Shout out to Jedi_Master_Misty_SmanEsay, who provided inspiration for Mace in this chapter. Thanks to everyone who has commented for providing me with motivation! :D

ln(^_^)

Chapter 13: Du Newpa Tula Moosta (A New Starting Line)

"Unfortunately, the only person who can tell us what in the Sith-hells he was thinking when he brought a nine-year-old into an active war zone is in a coma, so your guess is as good as mine."

"It was Master Jinn's decision to bring Anakin to Naboo?"

"It certainly wasn't the Council's, though I'm not saying we don't bear any of the blame for what occurred. The Council ordered Jinn to accompany Queen Amidala back to Naboo. It was only left implied by the clear danger of the situation that he should make arrangements for Skywalker to stay in the crèche. Of course, we had already told them both that it was our view that Skywalker shouldn't be trained as a Jedi, so maybe Jinn thought that since we hadn't arrived at a decision regarding the boy's future, he wouldn't be admitted to the crèche. We should have handled that whole situation differently."

"I can't but agree. You badly frightened Anakin, pulling him in before the full Council like that and telling him you wouldn't allow his training. He has a great deal of experience with difficult things for his age, but he's still only a child. He thought that he would be abandoned, left alone to fend for himself. I don't like that he was treated that way."

"Angry with us you are."

"…Yes, Master. I apolo—"

"Your apology we do not need. Expected, this anger is."

"I know, Master. My anger has been a problem for me since childhood. I have worked hard to master my temper but clearly not hard enough."

"Understandable, your anger is. Justified are your emotions. Many mistakes have the Jedi made with you and Anakin. Reviewed many of them we have in this session. And yet, only now are you angry, not on your own behalf, but on behalf of your child."

"Master Yoda is right. We expected more anger and possibly resentment from you towards the Order, not because we think it your weakness, but because the difficult experiences you have gone through would naturally engender such emotions. If you were my student, I would probably assign you to meditate on why you're not angrier in such a situation."

"You…want me to be angry with you?"

"That's…not quite what I meant. Though anger can be harmful when not properly managed, it is natural and occurs for a reason. For you to feel no anger…Perhaps you have already processed your anger and have let it go so well we no longer sense it. Perhaps you do not yet feel safe enough to allow yourself to do that. Or perhaps your sense of self-worth is so underdeveloped that you see no reason to feel anger on your own behalf. Understanding this will be important for you. Anger can teach us if we let it."

"I never felt that I learned anything from anger. It only made things harder for me when I acted on it, and holding onto it only hurt me more in the end. Repressing it was unsustainable. I eventually learned to let it go, mostly. But when it comes to Anakin being mistreated, I find that harder to do."

"A surprise that is not. Care deeply for him you do. A credit to you are your feelings, though careful you must be to not allow yourself to be ruled by them."

"Yes, Master. It was actually Anakin's existence that eventually pushed me to really master my anger and try to heal from my experiences as a slave. I knew I had to get myself right as much as possible before he was born, so I could better take care of him. And I finished cleansing my kyber crystal just before his birth. I didn't want anything with such negative energy anywhere near the baby."

"Your kyber crystal—the one you have in your lightsaber now? Where did you get it?"

"It's the same crystal I gathered from Ilum as an Initiate."

"See your lightsaber, may we?"

"Of course, Master."

"That's an unusual weapon. What is the hilt made of?"

"It's the bone of a greater krayt dragon, from a skeleton I came across while trapped by a sandstorm in the Tatooine wastes."

"Blue was the color of your blade as an Initiate, if correct my memory is. White it is now. This happened how?"

"It turned white after I healed the crystal from—from being bled. By Xanatos."

"…He—Xanatos bled your kyber. He used the dark side to corrupt your bonded crystal…and you healed it? At sixteen?"

"A task that a Jedi Master would find difficult, this is. Manage it, how did you?"

"It wasn't easy. It was impossible to even begin to try while I was still with Xanatos. After he died and I was sold, I had to keep the crystal hidden on my person always, and I had little time or energy to apply to the task. When I finally devoted the time to meditate with it, I realized that healing had to come from within me. It was my bonded crystal, and Xanatos used my pain to corrupt it. I had to find some measure of healing for myself in order to heal the kyber."

"Hmm, impressive. Most impressive."

"I couldn't have done it alone. Shmi, Anakin's mother, encouraged my efforts. She gave me the idea to talk to the kyber after—after she asked me to talk to Anakin in the womb. Even before she became pregnant, she inspired me to try to become a better version of myself."

"Glad I am that support you had. Yet you it was who accomplished this task."

