ghostrider- wow, I'm glad you found your way there. I suppose I'm taking my jolly good time getting it posted here, but I'm just lazy like that. I'm looking forward to the sequel, too! Now I just have to get more of it written!
Clover Brandybuck- Thanks! Sabé's definitely proved herself an adventure in this story.
"You didn't do anything wrong, Sabé," Padmé patiently said for the fifth time. "You did exactly what we planned. I just realized that it was the wrong plan. I had no choice."
Sabé sighed. After the initial relief of forging the alliance with the Gungans, she had begun to feel guilty and resentful about not having been able to succeed without Amidala's intervention. "I should've known what to do myself," she argued. "Then your cover wouldn't have been blown."
Padmé gave her a very stern, queenly gaze. "If you had done what I did, you would have been out of line, because it would have been going against my instructions. As for my cover, it's not completely blown. The Neimoidians don't know about it, and I intend to take advantage of that, so don't get into handmaiden gear again just yet."
Sabé opened her mouth to argue again, but Padmé gave her another look. "I don't want to talk about it anymore," she said with finality. "I want to get some sleep. You should get some too."
Sleep was easier said than done. The two of them were crammed into the back of a speeder, along with Rabé, who had successfully managed to attain unconsciousness, leaning her head back on the seat behind her. She was snoring so loudly that Sabé actually pitied Eirtaé being her roommate.
They were taking the quickest route possible back to Theed, where they would rendezvous with the Gungan army on the Naberrie private estate several miles outside the city. As the Naboo speeders could make the trek across the planet much more quickly than the Gungans, Amidala hoped to use the lead-time to round up any resistance in the city that had managed to elude the battle droids.
The approaching battle was starting to put everyone on edge. There was less chatter, and more nervous focus among the small group. The queen had not yet outlined her plan to anyone, not even Sabé, though she had assured her twin that she did indeed have a plan.
The sisters had an additional, minor cause for apprehension. If Richard and Claria had escaped Theed Palace, it was very likely that they had taken refuge in the Naberrie lands, which were considerable in size and where they would have a strong chance of moving about undetected. So there was a chance they might find their brother and sister, or even their father, when they arrived. The feelings this thought created in Sabé were powerful and paradoxical. She was desperately eager to find them, but she didn't want to get her hopes too high, for they might be severely disappointed. It took all the willpower she had just to keep from tearing off on her own to look for them. The choice between duty and family had never been more severe. The fact that liberating the planet was likely the speediest course of finding them safely made it a little easier.
They had all been crammed in stolen speeders for what felt like days, though in reality it had just been over one day, and in a few more torturous hours they would arrive. Sabé was so cramped and uncomfortable that she soon lost all her nervousness about reaching Theed in favor of stretching her legs properly. They were hungry too, for there weren't many rations to go around, and crowded, because in addition to people, they were bogged down with various supplies they had picked up on Coruscant. Rabé and Sabé broke down into bickering several times, which at first was mediated by Padmé's presence between them, but even her patience could only go so far. Sabé realized that the Queen's decision to put Eirtaé in another speeder altogether had been wise foresight on her part.
All in all, everyone was relieved when their driver said, "Milady, we are approaching your estate."
Padmé wriggled up and leaned forward so that she could see the viewscreen in the speeder's cockpit. "Approach from the east," she said, pointing. "There's a sizeable forest there that should provide us some cover. We can't go anywhere near the house, obviously, they'll have that watched."
"The eastern forest borders Gungan territory," the driver, a Lieutenant with the Royal Guard, noted.
"That's the idea," Padmé said, nodding.
The Lieutenant hesitated before adding, "It won't take them long to find us."
"No, it won't." She did not elaborate, and the finality in her tone silenced the man's doubts, though he obviously still had them.
"How long before the army comes?" he asked.
"It should be two days, they said," answered Panaka from the co-pilot's seat.
"Wow, they can make it in that time? I thought they were on foot."
"They battle on foot," Padmé said, "but they have their own means of transport. It's the size and assembling of the army that's going to take them awhile."
