Thank you all so much for waiting so patiently for this. I've had a lot on my mind with school, classes, and of course family stuff. I also had a little trouble writing this chapter out so I hope it's alright.
Chapter 5
Anakin and Padme looked at their rescue party, stunned.
The man who attacked them got up, realizing he was outnumbered, and left before any of them could stop him through the other alley exit. Padme chased after him, but quickly realized that she had lost him when she looked out into the streets and saw no one.
She turned back to look at Anakin, and Anakin swung around at Ferus. He punched Ferus in the face with his prosthetic hand hard before throwing him into the wall with the Force.
"You've gained a lot of nerve over the years Ferus!" Anakin angrily shouted at him. Ferus grunted in pain as Anakin held him to the wall, his other hand holding his lightsaber ready to be reignited.
"Anakin stop! It's not what it seems!" Sabe shouted at him.
"It seems like you all have allied with the man who helped murder my grandmother, so explain!"
Padme demanded as she stood next to her husband.
Dorme took a step towards her. "Padme, I know it's hard to believe, but Ferus Olin didn't kill your grandmother. He was with Gregor heading towards Varykino to make sure your grandmother was safe, only Malorum had already gotten there first," she explained.
"What proof do you guys have?" Anakin asked as Ferus struggled in his hold.
Sabe stepped closer to Anakin. "Anakin, we all took an oath to protect Padme and those she loves. If Ferus really killed Ryoo, would we be trying to help him? You have to trust us."
Anakin looked at Ferus. Like him he had gotten older, his hair was longer, and he had a five o'clock shave on his face, but that wasn't what bothered him. What bothered him was how good Ferus' shields had gotten over the years, making it hard for Anakin to read him. He searched his feelings and couldn't believe what he found.
He let Ferus go, and the man collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. "Don't make me regret this," Anakin warned in a deadly tone.
Ferus coughed. "Like you regret anything," he gasped.
Anakin tried to ignore the jab, but couldn't. Memories of the events that had lead up to Ferus leaving the Order rose in his mind.
They heard people coming out of the Naberrie home, no doubt wondering what all the commotion going on outside was.
"We have to get out of here," Sabe said, helping Ferus onto his feet.
The group quickly exited the alleyway opposite of the Naberrie home and down the streets.
"There's a shortcut to my house not far from here," Eirtae pointed out toward another alleyway. Stormtroopers were starting to come down the street, so they hurried. After a series of turns, they finally made it to Eirtae's home.
It was an old Jafan era house with secret passages that the original owners had put in to hide during the Gungan Wars. All the window curtains had been closed, ensuring that nobody would look in on them.
Padme had only been in this house twice in her whole life. Most of Eirtae's family hated Padme for winning the election against Eirtae, so the only time Padme had ever come into the Lasara home was when she finished her terms and Eirtae's father, the only member of the family who didn't mind Padme and Eirtae's friendship, was the only other person in the house.
The halls and the main rooms were covered in red, reminding Padme and Anakin too much of Palpatine's offices. Eirtae took them all to the main parlor, shutting the door and locking it. "I dismissed the servants for the week so we would have ensured privacy," Eirtae told them.
"What about your family?" Padme asked. Eirtae was the third child of four and she was married with a young son. Padme remembered that Eirtae's father had passed away a few years ago, her oldest brother during the Blockade, and that Eirtae had an estranged relationship with her mother since becoming Padme's handmaiden.
"Kitpat has taken little Kam to Alderaan to see his family, and my brothers have taken my mother to Coruscant to see her latest beau," Eirtae explained. The tone in her voice told Padme that things between her and her mother were still strained, and Padme had learned the hard way years ago not to interfere with Eirtae's family relationships.
"Now explain to us what's going on," Anakin demanded as they sat down on one of the sofas in the room. Everyone gathered around them, some sitting down in other seats.
Sabe looked at Ferus. "Tell them what you told us."
Ferus took a deep breath before looking at Anakin and Padme. The years away from the Jedi had been hard on him, that much Anakin could tell. "Six months ago, after the Empire's formation, I was contacted by Master Kenobi asking for help. He needed me to infiltrate the Empire to see if they were getting close to finding surviving Jedi. My partner and I discovered records from the Jedi Archives the Empire had taken during Order 66 and that Palpatine was trying to create his own Sith army to command," Ferus explained.
