." He removed his Master's boots, setting them neatly beside the bed, then moved toward the small but well-stocked kitchen. "Let me fix you some tea, Master," he called over his shoulder. "And it is time for your pain medication, as well."
Qui-Gon relaxed into the younger man's care, biting back his protests that he didn't need to be fussed over like an invalid. Quite frankly, he wanted to wallow in Obi-Wan's company as long as possible. All too soon, he would be leaving, and Qui-Gon would be alone, with only a small boy for company. He wasn't sure he could live that way, not now, not after having finally admitted to himself - if not to Obi- Wan - that against all protocol and good sense, he had fallen in love with his Apprentice. It was wrong, it was appalling, and it was all Qui-Gon could think about.
"Here, Master," his former Padawan said as he sat down on the edge of the bed, holding out two of the ugly green pills the medic had prescribed. Obi-Wan must have been reading his face, for he frowned. That familiar crease developed between his eyebrows and made Qui-Gon want to kiss it away. "Take your medicine, Master, or must I sit on you, hold your nose and push them down your throat?"
That image made Qui-Gon chuckle even as it made a portion of his anatomy sit up and take notice. Steady, Jinn, he told himself. Don't frighten the boy. He took the pills and swallowed them before looking again at the beautiful young man sitting beside him. No, not a boy. Not any longer.
A warm cup was pressed into his hand and he sipped at his favorite tea. "Are you happy, Obi-Wan?" he asked softly after a few moments of companionable silence.
"I am pleased that the Council has found me worthy of Knighthood," Obi-Wan said. It wasn't a lie, exactly, even if it was not the complete truth.
Qui-Gon narrowed his eyes, recognizing the evasion. "But, are you happy?"
This was it, the moment Obi-Wan had waited for and dreaded. Could he do it? Could he tell his Master what had been weighing so heavily on him for the past several months? Could he not? "I---" he began, then he lowered his eyes, not able to meet that intense blue gaze. He took a deep breath. "I don't want our bond to be broken," he finally managed to get out. "I don't want to leave you."
"Nor do I want you to leave."
The words brought his head up again. "You . . . you don't?" he asked in soft, hopeful amazement. Could it be true?
Qui-Gon set his cup aside then stroked Obi-Wan's cheek, his hand rough with calluses and breathtaking in its gentleness. "Don't you know that by now, my Obi-Wan?" he asked, smiling as the young Knight flushed at the endearment. "Have I shielded my feelings so well that you haven't suspected them?"
Obi-Wan felt like a trembling Initiate instead of a newly raised Knight. "Feelings?"
Qui-Gon leaned closer, his face now only inches away from Obi- Wan's. "Do you love me, Padawan?" he said, using the title like a caress.
"Oh, yes, my Master! With all of my heart and soul and being!"
"And don't you know that I love you just as much, with everything that I am? And that I have for a long, long time?"
Before Obi-Wan could answer, Qui-Gon leaned in and captured his mouth. The kiss was soft and tentative at first, like a breeze gently stirring the surface of a still pond. As their passion deepened, so did the kiss, until a tempest of lust and need overtook both men and they flung themselves together, hands grappling at clothes, seeking bare skin. Careful of his shoulder, Obi-Wan reminded himself, clutching instead at his Master's hips, pulling him closer. Tongues entwined even as their bond expanded, growing brighter and stronger until it seemed it encompassed the entire universe and then some. Reluctantly, Qui-Gon pulled back, holding the younger man at arm's length, looking deeply into the stormy green eyes, gone dark with desire.
"Do you want this, Obi-Wan?" he breathed. "Truly? For if we continue, it will be forever. Our bond will make it so."
In answer, Obi-Wan reached into his belt pouch and pulled out the severed braid. He pressed it into Qui-Gon's palm, folding the fingers around it as his Master had done earlier. He pressed a kiss on the knuckles before looking up to meet his Master's gaze again. "I want you, Qui-Gon Jinn," Obi-Wan said, putting the full force --- and Force --- of his heart behind the words. "Today, and tomorrow, and for as many tomorrows as we are given. Forever."
"Forever," Qui-Gon repeated in the tone of vow. He pulled his soon-to- be lover against him, pressing their bodies together with the promise of things to come. Their mouths met again, their bond surging higher still as if with a life of its own. Their erections, hot and heavy, pressed together through the restraining fabric of their leggings, the sensation drawing a moan from both men.
"Take me, Master," Obi-Wan pleaded when they came up for air. "Make me yours."
"Mine," Qui-Gon growled, his teeth finding the younger man's earlobe and biting down on the firm flesh. Fingers fumbling in their haste, he untied first his leggings and then his Padawan's, and with Obi- Wan's help, they were soon both naked.
Obi-Wan hissed as he stretched out beside the other and their engorged cocks brushed together. "Yes!" he gasped, as he was rolled over, Qui-Gon settling on top of him. His thighs were spread, his cock pressed up against his stomach and trapped there as something hot and hard was pressed against his unprepared anus. Force fingers opened him before his Master thrust home, balls deep in one movement.
Bright lights exploded behind his eyes and Obi-Wan cried out as his climax overtook him, bucking up into Qui-Gon's weight even as he felt the older man's release fill him. Their bond surged, locking their spirits together, as one soul now instead of two.
"Mine," Qui-Gon whispered against his ear as they both sagged, spent and satiated, onto the mattress.
"Mine," Obi-Wan repeated just as softly.
And outside, in the dark Naboo night, the stars swayed.
The End