Pranks 9

Anakin anxiously watched the clock that hung on the classroom wall. Barely fifteen minutes had passed since Masters Mace and Yoda headed down the hall towards the Council Room and not a thing had happened. There had been no loud shouts, no frantic running down the hall, nothing! Had his prank misfired? He hoped not, but then if he had fixed the wrong cushion, Yoda's for example. Then footsteps could be heard along with muffled grumbling.

Yes!

Anakin could barely contain his excitement as he watched Mace stalk pass the doorway amidst a huge cloud of glitter. But the young Padawan was careful to keep his face expressionless. There was no way he was going to get caught like Obi-Wan had! Then the bell signaling class was over rung. Gathering up his padd, Anakin hurried out into the hall with the other students. To his unbelieving eyes Master Yoda was almost right in front of him hobbling down the hall after Mace, the yellow envelope in his hand.

"Forgot your mail you have!" Yoda called, unknowingly getting glitter stuck to the bottom of his green feet, ankles and the hem of his robe.

Recognizing this opportunity was too good to miss, Anakin quickly glanced around and saw no one was paying any attention to himself or Yoda. Everyone was gawking at the gold-coated Mace and the sparkles he left in the air. Moving closer until he was directly behind Yoda, the young Padawan pulled a tiny vial from his belt. Pulling the cap off, he squirted the colorless liquid onto the back of the Jedi Master's robe. Palming the empty vial, he increased his pace and tossed the empty container into a nearby trash receptacle. Then he moved with the flow of students to the lunchroom, his stomach rumbling from hunger.

Master Yoda gave up chasing Mace and instead headed into one of the many outdoor gardens the Temple had. The meetings had been canceled until both Mace and the Council Room were cleaned, the busted cushion replaced. The elderly Jedi leaned on his cane and slowly made his way through the forest-like setting. A peaceful stream gurgled over rocks and birds sung in the trees. Sunlight filtered through the green branches overhead and the air smelled of growing things. Making his way over to a sun-warmed rock, Yoda sat down to meditate. He had been there for perhaps a half hour when his meditation was broken by a sound that didn't belong.

"Meow."

Yoda opened his eyes and saw a black-and-white cat. There were no cats on the Temple grounds and the Jedi Master was confused as to where this one had come from. "Belong here you do not."

"Meow!" the cat cried as it started to rub its slick furry body against Yoda's legs, purring.

Soon a second cat appeared from among the trees, then a third.

"Confusing this be, three cats where before there be none." Yoda stared at the two new arrivals: a longhaired white feline and an orange tabby. The tabby boldly leaped onto Yoda's lap, almost knocking him from the rock.

More cats hurried towards him from the forest, meowing and yowling. There seemed to be at least fifty, but since they kept moving about Yoda couldn't be sure. They surrounded him, all struggling to crawl on top of him. The tiny Jedi Master was knocked from his rock and fell into the stream, shrieking. Crawling out onto the bank, the cats instantly set upon him. And to Yoda's horror, new arrivals were approaching from the trees. Calling his walking stick to him with the Force, Yoda swung at the nearest cats. "Go away, belong here you do not!"

But the cats didn't listen.

"Aahhhhhhhhh!" Yoda shrieked as he called on the Force to help him run towards the Temple. The door opened for him and he dashed into the building, one hundred and one cats hot on his heels with several of them clinging to his back. A big black bristly one was on top of his head and the few observers who had been there to see it later swore that it looked like Yoda was sporting an Elvis hairdo. Desperate to escape from his attackers, Yoda hurried through the double doors into the padawan's huge lunchroom. It was there that the clinging cats became too heavy and the Jedi robe tore free, leaving the esteemed Master only in his underwear. The noisy chatter hushed as shocked students gaped open-mouthed at Yoda in his black briefs, the black cat still on his head. Then the room broke into a loud roar of laughter.

The cats hissed at each other, clawing and biting as they fought over Yoda's discarded robe. The black cat atop Yoda's head swatted at one of his huge green ears, nipping at the tip. That was too much for the Jedi Master and he hurried from the room, wailing at the top of his lungs.

Anakin laughed along with the other students. The pheromones had worked better than he had ever dreamed!

And Yoda had been pranked!