Risorgimento--Departure

by obi-ki

Title: Risorgimento--Departure

Author: obi-ki

Pairing: Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan

Catagory. Q/O AU

Time period: 20 years post ABY

Archive: MA, LJ. Anyone else please ask

Disclaimer: Everything Star Wars belongs to George Lucas and Lucasfilms. We're just playing in his world, borrowing the boyz and their accomplices and will return them all when I'm through. No money is being made from this, it is all done for entertainment only.

Author's notes: This is the eleventh segment in the Risorgimento series and the first non-journal entry I have written solo. This is dedicated to Padawanewan. This series and the snarky characterization of General Kenobi would not exist without her. Thanks to Merry Amelie for the thorough beta and thoughtful suggestions. The story would be much less without her valuable input.

Summary: Qui-Gon awakens in an unfamiliar environment, disoriented and thinking that the time is immediately following the Battle of Naboo. Obi-Wan awakens in the same environment, confused and thinking that it is immediately following the Battle on Mustafar. They separately meet with their host, Var-Son Meirr, and eventually find that they are in a remote medical facility, that Var-Son cloned them and that it's currently fifty-five years post Naboo. After spending some time getting acclimated and learning about the events of the last fifty-five years, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are finally brought together by their creator.

When the shock wears off, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan spend time with the healer and eventually alone together. They learn more about the events that have occurred and about each other. Especially in Obi-Wan's case, the events that occurred during the years after Naboo changed him and he is far from the inexperienced padawan that walked for so many years at his master's side. As they reconnect, they find something is off about them and they struggle to figure out how to deal with it. They speak to the healer about their concerns and Obi-Wan hears vague directions and odd comments from an internal voice. They decide that joint meditation may prove helpful and Var-Son directs them to the facility's garden.

During their joint meditation, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan reach out to one another and create the beginnings of a new bond between them. Although not as strong as their previous connection, they both feel it's a good beginning and will strengthen in time. Unbeknownst to them, they have company during their meditations - their ethereal counterparts are watching them and contemplating what if anything they can do to aid the clones along their path. When the meditation is over and both men return to their individual quarters, they spend some time in thought trying to get a handle on their situation.

Both Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan contemplate the events of the past few days and of their joint meditation. They use the datapads they find in their quarters to put their thoughts down and try to come to terms with their unique situation.

Putting their thoughts into words give both men some clarity. Qui-Gon uses the ritual of dressing to add the final level of serenity while Obi-Wan resorts to a more physical activity to release the last of his pent up tension. Obi-Wan shocks Qui-Gon with a bit of overt flirting but is glad to find it is more than welcome.

They join Var-Son for first-meal and answers to more of their questions but get one that they don't expect. The healer is dying and will not be coming with them when they leave the medical facility. With that knowledge heavy on their hearts, they head to the mechanics lab to construct new lightsabers.

The construction of their lightsabers offers surprises as well, the Force leading them to select 2 different gems to power their dual phase sabers. Although time consuming, the process is completed without issues and they leave the lab feeling more complete, lightsabers now hanging from their belts.

Arriving at the dining area, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan find their creator missing and are told that his condition has deteriorated. They argue, not so much about what they should do but how they should do it.

They go to visit Var-Son and stay with him during his final hours, providing emotional support. The following day they meet with FX-7 and are given the information Var-Son left for them and prepared to depart for their new lives.

After a stop in the gardens to grab a couple of plants to take with them, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon head for the ship. While Obi-Wan gets the ship ready and lifts off, Qui-Gon heads back to the sleeping quarters to put down his thoughts in his journal. When he finishs, he heads back to the cockpit and they watch as FX-7 fulfills his final duties to Var-Son Meirr.

As he watched Obi-Wan engage the ship's auto-pilot, Qui-Gon considered what to do next. They had many things to discuss and quite a few decisions to make, and it was difficult to choose which subject to tackle first. Settling on what he thought would be a safe subject, he asked the question that had been nagging him since Var-Son's revelation of their origin.

"Obi-Wan, can you tell me more about the clone troopers you fought with during the war?"

"The clones?" Obi-Wan repeated, obviously surprised. "You want to talk about the clones, now?"

"I know that we have many things to discuss, and I'm not dismissing the importance of any of those other things, but this has been weighing on my mind for days."

Obi-Wan blew out a frustrated breath. "Okay, spill it."

"From what I read in the history tomes, millions of clones were created by the Kamino cloners using a single donor host. Did all of those clones develop personalities and skill sets identical to their host, Jango Fett?" Qui-Gon asked.

