Chapter Text
Family secrets revealed!
Quick recap:
Twelve years ago, Anakin Skywalker was discovered on the Outer Rim desert planet Tatooine with his mother Shmi Skywalker, where they lived as slaves… until a Naboo ship carrying a then Queen Padmé Amidala and Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn landed there in need of repairs. Without the proper currency or anything of value to trade for the parts they could only get from the Skywalkers’ greedy master Watto, Master Jinn was forced to take a chance by entering Anakin in a pod race and placing a bet with Watto: if Anakin won, Watto would free him and his mother and give Qui-Gon’s group the parts they needed, but if Anakin lost, Watto would get the Nabuian ship and a blue diamond heart amulet he held.
Anakin won the race and his freedom, but he and his mother weren’t quite out of the woods yet. A fearsome battle raged on Naboo between the greedy Trade Federation and the Nabuians. To make matters worse, a powerful Sith warrior attacked, and Qui-Gon Jinn and Shmi Skywalker were caught in the middle. Maul tried to strike them down, but then there was a magical glow, and all that was left was Qui-Gon Jinn’s amulet.
Having made a promise to Qui-Gon before he vanished, his student Obi-Wan Kenobi took the amulet and gave it to young Skywalker to be its guardian, and became the boy’s teacher and guardian. But Anakin quickly learned he wasn’t alone. Shortly after, he discovered another amulet with a red ruby heart belonging to Kara Talhin, who was revealed to be his half-sister.
Eventually, Anakin Skywalker entered a forbidden marriage with Padmé that only he, his sister, and the Jedi and senator’s little daughter Gabriella knew about… until her parentage was revealed during a mission. However, that revelation later led to the Jedi Code being amended to allow Jedi to have families of their own. However, despite being allowed to have his wife and family as well as be a Jedi, Anakin and his sister Kara withheld another secret.
In the year since the Battle of Geonosis, Anakin and Kara came to learn their amulets were actually enchanted heirlooms belonging to the royal family of the lost kingdom Solaris… their family! But that wasn’t all; they soon came to learn Qui-Gon had given them each a particular amulet based on the order in which they were born, and there was a third amulet they needed to locate before Mariverde, the evil doresho gypsy with an evil plot to get the amulets herself could. However, they had a hard time finding clues on their own. They did learn, however, that Qui-Gon Jinn was in fact, their father, and thanks to Anakin receiving a visit from Qui-Gon Jinn’s spirit on Mortis, they learned their third sibling was in fact a brother. However, they also came to realize they couldn’t continue searching on their own, and thus consulted the Jedi Council for help.
The only clues the Jedi Council had so far were these:
The third sibling was male, his name started with the syllable “Karm-”, he was obviously born sometime within the first nine years of Anakin’s life, and he was at least half human. Thus, they sought to gain access to the birth records of every planet Qui-Gon Jinn had travelled to in the nine years since Anakin had been born. Fortunately, they had records of past missions, so they started there to narrow down the search of planets Qui-Gon had travelled to in order to search records for baby boys born during that time, as well as adoption records, even on Coruscant. Getting birth records from Tatooine, however, that would be trickier. It was only thanks to Anakin’s mother they knew his birthdate. But, it was a start.
Unfortunately, narrowing down the birth records would not be easy to find time for during the war, which was why it was a good thing the Jedi were receiving help from Captain Rex’s steed Dashing Swift, a pegasus with H.P.I, which gifted him a photographic memory and heightened cognitive thinking abilities, to read the books on Solaran history and about the amulets to find any facts that may prove helpful in finding Kara and Anakin’s brother.
After a full month, almost nothing.
Anakin and Kara kept hoping and praying that their little brother was okay and they would find him soon. They didn’t even know if their brother knew about either of them or his heritage, but wherever “Karmi,” as they were referring to him, was now, they looked forward to the day they would meet him for the very first time.
Kara and Anakin grew more anxious every day they spent looking for their missing brother. Every guy named Karmi, Carmen, Carmine, Karmelo, Karmellen, Carmanus, and any other ‘Karm-” name they could find, the Jedi Council asked if they were adopted or had a father they didn’t know. They even began checking orphanages just in case Kara and Anakin’s brother never got adopted to begin with, but still no luck.
Anakin and Kara both tried to imagine what their brother might look like; they wondered if he would look more like Qui-Gon or whoever his mother was. Whoever he was, Anakin really wanted to meet his little brother. He’d gotten to be a little brother, what with Kara always babying him, as well as Obi-Wan acting like a big brother to him all his life, but the thought of having a little brother, it sounded like a magical experience.
