A/N: I got the idea for this chapter from post/144318455203/ialreadyreadthatfanfic-dreamer-wisher-liar

I thought it was interesting to see how the series could change if Anakin's fears were addressed, so I thought I'd play around with it and see where the story goes. Enjoy!

Also, Happy New Year! 2020 better be great!

Three years later….

The hum my lightsaber clashing against Master Windu's filled my ears.

He pushed me back with the Force, maintaining his grip on his lightsaber effortlessly. I stumbled in my step, regaining it almost instantly.

"Good," Master Windu said, circling me. I mirrored him, watching him like a hawk, waiting for him to move.

Master Windu moved left. The Force let me know this was a feint and I instead thrust my blade to the right. Master Windu had to jump to the side to avoid the slash.

"Hmm. Really good."

We stood there for a minute before Master Windu deactivated his lightsaber, gesturing for me to do the same.

"Well, you've certainly grown over the last three years," Master Windu said, folding his arms. "I think you're ready for a little something more."

"What more is there, Master Windu?" I asked. I thought he had taught me everything.

"A little something I like to call… shatterpoint."

I took a deep breath, settling myself on the meditation mat. Master Windu had instructed me to focus on my connection with the Force before we began learning about this new ability.

I swept the thought aside, filing it away for further study, if I desired.

Exhaling, I let the Force flow through me and guide me.

It began in my core. My emotions were in check, pure. My body was rested, prepared to face the day. The Force was flowing steadily through me like a river.

I reached further.

The younglings were training, their Force signatures small, but powerful. They flowed as one, bumbling occasionally. Master Yoda was with them, watching with amusement and fondness.

The Initiates were bustling in one of the training rooms, their emotions flaring and dying. They were more powerful, but still growing.

A presence approached the meditation room. Comforting, peaceful. Familiar.

The door slid open with a hiss, something I could focus on as I drew myself out of my mediation.

"Obi-Wan!" I called, smiling up at the Jedi Knight. He smiled at me and gestured to the ground beside me.

"May I?"

"Of course," I responded. "How go things with your Padawan?" Obi-Wan sighed.

"We just returned from Carnelion IV. He… wanted to leave the Order."

"What?" I turned to Obi-Wan in shock. "But-"

"I know. I don't know how it happened, but one minute he was impressing everyone with his lightsaber skills and the next he was wanting to leave the Order."

"Did he talk to someone before he said that?" I asked. "Young ones are often impressionable, especially at twelve."

"Well, yes, he did. But I doubt the Chancellor had anything-"

"Palpatine?" I asked, looking wearily at my oldest friend. "He seems to be very… close to Anakin, don't you think. A little too close."

"It's fine, Drinna," Obi-Wan responded, shaking his head at me. "Anakin doesn't want to leave the Order anymore."

"I'm relieved to hear it. Though do be careful around the Chancellor. I don't trust him," I muttered.

"You only don't trust him because you haven't formally met him yet," Obi-Wan said with a laugh. I smiled, though it didn't reach my eyes.

"I sense something… odd about him. I can't put my finger on it, but until I do I refuse to trust him."

"You Zabraks and your stubbornness," Obi-Wan returned, standing. He strode around the room, stroking his chin. "But what to do about Anakin?"

"What is it this time?" I asked, leaning forward, over my feet.

"He is still attached to his mother. He fears losing her." Obi-Wan turned to me, spreading his hands in a helpless gesture. "I just don't know what to do with him!"

"Why don't you let me talk to him," I responded with a rueful smile. "I happen to know quite a bit about letting go of fear."

"Yes, I suppose you do," Obi-Wan chuckled. "Very well. When would you like to meet him?"

"Oh, I'm at the Creche in an hour. Could he join me there?"

"Of course."

The younglings in the Bear Clan bumbled about, still getting used to the Force. They weren't causing as many problems as some of the newly-found younglings, but these ones still were out of control.

"Drinna!" a voice called from behind me. I turned to smile at the newcomer.

"Anakin," I responded with a slight bow of my head. "It's good to see you."

"You as well," Anakin said with a smile. "Master Kenobi said you wanted to meet me here?"

"Yes," I replied, turning back to watch the younglings. There were fourteen of them, ranging in age and species. "I've volunteered to help watch the Bear Clan. I thought it might be good for you to join me."

"Oh." The disappointment in Anakin's voice was clear. I held back a smile. It was only a matter of time before Anakin was begging to be here.

"If you don't mind my asking," Anakin said after we had rounded up a few of the more rambunctious younglings, "Why haven't you been Knighted yet?"

A few of the younglings stopped playing and turned to watch the encounter. I sighed, sitting down and setting Ashla on my lap. The young togruta smiled up at me, grabbing onto one of my fingers.

