Sabé woke a day later to a deserted medical centre. Gingerly feeling her stomach and vaguely surprised to find nothing amiss, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood. Her ankle too had been seen to, and a length of bandage was now tightly wound around it.
She had been changed to a medical gown, and she drew on a robe to cover herself better. It was dark outside, and as she padded softly through the halls and corridors of the Royal palace she encountered few people.
Then she almost ran into three people who were standing at a window just around a corner.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Sabé exclaimed. Their attire registered in her mind, and she realised that they were Jedi. The tallest, a dark-skinned human, smiled gently at her. "You are Sabé, are you not?" he asked her.
"Yes," she replied. "And you're Jedi." One of the three, an olive-skinned woman, laughed softly. "I believe Queen Amidala is looking for you," she told the girl softly. Sabé nodded. "Thank you," she murmured, then sped past them. She didn't see the grave looks the three sent after her as she went.
She entered the queen's apartments quietly, so that no one noticed her until Yané was sent to fetch something. "You're up!" the girl exclaimed, skidding to a halt. "I'll see you later, okay?" She rushed off without waiting for a reply.
"What do you want me to do?" Sabé asked Padmé quietly. Padmé lifted her head and looked at her handmaiden. "You're alright?" she demanded. Sabé nodded. "Then help me change into this robe," Padmé ordered. Sabé nodded, and moved to help her.
A few minutes later Rabé shooed her away to dress whilst she fiddled about with Padmé's hair. Sabé slipped into her old room to discover that all the new clothes she'd bought on Coruscant had been placed in the wardrobe. She dropped the royal blue gown she'd been given onto the bed, and with a sigh stripped herself, moving into her 'fresher to shower.
She felt a lot better once her skin was clean and her hair was tangle free, she had to admit. She dried herself carefully, then slipped on her underwear and thin under tunic. The material slithered over her skin, moving with her body, and she tugged on the leggings that went with it. Then she lifted up the heavy, crushed velvet robe that went over it. The material was for show, unlike the tunic and leggings, which were purely practical.
Sabé struggled with the robe for a few moments, pulling it over her head as she slipped it over her arms at the same time. The intricate beadwork caught in her long hair, and she grunted in frustration.
"You never could manage these robes," Saché said amusedly, coming to her aid. She tugged the robe sharply, pulling it so that she could see Sabé's face. "Her highness sent me to hurry you. We leave in five minutes."
"Thanks, Saché," Sabé smiled in gratitude. The handmaiden nodded and moved from the room, leaving Sabé to pull the sewn-in bodice tighter and tie the ribbons in an ornate bow.
The dress complete, Sabé moved to the mirror and took a brush to her hair. Swiftly brushing through the mass, she tied it back into a complicated Naboo plait. "I really should cut it all off," she murmured rebelliously. Then she rose and slipped her feet into the dainty slippers that came with the dress.
"What's the occasion anyway?" she asked, as she moved into the main area, catching her cloak up as she did. Padmé looked up, a little surprised. "I thought you knew," she said. "It's Qui-Gon's funeral."
A wave of shock hit Sabé, and her composure faltered for a moment. "I didn't know," she said slowly. "I've been unconscious for the past day. I think." Padmé nodded quickly, then rose and came towards her handmaiden.
"We have to go," she said softly. "You're alright?" Sabé nodded. She pulled her hood over her head and took her place among the handmaidens who flanked the queen. Then they moved from the room.
It didn't take them long to reach the sacred sanctuary, where Naboo rulers had been cremated for centuries. Sabé wasn't surprised that Qui-Gon had been given that honour, but she was a little surprised by the speed with which it was taking place. The Jedi Council had reached Naboo in record time, setting off almost before they had been told of Qui-Gon's death.
She shifted slightly in her position by the cold, open window as she watched Qui-Gon's body consumed by the flames. She heard Anakin Skywalker ask Obi-Wan something, and the now Jedi Knight turned to answer him. Sabé felt her gaze drawn to Chancellor Palpatine, and something stirred within her. She dismissed it, and turned back to watch the flames.
She felt eyes on her, and beneath her hood her eyes darted to the Jedi Council. The three she had run into before, who she now knew were Mace Windu, Depa Billaba and Ki-Adi-Mundi, were all watching her, a strange expression on each of their faces. Another Jedi Master, a small green-skinned creature, was also watching her, but as she met his eyes, he turned back to watch the fire, sighing slightly. But the other three continued to watch her, and she raised her head slightly, defensively.
