The light of the full moon filtered down into the open balcony of the guest room, filling the elaborately decorated suite with pools of glowing silver light and deep purple shadow. Obi-Wan was awake, unable to sleep with the events of the day playing out again and again in his mind. Padmé slept beside him, only unconscious because of the use of the Force. Just like when they first arrived on Bakura and she'd had nightmares of Mustafar, he had lulled her to sleep with the gentlest of touches across the forehead with the Force. She breathed evenly beside him, looking perfectly peaceful and beautifully serene, as if nothing of the last few days had occurred.

Obi-Wan brushed a chestnut curl from her forehead and stroked her cheek tenderly, studying her features and the thin silver chain that hung around her neck that matched his own. He gently traced her lips, wishing that he could somehow take all her pain and worry away like how he used to. Soon it would be dawn, and when she awoke all the heartache of the day before would come crashing back onto her. The stress could cause her to go into an early labour when there was still a month left before her time was due and her welfare made him anxious.

In her sleep, her nightgown had ridden up to her breasts, so that her rounded stomach was exposed to the warm air of the night. Gently, he placed his calloused hand onto the perfectly smooth skin of her belly. As if a light inside had been turned on, a response came through the Force from the life form within. The little boy or girl inside recognised him as their father and pride swelled within his heart. Despite his happiness at their baby's healthy growth, the price of attachment had made itself clear over the last two days. Allowing himself this great love had a price - and it was the most wretched feelings of grief and despair when those he loved were in danger. His stomach hurt from the un-Jedi like worry that ate him up from the inside.

He moved back from his wife and carefully got up from the large bed. Padding softly, he made his way across the floor to the balcony, where the doors were wide open and the lilac voile curtains wafted gently in the fragrant air. It was a hot yet breezy summer's night on Alderaan and it reminded him of similar nights on Bakura. Bare chested, he let the wind stir his cropped hair as he came out into the open and rested against the balcony's smooth alabaster edge. He looked down at the glittering city before him and then up at the stars above. Somewhere out there, his innocent children were all alone and at the mercy of Darth Vader and the empire's evil intentions.

His mind drifted back the events of the day earlier, when they had heard the report coming in live from Jan Taylo and the rebels who had fought so hard to rescue the kidnapped children aboard the Project Harvester ship. They had all been huddled around the HoloProjector, listening to updates with bated breath.

The beginning of the rescue had been going well, he had been feeling positive that it would succeed by Bail's testimony about the previous missions, but everything had changed mid-way through the operation. He could still feel the shivers on his skin from hearing the words over the communication, and it was not just the night's breeze that raised the hair on the back of his neck.

"It can't be… it's Vader's ship! Confirmed, he's here!" the terrified, scratchy voice of Jan had echoed through the marbled sitting area.

Obi-Wan remembered his wife burying her face in her hands. He'd wrapped his arms around her as the feed came through the projector and they heard the increasingly distressing live report. They'd been under heavy fire from the ship's cannons and Vader's smaller ship, which had taken out several of their X-wings. They had all listened, barely able to breathe as the battle wore on and the evening outside became twilight. When the Project Harvester ship had disappeared into hyperspace, their rebel force immediately retreated to live to fight another day. They all knew without saying that against Vader, no one had a chance. Bail cut the transmission as Jan repeated that the mission had no choice but to be aborted.

"There is still hope," Bail had turned to him, taking his hand and Padmé's. Empathy and determination had been etched across his face. "It is risky, but there may be some minute possibility of extracting them from Coruscant. The Skywalker children are the future of this rebellion Padmé, and we will not give up until every option has been investigated."

She had nodded to Bail before burying her face into his neck as the grief took hold. Bail and Breha had excused themselves, promising they wouldn't rest until they had a new rescue plan ready for them. Breha also asked the etiquette droid to deliver food, towels and necessities to their room. Though unsaid, it was a sign that they were going to be staying longer than they thought. Left alone for the first time since their arrival, tiredness had washed over him like a wave. It felt like a great weight was upon his shoulders. With heavy steps Obi-Wan had guided his wife to their chambers.

"He knows," she had cried on the bed as soon as he had shut the heavy mahogany door to their room. "Why else would he have appeared? He's probably with them right now! If he has them, how will we get to them now?!"

He'd laid beside her and tried to comfort her, but she'd been beyond consolation. Brought back to the present, Obi-Wan glanced behind him at her sleeping figure. He knew his love for Luke and Leia was without limit, but if he put himself in his wife's shoes the grief was amplified tenfold. She was their mother, the one who carried them and went through the agonies of childbirth for them. The one who was causing her such pain was her former husband, one who had betrayed them all and tried to choke her in a fit of jealous rage. Her family were lost to her. Her father, mother, sister and niece could be dead or alive, but she had no way of knowing, nor could she find out without revealing her identity. If her family had been killed…then it was by the authority of her ex-husband's empire.

