Title: Beloved
Author: Hermione Eveningfall
Fandom: Star Wars
Rating: G
Disclaimer: The characters names and places do not belong to me. They are the property of George Lucas, Donald Glut and James Kahn (since Luke's friend's names are from the Star Wars trilogy novel-verse).
Summary: Another pre-Episode IV story, but not as dramatic as "Another thing needful". This one is pure fluff-Luke celebrating his 18th birthday with his Aunt, Uncle, and several friends.
Author Notes: As I have not seen the film version of the series, this story is primarily book-verse. (All righty! This has now changed, since I have just seen the film. Eeeeeeeee! *Squishes my Klaus* So I guess it'll be a bit of both at this point, though we'll just see how it goes. XD) Though in my head, I have Liam Aikan as Klaus, as he is in the movie-version. If that made any sense, whatsoever.
Bunny: #8 (words used are in bold)
Feedback: Yes please! Again, you folks know the drill ;o)

"HukEKSHHHH! AhETSHHHH! HuCHSHHHH!" Luke Skywalker groaned miserably as he awoke on the morning of his eighteenth birthday. He'd fallen asleep on the couch reading the night before, and realized his Aunt Beru draped a blanket over him. He blinked, struggling to sit up, and found the dim room to be swirling with dust. "Aunt Beru?" Luke sniffled, finding his nose to be tickling fiercely. He rubbed his itching eyes as he peered out the window over the seemingly endless desert of Tatooine, and realized a sandstorm had begun. ‘Of course,' he thought with as sigh as he shuffled towards the kitchen.

"Happy birthday, sweetheart," Beru Lars announced when he entered, and came over to give him a kiss on the cheek. "You are becoming more and more handsome every day, do you know that?" she brushed his bangs away from his eyes, and Luke blushed.

"Aunt Beru," he protested, just as Owen entered the hut. His face was covered with a mask, which he removed once safely indoors. "It looks bad out there," Luke sniffled, accepting a cup of tea as he sat down at the table.

"Yeah. I wouldn't recommend going outside anytime soon, Luke. Happy birthday, by the way." He added, ruffling the boy's hair affectionately.

Luke smiled. "Thanks." He felt an urge to sneeze again, and quickly turned his head into his shoulder. "Eh...eh...AhKSHHHH! HuhETSHHHUH! UhSHHHHH! Ow!" he clelared his throat, receiving concerned glances from his relatives.

"Oh I hope you aren't coming down with a cold! All of your friends are planning on coming over for a party, aren't they?" Beru asked, quickly feeling her nephew's forehead.

"Well, Biggs, Camie and Deak anyway. Not sure about Wendy or Fixer...I think they had to stay behind at the shop and work. But I don't think I'm sick...might just be my allergies. This happened the last couple of times we had big sand storms like this." He watched as his Aunt shut the windows, trying to block the elements from coming in.

"Yes. Well, you aren't running a fever in any case." She kissed him again before continuing to work at the stove. Luke turned to his Uncle, who was sipping from his own mug of tea, and frowned.

"I don't feel any different, you know?" he began, and Owen raised an eyebrow. "I'm supposed to be entering adulthood, and I just feel like the same old Luke." He received a chuckle from Owen, who set his mug down.

"Well, you have matured quite a bit, that I can absolutely see. You've definitely begun to take the important things in life more seriously. But now that you're an adult, we will expect you to take on more responsibilities."

Luke nodded, smiling softly as his Aunt set a plate of food in front of him. "Your favorite," she whispered into his ear.

"Thank you," he replied, and soon all three of them sat together.

"Oh ugh, my nose is driving me crazy!" Luke sniffled, pushing away from the table as a sneezy expression returned to his face. Beru and Owen held their breaths as Luke began breathing rapidly.

"Here, sweet." Beru handed him a handkerchief, just in time also.

"Huh-eh-AhSTSHHHH! EkSHHHH!" Luke blew his nose, though that did not help very much.

"Bless you," both adults told him, sighing. Ever since Luke had been given to them many years before, it was a never ending struggle with the boy's health. He caught things from miles away it seemed, as well as being bothered by several allergies. Despite the fact, however, they felt he'd turned out quite satisfactory.

‘Obi-Wan had warned us about the boy's condition when he first brought him to us,' Owen thought, cringing as Luke continued blowing his nose.

