Hello everyone. I'm glad everyone was happy with the previous chapter and thanks for the reviews and constructive criticism. Guest, you're right, I should've had Padmé ask Aayla about a relationship. Man, I could kick myself for not thinking of that lol. Anyway, on with the next chapter; Ahsoka returns from a routine mission and needs to find something to do and Anakin thinks about Katooni's restarted training whilst he waits for Padmé to give birth.

The Order Redeems: Chapter 36 – At a Loose End

Ahsoka Tano was relieved. Her ship, "The New Horizon," had been in hyperspace for the last ten hours and finally, she was nearing Coruscant. She was returning from a routine mission on Telos IV where she was supposedly required to oversee a disagreement that had broken out over the planet's restoration to the Republic and of its clean up due to the mining operations and factories. However, the expected trouble never happened and she was bored the whole time. Eventually, the two sides came to an agreement themselves, which left Ahsoka wondering why she was even there.

She sighed and leaned back; content to let the autopilot guide her ship. She started to think of recent events. It was four months since she had learnt that her parents survived and that she had a younger sister and Ahsoka had never been happier. She couldn't help but giggle as she thought back to the meal that Padmé treated her to on her life day. The look of sheer terror on Lux's face when he was introduced to her parents was priceless and it will live with her forever. Not being able to tell them herself, Ahsoka had Padmé and Anakin take her parents aside to fill them in on what had happened to her. Ahsoka sensed the shock and anger in both her mother and father but the one good thing was that her parents were far more understanding of her being with Lux afterwards.

Since that day, Ahsoka had made a point to keep in contact with both her parents and her sister. Ordinarily, her parent's tribe didn't talk to outsiders but when Ahsoka flew her parents and sister home on her ship, they met with the tribal leader and an exception was granted in her case. Ahsoka did feel slightly odd about being on Shili at that time. It brought back memories of her being alone and starving and her parents were horrified that their own daughter nearly starved to death just five hundred miles from their location. Her initial unease was cured however when the whole tribe came to speak to her and accept her back as one of their own. She was smiling as she flew back to the temple that day.

Ahsoka started to think about what lay ahead. She knew that she had several days off duty once she got back to the temple. Padmé was due to give birth any day and since Ahsoka was the twin's official godmother, she had to be there. Ahsoka hoped that the birth would happen before her next mission however; she did not want to miss it or the look on her former master's face for that matter.

There was only one problem. Lux was away at a diplomatic conference on Alderaan that was being hosted by the temporary chancellor, Bail Organa. The senator had temporarily taken over as chancellor from Padmé a month before so that she could go on maternity leave. Although Ahsoka was determined that she would not get in the way of Lux's duties as a senator, it did mean that she would, most likely, be bored for the next few days and she would have to find something to amuse herself. She smirked as a thought entered her head. Since it was discovered that Luminara and Obi-Wan had started to spend to odd night together, Ahsoka along with Anakin and Katooni had made it their personal goal to tease the couple as much as was possible. She hoped that neither Obi-Wan nor Luminara were going on missions when she returned, otherwise, she would be really bored.

She glanced at the navigation computer and smiled when she read that there was just one parsec left until she reached Coruscant. She sat back with contentment and watched the blue swirls of hyperspace.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Ahsoka entered the council chamber. She had landed a few minutes before and she decided to get her council report over with before she did anything else. Ahsoka had arrived around mid-morning which meant that she would have the rest of the day to herself afterwards. She smiled as she walked to the centre of the room. After five and a half months, she finally felt at ease with being a knight and she had realised a while before that it was almost like she had to leave the Order before she could finally truly become a Jedi. She finally understood what she was told on Mortis. Since then of course, her future-self had confirmed to her that the Jedi path was truly her true path. As she reached the middle, she bowed.

"Welcome back young Tano," Master Yoda began. "Successful your mission was, yes?"

Ahsoka smiled. "Yes Master," she answered. "Although to be honest, I didn't actually need to do anything. They sorted it out themselves."

Master Yoda smiled back and chuckled. It was obvious to him that Ahsoka still didn't fully realise the role that she did play on Telos. Simply being there was enough to accomplish her mission; as indeed, it often was, if handled correctly. This was the one lesson that Ahsoka still needed to learn. "To let them solve the problem themselves, the true role of the Jedi that is. Being there, often enough it is. Did more to help them than you think you did."

