Secrets

Mace Windu killed Darth Sidious mere months ago, Anakin Skywalker, recently promoted to jedi master, and Padme Amidala's marriage remained secret, and it is now an even harder challenge with twins in the story…

'Ani, please, can't you just cancel the council meeting!'

'No! We need to track down the remaining jedi who survived order 66! It's the most important meeting since the end of the war!'

'Well I have to attend the vote for the new chancellor.'

'One vote won't make a difference, Padme'

'Yes, it will! 'she replied indignantly 'Votes have been lost because one person did not show up! If you miss the council meeting it won't make any difference will it?'

'But it will make them suspicious if I am missing and they will go to my apartment, I won't be there and where will be the next place they look? Your apartment. And what will they find? Me with two force sensitive children! Then what will they think,'

'It's clear that neither of us can go then'

'Who is going to look after Luke and Leia!' Anakin exclaimed, pacing up and down their apartment. A cry came from the neighbouring room, 'I'll go' he sighed. As he picked up the shrieking bundle a thought came to mind as he was comforting Leia, gently rocking her from side to side, he quietly called Padme over and told her his plan.

What would happen if the council found out about me and Anakin, would it be that bad or would they expel Anakin from the jedi order, all we would have to do was tell them and hope for the best. Bringing her thoughts back to the senate meeting she realised she still had not found Anakin's padawan. Where is she! The senator wondered desperately, if she did not find her soon, she would be late to the senate…

'Um, Senator?'

'Ahsoka, there you are.' She replied, abruptly interrupted from her thoughts.

'Is there anything you need Padme?'

'Actually, yes.' Said Padme, hoping Ahsoka would not ask too many questions. 'Would you mind watching my children, Luke and Leia for an hour or so?'

'Really! I would love to.'

Relieved, Padme handed over her children to Ahsoka, 'Thank you so much, I need you to feed them at 12 o'clock, there are two bottles in the bag. I should head over to the senate now.

'Absolutely, I'll see you in a couple of hours then.'

'I better go, I can't thank you enough. Oh, can you also stay in the jedi temple, just in case something happens.'

'Don't worry, the war is over.'

'I know, I'm just being a worried mother,'

'I understand. 'replied Ahsoka smiling

'I stand here talking and I really need to go', after kissing her children the senator begins to rush away as Ashoka Tano waves goodbye.

'What do you want to do, hmm?' Ahsoka says to Padme's mysterious children.

As Anakin entered the council chamber, he was shocked how few jedi masters were left, as he entered the room he was greeted by his master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda and Mace Windu, the 3 others he had known to survive order 66, apart from his padawan Ahsoka, who had unknowingly agreed to look after his children. 'Glad we are that you could join us young Skywalker.' Yoda said as he entered the room. As Anakin took a seat, he could sense the anguish and loss from Obi-Wan, 'Master, I sense something is wrong, as if you have lost something dear to you.'

'I haven't done a good job of hiding my feelings, have I,' said Obi-Wan with a sad smile, 'When I travelled to Mandalore to face Darth Maul he captured Satine, one my closest friends from outside the jedi order and then killed her in front of my eyes.' As he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, about to continue, Mace Windu raised a hand signalling that he did not have to continue. Anakin felt a private understanding as he had been in a similar situation when Palpatine had been alive, he had sent constant dreams of Padme dying to temp him with the dark side, with desperation he had almost taken his hand…

They sat in an awkward silence until they saw a transmission flickering into life, it was famed war hero, and pilot, Plo Koon a jedi who was believed to be dead, ' If any member of the jedi council is receiving this, I may be one of the only jedi who survived order 66, I have crash landed on the forest moon of Endor I am sending you direct co-ordinates to my location, I have enough supplies for 2-3 weeks.' As he was about to continue, they lost connection.

'Hmm, troubling this is. 'commented Yoda

'At least we know one jedi has survived and where he is,' Anakin said trying to be positive, 'But who should go on the mission?'

'Go on the mission, you and Obi-wan should.'

'Um, are you sure?' If I left now, I would miss my children's start in life, their first steps their first words, everything, Anakin thought, but there was no way off getting out of this.

'Do you have a problem with that Skywalker,' replied Mace Windu eyeing him suspiciously, as usual

'No, not at all'

'Good. You can head out tomorrow with your padawan, she is still in the need of training, I believe this is the end of the meeting' At that Anakin rushed out of the chambers without a second thought.

In the meantime…

'Good morning senators' boomed Mas Emedda, the vice chair of the republic, 'We are gathered here today to elect a new chancellor of the republic. Please name your nominations.

