Once everyone was outside, the awkwardness from earlier dissipated somewhat as everyone's curiosity of their new surroundings took over. Luke wanted to touch everything, and had to be pulled back repeatedly by Padme or Obi-Wan when it came to plants, mostly. They had seen another frog, which had delighted Luke to no end. They came across lizards and birds, which all fled at their approach. Dorme took images with her pad and was going to search for information once they were inside, where there was holonet access. It wasn't the best access, but at least they didn't have to go into town to get it.
The morning was getting warmer as the sun rose higher, and all four stopped in front of a large fire pit outside. Obi-Wan theorized that it was for waste disposal, which would be more economical than having to take several trips to a landfill or waste disposal facility. Padme suddenly realized that Luke was looking at the charred contents in the fireplace with very wide frightened eyes. She immediately knelt down by him and took his shoulders asking "What's wrong?"
It took him a minute to respond, and then he replied with tear-filled eyes: "Unca Owen and Aunt B'ru got burned up. The house was all burned up. Bad guys burned up the house."
She shushed him and held him to her, rubbing his back while he cried quietly. She gave Obi-Wan a look, wondering what he had been thinking taking Luke back to see something like that. She picked Luke up and announced that they had probably done enough exploring for the day. Everyone agreed and walked back to the house.
Once inside, she took Luke to his room and sat on the bed with him on her lap, rocking him gently. He had stopped crying, but now he was spaced out, looking at nothing. He slowly relaxed in her arms, eyes still unfocused, probably reliving the worst moment of his very short life. She cursed Obi-Wan and the entire Galaxy for foisting any kind of heartbreak on her poor little boy. Eventually he pulled out of it and looked up at her with dry, red eyes.
"You ok?" she asked him gently, moving a strand of hair out from in front of his eyes. He nodded slowly and hugged her wordlessly. She squeezed him back and rocked him a little more. He sighed and started to let go, so she did as well. "Want to get some lunch?"
He nodded again and started to slide off her lap. He waited until Padme had stood up and then reached for her hand. She took it and squeezed it lightly, walking back into the kitchen. Dorme had a glass of water waiting for him, knowing his habits already. She made a point of not looking at Luke and making him feel self-conscious. Padme noticed that Obi-Wan was nowhere in sight. That was probably for the best at this moment.
Once lunch was over, Luke seemed to be in slightly better spirits, albeit a little tired. Padme made sure he went to the fresher before he went to sleep. She laid down with him again and stroked his hair until he fell asleep, neither of them saying anything, just taking comfort in each other's company. Once she was sure he was asleep, she walked out of the room, intent on laying into Obi-Wan.
The man in question was in the kitchen, putting his used dishes in the washing unit. "Not in here - outside, please", he said tightly, probably knowing what was coming before she had even stepped into the room. Damn Jedi.
They walked through the house and out the back, the tension between them palpable. Once they were out far enough that the sound wouldn't carry, Padme rounded on him: "What were you thinking? You knew enough to take him out of danger, and yet you took him back to the farm? What if there had been someone waiting there to see who came back and went after you?"
"I had no choice, Padme", he said tightly and defensively. She had never seen Obi-Wan look like this before, and while she was somewhat glad to see some sort of emotion from him, she wasn't sure that she liked what she was going to hear next. "There was no way that I was going to leave a three year old child unsupervised in a strange environment. What if he had hurt himself while I was gone? What if Tusken Raiders had shown up while I was out?" She shuddered at the mention of the Tuskens, remembering what they had done to poor Shmi.
"Surely there had to have been some other way, weren't there farmers nearby that could have watched him for you?" she pressed, still not willing to let it go.
"No, that would not have been advisable. If word had gotten back to any of those Imperials that anyone else that was supposed to be at that farm wasn't, then not only would Luke have been in danger, but whoever had been harboring him would as well. I waited for two days, until I was sure that there was no more Imperial presence," he held up a hand to silence her before she could ask him how he knew they were gone. "There are emergency comms that the farmers use to send out short messages regarding Tusken raids, sand storms, and the like. I monitored the chatter, which mentioned that they had been gone and not come back."
Padme sagged some, not knowing how to feel anymore. She was angry, but she couldn't really be angry at Obi-Wan anymore. It was another horrible situation, and she should just be glad that Luke was alright. "I took him with me when I went back to the farm. I was hoping I'd be able to salvage at least one change of clothes or one toy or something of his. But, the place was completely razed and burnt to the ground. Those poor farmers had been struck dead for no other reason than for existing. Palpatine wanted to make sure that all traces of Anakin Skywalker were gone. Even the headstones had been crushed into pieces," he finished somberly.
