A/N sorry I took so long to get this out, but I had a huge case of writers block. I'm still not pleased with the finally result but hey what are you gonna do? I want to thank everyone who left a review and favorited or followed my story, it really means a lot! Thanks for reading! Un-beta'd so all the typos and errors are mine (i hope they're not to distracting)
Disclaimer: I don't own any of this and I'm not making any money. I'm just doing this for fun.
"This is love, isn't it? When you notice someone's absence and hate that more than absence more than anything?More, even, than you love his presence?"
The refueling station Rex landed the Lambda-class shuttle in was almost empty at this time of day. Being in space for so long had caused Padmé's internal clock to become unreliable, she glanced at the large digital clock on the side of the faded blue building, with a flashing neon sign that read, "Caf House and Fuel."
It was almost dawn on Boz Pity; the nearest planet to the orbiting fuel station. Padmé was not fond of the idea of landing anywhere in a stolen imperial ship, but Rex informed her that the ship would be running on fumes before they even reached the outer-rim. So, she wasn't fond of the idea, but she was even less fond of drifting aimlessly through space. Padmé also couldn't deny the chance for a hot meal; the last time she ate was six hours ago, and they were all getting snappish with each other.
The stench of fuel and exhaust covered this place like a dense fog, when she stepped off the ramp and onto the black tarmac it tickled her nose; she sneezed three times in rapid succession. This orbiting station was mostly frequented by spice freighters, smugglers, and pirates because of its reputation for being able to find prostitutes and various illegal substances. The proprietor of the station was a pimp and a hustler, and according to Ahsoka a Jedi informant during the war.
"Are you sure it's safe coming here if he knows you're a Jedi?" Padmé fretted. Her brows furrowed in concern, and she cracked her knuckles; a nervous habit she'd thought she had broken years ago.
"I'll stay with the ship while you and Rex fill her back up and get food." Ahsoka explained easily, not bothering to turn from the control panel as she initiated the landing cycle.
Rex followed closely behind her; he tucked one of the smaller blasters they found on the ship into his well-worn jacket. She heard him cough when he reached the bottom and observed, "This place reeks worse than I remember."
Because of the large amount of fumes that starships released, the orbiting platform needed large exhaust vents and an air filtration center to clear the air and make it breathable for most beings.
Rex handed her a twenty-five credit chip and told her, "Just get us something that's cheap, it doesn't matter what. Meet me back here in twenty minutes this isn't a place you want to stay too long." Rex warned her.
"I'll comm you if there are any problems," Padmé promised. She turned and began to walk towards the diner. The diner was located in the middle of the complex; a flashing sign on the door proclaimed it was open. The door opened automatically when she approached and a chime signaled she entered.
The diner smelled like greasy food and smoke, and Padmé could feel her boots stick to floor when she approached the waitress at the counter.
"May I have a menu?" She asked politely, she tried not to stare at the large jagged scar that ran across the Twi'lek's face. The woman was wearing a dark purple uniform and a name tag that identified her as 'Asra'. The waitress reached under the counter and handed her a plastic menu. "Today's special is crab bisque served with fresh baked bread." The girl tonelessly informed her. Padmé looked at the yellowing walls and the booth with ripped upholstery repaired with tape, and couldn't imagine anything here being fresh.
She shook her head, "No thank you." She hoped her expression didn't convey any of the disgust she felt. Padmé's eyes quickly scanned the menu searching for something edible and cheap.
Before she could place her order with Asra a man's voice bellowed from the kitchen. "Asra, the boss has a job for you!" Padmé saw the young woman's jaw tighten and her eyes grow hard; she didn't yell back, but merely walked through the swinging doors and disappeared into the kitchen.
A few seconds later an older human woman dressed in the same uniform walked through the swinging doors and approached Padmé. "What can I get for you darlin'?" The woman's hair was too long for Padmé to able to make out her name, but she also had a scar that cut across her chin, though it had faded with age.
After Padmé placed her order she perched on a wobbly stool at the counter, and discreetly tried to brush crumbs off the counter before she laid her forearms on the sticky surface. The Imperial HoloVision news was on playing at a low volume; the popular reporter Ashii Nermani was giving the evening news report on Coruscant. The picture was all static and the audio kept cutting out so Padmé had to strain her ears to catch what the human woman was reporting.
