Categories > Movies > Star Wars > Coruscant Shadows
Padmé joined Motée in the latter's quarters to follow the reactions to the assasination over the holofeed. Moré Yelnina's reaction was just what they would hope it would be: she was upset, but it was clear that she knew her father's death would only make her own life better, and she wasn't inclined to launch any investigation. She might suspect Senator Okiltine's handmaidens, but if she made no effort, noone would try to arrest them.
Noone, that was, except a suspicious Jedi.
It took her some time to be able to break it to Motée. As expected, the other girl completely lost her cool. Padmé listened through her initial hysterical contemplations of what Padmé had done, the danger she had put the Senator in and the shame she had exposed her to, every word making her heart heavier, until at last she found herself getting to her knees and ripping off her collar to bare her throat, at which point Motée stopped and stared at her in shock.
"Do you really feel like you deserve death because of the Jedi?" she finally asked. "Or can you simply not live with the fact that you killed two men, even though your actions were honorable?"
"The latter," Padmé admitted. "But if you won't kill me, I won't kill myself."
"My father had more than one enemy," Moré was being shown on the holofeed, talking to a reporter, "and when his guard is convinced the deed itself was done by a hired assasin, like the ones that tried to kill Senator Okiltine a couple of weeks ago...no, I don't hold out much hope of finding out was behind this."
"And after you nearly pulled it off...get up."
Palpatine seemed genuinely grieved at the man's death. Padmé supposed that as Chancellor, he made it his policy to keep a compassionate view of everyone. He, she was sure, would make know attempt to uncover any truths.
The console gave them no warning when Anakin arrived; he didn't bother registering that he'd come to see them. When the door swooshed open without warning, both girls leapt to their feet and trained their blasters on his form, than lowered them.
"Master Jedi," said Motée, keeping her voice calm with effort. "Please be so kind as to use the console by the docking platform in future; there's one there just like there's one outside the Senator's building. We have reason not to trust strangers."
Anakin ignored her, instead looking directly at Padmé. She felt as if the ice in his eyes cut right through her, exposing her black deed for all the world to see. No, there was no keeping it from him. "You said I'd know soon enough," he growled.
"And so you do," she replied, though her voice barely came out. She wondered if she should have shown her throat to him.
"You know nothing," Motée said, raising her blaster again.
"Don't try it," Padmé told her. "You can't hurt him."
"Don't worry," he addressed her. "I've read enough about Naboo custom to know how better than to tell the authorities; it wouldn't be the guilty who would suffer than, would it?"
"No," said Motée, "it wouldn't. You must believe it when I swear that Senator Okiltine had nothing to do with any of this."
"I guessed that, since I have carried back and forth all your contact with her, and the recording that led you two to this act in the first place. But this is not the reason that I have come." He stepped out of the doorframe and into the quarters. "I went looking for you at the Senator's quarters first, and we may have to go back there, as well as to the Naberrie quarters, but I am to take you to the Temple as quickly as possible. My Master and I are traveling out, and we are to escort you to your Senator and leave you with her en route."
"About time," replied Motée, looking much happier. "Yes, run Padmé over there immediately. I'll be packed and join you in about an hour." Before either of them could object, she was running into her bedroom.
"Come on." Anakin had not looked directly at Padmé since turning his attention to Motée, and did not do so now. She followed him out of Motée's quarters a little bit behind him.
But that distance couldn't be maintained once they got into his speeder. Then they had to sit next to each other. Still he avoided looking at her. She looked around at the buildings flashing by, but the sight only reminded her of that first speeder ride they had gone on together, when she had been deceiving him even then, though innocently so, it seemed now. Eyes watering dangerously, she gave up trying to not look at him.
He was tense, and those lines of his face visible stood guard against her. Was it just her imagination, or was there a new sense of heaviness in the air around him? There was again parts of him closed to her completely, ones that she had glimpsed into before, some of them just the previous night, just as she wanted to beg him to tell her what it was she had done to him. Even the deepest rage coming from him, the unavoidable fact that yes, she had caused him this pain, would have been preferable to this cold, cruel silent slicing of her heart from his, to be left bleeding below her openly tearing eyes.
But that assumed he had ever been tied to her. No, perhaps this was no more than cool disgust for a creature that he now knew to be so below him that she didn't even deserve a Jedi's normal compassion.
