Owen Lars was a simple man. That was it. He grew up as a farmer, that was who he was. He believed in the rising and the falling of the suns. He didn't believe in all that supernatural hocus pocus that his late step brother Anakin Skywalker believed in. But the morning of Selona the eighth year 3BBY. Approximately three weeks before the seventeenth anniversary of Skywalker's death. Owen Lars became a believer or so he believed.
It was any normal morning for Owen Lars. He was the one who woke up in the early ours to pick the mushrooms off of the evaporators in order to prevent his own child from doing so. He would never have another Lars woman die over mushrooms as his step mother Shmi Skywalker-Lars did. As in every morning, he gathered the baskets together in the kitchen filled with fresh mushrooms. He was still the only one awake yet. Owen grew accustomed to life without his wife who had passed away some years before because of complications from childbirth. Owen mourned Beru's death. But he had a little light in his own tragedy. Their daughter had survived. She was ten now and one hundred percent independent. It was just the two of them now and Owen grew accustomed to being both mother and father to his child which included all the housework and the work on the farm. Unfortunately he couldn't afford hired help for the farm, so he did it all on his own. Owen never complained . This was his life and he was happy. But he could use the help.
"You know when I tuned in I expected to see Beru to being doing the housework and you to be working outside."
Owen jumped at hearing that voice. He had heard it before, but the man who the voice belonged to was dead. "Oh dear oh dear oh dear I am finally loosing it," he muttered to himself.
"Owen?"
"Maybe if I ignore it it will go away," Owen told himself.
"Look, you're the one who begged me to come visit you."
"Yeah when you were alive," Owen muttered.
"I'm sorry if I seemed to ignore your request of friendship or your invitation of family. I was busy fighting in a senseless war, But I'm taking you up on your offer now."
"Go away," Owen said.
"I need your help Owen, and as family you're obligated to help me."
"Okay I'm a believer are you happy!" Owen said.
"What are you ranting about? Please don't tell me that you lost your mind too." There was a slight groan in his tone of voice there.
"What?" Owen demanded.
"Look I'll be at your door in a matter of moments. By the way sorry for not mentioning this earlier but I'm not dead. Apparently you left your comm station on and I've been having some fun at your expense."
At that Owen growled. "That was not funny," he grumbled.
"Yes it was," Skywalker said.
In the next second there was a knock at the door and Owen groaned before answering it to see an older Anakin Skywalker grin at him.
"Surprise brother dear!" Anakin said.
"We're not brother's," Owen told him flatly. "Please don't tell me that you came here to hide out from the Empire because you've been causing trouble. I don't want storm troopers bursting down my door," he said frowning.
"If I was causing trouble for the empire I wouldn't be hiding out on Tatooine," Anakin told him.
"Lucky me," Owen said dryly.
"I wouldn't be hiding out on Tatooine because I would have been shipped off to the spice mines for assassinating the emperor himself, that is if they caught me," Anakin told him letting himself in.
"What am I doing letting a lunatic into my house where I have a ten year old sleeping?" Owen asked himself.
"I may be a lunatic but since your old man married my mother that makes us family," Anakin told him. Mind If I take a mushroom?" he asked
Owen waved a hand "Be my guest," he said.
"I'm hoping to be more than that," Anakin muttered as he popped a mushroom in his mouth. "Hey these aren't that bad, I can see why Mom was fond of them," he said he then noticed the holo Owen had displayed of his daughter. "Cute kid, what's her name?" he asked.
"Lexie. She's ten," Owen told him.
"I've got two of them, they turn seventeen in three weeks. I expect you'll meet them soon, their pretty eager to meet you," Anakin told him.
"Twin girls?" Owen asked.
"One girl, one boy but yeah twins," Anakin said.
"What are are their names?" Owen asked trying to picture Anakin as a father.
"Luke and Leia. Amazing kids really. But I'm not exactly their favorite person right about now," Anakin said the last part regretfully.
"Why's that?" Owen asked.
"Because I'm a lousy father," Anakin said making Owen stare at him.
