Author's Note: Sorry guys – I need to add some of that nasty angst to provide some needed conflict. Here goes…..

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Padmé was whistling in the kitchen again. She had taken it upon herself to learn some basic culinary arts, although she could give no explanation for her reasoning behind it. Dormé watched her with a humorous look. A twinge of pride still strummed through her as she felt somewhat responsible for the senator's present mood.

She had never seen the Senator happier than in the last six months. Her secret meetings with Obi-Wan Kenobi were growing more and more frequent and of longer duration. She felt it was finally time to test the waters.

"So." She turned her attention back to chopping the vegetables for their meal. "When's the date?"

"What date?"

"You know. THE date?"

Padmé's eyebrows lowered trying to discern her friend's meaning when the realization hit her and she began shaking her head. "Don't even start it, Dormé."

"Oh come on. Don't tell me you haven't thought about it."

"Nope."

"I don't believe that."

"Believe what you want. We are happy just the way we are. I'm not about to jeopardize it. And you'd better not either!" Padmé playfully pointed a flour-covered finger in Dormé's face.

"Alright…alright." Dormé returned to her task.

A minute later, Padmé could hear Dormé humming as she worked, and she quickly recognized the tune. The Nubian Wedding March.

"Stop it!"

Dormé acted shocked as a handful of flour struck her face. Within minutes, the kitchen was a disaster, chopped vegetables, flour, and fruit lying on the counters, the floor, even stuck on the ceiling. Padmé and Dormé both sat on the tile floor laughing.

"Order out?"

"Sounds great."

Later that night, Padmé lay awake on her bed, wrapped in her lavender satin sheets, eyes wide open and staring up into the darkness. Who was she kidding? Of course she had thought about it. It seemed the natural next step. But then dating a Jedi wasn't necessarily a natural thing to do. He visited her as often as he could, but his Jedi duties and her own senatorial ones kept them apart much more than she had expected. Would a wedding change that? Would a contract with the man she loved somehow drive away her fears that someday it would all come to a screeching halt? That he would open his eyes at the impossibility of it all and return to his previous Jedi existence? No. It wouldn't. And pushing the subject on him would more than likely drive him away. It was a commitment she could not ask from him. They would continue on like they had been and she would cherish their time together for as long as it lasted.

On the opposite side of the city, a pair of blue-green eyes stared into the darkness of his temple chamber. Sleep had eluded him once more and his thoughts automatically were drawn to her. He began to see the reasoning behind the Council forbidding attachment such as this. She was definitely a distraction, albeit a welcome one. When he wasn't with her, he was thinking about her. Perhaps it had all been a mistake – the uninvited thought struck him cold. Perhaps he shouldn't have uttered those words to her on that muddy planet, and kindled the fire that had suddenly burst forth and had been in full flame now for nearly six months. How long would the flames burn before they were snuffed out by reality? He had made a commitment to the Jedi Order. She was an important political figure. How could this ever work?

With an aching in the pit of his stomach, Obi-Wan rolled over on his cot and willed himself to sleep, a frown etched on his face as his final thoughts before dozing off were not pleasant. Perhaps it had been a mistake.

One short month later, Obi-Wan's prediction began to rear its ugly head. He had secretly met the Senator in her apartment once more and was holding her hands tightly as the tears fell from her beautiful brown eyes.

"Six months?"

"Possibly more. The outer rim planet is on the verge of civil war and as a member of the Republic, it's my duty to help them resolve this crisis."

"Your duty."

Obi-Wan did not miss the slight sarcasm he heard in her voice and in his mind's eyes he began to see the flickering flames beginning to die. Another tear fell down her face and he could not help but catch it and wipe it away from her soft, pale cheek. This was hurting her. It wasn't fair. Perhaps this had been a mistake.

"We both knew the consequences, Padmé."

"Yes, I know." But that knowledge did not help the fact that he would be gone from her for such a long period of time. She was selfish. No. Not selfish. Jealous. She was jealous of the Jedi Order, the planet he was going to go save, the whole galaxy!

"When do you leave?"

"In three days."

"Three days!"

Obi-Wan stood up then, unable to bear the pained look on her face. "Padmé…." He closed his eyes, unwilling to watch her as the words tumbled from his lips before he could stop them. "Perhaps this was a mistake. We probably shouldn't see each other any more."

There it was. The moment had finally come. She had expected it, but not so soon. How could she fight it? It was inevitable. But her acceptance of that fact didn't stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks.

Obi-Wan bent down and lightly kissed her lips before leaving her alone in her apartment.

But not truly alone. Dormé had been listening to the entire conversation, her face and mind now set firm with her determination. The time had come. Not only was her intrusion necessary - it was vital, and she only had three days.