Anakin was floating in darkness, or at least it felt like that. No matter how much he blinked, all he saw was the darkness.
For a second he wondered if this was what Vader's soul had looked like.
Then he saw a faint blue light that eventually became none other than-
"Qui-Gon…" Anakin whispered as the Jedi Master smiled at him.
"Hello Anakin, it has been some time, hasn't it?" Qui-Gon greeted.
"How are you here? And where is 'here'?" Anakin asked.
"I've become one with the Force and you are in your own subconscious, Anakin." Qui-Gon explained. "I'm proud of you."
"I didn't do much." Anakin said bashfully, running a hand through his hair.
"You saved Master Windu as well as your children and brought balance to the Force. And you say that isn't much?" Qui-Gon teased, causing Anakin to chuckle slightly.
"Anyone in my position would've done that." Anakin said before he froze as his words registered. "Except…I didn't in Luke and Leia's time…"
"Yet you found your way back to the light." Qui-Gon smiled, "You found yourself in their time and now they've helped you find yourself in your own. You did a good job, Anakin. We're all proud of you."
Then Anakin saw his mother, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Windu, Yoda, the Jedi Council, Padme, Luke and Leia all standing beside Qui-Gon and smiling at him.
Padme approached him and whispered in his ear,
"It's time to wake up, Ani."
Slowly, Anakin's eyes opened and Padme barely contained a joyful sob as she saw his electric blue eyes meet her own deep brown ones.
"Ani…" She whispered as she held his hand tightly, feeling his grip tighten.
"Padme…" Anakin whispered back weakly.
"You're in the med center, Master Windu brought you here after you defeated Palpatine." Padme answered the questions she knew he would ask. "Luke and Leia are beside you, being checked over by droids, and the babies are fine. We're all fine."
"Thank the Force…" Anakin sighed in relief as he laid back down and felt an enormous weight lift off his shoulders. He was safe, his wife was safe, his children were safe, they were all safe…
Anakin closed his eyes and returned to a peaceful sleep while Padme kept vigil over him and their twins, her hand absentmindedly rubbing against her swollen stomach.
The next time Anakin woke up, Obi-Wan raced into the med center to find the Skywalkers all awake and talking.
Neither Anakin nor Luke had ever seen him that relieved in their entire lives of knowing the older Jedi Master.
"Master." Anakin greeted Obi-Wan with a smile.
"Anakin…trust you to defeat the Sith while I'm away." Obi-Wan shook his head.
"What can I say? I have bad timing." Anakin grinned.
"The same luck your children have." Padme accused as she mockingly glared at her children.
"When have we ever had bad timing?" Luke asked.
"Do we want to start a discussion about a certain Jedi leaving his training early, against his Master's advice I might add, and found out his father was alive and his mother traveled through time. Or how about a certain princess admitting she loves a certain smuggling only when it seemed like death was a certainty." Padme recounted dryly, raising an eyebrow.
"No thank you." Leia stated as she avoided her father's inquisitive gaze.
Obi-Wan simply chuckled.
"I think you can handle these three, Padme." He said.
"Why thank you, Obi-Wan." Padme smiled as her husband and children began to sputter protests.
Once the three Skywalkers, and Master Windu, were released from the med center, the Jedi Council called them to explain themselves and decide Anakin's fate in the Order.
Padme sat in at her own insistence, despite Anakin's heavy protests.
The twins had a good idea where this would end, considering the date.
Anakin explained all of his actions while the twins explained their own, including the time travel they experienced.
The council wisely did not ask Padme any questions, remembering all too well what happened the last time an incident like this happened and entirely too fearful that this reaction would be worse based off the fact that she was currently pregnant.
Once all the explanations were finished, however, the council did not have time to make any decisions regarding Anakin because in that instant, Padme's water broke.
Having just left the med center, the Skywalker family rushed all the way back, Obi-Wan right behind them.
The council did not complain at all.
Padme Naberrie Amidala Skywalker's screams echoed through the med center as she slowly, but surely, prepared to go into labor with her twins. She spent several hours cursing Anakin's name even as she clutched his hand so hard, Anakin himself was sure she broke it.
The older twins sat beside Obi-Wan outside their mother's room, equal parts eager and fearful of the momentous moment they had the chance to witness as well as part of it. And, of course, of the inevitable moment they both knew was coming.
