Chapter 39
Padmé awoke with a start. She was discombobulated for a moment until she realized what had happened. She sat up, a twinge of pain in her back. I hope no one saw me sleeping in here, she thought anxiously as she smoothed down her hair. She walked over to the bacta tank and watched Anakin for a few minutes before going to use the bathroom.
It was mid-afternoon when Padmé arrived back home, deciding that Obi-Wan probably needed a break. Besides, the two babies inside of Padmé were telling her that they were hungry.
"Hello Obi-Wan," Padmé said as she entered the kitchen. He was sitting at the table having a cup of tea.
"Hello," Obi-Wan said. "The children are having a nap, and your parents are at your sister's house," he reported. "How's Anakin doing today?"
"Better," Padmé said as she opened the fridge to make herself some lunch. "The doctor said that he might be taken off of life support by the end of the week."
"That's wonderful," Obi-Wan said with a smile. "I can't believe that odious Donnovan actually gave you some good news."
"He didn't," she said. "It was a different doctor this morning."
"Ah, well that makes total sense," Obi-Wan said. "I have to wonder about why that man became a doctor with such a sour disposition," he pondered.
Padmé frowned. "Part of me thinks he has something against Anakin personally," she said.
"That thought hadn't occurred to me," Obi-Wan said. "Perhaps he knows about Anakin's past."
Padmé nodded. "I wondered that myself," she said. She sighed. "I'll just be happy when all of this is behind us," she said as she sat down with her meal.
Obi-Wan smiled at her sympathetically. "We all will," he said. "Luke and Leia miss their father a great deal."
"I know they do," Padmé said. "I've considered bringing them in to see him, but I'm afraid it might upset them seeing him the way he is now."
"It might," Obi-Wan said. "They are very young, after all."
"Not much more than babies," she said quietly. She ate her meal in silence for a few moments as she struggled with her emotions.
Obi-Wan sensed how she was struggling. He'd come to know her very well over the past several years.
"What if I came with you with the children?" he suggested. "I would be able to take them home if they couldn't handle seeing their father."
Padmé looked at him and smiled. "That's a wonderful idea, Obi-Wan," she said. "Thank you, my friend."
Obi-Wan returned her smile. "We live to serve, milady."
Later that afternoon, Obi-Wan and Padmé brought the twins to the hospital. Luke and Leia were excited at the thought of seeing their father, for it had been some time since they had seen him. Padmé had done her best to explain Anakin's current condition to the twins, but wasn't sure how well they understood. She only hoped that seeing him unconscious and on life support wouldn't be too difficult for them.
"Here we are," Padmé said as they reached Anakin's room.
"Where's Daddy?" Luke asked as they ran into the room. Both twins stopped when they saw the bacta tank, the sight of their father confusing them.
"Luke, Leia, I told you that Daddy was sleeping," Padmé said gently. "He's recovering from an accident, and the bacta in the tank is helping him get better."
Luke and Leia held tightly onto their mother's hand as they watched their father in the tank. They weren't certain if they were afraid or not as they watched Anakin. They sought out his mind, as he had taught them to do, and frowned when they were unable to reach him. Padmé looked down at them, wishing she had her husband's ability to read minds.
"I can't see him," Luke said, looking up at her mother.
"He's right there, Luke, " Padmé said.
"No Mommy," Leia said. "He means he can't hear him. In his head. Neither of us can."
The look in her twins' eyes broke Padmé's heart. "He's asleep," she told them. "But he won't be for long. Soon you'll be able to hear him and talk to him again."
Obi-Wan stood behind them, sensing the children's ambivalence. "Come along, children," Obi-Wan said, stepping forward. "Let's go get some ice cream from the cafeteria."
Luke and Leia left happily with Obi-Wan, the promise of ice cream putting a small smile on their faces. Padmé looked at Obi-Wan, grateful for his intervention.
Padmé sat on the side of the bed after Obi-Wan had left with the twins. She watched Anakin, wishing again with all her heart that all of this was behind her.
"Oh, you're here again."
Padmé turned, startled, and was dismayed to see Dr. Donnovan standing there.
