Ch. 16

Leia suddenly heard her daddy's voice in her head. It was like the way Luke talked to her, but she had never heard her daddy do it before- she was impressed to know that he could do it too. She turned quickly, and saw him standing up in the forest with Obi Wan.

'Daddy?' She answered through the Force. Suddenly, she realized that Force communication was for secrets, and she thought that maybe she shouldn't be looking at him. She whipped her head back around, and stared straight in front of her.

One of the guards saw this, and rushed to her.

"What are you staring at?" He demanded rudely, eyeing the surrounding area suspiciously.

"Um, I don't, I was-" Leia stuttered. Suddenly, tears came to her eyes. She didn't know what to say!
"Who were you looking at?" The guard demanded of the crying little girl.

'Don't say anything, Leia,' Anakin told her, fidgeting nervously with his cloak. 'It's ok; we'll come get you. But you have to talk to him first. Make sure he doesn't know we're here.'

Leia was scared; her daddy had never talked to her inside her head before. And he had told her and Luke that talking like that could lead to bad things if they didn't know how to use it properly. Was this a bad thing, or not? She didn't know if it was really daddy or just someone pretending to be him. So many bad people had talked to her today, she didn't know who was bad and who wasn't! She looked around again, to try to make sure it was Anakin talking to her, but then remembered that she had to pretend not to know.

"Where are you looking?" Asked the guard again, jabbing her with the back of his blaster.

Leia suddenly felt a surge of pain and anger come at her through the Force, and she began to cry more. It was quickly gone though, and she looked back up into the guard's face.

Anakin cursed himself for not having broken his connection with Leia when the guard hit her- he had just let his little girl feel a taste of the anger inside of him, and it killed him to see her sad expression. However, he quickly blocked her out again, and watched proudly but sadly as she faced up to the guard.

"Who's there?" The guard demanded again.

"I…I…" Said the little girl, very confused and scared about the whole situation.

"It's ok," the guard said, now trying the tactic of sympathy. "You can tell me, I'm not going to hurt you."

He seemed to be telling the truth, Leia thought… but he had just hit her with his blaster! And blasters could really hurt people if they got shot off in front of you…so that proved that he wasn't telling the truth, which was a very bad thing to do, mommy said.

"Did you see your daddy?" The guard asked. "Because he shouldn't be here…"
How did he know? Leia wondered. Well, if he knew, it was ok to tell him, wasn't it? But… something felt wrong. The daddy voice had said not to tell…

"I, I was…"

"Come on, little girl, spit it out!" The guard yelled angrily.

"I don't know," Leia began to cry. "I have to go the bathroom!" She said suddenly.

The guard sighed. So that was all that this had been about… "Ok," He said. "Go on." He rolled his eyes and watched as the girl walked into the outhouse just a few feet away.

'That's my girl,' Anakin thought, proudly, and he felt Obi Wan's hand on his shoulder, reflecting the same sentiment- they were both impressed with the little girl's strength and quick thinking.

"Now," Obi Wan said suddenly, and before the young Sith supporters knew what had hit them two Jedi Masters had Force pulled their blasters off of them and were attacking everyone in the area.

"Where are our light sabers?" Anakin yelled to Obi Wan as he cornered the group. "Did you see where they took them?"

"I don't know, ask," Obi Wan yelled, cornering his own group of them. Anakin was confused at first, but then realized he meant to ask Sidious' followers.

"Where are our weapons?" Anakin yelled menacingly, but, though his victims all cringed, they made no reply. "Where?" Anakin tried again more forcefully.

'Anakin, remember,' Obi wan told him through the Force. 'They're just children, like Han. We can help them…'

"You don't want to work for Sidious," Anakin said, this time with compassion in his voice. "We can give you better lives, an opportunity…"

"He has given us everything we have!" Answered one.

"He has only given you lies and deception!" Anakin pleaded. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him. "Padme!" He yelled.

"Where?" Obi Wan asked, ready to help her.

"We need her," Anakin answered. "She could convince them, she would make them see…she could help them"

"Ah yes, politics…" Obi Wan smiled.

"Can you handle them for now?" Anakin asked.

"Yes, I've got it under control," Obi Wan assured him, as he crowded all of the unarmed enemies into a corner. "But hurry, who knows when Sidious will arrive."

Leia chose this moment to walk back outside, and she stared in front of her, excited. "Daddy! Master Obi Wan!" She screamed, running into her father's arms.
"Hi angel!" Anakin cried, scooping up his daughter and holding her to him tightly. "It is so good to see you again. Leia, where is Luke? Where is mommy?"

"I don't… I don't know," Leia said sadly. She looked up at him, afraid he would be angry.

"Don't worry, we will find them," Anakin assured her, kissing her cheek. "We can find them through the Force, right? Do you know how to do that?"

"Like when I know if Luke is nearby?" Leia asked.

"Yes, only you can do it with everyone. Mommy too, and me. Have you ever done that?"

