Chapter Text
The night was cold on Tatooine. Lana Beniko stood on her estate balcony looking over the long desert, wearing a soft green dress, her blond hair tied loosely behind her. A deep breath pulled her from her worried thoughts and relaxed her pursed lips.
“She is resting comfortably. The best healers in the galaxy are at our call.” The Miraluka Grandmaster placed his hand on her shoulder and gave a soft squeeze.
“I know, and I trust you.” Lana replies, her voice soft and trailing off.
Thuross released her shoulder and looked back into the home, leaning against the railing, “Hanivah will be need some rest, and then you can meet your daughter. Walk with me?”
Lana's grip on the balcony relaxes and she exhales, “I would like that, Comma-, sorry, Thuross. It's late....... When will Theron and Sinetra arrive?”
“The weather on Belsavis took a turn, their ship needs to be repaired, but they should be here in two days.” Thuross responded softly, walking down the stairs to the courtyard.
Though the Dread Masters of Belsavis may be long dead, the disillusionment of many Sith in the Empire with the peace talks has led them to scavenge any dark side nexuses in the galaxy. The Eternal Alliance, though mostly incorporated with the Republic, has focused their efforts in stamping out any new threats since Darth Malgus was dealt with. Elom, Belsavis, Yavin 4, and surprisingly Coruscant has seen many Sith captured while raiding Jedi and Sith tombs and stealing artifacts.
“I should travel to Carrick Station in a few weeks, see what Tau and Arn have learned” she thought to herself.
“I'm surprised they had any issues with the ship with Vette and HK on board. What happened?”
“Oh, nothing too terrible, bad snowstorm froze over the thrusters, twisted part of the stabilizers, no attacks.” Thuross slows his steps and sits on a bench across from the garden. “Ardinondu sent you the tea seeds, I see” he says softly as he looks towards his Sith friend.
Lana was finally able to step away from combat in the last few years, much to Thuross' and Senya's suggestion. Four years, away from the Alliance, left the woman a chance to relax, and spend her time on hobbies. While officially retired, Lana kept close contact with Gnost-Dural, though even then, the Kel Dor Jedi Master kept the work conversations short, in exchange of philosophical discussions. She would get annoyed, but she enjoyed their talks.
Lana calms her breathing and sits down next to Thuross, the Hero of Tython, the Outlander, the Commander of the Eternal Alliance, now the Jedi Grandmaster, and forever one of her closest friends.
“I was happy when we were able to go back to Manaan, after the war slowed down” Lana said, head back looking at the stars. “Once Dr. Oggurobb took over a few of the facilities, he had Hanivah and I do a tour there.”
Thuross turned his head, the firm leather sash covering his lack of eyes. “Its not uncommon, you know, two people like yourselves, wanting children. There's always a way.”
After a moment of comfortable silence, a small breeze blew through the courtyard, sending a bristle through the small grass park and a soft voice through the two's minds. Lana smiles, and brushes a tear away and slowly standing. “Well, it doesn't seem like she's sleeping, shall we see them?”
“Lanivah is a little on the nose though” a Imperial accented pale-red skinned Twi'lek says walking towards them.
“Quiet Sel, it was her choice, and it's perfect” Lana jokingly snaps back. “Thank you, though, for your help the past few days.”
-
Up the stairs and into the bedroom alone, Lana softly knocks and enters. Seeing her normally talkative and snarky Mirialan wife, half-asleep and holding their new daughter on her chest, brings another happy tear to her eye. Lana is overwhelmed despite the calming emotions emanating through the Force bond between the three of them.
Hanivah looks up, eyes lidded and smiles, “She has your eyes, that'll stand out.”
Lana sits on the bed, running her hands over the sleeping infant, and smirks, “Shhh, don't ruin the moment. We have a few days before Vette and Sin get here, and knowing them, they'll have tons of questions.”
Hanivah leans back, and yawns, “It shouldn't be as hard for them as it seems to be, its a shame.” Lana lies down along side her family, cupping her wife's face. The two lean in for a soft kiss.
