Bright Sparkling Stars

Bright Sparkling Stars

By Ricco Ragazza

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars and George Lucas, his lawyers, and everyone else would laugh at me if I said that I did. So, :-p to that idea. All I own is my story, ask me before you use it. Thanks! :-)

Authors Note: My first real multi-chaptered story! And my muse ::da-da-da-duuuuum:: Amidala Skywalker/ Lady Serenity Moon! ::fans throw flowers:: Hey! Where are my flowers, huh?! Well, anyways, please read? So, if you wanna be nice to me, READ+REIVIEW!! Ok? Please? Thanks to anyone who does! ::blows them kisses::

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~Bright Sparkling Stars~

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~By Ricco Ragazza~

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Anakin fidgeted slightly as he stood straight clenching the sides of his pants in an effort to dry his sweaty palms. There he was in the middle of the dome shaped Jedi Council room; for the second time that week. Obi-wan sensed the unrest of his protégé, who was standing at his left, and a deep frown flashed across his bearded face. The grimace only resided on his rugged features for a split-second but that was long enough for Yoda to pick it up.

"Frustrated you are Obi-wan, yet your padawan still listens not. Instruct him better you should." Yoda answered to the expression in his special was of speaking. He didn't frown as Obi-wan had, but his emotions were on the same line. All of the Jedi were getting tired of Anakin's behavior, but there was nothing they could do. After all, he was their only hope, bad behavior or not.

The council couldn't tell him anything he already didn't know now, and if they thought instructing Anakin was a walk in the park maybe they should take on the responsibility, after all he never asked for the job.

"Yes, master." Obi-wan answered automatically as was the standard protocol. Inside he was still fuming, but he set up the necessary shields to block his thoughts from everyone else in the room; a trait he had learned early on at the Jedi Temple.

The other masters looked on at them with that all-knowing look that sometimes overtook their features without them really knowing it. Obi-wan stared blankly at a spot on the wall behind Yoda and Adi, this way it looked like he was looking at them, but he didn't have to meet their penetrating gazes. The sound of his heart pounding against the walls of his chest echoed hollowly in his ears as the deafening silence chewed away at the last of his wits.    

"Go now you may, but glad I will not be to see you again in the near future," Yoda huffed out and crinkled his already wrinkled face in a partly disgusted manner. Obi-wan and Anakin bowed in homage simultaneously and then turned and strode out of the chamber; both all too very ready to get away from the glares and harsh words that the council had to offer the two of them are the shortest notice. That was one thing they could always count on; rebuke from the Jedi masters.

Anakin trailed a few feet behind Obi-wan through the door of the council room, and right as it shut behind them Obi-wan turned on his heel to give him a small piece of his mind.

"Anakin, when are you going to grow up?! You're old enough to know the difference between right and wrong, or am I mistaken?" Obi-wan screeched from between his teeth, and he tried to keep his voice low; tried to keep his calm, but it was all too hard to grasp with the wet fingers of his mind.

Anakin hated being yelled at; he always had and he probably always would. He didn't feel like arguing today, he was much to run down and tired for arguing. He folded his arm across his chest; ready to let Obi-wan rant and rave at his expense until his heart was content. Looking down at the tips of his tan colored boots, Anakin paid no attention to what Obi-wan was saying; he let his mind drift off into his own small world.

"Anakin? Are you listening to me? ANAKIN!" Obi-wan yelled at him; seeing that yelling wasn't going to help in getting Anakin to pay attention, he reached over and grabbed Anakin's shoulder and dragged him down the hallway to the elevator.

Obi-wan hit the down button (The only way to go was down) with the palm of the hand that wasn't attached to Anakin a little too hard and a shot of pain went up his arm. If he even noticed the pain, it didn't show though. Anakin pulled away from his hard grasp and stood slumped over, still not paying much attention to why Obi-wan was so angry. He knew he had screwed up, he wasn't oblivious to the fact he had done something wrong, but everyone was acting that way. They treated him like he was still nine years old, and it was getting tiring.

The light above the elevator door lit up and soon after opened with a satisfying ding. Obi-wan proceeded to grab Anakin's arm and drag him unwillingly into the small chamber that was the inside of the elevator. "This is going to be one long ride…" Anakin thought unhappily as the double doors shut him in to face Obi-wan's wrath by himself.

