Chapter Four

Sabé effortlessly detached the escape shuttle from the ship as Obi-Wan sat next to her, his eyes closed in concentration. He had a firm hold on the minds of the people still on the ship and he was carefully keeping them from noticing that the shuttle was leaving and that the Senator, and the Jedi Master were gone. Amidala sat behind them, her thoughts on the people they were leaving behind.

I'm sorry it had to be like this, she reflected, thinking of their unfailing loyalty to her.

The shuttle cleared the ship and Sabé steered it towards their jump vector.

"You're sure about this planet, Master Kenobi?" she said. "Dagobah is uninhabited for a reason. I don't think it's a safe place for Senator Naberrie to give birth to her children. What if there are complications, what if we need help?"

"If we were in a city, our whereabouts would be known in a second. I do not doubt that there are already pictures of us posted in the news," Obi-Wan said patiently. "We need to go someplace where we would not be noticed or recognized."

"What's a more perfect place but an uninhabited planet?" Padmé said wryly. "Besides, it doesn't show up on any star charts so it's hidden as well."

Sabé's hands stilled on the controls. "Hidden? So how do we know where we're going?"

Padmé and Obi-Wan exchanged a glance. They'd already had this conversation.

"Through the Force," Obi-Wan said confidently. "Dagobah is a planet teeming with life and I can feel it through the Force."

"But Dagobah?!? It's a swamp!" Sabé exclaimed without her usual poise, betraying the extent of her feelings on the subject. "And what if we run into a star or an asteroid belt…"

"Don't worry," Obi-Wan reassured her, but not quite able to keep the amusement from his voice. "We'll make it Home."

"It's not funny, Master Kenobi."

He pasted a smile on his face, but could not make the anxiety he felt disappear. Neither Padmé nor Sabé knew about Dagobah's cursed past. Not only was the swamp planet full of life, but also full of dark energy. Master Yoda had battled with a Dark Jedi on Dagobah and his energy had stayed behind after he died to be absorbed by the planet life. Most Jedi steered clear of the planet but Obi-Wan saw it as their only chance at successfully evading Anakin.

Protecting the twins from the Darkside by bringing them to it…desperate times call for desperate measures, Obi-Wan thought to himself. Anakin would never think to look for us here. He wouldn't think that I was crazy enough to do this.

"Reaching jump vector in ten seconds," Sabé announced.

Obi-Wan focused on the viewscreen and watched as the stars began to stretch. He could still feel Padmé's hand in his when he'd helped her up in the cargohold, could still see the trust on her face as she put her life and the lives of her children in his hands.

Determination etched new lines on Obi-Wan's face. He had already failed the galaxy once. He would not do it again.

The first thing Padmé thought of as she stepped out of the shuttle was that this ugly place was where her children would be born. She recoiled at the thought, taking a step back and nearly hitting Sabé with the top of her head. Obi-Wan turned, sensing her distress, and raised an inquiring eyebrow. He put his own troubles in the back of his mind, though the power of the Darkside radiating from this place was making his head hurt. He strengthened his mental barriers and fixed a kind smile on his face.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's…it's hideous," Padmé sputtered. "This is the first place my children are going to see!"

Obi-Wan held out a hand. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. This place will save your children. Come on. Let's get settled in."

She frowned at him, putting a protective hand over her still-flat belly, but she did allow him to take her hand. They stood, hand in hand, staring at their new home. Dagobah was hideous, there was no other word that could describe it. It was gray and dark, its plants were gnarled and thorny, and its animals scurried underfoot or flew menacingly overhead. Nearby, something splashed in the greenish water, a grayish fog floating on its surface. The landscape was the stuff of nightmares.

Padmé thought of her home, of the sunrises and the sunsets that she and Anakin had gazed at while in each other's arms. She remembered the soft, cool breezes that rustled the sheer curtains at the doors to the balcony of their bedroom and breathed on their bodies as they lay down in bed. But most of all, her mind was full of her husband. Of Anakin smiling at her, kissing her, whispering things in her ear, his lips sensually brushing her skin ever so slightly. She didn't think she could love anyone as much as she had loved him, but she did…and more. It was idyll, it was perfect.. It was the stuff of dreams.

