"Dammit! WHERE is it?!" Luke hissed in frustration, a scowl on his face, as he haphazardly tossed aside one box before reaching over and going through the other boxes of stuff along the far wall of his room for about the third time.

"Where is what, Kid?" Han asked in confusion. He and Chewie had been helping Luke all morning bring all his stuff they'd brought over from England in the Falcon upstairs into his bedroom and unpacking it, and at the same time, as each box was emptied, Luke was filling the now empty boxes with stuff from his childhood. Toys, mostly. Broken ones. Lots of them. Things that he would certainly no longer use. But, now he was tearing everything apart looking for the one small object that he needed to put a working lightsaber back in his hand. And, it was frustrating the hell out of him that he wasn't finding it.

Surely it was here somewhere.

"It's…" He frowned. He'd never explained much about the Force, or his lightsaber, to Han. He'd given his friend the bare basics, and that was all Han wanted to know about that "hokey religion." Still, Han and Chewie had helped Mara pack his stuff up from their place just outside London. If anyone knew where it was, it would be him. "It's a little crystal. It would have been in the top drawer of my dresser. I had it in a little brown paper bag," Luke explained, as he continued rifling through another box.

Han glanced at Chewie, who shrugged and said something Luke didn't understand…like usual. "Nope, sorry, Kid. Neither of us have seen anything like that in your stuff."

Luke stopped digging in the box in front of him, burying his face in his hands, taking deep breaths to calm the sudden panic that was quickly rising to the surface. "Do you think Mara might have packed it?" Mara was currently unpacking her own stuff in her new quarters over in the Jedi Academy.

Chewie said something again, and Han translated. "Chewie packed the stuff from your drawers. I guess it's possible Mara packed it somewhere, but I doubt it." Han shrugged, standing behind Luke with his hands on his hips.

Luke ran his hands through his hair, groaning. "Maybe it's still there in London. We could go back, right? Maybe look for it? I mean, this is important, Han."

"Luke," Han sighed, "Why is this crystal so important? I didn't peg you for the type to get into jewelry." Luke shot his friend an irritated look. Han shrugged again and held up his hands innocently, "What?"

Luke just rolled his eyes and continued to look through the boxes. "That crystal is special, alright? It powers a lightsaber. I need it to build another lightsaber to replace the one I lost in Switzerland."

Han shrugged, bewildered, not understanding what the big deal was. "So, go get another one."

Luke paused, frowning. When he'd gone on that mission to the Crystal Temple in Nepal to steal the red crystal for his lightsaber, he would have said the same thing. It was just a means to an end—a way to power one of his primary weapons. But then, standing in that cave, he'd felt…drawn to the other crystal. It somehow called to him through the Force on a very personal level. He knew that he shouldn't have done it, but he couldn't help himself, and he'd answered that call and grabbed it, and he'd hidden it away this whole time. After he'd deserted Palpatine, there were nights that he could literally feel the crystal calling to him, tugging at him through the Force, almost enticing him to replace the red crystal in his lightsaber with this other one. More than once, he'd taken it out of the drawer to do just that, but…each time he hadn't felt ready. Something deep within him always held him back, left him feeling uncertain. So, he'd put it away again.

Now it was lost, and he felt as if he'd lost part of himself. And, it was driving him crazy, like an itch he couldn't scratch. "It's complicated." He muttered sourly, his face set in a frown.

Han and Chewie glanced at each other, and Chewie shrugged as if to say I have no idea why he's so moody about that. Han sighed again. "I'm sorry about the rock, Kid. I'm sure it'll turn up." He paused, trying to appear nonchalant, making a show of examining his nails. "Sooo…when does your sister get home from school today?"

Luke scowled at the reminder of where she was. Even though they'd returned home just the night before, things were already busy in the Skywalker household. Leia, who had missed a bunch of school, insisted that she needed to get back to her classes, but given that today was Friday, she would have at least the weekend ahead to spend time with him. He had spent nine years away from his twin, and now that they were back together again, he didn't want to give up any more time with her than was absolutely necessary, but at the same time, he knew she'd just spent the last two weeks traveling the globe helping to look for him. She'd missed a lot of classes because of it…and he wanted her to be successful and knew her education was important to her, just like their younger brother Hayden. "She said she'd be home about four," He replied. "Why?"

Han suddenly found one of his old toy rockets very interesting. "Oh...No reason. Just wondering when you'd see her again. That's all."

