Seras little snippet thread

“Are you sure about this?”

“Nope!” I offered back cheerfully, Aunt Ahsoka rolled her eyes but lit her lightsabers and I lit mine.The only person I’d ever trained with was Obi-Wan, so since Ahsoka was here, and Obi-Wan and her didn’t seem to be leaving any time soon, I’d asked for a spar.

Staring down two white blades and a look that reminded me this woman was good enough to go toe to toe with Darth Vader…

Yeah I was probably going to get my butt kicked. I just grinned and took a breath and exhaled.

She would muddy my vision when she attacked. The two of us would both be drawing on the force of course, and we’d both seek to succeed, but that was where I could win.

I didn’t need to beat her. Simply last long enough to learn.

As I expected Ahsoka struck first.

Really, was I sure she wasn’t related to me, because I was fairly sure she took more aft-I stopped thinking as she spun into a flurry of light and strikes that if not for the force guiding me, I’d have been cut in half right there.

Her aggression was so strong, I fell back to Soresu just to keep her blades back. The cracking of lightsabers meeting echoed over the dunes as I managed to finally stop backpedaling.

Hmm.

Two blades against one was cheating. Yep, that was what I decided.

There was a temptation to yank Obi-Wans lightsaber from his belt, as he was watching the fight doing the beard stroking smirk thing.

He thought this was hilarious.

But, before I could even consider it, I nearly crumpled under a double downward strike that sent my knee into the sand desperately holding back the blades.

“You’re holding back, why?” Ahsoka questioned me suddenly, as I shifted and force pushed my lightsaber, hurling her away giving me a moment to breathe.

“I’m kinda not?” I said, and she scoffed, shaking her head.

“You held back his strike, I know he was hitting harder than I am, yet I’m sending you stumbling back. Why?”

“Oh.” I realized what she meant and rubbed at the back of my head. “You’re faster, and you hit nearly as hard as well. I’m used to more time to brace and steady myself. You’re the first person I’ve ever trained against besides Uncle Ben.”

“Hmm. Well if you want me to spar with you more, then I want to see what you can really do. Stop holding back.” She demanded and then in a blur she was on me. Leaping downward swipe, horizontal swing with her Shoto, Ataru spin, into a Djem So full power double downward swing.

It was an overwhelming attack. Fast and brutally powerful, as she pushed down with the force.

In exchange I blocked and pushed up, just barely fighting her force and getting myself clear.

I was being put onto the back foot, because I was used to fighting Obi-Wan. Even father was a slower powerful striker now. But Ahsoka was at her peak, and ridiculously fast on top of that.

My footing was off. Schuta wasn’t Obi-Wan always mentioning that? Now I understood, Ahsoka’s speed was the push I needed for it to click. I was bracing too much, too ready to attack and receive with Obi-Wans sharp but slow in a way attacks.

My feet shifted.

How had… Like this. This was how Vader had stood when I saw him on Malachor. His suit kept him from moving quickly, but he still had to face those that did. Learn, adapt.

Ahsoka attacked, and I deflected, this time when I pushed deflected one of her blades, instead of blocking the other I attacked it. Both hands smashed my lightsaber into her blade, nearly yanking it out of her grip as I went on the offense.

Fast is slow, and slow is fast.

Instead of matching her speed, I struck out letting my blades build up power, the most basic of Djem So. Each strike wasn’t some whirling tornado, but simple, and overwhelming.

On my strike her blades locked and I simply powered through them. Pushing her backwards in the sand.

Yet she adapted and soon I was once more on the defense and not long after. I was on my back. Her boot on my chest and a lightsaber in my face.

“I give. You kicked my butt, Aunt Ahsoka.” I laughed as I looked up at her, her head coronaed by one of the suns.

“You did well. We’ll spar again. Come on. There’s some moves that your father taught me, I think will suit you… I have an old Holocron that he made for me when I was a Padawan. If you want to see it.”

“I’d love that!” I cheered happily as she offered me a hand still holding an unlit lightsaber which I grabbed and she yanked me to my feet.

