Featured songs:
1. "There's a Party Here in Agrabah" Parts 1 & 2 from Aladdin & the King of Thieves
2. Wedding March by Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
3. Everytime We Touch by Cascada
The big day was finally here.
As far back as Solaran history went, every king and queen of Solaris was married in the Corazón del Sol Church, and this time was no different. With that building being one of the first fully restored buildings in Solaris, the wedding ceremony would take place there. But, the reception would be taking place at the Naboo Palace, as the castle in Solaris was taking the longest to be restored, and the royal family prioritized fixing up the villages and preserving the vegetation first.
It was all over the news! But reporter Shera Nova was at the church to cover the pre-wedding news.
"We're live at the Corazón de Sol Church here in Solaris, restores just in time for what will be the royal wedding of the millenium," said the newswoman. "As we all know, Solaris has been without its leaders for almost a century, but two years ago, was rightfully returned its monarchy with Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn taking his place as king and his heirs their places. But, very soon King Qui-Gon will no longer be ruling on the throne alone. Today, he will be married to former slave girl Shmi Skywalker, long lost mother of his twin sons Anakin Skywalker and Carmine Jinn. I'm here with Crown Princess Kara Jinn for an update on the festivities. Princess Kara, what is your take on all this with the wedding and the fact that you will have a stepmother very soon?"
"Well, Shera... a lot of us probably heard fairy tales with mean, wicked stepmothers, but this won't be one of them." Kara said. "Shmi is a wonderful woman, and my brothers are very lucky to have gotten to call her their mother. I believe Solaris will be blessed to have her as its queen. And I to have her a mother soon as well. Speaking of her, I must see to it that she is prepared for the happiest day of many brides' lives. The wedding day."
Music seemed to fill the air, which was fitting because...
Kara:
There's a party here in Solaris,
There's excitement in the air
People pourin' in from near and far
'Cause the future queen and king are gonna have a wedding
There's a party here in Solaris,
Everybody will be there
So if you're a pauper or a shah,
Do somethin' with your hair!
You mustn't wear an outfit that's naughty
A turban that's unraveling just won't do
No earrings that are tasteless or gaudy
You're gonna look gorgeous when I get through
The rest of the family was doing everything possible to make sure everything would be perfect for the wedding. The kids were doing some last-minute decorating to the town and area surrounding the church. Gabby and Lamenta took care of flowers, Goldie and Mona tied some ribbons, and Omega and Boba made sure the people setting up the reception had everything just right
Gabby:
There's a party here in Solaris
So we're goin' to paint the town
If you want to see what colors are,
Follow me around!
Kids:
Our grandpa's gettin' married and it's
gonna be the wedding of the century
Kara:
My father's gettin' married, and you're gonna see
Just how much we can do!
The horses were helping out too.
Carousella:
You've heard of your safari, bar mitzvahs, (Aah!)
Crescent:
You've all been to a luau, or a sweet sixteen (Huh!)
Harmony:
Well, none of them compare to what this is!
Comedia:
The food might be disgusting, by evening you'll be busting!
Buttercup (getting all dressed up, which was unusual for her):
There's a party here in Solaris,
And it's got us all aglow
Gabby:
If these two could wait for so long,
They will make it last
Sure, there's nothin' to it!
Of course, there were those who thought a king would have to be out of his mind to marry a former slave girl, finding her to be way below his league.
Snobby Woman:
There's a party here in Solaris,
But we're not sure that we'll go
For although the groom is lah-tee-dah,
The bride is awfully low
News reporter:
And now we take you down to the palace
Where everyone has celebrated all night long
Except for Mariverde's clava malice,
Everybody's happy!
What could possibly go wrong?
Boba:
There's a party here in Solaris
And it's all gonna be fine!
Omega:
We've checked to make sure this time there
Won't be, imposters to replace either half up at the altar
The Batch were also helping by setting out the wedding gifts, but some were heavier than others.
Hunter:
There's a party here in Solaris
And the gifts are pourin' in!
