We Pretend It's Alright
Chapter Eight
Silence
Words- 6,322
We Pretend it's Alright
"Everything seems to be perfectly in order, Madam Senator." The medical droid said, turning away from the sonogram screen that was to the right of Padme's medical bed.
"Thank you." Padme smiled as she sat up, gathering her things. "I'll schedule my next appointment at the front desk on my way out." She was now standing up and was headed towards the door when the droid's next words stopped her.
"Would you like to know the genders of your children?" The droid asked, still looking at the image.
"The… the genders?" Padme repeated, not quite wrapping her head around what the medical droid had just asked her.
"Yes, the genders of your twins. During your past appointments we were unable to get a clear image of what genders they are, but tonight we able to determine." The droid explained, gesturing to the screen.
"I… yes please." Padme stumbled in her words, dazed. She had been so focused on everything else, including the twins' health, she had never asked about the gender.
"If you would come over here, I can show you."
Padme started to move over, but then stopped, an idea coming to her.
"Would it be possible for you to just write it down on the picture instead, so I can open it later?" She asked hopefully, trying to avoid looking at the screen nw. "I was hoping to get pictures anyway to show someone."
"Of course Miss Amidala. That is a request we get here quite often. I will send it up in an envelope to the front desk and you can pick it up on your way out." The droid replied.
"Thank you." Padme said again before exiting the room.
Leaving the office five minutes later, Padme pushed all thoughts of the envelope out of her mind as she mentally prepared herself for the rest of the day. She had a meeting with the Jedi council in an hour, lunch with a group of Senators she needed to back her anti-slavery bill, and then more and more meetings.
We Pretend It's Alright
"I know Hondo alright. I've had the luck to run into him quite a few times over the years." Anakin answered, leaning back against a wall. "What's he up to these days?"
"Last I heard, he's built another base, this time on Lothal." Kaalon told Anakin, leaning against the wall as well. "This time he's hoping no Jedi blow it up." Kaalon laughed as Anakin rolled his eyes.
"That was in no way my fault." Anakin said indignantly. "That was his doing."
"And I guess you aren't a Jedi anymore either, huh?" The Frenk chuckled, but he was watching Anakin curiously.
After a pause, Anakin shrugged again. "Yeah, I guess so." He didn't feel comfortable about discussing his Jedi status right now. He was still trying to deal with it himself, even a week later. In the past week since he had arrived here, the media had had a field day with the news of Anakin being expelled by from the Jedi order. It certainly wasn't helping his case as the no one outside the council and Padme knew the real reason he had been expelled.
"It bothers you, don't it?"
"What?" Anakin said, narrowing his eyes and continuing to gaze forward, refusing to meet Kaalon's gaze.
"That they kicked you out." Kaalon explained with a bit of a sneer. Many prisoners had been badgering Anakin about his case and his status within the Jedi. Everyone, inmate or not, wanted to know about his case, all with their own ideas about what had happened and what should happen now.
"I-"
"Skywalker, you have a visitor!" Anakin was cut off by a shout from the entrance of the D-wing cafeteria. He looked up to see an escort of four guards heading towards him.
"Guess we'll continue this later." Smiled Kaalon, slipping away as the clones approached Anakin.
"Or not." Anakin muttered as he moved off the wall. "You said I have a visitor? Who? I'm not scheduled for anymore today." He asked as the group stopped in front of him.
"Get moving inmate." The head clone ordered and two clones grabbed his arms, the head clone taking the lead and the other trailing behind.
Anakin wondered who he was about to see. He had already met with his legal team earlier, and he wasn't scheduled to meet with the anyone else today as far as he knew. It was already eight now and he had just been pulled out of his hour of free time before bed. Had something happened? Was there an emergency? Padme had told him that she didn't know the next time she would be able to see him, but maybe something in her schedule had changed.
But he soon realized they were not taking him to the rooms where he normally meets with legal or with Padme. The rooms he normally meets in were very nice comparatively to others he had been in, but they were not on the same level as the rooms Anakin was walking past right now. He was on a new level, literally. Here the rooms seemed more private, more secure; almost as if they were reserved for those higher up.
And that he appeared to be right about.
