Naberrie Villa, Theed
The luxury speeder arrived at the Naberrie Villa, and stopped just in front of the front door, kicking up a small cloud of dust from the cobblestone pathway. Padmé squinted towards the front door, which slid open to reveal her mother and sister. The young Princess of Naboo felt happy to see her family again, but she still felt uneasy from the recent events that nearly killed her family and closest friends. Six months earlier, hitmen likely sent by King Veruna had nearly killed her childhood friend Eirtaé, and placed her in a coma for a few months before she awoke. Also, her father had a temporary coma from his injuries before he awoke in the Lake Country Medical Center. Fortunately, Padmé was told that her father would soon be released because of his recovery.
"Welcome home, Padmé," Sola greeted her sister, and hugged her with both her prosthetic arm and her natural arm.
"I'm so happy to see that you're alright," Jobal tenderly spoke as she paced to the speeder, with her arms outstretched for a hug by her daughter.
Padmé exited the speeder with her travel bag and stopped on the front yard pathway to embrace her mother. Behind her, the five handmaidens stepped out of the speeder to unpack their handbags in the back compartment with casual chatter. Jobal turned her gaze to the handmaidens, and she knew that most of them were new friends of her daughter. The Naberrie woman decided to later treat her guests and daughters with a meal. She said, "Welcome back, all of you. I hope we can get familiar with each other."
"Come inside... I'll prepare my special pastries. The recipe is from Padmé's grandmother, Mistress Ryoo Thule," Jobal added, and led Padmé into the foyer of the Naberrie villa.
"Sounds great, Miss Naberrie," Rabé said, and Yané nodded as she set her hand bag on the cobblestone ground.
"Same here, I'm getting hungry," Saché said.
As the speeder departed with a hum, the other handmaidens followed Sabé, Eirtaé, and their Princess into the villa, and gawked at the elaborate main hallway. As seen by Anakin a few years earlier, the busts of past Naberries laid on the sides of the hallway, and colorful carpeting covered the dark wood floors.
"Amazing decor, Miss Naberrie," Yané said, as she gazed at the marble sculptures in awe.
"It's not much of a surprise if you often visit the place, Yané," Eirtaé commented.
"Yeah, this is our first time here. None of us Eccio House members have visited the Naberrie villa before, so we might not be a familiar with this place as you," Rabé explained to Eirtaé while looking at her.
"Well, I don't have a problem with you both coming here, so help yourselves out. Though, I could show you both around the villa later," Eirtaé said in a quieter tone.
"That's fine, a tour would help, I'm already confused by the twelve different doors along the hallway," Rabé calmly replied, and continued walking with Yané down the hallway.
"By the way, Rabé, Yané... the guest bedrooms are in the back of the main hall," Eirtaé informed them, and tuned back towards the kitchen to aid her friend Padmé in cooking the delicious pastries.
"We're starting to prepare lunch for all of us," Jobal called from the kitchen.
"Okay, Miss Naberrie, thanks for the favor," Rabé cheerfully replied, and walked with her fellow Eccio down the hallway.
The two arrived at a bronze metal door, and opened it to reveal a room with two bunk beds framed with Zaela tree wood. Between the two bunk beds, a small wooden cabinet stood. Rabé and Yané set their travel bags upon the floor and began to unpack. Both Eccio House girls felt grateful for the kind treatment they received from the Naberries, and wondered why they had been targeted by the Nabooian radicals almost one year ago.
A few minutes passed, and the Eccio girls completely unpacked their belongings. They looked each other in the eye and wondered what to do while waiting for their meal. Rabé shook her head in disapproval when Yané unhooked her chrome lightsaber from the utility belt on her civilian clothing.
"Practicing lightsabers? Just wait for a while. Maybe, if they have a yard, we could practice our lightsaber forms in it later," Rabé said.
In response, Yané said, "So, I guess that we're supposed to meditate, just as Father reminded us before?"
Rabé replied, "Uh, sure, our connection to the Force needs some practice. Who even knows what may happen to Padmé and whenever our Force powers are needed for our duties?"
"Right," Yané said, as she looked up at her sister and clipped her lightsaber back onto her belt.
Then, both Nabooian girls closed their eyes and sank into a meditative trance to allow their spirits to sink deeper into the Netherworld of the Force. A blissful feeling similar to floating in an endless sea immersed their senses. They quickly started to feel the strands of the Force hum with energy and flow like water through their surroundings. Both girls stretched with their Force senses and felt their auras emitting energy. They felt the signatures of Padmé, her sister, and her mother. Upon closer examination, the younger Naberrie girl and Princess of Naboo radiated a yellow-tinted aura mixed with gray.
