Chapter Six—Part 1

Between the dark and the daylight,

When the night is beginning to lower,

Comes a pause in the day's occupations,

That is known as the Children's Hour.

Do you think, O blue-eyed banditti,

Because you have scaled the wall,

Such an old mustache as I am

Is not a match for you all!

I have you fast in my fortress,

And will not let you depart,

But put you down into the dungeon

In the round-tower of my heart.

And there will I keep you forever,

Yes, forever and a day,

Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,

And moulder in dust away!

The Children's Hour (stanzas 1, 8, 9 & 10) by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

"How was your day?" Obi-Wan asks as Luke hastens out of his good school tunic and into an old one used for work and play.

"Alright, I guess."

"You guess? You mean you don't know?" he teases.

The boy gives him an unamused look.

"It was the same as always. Camie did better than me on the Basic quiz but I beat her on the math one. I have to beat her on the Galactic History test tomorrow or else she'll win this week."

Obi-Wan is aware of the ongoing rivalry between Luke and Camie to be the best student in the class, something their teacher has encouraged throughout the year.

"School isn't a competition you know," he says wryly.

Luke gives him another look that says he clearly does not understand.

"I played ball with Deacon and Windy at break." Luke scowls. "I wish they weren't so slow, it'd be more fun."

"You wish you could show them the full extent of your abilities," Obi-Wan says evenly.

The boy looks guilty and squirms awkwardly for a moment before responding.

"Yeah, sometimes. But especially when Laze comes around to bother us like he did today." The boy scowls again.

"What did you do?"

"We ignored him or we tried to and I told him to go away... I wish Biggs was there, Laze doesn't mess with us when he's around."

"Where was he?"

"With Janek some other friends from his class. He doesn't like to play with me when I'm at school anymore." Now Luke looked sad and lost.

Obi-Wan sighs to himself. He has been expecting this would happen for some time now. Biggs is Luke's best friend but is three years older than him. This hadn't made a difference when they were younger but Biggs is now eleven and it appears that he does not want to be seen being friends with an eight year old, even one as perceptive and precocious as Luke.

It could not have come at a worse time too. It has been less than a month since Coolie Whitesun destroyed the hydroponic station but the boy still has nightmares. At least twice a week Obi-Wan wakes in the night to find Luke climbing into his bed seeking comfort. He had not known what he should do about this so he spoke to Mrs. Marstrap who told him not to send the boy back to his own bed and that Luke would stop when he was ready.

"I like Windy and Deacon but they're not as fun as Biggs," Luke continues. "And they're afraid of Laze. I can't stand him! He's so mean …" Luke trails off.

Through their bond Obi-Wan can sense a swirl of emotion: anger, frustration and, strangely, fear.

"Dad?" Luke says tentatively. "Have you ever made someone do something?

"What do you mean, youngling?"

"I… when Laze was bothering us I really wanted him to go away," Luke is staring at the floor, guilt and fear radiating off him in the Force.

"That is understandable," Obi-Wan prompts, wondering at the boy's reaction.

"So I told him to leave us alone and Laze said he would leave us alone but his voice was all weird when he said it and I think I made him do it, but I didn't mean to!" Luke glances up looking stricken.

"Did you use the Force when you were talking to him?"

"I… I think so, but I didn't use it, I just told him to go away."

"It is possible to use the Force to…. compel people to do things," Obi-Wan says carefully.

He probably should have seen this coming. Luke is disturbingly advanced in his Force manipulation skills and has been since he was an infant. He has always been very careful not to reveal this to the boy, knowing that it is burden enough to be the only one of his peers that is Force sensitive. But Luke's abilities continue to surprise him, he did not think the boy would be capable of mind tricks for at least two more years. How does one explain the ethical ramifications of using such tricks to an eight year old?

"So I did make him go away," Luke says in a low voice.

"Let's go sit down and talk about this," Obi-Wan suggests.

Luke nods and they walk into the kitchen, Obi-wan talking the chair nearest the door. The boy remains standing, still looking troubled.

"Dad? Does what I did… does what I did make me a bad person?"

Obi-Wan pulls the boy into his lap and hugs him. It has been several years since he has done this. Not since Luke declared himself too old for such things. But the boy does not protest this time. Squeezing his son tighter, Obi-Wan thinks sometimes youngling, I wish I could protect you from yourself.