Wow. been awhile hasn't it? Yea well with computer crashes, high school, crushes and everything else in this life, I've been busy. I'm really sorry and I hope ya'll can forgive me because here is a nice good update. I hope when I'm done I'll have Chapter eight *this one*, nine and ten done and over with. Truth be told I've already have my way to end it ( and I know how I can make a sequel. Lolz. All this from watching Attack of The Clones on DVD... a couple of. dozen of times (

Chapter eight:

"Oh My Maker, help me. Who is THAT?" Sabé gasped looking out into the lake where she and Khariya could barely make out the outline of Marco's body. "Perfect. I see nothing but perfect. Who is that? Khariya."

"Oh, are you taking about Marco?" Khariya said innocently. She stood with Sabé by a boat waiting for Padmé to come with them to the island nearby. She could see Anakin by the boat waiting for the three women and watching her and Sabé carefully. "I met him this morning." Khariya saw a look of contempt cross Anakin's face.

"You did? What's he doing here?" Sabé asked her eyes lighting up. "C'mon tell me please!"

"He's a trader. from the Spica System. I would have more but Anakin sort of distracted me." Khariya said frowning.

"OoooOO. What's the story between you and the Jedi, Khariya? I mean it must've been something for you to actually be distracted from THAT." Sabé laughed gesturing to the Spican.

"Nothing is going on between me and Anakin," Khariya snapped. "There's more going on between my sister and Anakin than there is anything between us."

"That's not what I heard Lady Dané," Sabé laughed. "From rumors floating around it seems that we have a Peeping Jedi in our hands."

"Just what are you talking about?"

"Last night, as you were bathing, some servants saw Anakin at your door. They said that for a few minutes he stood there just watching your door, grinning. Hahahaha!" Khariya blushed furiously.

"Well. Well... Maybe he remembered something funny!" Khariya said angrily in a futile attempt to get Sabé to stop laughing so much. Suddenly, she felt a surge of emotion in her mind.

"I wasn't peeping, Khariya. I hope you know that," a voice in her head said. Khariya turned and saw Anakin leaning on the railing, staring into space as if absorbing the beautiful view but Khariya knew better. He was using the Force to communicate with her.

"Is that right? Then why were you just at my door, not bothering to knock, and grinning?"

"You said it yourself. I remembered something funny." He turned to look at her and gave her a grin that Khariya had to make herself glare at. She said it before, she'd say it again. The boy was too good looking for his own well-being. With that thought, Anakin's grew wider. Her blush turned redder and she spun to stare at Marco again.

"Why don't you introduce me, Khariya?" Sabé suggested, forgetting the last bit of gossip she was laughing about.

"Introduce you to whom, Sabé," Padmé asked. Khariya pointed lazily across the docks. "Oh my goodness, who is that??"

"Marco," Khariya answered. "You know we should really go. I'm tired of just standing here." She was starting to get tired of just looking at Marco. Not that she didn't think that Marco was heavenly to look at because he was. She wasn't that shallow. She needed a little more than looks to be kept interested. She wanted someone adventurous, romantic and had some goal in their lives other than figuring out which box of TeeLee plums went to which planet and how much fish it was worth trading for. Just by looking at Marco, not to mention, a little sweep in his mind with the Force, she knew he wasn't it.

"Okay, I guess Khariya is right." Padmé sighed. "I didn't clear up my whole day to watch a man unload a boat. I want to spend it with my sister." Padmé smiled at Khariya and took her hand as they boarded the boat.

It took about half an hour to reach the small island down the river. In the wait, Padmé and Sabé talked merrily about the latest fictional Holovids and the current gossip in politics and entertainment. Khariya on the other hand just sat there taking in the view and just seemed to meditate. What the others didn't know was that she was trying to distract herself from the unwavering stare that Anakin was giving her. and annoyingly enough, the gaze seemed to be accompanied with that increasingly irritating smirk of his.

". Looks like Anakin is looking at you, Padmé." One of Sabé's comments penetrated through the fog that Khariya was building against reality.

"What do you think of Anakin, Khari?" Sabé asked.

"Cute but too stubborn for my taste," Khariya answered promptly.

"Stubborn about what?" Sabé asked. Khariya looked away, uncomfortable. She didn't mean to say stubborn. And anyways, she could see that Padmé was curious as well.

"I'm sorry, Padmé. I can't help what I feel. but I swear, I'll make Anakin feel for you the way you feel for him." Before she could answer, the pilot of the vessel announced that they had arrived at the island.

"We're here!" Khariya exclaimed. She slipped off her high heeled shoes and ran off into a clearing. She spotted the hammock that she had put there years ago and lay down on it.

"Khariya! Wait for us!" Padmé gasped, out of breath. For the first time that day, Khariya laughed.

"Padmé, you need to get out of the Senate and get some exercise," Khariya giggled. She turned toward a rocky hill behind them and saw sparkle. "Those caves."

"What about them?" Sabé joined them a little less breathless than Padmé. Khariya was staring strangely up at them. "Didn't you use to go up there when you were a kid?"

"I did. but. I never remembered anything being able to reflect light up there."

"What do you mean reflect?" Sabé asked. but it was too late. Khariya was disappearing between different between plants and shrubbery and she was heading toward the hills.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Khariya went though the snagging plants and grinned. It had been awhile that she had went up there and she wanted to know what was up there that made that sparkle. She fought through and found the old trail that she used to use as a child. Now it was just an old mud trail with overgrown weeds.

She reached the caves and began to carefully walk into one of them. Suddenly a hand appeared from behind the boulders and clamped onto her mouth, pulling her into the darkness.
I'm SORRIE I'm SORRIE I'm SORRIE I'm SORRIE! I know it's been a LONG while but I'm on vacation for a few weeks and I'll be alone for a few days a week in the house and I'll have the computer ALL for myself without anyone to fight for it. SO PLEase Very SOrrie for having to make people wait for such a long time.