AN: Finally! Some ObiDala! Thanks for your patience! Enjoy!


Chapter Seventeen

Obi-Wan checked on his sleeping apprentice once more before he silently slipped out of their shared room in the Theed palace.

Sleep had eluded him and he thought perhaps a stroll through the palace gardens would help ease his mind. Checking with security before proceeding, he was awestruck as he stepped outside and crept along the stone walkway.

It wasn't the rows of moonlit shrubberybursting with fragrant white blossoms or the slender fruit-laden trees in the background that caught his eye. What had captured his attention was the Nubian sky. There appeared to be billions of stars against the black canvas above him. Much different from Coruscant, where the city-planet's towering buildings and active nightlife obscured their view. On missions, he was often too busy to take the time to simply admire the stars' beauty, and he took advantage of the opportunity whenever he could.

Mesmerized by the twinkling display, Obi-Wan literally stumbled into an object obstructing the path and glanced quickly down to a dainty figure draped in orange. His immediate reaction was to believe that one of the handmaidens shared his insomnia, but one look into the dark brown gaze before him, and he found himself bowing.

"Your majesty. I'm so sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going. I hope I haven't disturbed you."

A small smile appeared on the young woman's face as she lifted the hood of the robe away from her head. She glanced at him curiously for a long time before she spoke.

"No formalities out here, if you please." She teased with a smile once more, but the question in her eyes was going unspoken, and Obi-Wan found himself wondering what it was she wanted to know.

"And besides, it's the middle of the night. I'm off duty." She winked slyly at him, catching Obi-Wan once more off guard with her familiarity. They had been through so much together, but had not had the time to talk much. He felt he really did not know her all that well. Not as well as he would have liked to, anyway.

She turned to the side and mostly out of habit, Obi-Wan offered her his arm. He noted she took it readily and not only that, but with both hands. And what was really shocking to the young man was the fact that he didn't mind. In fact, as he gazed quickly down to the small hands gripping his arm, he had to resist the urge to cover them with his own.

Surprising and slightly disturbing.

Definitely something to meditate on later.

The couple began walking along the path at a leisurely pace, taking deep breaths of the fragrant garden air.

"I was speaking with Anakin earlier today." The younger woman spoke up quietly and Obi-Wan was pleased to note that the quality of her voice added to the beauty of their surroundings.

So this is how it begins, he thought. A small seed of friendship that was planted before Anakin was even old enough to realize its implications. A seed that with time would grow into an entity that neither his apprentice nor the Senator could ignore. He recalled Anakin telling him about meeting Padme. The boy had said that she looked like an angel.

Obi-Wan glanced down to her features as a beam of moonlight played with the gathering moisture rising from the surface, creating a halo effect around her face.

He had to agree with the boy. If angels indeed had wings as the ancient myths proclaimed, then he wondered where Padme Amidala was hiding hers.

Obi-Wan focused his attention back to their conversation as the young woman continued speaking.

"He told me that you promised to take him to visit his mother."

"I did." Obi-Wan replied as he directed them toward a slate bench covered in a growth of overgrown vines.

"But I always believed that the Jedi were cut off from their natural families when they moved to the Temple."

"That's true – in most cases." Obi-Wan motioned for Padme to take a seat before joining her, and together they looked back up into the sky.

"But not in Anakin's case?" Padme questioned him.

"Anakin is…special." Obi-Wan admitted with a knowing smile. "He is too old to have been taken away from his mother without any future ill effects. His attachment to her runs too deep, as is natural for most parent/child relationships. I am only doing what I feel is best for the boy."

Obi-Wan continued glancing at the glittering constellations, but Padme's ongoing silence drew his attention downward. When he met her gaze, what he saw there stole his breath away. Her eyes were as dark as the night surrounding them, the twinkling stars reflecting on their surfaces like the moon on a midnight lake. Her grin widened and suddenly her eyes sparkled even more, but not from an outward source.

"Well, I think it's a wonderful idea. I was worried about him at first, but now…" She hesitated, laying a hand upon his arm. "I think you'll be a wonderful master, Obi-Wan."

Still trying to regain his capacity to breathe, Obi-Wan was suddenly thankful he couldn't or the loud gulp that was threatening to escape him would have as Padme leaned forward and brushed a kiss against his cheek.

"Good night." She whispered.

Before he could respond in any way, she had eased up off the bench and made her way back into the palace.

Obi-Wan inhaled a long and deep breath, letting it out slowly through pursed lips.

He definitely had a few things to meditate on later.