"I'll go to the Senator's quarters. Meet me there when you're packed." He spoke quickly on docking, and left even more quickly. But Padmé stayed and when he was out of sight, she let herself curl up in the seat and cry for the love she felt for this brave and beautiful man whom she could never now call hers.
Noone, that was, except a suspicious Jedi.
It took her some time to be able to break it to Motée. As expected, the other girl completely lost her cool. Padmé listened through her initial hysterical contemplations of what Padmé had done, the danger she had put the Senator in and the shame she had exposed her to, every word making her heart heavier, until at last she found herself getting to her knees and ripping off her collar to bare her throat, at which point Motée stopped and stared at her in shock.
"Do you really feel like you deserve death because of the Jedi?" she finally asked. "Or can you simply not live with the fact that you killed two men, even though your actions were honorable?"
"The latter," Padmé admitted. "But if you won't kill me, I won't kill myself."
"My father had more than one enemy," Moré was being shown on the holofeed, talking to a reporter, "and when his guard is convinced the deed itself was done by a hired assasin, like the ones that tried to kill Senator Okiltine a couple of weeks ago...no, I don't hold out much hope of finding out was behind this."
"And after you nearly pulled it off...get up."
Palpatine seemed genuinely grieved at the man's death. Padmé supposed that as Chancellor, he made it his policy to keep a compassionate view of everyone. He, she was sure, would make know attempt to uncover any truths.
The console gave them no warning when Anakin arrived; he didn't bother registering that he'd come to see them. When the door swooshed open without warning, both girls leapt to their feet and trained their blasters on his form, than lowered them.
"Master Jedi," said Motée, keeping her voice calm with effort. "Please be so kind as to use the console by the docking platform in future; there's one there just like there's one outside the Senator's building. We have reason not to trust strangers."
Anakin ignored her, instead looking directly at Padmé. She felt as if the ice in his eyes cut right through her, exposing her black deed for all the world to see. No, there was no keeping it from him. "You said I'd know soon enough," he growled.
"And so you do," she replied, though her voice barely came out. She wondered if she should have shown her throat to him.
"You know nothing," Motée said, raising her blaster again.
"Don't try it," Padmé told her. "You can't hurt him."
"Don't worry," he addressed her. "I've read enough about Naboo custom to know how better than to tell the authorities; it wouldn't be the guilty who would suffer than, would it?"
"No," said Motée, "it wouldn't. You must believe it when I swear that Senator Okiltine had nothing to do with any of this."
"I guessed that, since I have carried back and forth all your contact with her, and the recording that led you two to this act in the first place. But this is not the reason that I have come." He stepped out of the doorframe and into the quarters. "I went looking for you at the Senator's quarters first, and we may have to go back there, as well as to the Naberrie quarters, but I am to take you to the Temple as quickly as possible. My Master and I are traveling out, and we are to escort you to your Senator and leave you with her en route."
"About time," replied Motée, looking much happier. "Yes, run Padmé over there immediately. I'll be packed and join you in about an hour." Before either of them could object, she was running into her bedroom.
"Come on." Anakin had not looked directly at Padmé since turning his attention to Motée, and did not do so now. She followed him out of Motée's quarters a little bit behind him.
But that distance couldn't be maintained once they got into his speeder. Then they had to sit next to each other. Still he avoided looking at her. She looked around at the buildings flashing by, but the sight only reminded her of that first speeder ride they had gone on together, when she had been deceiving him even then, though innocently so, it seemed now. Eyes watering dangerously, she gave up trying to not look at him.
He was tense, and those lines of his face visible stood guard against her. Was it just her imagination, or was there a new sense of heaviness in the air around him? There was again parts of him closed to her completely, ones that she had glimpsed into before, some of them just the previous night, just as she wanted to beg him to tell her what it was she had done to him. Even the deepest rage coming from him, the unavoidable fact that yes, she had caused him this pain, would have been preferable to this cold, cruel silent slicing of her heart from his, to be left bleeding below her openly tearing eyes.
But that assumed he had ever been tied to her. No, perhaps this was no more than cool disgust for a creature that he now knew to be so below him that she didn't even deserve a Jedi's normal compassion.
"I'll go to the Senator's quarters. Meet me there when you're packed." He spoke quickly on docking, and left even more quickly. But Padmé stayed and when he was out of sight, she let herself curl up in the seat and cry for the love she felt for this brave and beautiful man whom she could never now call hers.
Sign up to rate and review this story