Disclaimer: Usually I don’t bother with these things, you know the deal but this story ties in with the Young Jedi Knights books so I just wanted to stress the issue that some of this stuff isn’t mine! I have to have some things the same you see, like Luke’s lectures.

Time: during Heirs to the Force

[-1-]

Kris was not happy. He had been uprooted and now they were trying to replant him. Not literally, Kris was a full-blooded human from Coruscant. He was a normal, average, fourteen-year-old boy. He had a beast friend and a girl he was quite found of as well as a dozen other friends who hung around him. He had the perfect life on Coruscant. There were his parents, though, they were not part of the perfect life.

"Welcome to the Jedi Academy. I’m Tionne, please follow me." The silver hair woman interrupted his thoughts. He was glad however because he’d been sitting there, waiting for almost an hour. She led him into the great temple, down a corridor and into Luke Skywalker’s ‘office’.

"Hello Kris, I’m Master Skywalker. Welcome to the academy." Luke said with no emotion in his expression.

"Hi." Kris responded. Tionne left.

"Before you get settled in, we have to talk about why you’re here. You must not use the force like that again ever. It’s best right now if you only use it when you’re instructed to. Do you know what you did?"

"Kinda. I knew it was wrong as soon as it started but I wasn’t in control anymore. I tried to stop, I really did, and I didn’t want it to happen. I was mad, yeah, sure but..."

"It’s all right Kris. It was an accident. That’s why you're here. To learn to use the force properly." Luke said. Though, it certainly wasn’t all right.

Luke took Kris to the main audience chamber. He was giving a lecture. As the students were seated he caught a glimpse of a girl with red hair. She winked at him. He ended up between a strange alien he’d never seen before and a small boy who had the widest eyes anyone had ever seen. The girl was on the other side of the boy.

Master Skywalker began, "May the force be with you." That seemed to have an effect on most of the other students. A boy smiled, a girl shivered and others all reacted in little ways.

"As I have told you many times I don’t believe the training of a true Jedi comes from listening to lectures." Then why were they here? Kris wondered. Master Skywalker continued, "I want to teach you..."

Kris wasn’t paying any attention anymore. This was boring. Some weirdo in the front row asked a question. He could tell the other students didn’t approve. He guessed the colorful boy did it often. Master Skywalker kept talking, trying to answer the boy’s question so that he would understand it. Kris looked around. Stones, students, and a Master. This was his future? He looked over at the girl he’d seen earlier. She was intent on the stone under Master Skywalker’s feet. He tried to see what was so interesting but he was just bored. He tried to listen to Master Skywalker again. Just as he might have been able to, a droid sounded the alarm, something was wrong. They were told to practice their skills. He didn’t have any skills, unless you counted... but he didn’t and Skywalker didn’t have enough students anyway. The students filed out. Three ran after Skywalker the rest went toward what he guessed were their quarters. He decided to try and follow the boy he’d been next to.

"Hey, wait up!" The boy hesitated, unsure if Kris was really calling to him.

"Hi. I’m Kris Xef, I just got here before the lecture and I wonder if you could help me."

"I don’t know, what do you need help with?"

"What should I do? I don’t have any skills and I haven’t been given quarters." Kris didn’t like asking for help but he had to.

"Well, I could take you to Master Skywalker’s room and you could wait outside until he comes. Once he’s done with whatever is wrong I’m sure he’ll look for you."

"Thanks! That’d be great. So what’s your name?" Kris asked as the boy led him back toward Master Skywalker’s chamber.

"Gem Antilles."

"You mean like the great fighter pilot?"

"Yes. He’s my father."

"Cool. My parents are just normal people, not famous or anything. We have a garage and hanger on Coruscant." They had made it to Skywalker’s room.

"Well, see you around." Gem said and scurried back to where ever he had to go. Kris learned back on the wall.

"Hello." A voice called.

[-2-]

"Hello." Kris replied, somehow he knew who it was. The red headed girl stepped forward.

"I’m Prix. You’ve already met Gem and you’ll meet Yaden soon enough. What do you think about the force. It seems like trickery to me. I know it isn’t but I’m still a non believer." He looked at her, how could she have doubts? She hadn’t had the experience he’d had, nothing like it apparently.

"It’s real."

"That’s it? You seem the sort of person who has more to say."

"Usually, but not on this topic.