Okay, this is somewhat short...
And it's the last chapter...
Woohoo!
I can't wait to get to the next book I'm soooo excited for it!
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Enjoyyyy!
"Aria, can I talk to you?"
Aria looked up, slightly startled, to see Obi-Wan standing in the doorway of her room. Anakin and Padme were outside with Joshua at the younger boy's request to have a snowball fight, and Roxanne was down for her nap, while her mother took advantage of the peace and quiet to get some sleep of her own. Aria and Selina had not spoken any words more than necessary since the fight yesterday, and had avoided each other as much as possible. Aria, however, had been focusing on preparing for going to a new universe entirely. A backpack lay in the corner where she'd put all of her research of Obi-Wan, Padme, Anakin, Luke, Leia, Han, and many others so that she would have everything right on hand should something happen. It had been on a whim, but Aria had also packed her Star Wars complete saga and Clone Wars box set, as well as some of her Star Wars books, her small IPod speaker, chargers for her IPod and IPod speaker and, whenever she did leave, she planned on packing her laptop and laptop charger. Clothes she wasn't worried about, as none of her clothes would blend into the Star Wars Galaxy, so she'd have to get new ones whenever she did go with them. At the moment, Aria had been shuffling through some of Luke's history from the Legends part of Wookieepeida, and she stuffed the papers back into the backpack upon seeing Obi-Wan enter her room.
"Obi-Wan...of course, what do you need?" she asked, sitting down on her bed. Obi-Wan pulled up her desk chair to sit across from her, his eyes serious as he appraised the girl for several long moments.
"I'm not sure I'm entirely comfortable with taking you with us," he finally said. "You have a brother and sister here that I think need their older sister, and I can't guarantee your safety if you do come with us. Your life will be at risk, and it wouldn't take much for you to end up killed, especially in a place like our Galaxy."
Aria sighed, feeling frustration rush through her as she stood up sharply from her seat on the bed. Obi-Wan waited patiently for her to speak while she stared at a photo of her father that sat on her desk, hands on her hips. Finally, she spoke, looking much older than her sixteen some years as she answered Obi-Wan.
"Do you know the conversation my father and I had when the three of you first got here after dinner that night?" It was a rhetorical question, so Aria didn't wait for Obi-Wan to answer the question. "He told me that the three of you had been given a chance to change your fates, and for some reason the Force had decided I was the one to guide you safely to a better fate. He also told me to do everything I could to make sure that you all stayed on the right path. I feel like going with you would be the best way to do that."
"Would your father want you putting yourself in so much danger?" Obi-Wan countered.
"If it was the right thing to do...maybe. I can't speak for him. But I know what feels right, and I'm going to follow through with it," she said sternly.
"What about your family?" Obi-Wan asked softly, and Aria hesitated just slightly. She gave a depressed sigh, shaking her head slightly.
"Family members come and go all the time," Aria said bitterly. "And sometimes...sometimes a family has to split up. Listen, it's my choice, and nothing you say is going to change my mind. I'm coming with the three of you. You'll need what I know."
Obi-Wan shook his head, standing up. "I still don't think it's the best thing to do."
"The right thing to do is often the hardest, and sometimes the most painful," Aria said automatically, turning away from the picture of her father. "Listen, I don't know when it will be time for you to go back, but until then, I just want everyone to relax, and try to strengthen what bonds we have because I'm sure whenever we go back as a group those bonds will be tested to their limits, and I would like those bonds to stay firmly intact."
Obi-Wan shook his head. "A Jedi doesn't form attachments," he said simply.
"I said bond, not attachment. In my mind, there's a difference. An attachment you can't let go of if something happened. A bond would be like what you had or have with Qui-Gon, Satine, Siri...you can let go if they die. That's the difference in my book; the ability of letting go."
Obi-Wan still seemed doubtful, but he seemed to realize that Aria was not going to relent. She was going to come with them one way or another it seemed. With a sigh, he stood up from the bed. "You said we were going out tonight?"
Aria relaxed at the change of subject. "Yeah, there's a basketball game at the school tonight. I don't usually go to them but I figured it would be a nice break away from...everything."
