"Little Wonders"
He heard the other kids laughing at him again. He'd fallen and scraped his knee while doing the exercise Master Zekk had assigned. And it was an easy assignment! A simple course to resolve without using the Force.
But the boy had failed again and the other children were still laughing at him. He kept falling even when they were allowed to draw on the Force.
The boy hung his head and tried holding back tears. Did the other kids even know how much it hurt when they kept laughing at him? When they kept talking behind his back?
He knew he was clumsy but he didn't want to be reminded of it over and over again.
With anger buried beneath his heart, he headed out of the gym, stomping his short legs as he went. The lesson wasn't over yet but he didn't care. If he'd stayed and listened to the other children whisper, he knew he would start to cry. And then the whispering would get even worse.
The outside air was cool and moist, tickling the scrape at his knee. He bent down to examine the small wound and was happy to see that it was hardly bleeding. It would be another scar but that was okay. Scars made him remember that he was training to be a Jedi. And even though he was a clumsy child, deep within he hoped that he would make a great Jedi like Master Zekk.
The boy sat down on a large boulder, bringing his small legs to his chest. He pulled his knees closer and sighed as he watched beautiful white clouds pass by overhead. He listened to wildlife around the jungle; there were birds chirping and insects singing in the grass. He felt the trees and the flowers as they grew, he felt smaller animals scurrying beneath the earth.
He was strong in the Force, even old Grand Master Skywalker had said so, but still he was clumsy and kept falling.
There was a rustling from behind and the boy thought one of the other kids had followed him. He hoped not. He wasn't in the mood for a stupid argument and he knew he'd try to hit the person who dared make an unwanted remark.
But as the boy turned he was very surprised to see Master Zekk standing behind him. The tall Jedi was an imposing figure. His silver streaked black hair was braided into a ponytail hanging down his back, his green eyes almost glowing in the dim light of the day. And he didn't look happy at all.
"Eedrah, what are you doing out here?" he asked as he came closer, kneeling beside the boy to get a better look at him.
Eedrah tried to hide his tears, tried looking away from the Master. He felt embarrassed. He shouldn't be crying like a little girl! He was supposed to become a Jedi Knight and Jedi Knights never cried!
"I hurt myself." He said in a low voice, wiping his eyes on the sleeve of his small robe, "They were making fun of me again."
Master Zekk sighed as he straightened back to his full height, "Come on." He said, reaching out his large hand for the boy to grasp, "Let's go for a walk."
Eedrah kept quiet as he walked along side the Jedi Master. He'd never really talked to Master Zekk before. He kept his gaze to the ground, taking notice of small pebbles and green growths along the way. The breeze around them picked up, rustling his short blond hair.
"You shouldn't have just left, Eedrah." Master Zekk suddenly said and although his words were chastising, his voice was very soft.
Eedrah wiped at his eyes again and nodded, "I'm sorry, Master Zekk." He sniffled and clasped his small hands behind his back. He felt like a baby crying in front of the Master. Why couldn't he just be like the other kids and be tough?
Master Zekk halted his steps and gazed down at Eedrah, the faintest trace of a smile on his face, "Are you alright?"
The question surprised the boy completely. He shrugged and nodded curtly, not wanting to seem weaker than he already felt. If the children already made fun of Eedrah for failing, what would Master Zekk think now that he'd seen him cry?
"Eedrah." Master Zekk knelt before the young one and laid a large hand on Eedrah's shoulder, "You needn't be ashamed." He sighed and crouched before the boy, "Tell me what happened."
Eedrah sighed and shifted his blue gaze to the ground beneath his feet. He began to tell Master Zekk that the other children used every opportunity to make fun of him. Sometimes when he was good at certain things and when he was really, really proud of himself they would still find something to make him feel like a failure.
He sniffled again, "Why do they do that, Master Zekk? It's mean."
"I know, Eedrah." Master Zekk smiled, "Some people are cruel but you must try to be above them."
Eedrah wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his robe, "That's what my Mom always says, too. That people fail, even the children who tease me. But I'm tired of always being last. I don't want to fail anymore, Master Zekk."
Master Zekk chuckled at this and Eedrah turned his attention to the older man. This wasn't really a laughing matter and it irritated Eedrah that Master Zekk thought it was funny.
"I don't think it's funny." The Jedi Master said, as if he had read Eedrah's mind, "No one wants to fail, Eedrah. No one. But failure is a lesson each and every one of us must learn. Without failure you wouldn't be able to appreciate success."
Eedrah forced himself to look at the Jedi Master; he wasn't convinced.
"Have you ever failed, Master Zekk?"
