Thanks to all of you who read and reviewed my last story (especially those of you who reviewed, haha), and all of you who've come back to read this. :D This story will be updated at least one chapter per week unless it's a holiday week or I'm out of town. :D I promise (this way I'll keep myself from waiting for two years before finally finishing the story…)

Chapter One

Qui-Gon woke with a groan and slowly pried his eyes open. He was greeted by the harsh, bright lights of an infirmary. He knew instinctively that he was not in the Jedi Temple. He wasn't even on Coruscant, for that matter. He struggled to remember where he was and what had happened to him. He was on Naboo, he realized, in the palace infirmary.

He sat up, and quickly lowered himself down with a hiss as unanticipated pain shot through his abdomen. "Mister Qui-Gon!" he heard, and smiled a little through the pain. That was Anakin, he remembered, the little boy he'd met on Tatooine not very long ago. The boy he firmly believed to be the Chosen One who will bring balance to the Force.

"Hello, Anakin," he answered. "How are you?" He sensed something bothering the boy.

"I should be asking you that, Mister Qui-Gon, sir," Anakin answered. "You were asleep for a long time, more than two days." Anakin bit his lip nervously. "We were worried about you."

"I wasn't asleep, Ani," he said. "Not really. I was in something called a healing trance, taking care of my injuries." Anakin nodded.

"You mean the injuries you got from fighting that Sith guy," he said. Qui-Gon raised an eyebrow at him in a silent inquiry. "I heard Mister Obi-Wan telling someone named Yoda about what happened." At least Anakin had the grace to look contrite, he thought wryly. But the young boy's words had sparked a series of memories in him, and being too weary to suppress them, he closed his eyes and allowed them to play out.

He had fallen to the Sith warrior and now lay still on the cold metal floor, eyes glazing over with a lightsaber hole straight through his abdomen. He saw his padawan behind the red wall of energy, saw him scream, but could not hear it. He saw only bits of the fight after Obi-Wan engaged the Sith. It was nothing like Obi-Wan's usual style of fighting. Instead of the smooth, graceful movements Obi-Wan had learned after a time, they were jerky and harsh.

Qui-Gon could sense his padawan's negative feelings. His anger at the Dark Force-user who injured his master, his fear that Qui-Gon was going to die and his frustration with himself for letting it all happen.

Let go of your negative feelings, Obi-Wan. You cannot win by pitting your Darkness against his; you must be calm, Qui-Gon told his apprentice through the bond. He felt him falter, and in that moment he fell into the hole that led to the planet's core.

Qui-Gon wanted to curse at himself, but he lacked the energy. He had distracted his padawan from the task at hand, and in doing so gave his opponent the opportunity he needed.

But at least Obi-Wan was alright. Somewhat, anyway. He was clinging to a light attached to the side of the hole several feet below them. Again the Sith took to pacing, running his lightsaber along the edge, sending sparks down into the hole. A few moments later Qui-Gon saw Obi-Wan's lightsaber follow him into the hole.

It took only a minute for Obi-Wan to gather his strength and use the Force to propel himself from the hole. He summoned Qui-Gon's lightsaber to him and began the fight again. Though the Darkness was still within him, he had pushed it to the back of his mind, not having time to release it into the Force. Qui-Gon saw his apprentice sever the Sith's double-ended lightsaber, giving him only one to work with.

After that, Obi-Wan made short work of him. Qui-Gon felt a rush of relief as his padawan cut the Sith's body clean in half and sent it tumbling down the hole to the core.

Obi-Wan then rushed to his side, getting down on his knees and pulling Qui-Gon's head into his lap. He could sense his apprentice's intention of healing him and murmured, "No, it's too late…" He had accepted already that he was going to die. He was calm, knowing that he would soon be one with the Force.

"No…" Obi-Wan murmured, sounding as if he were close to tears. "No…"

"Obi-Wan… Promise… promise me you will train the boy," he said, voice hoarse. He was quiet for a moment, waiting for Obi-Wan to respond. He didn't. "He is the chosen one… he will bring balance… train him."

"No," Obi-Wan replied forcefully. "I will not train him."

"Obi-Wan… please…" Qui-Gon could feel himself growing weaker, but he did all he could to continue the conversation. He had to convince his padawan to train Anakin…

"No!" Obi-Wan said loudly, nearly shouting. Qui-Gon saw tears in his eyes. "I won't have to! You're not… you're not going to die."

