Chapter 49

Rayna's apartment

Aimee waited until after dinner had concluded and her young cousins were out of the room before she brought up the subject of Julie Banks with her aunt.

"I need to tell you something, Aunt Rayna," Aimee began. "Something that could be really serious."

Rayna frowned. "Could be serious? What does that mean?" she asked.

"I know someone who is obsessed with Anakin Skywalker," Aimee said.

Rayna smiled. "Anakin Skywalker has a lot of women attracted to him," she said. "He's a handsome young man."

"Yeah, I get that," Aimee said. "He's a stud, I know. But this goes beyond that, Auntie Ray. This person claims to be his friend since she met him once or twice. She's convinced that they are destined to be together."

"Sounds like this girl is delusional," Rayna said.

"She is," Aimee said. "But there's more, she's addicted to death sticks, and I think they're messing with her brain."

Rayna frowned. "Well, that's not good," she said. "You think she's a danger to Anakin? He's a Jedi, Aimee, he can take care of myself."

"No, not Anakin," Aimee said, "the Chancellor."

Rayna widened her eyes. "The Chancellor? Tell me what you mean, Aimee. How is this woman a danger to Chancellor Amidala?"

"We were at the Outlander club the other night," Aimee began, "and Julie was pretty wasted."

Rayna frowned. "Why are you friends with this person?" she asked.

"I'm starting to wonder that myself," Aimee replied. "Anyway, she was going to talk to bounty hunters about how much they charge," she said. "Luckily I stopped her before she could."

"How much they charge for what?" Rayna asked.

"Well, she never came out and said it, but I think she meant how much they would charge to put a hit on someone," Aimee said. "And I'm positive it was the Chancellor she was talking about."

Rayna sat in stunned silence for a moment or two as she digested this. "But even if this is true, what is her problem with the Chancellor?"

"She knows that Anakin Skywalker and the Chancellor are an item," Aimee said. "And in her delusional mind, she thinks that if the Chancellor was out of the picture, she'd have a clear shot at Anakin."

Rayna shook her head. "This is terrible," she said. "This is…this is treason! We have to tell her, Aimee. We need to warn her. And we need to talk to the Jedi. She needs to be arrested, locked away! I can't believe this!"

Aimee nodded. "She needs to be watched, at the very least," she said. "I mean, can they arrest her if she hasn't done anything yet?"

"I don't know," Rayna said. "But we need to inform the right people so that she can't."

"Yes, right away," Aimee said. "Who should we talk to?"

Rayna considered this for a moment. "I'll tell the Chancellor first thing in the morning. She'll know what to do."

Padmé's apartment

"Thank you, Dormé," Padmé said. "This is delicious."

Dormé smiled. "You're welcome," she said. "The twins enjoyed it too," she added.

"I'm sorry I was so late tonight," Padmé said. "I spent most of the morning at the courthouse."

"I'm so glad to hear that Palo character was put away," Dormé said. "You must be so relieved."

Padmé nodded. "I am," she said. "But I learned something this afternoon, something a little surprising," she added with a smile.

"Oh? What's that?" Dormé asked.

"I'm pregnant," Padmé said.

Dormé's eyes widened. "Pregnant? Really?"

Padmésighed. "Yes, really," she said.

"I knew you and Anakin were…well, you know... but I thought you were taking birth control," Dormé said. "I picked up the prescription for you myself!"

"I know, and I was," Padmésaid. "But that was after the first time. The first time we were intimate, well, it was so spontaneous that, well…"

"You didn't use any protection," Dormé said.

"Exactly," Padmésaid. "And that's all it took. I can't believe it, Dormé! What is Anakin going to think? He's been so concerned about us living together openly because he wants to avoid scandal. And now I'm pregnant! I don't know how I'm going to tell him!"

"Anakin loves you," Dormé said. "He loves Luke and Leia, and he will love this baby too, surely you know that."

"I don't doubt that," Padmé said. "But will he think I did this on purpose? To trap him?"

Dormé frowned. "He knows you better than that, Padmé," she said. "He won't think that."

Padmésighed. "I don't even know when I'll be able to tell him,"She said. "He's in the Outer Rim territories, and I have no idea when he'll be back."

Dormé considered this. "Well, you'll just have to wait for him to come home," she said. "That will give you some time to figure out how you're going to tell him."

"I suppose so," Padmé said. "I just hope I can."

Later that night

"Anakin, I need to tell you something."

"What is it? Go ahead, Padmé; you know you can tell you anything."

"I'm pregnant, Ani."

"What did you say?"

"I said I'm pregnant. I'm as shocked as you are, but…"

"You did this on purpose, didn't you? You're trying to trap me! You're trying to manipulate me!"

"No, Anakin I would never do such a thing!"

"You except me to believe you? After everything you've put me through?"

Padmé woke up with a start, the emotions of her nightmare shaking her from slumber. Upon realizing she had simply been dreaming, she covered her face with her hands. Thank God it was only a dream, she thought. She looked up as the commlink on her dresser sounded, and got out of bed at once to answer it.

"Ani!" she said when Anakin's holographic image issued forth.

Anakin smiled. "Hi," he said. "Did I wake you up?"

"No," she said. "I was awake."

"Can't sleep?"

"Well, I was asleep, but I had a nightmare," she explained. "That woke me up."

"Sorry to hear it," he said. "Hope it wasn't anything too upsetting."

She smiled. "No, it's fine," she said. "How are things going? Where are you?"

"We're on Dantooine," Anakin said. "We met with the parents of a young girl earlier today. She's twelve."

"Do you think she's a good candidate?" Padmé asked.

"I think so," Anakin replied. "The trouble is, her parents aren't sure they want to part with her. After everything that's happened recently, I can't blame them. Now that I'm a parent, I can't imagine just giving up my child and never seeing them again."