Luke stopped digging through boxes, and cast a quizzical look at his friend, suddenly feeling…uneasy. "When I'll see her again?" He echoed in disbelief, his clear blue eyes focused sharply on his friend, who was now shifting his stance from foot to foot almost...guiltily. "I don't think that's something I have to worry about anymore." His voice was filled with suspicion. "Wait a minute...You aren't hitting on my sister, are you?!"

Han quickly gave him an innocent look, his hands pointing toward his own chest. "What, me? Never."

Luke wasn't buying it. He knew that look. That look was classic 'Han-speak' meaning that he most certainly was hitting on Leia. Luke shook his head in exasperation. "Seriously, Han?! Come on, Man! You're like…ten years older than us! Get real, will ya?! My father will never allow it!"

"I haven't hit on your sister!" Han insisted, and Chewie said something and then sounded like he was laughing hysterically. "Yeah!" Han motioned toward the large Russian man, "Chewie's right. She hit on me!"

"Oh, right," Luke scowled, "Uh-huh, yeah...somehow I doubt that…."

"Kid, I kid you not," Han interrupted seriously, holding his right hand, palm up, facing Luke,"She literally walked over and laid a whopper of a kiss on me the moment I walked through the door of our house before we left for Switzerland. Your mom was standing right there, too and saw the whole thing! But...well, she's a damn good kisser! Knocked me for a loop! Can you blame me?! "

Luke was stunned, speechless, his eyebrows shooting up to his hairline. He couldn't imagine Leia kissing guys period, let alone random ones she'd never really met before, but his mind lingered on the memory of her briefly meeting Han in the Namibia base. The look that had passed between them had been almost molten…."Gross, Man," Luke groaned, "You're robbing the cradle! Putting the moves on my sister like that!" If Luke hadn't been so upset by this surprising revelation, he'd have laughed outright at the look on Han's face. It was like...innocently guilty, if there was such a thing, and Chewie doubled over, slapping his hands on his thighs, laughing all the harder at this exchange.

"I haven't done anything!"

"But you're planning on it!"

"No…"

"Ahem." Both of them stopped,heads whipping round towards the door to Luke's bedroom. Shmi stood there, an amused look on her face, her brown eyes sparkling. Clearly, she'd heard every word of the exchange. "Luke, your parents are back home from the airport with your mom's parents."

Luke had been so busy freaking out about the fact that Leia had been kissing his best friend, that he hadn't noticed his grandmother's appearance in the doorway. "Uh, thanks for the info, Grandma," He grumbled, "We're...Well, I'm just trying to find something I seem to have lost in the move."

"Well, your dad says you need to come down and spend time with your grandparents." When Luke looked like he was about to argue with her, she held up her hands. "Don't shoot the messenger; although, he's right. I would like to spend more time with you, Sweetie, and your Papa and Nana are anxious to see you again after all these years."

Luke gritted his teeth, guilt washing over him…as well as annoyance. He now understood why his father hadn't just come upstairs to get him himself, or send him a message through their stupid Force-link. He could say no to his father, but he couldn't say no to his grandmother. And, his father knew it. Blast him! He stood up slowly, giving Han a pointed look. "Just a warning, but you should probably clear out of here now before my father finds out that Leia kissed you."

"You're telling him?!" Han asked, blanching and clearly appalled. "You're supposed to be my best friend! You're wouldn't rat me out like that, would you?!"

"Oh, I am your best friend," He remarked dryly, "But, I'm also pretty sure that my father has sensed the reason for my…current displeasure already, and I'm kinda surprised he hasn't already come charging up here to shove his lightsaber through you. He's kind've protective of the females in this family that way." Luke smirked watching sweat break out on Han's face.

Han cast a nervous glance towards Shmi, who shrugged. "I'd like to say my son wouldn't do that, but I can't make any guarantees." She winked. "Dads are naturally protective of their children, their little girls..and their only daughters especially." She was still smiling, enjoying Han's sudden discomfort immensely.

"Right," Han grumbled. "Well, ok then...Chewie, let's you and me get out of here." Chewie started to head for the open window, the same window Mara had climbed through the night before. Luke opened his mouth to stop them and tell them to just use the front door, but shaking his head, he sighed instead, leaving his room in his grandmother's wake to head downstairs. If his friends wanted to be weird and not use a door to get into his room like normal people, he wasn't about to stop them.