"Should we talk with Padmé? She is obviously troubled from her father's injuries and the attempts on her relatives' lives," Rabé asked her sister.
"Sure, but that could wait until sometime after meditation," Yané replied.
The subject of the worries that Padmé faced was put aside as the Rabé and Yané sank deeper into their meditation. In the kitchen, Jobal kneaded the bread, and reached for a bottle containing berry filling. Eirtaé, who wore an apron, watched the EM oven cook slices of raw Naboo fish. Padmé, beside Sola, helped her prepare a cheesy pasta topped with spicy peppers.
"I might need some herbs for the pasta, little sister," Sola requested as she mixed the pasta with the cheesy paste.
Padmé handed over a handful of green leafy herbs to Sola, who tossed them in the bowl and furiously stirred with a wooden ladle.
"It's my second time cooking, Sola, I'm not sure if I can handle this," Padmé spoke and vacantly stared at the bowls of varying ingredients.
"I felt the same during my first few times learning how to cook, so don't worry. It's actually very routine like lawmaking," Sola reassured Padmé.
"Yeah, you just follow some kind of written sequence of steps. Put this amount of salt, and so on..." Padmé said during a quick glance at a datapad displaying the recipe.
Eventually, the Naberries in the kitchen with Eirtaé finished the pasta and pastries, the aromas lifting into the air and boosting their appetite. Jobal smiled at both Eirtaé and her daughters, and patted them on the shoulders. She commented, "Great work, girls, you might be cooking for me someday." Upon hearing the comment, Eirtaé grinned with pride in her culinary work, with the bread toasted a tanned brown.
Scoffing, Sola said, "Oh please, Mother, I've only been doing this for two years, and you've got decades of experience."
"Not to ruin the pleasant mood, but what about Father?" Padmé asked her mother after setting the last plate on the wooden table in the dining room.
Jobal shrugged, and Sola muttered, "I'm unsure about that."
"I guess we'll have to wait until the Medical Center releases him today. It might be during 5:00, as I heard from your father this morning," Jobal answered, and began to pull out the chairs around the table.
"We could speak to him about Dormé, who's a key witness of the attackers," Eirtaé suggested.
"Maybe that broken transmitter that you gave back to her may help uncover the mystery of the attack's planner, and maybe the Sith Lord too," Padmé added, resting her head on the palm of her hand.
"If we could crack the cached data within it, then Veruna is bantha fodder," Eirtaé mused, before a chime sounded from the main hall. Jobal reached out into the Force and felt the presence of a familiar person. Outside the door stood a blonde, blue-eyed teenage boy in a bluish-gray uniform. He tapped his foot as he awaited the Naberries to open the door.
"Padmé, I'm certain that it's your friend in the Naboo Engineering Corps," she said.
Eirtaé and Padmé wiped off their hands with a towel, and accompanied each other to the villa entrance.
"Padmé, are you sure that the guest is your friend Anakin? The agents use Force-scrambling charms, you know,"
Her friend felt a trace of fear flutter within, and she firmly gripped the lightsaber in her pocket. Padmé steeled her nerves and opened the door to see Anakin Skywalker in the Nabooian military uniform.
"Hello, angel, it's been a while," Anakin greeted.
"Good to see you again, Ani," Padmé responded, and hugged her friend. She soon noticed that her head barely went above the tops of his shoulders, as military training had boosted his heightening.
"By the way, Anakin, we're finished with a batch of pasta and Miss Naberrie's pastries for our lunch. Help yourself... sir," Eirtaé said with a grin.
Anakin smirked back at the blonde handmaiden, and said, "Hello to you to ma'am."
The blond Naboo girl playfully slapped him on the shoulder, and slyly said, "Apparently, you need to work on talking with the opposite sex."
"Cut it out, both of you, can we just enjoy lunch and probably focus on what to do about Veruna?" Padmé said in exasperation. The recent attacks on her family still bothered her, and she felt that it was foolish to focus on small issues such as the social awkwardness of Anakin Skywalker.
"Yes, Your Highness," Eirtaé responded, and turned around to walk back to the dining room, unaware of the glare she received from Padmé.