"I see."
When they entered the Naberrie forest, Sabé wished she could have said it looked familiar. By all rights it should have been, but she had spent very little time here as a child. On her rare visits she'd usually confined herself to the house and occasionally the gardens. She'd never considered herself to be an outdoorsy type.
When they finally stopped, all the girls scrambled out of the speeder with almost frantic eagerness, and Sabé breathed luxuriously with relief as she stretched her cramped muscles and breathed the familiar taste of Theed air.
Out of nowhere, Anakin came bounding up to them. "This is where you live, Padmé?" he asked, then stuttered, "I mean, Your Highness?"
Padmé smiled. "You can call me Padmé, Anakin, unless I'm dressed up like the queen. And yes, this is our estate, but we're hardly ever here, I'm afraid."
"All of it?" he exclaimed, blue eyes wide and near bursting as he tried to look in every direction at once.
"Everything up to the river," she confirmed, pointing east. "Anakin, have you met my sister?"
"You have a sister?" he asked, bringing his attention back instantly.
"Apparently not," Sabé whispered into Rabé's ear, who giggled.
"Yes, and you have actually met her, you just didn't know it was her."
"The fake queen," he said slowly, realization dawning in his eyes. "She's your sister?"
"Yes, my sister Sabé," Padmé said with a smile.
Sabé extended a hand. "Well, it's finally nice to really meet you, Anakin. Maybe now you won't be so afraid of me, huh?"
Anakin still seemed shy and closed around her. He took her hand and nodded, but said nothing, and looked at Padmé as if asking for her help.
Honestly, Sabé thought, I don't think I'm that scary.
Rabé was tugging on Sabé's sleeve. "Come on," she said, "Panaka's making the Guard set up tents. I think this could be fun to watch."
"Okay," Sabé said, allowing Rabé to lead her away and leaving Padmé and Anakin talking behind her. "But we'd better be careful. If he spots us, he'll want us to help too."
Sabé did not long remain free of Panaka's supervision.
"I want you to be quick, but above all be cautious," Amidala said, pacing slowly before a line of people that included Panaka, Sabé, Eirtaé, six guards, and two pilots. "It may be that they couldn't form any cells at all, and we'll just have to go with the people we have. Don't jeopardize what advantage we have by doing anything rash. Captain Panaka is absolutely in charge, and has my full authority while you're away. May the Force be with you, and we hope to see you soon."
Sabé had been surprised when the queen had requested she and Eirtaé be part of the recon team that was going to Theed to look for resistance.
"The idea is to send people familiar with the city," Amidala had explained to the selected. Indeed, everyone she had chosen were natives of the city, or at least had lived there for a substantial period of time.
The mission itself was simple enough. Go in, try to round up anyone who had escaped, and either bring them back, or give them instructions on what to do to help with the battle. Panaka, it turned out, was actually expecting to find such people, for he'd had a resistance plan drawn up and drilled for the servicemen ever since the blockade. Upon discovery of this information, Sabé had realized with some excitement that perhaps Saché and Yané had managed to avoid capture, and would be found as well.
"Here is your gear," Panaka said, handing Sabé and Eirtaé each a backpack laden with bulging compartments. "Ration bars, ascension gun, macrobinoculars, multitool, comlinks, extra battery packs and power packs for your blasters, basic first aid, camouflage supplies, and a canteen."
"What, no sewing kit?" Sabé asked, accepting her backpack and opening it to examine the contents more closely.
Panaka gave her a stern look. "No, now pay attention." He held up a small, thick disk. "This is a universal restraining bolt. Obviously it won't work if you run into a battalion of droids, but hopefully it can get you out of a scrape with one. You each get three bolts and a controller. Keep them somewhere easy to access."
"Captain, surely the Federation will be aware if we try to restrain their droids. How can you be sure the bolts will even work? Even if they do, it's going to be a huge red flag to the Neimoidians of our position."
