Disclaimer: I don't own anything (except a few original characters) and I'm not making any money off of this.

Every human being has six mutations in their DNA, giving unique qualities and abilities to each individual. Sometimes these mutations allow a person to do things beyond imagination.

Ch. 3: The Tour

On the way back to Obi-wan and Anakin's quarters Airiana thought about what Yoda had told her and what she should do until the reason for her being in this time revealed itself – if it ever did. Although she was lost in thought she still noticed the side glances and stares that she got from passing Jedi. They all felt she wasn't meant to be here and wondered why she was. They made her feel uncomfortable, like an outsider. She supposed she should be used to that by now, though.

After what seemed like a never-ending labyrinth of hallways Airiana finally reached her temporary quarters. The door slid open and she walked in. Anakin was watching something on what she called the TV and Obi-wan was making a wonderful, savory smell in the tiny kitchen.

"Did you protect your shins like I told you to?" Anakin asked, breaking the ice.

Smiling Airiana replied triumphantly, "Nope. And I don't have a bruise on me."

"Beginner's luck," Ani answered back.

This made Airiana outright laugh. It was anything but beginner's luck – she had gotten smacked in the shins by that damn stick more times than she could count. Of course, she wasn't going to let Ani know that; it was more fun this way.

"Did you discuss what you needed to with him?" asked Obi-wan.

"Yep, he said he needed to meditate on it and get back to me," then, to switch the subject she asked, "Whatcha makin?"

Obi-wan told her, but it was something she wasn't even going to try and pronounce.

"Well, it smells delicious."

"Thank-you," he replied and then decided now would be a good time to get to know this mystery girl a little better.

"We didn't get much of chance to talk yet, why don't you tell us a little about yourself."

"Like what?" Airiana asked, not liking where this was going.

"Where you're from, who your parents are, things you enjoy?"

"Well, my home-planet is called Earth and it's far, far away. My mother's name was Anwyn. She died soon after I was born and I don't know who my father is. I love to read – I plan on having my own personal library someday. I played basketball in high school – that's a sport on my home-world. I work-out at the gym, sword-fight, read some more, watch movies and TV, listen to music…that's it I guess."

"Would you like to see the Temple's library and sparring rooms then?" Obi-wan asked as he took something out of the oven.

"I'd love to."

"Good – tomorrow then. I'll give you the grand tour."

"Is supper ready, Master?" Anakin put in.

"Yes, padawan, it is," and the three of them sat down to eat.

The supper and the rest of the night consisted of much of the same kind of small talk. Airiana was fascinated by how much Obi-wan was so similar, yet different. He was so much younger and carefree. At the same time he still had the same sense of humor and the same kind of expressions and mannerisms.

As for Anakin, he wasn't anything like she expected. He was so youthful and full of life – and light. She had always pictured him as a quiet, introverted, sad kid…kind of a loner. The real Anakin was nothing like that. He was talkative, full of quick and witty comments, sarcastic, and friendly. For the first time she realized how much it must have hurt Ben to see this promising student turn into a monster. Even though she knew what he would probably become, she couldn't convince herself to be wary of him and keep her distance; as far as she knew Anakin and Vader were two completely different people.

The next day started out like the last one ended. After another delicious meal for breakfast prepared by Obi-wan and some more small talk, Ani left to meet up with some friends and Obi-wan and Airiana headed out to start her tour.

They began with the gardens, the crèche, and the classrooms; these areas alone took them until morning. The crèche took the longest of all because the younglings wouldn't let Obi-wan go. They loved him. And it was no wonder too; he was wonderful with them, even though he wouldn't admit it. They spent a lot of time in the gardens too. It was a beautiful place with all kinds of tropical tree and plants. There was even a swimming hole.

Next, they visited the cafeteria for a bite to eat. The food was actually better than Airiana would have expected. They sat with one of Obi-wan's friends, Garen. He seemed really nice and easy to get along with. Airiana spent most of lunch just listening to the two friends talk. They told stories from when they were initiates and talked about some of their recent missions. An hour and a half passed before they got up and went on their way.

