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“Grandma?“
I turn around and look at my granddaughter whose usually cute face probably resembles my own at the moment a bit too much with spotting all those frowning wrinkles on her forehead.
“Yes, sweetie?”
“Are you sad granny?”
Now I’m the one frowning, not quite understanding what she means.
“What makes you think that?” I ask, pulling her onto my lap and hugging her.
“Mama said you are always sad when you go to this room.”
Again I frown at her, but I slowly start to understand what she means.
“No, love, this room is just filled with so many little things that I collected over the years, it just makes me remember things.” I tell her, and stroke over her fuzzy red hair, which I know she already hates as much as I and my daughter have.
She pulls my hand away and looks up at me, biting her bottom lip.
“Will… will you tell me about the Sith prince?”
I have to chuckle because her voice has gotten so low that I barely understood her question. Bless her for being so curious.
“Sith prince?” I ask raising an eyebrow, just to tease her and see if she has the same courage that seems to have been bred into all of us Starfyre’s.
“I should not ask you, Mama said it’s forbidden.”
I try very hard to keep a straight face and not burst out in laughter. Yes, no one dares to mention “him” when I’m around. I don’t know maybe they all think I will burst into tears or something, it’s really ridiculous.
“So she has,” I say. “And she’s not all that wrong. But the Sith was never a prince, not even close to it. In fact some would call him a monster.”
My granddaughter’s hands suddenly clench into my robes and she holds on to me. I hug her tightly and kiss her forehead.
“Don’t worry he would never harm you, I wouldn’t let him touch you.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really, he has never single handedly defeated me.” Which is true, but then again, I never forced a real “to the death” confrontation with him. But my little mousey doesn’t have to know this.
“So is he more powerful than uncle Zhy?”
I have to laugh at that. “Darling, don’t worry sweetie, uncle Zhy could always handle himself against the Sith prince.”
She nods at that. “Good! When I’m a grown-up I will defeat even uncle Zhy.”
“I’m sure you will, sweetie.”
I can’t take away her illusion on how hard it would be for a non-force user to beat a Sith. But who knows she might be force sensitive after all.
“Gran, why did you fight with the Sith prince? Mama always tells me not to fight and to be a good girl.”
I really wish I could give her an easy answer to that. But how to explain so many things she doesn’t understand at her age?
“I didn’t really fight with him there was no time to fight. I was just so angry with him for such a long time that he threw his life away because his pride mattered more than, family and loved ones. But that’s just a part of what the Sith are.”
She frowns at me but then nods. “I think I understand, Gran.”
“You’re a smart girl Khyrella.” I smile at her and kiss her before she hops off my knees and runs out of the room.
The moment she leaves I can feel him behind me. I slowly close my eyes and lean back as strong arms encircle me from behind.
“I still regret that decision. Maybe…” I turn around and place a finger to his ghostly lips.
“Don’t, you did what you thought was the right choice.” I smile at him. “Although it was a surprise to see you lose your temper like that.”
He nods at me, and I wished I was stronger in the force, I can’t touch him the way he can touch me. His fingers brush under my chin softly and I look up, he bends and just before our lips meet he whispers.
“But I will always be here now to watch over you.”