"Padme," Obi Wan said softly, touching her hair gently with the back of his hand.
"Is Anakin alright?" she whispered.
"Padme," he tried to say, but his voice caught on his tears. He paused to take a deep breath, trying to force stillness back to his tired face. He couldn't, he couldn't do it. "I'm so sorry," he managed. She had never seen a Jedi lose control like that and despite the pain that was crushing her from the inside out, somehow she still wanted to comfort him, the way she had tried to, all those years ago, when she found him beside his Master's body.
Before all of this had happened.
When Anakin had been an innocent child too.
"I'm sorry too," she said, struggling to sit up. "This is my fault. I should have told you. I should have trusted you enough to ask for help. None of this would have happened."
"There's blame to share, Padme, but it's not yours."
"We need to go," she said.
"Can you walk?" he asked, helping her into a sitting position.
She nodded.
"Where will we go?" she asked, anxiously. "We cannot go back to Corusant and," she said softly. "And my baby, my baby will be born soon."
"I know," he said. "I can feel your son, and your daughter both. They will be with us soon."
"Both?" she whispered. "I'm having twins?"
"You didn't know," he said in surprise. "No one told you? Anakin never sensed it?"
"He never told me," Padme answered. It had never occurred to her that her husband would lie to her, or withhold the truth from her. But he had kept bigger secrets.
Who was to say he hadn't done the same about this?
"I didn't know that you could do that. He never, I mean, I don't think he did anyway. And I didn't go to a doctor, I was afraid they'd ask so many questions. I didn't know." She paused for a moment to force a mouthful of air through her bruised throat. It hurt. "Twins." She ran her hands over her belly because despite all her pain she was more than a little in awe of the love she felt for these two babies. "Thank you Obi Wan, for telling me that."
"I'm sorry." He seemed so unsure of himself, so shaken, and Padme felt something like comradery. No one loved Anakin more than she had, but Obi Wan had been close. No one understood what had been lost the way Obi Wan did. He was not the person she wanted with her, but he was probably the next best person.
"Where are we going?" she asked.
"Bail Organa is sheltering Master Yoda," Obi Wan said softly.
"He's a good man," Padme said softly.
"We'll be safe there, at least for now," Obi Wan answered, but there was something in his voice that made it clear to Padme that safety was not happiness, and that was something he didn't believe he'd ever be that again. Padme understood that. She wouldn't either.
By the time they docked Padme couldn't hold still anymore, she couldn't even sit. She paced back and forth behind Obi Wan. It was the only thing that helped with the pain she felt coming and going, building up in her back and even down her legs. Every breath hurt her throat where Anakin had choked her, but deeper and deeper breaths seemed instinctive. She was perfectly aware that this was probably early labour, but she didn't have time to consider that quite yet.
"Padme," Obi Wan said gently as he maneuvered their ship into position to dock.
"I'm all right," she insisted, wanting to raise her hands in case he tried to touch her. She didn't want to be touched right now, not by anyone. Well there was one person, but she was never going to see Anakin again, was she? The aching in her heart almost made the contractions feel like nothing at all.
Her mind was on something like autopilot. She followed Obi Wan down the hall, pausing once to let the contraction wash over her. She didn't remember deciding to start walking again and was surprised when she heard other people speaking.
"You're all right," Bail said, relief flooding his voice as OBi Wan stepped out of the ship and a second later Padme. "Padme," he said, taken aback but pleased. "Are you all right?" She was leaning her hands against her thighs as she tried to breathe. "Do you want me to fetch my medical droids?"
"I'm all right," she insisted. "Just," she paused for another breath. "Just a minute."
Yoda arrived a few minutes later but Padme was having a hard time concentrating. Every deep breath felt less and less like it was helping with the pain. Obi Wan was hovering around her, she could feel his closeness, when she realized that he was speaking to the others and she tried to listen to them. "The children are Anakin's," Obi Wan was explaining to the others. "She needs some space to deliver them safely. Please, let us give her this time, and then we can decide what to do next. Let their birth be as joyous as it can be. They're just children."
"I'll set course for Aldaraan," Bail said softly. "She and the babies will be safe there, at least for now."
"Padme," Obi Wan was saying gently to her and she looked up at his face. "I'm sorry, I know this isn't how your children were meant to enter the world. What can I do?"
"Just stay with me," she whispered. The pain was worse now, she couldn't get through it alone.
"Of course," he agreed. "I will not leave you. I promise."
Obi Wan was more patient than she could have imagined Anakin being. The thought came to her like a ghost, something very detached, almost like a dream. Anakin pacing the room, frustrated, wanting to know what was taking so long. She imagined herself smiling tiredly at him and saying, "it takes as long as it takes Ani" and him rolling his eyes, fidgeting and muttering about how Jedi were supposed to be patient.
"Ani," she exhaled.
"Padme," Obi Wan said, and she was back in this small space and he was holding her hands through a contraction she had almost day dreamed herself out of.
