Chapter 16

The dinning hall was set as servants were bringing in the drinks. Everyone was already seated. Everyone except two. Amidala sat at the head of the table. Sitting on her right was Luke and on her left was Panaka. Palpatine sat at the other end of the table. Luke had done everything he could to stay away from the newly elected Supreme Chancellor. The five council members, several government officials were there. The only two not there was Obi-Wan and Anya. No one wasn't too surprised when Anya and Obi-Wan didn't arrived for dinner. Anya was still healing from the wound inflicted by Darth Maul. And Obi-Wan haven't left her side since the battle. Just when the servants were bringing in the food, Obi-Wan and Anya entered.

Amidala grinned as the two latecomers sat down. "We're glade you could make it, Anya."

"How are you doing?" Captain Panaka asked.

"Doing a little better. Thank you." Anya said with a small grin.

From his seat between Qui-Gon and Panaka, Anakin smiled. The food was brought out. Everyone started eating and making small talk. Several times Palpatine kept glancing up at the two young Jedi.

"Knight Skywalker, I hear you attended the University of Coruscant. Graduated first in your class." Palpatine said.

"I majored in history and archeology." Anya replied.

"And medicine." Luke added.

"Oh really? Tell us about the university." the queen asked.

"As I was growing up, the more I became interested in history and digging up old artifacts. At one point, I decided I wanted to go the university. I started not caring about my training. No matter how hard I argued with my father, I wasn't allowed to go."

"Wasn't there any who supported you?" Governor Sio Bibble asked.

"Of course. My mother, friends, my aunt and uncle, other masters."

"So, what happened?" Anakin wanted to know. "What about your master?"

"My master supported me one hundred percent. She knew how badly I wanted to go. The only ones who needed convincing was my father and the council." the young Knight stated.

"So. . . what happened?" Anakin asked again.

"I finally realized the error I was making. I never noticed the talent she had. Anya can pick up an object and tell how old it is or it's history." Luke explained. "She needed to learn and expand her talent. So, I finally agreed to let her go."

"When I was finally allowed to go, the new semester was about to start within a month and they weren't taking any new students. Everyone at school knew strings were pulled to get me in."

"We went to the president of the university and got him to allow Anya in that semester. It was a fight just to get them to except her." explained Windu.

"Because you were a Jedi?" Palpatine asked.

"Because of her age." Luke answered.

"I was fifteen and the youngest to ever attend." Anya replied.

"It must have been hard traveling everyday back and forth, between the university and the Temple." Palpatine pointed out. "And keeping up with your training."

"It wasn't hard at all. My training was put on hold while I was in school. As for traveling, I stayed with my aunt and uncle who lived near the university." Anya exclaimed.

"Master Skywalker, I didn't know you had any siblings." Palpatine suggested, looking up at Luke.

"I do." Out of the corner of his eye, Luke noticed Amidala glance at him. "My sister and her husband was glade to let Anya stay with them while she attended the university."

"I hear that when you are brought to the Temple, you don't see much of your family or don't know them at all." one of the government officials asked.

"That is true. We are brought to the Temple at a young age. Some are six months old and then there are some who are three years old when they arrive. We try to encourage our students to visit their family. Some are very close to theirs and there are others who don't know their family." Windu said.

"Are you close to your family, Master Skywalker?" Palpatine asked.

"Yes, I am. I try to stay in touch with my sister as much as possible."

"I don't want to sound noisy, but is your sister Force sensitive also?" Palpatine asked taking a sip of wine. He looked over the rim of the glass at Luke.

The table got quite. Anyone who was Force sensitive could feel the electric static between the two men. Anya gave a quick glance at Yoda. In that glance, she noticed the master's ears where sticking straight up and concern in his eyes.

"The Force is strong in my family, Chancellor Palpatine. My father was a Jedi and my mother was a ruler of a planet. Shortly after I became a Knight, my father died, trying to save my life during a mission. Yes, my sister is Force sensitive. She had some training but chose not to become a Jedi. She likes her life the way it is. And I respect her decision." Luke exclaimed.

"What of your mother?" Amidala asked.