Anakin immediately took off his grimy boots and placed them outside the door before entering the Naberrie home. His feet felt cool on the stone tiled floor, and he instantly smelled a delicious aroma from the kitchen. He instantly recognized the aroma as that of the Naberrie family recipe pastries and pasta. The gnawing emptiness in his stomach increased, and he walked faster down the hall and turned left though a doorway. He found a familiar room with lavender walls and large windows facing central Theed, with the spires of the Royal Palace visible in the distance. Among the scene were Sola and Jobal seated together on some side seats along the wooden table, chattering about romantic advice.
Both Anakin and Padmé seated themselves across from Sola and Jobal, while Eirtaé seated herself on the seat normally taken by Ruwee, but Jobal paid no attention. Interrupting their previous conversation, Sola looked up and greeted Anakin with a wink, and Jobal nodded at him for her greeting.
"Hello Miss Naberrie, hello Sola, thanks for the lunch," Anakin greeted, then biting into the warm pastry on his plate.
"Not a problem, Anakin," Jobal said, and slurped in tendrils of pasta.
"My mother still makes good pasta, right?" Sola asked Anakin.
"Well, I'll try it with this red pepper here..." Anakin said, before consuming a mouthful of pasta and a bite of the famed Nabooian pepper.
Sola and Padmé stared at Anakin with wide eyes as Anakin Skywalker casually swallowed the tongue-searing mixture of spiced pasta without a sweat.
"Wow, Anakin... guess the military must've trained you to eat with a straight face," Eirtaé commented, raising an eyebrow.
"It's not a problem, Eirtaé... I can handle anything-"
Anakin soon burst out a raspy cough, and quickly gulped down a glass of shaak milk with teary eyes. He took more bites out of his pastry, and soon finished it in four minutes. Still panting from the heat of the pepper, Anakin refilled his glass of shaak milk and drank it half empty, then wiping his watery eyes with his napkin.
The Skywalker boy mumbled, "Never min' 'bout my last comment."
Sola laughed along with Eirtaé as Jobal chuckled, and she said, "You know, you didn't have to eat those peppers."
Anakin coughed again, and said, "Yeah, thanks for the advice-" He coughed, and continued, "I should try less of these Sith peppers."
The doorway to the dining room opened, and Rabé, Yané, and Saché entered to take their seats along Eirtaé after Anakin and Padmé left their seats. They said to Jobal, "Thanks for the pastries and pasta, Miss Naberrie." The other handmaidens began to enjoy their meal.
"Not a problem, ladies," Jobal said, as she moved her plate to the dishwasher.
"Mother, can we go see Father yet?" Padmé asked Jobal, who had finished her last bite of her lunch.
"Wait just a few minutes, dear. I need to find the public transport schedule first," Jobal said, as she left her seat and walked into her room to find her datapad. Bumps and clangs could be heard from within the room. After a few moments, Jobal projected her voice down the hallway, and spoke, "The hover taxi arrives at 4:30, Padmé."
"Alright Mother. I hope that we will be able to talk with Father and Dormé, they might help us track the attacks' mastermind." Padmé said.
"I understand, Padmé, we will find the culprit for the sake of justice," Jobal firmly said, as she exited her room, dressed in a brown cloak.
"Thanks, Mother," Padmé spoke, and turned to face Anakin. She held his hand, and asked Anakin, "Ani, try to use your senses to look out for any threats, okay? I just lack the ability of Foresight, despite my Shatterpoint ability in battle."
"Of course, I would do anything to ensure that my friends are safe," Anakin said, and comforted Padmé by holding her other hand.
(After the taxi ride)
After the journey through Theed, the hover taxi arrived along the curb by the Theed Medical Center, unloading the passengers: The esteemed Naberrie family, handmaiden Eirtaé, and military engineer Anakin Skywalker. Sabé, Rabé, Yané, and Saché had stayed behind, because Jobal had told them that Eirtaé could easily handle threats with her training in the Force and that of a Royal Handmaiden. Eirtaé and Padmé walked to the desk where a lone droid sat in front of a holographic console.
"The droid asked, "Welcome to Theed Medical Center. I may need a first name to find you both your patient to visit."
"Dormé and Ruwee," Padmé answered with a straight face, despite her feelings of uneasiness about the safety of her family.
