A/N: I'd like to clear something up here, as someone recently pointed out that the last chapter may have made Kevin come across as a bit OP. Essentially, Kevin has about the same amount of power as Obi-Wan—nothing to sneeze at, as Obi-Wan is one of the more powerful Jedi of his day. But that being said, Obi-Wan is INSANELY outclassed by several people, including Dooku, Yoda, Mace Windu, Anakin, and Palpatine. Kevin will never be as powerful as those guys. His primary gift—the thing that really makes him unique and special—is his affinity for sense powers, an aspect of the Force that I have always thought to be unfairly overlooked in favor of more obvious uses such as telekinesis. It will also play an essential role in the plot. You also won't need to worry about Kevin practically becoming the center of the universe—he'll do some cool things, but the canon characters will drive a lot of the story as well.

TL;DR, don't worry about Kevin becoming an overpowered Sue.

Disney owns Star Wars, and will soon rule the world. I, for one, welcome our new mouse overlords.

After that first day of training, time seemed to pass by rather quickly. I would wake up, have a small breakfast, go to the training areas, break for lunch, read up on galactic history, politics, and Jedi lore, return to training, then eat dinner and go to bed. By the end of the first week alone, I was (through telepathy training with Master Eelia) fluent enough in Huttese to carry on casual conversation, and had increased my ability to sense others within the Force in both scope and control. Thanks to that, I no longer had to worry about the constant buzz in my head from the information overload, which was a blessing all its own. I also made strides in telekinesis (though nothing too much bigger than your average furniture, or several heavy pots, if I really concentrated), as well as augmenting my physical abilities through the Force in the form of superhuman speed and acrobatics. Again, though, nothing on the level of a full-fledged Knight. Finally, I had started work on basic combat techniques, including hand-to-hand and lightsaber combat. On that last note, I was still using a training saber, and had only learned the first form, Shii-Cho. But that would change when I constructed my first lightsaber.

Most of the time, my training primarily involved Master Eelia helping me focus on my Force sense and general control of the Force in other ways, with Obi-Wan occasionally stepping in to give me instruction in combat—something that was becoming increasingly frequent. Finally after roughly three and a half months, it was time to forge my first lightsaber, a task which required exceptional control to correctly achieve the absolutely precise-to-the-nearest-fraction-of-a-nanometer alignment of the crystals. Master Eelia stood behind me as I sat cross-legged at a lightsaber forge, the pieces scattered on the altar in front of me.

-"Focus carefully, young Kevin. This is your final trial before becoming a Padawan."-

No pressure. To say I was nervous was a massive understatement. "What if I get it wrong? The idea of a minor explosion when I turn it on isn't appealing..."

-"Clear all doubt from your mind; that is the only limit keeping you from success here. Remember, sensory powers also translate well into granting the very kind of precision required for constructing a lightsaber, and your power in that regard is already considerable. You have what you need in front of you; all that is left is to succeed."-

"Try not—do, or do not. There is no try." The words of Yoda in the films immediately came to me. Before I fell through the portal, that phrase always bugged me; on the surface, it just didn't seem to make much sense. After all, "trying" is putting an effort into something. How can you do something without trying? And furthermore, that first part seems rather like wishful thinking. Sometimes, you're just going to fail no matter what, even if you really believe. But through my training, and with those words from Master Eelia, I realized I simply misunderstood the meaning of those words.

"Do, or do not" isn't referring to success or failure. It's commitment to action rather than simply contemplating the action. You can either act, or just sit there. There is no in between. "There is no try" isn't just about positive thinking, either; it's also about taking conscious thought out of what should be unconscious action. After all, when you're breathing, you're not TRYING to breathe, you're just breathing. By the same token, sometimes thinking about an action can distract you from what you need to do when acting on instinct will serve you better. But most of all, it involves something that didn't exist back on Earth, a factor that truly makes the saying work: the Force.

It's always there. You just have to listen and trust it, and let it guide you.

I closed my eyes, taking slow, deep breaths and entering a meditative state. I reached out, feeling the crystals with the force, lifting them up in preparation for the tricky part, the alignment. With the naked eye and bare hands, hell, even with a microscope and robotic arms, the task would be impossible to accomplish due to the sheer precision necessary. But the mind's eye can focus in ways nothing else can, zooming in and focusing with perfect clarity. And with the Force guiding my telekinesis, there was no danger of misalignment. Holding the crystals in place, I lifted the rest of the pieces and let the lightsaber slowly put itself together around them. Finally, the task was complete; all that remained was to switch it on. I called it into my hand, feeling the hilt fall perfectly into my grasp, and with a deep breath, activated it.

