Chapter 5

"Riksha?"

Riksha looked down at the young girl walking beside her. The Togruta had tilted her head back, curiously watching the face of the older woman. Her eyes were searching Riksha's face, examining her expression.

"Yes, Tarani?" Riksha asked. She turned her head away from Tarani, diverting her gaze to look forward. She didn't stop walking, as there was really no need to stop in order to talk. They were heading towards the stairwell, as it was early morning and time for breakfast to be prepared. She hadn't realized it before, but now Riksha had the feeling that the younger girl had been watching her the entire time. "What is it?"

"What are you thinking about?"

This question came as a surprise to Riksha. "What do you mean?"

The Togruta looked away from her for a moment, deciding how to answer. She looked down the hallway, at the long carpet that decorated the floor. It was pretty enough, not as pretty as some of the other carpets that graced the halls, but pretty nonetheless. "You just have that look on your face... The look you get when you're thinking real hard about something."

Riksha hadn't realized that there was a specific look. Well, she knew that people often had a look on their faces when they were thinking, but she just didn't realize that it was present in her own expressions. She usually tried to keep any thought-revealing expression off of her face, but apparently Tarani had still noticed. "I do?"

"Yep. Whatcha thinking about?"

"Just... Things."

"Did you have that dream again?"

Riksha stopped walking. How was it that this little girl so smart? She looked down at the 8 year-old standing beside her. Tarani's bright blue eyes looked back up at her, shining with genuine curiosity. The girl had noticed the thoughtful look on Riksha's face, and had wondered what had caused her to fall into such deep thought. After thinking about it herself, she had drawn the only logical conclusion she could after comparing this "look" to the ones she had noticed in the past. She had made an educated guess, and now waited patiently for an answer, to find out if her guess had been correct. After a moment of considering what to say, Riksha confirmed Tarani's speculation.

"Yes. I did."

"Wow, it's been a while since you had that dream last."

"I suppose it has."

About a month had passed since Riksha had last experienced the particular dream of which the two were now speaking. It was a nightmare really, and a reoccurring one at that. It was not very clear, the images no more than blurry shapes and colors. It was the feelings that were distinct, as clear as what she could feel right now. And these were what classified it as a nightmare. That, and the fact that the dream was a memory, and thinking about the dream stirred negative feelings within her. She knew that the memory was an unpleasant one, though even the memory was not clear in her mind. In fact, the memory was no clearer than the dream itself. It was muddled and hard to reach, locked away by the mild amnesia that Riksha suffered from. More frustrating than anything else, it prevented her from remembering what exactly had gone wrong on that mission two years ago. She clearly remembered breaking into the Separatist base and placing the bombs. She clearly remembered waking up in a hospital several days later. What happened in between was either muddled or completely out of reach.

These nightmares had started after Riksha had been a slave of the Queen for about a year. She had meditated long and hard for that year on the topic of that fateful mission, trying to unlock the hidden portion of her mind. She had made a little bit of progress, and then the nightmares began happening. They gave her a little more insight as to what had happened, but not much. They were nightly occurrences for a while, the same dream every night for a number of months. Then, slowly, they became less frequent.

Riksha examined the child, who was now standing in front of her. She had never told Tarani exactly what her nightmares were about. She had first mentioned them to the young girl when she had been having nightmares, and knowing Riksha had them sometimes too had been comforting. It is strange, how people take comfort in knowing others share similar pain. How Riksha dealt with nightmares was also a major part of what had helped calm the Togruta.

"How come you aren't afraid of nightmares?" Tarani asked, looking at Riksha with an amazed gaze. Her eyes were still filled with fear, from the dream out of which she had just awoken. The edge of the blanket that covered the bed was clenched in her fists, as though holding onto the blanket would prevent some monster from appearing.

Riksha sat down on the side of the girl's bed, smiling in a gentle and comforting way. "Because I remember that they are just dreams. Dreams cannot hurt you, Tarani. They are only things that your mind comes up with. Sometimes, once in a very long while, a dream is the Force talking to you. This can't hurt you either."

Tarani found the young woman's voice and insight soothing. "So by being scared of nightmares, I am being scared of my mind or the Force talking?"

"That's one way to look at it," Riksha replied.

Tarani fell silent, staring down at the blanket, thinking this over. Riksha could sense the fear slowly leaving, which was good.

"Even though I know it's just my mind, nightmares can still be scary," Tarani commented, before lifting her head to once again stare inquisitively at the older girl. "How else do you keep from being afraid?"

"Well, I think about the nightmares afterwards. I think about what it is that makes them seem scary," Riksha gave a small chuckle. "Sometimes, I realize they aren't even scary at all!"

Tarani giggled as well, scooting further under the covers and drawing a blanket up to her chin. She yawned, her eyelids beginning to droop a bit. She had been successfully consoled, and was now finished with the conversation. Riksha stood up, tucking the blanket gently around the girl's small figure. Seeing that Tarani was ready to go back to sleep, she smiled to herself, glad that she had helped her overcome her fear.