Hours later, Luke Anakin and Leia Amidala Skywalker were born and the older Leia was crying in her brother's arms as she watched their parents hold the baby versions of them in their arms.
"They're beautiful, Padme." Obi-Wan smiled.
"I'm so proud of you, Angel." Anakin whispered as he held little Leia in his arms and kissed the top of his wife's head.
"Finally, they're here…" Padme whispered as she stared down at little Luke, tears falling from her eyes.
"You'll have the childhood you deserve now." Anakin promised his adult children.
"I know we will." Luke grinned as he reached a hand out to his younger self. When the oldest baby grabbed the time traveler's finger, a current went through Luke that he knew he would never feel again.
It was the feeling of finding yourself after a long time being away.
Leia experienced the same feeling as she took her own baby version's hand and smiled down at her.
"We'll always be a family now." Leia added as her voice caught in her throat. For so many years, she had wished for her birth family and now she was staring at her younger self who now had that wish come true.
Suddenly, sand covered the adult twins and fell away to reveal them looking just as they had when they arrived three years ago.
"No…" Padme whispered as she realized what was happening.
"What's going on?" Obi-Wan asked, concerned as he looked at the adult twins.
"It's time for us to go." Luke answered as he stood up.
"Now?" Anakin asked sadly.
"Yes…" Leia answered as she rubbed at her eyes to stop her tears from falling.
"But you'll see us again." Luke said.
"Our memories, all of them, should return on our 24th birthday." Leia explained as she moved to stand next to her brother.
"Until then, you'll have this Luke and Leia to help grow up." Luke smiled as he took his sister's hand.
"And know we're inside them, even if you can't see us." Leia finished.
Sand suddenly began to surround the twins, blocking them from view.
"We love you!" Anakin and Padme cried, almost desperate.
"We love you too!" The twins cried.
The new parents saw a flash of silver and gold at the adult twins' necks before the sand fell and they were gone.
Later that day, Yoda and Windu visited the new parents in the med center to inform them that Anakin was still in the Order. However, the Chosen One denied the title of Master, at least until further notice.
Obi-Wan clapped his brother on the back, proud of the man he was becoming.
Once the new family of four returned to their apartment, Anakin took out a dusty old box and opened it.
Inside was a single comm.
Anakin activated the comm, calling the one with the other half home.
Hello everyone, I am proud to announce three things.
1.This story is officially complete, 23, technically 22, chapters, three years, two months and six days later and it is complete! I hope this chapter was worth it and you guys enjoyed the ride!
2.This story officially, as I am posting it, has 224 reviews, the most reviews I have ever had at this point in time! Thank you all so much for being such amazing readers and reviewers, I'm so happy so many of you like this story!
3.I FINALLY have a new laptop thanks to my parents and will now be doing my best to update more stories with it now!
This has been such an amazing ride and I love looking back at the first chapter of this story, heck this series, and seeing just how far I've come as an author and I'm so glad all of you enjoyed the ride with me.
Thanks to David-El (I'm so glad you enjoyed all these chapters, thank you for sticking around!), (Thank you so much for all of your reviews!), hawgirl01 (Thank you so much for the kind words!), SapphiRubyCrys (I hope this was worth the wait!), ThunderSphinx (Thank you for your honest opinion. And Palpatine fell as he did to reflect ROTJ. Also, I have about as much logic with writing as Disney does with movies at times.), KnightOwl247 (I'm glad you enjoyed it all!), Nataly SkyPot (Gracias!), ASHtheMUSICALgirl13 (You have stuck with me for a while now and I'm so glad you have enjoyed this story! I'll take you up on your offer for The Hope's New Beginning, thanks!), crimsonwolf49 (Thanks so much for sticking around with this story!), all 281 followers, 185 favorites, those who added this story to 4 different communities and all 68,784 readers! I cannot thank you all enough for sticking with this story and with me.
Of course, this series isn't over yet, there's still The Hope's New Beginning. However, that story will not be posted soon because I want to work on, and finish, more of my stories that I have been neglecting/not had time to update. Be patient with me, the triquel will be posted just not anytime soon.
Thank you all once again for staying around for the end of this story. It means a lot to me. I hope I see all of you again soon when The Hope's New Beginning is posted.
I will see you all again someday, I promise. Until that day, may the Force be with you, always!