Chapter 47

Naboo

It was a warm afternoon, and Anakin, Luke and Leia were enjoying themselves on the beach. They'd been swimming, and the warm sun was drying their skin as they sat playing in the sand.

"Look at my castle, Daddy!" Leia said with a smile.

Anakin smiled. "That's a fantastic castle, Leia," he said. "Who lives there? Is it a princess?"

Leia nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! Yes a beautiful princess lives there!"

"I made one too, Daddy," Luke said, not about to be outdone by his twin. "Look!"

"That's great, Luke," Anakin said. "And who lives there?"

"A dragon," Luke said. "A big scary dragon!"

Anakin smiled. "I guess we'd better be careful then," he said. "Dragons are pretty dangerous creatures."

Luke nodded enthusiastically.

"Excuse me sir," said Nelly as she appeared at the bottom of the long stairway that lead from the house. "I thought perhaps the children would like some lemonade," she said. She set the tray down on the sand.

"I think they would," Anakin said. "Thank you, Nelly."

She smiled. "Not at all, sir," she said.

Anakin looked at the twins. "I'm going to see how Mommy is doing with the babies," he said. "I'll be back soon, okay?"
"Okay Daddy," Luke said as Nelly poured the twins some lemonade.

"I'll stay here with them sir," Nelly said.

"Thank you," Anakin said. "I'll be back shortly."

Anakin stood up and dead up the stairs, taking them two at a time. He found Padmé in the nursery, feeding Amidala. She smiled at Anakin. "Did you have a nice swim?"

"The water's too cold for my liking," he said as he stood watching his namesake wake up. "But the kids enjoyed it."

"Too cold," Padmé scoffed. "You're such a big baby."

Anakin laughed as he picked up his infant son. "Did you hear that, Ani?" he asked the baby. "You see what disrespect I get from your mother?"

Padmé simply smiled and looked down at Amidala who was finished her lunch.

"Ready to switch?" Anakin asked.

"Yes," Padmé said.

Anakin lay his son in Padmé's arms and picked up Amidala to change and burp her. He had just placed her back in her crib when he heard screaming from the beach. He looked at Padmé in alarm, and then dashed out of the room. Padmé, who was in the middle of nursing Anakin Junior, could only sit and wait in fear.

Anakin ran down the steps towards the beach, his heart in his mouth. The thought of something befalling one of his precious children was more than he could bear. Finally he reached the beach and stood in shock and relief. Nelly had screamed because Luke and Leia had levitated her above the water. They were giggling as she struggled to get down. When the noticed their father standing there, they both gasped, and Nelly fell into the water. Anakin ran into the water to help her, for while the water wasn't deep, she was pretty shaken up.

"Are you okay?" Anakin asked.

"No, I am most certainly not okay!" Nelly cried indignantly. She looked at the children. "I will not stay in this house," she said as she proceeded to ring out her clothes. "I have seen strange things in the past three months, and I've said nothing. But this! This is the last straw! I quit!" With that she stopped out of the water with as much dignity as she could muster. Anakin watched her leave, knowing that nothing he could say at this point would stop her. And then he turned to his children.

"That was not a nice thing to do," he said. "You must not use your powers on other people that way."

Luke and Leia looked down at their toes, both ashamed.

Anakin frowned. He was unsure how to proceed. Clearly the twins' powers were growing stronger. As much as he didn't like the thought of turning to the Jedi, he was beginning to think that it was inevitable. They need proper training, he reflected as he took the twins' hands and headed up to the house with them. I can't do this alone...

"Ani?" Padme called when she heard the back door open. "What's happening? Nelly stormed past me with her bag in her hand!"

Anakin sighed. "She quit," he said.

Padmé's eyes widened. "What? Why? What happened? Are the children okay?"

"They're fine," Anakin said as Luke and Leia stood beside him, looking contrite. "To your room, both of you," he said. The twins did as they were told without question.

"Anakin what is going on?" Padmé asked, growing frustrated.

"They had her levitated over the lake," Anakin told her.

"Nelly?"

Anakin nodded. "She said that she's seen strange things," he said with a frown. "And that this was the last straw."

