THALIA

Thalia didn't leave the senate chambers feeling happy. Of course, she was relieved by the outcome of the vote, but she could only hope that the end would justify the means. She'd seen no other way out. She'd lain in bed all night trying to think of some way to keep her planet safe, but she had kept on coming back to Perxeus.

But it was done now. She hadn't sentenced Perxeus to death and it was only his pride against millions of lives, so there shouldn't be any contest. This was all well and good, but when Thalia stepped out of the chambers and came face-to-face with a very stern looking Obi-Wan, her guilt returned instantly.

"Might I have a word?" He asked, his voice deceptively pleasant.

Thalia nodded to the guards that Palpatine had insisted accompany her at all times and left them standing outside the door of a nearby office as Obi-Wan lead her inside.

It was a windowless room, but he strode over to the far wall and stared at it as if he were looking through the glass to the city beyond. Thalia stopped awkwardly in the middle of the room, deciding to clasp her hands in front of her to stop her fingers fidgeting.

"What were you thinking?" He asked quietly.

Thalia was silent for a moment, surprised by the question. "I'm sorry?"

"What were you thinking?" He asked again, his voice low as he continued to face the wall.

"I was thinking of the millions of lives I had to protect." She replied bluntly. She'd felt awkward before, like a child about to be punished by a teacher at school, but now she could feel anger bubbling inside her. How dare Obi-Wan chastise her for her choices.

"Thalia, you're trading in lives." He said, finally turning around and crossing his arms over his chest. His face wasn't angry, but it was stern.

"Perxeus is one man. I haven't sentenced him to death, he won't be harmed, in fact he'll probably be happier here on Coruscant." Thalia replied heatedly. She realised she was angrier that Obi-Wan clearly wasn't being honest with her. Yes, her actions may not have been befitting of a pacifist, but surely that didn't garner the backlash she was receiving from the Jedi.

"I was out of both options and time. You know that." Thalia couldn't help it. She laughed. "I expected this reaction from the Senators, but not from you."

Obi-Wan had his arms crossed over his chest and he was gripping his biceps trying to keep his composure. Before, he was trying to be diplomatic and gentle in what he wanted to say, but he'd realised that that wasn't getting him anywhere.

"Thalia, I don't want you to take this the wrong way, but you are a proud person. And that's not necessarily a bad thing, but you let it dictate your choices. You made a big spectacle with the hologram and the revelation about Perxeus; you wanted to have your way and be impressive in getting it." Obi-Wan said, the steadiness from his voice gone. She'd clearly offended him when she'd laughed, but after this comment, she didn't really care. Proud?! She was angry, more so because, deep down, she wondered if he was right, and she couldn't stand that she'd had to have been told that by someone she respected. The embarrassment only made her crosser. "There were other options."

"Like what? Getting on my knees and begging?" Thalia sneered, disgusted at herself for being so petty.

"Like asking me to speak with the Chancellor on your behalf or asking me to covertly take a team to Helwater and contain Class Five for you. Because I would have done it, had you asked." He admitted and Thalia felt the colour drain from her face. Of course, he wasn't so upset about what she did, he was upset about how she'd done it. "Your pride has driven your desire to be self-reliant. You need your friends with you, not held at arm's length, especially now. I'm not trying to offend you, but I must speak plainly."

Thalia stood dumbly in the middle of the room. She couldn't deny anything Obi-Wan had said and she knew he didn't say it out of malice. In truth, she had refrained from telling anyone about her plan for fear of them trying to stop her. But she hadn't expected Obi-Wan to declare that he would've moved the sun and moon to help her.

She was proud, or at least she had been. After Obi-Wan's reprimanding she felt like a fool; an ignorant child that had a tantrum when she didn't get her way.

Obi-Wan was looking at her, waiting to see what kind of response she had to his outburst. Thalia could see his anxiety growing by the second as she tried to think of something to say. What could she say? She couldn't defend herself; she shouldn't be angry; she didn't have anything to reassure him.

Instead of saying anything, the only thing she could bring herself to do was to sit down heavily on the edge of the sofa behind her. She rested her hands on her knees and stared at the ground in front of her.

"I know." Thalia said in a small voice, and even she was taken aback by how defeated she sounded.

