Chapter 24

Rebel Base-Sixth Planet of the Hoth System

The Rebel Alliance had finally reached the location of what would be its new base. The task that they faced in establishing a base in the remote ice world was enormous, despite the fact that engineers had already been there for several weeks to blast through the permafrost and commence building what would become Echo Base.

"Whoever said Hell was hot has never been to this planet," Han Solo grumbled as he zipped his parka up under his chin.

Leia smiled. "Well, think of it this way – the chances of the Empire finding us here are as low as the temperature."

Han smirked. "Yeah, I sure hope so. Look Princess, I don't know how long I'm gonna be able to hang around here. I need to get Jabba his money, or he'll be coming after me."

Leia frowned. "Han, the Alliance needs you. Surely you realize that."

Han shrugged. "Maybe, but I won't be much good to anybody with a bounty on my head. Say, maybe your dad can do something about that."

"My father is trying to keep a low profile just as you are, Han," Leia reminded him.

"I meant your other dad, the one on Alderaan," he said.

"Well, I'm not so sure he'll be in a hurry to do me any favors in the near future, not after the last conversation we had," Leia told him.

"He can't blame you for being sore that you were kept in the dark all those years," Han replied.

"No, especially since my real parents were alive all those years," Leia replied with a frown. "I just hope in time he'll come to see my point of view. I love him, Han; he has been the only father I've had until just recently. I don't want to sever that relationship simply because my real father has come into my life."

"That's understandable," Han said. "But considering who your real father is, are you really surprised that his identity was kept from you?"

Leia sighed. "No, I don't suppose so," she said. "But what about my mother? If she indeed has been alive all these years, Bail Organa should have told me so. I hate to think of her, all alone all these years," she said, shaking her head sadly. "It breaks my heart."

Chewbacca approached Han and Leia and said something to Han to which Han nodded in understanding.

"Chewie says your dad is on the comm. screen," Han told Leia. "Your real dad."

"He is?" she exclaimed. "He must have news about Mother! Tell Luke, will you Han? She asked as she ran off to the Falcon.

Han watched her go, smiling to himself as he did so. Then he turned to Chewbacca, who was watching him closely, his arms folded over his chest.

"You could be a little less obvious you know," Chewie said smugly.

"Mind your own business, fur ball," Han grumbled as he walked away. Chewbacca merely chuckled as he watched him leave.

Leia sat down at the comm. screen on board the Falcon, smiling when she saw her father's familiar face. Beside him was a woman who looked to be in her early seventies.

"Father!" Leia said breathlessly. "It's good to see you!"

"It's good to see you too, Leia," Anakin replied. "I'd like you to meet Jobal Naberrie, your grandmother."

Leia turned to the older woman. "Hello," she said with a smile. "It's so nice to meet you!"

Jobal smiled. "And you too, Leia. Your father told me how much you look like your mother; he was certainly right."

Leia's smile only grew upon hearing this. "Have you found her?" she said, turning back to Anakin. "Any luck with your search?"

Anakin nodded. "Yes, thanks to your grandmother, I found her," he told Leia.

"That's wonderful!" Leia exclaimed, just as Luke joined her at the comm. screen. "Luke, this is our grandmother."

Luke smiled. "Hi grandmother," he said.

Jobal smiled. "Nice to meet you, Luke."

"Father was just telling me how he found Mother," Leia told her twin.
"You did?" Luke said, looking at Anakin.

"Yes, I did," Anakin replied. "She has been in a long term care facility here in Theed," he told his children. "She is well, but she doesn't remember me."

"We knew that though, right?" Leia said.

"Yes, we did," Anakin replied. "But it wasn't easy to face the reality of it."

Jobal put a hand on Anakin's arm. "She agreed to talk to you, Anakin," she reminded him. "That is a big step. And an encouraging one too."

"Any hope that she will get her memory back?" Luke asked.

"That remains to be seen, Luke," Anakin replied. "I have a strong suspicion that the administrator of the facility she has been in has been doing something to prevent her from regaining her memory."

Leia frowned. "Why would he do that?" she asked.

"I don't know yet, Leia," Anakin replied. "But I will find out, I promise you."

"Have you told Mother your suspicions?" Luke asked.

"No, I haven't," Anakin replied. "She doesn't even know who I am yet; I don't want to overwhelm her."

"But she has to know, Father," Leia told him. "You have to start somewhere. Perhaps if she knows who you are it will help her to trust you."

"Perhaps," Anakin acknowledged. "I have something in mind, and I will need her trust to make it work."

"What plan is that?" Luke asked.

"A plan to get her out of that place," Anakin said. "She is stagnating there, and will never regain her memory if she remains there."