Panaka seemed unfazed as he began handing restraining bolts to the girls. "The idea of this mission is to avoid any Federation attention, Princess. If all goes well, you will not be seen by any droids and will avoid being spotted at all costs. These are a precautionary tactic only. The idea is to help you escape without getting a blaster hole burned into your back. Speaking of which, here are your pistols."
"We'll be careful, Captain," Eirtaé said, shooting Sabé a warning glance. Sabé closed her mouth, cutting off her arguments, and pressed her lips together hard. Glumly, she took the pistol and holster from Panaka and slipped it around her waist. It was highly frustrating not being able to think on these strategic levels. She'd always considered herself smart; why couldn't she see what the purpose of the bolts had been?
I suppose I can't be good at everything.
Speeder assignments were considerably less crowded than they had been on the journey to Naberrie Forest. After all, they were hopefully bringing people back with them. Sabé actually had the luxury of a whole backseat to herself, but as the ride to Theed was very short, she didn't have much time to appreciate the fact. She made use of the time by carefully going through everything in her bag, trying to become familiar with all the items.
She hadn't realized Panaka had been so productive during his time on Coruscant, having procured so many useful things. Had he anticipated the queen's decision to return? Or was he simply prepared for all possibilities? She had to admit he was a skilled Captain, regardless of how much he grated on her.
Soon the domes of Theed were visible across the cresting hills, and Sabé could make out the palace on the farthest edge, where the waterfalls hurled down on their perilous journey to the valley below. Twilight was falling over the city, and the rooftops glowed softly in the waning light. It seemed several lifetimes since she'd seen the city, though in reality it had been little over a week.
"Are those the camps, I wonder?" she asked aloud, leaning forward to point at several sprawling, scattered establishments which dotted the edges of the city. The glint of aircraft and machinery buzzed around these centers, evidence of the Federation's presence.
"That would be my guess," the driver agreed. "I hope Amalé is all right. I don't like the look of those camps."
"Who is Amalé?"
"My wife. We just got married a few months back- just before the blockade." He sighed. "Princess, I hope it's not improper to say that it's hard for me not to just take off and go looking for her."
Sabé was quiet a moment, realizing that she herself had acknowledged the same sentiments not six hours before. "Not improper, sir. I understand completely."
"Do you think the queen will win the fight, my lady?" he asked her. Sabé noticed that the other guard in the passenger seat was also paying close attention, waiting eagerly for her answer.
Never before had Sabé felt the weight of her royalty so keenly. Here she was, a brash and immature slip of a fourteen-year-old girl, and two grown men were waiting expectantly for her input, trusting her judgment and respecting her say because of the position and legacy of her family. As such, she considered her words very carefully before speaking.
"I do not know," she said slowly. "The odds are very poor for us, I'm afraid. However, the queen is very wise. She is one of the wisest people I've ever met, and she thinks carefully before she decides anything, and she has always put the good of Naboo first in all her considerations. We must have faith in her, and help her as much as we can. If we all give everything we have, then I think our chances for success are greater than many would believe."
The men seemed a little bit disappointed. She knew they hoped she would have been able to tell them the queen's battle plan. Whether or not she would have told them was a moot point, as she herself was not yet privy to Amidala's plans. However, despite their disappointment, they seemed more determined, for which Sabé was glad. Determination would be one of the keys to their survival.
At least they have the benefit of more training than I do, she thought, looking woefully out the viewport as the speeders slowed and came to a stop. I only hope I take to this battle stuff fairly quickly.
"On behalf of the Naboo Royal Guard, I would like to thank the residents of Sixty-Two Parith Street for their selfless donation to the war effort," whispered Sabé's companion, a rakish young man named Rizzo. She giggled as the guard pulled several sets of pants and shirts from the top drawer of a tall bureau.
The first night of their mission had been a smashing success. They'd snuck through the streets in small groups of three, on full alert and wearing (to Sabé's dismay) camouflage face paint, to lessen the glare of their faces, and worked their way systematically through Panaka's list of checkpoints. Everyone's spirits had lifted considerably when one of Panaka's potential safe houses proved to be a thriving hot spot of rebel activity.