"I'm sure it will be," Obi-Wan responded evenly. "When will we leave?"
"In about an hour."
Obi-Wan nodded, making his way to the door to give her some space once again. "All right, I'll tell the others then."
"What kind of game are we watching again? Basketball was it?" Anakin asked in the car pulled into the school parking lot.
"Yup. I usually sit up in the corner of the bleachers, so you can just ask as many questions about the game as you want. I used to play it, but...things happened, and I don't anymore," Aria said with a shrug, unbuckling her seatbelt. The group collectively got out of the car, Aria spearheading the group as she lead them inside of the school building for the first time, leading them through brick halls to the tile gymnasium where the basketball game was being held. There was already a decent amount of people there, and they had to navigate through a decent sized crowd of people before she directed them to the top of the bleachers in one of the far corners.
As they all got settled, Anakin cast his gaze around the room. "Hey, that Parker friend of yours isn't going to be here, is he?"
Aria chuckled in amusement at his tone of voice. Anakin was probably thinking of the over seven hundred rules Parker had tried to give them when they'd first arrived. "No, he usually doesn't come to these things. If he is here, he's probably been forced by someone," she snickered.
"Okay...that's a relief...not that he's a bad kid or anything, just—" Anakin started.
"He's a bit much?" Aria finished for him. "I know, he can be a bit much, can't he?"
"That's an understatement," Anakin muttered. Aria rolled her eyes and stretched, leaning her head against the wall behind them and closing her eyes.
"Do you guys want something to eat now or halfway through the game?" she asked.
"Best to get it now," Obi-Wan answered.
"All right then; four hamburgers, and soda all the way around. Got it," Aria said, standing up.
"I'll come with you," Anakin offered. He hadn't forgotten that they were at her school and that Aria seemed to have a large target painted on her back that said 'come and pick on me' for all her schoolmates. Aria shrugged in response.
"All right then, more hands to carry everything," she said with a light snicker. She was already descending the bleachers, and Anakin was right behind her, pulling his baseball cap lower over his eyes as he gained a few curious looks from people in the crowd. Aria chuckled again. "Jeez, even when you're trying to be subtle, you draw attention," she teased as she led them down the hall. A mixture of adults, teenagers, and little children mulled around them as she led them towards the cafeteria.
Anakin rolled his eyes. "I can't help it I'm irresistible."
"Sure, that's the reason."
Anakin smiled a little. It was nice to see her spark rekindled, even if it was always slight and the smile didn't always quite reach her eyes. She was still improving.
Anakin shoved his hands deep into the pockets of the jeans he was wearing and followed close behind Aria as she approached the food stand that was set up at the far end of the room. Anakin noticed a familiar group of girls eyeing the pair of them as Aria ordered the food, and he casually put his arm around her shoulders. She shot him a questioning look but didn't say anything as she paid for the food and divvied the load between the two of them. Anakin noticed that the little gaggle of girl's kept their eyes on the pair as they weaved their way through the cafeteria back towards the hall.
The girls followed.
"Hey Neads," one of them called, and Aria hesitated, obviously reluctant to turn around. Still, she did, her expression passive in the other girl's smug face. "Why don't you introduce us to your cousin?"
Anakin cocked an eyebrow at the other girl's demeaning tone of voice, pulling Aria closer in a side hug. "I'm not her cousin," he said politely.
"Oh really?" the girl asked. "I wouldn't have imagined anyone like you would let themselves be associated with someone like her. I figured that had to be the connection," she said snottily. Anakin was tempted to wrap the smug look off of her face, and he had the perfect way to do just that. Anakin smiled just as smugly back at the girl, twisting the cap backwards and cupping the back of Aria's neck in his hand.
"I guess this will really blow your mind then," he said smoothly before he leaned down and gave Aria a full on kiss on the mouth right in front of the group of girls. He could feel Aria's shock clearly through the Force, as well as trills of pure excitement, and he made sure to draw the kiss out nice and long, but not too long. When he pulled away, Aria was flushed a deep red and Anakin had to support her slightly as he turned to the other girls, putting the snapback back into place and tilting the hat slightly in a gesture of farewell.
