33 Apocalypse Avenue [morning]
Anakin hadn't been about to subject Rory to prom, but he'd stuck close to the island just in case the decorations had decided to come alive during the dance or something.
What? It was Fandom. That wasn't outside the realm of possibility.
He was up in his room, packing hastily and hoping to get up to Connecticut by noon.
She was juuuust tall enough to reach the knob, because she was a very big girl, and Daddy was on the other side and she could tell!
That was why, after a little struggle, the door to Anakin's room opened a crack and a curly-headed little girl with large blue eyes peeked in. "Daddy!"
Anakin's jaw dropped.
"..."
Speaking would be helpful here, but he wasn't quite up for it.
That was okay, because Juliet was launching herself across the room at his legs. "I finded you!"
"You certainly did," Anakin said, tangling his hands in her curls before crouching down to be at the little girl's eye level.
Those blues eyes looked terribly familiar...
"Where's your mommy, sweetheart?"
"Works?" she guessed helpfully. "She's prolly got a bedline."
"Bedline?" Anakin repeated blankly.
Then it sunk in. "Deadline."
Rory.
He sat down heavily on the bed and reached out to touch his daughter's cheek, something like wonder in his eyes. "Should we call her and say hi?" he asked, very proud that his voice didn't shake.
Anakin wasn't used to getting what he wished for.
"Yes!" Juliet said, nodding and jumping up and down happily. "I wanna call Mommy. Can I have coffee?"
Juliet was not allowed to have coffee yet, no.
"Maybe after we call Mommy," Anakin said, reaching for his comlink and pressing familiar numbers.
"Maybe" in this case meant "probably, because Anakin was about to become a giant pushover."
"I wanna press the buttons!" she said fretfully, making grabby hands.
"Do you know Mommy's number?" Anakin asked. "We don't want to call Leia by accident."
"Of course," she assured him knowledgeably.
No. She didn't.
Anakin glanced around the room, eyes falling on a stuffed Ewok he'd just finished for baby Ben.
"How about you get to call Mommy next time," he negotiated, "and you can keep that new Ewok company? He looks lonesome."
Anakin was going to spoil this kid rotten.
Juliet grinned and flailed out at the Ewok, pulling it in the Force without really meaning to.
She hugged it tight. "He's cold."
"He needed a little girl to love him," Anakin told her, fairly bursting with pride at her Force sensitivity, then patted his lap for her to climb into if she wanted.
He hit the final button on the comlink and waited for Rory to pick up.
It hadn't occurred to him that he didn't know his daughter's name yet.
She scrabbled into his lap with the Ewok. "Not a li'l girl."
"A very big girl, then," Anakin said solemnly as the phone rang.
"This many." She held up three fingers. "I can count."
Rory was in the middle of studying when the phone rang and she absently picked it up. "Hi?"
"It's me," he said, smiling. "I'm a little delayed coming up this weekend. I seem to have picked up a new friend, and she insists that she knows you."
He held the comlink out to the little girl. "Say hello."
"HI MOMMY," Juliet shouted into the phone.
Rory stared for a long moment.
Then: "What?"
"I have a beautiful three-year-old girl sitting on my lap with your eyes and my hair," Anakin said, trying not to sound choked up. "Fandom delivered children again this weekend."
"Mommy I finded Daddy and I have a new toy," Juliet announced. "Do you have a bedline?"
"I...." Rory didn't know how to finish that sentence. "Hi, sweetie. Oh my god."
"Do you want to see her?" Anakin asked.
"Please?" Rory said faintly.
Anakin flipped the holoprojector on. "Say hi to Mommy, love," he whispered.
"Mommy!" She flailed out at the hologram. "Hi Mommy! Where's you?"
Rory was still staring, wide-eyed. "I...um. I'll be home soon, honey. Be good for Daddy."
Anakin was grinning, clearly thrilled to death. "Isn't she beautiful?"
"Pretty," Juliet commented, reaching her tiny little hands out to the hologram.
"Yes, you are," Rory said softly, reaching out a little in spite of herself. "What's your name, sweetheart?"
"Lor'lai Juliet Skywalker," she pronounced carefully. "But Mommy's name and Grandma's name is the same so I'm Juliet!"
"Of course you are," Anakin said, reaching out to touch her curls again.
"Oh my god, she's so...wow," Rory murmured, staring.
"Perfect?" Anakin tried.
"Yes."
Juliet was amusing herself by climbing all over her father. "Up!"
Anakin picked her up, cuddled her for just a second, then tossed her into the air and caught her. "Better?"
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" she shrieked happily.
Anakin tickled her as he set her back down on his lap. "Should we say goodbye to Mommy now?"
"Bye bye Mommy! Bring home cookies!" Juliet yelled.
