So this chapter mentions lightsaber dueling styles! In future chapters, I hope that I can get more into it, because I found this really awesome guy on youtube who talks about it and lightsaber colors, etc. (I can't remember his channel name though x.x sorry!) and Wookiepedia (still laughing over that name) has a bunch of stuff on it too! So if in future chapters you guys get confused, you can find the stuff on wookiepedia!

Also, in this chapter I tried to make it seem like Windu is slowly trying to become a better master, like trying to be less stoic and cold, but it's realllllllyyyyy hard to do x.x so please forgive me if he seems ooc, and I would love if you all would suggest some ways to keep him in character but make him closer to Jack!

I hope you all enjoy this chap, and please remember to review with any suggestions for future chapters!

It had been a month since Jack had started training under Mace Windu. In that time, Obiwan had found nothing in the records about his home planet or his family. This set Jack in low spirits for a good day or so whenever he asked Obiwan if he'd found anything, only to get the same answer of 'no'.

But he'd busied himself with training. If he wasn't practicing, he was reading, and if not either of those, he was eating or sleeping. This routine though, worried Ahsoka, Anakin and Obiwan. He almost never smiled now, or joked like he did when he'd first arrived.

The vigerous training did wonders for his skills though. Each lesson that passed with Master Windu, Jack would excel each and every expectation his mentor set. From pushing simple, small crates in the storage area to lifting multipule things without needing to be meditating.

And even after the training sessions were finished and WIndu would have to leave to attend to council duties, Jack would continued training alone, pushing himself to the absolute limit of his abilities, sometimes even past.

This was one of those nights, it seemed, as Jack stumbled over to join Ahsoka, Anakin and Obiwan at their usual table for dinner in the mess hall. The three exchanged worried looks.

"Jack, are you okay?" Ahsoka asked, leaning forward slightly, brow furrowed in worry.

Jack hummed, nodding as he took a large bite of food.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He said once he swallowed.

"You've been pushing yourself too hard, Jack!" She insisted. "You should ask Master Windu for a day off training!"

"I agree." Anakin said, adding his two cents. "Master Windu's reasonable, Jack. I'm sure he'd understand."

Jack shook his head.

"No, no I'm fine." He insisted quietly, dipping his spoon in the soup he'd gotten.

Obiwan sighed.

"Jack, it isn't healthy to train so vigerously all the time."

The teen shrugged, wincing when his muscles protested.

Obiwan's brow furrowed in worry. The youth was as stubborn as Anakin and Ahsoka.

"If you won't ask Master Windu, then I will." He said with finality.

Jack paled slightly.

"What? No! Please don't!" He begged, looking at the man pleadingly.

"Then talk to Master Windu. He will understand."

Jack scowled.

"Look, I appreciate your guys' concern, but I'm fine! I use it to distract myself, okay?" He snapped, fingers digging into the bench he sat on. "If I don't do it, then I'll think about my mom, and my friends...my family..."

Jack's voice faded, and he then abruptly stood, walking off. He dumped his tray away before leaving the mess hall, no doubt to train more or go pass out in his quarters.

After a long, dragging minute, Anakin stood.

"I'm going to go talk to Master Windu." He said suddenly, surprising his two friends.

"You...what?" Ahsoka asked. "Is that really a good idea, Skyguy? Wouldn't Master Obiwan be a better choice to-"

Anakin shook his head, cutting her off.

"No. I'm going to talk to him. See you both later." He said, dissmissing himself as he left.

"Master Windu!"

The brown skinned man paused mid-stride, looking behind him. He saw Anakin quickly walking up, weaving around the other people who occupied the room.

"Skywalker. I'm busy, this had better be important." Windu said (as much a greeting as he would give).

Anakin stopped once he reached the man.

"You need to talk with Jack." Anakin said bluntly, getting straight to the point.

Windu raised a brow.

"I talk to him on a daily basis, Skywalker. I am his mentor."

The younger man scowled.

"I mean really talk to him. Not about training or about the jedi way! You can't seriously say you haven't noticed how depressed he's been!"

Windu was quiet, and Anakin let out an annoyed sound.

"Look, you haven't had a padawan before, so maybe you haven't heard," He said sarcastically. "But a master and padawan need a relationship beyond teacher and student. Especially now, with how the code has changed, attachment is allowed! Jack basically feels alone, the kid's missing his mom and his friends, and he only has Ahsoka, Obiwan and I to turn to!"

Windu didn't stop him, so Anakin took this as a good sign and continued.

"You're his teacher now, he's trusting you with his life, the least you can do in return is show that you care, and let him know you won't make him regret trusting you."

Anakin turned to leave, but then paused and look back.

"And while you're at it, make sure he stops training after hours. The kid's going to kill himself at this rate." He said gruffly before leaving as abruptly as he'd arrived.

Windu had never, in all his years as a jedi, recieved such a lecture. Not since he'd had his own master to teach him.

Anakin made a valid point. He wasn't just a council member any more, he was a mentor now. And that meant some things would need to change.

