Work Text:
The further the war progressed, the more weight Padmé carried on her shoulders at the end of the day. Her heart was in the right place, she was sure of it, but it felt like no one was on her side. While she watched the conflict escalate, she felt the energy drain from her. She was only one voice of many and it felt like the words she spoke didn’t matter anymore. There was always someone angrier, someone louder, someone else to drown out her desperate pleas to find a way to resolve the conflict.
Padmé knew the Jedi’s she loved were suffering and she wanted to do her part to alleviate that for them. It was a new mission every week, a new system being ripped apart one after another. Padmé fought for her people, she fought for justice, she fought for her galaxy with all her might. The closer she seemed to victory in the Senate, the harder the fall when her carefully laid plans were shredded by her opposition.
She was tired of it, she really was. She’d ignored the messages from her men all day asking what she wanted for dinner, asking what time she’d be back. Her comm had to be silenced with the flurry of messages she’d gotten, and she knew 80% of them were from Anakin. Patience was not his strong suit.
Her feet dragged across the floor as she reached her apartment. The door was already unlocked so they must have gotten here before her. While she was hoping to spend some time by herself to unravel over her issues, her heart skipped a beat knowing her lovers were already inside waiting for her.
As she opened the door, she heard loud voices from a few rooms over. Padmé explored, curious as to what was happening. She passed by the half bouquet of flowers on the table, curious as to what all the shouting was about. As she got closer, she could hear the stern voices more clearly.
“She loves the millaflowers, the whole point of stopping at Naboo was to get them for her, why can’t they go in the bath?”
“Because it’s a muscle relaxer when you introduce it to water.”
“So! She needs to relax, if we put just a few in, it’ll help.”
“Anakin I said don’t! Don’t, don’t put it in the water. It’ll relax her muscles enough so that she drowns, is that your intention?”
“Oh, yeah that wouldn’t be good.”
Padmé rounded the corner, walking slowly into the doorway of the fresher. “Up to no good in here, it sounds like.”
“Padmé!” Both of her boys chorused, their faces lighting up as she walked in.
“We thought we had more time,” Obi-Wan spoke over Anakin. “He was busy trying to draw the galaxy’s most lethal bath.”
“Relaxing, the galaxy’s most relaxing bath. How was I supposed to know these things could kill you?” Anakin rolled his eyes as he put the millaflowers down on the counter, picking up the bundle of rominaria’s beside them. “How are we supposed to raise our kids on Naboo someday if half the flowers there are poisonous?”
Padmé’s heart melted when she heard that.
“You won’t be in charge of supervising them, that’s for sure,” Obi-Wan said as he checked the temperature of the bath. “We heard the Senate dealings were rather tense today. Tonight is all about you sweetheart, anything you need we’ll take care of.”
“And here I was thinking I would just come home and cry,” Padmé said as she started undoing the coils of her hair. “This is much preferable.”
That set them off right away and she was being fussed over. Padmé’s tears held power in this galaxy. It kicked the most caring, loving Jedi’s into action. Anakin was swearing over her hairpins while Obi-Wan helped untangle her from the extravagance of her dress. It was a blur of sweet nothings, forehead kisses, and gentle hands easing her into the bath. She was breathing in the scent of the rominaria’s, thinking of home, and enjoying Anakin’s hands rubbing her shoulders.
Padmé really had it good. The worries of the senate were dissolving in a matter of minutes as Ani melted the tension with his hands. Obi-Wan was in and out of the fresher, bringing in her favorite drink, her favorite food. She taught them about the healing properties of millaflowers and how they were revered for their euphoric properties when you smelled them. Anakin tried to argue that he’d made the right choice by picking them but was quickly silenced by Obi-Wan.
They couldn’t leave her alone. For all their intentions to help her relax, Obi-Wan was seated on the floor beside her ready to refill her wine. Anakin had settled himself now on the counter at the end of the bathtub, telling her all the stories of their last mission and making her laugh wildly. With every bubbling laugh, she could see them worry a little less about her. Padmé had to hand it to them, their distraction tactics were excellent.
As the water started to chill, they were ready with a towel and a robe for her. Padmé felt more like a queen than a senator, enjoying the careful attention they paid to her. They had some of her well-loved adventure holos at the ready. Warm from the heat of the bath and the love of her Jedi’s, Padmé settled into the nook between the two of them on the couch. Her body softened against them, relaxing instinctively once she was in their arms. Sometimes she wondered if they used the force against her to relax her, and honestly, she wouldn’t even be upset if they did.
“Is there anything else we can do for you?” Obi-Wan asked as he rubbed the back of her neck.
“There’s more food, and I got a bottle of emerald wine, the kind you like from-” Anakin sat up dizzyingly fast, ready to do whatever Padmé commanded of him.
“Just stay here with me and hold me,” she said softly, pulling Anakin back closer to her. With them on either side of her, she was at peace. The problems of the Senate could wait until tomorrow. Padmé wanted to soak up this moment forever.