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starstwinkleplanetsshine · 6 months

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Twin Suns

Even though Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa are growing up millions of miles apart, the Force is watching over them as they find themselves in similar dire situations, and gives Beru Whitesun and Breha Organa some help with their two children of the Force.

This is my favorite thing I've ever written--I hope you enjoy!

If you prefer, you can read this on Ao3!

“Luke! Luke!” Aunt Beru’s voice carried on the biting wind into the vast Tatooine desert, and she prayed to all the ancient gods she didn’t believe in that her young nephew would hear her. She feared the swirling sands would cut through her words just as they were cutting into her skin, tearing them to shreds before they could reach the boys’ ears. She had told him he could play outside a while ago, but that was before the winds shifted and the sands started moving in that tell-tale way they only did before a storm. She knew how dangerous the sandstorms could be, but the five year old in her care did not. He had not been weathered by the dust and burned by the suns as she had, his spirit was still as naive and bright as the stars that lit the gentle night sky, lighting their only time of relief from the unforgiving suns. Sand had been woven into her being and etched into her bones, and she could feel its power rising as it threatened to display its dominance. Luke was too young to feel it now, but one day he, too, would learn. But until he did, Beru knew it was up to her to protect him.

Fear was beginning to rise in her as a wall of sand moved steadily toward their farm, little Luke nowhere in sight. She didn't know when her husband, Owen, appeared beside her, scanning the horizon for the boy, but his harsh voice cut through the wind.

“If he doesn’t come back before the storm hits--”

“--He will, Owen. He has to.”

“Beru, what if--”

“--Not another word. I won’t even consider it.”

Luke had been in their care since he was just days old, and although he was not of her blood, Beru loved him as a son. Protected him as her own. And not just because she remembered the broken boy who was his father and the kind woman who was his mother, not just because she wanted to keep her promise and honor their memory. Luke was her baby, he had been since the moment the heartbroken Jedi had placed him in her arms.

She promised Obi-Wan she would keep him safe, and that was a promise she was not about to break.

She shifted her prayers from the ancient gods of Tatooine to the Force, something she was only recently beginning to believe in, and she called out again.

“Luke! Luke!”

“Leia! Leia!” The voice that called out across the forest surrounding the Palace was not the voice of the Queen, but of a worried mother. Breha Organa could see the dark clouds brewing above, could feel the electricity in the air and hear the deafening cracks of thunder. Alderaan was a peaceful planet in every aspect except for its storms. When they struck, they carried all the righteous fury which lived in the hearts of all its citizens, the torrents coming down like the impassioned words that fly from the mouths of their Senators and leaders. Water was the lifeblood of Alderaan, and it could take life just as easily as it gave it. When Breha told the young princess she could play in the vast forest, her favorite place on their planet, she had no idea that within a short time the skies would turn violent and danger would threaten their peaceful paradise.

“Any sign of her, Dear?” The voice of her husband brought Breha out of her head and paused the worst case scenarios that were running through her mind. All she could do in response was shake her head no. She never had to put on any facades with Bail. She often felt he was the only person she could truly be herself around. Well, him and Leia.

Leia.

Where could she be?

“I have guards searching the entire palace and surrounding area for her, the last time someone saw her was about thirty minutes ago in the clearing near the palace doors.” Breha was only half listening to her husband's calm, soothing voice, her eyes still scanning the edge of the trees. Bail had an almost unsettling gift of remaining calm and logical in even the most dire and intense situations, a trait that not only made him a good prince, senator, and leader, but also a trait that made him a good husband and father. Breha was grateful for that gift at this moment.

“I would have never let her play by herself if I knew a storm would be coming.” Bail placed a loving hand on his wife's shoulder and spoke to her in a low, gentle voice, pretending not to notice the way her hands were shaking and her lip was quivering.

Breha Organa was not a woman easily shaken.

“No one knew, Dear. That’s what makes these storms so dangerous. There was no way of knowing, and we always let Leia play freely in this part of the forest. You cannot blame yourself.” Even though Leia was only five, and a Princess, it was common for her to roam around the Palace and a small area of the woods unattended, for someone always had eyes on her. All of the Palace’s inhabitants, and all of Alderaan for that matter, loved her as their own and had gotten used to seeing the small, giddy ball of sunlight bouncing about the castle. The servants liked to joke that you could keep track of where Leia had been by looking at how brightly people were smiling. Alderaan was a perfectly safe place for a young princess to grow up, perfectly safe, that is, except for when storms struck.

