"Sir." When Ashoka and Rex took Luke and Leia through the Resolute's corridors, other clone soldiers saluted them. Leia had envisioned that the inside of Republic ships and Empire vessels would be distinct from one another. When she looked at the similar boring gray and white lighted surfaces, she was dismayed. Her boots' contact with the ground reminded her of the Death Star. She was immediately brought back to that awful place by everything about this ship.

"No one is coming to save you Princess. It is useless to resist!" When Vader had taken her at the age of 19, he almost broke her spirit. During her time with him, her innocent dreams and hopes for the future of both herself and the galaxy were wrecked. She had felt sorry for Luke in his own moments of dashed hope because of this. The same dreams of a better future lay within his own heart as well. But, even after Ben's passing and during his time in Bespin, he managed to hang on to just enough of that same hope to maintain some of those same aspirations. He had her envious of this.

Although he had changed and was obviously not the same boy from Tatooine, occasional flashes of him seemed to still exist. She couldn't imagine how he had managed to hold onto that little piece of himself. They had divergent opinions of their father as a result of this difference between them. They had just recently had a talk that was cut short when Leia shut their conversation down, making her feelings clear.

"Luke, he put prestige and power before of us. He tolerated that for a long time. So yes, I'm okay with not saying a blasted word to that man!" He had pleaded with her to talk to their father, but she had stormed off, returning to her hut on Endor. Of course, she had her own explanations for this rejection. Given their current whereabouts, it was just a matter of time before they brought up the subject once more. She would rather not even talk to Anakin for the duration of their stay, if she could help it.

"The medical staff will transport you elsewhere. General Skywalker will send Ashoka back here to gather you for training after you've had a chance to recover." Rex rested his blue-designed helmet against his hip.

Luke asked cautiously, "Training?"

"You call yourselves Jedi. My master wants to see it for himself so he'll have something to report to the council once we arrive there." Ashoka explained.

"Be ready by 0600." Rex nodded at them before he and Ashoka walked away.

"Thank you." Luke gave a nod to clone who set their trays of food on the small table between their medical beds.

"Certainly, sir. Goodnight." The lights in the room dimmed slightly once the clone had left.

"Here I'll fix it." When she spoke, Leia threw her feet over the edge of the bed. As Luke sat up, his bacta patch came off his injured temple. He moved his arm away from the floor and back to the tray of food that was already in his lap.

"It's probably time for a new one now anyway," He yawned as his exhaustion and medications started to take effect.

"Hold still." She sprayed the liquid mist while putting her hand on the side of his face. Luke hissed with pain. "Just checking to see if you're awake." She grinned a little and immediately dressed the wound with the bandage, numbing the stinging discomfort.

"Thanks." He grinned before cutting into his cusine. "Wow.." The first initial bite surprised him.

"What's wrong?" She asked concerned, setting her own tray in front of her.

"It's- spicy." He is eyes and nose began to run as he coughed enough to stir up a Tatooine sandstorm.

"It's Melahnese, Luke. They used to serve it on the Death Star. It's not that bad." She switched their trays while rolling her eyes.

"Those poor storm troopers." He nearly drank his entire glass of milk before his coughing spell ended.

"Just quit whining and eat" She teased, dipping the food into the green fire sauce.

"Not all of us can have elite spice tolerance and the bowels of a Sarlac." He shot back, cutting into the fresh bantha steak.

"Well you then you shouldn't have ordered it."

"It's almost as if I didn't know."

"Haha." She said sarcastically.

"Can't have my bowels moving like that during our sparring session with father tomorrow." He sampled some of the side vegetables.

Father. It was already apparent. She didn't even need to listen anymore to understand where this was going. She exhaled a dreadful, long mental sigh. "He better hope he's as gifted with that saber as everyone claims he is because it would be unfortunate if the "hero with no fear" suffered a fatal injury during a training skirmish." She groaned.

"You don't mean that." He shook his head with a frown, knowing she simply didn't want anything to do with their father.

Leia began tightly, "Blast it Luke, Vader-" before he cut her off.

"Doesn't exist yet." He completed for her. "That man out there is Anakin Skywalker, our father. I'm not expecting you to adore him; all I'm asking is that you offer him a chance. This man is still good, and perhaps with us here we might have some influence on him that would prevent him from making the mistakes his alternate copy did. Please, Leia?" Luke's imploring stare matched her irritated one, and for a long time there was stillness.

She despised it when he did this. Something in her always gave whenever he delivered her that stupid, pitiful look. She grumbled, "Fine," as she finished her meal. "But you're not allowed to tell him."

"Tell what?"

