Redemption's Price: A Star Wars Story

Chapter 3

The guest room in the parsonage was very simple. Two beds with a small nightstand. "Do you think I should leave a book or two, just in case?" I asked as my father watched from the door.

"You do know, books with pages are scarce in this galaxy of ours?" My father said with a smile as he watched me work. "You're like your mother, you know. She always overthought things like this. But, by all means, put a book there; after all that, the young Jedi Luke seemed keen to learn. And that young Princess Leia might need something to quiet her mind."

Looking through my collection, I pulled out The Aionomica, a collection that might interest the young Jedi Master. Next, I steeped a pot of herbal tea named Sleep Tea. My father was right; I had also felt the conflict in Leia.

~~~

Meanwhile, Leia and Luke started their mission of interviews. Leia had noticed Master Rena leave early with her young Padawan. Although she had memories of Rena from her childhood, she had never thought this woman was a Jedi, but of course, all of that was hidden from the young Princess. So it was an obvious first choice, but as she knocked on the door, she met the elder, Master Brauta.

"Come in, Senator," Brauta remarked with a smile as she ushered Leia in.

The room was simple; there was a small kitchen with a bowl of local fruit and a water jug. A young girl dressed in temple robes with the distinct padawan braid behind her left ear sat at the table. They looked like they were in the middle of a card game.

"I was hoping to catch Master Rena," Leia remarked as she sat.

"Ah, she's retired for the evening," Master Brauta said with a knowing smile. "But, Tori and I are at your disposal."

"Oh," Leia replied. "Well then, is there anything you can tell me about Kaidar Waiwing?"

Giving a smile, Master Brauta patted the chair. "Come sit, play some sabbac, then you'll get the answers you seek."

Sabbac, now this was a game that Leia knew. Thanks to her husband, the senator thought this game would be easy. Well, taking the seat, young Tori dealt the cards, and they began to play for knowledge.

Leia was glad that Han had taught her to play Sabbac. In saying that, Brauta and young Tori were excellent players, far better than she had imagined. But soon, luck turned her way.

"Well then, what would you like to know?" Brauta remarked as she gathered the cards to shuffle them.

Taking a moment, Leia shuffled her thoughts. "We don't know much about Kaider other than very scattered childhood memories. Please, tell me about her."

Looking at her timepiece, Brauta turned to Tori. "Go check on Master Rena."

"Yes, ma'am."

Turning back to Leia, Brauta stood and filled two glasses with Corellian Brandy. "I feel like this is more your speed. We can talk without young ears listening."

Smiling and holding back a laugh, Leia was curious. Then, taking the glass, she felt the familiar warmth of the liquor.

"Kaider grew up with Maja. Master Yrsa had not trained her when I met them. Only after the Jedi Purge did she decide it was best to train the force-sensitive younglings here. It wasnt a choice she made lightly." Pausing for a moment, Brauta collected her thoughts. "My first impression of her was of a diligent, responsible, and passionate young girl. In the Jedi Order - before the purge - we were taught to be wary of passion, that it was a path to darkness. Yrsa, who had been on the Jedi Council and left that her chair, viewed things differently, although, at the time, there was only herself and I to train her. I had Master Scarre as my padawan at the time; we were still adjusting to life here."

"What about Master Rena?" Leia asked; she sensed that the absent Jedi Master was connected.

"Her story is not for me to tell." Pausing, Brauta looked back at the senator. "I'm sorry to be brusk. Perhaps we acted in haste."

"What do you mean?"

"Kaider was young, eager to learn, and dedicated to learning. So when Yrsa took her as a padawan over her daughter, I felt this was perhaps for the best. In regards to attachments, I mean." Taking a big gulp of brandy, Brauta looked back at Leia. "She was taken, kicking and screaming, touched until she broke. It broke Yrsa; she was never the same after losing Kaider to the Inquisitor. She blamed herself. That's why she made sure she would be the one to bring her back, no matter how it happened."

Leia reached out, as Luke had taught her. Master Brauta was telling the truth. "And you truly believe she returned?" Returned to the light? That was also in her thoughts and also left unsaid.

Looking at the empty glass, Brauta slowly nodded. "I do. But you will see." Pulling the bottle closer and refilling the glass, the elder Jedi looked back. "But she isn't the same bright spark as she once was. She lives with the memories of her past. She chose to hide in the Ancient City, trying to redeem herself over and over, like some penance for life in the Inquisatorium."