Given the events of this past week, Eden slept solidly until Eeth turned the light on in his bedroom the next morning. He was up in a flash, though, and busy getting himself organised for classes.

When he emerged from his bedroom, he was dressed in a clean uniform. His hair was still slightly damp and spiky from the wet hand he'd run through it. His padawan's braid had been attempted but it was apparent that this was still a skill he was learning. "Hey," he said in way of greeting, opening his pack to shove in his datapad. He withdrew his hand fast, though, as he felt something squishy in the bottom; a mouldy piece of half eaten fruit that must have been there from the last time he had gone to classes. He wrinkled his nose.

Eeth raised his eyebrows. "Is anything the matter?" he inquired.

"No," he replied out of reflex, tossing his datapad onto the couch and pulling the offending fruit from his pack. Ew. It was squishy and had a sharp smell that had him recoiling and holding it away from himself. "I could have used this as a chemistry assignment," he said as he took it to the rubbish.

Eeth frowned. "Make sure there is no fruit pulp sticking to the inside of your pack," he said. "And wash your hands thoroughly."

"You give a lot of orders, do you know that?"

"I do," Eeth said coolly. "But I do not take a lot of cheek."

Eden rolled his eyes at that, not that Eeth could see it as he was already moving to do as he was told. He upended his pack, making sure it was clean, and then he washed his hands.

Eeth looked him over. "I will help you with your braid," he said, not bothering to phrase this as a question. "Let us have breakfast first, though." He had prepared a type of porridge with fruit and nuts that he and his master had both liked. It was filling and healthy, too. Ever since having escaped from Nar Shaddaa, Eeth had considered the availability of clean and healthy food a great blessing, and one that he was grateful for.

Eden pulled his braid to one side and eyed it critically. It was lumpy, and he had left out a strand of hair that kind of stuck out. Okay, so it was a bit of a dog's breakfast. During their mission, he'd had it untied or tucked into his hat, and during school and time at the Temple, his master helped him do it although Eden knew this was something he needed to learn to do for himself, so he always tried. He studied Eeth's appearance which, compared to their time on the islands, was immaculate. His hair was pulled into two long, sleek tails that hung low down each side of his chest and were fastened with two brown ties that would have been similar in colour to his cloak had he been wearing it. His uniform was free from creases, his boots shiny and there wasn't a speck of sand on him. Even his fingernails were clean and neatly trimmed. Conversely, Eden was sure he was going to be finding sand on himself for the rest of his apprenticeship.

They ate mostly in silence. It was not that Eden was not looking forward to classes or that he minded Eeth's presence, but he simply couldn't think of anything to say. Thus, he said nothing. When their breakfast was finished, he helped with the dishes and then went to his bedroom to retrieve his comb. "Thanks," he said simply, putting the comb on the table and waiting for instructions.

"Sit down," Eeth said. He stood behind Eden and deftly plaited a braid that looked presentable and would not come apart for the rest of the day. He had some experience, after all. While he had never gone for the short and spiky haircut that many human padawans traditionally sported, thinking that it would look silly on a Zabrak and make undercover work difficult, he had worn a braid during all of his padawanhood, which had only ended a few short weeks ago. And he had actually enjoyed it when his master had done his braid for him in the early days although he had never admitted it. Therefore, he had no issue with doing it for Eden. "There you are," he said, briefly clapping a hand on Eden's shoulder. "You should really leave for classes now."

The boy stood and took his comb. "Thanks," he said when he looked at the job Eeth had done. It was actually better than Jay's efforts. He guessed that Eeth, having been a padawan himself recently and also having long hair, had plenty of practice, whereas Jay had not worn a braid in thirty years. He ran back to his room and put the comb away. Then, he snagged his pack from the couch and donned his cloak. "Straight home after classes?" he questioned. Usually, his master would give him instructions before he left. He wasn't sure what Eeth had planned for them other than the workout at 3pm. The workout! That thought sent a jolt of excitement through him, mingled with a thread of fear. Eeth was not exactly a tyrant, not exactly, but Eden had no idea how the man would take what he had orchestrated. Would it be worth it to see him bested? As he looked at Eeth again, suddenly the man seemed a lot taller and more muscular than he had remembered yesterday when he and his friends had come up with this crazy plan. Maybe he'd chicken out?

"Yes, please," said Eeth. He was planning on having a workout and then preparing lunch for both of them. Noticing Eden's scrutinising look, he raised his eyebrows. "Is something the matter?" he inquired.

