Chapter Five

Reaching the apartment he reinforced the notion of sleep in both the twins and pulled up carefully alongside the spacious balcony.

He removed Lané from between them, disabling the balcony's security features and moving inside stealthily. Glad that they hadn't yet had the heart to remove the contents of Lané's nursery he carefully placed her into her sleeper and smiled. It felt so right to have her back here. With them. Where she belonged. It had only been a week, but he knew Padmé had cried herself to sleep every night. Giving up Lané she had been forced to acknowledge that she would probably have no child of her own to raise.

She would be so happy. He reached out for her with his mind and found her fast asleep in their bed, long having given up on his return that evening.

He removed himself to the speeder and retrieved the twins, Luke in one arm and Leia in the other. They woke enough to cuddle into him and fall back to sleep.

It occurred to him as he carried them inside that they hadn't been home in almost a year. And hadn't seen Padmé in that long either. Unfortunately, that meant their beds in the nursery had been removed, and there was no specific place for them to sleep. When back at the temple he hadn't really considered this problem. His focus had been on getting them home. On having his family together. On having Padmé see their twins again.

But his mind provided him with a perfect image and he knew exactly where they would spend the night.

He walked confidently, though quietly, to his bedroom. Twisted and bent his knees to press the activation panel with his elbow and quietly slipped inside.

He grinned at Padmé, stretched out on her own side of the bed, leaving his quite free. Lots of room for two twins to fit and still leave room for him on the edge. Watching Padmé with eyes full of love he lowered first Leia, then Luke onto the bed and tugged their little boots off, then pulled the covers up over them all.

He walked around the bed, shrugging his clock off and letting his utility belt follow.

"Padmé," he whispered, stroking his fingers across her skin.

She moved slightly into his caresses and it took a few seconds for her to stir.

"Anakin," she sighed happily, reaching up to hold his hand to her cheek.

"I didn't think you were coming," she continued to yawn.

"The council called me before them unexpectedly."

"Is everything okay?" she asked immediately, eyes opening and focusing on him.

He held his fingers to his lips in a 'shhhh' gesture as his eyes lit up.

"I brought you a gift," he simply told her.

He leaned down to kiss her softly, then murmured into her ear "look," and shifted his eyes to behind her back.

Confused, she raised herself to her elbow and looked behind her, gasping at the two children who slept soundly in their bed.

"Anakin!"

She raised a hand to her chest and watched them breathing deeply.

"Please tell me they allowed this and you didn't sneak them out," she grinned, though she really didn't care as she leaned over and kissed first Leia and then Luke's foreheads.

His heart continued to swell as she studied them affectionately.

"Obi-Wan apparently caught me with Lané and stumbled upon the little fact that they all have my midiclorian count. They've gotten it into their heads that it could be genetic."

He grinned at their children as she brushed at Leia's longer hair and Luke's unruly wisps.

"They've sanctioned our marriage Padmé," he whispered as he turned his attention to her.

"What?"

She whipped her head around to him and he nodded.

"That's wonderful!"

She threw herself into his arms and he held her tight, burying his face in her neck.

"I know."

He kissed her neck gently.

"I told them the poor senator was doomed, since I was the only one who would ever father a child with her, and no matter what we did our babies would have to be Jedi. So they've agreed to let the kids live at home."

Leaning up to her ear he pulled her tightly to him and whispered "Lané's asleep in her room."

He could feel it. Her happiness. It filled her heart, her mind and her body and it couldn't help but move to permeate his.

"I have to take them back with me in the mornings but they're home Padmé. They're ours."

"I'm dreaming," she grinned to him, kissing his cheeks. "Pinch me."

He moved to kiss her with all the soft passion she brought bubbling forth in him. She laid back down to her pillow, pulling him with her. Her fingers caught up in the soft curls that caressed his neck and she shared his kisses with delight.

Eventually Anakin tucked himself into the other side of the bed and fell asleep smiling at Padmé over Luke and Leia's sleeping forms.