SANCTUARY

Chapter Nine

"Anakin! The food's almost ready. Do you want to eat at the table or stay in the living room?" Padme called out from the kitchen.

He turned his head toward the kitchen to answer her. Her back was turned to him as she put the final preparations together for their dinner. He smiled at the domestic scene, something that he had gotten quite used to since his accident.

"I don't know, Padme. What do you want to do?"

She sighed and shook her head at him. "Anakin…why don't I just bring the food to you so you don't have to get up?"

He nodded. "Sounds good to me."

Padme sighed again as she carried their plates over to him. She handed Anakin's to him and carefully sat down next to him. He noticed her caution and smiled warmly at her.

"You know, ever since I got my cast off, I have been a little less fragile."

Her cheeks reddened slightly and she tried to smile her embarrassment. "I know, I know. I guess it's just become a habit. I still can't believe how quickly you healed. I don't think the doctors can either.

He chuckled and looked down at his leg proudly. "I'm a walking miracle."

She smiled tenderly at him and exhaled loudly. "You're right."

He grinned back but it quickly faded when he noticed the hint of sadness in her eyes. They had never spoken about the accident but he knew that he could have died andhe knew she had been scared out of her mind for him. Her former senatorial instincts had automatically kicked in and she remained calm and collected through his recovery from the day of his accident. She took charge of everything, arranging a nurse to visit their homestead at least twice a week. She cooked for him whenever he was hungry, gave him his medication, and stayed by his side as much as her other duties would allow her.

In spite of the brave face she displayed in front of everyone, Anakin knew better. He knew that day had been the worst, most horrifying day of her life. It still pained him when he thought of his first night back at the homestead. Everyone had seemed to be sleeping but him. The pain in his leg and sides were too intense for him to sleep. As he lay restlessly in his room, he heard faint sobs outside his room. His entire body went cold as he realized the sobs could only be coming from Padme. She had given him his room back that night. His heart ached as he listened to her cry, hating himself for being unable to comfort her. He hated that he was too weak to be there for her. She was nothing but a pillar of strength for him and he couldn't even get out of bed.

He sighed and carefully glanced at Padme, who had finished her food and was watching him expectantly.

"So…what should we do now?" She asked.

He looked down at his plate pensively then his gaze returned to her after a moment.

"Would you like to take a walk with me? I think the fresh air would do both of us some good."

She nodded contentedly. "I think that's a good idea."

Anakin had been right. The fresh air was good for them. They didn't venture very far from the homestead. Anakin was still using a cane to help him walk and Padme linked her arm in his for added assistance. They walked slowly, they didn't really have anywhere else to be and that alone was relaxing enough.

Anakin's roaming eyes found the lone marker a short distance away and turned them to head in that direction. Padme's confusion lingered for only a few moments and quickly faded when she realized where they were headed.

He stopped a few feet in front of his mother's grave and desperately tried to stop his hands from trembling. He didn't want either of them to see him like that. Much to his dismay and delight, Padme's tiny hand slipped into his and she squeezed it tightly.

"She was a wonderful woman, Anakin. I didn't know her as well as I would have liked to but I knew that she loved you. Everything she did was for you."

Anakin nodded, his eyes never leaving the gravestone. "She would have loved you."

She smiled and squeezed his hand again. "I wish I could've known her better."

He nodded slowly and finally turned to look at her. "Me too."

"Come on, let's go back to the house. I think we've had enough fresh air for awhile."

Anakin could only nod before he took one last look at the gravestone. He followed Padme back to the homestead, neither of them saying a word. Anakin's thoughts continued to drift back to his mother's grave as they walked back. It seemed to ironic to him and he almost laughed out loud in spite of himself. A concrete wall hadn't been able to defeat him, but all the strength and good fortune in the galaxy hadn't been able to save her. There was nothing he could have done differently that would have saved her. His brush with death had forced him to accept that. Death was a part of life and as he glanced over at Padme, he vowed to himself not to waste anymore of his time.

