Cory wakes up in the late afternoon with a start, her chest feels tight and she sits up, breathing heavily. In the night, her two braids have come undone and her hair curls and halos around her head. She doesn't know what's woken her up, or who let her sleep so long, but she scrambles out of bed, heading for her En Suite.

As she gets ready, she can't shift the feeling of dread in her stomach, and she struggles to the meditation chamber, finding her Master.

"Master Yoda,"

"Ah! Coretta, my young padawan has awoken,"

"Apologies for the late start to the day, I-" she can't think, her stomach churning, the force was trying to tell her something.

"Coretta?" Yoda asks, sensing her discomfort, "Come, into the chamber we must go," he leads her into the dark room, and they sit opposite each other.

"I feel...off balance, like there's this fear inside me, eating away,"

"Deep breaths," Yoda instructs "Calm yourself, let the force guide you to your answer,"

Cory follows his instructions, shutting her eyes and breathing deeply, she feels the sickness more deeply now, but she embraces it, listening to Yoda as he speaks calmly.

Her mind wanders, and she feels the force pull her to another, "Anakin," she mutters, recognising his force signature, but it's far away, muted.

Then, she has flashes of his face, an open field with glistening water, a dining table in a small room, the dessert, sand, Tatooine, and screams for his mother.

Her eyes open with a jolt and she gasps.

"What is it young one?"

"I have to go," she's less panicked now, but her unease has not left "Master I request permission to leave Coruscant and go to Anakin," Yoda doesn't ask questions, he can feel her concern. After discovering that he had not known a clone army was being built, he feels he must trust his Padawan, trust her connection to the force.

Flying over Tatooine is...depressing. It was exactly as Anakin had described, bland and sandy. Cory had taken Yoda's advice to 'feel the force'...but she'd also tracked Padmé's ship.

After landing next to the Senator's ship, Cory steps down onto the hardened ground, a breeze flows through, and she lifts her hood to shield herself from the sand granules. A homestead sits in the distance, and Cory sees a Brunnete woman sitting on the steps, the woman turns at the movement.

"Coretta?"

"Padmé?" Cory walks faster, and Padmé embraces her tightly

"Oh I'm so glad you're here, Anakin - he's," she trails off, looking at the ever so slightly taller woman "How did you find us?"

"I tracked the ship," Cory admits "I-I don't know, I've had the awful feeling since yesterday and...I had to find Anakin,"

"He was having nightmares about his mother, I came with him an-" Padmé's speaking so fast Cory can barely register what's being said

"Padmé," Cory grips her shoulders "Where's Anakin?"

"He went after the Tuskens who took his mother,"

"Oh for kniffs sake," Cory mutters "Which direction?" Padmé points far off to the left "Okay...Who's house are we at?"

"Anakin's step-father's,"

"Right, well tell him I'm borrowing a speeder," with that, she's gone, using 'the force to guide' her, she feels a tug at her heart and follows it. She glides over miles of desert, and finally, in the distance she sees smoke rising.

Stopping the speeder by an identical red one, Cory jumps off, walking into the small village, she should be cautious, should pull out her lightsaber and sneak around, but instead, she looks around and sees bodies everywhere, they litter the ground, lightsaber wounds visible on their limbs.

"Ani..." Cory gulps down a small bit of bile that's risen, and she looks up to see a familiar dark brown robe, it turns.

"Cory?" Anakin asks, he drops to his knees, Cory rushes forward, cradling his head into her stomach "They killed her, they killed my mother," his arms wrap around her as he sobs.

"It's okay, you're okay," Cory lets her knees buckle, joining Anakin on the ground.

In the early hours of the next morning, Coretta is sitting at the Lars' kitchen table, her head in hands, Padmé is preparing breakfast with Beru.

"What's it like there?"

"I'm sorry?"

"On Naboo... What's it like?"

"Oh - It's... very green. With lots of water and trees. Not like here at all,"

"I think I like it here better,"

"Maybe you'll come and see it one day," Padmé smiles

"I don't think so. I don't like to travel," Beru turns to Cory "Do you like it here,"

"Huh?" Cory looks up, registering the question "Oh, yes, it's very uh," she looks around, looking for the word, the most she'd seen of Tatooine was their home and bodies littering the ground "Beige,"

"Beige?" Beru laughs

"I'm used to the bright lights of Coruscant," She notices that breakfast is ready and stands "I'll bring Anakin something," she takes the tray from Beru "Thank you," Padmé rubs her back before Coretta walks away, heading for the garage.

