Back in the Game (COMPLETE)

1.1.1

Author's Note: This is a request from @Aquabird1 . This is probably a few days or so before the Battle of Christophsis in Season 1 of the Clone Wars before Ahsoka is introduced. What do you guys think? Does this seem like something that would happen?

Obi-Wan drummed his fingers on his knees, looking out at the stairwell leading to the training hall he was sitting in. Anakin didn't know he was here, and in truth, he was probably still internally celebrating his new promotion to the rank of Jedi Knight. Despite the fact that it had been weeks since his ceremony, Anakin was still on an emotional high from his accomplishment. Obi-Wan had decided to let him enjoy it while it would last. There was little else to celebrate right now, after all.

The Clone War had taken off more rapidly than he had expected, and the Republic had taken drastic measures to ensure that the Separatists wouldn't catch them off guard. Obi-Wan had been assigned a battalion of clone troopers, as well as nearly every active Jedi Knight and Master in the Order. Clearly, no one had thought that a 19-year-old would be one of the new Generals of the Republic, or they wouldn't have done so. Obi-Wan was almost scared to see what Anakin would do with a few hundred troopers at his disposal, but he had done well so far, really well actually. 

Despite wanting to continue to keep an eye on Anakin, Obi-Wan knew that he would do amazing things if left to his own devices. The Jedi Master needed to distance himself from Anakin to let him have some responsibility and accountability of his own. The easiest way to do that was if he forced himself to focus on another student who needed guidance and monitoring, hence his application for a new Padawan had been sent in.

Perhaps it was a little soon to leave Anakin, but Obi-Wan trusted him completely and he knew Anakin neither wanted nor needed him breathing down his neck anymore. It was going to be a jarring transition, to be sure, but a necessary one. At least, that's what Obi-Wan kept telling himself. 

The doors to the training hall opened, and a line of maturing Younglings filed into the room behind Master Shaak Ti. Sixteen children sat in a circle in the middle of the room, trying to ignore Obi-Wan sitting on the side. Shaak saw them eyeballing the Jedi Master and smiled. "Master Kenobi will be observing your training today, Younglings. I suppose I forgot to tell you that."

Obi-Wan smiled at the children but did not move from his cross-legged seated position. While it was the Council's duty to assign Padawans to Masters, it was common practice for an aspiring teacher to observe the oldest group of Younglings. They had all completed building their lightsabers and were considered proficient at using them by their teachers. The Younglings here had either already passed their Initiate Trials or were getting ready to.

Additionally, they had chosen their desired emphasis for their training, and some had earned beads for their Padawan braids. White beads expressed a strength in healing, blue was mechanics, red was piloting, green was specialized Force abilities, yellow was lightsaber and other weapons, and black was covert operations. The youngest Younglings hadn't earned beads yet, but the older Padawans had one, and in some cases, two beads. 

Shaak began the lesson, deciding that today would be spent reviewing and building on their dueling techniques. The Younglings stood in lines, following the Jedi Master as she ran them through sequences, correcting any positions she saw them performing incorrectly. Sometimes it was something small, like the slight angle at which the lightsaber was supposed to be held, other times, footwork needed correcting. It was mostly the younger students who needed correction, but every once in a while an older Youngling would receive instruction as well. 

Watching them practice brought Obi-Wan back to his own days of training. He remembered being in the lines, watching the older Padawans demonstrate the sequences much like the ones here did. He never made it to the front line, because Qui-Gon Jinn had selected him as a Padawan at age 12. It was a slightly early age to be assigned to a Master, but Younglings could reach as old as 15 or 16 before being chosen, although it was rare. From what Obi-Wan could see, there were only two Younglings approaching that age in this group.