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Sabé awoke to the noise of bare feet pattering on the hard tile floor of the private house (That was inside the palace, but consisted of many rooms) she shared with the other handmaidens and their queen. She didn't get out of her soft plush bed at first; she just opened her eyes to see who was getting up at the late hour of the night, or better yet early hour of the morning. To her surprise it was none other than Amidala, their queen, who had a look of pure interest on her face as she tip-toed to the door. Sabé waited until the queen had opened the door to the balcony, which was close to her bed anyway, to follow her.

She slipped out bed and quickly scanned the space around her bed for her soft heeled slippers so that she wouldn't make as much noise as Amidala had. Not seeing them on first glance she turned back toward her bed and bent down with her knees bent to look under her small single sized bed. Seeing them, she bent forward, a little too far, and fell forward. She caught the bed to regain her balance, and then reached her hands under the bed and snatched her white fluff slippers.

Wasting no time she creped over to where her wrapper was on a hook beside her nightstand, and pulled it around her shoulders and tied it around her waist loosely. She tip-toed past the other sleeping handmaidens, three of them were in that part of the skilled architecturally designed room, and made her way silently to the balcony door. After about four cautious steps she stepped on something and she wavered, but stayed on her feet. She looked down, seeing that she had stepped on a hairbrush. Sabé brought her foot up, and rubbed her ankle where it was throbbing before she continued on her way to follow her queen.

*****

Amidala awoke suddenly, out of another dreamless sleep which had plagued her nights for weeks. She sat up in her bed and sent her covers to her knees with a half hearted toss. She stared blankly through an open door that was in front of her that opened up to another room for her handmaidens. Everyone was asleep, dreaming dreams of sugar plum faeries, Amidala was sure. She sighed deeply and let her shoulders slump as she shifted her gaze up to the ceiling.

Suddenly, she turned half way around to look out her window; that was conveniently placed behind the headboard of her bed. Amidala scooted over so that she could move the thick dark curtains with her hand, and she looked out over her private green gardens, the most beautiful in the entire palace. A thin mist covered all of the royal gardens, and the moonlight made it glitter in an eerily beautiful way. The gardens were in the center of their courtyard, surround on all sides by walls and other balconies.

She dropped the curtains from her hand and pulled her knees to her chest ridding them of the thick blankets. She then threw her legs over the side of her large bed, and proceeded to slip out onto the floor. The queen walked as quietly as she could, so that she wouldn't wake anyone; not bothering to grab a wrapper or to wear her slippers. Amidala walked very slowly over to the door to one of their balconies that was only a few paces from her bed.

When she got to the wide door, she tried to turn the knob, with no luck. Frowning, she then reached a few inches above the door knob and quickly turned the metal lock the opposite way. Amidala turned the silver knob this time very quickly with ease and stepped out onto the cool balcony, shutting the door slowly, and letting it latch slowly to lessen the noise it would make.

*****

Sabé opened the door and hurried out to where her queen was standing staring out over the gardens at the bright sparkling stars that had long before taken over the night sky. Sabé did have to admit that they were beautiful, and captivating; yet it was no excuse to get up in the middle of the night and scare the wits out of your loyal handmaiden.

"May I ask what the bloody hell you are doing out here at this time of night?" Sabé asked a startled Amidala. The queen turned around after jumping nearly a foot in the crisp night air to glare at her best friend, who had single handedly ripped her out of her reverie. She opened her mouth to shove a good comeback in Sabé's face, but couldn't think of one so she merely turned back around in such a stately manner it made Sabé start laughing at her.

Amidala frowned out over the green misty gardens and stomped her foot in an irritated manner, "Oh, hush! You'll wake everyone with that cackling of yours!" She snorted back at her handmaiden, who was now doubled over with laughter. "I can't see why you are laughing so hard, I didn't say anything quite that hilarious." She stated in a queenly way, but it only made Sabé laugh even harder.

Getting a hold of herself, Sabé's laughter slowly came to a halt, but tears were still in her eyes as she stood up straight and walked over to the ledge of the balcony that Amidala was resting her elbows on with a pouting look on her face.