Then finally the fire had burned out, and after a moment Padmé moved to place a hand on Obi-Wan's shoulder and spoke softly to him. Then she moved towards the door, and Sabé gladly moved from the cold window to join her. Just as they reached the door, something made her pause and turn back to look at the pyre again.
"Sabé?" Padmé asked, stopping. Sabé looked back at her queen. "Your highness, may I stay a while?" she asked softly. After watching her for a moment, Padmé nodded, and Sabé broke away from the group to wait for the sacred sanctuary to empty. It did so slowly, the Jedi being the last to leave, and not all of them going. The four who had been watching her remained behind, as did Obi-Wan Kenobi. Anakin, after a word from Obi-Wan, followed his friend and queen.
Sabé slowly walked to the pyre. Even though she was cold, she pushed her hood back from her face, letting the cloak pool at her face and letting a single tear slide down her cheek. She'd barely known him, and yet in a way he'd felt like the loving father she'd never had.
Obi-Wan moved up behind her. "Are you alright?" he asked, but his voice was slightly hollow. Sabé looked up at him. "Better than you, I imagine," she said, but her voice came out as a whisper. She looked back at the pyre. "I only found out it was happening just before we came," she admitted. "It's just kind of a shock."
Obi-Wan's arm moved around her shoulders, and she leant into him, glad of the support. "I heard about your family," he said softly after a moment. She stiffened instantly and drew away, turning to face him.
"What of it?" she demanded, a little loudly. The four Jedi, who had been quietly talking amongst themselves, lifted their heads. Sabé bit her tongue. "I'm sorry," she muttered. "It's just…"
"I know," Obi-Wan nodded gently. "Your mother." Sabé's face flamed. Obi-Wan tactfully changed the subject. "Are you alright now?"
Sabé nodded. "They did something or other to my stomach," she said. "And my ankle's fine now. Although I guess it's just a matter of time before I'm back in that damned med. centre."
Obi-Wan gave a soft laugh. Sabé smiled slightly, then turned back to the pyre. Tentatively, she stretched out a hand and ran it through the ash, lifting it and letting it drain back down through her fingers. She shivered from the cold, and twitched uncomfortably in her tight dress. However beautiful it might be, she reflected, it was not comfortable.
"Come on," Obi-Wan smiled. "You're cold. We'd better get inside." He bent and retrieved Sabé's cloak, settling it over her shoulders carefully. She clicked the clasp into place so it stayed there, and followed him to the door. Depa Billaba moved to halt them.
Obi-Wan bowed to her, and Sabé raised an eyebrow curiously. "We would like to talk with Lady Sabé," the Jedi Mistress said softly. "If that is alright."
"Of course," Sabé nodded. "Obi-Wan, I'll see you later." He nodded and slipped out. Sabé, shivering, drew her cloak closer around her and looked expectantly at the Jedi woman before her. Silently, Depa Billaba moved to stand with her Jedi companions. Sabé moved to sit on the stone steps that rose around the pyre.
"Were you ever tested for midi-chlorians?" Mace Windu asked suddenly. Sabé blinked. "I don't know," she said slowly. "I assume so, but…" She hesitated, then ploughed on. "But my parents weren't exactly forth-coming about things like that."
"Are your parents still alive?" Ki-Adi-Mundi asked gently. Sabé closed her eyes. A familiar crunch was all she could hear for a moment. "My mother's dead," she said shortly. "I have no way of contacting my father."
"A thief, you were," mused the small alien. Sabé looked at him. "Yes," she nodded. "I was. I was brought up as one." She frowned suddenly. "What's going on?" She shifted slightly on the cold step.
"You're extremely Force-sensitive," Depa Billaba explained at last. "Strong enough that you could have been trained as a Jedi if you were younger." Sabé was stunned. Then her thoughts raced.
"No," she heard herself say. She rose. "You're wrong. I never could be a Jedi." She moved to the door, still in a daze, then she turned back to see the Jedi silently watching her. "It was a Sith, wasn't it," she said, more stating a fact than asking a question. "That killed Qui-Gon Jinn."
"It was," Mace Windu confirmed quietly. Sabé nodded, and moved from the sanctuary. Obi-Wan was waiting for her outside, and as she met his eyes she knew that he'd known what was being said. But she pursed her lips and said nothing as she took his arm and led him through the palace to his guest quarters, next to Anakin's.
