Note: Yeah, sorry I took so long. And I apologize in advance if I ever take so long to update this again. So now, enjoy!

Chapter 24
When It Rains, It Pours

Of course a few minutes after Anakin trudged outside the sky opened up and it poured rain. As the warm rain ran over him, he mused how this change in weather was a lot like the luck he had been experiencing lately. If Obi-Wan was around to hear him, his former Master would've scolded him that there was no such thing as luck.

This is just great, Anakin sighed. First I get blind-sided with Padmé being alive and all, then I run into Obi-Wan, and then I get surprised with a two-for-one deal in the offspring department, and then one of them completely ignores me and the other is scared to death of me. So what's next? What else is there to sneak up on me? What else can go wrong?

"Wonderful weather we're having, eh?" Obi-Wan chuckled, trotting back towards the castle through the rain with his coat pulled over his head.

"Yeah," Anakin chuckled weakly with a wan smile, "remind you of anyplace?"

"All too well," Obi-Wan sighed and gave Anakin a speculative look. (Something wrong?)

(Ask me again later.) Anakin's eyes fell on Zett who was huddled down at Obi-Wan's side. The poor kid looked very much like a drowned womp rat. Well, what he imagined a womp rat would look like if it ever was in a situation where it would drown. "Hey kid, did you get to see much?"

"Not really," Zett shrugged. "Can we go inside now?"

"Of course," Anakin nodded and led the way back to the little mud room. Not that I really want to go back inside…

The little room was empty now and the enormous house was deceptively silent. Anakin wrung out his sopping wet clothes and toweled off his dripping boots. Then he helped Zett dry off as much as he could. He briefly thought of helping Obi-Wan, seeing as his former Master was starting to get old, but he just didn't feel up to cracking a joke at the moment.

Trudging back through the house, Anakin found his way back into the kitchen and slumped down into a chair. In a few short minutes, a steaming mug of tea was waiting at his right hand, courtesy of Obi-Wan. Anakin gratefully took it and sipped at it and waited for the chill dampness of his clothes to fade.

"Hey, Master?" Zett spoke up after a few minutes. "Are you okay?"

"I…I don't know," Anakin sighed wearily and clutched at his mug with both hands.

"You don't know?" Zett frowned, confused and rather worried.

"Give me a few days," Anakin snorted. "I think I'll have everything figured out by then."

"Okay," Zett agreed dubiously.

Before silence could properly fall in the kitchen, an electronic squeal heralded the sudden arrival of a hovering blue and yellow sphere. The small droid zipped around the kitchen a few times before flitting away with another ecstatic wail. Listening after it, it sounded like the spherical robot bounced off a wall somewhere as it continued to speed around.

"Anakin, that thing is insane," Obi-Wan declared after a minute.

"Uh…I wouldn't say insane," Anakin replied slowly. "I prefer to think of him as eccentric."

Obi-Wan shook his head. "It's insane."

"What was it?" Zett asked.

"That was Anakin's pet hovercam droid," Obi-Wan answered.

"Orbie isn't a pet," Anakin muttered. "Pets are living things, not droids."

"Fine, a pet project, then," Obi-Wan shrugged.

"Master Anakin, if that droid belongs to you, why is it here already?" Zett inquired.

"Near the end of the war, when the new Eta-2's came out, Padmé allowed me to use her Artoo unit, so I left Orbie with her as collateral and never took him back," Anakin explained.

"Oh." Zett glanced around the kitchen before coming up with another question. "What about that alien that we saw?"

"That was Maré, a little Najiimite orphan that Sabé found on a trip and brought back here," Obi-Wan explained. "She's Force-sensitive, actually."

"Really?" Anakin perked up a bit. "I hadn't noticed." Not that I'm really up for noticing much right now.

"Yes, I would've tried to bring her to Sanctuary, but I frighten her," Obi-Wan sighed.

"She's afraid of you?" Anakin snorted. Obi-Wan's not scary at all!

"The Najiimites are a primitive people," Obi-Wan explained. "They evolved from herd animals and females only interact with mature males during the mating season. Otherwise adult males are seen as threats, especially by children. So she doesn't just fear me, she fears all adults males, regardless of species."

"Ah," Anakin nodded. So that's why she ran off after seeing us.

"Perhaps if she manages to work past this fear, I might be able to bring her to Sanctuary later," Obi-Wan mused. "She'd probably never be a Knight, but she has the potential to be a Healer."