"It was probably an…unusual way of going about it. My understanding is that in most cases of bleeding kyber, the Jedi the crystals belonged to are no longer alive. Xanatos had me still at hand, so he came up with a…creative method of bleeding my kyber, by forcing my pain through the bond. So I started off with that circumstantial advantage. I doubt the method I used to heal it would work for anyone not already bonded to the kyber."

"…If Xanatos weren't dead, I would drop kick him into a black hole."

"Heh, well now, that's hardly a sentiment becoming of a Jedi Master. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were angry at a dead man, Master Windu."

"Well if I were angry, better that it be at a man who's already dead and beyond the reach of my saber. Removes the temptation to do anything rash."

"Hmm, yes, terrible it would be to act rashly. Have that, we cannot. Were you my student, Mace—"

"Oh for crying out loud."

"—assign you twelve meditations on the nature of recklessness I would, and three shifts assisting the crèchemasters to put the younglings down for naps. Patience, this teaches."

"I'll show you recklessness, you—"

"And busy it will keep you while first crack I get at drop kicking my former great-grand-Padawan into a black hole."

"Devious, Master Yoda. Also not a quality I would necessarily ascribe to a respectable Jedi Master."

"Occasionally, deviousness the situation requires. Help it I cannot if think it disreputable others do."

"How did you manage to build a lightsaber while enslaved? And then hide it from the Sith that captured you, for that matter?"

"Changing the subject, are you, Mace? Rude that is, when more I have to say on the topic of disreputable and devious things done by certain Masters of the Order when only young Knights they were."

"Please just answer the question, Kenobi. Don't let Yoda derail the conversation again."

"Of course, Master Windu. Perhaps, Master Yoda, you and I could circle back to the nature of deviousness later, when we are not taking up Master Windu's time."

"Mhmhmhmhm!"

"I am never leaving you two alone together."

"I didn't actually build the lightsaber. I acquired the parts, just in case, but I preferred to keep my crystal with me at all times. And if the slavers had caught me with a weapon, especially one as distinctive as a lightsaber…Well, it doesn't bear thinking about. I gave all the parts and the crystal to Anakin before he left with Master Jinn."

"You taught Anakin to build a lightsaber? Before he even arrived at the Temple? Was the chaos that would inevitably follow meant to be your revenge on us?"

"Actually, I didn't teach Anakin anything about lightsabers. I expected that once he arrived at the Temple, he would eventually learn what the parts I gave him were for, and he could decide to use them or not. I admit, though, that I did not anticipate that it would take him but a single evening in the Temple to learn the skill."

"A bright child, he is. But perhaps teach him this Qui-Gon did, on the journey through hyperspace."

"Ugh, that would be just like Jinn, to teach a nine-year-old with no weapons training to build a lightsaber. I swear that man lives to give me migraines."

"I'll have to ask Anakin. I also had a question to ask you, if I could."

"Of course."

"When Anakin gave me the lightsaber, he was nowhere near me. He was in the cockpit of the starfighter the entire time, and I wasn't even in the same room with him. But suddenly, I felt his presence in the Force just behind me, as clear as though he were actually there. I dared not turn my back on the Sith to look, but when I reached behind me, I felt the hilt of the lightsaber in my hand. The next moment, Anakin's presence was gone, but I had the saber. I didn't know this was possible, and Anakin himself doesn't really know what he did, only that he was trying to reach out to me in the Force through our bond. Do you know what happened?"

"I'm not sure I've heard of anything like this. Master Yoda?"

"Hmm, fascinating this is. Rare is this ability, but heard of it I have. Very strong in the Force is young Anakin, and strong is the bond between you. Possible this bond makes it for you to reach each other in the Force in this way. With no one else could young Anakin replicate this feat."

"Thank you, Master. I'll keep that in mind."

Anakin is…maybe in a little bit of trouble.

Or a lot. Possibly a lot of trouble. But he did exactly what Mister Qui-Gon said! He stayed in the cockpit the whole time! It was the cockpit that moved, honest, and he didn't even mean for that to happen.

Of course, he knows that Ben isn't going to fall for that excuse.

He really hopes Ben is okay. He thinks he is, but he's been distracted with flying a starfighter into orbit for the first time ever and avoiding the people shooting at him and blowing up stuff, so he kind of has had some other things on his mind and couldn't always pay attention to the part of his Luck sense—or the Force?—where he can feel Ben.

He'd managed to navigate the ship back into Naboo's atmosphere with R2-D2's help, but now he—oh wait, what's that flashing light?

"Artoo, what's going on?" he asks, eyeing the blinking light with suspicion. R2's response immediately comes over the communication panel. "We're being hailed? Hey, I didn't even think about this ship having a comm. This is great, maybe they can help. Now, how do I answer…"

It takes R2's rather unhelpful directions and several experimental button-pushes before he finally hears a voice crackling over the speaker.