By the time they reached the homestead, Beru was pacing nervously outside, waiting impatiently for Padme.

Padme's pace quickened slightly when she saw her distressed friend but she quickly slowed back down when she remembered that Anakin wasn't healed enough to keep up with her.

"Beru! What's the matter?"

Beru opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it. Apparently, she didn't want Anakin to hear whatever she had to say, a fact that did not escape him. He immediately excused him from the two women, to which Beru could only smile gratefully.

Once Anakin was safely inside the house and out of ear shot, Beru turned her face to Padme, nervously biting her lip.

"What is it?" Padme laughed, taking her friend by the shoulders in effort to calm her down.

Beru's hands began to shake slightly as she smoothed over her hair nervously. "I…I don't know how to tell you, Padme."

"Whatever it is, you can tell me."

Beru took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. "I'm pregnant."

Padme's mouth dropped open and she quickly covered it with her hands. This reaction only caused Beru to shake harder and she wrapped her arms tightly around herself.

"I don't know what to do, Padme."

"You have to tell Owen."

Beru nodded hesitantly and looked down at the ground, unable to look Padme in the eye. Padme noticed this immediately and she quickly embraced her friend.

"Beru, you don't have anything to be ashamed of. A baby is a wonderful blessing and I know Owen will think so too. It's really that not that big of a deal. You'll just have to move the wedding up, that's all."

Beru nodded again, this time with a little more confidence. "You're right. You're absolutely right. I mean, Owen might be a little surprised since we weren't really planning on this so soon but…"

"A little surprised?" Padme smiled knowingly.

Beru easily returned the smile and even laughed. "I know, I know. We both know that Owen tends to…overreact. But I think everything will be alright. You're right. Nothing's really changed between Owen and I. It's like you said, we'll just have to get married a little sooner than we thought."

"I know. Everything will be fine. You just need to tell him, alright? You won't be able to keep this a secret for long."

This time, Beru laughed loud. "You're right, Padme. And thank you for everything."

"Don't worry about it, Beru. Just focus on telling Owen and just being happy, alright?"

"Ok, thanks Padme. Well, I think I'm going to go inside and wait for Owen."

Padme nodded to her and watched her friend enter the house with a sigh. Things were about to change around the Lars homestead. It was hard to imagine a baby among the men in the Lars family, but then again, it had probably been difficult to image a woman living with them also. She had done it and survived so there was no doubt in her mind that the baby could as well. She sighed again and ran her fingers through her hair. Although she was happy for her friend, it was difficult not to wish that they could trade places. To live that simple existence was something that Padme didn't even know how to hope for. It was pointless to wish for something that could never come true.

She was jolted out of her thoughts when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned and smiled when she found that Anakin was behind her.

"So…what's going on with Beru?" He smiled.

Padme sighed and shook her head. "I don't think I should tell you, Anakin. It's not my place."

"Awww…come on Padme. Whatever it is, I won't tell Owen. I swear."

"I just think Beru wouldn't be very happy with me if I told you."

Anakin frowned, his curiosity getting the better of him. "Please, Padme. I won't tell Owen and I won't tell Beru that I know. My lips will be sealed. I swear."

Padme shook her head, unable to bring herself to betray her friend's confidence.

"Anakin just knock it off. I'm not going to tell you."

Anakin sighed and was about to reply when a speed-taxi pulled up in front of the homestead. Both Anakin and Padme stared as a hooded figure emerged from the speeder. Padme's eyes widened in recognition and began to walk toward the person she was sure she would never see again.

"Sabe?"

The figure removed the hood, revealing that it was indeed Sabe. She immediately ran to Padme and grasped her hands tightly.

"Sabe, what is it? What are you doing here?"

Sabe glanced quickly at Anakin, who stood frozen to the ground, then immediately returned her anxious eyes to Padme.

"It's your mother, Padme. She's dying."