"I'm sorry," Luke apologized, when he finished, and Beru squeezed his hand comfortingly.

"That wind is really picking up out there," Owen pointed out, changing the topic. Beru continued holding Luke's hand, as though afraid he'd leave her if she let go. Luke kissed her hand gently, and shook his head. "I don't know if a party is going to happen at this rate."

Luke wet his lips, sighing. "Well, hopefully it'll stop by then. The storms usually don't last for more than a few hours, right?"

Owen grunted under his breath, and glanced back down at his breakfast.

"HuhASHHHH! EhKSHHHHH! HuhESHHHHH!" Luke sniffled wetly, shaking his head to clear it.

"Bless you," Beru and Owen spoke in unison. "Go and lay down for a bit," Beru suggested, listening as his congestion thickened.

"I'b okay," Luke insisted, but broke into another sneezing fit before he could take another bite of breakfast. "HahKSHHHH! Uh-ehh-KSHHHHH! HepTSHHHH! Ah-CHSHHHHH!" Beru helped Luke stand, and quickly steered him to his bedroom. "Take a deep breath," she ordered, and Luke could barely do so between sneezes. After the last one, he collapsed against the mattress, panting and gulping for air. She covered the windows as best as she could, smoothing his cheek when she sat back down next to the bed.

"I'm okay," Luke swallowed, struggling to sit up, but she urged him back down.

"Rest. Your poor nose is so red and dry. I'll be right back." She left, and Luke felt a tremble go through him. Luke groaned inwardly, pounding the mattress with his fists. It only figured that this would happen, for he tended to be a magnet for bad luck. His friends always teased him about it, and sometimes he just wanted to sink through a hole in the ground.

"Here, this should help." Beru returned with a small tube of ointment, which she applied to Luke's nose. It soothed the soreness almost instantly, and Luke sighed with relief.

"Much better," he told her, and she beamed.

"Good."

"Aunt Beru, can I at least rest in the living room? I don't want to be stuck in bed on my birthday."

She hesitated, but then nodded. "Let me try to seal the windows in there as best I can, all right? And I'll make you a cup of tea while I think about it." He smiled as she left the room again, and settled against his pillows. The wind howled outside, and Luke knew that most people would be hiding in their huts. He only hoped his friends would truly come, even after the storm ended.

Eventually Luke moved back into the parlor, lying on the couch. "I wanted to give you something before you became too involved with your friends," Beru told Luke after the breakfast dishes were cleaned. After a bit, she hurried back into the kitchen, returning

with a cup of tea as well, and the steam helped him considerably. She then held a small box, and pulled a chair beside him. Luke sat up, accepting the box, and kissing his Aunt on the cheek.

"This is a family heirloom," she began as he opened it, and found a gold ring attached to a chain. It as plain gold, etched with the phrase Beloved. "I'm not sure how much you'd like it, but my mother told me to pass it down to my child. Since I do not have any girls, I thought you might appreciate it."

Luke felt his eyes well up with tears as he held the ring between his fingers. "But I'm...I'm not really your child, Aunt Beru. I can't possibly accept this." He bit his lip, watching as the ring gleamed in the afternoon haze. Beru held him close, rubbing his back.

"You may not be mine biologically, but you're the closest we've had to a child of our own, Luke. We've raised you since you were an infant, and we've thought nothing less of you. Please accept it, love. If anything, accept it as a rememberance of us when we're gone."

Tears began flowing down Luke's cheeks as he hugged his Aunt tightly, and he sobbed into her shoulder. "Thank you, Aunt Beru." He managed to gasp, allowing her to put the necklace on him. He looked at the ring as it hung just above the collar of his tunic, and he covered it with his hand protectively.

"You're welcome, sweetheart. We love you so much...I never want you to forget that." She stroked his hair, and wiped the tears from his face. "Now lay down, and hopefully this dreadful sandstorm will end in time for your celebration! I'd hate to see your eighteenth birthday party canceled of all things!"

Luke seriously hoped she was right, and decided to take a nap to prepare himself for either situation.

