Two more years to this day, Dormé would officially enter royal service. She just passed the latest tests which allowed her to continue her training. The final trial would be administered, if things progressed on time, in two years. Today was one of the many days she hoped her friend, the Prince of the Coruscanti Empire, would be able to visit her. It always bothered her that his older brother kept holding him back, though it was clear to everyone he ought to have already been granted the title of Jedi Knight. Dormé thought of her friend often while he was away. There were many instances in which she would find mysterious packages addressed to her, only to open them and find they were gifts from the prince himself. First it began with a pair of shoes to replace the ones she lost in the caves. Then came datachips of legends of old, trinkets and jewellery, all of them with a datachip letter from Anakin. Anakin, it seemed, truly made an effort to write properly, but he had not exaggerated at his atrocious spelling and grammar. Either way, she cherished the letters and showed off her gifts, enjoying the envious looks she received.

Moteé was the only one who was unfazed by the gifts and it was for this reason, Dormé didn’t feel bad talking to her about them. However, Moteé didn’t become very close to Dormé as a friend and Dormé was quite conscious of what Anakin had said she was like. Dormé thusly was able to recognise Moteé’s manipulative behaviour. She always looked forward to Anakin’s visits, though they were few and far between and always extremely short. But as the months between their last visit wore on, Dormé continued to receive and brag about the gifts her friend gave her. Moteé, it seemed, was the only one who thought there was more to it that friendship. The sixteen-year-old handmaiden-in-training was blissfully unaware of the connotations.

---

What started as a replacement for her shoes soon became a variety of different sort of things. Though he had promised that he wouldn’t interfere or do anything that might draw unwanted attention over their friendship, Anakin couldn’t resist. Every time he saw something pretty or unique he had to get it for Dormé. While he enjoyed giving his friend gifts and mailing her letters the young prince ultimately preferred spending time with her in person. She was so easy to talk to leaving Anakin never to feel the need to be someone he wasn’t. To the young handmaiden titles didn’t seem to matter and this in and of itself was a sanctuary that the Jedi prince didn’t realise he needed until he met her. While their friendship continued to grow, so did Anakin’s crush on the young handmaiden-in-training. In his mind, there was no other woman who was as fascinating or as wonderful as his best friend. Nevertheless, Anakin had learnt his lesson from Padmé and kept his feelings for Dormé to himself. Even so, he would talk constantly of Dormé and of their visits and when he wasn’t speaking of her, the Jedi prince was writing letters to Dormé or making plans months in advance for his next visit to Naboo.

On this particular day, the young prince learnt from his mother that politics had once more caused their paths to lead them to Naboo for a visit. Though it would only be for a couple of days, Anakin was utterly thrilled. He had just learnt that Dormé had successfully completed one of her trials and wanted to plan something extra special for his friend. In the end, he decided that he wanted to show her the lakehouse that his stepfather had recently had built for his mother on Delaya. Of course, he’d have to be careful about the arrangements, lest he encourage scandal and ruin his friend’s career. But as the day came, scandal and consequences were the last thing on the Jedi prince’s mind as their ship landed on the landing pads that decorated the outskirts of the Naboo palace. As always, Padmé was there to greet him and his family with her entourage of security and handmaidens. Though Anakin was happy to see the queen, his thoughts were on seeing his best friend. Upon completing the usual polite formalities, Anakin immediately asked about his best friend.

Padmé, having grown used to the prince’s repetitious question, just laughed as she gave him a knowing look that caused Anakin’s cheeks to burn. ‘Your lady love is currently training right now, Anakin, but she should be finished shortly,’ she teased as the Jedi prince attempted to deny his obvious affections for her, for he didn’t want Dormé to find out or worse get into trouble because of it. Despite this, he couldn’t help but suggest he head to the palace dojo all the same so he could observe her skills. Knowing that any attempts to dissuade him would only encourage him, the young queen just nodded, warning him not to interrupt the mentor’s tutelage. If the young prince heard a word she had said, it didn’t show as soon he was off down the hallways and corridors that would take him to where the maiden currently located.

