Hello! This is the sequel to my story, "Fixing A Hole." Basically, that means that this is an AU version of the galaxy if Anakin hadn't turned into Darth Vader. Anyway, I've thrown some interesting twists in, but the action isn't going to completely get going until the next chapter (hopefully). I hope you enjoy, and thank you very much for taking the time to read.
On Coruscant in the Jedi Temple, it was about twelve in the morning. It also happened to be a Friday and the thirteenth of the month (while that was normally good luck, this meant that the crazy girl from Dathomir next door was sharing her plots with one of her Dathomiran compatriots while they played a loud video game). The room was dark, partially owing to the fact that the room was painted black. There were two bunk beds in the room, but only three of them were occupied. The fourth bed, the bottom one on the left side, had all of the occupants' homework piled on it. Most of it was unfinished and due weeks before but belonged to the one sleeping on the bed above it. The occupant of the bed was a sixteen year old, brown haired, brown eyed human boy from Sulon who had the bad habit of snoring. Across the room was another brown haired boy, but he was a fifteen year old, green eyed Corellian who had a habit of reading into the small hours of the morning and leaving his light on after he had fallen asleep. Those two were the plagues of the third's sleep cycle.
The third could never find a way to fall asleep when there was a test the next day, seeing that the other two were in their own nervous and panicking modes. The worst part was that he always (well, almost always) turned his homework in on time. The only reason he got bad scores on any of the tests was because of the other two. Finally giving up, the last of the group got up and turned the light off. Master Kenobi had been complaining about how many light bulbs they had been running though, anyway. With one problem down, the only blond in the room sleepily debated with himself about whether to throw Kyle's shoe at him. Best case scenario, Kyle stopped snoring. Worst case scenario, Kyle stopped snoring and told Master Skywalker, Master Kenobi or (Force forbid!) Master Yoda in the morning. If Master Skywalker was told, there was no doubt that he would probably laugh at Kyle then rush off to tell all of the other Masters about how Kyle had gotten a shoe thrown at him. If Master Kenobi was told, the blond knew he'd be in a little more trouble, but Master Skywalker would find out about it and still have a good laugh. If Master Yoda found out... Well, the blond didn't want to think about that. Regardless, Kyle would be unlikely to tell the old green one, seeing as he hadn't done his homework since Finals the year before.
Before the blond could decide, his friend Corran picked up the shoe with the Force and threw it at the snoring one. Apparently Corran had decided that the benefits outweighed the consequences. "Kyle, shut up. While Coruscant is the planet that never sleeps, some of us would like to."
"For Force's sake, Corran! Did you have to throw your shoe at me! It smells disgusting!" Kyle exclaimed, now completely awake because of the stench the shoe was giving off. He picked it up with two fingers and threw it off the bed.
"It was your shoe..." the blond commented, trying to go to sleep.
"You're still awake?" the other two asked in unison.
"The light and the snoring kept me up..."
"Sorry," Kyle apologized, not really sounding like he actually was. He glared at Corran in the dark. "Did you really have to throw a shoe at me?"
"His idea," Corran replied, pointing down. "He just didn't want you to go and tell the old and wizened green gnome."
Kyle gasped. "I'm shocked to think that any roommate of mine would think that I would actually a) tell on them and b) tell Yoda of all people! Are you feeling all right?"
"No," the tired blond growled. "I'm not, and if you don't shut up, I'll make you."
"Ooo. Scary. Will you then proceed to try and take over the galaxy?" Kyle asked sarcastically.
"No. I'll stop with killing you. Then I'll go tell Master Skywalker it was an accident, apologize profusely, and sleep for a week."
Corran shrugged. "Kyle, you have to admit, Luke has a pretty good plan."
"What do you mean? He can't even get himself out of kitchen duty!" Kyle retorted.
"If I fail the test tomorrow---" Luke started.
