Busted
A Qui-Gon/ Obi-Wan story
"Master, you're always holding me back! It's not fair!"
Obi-Wan knew that at fifteen, he was too old to be stomping his foot in frustration, but he felt like doing it anyway. He also knew that his tone of voice came dangerously close to whining, and that his master could not stand whining at all, but he couldn't seem to help it.
Qui-Gon eyed him with a frown.
"If you can't talk to me in a mature and respectful way, maybe you need to spend some time in your room before we continue this discussion?" he asked sternly.
Obi-Wan shook his head quickly, knowing that making Qui-Gon resort to such a measure would certainly mean an increase of his punishment.
"No, master," he said hastily. "That's not necessary. I'm sorry."
Qui-Gon nodded.
"A wise decision," he said calmly.
"Padawan, I am not holding you back. You are simply not good enough yet at cushioning your falls to practice aerials without a harness. And when I allow you to start doing so, it will be under my supervision. I am very willing to offer you more coaching in the areas you need to work on. We can always take additional time to practice the skills you particularly want to improve. But I will not stand for you asking older padawans to teach you skills I have expressly refused to teach you. Anrik and Oriador are going to be punished by their masters, and you will be punished as well."
Obi-Wan nodded mutely. Once he had been found out, which, of course, had not at all been according to plan, he had been fully aware that he was not going to get out of this unpunished. He just hoped his punishment would not include a sore bottom. He had not been spanked in a while, and he really thought he was getting too old to be put over his master's lap.
Qui-Gon gave him a long, thoughtful look that made Obi-Wan squirm in nervous anticipation of his sentence.
Finally, Qui-Gon said: "Alright. This is, fortunately for you, the first time I found you practicing things you weren't supposed to do, and you at least had the sense to do it in the presence of padawans who would have been advanced enough to save you if something had gone wrong."
"But master!" Obi-Wan interrupted. "I keep telling you, it didn't go wrong! I'm old enough to..."
He stopped when he saw the dark look on his master's face.
"You do want to make this worse on yourself, don't you?" Qui-Gon asked ominously.
"Ummm," said Obi-Wan. "No. Umm. I don't. Sorry."
Qui-Gon gave him another scrutinizing look that made his padawan squirm. Then he said firmly: "This is what's going to happen. Your lightsaber training is completely cancelled for a week and will be replaced with chores. And I am not speaking of watering the flowers here, I am speaking of sweeping temple floors or cleaning refreshers for at least two hours every day. You will spend this time contemplating your actions and thinking about better ways to deal with your frustration than disobeying me and doing things behind me back. Furthermore, you will be grounded for two weeks, and I will assign you additional meditations. I sincerely hope that this punishment will convince you that what you did was not a good idea. If it doesn't... we will have to do this the hard way next time. Am I quite clearly understood?"
Obi-Wan bit his lip and nodded.
"Yes, master," he said quietly. Suddenly, he wasn't so certain whether a spanking wouldn't actually have been preferable to this. Sure, Qui-Gon's spankings hurt, but... No buts, he decided. A spanking would have been worse than this. Until now, he had not received a single spanking from Qui-Gon that had not made him wish he had been punished in any other way.
In any case, he didn't get to vote on the way he was punished, so the question was academic. One thing was for sure, however: If this was the easy way, he did not want to find out what the hard way looked like.
"Stop. Right. There."
A mere two days after his grounding had ended, Obi-Wan was brought to the sudden realization that the most vital part of his plans for the day had completely failed to work out: 'Don't get caught'.
The fact that he was engaged in an unauthorized lightsaber duel on a rope fifteen feet above the ground when his master's voice caused him to freeze did nothing to improve the situation. Of all people to enter the gym at this hour of the day, did it have to be Qui-Gon, who was supposed to be attending an all-day hearing at the Republic Senate? Obi-Wan had the distinct feeling that he was, after all, going to find out what the hard way looked like.