Luke turned to look at his mother. "She died when we were very young. I have no memory of her. I went to the Temple to be trained and my sister stayed with her. It was a decision my parents made. You see, my sister and I are twins. It was decided that if they had a boy, he, I, would be trained as a Jedi. And if they had a girl, she would stay with our mother and be raised by her and hopefully take over as ruler." It pained Luke to speak the half-truth. But he knew his mother knew the truth.

"What about her children? Are they Jedi too?" Palpatine asked.

The Sith master was starting to make Luke uncomfortable. He didn't know why Palpatine was asking those questions. "My niece is on Coruscant right now. She just got back from her mission."

Amidala didn't like the questioning either. She didn't understand what Palpatine was getting at. But what ever it was, she was ending it right now. "Anya, what did you do on brakes and in between semesters?"

Anya picked up on her grandmother's thoughts. She, too, didn't like it. And was glade to steer the conversation away from her family. She grinned and shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I usually stayed in school." Everyone gave her a puzzled look. "During brakes and vacations, I didn't want to go home. So, I stayed and took the classes that were being offered. By the time I graduated, I had a degree in medicine also."

"You're a doctor also?" exclaimed Panaka.

"Unfortunately, yes." Anya glanced down at Yoda and Windu. "Now the healers are trying to get their hands on me." A chuckle filtered around the table.

"When did you have time to train?" asked a woman official.

"During brakes, vacations, suspension, evenings."

"Did you say suspension?" asked Bibble.

"Yes." Stun and shock came around the table. She decided to explain. "I didn't start the fight."

"Fight?" Anakin asked. "What happened?"

"There were some at the university who thought I shouldn't had been there. Especially this one. Azia D'Cello. We were rivals. Her father was a big shot. I think a senator."

"D'Cello?" Palpatine spoke up.

"Yes." Anya glanced to her right at the chancellor.

"The name doesn't sound familiar. Which planet is he from?"

Anya was ready to say when she realized the mistake she was about to make. "I don't remember. Plus I never cared."

"You sure he was a senator?" Palpatine pushed further.

"I believe so. Like I said, I didn't care. So I never paid attention." She mentally crossed her fingers, hoping the Sith's questions would end.

"Well?" Anakin asked. "Get on with the story!"

"Anakin," Qui-Gon warned the boy softly.

A spike of anger and jealously flashed inside Obi-Wan. He quickly dampened it down before Qui-Gon or the council members sensed it. A wave of calm and love washed over him. He stretched out towards Anya.

It's okay. Talk to him when we get back.she sent.

Obi-Wan gave her a mental nod of his head.

"The moment I got there, Azia kept giving me a hard time. She would accused me of cheating on tests, sabotaging other's reports and doing special favors for my teachers and other faculty members. What ever she wanted, she got. Especially if I had it. Azia would try to push me out of the way so everyone's attention was on her. I didn't care much either." Anya explained. "We were in one class together. She would at times make comments."

"What kind of comments?" Panaka asked.

"Mostly about my family, the Jedi, me."

"What did you do?" another official asked.

"Nothing. I will admit it did bother me at times. One day, she was talking about my friends and I had enough. Until then, I kept quite. So I told her off. Azia didn't like it and tried to hit me."

"She hit you?" asked Anakin.

"Her fist never touched me. I was able to avoid it. She tried several times. We got into a fight. A professor sent us to the Dean of Students. Her father and my aunt and uncle were called."

"Master Skywalker, where were you?" Amidala asked.

"I was off planet, visiting my wife." Luke said. "The school had permission to contact my sister and bother-in-law because Anya was staying with them."

"Both my aunt and uncle were mad. Azia's father wanted me suspended instead of his daughter. Even though she was the one who started the fight. My uncle and him got into a little fight of their own. The Dean decided to suspend the both of us. He wasn't going to play favoritism. We each got one month suspension."

"And during that time, she was busy with her training." Windu spoke up.

"I'm sure the council wasn't too happy." Panaka stated.

"We weren't. Heard of fight and suspension, ordered her back, we did. A harsh punishment she had. Many hours a meditation she was given." Yoda spoke up for the first time.

"Within a day, the whole temple knew of what happened." Plo Kloon said.