"—to Bravo Eleven, come in Bravo Eleven. I repeat, this is Bravo Leader to Bravo Eleven, come in Bravo Eleven, over—"

Anakin knows that voice! "Hi Mister Olié! Sorry I wasn't answering before, I didn't know how to work the comm."

"…Anakin?"

"Yep, it's me, hi!"

"Anakin, was that, uh…was that you up in orbit at the control ship with us?"

"Yeah, that thing was huge! It's the biggest ship I've ever seen!"

"Oh man, okay, Ani… Are you all right? You're not hurt?"

"I'm okay, Mister Olié. Actually, I'm better than okay. I've never been in a space battle before. It was totally wizard!"

"Right, okay. Okay Ani, uh, how about you come on down now? The battle is over since the control ship is destroyed. The droids can't operate without it."

Anakin feels a surge of relief. He remembers listening in on the adults making their battle plans, and he had been pretty sure that he understood the mission, but it was good to hear it from an adult.

"Okay, sure! Can I ask you something though?"

"Anything, kid."

"Um, this is my first time ever piloting a starfighter, so uh… How do I land the ship?"

In the end, Mister Olié has Anakin land on the main thoroughfare that runs through the city up to the steps of the palace. He doesn't think that Ani can land safely in the hangar without training, so he originally wanted Ani to land in the river right by the hangar. But that's silly, because if he lands the starfighter in the river, how are they going to get it out? And what if it goes over the waterfall? And also, Anakin doesn't know how to swim, so he doesn't really like the thought of being in the river, and when Mister Olié hears that, he decides against a water landing.

Mister Olié isn't so keen on the main street either because there are broken-down droids and tanks and other blockages all along the way, but Ani assures him that if he can win the Boonta Eve Classic, he can avoid a few dead droids. For some reason, Mister Olié doesn't really seem reassured, but he walks Ani through landing anyway, and it works perfectly.

Well, almost perfectly. Ani didn't understand that Mister Olié wanted him to use the street as a runway going away from the palace, so he goes towards it instead and ends up right at the base of the steps going up to the palace's main entrance. But it's fine! He barely takes a chip out of the grand staircase when he crashes—more like bumps, really, he isn't going that fast anymore—into it.

But it must have worried Mister Olié, because he and three other pilots are running full tilt to get to him before he can even get the cockpit open.

"You all right, Ani?" Mister Olié pants as he skids to a stop by the fighter.

"I'm fine!" Ani calls as he shimmies out over the edge of the cockpit. "Here, catch me!"

"Oof!" Mister Olié grunts as Ani falls into his arms, but doesn't put Ani down, like he forgot that that's the next step. Ani has to wriggle out of his hold. Mister Olié still looks kind of panicked, even though Anakin is now safely on the ground. "Kid, I don't envy your parents their job," he mutters.

Speaking of which, that reminds Ani. "Do you know where Ben is? Is he okay?" It still feels like he's okay, but Ani really wants to know for sure.

Mister Olié looks over at another pilot, who is just wrapping up a comm call. "They say that his dad is on his way to the palace," she tells them. "We're to bring him up to the throne room."

Anakin brightens. It's not confirmation that Ben isn't hurt, but it sounds like he's going to get to see him soon. He waits very patiently while two of the pilots extract R2-D2 from the fighter because he wants R2 to come with him. Ben will be glad to know that R2 has been watching Ani's back because R2 is the coolest astromech droid ever.

He tells R2 this as the little droid is carefully navigating the stairs one step at a time, Ani's hand on its dome. He thinks R2's answering whistle sounds pleased.

The palace is huge. The hallways are big enough for a ronto to walk down them without even ducking its head. Does Padmé actually live here? He asks the pilots because all four of them are walking with Ani to make sure he doesn't get lost (again, according to them, but Ani wasn't lost, he was in the cockpit right where he was supposed to be). They smile and tell him she does, and even point out some of the security features in the architecture that are there to keep her safe.

When they get to the door of the throne room, they're stopped by a group of guards, but only because they want to be sure that the queen is ready to see them—they recognize their faces and know why they're here, so it's not long before they are being shown in to the grand throne room, where Padmé is talking with Captain Panaka, surrounded by her handmaidens and guards.

Padmé looks tired, but happy. Her magnesium-bright presence is steady and warm. When she sees Anakin and the pilots, her face breaks into a smile. Mister Olié bows to her, as do the other pilots, and Anakin suddenly remembers that Padmé is actually the queen. He bows too, but Padmé is already coming towards him, sweeping him into her arms in a big hug. Ani hugs her back, trying to show how relieved he is that she's okay.

