Olana Chion was becoming quite pretty.
It was something that was hard not to notice, particularly as someone who had known her since she was much younger. In just the past two years, she had gained nearly a foot in height, already foretelling the tall woman of regal bearing that she would become.
As usual, I found her surrounded by much younger students. They were deep in meditation, and I was happy to see that in addition to Olana floating a foot above the ground, four of the six younglings were as well. Her empathy, and her patience, were both as strong as her healing.
I had done what I could for Olana, but unfortunately, I had given her little hope for the future. Had Anakin been my Padawan, there seemed little chance that she would be chosen by another Knight. And with the uncertainty of the future, I had not been willing to include her in my plans.
All of that could change, now.
I sat down and joined the session, opening my mind to theirs. Olana sensed me immediately, and I was proud that she did not lose her focus despite the mixture of hope and fear that surged through her at my presence. I enveloped the seven minds around me - an easy measure for children this young, plus Olana as receptive as she was, and began sending out strong waves of calm, clear mental strength.
The younglings' minds spread out gradually under my influence, and I felt the other two rise a few inches from the ground joining their peers… although one of them was so surprised by it that he broke his concentration and fell back to the ground with a squeak. He sat and watched the rest of us patiently, and after a few more minutes, their teacher guided the end of the session.
"Good, now, as you sense your friends and your surroundings, turn your mind inward and regard yourself. Draw your senses in toward yourself, recapturing your mind, collecting your will, cementing your own personal presence." We each sank to the ground as we followed her instructions. "When you are entirely yourself again, you may open your eyes."
Olana patiently waited until each of the children's eyes opened, making contact with each of them and giving an encouraging smile. "You all did wonderfully! Poh'la, don't get discouraged! You levitated for a minute there, didn't you?" The boy who had dropped in surprise nodded excitedly. "Remember, this is an exercise you can do on your own, whenever you have time. Don't wait for one of us seniors to lead you in it - be your own teacher!"
The younglings gave various words of thanks as they dispersed, eventually leaving just the two of us in the teaching chamber.
"To what do I owe the honor?" Olana asked with a sardonic smile. Her fear and hope were warring, and… oh, she was shielding part of her mind from me! I was impressed and proud; I hadn't thought she'd advanced that far in her mind skills.
"I'd be surprised if you hadn't already heard." I returned my own smile, pointing at my own sloppy haircut.
Olana nodded, and I felt her fear increase again before it… vanished. I pushed slightly against her, but sensed nothing. An effective shield indeed. "The rumors say you brought back the Chosen One on your last mission," she pointed out. "You became a Knight so he can be your Padawan." Despite her mental shield, I could see the concern on her face.
"As usual, the rumors are just wrong enough to cause harm. In fact, I was made a Knight so that Anakin could become Qui-Gon's Padawan. Which still leaves open the question," I let my smile broaden into a grin, "of who my Padawan would be."
I rose from the ground and she did likewise. I continued, "I have quite a few plans in place for the coming years, and I will most certainly still be involved in Anakin's education. Ideally my student should compliment him. Less focus on physical skills and prowess; more on mental. A skilled healer, empath, and linguist. Someone who's studied diplomacy and pedagogy. A learner who has shown flexibility in her training, the ability to adapt to unorthodox techniques." I turned to her fully. "I believe that narrows it down to just one candidate. So how abou - oof!"
The girl had jumped on me for a tight hug, and dropped her shield enough that I could sense her deep relief, the satisfaction of fufilled hope. "I've wanted this since I was six years old," she murmured, as much to herself as to me, I thought.
"You've worked very hard, Olana. And your reward… is the chance to work even harder." I put her down carefully, mirroring her excited smile with my own. "Have you passed the Initiate Trials?"
She shook her head. "We still have two left. I'm not worried about the first one, but to take the second, I need to build my own sword. I'm no good with circuitry." She looked enviously at my own blade; although I kept it concealed along with my blaster and other specialized equipment when in the field, I wore it visibly when on Coruscant as was expected of a Jedi. "I... have... not done well, in several of the field exercises. The 'practical' tests."
I nodded. "Yes, but you have other exceptional talents. We'll work together on anything giving you trouble, don't worry." I led her out of the meditation room and towards my own quarters. "First, we have a much more pressing matter to go over. How's your Binary?"
I heard her take a deep breath, and felt her center herself. Then I heard: **Complete fluency acquired.** The squealing, clicking noises were coming from Olana! And they were, in fact, perfect Binary.
"How did you do that?" Droid Binary uses a speed and variety of sounds not available to the human vocal cords. There was a human version, but it was extremely slow since it expanded the sounds into longer sequences.
I felt her focus her will strongly again. **Sonic emissions amenable to Force manipulation.** Another deep breath. **0LNA acquired sufficient data/programming….**
"That's impressive," I cut her off as she took another breath. "You learned how to channel your voice, not only to amplify the sound but to wholly alter it. How did you even go about developing the technique?"
"I didn't have to; it was in the Archives," Olana admitted as we resumed walking. "Not for learning Droidspeak - it was originally developed for musical performance. Force Harmony, a way for a single singer or flutist to perform multiple notes. But it adapted readily to this."
"I will admit, Olana, that my suggestion was just that you learn to understand Binary. I wasn't more specific, because I didn't believe the other was possible."
She allowed herself a momentary smirk. "In the future, Master, you should be more careful with your orders. If you ask for the impossible, I make no guarantees that you won't get it."
"I'll keep that in mind."
R2 was waiting patiently in my quarters. I had asked him more than once if he needed anything or wanted to explore on his own, but he insisted he was happy to bide until he was needed. This patience no doubt served astromechs well during long periods of inactivity.
"Artoo, this is Olana, my student," I began. I crossed my legs on the floor in front of him, and she did the same.
The droid beeped a greeting, followed by **R2D2 astronavigation and repair unit.**
The girl inhaled, and quickly beeped the counter greeting, with **0LNA biological Jedi initiate.**
**Identity stored. Projecting data.** Leave it to R2 to take this entirely in stride.
As the timeline graphics floated above us, I addressed my Padawan-to-be. "Seven years ago, I had a vision. It showed me details of the future, branching out decades. It showed me the fall of the Republic, and the rise of a Sith-run Galactic Empire, twenty years from that day." My hand moved over the graphics, showing her dates and events; I noticed the detailed annotations and cross-references added by Padme and R2.
Olana's brow furrowed as she tried to take in what I was telling her. "This is what you have been working on all these years? Planning for the coming conflicts?"
I nodded. "Right here and now, Artoo and I will introduce you to the future shown in my visions, and the ways that the actual future has already diverged from it. And then," I caught and held her eyes, "you can choose with your eyes open. This path will be demanding, and we will likely be on it for most of our lives. But I do believe we can save the Republic, or at least thwart the will of the Sith.
"Or," I shrugged, "you can decline my offer and walk another path. I do not claim to speak for the Force; I do not know your destiny. And I will do everything I can to support you, either way - including finding you another Master."
Olana was not Anakin or Qui-Gon. She was prudent, willing to fully consider all options before committing. I valued that about her, greatly.
With a simple nod, she turned her attention fully to the holo. "In that case, Master Kenobi, let us begin."