[OOC: Preplayed with the always wonderful auroryborelais and wee_skycrawlers.]
What? It was Fandom. That wasn't outside the realm of possibility.
He was up in his room, packing hastily and hoping to get up to Connecticut by noon.
She was juuuust tall enough to reach the knob, because she was a very big girl, and Daddy was on the other side and she could tell!
That was why, after a little struggle, the door to Anakin's room opened a crack and a curly-headed little girl with large blue eyes peeked in. "Daddy!"
Anakin's jaw dropped.
"..."
Speaking would be helpful here, but he wasn't quite up for it.
That was okay, because Juliet was launching herself across the room at his legs. "I finded you!"
"You certainly did," Anakin said, tangling his hands in her curls before crouching down to be at the little girl's eye level.
Those blues eyes looked terribly familiar...
"Where's your mommy, sweetheart?"
"Works?" she guessed helpfully. "She's prolly got a bedline."
"Bedline?" Anakin repeated blankly.
Then it sunk in. "Deadline."
Rory.
He sat down heavily on the bed and reached out to touch his daughter's cheek, something like wonder in his eyes. "Should we call her and say hi?" he asked, very proud that his voice didn't shake.
Anakin wasn't used to getting what he wished for.
"Yes!" Juliet said, nodding and jumping up and down happily. "I wanna call Mommy. Can I have coffee?"
Juliet was not allowed to have coffee yet, no.
"Maybe after we call Mommy," Anakin said, reaching for his comlink and pressing familiar numbers.
"Maybe" in this case meant "probably, because Anakin was about to become a giant pushover."
"I wanna press the buttons!" she said fretfully, making grabby hands.
"Do you know Mommy's number?" Anakin asked. "We don't want to call Leia by accident."
"Of course," she assured him knowledgeably.
No. She didn't.
Anakin glanced around the room, eyes falling on a stuffed Ewok he'd just finished for baby Ben.
"How about you get to call Mommy next time," he negotiated, "and you can keep that new Ewok company? He looks lonesome."
Anakin was going to spoil this kid rotten.
Juliet grinned and flailed out at the Ewok, pulling it in the Force without really meaning to.
She hugged it tight. "He's cold."
"He needed a little girl to love him," Anakin told her, fairly bursting with pride at her Force sensitivity, then patted his lap for her to climb into if she wanted.
He hit the final button on the comlink and waited for Rory to pick up.
It hadn't occurred to him that he didn't know his daughter's name yet.
She scrabbled into his lap with the Ewok. "Not a li'l girl."
"A very big girl, then," Anakin said solemnly as the phone rang.
"This many." She held up three fingers. "I can count."
Rory was in the middle of studying when the phone rang and she absently picked it up. "Hi?"
"It's me," he said, smiling. "I'm a little delayed coming up this weekend. I seem to have picked up a new friend, and she insists that she knows you."
He held the comlink out to the little girl. "Say hello."
"HI MOMMY," Juliet shouted into the phone.
Rory stared for a long moment.
Then: "What?"
"I have a beautiful three-year-old girl sitting on my lap with your eyes and my hair," Anakin said, trying not to sound choked up. "Fandom delivered children again this weekend."
"Mommy I finded Daddy and I have a new toy," Juliet announced. "Do you have a bedline?"
"I...." Rory didn't know how to finish that sentence. "Hi, sweetie. Oh my god."
"Do you want to see her?" Anakin asked.
"Please?" Rory said faintly.
Anakin flipped the holoprojector on. "Say hi to Mommy, love," he whispered.
"Mommy!" She flailed out at the hologram. "Hi Mommy! Where's you?"
Rory was still staring, wide-eyed. "I...um. I'll be home soon, honey. Be good for Daddy."
Anakin was grinning, clearly thrilled to death. "Isn't she beautiful?"
"Pretty," Juliet commented, reaching her tiny little hands out to the hologram.
"Yes, you are," Rory said softly, reaching out a little in spite of herself. "What's your name, sweetheart?"
"Lor'lai Juliet Skywalker," she pronounced carefully. "But Mommy's name and Grandma's name is the same so I'm Juliet!"
"Of course you are," Anakin said, reaching out to touch her curls again.
"Oh my god, she's so...wow," Rory murmured, staring.
"Perfect?" Anakin tried.
"Yes."
Juliet was amusing herself by climbing all over her father. "Up!"
Anakin picked her up, cuddled her for just a second, then tossed her into the air and caught her. "Better?"
"Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" she shrieked happily.
Anakin tickled her as he set her back down on his lap. "Should we say goodbye to Mommy now?"
"Bye bye Mommy! Bring home cookies!" Juliet yelled.
[OOC: Preplayed with the always wonderful auroryborelais and wee_skycrawlers.]