Jeez Ahsoka was strong.

Ahsoka turned to Obi-Wan, and I could see something pass between them. A stirring of light off the sand, a whisper on the wind.

But I didn’t pry, instead wiping the sand from my shirt. Aww it had slipped into the nape of my neck. I was going to be itchy all day.

When I finally got most of the sand out, Ahsoka was doing her cross armed thing where she watched on thoughtfully.

“Something up?”

“No, Luke.” She offered with a smile and I just decided not to worry about it.

“Then I don’t suppose I could ask for something else?”

“Oh?” She wondered and I looked to Obi-Wan, purposefully spreading my grin as wide as possible.

“If you must. Really Luke, it’s so…” He trailed off, seeming to realize Ahsoka was there, and then he smirked and pulled his saber from his belt. A moment later it flashed into my hands.

I mean. I’d asked Obi-Wan about learning to use two Lightsabers at once before, and he’d just sighed and told me that he would only train me with one since we only had the two.

I’d mentioned the sabers I’d found on the old republic ship, but that had just left him ignoring me and wandering around his living room pretending he couldn’t hear me.

The saber thumped into my hand and I breathed in and out. Obi-Wan’s lightsaber was different from Anakins. It wasn’t hostile but it wasn’t as accepting either.

I turned it on and pointed it at Ahsoka.

Ahsoka who was grinning in delight at the sight. “Obi-Wan! You didn’t tell me my nephew wanted to learn Jark’Kai!” She teased and it was teasing as Obi-Wan sighed and then simply continued sitting on the rock he’d been using this whole time, giving the impression he was above all of this.

Of course Ahsoka and I shared a look and both of us grinned as we realized the teasing was totally working!

“Don’t forget to watch closely Uncle Ben! I need to know if I’m doing something wrong!” I added, and Ahsoka instantly added.

“I’ve never really trained anyone Master, please watch closely and point out any mistakes!” I’m sure that Obi-Wan would have said both of us had sharp teeth with how amused our grins were… If he was looking.

Which he wasn’t. Because Obi-Wan was purposefully pretending not to hear us troublemakers.

“Okay, so what do I do?” I asked, and Ahsoka laughed and walked closer taking a stance.

“Start like this. Since you already use Djem So the basics remain the same. Just like normal, use the force to help empower your blades, but let's go slow at first.”

“Yes Master!” I said, throwing her a wink, which after a moment I felt… Ah right, sensitive topic, but Ahsoka shook it off and soon we were swinging lightsabers around in the sand and just having a good time.

—--

It had been a few days since Ahsoka arrived, and while she had mostly stayed with Obi-Wan out in his home, she had come to visit every day, which was honestly really nice. Unfortunately I lived on a moisture farm, and secret Jedi Aunt or not, I still had chores.

“This one always gives us trouble. The poor thing has a badly designed compressor. Unfortunately, it causes an overheat, and a breakdown about once a month, but it’s a very cheap fix, and otherwise it still works.” I explained as I looked out at the sunlight that was blocked by an interested Togruta.

Well, she wasn’t that interested, but she was here to spend time with me, which was nice.

“So you have to fix it every so often?”

“Exactly. Uncle Owen, can’t do it. He’s not a bad mechanic, but she’s a bit temperamental.” I explained as I continued to clear the burned out wire and replace it. Wire was cheap, cheaper than a compressor anyways, and the cost of the the wires was nothing compared to the water this thing brought in every month.

“I’ve never really considered the ins and outs of moisture farming.” She offered and I barked out a laugh.

“Oh it’s dreadful, and worse, boring.” I assured her, with a smile that I wasn’t even sure she could see. “I’ll be done with this soon, if you want to head back inside.”

“I’ll stay if that’s alright. The heat isn’t something I enjoy, but I’m used to it in a way. Besides… It reminds me of-” She cut herself off, and at that I really did stop, and adjust myself so she could see my face.

“I’m happy to be compared to my father. Regardless of everything else. It’s okay.” I assured her, and then turned back to the wires. “So I remind you of him?”

