The Light Renewed: Chapter 3
The next several days passed quickly. Luke felt like a sponge, trying desperately to absorb as much knowledge as he could before Kanan and Ezra left. He was beginning to dread the thought of that day since he had privately begun to regard Kanan as his master, and Ezra was quickly becoming one of his closest friends. The two would often spend time together in the evenings; in the flagship canteen or on the Ghost; laughing and talking, playing games, and generally just enjoying themselves as young people will. They also had times when they would discuss more serious things, such as the Force or share commiseration over an ancient Jedi master's boring treatise on midi-clorians that Kanan was insisting they study, but also about life in general; growing up without a family, being a young adult and a Jedi, and what that meant for their futures, fellow beings of the "female persuasion," and a dozen other topics of universal interest to most young men.
He was also becoming increasingly more uncomfortable when he heard others referring to him as a Jedi Knight. Having seen how much he still needed to learn, he didn't feel he deserved the title, especially since Ezra hadn't received it yet from Kanan, and he knew he wasn't as advanced as Ezra. He had overheard two new members of the flagship's hanger crew talking about him that very morning as he had passed them on the way to the shuttle, and one had whispered to the other that "that's Luke Skywalker. He's a great pilot and a Jedi Knight!" It had thourghly embarrassed him and he was still puzzling about how to address the situation when he arrived at the Ghost. Kanan greeted him with a smile as he entered the crew lounge.
"Morning, Luke. How are you today?"
"Can't complain, master." Luke grinned. "Not that you would let me get by with it if I did."
Kanan chuckled. "Very true. Well, if you're ready, shall we go on to Ezra's room?"
After meditation and breakfast was over, the three Jedi settled in to begin their daily time of discussion. Luke decided to get Kanan and Ezra's advice on the subject bothering him and ask how they would handle it; he had already decided he was going to reject the Knight title until he felt worthy of it, but he wasn't sure how to respectfully tell others who may not understand his decision. When he broached the subject, however, Kanan and Ezra shared a knowing look, and Ezra gave a single, decisive nod of his head to Kanan. Kanan then turned to Luke, who had been watching this exchange in mild confusion.
"Luke, there's something I have been thinking about quite a bit recently. I discussed it with Ezra last night since it would affect him as well, and he is in agreement with me. You have learned a lot recently, but you still have so much more to learn, and I am not comfortable with leaving you in such a challenging position. So, my question to you is this: would you be interested in joining Ezra and I permanently as my junior Padawan? I'm sure I could get you dismissed from your military duty if this is something you would want to do, but you would need to leave here and go with us when we go."
Luke was dumbfounded at Kanan's proposal, but quickly managed to find his voice. "Master, I would be...so honored to join you and Ezra. I don't really know what to say; just...thank you?"
Kanan smiled quietly. "If you had not shown a willingness to learn and the ability to take instruction, Luke, I probably would not be making this suggestion, but you have real potential and, once you are fully trained, will be a strong asset to the new Jedi Order we are striving to build. As I said, you would be my Junior apprentice; Ezra, the Senior. There may be times that I will ask him to oversee certain aspects of your training, or I may send the two of you on missions together. In those times, I will expect you to show him the same level of respect and obedience that you would give to me. Will that be a problem for you?"
Luke shook his head. "No, of course not, Master. Ezra is more knowledgeable than I am in many areas and I can learn a great deal from him. It makes complete sense to put him in charge if you were to send us on a mission."
"I promise, I won't lord it over you, Luke." Ezra interjected. He leaned forward, forearms resting on his knees and hands clasped.
"I'm not worried about that, Ezra," Luke denied. "If you had wanted to do that, you would have already taken full advantage of my ignorance." He turned back to Kanan. "I confess, though, that your offer had never even crossed my mind, Master."
"Why is that, Luke?" Kanan questioned with a slight frown.
"Well, I was led to believe that the Jedi only took one Padawan at a time. I never thought of you offering to make me your Padawan when you still had Ezra, that's all."