The cell comprised seven uncaptured guards, three pilots, and one member of Parliament- the elderly Lady Cusca, who had nearly fainted with relief to see the recon team, and immediately latched herself to the two girls like a suckerfish. It was mostly because of Lady Cusca that Sabé had volunteered to go retrieve civilian clothing with Private Rizzo.
They'd learned a great deal of valuable information from their previously stranded colleagues about the situation in the city. Most of the people had been relocated to the camps outside the borders, and the Neimoidians had taken up residence in the palace and several of the richer neighborhoods. Droids patrolled the remaining streets in perfect cycles, an extreme advantage to the Naboo, who had taken to planning all their movements around this schedule.
For some reason that the resistance members had not yet been able to determine, droids occasionally could be found escorting prisoners around the city- presumably transferring them from the camps. The most likely theory was that these people were being requisitioned for questioning or labor. Whatever the reason, all members of the cell had taken to wearing civilian clothing at all times, the idea being to pass themselves off as misplaced captives should they be encountered. As with Panaka's idea of restraining bolts, no one was quite sure how effective this precaution would prove, but nonetheless the Captain had sent Sabé and Private Rizzo out to pilfer civilian clothing for the recon team as well.
"So what's the plan when we get back?" he asked, shutting the drawer firmly and tucking the clothes into his satchel.
"Panaka wants to check out the Larben Street and University safe houses, and then head back to the Queen," she said, wrapping a couple of skirts together.
"I hope he picks me to go back with you all," Rizzo said hopefully. He eyed Sabé's pack shrewdly as she shifted the items around, making room for the clothing. "Hey, you got any extra ration bars?"
Sabé rolled her eyes, grabbed a bar, and tossed it over to him. Rizzo's appetite was legendary among the guards, and he seemed to enjoy anything, even the dry, tasteless ration bars, which put Sabé in mind of sawdust.
"Are all of you going back? Even the handmaidens?" he asked eagerly.
"Yes, Eirta is going back, Rizzo!" Sabé cried with exasperation. Rizzo's crush on Eirtaé was more famous than his appetite, if that were possible, and he'd talked of little else since they'd broken into the house on Parith Street.
Rather than be humbled by Sabé's outburst, Rizzo only grinned and took a big bite of ration bar, munching loudly, and causing Sabé to shake her head amazedly. His happy-go-lucky nonchalance, even despite their current situation, reminded her greatly of Yané. "You know, if you'd change clothes here, you wouldn't have so many to carry back," he pointed out between bites.
"But where would I put the outfit I'm wearing?" she asked pointedly.
Rizzo paused in his chewing thoughtfully, then swallowed. "Good point," he remarked.
"You are such an idiot," Sabé said, shaking her head.
"That hurt, Princess. Okay, are we ready?"
"As soon as you're done stuffing your face, yes we are." Rizzo's only reply was another grin. Sabé found it quite stress-relieving to vent her scolding tendencies on someone who really didn't seem to give a hoot.
She wished they could have waited until nightfall for this adventure, but unfortunately Panaka wanted to use the night to check on the remaining safe houses and head back, so they needed to use the daylight hours as well. While Rizzo gobbled down the rest of the ration bar, she carefully peeked through the drapes in the front living room of the house. "It looks like the coast is clear," she said. "We should probably go now."
"I'm right behind you, Princess," came the reply. Sabé turned and raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh, my bad," he said. "I guess 'ladies first' isn't the best gentlemanly behavior in this case, is it?"
Sabé followed at Rizzo's heels as they edged out the door, keeping themselves concealed inside the door's alcove while Rizzo checked the street one last time. "Captain," Sabé called into her comlink.
"Panaka here," came the reply.
"We've collected the clothes- we're heading back now."
"Okay. Remember, avoid droid attention at all costs."
Sabé rolled her eyes. "Yes, Captain," she said with overemphasized patience. "Sabé out."
"Hey, Princess," whispered Rizzo, elbowing her in the ribs while still surveying the street before him, "don't forget- whatever you do, avoid droid attention at all costs."