"Old Kenobi will tell you it's your own fault," Kyle mentioned, cutting Luke off. "Remember, he's a higher rank than Skywalker, and you won't be allowed to retake it. Besides, you studied a ton earlier... Speaking of which---"
"No, I'm not going to stand any cheating whatsoever," Corran cut in. "Even if it is you, Kyle, cheating is still wrong, and I'm not standing for it. I worked really hard for this stupid test tomorrow, so shut up and go back to sleep, or I'll murder you before Luke gets a chance."
"You will go to sleep now," Luke muttered, hoping that maybe the other two would listen to the Jedi Mind Trick. Luckily, it partially worked, and Kyle was out like a light. It had probably only worked since all of them were only half awake, anyway.
"Took you long enough," Corran commented before going back to sleep himself.
Luke ignored his friend and tried to get to sleep. The Dathomirans were still discussing their plots loudly, but they suddenly became quiet. In minute, Luke was asleep.
Mara sighed. Why was Teneniel so insistent on staying up so late on Thursday the twelfth into the thirteenth, Mara was sure she would never understand. It probably had to do with the old superstition concerning whenever the thirteenth fell on a Friday. "So you swear you'll stay quiet for the rest of the night?"
Teneniel rolled her eyes. "Of course! Geez, I mean, if you'd said that we were bothering you, we would have stopped!"
"You were tormenting the guys next door again, weren't you?" Mara asked. The two witches from Dathomir always enjoyed bothering the Corellian, Katarn, and Luke.
"Mostly Luke. You know how easy it is to keep him up. I think Kyle stopped snoring, though." Teneniel shrugged. "If I heard correctly, Corran was making death threats."
"Now you eavesdrop, too?" Mara asked, somewhat annoyed.
"No. We bugged their room," the other, Allya, replied. "Katarn almost caught us ten times in a space of thirty minutes when we were setting up the equipment."
"Do I want to know?" Mara asked, shaking her head.
"The entire time we were in the room, Luke was asleep on his bed. He didn't even stir. Kyle walked back into the room every few minutes, but I was hiding on the ceiling with Allya pretending to be homework. He noticed nothing," Teneniel explained.
"Why did you bug their room?" Mara asked, now drawn into the topic.
"Guys say the darnedest things." Teneniel smiled, and Mara waved her on. "Well, there was this one time that Corran was talking about his father, and Kyle said something or other that was sort of insensitive about how Luke doesn't know who his parents are. Master Skywalker blew a gasket when we told him."
Realization dawned on Mara's face. "You two're the infamous Shadow Ninja?"
"Yup. Master Skywalker's own little covert surveillance system." Allya laughed. "You should see some of the stuff that we have on Master Kenobi! Yoda, too!"
"How've you kept this a secret?" Mara asked, a little stunned.
"Corran covers for us. He's part of our secret ops, and he's our connection to our employer (Corran is Master Skywalker's Padawan)." Teneniel thought for a moment. "Now we'll have to tell Master Skywalker that you know."
"Do you really?" Mara asked. "I'd rather do a mind-wipe on myself before confronting that particular Jedi Master."
"Suit yourself," Allya replied, shrugging, and turned back to the surveillance system while Mara walked out and went back to her room. Shortly thereafter, she started giggling. "Teneniel! News flash! Tionne's holding a party in a few days!"
Teneniel blinked. "Really? Are we invited?"
Allya nodded. "Yeah. She wouldn't have told us otherwise! You know she knows about the whole system we have set up. Lots of others are coming. It's gonna be great!" The plotting resumed.
The next morning at breakfast, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi was rather amused to see a disheveled-looking Anakin walk into the refectory half-asleep with a cup of coffee. Apparently someone hadn't gotten much sleep for whatever reason. Sixteen years had passed since the fall of Chancellor Palpatine, and Anakin still hadn't figured out the wisdom in falling asleep before midnight if he had to wake up early. Anakin found a seat next to Obi-Wan and sat down. "How are you always so cheerful in the morning?" Anakin asked.
"Because I don't stay up all night, Anakin. How much sleep did you get this time?"
Anakin groaned. "Two hours! Less than yesterday, can you believe it? Maybe I'm an insomniac or something?" He took a drink from the coffee he had with him. "In other news, how's Luke doing? I haven't had time to talk to him in the past few days since I got back from that mission on the Outer Rim concerning the Noghri."
