A Path Less Taken

Chapter 24 - A Time to Talk

"We'll definitely try to," Owen said before he walked out with his wife. Rex looked over to Ahsoka and noticed the thoughtful, yet slightly sullen expression on her face. He wasn't even going to bother asking what she was thinking.

"There's been a sighting of Dooku and Grievous on Tatooine," Cody said, walking into a room. Obi-Wan's ears perked up at this bit of news.

"Are they still there?" he asked.

"No. Long gone now. According to the person that called this in to the Republic, there was an attack on the village. Some man with a black lightsaber was the one to repel the attack," Cody said, reading from the tablet in his hands.

Obi-Wan frowned slightly as he pondered that statement. Only one person came to mind when it came to a black lightsaber. The only person to have one of those was Pre Viszla, who was killed by Maul.

"Did they have any detail on who the person was?" he questioned aloud.

"No. They only caught their saber color. They were too busy ducking for cover. The droids obviously didn't care to take prisoners." Cody said this last bit with distaste in his tone. "But someone was shot. He said it looked like a Togruta?"

At this, Obi-Wan froze. There were only two Togrutas that he knew of that weren't slaves, and one of them was not with the Jedi Order at this moment. The black lightsaber was a bit left field, but he knew who that Togruta was.

"Get me a shuttle to Tatooine," Obi-Wan said firmly.

"Sir?" Cody asked.

"Now Cody. In this case, the Order can wait. Get me to Tatooine." Obi-Wan's tone left little to no room for argument. Even in issuing orders on the battlefield, the Jedi Master was never this firm.

"Yes sir. I shall see what I can do," Cody said before walking off, Obi-Wan directly behind him. If Obi-Wan's instincts on the matter were correct, both Anakin and Ahsoka were on Tatooine. Or at least, they were there previously. It was the last place the Jedi would think to look for them, which is what made it the perfect hiding spot. Hopefully was Ahsoka was alright. But then again, there's no way Anakin would take a move like that lying down.

This whole situation concerning Anakin and the Order... it was all proving a little much. Jedi were not bound by law or any type of code of honor to stay at the temple. If you wanted to leave, you left. Simple as that. But it wasn't that easy for Anakin. Then again, things often never were. It was still no excuse.

The council was sure to find out about what happened on Tatooine soon enough. Both Grievous and Dooku were high priority targets, so they definitely would have to be informed. But before they did, he at least wanted to see if he could find any leads of his own. He knew for a fact that there was no way Anakin wanted to be near him if he was bringing a bunch of Jedi with him. So, for now at least, he'd operate on a solo agenda.

"The chances that anyone will still be there will be slim to none, but perhaps some leads would pop up," Obi-Wan thought as he exited the room, pulling a robe on.

Padme ended up getting in rather late at night again. For once, it wasn't necessarily because the Senate was abuzz with some sort of problem or activity. No, rather she really wanted to avoid this conversation with Anakin. Cause from the sound of what Clovis said, she knew that he was still going to be there waiting. It was a conversation she was not ready to face. But she couldn't avoid her house forever.

"This is a hole I dug myself. Time to lie in it," Padme thought as put her key in the lock and opened the door.

To see Anakin relaxing on the couch while looking at the TV. But when the door opened, he turned around while shutting the TV off. It was strange how there was some type of finality in such a simple gesture.

"We need to talk. And under normal circumstances, it's usually you the one saying that," Anakin said. The statement would've relieved the tension somewhat if his face wasn't dead serious.

"Yeah. I suppose we do," Padme said, tossing her keys on a table and locking the door. Then she sat down next to him as she turned to him.

"I'll start since I'm the one to come here out of the blue like this," Anakin said before taking a deep breath which sounded more like a sigh. "Honestly, I can't be the only one to think that things are... different between us."

"No. You're not," Padme said.

"What changed?" Anakin asked, his tone showing he truly wanted to know.

"You did," Padme said, making him frown. "It's not like that. It's just... I suppose I did too. Things just didn't feel the same between us."

"I get that you didn't like the fact that I left that Order in favor of bounty hunting. And with you... I don't have an answer for you. It was strange, but you didn't quite feel like the woman I married," Anakin said honestly. In this situation, it was not a time to cut the mustard.

"I haven't changed at all Ani," Padme said softly.

"I know. Force knows that I know. But I don't know what it is. If I had an answer for you, I'd easily tell you. I'm trying to salvage what we have left. I still do love you. But I feel like it's fading; that we're growing closer apart," Anakin said with emotion in his voice. His tone just made her feel worse.

"Believe me. The feeling of separation wasn't just happening to you," Padme said.

"Then... is there anything we can do to fix it? Can we just sit down and talk? Isn't that what married couples should do? Talk their problems out?" Anakin said. He hated sounding and feeling so helpless when it came to his own marriage.

"The problems... the problems have been here ever since the war started. With you being a Jedi and me being a Senator..."

"It's just the fact that I was a Jedi. The no attachment thing. I almost wish I didn't join the Jedi. But then I wouldn't have gotten to know Obi-Wan. Rex. Ahsoka." The idea of not knowing the people he was close to now was inconceivable. Strangely enough, Ahsoka more than anyone.

"I could understand that," Padme said before sighing. "Has there ever been a moment when you feel alone? When... when you just want something to take it all away? The feeling of being so alone?"

Anakin frowned. He most sincerely wanted to refute that, but couldn't. There were just nights that he had by himself, away from the battlefield where he just wished he was with his wife.

"I do. I needed to remind myself that one day the war would be over and we would never have to feel like this again, but it started to be less and less comforting as time went on. There were at least a few things that kept me grounded every now and then," Anakin said. But it wasn't things. People.

This is where Padme swallowed the lump in her throat while wringing her hands. She didn't want to say it. She really didn't want to fess up, but she might not have a choice.

"Do you... feel as if you could wait? I'm not sure if with the way things are now that I can give you what you want. What you deserve," Anakin said softly. Padme noted the solemn expression on his face, but it wasn't resigned. He didn't want to give up, but felt as if it was for the best and it wasn't just because of his not so smart way of leaving the Jedi.

Padme grabbed Anakin's real hand and looked directly into his eyes intently, and Anakin seemed to follow her lead. They continued to stare; almost as if it were some kind of staring competition. The both of them were looking for something, anything that reminded them of how they used to be.

"Do you... is there any chance that we can work this out?" Padme asked.

It was cowardly. It was plain cowardly to try and back out of admitting what she did. But she wasn't ready to let him go. She... it absolutely aggravated her that saying she loved him didn't feel entirely honest anymore. She definitely didn't act like it.

"I suppose we could try. I'll stay for as long as I can," Anakin said, holding out a hand towards her. Padme grabbed and Anakin pulled her close with his arms wrapped around her. Padme relaxed into his touch, but not completely. Because she couldn't still shake that small, gnawing feeling of guilt.

A/N: Short chapter, but it's something. I do believe that if Padme and Anakin were to have problem in their marriage, it'd go down fighting. The both of them are way too stubborn to give up that easy. I'm mulling over some ideas. They'll come sooner or later.