Jobal looked at him. "Do you really think that's wise, Anakin? She is getting the care she needs there."

"I have my doubts about that," he replied. "I have her medical records in my possession now," he told his children. "I plan to read them thoroughly, and I'm certain that I will find something in them that will confirm my suspicions."

"Let us know what you find," Luke said. "We'll be waiting anxiously to hear from you."

Anakin nodded. "I will," he replied. "Well it's getting late here, so I'll say goodnight to you both. It was good to see you."

"Goodnight Father," Leia said. "Goodnight Grandmother. It was wonderful meeting you."

Jobal smiled. "Good night Leia, Luke. I hope we get to meet very soon."

Anakin closed the transmission.

"They are lovely children," Jobal said. "You must be very proud of them."

"I am," Anakin replied. "Very much so. And I know Padmé will be as well when she meets them."

"Do you plan on telling her about them?" she asked as Anakin stood up.

"I don't know what the best thing to do is," he admitted. "But I think Leia is right; I think if I tell Padmé about our relationship, it will help her to trust me."

Jobal nodded. "I think so too. What about this plan you're talking about? Where would you take her, assuming you can get her out at all?"

"Oh I'll get her out," Anakin told her. "Make no mistake about that. And as for where, I plan to take her to the place that meant more to her than any other, the place where she and I fell in love and were married. The lake retreat."

"You were married there?" Jobal asked. "You mean when Ruwee and I came up there to tell you about the war…"

"We were on our honeymoon," Anakin told her with a smile. "And you had no idea, did you?"

Jobal shook her head. "Not a clue," she said.

Anakin laughed. "Well it's starting to get dark," he said, looking outside. "I'd better get going if I'm going to find a place to stay."

Jobal stood up. "You have found a place to stay," she told him. "Right here in this house."

"I don't want to impose upon you, Mrs. Naberrie," Anakin said.

"Anakin, you are family," she said. "You are most welcome here. Please, I won't take no for an answer."

Anakin smiled. "Thank you," he said. "You are very kind."

"Not at all," she said. "Now come this way, I'll show you where you can sleep. And in the morning, we can go back to see Padmé if you wish."

"That would be wonderful," he said.

Anakin spent the night in the very room he had slept in more than twenty years earlier, when he and Padmé had visited her parents on their way up to the lake retreat. He remembered having a night mare that night about his own mother, and how Padmé had come to him in the dead of night, concerned because she had heard him shouting in his sleep. He recalled how beautiful she looked in her frilly nightgown, with her hair loose about her shoulders, and how difficult it was not to pull her right into the bed with him. He smiled as he remembered her telling him about the fantasy she had about that occasion years later. So many memories, so many wonderful memories….I will find a way to bring them back to you, Padmé…I promise you..

Anakin spent many hours poring over Padmé's medical files. It was tremendously difficult for him to read about the woman he loved described in such cold, clinical terms. It broke his heart to read about how she went for days without speaking sometimes in the early years, about the nightmares that plagued her, about the depression she suffered and her refusal to see any visitors, even her parents. But it was clear that as time passed, she had grown stronger. The nightmares had stopped, she had begun to come out of her shell and interact more with others, and her moods swings had balanced out. And yet, there was no sign that she was beginning to regain her memory. This puzzled Anakin, and he reread sections over and over, taking note of all the anecdotal notes inserted into the records by the attending nurses and physicians. And then he began to notice a pattern.

He noticed that whenever she'd had a nightmare, the next day the dosage of her medication had been increased. During the time when she had been calling his name, the increase had been tremendous. And yet, as the depression and self-isolation began to subside, there had been no decrease in her meds. In fact, it was noted several times that she had questioned the need for them, and had to be coaxed into taking them. This angered Anakin tremendously, and convinced him even more that something dastardly was going on. I will get to the bottom of this, he vowed. And when I do, Palo Corrino will rue the day he crossed paths with me.

It was early the next morning when Anakin awoke. The morning was bright, and it gave him hope for what the day might hold in store for him. The thought of seeing his wife again was both exciting and terrifying to him; yesterday she had been happy to see him. What if today she wanted nothing to do with him? What if the small connection that he felt he'd made with her yesterday had evaporated over night? Then I'll just have to start all over again, if that is what it takes, he vowed to himself.

"Good morning, Ryoo," Anakin said as he entered the kitchen.

She turned around and smiled at him. "Good morning," she said. "I hope you slept well."

Anakin nodded. "I did," he replied. "I didn't realize how tired I was."

"No wonder, if you walked all the way here from Theed," she said as she took a pan of muffins out of the oven. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes, very," he replied. "Those smell fantastic."