"You girls have a nice night," he said, grinning at the look of pure shock and bewilderment that adorned the girls' faces. Chuckling under his breath, he spun Aria around and helped to guide her back towards the gymnasium. The poor girl seemed to be in a state of mild shock, and he couldn't help but find it amusing.
"So...so...um..." Aria stuttered out. She didn't seem capable of saying much else.
"You need to work on your ice-breakers," Anakin suggested.
Aria laughed weakly. "So...what ah...did you and Padme decide what you two were, ah...gonna do?" she managed to say. Anakin rolled his eyes, guiding the girl back through the crowd in the gym as they approached the bleachers.
"We agree partially with you. We are going to be careful, but...I don't think we're going to wait too long for a relationship."
Aria frowned. "Be careful about this. Secrets were destructive last time, so...I'd be very, very careful..."
Anakin sighed. "Well, we'll have you to keep us from doing the same stupid stuff we're supposed to do in the future, so we've got that going for us."
"You can't fix stupid," Aria muttered under her breath.
"What was that?"
"Nothing," Aria said innocently. Anakin rolled his eyes.
"Sure it was Aria. Sure it was."
After the basketball game, the mood of all four was significantly higher, with the most improvement seen in Aria, who was actually smiling and laughing along with them. Aria was cracking jokes with them just as she had before the accident. It was very refreshing to see her so lighthearted again, and Anakin had to admit that he had missed her being like this. She even got Obi-Wan and Anakin to share some of their adventures in the car, and she had been happy to inform them every time that it was a story that she had not heard before. By the time they arrived back at the house, they were all smiling, laughing, and wide awake. Of course, they had to quiet down by the time they entered the house since Roxanne was asleep, but no one complained. Selina was nowhere in sight, so they all just slipped right upstairs, undisturbed, and gathered in Aria's room for the usual nightly routine. The boys shook off their boots, setting them at the foot of their beds before getting ready for the night while Aria and Padme changed into their pajamas in the bathroom. The pair came back giggling softly about something—most likely some joke about Anakin, as he could tell from past experience—while Aria brushed her hair out.
"You know...I think today has been a really good day," Aria quipped, pulling her bed-sheets into place.
"I'd say so too," Anakin said from his spot on the floor, stretching out on the air mattress he was situated on. Anakin watched as Aria settled down for bed, pausing to look back at the trio on the floor.
"Do any of you wonder when the Force will decide to send you back? And how?" she suddenly asked.
"Every day," Padme admitted. "Have you ever thought that perhaps you have to finish the puzzle to send us back?"
Aria shook her head. "I don't think that's it...it makes me curious about when you will go back...it could be at any moment, truthfully."
"I do miss home," Padme sighed. "I think I'm ready to go back."
"I was on a rather important lead whenever this all happened," Obi-Wan quipped.
"Yes Obi-Wan, I know. You were about to discover a lot more than you bargained for too," Aria replied, snuggling under the covers. "But I think that might be a conversation for another time. Right now, I'm very tired, and I would like to go to bed...goodnight guys."
They all mumbled their own replies of goodnight as Obi-Wan clicked off the light, and a comfortable silence fell over the group. Soon, the breathing patterns around Anakin evened out until he was sure that everyone but him was asleep. For some reason, he tossed restlessly in the bed, unable to sleep. The Force was stirring around him, and he wondered if he was the only one who sensed the slight but almost constant and patterned ripples.
He frowned again, thinking that something might be about to happen again. Because of that thought, he stayed up far longer than normal, watching the minutes turn into an hour...an hour and a half...before he finally slipped off into sleep.
Aria didn't know what woke her at three o'clock in the morning. She just knew that she was awake, and that there was a strange white-blue light that was dimly illuminating her room. Aria rubbed her eyes sleepily, sitting up in bed and casting her eyes about her room for the source of the strange light. She didn't have to look far.
