Elevation
a Star Wars story
by Niki
Master Jinn stretched his aching muscles just a little bit further to properly secure the supports for the lighting. Although Obi-wan has said he'd prefer a private knighting ceremony, by the time they had decided on an acceptable guest list it was anything but private.
"Hep-Tisssh!" he sneezed freely. He blinked in surprise. He didn't even feel that one coming.
"Dusty up there?" Lisa asked from below. She could tell that Master Jinn's energy had been fast depleating since the decision had been made to elevate Obi-wan to knighthood. She recalled feeling the same thing from her own master just before her elevation. It seemed to be common for the Master of the elevated knight to become sick just before or after the ceremony; though for the life of her she couldn't understand why.
"Hep-Tissh!" he sneezed freely again, as if in reply. He sniffed liquidly. "Yes, thank you," he replied gruffly. He appreciated the way she showed her concern, and that she didn't way anything that would allude that he was getting sick.
He recalled nearly six months earlier when she had been elevated. Master Adi Mundi had contracted a horrendous case of Amadalyn Flu. He recalled how gently she took care of him before, during and after her ceremony – proving that they were correct in their decision to elevate her in the first place. H e remembered watching her guide her master so gently that seldom few he was anywhere near as ill as he was. He recalled her passing a handkerchief to him so carefully that most people thought he really did just drop a napkin.
He knew it was common for Masters to fall ill just before or after they elevate their padawans. Master's generally give up everything for their padawan's upbringing – outside relationship, friends outside the order, love… And, when the person they had given it all up for came to the point of moving on, Masters would often feel both joy and sad. Although they felt joyous for their padawan's gain, they were saddened for their personal loss. Depending on the amount of balance in each emotion would make their body's react either manically – if joyous, or ill – if saddened.
His thought drifted back to Adi Mundi and he wondered if Lisa ever realized what had made him so horribly ill. He supposed not.
He climbed down the ladder and stared up at his handiwork. Finally, the lighting was even. He scrubbed at his nose absent-mindedly.
"You'd best get some rest, Master Jinn," Lisa said, quietly coming up beside him.
"I'm fine," he said, looking around the room. There was still so much to be done. And, while Lisa, Adi Mundi, and Mace were being extremely helpful, he wanted everything to be perfect.
"Master Jinn," she said, her voice quiet but firm.
He sighed, and gave her a half smile. "Lisa, really – Qui-Gon was acceptable when you were a padawan." He lowered his voice, "Whether your Master ever found out or not." Speaking normally he continued, "It is not only acceptable, but expected now. We are equals, you and I."
Lisa smiled, but she didn't feel like an equal. "Qui-Gon. Get some rest. I think we both know what's coming. If you conserve your strength now, you may be able to stave off any…undue stress until after the ceremony."
Qui-Gon smiled. He couldn't have put that better himself. "Yes, of course." He yawned widely.
"I'll walk you home," Mace said, gently clapping Qui-Gon on the shoulder. He had gone through this himself. And, while he had been surprised by Adi Mundi's response to Lisa's elevation, he knew how deeply Qui-Gon cared for Obi-Wan.
Qui-Gon stood in front of the bathroom mirror and looked at himself in the still foggy mirror. The hot shower had helped break up some of the congestion that he had woken up with, but with that, "Hep-
Tissssh!" came the sneezing.He groaned against the tightening feeling in his throat and chest. His head pounded and he wondered if this was how Adi Mundi had felt before Lisa's elevation. "Hep-Tisssh!" His head snapped forward sending his silvering brown hair tumbling over his shoulders.
"Master?" Obi-Wan's ever vigilant, caring voice called into the fresher.
There was no use hiding the illness from Obi-Wan. His padawan was far to vigilant for him not to have noticed already. Silently, he opened the door.
Obi-Wan looked upon his Master's strong yet aging body. His eyes glazed over the towel that Qui-Gon had tied around his waste, and he immediately noticed the goosebumps that ran over the older man's body. His skin was mottled with cold, even though the fresher was still warm and steamy.
Slowly, Obi-Wan approached him. "Master? Are you ill?" he asked quietly. In the nearly two decades that they had been bonded, he had seldom seen his Master ill. Now, one day before his knighting ceremony his Master was feverish and sneezing.
