Star Wars Altered Universe

Episode III.5

Trial By Fire

Dedication

To my wonderful wife, Tara, without whom I could never have completed this.

I love you.

This wasn’t supposed to happen.

Her heart pounding in her ears, Shanda struggled once more to free herself from their steel-handed grasp; it was a useless gesture, she already knew that. The two troopers that held her were much larger than she was, and even if she’d called on the Force for help, there would have been little she could have done before the other two killed her master in response.

Over the hum of the turbolift, she felt the troopers hands tighten around her arms once more as he jerked her harshly back in place. “Try that once more,” he said, his voice tinny and hollow inside his helmet, “and he’ll be the one who pays for it.”

Glancing over through the disheveled auburn hair that hung over her eyes, she and Obi-Wan exchanged a long, worried glance. He looked awful; Micah Elisar’s guards had taken their master’s orders with a great deal of excited fervor, and it showed. Though she’d begged and pleaded with them to stop, they’d beaten him unmercifully for nearly an hour. His face was a mass of cuts and bruises, and she could barely see his blue eyes as he looked back at her, his eyelids swollen and bloody.

Patience, young one. Use the Force. Stay calm, all will be well.

She swallowed hard, managing a weak nod as she felt the turbolift whine to a stop. She’d heard her master’s inner voice speak to her, so clearly that she was surprised the guards hadn’t heard it. As the doors slid open, she tried as hard as she could to obey that calm, quiet command, and she reached -- as deeply as she ever had -- into the Force as the guards led them out of the turbolift and into theSepulcher’s large, round command chamber.

Her heart pounding as they shuffled her along behind Obi-Wan, Shanda could see the orange-red glow of Tatooine’s upper hemisphere through the massive viewport as the planet spun lazily below them, a stark contrast to the blackness of space that loomed above. She could feel the deck rumbling below her boots, feel the power of the great Imperial flagship as it orbited the planet slowly, dozens of other ships gathering around it, with swarms of small fighters milling about them, like bees around a hive.

The troopers shoved them up the stairs, and Shanda stumbled more than once as they pushed her along, until she found herself standing at Obi-Wan’s side at the top of them, a short distance away from a large, ornate chair that faced the viewport in front of them. Though she’d tried as hard as she could to steel herself, prepare herself for what she knew awaited them on the long journey up to the ship, she felt her heart stop as she saw the doorway across from them slide open... and the dark figure that entered.

She tried to step back, yet the troopers stopped her cold as she watched Darth Vader approach, his long cloak swirling around his boots as he strode defiantly toward them. Overwhelmed with fear, she felt tears sting her eyes, and had it not been for the touch of Obi-Wan’s hand as he reached down and took hers tightly, she would very well have begun to sob right then.

Her eyes swung back to the chair in front of them as she heard a dark, sinister voice. “How very touching,” the voice said as the chair began to turn slowly toward them, “to see how deeply you care for your young apprentice, Master Kenobi.”

The chair completed its turn, and with a flick of a pale finger it stopped. Obi-Wan squeezed Shanda’s hand a little tighter as she stood there trembling at his side, both of them watching as Emperor Palpatine smiled ruefully back at them, yellow eyes glowing from beneath his dark, thickly corded hood. “Welcome, young one,” Palpatine said, smiling sweetly at Shanda as he gestured toward Darth Vader, as the Dark Lord’s apprentice came and stood beside him. “I understand your master’s devotion to you, more than you might realize,” he continued, his pale hand coming to rest on the arm of his chair once more. “As you can see, I have an apprentice of my own.”

“At long last,” Palpatine sighed, his teeth shining in the darkness as his pale lips curled into a twisted smile. “It is indeed good to see you again, Master Kenobi,” he said, nodding his head. “As I’m sure you know, we’ve been looking for you for quite some time. I trust you’ve found your accommodations thus far... acceptable?”

Obi-Wan shot Palpatine a rather sour smile, one laced with pain. “Wonderfully so,” he snorted, shifting his angry, piercing eyes toward Vader. “I trust I have your apprentice to thank for such a hospitable reception?”

“Quite the contrary,” Emperor Palpatine replied nonchalantly, chuckling under his breath. “Lord Vader would very likely have killed you the moment he saw you, along with your precious young apprentice,” he said, shifting his yellow eyes back to Shanda once more. “It is only my hand that has stayed your execution thus far.”

“Then I supposed that thanks are in order,” Obi-Wan replied, making little attempt to hide the contempt in his voice and his beaten face as he nodded his head toward the Emperor. “Might I ask how long we might expect these... accommodations... to be provided?”

“For a while longer, at least,” Palpatine replied, rising to his feet and taking several steps toward the badly beaten Jedi Knight. “At least until you’ve served your purpose,” he replied coolly, pausing as he stopped a step or two in front of them.

Obi-Wan watched, resisting the urge to lash out as Palpatine smiled at Shanda, then patted her gently on the shoulder. Keep your filthy hands off of her is what he wanted to tell him; yet he held his tongue. “And what purpose might that be?” he managed to ask, watching as Palpatine turned a now angry face toward him once more.

Palpatine glared at him for a long quiet moment, until his gravely voice broken the awkward, tense silence once more. “I should think by now even one as dull as you would have been able to muddle his way through the Force to see his destiny,” he snorted, turning and making his way back toward his chair once more.

“You will die, soon enough, along with the rest of your Jedi friends that have been helping with your little insurgence,” Palpatine stated, his voice as cold and lifeless as a stone as he watched Obi-Wan and Shanda exchange a long, silent glance. “But not until our old friend arrives,” he said, his eyes sparkling with hate as his lips curled into a smile again. “Yes, I believe we are long, long over due for a reunion, and I’m looking forward to it very, very much.”

Obi-Wan felt his blood run cold; he closed his eyes, swallowing hard as he tried to push those feelings -- the ones he’d struggled so long to hide -- back down inside him. He knew it was hopeless, for he’d already sensed who it was Palpatine wanted.

And he knew he was on the way.

-----

Anakin awoke, just as the shrill tone of the comlink echoed through their chambers for the second time; he rolled onto his back, quite sleepily, just in time to see Padmé throw her pillow over her face. “Mmmph,” she growled, squeezing his bare arm gently as he lay beneath the covers beside her. “Make it stop, Ani,” she groaned sleepily, as Anakin yawned and sighed deeply, then rolled over beside her.

His left arm draped across her bare stomach, he lifted his hand and flicked his fingers with an alacrity totally out of concert with the rest of his body. He barely bothered to open his eyes as the small, cylindrical device leapt from the desk across the room, tumbling into his outstretched palm.

A quick flick of his thumb activated the device. “What?” he groused, eyes still closed as he lay there, his cheek pressed tight against Padmé’s chest; as he so often did, he pressed his lips gently to her soft, warm skin, his lips curling into a hint of a smile as he heard the much softer -- and contented -- moan from beneath her pillow, and then he dropped his cheek back onto her shoulder.