Leia looked at him, frustrated. "I know when you're there, but not mommy."
"Ah," Anakin said, smiling at her and wrapping her in his cloak. "That's because Luke, and you, and I, can use the Force, and mommy can't. But you will learn how to know when she, and everyone else, is near you too. I will teach you that."

"Why can't mommy use the Force?"

"Only some people can use the Force, Leia. That's what makes the Jedi different- that's why we need to help people, because we can do things that other people can't. We are better at defending ourselves and others because of the Force. Does that make sense to you?"

"I guess," Leia answered, furrowing her brow.

Anakin kissed her forehead. "It will make more sense to you later. Now, I can tell that mommy's this way," he said, starting to walk towards where he felt Padme's presence. "Can you feel that Leia?"

"I don't know," Leia answered honestly.

Anakin laughed. "It's ok. Do you know where Luke is?"

"I think he's this way too," she answered.

"I agree with you," he smiled at her. "Now Leia, do you know why they took you away from Luke and your mother?"

"No," Leia said sadly. "But it was mean."

"Well you're right about that," He told her. "Now Leia, I need you to be very quiet, and I need you to block- umm… do what you do when you play hide and seek with Luke. So that he can't find you."

"Ok!" Leia nodded excitedly, and Anakin soon couldn't feel her presence at all.

'Wow,' he thought to himself. No four year old he'd ever met could block her Force signal that well. It unnerved him slightly, knowing that even at that young age she could completely escape detection by him. But, he would have to worry about that later.

"Ok, Leia," he said, setting her down. "Stand right here and don't ever let me get out of your sight, ok?" He walked slowly forward, to gauge how many guards were around. Amazingly, the place seemed fairly deserted, save a few guards sitting lazily in the middle of the group of huts. He assumed that they must have all been drawn toward the little battle that had just taken place. Using the Force, he attracted all of their attention to a hut at the complete opposite end of the circle from the one in which Padme and Luke waited. As they all went to check on that hut, he grabbed Leia and slipped inside.

Padme sat, hugging Luke to her, tears in her eyes, when suddenly a hand slipped over her mouth. She tried to scream, but it restrained her. Suddenly, bright blue eyes looked in to her own.

"Sorry, but I couldn't risk you making a noise," Anakin said, and then took his hand off of her mouth and kissed her. "Let's get out of here."

Padme's senses flooded with happiness and reassurance. She clung to Anakin, and then pulled Leia to her, never wanting to let her go again. "How did you-"

"Never mind that, I'm here now. We don't have much time, come on!" He felt Luke silently squeezing his leg, and he picked up his son and hugged him tightly. "I missed you," Anakin told him, kissing his nose. He grabbed Padme's hand and pulled her up. "Are you ok?" He asked, immediately putting his hand on her stomach.

"I'm fine, and so is the baby, although… the baby needs to eat…"

"We'll be out of here in no time," Anakin assured her, trying to hide the worry that was engulfing him. He walked to the back wall, which this time was made out of wood. He gently Force pulled the wallboards out one by one, until the whole family could step outside at once. He then replaced them carefully, and, grabbing Leia and Luke and holding Padme's hand, he led his family back to where Obi Wan held the group of Sidious' followers.

"I was so worried, Anakin," Padme whispered, looking up into her husband's eyes. "I don't know why they took Leia, but I really feared the worst..."

"I know, I know," Anakin said, unsure of how to comfort her. "We will get out of here, and go back home, and nothing like this is going to happen again. I promise you, I won't let it."
Padme just smiled and nodded silently. She took Leia from Anakin and held her close.

"Mommy I tricked the guard!" Leia said enthusiastically. Padme looked confusedly up at Anakin.

"It's true, actually," He said smiling. "I'll explain later."
Padme nodded, and kissed Leia's head. "Where's Obi Wan?"

"Well, you're about to see," Anakin answered. "We kind of need your help."
"Well it's about time," Obi Wan said as they approached him. "Your family could really use some work on punctuality, you know."

"Now is really not the time for lectures, Master," Anakin joked.

"Did you explain this to Padme?" Obi Wan asked, one eye always on his prisoners.

"No, I'll do that now. Come here," he said, pulling Padme off to the side. "We need you to get our light sabers back. And if you can, try to convince these kids that they want to help us, not Sidious. Try, but it might be impossible. But we definitely need you to get them to tell us where Han and the Wookie are, and where our light sabers are, can you do that?"

"Why me?" Padme asked, confused.

"Because," Anakin smiled at her. "You're the one who knows how to convince someone you're right… without aggressive negotiations."

Padme laughed. "Well, all right." She walked over to Obi Wan and began to talk to the group that he held captive. Anakin helped Obi Wan to watch them, making sure to keep an eye on Luke and Leia who stood nearby. Almost immediately, Padme had captivated her audience, and they seemed as if they would help her.

"Ani?" Padme turned to him hesitantly. "I want you and Obi Wan to go somewhere else. I think your presence is hurting this endeavor. It's scaring them."
"We can't leave you with them," Anakin responded immediately. "I refuse to put you in that kind of danger."

