Chapter 2: Confused

Anakin Solo. A young Jedi knight on the path to becoming a master. A youth with the experience of any man. Anakin Solo was not a person you could easily confuse.

And yet here he was, floating in a vat of bacta on a planet he had no business being on with his savior walking away from him in a huff. His best friend, his confidant, and the young woman he had come within inches of kissing twice now, was walking away with little more then a few words.

No 'hello, Anakin. Glad to see you're alive.'

No hug… or kiss… for the revived person who thought the world of her.

Just, 'get back in the bacta, you're not done yet.' Like a nerf steak not cooked to her tastes.

And combined with the fresh memories of his near death experience…

Why?

His Uncle didn't seem fazed by the reaction of the young woman and let Tahiri pass him and walk out the door. He just shook his head slightly and smiled.

"Glad to see you alive, Anakin."

"I… I'm glad to be alive… I guess."

"You guess?"

"What's wrong with Tahiri?"

Luke smiled a little more, though one would think it had a bit of a conspiritory side to it.

"Nothing. She wouldn't tell you, but she's been living off of almost no food or sleep for about five days now. She's been in constant vigil over your body, and I don't know how she's holding up off of flight rations for two and a half days after nothing for almost a week. She saved you life here, before I arrived, and stood against a good dozen guards and Tenel Ka herself to keep you alive and in that vat you're floating in. She's probably just really tired."

"Wait… Tenel Ka… was trying to kill me?"

"No, not like that. It was a matter of politics. You, the man who basically destroyed the Hapan fleet with the activation of Centerpoint, were taking up a bacta tank and a noble wanted the use of it. Law here would require you give it up, along with your life in this case. Tenel Ka believed the law needed to be upheld, for whatever reason, and led her guard to do it. I wouldn't blame her until we can investigate her transgressions further."

"Alright then… I guess that answers my questions. Did we accomplish the mission?"

"Yes, though…"

"Jacen's missing."

"Yes."

Anakin could tell through the Force. His brother was still there… somewhere… but not accessible. It was like he was in an yslamri forest or something similar.

"Anakin!"

Anakin was shaken from his thoughts by the entrance of his parents.

"Mom, dad. How are you guys doing?"

"How are WE doing? We're supposed to be asking that about you!"

"Oh, right."

Han and Leia Solo were by his tube in an instant, doing every possible thing to make him feel very awkward in his near naked position floating in the tank.

"Mom, Dad… I'm fine."

"You are most certainly NOT fine!"

"Your mother is right, Anakin. You are, or at least were, not fine. And as soon as you are able, I need to know exactly what happened before you went unconscious." Luke was staring into his eyes as only a Jedi Master could. And for some reason Anakin knew exactly the information Luke wanted.

"Haven't the others filled you in?"

"I already know the basics of what happened, but I am talking specifically about when you were channeling the Force. Jedi all over the galaxy felt your outburst, Anakin. You would need to be Yuuzhan Vong to have not known anything."

Anakin closed his eyes and thought back those few days, what seemed like seconds or months to him. He knew what he should say. But he also knew that there was much more to these last three days then many could think possible.

Anakin Solo was torn between a truth or a half truth, half truth that would be interesting in and of it self, or a truth that would boggle the mind of any man, woman, or Jedi.

"Anakin?"

"Hm? Oh, yes… right. The… outburst. It was more of a… reaction then anything."

"You don't need to explain right now. You most likely need more rest."

"No, you should know now, while it is still fresh in my mind." Anakin sighed through the breathing apparatus and closed his eyes again. "You all know that the Force is energy created by living things, correct? It's the basic of Jedi teaching. I had an… epiphany three days ago. What if one could, instead of using the energy given off by living creatures, deconstruct the life to release the energy latent in the cells that is not part of the Force. It was only a theory, but I realize now that that was what I was doing."

"Anakin, that sounds… very Sith-like. The deconstruction of life for power…"

"And normally it would be! But that's the thing, when I was doing it, it was as if there was no dark side of the Force. I think it was because it as my own body I was destroying. My own cellular structure was decaying to provide me with the energy I needed to win. Self sacrifice is a Jedi trait, not Sith."

"True."

"I blacked out after Tahiri and the others came to save me." Anakin seemed to stall here, not knowing how or if to proceed. "And then… I thought I was dead."

"What?" The three adults stared at him.

"Son, you were unconscious. How can you think you're dead when you are unconscious?"

