Children of the Force

Chapter 8 - So I Will Not Be Afraid

Author's Note: This is the end! Enjoy! :D

~ Amina Gila

"I heard what happened to the old wizard," Han says, appearing in the doorway to the room in the Falcon Leia's been hiding in ever since the medical droids kicked her out of Anakin's room. They needed room to properly focus on treating him.

"Not now, Han," Leia mumbles, head resting in her hand. She doesn't want to talk to anyone right now. Except maybe her father and brother, but neither are around right now. She knew someone could easily die in this fight. She just... didn't expect it would actually happen.

It's only been weeks since Alderaan. It's still sinking in that they're gone forever, and she has no idea how to deal with that, as is. And now, Ben is gone too. It... feels like her fault, like she should've been able to prevent that somehow. Even if she knows there was nothing she could've done. Not really. Sidious was going to take someone out with him, and it was... Ben's choice.

That doesn't make it stop hurting. She didn't really know him, but he was the first person she really got attached too after Alderaan. And they were still fighting when he died, and she never had the chance to... anything.

But she can at least be grateful to him for saving Anakin. She... didn't expect he would do that, not after everything Luke told her about him. But then again, everyone has a light and dark sides to them.

"I wasn't here to annoy you," Han replies, and he sounds... serious. "Are you... okay?"

Leia wordlessly shakes her head. There's no point lying about it, anyway. He approaches her and she's only half thinking when she wraps her arms around him, hugging him tightly. She's half-expecting him to freak out or something, but he just returns it, and... waits.

Tears are stinging her eyes again, and it somehow feels like it took until this very moment for Alderaan to become real, too.

Chewie appears behind them – Leia doesn't know when he even came in – squashing them both in a hug. Han lets out a muffled yelp but doesn't try pulling away. She's just glad to have them here.

***

Of all things Luke expected to happen when they took down Sidious, this... wasn't it. He hadn't even given much thought to what would happen to Ben. He never expected him to die.

Luke didn't know him, and he's dead himself, so he doesn't feel that loss too deeply, not when he knows what it's like beyond death. But he can see full well how much it's hurting Leia and Anakin. He hardly even understands why it's affecting Anakin so much, after everything that happened between them, but Anakin still unquestionably cares about him, and... apparently the same is true in reverse, though Luke hardly understands how. He's never really thought about Obi-Wan's side, and he... frankly still doesn't feel bad about that, but he senses the slightest flux in the Force before Obi-Wan suddenly materializes in front of him, in the World Between Worlds.

"Ben?" Luke asks, feeling a small flare of surprise. For him to be out here, he must've learned to be a Force ghost.

"Luke," Ben returns the greeting, voice mostly toneless.

"I... didn't expect to see you here." He really doesn't know how to talk to him, after how hostile their interactions have been.

Ben studies him in silence for a long moment. "My old master taught me."

Luke nods, taking a few steps closer to him on the walkway. "Thank you for helping my father." At the cost of his own life. He still doesn't quite know how to feel about that.

Ben nods, though he's not really saying anything. It's probably awkward for him, too, to be fair.

"You should talk to him," Luke says, finally, "It would... help both of you, I think. I assume you know how to appear in the physical world?"