He slowly lowered his lightsaber, and Shiva, his opponent followed suit. The rope they were both standing on (rather unsteadily, in Shiva's case) was strictly off-limits for unsupervised padawans, and what was more, Qui-Gon had very specifically forbidden Obi-Wan to set foot on it just two days ago when he had listed a huge number of - in Obi-Wan's opinion - totally exaggerated safety rules before finally lifting his padawan's grounding.
/I'm doomed,/ Obi-Wan thought glumly. /I might as well just jump./
He didn't, though - partly because he did not really have a death wish, in spite of all the trouble he was in, and partly because Qui-Gon was just at this moment telling him to stay put.
He immediately stood as still as a statue, trying very hard to look like the most obedient padawan in the whole world. His hopes that his master was going to be impressed were not very high, though.
Qui-Gon, in the meanwhile, ordered Shiva, who seemed to have a much less secure hold than his own apprentice, off the rope first, stabilizing her with the Force. When Shiva was down, it was Obi-Wan's turn. The boy made his way to the small platform and down the ladder very reluctantly, then took a hesitant step towards his master, studying the ground with great interest.
"Look at me, padawan," Qui-Gon said very quietly. Obi-Wan slowly lifted his gaze from the floor and was met with such a displeased look that he flinched.
"You," Qui-Gon said sternly, "will go to our quarters, put your nose in the corner and wait for me there while I deliver your friend to her master. Now."
Obi-Wan looked at him in consternation. He hadn't had to stand in the corner since he was... well, actually, he had never had to stand in the corner at all until now. However, it took him only one second to come to the conclusion that it would not at all be wise to test his master on this. He turned and fled - at least momentarily - from Qui-Gon's displeasure.
/How exactly does one stand in the corner?/ he wondered when he had arrived in the common room of their quarters. There was only one empty corner he could possibly stand in, so this, at least, was clear. He went there until his nose was nearly touching the wall, then just stood, feeling quite stupid. Especially with an empty room in his back. This feeling, however, was heavily outweighed by his anxiety. Qui-Gon was very clearly absolutely furious, and Obi-Wan had to admit to himself that he had any right to be so. He had simply hoped not to get caught, but that hadn't worked the last time either... WHY was Qui-Gon so darn good at appearing at the wrong places in the wrong moment? It must be a skill that only Jedi Masters possessed. Obi-Wan knew that he had only very narrowly escaped a spanking the last time, and he also knew what this meant. He did not have the slightest hope of getting away with an over-the-knee handspanking, which was not exactly reassuring to think about. Unfortunately, he had great difficulties thinking of anything else than his impending punishment right now.
While Qui-Gon was walking back to his quarters, he was trying hard to release his anger and disappointment into the Force. He could not fathom what had gotten into his usually well-behaved apprentice to test him like this - and only two days after he had been released from his grounding for basically the same offense, at that. What he had done today had been much more dangerous than his previous transgression, however, for he had not been with older, much more advanced padawans, but with a girl who was even less experienced than Obi-Wan. He would really have to tan the boy's hide for this stunt. And he wondered whether there was even any point in letting him explain himself first. Qui-Gon could not imagine that there could be any explanation that might make Obi-Wan's disobedience and disregard for his safety seem any less like a punishable offense. Still... he was going to have to give the boy a chance to speak. But he was not going to enter into a discussion about this. Obi-Wan was supremely good at arguing, and Qui-Gon was not going to have any of that right now.
Walking into the common room, he looked at his apprentice's back for a moment, willing himself to be calm.
"You can turn around now, padawan," he finally said.
Obi-Wan complied immediately. "Master, I'm sorry. I-"
Qui-Gon cut him off by taking two long steps towards him, taking his shoulders in both hands and saying sharply: "You might think you're sorry now, but you will be much, much sorrier before the day is over. Now, is there anything that might possibly excuse - not only explain, but excuse - the level of disobedience you have displayed today?"
"Ummm... welll...." Obi-Wan mumbled, staring at his boots.