Anakin had watched Boba play with Gabby lots of times, and being a big brother looked like it could be a lot of fun. Even though there was the chance his brother probably wouldn’t even be a kid, Anakin thought he and his brother would have so much fun together. He could teach him all the things he learned while being a Jedi, and he could introduce him to the kids and the horses too. It also occurred to Anakin…
“I wonder if our brother has powers like we do, magic or Jedi.” Anakin said. “Unless… that siren from my dream was our brother.”
“I’m not sure. I mean, it’s possible, but then again he could’ve just had a connection to our brother somehow. But with or without any powers, I just know we’ll both love our little brother when we meet him, and I’m sure he’ll love us too. What’s important is that we treat him like any other member of the family, and he knows that even though we didn’t get to grow up together, we can still make up for lost time in the present.”
Anakin couldn’t help thinking about his teacher Garrett then; he’d spent twenty-two years estranged from his human family, but they eventually made up and came back together. Granted, that ended in a life vs death battle with Garrett’s psycho uncle and a bunch of monster hunting criminals where they had to rescue Garrett’s wolf family and escape an erupting volcano, but as far as Kara and Anakin knew, they didn’t even have an uncle on either of their parents’ sides… unless Qui-Gon had any brothers of his own or sisters who got married.
“Once we find our parents, maybe we can ask Father if he knows of any siblings he has.” Kara said.
“Maybe.” Anakin said. “For now, we gotta make sure our heirs stay safe.”
In the last year, the kids had changed a lot too. Now that Gabby was four years old, she was learning a lot more about everything, including her powers. Ever since Mortis, Gabby couldn’t stop thinking about that beam of light that burst from her chest that looked like a shooting star of sunlight. So, she decided to look in a book for answers. With Garrett helping his niece Naomi adjust to things in the Jedi Temple and Goldie helping Mariposa gather herbs today, Gabby was left to search for answers on her own. Luckily for her, Garrett always had books available on various subjects. So, Gabby went to her father’s room and looked in Boba’s bag since he got some of the more advanced studies.
Gabby picked out a book titled “Rare Spirits of Magics and Holders.”
“Hmm… maybe this’ll have some answers.”
Gabby flipped through some of the pages and saw different kinds of magical manifestations. But for something that was supposed to be rare, there were sure were a lot of them. Waterbird, firebird, ice flame, song dragon… sunburst!
“The Sunburst!”
Gabby spotted a picture of a magical manifestation that looked exactly like the one she saw.
“Gabby, were you digging in my bag for candy again?” Boba asked. “You know you can just ask.”
“No. Books this time.” Gabby said. “And look what I found. Look familiar to you?”
Boba took a look at the picture Gabby found and recognized it from Mortis.
“Wait a minute, so… you really don’t know how you did what you did before… with that giant beam of light?”
Gabby shook her head.
“Nope. At least it scared that scary Son away. I guess he really didn’t like sunlight. Seriously, I think he must’ve been part vampire.”
Boba laughed and said, “Maybe.”
Gabby turned to another page and showed Boba a picture of the waterbird.
“I found this too. It looks just like the birdie that came from you when we rescued the horses from Butch Melody.”
Boba slammed the book shut and covered his sister’s mouth before she could say anything.
“Gabby, listen to me very carefully. You can’t tell Mom and Dad about that waterbird.” Boba said. “If you do, they’re gonna wonder where I got it from, and then they’ll want to try an ancestry search, and if I turn out to have living relatives, that might mean my adoption will get overturned, meaning we won’t get to be siblings anymore because I’ll probably have to go live with them instead of you and our parents.”
Gabby gasped at that horrible thought.
“I don’t want you to go away, Big Brother!”
“And that’s why you can’t let Mom and Dad know about this. As far as they know, that was just a very powerful spell I unlocked.”
“But what about Mr. Garrett? Won’t he already know what it really is?”
“He does. But he agreed to keep it secret for the same reason. I guess… he knows better than any of us what it’s like to be away from your family, never knowing if you’re gonna see them again.”
Gabby hugged her brother tightly, and he hugged her back. He’d only been a Skywalker for a year, but Boba felt like he’d known them all his life, and he couldn’t imagine leaving behind his family… or his friends.
