Again, thank you all so much for reading and leaving such kind comments for this story.

Chapter 6

They had barely been on Coruscant for more than a day when they left for Naboo on a new sleek Nubian yacht accompanied by her staff. They arrived on her home planet late enough in the evening to warrant staying in the palace and not with her family. Five days had already passed since the battle on Geonosis and she found that she was restless, she wanted this situation resolved and she felt powerless after being ordered away from the capital. Anakin had kept himself distant during their journey and she knew that it was due to the fact that they were not traveling alone but she still resented the fact that they had barely had a moment to themselves since their kiss in her office. The Queen had sent an aid to Padmé's official residency in the palace to give her the intended schedule for the next day's meetings.

Padmé had eaten the light meal sent up by the kitchen staff and retired to her personal quarters with Dormé in tow. She was pleased to be home again, to smell the flowers in the air and hear the thundering waterfalls in the distance, but she could not find peace in the stark quarters she had only used on a handful of occasions. Dormé had been unpacking her traveling cases when she drifted out on to the balcony to brush her hair under Naboo's twin moons.

"M'lady, may I ask you something?" Dormé asked as she carefully placed a gown in the Senator's already stuffed closet.

"Of course," Padmé said, entering the spacious room again. She had just changed from the dress she had worn on their journey to a simple nightgown a robe, and she was more than happy to have her hair loosened from the tight braids she had worn.

"Has something changed between you and Padawan Skywalker?" the handmaiden asked, her cheeks flushing slightly with her question.

"What would make you think that?" Padmé replied calmly though her hand had stilled its brushing.

"I have been trained to act like you, to practically be you when needed, and I saw something between you today," she explained, "something that cannot be faked or covered up by your own years of practice. Your eyes give you away, M'lady, at least they do whenever he is around. They light up every time you see him."

Padmé looked at her handmaiden in surprise, not sure what to make of the other woman's statement. "Was it that obvious?" she finally asked.

"Not particularly obvious, at least not to those that are not as familiar with you as I am, M'lady," Dormé said. "I doubt anyone else even noticed it, but I have been trained to be able to read you. I hope I'm not being too bold by saying all of this."

"No, you are a good friend Dormé," Padmé said with a warm smile. "And you have never been anything but honest with me, I trust your judgment."

"Will you tell me the truth then, M'lady?"

Padmé drifts over to a large window, taking in the view of the peaceful city. The people of Theed are oblivious to her distress, sleeping comfortably in the darkened city, so very different from the noises and lights that never cease on Coruscant. "Anakin and I fell in love," she finally admitted to the other woman.

"I figured as much," Dormé replied, stepping closer to her employer. "And he knows of your feelings for him?"

"Yes," Padmé confirmed. "I told him when I thought we were about to die on Geonosis. I could not bring myself to let him die without knowing my true feelings for him."

"What will you do now?"

"He asked me to marry him."

"Congratulations, M'lady."

"I said no… but now I am beginning to regret doing so," she said. "Our relationship is complicated by our ranks in life but perhaps stealing that bit of joy would be something worth fighting for. Especially in these dark times."

"You do wish to marry him then?"

"I wish to be with him and making that bond legal would be a wonderful thing but it is also impossible because he is a Jedi and such attachments are forbidden for him."

"If he asked you again, what would you say?"

"I would say yes."

"Then perhaps pursuing this bond is a good thing, for both of you."

"Perhaps it is," Padmé agreed. "Would you find him for me and send him in?"

"Of course, M'lady," Dormé said as she slipped out of Padmé's bedroom.

Anakin was standing guard in the sitting room, much as he had done the first night of this assignment. His attention was drawn by the sound of rustling fabric and soft footfalls, his eyes opened automatically and met the gaze of Padmé's handmaiden.

"M'lady wishes to speak with you," she announced.

He followed her down the hall and bowed his head slightly when she opened the door for him and then took her leave. He entered Padmé's room, finding that his heart was beginning to race and his palms were suddenly damp from sudden nerves. She was standing by the window, her room illuminated by the brightly glowing moons and the single flickering lamp on the table beside her bed. The double doors leading to the balcony are open and the cool breeze that wafts through the room fills the air with the scent of wildflowers, reminding him sharply of their afternoon in the meadow.

