Some Father/Daughter time :D

Enjoy!

There was a loud clap of thunder outside of the apartment and Anakin's eyes flew open. It wasn't the storm that raged outside that had woken him though; it had been something else…

He lifted his head just slightly so that he could see if Padme had woken as well. She was sound asleep in his arms, and he could feel the steady rise and fall of her chest in his embrace. He smiled at how peaceful she looked, breathing in the scent of her hair as it brushed his cheek. Carefully, trying not to wake or disturb her in any way, Anakin lifted his arms and slowly released himself from their close hold of each other.

Once he'd cleared the most difficult obstacle, he gently eased himself off of the bed. He grabbed his shirt off of the edge of the bed, shrugging it on as he walked out of the bedroom. He was reminded of a similar walk the night he'd had the nightmare about Padme dying in childbirth, but he pushed such dark thoughts to the back of his mind.

Now that he was much more awake and alert of the world around him, Anakin was able to detect the strong sense of fear that had woken him in the first place. Frowning, Anakin followed the emotion to its source in the twins' bedroom, treading as lightly as possible just in case one of them was still asleep.

The door slid away and almost immediately Anakin could tell which twin was experiencing the fear. It was rather obvious since one twin was passed out in bed and snoring lightly while the other was huddled in the furthest corner of their bed shivering. Another clap of thunder, followed closely by a flash of lightning, startled the frightened one off of the bed and right into her father's arms in one second flat with a small squeak of, "Daddy!"

Anakin crouched down so that he could be level with his daughter, pulling Leia close into a protective hug as he snuck a glance at Luke. Of course the five year old boy was sleeping soundly through the storm, unperturbed by the tempest outside.

Leia trembled in his arms, obviously scared out of her mind. Anakin sighed a little before he tightened his hold on her, picking her up with a small grunt and allowing the little girl to bury her face into his neck. "Come on sweetheart…I got you…" he murmured, shutting the door behind him so Luke would remain undisturbed.

"I'm scared Daddy," Leia whimpered.

"Because of the storm?" he inquired, already confident that was the problem.

Leia nodded. "It's scary."

"It can be pretty and cool if you let it," Anakin said, trying to be helpful.

Leia shook her head adamantly. "No, it's—" there was another clap of thunder and the little girl jumped again in his arms with a small shriek, burying deep into her father's arms. "Scary!" she squeaked.

Anakin couldn't help but chuckle a little bit as he slipped into the kitchen, shifting to balance the little girl on his hip as he rifled through the cabinets for what he wanted. Finally he found the hot chocolate powder he kept on hand; he always had a stash of the powder somewhere so that the process would be one step shorter for making it. As he moved to mix the powder, sweetener, and water into the mugs, setting the family multiprocessor to agitate and heat, he started talking in soothing tones to Leia, who was still buried in his chest.

"How about we go sit on the couch on the vendetta and I can tell you some stories; would you like that?" he asked softly.

Leia pulled away, staring at him in wide eyed terror filled gaze. "But we can see the storm from the vendetta!"

Anakin chuckled softly. "Yes, we can; that's the point. We need to see the storm for my stories."

Leia blanched. "Why do you have stories about a storm?"

The multiprocessor chimed, signaling it was time to add the bantha milk. The multitasking was no trouble for Anakin, who was starting to adapt really well to fatherhood and the juggling that it demanded. "You'll just have to wait and see Princess," he said with a small smile. Leia's nose scrunched up in distaste, but her retort was cut off as another, particularly loud clap of thunder sounded outside. She clutched tighter to Anakin, who smiled slightly.

"If you don't want to watch the storm you can continue using me as your hiding spot," he joked lightly.

Leia, being a terrified five year old, did not catch his humor. Her high pitched complaint almost drowned out the chime of the multiprocessor that signaled the heating cycle right before it was ready. "I am not using you to hide!" she protested.

Anakin fixed his daughter with a serious look. "You can come to me for anything Leia; because you're afraid, because your upset, because you want to talk—anything."

