Padmé placed her textbooks into her backpack before zipping it up. Her attending held the wheelchair steady.
"I can walk," Padmé protested.
"Miss Amidala, I can assure you, this is just procedure. Please, have a seat," the attending said with a slight look of pity.
Padmé sighed with a slight smile and settled into the wheelchair, pulling her backpack into her lap. "Fine. Whatever gets me home faster. I've already spent too much time here."
The attending chuckled and wheeled her down to the library where Obi-Wan was waiting.
"Darling, the wheelchair is new. I thought you were doing better," he said in concern.
"I am. This is just procedure," she said with a wave of her hand. "I'm back to walking mostly on my own. Once the bruising went down, it was almost back to normal."
"But, she still shouldn't push herself," the attending said, giving Obi-Wan a pointed look.
Obi-Wan nodded. "Of course. I'm just glad to get you back home."
"Take care, Miss Amidala," the attending said as she passed Padmé off into Obi-Wan's custody.
"I'm so glad to be free," Padmé chuckled as they walked towards Obi-Wan's car. He had her backpack slung over his shoulder.
"And I'm glad that you're coming home. The apartment building has not been the same without you. Our new neighbor is... a lot to handle sometimes," Obi-Wan said, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"I'm sure he's not that bad," Padmé grinned.
"He's a criminal."
"He's my roommate," Padmé countered as they got into the car.
"I still think you should stay with Anakin and I until this all blows over," Obi-Wan replied.
"All my things are in my apartment. It wouldn't make sense for me to keep having to go back and forth between our apartments whenever I needed something," Padmé murmured as she looked out the window to watch the world pass on the drive home to the apartment.
They lulled into a pensive silence for the rest of the ride home.
"Are you nervous?" Obi-Wan asked as they waited outside her apartment.
"To be home? Not at all. I'm looking forward to it," she said as she unlocked her door and stepped inside to see Maul making a mess in her kitchen.
Obi-Wan followed behind as Maul looked up from whatever he was cooking. Padmé's new roommate quickly wiped his hands on his apron, leaving handprints marked in flour.
"Oh, you must be Miss Amidala," he grinned, "I have heard so much about you."
Obi-Wan leaned down to whisper in Padmé's ear, "My offer still stands."
"Nonsense," she murmured, "He seems fun."
Padmé walked over to her island and leaned against the counter, "What are you making?"
"I found this recipe card for jam filled bread in your cupboard. I wanted to try making it," Maul said sheepishly, he seemed to wither under Padmé's gaze. Unless, Padmé thought, it was Obi-Wan's gaze he was afraid of.
"That's one of my favorite dishes!" she said as she turned to look at Obi-Wan. He quickly smiled sweetly at her.
"That sounds like fun," Obi-Wan beamed. "Well, darling, if you need anything-"
"I'll call," Padmé said a little firmly.
Obi-Wan nodded and left, pausing at the door to give them a little wave.
When the door closed, Padmé let out a breathy chuckle, turning back to Maul, "He's so protective."
Maul gave her an appreciative once over, "I can see why."
Padmé rolled her eyes and went to help him bake, "So, what's your story? They haven't told me much."
"Buy me dinner and I'll tell you all about it," he said as he started to roll the dough into the right shape.
"Deal," she winked before quickly placing an order from her favorite Chinese restaurant.
She helped him with the finishing touches on the recipe and cleaning up all the flour while they waited for the food to arrive. Soon enough, they found themselves sitting on her couch and eating food with chopsticks. Maul was surprisingly adept once Padmé showed him how to do it properly.
"So they say you're a criminal," she said as she looked down at the lo mein she was trying to pick up.
"Former criminal," Maul said, "I haven't committed a crime in a while. I'm trying to set a good example for my little brother. He's in the foster system, but that doesn't mean his family can't still be a good role model for him."
"That's admirable," Padmé said with a small smile.
"I haven't seen him since they brought me here, though. I can't risk exposing the plan," Maul said with a sad smile.
"That must be hard," she murmured, "I haven't seen my sister since I came to school, but I miss her every day."
"I wish I was more... financially put together," Maul said after a moment, "That way Savage could live with me instead of total strangers. Although, the place he's living in now takes good care of him. It's probably a better life than anything I could provide for him."
"You don't have to live with him for him to know you care about him," Padmé replied. "I haven't lived with Sola for years, but I know she's still my sister and she cares about me."
"Enough about me," Maul said with a raised brow, "Tell me about you and Kenobi. How'd you two meet?"
"Well, he's my neighbor. The first official meeting I had with Obi-Wan was because of Anakin. You see, I used to babysit Ani when he was a kid, so when I moved in, Ani invited me over for breakfast. Obi-Wan came into the kitchen wearing nothing but a towel," Padmé said with a blush settling on her cheeks.
"I see, you're with him for his body," Maul teased.
"Nonsense. I'm with him because he's sweet and thoughtful and would do anything for the people he cares about," she said seriously.
"Wait," Maul said with a smirk. "You said your first official meeting. Does that mean there was an unofficial meeting?"
"The night before we met in the coffee shop downstairs and I helped him study, but we didn't know who each other was," Padmé said with a wistful smile on her face.
Maul took a long sip of his tea before pronouncing, "You're too good for him."
Padmé chuckled before picking up her phone after getting a text message. Her smile dripped from her face. "I have to head out. It's election night and I'm needed at work to support the mayor's race for governor. I should go to keep up appearances."
"Are you sure you should be leaving in your condition? You were just released from the hospital, I'm sure they'd understand," Maul protested, but Padmé was already slipping her shoes on to leave.
"I'll be fine. Besides, I want to be there to witness when he gets taken down," she said in a gravely serious voice.
Maul couldn't help the smirk on his face at the spark in her eyes, "Should I wait up?"
Padmé winked, "With a bottle of wine to celebrate our victory."