'Bail Organa!' came from the Aalderanian representatives

'Nute Gunray!' from the Trade federations

'Padme Amidala!' Came from the Nabooian representative Binks.

Padme was shocked, she only believed she would go to vote, not actually become a nominee, a thunderous applaud broke out at her name, she could only hope she did not win the election...

'Is that all the nominees chosen,' there was silence 'Good, let the vote begin' finished Mas Emedda. All around her Padme could hear the clicking of the voting board, she elected Bail Organa her close friend and respectable ally, he would make a good chancellor. Interrupting her thoughts Jar Jar whispered to her' Messa thinks yousa would makes a good Chancellor,' Padme smiled nervously 'Thanks Jar Jar.'

All too quickly the vote finished, and the tension began escalating around the room within a few minutes the results appeared on the hologram.

6% Nute Gunray

43% Bail Organa

51% Padme Amidala

'Senator Amidala of the Nabooian system, you have been elected as the new chancellor of the galactic senate,' announced the chair, 'Could you please join us on the podium as chancellor now.' The senator trembled as her seat travelled towards the podium and she walked up to it and stepped out she could feel the entirety of the senate staring at her then, it all went dark...

'Padme?' whispered Anakin gently shaking his wife, wearily opening her eyes she immediately panicked wondering where their children were, 'Ani, where are Luke and Leia?!' she blurted out in a panic, forgetting she had left them with Ahsoka and that they were perfectly safe, she tried to get up but her husband held her back, 'Padme, you need to rest, I'll go get them.'

'But what will you say, you can't tell Ahsoka you've come to collect you children.'

'I know, I'll tell her what happened and that you asked me to return your children, is that ok.'

'Yes, I don't know what I'd do without you,' She said with a weak smile.

'Neither do I,' Anakin replied with a smile, he kissed Padme on the forehead and swiftly left the room and soon realised he didn't know where to look for his young children and padawan, poking his head back round the corner he sheepishly asked,' Um, where did you say they were?'

Smiling at her husband she replied, 'I didn't. They will be in the jedi temple, or they should be.'

'Thank you, is there anything else I need to know senator,'

'No Master Jedi,'

'I shall head about my business,' he replied cheekily and once again he walked out of the room but this time he jumped in his speeder and headed over to the jedi temple at top speed to collect his children from one of his closest friends, his padawan Ahsoka.

Where would Ahsoka be he thought, using the knowledge of his apprentice, the archives came to his head but then he remembered they had to have silence so that was off the list, maybe the council chambers, that is very safe and there weren't any due meetings there since the one this morning, at once he made a beeline to the area. 'Ahsoka? Are you in there?' he asked as he opened the door and looked round, there was clearly no one there but he still looked round to double check, if she wasn't in there where else could she be he said angrily to himself, of course her quarters in the padawan section of the temple. He got there as fast as he could, trying to avoid running as it would imply something was wrong, which he did not want at all.

When he finally arrived, Ahsoka was there but she was force floating his children in the air...

'Ahsoka, put them down,' he knew she would careful, and meant well, and he did trust her, but his fatherly instincts kicked in and he became very protective of his children.

'Master? What are you doing here?'

'Ahsoka. Put. Them. Down.'

'Why? What is it to you? Anyway, you didn't answer my question.'

'I'll answer your question if you put them down.'

'They like it, we're playing,'

'Just put them down, it will,' Why did I say that he thought in a panic, what if she gets suspicious.

'What do you mean, it will make you feel better?' What did her master mean by that, he did not even know the children, unless he did...?

'It doesn't matter. Senator Amidala asked me to collect her children,' Anakin hated calling is wife that, she was more than that to him, but it had to be done, 'She is not feeling well.' Ahsoka knew Anakin was good friends with the senator, so it would make sense, she still thought it was suspicious, but she had a better way of confronting him...

'Ok' as she handed the children over to him, they seemed familiar, way too familiar, as he gently rocked them, perfectly cradled in his arms, he quickly rushed out of the door and down the corridor.

As Anakin walked out of Ahsoka quarters he felt a wave of relieve for no apparent reason, maybe it was because he no longer had to be away from his children and could see them before he left once again, more painful hours in hyperspace, nothing to do but dwell on his family, imagine what he was missing. More months of burying his happiness, shielding it from others, continuing to keep the secret he had done for years, unable to even think of his loved ones without the risk of being discovered, not even his pain. There was no way to explain the feeling of completion in him when his children were around, it was like Luke and Leia were a part of him, the missing pieces of a jigsaw, with so much focus on his children and family, he did not sense Ahsoka following him.

