Chapter 3

The rays of the morning sun burned away all traces of storm clouds shortly after dawn. Padmé woke to its warm light on her face and a refreshing rain scented breeze.

Somehow she knew, before even opening her eyes, that Anakin's place beside her was empty. Sitting up, she quickly scanned the room. The panic clutching her throat eased a little as she spotted the familiar dark cloak hanging on the door next to her own. As she climbed out of bed, she glanced toward the terrace. There he was, in his usual morning meditation spot, facing the distant horizon. Suddenly breathing was easier.

Pulling her silken robe around her she padded to the open door. Loathe to break her husband's concentration, she leaned against the wood frame. This need to center himself before beginning each day was something she understood. In fact, she often found herself wishing for an affinity to the Force so she could draw the same comfort and resolve from it that Anakin found. She envied him the additional source of strength, especially this morning as they once again faced separation.

Knowing Anakin would sense her anxiety she took a deep, calming breath and tried to marshal her chaotic emotions. Better to spend this last hour or so basking in his presence than waste it dreading his inevitable departure.

She'd much rather think about the vision he made as morning light bathed him in its hazy golden glow. The linen undertunic and pants clinging to his still-damp skin made it obvious he'd recently come from the 'fresher. It also clearly outlined the changes she had already noticed in his body. He had always been tall and well formed, but over the past year all traces of lankiness had been erased from his form. The promise of male beauty evident in his youth had been fulfilled in the added breadth of his shoulders, the sinewy strength in his arms and thighs and, yes, he'd grown taller too. As a man, Anakin Skywalker was breathtaking – a gilded vision of power and intensity. She stored the memory away for the long, lonely months ahead.

She noticed his hair was still wet too, which brought to mind a conversation they had shared the day before. In the course of teasing him about how long his hair had grown, he had replied that the war didn't leave much time for haircuts. The traditional padawan braid and the ponytail in back were still there, but easily lost in the over-long burnished waves that brushed his collar.

It was a simple thing to picture him without the telltale signs of his apprentice bond. She smiled at a mental image of Anakin in the formal robes of Knighthood, his wavy locks falling past his shoulders, streaked with gold courtesy of the suns of a hundred different systems. Yes, he would make a beautiful Jedi Knight.

She gave a small sigh, hoping the honor would not be far off. Her husband was not the most patient of men. As she'd done many times before, she prayed Anakin's suspicions were wrong, that Obi-Wan wasn't deliberately holding him back. Of all the things in the world that could hurt Ani, the idea that Obi-Wan lacked faith in him would top the list.

"Good morning." Anakin's voice wrapped around her like a hug. Like a good, strong hug. She could actually feel the pressure, like an invisible embrace.

"That's a neat trick, Jedi." Padmé replied, "but you'll have to settle for the real kind from me." She moved to stand beside him, arms winding tightly around his waist. He dropped his own arm over her shoulders and gave her an answering squeeze.

"Something besides my leaving is troubling you." The statement seemed more of a question. Sky-blue eyes opened to look down at her for the first time since she'd come out onto the porch.

It was tempting to deny her unrest and simplify their remaining time together, but Padmé found she couldn't lie to him. "I was just thinking what a beautiful Jedi you will make."

"And you find that thought…disturbing?" Anakin's voice deepened in mock seriousness, but his eyes sparkled with amusement.

She started to deny the obvious before realizing that he was teasing her. "Well, yes, but not the way you mean." The corners of her mouth tilted upward, but even the light-hearted banter couldn't erase the worry from her eyes.

Anakin continued to probe, this time serious. "In what way then?"

"I wonder when Obi-Wan will let you face the trials." She gazed out over the lake, but her stare was blank, as if she hoped a glimpse of the future might be found just beyond the simple beauty of the sunrise.

It was Anakin's turn to sigh. "I've given up hoping it will be soon. With the war going on the trials seem to have been put on hold for everyone. There have been a few knights made on the battlefield, but just between you and me, I think it has more to do with how many Jedi are being killed in action than whether or not a padawan is ready. It hasn't been a very successful tactic so far. Most of the new knights wind up dead."