He frowned, as he heard the familiar, nasally voice on the other end. “Commander Skywalker, this is Lieutenant Howwe.”

As usual, Anakin wasted no time in getting directly to his point. “Do you know what time it is, Lieutenant?” he growled, making little effort to hide his aggravation as he laid there, eyes closed, at Padmé's side. “You weren’t supposed to bother me for another three hours, yet.”

“Yes, sir, and I’m sorry to wake you,” Howwe apologized, “but Commander Fisto says that this is very important. He was the one who requested I wake you.”

Anakin opened his eyes, his brow furrowing a bit. “It better be,” he replied, even though he knew full well that Kit -- of all people -- would have refrained from intruding on their peace and privacy unless it was nothing short of an emergency. Especially at a time like this. “What is it?”

“We’ll reach Tatooine in just under two hours, sir,” Howwe continued, as Anakin raised himself up on his elbow once more. He blinked his eyes a few times, giving them a moment to adjust to the pale light of their quarters. “But long range scans reveal a larger Imperial presence than we’d anticipated.”

Anakin turned his eyes back to Padmé, as he saw her push the pillow from her face and look up at him, sleepily. “More ships?” Anakin asked, as he and Padmé exchanged a quiet glance.

“Quite a few more, sir,” the lieutenant replied. “Perhaps it’d be best if you came up here to have a look for yourself.”

Padmé nodded her head, a gentle hand rubbing Anakin’s shoulder affectionately. “I’ll be there in ten minutes,” he said, and, with a quick flick of his thumb, the comlink fell silent once more.

“Just like you thought there’d be,” Padmé sighed, her voice still soft and sleepy as Anakin leaned down and kissed her tenderly. I don’t know why I’d ever doubt your dreams anymore, anyway,” she said, brown curls framing her sleepy face as a gentle hand brushed his cheek. “You’d better get up there,” she said, offering him a drowsy, reassuring smile. “They’re going to need you.”

She knew what he was thinking, even before he’d spoken it out loud. “Everything will be fine, Ani,” she smiled softly, brown eyes sparkling in the dim light as they searched his for a long, quiet moment. She could read his tremor -- and his feelings -- like a book, and, as always, she’d taken it on herself to be his comforter once again. “You go on, they need you,” she whispered, pulling him close and kissing him tenderly once more; the room fell silent for a moment, except for the gentle rumble of the Talendor’sengines as it slipped through the blackness of space.

“Go,” she said again, with a gentle nod of his head. “Go be the leader I know you are,” she whispered, smiling up at him proudly. “The leader they need you to be.”

Another long moment passed as they stayed there, lost in time, until Anakin finally spoke. “I love you,” he replied softly. “And I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he said, gazing fondly at her as he watched her close her eyes and nod her head again. “Try to get some sleep,” he said, and he couldn’t help but grin as he watched her roll over onto her side, tucking her arm up under the pillow beneath her head.

“I won’t have to try hard,” she sighed, as Anakin pulled the bedclothes up over her shoulder and tucked her in. “And I love you, too,” she whispered, as he kissed her gently on the cheek once more, then rolled out of the bed and made his way to the washroom.

-------

“There you are, my friend,” Kit Fisto said, turning as he heard the two large metal doors that lead to the ship’s command deck slide open. He’d sensed his friend’s tremor as he’d neared the room -- so strong was it in these recent hours that it was almost impossible not to, no matter how grossly involved in studying the tactical readouts he’d been. “I was beginning to wonder if you’d fallen asleep again,” he said, the corner of his mouth curling up into his trademark sarcastic grin, “or become otherwise, shall we say...engaged.”

Kit chuckled to himself as he saw the sour smile Anakin shot him. “Believe me, either one would have been far preferable to this,” Anakin sighed, shrugging his shoulders as he straightened his thick brown cloak on them. “So what have we got?” he asked, stepping up between Kit and Aayla, who was still studying the tactical display intently, her lekku twitching like Beldarian sandworms as she did so.

“Plain and simple,” Aayla sighed, finally turning her eyes toward Anakin, “A trap. Just like you suspected.”

Anakin nodded his head, his brow furrowing as he eyed the holographic display closely. “I was afraid of that,” he finally said, nodding his head, disheveled blond hair sweeping around his shoulders. “It’s just like my dream. It seems the Empire is expecting us.”

“Well, we knew they would be, didn’t we?” Kit snorted sarcastically, flashing one set of membranes as he turned his large, coal black eyes back to the arrangement of holographic ships before the. “But Master Yoda knew that wasn’t going to stop you, so that’s why we're here. But look at this,” he said, gesturing toward the large ship near the center of the tactical readout. “I’ve never seen a ship this large,” he said, turning his attention to Lieutenant Howwe, who sat at the nearby command console. “Lieutenant?”

“It appears to be an Imperial ship, sir,” Howwe confirmed, more than a bit of concern on his young face as he drew the holoprojector’s focus in tighter on the massive vessel. “A new interceptor class, according to our information. We believe it’s the new Imperial flagship.”

“I guess they weren’t happy with what you did to their last one,” Aayla chimed in, one eyebrow cocked suspiciously as she glanced back at Anakin.

“Our best technicians estimate she has nearly forty percent more firepower than the standard imperial star cruiser, Commander,” Howwe continued, glancing up at the young Jedi Knight as he nodded his head.

“That’s where they’ll have him, then,” Anakin said finally, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he glanced back at his companions. “I’m sure of it.”

“I don’t understand,” Aayla interjected, openly frustrated, as she pounded her clenched fist on the edge of the display. “How do they build stuff like this without us knowing about it?”

Anakin was quick to answer. “He and Dooku commissioned a whole clone army without us knowing about it,” he said, blue eyes watching as Aayla sighed, then nodded her head. “In light of that, one ship isn’t so far fetched, now, is it?”

“This complicates things,” Anakin continued, wasting no time in getting back to his train of thought.

Kit stood up straight, the light saber that hung at his waist catching the light from the projection in front of them as it swung slowly at his side. “To say the least, Anakin,” he said. “The other ships are standing by, awaiting our instructions,” he added, his eyes shifting to his friend once more as Aayla looked on. “We’ve advised them that we may have to abort the mission.”

Kit and Aayla were both a bit surprised at Anakin’s quick response to this suggestion. “No, we can’t do that,” he said, shaking his head firmly. “It’s now or never.”

“Anakin, I appreciate your fervor, but we never planned on this,” Aayla said, no longer able to hold her tongue. She gestured toward the display in front of them. “Look at this blockade, they’ll have us flanked on both sides when we come out of hyperspace,” she said, shaking her head. “There’s no way we could take them by surprise, not with that cursed behemoth at the lead. We don’t even know what she’s capable of, and to be honest, I really don’t want to find out.”

