Intensive Care Room
Polis Massa
8 hours later
Padme Naberrie Amidala Skywalker stroked her baby son's bald little head, "Hey, wake up, little guy. You need to eat a little bit more."
Luke slumbered on determinedly, his little eyes screwed up against any attempts to wake him.
Padme looked up helplessly at the older version of her daughter, who smiled sympathetically. "Don't worry about it. He had a good feeding 2 and a half hour ago. He's just worn out. Busy day."
"Indeed it has been," the Senator from Naboo said with a deep sigh, even as she cast a loving glance at her baby daughter, who was wrapped up securely in the arms of Older Leia.
"Padme."
Padme jerked in surprise and turned toward the med bed where her horribly burned husband was lying in a cocoon of technology.
"Anakin?" she whispered in disbelief.
"Padme."
Older Luke reached out to the baby in his Alter mother's arms and said, "You should get up, Mom. Let him know you are truly Ok."
Padme relinquished her precious burden and rose shakily to her feet. Luke offered his other arm to her and she clutched it, more for emotional than physical support. These last few days had been completely overwhelming with the ascension of Palpatine to Emperor, the death of the Republic, her husband's fall to the Dark Side and subsequent attack on both the Jedi younglings and herself, Palpatine's death, and finally Anakin's return in a nearly dead condition.
"Ani?" she whispered softly.
The blue eyes were open and widened at the sight of her, "Padme ... Ok?"
"Yes, I'm Ok, Ani," she replied tenderly. She was really angry at him right now but she also loved the man. Given that he was in critical condition, she'd wait on reaming him out.
"Sorry, Padme. So sorry."
His burned face, covered with a mask pushing oxygen into his damaged lungs, scrunched as if he was going to cry. But he didn't.
Because, she realized with reeling horror, he probably couldn't. His tear ducts were almost certainly damaged since everything else was. She wondered if he could truly even see her.
"I am sorry too, Anakin," she replied softly. She wouldn't yell at him, but she needed time to process what had happened before offering quick forgiveness.
"Baby?" Anakin whispered.
"The babies are fine," Padme replied, her own eyes filled with tears which spilled out onto her cheeks. "We had twins."
There was more agonized wrinkling of the burned face, "Twins?"
"A boy and a girl, Ani. I named them Luke and Leia."
"Babies ... babies ..."
"He's getting worn out," Older Luke murmured. "I think you'd better let him stop talking."
"We're fine, Anakin," Padme finished. "Don't talk anymore. Just rest and heal."
/
Next door to med suite
"Murdered younglings he did!" Yoda said.
"He'll have to stand trial," Kenobi continued wearily.
"Under whose authority?" Leia demanded irritably.
There was a dreadful pause as the males in the room exchanged glances.
"The Republic ..." Bail Organa began doubtfully.
"Is dead," Leia finished harshly. "The Jedi Order, as you know it, is dead. We didn't stop Order 66 in this timeline so I'm afraid most of the Jedi have been slaughtered."
"Order 66?" Bail asked in confusion.
"It's what made the clones turn on the Jedi," Leia explained gravely, glancing through the transparisteel window where her brother was hovering over Darth Vader's still form. Luke was, she knew, bonded closely to their Alter father and was using his considerable expertise in Force healing to help the man not just live, but heal.
A little. Leia had known that her biological sire had been badly injured but this ... this was beyond belief. It was incredible that he had survived the fiery flows of Mustafar.
"The clones have a chip in their heads with numerous commands imprinted. One was Order 66, which allowed the leader of the Republic to order the destruction of the Jedi," she explained.
"Missed this how did we?" Yoda murmured sadly.
"Nevertheless, we must do something with ... about Anakin," Kenobi insisted.
