Wild Child
The initiates watched as Elsa and Rapunzel each petted and stroked the head of a winged elephant. The Jedi were trying to teach them to connect with the minds of animals. Once they got an understanding of that they could begin grasping the concept of how to use Jedi mind tricks.
"The key is to show it that you aren't going to harm it. Connect with it, trust it, and let it trust you," Elsa explained.
The initiates glanced back and forth, watching as one of the elephants wrapped its trunk around Rapunzel and then hoisted her off the ground gently. Elsa in turn had hers lift it's leg, allowing her to leap up and onto its back.
"Now then, you're all going to be paired up with an elephant. Your job is to connect with it. Develop a bond with it. Maybe each it a trick or two. You'll have five days before you present your progress," Elsa explained.
"So we're all going to get one?" Havolian asked.
"Yes," Elsa said with a nod. At that moment a group of Kinnarans walked in. Each one holding a rope and tied to it was a baby winged elephant. "Line up," Elsa commanded. The children did as told, lining up as a Kinnaran walked up to each one of them and handed them the end of the rope.
The children all took firm hold of their charges. The baby elephants were timid of these new people handling them. They gently tried to tug away, but the children kept their hold and tried rubbing them soothingly.
"Alright bye guys!" All eyes turned to Ella, who was already sitting atop her elephant's back with a wide smile as it carried her away. They all stared after her. Animals seemed to be Ella's natural strong suit, especially after they'd seen her tangle with the jungle king.
One by one the initiates pulled away their elephants with varying degrees of difficulty. All save one whose elephant refused to move altogether.
Wally growled and tugged at his elephant's rope. But it refused to follow after him. His growls only made it worse as he scared it into freezing up.
Elsa watched the wolf teen and sighed. She figured this exercise would be the most difficult for the Shivasten initiate. His people were naturally predatory. Something the elephants could instinctively sense. They were always wary when the wolf teen was near, bodies always going rigid, eyes always following him.
"Wally. Stop growling. You're scaring it," Elsa advised. Wally looked up at her. With a breath he ceased the rumble coming from his throat. He tried pulling it along once more and the elephant followed, albeit reluctantly, after him.
The initiates one by one tried to bond with their elephants. Each had their own tactics ranging from feeding treats, brushing, bathing, rubbing, singing, and in Ella's case, just using the Force to bond with its mind and let it know she meant no harm. Ella sat crossed legged on her elephant's back, occasionally tossing it a snack that it would catch in it's trunk and then eat.
"C'mon. Eat it," Wally commanded as he tried handing it a some hay. The elephant pulled away from his reaching hand. The wolf teen frowned as he took a step closer, prompting it to take a step back. He growled in irritation further scaring it. Shivasten's were hunters and trackers. Not...pet people.
"Ugh, this is stupid," Wally said in irritation as he paced back and forth impatiently. He looked back at the elephant, animalistic blue eyes making it tremble.
This was going to be hard.
The initiates were gathered at the bathing pools in the temple. They each dragged their elephants in with brushes as they began to bathe them. Most of the initiates remained in the shallow end while Ella encouraged hers to go into deeper part of the pool. She began to paddle with it, making it swim in small circles as the other initiates watched.
Wally remained at the edge, trying to drag his elephant into the pool. It resisted, pulling back against the rope. Wally grew more and more irritated and annoyed with it's constant fear of him. With a loud growl he leapt over it and bared his teeth. WIth a loud trumpet the elephant ran in the opposite direction and into the pool. Wally gave a proud toothy smile, thinking he'd just won. But it ran and swam to the other end before getting out and running out of the room.
With a groan Wally got down on all fours and raced after it, leaving the others to watch.
The baby elephant ran through the temple, forcing the Kinnarans into the air and out of the way as it went. Wally pursued, but this only made the poor baby elephant thing it was being chased by a predator. So the chase continued, they ran all throughout the temple. The baby elephant grew more and more panicked as it tried to get away.
Eventually it saw light from the outside. A large opening for the elephants to come in and out of the temple. It charged toward it, the wings on it's back opening and closing as it began taking frantic flaps. Wally's eyes widened as he saw it heading straight out of the temple. And if he was correct the baby was not yet old enough to fly.
"No!" he howled in panic. But the baby kept going before leaping out. It flapped its wings frantically to get airborne, but the baby was not yet strong enough, it began to plummet. Wally skidded to a stop before extending a hand out toward it. He caught it, focusing the Force to halt it's fall. But it was far too heavy for him to lift it back into the safety of the temple.
He grit his teeth with a trembling arm as the elephant began to get lower and lower. Sooner or later it would just drop, plummeting to the jungle floor and die.
With a deep breath Wally let out a loud howl that echoed through the temple. With that he grit his teeth and focused all his willpower on the elephant. After ages Wally felt he was at his limit. He struggled to hang on as he felt his energy sap and fade. And just before he was about to lose all hold on the baby he felt it lighten.
His classmates joined him at his side, arms out and focus on the elephant. Slowly but surely their combined powers brought the elephant back up and toward them. They backed away, pulling it in before finally setting it down on the ground. Wally collapsed down on the ground, drained of energy. He placed his head on the ground with a loud sigh of relief.
And then he felt something on his head. He looked up to see his elephant, nudging his head with his trunk.
Wally gave it a smile, being careful to hide his fangs. "Sorry about that little guy. Shouldn't have scared you." As Wally tried standing the elephant reached down and wrapped its trunk around his wrist as it helped him up. Once he was standing it gave him a nudge with it's head.
"Looks like it likes you now," Ella commented. Wally rubbed its head soothingly. "You've shown it you're willing to protect it. It trusts you now," Ella supplied.
Wally's smile grew. "Good to know."
Five days had passed. Elsa stood and surveyed each of the initiates as they showed off their own little tricks. It was a test to see how much each of them had bonded with their charges. Ella astounded everyone as she made her elephant stand up so she could flip onto its head.
Then she flipped off of it, allowing it to catch her in its trunk. And then set her down.
"Excellent job Ella," Elsa complimented proudly. "Now then, Wally," Elsa said looking to the wolf teen.
Wally smiled and nodded in excitement. He jogged a distance from it and then looked back at it. He gave a nod. The elephant gave a trumpet that it was ready before opening its wings. Wally raced toward it as it charged him, it took steady greath flaps. Wally leapt and flipped to land on its back as it actually managed to get airborne. The other gasped in amazement as it took a small low lap around the room.
When it touched down Wally let out a howl in victory as the elephant trumpeted proudly.
Wally looked back to Elsa for approval. She smiled at him.
"Excellent work Wally," Elsa said with a nod.
Wally threw his hands up in celebration.
Wally had learned a bit more about what it meant to be a Jedi.
Patience, compassion, kindness, and trust.
new chap. Wally, wolf kid from translyvania and shivasten male
