Rebirth #03 - Of Toads and Boys

by Angelica ( lilithschilde@roadrunner.com )

Archive: M_A, anyone else just ask

Category: Q/O, pre-slash, Humor

Rating: G for now

Spoilers: None

Series: Rebirth

Series Timeline: Begins a few weeks after AOTC

Summary: A day in the life of Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon.

Disclaimers: George owns it. I play with it. But I give all my money to Star Wars merchandising, so I have none to give him if he sues me. Feedback: Please!? I'll love you for ever and ever...OK, well, I'll be really happy.

Notes: This is just a short snippet. An average day with Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon. Hope you enjoy! As always, thanks to Master Jenn. I'm the luckiest Padawan in the whole galaxy. :o)

"Qui-Gon, you must come down from there. This is not the time to be climbing trees!"

Obi-Wan's yelling had little effect on the four-year-old, and the older man was becoming increasing agitated.

"Qui-Gon..."

"I know, you don't have to tell me again. I'll climb down right after I put Wiley back where he belongs."

Obi-Wan sighed and rubbed a hand over his eyes in frustration. They were going to be late getting back to the crèche, and while Knight Sidana had been lenient with him in the past, he still preferred to show that he could care for Qui-Gon and meet all his responsibilities in a timely manner. In the past year, Obi-Wan had managed to persuade the Council that not only was this child Master Qui-Gon Jinn, but that Obi-Wan himself should be allowed to help with his training. However, he knew the Council members watched him closely, and that most of the privileges they had granted had come from many long hours of debate, and a great deal of help from one little green Master. Yoda had become quite fond of little Qui-Gon over the past year, often spending time playing with him and teaching him the rudiments of the Force.

"Qui-Gon, *now*, please?" he said, the annoyance becoming clear from his tone.

He saw the boy give a great sigh and place something on a nearby branch. Turning to come back down, Qui-Gon caught his foot on a vine and tripped, sending him tumbling from the tree.

Reaching a hand out and calling upon the Force, Obi-Wan caught the boy in mid-air, then held him there, head down. The Jedi Knight stepped forward and peered into the blue eyes of his former Master.

"This is why you are not supposed to be climbing trees, Qui-Gon. You could have easily broken your neck!"

"But I didn't. You were here to catch me."

"That is not the point. I can not always be here, and you must learn to obey the rules. They are for your own protection."

"But you said you'll always be here for me, and you said that I always used to break the rules and get into trouble with the Council."

Obi-Wan closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Qui-Gon..." He opened his eyes to find the boy staring at him intently, and found the scrutiny to be more than a little nerve-wracking. "I will always be here for you, but not always physically here. There will, more than likely, come a time when I am called on to take a mission and leave Coruscant. When that happens, I want you to know that you are always in my thoughts, and in my heart, and that I am with you in spirit. Do you understand?"

Qui-Gon nodded, and Obi-Wan continued, flipping the boy over so that all the blood didn't rush to his head. "And yes, you did disobey the Council, but only when the Force willed it. You followed your heart and the will of the Force, first and foremost. This does not mean you should feel free to break the rules now because you feel like it."

"But Wiley..."

"Is a three-horned tree toad, and should have never been taken to the crèche. Toads belong in their trees, not in little boy's beds."

"That's why I was putting him back," Qui-Gon said defiantly.

Obi-Wan felt the pressure behind his eyes increase, and thanked his body for warning him and willed the pain to subside for now. This was certainly no time to deal with a headache. "No more arguing. We're going back to the crèche, before Knight Sidana comes looking for you."

Placing Qui-Gon on the ground, Obi-Wan examined his pockets to ensure that no other creatures would be following the boy home and satisfied, took his hand.

"Si won't be mad. She understands that you spend a lot of time with me."

"Yes, but we are late, and you know that I don't like being late."

"I know. But Obi, I had to put Wiley back in the tree. He was getting lonely and wanted to talk to the other toads in the garden."

Stopping in the hallway, Obi-Wan looked down at Qui-Gon and found big blue eyes looking up at him imploringly. Shaking his head, the Knight crouched down so that he was at eye level with the boy.

"I understand why you felt the need to return him to his home, Qui-Gon, but not as to why you took him away in the first place. *Or* why you felt the need to return him when we were already late in returning to the crèche."

"Do you promise not to tell?" Qui-Gon asked nervously.

Obi-Wan's eyes narrowed as he examined his young charge. "All right."

"I didn't take him, Hanri took him." Obi-Wan nodded, remembering the young Twi'lk boy, and motioning for Qui-Gon to continue. "Well, I knew Wiley had to go back, because he was getting hungry and thirsty. He wasn't drinking the muja juice Hanri kept giving him, because toads don't drink muja juice. So Hanri gave him to me to take care of, and I got you to bring me to the garden. But there weren't any bonoworms under the rock, so I climbed the tree so that Wiley would have something to eat. See?"

It all made perfect sense to Qui-Gon, and Obi-Wan had to keep from laughing.

"I do see," Obi-Wan said behind a façade of seriousness. "But you could have told me and I would have been happy to put the toad in the tree. Remember that the next time?"

Qui-Gon nodded, taking Obi-Wan's larger hand in both of his. "OK, but I can't see you climbing a tree with a toad in your tunic."