“We’re not going to find out,” Anakin replied, quite firmly.

“Anakin, I’m confused,” Kit said, taking a step closer to his friend. “What are you talking about?”

Kit watched Anakin for a long moment; he could sense his tremor, could feel Anakin probing the Force around them with a relentless fervor. He looked back at Aayla, a nervous tension filling the room around them until, a few moments later, Anakin’s firm voice broke the silence. “Wake Master Yoda,” Anakin said, his voice as firm and set as his countenance as he turned his piercing blue eyes to Kit once more. “Have everyone assemble on the flight deck in one hour. Understood?”

Under any other circumstances, Kit would have sought to argue, to reason with his young friend. Indeed, he’d never been one to back away from an argument, no matter how heated; yet this time, he held his tongue, for reasons which he wasn’t entirely sure. Perhaps it was the leading of the Force, or possibly the steel-hard resolution he saw in Anakin’s eyes as he looked back at him.

Either way, he knew that it was pointless to try to turn Anakin from this path. “Understood,” Kit finally replied, and he lifted a hand toward Aayla, effectively silencing her as she opened her mouth to protest. “It will be done as you request, Anakin.”

Kit took a step toward Aayla, as Anakin turned and began to stride toward the doorway, with as resolute a purpose as he’d ever seen any man possess. He turned his large eyes back to Aayla, and once again raised his hand as he saw the concern on her face. He knew she intended to protest again, yet it was his own voice that cut her short once more.

“This is a suicide mission, Anakin,” Kit called after him, watching him intently as the young Jedi Knight paused, then turned toward him once more. “You and Padmé will never get out of there alive. Why are you doing this?”

“Because Padmé and I didn’t go through hell for the past three days to give up on on them now, Kit,” Anakin replied, a fierce look of determination on his face. He paused, watching as his two friends looked at one another, then back to him as he spoke again.

“And because he’d do it for me.”

------

Four Days Earlier

The sands of time move quickly, no matter what planet you’re on.

It had been a long, busy day indeed, and to Anakin, those sands seemed to move exceptionally fast - especially today.

He reached over in the empty seat beside him, rummaging through the small bag he had placed there a few moments earlier; he smiled, as he finally found the large cluster of gandarra berries near the bottom of the bag. He turned his eyes back toward the narrow roadway as he pulled his hand from the bag, and he leaned back in the seat of his speeder as he popped a couple of the berries he’d plucked from the bag into his mouth.

He had stopped by the market on his way home, at Padmé’s request; tonight was a special night indeed, and she’d called him, just as he’d told her she would earlier that morning, with a couple of last minute requests. He smiled, chuckling quietly to himself, as he popped another of the plump, juicy berries in his mouth; he had promised them both that he would bring them some when he came home, and he knew that they’d be expecting them, since they loved them almost as much as he did.

Anakin took a deep breath and sighed, as he steered the speeder along the narrow, winding roadway that led to their home. It was hard to believe, he thought to himself, as the wind that whipped through the speeder’s cockpit tossed his long, blonde hair wildly about, that it had been two years since the day they had arrived.

They’d grown so much, he thought with a smile, as he let his mind drift back to that day aboard the Millenium Falcon, when he and Padmé had first welcomed them into the world. They had both seemed so tiny, so fragile, when Obi-Wan had carefully wrapped them in those blankets and placed them into her arms just after they were born; their lives had been changed forever in that instant, almost as much as it had been that night on Naboo almost six years ago, when they had first given their hearts to one another.

Many things had changed in the last two years since they had returned home. He wished, with all of his heart, that Padmé’s family could have come tonight to help them celebrate Luke and Leia’s birthday, yet he understood why they couldn’t. It was a long way from Venecia to Bardésha, after all, and, with Ruwee still recovering from a serious bout of Bendalian influenza, they had felt it best if they waited a few weeks and joined them for a belated celebration. Besides, Anakin thought to himself, as much as he loved Padmé’s family, there was something about just the four of them being together on this special night that appealed to him greatly.

It had been a difficult adjustment for the both of them at first, when they had made the decision to leave Venecia eighteen months ago; yet, deep down in their hearts, they had both known that, though it was a hard, painful choice, there was no question that it was the right one, and the only one, for the safety of her family as well as their own. Even with Anakin and Artoo’s skillful manipulation of the government databases that day in the capitol city, it had simply proven too difficult to hide in the city her family had called home for nearly six generations. Padmé’s fame and service record were far too well known, and, after several close calls with a couple of bounty hunters that had been sniffing around the city, they had decided together that it was in everyone’s best interest that they relocate, and strike out on their own.

Bardésha was a beautiful village, much like Venecia in many ways. Located in Naboo’s southern hemisphere, the weather was warmer most of the year, something that both he and Padmé had come to enjoy. Nestled in a beautiful valley between a large, tree-lined range of mountains and lush forests, it had proven to be both a beautiful, and practical, choice for them.

The people of Bardésha were pleasant and amicable, and they had found it relatively easy to conceal their pasts in this quiet mountain town; it had only taken Anakin a couple of months to reestablish his repair business near the bustling town center, and Padmé had come to enjoy the relative anonymity that this pleasant mountain town offered her. She had allowed the natural curl that had developed in her long, brown hair during her pregnancy to flourish, and it had proved to be enough of a change in her appearance to safely conceal her identity among the quiet, unobtrusive townsfolk; known only to their new friends and acquaintances as Padmé Skywalker, she and the children could now move around the city with relative ease and comfort, something that had given both her and Anakin a great deal of peace of mind.

Anakin popped the last berry in his hand into his mouth, munching contentedly, as he turned the speeder off the main road and onto the stone and dirt pathway that led to their small, comfortable home. They had chosen it carefully, when they had come to this place, and he couldn’t imagine that they could have found anyplace that suited them better. He glanced over the side of the speeder, looking down at the crystal clear brook that wound lazily along behind their property as he crossed the small wooden bridge that spanned it; it wasn’t as large, or as deep, as the river behind their old homestead, but it was just as beautiful, and as peaceful. Even better, he thought with a smile as he topped the small rise and started down toward the house, Luke and Leia loved it; the warmer, almost tropical weather kept the water at almost the perfect temperature, and Padmé took them both down to play near the water’s edge almost every day, with the exception of the few days each week that it rained.

Anakin reached over and pressed the button on the console of his speeder, and he watched as the smaller door on the front of the small hangar that stood about a hundred meters from their home began to lift slowly; he backed off of the throttle and, timing it perfectly just as he always did, brought the speeder just under the edge of the door and cut the engines, kicking up a small cloud of dust as the breaking dampers fired and the speeder dropped down onto its supports with a solid thump.