“What if we can't find her, Bail? What are we to do if--”

“--Breha, Dear, we mustn't even think of that. Someone will find her. We will find her. We still have some time before the storm hits in full, and by then she will be safely in our arms, and we’ll all be snuggled together on the couch watching the lighting dance across the sky as we always do. We will find Leia.” Bail placed a loving kiss on her cheek and took her hand gently, providing stability and safety that gave Breha the peace and security to brave a thousand storms.

Although, despite her husband's best efforts, Breha’s heart still raced for her daughter. For, since the moment little Leia had been placed into her arms, she was hers. In Leia, Breha saw the strength and the compassion of her birth mother and sensed the fire and power of her birth father. Every morning, Breha sent a silent prayer of gratitude to Padme Amidala and promised her she would keep her daughter safe, love her as her own, and honor her memory in the way she raised Leia. She remembered the young, wise, kind, beautiful woman Padme was and when she looked down into the big brown eyes of her daughter, she saw Naboo staring back at her. All Breha wanted was to protect Leia, the girl she loved as her own, the girl who was her own, and so as the winds picked up and she felt her tears mix with the first drops of rain that fell from the sky, Breha screamed her daughters name into the wind as she searched frantically through the trees.

----------------

Beru was now running, hoping that her feet could keep her ahead of the wall of sand that was steadily approaching. She had circled their farm twice, no three times, or was it four? Beru didn’t know, she had lost count, the only thing on her mind was finding Luke. He couldn’t have gone far, could he? His little legs could only go so fast, and he knew to never go beyond their property line. Although he was still young, Luke understood the dangers of the sands beyond. Every child on Tatooine did, knowing where it was safe and where it was not was a matter of life or death, and it was taught to them so young it was as if they had been born with the knowledge. Beru pulled her poncho tighter around her and tried in vain to shield her eyes from the sand as she strained to see into the haze, the ground beginning to mix with the sky and make the two indistinguishable. She was speaking out loud now, her voice once again lost in the wind,

“Please, Luke. Be safe. Come back to me”

----------------

Breha had been searching for close to an hour when she allowed herself to cry. Her clothes were now soaked to the skin, she refused to even stop for a moment when Bail offered to get her a raincoat, insisting they keep searching. Her husband gently took her hand in his and looked her deep in the eyes, wiping away the tears that were flowing down her cheeks like the raindrops falling from the sky. He didn’t say anything, he had already reassured her with words in every way he could think of, and he knew his wife enough to know what she needed.

And what she needed right now was to find their daughter.

And so he let her turn away from him, he watched as she began another lap, running the same course she had for the better part of half an hour. Bail took off in the opposite direction, scanning the trees so intensely he was sure he would have them memorized by the end of the day. The forest that was usually their safe place, a portion of them still technically on royal ground and patrolled by guards, a happy and beautiful retreat from the stress and demand of the palace, now turned into an arena of dread and uncertainty. He whispered a silent prayer to the Force, for although he could not feel it, he knew it was still there, still keeping watch over the galaxy,

“Please, Leia. Be Safe. Come back to us.”

----------------

The sands were furious now, whipping through the air and stinging anything unfortunate enough to be without shelter. Ripping through skin, blinding the eyes. A wall of impenetrable haze blocking out the searing light of the suns above. Beru was desperate now, a sinking feeling of helplessness forming in the pit of her stomach, overwhelming her and filling her eyes with tears, tears that turned to mud on her cheeks as they mixed with the sand in the air. The desert was always hungry, biding its time, plotting and waiting until it could devour. Growing up on Tatooine you know this, you know that at any moment the sands could rage or the suns could scorch or any number of dangers could claim you as their own. But Beru had made a promise, a promise to the broken Jedi who showed up on their doorstep with the helpless, beautiful, perfect child in his arms. A promise to the queen and senator who’s smile shone through her son every time he laughed. A promise to her brother-in-law who was lost long ago, but who she still remembered and wondered about. A promise, however faint and far away, to the distant Force. And now, the only thing she could think was that she couldn't keep that promise, that she was breaking it. She had failed. The weight of her guilt and fear sent her to the ground, her knees hitting the hard dirt and her hands going reflexively to cover her face from the barrage of wind and dust that was now beginning to pick up around her. It was over. He was gone. How would she tell Owen? How would she—

“Aunt Beru?”

