Remaking the Future (Book #1 in Bridging the Gap)

Chapter 15 - Whispers of Danger (Ramona)

I should be used to tension by now, especially with the amount of stress I deal with in my everyday life, but for some reason, this is worse. Tomorrow, the world will change forever, and I have no idea whether it will be better or worse. I sense a faint feeling in the Force, a whisper of impending danger so very close, and it's making me unnaturally jumpy.

"Where's Anakin?" I mutter out loud to myself, glancing at the doorway. Right after seeing Obi-Wan off to Utapau, we'd returned to Padme's apartment, and I think that he and Padme are having a conversation we really should hear. I want to know how he's feeling now that we've spent so much time speaking with him. I stand up and walk over to the doorway Padme just went through. I don't know exactly where she went, but I'm certain following her will lead us straight to Anakin.

"He's in there, I think," Ariana replies quietly, coming to stand beside me.

Teagan joins us just in time to hear Anakin demand, "Obi-Wan's been here, hasn't he?" He doesn't really sound upset, but rather curious. Good, so he is in that room. This is a conversation we must hear to determine how well we've done our job thus far.

"He came by this morning," Padme replies, not sounding concerned.

"What did he want?"

"He's worried about you," Padme tells him after a moment.

I shift, feeling slightly guilty for failing to tell Anakin that fact. I think I know exactly how Obi-Wan feels right now, but since Anakin has never had a younger sibling, he has no idea what it's like for someone you feel the instinctive need to care for being troubled by something, but refusing to tell you anything about it. That's how I feel towards Asiya. At least I don't think he does. I don't know if Ahsoka is real in this universe, but no one has mentioned anything about her. I guess I probably can't reach that conclusion too quickly.

I frown, wondering why Anakin can't seem to understand how much Obi-Wan loves him. Everyone else knows, so why doesn't he? It would probably help him tremendously if someone pointed that out to him. Maybe I should, but I don't even know how I would go about approaching the topic. I make a mental note to talk to Ariana later. I'm certain she could do it, even if she doesn't particularly want to.

"You told him something, didn't you?" questions Anakin suspiciously.

"He's your best friend, Anakin. He says you're under a lot of stress," responds Padme, not answering the question. I almost sigh with relief, and mentally thank her. I'm grateful that she won't let Anakin change the topic. She intends to talk to him about what's bothering him and won't take no for an answer. Maybe I should tell her to talk to Anakin about how much Obi-Wan cares about him.

"And he's not under stress?" Anakin grumbles.

"You have been moody lately," sighs Padme. I'm glad that we aren't the only ones who noticed how he's acting. That just seems to be how he copes with stress. At least he doesn't take it out on everyone, especially since no one can do anything about it.

"I'm not moody," argues Anakin, sounding slightly irritated, and I nearly snort. It sounds funny coming from him, especially since it's not the truth. One moment he's acting one way, and the next the opposite. He's been acting sullener than I ever realized he could be. Ironically, I haven't found myself to mind his behavior as much as I would in other people. Probably because he's Anakin after all, and it would be hard for me to mind most of his behavior.

"Anakin! Don't do this again," Padme orders. I know what she's saying. She doesn't want him to close her out when she's trying to help him.

"I don't know... I feel... lost," Anakin sighs at last.