This chapter deals with the aftermath of the Geonosis encounter for Anakin and Padme and deals with some medical stuff that I really wanted to include, but I am not a medical professional, so the descriptions might not be quite right. I guess I just want you to bare in mind that the force is involved with everything. (Oh, this is so going to backfire on me!)

SeraphimXII: I'm glad you liked it, and I thought it would make a change, seeing the events from an unexpected point of view. Dear old Boba has had a rough time of it lately, so I thought he needed a little bit of comfort at the end of things. I'll endeavor to update soon. Thanks again.

Shinen no Hikari: As you are clearly not enjoying this story, please remember that no one is forcing you to read it! And considering what this next chapter has in store, you are seriously going to hate me, so you should probably just put this story aside. I completely understand.

"I won't be swayed in this, Master."

Anakin lay in the large bed, his left arm still bandaged at the stump, awaiting the operation to attach the internal structures that would allow for the prosthetic to connect properly. Yoda thought he looked overly pale, his piercing blue eyes still slightly out of focus from the pain medication and the haunting aura of one who had faced the power of a Sith lord. Anakin was exceptionally talented, but still a padawan with so much to learn, so much to give to the order. And he was throwing it all away, right before Yoda's eyes.

"What you think is right, you must do, my padawan, of course," said the Jedi Master, sitting up on the bed. He was reminded of his brief encounter with Obi-Wan under similar circumstances, both men hurting and somewhat confused.

"But, Anakin, not to be taken lightly, this decision of yours. Spoken with Padme, have you?"

Anakin looked down at the sheets that covered his legs, the pattern of the Naboo royal house embroidered on the thick material. The closest decent medical facility that was now in friendly territory had turned out to be on the Naboo home world and they had remained on the planet while their recovery was taken care of, Senator Amidala had insisted after she considered herself wholly responsible for the casualties from the Geonocian encounter. The Naboo Queen had taken things a step further and the entire party was being treated by her personal physicians and technicians within the Palace complex of Theed. Trying to avoid drawing too much attention to the situation, Yoda had agreed and he had sent Mace back to inform the council of events on Geonosis.

Now he was presented with his lovesick padawan taking the impossible road of leaving the Jedi order for the sake of the former Senator. Padme had resigned as the representative of Naboo almost as soon as she had recovered enough to understand the consequences of her actions to rescue her Latterie. Even reassurances that the Sith had obviously manipulated the situation and had been planning to start a war to destabilize the region for some time, she had been unable to accept that it was not, in part at least, her fault that the conflict had escalated into war. Anakin was more determined than ever to be at her side, to be the rock she had been for him during his recent time on Tatooine.

"She's still in surgery for the.." he was still having trouble coming to terms with the severity of her injuries and so was she, another reason he had to be strong, had to be there for her. "…the hysterectomy."

No children. Ever. It had devastated her. The energy Anakin and Obi-Wan had channeled into her body had prevented her from bleeding to death internally, but the structure of the uterus had been ruptured and the damage had not been repaired in time to save the organ. Further complications had led to her eggs being effectively unharvestable, despite the best efforts of the Naboo surgeons. Jedi healers had been sent for, but arrived too late to help with the damage, the force seemed to be playing a cruel joke on the poor child. Now she was undergoing the last of the surgeries to remove the remaining damaged tissue.

Yoda could feel the strong emotions rolling off his padawan, emotions that betrayed his true and powerful feelings for Padme, feelings that could not easily be released into the force, as he had hoped the boy would be capable of. He was a powerfully sensitive conduit of the force and the thought of this boy outside the protection of the order concerned him greatly. But then there was the fact that the order itself was under siege constantly from the oppressing power of the dark side that had so clouded their abilities lately. He was becoming more convinced that removing this boy from that oppression was the right thing to do. But there was a feeling of tremendous doubt in his perceptions. The force had been his guide for so long, and now with increasing frustration, it was lacking in any guidance or seemed to send conflicting and confusing signals to him. How was he supposed to tell anymore?

He lifted Anakin's chin so that he could gaze into those troubled eyes again, the thick circles beneath them draining further color from his face. He had grown fond of the boy over the last ten years. A fiercely driven, enquiring mind had surpassed Yoda's expectations again and again, and his lightsabre skills and force abilities had rivaled every padawan in the order. His shining beacon within the living force had been an inspiration to many younglings, who considered the team of Yoda and Anakin to be the ultimate goal to aim for. Now, it was clear he was driven with a different purpose, one he would not be swayed from and he would pursue it with the same passion he had approached his training, of that Yoda was certain.

He knew it was pointless to argue the point further, the boy had made up his mind and nothing the green gnome said would dissuade him from his current course. He breathed deeply for a moment and leant in to touch their foreheads together for a brief moment, before he drew back.

"With the council I must consult. Much to inform them of I have. Like this they will not. But your side they will need to hear. Beside you I will remain." Anakin looked up, nodded and let his head rest against the pillows, his conversation with Yoda tiring him more than he had expected.

"When would you want to do this?" asked Anakin, feeling the weight of the Council suddenly falling on him, it seemed. Yoda was about to speak, when he sensed the approach of a visitor to the room.

"Later will we talk more, my pad-" he had to correct himself, "..Skywalker... Now, someone else in need of your council is." A long smile spread over his face and he turned to the door.

Sabe entered after a quiet knock and she bowed to the occupants.

"Forgive me, Masters," she began, coming into the room, "but Master Anakin asked me to inform him once Padme was out of surgery."

"Yes, thank you, Sabe," said Anakin, already starting to get up gingerly, Yoda assisting his former padawan. "I'll be there shortly."

She bowed and left the Jedi to prepare for the short walk to Padme's room. He stood tall behind Yoda who briefly nodded to the young man, sending his own love for the boy through their link, aiding Anakin's energy reserves for the vigil Yoda knew the young man would soon be undertaking at Padme's side.