Big Brother Wally
"Wally, Wally! The Littles are big now!" Wally's best friend Mary O'Brian called to him, excitedly running towards him as he was being dropped off at the O'Brian house for a day of fun.
"Huh?" Wally asked in confusion. Sure every kid had their own particular vocabulary and way of speech, but Mary had a particularly odd personal dictionary with very unique words and phrases like a TV being a Kermit box or fights being "Pretty dancing".
"Littles big, not small babies that just sleep. We play games now." Mary informed dragging her friend by the arm to her living room.
Wally would be shown just what Mary had meant when he was shown to Mary's sister and brother, Sarah and Joseph O'Brian who indeed were substantially bigger than last time and instead of needing to be held, were crawling by their own on the carpeted floor, Ginger keeping a watchful eye on a nearby window while Natalie laid in guard next to the play pen.
Inside of the pen, Sarah was stacking letter blocks with joy at making a tower, while Joseph was wiggling a stuffed elephant, pretending he was on a safari.
"What games you play?" Wally asked.
"We do racing, ball games, and lots of play wiggling with stuffies. Sarah can play Dragon and Fairy as helper dragon, but Joseph doesn't know how to play and won't learn." Mary said, with equal parts pride and frustration at Sarah and Joseph respectively.
Mary then got an idea, "Wally, want to play Jedi dragon?"
"Sure." Wally said. While not his usual idea of what proper Star Wars play was like, it was nice because he got to be the hero Jedi and save the day. Meanwhile for Mary, she was hopeful that maybe Wally could finally get Joseph to play the Dragon game right as he and Sarah both loved watching Star Wars and didn't share any of the hesitation and issues Mary had with "Lying Things".
"The two friends got into their respective costumes with Mary helping an eager Sarah get into her first dragon costume which Sarah surprisingly fit in by now. Joseph at first didn't pay any mind, merely playing a game of chase with Ginger's tail, but then Wally activated his toy lightsaber which immediately grabbed Joseph's attention.
"I'm Jedi Wally, will save fairy princess from Darth Vader and Dragon." Wally proclaimed.
At this proclamation and the sight of a blue lightsaber, Joseph's eyes went wide with recognition and he scrambled to join the game, crawling as fast as he could to be at Wally's side.
"Waf dah op!" Joseph yelled excitedly, in his mind saying that he was Han Solo, playing the role just like his Daddy.
Mary was slightly annoyed that now Joseph chose to play the game instead of joining in the proper format, but now was better than nothing. She went to go retrieve a colored cardboard box while Sarah did her best to drag toys and pillows to build her dragon's lair, an effort that was mostly possible thanks to the help of Natalie who retrieved many of the pillows with her mouth and deposited them in one pile.
Mary came back with a cardboard box which had drawn on with lots of markers to resemble a space shuttle. "Apprentice Joseph, we gonna go on Millennium Falcon and save the galaxy." Wally said, with Joseph bobbing his head in excitement. One of the sides was opened and Wally crawled in with Joseph sitting on his lap, both boys seeing a galaxy full of stars and possibilities instead of a mere living room.
"We're going to hyperspace, then we defeat dragon." Wally said, with Joseph giving a babble of agreement.
What followed was a really fun adventure in a fusion of Sci-Fi and Fantasy with the O'Brians and Wally traveling across space and sky, rescuing princesses and fighting Stormtroopers and all sorts of journeys. While Sarah and Joseph didn't understand much of what their directions were and often added their own brand of fun and creativity to the story, it was a nice experience to have them included in the play instead of just Wally and Mary.
As the day went on, Wally also noted with jealousy how close Mary and the twins were with each other, how they had a lot of fun together and were each other's friends. It was a situation that was foreign to Wally, and one he desperately wanted to experience.
Later that night as Wally was being tucked into bed by his parents, he gave them a very important request that would forever change the lives of the Lucas family. "Mommy, Daddy, wanna brother-sister like Mary." Wally asked.
George and Marcia looked at each other nervously at the request, "Really? What makes you say that Wally?" George asked kindly.
"Mary has Joseph, Sarah. They have fun, they Mary friends all days, and Uncle Bruce Aunt Carrie happier. Wanna brother-sister friend, we happy and fun." Wally explained simply.
A heavy pause was present at the bedside, which made Wally confused. They loved him so surely they would want another child right? If Uncle Bruce and Aunt Carrie could give Mary two siblings at once, then shouldn't just one be easy? Why would they be sad?
"We've...been wanting to give you a sibling for a long time Wally, and we're working on it." Marcia said, with George looking to her seriously, "We can't give you one right away, so you have to be patient and wait. Okay?" Marcia said softly with melancholy.
