LOST KINGDOM ─ star wars

XXXIX. The Heart Of Taris

Chapter Thirty-Nine
Jayce

With the Emperor dead, the remaining Imperial forces fled the planet. For the first time since my mother's death, Taris is finally free. There are still Imperial forces out there that need to be dealt with, planets still occupied that need assistance, but for today at least, we get to rejoice in our victory.

The palace guards moved all of Warren's things out of the 'king and queen's' suite, and one of the rebels was kind enough to move my small bag of belongings in. It's mine now, as it was my mother's before me. It feels strange, knowing that she once lived here, that as a baby I did too. I keep looking for signs of her here, something that makes her more than just an idea or a faint memory. But I find nothing. Elon and Elias Warren must have thrown away everything she owned.

"Nice room." I hear a voice say from the doorway. I turn to find Leia leaning against the frame, smiling at me.

I look around the room and nod in agreement. It is a nice room. It's bigger than my whole house on Tatooine, and filled with the finest furniture and decorations the galaxy has to offer. It's a room fit for a king or queen.

"I feel like I'm an imposter living in it." I admit.

She enters fully into the room and closes the distance between us, placing her hands on my hips, looking up into my face. "Are you still worried? About being king?"

"Worried, terrified, scared shitless," I chuckle, rubbing my hands up and down her arms. "Yes, I'm all of those things, but I realized something while I was with Yoda. I can't let my fear of failure control me. If I do, I'm bound to fail. I have to rise above my fear and try to be the best king I can be. That's exactly what I plan to do."

Her grip tightens on my waist. "It's a good plan. And you won't be alone, Jay. You'll have help while you navigate how to rule. You'll have Luke, Mom, Iris, Han, me..." She trails off, letting out a sigh, shutting her eyes for a moment. "I've been letting fear control me too. I should have confessed how I felt for you a long time ago, but I was too afraid of what being with you meant. I didn't feel fit to be a queen, especially after I learned who I really was, where I came from. It made deciding what I want for my future so much harder because I couldn't even decipher my past. But I've been trying to figure out who I am and what I want, and I think I've finally figured it out."

She opens her eyes and locks her gaze with mine, and after I give her a nod to continue, she does so. "I'm the daughter of Padmé Amidala and Aiden Parr, as well as the daughter of Anakin Skywalker and Fallon Priya. I'm a sister, a rebel, maybe one day a Jedi, maybe one day a queen..." She trails off.

I feel myself grin. "I would love nothing more than to have you as my queen."

She tightens her grip on my sides. "Really?"

I nod, never having been more sure of anything. "I've loved you since the first moment I saw you, and I've only grown to love you more as time has passed. Learning how to rule Taris will be difficult, as will helping to eradicate the rest of the Empire and rebuild our broken galaxy, but we can figure it out together."

"Together." She agrees, and then she leans up on the tips of her toes and captures my lips with hers.

-

Two days later...
Luke

"It's so strange," I whisper, more to myself than anyone else. "I never really knew the people buried here, these names should mean nothing to me and yet..."