Hunter nearly threw his back out on the last one he picked up, as Wrecker got distracted by the caterers moving food, which made the biggest Batcher want a sample, and the horses had to stop him, leaving Hunter to do the gift work.
I find this wedding stuff so hard
For such a heavy present
Let's hope it's something pleasant!
Pretty soon, more and more guests were arriving for the big event. Everything looked wonderful from the flowers to the banners, and the wedding party. Gabby got the pillow she would be carrying the wedding rings on.
Kara:
We've ordered just a few tasteful flowers
Royal Guard (approaching a ship):
The valet, sir, will carefully park for you
Sapphire (walking into the dressing room, where Padme, Mariposa, and Caroline were all dressed as bridesmaids):
The bridesmaids have been dressing for hours!
Ladies, you look lovely, and so grown-up too
It was nearly time for the ceremony to begin, but something was missing.
Kara:
There's a party here in Solaris
Guests are filling up the room
But there's something missing..
Yes, aha!
Garrett:
Where is the groom?
"Don't worry," said Obi-Wan. "I'm just about to go fetch him. It appears running late runs in his side of the family."
Obi-Wan saw Harmony setting up the instruments for the wedding march.
"Harmony, would you mind keeping the guests entertained while we are gone?"
"Sure," said Harmony. "I think the instruments could do with a warm-up. Ladies and gentlemen, the wedding ceremony will begin shortly. But for now, I hope you will enjoy a nice serenade of Harmony's Philharmonic."
Harmony started to conduct the instruments to play some beautiful classical music so Peppermint and Obi-Wan would have time to fetch Qui-Gon, as well as his sons. After what happened at Obi-Wan's wedding, neither the bride nor the groom were to be left alone for any reason, thus preventing any chance that either of them would be replaced by an imposter who wanted Shmi for himself or to cheat their way into becoming queen of Solaris.
"Come on, Obi-Wan." Peppermint said. "Let's just get the groom."
Qui-Gon brushed his hair back a little bit and tried to fix the dark green tie on his green suit.
"I'm starting to wonder if I made the right color choice." said Qui-Gon.
"You look great, Dad. I really mean that." Carmine said.
"Agreed. Green is definitely you're color." said Anakin. "It really represents your relationship with Mom. Like a green plant, always growing and growing stronger."
"Thank you, both." Qui-Gon looked at his reflection and sighed. "I just... I always dreamed of this day, and after all that happened, I thought it never would. But Anakin, you gave life to a girl who made all this possible."
"I think she feels honored to be the ring bearer at this wedding, especially after she gave that role to Boba when he came into the family before my wedding." Anakin said, remembering his own royal wedding.
"Gabriella is a special girl. All of my grandchildren are, and now they all get to be here for this special day." Qui-Gon said. "I still cannot believe this isn't all a dream."
Just then, there was a knock at the door, and everyone got into defensive positions.
"Who is it?" Anakin asked.
"It's Obi-Wan and Peppermint." called Obi-Wan's voice.
Carmine and Anakin kept their lightsabers ready just in case, and opened the door with the Force.
"Master Qui-Gon, it's time to get to the altar." Obi-Wan said.
Anakin and Carmine checked Obi-Wan and Peppermint just to be sure.
"They're clean." Carmine said. "Literally and figuratively."
"Wouldn't wanna be dirty for a special occasion like this." Peppermint chuckled.
"Are you ready for your big day, Master?" Obi-Wan asked.
"I believe I am. However, nervous as well."
"I'm pretty sure every groom feels that way on his wedding day." Carmine said. "Remember my second wedding to Caroline?"
"It isn't just the fact that I will have a queen soon." Qui-Gon sighed. "My whole life it seemed love was never meant to be anything more than a dream. But, by some miracle, I finally will be wed to a woman I never imagined I would find."
Qui-Gon:
There's a party here in Solaris
And the party's all for me
Just look, you guys, at where we are,
And how our dreams have come to be!
