NABOO, Same Day
Never show weakness. That had been her motto for years now. It kept her alive in a cruel world. She had already let her emotions get out of hand today. She felt embarrassed, realizing just how much of a blubbering, whimpering idiot she had appeared to be to Maz, Mr. LaPlume, Han, Chewbacca… they all must think her weak. Her right hand balled into a fist at the thought. It wouldn't happen here. Her new teacher, her fellow students… none of them were going to see her as weak. She refused to allow it. She tied her hair back into a braid, which she wrapped into a bun on top of her head as they neared the planet.
The Millenium Falcon pierced through the clouds and fog as it descended through Naboo's atmosphere. They passed over tree- covered mountains and lakes the same blue hue as sapphires, coming to rest in a field greener than anything Kira had seen on Cantonica. On a hill some ways away stood an opulent, domed building; it looked as if it had been carved into the hill where it rested at the time of the planet's creation. Several huts made of wood and stone dotted the hills and field surrounding it, connected by a trail that appeared to be worn out from over use.
No more looking like an unkept, fragile victim. She thought to herself one last time, a harsh resolve coming over her as she looked at her reflection in the cockpit windshield. Chewie and Han made their way to the door. Kira stood by her seat for a moment, in awe of a single beam of light that burst through the clouds to shine down on the Temple, squinting as the golden dome let off a blinding reflective light.
"Hey, kid, get over here!" Han's shouting from the ship's door brought her out of her trance. She joined him and Chewbacca by the door, watching as it lowered to the ground.
The sky was filled with thick, dark clouds in the process of parting, allowing sunlight to burst through and dot the landscape like many large spotlights. They walked down the ramp and into the field. Walking through damp grass was a new experience for Kira. The ground was firm yet slightly… squishy? She looked down at her feet and walked in a small circle. Had she stepped in something foul? She looked at the bottom of her boots. They were wet, but there was nothing stuck to them. It was definitely the ground, then. But how? Why was it like this? Were they sinking into some sort of hidden pit?
Han couldn't hold back a laugh this time. Kira froze in place and looked m up at him, slightly confused expression still on her face, which was quickly turning red at the realization that she was the only one having this reaction to the ground.
Shit. Kira could see the amused look on not just Han Solo's face, but on the face of a young man that was approaching them. His face only showed it for a moment, but he had noticed, nonetheless. Her heart sank slightly, realizing her ability to come off as a poker- faced girl with no fear had been uprooted by a state of confusion caused by the ground. She felt like she wanted to disappear. Apparently, this feeling was normal to all except her.
Standing up straight, she walked over to Han, trying to ignore the weird feeling of the ground as it squished underneath her. Before them stood a man cloaked in a brown robe. He removed his hood to reveal a bearded face and greying hair. That must be Master Skywalker, thought Kira.
Ahead of him walked the young man who grinned at her confusion. His dark, slightly curly hair surrounded his face. He was thin, dressed in a simple, white tunic. He was also almost a foot taller than her. His face seemed slightly annoyed as he stared at Han.
"Come to abandon another person here, have you?" His deep voice had an unstableness to it, as if he was trying to hold in anger. The man next to him gave him an angry look. Han sighed.
"It's good to see you too, son." Han said dryly, seemingly unsurprised at his son's passive aggressive attitude. Kira was surprised by the revelation—Han didn't seem to be the fatherly type.
Master Skywalker made his way over to Kira.
"So, you are the girl from Canto Bight."
Kira nodded, a sudden wave of nerves rendering her speechless. Ben looked up at her when he heard from where she came. He seemed… unimpressed. Of course he is… no one who claims to actually be from a gem- covered dung heap such as Canto Bight should be considered in any high regard.
"What's your name?"
Crap. She gulped.
"K-Kira, sir." She stuttered, her voice coming back. Damn my nerves.
"I'm Master Luke Skywalker," He turned to gesture at the grand building behind him. He gestured at Ben to step forward. He obeyed. "This is my nephew and oldest padawan, Ben Solo."
Luke looked back at the boy, who had looked over at Kira and grinned. She grinned back, then. He then turned to Han Solo and smiled. "Thank you for your help, old friend."
"Don't thank me, thank your sister. It was her idea."
Luke's eyes glistened in amusement as Han spoke. "I suppose you're off to Hosnian Prime to see her, then?"
"No, I'm off to meet with a gunrunner in the Outer Rim."
"Still smuggling, then?"
"What kind of man would I be if I wasn't? Besides, I'm not a fan of politics." Han turned to Kira. "Good luck, kid."
Chewie hugged her goodbye. She smiled up at him "So long, Chewbacca."
