Ben practically clung to his uncle as they approached the temple. His blue eyes were wide with anticipation. His breath caught in his chest. This wasn't what he had been expecting at all. When he had heard they would be training on Coruscant, he had imagined it being part of a skyscraper, another building in the city skyline he had heard so much about. Another tall, illuminated structure that screamed enterprise and industry more than peace and sanctuary. None of these were negative thoughts to Ben. They were just what his father had told him about the planet. It was all he knew of it, really. He had seen pictures and read about it in history, but his dad's opinion was the only he had ever really heard.
Despite having flown to what must have been half of the planets in the galaxy, they had never visited Coruscant. It was often described as the bright center of everything, the capital of lights, the city of new beginnings. It was the New Republic's central location. The beacon of democracy. People raved about it, proudly talking about all that it represented. But Ben's father had informed him, quite aggravated, that Coruscant was an abomination. It had been a hive of scum and villainy, not to mention the home of the empire. The palace where the emperor himself had lived still stood, though they had attempted to repurpose it. It was now the Senate building, and loaned itself to other functions within the New Republic. Certain rooms were used for negotiation, certain rooms for legislation, and certain rooms for mediation. He supposed that this was supposed to be some sort of symbolism. Turning the bad into good. Turning the home of oppression into the home of freedom. It was supposed to be a feel-good sort of thing. It was to give the citizens of the galaxy the sense that they had overcome the evil they had previously faced.
But his father had made it clear that despite the new shiny coat of paint they'd put on the canvas, the stain underneath remained. He was almost entirely certain that nothing had really changed. He had said more than once that at its core, Coruscant was still a dump.
So, obviously, Ben had been fearing the worst. What he had found was entirely different. They were a ways away from the city. Though most of the planet was densely populated, parts of it were actually kind of wooded. That's where they were. A few miles out from the city in every direction. It was kind of hilly, with emerald green grass and large oak trees. Given as it was autumn, the leaves of each tree were tinted orange. Cheery blue skies greeted them from above, only ever obscured by the occasional fluffy white cloud. It was so peaceful. Exactly where Ben would've envisioned a Jedi to train their Padawan, had he not known Coruscant was in the equation.
On one of the flatter hills sat a building. It almost looked like a cottage in structure, but it was far bigger. The roof appeared to be thatch, and the walls were made of old brick. Despite how ancient it looked, the temple was actually recently constructed. A few of the Jedi who had been hiding throughout the empire's reign had come out to help the man construct it. There were only a handful left, which was the whole reason for this "Jedi Academy" in the first place.
Nonetheless, Ben had a feeling this temple wasn't exactly like others. It probably wouldn't have even been considered one by the Jedi of old times. But it was theirs. Whether it fit the requirements or not, it was theirs. That was all that really seemed to matter.
"Uncle Luke," Ben asked slowly, swallowing hard, "how many kids are going to train here?"
"More and more every year," the man began slowly, as they started the trek up the hill. "This year I'll be taking seven, besides you."
Ben's eyes bugged out of his head. "Seven? That many?"
"I know it seems like a lot. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed myself, but you have to understand. I want to train the next generation as quickly as possible. I was originally going to take more, but I can't handle too many kids at once. Right now, it's just me. Maybe by next year, I'll have convinced a couple of the remaining Jedi to help."
"Why wouldn't they?" the boy asked curiously. "Don't they want to help train more Jedi?"
"Of course they do," Luke assured him. "They've just lived in fear for so long. They're so used to distrusting the government that they believe the New Republic is letting this Academy exist so they can get all the existing Jedi into one place and then finish them off. I understand their concern. After Order 66..." he trailed off, pain entering his eyes. He shook his head, as if to clear any stray thoughts from his mind. "I just hope they come around."
Ben wanted to ask about Order 66. It sounded ominous. But he bit it back. Luke didn't seem to want to talk about it, and he wasn't going to push. Not on the first day. "Yeah," he just agreed instead. "Me too."
"Anyways, though," the man chuckled, trying to sound happier than he was, "I'm excited for today. I think it's going to go well."
"What're we going to do today?" Ben asked, looking up at the sky.
It wasn't currently its usual blue. It was instead pale, with orange and pinks beginning to fill its emptiness. The sun was just beginning to peek out over the hills. It was early. The other Padawans were going to arrive soon, Ben knew.