Leia took a menacing step closer to the red headed Jedi and lifted a delicate finger to prod him in the chest, "Yes, Master Kenobi, why don't you do something about Anakin? Why don't you realize how much the Jedi Order in general, and you in particular, are responsible for this disaster? You and your precious cronies yanked him from his mother and left her in slavery. Then when he had visions of his mother dying in agony, you disregarded them, which ended in her murder. Over and over, you idiots have mouthed the stupid Jedi code that attachment is dangerous, with the result that when our father had visions of Padme dying in childbirth, he didn't come to you!"
"Come to me he did," Yoda admitted, his ears drooping.
"I know," Leia said, taking a deep, calming breaths. "I know Anakin didn't tell you he was envisioning his wife dying since he couldn't admit to having a wife, but still, you didn't support him when he was clearly distressed. On top of all that, you left him to the virulent and manipulative ministrations of the galaxy's local, incredibly powerful Sith Lord since you let Palpatine have unfettered access to Anakin from a young age! His turn to the Dark Side is on him, but you and your stupidity were a big part of why he Fell."
Obi-Wan Kenobi was startled to discover that he had backed against a wall and was cowering under the fierce gaze of this woman from another timeline. He had thought Padme was intimidating; her daughter Leia was downright scary.
"Right she is," Yoda mumbled sadly. "Failed, we have."
"What do you think we should do about Anakin Skywalker?" Bail asked softly.
Leia let herself relax slightly. For all that Yoda and Kenobi had their annoying characteristics, they were at least reasonable sentients.
"Give Anakin, or Vader, some time," the woman suggested. "This is a new scenario for us. We've never interacted with Vader so soon after his Fall. Given that Palpatine is dead at Luke's hands, the bond between Master Sith and Apprentice is broken. Even in my timeline, Vader did come back to the Light. He killed Palpatine to save Luke's life. I think there is hope for him, especially since Padme is alive and the twins are too."
Yoda shook his head, "Never trust him as a Jedi we can again."
"Oh, he should so not be a Jedi," Leia agreed with a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Indeed, I can't imagine he would want to be part of the Order which stupidly rejects reasonable and healthy emotional attachments ..."
"Attachment, his Fall it caused!" Yoda yelped in frustration.
"No, Master Yoda," Leia riposted, dropping to one knee to glare into the old gnome's face. "No. Attachment and love between a husband and a wife, between a brother and a sister, between comrades in arms, they are natural and healthy. Luke and I were both raised in loving homes with adoptive parents who adored us, and I really believe we are more emotionally stable than, say, Ahsoka Tano, who is awesome but a little weird from being whisked off to the Temple at a young age."
"Ahsoka is alive in your time?" Obi-Wan cried out with delight.
"Jedi attached for generations they have not!" Yoda said indignantly.
"Who raised you?" Bail Organa asked curiously.
"Yes, Ahsoka is alive. The Jedi were stupid in that area. Luke was raised by extended family and I ... I was raised by you ... Father."
Bail stared at the young woman, who now was teary.
"Me?"
"And Breha," Leia continued with a shaky smile. "Yes. You were wonderful parents and I learned so much from you. More than that, I was enveloped in your love. I'm incredibly grateful."
"In your timeline, are we ...?"
"Dead, yes," the woman explained sadly. "Palpatine ordered the construction of an armored space station with the ability to destroy planets. Alderaan was obliterated by the Death Star's superlaser before Luke was able to blow it up."
Bail actually wobbled slightly in distress, "Alderaan was destroyed?"
"In my timeline. It won't happen this time," she assured him.
The door slid open and Padme entered, looking exhausted.
"Here, let me take a baby," Leia said quickly, grabbing baby Luke. "Obi-Wan, take Luke."
The Jedi stared in horror at the small bundle thrust in his direction, "Er ..."
"Sit down and just hold him," Leia said in frustration. "It's not that hard. Just don't cover his face and nose and keep him tipped up a little."
She grabbed Baby Leia from her mother and pushed Padme firmly into a chair, "How is, um, Anakin doing?"