He blinked his eyes several times, giving them a moment to adjust to the soft light that filtered through the three small skylights in the roof above him; he reached over and picked up the bag from the seat beside him as he climbed quickly out of the speeder, and he looked up at the ship beside him as he suddenly heard a familiar voice call to him.

“Master Ani,” Threepio called, standing in the doorway of the small, silver ship. “Thank goodness you're home!”

“What’s the problem, Threepio?” Anakin asked, looking at his mechanical friend with a grin as he tucked the bag in his hand into the crook of his right arm and walked around the front of the speeder toward the ship.

“It’s that overbearing little astrodroid of yours again, Master Ani,” Threepio said, waving his arms agitatedly as Anakin walked slowly up the ramp into the ship. “I tried to tell him all afternoon that he needed to wait on you to return this evening before he tried to install that new transmitter,” he complained, shuffling along quickly behind Anakin as he made his way through the small crew cabin toward the cockpit, “but he simply won’t listen.”

“I told him that Mistress Padmé would need to use the ship’s transmitter later this evening,” Threepio wailed, as he followed Anakin into the cockpit. “But he insisted on starting the repairs, anyway.”

Anakin sighed, shaking his head slowly as he heard the long, electronic raspberry that came from the cockpit in reply to Threepio’s anxious, agitated voice; many things may have changed in the last two years, but the strained, yet generally friendly relationship between Artoo and Threepio wasn’t one of them.

“You two are almost as bad as Luke and Leia,” Anakin chuckled to himself, as he placed the bag in his arm down in the copilot’s seat of the small ship andglanced over toward the main communications console in the corner of the cockpit; he sighed again, reaching up and running his fingers slowly through his hair as he saw the huge, tangled array of wires and cables strewn about the cockpit floor.

“Artoo,” he sighed, shaking his head as he walked over and gazed at his little astrodroid with a resigned smile, “Did you really need to take the whole ship apart just to install a new transmitter?”

Anakin glanced over at the small display on the console in front of him, as Artoo swung his dome back toward him, a long string of beeps, clicks and whistles ensuing as Anakin knelt beside him and slapped him gently on top of his sensor dome.

“The emitter coil was bad?” Anakin asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise as he saw Artoo’s message scroll quickly across the tiny display in front of him. “Are you sure?”

Anakin sighed, nodding his head slowly as another long, angry string of whistles and clicks followed. “I’m sorry, Artoo,” he chuckled, patting his little droid’s dome reassuringly. “Yes, I know that you wouldn’t pull a perfectly good coil if there wasn’t something wrong with it.”

“But Threepio’s right this time,” Anakin said, standing up and looking down at their little droid with a sly grin. “It’s Luke and Leia’s birthday, remember? Padmé’s going to want to try to contact her mom and dad later tonight, so we need that transmitter working,” he said, walking over and picking up his bag from the copilot’s seat.

“And if it’s not,” he said, turning back his little round companion with a serious expression as he tucked his bag into the crook of his arm again, “you’re going to have the wrath of one very angry mother to deal with. Understand?”

Artoo sat quietly for a moment; Anakin and Threepio both watched him as he swung his dome back toward the mess of wires and circuit boards around him, and then back toward the two of them again.

Anakin couldn't help but laugh as he heard the short, electronic uh-oh from his little friend as he suddenly turned his attention back to the mass of circuits in front of him and returned to work, a huge array of sparks flying from his fusing probe as he began to fuse circuits at an almost alarming rate.

“Don’t worry, Threepio,” Anakin chuckled, turning his attention toward his tall silver friend and patting him soundly on the shoulder. “I think he’ll have it working in time for Padmé’s call later tonight.”

“But keep an eye on him,” Anakin called, glancing back over his shoulder as he walked quickly back toward the ship’s entry ramp. “And don’t let him off the ship until he’s finished, understand?”

“Very clearly, Master Ani,” Threepio called with a firm nod, his electronic eyes following Anakin as he trotted down the ramp and out of the ship.

“Well, you heard Master Ani, you overconfident little troublemaker,” Threepio chided, as he shuffled up quickly to Artoo’s side. “And you’d better hope you get that transmitter back together in time for Mistress Padmé to make her call this evening,” he said, rapping Artoo soundly atop is shiny silver dome. “Or you’re going to be in quite a lot of trouble.”

“I saw Mistress Padmé at her exercises the other evening,” Threepio said, leaning a little closer to his little round companion as he worked. “She’s becoming quite a powerful Jedi, you know,” he said, a tone of keen satisfaction in his electronic voice. “I wouldn’t want to be in your place if that transmitter fails to work.”

Artoo sighed, as well as a droid could, quickly surveying the mess on the cockpit floor around him one more time with his sensors; he swung his dome back toward the console in front of him after a long moment and went back to work, his probe sending another huge plume of sparks flying through the cockpit around them.

------

“There he is,” Anakin heard her playful, excited voice call, as he stepped out of the hangar and into the bright afternoon sunlight. “Go get him!”

He turned his attention toward the house, as he heard her soft, pleasant voice; he smiled, laughing quietly to himself, as he suddenly saw the bright eyed, sandy haired little boy that ran, somewhat slowly and clumsily, through the tall grass toward him. He took a few steps toward him and, dropping quickly to his knee and placing the bag in his arm on the ground beside him, he threw his arms open wide and caught him, hugging him tightly as he scooped him up into his arms.

“There’s my boy,” Anakin sighed, closing his eyes and smiling brightly as he felt his son throw his arms tightly around his neck and squeeze him tightly. “Happy birthday, Luke,” he said, kissing his son firmly on the cheek as he grinned back at him. “Did you have a good day?”

“Mm,hmm,” Luke replied softly, nodding his head with a sheepish smile; Anakin smiled again, as Luke turned his attention to his mother and pointed his tiny finger at her. “Mommy!” he exclaimed, looking back at his father with a grin.

“I see Mommy,” Anakin laughed, turning his attention to Padmé as she walked up to him; he closed his eyes, as she stepped up to him and kissed him tenderly for a long moment.

“Welcome home, Daddy,” Padmé said, opening her beautiful brown eyes and smiling up at him as their lips finally parted. “We’ve been waiting for you all afternoon,” she said, looking down at her little dark haired daughter with a smile as she hid playfully behind her skirt. “Haven’t we, Leia?”

“Waiting for me?” Anakin said, watching with a sly grin as she reached down and picked up Leia, hoisting her up into her arms and placing her on her hip.

“Now what in the world would you be waiting on me for?” he asked with a grin, as he leaned forward and kissed Leia gently on her cheek. “Happy birthday to you too, sweetheart,” he said, reaching up and brushing his hand through her fine, dark hair as she wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck and hugged her tightly, giggling quietly.