Anakin sensed the truth in Ferus' words, but he was hiding something as well. Anakin also felt the weight of the Jedi Holocron in his pocket and wondered again why the Force had told him to bring it with him. If Palpatine was building his own army of force-sensitives then why did the Force ask him to bring the one thing Palpatine needed to complete his plan and endanger all those children? He listened as Ferus continued.
"When I was discovered, I took the records with me and returned to Master Kenobi. We then discovered that Palpatine had sent one of his spies, Malorum to hunt for Anakin Skywalker, Padme Amidala, and their child. We followed his trail to here, and I was no my way to Varykino with Captain Typho when I realized his plan on how to draw you two out of hiding."
Anakin looked at Padme and saw the anguish and guilt in her that they had nearly fallen for the trap. "This 'Malorum', he's the guy in the alley?" he asked.
Ferus nodded. "He's certainly no ordinary 'spy'. He has the Force. I could sense it in him. And when we first got here, we heard that Ryoo had been tortured by a Jedi," Anakin's tone told that this had better be explained.
"Malorum found out that Padme had visited Naboo around the time of her pregnancy and stayed at Varykino woth her grandmother. He thought that Ryoo would know where Padme would hide in worst case scenario or at least the gender of her child," Ferus explained.
"She couldn't have known. I didn't even know the gender until I gave birth," Padme said, remembering how surprised she and Anakin were when the discovered that she was carrying twins.
"Didn't you see a medic?" Yane, who had gone into medicine when Padme's terms had ended, asked concerned.
"I did but I wanted to be surprised. I told the meddroid I only wanted to know if the baby and I were healthy," Padme assured.
Ferus continued with the story. "When we got there, I found Ryoo dying on the terrace. Malorum had used the Force to look into Ryoo's mind when she wouldn't tell him anything. By the time I got to her, her mind was so disoriented she kept telling me to "Save Padme" and 'Don't let him get to her.'" He looked at Padme with sorrow.
Padme's vision blurred as the tears returned. "You were there when she died?" he voice whispered with a crack.
Ferus nodded sadly. "All I can tell you is that Malorum didn't torture her for long. Your name was the last thing she said," he told her gently.
Padme felt tears sliding down her face as she thought of her grandmamma in her last moments. Her defying Malorum before being attacked, the pain and terror she must have felt, but she wasn't alone. At least she wasn't alone. For that Padme was grateful. "Thank you," she whispered.
Anakin watched as tears fell down Padme's face. He rubbed her back and shoulders in comfort before looking back up at Ferus. He couldn't shake the feeling that Ferus was hiding something, but he would focus on that later. In the meantime he would keep an eye on him.
"Something doesn't add up," he spoke up, gathering everyone's stares, including Padme's.
"What do you mean?" Motee asked.
"Why Ryoo of all people? Malorum had to have known that Ryoo couldn't have known about us. He could have used anybody in Padme's family, but he chose Ryoo. Why? And why at Varykino?" Anakin asked, his mind going through all sorts of scenarios.
"You think Malorum attacked Ryoo not just because she might know about you guys?" Sache asked him.
"Does it sound impossible?" Anakin stood up, facing Typho and Ferus. "What did the house look like when you guys got there? Anything broken? Upturned? Disoriented? Have the officials taken any evidence from the scene? And has the place been cleaned up since the attack?"
Typho looked bewildered by all the questions for a second before he composed his expression. "We made it only to the terrace where Ryoo was before we had to leave, but I noticed the glass dining room doors shattered outside. Officials will be starting to clean the place up after the funeral," he answered.
"It's half past eleven," Dorme said, looking at the grandfather chrono in the room. "They will be at Claines burying Ryoo. Their lunch starts at noon and will last a couple of hours. We'll have to leave now before they get back to Varykino."
"We can't all go," Sabe reminded them. "A dozen people would definitely be suspicious. Anakin, Typho, Ferus, Sache, Yane, and I would be enough to search the grounds, while the rest contact Vatie and see if she could get us access to the evidence the officials are holding."
