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With a final bow towards Master Yoda, who had been silent since Windu arrived watching them all, Mace led the boy away. Within a few moments he heard Wulo racing around once more as Master Yoda began further lessons, lightsaber instruction from the sound of it. Yoda had not, however, made any move to actually get off his padawan's back, which amused Mace. I certainly hope that doesn't start to develop into an actual habit…
Mace led Anakin through the temple higher up from the meditation halls into the levels where masters and knights had rooms before the start of the library levels. Since it was a little past lunchtime this area was empty of other people, which was good. Now how to go about this? Circumspectly or bluntly? Really, that wasn't even a question. Mace did not do circumspect very well.
"There is anger in you," Mace said bluntly. "Hate and arrogance too. This is why many of the Order are leery of allowing you to join our ranks. Have you felt that during your interaction with the other Jedi you have met?"
"Yes, Master Windu," said Anakin hesitantly. "But I don't understand it at all. I thought that Master Jinn said that listening to the Force was supposed to be a good thing, and can't emotions make you powerful?"
"Why do you think that?" Mace asked
"I have… I've known there's something different about me for a while, but I couldn't always control it. The few times I did, it was in the pod races or when I was working on a hard job. And I thought I was better, that is, I was better when I called for the Force through my emotions," Anakin replied, his voice becoming more certain as he went on.
"I see. And what emotions did you use?" Mace asked gravely.
Somehow knowing that answering outright would be very bad, Anakin looked away, but Mace pulled him to a stop, his hand once more resting gently but inexorably on Anakin's shoulder. "Tell me," he said calmly.
"Fear, a time or two, Master Windu. Not for myself but for my mom," Anakin added hurriedly, firmly believing that Jedi were above such things as personal fear. "I was worried a few times that if I messed up on the job our owner would do something to her or sell her off to someone else. And one time against another pod racer I used anger or hate. It's not really clear. It, it didn't help me win the race, but it helped me to get out of the pod before it exploded at least when the dug cheated."
Normally Anakin would not have been so hesitant, but all of his usual self-confidence disappeared when he was alone like this with the intimidating, bald-headed Jedi Master. He had heard about what happened on Naboo, had seen Master Qui-Gon's body and the body of his killer, and knew that Master Windu had sliced said killer into several pieces. Further, there was something daunting about the man, sort of like his first impression of Master Dooku, only not hidden under the older man's sangfroid.
"I see," Mace said gravely. "Come with me Anakin. I wish to show you something before we continue."
They retraced their steps, then carried on traveling several floors further down from the meditation center where Windu had found Anakin earlier. They were on the third floor of the Jedi Temple when they stopped going down, entering a series of hallways that led into classrooms.
Eventually they entered one with several dozen easels and other things scattered around. "Many Jedi take up painting in order to help hone their senses and attune themselves to the Force or make sense of the visions they see at first," Mace said in response to Anakin's quizzical look. "I never did, but my padawan did, as did Master Gallia and a few others I know of. It worked for them for a time, and also taught them to not value the works of their hands too highly, which is another valuable lesson. But that is not what we are here for."
Moving towards another, smaller door set in the classroom's far wall, Mace motioned Anakin towards the front desk and gestured for the boy to pull out a large white clay bowl about the size of his two hands cupped together. Anakin did so, and Mace soon came back holding several small containers of paint. "Many people need visual aids to help them understand a concept or technique, and I believe you are one of those. Would that be the case? You learn from looking and doing better than listening?"
"Oh yes, Master Windu," Anakin said eagerly. "I've learned almost all of the stuff I know about mechanics and engineering from doing and watching other people."
"Excellent," Mace said with a smile, the first one he had bestowed upon the young man, which caused Anakin to beam at him. "I will see to having you talk to a few of the Order's engineers, Jedi Knights and Masters who specialize in that craft. It will be interesting to see how far along in that area you are."
The Tatooine native nodded eagerly, already looking forward to those tests.
He fell silent, though, as Mace went on. "However, right now I wish to give you a demonstration of something." He held up the small paint containers, setting them on the table one after another. "Black, anger and hate. Red, fear. Blue inquisitive. Yellow, joy. Pink, love."
Anakin giggled at that, a typical young boy's response to that kind of statement, and Mace allowed him to do so for a few seconds before going on. "Green, serenity, and finally purple, self-control."
Holding up each color in turn save the first he had labeled, Mace poured a small teaspoon of each color into the white bowl. "A normal mind is something like this, at times serene, at times controlled, at others happy or inquisitive. The colors all swirl together into an odd mix. But each color is still there, still part of the whole."
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