Portrait of Forbidden Lovers (CH3)

By Obi's Girl

~~Padmé huffed, trying to catch up with Anakin. She hadn't seen him in several months and now just as they were going to be reacquainted, he was leaving her again. She stopped, her hand dropping to her stomach as Anakin finally faced her. He didn't want to leave, but the Jedi needed him and he couldn't put his duties aside – even to be with the woman he loved. Anakin, now his late twenties, was a handsome man, but also a very powerful Jedi Padawan. And that's exactly what was bothering him. He was still a Padawan, when he could have been a Jedi Knight. He tried to convince himself that Obi-Wan was right but a voice kept telling him he was wrong, and as much as he wanted to ignore that voice – he knew the voice was right. He was impulsive, hot-tempered and stubborn. But never, never, had he unleashed his anger on Padmé. She didn't deserve that.

"Anakin, please --- can't you stay awhile? It's been a long time…I've missed you." She cried, her hand still on her stomach. Anakin lowered his eyes, taking her small his hands in his. He missed her too, but because they had been apart for more than a year, it was hard to reconnect with her. She knew it; he knew it but neither of them would admit it openly.

"I want to stay, but they need me. I have to go." He mused, releasing her hands and heading for the door. Padmé bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears as Anakin stopped, feeling her pain. "I'll be back, I promise. We can have dinner together, I promise. I promise Padmé, I'll be back." With that said, he vanished. Padmé stood still for the longest time before walking aimlessly to the living room, fainting onto the couch. ~~

Anakin. Padmé's body bolted up, glancing at her surroundings. A small dresser, her cot and some her baggage off to the side of the cabin. Right, she thought, the shuttlecraft. Padmé rolled her eyes, sitting up, massaging her forehead. She wasn't sure if the dream she had was a memory --- she hadn't very many memories of Anakin. After the wedding, she was with him for only a couple hours before he had to return to the Jedi Temple. If he didn't have to go, he would have stayed but she knew he would be back. In the beginning, she tried to hard to convince herself that even though they were apart a lot, it wouldn't matter. But it did matter.

"Padmé?" Obi-Wan asked, entering the cabin. She smiled at him briefly, though she was still a little bit tired and weary. For some reason, since she and Obi-Wan left Naboo she had been tired more than usual and almost weak. Obi-Wan asked one time if she was falling ill, but Padmé reassured him that she wasn't and that she was worried about their current situation. But seeing Obi-Wan at her cabin door, Padmé knew he had been monitoring her closely using the Force. "What's wrong? I felt something --- I felt you were in pain."

She shrugged as he walked forward, sitting next to her on the cot. "I'm fine, Obi-Wan. I just had a dream. I'm fine."

Obi-Wan nodded, his hand lightly brushing her cheek, and smiled hopefully, "You were dreaming about Anakin, weren't you?" Padmé shook her head yes, still looking down at her hand as she rested on his shoulder, sobbing.

"Why did he have to leave me, Obi-Wan? We were so happy, weren't we? I don't even know anymore. So much of my memory is clouded… But --- ," she cried, biting her lip.

"But what love?"

She removed her head from the crook of his neck, staring up at Obi-Wan, "In my dream, I don't know if this was metaphorical or natural reaction, but I had my hand on my stomach. I mean, Anakin and I always wished for children – but we were never really alone most of the time…"

The Jedi huffed, closing his eyes and resting his hand on her womb. Through the Force, he felt the presence of two entities, but not yet mature. He couldn't pinpoint when she had become pregnant but it had to have been before Anakin left; maybe a month or two earlier. He reached further, trying to determine the gender of both babies but it was impossible to know. They were still immature. Finally, he opened his face, looking into Padmé's brown eyes and nodded.

Padmé groaned, hiding her face in her hands, "I can't believe this --- I'm pregnant. Pregnant!" Immediately, her eyes darted to Obi-Wan, a concerned expression on her face, "If I'm pregnant, does that mean Anakin can feel -- ?"

He nodded, "Maybe. We have to be careful, Padmé. This complicates things. Not only do I have to hide you in the coming months, but the children as well." Obi-Wan huffed, looking back at Padmé. "Before we left, I promised I wouldn't leave you --- I extend that promise to you and your children. We will not leave until they are born."

"And after their born? What happens then? You have to hide them, leaving me." Padmé cried.

Obi-Wan stroked her locks again and smiled, "I wish I didn't have to…" Before he could continue, Padmé kissed Obi-Wan, both falling back onto the cot…

TBC