"Senator Organa?" Anakin muttered to himself as they reached the glass windowed room he had been taken to. Through the glass Anakin could clearly make out the form of Bail Organa, who was sitting patiently at a table inside. He was quickly brought into the room and placed into a chair across from the Senator, his hands cuffed to the table.
"Thank you." Bail Organa said the clones as they left the room, nodding to them. He then turned his attention back to Anakin. "Master Skywalker, thank you for joining me today." He said with a smile, nodding to Anakin.
"With all due respect, I don't have the rank of master. And I'm not even a Jedi now so…" Anakin trailed off, pursing his lips and looking down at his hands.
"My apologies, force of habit I suppose? Do you mind if I call you Anakin?" Bail said after a bit of an awkward pause.
"Please." Anakin said with a nod. A tense silence fell over the two, both seemingly waiting for the other to speak.
"I suppose you're wondering what I'm doing here." Bail said finally, leaning forward in his chair
"Well, I certainly wasn't excepting this." Anakin admitted, peering curiously at the man across from him. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Well, truthfully I am here to offer my help" Bail informed him, clasping his hands together as waited for Anakin's reaction.
"Help?" Anakin asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes, I plan to back you in your upcoming case. I am going to align myself with you." He expanded, speaking simply as if this were the kind of thing he discussed all the time.
"Can you explain further?" Anakin asked cautiously. From his experience politicians rarely offered help without wanting something in return. He sat and listened as Bail started spewing off all sorts of information about press and stats and nothing Anakin was remotely interested in or asking for.
"I still don't understand." Anakin said when Bail had finally finished his monologue about how his political support would help Anakin immensely.
"What about my plan is confusing you?" Bail asked confused, his head tilting as he watched the prisoner in front of him.
"It's not your plan that I don't understand. I just don't get why you are helping me." Anakin pointed out, staring questioningly at the senator across from him. Silence fell over them, and it was a minute before Bail answered.
"I believe that you are a worthy cause to fight for, Anakin. Also, Padme is a great friend of mine, and I don't wish her to have to raise her children alone." Bail replied, but Anakin still felt he was leaving something out.
"So you're just a great person? You seek to gain nothing from this but the reward of knowing you've done a good deed?" Anakin challenged, his face stern and tone disbelieving. It wasn't that he believed that Bail Organa was a bad person, but he had been around politics too often not to know there was almost always an ulterior motive with these politicians. He had been screwed by those motives before and didn't want to be burned again.
"Well, I won't deny that it certainly would help my campaign if you win with my support." Bail admitted with a shrug, shaking off the comment as if it was meaningless
There it is.
"But if you don't win, there goes my chance at being Chancellor." He added, seeing the look on Anakin's face. "It's a dangerous move for me, you have to understand that."
"Yeah the fate of my life must be so hard for you to bet on, I'm really sorry to put you in this position, Senator." Anakin sneered, his eyes cold as he stared stone-faced at the man across from him.
"Anakin, that's not what I-"
"Of course it isn't Senator." Anakin scoffed, shaking his head. "You're just trying to do the right thing, aren't you? Everyone likes to think there the good guy, don't they? But guess what? No one is."
Silence feel over the room as the two men stared at each other. Bail was concealing a look of shock as he observed the fuming man before him. He hadn't expected such a negative reaction, as he believed he was doing Anakin a great service. The bitter man sitting before him not the Anakin Skywalker he remembered, but then again, did he even know this man?
"That may be true, but better to try to be the good guy than to give into the villain." Bail said conversationally, acting as if nothing out of the ordinary was occurring. "That's something I would think you'd understand very well." He added casually, watching Anakin closely.
Anakin, who had been looking down at his hands, slowly raised his head to look at the cool face of the Senator.
"Is there something you are trying to imply, Senator?" He asked quietly, his brow twitching as he waited for a response.
"Anakin, Padme told me what happened that night." He said, though he was now looking slightly uncomfortable.
"Did she?" Anakin said curiously, leaning back in his chair. "And what did she say happened that would make you say something like that?"
"Mr. Skywalker, I only meant to say that I do not believe you are a bad person." He backtracked, clearly uncomfortable. "And I wish to support you case as I believe you do not deserve to be punished for saving the galaxy from evil influences. As a politician and as a being, I cannot stand by and watch injustice occur." He finished passionately, his expression sincere.
