Disclaimer: They belong to George and Company. I'm just
borrowing, with no harm intended.
Acknowledgements: Ongoing thanks to Pumpkin for the great beta
and the encouragement! I'm especially grateful for her help
since she's so busy with her own stuff! Thanks so much,
Pumpkin!
Notes: Yes, you read it right. This one is postcard 5. I
haven't posted number 4 yet, because it's still a little rough
around the edges. For the sake of my saved files and for the
sake of keeping them straight in my head, I decided not to
re-number them. Sorry for any confusion or archiving woes. :(
Obi-Wan Kenobi hated farming.
Well, the padawan rationalized, perhaps the word "hate" was a
little harsh. After all, Jedi didn't hold on to such negative
emotions. Or so Obi-Wan told himself over and over as he lay
sprawled face-down in the mud.
Groaning, the boy rolled over onto his back and stared up at
the clear, blue sky. Despite the bright sunlight, the twin
moons of Cerus V were still faintly visible. From his
peripheral vision, Obi-Wan could see the flock of loreng he had
been trying to feed. When they'd spotted the bucket of grain
he'd been carrying, they'd rushed at him and he'd tripped. The
knee-high birds were now happily devouring the spilled grain,
apparently harboring no guilt over their benefactor's
predicament.
A low chuckle from his approaching Master brought Obi-Wan up
into a sitting position. The boy let out a disgusted sigh and
brushed his muddy hands against his equally muddy tunic,
managing to clean neither.
"Lying down on the job, Padawan?" Qui-Gon asked, not bothering
to conceal his amusement.
"Very funny, Master," Obi-Wan replied with a scowl.
Still smiling, Qui-Gon extended a hand to his filthy
apprentice.
Obi-Wan accepted the assistance and rose to his feet with as
much grace as the situation allowed.
Qui-Gon shook his head as he got a better look at the extent
of his padawan's grime. "Looks like the poultry got the better
of you," he commented smugly. "You need to be more open to the
Living Force, my padawan."
Obi-Wan's mood was bordering upon foul, and, for a moment, his
temper slipped loose. "Living Force?" he exclaimed loudly.
"I've been inundated with the Living Force since we arrived
here, Master! I'm sick of tending to these ungrateful, pathetic
lifeforms. What's happened to us? Did the council decide to
send me to Agri-Corps afterall, and this is my initiation? I
liked it better when we were running from those soldiers in the
city! I think the only reason that old farmer let us hide here
until the transport arrives was because he couldn't find anyone
else to take care of these stupid creatures."
Obi-Wan continued on and Qui-Gon patiently crossed his arms to
watch the tirade play itself out. This had been long in coming,
and the Jedi Master had no intention of interrupting. The anger
had been building inside his restless apprentice during the
last several days and had been easy to feel through their bond.
Qui-Gon was glad to see it finally surface, so that the padawan
could release it into the Force at long last.
Obi-Wan's outburst was finally ending. His voice decreased in
volume gradually until it finally tapered to a halt. He glared
at his silent Master petulantly.
"Are you even listening to me?"
Qui-Gon's expression was stoical. "Are you finished?"
Obi-Wan pouted. "Yes."
"And how do you feel now?"
With a long sigh, the boy looked away, his face flushing a
little. "Stupid."
Qui-Gon nodded. "Good. We'll meditate upon the merits of
releasing anger into the Force later. Right now we'll make use
of all that restless energy of yours. You can come help me
finish cleaning the barn, my padawan. And if you're still not
tired enough after that, there's a tybis harness that is in
need of a good scrubbing."
Obi-Wan groaned inwardly, then looked up at the elder Jedi
suspiciously. "Why do I get the feeling you're enjoying all
this, Master?"
Qui-Gon's face was impassive. "The Living Force is our ally,
padawan. You must learn to commune with that which surrounds
you."
"Yes, Master," Obi-Wan sighed heavily and trudged toward the
waking nightmare which was the barn.
If he had turned around, he would have caught the smug grin
that had quickly spread across his taciturn Master's
face.
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