"Please don't tell me that you're proud of that," Owen said.
"No. I'm far from proud. I'm not perfect Owen. I'm just now coming to terms with all of my faults. I don't think my mother would be very happy with me right about now," Anakin said.
Then Owen noticed the swagger in his step brother's step and how he seemed to be leaning to the side as he stood there. "Good gods are you drunk?!" he asked.
"I think so, but I'm not exactly sure. You know, I'm feeling a bit dizzy, mind if I sit down?" Anakin replied.
"I would strongly advise it," Owen said.
"Thanks," Anakin muttered plopping down on the floor of the kitchen. "I wasn't sure how much longer I'd last like that."
"I didn't mean for you to sit in the middle of the kitchen floor," Owen said, "come on, you need to sit somewhere more comfortable and preferably sobered up," he said helping Anakin up and guiding him to take a seat at the table.
"You're being too good to me, I don't deserve your kindness," Anakin told him.
"What happened to you Anakin?" Owen asked concerned.
"I am incapable of doing any right anymore. I'm a total screw up," Anakin said.
"Come now I don't believe that," Owen said.
"I just divorced my wife. My savior, the most beautiful of all angels. And my kids hate me for it," Anakin told him. He then groaned and banged his head on the table. "Now I have no one," he said despairingly.
Owen rolled his eyes. "Now you're being over dramatic," he said.
"I'd kill myself but I have to kill the emperor first," Anakin said.
"Okay no more alcohol for you," Owen said.
"Maybe I should feed myself to the sarlacc," Anakin said thoughtfully. "The perfect penance for my sins."
"Okay, you really need some sort of professional help. Maybe if you're properly medicated you won't feel like taking your own life," Owen said growing alarmed.
"However I take my own life I have to make sure they think it was an accident," Anakin muttered.
"Anakin, you can't take your own life, think about what that would do to your kids," Owen said.
Anakin frowned. "I don't want to hurt them, I love them too much to do that," he said. He then noticed the flower that sat in a jar in the middle of the table. "Mom," he whispered brokenly. "I'm so very sorry, so very sorry," he murmured.
Owen looked from the flower to the far away look on Anakin's face as he stared at the flower. "Did you just call that flower 'mom'?" he asked.
"Was she happy here?" Anakin asked.
"Shmi was very happy here," Owen told him.
"I've never seen my mother happy," Anakin confessed.
Owen felt for Anakin at this very moment. Owen's own mother passed away when he was very young, but she was very happy. "She missed you a great deal Anakin. She used to talk about you every chance she got. She held out hope that you would come back to visit her," he said.
"I asked them to let me come back to see her but they wouldn't let me, they wanted me to forget her," Anakin whispered angrily.
"Who are they?" Owen asked but Anakin didn't answer. All he got was silence. "Anakin?" he asked. That's when a Anakin snorted loudly and then began to snore. Owen sighed. "I'll just prepare breakfast and let him sleep it off," he muttered.
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When Anakin finally woke up he noticed that he was face down on something hard and his back ached from the awkward position he was in, being slumped over a table at an angle. But his head was pounding. He groaned loudly and lifted his head very slowly. He then found himself staring into a pair of blue eyes. That's when their owner came into focus and the eyes blinked. A girl child sat across from him staring at him.
"Hello," she said.
"Don't scream please," he begged.
"I'm not screaming. Here, my daddy said that you need to drink this," she said pushing a cup toward him. "He said that it would help you."
"What is it?" Anakin asked looking at the contents skeptically.
The girl shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "Are you really Anakin Skywalker?" she asked.
"Yes, and you are?" Anakin replied.
"I'm Lexie Lars," the girl told him.
"How did I get here?" he asked.
"I don't know, you were here when I woke up," Lexie said.
"Where's Owen?" Anakin asked.
"Daddy is in the garage. He's trying to fix something," Lexie told him.
"I need to talk to him," Anakin said getting up but he stood up too fast and swayed to the side.
"But you need to drink your drink," Lexie told him.
