While Ahsoka felt extraordinarily silly walking through the Jedi Temple wearing a blaster proof vest and modified binders, she had to admit they were helping. Moving was weird at first, like her gloves and boots had been filled with permacrete. But after a few minutes, she barely noticed them. They only distracted her when she moved too far away from her midline, giving her a split second warning so she wouldn't lose her balance. It grounded her, whether she was walking alongside her Master as he rattled off the latest podracing statistics, or now, when she was balanced on a platform the size of a brick, twelve feet off the ground.

She'd been hoping to work on her fighting. She preferred the closeness, the precision and raw strength required for hand to hand combat. Anakin was a fighter, in every sense of the word. He'd had to be, growing up the way he did, and had taught her the skills she needed to overcome physically larger opponents.

But they hadn't even set foot in the gym before he'd nudged her to the obstacle course. Ahsoka loved acrobatics, it was a tactical advantage as well as fun to jump, flip, and climb up things that humanoids were never intended to climb. But on a day like today, when she was both uncoordinated and distracted, the course was more frustrating than anything else. Perhaps that was why she'd fallen three times already. This section required her to jump from her platform and grab a pole that was a little smaller around than your average lightsaber. From there, she would dismount and begin the next section, which involved navigating a series of moving platforms. She could still see Anakin below her, trying not to stare and give her space to work while he spoke to Obi-Wan. I wonder what they're talking about. As if I have to guess.

"How is she?" Obi-Wan asked, careful to keep his expressions neutral.

"Coping." Anakin replied, keeping one eye on Ahsoka's movements through the course. "She's doing better than I would, but I'm worried she's just putting on a brave face. That kind of isolation… there's a reason Force suppression is used as a form of torture."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Have you considered taking her to a Mind Healer? They may not fix the problem, but it couldn't hurt."

"Hmph. That might help." He lowered his shields slightly and allowed himself to be vulnerable with his former mentor. "Honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing, Obi-Wan. We still don't know what's causing the problem in the first place." He rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous habit he'd carried from his teens.

"Anakin, you're doing fine. This is a unique situation, there's no rulebook for how to handle it. Do what feels right. After all, no one knows Ahsoka better than you."

Before he could thank his Master, another thud drew Anakin's attention back to his apprentice, sprawled on the floor and cursing like a smuggler. She pushed herself up to a sitting position and let her head fall into her hands. The elder Jedi shared a look, and a faint pulse of support echoed across their long dormant bond. Anakin walked over and sat down on the mat next to Ahsoka, placing a warm hand on her knee. Masters were taught to give their padawans independence, to allow them to work through problems on their own and guide them when they strayed off course. But as Anakin knew from past experience, it was nearly impossible to pull oneself out of a thought spiral once you were stuck.

"What's going on, Snips? Talk to me." He kept his voice low and soft, careful of her sensitive hearing.

She shook her head, curling further into herself. She didn't want to acknowledge the weakness, much less deal with it. Anakin took a breath. Do what feels right.

"Padawan. Tell me how you feel." The direct order and use of her formal title got the girl's attention, and she lifted her eyes to meet her master's. Despite the firm tone, his expression was calm, patient even.

"I'm frustrated."

"Why?"

She sat up a little straighter, eyes narrowing. He was baiting her. But knowing that didn't stop her from responding more harshly than was necessary.

"I keep falling."

"Why?"

Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow, unable to keep from eavesdropping. Ahsoka was a sweet girl, with an enormously kind heart. He'd watched her soothe crecheling's tantrums with a gentle smile and a well-timed joke. But he also knew that when she had been pushed to her limits, she could spit venom at anyone, even her beloved teacher.

"I. don't. know!"

Ghosts of tear tracks still stuck to Ahsoka's face but the fire in her eyes told a different story. Her front was cracking. She was panicked, but there was a fight there, a desperation to hold on. Anakin could see it too, and responded with the same calm demeanor that he'd started the conversation with.

"Well, let's think. You've got the dismount right. You've got the right height and speed, and reach the piping with no problem. I know, because you've grabbed it twice before you fell. So…"

"Something's wrong with my grip." It was a statement, not a question, whispered to herself as she put the pieces together. She blushed, shaking her head. "Sorry, Master. I didn't mean to-"

He nodded, rubbing her montrals like Obi-Wan would ruffle his hair. "It's okay kiddo. Take a breath, drink some water, and then try again. Slower, this time. Think about your hand placement, and how you've got to transition to the next element." He stood then, and went over to Obi-Wan, giving her the space she needed to reset and get back on her feet.

Obi-Wan had given up on his neutral expression, pride and amusement shining in his eyes.

"What's so funny?" Anakin asked, watching Ahsoka climb back up the ladder to restart the course.

"Just thinking of a certain Knight who swore up and down that he'd never take a padawan learner."

Anakin shrugged. "She's a good kid. I think-" He broke off in mid sentence, eyes going wide. Before Obi-Wan could ask what was wrong, his padawan had spun and was darting over to the obstacle course, a split second after Ahsoka had started screaming.

She hadn't even gotten to the part she'd been stuck on for so long. Instead she was frozen on the second section, hunched over, clutching her head and screaming in pain.

"Master!" She cried, voice thick with tears. "Master help! It hurts!"

Anakin stood below her, panicked. "Snips, I need you to jump! Jump off, I'll catch you. I promise!"

Well, she technically fell more than "jumped" but her Master caught her just the same, holding her close as she sobbed, nails digging into her temples.

"Master please make it stop! Hurts so bad!"

Before Anakin could even ask what was hurting or tell her that she'd be okay, Obi-Wan came from behind him and placed a hand on the center of her chest. A quick burst of the Force rendered the teen unconscious, leaving her two mentors to look at each other and wonder what had just happened.