Master Apprentice Archive The Power Of Two Quick search:

Categories: A/U, challenge
Pairing: Q/O
Rating: G
Disclaimer: Never been there…never done that…just wish I had.
Archive: M/A and my own site at www.slashcity.org/~anafic…anyone else just ask.
Thanks: to Caly Rose for her quick read-through of this written-in-one-hour fic!
Inspiration: Written in response to Master Ruth's Christmas gift challenge.

"Ohhhh..."

Qui-Gon smiled as he watched his young charge carefully finger the object on the table before him.

"Look! Look!" The youngster turned to grasp Qui-Gon's hand, nearly pulling him from his seat on the couch.

Obi-Wan had been with him four weeks now, and things had gone so smoothly Qui-Gon had almost been disturbed. Surely life with a two-year-old wasn't supposed to be so easy.

"Look, Mas!Fish!"

The delight in Obi-Wan's eyes warmed Qui-Gon's heart. The gift had called to him from one of the Temple's stores and, as Yoda had always taught him, Qui-Gon had listened to his instincts. It seemed the perfect way to commemorate their first month together. Besides, he reminded himself, it was educational.

The object was a tall cylinder filled with thick, clear liquid. Suspended inside were five colorful, molded fish.The liquid, when Force-stimulated, would cause the fish to move about as if swimming. Obi-Wan had not yet figured that out, would likely not be able to move the fish beyond a nudge for now. He was young, his Force abilities unrefined, but he would grow into it.

"Look, Mas!" Obi-Wan said again, not having gained his master's attention the first time.

"Look, *Master*," Qui-Gon corrected, although he had never been able to coax the whole word from Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan spun around. "No! *You* Mas! You look!"

Qui-Gon managed to hide his grin at the little boy's confusion.

"Yes, Obi-Wan," he said kindly."I will look.Show me what you have."

Intent again on the gift, Obi-Wan knelt beside the low table, looking at the fish."Fish! Five fish!"

Qui-Gon beamed.His Obi-Wan exceeded his age level in many areas.

"Go, fish, go!" Obi-Wan was saying, peering into the cylinder.  He turned to Qui-Gon, frowning."Fish no go!"

This was going to be difficult to explain...

"The fish are...pretend, Obi-Wan.They can't really swim."  *Oh, yes, Jinn,* he chided himself.*He'll certainly understand that...*

"Fish swim!" Obi-Wan corrected him.Gently and then not-so-gently he tapped his small fingers against the glass."Go, fish, please."

Qui-Gon's heart melted.The boy was so sincere.

"Think about the fish moving, Obi-Wan," he told the padawan, placing a hand on the youngster's temple. "Use your mind to tell the fish to move, and they will."

He saw Obi-Wan's shoulders hunch as he tried to understand."Me talk fish?"

"In a way, yes," Qui-Gon said."Use your mind to talk to the fish...like Master Yoda uses his mind to stack blocks and bounce balls in your school class."

A nod of the blond head said that Obi-Wan at least grasped that concept.  Focusing on the cylinder, Obi-Wan fell silent and still.When one of the fish began to rise toward the top of the liquid, he shouted and clapped his hands with delight. Slowly, the fish sank back down toward the bottom.

"No!" Obi-Wan told it, looking at the fish accusingly."Swim!"

"You must concentrate, my Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon told him, rubbing the small shoulders in comfort. "They can only swim when you are thinking about them."

With a noise that said he didn't quite believe it, Obi-Wan settled his gaze on the fish again. Slowly, one by one, the colorful creatures began to move; tails gently undulating, they bobbed along in the liquid, spurred on by Obi-Wan's tenuous grasp of the
Force.

Qui-Gon was amazed. He'd expected a movement or two, from perhaps one fish. But this...this was unbelievable. The shopkeeper had cautioned him against buying it solely for Obi-Wan's use, saying it would be frustrating for the toddler to stare at the frozen tableau.

"Oh, Mas! They swimming!"

Obi-Wan's delight was catching, and Qui-Gon laughed aloud, but nothing could seem to break Obi-Wan's concentration.

Faster and faster the fish swam, dazzling the boy with their colorful markings, clashing together, swimming up and down, side to side.  Even their fins moved now, making them look like the very real fish Obi-Wan believed them to be.

Suddenly, in an explosion of glass and water, the cylinder shattered, throwing the fish to all corners of the room. After a moment of shock, Obi-Wan began to scream in terror.

In a state of shock himself, Qui-Gon shook his head, not believing what he had seen. It was true that the glass was not very thick, that the toy was made for observing and not rough play, but he had felt the strength of the Force surge before the glass had broken. And the push, beyond anything a two-year-old should have been capable of, had come from Obi-Wan.

Remembering himself, Qui-Gon reached down and picked up Obi-Wan, holding him in his lap."Shhh…it's all right. Shhh…" He stroked the boy's soft hair, ran a finger tenderly down his cheek. "I know that must have scared you, but you are safe and well."

The boy cried as if his heart was broken; face buried in his master's chest, he could not be consoled. "Fish!" he cried. "Fish all gone!"

"No, Obi-Wan, they're..."Well, they were gone, but another cylinder could be purchased to place them in. "It's just broken, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon explained."We can fix it."

"No fix!No fish!"

Seeing one of the molded fish lying on the pillow beside him, Qui-Gon picked it up."See Obi-Wan? They're pretend.We can put them into some more water and you can make them swim again. Would you like that?"

Obi-Wan looked at the fish as if it were a strange, incomprehensible object. Carefully he touched it, shivering as his finger traced the hard, cold surface. "Fish swim?" he said hopefully, looking up at Qui-Gon, his blue-gray eyes still brimming with tears. He trusted Qui-Gon even if the fish did appear dead.

"Yes, my Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon told him with a comforting hug."The fish will swim again. I'm sure of it."

~ el fin ~

Feedback?Anything?Please?

(padawan_ana@yahoo.com)

Note: This is based on a gift I received from my mom for Christmas. The fish 'swim' up and down in the plastic cylinder, moved by the air exchange and the bubbles…no Force involved. : )