When he reached the bottom of the stairs leading to the kitchen, all of that was forgotten, though, as two elderly people he only vaguely recognized suddenly enveloped him in bear hugs, kissing his cheeks, crying, and saying a bunch of blubbered words that he couldn't understand for the life of him. He froze in their arms, stiff as a board, his eyes searching over their heads to look for his parents….only to find them standing in the kitchen, their heads bent together in the midst of a heated, whispered conversation. Oh yeah, he realized, looking at his father's murderous expression and his mother's exasperated one, his father had definitely figured out about Leia's kissing habits...and he was not happy. Not at all.

"T—thanks, guys, I mean...Grandma, Grandpa...it's…uh, really good to see you, too." He managed to squeeze out, feeling like he couldn't breathe with their arms wrapped so tightly around him, and realizing that his parents were not going to save him from their over zealous attention.

That seemed to make them realize that they were smothering him, and they hesitantly let him go, though they stayed in his personal bubble. "Oh, I'm sorry Luke, it's just that…we've missed you so much, Sweetheart!" His grandmother said, reaching up to ruffle his hair. "The last time we saw you, you were just a little boy and now…" tears sprung up in her eyes, and he could sense her anguish at having missed so many years of his life. "Oh, Luke…"

"We're just so happy you're home and safe, Son." His grandfather agreed, patting him on the shoulder, his eyes wandering over him, as though checking for physical injuries. "We'd almost given up hope that you would ever come back home…" His grandfather cleared his throat, obviously choked up at seeing his oldest grandson again.

Luke relaxed a little, peering into their faces, trying to remember them…but all he got was blurry images. "I'm sorry." He said through numb lips, truly meaning it, "I didn't mean to cause so much pain for everyone." He wondered how much they knew of his situation—how he'd literally been forced to believe that no one in his family was missing him. He had told himself for years that it didn't matter, but now…

"It's not your fault, Luke." His grandfather suddenly said bitterly, and to Luke's surprise, he sent a glowering look towards….his father?! What in the world was that for? "If you weren't…."

"Ruwee!" His grandmother hissed, glaring daggers at her husband. " Stop it! You said that you wouldn't bring that up ever again!"

"I know, Jobal, but it's true! They took him from us because of who he is! Because of who his father is! It's not fair to Luke…" Luke stared at his grandparents in shock, his mouth dropping wide open, as he realized just what his grandfather was suggesting. All of this happened because Luke was Force Sensitive, because he was the son of Anakin Skywalker. And, technically, his grandfather had a point…but Luke couldn't change his parentage, his genetics, or who he was. His mother had chosen to be with his father, knowing the risks involved with such a choice. He opened his mouth, about to interrupt his grandparents, to try to change the very awkward subject, but as he did…

Another memory hit him. Short, and yet it spoke volumes.

He was four and floating a toy space ship over his hands with the Force, frozen, watching as his dad argued with his grandpa. "You will not tell my son not to use his powers!" His dad was trying to keep his voice down, trying to keep from scaring Luke, but Luke could nevertheless feel his father's total frustration with his father-in-law.

"It's dangerous!" His grandpa hissed, "What if he uses that power when he starts going to school? Most children can't levitate objects." A frustrated sigh erupted from his grandpa. "Against my better judgment, I've tried to keep you and your world hidden from the prying eyes of the government, for my daughter's and my grandchildren's sakes, but if your twins start showing off their powers in public…" He paused, looking worriedly over at Luke. "Maybe you should home school them."

There was a spike of fury in the Force from his father, and Luke watched his dad open his mouth to make a scathing retort… "Daddy," Luke's voice was young, full of innocence. The toy rocket fell to the floor. "I'm sorry. Don't…don't be mad at Papa. I won't do it again."

His dad turned then, and Luke could see the effort his father was making to keep the fury off of his expression as he faced his son. His blue eyes looked at the rocket, and then at Luke, before he knelt down so that he and his son were face to face. The rocket levitated, this time by his father's will, floating gently back into Luke's hands. Once it had landed in his tiny hands, his dad reached up and ruffled Luke's hair affectionately. "Your grandpa is just worried for you, Luke. You shouldn't use this power you have in front of people who aren't…like us. But here at home, or with other Jedi, like Uncle Ben and Aunt Soka and Galen, I want you to use it as much as possible." Luke met his father's eyes, and he could hear his grandpa sigh in frustration before walking into their kitchen to find Leia or his mom. "Don't ever be ashamed of who you are, Luke."

