3 years later, Lars Homestead, Tatooine
Sparks flew as Anakin rewired the circuitry of the moisture vaporator. The goggles shielded his eyes from the brightness and potential wild sparks. Owen had asked him to take a look at the vaporator, as it had begun acting up. Anakin was more than happy to. He was able to solve the issue. Several fuses had blown. Sand had snuck its way in and clogged some circuitry, resulting in the blown fuses. He was able to repair them and able to optimize the vaporators. By Threepio's estimates, they would be able to double their production for the upcoming harvest, which delighted everyone. More crops meant more money. Anakin thought about beginning to save up for his own landspeeder or ship.
Getting up off his back, Anakin brushed the sand off his shoulders and raised his goggles to his forehead. He glanced at the datapad, which was stilled plugged into machine. Everything was running smoothly. He hummed to himself as he closed the panel and tightened it with the hydrospanner. Sure, he'd have to buy some parts to replace what he used to repair and optimize, but it was nothing that he and Owen couldn't afford.
Anakin had never really grown up with much. As a child, he was a slave. Scraps were all he had. When he joined the Order, he was taught that material possessions meant little. Money was only used to get necessities. When he married Padme, he was shocked by the wealth she had inherited, which was now his by marriage. He never really used any of it. He never wanted to become a slave to money. He already had enough masters to last a lifetime. And he planned on raising Luke and Leia with humility. They could have comfort and be spoiled a bit, as every father wants to do with their children. But Anakin swore to himself that his children would grow up appreciating what they had. Some day, they would understand. When he was able to explain everything in full to them.
Satisfied with his work, Anakin decided to check on Dewy the dewback, as his children affectionately named him. None of the adults had really ever thought to name him. But when Luke called him Dewy, trying to say dewback, they decided it was simpler to call him that. He remembered holding Leia up to the scaley creature, teaching her how to pet him. Luke and Leia were enthralled by the large beast and loved to spend time with him. They would wander around his pen and feed him with Uncle Owen or Aunt Beru.
Needless to say, Anakin was not surprised when he found his children in the stable, petting Dewy. The twins looked up at their father and ran over to him, their arms outstreched, begging to be held. Anakin's strength hadn't faded during his years, but he would be lying if he say it wasn't getting harder to hold two children at once. Kneeling down, Anakin embraced his two children.
"Daddy!" Luke squealed as he wrapped his little arms around his father.
"Are you gonna hang out with us and play with Dewy? We are feeding him some snacks!" Leia said, pointing to a bucket that Anakin saw Dewy was eyeing.
"Oh, is that so?" Anakin asked in a teasing manner. He stood up, each hand holding that of his children. "Well, if you keep that up, I'm sure you both will end up being Dewy's favorite. So much so he might just gobble both of you up!"
The twins giggled. "No, Daddy! Dewy would never. He's too king. He's just a big softy," Leia stated as she broke her father's grasp and hugged the dewback's snout. Luke ran over to the bucket and reached for another snack to feed Dewy, but Anakin picked up his son, tickling him as he did.
"And what do you think you're doing, little one?"
"Imma feed Dewy!"
Anakin chuckled."I think Dewy needs some rest. Too much food and he'll get sick, just like if you guys have too much candy. Besides, I think Aunt Beru needs your help with stuff. And where's Threepio. He's supposed to be watching you guys."
Luke and Leia went red, looking down and aimlessly kicking the sand. Anakin sighed. "Luke, did you or Leia shut him off again?"
"Nooo," Luke lied, a small smile creeping up his face. Anakin sighed again. He would have to move Threepio's switch inside of his chassis so the twins would stop terrorizing the poor droid.
"Luke, I need you to tell the truth."
Luke bit his lip before spilling the beans. "Leia and I wanted to go see Dewy, but Threepio said no. He wanted us to keep reading, which was boring!"
Anakin raised an eyebrow. "Well, I'm glad you told me the truth Luke, but you can't do that. We'll talk more about this when I get back from town with your uncle. For now, let's go see your Aunt."
"We're sorry, Daddy," The twins echoed, hugging their father.
"I accept your guy's apology. I love you both. Now run along. I'll see you two when I get back."
The three of them broke their hug and walked back into the homestead. Aunt Beru had found Threepio and turned him back on.
Beru had been essential to the twins' upbringing. She was always assisting with their teaching. Anakin could sense some jealously to him and Padme. Beru always wanted children of her own, but unfortunately, she was barren. She had come to accept this, painfully, but Luke and Leia were a much-needed spark of life to the farmstead. Beru had taken the role of a doting Aunt seriously, almost becoming a second mother to the children.
