In this chapter, I really tried to show how unconfident Luke was in the Force, just like in A New Hope. If it seems as though he's slightly…pathetic, it's only because I'm trying to show that and the difference between him and Leia. Also, pay attention to Leia's youngling partner, Janey. She'll play a big role later in the story.
Leia and Luke Skywalker stood among the other Younglings in the room, waiting for Master Yoda to come and start the training.
Their sixth birthday had been just a few months earlier. Each had received a lightsaber from their father. Leia had gotten a blue one while Luke had gotten green. Now, they were ready to start their Jedi training.
Luke held his lightsaber in his hand uneasily, surveying it quietly. Leia seemed more confident. She had received her mother's politics in her blood and kept her head held high, not willing to show anyone weakness.
The door to the Jedi Temple slid open and Yoda hobbled in with his cane.
All the Younglings rose. Some were older than Leia and Luke, at least ten. Obviously, they had been there longer.
"Good morning Master Yoda," came from all the Younglings.
Luke and Leia exchanged a glance.
"Good morning, Younglings," Yoda greeted back. "Welcome our new students, we must." He gestured to Leia and Luke. "Introduce yourselves, you may."
"Leia Skywalker," Leia said first, nodding at the other Younglings. She had a young voice, but it held power, strength.
"Luke Skywalker," Luke murmured, almost shyly. His voice sounded much like his sister's, although lacking the confidence, much to his embarrassment.
"Lightsabers, you already have. Given to you by your father, they must have been," Yoda said with a chuckle.
As if by answer, Leia ignited her lightsaber, holding it proudly. Luke clumsily dropped his.
"Get on with training, we must. Put on your blast shields, you may."
Each student got a blast shield from the back of the room and placed them over their heads. Luke seemed much warier than Leia, but still put it on.
"Trust your instincts, you must. Let the Force flow through you," Yoda instructed.
Remotes hovered in front of each Youngling. Without warning they started firing.
Leia winced as a blast hit her arm, but she raised her lightsaber in defense. To her relief, the next bolt was blocked.
Luke closed his eyes and focused, holding his lightsaber up. He trusted his instincts, as Yoda had told them, moving his lightsaber to the left to block an incoming bolt.
"How were my little Jedi their first day of training?" Anakin asked proudly as Leia and Luke followed Padmé into the apartment.
Luke shrugged indifferently. "It was okay."
"The zappy things hurt," Leia muttered, rubbing her arm.
Anakin laughed and placed his own hand on Leia's arm. "That's why you have to block them, Sweetie. They could very well be blaster bolts when you become a Jedi. Your lightsaber is your last line of defense in protecting your life." He turned to his son. "What did you think of the zaps?"
Luke shrugged again. "I didn't get hit by them."
Anakin frowned for a moment before grinning proudly, reaching out to ruffle his son's hair. "That's great, Luke! Your first time with a lightsaber and you can already block like a pro."
Leia scowled. "I bet his zappy thing was defective."
Padmé ran her fingers through her daughter's hair. "It's okay, honey. Not everyone is going to get it the first time."
Leia's scowl was still in place, but more for effect than actual bitterness.
The apartment door opened again, to reveal Obi-Wan Kenobi.
"Uncle Obi-Wan!" Luke and Leia cried in unison, running over to him.
Luke's eyes went wide. "Uh…I mean, Master Kenobi."
Leia nodded quickly. "Yeah, Master Kenobi."
Obi-Wan laughed and knelt down in front of the two kids. "As long as we're not among other Jedi, you can still call me Uncle Obi-Wan." He winked. "I won't tell if you won't."
Leia and Luke nodded in agreement. "Okay."
"How was the first day of Jedi training?" Obi-Wan inquired.
"Good except for the stupid zappy things," Leia told him. "I got hit in the arm."
Luke grinned. "Leia got hit but I didn't." He proudly stuck his thumb toward him chest. His father's praise had made him feel more confident about his abilities, even confident enough to insult Leia. And that took guts.
Leia shot him a glare.
"That's wonderful, Luke! And, even if you only got hit once, that's still pretty amazing on your first day," Obi-Wan consoled Leia. "The Force is strong in your family, remember that."
"Anger, Fear, Aggression," Yoda listed as he paced in front of the Younglings. "To where, do these emotions lead?"
All the older Younglings raised their hands patiently. Yoda, instead, turned to Luke. "Luke, tell me, can you?"
Luke frowned. "Um…" Suddenly, he remembered his father's warning about those emotions. "The Dark Side, Master Yoda?"
"No! A question, it is not! A truth, it is!"
Luke dipped his head slightly. "Sorry, Master Yoda."
Yoda continued his hobbled pacing in front of the Younglings. "Stronger, is the Dark Side?" This time, Yoda turned his green eyes on Leia. "Leia?"
Leia contemplated. "No."
Yoda gave a brief nod. "If stronger, it is not, then weaker, it is?"
She thought a moment again. "No."
"Equal, are they?"
Leia bit her lip. "The Dark Side is more…seductive, but it doesn't bring power. It only brings pain and suffering."
Yoda nodded. "Good." He hobbled down the line. Leia out a quick breath of relief. Luke gave her a small grin.