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The rain was coming down in sheets now, relentlessly pouring onto the soft earth. Drenching Brehas skin, stinging it, blinding her eyes. She could only see a few feet in front of her as the downpour raged and grew in intensity. The wall of rain blended with the dark gray mass of clouds above, becoming one, blocking out the sun. The only way to tell between the two was when the clouds would split open to allow a searing bolt of electricity through, lightning that could strike anywhere and ignite the forest below. Breha had passed worry, past panic, past desperation, and was now experiencing a fear and pain that she had never known and couldn’t name, as the deepest sense of helplessness she had ever felt began to take root deep within her. She had only felt this way once in her life, and now standing in the downpour she felt like that terrified and dying sixteen year old atop Appenza Peak all over again, her heart failing and her lungs no longer taking in air. Alderaan was a loving planet, generous and quick to give abundantly to its inhabitants. Taking was not in its nature, but there were moments, however rare, when the skies would rage or the seas would churn and everyone would be reminded just how severe their home could be, if it chose to. But Breha had made a promise, a promise to the wise Jedi who had long been a loyal friend to her husband. A promise to her own friend, a fellow queen and trusted ally to Bail in the senate, a role model to even Breha despite the woman being much younger than her. A promise to the fallen Republic itself, to keep the flame of hope alive, no matter how dim the ember may grow. A promise to the thing she knew held the galaxy together, to the Force that she trusted in to this very day. And now, the only thing she could think was that she couldn’t keep that promise, that she was breaking it. She had failed. The weight of her guilt and sorrow sent her to the ground, her knees hitting the damp earth and her hands, in vain, trying to wipe the rain and tears from her eyes. It was over. She was gone. How would she tell Bail? How would she—

“Mom?”

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The wind was so loud Beru almost missed the small, quivering voice. And if it weren’t for the five-year-old placing his tiny hand on her shoulder, she would've told herself she was imaging it. There was no way this fragile, helpless, gentle boy could’ve found his way to her in the middle of this dust storm. Beru barely even knew which way the farm was at this point, how could he have found her? It seemed impossible, and yet there he was.

“Luke!” Beru screamed into the wind, but this time with joy and surprise. Her tears fell harder now, but they were no longer tears of fear and pain. They were tears of relief, flowing down her cheeks and she didn’t even think to wipe them away. In a moment the small child was wrapped in his Aunt’s arms, the woman instinctively wrapping her own poncho around his face to shield his eyes from the stinging sands. Scooping Luke up, she began to walk in the direction of her home, at least she thought she was going the right direction. The storm had not hit in full yet, thank the gods, or else the two of them would’ve been as good as dead. She could still see shapes and outlines of her surroundings, and before long she was stumbling against the wind into the safety of their home.

She set Luke on the kitchen table and cradled his face in her hands, examining the small boy for any injuries.

“Are you okay? Where were you? How did you find me?” The words poured out of Beru’s mouth as fast as the winds that had just been whipping around them, less asking the questions and more needing some outlet for all of her emotions. To her surprise, the small boy in her arms let out a small laugh, but she could see lines down his cheeks where tears had cut through the dust and told the whole world how scared he was.

“I was playing over by the canyon, I’m sorry Aunt Beru I know I shouldn't have been that far from home. Then the wind started picking up and the dust started to rise up on the horizon, just like you told me it did before a storm. I got really scared and started to run back home but then a man appeared from beside a rock and told me I wouldn’t make it back in time and that I should hide in a cave for a while.” At this Beru pulled away, confusion clearly written on her face.

“A man?” She did not like the sound of that. “What did he look like?” Owen had told her that he saw Obi-Wan Kenobi on occasion near the rocks that separated their land from the canyon beyond. And even though Beru didn’t understand why, she knew her husband had told the Jedi to stay away from them. She wondered if now he was the only reason their nephew had survived.

“He was tall, with long dark hair, and some of it was in a ponytail. He had hair around his mouth, he wore weird robes that I haven’t ever seen before, and he was very nice. I wasn’t scared of him at all!” Beru thought for a moment. The robes sounded like Obi-Wan, but she knew he didn’t have long hair or a ponytail.

“He told you to hide?” Was all she said.

“Ya, he pointed to a cave in the rocks that would keep me safe. He told me that you would come looking for me soon, and that he would tell me when you were close enough to run to.”

“He came into the cave with you?” Beru was getting more and more concerned now, her voice serious.

“No, he stayed outside. I told him the storm wasn’t safe and that he should come with me, but he just smiled and said he would be okay.” Beru didn’t understand. This didn’t sound like something Obi-Wan would do, he would’ve brought Luke back to the farm, she was sure of it.

“And then what happened?”

“I ran to the cave and waited, like he told me to. After a while I thought I heard you calling my name, and then I heard the man’s voice tell me to leave the cave and walk to you, he said that you were close.”

“So he was in the cave with you?”

“Nope, it was just his voice. His body wasn’t there.” Beru couldn't help but let out a small laugh.