"You little rascals! Go finish your reading!" Aunt Beru scolded the twins. Sheepishly, they apologized to Aunt Beru and Threepio, before going to their room to finish the reading they were assigned.
Anakin chuckled and went to the fridge to grab a glass of blue milk. "Owen and I are heading to Anchorhead for supplies. Do you need anything while we are out?"
"I think everything is fine for now. Threepio has been such a helping hand with everything. You really went above and beyond when you made him."
"What can I say? He's pretty stellar."
With that, Anakin moved back up the stairs to the other garage where Owen was waiting for him. At the top of the stairs, Padme stood waiting for Anakin.
"They're so much like you," She said with a soft smile.
"I'm just glad Leia's temper didn't break out. She gets that from you."
"If anything, she gets it from you," Padme huffed. "I'll go make sure they're still reading."
Padme left and Anakin walked over to the land speeder, where Owen was. Owen had a confused and concerned look on his face, but it left when Anakin hopped in. Accelerating the power, the two took off towards Anchorhead.
Anchorhead
Ever since arriving on Tatooine, Anakin knew that he couldn't be seen in public as Anakin Skywalker, General of the 501st and now a Jedi fugitive. He needed to create a new alias to protect not only the twins and Padme but Owen and Beru as well. His mullet was gone, replaced with a nice short trim. He had grown a beard similar to Owen and Obi-wan before Anakin had last seen him. He had managed to repair his arm with the scraped remains of a protocol droid that Owen got from some traveling Jawas. It wasn't perfect, but Anakin was able to modify it to fit his purposes. He donned a dirty red tunic and a cloaked jacket that he could wear to cover himself from the scorching heat. He had burned his Jedi robes shortly after arriving at the homestead. It wasn't safe to wear them, not on Tatooine, with bounty hunters littered all over the sandy planet.
He had chosen a new name. Not only was Anakin Skywalker well known across the galaxy, but also on Tatooine. The human child that won the Boonta Eve Classic race and won his freedom. Anakin Skywalker only existed on the Lars homestead, hardly. To the public, he was Sebast Shaw. A family friend of the Lars that Owen knew when living on Ator. Luke and Leia kept their first names but were known as Shaws.
Anakin and Owen departed their speeder and entered Anchorhead, browsing the street vendors and shops for anything that they could afford and use on the homestead. Tatooine hadn't changed much. Depressed, solemn faces were all around. Slaves were busy working, some were treated better than others. It brought back bad memories for Anakin. Memoires that he wished would fade away like the drawings in the sand that children would make.
A blue nautolan approached Anakin, his hands clasped together and a sly grin across his face. "Pardon me sir, but I couldn't help but notice your droid arm," the alien said.
Anakin and Owen stopped, curious as to why this man would approach them. "And?" Anakin asked dryly.
"Well, I'm something of a technician myself you see. I work with droids all the time," The Nautolan gestured to the droids that were on display out of his shop. Anakin bit back a scoff. These droids were in poor shape, with some of their weldings already popping off.
"And what does this have to do with my arm?"
"Well, that's a protocol droid's arm. An older model, I think. I have some newer arms in my shop. HK arms, battle droid arms, lots of arms. You look like you could use an upgrade, my friend."
Anakin paused for a moment. If this Nautolan was a mechanic like he said, he would have a junk pile. Anakin could search through the junkpile for new parts that he could get for a much cheaper price. Most things that were thrown away were not broken like people believed they were. Anakin turned to Owen. "I'll catch up with you later, Owen."
"You sure?"
"Of course. I've got it under control here."
Owen nodded and continued down the sandy street, still looking at the vendors for something that would be useful. Anakin entered the store and looked around. The Nautolan wasn't kidding. There were a lot of droids here. There were strewn about the building. Some hung from the ceiling's rafters, others were piled on top of each other in cubbies or corners of the building.
The Nautolan went behind a counter and put both hands on it, eager to do business. "As I was saying, I have a fine collection here. If you lose a leg down the road, I've got you covered too!" The Nautolan chuckled.
Anakin nodded, then turned to the Nautolan. "Do you have a junk pile?"
"In the back, yeah," The Nautolan frowned. "But I have a strict policy. You gotta buy something first, then you can explore the junk pile. I don't let customers do that no more, especially after I got robbed by that toydarian. Sleemo," He muttered to himself.