"Are you okay, Ani?" she asks, kind brown eyes looking at him with both concern and joy.

"I'm fine. Are you okay?"

"Not a scratch. I hear that you had quite the adventure though."

"He certainly did, your highness," Mister Olié says, grinning. "He took out the control ship's main reactor—from the inside. I'm…not happy that he was right in the thick of a space battle, but he really saved the day. We lost four fighters today, but we would've lost more if it weren't for the kid."

"We would have lost much more indeed without Anakin's assistance," Padmé agrees. She looks at Ani again, this time with that wry look that Ben sometimes has that means Ani has done something he wasn't supposed to, but things turned out all right, so he can't lecture Ani as much as he wants because Ani was right in the end. "I am grateful to him. Even if I still wish that he had listened and stayed away from the fighting."

"I listened!" Ani protests. "I stayed in the cockpit, just like Mister Qui-Gon told me."

Padmé's smile falls. "Anakin, about Master Jinn…"

She pauses, like she's trying to figure out just what to say, but she never gets to continue because at that moment, Anakin feels a familiar presence enter the room.

He spins around to see Ben, standing there in the doorway, his eyes full of relief and joy as he looks at Anakin.

Anakin's heart lurches, and he's running, running straight to Ben, who falls to his knees and opens his arms just in time for Ani to slam into them, throwing his own arms around Ben's neck and clinging as tightly as he can. Ben's arms wrap around Ani's ribs, one of his hands coming to cup the back of Ani's head, holding Ani maybe just a bit too tight, but Ani doesn't mind at all. It makes him feel safe, safer than he's ever felt, and Ani suddenly finds his eyes overflowing with tears. He doesn't try to stop them, letting out the relief, the worry, the happiness, the hurt, the pride and the fear he feels. For the first time in weeks, he feels warm, lit up inside with Ben's familiar campfire presence.

Ben kisses his temple and rubs Ani's back. When Ani pulls away a bit, he sees that Ben's eyes are also damp.

"Are you all right, Anakin?" Ben asks, voice choked and soft as he rubs his hands over Ani's shoulders and down his arms to his hands. Ani nods, and Ben feels relief, such relief and happiness at the confirmation of Ani's wellbeing.

Anakin lightly touches the bandage poking out from beneath the rip in Ben's shirt. "You're hurt."

"Just a scratch," Ben says, and Anakin does his best to glare at him. Ben grins shakily. "Really, Anakin, it's going to be all right. I've already seen the medic. I'll be fine."

Ani nods and hugs Ben again, more gently this time. He shouldn't have slammed into Ben like that before; he was probably hurting Ben's wound. Ben hugs him back more firmly, holding him close against him, heedless of his injury. Ani wants to stay in Ben's embrace and never leave.

However, when he becomes aware of others talking somewhere in the room, he sighs and pulls away again. But he doesn't go far. He keeps his hand linked with Ben's. He doesn't want to lose him again.

Ben rises smoothly and they turn towards the throne together. Padmé is discreetly wiping at her eyes, but smiles as they approach.

Ani tugs on Ben's hand. "She's the queen," he whispers to Ben, and Ben's eyes widen in surprise. He bows to her, so Anakin does too.

Padmé just waves off the formality. She walks forward and hugs Ben gently, mindful of his bandaged chest. After a moment of hesitation, Ben returns her embrace.

"I'm glad that you're all right," she tells him. She glances over at Anakin. "And so happy to see you and Anakin reunited."

"I am grateful for that as well," Ben says, voice warm. "The Force was with us." Anakin grins.

Padmé releases Ben and takes a step back to look up at his face. "You came from the medical complex?" Ben nods. "How is Master Jinn?"

"He is in surgery now," Ben says, face serious. "His condition is very grave."

Anakin bites his lip, stomach twisting. Mister Qui-Gon must have been injured by that scary guy in black. "Is he going to be okay?"

Ben squeezes his hand. "I do not know, Ani. We must put our trust in the Force." Ani nods, recognizing one of Ben's common refrains, though he used to call it Luck. Mister Qui-Gon was right; Ben does know what the Force is.

"Are interplanetary communications back up?" Ben asks. "Has anyone contacted the Jedi High Council yet?"

"They are, and contacting the Jedi Council is on my list of things to do," Padmé says.

"If you would allow me to be of assistance, I would be pleased to contact the Council and report to them on what has happened here, as well as the status of Master Jinn."

Padmé studies Ben. She has her queen face on again. "The Council would accept a report from you?" she asks neutrally, as though she is asking more than just that one question.