Anakin picked up the cup offered to him and downed the contents instantly feeling better but his back was still stiff. He nodded to the girl before finding Owen. He found him where Lexie told him to find him.
"You slept for twelve hours, I hope the alcohol is out of your system," Owen said noticing him walk into the garage.
"You can say that," Anakin replied.
"What are you doing here Anakin?" Owen asked.
"I have no where else to go," Anakin told him.
"Why me?" Owen asked.
"Because we're somewhat family if you can call it that," Anakin told him.
Owen sighed. "Fine. I could use some help around the farm but I want no drinking, I have a ten year old to think of, I don't want her exposed to that," he said.
"Fair enough," Anakin said agreeing. He then noticed the shifter that Owen was working on. "Having trouble?" he asked.
"Yeah, this shifter broke a few weeks ago, but I haven't been able to fix it yet," Owen told him.
"Let me have a look at it," Anakin told him.
"Good luck, it's pretty much shot," Owen told him.
"Not necessarily," Anakin said examining the shifter. He picked up a few tools and started working on it. Within moments he handed it back to Owen. "It's fixed," he said.
"You're not joking are you?" Owen asked.
"I'm good at fixing things," Anakin told him.
"What about that hunk of junk you came here in? I can't imagine that it's flyable," Owen asked.
"I've got it working," Anakin told him.
"Obviously," Owen muttered. He looked Anakin then. "If you're going to stay here, then you need to work," he said.
"I expected that," Anakin told him.
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Three weeks after the divorce Anakin rolled out of bed knowing that he needed to get those parts for his ship today. Moving on wasn't easy and neither was the life as a moisture farmer. Owen had been good to Anakin in allowing him to stay in favor of Anakin helping out around the farm. Anakin resigned himself to the fact that this was his life now.
Upon Obi-Wan's insistence when Anakin left Naboo, Anakin took a two way comm. Apparently Luke had adjusted the two way comms so that the twins could keep contact with Obi-Wan and their mother if ever they got separated between worlds. This was, according to Obi-Wan, a way for Anakin to keep in contact with his old mentor and the twins at any time without the empire being able to track them. So far Anakin had spoken to Obi-Wan several times, but the twins had yet to comm him. Apparently Luke and Leia were still upset.
scratching his head, Anakin went about doing what he did every morning and met Owen and Lexie at the breakfast table. "I need to make a trip into Mos Espa today," he announced.
"What for?" Lexie asked and took a bite of her breakfast.
"I need to get some parts for my ship," Anakin told her.
"You're serious about getting that thing into outstanding condition then?" Owen asked.
"Yes," Anakin said simply.
"Can you even do it? And how are you going to pay for the parts?" Owen asked.
"I'll have the ship fixed up in no time and I don't need money, Watto is going to give me the parts for free," Anakin told him.
"Good luck," Owen snorted.
"Since I'll be gone getting parts, is there anything that we need that I can get while I'm out?" Anakin asked.
"I think we're good," Owen told him.
"Do you think that you can get some sweet powder?" Lexie asked.
"Lexie, you don't need any of that," Owen told his daughter.
Lexie's face fell. "Yes Daddy," she said.
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Watto's junk shop looked worse for the wear Anakin thought when he arrived. Taking a deep breath he pushed aside the old memories and entered the junk shop. For a moment he wondered if Watto was even still around since he didn't see him. But if he knew Watto, he knew that the toydarian would be out any time now so he just browsed around the shop looking for parts. Finding a few things that he could use, he made a mental note of where they were before heading out back to go hunting for parts.
"No customers back here unattended!"
Anakin calmly turned around to face Watto. "I'm looking for parts to a T17 Kumba Class Corellian Gunshuttle year 37BBY," Anakin told him calmly.
Watto flew forward to examine his customer. "You look familiar," he said.
"I'm not from around here," Anakin lied.
"What kind of parts are you looking for?" Watto asked.
"All of them," Anakin said, "including pieces of Limna for the outside,"
"You're in luck I just got a shipment in mostly what you're looking for, but it will be costly, five million," Watto said.
"You're going to give me everything I'm looking for for free," Anakin told him.