Meanwhile, in her dressing room, the bridesmaids just finished helping Shmi into her wedding dress. It was a beautiful long lace sleeve gown with a long A-line skirt with white daffodil flowers and petals embroidered into it. Her hair was let down with a veil fit to complete the look of the dress and leave a space for the tiara that would be placed on her head once she and Qui-Gon were married and she became Solaris' new queen.
Shmi looked in the mirror at how beautiful she looked. She couldn't believe this day was finally here, the day she would marry the man of her dreams, the man who gave her the children she loved so much.
Shmi:
There's a party here in Solaris
And I can't believe it's true
After all this waiting, here we are
We'll finally get so say, "I do!"
Qui-Gon: I never thought I'd ever be married
Shmi: I never thought I'd ever see this day
Both: Someone who could just understand me...
Qui-Gon was so lost in daydreaming, he didn't realize that instead of kissing his bride, he was kissing Anakin's cheek.
"Aah!"
"Aww, I love you too, Dad." Anakin chuckled, amid his father's embarrassment. "But save it for the altar."
Anakin (placing Qui-Gon's crown on his father's head):
There's a party here in Solaris
And it's starting right away
Carmine (fixing Qui-Gon with a sunflower pin for his jacket):
Let's get you dressed, 'cause you're the star!
Hey, c'mon, it's your wedding day!
And so, Qui-Gon was escorted by his sons and best man to the carriage that would take them to the church. They all waved to the people they passed by as everyone sang their congratulations to the king's marriage
Everyone:
King Qui-Gon's gettin' married, and it's gonna be
The wedding of the century
Amazing how these two could've come so far...
Kara: They're finally gettin' married!
Garrett: They're finally gettin' married!
Kids: They're finally gettin' married!
Wrecker: Look at all these presents!
Shmi: We're finally getting married!
Peppermint: You're finally gettin' married!
Qui-Gon: I'm finally gettin' married!
Everyone:
They're finally gettin' married
At the party in Solaris
Such a sight to see
Come on, go with me
To the party in Solaris!
And finally, Qui-Gon was at the church, and the royal wedding could begin.
The guards did a final perimeter check, as well as one of the bride and groom to make sure it was the real them, including having the wedding party ask the couple random questions to make sure it was them. Time for the wedding, it was at last.
Harmony tapped her hoof, and the orchestra began to play the fanfare to the philharmonic wedding march, and first through the doors was the groom with his firstborn child Kara. Kara couldn't be happier to be walking her father down the aisle on this most wonderful day. Most weddings, it was the mother or father walking the bride or groom down the aisle, but this time, it was their children, the half-siblings walking their parents down the aisle.
Qui-Gon looked so handsome in his suit, and so did Obi-Wan when he walked down the aisle, and Boba, who was old enough to be a groomsman by Qui-Gon's standards, and he was holding Luke's hand, as he'd just started walking, the baby boy looking adorable in his little suit and babbling about as everyone adored how cute he was.
And then, of course came the bridesmaids.
Lamenta and Goldie came in to sprinkle flower petals, and Omega was showing Leia how to throw the petals too as they walked down the aisle, looking so lovely in the gold and green dresses they all wore to fit with the golden sunflowers and the daffodils that decorated the wedding.
And of course, there was one of the most important parts of the ceremony to walk down the aisle: the ring bearer.
Gabby never expected that she would get a second chance to be a ring bearer for a wedding. The first time she'd been granted the role was for her parents' second wedding, but then Boba came along and Gabby saw that Boba needed a little more of a push to see that he was part of this family. So, she did the last thing most people might've expected anyone in a wedding party to do. She willingly gave up her role as ring bearer so her new brother could do it. That wedding was about more than a cover story for Anakin and Padme's romance; it was about celebrating and showing the rest of the galaxy that it was possible for the most unlikely of lovers', including Jedi to come together and create one big, happy family.
But then, Gabby was happily surprised when her grandparents decided to finally get married and they'd asked her to be the ring bearer. She thought they would've asked her brother to do it, but Qui-Gon said to her, "Neither of us would be here if it weren't for you, Gabriella. We both believe it only makes sense to have you and only you to carry the rings for us to seal our vows with."
