Disclaimer: All characters belong to Lucas Arts and Obsidian Entertainment. Not me. Well, barring my interpretation of the Exile. But I'm not making any money off this so please don't sue my poor, misbegotten hide. 'K? Lovely.
A petite blonde girl dressed in Padawan's robes sat under a tree in the grove near the Jedi Enclave on Dantooine. Watching the sunset, she sighed contentedly. The brilliant red, orange, and purple hues always made her feel at peace. She closed her eyes and inhaled the quiet evening air…
…and then a pair of hands dug into her midsection out of nowhere and began tickling her mercilessly. She yelped and curled up into a protective ball, fending off the surprise attack. Two voices, male and female, were laughing behind her.
"Rev! Mal!" She gasped between fits of laughter. "You know I hate it when you do that!"
"But its just so much fun, Jen!" Revan chuckled, and released her hapless prisoner. "You spend so much time with your head in the clouds, it's a wonder it doesn't take up permanent residence!"
Malak bent down and offered his hand, which Jennyl graciously accepted and pulled herself off the ground.
"The only thing that will bring her out of the clouds that I can think of is a certain blue-eyed JedI…" Malak teased and the smaller girl flushed.
"So, what brings you two here?" Jennyl inquired, looking at the tall young man and his shorter, dark-haired companion. "Surely it wasn't to lose your heads in the clouds."
Revan threw an arm around the blonde girl's shoulders and gave her a conspiratorial wink. They started back towards the Enclave, Malak silently following with a glint of humor in his eyes. "Actually, I just had a new idea, and I wanted your opinion on it. Bastila will be absolutely livid if she finds out about it so it's a total secret…"
Several days later
A lone Jedi slunk through the dark corridors. Dressed in a near-black brown cloak, she blended in nicely with the surrounding walls. She pressed her back up against the wall and peered around a corner. Spotting neither droid nor sentient, she slipped around and started down the long hallway. Using her Jedi sense, she probed for potential opposition. Two people in the third room down.
Strong mental barriers, she thought to herself. They must be the leaders.
Now standing outside the door, she prepped her dart launcher. Soft voices pierced through the thick walls. She froze. Someone was coming towards the door. Her breath caught in her throat. The door flew open. She jumped in front of it and released her dart, straight at the target's face.
A hand flew up with lightning reflexes and caught it just before it connected.
"Padawan Arren!" A harsh voice barked out. "Just what is the meaning of this!"
Reality flooded back to the young trainee. She wasn't an elite Jedi on a secret mission. She was Jennyl Arren, fifteen-year-old Padawan learner at the Dantooine Enclave. She stood, shocked, as the "target" dropped her parchment stinger, launched from a flexi band, not a wrist launcher. Cold, grey eyes glared down at her, demanding an explanation.
"M-Master Vrook," she stammered out. "I was…ah…practicing my stealth techniques…and I got a little…carried away…I think…"
A soft, deep laugh emerged from the room behind Master Vrook. Jedi Kavar appeared behind the seething Jedi Master. "I don't think she meant any harm Master Vrook," the sandy-haired young man said, still chuckling. "I'll escort her back to her quarters."
"You're being too soft with her, Kavar," the irate older man muttered. "She needs to learn discipline and control! I would much rather-"
"She's just a child, playing a game," Kavar said placatingly. The girl flushed angrily at being referred to as a child, but wisely held her peace. "No harm was done, and I believe she knows better now. Come, Jennyl."
"Yes, JedI Kavar," a small voice answered.
He started down the hall and the girl meekly trotted after him, quite relieved at having escaped the Jedi Master's wrath. Once around the corner, she sighed with relief. "Gods, Kavar, you are a life saver!"
Kavar turned to her and gave a small smile. "What exactly were you doing out here this late, Jen?"
"Oh…um…it was Revan's idea, kind of…"
Now things were clicking into place. Jennyl would never act that way on her own, but when grouped with Revan and her shadow, Malak, she seemed to take on a whole new level bravado and self-confidence. The three mischievous Padawans got themselves into more trouble in one week than all the other younglings combined could in a year.
"And what was Revan's idea?" the Jedi inquired, quite curious.
"It was a new game, for stealth training. We practiced moving undetected, stalking each other and 'killing' our targets," she explained. "We confined it to only Padawans, and Bastila almost gave us away." The auburn-haired girl was the "pet" of the Counsel, always ratting everyone out and as prim and proper as Master Vrook himself.
"Looks like you did a fine job of giving yourself away without Bastila's help," Kavar said with an arched eyebrow. "And Master Vrook hasn't been a padawan in thirty years!"
The petite padawan flushed with embarrassment. "I…uh…got a little carried away tonight, with my pretending, and I didn't know it was you two who were in there. All I could sense were familiar mind currents under exceptional shields. Revan and Malak have similar shields, so I thought you were them. I thought I'd surprise them." She replied sheepishly.
"Well, at least no one was hurt during your antics," he granted her that much.
"Pfft. All we were using was flexi bands and parchment stingers," she scoffed, pushing a few stray strands of blonde hair behind her ear.
Kavar tsked and shook his finger in mock reproach. "I want you to go and meditate on your actions," he lectured in a Vrook-like tone. "I don't want to see you again until you can recite the Jedi Code in seven non-Basic languages. Its all fun and games until someone loses an eye!"
They looked at each other, and when her grey eyes met his warm blue ones, they both burst into uncontrollable laughter.