"I am… not…yet…Hep-Tissh!" He coughed lightly. "The day after tomorrow. I'll be ill the day after tomorrow."
Having fallen ill several times before, Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow at him. That wasn't the way getting sick worked. If you were sick, it fell upon you when the illness was ready – not when the body was ready. In fact, in his experience, illness typically hit when the body was the least ready. "Yes, Master." He took a towel off of the rack and placed it over his Master's shoulders. "You need to keep warm. Whether you're sick now or later, I'll take care of you. You're not going to be alone during this." Before he could stop himself he reached up on his tip-toes and kissed Qui-Gon on the cheek.
Both men flushed with embarrassment. While they always used touch to communicate love and respect, kissing had not come into the picture since Obi-Wan was old enough to take care of his nightmares and clean himself up after training accidents.
Qui-Gon coughed lightly as his entered the presentation hall. The team had assembled earlier that morning and finished the decorations. All that was left for Qui-Gon to do was the walk through.
Lisa and Mace stood in the center of the room awaiting his final decisions.
"Wow, you've been busy," Qui-Gon said, as they took him around the room.
"You left very detailed instructions," Lisa said. She had placed a hand on the small of his back and gently pushed healing energy through it.
Mace chuckled. "Detailed…" he muttered.
Qui-Gon looked confused for a moment and then realized, "I didn't leave directions, did I?"
"Nope," Lisa confirmed. "Luckily, I was the only one who hadn't put one of these together before."
He saw the humor in what they were saying, but the bleariness in his head and the congestion in his chest and the sneeze in his nose kept him too distracted to respond.
Lisa noticed and stopped pushing healing energy through him.
As soon as she stopped, the sneezes exploded out of him. "Hep-
Tissh! Heptisssh! Tissh!" He stumbled forward, but caught himself on Mace's arm."Easy there," Mace soothed, as he helped him straighten up.
Lisa stepped in front of Qui-Gon. She caught the look in his eyes and side stepped just before he sneezed again. "Hep-Tissh!" he sneezed freely. "I'b sorry." He sniffed.
She reappeared in front of him. "No worries," she said, taking in the color of his pallor and the redness on the tip of his nose and the tips of his ears. "Are you going to be okay?" she whispered.
"I just have to make it through tomorrow," he replied.
She nodded. "Come find me in the infirmary if you need to afterwards," she offered.
He nodded. "Thangs." He reached out and squeezed her arm.
She noticed how much weaker his grip was versus the day before. Her memory flashed back to her knighting ceremony. By this time her Master could barely walk. In comparison to him, Qui-Gon was doing quite well. However, in comparison to how he was the day before, he was getting sicker faster than she thought he could maintain it.
After a final walk through of the hall, Qui-Gon had told the other two that there was nothing else that he wanted to change. In truth, he was getting too tired and weak to continue with the decorations – even if the lights weren't completely straight.
"What is it, Qui?" Mace asked, after Lisa had left. He knew that something had to have changed to make Qui-Gon's balance go so terribly awry so quickly.
"He kissed me."
"What?"
"Obi-Wan. When he discovered I was unwell. He… he kissed me." His nose twitched with an impending sneeze.
"Where?"
"On the cheek. But… Hep-Tisssh! Tisssh!"
"Bless you, Qui." Mace took a deep breath. Try as he might, Qui-Gon was unable to hide his true feelings for Obi-Wan. After the knighthood ceremony, Obi-Wan would be at liberty to pursue Qui-Gon. But, it was understood that the Masters would not pursue their padawan's – no matter how much they loved them.
The room was filled with Jedi and Senators alike. Qui-Gon smiled as he walked through the room greeting those who chose to come to share this very special day with he and Obi-Wan. He noticed that the lights had been straightened and the vanilla scented candles were replaced with non-scented ones. Something he mentally reminded himself to thank Mace for later. He had been able to keep his symptoms at bay for most of the day. While he still felt cold and foggy, he released his outward symptoms to the force, and focused his remaining energy on making this day as psecialy as he could for Obi-Wan.
