Luke was excited the next day when he found out he would spend the entire day with Leia, until they told him he would be taking lessons with her and her governess. As the party from Silver Streak strolled down the Synthstone corridors with the wide windows, the boy dragged his feet, moving as slowly as possible.

Anakin, whose legs were finally responding to his neural input properly, pivoted in the corridor, allowing Yoda and Obi-Wan to pass him. "Luke, I've asked you twice before to keep up with us. What is your problem?" 

He stopped, looking up at his tall father. "I don't want to have lessons with Leia."

"It's no different than if Piett or your mother were teaching you."

"Yes, it is." Luke hung his head so his father could not see the tears he was trying to hold back. "Leia makes fun of me. Calls me a nerfherder. And she already knows so much more than I do. I'm going to be lost before I even walk in the room."

Anakin knelt down beside his son, placing his arms on Luke's shoulders. "Hey, look at me. I wasn't the smartest Padawan at the Jedi Temple either. I was a slave when I went there. I knew how to fly and fix things, but not much else. And I'm going to tell you a secret. Can you keep it?"

Luke nodded his head after he wiped a tear with his sleeve.

"Girls who tease boys think that the boy is better than she is. She wants you to respect her, but she doesn't know how else to get your attention."

Luke snorted. "Not Leia. She just wants to control everything—including me."

Anakin grinned with a twinkle in his eye. She's definitely like Padmé. "You might be right, but you still can make it through one day with her. Tell you what, no matter what she says, don't react. Don't whimper, don't cry, don't get mad, just be at peace."

"Now you sound like Master Yoda." 

"Partially, but it will also drive her absolutely nuts if she can't get you to react." 

Luke giggled.

"After a while, she'll quit teasing you. Maybe then you two can help each other out. She's going to join you for your lessons with Master Yoda in the afternoon, too. I know she'll probably be scared at first."

Luke eyes widened. "She can use the Force?"

"Shh." Anakin held his finger to his lips. "She doesn't know it yet, and no one else around here is to find out."

"Got it, Daddy."

"Let's go find this princess of yours, then. We're late." Anakin rose to his full height. The two strode down the corridor, father and son side-by-side, Luke taking extra big steps to keep up with his father's long legs.

Anakin's strategy worked. It did not take too long until Leia was flabbergasted with Luke's lack of response, one way or the other.

When she would question him, he would respond, "It is the Jedi way." That response usually drew another response, leaving Leia just short of resorting to physical violence.

Luke smiled at her behind her back, chuckling. He could not wait to tell his dad how right he was about the little girl.

Leia outstripped Luke in politics, geography, history, and Basic language studies. However, she struggled in numbers and calculations. She could not even come up with the same answer twice, and most often both answers were incorrect.

Instead of boasting about his prowess in the subject, Luke felt led to help Leia instead. "Hey, you know all those facts about which ruler is from which planet what form of government they have. It's all memorization. Even math. You just don't know your facts. Why don't you go memorize your times tables for the threes. When you come back, I'll quiz you on them."

"No, thank you. I'd rather make a fool of myself on my own, thank you." Sarcasm masked her shame.

The governess, an elderly lady dressed in the blue livery of the House of Alderaan, intervened. "That's a very good idea, Your Highness."

"Well, I'll do it, but not with him."

Luke grinned. "What? You think you can't learn as well as me?"

"That's 'as I.'" Leia stuck her tongue out at him.

The governess corrected the young princess. "Your Highness, that was very rude. You owe your friend an apology for such unseemly behavior."

"He doesn't mind, do you, Luke?"

He shook his head with a slight grin on his face and his eyes narrowed, trying not to laugh at her. "Go memorize your facts, you weirdo."

"Not as weird as you." Leia hollered as she moved to the corner of the school room to work in peace and quiet.

The princess had a quick brain. With her reputation on the line, it did not take her very long at all to manage the 3's.

When she returned to the governess, though, she was shocked to be handed a datapad. "There is a review game for your 1's, 2's, and 3's times tables. Whoever finishes first will get this carved gundark for a prize. Ready, set, go." The governess removed a finely carved toy from her pocket.

Leia was just as quick as Luke in bringing up the game on the datapad, but Luke was quicker still in marking the correct answers as the questions appeared on the screen.