Ahsoka frowned. How can doing nothing help them? Oh well, she would have to think about that. "Thank you Master."

Anakin smirked in his chair. He could sense his former Padawan's confusion and he remembered being told something similar by Yoda when he was still learning. "What Master Yoda means Snips, is that your presence at proceedings was enough to prove to the people of Telos IV that the Republic will not abandon them and that trouble would not be tolerated. It provided an incentive to them to come up with a peaceful solution."

Ahsoka's eyes widened. She did not expect that from Anakin but it did at least clear things up for her. "I see. I'll have to remember that Skyguy."

"Learnt something today have you, young Tano?"

Ahsoka nodded, "Yes Master."

Master Yoda chuckled again. "A knight you now are, but never stop, does the learning. Always prepared to better themselves a Jedi must be. Remember that you should."

"I will Master Yoda." Ahsoka glanced at Anakin. She could sense that he was starting to feel a little nervous. Ahsoka silently laughed to herself; it wasn't much of a stretch to think of Padmé telling Anakin to stop fussing over her. That was probably why Anakin was here at that moment instead of with Padmé. Ahsoka decided to have a bit of fun. She turned fully to Anakin and asked, "How's Padmé Master?"

Anakin smirked, "Large!"

Again, Ahsoka's eyes widened. Did Anakin really say that? She glanced around and noticed Obi-Wan shaking his head. Ahsoka's face gained an evil grin as she said, "I'll tell her you said that."

Anakin narrowed his eyes and looked at his former apprentice. "You wouldn't dare Snips."

If possible, Ahsoka's grin got even wider. "Wouldn't I?" She could hear some sniggers coming from the other council members and couldn't help but snigger herself.

"Fine," Anakin declared. He grinned back at her. "I'll tell your parents what you and Senator Bonteri got up in that lake last week."

Ahsoka froze as laughter erupted around her. "Master! You wouldn't?" she begged. Anakin just smirked in reply. Ahsoka sighed, defeated. "Fine, Skyguy. You don't tell, I won't tell."

"That a girl Snips."

Obi-Wan tried desperately to control his amusement. Since Ahsoka had been cleared for full duty, these kinds of verbal games had become common between her and Anakin. In fact, the last four months had proven to be the best time that he had had as a council member. It was truly wonderful to see Anakin and Ahsoka as happy as they were but there were times that he wondered how old the two of them were. "Anakin, Ahsoka, will you two ever grow up?"

"Never Master Kenobi," Ahsoka returned happily.

"I'm with her," Anakin added.

Mace Windu shook his head. "Couple of children…." he muttered.

"Lighten up you should," Master Yoda stated as he looked at Mace. "To be serious all the time, no need there is." He turned back to Ahsoka. "Have some time off you do, Knight Tano. Need to do some studying you do; important for your next mission it will be."

Ahsoka was puzzled. "Studying Master?"

Master Windu took over. He was still a little taken aback from Yoda telling him to lighten up. He put it to the back of his mind and stated, "There is an election happening on Kiola six days from now. They are voting in a new senator but there are complications."

Ahsoka frowned. "Kiola? That was the planet where the clones under Barriss killed the children."

"Yes," Master Windu answered. "That is why there are complications. There is a renegade group that have appeared on the planet demanding justice. They have vowed to interfere with the elections."

"That could be a problem," Ahsoka agreed.

Obi-Wan took over. "Yes Ahsoka. As you know, we have tried to find the clones responsible for the atrocity but the records of the mission have been deleted, probably by Palpatine, so we have no idea who the clones were. All we know is that the clones weren't who Padawan Offee thought they were."

"And that's what inflamed the locals," Ahsoka guessed. "They're upset that the perpetrators have yet to be found."

"Precisely Ahsoka," Obi-Wan confirmed. "They have vowed that peaceful elections will not be allowed until the clones have been found and handed over to them."

"Your job Knight Tano…" Master Windu began, "…will be to make sure that the elections take place as scheduled. You will also try to find some clues on scene about the clone's identities."

"Hmmm, I've never been to Kiola."

"Hence the reason for study young Tano," Master Yoda answered. "Read up on the planet and their voting system you must. Give you something to do on your time off, it will."

"Yes Master," Ahsoka replied. "I'll give myself the rest of today to rest, and then I will start my study of the planet tomorrow with a clear head."

