Padmé felt like a little girl, and she was actually sure she looked like one, when she lamented that her own children, whose father didn't know they were his, were suffering the same fate as her. They too had been part of this plan; it wasn't fair that only she had to listen to Anakin's long speech about why she shouldn't put herself at risk by following Jedi cruisers.
"In my defense," she began, as her husband's speech started to overwhelm her.
"No," Anakin said, looking at her intently. "You're not going to give me one of those grand speeches you use as a senator to convince everyone you like. That doesn't work on me, Senator."
"Actually, I was just going to say that I loved you very much and that I missed you terribly," Padmé said, hugging him and trying not to laugh at his distraught face.
"As much as I'm enjoying this trick," Anakin said, gently taking her shoulders and pulling away. "I wouldn't know what to do if something happened to you," he said, hugging her again.
"But nothing happened to me, and what's more, I think our help was quite timely."
"You have a point there," Anakin smiled. "But Padmé, why were we followed?" he asked, his annoyance returning. "Why did you lie to the chancellor?"
"Why did you lie to the chancellor?" "The chancellor can't know anything about this," Padmé said, and Anakin looked at her curiously.
"Why?" he asked, advancing toward her with a frown. "I thought you trusted the chancellor."
"I do. He's my guide and my friend in the Senate," she lied. "Ani trusts me. I have a good reason."
"Can't you trust me enough to tell me?" he asked, annoyed.
"It's not that, Ani," Padmé said, trying to hug him, but he pushed her away this time.
"Then what?" he asked, raising his voice slightly.
"I can't tell you, but—" Padmé began, but he didn't hear her.
"I don't want to hear it," he said. "I'll keep your secret safe from the chancellor. I just hope you don't want to join the Separatists. That would be a big problem," Anakin said, raising an eyebrow and leaving.
"I'll keep your secret safe from the chancellor. I just hope you don't want to join the Separatists. That would be a big problem."
"I don't want to hear it." "Very well, as you wish, Jedi Master," she said, crossing her arms in annoyance.
Arguing with Anakin Skywalker was quite an ordeal; they were both stubborn, but they loved each other passionately. Padmé sighed; she had a journey of approximately three days to Coruscant ahead of her, since they had to circumnavigate the outer rim to get there.
"Master," Anakin said, approaching Obi-Wan, who was sitting in front of the stretcher where Satine was fighting for her life, "How is she?"
"She's recovering," Obi-Wan said, grateful to feel his former apprentice's hand on his shoulder.
"How are you, Master?" Anakin asked, concerned for him.
"I shouldn't have run away that day. I thought she was dead. I can't imagine the hell she went through. I simply failed her."
"It wasn't your fault, Master."
"It was, Anakin." He smiled, looking at his apprentice. Perhaps the words he was about to say would forever mark his destiny, but it didn't matter. "I wish I had been half as brave as you were."
"What are you saying, Master?" Anakin asked, completely confused.
"I wish I had married the woman I love. I wish I had protected her the way you protect Padmé. Instead, I've only let her suffer and pay for my mistakes," he said, referring to his failure to kill Darth Maul.
Anakin's face was completely distraught. They were alone there. The twins had gone to Padmé, and Ahsoka had left as soon as Anakin arrived. Entering, Anakin didn't understand what was happening. What was his master saying? Did he know?
"Master,"
"I know, Anakin. I wish you had told me," Obi-Wan smiled. "But I understand."
"I couldn't. I—" he tried to find the words. "How had he found out?"
"You thought I would tell the council?"
"Yes."
"I would never do that. You are my brother, Anakin, and I admire you. I am proud of you," Obi-Wan said sincerely.
"I'm sorry I didn't trust you, Master," Anakin confessed, remorseful.
"There's nothing to regret. Satine trusted me, and I failed her. You trusted me, and—" he didn't finish what he was saying—"Forget it." Anakin wanted to ask what he meant by that last part, but he refrained; it wasn't the right time.
"Don't blame yourself for this. The Duchess will be alright," Anakin smiled.
"I hope so," Obi-Wan said, holding Satine's hand.
"It's not too late, Obi-Wan," Anakin said, smiling.
"It's too late for me, many years too late."
"The last time I heard her flirt with you, she said she still found you attractive, although she preferred you without the beard."
"You'll never stop teasing me about that, will you?" Obi-Wan smiled, thanking him for his efforts to cheer him up.
"Not while I live," Anakin said, laughing as Ahsoka entered and tried to stop him again.
"Not while I'm alive." "I—" Ahsoka said, "Luke needed something." But Anakin stopped her with the Force.
"Hey, that's not fair, Master!" she cried as she felt herself being pulled until she was face to face with Anakin.
"It is to me."
"Well, I'm sorry. The twins can be quite persuasive."
"How does that involve you and Padmé?" Anakin asked.
"She can be very persuasive, too," Ahsoka said thoughtfully.
"You're right about that," Anakin smiled.
"Aren't you upset?"
"Not with you," Anakin said, remembering Padmé and her reluctance to trust him enough to tell her what she was doing there.
