Padme POV
I was staring at a working document of a bill that was going to be passed before the Senate. The bill would put safety measures in place that would ensure that no one could become Supreme Chancellor of the Senate for more than five years at a time, and that they could only serve twice in a lifetime. That part has not changed from before. What had changed was an elaborate plan that would take place to make sure no one could abolish democracy during war time. There were numerous safety measures that needed to be passed, and everyone was working around the clock to get votes. The bill went before the floor tomorrow.
Of course, this did not mean that their would never be an empire again. We were by no means safe. Instead, we had to be vigilant, ever watchful for a new person to grab for power and corrode our beloved republic. We weren't out of the woods yet. I rested my head in my hand. If another sith got a hold of the Republic, we were doomed. I cursed Palpatine under my breath. I actually made the move that got him elected Chancellor. I had been so stupid and naive.
My eyes wandered over to the chronometer. It was time to go home. Actually, it was an hour past time to go home. I shutdown the datapad, and stored it in my desk.
"I'm leaving, Captain," I said into my comms.
"Al'right my lady," came Typho. "I'll have your transport pulled around."
Typho drove me home through the Coruscant traffic, and I dreaded the idea of spending another night home alone. I thought about calling Ashoka and Rex, but I figured they had plans for the evening. I could call some of my single Senator friends and see if they wanted to go out for drinks, but they would end up flirting with someone, and I would still be there stuck pining for Anakin. I sighed. I figured I could call Mom and catch up. I haven't talked to her in a while.
We pulled up to my house, when I noticed the living room light was on. I knew I turned it off, so pulled out my blaster, and slowly I walked up the steps, letting myself in at the door. Podracing was on the TV, and I could smell soup cooking on the stove.
"What is this?"
"I'm making dinner. Eopie Stew," Anakin said proudly.
"Sounds delicious," I said.
"I thought we could eat something light tonight before we headed over."
"Head over to where?"
"The Opera House. They are doing a performance of Squid Lake. The music and dancing is supposed to be very beautiful."
"Won't you be bored? Nothing is going to blow up," I teased him.
"Well, there is supposed to be fireworks at the end. Explosions are exciting," he said winking.
I laughed.
I loved the opera. The music and the costumes were so beautiful as the calamari swam around in the dome. About half way through the first act, I looked to see how Anakin was liking it. He was not paying attention to the opera at all, but was in the process of taking his lightsaber apart.
"What are you doing?" I whispered to him.
"I'm cleaning it."
"Are you paying attention at all?"
"No, but it is okay because you'll tell me everything that happens later."
"Anakin, why did you bring us to the opera if you were not going to pay attention?"
"I am paying attention. They're singing now. They're gonna fight later and that is when all of the explosions will happen. It will be cool."
"You're a child," I said, but I laughed in spite of myself. "So…"
"So?"
"So, are you going to tell me what you 'mission' was about?"
"Nope."
"Why not?"
"You don't need to know."
"Ani, I thought you said we were going to do this marriage the right way this time. That means no secrets from each other."
"Did you see her do that? Now that was pretty."
"Ani!"
"Alright." He took a deep breath. "I went to find Sidious."
"YOU WHAT?!" I yelled.
We got hushed from the people around us. Anakin waved his hand to apologize, and we hunkered down beside one another.
"Why would you do that?!" I asked.
"To end this. I'm tired of playing cat and mouse, Padme. If he comes after me, or worse after you, I want to do it now. I want to get a fight over with so that I can defeat him and get it over with."
"Sidious doesn't want to fight you, Ani. He wants to play mind games with you. Mind games he can win."
"I know, and if I try to beat him at it then he will win."
"Yeah." I sighed then grabbed his hand. "We just started this again, and it is going good. Please don't let Sidious mess with us."
"I'm not Padme. I am trying to make sure that he is not going to come anywhere near us, and the only way to do that is to get him locked up for good."
"Could this be about revenge?"
"What do you mean?"
"Anakin, it is easy to see the way you act when you say his name or his name is said. He tortured you didn't he. You were his slave not his friend. I hate him for what he did to you, and I know you hate him too, but we both know where hate can lead you."
"You think I am going to be so consumed by my hatred I am going to fall back to the dark side. That is a popular opinion. Master Yoda warned me against it in meditation. I need to let go of my anger to truly be free of it."
"Can you do that?"
"I don't know. He was like a father to me, and then he treated me like a slave. Worse he made me not trust people who did care about me, like Yoda and Obi-Wan. He really twisted me up. I don't know what I am going to do when I finally get my hands on him."
"Anakin, you have to stop saying things like that. You are not that type of person anymore. It is one thing to keep the galaxy safe and to be selfless, but you are wanting revenge. That is corrosive. It will change who you are." I felt myself start to cry. "You can't do this to me again."
"Oh, Padme, I won't." He kissed my cheek. "See I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."
We kissed as the opera drew to a close.