Prologue

Bant Eerin was walking down the hallways looking for Obi-Wan...again. This was the second time this week she'd been doing this. She'd hoped that the teasing would stop or at least slacken off as Bruck Chun grew older in age and supposedly in maturity but no he'd stepped up his teasing and tormenting of her friend. All out of the Masters' earshot of course making the situation even more frustrating. Not only was it immature but also some of the teasing was just downright mean. Now Bant wasn't in Obi-Wan's age group. Contrary to popular opinion she was actually in a group two years younger then him. Still her maturity made many think that she was older then she actually was. Right now she heartily wished she was in Obi-Wan's age bracket that way she could tell off Bruck when it happened instead of hearing it second hand from Garen.

Sighing at things that couldn't be changed she sent out a pulse in the Force trying to locate her errant friend. Fortunately this time she sensed that he was nearby...in the Archives. Well that figured, Obi-Wan was a bit of a bookworm so retreating to the Archives was inevitable and not too unexpected.

The Mon Calamari quietly walked into the Archives and soon spotted him among the books his face buried into datafile about various flora and fauna about Geonosis. Bant walked up to him and tapped him on the shoulder getting his attention. Obi-Wan blinked as he turned away and noticed his friend. He smiled and signed a greeting along with Bant's sign name a besh sign with the motion for swimming attached to it.

"Has Bruck being teasing you again?" Bant signed slight anger lacing her signs. Usually he did have a hearing aid but it was often erratic at picking up sounds and also he was far more comfortable signing then using his rather nasally or as some described it toneless voice.

"No more than usual," he signed back giving her a comforting smile. "He's just being his usual obnoxious self."

"That's not what Garen told me, he said that he insulted your ability to become a Jedi."

"That's sadly not new," Obi-Wan sighed his weariness punctuating his signing. "I'm used to it at this point."

"He's wrong you know," Bant signed empathically trying to get across her point as both a friend and a fellow Initiate. "You are a capable Initiate and I have no doubt you'll do great things. You're smart and good at dueling and Bruck's just jealous he can't match your prowess."

"Well with your encouragement clearly then I'm set to be a member of the Council," Obi-Wan quipped smiling gratefully at her as he signed. "Seriously Bant it's okay. I'll be fine. I don't let him get to me."

"I just worry about you," she said allowing her concern to fill her signing. "There's no reason to be that mean, we're all striving for the same goal after all."

"Yes well the hope is he'll grow out of it at least," Obi-Wan sighed as he turned back to his studies. Noticing that Bant still looked upset on his behalf he gave her a gesture to join him which she happily obliged to doing. After several hours of both studying and mock assigning increasing silly signing words to various fauna and flora they were shooed out by Master Jocasta Nu. Bant walked back tired to her room rubbing her bulbous eyes as she went. She was unaware that her support along with Master Yoda and Garen was a big help to him during those trying periods and moments like this were ones the two would carry forward into his apprenticeship. But at the moment Bant was content that she'd shown her friend that she cared and wanted him to succeed. That was enough for her.