"I… I just did. It was as if my soul had separated from my body and I was floating with the Force."

"That doesn't sound possible."

"I know."

"You became one with the Force?"

"No, I was with the Force, but not in it."

"Now what is that supposed to mean." Han was getting slightly tired from all the Jedi talk. His wife and brother-in-law had to be philosophers, and now his son as well?

"I can't describe it. But I can say that my three days of unconsciousness were very… enlightening."

Tahiri was sitting silently at the Hapan table filled with food. She just stared at her plate that was half filled with delicacies she didn't even want to think about. It looked good a moment ago. Her fork poked at some gelatinous blob with a half hearted effort.

"It looks like Tahiri finally came out to eat. What? Anakin no longer need guarding?"

Tahiri looked up into the good natured face of Jaina Solo, and to her surprise, Jagged Fel's as well.

Wait… why am I surprised?

"No. Luke, Han, and Leia are with him…"

Jaina and Jag took seats and also began grabbing food. The table was constantly piled with food since the arrival of the Skywalkers, honored friends of the Queen Mother. Nothing seemed to please Tahiri's appetite, but the way Jaina and Jag went at it, it must have been good. Tahiri took a fork full of some sort of mixture involving fish and stuck it in her mouth with a grimace.

She just couldn't see how anyone liked the stuff. The least seasoned food burned her nostrils with its fragrance.

"Tahiri has been with Anakin almost non stop, Jag. Some of us thought she just liked seeing him in those briefs bacta patients need to wear."
Tahiri blushed and stared at the table with a small shake of her head.

"Jaina, I think you're embarrassing the poor girl."

"Maybe…"

Tahiri soon found her face lifted to look into Jaina's eyes. They held worry, though Tahiri couldn't understand why.

"Tahiri? You ok?"

"Ok…"

"You look kind of pale. Is Anakin Ok?"

"Yeah. He's fine." Tahiri suddenly noticed that her vision was slightly blurry and blinked a few times to clear it. Her mind must be slipping from lack of sleep.

No, she had just slept for a few hours only minutes ago.

"Tahiri?"

"Hm? An…kin… wake…" Now her voice wouldn't do as she said. Why did it have to be so hot in here? And why was Jaina all… fuzzy and on her side like that…

Jaina Solo knew something was wrong when Tahiri started slurring her speech. She only had water in the glass in front of her, and the dishes on the table were perfectly fine. Only when Tahiri slurred out some indecipherable words and then fall to the floor did she realize that something was very wrong with her.

She caught Tahiri in the Force and held her at eye level for a moment.

"Jag, something's wrong with Tahiri. We need to get to the infirmary, now."

"Right."

Anakin was sleeping when Jaina and Jag ran in the doors.

"Mom, Dad! Something's wrong with Tahiri!"

Instantly the medical droid had Tahiri on a stretcher and on the way to a patient table.

"Jaina? What happened?"

"She was just sitting at the table and started acting all… strange. She felt really tired through the force… it might be just plain fatigue."

"Mistress Veila is not suffering from 'mere fatigue', as you so delicately put it. The Mistress is suffering from dehydration, minor malnutrition, severe stress fatigue, and some minor coolant poisoning."

"Coolant poisoning!"

"I would assume it would be from breathing in the air in this room for three days straight. The coolant leaks are very minor but constant exposure can cause problems. This room wasn't meant for long stays, you know?"

"Great. The girl who saves our son gets killed watching over him."

"Actually, she will be quite fine in a day."
The droid hovered away to check various machines after putting a small I.V. in her arm for hydration.

Leia sighed.

"She should have known better…"

"On her behalf, I haven't been eating all that well recently, either."

"Same."

Leia glared at the two men who were now smiling at her with the grins that made one of them famous and the other look like a wise old man. Han smirked and put an arm over his wife's shoulder.

"Well, if there is one thing good that came out of this, it is that those two are going to have a hard time ignoring their feelings for each other…"

"You have no idea, Dad. Tahiri actually promised to kiss Anakin is he came back before that last run. Right after Anakin tried to sneak one on her."

"I'll have to ask him about that when he wakes up."

"He's too much like his father."

"What? If I remember clearly, our first kiss was snuck in by me while we were on the run."

"Exactly. Not the most romantic kiss I've had."

"No? Maybe you just don't remember the thrill of trying to fix a busted ship while Tie fighters try to blow you out of the sky. There is no better definition of romantic."

