Yané woke up late in the night, the first thing her sleep fog brain detected was the absence of another person in her bed.
Saché was gone.
She sat up slowly and scanned the darkness for her wife.
The door of their balcony was open slightly.
She must've needed some air. Yané thought.
She got out of bed and grabbed a blanket sitting at the edge of it. It was cold tonight, Saché would be cold too.
She slipped outside quietly, there were lots of little ears that might hear her moving around.
She quickly found Saché curled up and pressed against the wall with her head tucked in her knees. She had another nightmare. Yané realised.
Ever since Padmé had died, Saché's nightmares had come back worse than ever. Sometimes it was twisted memories gone horribly wrong, sometimes it was her failing at her job and their queen suffering, sometimes it was horrible things happening to their family.
Yané hummed softly as she sat down besides her wife. Saché startled and let out a squeak, settling when she saw it was only her. It hurt Yané's heart to see the bloodshot eyes and tear streaks that seemed to highlight the bright red of her scars.
She lifted her arm in an offering, Saché nodded and they snuggled close together, Yané wrapped the large blanket she had brought around Saché's shivering form.
Saché leaned her head on her shoulder, shaking every so often, from the cold or her tears, Yané didn't know. She sat with her wife, humming her favorite gentle melodies into the night breeze.
"Nightmare?" She asked softly once Saché's tears had begun to dry.
"Mhm." She nodded.
Yané hummed and pressed a kiss into Saché's forehead. She never asked for details, Saché would tell her sooner or later, prying didn't help.
They sat there in comfortable silence for a while longer, observing the night creatures and stars. They lived far enough out from Theed to have less light pollution and breathtaking stars.
"It was you this time." Saché mumbled quietly.
Yané turned her head away from the stars and looked back to her wife. Saché was gripping the fabric of her nightgown tight in her hand.
"It was you, they caught you. I don't know why or how or what you did, but they punished you for it. You were being tortured and there was nothing I could do to stop it! I didn't even know it was a dream until after I woke up, it was so real… I thought they were killing you… you screamed like they were…" Saché's voice trembled.
"I couldn't breath, I was suffocating, I couldn't even say anything… I was drowning." Saché cried into her.
Yané stared, she knew how vivid nightmares could be, she knew how awful Saché's could get, she knew all of this, yet it still hurt her and left her with nothing to say after.
She never felt like she had the right words for this.
She couldn't fix Saché's nightmares or her fears, no matter what she did they would always linger in the darkness of her mind.
Yané rested her head on Saché's and sat there with her wife until something came to her.
"I don't know what the future holds, but I know we'll adapt and overcome any challenges it has together, just like always." Yané said, kissing Saché's forehead gently.
Saché relaxed against her, Yané felt the tension leaving Saché's body. Together they looked up at the grand display of stars, countless other planets and suns with their own populations and countless lives on or dependent upon each one. It was a little existential to think about and often, Yané did, but right now, she just looked up and saw an intricate pattern of light in the sky.
"It's like your weavings." Saché murmured.
Yané hummed in agreement.
"It's so peaceful."
"It is."