Silent Jedi

Big Jedi Things

Our heroes were guided into the refractory by Chella. She showed them how to take their trays and plates from the line. Jett picked out everything that looked good to her. Once a child had their meal, they went to one of the long tables in the back of the room, which were designated for youngling clans. 

When Jett took her seat, she couldn't believe she was eating in the same room as Jedi Knights and Jedi Masters. A few hours ago she was sitting in the nursery, and now she was doing big Jedi things.

"Kavaa sit unko?" asked Rosa.

Jett nodded, unsure of why Rosa asked to sit next to her in the first place. A big Hutt like her couldn't sit on one of the benches of the lunch table. She had to stay on the end. There was nowhere else for her to go.

"Thanks!" said Rosa.

Are u noleeya room 518? asked Jett, taking in Rosa's musty smell. It wasn't too awful up close.

"Oh...are you talking tah je?" Rosa asked. Jet nodded. "Me...like how you talk, Jett. It is uh...very cool. Kavaa do u know Huttese?"

Mos Espa, Tatooine. Myo bunky dunko was ruled by Hutts. Are u noleeya room 518?

"Yes. Noleeya room 518."

Although Jett was a little nervous, she smiled. To her, Rosa seemed really fun and happy. She especially didn't seem to care that she still had paint on her face from this morning.

Mee'm do roommate, Rosa, Jett said.

"Oh? Yay! You and me...bestest pals!" Rosa said, clapping her hands.

Jett shook her head. No, it's called 'best friends.'

"No. Me like bestest pals!" Rosa said.

"I would like to ask a question!" said Beebo, who was sitting down a ways. "How come everyone else can hear Jett talking but I can't? I wonder if my sensors are off." He tapped his fist against his head a few times.

"Maybe it's because Jett uses her brain to do it, and you don't have a brain because you're just a droid," said Harpooni.

"Hey!" said Beebo, narrowing his eye and putting his hands on his hips.

"I think it's because it's an advanced technique," said Sorra.

"That's correct," said Eep. "The right term is called 'telepathy.' It's something only very advanced Jedi can master, but due to Jett's situation, she learned this early on. When we all become stronger Jedi, we'll be able to respond back without even opening our mouths."

"Aww. But that's going to take such a long time!" Beebo said.

Jett tapped on Roi, who was sitting next to her. He whipped his head around and focused all his eyes on hers. 

Tell him we can sign, she said.

"Jett says she can use her sign language, tck-tck-tck-tck-tck," Roi said.

"Hawkbats! I'm just a pit droid. I don't know any galactic basic sign language!" Beebo said.

"We'll teach you! Jett taught me and Roi so we can help!" Sorra said. 

"Can I learn, t-too?" asked J'hute.

"Yeah, count me in too!" said Puzz.

"Mmm! Mmm!" Jett said, bouncing in her seat and kicking her legs wildly with excitement.

After lunch was recess, where all of the younglings went to play out in one of the temple's courtyards. There were balls and other force-training toys they could play with, along with trees to climb and lots of places to sit.

Jett found a sunny spot to sit with Puzz, Harpooni, J'hute, Eep, and Beebo to practice sign language. Sorra, Roi, and Rosa were practicing their force-using by tossing a ball back and forth.

Eep, are you sure you want to learn, too? asked Jett.

"I can envision your hands. Please, go ahead," he said.

"Hey Eep? How come your hands are always behind your back?" Beebo asked.

"Yeah. Like, if you're blind shouldn't you be holding your arms out?" asked Harpooni.

"Why put my arms out? The force tells me exactly where I'm going. It tells me everything. It even tells me that my sister will be here in three...two...one—"

"Eep! Eep!"

The little Ithorian girl nudged her way into the circle, right next to her brother.

"This is my sister, Etta," Eep said, sighing.

Etta started muttering a whole bunch of things in Ithorian. Unlike her brother, she didn't have a translator on. In fact, she was vastly different from her brother. She had big brown eyes and wore bright white robes. She was wild and excitable: the polar opposite of the stoic and serious Eep. 

"Are we gonna start learning some sign language here or what?" Harpooni asked, crossing his arms.

Yes. Let's start with something simple. This is how you say "good morning." Jett said, showing them the signs.

Right behind them, Roi tossed the force ball with a little too much strength. It flew right over Sorra's head and over to a patch of grass, right underneath the tree where Deetz and Gaar were sitting.

Sorra went to pick up the ball, but stopped when she saw that the tree was full of beautiful turquoise flowers. She had to have one. Or ten. But she couldn't reach, and she'd never climbed a tree before.

"Deetz, can you hand me some of those pretty flowers?" she asked.

"That depends," he said.

"What? You can't just give me a flower? One flower?"

"Oh I can give 'ya a flower. You just gotta give me those extra crackers you've got in your pocket."

"No way. These are my crackers!" Sorra said, stamping her foot.

"No crackers, no flowers. That's the way it goes, kid."

"Grr. You win this time," Sorra said.

She tossed Deetz her half-eaten pack of crackers and Deetz tossed her down a single flower. When she was gone, Deetz and Gaar shared their crackers, all while snickering to each other.

After recess was meditation, which the Krayt Dragons had right in the courtyard. Next were more classes, dinner, then meditation again. After that, all the younglings were sent back to their rooms.

Jett and Rosa had two hours before lights out, like they would every other night. Typically, this would be a time to do homework, visit the library, or enjoy any other part of the Jedi Temple. But for Rosa, it was time to decorate.

She laid out a blanket with a pattern of different-colored lightsabers on the bottom bunk, which now had a steel frame. Someone must've come to reinforce it while they were away in class. The blanket had the words #1 Jedi in big letters. Rosa also hung some kind of band poster on the wall. It had Wookies on it.

Choy are you doing? asked Jett.

"Mee'm decorating!" Rosa said.

We're nopa allowed tah decorate.

"Yes. Master Chella said so! Were you nopa paying attention this morning?"

I guess not. Kochee did you get all that stuff, anyway?

"The gift shop!" Rosa said.

Gift shop? We don't have a gift shop.

"Tawaa jee-jee do! It is on doe main level."

Jett yawned and fell asleep before it was even time for lights-out. Being a Jedi definitely wasn't easy, and today was only day one.