Obi-Wan grinned. "Do the Noghri still think you're their savior?"
"Yeah... I keep telling them I'm not, but they just won't listen! It was a pretty bad crash, I'll admit, but it was nowhere near powerful enough to actually permanently damage the planet's ecosystem. The worst part is they keep calling me Lord Skywalker, and it's getting bloody annoying."
"Speaking of which, are they going to join the Republic? Do you know yet?"
Anakin sighed. "No. I don't know, but they might ally themselves with the Republic soon. I don't know how long that will be, though." He paused. "You still haven't answered my question about---"
"How is your Padawan doing?" Obi-Wan cut him off.
Translation: I'll tell you later because there are too many people around to actually be direct, Anakin thought. "Corran? I don't know. As I was saying, I haven't had time to talk to anyone since I got back. As far as I know, he has a test today. I think it was on the Clone Wars and the transition back to the Republic." Obi-Wan stared at him. "I'm supposed to be proctoring the test, aren't I?"
"No, Anakin. Callista's doing that."
There's only one other explanation... "Corran sneaked out of the Temple again?"
"And Luke. He gets in trouble without even trying or meaning to," Obi-Wan mentioned. "Like a certain Padawan I used to know. Quite frankly, I have a feeling that his ability to get in trouble is inherited. However, he does try to follow the rules, unlike the aforementioned Padawan."
"He definitely got that from his mother," Anakin said with a grin.
Obi-Wan cleared his throat. "Anakin, I know you want to tell him who his father is, but you know that the Council would probably kick one of them out. In all likelihood, it would most likely be the younger of the two. The elder would just be demoted." A meaningful stare was sent Anakin's way.
"I know. I know. It's just that his mother's been complaining about this for the past, I don't know, sixteen years that she can never see her son. You should hear the fits Leia throws, though. Force, she's as headstrong as me and as skilled at politics as her mother!"
Obi-Wan smiled and looked at the chrono on the wall. "Darn. Time for the work day."
"Do I have to go? Can't I just pretend to be sick? No one would care!"
Obi-Wan sighed. Anakin did this every time. "Anakin, no one would care except for the rest of us that don't want to listen to Jorus C'baoth complaining about the malfunctioning air conditioning. Meaning all of us."
"Ah! Mother! This is so infuriating! Why can't I go see Dad at the Temple?" Leia demanded. She was currently throwing a tantrum and throwing all of the documents she had to study around her room. Padmé sighed and waited for her daughter to calm down. This always happened when Anakin came back from missions. He was always to sleepy to really know what he was doing and generally picked up Leia's paperwork by accident.
"Your father will realize his mistake before you need whatever he accidentally took and bring it back before lunch." Padmé had been telling Leia this since she was ten. Why her fool of a husband mistook anything of Leia's for any paperwork belonging to him was beyond Padmé.
"But it was my diary!" Leia exclaimed. Oh, he better not read it! If he does... Leia paused, not thinking in words. Hell with it! Pain! Lots of pain!
"Leia, I'm sure your father didn't mean it. He won't read it either. If he wants to live, that is," Padmé added. "Besides, we have to get going. It's almost time for the Senate to start session."
"But Mom! All they ever do there is talk about nothing and more nothing! Please can I stay home today?"
"Your father won't read your diary, and no, you have to come. There's an important bill that is to be put up to vote. Don't shirk your duties."
"Why couldn't I have been a Jedi like Dad? It would have been so much easier than being a Senator! Then I wouldn't have to listen to boring old people all day!" Leia complained as she gathered up all of her stuff. It wasn't her fault that her mother happened to be a prominent Senator, so why was she being forced to take up that half of the family's job? Why couldn't she have been a Jedi? It would probably be a lot more interesting than going over trade disputes and raising taxes.
Padmé shook her head. "No, trust me, if you had been a Jedi, you'd be complaining about listening to 'boring old people' complaining of broken air conditioners."