She tilted her face up to his, her expression a study in conflicting emotions. She was sure no one deserved elevation as much as Anakin, but that didn't keep her from being grateful he hadn't received the accolade under similar circumstances.

"Don't worry, Padmé. This war can't last forever. I've stopped obsessing about Obi-Wan holding me back and you should too. The point is moot. As soon as there is a reasonable break in the fighting I intend to seek the Council's consent to face my trials whether Obi-Wan gives permission or not."

"Is that allowed?" Her amber-brown eyes sought his.

"The Jedi are mired in their traditions, but I've read about exceptions in some of the old texts. It wouldn't be the first time the Council has disregarded Obi-Wan where I'm concerned, so it's a possibility I can't leave unexplored."

"And Obi-Wan?" she asked. "How will he react?"

Anakin exhaled thoughtfully and looked back out to the horizon. "I think it might hurt his pride, but I don't think he'll fight me on this. To say our relationship has been strained over the past year would be the height of understatement." Lines of concentration between his brows told Padmé he was wrestling the urge to say more. The impulse to be open with her must have won because he continued. "If the argument we had before I left Coruscant is any indication, I think he is as ready to be done with our union as I am. Not that it matters. I'm more certain than ever that I will be a Knight. It's just a matter of when."

Padmé studied him intently, seeing he had indeed accepted this as truth. How different was the man before her from the reckless youth she'd married. He was still passionate, but far more centered; more set on following a path of his own making. She couldn't shake the feeling he still wasn't telling her everything, but had no desire to probe further. Instead, she decided to trust that it would all would work out one way or another. There were things one could control in life, and then there was Anakin…

"You've changed so much in the past year." She whispered, leaning her forehead on his chest. The thin linen of his Jedi undertunic was soft against her skin, but the flesh and blood beneath was solid and warm. Loving Anakin as a young man had been difficult. His brash unpredictability had been so far removed from anything she'd known before. This new Ani was more confident, purposeful, mature and far easier to love.

"The Chancellor reminds me often about the virtues of patience. I guess some of it was bound to soak in."

Anakin's words troubled her and it took a moment for her to realize why. Palpatine. For years she had trusted him implicitly. Lately, however, it had been a different story. Bail Organa was convinced he wasn't being forthcoming with his advisors or with the Senate. Still, he'd done so much for them… He was, without a doubt, one of Anakin's most trusted confidantes. Her husband admired him so much. Best to keep her suspicions to herself for now, until there was reason to share them.

Suddenly a loud buzz from inside the villa broke the peaceful silence. Someone was at the door. Without pause it sounded again, this time more insistently.

Anakin's eyes met Padmé's. An interruption could only mean one thing - their idyll was over. Nobody knew they were here. Nobody except…

"M'lady! M'lady please!" Dormé's voice called to them from the corridor. Her distress was evident, even through the heavy wooden door.

Padmé went inside to disengage the lock, her husband following close on her heels. Seconds later the frantic handmaiden, clad in dirty Naboo street clothes, darted into the room. She rushed to Padmé's side.

"Senator! You must hurry and get dressed! We've got to leave this place!" There was no mistaking Dormé's urgency. A fine sheen of perspiration covered her face and she struggled for breath. To the couple in the room she appeared to have run non-stop from Theed. "Everything's been destroyed! There's no time. We have to go now!"

Anakin slid an arm around the girl's shoulders, pulling her towards a nearby chair. "Dormé, slow down! You aren't making any sense. Take a deep breath and tell us what's going on." He tried to keep his tone soothing and firm, hoping to project an aura of calm for the obviously distraught woman.

Dormé did as he asked before trying to continue. "Master Anakin, the palace has been attacked! We have to find a safe place for Padmé!" It was a measure of her anxiety that she called them both familiar. No matter how close she and Padmé had become over the years, Dormé had always remained a stickler for formality.

Padmé stepped between her husband and her friend, reminding them that she was, in fact, present to decide her own fate. She spoke calmly and deliberately. "Dormé, please, I'm not going anywhere until I know everything."

