'But I am asking you what you think,' Qui-Gon said. 'You can have a feeling. It does not have to affect your behavior.'
Obi-Wan hesitated again. 'I think that personal happiness is less important than duty.'
Qui-Gon frowned. His Padawan had evaded the question. He had not lied, but he had not told the truth, either. Yet Qui-Gon would not chide him. The evasion came from a place of goodness. Somehow Obi-Wan must feel that to tell Qui-Gon the truth would be wrong. Qui-Gon would let the question rest there. He would not push. He was learning how to be a Master as surely as Obi-Wan was learning how to be a Padawan.
Learn not to teach, you must, Yoda had told him. As surely as you must guide, you must also be led.
They fell asleep to the gentle slap of the waves against the dock. The sun rose, and they awoke to the sound of birds and the splash of fish in the sea.
'I'm afraid I have no more food,' Leed said to them. His manner was friendlier than last night. Qui-Gon thought that was a good sign. It reinforced his decision not to push today. He would stand back and wait to see if Leed and Taroon could find each other.
Drenna had been awake for some time and had untangled fishing line and lined up short spears for each of them.
'On Senali, we are taught from an early age to be responsible for our own nourishment,' she said to them. 'If you wish to eat, you must fish.'
'I am not hungry,' Taroon said haughtily.
Drenna met his gaze steadily. 'That is not true,' she said. 'You are hungry. And you are afraid.'
Taroon bristled, and Qui-Gon gathered himself for another argument. He would not allow this one to go so far, he decided. A day of harmony would do them all good.
But before Taroon could speak, Drenna added in a gentler tone, 'It is natural to fear water when you cannot swim. But I can teach you. Senali and Rutanians are the same species. If we can be expert swimmers, you can be, too.'
Taroon hesitated.
'Of course,' Drenna said, shrugging, 'you might have a problem. You can't send seeker droids after fish. And if you hit them with a blaster, there goes your breakfast.'
She smirked at Taroon. Drenna had thrown out a challenge, Qui-Gon saw.
'I can learn by myself,' Taroon said.
'No, you can't. Do not worry,' Drenna said in a soft tone. 'I won't make fun of you. I had to learn myself, once.'
Taroon rose stiffly and picked up some fishing line and a spear. 'All right, then. Let's go.'
With a whoop, Leed dove off the dock. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan dove into the warm, clear water after him. Drenna took Taroon on the boat closer to shore to give him his first swimming lesson.
Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan donned their breathers as Leed treaded water.
'The principal source of food for many Senalis is the rocshore fish,' he explained. 'It has a spiny body with three large claws. If you take only one claw, the animal lives and grows another. You spear the fish through the tail, where it has no feeling. Then you grab the claw and twist it hard. Be careful or you can lose your fingers. You can watch me take a claw first, if you like.'
'That sounds like a good idea,' Qui-Gon said.
They dove deep into the lagoon, down where the water was cool and clear. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan followed Leed as he easily speared one rocshore fish, then another, grasping a claw and twisting to sever it, then dropping it into the pouch he wore at his waist. Soon Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon had speared their own rocshores and their pouches were full of the meaty claws.
They were almost ready to return when they saw Taroon and Drenna swimming nearby. Taroon was gliding through the water. Drenna had been a good teacher. Taroon's long legs and arms coordinated with smooth strokes and powerful kicks. He did not seem awkward as he had on land. He speared one rocshore, then another. Drenna swam beside him, pointing out fish and spearing her own with deft, perfectly aimed shots.
When they surfaced, Taroon grinned, holding up his full pouch. Qui-Gon realized that he had never seen Taroon smile.
'Pretty good, for your first try,' Drenna said. 'You are a fast learner.'
'You helped,' he conceded.
'It took me weeks to learn how to swim that well,' Leed told his brother admiringly.
Taroon turned his head to scan the shoreline. Qui-Gon saw that he was trying to conceal his pleasure at Leed's compliment. 'Well, it's better than drowning,' he said gruffly.
They swam toward the shore of the lagoon, where Leed and Drenna built a fire. They roasted the claws and cracked them open, squirting juice on the claw meat from tart fruit that Leed and Drenna had gathered.
It was a delicious meal. They ate their fill, then discovered that they still had more than half left over.
'We can take these to the Nali-Erun clan,' he said.
They paddled over to the nearby island. The clan had built their homes in the center of the island, underneath the cool shade of the trees. The structures were different from the ones in the main city. Here, they were built with leaves and reeds. They looked flimsy, and some looked ready to tumble down. When Leed held up his present of fish, children ran toward him hungrily.
'Why are they hungry?' Obi-Wan asked.
