Only for you, Willow.

Well, I've returned.

Children's lightsaber tournament as boring and useless as predicted. It's somewhat depressing to see how low the arts have really degenerated. The hacking, cutting, ruthlessly efficient sort of forms they teach the students these days...utterly pathetic. Stars above save us should in the future, an enemy approach these children wielding more than a straight-shooting blaster.

There were some interesting things I learned from my amusing playdate with Yoda. It's always great fun to try to guess what hidden agenda the old troll is stewing over when he seeks out my company. A sort of game. Today I had trouble with it. I don't suppose he was just wanting to see how I'm adjusting...but I really couldn't figure what other motivation he had for dragging me out to watch children spar.

I don't have a Padawan at the moment. That isn't an unhappy accident of fate, either. Yoda knows this. He knows *why* I haven't taken another one. It isn't exactly a secret; I'm not deaf to the rumors about me. I hardly think the Council would even let me train one of their impressionable little gems.

And yet, there I am, watching them playfight.

They weren't *that* bad, I suppose.

There was one child in particular, male human, ended up in the final ranking paired against a girl his own age. They were one of the few good fighters of the group, a lot of color to their form....proof once again that grace will win a battle over economy. Anyway, they fought for what seemed like ages... well, a decent length of time for a Jedi Master, an impossibly long eternity for an eleven year old....and, the boy finally knocked the girl's saber from her grip. But he didn't strike her. It might have been gratifying to actually score the hit he had been striving for for hours...but he didn't touch her. He sort of half-smiled, and stepped back.

I've never seen grace like that in a child.

It was odd.

Anyway, the rest of it ran smoothly, I suppose. Managed not to fight with Yoda, which is saying something.

There was just something about that boy.