“Luke, sweetie, that’s not possible.” The five-year-old merely shrugged his tiny shoulders.

“But that’s what happened, Aunt Beru. And he was right, I walked out of the cave and that's when I saw you kneeling on the ground!” Lukes face shifted slightly, and Beru saw a sadness flash across his eyes that seemed to belong to someone much older, “I’m sorry I scared you, Aunt Beru. I didn’t mean to.” Without thinking, Beru pulled Luke into a tight hug, remembering the feeling of hopelessness that overwhelmed her just minutes before as she stood calling his name into the growing darkness.

“It’s okay, Luke. It was an accident. What’s important is that you’re safe now. You’re home. Everything’s going to be okay.”

The two stayed like that for a long while, Beru holding the small boy in her arms, never wanting to let go again, until eventually Luke fell asleep in her arms. She held him for a few more minutes, knowing that these days of childhood would be gone soon, perhaps sooner than they would for any other child.

Because as much as Beru tried to forget it, Luke was not any other child. He was special, and just when she was beginning to believe that a normal life could be possible for him, the universe reminded her that she held a great responsibility in her hands. That night as she laid the sleeping child in his bed and watched his chest peacefully rise and fall, she whispered a prayer of protection over him. She wasn’t quite sure who it was to, maybe to the ancient gods of Tatooine that she stopped believing in long ago, or maybe to the Force which she could no longer ignore. And as she did, she got this overwhelming feeling in her chest that she was now a part of something much greater, this feeling that there were events that were set into motion long ago that were now intertwined with her destiny. No, intertwined with his destiny. The small, sleeping boy in front of her. He would not stay a boy forever, and she could not shake the feeling that someone out there, something, had great plans for him. Looking at the small, sleeping boy in front of her, she felt a hope, a new hope, rise in her chest that she couldn’t quite explain or understand.

But until the day where his future called upon him, she would hold Luke close, she would keep him safe, so that whatever his destiny was, whatever was waiting for him, he would be ready.

----------------

The rain was so loud, Breha almost missed the small, quivering voice. And if it wasn’t for the five-year-old placing a tiny hand on her shoulder, she would’ve told herself she was imagining it. Breha had told herself her little girl was gone, that she wouldn’t find her in time. That maybe in the morning, when the storm had passed, the Force and the gods of Alderaan would be kind enough to return her child to her, however dazed and damaged she would be by then. Leia finding her, now, in the middle of the wind and rain and thunder and electricity seemed impossible, and yet there she was.

“Leia!” Breha yelled her daughter's name into the howling wind, not in fear and desperation this time, but in surprise and relief. In an instant she wrapped her arms around the small girl, holding her tighter than she ever had before. In moments, the queen had wrapped her own rain poncho around the soaked and shivering girl who was clinging to her mother with everything she had. For a long while neither of them spoke, they just held one another and let their tears fall, mingling with the rain, before one of the royal guards stumbled upon their reunion and guided them back to the forest entrance of the palace. Bail was already waiting for them, pacing nervously and wringing his hands, when they entered the warm safety of their home. The senator let out a sound that was somewhere between a sigh and a sob, overcome by the sight of his wife and daughter safe at last, and was by their side in a second.

“My girls, you’re home, you’re safe at last” was all he said as he wrapped his arms around them, sinking to the floor in a protective hug.

“Are you okay? Where were you? How did you find me?” Breha’s words came tumbling out of her mouth as soon as all of their tears had slowed and they had stood up from their hug.

“I was playing in the forest very far from the doors, I’m sorry Mommy I shouldn't have been so far away. Then the wind started picking up and the thunder got louder and louder and the air got prickly like you said it did before a storm hit. I got really scared and was about to run back home when I heard a voice telling me to wait and hide.” Bail and Breha shared a look of confusion and concern before kneeling down to their daughter.

“You heard a voice?” Breha asked gently.

The small girl nodded. “But not out loud, it was in my head.”

“You heard a voice in your head? And it told you to hide?” It was Bail’s turn to ask.

Leia nodded again, her face very serious. “I found a tree that had big roots that I could hide under. As soon as I was hiding, I saw lightning really close to where I was. I got scared again, but the voice told me that everything would be okay. It told me that you were looking for me, and I felt better.” There was silence again as Bail and Breha shared another look, a knowing look, one that said they both knew what the other was thinking, but neither one of them wanted to say it out loud.

“What did the voice sound like, sweetheart?” Bail’s tone was soft and kind, wanting to understand his daughter.

