Si-ana Tome Aru -- Remember

By Seven

Rating: G
Warning: Large amounts of angst.
Dedicated to: All the members of the QGJDL and Qui-GonList.
Disclaimer: Star Wars and all Star Wars characters are th property of Lucasfilm, Ltd.
 
 

Winter had fallen on Aladell. The breezes that swept the desert plain were cooler and
harsher.

Interested gazes watched Obi-Wan Kenobi as he walked quickly through the city, his eyes
red and his garments rumpled. Sorrow had touched him.

The guards at the palace simply looked past him, recognizing him as one of the most honored
visitors to their mistress. Obi-Wan quickly went through the huge gates, and almost ran up the
long path to the palace, perched on a rock hill like a jewel in a battered setting.

Several of the Sovereign's aides, young men and women about his age, clad in the gray
uniforms of the Aladell government, were standing near the door, and talking. Obi-Wan heard
glimpses of their conversation: "Jedi," "Jedi Master," "Master Jinn." But as the disheveled
young man came into their midst, they fell respectfully silent.

"I'm here to see the Sovereign," he said uneasily.

One dark-haired young woman stepped forward. "Si-ana tome aru, methas mei." Obi-Wan
bowed respectfully, recognizing the greeting as, "We honor your companion in your time of
grief." The woman gestured for him to follow her, and started walking toward the gardens.

It was where she often was, especially when she was unhappy. Obi-Wan knew that she
had been close to Qui-Gon since he had been twelve years old, a frightened new padawan
himself.

Amid the still-green bushes and trees, Obi-Wan saw her. She wore a long cream-colored
gown, unadorned by the usual beadwork and embroidery. Her unbound dark hair seemed to
bear more gray than before. The aide vanished into the palace after murmuring a greeting to
her queen.

"I heard, Obi-Wan," the Sovereign said softly. She rested her hands on a railing as Obi-Wan
sat down beside her on the stone bench. "The Republic has suffered a great loss..."

From any other, the words would have sounded like a useless attempt to be sympathetic, but
Obi-Wan knew how deep the feeling ran. "I don't even know why it happened..."

"It's the will of the Force," the Sovereign replied with a sad smile.

"I know... I know," Obi-Wan replied, staring off at the horizen. "But how could his death serve
anything good?"

The Sovereign sighed. "I have learned, in a century of politics, that sometimes... for the
ultimate good, evil must strike a blow."

Obi-Wan did not reply. She gently put a long arm around his shoulders, and drew him to her.
"Obi-Wan," she murmured, a few tears welling in her large, starry eyes. "Your master would
not have desired his death to be anything but what it was."

Obi-Wan shook his head mutely on her shoulder, unable to say a word. A moment later, she
drew back and rose from the bench. "Come," she said quietly, taking his hand. "I want to
show you something that may ease your grief."

Obi-Wan frowned a little, but followed her as she walked to the edge of the garden. There
was a small door in the wooden wall, leading to what he knew to be a public park. She
opened the door, and led him into the sprawling, green park, with more drooping trees
overlooking the Aladell below them, families and lovers and people who seemed to be soothed
by the peace of the place.

And in the center of it all was a monument, a huge, glossy black obelisk. Silvery Aladell letters
crisscrossed its surface. And among them all, Obi-Wan recognized a name: "Qui-Gon Jinn."

"What's this?" he asked softly.

The Sovereign turned toward him, a faraway smile touching her lips. "A memorial."

Obi-Wan shook his head, trying to ignore the pain rising in his chest. "I don't understand."

The Sovereign rested one slim hand on the smooth black stone. "The Aladell use many
resources to remember... things both good and bad. But one thing my people value above
memory... is a man who was willing to brave the storm for us."

Obi-Wan stared at the monument through a veil of tears over his eyes. The Sovereign slipped
her hands around one of his. "When the people see this, they remember. The man they saw
for years, the stories of Qui-Gon Jinn, what they were told by their parents and sometimes
their grandparents. He lives on, Obi-Wan."

"And there is another kind of remembrance," she continued. "He often told me of the lessons
you had learned. Pass them on to your apprentices. Show them in your deeds and your
actions what Qui-Gon showed to you. He lives on in the Force, and in the memory that is
passed from one to another in his deeds."

Obi-Wan could no longer see the letters on the stone. "Thank you," he said softly, leaning on
it.

The Sovereign Saleil gently hugged him, stroking his short brown hair. "Remember..."

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