"I get brother-sister?" Wally asked with excitement for confirmation.
"We'll try." George affirmed.
"Do, no try Daddy."
"Okay, we'll do." George said, both him and Marcia giving each other a deep look while Wally peacefully went to sleep, unaware of what he had set into motion.
A few weeks later after many nights of long discussions, planning, and contacting of the right people, George and Marcia had an important talk with Wally at Dinner. "Wally, remember, how you wanted to get a brother or sister?"
"Yeah." Wally said as he at a spoonful of mashed potatoes.
"Well, your father and I are going to get you a sibling." Marcia informed, making Wally as happy as could be.
"Yay, gonna be a brother!" Wally yelled ecstatically. "Got pictures of baby in mommy belly?" Wally asked curiously.
At the rather innocent question that came from Wally using Sarah and Joseph as a reference, George and Marcia froze in anxiety as well as shared grief where a recent doctor's visit confirmed the low likelihood of another successful pregnancy and the dangers that accompanied it, thus forcing them to use an alternative to have a second baby Lucas.
"Well Wally, this baby would be different, it wouldn't come from mommy's belly." George gently informed, both parents trying to approach this gently as they had rehearsed the night before.
"Huh?" Wally said in confusion. "Babies come from mommy bellies, then mommy go to hospital and have baby."
There was some hurt present in Marcia's face at the explanation, with her holding hands with George under the table for support, "That's right Wally, but it can be really hard for some mommies to have babies in their bellies, or try and do it again." Said softly, with Wally thankfully following along so far. "When that happens, mommies and daddies will adopt a baby."
"Adopt?" Wally asked, pronouncing the foreign word uncertainly.
Both his parents nodded, "People who have a hard time having babies in bellies adopt babies or older kids, children who don't have any parents at all. So families can still have their babies, and babies who don't have parents can have them and be part of a loving family." George explained.
"Your father and I want to adopt a baby because it's hard for me to have one in my belly. You can have a sibling, and some lucky baby out there will have the best big brother ever." Marcia presented.
George and Marcia waited anxiously as Wally was processing this information to the best of his ability. With how smart Wally was, both felt it would be best to present the idea of adoption to him now rather than pretending that they were pregnant and Wally had a biological sibling so it wouldn't produce any confusion or Wally having sentiments that he didn't have a "real sibling". Bratty was not a word that one would define George Walton Lucas III, but there were ever present worries of rejection or Wally being indignant that he couldn't have any siblings who shared the same blood.
"So mommy daddy who have no baby, get baby with no mommy-daddy, then they family. Like Superman?" Wally asked for confirmation. As Mary's best friend, Wally had been presented with Superman extensively from Mary who read him comics numerous times, so he was well aware of the basic lore and story of the man of steel.
"Yeah, just like Superman. He lost his home and family, but he found a new one on Earth." George confirmed. If Wally was resistant, then perhaps he could also include the example of Luke and Leia.
"Oh, that nice." Wally said, then his eyes lit up like a Christmas tree once the realization kicked in, "Yay, Imma be brother." Wally said joyfully.
George and Marcia breathed a great sigh of relief that they had managed to push the idea through and Wally was accepting of it, thus passing the biggest hurdle of expanding their family. "By the way Wally, do you want a brother or sister?" George asked. He and Marcia didn't have a strong preference one way or the other, but they were definitely going to stick to adopting one child as experiences in babysitting the O'Brians had pushed them away from twins, both being amazed at just how Bruce and Carrie managed to raise the two alongside Mary.
Wally adopted a thinking pose and weighed the pros and cons along with plenty of daydreams in his mind for a minute before responding, "Sister. Daddy got me, Mommy get daughter." Wally answered thanks to his simplistic worldview and how he was super close to his Dad, so obviously Marcia deserved a similar relationship with a daughter.
Thus began a series of events that lead to the birth and adoption of Amanda Lucas.
For the year after the release of Empire Strikes Back, George and Marcia's primary focus was on adopting a baby girl. While they worked and still found plenty of time for Wally, there were many steps to be done to show to the state they were capable parents and ready to adopt.
For Wally, he didn't really notice much of a difference in his daily life aside from how every other week, he'd need to stay at his grandparents while his parents took adoption classes, and a couple of times there were people who came to their home and watched him play with his parents to see if Wally's parents were good, which Wally thought was silly since he had the best parents in the world.
For a while, Wally had almost forgotten that he was going to be a brother since there weren't any physical changes with his mom like Carrie in the twins, though around Easter this would change as his parents informed him that they were going to adopt a baby girl named Amanda in July, the middle of July being the time of her birth.