"Alright." Anakin said after a minute, sitting up and raising his hand as high as he could with the shackles. "Do what you want. I'm not going to turn away another resource. Just don't expect me to thanking you on my hands and knees." He said evenly, nodding to Bail, his eyes still narrowed.
Bail Organa stared at the prisoner before him, not knowing what to make of the situation. Truthfully, he had expected Anakin to be full of gratitude for him.
"Well, I'm-erm- glad you've come around." He said with an uneasy smile, his brow slightly furled . "I'll be working with Padme and prepare a statement for the press." He stood up and after a nod to Anakin, left the room.
We Pretend it's Alright
(Three days later)
"My client has agreed to answer your questions, but is not required to answer anything he doesn't wish too. I will be staying with Mr. Skywalker thorough the duration of this interrogation." Jinka stated from where she stood just to the left of were Anakin sat. It had been three days since his meeting with Bail Organa. Today was his first official meeting with the prosecution. Standing across from Jinka and Anakin was the head prosecutor in of the case. He was a all thin man with slicked back graying brown hair. His face was lined and his eyes had a twinkle in them Anakin couldn't seem to place.
"Thank you Ms. Gehlert, I understand and accept your terms." He said with a nod, both lawyers then taking their seats on opposite sides of the table.
"Mr. Skywalker, my name is Reginald Fornium, the head persecutor against you. Now I presume you are comfortable if I record this session?" He asked smoothly, holding up a small recording device as he looked questioningly.
"Yes, of course." Anakin responded, wondering what this man was playing at. The prosecutor had every right to record this session, with or without Anakin's permission. He eyed the man curiously as Fornium placed the device on the table after turning it on.
"Now Mr. Skywalker, will you please recount your version of the events from the night the former Chancellor Palpatine was murdered?" He asked, watching Anakin very closely.
Anakin immediately recited the events in the manner Jinka and Helgo had taught him, making sure to fully explain the circumstances in which Palpatine's death had occurred. He talked for what felt like ages, giving line after line of tale he knew so well. The legal team had decided that Anakin shouldn't talk about his internal struggle between the light and dark as much, but was more focused on Palpatine being Darth Sidious, as that was much more beneficial.
Mr. Fornium listened quietly throughout Anakin's monologue, taking notes as he listened intently. His face remained blank as he listened, and Anakin couldn't get a good read on him.
"Mr. Skywalker, you have made a pretty large accusation here. You stand by the accusation that Chancellor Palpatine was a… Sith Lord? I just don't believe how that could be possible. What proof do you have of this?"
"Not only did he admit it too me, but to four other Jedi masters." Anakin started, but was cut off by Fornium.
"And three of these witnesses and dead, and the other in critical conditions. Pretty convenient, isn't it? To me it almost seems as if it is you who is the Sith lord, Mr. Skywalker, and this was a just another step in your attempted rise to power."
"That's insane!"Anakin cut in, anger showing on his face as he stared the man down. "I am no Sith lord. I am- was a Jedi, and I am still loyal to the light side of the force. Just because I'm no longer a Jedi, doesn't mean I believe in the ways of the Sith." He expanded, his voice firm.
"They why were you expelled from the Jedi order, Mr. Skywalker?" Fornium shot back, raising his eyebrows. "If you are innocent of murder of these people, why were you expelled?"
"Well," Anakin stared, shooting a quick look at Jinka, who nodded to him. "I was truthfully expelled from the order for unrelated reasons." He said with a shrug.
"You expect me to believe that the council expelled you for reasons unrelated to the murders you partook in?"
"First of all, I did not partake in any murders. Palpatine killed the three Jedi masters and injured Master Windu. I will not deny that I was involved in Palpatine's death, but it was in means murder. He engaged me in a duel and I won. His death was justified in his actions, and I do not regret the decision I made to protect myself when he attacked me and in extension the Republic." Anakin said forcefully, leaning forward over the table and frustration evident on his face. "And what I'm saying about the circumstances of my expulsion is true. Many members of the council will confirm it."
"Then why were you expelled?"
"I fail to see what my expulsion has to do with this case."
"Well, I can't share that opinion as I don't know all the information. Why so sensitive about this topic? What are you hiding?" Fornium pushed, his head tilted as he stared at Anakin.
