SW Fic bit (part 3 of 3)

[tarotgal]

I finished this part the same day I finished part 2... but I thought it could use a bit of a wait before I posted it. Anyway... yes, enjoy the conclusion!

Title: Evaluating
Author: tarotgal
Fandom: Star Wars
Pairing: Obi/Qui
Rating: PG13
Warnings: Fluff
Disclaimer: The great flannel one. Not I. I make no money off this.
Summary: Obi-Wan does some self-evaluation and works through his head cold as Qui-Gon looks on.
Previously Posted: Part 1 and Part 2

Part 3

"On behalf of the Jedi Order, I take great pleasure in welcoming you all here today," Obi-Wan whispered, trying not to look down at the datapad on sink counter in front of him. Instead, he kept his eyes focused straight ahead at the mirror and his reflection in it. "This festival is…" He paused, feeling the unavoidable tickle creeping up on him.

He raised one arm and buried his nose in the crook. "IhhhChoo! Snuff! Yihh-Chushhh!" He lifted his head and wiggled his nose. "Sniff, sniff, sniifffffffff!" The hand not holding his speech reached over to the box of tissues by the sink. He blew one-handed then coughed a half dozen times into the tissue, hoping it would muffle the sound well enough. All the coughing he'd been doing this afternoon would surely wake his master up from his nap if the sneezes didn't do it first.

Obi-Wan cleared his throat and began at the top of the page. "On behalf of the Jedi-"

"Padawan?" Obi-Wan glanced to the side to see Qui-Gon standing in the 'fresher doorway. "You're practicing your welcome speech for the festival?" Obi-Wan nodded. "Good for you." He stepped forward, leaned close, and kissed the top of Obi-Wan's head. "I'll leave you to it, then."

Glad to be left alone to practice, Obi-Wan sniffed, cleared his throat, and began again. "On behalf of the Jedi Order, I take great-"

"Obi-Wan?" Qui-Gon popped back in again with an amused expression. "It's all right. I'm awake. No need to whisper any more."

Obi-Wan looked down at the datapad as a rosy hue filled his cheeks.

"Padawan?"

Obi-Wan cleared his throat and turned to Qui-Gon with his hands up. "First, Master, there's no cause for alarm," he whispered as loudly as he could, which wasn't much. "And second-"

He didn't get to second before his master exploded. "No cause for alarm? You've completely lost your voice!"

"I can still whisper," he stressed. "With a microphone, there won't be any problem. See?" He cleared his throat. "On behalf of… of…" His nose twitched and his face fell. And he directed the sneeze into his shoulder. "YihhChooo!" When he lifted his head, he saw Qui-Gon standing behind him, looking at his reflection in the mirror.

Two hot, strong hands found their way onto Obi-Wan's shoulders. "Nice try. But you're sick, and you're absolutely not going to the festival."

Obi-Wan's eyes widened at Qui-Gon's reflection in the mirror, instead of looking over his shoulder at his master. "But I've worked so hard at it. It's all I've thought about for weeks. And to be asked to deliver the opening was such an honor. Sniff! Sniff! I just can't give up now."

"Taking care of yourself when you're very ill is not giving up, Padawan."

Obi-Wan coughed and shook his head. "But I'm not very ill. It's just a sniffle and a few sneezes."

"And so much coughing that you've lost your voice," Qui-Gon pointed out.

"But I don't have a fever!" Obi-Wan said, trying to get above a whisper in order to prove his point. However most of the words were silent and bits of the rest came out in as a few high-pitched squeaks. He reached up to the mirror and pulled open the door to the medicine cabinet behind it. Quickly, his hands reached around, searching desperately for a thermometer. Whispering again, "You can take my temperature right now if you don't believe me. I don't have a fever. I'm not sick-"

Obi-Wan went silent as Qui-Gon's arm mirrored his and a hand grabbed his wrist, holding it still. "Padawan, I believe you. And even though your temperature is normal, you're still sick."

"But…" Obi-Wan stammered, trying to think of something to say. "But…"

"'But' is not a sentence," Qui-Gon said in his best teacher voice. "And neither is it a reason I should allow you to compromise what little health you have." His hand slid up Obi-Wan's arm and massaged the shoulders firmly. His thumbs reached up and brushed Obi-Wan's jaw. "There will be many other festivals and ceremonies. And there will be other chances to prove yourself to everyone."