Qui-Gon beamed as Obi-Wan entered the room. Dressed in his best robes, he looked modestly elegant – a trait held by most Jedi. He met Obi-Wan at the podium and embraced him tightly. He felt the tightness return to his chest and sniffed liquickly as tears sprang to his eyes.
A feeling of acceptance and joy filled the room as the guests looked on in silence.
When they released their hold on each other they noticed the tears in each others eyes.
Qui-Gon noticed the strength and independence in his soon to be former padawan’s eyes. Obi-Wan had exceeded his expectations and become stronger than he’d ever thought possible. His pride swelled and he was unable to keep a tear from rolling down his cheek.
When Obi-Wan looked at Qui-Gon he was touched by the joy and pride in his almost form master’s eyes. His master was still ill, there was no denying that. The tear that dripped down his cheek told Obi-Wan that his master did not have his usual control over his emotions. He reached up and brushed the tear off Qui-Gon’s cheek.
Mace and Adi Mundi stiffed as they watched the color drain from Qui-Gon’s face. Before either could react, they saw Lisa at the front of the crowd, getting as close to the podium as she could without drawing attention to herself.
“You trained her well,” Mace said quietly.
Adi Mundi nodded. He had long since fallen for his padawan. Her kindness, intuition, and observation skills were second to none. But, she hadn’t shown the same type of interest in him. “Perhaps better than I thought,” he said, pointing at the podium.
Mace followed his gaze and saw Lisa standing about four feet behind the podium.
They watched as Obi-Wan firmly grasped Qui-Gon’s elbow and assisted him to the podium. Adi-Mundi’s focus moved to Lisa. She was almost hiding in the shadows, but he could see the focus in her eyes. His heart swelled with pride. She was more of a spy and a healer than he’d never trained her to be. He felt a wave of exhaustion fall over his body.
Mace noticed immediately. Moving even closer and lowering his voice, “Conserve your energy. We need to focus on Qui-Gon today.”
They focused their attention back to Qui-Gon, who was rubbing at his nose with a handkerchief.
“I know exactly how he feels,” Adi Mundi said sympathetically.
“I know,” Mace agreed with the familiarity of an experienced master.
Qui-Gon cleared his through huskily. “Fellow Jedi, Senators, and invited guests, thank you for coming to the most important day in the life of a young man who is very dear to us all.” He paused and cleared his throat.
Lisa adjusted her line of vision, but did not move.
“Excuse me,” Qui-Gon continued. “Ever since he was an initiate, Obi-Wan Kenobi has surpassed any expectations set forth. His compassion, insight, and connection with the force has made him act with honor, integrity and courage in all situations.” Quickly he brought the handkerchief to his face and sneezed heavily into it. “Hess-Chump!”
Obi-Wan, who had been listening with respect and interest, grasped Qui-Gon’s shoulder.
“I’m all right,” Qui-Gon whispered.
Lisa shook her head and motioned for Mace to step forward, which he started to do.
“Excuse me,” Qui-Gon said with a sniffle. “I seem to have fallen into the same trap so mah-many masters do, and run myself down a little too far. So, I will keep this short as we welcome Obi-Wan into the Jedi order and present him with the rant of knighthood.” He paused to blow his nose. “Obi-Wah-Wan is loyal to the code and those who abide and live by it. And, most especially, those who don’t. He loves unconditionally, and expects only the force to be there in return. He is a great asset to our order and I have only the upmost pride as I induct him into the Order as a Jedi knight.”
With a simple snip, he cut Obi-Wan’s braid. He felt the fine ginger hair between his fingers, and his breath caught.
Obi-Wan turned around and took Qui-Gon into a warm embrace.
Qui-Gon felt a wave of dizziness hit him and started to shake. Before Obi-Wan could react, Lisa had pulled Qui-Gon away and was talking with him softly.
Mace and Adi Mundi paid their respects to Obi-Wan and went to join Qui-Gon, as Lisa went to speak to Obi-Wan.
“What’s wrong with him?” Obi-Wan asked in a low voice laced with worry.
“I’m not sure,” Lisa said quietly, her face bright with a ear to ear grin. “But I intend to find out,” she added shaking his hand and pushing him towards the masses that waited to great him.
When she turned around, Mace, Adi Mundi, and Qui-Gon were gone.
She made eye contact with Yoda, who waved an open palm at her.