"I am hiding nothing, I have nothing to hide." Anakin insisted, returning Fornium's stare. "I just simply don't wish to share the personal reasons I was expelled from the order."
"Why? Are you scared of what we may find out?"
A silence fell over the room as Fornium waited for a response. Anakin shared a look with Jinka. Sensing Anakin's discomfort over the topic, Jinka broke the silence.
"Mr. Skywalker is in his own rights. Jedi business isn't the same as the legal process we partake in. My client has no obligations to disclose the circumstances of his expulsion to you." She said, glancing at Anakin who was now very subdued with a blank look on his face. "Now I believe that is enough for today. Have your office contact mine if you wish to set up another meeting." She said, standing up and holding out her hand.
"Of course." Fornium said, standing up as well and shaking Jinka's hand. He nodded to them both and was at the door before he stopped. Turning around, his gaze found Anakin once more. "Mr. Skywalker, I wish you well, but I hope you don't forget what a high stakes case this is. You are accused of murdering the leader of the galaxy. Your life is no longer your own. Any secrets you may try to conceal my people will find. Good luck." With that he left, the door swinging shut behind him.
"I messed that up." Anakin said at once, his head in his hands once again. "I messed that up so badly."
"No you didn't." Jinka dismissed with a wave of her hand "He's just trying to get in your head, don't let him."
"But he's right, you know? I can't keep anything secret from them." He argued, thinking of Padme and his unborn children.
"Well, that may be true." Jinka admitted, taking a seat next the Anakin again. "But what do you have to hide?' She said with a shrug, not knowing the inner conflict that was raging inside Anakin's head.
"Yeah…" Anakin murmured, trailing off, still unsure of what to say. Truthfully, he didn't know what Padme had revealed about their relationship or even the trial. He really needed to talk to her and get their story straight.
"Anyway, I thought you did a nice job today, but I still want to work on your tone. You get too defensive and you become a lot more suspicious." Jinka informed him, glancing down at her comm. "Now I'm meeting with another member of the prosecution in two hours, and Bail Organa's press conference is at six tonight. I believe Padme said she might have to stop by, but she wasn't sure yet."
Anakin looked up her curiously. "Stop by today? Isn't she going to the press conference?"
"She is, but she said she might have time somewhere to squeeze in a visit." Jinka explained, fiddling with her comm. "Now I really must go, I have to discuss with Helgo before my meeting. Bye!' She said cheerily, giving him a wave he half-heartedly returned as she left.
A minute later four clones entered the room and unchained Anakin from the table.
"How's it going, Shaker? Jammed? Keeper? Other Sir I do not yet know?" He asked as his hands were retied behind his back.
"Skywalker, always the wise guy." Keeper chuckled as he finished rechaining Anakin's hands.
"Never!" Anakin exclaimed, pretending to be offended. "I am sincerely interested in the well being of my friends."
"Ha!" Jammed smirked, shaking his head as Shaker rolled his eyes. "You truly are something Skywalker."
"Why thanks, I think you're pretty great too." Anakin said cheekily as they exited the interrogation room.
"Who said that was a compliment?" Jammed laughed, the rest joining in. Honestly, interactions like this were the best part of Anakin's day often, unless Padme was visiting of course. He missed the 501 more than he ever thought he would. He had made nice with quite a few of the guards here, but he missed his men. It just wasn't the same.
"Where are we going?" Anakin asked as he was led past the normal route back to the prisoner's quarters.
"Infirmary." Shaker informed him as they entered the elevator.
"And why would that be?"
"You ask way too many questions." Shaker replied, giving Anakin a meaningful look.
Anakin nodded, understanding that something beyond him was going on. They walked in silence for the rest of the way. After a few minutes, they reached the medical bay doors. Leading him into the doors, the group came to a stop at the front desk. Anakin watched as Shaker leaned in close to the clone working the front desk and whispered something to him. The clone behind the desk wore his hair up in a top knot, reminding Anakin of Tup, and by extension, Fives. What had happened to Fives was one of his biggest regrets, along with Ahsoka's leaving, and abandoning her mother on Tattooine. It was his job to protect his men and he had failed Fives.