"Well have a seat," she said. "Everything is all set."

"Thank you," he said, overwhelmed by the kindness of his wife's family. He made his way into the dining room and joined Jobal, who was seated at the table enjoying a cup of tea.

"Good morning Anakin," she said with a smile. "How did you sleep?"

"Like a baby," he told her as he sat down. "I suppose a two hour hike will do that to a man."

"Indeed it will," she replied as Ryoo joined them.

"Grandmum tells me you're going to see Aunt Padmé again this morning," Ryoo said.

"Yes," Anakin replied. "I'm quite anxious to see her again."

"You know, I believe I remember you," Ryoo said. "I was only a child when you were here with my aunt, but I remember you nonetheless."

"I wasn't much more than a child myself," Anakin told her with a smile. "Nineteen years old and ready to take on the galaxy."

Ryoo laughed. "Yes, I know that feeling," she said. "I understand I have two cousins as well," she said. "Luke and Leia."

Anakin nodded. "That's right," he said, "they are a little younger than you are."

"I'd love to meet them," Ryoo replied.

"Perhaps when Padmé is well again, we can have them come for a visit," suggested Jobal.

"I'm sure they'd enjoy that very much," Anakin said.

Anakin forced himself to be patient as the meal dragged on, each minute that passed seeming like an eternity. He was very anxious to get back to Padmé, to talk to her again. He was tempted to tell her everything he suspected, but he feared this would only serve to frighten her. He needed to take things slowly with her; for to overwhelm her with information would only backfire, of that he was certain.

"Anakin why don't you go alone to see Padmé?" Jobal suggested. "I'm sure you'd like to spend some time alone with her."

"Do you think that she will be comfortable alone with me?" he asked. "As far as she knows, she only met me yesterday."

Jobal nodded. "True. Why don't I come with you, and then I'll find some excuse to give you some time alone with her. How does that sound?"

Anakin nodded. "Sounds like a great idea."

Jobal nodded. "Good. Shall we be off?"

Anakin and Jobal arrived at the facility shortly after Padmé had eaten her breakfast. She was surprised to see visitors so early in the day, but seemed pleased nonetheless. Anakin wasn't quite sure what to expect, but was relieved that Padmé remembered him, and seemed receptive to talking to him once again.

"I will be back shortly," Jobal said shortly after they had arrived. "I promised Thea that I would lend her the novel that I've just finished."

Padmé felt a little uneasy when her mother left, but said nothing.

"It's nice to see you again," Anakin told her as they sat in the small sitting room adjoining her bedroom. "Our conversation was interrupted yesterday, if you recall."

Padmé nodded. "Yes, I remember," she said. "Palo can be quite bossy sometimes I'm afraid."

Anakin smiled. "Yes, so I've noticed." He paused, unsure where to start. "It's a beautiful day outside," he told her. "Would you like to go down to the garden for a bit?"

"I'd love to," she replied. "But I haven't had my morning meds yet, and they won't let me go outside until I've had them."

Anakin felt a surge of anger go through him at her statement. "That isn't right, Padmé," he told her. "They cannot withhold privileges from you that way."

Padmé frowned. "I don't like it when they do that," she said quietly.

"Padmé, I want to talk to you about something," he began. "It's about the medication you've been taking."

Padmé was curious about what he was going to ask, but just then the duty nurse entered the room.

"Oh, rather early for a visitor," she commented as she looked at Anakin up and down.

Anakin did not reply, for his eyes were fixed on the cup of pills in the nurse's hand.

"Time for your morning dose, Padmé," the nurse said, handing her the cup of pills.

Padmé took them from her.

"I'll make sure she takes them," Anakin said to the nurse, standing up to look her in the eye. "Leave us," he said, using the Force to plant the suggestion her in her mind.

The nurse left them at once, closing the door behind her.

Padmé looked down at the pills, and Anakin could sense that she was ambivalent about taking them.

"Have you ever refused them?" he asked.

"What?" she asked, looking up at him.

"The pills," he said. "Have you ever refused to take them?"

"I've tried," she replied. "But they insist upon it. I have to take in morning and night. They told me that if I stop taking it, the nightmares will come back."

"Nightmares?" he asked. "What nightmares?"

Padmé sighed, and looked down at the pills. "I used to have nightmares," she told him. "Or at least that's what everyone tells me they were. I don't remember any of the details, I'm afraid. All they've told me is that I woke up for several nights shouting, and that I'd been having nightmares. The medication keeps the nightmares away."

Yes, of course...Anakin thought. You were starting to remember me, and he made sure those memories were squashed.

"Have you ever thought about what might happen if you didn't take the meds?" he asked.