Luke smiled at his family, all gathered now except Jacen. But worrying about Jacen now was pointless. Until they got a full sense of him through the force there was nothing they could do.

"So, did Tahiri tell you before she went down that Anakin woke up?"

"No, but she might have been trying to."

"He woke up for a few minutes, just long enough to embarrass Tahiri enough for her to leave."

"He probably has no idea why, either. Clueless with the girls, that one."

"Says who?"

It only took a second for everyone's eyes to land on the young man in the bacta tank, who now had his eyes open and what appeared to be, though the breathing mask blocked most of it, a frown on his face.

"Anakin! You're awake!"

"Hi, Jaina. Jag. So what was going on? All I heard was that I was bad with the women for some reason. Jaina?"

"Tahiri… passed out."

"What?"

"She's suffering from various problems, but mostly she just needs some real food, water, and rest."

"I wouldn't mind some of that… without the rest, actually. Maybe some rest on the side, but…"

Anakin's laugh died in his throat as he turned in his tank to see the pale and sweating Tahiri laying on one of the patient beds.

"Sith spit…"

"Anakin!"

"Sorry Mom."

It was another few hours before Em-Dee finished his tests on Anakin and the Jedi was finally released from his bacta container, and immediately was forced to go eat some food. Upon entering the dining hall he was given the fake courteous applause that Hapan nobility was so good at, the kind that just made you feel lower then them and caused you to almost punch one in the face for the hell of it. He immediately wished he was back on Coruscant with a nerf steak, but had to make do with the fancy food.

He was feeling much better then he should have felt, he knew. There were still things about his unconscious time that he hadn't told his parents or uncle. That, and the girl responsible for saving his life was laying asleep in the room he had just left.

At least now I know why she was acting so… weird when I woke up.

"Young Master Solo."

Anakin looked up from where he was poking a large gelatinous blob, the same kind Tahiri had been prodding earlier, to see a small humanoid droid waiting for his attention. At least it would be a welcome distraction from the… food.

"Yes?"

"I have a message, sir."

"From who?"

"Whom."

"Whom?"

"I cannot say. Do you want to receive the message?"

"Why not?"

Anakin wondered for weeks after why he ever agreed to receive a message from a mysterious droid with no known sender. He would always wonder what he was thinking. No much, obviously, as the droid's hand fell off to reveal the barrel of a disrupter pistol, which fired an instant later.

Luckily it was an instant.

Anakin was already gone.

Faster then even Luke could comprehend, Anakin was behind the droid, diverting its aim into the floor before placing a hand over its main power source. Instantly the droid shut down.

"Well… I guess it serves me right for accepting mail with no sender."

Anakin used the Force to push the droid a little away before sitting down to eat… something. The questioning and startled looks of his friends and family could wait. He had more important business to attend to.

Tahiri felt like a hover car had run her over a few times as she blinked her eyes awake. The first thing she noticed was that she felt like crap. The second thing was that she was in an all too familiar room. The clean air tasted almost sterile as she tried to lick her lips, but was unable to due to lack of moisture in her mouth. Almost instantly a cup of water was in front of her eyes and an arm behind her back, helping her sit up to drink it. Everything was a little foggy at first, but her vision started to clear a few moments after setting the glass down empty. Or so she thought, until the face that registered in her mind was of the young man that should have not been where he was.

"An… Anakin?" Her voice was rough from being too dry, but she at least thought her eyes and mind were working correctly.

"Good, at least you're talking to me again." The smile that too often in present days was not existent flashed across his face. The kind of smile that warmed her heart too much to bear.

"Wha…what happened?"

"You decided to starve yourself while watching over me and Jedi meditation can only take you so far. You were suffering from dehydration and mild malnutrition, for starters. You just passed out."

Tahiri looked pale and dazed still, but she gladly accepted another glass of water and a normal sandwich.

"Dad had the sandwich on the ship, I was saving it for later, but I figured you hate that food worse than I do. And you're starving…"
Anakin had to stop talking as Tahiri inhaled the sandwich in about one second, which she soon followed with some more water.

"O…k?"

"Thanks, Anakin. I can't stand this 'rich people food'. It has been hell."

Tahiri laid back down in the comfortable bed that someone had brought in for her use and stared at the ceiling.

What now?

"Tahiri?"

It looks like he is going to start the conversation.

"Yes?"

"I… guess I need to say thank you."

