Chapter 24

"Hurry up, I have to shut the door and take off!" Han shouted desperately. The extending arm he had sent out for the droids had not reached, and with the enemies approaching, Luke and Anakin became desperate and called upon the force. Their combined power levitated R2 through the door, causing an anxious moment as the net holding Threepio's remains tore and almost broke and fell! But now to everyone's relief, the droids, the humans, and the wookiee were all safely inside the Milleninum Falcon and it whirled, turned and sped out of the area, then upward, out of Kashyyk airspace. While Han and Chewbacca flew, and Leia checked on Padme, Anakin and Luke examined the droids.

"R2, are you okay?" Luke asked, the little droid beeped away.

Anakin's eyes were huge with surprise as they studied every inch of the droid. "Luke, did you say, R2? Is this droid called, R2D2?"

"Yes, Father." R2 jumped happily up and down, recognizing Anakin, and trying to use his sensors to figure out what was going on.

"Luke, did you know, I used to own this little guy, back here, in the past?" Luke's eyes were wide in shock now.

"You did? This same droid?" "Yes! He flew with me everywhere!" Anakin laughed.

"Me too!" Luke told him.

R2 beeped, and they understood, he was complaing that they had both always told him "R2, stay with the ship!" They both laughed and patted his dome.

"You know, he was with me when I flew that Death Star mission in the Battle of Yavin." Luke said.

Anakin looked down, sadly. "I thought that looked like my R2, but I thought it couldn't be possible..." His mind drifted off. "Luke, there has to be some meaning to this, that you and I had the same droid! How did you come to own him?" When Luke, and now Leia too, explained everything about the message for Obi Wan, and how Luke had become involved, chills shot through all of Anakin's newly restored body. He was overcome. "It was the will of the force. It was destiny. There is no other explaination, it was meant to be for us to find each other, and for all to be made right." He said softly, with a spacey glow in his eyes. They all shared a moment of goosebumps and warm feelings as they knew it to be true. But the suprises weren't over yet.

Anakin also noticed the pieces of Threepio, and commented: "That looks like a droid I built when I was a kid. His name was C3PO."

Now Luke looked shocked again. "Father, this is Threepio. He's been with us all along too, since we had R2."

Anakin almost passed out from the shock. "Oh, Luke, Leia, if I had known this before, it would have meant something. I'd have turned from Vader ages ago. I wish I had known!" He suffered again with guilt of the way he'd treated his children earlier as Vader, and a tear rolled down his cheek. He hoped that while the ship was still in the past, something could be done, if it could, to stop the things he had done. He glanced over at Padme, and the warm tear reached his cheek, tasting salty as he licked it from his lips.

"Han" Luke called out, "I need your tools to work on Threepio, is that okay?"

"You know it is, and you know where they are, kid." Luke started to go open the tool compartment, but Anakin used the force to wave it open, and levitate the necessary tools to him. Luke stood in awe and admiration for his father.

"Leave this to me, Luke," Anakin said with pride, "I built him, I can rebuild him." Anakin sat on the floor, carefully putting together each piece of Threepio, while R2 anxiously watched, and Chewbacca barked in happiness he did not have to do it this time! He had him all but reassembled when he stood up to take a break. He stretched and yawned, walking over to Han.

"What are the chances we will be able to maintain this ship as a time machine?" He asked. Han had no answer. It was the force that had brought them this far, and seemed to be controlling their path, so if it worked, it did, and if it didn't, don't blame him. Anakin hated to feel the least bit greedy after the gifts he had recently received, but he coudn't help but wonder out loud: "You know, if I can stay back here, Padme and I can get our babies from the Lars and Organa families, and live the life we should have before I made my mistakes."

Luke looked at him, cocking his head sideways. That was too weird for him to think of, himself as a baby. What would he do? Go home or stay in the future? "Father, what about me, and Leia now? And yourself, in the past, there would be 2 of you. What are you going to do, fight yourself as Vader? What if the Emperor finds out what happened, he'd kill you."

Anakin was very confused too. "I love our new life, Luke, but I can't give up on what I had back then."

Leia looked sadly at him. "You had your chance, way back then, you could have had that. But you lost it. Do you think it's too late to get it back? What of the other implications?" She asked. Anakin asked her opinion. "Father, I don't want to leave until I have found a way to save my adoptive father Bail Organa, and the entire planet of Alderaan, from destruction. There is lot of good we can do by stopping the events of the last 24 years from coming to pass."