"Looking to replace me, are you?" Anakin asked, doing his best to bury his worry at the thought.

"Hm? Oh, no, I wouldn't be much of a teacher to a future Healer," Obi-Wan snorted. "But Barriss Offee has Healer training, and last I knew she had no Padawan of her own yet."

"Heh, trying your hand at Master-Padawan match-making, then," Anakin grinned, now doing his best to hide his relief.

"I suppose," Obi-Wan shrugged. Then he cast a speculative look at Zett. "You know, perhaps you could help her."

"Huh?" Zett blinked.

"You're not much larger than Maré is, I don't think she'd be afraid of you. Perhaps you could teach her a few basic Force exercises until she feels more comfortable," Obi-Wan suggested. "Since she's come here, she's lingered about with nothing really to do. I think she'd enjoy a friend close to her age, even if that friend turns out to be a boy."

Zett frowned. "Teach her stuff?"

"Just the very basics, little exercises that the younglings are taught just after they leave the crèche," Obi-Wan explained.

"I don't know," Zett shrugged.

"You don't have to start immediately," Anakin smiled slightly. "Just think about it, okay?"

"Okay," Zett agreed quietly. He fidgeted for a minute. "May I look around?"

"Of course," Anakin grinned.

Zett bowed to them and scampered off to explore his new home.

"So I'm guessing that your meeting with the children didn't go very well?" Obi-Wan asked, now that they were alone.

"Yeah," Anakin sighed. "It—hey wait… You knew!" he accused, shocked. "You knew that there were two of them and you didn't say a word to me about it!"

Obi-Wan laughed at him. "Of course, Anakin! Though, I must admit, I was sworn to secrecy."

Anakin glared at him sourly. "Gee thanks."

"So what happened?" Obi-Wan asked once his chuckles had faded.

"Hmph, well…Leia didn't even notice me; she was too busy throwing a temper tantrum about a bath." Anakin slowly tilted his tea mug and sloshed the dark liquid around. "And Luke was terrified of me."

"Don't worry, Anakin," Obi-Wan advised and patted him on the shoulder. "That sounds almost exactly like what happened when I first met them. They'll warm up to you in time. Be patient."

Anakin propped his chin up with his fist and stared into his cup. "You know I'm bad at being patient."

"It shouldn't take more than a few weeks at most, I think." Obi-Wan chuckled. "Though I must warn you, for those few weeks, you will have a most interesting shadow."

"Oh?" Anakin frowned and raised a questioning eyebrow.

"It happened to me on my first visit here," Obi-Wan smiled. "Wherever I would go, little Luke would follow me. But if I turned around to look at him, or tried to talk to him, he'd scream and run away. The only thing he ever said to me was a 'bye, bye Uncle Ben' on the day that I left."

Anakin couldn't help but feel a little jealous. "He followed you around?"

"Yes," Obi-Wan chuckled. "He and his sister are both Force-sensitive, and as far as I can tell, Luke found me so fascinating because he sensed my strong presence, something he'd only seen before in Leia. I'm sure that he'll find you just as intriguing as he found me," he assured Anakin. "The trick is to pretend he isn't there, and soon he'll grow comfortable with you."

"Ugh," Anakin grumbled. Patience is evil…

"I wouldn't worry about Luke and Leia right now, they'll come around. What you should really worry about it getting settled here," Obi-Wan warned. "The situation on Xendiir is…complicated."

"Is there a problem?" Anakin frowned worriedly.

"Padmé will go over the specifics with you soon, I'm sure," Obi-Wan replied. "But you're appearing out of nowhere, so you need to keep your story straight to avoid sparking undue interest from the neighbors."

"Right," Anakin nodded. Heh, this is just like hiding out in the Jedi Order all over again. Only more complicated…

"Oh, Ben! I-I didn't know that you were here."

Anakin turned to find Sabé peeking into the kitchen, looking a bit embarrassed. She'd changed out of her muddied dress and freshened up a bit, putting her long brown hair up into a quick bun. Grinning, Anakin gave her a little wave.

"Yeah, he's here too," Anakin smirked. "He gave me a ride to this tropical backwater."

"Oh, of course," Sabé smiled.

"Yes, Anakin roped me into being his chauffer," Obi-Wan shrugged.

"I didn't rope you into anything," Anakin snorted. "You offered and I accepted."