She immediately knew that she had to do, and followed Obi-Wan around the room as he was congratulated, taking care of the little things that cropped up, so that Obi-Wan could enjoy his very special day.
"Heh…eh…" Qui-Gon brought his handkerchief to his face for what had to be the thirtieth time that hour.
"You can't let him affect you like this. You knew he would be knighted someday," Mace said, bringing Qui-Gon a warm cup of tea. His voice was thick with the reason of someone who had been there.
Qui-Gon closed his eyes and tried to release his illness to the force. Mace was correct, of course. He'd always known that he would see Obi-Wan to knighthood. But, he'd never thought it would affect him like this. "Heh-Kessh!" He blew his nose and flopped back on his couch cushions. He groaned as he felt the tickle return almost immediately. "Ki, how did you ged through dis?"
"Slowly. Lisa, being a healer, took it upon herself to stay with me until I'd recovered – which actually prolonged the process. I was overwhelmed by the feeling of loss and love, and I had to keep the feelings between myself and the Force, which is when I wound up in the infirmary for so long. Only when I accepted the fact that Lisa's care and gentleness proved that she did love me – just not in the way I wanted her to. That didn't make her love for me less important, or less real. With that knowledge, and her ongoing support I was able to recover and realize that I didn't lose anything – we just adjusted our relationship." He sniffed and rubbed a finger boyishly under his nose.
Mace and Qui-Gon looked on sympathetically.
"He's right, Qui," Mace said.
Qui-Gon sniffed liquidly. How nice it must have been for Lisa and Ki to be able to so simply adjust. Lisa was a healer, that adjustment was predictable. There was no predictable outcome for him and Obi-
Wan.He looked around his half empty apartment. "Heh-Kessh!" His head snapped forward and his silvering hair tumbled over his shoulders.
Lisa stood behind Obi-Wan as he was greeted by the Jedi Order. His face showed a bright and proud smile, but his rigid body language told her a different story. He was anxious about Qui-Gon.
Lisa looked around the room. It was starting to empty, but only by those who had come because it was politically correct to. There were still nearly 50 people who were partaking in the buffet and waiting to congratulate Obi-Wan.
She felt bad for Qui-Gon, but she knew it wasn't her place to care for him. It was her place to make sure that everything was taken care of at the ceremony. Without Qui-Gon, Mace, or Ki Adi Mundi there, she knew that nobody would stick around to clean up. And, there was always a mess to clean up.
Lisa teetered precariously on the shifty ladder as she tried to blow out the candles. She didn't remember it being this difficult to switch out the scented for the unscented candles the day before. Giving up on doing it properly, she snapped her fingers and they went out with the Force.
"Still here are you?" she heard her old master say.
Careful not to lose her footing she lowered herself down. "Just finishing cleaning up."
"A healers work is never done, huh?" he asked, walking over to her.
She noticed immediately that his nose was a little pinked.
"Tired, Master?" she asked, cleaning up the last of the food.
"Dot your, Bast-Hepchh!"
She sighed. "Oh no, not again."
"Sorry. Thoud I'd kicked id."
It had been months. She knew he had kicked this bug. She just didn't know he was so susceptible to catching it again.
She looked around the nearly clean room and sighed. `The droids can get the rest,' she thought. "Come on, Ki. I'll take you back to your quarters."
"Qui?" Obi-Wan called softly, as he overrode the sequence to get into his old chambers.
The lights were out, but Obi-Wan moved through the rooms with years of experience. Luckily, enough time hadn't passed for Qui-Gon to change the layout of the main room.
He slipped into Qui-Gon's bedroom. "Qui?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
Qui-Gon snored in response, but did not awake.
Obi-Wan felt his heart melt. How his body ached to hold Qui-Gon in his arms. He'd felt that way for years. He worked hard not show it, and to release his feelings to the force. But, when Qui-Gon was vulnerable like this, he felt the feelings flood his being.
Suddenly, Qui-Gon started awake. "Obi?" he asked. His voice was gruff with sleep.
"Yes." Obi-Wan stepped into the bedroom.
"Hep-Tessshooo!" Qui-Gon sneezed harshly.
"Blessings." Obi-Wan walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. "Qui, you're burning up."
