Disclaimer: I don't own it; it belongs to George Lucas, yada, yada, yada.

(Author's Note…Again: Sorry if anyone out there has been waiting for this. I'm having a very hard time with the scenes on Dagobah for some reason. Trying to fit Aurora into the pre-existing action of the movie is proving harder than I thought. Also, I really wanted to have more personal interaction between her and Luke, but it's giving me a hard time and doesn't want to conform to my ideas. I'm not entirely satisfied with this…actually I really don't care for parts of it all, but I'm tired of rewriting it and struggling with it, so this is what you get. It's not like I'm getting paid for it anyway )

Aurora stared numbly at the place where Luke's body had fallen. It had disappeared completely, as if it had never been, but she couldn't stop staring at the spot. Vaguely, she was aware of the damp mud sinking into her pants from where she knelt on the floor of the cave, but she couldn't bring herself to care. Her mind was still reeling with the implications of the…dream? Vision? Whatever it had been, it had been disturbingly real. Sweat was still drying on her skin from her exertions and she could feel the stinging cuts on her hands from where she had sank her nails into her palms. She wasn't certain exactly what Yoda had meant to happen in this cave, but she knew without a doubt that she had failed.

A slight noise drew her attention to her right and she saw Luke leaning weakly against the wall of the cave. He looked pale and shaky; his face wearing a look of horrified disbelief and his lightsaber gripped so tightly in his hand that his knuckles were white.

She had to clear her throat twice before she could make her voice work. She wondered if she had really been screaming, or if that had only been in her mind.

"Luke?"

Haunted blue eyes turned in her direction. Aurora shuddered. She didn't know what vision he had been gifted with, but from the look on his face, she didn't want to.

"Can you walk?"

With a shudder, he pulled away from the wall, swiping one hand over his face as if to rid himself of the last of the vision.

"Yeah. Let's get the hell out of here." His voice was uncharacteristically rough.

She staggered to her feet. "My sentiments exactly."

The turned together and headed for the opening of the cave. Neither spoke, both too engulfed in their own thoughts and feelings.

Aurora sat on the edge of the swamp, absently tearing up pieces of grass and tossing them into the water. The clouds had cleared and she could see the stars reflected in the still water. As each piece of plant landed with a gentle plop, the ripples spread out from it, seemingly setting the small points of light rocking back and forth.

She watched the ripples expand across the dark water and couldn't stop her thoughts from zooming back to her experience in the cave. Ripples of influence. How trite and clichéd. But clichés were clichés for a reason, and she would have to be woefully blind to ignore the lesson imparted from the terrifying vision. Every action had an equal and opposite reaction. For every decision that any being in the galaxy made, there were consequences; the more powerful the being, the more powerful the reaction. She had been so focused on what was happening to her and how becoming a Jedi would affect her, that she had been ignoring the effect that it would have on the galaxy in general.

The galaxy needed Jedi. It wasn't that complicated. No matter how scared she was of losing herself, no matter how much the thought of devoting her entire life to this one cause terrified her, it didn't matter. Because people would die if she didn't. It was that simple.

It was the same reason that she had willingly thrown herself into the cockpit of a barely familiar starfighter and launched herself at the Death Star. She had skills that the Alliance needed in order to defeat the Empire and it would be beyond selfish to deny that. If she could save lives simply by risking her own, than she was obligated to do so. After all, she didn't fear dying. Dying was simple. It was something that happened to everyone eventually; there was no getting around it. So spending your life trying to avoid it was rather pointless. And dying in a starfighter was probably one of the better ways to go. One brilliant flash of light and it was over. Quick and painless.

Living, on the other hand, that was where it got complicated. And painful. Living was definitely far more painful and usually lasted longer. That was why becoming a Jedi scared her. To spend years trapped into this lifestyle, set apart from everyone by awe and fear, constantly having to control your actions and emotions for fear of what they might lead to…

But she was past that. The vision in the darkside cave had made that very clear. She either learned to use the Force or she risked losing everyone she loved. It was that simple. And given that kind of incentive, Aurora really didn't have a problem with it. She could set aside her fears and anxieties and accept the role that she was required to play if it meant saving her friends and the rest of the galaxy. Because there simply wasn't anyone else to do it, aside from her and Luke.

