5 ABY

Theed Palace glistened in the late morning sun as the shuttle docked smoothly at the spaceport just outside Naboo's capital city. He would have to board another transport to the Lake District, but Aanakin paused looking over the older but familiar columns and architecture that still reminded him so much of her. He stepped back from the transport's ramp ignoring the last call to board and headed into the city pulling the cowl of his robes down over his eyes as he went. From the moment he saw it from orbit, Naboo sang to him of Padme. She loved her world almost more than she loved him and the life she'd given in service to it had never been forgotten.

To anyone who might take an interest, he appeared to be an aimlessly wandering tourist as he followed his former self's footsteps toward the Palace itself. Built in the wide, boulevard-like plaza just in front of the Palace steps was a moment to her. Water flowed gently around the base of a gorgeous mosaic set into a massive tablet- like stone ornately carved with small depictions of Queen and Senator Amidala with notable Nabooian dignitaries and figures from throughout her career. Her portrait stared out at him from the mosaic itself, her face painted white with the red dots high on her cheeks and framed with the traditional red and gold headpiece that matched the blood red gown she was wearing. The mural ended just under her shoulders but he remembered the rest of it like she'd worn it only the day before. He- Anakin- had been just a boy then.

As he gazed at her face, still round with the youth that politics stole from her, the mural suddenly changed to the older, slimmer face of Senator Amidala near the end of her life. Instead of a headdress she wore her hair in a simple bun held together by a clasp shaped liked wings- something he distinctly remembered teasing her about- and dark, formal, violet Senatorial robes that only a handful of people knew were hiding her pregnancy. His child. Their children. He blinked back a wave of emotion and stood gazing at her face until it changed back again, oblivious to the wetness on his cheek. It had been so long since he'd seen that face in those clothes. Not since the end- the almost very end- of everything. Swiftly he returned to the port and waited anxiously for the next transport leaving for the Lake District, boarding as quickly as possible.

The flight was brief and uneventful, landing directly in the square of little village several miles south of his destination. He breathed deeply, pressing down the nervousness with a brief, calming touch of the force and looked out a viewport with searching eyes. It was like instinct to look for her in the crowd of people milling about the square even though he knew she was neither there, nor waiting for his arrival. The air smelled of the lakes and everyone was dressed as lightly as possible so as to take full advantage of the sunshine. The skimmer Aanakin hired moved smoothly over the glassy water, slowing only slightly as it went around the last bend of the privately owned islands dotting one of the larger lakes in the area. The Naberrie family had owned one of them for several years before their second daughter had become the Queen of Naboo and it had become a haven for her during her political years and they'd formally renamed it Padme's Lake House after her death. Aanakin knew none of it as his skimmer slowed on its approach to the dock at the base of the villa on the water. He only saw the figure dressed in light summer clothes with greying hair piled delicately on her head standing in the doorway and felt his heart leap into his throat as she was obscured from view by their turn. Standing abruptly to try to see, Aanakin sprang from the still moving boat to the dock with several feet left to go and hurried up the stone steps to nearly collide fully with-

"P- Sabe." She had aged gracefully and still somewhat favored her late mistress, but she was definitely not his beloved and he found himself embarrassed at the brief lapse of sanity. She looked up at him with sorrowful hazel eyes and did not act like nor felt any surprise at seeing him standing before her.

"Master Skywalker," she said, giving him a long look before turning towards the door, "do come in." He stepped through in the sitting room and found it nearly unchanged since he'd last been there.

"You kept the house open?" he asked Sabe as she moved towards the sidebar.

"The Naberrie family did. To honor her. It was her favorite house on Naboo," Sabe answered as she handed him a cool glass of native sunshine tea- a light, bright yellow beverage made from flowers that only grow in the Lake District. Anakin had taken a liking to it when he had Padme had celebrated their marriage and honeymoon all those years ago and Sabe had remembered. "Though none of them ever come here, themselves. Too painful." He sank down on one of the two facing love seats in front of the fireplace taking a long drink of his tea. Above the fireplace sat a large, old fashioned painting of Padme in her flowing yellow and pink summer dress. He stared at it, unsure of how seeing her face everywhere was making him feel. The entire room was permeated with her very essence. Some of their happiest memories were made within these walls.

Sabe sat silently across from him with her own glass of what looked like a Corillian ale. Her hands shook ever so slightly as she took a sip of it and as Aanakin wondered if it were her age or his presence that caused it she looked at him pointedly, "you're dead."

"Yes," he replied, taking another drink from his cup and wishing for a moment she'd fixed him something fermented as well, "I am a clone."

"I'm not surprised. You were the type to do something like that," she said simply. Sabe had been one of the few within Padme's household who knew about them. She worked tirelessly to help them keep their secret and was instrumental in arranging her schedule in ways that put them in the same place at the same time.

"Did you ever tell the Naberries?"

"About you? No. They didn't even know about the pregnancy until the funeral." she smiled sadly. "I took an oath to serve and protect Padme as long as I lived. I'm still alive." They sat silent a moment before she spoke again. "Why are you here?"

"Truthfully I'm not sure. My entire existence was for one purpose- to come home to Padme if he didn't- and now that cannot be fulfilled and I don't know what to do with myself or where to go," he shrugged slightly, "who to report to." She tilted her head slightly and not unlike Padme used to do.

"Your entire life was 'who to report to' wasn't it? You were never master of your own fate." He smiled at the irony, assuming she didn't know who 'Master Skywalker' had become.

"To be honest I'm still processing. An entire lifetime was uploaded in an instant and I've not had long to sift through it. I think I just wanted to be in the next best place. I can't be with her, so I came here to her favorite place in the world." He paused, a thick lump of emotion rising in him, thickening his voice, "So very much has happened…" Obi- Wan Kenobi's face seemed to appear in the back of his mind. Both father and brother to him, his old Master had cared so much about him that it killed him in the end. He was a Jedi Master- a proper Jedi Master- all the way to his dying breath. In his memories- Anakin's memories- he could see the pain on Obi-Wans face as he begged "don't try it." He hadn't seen it then, not while blinded by rage and the dark side, but now in the memory it was so clear. Obi-Wan didn't want to kill Vader, he had wanted to save Anakin.

"Master Skywalker?" Sabe's voice cut in and his eyes snapped up to look directly at her, still so startlingly similar to Padme that he had to take a breath.

"So much went… wrong." She smiled at his statement.

"I never saw anything wrong, I only saw so much love. She was so worried for you, so scared, during the war. But proud too. You were her driving force and she felt she had to work that much harder to be worthy of you. And when you were home…" she trailed off a moment. "She hated to see you leave. When you were sent to the outer rim territories she tried to come up with ever possible reason to bring you back or join you herself."

"Oh I know. Her showing up in the middle of one battle or another was added stress I definitely did not need, but once we were alone it was worth it. And when we were apart those long stretches I could feel her need to get to me."

"I think she could too, in a way." Sabe retrieved his empty glass and replaced it with a Corillian ale and he smiled his thanks. After all, he was no longer a Jedi anyway.

"Sabe, is much of the house still the same?"

"It is."

"May I see it?"

"Master Skywalker, to me this house is as much yours as it ever was hers. You may go wherever you like on the property."

"Thank you, Sabe. Thank you very much."