Gabby initially felt worried though. The last time she'd been entrusted with wedding rings, they were lost due to a mix-up at the jewelry store, and then Gabby and Boba had to infiltrate a Separatist ship as well as a slave owner's home on Tatooine in order to find them again. But this time, they knew for sure they had the right box, and Gabby kept them safe in one place she knew no one else would find them: her toy box.
Today, at last, Gabby stood, looking absolutely beautiful in the gold and green sunflower patterned dress and crown of sunflowers she was gifted, and she walked steadily and gracefully down the aisle with the green pillow.
And finally, the music got louder as the fanfare played again, and the doors opened to reveal the bride/queen-to-be. No one could believe their eyes when they saw how beautiful Shmi looked in her bridal gown, especially Qui-Gon. How he got so lucky as to find a woman as lovely inside and out as she, he may never know. Shmi and Qui-Gon smiled at each other with no expression but love and happiness as their twin sons walked the bride down the aisle.
The couple couldn't be happier to be finally joining hands as they stood at the altar at last.
"Here we are at last," whispered Qui-Gon to his bride.
Shmi giggled.
Mona sat with her aunt and uncle in the audience, watching intently at what was happening. She'd never been to a wedding before, or any kind of big event really, not one that wasn't traumatic anyway. She didn't really understand at first what was happening, but the grownups had explained to her that a wedding was a very special occasion when a man and a woman met by chance and fell madly in love, like Qui-Gon and Shmi, they shared a special kind of bond that was unique to the two of them, and they decide to come together and have a family of their own. And that what happened at a wedding, the couple stood side by side and made the sacred vows with their family and friends as witnesses, and the rings were made to symbolize a bond between the two people.
"Today is a moment I thought I could and would only dream of," said Qui-Gon to his bride. "You are not only beautiful outside, but inside with a heart of a loving mother who gave me the gift of two of our three children, one of whom was mine with another woman. After I lost one love, I felt afraid of losing another. But today, I am standing in front of you not only giving a vow to love and cherish you forever, but to uphold my vow to protect and treasure our whole family for as long as we both shall live."
Mona thought it looked so sweet that Qui-Gon was saying so many things to Shmi. She started to wonder if this was anything like Garrett and Mariposa's wedding. Or Carmine and Caroline's, or that of any other married couple she knew, or what the weddings would be like for engaged couples she knew were getting married soon.
The thing about weddings, every one of them was different. Some liked to have a big extravagant wedding, while others took a simpler approach with a smaller gathering, or something big but simple, or small but elegant. Different brides and grooms had different dreams of what they wanted for their big day from the outfits to the flowers, place settings, and music for the first dance.
"I feel so blessed to have gotten to be with you again, Qui-Gon." Shmi said. "When we met, I never knew you were royalty, nor did I imagine a man as wise or as special as you could fall for a woman like me. You could have chosen any princess or a woman of high class that most would expect a king to choose for his bride, but somehow you chose me. Even if you were a common man, a servant, and did not have much to give in material, I would still choose you. And I hope that I can be more than just your wife and not merely a stepmother to your daughter, but the mother she always deserved."
Kara and her brothers both felt touched to hear that they were including them in the vows as well, sealing a vow to love all three of them as their children even though they came from different mothers.
"May I have the rings?" said the preacher.
Gabby walked up with a big smile on her face and gave the rings to her grandparents.
Shmi placed one ring on Qui-Gon, and Qui-Gon placed the other on Shmi.
"By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife, king and queen. King Qui-Gon, you may kiss your bride, Queen Shmi of Solaris."
Without hesitation, the king and his new queen finally kissed as a married couple. Not an eye in sight was without a tear in happiness for the couple. And as the fanfare blew, a beautiful crown of diamonds was placed on Shmi's head, officially crowning her queen.
"Presenting, the newlyweds, his majesty King Qui-Gon Jinn and his new queen, Queen Shmi Skywalker-Jinn of Solaris."
The people cheered as the king and his new queen exited the church, married at last.