At this point, Padme felt horrible for having said anything to him at all. She felt so guilty that it ate her up. This entire mess could have been laid at her feet if she really thought about it. "I might as well have killed them myself", she said sadly.
"No, Padme. This had nothing to do with your or me, or Luke for that matter. This had everything to do with Palpatine solidifying his hold over Vader", Obi-Wan stated firmly.
Padme didn't have the heart to tell him that she suspected it was more likely that Anakin himself had ordered the attack on the Lars farm. She didn't know if Obi-Wan knew about Anakin and the Tuskens, but she did, and she also remembered the murderous looks that Anakin had been throwing at his stepfamily. She remembered him ranting and raving about how they hadn't done enough, and it was their fault that his mother was dead. She had no doubt that he would've filed that away and gone ahead with eliminating them if he felt like it. Anakin could hold a grudge for longer than anyone she had ever met before. But she didn't have it in her to bait Obi-Wan again. He looked guilt-stricken enough as it was, and this situation was most certainly not his fault. He had gone back there with good intentions, and for better or for worse, Luke knew that his guardians were gone. She didn't know if that was better than him asking for them and if he could go back home or not, wondering why he had been taken away. Maybe this was for the best after all.
"I'm sorry, Obi-Wan. I shouldn't have just assumed the worst", she said contritely. "It seems that all Anakin or I do is bring you pain".
Obi-Wan snorted, "No, what you brought was trouble. Anakin brought pain". A beat. "And trouble".
She certainly couldn't disagree with that assessment. All of her good intentions tended to bring disaster, however unintentional. She rubbed her eyes and temples, feeling a headache coming on. She needed to get control of herself. "I'm so sorry, Obi-Wan. I'm such a mess, I know I'm not good company right now and I wish more than anything that I could fix all of this...this...mess", she finishes on a ragged breath.
"My lady, you are experiencing three years' worth of acclimation, plus exile, a new existence, and your new role as a mother. I'd say that entitles you to be a little bit of a...mess...right now", he said carefully.
Padme knew she'd been forgiven. Obi-Wan always forgave. She cursed herself for lashing out again at the one person who had always pulled her out of jams of her own making and forgave her for it time and again. She felt something soothing and warm course through her suddenly, and she knew that Obi-Wan was somehow doing something with the Force. She took her hands from her face and looked at him. "How is it that you can be so comforting right now, when you have lost everything and just had your life ripped apart again?" she asks shakily.
"Padme, right now, all you need to worry about is being strong for your son. Let me be strong for you. I know that you will come out of this stronger than before, and then you will repay me the favor in my moment of weakness". He gave her a small smile - a truce, one that should never had had to be extended if not for her behavior.
She let her tears come and hugged him tightly. Obi-Wan stiffened at first, not quite sure what to do with this level of contact. That only made her cry harder, that this kind, wonderful man had never experienced a truly heartfelt hug. She wondered how anyone could've denied a child that level of affection and then instilled in them a sense of rejecting it for themselves for the rest of their lives. He eventually put his arms around her and sagged a little, both of them holding on to each other, fellow victims of events bigger than they were.
Padme felt another wave of peace go through her, and she wondered at how it didn't seem inappropriate coming from Obi-Wan. She had admonished Anakin on many occasions to never use the Force on her, in any circumstances, including in bed. What did it say about her that she couldn't trust her own husband as well as his best friend? Had she truly been in such a state of denial, childishly thinking that her love could save him? She could feel Obi-Wan start to pull away, and she wiped her eyes, thoroughly exhausted, but cleansed. He put his arm around her waist and helped lead her back to the house.
Once they were in her room, he helped her to sit on the bed and pulled away. She called to him before he left, and he turned to face her. "How did you manage three years by yourself with this?" she asked him, in awe of his resilience and willpower. "What made it better for you?"
Obi-wan gave her a small, sad smile. "Time, my lady. Just time". With that, he took his leave.
She should've expected that answer, given that she had already known the it deep in her heart. She took a sip from the water bottle on her nightstand and took several deep breaths. She heard the shuffling of feet again, and saw Luke standing at the foot of her bed, still half-asleep.
Padme didn't know if he had sensed her being upset and that she needed someone to hold, or if maybe he'd had a nightmare and needed reassurance himself. She scooped him up without a word, marveling at how light he was, and lay him down with her, both of them curling into each other. She put her head over his, inhaling his scent and committing it to memory. She didn't know if it was a residual feeling from Obi-Wan's use of the Force earlier, or if Luke brought it out in her, but she felt peace flow through her as she finally fell asleep.