“You know very well what they’ve been waiting on,” Padmé laughed, watching as Luke leaned over his father’s arm and pointed to the bag on the ground at his feet as his bright, excited eyes suddenly caught site of it. “They’ve been standing at the back door watching for you ever since I told them you were bringing them their favorite surprise.”

“Berwees!” Luke exclaimed excitedly, leaning over Anakin’s arm and reaching toward the bag that rested near his father’s boots with all his might.

“Hold on there,” Anakin chuckled, grabbing hold of his son tightly as he pulled him back up securely into his arms. “Wait till we get in the house, okay?” he said, looking back at Luke with a grin.

Anakin looked down and stretched his hand out toward the bag beside him, and Padmé smiled slyly as the bag suddenly leapt from the ground and into his outstretched hand.

Anakin looked back at Luke, as he started to laugh and bounce excitedly in his arms. “You like it when I do that, don’t you?” he laughed, grinning as widely as his son was.

“I thought we weren’t supposed to let them see us do that,” Padmé said, tossing him a sly smirk as he grinned sheepishly back at her.

“Well, today’s a special day,” Anakin said, tussling Luke's hair as he bounced him playfully in his arms. “Besides,” he said, shaking his head slowly and looking back at Padmé with a grin, “They probably won’t remember much of this anyway.”

“You hope,” Padmé chuckled, as she walked slowly along beside him as they made their way up toward the house. “If they do,” she said, wrapping her left arm tightly around his waist as she smiled up at him, “we’re both going to be in a lot of trouble.”

-----

“Leia!” Padmé exclaimed, quickly grabbing her napkin and looking at her daughter with a disgusted expression as she took a deep breath and, quite unceremoniously, sprayed a mouthful of food all over the table in front of her.

“Don’t do that, honey,” she said firmly, shaking her head as she scrubbed her daughter’s face with her napkin for the second time this evening; she glanced over at Anakin as she suddenly heard him start to laugh – again.

“And you stop laughing at her,” Padmé growled, tossing him a playful frown as he grinned up at her sheepishly, watching as she scrubbed Leia’s food covered face with her napkin. “I think she does it because you think it’s funny.”

“I never said I thought it was funny,” Anakin snickered, shaking his head slowly as he leaned down over his plate and laughed, as quietly as he possibly could. “I’m laughing at something else,” he said, his eyes twinkling as he caught sight of her sarcastic smirk. He cut his blue eyes quickly over toward his son, as he sat quietly beside him. “Aren’t I, Luke?”

Padmé started to laugh, in spite of herself, as she saw the blank look of surprise on her young son’s face, as he stared quietly at his sister, his own small face and hands covered in food as he chewed, very slowly, watching Leia as she continued to blow raspberry after raspberry into her mother’s napkin.

“Stop it, Leia,” Padmé laughed,gazing back at her daughter with a hopeless, pleading expression. “Even your brother is looking at you like there’s something wrong with you.”

“You need to eat and stop playing,” Padmé said, still chuckling quietly to herself, as she placed her napkin on the table and picked up the spoon near Leia’s plate again, scooping up another mouthful of food from her daughter’s plate.

Anakin watched, with great amusement, as Padmé brought the small spoon to Leia’s mouth; he’d witnessed this little battle, time and time again, and it never ceased to entertain him.

“Come on, honey,” Padmé coaxed sweetly, as her daughter pursed her lips tightly and turned her head away as she brushed the spoon against them. “You haven’t eaten hardly anything.”

Padmé sighed again, as Leia shook her head and turned away again. “I give up,” she sighed, dropping the spoon on Leia’s plate and flopping back in her own chair, looking over at Anakin with a sad, defeated frown as he reached down into his lap and picked up his own napkin. “I’m a terrible mother. She’s just going to starve.”

“No, she’s not, and you’re a wonderful mother,” Anakin chuckled, shaking his head as he wiped his mouth on his napkin and stood up from his chair. Padmé watched him as he picked up his plate and walked over beside her. “Come on, switch places,” he said with a smile, leaning down and kissing her gently on the cheek. “I know what she wants.”

“Don’t be so sure,” she sighed,glancing up at him with a resigned, defeated smile as she picked up her plate and stood up from her chair. “She’s been like this all day long.”

“She just wants Daddy to help her with dinner tonight,” Anakin said, looking at his daughter with a grin as he sat down next to her. “Don’t you, sweetheart?”

Padmé watched him with a smile as she sat down in his chair and placed her plate on the table in front of her. “I think she wants Daddy to help her with everything,” she sighed, switching their glasses as Anakin picked up the spoon from Leia’s plate. “Maybe you should just start taking her to work with you everyday.”

“Well, that might not be a bad idea,” he said, returning the smile that Leia gave him. “You’d just attract all kinds of customers, wouldn’t you, sweetheart?” he said, gently rubbing the spoon against Leia’s food-covered lips.

Padmé shook her head with amazement as, without so much as a whimper, Leia opened her mouth and took the bite of food her father offered her. “There we go,” Anakin said, looking at his daughter with a huge grin. “See, Mom?” he said,glancing back at Padmé slyly. “We were hungry, after all.”

“You’re cheating,” Padmé snorted, frowning back at him playfully. “I saw you wave your hand when you sat down in front of her,” she chuckled, shaking her head as she finally took a bite of her own dinner.

“Now, you know that wouldn’t work,” Anakin said, as he scooped up another spoonful of food and shoveled it into Leia’s mouth as she opened it widely for him. “That only works on the weak minded,” he said, shaking his head slowly as he picked up his glass and took a long, thirsty swig. “And you know good and well that Leia is far from being weak minded.”

“No, she definitely isn’t that,” Padmé laughed, shaking her head and smiling back at him as she took a sip from her glass.

“I heard from Beru today,” Padmé said, placing her glass on the table again as Anakin continued to shovel spoonful after spoonful of food into Leia’s hungry little mouth. “She said that they’re planning to have a celebration for Shanda at the end of the month, and they wanted to know if we could come.”

“She said Shanda really wants us to be there,” she said, as she took another bite of her dinner. “But I think it’s really Luke and Leia she wants to see.”

“Well, of course we’ll be there,” Anakin said, nodding his head as he managed to sneak a bite of his own dinner. “I wouldn’t want to miss that for anything,” he said, looking back at Padmé as she picked up Luke’s cup and placed it a little closer to him. “When is everything going to be official?”

“Three days from now,” Padmé said with a nod, as Luke picked his cup up in his two small, food covered hands and took a long sip. “The ceremony will be a few days after that. Beru is so happy and excited.”

“I bet she is,” Anakin chuckled, nodding his head again. “Shanda Lars,” he said, smiling as he tried his soon-to-be-adopted niece's new name on for size. “It’s got a nice ring to it.”

“I’m happy for all of them,” Padmé said, resting her elbows on the table as she grinned back at him. “She said Obi-Wan’s really excited about it, too,” she said, turning her attention back to her daughter as Anakin started to feed her again. “She said that he came by earlier this morning to pick Shanda up, and they talked about everything before they left for Anchorhead.”

