Title: "Ours To Keep"
Author(s): KelliLB
Timeframe: Post ROTS
Characters: Beru Lars, Breha Organa
Genre: Vignette
Keywords: Beru Lars, Breha Organa, ROTS, Tatooine, Alderaan
Summary: Two vignettes on motherhood. After so much bad has happened, two women promise their adopted children that they will always be loved.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, Lucas owns everything, I'm just playing with his creations. I promise I'll put them back where they belong when I'm finished.

Notes: The idea for this fic came this morning. I wrote it fairly quickly so it's probably not up to the standards of the other stories on this site. I'm still fairly new to writing Star Wars fanfics. Comments and suggestions are gladly welcome.

Beru Lars:

You are ours to keep, that's what Obi-Wan promised. My dear boy, I have only known you for a month and I already love you more than anything. I know you're not my child biologically, but I don't care. I love you as if you were my own. Oh Luke, you have no idea what a blessing you are. As you lay there sleeping contentedly in the cradle that Owen built for you, you have no idea the twisted path that brought you to us. If Owen has anything to say about it, you never will.

I admit, I don't know as much as Obi-Wan does. When he arrived carrying you that fateful evening, he looked tormented. We were about to turn off the power for the night when I noticed a hooded and cloaked man walking toward the house carrying a bundle. I know I should have told Owen first, but I ran out to meet him. I have lived my entire life on Tatooine and I know better than to run up to strange men in the desert, but for some reason I felt no danger.

I will never forget his face; he couldn't have been more than forty but his eyes spoke of lifetimes of pain. He looked like he had been on the losing end of many battles for far too long. He told me his name and I recognized it. When Anakin had been here three years ago, he said that his Jedi Master was named Obi-Wan Kenobi. You began to cry, and I automatically reached out to take you. I don't know what made me do it, instinct I guess. I asked him what happened to Anakin. I did not know him very well, but he was Shmi's boy and I loved Shmi very much.

Obi-Wan blanched visibly at the mention of Anakin. Oh Luke, I hope you never experience pain so deep that you ever look that haunted. He told me to come to the house and he would explain it to both me and Owen. Over the course of the night, Obi-Wan told his heart wrenching tale. He explained how your father Anakin had made horrible choices which brought about the death of your mother. He wasn't specific as to what kind of choices and how it had caused your mother's death. I wasn't sure if he was protecting us by not telling the whole story or if he was protecting himself from having to relive the memories.

He told us about the Republic's fall and the rise of the Empire. News of happenings on core worlds is few and far between here on Tatooine. Sometimes it takes weeks for news from Coruscant to reach this far out. Most people here like it that way. Obi-Wan then explained that you needed to be hidden from the Empire. Owen demanded that we be told more before we took you in. Obi-Wan told us that Anakin's unusual abilities were passed onto you and it would be very dangerous for you to be found by the Emperor. He refused to say much more.

I had no reservations about taking you in. Owen seemed a little more resistant to the idea, but he came around and agreed. As Obi-Wan left for his ship, he told us that you were now ours to raise and he would stay on Tatooine to watch over you from a distance. I could tell Owen was uncomfortable with that, but he thankfully said little about it. Obi-Wan then told us that your name was Luke Skywalker and he would appreciate it if we'd not change it because it was important to your mother.

Obi-Wan left and I have only talked to him on three other occasions in Anchorhead. On one occasion he told me that he is now going by the name "Ben"; that is going to be hard to get used to but I will eventually.

News finally trickled into Mos Eisley about the Empire. No one seems too concerned; they figure that Tatooine is too out of reach to be bothered. I pray that's true.

Luke, I will do my best to care for you. I hope, wherever your mother is, that she approves of how I'm raising her child. I really wish that I could have you call me and Owen, "mother and father" but my conscience won't allow it. We are not your parents. It seems an insult to them to pretend we are. Owen agrees, he told me that he'll be fine with just being "Uncle Owen". We've talked about what we're going to tell you about your parents. Owen doesn't want you to know anything. He says it's the best thing for you, but I'm not sure. Someday when you're old enough I know we'll have to tell you the truth. That's a long way off though, I'm glad I don't have to think about that today.

