The Will of the Force

Chapter 5: Tatooine, Luke, and Obi-Wan

Anakin's reaction to the revelations that Padme was force-sensitive and would return to life was one of delight, disbelief, and shame.

'I should have trusted you when you said you wouldn't die,' he said. Leia, sensing her father's sadness, patted his mask much as she had done on Alderaan.

'Well, yes. But the force works in mysterious ways, perhaps this all needed to happen.'

'I'll spend the rest of my life atoning for what I've done,' he said shifting in discomfort as he repositioned Leia on his lap. Padme sensed that the prosthetics pained him when he sat or stayed still for too long. Extending her senses, Padme, to her disgust, found that the robotic limbs were of poor quality, unskillfully attached to his flesh, and the suit itself was heavy and irritable. Probing even further, she discovered that the suit was keeping his injuries in stasis, rather than healing them; and that metal spikes were protruding from the lining and inserted into his bone in multiple places. Shielding her emotions as Qui-Gon taught her, she allowed her rage to build, having no doubt that Palpatine had done this deliberately to keep Anakin subservient. She decided that once they had Luke they were going to Kamino to heal his injuries. She opened her mouth to tell him so, but was interrupted as at that moment, they landed in Anchorhead.

Anakin stood, gently pulling Leia's hood over her head, and led the way down the ramp. Even though she was incorporeal, Padme felt the heat of Tatooine slam into her like a brick wall. A crowd of people was gathering, curious as to what business an Imperial shuttle had on the desert planet. They withdrew once they saw Anakin's imposing figure, apparently not marred by the fact that he was holding a small baby in his arms. Leia squirmed uncomfortably, though whether from the heat or the attention Padme wasn't sure.

It's alright Leia, Padme heard Anakin soothe her through their bond and the girl quietened. She'd noticed that he preferred to speak telepathically to Leia, as it allowed him to use his normal voice and not the cold monotone of the vocoder. Addressing the crowd, though, the vocoder was useful – making it clear that their business was important and not to be impeded. 'Where is the nearest speeder hire place?'

'On the Western outskirts, just near the old Sparkling Sands Cantina.'

Nodding his thanks, Anakin began walking in the direction indicated. Padme began to follow, then had a thought. She motioned for him to wait, feeling his curiosity. Taking a deep breath and recalling Qui-Gon's lessons she said in a clear voice 'You will forget that you saw us, and should anyone ask, say you don't know anything about the Imperial shuttle or its occupants.' She chose not to appear as she spoke, so the words echoed from the sky, rather like the depiction of a deity speaking in an old holovid shad watched as a child.

The crowd answered as one, in a monotone voice 'We will forget we saw you, and should anyone ask, say we don't know anything about the Imperial shuttle or its occupants.'

Pleased that she'd done it correctly the first time and blushing at the pride radiating from Anakin, Padme followed her husband through the port. Most of the buildings were single-story earthen structures housing stalls and small shops. The people seemed weathered, hardened by the harsh realities of life here, and eyed the black-clad figure with a healthy dose of suspicion. She could only imagine their reaction if they had seen the ghost walking contentedly beside him. When they reached the speeder hire, the clerk, who Padme suspected may have been just a little terrified of Anakin despite the fact that he was polite through the encounter, gave them the best speeder available on the house, even throwing in a baby carrier for Leia, hurriedly assuring him it had a five-star safety rating. After dubiously inspecting the carrier, Padme and Anakin agreed that she was likely to be safer on his lap. The journey to the Lars' homestead was a quiet one, Anakin concentrating on piloting the speeder and keeping Leia secure, Padme thinking through every possible scenario that may arise and what she might to be deal with each one.