"M'lady, Theed has been invaded! The Palace has been overtaken by Trade Federation troops and bombs have all-but destroyed the city." She paused for breath. "Their fleet exited hyperspace just outside the atmosphere and immediately overrode our security systems. Nobody saw them coming! Even the Royal Guard was taken totally by surprise."

Not difficult, Padmé thought. Naboo didn't have a state of the art surveillance system. As well, the Royal Guard was their only active military. Each soldier was little more than an enlisted volunteer. Granted, they were well trained and prepared to protect the monarchy with their lives, but their numbers were few: only several hundred ground forces and two small fighter squadrons. They would be ill prepared to deal with an all-out attack and wouldn't be able to hold off invaders for long. In fact, in Padmé's opinion, ordering them to try would be foolish waste of their lives.

"What is the situation at the palace?" She was afraid to ask, but she had to know.

"The structure itself is intact, but the main hangar bay took a direct hit. When I managed to escape through the main bay itself, I saw intact fighters. I doubt we could get them in the air, though. The ships themselves are buried in debris and STAPs are patrolling everywhere firing at anything that moves. I barely escaped with my life." Anakin's eyes met Padmé's as the handmaiden continued her story. "I took the old path down the cliff face to the secret bunker and found the Governor hiding there, along with a few other members of the Royal Council. They told me that Federation ground forces –some half dozen Multi-Troop Transports, and a full complement of fifty Armored Assault Tanks – are even now heading for the outlying settlements and the Gungan cities."

Padmé's face drained of all color. Theed? The palace? Otoh Gunga? Fifty tanks and over 600 droid foot soldiers meant the loss of life would be staggering! Perhaps it already had been. But there was more. She could tell Dormé was still holding something back.

"What aren't you telling me?" She prompted insistently.

Dormé cast her gaze to the floor.

"Dormé!"

"I'm so sorry, m'lady. Since the first aerial assault there has been no word on the Queen's whereabouts. I've been able to learn nothing of her fate. The Governor says he fears the worst, that she may be dead." Her friend raised anguished liquid-brown eyes.

"And the Royal Guard? The Queen's handmaidens?" Padmé couldn't keep the dread from her voice.

"I'm told many gave their lives to protect Her Majesty during the invasion. Nobody knows how many or whom." The words rang with chilling finality. Padmé knew what their utterance had cost her friend. Not only was Dormé's husband a member of the guard, but her sister, Noalé, had recently followed their family's tradition and entered the personal service of Queen Jamillia. This news meant both were unaccounted for.

Anakin saw that Padmé needed a minute to collect her thoughts and remained silent. Truth be told, he could use a few moments to do the same. Why hadn't he felt something through the Force? True, he'd been preoccupied, but being on the same world as an attack of this magnitude and feeling nothing was unthinkable.

"I have to go to Theed." His wife's words were quietly uttered, but there was cold resolve in them that spoke volumes.

His chest tightened and an objection sprang to his lips. "No! They'll be looking for political targets! That means you'll be on their list. Padmé, the Trade Federation forces don't take prisoners!"

His words fell on deaf ears.

"Anakin, we are all sworn to serve the Queen first and foremost. She trusts me to do what is right. Besides, I know that palace better than anyone. If there is a way to get in and search, I can find it." He started to object again, but her hand on his arm gave him pause. "I'm sorry, but I have to do this!" She stood and started for the bedroom.

Anakin met Dormé's pleading gaze. Tears cut silver tracks down her cheeks. "Please, m'lord, you can't let her go!"

"Tell me a power on this world or any other that could stop her." He set his lips in a grim line. "That doesn't mean I can't go with her."

He gave the handmaiden a small smile that wasn't very reassuring, before disappearing after Padmé.

Anakin entered the bedchamber as Padmé was twisting her dark hair into a secure knot at the nape of her neck. She watched his reflection in the dresser mirror.

"I'm going with you." His words came as no surprise to her.

"I know. My Jedi bodyguard." Ironic, after all they'd been through, that they were back to these old, familiar roles. She didn't even try to curb the amusement in her voice. Any reason to smile, even a fleeting, melancholy one, was a welcome thing. She suspected the next few hours would bring only sorrow.