Rolling over, Aria leaned down and lightly thwacked Anakin's arm. "Anakin! Anakin!" she hissed several times over.
He groaned, covering his face with the pillow. "Go away," he mumbled.
"Anakin, get up!" she hissed. "Now!"
"What's going on?" came Padme's sleepy voice.
"Padme, wake up Obi-Wan while I try to drag this lazy laser-brain out of bed."
"I'm awake, there's no need," came Obi-Wan's equally tired voice. "What's going on?"
"This better be good," Anakin grumbled.
"Look at the mirror," she said simply. She could barely see their confused expressions in the dim light, but their gasps when they did as she suggested were audible.
"I...I guess that's our signal," Padme managed to say.
Where the reflective glass of the mirror should have been there was a shimmering white-blue light that rippled and swirled, absolutely tantalizing and mesmerizing. Aria threw the covers off of her, stumbling slightly from how tired she was. The three Star Wars characters were also scrambling to their feet. Collectively, they all stared at the mirror, unsure what to do for several moments.
"Get dressed; hurry," Aria suddenly said. "Who knows how long it's going to be open."
With that, the boys scrambled to re-find their tunics, tabards, and trousers, Padme hurried to find the dress she'd arrived in, and Aria rushed to her dresser to find a pair of clothes that would be durable and possibly less obvious than anything else she had in the Star Wars Galaxy. Padme and Aria rushed out of the room to change, tripping over their own feet in their rush. Aria brushed her hair out and snatched a ponytail off of the sink, rushing back into the bedroom where Obi-Wan and Anakin were pulling on their boots and hooking their lightsabers to their belts. Aria snatched her backpack off the ground and stuffed her laptop and laptop charger in the bag, slinging it over her shoulder as she approached the mirror and inspected the swirling light. She dared not touch it just in case she accidentally went through and left the others behind.
Obi-Wan approached her from behind. "This is your last chance to back down...are you absolutely sure you want to come?" Obi-Wan asked her quietly. Aria stared at the white light before she reached over and plucked a letter out of her backpack, crossing the room to set it on the bed before she took the picture of her father on the desk out of the frame, fold it up, and stick it in the back pocket of her jeans.
"I'm sure Obi-Wan. I'm not going to change my mind," she said firmly, crossing the room to rejoin the group as they all gathered around the mirror. Aria eyed it suspiciously. "Am I the only one who finds it strange how when you came through, the portal was the puzzle...but right now the portal is the mirror? How do we know we'll even go back to the time that you three came from? What if we end up...somewhere else?" Aria suggested worriedly.
Anakin wouldn't tear his eyes away from the portal. "I don't think it matters where we end up. I can tell that we need to go through; I can feel it in the Force."
Aria felt her stomach squirm nervously as she glanced around the room one last time, taking a deep breath. "We'll go through together then, and pray that whatever's on the other side of this portal won't be too much trouble," Aria said, hooking her arm around Anakin's. Padme hooked her arm through Anakin's other arm, and Obi-Wan hooked his arm around Padme's other free arm.
"Ready?" Anakin asked.
"Ready," Aria whispered, feeling a strange mixture of excitement and dread as she stepped forward and led the way through the portal and into a blinding world of pure white.
The first thing she felt was that it was like missing the first step going down the stairs. She felt like she was falling forever, and that it would never end; her heart even jumped into her throat and she had to cut off a small scream. Her grip on Anakin's arm tightened, and she was glad she could feel his arm hooked around hers. It was over just as quickly as missing the last step on the stairs too, and she suddenly felt herself land hard on solid, grassy ground, getting a mouthful of dirt. She could hear the others land just as unceremoniously as she had, and she was surprised that no one broke an arm on the landing considering their rough landing. Aria's head snapped up to take in her surroundings, and the first thing she noticed was the familiar blond figure they had just startled out of a nearby tree, watching him fall to the ground with a cry of surprise. Fear shot through her in that moment, and she only had one dominating thought racing through her head.
We're in trouble.
So ends Across the Universe Book 1: Pieces of Destiny...
Coming Soon:
Across the Universe Book 2: Impossibly Real