"Well, probably just the basics," his uncle mused. "Just so I can see where everyone is at. So I know what we'll need to work towards in the future."
Ben nodded, soaking that in. The words made his stomach feel kind of queasy. He didn't want to think about that. All of these kids were going to be four years older than he was, and they would probably be miles ahead of him. He just knew he was going to have to struggle to be anywhere near their level. It was going to take a lot of work on his part. Fear rose within him. Even with his best effort, would he be able to make up for four years of experience? He wasn't sure it was possible. His cheeks flushed as the humiliation of being the child of a group of children. They were already young. They weren't even teenagers, technically speaking. But he was going to be a kid in their eyes. Why had his family done this to him? Anxiety filled his mind.
"Ben," Luke spoke softly, as the terrain began to level out. They had almost reached the top of the hill. "I wouldn't have asked that you come if I didn't think you were capable."
The words that rose to Ben's tongue next shocked even him. "I thought it was because you were afraid I was going to go to the dark side," the underlying bitterness in his statement was evident, and left both people stunned.
The boy bit his lip, immediately regretting saying it. It was the first day of his Jedi training! He had told himself that he wasn't going to upset his uncle! But... he couldn't take it back now. He had meant exactly what he had said. He had heard the conversation between his uncle and his parents, and he couldn't deny that it had become a bit of a sore spot for him. He had had a lot of time to think while staying with his uncle—he had been living with the man for about a week before this point and had learned that Luke wasn't exactly the most sociable individual; he spent a lot of time on his own, writing letters and such—and one of the things that Ben kept coming back to was that day his parents had agreed to send him to the Academy. He was sort of irritated by it. His uncle and his mom, the nicest, most golden-hearted people he knew, had actually thought he could become evil? Only his dad had opposed the thought. He sunk into a sulk, crossing his arms, shooting the blond man standing next to him an accusing look.
"Ben..." Luke said slowly, pausing in his stride. He turned to stare at the boy apprehensively. "You have to understand our concern. When you used the Force by getting angry, you really did connect with the dark side. And when we were at your house, just a couple weeks ago, I felt you do so again. In fact, I can feel it right now."
Ben's jaw dropped. He paled. "Right now?"
"Not anymore," the man noted. "Look, I'm not trying to scare you. And I don't think you're a bad person. Far from it. I think you're one of the best people I've ever met. But I also think you're walking down a dangerous path. I just want to help you." He tried to smile. "Plus you're my nephew, Ben. How could you be bad? You're part of one of the best families out there."
That wasn't enough to persuade the boy this time. "What about what my dad said?"
"What do you mean?" Luke questioned nonchalantly, beginning to walk towards the looming building again. He seemed mildly determined to reach it now, seemingly thinking that reaching it would end this conversation. "What did he say?"
"He said the Force ruined your dad," Ben recalled. "Did he go to the dark side?"
Luke tensed immediately. He stopped in his tracks so suddenly that Ben almost kept walking. The boy stopped too, however, peering at them man curiously. The blond didn't move to look at the youth. He straightened, and his face suddenly looked older. Each wrinkle became apparent, from his smile lines to worry lines on his forehead. A deep pain entered his eyes, which went from being their typical blue to looking almost gray. "Yes." he answered, his voice clipped. "My father was lost for a period of time, but he wasn't a bad person either. He was redeemed in the end, Ben."
"How did he go to the dark side?" Ben asked curiously.
Luke returned to walking, picking up his pace quite a bit. "I don't know. I believe it had something to do with my mother." He was extremely close to running, his eyes locked on the temple. "But enough of that," he cleared his throat.
The raven-haired boy had never seen his uncle so jumpy or touchy about anything. He was thoroughly surprised by the man's drastic reaction. Ben mentally noted that apparently his grandfather was a sore subject. He silently debated asking his mother about him as soon as he got home. She tended to be more levelheaded about this kind of thing. Plus, he knew she had grown up in family different from the one Luke had grown up in. She had been adopted, raised by a set of parents that weren't her own. She thought of her father as Bail Organa, Ben knew. He had heard many stories of the man, a supposed great senator with a sense of duty and a burning desire for freedom. He had been one of billions to die when Alderaan had been obliterated by the Death Star. Asking about that would make her emotional. Asking about the biological father she had barely known? It probably wouldn't even earn a sniffle.