"Well, Anakin, I guess I just wasn't ready to face the Trials," I began.

"But you're as old as Obi-Wan!" Anakin protested, sitting down with a huff. "And wasn't he a little old to not be facing the Trials?"

I chuckled, bopping Ashla on the nose as she giggled, staring up at me with wide eyes.

"Each Jedi faces the Trials when they are ready. After the death of my Master, I knew that, unlike Obi-Wan, I was not ready. I still had much to learn with my given abilities and-"

"What are your abilities?" Anakin asked, schooching closer.

"I… am extremely in tune with the Force, Anakin," I began slowly. "More so than many. I'm what's called a Force Empath. I feel emotions deeply and I have to work a lot harder to rid myself of detrimental emotions. When my Master died, I felt a lot of grief and anger, but I was mostly afraid."

"You?" Anakin scoffed. "Afraid?" I smiled at him.

"Did you notice my injury during the fight in the hangar?" I asked, gesturing to my leg. "I froze in fear when I heard the Sith's lightsaber hum on. The red… there were echoes in my mind of my Master's death, even though I wasn't there to see it, I still felt it through our bond."

Anakin tried to smile as he looked at the ground but didn't succeed. He was thoughtful… I recognized. Concerned. Afraid.

"What are you afraid of?" I asked softly, letting Ashla go tottering over to Anakin. He looked at her for a moment before picking her up and setting her on his lap, smiling softly down at her.

"I'm not afraid of anything," Anakin said defiantly. "One day I'm going to be known as the Hero with No Fear!"

I chuckled, letting my hands rest in my lap as Jempa rushed to me with outstretched arms. I scooped him up and tickled him for a moment before letting him sit in my lap.

"Anakin, everyone is afraid of something. And that's okay. Fear… is a strange emotion. It's always going to be there. It just changes and diminishes. Some people are afraid of one thing their whole lives. But they learn to control their fear and change it to work for them. That's real courage, Anakin."

Anakin scoffed. "Yeah, right."

"I mean it, Anakin," I said sternly. "And I need you to listen. What I said before, about being a Force Empath, means I've had to study every emotion I've felt. That means the emotions I feel from other people. I've learned a lot about fear, and what Master Yoda says about it being the path to the Dark side is true. If you let it consume you. The job of a Jedi is to learn to let go."

Anakin shifted, nearly imperceptible, in his position and watched Ashla leave to go play with Chian. He looked after her wistfully. His emotions were strong in that instant.

Oh. That's what he's afraid of.

"Anakin," I said softly, bouncing Jempa in my lap. "Did I ever tell you what I'm most afraid of?"

"No-o," he replied uncertainly.

"Well, I'm terrified of heights, did you know that?" Anakin shook his head as I chuckled. "Yeah, I know. A Padawan who can Force jump with no problems whatsoever and has had to jump from exploding buildings and droid-infested hangars on Naboo is afraid of heights. But it's actually quite common. I just hate that feeling in your gut when you fall, like there's an emptiness in there and you're going to go splat if you step away from solid ground. I hate it," I said with a laugh.

"Obi-Wan… sorry, Master Kenobi-"

"You can call him Obi-Wan," I said. "I do."

"Obi-Wan hates my flying."

"Yes," I said with a chuckle. "That's something he's afraid of… but it goes deeper than that. He's afraid of uncertainty. He's getting better, if you haven't noticed, but he still doesn't trust things he can't quite control."

"Yeah," Anakin said with a laugh. "I guess he does."

"Well, anyways, my fear of falling and heights… it's always been there. I guess I must have been dropped as a baby or something, but I've always struggled with it. And I probably always will, but I'm learning how to control it and cope with it. And you, Anakin, can do the same."

"But I'm not scared of heights!" Anakin protested. I laughed as Jempa left my lap and stumbled away to his friends.

"I know. But you are scared of something. What is it?" I prompted, though I already knew the answer.

"I guess… I'm scared of losing my mom," he whispered.

"Here," I said, moving to sit beside him. "Copy me real quick." I sat in my meditation pose, feeling through the Force as Anakin struggled to copy me. I opened my eyes and smiled at him. "Is it okay if I move you so you'll be more comfortable?" I asked. Anakin nodded and I set to work.

When I was finally done, I sat across from him.

"Alright, Anakin. I want you to close your eyes and reach out to the Force in a moment. I'm going to do the same, but instead of examining myself, I'm going to help you examine… you." Anakin opened his eyes in confusion. "I know, it sounds weird at first, but I promise this will help."

Anakin shrugged as I settled myself and closed my eyes.