"I know what would happen," she replied. "Weren't you listening?"

"Yes, of course I was," he replied. "I suppose what I'm asking is, do you believe them?"

Padmé frowned. "Of course I believe them," she replied. "Why wouldn't i?"

"Because I've read through your medical files, Padmé," he told her. "And I don't believe them. I don't believe they are being completely honest with you. I think they are deliberately trying to keep you from getting your memory back."

Padmé considered what he said, and then stood up, agitated. "Why would they do that?" she asked, the frown not leaving her face. "They are here to help me! You're wrong; you don't know what you're talking about!"

"Padmé, I don't mean to upset you," he persisted. "But I have to ask- do you want to get your memory back?"

"Of course I do!" she cried. "Why would you ask me such a thing?"

"Have you ever thought that perhaps the nightmares, as they call them, were your mind starting to remember? And that the meds they force you to take prevent those memories from resurfacing?" he asked.

Padmé looked at him, and in her eyes he could see that what he was suggesting was tremendously upsetting to her. But she had to be told, if she was ever to be healed. She had to face the truth, no matter how ugly it may be.

"Who are you?" she asked at last. "Why does any of this concern you? What right do you have to look at my medical files? They are private!"
Anakin stood up. "Do you really want me to tell you who I am?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "I don't think you have any right to be here," she added, her anger increasing. "I think you have somehow fooled my mother into letting you see me, I don't know why, but…"

"I'm your husband, Padmé," he told her. "You and I have been married for more than twenty years."

Padmé looked at him, a look of utter shock on her face. "My husband?" she asked incredulously. "You're my husband?"

Anakin nodded, trying to discern what he saw in her eyes. "I want to take you out of here, Padmé," he told her, walking over to her. "I want to take you somewhere where you won't be forced to take drugs that you don't need, where you can be free and safe."

"I'm safe here," she replied. "I've been safe here for a long time! You say that you are my husband, but where have you been all that time? Why haven't you been here before yesterday?"

"Until just a few days I believed that you were dead, Padmé!" he told her. "And once I learned the truth, I came looking for you. I love you, Padmé, can't you see that?"

She shook her head. "Please stop," she said her eyes filling with tears. "I can't deal with all this! I don't know what to believe, what to think!"

"Padmé, I'm telling you the truth!" he exclaimed. "I would never lie to you, never!"

"Is everything alright?" Palo said as he entered the room. He had heard from the duty nurse that Anakin was alone with Padmé.

"This doesn't concern you," Anakin said, not looking at him. "This is between my wife and me."

"Padmé, are you alright?" Palo asked. He spoke to her as though he were speaking to a child.

Padmé did not reply, but merely looked at him, and then back at Anakin. "I…I don't know," she replied.

Palo frowned, seeing how distraught she was. He turned to Anakin. "I'll have to ask you to leave," he said. "You've upset her, can't you see that?"

Anakin forced himself to contain his anger, knowing that an outburst would only serve to upset Padmé even more. "I am trying to help her," he said to Palo. "Something you haven't managed to do in the twenty years she has been in your care."

"That's it," Palo said. "You need to leave now," he told Anakin. "If you don't leave peacefully, I'll have no choice but to call security."

Anakin smirked. "Security?" he said. "I'd like to see that," he remarked.

Palo was unnerved by Anakin's confidence, and decided upon a different tactic. "Padmé, do you wish him to stay? Or go?"

Padmé looked at Anakin, and he could see the confusion and fear in her eyes.

"I am telling you the truth, Padmé," he told her softly. "I promise you."

Padmé wasn't so convinced. "I don't know what the truth is anymore," she told him. "Please leave. I…I need to be alone."

"You heard her," Palo said smugly. "Unless you want to try and bully her, too."

Anakin turned to Palo, a look of fury in his eyes. "I will leave," he said. "But this isn't the end of it, administrator," he said. "Once I have the proof I need, I will be back."

"Proof of what?" Palo asked. "You're as delusional as half the people in this facility," he added.

Anakin looked back at Padmé. "Take this," he said, removing the japor snippet from around his neck. "I gave this to you when we were children. I carved it from a japor snippet. You loved this, Padmé, you wore it always. Please take it."

Padmé hesitated, and then took the pendant from his hand.

"I'll leave now, not because of this imbecile, but because I don't want to upset you anymore," he said.

She looked up at him. "Thank you," she said, and then returned her gaze to the pendant in her hand.

Anakin turned to Palo. "Until we meet again, administrator," he said, and then he left.

Anakin did not stop walking until he was outside. He stopped as the emotions that he had managed to control gave way. Leaning up against the stone wall that encircled the facility, he put a hand over his eyes and wept.