On July 13th, Wally would travel to Beverly Hills where he would stay at the O'Brian house while his parents traveled to the U.S Virgin Islands to pick up Amanda. In the meantime, Wally would stay with his godfamily in the hope that being with his best friend and godparents could distract his mind from the longest absence with his parents, and also to give him plenty of fun time with the O'Brians since he would have to return to San Francisco with Amanda for a while and Mary would start pre-school soon.
"Wally, you be good for Uncle Bruce and Aunt Carrie." Marcia reminded.
"Yes Mommy." Wally said with tears in his eyes. He knew his parents had to go so Amanda could be part of the family, but he never liked saying goodbye with his parents where he wouldn't see one for a day or more.
"Don't worry son, we'll call you every single day til we come back, and once we do neither your mom or I are gonna have work for three months so we can spend everyday with you and Amanda." George promised.
"Okay." Wally said, nodding along and then going in for a deep hug with his parents, a goodbye being delayed for a while until it was time to finally go, Wally waving to his parents at the window with a glum face.
"It's okay Wally, mommy-daddy leaving is bad, but it good when good reason. Missed Mommy and Daddy lots when they go to Japan and England, but they make Empire and really good. You miss Mommy-Daddy, but they'll come back with your sister." Mary explained.
"Yeah." Wally nodded, rubbing some of his tears with his sleeve. It wasn't nice, but this would have Amanda become part of the family, so he supposed it was worth it.
Mary then tugged on Wally, getting him to follow her, "Come Wally, today we start your training camp."
"Training camp?" Wally asked in confusion.
"I'm a Big Girl and Big Sister. I know all about taking care of littles and helping Mommy and Daddy. I'm your Master and will teach you about how to be a good big brother to Amanda." Mary proudly stated. Wally felt a bit relieved at that, as surely if Mary had dealt with two babies at once, then she must be the best teacher for Wally.
At that moment, a sleepy Joseph O'Brian came waddling in, rubbing his eyes and still in his Tom and Jerry PJs while his loyal kitten Tigger followed at his side. At the sight of Wally, Joseph greeted him with a tired smile, "Hi."
"No Joseph, Wally is getting a sister, we gotta practice with Sarah and Lamy." Mary moved forward and slightly pushed Joseph away in search of Sarah, but since Joseph was still tired he was off balance and fell on his bottom. While Joseph wasn't in physical pain, he was in slight emotional distress at being "pushed" by his big sister, causing the youngest Gosling to cry.
"Mary Frances O'Brian!" Said a stern Carrie.
'Well Mary's teaching me what not to do.' Wally thought.
The next six days would see Wally become a temporary member of the O'Brian family. While Wally had his usual fun at the O'Brian household like roleplaying Star Wars, making movies, racing toy cars, playing with the pets or his recent passion of swimming, his days would also be filled with acting as Mary's "Padawan" with the eldest Gosling teaching him all that there was to being a big sibling.
"Sometimes as a big sibling, you gotta be nice and let the Littles play with your toys." Mary explained, pointing to Joseph who was pulling Kermit O'Brian on a toy wagon while Sarah followed, crawling excitedly. "Kermit is my toy and best friend, but the Littles also love Kermit because they know he's best frog in whole world. I have to share as a good big sister. It tough, but they happy and Kermit is happy. Plus I can still play most games."
"Oh." Wally said with a frown. He really didn't want to share any of his Star Wars toys with Amanda since they were his toys, but then again Amanda would of course love Star Wars since it was the best movie. And if she loved it, then they can both play Star Wars and Wally would always have a play friend even if his parents were busy.
"Littles are hard so you got to help Mommy and Daddy with some responsibility. Take Indy on walks and zoomies for his exercise." Mary would later say as she motioned for Ginger and Natalie to join her on a family walk.
"Oh I walk with Indy lots at Ranch, that's easy." Wally said happily, with the Alaskan dog darting to his friend at the mention of a walk. Although, Wally would get a wakeup call of Indy being too spoiled with free range roaming as the dog liked to "Trick-or-Treat" and zig zag into other people's yards at Beverly Hills instead of traveling straight like Natalie.
"Teach a Little what you like so you can have lots of fun." Mary would advise, in particular by having Wally be a cheerer for one of her Pretty Dancing sessions. It looked fun to Wally, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to do kung fu with Amanda, as he couldn't imagine being as aggressive as the O'Brians who took turns at a training doll while the kittens savaged an old stuffed bear.
"Read them a story so they can be calm and you help them be super smart. It can also help cranky littles go to sleep." Mary advised, though she did frown slightly when Wally went for a Star Wars comic instead of one of her big books, though Sarah and Joseph seemed thrilled and enthralled, even if Wally had to rely on Mary for some of the big and alien words.