"Thank you." Anakin heard Shaker say to the clone working the desk. Shaker jerked his head to the left, and started that way, indicating that they should follow him. Anakin and the remaining three clones walked behind him through bay one and down a hall Anakin had not been down before. At the end of the hall, they stopped, and Shaker pulled Anakin forward, so they were both standing in front of a blue door with a plaque that read Head Medic. Shaker knocked on the door and after a few seconds it was opened by Fixer.
"Thanks Shaker. I'll take it from here. If you want to wait in the main hall, I'll bring him back there when we're done." Fixer told him, his tone one of a commander. "Oh and could you remove his cuffs?" He added as an afterthought.
"You sure?" Jammed asked from behind Anakin.
"Oh yes, I don't believe Mr. Skywalker here will be a threat to me today." Fixer said with a firm smile.
"Alright then…" Jammed muttered and Anakin rubbed his sore wrists as soon as they were freed.
"Now, Mr. Skywalker, if you would follow me." Fixer said, leading Anakin into what Anakin took to be Fixer's office. "Please, have a seat." He said, gesturing to the chair in front of his desk.
"Thanks." Anakin mumbled, still confused.
Fixer sat down behind the desk, his elbows on the surface as he leaned forward.
"Now, I need to know everything you can tell me about the inhibitor chips." Fixer said bluntly, staring intently at Anakin.
"The… inhibitor chips?" Anakin repeated, his brow furled as stared back at Fixer. "You mean-"
"The ones that are every clone's brain. Yeah, that inhibitor chip." Fixer said with a nod, raising one eyebrow as he waited.
Anakin recounted what he knew of what happened last year. Tup's actions and what had he had been told about both Tup and Fives' stays on Kamino after that. Finally, he explained what Fives had tried to tell him and Rex before he was shot.
"After that, Rex left the 501 but we kept in touch. He believed that something wrong was happening on Kamino and that it had to do with the chips. Last I heard from him a few months ago, he was on Kamino and snooping around. I believe he intended to have his removed to be able to study the chip. But I haven't heard from him since then." Anakin finished, still rubbing his red wrists as he spoke.
"Here." Fixer said, opening his desk drawer and pulling out a tube of ointment and handing it to Anakin. "It should help with the burn from the cuffs." He explained, and Anakin nodded.
"Thank you." Anakin said softly as he rubbed to ointment on his aching wrists.
"Well thank you for telling me this. I've heard rumors about it but nothing concrete until now." Fixer admitted, accepting the tube back from Anakin and returning it to the drawer.
"What do you think it actually is?" Anakin asked curiously, leaning forward.
"I believe that it is a device meant to take away a clone's free will, an overriding feature." Fixer replied, leaning back in his chair, his hands folded beneath his chin.
"I think you're right." Anakin said, a frown on his face. "I know Tup, and he never would have shot a Jedi for no reason. Tup was a good man. He didn't deserve what happened to him, and neither did Fives." Anakin's face was downcast, his tone mournful. He had lost one too many men recently.
"How far up do you think this conspiracy goes?" Fixer mused, a troubled look on his face.
"Fives said it went all the way to the top, and…" Anakin broke off as it dawned on him. "I think I understand what he meant now." He murmured, a look of fury filling his face.
"What do you mean?" Fixer urged him, watching him cautiously.
"Palpatine." Anakin answered in one word. "This all goes back to him, I see it now!"
"The late Chancellor you are here for killing?" Fixer asked with a questioning look.
"Yes, he isn't who everyone thinks he is." Anakin growled before launching into an explanation of Palpatine's true identity and motives.
"This a lot to take in." Fixer muttered after Anakin finished. "You believe this was part of his plan all along?"
"Of course! It makes so much sense." Anakin affirmed, leaning forward. "He would need an obedient army, one that would dispose of the Jedi for him, allowing him to take over. Most clones would never follow those orders, but if they didn't have a choice.." He trailed off and a silence fell over the two.
"Well," Fixer said after a minute, standing up and walking towards Anakin. "This certainly is a lot of information to work with. Thank you Mr. Skywalker for sharing this with me." He held out his hand and Anakin grasped it after standing up.
"Thank you for looking into this. I fear this problem goes far beyond us." Anakin responded, nodding to the man in front of him and wondering what would come next.