And change fast, too. Anakin was right about one other thing. Jack was training far too much to be healthy, and that was never a good thing.

Jack was surprised when on the way to the training room, he was intercepted by his Windu. The man held two folded cloaks, much to Jack's confusion

"Master!" He said, shock in his voice. "I thought you had a meeting with the other council members today?"

"I did." The man replied. "But I excused myself."

Jack tilted his head, brow furrowing in confusion.

"Are we having a long training session today?"

To his surprise once again, Windu shook his head.

"No. I have something else in mind for today." He replied. He then gestured for Jack to follow him, the gesture was now one he knew well. As the two walked down the hall, the man continued speaking.

"Today we are going outside of the temple. You've beem training hard, and I believe you deserve a day to relax."

Silence fell for a moment, Jack staring at his mentor.

"...Obiwan talked to you, didn't he? I told him not to!"

Windu raised a brow, but shook his head.

"Actually, it was Skywalker."

Jack's eyebrows raised.

"Anakin? Huh. Guess Ahsoka was right. He really is a big softie at heart."

Windu let out a snort, and Jack gaved a surprised look, but Windu quickly replaced his stoic expression once more.

"So...What're we going to do?"

The brown skinned man thought for a moment.

"Courasant is a large place. Today is a day for you to enjoy, so it's up to you. Until you decide, we'll simply wander around."

The words seemed painful for the man to say, and Jack noticed this easily.

"You know you don't have to do this."

Windu glanced at him for a long second.

"As your master, I need to make sure you don't push yourself to far. Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano and Master Kenobi are worried that you will hurt yourself with how hard you've been training after hours. And even though I've never said it before, I'm worried as well."

Jack looked at his mentor, shock in his storm colored eyes.

"But...I thought I was supposed to train?"

The corner of Windu's mouth twitched upward slightly before curving back down.

"You are. But you must balance it with an equal time of rest as well."

Jack looked down at his feet.

"But I...I keep thinking about my friends and mom whenever I don't keep myself busy."

They'd reached the entrance of the temple now, and Windu handed his padawan a cloak before pulling his own on over his shoulders and using the hood to his benefit, hiding his face.

Jack followed the example, but gave the man a curious, questioning look.

"Courasant is colder during the earlier months." His master explained. "Also, it is best to not draw attention."

Jack hummed in agreement and they left the temple. Jack looked around in awe.

Everything seemed so much bigger now, especially from the his vantage point on the street. Glass and metal shone prominent from the buildings above, light bouncing off of the smooth surfaces.

"Woah..."

Windu hid a soft smile. The reactions of new-comers was always an amusing sight.

The two began to walk, slowly, so Jack could take in the sights, both odd and wonderous to the teen.

Jack began to look pale, Windu noticed. There were many people around, so it must've been the miniscule yet dozens of force signs around him.

After awhile, Windu placed a hand on Jack's shoulder, steering him into a small, almost lifeless store.

mechanical parts lined the shelves, some scattered on the floor. The only other person their was a storekeep who they could hear taking inventory in the back room.

"Are you alright?" Windu asked.

Jack grimaced.

"Y-yeah, I'm just...It's always weird to sense the force in other people."

His mentor nodded in agreement, hand not leaving his shoulder.

"This place is closed off. No one else but us and the storekeeper. Take this chance and do as I've taught you."

Jack nodded, slightly shaky. He then closed his eyes and took a shuddering breath. After a few more similar intakes, Windu shook his head.

"You need to relax, Jack. Let your shoulders and head fall."

Jack did as told, shoulders going lax and head falling.

"Focus on my force signature, and begin blocking that out, bit by bit."

Jack hummed in understanding, focusing on the strong pulses of energy that centered around his mentor. He started with the warmth, the easiest thing to get rid of.

Once that was gone, he focused on the color that Windu radiated. That took only a few minutes. The last was the emotions, which was always hard for him.

He was surprised. Usually the emotions he sensed from his mentor were akin to restrained patience and cold calmness. But today the emotions were warmer and kinder, less grating on his mind. It made them easier to rid his mind of.

Finally, his breath evened out, and he wasn't nearly as pale. He looked up at his teacher.

"Alright. I'm okay now." He said quietly. "Sorry about that, Master."

Windu raised a brow.

"Why are you apologizing? I went through the same thing you are when I was a padawan. I know it isn't your fault."

Jack shrugged, ducking his head in embarrassment.

"I...Just feel like I should apologize."

"You don't need to." Windu replied before turning, leading the way out of the store.

Jack now wasn't overwhelmed, and could fully enjoy his time out of the temple. The warmth of the day and slight breeze did him wonders, and for the first time in a while, he smiled.

Windu walked slowly, following Jack as the teen wove about, peering into shops and such, or ran ahead to look over the bridges they sometimes crossed. While at night Courasant was rather dangerous, during the day it was a beautiful spectical to behold (though no less hectic).

