Falls the Shadow
Chapter 10
Tenderness
Padmé reached the village in the early afternoon and quickly found the things she was looking for, local, nondescript clothing for herself and Anakin. She found two pairs of trousers, another pair of sleeping pants and a bright green jerkin. The jerkin would be comfortable, and hopefully loose, over his large frame. The wounds had healed quite a bit from her initial sighting, but the memory of them was still fresh enough to cause her concern. She shuddered at the thought; the horror that had been Anakin's back would haunt her to her last days. She knew that any appropriations for the war effort would always be colorized by that vision, one she could not even share. At this thought, a rush of anger flooded through her. Anakin had been adamant about her dropping the investigation, and it still galled her to the very core but into the end he had been right.
She had stopped by the message center and was on her way back to the Villa, trying desperately to release her anger. Anakin would pick up on it the instant she walked into the room (probably, the instant she stepped off the boat at this rate) and she had no intention of discussing it further. She and Anakin only would have a few more days together, and she did not want it to be marred by this. The message to the Jedi temple had been accepted easily enough, that Anakin would be spending time here on Naboo and that she would 'visit' him from time to time, but the message from the Senate... Impossible allegations... nothing to investigate... hints of treason... in her best interest to leave things alone... Padmé swallowed hard, and put on her most diplomatic smile. If she was careful, Anakin would never know that anything was wrong.
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Padmé arrived back at the villa, and to her pleasant surprise, Anakin was waiting at the dock for her, but as she got closer, her heart seemed to fall into her stomach as she saw the look on his face. What ever it was, it wasn't good.
"Ani," she asked nervously as he took the bags from her. "What is it?"
"I should ask you the same thing," he said quietly. "You are so angry, Padmé... I could read your force signature from across the lake..."
"Politics," she groaned and rolled her head back and around. "Perhaps I will just leave the Senate after all..."
"Come back to the room Padmé," he said. "I will help you feel better."
She put her hands on her neck closed her eyes and smiled. "I'm sure you can."
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As soon as they entered their room Anakin helped Padmé remove her blouse and had her lay face down on the bed. He slowly started working on her back, gently massaging her shoulders and working his way up and down her spine.
"Do I need to ask?" he said at last, "or was it as bad as I thought it would be?"
"No, It was worse," she admitted. "And if it's all the same I think I would rather not talk about it..."
Anakin did not reply, but leaned over and kissed her between the shoulder blades
tenderly.
"I think I will just become a healer..." Padmé sighed into the pillow. "Speaking of which...what did Guérisseur say?"
"That I am making a remarkable recovery, even for a Jedi," Anakin smiled. "So, nothing too strenuous for at least another day, but other than that..." He leaned over and kissed her again, a little more sensually this time.
"I know we're not ready... not yet..." he began huskily. "But perhaps I can... do
something for you in the mean time..." Anakin placed his lips to the small of her back and
suggestively, with the tip of his tongue, traced a little circle there.
Padmé gave a shocked little squeal and like a shot, jumped almost straight up, whapping Anakin right in the middle of his forehead. He sat down heavily on the side of the bed as she sat up next to him, gasping and wheezing.
"Sorry..." he choked, rubbing his face and his forehead with his hands. "I didn't realize..."
"No... not your fault..." Padmé gasped "I'm the one... should apologize... didn't expect to... Oh GODS Anakin!" she cried at last, exasperated. "Are you all right?"
"Yes, " he grinned wolfishly. "With a headache that was well worth it, and now, I have a new little piece of information as well... I'll save that for later use…"
"You wouldn't dare!"
"Perhaps..." he kissed her lightly on the lips. "But you said we should do something
together today, and since THAT's out... do you have another idea?"
"Well, it's much more innocent then what you had in mind, but yes." she replied, getting control of herself at last. "I was thinking of the botanical gardens... we could walk through them together..."
"Yes, I'd like that," Anakin said. "Did I ever tell you? When I was very young, when I was first Obi-wan's Padawan, we went to Alderan together as Bail Organa's guest." Anakin's eyes misted over with the memory. "He called me, Bail, I mean... 'ti-bai' which means 'little brother'. Bail took us to the gardens, and to Obi-wan's horror, showed me what was good to eat. We went through, grazing like Nerfs... Manu-bai, I mean, Bail... he helped Obi-wan and I find a bond together... he was a good man, and that was a good memory... to visit the gardens with the woman I love... would be another treasured one..." He bent down and nuzzled her cheek softly. "Perhaps we should eat dinner first lest we strip the place bare. Speaking of bare..."
"Oh!" she gasped lightly, and started to laugh. "Perhaps I should find something to
wear..." she kissed him tenderly. "Unless you think I SHOULD go out like this..."
Anakin wordlessly handed her the blouse she had worn earlier, shaking his head.
'Incorrigible' he thought to himself. And he wouldn't have it any other way.
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Later that night, they lay together, comfortable in each others embraces.
"Ani," she whispered softly. "You seemed a bit sore when we finished our walk. Do you need to see Guérisseur again before... well... before we even consider..."
"I don't need to be poked and prodded by the healer again." Anakin grumbled.
"And How do they 'poke and prod' you Ani?" Padmé teased. "I DO want to hear..."
"Well, you see beloved, I guess I should have told you," he began seriously enough.
"Told me what?" Padmé interjected, a little frightened.
"That my arm isn't my only cybernetic..."
"Oh Gods..." Padmé gasped. "Ani... I don't know what to say."
"Say 'thank you'..."
"WHAT?"
"Say 'thank you'," he repeated, unable to contain his grin any longer. "You see, what they replaced was... well, let's just say it benefits both of us..."
"You're teasing me!"
"Nope, it's all cybernetic down there now..." he thrust his hips up and down a few times and burst out laughing. "Hundred times a minute now... just call me the Jedi Jackhammer..."
"Oh really?" Padmé purred as she reached slowly down the front of his chest and down his abdomen. "And where's the 'on' button?"
Reluctantly, he caught her hand in his own and brought back it up again. "Right next to me," he murmured softly. "But I can't, not tonight... but if you want me to... you know. The offer is still there..."
Padmé sighed heavily. "No, maybe another time... but not tonight. Ani, when we do make love again, the first time, I want it to be for both of us... not just me. Do you understand?"
"Yes," he said quietly. "I do. Hopefully tomorrow..." a note of fear crept into his voice despite his attempts to mask it.
She snuggled down deeper into his embrace, readying herself for sleep. "It's not a contest, or a deadline Ani," she said quietly. "No pressure... not ever... I love you..."
"And I love you my angel..." he replied, stroking her hair. "More than you could ever know."