"Very good," Master Yoda stated, "Dismissed you are; get yourself something to eat you should."

"Yes Master, "Ahsoka stated as she bowed. She turned and left the room. She was slightly concerned; this new mission was the most serious and dangerous that she had be allocated yet. She didn't mind as it proved that trust had again been built. Deciding that she was hungry, she headed to the canteen for a latish breakfast.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan Petro were heading to the practice rooms. They were going to aid Anakin. Katooni had regained enough movement in her arm to restart some light training but since she did retain some weakness, Anakin had asked his former master for some assistance in thinking of ways to help her overcome it. Obi-Wan had a feeling that his brain would be picked by Anakin over this but he didn't mind. Like everyone else, he was delighted that Katooni had regained the use of her arm; if he had to help her as well as Anakin then so be it. Obi-Wan also knew of course, that the other reason Anakin had asked him to be there was the fact that Anakin was panicking slightly over Padmé going into labour. He silently laughed as he thought of the sheer panic Anakin will undoubtedly display when he gets the call that the twins are coming.

Their path to the training rooms had taken them past one of the temple's canteens. As they were walking past, Obi-Wan spotted Ahsoka just leaving the canteen. "Hello Ahsoka."

"Hello again Master Kenobi," Ahsoka responded smiling. "Hi Petro. Where are you two going?"

"Hi Master Tano," Petro answered. "We're just off to the practice room."

Ahsoka looked up at Obi-Wan as he added, "Yes Ahsoka, we're just going to help Anakin. Katooni is just about to begin her training again and Anakin has asked me to aid him overcome Katooni's slight weakness that she's been left with."

Ahsoka smiled. "I'm so glad she has recovered; that was really rough for her."

"Yes it was," Obi-Wan said. "What are you up to? Starting to study for your mission?"

Ahsoka shook her head. "No, I'm not today Master Kenobi. My head has gone for the moment and I won't be able to concentrate so as I said, I'll start tomorrow. I really don't know what to do today."

"Well, make sure you do research Kiola, Ahsoka. You will need it when you get there. I've heard that their voting system is unusual to say the least."

Ahsoka nodded. She suspected as much, although, as usual, she hoped she wouldn't have to understand the politics in that great a detail. "Yes I will, but I'm just at a bit of a loose end for today."

Obi-Wan stroked his beard and went into deep thought for a second. He knew that Ahsoka never did like being bored and he knew from what Anakin had told him that she really had to be in a correct frame of mind for study. Eventually, an idea entered his head. "Ahsoka, if you're really looking for something to occupy you, the Apprentice Tournament is being held today. It's going to be a series of one on one lightsaber duels this year held in one of the gardens. It is always good to watch. I would watch it myself if I wasn't needed by the council or Anakin."

"Really?" Ahsoka asked. She thought back; she had only been in one tournament herself and it was a free for all that year. It was at that tournament that Master Yoda initially approached her about becoming Anakin's Padawan. She had no idea what the other forms that the tournament could take were like so Master Kenobi's idea actually interested her. It would be a lot better than the holoNet at least. "Thanks Master Kenobi. I might just go and watch that."

Obi-Wan smiled. "Good, I think you'll like it. Just remember Ahsoka, you'll be watching it from the other side this time; remember what it was like for you when you were in the tournament…..Oh, be mindful Ahsoka, you never know."

Ahsoka frowned. She didn't really know what Obi-Wan was on about, but she reasoned that she would figure it out. "Er…..right. Well, if it's on today then I'd better hurry; I wouldn't want to miss it." Ahsoka started to walk in the direction of the gardens. "See you Master Kenobi. Thanks for the idea."

"Anytime Ahsoka, see you soon," Obi-Wan stated as he watched the young Togruta walk away. He noticed that all three of her lekku had lengthened by a few centimetres and her montrals had also grown. She was growing up; faster now than ever. He secretly frowned to himself as he thought how close they had all come to losing her; that would have been a total travesty. It showed how strong she was that she was able to recover and forgive. He wondered if the council truly did deserve the total forgiveness that she had given them; even now, he wasn't sure. He shook his head and turned to his Padawan. "Come on Petro. Let's go and help Anakin."

