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Title: My Future Folds
Author: heartofslash
Rating: PG-13, some language and implied sex
Fandom: Star Wars, just before Revenge of the Sith
Pairing: Kenobi/Skywalker, Padme/Ani
Warnings: Humour and the search for a plausible plot.
Disclaimer: This is patently, absolutely NOT what George Lucas had in mind when he made up his prequels, and the characters and everything are ALL his except for the sexy bits and I make no profit at all nor do I intend any infringement on rights - bragging, copy or otherwise.
Author's Note: Many thanks to my wonderful smutty beta, salixbabylon .
My Lyrics: The other day I say you as I walked along the road/But then I saw him with you I could feel my future fold. ["What Goes On" from the Rubber Soul album.]
Summary: Confused and lonely, Padme turns to an old colleague from her home planet for a little support. Little does she suspect she is laying the foundations for a new evil empire, which will bring about the destruction of the Republic, spread fear and terror to every corner of the galaxy, and set fashion and technological design back by two decades.
A little gossip can be a dangerous thing…
My Future Folds
"It hasn't been easy keeping it secret, hiding our love, hiding our marriage. You know how important marriage is in our culture, Chancellor. It is the primary social relationship on Naboo and should never be slighted. Anakin doesn't understand that. He was brought up on a different world. To him, it is only about the two of us. He doesn't understand about the social aspect. He would love to tell everyone about us, if only to prove he was good enough to win my heart, but he knows he can't. We have to think about my career, and his position…"
"As a Jedi."
"Jedi are forbidden attachment. For him to love me is a violation of The Code, so we have to hide. We've done a good job of it so far, although there've been a few close calls. Obi-Wan, I mean Master Kenobi, is never far away."
"No, I suppose he would not be."
"Anakin is very alert, especially when it comes to Obi-Wan. He usually senses Master Kenobi's approach, so we have time to make things look perfectly innocent."
"And Anakin is able to deceive his own master in this way?"
"For the most part, but he won't be able to forever. Master Kenobi is becoming suspicious, and he's always watching."
"He is a diligent one."
"It's difficult to have him around so much. Not that he's rude about Ani and me. He usually just raises an eyebrow at me and gives me one of those looks. Then he gives Ani a look, and it's as if they're speaking to each other without words. It's a little irritating. I don't mean to criticize him. Master Kenobi is a fine Jedi and he's done so much for Ani. It's just that…"
"Yes?"
"It's just that they are so very… close."
"I've been given to understand that the bond between a Jedi master and his padawan is one of the strongest and most unbreakable in the galaxy."
"But Anakin is not his padawan anymore, and hasn't been for years, yet he continues to go on missions almost exclusively with Obi-Wan."
"The Skywalker/Kenobi partnership has served the Republic admirably."
"I know that, and I know how much we need them. I just wonder it they are perhaps… too close."
"How close are they?"
"Very close. I don't like to listen to rumours and idle gossip, but I can't help hearing sometimes."
"I have heard such things as well. It is said that Skywalker and Kenobi share everything except their light sabers."
"I can't believe that. Anakin is always so passionate, so enthusiastic. So… virile."
"Some men have large appetites."
"So you think it is true?"
"Of course not, my dear. I'm merely considering possibilities."
"Anakin says anything is possible. Look at him; born a slave on a remote world, and now here he is at the centre of the galaxy, a Jedi Knight. Can you imagine what his future would have been like if Master Jinn had not found him? All that power, all that potential gone to waste."
"In my experience, it is never too late to harness potential."
"I mean, what if he'd fallen into the hands of the Sith Lord!"
"Heavens forbid. What a thought."
"He was so young and impressionable."
"He would have been too easily turned. I agree."
"Do you really think so?"
"I'm no expert in the Force, but it does seem that your young husband is quite… volatile."
"Are you implying something?"
"I wouldn't dream of it. I only meant that, from my meagre understanding of such things, Anakin's anger could be used against him."
"I meant by the 'young husband' thing. You think I'm too old for him!"
"Not in the least. You are, what? Six years older than him, and only on 18% of the planets in the galaxy. Why, on Fraalaxia, you're a mere year and two months older than him. That's nothing. A mere trifle."
"You're just saying that."
"Think of it this way, Padme - the age difference between Anakin and Master Kenobi is much greater."
"True. Obi-Wan is even showing some grey hair. But he wears his age and experience so well. He has that aura of authority. It's no wonder Ani is so smitten with him."
"Smitten? You don't mean to say you really think…"
"Who knows for sure? They always come up with some plausible excuse."
"As do you and Anakin."
"Yes, but that's different. We're married! But if there is something going on between them, Ani and Obi-Wan are in just as much danger of being exposed as Ani and I are."
"The Jedi would not approve either way."
"Oh, what am I going to do? I couldn't stand it if anything bad happened to Ani."
"There is no reason for anything bad to happen, is there?"
"Well, there has been some suspicious behaviour. The last time I saw them together, they were walking so close Obi-Wan practically had his head on Ani's shoulder."
"There is quite a height difference."
"They were whispering together."
"Not unusual when two Jedi are conferring about something secretive."
"And Obi-Wan was doing that walk."
"What walk would that be?"
"The one where he sways his hips. It's not even a walk. It's more like a saunter. Or a sashay. You can see the movement even under all those robes! It's positively scandalous."
"Oh, that walk. Yes, it's a wonder the Council has let him get away with that all these years. It is most unbecoming a Jedi."