"When I was younger, I would often be overwhelmed with emotions, even here in the Temple. I had to have specialized training to control myself, otherwise I would break something in my panic. When I was assigned to Master Lergo, she and I perfected the technique. I call it examining myself, and it is, just not physically. I reach out with the Force and look at my emotions, find the different feelings and delve deep into them one by one to find the source… and then I let go."

"That sounds like a lot of work."

"It is," I said with a chuckle, opening my eyes to peer at the curious Padawan before me. "The first time I did it on my own I was so exhausted that I couldn't move for three hours and when I was retrieved, I fell down about ten times before I could even attempt to move."

Anakin looked at me in panic and I merely smiled.

"Of course, you won't ever have it that bad. It's just a lot of mental exertion and it takes practice, but because you aren't a Force Empath, you won't have to worry about it as much as I do. But it's still a helpful skill to learn."

"Okay," Anakin said, closing his eyes. "When do we start?" I chuckled again.

"Have a little patience," I murmured. "We can start now."

I reached out in the Force, feeling myself and the younglings around me. The Force connected us all.

"Reach out with the Force, Anakin. Feel the room," I said. Mari came and sat by me, playing with my robes, but ultimately curious.

"It's kind of hard when the younglings are curious," Anakin said, frustration sounding in his voice.

"It's a momentary distraction," I countered. "Let go. The Force flows through all of us. Feel it and let it guide you. The younglings will settle down."

I paused a moment, reaching out to the younglings and impressing on them the importance of what Anakin and I were doing. I finally felt a tug through the Force from Anakin.

"Well done. You've successfully found me," I said wryly. "Now turn back and focus on yourself."

The small tug disappeared and I let my conscience wander towards Anakin. He was struggling to bring the focus back to himself with Jempa tugging at his Padawan braid. I smiled, but reached out and pulled Jempa into my lap with the Force.

"Patience, little one. You can play with my braid later," I murmured to the Whiphid.

With the distraction gone, Anakin was able to focus the Force on himself. I reached out again, feeling as he hesitated.

"What do you feel, Anakin?" I prompted. Immediately, Anakin's focus was on his emotions, laser-like.

"I feel… relaxed. Happy. I enjoy being around the younglings," he responded. I smiled at his words.

"The younglings do tend to do that to people," I replied gently. "And you're doing good so far. What else do you feel?"

There was a slight pause as Anakin delved deeper, brushing aside his other feelings for the moment. I felt a shift in the Force as Anakin frowned.

"Cold."

My eyes flew open as I observed Anakin, standing from my position in a rush. Jempa pouted on the floor.

"Anakin…" I began.

"It's so cold," he muttered, his frown deepening. "I want to go home."

I didn't respond. I didn't know what to do.

"I want to go home!" Anakin said, his voice rising. "Let me go home!"

I lifted the younglings with the Force and pushed them away in case things escalated and approached Anakin slowly. True to his words, Anakin was shaking.

"Anakin, why do you feel cold?" I whispered.

"I don't want to lose…" he whimpered. "I miss her. I miss home."

I sat so that our knees were touching and frowned at the Padawan before me. A small nudge from the Force sent me grasping Anakin's head in my hands. He gasped at the sudden contact.

Anakin was older now, though he still had his Padawan braid. He had a blue lightsaber ignited in his hands, fury etched on his face. His fear had come true. His mother was dead.

And his eyes were a blazing yellow, like the tales I'd heard of the Sith. The eyes matched the Sith's, the one who had killed my Master. The one who wanted to kill me.

Anakin slaughtered the creatures who had killed his mother, not resting until they were all dead.

I gasped, lurching back from Anakin. His fear was all-consuming. I shivered, the temperature in the room seeming to drop.

"Anakin," I murmured. "Anakin, snap out of it."

The younglings had retreated back into their rooms, away from Anakin and myself.

Tentatively, I reached out and grasped Anakin's head again, delving into the Force to give me strength.

Colors flashed before my eyes, and I squeezed them shut against the onslaught. Pain. Thousands of people in pain and grief. Death cries echoed in my ears.

The Force offered me reprieve by showing me how to look deeper into Anakin's heart.

Anakin, I called through the Force. Anakin, focus. Follow the Force. Trust it and let it guide you. We can figure this out.

Anakin was calming now, his fear shrinking back into his heart. I grasped it with the Force and felt as Anakin joined me in examining it.

Look at it, Anakin. You've let it grow, I murmured. You've let it consume you.

Get out of my head.

Anakin, let me help you! I pleaded. Look. You're afraid of losing the things you love. You're afraid of being alone, but you don't have to be! The Force led me to ask Obi-Wan to let me talk to you here about leaving the Order. Being in the Creche will help you learn to let go of your attachments. It will teach you that it's okay to lose the things you love. But you have to give the Force a chance to show you.

