Little One
Two days later, Kai and Ashlyn were sparring in one of the Jedi Training Halls of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. Kai swiped Ashlyn's legs out from under her which knocked the usually agile Jedi Knight onto her back. Ashlyn lied there for a few moments looking up at the ceiling as she tried to control the pain that had shot up her back.
"Ash?" Kai asked worriedly as he came to stand over her, "Are you okay?".
"Yes, I think so," Ashlyn replied as she grasped the hand that Kai offered and he pulled her to her feet. However, when he let go she tried to walk but swayed a little too much for his liking and Kai caught her shoulders.
"I think you should go get checked out by the healers," Kai suggested as he then helped her out of the training hall and down the corridor.
"No seriously I'm fine, just a little dizzy," Ashlyn tried to argue.
"This coming from someone who barely ever gets dizzy from anything," Kai pointed out.
Ashlyn continued to insist that she just needed to lie down as Kai tried to steer her towards the medical bay but upon arriving she still insisted that she was fine. The young man hesitated awkwardly not sure what to do, he was concerned about his childhood friend but at the same time she really never did like being in the medical bay.
"Okay, I'll walk you back to your private quarters but I'm going to be leaving straight away to tell Daly. You got me?" Kai asked and Ashlyn sighed heavily but nodded in defeat.
When they arrived at her private quarters he helped Ashlyn sit on the edge of the bed and he then left to find Daly.
"I wonder what did happen," Ashlyn whispered softly as she lay down to rest her head on the pillow. The Jedi Knight closed her eyes as she sensed something intriguing through the Force and when she investigated it her eyes snapped open in surprise. Ashlyn's hand came to rest on her mid-section as realisation dawned on her, sensing the baby properly for the first time and then she was suddenly bought out of her reverie by someone leaning over her.
"Ash, are you okay?" the voice asked worriedly.
Ashlyn blinked rapidly for a moment and then nodded slightly as she still tried to process what she had just discovered.
Daly leaned in and kissed her gently on the forehead.
"I was so worried when Kai told me what happened," Daly said and then he noticed the expression of shock on Ashlyn's face, "What is it?"
Ashlyn blinked, "Nothing, everything is fine," she answered softly as she tried to wrack her brains to come up with a way to tell him about the baby.
Daly moved a strand of her hair away from her face lovingly and then kissed her on the forehead again, "You should get some rest," he said in a concerned voice.
Ashlyn nodded slightly as Daly left the room with an explanation that he would be back soon to check on her. The Jedi Knight lay there on her back as she stared at the ceiling, her brain scrambling to figure out what to do. When it dawned on her that she would have to tell the Jedi Council her heart was gripped with fear, where it came from she was not sure but it caused her motherly instinct to protect her child to go into overdrive.
"Don't worry little one, I'll keep you safe," Ashlyn mumbled as she closed her eyes and masked the unborn baby's Force presence with hers so that nobody would be able to sense him.
The next morning, Ashlyn had decided that she needed to make sure she saw a medical professional of some kind to ensure that the child was healthy. Her first thought was the Jedi Healers in the Temple but she knew that if they checked her over they would have to tell the Jedi Council and for some reason, the Jedi Knight was still gripped with fear at the idea. Once she had gotten dressed in her Jedi robes Ashlyn headed for the West hangar where she got into a speeder and left for the only person who she could think of would help her. After half an hour of navigating the Coruscanti traffic, the Jedi Knight arrived at her destination which was the Galactic Senate building. Ashlyn walked briskly through the hallways and the Jedi Knight reached the door where Captain Typho stood on guard outside.
"Is Senator Amidala free?" Ashlyn asked.
He nodded and entered the room, "Just a moment."
The Jedi Knight waited anxiously for several minutes which passed by slowly and when Captain Typho returned she entered the office to find Padme sitting behind her desk.
"Ashlyn, I will admit that this visit is a surprise," the Senator of Naboo greeted her warmly as she rose from her chair and gave the young Jedi Knight a warm hug.
"I hope I am not intruding," Ashlyn stated as she took a seat opposite her.
"Absolutely not. What can I help you with?"
The Jedi Knight sighed nervously, "I'm not really sure how to explain it," she started, "I think I might be pregnant," she added uncertainly.
