After a bit more conversation with Obi-Wan, Anakin went into his and Padmé's room, collapsing on the mattress. It was very tempting to fall asleep, but he knew that if he fell unconscious now, he'd be tired for dinner. He settled for staring up at the ceiling instead.

Despite how traumatic the Jedi Purge had been, he was grateful for many things that had happened because of it, one of them being the time he had spent with his family. If the Jedi Order had never fallen and Anakin was restrained to Coruscant most of the time, he would never have gotten the chance to watch his kids grow up, get to know his in-laws so well, or grow this close to his wife and Obi-Wan. He didn't know what Luke and Leia's lives would have been like if he was still a part of the old Jedi Order, but he knew it wouldn't be like this. Lake Country was quiet and rather boring, but it was safe and peaceful, which was a better childhood than Anakin ever got.

Quite frankly, only Sola could possibly know what a 'normal' childhood might look like. Padmé had gotten into Nabooian politics as a young teenager, and Obi-Wan and Anakin had been Jedi for most of their lives. No doubt, that was the reason she had been the domestic manager of the household. All four parents (let's be honest, Sola and Obi-Wan were just as much of parents to the twins as their siblings) knew Luke and Leia were growing restless with their simple lives in Lake Country, but no one dared to trade excitement for safety. Not when Anakin and Padmé could be arrested and killed at any time, not when they were so active in the Rebellion, not when the twins themselves were training to be Jedi. Not when they were hoping that Luke and Leia would outlive Ahsoka.

Anakin knew they couldn't hold back the kids for much longer. They didn't plan to actually, but today would be the last day of their simple lives. He was glad they got to spend it reuniting with their parents, speeding around Lake Country, enjoying a birthday dinner, and relaxing for the rest of the evening. As far as last days go, it was a very good one. It was peaceful and temporarily ignored the cruel world that would someday want to destroy all of them for their opposition to the Empire. He knew better than anyone that after a while in the war brewing across the galaxy, Luke and Leia would miss their lives on Naboo, even if they didn't understand why right now. After all, you only miss what you had after you no longer have it.

The bathroom door opened, and Padmé walked out, wringing the last drops of shower water out of her hair. Upon seeing Anakin lying on the bed by himself, she decided to join him and crawled over next to her husband. Hugging her close, Anakin remembered that the Order would never have let him spend this much time with his wife.

They still couldn't be very public about their marriage. If the Empire found out that Senator Padmé Amidala and rebel agent Anakin Skywalker were married, much less with kids, everyone they loved would be targeted. They didn't dare endanger their family in that way. No one minded them flirting when they saw each other in the Rebellion, but intimate moments were kept behind closed doors. Only when they were home was it safe to act as the couple the Jedi Order had forbidden them from being. The only real difference between then and now was the amount of time they got together, which was much more than it used to be.

Padmé nestled into Anakin's chest, and he stroked her hair absentmindedly while he probed a little to see how she was feeling. Exhaustion dominated her mind, which was understandable, but more importantly, she was resting now. Anakin was always glad to be a safe place for her to relax. Padmé spent a lot of time advocating for the well-being of others, whether they were close friends of hers, or allies of the Rebellion, or refugees trying to escape the oppression of the Empire. It wasn't often that someone looked out for her these days. Sure, she had security forces making sure she was safe at all times, but her mental health was another story. For her, resting wasn't just about taking a minute to lay down; it was about feeling secure enough to show weariness, doubt, and sometimes a little bit of hopelessness.

These were things Anakin had learned in the past sixteen years. Having spent more time by her side, supporting her work, he had begun to recognize the toll it took on her better than he had before. Padmé Amidala was a force to be reckoned with, but she was also human, despite how often Anakin called her an angel. Humans broke down and fell apart, and none of the Naberries were exceptions.

After a minute or so, he shifted and slid down so their heads were level. Anakin grabbed her hand with his flesh one and held it between their chests, lying on his side so he could look at her. Though she was smiling at him, he could see through the mask on Padmé's face. "How are you doing?"

Her gaze drifted, and the facade dropped. She took a moment to choose her words, but Anakin didn't try to rush her. "I remember when Bail started this rebellion. We knew we would be in it for the long run, but now... I guess I hoped that we would have done more by now."

