Chapter Twenty-Two

Padmé awoke disoriented and sluggish, a feeling very dissimilar to the condition she was usually in after a cycle of regeneration. And then it occurred to her that she had decided to skip most of her regenerating routine and obviously had suffered the consequences.

The young woman assumed she was still in the healer's examination room, but when she opened her eyes, Padmé was startled to discover she wasn't in the healer's wing at all. She was in a space similar to the guest room she and her comrades had been assigned to in the Temple, but these were much more pleasing, having the appearance of having been lived in for a long time.

"Oh good, you're awake." A friendly and familiar voice spoke from the doorway.

Padmé tried to raise her head to look at Obi-Wan, but the effort was too exhausting. Before even considering a request, she found her head being propped up by another pillow from off his bed.

"What happened?"

"You blacked out, I'm afraid." The Jedi explained. "My apartment was a lot closer than yours. I hope you don't mind."

Mind? Of course she didn't mind! Padmé was intrigued by the coziness and warmth of the simple dwelling, evident in the collection of holopics that lined the nearby shelves, as well as the assortment of soft throws and pillows that lay on the bed. She wanted to see more, but her neck muscles complained at the effort.

"Why am I here and not with the healers?"

"You've been out quite a while, but were in no immediate danger. The healers thought it best that you be somewhere comfortable when you woke up."

Comfortable. That was the word she was searching for. That was what she felt here -- in this place -- with this man.

"How long?"

"How long have you been out?" Obi-Wan asked and waited for Padmé's nod of affirmation. "About four hours. I'm afraid your system has undergone quite a shock and it's taken some time to adjust."

The Jedi then moved closer to the bed and sat down upon its edge, smiling graciously as he did so. "Sabé came by earlier and informed me of her suspicions - that you haven't been taking advantage of your full regeneration cycle."

"That's right." The young woman agreed, not exactly wishing to go into her reasons why. At least not yet.

"I see." Obi-Wan had given her a chance to explain, but once again she was keeping him in the dark, so-to-speak. Perhaps she just needed time. "The physician came by as well and said you were suffering from slight dehydration and malnutrition."

As Obi-Wan spoke, the young woman glanced down at her torso and only then noticed the intravenous line that ran from the port in her arm to a bag that hung near the bed. With sudden venom in her veins, she mustered the strength to reach over and attempt to wrench the connection free. She wasn't going to live like this any more! She was going to be human! Just like everyone else! Just like Obi-Wan.

"What are you doing?" The Jedi Knight however, aborted her efforts and secured the line back into place. "That's the only thing that is keeping you alive at this point!"

"Some life." Padmé muttered.

"Pardon me?"

"Some life! You call this living? I can't do this any more. I don't want to live like this any more." Tears threatened to well up in her eyes during her confession, and Padmé was almost perturbed at the reaction she saw on Obi-Wan's face. He was smiling.

"That's what I thought." The young man said. "Wait here."

Confusion drew Padmé's brows together as the Jedi left the room, soon returning however, with a silver tray that held an assortment of colorful items - some of which she recognized as fruit and bread.

Obi-Wan sat back down on the bed, setting the tray on the bedside table he had pulled over closer for convenience. He picked up a spherical object that appeared to have a fuzzy texture and was a muddy green color.

"This is a muja fruit." He explained, holding it up for her to see. "Less acidic than most other fruits, and rich in the nutrients that are currently being piped into your arm. I thought it was best to start you off with something mild. Muja is sometimes sour, but I managed to find some ripe ones at the market earlier."

The young man pulled out a small vibroblade and proceeded to trim away the outer layer of the fruit.

"How long has it been since you had any oral intake?"

"About eighty seasons." Padmé answered, suddenly nervous at the prospect of eating again.

At the upraised brows on the Jedi's face, the Queen decided to explain.

"The viral explosion destroyed all of our food sources -- all the animals and fields. All we had left were the supplies that my father had stored below ground. We had about ten years' worth - during which time, all of our efforts were put toward devising a counter-attack and protective agent against the virus. When the food stores ran out was when we began to rely upon intravenous supplementation. I was fourteen years old at the time."

"Well," Obi-Wan replied with a confident but friendly smirk. "You're in for a treat."

Padmé voluntarily dropped her lower lip down as Obi-Wan placed a sliver of the fruit he had cut onto her tongue.

She toyed with the delicate morsel before biting into it, amazed at the explosion of flavor that filled her mouth. Closing her eyes to relish the sensation of the sandy texture and sweet juices that flowed down her throat, Padmé was surprised to hear Obi-Wan chuckle. She opened her eyes to view his expectant face and made one demand.

"More."

After nearly devouring the entire piece of fruit, Obi-Wan stopped feeding it to her. "You're going to get a stomachache. That's probably enough for now."

He wasn't sure she would like the muja, but obviously she had. He would save the rest for later, Obi-Wan decided, shoving the tray and the table back to their position. He turned his attention back to the young woman lying in his bed and his chest filled with a deep intake of air at the beauty before him. She was smiling. Not the timid grin that he had seen before, but a full-blown, teeth-bearing smile.

Force, she was beautiful. And if he had any sense at all, he would stand up and run from the room. She was scheduled to be impregnated by some anonymous Jedi sperm donor soon, and then she would be off to the Unknown Regions again.

But no-one had ever accused Obi-Wan of having a lot of sense.

"You've got some fruit right…" The young man pointed to his own bottom lip, near the corner. Padmé responded by flicking her tongue out to capture the stray nourishment, while Obi-Wan's eyes riveted to the small pink organ, which seemed to not only flick at her lip, but along his nerves as well -- shooting desire from his own mouth, straight to his groin.

"Missed it." Obi-Wan teased. "Here, allow me." With a careful swipe of his finger underneath her full lower lip, Obi-Wan brought the digit into his own mouth and suckled it. "Sweet." He said, his voice lowering at the darkened gaze which had dropped to follow his hand and then stayed upon his mouth, drawing him closer and closer until he was able to taste the remnants of the Muja fruit not on his finger, but on her lips. A soft gasp escaped Padmé's mouth, which flitted across Obi-Wan's lips and he hesitated, waiting to gauge her reaction. She sat surprisingly still, as he had expected. At least for a while, but soon he felt the trembling touch of her hand on the back of his neck, pulling him in at an angle, making her desire clear.

Obi-Wan pushed aside the carelessness of his actions for now, answering her call and his own desires. Muja fruit was Obi-Wan's favorite, but it did not compare to the sweetness of Padmé's lips and tongue as it swirled around his own, dipping confidently into his mouth. He wasn't sure where she learned to kiss like that, but he was so glad she had. It was another question he would have to add onto his growing list. But one thing he knew was that he didn't want the kiss to end, and he deepened it even further, tenderly grasping her head to grind his mouth against hers, clashing their teeth momentarily together.

If the Galaxy ended right now, he would be satisfied - just as long as he could keep kissing Padmé like this.

But, he supposed that the Force had other plans, as Sabé's voice burst through his euphoria.

"What in the hell is going on here?"