Author's Notes: Here's chapter 6. Hope you like it.
Disclaimer: George Lucas owns Star Wars. I write for fun, not money.
Fear part 6
Keren woke slowly to find herself lying on a bed in a small, but cozy circular room with pale yellow walls. There was one other (empty) bed in the room, several chairs, and a framed portrait with old-fashioned curlique script hanging beside a window.
She blinked and sat up, wondering where she was. Just then it all came back to her-her arrival at the Jedi Academy, how Anakin and Luke had been introducing her to the other students-what were they called? Padawans?- and how she had fainted when that great hairy monster had rushed in, about to shoot her.
Well, she obviously wasn't dead so the Jedi must have restrained him. She didn't seem to be injured either. But what was she supposed to do now?
There was a knock on the door and a voice called, "Keren, are you awake? Can I come in?"
Luke had been waiting outside in the hall, meditating while he waited for Keren to regain consciousness. He and a remorseful Chewbacca had carried her up to the third floor to the last empty bedroom while Anakin and the padawans began preparing dinner. Anakin had sensed that some of Keren's fear was related to him and felt that it would be more considerate to her if he stayed away for now. But they didn't want her to be alone when she came to so Luke had offered to wait outside her room and try to reassure her.
As soon as he sensed Keren's presence becoming more alert, Luke knocked on the door and asked to come in. The voice that answered him sounded small and uncertain. "Yes."
Luke entered and sat down in a chair across from Keren's bed. "How do you feel?"
Keren hesitated. It was a simple question, but she hated talking about her feelings. No one ever understood how she could be so afraid all the time, and she always felt that people were judging her, wondering what was wrong with her, but the young Jedi was looking at her with sympathetic eyes, and all of a sudden she found herself saying, "I guess I'm all right. What happened to that hairy monster?"
Luke laughed, but it was a friendly laugh. Keren could tell that he wasn't poking fun at her.
"Chewie can be intimidating, can't he? I remember when I first met him I thought he would pull my arms off if I looked at him wrong," he said. "It didn't help that Han kept implying he was this half-civilized, badtempered beast, but Chewbacca's actually very kind-hearted. It's just that he's a loyal friend and when he heard the alarm going off, he was afraid we were in danger."
"So he's a friend?" Keren asked.
"Part of the family," Luke replied. "And he's really sorry for frightening you."
"Oh, that's all right," Keren smiled a little sadly. "I'm frightened of just about everything."
"Why?"
"I don't know exactly," she admitted. "It's just that everything is so bright, and loud, and crowded. And there are so many people everywhere. I don't know how to talk to people or act around them."
"Pretty different from that little underground room, huh?" Luke commiserated.
"Very. Sometimes I don't think I'll ever get used to being out here."
"You just need more time," Luke tried to reassure her.
Keren sighed, "But it's been a month already, and I'm not any better."
"Well, a month isn't that long, especially compared to the seventeen years you were trapped," he pointed out. "And it's probably even more difficult for you because you grew up there. You don't have any memories of being free or the outside world. Your mom is probably finding it a little easier to adjust than you are just because she at least can remember her life before being imprisoned."
"Yes, I think it is a little easier for her," Keren agreed. "And she and my father are really glad to be back together." Suddenly she looked a little awkward, "Um, I know what my father did, how he nearly killed you with the bysa virus. I'm sorry."
Luke shook his head. "That's not your fault. Besides, I understand. Your father, your whole family, suffered because of the Empire. I forgave him a long time ago."
"He's really a nice person," Keren continued. "I mean, I know what he did was wrong, but he's really not like that. He does care about people. And he's been so kind to my mother and to me. I just wish he hadn't-" she stopped and sighed. "I sound crazy. I guess it's hard to understand."
Luke gave her a wry grin. "You mean, how your father has done things you don't approve of, but you can see past that and love him anyway? I understand that perfectly. I could write a book about it."
Keren nodded. It was strange, but for a few minutes, she'd almost forgotten this friendly, kindhearted young man was Anakin Skywalker's son. Anakin Skywalker who had once been Darth Vader. "I guess you could."
For a little while they were quiet. Luke watched as Keren's expression became troubled and her eyes clouded. She had begun to relax and feel at ease, but now he could sense fear beginning to grow inside her again. He made a guess at what was bothering her this time.
"My father is very different now, too, you know," he said quietly. "He would never hurt you."