Within the waiting room, dozens of Nabooians glanced at her, as she was the famed Naboo Princess. As she had appeared on holographic broadcasts multiple times, the people of Naboo easily recognized her face. Padmé knew she was being watched, so she attempted to keep a straight face to preserve her outer image of a strong-headed and confident Royal Princess. However, she felt far from confident, but instead fearful for her family and friends under the threat of a hidden Sith Lord and the psychotic King Veruna. Already she began to feel a tugging from her two sides: duty and family. She began to feel weary from having to hide her true self and her true feelings from sight everyday she adorned herself with her royal robes. To add to her inner burden, the weight of the entire population of Naboo rested on her shoulders, the shoulders of a teenage girl who had sacrificed a peaceful, normal life. Despite her uncertainty, Padmé still had to bring attackers of her family to justice and to create a safer world for her family and people.
"Just a minute, ma'am," the droid replied, and tapped on a touch console.
"Room 216, and Room 217," the droid said, and then added, "That will be fifty Republic credits, unless-"
Padmé held out a silver chip, which the droid scanned, and then blinked in surprise. The droid pointed its hands to the turbolift door, and said, "Sorry, Your Highness, you may continue on."
The Naberries went up the turbolift with their blonde handmaiden, and arrived at level two a moment later to search the hallway for Ruwee and Dormé. Soon, they reached the doors marked "217" and "216", and Jobal looked expectantly at her daughters and softly spoke, "Try not to agitate your father, he's just had an operation from his injuries and been through a months-long recovery and rehab."
Padmé felt a chill down her spine, and looked at her mother. "Operation... rehab, oh Force," she thought.
Sola pressed a button beside the door, which slid open to reveal Ruwee sitting in bed with a weary smile upon his slightly wrinkled face. Sola then looked down to see his legs... made of glistening durasteel. Eirtaé and Padmé stood shocked at the sight, and Sola bowed her head in slight sadness, since Ruwee had lost his legs.
"It's not really a surprise, your Father suffered serious injuries..." Jobal whispered to her daughters, and placed her hands on the shoulders of her youngest daughter.
"What happened to your legs, Father?" Padmé said.
"The explosion damaged some nerve tissue, so my legs were amputated. It took a while, but I got accustomed to these." Ruwee said, and pointed to his prosthetic legs.
"I'm so sorry about your legs-"
Ruwee interjected, "Hush, daughter, it's nothing but a flesh wound to me. It will definitely take more than an explosion to put this Naberrie down, and I've faced worse trials. Don't feel sorry for me, Padmé. Feel happy that I survived."
"In all of my forty-seven years of life, giving up is not my specialty," Ruwee added.
"Oh. Nice to see that you've recovered completely, Father," Padmé said in a lighter tone.
"Thanks, daughter. Now I must comfort your mother," her father replied.
With a grunt, Ruwee got out of his bed to hug Jobal, and walked on his prosthetic legs with little difficulty. His wife started to tear up in happiness in his embrace.
"Honey," Ruwee whispered into her ear.
Jobal hummed in satisfaction at being able to embrace her husband after six months apart. She mumbled, "My Ru..."
"Your father is a very brave and strong man, Padmé," Eirtaé told Padmé.
"He's the kind of person who hardly goes down without a fight, especially facing people who might be working for that scoundrel Veruna," Padmé harshly spoke.
Ruwee and Jobal looked at Padmé, and patted her on the back. Ruwee proposed, "Don't fret, daughter. He'll be dealt with soon. We could ask the Rieren Elders to send a party to apprehend him. As a Force Sensitive of Naboo, he is technically under the jurisdiction of the Rieren Society."
"Not quite, Ru. Veruna is still the King of Naboo, and any of his guards and staff would pursue him, making matters difficult," Jobal countered.
"So what can we do, Jo'?" her husband questioned.
"I suggest that we use the communicator that Dormé has as evidence: it could prove that Veruna called the attacks. If possible, we could ask a slicer to crack into the comlink's data storage," Padmé suggested.
"Padmé is correct in her proposal, Mister Naberrie and Miss Naberrie, comlink devices automatically store the last few calls made with them," Anakin commented with a grin.
"I've spent time messing with devices like these. I'm a decent Royal Engineer, so cracking these will be like a walk by Varykino Lake," Anakin added, and he rubbed his hands in anticipation.
"That plan could easily work," Ruwee agreed.
"Very clever," his wife commented.
"Now, we need to get Dormé, and stop Veruna's schemes, along with the unknown Sith Lord's manipulation," Padmé firmly said.
"Mind if we accompany you, Padmé?" Jobal said, while holding hands with her husband.
"It's okay, just stay outside until I'm finished speaking with my handmaiden with my friend, Anakin," Padmé replied.
