I've had this story up before, but I'm reposting a chapter a day so more people get to read it

A Mother Lives

A Shmi Lives Story

By Rose-Arwen-Padme

Reverine

An hour and a half later, Anakin Skywalker headed back to his mother's room after more rest As he made his way there he stopped by the kitchen to say hello to Padme, but instead only found Owen and Cliegg talking and eating

"Where's Padme?" he asked "Is she with my mom?"

Cliegg smiled meekly "Yes, but don't try to get in there"

"Why not?"

Owen looked at him wearily "Because they claim they're having a girls-only afternoon party They sent for Beru over an hour ago, and all you can hear is their screams of laughter Well, I'm sure Beru and Padme are doing most of the laughter since Shmi's ribs are broken, but that medicine we gave her seemed to speed up the healing process Anyways, it's a girl thing, or so they say, and us guys have been warned to stay out"

Anakin smiled mischievously and said, "Well, I have been know for my own surprises"

And with that he turned on his heel and left for his mother's room

As he came down the narrow corridor, he heard hard laughing coming from inside the room—Padme's and Beru's laughing As he neared the door he slowed his steps gradually, and ultimately laid his ear against the door, listening intently He smiled at what he heard

"…So then the presents exploded…" Laughing "… And the wrapping paper and bows flew everywhere…" More laughing "And the birthday girl, my sister, started crying, which of course made her party makeup run…" Even more laughing as Padme talked "T-there's still a dent in the wall where the metal had f-flown into it!!" Hysterical laughter from Beru. "…And that's when I stopped playing with chemicals and decided a career in science was not for me! I don't think Sola has ever completely forgiven me for that minor accident at her birthday party, but I was only seven!"

Anakin heard the hoarse laughing then come from his mother "Minor accident?!" she joked "Why, Padme, you're lucky you didn't cause the entire neighborhood to go up in smoke!"

Padme laughed with her "I thought it would be the perfect birthday present—instant flying, the answer to mankind's source for defying gravity!"

More laughing continued this statement, until his mother wheezed, "Padme, you are an incredible girl! You have a wild streak to match Ani's, and not many people can do that!"

Padme laughed with her, and now Anakin decided was the best time to go in He pushed open the control to open the door and when it zoomed up, he stepped in Anakin was stunned at what he saw

Padme was laid back in her chair, her feet propped up on the bed Her sandals had been kicked off and thrown aside Her dress had been rolled up, revealing her knees; her hair had been pulled loose, and she was holding a little glass of Reverine, an alcoholic beverage

Beru also had her dress rolled up, though not as far as Padme, and her feet were up on the bed Also, her hair had been pulled from its tight buns and one of her vests had been taken off In her hand was a small glass of Reverine

Anakin's mother was more or less unchanged, though her hair was down too and combed Her cheeked were rosy and her eyes twinkling, and she also had a tiny glass of wine in her hand

They all stopped short and looked up when Anakin came in After a moment, Padme exclaimed, "Oh, hello Anakin! What are you doing here?" Her voice was more than slightly tipsy

Anakin looked at her, her cheeks flushed and her skin glowing She had been laughing with them for a long time Beru immediately rolled her dress back down and moved her hair behind her shoulders, but it was obvious she was tipsy too

"Hello, son," Shmi said, smiling

Anakin blushed "I see I've stumbled upon the girls' afternoon party!"

Padme turned to her companions and winked "But not by accident, right?"

Anakin laughed with them, and then sobered his tone "Alright, alright But wipe those smiles off your faces because I'm the party pooper My mother needs to rest"

Padme and Beru and Shmi started to laugh, but Anakin showed he was serious by plucking their wine glasses out of their hands

After a moment, Padme and Beru nodded their heads "Okay," Padme said sincerely "We'll beat it" She turned to Shmi "Thank you, for a wonderful afternoon This has been one of the best hour and a halves in my life!" She leaned over and planted a kiss on Shmi's cheek On her way out the door she patted Beru on the back, and then said, "You'll be able to find me in the garage I need a little more sleep" Then Padme paused and doubled back, and kissed Anakin on the cheek Then she skipped out the door, heading for the garage

Anakin stood there, slightly shocked Soon he turned to his mother "More sleep? How does she need more sleep?"
Beru smiled a little too hugely "Oh, but she didn't get anymore sleep than you did the other night She was awake all night, pacing around in the garage or working on Threepio She was exhausted by daybreak from worrying about you so much" Beru nodded exaggeratedly, like she had finished some great speech, then stood up, rather clumsily, and exited the room

Anakin and Shmi shared a knowing look Shmi raised her eyebrows and smiled "Oh, really?"

Anakin blushed then said, "I've never seen Padme drunk before! Mom, what'd you do to her?"

