Author's Notes: Thanks, again, to all who have been reviewing! I hope you enjoy the next chapter.

Fear Part 12

"Hey, you guys ought to see this," Han called from the lounge as Anakin, Luke, and Leia entered the Falcon. They hurried to join the others watching a local news report on the holonet. A group of demonstrators marched down the main street of the village. They carried signs with slogans like, "No more Jedi!" and "Freedom from the Force-users!" and chanted anti-Jedi sayings.

As the the Jedi and their family watched in concern, the reporter said, "As everyone can see, some citizens feel very strongly against the small group of Jedi who have come to Naboo. We're here to talk with their leaders, Ignatia Kane and her son Garmon. Mrs. Kane is a well-known figure in our community who says we should all be concerned about allowing the rise of the Jedi Order again."

The holonet camera focused on Ignatia Kane, who looked regal and dignified in a sky blue pantsuit and shawl, and wore her hair pinned on top of her head. Only her gray eyes blazed with a barely contained fury. Beside her stood a young man who looked as if he would be average height and weight, with his mother's black hair and steely eyes.

Ignatia nodded at the reporter and said in a low, but intense voice, "Yes, that's quite right. We simply cannot allow the Jedi to form again. The risks are too great."

"What kind of risks are you referring to?" the reporter questioned.

"The risk of a power-mad dictator taking charge again, and no one being able to stand against him, or her. The galaxy has just freed itself from the iron grip of Emperor Palpatine. And one of the Jedi Masters is Anakin Skywalker, whom everyone knows was Palpatine's henchman, Darth Vader. Why he's allowed to wander around free, instead of having to pay for his crimes, is beyond me. And actually, the situation is even worse than that. Not only is he is free, but he's permitted to train students in his ways. It's a mockery of justice, and we won't stand for it!" Ignatia Kane's voice had risen in pitch and volume as she went on, until she almost shrieked the ending.

The reporter, a young woman who looked barely old enough to be out of school, seemed taken aback at Ignatia's vehemence. She blinked a couple of times and finally stammered, "But isn't-, isn't it true that Palpatine was a Sith, not a Jedi? I've always heard that the Jedi were morally upright, compassionate, and committed to serving the peoples of the galaxy."

Ignatia quickly shook her head. "They all have magical abilities that can be used for good or evil on a whim. Perhaps there is a difference between the Jedi and Sith, but in my opinion, it's a fine line. We've all heard Anakin Skywalker's explanation of how he fell to the dark side. He was a Jedi who became a Sith. What's to prevent someone else from doing the same?"

"And do you know the kind of power they wield? They can snuff out a person's life just by looking at him. I know that from personal experience. Palpatine killed my father in just such a way. No one should be allowed to have that kind of power." Ignatia's calm demeanor had completely vanished by now. She was shaking with restrained emotion. "The Jedi must be stopped. If they won't quit voluntarily, then they must be destroyed!"

Her son gave a ragged cheer and clapped loudly in support. The young reporter seemed even more rattled than before. She could only stare at them, speechless, for several long moments before pulling herself together enough to say, "You do know that the Jedi Academy was blown up last night, and the Jedi themselves, along the New Republic's Vice-Chancellor and some other top officials, barely escaped with their lives? Surely you're not condoning such actions? Your group doesn't advocate violence, does it?"

Ignatia suddenly became much calmer. She and her son exchanged a sly glance, and then she smiled serenely and said, "We advocate peace for all the peoples of the galaxy. I must say that I believe the Jedi got what they deserve. They had been warned to leave and they refused to do so. If they insist on trying to re-form, they must suffer the consequences."

"Well, it is possible that the whole matter will be out of our hands soon, anyway," the reporter remarked. "Already, some people are speculating that the Jedi will leave Naboo, and go back to the original Temple on Coruscant."

Garmon Kane reached for the microphone and said ominously, "Then we will follow them to Coruscant and make sure the people there know how dangerous they are. The Jedi must be destroyed, along with those who support them."

"Are you threatening the Jedi?" the reporter sounded incredulous.

