Sorry for the long wait guys. I was busy with school and other stuff, but now that my classes are over I'm ready to get to writing again. Thanks for being patient, and for giving feedback, it really helps to see your support.
Remembrance
Chapter 10
In the busy market streets of Theed, Ahsoka walked through the waves of people while wearing a brown cloak that hid her features well, and carried a basket with a couple of groceries.
Just as Vader had instructed, she had precautions not to draw any unwanted attention to herself. Although she had no trouble in hiding her presence, his other instructions on keeping Leia indoors all the time hadn't been well received with the little lady. Despite the maturity she showed for her age, Leia was still a child that could get bored easily if she was forced to stay indoors all the time, with only a garden offering the chance for her to run around. But even so, Ahsoka agreed with Vader's concerns. With people under the Emperor possibly looking to get dirt on Vader, there was not telling what would happen if they found out he had a child.
She would have stayed indoors herself, but being a guest in a house without doing much to help out, had made her want to at least help them out by going out to buy groceries for them. It was the least she could do.
However, there was also another reason for these trips to the market.
Lately, she had noticed an increase in the number of Imperial forces in town. She wasn't about to leave the planet just yet, first she needed to make sure if they were the people that Vader warned her about.
Her eyes narrowed on an Imperial Officer walking away from the busy streets. If there was one thing she learned from watching them these last few days, it was that Imperial Officer's were rarely alone, mostly accompanied by a couple of Stormtroopers.
Deciding that she may be able to find something, she quietly followed after him while keeping her Force presence hidden just in case. He was walking into a desolate street and then walked into a dark alleyway.
Suspicious.
Ahsoka climbed up one of the two buildings with a powerful leap, and then peeked into the alleyway from above, easily spotting the officer speaking with a person shrouded in the dark side of the Force. She leaned in closer, trying to listen to what they were saying.
"G-Good to see you sir..." the officer said in a nervous voice.
"What did you find at the house?" Asked the hooded man, clearly wanting to get right to the point.
"Um...yes. The one thing that stood out in that house was a room filled with things for children. Furniture, toys, clothes, the whole deal. At first we thought that we were investigating the wrong place, but we found one of those chambers Lord Vader uses right next to the child's room."
The hooded man crossed his arms, "So it was as I thought... perhaps Vader is playing house with a family here..."
Suddenly he looked up, his eyes narrowed and lingering at the edge of the building's roof.
The officer stared at the man uncertainly until he finally spoke.
"You are dismissed. I will get to the bottom of this myself."
With that the hooded man left.
Ahsoka hurried back to the house, still holding the basket as a way to disguise her identity further.
Vader had been right, dangerous people were investigating him.
But why? Had Vader done something to make the Emperor act?
She really wished she could talk to him to know what was happening, but he had only contacted her once in the past two weeks. Of course, she kept this a secret from Leia and assured the little one that he did call but could only do it after her bedtime. The girl had believed her at first but the lie was wearing thin as she was very perceptive.
Finally, Ahsoka felt a bit of relief wash over her once she finally made it to the home.
Leia was perfectly safe sitting in the living area reading a picture book while her grandparents watched the holonet.
"Thank you for going grocery shopping for us," Jobal said with an appreciative smile though it disappeared quickly when she noticed the worried look on Ahsoka's face. "Is something wrong?"
"Leia and I need to leave the planet."
Leia looked up from her book with a smile, "Are we going to see Daddy?"
"Yes, so go and get your things packed," Ahsoka lied.
The girl cheered and ran to her room, the book forgotten on the floor.
Now alone, Ahsoka's voice took a more serious tone, "What Vader warned me about is happening right now. His house at the lake was searched and they found a lot of Leia's things."
Ruwee frowned deeply, "Those blasted Imperials..."
"When are you going to leave?" Jobal asked.
"As soon as possible. Their people are dangerous and I can't risk Leia getting hurt."
"Of course," Jobal agreed. "I know Anakin left a ship for you, but you can take ours instead. It's at our landing platform nearby. We'll go there with you."