Qui-Gon kissed his new wife once more, Shmi returning the loving embrace.
"Ready, sis?" Remix smiled at his sister.
"You know it." Magenta smiled. This was her first time singing on stage in a while, and this time she had a new song just for the newlyweds.
"Yo, yo, yo! Party peoples," shouted Remix, turning his tables. "Let's give a big warm welcome to the galaxy's favorite newlyweds, Qui-Gon and Shmi Jinn!"
The newlyweds were greeted with applause as it was time for their first dance.
"Congrats, your majesties on a royally romantic unity. In honor of today, we get to hear a song we worked on together just for your special day. Everyone, give it up for my sister, Magenta Mareheart!"
Magenta stepped up to the mic to sing her song, while her brother dropped the beat.
Magenta:
I still hear your voice when you sleep next to me
I still feel your touch in my dreams
Forgive me my weakness, but I don't know why
Without you, it's hard to survive
'Cause every time we touch
I get this feeling
And every time we kiss
I swear I could fly
Can't you feel my heart beat fast
I want this to last
Need you by my side
The newlyweds danced their first dance together, and did so beautifully. Most chose a slow song for their first dance, but this couple chose unlike others might. Most found that everything moved so fast when it came to their weddings, and these two made it work and looked graceful doing it.
'Cause every time we touch
I feel this static
And every time we kiss
I reach for the sky
Can't you hear my heart beat so
I can't let you go
Want you in my life
Shmi looked into her new husband's eyes and kissed him again as she felt his warm embrace in those strong arms of his. Something about it just made her feel at home, and she never wanted him to let go.
Your arms are my castle
Your heart is my sky
They wipe away tears that I cry
The good and the bad times
We've been through them all
You make me rise when I fall
Magenta also felt more alive than she'd ever felt singing a song, and this time especially so because she and her brother were doing it together like they'd always dreamed they'd be doing since they were foals.
'Cause every time we touch
I get this feeling
And every time we kiss
I swear I can fly
Can't you feel my heart beat fast
I want this to last
Need you by my side
'Cause every time we touch
I feel this static
And every time we kiss
I reach for the sky
Can't you hear my heart beat so
I can't let you go
Want you in my life
'Cause every time we touch
I get this feeling
And every time we kiss
I swear I could fly
Can't you feel my heart beat fast
I want this to last
Need you by my side
People cheered as Qui-Gon held Shmi in a dip for their big finish.
Mona mostly stood aside as she watched the newlyweds and their family celebrating together. Baby Charlotte was giggling as Shmi nuzzled her tiny nose and Qui-Gon tickled her. Was that really how other kids were supposed to be treated by their parents?
Mona thought back. She could barely remember her dad's face. As far as she knew, he wasn't even around when she was born (or rather out from the tube). It wasn't until the day Mariverde killed him that Mona even knew she had a father. She also remembered her mother saying something along the lines of 'seeing death will toughen you up, and if you can't deal with it, you'll be next.'
"Uncle Garrett?" said Mona, her uncle getting some wedding cake.
"Yes, Mona?"
"Is this anything like what your wedding was like?"
"Well, it's mostly the same. Except, when Mariposa and I got married, we did so outdoors, and we didn't have quite as many guests."
"Did you have your family and friends there?"
"Well, friends more so than family. Aunt Mariposa lost her father when she was your age, and her mother and both her sisters left long before their parents split up."
"What about your family?"
Garrett got shifty eyes at that moment and tried distracting Mona with a piece of cake.
"Why don't you have some cake, Mona?" Garrett said, giving Mona a piece of the perfect cake. Cloudberry with vanilla custard.
Initially, Mona wondered why Garrett seemed to avoid talking about his family, but one taste of the cake and she was downing it, much like Boba did when he tried his first taste of a cinnamon roll, his first taste of anything with sugar. But, she was not going to forget to find out more later.
A few days later, while Qui-Gon and Shmi were away on their honeymoon, a mail droid came with some deliveries.
"Thank you, Mr. Mail Droid." Omega called, getting the mail.
