Chapter Seven
Bail jogged to his fiancé's apartment in an attempt to catch her and her Jedi protector before they left for Naboo. When her door opened, he was met with the expressionless mask on the Jedi's face that had been there the previous day. He frowned and quickly let himself in when the Jedi showed no intention of opening the door any further.
"Padme? Darling, I wanted to see you before you left."
Padme appeared from her bedroom with several bags in hand. "Oh Bail, if you had come here several minutes later, you would have missed us. We were just about to leave."
"Well, then I'm just in time, aren't I?" Bail smiled brightly at her.
Padme managed a weak smile in his direction and glanced nervously at Anakin, who was staring intensely at Bail.
Bail placed a hand on her shoulder and stepped a little closer to her. "Please, take care of yourself, Padme. I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you."
He awkwardly took the bags from her, then turned around to Anakin and unceremoniously handed Padme's bag to the now glaring Jedi.
"Jedi Skywalker, I trust you will guard her with your life. She is without a doubt my most precious possession."
Anakin could only nod, far too shocked and outraged to even be able to think of a reply to what the man just said to him. He watched with flashing eyes as Bail leaned down and kissed Padme forcefully on the lips. His jaw clenched in both anger and disgust and yet forced himself to remain calm and collected.
Padme, on the other hand, was having a more difficult time hiding her emotions. She had to stop herself from gagging from Bail's lips on hers and when he finally released her, she somehow managed an unconvincing smile in return.
Bail smiled triumphantly and for reasons unknown to him, found the extremely menacing eyes of the Jedi Knight next to him. His face took on a puzzled expression because he just could not fathom why the Jedi would seem angry all of the sudden. He decided to shake it off and then thought nothing of it.
Bail said his goodbyes once again and then left, leaving an extremely relieved Anakin and Padme.
Once he was gone, Padme quickly walked over to Anakin and took her bags from his hands.
"You don't have to carry those. You have your own bags to carry."
Anakin nodded, regressing back to the previous night where he had given her the silent treatment. He was far too angry to speak and now was becoming even more angry at himself for letting his emotions take control of him.
"Shall we go?" Padme met his eyes, hoping that he would speak to her.
He decided that now was as good a time as any to inform her about the circumstances of their travel.
"Before we leave, I need to tell you about the disguises I came up with. We'll be traveling under the names Ben and Sabe Lightwater. And since we're listed as husband and wife, we also have to share a room. I would have preferred separate rooms, but then that would look suspicious. We need to stay as anonymous as possible so if anyone asks, we are traveling to Naboo to visit your parents. Do you have any questions?"
Padme frowned, definitely not liking this. That certainly was quite a stretch for them both, considering their past. And to have to share a room…she didn't want to think about everything that would entail. Of course, she only had one question.
"How long will the trip take?"
Anakin set his bag down on the chair and lifted his eyes at the sigh coming from the other side of the room. Padme was struggling to get one of her bags on the top shelf, but her small stature was easily winning the battle. She set the bag on the floor and sat down on the bed in defeat.
Anakin crossed the room, picked the bag up, and easily put it on the shelf. She looked up at him in exasperation and kicked off her shoes.
"Are you hungry?"
She nodded absentmindedly and lay down on the bed.
"Alright, I'll get us some food."
"Don't you want me to come with you?"
"No, the less people that see you the better."
Anakin left several moments later, leaving Padme alone to her thoughts. She glanced over at the chair and sighed at the sight of his bags. Oh that's right, he would be staying there too. Even though she had to admit it was a good idea, it was also a nightmare for her and for Anakin as well, she guessed. He made it no secret that his only business with her was his 'assignment' to protect her. It was more than obvious that he really didn't want anything to do with her. And he had every right to feel that way. What she had done was unforgivable and she didn't expect to ever earn his forgiveness for it. It had been low and painfully immature, but she knew that at the time, she had thought she was doing the right thing. But it proved to be a horrible mistake. The worst mistake of her life. But she couldn't undo what had already been done, and she knew that the fact that she would do anything to take it back simply wasn't enough either.