"I'm going to Varykino," Padme said, getting up.
"No, you're not," Anakin told her along with half of the room.
Padme glared at them all. "If anything was moved or broken during the attack, I would know. The rest of you can contact Vatie and see if she can find anything."
"In that case, I better stay here," Yane said.
"Me too," Sache volunteered as well. "I can help her gain access to the Investigators files and find out more."
"We're all in agreement then? Padme asked. The women nodded while the men grudgingly agreed.
Anakin's group went out the back door of the house. Ferus grabbed his arm to stop him while Padme, Sabe, and Typho continued out. "You don't trust me," Ferus told Anakin.
Anakin glared at his childhood rival. "It may have been five years, but your shields aren't strong enough to hide the fact that you're hiding something," Anakin told him.
Ferus' face darkened. "Don't get high and mighty with me Skywalker. You were never the perfect Jedi either. I tried to warn Master Kenobi about you. Your wife and child are proof that you were never meant to be a Jedi."
Anakin's hands clenched, wanting to hit Ferus.
"Anakin?"
Anakin and Ferus turned to see Padme, Sabe, and Typho looking at them a little concerned.
"It's fine Padme," Anakin told her. Padme's eyebrows narrowed, telling him that she didn't believe him for a second, but she wouldn't push the issue. For now.
Everyone continued, Ferus moving to join them, but this time it was Anakin that grabbed his arm and prevented him from leaving. "Just so we're clear," Anakin whispered in a deadly tone. "If anything happens to my wife, or Malorum, or the Emperor, or anyone finds out about my child, the galaxy will be too small of a place to hide from me."
Ferus' face was stoic, but Anakin knew that he got and understood the message.
He let go of Ferus' arm and followed after the others.
000{{*}}000
For the first time in her life, Padme dreaded going to Varykino.
As a child, it was her favorite place in all of Naboo. She and her family would go swimming every day and uncover hidden treasures in the deep. Her father would teach her and Sola how to fish, and her mother would show them how to weave tiaras from the water lilies that grew around the Lake Country. At night, they would eat shuura fruit and play hide-and-seek in the many rooms of the ancient house. It was the place where she and Anakin fell in love, married, and shared many treasurable memories at. Varykino had always been a place of wonder and magic for Padme. Now, it was the place where one of the most important persons in Padme's life had been brutally murdered.
They were all in the water speeder Typho had gotten for them, making their way toward Varykino. Typho was driving with Ferus next to him while she sat in the back between Anakin and Sabe.
She didn't need to be a Jedi to sense the distrust Anakin had for Ferus. If she was being honest, she didn't trust Ferus either, but she trusted Obi-wan's judgment.
She looked at Sabe, the woman who had been her bodyguard and her closest friend since they were teenagers when Padme had been Princess of Theed and Sabe was training to be a handmaiden.
"How did you all know that we were in trouble?" Padme asked as they soured across the lake. It was a question that had been bothering her since they entered Eirtae's house.
Sabe looked at her. "I didn't notice you guys until after Palpatine's speech when I saw you guys leaving. I recognized your figure, but it was your thumbnails that gave it away. I remember all those days when I would paint your nails white while we got you ready for the day," Sabe explained, a smile briefly showing on her face as she remembered those days when Padme was queen.
Padme glanced at her thumbnails and smiled as she too remembered those days that seemed easy compared to these days.
"And I also recognized Anakin even with the beard," Sabe added in. "After you disappeared, Motee and Elle told us about you and Anakin and the baby you were expecting. We were beginning to fear for the worse when Ferus came and told us what Kenobi had told him."
"What did Obi-wan tell him?" Anakin asked, keeping his eyes on Ferus.
"He confirmed that you and Padme had been secretly married for years, that Padme had your baby while you all were on the run, and that you were in hiding," Sabe explained. She noticed the suspicion in Anakin's eyes directed at Ferus. "Why don't you trust him?"
"Five years ago, before the Clone Wars, Ferus left the Order. He could have seen, done, or gone through anything, and he's hiding something. I know it," Anakin answered, narrowing his eyes.