"Padmé," he said softly, breaking the hypnotic silence that had filled the room as he simply watched her. She turned to face him, a soft smile on her face as she beckoned him closer to her. He was powerless to refuse and moved to her side in an instant, his hand gently grasping hers as their eyes locked. "You wanted to see me."

"I have been thinking," she said softly, her free hand resting lightly over his racing heart. She felt somewhat comforted by the knowledge that he was as effected by what they shared as she was.

"About?"

"Us."

He felt a prickle of fear shoot down his spine, his blood turned to ice in his veins. "And?" he prompted weakly, finding it hard to force the word out around the lump that had lodged itself in his throat.

"And I want to be with you," she said. "We can fight the way we feel or we can accept it, I choose to accept it now. I'm tired of pushing you away."

"What are you trying to say?" he asked.

"I thought it was obvious," she teased.

"Well, you're saying that you want to be with me but I'm not sure if that's your way of saying you'll marry me or what."

"All you have to do is ask Anakin."

"Will you marry me?"

"Yes," she finally agreed.

"Yes?" When she nodded, he embraced her tightly and spun her around with a shout of joyous laughter. He placed her back on her feet and lovingly farmed her face with his large hands, his eyes glittering with unshed tears. "Oh Padmé, I love you so much," he whispered breathlessly.

She smiled up at him as her arms slipped around his lean waist. "You must promise me something though," she said.

"Anything."

"You must promise me that you will tell Obi-Wan everything," she said, her eyes holding his response at bay. "You must tell him what happened on Tatooine and you must tell him about us."

"Padmé, I can't do that. He'll toss me to the Jedi Council for judgment without as much as a second thought. He doesn't understand what it means to love. He won't understand that your love makes me stronger."

"Then you have to make him understand Ani."

"They'll kick me out of the Order. I've broken just about every rule they live by."

"They've made exceptions for you in the past."

"But I hadn't killed… They taught me how to kill when I was fourteen but they'll kick me out the moment I tell them about what happened to my mother."

"You must have faith that they will make the right decision," she told him gently. "If, by marrying me, you are willing to give up your life as a Jedi because they force you to then so be it, but just know that I refuse to marry you until you tell your Master what has changed you."

He chewed on his bottom lip and reluctantly nodded his head. "I can't marry you, at least not in good conscience, until I am Knighted," he said.

"You have to do what you feel is right Anakin," she murmured. "I will wait for you as long as it takes."

"It won't take long," he insisted. "The Council believes I'm ready now, they said something about me taking the trails within the month."

"And you'll tell Obi-Wan?"

"As soon as I've been Knighted. And your family?"

"We'll tell them when we see them tomorrow and find a way to have them with us when we do get married. I could never do such a thing behind their backs."

"Good, I want them there with us. You deserve that much."

She smiled and urged him down for a kiss, letting it linger and deepen with every sensual sweep of their lips. She slid her hands up his chest and wound them around his neck as she stood on the tips of her toes to reach his lips at a better angle. The passion that blazed between them came to life effortlessly and she found she was more than ready to give into that fire.

He broke the kiss with a great deal of effort and leaned his forehead against hers as they both struggled to slow their breathing. "I want to do this right by you," he said, his voice raw with emotion. "If there are any traditions we need to follow…"

"There's only one that I care about," she said. "There is a tradition in the village where I was born that every couple follows. When a couple becomes pledged to each other, they visit an artist from the village, usually an elder with years of experience, and they have that artist create a symbol that the couple feels is a representation of their love. The symbol is then tattooed on their left ring finger as a permanent reminder of their love. They feel that a piece of jewelry is too temporary, it can be removed easily, but inking the skin creates a mark that cannot be easily removed."

He reached for her left hand and held it so they could both see it, his large thumb sweeping over the dainty fingers until it rested over her ring finger. "The mark goes here then, like a ring?" he questioned and when she nodded he brought her hand to his lips to place a soft kiss over the spot that would carry his mark. "What kind of symbols do people get?"

