Gossip

A/n: I hadn't planned to continue this one but then I had to! Enjoy! And Happy Holidays, everyone! :)

Chapter 2

It was very late by the time Satine made it back to her assigned rooms and most of her staff had already turned in for the night. She dismissed her assistant and then she was alone in her quarters. She slowly undressed and brushed out her hair, all the while replaying her conversation with Padme.

She sank onto the couch in the sitting room. Her delegation was scheduled for departure tomorrow afternoon, as soon as the closing remarks were over. They needed to be back on Mandalore in time for the start of the next legislative session, so there was no way she could delay.

"I should get some rest," she said to herself, but didn't move. She activated her commlink. There was one unread message. How had she missed that? She tapped the playback button and a holo sprang to life.

"Duchess," Obi-Wan said, "I hope you are well. I apologize for messaging you so late. I hear you are departing Coruscant tomorrow. If you have time in your schedule, I was hoping you could join me for tea. You remember that little place near the Botanic Gardens? I've been craving their pastries for months." He paused, smiled in a way that, even over the holo, made her think that maybe it was actually her that he'd been missing. "I'll talk to you soon." Then he signed off.

Satine grinned. She took a moment to compose herself and recorded a response. "General Kenobi, it's so good to hear from you again. Tea sounds lovely. I'm sure I can find some time to slip away."

Her words trailed off and her polite smile fell. It was all so perfectly polite. Nothing at all to hint that they were anything but old friends meeting to catch up when they happened to cross paths. She was hiding her feelings so well that she might as well not have them.

She deleted the first attempt and then recorded a second message, voice only. She told him the address for where she was staying and the security code for her door. Nothing else, no formal introduction, no pleasantries. Feeling a new, empowering resolve, she tapped Send.

Then she stared at the commlink wide-eyed. What had she done? She should send a follow up, some sort of explanation, something. But her mind was blank. She checked the little status indicator. Message Received. Did that mean that Obi-Wan had read it or simply that it had been received by this commlink?

Satine put her commlink on the low table and got up to pace around the room. After a several long minutes of that, she checked it again. Nothing. She sighed. What had she been expecting? It was late. He must have sent his message and then gone to sleep. He wouldn't get her reply until morning. Then she could reply, suggest that he come here and then they go to the tea shop together. Perfectly reasonable.

She collapsed back onto the couch and threw an arm over her eyes. Her conversation with Padme, and maybe the high-quality alcohol at the party, had made her imagination run away for a moment there. But nothing was ever going to change.

Satine must have fallen asleep because the next thing she knew, there was the soft chime from the door being unlocked and a low voice calling her name. She moved her arm and blinked against the lights. That voice sounded familiar. Instantly she sat up.

There was Obi-Wan stepping into the room, wearing his brown robe. He held his lightsaber in his hand, ready but not activated. His eyes quickly scanned the room and locked onto her.

"Satine! Are you hurt?!" He walked towards her, his blue eyes radiating concern.

For half a second Satine thought maybe she was dreaming.

"No, I'm fine," she said, then, "Obi-Wan. What are you doing here?"

Now Obi-Wan frowned. "I got your message and came right away." He cocked his head in confusion. "What's going on?"

"Oh, that's right. My message," Satine grimaced.

Before she could explain, he was quickly walking through the bedroom and the kitchen area, checking each exit. Satine moved to intercept him before he could wake her assistant in the adjoining suite.

"Obi, stop," she put her hands on his shoulders, forcing him to focus on her, "Nothing's wrong! Everything is fine. I'm fine."

Obi-Wan blinked, "But why did you only send your address? I assumed you were in trouble!"

"Oh. I'm sorry I alarmed you. I can see now that some context might have been helpful," Satine said with an apologetic smile.

The tension in his stance relaxed and he clipped his lightsaber to his belt. He returned her smile, looking a little bashful as he ran a hand through his hair.

"You really had me worried there, Duchess," he said. Always polite. Always the gentleman.

"Don't do that," Satine said. "You don't have to use my title when we're alone."

Obi-Wan's expression softened. "Satine then." That was better. There was something special about the way the syllables of her name sounded in his accent. "Why did you call me over?"

There was nothing to do but to tell the truth. "I didn't want to wait until tomorrow to see you."

He seemed a little bit surprised at her answer. It was unusually direct. She couldn't help staring at him. It had been months since she's seen him last, and that had only been over holo and a purely professional conversation at that. Now he was standing right in front of her. She was wearing her loose sleeping clothes, no jewelry, no flowers in her hair. No formal event. No impending danger, no political crisis. No clones or Jedi apprentices. This moment was exactly what she'd been longing for.

"Obi," she said, closing the distance between them and throwing her arms around his neck, "I've missed you!"