"Master Eldorm Vondell, Anya's master, made sure she trained extra hard during that month." Depa Billala added.

"And I'm not sorry for what I did." Anya said. "You would think after something like that, that person wouldn't say another word to you. Well, the moment Azia saw me, after I returned back to school, she started yet again. But this time, I walked away. And to this day, we're still rivals. The only worst part about it was, having my parents find out."

"My sister contacted my wife and I. We headed back to Coruscant. We weren't happy one bit." Luke stated, glancing over at his daughter.

"Well, I just got a new attitude towards the Jedi. Remind me not to get on your bad side, Anya." Panaka said laughing.

The table laughed. The conversation turned towards other topics. Amidala explained about the celebration the next day and how the recovery process was going. Qui-Gon spun a few tales that had everyone laughing hard. And had Obi-Wan blushing with embarrassment. Palpatine didn't say much as the evening went on. The Jedi were all relived that the Sith Lord didn't start his questioning again.

Panaka had asked Luke how he and his wife met. Laughing, Luke replied that Mara was trying to kill him. He had to explain that one. As he did, Luke added things to make everyone believe it. The tale he told was almost the same as the truth.

"I was wondering something, Anya. I noticed you are a little younger then Obi-Wan. But you're a Knight and he's a Padawan." Palpatine stated.

There was silence all around the table. Anya shot Luke a quick glance.

Where is he doing this time?" she asked herself.

He's planning something. Be careful.Luke said.

"She was Knighted at twenty-one." Windu spoke up, catching Anya's question.

"Impressive." the chancellor said. "I thought you have to go through some sort of trail before you are Knighted."

"We do. Anya already went through her trails. And soon Obi-Wan will be too." the senior council member said.

Palpatine took a sip from his glass. "How did you become a Knight?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Anya.

"I read somewhere you never went through your trails. Something about a mysterious alien group." He answered looking over the rim of his wine glass.

The silence lingered over the group again. Anya stared down at her plate. Obi-Wan sensed her uneasiness and fear. He sent a wave of calm and love to her. Luke bit down his anger before anyone sensed it. He became suddenly uncomfortable again. If Palpatine made him this uncomfortable, then Anya must be ready to jump out of her skin.

How did he learn about that?Depa wondered.

It's not public knowledge. No one knows of that except for the council and a select few.Luke stated.

How in the hell did Sith brains find out?Anya demanded to know, almost panicking.

The only way is if he somehow hacked into the temple's records.Windu stated.

Check we should if intruder there was.Yoda announced.

"It's something I don't like to talk about." Anya said without looking up. She appeared calm on the outside, but she was panicking on the inside.

"I think everyone here would like to know." the chancellor said.

Make him stop!Anya screamed.

"It is quite alright. If Anya doesn't want to talk about it, then she shouldn't have too." Amidala suggested.

Anya looked over at the queen and grinned. "Thank you, your highness."

Palpatine didn't like it. He bit down on his anger and cursed under his breath. Panaka broke the ice by telling another funny story. One that happened on Tatooine while Obi-Wan, Padmé, Artoo, and Jar Jar was in Mos Espa. Anya rolled her eyes at the incident. Everyone thought it was funny, except her.

Anya reached out to grab her glass. Her fingers curled around the smooth material. Just as she picked it up, her hand suddenly lost feeling. The grip on the glass loosened and it fell to the table. Hitting the table with a thud, the glass tipped over and the wine spilled.

Everyone jumped. Voices mixed as several servants hurried in to clean up the mess. Anya had pulled her hand away and was cradling it.

"You alright?" Obi-Wan asked, sensing confusion and fear.

"My hand went numb." Anya replied.

"Went numb? How?" Qui-Gon asked.

Luke had moved from his seat and was by Anya before Qui-Gon was even done speaking.

"I don't know." she said.

"Let me take a look." Luke said gently taking her hand.

"What happened?" Palpatine asked concerned.

"I just went to grab my glass and my hand went numb."

As she spoke, Luke was testing her hand by pinching the skin. "Can you feel that?" he asked. Anya shook her head. Spying the pin that was holding her hair up, Luke took it. Turning the hand over, he gently touched the sharp end to the palm. "What about that?"