"That sounds... fun ," Leia said, a little disturbed by the fact that it did sound better than participating in the Senate.
"...And then there are all of the Corellian Jedi which break all sorts of rules and have to be reprimanded by the Council."
"It still sounds better, Mom. Besides---"
"Of course, the Council takes coffee breaks every twenty minutes when certain Jedi are back at the Temple. Your father's always a lot happier when it's like that. He's also very hyper, too. Sometimes I think they should keep him away from any caffeinated beverage."
Leia sighed, finally giving in. "Fine. Can we just go now?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
Luke stared blankly at the sheet of paper in front of him. It was a test on the Clone Wars. Kyle was still trying to get some answers out of him, but Luke didn't notice. He was staring at the first question. Who was the one who suggested that Palpatine be given emergency powers? the first question read. A. Representative Binks of Naboo, B. Senator Organa of Alderaan, C. Senator Mothma of Chandrilla, D. Senator Bel Ibis of Corellia. The question couldn't be that easy, Luke had thought the first time he had read it through. There had to be a catch, and sure enough, there was. He read the next line again. In the form of an essay, explain why the remaining three did not suggest this. Use examples of legislation suggested by them or their actions to support your answer. In the concluding paragraph, make sure you mention who did suggest the emergency powers and why they did so.
Luke skipped that question for the moment and decided to read the next one. It wasn't any better than the last, unfortunately for Luke. Describe the Battle of Utapau. Who lead the assault? How many of the Separatist leaders were captured? What was the battle's impact on the war? Many say this was the battle that won the war, but others disagree, citing the deposing of Palpatine as the end of the war. State your opinion and back it up with facts to support your answer.
"Next," Luke murmured. This test was almost the worst he had ever taken. It didn't particularly help that Corran and Kyle had kept him up until midnight, or that Kyle was still trying to cheat. Luke looked at the next question. Summarize the battle for Coruscant. Who were the Jedi involved? Who were the Sith involved? What was the Separatist's purpose in the battle? What happened in...
Luke stopped reading and groaned. Were all of the questions essays? He looked over to see Corran staring blankly at his own test. Apparently Luke wasn't alone. Kyle, however, was now writing away. I bet he's writing some story instead of doing the test... Luke thought. Then again, he amended, Kyle might have actually gotten his act together and decided not to be lazy... The Dathomirans were doodling all over the tests yet somehow answered the questions in doodles. Luke didn't want to know what made them decide to do that. It was probably a form of protest. Jade, on the other hand, was actually taking the test.
I should get to work, too... Luke decided as he looked at the next question. Which of the following events never happened? the question asked. Good. A multiple choice question (hopefully). A. Anakin Skywalker broke almost every rule in the book, B. Obi-Wan Kenobi apprehended General Grievous and took the General back to Coruscant, C. Anakin Skywalker insulted an ambassador from another galaxy who offered to help with the war. Thankfully, the science officer deescalated the situation before it caused another war. The captain of the ship and Skywalker are still on extremely bitter terms, D. After Palpatine was arrested, a pilot in a little known squadron suggested that Palpatine be given a wedgie and that the event should be taped. A Senator replied that it was against the rules of war. A Jedi backed her up, saying that it was implausible to move Palpatine.
Luke stared at the question. Somehow, he knew the answer was definitely B, even though C and D sounded like pure fiction. He had to wonder, however, who wrote the test. It sounded like the Council had had nothing better to do one day and had made this up to alleviate the boredom. It sounded like something Master Windu would write. Maybe even Yoda, if the Jedi Master could write in flowing Basic. Regardless of who wrote the test and their ulterior motivation for doing so, Luke convinced himself that it would just be better if he started working, and he did.
After the class had filed out, Callista looked at the stack of papers on her desk. She knew half of them would be long winded complaints or protests. The other half would have tried to actually take the exam. She separated the the papers into three piles: complaints, forms of protest, and actual completed exams. Picking up the first form of the complaints, Callista mentally cursed the Council for assigning her the job of being the History of War teacher to a bunch of rebellious Padawans who insisted on procrastinating as much as (in most cases) humanly possible.
