101 Star Wars Variations 51: Jedi Fool

A man and his son are walking along.  The son is distracted, as all boys are, and the father is trying to capture his attention, as all fathers do.

"Did I ever tell you about the Jedi?" he asks.

The boy nods.  He's heard all his father's stories a million times.

"Well, this time will be different," the father says.  "This time, I tell you the truth."

The boy actually perks his head, curious.  Is it possible?  Will his father surprise him for a change?

"A long time ago," the father begins, "in a galaxy far, far away," which is not strictly true, but by the time he's done speaking, his son might certainly hope so, "the Jedi were the scourge of many worlds.  It's true!  They spread their numbers and their tyranny with impunity.  The Old Republic struggled for years to curtail them.  There had been a time when the Jedi were trusted, but that lasted long enough for the first of them to reveal their true nature.  It's important for me to note that the Sith were worse, mind you, not that it particularly matters.  They were competing tribes of notoriety, is all.  One day it was predicted that justice would be brought to the Jedi.  Naturally the Jedi themselves suppressed this prophecy for as long as they could, until it was no longer possible, until it came time to be fulfilled.  The Jedi savior destroyed both tribes.  What else would you expect?  That's what happened.  We've been free of their menace ever since."

"Daddy?" the boy asks after a while.

"Yes, son?"

"Is it okay if I still think of one or two of them as heroes?"

"Of course."