"No," Eden replied convincingly as he wiped his palms on his trousers. "Classes finish at 1 pm today. I'll see you then," he told him, and with that took off to begin his day.

As it turned out his friends did not want to chicken out. Brin was looking forward to proving himself right and Alec, although mostly unfazed, seemed curious enough to want to go ahead with it. Eden, on the other hand, was starting to get a little nervous about their plan. "Maybe we shouldn't," he whispered during their chemistry class. They were doing labs for the last hour, so a little bit of talking was acceptable.

"Shouldn't what?" Alec questioned him, his hand poised over the test-tube wondering if he was about to add the wrong substance. He was rechecking the chemical list when Eden clarified.

"I mean with Eeth this afternoon."

"I can't believe you're still going on about that. Don't be such a coward, he's a brand new knight," Brin scoffed and turned up the heat on their burner.

"Besides, he might just enjoy the challenge, you never know," added Alec.

"Hey, take that back. I'm no coward, and you know it!" Eden said a little too loudly, drawing the attention of their instructor, who was now making his way over to their bench.

"Boys, this is a labs class. Pull yourselves together and focus on what you are doing. Get those ratios wrong, and you'll be the ones cleaning it up. Last warning," he said quietly so that no one other than the three at their bench would hear.

"Yes, Sir," they chorused, remaining silent until the man was once again busy with another bench of students.

"Good one, Eden. Why don't you just hold up a sign inviting him to come tell us off next time," Brin teased, but it was clear that it was only teasing, nothing malicious.

Eden smirked and bumped the boy with his shoulder. Unfortunately, this caused him to drop the ampule he had just snapped the top off into the mix.

An hour later they were still cleaning up the sticky mess that had oozed from their chemical concoction and fused to the desk. None of the boys had bothered to try talking their way around what had caused it, nor were they surprised to be held back for as long as it took to clean their mess.

In the meanwhile, their instructor had contacted each of their quarters to inform their masters or, in Eden's case, guardian, why they were going to be home late today. When he deemed their efforts satisfactory, the instructor lectured them for ten minutes on the expected behaviour during labs, then handed them each an extra assignment on that very subject before dismissing them.

Each boy wore a different expression as they left the classroom. Brin was indignant, wanting to blow off steam, his demeanour irritated. Alec was taking it all in stride; nothing much seemed to bother that kid. Eden was an equal mix of the two although he was also a bit nervous about facing Eeth over what happened in class. It was the first time he'd ever gotten in trouble during a class as a padawan, so even if this had been Jay, the boy would have been a bit wary.

"See you at three, unless I'm grounded," Alec said, stepping inside the lift.

Eden and Brin lived quite close, so they walked together. "Will you get in trouble?" Eden asked conversationally. Brin seemed annoyed, but he could sense more; regret and guilt.

"Yeah, probably. This is the third time this month I've gotten behavioural reports from my classes. I might not make it to our sparring match at three. It depends on the extent of his displeasure. You're lucky Jay isn't here."

Eden scoffed at that comment. "As I told you before, Eeth is no pushover. So far he has been pretty predictable with consequences; if I mess up badly enough, he'll punish me for it. Pretty straightforward."

It was just after two in the afternoon when Eden entered his quarters. He threw his cloak and pack on the couch. Then, instead of heading for the kitchen as he typically did, he took off for his bedroom.

"Stop!" Eeth called, emerging from the kitchen to see Eden's retreating back. "I do not know where you think you are going, but neither will you skip lunch nor are you getting out of explaining what held you back at school. Wash your hands and sit down." He pointed at the table that was already set. He had just been reheating the pasta dish he had cooked which had gone cold in the meanwhile, due to Eden's delay.

Eden froze at Eeth's order, the knee-jerk reaction testament to a lifetime spent training as a Jedi youngling. He turned to face the man, his nose wrinkled and expression one of clear disdain. "Fine," he replied and went to the kitchen to wash his hands. The kid took his time with this although there was only so long one could draw such a simple task out. When he sat at the table, he was looking anywhere but at Eeth. "Can I help?" Anything was better than talking about what happened during class and maybe postponing that conversation would give him time to settle his stomach.

"No," Eeth replied. "Lunch is ready; after all, I had expected you to be home shortly after one o'clock. Sit down, eat, and then tell me what happened." He sat down himself and pushed the bowl of pasta towards Eden, inviting him to serve himself.