Padme's expression went from soft to surprised and then concern when she noticed that the younger woman was shaking slightly. The Senator had never seen Ashlyn this worried about something before and the fact that she had come to her rather than Anakin with this information deeply concerned the ex-Queen of Naboo.
"I know that I should be telling the Jedi High Council but I am so scared to do that and I don't even know why," Ashlyn revealed.
"Ashlyn, I think you should be going to Anakin. After all, he will be able to make sure nothing bad happens to you or the baby," Padme tried to encourage her softly, "Does Daly know?" she asked curiously.
Ashlyn shook her head lightly, "I don't know how to tell him," she revealed, "Do you know a doctor that I can go to just to make sure? I promise I will tell Daly as soon as I know that I definitely am pregnant."
Padme thought carefully for a moment, "I might know someone, give me a second," she stated as she rose to her feet and walked over to the holoterminal. After a few minutes of Padme talking to someone which Ashlyn had blocked out as she tried to figure out what to do next the Senator came back to sit behind her desk.
"The Doctor I see is on her way here now," Padme revealed, "I took a guess that you would feel more comfortable if the examination happened here in my office rather than at a medical centre," she added.
Ashlyn smiled, "Thank you Padme," she thanked the Senator with deep gratitude.
"Just promise me that when you return to the Temple that you will tell Daly as soon as possible," Padme requested, "And Anakin. It's too dangerous at the moment for you to keep something like this a secret," she added seriously.
"I promise I'll try," the Jedi Knight said.
Sensing that the young woman was still scared of something the Senator left it at that as she went through documents for a bill that she was currently trying to pass in the Senate while they waited for the Doctor to arrive. After about fifteen minutes passed, when Captain Typho entered looking slightly confused about something.
"My lady, did you request an appointment with Doctor Ilaitros?" the Captain asked in slight concern.
"Yes Captain, let her in please," Padme reassured the man.
"Very good, my lady," Captain Typho said as he left and was replaced by a woman who was wearing a white medical coat.
"Good morning Senator Amidala," Doctor Ilaitros greeted as Padme rose to her feet and met the woman at the door.
"Good morning Doctor, I apologise for the short notice," Padme apologised.
"Now what seems to be the problem?" the Doctor asked as she took a seat next to Ashlyn as the Senator walked around to sit on the other side of the desk.
"Doctor Ilaitros, this is a friend of mine Ashlyn," Padme introduced the two woman to each other, "Now Ashlyn thinks she may be pregnant but she would like to make absolutely certain before she informs the Jedi High Council," she explained the situation to the Doctor.
"Hmm very well, it is quite a simple test to determine pregnancy or not," Doctor Ilaitros said as she opened up her medical bag.
After half an hour, Ashlyn left Senator Amidala's office with the confirmation that she was indeed pregnant and had been for the last month. Now that the Jedi Knight thought about it she had been getting morning sickness quite a lot over the last month but she had just ignored it and attributed it to other random causes. However, as Ashlyn was flying the speeder back to the Jedi Temple her thoughts moved to coming up with a way of telling Daly about the baby. Upon reaching the West Hangar of the Jedi Temple, Ashlyn found her husband there waiting for her.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" Daly asked as he wrapped his arms around her protectively.
"Better," Ashlyn answered truthfully as her stomach did a somersault from feeling so nervous.
Daly frowned slightly in concern as he felt her body shaking slightly and he could feel how nervous she was through their Force bond, "Are you sure? You're shaking. What's going on?"
Ashlyn smiled warmly as she scrambled for a way to tell him the news, "Everything is fine," she said softly in an attempt to reassure him of that.
"Okay, we should get back to the North Hangar. Eric apparently has something to show everyone," Daly said but he couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right. However, he decided to leave it for now and talk to Ashlyn later when there was no one around to overhear them. The couple walked through the hangar doors and through the Temple; when they reached the North Hangar they found all their friends gathered. The Smuggler had been working heavily lately to expand the cargo hold of the Scoundrels Constellation so that he could fit larger shipments as well as fit another ship that was similar size to The Wolf-Star Runner in there. This meant that when the group went on missions together all their Starfighters would be able to fit snugly in the cargo bay.