After getting Leia packed and ready, they all walked to a large building two blocks away from the Naberrie home. Since there wasn't a lot of room between the houses, the neighborhood had built the large building with several landing platforms for those that paid for them.
"Come visit again okay?" Jobal said tearfully to Leia as they stood on the ramp of the ship.
The little girl nodded with a smile on her face, "Okay. I'll bring you a present too."
Jobal laughed softly as her husband knelt down to hug his granddaughter.
"You be good alright?"
Ahsoka watched the exchange before stepping forward, it was time to leave.
She took Leia's hand and led her inside the ship while she waved at her grandparents.
"Bye Grandma. Bye Grandpa!"
Ruwee and Jobal held each other as they watched the ship fly. There went that last remaining link to their daughter, their precious granddaughter, and they hoped with all they had that she would be safe.
It had been hard to calm down the excited Leia after they entered the ship, and even harder to explain to her that they wouldn't be seeing her father right away. She had been upset, but had calmed down and taken possession of a table where she could draw.
Ahsoka glanced back at Leia from the cockpit. The little one was sitting on the table with her eyes narrowed and the tip of her tongue peeking out of her mouth as she concentrated in drawing.
Laughing silently to herself at the adorable sight, Ahsoka turned back to the controls and pressed a couple of buttons and soon enough the small image of Obi-Wan appeared in front of her.
"Ahsoka? This is a surprise."
"Hello Master," she bowed her head slightly, mostly out of habit. Even if she had left the order, Obi-Wan was someone she respected.
Obi-Wan smiled before his expression took on a more worried form, "Is there something wrong?"
There were a lot of things wrong, but only a few of those she could tell Obi-Wan now. The rest she would tell him face to face.
"I would be lying if I said there wasn't," she said. "To make a long story short, I have Leia with me."
Obi-Wan almost gaped at that.
"I'm on my way to Tatooine. There are some dangerous people after us and I need your help to keep her safe."
"Of course, but what sort of people are you talking about? And how dangerous?"
"They're called the 'Emperor's Hands' and they are Force users trained in the Dark Side to be assassins," Ahsoka informed. "I suppose you can guess just how dangerous they are."
Obi-Wan nodded slowly, the gears already turning in his head.
"I will send you the coordinates for a safe place where you can land. Luckily the Empire doesn't set foot here unless Jabba is...misbehaving."
"Thank you," she smiled.
"May the Force be with you," Obi-Wan said before ending the transmission.
Obi-Wan leaned back on his chair while rubbing his beard, something he often did whenever he was thinking very carefully about something, also something that he found himself doing a lot more of recently.
Ahsoka was coming to Tatooine with Leia looking for protection against Force sensitive assassins.
He wanted to believe that he could use his abilities to help, but he hadn't used his lightsaber in years, even just for training so he didn't know how he would fare against someone who used a lightsaber skillfully.
Perhaps he should start training with his lightsaber again. Up until now he had made due with only his Force abilities to avoid fighting. He always told himself that it was the Jedi way, ending disputes peacefully but deep down he knew the real reason for why he hadn't touched his lightsaber in years.
The memories.
Every time he grasped the hilt of his lightsaber, he was met with haunting memories.
The agonizing hot weather of Mustafar...
The hate-filled eyes of his old apprentice...
The feeling of his lightsaber cutting through limbs...
Obi-Wan closed his eyes and let out a long drawn out sigh. Not even once did he think that he would ever have to fight Anakin, but now here he was years later, feeling a lot older than he actually was, too afraid to face the memories of said fight.
However, he needed to do just that, and soon...
To add to his worries, there was also something else he needed to face. Leia was coming, and Padmé needed to know. He was happy to tell her that she would be reunited with her daughter, of course, but he also knew how dangerous it was to have the twins together.
Force sensitive siblings almost always had deeper bonds than even Master and Apprentice. In this case they were not only siblings, but twins and Anakin Skywalker's kids. It would be near impossible for Vader, much less the Emperor, to not notice their bond. It would be like a shining beacon in the dark of the night.
