Well, back by popular demand (and because the bunny won't stop chewing on my shoelaces), it's Chapter 2!
I know I said it was a One shot but the lock broke off his cage and the bunny is running loose. This is just after ROTJ, Either Truce at Bakura has already happened or it just isn't going to happen at all, it doesn't show up in this story so you might as well ignore it.
The trilogy happened exactly the same except for the events of Chapter One of this story. Luke used the money Beru gave him to pay Han (Instead of selling the speeder, isn't that clever of me). The two of them resued Leia, Obi Wan died, etc.
To the wonderfully fabulous people who encouraged that darn bunny...
MistiWhitesun: Yes I am a night person, I am also flattered. You are right about writing it in a hurry though winces I looked it over once I read your review and this Chapter has been spellchecked. I debated for a while and decided not to 'fix' chapter one though.
skywalker05: Hey thanks! I always wanted Beru to have a bigger part than she did in the movies. I know it's a bit unbelievable, but this is what I think she would say.
kayladie: I was quite proud of the speeder conversation. I didn't want everyone just sitting and staring at each other so I thought about what usually happens when my parents see eachother, they find a safe topic that no one can get offended by. Anyway, here's Chapter 2, I hope you like it, chapter three is coming, eventually.
Kazzy: I have the same complaints about Luke and Leia's mother. I'm glad you noticed the parallels. One of my pet peeves is when authors try too hard to find similarities between Luke and Anakin, but it is almost as bad to leave that angle out completely. I'm glad you think I did it right. As for Luke resembling his mother, it just seemed like a good idea at the time.
BTW: to everyone else, Kazzy's 'A Moment in Time' is absolutely wonderful and you should definitely read it!
from the silent planet: Ask and Ye Shall Recieve! Beru is back and still taking over. It's post ROTJ and Luke brought some friends home!
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A/N Just so y'all know, this story starts post ROTJ (by a few days) in orbit above Tatooine, on board the Millennium Falcon...
"Isn't Anyone Going to Say Anything?"Chapter 2 - After Return of the Jedi
"Well, this is it. Home. It's not much to look at, but there it is."
"I'm sure it's wonderful Luke." Leia leaned against her brother and looked out the viewport at Tatooine. He hadn't been sure he wanted to return, but Leia had insisted on going once she learned she had more family and Luke knew he couldn't let her go alone.
"It's terrible. It's hot, it's sandy, it's dry, but it's where I grew up and it will be good to see it again, now that I don't have any friends to rescue." He sighed and turned to Leia. "Are you ready?"
"I think I should be asking you that." Leia responded, not entirely sure how her brother would be feeling. She looked into his eyes.
"It's been four years, Leia. I don't think I will ever be ready, but I have to go."
"You make it sound like a chore. They raised you, is it so hard to visit them?"
Luke sighed and ran one hand through blond hair that had darkened considerably without constant sun-bleaching. "You don't understand. So much has changed. I've changed. I've done pretty much everything Uncle Owen never wanted me to even know about. I just couldn't bear to know they were disappointed in me."
"Luke," Leia took his chin in her hand and made him look her in the eye. "They could never be disappointed in you. The reasons they did and said the things they did and said have changed. I'm sure they will be proud of you, I know I am!"
"I hope you're right." Luke smiled a bit and turned back toward the viewport.
Han's voice sounded over the intercom "Better get strapped in, we'll be landing soon."
"You've got the coordinates, right?"
"Kid, like I told you the last three times you asked, I know what I'm doing."
Luke smiled nervously and Leia patted his arm. They strapped in and waited as patiently as they could manage.
/
"Beru! Beru, get out here, there's a ship landing." Owen called down into the courtyard. Beru stuck her head out the door and squinted into the sun.
"Is it anyone we know?"
"I don't recognize it, better get out here."
"I'm coming." Beru shut the door and dashed for the stairs. She stopped next to Owen just in time to see a large freighter settle a hundred yards from where they were standing. The ship looked like it belonged in a junkyard but it was obviously piloted by a pro. The repulsors didn't even scatter any sand.