“It was an old man’s voice, and I don’t know who it was. And he talked really funny, all backwards. But he sounded nice, and I don’t know why, but I trusted him. When I heard it, I felt safe.” At those words, tears rushed into Breha’s eyes once more and Bail nodded slowly, seeming to understand. Neither of them asked anymore questions about the voice. The three were silent for a few moments, before the Princess broke the silence, “I’m sorry Mommy. I’m sorry Daddy. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Tears began to brim in her eyes again, and she looked down to her soaked shoes.

“It’s okay, Leia. What’s important is that you’re safe now. You’re home. Everything’s going to be okay.” Breha wrapped her daughter in her arms as she said those words, but she kept her eyes locked on her husbands. There was a look in his eye that she couldn’t quite place, but she knew he was trying to make sense of what their daughter said, trying to work through all of the emotions and thoughts, just as she was. The Queen and the Senator walked side by side, Breha carrying their daughter to her room, where they read to her and sang with her until she fell asleep. But after turning out the light and walking towards the door, Breha lingered for a moment, and as she felt her husband's hand on her shoulder, she knew Bail was doing the same. She stood in the doorway to the lavish bedroom, filled with all the comforts owed to a princess, and she watched the sleeping girl. She knew as soon as she left this room, her and Bail would have a long talk about the child in their care. A long talk about her past, about her future, about their role in both of those things. A long talk about the galaxy, about The Force. So she lingered, living in this moment where there was nothing but herself, her husband, and their daughter sleeping peacefully in their home. She lingered, knowing that soon these days of childhood would be gone, perhaps sooner than they would for any other child.

Because as much as Breha tried to forget it, Leia was not any other child. And not just because she was a princess of Alderaan. No, Leia was special, and just when she was beginning to believe that a normal royal life could be possible for her, the universe reminded her that she held a great responsibility in her hands. She thought of the world Leia was born into, one of tradition and politics and power. She thought of the gift and curse she inherited from her birth parents that the small girl didn’t even know about, and perhaps would never know about. She thought about the Empire that grew stronger every day, squeezing and constricting those they ruled over like a snake slowly killing its prey, biding its time until it could devour. Breha wondered what kind of future Leia would have, and her heart broke for her. She knew more than most that the life of a Queen was both a privilege and a burden, a great joy and a great weight that one had to carry alone.

Well, maybe not alone.

Breha looked at the peaceful, sleeping child in front of her and she got an overwhelming feeling in her chest that she was a part of something much greater, a feeling that there were events which were set into motion long ago that were intertwined with her destiny. No, intertwined with her destiny. The small, sleeping girl in front of her. She would not stay a child forever, and she could not shake the feeling that someone out there, something, had great plans for Leia. Looking at the small princess in front of her, Breha felt a hope, a new hope, rise in her chest that she was only beginning to understand.

But until the day where Leia’s future called upon her, Breha would hold her close, she would keep her safe, so that whatever her destiny was, whatever was waiting for her, she would be ready.

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ashintheairlikesnow · 2 years

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Kauri and Vince in pain or angst is just ✨👌🏾! Listen we all hate Owen but i gotta admit the man has taste…

CW: References to past domestic violence, discussion of child abuse and domestic violence, and then everything goes to shit at the end

At least, Jake thinks, he isn't running yet.

He stands in the doorway to their bedroom, looking in on Kauri. He looks so small, curled up like that on his side in the center of the enormous oversized king bed that is the one single luxury Jake allows himself. His hair falls over his forehead and along his neck, and through the black curls Jake can see heavy dark eyelashes, just barely resting on his cheek. He's gone more angular with time, lost the last of the softness that had rounded him when they first met.

Still, he seems the same in so many ways. Frightened and curled around the little Roomba that had been with him since he was trapped, has followed him through freedom, and who even now sits with a soft buzzing warmth, her visual sensors two red dots watching Jake, an unblinking guardian.

"He's going to take a shower," Jake says, voice low. Kauri doesn't respond, but his arms tightens minutely around Keira, and he presses his forehead against the curved metal along her side. "He says he mostly just got roughed up. His nose isn't even broken, we thought it was but... just a lot of blood. He'll heal up all right. Just some bumps and bruises and a whole lot of very gross dirt."

Kauri still doesn't move, or even open his eyes.

Jake inhales, slowly, and then steps inside properly, closing the door behind him. The room dips into comfortable darkness, lit only by the streetlight outside. The night has fallen by now, and some of the sweltering daytime heat is finally letting up.

The ceiling fan ticks in a lazy spin overhead, and Jake could reach up and touch it without even stretching onto his toes, but he just sits at the edge of the bed. Keira watches him. Kauri curls up a little tighter around her.