"Don't leave just yet, Han. I'd like to discuss something with you."
Luke motioned to Kira as Han and Chewbacca walked back to the ship. She walked over to him. He looked at her, then he looked over at his apprentice.
"How old are you, Kira?"
"Eighteen."
He nodded in acknowledgement of her answer, then looked off towards the temple, thinking.
"Ben," the man said without looking at him. Ben looked at his teacher, an eagerness in his eyes.
"Yes, Master?"
Luke was silent for a moment. "Go and show our new Padawan around the Temple. Get her a place to stay. Introduce her to the others. I will meet with her privately tomorrow. I will consider allowing you to help in her training. She has a lot of catching up to do if I am to train her with the rest of her peers."
"Thank you, Master Skywalker," Ben said with a bow. He motioned for her to follow him as he turned around and walked toward the temple at a fast pace. She ran to catch up to him, and even then she found herself needing to jog to keep up with his long legs and quick pace.
"Could you maybe slow down please?"
Ben stopped and let out an annoyed sigh. He turned to look down at her.
"Look, could you at least make an effort to try and control your emotions?" He said, frustration drenching each word. Kira's eyes grew wide upon hearing this. She had reigned in her fear and sadness on the flight here, or so she thought.
"I thought I already had."
Ben raised an eyebrow as if her admission worried him. "You mean, this is how you normally are? This is you when you are calm?"
What is his problem? Kira thought angrily. Why was it that every person she had met today decided it was of the utmost importance to tell her how kriffing emotional she was?
"I mean I'm a little nervous because I'm on a strange new planet and your shouting isn't exactly doing anything to help calm me down!" Kira shouted, standing on tiptoe as she glared into his eyes.
Ben raised his hands up to his shoulders and backed up, in an attempt to quell her anger. He clenched his jaw and looked around. They were halfway to the temple at this point.
"Listen, Master Skywalker is very critical of things one might consider a weakness, or a path to the Dark side of the Force." His voice became less harsh as he continued to speak. "If you show up to the temple tomorrow with this same aura of…fear. He's going to make an example of you."
"Well isn't it Master Skywalker's job to show me how to control my emotions?" Kira asked, crossing her arms. "Surely, a great teacher wouldn't go out of his way to make an example out of a student."
Ben laughed and shook his head.
"Fine, then. If you truly want to learn from 'Master Skywalker' tomorrow, I won't take that away from you." His voice walked a thin line between sincerity and condescension.
He walked ahead at a slower pace, so she could keep up with him. Kira felt uneasy. She knew there was something that Ben wasn't telling her- he made it obvious. He wasn't trying to upset her, she thought. He seemed like he was trying to… protect her from something? She threw that thought from her mind. She was safe now. With Master Skywalker here, there was nothing her fellow Padawan could possibly need to protect her from. She hadn't had friends since… well, since before her parents… changed. But that was long ago, when she was much younger.
Kira nodded and fell back into silence- she was terrible at keeping conversation, and didn't quite know what else to ask him. If she was going to be here, she might as well try and get to know someone. She turned to Ben as they walked.
"So... how long have you been training with Master Skywalker?"
"You mean my uncle?" He said with a smirk, looking thoughtfully up the sky as he clasped his hands behind his back. "Technically, he's been training me my whole life. In small ways, at least… but he's only been Master Skywalker for about a year."
They stopped at the bottom of a long staircase now. Kira gasped as she looked up and saw the Jedi Temple looming over them from atop the hill. The sheer size of it left her in awe, but her heart sank when she realized just how many steps were between them and the temple itself.
"Is climbing hundreds of stairs one of the requirements for becoming a jedi?" Kira asked unhappily.
Ben laughed as he took one step up.
"Consider this your first training session," he said, then began climbing at a shockingly fast pace, taking the stairs two at a time.
"Oh for Kriff's sake," she mumbled to herself, then shouted after him, "wait for me!"
She attempted to take the stairs two at a time as Ben had, but her legs proved to not be cut out for the task. She switched to climbing each step individually. She pushed herself harder to catch up with him. He reached the top of the staircase long before she did.
"Hurry it up!" He shouted down to her. She cursed at him profusely in her head as she maintained her quick pace, unable to go any faster for fear of falling. When she finally reached the top, she doubled over, panting.
In front of them was an elaborate entrance; several elaborate, 20- foot tall marble pillars led to a massive pair of golden doors. Kira straightened herself out, in awe of its beauty. Ben, used to its beauty, walked ahead.
"We need to get you some robes. Its against the rules of our temple to go through the doors without proper attire," Ben said, frowning as he eyed her borrowed clothes. "I suppose you will have to be the exception."
