It had been a fairly long day for Padmé, but one of the best. Despite the battle that it was becoming to keep freedoms within the Republic, and the fact that so much of the senate was blindly following rumors (along with the more and more dramatic - she was certain - exaggerations of Chancellor Palpatine), she was happy.

Anakin had returned that day, and she knew that he and Obi-Wan had planned on going out to lunch before some training with Ahsoka. Then he was going to come home. Even the awful migraine that had come upon her quite suddenly only a half-hour earlier could do nothing to dim her excitement at the prospect of seeing her husband. It had almost been a full month, and she was dying to talk to him.

She had actually been the one to insist that he and Obi-Wan have a meal together that day; their relationship had suffered ever since Obi-Wan had "died" to stop the assassination of the Chancellor. If Padmé were being truthful - which she strove to always be - she would have to admit that the fake death of such a close colleague still haunted her dreams.

She was certain that it was the same for Anakin, though he tended to bury fear behind mistrust and anger. She hoped that he hadn't been too hard on Obi-Wan in the past few months, just as she hoped that by talking to him tonight, she could perhaps ease the pain that Obi-Wan was experiencing as Anakin most likely shunned him.

Padmé sighed as she considered the words and arguments that she would use in advance. Her husband had been getting much better at arguing since they'd gotten married, and she was fairly sure that the blame was hers more than Obi-Wan's (though Anakin's old master had certainly missed his calling in politics, based on the results he so often managed to produce in the field - Negotiator, indeed).

She was broken from her thoughts when the door to her apartment chimed, and she excitedly went to answer it. Her excitement dimmed, however, when she realized how early it still was. Anakin still had four hours to go before he was supposed to show up, and Padmé hesitated at the door. Had Anakin come early because of something that had happened with Obi-Wan? Had they fought?

Shaking her head to clear these thoughts, she pressed the button on the control panel that allowed it to slide open. Padmé's eyes widened slightly in shock when she saw Ahsoka standing there. It was only years of working in politics that allowed her to respond immediately despite her surprise. "Ahsoka; I wasn't expecting you. To what do I owe the pleasu-?"

"My master isn't here, is he?" Ahsoka had appeared a little worried, but her tone had Padmé immediately on edge. She looked harried, and a little out of breath, almost as though she'd ran to arrive.

"I haven't seen Anakin all day - in fact, I wasn't even aware that you'd returned to Coruscant." She stepped back and gestured for Ahsoka to come in, watching the young togruta closely. The girl was clearly nervous, and her eyes were squinting strangely, almost as though she were in pain. Of course, none of that stopped Ahsoka from giving her a very knowing look, her lips pressed together in disbelief. Padmé ignored the look - along with its ramifications - as she was gripped by apprehension. "Ahsoka, is something wrong? Did something happen to Anakin?" Padmé was caught off guard when the padawan suddenly turned to her, stopping her visual sweep of the apartment (as if Anakin was hiding somewhere) to fix her with an intense gaze.

"There was a huge wave in the Force, Senator, and Skyguy was right in the middle of it."

Padmé's was alarmed when Ahsoka's eyes suddenly welled with tears.

"I don't know exactly what happened or what it was, but- …" She swallowed, steeling herself before Padmé even had the chance to really react. "There was so much pain."

Now Padmé was grabbing the young Jedi - no emotion be damned - and pulling her into a hug. She ruthlessly quelled her own panic as she spoke, and she knew she sounded more like she had as Queen Amidala than Padmé at that moment. "Hey, whatever happened, I'm sure it will all be fine." At that moment, only that part of her that had so blankly played Queen Amidala could be calm; on the inside, she was beginning to worry nearly as much as Ahsoka.

The hug was returned fiercely, the togruta stealing her breath with how tightly she squeezed. "It almost broke our bond." The words were whispered, and Padmé felt her blood run cold. She didn't know a lot about the Force or being a Jedi, but Anakin had explained bonds to her before. He said that they had a bond, even if Padmé couldn't feel it like he did.

As she gently ran a hand down Ahsoka's third lekku, she considered whether or not her sudden headache earlier had anything to do with what had happened with Anakin. "Does your head hurt?" Ahsoka nodded against her shoulder, and Padmé sighed, gently pulling away. That answered that. "Sit down, please. I'll go get you something for the pain."