"He must remain oblivious of our relation to him. At least for now." She fixed a steely glance on him.

"Deal." He held his tongue and skipped through all the hypothetical scenarios. When he first saw the man, he was so tempted to tell him they were related, but his internal tension and dread prevented him. He feared Anakin and was astounded by him at the same time, and he only hoped that his boyhood hero would live up to everyone's expectations of him.

The doctors were leaving their room when they woke up the following morning. A plate of breakfast foods and Jedi robes for each of them were waiting on the table. Luke couldn't help but smile as he anticipated what the day would bring.

"I hope your stay last night was somewhat comfortable and refreshing. There isn't exactly a lot of that during a war on a battle ship." Ashoka led the way to the ship's training center.

"Compared to being a prisoner in a Death Watch camp, it was definitely an improvement." Leia nodded while fixing her new white robes and brown belt.

"So what sorts of training did General Skywalker have in mind?" Luke questioned. Leia could feel his sense of worry starting to rise.

"Oh you'll see." She smiled slyly, which only added to his mounting anxiousness. "Good morning, Skyguy!" His padawan greeted him, opening and shutting the doors to the training room.

"Good morning, everyone." The moment Anakin opened his eyes, he stood up. Luke guessed they had stumbled upon his father as he was doing morning meditation. "So, who wishes to go first?" He asked, looking between Luke and Leia.

"I will." Luke volunteered himself as he had planned. His new dark brown and tan robes, which he had assumed to be an unused pair of Anakin's, were unclipped from his saber's hilt.

"Rex, Obi-Wan." The two men across the room in the observation booth came down on the training floor in response.

"Good luck." Obi-Wan smiled warmly and handed Luke a helmet with it's shield down, reminding him of his first training session they had aboard the Falcon.

"Don't worry, my men have their blasters set to stun, so if they make contact, you won't be out for very long." Anakin gave him a shoulder pat. "Are your soldiers prepared, Rex?"

"They've been looking forward to this, sir." While his soldiers entered the space and took up positions all around the blinded foreigner, Rex cracked a grin

Luke inhaled deeply and tightened his grasp on his saber before lighting the sharp, emerald-green blade. He quickly performed a Jedi breathing exercise to center himself.

"Begin." Anakin said over the innercom. Everyone besides Luke and the troopers watched the performance from within the overlooking booth.

At first none of the troops opened fire. Luke mentally combed the space in search of every life source there. He could feel the soldiers surrounding him in an almost perfect circle. He sensed some of the younger soldiers among them seeming apprehensive to him, clutching their blasters firmly. The first warrior broke the tension a few seconds later, firing his opening shot, which Luke easily deflected. After a brief pause, all of the remaining troops fired their blasters simultaneously.

Leia observed his blade transform into a series of swift green motion blurs. "You've got it." She quietly rooted for him.

"The boy is quite something." Obi-Wan placed a hand under his beard, seeing the young Jedi flip through the air multiple times.

"But who could have taught him?"

"Hard to say. His style doesn't exactly correspond to one specific master." They observed Luke deflect the bolts with astonishing accuracy at targets placed around the room.

"Rex, tell the men to stand down. Ashoka come with me." Anakin ordered.

When the firing ceased, Luke remained in a guarded position. "Is it over?" He questioned, his eyes still shielded.

"Almost. You can take the helmet off now." He heard his father's collected voice. "Let's see your skills in one on one combat." Before starting his clean blue blade, Anakin waited for the soldiers and Ashoka to huddle on the sidelines. Seeing his father's saber for the first time since Bespin brought him shame, as he remembered how much he cherished the weapon before losing it to the pits of Cloud City. The two circled in a stand off, Luke having his blade in a defensive position while Anakin rested his by his side, stalking the boy. "Your tense." Anakin saw his posture and the firm hold he had on his saber. "Relax."

Luke, who was still trying to process the reality that he was facing Anakin Skywalker, had not even noticed. "You're unwise to lower your defenses!" He remembered Vader mocking him right before almost cutting him in two.

"Come on, kid. Fight me!" Anakin urged him. When Luke tried to strike at the man in front of him, he hesitated, finding himself unable to do so. He was jerked out of his reverie as he defended against Anakin's attack. "Finally, just making sure your still with me." His father could feel the power in Luke's push against him. "Your lucky I'm not your enemy. In their eyes if you will not fight, then they will ensure you meet your destiny." Anakin pushed Luke back, breaking the blades' encounter.

