Chapter 88
AN: Some of the information in the next few chapters comes from the Star Wars Radio Dramas.
Also, I would like to thank everyone continuing to read and review this story.
The first of the two suns was just starting to rise over the sandy dunes when Ari arrived at her old home. There had been two speeder bikes that were in the Falcon's cargo hold. The night before Luke had mentioned them and said they were necessary. Ari wondered where he had gotten them. However, Luke hadn't explained though, and she hadn't asked. She had walked one of the bikes down the ramp while the stars were still shining. She had been able to sleep for long.
The speeder bike had handled well enough and she had arrived at the homestead without incident. That was for the best, because her mind had been racing faster than the speeder bike as she had traveled. What would it look like? Would the speeder and her family still be like they were before? She didn't know if she could handle that. She had done well enough while working at the various bases, but returning caused the heartache to return.
Looking at the homestead, she noticed not much had changed. The buildings were still black from the fires. However, the speeder and the bodies of her family were no longer there. She hoped that some kind neighbor had taken care of them. She didn't want to think of any other possibility.
Without the smoke attacking her lungs, she was able to walk through the buildings. First, she went into the tech dome. Apparently others had been here, since almost everything was gone, aside from a few pieces of scrap metal. The tech dome, which her father had always kept clean, was barely recognizable. A few parts of the carefully stacked boxes were scattered over the floor. It appeared as if someone had been trying to take them apart and with only mild success.
Everything else was gone. The droids that had been there, the tools, even the small bottles of oil they had for the machines.
Ari didn't touch anything, even the walls as she left the tech dome and to the main living area of the farm. It was just as black from the aged smoke as the tech dome. The walls her mother had carefully cleaned no longer were showing, and the sand the family had always been sweeping and removing covered the floors.
She went into the main areas first. The kitchen was completely empty of food, cooking utensils with charred remains of the table and chairs. Sand lay over the counters which proved no one had been there in quite sometime.
The other rooms proved to be like that, empty of supplies, covered in sand with the smell of smoke still clinging to the walls.
The last rooms she went to would be the most difficult to go to. She went to her old room first. The rising suns cast it in a red hue, and it felt like something from another life time. Her tools that she usually laid out on her desk were gone, as were any other personal objects. They must have been destroyed or burnt. Frowning, she knelt down and looked under her bed. She remembered that was where she had hidden Jett's birthday gift. She was not surprised that it was gone, but it was saddening to discover. Even though she had left Tatooine, a part of her believed that at least some of her previous life would be there.
When she got to Jett's room, she felt a pain go through her. The models her brother had made were smashed, littering the ground, but other things, such as blankets were missing. She wondered how many beings had entered their home to steal. It was a thought that made her stomach churn. She could still remember coming in here, sometimes to argue with him. She wished she could take back every mean thing she had ever said. Even though they bickered, she hoped that he knew she loved him.
The last room she stopped in was her parent's bedroom. Like her room and Jett's room, it had been simple, practical and clean. There had not been much decoration, but she did remember her mother's quilt from Naboo. It had been a wedding gift from her parents and she had told Ari she could pass it on to her when she was married. Like many objects, that was gone as well.
Sinking to the floor in the middle of the room a few tears slipped down her cheeks. "Dad, Mom, I miss you both. You would be proud of me. I know you did not want me to be a Jedi, but I will be one. Soon it will be safe for people to be Jedi again. Luke is going to be one, if he isn't already. I have a bit more to learn. I hope you are happy now, wherever you are…"
Wiping her eyes on her sleeve, she got to her feet, brushing off the sand. One sun had already risen and the other seemed to quickly be catching up.
