By My Side

Chapter 33 - Interlude

Author's Note: So. Uh. I made a promise a long time ago, and it's finally happening?? xD

Next chapter: November 30th :)

~ Rivana Rita

Padme finds herself staring, nearly blankly, at the hologram for a few minutes even after it turns off.

Count Dooku just extended an offer for peace. He's offering a final end to the war, and it – it's something Padme has been fighting for so hard, for so long, no matter how impossible it seemed. She'll do the same now, of course, and with Sidious gone – Anakin told her how he was a major reason for the war in the first place – Padme has hope it might actually work.

The Vice Chancellor has taken Palpatine's place temporarily, and considering the war, there hasn't been time to hold a new election yet. Padme has no idea whether he'll agree or not, but she can hope.

With the Jedi removed from military matters, she doesn't know how successful the effort will be, but it's worth trying. Worth hoping and fighting for. Anakin told her once, briefly, that in the future, she had reached out to Mina Bonteri about trying to end the war. It had gotten close, until Dooku had Mina killed and framed the Republic for it.

As to what happened with Anakin, Padme doesn't know. It's been nearly an entire month since he was lost, and she's desperate to hear word from him. She can only hope he's still alive, but she doesn't know. Padme has no way to know whether he's alright, or if Dooku is hurting him.

She's so, so worried about him, though she's rapidly growing accustomed to that fear. It never really goes away. Padme wants to see him again, and she can't help fearing that he might not come back sometime.

She can't think about it, but she's still so, so afraid of it.

Anakin is her husband, and she knew it would be hard when they married. That doesn't mean she at all anticipated how difficult things actually have been for them.

She can't help wondering why the Separatists are suddenly offering this, though. There's a tiny part of her that wants to believe it has something to do with Anakin, that it's some sort of proof he's fine, but she needs to be realistic. It's... doubtful that he's capable of doing anything right now. Both he and Ahsoka were lost, and that could mean anything.

It certainly doesn't mean anything good.

And she'll have to admit that she's still hurt by what Obi-Wan told her about Anakin, though she has to talk to him again before making any real judgment. He might've been working with Dooku, though a lot... changed in the future, and it's something Padme would have to ask him about. He's not the same as he once was, isn't as child-like anymore, and she understands that. He wouldn't have done it if there wasn't something more going on and she wishes she was able to talk to him.

The best she can do is keep fighting in the Senate as she always has and do her best to bring this war to a close.

***

To say that he's struggling without Anakin's constant presence would be an understatement. He's far away, and Obi-Wan has no idea where he is, or what's happening to him. All they do know is that he's deep in Separatist territory somewhere, and Obi-Wan is... admittedly afraid that the person they'll eventually find will be nothing like the one they lost. Anakin was already changing, and it's clear Sidious had far more influence over him than Obi-Wan had any idea about, which... says a lot about how much he failed him.

He should have known, and Anakin should have told him.

The Council could've done something about this a long time ago if they'd known.