"Yes or no, padawan?"
"No, master," Obi-Wan admitted. He had had a sinking feeling in his stomach all along, but by now, he felt positively sick.
Qui-Gon sensed this and sighed. As much as he wanted his padawan to take this punishment seriously, he did not exactly want him to be sick with fright.
"Obi-Wan," he said a little more gently, guiding the boy's chin upwards with his fingertip and making him look at him. "I care for your safety. I don't want you to get killed in a pointless stunt. If a long and hard spanking is what you need to keep you from risking your life, a long and hard spanking is what I'm going to give you. Not because I hate you, but because I love you. Do you understand that?"
Very slightly reassured, Obi-Wan nodded.
"Yes, master. But-"
"No buts, padawan. I love you, and you are going to be punished right now. None of the two things is open for debate. Go to your room. I'll be with you in a second."
Obi-Wan was mortified when he saw his master entering his room carrying both a paddle and a strap. Each of the implements was bad enough by itself, but he didn't think he was going to survive both.
"Master..." he pleaded weakly.
"No, Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said sternly. "You deserve this, and you know it. We will talk more about this later. Right now, you are going to bare your bottom and bend over your desk."
Obi-Wan complied miserably, not daring to protest. He usually was spanked over his master's lap, and he hated having to bend over a piece of funiture. It felt impersonal somehow... and it required much more willpower to keep still this way than when his master held him. But obviously, his opinion on the matter was of no relevance at the moment.
Without making any further words, Qui-Gon went to stand at his padawan's side. He let the paddle rest on the boy's bottom briefly, both to measure the distance and to prepare him for what was to come, then raised it high and brought it down onto Obi-Wan's bottom, hard.
"OUCH!" Obi-Wan yelped, shocked at how much this stung. He had been paddled before, but he realized now that Qui-Gon had always held back at these occasions. He was not holding back now, which made for a very, very unpleasant experience.
"MASTER! I'M SORRIIIIIEEEEEOOWWWW!"
After only three scorching swats, he felt tears stinging his eyelids. The fifth swat, which was directed to the crease where his bottom met the thighs, had him stomping his feet in a futile attempt to alleviate the pain.
"You will keep still, padawan," Qui-Gon ordered firmly, though not without compassion. He knew very well how hard it was to keep still during a paddling like this. But he also knew he needed to make it very, very clear to Obi-Wan how serious he was about this.
Obi-Wan forced himself to remain still through the next three swats, but he yelled loudly with each of them. The ninth swat was directed to his left thigh and made him howl, jump up and try to protect his bottom with his hands. Before he even realized what was happening, Qui-Gon had pressed him back onto the desk, saying grimly: "You were told to keep still. That's one extra swat."
That was the point at which Obi-Wan started sobbing.
Qui-Gon couldn't help but take pity on him. He patted his back and sent him a brief flash of reassurance through their bond.
"We're almost done here, padawan," he said gently. "Only one more, plus your punishment swat. You can do this. Brace yourself."
Obi-Wan nodded miserably, still crying hard. He managed to keep still when the paddle came down onto his right thigh, although his howl could probably heard in the Council chamber.
Qui-Gon gave him a moment's reprieve, then raised the paddle again.
"Now for your punishment swat, padawan," he said and brought the paddle down right onto Obi-Wan's sitspot.
Obi-Wan thought he couldn't possible cry any harder. This was not the longest, but certainly the hardest paddling his master had ever given him. His bottom seemed to be on fire, and he couldn't imagine being able to sit down any time soon. Plus, the prospect of a strapping was still looming over his head.
Qui-Gon gave his very sore apprentice some time to calm down, then pulled him up and into a hug.
"This part is over, Obi-Wan," he said gently, stroking the distressed boy's back. "That was a hard paddling, but you took it well. You know I can't let you get away with risking your life."