As she left the room, she paused, hearing something near her. She frowned and was only slightly startled as a womprat jumped out, hissing at her. While she could easily kill it with her lightsaber, much like she and the other had killed them with blasters, she didn't. She moved one hand slightly though. "You don't want to attack." During Taylor's short stay, she had taught Ari how to use the Jedi Mind Trick. It would take practice, but on the simple mind of the womprat, it was easy to cause it to move away, no longer interested in her. Ari had not used the Mind Trick often because she had been with other Rebels. She did not want to bend their wills, and they were all strong willed. Taylor had explained that this only worked on the weak minded. While she had used it once or twice on animals in the woods of Arbra, it had only been to keep them from coming too close to base.
Once the womprat disappeared, Ari stepped outside again and blinked a few times to get used to the sun. Even at dawn, it was still bright.
She stopped for a moment at the gravesite she had made. The rock was still in place, and she knew that meant her faithful candido was still under the gravemarker. "Good girl, Saber," she gave a small smile then headed back to the bike. While it had been very emotional, she was glad she had gone there once again. She had needed to do that. She knew she might never fully get over the violent deaths of her parents and brother, but she felt like there was finality to it now.
Ari piloted to the Falcon's hiding place, the warmth of the suns on her back. She cut the power and walked it back the rest of the way so she would not wake the others if they were still sleeping.
However, she found that she was not the only one who was awake this early. A blonde haired, black clothed figure was sitting inside of the cave. Luke appeared to be meditating, but as she parked the bike and cut the power completely, he spoke. "Did you go back?" he asked.
Ari walked over to him and sat down so she was across from him. "Yes," she answered as she crossed her legs to get comfortable on the sandy ground.
"I did the same when we first arrived," he answered simply, opening his eyes.
"Being back, it is almost impossible to not go back," she shrugged.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" he asked her.
Ari paused, thinking this over. "I think so. I don't know what it is, but I feel I made the right choice by going there. Everything was gone though."
"The Sand People and Jawas most likely," Luke nodded. "It was the same at mine."
A silence fell over the two of them and for a few minutes there was no sound except for the wind outside the cave causing the landscape of sand to constantly shift and change. It stayed like this for a moment until Ari looked over at Luke, who was looking at her.
"Things feel different," Ari remarked. "Between us I mean."
Luke nodded. "I think they are, but neither of us are the same as the people we were when we were last here. We've changed."
"I didn't want it to," she admitted.
"But things are constantly changing. We can't stop it. The sand dunes here are like life. The winds constantly change them. And just like we have no control over that, we can only do as the Force wills us to do."
"I wish I understood what it was asking of us," Ari remarked.
"I doubt even Jedi Masters can know that. The future is always changing, depending on what path you choose. Look at us when we lived here. We always talked about leaving, but I worried I would be stuck here forever. I know you felt the same way. I thought I would be working on my Uncle's farm taking it over from him when the time was right."
"But you didn't," Ari reminded him. "And now look at you. A Jedi Knight."
"I don't know if I am a Jedi, yet. But if not, I soon will be." His eyes got a far off look for a moment and Ari knew what he was thinking of. He was going to confront Vader. He didn't say it, but she knew that he had been planning on it.
"I wonder what the others would think of us now," Ari commented, trying to shift the conversation from the trials they would all soon face.
"Actually, I know what they would think. I saw Fixer and Cami when we first got here. I was getting supplies and they were there too, in Anchorhead."
"Did they recognize you?" Ari asked. She remembered both Fixer and Cami well. Fixer with his cocky attitude, dark hair, and biting comments had worked at Tosche Station. His girlfriend, Cami, had thought she had made a great choice by dating Fixer. It was rare to see her without him. The young woman looked much like Ari, her hair was a dark blonde color due to her time in the sun and being close to the same height. However, while Ari's blue eyes showed different emotions depending on her mood, Cami had sharp, gray eyes. She usually looked sad, upset or bored, and she almost never smiled, unless it was at something Fixer said. Ari's parents had wanted her to spend more time with Cami, since there were few girls her age around. However, the two girls did not have anything in common.
