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“But you said you wouldn’t be able to come!”
Padmé spread her hands out. “Surprise!” she said, grinning when her older sister, Sola, squealed in delight and ran down the steps towards her. She let out an oof as Sola crashed into her. “I missed you, I’m sorry I don’t get a chance to come out as often,” she said, leaning into Sola’s embrace. “I really didn’t think I would get to make it out here for the Festival of Light, but then Chancellor Palpatine decided to attend this year, and I took that as an opportunity to join him. Then I decided I would try to surprise you,” Padmé explained as she leaned back to look at her sister better. Despite the new stress lines on her face, Sola seemed well. Padmé could see traces of relief on her sister’s face, but no heavy worries, which is all Padmé wanted to see from her, especially after the most recent events.
Sola smiled. “Mom worries. She tries not to tell you when you call, but she worries,” she said as she pulled away and took one of Padme’s bags. “Hello there, Artoo,” she said when Artoo warbled at her in greeting. She snuck a sly glance at Padmé as Padmé took the other bag. “So if he’s here, and he’s usually all over the HoloNet because they love a certain Jedi that Artoo is always seen hanging out with...” she said casually, flashing a toothy smile before smirking at Padmé.
Padmé playfully shoved Sola with an elbow. “Guarding the Chancellor, as always when he’s not on the field. Even on Coruscant, Anakin isn’t that interested in politics to be always discussing it with the Chancellor,” she said as she followed Sola into the house. She hesitated, and then said “I don’t know if you heard, but Obi-Wan died recently. A bounty hunter named Rako Hardeen shot him when he and Anakin were on an assignment.”
Sola looked back at her, eyes widening slightly as she began to lead Padmé towards the house. “Really? We had heard mutterings about it from the Queen’s inner circle, but Dad was convinced it was just a rumor... we all did. No one has forgotten what Obi-Wan did for us during the invasion all those years ago,” she admitted, brows pinching together as she looked down. She hesitated, and then looked back up, coming to a stop part way up the front steps. She whispered, “How is Anakin taking it? Obi-Wan was his teacher for years before the war started.”
Padmé grimaced as she pulled her arm back to avoid accidentally bumping Sola with the suitcase she was carrying. “Not well, I think. He hasn't really talked about it with me, or Ahsoka Tano, his student, for that matter. Ahsoka doesn't think Anakin has talked about it with anyone, really,” she admitted, nudging Sola with the edge of the suitcase to get her moving up the stairs again. Artoo then warbled behind her, catching her attention. “And apparently he hasn’t talked to Artoo about it either,” she added, following Sola up the rest of the way up the stairs. She tilted her head, suddenly realizing that something felt off about the house. “Where is everyone? I usually get bulldozed over right about now.”
“Oh, Pooja and Ryoo wanted to go see the preparations being made for the Festival of Light, so Mom and Darred took them. I was going to join them, but I’ve decided that I’m going to take what time I have with just you and grill you for updates on your life. Especially since I have you all to myself for now,” Sola said, winking as Padmé laughed. “Oh, and Dad is with the Queen’s advisers overseeing the preparations. Stars forbid he can retire from public service and stay in peaceful retirement,” Sola said, rolling her eyes. “Although, I’m betting you’re going to be like that too if you ever decide to leave the Senate and politics for good. Always with the family, but dipping occasionally back into politics.”
Padmé hesitated as she stopped at the top of the stairs to wait for Artoo, who was still making his way up. “Don’t tell Mom since I’m not certain about the next few years...but I think a temporary hiatus from politics may be in the future for me,” she admitted, giving Sola a sheepish smile as Sola turned sharply on a heel to stare at her. “I want a family, Sola. I have been wanting something like that since I stepped down as queen, but I couldn’t say no when Queen Jamilia asked me to stay on as senator. There are just a few things I need to figure out first before I make it official, so don’t say anything to Mom. Please,” she said, voice dropping to a whisper as Sola scooted closer.
Sola gaped at her for a few seconds. “Seriously? Padmé, that’s exciting! Mom will be happy to hear that you’ll be home for a while. You’re probably going to wait until the war is over though, aren’t you?” she asked, arching a brow as she tried to conceal her smirk when Padmé shrugged her shoulders, ducking her head down in embarrassment. “You do realize that if you say the word ‘family’ around Mom, she’s going to start trying to set you up with someone, right?” Sola said, folding her arms across her chest.
Padmé hesitated: she and Anakin had agreed to secrecy about their marriage, but they really hadn’t talked about what would happen to either of them, or the state of public knowledge about their marriage, at the end of the war. She was willing to step down to start a family, and while Anakin had expressed interest in children one day, she didn’t know if he would want to leave the Order while he still had Ahsoka to teach. She bit her lip, and then said, “Swear to me you won’t tell Mom this next part.”
Sola’s mouth dropped open again as she dropped the suitcase. “Seriously?”
Padmé clapped a hand over Sola’s mouth in a flash of panic. In a low voice, she said, “I won’t say who, but I do have someone that I love and care about, and he feels the same way about me. But you can’t tell Mom, okay? Let me tell her when the time is right, half of the city will know by the end of the day if and when I tell her. Promise me, Sola.”
Sola nods, and Padmé could feel Sola’s lips curving into a smile. When she removed her hand, Sola drew two lines over her heart. “I promise to the goddesses above that I will not tell Mom about your secret beau,” she said, grinning despite the solemnity of the vow. She shook her head. “Force, Padmé, I hope that whatever the HoloNet is saying about you and Anakin isn’t true because if it is, he’s going to be cut up into pieces if--wait, does he know? About your secret boyfriend?” Sola said, dropping her voice again as she cast an anxious glance at one of the neighboring houses.
Padmé nods. “Yeah, he knows.” Technically a half-truth, but still a truth. Padmé liked to think Obi-Wan would be proud that she picked up his ability to do that, yet, she still felt guilty about not coming fully clean to her own sister.
Sola cackled. “You do realize I won’t be able to look Anakin in the eye with a straight face now that I know about this, right?” she asked, bending down to pick up the suitcase she’d dropped earlier. “Or Mom, stars, she’s going to be mad that I knew this all along when you finally come clean about it to her.”
Padmé smiled, hoping it hid the guilt she could feel swelling in her chest now. “Well, you can always blame me when she complains,” she said as she moved aside to give Artoo room on the front step.
Sola laughed. “Oh, I definitely will. I’d be failing in my big sister duties if I didn’t,” she said, elbowing Padmé playfully before gesturing to Padmé to follow her. “You can set your bags down in the hall, I’ll prepare your room. Mom’s been leaving boxes in there since Dad’s been cleaning the attic.”
Padmé snorts. “Spring cleaning attempt number fifty-four?”
“No, fifty-six. Fifty-four was three months ago, fifty-five was two weeks ago.”
Padmé laughed as she followed Sola into the house.