Title: The Greatest Gift Is Your Song
Author: Padawan Jess Kenobi
Rating: JA, mushiness
Disclamor: Not mine, never will be mine.

***Authors note:   the song in italics does not, I repeat does NOT belong to me. It is featured in Moulin Rouge, written by Bernie Taupin, I believe. I added ONE word, to the song, just so it would flow a little better***

Qui-Gon yawned and sat up in bed, and looked out the window of his bedroom. Coruscant seemed to sparkle and shine. The temperature was warm, yet not uncomfortably so. The sky was a clear baby blue color that Qui-Gon loved. Considering the bad weather that they had been having lately, the good weather seemed special, which was appropriate because today was a special day. Today was Qui-Gon Jinn's birthday.

Qui-Gon stepped gracefully off the spacious bed, onto the green-rugged floor. He changed out of his sleep-clothes into a clean tunic, and headed off for the kitchen, his stomach growling.

When he arrived in the doorway of the kitchen, he was met with the sight of a sleepy-eyed boy. The table was set neatly, and there were plates filled with food. Obi-Wan lifted his head and saw Qui-Gon. Forgetting his dignity, Obi-Wan ran over to his much- loved mentor.

"Happy birthday, Master!" Obi-Wan said eagerly.

Qui-Gon smiled widely, "Thank you, Obi-Wan." He glanced again at the table and heaping plates of food. "Did you make that?" he inquired.

Obi-Wan nodded proudly, "Yes, I did, Master. Come on!" Obi-Wan led his Master over to the table. They both sat down at the same time.

Obi-Wan motioned to Qui-Gon to start eating. Qui-Gon complied and dug his fork into the contents of the meal, lifting the fork back into his mouth, savoring the delicious taste of the food. "Padawan, this is wonderful!" Qui-Gon exclaimed.

Obi-Wan grinned as he too began to eat. About halfway through the meal, Obi-Wan glanced at his Master. "How- how old are you turning, Master?" he asked nervously, afraid that perhaps he was being too nosy. It wasn't exactly his business to inquire about his Master's age. But his nervousness evaporated, as he saw that Qui-was not angry.

Qui-Gon looked up, "Well, padawan, I am turning 49 today," he answered.

The fourteen-year-olds eye's widened, "wow!" he exclaimed.

Qui-Gon smiled, amused, as he brought the fork up to his mouth again.

"That old, huh?" Obi-Wan murmured softly to himself.

Qui-Gon grabbed a towel from the counter and reached over the table. He gently smacked Obi-Wan in the head, "I heard that you little brat." Qui-Gon said, his eyes twinkling with mirth.

Obi-Wan gave an innocent look and buried his grin in his plate. They finished they're meal ten minutes later.

"Thank you for the breakfast, padawan, it was truly delicious." Qui-Gon said.

Obi-Wan shrugged aside the compliment, "It was no trouble, Master, really," he answered as he began to wash the dishes. Qui-Gon started to help, when Obi-Wan put his hands on his hips in a classical scolding posture, "Today is your birthday, I'll do the dishes, you go sit down, or something."

Qui-Gon laughed softly and sat on the comfortable couch in the living room. Obi-Wan soon joined him, trying to wipe the bubbles from dishwasher liquid off of his hands, onto his tunic. Qui-Gon rolled his eyes.

"You'll get your present tonight, okay Master? "Obi-Wan said.

Qui-Gon looked at his young apprentice, "I really don't need a gift, padawan, the breakfast was enough."

Obi-Wan shook his head firmly, "you are getting a gift, Master, there is no way out of this." He said as he winked youthfully.

Qui-Gon grinned, "Fine padawan. But, its really not necessary, although I do appreciate it."

Obi-Wan smiled and leaned back into the couch. "Master," he said cautiously, "Are there any past birthday gifts you would like to share with me?" He glanced at the older Jedi, who had his grin still plastered across his face.