Thank you? Thank you? What does he mean by that? Just… thank you…

"Don't mention it."

"And I'm sorry."

"Hm?"

"Sorry, for… you know… doing the whole hero sacrifice thing."

"You did what you needed to do."

Silence pervaded the room. Anakin obviously had something on his mind, but Tahiri was not going to budge an inch to comply.

"Look… Tahiri…"

"What?"

"I… what happened?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you treating me like this? Ignoring me after all we've been through? When I heard that you passed out from taking care of me all this time… don't you know how worried I was? And your promise… damn it! Tahiri, I need to know. Why did you do this to yourself?"
Tahiri stared at the ceiling with all the thoughts of the past few days running through her head. She knew why she did what she did. She knew exactly why she was ignoring him.

It's because I finally decided to tell you my feelings… and I can't find the right way to say them.

It's because you almost died.

It's because you almost didn't come back.

It's because I'm so confused and it's all coming at me too fast.

Tahiri blushed when she thought about the promise she had made back in that world ship. The promise that if Anakin came back… she would give him a kiss.

Their first.

"Tahiri? Tahiri, are you awake?"

Anakin looked down on her with a worry filled face, wondering what he could have possibly done, besides almost die, that would make her treat him this way.

I thought that we were best friends. Weren't we? Did she forget the promise she made me? If I came back… damn it. I thought we were finally ready for something more than just friendship. I thought… she felt the same way about me as I did about her…

"I'm not mad, Anakin."

Tahiri's voice suddenly knocked Anakin out of his thoughts. Tahiri was looking at him now with a tired smile, one that brightened his spirits infinitely. It wasn't her usual smile, but it would do for now.

"In fact… I'm very happy. So happy I…" Tears were gathering at the edges of her eyes, the eyes of the tomboy that almost never cried. "… I'm glad you came back."

Anakin smiled. And then took a risk. Leaning in with almost delicate smoothness he placed his lips on hers for only an instant before he broke away. Both teens were blushing as Anakin leaned back.

"You know… the promise…"

"Yeah…"

Anakin sat back in the chair he had been resting in. Just in time to miss a blaster shot that passed only inches in front of his face, scalding him. Instantly, and slightly less instantly in Tahiri's case, they were on their feet with lightsabers in hand. A shadow flashed out of the door and down the hall.

"Stay here, Tahiri." Anakin was gone before she had the chance to say a word.

But that was fine with her. Getting up so suddenly caused her to almost black out. She lay back in her bed once again, but this time kept an eye on the door.

Anakin was down the hall faster than most Jedi Masters would have been able to run. The Force fed his speed and perception to near impossible heights as he fed more of his mind to his connection with the Force. Before he was ten seconds out of the door he had caught up with the figure that had taken a shot at him. The Hapan servant spun in horror and took another shot with his disruptor pistol at Anakin. This time, though, Anakin had no choice but to block it. Other people were behind him in the hall. His lightsaber came up and knocked the bolt into the ceiling, and the next one into the floor. The disruptor only had about two shots left, and the would-be assassin took both in either leg as Anakin blocked them. The power of the disruptor was obviously set to high by the damage it did, nearly destroying both legs. Anakin realized from the panicked cries of the bystanders that it was probably time to leave Hapan if his family was to get out at all. He calmly extinguished his lightsaber and placed it on his belt before heading back through the corridors to the infirmary.

Anakin, you're sloppy.

My concentration is gone after that kiss.

Women, the bane of many better Jedi than me.

Or me. I'll be more focused from here on out.

Good. Remember, this is your last chance. Blow this one…

I know.

The Millennium Falcon, despite its age, still sailed the hyperspace lanes faster than any other ship out there. And now it was loaded up with Jedi returning from a successful mission. After the multiple attacks on Anakin Solo they had decided to quickly pack up, grab their people and leave. Anakin sat in the makeshift infirmary next to Tahiri. Leia and Jaina sat in the main cabin talking and laughing with the other Jedi, each trying to drown their worries and sorrows in the present company. They had all lost friends and warriors, and one son that had yet to appear in their senses. But, as Luke put it earlier, they had so much to be grateful for. Anakin should have been killed, but he wasn't, and the mission had been successful.

Han Solo sat in the pilot's chair, his head set tuned into what was happening in the cabin. True, he had lost a son on that mission. But he wasn't dead, so hope was still there. Over all, the future looked bright.

Now if only those Vong bastards would leave…