After following her master for a while, Ahsoka realised how far he had to come just to collect them, shortly following this thought, she glimpsed him carefully enter a speeder with his children still on the senator's children on his lap. How is that even legal she wondered? She knew where he was going, so she just had to get there first.

Having lived in Coruscant for most of her life, Ahsoka knew it like the back of her hand, she knew all the shortcuts and the most hidden routes to go anywhere and everywhere possible. Luckily, the shortcut to Padme's apartment was easy and probably quicker than a speeder so that's the way she headed.

Anakin knew if his children were not travelling with him he would be doing some extremely dangerous driving just for the thrill of it, however, he did not have his full attention on the path ahead of him as he had focused the force on the two pure lights amidst the blaring city. He knew the plant like his mechanical arm (of his own design), the fastest and safest routes by speeder, he was soon pulling up in the speeder parking area on the 16th floor and rushing to Padme's apartment on the top floor.

Soon Ahsoka was making the last jump from a billboard advertising jogan fruit to the 16th floor of the building, she noticed that Anakin had already parked his speeder there, I must move faster she said to herself. There was only on way to get there faster, and that was through the ventilation shaft, she spotted a grate just above the doors and jumped up through the tiny hole and began crawling through the dust.

She arrived just in time as she could hear her master 's footsteps coming round the corner towards the door, he gently knocked on the doors with his foot and within a few seconds padme opened the door and hugged him tightly!

'what took you so long, I was so worried!?'

'Just some complications' He just called her a complication! What he did next though was such a shock to Ahsoka, Anakin kissed the senator, not like a hello or in a polite way, a proper kiss on the lips! Leaning in closer to try and hear them the grate suddenly gave away and she fell to the floor in a cloud of dust.

'Ahsoka! Um...ur...it's not what it looks like,' Anakin stuttered knowing full well what it looked like,' what do you think you're doing following me anyway?' it was Ahsoka's turn to be speechless now, 'I um,' she decided to confront him, even if she was wrong, she would know the truth, they are your children aren't they master,'

Anakin sighed, knowing his and padme's secret they had kept so long had been blown, 'your right Ahsoka, they are our children.'

'You better come inside while we explain,' padme said, motioning towards the door, after she and Anakin had put the twins asleep, they began to explain everything...

'So, you are telling me that at the age of 19, still a padawan learner, you got married straight after the battle of Geonosis, in secret, on Naboo, with a dodgy priest and two droids. Then after 4 years and a 5-month mission you come back and discovered padme is pregnant and then proceed to have Darth Sidious tempt you with the dark side by sending you visions of padme dying. You resisted and that leads us too now, you managing to keep a family secret. Am I correct?

'Basically, yeah,' Anakin smiled

'Wow, that is not what I was expecting. I just thought that you two were together with children at the most, minus all of that though.'

'Listen Ahsoka, you can't tell anyone, if the jedi council knew Anakin could get expelled from the order,' started Padme,

'Don't worry, your secret, I mean secrets,' Ahsoka said gesturing towards the sleeping twins, 'Are safe with me.'

'Thank you,' sighed Anakin and Padme in unison,

'It will be greatly appreciated,' continued Anakin.

'So, is it just me that knows?'

'Apart from a couple of Padme's maids and Captain Typho, you're the only other who knows. But you are the only jedi.'

'Wow,'

'Padme,' Anakin had just remembered about his mission,' with all the commotion I forgot to tell you that I will going on a mission tomorrow to search for any remaining jedi who survived order 66, so far we have found Master Plo Koon's whereabouts but that is all.'

'What, already? The war has only just finished, why do you have to leave me again so soon.'

'I would try and get out of it but Obi-Wan knows the connection I have with you and now our children have been recently born, if I ask to stay the suspicions will rise further,'

'I could always help,' piped up Ahsoka,' seeing as I am staying here

'That's the thing, you're not, you still need your training, as Mace Windu says, so you'll be coming along too.' Anakin replied, sadly knowing his wife would be alone for a month or two with a couple of needy younglings in a big city with many responsibilities, 'Oh' was all Ahsoka could come up with.

'Well then, Ahsoka, you should return to your quarters, you've got a long day ahead of you,' declared Padme, 'and you Anakin.'

'Padme, I'm your husband, not your child, but I think I'll stay here mi'lady,' he returned audaciously, that was when Ahsoka realized how awkward this was for her, 'I think I'll be going now,' Ahsoka blurted out.

'I'll see you at 7 am sharp in hanger 13, get some rest,'

'See you then Master,' at that, she bolted out of their apartment.