Chapter 29 - Teaching the Basics
Okay, Luke, Leia." Anakin turned around to address them both before they started. "You remember what the number one rule is?"
"Don't tell Mommy." Leia replied with a little bit of attitude, while Luke nodded in agreement.
"Well actually, the number one rule is you are only allowed to do this when I'm there with you, and when you're being careful. But yes, it's probably best. Don't tell your mother. Alright, who wants to go first?"
Luke's hand shot up rapidly. Leia merely sat there, giving her mother's disapproving frown.
"How 'bout Ladies first, kido," Anakin suggested.
Luke frowned, but Anakin thought he saw Leia smile a little bit.
"Okay, come up here." Anakin helped situate his daughter in the front of the speeder while he sat beside her. They were in a quiet, empty corner of the desert, where it would be safe to give his kids a brief lesson. There was nothing around to crash into and he'd be there the whole time. Sure they were only eight, but then Anakin remembered being a lot younger when he had first started to learn. And it's not like this was a podrace. His wife was clearly overreacting.
Mara danced excitedly as her handmaidens rushed to finish dressing the six year old princess. Every time she bounced, her hair came out of it's buns, and the women cringed behind her.
"Mara, there you are. You're looking beautiful." Viceroy Bail entered the chamber and admired his daughter's dress. It was an expensive piece. Especially considering all the extra tariffs the empire had been placing recently. But Bail would spare nothing for his princess. "Your mommy is excited to see you too. Are you ready for your first day in the royal court."
The little girl was so excited all she could do was squeal in delight.
"Now, after the presentation, you can let your hair down. But for now, as hard as it is, we've gotta hold really still and let them finish tying it up. Alright, hold my hands."
Quickly, the women worked to finish their preparations. Then they backed away with a curtsy.
Bail brought Mara down to the royal court. "Stay here, darling, until they announce you." He then disappeared through a door and into the palace throne room.
Mara crept over and peered into the room. Today it was filled with diplomats who were helping her father's rebellion. All-eyes, he'd called them. Though there was nothing strange about their eyes that the girl could see. Most species had two of them. Now there was a Gran, who she could see shake hands with her father. He had three eyes. But it was still a far cry from saying he was all-eyes.
"Her Royal Highness, Queen Breha would like to present her daughter, Princess Mara Organa, heiress to the Royal Family of Alderaan." A loud voice announced for everyone to hear.
The room full of people all turned to face the door where Mara peered through. She gulped. In all her imaginings, she didn't once imagine there'd be so many people.
"Go ahead, little one," a friendly voice of one of the servants ushered her forward.
With a few hesitating steps, Mara started walking into the throne room. It all became a blur to the girl as she stopped and curtseyed in front of her mother's throne. Her mommy bent down to stroke her face as they both smiled.
"That's very good dear," Breha said.
Bail got up and walked with Mara to the antechamber and out of the throne room.
"But…" Mara turned to protest them leaving the room so soon.
"The rest will be all politics and stuffy grown up talk. You don't want to be there for that. Lessons will be so much more fun. Come Mara, let's go meet your tutor," said Bail.
Mara followed her father out, through the armory, and into another small chamber. The room had a few desks in it and a small bookshelf. Not as big as the ones in the royal library, but it had many colorful datacrons on it. There were also two people in the room, a woman and a girl.
"Go ahead, honey. Introduce yourself. I'm gonna talk to your teacher for a sec." Bail whispered.
Mara walked up to the girl with white hair. "Hi, are you Mara? I'm Winter. I hope we can be good friends. My mommy works for your daddy. She's Sheltay Retrac, head Political Aide and 'the reason I keep my sanity,' in your father's own words," said Winter, with quote gestures. "Today was your presentation in the royal court, wasn't it? Was the senator from Kinyen there today? I only ask because five out of seven times that he shows up to these things my mom is exhausted by the day's end. How old are you? I'm Eight. How did your hair get so red?"
A sharp look from her teacher caused Winter's long rambling to stop. "Proper decorum child. Let her answer one question at a time."
"Sorry," Winter apologized in a whisper.
"It's okay. Yes, I'm Mara. Uh, I'm Six years old, and today was my first day in the royal court. Um, I don't remember what else you were asking."
"Oh, sorry about that. I have an eidetic and echoic memory. That means I remember everything. If you tell me to forget something, I can't! The senator from Kinyen. Was he in the hall?"
"I don't know?"