Dormé yelled to accent each attack she made. This was a new formation that was a bit complicated, but Dormé seemed to be getting the hang of it. Everything, including physical training was becoming more complex and intensive since she had passed the last level before completing her handmaiden training. Saché placed security above all other methods they were expected to learn and it seemed Dormé might actually have a chance to start decoy lessons due to her resemblance to the queen. Dormé was excited at the prospect of this, feeling this meant that she would probably be picked, though she didn’t count on it.

It was hard for Dormé to think about the future because she had been let down so many times before during her life. She felt it was futile to make plans because they would end up falling through. She hated the disappointment it brought. But there was one exception to the rule: the prince. Out of all the people she ever knew, he was the only one that hadn’t let her down, though her pessimism warned her that it was only a matter of time. However, she was able to push the pessimism down when she thought about him because he always seemed just as eager or even more eager that she was to make plans and try to see each other as often as possible. As much as she enjoyed bragging about the gifts and trinkets, she enjoyed spending time with him even more.

Though she thought about him often, she was also adept at putting such thoughts in a corner of her head and solely focus on her training. When she was on ‘duty’—which was at this level mock-duty since she was in training—she was just a handmaiden. Her thoughts were only on the protection and service of her queen, nothing else. As such, her training was almost always successful and after the first time she had been warned by her mentor to behave and not make snappy replies, Dormé paid it heed and obeyed her mentor as though she were a goddess. Off duty was another story entirely...

Arriving at the dojo, Anakin overheard Dormé’s rather powerful battle cries and grinned. He always enjoyed watching her in battle and had on more than one occasion day-dreamed of them sparring together. Upon entering, the Jedi prince immediately caught sight of the handmaiden and couldn’t help but watch her intently. Though she was caught up in the duel and her training, Anakin was hardly bothered by it. He enjoyed how fiery she looked when in the thick of a spar with strands of hair slipping out of her braids and her cheeks rosy. Leaning against the doorway, he folded his arms as he let his thoughts wander.

Though Dormé was clearly sparring with another, the young prince began daydreaming that he was clashing blades with her instead. Of course, in his mind the spar was far more intense with the end results being their blades getting caught within each other drawing them within inches of each other. Of course he was the one—in his daydream—that drew back the strands of her hair that had fallen into her eyes before leaning in to steal a taste of her lips. The thoughts did little to hide his almost dreamy eyed expression before the silence of the spar’s end snapped him back to reality.

‘Looks like your boyfriend is here,’ remarked Dané to a tired, but invigorated Dormé.

As Moteé brushed past Dormé to put her own blade away, she added, ‘You might want to use the fresher before you see him.’

Dormé rolled her eyes at Moteé’s comment and waved over at Anakin, beaming before taking a long drink of vitawater. She had no idea how long he had been standing there and hoped it hadn’t been too long, for she would feel bad if he had been waiting a long time. She knew the prince’s schedule was busier than her own.

Anakin felt his cheeks warm a little as Dormé caught sight of him. The young prince hoped that his friend hadn’t seen him so openly daydreaming. The sight of her smile promptly brought one to his own lips as he gave her a wave in reply to her own. Vaguely recalling Padmé’s constant warnings not to intrupt the training sessions, Anakin refrained from moving to join her side. After all, he didn’t want to stir up trouble for his friend despite how much he wanted to begin their visit.

Dormé promptly bounced to the fresher behind her fellow handmaidens-in-training to quickly wash up before dashing out to meet up with her friend. She was giddy with joy at the chance of seeing him, even if it was just in passing.

Anakin waited with much impatience for his friend to return from the fresher but when she did the young prince was once more all smiles.

She was pleased to see, upon approach, that he didn’t look too put-out at having to wait around for her. She swiftly cantered toward him to attack him with a hug. ‘Anakin!’

Anakin promptly twirled her around, laughing in joy as she spoke his name. ‘It’s so good to see you again, Dormé!’

Dormé didn’t think anything of it, nor minded if anyone saw, for she had no reason not to be happy to see her friend. After all, it wasn’t as if they were able to see each other every day. ‘How are you? I hope you weren’t waiting too long...’