Petro nodded. "Yes Master," he stated as he followed Obi-Wan. Like his master, Petro was waiting with some amusement to see what state Anakin Skywalker was going to be in. It would definitely be comical to see a Jedi Master nervous over his wife about to give birth and Petro had no intention of missing it.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Anakin Skywalker was in one of the temple rooms with his Padawan, Katooni. Her healers had told the two of them that she had recovered enough to begin some light training. Anakin was delighted; she had recovered almost all of the movement in her right hand and arm, although, as expected, she had been left with a slight weakness in that arm. That fact was giving Anakin a headache. He was her master and he knew that her training, even her lightsaber style would have to change from now on. It was his responsibility to teach her that new style, but there was just one problem; he had no idea what it should be. The only thing he knew was that she no longer had the strength for the style he had be teaching her, Form V. That indeed was the purpose of this session. He hoped that his former master had some ideas.

That wasn't the only reason that Anakin was on edge. He knew, of course, that although Padmé was due to give birth soon, she was unlikely to go into labour today. Although his brain knew that, he was still uneasy. His place was with her really, but it was Padmé herself that had told Anakin to go to the temple. In truth, it was taking all of his newfound control to keep himself on an even keel. He knew, however, that the same could probably be said for any man whose wife was due to go into labour.

Anakin's unease was amusing his Padawan. Katooni was well aware of her master's dilemma and she was, by now, fully practiced in the art of holding her laughter. All though her time as an Initiate, she had been told to learn calmness and control from her superiors and from her master once she was a Padawan, but now, she had a front row seat to her master potentially having a coronary and it was hysterical.

Katooni had reason to worry herself of course. She knew that the weakness that she had been left with was going to cause her a problem. Indeed, in reality, she was worried that she would never be able to swing a lightsaber properly again and at one point, she even considered switching permanently to a blaster. Eventually, her determination had over-ridden her lack of confidence and she set her mind on resuming her training. She was, however, slightly puzzled about why they were waiting. "Master, when are we going to begin?"

Katooni's question snapped Anakin out of his thoughts. He looked down at her and quickly answered, "Soon Katooni; we're just waiting for Obi-Wan. He has agreed to help."

"Ah, okay," she replied. She then bit her lip and asked, "Er, this isn't going to be easy, is it?"

Anakin gave a reassuring smile. "I'm here to help you Katooni. I'll think of someway to overcome your problems."

Katooni flashed a smile and nodded. "Thank you, master. I'm just not that confident at the moment."

"I know," Anakin replied. At that moment, he noticed Obi-Wan and Petro enter the training room and walk over to them. "Hello master, Petro."

"Hi Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "Padawan Katooni."

"Master Kenobi," Katooni returned. "Good to see you. And you Petro."

Petro smiled and nodded but before he could say anything, Obi-Wan stated, "Well, I suppose we should get to it."

Anakin agreed. "Yeah I think so. Obi-Wan, do you think we could get Katooni and Petro to spar slowly. I want to see how Katooni is."

Obi-Wan thought for a second. He was interested to see how affected young Katooni was himself and a slow sparring session with Petro was a good way to see that. "Yes, that might be a good idea Anakin." He turned to the two Padawans. "Katooni, Petro. Anakin and I will watch the two of you spar slowly. I mean, slowly. Petro, remember that Katooni is slightly limited; this is not about winning, it is about finding out Katooni's requirements."

"Katooni," Anakin began. "It might be best if you use the two handed grip for this."

Both Padawans nodded and after turning their sabers down to training levels, they both activated them. They both moved out into the room and began to circle each other. Taking the initiative, Petro lunged in, swinging his saber from a high point aiming for her midriff. Feeling fearful, Katooni didn't block but rather leapt sideways out of the way. Seeing this, Petro pressed his advantage swinging his saber vertically, bringing it down towards her head. Katooni grimaced and moved to block the strike. Even though she had her saber in both hands, it was still difficult for her to block and she had to move with the strike.

Even Petro noticed that she was tentative and as he swung another attack at her face he said, "Come on Tooni, hit me back." Katooni however, pushed her saber sideways in an attempt to block the strike. Petro's attack was too strong for her weakened arm however and it pushed her sideways. Deciding to go with it, she spun around, swinging an attack back at Petro. He jumped out of the way before rolling his saber in his hand and bringing it down on her again. This time, she could do nothing about it and as she tried to block again, her saber was knocked out of her hand.

Katooni looked deflated and beaten by the defeat. It wasn't the fact that Petro beat her that was the problem; he had often beaten her when they were in their clan. What got to her was the fact that she couldn't even compete.