He started opening the door, then turned to her and added; "Keep close and don't talk. I don't want the other padawans finding you before you're properly dressed."
Kira nodded in understanding, walking right next to Ben as they entered the temple. She jogged to keep up with his long stride. They had entered a seemingly endless hallway made of the same elegant marble as the pillars outside. Before she could properly absorb her surroundings, Ben pushed her into a doorway. This caught her off guard.
"Hey, what the f-" Ben put a hand over her mouth and shushed as he opened the door, pushing her through.
They were in a large linen closet, filled with piles of laundry. Ben began digging through a pile of white tunics. He found one that looked as if it would fit her and held it up to her chest to size it. Kira glared at him as he stared at her.
"Excuse me," She said harshly, grabbing the tunic away from him. Ben took a step back, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.
"Sorry… just trying to help."
"I think I can find clothes for myself, thank you."
Kira turned to the pile of clothes and grabbed a few tunics, pants, and a brown robe while Ben watched awkwardly. When she was done, she turned to leave, but Ben stood in her way, staring at the door.
"Uhm… I'm ready to go?"
"You… have to change before we can re- enter the temple." He said awkwardly.
Kira let out an annoyed sigh.
"Well… can you at least stand outside the door while I do that?"
"Oh… yeah, sure, sorry." Ben mumbled as he exited into the hallway.
Kira changed quickly, then stared at the brown robe in her hand for what felt like ages. This would be one of the only things she wore for the rest of her time here at the Temple, which more likely than not would end up being the rest of her life. It beats what I had to wear for the last four years by a long shot. She thought to herself as she donned the cloak as she left the closet. Ben turned to look at her and grinned. She smiled back.
"How do I look?" She asked half- jokingly, twirling as she did so.
Ben opened his mouth to answer, but jumped when he heard shouting coming from down the hall. He frowned, then turned back toward the entrance.
"Come along, we have to find you a hut to stay in." He said, folding his arms behind his back as he quickly made his way towards the door. Kira ran after him, which seemed to be an ongoing trend for them.
"Wait, who else is in here?" She asked after him.
"No one… just other students…" He said dismissively. He stopped and waved his hand, causing the door to open. Kira turned in the direction of the shouting.
"Well…Shouldn't I meet them?"
"Not tonight." Ben said, clenching his jaw. He grabbed Kira's arm and pulled her through the door, allowing it to slam shut behind her.
"But I thought I was supposed to meet-"
"I don't think tonight is a good time for that. It's getting dark, the other students will want to head off to bed soon. Not the best time for introductions."
Well he's obviously got something to hide. Kira thought to herself. She wanted to demand an answer, but the yawn she felt coming on told her she didn't have the energy to bother with it tonight. She followed him around the side of the temple, where a dirt path led back to several of the small huts Kira had seen earlier.
They walked what felt like a mile on an obviously less traveled path which jutted off the main road. They finally reached the first hut on the path. Its torch remained unlit, unlike the other huts which could be seen lighting the landscape. In the little light that remained from the sunset, Kira could make out thick vines that had crawled up the side of the wall.
"This," Ben said, motioning to the dilapidated shack, "is currently the only available room. You could technically room with another student, but I will leave that decision to you. I'd personally recommend keeping this one to yourself. It's much less… stressful."
"Thank you for your help, Ben."
Another awkward silence fell upon them.
"If you need anything, I live at the end of this path. Try to get some rest. I will come and get you before your meeting with Master Skywalker." He waved his hand by the torch as he walked past it, and it ignited with a small pop, which startled Kira.
As Ben walked down the path, Kira opened the door to her new home. It was small, but spacious when she considered that it would be hers alone. Back in Canto Bight, she shared a room of this size with three other girls. One wall contained a small window, covered by a cloth curtain. Below the window stood an empty desk. On the other side of the room was a small bed, upon with a folded blanket and a pillow had been placed.
Kira took off her cloak and draped it over the chair that accompanied her desk. She unfolded the blankets and placed them on the bed, removed her boots, and settled in. There was a small hole in the ceiling, likely designed as an outlet for smoke from a fire on cold nights. Through this hole, she was able to stare up at the star- filled night sky. The view was something she couldn't get back on Cantonica, unless she wandered off far into the desert. She felt a sense of childish wonder return to her as she lay peacefully on her new bed. She took in a deep breath of the fresh air and smiled. This is what it feels like to be free... resting in a bed without worrying...feeling at peace. Her eyelids began to feel heavy as time went on, and she fell into a much needed sleep at last.