"More than form the biggest uprising against the Empire in the past decade and a half?" he questioned, but he knew she was serious. Padmé was nothing if not ambitious. "You've done more than anyone else in the galaxy."

"Yet we still have so far to go," she reminded him, staring down at their hands. "I wanted to clear the way for Luke and Leia. I didn't want the Empire to loom over them once they grew up, but it's still here. A Star Destroyer is orbiting their home planet right now."

Anakin's heart broke a little bit as she spoke. He knew that Padmé wanted to give the world to their children, and he would do the same if it were within his grasp. They shouldn't have to inherit a world that was shattered. Nobody should. They shouldn't have to take on the burden of fixing something they had no part in breaking.

Closing his eyes, tilted his head forward until their foreheads were touching. Padmé was squeezing his hand tight, holding onto the lifeline that kept her from falling down a dark, dark hole in her mind. The fear that her children might have to face a cruel, violent, unforgiving world terrified her, but not as much as the unthinkable possibility that the world she had failed to fix thus far might kill them before she got a chance to finish her work. She trusted her family to help her protect Luke and Leia, but letting them take on the world they so badly wanted to explore meant dropping the shield Padmé had held up in front of them.

She wasn't alone in her fear, though. Not as long as Anakin was with her. "Maybe the Empire is still around," he admitted, "but they haven't lived in fear of it. The Empire's shadow doesn't scare them. We've protected them long enough that they have the choice to stay or go. If anything, it's our fault they want to fight so bad," he realized, opening his eyes. "I mean, look at us."

Laughing a little, her face brightened once more, and that made Anakin smile. He had a point. Anyone who did not expect the Naberrie twins to follow in their parent's footsteps had clearly never seen Anakin and Padmé in action. It was practically impossible for the pair of them to produce children who would want to avoid a worthy fight.

"You did clear the way," he told her, staring into her eyes, "but that way is forward. Before long, they're going to be the ones clearing the way for someone else. It's not because they have to. It's because they will. They're good people, just like you, and I know better than to try to hold you back."

"Not to mention, either one of them can give us a run for our money as far as stubbornness goes," Padmé teased, shaking her head. "I can't imagine what they'll be like when they join the Rebellion."

"I can." Anakin grinned, thinking about it. "They're going to be a nightmare for Dooku one day."

She had to smile at that. The idea of the self-proclaimed Emperor finally getting what he deserved after all these years gave her hope. "Better him than us."

Leaning up, he kissed her forehead and rested there for a moment. After a moment, though, his thoughts wandered. "Speaking of, we should probably catch up to them. We're supposed to meet them for dinner soon."

"Already?" Padmé groaned, but when she rolled over to look at the clock, it was indeed time to start getting ready to leave. She sighed and lay back down, rubbing her face with her hands.

Anakin would have loved to stay there for the rest of the day, but they couldn't skip birthday dinner. He wrapped his arms around his wife one last time, breathing deeply. "Love you, angel."

"Love you too," she whispered back, stroking his head. They met for one last kiss before Anakin crawled over her, walking toward the closet. If they were going out for dinner, he needed to look slightly more presentable.

~

By the time Anakin and Padmé got changed and back to the garage, Obi-Wan and Sola were already sitting in the backseat of the speeder, waiting for them. Sola stared at them as they approached the vehicle. "I was wondering when you were coming."

"Ah, don't worry," Anakin assured her, helping Padmé into the front passenger seat. "I can make up for lost time on the road."

Obi-Wan groaned. "You're just as bad as Luke."

"First off, who do you think he learned it from?" Anakin reminded, causing him to roll his eyes. "Second off, you don't even notice when I speed anymore."

"I suppose I've gotten used to it," he confessed. "Not that it's something I should be used to."

Shrugging, Anakin hopped into the pilot's seat and started the engine. "Probably not." He glanced to the side, where R2-D2 and C-3PO were standing by to send them off. "We'll be back in a couple of hours, tops."

Artoo whistled in acknowledgment. Beside him, Threepio requested, "Do enjoy yourselves tonight. There's no point in wasting a peaceful evening."

"I couldn't have put it better myself," Padmé agreed, smiling. "Besides, we have a pair of birthdays to celebrate."

"Kennedy's Diner, here we come," Anakin announced, and as the four of them sped off down the driveway, he could see Threepio waving after them in the rearview mirror.