A MESSED UP DESTINY
A STAR WARS STORY
Chapter 7
Disclaimer: Disney owns everything and I make no profit from this.
Hello there everyone and welcome to chapter 7 of the story! I'm currently trying to catch up with the timeline and produce as many chapters as possible, which should be easy, barely an inconvenience! Anyways, a formal apology for ranting in the last epilogue. It was three thirty in the morning and that's when my brain decided to give me the inspiration I needed to write the chapter so…well, you guys saw the results. My weird writing times aside, this chapter is the last one when it comes to Anakin and Padme's vacation (because it is anything but hiding) on Naboo. This one is pure fluff with some Force lessons pushed in for good measure and will also reveal the reason Anakin was practicing with the water in the last two chapters (which will hopefully make for a cute moment between the two) Also, this is the last Padme chapter for a while, since she won't be a main character during the chapters regarding Geonosis (I'll be focusing on Jedi-related stuff) and since I'll have to "reveal" that Anakin is actually Vader to Obi Wan. Lastly, Qui Gon will make another appearance in this chapter, once again teasing Anakin about something without it being directly mentioned. Now, this chapter is going to be longer than usual (see chapters 1, 2, 3 and 5 for an average word count), so let's get straight to it!
A message from the dessert! The argument between the two lovebirds now rendered nonexistent and after some much needed cuddles Padme and Anakin decide to spend the day relaxing on the beach as a way to forget about the battles ahead. Unfortunately, their downtime is cut short when a message from Tatooine disturbs the peace and forces the two heroes to travel to the desert planet in order to investigate it.
Note: For those who don't know, Ferus Olin is Siri Tachi's Padawan.
Naboo, Varikyno, Anakin's point of view:
It was an hour after our –admittedly late- breakfast and we were cuddling on the same sofa as before, relaxing like normal human beings. Padme had requested that we go swimming at some point today and I was more than happy to comply –not to mention I'd get to see her in a bathing suit-, so we had set the time for about an hour after breakfast, but neither of us were making a move to get up at the moment, so I didn't mind ignoring our schedule.
"Ani, are we ever going to get up?", asked Padme.
I sighed, feigning annoyance. "As milady wishes."
There was a short giggle from Padme after my response, but I ignored it and went into my room to change, knowing that Padme was doing the same.
I re-entered the main area of the house knowing that I'd her in a swimming suit, but my brain was unprepared for the actual sight. I was sure my jaw dropped to the floor when she first came into view, because she was absolutely stunning. More than usual, that is. Padme laughed when she saw me standing there, looking like a statue, but I had no words.
"Ani, are you going to follow me or will I have to drag you to the beach myself?", she asked me and in a moment of clarity, I nodded an affirmative.
Padme laughed at my behavior, but I ignored it and did my best to follow her without tripping over something. I managed to walk all the way to lake's shore without falling over, though I suspect the resident Force ghost was responsible for this incredible feat. Speaking of the Force ghost, he suddenly appeared before me, causing me to finally fall over and hit the ground with a soft 'thump'.
"Padawans, am I right?", asked Qui Gon, still doing his best to mess with me.
Padme laughed at my Master's remark, while I tried stand up straight. "I must agree Master Jinn, he does seem a bit…distracted." I finally managed to get up from the ground. "Perhaps a nice, tight hug will bring him to his senses.", continued Padme.
"No, no, no. Not happening!", I told her, but she advanced towards me and wrapped me in the tightest hug I had ever experienced. Force her body is so soft…and her hair smells like scent candles. No, bad brain. There'll be time for this later, not now. Bad Anakin!
Padme let go of me and I simply stood there, still dazed by the whole experience. "Can I get a different Force ghost please?", I asked them, and they both broke into laughter.
"Come on Ani, that wasn't so bad.", said Padme.
"No, it really wasn't…", I admitted.
"Well then Padawan, I can't see what the problem is.", said Qui Gon, still making fun of me.
"Alright, alright. Can we just go swimming now? There's something I want to show you Padme.", I told her, trying my best to get her moving so I could finally show her the surprise.
"I'll be leaving you now Padawan, so please be sure to not freeze up like that again. The Senator didn't come here to go swimming with a statue.", said Qui Gon via the Force bond.
"Master!", I yelled, and Padme jumped out of surprise.
