♡Anakin and Padmé Fanfictions♡

Liberabit Vos (Part 2)

Time passed, and Anakin couldn't keep track of exactly how much. It felt like he'd been here for over a week but without any understanding of the time, it was difficult to guess. It was a funny thing, nobody ever said the worst part of captivity was the all-consuming, absolute state of boredom the majority of the day was taken up by. In the small space of his cage, there wasn't much room to do anything. He walked the few feet over and over just to feel movement in his limbs.

One morning - or at least, morning to him - Anakin laid back on his bench with a sigh. Thus far, he had discovered there were thirty-two bars built into the cage, six fluorescent lights in the ceiling, and twelve buttons on the door receiver pad across the room. He knew every inch of the room and it was driving him mad.

Normally, his day began with the alarm set on his chrono, he would climb out of bed and take a shower whilst his manservants prepared an appropriate outfit for the schedule of meetings and Senate sessions for the day. They would leave him to dress while Anakin looked over his datapad for breaking news and any personal messages from his family. His private chef droid would prepare a quick but filling breakfast to be eaten en route to the Senate rotunda whilst he worked on his bills and prepped for the day. Then it was meetings, meetings, and more meetings until a session of the Senate was called. More bill work, and perhaps some speech preparation. Sometimes a quick lunch in his office with Bail and Mon and then he would work until the sun set and the cleaning droids set to work because almost everyone else had gone. At which point he would return home, eat, shower, sleep and then do it all over again in the morning.

Now, Anakin's schedule was filled with a new routine of daily appointments. Wake up. Morning bathroom visit. Breakfast. Bicker with Amidala. Boredom. Bicker with Amidala. More boredom. Lunch. Pacing the length of his cell. Bicker with Amidala or the guards if they had appeared. Dinner. Final bathroom break. Force himself to sleep early to end the day quicker.

If this kept on, he would explode from the monotony and tedium.

One further - assumed - week into the Senator's captivity, Amidala stepped back into his cell dragging a small square table with her (which, he saw took no time at all despite her height), it was the most excitement he'd had in some time and what should've been mere curiosity brought him to his feet. "What're you doing?" He asked, peering through the bars of his cage.

"I'm not going to be popular around here today," she threw a bright, youthful smile at Anakin over her shoulder as she spun the table in a small circle and began pushing it toward his cage. "I've been working on this all morning and it should work but I haven't fully tested it yet..." She flicked a small, red switch and a holographic dejarik board flickered to life. "I had to scavenge the parts together and then uninstall the game from the ship's official hardwiring to download it onto here... which means none of the pilots and guards can play anymore..." She looked at him with a wince, reaching up to scratch at her nape. "But you looked bored in there so... want to play?"

Yes! Anakin wanted to shout at the top of his lungs. Yes, I want to play! Despite himself, a small smile pulled at his lips. She'd gone completely out of her way to do something nice for him... Her prisoner. Why?

Instead, he said, "I can't touch the board..." Not without a shock that would knock him unconscious, but then there was a chance he was bored enough to risk it. It was finally something to do!

"Oh. Right." The Sith's face fell for a moment before she rounded the table, "I can disable the power of the cage so you can reach out but it won't unlock. It'll go back on as soon as we're done, okay?" What could he do with his arms able to reach out of the bars? Almost nothing, he thought mournfully. Without a weapon, even if he was able to get his hands on Amidala there wasn't much he could do about it.