"Yes, I know. At least, that's what I've been telling myself," Keren agreed. "It's just when I saw him, I couldn't help but think about how he hurt my family. And I've heard about some of the other things he did when he was Darth Vader. I don't understand. Why has he changed? And if he's really a good person, how could he have done those things?"
"You ask all the tough questions right off the bat, don't you?" Luke mused.
Then, noticing her chagrined expression, he quickly added, "No, it's all right. You have a right to ask questions and wonder about Father. I'm just not sure I can give you answers that will satisfy you."
He paused, considering where to begin. "Well, Father turned back to the Light side for me. You see, when Father was Vader, he wanted me to join him on the dark side. We first met at Bespin, and it went badly, but I managed to escape and I sensed some lingering bit of good buried deep inside him. I decided to try to redeem him and bring him back to the Light. We met up again just before the battle of Endor-have you heard about the battle of Endor?"
As Keren nodded, he went on describing how Palpatine had baited him, how he and his father had dueled, how he had nearly fallen to the dark side but had managed to resist, and then how his father had saved his life when the Emperor had begun tormenting him with Force lightning.
"Falling to the dark side was a terrible mistake," Luke said with quiet intensity. "But Father did defeat Palpatine and destroy the Sith order, and he did something that was considered impossible-he renounced the dark side and came back to the Light. And if it weren't for him, the galaxy wouldn't be at peace now. The Empire might have lost the war, but they'd still be strong enough to cause problems."
Keren had been listening to the devotion in Luke's voice when he spoke of his father. "You really love him, don't you?"
"I always dreamed of my father when I was growing up," Luke told her. "I just knew he would have been this amazing person-kind and gentle, but strong and brave. And he would have loved me and been proud of me, even if I was the shortest kid in the class and didn't have lots of friends. Ever since he returned to the Light, he's made all those dreams I ever had about him come true. Yes, I love him very much."
A lump came to Keren's throat. Luke was so sincere, she couldn't help but begin to see Anakin through his eyes. It was beautiful the way the two of them had reconciled. And she suddenly realized that she'd become so engrossed in the story that she'd forgotten to feel ill at ease or afraid. Maybe coming here had been a good idea after all.
She was feeling so confident that she was able to smile at Chewbacca a few minutes later when he knocked on the door and cautiously entered. He barked softly, apologetically at her, and when she smiled, he slowly held out a giant paw towards her.
Keren hesitated, but then she reached out and took it. "Hi, Chewbacca."
The Wookiee crinkled his eyes at her and Luke beamed at both of them. "See, Keren, everything will be fine. Just give yourself some time. What's up, Chewie?"
The Wookiee informed them that dinner was ready and they all headed downstairs to the dining room. Luke could feel Keren's nervousness when they entered to find Anakin and the padawans waiting for them, but she handled it surprisingly well. She gave them a shy smile and even introduced herself.
Anakin must have spoken to the padawans because no one mentioned the fainting spell or asked Keren hard-to-answer questions. They just said hello, that they were happy to meet her, and then spent most of the time talking about the lightsaber practice that afternoon and how they were going to construct their own in the morning.
Over the next days Keren tried to settle down to life at the Jedi Academy and get to know the others. It wasn't easy, but she slowly began to feel more at ease. Tera and Elissa were friendly, and as they were two teenage girls just a few years younger, she found herself identifying with them, or at least feeling that she could identify with them in time.
Gil won her heart the day after her arrival by approaching shyly and handing her a small bouquet of wildflowers.
"To make you feel at home," he'd explained. "When I lived on Nar Shaddaa, there were lots of mean people around and I was scared most of the time, too. But you don't have to worry now. Everybody here is nice. At least at the lake retreat," he seemed about to add something else, but then changed his mind and ran off to play.
She grew fond of Chewbacca and the droids as well. She didn't understand the Wookiee's language so they couldn't really talk, but they often exchanged friendly smiles.
Threepio reminded her of the protocol droid who had been their guard and companion, and oddly enough, she found that comforting. After all, it wasn't M4U's fault that Palpatine had had him wired with explosives set to go off if they attempted to escape. Otherwise, he had been nice enough and he had been a familiar part of her life.
But Luke was the one she felt most comfortable with, and the first few days after she came, he took time off from working with the padawans to help her feel more at ease. They went for walks in the woods, and Luke began teaching her to meditate. It seemed to help her nerves a little, and finally she began to feel calmer and more relaxed than she had since being released from Palpatine's prison.