"I know," Obi-Wan brought out, his sobs gradually subsiding. He leaned his head against his master's shoulder, hoping against hope that his master would somehow deem him sufficiently punished and just forget about the strap.
"I'm sorry I disobeyed you," he murmured.
"Yes, and you are still going to be punished for that," Qui-Gon said calmly, shattering Obi-Wan's hopes. "The paddling you just received was for endangering your safety. Your blatant disobedience has earned you a strapping on top of that. But first, I'm going to do some healing on your bottom. I want to teach you a lesson, but I do not want to harm you. Besides, we need to talk. Lie down on your bed while I get the ointment."
Obi-Wan felt a mixture of dread and relief at these words. Receiving a strapping from Qui-Gon was never a picnic, but judging from the harshness of the paddling he had just endured, this one was going to be really bad.
/Well... what have I been expecting?/ he thought glumly as he lay down on his bed face-down. /I've repeated the exact offense for which I've been punished a mere two weeks ago, only worse./ He had very rarely been punished for repeat offenses before, but those punishments had always been memorable.
Qui-Gon soon returned with a bottle of ointment in his hands and started to work it into his apprentice's buttocks and thighs with surprising gentleness. The boy's skin was a very dark shade of red, and Qui-Gon had no doubt that it hurt fiercely. He let a steady stream of healing energy flow to the damaged area. The pain would be almost gone when he was done, but the skin was still going to be tender.
"What could you possibly have been thinking to do something like this?" he asked quietly while he was working to improve the state of his padawan's bottom.
Obi-Wan was silent for a moment. Had he been asked that question before his paddling, he would probably have given a rather mutinous response, but he felt too vulnerable right now to try anything but the remorseful approach.
"I wasn't thinking," he finally said miserably. "It was stupid of me. I'm so sorry, master."
"That's good," Qui-Gon said, turning his attention to Obi-Wan's thighs. "But that's not what I wanted to know. What I wanted to know is what made you do something this stupid. No matter how inadequate an explanation it might seem like."
"Umm..." Obi-Wan said. Now came the difficult part. No, that wasn't true. It seemed as if the day was entirely composed of difficult parts since he had been caught. But some of these at least did not require him to do anything, except for keeping still and yelling "Ouch!"
"Errrm," he ventured.
"Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said, a hint of warning in his voice. He had finished his ministrations to his padawan's bottom and let his tunic fall over it for the moment to grant him a little bit of modesty.
"Okay, okay," Obi-Wan said hastily. "It had to do with the grounding. Ummm. The others were kind of asking about it, and I was kind of embarrassed to admit that it was because you had forbidden me to do those aerials without a harness, and I, errr, I mean, they teased me about it, so I, well, kinda wanted to prove I can do this stuff. So Shiva and I kind of ended up on that rope."
"You kind of ended up on that rope," Qui-Gon repeated in a flat voice.
"Yes," Obi-Wan assured him a touch too fast.
Qui-Gon frowned. He could sense that his padawan was trying to conceal something from him. Besides, all of this sounded rather unlikely.
"Now, why am I not buying this?" he asked pointedly. "Padawan, your story makes no sense. Why would your classmates' teasing about not being allowed to do aerials without a harness make you start a sparring match on a rope that is out of bounds to all of you and that has nothing to do with your grounding whatsoever? The truth, please. Lying to your master is unwise under the best of circumstances, but I would have thought you were smart enough not to even think of trying it now."
Obi-Wan gulped. Why, why, why had his master to be so darn perceptive?
He drew a deep breath. It seemed as if honesty was his only option now. Anything else would be simply suicidal.
"Alright," he said in a subdued voice, barely audible at first. "It wasn't quite like I told you. I'm sorry I tried to lie to you. What really happened was this. I... I was too embarrassed to tell them that my grounding had been because of these aerials because... uh... I had been telling them that I had been doing them without a harness for quite a while, and I couldn't go back on that... So I told them the first best thing that came to my mind, which was that I was grounded because I had snuck onto the rope and got caught... And they thought that was so cool, and they urged me to do it again, and all our masters were supposed to be away at that hearing, and Shiva wanted to try it, too... Well. That's how we ended up there. I'm sorry. I know it was an idiotic thing to do."
