Greetings again, friends. I present to you chapter 5.

I own Kamuro and Ayame. Everything else belongs to their respective owners.

As they rode the lift to Senator Amidala's penthouse apartment, Anakin was vibrating with energy.

"You seem a little on edge," Obi-Wan commented. Anakin looked up from straightening his tunic, stopped his grooming, and looked at the door.

"Not at all," he said, trying to keep calm.

"I haven't felt you this tense since we fell into that nest of Gundarks," Obi-Wan mused, making Ayame look at him with surprise.

"You never told me about that," she said. Obi-Wan looked at his wife, realizing that he was in trouble.

"You fell into that nightmare, Master. And I rescued you, remember?" Anakin said. He glanced at Ayame, giving her a reassuring look. Ayame was still glaring at Obi-Wan, even as he laughed at his apprentice's claim. Ayame had the oddest feeling that it was true, but she gave her husband one final look that said that they needed to have a talk later. Obi-Wan gave a small sigh, knowing that he was in for it when they were alone. Glancing back at Anakin, he noticed that his Padawan's face was shining with sweat.

"You're sweating. Relax. Take a deep breath," he said, trying to get Anakin to calm down.

"I haven't seen her in 10 years, Master," Anakin replied. Ayame looked at her own Padawan, and caught him in the middle of grooming himself. Kamuro froze for a minute, wilting slightly under his Master's gaze. Ayame merely chuckled a bit and faced the door again. Kamuro finished smoothing down his fur, and relaxed.

The lift finally slowed to a stop at the top floor. As the doors slid open, Ayame, Obi-Wan, and Anakin heard a familiar voice.

"Obi? OBI! Meesa so smilen to seein yousa!" Jar Jar Binks, the gangly orange Gungan came bounding forward and started shaking Obi-Wan's hand enthusiastically. As opposed to the native clothes that he wore when they last saw each other, Jar Jar was dressed in Senate robes of dark red and gold. For the gangly amphibian that he was, he looked strangely dignified.

"Good to see you again, Jar Jar," Obi-Wan replied with a laugh. Jar Jar then saw Ayame, and got even more excited.

"Ayme! Yousa here too!" Jar Jar exclaimed, running over and giving her a big hug. Ayame let out a surprised laugh.

"It's good to see you too, Jar Jar," she said. Jar Jar looked behind Ayame and saw Kamuro. Ayame noticed that as Jar Jar let go, he took a more dignified stance.

"Dissen be your Padawan?" he asked.

"Yes, he is. Kamuro Dayspirit, this is Representative Jar Jar Binks of Naboo," Ayame said, making the introductions. Jar Jar bowed to Kamuro, who bowed back. Finally, Jar Jar turned to Anakin.

"Dissen is...Ani? Itty Ani?" Jar Jar said, his already bulging eyes getting even bigger. "ANI!" He leaped to Anakin and gave him the biggest hug of all, actually picking the young Padawan up and spinning him around.

"Hi Jar Jar," Anakin managed to get out, as Jar Jar was squeezing him rather tightly. Two seconds later, Jar Jar seemed to remember himself. He let go of Anakin, straightened his robes, and cleared his throat.

"Weesa glad to be seein you, Master Jedis," Jar Jar said, doing his best to keep his tone appropriate for a member of the Senate. "Senator Padmé bein expecting yousa. Come dis way." The four Jedi followed Jar Jar into the main room of the apartment, where Padmé was waiting. "Senator Padmé! Meesa palos here. Lookie lookie Senator, deesa Jedi arriven," Jar Jar said. Padmé walked over from the balcony to greet her guests. Obi-Wan, Ayame, and Kamuro bowed, but Anakin did not. His eyes were glued on Padmé.

"It's a great pleasure to see you again, Milady," Obi-Wan said.

"It's been far too long, Master Kenobi," Padmé replied. Her eyes then fell to the tall young man behind her, and her face became a picture of pleasant shock. "Ani?! My goodness, you've grown!"

"So have you," Anakin said. "Grown more beautiful, I mean...well...for a Senator, I mean." Ayame watched as Anakin went from being the star Padawan at the Academy to a bumbling, awkward teenager.

"Ani, you'll always be that little boy I knew on Tatooine," Padmé said with a smile. Anakin blushed and every adult in the room smiled. She then turned to Ayame and Kamuro. "I'm so glad you could accept my invitation, Master...oh," Padmé said, pausing because she realized that addressing Ayame by her last name would cause confusion, especially because traditionally, Jedi were not allowed to marry. Ayame gave a small laugh and smiled.

"Master Ayame is fine, My Lady," she said. Padmé smiled with relief. "And we're very glad that you invited us. Senator, may I present my Padawan, Kamuro Dayspirit. Kamuro, this is Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo." Kamuro bowed to the Senator, who curtseyed back.

"It's a pleasure, Kamuro," Padmé said.

"The pleasure is all mine, My Lady," Kamuro replied. As everyone moved to sit down, Obi-Wan got down to business.

"I can assure you that our presence here will be invisible, My Lady," he began. A tall guard with dark curly hair, tan skin, and an eye patch stepped forward.

"I'm Captain Typho of her majesty's security force. Queen Jamilla has asked me to protect the Senator as well. I'm glad you're here, Master Jedi. The situation is more serious than the Senator will admit," he said.

"I don't need more security, I need answers," Padmé said. "I want to know who's trying to kill me."

"We're here to protect you, Senator. Not start an investigation," Obi-Wan said, his expression serious.

