Chapter 16 - Revelations
When Anakin and Ahsoka showed up without him, she immediately knew something had gone wrong. Satine didn't need the Force to tell her that. Padme and her had won the debate with the senate, ensuring Mandalore's independence. She had to return soon but hadn't dared to leave before she knew that all of them were safe back home. Guilt gnawed on her mind, as she was the reason for bringing all of them in this situation. Death Watch and the Separatists wanted to bring Mandalore down which resulted in targets painted on her and her friend's backs. The hours of waiting had been agonizing for both of them.
The jedi duo looked terrible. Ahsoka's eyes were red-rimmed, like she had been crying. Her gaze was empty, her posture slumped. The girl didn't even try to hide her exhaustion or put on a front. She looked broken.
Her master was even worse. Apart from the burns that littered his face, Anakin seemed like his spirit had finally left him. Something heavy burdened on his mind, one could see it on the way his eyes were wandering, not really focusing at anything.
Despite their reunion, no joy filled the room. Padme shifted forward after a while and gathered her husband in her arms. He let his head fall on top of her shoulder, struggling to keep himself together. Satine didn't knew Anakin for long but Obi-Wan had always told her that his apprentice was a very confident and self-conscious man. She could see nothing of that as the jedi knight let himself fall into his wife's embrace.
"Ani, what happened?", Padme asked with a hushed voice, shocked by the jedi's appearance. He slowly loosened himself from her and approached Satine, his eyes filled with regret.
As the realization hit her, it felt she just got overrun by a speeder.
"No", the duchess croaked, stumbling backwards on reflex. Anakin gripped her arm with incredible speed before she could retrace further.
"Satine…", he began, but she didn't want to hear it. Not after everything they've been through. Satine vehemently shook her head, trying to rip herself free out of the knight's grasp. The hand only tightened around hers.
"Let me go, Anakin", she hissed, panic finally taking over.
"Satine, please! Listen to me", he tried again, this time with a loud voice which cracked with emotion.
Her head spun around to meet his gaze. Satine's eyes were wet now and she was breathing hard. As she met Anakin's blue ones, she saw that his were equally glassy.
"Obi-Wan's not dead", Anakin rasped out, his hand still holding her strong, "but it doesn't look good. He's fallen into a coma this morning."
She didn't notice when her legs gave out beneath her and he caught her, lowering both of them gently to the floor. As she collapsed in his arms and sobbed quietly, Anakin spoke again, his voice getting a little steadier. "You know as good as I do that the old man is incredibly strong and stubborn. He'll get back on his feet."
"How? What happened back there, Anakin?", the blonde just breathed out, still shaking.
She heard him swallow next to her before he answered. "Dooku, the Sith", the jedi began, "he did something to Obi-Wan. I haven't seen exactly what went down between the two of them but I know that Dooku attacked him through the Force and caused some serious brain damage. The docs managed to stop the bleeding but they can't tell if he's going to wake up."
Satine listened intently until he finished. She couldn't believe what she just heard. Her breath got caught up in her throat. A few days ago, she had thought they'd maybe get a few weeks of peace and quiet after things were settled with the senate. And now she had to face the possibility to lose her partner forever. Again. Never seeing his smile again. His bright blue-grey eyes, which lightened up every time they saw each other or he spoke about Anakin and Ahsoka. It was incredible how much that man had changed her life.
"Can I visit him?", she simply asked after she had composed herself a little.
Anakin seemed to contemplate his options before he nodded. "I'll make do, I promise you that, Satine. It won't be easy to convince the council to give you clearance for the temple and then we still have to get passed Master Che in the healing halls. But it's the least I can do for you, so don't worry, you'll get to see him."
She gave a genuine smile. "Thank you, Anakin."
They stood up from the ground again as Padme and Ahsoka approached them together, having witnessed the scene in front of them. Both women held each other close, Padme now equally shaken as the rest of them after she got the news. Rubbing Ahsoka's arm in a gesture of comfort, she addressed the group. "Maybe we should all try to get some rest. The apartment is big enough to fit all of us. Only if you want to stay, of course."
Satine didn't really want to be alone right now and as Ahsoka wouldn't return to the temple as well, they all stuck together.
The padawan claimed the couch in the living room which left the small guest room for her. Her mind still swirled with emotions. The duchess sat down on the soft bed and tried to calm herself. In the past she actually had attempted to meditate to find her center after Obi-Wan had taught her the way. Now the very idea of trying left a bitter taste in her mouth.
Slowly she laid down, staring at the ceiling. It took hours before she finally succumbed to an unrestful sleep.
Anakin had checked on Ahsoka for a last time before retreating to his and Padme's bedroom. A heavy silence had fallen over the whole apartment. As he silently trudged inside and closed the door softly behind him, Padme was already waiting for him, sitting on the bed. It looked like something was nagging on her.