"Sorry," Ben said quietly, though he wasn't really. If anything, he was glad he'd said it. It had given him a bit of insight on a subject he'd known nothing about, and it had allowed him to express his frustration at his uncle and parents. With that off his chest, he felt lighter. Some of his nerves cleared. "I didn't mean to upset you."
"You didn't upset me," Luke responded smoothly, though they both knew he had. "Look, Ben," his tone was now flooded with relief. "This is where we're going to be training."
It was even bigger up close. Ben marveled at it, thoroughly amazed. It was actually kind of incredible now that he was looking right at it. "You guys made this?"
"Yeah, we did," Luke allowed a touch of pride to enter his voice, though it was gone quickly. He wasn't really the prideful type. "We weren't going to build it here originally," he told the boy distantly. "We wanted to build it on that hill over there," he pointed westward, at a much taller hill. "But the Force directed us here instead. We kept going to the other hill, but we couldn't feel anything. The Force always pulled us to this one." He smiled. "We weren't going to use brick either, but every other material we tried ended up being destroyed somehow. The wood burned before we even had half a wall built, and we had an earthquake that caused the stone to crumble. I still can't explain that one. It seems impossible, but we'll all swear by it. Each time we tried to go a different direction than what the Force told us, it just wouldn't work. Finally, we learned to just listen. This wasn't at all the original plan, you know."
"What was?" Ben questioned, incredibly curious. Was the Force actually powerful enough to ignite wood spontaneously and crumble stone without warning?
"It was a magnificent temple with spires and stained glass windows. It was even bigger than this one. The walls were wooden, but stained white. It towered above everything, grand and gorgeous. A beautiful reminder of the power of the Force." He chuckled at the thought. "Apparently it wanted something more modest."
Ben couldn't help but laugh. "That's actually really funny, Uncle Luke."
"You know, it was frustrating at the time. Xavier and Andrew, two of the Jedi helping me, were just as baffled as I was. But it was Dagger, the craziest of the four of us, that knew what was going on. He convinced us to just follow the Force."
"His name is Dagger?" the boy giggled, his childlike innocence shining through. "Really?"
"Probably not," Luke answered airily. "He's definitely not what you would expect a Jedi to act like. He's a little more brash, kind of wild. Knowing him, he changed it because it sounded cooler that way. See, Xavier and Andrew are both a lot more formal. They remind me of other Jedi I've known. Dagger, however... reminds me of a less mature version of your dad."
"Less mature?" the raven-haired youth raised his eyebrows. "But my mom always tells my dad to grow up and act his age."
Luke grinned. "Yeah. She doesn't really like Dagger very much," he admitted. "They don't get along."
"She knows him?"
"Oh, sure. So does your dad. They know Xavier and Andrew too."
"How come I've never met them?" Ben asked, feeling a little left out. He wanted to know the crazy people who had helped build this incredible structure.
The blond tilted his head. "Well... originally, your parents didn't particularly want you getting too caught up with Jedi. This wasn't their original plan for you. Initially, they wanted you to be a pilot. A good, honest career. Not quite as risky as that of a Jedi. Well... not in the same way. And they figured you'd be good at it. After all, you have Skywalker and Solo blood in you. How could you not be?"
"And now I'm at a school for Jedi," the eight year old smiled kind of sadly. "That didn't really work for them."
"Oh, I don't know. From my experience, Jedi make the best pilots," Luke winked. Then he gestured towards the door. "Do you want to see the inside? You know, since you'll be living here for at least the next few months."
"Yeah!"
His uncle pushed open the door. Ben was mildly surprised to see that the room inside was practically empty. It was absolutely massive, resembling a ballroom of sorts. The floor was hardwood, which made the child smile. Apparently the Force didn't want wooden walls, but floors were fair game. He peered around curiously. Despite the fact that there was nothing inside of it, spare a single wooden chair sitting off to the side, it had a life of its own. Something in the air felt almost... electric. With his every breath, Ben seemed to grow more energized, but in an abnormal way. He wasn't becoming hyper, exactly. Something about the room made him feel calm and at peace, but more, well, the best way to describe it was alive.
