Chapter 42

Anakin felt as though he was under water. He could hear sounds around him, but they were muffled, and indiscernible. He was aware of the presence of his wife and children. Luke and Leia were talking to him through the Force. As he drew closer to the surface, his ability to communicate with his children increased, and he began to speak to them.

Luke...Leia...I'm coming back. I love you guys so much.

Daddy! We can hear you!

That's great! I'm so proud of you two...tell Mommy that I'm almost there.

"Mommy, Daddy says that he's almost there," Leia informed her mother.

Padmé looked at her daughter, and then back at Anakin. "Almost there? What does that mean, Leia?"

"I think it means he's almost awake," Luke said.

Padmé smiled. "That's wonderful!" she said. "Ani, come back to us," she said, squeezing his hand again. "We're all here. Please wake up!"

Elsewhere in the hospital

"We really do need to stop meeting like this," Helen said as Obi-Wan held her in his arms in the nurses' lounge.

Obi-Wan laughed. "I can't seem to stop myself," he said. "There must be something wrong with me. You're a nurse, what do you think?"

Helen gave him a coy smile. "I have a few ideas," she said. "But I think I need more information in order to produce a more accurate diagnosis."

"I see," Obi-Wan said. "Well perhaps a trip to the capital would give you the information you need," he said.

"What do you mean?" Helen said. "A trip to the capital?"

"I mean that I've been called to the capital by the chancellor," he said. "And I'd like you to come with me. Do you think you can get the time off?"

Helen was pleased beyond measure. "I think I can arrange that," she said. "Some of the girls owe me a favour." She kissed him on the cheek. "I would love to go to the capital with you, Obi-Wan."

"Splendid," he said with a smile. "We'll be leaving the day after tomorrow," he said. "Can you make it?"

Helen nodded. "I'll make sure of it," she said. She gave him a quick kiss. "Break time's over, " she said. "I'll see you later, okay?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "You will, my dear," he said. "I'm going to see how Anakin is doing."

She smiled. "Then I'll see you soon," she said, and left the lounge. Obi-Wan followed her out and headed towards the room where Anakin was slowly awakening.

Ani, we're all here, please wake up! Anakin heard his wife's voice, she was close by, she was holding his hand. His eyelids were so heavy, like lead...he struggled to open them, using all the strength he had inside of him.

"How is Anakin doing?" Obi-Wan asked as he entered the room.

Padmé looked over at him. "He seems to be coming around," she said. "Luke and Leia have been communicating with him for almost an hour."

Obi-Wan smiled. "That's wonderful," he said.

"Mommy he's trying to open his eyes!" Luke exclaimed.

Padmé turned back to look at Anakin, and sure enough his eyes were moving under the lids. "Ani, open your eyes," she pleaded. "We're right here!"

I'm trying, Padmé, Anakin thought. I'm trying with everything I've got. Slowly, ever so slowly, he opened his eyes. The light was bright over head, but his eyes adjusted in a moment or two. He knew that his family was nearby, but their faces were still blurred. He looked up at Padmé, focusing on her face. Her smile was as brilliant as a Tatooine sun.

"Hi," Padmé said. "Welcome back," she said, kissing him softly on the mouth.

"Hi," Anakin said, his voice weak. "It's good to be back." He looked at Luke and then Leia. "It's so good to see you all," he said.

Luke and Leia scrambled up onto the bed and threw their arms around their father. Anakin hugged them tightly to him, the love he felt emanating from them warming his heart.

Obi-Wan walked over to the bed. "Welcome back, Anakin," Obi-Wan said with a smile.

Anakin looked up at his friend. "Thanks old friend," he said. "It's good to be back."

"Good morning everyone!" said Helen as she entered the room. She gave Obi-Wan a warm smile, that did not go unnoticed by Anakin. "Well hello, Anakin," she said, walking over to stand beside his bed. "It's nice to see you."

Anakin looked up at her, not recognizing her, but judging that she must have been one of the attending nurses. "Hello," he said.