"What's on your mind?", Anakin asked, while he made his way over to her. His wife was fidgeting and pursed her lips as she finally looked at him. Her eyes were puffy, she must have been crying as well when she'd been alone. Padme held out a hand to him, so he gently took it and sat down next to her. Anakin caressed her fingers, tracing over the small wedding band.
"I wish I could have told you under better circumstances", she began, her voice hoarse from crying earlier, "but you deserve to know." Padme gripped his hand tighter. She regarded him with a mix of uncertainty and sadness.
Confusion spread over Anakin's face, not quite grasping where she was heading.
"I'm pregnant, Ani. You're going to be a father."
Only now he noticed his child's bright beacon in the Force. "Stars", Anakin blurted out with a huff, overwhelmed by the feeling, "how could I not see that?" He stretched out with his senses to trace the small signature.
Padme pulled him closer and gave him a knowing smile. "Your mind is occupied. You're worrying for Obi-Wan. We all do. It's only human to oversee things when your head is elsewhere."
Anakin nodded and smiled sadly. He was so lucky to have her. Soon he'd be a father, have a family. It was a gift and he would do anything to protect it.
His thoughts then wandered to Satine in the guestroom, to Obi-Wan, laid up in the healing halls.
On reflex he pulled Padme closer to him, putting his chin on top of her head. "It's so unfair", he muttered, "why do we get to have a family while others may not even see each other again." His eyes began to wander over Coruscant's skyline. It was a cloudy night, not much light fell through the large window and the large skyscrapers were obscured to undefined shadows. In the dark, the city almost looked intimidating, as if it were swallowing the inhabitants in its dark corners. Anakin never liked the city much but right now it made him almost feel uncomfortable. There was a darkness looming somewhere on this planet.
The next morning
It was still early, but Ahsoka saw no point in lying down any longer. She had tried to sleep, of course. Yet the events of the last days haunted her every time she closed her eyes, making her wake up gasping for a breath and drenched in sweat. Anakin hadn't caught on until now and the padawan wanted to keep it that way. The man had enough on his plate and it definitely wasn't helping if she added her problems to that.
She silently tiptoed through the living room, taking a closer look on her surroundings. In contrast to their quarters at the jedi temple, this apartment was adorned with various luxurious items. 'Being a senator must really pay itself off', she mused as she studied an expensive looking painting on the wall. It depictured the palace of Naboo, Ahsoka guessed. She had never been there herself but she had learned a lot about the different planets during her classes. In addition to that her master had always been very enthusiastic when it came to that specific planet. Not reprehensible considering that he married Padme there.
Losing her interest in the picture, Ahsoka gazed further around the room. Her eyes set on an interesting looking instrument in the far corner near the window. She drew closer and cautiously grabbed it in her hand, afraid to break it. It was crafted out of some darkened wood, formed into a hollow body with a long neck. On top off the neck were strings attached which ran all the way down over a hole in the body.
"What you've got there, Snips?" Ahsoka had been so taken in by examining the instrument, that she hadn't heard Anakin and Padme who had emerged from the bedroom.
"Oh, uh nothing. I was just wondering what this is. I haven't seen an instrument like this before", she said a little embarrassed, holding out the object in question.
Anakin took it in his hands, not quite knowing what to do with it either. Next to him, Padme started chuckling lightly. "It's a guitar", she then enlightened them, "I got it as a gift from a fellow senator."
Ahsoka perked up at that and grinned at her enthusiastically. "Do you know how to play it?" The brunette's eyes widened and she held her hands up apologetically. "I think I have to disappoint you with that, Ahsoka. I think it hadn't been used once."
"Obi-Wan knows how to play the guitar", a voice suddenly piped up behind them. All three whirled around and stared at Satine, who apparently had just stood up as well. There were dark rings under her eyes and she looked paler than usual. It was obvious that she hadn't been sleeping well or at all.
Satine then came closer and studied the instrument in Anakin's hands. She gave a small smile, as she traced the guitar strings with one of her fingers. "I found out by mere accident. While Master Jinn and him protected me, we had a bet going on between the two of us", her eyes were still focused on the guitar, but they shone brightly on remembering that fond memory, "I don't recall what it was about but I know that the loser had to sing a song. Well, and as you can guess, your master lost the bet. We were staying at an abandoned farm house at the time and he somehow managed to produce an old guitar from somewhere. So, when we were sitting around the fire in the evening, he actually sang with the guitar accompanying him."
Anakin had lifted both of his eyebrows at that revelation. "I never knew that. Did he tell you how he learned it?"
"He did", Satine said, pressing her lips into a thin line, "but that story definitely isn't mine to share."
Ahsoka felt that there was more behind that statement but didn't dare to ask. Her master seemed a little confused as well but didn't push further. It was clear, that Satine was remaining silent for Obi-Wan's sake, not hers. The padawan hoped that her grandmaster might tell them one day.
They dropped the subject then and got ready to leave for the temple. It was time to see if they could get Satine inside the temple.