Obi-Wan continued to rub his beard, wondering how he was going to get them all through this safely.
The Emperor was fuming.
A whole fleet gone!
It simply cut off all communications and disappeared.
The Executor was declared a casualty of a cowardly attack from the Rebels, but in reality he had no idea what happened. The Rebels could have very well destroyed it but he knew better than to believe in something so convenient.
No. This was Vader.
The very same Vader that had, just as his ship, disappeared without a trace.
His apprentice was plotting something much worse than he initially thought. With a full fleet and a star destroyer under his command, Vader could prove to become a thorn at his side.
His hands clenched tightly.
Were it any other time in the past, he would have been amused with Vader's actions, but when he learned that his apprentice was playing house with some bastard child, he had killed all ten officers at his throne room at the time.
Vader had always been laughably weak to his emotions. It was the reason turning him was so easy. From the moment the Jedi separated him from his mother, Vader's fate was sealed.
However, with the most recent developments and the strange ways Vader's presence would flicker between light and dark at random moments, he was beginning to think that maybe Vader could be turned back.
It was a ludicrous thought, and yet here he was wondering just that. All the while his foolish apprentice was off hiding like some coward.
When this was all over, and Vader was kneeling on the ground before him again, he vowed to make him pay.
Vader would need a lot more than that suit to keep on breathing when he was through with him.
It was early in the morning when Obi-Wan entered the home of the two people he had vowed to protect.
Inside he was met with the disapproving face of Padmé, and a half-awake Luke who did not even notice his presence as he walked into the bathroom.
"What are you doing here?" Padmé asked, her voice firm.
"I came by to let you know that you will be seeing your daughter today."
Padmé's eyes widened before they narrowed as disbelief set in, "What are you trying to do Obi-Wan?"
The Jedi shook his head, "I mean what I say Padmé. I'd wanted to keep you in the dark, but it's useless now." He sat down on a chair and she did the same. "Your daughter, Leia, has lived for many years with Bail and Breha in Alderaan."
"What?!" Padmé let out. "Why did they never tell me? If they knew I was here, looking for her in my own way, why didn't they say anything?"
"It was for her own good. We believed that the twins were better off being separated-"
"But why?" Padmé countered, "I'm tired of this excuse. What makes it so dangerous for them to be together. I doubt Palpatine would actively search for them now that he has that monster with him."
"I'm afraid I can't tell you that just yet," he said and continued before she could argue, "A few weeks ago, Bail and Breha were murdered."
"What about Leia?"
"She went missing, but Ahsoka found her recently. They are both on their way here now."
Padmé nodded, feeling tears in her eyes.
Could it really be happening so quickly? Only a couple of minutes ago she had been going through her daily routine and now she was being told that her daughter was on her way home.
"When are they getting here?"
"In a few hours," Obi-Wan said, "You can come if you would like."
A couple of tears rolled down her cheeks but she wiped them away quickly with her trembling hands.
"I would like that."
Leia's initial thought when she and Ahsoka exited the ship inside of a large crater covered by tall hills, was that she did not like this planet.
It was really hot and a bit of sand went in her mouth with a gust of wind.
"Ew," she whined and wiped her tongue.
She did not like this planet. She wished her Daddy would come soon and take them somewhere nice.
"They should be here soon," Ahsoka said while watching the youngling sitting on a shadowy area of the crater.
"Is Daddy going to be with them?"
"I told you that he's not coming right now," Ahsoka explained to the sulking little girl.
Leia crossed her arms but then heard something, like the sound of something getting closer. Feeling a bit scared, she ran to Ahsoka's side and hid behind her as a speeder entered the area and stopped near them.
Ahsoka smiled slightly when seeing Obi-Wan but then gasped when she saw who was with him.
There was no way...
Padmé felt her whole world stop when she saw the little girl hiding behind Ahsoka.
Thoughts and feelings ran rampant inside of her as she got out of the speeder and approached the two, though her gaze was solely on the brown-haired girl.
"Leia."