"Well if I hadn't offered, you would've asked," Obi-Wan countered. "So what have you been up to?" he asked Sabé politely.

"Trying and miserably failing to stop the twin terrors from engaging in mud-slinging," Sabé sighed and leaned against a countertop.

"Ah," Obi-Wan nodded knowingly, "I see."

"It's too bad that you didn't arrive early enough to join us," Sabé lamented.

"While I didn't have to contend with mud-wielding toddlers, I did end up getting soaked by the rain," Obi-Wan informed her.

"I see that," Sabé nodded as she looked him over, noting his damp clothes and hair. "Here, let's get you properly dried off."

Sabé then took Obi-Wan by the hand and led him away. Obi-Wan tamely followed after her without any protest. Anakin stared after them, completely unsure of what to think.

What the hell is going on?

Padmé entered her bedroom and dug around in her closet in search of a new dress. After Luke put his muddy hands all over her current dress, and then both twins got soap and water all over her during their bath, she desperately needed to change. Choosing a deep purple dress, she began shedding the dirtied red dress. She was interrupted.

"Hey Padmé, have you—erk!"

Halfway out of her dress, Padmé snapped her head to the door to find Anakin staring fixedly at the carpet and blushing.

"Sorry, sorry," he squeaked, "I'll-I'll come back later."

"No, it was my fault," Padmé sighed and hurried to pull the purple dress. "I left the door open." This is what I get for living in a house with two close friends, two droids, two babies, and an alien with no cultural taboo against nudity for too long… "What was it that you wanted to ask me?"

"I, uh," he swallowed hard, "I wanted to know if you'd noticed anything… weird …about Obi-Wan and Sabé."

"Weird?" Padmé frowned and worked on the buttons on the back of her dress. "What do you mean?"

"I-I don't know. I just saw them down in the kitchen a while ago and they just seemed…different." Anakin shrugged helplessly and continued to stare nervously at her carpet. "They just started talking, totally seemed to forget that I was there, and then they ditched me without even a good-bye."

"Hmm. I think I know what you're talking about," Padmé sighed. She scowled when she came to what she called 'the evil button'. It was located in the one spot on her back where no matter how she twisted she couldn't quite reach it. "Dratted button," she muttered as she continued her valiant struggle.

Then Anakin was behind her, gently moving her hands aside and fastening the last few buttons himself. "There," he murmured when he finished and stepped away.

"Thanks," she smiled, studiously ignoring the tingle that flickered over her when his fingers accidentally brushed against her skin. "Yes, I've noticed that Sabé and Ben have been acting a bit different. But I wouldn't worry about it. They're fine."

"Oh?" Anakin blinked, confused.

"They're fine," she repeated. "They'll figure it out on their own."

"They'll figure what out on their own?" he frowned.

"Think about it," she suggested, fighting a smile. "Now I've got to rescue Artoo and Typho from babysitting duty. I'll fill you in on everything tonight, after I put the kids to bed, okay?"

"Okay," he nodded, still puzzling over Obi-Wan and Sabé.

Padmé grinned and left him there as she returned to her babies. Oh Anakin… It never once occurred to you that Sabé and Obi-Wan might be interested in each other in a more than friendly way?

By the time night had fallen on Xendiir, the rain finally stopped. Dinner had been a bit on the chaotic side, with Leia constantly playing with her food and Luke staring at the strangers at the table and barely eating anything, but the food had been good. And now that the meal was over and the sun was down, things were quieting down.

Anakin paced around his new bedroom, trying it on for size. It was about the size of his old room back in the Temple, though the color and decorating scheme was much livelier. He liked it well enough, it was certainly nicer than most of the places he'd been staying in for the past few years.

It's kind of weird having the room all to myself, though, he reflected. It didn't matter that Zett had the room right next door to his; there was still a wall between them. He couldn't see his Padawan anymore, and it felt weird. Yet another new thing to get used to…

In one day he'd been slammed by an avalanche of new information and there was more to come. First he'd seen her again, and then there was the shock of there being two children instead of one, and now the mystery of what Obi-Wan and Sabé were up to. If he thought about any of those things too much, his head started to spin.

And now it's time to cram more things in my head, he sighed. Zett had just dropped off, he sensed, and he knew the twins were in bed. Now that the time Padmé had specified had come, it was time for him to go see her. And hopefully this time she'd be fully clothed.

