Across the Stars ~Anakin Skywalker~

04

"Well, it's certainly much warmer here than it is on Dinauria right now. Good thing I packed some warm weather clothes just in case," I say as Anakin and I make our way through Mos Espa Spaceport, where Anakin grew up. He asks several of the locals for directions to a junk shop owned by Watto, a blue Toydarian. When we arrive at our destination, Anakin begins speaking to Watto in Toydarian, a language that I didn't understand very well. It took a bit for Watto to recognize him, but when he did, he started going on and on about how much Anakin's changed since he last saw him. "I'm looking for my mother," Anakin says. "Oh, right, uh, Shmi. I, uh, I sold her," Watto replies. "Who did you sell her to?" Anakin asks. "It was a moisture farmer named, eh, Lars. At least, I think it was Lars. And I can't believe it! He freed her, then married her! Can't get much better than that, I think," Watto says, giving us directions to get to the Lars moisture farm, and we set off for the moisture farm after thanking Watto for his help.

"Wow. This doesn't seem like a very fun place to live," I remark as we arrive at the moisture farm. "Yeah. It's about as close to hell as you can get," Anakin replies. "Hello," a young blonde woman with a kind face says when she sees us. "Hello," I say, walking over to her and shaking her hand. "Hello. I'm Owen Lars, and this is my girlfriend, Beru," a young man says, coming over to join us. "I'm Anakin Skywalker, and this is my friend Duna Nichs," Anakin replies. "So, I guess that you're my half-brother, then," Owen says, as an older man comes over in a hoverchair. "Cliegg Lars. Shmi is my wife," he says, offering his hand for us to shake, which we do. He invites us inside, where he fills us in on what happened to Shmi. "I'm going to go and get her. I'll be back as soon as I can," Anakin says when Cliegg is done telling us what happened. Then, he takes me by surprise when he kisses my forehead and tells me to stay safe. Before I know it, he's gone, leaving me with Cliegg and his family. Beru soon asks if she can talk to me alone, and I agree. She brings me to another room, which she tells me is her bedroom, and sits down on her bed, inviting me to join her. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?" I ask her. "Look, you seem to be a lot closer to Anakin than just a friend," she replies, and I simply nod. "Well, why are you denying your feelings for him?" She asks. "Because there's no way that it could ever work out between me and him. He's training to become a Jedi, and I'm a Senator," I say. "That's not necessarily true," she says. "I know, but I don't want to end up having to live a lie to be with him," I say quietly. "I hate to break it to you, but by denying your feelings for him, you already are living a lie," she says, and I realize that she's right. I'm already living a lie because I'm denying my own feelings for Anakin. "Well, I think I'll let you be. I'm sure you have a lot to think about. Just remember that you can talk to me anytime. Here, I have something for you," she says, handing me a holographic communicator. "Thanks Beru. You're really sweet. Owen is lucky to have you," I tell her. "Thanks Duna. I'm glad I got to meet you," she replies, leaving the room.

When it starts to get dark outside, I start to worry about Anakin, not that there's really anything I can do to help him. I decide to pass the time until he returns by thinking about what I want from my life, and what I want to do with my time in the galaxy. The more I think about it, the more I start to accept my feelings for Anakin, and I realize that I'm hurting my heart by denying my love for him. I ultimately end up deciding that at the first opportunity, I will tell Anakin that I can't deny my feelings for him any longer. With that thought to comfort me, I fall into a peaceful sleep.

I awake the next morning and come face-to-face with Anakin, who looks upset. Very upset. "They killed her. The Sand People. They killed my mother," he says, seemingly trying to hold back tears. "Oh Ani, I'm so sorry. Is there anything I can do to help you?" I ask. "No, not really. That's not the only thing, though," he says, and I can't help but feel a sense of dread. "What else happened?" I ask nervously. "Well, I got really angry about the whole thing, and I lashed out at the Sand People. I killed them all," he says, and I let out a soft gasp. "And not just the men, but the women, and the children, too. I hate them!" He says angrily, and I back away from him a bit. As soon as it happened, it's over, and I cautiously approach him. "Are you done?" I ask nervously. "Yeah, I think so. Sorry if I scared you," he says, and I nod, accepting the apology. "I saw the protocol droid you made for your mother. He's quite impressive," I say. "Yeah, but he really doesn't have a purpose anymore," he says. "Well, maybe you see it that way, but he could be very helpful to... oh, I don't know, maybe a Senator?" I ask. "I suppose so. Artoo, what are you doing in here?" He asks as the little astromech droid rolls up to us. He beeps and whistles a bit, then pulls up a hologram of Obi-Wan Kenobi. "Anakin, please transmit this message to Coruscant. I have tracked the bounty hunter Jango Fett to the planet Geonosis. I intend to bring him in for questioning. No, wait. No!" The hologram of Obi-Wan says, and then he backs out of the shot, revealing that he is under attack from a destroyer droid.

"Duna, it's my job to protect you. This isn't safe, and besides that, he mentioned not to come after him," Anakin says. "He told you not to go after him. He said nothing about me," I reply. "I can't let you go. We don't have any way of knowing what might happen," he says. "You said that it's your job to protect me, right?" I ask him, and he nods in response. "Well, if you want to protect me, I guess you'll just have to come along," I say matter-of-factly, and he gives in. We bring R2-D2 and C-3PO, Anakin's protocol droid, with us to Geonosis.

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This story is really starting to come together, I think. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Bye for now!