Sabé reached the Amidala and looked over at her with a questioning look on her face. "Really, though, why are you out here?" She whispered to her queen, and when she got no answer she mimicked the way her friend was standing there; pout and all. Amidala turned her head long enough to see that she was now being made fun of and turned her head back with a jerk and frowned even deeper.

"Ami-daaaaaalaaaaaa? Hellooooo? Any-body-hooooo--" Sabé was cut off by a smack on the head with the back of her own right slipper. Amidala had snatched it off quite quickly, much too quickly for Sabé to notice. It was now the queen's turn to laugh as she ran to where the stairs off the balcony to the gardens were and hustled down as quickly as she could, not minding that she wasn't wearing any sort of shoes.

"That's not funny!" Sabé screeched after the queen, and Amidala's laughter got louder. As she neared the bottom of the stone steps Sabé's left slipper went sailing by the side of her head, but missed by an inch and hit the thick green grass and rolled over twice and came to a stop about two feet from the stairs.

Amidala stopped, turned back toward Sabé at the bottom of the stairs and put her hands on her hips. "Missed me, missed me, now ya gotta kiss me!" She jeered at Sabé as she swung her hips from side to side while scrunching up her facial features and sticking her tongue at out.

"Ooooh! You're gonna get a kiss alright! Not one that you will particularly like though!" Sabé yelled as she ran to the stairs and flew down them after Amidala, who had let out a small scream when she saw Sabé start after her.

"Oh? A bad kiss, huh? Probably from your boyfriend then!" Amidala yelled behind her as she ran through the garden dodging obstacles such as the trees and beds of flowers. The mist was getting thicker and she could barely see where she was going; hoping not to run into a tree she continued onward running in part circles trying to tire Sabé out.

The cool mist that covered the ground swirled around their ankles as the chase continued on; their laughter filled the air with a musical sound. The wind that blew in Amidala's face cooled it from running, and the thick soft green grass was plush under her feet, but firm. It was the perfect evening, but neither of them were now looking up at the star filled sky.

After about three straight minutes of running around in circles Sabé was getting tired of chasing Amidala and slowed her pace down to a mild jog. "Fine! I'll kiss you later!" She yelled after the running figure of Amidala between pants; she doubled over and tried helplessly to get back her breath from the mixture of laughing so hard and running at the same time.

Amidala stopped cautiously only after a moment of not hearing her friend behind her. She turned around with a grin that took up her whole face and looked at Sabé.

"How the heck can you keep that grin on your face without falling to the ground from lack of oxygen?!" Sabé questioned her queen's expression while she still tried to regain her breath.

Amidala stated walking toward her, "Oh, this old thing?" She asked as she stretched her smile even wider; wider than either of the girls had thought possible. Amidala tossed herself onto the grass beside Sabé and looked through the trees up into the black starry sky. Her friend soon regained most of her breath as sank to her knees and then proceeded to lie down beside Amidala and follow her gaze up to the sky.

"Ya think my dream guy is up there?" Amidala asked dreamily as she crossed her legs at the ankles and stared even harder at the millions of stars that lit up the otherwise pitch black sky.

"Uhhhh, if your dream is some kind of stalker…I don't think normal guys hang out in the trees of our gardens…" Sabé said in a serious tone of voice, even though she was joking. She folded her arms behind her head and gazed up half interested at the stars.

"I'm being serious! I mean, you can't help but wonder…what's he doing right now?"

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Anakin stared up at his ceiling and counted the dots. "Three hundred forty-one, three hundred forty-two…" He said half-heartedly as he lay on his small bed in his cramped little chambers; the best that the temple had to offer him. He was lying on his perfectly made bed, not bothering to get under the blankets; or for that matter even take off his boots.

He stopped in his pursuit of counting all of the dots and pushed himself up and threw his legs over the edge of his bed.

Anakin walked over to his door and stared at the knob. One part of him wanted to go out, swallow his pride and apologize. Yet the other part, the proud one, wanted to lay back down and count dots and run from the realization that he was wrong. Before he could make up his mind Obi-wan burst through the door, almost knocking him to the floor.
"Get packed quickly, we have a serious mission to go on." Obi-wan said calmly, but Anakin could see the terror on his features: never a good way to start off a mission.