"Ihhhh…" Obi-Wan's eyes slammed closed and his hand snapped up to his face, cupping around nose and mouth just in time so he didn't sneeze all over the refresher. "Hitchuhhh! YiiihhChschhh! IhhhShhhh!"

More shoulder-rubbing accompanied Qui-Gon's gentle, "Bless you, Padawan Mine." And a soft kiss sealed the sentiment. The kiss blended into a nuzzle, with Qui-Gon breathing warmly into the top of Obi-Wan's head, short fuzzy hair and all. "Let Bant cover the opening this time. You've certainly taken much care with the preparations. I am confident that the festival will run smoothly with you in bed. I want to see you take care of your cold, now." His hands slid down and wrapped around Obi-Wan in a hug.

Completely unable to say no to such overwhelming persuasion, Obi-Wan sniffled and nodded. "Yes, My Master," he whispered, closing his eyes. He set the speech aside and turned in Qui-Gon's arms, snuggling into his chest. "I know you need to be at the festival," he whispered. "SniffsniffSNIFF! But perhaps you have a few moments to spend with me first?"

Qui-Gon hugged tightly. "I can tuck you into bed and sit with you a little while," he said nodding. "And I will give you a full report of the festival when I get back, if you're not asleep by then."

"If I am, you can wake me up," Obi-Wan whispered. "I'm sure you can figure out a way to do that."

"Mmm." Qui-Gon patted his padawan's back. "We'll see." Then Obi-Wan broke away and headed for the bedroom, with his master following right behind.






Afterwards note: The funny thing is, I already had this worked out plot-wise at least a week before I lost my voice last week. Still, it was nice being able to empathize with him while writing it. *snuggles Obi*

Comments

[the-pirate-girl.livejournal.com]

hey. Just wanted to tell you that I really liked this story and how Obi-Wan pushes himself so hard to impress Qui-Gon. It's so sweet! I love all your stories! Thanks for posting them for your fellow sneeze fetishists to enjoy!

[the-pirate-girl.livejournal.com]

An addendum to my last comment-I was bored and inspired by your story Familiarity on your website and I did a quick sketchie of sick Draco for you. Enjoy! Thanks again for all your great fics!

[tarotgal]

Oh. My. Gods.
OMGOMGOMGOMG!

This is the first time anyone has ever drawn anything specifically from one of my stories. And it's... it's just breathtaking!! And much enjoyed, believe me!

His eyes are just precious- Draco totally looks all sick and sleepy... and his pajamas! Oh, I just love his pajamas! And the tissue (or is it a handkerchief?) in his hand... I love its rumples.
I think I mentioned he was a fourth year in Familiarity and, thus, wouldn't have the mark yet. But I'm glad you ignored it and drew it anyway because it fits SO much better now. And the ring like in the movie! And Snape there with that touch. I love the angle of his hand and the way it's so tight around Draco's head. More than just a light pet... like Snape is thinking and his hand his heavy or he's about to ruffle Draco's hair. *deep sigh* So fantastic. I'm in awe of the details and the cuteness.

And I'm incredibly touched that you'd illustrate one of my fics. It's always been a huge desire of mine because I, ah, suck when it comes to drawing. So seeing my words in image form... it's incredible. You're so sweet! Thank you so, soooooooooooooooo much!!!!! *hughughughughughughughughughughughughughughug*

Funny thing is, I was just thinking about this story last night. So it was quite a surprise to see even a mention of it today, let alone this!

Would you mind if I put the picture (with credit to you and a link to your gallery, of course) up in the gift section of my website? Because... gods... this is just too gorgeous for words. I'm so very, very moved. Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *HUGEHUGS*

Is there anything you'd especially like me to write for you? I know this was a thank you present already, but I'd be more than happy to write you a "you're welcome! and thank you!" present because this was so fantastic and sweet of you!

[the-pirate-girl.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you liked it!!! no need to write anything for me in return--just keep writing all those great sneezefics, YUM! and cetainly, feel free to put it up on your website. Thanks :D

[tarotgal]

Awww, thank you! :-) Considering how shocked Obi was in Episode I when Qui suddenly said he was ready for the trials, I have a feeling Obi was always very keen to please. I always worry things like workaholic!Obi will get boring to people, since I write it SO much. But I love that characteristic and love to have fun with it. So it's great to hear you really liked that element. So thank YOU for reading and taking the time to give me feedback!