Gabby couldn’t imagine being without her big brother either; she loved him so much, and in the year since Boba first came home, she’d spent so much time with him and he taught her a lot of things that a big brother or sister would teach the younger one. He’d sit with her while she read a book so she could practice reading longer words and sentences, pick her up so she could reach higher shelves, and even occasionally he would do his best to include her in things he did with the other big kids. It probably helped that at least one of his friends had a little brother of her own that she took care of too.
“I don’t care about being related,” said Boba. “You and I, we’re siblings, and we stick together forever, no matter what.”
“Together forever.” Gabby said, but then she started laughing. “But I don’t think you’re gonna fit in your shirt forever.”
Boba looked down and realized his stomach was showing. He tried to pull his shirt down, but it popped up again.
“Agh! This was my favorite shirt.” Boba whined. “Now I know how Vinnie felt a bunch of times last year.”
After finding a shirt that fit to change into, Boba took Gabby to play on Anakin’s swing in the main temple courtyard. There were no classes there at the moment, so it made for some good brother-sister time. Kara used to push her little brother on that swing all the time, now Boba pushed his little sister on the swing until Gabby got down and declared Boba’s turn. Gabby was a little small to push her brother on the swing, but luckily, she had strong wind magic to help her out…but it did more blowing Boba’s hair and making leaves fall from the tree than making the swing go higher. On the bright side, it felt nice for the kids to feel a breeze on this warm sunny day.
From afar, Anakin watched as his kids were playing and having fun together. It made him happy to see that the two of them got along so well. When he and Padmé decided to adopt Boba, part of Anakin worried whether he and Gabby would get along. He didn’t always get along with his Jedi brothers and sisters, and most of them weren’t even related to each other; sometimes he and Kara didn’t get along. Occasionally, he did see Gabby and Boba fighting over whether to watch Bright & Barly or Hyperspeed Racers, or who got the last piece of cake, but usually it ended up getting resolved somehow. It occurred to Anakin… he really hoped he and his little brother would get along, however old he was, whoever he was.
Come to think of it, Anakin realized this was another thing he and Gabby had in common: having an adoptive big brother. Anakin thought of Obi-Wan then. Obi-Wan might not have been biologically related to Kara or Anakin, but in every other way, he was their big brother… in all the ways that truly mattered. Anakin couldn’t help wondering if maybe Obi-Wan could give him some advice on being a big brother.
You can probably imagine Obi-Wan was surprised when Anakin Skywalker of all people came to him and asked him if he could tell him what he knew about being a big brother. Naturally, Obi-Wan questioned Anakin why he wasn’t asking Kara about this.
“Kara already tells me everyday how I challenge her, and then she usually babies me. If she had her way, I’d probably be sleeping in a nursery and watching Bright & Barly instead of fighting in battle.”
Obi-Wan chuckled and said,
“I don’t know about that, but Kara does act that way because she loves you and wants the best for you. After your parents disappeared… I know for a fact she felt most terrible that your mother vanished.”
Anakin’s eyes went wide when he heard that; Kara never told him that. To be fair, Kara and Anakin didn’t know when they first met which parent they were half-related from, and neither did Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan told Anakin that Qui-Gon told him that he’d learned Kara was Anakin’s half-sister, but he didn’t explain how he knew, but now his former Padawan knew why. But… Obi-Wan did know that Kara had learned her mother passed when she was very small, and when she learned what happened to Anakin’s mother, and the whole situation with him being a late beginner in the Jedi Order, it was like this whole maternal vibe just took over. If Anakin’s mother couldn’t be there for her son, Kara would do it for her. Since then, Kara was a caring, nurturing big sister to Anakin, and doing all the things she’d learned over the years that a good mother would do, and all the while, guarding her amulet.
But in regards to Anakin’s situation…
“I don’t imagine my little brother’s gonna be okay with me babying him, not that it’s something I can really do. That’s reserved for Gabby. That, and I tried it with Boba, and I got a face full of seaweed.”
Obi-Wan laughed again.
“Had you had your powers when you were his age… I’m not sure how I could’ve handled you then. To be honest, you didn’t always make it easy.”
Anakin was used to hearing comments like that from Obi-Wan. It didn’t mean he liked it, but he appreciated the honesty.
Obi-Wan explained to Anakin that being a big brother, even when the little brother isn’t related to you, is a big responsibility. When Obi-Wan took on the job, he may have hidden it very well, but he felt so many emotions running through him at once, mostly fear and guilt. His master vanished before his eyes and he saw no trace of where he was. How was he supposed to take care of a child?
