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Chapter Eighteen

"Love is Not a Supernova"

Padmé was not surprised to find Dormé huddled on her bed holding tightly onto a pillow. She was surprised, however, to discover her young assistant had been crying, although was trying her best to hide it.

"Are you all right?" Padmé asked her. The young woman was as tough as they came, but only on the outside. Inside, the Senator knew her assistant was tender-hearted and considerably uncertain when it came to matters of the heart.

"I can't stand him! He's such an idiot!"

Padmé also realized her friend had a tendency to allow her emotions to control her tongue, and in moments of distress, often said things she didn't mean. She just hoped Anakin realized that as well.

"Don't say such things," she consoled the young woman, seating herself next to Dormé on the bed and patting her back in a gentle, rhythmic pattern.

"I'm serious! That's why I dumped him! I never want to see his stupid face again!" Fresh tears rolled down the young woman's cheeks before she dramatically threw herself facedown upon the bed.

From what she had overheard, Padmé didn't think the situation was that dire. It certainly shouldn't be the cause of such an extreme reaction! She and Dormé, however, were not the same people, so she was doing her best not to be judgmental or critical. She'd made that mistake before and swore she wouldn't again. This wasn't the first break-up. Actually, if Padmé remembered correctly, this would be their third. The first occurred following a time Anakin had been called to attend a briefing in the Council Tower: one of the many requirements of being a Jedi. Not a big deal, except for the fact, he forgot to contact Dormé about it, and had stood her up for a date. It was an unfortunate oversight, but Dormé refused to forgive him. They didn't speak for days.

The true mistake had been made afterward, when Padmé had voiced her opinion and compared the two of them to a supernova: white hot, energetic, aggressive bodies which would burn out before they had a chance to stabilize into anything significant.

At the time, Dormé had listened to her quite attentively. She had actually agreed with what Padmé had said and seemed to be considering her advice.

And then turned right around and made up with Anakin.

From that moment on, Padmé learned to keep her opinions to herself, although she hated to see her friend needlessly suffer. If only the two of them would slow down long enough to listen to one another!

All she could do was offer support, and she did so by patting Dormé's shoulder; which she kept up until the young woman began to snore.

Once she had eased herself off the bed, Padmé returned to the common room where Anakin was finishing his discussion with his Master. When the young man had made his way back inside, Padmé squeezed his arm affectionately as he passed. He seemed upset, though not nearly as much as Dormé.

"How did it go?" she asked once she had seated herself near Obi-Wan.

"I did my best to talk some sense into him, but when it comes to matters such as this, sometimes it's best to let him make his own decisions."

"Even if they're the wrong ones?" Padmé pondered. She had often deliberated over the exact same philosophy.

"Even if they're the wrong ones." Obi-Wan stated with confidence. "Otherwise, how is he ever to learn?"

"That's true," Padmé agreed, appreciating the fact that Obi-Wan's opinions nearly paralleled her own. "You seem to have more practice at this than I do. When Dormé acts this way, I don't know what to say! And how many does this make? Three? Is this healthy?"

"They've broken up three times? I thought it was just two." Obi-Wan pondered, his gaze distant, his hand toying with his beard.

"At least I didn't put my foot in my mouth this time," Padmé was pleased to announce. "Which proves, I am learning."

The expectant raise of his brow prompted Padmé to explain herself.

"I think it was after their first major fight."

"The Council Meeting," Obi-Wan defined. `

"Yes. Dormé was so upset and I took it upon myself to be the much wiser mentor and actually compared their relationship to a supernova."

A quirk of his lip warned Padmé, she had said something which caused Obi-Wan some alarm. Or else he was experiencing some new symptom.

"You're joking."

After she shook her head in a curious, negative response, Obi-Wan chuckled. "I used a meteor: A speck of dust which burns hot and bright through the atmosphere, abruptly hitting the earth with devastating effects," he quoted himself.

"You didn't."

"I did."

"Recently?"

"Just now."

Padmé hid a wide grin blossoming behind her hand.

"Go ahead and laugh at me. I knew he wasn't listening anyway. His hormones are clogging his ears."

She took his advice and burst out in giggles, actually snorting at the end, which embarrassed her completely and resulted in a round of hysterics. Obi-Wan didn't seem to mind, however. He joined her after that, and they laughed together for quite a while. It was a great stress-reliever.

"That feels good," Obi-Wan announced once they had caught their breath. "I don't often get a chance to laugh. There's not much to laugh about out in the galaxy."

"I know," Padmé agreed, sobering slightly, although she continued to smile. She couldn't help herself. She simply enjoyed his company, and if this was all she could ever have with Obi-Wan, it would be enough.