Disclaimer: Still not Disney. Still don't own Star Wars. Rae is mine!
Point in Timeline – 1 year, 2 months after Naboo Crisis
Chapter 8: The Student and the Shadow
It was one of Rae's increasingly rare days off and she just couldn't stay in her apartment, so she headed to the Jedi Temple. Upon entering, she once again turned to her Intuition to guide her as she had not learned where the training rooms were. Strangely, her Intuition did not lead her where she was planning but to the Room of a Thousand Fountains instead. There, she found a new Jedi. This one was... different. For one thing, they weren't dressed in the traditional Jedi robes but in far more common attire and for another Rae could see a stark white bandage peeking out from the neck of their tunic. Not to mention she could almost hear the Mission: Impossible theme while looking at them with the crackle of fire and an undercurrent of humor. Her Intuition was growing stronger, progressing from half-formed thoughts to singsonged words and... could the music and chimes she'd been hearing-but-not-hearing be the next part of its evolution? Curious, she moved closer. "Good afternoon, Jedi. Might I join you?" she asked. The Jedi turned to her with an unreadable expression, but she could hear curious chimes and surprised trills and a brief cymbal crash of pain raising above the 'spy' theme. Huh, guess that answered that question. Neat.
"And whom might you be, Young One?" they asked. Rae stood a respectful distance and bowed politely.
"My name is Rae Donna Mayar, Jedi. Might I know your name?" she asked. The Jedi huffed, the natural sound accompanied by musical trills that Rae associated with amusement. Well. That could be helpful.
"I am Blon Dellian, Rae. Come, sit with me," they answered. Rae mentally frowned. Blon... was that a male or female name? And what species were they? She'd never seen anyone with such dusty looking skin, and the lack of hair didn't help. Though... there was some familiarity to them. "I can see the questions in your eyes, Young One. Ask, I will not be offended." Flushing, Rae looked down.
"I've never seen anyone like you before. And I admit, I am having trouble determining which pronouns to use for you," she admitted. Blon chuckled.
"I am a male Pau'an, from Utapau," he told her. She smiled up at him.
"Thank you. If I may ask, are you a Knight? Or something else? I admit, I haven't seen any Jedi dressed as causally as you are. Most wear their robes all the time, though I've managed to get Obi-Wan and his Padawan to wear other things," she asked. Blon chuckled again.
"I am what is known as a Jedi Shadow, Rae. A member of the Jedi Sentinel branch of the Order," he said. Rae's eyes went wide. She knew of the Jedi Sentinels of course. The Temple guards were Sentinels, Bastila was a Sentinel, her favored class in KoTOR was a Jedi Sentinel. Never really heard of Jedi Shadows though, that was a new one. Though, if it was anything like what it sounded like, that would explain why his main Song was the Mission: Impossible theme.
"I was unaware that the Sentinels had such a title," she said. "What do you do, Shadow Blon?" He gave her a soft smile.
"Most don't know we exist until they reach the rank of Jedi Knight. Shadows work directly under the Council of First Knowledge. We are sent out to seek and destroy anything and everything connected to the Sith or their followers. It can be a very taxing job." Rae hummed.
"In seeking out the Dark side and its Adepts... do you deal in information as well?" she asked. Blon hummed.
"You may be thinking of the Jedi Investigators. Where they work with law enforcement, crime, and finding the truth behind corruption, we Shadows go further, though we share some skills," he answered. Rae nodded and looked up to the sky. Yup, that was why his Song was the way it was. Drat, that melody was going to be stuck in her head for weeks!
"Have you heard of me, Shadow? About what I can do?" she asked softly. Blon hummed.
"So, you are the one who cowed Mace and possesses knowledge it should be impossible for you to know," he remarked. She smiled wryly.
"Aye. Force Intuition we're calling it, though that seems a bit of a misnomer. It's a powerful ability, without doubt, but I do not possess the capability to be a full Jedi. Quite aside from being too old for training, of course," she said. "But see, thing is, I can See some pretty big things happening within the next decade or so. And it scares me."
"Be aware of your fear," Blon began but Rae cut him off with a dry chuckle.
"The danger lies in allowing fear to rule you, not feeling it, Blon. I would have thought one who devotes his life to the fight against the Dark Side would understand this," she said. "And honestly, who would not feel trepidation in the face of a Galactic War?" The Shadow sucked in a harsh breath and Rae huffed out a laugh. "Indeed. I know that a war is coming and that to stop it would be... difficult. It's possible but... this war has been building for a long time and events have already been put into motion."
"Can you see no way of mitigating the effects?" Blon asked. Rae sighed and looked back at his gaunt face.
"To a degree... but as I am, I don't have the skills or the strength to do so," she answered. "Though... I do have roughly ten years to prepare. I've been doing my best on my own but," she shrugged helplessly, "I've yet to find a good way to train my information gathering and stealth skills. And against a Hidden Sith? I'm going to need both." Blon stared into her eyes, then nodded.
"I'll help you, Rae," he told her.
"What? Just like that?" she asked, straightening from her comfortable half-slouch, though his Song sounded sincere. Blon nodded.
"Well, I would like to know more about you, but from what I've heard..." he smiled, "you're a good woman. From how you spoke, you're looking to do the same work as I am. And... it has been many years since I trained an apprentice." Rae chuckled at the mildly sheepish flourishes she heard in the tall Pau'an's Song at that.
"Well. I'd be a fool to turn you away, Blon. While I am no Jedi, I look forward to learning what you can teach me, Master Dellian," she said, standing to formally bow to the man. "Though..." she stood and gave him a cheeky grin, "I'd be a bigger fool to go against the will of the Healers. The physical side of training would be better left until they give you a clean bill of health." Blon laughed.
"Indeed! It is a true fool who invites wrath upon themselves from an ally. We shall start with your technical learning then," he said. Rae grinned and sat beside him once more.
"Might we put that off for later? The waters are peaceful today, and we have only just met," she said. Blon bowed his head and the pair spent the next few hours merely talking with each other. As the light faded, Rae passed her datapad to Blon and asked him to find a schedule that worked for him.
"I look forward to our lessons, Rae," the Pau'an said, raising his hand in parting.
"I as well, Blon," Rae answered, also raising her hand as she left.
/?/
A/N: And... they clicked faster than I anticipated. Also, the fact that Blon is a Shadow will be important later.
Also... musical intuition? I don't know, but I thought it was in interesting idea since Rae hears the Force but doesn't feel it. Plus, music can say more than words.