Shmi innocently put her hands up "I didn't do anything!" She dropped her eyes "Though, it was my idea for the drinks Besides, the best way to get to know someone is to get his or her walls down first Cliegg taught me that And it's not just Padme I got to lighten up Beru has never laid back so much before She threw aside the timid and practical of her personality and joined Padme and I in some dirty jokes and storytelling "

Anakin shook his head, then rushed to his mother's side, smiling "Okay, tell me What do you think of Padme? Say everything!"
Shmi laughed, and through the wheezing, it was merry and happy "Oh, Ani! I can see why you love her! It's like she was born to be a Skywalker She's absolutely wonderful and a fantastic, spirited young woman"

Anakin couldn't believe his ears "So you… connected with her?"

Shmi smiled even more "Yes, Ani, we connected I can see why you're in love with her, and why you two are such a perfect match"

Anakin yelped for joy, and then wrapped his arms around his motherHe laughed with her, feeling lighter then air "Oh, Mom," he exclaimed "It means so much to me that you love her" He closed his eyes "And it's obvious she loves you too Oh, this is exactly what I wanted, Mom."

Shmi grinned at her son "Go! Go talk to her!" Anakin nodded, kissed her on the cheek, and then tore off for the garage

He paused momentarily at the door to yell, "Now, you, I meant it! Get some sleep!"

He found Padme getting the blankets ready again on the floor She smiled when Anakin walked in "You know, we really ought to just leave the blankets on the floor, since one of us seems to be coming back here to sleep every few hours," she said calmly, the Reverine gradually wearing off

Anakin walked over to her and pulled her up gently by her forearms He looked at her intently "So, what did you think of my mother, Padme? Did you like her?"

Padme pulled a face "No, Anakin, I did not like her" At his surprised expression, she grinned and exclaimed, "I loved her! She's amazing! She is kind, tender, caring, and sensitive, though she surprisingly a little wild at times when she wants to be"

Anakin smiled and pulled Padme to him, hugging her She giggled and said, "She liked me."
Anakin pulled her back and asked, "How did you know?"

Padme playfully slapped him on the shoulder "You just told me, silly! Well of course I knew the second I walked back in that room almost two hours ago that she was going to examine me, and I guess I was right I can see where you get your strength and will power And your good heart" Padme suddenly blushed at the compliment she had let slip out, but she didn't regret it It was the truth Obviously Shmi was Anakin's origin for his caring and loving spirit

Anakin wanted desperately to kiss Padme at that moment, but the longing only made him come to his senses He slowly, reluctantly, pulled back from Padme and smiled "Come on," he said quietly "You get some sleep while I…" he sighed, "do something I practically ordered my mom to get more sleep herself"

Padme nodded and smiled, happy to get some rest herself "Alright Good-night, Anakin"

For a brief second, Anakin let his control slip as he kissed her forehead tenderly "Goodnight, Padme" He slowly turned around and left, leaving a stunned Padme in the garage Bit by bit she knelt down and laid on the blanket She shivered slightly, and then wrapped her arms around her in an attempt for keeping warm

Anakin, who had paused outside the door, felt the chill night wind pass through the door He shivered a little, but nothing too cold Then he thought of Padme, alone on the garage floor, nothing between her and the ground but a blanket She had no cover, though, which was the biggest problem

He immediately turned around and entered the garage again, and winced when he saw Padme curled up on the blanket Straight away he took off his broad Jedi robe and laid it across her, knelling down close He tucked it in around her, and smiled a little when she opened her chestnut eyes

Padme stared not at him, but into him and whispered, "Thank you" She pulled the robe closer around her, pleased that it was already warm from being around Anakin Secretly, she loved being wrapped up in his unique scent and his warmth. Then she suddenly leaned up and kissed him on the lips firmly, and held her position it there. Though it lasted several moments, it was not long enough for Anakin. She pulled back slowly, staring into his eyes. "One kiss deserves another," she said quietly, before falling asleep on the blanketShe was too tired to worry whether or not that had been such a good idea, and, mostly because of the wine, at that moment she honestly didn't care.

Anakin smiled to himself He thought, You should have told me that earlier, after I kissed you on the lips Too bad you were asleep, my angel…

Anakin knew he shouldn't think such thoughts, now that he and Padme had decided not to fall in love, but he couldn't help it Padme's kiss had been a friendly one, and could probably be credited to her wine, but it had been a kiss all the same He stroked her forehead, then stood up quietly and left

The next day, Cliegg, Owen, Beru, Anakin, and Padme sat around the table while Shmi slept Once, after Padme had laughed at a joke he had made, Anakin realized with a sigh that his feelings for her weren't diminishing, but growing. How could they not? His love for her now was deeper, more intense, than it had ever been before, and it almost scared him. Almost.

