Weeks later, Padme had managed to assemble a temporary senate. It was small, with only a few senators, but she knew that planets needed time to elect new senators.

"I think it would be safe to bring the other kids back now, Ani," Padme commented over breakfast.

Luke looked up from his cereal, "What was so dangerous, Mommy? Nothing bad happened, did it?"

"No, Luke. Nothing bad happened, but I thought it might. I just wanted you to be safe." Padme turned back to her husband.

"So Leia and Laasya can come home now? I was getting lonely…" Luke finished his cereal and pushed the bowl away.

"Well, that's Daddy's choice. Ani?"

"I think all the kids would have been safe here all along. You were the one who was worried about this. I'd be glad to get them back."

"Wonderful, I'll call Bail." Padme stood up and took her dishes, and her son's, to the kitchen.

Anakin smiled at his son, "Are you still going to have time to play in the garage with me, or will you be occupied with playing house?"

Luke made a comically exaggerated expression of exasperation, "Daddy, I hate playing house. I wanna build stuff in the garage with you."

"All right, then. I guess I won't be lonely."

Luke looked at his father seriously, "I'd never let you be lonely, Daddy. I'd love you no matter what." Then the serious expression was gone and he hopped of his chair and grabbed his father's legs. Anakin scooped him up and returned the hug.

"Thanks, Luke. I wouldn't let you be lonely either." Anakin stood up and flipped his son over his shoulder. Luke squealed and Anakin used his Jedi reflexes to let go, spin, and catch his son before he could fall very far. Luke gave another howl of laughter and clung to his neck.

Padme came back in with a comlink. She rolled her eyes at her husband who had put his son on the table and was now tickling him mercilessly. Luke was giggling helplessly and trying to push his father's hands away.

"Boys, please. I have an important call to make!" she teased.

Anakin stopped tickling his son and playfully rolled his eyes, "Yes, Mom." He slung his son over his shoulder and carried him to the garage like a sack of vegetables, Luke giggling the entire way.

Anakin set his son down on the workbench and Luke pushed tears of laughter out of his eyes. Anakin slipped under the bench and pulled out Luke's most recent project. Luke took it and started working on it happily. Anakin took his own project off a shelf and sat on the bench beside Luke.

"Are you looking forward to seeing your sisters again?" Anakin asked his son.

Luke shrugged, "I want to see them again, but then I won't get to be with you an' Mom as much."

"Don't worry about it, Kiddo. We won't forget to spend time with you. And I promise you that if the girls start trying to do our hair I will grab you and run, okay?" Anakin joked.

Luke grinned, "Okay. D'you think Leia will like my droids?"

"I think Leia will love your droids."

"Can I make Leia a special droid?" Luke asked eagerly.

"Sure. What do you think she'd want it to be able to do?"

Luke frowned in sudden confusion, "I dunno. What do you think?"

"Don't ask me, Luke. Ask your mom, she knows more about girls than I would." Anakin laughed.

"Right. Ask Mom." Luke put his project down and ran to find his mother. Anakin took the opportunity to poke at Luke's droid; something Luke had established right away was against his rules.

When Luke came trotting back downstairs, Anakin had returned Luke's droid to its original place.

"Mom says that she doesn't know what Leia might like and that just 'cuz she's a girl we shouldn't assume that all girls are the same. And she told me to give you this for saying that she would understand." Luke marched up to his father and gave him a surprisingly hard punch for such a small child.

Anakin grabbed his son's wrist, too late. He hadn't been expecting his innocent son to punch him, "Luke, when Mommy tells you to punch me, she means gently. I hope."

Luke looked up at his father's face and saw that Anakin's eyes were watering in pain. Immediately he burst into tears, "I didn't mean to hurt you, Daddy! I didn't mean to!"

Anakin bent down and hugged his son, "I know you didn't mean to, Luke. I'm okay. Don't worry about it. Everyone makes mistakes. I don't mind. You learned from it, right?"

Luke sniffled, "What do you mean?"

Anakin brushed his son's tears away, "You're not going to punch anyone that hard again, are you?"

"Never," Luke buried his face against his father and Anakin hugged him close, wondering why the boy had had to take simple physical pain and add far more confusing emotional pain to it. The poor child obviously felt terrible about it, which made Anakin hurt considerably more than the punch had.

Finally, Luke started hiccupping and Anakin felt it was safe to release the boy for long enough to hop onto the workbench and bring his son close again. After a while, Luke had calmed down enough to squirm out of his father's arms and pick his project back up to start work on it.

Anakin kissed his son's forehead and returned to his own project.