The vision ended as quickly as it came, and when Luke jolted back to reality, he realized that his grandparents were all staring at him in concern, Shmi having walked over to stand with Ruwee and Jobal. He realized that he was staring off into space like a fool, and his face flushed hot in embarrassment. "Are you okay, Luke?" His Nana asked. He also realized that his parents had gone silent in the kitchen as well, and he could feel his father reaching out to him with concern through their bond.

"I'm…fine. Sorry." He offered a sheepish smile. "I think I'm going to grab a bite to eat. I haven't had lunch yet, so…we'll, uh, talk once you're all settled in. Is that cool?"

His grandparents all looked at one another, obviously concerned by his behavior. He had a feeling people would be looking like that a lot around him as he struggled to adjust to everything. He tried not to let it bother him, even though part of him hissed that he wasn't some invalid who needed watching every moment of every day. "Sure, Luke." His grandfather said, offering an apologetic smile. "I didn't mean to offend you…"

But, Luke was already moving toward the kitchen, hearing Threepio approach his grandparents to offer his assistance. As he entered the kitchen, his parents watched him, glancing at one another, silently communicating. Luke ignored them, going straight for the fridge. As he opened it, Artoo, who had been at his father's side, rolled over and gently bumped his leg affectionately, tootling a greeting, his optical sensor gazing up at Luke. "Hey, Artoo," He muttered, reaching down to pat the droid's dome affectionately. He had re-met the little droid that morning at breakfast before Leia had gone to school, and he felt an odd sense of…attachment to the astromech.

"I'm sorry, Luke. My parents mean well," His mom suddenly said, her tone apologetic. "They didn't find out about your father's powers until after I became pregnant with you and Leia. My dad, especially, has a hard time with it. He doesn't really understand it, and he just sees it as a danger...especially after everything that's happened with Palpatine."

Luke pulled out some left-over lasagna and a can of Dr. Pepper, shrugging his shoulders. "No big deal." He said, "They aren't completely wrong."

He felt his father tense through their bond, but there was no outright disagreement. Padme frowned, but didn't comment on it. Instead, she said, "Before your grandparents come back downstairs, we wanted to talk to you about something."

He plopped a plate of lasagna into the microwave, covered it, and turned it on to heat his food, then popped the top of the can to take a swig of soda. "Sure." He said noncommittally. Artoo still followed him, beeping something at him. He supposed he could lean down and check the translation on the droid, or install the app for droids like this on his phone, but he was more concerned with what it was his parents wanted to talk to him about. It felt…strange. He'd spent so long on his own taking care of himself without having to have "parent talks" that it was both uncomfortable and intense at the same time, wondering what it was they wanted to talk about.

There was another shared glance between his parents. His mom was practically coated with apprehension, but steely determination, while his father still seemed…tense over finding out about Leia's kissing habits and hearing his in-laws go off about their Force abilities. Luke began to take another sip of the bubbly drink. "Luke, we believe it would be best if you went back to school." His mom finally said, getting straight to the point.

He took a sharp breath, forgetting that he was still drinking the soda, and began to cough violently, managing to set the soda can down on the counter while he sputtered. His mom moved toward him to help, but he waved her off, finally managing to take in a deep breath. "I'm sorry, but what did you say?" He managed to croak, his voice raw, staring incredulously between his parents.

Although she was clearly nervous about his reaction to this insane idea, he could see in her dark eyes that she was determined and resolved nonetheless. "As much as we want you to never leave our sight again, we also want you to live as healthy and normal a life as you can, Luke…physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially. Part of that process is getting an education so that you can go to college and achieve whatever it is that you want to achieve in life, as well as interacting with other kids your age." Kid. He hadn't thought of himself as a 'kid' in so long…the term didn't feel right. He'd done more in his seventeen years of life than most adults ever did in their lifetime. The idea of him actually going to a school, interacting with normal, innocent people who had no idea of the dangers that were out there on this planet, dangers that he constantly had faced almost daily…

"I got an education." Luke informed her, trying not to lose his temper. His sarcasm with his mother the day before, and his father's reaction to it, replayed in his mind. More than that, he didn't want to be mad at his mother...which was exactly why his father was not the one telling him this. "I didn't just learn how to kill people, you know."