“Yes, Anakin often tinkered everywhere we went. He'd have some project. Sometimes a ship, or something else. Usually a ship.” She joked at the end, and I felt myself smiling along with her.

"Maybe someday I’ll drag him out and we’ll fix a ship together.” I offered, liking the idea. The two of us, diving into the force and fixing some old ship until it purred just right.

“Luke.” Ahsoka whispered, almost despite herself and I felt her flash in the force as she tried to calm herself.

“I know, Aunt Ahsoka. He fell to the darkside. He’s done… Terrible things. Things I don’t even want to think about. Things that he can’t be forgiven for… But he’s my father, and I know there is good in him. Darth Vader has not destroyed the man underneath, and someday, I’ll bring that man back out fully.”

Anakin dying to kill Sidious.

That was still likely. Even probable in how things would go. It took a lot for the man underneath the mask to finally break free, to protect his son.

But…

But!

Maybe I wanted to know my father! Maybe I wanted to save him early enough that he wouldn’t pass on into the force.

I reached up, and pressed my hands against the compressor. Against the broken object. It was old. Tired. It’d been created wrong. A mishap during production. If this was any planet besides Tatooine, well and a few dozen more. It would have been scrapped long ago, but this was Tatooine.

Here, even the broken were accepted.

This broken compressor. The broken man that was my father.

I breathed out, and the world quieted.

Something broken. Something that didn’t work… But why? Because of a mistake? Because of a series of situations that led to that result?

Time flowed forward, but it wasn’t the future, or the past that mattered. Only the here and now.

I saw it. The moment that caused this compressor to end up in its current state. Just a single worker falling asleep on the job, the long hours, ending in a result of someone that was supposed to check the output of the massive machines to miss one.

I reached out, and grabbed the compressor, I pushed that ghostly what was, and could have been right into the present. I opened my eyes, the compressor I was touching was shining and new.

“I’m good at fixing things Aunt Ahsoka.” I replied calmly as I wiggled and pulled myself free of the underside of the moisture vaporator.

“Luke what did you just do?” She asked, and I smiled at her.

“I fixed it. I don’t usually use the force for this sort of thing, I like fixing things the normal way too, but sometimes.” I ran a hand across my head wiping my hair out of my eyes so I could really lock our eyes together. Blue on blue. “Nothing is unfixable with the right work. And so in turn, nothing is permanently broken.”

I stood up, wiping my hands and grabbing my tool box. Looking into those blue eyes, and Ahsoka did show an emotion I liked.

Hope. She wanted to save Anakin just as much as I did.

“Well that’s my last chore for the day. Want to do something?” I asked and she blinked at the question before smiling.

“Sure.”

“Cool, want to see an Old Republic Jedi Cruiser I found out in the desert?” I asked and grinned in delight at the surprise at my words.

“Yes, yes I would.” She confirmed with a very interested look, the look of a woman about to have a fun adventure.

“Cool. Let me tell Uncle Owen I’m done… I’d offer to fly with my T-16, but…”

“We can take my ship if it’s that far.”

“Sweet… Can I fly?” I asked sending her the best puppy dog eyes.

“Absolutely… Not.” She added right as my hopes got up.

“Aww come on! I’m a great pilot!”

“Have you ever flown a G9 before?”

“Nope!”

“Then no… Maybe later.” She offered me a wink that I returned with a bright smile. After just a few moments of letting Uncle Owen know we were leaving I hurried out to the space Ahsoka’s ship had claimed over the last few weeks.

“A G9 huh? Didn’t father have one of these during the Clone Wars?” I asked, as we stepped on board and Ahsoka had a slight hitch to her step before she relaxed.

“The Twilight, yes. This isn’t that ship. Just a loaner from the Rebellion.” She offered as I stepped in, and then she suddenly hesitated but tried to hide it as she walked to the cockpit.

Stopped for a second to wonder why she had just had such a strange shift before realizing it.

Despite everything, the one thing we basically didn’t talk about was the Empire, and the Rebellion.