"Sorry," Eden said, and to his credit, the kid really was sorry about that. He could tell by the meal that Eeth had cooked it himself and he felt guilty that it had gone cold thanks to his messing around. Picking up the serving spoon he quickly filled his plate and started eating. It was good, and he said as much, but not much else; he wasn't keen on discussing what happened today, nor was he willing to bring it up.

Eeth had booked a training room at three, and he was not willing to postpone their scheduled slot. Therefore, as soon as Eden had emptied his plate, he said: "Alright. Tell me what happened. And make it straight and to the point, please." In his experience, most children tended to "emm" and "aaahh" a lot when confronted with their own misbehaviour, and he had little patience for that.

Fortunately, by the time Eden had had his fill, his stomach had unknotted and his nerves abated. Sort of. For a while there, he had had hopes that Eeth would think it was all too much hassle and let it slide. Those hopes were dashed, though, when he was asked to explain. He coughed once and took a drink. Stalling. Straight and to the point? He wasn't sure if he could make this succinct, not to mention the fact that he wasn't exactly in a hurry to tell this story. "Uh. Okay. Well, it's just that it's not that simple, it's complicated…"

"Nevertheless, I am sure it is not beyond your ability to tell me," Eeth said, giving him a quelling look. "Preferably right now."

The look on Eden's face would have said it all. His nose wrinkled, his brow furrowed and he blew out a sigh. "Fine, be like that, then." He wasn't thrilled, but nor was Eeth giving him another choice. "Brin, Alec and I were doing the practical part of our labs. We were caught talking about other things and not focusing once, and warned about paying attention. Then Brin said something, and I playfully bumped him, and he dropped the ampule into the flask. The stuff coagulated and started growing. It went everywhere and if our instructor had not doused our experiment in a neutralising agent, it probably would have taken over the Temple." He paused to look at the man for a second before continuing. "We got a zero for that lab." This information had been sobering; he'd never failed anything before, and he did not like it. "We also have to write a two-thousand-word essay on the lab safety rules and why they are in place, due in two weeks. We cleaned the mess up ourselves. That's why I was late. No big deal." The latter was tacked on in hopes that Eeth would agree with him.

"Hmm," said Eeth noncommittally, but the expression on his face made clear that he was rather unimpressed.

He pondered what to do about this. This was a new situation for him as well; so far, he had never had to punish an initiate or padawan for misbehaviour that had occurred outside his own sphere of responsibility. Did he have to punish Eden, though? His own master had not usually punished him for incidents at school (which had been rare, anyway) unless the teacher involved had specifically asked her to. Eden had had to clean up the lab and received an assignment. There was a chance that his master might have considered that sufficient punishment. On the other hand, Eden's instructor had asked Eeth in his message to discuss Eden's behaviour with him and make clear to him that it was unacceptable. That was a rather ambiguous request and probably meant to leave Eeth some leeway. The problem was that Eeth was having unexpected difficulty deciding on the right course of action.

He looked at Eden's face. The boy looked distinctly guilty, and that settled things for him. If he himself had done such a thing as a padawan, he would have expected his master to punish him. It just seemed the right thing to do under the circumstances. He had no intention to draw this out unduly, but there had to be some repercussions lest Eden receive the impression that his behaviour had not been all that bad.

Without further ado, Eeth pushed back his chair and pulled the paddle out of his belt.

"Your behaviour has been unacceptable and you know it," he said. "I will give you a good incentive to show more respect towards your teachers and their instructions the next time. Come here, bare your bottom and bend over."

Oblivious to Eeth's thoughts, Eden fidgeted his way through the short stretch of silence, his expression growing increasingly sombre. When the knight spoke, his gaze lifted, but the appearance of his paddle and his words drew a pained groan from the boy. He stood and dragged his feet to stand before him. "Eeth… please." He looked into the knight's eyes, hoping that the familiar address and his sincerity would garner some leniency here. "This was a once-off, I swear. I never get into trouble in classes, not ever. It won't happen again." He unconsciously covered his backside with a hand and shifted uncomfortably.

"Yes, and I plan to give you a reason to keep that promise," Eeth said, unfazed. "Bare your bottom and get over my lap. If I need to tell you again, it will only be the worse for you."

"I don't need incentive." Eden flung open the clasp on his trousers with a little too much force and flinched as the sound of half the clasp hit the wall and rattled to the floor.

Eeth remained silent, but he gave Eden a glare that would have a Hutt running, tapping the paddle on his upper thigh once. It was quite plain that he was running out of patience.