Anakin nodded in agreement. "And while we're on this trip, might as well go back further in the past, and save my mother!" Luke would also have loved to have saved his grandmother, and Alderraan, but was worried about Anakin and Leia's propositions. While their intentions were very good, as was what they wanted to do, how would this effect everything else? They were fortunate enough to be able to have saved Padme, but he wondered what else would happen if they messed with too many events. He felt it, but he didn't speak it. He left Leia and Anakin to their regrets and reflections and contemplations. Luke was concerned that the force, it all its infinite wisdom and generosity to Anakin, might find him ungrateful and greedy and change its mind about its gifts to him. Anakin sensed this in Luke, and considered this too, as stood silently staring out the window. He knew he was once again letting his emotions rule him, and feared where it would lead him. Without turning around, he mumbled sadly,"What will be will be the will of the force, and not me.."

Just then, it did. The Falcon rocked and shook, and lights flashed again. "Here we go again!" Han yelled out as he and Chewbacca fought to maintain control. "Look Anakin, if you can bring balance to the force, surely you can help me steady this thing, get over here!" Anakin joined them at the pilot seats. But nothing anyone did helped to stop the disturbance, until finally, a noise clanked, loud at first, then as gentle as a tiny bell. All was silent. The ship was fine and all were safe. But Han noticed something on his control panel. The coordinates he had set for the time travel no longer existed. Whatever had given them the ability had taken it away as suddenly as it had come by chance. "I think the uh, 'force' has made up its mind, guys." He announced. "We are no longer capable of time travel."

Anakin and Leia looked shocked and devastated. Their plans would never come true now. Luke just stared. He had expected this. Too much tampering with fate, no matter how good your intentions, was not the will of the force. The things that had been changed were changed by the force, they had Padme, but it could no longer allow them to run free all through the circuits of time changing everything. They must be thankful for what they did have, and go on from there.

"Where are we, Han?" Leia said sadly. "Are we still in the same time?"

From all Han could read and pick up on his communicators, he had his answer. He didn't know how she would take the news. "No, baby, I'm sorry. We are back in our own time, and as far as I know, we will be staying here."

Her emotions were torn. She had been given a chance to go back, and she had helped save her mother and redeem her father. Yet she had not saved the republic, or Alderraan, or her adoptive father. Anakin, seeing and sensing her despair, walked over and put his arm kindly around her and they comforted each other. He didn't need to search her feelings, for they were his own as well. "I know how you feel, there was much I wanted to change. But it is the will of the force. It has given us much, and what it has not, we must understand there must be reasons for it. We can go home, and make it right for now. Remember, the Emperor is dead, the empire is defeated, there is much to do. You will be needed." She looked up at him and nodded with a brave half smile. They both had tears on their cheeks. Luke walked over and hugged them both, all three of them embracing and feeling love. Anakin thought how lucky he was to have them, and Padme, but how sad it was he would never see them as babies or make up for their lost childhoods and everything else. They were safe, but the events of the last 24 years must remain unchanged. Back in Coruscant, there would be much they could do for the galaxy, and they must be prepared for what lie ahead, not behind. That was over.

"AAHHHHH!" came a shrill cry from the back of the ship. It was Padme's voice! Anakin ran to her. Luke and Leia stood back, watching. Anakin sat down beside her and lovingly cradled her in his arms.

"What is it, my love? Are you all right? Please say you are not hurt or ill, I can't bear that." She shook her head no, looking up at him with teary and pleading but desperate eyes.

"Anakin, what happened to the baby? It's GONE!" Shaking uncontrollably, she showed him the pillow she had pulled from under her dress, the one Yoda had used to make her appear pregnant at he funeral. Her tragic death had not registered in her memory, at least not now. Now that she was awake and more coherent, she was shocked and horribly upset to reach down to feel her baby and discover she was no longer pregnant.

Anakin held her tight and patted her back. "Shhhh, it's okay, I promise, the babies are okay, they are not dead."

"They? Babies? What?" she demanded through her gasps of crying. Over her head, which was on his shoulder, Anakin stared over at Luke and Leia where they stood. It was a look of, don't say anything yet, and a look of, oh this is going to be a tough one. They stayed still and silent, waiting for how their Father was going to explain this, and how their Mother was going to take it. It was indeed going to be tough, but as much as they had been through, this was their last obstacle to final happiness. They were going to get through it together.

"Anakin?" Padme begged, looking up again. "Where is our baby? What happened? Please tell me."