Oneshots! (Mostly Hermitcraft)

I Have a Bad Feeling About This (pt. 3) [Tango]

Hoooooooooo boy. This one's 5.6 k words long. Buckle up for the finale.

"We're here again?" Tango asked, looking at the maze-like rooms of the Temple.

"Different Temple, but yes, we're here again," Xisuma confirmed. He hauled open a door on the opposite side of the training room they'd stopped in, using the Force to rearrange several blocks of various sizes.

Xisuma placed the smallest one – no larger than a die used in a game of Sabacc – in the center of the room. "Lift it," he invited, stepping away. "Just a few meters off the ground."

Tango extended his hand and the die flew upward, fueled by anxiety. He stopped it roughly two meters off the ground, his fear of failure evident on his face. Xisuma sighed, waving for Tango to relax.

"You must let go of your fear," he admonished as the die was set carefully on the ground. Tango nodded, trying to erase the uncertainty that constantly pounded at his chest. "It's a difficult task, I know, but your habits of swimming in adrenaline until you crash are going to destroy you before the Empire even gets close."

"Master, I-" Tango began. He shut his mouth abruptly, focusing on the next block Xisuma had moved into the room. It was the size of a drinking mug.

"Yes?" Xisuma responded patiently, watching the second object move upward at a more controlled pace.

"I guess I don't want to fail everyone like I did the first time. Everyone being a grand total of three people." Tango shrugged, trying to offset his troubles with an attempt at dry humor. It failed dramatically, the block falling to the floor as his mental concentration broke. He picked it up again with a huff, raising and lowering it to get a feel for how the Force moved.

"This is an important step for you," Xisuma said, smiling sympathetically. "Acknowledging your fear helps you begin to understand it. Understanding our fears helps us find strength in the worst situations."

"You don't understand," Tango complained. "My brother and aunt died because I couldn't do anything right. If I'd just listened or trusted the Force more, we wouldn't- I didn't- I dunno."

"You had no way of knowing the Force was speaking to you," the Jedi Master responded calmly. He pulled out one of the largest blocks, the size of a landspeeder.

"Master, I can't lift that."

"Why not?"

"It's too big."

Xisuma shook his head. "Size doesn't matter when you let go of your fear of failing. Give it a go, then we'll continue our conversation."

Tango frowned, extending his hand. His arm shook as he tried to raise it, getting it ten centimeters off the ground before dropping it with a muffled boom. He sat down dejectedly, tracing an invisible pattern on the ground. Xisuma sat next to him, looking ponderously at the wall as he pieced together his thoughts.

"Fear is complicated," the Jedi began, hesitating as he recalled his own training. "It drives us, protects us some times, endangers us others. However, it's this fear of loss that is the most driving and endangering."

Tango nodded, trying to understand. "How so?"

"How do you feel about yourself with what happened?"

"Upset. Kinda angry. Out of control. Desperate."

"And how do you want to feel about yourself?"

"At peace. Like I'm not the only one to blame. That I'm capable of stuff. That I don't have to hate myself."

Xisuma exhaled deeply. "Are you afraid of losing others?"

"I am." Tango's answer was short and direct, something he obviously needed to get out, but was unable to do so completely.