His mom flinched, just barely, but he still caught it and winced internally. The reminder that he was a killer… "Do you have any school transcripts to prove that?" He was silent. Of course he didn't, but he'd spent those years focusing on not only learning to fight and kill, but also survival skills, and even the essential subjects like reading, writing, mathematics, science, and history. In fact, they were rather vigorous programs, so much so that he had struggled with that the most…well, not math and science. Those subjects came as naturally as breathing to him. Maybe I can help Hayden with his science project after all, the sudden thought crossed his mind, before he shook his head to focus on...what was it again? Oh, yeah. School. Transcripts. Right...But, he realized, considering that the Inquisitor program was off of any official record a normal government would have, Luke knew that there was no way he could produce transcripts.

He kept silent. "I thought not." His mom paused, looking him over. "What do you want to do, Luke?"

It was a good question. One Luke didn't really have the answer to. Honestly, he hadn't thought past killing Palpatine...He knew he wanted Mara in his life. He knew he wanted Han and Chewie around…and he supposed that he wanted to get to know the family he'd been taken from better. Those weren't financial desires, though. To live, he needed money to afford shelter, food, necessities and comforts for himself and whoever was with him. "I guess…I figured I'd just help Han and Chewie." He didn't say the word smuggling, but his parents clearly understood what he was getting at, and he could feel the sharp disapproval radiate through his bond with his father, though his father's expression was still intently focused on listening. It was true, though. Han made good money, and if he kept bounty hunting, he would have a good profit. But, it wasn't a stable lifestyle, and frankly, now that he really thought about it, he couldn't see himself doing it for the rest of his life either. But, what then…? "What did I want to be when I was little?" He'd posed the question before he could stop himself.

Surprised, his parents exchanged a look. "You wanted to build spaceships," His father spoke, a small smile on his face, "You wanted to be in outer space."

"Like your dad." His mom added with a smile, her gaze far away, remembering his youth.

Luke's mind flashed to the ship he'd been drawing and perfecting for years. He remembered Mara's observation that space wasn't just an interest for him, it was part of his very soul. The idea of him flying that ship through space…now that appealed to him. Not because his father was the director of NASA. Not because his father was the first person to set foot on Mars. Not because his father built ships like they were no more complicated than a Lego toy spaceship. It appealed to him because something in his very blood cried out for it, something drove him to want to fly, to be out among the stars, exploring…

When he didn't respond, his father calmly pointed out, "If you still want to do that, you need at least a Master's degree."

And, to get that Master's degree, he would need to get into college. A good college. To get into college, he would need transcripts proving that he'd been to school. "So, what...are they going to make me go through everything I've missed?" Luke asked, his voice dry at the thought. All that work…. It would take years to finish. He would be thirty-something by the time he graduated friggin' high school. Maybe he would just stick to smuggling and bounty hunting…

"We've already contacted the school district this morning. They…understand at least the basic situation. They're willing to give you a comprehensive test to evaluate your skill level, and based on the results of that test, they'll place you into the appropriate grade level in high school." His mother responded.

Some of his tension relaxed. That wasn't completely unmanageable. But, the idea of going to school, surrounded by curious, gossiping, normal teenagers…he shuddered. He hadn't even gone outside his family's private grounds yet, where the reporters were still camped out at the gates, trying to get a look at him. What if the reporters found out that he was going to school? He didn't feel like getting swarmed…but worse, what if Palpatine decided to strike him there? He didn't even have his lightsaber to protect him now. What if…

Leia will be with you. His father's voice drifted into his mind, reading his fears. There are other Jedi there, too…including some of your old friends. They are aware of the danger, and are prepared should an attack happen. He hesitated, still not sure…but he couldn't keep hiding forever. He would go mad anyway, being stuck in one confined place. Mara was right—his place was out among the stars. To get there, he would need to go back to school…even if he hated the idea of it. So, standing taller, he shoved his hands in his pockets and bit the bullet...

"When do I start?"


Sorry for the late update. My cat died, I got sick, and then for some reason, my word program wouldn't let me do anything in it for like a week, so I didn't get this finished earlier than now. It's been a pretty weird few weeks. But it's up!

I also started a third story. This is still my primary story, but I enjoy writing Star Wars fanfic, so... why not?

Review! You guys are the best!

Love,

Sarah