Once he was down, the pilot turned off the engines. The cockpit was turned away from them so they had no hint of who might be inside. The ramp lowered slowly and Owen and Beru watched as two figures walked down it. At the bottom, the taller of the two paused and the shorter took his hand and pulled him forward.
The shorter one, a woman, was wearing a white senators gown and had her brown hair twisted and piled on top of her head. The taller was male and wore his dark blond hair shaggy. He was dressed in a plain cream colored tunic and pants...
"Luke?" Beru whispered then shouted, "Luke!" She ran forward and grabbed her boy in a tight hug. Owen was only moments behind her, hardly daring to believe that the boy was still alive.
"It's me Aunt Beru, I'm back." He held on to her tightly even as his uncle slapped his back and said, "It's good to have you home, son."
Beru finally let go, realizing she was being rude to her nephew's friend. "Luke, who is your friend?"
Luke's face became serious again. "Aunt Beru, Uncle Owen, I'd like you to meet Princess Leia Organa of Alderaan. Leia, this is my, our, Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen."
Owen froze. Beru, also catching the phrasing he had used, whispered, "Our?"
"So that's where they put her." Owen said. "Royalty, hmm? Well I'll be."
Beru looked at her niece appraisingly, then hugged her as fiercely as she had Luke. "I never thought I'd live to meet you! Where in the galaxy did Luke find you?"
"That's a long story, Aunt Beru. Maybe we should get in out of the suns before we start it." Luke said practically.
The group started toward the house when Luke stopped suddenly. "Where's Han?"
Leia looked around, feeling foolish for doing so, "He must still be on the Falcon."
"You guys go ahead, I'll go get him." Luke said, turning back. He jogged up the ramp and disappeared inside the ship.
Beru wrapped an arm around Leia and steered her toward the steps. "Come on inside dear, he knows the way. I can't wait to hear how you've been."
/
"Han?"
"Yeah kid?" Han was still in the cockpit with Chewie. He had a hydro spanner in his hand and was reaching for a console.
"Aren't you coming?" Luke couldn't hide the disappointment in his voice.
"I don't want to mar the family reunion, kid."
Luke reached out and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You know, you are family too, Han. You and Chewie are the best friends I've ever had, I want my Aunt and Uncle to meet you too, both of you." He nodded at Chewie who ruffled Luke's hair in return.
"Alright kid, if it means that much to you." Han said, feigning exasperation but truly touched. He rose from the pilots seat and was followed by Chewie. They trooped out into the heat.
"I shoulda stayed on the ship, I forgot how hot it is here." Han said, tugging at the neck of his shirt. Chewie howled his agreement but followed a grinning Luke anyway.
"It's cooler in the house, come on." Luke walked quickly toward the steps, barely succeeding in hiding his own discomfort.
Luke knew he shouldn't be, but was surprised at the lack of carbon scoring on the door frame. It's been four years, like you just told Leia, a lot has changed. The door was made of a soft plastic instead of the heavy metal door he had grown up with. When he opened it he nearly cried. The front room was almost exactly the same. He looked at a sofa that had been black char the last time he'd seen it and a rug that had been a sooty smear on the floor. Beru walked into the room from the hallway at almost the same moment that Luke noticed his sister and Uncle sitting together on the sofa.
"Hey kid, are we going to stand out here all day or are you going to let us in?" Han said from outside and Luke realized he was blocking the door. He hurried to step inside and Han and Chewie followed.
"More friends?" Beru asked, stepping forward to play hostess.
"This is Captain Han Solo, of the Millennium Falcon and his First Mate Chewbacca." Luke said, quickly remembering his manners. "Han, Chewie, this is Beru and Owen Lars."
"Nice to meet you." Han said, holding out a hand to the now standing Owen.
"Same here." was the reply.