We Pretend It's Alright
We Pretend It's Alright
Anakin sat awake on his bunk, staring transfixed at the orange ray shield covering the cement door four feet in front of him. Padme hadn't showed up today, understandable of course. She was incredibly overworked as it was, and Anakin hated that he was a burden on her, as much as she insisted he wasn't. Still, it had been nice to able to see her standing beside Bail Organa during the live stream of his press conference that had played on the HoloNet in one of the recreation rooms. Seeing her safe helped to quell some of his anxieties, but it had three days since he had last seen her now and it was starting to wear on him.
Tonight, like most nights he had experienced recently, Anakin couldn't sleep. The anxiety of his circumstances kept him awake. He needed to be on guard all the time, ready for whatever could happen. He could never not be ready again. He would not be fooled again.
He had been betrayed three times already, once each by the Chancellor, the Jedi, and Obi Wan. And he couldn't trust the Republic, though that wasn't something new. He had never had faith in government. It wasn't effective in doing the one thing they should be doing: protecting its people. All the leaders in the Republic act only in their own interest, not in the interests of their people.
The Republic never did anything good for him and his mother on Tattooine, that was for sure. No one ever tried to break up the corrupt system there, a system too broken for anyone to benefit from by fixing. A system Anakin had lived in the first nine years of his life, the one his mother had lived in her whole life.
"Born a slave, die a slave." Anakin murmured to himself with a sad smile, thinking back on her early childhood as he sat awake.
For the first four years of his life, he and his mother had been enslaved to a wealthy crime lord who was based on Tattooine, an associate of the Hutt's. Anakin didn't remember much from his time there as he had been too young to retain much, but he would never forget Rhjoka. She was an older Twi'lek who was also enslaved there. Most the other slaves were young women and though she was probably only in her fifties, compared to the others she had seemed old to Anakin. Rhjoka worked in the kitchens sometimes but didn't have a set purpose. The others wondered sometimes why the Master kept her and Rhjoka had once told Anakin that she had been enslaved to the Master since she was a young girl, that she was his first slave. Perhaps the Master had been sentimental; perhaps he kept her to care for Anakin. That estate had certainly not been family friendly and Anakin still wondered why the Master had kept his mother once she had Anakin.
Rhjoka had ended up caring for Anakin most of the time as Shmi couldn't. She kept him out of trouble and taught him how he was supposed to act. She often shared her wisdom with him, pulling him close at night and talking to him as if he was her equal. She told it as it was, never sheltering Anakin from the world around him. The twi'lek thought it important he be prepared for the life he had ahead of him.
"Being a slave is not easy." She would tell him, rocking him in her arms as they tuned the loud noises coming from the hall above them. "It takes a lot of strength. Your mom, she has strength. You learn from her, child. You will have the strength too, one day."
Anakin remembered one day when all the slaves of the household had been called out to the yard by the master. Rhjoka had been with Anakin and she told him he must not make a sound. He was to stand silently behind beside her and not move. In the yard they were told to line up, and he saw his mother at the opposite end. He remembered the scared look on her face clearly as he could picture the emotionless face of Rhjoka.
The Master had dragged a young Tortuga from the line. She had only been there a week and apparently had tried to run away. She was a newly captured slave and thought she could escape. She was on her knees, her hands in the air and praying in a language Anakin didn't know as tears streamed down her face. The Master shot her in the side of the head with a blaster he drew from his holster. There had been no warning and today the image still burned in Anakin's mind.
After, he had then ordered everyone back to work, warning them that disobedience would not be tolerated. As Anakin and Rhjoka had turned to return the kitchen, he had stopped them. They were to dispose of the body. The two slaves had dragged the body off of the estate and dug a shallow grave where they buried the body.
"She didn't have the strength." Rhjoka had told Anakin as they stood over the shallow grave. He hadn't spoken for a week after that.
Rhjoka had often told Anakin that she was born a slave and would die a slave. She was never resentful but was simply stating a fact.
"Born a slave, die a slave. That's the way it goes child, that's our role." She would say to him. Her tone wasn't sad but resigned. The fight in her had gone long before Anakin had been born.
When the Master had been killed by the Hutts, his slaves had been separated and sold. Anakin and his mother had nearly been separated and were extremely fortunate to stay together. Anakin never saw Rhjoka again after that and he still wondered what had become of her.