"Anakin?" she finds him hunched over a workbench, repairing a part of one of the speeders "I brought you some food," she places it down, and walks around the bench, putting her hand on the small of Anakin's back.

"The shifter broke. Life seems so much simpler when you're fixing things. I'm good at fixing things... always was. But I couldn't..." his hands stop moving and tears well in his eyes "Why did she have to die? Why couldn't I save her? I know I could have!"

"There are things no one can fix," Cory looks up into his eyes "You're not all-powerful, Ani, no one is," he walks away from the bench, turning his back to his friend

"I should be! Someday I will be... I will be the most powerful Jedi ever! I promise you, I will even learn to stop people from dying!"

"Anakin..."

"It's all Obi-Wan's fault. He's jealous! He knows I'm already more powerful than he is. He's holding me back!"

"You know that's not true," Cory snaps, she doesn't mean to, but she does, she watches Anakin hurl the wrench in his hand across the garage and jumps slightly.

"I... I killed them. I killed them all. They're dead, every single one of them..." he looks back up into Cory's eyes, approaching her "Not just the men, but the women and the children too. They're like animals, and I slaughtered them like animals... I hate them!" There's a beat of silence "And you hate me for what I did," with that, he collapses to the floor, gasping for air through his tears, Coretta mimicks her actions from last night, falling to the floor with him, and she grabs his face.

"I don't hate you Anakin," she promises, tears forming in her own eyes from watching him break so easily

"But I killed them!"

"I'm not going to berate you when you're like this," she says softly, wiping away his tears with her thumbs, he sobs harder, burning his face into her chest, muttering incoherently

"I hate them! Why do I hate them? I didn't... I couldn't... I couldn't control myself. I... I don't want to hate them...But I just can't forgive them. I'm a Jedi. I know I'm better than this. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" she rocks him slowly, her arms holding him tightly whole his tears dampen her robes and his apologies spew all over the floor.

In the afternoon, Cliegg has set up a small funeral for his wife, he, Owen, Beru, C-Threepio, Padmé, Coretta and Anakin stand by three headstones.

"I know wherever you are it's become a better place. You were the most loving partner a man could ever have. Goodbye, my dearest wife, and thank you," as Cliegg finishes his speech, everyone watches as Anakin kneels at his mother's grave, picking up a handful of sand.

"I wasn't strong enough to save you, Mom. I wasn't strong enough. But I promise I won't fail again..." he drops the sand and stands "I miss you so much,"

A calm silence overtakes them, until, in the distance, beeps and whistles are heard, they turn.

"Artoo, what are you doing here?" Padmé asks, he beeps in response

"It seems that he is carrying a message from an Obi-Wan Kenobi. Master Ani, does that name mean anything to you?" Threepo translates.

Inside the Naboo Starship, a rough hologram of Obi-Wan is projected "Anakin, my long-range transmitter has been knocked out. Retransmit this message to Coruscant,"

Padmè turns and reaches over to a control board, pushing a button down to transmit the message.

"I have tracked the bounty hunter Jango Fett to the droid foundries on Geonosis. The Trade Federation is to take delivery of a droid army here and it is clear that Viceroy Gunray is behind the assassination attempts on Senator Amidala. The Commerce Guilds and Corporate Alliance have both pledged their armies to Count Dooku and are forming an-" The trio watch as Obi-Wan draws his lightsaber, and is attacked by Droidekas.

"Wait- Wait!"

The hologram cuts off and Anakin jumps up, agitated, Coretta bites her lip as Mace Windu takes Obi-Wan's place.

"Anakin, We will deal with Count Dooku. The most important thing for you is to stay where you are, protect the Senator at all costs. That is your first priority,"

"Understood, Master,"

"Coretta, take your starship to Geonosis, scout the area, but do not engage until backup arrives,"

"Yes Master Windu,"

The hologram switches off and Padmè looks at the readout on the ship's control panel "They'll never get there in time to save him. They have to come halfway across the galaxy. Look, Geonosis is less than a parsec away,"

"If he's still alive..." Anakin mutters

"Anakin-" both Padmè and Cory start

"Are you just going to sit here and let him die? He's your friend... your mentor -"

"He's like my father, but you heard Master Windu. He gave me strict orders to stay here, and Cory must not engage"

"He gave you strict orders to protect me..." she flicks more switches and the engines fire " ...and I'm going to save Obi-Wan. So if you plan to protect me, you will have to come along. Cory can engage - we're backup"

"Yes ma'am" Cory grins, exiting the ship to enter her own "Meet you on Geonosis".