"Hep-Tessshh!" He sniffed congestedly. "I doe."
Obi-Wan brushed back Qui-Gon's hair. He felt himself grow hard, despite his best efforts to exude caring and concern.
It did not go unnoticed. "I can't be buch to look adt," Qui-Gon whispered stuffily.
Obi-Wan looked at him as his eyes adjusted to the lack of light. Lights from outside cast eerie shadows over Qui-Gon, making him look even more pale and drawn than he already was. Dark circles which had formed underneath his eyes were more pronounced. His heavy eyelids seemed puffy in the false light. And, even the shadows couldn't hide the flush in his cheeks or the redness of his nose.
"You're just as handsome as always," Obi-Wan whispered. He immediately closed his eyes and winced. He hadn't meant to say that. There was no use denying the feelings any longer. He'd just said exactly what was on his mind.
An exhausted, husky laugh turned into deep husky coughs. "By Obi-Wah—
haah-Hetchhhhshhh!"The sneeze was wet and uncontrolled. Part of the spray hit Obi-Wan in the chest, but he didn't flinch as he watched Qui-Gon's body collapse in response to the sneeze.
"Ohhh, Obi…" Qui-Gon groaned miserably. If he didn't think he could feel worse, he was wrong. Not only did the illness seem to want to take a turn for the worse: raising his fever and making his whole body feel heavy, like he was being weighted by sand. And, now, the humiliation of not only Obi-Wan seeing him this weak, but sneezing on him was letting depression, the likes of which he'd never known settle in his bones.
Although their bond was diminished with the cutting of his Padawan braid, Obi-Wan could still feel his shame and resmorse.
"Hey, hey," he said, pulling Qui-Gon into him. "None of that. There's nothing for you to be so sad over."
He could feel Qui-Gon shake in his arms.
"What's so fun…" he started, and then noticed the wetness on his shoulder. `Tears?' he thought. In all their years together, he had only ever seen his Master cry, at the death and funeral of Master Tahl. He couldn't think of what loss could be so great that it would make him cry.
"Hey," Obi-Wan whispered into Qui-Gon's ear. "What is it?" Before he could stop himself he let the tip of his tongue lightly trace Qui-
Gon's earlobe.He heard Qui's breathing stutter, and he pressed his own thigh as he felt himself begin to swell. He whimpered in protest. He'd kept his feelings to himself all this time, but it didn't look like he would be keeping his secret another night. The Force certainly works in mysterious ways.
As Qui-Gon felt the guttural whimper from his former Padawan, he felt a part of him twitch that hadn't in over 15 years. He gasped in surprise and arousal. "Obi…n…Hesshh!" He sneezed into Obi-Wan's shoulder.
Slowly, he pulled himself away from Obi-Wan. "I'm…s…s…Hassshessh!" His head snapped forward with the velocity of the sneeze.
Obi-Wan pulled a tissue off of the bedside table. "Here," he said, tenderly handing it over.
"Thangs," Qui-Gon replied stuffily. He buried his nose into the tissue and blew it until he couldn't anymore. Tears ran from his eyes. He felt like he was in a dream. He had yearned for Obi-Wan to touch him like this for years. But, now, when that dream was delivered, he was too ill to enjoy it. He threw away the tissue and leaned back against his pillows.
He sighed heavily. "Oh, Obi…"
Acting on impulse and trusting in the Force, Obi-Wan leaned forward and kissed Qui-Gon passionately. He felt Qui-Gon push back, their tongues lashing at each other.
Suddenly, Qui-Gon pulled back. "Haressshhh! Heptesshhh! Aaressshhh!" He cupped his hands over his mouth and continued to sneeze violently. "Harshhh! Arechhhh! Heptesshh!"
Obi-Wan gently pushed Qui-Gon over and climbed in the bed beside him. Holding him close, he murmured softly, "Shhh…let them come. I'll hold you."
Fighting the instinct to pull away, Qui-Gon let himself be held. He didn't like to be coddled, but Obi-Wan didn't know that. Pushing Obi-Wan away now would be a travesty. It could end this dream…this almost perfect dream.
Not canon! Also first parts would be PG rated. The end parts will be able to be viewed on fanfiction.net, because of sexual content.