"Like what?" Padme asked.
"I don't know yet."
They slowed down as they came to the turn leading to Varykino.
"We better get off here," Ferus said, pointing to an alcove that would hide their speeder not far from Varykino. "Inspector Divo left a squad of Stormtroopers to make sure the crime scene wasn't disturbed."
"Inspector?" Padme asked as they brought their speeder on to shore.
"Detective Divo was promoted to inspector shortly after Senator Farr's death," Typho explained. "The Emperor was the one to assign him to this case."
Well that explained a lot.
Padme remembered how Detective Divo "solved" the case of her Uncle Ono's death. He wouldn't have been able to if it hadn't been for her and Bail's meddling.
After securing the speeder, they walked on foot through the bushes and trees until they were at the edge of it several yards away from the lake house. Ferus was right. There were Stormtroopers patrolling the grounds, no doubt making sure that no civilians or reporters came and disturbed the scene on Inspector Divo's orders.
"Any surveillance we have to worry about?" Anakin asked.
"Just an LEP droid analyzing the scene," Typho told him.
"Anakin and I will handle the Stormtroopers. Then we'll all scour the house for any evidence missed," Ferus announced.
Anakin glared at him. "Who put you in charge?"
"Ani!" Padme reprimanded him in a sharp whisper.
Ferus glared back at him. "You and I are best equipped for this. You have a better suggestion?"
Anakin shut his mouth.
"Let's go then."
The two men crept carefully, given that it was daylight, leaving Padme with Typho and Sabe.
"They certainly don't get along well," Typho remarked, annoyed.
"They were classmate rivals when they were young," Padme explained.
"Reminds me too much of Eirtae and Motee," Sabe mumbled.
A few minutes later, Anakin waved them inside. He and Ferus had stunned the whole squad and deactivated the droid so as not to alert anyone to their presence.
"This way," Ferus directed them.
They went over across the terrace to the place where Ryoo's body had been found. The place was marked, showing the position as to how she was laying when she died. There were shards of glass out on the terrace and at the place where the upper half of Ryoo's body was a burned mark from where the lightsaber must have pierced her.
Anakin kneeled down to take a closer look before turning his head to look up at Padme. She had gone pale knowing that this was the place her grandmother had died and the same spot where she and Anakin had been married at.
"You sure you want to do this?" Anakin asked, concerned.
Padme swallowed before nodding her head. "Yes. I have to know what she knew that had gotten her killed."
Anakin nodded before turning back to the scene. The glass was flung outside but not inside so it had to have been broken from inside. "When you guys got here, had the window just been broken?" Anakin asked Typho and Ferus.
Ferus nodded. "Yes. It was like Ryoo had been flung out into it, breaking the glass; which would explain the bruised spine given her age and built."
Padme flinched but forced herself to focus.
Anakin stood up, looking towards the inside. "So he must have come in some other way. Let's spread out and see where."
After making sure that Ferus wouldn't be left unattended, Anakin and Padme started looking through the large house. The glass doors that had been broken, led to the dining room, and Padme instantly saw what had been disturbed. The head dining room chair had been moved away from the table, and several vases had been shattered like someone had thrown them. There was also an unfinished meal laid out on the table.
"What made Ferus leave the Jedi Order in the first place?" Padme asked Anakin as they looked around.
Anakin looked at his wife in surprise. "Do we have to talk about this now?"
"You couldn't hide your disdain of him from Sabe and Typho. If we want to stop Malorum we have to find out what he believed my grandmother knew and that means working together," Padme explained to her husband.
Anakin sighed.
