Even long after his ship had disappeared from sight, Neva stood on the Veranda, deep in thought as she looked out over the Capital. It was only when she heard Padmé approach that she pulled herself from her musings. Padmé had changed into a pair of cream pants and a light tan tunic complete with supportive belt and functional boots, obviously prepared for travel. Normally Neva would have been curious about what the Senator was up to, but she found that curiosity strangely absent. Padmé just stood, watching the Former Princess, meeting her gaze. Neva sighed heavily, breaking the silence.

"I'm sorry, Padmé, that I didn't tell you," Neva had paused, her hazel eyes shifting back to look out among the glittering spires and rushing speeders, "but I think you, of all people, can understand why I kept my silence." It was a long moment before Padmé responded, obviously weighing her words carefully.

"You love him," she said slowly, stating it rather than asking. There was no censure, just sympathy. Neva closed her eyes, commanding the threatening tears not to fall. She was still wearing the dark cloak she had worn for her errands. She pulled it tighter around herself, hugging herself close.

"Yes."

"Is it serious?" Neva turned her gaze back to the Senator, studying her for a moment.

"Not so serious as what you have with Anakin. Not nearly." Padmé blushed when Neva spoke, but she didn't lower her gaze in embarrassment. That gave Neva a small measure of comfort for some reason, though she couldn't explain why. "We spent a great deal of time together on Naboo before the Election. After I was—injured, our feelings for each other came out. While we have never denied their existence, we decided together that to act upon them would be wrong. He was a Jedi, I was still torn over whether or not to accept the Throne. And no matter how much we wanted to be together, we both knew we couldn't have a future, not with the vows and commitments we had already made. But our feelings never diminished. I have never stopped loving him." As she trailed off, Neva couldn't help but notice Padmé looking away, unable to keep the Former Princess's gaze. Neva frowned, but before she could question the shame written on Padmé's face the Senator looked up, struggling to put her thoughts into words.

"I said the same thing to Anakin once; that as a Jedi and a Senator we couldn't have a real future. It would destroy us, I said. But we decided that wasn't enough. What we felt was too strong to fight, and too precious to deny." Tears appeared in Padmé's eyes when she paused, and she almost wasn't able to continue. But she found her voice after a moment, though it was thick with emotion. "Now, I'm not so sure. His fear for me, for our baby; that has to be what's driven him to this. He was always talking about finding a way to save us, to save me from dying in childbirth. I'm scared that Anakin has been twisted, that the man I married isn't the man I fell in love with anymore." Neva's eyes widened in shock at Padmé's admission.

"Married?!" Neva didn't intend to let the exclamation slip, but she was so caught off guard by the revelation that she couldn't help it. Padmé nodded absently. They stood in silence for a moment, each one deep in thought. Neva turned, moving closer to her friend. She didn't presume to reach out to her, though. They both knew that the men they each loved were now enemies, and that one was very likely to cause the death of the other. It created a chasm between them that their friendship couldn't quite bridge.

"You're going after him, aren't you?" A flash of panic surfaced in Padmé's dark eyes at the former Princess' statement, but Neva continued before she could object. "I'm not going to run off and tell Obi-wan, Padmé, no matter how much I might be tempted. I know, just as you do, that when they face each other, only one is going to walk away from that fight. And we all know, Obi-wan included, that Anakin is the more powerful. We both know the odds." Sympathy spread across Padmé's features, but she knew better than to say anything, and for that Neva was thankful. One thing gnawed at her though, one thing she didn't quite understand. "But why?" At Neva's question, Padmé took a deep breath. She knew exactly what the former Princess meant. Neva saw it in her face that she wasn't entirely sure why she was going herself.

"He asked me to wait. But after what Obi-wan said... I have to know. I have to see his face when I ask him what he's done. I need to help him realize this is not the answer. I have to. For our sake, and this baby's," her hands came up to her belly, cradling the unborn child within her. There was a desperation and a faint but determined hope in her voice that broke Neva's heart. There was also a sad recognition, like part of her already knew there was nothing she could do. This time Neva did reach out, taking Padmé's hands in her own.

"If anyone has a chance to—to make him understand, it's going to be you, Padmé." A faint, hopeful smile came to her face before the Senator began to move away. As Padmé began to retreat from the Veranda, one of Neva's tears finally managed to escape and slowly made its way down her cheek.

"I'm leaving Coruscant, Padmé," the Senator turned from where she stood in the archway that led inside, pausing when she heard Neva's voice, "I can't stay here anymore. There's nothing left for me here. I—" She couldn't bring herself to finish.

"Will you go back to Naboo?" Neva thought for a moment.

"I don't know. Most likely."

"I'm sorry, Neva." There was nothing left to say. With that, Padmé left Neva alone on the Veranda.

After another moment looking out at the City, Neva turned one last time, slowly making her way across the terrace. Pausing at the same archway Padmé had, Neva turned to look out at the Veranda one last time. It really was a beautiful view, but not the kind of beautiful she longed for. Sighing sadly, Neva decided it was time to go, and disappeared into the depths of the Apartment herself.

***

She had done exactly as he asked. Even now she sat, waiting, in one of the Passenger Quarters of the Tantive IV as Organa's ship waited for—well, something. She didn't know what. Alderaan's Senator had said he had one more task to complete before they could depart, but that it wouldn't take long.

She had arrived at the Senator's Coruscant Residence with her few belongings only to be initially turned away. It seemed that Organa had enacted similar orders as Padmé, restricting all visitors asking to see the Senator. But as soon as she had mentioned the name of her Jedi, she had been invited inside at once. She had been taken directly to Senator Organa from there and then left alone with him.