"He'd be the Gran in a blue frock. Unless his laundry got delayed again, then he'd wear green." None of this was sparking any bells for Mara.
"There was a Gran. My daddy called him all-eyes. I don't remember what he was wearing though."
"Oh, all-eyes. He probably meant Allies. The Gran have been supplying food and other items to the Alliance. Though they insist on not participating in war efforts. Even after what the Empire did to Kinyen. What about your hair? How did it get so red?
"I don't know." Mara stroked her hair in embarrassment. Some of it was already falling out of the bun.
"It's nice. I like it," Winter said, and Mara smiled.
"Okay girls. I'm gonna have to go now. I'll see you when your lessons are over today," said Bail. Mara turned frightened eyes to him as he pulled himself from the room.
"Daddy," she called out, but her father did not turn around.
Behind her Winter touched her shoulder. "It's alright. He'll be back with my mommy when class is over. Our tutor is Mrs. Sabé. She used to work for the former Senator, Padme Amidala of Naboo."
"That's enough Winter," Mrs. Sabé said. "You can work on that worksheet while I start with Mara's first lesson."
"Ooh, Basic alphabet. That was a fun one," Winter said. Mrs. Sabé gave her another look. "I know. I'm sealing the hatch now."
After their very first flying lesson, Anakin brought the Twins home again.
"Hi honey, hi Mom." Anakin greeted his wife with a kiss to her lips and his mom with a kiss to her cheek.
"Hi Ani, did you get the blue milk?" Padme asked.
"Grandma, Grandma!" Luke and Leia both run inside and hug the woman.
"Kids, why don't you go show grandma your new speeder toys," Padme suggested.
Luke and Leia ran off and returned with a wearable suit with buttons and levers in front of them that looked like a real speeder's cockpit. "See grandma, this is speed and this stops," Luke explained.
"No Luke, this one is speed and this one stops it," Leia corrected her brother.
"Oh yeah, that's right. And this makes the horn go beep-beep!" Luke added.
"Wow, you'll be a pilot in no time." Shmi said.
"Ani made them those. He's been trying to persuade me to let them have flying lessons, and he built them as teaching aids. I told him they were way too young to fly for real, but they make good toys though."
"Ah yes, round here the kids do learn young though," Shmi said.
"Right, tell her mom. I was a lot younger when I started, and it all came naturally. Some of my students are in their thirties and have never flown anything. It takes them forever just to grasp the basics."
Yes, you were only a small boy when Watto had that boy teach you. I remember being scared out of my mind every day, listening for a crash outside the shop. But Watto wanted you to fly supplies for him. What choice did I have?"
"Mom," Anakin protested. Padme was looking triumphant. He sighed in defeat.
"Well I should be getting home now." Shmi got up.
"Please, Mom? Let me fly you," Anakin offered.
"Okay, I can't say no to a free ride," Shmi accepted.
"Can we come?" Luke threw off the toy contraption and followed his dad.
"Alright," Anakin said.
"Yay! Dad, since you'll be there, can I fly?" Luke looked up to his father with pleading eyes.
Every adult's eyes went big.
Leia rolled her eyes and whispered to her brother, "Lesson one!"
"That's why I'm asking. Daddy says as long as he's there." Luke whispered back a little too loudly.
Anakin looked sheepishly at his wife and she glared back at him.
Hello Everyone,
Lately it seems that this site has been having an issue with it's views counter. The general stats have been lower, and repeat views have completely disappeared. Others have noticed this glitch as well on the forums. I'd just like to encourage you to take the extra effort and leave reviews on whatever fanfiction you read this month. We writers really do appreciate the feedback.
Winter is another Legends character. She was eventually adopted by Bail Organa, after her mom died, and raised alongside Leia as her sister. And the thing about her memory is from canon too, though they called it holographic and audiographic memory. However when I googled those terms, holographic seemed to suggest some technological intervention, and for audiographic memory google suggested the 'real' terms for it. So I decided to use the eidetic and echoic terms to be more accurate.
And Winter's personality is a little different here than what is described in canon. But then she's eight. And she hasn't had many of the experiences that later affected her personality.
Sabé, Padme's old handmaiden, was their tutor in legends too. Though I couldn't find a second name for her and I cringed having the kids call her a first name. So I added the title Mrs.
In the next chapter, we will be jumping ahead one more year. The twins will be nine. I don't want to spoil anything, but I've been planning this part for a while now too. And we may have a dramatic ending leading to another exciting chapter, if it flows like I think it will.