Ignatia laid a hand on her son's arm, and answered. "My son tends to let his fervor for protecting innocent people get the better of him sometimes. Nonetheless, we will not allow the Jedi Order to rise again. Now, if you'll excuse us, we need to get back to the demonstration."

The Kanes moved off-camera, and the Han reached to switch the 'net off. "That lady's wacko," he shook his head. "And I'd bet everything I own that she's the one who blew up the retreat. Or her son, maybe. That kid seemed a little off-balance, too."

Luke nodded. "I think you're right. She's got to be behind it. And did you catch that line about how we must be destroyed, along with those who support us? I'd bet that they also set fire to the Shaflizes' home."

"Yeah, cause she said it was his fault we were here and he'd live to regret it," Gil piped up eagerly.

"You're probably right," Leia said. "But we can't do anything without evidence. Let's eat and rest a little, and then we all need to see about helping with the investigation."

They all stood and headed for the galley, except for Anakin who remained seated on the couch. Luke went to sit beside him. "Father?"

"It's all my fault," Anakin said in a broken voice. "It's my fault she hates us. It's my fault all this has happened. I've placed all of you in danger."

Luke was quiet for a moment, trying to think of the right words to respond. It wasn't all Anakin's fault, but it was undeniable that his past as Darth Vader had serious consequences for them all. Yet it was also true that Ignatia Kane's hatred and thinking were unreasonable. And Luke didn't want his father to suffer any more guilt. Anakin was doing everything he could to try to make up for the past, and his knowledge and experience were invaluable to them.

"No, it's not, Father," he finally said softly. "It's not your fault that Ignatia Kane has let her anger and fear control her life. It might be easier for us now if you had never given in to the dark side, but this entire situation is not your fault."

"She hates and fears us because of me," Anakin repeated, bowing his head in shame.

"She hates and fears us because that's what she wants to do," Luke argued. He placed a hand on his father's broad shoulder. Anakin was so strong, and yet so vulnerable. Luke longed to comfort him. "Maybe some of her concerns are valid. We've worried about one of our students falling ourselves. But there are legitimate ways for her to express those concerns. She's chosen to resort to violence instead. That's not your fault."

He remembered something Ignatia Kane had said and added, "And it sounds to me like the real reason she hates us is because she blames Palpatine for her father's death, and she's afraid of someone becoming like him. If he

really did kill her father, then she has a right to be upset. But she doesn't have a right to blame us for that, not even you. You didn't have anything to do with her father's death, did you?"

Anakin frowned slightly as he considered the matter. "I don't think so. His name is not familiar, and I don't remember having anything to do with any deaths on Naboo."

"I wonder what happened to him, anyway," Luke mused. "The records said he died in a construction site accident." He stopped abruptly. "Father, could he have been the architect who designed the underground rooms at Palpatine's house on Naboo? You said Palpatine killed all the workers there."

"That would make sense," Anakin agreed. "We need to have Threepio find out all he can about Aleron Esmond's 'accident.'"

"We will," Luke stood and held out a hand to his father. "Right after breakfast."

Anakin took his son's hand and stood up, giving Luke a wry smile, "More like lunch by this time."

Several hours later Anakin and Luke were talking with the security guard captain near the enormous piles of rubble that had been the lake retreat. Leia and Han had taken the droids into the village so that they could use the public library's computers to search for information on Ignatia Kane and her father's death. The computers from the lake retreat were, of course, no longer functional.

Chewbacca had taken the padawans and gone over to see if they could help the Shaflizes. They hadn't really wanted to leave, but at this point there was nothing the padawans could do to help and they were going stir crazy on board the ships. Luke had finally asked Chewie to take them to their neighbors because it would give them something to do, and they might be of some help to the Shafliz family.

"It looks like someone threw a thermal detonator onto the terrace," the captain remarked, holding up a small metal shell. "This is the casing. Most likely, they came in a boat. They'd be able to get pretty close from the lake."

Anakin and Luke nodded. They'd already decided that the perpetrator would have probably approached by water. The electric fence couldn't extend into the lake and it would have kept the bomber from coming close to their home at any other point on land.

