𝐀𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐎

𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑

     The bed was on a platform, which was also black. In fact, everything in the room was black except the red lighting and her white shirt. Astrid stood out in the room because of it.

    Slipping out of the bed, Astrid quietly made her way to the steps that led her down the bed's platform. Her hands glided over the cool railing, while her feet padded gently over the black marble floor.

    The red light made it harder to see deeper into the extremely large room, which meant if she wanted to see the room in its entirety, she'd have to walk around to see it. But the room was the least of her concerns. It was the large glass window that spanned out from one end to the other. It had to be at least twenty feet wide and was held between two horizontal black slabs.

    Astrid couldn't stop herself from moving closer to it, heart thumping wildly as she took in the view. Outside, she could see an ashy atmosphere. Clouds of smoke and pockets of black ash tossed around in the air obscuring the view of the stars. Down below, on the land, a large river of lava flowed wildly and churned, throwing up some into the polluted air. The bright orange lighting up the planet.

    She was on Mustafar.

    Astrid hadn't ever been to the planet, she only ever heard cursed stories about the place. Never in her life did she think she'd ever be on the planet.

    Like Astrid said earlier, she stood out. Her white shirt contrasted with the darkness of the room she was in and the orange lava simmering and bubbling below. It was now clear why she was wearing the color white too. It would be harder for her to escape if she stood out so much. Whoever she was here with didn't want her to leave–and it was probably, Anakin in the Sith form he would present himself in these dreams.

    "My girl's clever, isn't she?" two hands rest on both sides of Astrid on the bottom black slab that held the window, caging her in between his built arms. Astrid didn't have to look back to see the face of the man to know it was Anakin, his therapeutic voice gave it away.

    Astrid's eyes never leave the angry molten below. Something about this dream was different, she was at peace. No negative emotions were terrorizing her brain, it was all quiet. "Why does this dream feel so different?" Astrid's voice came out small, barely a whisper.

    A cool metal arm slips under her shirt, caressing her toned stomach and her smooth skin. Anakin drops his chin on her shoulder, peppering the area of her neck beside him with small kisses. In between each peck, he said, "because, my love, you've accepted it."

    "Accepted what?" Astrid couldn't help but lean into Anakin's warm body behind her. She finally turns to look at his face, eyes sweeping over his tan skin. It was just like how he was now, minus the Sith eyes and the few new scars. Something about the yellow eyes didn't scare her anymore, maybe it was the fact she knew he wouldn't hurt her, but she didn't know for sure.

    The kisses travel up her neck to her jaw, and Anakin's arm that soothed the heated-up skin of her toned stomach tightened its hold. It was impossible to escape his grip–it was too strong. The years of training and swinging his lightsaber made his arms strong and taut.

    "You've accepted me," Anakin's breath tickles her jaw, goosebumps erupting all over her skin. Astrid's eyes move back to the lava, processing the words spilling from his soft lips. "You've accepted your role as Empress."

    "Empress?" the girl mumbles, confused. What did he mean? The Republic didn't have an Emperor or dictator–unless you count the Chancellor's growing power, which Astrid had grown wary of.