Anakin sighed. He didn't want to use a mind trick, just in case. He walked around the shop a bit more and found a pile of astromech heads. They all ranged in model and series, from R-series, Q-series, and even a C-series. Anakin picked up a scuffed, sandy blue R2 dome. Hands shaking, he examined it with care, trying to fight back the fear inside of him.
Please don't be him. Please don't be him. Force, please...
Anakin looked closely at the dome, realizing that the square around the eye lens had green dots around it. Sighing with relief, he put it down. It wasn't R2, at least not his R2. R2-D2 was still out in the galaxy. Realizing that the Nautolan was looking at him funny, Anakin grabbed a purple R4 dome and brought it to the counter.
"Sorry about that. One of the domes reminded me of my father's astromech. I got too attached to it," Anakin lied.
"Yeah well, you're not the first one to act like that. I had a Zabrak break down in tears when she saw me rewiring a protocol droid."
"How much for the head?"
"75 credits."
"And I get to explore the junkyard?"
The Nautolan nodded, pointing behind himself with a thumb. Take the corridor and go left. You'll see it."
Anakin placed the credits on the counter and left for the junkpile, the dome tucked under his hand.
The junk pile wasn't big at all. It barely went up to Anakin's knees. Sighing, Anakin began navigating his way through the pile, looking for anything useful that might help the farm. He found several droid heads, eye sockets, a few fingers, and depleted energy cells. Deep beneath the rubbish though, Anakin found a protocol droid chassis. Grinning, he peeled back the metal covering, exposing the circuitry. He would be able to use the parts to fix amplify one of Owen's vaporators. Smiling to himself, Anakin began taking the circuits into his backpack.
Anakin caught up to Owen, who was talking to a Rodian. The two were conversing in huttese, arguing over the price of some dining wear. Reading the situation, Anakin could tell that Owen had it under control. Walking by, Anakin pat his step-brother on the shoulder and pointed to the cantina.
"I'm heading in, meet me when you're done."
Owen nodded, keeping his attention on the Rodian. Anakin entered the cantina, the alarm going off as he entered. The bartender turned towards Anakin, sneering.
"No droids!" He shouted as several of the patrons turned to look at the new patron. Anakin pointed to his prosthetic.
"I've got a metal arm. Lost it in a farming accident," Anakin responded, hoping that the owner would accept his answer. Realizing that he didn't have the bandwidth to deal with Anakin during rush hour, the bartender scoffed and waved him in, preparing a drink.
Ordering a Tatooine sunset, Anakin took a drink, allowing himself to feel the liquor warm his bones and start a soft fire within him. Smacking his lips, getting the drops that hung off his beard into his mouth, he took another sip. It was a poor habit that he had taken up since arriving on Tatooine. One that he hid from his family. only drinking in the cantina. He never brought it into the homestead, but he still felt shameful about drinking. Feeling like a rotten man, feeling like a disgrace. How far the mighty Chosen One had fallen, drinking in a cantina by himself. But it numbed the pain. Unable to rely on the Force, Anakin decided that he would numb his connection to it and his feelings. It was safer that way.
A group of spacers were huddled around a holotable, their body language showing fright and surprise. Curiosity rose in Anakin and he wandered over, wanting to see what was happening. Peaking over the shoulders of the spacers, Anakin saw what they were watching. It was a news report from the Empire.
"Imperial Forces finally besieged Mon Cala, putting an end to the rebellious forces that reports say were experimenting upon clones and Quarrens. Darth Chasm led an strike team, encountering several Jedi on the planet. Lady Chasm was able to strike down the traitorous Jedi and liberate the planet. Imperial Reports indicate that several Mon Calamari warships escaped the planet however, and the Imperial Navy is offering a bounty for any information that leads to the discovery and/or destruction of the warships."
As the reporter talked, footage of the invasion played in the background. Anakin wondered how it was captured, but it mattered little now. Anakin watched as a lady in black armor deflected blaster bolts with two red blades. Her armor was sleek and had several protective pads on the chest and shoulders, adding to her imposing figure. She wore a black helmet that had two thin red lines acting as a visor. It almost reminded Anakin of Rex's Jaig eyes.
Without effort, this new Sith, Darth Chasm cut down her opponents with vicious ease, sending some gasps and a few dark chuckles from the onlookers.
Anakin recognized that fighting style. He had seen it before, during the war.
The war.
The clones.
The Temple.
The-
Flashes of the past slowly crept up into his mind and on instinct, Anakin threw the rest of his drink down his throat, praying the liquor would bury his memories. Putting the glass on the table and leaving the proper payment, he left the cantina, hoping to leave the memories of his old life as well.