"Can you possibly be any more uncouth?" Sabé whispered back.
"Don't tempt me. Okay, we're going."
Sneaking through the streets avoiding droid attention was somewhat time-consuming, and for all his outward slovenliness, Rizzo was a very meticulous guard, and had to triple-check every street before he let them advance.
When they were halfway to the safe house, a sudden movement caused him to pull Sabé quickly into a side alley, and down on the ground, where he hovered above her. Together, they peered out into the street to get a glimpse of the new arrivals. Five droids escorted two prisoners down the sidewalk. Sabé let out a gasp that she hoped wasn't too loud, but was powerless to prevent.
The prisoners were Saché and Yané.
Before Sabé had a chance to speak, she felt Rizzo's hand clamped around her mouth. "Don't even think about it, Princess," he whispered. "I want to help them too, but our orders stand."
A surge of anger caused her to wrench her face free. "Oh, fry Panaka, anyway," she whispered fiercely back. "He didn't know we would run into them."
"I'm telling you, Princess- you go out there, you jeopardize the mission and the resistance. Heck, who knows? Maybe the whole war."
"If we don't rescue them, they could die!" she hissed.
Rizzo paused beside her, his face thoughtful. Then he seemed to make up his mind about something. He opened his mouth to speak, but before he had the chance to overrule her again, Sabé sprang free of his grip.
"I don't care what you say, I'm going," she told him firmly, and dashed off.
"Sithspit," she heard him swear behind her. She flushed with renewed anger and embarrassment. Most people, even guards, didn't speak that way around her. "Blast you, woman," he added, and she heard him scrambling to his feet as well, darting out into the street after her. "I'm going to be in so much trouble, please come back!"
She shook off the hand he placed on her arm and trudged forward towards the droids holding her friends captive. Then he gave a resigned sigh and fell into step beside her. "I hope you have a plan," he muttered out of the corner of his mouth.
Sabé reached into her pocket with her right hand, grabbed the three restraining bolts there, and handed one to him. "Might as well just grab and run," she said. "We'll never convince them to hand the girls over." As she spoke, she reached down and loosened the pistol in her holster with her left hand.
"We only have three of these," he whispered, looking ahead anxiously. The rapid pace Sabé had set was swiftly closing the distance. "There are five droids. What about the other two?"
"You have a gun, don't you? Use it." These cocky and aggressive words felt strange to say, but she was both so angry and so focused that she barely cared.
Rizzo sighed again. "I thought handmaidens were supposed to be subtle," he pointed out.
"Shut up," she hissed. They were within hearing range now. "Saché!" she called. "Yané!"
Seven heads, two human and five mechanical, made near-identical stopping and turning motions. Saché and Yané's faces, however, betrayed amazed shock and wonder which the droids' faces could not. Sabé rushed up to the group with a smile. "It's so great to see you!" she said, giving each of the girls a hug. As she did so, she slipped them each a restraining bolt, hoping against hope they would figure out what they were for. "How have you been?"
Yané only continued to goggle, but Saché gave the droids a strange, sidelong glance and then turned her puzzled expression to Sabé. "Tolerably, well, thank-" she began.
"Halt," said the lead droid, holding up a hand and putting it to Sabé's chest. "Who are you?"
She curtseyed. "Sabé Naberrie, at your service," she replied with a winning smile. Coming out of the curtsey, her left hand dropped her skirts, seized her pistol on the way back up, and promptly shot the droid's head off.
A mad frenzy followed, in which the other four droids immediately started firing at the two newcomers. Rizzo grabbed Sabé's sleeve and dragged her behind a nearby freestanding statue.
"We can't fire back, we might hit Saché and Yané!" Sabé cried.
"Princess, I know I look shallow, but I ain't stupid!" he yelled back.
"The bolts!" she exclaimed. "They're our only hope." She stuck her head quickly above the statue, only to dodge back down again as a blaster shot came whizzing over her head. "Saché, Yané, use the restraining bolts!" Sabé yelled over the din. With the droids' attention focused on Sabé and Rizzo, the girls would have the perfect opportunity to test Panaka's precaution, if they could only get the message.