Again, nothing. Anya tried to more the fingers. They wouldn't move. "They won't move."

"Go to the med center and have that hand looked at." Luke told his daughter.

"I think I'll do that." Anya said.

"Rest you need." Yoda added.

Giving a small bow, Obi-Wan helped Anya out of the dinning hall. Luke retook his seat beside Amidala. No one said a word for a few minutes. Concern was thriving in the Force. Anyone who was Force sensitive could had felt it.

"How long had Knight Skywalker and Padawan Kenobi been seeing each other?" Palpatine asked. The Jedi all turned to stare at the chancellor. "They do make a lovely couple. You don't have to be gifted to know they care about each other deeply."

"Yes, they do, very much." Qui-Gon answered.

Where is Palpatine getting at?Luke wondered.

Patient, my student. Reveal his intensions he will. Sooner or later.Yoda sent back.

"Three months." Plo Koon replied. He, too, didn't like this.

"Master Jinn, Master Skywalker, you must be proud." one of the female government official said.

"Yes, we are." That was all Luke was about to say.

Something wasn't right. Yoda looked down at Palpatine and his ear twitched. The moment Anya and Obi-Wan arrived, he was able to sense the Dark Side. He couldn't pin point it's location. But he doesn't need too. He knew where it was coming from. Palpatine. The Sith Lord. The green master mentally crossed his fingers, hoping the Sith Lord didn't know Anya and Obi-Wan's secrets.

Walking down the hall towards Anya's quarters, Qui-Gon hurried to catch up to Luke. He knew Luke was troubled by something. Everyone at dinner knew Luke was concern about his daughter. More so when Palpatine kept asking more personal questions about Anya. Towards the end, the chancellor started asking about Obi-Wan. Qui-Gon didn't like that. He knew the other Jedi didn't like that either. Especially Yoda.

"What is it?" Qui-Gon asked stepping up beside his friend.

"Something isn't right here. I can feel it." answered Luke.

"Concern, he is." The two men turned to see Yoda, walking towards them, walking stick making a soft thud on the marble floor. "A father, he is."

"Yes, master." Luke said bowing his head. Qui-Gon gave him a puzzled expression. "Her right hand is the arm that got crushed by the Borlongs. It took at least 20 trips into the bacta and countless hours either Anya in a healing trance or a healer. The doctors were able to repair it. Just barley. Anya was very close to losing her arm. She never had any trouble with it. Until now. And what got me concern is Paplpatine."

"Sense the Dark Side, I did. Powerful it is. Safe the Temple is. Return quickly we must. Protect Anya and Obi-Wan." the little master said.

"You don't suppose he. . ." Qui-Gon's voice trailed off. The other two got the drift as to what he was asking. Could Palpatine had known of Anya's captivity and the injuries she received and then using the powers of the Dark Side to cause her hand to go numb?

No one knew what the supreme chancellor was thinking or knows about her and the others. Especially if she is the Child of Light, Child of Dark. The entire council agreed that Obi-Wan and Anya needed to get back to the Temple as soon as possible.

"Tomorrow, we leave." Yoda said.

"What of the celebration?" Qui-Gon asked.

"After the celebration." their teacher replied. "Important we return."

"Anya isn't healed enough to travel. The doctors won't release her." Luke stated.

"Know this I do. Rest she can. Staying here, bigger risk. For both." said their master.

"I will no risk her health, Yoda."

"Protection, they both need! Rick it we cannot. Leave tomorrow, after celebration, we are."

Luke heard the order clearly. There was no room for argument. "Excuse me, Yoda; Qui-Gon, I was about to go see how Anya was."

"Go. Her health, more important. A father you are, not a master." Yoda waved his hand to dismiss Luke.

Luke gave a small bow and hurried down the hall. Qui-Gon stood with Yoda as they watched Luke leave.

"I bet you never thought you ever see him as a master and a father." the taller of the two spoke.

"Make us proud, he did." The little green Jedi stared up at his formal padawan. "Come. Talk we must about Obi-Wan."

Obi-Wan? Why in the Sith hell would Yoda want to discuss Obi-Wan? Together, they headed back the way they came.