Anakin didn't know what it was about these kids. He'd only known them for a day, and he was willing to return to Tatooine for them. He didn't know why. It made no sense, but it felt right in the Force, and Obi-Wan was always getting on him to pay more attention to the will of the Force.
He wasn't supposed to be leaving Coruscant without orders. It wouldn't be considered insubordination. Jedi Knights could go where they pleased, but they were supposed to at least report to the Council where they were going and how long they would be gone for, just in case they needed to be reached in an emergency.
Ever since the war had started and the knights became generals, those rules had been enforced a bit more. The Jedi weren't required to fight in the war, but it was very strongly frowned upon if they didn't contribute to the effort in some way.
Anakin was one of the Jedi most willing to fight. He knew that the Jedi stood for peace, but growing up on a planet as harsh as Tatooine Anakin had learned that peace couldn't be achieved by sitting around and waiting for it to come. It had to be fought for and defended fiercely.
Anakin was one of the greatest generals fighting on the behalf of the Republic. He could be called out at any time, and yet he was leaving Coruscant because finding a potential runaway boy felt more important.
Anakin would easily be able to rationalize his actions to the council. Luke was strong in the Force, but also vulnerable to his emotions. He knew very little about the ways of the Force. Anakin wouldn't be surprised if he didn't even know about the Dark Side. And his ignorance could make him vulnerable.
The Sith could go after Luke and snag him up while he wasn't under the watch of the Jedi. They didn't know if the Sith knew about Luke, or if they would make snuffing out his bright light in the Force a priority, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
Anakin had a strategically good reason for going after Luke, but he was also going for his own selfish reasons. He was worried about the boy, and he felt bad that he'd upset him. He'd been trying to be responsible. He hadn't wanted to burden Luke more than he clearly already had. But the damage had been done, and Anakin needed to take responsibility for it.
And he must have upset the boy more than he'd thought if he was desperate enough to go running back to Tatooine as Leia thought. Anakin didn't know anybody who went back there if they had any other choice.
Leia wanted to go to Tatooine immediately, but Anakin convinced her to stall just a little bit. He didn't like leaving Coruscant without telling his wife. Leia could glare and make passive aggressive comments all she wanted. Anakin was going to go to the senate building and talk to Padmé. She deserved to know why he was just disappearing on her.
What Anakin hadn't taken into account was how stubborn Padmé was. As soon as she heard that Luke was missing and upset she declared that she was going to go with them to find him. It didn't matter that she had obligations and responsibilities at work. She considered Luke to be her responsibility, and it was one that she couldn't pass on to someone else.
So Anakin somehow found himself in his ship, making his way to a place that he didn't want to be to find a child that he thought was better off without him, accompanied by another child who shouldn't be away from the temple, and his wife, who shouldn't just up and leave Coruscant.
Obi-Wan frequently asked Anakin how he ended up in these situations. Honestly, he didn't know most of the time either.
The flight was quiet and easy, but Anakin had to fight off the sinking in his stomach the whole time. He didn't think he would ever go back to Tatooine. He had thought that the only thing that was going to drag him back to his home planet was his mother and to save the slaves. Now that his mother was gone, he had no reason to go back. And yet here he was, all for the sake of a boy who he had only known for a day.
As though this whole thing wasn't bad enough, Anakin had to deal with his wife's judgement. He had done what he had thought was best for Luke, but Leia had gotten angry at him, and once Padmé was told that he had cut the boy off she had been unimpressed as well.
"You two have a lot in common." Padmé said. "More than just your home planet." She didn't sound mad, just disappointed, and that was what wormed under Anakin's skin. He got defensive when he was treated with anger, but disappointment made him actually take a small step back and look at his actions. And as they were in hyperspace, just the three of them, there was nowhere to go to escape the lecture that he probably needed to hear.
Padmé took his hand. "You both care so passionately about people. Your hearts are so big that you don't know what to do with it." Anakin fidgeted uncomfortably. He didn't like talking about his feelings, because he sometimes felt like he was hit with them so much more strongly than everybody else. It was either that or everybody else had mastered the art of controlling their emotions.
Anakin tried hard to do the same, but how could he when he was always hit with emotions that he frequently couldn't even identify?
Padmé put her hands on Anakin's face, nudging him to look towards her. "You should have heard him talking at lunch. He sounded so much like you. Oh, he sounded just seconds away from outright accusing the Republic of endorsing slavery."
Anakin blinked. That kid had guts. He'd had a few of those treasonous thoughts himself but he pushed them down and never voiced them. When he was nine years old he'd learned that the galaxy was bigger than he could ever dream of understanding, and ever since then he'd been reluctantly accepting that there were some things that he would never understand, and that it was a problem with him.
Hearing that Luke shared some of his thoughts, and was naive enough to voice them in front of senators of the Republic, it made a feeling rise in Anakin's chest that he didn't entirely understand. It reminded him of pride, but why should he be proud of an outspoken teenager?
Leia was watching them with fascination.. Anakin didn't appreciate her looking at them as though they were her favorite holo-drama. "You don't like slaves either?"