"That'll take care of two of them, if they even work," the guard said matter-of-factly.
"Will a stun bolt disable a droid?" she asked hopefully, nodding at his blaster. Her pistol did not have stun capability but his weapon did.
"Guess we'll find out," he said. Then he yelled, 'How's it going?"
"They're on, but it's not working!" Sabé heard Yané's frantic reply.
"Well, there goes that plan," Rizzo remarked dryly. "What now?"
"No, wait!" Sabé exclaimed, "I forgot, I need to activate the controller!" Mentally kicking herself for this oversight, she pulled the device from her right pocket and risked a quick emergence from their shelter to aim it at the offending droids. To her immense satisfaction, two of them froze in place and stopped firing. One of them fell over altogether, sending a random blaster shot across the street, where it put a sizable hole in someone's front porch.
"Okay, move over," Rizzo commanded. Having botched the entire venture thus far, Sabé suffered no loss in pride from letting him take over. He leaned out around the statue, only to leap back with a cry of pain. "Sithspit!" he cried again, causing Sabé to grimace again. He was clutching his shoulder, which was smoking.
Sabé shrieked, and rushed over. "Are you okay?" she asked frantically.
Rizzo nodded with gritted teeth. "Yes, Princess, I'll be fine." He shoved the blaster into her hands. "Would you shoot the stupid droids, please?"
Sabé gulped and nodded. She took the heavy blaster in her hand, a little nervous because she did not know quite how to use it. Hesitantly, she crept around the corner and took a careful shot. Apparently, all Panaka's training had done some good, because she quite clearly saw it hit the droid, but not before Saché had also accidentally stepped into the line of fire. Sabé heard Yané scream, and when she risked another quick look, the she saw the results of her handiwork, which weren't good at all.
"Well," she said slowly, "I have bad news and more bad news. First, stun bolts do not work on droids."
"Wonderful. What's the other bad news?"
"Um…Saché's out cold." Indeed, Saché's crumpled form lay prostrate in the middle of the street. Sabé guessed this had been the cause of Yané's scream.
Rizzo snorted. "This could almost be funny if lives weren't in danger and it wasn't happening to me," he said. "Any more bright ideas?"
Before Sabé could reply, several sharp blasts, followed by the sounds of machinery collapsing to the street, caused her and Rizzo to exchange mirrored looks of surprise.
"I got them!" Yané yelled.
Sabé and Rizzo scrambled out from behind the statue onto the street proper. There they saw Yané with one of the droids' bulky blasters still smoking in her hands, looking a little incredulous at the results of her handiwork. Sabé clutched Rizzo's blaster in her right hand and her pistol in her left, and Rizzo clutched his wounded shoulder. "Good job," Rizzo said when they reached Yané.
"Thanks," Sabé said, feeling a little elated at their success.
"I wasn't talking to you, Princess," he spat. She blanched. Clearly, he wasn't very happy with her, and when she stopped to think about it, she realized he had every right to be angry. "We'd better hurry," he said, "they'll have been calling for reinforcements with their antennas. Princess, I think that since I'm injured, you should have the honor of carrying Saché. You are, after all, the one who knocked her out."
"Shouldn't we take their blasters?" she asked, pointing to the droids' weapons lying scattered across the street.
"Yané, would you be so kind as to take some extra blasters?" Rizzo asked through gritted teeth.
Fortunately for Sabé, Saché did not weigh much, but her back was still aching by the time they reached the safe house. They must have looked quite the sight walking into the main conference room- dirty, wounded, and laden with stolen arms.
Someone took Saché from Sabé's shoulders, and she heaved a sigh of relief, rubbing at her neck gratefully. When she looked up, she immediately stopped rubbing and froze.
Captain Panaka was shooting daggers at her with his eyes, and she knew she was in a very great deal of trouble.
The remainder of the Theed retrieval mission went without a hitch. Sabé was not allowed to participate. She spent the rest of the day and evening nursing both Saché, who was still unconscious, and a very gripey Rizzo, who took great pleasure in making her wait on him hand and foot.
