Searching for Skywalker ↬ Star Wars

02: Wound to the Heart

[edited]

Anakin:

"Dad! Can we go see the pod races?!" His seven-year-old son ran up to him, smiling brightly. "No! I wanna go watch mommy's Senate meeting!" Leia, Luke's twin sister came running after him, protesting the idea that was loved by the Skywalker boys.

Anakin hadn't seen his family in months due to Jedi responsibilities. Padmè had told him the children were taking it hard. Especially Luke. "Well Leia, how 'bout I drop you off with your mom? Then Luke and I can go see the races?" Anakin knelt beside his daughter, hoping to get a yes, so both kids could get what they wanted.

"I approve," Leia nodded, mocking something Padmè had often done as a joke. "Alright, don't forget to grab your jackets! Coruscant is approaching its colder season," Anakin cautioned the children, and they laughed. "Alright Dad," Luke said happily, grabbing his from his bedroom.

Anakin still thought it was a miracle he was allowed to stay in the order and raise his kids. Seven years ago, he had stood before the council, awaiting their decision. They had allowed him to stay because Anakin had discovered and defeated the Sith Lord. Yoda had also made it evident the Jedi needed to change their ways as well.

"Dad!" Leia snapped her fingers in front of Anakin's face. He sat up in alarm but calmed when he realized it was only his impatient daughter and innocent son trying to get his attention. "Let's go," Anakin smiled, grabbing their little hands and leading them towards the veranda.

They all hopped into the speeder, and Luke was almost bursting with excitement. "I can't wait for tonight's races!! My friends said that my favori-" Luke was abruptly cut off, something he didn't appreciate. "Luke, can you not talk about races for awhile? I love you, but you might need a pod-race intervention," Leia said sarcastically.

Leia was wise beyond her seven years- something Anakin did not yet understand how the whole thing worked. She had picked up many tricks by watching the Senate, some good, some not so good. Anakin sometimes wished she was more like Luke in kindness.

Leia had a good heart, and Anakin knew it was in there. Leia loved her brother a lot, Anakin could see it in her eyes. At Leia's comment, Luke looked saddened but covered it by looked out the speeder window.

Anakin's com beeped, emitting a blue light. "Master Skywalker, your assistance is requested at the temple. This is something big, we fear." Ki-Adi Mundi's image appeared, floating above his wrist. "Oh. Of course," he said grimly, trying to hide his imminent disappointment.

"I am sorry Luke, I'm going to have to rain check. Can you go with Leia and your mother to the Senate? I'll be back soon," Anakin looked at his son, wanting desperately to forget the call to the Temple from the Jedi. "Y-Yeah. S-Sure dad," Luke nodded and turned to the window once more.

As they pulled up to the senate building, Padmè approached with her arms out-stretched. "Luke! Leia! How was your day?" Anakin smiled at his family, then pulled away, their chatter fading in the distance, speeder traffic drowning them out.

Leaving them alone was the worst mistake of his life.

Luke:

His mother led him to a vast room, filled with Senators from all over the galaxy. They were directed to sit quietly until the meeting was over. Luke didn't exactly do well with the direction 'sit quietly'.He was a little kid, 'quiet' didn't exactly come in the job description. 

To his left, Leia looked longingly at the sight that lay in front of them. She wanted to be a senator badly- that much was obvious now. Leia had always been interested in the boring stuff, but at least they agreed on Jedi. They had always agreed on the Jedi, and they had both been able to levitate objects since infancy. Luke remembered one of the tales his parents had told the twins about how in the middle of washing the dishes together, mother and father's plates were both ripped out of their hands and began to float around the room. Leia and Luke were both sitting in their high chairs and laughing as the plates seemed to zoom around the room until they finally hit a wall at full speed and exploded into tiny bits of china. Luke was told that their father had jumped in surprise when it happened and thanks to the force he actually jumped and hit the ceiling, rendering him unconscious. That had been quite a day for their mother.
 

As the meeting droned on, Luke's heart yearned for his father, and to spend a real evening with him.

He had not seen his dad for nearly three months, Jedi duties preventing any possible family opportunities that could have occurred. Did the Jedi know Anakin had a family to take care of as well? It didn't seem like it. 

Altogether, his father had missed roughly two years of his life. Leia didn't seem bothered by it, she was so close to their mother anyway. 'Why do you care so much? Mom loves us just as much,' was Leia's usual response to his pestering about the situation. Luke's tender heart couldn't bear the separation, sometimes Leia just could not get that. They were different in that way it seemed. 

The tears fell one by one without him noticing.

"Luke?" His mother shocked him from his thoughts. "Mother?" he looked up to meet his mother's warm brown eyes, staring down in concern. "Here, let's talk. I have a few minutes. Leia, stay here," Padme led him towards the doors. 

Padmè and Luke walked down the now empty hall, Luke's pain slightly relieved. He loved his mother very much and was often told how similar in both character and appearance they were. "Is everything alright my dear?" his mother knelt beside him. "I miss Dad," he stated bluntly, avoiding her gaze. Padmè nodded, understanding his feelings.

"I know Luke. I do too..but right now he's busy. He will be back later, he's always back. Right?" Luke's mother attempted to lift his spirits. "..Right," Luke responded softly. "Alright, now let's head back to your sister,"

As the mother and son walked the hall, the sound of boots erupted behind them. "Wha-" Luke whirled around and was met with white armor suspiciously similar to the clone troopers. "Luke. Don't move." His mother hissed beside him. In the corner of his eye, he saw her slowly move for a small blaster.

"Don't move!" The soldier shouted, blasting Padmè's arm. "Mom!" he shouted as his mother collapsed, clutching her bloody forearm. "Luke, run!" Her brown eyes pleaded with him, and he ran. He ran like the scared child he was.

"Get 'em!" The soldiers shouted at him. Guns snapped as they reloaded and fired, Luke narrowly missing the shots. Then, a loose floorboard tripped him, and a soldier got Luke in the leg. His leg was lit with a new fire, burning up his young innocence in misery. Luke wailed in agony, never had he felt such pain.

Luke? A familiar voice called through the force. 'Leia! Run! Find father! Don't come back for me, just go!' He shouted through the force before pain overcame him, and darkness swallowed Luke whole.

"We got 'em, my lord. The kid put up a fight, but we got 'em."

And here is where the real story begins! Who's excited?? And you may start to dislike Luke in a few chapters...Sith stuff happens..
May the force be with you-
MaddySkywalker