"Plus, he looks at everyone as if he's trying to seduce them."
"Personally, I make it a practice never to look a Jedi in the eye."
"But I shouldn't say anything bad about Obi-Wan. After all, he has taught Anakin so much, especially about how to harness his power."
"Does Anakin have difficulty with his power?"
"If anything, he has too much of it. It could make him vulnerable to seduction."
"By Obi-Wan?"
"To the Dark Side!"
"Oh, I wouldn't know a thing about the Dark Side."
"Obi-Wan says he has to keep a close eye on Anakin to be sure he doesn't stray."
"So, do you worry about him… straying?"
"Well…"
"You mentioned suspicious behaviour earlier."
"I shouldn't say anything. I don't know how much of what I think I see is coloured by jealousy."
"Surely you have no cause to be jealous, my dear."
"Wouldn’t you be jealous if your husband called another man 'Master' so long after he was knighted?"
"I wouldn't know about such things."
"Try to imagine it - the man you love, the man you want - the man you plan to spend the rest of your life with - traveling around the galaxy with Obi-Wan Kenobi, calling him 'Master', praising Obi-Wan's every move, jumping at every opportunity to impress Obi-Wan. Wouldn't that make you jealous?"
"Now that you mention it…"
"And is there really a reason for Ani to wake Obi-Wan up every morning when they're on Coruscant? Ani leaves hours before he has to be on duty. He says, 'Master Kenobi needs a little help.' He says, 'Obi-wan is so grumpy if I'm not there to take care of him in the morning.' What the hells is that supposed to mean?"
"Perhaps Master Kenobi is particular about how his morning chai is brewed."
"And what about the massages?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Full body, naked massages. Ani says, 'Master Kenobi needs my attention. He's suffered a few too many falls. He gets so stiff. He needs his muscles loosened every now and then.' "
"Oh. My."
"I walked in on one of those massages once. It would appear that Master Kenobi is prone to falling on his ass!"
"Fascinating."
"I'll say! Although, I have to admit, in spite of the falls and his advanced age, Master Kenobi has one of the finest asses I've ever been privileged to view… especially when it is coated with oil and being plumped by my husband's good hand."
"Shocking."
"I don't even want to mention where his mechanical hand was."
"Oh, come on. Do tell."
"Then there are the messages."
"More massages?"
"No, messages. Comms. The last one was in the middle of the night. Obi-Wan said, 'Anakin, come quickly. I need you to save my ass.' I mean, how obvious can you get?"
"Perhaps he was in a spot of trouble. Ran into some unsavoury characters from the lower levels?"
"You think? Anakin jumped up, grabbed a bottle of my best body lotion and ran out the door, still in his sleep pants. And nothing else!"
"I see."
"But now they don't need comms because they're together in the Outer Rim."
"I'm sure they're far too busy fighting the enemy to get up to any Outer Rim shenanigans."
"It doesn’t matter. Things will be different from now on. The next time Anakin comes home to me, he'll have a reason to stay."
"Why is that? Oh! Goodness! I didn't realize. You hide it so well in those elaborate, voluminous robes. Just how far along are you, if you don't mind my asking?"
"Three months. I'm barely showing. But by the time he returns… If he returns…"
"We'll just have to see to it that he does return, and as soon as possible."
"Can you do that?"
"My dear. I do have a little bit of pull in the Senate, and with the Jedi Council."
"Of course you do. But the war effort is so important. How will you justify bringing him home?"
"I'm sure I can come up with something."
"It won't do any good. He'll probably still be working with Obi-Wan all the time."
"Perhaps I can find some way to give Anakin some solo work closer to home."
"Oh, that would be wonderful! I only hope he won't be too upset about the baby."
"Why ever would Anakin be upset?"
"He worries so much. After what happened to his mother on Tatooine, he's plagued by insecurity. He has terrible nightmares."
"Nightmares, you say. How interesting… I mean, how awful!"
"Anakin fears he will be unable to protect the ones he loves."
"He never seems to have much difficulty rescuing Obi-Wan Kenobi."
"Don't even mention that name!"
"Sorry."
"No, I'm sorry. It's the hormones talking. I haven't been myself. I've been so erratic lately. Maybe I've been imagining this thing between Ani and Obi-Wan."
"You must get some rest, my dear. You must be healthy and strong, for Anakin's sake."
"I know. He'd be lost without me. And without Obi-Wan. He needs us both so much. All that power, all that Force flowing through him. It frightens me sometimes. He needs us both to keep him stable."
"Yesssss. There's no telling what would happen if something were to happen to you. Or threaten to happen… That might just be enough to send him over the edge."
"Not that he'll ever lose control; Obi-Wan wouldn't let it. Why, sometimes when Anakin get agitated, he rushes off to find Obi-Wan. He says that Master Kenobi fills him with his serenity."
"I'll bet he does."
"Oh, my, look at the chrono! I'm sorry to have taken so much of your valuable time."
"No problem at all. It's been most enlightening."
"You won't tell anyone, will you? I mean, about his temper and the nightmares and his fears about protecting me and about the baby. Why, if the wrong person were to find out about those things--"
"Young Anakin could easily be corrupted. Fear not. My lips are sealed.
"And about Obi-Wan…"
"What about him?"
"I can't help but think he'll play a huge part in shaping Anakin's future."
"I foresee great changes."
"Well, thank you for all your support, Chancellor Palpatine."
"Anytime, my dear Padme. Any time."
The End
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