Oh, Obi-Wan… he thought. I know this is hard for you…

"Train him for me," Qui-Gon said softly. "When I've gone." He closed his eyes and immediately felt the Force swirl around him and begin to fill him. He was going to die, soon. He felt himself being carried off, and then—

And then he was being pulled down again. What…? he thought. Had he the strength then, he would have groaned aloud. Obi-Wan was trying to heal him. He knew it wouldn't work, though, so all he had to do was wait for his padawan to exhaust himself.

He was shocked to feel it working. He could feel the damage the Sith's lightsaber had done healing. The muscles were pulling themselves together, the bone healing itself until it became merely a normal break, the nick on his lung growing back and the skin healing…

It was by no means fully healed, but he knew now that he would live. But at what cost? he asked himself, and slowly opened his eyes. He saw Obi-Wan slumped over him, eyes closed and breathing ragged. He knew that his padawan did not have a strong enough connection to the Living Force to have healed him so easily, which meant…

He gave his own energy to save me, he though. Padawan mine, how foolish of you. Saving an old man like me…

Though he wanted to make sure that Obi-Wan would be alright, he did not have the energy. He surrendered himself to sleep.

When he opened his eyes again, Anakin was no longer there, his spot in the chair next to the bed taken by Master Yoda.

"Awake, it is good to see you," said the Jedi Master. "Died, you nearly did."

"I know," he answered. "Obi-Wan saved me. Where is he?"

"On Coruscant, he is," answered Yoda. "When told you would live, left he did." Qui-Gon's brow furrowed.

"He left? Without us?" he asked. Yoda nodded.

"Happy with you, he did not seem. Happen, something did." With anyone else that would have been a question. Qui-Gon sighed.

"Yes," he answered. "Though something that would make him angry with me, I don't know…"

"Ask him on our return, we will," Yoda assured him. "The boy, young Skywalker—"

"Allow me to train him, Master," Qui-Gon interrupted. Yoda continued on as if he had not spoken.

"Trained, he will be."

"Thank you, Master," Qui-Gon said, relief flowing through him. The boy's training would be much easier with the consent of the council.

"My padawan, he will be." This surprised Qui-Gon. He blinked for a few moments, trying to make sense of what he had just heard.

"Your padawan?"

"Hear me, you did," said Yoda, face serious but eyes shining with amusement.

"But—" Qui-Gon began to protest.

"Train him, I will," insisted Yoda. "Rest, you will need. And restrict your movement, this injury will, for some time." Qui-Gon was forced to admit that the elder Jedi had a point. But he had already promised Anakin that he would train him…

"But—"

"Asked him, I did. Agreed he has, for understands, he does," said Yoda. "Though know I am Yoda, he does not."

Qui-Gon sighed, knowing this was a battle he would not be able to win. Anakin would be trained, though, and he did feel a certain sense of relief knowing that he would not have another Padawan…

Again his thoughts turned to his apprentice. "Obi-Wan—"

"Knighted, he was, for killing the Sith," said Yoda. "His trials, this mission was, though knew it, he did not." Qui-Gon beamed. He had known that his Padawan was ready for the Trials; he had been right.

"Wait," he said, smile fading slightly, "was? He was Knighted already?" The amusement in Yoda's eyes disappeared.

"Took his vows, he did, though had a formal ceremony, he did not. Wanted to wait for you, the Council did," said the Jedi Master.

"The Council? Not Obi-Wan?" asked Qui-Gon.

"Refused to have the ceremony, we did," said Yoda. "Cut off his own braid, he did, before going to Ilum."

Qui-Gon was speechless. He felt confused and hurt—yes, he was proud that his Padawan was finally a Jedi Knight, but he had not been able to take part in the ceremony. Obi-Wan hadn't even had a ceremony.

"Why?" he asked Yoda. "Why did he deny himself a proper ceremony? Is it because he didn't want me there? What did I do?"

Yoda's ears fell. "Know, I do not." He stood, taking his walking stick and heading for the door. "Able to walk tomorrow, you will be. Leave for Coruscant, we will."

Qui-Gon nodded and settled back onto the pillows to try to sleep. He had a feeling that there would be more than a few difficult days in the coming weeks, and he was determined to rest while he could.

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