Your uncle is a hard man, but I know he loves you very much. He may not be the most affectionate caregiver, but he will always care for you in his own way. I wish you could grow up with cousins, but an accident two years ago rendered me unable to carry a child. It's just you, me, and Owen but that's just fine. We'll be a family. I still fear for the reasons that Obi-Wan gave you to us. I will do everything it takes to protect you. The Empire will have to step over me and your uncle's dead bodies to take you away.

As I watch you sleep I just want to say thank you. Thank you for bringing unexpected joy to our lives. Luke, I can't promise you an easy life, especially on Tatooine, but I can promise you that you will be loved forever and protected as long as we are able.

Breha Organa:

You are ours to keep; that's what your father said when he brought you to me one standard month ago. We had been wanting to adopt a baby girl for so long and finally we have you. My dear Leia, I wish the circumstances of your adoption were different but I will never regret bringing you into our home.

The day you were brought home, I had been monitoring the situation on Coruscant for the last few days worrying about your father. The Republic had fallen apart, the snake Palpatine declared himself Emperor. On top of it all, the Jedi had been declared enemies of the state. It was hard to get true information; everything coming out of Holonet was very pro Palpatine that I wondered if anything they said was true. One thing I knew wasn't true; I knew the Jedi did not betray the Republic. I did not need your father to reassure me of that.

As I grieved for the Republic and democracy, I worried endlessly about your father. I knew he was known to not be a supporter of Palpatine. He was not as outspoken as some senators, but I still feared for him. Detractors of new political regimes are not usually treated well. When I finally received word from him, I was so relieved. He apologized for not contacting me sooner but he had been on what he called, "an errand of utmost importance." He didn't give me many details, he still hasn't, but he told me that he was bringing home someone.

Leia, that someone that my husband brought home was you; our beautiful daughter. Your father told me what really happened, how Palpatine had killed most of the Jedi and how he had apparently been planning it for years to coincide with his government takeover. I knew Palpatine was not to be trusted, but I had no idea that he was capable of such a thing. Your father told me to protect Alderaan and our family that he has to make it appear that he supports the Empire. He said that too many lives were at stake for him to act without thinking.

Your father then told me who you were and who's parents you were. I knew your biological mother. Padmé had visited Alderaan several times and she was a good friend of your father's in the Senate. I was very grieved when he told me she had died. I had never met your biological father, but I heard many things about him. They called him the "Hero With No Fear" and he was the Jedi poster boy for the Republic war effort. He and Master Kenobi were sent on the most dangerous missions during the war. I listened to my husband tell me how Anakin Skywalker had betrayed the Republic and the Jedi. Your father nearly broke down when he told me of the attack on the Jedi temple and the children that were killed.

I did not want to believe what your father told me, but I knew I had no choice. He told me that he had agreed to adopt you to hide you in plain sight. He told me if Palpatine knew who your biological parents were it would make you a target. I remember looking down at your sleeping newborn face and feeling a swell of love come over me. I knew you would be our daughter and we would love you till the stars burn out. It was not fair that Padmé would never get to raise you but I knew I would do everything in my power to love and protect you as she would have.

Your father told me that we can never tell you about your biological parents; that it would be too dangerous. His fear of your discovery has increased with the arrival of an Imperial enforcer called Darth Vader on the galactic scene. He seemed to just appear out of nowhere as the Emperor's second in command. I know your father knows more than he's telling me. He told me it pains him, but he can't tell me everything yet because too many lives were at stake.

I know you will not remember Leia, but this will be the last time I speak of your biological parents. My husband is right. It is too dangerous and I don't want you growing up with such a heavy burden. You are Leia Organa of Alderaan, child of Bail and Breha Organa. That is all you need to know now.

I fear for the future little one. You are sleeping peacefully now, but I fear that peace will be short lived. I know my husband, he will not sit idle in the Senate. He will do what he can to restore the Republic. There will be upheaval eventually and you will grow up in the middle of it, we can't protect you from all of it. Just remember, your parents love you, now and forever.