"What are you daft? No money no deal," Watto told him.
Anakin raised an eyebrow. "I don't think you're in the position to refuse me," he said.
"Leave my shop and come back when you have the money," Watto told him.
Anakin lifted his hand and used the force to shove Watto hard into a pile of junk. "Like I said, you're in no position to refuse me," he said.
"You think you can use tricks to persuade me?" Watto demanded getting up.
Anakin used to the force to put pressure on Watto's windpipe all the while hating himself for using this trick. "You'll give me everything I ask for Watto. That's less than you owe me for the hardship you put me and my mother through," he said dangerously calm.
At that remark Watto's eyes grew bigger as he struggled for air now knowing why Anakin looked so familiar. "Whatever...you...say..." he managed to choke out.
Anakin released him much to Watto's relief. "You never saw me today or ever. From now on any Skywalker who comes here looking for parts gets what they want to questions asked and no money exchanged," he ordered.
"They said you died in the purges, how did you survive?" Watto demanded.
"I turned into Darth Vader," Anakin told him bluntly.
At that Watto knew that he would be looking for trouble should he ever cross his former slave. "Where should I have these parts delivered?" he asked.
"Docking bay seventy four. And I want those speeder bikes," Anakin said pointing to the set of three old speeder bikes around the corner.
"They don't work," Watto told him.
"Then I'll get them working," Anakin said. "If my shipment doesn't arrive in half an hour, I'll be back here and I wont be happy," Anakin told him leaving the shop. Half an hour later Anakin oversaw the shipment being loaded into his ship.
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Three months after the divorce Anakin was working on his ship when two X-wing class ships landed. Anakin was too busy to really take notice. The two ships opened up and their pilots took off their helmets revealing the twins. Luke and Leia both jumped down from their ships and approached their father.
"This place doesn't seem like much," Luke said looking around.
"That's because it isn't," Anakin replied turning around to face his kids. "I'd hug you, but I'm covered in grease," he said
"How are you holding up?" Leia asked .
"I'm doing the best that I can. Don't worry about me," Anakin told her.
"Uncle Anakin!" Lexie cried coming outside, she stopped when she saw the new comers. "Who are you?" she asked.
"Your cousins," Anakin told the ten year old. "What is it?" he asked.
Lexie turned away from the twins to face him. "Daddy said to tell you that lunch is almost ready," she told him.
Anakin looked up at the sky to the positions of the suns. "Yeah I guess it's about that time," he said. "I'll be in in a few minutes," he told Lexie.
"Okay then," Lexie said going back inside.
Anakin turned back to the twins. "You didn't tell me you were coming, please tell me that your mother knows you're here," he said.
"We told her that we needed to get off of Hoth," Luke said.
"She only agreed because Luke stayed out all night in the snow after being attacked by a wampa, if it weren't for Han he would have froze," Leia informed him.
At this Anakin raised an eyebrow. "And you didn't sense this attack?" he asked his son.
"I was preoccupied by this meteor that crashed. I wanted to make sure that it wasn't another prob droid," Luke told him.
"Was it?" Anakin asked.
"No, just some sort of escape pod, nothing was in it, last I knew it was in the possession of the alliance, they're trying to figure out where it came from," Luke answered.
"That's strange. I should contact Obi-Wan and see what he thinks," Anakin muttered. He shook his head. "Come on inside then," he told them. When they got inside Anakin brought them to a door. "I don't know how long you'll be here, but you're going to have to share a room, I have some comfortable clothes stored in there for the two of you, whatever you're wearing now wont be all that comfortable here," he told them. "There's a refresher behind the door on the right," he added.
"This is awkward now isn't it?" Leia asked.
"This isn't how I want things you know that," Anakin told them.
"Then why did you do it?" Luke asked.
"Because I had to, now get changed while I get cleaned up," Anakin told them and walked away.
Luke turned to his twin. "Do you really think it will work?" he asked.
"It has to," Leia told him.
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"We have visitors," Anakin announced as he lead Luke and Leia to the lunch table.