“Were they going to escort another one of the children?” Anakin asked, his expression becoming much more serious for a moment.

“I think so,” Padmé said, nodding her head firmly as she brought her glass up to her lips again, pausing for a moment as she took a sip. “Beru said he’s been taking her with him on most of the escort runs the past few months,” she said, placing her glass back on the table in front of her. “I think they only have four more left to relocate, and then that’ll be the last of them.”

“It’s taken a long time,” Anakin sighed, nodding his head slowly. “I’m glad it’s almost over.”

“Me, too,” Padmé sighed, looking back at him with an apprehensive smile. “Beru worries so much when they go on these things, what with all the close calls Obi-Wan’s had the past few months,” she said. “She said she knows that its all part of Shanda’s training, but she said she’ll be so glad when this part’s over.”

“I know,” Anakin sighed, nodding his head slowly as they gazed at each other thoughtfully for a long moment. “So will I.”

“Speaking of things being over,” Anakin said, his expression brightening considerably as he took another bite of his dinner, “How’s the project coming?”

He smiled, as he watched her raise her eyebrows and take a long, deep breath. “Well,” she sighed, “I think I’m almost finished. If I can get a few more hours to work on it, I should be done.”

“That’s great!” Anakin beamed, watching as she grinned sheepishly at him and poked at the food on her plate nervously with her fork. “Did you make the phase adjustments to the crystals, like we talked about the other morning?”

“I think so,” Padmé nodded, pausing as she took another bite of her dinner; she laid her fork down next to her plate as she reached over and picked up the small, damp towel that rested on the table between her and Luke.

Anakin watched her, as she reached over and began to wipe his small, food-covered face and hands. “I ran the spectrum analysis like you told me,” she said, smiling at her sandy-haired son as he squirmed and grunted in his chair as she cleaned him up. “Everything looks good, but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see how it turns out.”

“I think somebody’s just about finished with his dinner,” Padmé said, caressing Luke’s freshly clean cheek softly as he grinned up at her and banged his small hands soundly on the tray in front of him.

“I think this one is too,” Anakin replied, quickly studying Leia’s plate as he shoveled one more small bite of food into her mouth.

“Tell you what,” Anakin said, as he stood up and picked up Luke and Leia’s plates. Padmé took another bite of her dinner, watching as he walked over to the counter in their small kitchen and placed the plates in the sink below the window.

“I’ll clean up the kitchen tonight, and give these two their baths,” he said, as he picked up the bowlful of freshly washed fruit and walked back to the table. “While I’m doing that, you can see if you can finish it up.”

Padmé smiled brightly as she saw Luke and Leia’s small faces light up as their father placed a small handful of the bright red gandarra berries from the bowl on each of their trays in front of them. “There you go, you two,” he sighed,gazing at both of his children fondly as he sat the bowl down on the table and took his seat again beside Padmé.

“Are you sure?” Padmé asked, as he picked up a handful of the plump, juicy berries for himself and grinned back at her. “You’ve been working all day. It’s not fair for you to have to come home and…”

She stopped mid-sentence, chuckling quietly to herself, as he leaned over toward her quickly and silenced her with a kiss. “Of course I’m sure,” he said, nodding his head as he sat back up in his chair and popped a couple of berries in his mouth. “Besides,” he said, looking back at her with a sly grin, “You and I can relax later, together.”

“I see,” Padmé said, grinning back at him playfully as she watched him smile back at her, munching as happily and contentedly on the juicy red berries as Luke and Leia. She and Anakin both turned their attention to their son, as he suddenly squealed excitedly, and sent a number of the round, red berries flying off his tray toward the table.

Padmé grinned again, shaking her head slowly as Anakin instantly raised his hand, catching two of the errant berries and holding them in the Force a short distance above the table. She watched, her smile growing brighter and brighter, as Luke’s bright eyes followed them, completely mesmerized, as the small fruits floated slowly across the table and hung, perfectly still, just an inch or two from his small, beaming face.

“There you go again,” she sighed, shaking her head as her son squealed excitedly as he reached up with his small hand and plucked the two berries from the air in front of him. “Master Yoda is going to be so put out with you, if he ever finds out you do this.”

“Yeah, well,” Anakin chuckled, resting his chin on his hand and he slidthe other hand over toward her. “Obi-Wan wasn’t too thrilled about it either,” he said, winking at her as she took his hand and squeeze it tightly. “But he got over it.”

“Eat,” Anakin said, nodding toward her plate as he gazed at her fondly. They exchanged a long, quiet glance and, giving his hand another squeeze, Padme finally went back to her dinner.

“Oh,” she said, looking back up at him with a grin as she chewed, “Let me tell you what your son did today.”

Anakin took a long, deep breath and sighed, quite contentedly; he glanced over at his two happy children, and then turned his attention back to Padmé as she began to share the events of her day with him. He squeezed her hand again tightly, as he listened to her soft, soothing voice, and felt her soft, warm tremor in his heart.

He couldn’t imagine being any happier.

------

Padmé reached up and adjusted the small, swing arm lamp that hung over the workbench; she reached up, as soon as she got the lamp where she wanted it, and brushed her long hair back over her shoulder as she turned her attention back to the bench again.

Her padawan braid swung slowly by her left ear, as she reached over and picked up the small, cylindrical power cell that lay on the bench; she took a long, deep breath, as she held it gingerly in her hand for a moment, and then, holding her breath and biting her lip gently, she picked up the smooth, shiny cylinder in her other hand and, with one quick, smooth motion, snapped the power cell into place.

She sighed, quite relieved, as she saw the cell’s contacts spark for just an instant, and then sit quietly in its socket in the smooth, polished cylinder. She laid her weapon back down on the table and, reaching over and picking up the cover plate that rested on the bench beside it, she snapped it into place and secured it quickly with two small screws.

She glanced over her shoulder, as she suddenly heard the door to the hangar open; she smiled, as she saw Anakin step through the doorway and close it carefully behind him.

Padmé closed her eyes and smiled, as she felt his hands fall gently on her shoulders as he walked up behind her and kissed her softly on the cheek; she laid the smooth, metal cylinder down on the workbench in front of her, as she reached up and took his hands tightly in hers.

“What are you doing out here?” she said, her dark brown eyes sparkling brightly as she looked up over her shoulder at his smiling face. “I’m supposed to be doing this on my own, you know,” she said, smiling at him brightly as he looked down at the bench in front of her. “Where are the kids?”

“I didn’t come out to help you, don’t worry,” Anakin said, shaking his head and laughing softly as he leaned closer to her; she closed her eyes and smiled again, sighing contentedly as he wrapped his arms tightly around her and kissed her on the cheek again. “And don’t worry,” he said softly, “They’re in their room playing, and Threepio’s watching them.”