"This is where we'll be doing most of our training," Luke murmured thoughtfully. "Force and lightsaber. There are a couple other rooms, bedrooms and bathrooms and other necessities, but other than that... this is the main focal point. It looks like a lot of nothing, I know, but when you get more attuned to the Force you'll be able to—"
"I can feel it now," Han Solo's son interrupted, anticipating the man's next words. "The electricity in the air. The way the room has its own energy. I can feel it."
The Jedi blinked, truly caught off-guard. "You can?"
"Yeah. It's... incredible," he breathed. "This is what I'd imagine magic feels like," he confessed, though he knew that statement would've sounded excessively girly in the ears of his father.
"That... wow, Ben," he seemed flabbergasted. "I wasn't expecting that. I wasn't expecting that at all." He was going to say something when he stopped suddenly. "They're here."
Ben blanched. "The other students?"
"Yes. I sent out a ship to go to all of their respective planets and pick them up. It's a fast one, but even so, I imagine some of those kids have been up even longer than we have."
"So they're going to be really grumpy?" the boy guessed.
"It's possible," Luke confirmed. "Well, I'm going to go get a couple things ready for today. Why don't you go greet your new classmates, Ben?"
"By myself?" he squeaked.
"You'll be okay," his uncle promised, flashing the boy a reassuring grin as he vanished into one of the back rooms.
Ben swallowed hard, then gingerly stepped outside. The ship was unloading. He watched with great interest. Four boys. Only three girls. All human. He had been expecting a Twi'lek or two, but apparently that wasn't the case this year. To his relief, they all looked excited, rather than irritated. None of them were grouchy, despite how early they'd had to wake up.
One girl, with wild red hair and a huge smile, spotted him first. "There's the eighth one, guys!" she said cheerily. "I told you there was supposed to be another one!"
A boy that was slightly taller than the others stepped in front. His hair was as dark as Ben's, and his eyes were almost the same shade. He had an authoritative look to him, and seemed to have already asserted himself as the leader. "Nice to meet you," he said, his manner seeming oddly formal. "I'm Coulter Danos."
"Uh, hi," Ben rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "I'm Ben Solo."
The reaction to this was far from normal. Everyone seemed to stare at him more intently. Their mildly interested looks coming to They all gawked at him, wide-eyed. A couple gasps rang out. Ben suddenly felt entirely isolated. They turned to one another, as if he weren't even there. They began to whisper, though Ben heard every word. He fidgeted, rubbing the back of his neck, almost wanting to turn on his heel and run into the temple.
"Solo? As in Han?"
"No way. It has to be a coincidence. Why would Han Solo send his kid here?"
"It makes perfect sense! Luke is Han's brother!"
"No, he's not! Don't be dumb! Luke is an only child! Jedi don't have siblings!"
"Yes, they do! Luke has a sister, remember? Leia, the former princess of Alderaan!"
"Didn't that planet explode?"
Ben cleared his throat. They all turned to gape at him again. Most of them looked amazed, starstruck even, but some appeared more critical. Coulter fell into this group. His mouth was a straight line, and his eyes were displaying as little emotion as possible. However, his arms were crossed, which was often a sign that someone's mind was closed, and normally that they didn't believe what was being said. His eyebrows were also furrowed, just slightly.
"Han Solo is my dad," he announced, not understanding their doubt on the subject.
A girl with stick-straight black hair gasped. Her jade eyes were almond-shaped. "It is true. He's actually your dad?"
"Yeah," he responded, feeling slightly sheepish. He squirmed a little, their disbelieving gazes making him kind of uncomfortable.
"So, is your mom Leia Organa?" a short boy with a shaved head asked incredulously.
"Y-yeah," he confirmed slowly.
"And then Luke Skywalker is your uncle, right?" the black-haired girl prodded, shooting a different boy a pointed look. "Because Leia is his sister?"
Ben nodded wordlessly.
"Wow!" the redhead exclaimed. Her voice had a lilt to it. Her accent was distinctly inner rim. "That's incredible! What are they like?"
He blinked. "My parents?"
"Yeah!" the bald boy asked. "Han Solo is like the world's best pilot! Does he ever take you out in the Millennium Falcon?"
"Well, yeah, sometimes. He likes to call Uncle Chewie over to help me copilot—"
"Uncle Chewie? You mean Chewbacca? The Wookiee that beat up multiple Stormtroopers inside of the Death Star itself?" a white-haired boy with hazel eyes chirped.
