It has been a week since I married Anakin. Padme had left the lake house straight after the wedding and given us time alone for the remainder of our trip. It had been the greatest week of my life. We spent the entire time learning more about each other and trying new things. We talked, we danced, we laughed, we explored.
I wish my life could stay like this forever. Just us with no responsibilities.
Unfortunately, today marked the day when we had to return to Coruscant. Neither of us had heard anything from the Council since we left a week ago. With the looming threat of war, I'm almost afraid to return.
I turn over in the bed to face my sleeping husband. Truthfully neither of us had done much sleeping since the wedding, but when we did sleep it was peaceful. I recall the time not so long ago when Anakin was plagued with nightmares. His mother is no longer in pain, though I was worried he would be cursed with painful reminders of what happened for a very long time. It seems that in my presence, his mind is actually given the opportunity to be at peace.
I needed to wake Anakin so we could go back to Coruscant but I couldn't bring myself to do it. He looked far too calm.
The realisation of how creepy my gazing, no staring, is hits me. I avert my gaze away from him and to the blinding sunlight coming through the window of the bedroom. It was well and truly past sunrise, meaning I should have gotten out of bed a few hours earlier.
I yawn as I put together the things I had travelled here with. Perhaps it would have been smart to sleep a little more this trip. Now I'm going to be exhausted when we return to Coruscant. That's the last thing I need. Dealing with some of the decisions the Council makes is hard enough on a regular day. I don't want to know how much worse it'll be while I'm sleep deprived.
I pack my things into the bag and do the same for Anakin's. Due to our lack of possessions, I complete the packing in a matter of minutes.
A groan coming from my waking husband catches my attention. I turn to him and give him a bright smile. Every time I saw him, I became overwhelmed by joy. He offers a sleepy smile that turns into a frown upon noticing the packed bags.
"Are you sure we can't just stay for one more day?" Anakin asks groggily while sitting up a little.
"We have to leave sooner or later." I say as I zip up the bags.
"I choose later." He says, laying back down and pulling the covers over his head.
He is not a morning person.
I sit on the empty side of the bed where I had slept earlier. I reach over to the covers over Anakin's head and gently pull them away. He begins whining a little so I shut him up by planting a light kiss on his lips. A kiss he happily returns. A mischievous smile spreads across his face as he pulls me back into the bed beside him. We continue to kiss each other passionately until I unwillingly break away. If we stayed like this much longer, I fear I would never go back to Coruscant.
"Come on, we need to go back." I say, even though my heart did not agree with the statement my mind was urging.
"At least stay in bed with me for another hour." He pleads, a desperate pout forming.
As fun as his offer sounded, I couldn't accept. I wanted nothing more than to stay here for longer. I would stay forever if I could. Unfortunately, we had a duty within the galaxy. Our gifts were needed elsewhere.
"Coruscant." Is all I say before getting back out of the warm bed.
He whines for a bit about how hard his life is but eventually does the same.
I wished we could stay longer, but we simply couldn't. We're Jedi. We have a duty. Us choosing to be together was bad enough; choosing to ignore our duties for the sake of our love would be even worse.
Anakin swiftly showers and changes into his Jedi robes. We don't waste time eating breakfast on Naboo. We were already going to be returning to Coruscant later than we should.
We take the water speeder to the heart of Theed, once again leaving the privacy of the Lake House behind. Padme, Artoo, and Threepio meet us at our ship on the dock.
"Well hello there, Skywalker's." Padme says excitedly. I daresay she has wanted to address us like that for a while.
I give her a hug. She has done so much for us and I will forever be incredibly grateful for her.
"Thank you for everything, Padme." I say softly.
She doesn't say anything, only hugs me tighter.
"Hey Artoo." I hear Anakin address his droid.
I have no doubt that he would be crouching down to be level with the droid. I break away from my hug with Padme to see if my suspicions are correct. As expected, Anakin is crouching beside Artoo.
"Miss Padme, I must remind you that you have a meeting with the other Naboo officials in less than an hour." Threepio says rather matter-of-factly
"Thank you, Threepio. I don't know what I'm going to do without you." She says to the protocol droid with a weak smile.
Anakin's gaze shifts between Padme and Threepio.
"I think Threepio should stay with you." Anakin suggests "He would be of great service to a Senator."
"Are you sure? He is your droid." Padme says.
Anakin cares deeply for Threepio. That's the kind of attachment you form when you are reunited with something you made when you were only nine years old. I know how much he would miss the droid, but he cannot handle the constant reminder of his mother and how he had failed to save her.
"I'm sure. I think he would do well with you." Anakin says with slight reluctance in his voice
"Thank you, Anakin." Padme says graciously.
We say our goodbyes to the Padme and Threepio and board our ship alongside Artoo. Anakin wastes no time in flying it out of Naboo. I stare out at the vastness before us that is the galaxy. I still find it so incredibly beautiful and peaceful. The tranquility vanishes when Anakin sets the ship to hyperspace.
We spend the journey talking with one another about mindless things. It was nice to have a bit more time to ourselves before we would have to hide our love again in front of the Council. That is one thing I am not looking forward to.
The trip from Naboo to Coruscant seemed much shorter this time than it had previously. Maybe it was because the looming threat on Padme's life was no longer present. Anakin lands the ship in one of the docking bays. This one is of walking distance from the Jedi Temple. Artoo, Anakin, and I make our way to the Temple slowly. I'm not ready to make our love a secret again and I know Anakin isn't either. Regardless of our feelings, we continue walking until we reach our destination.
I notice the odd feeling surrounding the Temple as soon as we enter. It never feels overly joyous here due to the Jedi's often lack of emotion but it always feels at peace. Right now that peace is nowhere to be found. All I can feel is unease, anxiety, and dread. Something terrible is happening. The war Anakin mentioned a week ago in the medical bay may very well be upon us.
"Something's wrong." Anakin's voice enters my mind.
There wasn't really any need for us to be speaking through our connection in this moment, however we sometimes just enjoyed the feeling of communicating on a different level. It signified our connection to one another and reminds us of how the force brought us together.
"I feel it too." I assure him.
"We should find Obi Wan. He'll have the answers we need."
I was going to suggest we find Master Ti instead but Obi Wan is probably a better option. Don't get me wrong, I respect and care for my Master just like every other Padawan. However I feel that Obi Wan is a better person to go to with anything really. There's just something about him.
"Where would he be?" I ask Anakin as we continue to walk throughout the Temple.
"The Archives." The certainty in his voice is clear even though he isn't physically saying the words "Obi Wan likes to expand on his knowledge when he's stressed. He calls it a 'coping mechanism'"
I stifle a laugh as I imagine a panicked Obi Wan desperately trying to distract himself from his problems by reading. I guess his so-called 'coping mechanism' is much better than mine. I tend to just cry in my shower.
We silently walk through the melancholy halls of the Temple until we reach the Archives. Sure enough, Obi Wan is sitting in there eagerly reading a Jedi text of some kind.
His gaze shoots over to us as he becomes aware of our presence.
"Anakin, (Y/N)." He says as he walks over to us, leaving the book behind, "It is good to see you."
I can't help but notice the lack of light in his usually gleeful voice. Something definitely wasn't right. Anakin and I felt the unease within the fellow Jedi as soon as we entered the Temple. Obi Wan's odd mannerisms are simply confirming what we had already suspected.
"Master? Is everything alright?" Anakin asks the worried man before us.
Obi Wan looks to the ground. I can't tell if it is out of fear or dread.
"I'm afraid not, my Padawan." He sighs "Come, we have much to discuss."
He leads us out of the Archives and through the halls of the Temple. I did not like where this was heading.