Ben nods. "I am known to the Jedi," he says. Padmé's brows raise a bit.

"Then I would be glad for your assistance, Ben. Rabé will get you a comm." She pauses. "Is there a way to submit a request to the Council for emergency aid from the Jedi Service Corps? I understand that such requests usually go through the Senate, but the Senate is not known for its quick response at the best of times, and they are currently in the middle of an election. It is vital for my people that they receive aid quickly."

"I will certainly place the request on your behalf. I strongly suspect that in this case, the Council will have good reason to forego protocol and send a team immediately."

Padmé nods. "Thank you, Ben. And—" she takes a deep breath. "I am sorry that you and Anakin were put in danger yet again. You both have my gratitude and the gratitude of the Naboo for your courageous actions. Ask any boon of me, and if it is within my power, I will grant it."

Ben bows deeply to her. "Thank you, Your Highness. I am glad that we were able to be of service to you."

Padmé nods, then smiles at Ben and Anakin and finally turns away to give another of the many people around her her attention.

"You're Anakin's father?" Mister Olié holds out his hand to Ben. "Your son is quite the pilot. I'd say as good as any pilot in Bravo Squadron." Ani puffs up with pride as Ben shakes Mister Olié's hand.

"Yes, he is," Ben says with a rueful smile. "Though I think he should wait until he is at least an adult before joining your team officially. Perhaps by then he will have learned to listen to his commanding officers when they tell him to stay put."

"I stayed in the cockpit!" Anakin mutters, a little tired of having to repeat this point so much. "I listened!"

Ben glances at him with a twinkle in his eye. "And perhaps then he won't pout quite as much when he's chastised for being reckless."

"I am not pouting!" Anakin squawks.

"Oh? Then what's that look on your face?"

"I'm scowling. I don't pout, only little kids do that."

"Ah, I see. Well then, since you are so very mature, I'm sure it will be no trouble for you to wait very patiently and not complain while I send a message to the Council. If you can manage that, I'll show you something new after."

Ani perks up. He likes it when Ben teaches him new things; it's always something cool. "Okay!" He turns back to the pilot. "Thanks for helping me land the starfighter and find Ben, Mister Olié. Maybe tomorrow I could come help you fix up my fighter?"

"Your fighter?" Ben raises an eyebrow. "The ship belongs to the Naboo Security Forces, Anakin."

Mister Olié just smiles and ruffles Ani's hair. "Kid, if you're as good a mechanic as you are a pilot, you're welcome in the hangar anytime."

Anakin beams. "Wizard!"

Ben grins. "You're going to wish you hadn't said that," he tells Mister Olié, who laughs.

That's when Rabé comes over and whisks them off to go comm the Jedi, or whatever they're doing next. She has them stop at a kitchen first so they can pick up some food for latemeal, then in some sort of storage closet where she gets Ben a spare uniform to replace his clothes and even a too-big shirt for Ani. By the time they finally head toward the room she's going to have them stay in, Ani is pretty tired, and his legs have started to shake like they do after a podrace, which makes sense, because flying a starfighter in a battle was way more intense than any podrace he's ever been in.

Ben notices immediately of course, and he picks Ani up to carry him the rest of the way. Ani doesn't argue because it means he can lay his head down on Ben's shoulder and feel his heart thumping inside the chest pressed against his own.

"Hey, Rabé, what's a boon?" Ani asks the handmaiden. If he doesn't talk, he's going to fall asleep on Ben, and he doesn't want to sleep yet.

"It's like a favor."

"Oh. So Padmé said she would do us a favor? That's really nice of her."

"You've done so much for us, Anakin, she wants to do something for you too."

"Do you think she would let us stay here? I mean, not here in the palace, but here on Naboo? I like it here."

Ani feels Ben stroke a comforting hand through his hair. Rabé smiles at him. "If that's what you wanted to ask of her, I am sure that she would do that for you."

"Thanks, Rabé."

Rabé opens the next door for them and bows them through. "Anytime, Ani."

As Rabé closes the door behind Ani and Ben, Ani raises his head from Ben's shoulder and looks around, mouth a little agape. The suite of rooms they have been given is larger than their entire house back on Tatooine. Ben shrugs the bag of clothing and food off his shoulder and goes to sit on a richly upholstered armchair, settling Ani on his lap. Anakin winces a little when their weight creases the flawless brocade. Are they even allowed to sit on this?

Looking down at their sumptuous seat, Ani notices something he hadn't before. He reaches out to touch the bone hilt of the lightsaber he built, now hanging from Ben's belt.