"The suspected rebel was extradited to his home planet of- Imperial reports have confirmed that there were three more rebels that escaped custody- a former clone trooper, a Torgruta female, and a Human woman were last seen fleeing- any information please contact-." The picture finally cut out and was replaced by an out of range message accompanied by an annoying buzzing sound.
Padmé felt the blood drain from her face; she was suddenly freezing, she pulled her thin long sleeved shirt sleeves over her knuckles. She knew in herl mind that no one knew she was here, and Rex had removed the tracking system from the ship, but she felt as though a hundred eyes were watching her through the front window. She quickly turned around to look out the window to make sure she was alone, she felt foolish for doing it but she also felt safer after she had done it.
She jumped when the kitchen door suddenly swung open and the woman who took her order walked out holding a clear plastic bag and a drink carrier.
"Here ya go honey." The older woman smiled, "I put a cookie in there from the boss." She informed Padmé.
Confused Padmé shook her head, "I didn't see-,"
The woman cut her off, "No, but he saw you." She pointed to the corner where a small recording device sat.
Padmé felt herself tense; now she understood why she felt as though she was being watched. Padmé recalled what Ahsoka said about this man, he was a pimp, and she remembered how Asra stiffened when she was called back to do a "job" for him.
She tried not to show how unsettled she was, she gave the woman a tight lipped smile and said, "Tell him I said thank you." She swiftly turned around and hastily walked out of the diner, she tried not to make it look like she was running.
The brief walk from the restaurant to the ship was silent except for her light steps across the asphalt, she was the only one out there, but she still felt like she was being observed. She would have felt safer will her blaster and vowed never to go anywhere without it again, she didn't bother with the pretense of not being frightened, and ran up the still deployed ramp while she tried not spill the drinks.
Her heart was beating fast in her chest and she was slightly shaking from exerting so much energy with so little in her stomach. Ahsoka must have been alarmed when she heard her hurried footsteps on the gangplank; she exited the cockpit to investigate.
"Is everything alright?" She questioned Padmé when she saw her leaning against a wall as she tried to catch her breath.
"Yeah, everything is fine," Padmé reassured her, breathing heavily, "Let's just get out of here." She urged.
Ahsoka could probably sense her panic in the force-she didn't really understand how it worked-but she was thankful she didn't ask any questions; just returned to the cockpit and readied the ship for takeoff.
After she sat down on the surprisingly comfortable seat she tried to calm down and began to feel silly. She had much bigger threats to worry about than a creepy fueling station owner; she was a wanted criminal though she wasn't sure how much of her identity had been revealed on the evening news report.
When Padmé's hands no longer shook she traveled up to the cockpit to give Ahsoka and Rex their food. While they ate together Padmé explained what she saw on the Imperial HoloVision news, "They have our descriptions, and they know we stole an Imperial shuttle."
"It should only take us seven more hours to get to Pantora-,"
Padmé cut Ahsoka off, "You're not still serious about going to Pantora in this thing are you?" She inquired incredulously, her eyebrows raised. "You might have taken the tracking system out, but you can't erase the ship's serial number. We'll be detained before we even reach the planet's surface."
Ahsoka hesitated only a moment before speaking, "I've slipped past tighter planetary security than this during the war, this should be no problem."
Padmé couldn't believe what she was hearing, she turned to Rex in hope that maybe he had common sense where Ahsoka lacked.
"The Senator is right Ahsoka, it's too risky."
"Rex-!" Ahsoka started before being interrupted by him again. He spoke in a soft tone as he tried to get her to see reason.
"We do not doubt your abilities; we just need a plan with the least amount of negative outcomes as possible." Rex gave her a small smile and placed his hand on her knee.
Ahsoka nodded her head in assent and took a sip of her Jawa Juice; she absently stared at a spot above where Padmé sat. The cockpit was silent except for the sounds of people eating silently and the crinkle of the brown paper the sandwiches were wrapped in.
"There is a small moon just on the edge of the mid-rim where we can sell this and buy a new ship." Ahsoka said. "I've been there before; the woman who runs it is discreet and has no love for the Empire. It's an hour out of our way, but the time wasted is worth it, agreed?"
