Disclaimer: I own Star Wars.
Okay fine! I don't. Fooled you though, didn't I?

Thanks to Gandalf3213 for inspiring me to write this story through their Jedi Apprentice fic, "Child of Darkness".

In a crowded plaza on Coruscant, throngs of beings surged, weaving in and out among each other, rarely making eye contact in their hurry to get to their destinations. While many of these beings were human, even a cursory inspection would reveal a variety of species. Brightly dyed clothing, pastel toned skin, and fur of various shades created a conglomeration of swirling color that could prove disorienting to a being unfamiliar with such surroundings.

Amidst this mass of controlled chaos, two beings stood serenely- or, at least, one was serene; the other was relying on that calm to still his own nerves. The two beings looked out of place in their plain brown and tan robes, relatively motionless among the pulsing activity around them.

The serene being, a woman with long dark hair and soft brown eyes, knelt beside a boy no more than seven years old. "Now Obi Wan, I know this is your first trip outside the Temple, and you are a bit nervous," her voice was kind, yet held firmness behind it. "Still you need to let go of your anxiety, little one. Try our breathing exercise."

The boy nodded. His light hair, a blonde that was darkening to auburn, fell in front of his face as he did so. If he was chosen as a padawan, that hair would be cut into the traditional style. For now it pleased him to let it grow. Obediently the boy practiced a breathing exercise that he had learned when barely four years old. The tension in his body visibly lessened.

Satisfied, the woman, a crèche master of the Temple, resumed her instruction. "Very good. Now concentrate, and describe our environment."

The boy hesitated a bit, before closing his blue-grey eyes. His childish face was a mask of concentration. "There…are many, many people here. Most are walking alone, but some are in groups. They all seem to be in a hurry."

He paused, but the crèche master said nothing, waiting for more.

"There are small grassy areas, with…fences?...around them. And…trees," He paused to consider further. "Asope trees," the boy asserted. Obi Wan continued, until the crèche master stopped him after describing the birds that were nesting in nearby branches.

"Very good, young one. You do very well with this exercise," she praised. "Do, however, be a bit more mindful of inanimate objects. They are more difficult to sense than living things, but it is very important that you learn to do so."

"Yes, master." Obi Wan assented.

Now she felt ready to give him the task for which she had brought him. "Young one, I want you to cross this plaza without my guidance. We are on the south end. Make your way to the north end. Try to navigate through this crowd without touching another being or object. Do you understand?"

Obi Wan looked nervous again. She understood why. Unlike in the Temple, the beings out here would not make room for the youngling; he could easily be run into if he was not alert. "Don't be troubled, little one. I will be nearby to help if you really need it. I am watching over you, but I want you to do your best on your own."

The child nodded, smiling tentatively at his teacher before turning and weaving his way through the crowd. More than once, he had to turn his slender body sideways to avoid being compressed between two beings. At one point, a scruffy Bothan came running through, pushing his way through the mass. Obi Wan narrowly avoided being run down by spinning out of the way.

Unfortunately, this caused a momentary loss of orientation. When it seemed he got his bearings back, he began to walk again, only to be knocked to the ground when his body impacted a bulging cluster of shopping bags. The plump human cried out when her purchases also fell to the ground.

"You wretched little brat!" she shrieked "Why don't you watch where you're going?"

"I…I'm sorry." The child stammered. The woman's rage seemed to pummel against the boy's senses. Having grown up in the Temple, he was unused to such blatant anger, and certainly unused to being the focus of it.

In an effort to appease the woman, he lifted one of the dropped bags. Regrettably, he held the bag upside down, spilling its contents all over the permacrete floor.

The woman's rage became indignation. "What are you doing? Are you blind?" she demanded maliciously.

Suddenly, the crèche master was at his side, her hand resting comfortingly on the shoulder of her bewildered charge. "As a matter of fact, he is."