Caleb Dume was overwhelmed by stress.

He sat in a dark, tight corner, crying from his overflowing stress. None of the other younglings in his clan knew he was there. They were all happily enjoying a period of free time to do as they pleased.

It didn't please Caleb to do this. He was quite miserable, he just wanted it to stop. If a genie (like one that could grant wishes in the stories he'd heard) popped before him and provided him with a single wish, Caleb would've wished for his stress to dissipate and never return.

But, of course, genies only existed in fantasy stories.

The rivers of tears streamed down more rapidly by the second. They dripped off his jawline and gathered in puddles, absorbed by his robes.

"Um… excuse me?" a small, high-pitched voice asked.

Caleb's breath hitched. His head snapped up and he stared at the Togruta girl that stood next to him.

"What's wrong?" she tilted her head, her blue, innocent eyes boring into him.

"N-nothing," Caleb stammered.

"Liar," Togruta elbowed him. "Tell me the truth."

"I-I'm okay. I don't w-want to t-take up your time," Caleb scooted further back into the dark corner.

Togruta only climbed in next to him, making herself comfortable in the space he freed up.

"I'm not in a hurry," Togruta shrugged.

Caleb remained silent. For a long moment, he just stared at her, observing her features as well as he could in the darkness.

Caleb could've sworn he'd seen her before. Maybe during a lesson… there weren't a lot of Togrutas in the Jedi Temple, so it wouldn't be so unlikely.

"I'm Ahsoka Tano," Togruta said without looking at him.

Oh, Ahsoka! Yes, he knew about her. She was the one who held her lightsaber backward. How come he hadn't recognized her? Well, she was about as tall as him. Caleb thought she would've been taller.

He remembered her from a sparring lesson his clan had with an older clan. Ahsoka was only about three years older than him, but she was in a more advanced clan. The other masters told him it was because Ahsoka was extra talented.

"You're Caleb Dume, right?" Ahsoka kept looking at the wall in front of her.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Caleb asked.

"I saw you at one of the lessons…" Ahsoka began.

Was this true? Ahsoka remembered him from one of the lessons? Nerdy ol' Caleb? Ahsoka was admired amongst those in his clan, especially the girls who wanted to be just like her. And admirable Ahsoka remembered him out of all the younglings?

"...you were the one who kept asking all those questions during the lecture," Ahsoka finished.

Of course. Caleb was infamous for asking "too many" questions. Caleb sulked. Admirable Ahsoka thought he was nerdy, just like the rest of them did.

"I thought they were good questions. I wanted to know some of them myself," Ahsoka continued.

Caleb gaped at her. Admirable Ahsoka didn't think he was a nerd? Okay, maybe that was going a little far, but when she looked at him, he could detect no disgust in her eyes. She didn't hate him!

"Of course I don't hate you; it's not the Jedi Way. And stop calling me that," Ahsoka scowled at him.

"W-what? How did you…"

Ahsoka laughed. "You're thinking so loud that it's making my montrals ache."

Caleb felt his face redden as he raised his mental shields. He really needed to work on not letting them drop when he was stressed.

"The stress…" Ahsoka said softly, bringing her knees closer to her chest and looking at the wall ahead. "...it's nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone feels stress and most people feel it quite often. I know I do."

What? Admirable Ahsoka got stressed out? Caleb wondered if she had any advice and considered asking her, but he stayed silent. He mentally kicked himself for being bashful.

"Do you have any… advice?" Caleb finally forced himself to say shyly.

"Depends," Ahsoka looked ahead.

Caleb stayed silent, not brave enough to request for her to continue.

"Sometimes I meditate. Sometimes I train. Sometimes I read. I just look for a distraction or something that will brighten my mood," Ahsoka continued without Caleb having to prompt her. "I think you should try meditating."

"That's what all the masters say," Caleb grumbled. "They're no help."

"Don't do it like they say to do it," Ahsoka told him. "They say there's only the Force and they think that the Force can solve everything. Sometimes I wonder if they forgot about the time when they were younglings…." Ahsoka trailed off, seeming to lose herself in her thoughts.

"So…" Caleb mused, "what does that say about all the experienced masters…?"

"That we all get old and un-creative and lose our problem-solving skills?" Ahsoka laughed. Caleb laughed with her.

"Anyways," Ahsoka calmed down, "when you meditate, you use the Force, but you search the source of your stress. You have to use your mind and think hard about how you can solve it, or just think it through clearly and organize it. If you can sort out everything, usually it makes everything more simplistic and calm in your mind."

"Whoah," Caleb stared at Ahsoka with wide eyes. "You're so smart. I don't even know what sim-sim-simpertic means."

Ahsoka giggled. "Simplistic. It means simple."

"Well it's not a simple word for simple," Caleb said. He glanced at Ahsoka out of the corner of his eye. She really sounded so much older than three years his senior.

"You should try it," Ahsoka tilted her head to him.

"Meditating?"

She nodded.

"Now?"

Another nod. "Are you comfortable?"

"Yeah," said Caleb, shutting his eyes. They almost flew open again when he realized that he already felt better. Just talking with Ahsoka made him brighten up. But he still had some sorting to do.

Caleb focused on the Force. He calmed his breathing and began to approach his stress. He almost drew back and gave up, but the calming presence of Admirable Ahsoka beside him prompted him on.

Gathering all his bravery, Caleb dug deep into the sources of his stress. For a while, he thought it would drown him. Then he began getting somewhere. He broke through and from there, he sorted things out swiftly.

Caleb opened his eyes slowly, feeling strong and fresh. He looked to the side of him. Ahsoka still sat there. Her eyes were closed, and for an instant, Caleb wondered if she'd fallen asleep.

"Did it work?" Ahsoka asked, alarming Caleb.

"Yeah, it did," Caleb smiled at her opening blue eyes.

Ahsoka smiled back. "I sense the calmness in you."

"How long did it take?" Caleb asked.

"Around two hours."

"Two hours?!"

"Yeah," Ahsoka shrugged. "The first time always takes the longest. But don't worry, if you practice, it'll become easier and quicker."

"How do you know this stuff?" Caleb asked. "It's really cool."

"I dunno. I guess I just like trying new things," Ahsoka stood stiffly and stretched a little, offering a hand to Caleb. "Come on, let's go find the others."

Caleb took her hand and allowed her to help him out of the cramped space. He smiled over at her. "Thanks, Ahsoka."

Ahsoka matched his smile, her bright blue eyes gleaming. "You're welcome, Caleb."