Luke. Now she came to the crux of the problem. The whole reason why she was sitting here in the dark, the wet ground slowly soaking into the seat of her pants, tossing bits of plant matter into the stagnant water of the swamp. Luke Skywalker.

She was well aware of just exactly why that vision in the cave was bothering her so badly. At first, remembering the entire experience had caused her hands to shake and sweat to break out on her forehead. But after she forced herself to calm down and carefully think about it, she had come to terms with the vision and taken what she could from it. She had learned her lesson. But, unfortunately, she had learned much more than that. She had also learned exactly what Luke meant to her.

It wasn't a coincidence that the cave had saved Luke's appearance for last. Apparently, the Force had wanted her to confront her feelings about this as well. She had tried to save the others, had pushed her body beyond its limits trying to stop them from dying, but she had failed. And as horrifying and torturous as it had been to watch their deaths, she could have gone on. It would have been painful, and she would probably never have been the same, but she would have survived their loss. Not so with Luke. It had only taken one clash of the lightsaber blades and Aurora realized she would do anything within her power and quite a bit outside of it to save him. Nothing was too much. She couldn't even begin to describe what she had felt when that glowing red blade had sunk into his body and he had crumpled to the floor. Even now, far removed from the situation, she could feel her heart speed up at the memory, her hands were clenching into fists, and red fury was sweeping across her vision.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down; deliberately unclenching her hands and taking a series of deep breaths until the feelings of murderous grief began to recede and her vision returned to normal. With a grimace, she wiped the crushed bits of plants off her hands.

Clearly, her feelings for Luke went far deeper than she had realized. Which was a problem. A very large problem. Because she couldn't afford to have these feelings for Luke. Not now. There was too much riding on the two of them for either to take a chance on their relationship blowing up in their faces. Bad enough to have to work closely with your commanding officer after a failed relationship with him, but for two Jedi, who by the very nature of their partnership had to share feelings and emotions? Aurora shuddered at the thought. Devastating, and beyond humiliating.

So it simply wasn't an option. If she could control her anger and fear, she could certainly control this thing she had for Luke, whatever it was.

Love, a little voice whispered in the back of her head. Aurora ruthlessly squashed it down. But she sat by the dark water for a long time, her thoughts whirling.

Aurora was upside down, her hands planted securely in the mud. Master Yoda was balanced on her feet, seemingly effortlessly. The blood had long since rushed to her head, but she was ignoring that. She was also ignoring how ridiculous this would look to an observer. Instead, she was concentrating on the swelling sensation of warmth that was rising in her. It was familiar by now and far easier to access. Focusing on two boulders on the ground in front of her, she concentrated and one of the rocks slowly lifted into the air to balance lightly on top of the other. A slight smile may have crossed her face, but it was hard to tell under the strain visible there.

Yoda's voice came softly from above her. "Use the Force. Yes…"

He tapped her leg firmly and straining even more, she carefully lifted one hand from the ground. Her body shifted precariously as her balance wavered, but with a visible effort, she steadied herself on one hand, feeling the sweat trickling down her face from her efforts.

At the edge of the clearing, she vaguely heard Artoo beeping about something.

"Now…the stone. Feel it." Yoda instructed.

Her body shaking under the strain, Aurora concentrated on the top rock. Seeing it resting lightly on the other, visualizing it rising…slowly into the air. Her teeth gritted, but hesitantly the rock lifted off the other, visibly unsteady.

Aurora's breath was wheezing in her lungs now with the exertion.

Suddenly, Artoo's beeping and whistling got more frantic and Aurora felt her concentration shift. Her grasp on the Force slipped and her body tipped sideways. Frantically, she tried to correct, slamming her other hand back down into the mud, but it was too late; she was too far off balance.

With a strangled "Concentrate!" Yoda jumped clear of her feet as she tipped sideways and crashed into the mud.

Gasping and wincing at her hard landing, she sent a withering glance at the little droid, ignoring the fact that Yoda was aiming the same look at her.

Across the clearing where he had been watching, Luke winced in sympathy, but moved quickly to the frantically rocking droid.
"What's the matter, Artoo?"