Ahsoka hadn’t mentioned until now that she even worked with them or anything.

It didn’t really matter, so I just followed her into the cockpit and took the co-pilot seat, already inputting data into the navigation system.

“That’s far out into the dune sea.” She offered as she looked over the coordinates.

“Yep! The force guided me there years ago. I still head out to go see the Great Mother pretty often… She’ll like you.” I decided with a smile.

Heh.

Was I being a bit mean not telling Ahsoka what the Great Mother was? Yes.

Was it gonna be really funny? Also yes!

“The Great Mother?”

“My friend… Sort of my Morai.” I offered then looked out the window at the greenish owl that was right there resting in a shadowed nook on one of the farm buildings.

“I see?”

“Don’t worry, she’s my friend. I saved her life, and we have an understanding. She lives in the old Cruiser, and that’s actually really helpful, she keeps the path to the ship clear so I can go down there.” I happily chattered about my adventures in the ship. Exploring it fully, and eventually over the years stripping it down for random parts.

“I had considered trying to fix it once, but… Well, some things are okay with resting. She’s the Great Mothers nest now anyways.”

“Fixing a crashed cruiser would be a massive task.”

“Yeah… But I’m good at fixing things.” I said, as I turned giving Ahsoka a smirk as she lifted off.

“So you say.” She teased and I gasped in faux outrage.

“Don’t make me fix something for you too! I’ll do it!” I threatened and Ahsoka laughed at my words.

“Oh no. Don’t fix the broken Caf machine over there. I’d hate that.”

“I was thinking of something bigger, but I can actually fix that.” I mumbled as I slipped out of the co-pilot seat and went to check it out.

“Luke, I was joking!” She called out holding back a laugh that made me smile along.

“I wasn’t!” I called back.

Just for her previous banter I’m going to fix this caf machine… And her relationship with the Jedi order.

—--

“That dune right there? That’s the one.” I pointed out, and Ahsoka nodded along as we coasted in. “Watch the edge, it slips.”

“I’ll be careful.” She assured me, and so I shut up, because yeah backseat driving or flying in this case would be annoying.

We settled in without too much issue, and the noise must have woken up the Great Mother.

A moment later I felt her presence begin to unfold, almost aggressively, to hunt whatever was daring to enter her hunting grounds, but she ran smack dab into my gentle touch and the aggression vanished into a sort of grumpy greeting.

“What was that?” Ahsoka asked as she had snapped around to look for whatever presence had just swarming up promising violence.

“The Great Mother, my friend. C’mon.” I urged her on, still smiling, and suddenly Ahsoka seemed to notice I was smiling a bit too much to just be happy and I was actually being a bit of a trickster, her eyes narrowed as she looked at me.

“Relax, there’s no danger.” I assured her and barely held back the quiet snickers as I turned around and hurried towards the exit. Only remembering a bit later that Togruta have extremely good hearing thanks to their montrails and she definitely heard me.

I of course was going to pretend she didn’t! It was funnier that way!

I opened the back hatch and smiled at the scent on the air. It smelled like fish. She must have drawn in another prey in the last week. It meant she was full, and explained why she hadn’t already popped her head out.

I reached out mentally, and instead of getting a positive response she sent me a sleepy huff.

“Well it looks like I have to open the path. She’s napping.” I told Ahsoka as she caught up to me.

“Your Great Mother that keeps the path clear?” She asked.

“Yep. You’ll still get to meet her, so don’t worry!” I assured her as I paced around a bit. Now where was that hole… Ah, here. I pulled my leg back from the collapsing sand. Unfortunately the sand might shift, but it was still blocking the hole.

I closed my eyes and reached out.

One grain of sand was tiny, such a small thing. Size matters not. If you could move one grain of sand, you could move ten. If ten, a hundred.

If there was no such thing as limits to the Force. Then why did jedi struggle to move things?

Limits were mental. The difficulty of wrapping a human, or sentient mind around the difficulty of a task.