"Kauri. Look at me." There's a pause, and then he does. Those wide blue eyes slowly open, glimmering with tears and shadowed in misery. "This isn't your fault."

"It is," Kauri answers. His voice is hoarse, but he's been crying ever since they got the call from Krista, off and on. Jake isn't surprised. It actually reminds him of Jameson, whose voice is eternally hoarse from screaming and not tears, but the effect is sort of the same. "It is my fault. If I wasn't here-"

"He'd have found you ages ago, and we couldn't keep you safe," Jake soothes, leaning over to push back the curls with his thumb, rubbing it lightly over Kauri's forehead just above his thick eyebrows. He shivers, but it's a pleasant sensation, and the beautiful man manages a slight, faint, frightened smile.

"You'd all be better off," Kauri says.

Falsehood detected, Keira answers, sounding almost prim and proper - if metallic robot voices can have emotions like that - and Jake grins.

"See? Keira's smarter than all of us combined and she knows you're better off here than back there."

"You taught her to say that when I say anything bad about myself," Kauri says petulantly. But his arms tighten around the little robot that was by his side before anyone else even had the chance.

"Guilty as charged," Jake admits. He can barely contain the weight and the depth of his love, in the moment. Down the hall the shower runs, Antoni scrubbing away the remnants of what Owen did. In another room, Chris is safe in bed, Rafael and Laken with him, distracting him with video games so he won't think about what was written on the walls. Krista is in a hotel room while they move her to a new apartment - Jake had paid the lease-breaking fee and all the costs of the new place and hiring a moving truck himself, out of a stash of money Vincent Shield gave him more or less against his will more than a year ago. Krista's safe, under an assumed name and driven to a place no one will expect her to be.

Everyone is exactly as safe as Jake is capable of making them.

And he feels like shit that he can't do better than this.

"What'm I gonna do?" Kauri asks, and the wedding ring glitters in the darkness on his left ring finger as he rests the hand on top of Keira. She whirrs her little broken wheel in response, a sound not entirely unlike a cat purring. "Jake, what-... what do I do, we can't go to the cops, we can't... Jesus. You were right."

Jake pauses. "Right about what, Kaur?"

"Going public," Kauri whispers. "Telling everyone what WRU is doing. You were so right, it told Owen where to find me, didn't it? I didn't think he'd still be looking after so long, but-... but-"

"He is, yeah. And no, this isn't what I thought would happen, and although it literally hurts me to admit to this, no, I wasn't right in being too scared to let you speak up. You did the right thing." Jake takes his hand, and Kauri's fingers are long and cool in his own. "You really did. None of this changes that. Whatever bullshit Owen does is because he's a shitty asshole who wanted to hurt you. It's not because of anything you've ever done."

"He's hurting everyone around me," Kauri says, meeting Jake's eyes finally. "He-... he hurt you by sending your dad-"

"I kicked that fucker off my front porch in less than an hour." Jake keeps his voice light, although the humor doesn't quite land. "And then my mom drove to his hotel and screamed at him to leave us alone from there. He's gone, and you know what?"

Kauri waits a beat, and then asks, "What?"

"I found out important shit from that, anyway. One, that he's actually a more pathetic person than he used to be, he didn't even want to find me, he just wanted the money Owen gave him for doing it. He had to take a picture of my house, apparently, for proof. Two, when Mom was yelling at him he admitted he doesn't know where Jeremy is, so my little brother is safe from him, too."

"Go Suzanne," Kauri says, brightening just a little. "She really decided to leave and went, huh?"

"She really did. Apparently Dad's history of using custodial visits to beat the shit out of me came up in court." Jake ignores the ancient twist of jealousy, that someone else's mom could go when his felt compelled to stay for so, so long. It wasn't her fault, not really - Jake by now knows everything about the psychology of abuse, he's made rescuing people from a kind of endless legal abuse the focus of his entire life.

But the jealousy is still there, deep down. And he doesn't hate himself for feeling it, not anymore. He just accepts that it's the child in him wishing things could have been different, and that's an okay thing to wish.

"Go Suzanne," Kauri repeats, but his eyes close again. He squeezes Jake's hand. "I wish I could have been like her."

"Kauri." Jake laughs - he can't help it, it's such a bizarre train of thought. "Kauri, I love you, but you are, you are like her."

His eyes open again, and he blinks up at Jake, confused. Jake loves the way his brow furrows, the little wrinkle between his eyebrows, when he makes this face. "What? How?"