“After taking you in, I needed to make a lot of changes. I needed to be the example for you. Being an older sibling involves that responsibility. Setting an example for the younger sibling is a privilege, but it can be daunting… especially when the younger sibling does not always listen.”
Although, Obi-Wan could probably have cut Anakin some slack; he’d spent his whole life as a slave, so it should’ve been anticipated that when he got his freedom, he’d want to do things like jumping on the bed, sneaking a cookie from the jar, or wanting to play instead of doing homework. Of course, before then was how Obi-Wan saw Anakin constantly drawing pictures of Sapphire.
In some other cases, some might call that a creepy obsession, but Obi-Wan saw Anakin was doing it because he missed his friend. His horse showed him how to be a kid, and she showed herself to be incredibly nurturing too. Obi-Wan recalled a few times he’d walked by Anakin’s room and saw him working on a new drawing and heard him narrating as he wrote, creating a story for each drawing, and even the time Anakin tied Sapphire’s ribbon around his wrist and named it Bow; it was pretty much the closest thing he’d had to a lovey like most kids had for comfort. It seemed abundantly clear where Gabby inherited her love of storytelling from.
Obi-Wan, however, deep down, always felt horrible that he chose to just do all the traditional Jedi things instead of encouraging him to keep going with the artwork or playtime with his big sister that seemed therapeutic for him. So, not wanting anyone to think he was a bad Jedi for letting Anakin do this stuff, he usually just turned a blind eye and acted like he didn’t know about it and covered for him the best he could. But all the while, Obi-Wan began to realize that no matter how many parenting books or websites he consulted, there was no one “right way” to raise a child except with tender loving care.
“The point is, Anakin… being a big brother is a learning experience. No one knows what they’re doing at first, and many times even after years of doing so. In fact, in the first few months since Boba’s adoption, he once came to me with the same questions you asked me.”
Anakin’s eyes widened again.
“He didn’t tell me.”
“Most boys at that age don’t tend to talk about such things proudly. Remember when you were that age?”
Anakin realized Obi-Wan did make a good point, and he was fascinated to learn that Boba had gone to Obi-Wan because he was worried whether or not he was any good at being Gabby’s big brother despite not being related to her. In that conversation, Obi-Wan helped Boba to reflect and realize he’d already done many great things to prove himself a great big brother. He played games with Gabby and always made sure to be gentle so she wouldn’t get hurt since she was little, and he did the ever important task of teaching his younger sibling. He taught her how to aim, how to defend herself, and he even helped her with some more… normal things like learning how to read longer words, how to make paper starships, and how to multiply and divide bigger numbers. But… there was more to it than that.
“Gabriella wasn’t the only one learning in the relationship. Boba came to realize as I did with you, that he learned from his little sister, and I with my little brother… who quickly went from being smaller than me to being taller than me.”
Anakin laughed at that last remark. Even after Anakin exceeded Obi-Wan’s height, Obi-Wan knew how to be the bigger person.
But it was true, Boba came to learn a lot from his younger sister without even realizing it; things like how to be a kid, how to be a friend, how to deal with his feelings, and how to just let himself have fun instead of worrying about what other people thought. And Obi-Wan… he grew to learn from Anakin that it was sometimes a good idea to question rules and certain traditions if they interfered with progress, or in some cases, the wellbeing of the current or future generation. And watching Anakin raise his kids, it was clear being able to just be their dad when he wasn’t on the battlefield made him happier, healthier, and overall a better Jedi and a better man. Seeing how Anakin could be so brave with his family, it’d been enough to give Obi-Wan the courage to rekindle his… relationship with Duchess Satine, which then became a real relationship after Obi-Wan finally gathered the courage to confess his love and kiss her. And that was just one of many Jedi relationships to be rekindled.
“By the look of things, I’d say what you’re doing now is certified evidence that you’ll be a wonderful big brother, Anakin.”
“And that’s…?”
“The same thing I told Boba. Talking. You haven’t even met your brother yet, and already you have so many questions about being the big brother you believe the younger sibling deserves.”
Anakin thought about it and realized Obi-Wan was right; maybe he would be a great big brother after all. Now, if only he could find his brother.
“I just hope wherever he is now, someone’s taking good care of him.” Anakin said.
And little brothers and sisters weren’t the only ones who required attention.
Despite the war going on, there were the everyday problems to deal with, and of course, every family had its own problems and uncertainties.