"Goodnight, Riksha," Tarani called drowsily, as Riksha turned to leave.

"Goodnight, Tarani."

Now, Tarani stood looking up at the woman she considered a friend. She didn't pry for information about the dream, replying with a simple casual statement. "I wonder why it came back."

Excellent question. Why did this nightmare come back? Riksha supposed it had never really been triggered by anything before, but she almost felt as if there should be a reason to explain why it had come back. An entire month with no blurry-memory-nightmare, then poof! It happened again. Such things ought to have a proper reason behind them. Right?

"I don't know." Realizing that they had been standing in the hallway for a good couple of minutes, Riksha added "you should probably get going. I don't think the Queen will be too pleased if her guest is late to breakfast."

Tarani nodded, turning and hurrying down the hall and to the stairs. Riksha herself moved quickly down to the kitchen to prepare breakfast, knowing full well that there would be unpleasant consequences for everyone if the food was not on the table by exactly 7:00.

Anakin heard a faint, almost hesitant knocking on his door. Striding over quickly, he grasped the handle with his gloved mechanical hand and pulled it open. He had half expected to find someone around his height, but instead he found himself looking down at a young Togruta.

"Sorry to bother you, Sir," she began. She didn't meet his eyes, as that was not proper behavior for a slave. Instead, she just looked at his boots. They looked like they didn't belong with his outfit, in her opinion. Well, she supposed they sort of matched, but the looked more like work boots than anything else. While the rest of his attire was slightly on the fancy side (as most traders wore clothing to express their status) his boots looked like they had been through a lot. "Breakfast will be ready in exactly 20 minutes."

"Alright, I'll be there," Anakin replied. "Thank you for telling me."

The Togruta appeared just as surprised as the Twi'Lek had last night at receiving thanks. She bowed quickly, before hurrying off to do something else. Anakin watched her go, her head-tails bouncing against her shoulders as she headed for the stairs. He was making a point of being kind to the Queen's slaves, since he knew that he was likely the only one to ever do so. It was sad, how people were treated like they were worthless and their single purpose was to serve. They were practically treated like expendable B1 droids.

Anakin took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. He could feel the anger bubbling inside of him, and that was not something that would help anyone. He already had broken something, and if he let himself get angry he would likely do something even more rash and counter productive. He had known what he was getting into when he accepted this mission from Obi-Wan, now he needed to see it through. That meant that, no matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't afford to get into "aggressive negotiations." It also meant he needed to try and keep his own past and personal feelings from interfering with the mission. If I succeed, then all these slaves will be freed. He tried to remind himself of this, to assure himself that his patience and lack of taking action would pay off. He could be more helpful to the slaves through just sticking to the mission plan.

So, instead of blowing his cover and bringing out his lightsaber, Anakin calmly made his way down to the dining room. Which turned out to be empty. Glancing at the clock sitting on the wall to be sure he was on time, he confirmed that it was exactly 7:00. So where was the Queen? Shrugging, the Jedi in disguise strode over to the table and sat down in one of the chairs. He drummed on the table with his fingers, eyes wandering aimlessly over the room, waiting for someone to show up. Eventually, at 7:02, the slave that Anakin remembered had been called Riley walked through. She was not dressed in the same fancy attire as yesterday, rather today she wore a much simpler raw umber colored tank top and skirt. These of course had fancy gold embroidery along the edges, but overall the outfit was very different from that of yesterday. Upon seeing Anakin, she paused midstep. A look of mild confusion ran across her face as she saw him sitting alone at the long table, before realization dawned on her.

"The breakfast table is located in a different room," she said in an almost hesitant voice, as though she were unsure wether she should be speaking to him.

Anakin felt slightly embarrassed about this situation, and a somewhat awkward silence followed the slave's comment. He had gone to the wrong room and sat there like an idiot for a full two minutes. "Would you mind showing me?" He asked her at last, hoping it wouldn't be too much trouble. After all, he didn't know what she was supposed to be doing.

She nodded, and Anakin stood up from the table. After pushing the chair in, he walked over to where she stood. She turned and headed back towards the door through which she had come only a moment before. The pair made their way down a long hallway, with many doors and halls branching off of it. Anakin took it all in, making a mental map of the paths they took so that he could find his way to the breakfast room in the future without assistance. Knowing the layout of the palace would also come in handy if the Republic ever wanted to do any invading...

It wasn't long before they entered a large room with white tile flooring, which Anakin assumed to be the dining area for breakfast. The room had a large window covering one wall, so that a person could watch the sunrise or just look out the window while eating the first meal of the day. Very near the window was a fairly small round table, made of a very light colored wood and adorned with intricate carvings along the edge and on the legs. Two chairs currently sat across from each other at the table, though there was some space left for two or so more. In one of these chairs sat the Queen, and on the table were several platters of breakfast foods. The Queen heard Anakin and Riksha enter, and turned her head to look at them.

