10
Naboo
"False labour? Are you sure?" Jobal asked.
"Yes Mrs. Naberrie," the doctor told her. "It's not uncommon. Her contractions have stopped, so I'm certain that is what happened."
"Can we take her home, then?" Ruwee asked.
"I've administered a sedative, so she's sleeping now," the doctor replied. "And quite frankly I'm concerned about her blood pressure. I'd like to keep her for at least one rotation to keep her under observation."
"Whatever you think is best," Jobal said.
"She'll be asleep for several hours," the doctor said. "Why don't you both go home and get some sleep yourselves?"
"Sounds like a good idea to me," Ruwee said. "What do you say, dear?"
Jobal didn't like the thought of leaving Padmé, but decided that she was in good hands. Besides, she'd be asleep for a while, according to the doctor. "Very well," she said. "Thank you, Doctor," she said.
"You're quite welcome, goodnight."
Jobal and Ruwee left the hospital and travelled through the quiet city to their home. The news from the capital had been grim, and they had done their best to shield Padmé from it. But they both knew it was only a matter of time before she learned the ugly truth that the Jedi had been declared enemies and were systematically being killed by the clones. Neither of them held out much hope that their son-in-law had survived the purge, for there wasn't a Jedi Knight whose face was more recognizable than Anakin Skywalker.
As they walked up to their door, a person emerged from the shadows, startling them both.
"Mr. and Mrs. Naberrie?"
Ruwee pulled his wife behind him when he saw a clone trooper step out of the shadows. "What do you want?" he said.
"I need to talk to you both," the clone said. "Please, may I come inside? I promise you, I mean you no harm. I swear it."
"Talk then, go ahead," Ruwee said. "Surely you don't think we're foolish enough to let you in our house."
The clone hesitated for a moment, as though deciding upon a course of action. And then he took off his helmet.
Ruwee and Jobal recognised their son-in-law at once, and, without saying a word, let him into the house.
"Anakin, thank God!" Jobal said.
"So you know, then?" Anakin asked.
"It's been all over the news," Ruwee said. "How did you manage to escape the clones?"
"It hasn't been easy," he said. "But I had to see Padmé. Is she asleep?"
"She's in the hospital," Ruwee told him. "We just left her."
"Is she all right? Did she have the babies already?" Anakin asked.
"No, she had some contractions and it turned out to be false labour," Jobal explained. "She was watching the news from the capital with us, and it upset her tremendously as you can imagine."
Anakin frowned. "I'm sure," he said. "I hope she doesn't think I'm dead."
"She might," Ruwee said. "The story coming from the capital has been pretty grim."
"Then I need to see her, I need to let her know that I'm alive," Anakin said.
"You have to be careful, Anakin," Jobal said. "The clones must be looking for you."
"Well, it's a good thing I have a clone helmet," he said.
"Where did you get that from?" Ruwee asked.
"The captain of my squadron was not part of the purge, and has allied himself to me and the rest of the surviving Jedi," he said. "If it weren't for him, we never would have made it off of Coruscant."
"How did this happen, Anakin?" Ruwee asked. "I never liked Palpatine, but to think that he would declare the Jedi enemies of the Republic? It's ludicrous!"
"Palpatine won't be a problem anymore," Anakin said as he replaced his helmet. "I promise you that. Now please, tell me how to find Padmé."
Theed Hospital
Padmé had been sleeping for a few hours when the need to use the facilities woke her up. Slowly she got off the bed and headed to the fresher that was attached to her room. Her movements alerted the medi-droid that was assigned to her room.
"Can I help you, Senator?"
Padmé shook her head. "I just need to use the fresher," she said.
"You should be resting," it told her.
"Tell the twins that," she grumbled as she continued on her way.
Anakin arrived at the room just as the door to the fresher closed. He still wore his helmet, and it had served him well thus far. He knew that he was gambling with fate, but he needed to see her.
"Where it Senator Amidala?" he asked the medi-droid.
"In the fresher," the droid replied "What does the Imperial Army want of her?"
"That's none of your business," Anakin said. "Get out."
"I am programmed to remain in this room to monitor Senator Amidala's condition at all times," the droid replied.
Anakin frowned under the helmet he wore, knowing that he dare not remove it with the droid present. He considered deactivating it when the door to the fresher opened. He turned to see his wife standing there, looking at him with terror in her eyes.