"Do you have any clues about the bomber's identity?" Anakin asked.

"Well, nothing definite," the captain admitted. "We do know that Ignatia Kane seems to bear a grudge against you, so she's a suspect, but there's nothing to tie her or her older son to the crime right now."

"What about this detonator?" Luke motioned to its remains. "Is there any way to find out where it came from? Then maybe we could tie it to the Kanes."

"Thermal detonators are pretty rare on Naboo, but there are a few ammunitions stores in Theed where you could get one," the captain replied. "We've contacted the Theed security unit and they're checking the records at the stores now, to see if anyone has purchased any detonators recently."

"We need a warrant to search the Kanes' house," Anakin stated firmly. "Perhaps they have a receipt, or something."

"Yes, we're working on that now, too," the captain agreed. "Although if they're smart, they'll have already gotten rid of any paper trails. Right now, all we can do is wait for the warrant and to hear from the Theed guards. We're going to head back to the village now. I'll let you know as soon as we hear anything."

Once the guards had gone, Luke said, "What should we do now, Father?"

Anakin sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "To be honest, Luke, I don't really know. I hate not to be doing something, but it does sound like we need to wait for the search warrant, at least, before we can take any further action."

Just then a blue speeder appeared on the horizon and headed towards them at a rapid pace.

"Keren," Luke remarked unnecessarily. He and Anakin could both sense her presence, not to mention recognize the speeder. It pulled up beside them and Keren jumped out. With uncharacteristic boldness, she rushed to embrace them.

"Master Luke, Master Anakin, is everyone all right? We heard about the bombing, but we didn't know if anyone had been hurt. The news reports said at first that everyone had been killed, but later they said there might have been some survivors. I came as quick as I could," she looked at them with wide, frightened eyes.

"We're all fine," Anakin reassured her. "Everyone is alive. It was close, but we all got out in time."

"The reporters in the village know that everyone's okay," Luke told her. "I'm surprised they haven't gotten it straightened out in Theed."

"Well, they may have by now," Keren answered. "I haven't seen the news since early this morning. I just threw some of my things in the back of my speeder and took off. Mother and Father weren't happy about it, either. They wanted me to stay with them until they were sure it was safe, but I told them I had to come and help if I could."

Anakin smiled at her. "And we're glad you did. The ships are all right. Why don't we go on board and we'll tell you what we know so far, which isn't very much."

Over the next few days, the New Republic Intelligence team arrived and began helping in the investigation. With so many skilled agents and the Jedi working on it, they'd all expected for things to move quickly, but they were disappointed.

For one thing, it took two days to get the search warrant for the Kanes' house. The local judge happened to be a good friend of theirs, and he tied the process up in paperwork as long as he could. Only when the NR Intelligence agents threatened to remove him from office and bring charges against him for impeding the investigation, with Anakin standing beside them with his fingers running over his lightsaber hilt, did the judge give in and sign the warrant.

Not surprisingly, the search itself turned up no evidence. Even if there had been anything there to start with, the Kanes had had plenty of time to get rid of it.

The records from the two ammunitions stores in Theed weren't very helpful, either. Several detonators had been sold in the last month, but none of the clerks could remember who had bought them. The customers did have to fill out a questionaire before being allowed to purchase ammunitions-the Naboo were very careful about who was allowed to have weapons-but none of the names were familiar and it took time to track everyone down and see if someone had given false information.

On top of the problems with the investigation, they received more bad news. Tera's parents called from Otoh Gunga and insisted that she give up her Jedi training and return home. They'd always had doubts about her becoming involved in such a potentially dangerous way of life, and the recent events had frightened them. Anakin and Luke tried to convince the gungans that they were taking all the safety measures possible, and Tera pleaded to stay, but to no avail. Coru and Yiwa Paara were adamant. She must go back.

All in all, it was a discouraging time. Tera was inconsolable, and the other padawans were upset, too. Elissa, in particular, was taking it very hard. Anakin and Luke tried to cheer them up by saying that once the bombers were imprisoned and things calmed down, they would try again to convince Tera's parents to let her resume her training, but it sounded hollow even to them.

