Padme woke with a start. She had been screaming at Anakin about how he had ruined everything in their lives while her teenaged daughter, who looked like her and didn't look like her, witnessed the exchange with sad and shocked eyes. A sleepy sniffle and a shuffle next to her brought her back to reality - she was in a hotel room in Bespin. Bespin, yes, Bespin. They had stopped for hyperdrive repairs on Bespin after it had started to make an ominous whining noise. Her son was four years old, going on five - not a teenager. And Anakin was no longer Anakin, and he was most certainly not whole anymore - she knew what his injuries had been and had seen the suit he was encased in. Leia was safe on Alderaan - she was Princess Leia Organa, and Dorme had promised on her life to see to it that she was safe.

Padme shuddered involuntarily. Why had she dreamt of Anakin? She hadn't dreamt of him in months. And why had Leia been there with him? She tried to shake the mental cobwebs, the sticky remnants of her dreams that were stubbornly clinging for no other reason than to torture her. Luke shifted again in his sleep and she felt his head dig painfully into her collarbone. Padme lay further down, so as to be in a more horizontal position, and Luke settled in with a sigh, now that her collarbone wasn't protruding anymore. She looked down at her little boy, his mouth fallen halfway open to reveal teeth that were remarkably similar to her own. She kissed his forehead and rubbed his back, soothing herself more than anything.

She looked around the small hotel room once her eyes had adjusted to the dark. She took in a deep breath and let it out - waking up disoriented was never a pleasant experience. Her dream had seemed so vivid, and real. Padme bit her lip and wondered just how hellish Anakin's experiences must have been if his dreams were even half that vivid, given the frequency of them. She fought back tears at that thought - he had still taken actions that were unconscionable on her behalf, without her consent. She could feel all the sympathy in the universe for him, but that did not excuse the course of action taken.

Padme heard a snore from the other side of her thin wall, and recognized it as Han's. She smiled to herself - he could snore like a Wookie when tired, and he most certainly was now that he had gotten his immunizations. They had managed to get Han some forged identification documents, one of Bespin's many unadvertised but commonly known services. They had tried searching for any family or clue of his parents, but Han had somehow never been registered with either the Republic or Imperial database. Han had shrugged as if to say told you so, and she and Obi-Wan had exchanged a look. Luke most certainly wasn't registered, but it was for entirely different reasons. Her heart ached for Han at that moment and she wondered if Obi-Wan hadn't been proud of him for taking such a Jedi-like approach to the situation.

Obi-Wan and Han got along famously. She had spied them sitting in the cockpit with Obi-Wan giving Han instructions on how to pilot. She had to admit, Han was a natural. The similarities to Anakin both hurt her heart and caused her to smile at the same time - a strange mixture of emotions that she supposed would follow her throughout the rest of her life. Padme kept her thoughts to herself, but she suspected that Obi-Wan took Han on since he reminded him of Anakin. Perhaps he felt that he could save this boy, where he had failed with Anakin. There would also not be the crushing devastation wrought on the Galaxy were Han to ever go into a rage, given that he was not a Force-user. Either way, she had noticed that Obi-Wan's spirits had picked up considerably since they had added Han to their "family".

Her thoughts kept going in circles, coming back to Anakin again and again. She wondered why her mind had decided to pull this stunt on her at this particular moment in time. Padme kept wondering what Anakin would have thought of Han - would he have seen the similarities between themselves? Would he have been irritated or amused? She kept picturing Luke as he followed Han around whenever possible, peppering him with questions. She wondered if he would have been a Daddy's boy and followed Anakin around everywhere as well. She also wondered just what kind of father Anakin would have been, and couldn't separate his turn from the Dark Side from him anymore. She wondered if he would have hit Luke for whining. Or Leia? What would he have done with her? Spoiled her rotten? Or, given that from what little she knew of her own daughter that she did have his fiery temper, would he have choked her in a rage? Those thoughts would not leave her - after all, she had thought that he would never hurt her at one point in time.

