Chapter 34 - Reunion
DISCLAIMER: We (unfortunately) do not own Star Wars. :P
Author's Note: In which things wind down to a close... and Anakin is reunited with his children. :D Also... the scene with Anakin and Luke was written with a certain reader of mine in mine who loves Luke. ;)
Thank you all so, so much for all the support you've shown! I literally cannot believe that there is only an epilogue left in this fanfic. Lol.
~ Amina Gila
As he'd expected, Anakin has to remain while Bail gives a speech, talking about the reforms he intends to make now that he's officially the Emperor. With Anakin having handed the reins over to Bail while he's still alive, there's no need for an official ceremony like the one Anakin had intended to have. The Senate convenes for a recess, so Anakin and Bail head to Anakin's residence to await everyone's return.
"Ahsoka, what's the status?" Anakin asks, opening the comm channel to her as they wait on the landing platform.
"Obi-Wan made an announcement about the Death Star's imminent destruction," she reports, "And a number of Imperials fled before it occurred. We're currently picking up their pods with the Executor." Anakin had asked Piett to remain in the vicinity until the destruction was complete, so he could either offer reinforcements, or pick up the survivors in the aftermath.
"That is good to hear," Anakin replies. "There were a few… complications here, but I dealt with them. Bail is the new Emperor." He supposes that they might not see the revelation of his identity in such a way as a complication, but he does. Despite what Obi-Wan might say, Anakin has never quite learned the way with words that he has, making it harder for him to lead people on the way Obi-Wan does. Or the way Sidious did. Politics really is not his arena, and Anakin is grateful to finally be out of it.
"The Ghost has already made the jump to hyperspace though," Ahsoka tells him after a pause. "It should be arriving anytime."
"Good. Come back as soon as you're done out there, Snips." He smirks slightly on using her old nickname for her. It's not one he uses frequently anymore, maybe because it's a reminder of the times gone by. But those times were good as much as they were bad, so perhaps he should begin changing that. He knows that she'll like it.
"As you wish, Skyguy," she chirps, and he can almost see her smiling as he cuts the connection.
Ahsoka's right. They don't have to wait long, as it turns out. Only minutes pass before a large freighter touches down. The ramp lowers, and the twins appear at the top of it, looking down at their new, unfamiliar surroundings. A wave of relief crashes over Anakin when he sees them safe and sound with his own eyes. He had known, of course, that Obi-Wan would protect them, but that knowledge is very different than seeing them alive and unharmed.
"Father!" cries Luke, his voice betraying his joy.
"Daddy!" exclaims Leia, eyes widening with delight.
Without another word, the twins race down the ramp towards him and Bail, and Anakin drops onto one knee to catch whichever of them, or both of them, leaps at him first. He's not exactly surprised when Leia throws herself at Bail – she hasn't seen him in over a year, after all, and she's missed him greatly – and he would mind far more if it wasn't for the fact that he now has an armful of Luke, who seems quite intent on sticking them together forever, especially from the way that he's clinging to him, arms entwined around his neck, head resting on his shoulder, and legs wrapped around his waist.
"Are you alright?" Anakin asks him quietly, as Obi-Wan comes down the ramp, followed by the clones – Rex, Cody, and Echo – all of whom seem relatively unharmed.
Luke nods, and Anakin senses the fear he'd felt through their bond. A pang of guilt shoots through him because it's his fault that the twins were kidnapped. He's lucky that Tarkin didn't simply have them killed after Sidious' death, though using them as a bargaining chip was highly effective. Still, Anakin can only be grateful that they weren't hurt. It would have been easy to keep them alive without keeping them healthy.
Anakin stands, still holding Luke in his arms, silently acknowledging that he doesn't want to let him go either. These past few days have been the longest he's been separated from them since they were reunited, and it's been so hard. "I missed you," he murmurs to his son as he nods to Obi-Wan and the clones. "How was the trip?" he asks them.
"It was good," Obi-Wan answers for all of them as the door to his residence opens behind them. Owen and Beru step outside, expressions betraying their relief. They've been here since last night, and Anakin knows how fearful they were after hearing the news. Han and Chewie are still here as well, partially because Anakin wanted them around in case worst came to worse and the plan to rescue the twins and stop Tarkin backfired. He imagines that they're currently in their ship in the hanger bay.
"Luke! Leia!" exclaims Beru. "I'm so glad that you're safe!" She hurries towards them, taking in the fact that Luke is holding onto Anakin like there's no tomorrow, and Leia is pressing herself against Bail's side, clinging to his hand.