Rex and Padmé nodded their heads wordlessly; an uncomfortable silence filled the cabin, Padmé shifted in her seat and tried to think of something to say. She was always on friendly terms with Ahsoka, but their conversations never strayed far from Ahsoka's Jedi training or Padmé's work in the Senate. Now Ahsoka wasn't a Padawan learner and Padmé wasn't a Senator; they didn't have anything in common anymore.
"We'll be coming out of hyperspace in two hours to switch lanes," Rex informed them; before he could continue he tried to cover a large yawn with the back of his hand. Looking back down at the navigation computer he asked Ahsoka, "What are the coordinates for the moon? I can never remember."
Ahsoka noticed how exhausted Rex looked and waved him away from the computer. "Rex, let me worry about that; you need to get some rest." Rex looked as though he was about to protest but then decided it wasn't worth it. As Rex stood he brushed the crumbs off his lap and said a brief, "Goodnight." Over his shoulder as he stepped out of the cockpit.
Padmé sat down in the chair he had just vacated; she curled her knees under her body and propped her head up on her fist, and stared blankly ahead at the whirling lights of hyperspace. Ahsoka startled her when she reached over and began to program the coordinates into the navigation system. Padmé could tell that she was just as exhausted as Rex was; her normally vibrant skin was washed out and dark circles were visible under her tired eyes.
"You should get some rest as well, Ahsoka." Padmé encouraged.
Ahsoka shrugged her shoulders and rubbed her eyes with the base of her palms, "I'm fine; I took a little nap earlier."
Padmé gave her a disapproving look, "Ahsoka, go get some rest you look exhausted. I can watch over everything while you guys sleep," She saw Ahsoka get ready to voice some type of worry, she interjected, "And I promise if anything bad happens I will wake you."
Padmé moved to get ready to push Ahsoka out of the cabin, "Okay you win," She conceded raising her hands in surrender. Padmé's stern look melted into a smile and shooed her out of the pilot's seat. "Sweet dreams." She called to Ahsoka's back, who merely mumbled something under breath.
The cabin was then filled with the still silence only felt when in space. Padmé looked out of the front viewport and sighed. She finished the last bites of her sandwich leisurely and paced her sips of water so it would last her the rest of the trip. Padmé slipped off her boots and rolled off her socks in an attempt to get more comfortable in the hard, straight backed chairs. She stretched out her toes and winched when she noticed an ugly blister had formed on the back of her heel from where the tattered boots had chafed her. She sighed quietly again and admitted to herself that she was bored. When she took long trips like this with no one to talk to she would have her datapad to distract her, now along with all of her other belongings, it was destroyed when the "Red Lady" was shot out of the sky on Dxun.
She gazed around the cockpit in hopes that she would find something that could occupy her time. Her eyes landed on a paperback book tossed carelessly on the floor under the control panel. It must have belonged to one of the pilots Padmé surmised, she was thankful for the distraction until she read the title, "The Jedi Order Uncovered; A Guide to Understanding the Propaganda, Dogma, and Deceptions of the Jedi" Written by Doctor Lumus Rush & Professor Mena Tel.
Padmé let out a sigh of disgust has her eyes glanced over the summary, and then scoffed when she read the glowing reviews printed on the back of the book. She flipped through the book casually for a couple minutes before getting annoyed.
With nothing to distract her she stared straight ahead without thinking about anything. She wasn't sure how long she was zoned out before she felt it; it was barely even a whisper of a touch that tickled the base of her neck. She turned around thinking Rex or Ahsoka woke up but was greeted with empty space when she looked. She felt it again a moment later, it was stronger this time; an icy caress that traced the inside of her skull.
Padmé was uneasy, she had a bad feeling about what was about to happen, and then for not even a second she felt the distinct sensation of her body being invaded. Recognition dawned on her and panic bloomed inside her chest; she had felt this sensation before, when she still lived on Coruscant.
She wasn't sure if Anakin had done it on purpose, but there were times when she could feel him inside her; her vision would blur and she felt like she was being pushed out of her own body. He never mentioned it to her, and she never brought it up with him, she didn't want to embarrass him if it was on accident.