Boba’s friend Myra was one of them. Her parents had been engaged for five months, and there was a lot to do before the I do’s. Mace still had yet to meet his in-laws so they could set a date for the big day, and of course there was the matter of Mace making the huge decision to officially adopt Kade as his own son. But, Myra also had other concerns besides her parents upcoming nuptials.
After playing her guitar at the Father’s Day party a few weeks back, Myra was ecstatic and shocked to learn that a real music producer was among the dads in the audience. And he was no ordinary music producer either; it was Armando Hall, Vinnie’s dad, and perhaps the most famous music producer in the galaxy. Armando Hall worked with so many of the biggest stars in the galaxy; he could make Myra a superstar before she was sixteen!
So, Myra got to work practicing and practicing her guitar, sharpening her voice, and choosing her signature style of clothing so she could officially audition for him for the next big showcase. She was ecstatic, and her friends were so happy for her for landing such a big opportunity.
Vinnie, on the other hand, was dealing with entirely different feelings.
Adolescence is known as the worst stage of growing up. You know, the changing body and all that stuff. It was different for everyone. For Vinnie, he mostly got the growth parts of puberty, mainly gaining big muscles and getting very tall very fast. He was only thirteen, and he measured to five foot seven. He might even grow to be as tall as Anakin by next year! But, all the outgrowing his clothes set aside, he had other concerns.
You see, Vinnie had been spending most of his time at the Jedi Temple for school, only going to his bedroom at his family’s mansion when his father told him to. His father either couldn’t or wouldn’t explain why, but he’d needed Vinnie to stay out of the mansion as much as he could. All the while, Vinnie received schooling at the Jedi Temple, where he was safeguarded primarily by Master Luminara Unduli, and she took good care of him. However, she didn’t know why Mr. Hall needed his son protected either, or why he needed such a cover story for his wife and his older son Derek. But, Mr. Hall was paying the Jedi Order handsomely, which came in handy for setting emergency funds for the order. Still, the Jedi were concerned, especially for Vinnie’s wellbeing.
Many saw how happy Vinnie was to see his father at the party. According to Vinnie, he hardly ever saw his father anymore, especially since he married Tatiana, Vinnie’s stepmother, whom everyone came to learn was only twenty-three. Naturally, many found that both disgusting and weird, but Vinnie said he was sure his dad only married her because somehow she got pregnant with his kid, but he felt pretty sure Jacob wasn’t even related to him. But whatever was going on, it was imperative that Vinnie be kept safe. That became a little harder when summertime came around, so Mr. Hall told Vinnie he told the rest of the family that he was spending the summer at camp. Vinnie at least felt happy that it meant he could spend more time with his friends without worrying about having to rush home, but… he still missed his dad. And it wasn’t just that.
You see, with puberty also came that other thing… boys start liking girls and girls start liking boys. And… Vinnie had his eye on one girl in particular, but he was sure she’d never go for him.
So, for now, he went on to do as his father told him: to enjoy his summer, spend time with his friends, and just be a kid. His father was imperative that Vinnie never forget how much his mother loved him either, and he reminded him that if Lydia Hall could see her son now, she would be so proud of the young man he was becoming. There was no joke about it. Speaking of jokes…
Comedia Evermare-Mundi was yet another character in a story of growing up. It’d been one year since she’d gotten adopted and was finally free from her abusive parents who never allowed her to be her silly-corn self or to enjoy the funner things in life. It wasn’t until a Jedi Master named Ki-Adi Mundi discovered her endurance and decided to raise her as his own.
In all that time, Comedia came to learn that there were a few people who looked at her adoptive father and perceived him as a sociopath, probably because he may have taken following the Jedi Code a little too far by hardly showing any emotion. But, most of them didn’t know that he’d secretly suppressed his emotions, and after he lost all of his biological daughters, he’d spent many nights crying himself to sleep, which he muffled with a lot of pillows. But… with Comedia, something about her got him to open up more. She inspired him to take a second chance, to do with her what he couldn’t do with his biological children: help and watch her grow. It helped him to remember what it really meant to be compassionate. Sure, he’d gotten more of that experience whenever Gabby was around, but after Comedia came around, he got a challenge because unlike Gabby, Comedia had been abused and she needed someone patient and caring to help her. It’d even shocked him when she asked him why he was helping her; it appeared even she used to think he was what a lot of people perceived him as before.
