29 - Balance
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Third Person POV
The moment Anakin Skywalker took his last breath, the exact second his heart stopped beating; every force user alive felt it.
For many it was a simple tug on the heart strings, but for some—those closest to him—it was a much stronger pain, but it wasn't just physical pain either, there was also an emotional pain. It felt as if a part of them died and they were left with a hollow place in their chest; the place their force bound connection to Anakin used to be.
Obi-Wan knew the second the pulse of the final heart beat went through his body; he clutched his chest, and dropped his cane. Tears swelled in his eyes as his heart instantly broke beyond repair, and he dropped to his knees - a heart broken sob escaped his throat, "Anakin...No."
He knew his brother was gone, and now all he could feel was a deep sorrow and regret. Regret that their last interaction was a fight, and he's sorrowful because he knows he'll never get to hug, or tell Anakin that he loves him again. And he regrets not saying or doing that more.
Meanwhile, Ahsoka was upstairs holding a sleeping Grogu to her chest as she quietly sobbed on the bedroom floor. She was taking him to bed the moment she felt both Anakin and Ti pass.
Losing them both tore her apart in different ways, and so she broke down; hugging the child close for comfort.
She very nearly got on a ship and flew to Coruscant herself to help, but she knew that she needed to be there for the child, and for Obi-Wan. The bad batch is still busy giving the surgeries to the four so they're not of much help right now, and she had to be here in case of an attack.
So now she's placing her faith in the gods and praying for them to save the last of the family she has left.
Then there's the person who felt the most anguish with Anakin's passing, and she didn't even understand why. If Lilith wasn't already on her back, the pain alone would have crippled her down to her knees.
"Why does this hurt so much?" She questioned aloud while clutching her chest to ease her damaged heart, and wiping away her involuntary tears.
Although Lilith is completely unaware of why she is in so much pain, her subconscious knows, remembers. Hence the way her body and emotions are reacting, her subconscious gained a bit of control.
Cal looked away from Anakin, gazing back down at his former Master, "Because you love him." He choked on a sob, his grip tightening around the handle of his lightsaber.
He was having a difficult time figuring out what his next move should be. At fist he thought about killing her, but the fact that she's showing some form of remorse was placing a small piece of hope in his heart. And it's that little piece of hope that he's clinging to that's keeping him from making what he worries would be a mistake.
Lilith immediately shook her head; Cal's words, along with Sidious' constant whispers in her head saying the complete opposite were swirling in her mind, "No," She mumbled in denial, "What did you do to me?" She cried; her heart was slowly coming undone, and she felt like the world around her was closing in, "You're doing something to me, I know you are."
She convinced herself that he was using an empathic ability on her; one that would be unknown to her limited mind, but if only that were true.
Cal shook his head slowly, "No Master, you're hurting because you've loved him since you were both children. He was your best friend and you killed him." Cal was purposely trying to mess with her emotions, hoping that a trigger as strong as this would be enough to get her to remember who she really is.
Lilith attempted to stand up, but Yoda was the one to use the force to push her back down to the ground, "Grieving Anakin, your heart is - lying, your padawan is not." He stepped away from Anakin's pale body and got closer to the daughter he's missed more than anything.
Lilith's amber eyes snapped to Yoda, and she narrowed them; too afraid to believe anything other than what Sidious has told her, "Liars and manipulators, that's all he said you are-" She paused when her attention was directed towards something else.
Her eyes landed on Artoo, who just rolled away from Anakin's side. They say that droids can't experience human emotions, but if that were actually possible; Artoo would have a broken heart right about now.
Artoo was Anakins faithful droid and best friend; he also knows what Anakin's last wish would be. He would want his (y/n) to come back, and Artoo was determined to make that happen. He had an advantage to reach her that nobody else had; visual proof.
He knew keeping everything he believed was recording worthy would come in handy one day. Although he was initially hoping that the footage would be of good use at the wedding he had anticipated for; that was his little plan, to show you your most cherished memories.
So once Artoo had Liliths eyes on him. He displayed images that immediately captured her attention; it was a holographic recording of her with Anakin.
*'"I know you said you didn't need one, but I felt like you deserved one." Anakin reached forward and pulled a ring from a box, "May I?" He asked as he held his other hand out for her left hand.
She nodded as a few stray tears escaped her eyes. He placed the ring on her finger gently, and instantly held it up so it could shine in the light, "Ani this must have cost a fortune."
He shook his head as he grabbed her hand and placed a kiss on her fingers, "Don't you worry about that, it looks perfect on you." He smiled as he moved her hand side to side, watching the ring sparkle just as she was.
