Falls the Shadow
Chapter 1
Disclaimer in the prologue.
Padmé arrived at the Villa in the early Naboo evening, a little surprised not to find Anakin waiting at the dock for her. After checking in, a droid bell hop saw her to the room and set her bags on to the dresser, bowed and took its leave. She still had not seen Anakin and began to wander around the little suite, calling his name.
"Ani..." she called softly, wandering into the main sitting room where at last she found him, on the balcony, gloriously shirtless, and facing the setting sun. She stood there, just watching him for a moment, a little taken aback at first, she had expected a slightly more enthusiastic reunion, but then she actually saw...
"Oh Gods..." she gasped."Ani..."
His back, what she could see of it, was a myriad of freshly healing wounds. Even parts of his mechano arm's skin covering had been hastily replaced. Patches of new skin that didn't match the rest of his body criss-crossed his back, new wounds scaring over old...
After what seemed to be an eternity, Anakin slowly turned around to face her, a look of quiet desperation on his face.
"Padmé..." he said at last."You came..." he held his arms to her and to her horror, his left arm, what had been his human arm, almost looked worse. Black and blue bruises covered it, signs that injections had been repeatedly, and clumsily given. His chest, thankfully his chest seemed relatively unmarked but the pain was inherently evident in his eyes.
Padmé remained rooted to the spot, unable to take her eyes off of him.
"I know how I look," he said quietly, looking down at the floor. "I...I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you..."
Padmé walked towards him and gently took him into her arms. Anakin carefully put his arms around his wife, buried his face into her hair and wept...