When the subject of children came about, Ki-Adi always wanted a son of his own, but he was blessed with Comedia instead, and in his eyes… she was even better than any imaginary child he could think up. And one of the greatest gifts she’d given him was… helping him remember how to laugh.
They say laughter is the best medicine, and Comedia knew that very well, but she also knew that there were things that were no laughing matter. Despite being adopted by a Jedi, Comedia was still a princess of Equinaro. With her birth parents being stripped of their titles, the Realm of Neighway fell to their daughters to rule. Princess Emeraldi, Comedia’s older sister, moved in with Queen Reigna’s family to recover from the trauma, but as the eldest child, she was to become the new duchess of Neighway, which was a daunting task for such a young mare.
To top it off, being the younger child, Comedia also had to learn more about being royalty and being a Jedi when she was found to be Force-sensitive, but her dream was to be a stand-up comedian. But, she knew one friend who might fit in easily to help Emeraldi prepare.
Rachel Kharen, she was definitely the strategist of the group. She was very intelligent, well-rounded, and very motivated. Her dream was to become a great senator like her aunt, Riyo Chuchi, so she could help lots of people across the galaxy like her aunt was determined to do all the time. It was no easy feat though, being related to a politician. You might think the hardest part is being a primary target for criminals, but that’s not the only thing.
You see, when you have a parent or relative in a political position, people tend to assume things about you. Like, they think you get special treatment, such as being what’s known as a “nepo hire” in the event you applied for an internship or job in the field of politics, or in some cases legal profession, as being a lawyer was her backup career choice. But, Rachel’s story was slightly different. She didn’t get “special treatment” like some other politicians’ children might. Her father was a doctor and her mother was a mechanic. They lived in a nice apartment and had a great living, but… Rachel attended a prestigious prep school on a scholarship, not because her parents couldn’t afford it, but because she wanted to take the opportunity to prove herself a hard worker who earned her rewards through such, not by asking Auntie Riyo to pull some strings for you.
“If I wanted to pull strings, I’d work in the puppet theater or a sewing shop.” She would say.
Of course, going to that school on a scholarship, it made a lot of the rich kids there assume things about Rachel, mocking her for her parents probably being “too poor” to get her in on their own. That gave Rachel the opportunity to write things down about various students and create files for each of them. Being one to watch a lot of detective shows, she learned a thing or two about going undercover. Thus, she knew pretty much every weakness of every mean girl, bad boy, sports captain, and test answer dealer in that entire school. If there was one thing she knew if she wanted to be a good senator, she needed to get a sense of the people she would be working with… or against.
That wasn’t to say Rachel only saw the worst in people. The fact that she and Vinnie were friends was just one piece of proof, and later she met his new friends and became part of the group, and she eventually made a new friend in a foreign exchange student who’d been staying with her family until summertime came around. But, Holly promised she would be returning in the fall, and she would be looking forward to seeing her friends again.
Gabby and Boba couldn’t believe it when they learned they had an uncle on their dad’s side they’d never met, and they really hoped their dad and aunt could find him too.
“What do you think he’ll be like?” Gabby asked her brother.
“If he’s anything like Dad, maybe he’ll be adventurous.”
Gabby thought and said,
“Maybe he’ll be lots of fun and teach us new games to play.” She thought again. “Do you think he’ll like us?”
“Well, I don’t know how he’ll feel about me, since I’m adopted. But, he’d have to be crazy not to love you. You’re a social butterfly and you’re not even half-maricamba.
Then, Gabby couldn’t help wondering about something.
“You don’t think Mommy and Daddy would ever have to separate us to keep us safe, do you?”
Boba couldn’t help looking at his sister with surprise. He knew the story now about how Qui-Gon had to separate his kids to keep them safe, but now that his sister asked that question, he couldn’t help wondering if, God forbid, that were to happen to their family, their parents would ever do the same if they had to. Sure, he would understand that his parents had to keep him and his sister safe, but he would be more terrified of never seeing his sister again than of any wicked witch or evil sorcerer might come after them. Gabby was a smart and capable girl, but Boba still worried for her. As strong and smart as she may be, she was still a little girl in need of guidance and protection, and even though she started out as an only child, there was no going back now that she knew how it felt to have a sibling; now she couldn’t imagine life without him.
Speaking of siblings…
Gabby’s horse Carousella was about to become a big sister very soon. Her mother Lavendera Mareheart was very pregnant now, due any day to give birth to her third baby.