Anakin looked with concern at Katooni. He could sense her despondency and the general feeling of defeat rolling off her. It hurt him to see his Padawan feel like that; maybe this practice session wasn't a particularly good idea after all. "Hey, don't feel bad Katooni. You have been injured for four months. It'll come."

Katooni looked down. Her voice was deflated as she spoke, "I just can't do it Master."

Anakin sighed. He had to come up with something, and it had to be soon. "Stay with Petro for a minute. I need to speak to Obi-Wan."

Katooni sadly nodded. "Okay."

Anakin walked up to Obi-Wan and the two masters walked away from their respective Padawans. "What do you think Obi-Wan?" Anakin asked.

Obi-Wan sighed. How did he know that Anakin would ask that? He thought about the duel he had just witnessed. It was clear that Katooni had a serious strength issue; blocking in particular was causing her serious problems. He wasn't sure however, if he had any idea what to do about it. "Strength is an issue for her Anakin."

"We always knew it was going to be Obi-Wan, but she really did struggle."

"Yes she did," Obi-Wan replied. "I think we will have to get her to focus on speed and Force use." He stroked his beard. For once, he could quite understand why Anakin had asked for help; this was not an easy problem to solve. Obi-Wan didn't want to think it, but it was possible that Katooni was simply no longer capable of lightsaber combat. He knew that Anakin feared exactly the same thing as did Katooni herself. Still, he had to suggest something; there was no way he would allow her to be abandoned like Ahsoka initially was. "Maybe try her with Form VI Anakin?"

Anakin nodded and went into deep thought. Form VI, Niman, was not a form that he himself studied that much. The aggression of Form V always suited him better which was why he taught it to both Ahsoka and Katooni. However, Ahsoka did look into it quite a bit when she started to practice Jar'Kai. He then thought about Ahsoka. He had taught her the basics of dual wielding, but she had gone on and developed most of her current duel wielding style herself, including mixing it with the reverse Shien grip that she liked so much. After that, an idea came into Anakin's mind; could Ahsoka's ideas help Katooni? On reflection, yes, he thought, as long as he kept Katooni away from Ahsoka's grip. "Master, I have an idea."

"Go on Anakin," Obi-Wan urged.

"Do you think dual wielding could help her?" Anakin asked. "A secondary blade in her left hand mixed with Form VI might be right for her. Think about it, it would compensate for the lack of strength in her right arm."

Obi-Wan went into thought himself. Even though the idea seemed silly initially, after a while he could see where Anakin had got the idea from. "You're thinking of Ahsoka aren't you?" Anakin nodded in reply. "Well, Anakin, I can see where you're coming from. If we could get her to combine it with the Force pushes of Form VI, it might work Anakin. I think you should get Ahsoka to help you if that's the direction you want to go with Katooni. At the moment, Ahsoka is one of the best Jar'Kai users in the temple and her style is unique. Yoda and Mace are watching her in fact. If she can cover a couple of her remaining weaknesses, they are thinking of declaring Ahsoka's style as a new form."

Anakin frowned. "Do you think Ahsoka could help Katooni?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "If you get Katooni to dual wield, then I know Ahsoka could help her. Master Yoda knows it too. Don't tell her, but Ahsoka will be given a class of her own to teach once she has more experience as a knight."

"I think that's what I'll do then," Anakin began. "I'll give Katooni some time to feel better whilst I see how Padmé is getting on, and then I'll try Katooni with Form VI and a second blade; just to see how it goes."

"It couldn't hurt," Obi-Wan replied. "I think we had better go back to them."

Anakin nodded and the two masters walked back towards their Padawans. Anakin smiled when he saw the Petro was doing his best to lift Katooni's spirits. He hoped his ideas would aid even more. "Katooni," Anakin began. "Obi-Wan and I have had a thought. It might sound stupid and difficult to you initially and it does have problems of its own, but I'm going to try you with a second blade and we will be swapping your training to Form VI."

"Second blade, Master?" Katooni asked in shock, "Like Master Tano?"

Anakin nodded. "Well not exactly like Ahsoka, but yes. I think I can teach you it in a way that will compensate for the weakness in your arm."

Katooni shook her head. "I can't do that Master. I'm not very good with one lightsaber. I'd never handle two."