Leia leaned her head against his shoulder once more. "Alright Daddy…"

Anakin smiled a little. "Don't forget it."

"I won't," Leia mumbled as the multiprocessor chimed one final time. Anakin's smile grew as he finally retrieved the mugs of steaming hot chocolate, deciding to risk it and use the Force to carry the mugs to the vendetta. Leia snuggled into his arm as he set the mugs down on a side table, sitting down on the couch with her. Leia buried deep into his arms, her face turned away so that she didn't have to see the storm outside. Gently, Anakin pressed one of the hot chocolate mugs into the little girls hand, who took it eagerly. For a moment they both sat in silence, cuddled close together and sipping on the hot chocolate before Anakin suddenly spoke.

"Did you know that thunderstorms are just the Force having a sneezing fit?" he asked evenly.

Leia—always the practical one—snorted. "Yeah right Daddy."

"It's true!" Anakin said earnestly.

"Then what's the lightning?" Leia challenged.

Anakin gestured with his organic hand towards the raging storm outside. "It's the sky jumping when it's startled."

"And the rain?" Leia asked with a small smile, peeking up at him from her curled position at his side.

"It's crying because its sneezes are scaring beautiful girls like you when it didn't mean to, so it's upset. The storm doesn't mean to scare anybody; it can't help it."

Leia frowned at her father, and Anakin was pleased to see that she didn't notice the next clap of thunder. "That's not true," she said, though now she looked a little guilty for judging too quickly.

Oh, the mind of a five year old.

Anakin pulled his daughter closer, nodding outside where the rain was pouring heavily over the planet around them. "Perhaps, but I do know that the storm does not mean you harm Princess. There's nothing to be frightened of. Besides, so long as I'm here nothing will hurt you."

Leia's brown eyes peered up at him, the hot chocolate in her tiny hand practically forgotten, her brow furrowed with doubt. "Do you promise Daddy?"

Anakin smiled at her, rubbing her tiny arm soothingly. "I promise Leia." He kissed the crown of her head and the little girl situated herself so that she remained curled up at her father's side, her eyes peering curiously up at the storm. Anakin kept his soothing motions on her arm constant, watching the storm with her while sneaking glances at her from the corners of his eyes. Gradually, she was no longer looking at the storm in fear but in wonder, starting to appreciate the storm for the beauty that it truly presented.

Anakin's smile grew slightly as he watched her, waiting until her hot chocolate was done before he started to gently hum. It was just a ballad he'd known as a child, but it's tune was soothing. Even now Leia's eyes were drooping, getting closer and closer to sliding shut. The soft vibrations in Anakin's chest as he hummed to his daughter served to further sooth her as she curled closer to her father. Tenderly, Anakin took the hot chocolate cup from his daughter, setting it aside safely on the small table beside the couch. The little Leia's eyes eventually slid shut, her tiny mouth slightly agape as she slept soundly on her father. Anakin watched her sleep in silence for a few moments, gently smoothing her hair down to tame any unruly flyaways. Absentmindedly he watched the storm, still humming the ballad as he finished his own hot chocolate.

Silently, he set the mug aside before gathering the sleeping child up in his arms as carefully as he could, holding her close to his chest. He navigated his way through the halls of the apartment back to the twins' room, opening the door with the Force since his hands were preoccupied with holding little Leia. Luke's snoring greeted him immediately, and Anakin couldn't help but roll his eyes slightly. Hopefully whenever Luke's training got so far along he would become a light sleeper.

Treading carefully, Anakin settled Leia back into her bed, pulling the covers over her and making sure her precious—and very worn out—blankie was tucked beside her. Before leaving, he planted a soft kiss on the head of each twin, smiling at how peaceful they looked.

He stopped in the doorway, eyes grazing one last time over the twins. "I love you," he whispered.

"Daddy, love you more…" he heard a little voice whisper as he was turning away. He felt warmth flood his heart and he turned his head to look at his daughter, already fading back into unconsciousness with the most angelic expression on her face.

"Goodnight Princess," he whispered before he finally let the door shut behind him and made his way back to bed.