Carousella entered one of the Temple gardens where Lavendera had been staying for the last eight months to have a safe, comfortable place to rest as she prepared to give birth. So far, she’d been doing very well according to Dr. Nema and Dr. Sunheart. Sunheart provided Dr. Nema a great deal of assistance on equine biology to further ensure Lavendera would have a safe, healthy birth for her baby whenever he or she came.
Lavendera, at the moment, lay down calmly resting for another day. Honestly, she couldn’t wait to be done lugging around this big bump; it’d become really difficult for her to move around on her own by now, and she was getting huge. It was also driving her husband crazy because he would go back to Equinaro for some time to continue with royal guard duties, but he always hesitated, worrying his wife would need something while he was away.
“Armorous, I’ll be fine. The baby won’t be here for a while,” she would tell him constantly. “Besides, Carousella and Remix are here taking care of me.”
And sure enough, Carousella’s big brother Crescent came over to help out too; he wanted to ensure his new brother or sister would come out healthy and happy this time, like when Carousella was born.
But for now, Crescent was getting his mom some food, her newest weird craving? Chocolate ice cream with bananas, cream cheese, potato chips, chocolate chips, caramel, and applesauce.
Carousella, on the other hoof, entered the garden to check on her mom.
“Hi, Mom. How are you feeling?”
“Like I’m about to explode. But, both doctors say the little one’s doing very well in here.” Lavendera lifted her wing from her pregnant stomach. “Isn’t that right, Baby?”
Carousella nuzzled her mom’s stomach, and the baby moved.
“Hi, Baby Pony. Remember me? I’m your big sister, Carousella. I can’t wait to meet you. You’ll love my rider Gabby too. She’s excited to meet a real baby foal.”
Lavendera giggled seeing her daughter already being so good with the unborn baby.
“Any idea when the foal’s coming?” Carousella said.
“Any day. That’s all we know. But hopefully soon.”
Carousella at least knew that she wouldn’t have to worry about not knowing where her new brother or sister was, unlike Anakin and Kara with their brother. But, Carousella couldn’t help feeling worried; this was war time, and living in fear was not how she wanted the baby to grow up. Lavendera, however, reassured her daughter that they were going to protect the baby; she would take maternity leave, and once the baby was big enough to travel, the Marehearts would take him or her back to Equinaro.
“Have you and Dad thought of names for the baby yet?”
“We’re still narrowing it down, but… maybe it’ll be more like when you and Crescent entered our lives. We planned out names all throughout both pregnancies, and then we realized none of the names we initially picked were right. But, we knew just the right names for each of you shortly after we saw you, and however we name this baby, they’ll be a blessing to our family, and we’ll do the same for them.”
And little did they know just how soon that day would come.
It was nighttime, and everyone who wasn’t on a mission or doing late-night sparring or meditation was nestled up in bed for a trip to Dream Land. At least, until everyone heard the sound of whinnying through the vents.
People covered their ears with pillows or put ear plugs in as the whinnying got louder and then there were sounds of droids moving back and forth and Dr. Nema calling in Sunheart. No one had the energy to guess what was happening, but they were able to get back to sleep after he clock struck midnight.
The next morning, as Carousella was having breakfast with her human family, Sunheart came to visit, telling Carousella and Remix that they had to come to the garden right away.
“Kids, you can come too.” Sunheart said.
So, they did.
Carousella then quickly realized what all that noise the night before, so she began to run as fast as she could to the garden. There, she met with her brother and her cousins Magenta and Remix, and together they saw Crescent and Carousella’s parents there, Lavendera looking exhausted, but very happy as she gazed down at something underneath her wing. It was a little unicorn filly of a lovely midnight blue like her father with a plum colored mane like her big brother, and she was fast asleep all nestled underneath her mother’s wings.
“Carousella, Crescent…meet your new sister. Midnight.”
Lavendera gently nuzzled the foal’s tiny head.
“Come on, wake up, Midnight. We have company.”
Midnight’s little eyes fluttered open, revealing them to be a lovely shade of blue like her big sister’s. The filly whinnied a cute baby whinny as she took a gaze at her surroundings for the very first time. No one could believe their eyes when they saw how little and cute Midnight was. Carousella, especially, was overcome with so much emotion as she saw her baby sister for the very first time.
Lavendera moved her wing so Midnight could try to stand up for the first time. Midnight stood on wobbly little hooves, her long legs nearly throwing her off balance before she started to take her first steps toward her big sister. The little filly looked up at Carousella and sniffed the air, Carousella lowering her head to nuzzle with her baby sister.