As she went for the medicine, Ahsoka's trembly voice followed her out. "I called him. Right after it happened, I called him." Padmé forced herself to move slowly as she retrieved some pain medication capsules (she could use some herself, truth be told), carrying it back in with some water as Ahsoka continued. "He looked … it was- Padmé, he looked awful."

Padmé watched as her husband's padawan gratefully took the medication and the water, swallowing the capsules in one gulp before finishing off the water only seconds later. That couldn't have been a healthy way to drink, but Padmé didn't mention it, willing her hands to stay steady as she took her own medicine. After taking the sip required, she spoke purposefully, trying to ascertain what was happening. "And … how did he feel?"

"I couldn't feel him at all! I still can't!" Ahsoka's voice had raised, though Padmé doubted that the teen had meant to shout. "He closed off the bond right after the big wave in the Force!"

"And Obi-Wan?" Padmé's chest hurt a little, and she realized that it was because she'd been holding her breath. She began forcing the air in and out, while Ahsoka shrugged helplessly.

"I- … I think he was there, but I didn't see him in the call …" The young Jedi seemed at a loss for a moment, and silence fell between them. It lasted for a short while, and Padmé attempted to process what was going on. She had never seen Ahsoka quite this distraught, and the only scenarios she could think up that would cause it were too horrible to dwell on.

Anakin was alive, wasn't he? Didn't that mean something? And if Obi-Wan was with him, then he was likely in no danger of dying (there was no one Padmé trusted more to keep her husband alive, despite his best efforts). Still, her imagination wasn't good enough. She needed details. "When you say he looked awful, Ahsoka, what do you mean?" Her voice had gone flat, and she knew she sounded like a queen.

Ahsoka stayed silent for long enough to make Padmé begin to worry, then looked up, her eyes shining again. "Senator- … Padmé. When's the last time you saw my Master cry?"

That brought back memories. The Sandpeople - Tatooine and that horrible day that they'd spent there while he mourned- keened for his great loss. When Obi-Wan had been suffering from an extremely trying mission (something to do with a Sith Temple, one Bail refused to tell her about) … "Quite a while ago." She admitted. Anakin's tears had never boded well. If there were tears- if there was sadness, anger almost always replaced it.

Ahsoka scrubbed her face a little, sniffing loudly, and Padmé stood mechanically to get a kerchief. No more words were said between them. There was a sort of understanding that they reached silently, and there wasn't any point in either of them hiding or debating the fact that Anakin would show up here far sooner than later. On a whim, Padmé snatched one of her lap blankets from a chair, and draped it over Ahsoka, who was still trembling, before proffering the clean white cloth.

"Thank you," The togruta spoke quietly, using it to wipe her face, and Padmé nodded. Then, because the mood was so heavy, she mustered up a smile for the younger girl.

"Anakin is strong, Ahsoka. I'm sure he'll be all right."

Ahsoka merely regarded her with sad eyes; she seemed far older than her age when she responded. "I hope you're right."

Padmé couldn't help herself, pursing her lips for a moment at the (normally very optimistic) padawan's tone. It must have been terrible - whatever had happened - but moping had never helped a soul and so it was with conviction that she pulled a smile onto her face to respond. "I know I'm right. He's got us, and we're going to make it right."

Ahsoka snorted, pulling the blanket around herself more tightly before her face fell back into a somber expression. "I have a feeling that making it right is going to be harder than you think." She hugged her knees for a moment of silence before her eyes flitted up to meet Padmé's again.

Padmé began to shake her head, a rebuttal rising to her lips when Ahsoka continued in quieter tone.

"He felt broken."

Welp. Here's the next chapter folks.

And actually, ya'know how I apologized for last chapter being short? I just looked at it today (because this chapter felt so short) and last chapter is the longest one so far. I can be such a duh, sometimes. *facepalm*

Aaaaanyway. Your reviews and favorites are what keep me alive; I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even though it doesn't have the boys. Don't worry. We'll be back with Anakin and Obi-Wan next chapter. ;)

-Al