"Year before we met again, Obi-wan and I were assigned on a mission with Ferus, his Master Siri Tachi, and a couple other Jedi teams: my friend Tru Veld, his master Ry-Gaul, and another friend Darra Thel-Tanis, and her master Soara Antana. Our mission was to capture and interrogate Granta Omega, a force-sensitive that had been causing a lot of trouble and whom we believed was aligned with the Sith. Before we left for the mission, I worked on Tru's lightsaber because he had been complaining about its power source draining too quickly so I thought I could fix it for him. We chased Omega to Kessel, the Sith's homeworld. Some point during our mission there, we got separated from our masters. The planet was heavily influenced by the Dark Side, and we were all short-tempered with one another. I didn't know it at the time, but sometime during that Ferus worked on Tru's lightsaber, not knowing the adjustments I made to it. Omega found us and toyed with us. Ferus lost his lightsaber so Tru threw his to him, but it went out at the same time Omega went to attack him. Darra saw this and threw herself in front of Ferus and she died for it. Omega escaped right before our masters finally found us. Ferus and Tru found out what had happened to the lightsaber and blamed me for Darra's death. Ferus felt guilty over Darra's death, so he left. Obi-wan and I found Omega weeks later, and he told us that the Sith were going to win and there was nothing we could do to stop it right before he killed himself."
At the end of his story, Anakin took a shaky breath as the memories of that mission flooded back into his mind. He lost Darra, one of the few friends he had in the Jedi Order, and he lost the trust of his other friend Tru. Omega had warned him and Obi-wan that he knew the identity of the Sith. If they had listened to him maybe they would have been able to discover the Sith's identity sooner and prevent all this destruction.
Padme meanwhile was stunned. Anakin rarely talked about his missions that didn't have just him and Obi-wan when he was a padawan. Mostly it was because the other Jedi didn't like him. She saw the guilt in his eyes for the actions he took that had unknowingly led up to the death of a friend.
"You can't blame yourself for Darra's death. You couldn't have known everything that happened to Tru's lightsaber," Padme tried to tell him.
"I could have told Tru about it," Anakin said.
"You could have," Padme agreed with him. "But you couldn't have known that Ferus would work on it, accidentally ruining it, and leaving him exposed. The two of you can't let your resentment to one another rule your lives forever."
Anakin smiled slightly. His wife always saw the good in everyone.
They were interrupted by Sabe's voice from upstairs.
"You guys should come look at this!"
000{{*}}000
Naboo; 66 bby
Padme was both nervous and excited at the same time.
When she scored high on the aptitude tests her parents had been shocked and thrilled to discover that she showed promise in the political field, yet also dismayed that they couldn't afford to send their young daughter to the LYP in Theed. It took Padme three years to earn a full scholarship and another year to get accepted in and make her living arrangements. Ryoo had arranged for her to live with her old friend Winama and her family while she attended the Program. In the two years of her attendance, Padme had become close to the Naberries. Winama reminding her so much of Ryoo and her mother, and Ruwee becoming like a little brother to her. Luke was like an older brother and mentor who helped her when she struggled in her studies. Since finding out about her skills, Padme had dreamed about serving and making a difference in the lives of Naboo.
Today, she had searched through every dress in Winama's shop before she finally settled for a lavender dress with overhanging sleeves that flattered her figure. She had Ryoo do her makeup and help put her dark, wavy hair into a neat bun.
"Try to relax," Ryoo said as she put the last hairpin in Padme's hair.
"I'm trying. Shiraya, I haven't felt like this since my first day at the Program," Padme said. Taking a deep breath, she looked at herself in the mirror. She still looked thin from her illness, but the lavender made her look healthier than the mourning black.
Once Ryoo was done, Padme turned to look at her with a smile. "This is it. My first step into politics. I just wish Mama was here to see this."
Ryoo smiled sadly at her. "She would have been proud."
A knock came from the door, and Winama cracked it open. "You look very nice, Padme," she said, coming over to Padme. In her hand was a gold comb with a pixie on it like the Naboo stories told to children. "When we were able to afford it, my mother bought this for me when I entered the Youth Program as a good luck charm. I want you to have it," Winama said to her.
Padme was shocked and she had a feeling that Ryoo was as well. "Winama, I could,'t." she tried to protest. She knew it meant a lot to Winama since her mother died not too long ago as well.
"I insist. You're going to the palace and it wouldn't hurt to have a bit of luck when dealing with the likes of Tapalo and Palpatine," Winama said as she placed the comb in Padme's hair.
"Thank you," Padme whispered.
Winama smiled gently at her. "You'll do fine Padme."