Beru watched her husband and her nephew's friends standing there and couldn't help but smile at the memory of the day Luke left home. "Well sit, sit." She said, motioning toward the sofa and chairs. "I found the holo album, Leia. I have more, of course, but these are the best of the bunch."
Luke realized that his aunt was holding a largish brown book with a picture of him on the front and groaned. "Aunt Beru, I'm sure no one wants to look at..."
"Oh, but I do!" Leia stopped him, her face totally serious. "It hadn't occurred to me before but I mentioned how much I wished we had grown up together and Mrs. Lars..."
"Aunt Beru is fine dear."
"Aunt Beru offered to get her album..."
Luke gave up. His uncle gave him a sympathetic look and he sighed, resigned to embarrassment. Han grinned at him and sat on the other side of Beru, who was sitting next to Leia.
"I bet you were a cute kid." He said, knowing his friends face was turning red.
Luke decided to ignore them and turned to his uncle. "The last time I saw this room it was soot and ashes, how did you manage to make it look..."
"Exactly the same?" His uncle supplied. "Your aunt refused to do anything else. She said she liked it the way it was and wouldn't settle for anything less."
Luke looked around in amazement. He could almost believe no time had passed at all.
"Luke, dear, would you get us all something to drink?" Beru called from he sofa.
"Yes, Aunt Beru." He answered automatically, heading for the kitchen. He paused in the doorway long enough to look back at his family and smile. The kitchen was a bit different. The appliances were new and there were only three chairs at the table now, but the cabinets were the same and the same old mural was on the ceiling. The glasses were even in the same place. He found a tray and filled six huge cups with water.
When he came back nothing had changed except Chewie and Owen were now sitting in chairs at either end of the sofa. Luke set the tray on the low table in the middle of the room and took a seat on the second sofa that faced the one his aunt and sister were sitting on. The large album was now closed and Beru was holding a small silver datapad that Leia must have had in one of her pockets.
"That one is just after we arrived on Hoth. Luke forgot to put the cleats on his boots and, well, you can see the result." Leia explained to a laughing Beru.
Luke shot her a look that clearly said 'you will pay for this' and cleared his throat. "I think we've seen enough pictures. I want to hear how you have been."
"Oh, we've been pretty much the same. You know nothing interesting ever happens here. You spent eighteen years complaining about that very fact." Beru told him. "I want to know, how did you all end up here, together?"
Luke looked from Leia to Han and back at his aunt. Luke started the explanation, since the story started with him. "Well, when Obi Wan and I left here, we hired a ship to take us to Alderaan. Han was the pilot. Only, we got there and, well, I'm sure you heard about Alderaan. It happened just hours before we arrived. Instead there was a huge battle station there. The ship was caught in a tractor beam and we hid inside to keep from being captured."
Luke paused to watch his family. Beru's face was relaxed, after all, Luke was obviously okay. Owen's face was unreadable. "Anyway, we all snuck off the ship and made it look like it was abandoned. Obi Wan went to disable the tractor beam and Han and I discovered Leia was on board. We rescued her, but Obi Wan didn't make it. We got away and took the droids to Alliance high command. They made me a pilot and Han decided to stick around. The rest is, well, the rest."
Owen raised an eyebrow, knowing that was not the whole story but not willing to upset Beru or Luke by asking for information the boy obviously didn't want to give. Beru just grabbed his and Leia's hands and held on to both of them. "My dears, what a horrible way to meet." Beru had tears in her eyes. "I'm so glad you did though. I'm so happy for you both. She raised one hand to Leia's face and looked from her to Luke.
They sat in silence for a moment until Chewie barked a question. Han translated for him. "He wants to know if Beru was Anakin's sister or if Owen was his brother." At the look he received from Owen and Beru he continued. "Family is very important to Chewie, to all wookies. It's just curiosity."
Beru relaxed a bit. "Of course he's curious."
"Anakin was my step brother." Owen explained. "I barely knew him. My father didn't meet Shmi until a couple of years after he left here so I barely knew him. I only saw him a couple of times before..." He trailed off, barely stopping himself in time.