Anakin sighed. He hoped that this worked as he really needs to work on her confidence as well. "We'll just try it as an experiment Katooni. I'll get Ahsoka to help you as well. If it doesn't work, we'll try something else. At least try it."

"Okay master. I'll give it a go. Should I read up on Form VI?"

"Might be an idea," Anakin replied. "I'll give you a couple of hours for that if you like. Then we'll try it later. As I said, it's just an experiment. Come On." Katooni nodded as she followed Anakin. He turned to Obi-Wan and Petro, "Thanks for your assistance Master. Thanks Petro."

"Anytime Anakin," Obi-Wan replied as Petro acknowledged him with a nod.

Katooni smiled and waved goodbye at Petro as she followed her master out of the room. Although she didn't want to say anything, Anakin's idea terrified her; would she really find two lightsabers better for her than one? She seriously doubted it but as her master said, it was an experiment and it would be nice to train with Ahsoka again.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Ahsoka was sat in one of the temple gardens. She had been watching the Apprentice Tournament for the last hour and just like Obi-Wan had told her, she loved it. She was especially interested by the form the tournament had taken; as she had been told, the younglings were facing each other one on one in lightsaber combat. Instead of being a knockout tournament however, the training masters had decided on something really different this year and had made the competition a league system. As normal for such a system, every youngling was expected to duel every other one with points allocated whether he or she won, lost or drew. Just before the tournament began, the experimental system was explained and Ahsoka found it fascinating, if a little excessive.

As she sat there watching, Ahsoka made a point of not paying much attention to who was duelling in any particular duel as she wished to remain neutral even though she could see that other knights and masters who were watching had clearly gained favourites. That was the point of the tournament of course. The whole competition was organised to match new Padawans with Masters. Ahsoka, however, had no wish to think any further about it so she just enjoyed the matches.

In general, she was impressed by the standard that had been shown by the younglings. Not that she was an expert, but she could tell that as a general rule, this crop of younglings were well trained and well-practiced and it was very enjoyable to watch their skill as the vast majority of the matches were very close and very exciting.

There was one exception however and Ahsoka smirked with amusement as the blue skinned Pantoran girl again took her place in the ring that had been laid out. Her opponent, a male Nautolan, was also smirking. Clearly, he knew that the Pantoran girl was no competition. As soon as the master started the match, the Nautolan jumped immediately into action. Leaping into the air, he ignited his training saber and brought it down towards the girl's head. She tried her best to block, but as soon as the two blades met, the Nautolan quickly switched his blade's direction. It was a simple quick switch; something which any lightsaber duellist should be able to cope with, but the Pantoran girl couldn't and as soon as she tried to adapt, her saber was knocked out of her hand. Ahsoka shook her head. Even though she knew that she shouldn't, she couldn't help but silently laugh. "That girl is useless," Ahsoka said quietly to herself. In fact, Ahsoka was puzzled; she knew that a youngling had to pass the initiate trials to be allowed into the tournament, but she wasn't sure how the Pantoran girl could have done with such a lack of skill.

As Ahsoka looked at the Pantoran girl however, Ahsoka couldn't help but think that she should know her or at least know of her. There was something incredibly familiar about the girl even though Ahsoka knew that she had never seen her before. After a few seconds, Ahsoka realised that the girl looked a lot like her friend, Senator Riyo Chuchi. Ahsoka estimated that she was about the same age as her own sister Arika, thirteen, and she had the typical Pantoran blue skin, Shoulder length dark purple hair that was a shade or two darker than Senator Chuchi's. Her eyes, like most Pantoran's, were a pale yellow and like Chuchi, she had two markings on her cheeks but hers were yellow instead of the green colour that they were on Chuchi. Although obviously younger, her face resembled Chuchi's face greatly and only differed by being slightly rounder. Her clothing consisted of a purple tunic that was similar in shape to Ahsoka's own. Unlike Ahsoka's however, her tunic retained its back and had no cut out in the front. She was wearing a maroon coloured skirt that reached halfway down her thighs and maroon shoes.

The next few matches involving the Pantoran girl all went in a similar fashion. She barely lasted more than two or three minutes in any of them and she was bottom of the league in the competition. Eventually, Ahsoka started to feel sorry for the Pantoran. She didn't like to see anyone get beaten so embarrassingly and as she watched, Ahsoka thought of an obvious improvement that the girl could use. Although Ahsoka wanted to remain neutral, she had to tell the girl; it was her duty as a knight to do so and she wouldn't feel right if she didn't. She waited until a break in the tournament and when other knights started to approach some of the younglings, she did the same.