"Well, once Tahl got me this wonderful locket when I we were younger. It was beautiful, made of pure gold, words with exquisite beauty were carved into it." Qui-Gon reached down into his tunic, and grabbed a hold of something that was lying on his neck. He took it off, and held it in his hands so Obi-Wan could see. It was, as was described, a locket of pure gold. It was in the shape of a heart, and not one single scratch mark was visible on its glass like surface.

Qui-Gon opened up the locket, and inside was a small picture of a younger him and Tahl. They looked about 16, and they were both smiling and laughing widely, a clearly un-candid picture. Obi-Wan read the words that were carved into the right side of it. It read, To my best friend, Qui. Remember me forever, as I shall remember you. You shall always be in my heart, for the day not goes round when you aren't here with me. Love, Tahl

Obi-Wan smiled softly, and looked up at his Master, who was staring at the locket. He put it back on, and then started talking again. "I know you probably don't want to hear this, but Xanatos also got me many wonderful gifts."

Obi-Wan looked down nervously. What if his Master didn't like his gift? Ah, well, it was a bit hard not to give him that now. Obi-Wan turned his attention back to his Master who was speaking again. And that was the way a large portion of the afternoon was spent, the two Jedi talking to each other. Time flew for Qui-Gon, he hadn't even realized that they had been talking that long.

At the 5th hour, Qui-Gon's comlink suddenly rang. He rose to get it, leaving Obi-Wan to hide his nervous grin. "Jinn here," Qui-Gon answered.

"Hey Qui!" It was his friend, Mace Windu, "First of all, happy birthday! Second of all, do you think you and your padawan could report to the Main Hall in Coruscant Square, please?"

"Thanks, Mace," Qui-Gon said, referring to the birthday part, "Why are we needed in Coruscnat Square?"

Mace's voice had a strange tone to it, "We'll tell you when you get here."

Qui-Gon sighed, "All right, Mace. We're on our way."

They terminated the link, and Qui-Gon walked to the living room area. "The Council wants to see us in Coruscant Square, padawan." Was it just him, or was Obi-Wan a bit antsy? "Let's go."

Obi-Wan jumped off the couch as if he was attached to a spring. Qui-Gon eyes him curiously, "Something wrong, Obi-Wan?" he asked.

Obi-Wan fidgeted a little, "No, Master. Come on, let’s go."

Qui-Gon shrugged and allowed himself to be lead out the door. They hailed over a taxi, and arrived there ten minutes later

The majesty of the Square never ceased to amaze the Jedi Master. The building was an enormously tall one, with the walls painted a cerulean color. Large windows plastered throughout the building, which allowed you to see the clear sky of Coruscant. Large maroon symbolic cloth with designs on them, hung from the ceiling. Obi-Wan also gazed around in amazement, although nervousness was wracking through him.

When they arrived in the Main Hall, the friendly face of Mace Windu was too be seen to greet their arrival. "Obi-Wan," he said first, "You go through that door." He pointed to a large, old-style wooden door that led into a large room, concealed by velvet drapes of great majesty.

Obi-Wan nodded and turned to Qui-Gon, "see you soon, Master." He bid as he walked through that door, grinning nervously.

Qui-Gon turned, confused, to look at Mace, "Where is Obi-Wan going?" He asked.

Mace smiled, "You'll see" was all he said. It was then that Qui-Gon noticed the large setup of chairs filling the large room. Mace beckoned Qui-Gon to follow him to the front row of the room. Qui-Gon followed, not even going to question anything anymore. They both took a seat, and turned their attention towards the stage that was in front of them.

Lights blazed on as a middle-aged man ran out onto the stage. In a booming voice, he announced, "Welcome ladies and gentlemen, to Coruscant Square's 25th Talent Competition! This year, we have the most talented people from all over Coruscant"

Qui-Gon gave a start as he realized what that meant, perhaps his padawan was in this competition?

The man kept talking, until the first performer came out. She was a humanoid, with long locks of golden hair. She started her performance, a dance routine, a very beautiful one at that. When she was finished, a long string of applause followed, and she took a bow, apparently pleased with her performance.