Luke struck back with a strong blow, but Anakin stopped it, allowing Luke to almost knock him to the ground with a quick kick to the knee. The two traded attacks back and forth, mirroring each other's blocks and assaults. Everyone watching observed the perfect flow of exchanges, realizing one might suspect it was rehearsed. Anakin executed his hallmark move, swinging his blade behind his back while spinning and leaping forwards.

"Show off." Ashoka shook her head as she watched from the sidelines with the other clones. She hoped that maybe she would be able to join in on the fun soon.

The sword was inches from Luke's face, which was a little closer than he was comfortable with. Luke struggled to fend off the attack. He attempted to disarm his father by grabbing the hand that was holding his blue blade with his false one. Anakin felt his firm hold and realized that he, too, had likely lost his hand in combat. He answered with his own robotic arm performing the same action. The pair forced each other to submission and dropped their weapons simultaneously. Luke used the force to direct the nearest weapon to his hand, which happened to be his father's.

"You have small hands." Anakin teased, picking up Luke's weapon.

"And you have the hands of a wampa." Luke swung at Anakin, feeling the weapon in his grasp once again. Getting tired of going back and forth, Anakin nodded at Ashoka who was eager to join the fight.

Luke took a step back as Ashoka ignited both of her weapons next to Anakin.

"Oh, come on, that's not fair." Luke grinned. For a time, he was able to fend off the pair, giving them a run for their credits. Before locking up with Ashoka, he shoved Anakin across the room using force.

"You've certainly made quite the debut, Luke." She held her two sabers against his one. "But I can tell you're not used to fighting more than one force user."

"Luke!" Despite knowing that only Obi-Wan and Rex could hear her, Leia yelled from the booth. She watched Ashoka fire two stun blasts at his body from her wrist. Luke immediately threw her into the wall more forcefully than he had planned, sending him toppling before he was able to catch himself. It was a long enough gap for Anakin to send his weapon whirling through the air, blasting Luke's out of his grasp as he regained his footing.

"It's okay, Leia. He will be fine." Obi-Wan tried to assure her but in his own mind he knew how unpredictable Anakin could be at times.

Luke quickly summoned Ashoka's sabers to his aid as Anakin charged at him with his green blade. His inexperience with duel swords lost him the battle. Ashoka received a glance from Anakin urging her to back off. She could tell from his expression that this was going to end soon.

He kicked the weapons out of Luke's hands the moment they touched. Luke aimed for a kick on the inner of Anakin's knee with nothing but his skills remaining. When he felt his father's hand had gripped hard on the neck of his robes, nearly choking him, he failed miserably. Anakin lowered the young man, suspending him just above the ground with his hold. Luke felt the bend in his knees as he realized the only thing stopping his back from touching the grey floor was his father's grip and his own feet.

"It appears your are beaten." Anakin smirked triumphantly as he lowered Luke's saber to his face.

"I gathered that." Luke clenched his teeth, blood rushing to his head. He could feel one of the sparks of his saber crackle next to his ear.

Anakin thumbed the button on Luke's sword, the emerald green light vanishing back into the hilt. He brought Luke back up on his feet and handed him his weapon before calling his own back to his belt. Ashoka followed suite, returning hers back to her hip.

"Your turn." Luke winced as Leia came down to meet him. He wiped the sweat from his brow. He could feel his heart pounding in his head as he tried to steady his heavy breathing.

"Your still learning?" Anakin asked Leia, trying to judge how much of a challenge he should give her. His towering presence made her uneasy.

"Yes. I don't think I could do nearly as much as he did. I don't even have my own lightsaber yet." Leia patted Luke's shoulder and handed him a water canteen.

"Then you'll only be tasked to drill with my men. If the council will allow you to remain with us for a while then maybe we might be able to help you progress." He handed her the visored helmet. "Ashoka, do you mind?" He asked nodding towards one of her sabers."

"Not at all." The padawan kindly handed her weapon over to Leia.

She nodded towards the young togruta before continuing. "I can't imagine they take well to strangers. Especially inexperienced force users at such an age."

"When I first arrived I thought the same, being a stranger to the council and older than what they prefer. But it wasn't like that at all. I managed to find great friends, even the chancellor himself." Leia mentally sneered at the mention of Palpatine. She wondered how in the world the public never saw through him, what a monster he really was. "Perhaps you will too." Anakin smiled thinking of the older father figure and how he really was the only being he could truly be vulnerable with about the Jedi and his feelings. "But I digress. Good luck." He smiled before the only people on the floor were her and the clones.

She centered herself, using the same breathing techniques as Luke.

"Begin."