Luke turns his head enough to reassure her – and Owen – that he and his sister are alright. That's when Anakin catches sight of a human man standing next to a female Twi'lek at the top of the ramp. "Who are they?" he queries, glancing at his former master, as the clones disappear inside the building after he motions that they're dismissed.
"Kanan Jarrus and Hera Syndulla," Obi-Wan introduces. "They're the leaders of the Ghost, and Ahsoka knew them because of her anti-Empire work."
Looking at them, Anakin gets the distinct impression that Kanan is glad the clones are gone, and he also realizes that he was once a Jedi from the strength of his Force signature. If he was a Padawan – he looks as if he might have been – then he could well have seen his master die. No wonder he was uneasy.
"I assume you want to stay here until Ahsoka returns?" Anakin asks them.
"Yes," Hera replies, exchanging a look with Kanan. "We will."
Nodding to them, Anakin gestures for everyone to go inside. It'll be far more comfortable once they're all sitting in the living room. In the end, it's actually not, because Luke refuses to let go of Anakin, and Leia wants to sit next to him, so they end up crowding onto a large couch together. Luke is seated in Anakin's lap, while Obi-Wan is on his right, and Leia on his left – her hand curled into his sleeve as she rests her head on his arm. Bail is sitting next to Leia.
"What now?" Obi-Wan inquires once everyone is settled.
"I don't know," Bail admits, shaking his head. "The galaxy has been torn apart so badly, that I fear it will take years for anything to be resolved."
"It will," Anakin states with assurance, shamelessly leaning against Obi-Wan's side. They haven't had the chance to talk, but at the same time, they hardly need to. The way that they're holding onto each other's Force signatures says more than words ever could. It's finally over for both of them. They can stop fighting because there isn't anything more which they need to fight. And most of all, they still have each other; Anakin wouldn't sacrifice this for anything. All his life, he's only ever wanted Obi-Wan to care about him, wanted to be worth something to someone, wanted to be viewed as something more than whatever uses he could have to others.
When Obi-Wan and Ahsoka pulled him back from the brink, they also proved to him that, despite his past, despite everything he's been through, he is worth something, not because he's useful, but because he's Anakin, and to them, he's irreplaceable.
"We'll need to expose the extent of Sidious' crimes so that the public can understand who has been in control," Anakin points out. "That will do much in decreasing whatever support he might still have." He's always been a strategist, and maybe there aren't any more wars for him to fight, but he'll help in the political arena when he can. After everything he's put the galaxy through – him and Sidious both – he wants to offer some repayment.
They discuss ideas back and forth for a while, Owen and Beru finally warming up to the topic enough that they offer their own opinions. Anakin feels it when Ahsoka arrives, their bond snapping back into full awareness, her presence shining brightly. "Ahsoka's back," he states, interrupting the long debate which Bail and Obi-Wan had gotten into.
Luke scrambles off Anakin's lap, racing for the door with Leia right behind him. Ahsoka seems to be their mother as much as she is their aunt, at times, mainly because the twins never knew Padme. Anakin pushes aside the sting of bitterness at the thought as he and Obi-Wan follow them. Ahsoka lands in her X-wing fighter, leaping to the ground with a grin on her face.
"Aunt 'Soka!" shriek the twins as they throw their arms around her excitedly.
When they finally let go, Anakin is there, nearly lifting her off her feet in a crushing embrace. "I'm so proud of you, Ahsoka," he tells her. He knows she made the shot. She doesn't need to tell him that she did. "You saved a lot of people." If she'd failed or missed, he doesn't want to know how many planets would have ended up destroyed as a result.
"I only did what you would have done, Anakin," she responds with a warm smile, "And it's all because of your training."
Anakin feels a flush of embarrassment creep up, and he glances over at Obi-Wan. "Well," he says jokingly, "You probably ought to thank Obi-Wan for that then, since he trained me, and Force knows how hard that was."
Obi-Wan steps to his side, resting a comforting hand on his shoulder as their bond sings with a shared affection so deep that words couldn't do it justice. "You both did well today," he states simply, "But what comes next might be even harder."
Standing there with his siblings next to him, his children mere feet away, Anakin knows that everything will be alright in the end, regardless of how long it takes them to achieve true peace. Every day will be an adventure, a blessing even, and he intends to live life to its fullest. It's what his mother would have wanted him to do, and it's what Padme would have wanted too.