"Yes, it was," Qui-Gon said sternly. "Had you not bragged to your classmates and lied to them, twice, you wouldn't have brought yourself into that situation. And even when you did brag to them and they encouraged you to go up onto that rope, you should have refused on the grounds that you had no permission to be up there, no matter whether your master was around or not. This is not the kind of behavior I expect from my padawan."
"No, master. I'm sorry," Obi-Wan murmured, trying to hold back his tears.
"I sincerely hope so," Qui-Gon replied firmly. "I am still going to punish you for your disobedience and your attempt at lying to me now, and I sincerely hope that you will learn your lesson."
"Yes, master," Obi-Wan brought out, choking back a sob. There wasn't really much else to say.
"Well, then, let's get this over with," Qui-Gon said a little more gently. He stood up and retrieved his strap.
"Stay on the bed, but put two pillows under your hips," he instructed his apprentice.
Obi-Wan groaned and obeyed. He hated the way this position exposed the sensitive undercurve of his bottom, which was still bound to be rather tender.
"Alright," Qui-Gon said. "That will be eighteen for disobeying me, especially after having been punished for the same thing a mere two weeks ago, and six for your misguided attempt at lying to me. Getting out of position will earn you extra swats, and I think we'd both prefer to avoid that. Ready?"
Without waiting for an answer, he lifted the strap and brought it down onto the center of Obi-Wan's bottom.
Obi-Wan had no idea how he survived this ordeal without actually getting out of position once. Possibly by howling so loudly that it could certainly be heard on the other side of Coruscant. Never, ever had he been punished so severely before, and he vowed to himself that he was never going to risk a repeat. After it was over, he simply continued to lay there, sobbing. He didn't even try to touch his bottom - he was sure it was only going to make things worse. With a start, he realized that his master had sat down next to him and put his hand on his shoulder.
"Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said softly. "I want you to meditate on the lesson you have learned from this. You can take all the time you need. When you're done, come talk to me. I'll be in the common room."
When he left the room, he took the ointment with him. He was going to do a fair amount of healing to Obi-Wan's sore bottom, but not before Obi-Wan had done a fair amount of thinking on his actions.
Later that night, Obi-Wan was sitting in his master's lap with his head on Qui-Gon's broad shoulder. It had been a long time since he had been seeking to be cuddled in such a childish way, but tonight he desperately needed the reassurance and comfort that came from it, and Qui-Gon readily provided it.
"Do you think you're going to be able to sleep, padawan?" he asked gently, stroking the boy's back in a soothing rhythm.
Obi-Wan nodded sleepily. "Yes, master. It doesn't hurt all that much any more. Thank you."
He wasn't quite clear about what it was that he was thanking his master for. Not only the healing, that was for sure - although he was definitely more than grateful for not having to sit (or stand) through classes tomorrow with a well-strapped bottom. Maybe it was the security that came from having it brought home to him just how important his safety was to Qui-Gon.
"It's good to have you, master," he murmured, snuggling closer to Qui-Gon's chest. "Even though you keep showing up at the wrong moment and interfering and always finding out when I mess up."
He grinned a little cheekily, looking up at his master.
Qui-Gon grinned back. "What kind of a master would I be if I didn't do all these things?" he asked good-humoredly. In a more serious tone of voice, he added: "I can return the compliment. It's good to have you. And that's exactly the reason why I can't allow you to risk your life pointlessly." He ruffled Obi-Wan's hair affectionately.
"I know," Obi-Wan said around a yawn. "I told you I'm sorry. I won't do it again. Honestly. I mean it and everything. Can I please go to bed now?"
"Yes, padawan," Qui-Gon said gently, enveloping the boy in a strong hug. "You can go to bed."
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