"Gods, no," Obi-Wan replied. "Much to the Kaminoans' dismay, most of the clones developed distinct personalities over time, especially the ones who survived many battles, like Cody and Rex."

"Cody and Rex?" Qui-Gon asked. "I thought the Kamino cloners gave the clones numerical designations like Alpha 08 or RC 1138."

A wave of sadness washed through Obi-Wan as he thought about the clone commander who had become his friend. "They did, but most of them chose nicknames after the first couple of battles. I think Cody was the first to do that, right after he went through elite commando training and, over time, the new clones chose names as soon as they were assigned to a squadron."

Qui-Gon sensed the emotions that passed through his companion and couldn't help but ask. "Did you know Cody and Rex well?"

"Cody served as commander of the squadron of clone troopers assigned to me for most of the war, starting with the Battle of Christophsis right through Utapau," Obi-Wan explained. "Rex served in the same capacity for Anakin. I lost count of the number of missions the four of us served on together."

"You can't serve beside someone for that many years without becoming close," Qui-Gon stated, easily reading between the lines of that statement.

"He was my comrade and my friend, and I trusted him with my life," Obi-Wan said bitterly. "Right up to the moment that he tried to kill me." He took a deep breath and continued. "But that's beside the point. Although all the clones were created from the same genetic material, went through the same training and were given the same skill set, their personalities were as different from each other's and from Jango Fett's as their Force-signatures were."

"In what ways?" Qui-Gon asked, the answer to that question suddenly very important to him.

"Although highly intelligent and skilled, Jango was a self-serving and calculating bastard. He did nothing that was not to his ultimate benefit," Obi-Wan explained. "The clones had his fighting skills and many of the officers had his talents in strategy and battle tactics but, in most cases, the similarities ended there. I presume that their strong sense of obedience and loyalty was influenced by their indoctrination at the Kamino education complex, but even so, it definitely makes a strong argument for the nature versus nurture debate."

"So what was Cody like?' Qui-Gon asked, sensing Obi-Wan needed to talk about this even if he didn't realize it yet.

"He had a wicked sense of humor and was loyal almost to a fault," Obi-Wan admitted. "He served me with a dedication unmatched even by his 'brothers'. Too bad that, in the end, his loyalty to me came in a distant second to his programmed loyalty to the Republic and Palpatine." He watched Qui-Gon's face as he spoke. "Why are you suddenly so fascinated by the clones?"

Qui-Gon managed to look a bit embarrassed as he answered. "Blatant self-interest. I've been wondering how much of our future is predestined based on our genetic make-up."

Obi-Wan laughed. "That's priceless. Master 'your focus determines your reality' and 'keep your concentration here and now, where it belongs' is worried about the future."

Qui-Gon laughed as well. "I guess I deserved that." He took a deep breath and then pushed on. "Don't you find the unknowns of our situation a bit unsettling?"

"Not really," Obi-Wan answered with a smile. "Remember, I've lived through a war that ended in the destruction of everything I held dear. Plus a wise man once told me to take each day as it comes, and the future will take care of itself."

"Maybe you should hunt that wise man down," Qui-Gon countered.

"I don't have to look very far," Obi-Wan retorted before becoming more serious.

"Is it our future in the New Republic that concerns you, my Master, or our future with one another?"

"Both. I spent more years than I care to count striving for control with a single-mindedness that, at times, had my superiors and even my apprentices pulling their hair out," Qui-Gon admitted.

"So, it comes out at last. You're the reason Mace Windu had to shave his head," Obi-Wan joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"I'm sure Mace would have said I was the largest contributing factor," Qui-Gon agreed, before continuing. "Even though necessity has forced my hand many times

over the years, striding forward blind is not the way I want to step into a new situation, especially one as important as this." Reaching over, he placed his hand on Obi-Wan's shoulder. "I've never been very good at developing and keeping personal relationships; a deficiency that most would consider my biggest personality flaw. In truth, you and Yoda are the only close friends that I've managed keep over the years."

Even as he basked in the warmth of the hand on his shoulder, Obi-Wan mumbled under his breath. "Not for lack of trying." Looking up, he continued in a louder voice. "For all your pig-headedness and overconfidence, I always knew your heart was in the right place. You did what you believed was right and what you felt the Force was directing you to do to a degree beyond that of any other Jedi I ever knew, up to and including Master Yoda. We might not have always agreed, my Master, and there were many times when your methods left me feeling bereft. But in the end, I came to recognize the conviction behind your choices."

