The bullet hit Anakin in the torso. He flew back, hissing from the impact. His body lay in a crumple on the floor, his limbs tangled. He made no sound, instead he took the pain silently. He closed his eyes, a crease formed in between his brows.

Padmé's head turned away from the sight as she heard banging from a door. After seaching for a moment, she found a closet in the far right of the room. People were making sound from the other side of the structure.

Padmé pulled firmly on the knob, but was unsuccessful in opening it. She assumed Anakin had locked the door. Turning around, she ran back to Obi-wan. His unconscious body still lay untouched next to Bail's dead one. She took his lightsaber from his pocket and ignited it. Padmé made her way back to medical room.

With aggression, she let the plasmic blade's heat slice through the handle. It fell to the floor with a light clinging noise, sizzling at her feet. She stuck her hand into the hole she'd created and opened the door. The medical staff poured out from the opening.

"Obi-wan!" she informed them desperately, "He's in the hallway! He needs help!"

After thanking her, a group of people rushed towards the hall. Padmé focused her attention on the twins, who were screaming. The commotion must have frightened them.

She eyed the corner where Anakin had been sitting, her heart beat furiously in her chest. She was dissapointed, mortified, and ready for vengeance. Not a single soul would ever lay a hand wrongly on her children.

After examining the corner, it became blatantly obvious that Anakin had escaped again. He was no where in sight. He must have left when she'd gotten Obi-wan's lightsaber.

She shook her rage from her tingling veins. Instead, she ran to the cradles that Luke and Leia laid in. Padmé placed one child in each arm, then slid to the floor. She bit back tears of relief. They were safe, she was holding her two beautiful, healthy children.

"I will never let anything happen to you," she whispered, leaving a kiss on each of their foreheads, "As long as I'm living, I will protect you with all that I am."

-----

Padmé's foot bounced rapidly on the floor. She grinded her teeth as she sat in the hospital chair. The rebels had decided that they couldn't heal Obi-wan on their own. With Palpatine dead and Anakin wounded, they deemed a visit to the real hospital safe. Padmé was in the waiting room, eager for news on how his surgery had gone.

The twins were fast asleep in their carriers, which had been postioned on either side of her. Other then her two children, she was alone. She'd proved she could defend herself and conviced the rebels to let her leave alone. The weight of the gun they'd given her pressed on her hip. She found comfort in the ability of being responsible of herself. She hadn't had freedom to be alone with the twins yet. It was nice to take care of them herself.

"Padmé Amidala?" a robotic voice called.

Since the collapse of democracy and Palpatine's Order 66, it seemed Coruscant had abandoned statuses. She understood, considering it was hard to identify who was truly in control of the planet during the time being. It was Palpatine, but he was dead. Since there was a new Sith, Anakin, it made sense that he would continue to reign over the planets his master had. However, he hadn't claimed leadership yet. The clones that had previously roamed Coruscant were no where to be seen. A part of Padmé wondered if Anakin had ordered them to retreat -- but why?

Padmé stood up, making eye contact with the droid, "That's me."

"I have information regarding Obi-wan," it said, "Would you follow me?"

"Of course," she replied. Padmé picked up the twins carriers and awkwardly shuffled behind the mechanical being. The carriers were big.

After following the droid down the hall, a door slid open. A smile broke across Padmé's face as she saw Obi-wan laying across a hospital bed. His blue eyes peered back at her. He looked tired, but well.

She entered the room and placed the twins back on the floor. After, she closed the space between the two with an embrace.

"I was so worried about you," she told him.

"I'm alright," he assured her, using his good arm to rub her back. "Thank you, Padmé. I'm truly grateful for what you did for me."

"What did I do?" she asked, pulling back from their embrace.

"You saved my life," he answered. "You... you protected your children, the rebels, and I. You faced Anakin when I... when I couldn't."

She bit her lip, "I didn't do a very good job."

"Padmé," Obi-wan replied, "Because of you I'm alive."

She shook her head, "I didn't save everyone."

He raised his eyebrow, an unspoken question.

"Senator Organa... Bail... He's dead. Anakin killed him."

Obi-wan was silent. He'd worked closely with Bail for weeks before what happened that day. After sucking in a deep breath, he shook his head, "Bail died a hero. He worked hard to restore balance after this corruption. I will never forget him."

"I won't either," she whispered.