The boy took a moment to look over at the princess. She was biting a strand of her hair. When she got some wrong, she became increasingly frustrated. She caught him staring at her and glared back at him.

He averted his eyes back to his screen, continuing to answer his questions. He slowed down on purpose, glancing over occasionally at her. He could feel her anger building.

He took a cleansing breath as his father had taught him weeks ago when he was in the Bacta tank. He allowed the Force to pass through him in his peaceful mode and let it pass toward Leia. Luke felt her calming as her back relaxed and the tension between her eyes retreated.

Now he was on his last problem. He made a show of trying to figure it out, feeling through that other sense of his to know when Leia had finished.

Of course, she screamed in exultation. Using that other sense was not at all necessary. Luke beamed at her, happy that she was happy.

She jumped over to him and grabbed him in a hug. "I beat you. I beat you."

He held onto her, because it just felt right to hug her. He would fail every test if she would hug him like this every time.

While they were eating lunch in the schoolroom with the governess, Master Yoda appeared at the door. "Hmm, lunch? Any good, Young Skywalker?"

Luke smiled at the Jedi Master, making room at the table for him. "Yes, Master Yoda, very tasty. Try some."

Leia's wide eyes stared at Master Yoda. She thought she could identify any known life form in the galaxy with visual inspection only. She had seen him at dinner, but he was at the other end of the long table speaking with her parents last night. Up close, she could feel his wisdom emanating from him.

Master Yoda took a bite of the sandwich. "Mm. Very tasty indeed." He stood again, placing the rest of the sandwich on a plate. "Time to go. Next lesson waits."

"I have to change first. Mother doesn't let me do combat practice in dresses."

"Hmm, perhaps change you should not. One day you may be wearing a dress when your skills you need," Yoda said. "Dress is fine for what we're doing today. Come, come."

The Jedi Master hobbled from the room with his gimer stick.

He led the children to the landing bay where the Silver Streak was docked. He waddled onto the ship and proceeded to the cockpit. He sat on the floor as Luke and Leia both took a command seat. Master Yoda motioned with his stick, hitting it on the floor.

The children looked at each other and sat down quickly in front of the aged Jedi Master. 

"Leia, know you anything about the Force? The Jedi?"

Leia looked up, thinking. "The Jedi were the generals of the Clone War before the Galactic Empire. I've never heard of the Force before."

Yoda grunted at the Galactic Empire's revisionist history lessons. He waved his hand across the space. "The Force is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the galaxy together. Some can see it, touch it, use it. Close your eyes and empty your mind, Younglings . . ."

Outside the Silver Streak in the docking bay, Obi-Wan removed his cloak and stretched his back and legs while Anakin did the same.

Anakin said, "Take it easy on me at first. I haven't done this in a while."

"You haven't done this in a while? I positively creak every time I move, Anakin."

"Well, I just figured out how to walk again without tripping over my own feet."

"The truth is Master Yoda could finish us both off in less than a minute, and he's over 800 years old." Obi-Wan stretched his saber arm and rolled it in circles. "Let's just start with regular drills, nice and slow, building up in speed as we go. Soresu."

Anakin smiled back at his old master."Well, I'm certainly not going to try Ataru any time soon."

The two men stood side-by-side a few meters apart. Obi-Wan said, "Begin. 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8. Again."

After ten passes through the drills, Obi-Wan sped up the pace. After a quarter of an hour, both panted, and sweat streamed down their faces.

Anakin said, "I didn't realize how out of shape I was."

"Probably all that time at the med center. It'll come back." Obi-Wan straightened and moved in front of Anakin, facing him. "Sparring drills 1 and 2. Ready, set, go."

Anakin and Obi-Wan sparred for half an hour, pulling on the Force to strengthen them both. Soresu fighting focused on tight blade work and subtle dodges to facilitate defensive maneuvering. The form required the least amount of footwork, but it also built endurance the quickest.

While the Jedi sparred against each other, workers on the other ships in the landing bay stopped their duties to watch. Over eight years had passed since anyone on Alderaan had seen a Jedi in saber combat.

With an audience watching, Anakin could not resist stepping the drills up a notch. Obi-Wan compensated as well. Now they were both huffing and puffing, and it was all either could do to pull their blades to avoid striking the other.

