NOMINAL young Obi-Wan. Hum-huff.
:-P

I can't stop laughing at this! I think this suits Dooku, I've always think of him as an impatient and tought guy.. like he'd talk sharply.. Nicely done, I really liked this!

Brilliant. I love the way you write, It's truly supurb! I loved the idea of Dooku trying to keep control of 10 children, and failing... It was brilliant!

Nela

Hi,

I really loved your story - it is not often that I find a story about Dooku and Qui-Gon and even more seldom one as good as yours. Loved that fact that Dooku keept calling Qui-Gon 'child'.

Oh and little Obi-Wan? Very nice touch!

Best, Blue

This is pretty interesting. It's not often I read a fic where Dooku's and Qui-Gon's relationship isn't so strained past the point of having fun. To see Dooku and Qui-Gon exchanged verbal harmless jabs is nice.

I really like your Dooku. He's great.

Ok, you've set a new record - you've made me actually *like* Dooku! You portrayed him *perfectly* and I absolutely *love* the Christopher Lee-like nature you gave off. Wonderful!

-Elfpen

A brilliant story.

You just don't see enough Dooku on and you write him so well!

Nice ending! I love how you kept the character's personalities really true to form. Awesome job, great story!

Ouch, that was kinda harsh. Hmm, I wonder where this is all going. Are we getting, in part, why Dooku joined the dark side? And just what did he mean by that last comment?

Oh, this has the makings of all sorts of trouble. Dooku...teaching? What the heck are the council members taking? Well, this is pre-evil Dooku, so it's okay. Poor guy, obviously you should never allow him near little children. LOL. Great chapter, I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Apt description of Qui-Gon's reaction to Dooku's reaction. You masterfully enlarged Dooku's sidestepping of his former Padawan's overtures so their relationship became a kind of metaphor for what Qui-Gon was left with after Telos – his past with Dooku, and 'whispers' of hope amidst the painful memories. Which is what I assumed the title noun referred to the first time I read this piece.

Extremely well-crafted dialogue, as always. I couldn't help feeling, after I had read through the whole chapter, that the point where Qui-Gon denies himself the comfort of metaphorically crying on Dooku's shoulder was a defining moment in both their lives, especially Dooku's. their roles seem to shift subtly in this chapter, with Dooku taking the part of the comforting Master, and Qui-Gon the Padawan.

The part where Dooku attempts to cajole Qui-Gon into taking Obi-Wan as Padawan was thoroughly endearing, and not the least foreshadow-y, especially in light of the events of AotC and RotS. I like how, without having the narrative explode into weepy histrionics, you subtly exposited their great affection and deep respect for each other. 'Whispers' was a provocative, moving, even entertaining glimpse into the relationship of Dooku and Qui-Gon, well written, and I truly enjoyed reading it.

I was a little surprised that here Dooku mentioned Mace Windu as a 'friend'. They are so different. Opposites attract, I s'pose.

The quiet discomfited-ness between former Master and Padawan has eased almost completely in this chapter. When reading it, I sensed a greater warmth, despite Dooku's moodiness and sometimes bewilderingly sudden vicious turns. I enjoyed how you treated their relationship – while no longer that of master and apprentice, neither is it a relationship between, say, childhood friends, or even colleagues, but something unique between Dooku former Master to Padawan Jinn, and a damaged Jedi who was once Dooku's apprentice, something you demonstrated beautifully in this story in a highly distinctive and engaging voice. It does seem weird that I think they seem closer in this chapter – what with Dooku being so harsh on poor innocent Qui-Gon! – but that was the overwhelming impression I got.

Ah Jess, am sorry I haven't reviewed this before.

Excellent start to a sincere, thought-provoking, often poignant piece of writing. I liked how, from the start, instead of writing the highly popular slit-my-wrists-and-hope-to-die-starved-of-padawan-love Qui-Gon that figures so prominently in so many post-Telos fics, you portrayed a normal man, with just enough of a pronounced touch of numbing sadness in his character. Sharp lines of dialogue for Master Dooku that I think demonstrated intimate knowledge of the man. Nice usage of little Bant, Quinlan and Obi-Wan, and unusual but completely believable imagery of Dooku as 'flitting around', a Snapesque 'oversized bat'.

There was a certain subtle awkwardness, the faintest undercurrent of unease, about Dooku and Qui-Gon's meeting. Intentional or not, it worked very well. It was so typical of the pair that Dooku would first dissert Quinlan's swordplay while Qui-Gon attends to the injured, helpless 'pathetic lifeform'. This bit where the whole class, and Dooku, reacts to Obi-Wan's injury, was in terms of writing style oddly reminiscent of Juri's work – there's a definite if slight influence from A Test of Faith or Eclipse here, though it serves to complement your customarily brisk, self-assured style rather than detract from it. The last few lines, though, were instantly recognisable as all yours. Good chapter.

Very nice. They never show Dooku very often. I like this one...