Only two troops fired immediately this time. Leia naturally blocked them. She was astounded by how long she was able to remain in the circle of clones. The intensity only increased. For a long time, Ashoka's green sword was flying in all directions. Leia's training had only gotten her so far, though, when one of the stun blasts hit her in the back. She felt weightless as she sensed herself plummeting. The last thing she remembered before falling unconscious was hearing Ashoka's sword striking the ground and felt her own head do the same.

Her head was pounding. The voice that called for her boomed a thousand times louder than what it actually was.

"Hey." She heard a gentle voice.

Luke helped her sit up from the grey training floor. "That empty skull of yours sounded pretty hollow when you hit the ground. Sounded like it hurt." He joked. "You alright."

She winced, feeling the pain in her head as she moved. "Yea, just a headache is all." She responded as he helped her to her feet. Luckily the helmet she wore absorbed some of the pain. But even with something to protect her head the impact still hurt nonetheless.

"You did good, kid. Don't get down on yourself." Rex saw Leia's defeated expression, probably realizing she had recalled what put her on the floor in the first place.

"But if I knew more I know that wouldn't have happened!" She grew frustrated with herself.

"Your just starting out, Leia. With patience I'm sure you will become a great Jedi." Obi-Wan encouraged, as he and Anakin approached the group.

"Why don't you two hit the refresher. One of the clones should bring you breakfast shortly." Anakin suggested to the twins who nodded and walked off. He could hear Luke talk to his sister as they walked towards their quarters.

"Don't be so hard on yourself Leia..." He had heard him say before turning his attention back to his friends.

"Ashoka, Rex." Anakin said, his eyes still following the twins. "Send a message to the Council and inform them of our new friends. Tell them to be expecting us soon." His brow furrowed watching Luke and Leia slip out of the doors of the training center.

"Yes master." Ashoka said before her and Rex departed.

"The council is going to fear him for his skills. I've not seen someone so gifted in the force, since you." Obi-wan put his hand back under his beard. "Leia has the potential to be every bit the same. I can feel their strength."

"It's almost overwhelming. Theres something about Luke."

"What?" Obi-wan asked as his former student paused.

"I don't know. But it makes me uneasy."

"I sense nothing wrong with them. Luke seems to have the bigger heart between the two of them, the way he cares for her."

"Maybe. Perhaps it's just the war getting to me." Anakin sighed. He hadn't been able to sleep in a few days, with their dealings on Ryloth keeping him up. He shoved the thought aside. He had only just met the pair, it wasn't fair to Luke for him to immidiatly declare him a threat.

Luke was in awe at the sight of Coruscant from space. He had always seen pictures of the thriving planet but had never had the pleasure to actually step foot on it's surface. The globe glowed with light, each one he imagined to be a single person. The teeming civilization was even more stunning and beautiful up close as they got off the Resolute and into a taxi. Each building seemed to scrape the night skys. He looked down over the edge of the taxi and saw a never ending pit of buildings and speeders. If there was a bottom to the buildings he was sure they were hundreds of feet down. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, taking in his surroundings. He felt all the vehicles around them, each engine's vibration and the many life vessels that drove them. From many people he had spoke with in the Rebellion, he had heard the planet was gross and too crowded. As a farm boy from a back water planet, this had to be one of the most beautiful planets he had ever had the luxery of visiting.

"I will warn you before we get inside. Master Windu will not take to either of you at first. He didn't take to me when I first arrived, he still hasn't. Don't let him shake you, he doesn't like anybody." Anakin chuckled as they exited the taxi and began walking the steps of the temple.

The Great Jedi Temple. They had only heard about it. Unfortunatly after the Jedi purge, the Empire took over the temple, designing it to be their own. They had erased all the public archives of anything about the Jedi other than the fact that they were traitors of the Republic. That had included what the temple had looked like before it was taken over. Luke and Leia were stunned at the massive sight before them. The towering, golden statues on their left and right seemed small in comparison to the mammoth that was the temple.

It felt odd to walk the halls of the temple. Leia had only been once or twice with Bail and Breha for certain occassions. She wasn't used to seeing colors besides the grey, black, and white. It was nice to see the mass of stormtroopers replaced by Jedi even if most of them were younglings. Most of the masters, she figured must be off on their own missions all across the galaxy leading their troops into battle.

He could feel his heart nearly beat out of his chest when the door slid open to reveal the great and mighty Jedi Council. The twins and their three Jedi friends paused at the center of the room. Obi-wan kept walking, taking his seat upon the council. Luke was awestruck realizing the greatest and most powerful Jedi from all across the galaxy were seated right in front of him.

"Expecting you, we have." Luke heard a familiar voice, nearly sending tears to his eyes.

Master!