"Yes I am," she said, standing up. "Is that a problem?"
"No," Donnovan said, scanning over the control panel. "Just so long as you stay out of my way."
Padmé frowned, deciding that she'd had enough. "Okay, I've had it," she said. "I've taken your rudeness, your coldness and your unprofessional attitude. If there's a reason you're treating me this way, then please, tell me."
Donnovan turned his eyes to her. They were slate grey, and utterly cold. "I took an oath to save lives," he said. "And I've worked hard for more than twenty years doing just that. But when I'm put in a position where I have to save the life of a mass murderer, I have serious ethical qualms."
Padmé was shocked, so shocked that she was momentarily rendered speechless. That explains it all, she thought. He hates Anakin because he was Darth Vader...he still thinks of him as Darth Vader.
"I understand," she said at last. "I know all about Anakin's past, I know the crimes he committed. He doesn't expect to be forgiven for that past, but has vowed to spend the rest of his life atoning for it. I don't expect that any of what I've said will change your opinion of him, but..."
"No, it will not," he cut in. "I don't care how sorry he is," he said. "He killed countless people, including women and children. He killed without mercy, without compunction. All the remorse in the universe cannot make up for that. Remorse cannot bring back the lives of those whom he murdered."
Padmé fought hard not to cry, for his words were hitting her hard. Donnovan left the room at this point, and Padmé sat down on the edge of the bed. It was then that she broke down and cried.
"How is your ice cream, younglings?" Obi-Wan asked as they sat in the cafeteria.
"Good," Luke said.
"It's good," Leia agreed.
Obi-Wan could see that the twins were contemplative, and that seeing their father had upset them, even if they couldn't verbalize it.
"Your daddy is going to be just fine," Obi-Wan told them. "I know it was probably a little frightening to see him like that, but he's going to be fine. He's very strong."
"We know," Leia said with a frown. "What happened to his hands, Obi-Wan? And his feet?"
The child's question gave Obi-Wan pause. How do I tell them what I did to their father? How do I tell them what he did? They love him so purely and innocently...it would destroy them to know of Anakin's dark deeds...
"Your daddy had a serious accident just before you were born," Obi-Wan said. "Do you remember when you first met him how he was wearing a mask and the black suit?"
The twins nodded simultaneously.
"He had to wear those things because of the accident he had," Obi-Wan said. "The doctors gave him artificial hands and feet, but now he's going to have real ones again. Do you understand?"
The twins didn't completely understand what Obi-Wan had told them, but were distracted. Each of the twins had felt their mother's despair, and were close to tears. Obi-Wan sensed their distress and frowned. "What's wrong?" he asked. "What do you sense?"
"Mommy is sad," Luke said, looking at Obi-Wan with eyes that shone with unshed tears. "Really sad!"
Leia nodded, agreeing with her brother's assessment.
"Then let's go to her," Obi-Wan said, standing up. "Your mother needs us."
Luke and Leia stood up too and left with Obi-Wan, leaving their barely touched ice cream behind.
Padmé had just emerged from the bathroom when Luke and Leia ran into the room. She was surprised to see them so soon, but when they ran to her and threw their arms around her tightly, she knew why they had come. It wasn't the first time that Luke and Leia had sensed their mother's emotions; as the children of the Chosen One, they were gifted with tremendous insight.
Padmé hugged the twins tightly, not saying a word, knowing that no words were needed between them. "It's okay," she told them soothingly. "It's going to be okay, I promise."
Obi-Wan stood in the doorway, watching as Padmé and her children comforted one another. He could sense how upset Padmé was, but wasn't sure he should ask what was bothering her. He did, however, have a very good idea what it was that had her so upset, and he decided to see if he was correct. He walked over to the control panel that reported Anakin's vital signs. It also had the names of the nurse on duty as well as the attending physician. When he saw the name Donnovan, Obi- Wan frowned. You've gone too far this time, he thought.
"I'll be back," he told Padmé.
She looked up at him. "Where are you going?"
"To right a wrong," he told her. "One that's gone too far. I promise you, Padmé, it will go no farther." And with that he left.