"What do you want?" she asked. "How dare you come into my private room?"
"I'm sorry Senator, I didn't mean to frighten you," Anakin said, fighting the urge to take her in his arms.
Padmé said nothing, to hide her fear. He's here to make me tell him where Anakin is…he is looking for Anakin…he means to kill him…
Anakin sensed her fear, and, after deactivating the medi-droid, took off his helmet.
Padmé's eyes widened when she saw him, and she began to cry.
"Don't cry," he said, taking her by the hands. "Please, I'm fine."
"I was so afraid," she sobbed. "The news…the purges..."
"I'm okay, you don't need to worry."
"But you're still in danger. You shouldn't have come here – what if someone sees you?"
Anakin sighed knowing she was right. "I had to see you," he told her.
Padmé smiled through her tears. "I know," she said softly. "And I'm glad you came, but you have to leave. I can't stand the thought of you being in danger."
Anakin nodded. "I know," he said. He kissed her softly on the mouth. "I'll be back when I can," he said. "Hopefully before the twins arrive."
Padmé nodded, her tears preventing her from speaking.
He replaced the helmet as she watched. "I love you," he told her.
"I love you too," she said. "Be safe."
Anakin nodded, and then, after reactivating the droid, left her once more. He had almost reached the hospital lobby when a small group of clones approached him.
"Excuse me, Commander," one of them said, recognizing the markings on Rex's armour. "What are you doing here?"
Anakin thought fast. "Just looking for some intel on Skywalker," he said. "I thought someone here might know his whereabouts."
"What's wrong with your voice?" one of the other clones asked.
Anakin frowned. "There's nothing wrong with my voice," he said, using the Force to bend the clones' minds. "Leave me alone and go on your way."
"There's nothing wrong with his voice," the third clone said. "Leave him alone, let's go."
The three clones walked away and Anakin went in the opposite direction, his heart hammering hard. That was too close, he reflected, realizing that he couldn't take such risks again. He headed to the hangar and made for the Lake District. It had occurred to him that he would most likely miss the birth of his children. He didn't dare take the risk of coming to see Padmé again; he couldn't risk her safety or his own.
Anakin found his comrades sitting down to lunch when he arrived back at the lake house.
"I'll be right back," he told them. "I need to get out of this armour. I honestly don't know how wear this all the time," he said to Rex.
"You get used to it," Rex replied.
Anakin couldn't imagine how. He went to his room and quickly changed, all too happy to do so.
"How is the Senator?" Obi-Wan asked as Anakin sat down to join them for lunch.
He glanced at Ahsoka, who was watching him closely. "She's good," he said.
"Surprised I am that you'd take such a risk to see Senator Amidala," Yoda said.
Anakin and Obi-Wan exchanged a look. Obi-Wan shrugged.
"Padmé is my wife," Anakin said.
"Your wife?" Ahsoka exclaimed. "Since when?"
"Since the start of the War," Anakin said. "She's…she's expecting twins soon."
Yoda sighed. "Broken the Code, you have, Anakin."
"I know, Master Yoda," Anakin said, trying to ignore the hurt look in Ahsoka's eyes. "I couldn't live without her. I'm sorry."
Ahsoka shook her head in disbelief. "All the time I was your padawan, all those years," she said. "You were married to her? And you never told me?"
"How could I tell you?" Anakin countered. "I couldn't tell anyone!"
"Obi-Wan seemed to know," she pointed out.
"I only found out a few months ago, Ahsoka," he said.
"And yet said nothing, you did," Yoda said.
"Does it matter now?" Anakin asked in exasperation. "The Jedi have been all but destroyed! We here might be all that's left! Does it matter now that I broke the Code? Really?"
"No," Obi-Wan said. "The Order will never be the same, thanks to Palpatine," he said. "The fact that Anakin broke the Code is irrelevant now."
"Not irrelevant," Yoda said. "Children he will have, the future of the Order they represent."
"There won't be an Order unless we can find a way to stop the clones," Anakin said. "Any news from the Capital?"
"Senator Organa is having a press conference this afternoon," Rex told him. "Maybe we'll learn something then."
"Let's hope it's good news," Ahsoka said.
Obi-Wan nodded. "Indeed, we could all use some good news right now."