Feast of Souls by Catnip

[splix.livejournal.com]

Title: Feast of Souls

Author: Catnip

Rating: PG

Pairing: Q/O, of sorts

Warnings:







I feel a little stupid for even doing warnings
since the fic follows canon - ie, Qui-Gon is dead,
but: character death. Also, possible food squick. :)














Author's e-mail, web site and/or LJ id:
wcoomber@coppervalley.bc.ca

Link to story:
http://www.masterapprentice.org/archive/f/feastofsouls.html

Reasons for recommending: Most of my favorite Q/O
stories are quite long and plotty. This one's
neither, but it's found its way onto my hard drive
as one of my all-time favorites. It's a
beautifully written, succinct little fic about
grief and acceptance. It also cleverly explains
canonical events in the original trilogy that
don't quite match up with another event in TPM.

Caveat: Don't eat while reading.

Quote from story:

He listened, enchanted by the beauty of it, the
stark simplicity of that one pure note that
carried such longing and grief. He could sit here
forever and listen to it, meditate with it, let
his soul weep with it ...

Until the echoes returned, adding ugly, discordant
notes to the beautiful sound. The keening turned
into harsh, barking sobs, blaring to his ears, as
though they were coming from right next to him.

He felt the broad, callused palm of Qui-Gon's hand
resting on his forehead, as it had done a hundred
times in the past. It was warm and moist against
Obi-Wan's cold skin, still pulsing with life. It
soothed him and touched the places in his heart
and soul he thought had died and shrivelled.
Unconsciously, he leaned towards it.

Comments

[thalia]

How did I never read this? Eww, for one thing, but it's an interesting take on Jedi tradition.

[the-haunt.livejournal.com]

I remember how difficult it was to get through this the first time. I wanted to tear my gaze away and move on to something else, but I couldn't. The grief was so deep and poignant that I felt it through to my toes; I was mesmerized and I kept reading. And by the end I really felt like I'd been there with Obi-Wan, sharing in the pain. It was an intense purgation.

This story definitely isn't for the squeamish, but it's very powerful in its own right.

[maliwane.livejournal.com]

This was just as . . . . fascinating the second time around as it was the first. Good ol' Catnip! And yeah, sorta like a train wreck - you don't want to look, but you can't look away. LOL!

[gloriana.livejournal.com]

Do you know, either I missed this the first time round, or else I have erased it from my memory? I like the pushing of the envelope, and the questions of cultural relativity, but I somehow can't get myself into that mourning headspace...

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you very much to all of you.

Didn't know if it was kosher to leave a message in the midst of this discussion, but it seems to be dying down now, so...

Alex, you are sooo wonderful. I can't believe that you rec'ed that story, but THANK YOU so much! You're crazy and you're wonderful and I love you so much!!!

Gloriana, thank you for the criticism. You read much more into the story than I thought I wrote into it, but I so much appreciate your views on it. I really should rewrite it, but truthfully I can barely stand to reread my writing in whatever genre I write in.

Alex, have I told you lately that I love you? You gave me my first ever OH MY GOD! moment when I found your rec to my story yesterday. Made me grin all day, which is so nice. Thank you so very much. Your faith makes me keep thinking that I can eventually write fics that are cohesive and worth reading. I learn a little bit more each time you folks give me feedback.

Thank you all of you,

Catnip