"I'm Helen," she said. "Helen Adams. I've been one of the nurses that's been watching over you during the past four weeks."

Anakin smiled. "Thank you," he said.

"You're quite welcome," Helen said. "Let's get you hooked up to a IV," she said as she inserted a needle into Anakin's arm. "You need to get your strength back. Four weeks in stasis is a long time."

Anakin simply nodded, for he was starting to grow drowsy. His eyelids had never felt so heavy. Obi-Wan could see that he was fighting to stay awake.

"Why don't I take the younglings to the cafeteria for a snack," Obi-Wan said.

Padmé was grateful for his suggestion. "Thank you, Obi-Wan," she said. "I'm sure they're getting hungry by now, since neither of them ate much of their breakfast. Isn't that right?" she asked her children.

"Yes Mommy, I'm really hungry," Luke said.

Obi-Wan chuckled, and tousled the boy's hair. "Well then, let's go get something to eat, shall we?" He took the twins by the hand and left the room. Helen watched him leave, and then turned back to Padmé and Anakin.

"When can I go home?" Anakin asked.

"That's a question for Dr. Halpern," Helen said. "Considering how long you've been in stasis, I'd say that you're looking at another few days at least, in order to get your strength back."

Anakin frowned, not liking the sound of that at all. But he didn't say anything. He was just grateful that he was alive.

"I'll be back later on," Helen said. "It's nice to have you awake, Anakin."

"It's nice to be awake," he replied. Helen left at this point, leaving Anakin and Padmé alone.

"What's going on there?" Anakin said. "It's not my imagination is it?"

"No it isn't," Padmé said. "She and Obi-Wan have been dating for three weeks."

"What?" Anakin asked. "Are you joking?"
Padmé smiled. "No I'm not," she said. "I think it's wonderful! Why shouldn't Obi-Wan have a woman in his life? The new Jedi order has lifted that ridiculous edict against emotional attachments, after all."

"Don't get me wrong, Padmé, I think it's great. I'm just...surprised. I had Obi-Wan pegged for a confirmed bachelor," Anakin said with a yawn.

"I think he did too," Padmé said. "You need to rest," she told him. "Stop fighting it, Anakin."

"Okay," Anakin said as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Padmé smiled, and kissed him as he slept. "Sweet dreams, Ani," she whispered. And then she left the room to go and join Obi-Wan and the twins in the cafeteria. The babies were hungry.

Anakin woke up again after a few hours, and was happy to see his family there waiting for him once again.

"Hi Daddy!" Leia said. "Did you have a nice nap?"

Anakin and Padmé were amused.

"I did," he said. "Thank you, sweetheart. Did you guys have something to eat?"

"I had pancakes, Daddy!" Luke declared.

"I had scrambled eggs," Leia told him. "And Obi-Wan had boring porridge."

Anakin laughed. "Well I'm looking forward to eating something," he said. "I hope they won't keep me on liquids too long."

"Try to be patient, Ani," Padmé told him.

"Anakin? Patient?" Obi-Wan remarked with a smile.

Anakin smiled. "All right, I'll do my best," he said.

"I like your new hands, Daddy," Leia said as she held onto one of Anakin's large hands.

"I have new hands?" Anakin asked, looking at Padmé.

"Yes," she said. "Don't they seem ...different?" she asked.

Anakin lifted up his hands and examined them. "They look real," he said. "I've never seen such realistic prosthetics."

"They're not prosthetics, Anakin," Padmé told him. "They're real, they're your hands. They were regenerated while you were in stasis, along with your legs and feet."

Anakin stared at her, hardly able to believe what she'd just told him. "How? How did they do it?" he asked in amazement as he examined his hands.

"They used technology that the cloners of Kamino perfected," Padmé told him. She smiled. "You're completely healed, Ani."

Anakin was too moved to speak. The fires of Mustafar had all but killed him. And now, at last, the physical scars of that horrific day were finally gone. It would take considerably longer for the emotional scars to be healed.