Leia looked at her with a bit of apprehension, her Daddy had told her to be careful around strangers and to call him quickly if they knew her name. But something was...odd.
The lady was crying, and reaching slowly with one of her hands.
Padmé smiled briefly when seeing the confusion on her daughter's face, understanding that she would be feeling a bit confused over having a stranger act like this. But they would not be strangers any longer.
"I'm...your mother Leia."
"My...Mommy?" Leia repeated slowly, her eyes slowly filling with confusion. "But you were gone."
"No. Not anymore. I'm here now Leia," she reassured.
"But then why-"
"Search your feelings Leia," Ahsoka instructed with a gentle smile.
Leia nodded slowly and closed her eyes, just like she had done with her Daddy. They remained that way for a few moments until she finally opened her brown eyes which were now filled with tears, "You're my Mommy!"
Padmé nodded and finally pulled her daughter into a hug, openly sobbing in happiness at finally being reunited with her.
It seemed like an awfully short time before they separated. Leia's face was full of happiness and awe, but she couldn't help but cock her head to the side in a show of confusion.
"But why didn't Daddy tell me that you were here?" Leia asked.
"I'm sorry Leia, but Bail was-"
"Not him," Leia broke in, "My real Daddy. Are you angry with him Mommy? Is that why he is always sad?"
"Your real Daddy?" Padmé repeated, feeling confused, and turned to Obi-Wan who shook his head. Was she talking about who she was staying with before Ahsoka found her? "Who are you talking about Leia?"
"Maybe we should leave for now?" Ahsoka tried to cut in.
"My Daddy," Leia repeated, "I called him Mr. Vader before I learned that he was my real Daddy."
"Ahsoka," Obi-Wan cut in this time, looking like he'd seen a ghost. "What is she talking about?"
The former Jedi sighed, "Leia has been staying with Vader all this time."
"What?!" Both Padmé and Obi-Wan exclaimed at the same time.
"Did he find out?" The Jedi asked.
Ahsoka nodded, "I'm sure you've felt it too, but being with Leia has begun to change him. I see more of Anakin in him every day."
Padmé looked up when hearing the name, "Anakin? What are you-"
"Vader is coming closer to being Anakin once again. He's turning away from the Dark Side," Ahsoka declared.
Furious brown eyes turned to Obi-Wan, "What is she talking about Obi-Wan? I don't understand any of this! What is going on?"
Ahsoka looked between the two of them, one furious and one nervous, and finally put two and two together.
"You didn't tell her?"
Obi-Wan looked down, "It was for her own good."
"Tell me what?" Padmé asked in a serious voice.
"Padmé... Darth Vader is Anakin."
A deafening silence settled in the area. Padmé looked between the two, taking the silent and guilty expression on Obi-Wan's face as proof that Ahsoka had told the truth.
Before words could leave her mouth, they were all interrupted by the roaring engine of a ship.
Everyone looked up to see a large black ship hover over the area before four hooded figures jumped down from it and landed in front of the group.
Obi-Wan and Ahsoka instantly stepped in front of the family, while Padmé took Leia and ran back to the speeder where Luke had been watching everything from.
"Who are you?" Obi-Wan asked in a neutral voice.
"We are no one," responded a male voice.
"How did you find us this quickly?" Ahsoka couldn't help but ask.
One of the hooded figures chuckled, "It's not too surprising. I searched Vader's Naboo home by myself. In a child's room, I found a very adorable drawing with the names Ruwee and Jobal. From then, I simply checked the records, found the home, and placed a locator on the ship just in case they decided to leave while my back was turned. The only reason I didn't approach you sooner was because I was told not to."
Four red blades hissed as they came to life. Ahsoka ignited her two light sabers while Obi-Wan held his tightly on his hand with a troubled expression before he relaxed and the blue blade of his lightsaber emerged.
"We will talk about all of this later, but for now you have to get the younglings away from here," Obi-Wan said to Padmé without taking his eyes away from the enemies. "Go to where we agreed on."