A cold little foot curling into her thigh made her take a sharp breath and leave her morbid train of thought. She would need to go shopping for a new set of night clothes for Luke. He had outgrown his beloved Froggy pajamas. She had toyed with finding another set, only to have caught Luke in tears in their room on the Falcon after Han had laughed at them. She sighed and supposed that they would have to do with something less childish. She loathed the idea of her son growing up on her, but she knew that it was inevitable. Her heart ached at the thought of her Leia, and how she had still yet to meet her beautiful girl. She sniffled at the thought that it might not be until she was a proper teenager that they might meet, if ever. She wondered how Leia and Han would have gotten along. Somehow, she doubted that Leia would have shed a single tear over Han's mocking of her wardrobe choices.

Padme cuddled her son closer and leaned her head on his, inhaling the sweet smell of baby shampoo. She had not seen her son in her dream - but he had been there. The few nice aspects of it had been that they had been living somewhere near water, and that her son had been out enjoying himself in the ocean while she was berating his wayward father. Padme sighed and resolved to find some place where there was water for them to be near. She loved water, Han did as well, given that he was from Corellia, and after his initial apprehension - Luke loved it. She didn't know how Obi-Wan felt about water, but she figured that three out of four would win the argument, if it came to it. She could practically hear the surf, waves breaking on the sand, warm salty air filling her lungs and making her eyes water slightly. She smiled as she relaxed and sank back into sleep.

"I must say, I can't remember the last time I was able to sit at a proper eatery and not worry about people staring at me," Padme mused aloud as she pushed her empty plate away. She didn't know if it was their new hair colors, Bespin's cultural atmosphere, or a combination of both - but it seemed that people didn't pay them any mind. Everyone went about their own business. There were a few smugglers to be seen, but no one seemed to be in the mood to rob anyone else there. It was reminiscent of Tattooine in a way - but light years more civilized.

"I'd say that this is an agreeable change of circumstances for once," Obi-Wan remarked as he moved Luke's glass of juice from its precarious placement near the edge of the table. "I also hope that you didn't just jinx us."

Padme wrinkled her nose in response. Before she could retort, Han ambled up to the table and sat down heavily in his previously vacated chair. "Good news," he said as he threw an arm lazily over the back of his chair. "The repairs should be done by tomorrow mid-morning at the latest."

"That is good news," Obi-Wan said as he winked at Luke, who attempted to wink back, only to squinch both eyes shut at once. Luke covered his mouth as he giggled, trying to keep his overstuffed mouth from leaking its contents. Padme smiled and shook her head.

"Thank you, Han," she told him sincerely. She had dreaded speaking to the mechanics - she always feared that they would try to tell her that there was something else that needed work done. She was mildly competent with mechanics, but she didn't know enough to know when she was being taken advantage of in that realm. Han's natural aptitude for mechanics had been a welcome surprise for both Obi-Wan and herself.

"Where to next, then?" Han asked with barely concealed excitement. He honestly did seem to be most at home on a ship flying through the stars.

"I am strongly considering Anchoron again," Obi-Wan said as he swept crumbs from the table onto his empty plate. "It is not widely patrolled by the Empire, is in the Outer Rim, and is not experiencing any upheaval or protests." What was left unsaid between the adults was that there had been no previous Jedi Enclaves or extensive presence there. Lothal had been eliminated as a destination for that reason even before the planet's decision to formally join the Empire.

"Which means no Imperial presence expected in the near future," Padme finished for him.

"Correct. It is also a very civilized system, where the people are renowned for their good manners," Obi-Wan said with a twinkle in his eye. Padme knew that he missed Coruscant as much as she did. It would have to do for now. However, something told Padme that it might be longer than their stay on Dantooine. She had already forgotten about most of her dream, but the one thing that still stood out vividly for her had been the impression of water. Whether any of it was real or the work of the Force, she didn't care - she was ready for a change for the better.