On the last evening before Tera departed, they tried to have a good-bye party for her on the Falcon. It was the larger ship, and was a bit roomier inside than the Angel. Threepio had prepared a scrumptious dinner with everyone's favorite foods, and they played music and cards. But no one's heart was really in it, and after a while Luke couldn't bear the strained atmoshphere. He slipped out to go sit alone by the shore of the lake. He was watching the red sun sink towards the horizon when Keren approached and sat down beside him.

"Are you all right, Master Luke?" she asked in concern.

He didn't take his eyes off the sunset. "It's beautiful, isn't it? I've always liked to look at the sunset. Everything seems so peaceful." He sighed. "You know, that's why Father and I wanted to have the Academy here. It seemed so quiet and peaceful. Guess looks can be deceiving, huh?"

"It has been quiet and peaceful most of the time," Keren replied. "And it will be again. Don't give up."

Luke smiled at her. "Are you the same girl who used to be afraid of her own shadow? You've come a long way, you know. It was pretty brave of you to come back here right after the explosion, not knowing what you'd find."

"Or foolhardy, according to my parents. But thank you. I don't feel that I was brave, though. It was just that the lake retreat had become my home. All of you had become my friends. I had to come."

"I can understand that." After a moment of silence, Luke turned back to gaze at the sky, deep blue shot through with pink and gold and purple streaks. In spite of the beauty, Keren could sense him becoming melancholy again. She wanted to cheer Luke up. He'd been so helpful to her when she'd first arrived, so patient and understanding. She glanced down at the frame in her hands and held it out to him.

"Do you recognize this, Master Luke?"

Luke took the picture and studied it. It was a verse written in old- fashioned, hard-to-read curlique script. It was one of Master Yoda's favorite sayings.

"Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering."

And underneath a single command.

"Do not let fear control your heart."

"It hung in my room," Keren said. "I used to look at it when I felt frightened. I think it helped me."

"It's certainly true," Luke answered. "Just look at what's happened here."

"Yes, but to me, it's encouraging that it survived the blast. And in perfect condition. It's not even singed. It seems like a good sign to me. You know, that the Jedi Academy will survive and go on, too."

"Oh, we will," He agreed. "I don't doubt that. It's just a hard time right now, but we'll get through it."

Keren slowly stood up. "Well, I guess I'll get back to the party. I hate that Tera's having to leave."

"Me, too. I only hope her parents will let her come back when things have settled down again."

"Do you think they will?"

Luke shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted. "I hope so."

Keren left and headed back to the Falcon, but Luke remained where he was. He thought about the portrait Keren had left lying on the ground beside him. He picked it up and studied it. Was it a good omen that it had survived? With that reasoning, the broken family crest seemed even more ominous. He'd felt a sudden, strong sense of foreboding when he'd discovered it lying in two ruined pieces. The feeling had vanished as quickly as it had appeared, and he almost wondered if he'd just imagined it. But it had been so strong it had almost made him physically ill for a moment, and deep inside he knew it had been real.

He hadn't mentioned it to anyone. Mostly because they'd all been so busy, and Anakin had been so depressed at first. At least, he seemed to be better now. The depression had resolved into determination to see the attackers imprisoned and his family safe again.

Han would probably scoff at silly superstitious nonsense if Luke told him about his fears, never mind that he himself paid great attention to his own hunches. And Luke didn't want to talk to the padawans because they all were shaken and upset enough about the recent events.

He supposed he could tell Leia and Chewie about that sense of threatening danger, but again, they'd just all been so busy and they couldn't really do anything about it, anyway. Could they?

The more Luke thought about it, the more he decided that if the feeling had meant anything, it was probably just foretelling Tera's departure. He didn't really consider the padawans part of the immediate family. That was reserved for Leia, Han, his father, Chewie, the droids, and Lando. But maybe the padawans were like an extended family.

A voice interrupted his thoughts. "Hey, kid, you gonna sit out here all night?" And then Han and Leia sat down on either side of him.

"No, I guess I just lost track of the time," Luke smiled at them. "I'm sorry all this trouble happened just when you came, but I'm glad you're here."

