Memories Ch. 7-5

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Silence hung heavily over the dinner table, interrupted only by the occasional toddler babble from Ben Skywalker. Anakin looked up from his nerf steak at his sister, who held a fork halfway between her plate and her mouth, forgotten as she stared at the empty place setting where Sannah usually sat.

Sighing, he lowered his head once again, and picked up his knife to cut a chunk of meat off.

He then heard Jaina set her fork back down, as she said, "I'm worried about her."

Mara's voice held that cool, calm, competence that Anakin always associated with her teaching Jaina some lesson. "Don't worry about her. She'll come home soon. After all, this is the only home she has."

Jaina made a small sound of acceptance.

Anakin placed the meat into his mouth and started chewing. For once, the food lacked taste. He chewed mechanically, watching his plate rather than the others at the table. Finally, he lifted his eyes. "Don't worry about someone who would just throw a life away."

He noticed Mara's eyes as they narrowed and turned away. He then looked down at his plate once more, suddenly, no longer hungry.

Jaina's voice was low and filled with pain. "I'm still worried."

Anakin pushed back from the table. "She'll either return or not. And if she gets her memory back, all the better for us."

He tossed the napkin from his lap onto the table beside his plate. "Thanks for dinner, Aunt Mara. I'll be back later."

Then he walked from the apartment and boarded the lift. As soon as the doors closed he slammed his head against them, and cried. A few minutes later, he straightened and scrubbed at his eyes with the palm of his hands. Then he jabbed the button for the ground floor and turned to face the night through the transparisteel viewport of the lift as it began to move down.

The first place he went was where he had last seen her, the bridge overlooking the fast flowing river. He stared at the black water as it rushed beneath him. Then he turned and walked to the shopping district, going to the various shops and vendors that he knew she liked.

He began to wander aimlessly, and before long found himself sitting on the bench near the landing field; the same one that he had sat on when he first came here. Propping his elbows on his knees, he hid his face in his hands.

I don't know where else to look, he thought. Come to think of it, I don't even know that much about her at all.

He sighed yet again, and then stood up, looking around. In the distance, the Jedi Temple stood. I wonder if Tenel Ka is there tonight.

Shrugging his shoulders, he started towards the Temple and within five minutes he was walking into the building. An eerie silence hung over everything, and he walked up the stairs to the second level, heading towards the outer wall. It was there that he found her, staring into the distance, the darkness making her armor almost appear black.

He stopped a few paces from her, watching silently. Knowing that she knew he was there.

Finally, he spoke. "Tenel Ka?"

She did not take her eyes away from the view from the window. "Yes?"

"Do you remember Sannah? The girl who tried to scare us with a curtain?"

Her head moved slightly, a short nod. "Yes."

"Do you happen to know where she's at?"

Tenel Ka's eyes drifted closed.

He waited.

Finally they opened. "It's just a feeling, but try the Temple of the Blueleaf Cluster."

Anakin watched her for a moment, and then nodded his head. "Thanks."

Without waiting for a response, he turned away and left the temple. He stood at the gates, and looked towards the north and the Temple of the Blueleaf Cluster. He could just make out the stone of its parapets from where he was standing.

He turned and looked the other way, looking out over the town and his apartment. Sighing, he faced the woods once again and began walking. He splashed through the frigid water of the small stream which separated the two temples, and then continued trudging up the nearly non-existent path.

Finally he reached the small clearing which held the temple. He ducked into the building through the doorway, and looked around. The main floor was a large open space and off to the side were thin stairs leading up. Carefully, he climbed those stairs and once he had reached the top could make out the thin outline of Sannah, highlighted by the blue glow from the crystal at the center of the room. The light wavered and pulsed, making Anakin feel as if he was standing on the bottom of a giant pool.

Her voice was soft and filled with sorrow, and though it was not directed at him, Anakin heard it as if she were sitting right beside him, rather than kneeling on the floor a dozen meters away.

"I like this room; it kind of reminds me of being underwater."

He noticed her pull a bag from one of her pockets and slowly unroll it. She then pulled out a meatroll and dropped the bag beside her. Breaking the meatroll in half, she set one piece down on the floor and Anakin wondered just what it was she was doing.

Then she spoke again. "That's your bit, but that's going to be the last of it. I'm all out of allowance. But I think I'll go to sleep now, searching for you all evening made me really tired."

She lay down onto the stone floor, stretching out. As she did so, she revealed the white animal from earlier. It sat on its haunches and was watching him.

Anakin walked the rest of the way into the room, and knelt down beside Sannah. He reached over and scratched the creature's head, and said, "Well, it looks like you were found."

Then he turned his attention to Sannah, brushing the strings of her hair, which were wet, from her face. "You're still an idiot, but you're family. Now it's time to come home."

She moved her head slightly, and Anakin noticed her that the three lines on her neck had grown slightly larger, and had taken on an inflamed look. He ran his finger down the middle one, and a sharp pain flared across the tip of the finger. He pulled back and looked at it, noticing the thin cut. As he watched it oozed a bubble of blood. He stuck the finger in his mouth and sucked on it while looking down at the girl, wondering what was wrong with her.

Pushing that from his mind, he slid his arms under her and picked her up, cradling her gently against his chest. He gently pressed his lips against her forehead and started back the way he had come. When he reached the stairs, he glanced back at where the white creature was still sitting in the middle of the floor.

"Are you coming?" he asked it, not entirely certain why he was addressing it as if it--no, he was intelligent.

To his surprise, the creature stood and began following him, the pads of his feet a quiet whisper against the stone.

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A scream shattered his dream and Anakin's eyes snapped open. Groggily he sat up in bed.

From the hallway, Sannah's voice was loud and scared. "Wh-what? Where? Where am I? How did I get here?

Then she let out a short yelp of pain followed by a loud crash. Anakin groaned as he pulled himself out of bed and stumbled to the door. He stepped out into the hall at the same time as Jaina. Together they turned and walked down to the living room. Anakin activated the lights and they find Sannah tumbled over one of the small decorative tables.

Jaina smiled brightly as she knelt down beside Sannah. "Are you all right?"

Sannah sat up, and looked around the room. "How did I get back here?"

Jaina giggled. "Anakin brought you back."

She turned her eyes onto him, and he could feel the blush as it cropped up on his cheeks. He glanced up towards the ceiling. "Well, I just didn't want you to come knocking on the door in the middle of the night, waking everyone up."

Jaina shook her head. "Don't believe him. He carried you home from wherever he found you." She then stood up, and held her hand out towards Sannah. "Now, it's time to get some sleep."

Sannah took the hand and allowed herself to be helped up. Together the three walked back down the hallway. Jaina said her goodnights and then returned to her room. Sannah stopped by Anakin, and looked at him for a moment, before dropping her attention to her hands.

"What happened to... well, whatever it is?"

"It's in your room," he replied.

"Oh," she said. She then turned from him and took a few steps. Just as Anakin was about to go into his room, she stopped again, and turned once more to look at him. "Just as I was about to go to sleep, I heard someone talking to me..."

Anakin nodded his head, saying, "That was me."

"What did you say?"

He grinned. "A eulogy."

Frustration flared to life on her face. "I knew you were trying to kill me."

Anakin laughed and she turned from him, stomping down the hall towards her room. When she had arrived, she paused once again. Then she looked at Anakin, and he noticed the tears that rimmed her eyes. "Thank you."

Then she darted into her room, leaving Anakin alone in the hallway. A smile on his face.

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