Padmé quickly recalled an occasion in which he had told her of a safe place to go in case they were ever in danger. A small hut at the foot of a large hill, barely visible unless one was searching for it.
She nodded fiercely, grabbed Leia by the hand, and led her to the speeder where Luke was watching the scene, his little blue eyes showing just how scared he was.
Padmé had no time to relish as she sat Leia next to Luke, and quickly turned on the speeder.
"The brats aren't going anywhere!" One of the Emperor's Hands declared in a deep voice before he used the Force to dash towards the speeder at a fast speed.
Luckily, Obi-Wan quickly reacted and used a Force Push to kill the man's momentum and causing him to trip over his feet and fall. The hood came undone to reveal a youthful face with short black hair.
"Focus on the Jedi for now Vislor," said one of the hooded figures in a masculine voice. He removed his hood to reveal that he was in fact an Anzat.
Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes on him. The Anzati were a humanoid species but with two tentacles on their cheeks. Right now the one they were facing had his tentacles curled in, but he had heard some terrible things about them. From the little knowledge he had, he knew that they used those tentacles to feed on the brains of whoever was unfortunate enough to face them.
"Though we are on opposing sides, I see no need to be uncivil with you," said the Anzat. "You are Jedi after all. A most worthy challenge. My name is Cassir Moraal."
There was a pause, as if he was trying to get them to say their names, but the two remained quiet causing Cassir to laugh.
"No use in withholding information, you are about to die after all."
As he said that, Cassir used the Force to hurl a rock at Obi-Wan who quickly stepped back and cut it in two.
The effect was instant for Obi-Wan. As soon as his lightsaber cut through the rock, he was struck by haunting memories that caused him to lose concentration and be pulled towards the Anzat.
"Obi-Wan!" Ahsoka yelled and tried to go after him but was stopped by the three remaining Hands, who moved to stand between her and Obi-Wan.
"You're not going anywhere," came a feminine voice from one of the hooded figures, "You will be forced to watch as your friend is killed."
Ahsoka dropped into her ready stance and smirked, "I'm sorry to say that there is no way for your leader to beat him."
Vislor chuckled, "He's not our leader."
"Oh, so you're one of those underlings that feel like there is no leader within your group," Ahsoka said with a smirk.
"You are mistaken Jedi," said the other hooded figure in a thick accent. She pulled back her hood to reveal herself as a purple Twi-lek, "We do have a leader. She is just not here."
Ahsoka chuckled, "Couldn't make it?"
The last of the hooded figures chuckled and turned her head in the direction that the speeder had taken off.
Ahsoka's blood ran cold when she realized what they were trying to say.
"Our leader should be standing over the bodies of the happy family by now."
"Where are we going mom?" Luke asked in a worried tone. "Why did we leave Uncle Ben behind?"
Padmé tried her best to smile despite the situation. "Don't worry Luke, he's okay."
"But those people looked really mean," Leia pointed out.
The mother bit her lip. Luke usually took whatever answer she gave but Leia appeared to have none of that. To make things more complicating, he was nodding in agreement with his sister.
"Listen you two-"
"Mom look out!"
Padmé looked up just in time to see a ship hovering above them and moved the speeder just as it fired on them. Unfortunately she was not able to escape the blast and the speeder was knocked aside ferociously.
Disoriented with her body throbbing painfully all over, Padmé slowly regained her senses, looking around disoriented at first until her eyes went wide and she sat up despite the pain.
Luke and Leia! Where were they?!
She tried to stand but screamed in pain when she tried to put weight on her right foot. Twisted no doubt. Even so, she managed to sit up and looked around as the sand cleared around them and she could finally see her two babies, still strapped to the speeder.
Despite Leia bleeding a bit from the head, it didn't seem that they had taken any serious injuries, a relieved smile settled on her face as she dragged herself towards them.
Suddenly, she noticed a dark figure emerge from a cloud of sand.
It was a woman wearing a heavy black cloak. Padmé tried not to gasp at her appearance. Despite her face being scarred, the thing that stood out to Padmé was the woman's eyes. They were a sickly dark yellow color that sent chills down her spine.