"It's okay Uncle Owen. I know about Vader." Luke said and Beru looked at him horrified. "It's okay, really. He really is dead now and he can't hurt us anymore." Those few words, so simple and childish, spoke volumes. For just a moment, Beru saw the little boy who had hidden under his bed for hours the first time a tusken raider made it through the fence to attack the house.
"Aunt Beru, could you tell me about my grandmother? No one seems to know who she was." Leia changed the topic, if not deftly at least effectively.
"Dear, I'm not surprised. Shmi Skywalker was a tiny girl when Gardula the Hutt bought her and she never left Tatooine after that."
"Bought her?" Leia managed to pack a lifetimes worth of disgust and shock into those two words.
"Yes, when she was very young, your grandmother's family was captured by pirates and sold into slavery. She spent most of her life working for Gardula. Shortly after Anakin was born, Gardula lost both of them to a shopkeeper named Watto in a card game. He owned both of them for over eight years, until a Jedi came and won Anakin."
"My father was a slave?" Luke whispered. He still didn't know anything about his family. Obi Wan had told him a bit about his father on the way to Alderaan, but it had mostly been about the time Anakin spent at the temple.
Beru smiled at him sadly. "I guess old Obi Wan didn't have the chance to tell you much did he? Yes, Anakin was a slave until he was about nine. Then he won a podrace to help a Jedi and a Queen who were stranded here. The Jedi made a bet with Watto and won Anakin's freedom, but couldn't win Shmi's. Anakin left with the Jedi. A few years later, Owen's father met her and fell in love. He bought her from Watto and freed her. She later agreed to marry him."
"It sounds a little like a fairy tale." Leia sighed. "I wish I could have known her."
"I wish you could have too. She was a very nice lady. I only knew her for a few years before she died, but she was one of the kindest people I have ever met." Beru looked at her and tilted her head to the side. "You know, you look just like you're mother?"
"I know. She died when I was still very young, and my adoptive family never spoke of her, but I remember a little."
Beru just looked back and forth between the two. Owen, whom she had nearly forgotten about, spoke up from across the room. "It's getting late. We should figure out sleeping arrangements for everyone."
"Oh, dear me your right. Luke, your old room is exactly like you left it and Leia, you can have the guest room. Owen, would you be a dear and set up a couple of cots in here, we can move the sofas against the wall..."
Han cut her off. "Ma'am, if it's all the same to you, Chewie and I can sleep on the Falcon. We're used to it. Besides, the bed on Chewie's cabin is longer than any cot you're likely to have."
"Are you sure, it really is no trouble."
"Quite sure ma'am."
"All right then. Oh, dear, here we are talking about bed and I haven't even started dinner." Beru stood quickly. "I'll just go see what I can find to eat. Luke, show your sister her room and help her bring in her bags."
"Yes Aunt Beru." Luke answered automatically. He rose and offered a hand to Leia. The two of them headed for the hall, leaving Owen, Han and Chewie alone.
"So, you're a pilot? You own that hunk of junk out there?" Owen asked Han.
"Hey, she might not look like much, but she's got it where it counts. I would like to point out that she's saved your nephews rear end on more than one occasion..."
/
Luke heard Han bragging as he walked away and grinned. He pulled on Leia's hand as he led her down the hallway. "That's Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen's room, here's the 'fresher, here's my room, and here's where you'll be sleeping." He named the doors as they went by, stopping in front of the last. He reached for the old fashioned knob and turned, letting the door swing open on it's own.
Leia gasped as the room was slowly revealed. The walls were the same sandy color as the rest of the house but the ceiling was painted in bright greens. The scene was a garden with a waterfall. On a bench sat two young people, one a sandy haired young man, the other a short young woman with her hair in braids. Neither's face could be seen. The image was completed by a rainbow of light that scattered across the entire ceiling.
"Grandmother painted the mural. The light comes from the window on the wall."
