Padawan Kakarot
Chapter 2: First Steps
Eight Years later
"Younglings," a gentle voice called both vocally and through the Force. "It's time to get up."
Kakarot stirred in his bed. The thought of going back to sleep crossed his mind, but a gentle push from the voice told him otherwise. The monkey boy let out a loud yawn while he stretched his short body.
An annoyed grunt told him that he wasn't only one not ready to get up yet. Kakarot glanced over across the small room to the bundle still wrapped in his sheets.
Kakarot silently jumped off his bed and landed softly next to the bed. A grin spread across his face as he inched closer to the bundle. He took a deep breath and yelled:
"HEY PIK GET UP!"
The blue Twi'lek boy jolted out of his slumber as if lightning struck him. His shocked body twisted in his sheets causing the young alien to tumble to the floor hitting his head. Needless to say he was not assumed when he heard Kakarot's satisfied laughter.
"I got you good that time didn't I, Pik?" the monkey boy managed to say in-between his joyous giggles.
Pikota Lorkesh shook his head, hoping there was no bruise on his lekku. From the way they were twitching in irritation at Kakarot, he had nothing to worry about.
"That wasn't funny Kakarot!" he protested, his blue skin darkening.
"Yes it was!" the monkey boy chuckled. "In fact I-.." But a sharp piercing pain ran up his spine, cutting him off. Kakarot gritted his teeth trying not to cry out but to no avail.
"YOW!" he yelled jumping into the air. When he landed he shot a half playful, half serious glare at his friend.
"Now we're even," Pik said with a smile.
"That wasn't funny," Kakarot said massaging his now sore tail. "You know how much that hurts me."
"Like I said," Pik repeated. "We're even." Kakarot gave Pik one last look before breaking into a laugh.
"I guess we are."
"Younglings," a stern voice said from their doorway. The two boys turned to see their Jedi Minder, Shila Madre eyeing them with a disapproving look.
She was a middle aged woman with several lines on her face from the years of bringing up countless younglings. Her drawn back hood revealed the hints of gray in her black hair that was tied back and in a bun. Her oval face and pointed chin often gave her an unintentional rigid and strict look, but the younglings knew better. Master Madre was a very kind and loving woman, unfortunately for Kakarot and Pik, they mostly saw her stern side.
"Yes Master Madre," they said in unison.
"If you are quite finished with your roughhousing, would you two please join the rest of your clan in the corridor? So we may start today's lesson?"
The two boys looked past the irritated den mother and saw the other eighteen members of their youngling clan standing in the doorway snickering at their misfortune.
"Sorry Master," Pik said sheepishly.
"Yeah sorry," Kakarot repeated, though without Pik's shameful eyes.
Shila sighed and nodded in acceptance. The two boys rushed out to join their clan sibling in their line.
"Getting trouble a little early today aren't we, Kakarot?" a human boy with a messy blonde hair in a bowl cut.
"Yeah," Kakarot replied with a grin. "But just wait, Tourin you'll be next before this morning is over."
"He'll probably forget a verse in the code today," a Togruta girl said with a snicker.
"I will not!" Tourin insisted his face beginning to flush. "You'll probably cut yourself with your own lightsaber Aysha!"
"Will not!" Aysha barked, her rusty skin darkening and lekku beginning to twitch.
Shila loudly cleared her throat, breaking up their bickering. She shot the foursome a look that silenced them all instantly.
"Guess it's all of us this time," Pik chuckled.
"Now then," Shila said when all attention was on her. "Recite the Jedi Code, in unison, loudly and clearly this time. Any delays or missed lines means we must repeat."
A groan erupted from her charges, but a stern look from their minder told the younglings there was to be no argument.
"Hear that Tourin?" Kakarot nudged the human boy with a snicker. "Don't mess up."
"Shut up Kakarot."
"Ready….begin."
There was a slight delay as the younglings took a collective deep breath. Both in preparation and as a stalling means. The Jedi code had simple lines, but it was always easy for them get mixed up on certain verses.
"There is no emotion, there is peace," they began. So far so good, Kakarot thought. Spending all morning reciting the code was boring. The sooner they finished it, the sooner they could get to something more fun, like the sparring ring or the obstacle course or blaster deflection. Kakarot felt his tail twitch in excitement at the thought of any of those classes. So much so he almost missed the next line.