Anakin felt both annoyed and amused at the comment. "I don't know any decent person who likes slavery." He didn't like to talk about his personal feelings on the matter, but talking to Leia was just like talking to Luke. Anakin felt like he could talk to them. He didn't understand it, but it was hard to resist.
So he found himself explaining more than he would with most people. "My mom was a slave."
Leia looked slightly ill. What was odd was that there wasn't the familiar look of pity in her eyes. Leia looked saddened and horrified, but there was a strange understanding in her gaze, even though he knew by looking at her that she hadn't been exposed to slave culture herself.
She took a shaky breath. "Our…Luke's grandmother was too." And Anakin wondered if that was the reason behind their connection. Luke and Leia had a connection because they were apparently brother and sister. And if they were descended from slaves, then that would explain why Anakin felt a bond with them.
Slaves on Tatooine had a way of carrying themselves. They could recognize each other at a glance from the other side of a crowded market, even if they were total strangers. Even people who had never been enslaved a single day of their lives, but had the blood and the name of someone who had, carried that with them.
Anakin, Luke, and Leia were all incredibly strong in the Force. It might be enhancing that slave connection, giving them a bond.
Leia wrapped her arms around herself. "I-I didn't know." She swallowed thickly and lowered her head. Her shoulders shook. "How am I supposed to help him when I don't even know what he's carrying?"
Anakin shook his head. It was odd to see Leia look so uncertain. Especially when he thought that what she had said was ridiculous in and of himself. "You're helping him a lot more than you know." He could feel their bond, and he knew just how protective Leia was of her brother. He didn't think she would drag a Jedi to the other side of the galaxy if she didn't care. And just caring about somebody, and not being afraid to show it, could sometimes be the most important thing you could do to help them.
"Has Luke not told you about his nightmares?" Padmé asked. Leia shook her head.
"I know he's been having them for weeks. I've felt echoes of his fear and exhaustion, but I haven't known the specifics." Leia said. "I wish he could talk to me." She took a deep breath and Anakin watched as the tension seemed to slip out of her shoulders. "But this isn't about me. As long as Luke is taken care of, that's all that matters." She gave Anakin a hard look, silently telling him that she expected him to be the one to talk to Luke. He didn't particularly want to, but if that was what the boy needed, so be it. Like Leia said, this wasn't about him.
The rest of the flight was a little less tense, but still stressful. Leia eventually fell asleep, leaving Anakin alone with his wife. She held his hand, rubbing her thumb across his knuckles.
"I know it hurts to talk about your mother." Padmé said. "You have every right. But you and Luke, your pain is so similar. Maybe it's the empathy through the Force. Maybe you're just alike. But one way that Luke's different from you is that he needs to talk about it. You don't need to talk about your mother, but maybe you can convince Luke to open up to you."
Anakin didn't like to talk about other's emotions, because he didn't feel like he was qualified to do that. He couldn't control his own temper. He couldn't tell the difference between being jealous and being protective. Luke would probably be better off talking to literally anybody else.
But Anakin understood his problems in a way that the others couldn't. Whether he liked it or not, it had to be him.
As they got closer to Tatooine Anakin found himself meditating. It wasn't as deep and focused as Obi-Wan would probably want it to be, but it got the job done. Anakin reached out for Luke, looking for the blinding light. It was closed off, but he could sense it. Anakin had always felt like Tatooine was a big ball of darkness that just ate away any source of light. The twin suns were the only source of warmth and light.
He was able to feel some light coming from the blackhole that was Tatooine. It wasn't strong, but it was bright. Luke. Anakin had no idea how someone so bright could come from a place like this. Even after being tormented by nightmares for weeks, Luke still carried hope. He was the only person that Anakin knew who held onto that light.
Other than his mother.
Eventually they left hyperspace and Anakin saw his home planet in front of him. They didn't need to search the planet for Luke. Anakin could sense him from here, and it was a relief. He hadn't realized how much he had missed that light.
Leia leaned against the windows as they approached the planet and landed at one of the cheapest, but safest, docks. She looked excited to see the planet, though Anakin knew that she was just eager to find her brother. Nobody in their right mind actually wanted to be on Tatooine.
Leia looked like she wanted to run out of the ship before they even landed. Anakin could feel her desperation. He reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her back.
"You're not just going out there." Anakin said. "You have no idea how dangerous this planet is. I can find Luke, but not if I have to keep you out of danger."
Leia looked like she wanted to start another fight, and Anakin understood the feeling. He could never handle just sitting back and waiting for somebody else to fix things for him. He fought his own battles. But Leia was just a child. The Jedi may expect a lot of their padawans, and Leia was of the age where she might have been sent on missions by herself if she had been raised by the Jedi, but she hadn't been. She was young, untrained, and unfamiliar with this planet.
She and Padmé could wear whatever desert clothes they wanted, the people of Tatooine would recognize them as outsiders and easy targets. Anakin could protect them from wandering eyes, but that would take his attention away from Luke
Leia and Anakin stared at each other for a few long moments, neither of them willing to back down. Leia clenched her jaw and straightened her shoulders. "You have ten minutes. If you haven't returned with Luke by then, or if he hasn't opened himself up to me, then I'll be coming after him myself."
