AN: First NJO fic! Heck, first fic! One-shot. Contains Star by Star spoilers! Mutters under breath Though if you don't know what happened there, why are you on this part of the site? Resumes normal speaking tone Takes place a little over six months after Unifying Force ends. Tahiri is no longer at Zorma Sekot. Feel free to correct me with any incorrect details, no matter how minor! This is a bit like another NJO fic I read where dead relatives come to visit.

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars in any form. I am merely borrowing part of it and its characters for the plot in this story. The plot is all I own. So please don't sue me; you'll get… five cents. Man, is five cents a real reason to sue?

The Visit

A glowing figure was in the dark bedroom of a blonde and depressed teenager. The figure watched the girl who was two years younger than him cry in her sleep. He walked over to her and shook her shoulder. His hand sunk into her for a couple millimeters before stopping.

"Tahiri, wake up," he whispered. The girl moaned in her sleep and stirred slightly. "Tahiri, wake up! It's me!" he whispered. I'm gonna get in so much trouble for this, he thought as his best friend opened her eyes and blinked and rubbed the sleep from them as she yawned and sat up. When she saw him she froze and spoke the first words that came to her.

"Anakin… what are you doing in my room so late?" Anakin Solo smiled a cocky lopsided grin that could have mirrored his father's.

"I needed to talk to you."

"But… you died. I saw you die. We all did. How…?" Anakin's cocky smile melted into a gentle one, knowing what she was trying to say and held her hands in his semisolid ones.

"I did die. But you remember what Uncle Luke said about when he saw Obi-Wan Kenobi? You're seeing me like a ghost, a Force projection. I needed to see you again, to talk to you. I'm always here if you need me, got it? Stop blaming yourself for my death. You couldn't have done anything even if you'd been down there with me. The only thing that would've been achieved is you dying too and we can't have that, now can we?" he asked as he stroked her golden hair. Tahiri began to cry into his jumpsuit as he held her. Once she calmed down, he brushed away her tears.

"Tahiri, the thing I need to tell you is that I want you to stop mourning me," he told her softly. "You're not being fair to yourself to just cry and not talk to anyone unless you have to. Stop acting like I used to. That's not you. That's me. One of the things I love best about you is your being a chatterbox. Start living life again. Finding out about the Yuuzhan Vong side of yourself and Riina's history and culture is wonderful, but you're starting to pull away from everyone again.

"You can spend time with my family, you know. We all consider you family. I have since I was eleven; remember what I told you at the academy? Consider me your family. I love you. You're my best friend and so much more. Please start living again. You're hurting me when you isolate yourself so much.

"I know we grew up fast because of the war, but don't change so much," he begged. "It's like you're trying to kill everything I love about you. Please at least try to be happy again. I'm not asking too much, am I?" Tahiri smiled for the first time in what felt like an eon as she looked at her love.

"I'll try to be happy, Anakin," she promised. "For you, I'll do anything. But are you asking me to not care that you died? I can't do that." Anakin shook his head.

"No, I'm not saying that. I'm saying to stop acting like I died yesterday and you'll never get over it. You need to stop feeling guilty. The thing I want most right now is for you to be happy. My family considers you a part of the family, even if you don't consider yourself a part of it." He blushed and continued. "Can I tell you a secret?" Tahiri's eyes shot wide open and she pulled away.

"Of course you can! You ought to trust me by now Anakin Solo!" Anakin waved his hands in defense as he tried to defend himself from his best friend and love and calm her down.

"I just wanted to make sure you were paying attention," he protested. "I know I can trust you! I've known you since you were nine, haven't I? I can trust you. The secret I want to tell you is–"

"Ah, so this is the girl you always talk about, is it, Anakin?" an older voice asked as Anakin jumped and turned beet red. Tahiri looked around until she noticed an older man, dressed in Jedi robes and glowing just like Anakin.

"Who are you?" Tahiri asked plainly. "And what are you doing in my room? Are you dead, too? Is that why you're glowing?" The older man began to chuckle as Anakin's blush faded and he tried to hide his relief that she was slowly going back to her normal—or at least what he considered her normal—self.

"I'm—or would've been if this idiot here hadn't decided to be the hero—your grandfather. You're a wonderful girl, pretty, too. I can see why he wants to do this." Tahiri's mouth dropped open and she was rendered speechless and bright red. Anakin Solo took this opportunity to explain himself.

