Flight Path
Author's Note: This is a gift for Sinvulkt for the 2023 May 4th Disaster Lineage Appreciation Exchange! I know you're gonna love it! :D
BEHOLD! The long-awaited sequel one-shot to Bygone! :')
You don't need to read Bygone first, but... it might make more sense if you do? Idk. Lol. Anyway, enjoy the fluff! ^-^
~ Amina Gila
Anakin hums as he looks through the viewport, watching the mountainous peaks of Alderaan up ahead of them. "It looks the same," he remarks, as he angles the shuttle down to land.
Leia's expression is wistful as she stares out at the world where she grew up. Maybe the Organas were forcibly removed – and her adoptive parents publicly executed as rebels – but she is still the princess of his world. For all that Anakin regrets he was unable to raise his children, he's just grateful that they had a good childhood. The Organas were good people, and Anakin knew Bail personally even if they weren't friends. The Lars are his stepfamily, and they, too, would have given Luke a good life. It's more than he can ask for.
"It does, doesn't it," she murmurs, leaning closer to the viewport, staring at the snow-capped peaks in the distance as the shuttle lands.
A tendril of excitement worms through Anakin as he rises from the pilot's seat, ushering everyone to the ramp to disembark. He didn't realize how much he missed flying ships until they left Coruscant to come here for a short vacation from the chaos in the galaxy. Ahsoka had insisted on it, saying that they should all take some time for themselves to just be together, and Anakin had agreed. Together, the two had persuaded everyone else – Obi-Wan, Luke, Leia, and Rex – to come along, too.
But for all that Anakin has missed flying ships, he has missed flying in his other form even more. Maybe he shouldn't, but as a dragon, flying was always so freeing for him, feeling the wind rushing past him as he swooped and soared. He hasn't shifted again since his children first forced him to shift back to his human form, and he feels a certain nervous anticipation at the thought. On one hand, he's admittedly scared, because he was trapped as a dragon for so many years. But on the other hand, he… loves being a dragon. It offers a freedom and power that's unmatched by anything else, and as a dragon, he has saved so many people, so many friends. He was a dragon just as much as a man during the Clone Wars.
The fresh air is crisp and cool, and Anakin inhales deeply, feeling the peacefulness of the planet and the nature around him seep into him. He still struggles a lot, especially with depression and his own actions. He knows what he did after he Fell now, vaguely at least, through reports and whatever information he's weaseled out of people, but he doesn't remember it. He doesn't know why. Why he Fell, why… any of it. No one knows anymore, and Anakin is only grateful that no one harbors any negative feelings against him for it.
It – he has lost so much time, and physically, he's hardly any older than his children are now. It's weird, and even though it's been months, he's still struggling to adjust to a galaxy that is the polar opposite of everything he remembers.
And maybe that's partially why Ahsoka suggested that they come here, so he could get a break from the stress of everything and have a chance to relax somewhere where he can feel safe.
"This is a safe house?" Luke asks curiously, starting towards the small structure built into the rocks. "It's… It looks primitive, like the moisture farms on Tatooine."
Leia shoves him aside good-naturedly as she pushes ahead of him to open the door. "Oh, just you wait," she chirps. "Looks are deceiving. It's supposed to look like a simple hut."
Anakin shakes his head at the twins' antics, dispelling the twinge in his chest as he sees them. He didn't raise them, and they didn't grow up together either. All of them have lost so much time together – but at least they're together now.
"So," Ahsoka says conversationally, falling in step next to him and Obi-Wan, "How do you plan to teach them about their dragons?"
"They will need to become comfortable with them first," Obi-Wan replies thoughtfully, watching as Luke and Leia disappear into the hut. Rex pauses, and Anakin gestures for him to go ahead. The twins might be twenty-one already, but they're still chaotic enough to need someone to keep an eye on them.
"How did you get used to it?" Ahsoka queries, looking to Anakin.
He pauses, trying to think back to his own past, when he started training as a Jedi. "It is… spotty," he admits after a few minutes, "But it was very much instinctive to me. I always knew I was something… other. They have not yet become accustomed to the idea that they're more than human. I always knew. I remember that Obi-Wan took me on a few months leave from the Temple to a secluded place so I could learn how to control my abilities. That was when I first flew."
"Instinct, huh?" There's a small smile playing on her lips, a hint of mischief glinting in her blue eyes. "What would you say for taking them out for their first flight? All of us could go."
"Now wait a minute –" Obi-Wan begins, the faintest thread of panic in his voice, and Anakin laughs.
"Oh, that is a wonderful idea, Snips," he agrees. "Think you can hold on, old man," he teases, turning to Obi-Wan, smirking.
His former master frowns, crossing his arms. "I am not going to be riding you," he replies primly. "That would be foolhardy and reckless."
Dimly, Anakin has a vague memory of swooping down to pick up Obi-Wan and pull him out of a mess when he was still a padawan, and of his master clinging to him for dear life, screaming when they actually took off and started soaring. It's a memory that he still finds unreasonably hilarious, no matter how dim it is, and he'll cherish it forever. He also remembers, much more clearly, Ahsoka and Rex – and even some of the other clones – riding on him at different times during the war. And vaguely, there's an impression of Padme's body pressed up against his back, arms looped around his neck, laughing as they fly through the clouds.
"Please," he replies, waving it off, "As if I haven't been ridden dozens of times already."
"It's okay," Ahsoka interjects, patting Obi-Wan's arm. "We wouldn't want him to have a heart attack from the height. I'll go alone. Rex can stay and keep an eye on him – unless he wants to come."
