Author's note: This is my new little diversion. Consider it A/U because I did have to play around facts a little, with the timeline a bit and I made up a planet. I know first chapter's short, but I'm still working on the next few chapters and plan to post again next weekend...unless I get talked into posting earlier...LOL. This is another-type of origin story for me, but this is what happens when I get to thinking what would happen if... Also, I have a whole other plan for this than I did for "Transmutation", so I hope you like it. OH! and Sabine will be coming. She's part of the action later, so don't think I cut her out for no good reason.
1. Then
The scent of earth and rock surrounded the beings in the tunnel as they made their way through to a larger cave. Halo lights lit the chamber which contained several pieces of furniture, along with a large holotable in the middle. Depa Billaba and her padawan Caleb Dume had come to Cham Syndulla's residence, then been taken to this hidden conference room far beneath the house. Caleb assumed it was to be certain they weren't eavesdropped on by listening devices, because they had been scanned for such before they had been brought to this room. The war on Ryloth was over, but it had apparently left its mark on the planet's inhabitants. Even though Master Windu had helped save Ryloth,and the battles were over, Syndulla retained his cautious nature, and so the precautions.
His Master took a seat on a rock ledge carved into the stone for the purpose, and gestured to the rock near him. "Sit if you wish. It may be a while before we are joined by Master Windu and Syndulla."
"Yes, Master." The thirteen-year-old padawan followed suit. He glanced to his master and saw she had closed her eyes, obviously in meditation. He tried to do the same thing, but thoughts of their mission were getting in the way. They were here to escort Master Windu back to Coruscant after the victory on Ryloth. It would be the first time Caleb would meet Windu after becoming Master Billaba's padawan. Usually younglings went to Ilum to get their lightsaber crystals, but instead, he and Billaba had traveled to a planet named Jedha, which some said contained one of the most important Jedi temples. Caleb had received his kyber crystal after facing a test of his greatest fear. This time he would meet Windu not as a temple youngling, but as a full-fledged Padawan who had won his Kyber crystal and would soon build his own lightsaber. He examined his emotions about Windu and realized that he wasn't trying to impress the Jedi It was more like he wanted to prove himself a worthy padawan to Master Billaba.
He wondered was that the wrong thing to think? Was wanting to make someone proud un-Jedi-like behavior? He was supposed to let go of pride, wasn't he? But it wasn't like he wanted it for himself. Mainly, he just wanted her to be glad that she chose him...that was all. Did that count? He sighed at all the questions piling up in his mind. This was not helping him meditate at all.
As he tried to quiet his mind, a brilliant force-signature became slowly apparent, and he watched its shine with his inward eye while it moved across the room towards him. He opened his eyes to see a girl, a Twi'lek of about 7 or 8, standing there, in front of him, looking at him with a wondering gaze. "Woah..." She whispered as he looked into her green eyes. "You're a Jedi?" She spoke in carefully accented Basic.
Caleb nodded. "A padawan," he said, keeping his voice low so as not to disturb his master. He did not notice that Depa had cracked open an eye and was watching them with the hint of a smile on her features. The boy looked at the radiant warmth of the Twi'lek's Force-signature again. It was like a tiny sun, lighting up the room, just like her smile. She was a lot shorter than he was, with skin the color of new leaves, spring leaves that had just unfurled themselves to the sun. He smiled at her, then put out his hand. "I'm Caleb Dume. Padawan to Master Depa Billaba."
"I'm Hera Syndulla." Her lekku curled a little at the tips, shyly, when she introduced herself and shook his hand in return. "You must be here to see my father."
He nodded. "We are here to escort Master Windu back to Coruscant."
"Father will probably be late. He's always late." Her lekku twitched as she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. An old, dented and dirty astromech wheeled over to them. "Chopper! I told you to stay back in my room." Hera went over to the mech, who was flailing one manipulator arm while the other arm hung limply at his side, obviously broken.
"Wow. An astromech. Is he yours?" Caleb came over with her to peer at the orange and white droid.
"Yeah. I found him a year ago, and I've been fixing him up. His manipulator is broken, though." She frowned. "If I find a new arm for him, he'll be good as new, but after this war, parts are hard to come by."
He was dented and had some carbon scoring. Caleb knelt down beside the droid, who began to squawk loudly. "Shhh!" Hera cried, almost as loud as his squawking. "You'll disturb Master Billaba!"
Neither child heard a soft, muffled laugh come from the Jedi across the room.
"Do you have a Harris wrench?" Caleb asked her, peering at the droid's arm.
"Yep," Hera withdrew the tool from her back pocket, and handed it over to him. "Do you know how to fix it?"
"Maybe. Let me get in here and take a look." Caleb backed up quickly when Chopper rocked indignantly from side to side on his struts.
"Stop, Chop. That's not nice. Let him try to fix you." Hera peered at what Caleb was doing to the little droid, intent on learning where she'd gone wrong.
Caleb removed the arm, took the edge of his sleeve and cleaned the connectors. He tried reversing them from the way they were before, but it didn't work. Then he peered more closely at the tech that connected the arm and servo to the droid's electronics and he found some bent connection points. He straightened the metal connectors the best he could, then replaced them. "It's hard to see where it's bent, but look right here." Caleb pointed. "He's had some damage. Ok, now let's see..."
"He was in a crash. I found him in pieces and had to get a new leg for him, but it doesn't match. He doesn't like it very much. After that, I put on new optics. His old ones were cracked."
"I'd say you did a pretty good job." He used the wrench and replaced the arm. Immediately Chopper waved it in the air with a "ta-da" noise.
"That was it...the connectors were just damaged. You're all good now."
"Thank you so much!" Hera threw her arms around Caleb in her excitement. Then she realized what she'd done and quickly let him go and turned back to Chopper as her lekku flushed.
Caleb felt pride again—no it was thankfulness. Jedi were supposed to help others, and helping her made him feel as if he were fulfilling his purpose in life. "It was nothing." He murmured. He was struggling for what else to say when he felt, rather than saw, a new presence in the room. Hera looked up immediately, her happy expression falling. It was her father.
"Hera. Get that rusty, bucket of bolts out of here, before I get a servant to haul it off." His voice was sharp. By the way Hera reacted, it wasn't the first time he'd been short with her.
"Yes, father. C'mon Chop." Chopper made a grumpy noise, and Hera patted the astromech on the head to start him moving along with her. When she was almost out of the other door, she cast her gaze back to Caleb where her father couldn't see it and mouthed a silent 'Thank you.'
He smiled softly at the younger Twi'lek, then returned his gaze to Cham Syndulla. Later, he would not remember much of the meeting with the famous resistance leader, but the girl...the girl and her smile he would remember. As with all things when the Force was involved, there was a good reason for it.