"Alright, alright. I'm going away now. And as far as getting a new Force ghost goes, I think I may be able to arrange that."
Padme laughed at our antics and I was rendered speechless as Qui Gon faded away into the Force. I sighed once more "He always does this you know. Says something cryptic and leaves you with no clear answer to your questions.", I told Padme.
"Oh, so that's why he is a Jedi Master. He must have been promoted when he became vague enough.", Padme joked, and I couldn't help but laugh at the cheeky remark.
"So, swimming?", I ask her.
"Swimming.", she confirms.
We both resume out walk towards the shore of the lake and arrive a couple minutes later. Padme then dove into the water in a graceful leap and I followed, with much less grace than her. We took the time to enjoy ourselves, seeing who could out-swim the other, participating in water splashing contests and generally having the time of our lives. We stopped after a while, both exhausted and decided to rest ashore with the water still touching our legs.
"Ani, you didn't show me this 'surprise' of yours.", Padme said and I was reminded of why I wanted to go swimming in the first place.
"Oh. That. Well, I wanted to have a little fun first. But yes, I'll show you. Wait here, I'll be right back.", I told her and then leapt into the water.
I allowed myself to sink to the bottom of the lake while still holding my breath and then used the Force to move the water away from me and my surroundings, creating a bubble of air around me. I then levitated myself back to the surface so I could talk to Padme.
"So? What's the surprise?", she asked.
"Just come back in and you'll find out"
Padme did as she was told and slowly walked back in, only to accidentally fall into the bubble. I caught her before she hit the ground, but her reaction was hilarious. She squealed as she fell and kept on doing so for a good second or two, before realizing that she wasn't falling anymore. I set her down on the sand and I allowed myself to burst into laughter because of her antics. Her own laughter echoed behind mine and it took us a good second to compose ourselves. I then extended both arms, as if giving a presentation of the space. It was in that moment that some fish passed by us, barely missing Padme, who had placed herself right next to the edge of my little surprise.
"By the stars! Ani, this is amazing! How did you even do this?", she said, absolutely star struck by the sight around us.
I couldn't stop myself from laughing at her. "Yeah, I guess it is pretty cool, huh?"
"Anakin, I've never seen something like this? I didn't even know that Jedi could do this kind of thing!"
"Well, Master Yoda always said that nothing is impossible when one has the Force as their ally."
"I second that opinion."
"I'm sure the little troll would appreciate it milady."
"Oh, look at that fish!", she said while to a particularly big one.
It swam near us and stopped right next to me, seemingly examining the two strange humans that were standing at the bottom of the lake. I stared it in the eye and then decided to try and connect with the scaly creature. I extended a hand and it swam a little further away, only to return moments later. I reached out with the Force, connecting me to it while allowing the water to reach my hand. I soon felt it accepting my presence and the fish swam into my open palm. I ran my hand across its side and terminated the connection between the two of us, allowing it to swim away to wherever it was going before it had bumped into Padme and me.
"Did you just…pet a fish?", she asked while struggling to hold back a giggle.
"Yeah, I guess I did.", I told her.
"I suppose you can cross that off your bucket list.", Padme said while giggling slightly
"Wasn't it weird for you?", she asked me.
"Nah, I've done weirder stuff."
"Like what?", she questioned, genuinely curious as to what my response would be.
"Remind me to tell you about that time where I slept through one of Palpatine's speeches. It was when I discovered my new favorite pastime when he was dealing with Senators."
"You slept through his Highnesses' speeches? Lord Vader, that behavior is inexcusable and you must be punished for it. Therefore, I sentence you to ten minutes of solid tickling!"
Holding back laughter, I 'fell' on my knees and tried to make my voice sound as Vader-y as possible before crying out loud.
"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"
In that moment the environment around me shifted. I wasn't on Naboo anymore and Padme was nowhere in sight. Instead I was kneeling on the floor of an Imperial medical facility, watching as everything around me was destroyed by my sheer power in the Force. Watching as Palpatine cackled behind, as the droids next to me were crushed to nuts and bolts and as the cold, metallic floor cracked into a thousand pieces.
"Ani? Are you okay? You seemed…distracted. Is something wrong?", asked Padme.
"I, uh…I think I had a flashback. Or…flash forward, I suppose.", I told her.