Four days after Keren had come to the lake retreat, Luke went out on the terrace one night to find his father sitting alone on the steps, gazing at the stars. He sensed that Anakin was troubled and went to sit beside him.
"Hi, Father," he said softly, reaching to take his father's hand.
Anakin smiled at him, but it was a sad smile. "Hi, son."
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing, and everything," Anakin replied. "I was just thinking about how Keren has been affected so badly by her imprisonment, and wishing I could do something to help her. But right now, she's still afraid of me, and I don't know if I should approach her or not. She's so fragile. I don't want to make things worse."
"I've been talking with her about you," Luke told him. "Trying to explain how Palpatine manipulated you into believing her family would be reunited on Coruscant, how you thought her father would be helping the people of the galaxy. She knows you never meant for her or her mother to be imprisoned like that."
"Thank you, Luke, but don't make excuses for me. I am still responsible for what happened."
"I'm not making excuses for you, Father. Just trying to help Keren understand. And she is better," Luke added more cheerfully. "I'm thinking about starting to work with her on some things besides meditation tomorrow. Maybe we'll practice levitating some rocks. The others seemed to pick that up pretty quickly."
He caught a flash of doubt from Anakin. "What, Father? You don't think that's a good idea?"
Anakin was quiet a moment. Finally he said slowly, "I guess I'm beginning to wonder if training Keren as a Jedi might be a mistake."
"Why?"
"She's so traumatized by her past. And I feel terrible because that's my fault, not hers, but still, the fact is she's filled with fears and doubts and resentments. What if we train her and she ends up falling to the dark side? I feel like we're taking a little bit of a risk with Gil, and sometimes I really worry about him, but he's not nearly as troubled as Keren. The old Jedi would have never taken her on," Anakin said.
Luke considered his father's words. "I thought we'd decided that one of the mistakes that the old Jedi made was not teaching padawans to handle their emotions. I mean, it's a mistake to just say 'Don't feel anger,' and 'Don't feel fear,' because everyone feels those things sometimes, whether they're Jedi or not. The key is to learn to handle those emotions the right way."
Anakin nodded. "Yes, you're right about that."
"Well, I think we can teach Keren, and Gil, to handle their resentment and fear."
"I hope so," Anakin stared out at the still, dark water of the lake. "But sometimes the damage is too great, Luke. And I'm afraid that in Keren's case, it may be."
"So what do you think we should do? Just send her back home? After we told her she was welcome here, and she's just starting to make some progress? Because I think that would be the worst thing we could do," Luke said.
Anakin shook his head. "No, I don't think we should send her away. I owe it to her to try to help her. I want to help her. I can't bear to think of her being scarred for life like this. I'm just saying I don't know that we should train her. If she turned to the dark side." his voice trailed off.
The thought of being responsible for one of the padawans falling, the potential for damage that could be inflicted on the galaxy once again, and the knowledge of the suffering he'd already caused so many innocent people suddenly overcame Anakin. He buried his face in his hands and wept.
Luke wrapped his arms around his father and held him close, just as Anakin had held him so many times when he needed comfort.
//Shh, it'll be all right, Father// he reached for their mind-link. It was such a close, intimate way of communicating that in itself it could be a comfort to them. //Keren and Gil are both going to be all right. We'll help them. It'll be all right.//
After a little while, Anakin dried his tears, but he didn't move away from Luke's embrace. It was such a miracle to have his son's love. He could never quite get over that, in spite of everything he'd done, Luke still wanted him as his father. The love and friendship they shared was a priceless gift, one he gave thanks for every day of his life. He sent Luke a tremendous wave of gratitude and affection even as he cherished the feel of his son's arms around him, the touch of his hand as the boy stroked his hair.
//Thank you, Luke. I could never get along without you, you know.//
Luke wholeheartedly returned his love across their bond. //Well, that works out well, because I couldn't get along without you, either.// He patted his father's back. //We don't have to make a decision about Keren right now. I'll just keep working with her on meditating and helping her adjust to the world. We'll watch and see how she does for a few more weeks, and if you still think it would be wrong to train her, then we won't, okay?//
Anakin nodded. //That sounds like a good idea.// He raised his head, sat back, and smiled gratefully at his son. //Thank you, again, Luke. I know I've said it before, but I'll never deserve to have such a wonderful son as you are. I love you, though, so much. You are the most precious thing in my life.//
Luke gently squeezed his hand. //I love you, too, Father, with all my heart.//
Father and son sat on the steps and looked at the stars in companionable silence for a long time.