This was all kind of making Ben's head spin, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't like the attention. "I guess so," he said slowly.
"You've flown co-pilot on the Falcon with Chewbacca?" Coulter asked in disbelief, his chocolate eyes narrowing. "No way."
"No, really," Ben insisted. "I don't do too much of the actually flying, my dad really loves that ship, but I still get to sit co-pilot. Sometimes he even lets me help land it. Uncle Chewie makes sure I do everything right, but it's still really fun."
A dark-skinned boy with curly black hair raised his eyebrows. "And what about your mum?" his accent was even more inner rim than the redhead's. In fact, he sounded like he was raised on Coruscant itself.
"She's..." he'd never had to describe his parents like this before, "she's nice. Super smart. She's a really good mom. She'll do anything for me. She takes care of me when I'm sick and helps me feel better when I'm sad."
"She was one of the greatest diplomats of all time. A princess!" a girl with short, brown hair and pale skin exclaimed. She looked enthralled. "Is your dad a prince?"
Ben's eyebrows shot towards his hairline. "Uh, no—"
"Are you kidding?" the girl with black girls hair scoffed. "Han Solo was a pilot for the rebellion! He flew the Millennium Falcon!"
"I know! Didn't you take history class? Han Solo is legendary, not a stuffy prince!" the white-haired kid protested.
"Well, isn't he now? Since he technically married a princess?" the redhead questioned carefully.
"The princess of a planet that doesn't exist anymore," the bald boy pointed out. "Alderaan blew up, remember?"
"That's right," the dark-skinned boy recalled. "The Death Star. Yeah, I would say that takes away Leia's princess status. You can't be princess of an asteroid field."
"So then Han is definitely not a prince, since he married her after Alderaan was dust in the wind," the towhead stated conclusively.
Coulter didn't bother inserting himself in the conversation. He stared at Ben, dark eyes narrowed a little. He didn't seem to care about what the others were saying. All of his attention was on the eight year old. "What about your uncle?"
Everyone stopped and turned back to stare at Ben, who suddenly felt self-conscious. "What about him?"
"What is he like?"
"Well, you're going to meet him today," Ben answered lamely, fidgeting.
"Yeah, but give us a heads-up. I mean, you have to know him pretty well, right? I mean, for him to let you in early," Coulter said calmly.
The redhead frowned. "Coulter!" she scolded.
"It's okay, Mariana," he assured her, not moving his eyes from the boy. "We were all thinking it. He's obviously younger than we are. What are you, ten?"
"Come on, Coulter," the bald kid frowned. "Don't."
Coulter clicked his tongue. "Please, Leo. It's fine. Seriously, Ben. How old are you?"
"I'm eight," the boy confessed quietly, staring at the ground.
"Seriously?" the dark-skinned kid asked, eyes wide. "Eight?"
"Why does that matter?" Mariana asserted. "He's fine. He's here for a reason. He's probably really good with the Force."
Coulter scoffed. "Or uncle dearest let him in. I mean, come on. Maybe if he were a Skywalker, I would believe he was strong in the Force. But he's not a Skywalker. He's a Solo. And when have you ever heard about Han using the Force?"
Ben's cheeks burned. "That's not fair. I'm probably just as good as you are."
"I doubt it," the kid said matter-of-factly. "You're eight."
"Coulter!" Leo scolded again. "Leave him alone. Come on. We're all here to train together."
He chuckled. "Yeah, well, you're nuts if you think we're all going to become Jedi. There's one teacher and eight of us. He's naturally going to zero in on a couple of us. The talented ones. That's obvious."
"What's obvious?"
Everyone jumped. Luke had approached from the side, a calm, inquiring look on his face.
Coulter paled a little. But he turned, putting up a fake smile. "Master Skywalker," he greeted, bowing.
Many of the other kids followed suit. Ben didn't. He was taken aback. What had he just said? Master Skywalker? Were they actually supposed to call Luke that? He couldn't. It just seemed awkward and odd. It would be like calling his dad by his first name. Weird and unnecessary. Did he actually have to equip the title of 'master' to his uncle? He understood that the man truly was a Jedi Master now, and that he'd earned that title. He knew that it was only customary to refer to one's teacher in that way. All Padawans addressed their corresponding Jedi as such. But this was different. Ben was related to his Jedi! He had grown up seeing him pop in to check up on them, hearing lengthy conversations about him, and dreaming about being just like him. Was all of that worth nothing here? To say the boy was "out of sorts" would've been the understatement of the century. So instead, he just offered a small bow and said nothing.