The first paper was by Kyle Katarn. Callista could not have been less surprised. The first line was even less surprising. "This is a bunch of bantha fodder," Callista read out loud. She laughed a bit. Always to the point, that one was. She continued to read, "Furthermore, while I do know the material, contrary to popular belief, this test is obviously a joke. While the last question was pretty funny, I still find it detestable that you and whoever wrote the test expect us to complete all three essays in an hour. These are all definitely half an hour essays each! As a representative of the class and by the Force, I demand that you give us a new exam so we can be tested fairly.
"This all said, I know that some of the class is actually trying to take this insane test, and they should be rewarded for actually trying. I'm pretty sure Jade is one of them, but I have the feeling she's actually taking the test. Luke's staring off into space, but I think he'll actually write, too. I'm getting off topic.
"In conclusion, I think you should provide us with an alternate test to take since this one was not correctly gauged for the time allotted. However, I am willing to concede on one thing: I'm doing the test anyway since I don't particularly want to completely fail." Callista shook her head, smiling. A typical Katarn paper. After grading it, she wrote "Nice try" next to the plea for an easier test.
Setting Kyle's paper in the finished pile, she picked a random test from the middle of the forms of protest pile. It belonged to Teneniel Djo. That Dathomiran girl had some serious issue Callista decided once she saw that the answers to the test were comprised of doodles and mini-comics.
The first of the essays had an extremely inventive version of the Senate meeting in which Palpatine had been granted emergency powers. All of the Senators were caricatures of themselves, and Teneniel had made Binks look like a fool. That said, Palpatine wasn't any better off since he was drawn as a faceless person with a mask which said "I am a Dark Lord of the Sith" on it. On the contrary, Mothma, Organa, and Bel Ibis looked normal enough. There was still the random Senator which had a dunce cap on, though, but that was in character with Teneniel's nature of cynicism towards high-ranking politicians.
The second essay had a very detailed depiction of the battle of Utapau. Grievous was depicted as a metal grasshopper with respiratory problems, and Callista had no trouble accepting Teneniel's representation more than correct depictions. After the battle scenes, Teneniel had drawn a debate between herself and Allya on whether the Battle of Utapau was the battle which had ended the war. Teneniel took the side that it was the battle which ended the war, but that Palpatine's capture sped up the mopping up action since he had been the true political head of the Separatists.
The third essay/ comic was similar to the second one in that it too was basically a graphic depiction of the battle. Unlike the last, this time she did mini-biographies on each of the characters as they appeared. Callista couldn't help but laugh at some of them, particularly Anakin's, which read, "Most awesome Jedi ever, but has anger management problems in addition to not being able to work well with others. He has broken most of the Jedi laws, including the no-marriage rule (which was changed because he convinced the Council that it was stupid) and the rule which states that one cannot shirk work if certain Jedi Masters are scheduled into the Council meeting so they can to complain about the air conditioning."
What really made Callista laugh, however, was the comic which followed the last question (which Teneniel had answered correctly). The comic was of the last choice. It changed events slightly and made for a hilarious comic: instead of the Senator, which Teneniel had decided to make Alderaanian, telling the fighter pilot to cease and desist, she gave him the go ahead. Another pilot (he looked like a smuggler, quite frankly) volunteered to tape the entire episode. After Palpatine had been dragged out of the room, two of the Jedi which had been present ran after the group of crazies. The comic ended there with everyone still left in the room being completely stunned (Teneniel still had someone say a clever line to end it). Callista decided that she would definitely have to scan this into a computer and mail it to every member of the Council. There was no doubt that some of them would find it just as funny.
After giving Teneniel full marks on the test and pausing to wonder how she had gotten the four comics finished on time, Callista set the test down on top of Kyle's and picked up the first test of the actual test pile. It was by Mara Jade. Callista noticed that it had been written in story format, complete with cheesy opening lines. It didn't matter. Mara wrote quality work and wouldn't blow a test off unless she really had a problem with it. Callista started reading. "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away"? What sort of line is that? This was going to be a fun grading session.