Guardian | Obi-wan's new padawan

Chapter 11: Blue Shadows

The blue lightsaber passed by only inches away from my face. And despite it being far from fully powered, I could feel the heat singe some of the baby hairs on my face. I let out a breathy laugh as I quickly stepped back, sinking deeper into a defensive stance. "You sure you want to specialize in Soresu? You're really driving me into a corner here."

Ilaria grinned at me, her teeth blinking in the artificial dojo light. "Master Gallia has been very insistent on teaching me to counter and pressure with attacks. Says it plays on my strengths a lot better than just waiting for an opening."

I had to agree. Ilaria was strong, very strong. The ache in my arms from blocking her constant strikes was a reminder of that. Of course she'd switch to form five under the guidance of a master in that form, who could easily see that Ilaria would take to it like a fish to water. I was going down the same path after all, my preference having quickly switched to Soresu under Obi-wan's tutelage. But I was grateful for it. I would have never been able to stop Ilaria with only Ataru.

I returned the grin. "And yet, you haven't got a single hit on me yet."

"Yet." Ilaria laughed, launching towards me again, her blue lightsaber dancing around me as I blocked strike after strike. Sweat dripped down my brow as I hurried my body into the stances, once again grateful for Obi-wan's insistent drilling of katas. I wasn't the only one getting tired though, and as Ilaria's strikes slowed down ever so slightly, I was able to spot the chinks in her form. When she readied another powerful swing from above her head, she overreached, and she stumbled forward slightly as I quickly stepped back, her grip on her hilt filtering as I hit it out of her hand, flinging it to the side of the mat.

I quickly activated my second saber and held it under her chin before she could summon hers to her hand once more, the both of us panting, chests heaving as my golden saber hummed between us.

"Sola." Ilaria said, holding up her hands in surrender.

"Oh thank the force." I panted, deactivating both of my sabers before falling on my ass and leaning back on my hands. "I thought we would never finish."

"You could say that again." Ilaria said with a sigh as she sat down next to me, wiping sweat off her brow with her hand. "I thought we'd both just collapse there at the end."

I smiled, looking up at the ceiling. "It was fun though. We barely get to hang out anymore with all our missions going on."

She nodded. "Yeah, but with us both improving like this, we can at least keep each other on our toes."

"I should introduce you to Ahsoka if you wanna be kept on your toes." I said. "She's very... how should I say? Unpredictable?"

"You kind of have to be if you're master Skywalker's apprentice." Ilaria stated simply.

I laughed, thinking back to their crashlanding on Tatooine, the Gundark, and of course the Pirates. Though, the pirates were probably more Obi-wan's fault than his. I could only imagine the shenanigans both masters could get into if left alone together.

Speaking of, they were coming this way. I could sense Obi-wan from pretty much anywhere, and his presence was getting closer, our bond thrumming at our proximity. And Anakin was hard to miss as always, especially with Ahsoka so close to him.

"I guess introductions are going to be sooner than expected." I said, perking up and looking at the door. Ilaria's fur bristled slightly. It wasn't nothing, meeting both Anakin and Obi-wan at the same time, they were almost like temple celebrities. That and Ilaria was never good around strangers, her instincts making her weary of any species other than Shistavanen. Me being part Togorian helped slightly when we first met, but anyone else just sets her off.