TBC
Disclaimer: George Lucas owns Star Wars. I write for fun, not money.
Fear part 6
Keren woke slowly to find herself lying on a bed in a small, but cozy circular room with pale yellow walls. There was one other (empty) bed in the room, several chairs, and a framed portrait with old-fashioned curlique script hanging beside a window.
She blinked and sat up, wondering where she was. Just then it all came back to her-her arrival at the Jedi Academy, how Anakin and Luke had been introducing her to the other students-what were they called? Padawans?- and how she had fainted when that great hairy monster had rushed in, about to shoot her.
Well, she obviously wasn't dead so the Jedi must have restrained him. She didn't seem to be injured either. But what was she supposed to do now?
There was a knock on the door and a voice called, "Keren, are you awake? Can I come in?"
Luke had been waiting outside in the hall, meditating while he waited for Keren to regain consciousness. He and a remorseful Chewbacca had carried her up to the third floor to the last empty bedroom while Anakin and the padawans began preparing dinner. Anakin had sensed that some of Keren's fear was related to him and felt that it would be more considerate to her if he stayed away for now. But they didn't want her to be alone when she came to so Luke had offered to wait outside her room and try to reassure her.
As soon as he sensed Keren's presence becoming more alert, Luke knocked on the door and asked to come in. The voice that answered him sounded small and uncertain. "Yes."
Luke entered and sat down in a chair across from Keren's bed. "How do you feel?"
Keren hesitated. It was a simple question, but she hated talking about her feelings. No one ever understood how she could be so afraid all the time, and she always felt that people were judging her, wondering what was wrong with her, but the young Jedi was looking at her with sympathetic eyes, and all of a sudden she found herself saying, "I guess I'm all right. What happened to that hairy monster?"
Luke laughed, but it was a friendly laugh. Keren could tell that he wasn't poking fun at her.
"Chewie can be intimidating, can't he? I remember when I first met him I thought he would pull my arms off if I looked at him wrong," he said. "It didn't help that Han kept implying he was this half-civilized, badtempered beast, but Chewbacca's actually very kind-hearted. It's just that he's a loyal friend and when he heard the alarm going off, he was afraid we were in danger."
"So he's a friend?" Keren asked.
"Part of the family," Luke replied. "And he's really sorry for frightening you."
"Oh, that's all right," Keren smiled a little sadly. "I'm frightened of just about everything."
"Why?"
"I don't know exactly," she admitted. "It's just that everything is so bright, and loud, and crowded. And there are so many people everywhere. I don't know how to talk to people or act around them."
"Pretty different from that little underground room, huh?" Luke commiserated.
"Very. Sometimes I don't think I'll ever get used to being out here."
"You just need more time," Luke tried to reassure her.
Keren sighed, "But it's been a month already, and I'm not any better."
"Well, a month isn't that long, especially compared to the seventeen years you were trapped," he pointed out. "And it's probably even more difficult for you because you grew up there. You don't have any memories of being free or the outside world. Your mom is probably finding it a little easier to adjust than you are just because she at least can remember her life before being imprisoned."
"Yes, I think it is a little easier for her," Keren agreed. "And she and my father are really glad to be back together." Suddenly she looked a little awkward, "Um, I know what my father did, how he nearly killed you with the bysa virus. I'm sorry."
Luke shook his head. "That's not your fault. Besides, I understand. Your father, your whole family, suffered because of the Empire. I forgave him a long time ago."
"He's really a nice person," Keren continued. "I mean, I know what he did was wrong, but he's really not like that. He does care about people. And he's been so kind to my mother and to me. I just wish he hadn't-" she stopped and sighed. "I sound crazy. I guess it's hard to understand."
Luke gave her a wry grin. "You mean, how your father has done things you don't approve of, but you can see past that and love him anyway? I understand that perfectly. I could write a book about it."
Keren nodded. It was strange, but for a few minutes, she'd almost forgotten this friendly, kindhearted young man was Anakin Skywalker's son. Anakin Skywalker who had once been Darth Vader. "I guess you could."
For a little while they were quiet. Luke watched as Keren's expression became troubled and her eyes clouded. She had begun to relax and feel at ease, but now he could sense fear beginning to grow inside her again. He made a guess at what was bothering her this time.
"My father is very different now, too, you know," he said quietly. "He would never hurt you."