"You got it," Anakin says, a little awed. He knew what he had done, what he had tried to do, sitting in the cockpit of the fighter and reaching out with all his strength, bringing forth that place in his mind where he can always sense Ben. He'd felt the hilt of the lightsaber plucked from his outstretched hand, but he'd had his eyes closed, so he didn't see it happen.

Ben doesn't take his eyes off of Anakin, though he reaches down to touch the lightsaber too. "Yes, Anakin. You did a wonderful job building it. And you got it to me just in time." He brushes warm fingers over Anakin's cheek and cups the nape of his neck. "You saved me. You saved this planet. You've done so well."

Ani's face feels warm at Ben's praise, and he feels strangely shy all of a sudden. The weight of Ben's gaze is heavy, like he is eating Anakin up with his eyes and can't get enough of looking at him. Ani recognizes it; he feels the same about Ben after weeks without him. He doesn't think he will ever get tired of hearing Ben's calm voice talking to him or feeling his strong hand on his shoulder. Not for a long time, anyway. He glances down and sees the rip in Ben's shirt again, and the bandage underneath.

"I didn't save you from this," he says, tracing the edge of the bandage with a finger.

"That's not on you, Ani, not even a little," Ben tells him, taking Ani's hand and lifting it away, holding it gently in their laps.

"Did the bad guy do that to you?" Ben nods. Ani is struck by the sudden certainty that this wound is not the only injury that the mysterious fighter dealt Ben. And he must have been the one to hurt Mister Qui-Gon too. "Did you kill him?" Ani asks.

There is a flash of grief and guilt from Ben, but also a sense of peace. "Yes," he says simply. "I didn't want to, but he gave me no other choice."

Ani nods. "I—I think that the control ship was mostly staffed by droids. But—but there must have been some living people aboard too when I—when I—" He stops when he feels like he can't go on. He's not sure he can say it out loud, when this is the first he's even let himself think it, really.

"Oh, Anakin," Ben whispers, a tremor in his voice, but his hands are steady as they cradle Ani's. "I'm so sorry. You should have never been put in that position. But you were, and you handled it well, much better than most anyone else would." He cups Ani's cheek, gently encouraging him to lift his gaze to meet Ben's eyes. "What you did, you did not out of anger or malice. You acted in the only way you could to save your life and the lives of your friends. You let the Force guide you. You showed great courage and integrity today, Anakin. You brought hope to the peoples of Naboo. I am proud of you."

Ani just nods, his relief so strong that it steals his voice. Tears spill from his eyes again, and he leans forward to bury his face in Ben's chest. Ben's arms come around him, comforting and safe, and Ani can feel Ben's warm presence surrounding him, sheltering him, even better than a hug. He lets himself linger in Ben's embrace for several long minutes. Ben holds him close all the while and gives him a reassuring smile when Anakin finally lifts his head, eyes dry again.

"Are you gonna send a message to the Jedi Council now?" Ani asks.

"Yes, I am."

"Are you gonna tell them anything about me?" Anakin squirms a little at the thought. He doesn't think the Council likes him very much.

"Yes. They at least need to know that you're safe. But Ani, I wanted to talk to you about that first. You asked Rabé if we could stay here on Naboo. Does that mean that you've changed your mind about wanting to be a Jedi?"

Anakin shrugs. It doesn't really have anything to do with what he wants. It's the Jedi that don't want him.

"Ani, did Master Jinn take you to meet the Jedi High Council while you were on Coruscant?" Ben's voice is gentle as he questions him. Ani nods. "And what happened when you spoke with the Council?"

Anakin takes a deep breath. "They said that they won't let me be trained. Because I'm too old, and I have too much fear and…and because I'm attached to you."

"Anakin, I'm so sorry." Ben's blue eyes are sad, but not because he's disappointed in Ani. "I didn't mean to make this harder for you. We've had a bond since you were very small, but I didn't think that would prevent you from joining the Jedi. You let me go when you left Tatooine, and you were very brave to do that. I thought that would be enough to show them your commitment. I'm sorry that my bond with you prevented them from seeing that."

"It's not your fault, Ben! It was my fault. I was afraid, and I was worried about you. I missed you so much. I was trying to be brave, like you taught me, but I couldn't—"

"You are brave, Anakin," Ben reassures him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "You have done so well in very difficult circumstances, and I'm so proud of you. I'm not sure the Council would listen to anything I have to say, but I will talk to them for you, try to get them to reconsider—"

Anakin shakes his head. "I—I don't think I want you to do that. I think I have changed my mind about being a Jedi, kind of. I still want to be a Jedi, but I want to stay with you more. If you can't be a Jedi, then I don't want to be one either. I won't go and leave you behind again. We belong together."