"There is no ignorance, there is knowledge." Pik and Aysha gave the monkey boy a look. Kakarot could only give his trademarked grin as an apology.
"There is no passion, there is serenity." Pik nudged Kakarot and motioned to Tourin whose forehead began to glisten. Tourin always mixed up the lines around here. Pik and Aysha had tried helping him not too long ago. They both knew the code as well as they knew their lekku, but Tourin could never fully remember it. Kakarot almost winced when the next line came up.
"There is no chaos, there is love." Kakarot sighed when he heard Tourin's error. There goes the sparring ring.
"Tourin," Master Madre said, stopping the exercise. "I believe love is not in the code."
Kakarot didn't have to look to know that Tourin's face was redder than Aysha's skin. The rest of their clan eyed the boy with annoyed looks, knowing what was coming next. The blonde boy looked as though he would faint from all the eyes on him. He hated being the center of attention.
"Actually Master," Kakarot piped up. "That was me."
"Kakarot?" Shila eyed the boy, who flashed his teeth in a grin.
"Sorry I was thinking how much I loved breakfast and I guess it just slipped out."
Shila sighed. She didn't have to be Force sensitive to know what Kakarot was up to, but for both his and Tourin's sake she went with it. "Breakfast has no place in the Jedi Code, Kakarot."
"I know, sorry, again."
"From the top," Shila commanded, earning a groan from the younglings. Collective eyes turned to Kakarot in a glare, but the monkey boy just laughed it off.
"Thanks Kakarot," Tourin whispered.
"No problem."
OOOOO
It took three more tries before the younglings left the corridor. And it wasn't to the sparring ring or to the obstacle course like Kakarot had hoped. It was to the Archives.
"Oh man, I hate the archives," Kakarot groaned on the way.
"I don't get how you can hate it," Pik said. "There's so much knowledge there."
"Yeah, like the Jedi master who took on Lord Kaan and the Brotherhood of Darkness," Aysha said excitedly. "That was a great lesson!"
"And the lesson on the Jedi Civil war!" Tourin added. "Revan sounded so cool!"
Kakarot couldn't help but smile. Reading about all those great battle and warriors was exciting, he had to admit.
"Okay, those lessons were kind of cool," he acknowledged. "But everything else after that is so boring." It was always this Jedi negotiated peace on this planet, or found this artifact, or found a new meaning the in Jedi code. It was lessons like that that made Kakarot wish the Sith would return so they could hear about more battles.
"Jedi can't fight all the time Kakarot," Pik said, his eyes already brightening as they approached the archive entrance. "Knowing stuff is just as important."
"Yeah you only don't like the archives cuz you can't stand still for more than a minute," Aysha laughed.
"I can to!" Kakarot insisted.
"Pfft, doubt it," Tourin chuckled.
"Can to. I bet half my breakfast I can!"
"Deal!" the trio said instantly before Kakarot could realize what he just agreed to.
"Welcome younglings," Jocasta Nu said with a bright smile. As the younglings entered the great library, Kakarot could already feel his tail twitch. This was going to be a long two hours.
They sat in a small semi-circle in the rotunda. It was still early morning, so there was a small amount of foot traffic. Master Nu began with a quick quiz on what they had learned the previous lesson. Kakarot barely paid attention; he was too busy resisting the urge to play with his ever twitching tail.
He closed his eyes and grinded his teeth, focusing all his energy on not moving. For my breakfast, for my breakfast, he kept repeating to himself. Much to his annoyance, his three friends only found his plight funny. His tail twitched again, making Kakarot just want to jump up from his seated position and run around the archives. This sitting still stuff was tough!
"Kakarot," he heard.
"Yes master?" he responded.
"Perhaps you name three of the Lost Jedi trained by the Jedi Exile?"
Crap! He really didn't like the Jedi Exile's story. It didn't make any sense. He always lost focus everytime he heard a mention of echoes or imprints left in the Force. So much so that by the end Kakarot was left wondering what all that trouble had been about. The fact that the story ended so abruptly didn't help matters either.
"Uh…the lost Jedi were…."
"Yes?"
Kakarot looked to his three friends for any help, but they were too busy snickering at his plight to help. The waiting expression on Master Nu made Kakarot pick the first names that popped in his head.
"Bastila Shan, Lord Hoth and, Caleb?"
