A/N: Hi sorry I hadn't posted this yet, (like I said I would, wow great job me.) but I was working on a short fic for celebrate-the-clone-wars's Writing Wednesday prompt. You can check it out if you'd like. I can't put the link here but all you have to do is add /blog/jedimastermeganfics after the normal stuff. Hopefully that works for you if you're interested.
Thanks to everyone who followed/favorited and to david davies 5851 and IthilwenofIthilien for reviewing!
Enjoy this second Council chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, I just obsess over it 24/7
*Elytra's POV*
We were called back early the next morning, before the sun had completely risen. I didn't get much sleep last night. I couldn't. Things were just… too new. Too different. Not even the food stayed the same. I had yet to find some foods in the Temple cafeteria that would help me slowly adjust to these new tastes. Anakin offered me some ration bars, but those didn't do much. They also tasted horrible.
Hungry and unable to sleep, I spent the night trying to learn the Aurebesh alphabet in Anakin's and Ahsoka's quarters. Whether I became a Jedi or not, this galaxy was my home now. I was going to need to learn how to read. It seemed pretty simple, but it would be a while before my brain recognized the characters enough to be able to see words instead of translated symbols.
The anticipation for the upcoming meeting was probably the only thing keeping me on my feet at this point. My stomach twisted into a buddle of nerves as I neared the Council chambers, Anakin and Ahsoka at my side. The former had his hand reassuringly on my shoulder. We met Padme at the door, all dressed up in her senatorial robes. She smiled at me. I returned it as best I could. Taking a deep breath and schooling my features, I nodded to Anakin, who signaled the Padawan in the reception area. The doors slid open and we stepped inside.
My gaze immediately fell on Obi-wan. He looked exhausted, even more so than me. I wondered how long they were up discussing everything I'd told them. Being the only person on the Council who was in my world in person, he must have been bombarded with questions. Beyond the exhaustion, I saw thinly-veiled irritation, seemingly aimed at various members of the Council. My heart dropped into my stomach.
"Thank you for returning so early, Senator, Miss Lasace," Windu said, nodding to each of us respectively. "Skywalker, Padawan Tano, thank you for sharing your quarters for the time being," he added, addressing the other two.
"It was no problem, Masters." Anakin replied, bowing.
"Now then, onto business." Windu folded his fingers in front of him. "We have discussed your account of the events that supposedly occurred. Seeing as it coincides perfectly with the other four accounts given, we have no reason to not believe you all are telling the truth."
"The idea of transportation between galaxies is quite strange," Shaak Ti mused, appearing before us in hologram form. "Perhaps in the future, we could study this more. I hope you would not mind us inquiring more about your galaxy at a later date."
"Not at all, Master Ti," I answered, bowing slightly in respect for her. She was definitely on my list of allies.
"Another thing that should be addressed is the matter of her knowing our potential future," Master Mundi spoke up.
An unknown Master picked up where he left off. "If she knows thing such as battle plans, it could be problematic if she gave it to our enemies."
"You have my word that I will not speak of such information," I promised, hoping they would hear my sincerity in my words as well as the Force. "Not unless someone here wishes to know it."
"We do not wish to know our futures, however possible they may be," Master Plo said, answering my question without me ever having to ask it.
Master Luminara looked upon me with sympathy. "That is burden we do not wish on ourselves. I would wish it on no one. Sadly, you will have to bear it, and for that I offer my deepest sympathies."
"I understand, Masters. And thank you." I shared a glance with Obi-wan, both of us thinking of that night so long ago, where we talked about out futures. It was then I said that I wouldn't be going back with them. Obviously, that had changed. I wondered how many other things will change.
I drew my focus back to the conversation around me. It was slightly dizzying to follow the discussion bouncing around the room, having to go back and forth between members and turning in every which way. Honestly, how much did these people need to talk? Hadn't they been doing this all night?
Windu's voice cut through the air. "We have one more thing to say, before you four may be excused." I stood up straighter. This was the news I was waiting for, the news that was the reason for my lack of sleep, the news that could potentially determine the fate of the galaxy if the Force was correct. (I had a feeling it was.) "You asked if you would be trained in the Jedi arts… Our answer is no."
"No?" I sputtered, taken by surprise. I knew that this was a very real answer they could give me, but with all their talk about not wanting to know their future, I had hoped they would have said yes, if only to put my knowledge to use. I guess I put too much faith in them.
"You are too old to begin the training," he continued, obviously expecting the exchange to be over and done with. Oh, how wrong he was.
"Exceptions have been made before," I said. He threw a frown in my direction, which I promptly ignored, turning to address the other masters. "And how old am I shouldn't matter!" I said, accentuating my words with my hands. "What should matter is that I have a will to learn and an eagerness to help people!"
"Miss Lasace," Windu said, disapproving glare firmly fixed upon me. "Our decision has been made."
"Well maybe you should reconsider your decision, Master Windu."
"Who are you to tell us on how to make our decisions?" he exclaimed indignantly, the renowned Jedi calm breaking ever so slightly.