Ben's heart is full of both pride and pain for Ani. His eyes and voice are soft when he says, "Anakin, wherever you are in the galaxy, no matter how far away from me the Force may take you, I will always be with you. I think you proved that when you gave me this." He pats the lightsaber on his hip. "But I would be remiss if I did not tell you that I worried about you as well, and I missed you terribly these last few weeks. I would like it if we were together."

Anakin's hope rises. "So I can stay with you then?"

"Anakin, you will have a home with me for as long as you want it." He kisses Ani's forehead. "I love you."

"I love you too…Dad." Ben looks at him, startled. This is the first time Ani has ever called him that. "Is it—I know that you're not my birth father," Ani babbles, nerves making his stomach twist, "but you raised me and—and you're my family, and family sticks together. Is it okay if I call you Dad?"

For as long as Anakin can remember, people have taken Ben for his father, or sometimes his brother, and Ben is the closest thing he has ever had to either one. But Ben is more to him than a brother, and being separated from Ben for the first time has shown him how much Ben really means to him. Ani wants to recognize that. He wants to call Ben his father.

There are tears in Ben's eyes again. "Yes, Ani. If—if that is what you want, I would be honored—and touched—if you called me that. You are my family too, my child." He smiles, and Ani smiles back. "We stick together."

Ani has to hug him again after that, and when they break apart, he sees a few tears have slipped free from Ben's eyes. Instead of wiping his face on his sleeve or getting up to wash his face, Ben reaches out a hand, and a box of tissues that are sitting on an ornate side table come flying into his hand.

"Whoa!" Ani has never seen Ben do anything like that before. "How did you do that?"

Ben grins a little even as he wipes at his eyes. "I used the Force."

"Mister Qui-Gon told me about the Force," Anakin says thoughtfully. "That's what you mean when you say the Wind and Luck, right?"

"Yes, it is."

Ani frowns. "You didn't tell me that."

Ben sighs, but looks Anakin in the eye. "No."

"There are a lot of things you didn't tell me."

"I know, Anakin. I'm sorry." Ben doesn't feel guilty exactly, but Ani gets the sense that he wishes he could have done things differently.

"You've been holding me back," Anakin says, not quite accusing, because he's still not sure why Ben did it, but he has an idea.

"I didn't mean to," Ben tells him, sincerity all through him. "I was afraid that if anyone, especially one of our owners, saw your true power, they would try to use you. They would take you away from me and hurt you."

Anakin nods solemnly. He was right then, about the Force being something they couldn't talk about. "Now that we're free, will you teach me?"

"I'll teach you everything I know, and if I don't know, I will help you find the answers."

"Thank you, Dad."

"Of course, Ani."

"Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"You were a Jedi, weren't you?"

Ben is silent for some time. Ani senses there is a great deal of history and emotion wrapped up in that question for him, so Ani waits patiently for an answer. He doesn't want to push, but he's sure that he's right about this. How else could Ben know so much about the Force? And he had given Ani all the parts to make the lightsaber, and Knight Bant had told Ani that kyber crystals like the one Ben gave him were sacred to Jedi.

Ben takes a deep breath. "I was raised by the Jedi, at the Temple on Coruscant. I was an Initiate in the Order until I was twelve. But I was not meant for that life."

Anakin can sense old pain behind Ben's words. He wishes he understood it. "Will you tell me what happened to you?"

"Yes," Ben says immediately. "One day, I will. But it is a story for another time."

Ani nods seriously. "Okay. I can wait."

Ben grins. "I appreciate your patience. And while you're waiting, please wash yourself up and eat something. I'm going into the other room to comm the Council, and when I get back, we'll meditate and get some shut-eye. We've both had a very long day."

Anakin wakes hours later in the middle of the night. Ben is still beside him, callused hand covering his where they lay between their bodies, mind calm with deep sleep. He is not the source of Ani's disquiet.

Anakin lifts his head and looks around, and immediately spots a figure near the door. He rubs at his eyes.

"Padmé?" he calls softly. He knows it's her; he could never mistake her magnesium presence. "Are you okay?"

Padmé takes a few steps into the room, until Anakin can see her features illuminated in the moonlight streaming through the window. Her face is tense, and there are shadows under her eyes that Anakin doesn't think come entirely from the lack of light in the room.

"I'm okay, Anakin," she whispers. "I'm sorry I woke you up. I didn't mean to."

"It's okay. What are you doing here? Do you need something?"

"No, no, I'm fine. Go back to sleep. I'm sorry I barged in."

Anakin sits up. "Wait. At least tell me what's wrong. Did you have a nightmare? Is that why you're up?"

Padmé creeps closer to the bed. "Shouldn't we take this conversation somewhere else? I wouldn't want to wake Ben."

