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The sun was barely up over the glittering city planet of Coruscant as Qui-Gon waited for his tea to steep while relishing the quiet of dawn. These peaceful first minutes of the day were always his favorite. The time before the world woke up and the Force flowed freely above the background noise of the giant city around them; it was why he rose with the sun whenever they were home in the Temple.
It was also his few blissful moments of alone time from his Padawan. Living every day with a teenage boy was sometimes a trial- no matter how much you loved said teenage boy- and occasionally it was nice to have some time without the sullen looks, the outright rebellion and the constant need to question everything ever.
Yes, this was Qui-Gon’s favorite time of the day. A strong cup of tea and blessed silence. He sat at the table, his hands closed around the warm cup and enjoyed. The passage of time faded as he moved deeper into the Force, and he connected to all things around him. Eventually he reached out and gently to connect with the two beings asleep in the other room, but he may have accidentally lingered too long as the Force rippled back alerting their rise to consciousness. Oops. Quiet time was over.
The soft thump told Qui-Gon Trouble was up. A brief pause and a slightly louder thump signaled Trouble’s keeper was also up.
Trouble the Loth cat made her entrance with a huge stretch, each front leg one at a time in front of her in a bow then each of the back ones also dramatically one at a time, her tail straight up in the air. The whole display was topped with an enormous yawn to remind the world of her mouth full of razor sharp teeth.
Behind her Obi-Wan also appeared for his just-out-of-bed stretch. He stretched his arms up over his head relishing the way his muscles quivered awake from slumber; right up until his spine aligned with a very audible crack which elicited a squeak of discomfort and surprise.
Qui-Gon arched an eyebrow at him and smiled slightly over his tea cup. “Good morning children,”
Trouble warbled her good morning and moved quickly towards him with her strange gait and talons clicky-clicking on the stone floor.
Obi-Wan was still frozen in place waiting for his spine to release. “Morning,” he muttered through slightly gritted teeth. “It would be better if someone wasn’t a bed hog.”
“You were the one who insisted on keeping her,” Qui-Gon reminded him wryly.
“Yeah….” The boy finally lowered his arms cautiously, waiting for more surprise pain. His Master was right, Trouble was his alone.
Trouble had entered their lives via a sketchy merchant booth in a rim planet space port. What was supposed to be a twenty-minute change of ships became an hour long haggle with the proprietor of said sketchy booth in which Obi-Wan had insisted (perhaps with some Jedi skill) a tiny crate was no place to keep a cute little whatever this creature was. After winning the negotiation, and paying the credits, Obi-Wan had happily played with his bat eared prize all the way back to the Temple on Coruscant - only to be confronted with the task of smuggling her in. It had been humorous for Qui-Gon to watch his Padawan walking along in front of him struggling to contain a live animal, complete with claws and teeth, within his robes while trying to also keep a proper straight face.
Somehow they had made it to their quarters undetected with everyone’s limbs intact. Trouble promptly earned her title by upsetting several potted plants in the windowsill while chasing a probably imaginary bug and proceeding to grow exponentially by the day. Amazing how a proper diet could cause a wild animal to reach her full unexpectedly large potential.
Now the almost 20 lb. feline creature was perched on the chair opposite Qui-Gon staring into his soul with her big eyes and quivering whiskers. The demand was obvious. Obi-Wan joined them at the table, scooped her up with a grunt and sat her on his lap. His face now shared a similar expression.
“The children require food I suppose,” Qui-Gon sighed setting his tea cup down. Trouble watched his every move intently. She made a little chirp sound which was very obviously a ‘yes’.
Obi-Wan grinned and kissed her on the top of her soft head right between her giant pointy ears where the fur was most plush. “Yes please,” he also chirped.
The morning ritual continued as Qui-Gon made his Padawan and his creature breakfast and Obi-Wan read news headlines off his data pad, mostly for Trouble but he knew Qui-Gon liked it too.
Trouble purred and dug her claws into Obi-Wan’s thighs in delight and anticipation of food. She was very content and also deaf to his protests at the liberal use of her daggers. “Ow! Trouble! Why!?” he whined, disengaging her toes once again from his tender flesh.
Obi-Wan really had not been familiar with Loth cats as a species or even where in the galaxy the planet Lothal was, when he saw the little pile of fluff in the filth filled crate. He just knew he needed to save it, whatever it was. Inconclusive research and some weird behavior from said Loth cat had, on occasion, caused him to question some of his recent somewhat rash decisions.
But not when Trouble was squinting up at him and purring so loudly he could feel it. Qui-Gon set two plates down on the table and gave Trouble a warning look. He set her plate on the floor. He was a tolerant man, but no cats would be eating at his table. She jumped down and proceeded to wolf her breakfast- in much the same way Obi-Wan always did. Growing cats and boys clearly needed morning meals to survive the wilds of the Jedi Temple.
This was probably Qui-Gon’s second favorite part of the day; the silence and peace of sunrise may now be gone but the joy of the morning was still present. Obi-Wan’s smile and babbling over their shared meal was still a quiet connection before the day really began. It was their time, before duties and obligations butted in and filled the day with distractions and worries.
Trouble rubbed against their legs under the table while chittering happily. The city around them woke up and also began its new day, enacted in billions of little rituals just like theirs, no less joyful or intimate.
Obi-Wan yelped in surprise as Trouble nipped his bare ankle. It was probably safe to assume other beings breakfast meals did not include aggressive Loth cat love biting. “Don’t say it…” he muttered.
Qui-Gon wasn’t going to say anything, not out loud anyway, but his laughter carried through their bond causing Obi-Wan to pout slightly. Trouble’s round head popped over the edge of the table as she stood on her hind legs and eyed the two mostly empty plates just out of her reach. One little black foot darted out but Obi-Wan was quicker and snatched the plate away. “You’re so naughty Trouble!”
“She’s certainly not alone in that is she?” Qui-Gon asked and enjoyed his Padawan’s aghast look at the implication he was also as naughty as the above average house pet. It was true though, and they both knew it. Obi-Wan stood up in a feigned huff and shouldered Trouble, “Come on kitten...lets go play in the Fountain Room. I think you need some fresh air.” Her purring in his ear was deafening as they returned to their room to get dressed for a romp.
Qui-Gon sipped the last of his tea and contemplated his least favorite morning task- doing the dishes. His Padawan and the Padawan’s cat had made themselves scare at the critical moment there work was to be done. Typical. The upside was once they left on their adventure he would have their rooms to himself again and perhaps he could enjoy some further quiet time- until lunch anyway.