Obi-Wan always stiffened up at first when she hugged him, so she was expecting that, but this time he yelped and awkwardly turned to the side. Satine stepped back and saw his grimace, quickly suppressed.

"What is it? Are you hurt?" Satine asked.

"It's nothing. A few bruised ribs from our last battle, that's all," Obi-Wan pressed a hand to his side. He smiled and even Satine almost couldn't tell that it was forced. "You caught me off guard, that's all."

Satine frowned, "Padme said that you were fine."

"I am fine!" Obi-Wan removed his robe and draped it over the back of a chair. He probably meant to demonstrate his point but his movements were a little bit stiff. He moved towards the couch and motioned for Satine to join him.

Sitting together, Satine finally started to relax.

"Hold on, what did you say about Padme?" Obi-Wan looked at her.

"I saw Padme earlier tonight. She told me that she heard you were back in the system." Satine reminded herself to breath, forced herself not to shift her eyes away evasively.

"Of course," Obi-Wan sighed. "And did she tell you where she heard that from?"

"I don't know where she heard it. She didn't say," Satine's first instinct was to cover for Padme, but she should have known better than to think she could lie to Obi-Wan. He always seemed like he could see right through her.

"You can relax, Satine," he said, leaned back into the sofa, tilting his head back on the cushion. "There's only one person it could have been. He probably commed her as soon as we exited hyperspace."

Satine took a moment to process that. Obi-Wan was staring off into space. She said, "So…you knew?"

Now he looked at her again, his expression slightly cynical. "Of course I knew. Anakin isn't half as good a liar as he thinks he is. Honestly, I'm shocked that it took this long for someone else to find out."

"And…you approve?" she asked.

"No, of course I don't approve," Obi-Wan crossed his arms, "What he's doing is irresponsible and dangerous."

"So why haven't you said anything?" Satine asked. She knew she shouldn't pry, that she had already violated Padme's trust once, but she was in this far. She needed to know what Obi-Wan was thinking.

Obi-Wan uncrossed his arms, seemed to stare into the distance again, "What could I say? I've said everything a hundred times. I've known about Anakin's feelings for Padme from the start. The kid isn't exactly subtle. But I thought it was just a youthful infatuation. Harmless. I tried to guide him… Eventually I decided that I had to trust him. So I keep quiet and hope he doesn't get himself or anyone else hurt. What else can I do?"

It was rare to see Obi-Wan look so vulnerable. Before she could begin to think of what to say, he said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't lay all this on you."

"Don't be," Satine put a hand on his. "For what it's worth, I'm sure they'll be alright. Padme is smart. She knows how to protect herself. In this profession, it's best to keep your personal life private. To keep your feelings secret, even from your closest friends."

Obi-Wan didn't say anything, but he seemed to relax a little. He must worry a lot about his apprentice, Satine realized. Satine reached out and brushed Obi-Wan's hair back from his face. He didn't move to stop her, so she did it again, leaning her arm against the back of the couch. He'd changed so much since they were teenagers, they both had, but in other ways he was still exactly the same.

"Is that what we had? A harmless youthful infatuation?" she asked, her voice quieter than she wanted.

Obi-Wan met her eyes and the softness in his expression made her stomach flip. He smiled, "Maybe it was." Then he looked serious. "But I meant what I said, before. That I would have left the Jedi Order, if you had said the word."

Satine felt herself pulling back. "Do you have any idea how difficult it is for me, to hear you say that?" Obi-Wan looked pained.

She gathered her strength and plunged forward, "I never would have asked you to leave the Jedi. To leave your whole life behind. And you would never ask me to give up politics. To leave Mandalore. Can't you see that this way of thinking, all or nothing, black or white, that's what makes it all so painful? Can't there be some sort of grey area, some way to balance things, where we aren't constantly torturing ourselves with thoughts about what could have been?"

Satine was out of breath. She hadn't planned to say all that. The words had come together almost on their own, the way all her best speeches did. And she had a good argument. She knew she did.

Obi-Wan was quiet for a long moment then he reached out and took her hand. "What are you suggesting?" he asked.

"I'm only suggesting…" Satine's mind spun. The way he was twining his fingers through hers was very distracting. "I was thinking...only that maybe we don't have to make any big decisions. That we should simply enjoy the time that we have together."

Obi-Wan's shoulder was warm where it was pressed against hers. It was difficult to read his expression. Finally, he spoke again, "It's very late, my dear. I think we should get some rest."

Satine felt a flash of annoyance. This was an important conversation and she would not let him put it off. She opened her mouth to say so but his words belatedly lit up in her mind. My dear. We. Satine felt a smile tugging at her lips.

"Yes, maybe we should do that," she said, slowly standing and with their fingers still intertwined, led him into the bedroom.