"The fricking person the Force chose, that's who!" I yelled, finally exploding. "Can't you feel in the Force that training me is the right thing to do? It has told me itself that it wishes for me to be trained, so I could help your galaxy out of the hole it's fallen into, a hole that's partially of your own making."
The Masters looked taken aback. "Miss Lasace, please-"
I raised a hand, cutting off their protests as I took another step towards Master Windu. "Are you so blind," I continued, ignoring the dangerous look in his eyes that was hardly being concealed anymore, "that you cannot see what the Force is trying to tell you? Can't you feel it around me even now? Are you even listening to it at all anymore? Or are you too stubbornly stuck in your old, restricting ways of thought that you can't see what's right in front of your-"
"Enough of this!" The small green Jedi banged his stick on the ground as he spoke, forcing everyone to pay attention and heed his words. I stepped back, finding the center of the room again. The Force swept through my mind, trailing whispers of encouragement and possible ideas as it passed through. Perhaps I needed to make them see reason another way.
"Miss Lasace, this type of behavior you are exhibiting is not tolerated here." I crossed my arms and met Windu's glare with one of my own, considering my options. "If keep this up, we will be forced to ask you to leave."
I smirked, though the expression was hid as I turned to the people behind me. "Anakin," I said calmly, heeding Windu's words even though I made no acknowledgement of them, "You said the last battle you participated in was the battle to destroy the Malevolence, correct?"
"I- um, yes?" he replied, voice uncharacteristically tiny. It seemed not even he wanted to get in between this special argument of ours.
I hummed, turning back around and giving Windu a small smile before sinking down to the floor. I crossed my legs comfortably and met Windu's gaze once more before closing my eyes. "What in the name of the Force are you doing?" he asked, incredulity lacing his voice. Oh, if only I could see the look on his face right about now. But I kept my eyes closed, ignoring Windu and all the stares I could feel on me.
"Soon, a few Senators will be in certain circumstances that allow them to capture Nute Gunray. A Jedi team will be dispatched to bring him to Coruscant, but he will escape custody before they arrive." Murmurs sprung to life in the Council chambers, the phrases "what is she doing?" and "is she out of her mind?" being among the most commonly uttered. "From there, another Jedi team will be dispatched to track down his location-"
"What is the meaning of this?" a voice rang out above the others. Master Even Piell. I could only tell it was him because of the accent. Most other voices were unknown to me.
"I think it's pretty simple, Master Piell," I said, pausing my spiel momentarily. "I'm telling you your future. A very vague version of it anyway." I picked another moment of the Clone Wars and started again. "At a different point in time, a mission will be launched to capture Dooku-"
"You would go against our express wishes to not know?" I couldn't pinpoint who it was, but I tilted my head in the direction of the voice.
"This information has the ability to save countless lives across the galaxy. Since I cannot use it myself, that task falls to you, hence me telling you. I would think innocent lives would take precedent over personal preference." Louder shouts broke out across the room. Obi-wan's was not among them. A wave of support flowed over me, the origin feeling a lot like him. I hid my smile. I'd be sure to thank him later. For now, I ignored the Councilors, continuing on with my tirade. The Force sang with pride in my mind, and I could feel the hints of amazed astonishment in a few others, most likely my friends.
After letting the shouting go on for a while, I stopped speaking completely. I sat there, content, and waited for them to notice. It didn't take long. Once the voices were quiet enough for me to be heard again, I opened my eyes. "There is an easier way to go about all of this."
"And what would that be?" Master Plo said, asking the question I had been slowly been leading them to since the beginning.
"Train me." The room was dead silent, no one so much as breathing. A frozen moment in time. The tap of a gimmer stick on the marble floor broke the illusion. Master Yoda hobbled to the center of the chambers, stopping right in front of me.
"Hmm, emotional you are. Lots of fear, anger, pain, I sense in you. Lead you to recklessness that will," he admonished, perfectly matching me eye for eye as we stared at each other. Suddenly, his eyes softened. "But from recklessness, shine through your true colors do. Compassion, by putting others over yourself. Cleverness, by maneuvering us all in a direction you chose. Selflessness, by willing to do what others are not. Persistence, by pushing for what you know to be right." He paused glancing at all member of the room before settling back on me. "And faith in the Force, by carrying out its will, even when see it others could not."
He rested one gnarled hand on my shoulder, a smile ghosting across his features. "A balance exists in you, yes. A good Jedi you would make. In this war, one that would be invaluable. Give you my blessing to be trained I do." He squeezed my shoulder, then turned and hobbled back to his chair, leaving the other masters to gape openly at his announcement.
Obi-wan asked for it to be put to a vote, firmly raising his hand in favor. Then, one by one, other master began to agree. Yoda, Shaak Ti, Plo Koon, Adi Gallia, Ki Adi Mundi, Luminara Unduli, Eeth Koth. The remainder were outvoted, 8 to 4.
"It seems," Windu said with a sigh, "the majority of the Council has decided. Elytra Lasace, you are to be trained as a Jedi."
A/N: Okay, next chapter is going to take a LOT of work cause I have only the most basic idea of I want it to go and it's kind of an important chapter so... We'll see. Maybe I'll have it up before Saturday, maybe not. Stay tuned I guess.