Accismus⋆౨ৎ˚⟡.• Anakin Skywalker⋆౨ৎ˚⟡.•

19.

Night fell on Tatooine, and Sol much preferred the cool air to the heat of the day. The two suns set and made an intoxicating sunset over the sand, but Sol couldn't find joy or relaxation in the phenomenon. She worried for Anakin from the moment he left on the Lars family speeder. He had been angry when he left despite Sol's attempt to make him realise what was at stake, and Sol couldn't sense his signature in the Force. Tatooine was large and stretched on for miles with mostly nothing. It would take hours to find Anakin's orange glow, so Sol retired from meditation in front of the sunset and spent the night in the hut.

'There's another speeder outside,' Padme said when Sol entered their shared sleeping quarters for the night. 'We could go after Ani.'

'Oh, please don't, Miss Padme and Miss Sol,' C3-PO intervened, his glowing eyes lighting up the dark room. 'It's not safe, and these people need your help in these trying times.'

'We're not leaving, Threepio.'

Padme's brows raised at Sol's definitive answer. The sound of C3-PO's robotic joints moving and the circulating of R2's head was all that was heard in the room, and Padme studied the young Jedi who leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. With her lips downturned and her lashes over her cheeks, Sol stood with her eyes closed in deep thought. Padme could see from her seat on the cot they would be sleeping in that Sol's heart was heavy. The Padawan still had not told the senator what had been said between her and Anakin before he left, but she avoided a meal that was offered by Beru and had been out on the sand for the remainder of the evening. Padme didn't have to ask to know that Sol was hurting.

'If you're so worried, you should go after him. You can sense him, right?' Padme tried.

'He's too far off,' Sol answered and opened her eyes, now staring at the floor. 'Plus, this is his mother, after all. He has to do this on his own... he made that clear.'

'What happened, Sol?'

Sol didn't answer, leaving Padme to sigh loudly. C3-PO engaged in a conversation with the senator about how he couldn't relate to not being able to retire because of the overbearing feeling of worry, and Sol tuned out their light voices. 

She thought about contacting Master Kenobi through R2. He knew Anakin best and maybe she could gather some more information on how to handle the situation. But she couldn't reveal that they were on Tatooine, and not Naboo. She didn't know if R2 could cover their location signal during a transmission, and she didn't want to risk it.

Anakin's lack of care for her words hurt, and that was the centre of Sol's sorrow. She had let her judgement slip for a moment and the feelings spilt out. She could have jeopardised her future as a Jedi, but she didn't care. She understood that Anakin's mother was in trouble and that Sol was selfish to make the situation about her worries, but Anakin could have shown a slither of warmth to her confession.

Without a hint of closure, Sol prepared to rest for the night.

---

Sol awoke from her sleep with a jolt. Her chest had a familiar ache and her head felt as if it was splitting. With her skin layered in sudden sweat, Sol stood up from the bed that Padme still slept in. A ring consumed her ears and as if she could hear screams of anguish, Sol's bones quivered inside of her at what she sensed.

The Force flared with the emotions of a young Skywalker. They were strong, turning the lining that was the root of everything and everyone red with inflamed anguish. Sol would usually find peace in the Force, but all she felt was pain in the night. No matter where Anakin was in the galaxy, Sol was sure that anyone who was Force-sensitive would feel what she did.

Stepping out of the bedroom to leave Padme at rest, Sol spotted R2 stationed in the hallway. At the motion, he powered on with his red and blue lights lit. Sol looked at him in the corner, before heading down the hall to be away from the bedrooms. R2 didn't have to be instructed to follow, so he rolled after her, keeping his beeps at bay until they were in the courtyard of the homestead.