Luck seemed to be on Luke's side for his special day after all. The sandstorm did end in time for the party, and Luke's trio, though slightly ruffled and out of breath, arrived on time. "Happy birthday!" Cammie cried as she, followed by Biggs and Deak, entered the hut. Each of them carried small gift boxes in their hands, and were grinning. Luke awoke, beaming as his friends approached the couch. "Oh, tell me you're not sick again." she put her hands on her hips, after pulling a strand of dark hair behind her ear.

He shook his head. "No, just all of this dust was making me sneeze." He accepted a hug from them, and Beru came in to greet them as well.

"There is plenty of food set up for all of you in the kitchen, so feel free to help yourselves! I'm not sure what Luke has planned, but as long as it does not involve anything that may break household objects, anything is open."

Biggs helped Luke stand up from the couch, and the the three of them piled on it together.

"Some crazy storm, eh, wormie?" Deak asked, as he handed Luke his wrapped gift. "I saw this, and thought of you."

"Thanks, Deak."

"Well don't just stare at it," Cammie teased. "Open it!"

Luke rubbed his nose real quickly, before tearing off the slightly messy wrapping, and grinned. "Wow, thank you!" in his hands, he held a thick book, which contained information about every space ship ever created. Luke opened it, and began to flip through the colorful pages.

"I thought you'd like that."

Cammie handed Luke a round package, hugging and kissing his cheek. The other boys were grinning at the fact that she had turned bright crimson, but choose not to say anything. After all, the last time Biggs had insulted her, she'd tackled him to the ground and he'd wound up with a black eye. "Happy Birthday," she added, and Luke beamed, feeling warm and tingly all over. It was nice to know that despite his friend's teasing, they still cared about him.

Beru peered through the doorway, smiling to herself. Despite all they had been through, Luke was certainly someone to b proud of. Signs of weakness still shown in his eyes, and in his movement.

"Beru, how does this look?" Owen finished icing the cake, and she turned to him. She walked over to the table, and glanced down.

"HuhASHHHH! HukKSHHHH!" they heard Luke sneezing from the parlor, and his friends giggling about it.

"Fine," she replied, shaking her head. "I hope we have enough candles!"

"Cammie and Luke can be a team, and I'll take Deak," Biggs suggested as he helped Luke hook up his video game machine. The screen lit up, and a bouncy music filled the air.

"Why don't we try new teams for once?" Camme asked, though Luke noticed she was blushing a tiny bit.

"But Luke and Deak are the best players...it's nice to mix them up," Biggs replied, but then shrunk back as she gave him a warning look. "Okay...Luke, Cammie'll partner up with Deak, and you can be with me."

Luke wet his lips, trying to hide his relief. He liked Cammie well enough, but he felt uncomfortable when he sat next to her at any length of time. He tossed a controller to her, before taking his spot beside Biggs.

"Have you ever played Space Balls? I thought we'd try something new," he told his friends, and Deak cheered.

"It's a classic!"

Luke rubbed his nose and his eyes, feeling itchy again.

"You okay?" Deak asked, and he nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

"Here comes another asteroid! BOOM! Blast off!" Cammie cheered, and Biggs began laughing as she leaned far to the side, her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth.

"We should let Luke win," Deak smirked. "It's his birthday after all."

Biggs snorted. "Fat chance."

"HuhKSHHHH! EsHHHHH!" Luke sneezed, turning his head away.

"Bless you," Cammie clucked her tongue in a motherly way.

"Thanks." He turned his attention back to the screen, watching as Deak navigated their speeder through the meteor shower.

Eventually, Beru called the group of giddy teens into the kitchen for dinner, insisting that Luke sit at the head of the table for that night. "Aunt Beru," he started to protest, hating to be the center of attention. It was worse, when he still felt very sneezy, and didn't want everyone watching. But he gave in, glad Beru had decided to spare him of her usual kiss. She smiled when she went to fetch the food, and watched as Owen sat down next to Biggs.

"I hope everyone is having a good time?" she asked, once the meal was served.

"Yes, Mrs. Lars," Cammie replied, and Owen raised an eyebrow at his wife.

"Well! While we're all here, I'd like to propose a toast to Luke. To wish him the best of uluck as he enters the new journey of adulthood."

"Here here!" Biggs shouted, and glasses all clanked together.

Luke blushed. "Thanks," he replied, taking a sip of the cold, blue-tinted milk. He couldn't imagine a better birthday, surrounded by friends and a loving ,caring family. Perhaps he really was lucky after all.