A/N: I incorporated some of Ben's childhood before he reaches the Jedi Academy. Enjoy!
Chapter 2: Smuggler
After what felt like hours in the darkness, Ben was able to open his eyes. He could feel a cold rag on his forehead and he laying down on a cushioned bed, his head propped up with a pillow. He wriggled his toes which now had socks on them. His hands were laid down on his sides. Ben blinked slowly, trying to process the events that occurred earlier. He wondered how long he was sleeping for. Ben wanted to sit up. He tried to pull his body up from the bed but found he did not have the energy to do so. He turned his head on the pillow and noticed someone sitting at the edge of his bed hunched over with hands holding their face.
"Ben, I'm so sorry." Han said. "I must be a terrible father." He kept his hands over his face.
"Your mother and I," he began, "We just don't agree on everything. I just wanted you to be normal, that's all. The last thing I want is for kids to make fun of you at school, or pick on you because you're different." Han lifted his hands away from his face and turned to look at his son with a hurt expression.
Ben looked at him and tried to mouth words, but no sound would come out. His eyelids were half shut as he tried to stay awake. Han reached over to Ben and ran his hand though his son's short black hair.
"I wasn't born with the force son. I can't imagine what kind of life you'll lead or who you'll be." Han looked at his son lovingly.
"Just know son, that your mother and I love you very much. So does your Uncle Chewie. And I'm sorry for what I said earlier. I didn't know you had been standing there the whole time and I probably shouldn't have said that anyway." Han said regrettably. He planted a kiss on Ben's head making sure not to move the rag.
Ben closed his eyes again. He could hear his father stand up and walk out of the room telling C-3P0 to look after him. Ben slept peacefully that night.
3 years later.
Ben was close to 9 years old. He wanted to grow his hair out like his father, but his dark black hair was still trimmed short and combed neatly over his head as his mother would make him do. He wore a black t-shirt with a red rebel alliance logo on it and black pants with black boots.
It was early morning on Naboo and Ben was outside his home walking to his usual spot. Leia was still on the planet Hosnian Prime and had been for the past week. This time she had taken C-3P0 with her to assist with negotiations. Ben hadn't seen Han or Chewbacca in three months. His parents were both rarely home at the same time. Sometimes Ben felt like they had forgotten all about him.
His mother wouldn't let him go with her to meetings as she felt the senate might target him and do terrible things. His father wouldn't take him either due to the long periods of time that he would be away. Ben kicked a rock with his boot. It's not like they ever asked what he wanted to do.
Ben continued walking and eventually reached the creek. Far down the stream was a gathering of rocks that he loved in his younger days. His parents never saw his favorite spot. They were too consumed with their own lives for Ben to show it to them. He picked up a stone and threw it into the creek. It made a splash and sunk to the bottom of the water. Ben was sure they wouldn't remember his birthday coming up either. He bent down and grabbed a heavier stone with both hands and chucked it into the creek. Ben grit his teeth. It was like a game to them and he was just an extra piece in their elaborate lives.
Ben relaxed his jaw. He could feel the energy within him, flowing through his very being. The Force. It began coming more naturally to him. Ben raised his hand and lifted a smaller stone in the air. He wondered what his Uncle Luke would say. He hadn't seen Luke since he was four years old and could vaguely remember Luke being able to lift objects much larger than the stones with the Force. Ben glared at the stone that levitated in front of him. He swirled his index finger and made the rock spin. Surely his mother would know about what he could do, if she were to ever come to his secret spot. His father would never understand. Ben flicked his finger and launched the stone into the creek.
"You have far more power than you could imagine." A haunting voice said to him.
Ben shut his eyes and shook his head. In the three years, he had heard this voice a few times. It was usually when he was experimenting with the Force. Ben had accepted this voice was inside his head. No others could hear it except for him. Ben didn't dare tell his parents. His father already thought he was strange enough and he couldn't imagine what his mother would say if he told her about the voices in his head.
But the voice was always right. Great potential, Power, Excellence. The voice would praise him more than his parents, and encouraged the use of the Force. At least someone, something cared about him and admired his feats. The voice called for him, but Ben did not dare call back. He instead used it as a means to focus and know that he was going down the correct path. Not the one of a senator like his mother, or the smuggler that his father was. Ben lifted up another stone with the force.
He felt a sudden gust of wind blow by. He looked up into the sky and saw a massive circular ship soar over his head and begin to land in a nearby shipyard. The Millennium Falcon. Ben's heart raced and the stone fell to the floor. He took off running towards the direction of the ship nearly tripping over several stones along the way. Running became easier when the grassy grounds became solid and he was in the living area of Theed.
The city was buzzing with life. Beings of all of races were leaving their homes to go to work or grab a bite to eat. Most would be on their way to reach the shipyard if not other places around Naboo. Ben weaved in and out of crowds. His reflexes were getting better. His short height also played to his advantage as he was able to push through the crowd easier. Ben leaped over crates, maneuvered around citizens and discovered the quickest path.
It took a nearly twenty minutes, but Ben had finally reached the shipyard. He bent over placing his hands on his knees to hold himself up and was panting from the sprint. He hadn't crashed into anyone the entire run and felt a little pride in himself. He could probably be a successful pilot one day with those skills. Ben breathed heavily and tried to relax. There were multiple ships that were landing and taking off. One of them had to be the Falcon.