Master Nu sighed and shook her head. Shila also gave Kakarot a disapproving look.
"No Kakarot. Not only did none of those three ever meet, but only two of them were Jedi."
"Oh…sorry."
"Anyone else care to venture a guess?"
Pik and Aysha's hands went up instantly.
"Young Aysha?"
The Togruta girl stuck her tongue out at her friend in satisfaction before answering.
"Atton Rand, the reformed Visas Marr, and Brianna the Handmaiden, who went succeeded Jedi Master Atris as historian of the Jedi order," she said without taking a breath.
"Very good young one."
"Show off," Pik whispered in annoyance.
"You just need to faster," Aysha replied as she sat down.
"She just likes you better."
"Either way you both are doing a lot better than our monkey boy over there," Tourin said motioning to Kakarot who began physically twitching.
"I give him another standard minute before he cracks," Pik chuckled as Master Nu began lecturing on how the Lost Jedi helped rebuild the shattered Order.
"A minute?" Aysha laughed. "That's giving him too much credit."
"How about the next thirty seconds?" Pik proposed.
"Even that's pushing it," Tourin snickered.
"Now Younglings," Master Nu said catching the trio's attention. "It's time to get up and…"
But at the sound of "get up", Kakarot jumped to his feet and started jogging in place as if he had to relieve himself.
"We can move now? Awesome!" he exclaimed and began running around the rotunda in joy.
In his joy, Kakarot failed to hear the scolding of Master Nu and Shila, the laughter of his youngling clan, and the warnings of his three friends who he was about to crash into.
A loud whomp echoed throughout the chamber as Kakarot ran into two people. Their legs were so hard and tone that the young monkey boy was knocked to his behind in an instant.
"Mind your step youngling," a stern, no nonsense voice said.
"Yes," a voice more warm, but just as annoyed said. "One never knows what the next step will bring."
Kakarot looked up and saw the faces of Master Mace Windu and Qui-Gon Jinn staring down at him. Kakarot's face instantly went red. The two masters looked at him with curious and analyzing eyes. As if they were watching a wild animal out of its habitat. It seemed like an eternity before Shila ran over to him for damage control.
"Masters you have my most sincere apologies," Shila said frantically bowing every other word. "I do not know what got into him."
"No harm done Master Madre," Mace said easily. "Just tell the Youngling to mind his step."
"Kakarot, don't you have something to say to the masters?" Shila said sternly at Kakarot as she gripped his arm.
Kakarot gaped up at the two masters, at a loss for words. He didn't know why but something in him felt excited. Like meeting two long lost friends, or coming up for air after going underwater.
"Kakarot!" Shila hissed, snapping the boy out of his trance.
"I'm sorry masters," he said finally with a bow.
"Apology accepted young one," Qui-Gon said amicably. "Mind your step in the future."
"Good luck with your studies," Mace added. The two masters bowed to Shila and the rest of the class before venturing deeper into the archives.
Kakarot watched them go with wide eyes. Shila's lecturing and harsh grip were lost on him. Even the snickers and stares from the rest of the class didn't catch his notice. His eyes remained fixed on the masters until they disappeared from his view. Only Pik managed to break his trance with a quick tug on his tail.
"Coruscant to Kakarot, are you home?" Pik said. Kakarot shot the Twi'lek a look for pulling on his tail again.
"What's the matter with you?" Pik asked, ignoring the glare. "You're staring at Master Windu and Master Jinn like they have four heads or something."
With his mind active again and out of the presence of the masters, Kakarot could finally put into words what he had felt.
"They're strong," he whispered.
"What?" his three friends said in unison.
"They're really strong! This is awesome!"
The trio could only stare in confusion as they watched Kakarot jump around as if he just received two new toys.
AN: Hey all, back again with another installment. Mostly an introduction chapter. Originally I was just going to jump into Kakarot becoming a Padawan and getting his master. But then I thought that wasn't making good enough use of the story. So I decided to hold off on that for later. And I like it this way since there will be more development all around. Kakarot's friends I made up on the spot, still deciding on what role they'll play. I'm up for suggestions on that part. Oh and Kakarot met his teacher this chapter. Feel free to guess. I wanted to show what Broly was up to, but once again decided to hold that off till later. Anyways hoped you enjoyed this chapter. See you next time.