Anakin was always so sensitive.
Now she was sensing it again, it was much more forceful this time, and distinctly more malevolent than what she remembers feeling when it was Anakin. She purposefully erected all her mental barriers the way Obi-Wan had taught her to do. Whatever mental connection she had with Anakin had faded over the past ten years, but now she could feel it knitting itself back together again.
She screwed her eyes shut and began to take deep breaths; clearing her mind of any information that might lead him to her, or any knowledge of the twins existence.
After a couple minutes she felt as though she was alone again and opened her eyes. The gravity of the situation was not lost on her, Vader knew she was alive and there was nothing she could do about it while she was trapped on this ship for the next two hours.
XxX
The Imperial Shuttle landed in the middle of a junkyard on a small moon that orbited Malastare. The ominous gray clouds did nothing to help ease Padmé's sense of growing doom. They walked towards a small wooden house in the middle of the property; it had a faded green manual door, and a small dirty glass window.
Rex knocked loudly on the door while Ahsoka and Padmé stood behind him with their hoods concealing their faces. A woman's voice boomed through the door, "It's open." Rex looked over his shoulder to Ahsoka, who nodded her head. He twisted the small brass knob of the door and pushed it open.
Padmé was immediately hit with a wave of hot air and the smell of baking bread when she entered the small house. A large woman was seated behind a desk that faced the door; with a small blue that animal dozed peacefully at her feet.
The woman studied them over the rim of her glasses with a contemplative look on her face before breaking out into a broad grin.
"Come in! Come in! Get out of the cold, and have a seat." She ushered, pointing to a large red couch in the middle of the room. She stood up from her chair easily and walked from around the desk to stand in front of Rex.
"I have seen you around these parts in a while." She said, with a gap toothed smile. The woman was about the same height as Rex, and effortlessly reached over to give him a quick embrace.
"Not much of a reason to in these days." Rex offered "Helena, you know Ahsoka, and here is our friend, Padmé."
Padmé lowered the hood of the too big jacket she had borrowed from Rex and stepped forward to introduce herself, she offered her hand and said, "So nice to meet you Helena."
Helena gripped her smaller hand in between her two larger warm hands and gave a quick shake, "Likewise, now I have a feeling that this isn't a purely social visit." She released her hand and moved towards a plush dark brown chair.
They followed her to the sitting area and sat across from her on the crimson colored couch. The woman pulled out a pack of cigarra's from in between the chair cushion and lit it.
"We have an Imperial Lambda-class shuttle we need to get rid of, and fast." Ahsoka explained, "Can you help us?"
The woman took a deep drag before blowing the smoke out of her mouth; the woman wore a pensive look on her face, and sucked her teeth before she answered Ahsoka. "Sure, why not? I can strip it down and sell it for spare parts. I'm assuming that's what you flew in?"
"Yeah, that's the other thing; we need another ship. Do you have one?" Ahsoka questioned.
Helena chuckled, "This whole damn moon is filled with ships. The question is whether or not they can stay in the sky long enough to get you wherever you're goin'."
"Can they?" Padmé asked.
Helena laid her still burning cigarra in the glass ash tray on the table next to the chair, and gave her a serious look. "If I worked on them, you can bet your ass they will."
Helena leaned back in her chair and whistled at the animal still sleeping at the desk. Its ears perked up and lifted its head, "Go fetch Rip for me will ya." She commanded. The six legged blue creature obediently got up and bounded out of the small door built into the larger one.
While they waited for the creature to come back with whomever this Rip person was Ahsoka and Helena started up a conversation.
"How are you doing Ahsoka, I haven't seen you since you came here with that handsome Jedi master of yours."
"Master Anakin, you mean." Ahsoka guessed, shifting her gaze over to Padmé for a second.
Helena let out a burst of laughter, "No, he was much to pretty for my taste, the other one, with the beard." She supplied, her hands petting an invisible beard on her chin, still chuckling.
Padmé let out a quiet snort of laughter as Ahsoka answered her, "Oh, you mean Master Kenobi."
"Yes, that's the one! How is he doing?"
"He's alive." Ahsoka answered cryptically.