During their sparring, Master Yoda brought the Younglings out to the ramp to watch the Jedi in their drills. 

"Wow! Look at that, Leia. My dad is amazing."

"Huh. They're both good. I think Master Kenobi will win, though." Her eyes took on a dreamy look. "I can't wait until I get my lightsaber. Then I'm going to take you out, Luke Skywalker, and show you what a woman can do."

 "Hmm. Build one you must. But not yet. Much to learn about the Force first." 

Leia sighed at Yoda's words. When the Jedi Master focused on the fighters, she caught Luke's eye. She winked at him and raised her hand in a mock saber battle.

Luke grinned but ignored her fake battle.

While the two old friends continued to spar, Master Yoda looked at the top of the yacht parked beside the Silver Streak. A creature dressed in grey moved across the fuselage, jumping like a Lothal wolf on the hunt. He carried two silver cylinders. They might have been lightsabers, but they were held in a reverse-hilt fashion. A metal mesh over a hard helmet masked the creature. 

Master Yoda pointed him out to the Younglings. Luke seemed worried until he felt the Jedi Master's peace.

All of a sudden, the creature pounced between the two men, bringing his white lightsabers up, deflecting both strikes. "I can't believe how slow you two have gotten. Time for some real sparring, I think." The creature struck quickly with her sabers. The voice was definitely female.

As the two attacked the intruder, the Younglings dropped their mouths in shock. The intruder, whatever she was, moved incredibly fast. Although, Luke could have sworn his father was not using his full arm power in his swings.

The intruder said, "Come on, Master, have you become weak as well as slow in your old age?"

Anakin advanced on the intruder. "Not so old that I can't best a disrespectful Togruta with a weak handgrip." He swung and disabled one of her blades, calling it to himself. He laughed at her. "Wanna try again, Snips?"

Snips lunged at Anakin, pushing him back against the Silver Streak's landing strut, while Obi-Wan sat back and watched. "The name's Fulcrum. And it's obvious only one of us has stayed in fighting trim, Skyguy."

"Whatever you say, Snips." Anakin grinned while Obi-Wan came up behind the cloaked Togruta. Kenobi grabbed her arms from behind as Anakin reached out with his right hand, yanking her remaining lightsaber from her hand.

After attaching it to his belt, Anakin grabbed the intruder by the legs while Obi-Wan grabbed her arms. They dragged her up the ramp of the Silver Streak, landing her on the floor of the royal cabin. Yoda pulled the Younglings with him as he closed the ramp.

When they reached the cabin, the intruder wiggled on the floor, trying to break free. "Let me go!"

Obi-Wan grinned at his wiggling friend. "Not until we confirm you really are our Little 'Soka." He laughed as he pulled her mesh hood and hard helmet off. "You see, this thing was blocking your peripheral vision, slowing you down."

As he tossed it onto the floor, the Togruta pounced on Anakin and wrestled with him, knocking a vase with crash. The rest of the occupants stayed out of the way.

But it was not until Padmé entered the cabin that the battle stopped. "What is going on in here?"

Anakin stopped immediately at his wife's voice. He lay across Ahsoka.

The Togruta looked up and said, "Hi, Padmé."

"Ahsoka? You're Fulcrum?"

The orange Togruta smiled at her friend. "Guess so. Just had to teach Skyguy a lesson—he's gotten pretty soft over the last few years."

Obi-Wan laughed at that.

Ahsoka threw a vase at Kenobi, who dodged it with ease. "I don't know what you're laughing about, Old Timer. I could hear your joints groaning every time I swung the saber at you."

Master Yoda held his hand up. "Enough, 'Soka. Younglings have we here. Good example must you be."

Anakin lifted himself off his former Padawan and offered a hand to lift her up. She stood with grace, barely touching him.

Padmé concealed a laugh. "Would anyone care for some tea?"

Master Yoda hobbled over to one of the seats in the sitting area. "Tea, good. Much to discuss have we. Much to discuss."

Did you know . . .

● This is five years before the Rebels timeline, so Ahsoka lives! Take that, Dave Filoni.

Tell me what you think . . .

● Do you think Obi-Wan and Anakin see Ahsoka as a Rebellion leader or as the Padawan they last knew? Why or why not?