"Anakin is lost," Obi-wan's voice held deep pain, Padmé could hear the brokeness he felt within his soul. "So very lost."

"He escaped," Padmé informed him, "But I won't let him again. Once you heal, we'll find him. I'll end him myself if I have to."

"Padmé-"

"You can't change my mind."

-------

"Have their been any sightings?" Padmé's voice asked loudly.

She sat at the end of the table, sorrounded by the rebel council. At her side was Obi-wan. His metal arm reflected the light from the ceiling. Ever since Padmé rescued him, the rebels decided to put her in command with Obi-wan. The two lead the rebellion side by side.

"The last sighting was last month still," a young man told her, "When he escaped the base. That was the last time anybody has seen clones on Coruscant as well."

Padmé nodded her head, "He must be planning to attack soon. He has an enormous army. We need to recruit more people to our cause, fast."

The rebels no longer met underground. Instead, they used a large building in Coruscant. For the time being, the planet was theirs. Anakin knew the location of their other base. There was no point in staying there.

Padmé and Obi-wan did their best to strengthen their numbers. They anticipated an attack from Anakin sooner than later. He'd seemed to have dissapeared from the solar system entirely. Despite paying countless bounty hunters, no one could locate the Sith. It made no sense.

"Our numbers have double since last week," the man boy told her again, "We need more starfighters. We have too many men who will not have jobs during an attack."

"I will do my best to reach out to my contacts," Obi-wan addressed the group, "Until then, we'll have to make due."

"I still want every recruit to be trained for air and ground combat," Padmé added. "We need to be as prepared as possible."

"Yes, Padmé," the man nodded his head.

"Good," she folded her hands together, "That concludes our meeting. If any of your contacts tells you of a Sith sighting, be sure to tell me immediately."

After speaking, Padmé swiftly left the room. She headed towards the door, exiting onto the Coruscant streets. She sat down on an outdoor seat, studying the city.

She hadn't seen Anakin for a month. The last thing she'd seen was his face twisted in pain by the bullet she'd sent into his body. Part of her wondered if he was still out there -- no one had seen him. Had she killed him?

Common sense told her he was alive. Anakin Skywalker, one of the strongest beings in the galaxy, was not going to be brought down by a misaimed shot. He'd endured much worse.

She huffed, pressing her fingernails into her palms roughly. The skin of her hands began to turn white.

Fury, betrayal, pain, disappointment, heartbreak, brokeness, resentment, sorrow... the emotions drowned her. Most days she felt as if she couldn't breathe.

Most days, it was the anger that kept her up at night. His face had been engraved into her mind. All she thought of was her hands wrapped around his throat, strangling him, until the yellow in his eyes died. Until the Sith was gone.

She wanted him gone. She wanted him dead. Not only had he ripped her heart from her chest and left ger corpse to wither alone, he'd hurt so many people she knew and love. Because of him, Obi-wan had a prosthetic arm. Because of him, the twins could have gotten hurt. Because of him, her friend was forever gone.

She was disgusted with herself. It made her nauseous when she thought of how she used to care for him. At one point, his hands had travelled across every inch of her skin. At one point, she'd loved him with every ounce of her body. With all of her soul.

Now there she sat, alone on a bench. She was supposed to be running through the fields of Naboo with her husband and children. She wasn't supposed to be leading a rebellion against the man she used to love.

She blamed him. She blamed his pridefullness, his stupidity, his greed... She hated him. She hated the fact that she lived in the same universe as the monster.

Or, she told herself every day that she hated him. She convinced herself there was no love for the man left. It was easier to live if she saw him as a monster. It killed her when she thought of him as anything else.

Her thoughts wandered away from him and to the twins. They were at the apartment she temporarily called home with their nanny. She trusted the woman, although some days gave her anxiety from the space spent away from the only family she had left.

Padmé looked up to the sky. She sent a slient prayer, hopeful of the future. All she wanted was a safe and healthy home for her family.

She studied the blue hues above her, admiring the clear and vast space. She tried to calm herself before heading home.

Padmé admired the sun. It shone bright in the sky, pulsating in a way. It stretched widely across the sky.

However, her breath stopped when she realized the ciew in front of her.

It wasn't the sun she'd been staring at.

The sky was on fire.

-----

*if there are a ton of spelling mistakes I'm sorry! Im half asleep currently lmao