"Not right away. But I greeted them by name and Cami realized who I was after a few seconds. She actually said my name instead of Wormie, so she must have been surprised." While Ari and Luke had spent time together with the group of kids at Tosche Station, they had not always been kind. They had laughed at Luke's dreams, saying he just wanted to follow Biggs and live in his shadow. While Biggs had been a good friend and a very gifted pilot, Ari felt Luke was surpassing that by becoming a Jedi."
"And what about Fixer?"
"Oh, you know how he is. He tried to act like it was not a big deal. I guess everyone thought that you and I had been killed."
"You mean they haven't heard about all you have done?" Ari asked, a bit surprised.
"They heard the name Skywalker, but I guess they thought there was another Skywalker doing all of that."
"I am not very surprised. I am sure this will give them something to talk about with Windy and Deak," Ari gave a small smile. They hung on Fixer's every word, but that was because they were followers. She remembered that Windy had seemed interested in her, but she wanted more than anyone on Tatooine could offer.
"I guess so. The others are working on the farms still, but as you know, they were fine with that," Luke said.
Ari nodded, not having anything else to say. While things had changed in her life and Luke's life, it was as if nothing changed for the people on Tatooine.
"Luke?" Ari spoke up after a few moments of silence, and continued as he looked back at her. "Not everything has to change, does it?"
"What do mean?" Luke asked.
"Not much has changed to Fixer and the others. But our lives are completely different than they once were. But I feel that in our duty, we have changed as well. Our friendship has. I always thought we would be close. We used to be."
"I still consider us close, even though we have not spent a lot of time together lately. A few months apart will not change the years of friendship we have had," he assured her with a small smile, patting her knee. "And once we end the Empire's reign, we will be together a lot. Who better to start a Jedi Academy than two Jedi?"
Ari laughed softly. "True."
Luke removed his hand from her knee, and then touched the bracelet she still wore. "I promised you, remember? Some things never change. We are like the canyons. The sand can hit us, but we will stay standing. It will take gusts of wind to destroy us or our friendship."
This caused Ari to smile. "When did you get so wise?" she teased him.
"I always have been, you just haven't noticed," he joked. It was the first time he had done so in a long time. He glanced out of the cave and sighed, getting to his feet. "It is morning," he announced and held out his hand to Ari.
After glancing over her shoulder, seeing the way the sunlight was hitting the sand outside the cave, Ari took Luke's hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet. "Yes, it is." They both knew what this meant. Ari had planned to leave earlier, but was glad she and Luke had talked. She also knew that he still did not want her to go through such a risky mission. It was not as dangerous as trying to destroy the Death Star, but many beings that had gotten too close to the Palace never returned. However, Ari had refused to allow herself to be swayed. She felt the Force was leading her to do this and since it would help rescue Han, she knew she had no choice but to go.
"Do you want something to eat before you go?" Luke asked. Ari shook her head. "I have a few rations and some water. I want to hurry before it gets too late. As the day goes on, I am sure there will be more guards patrolling."
Luke nodded and they looked at each other for a moment. Ari's attention then went to her bracelet, which was reflecting the sunlight. It would be too dangerous to try to get around with that on. It could reveal her location, and if she was caught, it could be taken. Also, while there as not a lot of information on it, it was more than Ari planned on giving anyone. She took Luke's hand and opened it, palm up. Then she took off her bracelet and placed it in his hand. "I will be getting this back very soon," she assured him. She had a feeling that this mission would be more difficult than it sounded, and she had a feeling Luke knew that as well. She was trying to keep the mood light, hoping to ease the tension they both felt. Not just about her mission to make sure Lando was alright and to get information about Jabba's Palace, but the whole operation to save Han.
Luke closed his fingers around the bracelet, then looked up at her for a moment before pulling her into a hug. He held her for a moment and then kissed the top of her head. It was so light that Ari was almost uncertain if he had really done it.
"Be safe, Ari."
"I will," she answered as they pulled away from each other. She turned to leave then paused and looked over her shoulder. "Luke?"
"Yes?"
"May the Force be with you," she gave him a small smile and a wave before stepping out of the cave and out under the glare of the hot twin suns.