Disclaimer: Star Wars and all associated characters, plotlines, and worlds (good and bad) are property and copyright © of George Lucas (aka The Richest Man in Hollywood). This is purely for fan entertainment only.

Also a warning… this fanfic is rated MA for adult themes. I have also officially crossed over into "Obidala land"… in other words, if you're offended or otherwise do not like the pairing between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Padmé Amidala, then please don't read further to spare yourself the irritation. Otherwise, enjoy!

Chapter 14 – A Dark and Foreboding Presence

Soft rain fell around him; he could nearly smell the scent of the wet trees, wet earth. He was among the trees on Endor, walking along the paths with Padmé, enjoying the nature and the solitude. Her hair was damp, raindrops clinging to her curls before falling to the ground. Neither seemed to care about the rain, they were only aware of each other. She was holding a lightly wrapped bundle in her arms, their daughter. The baby giggled every time her mother reached over to wrap the blanket closer, and shield her from the rain. They stopped, and he offered to take the child for a while, resting the soft cheeks of the baby against his shoulder, feeling the warm weight. He basked in the serenity of it, the simplicity of mother, father, and child.

But his reverie was ended abruptly, the menacing frame of Darth Vader coming into view, his breath ominously loud. "At last, we meet again." He greeted the Jedi Master.

Obi-Wan jerked up to a sitting position, a cold sweat breaking out across his forehead, dampening the small of his back and his shoulders. He carefully moved Padmé's draped arm away from his waist and rose out of the bed, throwing on a robe. Darth Vader's breathing still echoed in his ears, nearly as if he was in the room with them.

But he wasn't, Obi-Wan assured himself as he paced the length of the room. Vader was far away, though never quite far enough away. He would always be searching, ever reaching out for him. The thought of hiding forever had made him shudder in disgust at first, until he quelled his pride.

He could not, however, hide his fear. He was suspicious that Darth Vader would find them here, at their most vulnerable. He found himself increasingly secure, instead of looking for the way out. But he felt the renewed urgency in leaving this place and finding refuge somewhere else. Bail Organa had sent them brief messages, but he was now positive that they could return to one of the planets that Darth Vader had already been to, already purged all of the Jedi.

Obi-Wan's thoughts trailed again to Anakin, and the man who had died while he was away pursuing General Grievous. He had found a growing awareness of what the young Jedi must have felt, faced with the knowledge that the one he loved most would die. He had dwelled on that for quite some time, trying to learn whether he was himself was still capable of accepting death as a part of life.

But either way, he still felt that he would not turn to the ways of the Sith to seek comfort. The Sith destroyed life, not created it. He still did not understand what Anakin had thought he would find in Darth Sidious's tutelage. What power did he offer him? He was positive whatever power the Sith lord claimed to hold, he was only boasting of what could be, using Anakin's weaknesses to exploit him, turn him to his side and his servitude.

Padmé had stirred, sensing the lack of warmth. He went back to the bed to join her, wrapping his arms about her, tucking her head under his chin. He felt the comfortable weight of her body against his, felt his body calm down and start relaxing under the influence of her own steady breathing. He found himself falling into her rhythm, sleep finally tempting him once more.

But either way, she as here now, and it furthered his conviction to take action immediately, to leave this planet. They would leave tomorrow.

They had long since cleaned up the mess the dying Jedi had made, but the deck still smelled of antiseptic, neurotoxin, and boiling flesh. It made him at once thankful that he could no longer smell. The Dark Lord paced up and down the length of the ship impatiently, as the Commander informed him that they had reached Endor's system and would be entering orbit around the planet within the next few minutes.

His entire body almost itched in anticipation of acting, of finally reaching this goal. He had not slept restfully since finding that Padmé was alive. It almost consumed the point of finding Obi-Wan and besting him. But, he reminded himself, if Obi-Wan had been bedding Padmé, as he suspected, then all the better reason to kill him. He could not close his eyes against the image of his Angel writhing in the arms of his former Master, her body responding to what he expected would be his expert touch, as Obi-Wan excelled in everything he did, or he would not do it.