"You were scared. You were hurting. He turned on you - and you decided to leave, you took what you loved-" His eyes flicker down to Keira, whose visual sensors might brighten briefly in what he likes to think is her attempt to approximate a smile, "-and you went."

"Yeah, but-"

"You threw yourself out of a moving car on a highway," Jake insists, and pulls Kauri's hand to his lips to kiss along his knuckles one by one. "You cut shit out from under your skin so he couldn't track you with it. You nearly fucking died for freedom. Go Suzanne, yeah, I'm so glad Jeremy won't have to know Dad like I did, but... go you, too, Kauri. If you hadn't run you'd be dead. And you ran, and here you are."

"Here I am," Kauri echoes, the first glimpse of a real smile fading as he thinks. "And here Owen is, tracking me down, ruining my life. Ruining all our lives. Chris has barely spoken since it happened-"

"He ate a little bit today," Jake says, thinking. "Laken's trying to get him to drink a protein shake before he learns about Antoni."

"Krista doesn't feel safe anymore-"

"The movers are packing all her shit up for us tomorrow, and she'll be moved into the new place by Monday. It's ten minutes away instead of an hour, so she'll be closer to help if she needs it again."

"Antoni is hurt-"

"Antoni's been hurt before," Jake says, but his voice gentles. He knows this guilt, marking Kauri's face as deeply as any scar ever could. "He'll be all right. He's here, and we'll take care of him."

"I guess. Jake, I-... I'm scared of him. I make jokes, I know, about Owen's... his bullshit, and everything he did to me, but-... but." Kauri huffs dry, humorless, angry laughter, closing his eyes and curling tightly around Keira again. "I'm so scared," He whispers, lips trembling against Keira's side.

Kauri is good, Keira croons, soothing as best she can. Kauri Grant, owner. Kauri is good. Reassurance Jake Stanton provide.

"I do, and I will, as many times as you need to hear it. We'll get through this, Kauri."

"Maybe," Kauri whispers. "Maybe we will. What did Nat say?"

"I don't know, I haven't talked to her." Jake shrugs. Kauri raises his head, confused, and Jake sighs. "She texted before that she and Jameson were doing movie night, and you know how she is about he phone. She turns it off during movies. I've left a voicemail and I'll try again when I figure the movie's probably over."

Kauri is quiet, for a second. Outside, a mourning dove softly calls hoo-hoo, hoo. Then he pushes himself up. "Call Jameson's phone," He says quickly. "Please."

"Jameson didn't give me his number, he was... he's not exactly happy with me-"

"Do it, Jake. Please. Get Allyn, they know... they know, please." Kauri swallows. His seem briefly silver, reflecting the hint of light from outside. "For me, Jake. Please."

"... yeah. Okay." Jake gets to his feet and heads down the hall, finding Allyn in their bedroom listening to an audiobook, eyes closed. He makes sure to let the door hit the wall, so they jolt into awareness and open their eyes before he's right in front of them. They look up - already ready for bed in a matching pajama set they found at Secondhand Threads two weeks ago.

"Jake?" They tip their head to one side, heavy, wavy red hair falling against the freckles on their cheek.

"Can you call Jameson for me, please? Nat's phone is off."

Allyn nods. "Movie night," They say sagely, and twist to their side to pick their phone up off the nightstand. They're proud of it, of the trust Jake shows them in giving them a phone of their own and a way to contact Jameson that doesn't mean going through someone else. Jake hears them in there talking for an hour some nights, Allyn's voice low and soft the way Jake's own voice gets when he talks to Kauri and Antoni.

The shower at the end of the hall shuts off.

Allyn finds the call history, and Jameson is the only person they've ever called so they don't need to read in order to hit the send button and hold it up to their ear. They frown.

The second tick by, one by one by one by one.

"Hold on," They say quietly. "Let me try again."

Something cold starts to settle in Jake's chest. He hovers in the doorway, watching as they call again. The time stretches. It slows. It stops.

Allyn frowns down at the phone. They try one more time. This time, they flinch and look up. "The phone's not even ringing now, it went to his voicemail."

Jake could pretend to be confused... but he isn't.

Just cold with a burst of fury that closes sharp fingers around his heart. He turns around and finds Antoni in the bathroom doorway, drying his hair in a loose, long-sleeved shirt and pants. "Jasha?" Antoni asks, but hesitates when he sees... whatever it is he sees in Jake's face. "Jasha-"

Jake moves past him without a word and goes back to the bedroom. "I'm going to check on Nat," He says sharply to Kauri, sitting on the side of the bed to yank on tennis shoes. "Jameson's phone rang twice with no answer and went to voicemail. It's probably nothing, but-"

"It's not nothing," Kauri cuts him off. He sits up, too, clambering out from the center of the bed and standing. "I'll go with you-"

"No." Jake looks up at him, and he feels guilty at how Kauri looks scared of him, too, the look on his face... but not so guilty that he'll give in and risk what might happen if he goes. "Listen. I'm going to go handle it. You stay here and keep track of everyone. Keep them safe. Keira, you've got location on my phone?"