The woman's mouth downturned for a split second and there was a beat of silence before she said, "Well, that's good. Can I just say it was terrible what happened to the Jedi. No one deserves that."
Before Ahsoka could respond the door swung open and the blue creature ran in followed by a young pretty girl. She was the same height as Helena with the same dark complexion.
"Ahsoka and Rex, you remember my daughter Ripley." Helena introduced while standing up from the chair. Ripley gave them a small wave, and then turned to her mother. "What do you want?"
Helena was back at her desk and was looking at a datapad, "I need you to do inventory on the ship they just brought and see if it has any parts we don't have or need." Helena instructed her daughter, the girl wordlessly agreed and tied her long black hair in a knot on top of her head before leaving. "Rex, go with her." Ahsoka directed quietly. Rex obeyed and jogged out of the room to catch up with Ripley.
When Padmé gave her a quizzical look, Ahsoka quietly spoke out of the corner of her mouth, "Just making sure we get a fair trade."
Realization dawned on Padmé, and she knowingly nodded her head. It was quiet in the house save for the sound of the ticking of the timer on the counter and the light patter of rain hitting the window.
The timer suddenly dinged, and everyone's heads turned towards the oven. Helena placed the datapad on her desk, and strode towards the small kitchen area. "I made some sweet bread, do you girls want any?"
They both realized it may be a while before they would have an opportunity to eat again and leapt at the chance, in unison they answered, "Yes!"
Not fazed by their enthusiasm, she waved them over and told them to help themselves.
Padmé drizzled some sweet honey on the warm fluffy bread with a tiny silver spoon before taking a delicate bite, she moaned when she tasted it, and praised Helena around a mouthful of bread, "This is delicious."
Helena smiled, "Thanks, my momma taught me how to make it, all of you looked miserable when you walked in here. What have you gotten yourself into?" She asked, seriously. "I need to know if you being here is going to cause any trouble for me down the line."
Ahsoka swallowed quickly, and brushed a few crumbs from her mouth, "Telling you would put you and Ripley in trouble, just let us buy a ship and leave. I promise no harm will come to your family."
Helena gave both of them a wary look with a raised brow, "Alright, I'm deciding to trust you. All of you." She then turned her sharp gaze towards Padmé, and watched her. Padmé steadily met her gaze; she had stared down politicians and Sith lords (and sometimes one in the same), soon the hunger pangs became too strong to ignore and she looked down to grab another slice of bread.
XxX
Padmé sloshed through the mud on the journey to their newly acquired starship. The light rain was now a ferocious downpour, and heavy hard drops would sting the skin if left uncovered. Unable to see ahead of her, she followed the muddy boots of Rex who hiked in front of her.
Padmé was still unnerved by the way the woman watched her all day, it only took an hour for Rip to estimate how much the ship would be worth, and an equal and fair trade. Padmé was certain the woman recognized her; Ahsoka said the woman could be trusted, but Padmé had no doubt the woman would sell them up the river if Imperial agents came here looking for them, especially if they threatened her daughter.
She was so caught up in her thoughts, she didn't notice when Rex skirted around a small puddle. Her right foot got stuck in the hole and she lost her balance. Her hands flew up to stop herself from face planting in the mud; her palms met sharp pieces of gravel and mud squelched between her fingers, and under her fingernails. He knees slammed into the slippery ground and forced them to slide further apart. She lifted her head up to call out for them to wait when she felt it again; the sensation of cold fingers caressing along the inside of her skull. She screwed her eyes shut tight, and begged.
Please, not right now.
"Padmé…"
Her own name spoken by someone else in her head startled her, and her eyes flew open in shock.
"Padmé!" she heard a voice shout, and then a pair of worn muddy boots entered her field of vision. "Stop playing around in the mud; we have to go." She looked up at Ahsoka, and saw the teasing grin on her face. She reached out to the outstretched hand Ahsoka offered her, and carefully pulled herself out of the mud.
She thanked Ahsoka, and allowed her to lead her by the hand towards the ship, but her thoughts were still on what had just happened. She wasn't sure if she should tell them what happened, she didn't think they could do anything and it was just cause them to worry. On the other hand it was a problem that threatened them too, if Vader caught up to her she doubted he would do anything that would cause her to be permanently damaged (at least I hope not), but Ahsoka and Rex had no such assurance.