Later on that day, after dropping Ruwee and Jobal off at school, Padme went with Luke to the Palace. No matter how many times she saw it, it always amazed Padme of the sheer beauty of the Palace and the history it carried.
She walked next to Luke as they entered the Palace, showed their IDs and were scanned by the security before continuing down the halls towards the offices.
Padme struggled to keep up with Luke, so enraptured was she by the artistic designs in the hallways and the views she saw from the windows they passed. How did the staff move around the Palace without getting lost?
They entered the offices where a lot of interns, pages, and handmaidens worked at desks, and Padme saw the doors along one side of the room with names on them to recognize members of the Advisory Council.
"My office is the third door down in case you need me. I might be in a meeting with the Queen or any other members so I may not be able to help you when you need it," Luke warned.
"Don't worry Luke. I'm sure I'll be able to manage," Padme said, smiling brightly.
Luke narrowed his eyes. "I mean it Padme. Be careful what you day around people. Lady Veruna will be the one to assign you on tasks. Good luck." With that, Luke headed over to his office, shutting his door, and leaving Padme all alone in this strange new world.
She felt a little intimidated watching everybody going about their business, a hint of fear in their eyes. What was going on here that had everyone so nerve wracked?
Padme headed over to the door labeled 'Lady Veruna'. She knocked and heard a distinguished voice tell her to come in.
Once a magnificent beauty in her time, Lady Eirtae Veruna was now in her fifties and had aged rapidly, making her appear much older. Mother of Ars Veruna, Eirtae had surprisingly different views compared to her son's. While Ars wanted Naboo to enter into business with the Trade Federation and Damask Holdings, Eirtae wished Naboo to remain on its own.
Padme kept herself steady as she looked at the woman who was now her new boss. "Padme Lydonia. I'm the new intern," Padme introduced herself. The woman narrowed her eyes at her and for one moment, Padme felt small. All the excitement she had felt that morning evaporated, leaving her breathless. She suddenly remembered Sheeve's advice and hoped that Lady Veruna didn't read up on her nervousness.
Lady Veruna nodded. "I see. I have a set of jobs for you. I hope you can keep up with them."
"I will," Padme automatically replied.
She had half-expected running café runs for the staff when becoming an intern, and she was right. She made several runs to the café shop with a list of all kinds of café people wanted and went through security several times, unfortunately causing some of them to cool a bit and upsetting a lot of people. Next, she had to run errands for Lady Veruna that infuriated her like Veruna's dry cleaning and dropping off files to officials throughout the Palace. By the end of the day, she was exhausted. She had run into Pooja and Gregor a couple of times during the day but barely had time to exchange a few sentences before she had to run on another errand.
On their way home, Padme finally had the chance to ask Luke why everyone was so nervous.
"It's this business agreement. People don't want to sell plasma at a certain price when the buyers are going to resell it at a price twenty times than what they paid. However, if the Queen refuses, there could be consequences in our future trading for refusing the Trade Federation," Luke explained.
"What can they do?" Padme asked fearfully as they walked the streets towards the Naberrie home.
"They can talk and threaten other businesses from trading with us," Luke answered. "We depend on trades of plasma for supplies, but we shouldn't be cheated out of the credits payed for our plasma because when it comes on demand we'll run out of it on out land, and we'll be forced to invade Gungan territories to get more. We can't have another war with the Gungans."
They were quiet the rest of the way home, Padme thinking over Luke's words. She remembered when Jon would come home from working at the mines exhausted, and him and Ryoo worrying about bills and the threat of the mines closing always looming over them. She agreed with Luke. The Naboo should get the credits they earned with their plasma and not have to bother the Gungans to get more. Lives had already been lost over the right to mine plasma. No more should be lost. Yet if they refused, the Trade Federation would see it that they wouldn't sell their plasma to any rivals of theirs. It was a standoff.
That evening was like any other. Everyone talked about their day: Padme on her first day as an intern, Winama and Ryoo on the business they had that day, and the kids' excitement for the upcoming Blessing Day in a couple of weeks. Ruwee then mentioned an assignment in class they had to do. They had to pick a famous speech of Naboo history and present it to the school assembly before they went on break for Blessing Day.