Omega brought what came into the mail inside. There were plenty of letters, and a package too.
"I was wondering when this was going to arrive," said Gabby, opening her package, finding a new pair of pink boots inside.
Lamenta went through a pile to find some letters for her parents, but she also got curious when she saw an envelope addressed to Garrett Heartwood, and the returning address was from Lokahi-Hana.
"Hey, Garret." Lamenta said. "There's a letter for you here."
Garrett took one look at the letter and threw it in the trash though.
"Why did you do that?" Padme asked.
"Clearly, it was sent here by mistake." Garrett said.
"Then why did it have your name on it. Unless your name only has one 'T' instead of two and there's more than one Garrett Heartwood around here."
"I need to get next week's lesson plan together."
Garrett didn't even bother to finish his breakfast as he left; he'd suddenly lost his appetite.
Curious, Boba took the letter out from the trash and brought it back to the table.
"What do you think got him so upset?" Boba said.
"Only one way to find out." Anakin said, and he opened the letter.
"Anakin!" Kara scolded. "It's impolite to open someone else's mail."
"Well, do you think Garret's gonna tell us anything?"
"I hate to admit it," said Mariposa. "But Anakin has a point. Garrett has been more secretive than usual, and we all know that keeping too many secrets isn't good for any relationship."
Anakin took out the contents of the envelope and read what it said.
Dear Garrett,
Please accept this invitation to the annual Heartwood Family Luau
We have not seen you at the reunion in over twenty years, and would
greatly appreciate your presence at this most festive occasion.
Sincerely, Mother and Father
"An invitation to a luau?" Goldie scratched her head. "Why would Daddy not want that?"
"Maybe he doesn't like pineapple." Buttercup suggested.
"What's a luau?" Wrecker asked.
"A luau is an island feast and celebration at the beach with dancing and lots of music." Buttercup explained. "My stepmother is from one of the tropical areas of Equinaro."
"You know, now that I think about it," said Kara. "Garrett has never once told us anything about his own family heritage."
The others realized Kara was right. In every lesson they'd had since the Heartwoods moved in, Garrett shared many stories about the places he'd traveled to, and everything he learned about the people and their cultures. He'd even shared how he used to be a magician in the circus when he was younger, which not only gave him more time to travel to lots of different places, but a lot of chances to practice his magic and do all kinds of fun tricks. But, Garrett never spoke about his family.
"Do you think it could be anything like Brenda and Heidi's relationship with their parents?" Carmine guessed.
"I'm not so sure." Kara said. "But I think it would be a good idea to talk to Garrett."
"You know what?" said Mariposa, standing up. "I think it's about time Garrett finally told the truth about his family. Obviously, my side of the family can't have Goldie in their lives, but she shouldn't be denied a chance to know her father's side of the family if they're around and are good people. We can't make any conclusions without knowing the whole story."
Garrett sat in his study, writing some things down, when his wife came in and startled him.
"Garrett, we need to talk." Mariposa said, sounding serious.
"What about?" Garrett said.
"Come with me, Mister." Mariposa pulled her husband out from his chair and to the living room where she had him sit on the couch.
Garrett wasn't sure what exactly to expect. But Mariposa told the kids to go and wait in the other room. But of course, the children pressed their ears to the door to listen in.
"Garrett, we know what was in that envelope." said Mariposa. "You haven't seen your family in twenty years."
"When everyone was under that truth spell," said Anakin. "Lamenta said you seemed especially worried about talking about where your family is from. What happened?"
Garrett didn't say anything.
"Garret, we just want to help you." Padme said. "You're part of this family too."
"You've helped all of us so much," said Carmine. "Whether it was related to learning more about magic or if we were just curious about travel or cultures."
"Yeah," said Anakin. "You're pretty much the only teacher who's managed to keep my attention. Don't tell Obi-Wan. Even the kids. I don't think I've seen any of them as interested in attending a class as they are whenever you teach them."
"Garrett," said Mariposa. "We all just want to help you. Is there a reason you never talk about your family? Did they do something bad to you?"
