Sotira and Ani walked out to the busy streets of Mos Espa, as the sky grew more blue with each moment.

'Where I come from the Twin Stars do not rise as high… The sky you have here is beautiful.' Sotira said.

'It's normal…'

'Perhaps, but cannot normal be beautiful and beautiful normal?' She asked and peeked at Ani, who smiled with a bit of shame.

'Maybe… So how will you help me find your mother? You haven't even seen her.'

'You see, in a way all lives are tied together, especially in a family. Not many do, but I can feel and follow that connection.' Sotira calmly explained. Ani looked at her with suspicion.

'Who are you… really?' He asked. Sotira chuckled and replied:

'Just a kid from Tattoine, like you.'

'I don't want to be just that kid from Tattoine. One day I will free us and fly far away.' Ani said with confidence. Sotira smiled.

'I do not doubt you will… Each of us has a potential to be something special.' She said, stopped and closed her eyes. Ani looked at her with curiosity.

'What are you doing?' He asked. Sotira opened her eyes again and said quietly:

'Your mom is in the marketplace…'

The two carried on through the poor city, to a small marketplace where Ani's mother was just passing by.

'Ani, I thought you were still asleep.' She said while he ran towards her.

'I didn't know where you are.' Ani said and hugged his mom.

'I only went to do some shopping.'

'Look who I met…' Ani turned and pointed at Sotira. 'A new friend, her name is Sotira.'

Ani's mother looked over at Sotira and said:

'Hello. My name is Shmi… Shmi Skywalker.'

Sotira bowed politely and said:

'Little Ani really cares about his mother.'

'Yes he does…' Shmi said. She kept observing Sotira. Though she did not know her, she saw something in her brownish eyes… Trust and kindness… The feeling of safety. 'Ani… Why don't we invite your new friend for a nice breakfast, before you go off to mister Watto.'

Ani happily nodded his head.

With days passing, Sotira quickly became a friend of the small family of two. On various occasions she helped Shmi around the house and spent a lot of time playing or building things with Ani in his backyard...

'Where did you learn to construct a power cell like that?' He asked.

'From a friend of mine, who learned it from his friend… You remind me of him. He was also a tinkerer… And he even looked like you.' She replied and then looked away with melancholy. 'I can show you… How to do that.'

'There is actually something else I would like you to teach me…' Ani said timidly. Sotira looked at him with an open mind. 'The day we met, you told that you can sense the connections between people… Could you show me how to do that?'

'Of course… Although I cannot show or teach you how to sense them. I can only help you understand their nature… But with that knowledge, you will be able to find them as well.' Sotira said. Ani nodded unsurely. He did not truly understand her, but kept listening. 'Come… Lie down.' She said. Ani slowly lied his body on a stone bench and his head on Sotira's legs. 'Close your eyes, take a deep breath, clear your mind… And now, picture the universe itself…'

'What does that have to do with anything?'

'You will understand soon enough… For now, just imagine how the universe looks like, what do you see?'

'Space, a broad space… Galaxies, stars…'

'And what lies beneath it? What is the fundament for all of that you see?'

'I don't know… Maybe gravity and some sort of… Physics.' Ani said. Sotira chuckled.

'You are smart… So now, tell me… What are those physics?'

'I… I don't know. I never thought about that. I guess it's just how things are…'

'Perhaps, but for the moment being, picture that they are mysterious threads, that hold the entire universe together. But they are more than physics. Deep within, the threads would connect everything together, as well as everyone…'

'What does that mean?' Ani asked with confusement.

'It means that you and me, and everyone, are connected with every single object in the universe, every person and even, the threads which shape our reality…' Sotira replied. Suddenly Ani raised his head from her legs and stared in front of him with disbelief. A rock from the ground started floating all by itself. He looked over at Sotira with confusement. 'And being connected with them, we can influence the way things are, we can look further, see more… Feel what others feel.'

'So you are connected to the rock… That's how you manage to lift it up.'

'In a certain meaning, but there is a number of ways to make that happen… Lift it with nothing but the power of your will, influence the way gravity affects it… Our possibilities are endless… So now, think of your mom and you will find her.'

Ani closed his eyes and sat in silence for a while. Ultimately he exclaimed with irritation:

'I don't understand… I don't feel anything.'

'Be calm… Do not recall the memories of your mother, but focus and think of her now.' Sotira whispered to him. So once again, Ani closed his eyes, took a big breath and focused. Suddenly he gasped and looked at Sotira with confusement.

'I have felt something… I saw my mom for a short moment… Like she was here… But she wasn't…'

'You are a natural. It is love that creates a strong bond… Beauty of kindness bound by understanding… Not many know it, but it is the fundament to all of our connections… Never forget that and never let anyone take it away from you.' Sotira said quietly and took Ani's hand. He looked up to her with a wide smile and replied:

'Never.'

'Let us try that again…'