He felt a pain of longing for the old woman as he sat awake. What wouldn't he give to see her once more? He had so many questions no one could answer. His mother was dead, Rhjoka was gone, no one from his former life remained. His old family was gone, but now he had a new family to take care off. And what good was he doing for them in here?
Anakin sat up on his cot, wishing more than anything that he wasn't trapped in this prison. He should be out buying baby things with Padme, or helping her prepare for her next Senate meeting. He should be fighting alongside the 501, laughing with Ahsoka and Rex on some far away planet. He should be working a mission with Obi Wan, working towards ending the war. There was so much he should be doing right now, and none of those things were sitting in a prison cell. He wished for his life back, one free of murder and trials. A life where he was a Jedi and a father, able to be with the ones he loved and protect them.
Instead, he thought as he stared the ray shield glowing brightly in front of him, he was sitting in here, waiting for things he couldn't control and hating every minute of it.
We Pretend It's Alright
Miles away from Anakin's cell, Padme sat curled up on a couch in her apartment, staring out at the bright city. She was having trouble sleeping yet again, a combination of stress and her pregnancy. She knew she was pushing her limits with her workload, but she couldn't stop now. The first hearings for the trial were fast approaching and they had to come off strong. If she let up now, all this work would be for nothing and Anakin would be condemned.
If only she could get more than a few hours sleep. If only she could make more time in the day. Padme needed more time, time to meet with Senators, time to meet with the prosecution, time to meet with the Jedi. She needed time to meet with Anakin more than anything.
It had been three days now she hadn't seen him, not since the day he had meet with Bail and she had had her medical appointment. And even so, she had only stayed for twenty minutes, enough time to brief him on the next few days and what Bail's support meant for their case. Anakin had been very skeptical of Bail, and though Padme would never tell Anakin, she had to wonder if this was rooted in Anakin's jealous nature. It was most likely that and his distrust of politicians, not to mention his overall trust issues that he never dealt with.
"Oh Anakin." Padme mumbled, yawning and wrapping a blanket around her large frame as she tried to quiet her racing mind.
"Mistress Padme! Is there anything else I can do to help you?" Threepio tittered as he walked into the room.
"No, thank you, Threepio." She said, stifling a yawn with her hand. "Just double check that the security system is up before you shut down, okay?"
"Oh of course. I will check right away!" He exclaimed, tottering away towards the main hall.
Padme gazed around the room, thinking she should head to bed when something caught her eye. Her bag was hanging up across the room and an envelope was sticking out the top.
"What's this?" Padme murmured, slowly heaving herself off the couch and wobbling over the hook. She pulled the envelope out and read what has written on the front. Padme Amidala, twins' genders, it read and Padme felt her heart leap. She had completely forgotten about the envelope. The past few days had just been so busy, it had slipped her mind.
Should she open it?
Padme bit her lip as she stared down at the crisp white envelope in her hands. Did she even want to know? It didn't really matter to her either way and she due in just a little over a month. She wouldn't open it, she didn't need to. With a sigh, Padme dropped the envelope on a table to her left. Deciding she really should try and sleep, she walked to the balcony entrance to close the opening. As she stood in the doorway, cool night air blowing on her face, her gaze once again shifted back to the city. It always looked so beautiful at night.
Back on Theed when Padme had been Queen, she often watch the city at night, admiring the beauty of the Capitol. Coruscant had a different charm, a more urban appeal. Honestly if the circumstances had been different, she would have been in Theed now, preparing a house on the upper-east side, visiting with her family and working on her anti-slavery bill in peace. It would have been perfect, just her and Anakin and their soon-to-be children.
Padme yawned as she pushed away the fantasy, closing the entrance and applying the lock and security system. What's done was done. There was no use wishing for something she couldn't have.
AN:
Hello! Hope you enjoyed the new chapter! Sorry it took so long, but inspiration comes and goes, what can I say. I wanted to show the case progressing a bit in this chapter, and opening up a few more plotlines and possibilities with some of the new interactions. I also like portraying Bail Organa as slightly clueless sometimes in an "I'm really great" kind of way, but I respect his character a lot too. We also meet the head prosecutor and I hope he doesn't come off as evil because he isn't. He's just a man doing his job, not an evil person.
Next chapter we are going to check in on our favorite captain on his search for our favorite ex-padawan…
Till next chapter!
-Diamondgirl3;)