"Better," Padme explained wearily. "Your brother is clearly doing miracles. The med droids can't explain why or how Anakin's lung function and circulation is improving. Of course, they are also working with more traditional methods on his burned skin and other damaged organs ..."
Here she shot a furious look at Kenobi, who had clumsily adjusted Luke into a reasonably competent position, "I can't believe you left him to burn, Obi-Wan."
The Jedi lifted teary eyes now and his face was ashen,"I thought he was dead, Padme. He attacked you, I begged him to turn back, he attacked me, and I ... I was sure ..."
"I know," Padme finished, waving a hand. "The whole thing is a disaster. I think Anakin will live, but then what? He murdered children."
"While totally sleep deprived, terrified for your well-being, and with a unknown Force Bond to an undercover Sith Lord," Leia said flatly. "I'll be honest that in my timeline, I hated Darth Vader. He was a horribly, bad, evil, cruel man. But I've also met Anakin Skywalker and he was a good, if conflicted and somewhat immature, man. I am not telling you what to do, but what happened was not done in a space vacuum."
Padme turned back to the window through which her horrifically burned husband was slumbering.
"I know," she murmured softly.
/
Varykino
Naboo
4 years later
Anakin Skywalker lay on the beach of the little island in the middle of the lake. Two hundred meters away, across the channel, Varykino crouched beautifully among the flora of this gorgeous place.
There was a gentle surge in the Force and Anakin propped himself on one elbow as his wife waded into the water near Varykino and then began swimming briskly toward him. He rolled to his feet in mild concern, prepared to leap in after her if she had any trouble.
Of course she didn't. She was an amazing swimming.
"Ani," she panted once she had reached the island.
"Hello, my darling," he replied, rising to his feet and drawing her into his arms. "I'm sorry I didn't wait for you. I thought you were busy talking politics with the Organas this morning."
Padme smiled and flopped onto the beach, letting her body sink into the soft sand.
"We had a very productive meeting," she murmured with her eyes shut. "Then the twins woke up from their nap and wanted to play with Winter and the Organas and my folks and my sister and a couple of droids agreed to watch them all, so I snuck off to be with you."
Anakin leaned over and kissed her, "I'm glad."
"I'm glad too," Padme murmured with a yawn. "I love politics, I do, but we've had a heavy load lately. I really appreciate you caring for the twins so well. It makes it much easier when I know they are happy and guarded. I mean, given how crazy they are, they kind of need a Force Sensitive daddy."
"You know I love it," Anakin stated. And he did. His horrifying descent into the Dark Side of the Force was a nasty but thankfully distant memory. When he arose from his bed of pain, permanently scarred but with decently functioning organs, he had decided he was done with the Jedi and the Sith.
He would do what Padme had suggested (pleaded, really); he had gone away with her and the babies and retreated to Varykino.
He was, he knew, too unstable to be living an extremely stressful life. Far better to raise his children wisely and lovingly than go Rythen crackers again. Besides, while the New Republic had given him amnesty for his crimes, the sad reality was that he had murdered children. (Some nights, his dreams were haunted with their terrified faces just before he cut them down. It was part of his penance that he would be reminded frequently of his horrific crimes.)
He was not worthy to be a warrior for good. He would stay here and support his wife and love his children.
"Mmmmm," Padme muttered, "it's so peaceful here, though there is a lot of sand."
Anakin nodded and leaned over, planting a kiss on his wife's lips before lying back down.
"I love sand," he murmured. "It's warm, and soft, and comes off in the water."
Author Note: Ladies and gents, I am so excited! I actually (self) published a book on Amazon (including Kindle Unlimited) called "I am Jael", a Pride and Prejudice variation. The Star Wars fandom seriously gets a lot of credit; I learned so much about writing these last few years from you all. So thank you thank you thank you for reading my work, and reviewing, and commenting. I know I've improved thanks to you all! Stay safe. So much going on these days. And thanks to my wonderful husband for his encouragement and his story editing!