"He's Anakin Skywalker, the man I was named after. Not Vader. Grandfather is very nice and helped me get here so I could talk to you. That secret I wanted to tell you," Anakin Solo turned red again but continued. "I- I was going to ask you to marry me once the war ended, but I never got the chance. I got killed. I knew when I left the rest of the strike force that I wasn't going to survive. Even if I'd gone into a healing trance right then and there, I wouldn't have made it. I was too far gone. That's why I didn't ask you. I didn't beforehand because we were in the middle of the war and didn't know if anything would happen to either of us. Sorry. But…" His voice trailed off and Tahiri hugged him hard.

"I would've loved that. But why are you telling me now?"

"It felt right. And Grandfather kept telling me that if I was going to keep telling him about you, I may as well ask you. Consider this an apology for everything I've ever done wrong and for dying. I also wanted to let you know that I'm here for you whenever you need me. I won't be able to always come visit you like this because I'm already going to get in trouble with Yoda for this, but I'll always be able to hear you and see you, even when you can't see or hear me. I'm always here for you, just like when we were little at the academy." Tahiri's ears perked up slightly when she heard Yoda's name.

"You've met Yoda," she demanded, not quite a question or a statement.

"Well, I'm dead, aren't I? He's convinced that Grandfather and I need to continue with our training, even though we're dead. He's really short and a non-human species and talks different."

"He's also a bit of a slavedriver when it comes to training," the older Anakin put in. As though in response to the call, another glowing figure appeared, though it was very different from the others. It was small and green, and has a stick, and… do I really need to describe this guy?

"Visiting relatives you should not be! Listening to my lecture, you should. Many rules you break now. Come!" Both Anakins groaned as Yoda hit the younger one over the head with his stick. "Proposing you should not be! Young Padawans, being here you should not! Come! Missing my lecture, you both are!" With that Yoda and the older Anakin vanished. The younger Anakin kissed Tahiri tenderly, and when they broke away, Anakin saw Tahiri's eyes dancing just the way they used to.

"I wanted to ask, since I'm dead and we can't actually get married, if you would consider yourself married to me anyway? You don't have to," he added, looking worried she would say no. She laughed.

"Of course I want to! But since you were going to ask me to marry you," she asked, "can I tell your mother and the rest of your family? I want them to know." Anakin blushed slightly as he began to fade.

"Sure. They'll be your family, too, you know. But be ready for waterworks because Mom'll be crying a river of joy!"

"Of course," Tahiri agreed. Just before Anakin vansihed completely, he placed a kiss on her forehead in the middle of her scars.

"I love you," she heard him whisper.

"I love you, too," she whispered back. She stared at the place where her love had been before realizing it was almost dawn. Then she opened the drapes and leaned on the windowsill. There was no glass in the window, but she didn't mind. She contemplated this new feeling she felt and when sudden understanding struck her, she felt a grin nearly slice her face in half.

"I feel peace and hope," she whispered to herself. She was roused out of her revire a few minutes later by the sounds of people moving around in the room next to hers. She quickly got dressed in her jumpsuit and went out to face people again. She encoutered Luke and Leia in the hallway, talking. They stopped when they saw her and turned toward her, silly grins across their faces, which was extermely surprising, especially for Leia nowadays that her youngest son and child had died.

"We know," Luke told her. "Father came to visit me last night before joining Anakin in your room. I was just telling Leia about his visit. He said he was pretty sure you'd accept the title as Anakin's wife even though you didn't actually manage to get married. From the look on your face, you did." Tahiri nodded and was slightly shocked as Leia and Luke both grabbed her up in a fierce hug. She gripped them back tightly as the inital shock faded. She was part of a family again. A family larger than just her and Anakin.

After a few moments, she realized Anakin had been right. His mom was crying a river of joy. When they sepreated, Luke looked at her strenly and took her by the shoulders.

"I want you to call me 'Uncle Luke' from now on, got it? Just like Anakin and Jaina and Jacen. Same rule applies to you since you're my neice now." Tahiri grinned.

"Okay, Mas- Uncle Luke," she amended.

"That's right," Luke agreed. Then Leia hugged her tight again.

"I'm so happy," she choked out. "My boy was going to get married. I've got another daughter. Call me 'Mom,' " she ordered Tahiri.

"All right, Mom," Tahiri agreed. "But you need to stop crying or you're going to get a lot of unwanted attention." Leia smiled and wiped her tears away.

"Let's go tell the rest of the family," Luke suggested. "I'm sure Jaina and Jacen will be overjoyed at having a litle sister and I know Ben will love having another cousin." Tahiri smiled and they all walked off, arms around each other, to spread the good news.

AN: So? How was it? Crappy or worth reading?