"Yes," she said, smiling at him. Then a contraction rolled over her and it turned into a grimace. Obi Wan wasn't bothered by it, he just held her hands tighter. She could hear his breath, it was so steady and she tried to match it.
"What do you need?" he asked her. He wasn't going to tell her to rush. He wasn't going to ask her if she wanted surgery, pain medication, anything else. He was just going to do whatever she needed from him. She was scared, and she craved Anakin's strength and heat. She felt like it was the only thing that could give her the strength to get through this.
She didn't have that, and she thought about giving up.
Obi Wan's eyes felt cool as water, like the lake on Naboo. Cool and steady. She needed Ani and his fire. She would never have it.
"Padme," Obi Wan said softly to her, "You're doing so well, you're almost there. There's not much time left now. Is there anything I can get for you? Anything you need?"
"Nothing you can give me," she thought but instead she whispered, "I'm scared."
"I know," he said. "I know you are Padme," he said softly. "Save your strength, rest just for a minute, if you can." She nodded, sinking down onto the bed for a moment, trying to catch her breath. He knelt in front of her, looking her in the eyes. "Padme, this is going to be difficult. But I know you can do it. Your children need you to do this. This is all we have left of him now, all our hopes. You will survive this. You have a strength that you have only just begun to understand but you will see some of it in the next few minutes. I promise."
It was only a few more minutes before she looked at him and said, "They're coming," and then groaned loudly as she bared down with the next contraction.
"Well done," he said, pulling her to her feet the second the contraction ended and held her around the waist as they lowered to a squat. "There will be a few more of those, but then your children will be with us."
She moaned as the next contraction started and pushed, as hard as she could.
When she felt the sudden relief from the pressure, she sagged down as Obi Wan lifted up her baby, so small, so still.
"Rest for a few minutes Padme," Obi Wan said, guiding her back down onto the floor and handing her the baby. "Here is your son. Let him give you strength."
She pressed him so gently against her chest, looking down at the tiny bewildered face, blue eyes wide open, little mouth working slowly and sporadic. When she knew it was time to push again she looked to Obi Wan, waiting a few feet away and he came closer, gently lifting the baby and holding him tightly as she pushed again. It was much faster the second time and within just a few minutes she heard the indignant screams of another baby.
"Your daughter," Obi Wan said gently, setting her down on Padme's chest and immediately fetching the boy from the bassinet where he'd been laid in. "Just be with them for a moment." He pulled a blanket over the three of them and retreated.
Padme didn't look up from her children for a long time. The girl screamed until she was settled on Padme's breast, her little mouth rough and hungry. They looked so different from each other, Padme searched both of them for signs of Anakin. The boy had fairer colouring but there was something of Anakin's fire in the girl's determination.
When they dozed off on her chest, she closed her eyes too. Her last thought was bewildering. She didn't really want to wake up and face a life without her husband, but she could not imagine ever leaving her beautiful, little babies.
Obi Wan woke her gently. "Padme," he said softly. "The droids really do need to check the babies, and you, just to make sure everyone is well."
"I don't want them to take my children," she answered.
"I won't let them out of my sight, I promise," he assured her. She shook her head, pulling the babies closer to her chest. The boy was asleep but the girl shouted her objection to losing the breast she'd fallen asleep on. "Padme, I promise," he repeated.
"Alright," she agreed. "Don't leave them."
"I won't."
It didn't take long for the droids to weigh the babies and check their temperatures and whatever else needed to be checked. Padme spent most of it stretching her neck as far as it would go so she could see the children and answering the droid's questions absentmindedly. Obi Wan's back was almost always in the way, but he kept to his promise. They were never out of his reach.
"What are their names?" the droid asked, as it flew around, placing the girl in Padme's arms as another one around with the boy.
"Oh," she said, surprised at such an obvious question and having no answer to it. She looked up at Obi Wan. He smiled back at her and shrugged slightly.
"He never said anything to me about them," he said softly.
"What do you think?" she asked. "You're the closest person to a father they'll ever have."
His smile twisted and Padme could see tears in his beard suddenly. She wished she hadn't spoken, but he took a few steps closer to her, looking down at the children resting on her. "His struggle will be the same as his father's," he said quietly, his lips moving almost prophetically. "By the will of the Force, he may find the light."
"Luke then," Padme said softly. "It means light." She looked down at him and smiled softly, whispering the name like it was a blessing. "Luke."
"It's a good name," Obi Wan agreed.
"What do you see for my daughter?" Padme asked, looking at him.
"Well she's already a fighter," Obi Wan said, looking down at her. "A tiger."
Padme nodded thoughtfully, her thumb tracking over the little girl's dark hair. "Leia," she said at last. "It means lioness."
"Yes," Obi Wan agreed. "Yes. Luke and Leai."
"Obi Wan, what are we going to do?" Padme whispered.
