I saw this one picture of a Jedi Shmi on Tumblr and I can't for the life of me find it! But it gave me this brilliant idea that I just had to write! I know I have a million other stories that I haven't even gotten close to finishing, but I just had to start this!
Happy reading!
Chapter 1
Shmi Skywalker knew little of fear. Her entire life she had faced trials that challenged her mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. She had been trained to face the rigors of battle and the importance of inner peace. Taught that love of all things was paramount to keeping peace and balance. She had been trained to be a Jedi. The peacekeepers of the galaxy and the neutral hand of the Repubic's justice. Or, at least she used to be. Shmi wrapped her tattered cloak tighter about herself, rocking gently to sooth the warm bundle in her arms. The babe cooed as he nestled closer to her and she smiled despite herself. Tatooine was not the most ideal place to raise a child, but if there is a bright center to the universe, Tatooine was the farthest planet from it, which conveniently also put it far out of the control of the Republic and the Jedi who would no doubt take the baby from her.
She never knew her own family. Her earliest memories were always of the Jedi who she had thought her brothers and sisters. Master Yoda had great wisdom and was like a grandfather to everyone. He also had an interesting sense of humor that could always make the other younglings smile. Master Windu could be strict and harsh at times, but there was a protective kindness in him that had a way of making her feel safe. Training as his Padawan terrified her at first, but by the end, she could not imagine gaining a better teacher, nor a better friend.
The baby whimpered as the sand whirled around them in the small hovel she had settled them in for the night. With no money, no food, and no shelter, Shmi whispered encouraged patience to her son. The suns would rise soon, and once they did, she would make her way into town as if she were a spice trader. What credits she had should be enough to pay for some water and shelter for a few days, but they had to wait until morning. The crowds of beings of all kinds of worlds would hide her, keep her from standing out. The last thing she needed was rumors drawing bounty hunters in hoping there was a price on her head. Leaving Coruscant had been hard enough and she was loathe to start a fight with bounty hunters that would no doubtably force her to draw her lightsaber. The weapon itself would draw the attention of the Jedi and thus lead them to her. They would force her to give up her son.
Shmi had never imagined herself as a mother. Jedi were not permitted to have families. But the day she found out she was pregnant, she was in such shock and disbelief. It was impossible. Traveling across the galaxy had meant that she'd had lovers before, but they never meant anything. But this time there had been no lover. Her entire first trimester she had been in denial. The tests were wrong, her morning sickness was just a stomach bug— an illness from her last mission, the weight gain was just stress… but by the second, she had no further way to deny it. She was pregnant. And for the first time since her fist solo mission as a Jedi Knight, she longed to be a Padawan again, longed for the days when her master could tell her exactly how to handle the situation. But she couldn't. She already knew exactly what her master would say. She knew what normally happened, and in this case, with no father even involved, she knew that this child would be denied any sort of normal upbringing even by Jedi standards. And much to her own shock, she actually wanted a part in this child's life. She wanted to raise her child, she felt a love for him that she'd never felt before— an attachment that was undoubtably forbidden by the teachings of the Jedi. And so, her only option was clear: leave. Leave the Republic, leave the Jedi, leave everything behind. Give her child a life that she had never had, raise him to be a good person, give him happiness, and love, and that should be enough. It will be enough.
In the distance, the dim lights from the nearby settlement shined like a beacon in the pitch black darkness. A new life awaited them. A life that she could honestly say terrified her. But as she glanced at her son in her arms, she swore the Force showed her a vision. A vision of her son as a young boy. Happy, excitable, and a feeling of overwhelming love and hope filled her. Shmi smiled as she traced his smooth brow and watched as the most beautiful blue eyes opened to regard her. "You're going to grow up to be so handsome, aren't you?" She cooed. "I… I don't even know what to name you," She laughed. "I could name you after my Jedi master. But you don't really look like a Mace, do you?" Shmi shook her head and planted a kiss on the light tuffs of blond hair that dusted the top of his head. He needed a name. But with everything else she had been so worried about, the name of her child had been far from her mind. She hasn't even been a mother too long, and she was already making a mess of it. Her son didn't look like a Mace. She thought about all the other men she knew in her life, and all the names that she could possibly call him, but none of them sounded right. "Caleb …Jard …Ki … Kit…" Shmi pursed her lips before she sighed, "I… I'm sorry, my love. I… I don't know…" she was just about to give up trying to find a name until the morning, when a thought passed through her mind. "Anakin," The name passed through her lips and it felt like one of the visions she had seen. "Anakin." The name felt right, and as if he approved of it, her son gurgled up at her before giving a light hiccup. Shmi laughed and kissed his head again, "It is a nice name, isn't it?" She asked, "Anakin Skywalker… sounds nice too," Shmi smiled as she looked back towards the town, "Just a few more hours, my little Ani," She said, "A few more hours."