Still, she couldn't help but think about him, even though their relationship had been over for quite some time. He had definitely grown since she had last seen him. He was a man now, rugged-looking, with a much more muscular physique than she remembered. He had also grown at least an inch since she had seen him last and the padawan braid was long gone, replaced by much longer curly hair. He made her forget to breathe and that was a feeling she hadn't experienced since, well the last time she had been with him.
As her thoughts continued, she began to dread the next two days even more, which, according to Anakin, was how long the trip was going to take. What would have been any other girl's fantasy was her nightmare and there was no getting out of it. Not until the assassination attempts stopped at least.
She looked up as the door opened and Anakin appeared again, carrying two trays full of food. He handed one to her and she began to eat hungrily. Anakin sat down on the opposite edge of the bed, careful to put as much space between them as possible, especially given the fact that they were both on the same bed. Padme didn't need to be a Jedi to read his mind.
Tired of the never-ending silence, Anakin turned on the holonews, hoping for some kind of distraction from the temptation a mere three feet away from him. Much to his dismay, the news was currently running a story about the assassination attempts on Padme's life. Before he even had a chance to shut it off, he heard a crash and a door slam. He winced involuntarily as his own foolishness and quickly walked over to the refresher door. He knocked lightly, and when he was met with nothing but silence, he knocked again.
"I just need a few minutes. I'll alright." Was his only answer.
He sighed, feeling guilty for reminding her of the fact that her life was in grave danger. But she showed no signs of coming out of the there any time soon so he resigned himself onto the bed. He closed his eyes, telling himself that he would only rest for a few moments. But before he knew it, he was fast asleep.
Padme sat down next to the sink and could no longer control the sobs that escaped from her body. Everything that had happened the last few days came rushing back to her, making her feel extremely overwhelmed and frightened at the same time. The recent assassination attempt, her upcoming marriage to a man she couldn't stand, and now, being so near to the man that still held her heart was just too much to deal with all at once. She wiped the tears from her cheeks and resolved that now was not the time to deal with her problems. All she wanted to do was get to the Lake Retreat, then she could keep her distance from him. They were a little too close for comfort in the tiny room.
Tiredness was beginning to catch up to her and so she opened the door, only to find Anakin sleeping peacefully on what was supposed to be her bed. She smiled softly at the sight, focusing on the way his hair fell into his eyes, making him look irresistible and even more adorable. She didn't have the heart to wake him, knowing that he was probably just as tired as she was from the recent events. She bit her lip as she whirled a thought around in her head. It would be just for tonight and she certainly didn't want to sleep on the floor…
She lay down next to him on the bed and pulled the covers tightly around, grateful that Anakin hadn't taken the time to do so. She turned away from him, fearing what she would do if she continued to look into that face. Much to her surprise, she felt strangely calm and at peace with Anakin sleeping soundly beside her. She had never felt as safe in her entire life as she did at that moment. With those thoughts, she quickly fell asleep.
Several hours later, Anakin's eyes fluttered open and he rubbed them in a mixture of confusion and tiredness. He looked around and his eyes fell on the sleeping form of Padme. He sighed and realized that it was time for him to move to the floor. But he allowed himself to take one more glance at her and suddenly, he didn't want to be anywhere else at that moment. He felt more peace at that moment then he could ever remember feeling, not even when he and Padme had first been together. He sighed, knowing that he didn't have the mental strength at this hour to reason with himself.
His hand reached out to touch a strand of her hair as if it had a will of its own and he found himself enthralled at the feel of her hair. It was just as he remembered, and he could smell its sweet scent even from where he was laying. The feeling of intoxication swirled around him and he felt dizzy. Unable to control his emotions any longer, he feel back asleep, his hand still tangled in her hair.