Ahsoka was conscious of the fact that she was only four years older than the girl, so she hoped that the girl would listen to her. She decided to take a young attitude herself as she slowly walked up to the girl. "Hello."

The Pantoran turned around and smiled when she saw that the female voice came from a girl not that much older than herself. She blinked a few times once she saw who it was; the experiences of Ahsoka Tano had spread through the younglings and the young Togrutan knight had become someone that the younglings all aspired to. The Pantoran girl bowed her head, as was traditional when addressing a knight, and replied, "Hello Master Tano."

Ahsoka bit her lip. She had yet to get used to younglings and Padawans showing her that kind of respect and it still made her feel a little uncomfortable. Ahsoka wondered how to begin; she didn't want to just shoot her suggestion at her as it would be a bit condescending. In addition, she was feeling a little guilty over feeling amused initially. "I've been watching and I'm sorry for how this is going for you."

The girl nodded. "Thank you. I've never been good with a lightsaber. I barely scraped through the Initiate trials in fact. This isn't my strength at all."

Ahsoka had to agree with her about that. "You still try though. I'm impressed by that."

"Yes," she sighed. "But only in the tournaments. I've been let off saber training now."

"Oh," Ahsoka replied. If she was honest, she could see why the girl had been let off lighsaber training but maybe she could still help the girl a little. "Well, I think I have an idea to aid you slightly for this tournament."

The Pantoran smiled. "Please."

"You need to watch for blade switches." Ahsoka took her main saber of her belt. She held it in her reverse grip and ignited the white blade. "When you see your opponents try to quickly change his or her blade's direction…." Ahsoka rolled her saber in her hand, "…try rolling your blade in a circle. That way, you should still block the strike wherever the attack comes. Once blocked, try switching direction yourself." Ahsoka extinguished her blade and returned the saber to her belt.

"Thank you Master Tano. I will try that."

Ahsoka smiled. "I hope it helps you. Goodbye for now. I see you will start again soon."

"Goodbye."

Ahsoka walked back to her seat and sat down. A warm and satisfied feeling swept through Ahsoka as she watched the Pantoran girl do much better in her next match. She still didn't win but at least she wasn't quite so embarrassed. Ahsoka was pleased that she had been able to help someone but she wished that she could work out why she thought she knew the girl.

-0-0-0-0-0-

Jedi Grandmaster Yoda was standing in the temple garden. He had also been watching the Apprentice Tournament as he did every year. He loved watching young knights and masters form new training bonds with younglings and it always brought warmth to his heart. This year, the tournament was even more important. The Clone Wars had decimated the numbers of Jedi in the Order and now the war was over, it was essential that more younglings were trained.

A smile came to the grandmaster's face as he watched Ahsoka Tano give some advice to the young Pantoran girl. He knew that the girl was already written down for the Educational Corps but he could now see the true will of the Force. Yes, he would have to keep a close eye on both girls; it was clear to him that another bond had just been formed. Now he just needed to get Knight Tano to realise the will of the Force.

Well, that's chapter 36. I know that there wasn't much action in this chapter but that was quite deliberate. I'm sure you all know the importance of the Pantoran girl introduced in this chapter and yes, she really is that hopeless at the moment but as Ahsoka will find out, she has other strengths. By the way, three gold stars to those of you who remember her name. I deliberately left it out here because Ahsoka doesn't remember it at this stage.

One thing in case anyone asks. No, I'm saying no more about what Ahsoka and Lux did in that lake and I'll leave it to your imagination as I want to keep this T rated rather than M. I'll give you a hint though: Remember that it happened; it will be important to Ahsoka.

I have a couple of questions that I want your opinion on. I am undecided whether to get Barriss involved on Ahsoka's mission to Kiola. What do you all think? Ahsoka won't be alone on this mission either way. Also, I'm undecided whether Anakin and Katooni's experiment will be successful. Please tell me what you think.

Next Chapter; Ahsoka begins her research on Kiola and bumps into her new friend again. This time, she finds out a few things about her. Anakin goes into full panic mode as he gets the call he's been waiting for and Obi-Wan gets a lead on Bo-Katarn.