"Do you want me to tell you something speaking as a woman and not as your padawan?" Ahsoka asked, and Anakin nodded.
"She just wants to be near you. She's your wife, after all. It's fine that sometimes she just wants to know if you're okay," Ahsoka said, laughing inwardly as she saw Anakin's jaw drop, his gaze shifting between her and Obi-Wan, who was trying to stifle a laugh.
"You, how?" Anakin stammered.
"Relax, Master," Ahsoka smiled as Anakin struggled to understand how everyone seemed to know about his marriage. What was coming next? Mace Windu asking him to be the godfather of his future children, if he had any? Either way, that would be impossible; besides, Obi-Wan would get the job.
"Everyone knows?" he asked.
"Yep," Luke said, crossing to the other side of the room. He'd already gotten lost three times looking for Padmé's ship, where he'd left his lightsaber.
"We always knew," Leia said, walking toward Padmé's room to see if she could find Luke, since she had found his lightsaber.
"Why didn't anyone say anything?" Anakin asked, leaning against the wall to keep his balance.
"Oh, you seemed quite content with your nonexistent lying skills," Ahsoka teased.
"Does the Council know?"
"No, and they won't," Ahsoka said, looking at Obi-Wan, who nodded.
"Thank you," Anakin said, pulling them both into a hug.
"Hey, that hurts," Ahsoka said.
"Control your Force, Anakin," Obi-Wan said, returning the hug.
"Control your strength, Anakin." "Does Padmé know that they know?" he asked, and everyone suddenly seemed very preoccupied with their own affairs. "I'll take that as a yes."
"Where was the wedding?" Ahsoka asked as Anakin studied possible routes to shorten the journey, finding none.
"Naboo, after the Battle of Geonosis."
"Who was at her wedding?" Obi-Wan asked, helping him with the coordinates.
"C-3PO and R2-D2," Anakin said, oblivious to Ahsoka and Obi-Wan's jaws dropping. "Oh, and the priest too."
"That's too sad, Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "No guests? Not even Padmé's family?"
"No guests?" "For me, it was the happiest day of my life," Anakin confessed. "If anything were to happen to her, if she were no longer by my side, I couldn't live without her." He confessed, knowing that what he was saying was exactly the reason the Jedi forbade attachment, but Obi-Wan understood. His spirits had been low since he had lost Satine; he wasn't the same anymore, and now that he knew she was alive, hope had returned to him.
"When this whole war is over, we'll plan another wedding," Ahsoka said, and Anakin smiled.
"Any ideas about the coordinates?" Anakin asked, looking at Luke and Leia, who seemed to be discussing the meaning of the lightsaber colors.
"Luke, Leia, I'm pretty sure you can ask the Jedi Masters the meaning of each color later," Padmé smiled. "What's wrong?" "What were we talking about?" she asked, noticing everyone staring at her.
"We were talking about our wedding on Naboo," Anakin smiled, and Padmé smiled back. So, Anakin had finally told everyone; there were fewer secrets left to reveal.
"Did you tell them about our honored guests?" Padmé laughed.
"Oh yes, a very joyful wedding," Ahsoka joked.
"For me, it was the happiest day of my life," Padmé confessed, and Ahsoka rolled her eyes; they couldn't be that alike.
"That's exactly what Anakin just said," Obi-Wan said, struggling with the coordinates. Padmé approached, and Anakin hugged her, forgetting any previous annoyance.
"I think it will take us even longer than planned to reach Coruscant," Anakin said, a little worried. "Satine needed immediate medical attention."
"Did you try these?" Padmé asked, entering some coordinates, and the ship was able to jump to lightspeed without any problem. The journey would be long, but thanks to those coordinates, it would be considerably shorter.
"What?" Anakin asked, confused.
"Luke insisted on writing down the coordinates while we were following them. He repeated them so many times that I ended up memorizing them."
"Couldn't you have said it before?" Anakin asked, looking at Luke.
"I thought that since you claimed to be a better pilot than me, you'd know them by heart," Luke joked, and everyone laughed—everyone except Anakin, who just smiled.
Suddenly, as they broke free from lightspeed, Padmé gripped Anakin's arm tightly.
"What's wrong?" Anakin asked, but Padmé didn't get a chance to answer. She just looked at him and then collapsed into his arms.
"Padmé, angel, what's wrong?" he asked, carrying her and placing her on a stretcher next to Satine.
Anakin was terribly worried, but the others on the ship were in shock; they knew what was happening.
Long minutes passed before the medical droid examined her and assured Anakin that everything was alright.
"But what happened to it?" Anakin asked.
"A malfunction due to the change in atmosphere," the droid said, but Anakin didn't seem convinced. It was the best idea Ahsoka had come up with when she reprogrammed the droid while she was distracted.
"That was close," Leia said, leaning on Luke.
"Leia, we don't have much time left," Luke said, and Leia understood. They had less than nine months.
Padmé woke up and realized she was next to Satine.
"Satine, you're awake," Padmé said, watching the blonde look at her with a tired expression.