The woman remained still for a moment before she turned in the direction of Luke and Leia.
"Leave them out of this!" Padmé screamed in horror, and tried to stand but cried out in pain again as her foot gave out under her weight. "Don't touch them!"
"I will only kill one," the leader of the Emperor's Hands stated in a calm voice as she walked to them.
"No! I won't let you!"
Ignoring the mother's screams, the woman kept a steady face until she was finally standing next to the wrecked speeder and over the two unconscious children.
Her lightsaber came to life.
"Stop! No! Please! Not them! Kill me instead!" Padmé cried desperately, even bearing through the pain to stand and stumble towards them, but was pushed back with the Force before she could get too close.
Padmé's heart was going crazy, she had no idea what to do. There was a lot more distance between them now and the woman had raised the blade in the air.
"NO!"
The desert got noticeably colder as the Emperor's Hand was ferociously pushed away from the twins and crashed against the sand with such force that she kicked up a cloud of dust.
Padmé looked up slowly as a ship descended from the sky with a hooded figure standing on top of it.
The Emperor's Hand got up slowly, her yellow eyes glaring hatefully at the person standing on top of the hovering ship, "Who are you?"
"You will pay for making my child bleed," the hooded figure stated in a voice so cold that even the Emperor's Hand found herself taking an involuntary step back.
He jumped down from the ship, the wind causing his hood to come down and reveal the face of Anakin Skywalker.
"A-Anakin..." Padmé stuttered, her eyes wide.
So full of hatred towards the person who had put his daughter in danger, Vader did not even notice that there was someone behind him sprawled on the sand. There was nothing on his mind but a burning desire to kill her in the most painful way.
"I'll ask again," the Emperor's Hand hissed as she ignited her red blade, "Who are you?"
"I believe you already know the answer to that question Fane."
Fane studied his face before her eyes widened in realization, "Vader... So that's who you were under the mask."
Vader said nothing, simply raised a hand and, even though Fane tried to fight against anything he might attempt with the Force, she was taken by surprise when Vader broke through her defenses without any trouble, and lifted her in the air with a tight grip on her neck.
She gasped and wheezed for a breath, and just when she was about to lose consciousness, he let her go. Fane dropped ungraciously on the ground before streaks of Sith Lightning hit her body and she screamed in agony.
Vader continued this, relishing in her pain with a twisted smirk on his face.
This was power.
What he was meant to become all along.
Not even the Emperor stood a chance against him, he was invincible.
Obi-Wan and Ahsoka looked off in the distance, the Emperor's Hands doing the same as they were hit by an unexpectedly powerful wave of the Dark Side.
"That's..." Ahsoka muttered with her eyes wide, easily identifying the Force signature.
"Vader," Obi-Wan finished for her with a grim expression.
Vader could almost laugh as Fane writhed on the ground like the worm she was.
"Anakin!"
The Sigh Lightning ceased almost immediately. His lips parted slightly once he turned his head when hearing the voice, her voice.
"P-Padmé? You... You're alive..." Anakin muttered to himself in a broken voice as his knees grew week and he staggered backwards, reeling in shock.
What just happened?
The moment he entered the planet he had easily found Leia's scared Force signature, but the moment it weakened severely in a matter of seconds, he had rushed to where she was, even jumping out of his ship and letting R7 pilot instead.
When he spotted Leia on a wrecked speeder and someone walking towards her, he had seen red and let rage take over. But now...
"It's me Ani," Padmé nodded in a gentle voice, relieved to see that her Ani was still in there.
She had been horrified at what she saw him do. It wasn't so much hurting the woman who had tried to kill her children, but the way Anakin seemed to enjoy and draw pleasure from her suffering. Padmé did not feel the least bit sorry for the woman, but Anakin had just felt so wrong.
Anakin bit his trembling lip, trying desperately to stop himself from breaking down right there and then, he had never felt so overwhelmed in his whole life.
However, he couldn't afford to waver. There was still something that he needed to do.