"Are you enjoying yourself so far?" Obi-wan asked as they walked down the hall to the training rooms.

"Yeah, I am."

And in fact she was. The Jedi Temple was an unbelievable place. It was beautiful, serene, cozy, and full of life. Not only this, but Airiana finally knew exactly what it looked like; for so long she only had Ben's short and often vague descriptions. She had also found out a lot about Ben that she didn't know before; who his friends were, who his teachers were, what his classes had been like, what his master had been like. All these things had been stuff Ben never talked about.

"Good," he said as they entered one of the larger training rooms.

"So, do you want to spar?" Airiana playfully asked as she walked out to the middle of the sparring mat.

Interested in seeing how much she actually knew, Obi-wan took the opportunity.

"I must warn you, however, I was taught by one of the greatest swordsmen to ever live."

Airiana smiled, "I was just joking. We just ate, remember? There's no way I'm sparring anyone right now."

"Oh, well, in that case would you like to find a match to watch?"

"Sure."

Obi-wan lead her to the next sparring room, but that one was empty to. In the third room they tried, however, a match had just started. They went up to the balconies in order to get the best view. Airiana had never seen a sparring match between two Jedi before; this one was a master and padawan. The apprentice was probably the same age as Anakin, maybe a little older. The match was intense, and fast-paced; Airiana thought it was awesome. Obi-wan explained some of the moves the opponents executed and criticized few of them too. Airiana just smiled and listened. She didn't really need anything explained and she could have challenged some of Obi-wan's critiques, but decided that it wouldn't be the smartest thing to do.

After about fifteen or twenty minutes Obi-wan said, "So would you like to see the library now?"

"Of course," and they left the dueling Jedi.

"Can I open my eyes yet?" Airiana asked as Obi-wan lead her into the library.

He had noticed throughout the day that Airiana seemed most excited to see the library. He offered to bring her here first, but she had refused saying that she wanted to save the best for last. Thinking this, he wanted her to be awed by the library, so instead of just letting her walk in, he made her shut her eyes and be led to the middle of the library.

"Okay, stop. Now you may open your eyes."

Airiana opened them. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It was the largest library she had ever been in and instead of regular paper books there were holo-disks, holo-vids, and other types of disks that she didn't even know the names to.

She was actually a little disappointed; she liked paper books and the 'old-fashioned' libraries. They smelled good and always seemed to have really comfy chairs; they were cozy. This, however, wasn't any of those things. The disks were cold, hard, and unfriendly. There weren't many chairs either, most of them were in front of computer screens and looked anything but comfy. She also expected that this was more of a research library than anything else. It probably wouldn't have any Shakespeare, Dickens, or Bronte in it. Still, it was a library – and a huge one at that.

She didn't let her disappointment show, "It's unbelievable."

"It is impressive," Obi-wan said looking around. He was always in amazed by it when he took the time to stop and think about how big it actually was and how much information was stored in it.

"What are those?" Airiana asked pointing to some statues along the aisles of 'books.'

"They're busts of great Jedi Masters."

"Oh."

As they were walking along the main aisles, Airiana took notice of one particular bust. "Who's this?"

"That's Count Dooku. He was one of Master Yoda's apprentices and was my master's master."

"Is he still alive?" Airiana asked apprehensively.

"Yes he is, though he's no longer a Jedi. He left the order about nine years ago."

"May I ask why?"

"He believes that the Senate is corrupt and the Jedi Order has close ties to the Senate. I'm sure there is more to it than that, but that's all I know. Since he's left the order, he's become the leader of a separatist organization, persuading star systems to leave the Republic and join him. Some people believe the Separatists are even responsible for some recent terrorist attacks. May I ask why you seem so interested in Dooku?"

"He looks a lot like someone I used to know," Airiana replied quietly, staring at the bust as scenes from her past flashed through her mind.

"Well, I'm sure it's not the same person."

"No, probably not," she agreed, though she wasn't so sure.

Oooo, cliff-hanger. I promise I won't leave ya hangin. I might be tempted to if no one reviews though. I can't stress it enough; please, Please, PLEASE review.