"Yes, I know. At least, that's what I've been telling myself," Keren agreed. "It's just when I saw him, I couldn't help but think about how he hurt my family. And I've heard about some of the other things he did when he was Darth Vader. I don't understand. Why has he changed? And if he's really a good person, how could he have done those things?"
"You ask all the tough questions right off the bat, don't you?" Luke mused.
Then, noticing her chagrined expression, he quickly added, "No, it's all right. You have a right to ask questions and wonder about Father. I'm just not sure I can give you answers that will satisfy you."
He paused, considering where to begin. "Well, Father turned back to the Light side for me. You see, when Father was Vader, he wanted me to join him on the dark side. We first met at Bespin, and it went badly, but I managed to escape and I sensed some lingering bit of good buried deep inside him. I decided to try to redeem him and bring him back to the Light. We met up again just before the battle of Endor-have you heard about the battle of Endor?"
As Keren nodded, he went on describing how Palpatine had baited him, how he and his father had dueled, how he had nearly fallen to the dark side but had managed to resist, and then how his father had saved his life when the Emperor had begun tormenting him with Force lightning.
"Falling to the dark side was a terrible mistake," Luke said with quiet intensity. "But Father did defeat Palpatine and destroy the Sith order, and he did something that was considered impossible-he renounced the dark side and came back to the Light. And if it weren't for him, the galaxy wouldn't be at peace now. The Empire might have lost the war, but they'd still be strong enough to cause problems."
Keren had been listening to the devotion in Luke's voice when he spoke of his father. "You really love him, don't you?"
"I always dreamed of my father when I was growing up," Luke told her. "I just knew he would have been this amazing person-kind and gentle, but strong and brave. And he would have loved me and been proud of me, even if I was the shortest kid in the class and didn't have lots of friends. Ever since he returned to the Light, he's made all those dreams I ever had about him come true. Yes, I love him very much."
A lump came to Keren's throat. Luke was so sincere, she couldn't help but begin to see Anakin through his eyes. It was beautiful the way the two of them had reconciled. And she suddenly realized that she'd become so engrossed in the story that she'd forgotten to feel ill at ease or afraid. Maybe coming here had been a good idea after all.
She was feeling so confident that she was able to smile at Chewbacca a few minutes later when he knocked on the door and cautiously entered. He barked softly, apologetically at her, and when she smiled, he slowly held out a giant paw towards her.
Keren hesitated, but then she reached out and took it. "Hi, Chewbacca."
The Wookiee crinkled his eyes at her and Luke beamed at both of them. "See, Keren, everything will be fine. Just give yourself some time. What's up, Chewie?"
The Wookiee informed them that dinner was ready and they all headed downstairs to the dining room. Luke could feel Keren's nervousness when they entered to find Anakin and the padawans waiting for them, but she handled it surprisingly well. She gave them a shy smile and even introduced herself.
Anakin must have spoken to the padawans because no one mentioned the fainting spell or asked Keren hard-to-answer questions. They just said hello, that they were happy to meet her, and then spent most of the time talking about the lightsaber practice that afternoon and how they were going to construct their own in the morning.
Over the next days Keren tried to settle down to life at the Jedi Academy and get to know the others. It wasn't easy, but she slowly began to feel more at ease. Tera and Elissa were friendly, and as they were two teenage girls just a few years younger, she found herself identifying with them, or at least feeling that she could identify with them in time.
Gil won her heart the day after her arrival by approaching shyly and handing her a small bouquet of wildflowers.
"To make you feel at home," he'd explained. "When I lived on Nar Shaddaa, there were lots of mean people around and I was scared most of the time, too. But you don't have to worry now. Everybody here is nice. At least at the lake retreat," he seemed about to add something else, but then changed his mind and ran off to play.
She grew fond of Chewbacca and the droids as well. She didn't understand the Wookiee's language so they couldn't really talk, but they often exchanged friendly smiles.
Threepio reminded her of the protocol droid who had been their guard and companion, and oddly enough, she found that comforting. After all, it wasn't M4U's fault that Palpatine had had him wired with explosives set to go off if they attempted to escape. Otherwise, he had been nice enough and he had been a familiar part of her life.
But Luke was the one she felt most comfortable with, and the first few days after she came, he took time off from working with the padawans to help her feel more at ease. They went for walks in the woods, and Luke began teaching her to meditate. It seemed to help her nerves a little, and finally she began to feel calmer and more relaxed than she had since being released from Palpatine's prison.