"Will you come in?" he asked her quietly. Sabé shrugged slightly. "The Queen will be expecting me," she said softly. "The Queen knows about it," Obi-Wan told her. "The Council talked to her earlier."
Sabé closed her eyes and allowed Obi-Wan to lead her into his rooms and seat her on a couch. She heard him moving about, then felt a hot mug being placed in her hands. She opened her eyes. "Hot chocolate?" she inquired, an eyebrow raised. Obi-Wan shrugged. "Yané said it was your favourite," he explained. She nodded slightly, lifting it to her lips and sipping the sweet drink.
Then she put the mug down on a nearby table. "What did they mean, Obi-Wan?" she asked softly. "What does it all mean?"
"It means that if we'd found you early enough, you could have become a Jedi," Obi-wan explained. "They want to do a midi-chlorien count on your blood as soon as possible. If it's as high as they suspect, they may leave a member of the Council here to give you some special training – mental shields, that sort of thing."
"Would it interfere with my duties?" she inquired, lifting her drink again and ingesting the explanation. Obi-Wan shook his head silently. She thought heavily for a moment, then sipped the hot liquid again. "Yet another thing to blame my parents for," she muttered at last.
"Sabé, you mustn't blame them," Obi-Wan tried to say. Sabé put down her drink in exasperation. "No, Obi-Wan, they are the people I must blame!" she exploded. "They kept me from living a normal life until I was sixteen, dragging me through their life of robbery and violence. Now I find out that they probably denied me the life of a Jedi. They've been the cause of all the pain in my life, especially in the last six months. Tell, me what else can I do but blame them?"
"Forgive them," Obi-Wan said softly. "They were doing the only thing they knew to do." A tear slipped down Sabé's face. "The only thing they knew how to do was hurt me," she whispered brokenly. Obi-Wan leant forward to wipe the tear from her cheek, and his hand lingered. Sabé looked up to meet his eyes, and saw a strange expression in his eyes, a feeling she dared not identify.
Obi-Wan's hand moved so that his palm was against Sabé's cheek, his fingertips entwined in her hair. His other hand reached around her, loosing her hair from its clasp. Sabé's hand crept up to rest on Obi-Wan's shoulder.
"What are we doing?" she whispered finally. Her answer was Obi-Wan's lips on hers, soft, demanding. She gave in utterly and completely, clinging to him tightly as he kissed her. Her hair came loose from its plait, framing her face, and his hand entwined in it.
Then she was tugging at his tunic, demanding silently that it be taken off, and he complied quickly. He removed her cloak easily, then was met with the barrier of her complicated dress.
"Let me," Sabé breathed into his mouth. She tugged at the bodice ribbons until they were loose, then pulled the stiff dress over her head and discarded it on the floor. Obi-Wan pulled her to stand, and led her through to his bedroom as she ripped her slippers off and removed her leggings as fast as she could. Then she was standing next to the bed, and Obi-Wan's mouth was kissing her neck, making her gasp. He slid off her under tunic, and she tugged at his trousers, pulling them off quickly.
She was pushed back onto the bed, and she gasped as Obi-Wan kissed her again. Then she felt something in her mind, and her eyes flew open.
"Obi-Wan," she gasped. His eyes met hers. "We've bonded," he murmured. "In mind, and in body." Then he proceeded to make the word a deed.
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Sabé's eyes fluttered open as the early morning sunlight filtered into the room. Obi-Wan lay asleep next to her, and the events of the night before came rushing back to her in a rush. She smiled, and turned her head to gaze at Obi-Wan. Her hand crept up to brush his cheek, and he smiled as his eyes opened.
"Morning," she smiled. "Morning," he smiled back. He frowned slightly. "It's morning already?" Sabé laughed, and he grinned inadvertently. She shifted so that she lay more comfortably in his arms, and moaned as he nuzzled her neck.
What's going to happen now? she sent through her new mental bond with him. He sighed, and moved back so they could look at each other. "I don't know," he replied softly. They lay there for minutes, then the door chime sounded.
Sabé sat straight up in bed. "Shazit," she cursed. Obi-Wan, sitting up, raised an eyebrow. "I was supposed to be helping Padmé dress!" Sabé groaned. The door chime sounded again, and Obi-Wan dragged himself out of bed, wrapping a robe around himself and moving through to the main area.
The door opened, and Sabé heard the annoyed tones of Eirtaé asking if Obi-Wan knew where she was. After only a split second's hesitation, Obi-Wan said that Sabé had fallen asleep the night before and wasn't awake yet.