Anakin shot up in bed to his wife's scream. She was crying out for him, crying for help. Fear shot through Anakin like a volley of blaster bolts. This was exactly like his dream. The one he just had. Padme dying in childbirth. Anakin froze for a second. Memories of the nightmares of his mother and her death came back to the forefront of his mind. The cold, empty feeling that took his heart when she died in his arms.
He never wanted to feel that again, he couldn't. He couldn't bear it to happen. Calling upon his inner strength and will, he ignored those memories, no matter how they nipped at his mind, echoing to him that Padme would die in his arms tonight.
But Anakin refused to listen. He would not let fate win again. Getting out of the bed, Anakin grabbed his wife's hand and used the Force to bring a wet cloth to his wife's head as painful contraction hit her. Anakin did his head to fight the fear that rose up when Padme cried out, for his sake and for hers.
"Deep breaths, Padme, deep breaths," he said, trying to help his wife. His encouragement was met with a glare, telling him to shut up and let her focus.
Anakin turned and yelled for Threepio or R2 to bring a medkit to help, anything that Padme might have had prepared for the birth of their child. Padme groaned and cried out, squeezing Anakin's metal hand with all her might as he did.
That night, everything changed for the Skywalker family. Two became four. On that dark night on Coruscant, Luke and Leia Skywalker forced their way out into their father and mother's arms earlier than expected. The newborns laid on their parent's bear chests, warming themselves. Anakin and Padme lay next to each other, softly smiling as they looked at their children and then each other.
Anakin opened his eyes. He was still on Tatooine, in the Lars homestead. Padme lay beside him, sleeping. Luke and Leia were in the other room, sleeping as well. Rubbing his eyes, Anakin quietly groaned, realizing that it was only 2 in the morning. He softly sat up and put his boots and shirt on, then attached his prosthetic and crept out of the room. The cool night sky greeted him as he rose out of the homestead's entrance and stepped onto the sand. Despite it being dark, Anakin knew the path by heart. The path to his mother's grave.
Anakin walked up to the tombstone, slowly. He had avoided this for the last 5 years. Ashamed of his failure. Ashamed of his actions that night. But he knew that he had to confront it one day. Swallowing hard, Anakin spoke in a low voice.
"Hey, Mom. I'm sorry for not coming in a long time. I've been...carrying a lot of guilt for what happened. I've had a lot of time to think about that night. I wish I came here sooner. I never should have left you. I'm so sorry." He wiped a tear and took a deep breath before continuing. "I married Padme. That girl that came with Qui-gon to our house. She's so beautiful, Mom. I wish you got to know her. You'd love her. We got married during a war though and had to keep it a secret, since Jedi aren't supposed to get married. Yeah, I know. I'm always breaking the rules. But you should know that we have two kids. You're a grandmother, mom. Luke and Leia. You'd love them. They're so wild and crazy and drive me up the walls, but I love them more each and every day."
Anakin knelt down and put a hand on the tombstone.
"I'll bring them to you in the morning. Thank you for raising me the way you did. I love you, Mom."
And with that, Anakin felt a great weight fall off his shoulders. Standing up, Anakin brushed the sand off his clothes before returning to his bed.
Nar Shaddaa
Two bounty hunters walked into a dark hallway, blasters drawn and ready. They followed up on a lead that a Jedi was hiding here in this building complex on Nar Shaddaa. Jedi ran a high bounty in the galaxy, for the black market and the Empire. And this wouldn't be the duo's first time going after a Jedi. Approaching the door, the first bounty hunter leaned against the wall, while the second one took a step back and kicked the door down. The rusty, cheap door flew back and collided with the wall not too far from it. The bounty hunter duo ran in, looking for their target. They saw a sleeping figure laying on the ground, using clothes as a pillow, a damp dirty cloak as a blanket. Grinning, they shot a stun bolt at the Jedi.
Chuckling to themselves, they walked over and grabbed the Jedi's cloak, only for their hand to go through the cloak. There was nothing there. Before they had any chance to react, a blue blade cut down the first bounty hunter, and an unseen force threw the second one out the window, sending the bounty hunter into the seemingly endless city below.
The figure sighed as he deactivated his saber. That was the second group of bounty hunters this week. He had to go to a different planet, as Nar Shaddaa was becoming increasingly dangerous. Grabbing the backpack that held his few belonging, Obi-wan Kenobi made his way to the transport center.