"Ah." Kanan nodded in understanding. "It's true that in the past, the Jedi have not generally taken on multiple Padawans simultaneously, but this is not a normal time for the Jedi Order. Hopefully in the future, we can return to the one apprentice per master standard, but for now, if I see a strong potential student, I will have to take them on. Besides, Ezra won't be my student for much longer."
Ezra's head shot up and he stared at his master. Kanan glanced at him, but continued.
"I don't know when it will be, but I feel strongly that Ezra's time with me is almost over. I'm sure it won't be more than another year, probably less, before he's ready to be raised to full Jedi Knight."
Luke looked over at Ezra. He was still staring at Kanan, conflicting emotions of shock, doubt, excitement, and fear flickering across his face. Ezra then lowered his head and looked down at his clasped hands, brow furrowed in thought. Luke looked back at Kanan to see him observing Ezra fondly. Luke was suddenly struck with the random thought of how often Kanan seemed to "look" at those around him. More than once already he had felt the piercing regard of those sightless eyes, and even though Luke knew Kanan could not physically see him, he knew that Kanan did indeed "see" the situations and emotions of the people around him, sometimes more clearly than those who retained their sight.
"I have no fears for you, Ezra." Kanan said. Ezra glanced up at his master, uncertainty still troubling his gaze. Kanan nodded firmly. "You have learned everything I have to teach you, and learned it well. If it were based on my own judgment, I probably would have already promoted you, but I don't feel, for whatever reason, that the Force is ready for me to do that yet. I don't know why. Soon, though. That I do know."
"I'm happy to stay with you for as long as possible, Master." Ezra answered quietly.
Kanan chuckled and clapped Ezra on the back. "Don't be so glum, Ezra! It's not as though I'm going to send you away when you become a Knight. I will still be over you as the head of the Order, and I will always be available to you for advice; you will simply gain more autonomy than you have now. Hopefully, in my meeting with the New Republic leaders today, I can convince them to give me the funding I need to build a Jedi Enclave on Lothal, and if so, we won't be traveling as much as we did during the war. Our focus will change to finding and training new Jedi, a goal in which I expect you to take an active part." Ezra gulped visibly at the thought of having a student of his own and Kanan chuckled again at his discomfort. Ezra rolled his eyes and punched him in the arm.
"Is it wrong that I'm looking forward to all the problems your student will give you in repayment for what you've put me through?" Kanan asked, smiling.
"I didn't think revenge was the Jedi way, Master." Ezra retorted quickly, and both Kanan and Luke laughed heartily.
"He's got a point, Master," Luke said, once he could speak. Kanan chuckled again and shrugged his shoulders.
"Someone has to knock him down a few pegs once in a while or he'll become prideful, and that's not Jedi-like either." Kanan responded. Luke laughed again and Ezra gave Kanan a sarcastic smirk. Kanan shook his head. "I think we'll cut this morning's discussion time short since we have already talked about the issue I wanted to raise with Luke, and while it's good to have some levity once in a while, it doesn't lend itself to serious contemplation or conversation. Let's just head on out for lunch." Kanan directed the young men to follow him out of the room toward the crew lounge to meet Hera and the others for the noon meal.
After an enjoyable lunch, the three made their way over to the flagship, as was their usual custom. Today, however, Luke and Ezra went alone to the training rooms, and Kanan went for his meeting with the New Republic leaders. At the end of the afternoon, everyone met back on the Ghost for supper, and Hera asked Kanan how the meeting had gone.
"Better than I expected," he replied. "I didn't get all that I asked for, but more than I figured I would. It will be enough to build an Enclave and a few small houses for families. The dorms for Padawans and private rooms for Knights and Masters will be in the Enclave for now. They promised to have the funds transferred and available to me by the time we get back to Lothal."