[vatergrrl.livejournal.com]

> "'But' is not a sentence," Qui-Gon said in his best teacher voice.< Oh, yes, LOVE that bit! Qui, always in control and always the teacherly type. I bet he's quite the grammar avenger, too, if it every came to that. And the laryngitis aspect felt very new, innovative, and fun -- it's a vastly underused element in h/c and sneezefetish fiction, given how common it is in real life and how endlessly frustrating it is when it happens, ALWAYS before a major speech or vocal performance! The implied sex scene at the end was a nice cap to the storyline -- although I like slashy stuff just fine, I think that here the "curtain closes on our two lovers" motif was just the right touch, a "fade out/shut the door" thing which can be hotter than a full description of what happens next.

[tarotgal]

> "'But' is not a sentence," Qui-Gon said in his best teacher voice.< Oh, yes, LOVE that bit! Qui, always in control and always the teacherly type. I bet he's quite the grammar avenger, too, if it every came to that.
I would think so, considering how honed his diplomatic skills are. It's important to watch what you say in such circumstances and project a proper image of the Jedi... damn, I'm getting another bunny already! LOL
But I'm very pleased you liked that bit. It made me giggle as well. However, I cannot claim responsibility for it. My aunt (who substitute teaches now and uses that with her students) must have said that to my younger cousins at least 5 times during my vacation, and so as I was writing (and noticing I used the word 'But' a lot more than I meant to) I just couldn't resist adding in a few more 'But's and putting in that line.

And the laryngitis aspect felt very new, innovative, and fun -- it's a vastly underused element in h/c and sneezefetish fiction, given how common it is in real life and how endlessly frustrating it is when it happens, ALWAYS before a major speech or vocal performance!
Yes, ALWAYS! *remembers her big speech in Public Speaking class at uni and having to get a doctor's note*
Though it's funny you mention laryngitis as feeling new & innovative. To me, it felt old and used. I included it in a few of my fics WAY back in my first year of story-writing. It's in that camping trip story I wrote... and others I can't recall off the top of my head. But it IS something I hadn't used in a while and I'm VERY glad you enjoyed that element!

The implied sex scene at the end was a nice cap to the storyline -- although I like slashy stuff just fine, I think that here the "curtain closes on our two lovers" motif was just the right touch, a "fade out/shut the door" thing which can be hotter than a full description of what happens next.
What's funny is that my first drafts were much more gen at the end. Obi's last line was added during my last editing session because after re-reading parts 1 & 2 I decided I needed a tad bit more meaning behind Qui's "Mmm" for part 3. Before that, though, it was just Qui "Mmm"ing in doubt about waking Obi up later (presumably wanting him to go to sleep and stay asleep as festival news could wait). And I still didn't intend them to go off and be doing it there. I definitely wanted to imply that later they might, but really I intended for Qui to just tuck him into bed and sit with him a little (to be sure he stayed put and didn't run off to the festival after all).
But I totally agree. Sometimes the sexiest things are the parts you don't see. The implications that let you imagine more in an image or a storyline. And I'm glad you thought that worked for this. I just wanted fluff and snuggles :-)

*Hugs* Thank you for such lovely feedback!!

[ladykorana.livejournal.com]

Oooh, such yumminess! I'm glad he finally agreed to rest and let himself heal...and relax with his Master.*G* I really enjoyed this series of fics. And I enthusiastically second the comment about the laryngitis...it's an often- overlooked symptom that I'd really love to see more of in fics.

[tarotgal]

Thank you! :-) I know it was rather short for a multi-parter, but I'm glad you enjoyed them all so much! I agree. Much as I love it when Obi pushes himself... there's something about him giving in and snuggling up to Qui in bed that's quite satisfying :-)

And you're right. It certainly does add an interestng dimension/complication to a storyline. I'm surprised it's not out there in fics more often! I'm very glad you liked it here.


I've got a medical question for you... if that's not imposing too much. I've given one of my characters Strep Throat (which is a terrible way to phrase it, but that makes me giggle so there it is) and I was wondering how long it takes docs to run the test to determine that's what someone has. During my one and only experience with it, it took 24 hours for them to get back to me about it. But my boyfriend at the time was shocked at it taking so long and said he'd only had to wait a few minutes when he had it as a kid. Which surprised me. I know they usually take a few swabs and maybe there are multiple tests which take different lengths of time, but I'm finding it hard to come upon anything which explains this online and thought, perhaps, you might have some idea? I don't want my boy going without antibiotics longer than he needs to... but I don't want it to be too quick a determination if it's not supposed to be, either.