Padmé turned her head toward him, and their eyes met for a brief moment, as she pressed her lips gently to his; she sighed again, reaching up and caressing his cheek gently as she kissed him for a long moment.

“I think you came out here to distract me,” she sighed quietly, as she felt that warm, wonderful feeling sweep over them both; she laughed softly, wrapping her arms around his tightly as he moved his soft, passionate kisses down to the nape of her neck.

“So how’s it going?” Anakin asked, his voice muffled as he nuzzled her neck and kissed her, gently.

“I… don’t… remember,” Padmé laughed quietly, as she felt the delightful, tingling sensation of his lips on the nape of her neck. “I think I was building something.”

“Sorry,” Anakin laughed, hugging her tightly as he turned his attention to the workbench in front of her. “Hey,” he said, looking back at her with a grin as his eyes quickly surveyed her weapon as she picked it up gingerly and cradled it, almost reverently, in her hands. “You got the power cell installed.”

“Just now,” Padmé sighed, nodding her head as he released her from his embrace and stood beside her as she swiveled in her chair to face him. “I haven’t tried it out yet,” she said, looking up at him a little apprehensively as she placed her weapon into his outstretched hand, “but I think it’s all put together right.”

Padmé smiled, watching as Anakin turned her new light saber slowly over in his hands. “It looks fantastic, Padmé,” he said, smiling proudly back at her. “You really did a great job.”

“Well, I had a good teacher,” she grinned, looking up at him sheepishly. “But looks are one thing,” she sighed. “We still need to find out if it works.”

“You lined up the emitter coil, and hooked up the overload switch, like we talked about, right?” Anakin asked, as she nodded her head firmly.

“Yes,” Padmé replied. “As far as I know,” she said, taking another deep breath and sighing deeply, “It’s finished.”

“Well,” Anakin sighed, as he placed her weapon back into her hand, “I guess it’s time we found out if it works,” he said, grinning slyly at her. “And if you got the color you wanted.”

“Oh, no,” she laughed, quite nervously, as she handed the small, delicate weapon back to him again. “I want you to try it out first,” she said, smiling nervously up at him. “I want to know what you think, and I want your honest opinion,” she said, her expression growing a bit more serious as she gazed up at him. “Don’t pull any punches. Promise?”

“Okay, promise,” Anakin grinned, nodding his head firmly as he took a few steps back from the workbench. “You ready?”

“Ready,” Padmé said, folding her hands nervously in her lap as she nodded her head slowly. “As I’ll ever be.”

Anakin smiled back at her for a moment, and then he brought her weapon up in front of him as he pressed the smooth, round igniter switch just below the emitter of her delicate, elegant weapon.

Padmé’s look of concern and uncertainty quickly faded, replaced by a bright, excited smile as she watched, laughing happily, as her weapon blazed forth in her husband’s hand, it’s thin, brilliant blade humming smoothly as he looked back at her.

“You did it, Angel,” Anakin exclaimed, watching her with a proud smile as she lifted her hands to her face and laughed excitedly, as she looked with happy amazement at the dark, cobalt-blue blade of her weapon.

Anakin turned it slowly in his hand as he admired the pure, dark blue color of the thin, humming shaft of light; it was a color as unique as the blades of his own, and it had taken her weeks of tuning and aligning the emitter crystals to get just the color she had chosen on the spectrum analyzer.

She had fashioned her weapon, like every Jedi did, to fit her own physical traits, as well as her fighting style. While similar in both form and design to Anakin’s, she had designed the hilt of her weapon to fit her smaller hands. The grip was a bit longer, as she preferred to space her hands a bit more, and was significantly thinner than his, a feat of engineering that had proven to be no small challenge for her. Yet, like everything else that Padmé had done in her life, she had poured every ounce of her abilities and dedication into its design, and her hard work had been supremely rewarded – it was a truly elegant weapon, one that suited the beautiful young woman who was once queen of Naboo perfectly.

Padmé watched with an excited smile, as Anakin swung her weapon smoothly at his side several times, its brilliant, dark blue blade humming smoothly as it sliced through the air. “It’s perfect, Padmé,” he beamed, looking back at her with a proud smile as he reached over and took her hand, pulling her up off of the chair where she sat.

“I think it’s balanced even better than mine,” he said, laughing quietly to himself as he powered her weapon down and handed it to her as she came and stood beside him. “Come on, let’s see you try it.”

Anakin took several steps back and leaned against the wall of their workshop; he folded his arms tightly across his chest, watching her with a keen smile as she pressed the igniter on her weapon and brought it up in front of her. He laughed again, as he saw the look of complete amazement, and satisfied accomplishment, that spread across his wife’s face as, holding her weapon in her hand and balancing it in the crook between her thumb and forefinger, she swung it beside her several times, neatly and smoothly.

“I can’t believe it,” she giggled, looking back at him with a bright smile as she brought her blade back up in front of her and powered it down. “I did it!”

Anakin grunted, laughing quietly to himself, as she suddenly leapt toward him and flung her arms tightly around his neck. “I did it, Ani,” she giggled happily, as she hugged him tightly. “It works!”

“I’m really, really proud of you, Padmé,” Anakin said, his face beaming brightly as he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist and smiled back at her. “You know what this means, now, don’t you?”

Padmé looked up at him, her smile softening as she suddenly realized the milestone she had reached in her training. “I’m finished,” she said softly, looking up at him and nodding her head slowly as she looked into his proudly smiling face. “Aren’t I?”

“Yes,” Anakin replied, nodding his head slowly as he smiled fondly at her. “It’s time.”

Padmé looked down at the weapon in her hand again, as the full meaning of this moment finally struck her. She smiled, as she turned her weapon slowly over in her hand; it had been a long, hard road, since she had started down this path with Anakin almost two years ago. It was hard to believe, she thought to herself, that she had finally reached the end of it.

“Are you sure I’m ready?” she asked, looking back up at him apprehensively as her eyes searched his for a long moment.

“You’ve been ready for a while now,” Anakin said softly, nodding his head slowly as he reached up and brushed his fingers gently through her long, wavy hair. “You just had to prove it to yourself.”

“And you’re going to do great,” Anakin said, his smile brightening as she looked up at him fondly. “I’ll call Master Yoda first thing tomorrow,” he said, watching her as she took a long, deep breath, and then nodded her head slowly. “And let him know you’re ready for your Trials.”

“Or, at least I think I will,” Anakin said, looking back up at their new ship that rested across the hanger with an apprehensive smile. “If Artoo’s got the transmitter back together by then.”