When he'd finally fallen asleep, Sabé sat at Saché's bedside, hoping her friend would wake up soon, and feeling altogether miserable.
Yané breezed through the doorway and sat down on the foot of the bed. "Lady Cusca made some kind of weird stewy stuff," she announced. "Do you want some?"
"She cooks?" Sabé asked in ill-concealed skepticism.
Yané shrugged. "It's not too bad, actually."
"I'll pass."
"So… what did Panaka say to you?"
"Oh, basically that I'm irresponsible, rash, immature, and selfish. Pretty much what everyone else has been telling me lately, only in his case it was delivered in professional lingo."
"What were you thinking? I have never before in my career dealt with such blatant insubordination, Princess Vána!"
"It seemed like the right thing to do."
"The right thing to do is whatever I say it is!"
"You would have just walked the other way?"
"What I would have or would not have done is not the issue here. Thanks to your recklessness, I have two very injured people on my hands, and it's very likely that the Federation troops have figured out where we are."
"I can't believe you would have just let them walk off, possibly to their deaths!"
Panaka slammed a hand down on the briefing table. "Welcome to war, Princess. You have to make tough choices. Nothing is ever quite black and white, but you do the best you can.
"You're right, I did not expect that you would come across your fellow handmaidens being held captive while you were gone. And no, I would not have allowed them to remain captive, but the call was not yours to make. Did you even think to use your comlink? Not only would I have given you permission, had you asked, I would have sent you a team to get it done properly.
"As it is, I'm suspending you from further action until I can take this matter to the queen."
Sabé squirmed uncomfortably in the hard chair. It turned out that Private Rizzo had actually been about to call Panaka when, presuming he was only going to tell her no again, she had so boldly taken the initiative and jumped out into the street.
The only redeeming factor of the whole interview with Panaka was that she had been able to convince him that the blame for the whole debacle rested squarely with her, and that Rizzo had not instigated it in any way. Of course, she was then subjected to a humiliating lecture comparing her to the injured private, and painting her in an even worse light than before.
The closest thing they had to a medic was a colonel with a crash course in field medicine, who said he was pretty sure that Saché would be all right. He'd cleaned Rizzo's wound, packed it with bacta patches, and put him in a splint. Now all they could do was wait for the mission's conclusion before heading back to Naberrie Forest.
Above all things, Sabé dreaded Padmé's reaction.
"Thank you, Sabé," Yané said quietly, startling Sabé from her reverie. "For saving us. I know you got in trouble, but I'm certainly glad I'm not captured anymore."
Sabé finally managed a small smile. Amidst all the anger and frustration surrounding her ill-advised rescue, she had at least managed to free her colleagues. "You're welcome," she said. "You should probably thank Rizzo more, though," she added soberly. "He did a lot more than I did."
"Well," Yané said with a giggle, "I would, but…" she leaned in conspiratorially. "I think he's become quite the hero around here. He's getting a lot of attention, especially from-"
Sabé groaned. "Oh, no," she said, "not Eirtaé."
"The same."
"As if his head weren't big enough already."
"Yeah, well, she's talking to him now, so I don't think he'd like me to interrupt with a thank you."
Sabé frowned. "I thought he was sleeping."
"Maybe he was, but he's not now."
"Ah well. I don't care as long as he's distracted enough not to make me fluff his pillows or something else equally stupid."
"SABÉ!" came a shout from the hallway, as if on cue.
"Princess Sabé," she muttered, rolling her eyes and standing up. "What is it now?" she asked irritably, stepping into the room across the hall where Rizzo lay stretched out on a cot with his arm resting snugly against his chest. Eirtaé sat on a small stool beside him.
"Eirtaé tells me there's some soup or something to eat." he prompted, smiling sweetly. "Would you be so kind as to bring me some?"
On second thought, Sabé thought as she stormed out in search of Lady Cusca and her culinary concoction, perhaps this is the worst possible punishment I could ever receive.
Replies always welcome!
Saché