Holding a single sand grain in your palm wasn’t too hard, although it might blow away if you weren’t careful. Scooping up a handful was actually easier, but asking someone to pick up a billion grains of sand would have them reject the idea as too difficult.

“Size matters not.” I whispered to the winds. Reminding the Suns that such things were infinitesimal to even a single moment of star light.

I reached out and grabbed, not just one grain, but all of them. If I tried to think about it, I’d fail. My mind couldn’t grasp at the complexity of the task.

But I was not just a material being. Luminous beings, not crude matter.

It was not Luke the brain that handled the task, but the spirit. The Force.

My hand clenched into a fist as if I was gripping every grain of sand with full force. I pulled and out came tons of sand blowing out of the hole like a torrent of pressurized water. I blinked looking up and double checking that I was in the clear. If that sand had hit Ahsoka, or her ship that would have done some serious damage.

Whew.

“Path is clear!” I called Ahsoka who I realized was looking at me in that surprised Jedi way. Trying to hide it, but it blasted into the Force. Jedi often submerged their emotions in the force I’d noticed. As if they could push the feeling part of themselves into the spirit, when it was the matter than carried that part.

I just kept a calm smile on my face while she processed. “Size matters not, huh? I haven’t heard that in… A long time.”

“I hope to meet Master Yoda at some point. I’d love to hear his perspective on the force. C’mon! Check this out!” I called as I stepped into the now cleared path and down into the darkness, that wasn’t so dark anymore.

I could still feel some of the old wounds, but after years and my own presence, the light now suffused this place.

As I stepped in, I smiled at the warm feeling of the Great Mothers Nest. While it was dark, it didn’t feel dark. The light from the entrance now reflected off the glass, and actually gave it a sort of glow. Just enough that the dark didn’t seem so dark. That the shadows weren’t so long.

“Luke?” Ahsoka whispered as she must have sensed that something was not right as she followed me. First stepping onto the glass floor in surprise, and then looking up at the ship.

Then she of course noticed the open cargo bay. It was impossible not to after all. The Great Mother wasn’t sleeping even if she was being lazy, and while tiny her eyes were locked onto the new figure.

And her presence was deadly intent.

I reached up and brushed it away like a parent patting a child on the head to keep them from glaring.

“It’s okay. I’ve brought a friend… Family. This is Ahsoka.” I called out, and a moment later there was the sound of sand crushing as something incredibly large shifted, and out came her head sliding out of the open doors, until she was just in front of me.

I turned and waved at the Great Mother as I looked at Ahsoka. “Isn’t she great?” I asked, practically laughing as Ahsoka had a look on her face as she desperately calculated the odds of fighting right that moment.

“Luke! That-”

“It’s fin-Oof. Okay okay!” I grumbled, as the Great Mother nudged me, which sent me tumbling forward. “Fine! Fine, I did promise, and I can smell your catch on your breath. Did you have a good hunt?” I asked her, conveying my feelings through the force and earning an open mawed hissing trill of pleasure.

“Aunt Ahsoka. It’s okay, really. She’s a friend. Come over, she won’t bite. This is the Great Mother, the oldest, largest, and the only Force Sensitive Krayt Dragon on Tatooine.” I offered and Ahsoka hissed through her teeth at my explanation…

Or maybe it was because I was climbing up onto the massive maw, balancing my foot on her tongue as she kept wiggling it around at me. I reached in between the teeth. “Really, how old are you that you still get old fish bones stuck between your teeth?” I grumbled as I yanked the offending objects from in between her massive ivory spires. The teeth were larger than me as I yanked out the gunk stuck in between them.

I’d definitely have to use a cleansing pad after this, she really had some icky saliva. Thankfully she wasn’t going full acid breath right now.

“That’s a Krayt Dragon.” Ahsoka finally said and I turned and nodded.

“Are you still stuck on that? C’mon Aunt Ahsoka, catch up a little.” I teased her a little, absolutely delighting in making the mostly stoic woman act like she was having a stroke.

I wonder how she’d react if I offered her a ride?