Bibble stiffened. 'The Naboo will not be intimidated, not even at the cost of innocent lives-'
'Perhaps you should worry more about yourself, Governor!' Gunray cut him off sharply. 'The odds are good that you are going to die much sooner than your people!' He was shaking with rage, and all at once his patience was exhausted. 'Enough of this!' he exploded. 'Take him away!'
The battle droids moved quickly, surrounding Sio Bibble, separating him from his colleagues.
'This invasion will gain you nothing!' the governor called back over his shoulder as he was dragged out. 'We are a democracy! The people have decided, Viceroy! They will not live in tyranny...'
The rest of what he said was lost as he disappeared through the doorway into the hall beyond. The Naboo officials filed out after him, silent and dejected.
The Neimoidian stared after them momentarily, then turned his attention to OOM-9 as the commander of his battle droids approached, metal face blank, voice devoid of inflection.
'My troops are in position to begin searching the swamps for the rumored underwater villages,' OOM-9 reported. 'They will not stay hidden for long.'
Nute Gunray nodded and dismissed him with a wave of his hand. He thought nothing of these savages who occupied the swamps. They would be crushed in short order. For all intents and purposes, the planet was in his control.
He leaned back in the mechano-chair, a measure of calmness returning. All that remained was for the Sith Lords to bring him the Queen. Certainly they should have little difficulty in accomplishing that.
Nevertheless, he knew he wouldn't be happy until this business was over.
Aboard the Queen's transport, Anakin Skywalker sat shivering in a corner of the central chamber, trying to decide what he should do to get warm. Everyone else was asleep, and he had been asleep as well, but only for a short time, troubled by his dreams. He came awake to the silence and could not make himself move, paralyzed by more than simply the cold.
Jar Jar slept to one side, stretched out in a chair, head back, snoring loudly. Nothing kept the Gungan from sleeping. Or eating, for that matter. The boy smiled briefly. R2-D2 rested close by, upright and mostly silent, his lights blinking softly.
Anakin stared into the darkness, willing himself to move, to overcome his inertia. But his dreams haunted him still. He found himself thinking of his mother and home, and everything closed down inside. He missed her so much! He had thought it would get better once he was away, but it hadn't. Everything reminded him of her, and if he tried to close his eyes against those memories, he found her face waiting for him, suspended in the darkness of his thoughts, anxious and worn.
Tears came to his eyes, unbidden. Maybe he had made a mistake by coming. Maybe he should go home. Except he couldn't now. Maybe not ever again.
A slim figure entered the room, and Anakin watched the light of a viewscreen illuminate Padme's soft face. Standing as if carved from stone, she clicked on a recording and stood watching the replay of Sio Bibble's plea to Queen Amidala to come home, to save her people from starvation, to help them in their time of need. She watched it all the way through, then shut it off again and stood staring at nothing, her head bent.
What was she doing?
Suddenly she seemed to sense him watching, and turned quickly toward where he crouched. Her beautiful face seemed tired and careworn as she approached and knelt beside him. He stiffened, trying desperately to stop from crying, but he couldn't hide either the tears or his shivering, and was left huddled before her, revealed.
'Are you all right, Annie?' she asked him softly.
'It's very cold,' he managed to whisper.
She smiled and removed her heavy overjacket, wrapping it around his shoulders and tucking it about him. 'You're from a warm planet, Annie. Space is cold.'
Anakin nodded, pulling the jacket tighter. He brushed at his eyes. 'You seem sad,' he said.
If she saw the irony in his observation, 'she did not say so. 'The Queen is worried. Her people are suffering, dying. She must convince the Senate to intervene, or else...' She trailed off, unwilling to speak the words. 'I'm not sure what will happen,' she finished, her voice distant, her eyes sliding away from his to fix on something else.
'I'm not sure what's going to happen to me, either,' he admitted worriedly. 'I don't know if I'll ever see-'
He stopped, his throat tightening, the words fading away into silence. He took a deep breath, furrowed his brow, and reached into his pocket.
'Here,' he said, 'I made this for you. So you'd remember me. I carved it out of a japor snippet. Take it. It will bring you good fortune.'
He handed her an intricately carved wooden pendant. She studied it a moment, face lowered in shadow, then slipped it around her neck.
'It's beautiful. But I don't need this to remember you.' Her face lifted to his with a smile. 'How could I forget my future husband?' She looked down at the pendant, fingering it thoughtfully. 'Many things will change when we reach Coruscant, Annie. My caring for you will not be one of them.'
The boy nodded, swallowing. 'I know. And I won't stop caring for you, either. Only, I miss--'
His voice broke, and the tears sprang into his eyes once more.
'You miss your mother,' the girl finished quietly.
Anakin nodded, wiping at his face, unable to speak a word as Padme Naberrie drew him against her and held him close.