Obi-Wan huffs. "Excuse me," he grumbles. "I think there is adequate reason to be cautious. This is the first flight you'll be taking in years."
"It's sure to be memorable," Anakin quips back.
"I'll let the others know what we're planning, see if they're interested," Ahsoka chimes in. "Be good while I'm gone." Anakin isn't sure to whom she's directing that comment, but her eye markings are arched in a way that lets him know that, for one, she isn't too concerned, and for two, she doesn't have high hopes of them listening.
"Will you really be okay with this?" Obi-Wan queries once Ahsoka has gone ahead and once she's out of hearing range. "I know you have… been through a lot as a dragon. Will it be… hard for you to shift?"
Anakin hesitates, because in truth, that's not something he's given much thought to. Or any, really. Actually, he's been trying not to think about it. "I…" he trails off, shrugging. "I do not know," he admits. "I hope not. But it – this power is a part of me, and even if I fear it, I have to face it anyway. It's not realistic to think I can avoid it forever."
Obi-Wan studies him, blue-gray eyes troubled. Once, in the past, Anakin would have seen the question as a subtle accusation of his inability to be good enough, but he finds that, after everything he endured as Sidious' pet, he doesn't care much for what others think anymore. He's still learning to adjust to this galaxy which is so different from what he remembers; he doesn't have time to fear what others think of him. He can hardly help himself now, never mind helping anyone else.
But now, after everything he's endured, after the many hours that he and Obi-Wan have spent together, trying to rebuild and restore something of the fractured relationship they had, they've come to understand one another much more deeply. Anakin is now able to perceive the words for what they are: concern, not accusation.
"I'm proud of you," Obi-Wan says at length, reaching out to squeeze his shoulder, "And I'm glad that you're so willing to face your fears."
Anakin ducks his head, feeling a little abashed by the praise. When he – in the past, before… the Empire, he would have done almost anything to get even a little praise from Obi-Wan, given how rare and fleeting it was. And now, it's as though Obi-Wan is willing to hand it out far more readily. Whatever the reasoning behind it, Anakin is selfishly glad. It means that for all the things that have gone wrong, he's not a lost cause, especially if Obi-Wan can still be proud of him, after all the things he did.
The moment is broken when Ahsoka returns with Luke and Leia, who are each sporting matching grins of excitement on their faces. "What do we do, Father?" Luke queries. "We know how to shift, but we've never flown before."
"Then you have a lot to learn," Ahsoka sing-songs, "And these two old men –" she jabs a finger at Obi-Wan and over her shoulder to where Rex is standing in the doorway, "– are staying behind."
Rex snorts. "I might be getting older, Commander, but I can still give you a fight."
She throws him a smirk. "Oh, I don't doubt it."
Anakin tunes them out when they start exchanging quips, focusing instead on his children. "I don't think either of you have the ability, yet, to shift your clothing, so you'll need to change. Put on something that you won't destroy."
They exchange looks, obviously communicating telepathically – or maybe just with their eyes – before dashing back into the house. They return only a minute later in loose robes.
"Now what?" asks Leia.
"You are one with the Force," Anakin replies, reaching out to the Light and letting it wash through him, "Let it flow through you and do not hold back." He stands back, waiting and watching as the twins shift. Next to them, he's tiny, but he takes a moment to feel his pride for them, and to admire the beauty of their other forms. Like this, they are wild and free – just like he once was.
"Ready to hop on?" he asks, looking to Ahsoka.
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" she says in lieu of reply, glancing between Obi-Wan and Rex.
"Next time," Rex promises.
Obi-Wan huffs. "I don't think Anakin wants me to throw up on his back."
"That has never happened." Anakin rolls his eyes at the dramatic-ness of his once master.
"Yes, it did," he insists. "Maybe you don't remember it, but I do. It was a very embarrassing moment. For both of us."
"Then you should come. If it happens again, I'll at least have something to remember."
Obi-Wan glares. "No."
Rex coughs to cover up a laugh, Ahsoka giggles, and Luke and Leia – their dragons, that is – make noises that Anakin is quite certain are laughter. "Okay fine, suit yourself," he shrugs, closing his eyes and letting himself fall into the Force. It's instinct, muscle memory almost, and he feels a myriad of emotions crash over him at how easy it still is for him to shift and to transform his prosthetic limbs and clothes with him.
The pain is acute, but brief, and he shakes it off, tossing his head into the air, feeling the sheer, unfiltered joy of being free. Ahsoka pats his side, running her fingers over his tan scales, and when he turns to her, she gives him a sad smile. "I've missed you," she murmurs, "Your dragon is so… beautiful. I've missed it, and I've missed flying with you."
With those words, she swings onto his back, pressing herself against his neck and wrapping her arms around him. "Ready when you are, Skyguy."
"Follow me," Anakin says to the twins. "It's all instinct… with a little bit of practice." He rears up, flapping his wings and kicking himself off the ground, letting the air catch under him, lifting him free.
And then, he's flying.
It's exhilarating, and the faint worry in the back of his mind that he won't be able to shift back when all is said and done disappears under the weight of the sheer euphoria of having the wind rush over his body, of the weightless sensation of being high above the ground. He climbs higher, circling and looking down at his children as they test out their own wings, flying, but not too high. They're still learning, after all.
He dives downward, swooping low enough that Obi-Wan instinctively ducks before sweeping upward again. Ahsoka tightens her grip, radiating feelings of joy into the Force so strongly that it almost feels like his own. It probably is partially his own, too, because this – this is what it means to be truly free.
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