It was about the middle of the day when they settled down in a small, run-down and rusty diner. An alien man with four or so arms was the cook and diner owner. He welcomed them and joked, laughing boisterously. Jack decided that, despite the rust covered metal walls and the other patrons that glared around, he liked the place, if only because the loud and welcoming cook who made him feel at ease.

As they sat, waiting for their food, Jack looked around awkwardly.

It was a few minutes later that his mentor broke the silence.

"Jack. I realized recently that apart from your name and age, I know nothing about you. That isn't exactly a good thing, I assume you can guess. As your master, I should know more about you, if you won't mind talking about it."

Jack blinked, shock in his eyes, but he then nodded.

"Uh, alright. What do you want to know, Master?"

The man thread his fingers together, placing them on the table.

"Anything you wish to share. It's your choice of what you do or do not tell me."

Jack leaned back in his seat, thinking for a second.

"Well. My mom is a nurse, her name is June Darby. I had a job, back home. We needed the extra money, for bills and stuff."

He paused when a droid came, depositing their food on the table before them before leaving them alone once more. Jack, sure that the droid wouldn't return, continued.

"I didn't have many friends until a year ago or so, but now I do, and they're the best. Miko's a little hyper, but very brave and confident. Raf is only twelve, but he's a genius."

Jack smiled softly, his expression one of fondness as he thought about his friends.

"Arcee is brave, and probably my best friend. There's Bumblebee, Bulkhead, Smokescreen, Ratchet, Wheeljack...please don't give me that look. I know their names seem odd, but I they're really good friends. And then their's Optimus. He...He's like a dad to me. Or, I think being around him is what it would be like around a dad, but...I don't really know."

His teacher raised a brow.

"You don't know?"

Jack nodded, ducking his head.

"Yeah. My dad...wasn't really the model of a good person."

Jack shifted, holding out his arm and lifting his sleeve.

A long, rough scar marred the teen's pale skin. The discolored skin stood out prominently, and it was obviously from a knife.

Jack pulled his sleeve back down and returned to eating.

"He was arrested when I was seven, and he's locked up for life."

The teen laughed humorlessly.

"At the trial, he nearly jumped me when he saw me. I guess he found out I was the one who called the authorities."

Silence fell once more, Jack eating while Windu watched him quietly.

"How many others?"

Jack looked up, spoon in his mouth.

"Hmm?"

"How many other scars do you have?" He asked, gesturing to the arm Jack had shown.

Jack shrugged.

"I dunno." He mumbled around the spoon. "A lot I guess."

Windu, seeing his student's shoulders hike high and stiff, changed the subject.

"This 'Optimus'. What is he like?"

The teen straightened, eyes lighting at the mention of the name.

"He's great. He's brave and kind, really smart too. He reminds me of jedi. He's a peacekeeper and leader."

Windu bowwed his head in understanding.

"He sounds like a wise person."

Jack smiled softly.

"Yeah...Yeah he is."

Silence came once more, but this one wasn't tense, but instead comfortable.

After eating quietly for awhile, Jack asked a question that had been on his mind for awhile.

"Hey Master? I was reading a holopad a few days ago that said their are different forms of lightsaber dueling. Is that true?"

Windu's brow arched in slight surprise. He'd beem reading about that?

"Yes. That's true. There are different forms of lightsaber dueling styles."

Jack's eyes lit once more with interest. His mind had an unquenchible thirst for new ideas and knowledge it seemed.

"I couldn't find many holopads on it. Could you tell me more about them?"

This was one conversation Windu could hold with ease.

Jack sat in a chair, watching his master walk around the room in search of some holopads he'd promised to let Jack read.

The teen was in awe when he saw how large his mentors quarters were. With high arching ceilings and large, tinted windows, there were shelves lined with holopads and holopictures, which Jack took great interest in, having never seen any.

He squinted slightly, examining a paticular picture of Windu and a stranger Jack didn't know. It was a younger version of his mentor, with a slight smile curling at the edge of his lips, while at his side was another man, maybe a few years older.

"Master?"

"Yes?"

"Who's that with you in the picture?" Jack asked, pointing from where he sat.

The man glanced at the picture and frowned.

"Someone I knew long ago. He turned to the dark side."

Jack tilted his head.

"Then why do you keep the picture?"

Windu returned to his search as he answered.

"Memories, good and bad, shouldn't be forgoten."

Jack nodded slowly in understanding. He then stood to examine the other pictures he couldn't see well from the chair.

Windu finally found the holopads he was searching for and moved over to sit in a chair, waiting for Jack to come sit as well. Jack soon did so, leaning forward with interest as the man set the holopads on the table before them.

When switched on, they showed diagrams of the different lightsaber dueling styles along with neatly composed notes.

"Be careful with these. They don't go to the archieve. When you are finished with them, return them to me, not the archives, understood?"

"Yes Master." Jack replied, taking the holopads carefully and examining the diagrams with awe.

"Eventually I will be teaching you these, and you will be able to choose which you feel most comfortable with." Windu said as he watched Jack look over the holopads.

The teen nodded, a smile curling at his lips. He liked having something new to read.