Eden did his best to ignore that as he slid his underwear, and what was left of his belt and trousers, to his knees in a single curt motion. He hesitated. Why? Because the last time Eeth put him over his knee it was because the paddling was more than he could take standing up. He hoped that was not the case this time. After a second, he leant forward and placed himself so that his ass was positioned over Eeth's right thigh and his hands and feet were braced against the flooring.

Eeth shifted Eden a little further forward and started bringing the paddle down onto Eden's bottom. Since this was apparently a first offence and Eden's teacher had not specifically asked for such a form of punishment, he decided to keep this spanking at a moderate level and not to draw it out unduly. Eden would not enjoy it, but neither would he be in excruciating pain. It was about the equivalent of what Eeth usually meted out for misbehaviour in class: a dozen firm and fast swats, all focussed on the most tender part of Eden's bottom.

Eden gritted his teeth through the first few, but by the halfway point, the kid was starting to struggle. It stung and burned like nothing else. He started to writhe and shift his weight from foot to foot; who knew, maybe he would writhe himself right off Eeth's lap? That was seeming less likely by the second. By the eight swat he was yelping, and by the time Eeth landed the tenth he had started begging. He had no idea how many the knight was going to give him, after all. "Stop, AHHH!" he hissed as the twelfth smack practically took his breath away.

"I was going to," Eeth said calmly, "but you had better not try to order me around." Thus, as a matter of principle, he added one more swat, to the tops of Eden's thighs, and then released his hold on the boy.

"Aowwwwch!" That last one had really fucking hurt. Eden quickly scrambled to his feet, rubbing furiously at the backs of his thighs with both hands. He was not crying, he wasn't! A sleeve was dragged across his eyes as he lowered his head. Eden wasn't feeling guilty any more although he did feel the need to sulk, if only for show. So, he folded both arms tightly about his chest and glared. He didn't bother with his trousers; they weren't going to stay up after he'd busted the clasp. This lasted until it became clear that Eeth wasn't going to start feeling sorry for him all of a sudden. If anything, it might just be the opposite. When he realised that, Eden dropped the defiant act immediately and sniffled once. "May I be excused?" Usually, Jay would pull him into a hug regardless of whether he wanted it or not, but Eeth was not Jay, and he did not want to cry in front of the man if he could help it.

"Yes, you may," Eeth replied. "And do something about these pants of yours. If you cannot repair the clasp, I will show you how to do so tonight. Be back here at ten to three with your gym bag."

Again, Eden swiped a sleeve across his face, only this time it targeted the area beneath his nose. He nodded once. Then he turned on his heel and ran for his room. The second his door slid shut, the boy threw himself on his bed and cried – not because that punishment had been the worst of his life, far from it, but because everything was getting on top of him. He was getting in trouble more than he usually did and he was feeling rebellious towards Eeth for no reason that he could understand!

At exactly ten to three, the boy exited his bedroom clad in a clean workout uniform, a sombre expression on his face. Eeth had already changed into workout clothes and was waiting for him by the door, his bag packed. "I'm sorry, but," Eden started. Then, remembering Jay's many lessons on apologies, he started again. "I'm sorry that I misbehaved in class," he said quietly. His ass still hurt, but it was not unbearable.

"Apology accepted," Eeth said. He said it rather gently because it had been a good apology and Eden seemed a little dejected to him. He decided not to be too hard on the boy during their workout today; a short warm-up and some freestyle sparring would suffice, and maybe the mineral baths after that.

Eden shouldered his pack and waited for Eeth to lead on. He hoped that his friends would not be able to make it as he was not exactly keen on pushing Eeth further today.

Eeth led the way, with Eden dragging his feet and following slowly behind him. He was particularly loath to exercise today as he had figured out over the years that working out with a sore ass was unpleasant; sweat tended to itch and sting the skin.

When they entered the gym, Eden immediately started looking around for Alec and Brin, his face visibly relaxing when he could see nor sense either of his friends nearby. Maybe they had gotten into trouble? He doubted that Alec would catch much. After all, it had mostly been his fault. Brin, however, had not shared his optimism. Eden had to admit that if this were his third behavioural report this month, he would be nervous, too. He threw his pack on the bench and turned an unenthusiastic expression on the knight. Typically, he'd have come up with some smart-alec remark about the sort of torment Eeth was about to put him through, but after having been made to lug boulders up trees, Eden kept his mouth closed.

Eeth led Eden through a warm-up that was thorough, but a little less demanding than usual. He had a vague sense that the boy was feeling downcast. That was understandable; he doubtlessly missed his master, and on top of that, he had been punished for the trouble he had got into in class. Eeth was perfectly willing to go easy on him. Or at least slightly less hard than usual.

