Naboo

Padmé was coming home from a long meeting with the queen. She tried her best not to drag her feet as she made her way through the seemingly endless hallways of the lake retreat. She tried to remember why she had decided to move from Theed to the lake country and was painfully reminded of Anakin. He also loved nature and water so they decided it would be great to live there. After the divorce she remained there because she thought it would be better for Leia to grow up in a healthy environment close to nature.

Today Padmé didn't care. She just wanted a small apartment close to the palace so when she got there after work she would walk in, take two steps and collapse on her bed. She was daydreaming about this when she caught sight of Leia running towards her.

"Mother!", she greeted. Padmé smiled and Leia jumped to her arms. Padmé tried to hide her exhaustion and carried her little girl. This was the happiest she had seen her in a week and she didn't want to ruin it for her. "I'm so glad you're home"

"Me too", Padmé said earnestly as she kisses her cheek. She started walking again, carrying Leia. /When did she get to be so big…/ Padmé wondered. "And how is my little princess today?"

"Good. I talked to Luke this morning", Leia announced with a smile.

"Yes, I know, I talked to him, too"

"And then I talked to daddy. He did the funniest thing! I was looking at the hologram, right? And he fell back to the floor! Unintentionally, of course, and then he said he did it on purpose but I knew he didn't because he looked like he was in a lot of pain. What is it with men and pride?", Leia asked whimsically.

"No one knows, darling. No one knows…", Padmé sighed as she walked into her room and playfully dropped Leia on the bed. The little girl giggled when her mother tickled her and then collapsed on the bed next to her.

"Do you ever regret knowing dad?", Leia asked curiously.

"No, because otherwise I wouldn't have you", Padmé replied, touching the tip of Leia's nose. Leia smiled briefly.

"If you loved each other why did you fight?"

"I love your aunt Sola very much and we fought like animals", Padmé explained.

"But you're still sisters. How come you and daddy fought and you stopped being married?", Leia insisted. Padmé sighed and shrugged softly.

"It's different. I didn't like who I was when I was with your father", she confessed.

"He told me he was better when he was with you. At least in the beginning. Then he told me he was like a baby". Padmé pondered on her daughter's words for a while. Anakin had never admitted his immatureness when they were together, and now he seemed to do it for everyone to hear. Was he different and she had missed it?

"That's true", Padmé decided. She pulled Leia closer to her and kissed her face repeatedly, making her squeal and laugh. "Now go get ready. I'm taking you and Sabé out for dinner", she announced. Leia looked ecstatically at her.

"Girls night out?", she asked excited.

"Yes. Now go!", Padmé ordered in mock seriousness. Leia jumped off the bed and rushed to her room. Padmé watched her, always smiling, and then stared at the ceiling, trying desperately to get her mind off Anakin.

Courascant.

Jedi Temple.

Anakin and Obi Wan were taking a walk through the large hall in the temple. Even though they were quiet, Obi Wan could feel something coming from Anakin. And it wasn't good.

"What is it, old friend?", he asked knowingly. Anakin gave him a puzzled look and frowned. Obi Wan scoffed, amused. "I've seen that look before, Anakin…" His old Padawan exhaled heavily.

"It's Padmé", he whispered.

"What about her?", Obi Wan asked, confused. It had been years since Anakin had mentioned her name.

"Remember Krista?"

"The daughter of Police Chief Halo, of course."

"Well… She and I – we were sort of – we had… something…"

Obi Wan rolled his eyes.

"Force, Anakin…", he muttered. Anakin looked guiltily at him.

"We went to Naboo to get married, and – "

"You WHAT?", Kenobi cried out. Anakin shushed him and pulled him to a side.

"It's a long story. Let's go to someplace more quiet".

An hour and a half later Obi Wan gaped at Anakin in disbelief. He told him everything: about the exchange program, about Leia posing as a student, about how he and Krista went to Naboo to get married and how it all turned out to be a plan by the twins to get their parents back together. He told his old master about how he broke the engagement for Padmé and how he realized he was still in love with her. Obi Wan rubbed his eyes.

"Are you okay?", Anakin asked, concerned.

"I need a pill", his master muttered. Anakin smiled a half smile and Obi Wan returned the gesture. He leaned back on his chair and looked at his friend.

"What?"

"You were going to get married in secret again. The first time we forgave you, but now… How could you do this, Anakin? You weren't thinking, you didn't even love this poor Krista girl and you were going to marry her!"

"I know, I just – "

"You just what?", Obi Wan cut in. Anakin looked down. He had no excuses. "You can't keep this up, Anakin. It's time you start thinking with your head, stop lying to yourself. And you were going to do it without telling Luke?"

"I wanted to surprise him, he needs a mother", Anakin explained.