"Lady Amalia," he had said, not bothering to hide his confusion at her presence, especially as she was still holding onto her possessions, "to what do I owe the pleasure—" she had held up a hand then, interrupting him.

"I think we both know that had I been here on Senate business, I would not have made it through the front door. I am here on Jedi business, Senator, of a sort." His face had gone deadly serious then, and he sat forward in his seat, waiting for her to explain. It took her a moment to decide how much to reveal, but eventually, she had decided that she had little left to lose.

"I am here because Obi-wan asked me to come to you for help," she had hesitated when Organa started at the intimate way she referred to her Jedi, obviously not expecting that, "He asked that I leave the Capital, and is concerned that my—attachment to him puts me in danger. He said that I could trust you to help me, as I suspect you have helped him already."

"You have an attachment with Master Kenobi? I was under the impression that the Jedi forswore—" again she had interrupted him, feeling horrible for ignoring her manners so purposefully.

"It's not the kind of relationship you think. It is an emotional bond only. Nothing more developed between us. Our commitments saw to that." He had nodded.

"I understand, Milady. Of course, you will have my assistance to get to wherever it is you wish to go. Do not fear; you are safe with us." She had thought herself calm up until that point, but his genuine assurance that she was among those she could trust and that she was about to leave the Capital lifted a huge weight off her shoulders, and before she could stop herself, she had sunk back into the cushions of her seat in relief and exhaustion. It was uncharacteristic of her to fall out of her political persona around acquaintances, and it was obvious that it had taken Organa by surprise. Concern had sprung to the Senator's face, and in a moment he had joined her on the couch where she was sitting, laying a gentle hand on her shoulder. She had straightened immediately, embarrassed by her lack of control. She had begun to apologize, but he had been the one to interrupt then.

"I can only imagine that this has been a trying few days. You must be exhausted and dreadfully worried for Master Kenobi," he had held up his hand when she had tried to defend herself, "do not try to deny it, I can see it in your face. And I saw your reaction in the Senate yesterday; Palpatine's actions are—well, there is nothing we can do for the time being. Please," he stood, pulling her to her feet along with him, "you are welcome to one of the guest chambers here. I will send someone to take you to my ship after we decide when to depart, but until then, I insist you take some time to rest." There had been no way she could adequately convey her gratitude, and Organa had insisted such expressions were unnecessary.

He had been right, though; she was exhausted, emotionally and physically. She hadn't truly slept since the night the Temple was attacked. Plus with everything that had happened since...the respite Organa had offered was precisely what Neva had needed to keep going. It had been hard to relax, even a little at first, but eventually she had drifted off into a light sleep. She had been woken a short time later by one of Organa's aides and informed that, once he returned from this last errand, they would be departing Coruscant. In next to no time at all, she was settled aboard the Tantive IV, waiting impatiently for Organa to return.

As the time passed, she found herself getting frustrated. Somewhere, Obi-wan was trying to find Anakin, maybe already had, and was intent on trying to destroy him. What was Neva doing? Sitting. Waiting. She was beginning to go a little stir-crazy. In an attempt to distract herself, she exited her quarters, contenting herself to locating the ship's common area. After some wandering and the assistance of a couple obliging crewmembers, she eventually found her way to the Common Room. It wasn't really the wisest of plans, though, for almost as soon as she found the room, she found herself getting anxious again. So, she settled for pacing, hoping that, if it didn't burn off some of her impatience, it would at least let her work off some nervous energy.

So she paced, concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, watching the undulations of the dark blue fabric of her skirts that moved in time with her feet. Her mind was whirring, mostly with worry, but she tried desperately to keep herself from dwelling on things like Obi-wan's safety, Padmé's mission, the formation of Palpatine's new Empire, the end of the war or even Organa's apparent lateness. There was nothing she could do about any of it, so for now, she just went from one end of the room to the other, her long braid drumming rhythmically against her back.

Thankfully, it wasn't too much longer before her pacing was interrupted by Organa's much anticipated arrival. He wasn't alone, though, and his companion's identity surprised Neva.

"Master Yoda," she couldn't help but exclaim when she caught sight of the diminutive Jedi at the Senator's side. A frown appeared on the Jedi Master's face for a split second when she spotted him, but it was gone in an instant, replaced with the mild expression she was used to, though there was a distinctly sad cast to his wizened features this time. Neva had only encountered the Jedi once or twice, and always as part of Padmé's entourage. Organa quietly cleared his throat before introducing Neva, as she had never been formally introduced to the Jedi before. As she gave her condolences to the Jedi, Neva couldn't help but wonder just what the Senator had told him about her presence there, and what the Jedi made of it if he had. If the concerned and wary look in those big brown eyes was anything to go by, he knew, and he was not impressed. At this moment, though, Neva really didn't care. What did it matter that she and Obi-wan had feelings for each other. It hadn't interfered with either of their responsibilities; they were both too dedicated and professional for that, save the last few days on her part, of course.

So when Senator Organa revealed that they were headed to Polis Massa where, hopefully, they would rendezvous with Obi-wan, hope surged within Neva along with relief. Finally, the waiting was over. But just as she was glad that the waiting was done, her apprehension began to return. She still didn't know what fate had befallen her Jedi. Part of her insisted that she would know if something had happened, if something went wrong.

But the rest of her knew that she wouldn't know. She had no idea if he had found Anakin, or if he was still alive. As much as she fought to avoid the thought, she couldn't shake the image of him lying—no. She refused to think that. He had promised he would come back to her.

He had to. She didn't know what she would do if he didn't.

A/N: Thanks for reading!

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