Time went on, different talented children performed, and Qui-Gon found himself enjoying himself immensely. And then, down to the very last performer, a familiar face popped out onto the stage.

The announcer introduced him as Obi-Wan, a Jedi Padawan. The crowd seemed pleased, as they looked upon the young boy, but none as pleased as Qui-Gon. Obi-Wan lifted his head shyly, as music began to play. It was then that Qui-Gon realized his padawan was in this show for singing. "I never knew Obi-Wan could sing!" Qui-Gon said out loud quietly to himself.

The music was soft, but was gaining speed. It was only a matter of seconds before the first word trickled out of Obi-Wan's lips.

My gift is my song
And this one is for you
And you can tell everybody
That this is your song

His voice picked up confidence as he saw everyone staring wide-eyed at him. His accented voice was smooth, barely a trace of foreignness in it. His ginger-red hair was gleaming in the spotlights placed above him. Obi-Wan glanced up and looked at Qui-Gon, and then began singing again. His voice strung across the stage, and enveloped everyone that viewed him, no one could move.


And may be quite simple that
Now that it's done
I hope you don't mind
I hope you don't mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is
Now you're in the world

Obi-Wan looked out at the crowd, and he began to smile, his lips turning upwards. Qui-Gon noticed that even the announcer had stopped moving, and was paying close attention to the boy. The emotion in Obi-Wan's voice was heavy, and it enveloped everyone in the room. They could all feel that Obi-Wan had an indispensable amount of love for a certain invidual.


Sat on the roof
And I kicked off the moss
Well singing these verses
Well they, they got me quite cross
But the suns been kind
While I wrote this song
It's for people like you
That keep it turned on.

So excuse me forgetting
But these things I do
You see I've forgotten
If they're green or they're blue
Anyway the thing is
That I really love you. Dad
Yours are the sweetest eyes
That I've ever seen [/i]

Qui-Gon felt a lump form in his throat. "He called me Dad," he said to no one but himself, "My boy called me dad."

And you can tell everybody
That this is your song
And it may be quite simple
But now that it's done

I hope you don't mind
I hope you don't mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is
Now you're in the world

The song ended, and the room was dead silent for a couple seconds, before one by one, every member in the audience stood up in their seats, clapping hard. A standing ovation was soon in order for Obi-Wan, who was grinning like his birthday had come early.

The announcer ran on stage, holding a golden trophy, that gleamed almost as brightly as Obi-Wan's hair. "And the winner of this years Coruscant Talent Competition is, Jedi Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi!" Everyone clapped again, loudly.

Obi-Wan felt as if his ears where going to explode, but as soon as he looked at his Master, he knew it was worth it. Obi-Wan squinted a bit, were those tears in his Master's eyes?

A microphone was put in his hand, and all of a sudden the entire room had gone silent again. Obi-Wan looked slightly nervous, but started talking. "Um, thank you. I am honored for this award. Erm, I want to thank everyone I know, thank you for everything." His eyes lingered on Qui-Gon, "But most of all, I want to thank the person that this song is dedicated too. That person is Qui-Gon Jinn. He is not only my Master, but he is a father to me to. Happy birthday, Master." Obi-Wan smiled, and ran down to his Master.

Qui-Gon, with a suspicious brightness in his eyes, held his padawan tightly. "Thank you, Obi-Wan."

Obi-Wan took his head out of his Master's robe. "I'm sorry I could get you nothing else, Master. I couldn't think of anything, and I just wanted you to know that since you accepted me as your padawan, they have been the best times of my life. I love you, Dad."

Both Master and Apprentice were oblivious to the "awwws" the crowd let out. Qui-Gon held his padawan by his muscular shoulders. "Know this padawan. These times have been the best of my life, also. It was a wonderful present. The greatest gift is your song, son. A song of love." Obi-Wan smiled brightly, tears also forming in his eyes.

As the minutes past, they knew that they were not meant to just be a Master/Padawan team, they were meant to be father and son.

Obi-Wan knew that no matter the future would bring him, those words would always be in his head, "The greatest gift is your song."

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