Anakin walked up behind his wife, squeezing her shoulders in a gesture of support before crouching to meet her eyes in the mirror's polished surface. "You should be prepared. There won't be much left of the Palace – or the city, for that matter – when the battle droids and AATs finish with it."

She saw the concern in his ice blue eyes. Apprehension and something more. It was frighteningly familiar. She'd seen that same combination, fear and resolve, on his face as he left the Tatooine homestead to search for his mother. The same unyielding determination as when he had promised, at her graveside, never to fail again.

"Is there nothing I can say to keep you from going?" His words were carefully neutral, but his eyes pleaded with hers.

"Anakin, I love you, but this is my home. If I don't go it will be like turning my back on Naboo, giving up without a fight! I can't do that." She felt unwelcome tears fill her eyes, and compensated for the obvious vulnerability by squaring her shoulders.

She could tell he was wrestling against the urge to say more. Evidently he decided there was no point. His lips thinned and his expression became shuttered.

"I had to ask." He rose and gently kissed the crown of her head before turning to begin wrapping his multi-layered Jedi tunic.

Padmé rose from the dresser, relieved that there would be no argument. She finished fastening her black flight suit and crossed to the stand holding her open travel case. Reaching in, she pulled out a leather gunbelt and cinched it around her waist. The seldom-used leather creaked as she bent back over the valise. A small but lethal looking silver blaster came out next. She checked the gauge at the side of the weapon to be sure it was fully charged, then settled it into the holster on her thigh. Every motion was purposeful and efficient, a direct contrast to the emotions roiling through her.

Among the chaos of thoughts in her head, one truth was very clear. An hour ago she would have said she couldn't love Anakin more. Now she knew otherwise. Those four last words contained a wealth of understanding that surpassed even the most flowery promises or impassioned pleas. They had melted her heart. He didn't know it, but he'd just given her a priceless gift. He had chosen to honor her feelings and her commitment, despite his own well-justified misgivings.

She knew without a doubt that he would stand by her and make this mission his own. For the first time since Dormé's arrival she felt a glimmer of hope.

They finished dressing in silence and returned to the sitting room a short time later. It was obvious that Dormé had used the time alone to compose herself. She looked up as they entered.

"M'lady, you know the Separatists will be searching for you."

"I know. That's why Anakin is going with me. You will need to lead them away from the palace." Padmé's tone was firm.

Dormé looked set to argue. "M'lady, my own safety isn't an issue here, but I can't protect you if I'm not with you." Protecting her charge was the task uppermost in her mind. To her, it made no sense for them to split up. It was true they all served the Queen, but Dormé's pledge was to protect Padmé at all costs; if need be, to give her life in the effort. There was another fact to consider, as well. If the worst came to pass and Her Majesty was killed it would fall to Amidala, as the previous Queen, to rule in her place until a new monarch could be elected.

"I'm sorry Dormé. I know my responsibilities, but I have to go where I'm needed most." Clearly Padmé's mind was made up and she wouldn't be swayed. "Anakin could go alone, but he's a stranger to the Palace. I know the hiding places and the exits. That makes me our best chance of getting in and finding the Queen, or anyone else who might still be alive." She tried to give her friend a reassuring smile. "I'm sure the invaders know I'm here on Naboo. I imagine they're scouring every inch of the palace for me as we speak. The best thing you can do is buy time for anyone still in hiding, and for us, by drawing security patrols away. Dormé, you are the only one who can do this. I'm relying on you."

Although every fiber of her being wanted to protest, Dormé's years of training and ever-present loyalty reasserted itself in the face of duty. It was true that anyone still hiding in the castle stood a better chance if the troops searching the grounds were lured away.

"Yes, m'lady, you know you can count on me." She looked down at her pants and smock, a wry expression on her face. The garments were torn and dirty from climbing down the cliff face. "I think perhaps a change of clothing is in order. Something a bit more senatorial." She tried her best to smile at Padmé. Understandably, the expression still appeared forced.

Padmé responded in kind, glad to have her friend back on the team. "Yes, I completely agree."

Dormé turned toward the bedroom, only to be halted as Padmé spoke again. "And, Dormé... there's an extra blaster in the upper closet compartment." The handmaiden nodded before resuming her course.