"We will find out who's trying to kill you, Padmé," Anakin said suddenly. "I promise." Ayame looked at Anakin, who seemed to realize that he had just made a mistake.

"We will not exceed our mandate, my young Padawan learner," Obi-Wan chided Anakin.

"I meant in the interest of protecting her, Master, of course," Anakin responded, trying to save face.

"We will not go through this exercise again, Anakin," Obi-Wan said. "And you will pay attention to my lead." Ayame thought it would end there, but she felt Anakin's anger flare up a bit.

"Why?" he challenged.

"What?!" Obi-Wan asked, shocked at both the question and the fact that Anakin was asking this in the present company. All eyes rested on the Master and Padawan. Ayame held her breath. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kamuro tense up. His tail was flicking back and forth slightly. Now is not the time or place, you two, she thought.

"Why else do you think we were assigned to her, if not to find the killer?" Anakin continued. "Protection is a job for local security, not Jedi." Now, he was starting to sound arrogant. "It's overkill, Master. Investigation is implied in our mandate."

"We will do exactly as the Council has instructed," Obi-Wan said, his voice calm and definitive, ending the argument. He then leaned in towards Anakin slightly and added, "and you will learn your place, young one." Anakin got the message, hanging his head slightly and looking down. Ayame sighed, relieved that it didn't escalate. She made a mental note to talk with Anakin later, alone. After a very tense moment, Padmé broke the silence.

"Perhaps with your presence, the mysteries surrounding this threat will be revealed," she said. She then turned her attention back to Ayame. "In the mean time, we need to celebrate." They all joined her in the dining room for a wonderful dinner and a small party for Obi-Wan and Ayame. They recounted some of their adventures for everyone, and a relaxed atmosphere settled around everyone before Padmé decided to go to bed. As she walked out, Ayame pulled Obi-Wan aside.

"I can't believe he said that to me," Obi-Wan said immediately. Ayame sighed, knowing that it would not have left his mind so easily. "And in front of the Senator."

"And I can't believe you continued to reprimand him in front of her," Ayame replied. "You talk about knowing your place, when you need to learn it just as much as he does." Obi-Wan frowned.

"You're not always right about the boy, Ayame," he said.

"And neither are you, Obi-Wan," she retorted, keeping her voice low. She then sighed, composed herself, and met his gaze again. "Obi-Wan, he has been smitten with her ever since he was a boy. It should come as no surprise that he would be enthusiastic about making sure that she's safe. Don't completely destroy that enthusiasm. Temper it instead." Obi-Wan sighed, realizing that she was right. He looked back at his wife, smiled, and caressed the side of her face.

"I suppose you're right," he said. "Alright, I'll go with the Captain." With a grin, Ayame nuzzled his hand and sent him on his way. As he went to talk with Captain Typho, Ayame sent Kamuro with him and pulled Anakin aside.

"Anakin, what were you thinking?" she asked, careful to keep her tone even and not sound like she was scolding him. "I understand that you want to help Padmé, but there is a limit to what you and Obi-Wan are allowed to do. In this case, protection is all that you are to do, and that is all you will do." Anakin looked at her, ready to say something. However, Ayame gave him a look that she had used on both him and Kamuro multiple times when they were doing something wrong, and the retort seemed to vanish from his thoughts.

"Yes, Master Ayame," he muttered, hanging his head. Ayame grinned slightly, placed two fingers under his chin, and gently lifted his face so that he was looking at her.

"I am glad that you're so enthusiastic about protecting her," she added softly. "Let's focus on one thing at a time. If you do find something that leads to the killer, share it with Obi-Wan and security. You need to work with people, not independent of them. What is our first duty as Jedi?"

"To protect the Republic," Anakin answered.

"Exactly. Protection comes first," Ayame said. "You need to be more aware of your thoughts, Ani. Focus your energies on the task at hand for now. I'm going to say the same thing that Qui-Gon said to Obi-Wan and me during the Naboo blockade: Be mindful of the living Force, but not at the expense of the moment." Anakin nodded, and a sad look passed over his face. Ayame read it and nodded. "I miss him, too."

"I wish he were here right now," Anakin said. "I sometimes wish that he had trained me before Master Obi-Wan." Realizing what he said, he started stuttering, "But, not that Master Obi-Wan isn't a good teacher, I just..."

"Anakin, it's okay," Ayame said. "Qui-Gon was your first teacher, and he was the one who helped you escape slavery and got you to the Temple. You still learned something from him. If you stop and listen for a moment, you may hear him reaching out to you." At that moment, Kamuro came back upstairs.

"Master Obi-Wan is on his way back. He wanted to make sure that the Captain had enough people downstairs," he said. Ayame nodded.

"We should go. I don't distract you," Ayame said to Anakin. "Think on what I've said, Ani." Anakin nodded, and bowed.

"Have a good night, Master Ayame," he said. Ayame smiled kindly.

"Good night, Anakin. Stay safe," she replied, bowing in return. As she and Kamuro returned to the lift, Obi-Wan was walking out of it.

"Going home?" he asked. Ayame nodded, and Obi-Wan held the lift for them. As she passed him, she stopped and gave him a kiss.

"Be safe," she whispered.

"I will," he answered.

"Good night, Master Obi-Wan," Kamuro said, bowing as they left.

"Good night, Kamuro. Sleep well," Obi-Wan replied. As he watched them leave, a small part of him wanted Ayame to stay. He hadn't seen her in a few months and he wanted to spend more time with her. We agreed, remember? a small voice in his head – a voice that often sounded like Ayame – said. He sighed and returned to his apprentice for what would be, hopefully, a very quiet night.