Leia reached for his hand and said, "I'm glad we're here, too. I'd hate for you and Father to have to deal with it all alone."

Han added, "Is there anything we can do, Luke? Cause I don't feel like we're really helping."

"You're helping a lot just by being here to support us," Luke told him. He looked over at the mounds of debris nearby. "I still can't believe this happened. I can't believe they hate us so much."

"Remember it's just a small group," Leia tried to comfort him. "We've gotten lots of condolence messages and offers to help. Most people are on our side, Luke."

Han was staring at the ruins of the lake retreat, too. "Two or three construction companies have even offered to rebuild the place for free."

"That's good," Luke tried to sound enthusiastic, but couldn't quite pull it off.

Han patted his friend's shoulder. "You know, I think it would help everybody if the ruins were cleared away and the rebuilding could get started. When are you guys planning to have someone come and clean this up?"

"Actually, I think they're supposed to begin clearing the debris away tomorrow," Luke said.

"Good, we'd like to see them begin before we have to leave," Han remarked.

Luke looked suddenly dismayed. "You're leaving?"

"Well, not right away," Leia told him. "We can stay for a few more days, maybe a week, in light of the recent events. But we do have to get to back to Coruscant soon." She studied her brother's face in concern. "I know you and Father want to help in the investigation, but I wish you'd just let NRI handle it and come with us."

Luke shook his head. "No, we have to be involved."

"I was afraid you'd say that," Leia said. "I'm a little worried about you, Luke. You've been strong for Father's sake, but I know you've got to be upset about all this, too. I think it would do you a lot of good to get away from it for a while. Are you sure you can't come with us to Coruscant? Even if it was just for a short visit?" Luke shook his head regretfully, "Not right now, I'm afraid. We really do need to be involved in this. If we left now, it would look like we were running away. And we can't let Ignatia Kane and her group get away with attempted murder. And it's not just against us. I'm sure they're behind the fire at the Shaflizes, too."

They were all quiet for a few moments, then Luke added. "We'll come just as soon as we can. I promise."

Leia hugged him. "Okay, see that you do."

They stood and began walking back towards the Falcon. Thinking of the farewell party reminded Luke of something. "Hey, you asked if you two could do anything to help? Well, there is something you could do. Or at least, Leia could do something."

"Name it," she said instantly.

"Well, Tera's going back to Otoh Gunga tomorrow, and I wondered if maybe you would go with her. Father and I have tried and tried to convince her parents to let her stay, and they just won't listen to us. I hate to lose her. She could be a great Jedi one day. If you went as the Vice- Chancellor, they might listen to you."

Leia considered, "Well, I guess I could speak with them, but I can't really blame them for being concerned about their daughter. I don't think it would be right for me to use my influence to pressure them."

But Luke shook his head. "I don't mean for you to pressure them. That would be wrong. But maybe you could just explain how much the New Republic needs Jedi, and that we're being very careful. Maybe the padawans could even go on to Coruscant and stay there while Father and I work on the case here."

Leia nodded. "All right. I could do that. And to be honest, that would work out well for me, too. The senator from Naboo wants several gungans to join her committee on Coruscant to represent the gungan people and their interests. I could speak with them about that, too, while I'm there." She turned to Han. "You want to come, too, Han?"

"Mmm, sit around while you're in political meetings most of the day? If you don't mind, sweetheart, I'd rather stay here. Maybe I can help with the construction clean-up," he responded.

As Leia nodded, Luke added, "That's good, because to be honest, I'm not sure there would be room for you, anyway, Han. Tera's parents are sending a driver for her, and I think the sub only holds four. Elissa's going, too. She's so upset about Tera leaving that Father said she could go along to Otoh Gunga and visit for a little while."

"Poor kid. I guess it's hard for her to lose her best friend," Han commented.

"Yes, but hopefully, Tera will be back soon," Luke answered.

"And this whole mess resolved," Leia agreed. She reached out her arms to her husband and brother, who were on either side of her, and the three of them wrapped their arms around each other as they walked up the ramp to the Falcon.

TBCa