The result was bright green glow, accompanied by an iconic sound.

"Ah, Anakin! It's good to see you again, sonny."

"Likewise, Chancellor. It's been too long since we last spoke outside of official business."

Palpatine rose from his desk to greet the Chosen One, a grandfatherly smile on his face. He had been cultivating a casual relationship with Anakin over the years, becoming almost a surrogate father to the young man. Little did the Jedi know that their relationship was in fact one of cruel manipulation and subtle emotional abuse, both of which Palpatine took immense pleasure in using against him.

Such weak sentiment, the hidden Sith Lord thought. That pathetic trust shall be the first thing I will crush out of him.

Sadism aside, however, there was another motive for this particular conversation; as Darth Sidious, he knew of Kevin, and needed to meet the boy to assess whether or not he was a threat, and to unravel whatever secrets he possessed. But as Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, he had no way of knowing about something the Jedi had kept secret as best they could, and asking to meet Kevin without "finding out" would raise suspicion. Thankfully, Skywalker was easily lead.

"So, my young friend, what news from the Order?"

Anakin frowned. "The war isn't making things easy. Things have gone better since we finally took Geonosis for good, but we're still losing Jedi in battle."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Palpatine said, his tone and expression a perfect imitation of sympathetic grief. "This war has taken a toll on all of us; the thought of the Order slowly shrinking to nothing is frightening indeed." In fact, the thought sent a shiver of pleasure up his spine.

"Yes, but thankfully, we still have many promising young initiates."

There! An opening! "I see. I assume you are referring to your own Padawan?"

"Yes, but she isn't the only one with promise."

"Oh? I sense you speak of someone in particular."

"Well..." Anakin paused slightly. "it's kind of Jedi business."

Easily countered with reverse psychology. "Oh," Palpatine frowned, a slight amount of hurt in his voice designed to engender guilt in Skywalker. "In that case, I apologize. I didn't mean to pry..."

The Jedi fell for it completely, holding up his hands. "No, it's fine! There isn't really any rule against telling you something about him, I suppose..."

Within a few minutes, the young Jedi had divulged all but the boy's origins involving the portal, including his surprising level of sensitivity to the Force and the fact that he was on the cusp of being made a Padawan.

"He sounds like a fascinating young man! I would very much like to meet him in person..."

"Well, if I'm right about who's planning to take him on, I'm sure you'll get the opportunity soon enough!"

The two shared a laugh, but only one truly meant it.

Ordinarily, an initiate who had completed their trials would participate in a ceremony alongside a large number of their peers, while various Jedi Knights and Masters went and offered apprenticeships to those they sought. My case, however, was unique, both due to my age and the events that brought me into the Order. As such, I found myself not in a ceremonial room surrounded by fellow initiates, but standing before the Jedi Council once again, feeling their gaze on me.

"Passed your trials quickly, you have. Much promise in you, this Council sees."

Windu nodded. "Indeed. But we are not the only ones interested in your progress; more than a few Knights of the Order have expressed their approval of your abilities. There are even those who are considering asking you to be their Padawan already."

Again, no pressure. "Um... may I ask who they are?"

"Indeed you may," Plo Koon said. "The ones we have given our approval to are Knights Kolo M'Dora, Alain Vienn, and Aayla Secura."

I considered the names; only Aayla was familiar. "Do I have to decide right now?"

Windu shook his head. "No, you do not. Nor do we expect you to. This is a decision that will affect the rest of your life, and not one to be taken lightly. You may return to your dormitory to think it over."

With that, I was dismissed, and I decided to take that advice. I sat for a long time in my room, looking over the dossiers on the Knights in question, and the decision wasn't easy at all. A knock on my door startled me out of my thinking; for a moment, I considered asking them to leave me alone to think, but then I figured that some advice could help me make my choice. "It's okay, you can come in."

Obi-Wan Kenobi walked into my room and looked at the dossiers in front of me. "I heard you completed your trials with flying colors, but I didn't realize there were already offers for you. Have you made a decision yet?"

"No, not yet," I said, shaking my head. "To be honest, as flattered as I am that they're even considering me, none of them really stand out from the others."

Kenobi sighed in what almost seemed like relief. "Well then, I'm afraid I may be about to make your decision even more difficult."

I looked up at him. "How so?"