"What was obvious, Coulter?"
The dark-haired pre-teen inhaled sharply. "You know my name?"
"I hand-selected all of you. Of course I do."
"O-oh. Nothing, Master Skywalker," he chewed on his bottom lip. "I don't remember."
Luke raised his eyebrows but nodded. "I think you'd all like to see the inside of the temple now," he addressed them.
They all nodded vigorously, murmuring to one another. Ben just looked at his uncle. What have you gotten me into? he thought, mildly frustrated.
Luke turned and looked right at him, blue eyes displaying shock for what had to be the third time that day. "What?" he practically whispered. None of the other kids took notice.
Ben's jaw dropped in awe. Had his uncle heard what he was thinking? He couldn't remember how to talk to answer. He wasn't sure he wanted to. What had just happened?
Luke turned away hesitantly. Opening the door, he grinned, though it seemed slightly strained. "Here you go."
The kids rushed in, but stopped when they saw the room. They looked around, clearly baffled by this turn of events. The energy flowed into Ben, but could tell by the expressions that his classmates were wearing that they didn't feel it.
"It's empty," the white-haired boy voiced everyone's concern.
"I know, Calum. It appears empty. But when you get more adept with the Force, you'll feel that it is full of energy. To a more trained Jedi, the air feels electric. The Force fills this room. Peace and serenity will come easy to you in here, even if you can't feel it."
Ben swelled a little. He could feel it and they couldn't. He was more... wait. He stopped. Coulter had a strange look on his face. His concentration seemed over-exaggerated. His forehead was creased and his eyes were squeezed tightly shut. That was kind of odd. Could Coulter actually feel the energy? That didn't seem right. It had a calming effect, not a laboring one. But his breaths were deep, just like Ben's had been... and when he opened his eyes, he was smirking arrogantly. "So what if we do feel it, Master Skywalker?" Coulter asked loudly, shooting Ben a gloating look.
"It means you're more in tune with this place. The Force is acknowledging your potential," the man answered calmly, not turning to look at the boy.
"I'm the only one that the Force is noticing?" the cocky kid said, a huge grin crossing his smug face.
Luke turned towards Ben. "Not the only one."
The raven-haired boy couldn't help but smirk at Coulter, though he knew it wasn't the Jedi way. It was oddly satisfying to see the guy deflate. It felt good to punch a hole in his giant ego.
"Your first test is going to seem odd. We'll only be doing a couple exercises today. We're going to use the Force, and we're going to use a lightsaber. Now, obviously, I'll provide training sabers. Real ones are dangerous, and I don't want any of you getting hurt." He cleared his throat. "But first... we're going to try to see how well you can use the Force. Give me a second." He left the room, stepping into one of the adjacent ones.
Immediately, Coulter spun on Ben. "You did not feel the Force."
"I feel it right now," Ben retorted, taking a defensive stance. "I just had enough class not to brag about it."
"Listen, Solo," Coulter growled, stepping forwards threateningly.
Mariana and the black haired girl both immediately got in between the two of them. After a second, Leo did the same. The brown-haired girl hesitated, but fell into place next to the others. Only Calum and the curly-haired kid stayed behind Coulter.
"So Calum and James are the only ones who know what's going on. Don't you guys get it? Solo here is just going to whine to his uncle so he gets better treatment! Do you think he, four years younger than us, could actually feel the Force in there, when most of you guys couldn't?"
"Back off, Coulter," Mariana spoke calmly. "Envy isn't becoming of a Jedi."
"Envy? You think I'm jealous of this kid? What are you, thick?"
"Please! He's related to Han Solo, and Leia Organa, and Luke Skywalker. His life is cooler than yours will ever be," the raven-haired girl snapped. "And there's nothing you can do to change that, Coulter. He lucked out in the family department. His parents are rebel heroes, and yours sell space rations to desperate travelers for twice the market price."
"Shut up, Indigo! At least my parents didn't name me after a color because they saw it in the 'essence of my soul!'"