"What do you mean?", she asked while kneeling beside me, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"I saw the medical room. The one where I was put in the suit. It was right after he…right after Sidious told me I had killed you."
"Oh, Anakin.", Padme said, concerned.
"It's fine. It's over now."
"You know what, I think we should go back to the house. Dry off and get changed, maybe watch a rom com afterwards.", she suggested.
"What is it with you and romantic comedies? Like, I get that the plot can be interesting, but in the end they either have the main character bounce around a bunch of love interests, or desperately trying to decide which one to pick. It's always the same thing after the third or fourth season.", I told her, which earned me a giggle.
"I forget that boys can be clueless sometimes. Ani, girls live for that kind of sappy, poorly-written-but-emotional romance story crap. It's in our blood.", she explained.
"Huh. The more you know. Now, shall we go back?", I asked.
"Sure, but there's just one problem. How do we get out of this hole you've made?"
I stood still for a moment, trying to figure out how to do just that. It seemed that in my haste, I hadn't made us a way out. The water started shifting from above us to the sides and then making a path towards the shore while letting the sunlight hit us. Deciding to see what had caused this 'miracle' we walked across the lakebed and I helped Padme climb to shore after flipping out myself. We both shook the water off us and looked around, trying to spot the person –or thing- responsible for our 'escape'. That was when Qui Gon appeared. Of course it was him.
"You are quite welcome, both of you.", the ghost said, a smug look on his transparent face.
"Yes, Master. Thank you for rescuing us from that terrible trap. I can only hope you'll do the same when it's time for that nest of Gundarks.", I told him.
"Wait, he can use the Force?", asked Padme.
"Of course I can Senator. How do you think I got Anakin here in this mess? With the power of love?", asked the Force ghost, only half joking.
"Huh. And here I thought you would have some cool stuff to teach me. Guess not." The comment made Qui Gon frown slightly, before he realized I was messing with him, that is.
"Padawan, I suggest you don't spend your time thinking of funny remarks to throw at me and instead focus on what's important. In this case, your wonderful company."
"Yes, Master. As if I would ever focus on anything other than Padme while she's around.", I said, not noticing the blush on my Angel's face.
Qui Gon laughed and decided to accompany us back to the villa, where Padme and I changed our from our now thoroughly soaked cloths into new ones, clean Jedi Robes for me and that black dress that used to drive me crazy for her. I only found out about the latter after entering the living room, when I saw her sitting cross legged on the leather couch with the fireplace being the only source of light in the room. I practically flew across the room and took my seat next to her, mentally preparing myself for a two hour long cheesy rom com that I had probably seen before. Thankfully, the viewing of what would have been an utter waste of time never occurred. Padme opted to pass me a glass of wine while filling one for herself, still sitting on the couch with a big part of her legs exposed. No! Bad Anakin! This isn't your wife! She's your friend with possible benefits and you want to take it slow. You both agreed on that! She has enough baggage in her life with all the bounty hunters trying to kill her. A horny Sith Lord won't be helping in the slightest!
"What are you thinking about?"
I jumped at the sound of her voice and some drops of wine went flying out of my glass, but I quickly caught them with the Force and placed them back in. "Uh, nothing in particular. It's just that…you look wonderful. That's all."
Padme tilted her head in curiosity. "Only wonderful? And here I thought that a Lord would be more cultivated."
"Senator, are you teasing me?", I asked her in a mocking tone.
"Me, teasing? Oh no, I would be much afraid to tease a Jedi.", she commented in mock-fear.
I raised a finger and tried to sound like Vader's vocoder again. "I find your lack of honesty…disturbing."
Padme laughed out loud, seeing something funny in my honest attempt to imitate the Empire's enforcer. "Oh my Force! Is that what you sounded like? It sounds ridiculous! I don't think I could ever be afraid of Darth Vader!"
I raised my hand in the air and continued my imitation. "You will know the power, of the Dark Side!"
Padme kept on laughing loudly and the sound began to echo around the house. Feeling especially silly myself, I followed her example and soon the only thing that could be heard was two people laughing like mad. We continued for quite some time, with the occasional break in order to keep the Vader quotes coming and then laid down on the couch, panting and desperately trying to catch our breaths. Padme rested her head in my lap and I didn't the energy or will to move it. The warmth from the fireplace was nice, Padme and I were laughing our butts off at my imitations of Darth Vader and everything was looking great for a change. That was when my com unit began beeping, ruining the moment. I reached out with the Force to grab it and answered. It was Ferus Olin, Siri's Padawan.