For a few long moments, neither Jedi nor Queen moved. They stayed in silence as the tension dissipated from the room. Finally, Obi-Wan let his arms drop from where they were crossed over his chest and crossed the floor in three easy strides, tentatively sitting on the edge of the sofa beside Thalia. For another while, they sat there in silence, but after what felt like hours, Obi-Wan sighed and, keeping his gaze locked on the floor in front of him, reached across to place his hand atop hers.

Thalia felt her heart give a little hiccup as his fingers curled around her hand. She stared at their hands before tentatively casting her gaze upward, towards Obi-Wan. As if he had been waiting for her, his eyes snapped to hers immediately and found her gaze instantly. Slowly, she turned her hand until it was facing palm up and spread her fingers so they could intertwine with his. Though he wore gloves, Thalia could swear she could still feel a hint of heat through the leather. His eyes roamed her face while her gaze was steady, but she couldn't help the way her breath caught when his eyes dropped down, just for a moment, to focus on her lips. When he raised them again, he met her eyes for a long moment.

"You should prepare for Perxeus' arrival." He said, barely audible as if not wanting to break the silence.

Thalia didn't trust herself to speak, so she simply nodded. Still, neither of them moved.

Obi-Wan's mentioning of Perxeus had, however, brought her back to reality, and finally she let her eyes drop down to the space between them. She smiled at the air before rising to her feet, letting her hand fall away from Obi-Wan's grasp.

As she walked back into the corridor and was joined by her guards, her heart was still racing. After the events of the past few days, this had felt like a shock to her system.

. . .

As the wind whipped against his long, brown robes, Obi-Wan drew his arms tighter around his torso, trying to keep the material in check. Standing on the Senate Chamber's landing platform left the group completely exposed to every blast of wind generated from the passing traffic. He stood beside Master Windu and Master Yoda as the three Jedi watched from a respectful distance, the exchange that was about to take place. Mas Amedda, Chancellor Palpatine and Thalia stood about thirty meters ahead of them, watching the night sky as they waited to see the familiar bronze glint of a Troskan ship. Aboard that ship would be the former advisor, to the now, Queen of Troska, Perxeus Amany.

As another gust of wind lashed across the platform, Thalia's velvet cloak whipped around her so violently that Obi-Wan was surprised it didn't knock her legs out from under her. She turned her head into the wind, towards Palpatine and nodded at something he must have said to her. She then looked over her shoulder at the three Jedi before turning her face back to the Coruscant skyline.

They hadn't spoken since their confrontation in the office earlier that day. Obi-Wan hadn't been sure how his appraisal would have gone down with the Queen, but he knew if anyone could take what he'd said, it would be Thalia. That still didn't make saying it any easier. But she seemed to have taken it well. At least, as far as he knew, she'd taken it well.

"Here they come." Master Windu said beside him, pulling Obi-Wan from his train of thoughts, which were more often than not, occupied by the Queen of Troska. Obi-Wan added it to the list of his concerns.

As one, the group on the platform turned their heads to the North and it wasn't long before they spotted the sleek, bronze cruiser gliding towards the platform. The ship turned in an arc before gracefully descending to the platform.

Everyone seemed to be holding their breath as the loading ramp hissed open and amongst the steam, two Troskan guards marched onto the landing platform. Behind them came Perxeus. He'd been an old man when Obi-Wan had first met him, but after fifteen years and an extended stay in prison, he looked prehistoric. His face was gaunt, and his skin seemed to cling to every dip and crevice of his skull for dear life. He walked with a stoop, yet still managed to radiate pride and when he set his eyes on Thalia they held malice as deep as his year were numerous.

Though the wind was strong, Obi-Wan could just make out what was said between the parties.

"Perxeus Amany?" Mas Amedda confirmed.

"Why am I here?" Perxeus asked in reply, his voice gravely like it hadn't been used in years. His voice wasn't the only thing that had Obi-Wan's attention. The old man, though speaking with Mas Amedda, was eyeing the Chancellor with something that looked like a mix of fear, interest and confusion.

"You're being moving to a prison here on Coruscant as part of a deal the Republic has struck with Troska." Palpatine replied. Perxeus' pride seemed to have drained from him as he looked between Thalia and the Chancellor in bewilderment.

"I sense something odd about him." Windu said, frowning slightly at the old man.

"Hard to read, the force is. Clouded they are." Yoda added and Obi-Wan brought up a hand to run over his beard. Something was definitely off.

"You may be the only person alive who knows the identity of the Separatist leader." Palpatine was saying to the man.