"I love it, thank you." She leaned forward and pulled him into a hug, "You're the love of my life, I don't know what I would do without you."
Anakin chuckled as he hugged her back, "You're the love of my life too Princess, I can't wait for you to be my wife."
She pulled away to gaze into his eyes, love glimmering through them as she caressed his cheek while slowly smiling.'
Lilith was speechless as she watched the recording finish, and she began to have flashes of memories creep up to her mind. Most of them of Anakin, starting with the moment they met, and continuing on through their childhood.
"No, I don't-" She looked past the droid, her scared eyes landing on Anakin's lifeless body. His head was tilted in her direction, and she couldn't comprehend why due to her denial, but she so badly wanted his eyes to open, "I don't know him." She whispered, tears pooled in her eyes and she thought about getting up and running, but she knew they would only pin her back down, "That wasn't real, this is just a trick to distract me," She mumbled quietly as tears slowly slid down her cheeks.
Even she was having a hard to believing any of the words coming out of her mouth. She was just scared; scared of Sidious, and scared of the truth. She knew that if everything they were throwing at her was true - the reality of it all would destroy her.
" I don't know any of you!" She yelled, "So I definitely don't care about-" Her eyes landed back on Anakin, she could feel a strong ache in her chest whenever she looked at him, and it brought on more tears that quickly spring from her eyes.
Once again, her view of Anakin was blocked with another holographic image. One that struck a core part of her brain, creating a domino affect on her memories.
*'"Did you come here to kill me?"
Anakin's eyes widened, "No, listen to-"
He stopped speaking and shot his hands up to his neck. Her hand was currently raised in his direction with a deathly gaze, "I did it all for you!" She shouted as water pooled in her eyes, "Why can't you see that I was trying to make everything better for us?"
She squeezed tighter and Anakin dropped down to his knees, "(y/n)-" He tried to speak, but choked instead, "Princess stop-"
She blinked rapidly like she was pulling herself from a trance and released her grip on him. Anakin took a deep inhale to gain back what his deprived oxygen. Only to begin to cough violently, "I'm so sorry Anakin, I didn't mean to hurt you," She apologized with a deep sadness in her tone.
Anakin kept his watery eyes on her, "I forgive you, if you just please get on this ship and leave here with me." He begged her in a hoarse tone before coughing once more.
She shook her head, "No, but you need to go."
He slowly stood up while shaking his head, "I can't," He stubbornly responded, "Not without you."
She backed away from him to create some distance, "I have to finish what I started, I can't stop until I have the knowledge that I need for us to be happy."
"(y/n), I won't be happy if you continue to do this. You're breaking my heart. We are all we need, I love you, so please stop this."
She slowly shook her head with no change in her features, "Love won't save you Anakin, only my new powers can do that."
"But at what cost?" He shouted, crying from his broken heart, "You're a good person don't do this."
"But I have to!" She shouted back; tears forming in her eyes as well, "I'm doing this for you Ani, to protect you."
"Don't do that," He shook his head as he slowly backed away from her once more, "Don't spill blood in my name."
She paused as she stared him down with her sickening yellow gaze, "But I have," She growled menacingly, "And I will do it again, a hundred times over."
He slowly brought his hand to his lightsaber handle, "You're going down a path that I can't follow Princess." He sniffled; tightening his grip on it, "I'm begging you to get on this ship with me and leave all of this behind."
She stubbornly shook her head once more with a cold look in her eyes, "No."
A whimper escaped his lips as he pulled his lightsaber from his belt, "You're not giving me much a choice baby." He reluctantly ignited his blue lightsaber.
Her eyes slowly trailed down to the weapon his hand, "What are you doing?"'*
"He was trying to stop me from making the biggest mistake of my life." (Y/n) uttered; tears poured down her cheeks as the final memory that she was missing fell back into place, like a puzzle was being completed.
The affect Sidious had on her wore off and she was able to remember everything.
Words couldn't describe the relief and joy that Yoda and Cal felt when they realized that the one talking was no longer Lilith, but (Y/n).
They were the only ones feeling any ounce of joy though, because the lost Angel was being hit with a new kind of grief. Especially now that she fully understands that it was her who took the life of the only man she's ever loved.
"What have I done?" She whimpered, "Master Yoda, what did I just do?" Her whimpers turned into sobs, which then turned into screams as she attempted to crawl to Anakin's side, "No, Anakin!" Regret and guilt flooded her heart, and the memory of stabbing him was on repeat and too much for her; so she began to hyperventilate.