The door opened with a swish and Yoda, along with all the Younglings, turned to face the visitors.
"Master Kenobi, Master Skywalker," the Younglings all greeted.
Leia and Luke exchanged a wide grinned look.
"Seek me, you have. Questions, I feel. On a mission, you are going?" Yoda questioned Obi-Wan and Anakin, hobbling over.
"Not a mission, exactly, Master," Obi-Wan answered. "I have a question about something you mentioned once before. Master Skywalker just happened to be with me."
Yoda nodded and turned to Anakin. "Watch the Younglings, may you?" At Anakin's nod, Yoda turned to the students. "Get your blast shields, you may." Yoda and Obi-Wan disappeared through the door.
Leia and Luke both hurried to get their blast shields on and show their father how well they were doing. Anakin was just as excited to see.
Leia ignited her lightsaber and raised it and reached out with the Force, feeling for where the blasts came from. Happily, she didn't get hit this time. She had gotten better over the past few weeks at using her lightsaber.
Luke was moving at a much quicker pace than his sister, causing the remote to start shooting off the blasts faster. Still he only missed one.
Anakin nodded, a wide, fatherly smile on his face. "You're doing very well, Younglings."
There was a chorus of "Thank you Master Skywalker."
The door re-opened and Yoda and Obi-Wan came in. The Younglings all removed their blast shields.
"Dismissed for the day, you are," Yoda announced.
"Thank you Master Yoda."
Leia and Luke quickly hurried over to their father. "Dad! Did you see me?" Leia asked, tugging on her father's sleeve.
Luke grinned up at Anakin. "I only got hit once and it was going faster!"
Anakin wrapped an arm around each of his children proudly. "Yes, I saw."
"Strong in the Force, your children are. Powerful Jedi, they will be. But, to be made, choices are," Yoda told Anakin, eyeing Leia and Luke. His glance was a second longer on Leia's face than Luke's. "Arise, doubts will. Foreseen it, I have."
"What have you seen, Master Yoda?" Obi-Wan asked, he himself curious.
Instead of answering the question, Yoda placed a hand on Leia's shoulder. "Doubt the Force, you must not. Your ally, it is."
Leia nodded. "I understand, Master Yoda."
"Just understand, you should not. Not the same thing as knowing, understanding is. Know, you must."
Leia lowered her head and nodded. "Yes, Master Yoda."
Anakin's arm tightened around his daughter as they went through the doors. "I was in the same place as you once, Leia. Trust me, it gets easier."
She looked up at her father and nodded, though somehow, the practical part of her didn't believe that.
"Something new, we will try. In partners, I will put you," Yoda announced. "Spar together, you will."
Luke ended up with a Twi'lek girl and Leia was put with a human girl with blonde hair that was probably a year or two older than her.
"Leia Skywalker," Leia introduced herself to the girl, igniting her lightsaber.
The girl smiled. "I know. I think everyone knows you and your brother. Janey Braske." She too started her lightsaber. Hers was green, like Luke's.
Yoda came by. "On the defense, Leia will be. On the offense, Janey will be."
Leia nodded at Janey to come at her. Janey took a deep breath and closed her eyes, concentrating. When her eyes opened, they narrowed and she darted at Leia, swinging her lightsaber.
Leia quickly raised her own lightsaber in defense, the lights blending. Janey jumped back and then came at Leia again from a different angle. Leia turned and defended again, but was pushed back a bit, stumbling.
Janey took this and used the time to stab through the air towards Leia's stomach, stopping inches from it. "You're dead," Janey announced with a smile.
Leia stared down at Janey's lightsaber practically touching her Jedi robes. "You're good."
Janey retracted her lightsaber and grinned. "Thank you. That means a lot coming from the Chosen One's daughter."
Leia's own lightsaber retracted. There was a frown on her young face. "Chosen One?"
Janey's own frown was in place. "Your father, Anakin. Anakin Skywalker. He's the Chosen One, the one that'll bring balance to the Force. It's in the prophecy. Didn't you know that?"
"Uh…no. I didn't."
Janey shifted uncomfortably. "Oh. He'll probably tell you about it some other time."
"For chatting, this time is not!" Yoda interrupted, banging his stick down onto the ground. "Positions, you will switch." He hobbled over to the next partners.
"You attack me this time," Janey told Leia.
Leia nodded, but her mind was elsewhere.
"Dad…" Leia trailed off as she sat next to her father on the couch. "Can I ask you a question?"
Anakin nodded. "Of course, Sweetie."
"Are you the Chosen One?"
He turned to her, his brows furrowed. "Chosen One? Now where did you hear that?"
"Just…people talking in the class. But that doesn't answer my question."
Anakin sighed, reaching up to scratch his neck. "Well, that's what people say. The master who found me on Tatooine, Master Qui-Gon Jinn, thought me to be the Chosen One. It is said in the Jedi's prophecy that the Chosen One would bring balance to the Force by destroying the Dark Side. It's a heavy expectation to have on your shoulders."
"I think you lived up to your expectations, Dad," Leia told him with a wide, child's smile.
Anakin smiled softly. "Thank you, Leia."