Ben closed his eyes and sensed the energy around him. He knew his father would be here in the shipyard still doing inspections. Ben imagined his father's face, the messy hair, the family bond they shared. He searched. The movement of the creatures around him began to fade and the hum of the ships engines silenced. Ben eye's shot open. There. He felt his father's presence still aboard the Millennium Falcon and Chewie was with him. He was drawn to his father's energy and felt as if he was being pulled towards the location.
The ramp to the entrance of the Falcon was down allowing access. Ben leaped into the ship. His father had taken him on rides in the prized ship on occasion. Ben would be often pretend he was the copilot instead of his uncle Chewie. He knew his way around the ship and easily found the cockpit.
"I told you we had to replace the lights on these switches." Han was telling Chewbacca holding his hand on his forehead.
"I'm pretty sure you had to do that" Chewbacca replied in Wookie and began turning several knobs.
Ben ran up to his father and hugged him from behind. Han Solo raised his arms up in shock and yelped.
"Ben! What are you doing here?" Han asked his son surprised. Ben let go.
"Mother isn't back from the senate yet and I saw your ship land," he said beaming at his father. He then turned to hug his furry uncle. Chewbacca lifted Ben into the air and embraced him letting out a gently roar.
Han gave Ben a puzzled look. "I just landed a while back. How did you find me?" Chewie set Ben down on the floor. Ben calmly replied "I felt your presence." For some crazy reason, Han got chills up his spine.
"You're not messing with that force stuff again are you?" Han asked.
Ben shook his head. Of course he wouldn't tell his father the truth. He would never understand anyway.
Han smiled and pat his son on the head. "Good."
He paused for a moment. "I don't get why your mother keeps your hair that short." Ben laughed at this.
Han pointed at Chewie. "We'll do this light switch thing later." Chewie replied with "If you say so".
The three of them walked off the ship together. The ramp to the Millennium Falcon closed and locked in place. Han waited at a booth and paid for a land speeder to take them home. The driver ended up taking a back route to avoid the mess of the city.
For the first time in weeks, Ben had felt happiness. It was nice to have at least one parent home. Ben felt the breeze cross his face from the topless land speeder. He breathed in the cool Naboo air. His father had taken him to other planets before, but none like this. He had seen civilizations that existed in the sky, busy places without grass, and even places where people existed in the desert with nothing but sand.
Ben had heard stories of his Uncle Luke growing up in the sand. Even his grandfather grew up in a harsh desert. He wondered what their lives would've been like had they had lived on Naboo with grassy fields, plenty of water, and nature surrounding him. He was very fortunate despite his parents being gone for long periods of time.
The speeder arrived at their home in five minutes. Han gave the driver money and asked him to wait where he was. Han gently pushed Ben inside the house. Han looked around. Everything was neatly in place and in order just the way Leia liked it. If there weren't dishes lying around, Han could've sworn Ben was never there.
"So how long have you been alone kiddo?" He asked his son. Ben raised up 7 fingers that represented days. Han's heart stung with guilt and he scrunched his face. Han walked over to one of the coat closets they had and opened the door. At the very top was a shelf with a dusty brown box on top. He hadn't touched it since his marriage. Han stood on his toes and pulled it down from the shelf.
"I actually just came for this." He blew the dust away. There was a faded label in a language that Ben could not read. "I met someone who said they'd pay good money if they could get their hands on the stuff inside this box." Han handed the medium sized box to Chewbacca and gave him a nod.
Ben looked up at his father. "Are you leaving again?" He asked quietly. Han looked at Chewie who glared back. Han knew what he had to do.
"S-son, would you like to come with us this time?" Han choked out. Ben's entire face lit up.
"Could I father?" Ben asked brightly. Han sighed and said yes. Ben jumped for joy. He had never been on a smuggling trip before.
"Go get ready." Han told his son. Ben raced to his room. "And don't tell your mother! I expect she won't be home for another week."
In ten minutes, Ben was ready to go. He still wore his black pants and boots, but he changed his shirt to a white collared button up and a long brown cloak with a hood. Ben shoved a couple of snacks in his pants pockets for the trip and threw his hood up. The cloak was a gift front his Uncle Luke from his last birthday. Ben treasured the cloak as it made him feel dangerous.
"Ben take that hood off your head." Han said disapprovingly.
"Just let him, he's learning how to dress" Chewbacca snarled while holding the box. "You sound like my wife." Han said sarcastically.
He wrote a letter to Leia and left it on the doorstep explaining that he took their son out on a small trip. The letter was for in the event that she arrived home before they did.
The three of them hopped into the land speeder that was still waiting and the driver took them back to the shipyard. They boarded the Millennium Falcon. Chewbacca was Han's copilot so Ben had to sit in the Main Hold until they reached their destination.
Ben swung his feet on the crescent seat with his hands on his knees. He had no idea where they were going. He was just so excited that he would no longer be alone that he neglected to ask. Ben raised his arm. He hadn't completely grown into the brown cloak that his Uncle Luke had given him as his fingers were barely outside of the sleeves. Luke had said that the Jedi had once worn robes like these and it would allow them to move easier especially during battle.
Ben yawned. It was probably still morning outside, but something about space travel made him sleepy. Ben thought of the fabled Jedi. Luke had once told him a story about them. He must've been four years old. Ben could vaguely remember anything about the story, just that they embraced the force and were guardians of the galaxy many years go until one day they vanished or someone wiped them out. Ben couldn't remember. He just knew that they were gone. He laid down on the cushioned seat and shut his eyes falling asleep.
"Ben." His father said. "Wake up." Slowly, Ben opened his eyes and saw his father's face looking down at him.
"We're here."
A/N: Please review! Feedback is helpful. Chapter 3 coming soon.