Kaki wrote this one as a birthday gift for me.
Remember “A Step Too Far” in which Palpatine’s young wife Amne is told her husband is the Sith lord? This is the morning before that fateful afternoon. It’s a real heartbreaker.
Thanks, Kaki!
***
The first thought that crossed her sleep-muddled mind was Tonight.
She often awoke to notice the time on the bedside chrono or to register that some matter of state was so urgent that Sheev was speaking with an advisor over his comm link while dressing for an urgent meeting. If she were too tired to rouse herself, she would take accounting of simpler things such as the rattling of rain against the window panes or whether she had slept comfortably.
All of that was inconsequential this morning. Tonight, she would put life-changing information into words and for now, she had to resist the overwhelming urge to interrupt the Supreme Chancellor’s morning.
Amne Selrieen Palpatine opened her eyes to find her husband still sleeping. His mouth turned down slightly at the corners, but it had been days since he had cause to smile in her presence and she supposed that the war had changed his resting expression.
Sheev had not been there when sleep took her last night, but she could see the collar of his nightclothes beneath the blankets that were nearly pulled to his chin. It pleased her that he was hopeful of so much rest that he put himself to bed instead of spending a restless night in another room of the Mansion; in this state of repose, he even looked oddly vulnerable.
Erasmesheev Palpatine daring to sleep this soundly meant that the Republic could be left to the wisdom of lesser beings for a few hours and she dared not interrupt that rare experience.
For the next minute, Amne matched the pace of his breathing and felt the contentment of the morning deepen into calm. She even attempted to join him in sleep, but there was still a secret fluttering of exhilaration that demanded her consideration and she finally turned her full attention to words that she had been mulling over for days.
Beloved, I’ve been dreaming again.
I have felt a change recently and the doctor confirmed that we are to be parents.
We—you and I—changed each other’s lives on the night I returned to you.
It will be different this time. I know it.
We’re having a daughter.
It was fortunate that the mother of the Chancellor’s child had resolved to speak to him tonight because none of her words were adequate to the announcement. It was possible that she would spend her spare moments revising her opening remark.
The mild irritation left her in a quiet sigh and Sheev stirred. Eyes still closed, he reached out an arm to encircle her waist and drew her so close that only breath and their child separated them. Amne let her right hand graze the soft skin beneath his jaw, then slid further to stroke the nape of his neck. Without a need for invitation, he leaned into the embrace and captured her mouth.
He stole her breath in that moment, greeting her with comfortable intimacy that usually signaled that they did not have long to be together. Several moments later, though, the morning tenderness that was familiar intensified and she found her hand tightening reflexively against the warm skin above his collar. Her breath left her again in a quiet sigh as her back met the mattress and he silenced her with another kiss.
It was not to last, however. He pulled away a moment later, looking slightly affronted. “What is it that you find amusing?”
Amne hadn’t been conscious of the quick smattering of laughter that had left her throat, but the outburst of joy had left its mark in the irrepressible smile on her face.
Instead of dismissing the question or distracting him, Amne rested a hand against his heart, both of their pulses elevated. “We have time for …” Her cheeks flushed and she let the toes of her right foot graze his leg. “I didn’t expect such happiness this morning.”
“We have time enough for such happiness,” he echoed, his expression softening at the explanation. “I do not care to compare schedules at this moment.”
This time, the laugh was less spontaneous and she did not mind it at all when he stopped her mouth. Her hands found their place against his lower back and there was no mistaking her intention as she invited him closer.
Tonight, she thought, they would talk but this morning, there was a deliciousness in other forms of communication.
*
Had matters of state not been so consistent in their interruptions, Sheev might have suspected something earlier. The nausea and vomiting had been more difficult to reckon with this time and Amne had followed her medic’s suggestion of eating bland foods and lean proteins. Medication had tempered the worst of it and while she still found herself averse to some foods, she was grateful that their unexpected morning together did not include any gastrointestinal issues.
The steward brought their favorites, rewarding the Chancellor for his presence with a fresh basket of his favorite bread as the kitchen staff often did when he returned from some journey. Sheev raised an eyebrow at his wife, but only thanked the man. Once the door had shut, he let the other wheaten eyebrow raise.
“Have I truly been absent long enough to warrant a homecoming?”
The honest answer was yes, but Amne opted for the diplomatic answer. It was not by his choosing that he was unable to spend more than a few hours on a given day in their home.
“I think you have been absent in a way that reminds them of the taxing and time-consuming nature of your work,” she said. “Don’t think too much about the baker’s intentions.”
He nodded and divided the pastry in half, gallantly offering the other piece to her. He surprised her a moment later by using the hand-off to squeeze her fingers affectionately and Amne returned the gesture before retreating to her side of the table.
“What shall I think of your intentions?” he asked once they had finished their portions. “That was quite a homecoming.”
“As I recall, you were the one to take initiative,” Amne rejoined. “I thought it an excellent idea and my intentions were to encourage you.”
Had the steward not returned with a pitcher of water at that moment she might have admitted to wanting to continue supporting him in his agenda, but it was a family rule that they try not to embarrass the staff. As it was, while she was still in her nightgown and a robe, he had changed into clothing more appropriate to a Senate session before they descended to the dining room. He was clearly prepared to move on to the things that could not be put off for much longer.
“I’ve disappointed you,” Sheev said.
She looked up suddenly from the fruit that she had speared with a fork, taken aback. “I’m sorry?”
“No.” He inclined his head towards her. “I watched your joy fade just now and I blame the Republic.”
“I always blame the Republic,” Amne said, attempting a smile. She ate three more berries before continuing, “I have loved this more leisurely morning, but we each have duties to attend to. The Senate reconvenes in an hour and it will take you half that time to travel from your vehicle to the Box. A quarter of the hour will be spent in traffic, which means that–”
“This is precisely why I had no interest in comparing schedules earlier,” he finished with a sigh. “I think the joy just faded from my face as well.”
She could alter that with three words, but she couldn’t speak them out loud with his brow now furrowing. “I’m sorry to have dampened your spirits.”
A quarter of an hour before he needed to leave meant that at least one member of staff would arrive in the next five minutes to ask to ride with him. He cheered himself up slightly with another piece of bread, then quickly drank his water while Amne finished her own plate.
“I cannot spare much more time for you but permit me to walk you back to our rooms,” Sheev requested.
She accepted his arm as he offered it and they even ignored the ringing of the anunciator chime as they mounted the stairs. As expected, someone was here to make demands of the Chancellor and she loved him for completely ignoring that fact for a few minutes.
At the door to their wing, he gave her another kiss of the kind that had preceded their dedicated intimacy and he cupped her face in his hands, their eyes meeting for a long moment after it ended.
“Thank you for such happiness,” he said simply before letting his hands fall and turning away.
She watched him until he turned the corner and touched a hand to her lips. The smile returned.
Tonight, she resolved.