called shaaks grazed contentedly nearby, seemingly oblivious to the couple. They were curious-looking four-legged beasts, with huge, bloated bodies. Insects buzzed about in the air, too busy with the flowers to take any time to bother either Anakin or Padme. Padme sat on the grass, absently picking flowers, bringing them up to deeply inhale their scents. Every so often, she glanced over at Anakin, but only briefly, almost afraid to let him notice. She loved the way he was reacting to this place, to all of Naboo, his simple joys forcing her to see things as she had when she was younger, before the real world had pushed her to a place of responsibility. It surprised her that a Jedi Padawan would be so…
She couldn't think of the word. Carefree? Joyous? Spirited? Some combination of the three?
'Well?' Anakin prompted, forcing Padme to consider again the question he had just asked her.
'I don't know,' she said dismissively, purposely exaggerating her frustration.
'Sure you do! You just don't want to tell me!'
Padme gave a helpless little laugh. 'Are you going to use one of your Jedi mind tricks on me?'
'They only work on the weak-minded,' Anakin explained. 'You are anything but weak-minded.' He ended with an innocent, wide-eyed look that Padm simply could not resist.
'All right,' she surrendered. 'I was twelve. His name was Palo. We were both in the Legislative Youth Program. He was a few years older than I…'
She narrowed her eyes as she finished, teasing Anakin with sudden intensity. 'Very cute,' she said, her voice taking on a purposeful, suggestive tone. 'Dark curly hair… dreamy eyes…'
'All right, I get the picture!' the Jedi cried, waving his hands in exasperation. He calmed a moment later, though, and settled back more seriously. 'Whatever happened to him?'
'I went into public service. He went on to become an artist.'
'Maybe he was the smart one.'
'You really don't like politicians, do you?' Padme asked, a bit of anger creeping in despite the warm wind and the idyllic setting.
'I like two or three,' Anakin replied. 'But I'm not really sure about one of them.' His smile was perfectly disarming and Padme had to work hard to keep any semblance of a frown against it.
'I don't think the system works,' Anakin finished, matter-of-factly. 'Really?' she replied sarcastically. 'Well, how would you have it work?'
Anakin stood up, suddenly intense. 'We need a system where the politicians sit down and discuss the problem, agree what's in the best interests of the people, and then do it,' he said, as if it was perfectly simple and logical.
'Which is exactly what we do,' came Padme's unhesitating reply. Anakin looked at her doubtfully.
'The trouble is that people don't always agree,' she explained. 'In fact, they hardly ever do.'
'Then they should be made to.'
That statement caught Padme a bit off guard. Was he so convinced that he had the answers that he… No, she put that unsettling thought out of her mind. 'By whom?' she asked. 'Who is going to make them?'
'I don't know,' he answered, waving his hands again in obvious frustration.
'Someone.'
'You?'
'Of course not me!'
'But someone.'
'Someone wise.'
'That sounds an awful lot like a dictatorship,' Padme said, winning the debate. She watched Anakin as a mischievous little grin began to spread across his face.
'Well,' he said calmly, 'if it works…'
Padme tried to hide her shock. What was he talking about? How could he believe that? She stared at him, and he returned the severe look-but he couldn't hold it, and burst out laughing.
'You're making fun of me!'
'Oh no,' Anakin said, backing away and falling to sit on the soft grass, hands out defensively before him. 'I'd be much too frightened to tease a Senator.'
'You're so bad!' She reached over, picked up a piece of fruit, and threw it at him, and when he caught it, she threw another, and then another.
'You're always so serious,' Anakin scolded, and he began juggling the fruit.
'I'm so serious?' Her incredulity was feigned, because Padme agreed with the assessment to a great extent. For all her life, she had watched people like Palo go off and follow their hearts, while she had followed the path of duty. She had known great triumph and great joy, to be sure, but all of it had been wrapped up in the extravagant outfits of Naboo's Queen, and now in the endless responsibilities of a Galactic Senator. Maybe she just wanted to take off all those trappings, all those clothes, and dive into the sparkling water, for no better reason than to feel its cool comfort, for no better reason than to laugh.
She grabbed up another piece of fruit and threw it at Anakin, and he caught it and seamlessly put it up with the others. Then another, and another, until too many went his way and he lost control, then tried futilely to duck away from the dropping fruit.
Padme had to clutch at her belly, she was laughing so hard. Caught up in the whirlwind of the moment, Anakin sprang to his feet and ran off to the side, cutting in front of a shaak and frightening it with his sheer