He sighed heavily and nodded once, his dark green eyes suddenly showing the tiniest bit of sadness. "Of course, Eedrah. I have failed and I have made mistakes."
"But you're a Jedi Master. Master's don't make mistakes." Eedrah's voice was laden with childish naiveté.
"Eedrah, I was once young like you are now. And the young tend to make mistakes in order to grow." He huffed out a breath of air and shifted his gaze to the sky, "I was a frustrated child, Eedrah. I thought of myself to be worthless and when I met a few of my friends and got to see their lives up close, the feeling intensified and I became angry."
Eedrah listened, captured by the Masters' words, "After various events I finally met up with a man who promised me a better life. And I believed him because I had nothing left to lose." Master Zekk sighed heavily, "I turned to the Dark Side of the Force, Eedrah. Although only for a short time that was one of my biggest mistakes."
Eedrah's eyes had widened considerably and he stared in shock. Master Zekk had gone to the Dark Side? The one Master he looked up to over all others had been a Dark Jedi? The boy could hardly believe it.
Master Zekk noted the boys' reaction and let a mirthless smile cross his face, "So you see Eedrah, no one is safe from failure or mistakes. It is the way of life."
Eedrah nodded slowly but said nothing more. It seemed he had trouble accepting that even the greatest of beings were not infallible.
"But you shouldn't dwell on your mistakes, Eedrah. I wouldn't be the man I am today if I kept questioning my actions instead of looking into the future."
Eedrah looked aside and watched a colorful bird perched atop a small stone, chirping happily. He couldn't help but wonder if animals had a sense of good and wrong, of failures and mistakes.
"How did you come back, Master Zekk?" he asked in a small voice.
"My friends helped me."
Eedrah nodded and forced himself to look at the Jedi Master. He wondered if the Master had told any of the other children about his fall to the Dark Side. Eedrah was sure the other Masters knew.
"It really doesn't matter, does it?" Eedrah suddenly asked, "It's who you are today that's important, isn't it?"
Master Zekk smiled and nodded, "Exactly."
Eedrah crossed his small arms over his chest and exhaled loudly, "I understand that everyone makes mistakes and all but – I want the other kids to stop teasing me, Master Zekk."
Zekk got to his feet then and nodded, "I'll tell you what; I'll help you practice with the exercises after the lessons. I'm certain you'll do better."
Private lessons with Master Zekk? Eedrah smiled with elation, "Thank you, Master Zekk." It took all his self control not to jump around in joy and hug the older man, "It would mean a lot to me."
"All right. Now hurry back inside. The lesson isn't over yet."
Eedrah bowed slightly and turned on his heel, running back the way he'd walked with Master Zekk. He felt a lot better when he entered the gym and he ignored the stares the other children were giving him. He'd do better next time; he was certain of it.
Zekk watched the young boy as he ran down the path. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and smiled to himself. The mind of a child is truly a wondrous thing, he thought as he turned around and headed the opposite direction. He'd left one of the Jedi Knights in charge of the younglings as he'd headed out to see what was wrong with Eedrah. The boy had promising Force abilities and Zekk was certain he'd someday become a powerful Jedi Knight.
There was a sudden tingling at the nape of his neck and Zekk stopped, tilting his head to the side as he closed his eyes. He smiled then and drew in a breath, "I was wondering when you'd return."
"You did well with the boy."
Zekk eyed the shimmering blue form of his childhood friend, his heart aching that he could no longer hold her, "You were eaves-dropping?"
Jaina laughed, "Guilty as charged."
"Why are you here?"
Jaina sighed and the smile on her face vanished, "I came to say good-bye, Zekk."
Zekk cringed at the thought of losing her a second time. But he had known the time would come but he wasn't ready for it. He didn't believe he'd ever be ready for it. His heart pounded beneath his chest as Jaina smiled and he had to ask himself where the two of them would be, had she not died – had she listened to him and let her stubbornness be.
She stepped closer and raised a translucent arm. He could barely feel her touch but his hair stood on end and he closed his eyes, "I miss you, Jaina."
A single tear pearled down Jaina's shimmering cheek, "And I miss you, Zekk." She let her hand drop and stepped back, "I know we'll see each other again. In time."
Zekk nodded and watched his love dissipate with a warm, swirling gust of wind. He took a shuddering breath as he realized she wouldn't visit him any more. He was now truly alone, "I love you, Jaina."
For a moment he thought he'd felt her touch on his cheek but he couldn't have been sure. The feeling was gone almost immediately. But he hoped it was her answer; he hoped that after all these years, after all their ups and downs, Jaina still felt for him as in the beginning of their adventurous relationship.
"I love you." He whispered again before slowly returning to the gym with a heavy heart. After all, he still had a lesson to teach.