Tel'har was a beautiful planet, lush vegetation,
temperate climate. What many species might consider their version of
heaven. And Obi-Wan Kenobi decided he had seen enough of it in three
days to last him the rest of eternity. For one, any comparison to
paradise would fade when the torrential nightly rains came. And
secondly, those same rains caused huge mud pits in the jungles.
Particularly sticky, clinging mud pits that Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon
managed to discover on their own.
Obi-Wan had already cleaned his body and now he was working on his
lightsaber. It was well made and designed to work in the harshest of
environments, but there were limits.
He paused when his master walked into the room, fresh from the
shower. He nodded at his apprentice before settling in front of the
room monitor to read the daily reports. He watched Qui-Gon start
combing the mass of tangles from his hair. The mud had been
especially viscous and difficult to wash out and several vigorous
scrubbings had no doubt been necessary. The older man was fairly
jerking the comb through his hair and Obi-Wan winced in sympathetic
pain. Surely he didn't need to be so rough. But he was distracted
with his reading and it was harder to remove tangles that you
couldn't see. An idea formed in the back of Obi-Wan's mind. Did he
dare?
Watching his master struggle with a particular stubborn snarl
decided it for him. He walked over and, somewhat hesitantly,
confiscated the comb. Qui-Gon glanced up questioningly for a moment,
but then resumed his reading without comment. Permission granted,
Obi-Wan carefully worked out the knot, starting from the ends and
working his way up. The heavy mass was still damp and felt cool and
soft against his fingers. From the time he'd been apprenticed to
Qui-Gon he'd always secretly admire Qui-Gon's hair. Even as a child
he'd been forced to wear his own hair short and now as a Padawan he
was allowed only a short pigtail and a braid. And so the long
strands of his master's hair fascinated him.
Not that Qui-Gon was particularly vain about it. He wore it simply,
tied back and away from his face so as not to obscure his vision.
He'd probably only let it grow because as a master he could. The
older man flinched slightly as the comb caught at yet another tangle
and Obi-Wan massaged the spot with his free hand, soothing away the
pain he had inadvertently caused.
The thick length lightened as it dried, turning a rich bronze
streaked lightly with gray, betraying his master's age. The tangles
were gone now, but Obi-Wan continued, running the comb downward and
smoothing it with his other hand. Qui-Gon had long since abandoned
his reading and instead was resting his head on his hands, eyes
closed as he relaxed into the pleasant sensation.
The long strands were silky against his fingers, clinging to them
statically. He ran his hand down its length again, to feel the
texture of it against his palm. He suddenly felt an overwhelming
urge to bury his face into those satiny tresses and inhale deeply,
to breathe in that clean scent and feel that softness against his
face.
He nearly recoiled in horror at the fleeting thought. Where had
-that- come from? Sure, Master Qui-Gon had nice hair but really,
what a most improper action that would be. Even as he pondered it,
his hands never faltered, still stroked that wonderfully silky mass.
Another thought slipped in, replacing the first. He knew how soft it
felt against his hands, the clinging filaments almost ticklish. How
would it feel elsewhere? On his chest perhaps? His stomach, his...
Qui-Gon made a soft noise and Obi-Wan dropped the comb, terrified
that his inappropriate thoughts had been discovered. But his master
said nothing and upon closer inspection, Obi-Wan realized with a
touch of pique that the older man was asleep.
The flash of annoyance fled as quickly as it had come. Of course he
was tired, neither of them had slept more than a handful of hours in
the past few days. If he had any sense of his own he'd be tired too.
He stepped back and with careful concentration he used the Force,
with careful delicacy, to shift his master into the bed. The other
man never stirred, a testament to his trust in his student. Obi-Wan
swore to himself that he would never betray that trust. He quickly
slipped into his sleeping clothes before settling on the bed with
his master and when he rested his head in the pillow, he could feel
the very fringe of that soft weight brush his cheek, faintly smelled
the fresh cleanliness of it.
Sleep was a long time coming.
-finis-
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