Indigo glared at him. "I'll take hippies over conmen any day. Besides, if you'd been named after the essence of your soul, you'd be named Puke Green, so thank your lucky stars you weren't!"
"They were neighbors. They grew up together," Mariana whispered to Ben, expression grave. "I have a feeling this argument has been going on for a long time."
"Where are you from?" he whispered to her, watching them.
"Locke. It's a planet not far from here. I'm guessing you're Outer Rim?"
"Mid-rim, actually. Dad wanted to raise me on Corellia, but mom said something about it being a hive for scum, so..." he shrugged. "I get my accent from my dad, I guess. I don't think of it as an accent, I'm so used to it."
She laughed. "I know! I always get comments on mine, but this is just how everyone talks where I'm from. People always assume I'm from here, you know, but I've never even been to Coruscant before."
"Me neither," he admitted.
"Really? Blimey. I thought that you'd have been here a lot, with Skywalker being your uncle and all."
He shook his head. "No. Uncle Luke doesn't—"
Ben stopped mid-sentence as the man entered, carrying... a stack of dishes? He looked at Mariana, his eyebrows raised. His confusion was reflected on her face, her turquoise eyes wide. He glanced around. All the others were silent, staring at Luke. Even Coulter and Indigo had ceased their incessant bickering to gape at the Jedi. They exchanged terrified expressions.
He sat them down calmly. "Everyone come and take one," he encouraged.
The Padawans walked forward nervously. Each one slowly picked up a plate and backed up. Ben had a feeling he knew where this was going. He set his plate down and sat cross-legged on the floor. Some of the other kids saw him and did the same. After a minute, only Coulter, James, and Calum still stood. They stared at Luke stubbornly, waiting for him to actually tell them what to do. They were clearly refusing to trust Ben.
"Go ahead and sit down. Put your plate in front of you," Luke prompted tiredly, clearly understanding the division in the group that had already formed.
Now they did, with Coulter shooting Luke a particularly big, simpering smile. Ben couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"Now focus all of your energy on the plate. Delve into yourself and draw from your inner peace. Use the Force. It surrounds you. Work with it. Try to move your dish into the air. Don't worry if you can't do it right now. At this point we're just trying to achieve some sort of movement."
Ben took a deep breath. It had been two years since he had used the Force, but he remembered it well. He closed his eyes. He could feel the Force around him. He mentally took a hold of it. He wasn't going to be working with it. It was going to be working for him. He began to think about things that upset him. Coulter's jeering face entered his mind. The comments about his abilities and potential floated through his head. The conversation he'd heard between his parents and his uncle came to him once again. His frustration at his uncle's habit of constantly dodging questions. His embarrassment at being the youngest one there.
The negative emotions swirled within him, a fiery tornado of hatred. His blue eyes blazed. With a silent command, he unleashed it upon the plate. Now that he was older, he could see the difference between his anger and the Force itself. The anger was his blunt weapon. It attacked the Force, making it bend to its will. The plate skyrocketed into the air, at a speed that didn't seem possible. It almost slammed into the ceiling, but stopped right before it did so. It hovered there, perfectly steady. After a second, Ben attempted to make it spin. It did. Like a top. Faster and faster, the plate spun, several feet above all of their heads—
"Ben!" Luke ran towards him, panic etched into his features. "What are you doing?"
Startled, Ben lost focus. The plate plummeted, smashing on the wooden floor. It shattered into what seemed like millions of people. Tears sprung to his eyes. No! He had had it! It was perfect until Luke had gone and scared him! He looked up, not sure whether to be confused or angry. His face was hot. He could feel the eyes of the other Padawans. He had to bite his tongue to keep from yelling at them to mind their own business.
"Why did you do that?" he asked quietly, not trusting himself to speak any louder than a whisper.
"Ben, what you were doing was not... I don't even know how you did that in here! This temple was supposed to prevent the dark side from entering it!"
Gasps rang out throughout the room, one of them belonging to Ben. The dark side. He had used the dark side. Again. He really was a bad person. The tears in his eyes ran down his cheeks now. He couldn't keep them back.
"Ben was using the dark side?" Mariana asked fearfully. "Isn't... isn't that evil?"
