Skywalker Apartment [morning]

[sith_happened]

Nightmares, Anakin was used to. He'd relived the terrible moments of his life so often and in so many different permutations that he could practically identify them by taste.

But this moment was one he hadn't thought of--hadn't allowed himself to dwell on--for many, many years.


Padmé stared at him from across the picnic blanket on a perfect day in Naboo, realization slowly dawning in her eyes. "You're making fun of me," she accused.

"Oh, no," he insisted. "I'd be much too frightened to tease a Senator." Unable to keep up the pretense any longer, he grinned, then bit his lip and looked away, very conscious of Padmé's looking at him.

A soft voice came out of nowhere: "If you dream them, they will come."

Anakin smiled in his sleep, curled around the warm body in his bed, opened his eyes...and realized who he was holding.

Guilt. It's what's for breakfast.

Comments

[auroryborealis.livejournal.com]

"Mmmf?" Rory replied in her sleep, cuddling closer.

Have some more guilt, Anakin.

[sith_happened]

"Go back to sleep, love," Anakin murmured. "It's early."

[auroryborealis.livejournal.com]

"Why're you up?" she asked, squirming a bit in his arms to face him sleepily. "Juliet's okay?"

[sith_happened]

He checked through the Force just to be sure before saying, "Yes. Sorry I disturbed you. It was just a dream."

About his dead wife. Guilt guilt guilt.

[auroryborealis.livejournal.com]

"Bad dream?" she asked, reaching a hand up to smooth over his curls.

[sith_happened]

Only once he'd woken up.

"Sort of," he said. "It wasn't something I've thought about in decades."

[auroryborealis.livejournal.com]

"Wanna talk about it?" she asked, curling close to him.

[sith_happened]

He leaned in to kiss her neck, sliding his hands more tightly around her waist. "I think this is Leia's fault," he said finally. "She was asking about old memories."

[auroryborealis.livejournal.com]

Rory twined her legs with his. "What kind of old memories?"

[sith_happened]

"A time on Naboo," he hedged after a moment, "years after I left here, but before I was married."

Guilt. Guilt guilt guilt.

But better guilt now than lying to Rory.