Padmé was silent for a moment as she considered this. She was well acquainted with Luke and Leia's abilities, for their protocol droid had been on the receiving end of their hijinx more than once. She'd always been amused, but this was not funny.

"What are we going to do, Ani?" she asked.

Anakin ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "I don't think we have a choice any more, Padmé," he said. "I think they need to be trained. Properly trained. I can't do it alone."

"I thought Qui-Gon was going to help you," she said.

"He's been helping with the new Order," Anakin said. "I kind of think he's doing that so that I'll bring the children there, so that I'll return." He frowned. "I don't want to go there again, Padmé. I don't want to be a Jedi, I have no right to be."

Padmé nodded, understanding how he felt. "But perhaps Luke and Leia need to be," she said. "I'm not crazy about the idea, but you're right, they need to be trained. They're too much for you to do alone. I think you're right, we have no choice anymore."

Anakin knew that this was true, but it didn't sit well with him. The thought of returning to the Jedi Temple was one that he had been pushing aside for months; but he knew that he could not avoid it indefinitely. Sooner or later, his destiny would take him there again. How will I face it when it does? he reflected. How do I come to terms with what I did there that night?

"Anakin?"

Anakin looked at his wife. "Come on," he said. "We need to make some plans."

While the babies napped, Anakin and Padmé looked for a place to live on Coruscant. Neither of them wanted to living in a high rise, for their children had spent all their short lives living near water and spending plenty of time in the outdoors. The idea of having them cooped up in an apartment was abhorrent to both of their parents. The only place on Coruscant that wasn't covered in skyscrapers was in the Manarai Mountains region. And it was there that they focused their search.

Later

"Marriage agrees with you, Obi-Wan," Anakin said with a smile.

Obi-Wan chuckled. "I can't deny that," he said. "Makes me wonder why I waited so long."

"Well we both know the answer to that," Anakin replied. "Speaking of which, how are things going with the rebuild? Has Yoda accepted your marriage yet?"

"I suppose in a fashion he has," Obi-Wan said. "He's never been one to like change. As for the Order, things are going slowly," Obi-Wan replied. He didn't need to tell Anakin why, for it was he who had all but wiped out the Jedi. "There's someone here you may be surprised to see, however," Obi-Wan said. "Someone who is quite eager to see you."

"Really?" Anakin said. "I can't imagine who."

"Your former padawan," Obi-Wan said. "Ahsoka. She's looking forward to seeing you. Can we expect you soon?"

"That's why I contacted you, actually," Anakin said. And then he proceeded to tell Obi-Wan about what had happened at the beach the previous day. Obi-Wan listened, not at all surprised by what Anakin was telling him.

"Luke and Leia are very strong with the Force," Obi-Wan commented. "They are their father's children, after all. I suspected that it would only be a matter of time before they would require formal training. I did my best when they were toddlers, but even then it was a challenge keeping up with them."

"Tell me about it," Anakin replied. "I've found a house that Padmé and I are going to have a look at. I won't raise my children in that concrete and durasteel jungle," he said. "So we'll be coming to the capital in a few days. Ani and Ami are three months old now, they're old enough to travel."

"I look forward to meeting them at last," Obi-Wan said. "Where will you stay?"

"The apartment on Republica," Anakin said. "We're having some things brought over for the children. It will be cramped but hopefully this new place works out for us."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Helen and I will bring dinner over if you can give me an ETA," he said.

Anakin smiled. "Thanks, that sounds great," he said. He didn't tell Obi-Wan how the thought of seeing the Temple again was giving him nightmares, but he suspected his best friend would know how he felt. "I guess I'll see you in a few days, then. I'll contact you with our ETA when I know."

"Very good," Obi-Wan said. "Until then. Have a safe journey, Anakin. Give my best to Padmé and the children."

"I will," Anakin said. "And give mine to Helen. See you soon."

Anakin sat for a moment after he'd ended the transmission. Ahsoka wants to see me...he thought about the last time he'd seen his onetime padawan, he remembered the disillusionment in her eyes. And now I will need to face her after everything I've done...after turning into a monster...With these thoughts preying on his mind, Anakin headed to bed, where his wife was already asleep. He spooned up behind her, the scent of her bringing him a modicum of much needed peace.