The Jedi Master smiled. "By adding another offer to the table."

I paused, hardly believing what I had just heard. This was Obi-Wan-Freaking-Kenobi, the Jedi-est Jedi ever to Jedi. And he was offering to take me as his SECOND Padawan. No pressure whatsoever.

"Wait, why? Is it my sensitivity?"

"No, it's not just that..." He stroked his beard thoughtfully. "You see, ever since you came here, I sensed something about you. A feeling of... intent, of design. When I first met Anakin, I felt the same thing, but I chalked it down to coincidence back then. But as I eventually found out, there is no such thing as coincidence. Now I know that feeling was, in fact, the will of the Force; our paths were meant to cross, Kevin. I am certain of it. Search your feelings, and I'm sure you'll realize it as well."

I searched the Force for guidance; the result was a feeling of confirmation. There was no doubt.

"I accept, Master Obi-Wan."

At the end of that day, I received my padawan braid; Ahsoka, Anakin, Master(!) Obi-Wan, and Master Eelia decided to celebrate my "graduation" with a visit to Dex's Diner. To be honest, I always thought that scene in the movies was out-of-place and kind of stupid, but being there in person made it harder to criticize. The fact that the food, while still somewhat alien, was much closer to what I had on Earth helped as well: simple, greasy, and absolutely delicious. But the celebration didn't end there; Obi-Wan and Anakin told me they had one last surprise for me, and we soon found ourselves traveling to the Senate building.

I briefly wondered what was there that counted as part of the celebration; when I asked, the only answer I got was, "It's a surprise." After landing our speeder in a super-fancy transport hangar, walking through halls of unparalleled opulence, a long elevator ride with a magnificent windowed view of the Senate District, and the opening of an elaborately-decorated door, I realized that they were, in fact, only half-right. It wasn't a surprise; it was the most terrifying day of my life. Because the door opened, revealing no less than the personal office of the Supreme Chancellor, with one of the single most horrifyingly evil villains in the history of fiction standing from behind his desk, a deceptive grin on his face.

Have you ever seen evil up close? And I don't mean just a general bad guy or situation, I don't mean seeing atrocities in the news, I mean actual, real evil? Because if not, I wish I were still so innocent. When you look true evil right in the eye, there is a terrible coldness that overtakes you. You feel like a helpless rabbit cornered by a snarling wolf, his teeth inches from your throat. Your heart beats in terror and you feel dirty, just absolutely filthy being close to the source of the blackness, as if all the blood on the THING'S hand would wash over you and stain you red forever.

That description, that feeling? Was nothing compared to seeing that monster smile warmly at me. I counted myself extremely lucky that my training kept me from revealing how utterly terrified I was... or so I thought. Pleasantries were exchanged, oblivious to the threat, then came my turn to shake hands with the abomination. IT took my hand, looked me in the eye, and it was in that moment that I felt greater terror than I can even truly describe, which only increased when I heard its Sidious voice in my head.

You are an open book to me, wretch. You know who I am, don't you?

I couldn't reply without giving away that which the Force did not want me to reveal to the heroes.

Pathetic child. Your power is nothing compared to the Dark Side. Right here, right now, I could kill all of you, and it would be EASY. But that would only disrupt the web I have woven. So I will simply give you a warning.

Disrupt my plans in any way, and you will SUFFER. You will watch, helpless, as I slowly destroy everything you love and cherish, and when you at last have no tears left to shed, no one left to grieve, you will be subjected to pain beyond imagination, and not long after that you will be begging me to end your miserable existence. Do I make myself clear, whelp?

It did. There was no doubt; this thing could easily follow through on its promise. That handshake only lasted a couple of seconds, but to me it seemed a horrifying eternity. Once it was done, I asked to be excused to use the restroom, a request that was granted. Once inside, I sat on the floor, held my knees close to my body, and wept quietly in terror, shivering with dread. Slowly, I came back to myself, and hid my feelings as best I could; thankfully, neither Anakin nor Master Obi-Wan sensed my fear, and it was soon time to leave that profane chamber. As we traveled back to the temple, I wondered: if this creature was so dangerous that facing it would be my death, why did the Force bother bringing me here? For the first time, the Force was silent on the matter.

Call me insane, but that last scene was actually a lot of fun to write. Casual first-person dialogue style aside, I tried to get a semi-lovecraftian vibe going for Palpatine. How'd I do?

EDIT: Changed the length of time mentioned at the beginning because a month and a half of training is way too short, among other reasons I can't go into.