𝗙𝗔𝗨𝗟𝗧𝗦 | anakin skywalker

✰ 3. see me. feel me. know me.

Anakin came when he said he would— right as the sun had set, there was three knocks on Akya's door.  "It's open," she called.  The familiar face opened the door and smiled at her proudly.  He seemed to be very sure of himself.

"What are you so happy about?" she asked, turning back around after she'd closed the curtains.

"This is going to work," he said.  "I know it is."

"Then I suppose let's get started," she told him.  "You can take your cloak off, if you want.  Were you outside?"

"Oh, yeah," he said, realizing his cloak was still on.  He slipped it off over his shoulders and laid it on Akya's bed.  "Sparring.  You can take a seat on the mat there," he said, pointing to her carpet.  She did as he asked, and he sat right in front of her.  "Okay," he said. "I just thought of this exercise a little while ago, but I think I've got the concept down.  Now, I want you close your eyes.  Reach out with the Force the best you can, and all I want you to do is feel my presence.  Feel that I am here."

Akya nodded and shut her eyes.  Inside, of course, she knew he was there, but she couldn't exactly feel him.  She just knew he was still sitting there.

"Now, I am going to move to another place in your room," he continued calmly. "This place is familiar to you, and I am out of place inside it. Picture your room in your mind's eye, and put me inside of it. Tell me where I am standing." She hadn't even realized that he had walked away, nor that his voice was getting further. She tried to think about where he could be located, feel him out of place in her room. Based on her feelings—

Actually, Akya felt nothing. She only knew of his presence because of logic, because she knew he was inside her room, somewhere, waiting. So Akya made a rather random guess. "You're standing by the dresser," she said. Anakin heard the unsureness in her voice, though he could probably tell she was trying to mask it.

"Open your eyes, Akya," he said. Akya opened them to find him not standing by the dresser, but just next to the bed, where his cloak was laid. If she had thought a little more, perhaps she could have assumed that. But she still wouldn't have been able to feel Anakin through the Force. Akya sighed at her mistake and looked down into her lap.

"That's alright," he said hopefully, coming back toward her to sit. "We're going to try again. Differently this time."

"Okay," she said. Somehow, his confidence in himself made her trust him just that much more.

"Close your eyes," he said. "I'm going to close mine, too. Then we're going to join hands." Akya nodded to him, and they both closed their eyes. Before taking his hands, Akya took a deep breath, clearing her mind of all doubt in herself. Perhaps it would aid in their attempts. Then, slowly, she put her hands out, reaching for where she thought Anakin's would be. Their fingers brushed each other, finally finding the object of their search. Once their palms touched, Akya's eyes moved quickly. She saw nothing but red, everywhere. She heard Anakin's voice in the distance somewhere— but couldn't make out what he was saying. Lightning struck, and Akya opened her eyes with a gasp, pulling her hands away from his.

"What, Akya?" he said, now worried. Anakin's voice was no longer distant. "Are you okay? Did something happen?"

"I saw..." She couldn't explain it. "Red. All I saw was red. And there was a storm. And your voice."

"My voice?"

"I think so," she said. "It was so fast."

"Try again," he said, putting out his hands. She nodded, and they both shut their eyes once again. This time, when their hands intertwined, she saw only the back of her eyelids. Perhaps it had meant nothing.