Night had long since fallen, but Riyo Chuchi still couldn't sleep. A faint smile lingered on her lips — the past evening had been eventful…
Riyo was accustomed to arranging everything, if not at the highest level, then at least at an acceptable one — so that she would not be embarrassed, first and foremost, before herself. The atmosphere in her modest home in the Senate District of Coruscant was not overly pretentious, but she did her best to ensure that the meeting went well. A couple of droids assisted her with this: they arranged chairs around a low table and selected unobtrusive music. A little later, the ordered food arrived. Cakes, among other things.
Knight Mikore Vikt and his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, arrived right on time. At first, the Pantoran senator felt a little out of place, but the atmosphere soon warmed. The Jedi joked — and so did the girl. Both enjoyed the refreshments, and the cakes… well, they even had a bet on who could eat more. Riyo laughed heartily. It was nothing like the usual atmosphere at receptions and parties hosted by other senators. They chatted about various topics, from fashion — with Ahsoka taking a particularly active part — to the latest news and gossip.
And when Ahsoka, tired and full, dozed off in her chair, Riyo found herself in an interestingconversation with Mikore. A more… serious one.
***
"Mikore, do you really think that the Loyalist Committee," Riyo asked carefully, "is behaving improperly?"
"Although I spoke in the heat of the moment," Mikore replied after a pause, "but… there is some truth in my words."
"But aren't they fighting to end the war as soon as possible?"
"Yes, their words are beautiful — I won't argue with that. But their actions now look truly ridiculous. We must strive to prevent wars; only then will politicians mean something... But now, their words are nothing compared to the blasters in the hands of combat droids."
"Are you saying that everything we do is in vain?"
"I would like to understand what exactly you're doing. On the one hand, the Senate wants to end the war. On the other, it refuses to give us new fighters and sabotages ship construction… According to that logic, the simplest solution would be to surrender to the enemy. But they won't do that… at least, most of them won't. Let's not look too far — let's take Pantora as an example. You want the Republic to protect you, yet at the same time you bind our hands."
"Do you think the war will continue?"
"Yes. And for a very long time. That's why staying on the sidelines — tempting as it may be — unfortunately won't work."
There was a pause.
"Although... all this talk about new batches of clones," Mikore added quietly, "smacks of hypocrisy."
"Why?"
"The Republic is defended by clones — not its citizens, not slaves, not even droids. There are too few Jedi, and the main burden of the war falls on them. We couldn't survive without the clones. They could survive without us. But… clones are treated as things bought with credits. They have no names, no rights — but, frankly, they don't care. Still, that doesn't change the fact that the Republic's attitude toward them is unjust."
Riyo's eyes widened. She had never thought about it that way before.
***
Riyo rolled onto her other side and pulled the blanket up to her chin. The conversation forced her to rethink much of what was happening in the Republic. The Jedi's words had struck a deep chord within her. Perhaps the new bill proposed at yesterday's Senate meeting truly did make sense?
And yet, one moment from that evening inexplicably made her heart beat a little faster: Mikore Vikt had looked only at her the entire time — and she found it… pleasant? And then he had said, "If you need help, I'm always here."
With those thoughts, she finally fell asleep.
***
Two days had passed since that evening. Nothing particularly significant had happened during that time.
Well… except that I kept replaying memories of that night over and over in my head.
Part of me wanted to see Riyo again, but I understood there was no reason to do so right now. Besides, she had mentioned she would be busy these days…
Otherwise, we simply rested and enjoyed the calm. Our training sessions weren't exhausting — quite the opposite. When we weren't fencing, I told Ahsoka about various historical events. She listened with genuine interest.
And, remembering my promise, I prepared a report for Jasmill Selanno. In truth, I compiled it from fragments of my other reports, supplemented with documents obtained from Sumeragi and Blam. The result turned out rather impressive. Adding a few personal observations and suggestions, I sent the hefty file to the addressee with a clear conscience.
***
Padme Amidala gazed intently at the view of Coruscant beyond the window, and at last she spotted a familiar airspeeder — or rather, not the vehicle itself, but the pilot's distinctive manner of flying. And her heart could not be mistaken…
Moments later, Anakin — her Ani — was already holding her in his arms.
"How are you, my love?"
"Oh, Ani… I was so afraid. There were rumors that you had died on Jabiim. When I learned you'd been transferred to Muunilinst, I felt a little calmer, but still…"
"You know I always come back to you. But the rumors were only slightly exaggerated. We barely got out of there. What's more," Anakin added, stepping back and waving a hand dismissively, "we simply ran away, leaving the others there… to die. You know, I'm a little jealous of Vikt, actually — he stayed and even managed to leave with dignity… But we took Muunilinst. And Obi-Wan says I'll soon be promoted to Jedi Knight!"
"Vikt… Do you know what he did here? Right in front of the senators and the Chancellor, he nearly strangled Bail Organa!"
"Really?" Anakin blinked in surprise. "I hadn't heard that. We just returned."
Padme briefly recounted the incident.
"There are already such wild details going around the Senate. It's incredible how fast stories get embellished!"
"You know," the young man said thoughtfully, "he's right about something."
"Who?"
"Vikt. Organa shouldn't have said those things to a Jedi."
Anakin laughed softly.
"Besides, I don't really like Senator Organa — you know that. He's always hovering around you…"
"Anakin," Padmу said gently, "we're friends. And we work on the Committee—"
"Let's not argue." His eyes met hers. "I haven't seen you in so long…"
They fell silent, merging into a long, lingering kiss.