A small sound escaped her lips and she let go of Obi-Wan's hand, wrapping her arms around herself as she shivered.

"Are you cold?" he asked, starting to take off his cloak.

"No. Just worried," she answered vaguely. "Well, let's start unloading the shuttle. We have a lot of work to do. If we're gonna make this Home, we've got our work cut out for us."

The sound of Padmé retching pulled Sabé from the warm embrace of sleep. Still not fully awake, she went towards the sound and was surprised to see that Obi-Wan was already there, one hand holding back Padmé's hair while the other stroked her back comfortingly. They were both kneeling at the edge of swamp, clothes muddied, but neither seemed to notice. Sabé felt the bottom of her stomach drop as Obi-Wan turned his head to look at her and she had to lean against the doorway of their small abode.

He's beautiful, she thought wistfully.

"Good morning, Sabé," he said with a small smile. "Would you mind making a cup of tea for Padmé?"

Sabé could not find her voice so she only nodded and turned to the small fire pit in the center of their camp. Nearby, the beginnings of a more permanent abode sat, awaiting that day's work. Sabé could not wait until it was completed. It was hard work but she felt they needed a roof over their heads at least. Compared to the luxury she and Padmé were used to, their living conditions now were indescribable.

Padmé and Obi-Wan rose just as the pot of tea began to steam. Sabé poured a cup for each of them and the three of them sat on the ground, sipping tea.

"Are you feeling better?" Sabé asked Padmé.

"Yes, I am," she answered with a wane smile. "I didn't mean to wake either of you."

"I was already up," Obi-Wan reassured her.

Sabé studied the Jedi Master's face and saw how sallow and pale he looked-even more so than Padmé, who had reason to look the way she did. His eyes were red-rimmed and strained, but she hadn't heard a complaint come from him since they had arrived on this godforsaken planet a month before. He had been nothing but supportive to Padmé and kind to them both. However, Sabé had fallen in love with him long before any of this happened. She took great pains to keep her emotions hidden, nervous that he could sense it, but if he could he showed no sign, for which she was grateful.

"This is very good tea, Sabé," he said, scratching at his beard, mouth quirking with some annoyance.

"Why don't you shave it off," Padmé suggested. "I've been watching you scratch at it for the past few weeks and honestly, Obi-Wan, just let it go."

He sighed as he had already been considering it. "Alright."

"How about a hair cut, too?" she added with a mischievous smile.

He grimaced, touching the reddish-gold hair brushing the tops of his shoulders. "Fine."

"Sabé, get the scissors," Padmé said with flourish.

Padmé led Obi-Wan outside while Sabé searched for soap, her scissors, and a razor. She came out to see Obi-Wan sitting on a rock expectantly and Padmé grinning at him, happier than she'd been in days. He was looking back at her with a wry smile. The picture made the handmaiden pause. There was something there that she couldn't name, but made her feel like she was looking at something she wasn't supposed to be looking at.

Padmé glanced at her. "Come on, Sabé, before he loses his nerve."

Sabé smiled gamely and got to work.

Unable to keep a laugh from escaping her lips, Padmé beamed at the Jedi Master she now considered her closest friend. The whole situation amused her, as she had never considered that Obi-Wan would be vain enough to endure discomfort, but he was just that. Everyday she was learning something new about him and she realized that she really didn't know him at all, despite all they had been through together. Obi-Wan kept everything close to him and she had to wonder why.

Resting her chin in her hand, Padmé watched Sabé lather soap onto Obi-Wan's cheeks. He closed his eyes as the razor scraped against his beard, but Sabé barely even blinked. It was then she let her guard down, it was then her feelings shone through her movements and her face, and it was then Padmé knew her handmaiden loved a Jedi Master. She drew in a breath at the realization and sat back, studying the scene anew.

Sabé's hands caressed rather than touched, her eyes speaking words that her mouth could not. But Obi-Wan was oblivious. His eyes remained closed, his body as still as a statue. He radiated a distance, a coolness, where Sabé was nothing but an explosion waiting to happen. When he finally did open his eyes as Sabe wiped away the last bit of soap, it was Padmé he looked to first.