Luke stood, looking in horror and shock at the throne. The Emperor's dead body slumped in the chair as the lightsabre spiralled back to Luke's hand. For a moment, all was silent.

"Luke?" Mark asked quietly, feeling the battle station lurch beneath him. "Luke, we need to get out of here-"

The Jedi turned to Vader. "Will you join us?"

The Sith looked at his old master, then at Luke. "I was wrong, my son. Anakin Skywalker is not dead."

Luke gave a smile and bowed to his father. "You won't regret it."

Mark got to his feet and grinned at Luke. Vader walked to the edge of the catwalk and gazed down at the reactor core. He un-looped the lightsabre from his belt and moved to drop it into the void.

"Wait," Luke stopped him. "I think I know what to do with it."

Later that day, just as the stars began to appear in the sky over Endor, the treetop village celebrated. Rebel soldiers and Ewoks alike danced and rejoiced in the firelight. Three figures sat high above, watching from a tree branch a fair distance away.

Harrison, Carrie and Mark had no reason to celebrate.

Yes, they'd won- the Emperor was dead, and Vader, now Anakin Skywalker, had been returned to the light. The second Death Star was gone and the galaxy was free from the Empire. But it wasn't their fight, and never had been. Luke appreciated that they'd wanted space, and so after meeting Lando Calrissian and Wedge Antilles the three of them had made their way to the tree. There wasn't much to say, short of sharing the various sides of the story and confiding in each other the different skills in the Force they'd discovered.

Harrison looked at the stars and desperately wished to see some of the familiar constellations he'd grown up with- but Earth was possibly thousands, if not millions, of light-years away. Mark too gazed upwards as fireworks exploded in the sky. They glittered yellow, red, green, blue and many colours the Americans had no words for- a bittersweet memory of the home they'd left behind.

In his hands Mark held Darth Vader's old lightsabre. The focusing crystal had been removed and replaced by a new blue one. He ignited it and the soft glow of the blade illuminated his face. As the lightsabre's hum penetrated the silence around them, two small bird-like creatures landed on a branch above the trio's heads.

Carrie turned to Harrison. "What're they saying?"

He laughed. "They're saying 'food' quite a lot. Oh, and they're annoyed that we're blocking their nest."

Mark moved away from the trunk. "Sorry," he apologised to the birds.

They chirped at him and flew into the hole that Mark had been covering. Carrie smiled softly and brought her knees up to her chin.

"Do you miss home?" She asked the other two.

"Yes." Mark extinguished the lightsabre and set it down next to him.

Harrison didn't reply. Silence surrounded them again.

Luke sat around one of the campfires with Leia, Han, Chewie, and Lando, laughing and joking with them as the night continued.

Luke, we need to talk. Obi-Wan's voice disrupted his thoughts- Luke wasn't surprised, because he'd been expecting the call.

Okay, wait a minute. He replied. Then he turned to the others. "Sorry, I need to go for a moment."

Leia shot him a concerned look, but Luke smiled reassuringly at her as he got up. "I'll only be a few minutes," he told her, and then remembered something. "Oh, and when the others get back can you send them over?"

"Of course, kid. Now go answer the call of the Jedi." Han grinned as he slipped an arm around Leia.

Luke turned and walked off too a relatively abandoned walkway. The blue, almost ghostly images of Obi-Wan and Yoda were already there.

"First," Obi-Wan started, smiling, "well done returning Anakin the light side. I've already seen him and we've been talking."

"But… I killed the Emperor."

"We always knew it was a risk, Luke. But you took it well. Actually, we've come to talk about-"

"I know," Luke cut him off. "Carrie, Mark and Harrison can't stay here."

Yoda nodded and stepped forward. "Go back, they must, or risk greater issues we may."

"What do you mean by that?"

"We're not sure," Obi-Wan admitted. "But we're worried that people from Earth will be missing them soon- even though the Force seems to have temporarily suspended time there, or at least slowed it. They need to get back quickly."

Luke's face fell, and for a moment Obi-Wan realised he looked heart-wrenchingly like the young farm boy he'd been four years ago. "But they can use the Force, Ben! Don't you see? I could- we could- use this! Groups of Jedi like in the Clone Wars. And we could make it work so that it…" He trailed off, seeing his old master's face.

"No." Obi-Wan said softly.

"What will become of them?"

"Serve their own galaxy, they will; though with the Force it will be not. Other destinies they have to follow."

Like what? Luke asked silently, momentarily angry, What could be more important than teaching them to use their abilities?

"Luke?"

The voice made him turn. Mark stood behind him, with Carrie to the left and Harrison to the right. Luke began to wonder if they were aware that they'd sneaked up on him. But as he looked at them, he saw they were focused behind him, on Ben and Yoda.

"Who're they?" Harrison asked, then paused. "Wait- I've seen one of them before." He pointed at Yoda. "Your picture was in the book that brought us here."

Mark coughed and asked quietly, "Are you taking us home?"

"What?" Carrie asked, turning to him, "I thought you loved it here!"

"I do… but I miss home. And they need us there."

All three turned to Obi-Wan and Yoda, begging for an answer that they were half-scared to hear.

"You can go home, if you want to," Obi-Wan replied, then added, "but this might be your only chance."

Luke couldn't meet Mark's eyes. The teenager took a step forward and handed the lightsabre in his hand back to Luke. "I'm going." He declared, as Luke took the weapon.

"Me too… I've got exams." It was the only reason Carrie could come up with, aside from the fact that it felt like the right thing to do.

Luke smiled as Harrison nodded. "Okay, I'm in."

"Go soon, you must." Yoda looked over at Luke; the Jedi's eyes were full of sorrow and pleas.

"Masters, Leia and Han will want to say goodbye."

Smiling understandably, Obi-Wan put a hand on Luke's shoulder. "Of course."