“Hi, Midnight. I’m Carousella.”
Midnight whinnied again; it seemed that she recognized her big sister’s voice from all the time she’d talked to her while Lavendera was pregnant.
“She’s so cute!” Gabby said as quietly as she could.
Then Midnight started sniffing the human kids too. Boba froze as Midnight rubbed against him. Gabby reached her hand out to Midnight, but was hesitant.
“Go ahead, but be gentle.” Lavendera said.
So, Gabby was very gentle, stroking the top of Midnight’s little head.
Crescent and his cousins were all happy to meet Midnight too. They all thought Midnight was so cute, although Remix could’ve done without Midnight biting and yanking his tail.
“Ow! My tail!” Remix groaned, trying to get his tail back, but only succeeded in making Midnight think it was a game.
Magenta laughed and said, “Looks like that’s what you get for all the times you yanked my tail when you were a baby.”
“Ha, ha. Very funny.” Remix said sarcastically, resorting to using his magic horn to get Midnight off his tail.
“Here, Midnight. Look what Daddy has for you.” General Mareheart sang.
Carousella’s father brought out a rubber toy that looked like a pink horseshoe. Carousella recognized that toy; she’d had one just like it when she was a foal. And now, Midnight was happily chewing it now that she’d started teething.
“Wow! She was just born, and she can already walk and she’s already teething.” Gabby said.
“Well, horses are born a little differently than humans,” said Carousella. “But both do tend to be pretty cute when they’re born.”
Everyone shared their congratulations when they heard the Marehearts’ new baby finally arrived. Naturally, Master Yoda was eager to meet Magenta’s new cousin, and he found her adorable even though she was still so much bigger than him despite being a newborn.
Midnight was a naturally curious baby; she was going to need someone watching over her to make sure nothing bad happened to her, and she would have her big sister and her cousins to watch her while her father and big brother handled guard duties in Equinaro.
All the while, Anakin and Kara caught sight of many times when Carousella would help take care of her new sister, whether that was giving the filly a bottle, playing with her, or… making sure she was housebroken.
Seeing how many good things there were about having a younger sibling, Anakin and Kara both really hoped they would be able to find their missing brother before anything bad could happen to him.
A month later, Anakin stood by a window with Kara as they watched the sun setting again.
Kara put a hand on her brothers’ shoulder. Still no leads on where their brother was. No luck with the holocrons, and that was assuming the missing brother was even Force sensitive. Same went for the search through birth records, adoption papers, and orphanages. Whoever “Karmi” was, he was surely skilled at staying off the grid.
Obi-Wan walked by Kara and Anakin and saw the two of them looked depressed.
“Still worrying about your brother?” Obi-Wan said.
“Not just for him. Our parents as well,” said Kara. “Whatever happened to them could’ve also happened to our brother, and we have no way of knowing if any of them are in danger!”
It concerned Obi-Wan to see Kara upset now; normally, she was the level-headed one of this sibling duo, but even she had her limits. And seeing how she cared for Anakin, Obi-Wan could see how going so long without any clues to finding her other little brother would have her worried sick.
Obi-Wan held one of Kara and Anakin’s shoulders.
“Listen to me, both of you. We are doing everything in our power to find your brother. Wherever he is, I’m sure we’ll find him. We just need to find some lead, which we cannot be certain when we will find it.”
Suddenly, there was a glow coming from underneath Anakin and Kara’s clothes. It was their amulets! They must’ve been providing another clue!
Quickly, Anakin and Kara rushed with Obi-Wan to the Council chambers to see the next clue. Kara and Anakin each took out their glowing amulets, and when they did, they formed another clue that could possibly lead them to their brother. And the clue, it looked like it was showing a person. Kara and Anakin held their amulets very still so the picture could become clearer. It got clearer and clearer until it revealed that the clue was…
“Stalker?!” Kara and Anakin gasped in unison.
How's that for a beginning chapter, ending on a cliffhanger!
It feels good to be back on the main story, but I'm gonna keep working on Between Battles and Storytime Tales too, and my original stuff, so updates here may be a little longer than before. So, I hope you'll check out my other stories, and leave a comment to tell me what you thought. However, only registered users will be able to do so now, because I recently received a very nasty comment from a guest user who was either too much of a coward to risk being blocked, or some bot. Either way, only registered users will be able to comment here.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, and please don't forget to share your feedback in the comments. Until next time! :)