Padmé gripped Ahsoka's hand harder when she thought of Vader, why did she think he wouldn't harm her? He has done it before when he was angry with her; only moments after embracing her and telling her everything he had done was for her. Now after seven years of obeying his masters cruel bidding, he would probably have no problem snapping her neck if he was commanded. She tried to swallow the lump in her throat that formed when she thought about how dark her life turned out to be.
The ship was named "The Sun King" and was a newer model that thankfully included running water, and a private comm line. Padmé sat at the table in the back of the ship and removed her dirty boots and damp socks. She was filthy; dirt was caked under her nails, and had gotten into the cracks of the split skin on her knuckles. Her pants were beyond hope; they were ripped, dirty, and smelled like rain water and oil. She shrugged out of the waterlogged jacket and wrung it out before she laid it along the back of the bench in an attempt to let it dry.
She felt the ship begin it's ascent of this dreary moon, and back into space. Padmé was preparing to take a shower when she panic seized her. She couldn't remember if she brought the datadisk with her or if she left it on the shuttle. She frantically ripped the jacket off the bench and began searching through the deep and apparently numerous pockets. She was about to call out to Ahsoka and tell her to turn the ship around when she felt the hard plastic case of the disk. Relief washed over her and she left out a huge sigh.
She was clutching the disk to her chest when Ahsoka walked out of the cockpit to find her. "Everything okay back here? It felt like you were about to die."
Padmé didn't question how she would know what a person dying felt like and instead told her, "I thought I forgot this." She held up the disk in the air before placing it on the table.
"Yes, that would have been terrible." She said dryly. Padmé gave her a questioning look at her tone, and before she could ask what she meant by that, Ahsoka dismissively waved her hand, and spoke. "Ignore that I said that, I need to try to get in contact with Riyo before we make the jump to hyperspace."
Padmé took that to mean she wanted to sit at the table while she did that, "Okay, I was just about to take a shower anyway."
Ahsoka nodded her head, "Don't use all the hot water, I want in next."
"I'll try not to." Padmé grinned.
She padded softly on the cold floor across the small hallway into the 'fresher. The room was bigger than Padmé imagined, but still not what anyone would call luxurious. She reached in and turned the hot water faucet all the way to the left to let the room steam up.
She disrobed quickly, kicking the dirty clothes into a corner, and untying her hair from the tight pony tail on top of her head. The water was scalding when it touched her skin; she turned it down a little bit, and turned the cold water faucet on. When she adjusted the water temperature just right she placed her head under the shower head.
I should have used the comm to try to get in contact with Bail, and tell him what has happened. I forgot all about him and Flint and Pryia, what is happening to me?
Padmé was never this forgetful, particularly when it came to something as important to this. Maybe she still had some short term memory loss; she couldn't remember how long the doctor said it was supposed to last.
Maybe I'm just getting old.
Age was such a silly thing to be afraid of; everyone does it, even if it takes longer for some species. And in her life right now she had much bigger things to fear than aging.
There wasn't any soap, just a threadbare wash cloth hung on the silver railing in the shower. She started to scrub furiously at her skin; she pressed down so hard it started to become red. She was almost done when she felt it again; she was starting to become less afraid when it happened and more exasperated.
This time though, it wasn't a simple touch skimming her skull, but the feeling that someone was right behind her. In her rational mind she knew there was no one in the shower with her; she was still too nervous to look back and check. There was light sensation of a finger running along her naked spine; Padmé shivered.
"Tell me where you are."
The voice that spoke was the one that belonged to Anakin Skywalker, not the low intimidating tone of Darth Vader. Padmé was shocked into silence, and she didn't answer until the voice commanded again.
"Tell me where you are."
"No."
Anger rose inside her and brought a flush to her cheeks. She tried to block him out again, but he forced himself through her walls. The voice was lowered into a growl when it spoke again.
"Tell me."
"No, leave me alone."
Padmé began to shake she was so angry, she knew she wasn't the one who was enraged and she tried to calm herself down and banish him from her mind.
"Tell me!"
"No!"