"it's okay, (y/n), it's okay," Cal dropped down and tried his best to calm her down, but nothing was working. She cried hysterically while reaching over his shoulder for the love of her life.
"Let me go to him," She begged for Cal to let her out of his hold. He was merely trying to give her comfort, and keep her away from having that image of Anakin; but the only thing she wanted was to hold her fiancé in her arms, "I said let me go to him!" She shouted, using the force to shove—not just him—but Master Yoda away who was also trying to get closer to help her in her distraught state.
As soon as she had nothing in her way, (Y/n) quickly crawled to Anakin's side before placing a hand on his chest and pushing herself up, "Baby I'm so sorry," She whispered; caressing his cheek and moving his blonde curls out of his face, "Please forgive me Ani," She sobbed, dropping her face into his shoulder where she let out a pain-filled scream, the mask amplifying the sound, "I thought I was saving you, but I should've listened to you about him. I should've fucking listened and I'm so sorry; please wake up Ani please." She begged in a cry, grabbing his tunic and desperately shaking him.
"Gone, he is." Master Yoda placed his hand on her shoulder, and she jumped in surprise. She didn't hear or feel him come close to her, her entire focus was on her love lying dead in-front of her.
But then a specific memory came to mind, one she always knew would benefit her one day.
"No, he's gonna be fine," She shook her head in denial as she grabbed Anakin's head and placed it on her lap, "I can save him," She quickly wiped away her tears as she began removing his shirt to get a better look at the wound she inflicted.
Yoda and Cal watched her in confusion, "You can't, he's not even breathing anymore - you won't be able to bring him back." Cal tried to reason with her, but she paid no attention to what he had to say; she refused to believe this is how the story is meant to end.
She knew there was more for Anakin's future. She made the mistake of trying to take on Sidious herself; forgetting that it is Anakin who is meant to fulfill a prophecy. It's him who is supposed to take Palpatine down and destroy the Sith, not her - this was never her story.
"This galaxy needs you so much more than it needs me Anakin," She brushed his hair the side and shivered as his cold face sent a shock through her warm fingertips, "You're their chosen one," She continued to whisper, hoping he was somehow listening, "But me; I'm no one." She placed her hand over his wound and closed her eyes, "You deserve to live."
Master Yoda instantly knew what she was trying to do; it's something he reluctantly taught her about many years ago.
Flashback
"Reading, what are you?" Master Yoda approached a thirteen year old (y/n) who was sitting in the temple gardens with her face buried a book.
She yawned before closing the book, but keeping her thumb between the pages so she wouldn't lose her place, "A love story." She responded to him with a sweet smile, holding up the cover so he could read the title Romeo and Juliet.
He nodded knowingly, "Based off a true Jedi legend that one is." He told her, knowing it would catch her interest. He's learned that she loves reading, and not just anything, but she enjoyed reading about love. So for her to hear about one of these stories being real, well to say that she was interested in hearing it would be an understatement.
She set the book down on the grass and brought her knees up to her chest, "You're telling me that two Jedi's, both bound to never form attachments, kill themselves for love?"
He chuckled with a head shake, "That Earth version was altered to stupidity. Much better and sensible, the original story is." He sat down in front of her with his legs crossed, before he began floating a few inches from the ground, "Both die yes, but one survives." He cryptically spoke.
Confusion flashed across (y/n)'s features, "That doesn't make any sense Master."
He placed his claw in front of his lips, "Patience."
Flashback ends
Yoda's first instinct was to stop her, and that's exactly what she expected him to try and do. And so, before she began, (y/n) created her own force shield that surrounded her and Anakin. One that was strong enough to keep everyone away, but it was only going to last for a few minutes at most.
"No!" Yoda shouted, and her eyes met his for a short moment.
"I love you." She mouthed to both him and Cal, who appeared to be confused on what was happening, before (y/n) turned her attention back to Anakin; her eyes closing, and going back to the days she studied this just after hearing that story.
Flashback
"So one of them died in a war?" (Y/n) questioned with teary eyes; she had a habit of getting into stories and feeling the emotions as if they were her own. So she easily cried when listening to or reading about a tragedy.
Master Yoda nodded, "Yes, Alexander," He clarified after informing (y/n) about the first two Jedi on record to break the code for love. And how it had remained a secret to most until their deaths, "But dead, he did not stay. Bella was heartbroken, distraught - the love of her life he was. So, she found a way, and used the force to breathe life back into him."
(Y/n) sat up, and leaned closer with more intrigue, "How is that possible?"