"My mother and father have the symbol of Dalhein, the god of love. My sister and her husband have the symbol Sha'an, an ancient bird that was said to bring happiness and love."

"So the symbols are from your religion then?"

"Not necessarily, she said. "The symbol can be anything; the only importance is that it be able to represent the permanence of their love."

"An angel," he said softly. "I've always thought you were one, I still think you might be one."

She smiled shyly and glanced down at their intertwined hands. "Perhaps," she agreed softly.

"Tell me more," he requested.

"The symbol is integrated into a band around the finger during the couple's first pregnancy."

"Why not when they're married?"

"My people feel that the creation of another life is better representative of the bonds of love than the ceremony that legally ties the couple together. In fact the ceremony that is part of receiving the mark is considered as much a wedding as the actual wedding. Many feel that the marking is more important because it is a moment shared only by the couple while the formal wedding is done more to appease the families."

"I want to do this for you Padmé," he said softly. "We'll find someone who can do this for us."

She reached up to touch his cheek, her eyes suspiciously moist with unshed tears. "Thank you," she whispered. He smiled and leaned down to kiss her, his arms wrapping around her to pull her close. She melted into his embrace and eagerly returned the passionate kiss.

He pulled her even closer to him as his lips left hers to blaze a trail along her jaw and down her neck, learning the spots that made her gasp and cling to him. His hands moved all over her back, careful movements that avoided the still sore gashes there and sent heat along her nerve endings. Her hands grasped the slick leather of his vest in an attempt to stay grounded as she lost herself in his touch. She hissed his name against his ear, earning a sharp groan of longing from the back of his throat. By the Force this heat would incinerate them both and leave nothing left if they did not give in, she thought.

His eyes were blazing with love and desire when they found hers, asking for permission to continue. She was slightly dazed and breathing heavily but she knew that it was time to finally consummate the love they shared. At her slight nod his hands moved to her shoulders to push the silken robe from her shoulders and leave her standing before him in little more than a white shift that clung to her the way he longed to.

Her own hands were shaking as they moved down his chest towards his belt and trembling fingers worked to release the clasp. When she succeeded in releasing the belt his hands grasped it and gently lowered it to the floor of her room, not willing to sacrifice another lightsaber to the heat of the moment. Her eyes lifted up to meet his from beneath thick eyelashes as her hands worked to push open the rough layers of clothing that kept him hidden from view. He shrugged out of his tunics with the help of her eager hands, gasping softly when she pressed her lips to the fading bruise on his shoulder. Her hands gently traced over the toned muscles beneath his golden skin, fascinated by the way they rippled beneath her touch.

She stepped back enough to meet his eyes and reached for his hand, smiling when he gulped nervously as she took him to her bed. He was even more tentative when she lay herself down and tugged on his hand, urging him to join her, his movements were careful as he moved over her. She found comfort in his weight resting above her and reached up to touch his cheek as she lost herself in his fathomless blue eyes.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"If I wasn't sure you wouldn't be here now," she teased. "I want you to make love to me Anakin. I want you."

"Aren't there usually customs to follow? Rules for the couple?" he asked, biting his bottom lip. "I want to do this right Padmé."

"My people feel that once a couple has made the decision to bind their lives together it makes sense that they would also form that physical bond," she explained, trying to ignore the warmth that spread through her body form the contact with his. "Traditionally such a bond is forged after they receive the mark…"

"Then we should wait," he said, his voice tight as he struggled with his own body's reactions to having her so close.

A sly smile curved her lips before she responded, "But typically couples don't wait that long."

There was a flash of indecision in his eyes and with a wave of his hand the room was plunged into muted darkness before his mouth lowered to cover hers and steal her breath. All their concerns about tradition washed away in the wake of their shared passion.

Naboo's bright moons illuminated the bedroom in a shadowy blue light. Anakin lay on his back in the middle of the large bed with the woman he loved resting atop of him. The expensive silken sheets were carelessly strewn about them, ruffled from their passion and barely covering them from the waist down. Padmé nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck, sighing contentedly as his fingers lightly traced over her back. They were drowsy and exhausted but neither wanted to give in to sleep and instead they lay there in a comfortable silence content to listen to the sound of their breathing and the night birds.