She was agreeing to stay, but Anakin was somehow left with the feeling that she had won. This girl was impressive, and maybe she would be able to manage herself on this planet, but Anakin wasn't going to take that chance.
"I'll be back soon." Anakin promised. He gave Padmé a pleading look. "Keep her here." He left the ship before he could hear Leia's indignant argument that she couldn't be kept anywhere.
Anakin followed Luke's light, projecting an aura of confidence and strength. It might draw the wrong kind of attention from some of the most dangerous people on Tatooine, but it would be enough to ward off the smaller threats.
Anakin went to another docking bay nearby. A particularly shady one, unless things have changed since he was here last. This bay was used by smugglers of all kinds, including those who thought it was okay to smuggle humans. He felt a familiar sense of righteous fury as he walked past the workers and smugglers, using just a touch of the Force to make himself less noticeable. He didn't become invisible. The Force just made him look to most people like someone who wasn't worth a second glance.
Anakin walked towards an old ship that was being unloaded. He spotted Luke right away, bent over the engine and fidgeting with something. He saw the boy pause, growing tense just as Anakin felt a sense of danger. He saw a nautolan gesture towards Luke, and two thugs who looked far too smug for the likes of Tatooine walk towards him. Anakin had a very clear idea of where this was going, and he wasn't going to stand for it.
Anakin took out his lightsaber and cut off the hands of the thugs. He wanted to kill these men here and now, but he controlled himself. That wasn't the way of the Jedi, and Anakin knew that anything he did would be nothing compared to the punishment of their bosses.
He ran to Luke, who was just staring at him with wide eyes. He looked startled. Whether it was because he'd seen Anakin cut off someone's hands so effortlessly, or because he was stunned at Anakin's mere presence, he didn't know, and it didn't really matter. What was important right now was getting Luke out of there.
Anakin took Luke's hand and pulled him out of the shipyard. By the time they got onto the streets he let go of the boy and slowed their pace so as to not draw attention to them. He was glad when Luke followed him, though the boy wasn't happy with him. Anakin was expecting to be yelled at, but when Luke opened his mouth the topic was not what he had expected at all.
"You didn't have to hurt them." Luke said. Anakin couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Those were slavers." Anakin growled. "They were going to drag you into that, and as soon as they found out your family history they were going to make you wish you'd never been born." Slavers were not kind to those they saw as escaped slaves. Even if those slaves had won their freedom fairly, or if the family hadn't been enslaved in generations, it was all the same to slavers.
"You think I don't know that?" Luke glared at him, though to Anakin he just looked like a child who thought he knew everything. Then again, Tatooine youth were some of the few people that actually seemed like they really did know everything. Tatooine wasn't big on education, but those who lived to be even just Luke's age picked up a thing or two about how to survive.
"I knew what the engineer was going to do." Luke said. "I could take care of myself."
Anakin was stunned and he felt his temper rise as his worry and frustration with this boy got stronger. "You hitched a ride with someone you knew was going to sell you out?"
"It was a guaranteed ride to Tatooine." Luke said. "That's better than a questionable ride from people who would sell me somewhere else."
The kid stood behind his actions and thought process, and Anakin didn't know whether to be baffled or angry.
"I don't understand you." Anakin muttered.
Luke's bright light dimmed ever so slightly. Even with their bond closed off Anakin could feel the kid's mood plummet. He wore his heart so far on his sleeve that Anakin was surprised that he'd survived this long on Tatooine. And he was even more confused about why Luke was still walking with him, even though he'd just managed to hurt him again without even trying.
Anakin sighed. He wasn't cut out for this. He slowly opened himself up to the boy, just a little. He wasn't opening the bond up completely again, but he didn't block him out either. He thought this would be what Luke would want, but the kid just grimaced and Anakin could feel him make a clumsy attempt to block him out again.
Anakin knew that he should apologize or address what was going on between them, but he didn't know how. He wasn't in the habit of apologizing, and he had the feeling that Luke would be looking for much more than he was able to give.
"Forget why you thought coming here was a good idea." Anakin said. "Why did you want to come here in the first place?"
"I-I don't know." Luke admitted quietly. "I just want my family." He sounded heartbroken and resigned, like it was something he didn't think he could ever have. Anakin understood the feeling well. Maybe Padmé was right about them having a lot in common.
Anakin knew he should say more, but he didn't know what. They didn't really have time to figure it out. Talking out in the open on the streets of Tatooine was not a good idea, and Anakin knew that Luke was as aware of that fact as he was.
Padmé and Leia thought he was the best person to get through to Luke, but he didn't know how. Leia was his brother. She had a connection to him still, and though Luke wasn't reaching out to her the bond was still there.
Luke would be better off with Leia. Anakin was just here to keep the two of them safe. He couldn't even deal with his own emotional issues. No matter how much he and Luke had in common, how was he supposed to help him when he couldn't even help himself?