"Garrett..." said Indira. "It was the hardest thing I could have ever done, telling the truth about my own past. I know it can be scary to confront your past, but running from it never solved anything. I had to learn that the hard way. You will feel a lot better if you just tell us what happened and how it's affected you."
Garrett sighed; it was clear no one was going to let this go until he told the whole truth.
"It was more like I did something bad to them." Garrett said.
"How so?" asked Padme.
Garrett got out a book he didn't tend to show to anyone, including his wife and daughter. He took out a family photo from a long time ago. In it, there was a man and a woman, and they had eight children with them, five girls and three boys in total, one of them being Garrett when he was in his teenage years.
"That's me with my family, when I was fifteen." Garrett explained. "I was the second born child. That's my big sister Nani. Then there's the triplets Minka, Kaia, and Koa, Lisa, Mahani, and that baby my mother is holding is my little brother Akamu."
"You sure have a big family." Caroline said. "I always wished I had a brother or a sister."
"Did you and your family fight a lot?" Padme asked.
"No, I was actually really close with all my siblings, especially Mahani. When she was little, I taught her everything she knew about the water and how to stay balanced on a surfboard."
"You surf too?"
"I wasn't just a surfer. I was a champ." Garrett said, turning to a page full of pictures of him surfing in competitions and with some medals and blue ribbons on them. Garrett was a great champion surfer who never fell off his board and always knew when the biggest, best waves were coming.
"I don't get it," said Anakin. "If you were close with your family and a champion surfer, why did you run away? Lamenta told me you said that."
Garrett sighed.
"My family didn't approve of my career choices."
You see, Garrett's family didn't just surf; they also ran a business of building surfboards and all kinds of great equipment for water travel and sports. And, Garrett's father planned to have Garrett take over the company when he retired. Except, Garrett found that he didn't want to be a businessman. He wanted to become... a teacher.
"Why wouldn't he like that you wanted to be a teacher?" Padme said. "Obi-Wan always told Anakin that teaching is a privilege."
"My father doesn't think so. Well, in a way, he thinks it is actually... a privilege for women depending on men for a good life or for failures at different fields. Those who can't do teach, so if you're teaching, you clearly can't do, my father would always say."
"That's just not true, Garrett." Mariposa said. "You're a marvelous teacher. You're a highly respected professor at one of the top Enchanted colleges, you work for the Enchantra High Commission as one of its most respected members, you teach royalty, and you've traveled to so many places. You have so much to be proud of, and you even have a family of your own."
"Yes, but my family doesn't know I'm married to a doresho gypsy. They hate doresho gypsies." Garrett said. "It's another reason I never wanted you or Goldie to meet them. If my parents found out Goldie is half Doresho, they wouldn't just disown me, they'd give her a death sentence for her birthday."
"It couldn't be that bad," said Padme. "I'm sure if they just got to know her, they would realize they're wrong about doresho gypsies being dangerous."
"I don't think I could do it." Garrett said. "It's been so long, I don't even think my family would remember me or recognize me."
"Well, you did grow whiskers since then." Diamond said, rubbing her cheek against the stubble on Garrett's face.
"Diamond, knock it off!" Garrett scolded.
"Wait." Kara said, looking again at the invitation. "Why don't we go with you?"
"You? Come to meet my family? I'm not sure about that." Garrett said.
"Father and Mother will be back in time to go. And clearly your family needs a little convincing that teaching is a great career." Kara continued. "You've taught us so much, and like Mariposa said, Goldie should get to know more about your side of the family."
"Why not think about it as a new learning experience?" Anakin suggested. "We don't know a lot about your hometown. So, you can teach us."
Garrett started to think about it; this could be a good chance to teach his adoptive family about his heritage, and maybe they were right. If his family just met some of his students as well as got to know his wife and daughter, maybe they would see they were wrong about teaching being a mediocre career as well as doresho gypsies being dangerous.
Garrett stood up and said, "Class begins in one hour. You've all got a lot to learn if you're going to meet my family. All of you."