Hera beamed at him. She knew how much this meant to Kanan; that the legacy of the Jedi Order not be allowed to fade from the galaxy, and she was glad the leaders of the New Republic could see the wisdom of Kanan's request. She was also weary from the war and wanted to settle down, maybe adopt some children. Hera had a mother's heart, and while she had always "mothered" the other members of the Ghost's crew, she wanted to be 'Mother' to some children of her own. With Kanan, however, that wasn't an option, since Twi'leks and Humans couldn't interbreed. It was one of the more disgusting reasons the females of her species were in such high demand as slave girls throughout the seedier parts of the galaxy; Human men could have their enjoyment without worrying about any "problems" that might result from it. Normally, the very thought would have been enough to make her blood boil with anger, but she knew Kanan didn't feel that way about her, and if they had been able to have children together, he would have been thrilled at the prospect. So, she had proposed to Kanan that they adopt some children from worlds most affected by the war; to bring these little orphans into a loving home and fulfill a longing of her own at the same time. He had been completely supportive of the idea, though he had expressed concern that he didn't really know how to be a father. She had laughed at that idea, asking him what he thought he was doing with Ezra. Quite seriously, Kanan had responded that he figured "Master" and "Father" to be two very different roles. He was also concerned that he wouldn't be able to be there for their children like he should be, due to the high volume of work he would be required to pour into starting the Jedi Enclave and the training of new Jedi. She had sobered then, realizing he had real fears and legitimate concerns. They had talked of it many times since then and they had pledged to work through it, Kanan promising that he would be there as much as possible, and Hera promising that she would step into the gaps he would have to leave sometimes due to his other responsibilities, and not to resent him for often putting the Jedi first; after all, this had been his dream long before she had ever mentioned children to him. She knew Kanan. He would be there as much as he possibly could, putting in effort and time even when he was weary and should really have spent that time in rest. She had no fear that Kanan would be neglectful of his family. She gave a contented sigh, knowing that Kanan would be able to sense her happiness even from across the room. Looking over at him, she saw that she was right as Kanan shared a private and tender smile with her that told her she was much loved, and that he was just as happy her dream was becoming reality as he was thrilled about his own.
"Since you've had your meeting, when are you thinking we will leave, Kanan?" Hera asked. "I really want to stop by and see my father for a few days before we go on to Lothal. It's been a while since I've seen him."
"I don't see any reason to wait. Luke, I stopped by Command and told them of my offer and your acceptance of it, and as I thought, they had no problem with giving you an honorable discharge from your military duty. General Madine signed off on it himself, so you're free and clear now, bound only to the Jedi Order." Luke grinned and thanked Kanan for attending to it. "No problem at all." Kanan responded. "You'll be sharing quarters with Ezra here on the Ghost. We'll leave tomorrow, so you need to head over and get your stuff and say any goodbyes this evening. Will that be enough time for you to do everything before we leave? I know this has been a surprising day and you haven't been able to tell anyone else about what's going on."
"No, I only have a couple of people I want to make sure I talk to in person. The rest I can leave messages for. And I only have a few things to pack." Luke replied. He looked over at Ezra and quirked one eyebrow. "I sure hope you don't snore, Ezra. I will be the epitome of a perfect roommate, but you..." he trailed off with a shrug and a grin.
"He does." Zeb interjected with a grunt. "Never could get a decent night's sleep when he was rooming with me."
"You overgrown, hairless wookie," Ezra glared at Zeb across the table. "If you ever were woken up by snoring, it was coming out of your own mouth."
"I have to admit, Zebster, that I have never heard Ezra snoring." Sabine put in. "You, on the other hand, can really get rolling sometimes."
"Thank you, Sabine," Ezra gave her a seated bow. "Nice to be vindicated from unjust accusations."
Sabine crossed her arms and leaned back in her seat. "Just because I agree with you about the snoring doesn't mean that there isn't plenty of stuff I could tell Luke about your bad habits that would make him run as far as he could."