Obi-Wan had never known his birth family, but Qui-Gon was his father-figure. His death had shaken him deeply with grief. But to imagine that his murder came from the hands of someone he loved, his spouse, it was almost impossible to comprehend the heartbreak of such a thing. His wife's suffering was too much to bear. His poor Padmé. What had she ever done to deserve all this?

How he wished to be back in their cottage with the little ones playing. He would give anything to be back there, to feel the breeze cooling the sweat on his brow and to hear the crickets chirping in the long golden grass. He would watch the twins play with a tireless energy amongst the flowers, laughing loudly and without a care in the world, lost in their imaginary game. He could picture Padmé beside him in the garden, soaking up the sun in a white dress. The rays turned her skin golden and her hair shone with a deep brown lustre. She beamed at him and he could see that she was truly happy and peaceful, as she deserved to be.

He wished he could hold them all tightly in that moment, to protect them from every evil that was out there in the galaxy, threatening to encroach on their happiness. The summer garden played out in his mind for a long time, taunting him with what was, and what he could never go back to. A lump rose in his throat and he allowed himself to weep for the loss of his children, the pain Padmé suffered, and for the man who had caused all of this grief - Anakin. How he missed him even to this day.

Sleep evaded him, and as soon as it was dawn, he was ready to meet with Breha and Bail with his wife, to discuss what the next steps would be. Even if they were within Vader's clutches on Coruscant, they might have a slim chance of a rescue. He could not give up hope, for it was all he had left.

ooooo

Later that day

Padmé paced the room with her hands wrapped over her stomach, unable to sit still as they listened to the latest live report from the rebels dedicated to helping their cause. They had been in and out of talks all day with Mon Mothma and other superior commanders of the rebel alliance. After hours of negotiations and discussion, an extraction mission had been organised. Three highly trained spies had been deployed to the imperial landing bay who lived and worked as civilians undercover in the heart of Coruscant. The spies reported the goings-on from the dark underworld of the senate and the movements of the Emperor to the rebels. This time, they were scoping the docking bay where the Harvester ship would land and reporting every detail back to Alderaan and the rebel base which was currently situated on Dantooine.

"We can see some people exiting the ship now," one of the spies whispered over the comlink.

"I'm looking but I can't see any younglings which match your description," another voice said, who was using long range binoculars to scope the highly guarded bay.

"How many are there?" Padmé asked, her empathy clearly displayed across her features.

"I count nine younglings, but there are a lot of guards for so small a number. Confirmed, there are over thirty storm troopers present." Some rustling and interference came through the comlink. Bail fiddled about with some settings and the voice came through again. "There are no children that match the description given in the brief. Most of these younglings are non-human species. Only two present are human that we can recognise. They are far too small to be nine, and they are both dark haired boys."

Obi-Wan's heart ached for the poor younglings and their dark fate. But he knew it was suicide to rescue nine younglings from such a highly guarded bay with only three spies at their disposal. If the empire was ever defeated, such atrocities would finally end.

"So the children in the brief description are definitely not present? Can you confirm?" Mothma spoke with her usual calm manner over the transmission, her voice echoing through from Dantooine.

After some more rustling, the reply came through. "Confirmed, the assets are not present."

Obi-Wan breathed out a sigh, leaning back in his seat and raking a hand through his hair. Padmé came to sit beside him, equally relieved but then also deeply troubled - if they were not on Coruscant, where were they? And how would they find them?

"Has Vader taken them already? Did he board the ship before they landed on Coruscant?" Padmé asked, echoing her fears from the previous night.

"He must have done somewhere en route, though none of our sources can confirm this - we have no spies onboard either ship," Mothma replied over the transmission.

"If he has them, then he would go straight to the Emperor without delay," Obi-Wan said. "Maybe that's where they are."

"We have a mole on the Emperor's Star destroyer - he has not reported anything about Vader for over a day now. From his encrypted transmission, they are not expecting his arrival any time soon either. Usually, they know in advance in order to prepare. This update was from exactly one hour ago," Mothma said.

"So we have no idea where the children or Vader are now?" Obi-Wan questioned, suppressing his paternal instinct to panic. Before they had known the location of the children, but now they were truly lost and it terrified him - but his Jedi training served him well and despite the extreme anxiety, he quietened his racing emotions. "What will our plan be now?"

"We have another card up our sleeve," Bail turned to him and Padmé, again offering a sliver of hope that they would be able to cling to. "We have a contact who can find anyone in the galaxy. Let's send him a message."