Chapter 89
Several months later….
Anakin sat in the rocker holding his newly born son in his arms. He could not take his eyes from the tiny boy's face, drinking in every detail of him. He kissed the top of the boy's head, loving the softness of his brown downy hair, the sweet new born baby scent of him. It astonished him that he could be so attached to such a tiny being mere hours after setting eyes on him for the first time.
The door to the hospital room opened and Anakin looked up to see his two elder children walk in. He smiled at them. "Come on in," he said softly, careful not to wake up his wife. "Meet your baby brother."
Luke and Leia approached him and smiled when they saw the sleeping baby in his arms.
"He's so beautiful," Leia said softly, bending to kiss him. "He even smells good."
"How's Mom?" Luke asked, looking back at the bed where Padmé was sleeping.
"She's fine," Anakin said, looking at her. "It was an incredible experience being here with her. I only wish…" he stopped, emotions overwhelming him.
"We know, Dad," Luke said, putting a hand on his father's shoulder.
"May I hold him, Dad?" Leia said.
"Of course," Anakin said. He stood up and placed the small boy in her arms.
"Did you finally decide on a name?" Luke asked with a smile, looking down at his little brother.
Anakin nodded. "Yes, we named him after your grand father, Ruwee. Your mother wanted to name him after me, but I insisted."
"That will mean a lot to Grandma, I'm sure," Leia said, kissing the tip of the baby's nose. "She said she'll be here the day after tomorrow to see him."
"Good," Anakin said. "She hasn't had a grandbaby to fuss over in a very long time," he added. He looked up at Leia. "What news on the elections?"
Leia smiled. "Mon Mothma by a landslide," she said. "She will make a great Chancellor."
"I'm sure Mom would have won hands down had she thrown her name in," Luke pointed out.
"Yes, no doubt," Anakin said. "But she had other priorities to consider," he added with a smile.
Luke nodded. "Han and Ylla are outside," he told his father. "Think we could show them the baby?"
"I don't see why not," Anakin said. "Just so long as they don't have any contagious diseases."
Leia and Luke looked at one another, stifling a smile. "No, they're both in good health, Daddy," Leia said. "Come on, Luke," she said, walking towards the door. "Let's go show him off."
Anakin smiled as his three children left the room. He walked over to the bed where Padmé was starting to wake up. "Hi," he said with smile.
"Hi," she replied. She looked around. "Where's the baby?" she asked an edge of panic in her voice.
"He's with the kids," Anakin assured her, taking her hand. "They are anxious to show him off to their betrothed."
Padmé nodded. "I guess that's natural," she said.
"With a baby as beautiful as him, absolutely," Anakin replied. "I can't get over how perfect he is," he said.
Padmé smiled. "He is," she agreed.
"Your mother is coming in a few days to see him," Anakin told her.
"Good," Padmé said, sitting up in the bed. "Does she know the name we chose?"
Anakin shook his head. "No, I thought you'd like to tell her," he said.
Padmé smiled. "Yes, I would. I think she'll be happy."
"I'm sure she will," Anakin replied. He turned and looked at the door. "Where are those kids?" he muttered. "I just have visions of Solo passing the baby around like he was a Corellian football."
Padmé laughed. "Now now," she said. "Han is going to be our son in law, remember?"
"How could I forget?" Anakin remarked.
"You like him, admit it," she said.
Anakin smiled. "Well, a little I suppose," he said. "I just wish he was a little more ….respectful. Like Ylla."
"Ylla is a rare gem," Padmé said. "She will be the perfect wife for Luke."
"She will," Anakin agreed. He smiled. "Imagine - little Ruwee will probably be an uncle when he's less than five years old."
Padmé nodded. "Very possibly, yes."
The door opened and both Anakin and Padmé looked over to see their children walk into the room.
"Hi Mom," Luke said, coming over to the bed. Leia joined him and they both kissed her.
"Where are Han and Ylla?" Padmé asked.
"We weren't sure if you were awake," Leia explained. "Is it okay if they come in?"
"Of course," Padmé replied. "They're practically family," she added with a smile.
Leia nodded, and then handed her baby brother to her mother. Ruwee was awake now and looked up at his mother's face. Padmé kissed his tiny nose, marveling in the perfection of his miniature features. She looked up as the door opened and saw Han and Ylla enter the room.
"Congratulations!" Ylla said as she came over to kiss Padmé. She looked down at the baby in her arms. "He is just beautiful," she crooned.
"Thank you," Padmé said, looking down at her new son with adoration.
"Hey, he looks like a miniature Luke," Han commented with a smile.
"Does he?" Ylla said. She looked up at Padmé. "Did Luke look like this when he was a baby?"
Padmé looked up at Ylla, and then at Anakin. She could see that Anakin too had been thinking about the birth of their twins. It was difficult for her to remember that day without thinking of Mustafar, without thinking of what happened after they were born.
"There is a family resemblance, no doubt," Padmé said at last.
Luke and Leia could see that this was a difficult topic for their parents, and they knew the reason why. Their birth had marked the end of their life together, and the beginning of the Darkness that had claimed the life of their father for two decades.
But the birth of young Ruwee marked a new beginning for the Skywalker family. It represented a second chance, one that Anakin had never believed he would be given. Not only that, it heralded the beginning of a New Republic.
Little by little the Imperial forces had seen the futility of fighting against the changes that Anakin had set into motion. Within two years of the death of Palpatine, every remaining vestige of the once mighty Empire had been eradicated, and the control of the galaxy had been returned to the local systems. The Senate had once again been established, with Mon Mothma as its leader, the Supreme Chancellor. The enormous Imperial army and navy were now the Republican Army and Navy, the clone army having been given new directives. It was an exciting time, a time of great change and even greater challenge. And yet, the promise of the future was great. The Sith had been destroyed, the Jedi Order reestablished. The galaxy had been reborn; and while no one would ever forget the errors of the past, all had been able to learn from them and never allow them to happen again.