His blood boiled at the thought of Obi-Wan's manipulation, as Padmé would never willingly betray him. She was likely convinced that he was dead, and he had preyed on her sadness, hoping to take over where Anakin had left off. She was the one thing that was good and pure; she was not capable of making a decision that would lead her away from him.

He wished she had understood before that he had done everything thus far to protect her, to save her. She had shuddered in horror at the thought of him killing younglings, but he reminded himself of the necessity of ridding the galaxy of the Jedi, earning the merit of his new Master to learn the secret that would save her life.

It dawned on him- perhaps the method had worked, perhaps Darth Sidious had saved her life despite what he had told Anakin. But what motive would he have in hiding her from him? He thought on it carefully, realized that perhaps this was just another scheme, one to control him. He knew that the premonition would come true and must be halted; only someone with great power could do that. So, his new Master must be involved.

And if that were the case, it was definitely a power move, a control issue. It made the rage boil in his veins all the same- he would not be controlled like a puppet on strings, not with Padmé alive and giving him purpose! He felt renewed ambition, a new need to overthrow Palpatine and claim it for his own Empire, to forge in his own image.

The Commander interrupted his thoughts, informing them that they were now in orbit around Endor. "Shall I prepare your away team?"

He inclined his head, assenting. He had informed his team of select Clone troopers that they were to let him deal with the Jedi Master and his errant wife himself, and not to intervene. He wanted the personal satisfaction of dealing with them himself.

And now it was time.

They sat together on the couch, preparing to leave Endor. They did not need to pay off the rent as they paid in advance, and had no one to say goodbye to. He only wanted to wait long enough to let Padmé's morning sickness die down. She fortunately did not have the sickness long, and they would be able to travel comfortably after. He enclosed her in the circle of his arm, stroking her hair, trying his best to soothe the nausea.

"If only Sabé were here." She mused aloud.

He grinned, wondering where this was leading. "Oh, but I thought you packed her with us?" he teased lightly. He had hauled her bags again- she had seemed to accumulate more in their short visit.

She shook her head lightly, avoiding giggling this time. "No, she knew the best way to soothe morning sickness. And she was excellent with anything else that pregnancy threw at me." She smiled wistfully, "But she was only around for a short while, then went back to Naboo."

He went back to stroking her hair, letting the soft strands thread through his fingers. "That's where we're going." He informed her.

She turned around to face him, her grin lighting up her face. "Really?"

Obi-Wan nodded, smiling. "We're going to Naboo so that we can hide in plain sight, and you can be at home."

Her grin widened at the thought of being at home, of raising their child in a more familiar place. Her thoughts went back to the nursery she had planned with her pregnancy with the twins, decided that she would definitely move those plans into action. She could almost smell the scent of the flowers, feel the warmth of the sunlight on her bare arms. Happiness overwhelmed her for the first time in a long time- as long as she could remember. She clung onto it, knowing how temporary and transient it seemed to be these days.

He leaned in to give her a kiss, share in the happiness, when they heard the door abruptly slam open. They both jerked to look who was invading their privacy, and saw the dark, boding figure of Darth Vader in the doorway.

Yes, I know it is an awful cliffhanger. But, you have something to look forward to! Let me know what you think, I'm also curious to see what everyone's impressions are thus far, see what directions I have led you off in. What do you think is going to happen? This is important because in the future, I know which of the techniques I tried worked.

Also, I would like to plug a new writer, one of my faithful reviewers: Darth Lemon! She has written a one-shot. It's rather good and I'm sure she will come up with more in the future! And a special thanks to Hearts for being the 100th reviewer. I cannot believe that this little story, started out as a whim, now has over 100 reviews and over 6,500 hits! It would not be possible without you guys being so patient with me. And I hope I can continue to please, just let me know what you think : )