Four days after Keren had come to the lake retreat, Luke went out on the terrace one night to find his father sitting alone on the steps, gazing at the stars. He sensed that Anakin was troubled and went to sit beside him.
"Hi, Father," he said softly, reaching to take his father's hand.
Anakin smiled at him, but it was a sad smile. "Hi, son."
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing, and everything," Anakin replied. "I was just thinking about how Keren has been affected so badly by her imprisonment, and wishing I could do something to help her. But right now, she's still afraid of me, and I don't know if I should approach her or not. She's so fragile. I don't want to make things worse."
"I've been talking with her about you," Luke told him. "Trying to explain how Palpatine manipulated you into believing her family would be reunited on Coruscant, how you thought her father would be helping the people of the galaxy. She knows you never meant for her or her mother to be imprisoned like that."
"Thank you, Luke, but don't make excuses for me. I am still responsible for what happened."
"I'm not making excuses for you, Father. Just trying to help Keren understand. And she is better," Luke added more cheerfully. "I'm thinking about starting to work with her on some things besides meditation tomorrow. Maybe we'll practice levitating some rocks. The others seemed to pick that up pretty quickly."
He caught a flash of doubt from Anakin. "What, Father? You don't think that's a good idea?"
Anakin was quiet a moment. Finally he said slowly, "I guess I'm beginning to wonder if training Keren as a Jedi might be a mistake."
"Why?"
"She's so traumatized by her past. And I feel terrible because that's my fault, not hers, but still, the fact is she's filled with fears and doubts and resentments. What if we train her and she ends up falling to the dark side? I feel like we're taking a little bit of a risk with Gil, and sometimes I really worry about him, but he's not nearly as troubled as Keren. The old Jedi would have never taken her on," Anakin said.
Luke considered his father's words. "I thought we'd decided that one of the mistakes that the old Jedi made was not teaching padawans to handle their emotions. I mean, it's a mistake to just say 'Don't feel anger,' and 'Don't feel fear,' because everyone feels those things sometimes, whether they're Jedi or not. The key is to learn to handle those emotions the right way."
Anakin nodded. "Yes, you're right about that."
"Well, I think we can teach Keren, and Gil, to handle their resentment and fear."
"I hope so," Anakin stared out at the still, dark water of the lake. "But sometimes the damage is too great, Luke. And I'm afraid that in Keren's case, it may be."
"So what do you think we should do? Just send her back home? After we told her she was welcome here, and she's just starting to make some progress? Because I think that would be the worst thing we could do," Luke said.
Anakin shook his head. "No, I don't think we should send her away. I owe it to her to try to help her. I want to help her. I can't bear to think of her being scarred for life like this. I'm just saying I don't know that we should train her. If she turned to the dark side." his voice trailed off.
The thought of being responsible for one of the padawans falling, the potential for damage that could be inflicted on the galaxy once again, and the knowledge of the suffering he'd already caused so many innocent people suddenly overcame Anakin. He buried his face in his hands and wept.
Luke wrapped his arms around his father and held him close, just as Anakin had held him so many times when he needed comfort.
//Shh, it'll be all right, Father// he reached for their mind-link. It was such a close, intimate way of communicating that in itself it could be a comfort to them. //Keren and Gil are both going to be all right. We'll help them. It'll be all right.//
After a little while, Anakin dried his tears, but he didn't move away from Luke's embrace. It was such a miracle to have his son's love. He could never quite get over that, in spite of everything he'd done, Luke still wanted him as his father. The love and friendship they shared was a priceless gift, one he gave thanks for every day of his life. He sent Luke a tremendous wave of gratitude and affection even as he cherished the feel of his son's arms around him, the touch of his hand as the boy stroked his hair.
//Thank you, Luke. I could never get along without you, you know.//
Luke wholeheartedly returned his love across their bond. //Well, that works out well, because I couldn't get along without you, either.// He patted his father's back. //We don't have to make a decision about Keren right now. I'll just keep working with her on meditating and helping her adjust to the world. We'll watch and see how she does for a few more weeks, and if you still think it would be wrong to train her, then we won't, okay?//
Anakin nodded. //That sounds like a good idea.// He raised his head, sat back, and smiled gratefully at his son. //Thank you, again, Luke. I know I've said it before, but I'll never deserve to have such a wonderful son as you are. I love you, though, so much. You are the most precious thing in my life.//
Luke gently squeezed his hand. //I love you, too, Father, with all my heart.//
Father and son sat on the steps and looked at the stars in companionable silence for a long time.
TBC