From her place on his chest she watched her fingers trace random patterns across the smooth skin of his chest and shoulder. The bruises that had looked so painful only days before were beginning to fade and she suspected it had something to do with his link to the Force. But her attention wasn't on the discolored skin; it was on the raised scars her fingertips were discovering. Her fingers had already learned that his back was marred by barely visible lashes, long since healed but still lingering as a reminder of his past as a slave, and his arms had numerous scars of their own, burns and scrapes that had never been properly healed. Her current fascination was being held by a scar just below his right collarbone.

"Ani?" she whispered, lifting her head to see if he was awake or not and finding half lidded eyes smiling at her. "Where did you get this scar?"

He knew what she was talking about from the way her fingers traced over it and he almost didn't want to answer it just so he could continue to focus on her touch. "A couple years ago Obi-Wan and I were chasing a bounty hunter who preferred using old fashioned blades," he explained. "I was chasing him and I caught him but he stabbed me and got away. Obi-Wan caught him a few minutes later and got all the praise from the Council and I got reprimanded for being too rash."

She frowned at this new information and returned her gaze to the scar she was tracing, on impulse she shifted and pressed her lips to it. He took an unsteady breath in response to her action and she smiled against his skin, she had found she liked his reactions to her touch. "What about this one?" she asked as she touched a scar that looked suspiciously like a blaster bolt had grazed the outside of his right bicep.

"That's from a crash I had from racing in the garbage pits on Coruscant," he said, his voice having gone husky in response to her touch.

She lifted her head again to look at him, her expression quizzical. "There are races in the garbage pits?"

He grinned sheepishly and nodded. "I was desperate for a thrill after I moved to the Temple with Obi-Wan. I was just going to classes and being told to meditate," he said. "I found out about the races and I was able to salvage an old pair of wings to use and…"

"Wings?"

"Yeah, we would put on wings and try to steal a scale from one of the giant worms at the bottom without being shot," he explained. "Unfortunately I got shot one time and Obi-Wan never let me hear the end of it."

She shook her head in amusement and resumed her exploration, her fingers gliding down his torso to a burn she had seen along his thigh. "And this one?"

"I think that I got that after I crashed a podracer a year before we met," he answered. "I don't really remember what happened but Mom… she said I was unconscious for a couple of days after that…"

She saw the tears glittering in his eyes at the mention of his mother and leaned in to lightly brush her lips across his before teasing, "Does every scar come with a crazy story?"

"Not all of them," he said sadly. "Some I'd like to forget."

She frowned slightly, knowing exactly what he meant. "Those scars are a part of you and because of that I accept them," she whispered sincerely, "and whatever stunt you may have pulled to receive them."

He gently caught her left hand and brought it up for both of them to see. "Tell me more about this mark of commitment," he said, needing to change the subject as his index finger lightly traced over the spot she had told him their mark would be.

"I've told you everything," she said as she pressed her lips to the slight dimple in his chin. He shifted slightly and settled more comfortably into their bed, his free arm winding around her waist to keep her close. She watched his eyes drift closed and found that she wanted him again, as if sensing her amorous mood his eyes opened again and met hers. A sly smile pulled at her lips, making Anakin swallow hard and then clamp down on his bottom lip to keep from crying out when her hand moved down and gently took hold of him. His head fell back against the pillow and he gasped her name on a strangled moan. She leaned forward and claimed his lips in a kiss filled with need and desire and he was powerless to resist her. He moved with unnatural speed to flip them over and she smiled against his lips when he settled over her, his hands pulling hers away from him and pinning them beside her head. "That was a very evil thing to do, M'lady," he murmured as he kissed his way along her jaw.

She shivered at the delicious tremors that shot down her spine from the husky note in his voice and flexed her fingers in his grip, letting them slide through his, knotting their hands together as she looked up into his eyes. The desire she felt for him was mirrored in his own glowing eyes. "I love you," she whispered breathlessly. That was all it took for him to claim her lips again and begin the process of driving her mad with passion.