"Riley?" She began, speaking as though Anakin weren't standing there. "What are you doing back so soon? I told you to go clean the kitchen." Then, seemingly noticing Anakin for the first time, she smiled. "Ah, there you are. I was wondering what was keeping you. We like to keep a strict schedule, you know. Why, you're nearly five minutes late! I don't blame you, of course, as you wouldn't have known. Did Taylor not tell you that breakfast was exactly at 7?"

Anakin glanced at the slave beside him, who didn't even argue that the reason she had come back was because she was bringing him to breakfast. She just stood there, looking at the floor. Before Anakin could reply to the Queen, she had begun speaking again.

"Come, sit down. The food will get cold," she said, gesturing to the chair across from her.

Anakin sat down, and once again opened his mouth to explain that he simply had gone to the wrong room and that Taylor (he assumed this was the name of the Togruta child) did tell him that breakfast was at seven. Once again, he didn't get a chance to say anything when the Queen yelled for the girl.

"Taylor! Come here!"

The girl from earlier scurried into the room, nearly crashing into Riksha who was still standing halfway between the table and the door. Anakin couldn't help noticing this. I wonder why she hasn't left. The Queen didn't seem happy that she came back in the first place...

Tarani skidded to a stop beside the table, nearly loosing her balance due to the fact she had been moving so quickly. "Yes, Master?"

The Queen gave the girl an accusatory look. "Taylor, did you tell Arwyn here that breakfast was exactly at 7:00?"

"Yes."

"Did you explain to him that we keep a very tight schedule?"

Anakin saw a bit of worry begin to creep into the girl's expression. He noticed that she fiddled nervously with the hem of her shirt, twisting it and rolling it between her fingers.

"No."

"Did you even tell him where the breakfast parlor was?"

Tarani bit her lip. "No."

"Then how did you expect him to get here?" The Queen's tone was growing harsher with every question she asked, obviously not pleased with the Togruta. "Don't answer, that's rhetorical. I'll deal with your punishment later."

Anakin took a quiet breath to keep his emotions in check. The poor child was on the verge of tears from the scolding, and knowing that she would be getting even more of a punishment later. Suddenly, he felt a surge of protectiveness and irritation. Well, rather he sensed this surge. He glanced up at the Queen. It was obviously not from her... Slowly, Anakin turned his head, and saw that the other slave was still standing there. She was pointedly glaring at the Queen, and tapping her fingers restlessly against the side of her leg. The irritation and protectiveness was definitely radiating from her. Truthfully, Anakin was a bit shocked by how harshly she was glaring at the Queen. Just a few minutes earlier, she had seemed as passive and uncertain as any other well-trained slave. Now, she appeared to have the ferocity of an unbroken being.

The Togruta turned and moved away from the table, having been sent away by the Queen. She retreated almost like a dog who has just been yelled at and scolded for chewing on furniture. She appeared to shrink a bit, no doubt upset and nervous about whatever punishment was to come upon her later. Anakin felt sorry for the girl, and wished there was something he could have done to prevent her getting blamed. He watched as the two slaves left together, the older one murmuring something to the younger.

Turning his attention away from them, Anakin picked up one of the breakfast pastries and began to nibble on it.

"When do you plan on heading down to the market? Of course, the auction isn't until later, but it's always smart to head down early to check out the different options. Some of the traders will sell their slaves to you straight away, not even wait to auction them off," The Queen had decided to strike up a conversation, being the social person she was. Silence was not an option.

"I'm not sure, really. When do you suggest I head down? I want to look for the best deals, of course."

Clasping her hands together, the woman appeared to have just thought of a wonderfully brilliant idea. "I'm sending Riley down to find a new servant for me. Why don't you head down with her? She has an uncanny ability to choose just which slaves will make a perfect fit for my palace, perhaps she can help you pick out one for yourself as well."

Anakin thought this over, and continued to nibble on his pastry as he did so. Perhaps, if he went down to the market with the Queen's slave, he could pry some information out of her. "That sounds like a good idea. When is she heading down?"

"Once she's done cleaning the kitchen, which should should be very soon, knowing her. I'm fairly certain she uses those powers of hers to get it done more quickly than the average slave."

Those powers? Anakin raised an eyebrow at this. The Queen must be referring to the Force. It seemed that the slave used the Force to do a lot of things... Perhaps he would question her about more than just the Queen.

What do you all think of the story so far? I know, there hasn't been a whole lot of action yet, but there will be soon. We can't expect there to be a bunch of action right in the beginning now can we?

What do you think of the length of the chapters? Would you prefer longer or shorter ones? I've been trying to keep them between 2-4 thousand words each.