He had thought they were friends. Now even the people had been nice to him would jump ship and run to Coulter. He knew he was going to be out outcast at this awful place! Why had he ever come here? He couldn't even look up, he was so ashamed of himself. His dad was right. He never should've tried this Force thing. What if it ruined him? He was already contacting the dark side where it shouldn't have been possible. What was wrong with him?
"Ben is not evil," Luke said firmly, his tone stern. "He didn't know. It's the first day, mistakes are going to be made. All Jedi touch the dark side at some point. Of course it is to be avoided, but it's normal. You have to understand, this is... is..." he floundered momentarily before regaining his ability to think, "is a learning opportunity."
Ben knew he was only saying that so the other kids would be nice about it. He appreciated the effort, but it only served to make him feel worse. This wasn't normal, no matter what Luke said. The dark side wasn't just another oopsy. It was a big deal. It was the whole reason he was here. And it sounded like it would be the whole reason he left.
"I don't understand."
Of course it was Coulter who spoke. Ben's rage flared up. He didn't want to hear the jerk's two cents. He was probably just going to shoot a mocking comment Ben's way anyways.
"Master Skywalker, Ben was doing so well. His plate was soaring. Why is that bad?"
Ben's jaw dropped. It wasn't an insult? He turned to gape at Coulter. The boy's face was earnest. Why the heck would he stand up for Ben? He had made it clear he didn't like him. That had been more than obvious. Was this a truce? Or was he actually just confused?
"Ben was using the Force very well, but he was using the wrong side of the Force," Luke explained. "I told you all to draw from your inner peace and serenity. But Ben allowed himself to pull from anger and frustration. It seems harmless, and it does appear to be more effective. Fact is, it's easier to use. It's easier to harness negative emotions. This can be tempting, but it's dangerous."
"Why?" the little, pale brunette asked, sounding troubled.
"Honestly, it's hard to explain, Olive, when it sounds so harmless. When you use the dark side of the Force, at first, it makes you feel powerful. You feel like you are the master of everything, and that nothing can stop you. With darkness as your guide, you use the Force as a slave. But it's not long before you become the slave to darkness. You do horrible, awful things that you would never have done. You become a whole different person, living entirely on rage and hatred. In time, those emotions become all you have left."
The children fell quiet. They all say in silence for a good couple of minutes. Finally, Coulter spoke again, his voice soft. "Can we be done with Force training for today, Master Skywalker?"
Luke didn't really hesitate, he just nodded. "I think that would be best," he agreed. "Head outside. I think we'll skip lightsaber training today. Maybe we'll just spend the rest of the day studying meditation. Yeah. It's a lot easier to get in touch with your inner peace that way."
Everybody headed outside, but Coulter hung back. Ben tried to speed up, as to get past him before he could say anything, but it didn't work. His peer grabbed his arm. "Hey, Ben," he begun. "Look."
"Coulter, I really don't—"
"I'm sorry."
He blinked. "What?"
"I shouldn't have said the things I said about you and your family. Even if you did use the dark side, you were a lot better at using the Force than I was. I couldn't move the plate at all. Mariana and Indigo were right. I was jealous." He stuck out his hand. "Can we just start over?"
Ben didn't know what to make of that. "Um..." he hesitated. As much as Coulter had upset him earlier, Jedi didn't hold grudges. Jedi were forgiving. The dark side sought revenge. The Jedi sought redemption. So he forced a smile and shook the boy's hand. "Yeah. Sure."
Coulter beamed. His face looking a hundred percent less guilt-ridden, he practically skipped out of the door. As Ben followed him out the door, a crazy thought occurred to him, but he quickly dismissed it. After all, it was just superstitious. But despite his dismissal of it, the thought remained in his skull:
Had Coulter's change of heart come because he had felt that he had been one of the reasons Ben had touched the dark side?
And if so, then had Luke felt it too?
He swallowed, racked by the anxiety of someone that knew that their thoughts could be listened in on at any time.
This was going to be a long couple of months.
A/N: I know this one was really, really long, but I felt that it needed to be. In order to get across everything that I was trying to get across, it just had to be long. But I'm really interested in what you guys think about it, and about this story in general. Particularly the characterization of Ben. If you could leave me a review, I promise you it would make my day! And for those of you wondering when Ben is going to become Kylo Ren, I can promise you that it's coming. That's the whole point of this story after all, so I believe that we'll see more and more Kylo and less and less Ben in upcoming chapters.
Thanks for reading!