[ladykorana.livejournal.com]

Yay, a medical question! I so enjoy the chance to contribute in some small way to your fic writing processes...

There are two ways to detect strep throat (the technical term is 'streptococcal pharyngitis', for what it's worth, but even medical personnel usually just use the slang term): 1. a rapid immunoassay test to detect the presence of the bacterial antigen, which takes only minutes and 2. sending the swab to a lab to have the bacteria grown in selective growth media until there's bacterial colonies that are big enough to be cultured, which takes a day or two. It's very common for offices to run the Rapid Streptococcal Antigen Test in the presence of symptoms suggesting strep throat (soreness, redness, swelling, etc.), but the rapid test is less specific than the culture, so a sample is frequently sent to be cultured as well, especially if the rapid test is negative but symptoms are present. In either case, antibiotics flow like water nowdays, and I'm pretty sure they'd give antibiotics until the culture results came back, just to be safe and not get sued. Hope that helps!!

[ladykorana.livejournal.com]

Also, FYI, doing a culture is considered the gold standard in terms of positively identifying all bacteria present. If there's more going on there than just the strep bacteria, the rapid test won't pick that up. Also, once identified, cultures can be tested against antibiotics to determine sensitivities to various drugs, but that takes a bit more time (and money) and isn't usually done unless the infection is proving dangerous or difficult to treat. Just so you know. *G*

[tarotgal]

Ah-ha! Well, that makes perfect sense then. I should have asked you long before- that's something I've been wondering about for a year or two. LOL
And that's MORE than helpful. Well, in the sense that now I have some idea of what should take place and what would be accurate.

It's less helpful in the fact that now I have to rewrite massive amounts of the story and don't know how in the world I'm going to work around that now. Bah. *tosses fic out of the window*

Unless... is the rapid test by any chance something that might concievably take longer if it was a busy night in the lab and things got backed up for a few hours? Or is it *only* a walk down the hall and be back in 10 minutes type of thing? My fic's set in a busy emergency room and I'd really like them to leave without knowing for *certian*.

And THANK YOU! You're so fantastic! And very sweet to help me with this! Really, really does help. Even if it means having to rewrite the whole dang fic ;-)

[ladykorana.livejournal.com]

It really is only a couple minutes to walk down the hall and run the test. There are no elaborate set-ups or special facilities required. Theoretically, it is possible that the ER could have been so busy that they have run out of test kits, but that would mean the people in charge of ordering supplies have been doing a piss-poor job of it. *G*

Hmmm...maybe that particular lot number of test kits could have been recalled by the manufacturer for some flaw or something. See, there are ways around every fic problem! ;)

[smokeycat-430.livejournal.com]

I think I could go on and on about how much I enjoy your cute and fluffy stories but so I think that I'll just stop before I start and save it for other times. Loved this part as well and was sad and a little surprised to see that it was the end as I was expecting it to be longer for some reason. Oh well, I'm sure you already have more yummy goodness left to post later. ;-)

[tarotgal]

Awwwwww! Thank you so much! I must admit, it feels quite good to write cute and fluffy. I sometimes worry that I like writing them so much and that they won't be of much interest to readers because, yeah, fluff. So it's really great you enjoy them so much! :-)

I'm sorry it was so short. Part 3 was actually a few pages longer than parts 1 and 2, but I know what you mean. Sorry about that.

And, yes. No worries. Definitely have many more fics to come!

[(Anonymous)]

Oh! I loved this! I really did. My favorite had to be when we (and Qui of course) realized that Obi's whispering wasn't out of choice, but out of necessity! Poor little JedI! Moments like that make me wanna hug and squeeze poor Obi! Plus, Obi sounds just like me. I always gauge my illness on whether or not I have a fever. Haha, like Obi, no fever = not sick. :)
I loved this (fluff!)

~A

[tarotgal]

Thank you! Sometimes a bit of fluff is just what the doctor ordered, isn't it? :-)
My favorite had to be when we (and Qui of course) realized that Obi's whispering wasn't out of choice, but out of necessity! Poor little JedI! Moments like that make me wanna hug and squeeze poor Obi!
Yay! I totally agree.

I always gauge my illness on whether or not I have a fever. Haha, like Obi, no fever = not sick. :)
I must admit I do that for certain illnesses as well. I'm glad you liked that- it was definitely the one thing that made me write this whole story. He brings up the fact that he doesn't have a fever in each part, though does so with more and more strength as time goes on.