"So Lexie told me," Owen said, he shook Luke and Leia's hands. "Your father has told me about you," he told them.
Luke and Leia looked at each other both wondering what exactly their father had to say about them.
"I'm sure that you're used to better food than what you'll find on Tatooine, but it's all we have," Owen said.
Anakin placed a hand on each twin's shoulder. "They won't complain," Anakin said and looked at the twins. "Will you?" he said adding a little pressure on thier shoulders as a warning.
"No we won't," Leia said.
"We're used to crappy food, we grew up on the run," Luke couldn't help but add the comment directed at his father.
Anakin looked at his son knowing the full meaning behind his words. "Sit down the both of you," he said.
Owen looked at the three Skywalkers seeing the tension in the kids, the boy mostly.
Luke didn't say another word through the whole meal and ate his meal sullenly. Leia at least made an effort at conversation all the while sending looks at her brother. When the meal was over with Owen and Lexie cleared the table and began cleaning up leaving Anakin alone with his children.
"Lets just make the best of this situation okay," Anakin suggested.
"Whatever," Luke said sullenly.
"Luke," Leia warned.
Luke looked Anakin in the eye. "Why would you want to be in such a wretched place for anyway?" he demanded.
"I grew up here," Anakin said simple.
"You grew up on Coruscant," Luke said flatly.
"I was born here, my mother raised me here," Anakin told him.
"You're mother is dead," Luke said sullenly.
"Luke!" Leia warned.
Anakin frowned at his son. "I'm reminded of that every day when I see her gravestone. I'm reminded of the most horrific night of my life. Of how much of a failure I am," he said flatly.
"You're not a failure," Leia whispered.
"You're needed elsewhere but instead you holed up on this desolate planet. Some chosen one you are," Luke told him.
"The galaxy is better off without me," Anakin said.
"Who is supposed to stop the emperor if not you?" Luke demanded.
Anakin stood up then and turned to the door before turning back to his son. "I can't stop Palpatine, I never could. Whether any one us likes it or not, this is my place now. This is my life. If you want to be a part of it like I want you to be, then accept it," he said before leaving.
When he left Leia turned to her brother. "That went well," she said flatly. "Maybe if you changed your attitude a little then we can convince him to snap out of this whole he's in," she said before standing up and leaving.
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Leia found her father in the garage. "Luke didn't mean to upset you," she said.
"Yes he did," Anakin told her as he worked on a motor of some sort. "I won't break Leia. I can take criticism no matter who it comes from," he told her. "I'm surprised that you're not as sullen as your brother given the situation," he added.
"I have more reason to be than Luke," Leia told him.
"Why's that?" Anakin asked feigning innocence.
"I know that it was you who ratted me out to Mom about Han," Leia told him.
"She told you then," Anakin said clearly not bothered.
"She didn't have to," Leia said. "What I don't understand is why you did it. It's not like you didn't keep a relationship secret," she finished flatly.
"I did it because secrets never help anyone. Look at what it did to your mother and I," Anakin told her.
"It was a completely different situation and you know it! It didn't have to stay a secret for long!" Leia told him.
"I'm not going to apologize for doing what I felt was right," Anakin told her.
"I don't expect any sort of apology out of you. The truth of the matter is that I don't have any expectations where you're concerned," Leia told him coolly.
That for some reason stabbed at him. He stopped what he was working on. "I can never take back the things that I have done in the past. I don't ask for forgiveness because I don't deserve it. But If I can ever go back in time and change it, I would do it in a heartbeat. You have to believe that," he said.
"I know you would. But you can't. The least you can do is fix your mistakes, that's all we ask," Leia told him before leaving.
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Leia busied herself by taking over some of the cleaning in dining room. Luke had gone off to work on his X-wing. Owen and Lexie was doing whatever they did at this time and as far as Leia knew her father was still in the garage. She had come here to convince him to not only come home but to help the alliance. They needed him. But he was unable to see that yet. She refused to believe that he didn't care, that he would stay here forever. She still believed that he would change his mind and come back to them, that they would be a family, that the Empire would be destroyed.