When the warm-up was complete, he said: "Freestyle sparring now. Try to apply the things you have learned whenever possible; but first and foremost, improvise."

Meanwhile, Alec was sitting on the highest tower. Not many junior padawans were allowed up here unsupervised, but given that he was almost 180cm tall at just eleven, he had doubted anyone would question his right to be here. As it turned out, he was correct. He wouldn't jump, of course, but it gave him a good vantage point from which to observe Eeth and Eden. They were barely ten minutes into the match, and Alec could not see what Eden was complaining about. Sure, he hadn't scored a hit on the man, but nor did it look like Eeth was kicking him all over the gym as Eden had described.

He was about to jump down when he caught sight of Brin entering the gym. The teen wore a slight scowl on his face and was walking a little stiffly.

Alec started down the ladder to intercept Brin before he spotted Eeth and Eden sparring and flew into their plans. He jumped the last four meters, landing slightly off and turning his ankle, but he ignored the slight pain and ran anyway. "Brin, Brin!" he called and smiled when the boy turned.

"Hey Alec, man, you ready to kick some ass? I need to blow off some steam." Brin's expression had brightened upon seeing his friend, although Alec could tell he had been crying as his eyes were slightly red-rimmed.

"I'm not sure. The guy doesn't look like he's exactly monstering Eden or anything. I dunno. Let's watch some more before jumping to conclusions."

Brin looked disappointed but conceded that it couldn't hurt to watch. He made to sit but reconsidered. His hesitation was all-telling, as was his choice to remain standing.

"That bad?" Alec enquired, his expression sympathetic.

"Yeah, it was. I got another coming next week, too."

"At least you aren't grounded."

"Nah, he rarely does. Says there's little point given the small amount of social time I get. Telling you, though, I'd take a year of grounding over another twelve with the cane," Brin complained, unwittingly rubbing the seat of his pants.

It was at that moment that Eden noticed his two friends. His eyes went wide, and he gave the universal signal for them to abort the mission! Unfortunately, his lack in focus meant he failed to block, and Eeth had him flat on his ass in a heartbeat. "Ahh!" he hissed as his ass made contact with the hard flooring. The slight distraction was all it took, and a second later his saber was sent skidding across the floor.

"Focus!" snapped Eeth, unaware of what had caused the interruption. He summoned Eden's saber, using the Force, and held it out to him. "That was completely unnecessary," he said sternly. "Try it again, and pay attention to what you are doing. And to your balance."

"I am trying!" the boy snapped, snatching his weapon from the man and rubbing at his ass briefly with his other hand. That had been embarrassing and to add insult to injury, his friends had probably seen the whole thing.

Oh, yes, Alec and Brin had seen it, and they both raised a brow at the rebuke. "I'd expect the same from my master if I did that," Alec said reasonably.

"Yeah, but Eden's not exactly the best fighter, and the guy was kinda harsh on him." They watched for another minute, both boys paying careful attention to the fight. Eden was leaving himself open, and Eeth was not missing those openings, nor was he failing to point them out. The man was barking out corrections in a clipped, matter-of-fact tone left and right.

Again Eden was floored, only this time he tumbled a bit first before rolling backwards and into a low crouch. His saber had been knocked flying once again, but he was fast this time and used the Force to summon it. Just as he was picking himself up, he saw a blue and green blade flash to life behind Eeth. He bit his lip, a slight smile on his face as he recognised his two friends; he was tired of being beaten today, and now he wanted that chance at retribution!

Alec had not planned to intervene, but when Brin ignited his blade, he could not let him go alone. His ankle was still a bit sore, but it was nothing that was going to hinder him. Brin, on the other hand, had taken twelve licks with a cane barely half an hour ago and was smarting, not that the kid showed it; he was a Jedi after all, and this was going to be cathartic.

Both boys rounded on Eeth in a classic pairs tactic: if one of them failed the other should manage to score a hit. In theory.

Brin took the lead, charging up behind the man and somersaulting to land to his left, just outside the man's peripheral vision. He lunged with a powerful attack that, if Eeth failed to block, would undoubtedly land him on his back. That left Alec to back this up, the two working in perfect sync.

Eden, having seen this coming, had taken his time getting up, waited for the right moment and then charged from the front. Eeth was going down. The three of them were going to drop him like a toilet seat, and it was going to feel incredibly satisfying!