"I thought we were underground?" Leia asked, not taking her eyes off the ceiling.
"We are, it's cooler that way. There are tunnels into most of the rooms that bring light. This one was inset with prisms when the mural was painted." Luke walked over to the wall and stood next to the glimmering panel. He looked around at the effect. "This was always my favorite room growing up."
/
Quite a while later, Beru realized how quiet the house had become. Dinner was almost ready so she finished quickly and went to find everyone. In the main room, Owen, Han, and Chewbacca were discussing something about shipping costs.
"...but there wouldn't be any profit in it if I didn't mark it up at least twenty percent. Keeping a ship flying isn't cheap you know."
Beru cleared her throat. "Boys, dinner is just about ready, why don't you go get settled and I'll find Luke and Leia." She didn't wait for a response but headed in the direction she had last seen them going. She found the two of them in the guest room.
Luke had made up the bed with fresh linens and he and Leia were lying on top of it, holding hands and staring at the ceiling.
"Children?" She said softly. Neither stirred. She stepped closer and realized they had fallen asleep. She smiled and sat on the edge of the bed next to Luke. She reached out and brushed a lock of hair out of his eyes. "My boy, you've grown so much." She whispered, remembering all the other times she had watched him sleep. After a few moments she remembered that people were waiting. Nudging his shoulder she said quietly, "Luke, Luke darling, wake up."
He murmured for a moment and opened his eyes. He looked around for a moment then raised Leia's hand. "Leia, wake up." He said, turning to look at her but didn't sit up.
Leia seemed to come instantly awake. "Oops." She said simply.
"Yeah, oops." Luke echoed with a smile.
"Did you have a nice nap?" Beru asked them with a smile.
Leia smiled and Luke winced. "We didn't mean to fall asleep. We were looking at the mural and trying to figure out who the people were."
Beru looked up. "I don't know. I used to think it was someone your grandmother remembered from when she was very small. For a while I thought it might be your parents, but that was before I met your father. He was quite a bit taller than that, you know."
"I thought you didn't know mother?" Luke asked confused.
"Oh I knew her, I just didn't know she was your mother. Not until just before you left when Obi Wan told me. Your grandmother knew her too. She never saw your parents married, but always believed they would be together someday. I always thought she imagined this was how your father would look, but now I'm not so sure."
"What do you think now?" Leia's voice was barely audible. She was already pretty sure she knew the answer.
Beru, whose voice had gotten quieter and quieter as she spoke, answered as expected. "I think Shmi painted the two of you."
"How could she..."
Beru just smiled. "How, indeed. I'm a simple woman. My greatest goal in life has always been to have a home and raise a family. There is much in this galaxy that I was never meant to understand." Luke and Leia were still holding hands, Beru took their clasped hands in both of hers and held them tight. "Your family, your legacy, is a special one. It started with Shmi. I believe that she was allowed to see some of that. I hope that is was some comfort to her."
Beru raised her eyes to the ceiling, still not letting the childrens' hands go. "I've often cursed the galaxy in general for the way some people, good people like Shmi, were forced to live. A slave since she was a child, she was given a son who was taken away while he was still very young. She lived a few years in happiness here and was then captured and tortured by raiders. I like to think that she knew, on some level, what she started, and that knowledge gave her comfort.
"I look at that picture and I see the two of you on a rich, lush, green world, wanting for nothing without a care in the world. I see poor Shmi Skywalker standing on a stool with paint smears on her grinning face and a brush and palette in hand telling Cleigg that he has the prism upside down. I see your grandmother, and then your father and mother, and then the two of you, each in turn lying on this very bed looking at that image and wondering. I see these things and I don't mind how unfair the galaxy is sometimes because I know that sometimes the galaxy gets it right." Beru fell silent.
After a moment she looked back at the twins whose eyes had never left her face. She dropped their hands from hers and smiled quickly. "But then, here I am waxing poetic at the two of you and all I wanted to do was tell you supper was ready."
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Continued in Ch. 3... Keep reading.
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