"Nah, he's out. See?" Ani pokes Ben hard in the shoulder to demonstrate, and he just rolls over, away from Ani, still fast asleep. "He took this medicine the healers gave him that makes him sleepy. He won't wake up unless we really need him."

Padmé glances over at Ben, then settles herself on the rug next to the bed, leaning against the frame. "I didn't have a nightmare," she says. "I haven't actually been to bed yet."

Anakin takes in her nightdress and unbound hair. She is clearly ready for sleep, but she hasn't gone to bed yet? "Can't sleep?"

"Yeah," she sighs. "I was up late taking care of things that need doing, and when I got back to my bedroom, everything was so dark and empty and quiet. I decided to come check on you and Ben, just to make sure you're okay. And to remind myself that there are other people in this wing of the palace with me, it's not empty."

Ani frowns. "What about your handmaidens? Aren't they here?"

Padmé shakes her head. "No. I gave them leave to go find their families."

"That was good of you," Anakin tells her. He's sure everyone in the queen's retinue is worried about their families after everything that happened. He pauses, thinks. "What about your family? Have you already found them?"

Padmé takes a deep breath. "No. I can't leave the palace right now, but I have people looking for them. I'm sure it won't be long…"

Ani's heart squeezes painfully. No wonder she can't sleep. He reaches out to touch her shoulder. "I'm sure they're okay. You saved them. You saved everyone."

Padmé glances up at him, moisture glimmering in her eyes. "Thanks, Ani," she whispers.

"You should stay here tonight," he tells her. "That way you won't be alone."

Padmé looks at Ben again. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Dad won't mind." He scoots back to make room and pats the space next to him.

Padmé needs no further invitation to climb into the bed and settle under the covers beside him. She must really not want to be alone, which Anakin can't blame her for. Besides, this is hardly the first time they've shared a sleeping space. They slept with the handmaidens the whole way back to Naboo, and they also shared the only sleep pallet the night before the Boonta Eve Classic. That time was even Ben's idea, though he and Mister Qui-Gon had to sleep on the floor in the kitchen.

"I've never heard you call him Dad before," Padmé says, the question implied.

Ani can't help the smile that spreads across his face, remembering how good it felt when Ben called him his child. "Yeah. I finally asked him. I decided I'm not going to go be a Jedi after all. We're free now, and we're going to stay together. So I thought it was time."

Padmé still feels confused, and Anakin realizes she thinks the same thing everyone always does. "Oh. Ben isn't my birth father. He was friends with my mother, and she asked him to take care of me when she was sold away. But I already knew him as Ben then, so I guess I just kept calling him that. We're family though, even though we're not blood. So I asked, and he said I could call him Dad."

Padmé smiles as she reaches out and takes his hand. "I'm happy for you both."

"Do you think me and Ben could live here, on Naboo?" Ani blurts out. "It's so nice here, the most beautiful planet I've ever seen. And I've already made friends with you and Rabé and Eirtaé and Sabé and Captain Panaka and Mister Olié. And Artoo! And Rabé said that a boon means a favor and that you would probably let us stay if we asked. I understand if you have other things to do right now, but do you think, maybe—?"

Padmé squeezes his hand gently, her smile growing wider. "I would like it very much if you stayed here on Naboo, Ani."

Ani grins back. "Wizard!" he whispers, and Padmé giggles. "Thanks, Padmé. Tomorrow, Dad and I can help look for your family. He says that we're gonna make ourselves useful anyway, and what's more useful than that? And I really want to meet your sister and your mom and dad—"

Anakin is (rudely!) interrupted just then by Ben, who, without waking, rolls over and puts a hand over Ani's mouth. "Shhh…" He shushes Ani without even opening his eyes.

Padmé giggles into her hands as Ani pulls Ben's hand down. This only encourages Ben to wrap his arm around Ani's waist and pull the boy in against him.

"I think your dad wants us to go to sleep," Padmé whispers, still grinning. "We'll talk more in the morning."

"Okay. And Padmé?"

"Yes, Ani?"

"I really mean it. We'll find your family, and they're going to be okay."

Padmé squeezes his hand again. "Thank you, Ani."

"Goodnight, Padmé."

"Goodnight."

Though Anakin thinks that he's wide awake and it will take a while for him to get back to sleep, it isn't long at all before the warmth of Ben's body and Padmé's quiet breathing lull him into sleep. All three of the bed's occupants sleep very soundly and undisturbed until the morning, when they're all jolted awake by a distraught Captain Panaka bursting into the room in a frantic search for his queen.

Anakin thinks that the loud and long lecture the poor man gives all three of them is particularly unfair to Ben, who until that moment had no idea the queen was even in his bed.