THE DEPARTED

Chapter Two

"Anakin, when do you believe you will finally be Knighted?"

Anakin closed his eyes briefly in slight annoyance at Sabe's attention and intense stare. She had been acting like this ever since they left for Naboo and now that they were there, her interest in him only seemed to deepen with each passing minute. He glanced quickly at an equally annoyed Padme and took a deep breath in an effort to conjure some patience.

"Well, Senator…"

"Please, Anakin, call me Sabe."

He smiled weakly and cleared his throat in a valiant effort to stay sane. "Well, Sabe, like I mentioned earlier, I expect to become a Knight as soon as this mission is complete."

Sabe's eyebrows raised in a joyful expression and she grinned brightly. "That's incredible. I mean, you're only what…twenty years old?"

"Twenty-one, actually."

"Well, you're well on your way to becoming one of the youngest Knights ever, right?"

"I guess you could say that. Padme will still be the youngest though."

He looked her way and gave her a genuine smile, which Padme returned gratefully. Sabe, however, witnessed the exchange and gritted her teeth in annoyance.

"You'll be the youngest male Knight then. Even Padme can't take that away from you."

Sabe's plastered grin caused both Anakin and Padme to stare at her in shock and wonder what she could have possibly meant be that. Padme shook her head in disappointment. It seemed as though her friend hadn't changed at all.

"Listen, Sabe, I don't know what you're getting at here. If there's something you need to say to me then please say it."

Sabe only stared back at Padme, almost as if she was shocked that Padme had had the nerve to say that to her.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Padme. I only meant that Anakin will be able to be known for that as well. It's only fair, you know, after all his hard work and dedication."

"So you're saying I haven't worked for my title? That I haven't been dedicated? That I haven't earned it?"

Sabe merely shook her head. "I would never say that, Padme. You know that. Besides, we're friends. I thought you knew better than that."

Padme stood up and began to leave the dining room, but before she left, she turned to face Sabe one more time. "You don't know what it's been like for me. You don't know how hard it was for me to lose Shaak-Ti. I thought you would've known better too."

With that, Padme walked out of the room, leaving Anakin with Sabe. He had watched her leave and could sense that this confrontation with Sabe was harder on Padme than she was letting on. His heart went out to her and he immediately rose to follow her.

"Wait, Anakin, don't leave me here by myself. She'll be fine."

Anakin gazed sternly at Sabe and shook his head. "I know what you were trying to do Sabe and I don't appreciate it. You and Padme are just going to have to find some way to get along because I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Leaving a disheartened Sabe alone at the dinner table, Anakin quickly exited the room to search for Padme. She couldn't have gone far, after all, there were only so many rooms in the Lake Retreat. After searching every room in the Retreat, he began to worry. She was no where to be found and his heart began to pound. Where was she? Was she alright? He closed his eyes and let the Force guide him to her. Once he found her Force signature, he allowed his own to wrap around her in a comforting embrace and sighed with relief when he felt her begin to calm down.

He finally found her sitting on a terrace that looked out over a beautiful, glistening lake. But that wasn't his main concern. Somehow, his feet brought him to her and he did the only thing he could do: he pulled her into his arms and let her cry. He stroked her hair comfortingly and waited until her sobs had subsided before releasing her so he could wipe the tears from her eyes.

He smiled tenderly at her and whispered: "Everything's going to be alright. Don't worry, Padme. Just let me take care of you for awhile."

She nodded and let her head rest against his chest once again. She breathed in deeply and found his scent, which had always comforted her in a way she had never been able to describe.

"You always know what to say to make me feel better. Thank you, Anakin."

"Don't worry about it. That's what I'm here for, right?"

He smiled when he heard her soft laughter in his ear and realized that he had never heard anything so sweet. It was music to his ears and he knew he had to hear more of it. His heart was beating wildly in his chest and he prayed she didn't notice.

Padme sighed softly and found herself wanting to be closer to him, to feel more of his warmth. He made her feel safe and she had never needed anyone to do that for her before. As a Jedi, she was the one who was supposed to be the protector. She wasn't supposed to be the one that needed protecting. But being with Anakin like that made her feel as though she couldn't get enough, that she might always need him to be there for her.

"Anakin, I can't thank you enough for being here right now. You really should be with Sabe."

He laughed lightly. "Are you kidding me? I'm afraid to even be in the same room as her. There's no telling what she'll do to me with those eyes."

Her laughter returned once again and his heart skipped a beat. He almost jumped from surprise at this new feeling. He didn't know how to describe it because he had never felt this before. But then again, there had always been something with Padme. Whenever he saw her, something inside of him screamed her name, begged to be let out but he knew that whatever that was, he couldn't acknowledge it. They were Jedi and even though he wasn't sure what this feeling was, he did know that the Jedi would not approve.

Padme sighed as she realized that they should probably get back to Sabe. They were forgetting their duties and it was time to get back to that. She found herself reluctantly untangling herself from Anakin's arms and smiled at his confusion towards her actions.

"We need to get back, Anakin. We're not doing a very good job so far with Sabe."

He groaned and ran his hand through his hair. "Oh yeah. Sabe. Thanks for reminding me."

"You know, for someone who is so set on becoming Knight after this mission is over, I'd like to think you would be a little more enthusiastic about this."

"I get what you're saying but that doesn't mean I have to like this."

She laughed again and he couldn't help but smile brightly. There it was again.

"Well, think of this way, we have to do our job in order for us to finish it, and the sooner we finish it, the sooner you get to get away from Sabe."

"Good point. Let's go."

Padme's laughter floated into the wind as they walked back together. Anakin almost reached for his hand, but quickly stopped himself when he realized what he was doing. He knew full well that he couldn't continue this way and that it was wrong to have any feelings towards Padme. They were just friends. That was all. No one said being friends was against the Code. But Anakin realized with a heavy heart that what he knew he had always felt for Padme was more complicated than friendship and that it wasn't something one could just wish away. It was a feeling that was there to stay and he painfully admitted to himself that maybe he didn't want this feeling to go away.

For a fleeting moment, he wondered what it might be like if Padme returned his feelings, then quickly shook his head. No…Padme was smarter than that. She knew better and she knew the Code. He knew he was weak in this respect and had never fully understood why the Code insisted on no attachments. He feared he had already broken the Code, perhaps a long time ago, and that now, Padme would always be a scar on his heart for he knew that she would never allow herself to feel what he was feeling.

While Anakin contemplated in silent despair, Padme was also raging a battle within herself for she too had felt it. There was something about Anakin that she couldn't describe, and that made her feel something that she couldn't name. Her feelings had hesitantly taken root and she feared there was no going back now. Although she knew that everything taking place in her mind and in her heart was wrong and against everything she had been taught, she couldn't help it. It had always been there between them, ever since they had met when they were young padawans, some bond had formed between them and she knew it would be next to impossible to sever.

Padme glanced quickly at Anakin and closed her eyes. Then her eyes flew open again in surprise. Anakin felt the same way. Her heart wanted to soar at this realization, but couldn't because of the chains of the Code. She closed her eyes one more time and when they opened, she found new strength within herself to resist and push away any feelings she had towards Anakin because if she didn't, if she surrendered, it would destroy them both.