"I'll wake her and send her to the Queen in a moment," he added smoothly, keying the door shut on Eirtaé's incredulous face. He turned back to see Sabé already struggling into her gown. For once, she managed to get it over her head, and tightening the ribbons on her bodice, she looked for her shoes.
"Padmé's going to kill me," she groaned, spying them under a chair and diving for them. She tugged them on, and tied her hair back into a ponytail. She picked her cloak from the couch, and folded it over her arm. Then she looked back up at Obi-Wan, who still stood watching her.
"Will I see you later?" he asked her. She nodded. "There's the festival day tomorrow," she reminded him. "I'm sure to have some time off." She hadn't answered his real question, and they both knew it. She moved to the door, and he stood aside to let her pass. Then he stopped her, placing a hand on her arm. A shiver went through her at his touch, even through layers of cloth.
"I think I'm in love with you," he told her quietly. She met his eyes. "I know," she nodded. "I think I'm in love with you, too." Then she was gone.
She slipped through the corridors which, in the early hours of the morning, were still mostly empty. She managed to make it through almost to the Queen's apartments before she was found by Captain Panaka.
"Sabé, where have you been?" he asked, exasperated. "We've been looking for you for hours!" Sabé raised an eyebrow. "It's still very early, Captain," she reminded him. "I had some news last night, and I needed to talk to Obi-Wa – Jedi Kenobi," she corrected herself quickly on his look. "I guess I fell asleep." He nodded slowly, not satisfied. "Her Highness wants you," he told her then, and she nodded, continuing on her way.
She let herself into the apartment quietly, but all five of her friends were waiting for her. Padmé was dressed in a simple gown instead of her robes of office, and her face was bare. The others wore their own clothes too, and Sabé's heart fell.
"Where were you?" Padmé asked abruptly. Sabé looked down at her, then silently moved past them into her own room to change. Glancing at each other, the five followed.
As Sabé pulled off the heavy over-dress, she noticed with concern that her under-tunic had been ripped slightly. Facing away from the handmaidens and queen, she hoped they didn't notice it, but they did. As she pulled on a pair of leggings and a tunic, Rabé moved to pick up the under tunic.
"How did this get ripped, Sabé?" she asked softly. Sabé spun around to see the fabric, snatching it away from the younger girl. She inspected the rip, then dropped the tunic onto the bed. "It can be mended," she said dully. "It doesn't matter."
"The Jedi talked to you, didn't they, Sabé?" Padmé asked softly. Sabé froze, and looked up at her queen. "Obi-Wan told me you knew about it," she said distantly. She shrugged, pulling her hair from its clasp and running a brush quickly through it before retying it in a simple plait that hung down below her waist. She turned back to the girls. "Would you mind?" she asked pointedly. No one moved. Sabé rolled her eyes, and stalked past them into the main room.
"Where were you, Sabé?" Yané demanded. Sabé didn't look at any of them. "Jedi Kenobi said you fell asleep in his room," Eirtaé put in. "Is that true?"
Sabé turned back to meet their eyes finally. "Yes," she said at last. "That's true." True enough, she added in her mind. "I needed to talk to him. I guess I was just very tired."
"You were asleep for the whole day," Saché tartly reminded her. "You can't have been that tired." Sabé turned away from them. Saché's eyes widened. "Oh no. No, no, no, Sabé, tell me you didn't!" She crossed the room to roughly turn Sabé so that she was facing the other five. A blush was spreading across Sabé's face, and the others quickly realised what Saché was talking about.
"Oh, Gods," Yané murmured. Her face was a perfect picture of shock and incredulity. Next to her, Eirtaé's hand was at her mouth as she gaped at Sabé. Rabé sank to sit on a couch near her, limp, and Saché broke away from Sabé to join Rabé. Padmé moved forward to lift Sabé's chin so the two were eyes to eye.
"Did you sleep with Obi-Wan?" Padmé asked, her voice soft. Sabé closed her eyes. "No," she said firmly. "I did not." Eirtaé gave an audible sigh of relief. "I made love with Obi-Wan." Eirtaé joined the other two on the couch. "Not that I think it's any of your business," Sabé told them all harshly. "I was told that you needed me, your highness, but if you do not, I need to take a walk to think. I may need some Jedi training, and I need to decide if that's what I want." Then she stormed out.
Padmé sat limply on a chair. "Oh, Sabé," she groaned.
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