"That's no excuse, old friend", Kenobi shook his head. Anakin nodded and looked down. "You're getting careless, even more than before. Eight years ago you wouldn't have played with someone's feelings like this, but now… Now you're reckless. You're hiding information from your son, from the order, from myself and from yourself." Obi Wan paused and sighed. "Look, Anakin, I don't know what exactly happened between you and Padmé eight years ago, but you haven't been the same since then. Something changed in you", he added. Anakin looked down at his hands.

"I know. Back in Naboo I started being my old self again. And I was better, I was better with the kids, with Padmé, with myself… It's because of her, whenever I'm around her I feel better, I feel like I'm a better person. She makes me better".

"You're not a droid to be upgraded, Anakin, you're a person", Obi Wan corrected. Anakin laughed softly. "It's all you, Padmé is just… the inspiration, but in the end it's all you. And frankly, I'd love to see the old Anakin again", he implied. Anakin frowned softly.

"What do you mean?", he questioned in a whisper. Obi Wan shook his head, amused.

"I'll talk to the council. I'm sure they'll understand and they will be forgiving. Again." Anakin looked away and sighed.

"I don't think she wants to see me. Besides, if it didn't work the first time, why should this one work?"

"Second time's the charm…" Anakin frowned.

"I thought it was the third"

"How many times do you plan to marry her?", Obi Wan joked. They laughed and Anakin smiled sadly. Obi Wan arched a brow.

"You're doing it again"

"Doing what?", Anakin questioned, confused.

"You're letting her go". Anakin ruffled his hair.

"It's not the same. Things change"

"Look, I'm no expert in this whole… romantic-dating-getting-re-married-to-a-senator thing, but I do know she hasn't forgotten about you", he said mysteriously. Anakin's head shot to Obi Wan.

"What do you mean?", he blurted out. Obi Wan tried to suppress a smile.

"I ran into her a couple of times in the Senate. She always looked around o see if you were around". Anakin snorted.

"You know I never go anywhere near the Senate…", he reminded, disappointed.

"I do, but she didn't…" Anakin looked hopefully at him. Obi Wan tapped his shoulder a couple of times and stood up. "Senator Organa needs to be escorted to Naboo in a couple of days. And since your mission was cancelled…", he said casually, walking away. Anakin watched him go with a knowing smile on his lips.

/Here we go again…/

Anakin laid on his couch staring at the ceiling. Luke walked out of the kitchen and climbed to his father's lap.

"Aren't you a little old for this?", Anakin teased.

"Compared to me you're a monument", Luke shot back. Anakin chuckled and pulled him down, putting his arm around him protectively. "I miss mom. And Leia. And Sabé. I don't miss Jar-Jar"

"Nobody does"

"Do you miss Leia?", Luke asked. Anakin sighed and nodded.

"Yeah. She's pretty amazing, I miss her to death", Anakin admitted.

"What about mom?", the boy said casually.

"Ibid"

"What does that mean?"

"That I miss her and that I think she's amazing", Anakin explained.

"I think she ibids you, too", Luke said, not realizing his misuse of the word. Anakin smiled tenderly and tapped Luke's shoulder.

"Y'know, this is a typical case of delayed reaction", Luke said matter-of-factly. Anakin frowned.

"What?"

"Delayed reaction. It's when you react after some time"

"What do you know about delayed reaction?", Anakin asked intrigued.

"I saw it on a holo-soap. There was this count who had a phony moustache and he said really cheesy things like 'your hair is the inspiration to my senses' and stuff".

"And the girl liked that?"

"Yeah. She was all over him. She had a weird dress. You could see her bellybutton through the neckline. I liked it"

"That makes two of us. Which one was it, 'Beyond Parsecs' or 'Hyperspace Love'?", Anakin asked.

"'Beyond Parsecs'. I missed a couple of episodes, though", Luke sighed.

"I could get the tapes for you"

"Thanks, dad"

"No problem", he uttered. Anakin rolled his eyes, angry at himself. "I don't know what to do… Your mother is gonna flip if I go there again. What am I supposed to say to her? 'Hey, Padmé. Wanna hear something funny…?'"

"The count told the girl a really cheesy speech and she was melting", Luke cut in.

"What kind of stuff?"

"You know, how beautiful she was and how she made him want to go back and forth the galaxy just to see her smile… and all the stuff he missed about her, and how he saw himself through her eyes and all that crap", Luke muttered.

"Don't say crap"

"Okay."

"I don't know about the smile thing, but I could tell her what I miss about her…", Anakin considered.

"Yeah. But you have to be corny and keep it simple. Chicks love that"

"I know. That's how I got your mom in the first place", Anakin said proudly.

"Cool."

Anakin smiled hopefully. Maybe there was another chance.