He was finally so incensed that his grip on her mind loosened enough for her to push him out and bring up her mental barriers. Her breathing was heavy, and even though she was in the shower she could feel her body begin to sweat. She stood under the nozzle once more to clean up, and then hastily turned off the water and sprung out of the shower stall. She grabbed the sink in an effort to regain her balance when she slipped on a tiny puddle of water.
Padmé stood in the middle of the 'fresher naked and frightened, and tried to hold back the sobs that threatened to break free from her chest.
XxX
After she found a towel in the closet adjacent to the 'fresher and put on the clean clothes Helena offered them she felt more calm and collected after the incident in the shower. The clothes belonged to Ripley; they were a little too big for Padmé, but she was just thankful for dry clothes. Padmé's hair was still wrapped up in a towel when she walked over to the table in hopes of being able to talk with Ahsoka. She looked over just in time to see Ahsoka pull away from giving Rex a kiss. Neither of them looked embarrassed; Padmé doubted the flush on Rex's cheeks was from shame.
"Ahsoka, Can I talk to you about something?" Padmé asked quietly.
"Yeah sure, what do you need?" Ahsoka said lightly, not intending to move away from Rex. Padmé didn't know if she could talk about this with Rex around, it seemed very personal for reasons Padmé couldn't explain. Thankfully, Rex noticed her wide eyed expression, and took pity on her.
"I'll let you two have your girl talk, I'll be up front." He said, sliding out of the bench. She watched Ahsoka watch Rex stride towards the cockpit, before she turned to face Padmé.
"What did you want to talk about?" Ahsoka asked, turning her vibrant blue eyes on Padmé. It took Padmé a few seconds to find the right words, and stumbled over them when she spoke.
"I…I think Vader knows I'm alive." She finally stuttered out, it didn't make her feel better to get the words out, saying them out loud only caused her fear to solidify.
Ahsoka straightened up. "How do you know that? I checked the security recordings on Dxun; they don't even record. What happened in that interrogation room, Padmé?" Ahsoka gripped the table, and leaned forward as she questioned Padmé rapidly.
"Well…that one officer-Kazak, he did a DNA scan on me and knew who I was, but I shot him…" Padmé trailed off, "Ugh, I've been so sloppy, anyone with half a brain could follow the trail back to me." She shoved her head in hands, and berated herself.
"Hey, I can feel something else is wrong, what is it?" Ahsoka asked, and began to rub soothing circles on Padmé's back.
Her head was still covered by her hands so her words came out muffled, "He speaks to me…in my thoughts. I know it sounds crazy, but I'm not lying." She raised her head to look at Ahsoka, and was the verge on tears when she begged, "Please, I can't…the twins…he can't know about them. I don't care what happens to me, but I can't let him near them." She covered her eyes in a futile attempt to hide her tears.
Ahsoka gathered her up in her arms and rocked her while she cried silently; she whispered in her ear, "I do believe you. Anakin was very strong in the Force, and you two had a very close connection it's not so far-fetched that something like this could happen." Ahsoka paused for a moment, and cleared her throat, "And Padmé, you might not care what happens to you, but I do, and so does Rex, and I'm going to make sure you live long enough to see your children again, I promise."
Her words had calmed Padmé; she raised her head from Ahsoka's chest and wiped her eyes with back of her hand. Unwilling to address the scene that just happened, Padmé charged forward with another question, "What should I do?" she hated how small her voice sounded.
"I'll think of something, you should go to sleep." Ahsoka advised.
Padmé was too drained to even put up half a fight, she let Ahsoka drag her to the single bed and tuck her in. Ahsoka sat on the edge of the bed, and looked down at Padmé with a reassuring smile, "You'll feel better in the morning, I promise." Ahsoka leaned down to press a light kiss to her forehead.
"You don't have to coddle me, Ahsoka. I'm a big girl; I can take care of myself." She hated how petulant she sounded, but she hated being treated as some delicate flower even more.
Ahsoka got off the bed and went to the door to flick off the lights, "I know you are, but letting someone take care of you isn't a weakness." Ahsoka turned off the lights and walked out of the room, the automatic door sliding shut behind her.
Padmé curled onto her side and thought about Ahsoka's words; it took her a long time to fall asleep that night.