Touched by Obi-Wan's admission, Qui-Gon squeezed gently. "Reasons notwithstanding, the greatest regrets in my life are the times I caused you pain, my Padawan. From rejecting you on Bandomeer to claiming Anakin in the Council Chamber, my pride and stubbornness made me say and do many things that hurt you."

Another snort echoed unheard in the back of the cockpit, this one from the blue-tinged version of General Kenobi. "Let's not forget your dying words. 'Train the boy' was in the top five of the stupidest things you ever said to me."

"It definitely was not one of my most stellar moments, Obi-Wan, but you have to remember I'd just been run through by Maul's 'saber," spectral Qui-Gon replied.

"Details, details," his companion replied. He gathered the Force and placed an invisible hand in the center of his counterpart's back. "And you always did talk too much. Now kiss him already," he demanded as he pushed. He laughed when Obi-Wan jerked forward in his chair and his hand went to his lightsaber as he looked around the cockpit. "Hey it worked. I can't remember the last time I

was able to affect the physical world."

"Interesting. Must have something to do with when we connected with them in the gardens," the phantom master replied. "The only person I was ever able to affect physically was you, and that was after many years of practice."

"Just proves I'm a quicker learner." Grinning at his counterpart's shocked expression, he added, "Wonder what else I can do?"

A large glowing hand stroked down the side of Obi-Wan's face. "Let him be, love. They'll get there; you just need to give them time and let it happen."

"Spoil-sport," he growled but pulled back his awareness and leaned against the cockpit wall.

Obi-Wan glared at Qui-Gon as he sat back in his seat. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Push me."

Qui-Gon lifted his hand from Obi-Wan's shoulder and raised both in front of him. "I did no such thing."

"Uh, oh," whispered the transparent man resting against the bulkhead.

"Well, something pushed me and you're the only other person in the room," Obi-Wan exclaimed, even as he searched their surroundings with both his eyes and the Force.

Qui-Gon joined Obi-Wan in his search but the trace of the Force he sensed evaporated almost as soon as he found it. Scrutinizing what he had handled, he turned to Obi-Wan in surprise. "That felt like you."

Reaching out, Obi-Wan touched upon the kernel of the Force Qui-Gon had isolated. "How is that possible? I certainly didn't use the Force to push myself."

"I wonder..." The sentence trailed off as Qui-Gon drew more deeply on the Force.

"You wonder what?"

"Back during the years after Xanatos turned, Coruscant was not a place where I enjoyed spending time, so between missions I would travel to the smaller satellite Temples or to other remote worlds with Jedi connections," Qui-Gon explained. "During that time, I spent almost a full cycle on Karfeddion and there I met a man who was a member of the Ancient Order of the Whills. Known to me only as Shaman, he taught me about a number of lost Jedi skills, including one technique which he claimed would allow a Force-sensitive individual to retain his sense of self after death and interact with those of the living world through voice, dreams and apparitions."

Obi-Wan shuddered as he remembered his journey to Zigoola with Bail Organa and the Dark-Side illusions he had constantly been subjected to during their time there. If he'd experienced spectral contact with Qui-Gon in the years between Naboo and the Clone Wars, it might have made separating illusion from reality a bit less problematic. That thought brought forward a slightly more pleasant memory. "While we were aboard Bail's ship after Mustafar, Yoda said something about me becoming your student again while I was looking after Luke on Tatooine, so you must have had some success with the technique."

"Not as much as I would have liked, if you have no memory of me contacting you," Qui-Gon replied sadly. "You would definitely have been the first person I communicated with if I had the ability, not Master Yoda."

"Maybe it took you a while to figure it out." The memory of a conversation he'd had with Anakin during their mission to Zonama Sekot came back to him and Obi-Wan frowned. "Unless I wasn't listening."

"What makes you say that?"

"During one of our first missions together, about three years after Naboo, Anakin told me that he thought he heard you speaking to him through the Force, and I dismissed it as wishful thinking," Obi-Wan admitted.

"Since Master Yoda didn't reveal my contact with him until almost ten years later, I suspect Anakin might have imagined it," Qui-Gon said, after a moment of thought. "But, with his extraordinary midi-chlorian count and his unique skills, anything is possible. I guess we'll never know for certain."

Obi-Wan thought back to some of the New Jedi Order files that he had read over the past few days, remembering a couple of vague entries stating that he had 'appeared' to Luke at various points. His eyes widened as that memory made the import of Qui-Gon's statements hit home. "So are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"If you think I'm saying that we have company on this ship, then yes, that is what I'm saying." Qui-Gon glanced around the cockpit and smiled. "So, General Kenobi, any experience in dealing with Force ghosts in your extensive repertoire?"

TBC