Leia was brought out of her thoughts when a blue prickly looking flower was offered to her.
"A peace offering," Anakin said as Leia took the flower smelling it's sun drenched scent.
"I didn't think such things grew here," she said turning to face her father.
"They only grow in places with high moisture levels. It's how a moisture farmer knows where to make his homestead," Anakin told her.
"Interesting," Leia said.
Anakin leaned against the table. "There's an old legend about a great oasis somewhere in the deserts. Many adventure seekers have gone out to search for it but were never seen again. Some say that they died somewhere out there from the heat or from dehydration. Some say that they were taken prisoner by Tuskans while other say that hey had found the oasis and decided to never leave it. When I was a boy, I had grand desires for adventure and tried to go looking for the oasis, I went as far as I could go being a slave and all, not to mention I was only six years old at the time. I thought that I had found it once when I found a whole area of those flowers. I picked a few and came running home to my mother telling her about my great adventure and my surprising find. She listened to my story and encouraged me to believe in my adventure telling me how brave I was. From then on I continued to travel to my oasis to present these flowers to her, especially when she was sad," he told her.
Leia looked down at the flower and imaged her father presenting one to his mother as a child. "Does the flower have a name?" she asked.
"It's called a Sand-Bud-Leia," Anakin told her.
Leia looked at him then now knowing why she had such an unusual name. "I was named in remembrance of your mother," she concluded.
Anakin smiled. "I couldn't give you my mother's name. To me there was only one Shmi Skywalker and there could never be any other in my heart. But I came up with the next best thing. I never explained to your mother where I came up with your name and what it meant. I ever talked about my mother after she died," he told her. He looked away for a moment as though he was seeing something she couldn't before turning back to her. "You've probably been told that you look like your mother, but in truth you look more like my mother," he said.
"I don't suppose there is any holo's of her?" Leia asked.
"I don't know. There might be somewhere around here, she lived here for several years before she died," Anakin replied.
"Have you asked Uncle Owen?" Leia asked.
"No," Anakin said quickly. "You can ask him. I'm not ready to see them if they're around," he finished.
"You loved her very much," Leia said.
"She was all I had. My hope," Anakin whispered. He straitened up and gave Leia a kiss on her forehead. "I know that I never showed it, but I loved you from the moment your mother told me she was pregnant, remember that," he told her before leaving the room.
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At the end of the day Anakin washed up. He splashed water of his face before bracing his hands on the edge of the sink. He took a deep breath as he did at the end of every day before looking up into the mirror. The face he saw morphed before his very eyes from the innocent young boy he once was to the nineteen year old who grew up fast by not only getting married and breaking the rules but getting involved in a war shortly after watching his mother die, the events hardening him and then to the war scared face, the last face of Anakin Skywalker. Then he saw the badly burned face of the newly born Darth Vader. From there the morphing grew faster as the face healed and was sealed in darkness until suddenly it stopped morphing. Now Anakin Skywalker was back, but he still looked like Darth Vader.
Suddenly Anakin was having a hard time breathing as he struggled to separate himself from the monster that he had lived as for so long. He closed his eyes and slumped against the sink as he saw the faces of everyone he had killed. Including the children. Then he saw Padme. Her horrified expression on Mustafar. Then he saw her hard emotionless face on top of the jedi temple followed by her startled and freighted look on Naboo and her please for him to stop. He cries rang in his ears like thunder. He felt as though someone had an iron grip on his throat and he struggled for air. He opened his eyes and looked himself straight in the mirror. He had to separate himself from Vader. He had to do something so that he wouldn't see Vader in the mirror again.
Once he had calmed down some he found his shaving kit. He knew that it wouldn't help anything, but he needed to make a change, even if it only started with this. He took one last look at himself before preparing the razor and proceeded in shaving his hair off. It was only the beginning. Once he had done this, he could move about unrecognized. He would start putting a plan in motion. Luke and Leia were right. He was the one who had to end it. He had to end the suffering that he had helped create. But he would do things himself this time. He would face the monster alone.