"Just step out of ear shot. You'll still be able to protect me and keep them in check…please?" Padme looked at Anakin, her eyes begging him to obey.

Anakin sighed. "All right," he said reluctantly. "We'll watch Luke and Leia over here…be careful, Padme."

"Don't worry," she assured him. Anakin and Obi Wan stepped away with Luke and Leia.

"She'll be fine, Anakin," Obi Wan reassured him. "She knows what she's doing."

"I know she does, it's just… I just…"

"I know," Obi Wan said warmly, putting his hand reassuringly on his shoulder.

Soon, Padme walked over to them. "Your light sabers are with Sidious, I'm afraid… but Han and the Wookie are right here, in that hut," she pointed to a hut close by. "They all seem very confused and unsure…it's obvious that what Han told us is true, these are people who have been brainwashed for a long time. I think that we could convince them of Sidious' bad intentions, but I don't know what we would do… I mean how are we supposed to help so many of them? I know there are tons more still with Sidious and throughout this camp, and by the way, who knows how many more innocent prisoners there are? We might not be the only ones. I-"

"Hold on, hold on," Obi Wan said, smiling. Suddenly, Obi Wan looked down as he felt a tug on his leg, and saw Luke clinging to it, smiling up at him.

"Yeah, they do that…" Anakin said, laughing.

"Ok," Obi Wan replied, unsurely. "Listen, what I think we should do is get ourselves and Han and the wookie out of here, in whatever way we can. Then we have to go back to the Senate and the Council and see what they suggest we do here… whether us escaping includes killing Sidious or not, is simply up to fate. Let's just try to get out of here, and when we get back to Coruscant we can worry about everything else. We can manage to get out of here without light sabers, I'm sure…what do you think?"

"I agree that we have to think first about getting ourselves out of here, or else no one will ever even be informed about this… but as soon as we get back to Coruscant we have to make sure this situation is addressed, and-"

"Padme," Anakin said, cutting her off. "You're the Chancellor. You decide what situations to address…"

"Right…so I agree with Obi Wan," Padme said.

"Master!" Said a small voice from beneath Obi Wan. Obi Wan looked down and saw Luke staring up at him, bright eyed.

"Um, yes Luke?" Obi Wan asked, as he, Padme and Anakin shared an amused look.

" I agree too!" Luke said importantly, though he didn't really understand what they were talking about.

"So do I!" Leia yelled, not wanting to be outdone by her brother. The twins shared a confused glance, and smiled proudly at their parents and Obi Wan.

"Well I guess it's settled then," Obi Wan laughed. "Anakin, go get Han and the Wookie, quickly. We'll just slip back into the woods and be gone, hopefully before Sidious realizes anything is wrong. Hurry!"
Anakin rushed into the hut and found Han and the Wookie in the midst of several escape attempts. They had tried bursting through the walls and digging through the floor, and were actually very close to getting out.

"Come on," Anakin said. "We've got to get out of here now. Han, um… wookie, come on!"

"His name's Chewy," Han said. Anakin nodded and they followed him out.

"You won't say anything," they found Obi Wan instructing the group of prisoners, waving his hand, about to perform a Jedi mind trick.

"Don't!" Han yelled suddenly. Obi Wan turned to him, confused and surprised. "Don't, it's what he does. If you do, they'll never trust you again…"
"Thank you," Obi Wan said, staring at the boy, impressed. "Please," he said to his captives. "Don't tell them, we're going to come back to help you…"

"How do we know that?" One yelled, and they all looked very cynical.

"Padme?" Obi Wan turned to her for assistance, and she soon had them all convinced that they would be back.

Turning to each other with suddenly hopeful glances, Obi Wan, Anakin, and Padme led the children and Chewy into the woods. Just as they reached the edge of the trees, they heard shouts approaching them, Sidious' unmistakable cackle among them.

"Hurry!" Anakin yelled urgently, and soon they were running through the trees as laser blasts pursued them. Anakin scooped up Luke and Obi Wan held Leia, and they ran forcefully through the trees. They could see the ship ahead, and felt confident that they could make it, but Sidious and his men were close behind.

"Run on to the ship, and grab the light sabers that are on there," Anakin instructed Padme. "Hurry!"

She ran on board and quickly found the light sabers, rushing back out to throw them to Obi Wan and Anakin. They expertly deflected the blasts, but just as the children were rushing on to the ship, a blast hit Leia in the arm. She screamed, but continued to run- everyone could see she'd be fine, but Anakin froze.

"Anakin, no!" Obi Wan yelled, knowing what was about to happen.

Without thinking, without even realizing it, Anakin threw himself on to a cackling Sidious and his light saber met the Sith's red blade.

Hello all- that was a randomly long chapter, I hope it wasn't too rambling. I'm really ready for them to be home soon, so I hope to wrap the Kashyyyk part up very soon…hope you're enjoying!