"What?" Perxeus seemed genuinely shocked by the claim. "But…" he began, looking pleadingly at Thalia.

"Come, let's get out of this wind, your highness." Palpatine said over the top of the advisor and turned to walk back towards the senate building.

Two things then happened in very quick succession. First, Perxeus reached out and grabbed a hold of Thalia's arm, pulling her towards him as if he desperately wanted to tell her something. Second, a high-pitched whirring noise met their ears. It sounded like a speeder. Out of the corner of his eye, Obi-Wan saw a bike fly around the side of the senate building. It flew low and fast, heading straight for the landing platform. The group in front of the Jedi turned in unison, just in time to see the bike shoot over the top of the Troskan ship. Three small, dark objects dropped from the rider's hand and clattered onto the platform. Grenades.

The three Jedi didn't have time to think. In unison, they threw out their arms. As the blast threw blinding light in their faces, Master Yoda did his best to contain the explosion to the end of the platform while Obi-Wan and Master Windu used the force to pull the group out of harm's way. While Mas Amedda and Chancellor Palpatine slid gracefully across the platform to safety, Obi-Wan, in his hurry, had underestimated the distance between himself and Thalia and soon discovered that he hadn't needed to wrench her towards him so ferociously.

She slammed into his chest with such force that it knocked him backwards and the pair sprawled onto the ground in a jumble of limbs and robes. Slightly dazed, Obi-Wan looked up at the sky above him, trying to get his bearings. His arms were wrapped tightly around Thalia, his hands tangled in her cloak. She tried to push herself off him, but the mass of material was proving to be a hindrance.

"Are you alright?" He asked as he finally unwound his arms from the hood of her cloak.

She didn't reply as she struggled to her hands and knees. Obi-Wan reached up and braced a hand on her shoulder, trying to get a look at her face. When he caught her eye, she simply nodded.

"Winded." She managed in a strangled voice. She inched back to sit on her heels, her hands braced on the ground in front of her as Obi-Wan sat up. Thalia was trying to take slow, deep breaths while simultaneously trying not to be thrown sideways by the gusting wind. He glanced past her to see Master Windu helping Chancellor Palpatine to his feet.

"Oh, that's not good." Obi-Wan muttered to himself as he looked past the recovering group.

"What?" Thalia wheezed and raised her head to follow his gaze over her shoulder.

Lying in a motionless heap on the ground was the shrivelled body of Perxeus and his two guards. Shakily, Thalia managed to push herself to her feet and staggered towards the scene of destruction. Her steps faltered when she got close enough to see what remained of the Troskans. They were badly burned, and the wind carried the smoking smell of burnt flesh. Thalia quickly brought her hand to her mouth and turned away.

"Is everyone alright?" Chancellor Palpatine asked, his voice wobbling slightly. He didn't wait for a reply. "Well, I think we'd all better get off this platform."

. . .

The moment a shaft of light spread across the corridor floor, indicating the opening of a door, Obi-Wan was on his feet. As someone left the Chancellor's office, their shadow stepped into the light and a moment later, Thalia appeared in the doorway, her cloak neatly folded over her arms.

"Well?" Obi-Wan couldn't help but ask and the corner of Thalia's mouth quirked upwards in a tired smile.

"All is well. The Chancellor very graciously upheld his end of the deal. While he didn't exactly get what he'd hoped for, he said I'd still upheld my end of the bargain, so the Republic will let Troska deal with Class Five ourselves." Thalia answered, and anticipating his next question continued. "Authorities are looking at the security footage of the incident, but they doubt they'll be able to identify the driver."

Obi-Wan bobbed his head in understanding before gesturing them to walk down the corridor and out of ear shot of the Chancellor's office.

"Perxeus seemed…odd." He said quietly. "Do you know what was wrong with him?"

Thalia cast a wary look over her shoulder to make sure there was enough distance between them and the office. She stopped walking and took a step closer to Obi-Wan.

"It was something about the Chancellor. Perxeus was afraid of him, but as far as I know they've never met." She whispered, while keeping her gaze fixed on the Jedi. "He seemed about to tell me something when he grabbed my arm, but he never got the chance." She finished, her eyes dropping to Obi-Wan's shoulder.

"I think it's clear that this attack wasn't a coincidence." He said, watching her eyes lift back up to his. "Someone very powerful doesn't want their identity known. How we proceed in this war is more important than ever."