Okay. The reply was merely a sniffle, a whimper, but it was enough. Slowly, so as not to disorient the boy, I showed Anakin the way back to reality.

Anakin sniffled, curling up into a ball on the hard floor, his knees to his chest.

"I feel so empty and cold," he sobbed. I crawled around behind him and held him to my chest, and made soothing gestures.

"I know," I murmured. "I feel it. You're still so afraid. And that's okay. You are so brave, Anakin," I said, kissing him on the forehead. "You've already faced so much fear these past three years. And look at where you are! You're on your way to fulfilling your dreams, to becoming a Jedi Knight. With the progress you're making, you might even get Knighted before I will."

Anakin chuckled through his tears.

"I doubt it," he replied.

"Okay, maybe I was exaggerating a little bit, but I promise you can overcome this. I'll help you if you want." Anakin nodded vigorously against me, knocking his head into my chin a couple of times. I winced, but smiled down at him, kissing his head again. "You'll be okay."

We sat there for a minute as Anakin calmed down. The younglings were starting to come back out and begin to play, though they were still giving us some odd glances. Ashla came and sat next to me, playing with the hem of my robe.

"Anakin," I said, drawing back. Anakin tried to cling tighter to me. I sighed. This would be hard. "Anakin, you need to let go."

Sniffling, Anakin nodded and slowly let go of my arm.

"Good job, Anakin," I said softly. "You're one step closer to letting go of your fear. It's going to take time, but you can do this."

"Thank you for helping me," Anakin sniffled, rubbing his eyes.

"Of course," I responded, smiling at the boy and pulling Ashla into my lap. "Anakin, fear never really goes away. And that's okay. It's okay to be scared sometimes, but if you let it paralyze you like I did back on Naboo, you'll never grow. And, if you really are going to be the Hero with No Fear, you need to learn how to control that fear and let it work for you. That takes practice and a whole lot of effort, but every step you take on that path will bring you closer to your goal."

I handed Ashla over to Anakin and let him play with her. Our time in the Creche was almost over for the day, so I went about observing the younglings and let Anakin think things over. He would come to his own decision. And I would respect it.

"Anakin, time to go," I called when I sensed Obi-Wan drawing near. "Obi-Wan is on his way."

Anakin got up, albeit reluctantly. He had enjoyed his time in the Creche, I sensed. I sent a small smile his way as he rubbed his arm awkwardly.

"Do we have to?"

"Yes, Anakin," I said softly. "It's okay to miss her."

Anakin looked up sharply and stared at me, eyes narrow.

"You mean them," he said.

"That's what I said, isn't it?" I asked, beginning to walk away to hide the smile growing on my face. Anakin hurried to catch up. "So, have you thought about what I've said?" Anakin nodded.

"Yes. I think it would be nice to not be afraid constantly." I faltered in my step briefly, though I covered it quickly and I don't think Anakin noticed. "Will you… help me?"

"Of course!" I replied, letting my smile show. "I would be honored. We can meet once a week here the Creche and work on it. It'll be a good learning experience for the younglings as well."

"Can't we come more often than that?" Anakin pleaded.

"No, Anakin. The other Jedi need to teach the younglings, too, and prepare them to become Padawans. We can't be with them all the time. It's learning to love from far away but not worrying."

"I thought Jedi weren't allowed to love," Anakin said. I sighed.

"I think there are some things that need to be considered from multiple angles," I said slowly. "Love… is one of them. There are different types." Anakin looked at me curiously. "But we can discuss that in our next session. It's a complicated matter, to say the least. Perhaps more complicated and powerful than fear. But I think that would also be beneficial, so if you want to talk about that next week, we can."

"Alright. Can I think about it?" Anakin asked.

"Of course. Don't hesitate to ask me questions. If you need more time, let me know, too. I'm here to be your friend and help you."

"Thank you, Drinna," Anakin said, just as the doors opened and Obi-Wan came in, smiling serenely.

"Wow," Obi-Wan joked. "Anakin Skywalker thanking someone. I never thought I'd live to see the day." Anakin sulked, but smiled good-naturedly. "Drinna, it's lovely to see you again."

"We saw each other not three hours ago, Obi-Wan!" I replied with a laugh.

"Ah, but every moment in your presence is one that I am blessed to have," Obi-Wan replied, bowing low with a flourish. I rolled my eyes, but smiled.

"Eww," I heard Anakin mutter. Obi-Wan and I exchanged looks and burst out laughing while I ruffled Anakin's hair.

"Don't ever change, Anakin," I responded, kissing his hair. Obi-Wan's smile diminished and he sent me a pointed look. My breath hitched as I realized my… mistake and I looked away, letting go of Anakin slowly.

We'll talk later, I told Obi-Wan through the Force. I learned a lot about your Padawan.