As Ruwee talked excitedly on how he was going to do his on King Jafan I's victory speech, Padme noticed how quiet Jobal was. It wasn't unusual most of the time since the younger girl's father died a month ago, but lately she had begun to come out of shell more. Padme had the feeling that something was up.
So that night, after she finished her program assignments, Padme went to check on Jobal in her room. Jobal was laying in her bed, reading a book with the light turned on when Padme came in.
Padme knocked on the doorframe. "Mind if I come in?"
Jobal shook her head.
Padme sat down at the end of her bed. "You're worried about the speech aren't you?" she asked.
"I don't like talking in front of other people. I'm not like Ruwee or Ono. Eme anidale kept saying that because I was a peasant I wouldn't get far in politics," Jobal said.
Padme's heart sunk for the little girl, knowing very well what she was going through. "Don't listen to people like Eme. If you want to become a politician you got to put your heart into it and not let anybody scare you away. When I was your age, children in my school didn't think I would real far because I was terrible at public speaking, so I practiced in front of your parents and grandparents until I got better. It just takes time," Padme explain to her young niece.
Jobal looked down for a moment before nodding her head.
"Now, let's get you into bed or your mother will kill us both for staying up too long."
As Jobal slipped under the covers, she asked Padme to tell her a story. "Then I promise I'll go to sleep."
Padme sighed. "Which one?"
"The one with the pixie, Padme."
Padme nearly rolled her eyes. Mammy use to tell that story to her so many times she practically knew it by heart. "Alright," she said, sitting down next to Jobal on the bed.
"Long ago when humans first came to Naboo, there were pixies that lived in the land. They were small, with wings, and lived in the trees and flowers throughout the forests. One pixie was named Padme and she was as red as the red roses throughout the land.
When the humans came to Naboo, most of the pixies were afraid of them. They trampled the ground and cut down many of the trees to build their homes. So the pixies did everything they could to scare the humans off. They would steal little trinkets and mess with their machines, but the adults took no notice of these creatures and instead blamed it all on the children.
Padme, however was curious about the humans. You see, the adults couldn't see the pixies but the children could. One of these children was a girl named Sola, and she was the one who first saw Padme. Sola was frightened of the new world her family had taken her to that was so different to the world she previously had lived on, so Padme took her and the other children under her wing to show them all the wonder of Naboo. She showed them the waterfalls where they could get fresh water, how to swim, what berries were poisonous and what were not, what herbs they could use to heal themselves, and what animals were friendly.
One day, while they were exploring the woods, a dark spirit called the Wraith watched them. He was drawn by the pure and beautiful presence of Padme and the innocence of the children she protected, knowing that he had none of those things.
So on that day, he laid a trap for the children: a net hidden in the leaves and grass of the forest floor. Padme saw the trap and hurried to warn the children, but it was too late. The net caught them and the wraith seized Padme from behind before taking them to his cave. There he tried to make Padme swear that she would be with him forever. When she refused, he threatened to suck the souls of the children and make himself mortal for her. He readied a potion and was about to give it to the child Sola when Padme stole the potion and drunk it. The potion was poisonous to pixies and so Padme began to fade from this world.
Ashamed of his actions, the Wraith flew from the cave across the planet, never to be seen again. Padme died in the arms of Sola, surrounded by the children she rescued. The children mourned her death and returned her to the pixies. From Padme's teachings, the children were able to thrive on Naboo for generations to come."
"It's sad," Jobal said when Padme finished the story.
Padme nodded. "Yes it is, but Padme's bravery and sacrifice not only saved the children but helped them to survive the wilderness Naboo was when they first settled on Naboo."
"I don't want you to die like the Padme in the story," Jobal said, tears in her eyes.
Padme looked at her niece, startled. "Who said I was going to die? I'm not Jobal."
"Promise?"
"Promise. Now, let's get some sleep."
000{{*}}000
Well, there's that chapter. I can't promise when the next chapter will be. I have five classes this semester and I have my new job to worry about, but I promise I will work on this when I can. Thank you all, and please favor and review. It keeps the energy up.