"Ferus? Why are you calling me?", I asked him.
"Not now Skywalker. I have a problem. My Master has been kidnapped by those damned Sand people!", Ferus nearly yelled.
"Okay, okay. Calm down. Naboo isn't that far from Tatooine. I'm coming to get you.", I told him calmly.
"Naboo? What the heck are you doing there?", the boy asked me.
"I'm guarding Senator Amidala. That's why I didn't go to Tatooine myself."
"Oh, great. So you're guarding a Senator from what looks to be a comfortable couch and I'm stuck at some Moisture Farmer's, without Master Siri.
"Ferus, I need you to relax. I'll go tell the Senator to prepare a ship and we'll be on our way." I gave a knowing look to Padme while saying that, not realizing that Ferus had noticed.
"What? Is she too busy sucking you o-", Ferus never got to finish that question as an invisible hand wrapped around his throat, making him gasp for air.
"I told you that we're on our way. Don't do anything stupid until we reach you. Got it?", I questioned. The boy managed a nod and I let go of him, allowing him to breath properly again.
I then shut the com unit off and gently removed Padme's head from my lap. She gave me a soft look, silently saying that she would go get ready. I got up to do the same, but not before giving her a kiss on the forehead. The two of us then retreated to our respective rooms only to reemerge ten minutes later, bags packed and disguises on our bodies. One short talk with the nearest handmaiden and a pointless attempt to stop us from leaving later, we boarded the Nubian, which the Queen had arranged to be brought back to Naboo in case it was necessary, and blasted off into hyperspace.
Chapter 7 is now complete! Hope you enjoyed reading, because I certainly enjoyed writing the Anidala scenes, specifically the last one with the fireplace. Also, you guys didn't seriously think that I, a Darth Vader fan, would forget about the flashbacks did you? I sure hope not, because those things are going to keep coming back again and again. They'll also receive a proper explanation in later chapters, somewhere after the Battle of GeonosisNow, onto the specifics and outro.
Firstly, everyone can tell that Anakin's thoughts aren't as clean as he's like them to be during this chapter. First with the bathing suit and then with the dress, he does his best to restrain himself from moving too fast, since Padme "already has too much baggage to deal with". Not that he's wrong. Oh well, I'm sure the Senator appreciates his effort.
Secondly, I don't know why, but I had way too much fun writing the scene with the fish. I had originally intended for it to be a fluffy moment between Anakin and Padme, but I couldn't resist shoving a little Force-related shenanigans in there. In case anyone doesn't remember, we've seen both Ezra and Kannan do similar things with animals in Star Wars Rebels, and I just wanted to remind you guys that this ability exists. I'll come up with something where it needs to be used later on in the story, but the scene seemed appropriate.
Thirdly, Qui Gon is being sassy and I'm loving it. I'm totally on board with him being the "very wise but also sometimes sassy" kinda guy, but I'd like to read your thoughts in the review section. Would you or would you not like a sassier Qui Gon for this story? I mean, he's still the mentor character so he'll always be there to help the heroes (except when the plot demands him not to), but I'd like to include him in some of the more funny scenes in future chapters.
Fourthly, the scene where Anakin and Padme are chilling on the couch and mocking Darth Vader's voice is pure gold for me. Anakin would never be able to joke about this with anyone but Padme (at least for now) and he's doing a great job of making fun of himself…which might not be a good thing now that I think about it. Oh well, I'm sure he'll be fine.
Lastly, the Force Choke. I hadn't even intended for Ferus to be in this chapter to begin with, but I wanted to have someone call Anakin and give him a reason to return to Tatooine. I was planning on having Owen do it but the scene turned out too awkward for use and I scrapped it. I also like the fact that Anakin goes full on Darth Vader the second someone says anything inappropriate about Padme. And to clarify, he didn't use a normal Force Choke on Ferus (like lifting him off the ground and stuff). He just…choked the guy I guess.
Anyways, I hope this was a fun read for all you guys! Be sure to leave a review with your comments and/or questions because they really help me be a better writer (And not because I get super excited or anything. Nope…I'm an absolute professional.) So yeah, May the Force be with you guys! Until next time! Bye!