He flushed again at that particular memory. Note to self: never just walk into her room again, especially if she's been in recent, close contact with dirty little children.

Shaking his head to clear it, he left his room and walked down the hall to Padmé's room. The door was closed this time and he gratefully knocked on it. A minute later she opened the door for him in a bathrobe and silver nightgown that really seemed to cling to her skin.

"Hi," he grinned weakly. Don't look at that, look at her face.

"Hi," she smiled, "come in."

Shoving back his anxiety, he stepped inside and took a seat on the edge of her bed. "So…"

Padmé shut the door and walked over to a small chest on her dresser, next to her mirror. "Let's get started then, shall we?"

She's nervous, he sensed, surprised. What's she got to be nervous about? "So what's first?"

She lifted the lid and started to rummage around. From all the clinking metallic sounds, he guessed that the small chest was her jewelry box. "Before I came to Xendiir, Master Yoda sent me to the medical center of Polis Massa to give birth to the twins. To while away my time there, I worked with Sabé and Typho to build up our new identities, our new lives. I did everything I could to make sure that, wherever we went, we wouldn't stand out. I made sure that our covers were as above reproach as possible."

Padmé found whatever she was looking for in her jewelry chest and turned around to face him, though her eyes didn't meet his. "In every Human culture that I know of, it's not exactly smiled upon for a woman to have children out of wedlock. Most planets do accept it, they won't persecute any woman in that situation, but people notice that and they remember it. So when I reinvented myself on Polis Massa, I went from Padmé Amidala Naberrie the single Senator of Naboo, to…Padmé Skywalker the married mother of two from Corellia."

Anakin swore his heart skipped a beat or two when she said that. She took my name. So…that means…

"I know I didn't ask you first about this, and I'm sorry, but it made perfect sense at the time. The name Anakin Skywalker has no official ties to the Jedi Order, and your early years on Tatooine, while not pleasant, are relatively safe. And when you eventually came across me, if there was any doubt as your relationship to me, I could prove that you were the father of my children with a simple blood test." She finally looked into his eyes. "If you're angry with me for pulling you into this position without consulting you first, I completely understand."

He almost laughed at her then. But he didn't. Laughing at her would only hurt her feelings. "Why would I be mad?"

She gaped at him. "I…I forged a stack of papers and lied to all the neighbors, saying that you're my husband. And now that you're here, I have to ask you to fulfill that role that I made for you without asking. I would be a little upset if I were in your position."

"Well, I'm not." He got up from the bed and walked over to stand before her. "I'd be mad if I despised you, which I don't. I like you. You're my friend and the-the mother of my children. I'm not mad at all." He gently grasped her upper arms and wished he felt brave enough to hug her. "I'm honored that you chose my name. I was actually expecting you to make me change my name to something else."

"Ani," she breathed. "I…well, I guess the only thing left…"

She opened her hand to reveal a pair of rings resting on her palm. They were both pale silver, almost a metallic sort of white. One was thin and small and the other was larger and the band was wider. There were no markings or inscriptions of any kind on them. A pair of matching wedding bands.

Padmé picked up the larger ring and rolled it nervously between her fingers. "I don't know if it will fit; I had to guess at the size."

"Well let's find out," he grinned and held out his left hand to her.

Weakly grinning back, she took his hand and slowly slipped the band on his ring finger. "It's too loose," she sighed.

"Not by much," he shrugged. "It's shouldn't be too hard to fix."

"No, it shouldn't be; especially since I know the local jeweler." Padmé smiled up at him. "He's a nice old man and he'll keep it quiet, even though it'll break his heart to resize my husbands ring. I'll take you tomorrow afternoon."

He couldn't help but blush at being called her husband. "Do I get to keep it until then?"

"Of course," she giggled a little.

She moved to put on the other ring, but he stopped her. "Allow me," he whispered and slipped the band over her finger for her.

"Thank you," she whispered back.

He made the mistake of looking into her eyes then. They were dark and beautiful and he couldn't look away. It was like they were magnetic and he felt himself being drawn in. He could almost taste—

"Anakin."

Blinking, he nervously pulled away. "S-sorry. I…I'm going to bed now." What was I doing?

"No, wait," she mumbled nervously. "We're not finished yet. We didn't go over the details of the cover story."

Anakin swallowed hard and shuffled over the edge of the bed. "Alright."

Padmé hesitated before sitting down beside him. "Well…well what I worked out for your cover is…"