At dinner time, Wally was slightly bewildered at the chaotic sight as Joseph waged a strong and defiant war of attrition with Bruce over brocoli while Sarah was being a bit bratty and tried to feed her food to the pets.
Wally looked to Mary for advice who was doing her best to subtly drop broccoli to the floor for the pets while her parents and grandma were distracted with Sarah, "Sometimes the Littles are just crazy and Mommy and Daddy gotta take care of them." Mary simply said.
For an entire week, Mary would give a firm education on how to be a great older sibling, and while Wally was confused on some parts, he was a quick learner and by the end of the week was deemed to be a good big brother by Mary.
July 20th would mark the day the Lucas' returned to LA and thus, Wally would be a big brother. To pass the time so he wouldn't spend hours in anxious waiting, Carrie hosted a Star Wars marathon so Wally could relax and be happy with his favorite movies while Bruce went to the airport to help the Lucas'.
It was a very effective way to help as Wally could mostly relax with his favorite stories on the screen, though every now and then he would look back at the nearby clock and get anxious over his parents return.
Watching Star Wars had also presented many new questions for Wally, as he had discovered recently while sneaking into his Dad's office that George planned for Luke and Leia to not only be siblings, but twins. Wally thought that was nice because it meant Han and Leia could be happily ever after without Luke being sad, but it also presented lots of new questions.
"Mary, do you kiss Joseph like how Leia kissed Luke?" Wally asked, in reference to the scene on Hoth where Leia gave Luke a deep kiss while he was recovering. Mary made a very intense face of disgust at the question, as that was her least favorite part of Star Wars because to her, Leia should always be with Han, a sentiment that Joseph and Sarah seemed to share.
"No, that's gross. Leia was silly and gave Luke a kiss that's for Han, it's a Mommy-Daddy romance kiss only, Mommy should never kiss no one else but Daddy like that, even pretend movie kisses." Mary said strongly. "I just hug Joseph and give him small cheek kisses, that's it."
Joseph nodded along, but such an answer made him more confused. If that was the case, why did Leia kiss Luke like she love-loved him when they're twins? Why would his daddy write the scene like that and his mommy okay it as editor if they knew Luke and Leia were siblings?
Before Wally could ruminate further, the children's attention were grabbed by the sudden scramble of a dalmatian, cat and kittens heading to the back door in excitement.
"That means Daddy's home." Mary said happily, rushing to go visit her Dad at the door, followed by a speedy Joseph and waddling Sarah. Wally followed last since it also meant that his parents were finally home, and while he was super happy, he was also a bit nervous on how things would change.
The backdoor opened and Bruce came in, being almost unrecognizable due to the heavy pile of luggage that he was carrying on his back and arms with Carrie moving to assist. The Goslings and pets gathered around Bruce, leaving Wally to see the return of his family, running towards Marcia who came in first with a big hug.
Wally then stepped back as George came in with a baby carrier in hand, awestruck at the sight as everything was settling in. "Sister?" Wally asked softly, to which George nodded.
The Lucas' went to the living room to settle down on the couch, followed by the Goslings and pets who were excited to meet the new friend.
Marcia lifted Wally to sit between her and Amanda in the middle while George was on the other end, "Be calm and quiet everyone, Amanda is only five days old and she's had to do a lot of traveling so she's pretty antsy and restless." Marcia softly requested.
"Hush littles!" Mary commanded of the twins, who both gave each other a look of indignation at the assumption as they had been perfectly quiet.
"Everyone say hi to Amanda Lucas." George said, and peeled back the carrier's cover to reveal a small baby girl bundled in a violet blanket and wearing a white onesie.
Everyone present tried to get a good look as George gently lifted Amanda from the carrier and held her firmly in his arms, lowering her slightly so Indy could get a good sniff of his new human.
Wally was amazed at the sight, a realization settling in that he was now going to be a big brother for the rest of his life and Amanda would be his sister and friend forever.
"She looks like you Wally." Mary complimented, making George and Marcia chuckle lightly at the irony of the statement.
"Can I hold her Daddy?" Wally asked.
George shook his head, "She's too little for you right now son, but you can hug her softly or give love pats."
"You gotta love her a super duper lot Wally. I love the Littles a lot and now they're almost as big as me." Mary advised.
Wally nodded as he scooted and sat up straight, peering over to look at Amanda who was opening her eyes and was slightly fussy at the new environment and all the different people.
"Hi Amanda, I'm Wally, your big brother. Thank you for joining family and being Mommy and Daddy daughter." Wally said, giving her loving pats with Amanda then grabbing one of Wally's fingers and holding on tight with both hands which he saw as her hug.
Before today Wally was an only child, and now he was a big brother, and that made him happy.