With an almost panicked whistle, the astromech rushed to the edge of the water, his dome twirling frenetically as Luke followed closely behind him. With another flinch as overtaxed muscles protested, Aurora staggered to her feet and trailed after them. She arrived next to Luke just in time to see the dark water close over the majority of Luke's X-Wing. Only the tip of the ship's nose was still visible.

"Oops." She muttered.

Luke look appalled. "Oh no! We'll never get it out now."

Beside them, Yoda stamped his foot like an irritated toddler. "So certain are you. Always with you it cannot be done. Hear you nothing that I say?"

Luke and Aurora exchanged glances. Exhausted from her previous efforts and in no mood to argue with their stubborn teacher, she made an after-you gesture and turned to seat herself on a nearby log, clearing excusing herself from the coming discussion.

With an edge of exasperation riding his voice, Luke turned to the little Jedi Master. "Master, moving stones around is one thing. This is totally different."

"No!" Yoda stamped his stick into the ground. "No different! Only different in your mind. You must unlearn what you have learned."

Luke took a deep breath. They had been training most of the day and he was already tired, but he knew better than to tell Yoda that. The Jedi Master accepted no excuses and any attempt to make him see reason just left you feeling like a lazy idiot. With a heartfelt sigh, Luke focused on the submerged ship. "All right. I'll give it a try."

But even this wasn't enough for Yoda. "No! Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try."

Luke sighed again, but made sure it was internal. Trying to ignore his sore muscles and the itchy combination of sweat and mud that covered him, he closed his eyes and concentrated on his ship. He pictured its familiar lines. The feel of the cool metal under his skin when he walked past and couldn't stop himself from brushing his fingers over it, like petting a beloved animal. The well-known scent that he associated with it, of metal and fuel and that combination of dust and ozone that he associated with space. He remembered the sound of the engines coming to life with a roar and the way he could feel that sound vibrate against his spine when he sat in the cockpit. And then he pictured all of that slowly rising from the cold, dark water that surrounded it. The bright metal of the hull slowly rising up. The way the water would almost peel back from the transparisteel cockpit in layers, bubbles frothing in the wake.

Luke had stretched out one hand towards the ship, as if reaching physically for it. Aurora choked back a gasp as the nose of the X-Wing slowly began to rise above the swamp water that engulfed it. For several breathless seconds, it continued to rise, hovering above the dank liquid. Then Luke let out a strangled breath and the ship sank back down with a despondent gurgle.

Panting, Luke sank to the ground, his head hanging in exhaustion.

"I can't." He gasped, black spots flashing in front of his eyes. "It's too big."

Concerned, Aurora rose off the log to kneel next to him, her hand on his shoulder.

"Breathe." She instructed firmly.

Yoda eyed them with disfavor. "Size matters not." He stated. "Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hm? Mmm."

Shakily, Luke shook his head.

"And well you should not. For my ally is the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we." He reached over and pinched Luke's shoulder. "Not this crude matter." Lifting one clawed hand in a sweeping, all-encompassing gesture, he indicated the swamp around them. "You must feel the Force around you. Here, between you…me…the tree…the rock…everywhere! Yes, even between this land and that ship!"

Aurora was staring at the Jedi Master in disbelief, her hand still on Luke's shoulder. She felt the muscles under her fingers tense as he pushed himself to his feet.

"You want the impossible." He told the diminutive creature miserably, before walking away.

Yoda took a deep breath and turned away. Facing the swamp and its captive starfighter, he closed his eyes and bowed his head. With one hand, he slowly pointed at the ship. The water bubbled and gurgled and the X-Wing rose steadily from its watery prison, water pouring from its silvery sides. Slowly and surely it cleared the water and glided silently to the shore, all at the silent command of that one beckoning hand. With a soft thump, the ship settled onto the muddy ground, water dripping off it. With a sigh, Yoda lowered his hand.

Aurora, still kneeling on the ground where Luke had left her, stared at him, speechless. The power it must have taken to lift the entire ship and the little being wasn't even breathing hard.

Luke was equally astonished, and he rushed towards his ship, touching it in awe as if to assure himself that it was real. Ducking under the nose, he came towards his teacher.

"I don't…I don't believe it!"

Yoda raised his head to stare him full in the face. "That is why you fail."