“If Artoo has what back together?” Padmé asked, glancing over at the ship with a frown. “He better not have broken that transmitter in that ship, not tonight,” she said, as she took a step toward the ship. “So help me, I’ll…”

“Uh, oh,” Anakin sighed, watching her with a smile as she started across the hangar toward the ship, with him following close behind her. “Come on, Artoo,” he sighed under his breath, chuckling quietly to himself. “Please have that transmitter back together.”

------

Anakin leaned against the doorframe of Luke and Leia’s bedroom; he folded his arms across his chest, watching with a smile as Padmé tucked them both securely into their beds.

“Okay, now,” Padmé said, smiling softly as she pulled the blanket up and tucked it securely around her daughter as she sat down gently on the bed beside her. “We’ve had a big night tonight,” she said, reaching up and brushing her hand gently through her daughter’s dark, wavy hair and looking over at Luke fondly. “I want the two of you to go to sleep,” she said, leaning down and kissing Leia gently on the cheek. “Understand?”

Padmé closed her eyes and smiled, sighing deeply as Leia put her small arms around her neck and hugged her tightly. “Luvuu,” Leia said softly, as she smiled up at her mother’s face as Padmé tucked her arms back under the thick, soft covers securely.

“I love you too, sweetheart,” Padmé smiled, caressing Leia’s small cheek gently. “So very much.”

Anakin took a long, deep breath, sighing contentedly, as he watched Padmé stand up and, sitting down on the edge of Luke’s bed, tuck him securely under his blanket in like fashion.

“Goodnight, my handsome little boy,” Padmé smiled, as she leaned down and kissed Luke playfully on his cheek as he squirmed and giggled under the bedclothes. She smiled again, squeezing her eyes shut tightly as he, as his sister had before him, flung his small arms tightly around her neck and squeezed her tightly, burying his small, giggling face in his mother’s long, wavy hair, as is cascaded over the shoulders of her soft satin nightgown.

“Luvuu too,” Luke said, as he flopped over onto his side and buried his face into his pillow, looking up at her sheepishly as she tucked the blanket securely around him.

“And I love you,” Padmé said softly, rubbing his small back gently as he sighed deeply and closed his eyes. “Sweet dreams, my love.”

Goodnight, you two,” Anakin said, as he walked into the room as Padmé stood up and smiled back at him. She watched him, smiling softly, as he leaned down and kissed each one of them gently on the cheek.

“Nite,” they both said, almost in concert, as he stood up and placed his arm around their mother’s waist, pulling her close to him.

They both looked over at Luke, as he suddenly rolled over onto his back, looking up at them with a serious, worried expression on his small face. “Artoo?” he said, glancing over toward the doorway.

“Don’t worry,” Anakin said, nodding his head as he pointed toward the doorway as he heard the whine of Artoo’s motors approaching. “He’s coming down the hallway now,” he said, looking up and watching with a smile as his little astrodroid wheeled slowly through the doorway and took his customary place in the corner of the children’s bedroom.

“You’re late, Artoo,” Padmé said, as she and Anakin walked slowly toward the doorway. “I think they were afraid you weren’t coming tonight.”

Artoo whistled, quite brightly, as he backed himself into the corner and tucked his center wheel up inside his smooth, round body. He swung his dome toward the doorway, watching as Anakin and Padmé turned and looked back at their children fondly.

“Goodnight, you two,” Anakin said, as he reached over and pressed the switch on the control pad near the doorway. “Sleep well.”

Artoo swung his large, round sensor dome back toward the children again, and, whistling his customary goodnight as he always did, he switched on his main sensor light, bathing the children’s room in a soft, warm glow. He switched on his proximity sensors and, settling himself into his usual diagnostic routine, he began his nightly, silent watch over their two small children, just as he always did, as Anakin quietly closed the door to their room behind him.

------

“You know,” Padmé said, sliding into bed beside him as he pulled the bedclothes back for her, “I’m almost positive that this has got to be some kind of first.”

“Well,” Anakin said with a grin, as he reached over and picked up the two long stemmed glasses of wine that sat on the small table next to their bed. “We’re kind of good at those,” he said, leaning back against the pillow behind him as he handed one of the glasses to her as she snuggled close beside him.

“What first, specifically, were you referring to this time?” he asked, closing his eyes as she placed her hand gently on his bare chest and kissed him tenderly for a long moment.

“This little celebration,” she laughed softly, opening her eyes and snuggling close to him. “I mean, think about it,” she said, as she held her glass up next to his and smiled seductively at him. “How many Jedi and their padawans have celebrated like this before?” she giggled, as she watched him start to laugh.

“I see your point,” Anakin laughed, as he leaned a little closer to her; he smiled at her for a long moment. “To you,” he said softly, as he gazed deeply into her eyes and touched his glass gently to hers.

“To us,” Padmé replied, as she looked back at him fondly and raised her glass to her lips.

“To us,” Anakin nodded, sighing contentedly; their eyes never parted, as they both took a long sip of the fragrant red wine that he had picked up for them earlier that afternoon.

“Oh, Ani,” Padmé said, looking back at her glass with a bright smile. “This is fabulous. Where did you get this?”

“It is good, isn’t it?” he said, reaching over and placing his glass on the table beside them. “I got it from that new vendor at the market, just down the street from the shop,” he said, looking back at her with a grin as she took another long sip from her glass.

“Well, we need to go back and get some more,” she said, as she snuggled close to him and laid her head on his shoulder. “We need to keep this around for special occasions,” she said, looking up at him with a smile. “Like this.”

“Every night’s a special occasion,” Anakin said, reaching over and brushing his fingers lightly across her cheek. “As long as you’re here with me.”

Padmé looked up at him fondly, as her eyes searched his for a long moment. “Yes, it is,” she said softly, as she took another sip from her glass and handed it to him, nodding toward the small table beside their bed.

“You done already?” he asked, taking her glass from her and placing it on the table beside his; he smiled, as he felt her grab hold of his bare shoulders tightly and pull him down in the bed beside her.

“No,” she said, smiling at him softly as she rolled up onto his chest and gazed fondly at him. “I’ll finish it, later,” she whispered, as she smiled brightly down at him and brushed her fingers slowly through his long, shaggy mane. “But right now, I’ve got something else on my mind.”

“Really?” Anakin grinned, looking up at her as he tucked his arm under his head and leaned back against his pillow. “And what might that be?”

Anakin smiled, quite brightly, as he watched Padmé turn her attention to the lamp that rested on the table near their bedroom window. He reached up and brushed his hand gently over her shoulders, tracing the thin straps of her soft, white satin gown with his fingertips, as she lifted her hand and reached into the Force, just as he had taught her.

He looked up at her fondly, as the lamp’s light began to fade quickly, just as he felt her strong soothing tremor deep inside his own heart. They settled down into the soft, thick covers of their bed, their lips locked in a tight, passionate embrace, as the last flicker of light from the lamp faded, in perfect concert, with the fires of passion that blazed brightly inside them.

-----

Our Story Continues...