They were talking merrily, and all were surprised at what good fast friends Padme and Beru were turning out to be, especially since the two were obviously so different After a while, Beru offered to go with Padme on a walk around the homestead She readily agreed, saying she needed to exercise her aching legs

"Are you sure that is such a good idea?" Anakin asked, concerned

Padme smiled back at him "Of course! I'll be fine, Ani"

And that was that Anakin couldn't argue with Padme, but his gut feeling kept him troubled "Alright," he agreed softly.

Soon after, the two young women left for a fifteen-minute walk to stretch their legs

"See you soon!" Padme called as they went up the stairs to the surface "We shouldn't be longer than twenty minutes or so!"

It was an hour later when Anakin was more anxious than he had ever been Padme and Beru were still out, and they hadn't heard anything from them Owen, who had before been calm and quiet, was now pacing the floors along with Anakin Cliegg unsuccessfully tried to cool them, but Anakin and Owen continued to worry

When Padme and Beru had been gone for two hours, Anakin and Owen set out for the bluff With his lightsaber in his hand, Anakin stepped out onto the desert After a quick search, Padme and Beru were nowhere to be found

"This can't be!" Anakin exclaimed "They said they would only be gone for twenty minutes at the most!"

Owen ran his fingers through his hair "Anakin, I don't feel good about this"

Anakin nodded his head "I sense through the Force, and I'm not sensing good things Oh, Padme! If anything happened to you…"

Images of her that he had burned in his mind suddenly flooded him: their reunion on Coruscant, the freighter to Naboo, their walk to her parent's house, the look she gave him after he found the serious picture of her as an adolescent, when he kissed her on the balustrade, in the meadow, the dinner where he made her dessert fly, the morning where she said she'd follow him to Tatooine, the tight hug she gave him before he left for his mother, and the look of longing she had made just last night when she had suddenly kissed him good night. Finally, he saw a picture of the last time he had seen her, disappearing up the stairs, just over two ago.

It was at that moment when they heard a woman's moan come from behind a nearby evaporator They ran towards it, hoping to see that the two women had decided to play a mean joke and were now playing hide-and-seek, but each knowing it wasn't going to be true.

When they looked behind the evaporator, Owen's heart rose a little, while Anakin's heart sunk Beru laid sprawled in front of the evaporator, a long cut across her forehead Her left eye was bruised badly, but she seemed to look alright overall Owen kneeled down next to her and took her in his arms

"Oh, Beru, I was so worried," Owen said emotionally Beru held on to him tightly, crying softly "Are you alright?"

Anakin knelt down next to her "Where's Padme?" he asked urgently "Where's Padme, Beru?" he asked again, with more edge in his voice "Where is she?"

Beru looked at him sadly "It was the Tusken Raiders again," she said quietly "They came…"

Anakin winced and ran a hand through his hair "What happened to her?" he asked, failing to keep his voice calm "Tell me!"

Beru looked at him mournfully "She… she… they took her She screamed and kicked… she struggled with all her might…" She paused and closed her eyes, as if picturing it "She kept fighting… so they struck her… but she still struggled to get away… so they beat her across the face again, harder Then, they hit her on the back of the head… and she got very still They moved her into a cage on the back of one of their banthas… and locked her up She was still unconscious when the group left quickly, heading east She had been crying for you… but you didn't come… she had been crying for you, Anakin…"

Anakin's heart stopped Padme? Taken? No! It was like his mother's kidnapping all over again, but now he was here when it happened, only a few dozen yards away, not on another planet, which made it all the worse His knees buckled under him and he fell into the sand The thought of Padme's sweet face being scarred and beaten like his mother's had been, her feeble body hanging onto, strapped onto, a wooden frame in a dark room… left to die…

Then, like a strange vision, he saw the kidnapping in his mind He saw Padme screaming, panicking, and hopelessly struggling to get away from her captors He saw the first strike across her beautiful face as she kicked and yelled his name, then how she relentlessly continued to call for him and fight He saw the next hit, and how Padme was still shouting for him, despite how she was beginning to suffer from the pain of her punches Then finally Anakin saw a Tusken Raider hit her on the back of her head with a pole, and he watched her body go limp and her eyes close

Anakin opened his eyes, unable to witness the rest He didn't care how Beru had managed to escape, how many Tuskens there were, or how long ago they had left He shouted out her name once in agony, then ran off for Owen's speeder bike Beru had said they had headed west

Well, then he would head west Anakin had found his mother, now he would find Padme He kicked on the engine, and set out for the Tusken Raiders, who had once again taken a woman he dearly loved