"Just stay safe, Padmé, that's all we desire," Jobal said as she hugged her youngest daughter.
(Room 216)
Dormé gazed at her datapad, as she read the latest issue of Theed Times, and wore a worried expression. Despite being reassured by the investigations that Veruna undertook, she felt that the Naberries were still in danger even after the attacks called on them. Distracting her from her thoughts, the door beeped, and a familiar voice spoke.
"Dormé? It's me, Padmé. I have so much to tell you," her mistress spoke from behind the door.
The handmaiden opened the door with a gesture of her hand, and greeted, "Good to see you again, Padmé. When i heard about the attacks, I feared that the worst might have happened to your family."
"Oh, we still survived in good condition, but my father lost his legs," Padmé quietly said, and she lowered her head in sadness. She sat on the side of the hospital bed and rested her chin in her hands.
"Sorry to hear that, Padmé," Dormé said, and she leaned over to put an arm around the shoulder of her mistress.
"Thanks, Dormé, I just feel so disturbed over nearly losing my family, and the fact that a Sith Lord might be utilizing my hard-fought efforts for some twisted scheme. Will my aspirations be in vain?"
The handmaiden sat silent for a moment, and thought about the words of her friend. She then said, "No, you are more than a pawn, Padmé. At the age of sixteen, you have reached the position as Princess of Naboo, and you are about to become Queen... from you hard work. No one outside your family thought that you would become Princess. You are a fighter, and many people like you live to fight off the darkness everyday. Thanks to figures like you, people find hope in the future, so you're not alone in your pursuit of Veruna. But it's okay to be sometimes vulnerable for a warrior. Just tell me what else is disturbing you."
"My father has been maimed for life, and is only half of a man. On top of that, I have to lie to my constituents about my identity. Am I some vulnerable little girl, or a strong, intelligent leader as they see on Naboo News? It's all because I am worried for my family under the threat of Veruna, and I'm often forced to abandon them for my duty. I hate to admit this, but I'm a hypocrite."
"That's mostly true, Padmé, but I'm not perfect. Nor you. No person or alien in this galaxy is perfect, so don't hate yourself for that," Dormé said.
The handmaiden gestured for Eirtaé, who wore an expression of concern for Padmé, to leave them alone in their consolation. Eirtaé hesitantly departed the room, and looked back once before the door slid shut to isolate Anakin, Padmé, and Dormé. Dormé turned back to face her mistress and friend.
"Now we all are hypocrites, since we break our own promises and make mistakes. That's a truth of life, and I hope that you understand that. Just keep moving forward. Even with two broken legs, I still held onto this for you. I know how fierce your desire for justice is, friend," Dormé continued, and reached into her bedside drawer to pull out a bent silvery device. Anakin raised an eyebrow in wonder. Padmé gasped and said, "The communicator."
"Of course, I held onto this for you," her handmaiden spoke.
The young Princess of Naboo hesitantly took the communicator from the palm of her friend.
Anakin asked, "Not to disturb you both, but when can we begin the decryption of this device? I am eager to see that psychopath be imprisoned for trying to kill my friend and her family."
Dormé cleared her throat, and Anakin looked at her. He gazed at Dormé for a moment and hastily added, "Uh, handmaidens too."
"Yes, Anakin, but first we must figure out the appropriate times to work on this device and how to use the evidence for our allegation that Veruna called the attacks," Padmé said.
"Maybe whenever I'm on break hours, I could work on cracking the encryption on that comlink. Give me a month, and I can easily get you the recorded messages," her close friend said with a smile.
"Thanks, Anakin," Padmé said.
"If we expose King Veruna, we can easily reveal his involvement in the attack and make him abdicate the throne. Then, I'll repair the damage he has done upon Naboo, such as the poverty that he has ignored. Even before that, I can prepare the argument to prosecute him," Padmé enthusiastically added.
Anakin stroked his hair for a moment and spoke, "True, and you would become the immediate successor of King Veruna, and then we can interrogate him in prison to find out more about the dangerous Sith Lord."
"So what role do I play?" Dormé asked.
"Just act normal so that Veruna is not suspicious. Surprise will be the main element of our plan," Padmé suggested.
"Yeah, of course I need a break from facing off angry lunatics in metal suits," Dormé wryly commented.
Padmé laughed at the humorous comment of her loyal handmaiden, and gestured for Anakin to sit on the bed. Soon, the three engaged in further conversation about how to expose the dark deeds of the corrupt ruler of Naboo and the hidden Sith.