"My bad habits?!" Ezra placed a hand to his chest in feigned shock. "I'll have you know..."
Kanan shook his head then stood, walking out of the dining room to the outer hatch. He motioned for Luke to follow, speaking quietly with a rueful smile. "This could go on for some time, Luke. Why don't you go ahead and take the Phantom over; I want to make sure you have enough time to get everything done."
Luke chuckled. "Sure thing, Kanan. I'll be back soon."
Hera came to stand next to him and slipped a motherly arm around his waist. "Take your time, Luke. I'll make sure your bunk is ready for you when you get back."
"If you'll just leave the stuff on the bunk, I'll take care of it, Hera; no need to do that for me." Luke protested.
"Not a word. I'll do it; it will only take a minute. We're glad you're joining us, Luke." Hera replied, giving him a light squeeze, then releasing him.
Kanan stood next to Hera and slipped his own arm around her waist as he faced Luke. "Yes, we are, Luke. You are a good man and will make an excellent Jedi. I have high hopes for your future."
Luke looked at Kanan seriously for a moment, then suddenly straightened and gave his master a full, formal Jedi bow. "I am honored you have given me this opportunity, Master Jarrus. I will endeavor to never cause your trust in me to be misplaced."
Kanan dipped his head in return. "I have no fears on that account, Padawan."
Luke ducked into the Phantom and disengaged it from the Ghost. As soon as he arrived back at the New Republic flagship, he went to his quarters and packed his belongings, then used his com to contact Leia. After learning she was at the canteen of the ship with Han, he quickly headed that way. Leia greeted him happily, though somewhat confused he would insist on crashing her time with Han. Even though Han knew it wasn't normal for Luke to do such a thing, he still showed a bit of his irritation at the interruption, but both soon began to listen intently to what Luke was telling them. Leia had known of his training time with Kanan, of course, but she hadn't realized it had progressed so far. She was especially concerned about Luke having left the New Republic military.
"Luke, you could go far in the military. Are you really sure about this?" Leia queried.
"Leia, you know I have always had my heart set on being a Jedi, ever since my time with Ben. Now I have the opportunity to study under an actual master; I can't pass that up." Luke responded.
"I know; I'm being selfish. I know we don't see each other often here, but we can get together occasionally. If you go halfway across the galaxy, it might be years before I see you again. I just found my brother; I really don't want to lose you again so soon." Leia admitted.
Luke gave her a hug. "You're not losing me. I'll com you at least once a week, and it won't be years before you see me again. I'm sure Jedi Order and the New Republic government will be working closely together as they did in the past, and since you're going into politics, I have a feeling I'll see you often, even before I'm raised to full Jedi Knight." He released her, then turned to Han, sticking out his hand. "Take care of her, Han. She can be a handful, I know, but if anyone can handle her, you can." Luke winked at Leia, who narrowed her eyes at him in a playful glare. Han took Luke's hand, shaking it firmly. "I'll do my best, Luke. Take care." Luke nodded, and as he turned to leave, Han spoke again."Hey, Kid."
Luke turned back to him quizzically. "Yes?"
Han looked at him, a serious expression on his face. "May the Force be with you."
Luke gave him a nod of thanks. "It will be. It's not let me down yet."
Han and Leia waved to him again and he waved back, then turned and trotted down the corridor toward the hanger bay where the Phantom was docked. As he eased it out into the blackness of space and headed back toward the Ghost, Luke contemplated again how completely the Force had changed the direction of his life just in a matter of a few days. Trusting the Force was a lesson he was still learning, but he knew that doing so would result in him being a much happier and more fulfilled person.
(Author's Note: Thanks so much for being patient with me being late getting this chapter out this week. I burned three fingers of my hand in a cooking accident this week; nothing severe, but they were red, swollen, and blistered, and hurt too much to type on the computer. I will try very hard not to allow my lateness this week to put me behind for next week's chapter. Thanks again for your interest in my story. May the Force be with you.)