"Look who's talking," Satine smiled.
"Padmé, you're awake," Anakin said, hugging her, and Padmé stood up despite Anakin's insistence that she shouldn't.
"I'm fine," Padmé said, kissing him. What did it matter? Everyone already knew.
Satine looked at them, impressed. They had forgotten about Satine.
"I'm happy for you, Padmé," Satine smiled.
"Duchess, I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were awake. How are you feeling?" Anakin asked, blushing.
"Much better now," Satine joked, and suddenly her gaze fixed on a point behind Anakin.
"Satine?" Obi-Wan asked, looking at her in amazement. Anakin and Padmé immediately stepped back with smiles.
"Obi," Satine whispered, tears streaming down her face.
"Satine," Obi-Wan said, rushing to embrace her.
"Obi," Satine repeated, surprised that the ever-faithful Jedi code, Obi-Wan Kenobi, was embracing her in front of everyone. But she couldn't say anything more when Obi-Wan took her by the waist and kissed her in the sweetest way she could have imagined.
Anakin and Padmé smiled, clearly surprised.
"I think it's time to go," Padmé smiled, pulling Anakin along with her.
Anakin smiled and left with Padmé. He could hardly believe his master was following his example.
"You've really managed to lead the ever-wise Obi-Wan astray," Ahsoka said, winking at Anakin, who was still smiling, happy for his master.
"What happened?" Luke asked, who was with Leia.
"Not much," Anakin said.
The five continued talking about how Padmé and the twins had followed them.
"You've surprised me, know-it-all," Anakin said, referring to the ways Ahsoka had managed to leak information along with Obi-Wan.
"Maybe I could join the Separatists."
"I'd have to kill you, and that's not an option I'm keen on," Anakin joked.
"You wouldn't have stood a chance, Master," Ahsoka said.
Obi-Wan couldn't stop apologizing to Satine for leaving that day.
"It's not your fault," Satine smiled. "He made you believe I was dead."
"But I should have known. I should have come back for you."
"You're here now," Satine smiled, hugging him.
"Ready to return to Coruscant?" Obi-Wan asked, looking directly into her eyes.
"Perhaps I'd prefer to stay a few more minutes with you," Satine said, hugging him tightly before having to part from him again forever. She had to accept it; they could never be together again.
"A few minutes?" Obi-Wan asked, feeling the adrenaline rush through his body. "We have a lifetime to be together," Obi-Wan smiled.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm ready to go back to Coruscant?" "Satine, this isn't the time or place, but I can't wait any longer. Will you marry me?" he asked, kneeling down.
Satine stared at him as if she'd grown three heads. Was the love of her life proposing? What was happening to the Jedi Order? She could never ask him to leave the Jedi Order; it was her life. But then there were Padmé and General Skywalker. They seemed to be getting along perfectly well without telling anyone. So she thought it was time to be happy. She'd been through hell, she'd almost died, and she couldn't think about it anymore before throwing herself into Obi-Wan's arms.
"A thousand times yes," she sobbed, and Obi-Wan swept her up, spinning her around in the air.
"You can come out from behind that door now," Obi-Wan said, and Anakin opened the door, letting Ahsoka, Padmé, and the twins in.
"It's about time you thought about your happiness, Master," Anakin said, congratulating him, and Obi-Wan gave him a big hug.
"Perhaps I've decided to follow your example," Obi-Wan said, looking at Padmé and the twins. He longed to tell Anakin that they were his children.
"Congratulations, Master," Leia and Luke said.
"Congratulations, Master," Ahsoka said, smiling. "Who knows? Maybe I'll decide to get married too."
"Is there anyone?" Anakin asked, frowning, and everyone burst into laughter.
"No one for now," Ahsoka smiled, seeing Anakin's frown.
"I hope so," Anakin huffed grumpily. Meanwhile, Padmé wondered how he would react when he found out about his daughter's boyfriend.
Anakin and Obi-Wan left to talk.
"Do you think we should tell him?" Luke asked.
"The future has definitely changed," Leia said. "Obi-Wan will be married," she said, looking at the sleeping duchess, who was still very weak.
"We don't know if that will stay the case," Ahsoka said, regretting being the one to say no this time.
"He would have told me if he were married," Luke said. "He would have warned me."
"Are you sure?" Leia asked.
"Absolutely."
"Then we've already changed part of the future. Lying to his father would only be failing him."
"You're right," the twins whispered, terrified. They didn't know if it was the right decision, they didn't know if it was what they had to do, but they were sure they wanted to do it. They wanted to make the most of their time with their father.
"First, I think it would be right for Padmé to get a medical checkup to make sure she's healthy," Ahsoka said.
"Thank you for stopping the droid from telling her the truth," Padmé said, thanking Ahsoka.
"Did you already know?" the twins asked.
"Of course," Padmé smiled.
"When are we going to tell her?" Luke asked nervously, and "nervous" was an understatement.
"On Coruscant. I want us all to have dinner together," Padmé said, and everyone nodded.
"As soon as we get to Coruscant," Leia said, and everyone nodded.