With some effort, he tore his eyes away from Padmé and narrowed them on Fane, "I believed the Emperor would try to track me down, but not with the highly esteemed head of the Emperor's Hands."
Fane growled, barely managing to get on all-fours as the aftereffects of the lighting were still causing her body to shake involuntarily. It was just as strong as when the Emperor used it on her.
"You will die Vader," she spat his name.
He smirked slightly at that, finding irony in her words. In a way, he too wished Vader would die.
Putting the last thought away, he showed no hesitation as his red blade cut through the woman, finally killing her.
With the threat to his family gone, he turned back to Padmé who was trying to crawl over to the speeder, to their daughter's side.
"She's fine," he said while he walked to her side and carried her bridal style.
"How do you know... The Force, right."
He nodded, "Leia is completely fine. Just a few scratches."
"What about Luke?"
"The boy is fine too..." Anakin carefully placed Padmé on the ground next to the speeder.
He carefully unbuckled Leia from her seat and placed her on her mother's arms. Next he moved on to the boy, the blond boy who appeared to be the same age as Leia.
His heart beat wildly against his chest as he picked him up and looked to Padmé.
She could see the confusion in his eyes and smiled fondly when she realized that the two hadn't met.
"Luke is our son. Leia's twin brother."
"Our...son," he repeated slowly as a smile slowly spread across his face and he looked at the boy in a new light. He had his suspicions based on his appearance but his attempt to connect with the boy through the Force had failed as he was unconscious. "We have a family."
Anakin sat next to his wife, quietly enjoying this brief moment of happiness. There was still much he had to say, much she had to say, but he was far too overwhelmed with happiness at the moment that he didn't care. However, there was something bothering him.
"I can sense Ahsoka needs my help," Anakin said.
His ship landed on the ground and out came two medical droids.
"Patient Number 34, you were advised to avoid high intensity activities."
"You have new patients," Anakin said, "Take care of these three."
"At once sir," the other medical droid said when seeing the condition the new patients were in, while the other droid went back into the ship and came out moments later with a stretcher.
Anakin rolled his eyes, "Attend to them here, there is not enough room on the ship."
"Understood sir."
"I won't be long Padmé, you should be safe here."
"Okay."
They shared a look, both not really knowing what to say. Anakin was the first to break their gaze and began to walk into the ship.
"Ani!"
He stopped at the ramp and turned to see her.
"Come back safe," she said with a smile made more beautiful by her twinkling eyes.
It was something she always said back when he left for a mission during the Clone Wars.
"I always do," he smiled, feeling tears in his eyes.
It was an exchange they had every time he left on missions. To think that years after he believed her dead he would be saying these words again.
Padmé remained quiet as he entered the ship and flew off.
She was torn on the inside.
Their last meeting back in Mustafar... she could recall every detail of it to this day. It had been a horrible experience, something that she never thought would happen. Her Ani had actually tried to hurt her.
Even though she had begged him to give up on everything and leave with her so that they could be safe and be a family, he had ignored her words. However, as delirious as she was when giving birth to her children, she had known that there was still good in him. Anakin was not completely gone, he just couldn't be.
When they told her that he had died, she didn't know what to do. She had grown so used to living with him, to knowing that he would come back, that she had no idea how to live a life without him, but she pushed through because her children still needed her. Even so, late at night when she would be in her bed, all alone, her mind would replay moments she had spend with her husband.
And now, he was alive.
Not only that, but he had turned away from the darkness when he saw her.
She was happy. Her family was whole. But at the same time she was terrified that they would be separated again. Anakin had turned away from her once, and she absolutely did not want that to happen again.
Her worry calmed slightly as she watched the droids placing bacta on Luke and Leia.
Her love alone had not been able to pull Anakin out of the darkness, but maybe with all of them together, they could become the family she had always wanted to have.
There were still a lot of things that they needed to say to each other. Mostly about that time on Mustafar, but for now she closed her eyes and clenched her hands to her chest, desperately hoping that this time they could be a family.