Chapter 33

Obi-Wan had almost fallen asleep when he received word that Anakin had returned to the ship. deciding that he needed to deliver the bad news sooner rather than later, he got out of bed, got dressed, and headed to the shuttle bay.

As soon as he saw Anakin's face, Obi-Wan could see that the trip to Naboo had been worthwhile. Anakin looked much more relaxed that the last time Obi-Wan had seen him.

"Welcome back," Obi-Wan said. "You look well rested."

Anakin smiled. "Twenty -four hours spent with my family is like a tonic," he said.

"I'm sure," Obi-Wan said. "It must have been difficult to leave."

"It was," Anakin said. "I want to know about your conversation with Organa," he said. "I'm starved. Join me in the officers' mess?"

"Lead the way," Obi-Wan said.

Obi-Wan stifled a yawn as Anakin replicated himself something to eat.

"You want anything?" Anakin asked.

"No thank you," Obi-Wan said. "I never eat in the middle of the night."

Anakin laughed. "Sorry, I guess my chronometer is still on Naboo time," he said as he sat down with his tray. "One of the things I hate most about space travel."

"One of the many things I hate," Obi-Wan agreed.

Anakin smiled. "So how did it go?" he asked. "Did you talk to him?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "I did," he said. "I'm afraid it wasn't too encouraging."

Anakin looked at him with a frown. "Why doesn't that surprise me?"

Obi-Wan shrugged. "We were right, Anakin," he said. "Tatooine is simply too obscure to be of interest to the Republic at this time."

"Damn it," Anakin muttered with a frown.

"However," Obi-Wan said. "All is not lost. He offered to send some advisors to help you set up a government, and promised to keep an eye on the situation here. Perhaps if Tatooine can establish itself as a viable trading pattern, the Republic will reconsider including it."

Anakin nodded, the frown not leaving his face. "I don't need his advisors," he said. "Fat, paper -pushing bureaucrats who know nothing about this planet and its unique needs."

Obi-Wan couldn't help but chuckle. "Indeed," he said. "So what now?"

"Now we do it ourselves," Anakin said. "Where is Rex?"

"Asleep I imagine," Obi-Wan said. "You do know it's past midnight locally, don't you?"
Anakin smiled. "I do now," he said. "Very well, I'll meet with him and you in the morning. I'd like Padmé to be in on the planning. She knows a thing or two about running a planet."

"She does indeed," Obi-Wan said. "Very well. If you don't mind, I'd like to return to my bed now. I'm not as young as I used to be."

Anakin chuckled. "Sleep well, old friend," he said.

Obi-Wan left the mess hall, leaving Anakin alone to finish his meal. It bothered Anakin that the Chancellor had not agreed to pull Tatooine under the protection of the Republic. He'd thought Bail Organa was a more intuitive person; but clearly he'd overestimated him. Or perhaps being the Chancellor had narrowed his point of view... I don't need him, he decided. One day he'll be asking Tatooine to join the Republic, and then we'll be able to negotiate from a position of power. Deciding to get a few hours of sleep, Anakin handed his tray to a passing droid and headed to his quarters.

As he reached his bedroom, Anakin tossed his bag onto the bed. He opened it up to pull out the items he needed, and frowned when he saw a data disc that he knew he hadn't place in the bag. He picked it up and walked over to the computer and inserted it into the data drive. He sat down as it engaged, and felt a rush of emotion when he saw the images on the screen. It was a short video of the tiny twins growing inside of his wife's womb. He smiled as he watched the tiny babies, amazed by how well formed they were already. "Thank you, Angel," he said as the video ended, missing his wife desperately at the moment. He turned off the computer and headed back to the bed, hating the thought of sleeping without Padmé. He got undressed and got into bed, telling himself that it wouldn't be long before they would be together again. And with those thoughts, he drifted off to sleep.

The next morning

The twins suns of Tatooine shone relentlessly in the clear blue sky as Anakin made his way to the property that had once belonged to Jabba the Hutt. Captain Rex and Naaviva were already at the site. Anakin was rather surprised to see the two of them together. Naaviva smiled when she saw Anakin.

"Welcome back!" she said, giving him a hug. "Did you have a good trip?"

"Yes, it was good to see my family again, even for a short time," Anakin said. "How are things going here?"

"They're going well," Rex said, looking up at the framework of the new building. "I've had men working around the clock, so we're in good shape."

Anakin nodded. "I want to talk to you about something," he said. "Let's go somewhere to get out of the sun," he said.

"I have a tent set up nearby," Rex said. "Follow me."

Anakin and Naaviva followed Rex to a tent that sat nearby. They went inside and sat down.

"What's up, boss?" Rex asked.

"I need to address the people of Mos Espa," Anakin said. "They need to know what's going on, that they are no longer slaves. I need to make sure they know that things are under control, and that they don't need to worry about another dictator taking control of them."

"How are you going to do that?" Naaviva asked.

"Boonta Eve," Anakin said. "A large arena outside of town. We need to send word to everything in town to come there to hear what I have to say."

"We can go door to door if we need to," Naaviva said, looking at Rex. "Your men can help, right?"