"No, neither can I," she said. "Our children are everything to me, just as I know they are to you."

"Absolutely," Anakin agreed. "I miss them already," he added with a smile.

"I thought the Jedi edicts were changing," Padmé said.

"They are," Anakin said.

"Perhaps if her parents knew that it would help them let her become a Jedi," she suggested.

Anakin considered this. "You might be right," he said. "We're seeing them again in the morning," he said. "I'll mention it to them."

Padmé smiled. "I hope it helps," she said.

Anakin nodded. There was something she was hiding, something big; but he couldn't figure it out given the nature of their communication. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she assured him. "I guess the nightmare has me a bit rattled."

"Nightmares will do that," he said. "So, you're sleeping better tonight? Maybe I'm the problem," he suggested with a smile.

Padmé shook her head. "No, not at all," she said. "I miss you in my bed," she told him with a smile.

Anakin smiled. "I can relate," he said.

Padmé laughed. "I went to see my doctor today about the insomnia, and she gave me an herbal supplement to help."

"Good," Anakin said. "Well, I should get going, and let you get back to sleep. I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay Ani," she said. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight," he said. "Only sweet dreams this time," he added.

"I'll do my best," she said. And then he ended the transmission.

Padmé sat for a moment on the edge of the bed, missing him deeply. Now that she knew she was pregnant, she understood why her emotions were so heightened. But that didn't help her feel any better when the man she loved was at the outer edge of the galaxy tonight, instead of with her in her bed. Climbing back into bed, Padmé closed her eyes, doing her best to relax and fall back asleep.

Dantooine

Dantooine was a farming planet, consisting of wide-open spaces, vast green fields and rolling plains. It struck both Anakin and Obi-Wan just how utterly different this planet was from Coruscant, where green spaces were rare.

"I could see myself living here," Anakin said as they made their way to the farm where their Jedi hopeful lived. "Fresh air, space, trees," he said, looking around.

Obi-Wan smiled. "I can't see you as a farmer, Anakin," he remarked. "You'd be bored to death."

Anakin chuckled. "Maybe," he said.

They were welcomed back into the farmstead by the parents of young Kimm Jorel.

"Thank you for seeing us again," Anakin said as they sat down at the kitchen table. Kimm's mother, Beryl, set a cup of hot cider down in front of each of them.

"It's an honour, Master Jedi," Kimm's father, Percival, said. "We appreciate your interest in our child."

"Kimm is a special young lady," Obi-Wan said. "We would be honoured to have her join our ranks."

Beryl and Percival looked at one another. "We understand that," Percival said. "However, I'm not sure we can hand her over," he went on. "She's our only daughter, and the thought of never seeing her again is hard to imagine."

"Perhaps I can alleviate your concerns," Anakin said. "We have changed many of our edicts," he explained. "Given the fact that we are so few now, we've had no choice."

"Which edicts do you mean, Master Skywalker?" Beryl asked.

"The edict that forbids attachments," Anakin explained. "We are allowing Jedi to have families now; I myself have two children," he added with a smile.

"So, this means that you can continue to have a relationship with your daughter," Obi-Wan said. "Kimm can visit you, she won't be held to the same decrees that Jedi have been held to for centuries."

Beryl and Percival smiled. "That is wonderful to hear," Beryl said. "And it makes a huge difference."

"Does that mean you're willing to let Kimm join the Order?" Anakin asked.

"We'd like to talk to her about it first," Percival said. "But I know she's excited about the prospect, so I think we can say it's quite likely, yes."

Anakin smiled. "That's excellent," he said.

"We will let you speak to your daughter and return later today, if that is acceptable," Obi-Wan said.

"Yes, that would be fine," Beryl said. "Thank you again, Master Jedi."

Padmé's office – the next morning

Rayna sat at her desk, drumming her nails nervously on the arms of her chair. She'd had a nightmare the previous night about Padmé, about Julie attacking her. It had made for a restless night as Rayna wrestled with the dreadful information her niece had given her. She looked at the computer on her desk, seeing that Padmé was still on a call, and knew she couldn't interrupt. Finally, after another extremely long ten minutes, the call ended, and Rayna knew it was her chance.

"Excuse me, your Excellency," Rayna said, peeking her head in Padmé's office. "Do you have a moment? I really need to talk to you."

"Of course," Padmé said. "Come in, Rayna. What's on your mind?"

Rayna came in and took a seat. "I need to tell you something," she began. "Something dire, and it concerns you."

Padmé grew alarmed. "What are you talking about?" she asked.

Rayna proceeded to tell Padmé about the conversation she'd had with her niece, Aimee, the previous evening. Padmé listened in growing alarm, her mind racing at the implications. By the end of the conversation, she had stood up, and was pacing in the room, agitated.

"This woman is out of control," Padmé said. "I knew she was obsessed with Anakin, but I didn't think she'd go this far!"

"And I don't know that she would," Rayna said. "Aimee said she was stoned when she was thinking about talking to a bounty hunter. But even so, I think we need to inform someone. But who, Milady? The Jedi? Perhaps Master Skywalker?"

"Anakin is off planet right now," Padmé said. "I don't know when he'll be back. Perhaps we should contact the Council," she said. "I'm sure there's at least one member still here."

Rayna nodded. "I'll do so at once," she said. "And I'm going to have two extra guards posted at your door," she said. "You know, better safe than sorry."

Padmé nodded. "Yes, of course," she said. "Thank you, Rayna."

Rayna smiled, feeling relieved that things were in motion to protect her dear Chancellor. "Of course," she said. "I'll contact the Council right now."

Rayna left Padmé's office to contact the temple, leaving Padmé alone to contemplate what she had just learned. Anakin, I need you! She thought, fighting the tears that threatened. Please come home soon.