“Are you okay?” Lana asks, eye-to-eye and sharing a pillow.
“I'm happy. Who knew, we met at Manaan, and now we have our little girl from Manaan” Hanivah exhales with a smirk, hearing a soft coo from the half-Human and Mirialan child. “Every thing's sore, but I'm happy. The next one is yours though.” She wiggles a few fingers, reaching our with her mind, turning off the lights.
-
One of the many things Lana brought out of her was her innate Force abilities. Mirialans always have a connection to the Force, but while it simply expanded her luck and aim during her teenage years of smuggling, Hanivah learned meditations, and simple abilities during the last 10 years shes known Lana.
She was hired along with her crew by this angry, distraught Sith during the initial Eternal Empire attacks ravaged the core world. She was surprised to see her again after Yavin 4. When everyone said their goodbyes, they both thought it was going to be a simple one night, though closer to one week, stand. But when Corso got a holocall from her while they were hiding out on forest settlement on Arbra, Hanivah jumped at the chance to see her again.
Meeting Lana, slumped in a back alley on Nar Shaddaa, the Sith broke down, spilling all of her anxieties, worries, and failures at battles across the core worlds to the equally distraught smuggler. This was quite a different Lana from a year back.
A shattered speeder, and half a dozen whiskeys finally calmed her down, as they left the planet, seeking some Eternal Empire traitor named Koth. Years later, she helped with the Zakuul prison break, freeing the rage-filled Emperor's Wrath Sinetra, while Lana fled with the captured Jedi Thuross. She comes to find out these two were there during the Emperor's assassination, in-turn binding Valkorian to their minds.
Years of fighting, new allies, blossoming love, and too many deaths, and the war for the Eternal Throne ended. The fighting never stopped, but they were able to finally step away.
Between Lana and Sinetra, the new Jedi Order has been more accepting of Sith, not adopting their doctrine of course, but allowing for teachings, and philosophies to mix between the two stark contrasts.
The Council would occasionally object, but with the Grandmaster and Gnost-Dural vouching on behalf of the two heroes of the galaxy, any objections are quickly dismissed during questions towards the two born Sith. The kindness, especially, from the previous Emperor's Wrath was particularly disarming. Always looking in on the younger students and helping with any task required of him around the Jedi temple, Vette half-jokingly offered to build a house for her and Sinetra at the new Kalikori village a few hours away, and, just a few months later, a house was built at the new Kalikori village.
Lana, on the other hand, keeps mostly off the Jedi homeworld. Even years later, and offers of forgiveness from Thuross and other Jedi, she still feels the guilt for the attacks she organized on the planet on behalf of Darth Angral.
The closest she's been convinced to travel to is the satellite orbital station, dropping Tau and Arn off for a pilgrimage event one year. They did their best to coax her to join them, but the farther she could be from the planet and the closer to her wife, the better. She didn't have a home on Dromund Kaas, Tython, or any of the Core Worlds, for that matter.
Hanivah found it best to purchase a location on Tatooine for them, under the guise of an Outer Rim rest hub for the Alliance, with that function quickly being revealed a ruse to Lana, it being a simple homestead. Finally a place she could call home, warm days, and cold nights.
-
Lana knew their child would be gifted with the Force. Anyone Force-sensitive around her pregnant wife could feel the energy from little Lanivah. She finally agreed to allow Thuross' wife Kira to be her master when the time came. Lana felt a connection to Kira during the battles with Valkorian, sensing a familiar demeanor to her own, at least one she could trust from the woman, and, given Lanivah's desire to become a Jedi, Kira would step in to handle her training, along many others in their life jumping at the chance to help.
Lana would teach her more simpler abilities for the first few years, but the two mothers knew that their child would be special, and wouldn't keep her stuck in a back-water planet like Tatooine.
“The stars do not wait for you, my love, you need to reach out and take them” Lana whispered.