"Yeah they can," Rex said.

"But no helmets," she said. "They'll only scare people."

Anakin smiled, seeing a new side of Naaviva. "But before we do that, we need to form a plan for a government, even if it's just a temporary one."

"And you're taking the lead, right?" Rex asked. "You're the natural choice, Anakin."

"No, I'm not," Anakin said. "You are."

"Me?" Rex said. "Are you serious? You want me to rule this planet?"

"Why not?" Anakin asked. "You're a great leader," he said. "Good in a crisis, smart...and you're honest. A rare quality for a politician, but a good one."

Naaviva laughed, and linked an arm through Rex's. "I think you'd be a wonderful leader," she said. "And I'd be happy to help you. If you think that's okay, Anakin."

Anakin smiled. "I think that's a wonderful idea," he said. "You too would make a great team."

Rex looked at Anakin, and then at Naaviva with a shake of his head. "I think you're both out of your minds," he said.

Later that night

Anakin, Obi-Wan, Rex and Naaviva had spent the better part of three hours in conversation, ironing out the details of the provisional government. Padmé took part in the conversation via holonet, and had a lot of very useful ideas to share.

"I think we're in business," Rex said as they concluded their meeting. "I just hope I can live up to your expectations, Anakin."

"You've never let me down before, Rex," Anakin said. "And you won't do so now."

Rex smiled. "Good night," he said, and then left with Naaviva. Anakin sat back down to speak to his wife alone.

"I think that went very well," Padmé said. "It's very exciting to be a part of this. Thank you for including me, Ani."

"Thank you for your expertise," Anakin said. "I'm a novice here. You're the one with experience."

Padmé smiled. "You know, I had another idea, but didn't want to say it in front of the others."

"What is it?" he asked.
"I think you should use Naaviva as the face of this new government," she said.

"Really?" Anakin asked.

Padmé nodded. "Yes, she's perfect. Think of it, Ani; she's a former slave. She's a symbol of this movement of yours. And she's very engaging and likable. Granted, she's too young and inexperienced to be a real leader, but I think she'd make a valuable figurehead. And who knows? She might surprise you."

Anakin nodded. "I think you're onto something here," he said. "Perhaps I should introduce her when I make my address at Boonta Eve."

"I wish I could be there to see that," she said. "Perhaps you could broadcast it. I think the people of the whole planet should be able to see that, not just those who are present."

"Already covered," Anakin said. "We'll be broadcasting to the whole planet. I'll have my crew send it to you as well."
"Wonderful," she said with a smile.

"How are Luke and Leia?" Anakin asked. "All pumped about their birthday?"

"Oh you know it," Padmé said with a laugh. "Only 12 days now, don't you know."

"I know," he said. "It will be nice to make some good memories for that day."

Padmé nodded. "I agree. I was thinking of having their party up at the lake house."

"Great idea," he said. "I haven't been up there in a while. Lots of happy memories there," he said with a smile.

Padmé smiled too. "Yes, lots of happy memories. You need to get to bed," she said. "Big day tomorrow."

"Yes, a very big day," Anakin said. "I'll see you soon, Padmé. I love you."

"I love you too," she said. "Sweet dreams."

The next day

Naaviva and Rex, along with a handful of unmasked members of Rex's legion were up early the next morning. They dispersed throughout Mos Espa to deliver the message about the upcoming event at Boonta Eve. Their message was met with a mixture of reactions: some interested, some doubtful, a few downright hostile. But they managed to get people talking, which was the point of the exercise.

At Boonta Eve, Anakin stood looking up at the empty stands, waves of memories coming fast and furious.

"This is a big day for you, Anakin," said Qui-Gon as he appeared beside Anakin. "Almost as big as that day all those years ago when you won that race."

Anakin nodded. "That seems so long ago," he said. "The galaxy seemed so full of possibilities, so full of hope back then. Little did I know what was in store for me."

Qui-Gon frowned. "You were victimized, Anakin," he said. "As soon as Palpatine set eyes on you, he had his sights set on you. If only the Jedi Council had seen what was happening before it was too late."

"If only you had survived," Anakin said. "I've often wondered how different my life would have turned out if you had."

Qui-Gon smiled. "It's impossible to say," he said. "You may have been destined to follow the path you took, Anakin. The Force may have intended that you fall to the dark side."

Anakin frowned. "To what end?" he said. "I caused such destruction, such pain to so many people, including my wife. I all but destroyed the Jedi...what reason could the Force have had for all that to happen?"

"I cannot answer that," Qui-Gon said. "The Force moves in mysterious ways."

Anakin nodded. "It does indeed," he said. He saw a small shuttle land nearby, and realized that the technical crew had arrived. "Time to get to work," he said.

Qui-Gon smiled. "You'll do well, Anakin," he said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm very proud of you."

"Thank you Master," Anakin said. "I wouldn't be here today to do this if it hadn't been for you giving me the kick it the pants that I needed all those months ago. I owe you everything."

Qui-Gon shook his head. "You owe me nothing, Anakin." And with that he disappeared. Anakin took a deep breath, and then walked over to meet the technicians who were unloading equipment. Show time, he thought.