Jake Stanton phone ID verified, Keira responds. She might sound urgent. How do you know, with a robot voice, coolly feminine and metallic? Location tracking on.

"Good. If my phone heads anywhere but Nat's house, Kauri, then you come for me, too. But otherwise I'll call you."

Kauri doesn't want to say yes, Jake can tell, but he can't say no, either. It should bother Jake that he can tell Kauri can't say no, right now, that he's too deep in his terror and fear to remember how long it took him to speak up for himself.

It doesn't. He needs that fear right now. He needs Kauri to stay here.

He leaves the room and heads down the hall at a fast clip, ignoring Antoni's eyes on his back. Jake slams the door shut and locks it in one smooth motion before he's jogging for the car he borrowed since his own is sitting at a mechanic's to get every damn tire replaced now, since Owen slashed them.

"Shit," He mutters to himself, and pulls out of the driveway so fast he nearly hits the neighbor's mailbox, before tires squeal on pavement and he's gone. The drive takes forever, no matter how fast he goes. He tries calling her three more times. It doesn't work.

Nat's truck is in her driveway, lights show through the blinds, but when he leaps up the stairs and opens her unlocked front door...

She's gone.

So is Jameson.

The only thing he can see is a spray of blood along the wall above Jameson's phone, dropped directly beneath it into a puddle of more blood, drips and drops of it along the floor, leading from the phone towards the door. Now that Jake is looking, he can see more drops on the porch, down the steps. He smeared them when he went running up to come inside.

There's a goddamn handprint on the inside of the front door.

That has to be on purpose.

That's a fucking message.

Trash Cat is a meow before she's a creature, loudly yowling as she runs up to Jake. He scoops her up and for the first time she allows him to hold him, clinging with claws to his arm and shoulder. Jake takes a breath, knowing immediately he won't find Nat or Jameson here. If Trash Cat is coming to him, there's no one else.

Tied to her collar with thread is a little rolled-up piece of paper, a bloodied fingerprint pressed into the blank side. He unrolls it, stares at what's written in ballpoint pen. He checks the whole house to be sure - to ensure no one is here, no one is hiding, he even checks the secret closet hiding space he once put Chris in so long ago - and then he heads back outside and gets into the borrowed car.

With Trash Cat sitting ladylike in the passenger seat, he picks up his phone.

"Jake, did you find them-"

"He's got them," Jake says, voice flat. Kauri lets out a soft cry at the other end, and then Jake has to close his eyes as one of the two loves of his life wails, an animal sound he would rather die than ever have to hear again.

"No," Kauri whimpers. A sob breaks on the other end. Antoni's voice is low, muffled, not quite understandable in the background. Jake hears Kauri tell him, and Antoni's vicious swearing in Russian. Kauri returns to the phone, his voice shaking with tears. "Jake, no, please, please tell me he doesn't-"

"He does," Jake says. He takes a deep breath. "But listen. Trash Cat's still here."

Trash Cat meows when she hears her name, left ear flicking towards him and then away. Her tail lashes, unhappily.

"He didn't-... oh god, he didn't hurt her, did she? She's just an animal, she didn't-... she isn't-"

"He didn't hurt her," Jake soothes. "I'm bringing her back with me. But I found a note on her."

"A..." Kauri sniffs. "A note?"

"A note."

"From... oh, fuck, jesus, god..." Kauri takes a breath so deep Jake can hear it through the phone line. "From Owen? Does he s-say what he's going to d-d-do to them or-"

"It's not from Owen." Jake backs down the driveway, turning out to head for the four-way stop at the end of the street.

"What? Then-"

"The note is from Nat," Jake says. His eyes are on the merge to the highway up ahead and the promise of laying his foot as hard as he can on the gas pedal to head home. "It's Jameson's blood on the wall, not hers. And Owen's too apparently. I need to talk to Keira."

"What? Why? Wait, blood on the wall?"

"Listen. Owen's got Vince, apparently, and now he's got Jameson and Nat, but... but listen."

There's a pause. "I'm listening-... oh god, Jake."

"Listen to me." His left hand is tingling, and Jake ignores the evidence of the lasting nerve damage that he is still pretending never happened. "Nat has a plan."

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