Flashback ends
(Y/n) could feel it, the consequences of this ability. The same reason why Master Yoda was trying to break through her shield and stop her. The side effect of this power was an inevitable tragedy, but she didn't care; all she could think about was seeing him breathe again.
A light shined off of both (y/n) and Anakin, a light so bright that it was close to blinding for anyone watching. Including the clone soldiers who were standing idly by without a command to go off of. They simply watched as their commander attempted to resurrect the very person they were brought to kill.
(Y/n)'s shield that was keeping everyone from disturbing her was beginning to weaken, because she herself was now becoming weak. Yoda was seconds from breaking through, but Cal was the one to stop him, "We have to respect what she wants to do."
"But-"
"I know," Cal cut him off without allowing him to finish, "But it's her choice, and I wouldn't want her to stand in my way, so I won't stand in hers." Cal's watery eyes looked down at the sad green man; when he put together what was happening, he too wanted to stop her. But then he put himself in the position, and thought of it being Ahsoka in Anakin's place. So he understands her choice, and would make the exact same one.
They both turned their gazes back to the scene in front of them, one that now had a full audience with both Mando and Rex waking up - their dazed eyes glued to the light.
"I love you Anakin." (Y/n) sniffled as she used that very love she had for him to give herself the last both of strength she needed to bring him back.
After a few moments of silence and deep focus, a finger twitched, and a heart that was once frozen had a beat.
The more life being brought into Anakin's body, the more the inevitable affects were taking a toll on (y/n). She weakly dropped her hand down onto his stomach. Right on the area that once had a fatal wound, but was now gone.
Then, her eyes darted open when she heard a short gasp flow past his lips, "(y/n)?" Anakin spoke in a weak, soft voice.
The second (y/n) looked down, their eyes locked and relief washed over her body, "I did it." She laughed in amazement, her hidden smile reaching from ear to ear, "I knew I could save you." She caressed his cheek as a tear fell and landed on his chin. She felt complete now, she did exactly what she set out to do; she saved him from death.
Anakin slowly sat up, confused on how he was alive. He was having a hard time remembering his last moments of life, but he was also overjoyed to see her by his side, "Are you-" He brought his hand up and unhooked her mask; he was slow, giving her enough time to object if she chose to, "Really you?" He brought the mask down, revealing a familiar infectious smile that sparked hope into his heart.
She nodded as she leaned forward and pressed her forehead against his, "Yes it's me." Her smile widened.
She knew she only had seconds before the inevitable, but she wanted to enjoy this moment; having him in her hold only if it's for a short amount of time.
She wanted to take advantage of the time she had, and say exactly what she needed to say. Her eyes watered, "Anakin I'm so sorry for everything I did. I'm sorry for all of it-"
He cut her off as he cupped her cheeks, and crashed their lips together in a passionate mantra. He moved his lips quickly against hers as he ran his fingers into her hair, but caring that they had an audience.
Her apology was unneeded to him, having her as her was enough, "I'm sorry too," He whispered in between kisses, "I love you Princess, and we'll get through this. We'll get Sidious out of our lives and finally have what we deserve." He smiled with hope.
He still had so many questions on how he was alive, he felt himself slip away. But he was too overjoyed in this moment to ruin it with questions; knowing him and his love were on the same side and she was finally free of Palpatine's manipulation.
(Y/n) backed away with a smile as she pressed her hand against his cheek. Anakin was blissfully unaware that his hope was seconds away from being taken from him, "I love you more," She whispered as a single tear slid down her cheek.
And those were her last words before her eyes closed, and she fell forward; landing in Anakin's arms.
Flashback in y/n's POV
I stared up at the ceiling as I played Master Yoda's story in my mind like a movie on replay.
Alexander and Bella were two Jedi Knights who fell in love during the old republic. They had a secret marriage that went on for years, lasting until they both took their last breaths. And they even had a secret child that was raised off world by trusted individuals.
Alexander was the one who was lucky enough to raise their child and live out his life until he reached old age, but he did so with longing and sorrow in his heart. He was grateful to watch his his child grow up, but he missed his wife every single day until he died without ever remarrying.
During a battle, Alexander was struck down by a Sith; stabbed straight through his chest mercilessly. That Sith, Darth Tenbrous.
Bella found him and felt like her world had completely shattered around her. He was her best friend, her other half, and a much better person than her in her eyes.
So eventually she did what most would consider selfish, but she knew their son would be better off with him over her. So she used a force ability called 'force resurrection.' It allows the user to bring someone back to the land of the living, but with only one catch.
The one performing the ability must die in the others place; to create balance.
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