At her obvious joy and eagerness Anakin laughed softly he held her for a little too long to be proper. ‘I was hardly waiting at all,’ the young prince admitted as he told Dormé that he was fine, though in much better spirits upon seeing his old friend again.

Dormé was overjoyed that her friend was just as happy to see her as she was to see him. If she noticed he held onto her a bit long than would be deemed appropriate by an onlooker, she didn’t say anything. In truth, if she had, she would have relished it anyway though for different reasons than her friend. ‘Oh good,’ she said, grinning with flushed cheeks from the recent exertion.

‘Congratulations on your trials! I heard you did extremely well,’ the young prince continued with a proud smile. ‘Padmé was most impressed with you,’ he said as he recalled the queen’s admittance. ‘Pretty soon, you’ll be a handmaiden,’ he concluded before adding with a grin.

She was humbled by his congratulatory remarks and her blush deepened when he mentioned the queen, though she had a feeling it was slightly exaggerated, as much as she wanted to believe the queen would eventually choose her. Though she was closer to attaining her dream, she still wouldn’t count on it.

‘In the meantime, we must celebrate and I have just the idea,’ he said eagerly as his eyes danced with hope and joy.

Dormé’s eyes lit up. ‘Oh really? Do tell!’ she cheered, ready to give him an encouraging poke if he wanted to make her guess. She wasn’t very patient when it came to guessing games and wanted to know straightaway what he had in mind. She hoped this also meant that he was free for more than just a few minutes.

As he spoke of celebrations, Anakin grinned at the sight of Dormé’s amber eyes dancing in joy. For a moment, he fell silent as he couldn’t help but take it all in. Her smile and excitement was so addictive to the young prince who could never have enough of it. Raising a brow, he was tempted to tease her by making her guess, but he could also sense her impatience and so he refrained. ‘My stepfather had a lakehouse built for my mother on Delaya,’ he began eagerly as his eyes danced in mischief and excitement. ‘And I figured, what better way to mark it completion than for us to go there for the day,’ he said with a grin.

‘A lakehouse?’ she repeated, her eyes growing wide with amazement. Though she was keenly aware her friend was a prince and this meant he never had an issue with money, it was hard to imagine such things. It was something she had only heard of, but never seen, just as this palace was as grand as any fairytale she read.

‘I’m not sure how busy your schedule is, but mine will be fairly free for the next couple of days because most of the meetings just involve my mom and stepdad only,’ he admitted with a hopeful look.

‘Oh yes! I’d love to!!!’ she exclaimed, not even thinking about her schedule until he mentioned it. Dormé then remembered that she would have to attain permission and hoped it would be allowed. ‘I should probably ask my mentor,’ she said a bit reluctantly. Dormé would much rather just run off with him, but having learnt her lesson the first time, foolishness like that would not be allowed or looked upon favourably when it came time to choose the newest members of the queens entourage.

Frankly, he thought it was silly that Dormé had to report her actions to her tutor after all they would be going on their own time and she would be safe. However, he kept this to himself as he didn’t want to place her chances of becoming a handmaiden at risk. ‘I guess you probably should,’ he said in hesitance before adding quickly. ‘If she gets all grouchy about it, just tell her that there will be a lot of security there and I’ll be sure to have you back here in time for your training,’ Anakin concluded figuring if they eased her mentor’s fears then their chances will be better.

‘Back in time for my training tomorrow?’ she asked. ‘I’m pretty sure that was it for today unless they spring something at the last minute. At least I hope it is,’ she said eagerly.

Anakin’s eyes lit up as she admitted that training wouldn’t begin again until tomorrow. He didn’t think he’d be able to have so much time with her and the prospect filled him with such joy. ‘If that was the last of your training today we could leave right away then!’ he exclaimed eagerly.

‘I’ll go tell her now!’ Dormé grinned at him, but before bouncing off to inform Lady Saché, she added teasingly, ‘If you’re gone when I return, I shall be very cross with you.’

The young prince chuckled in reply before adding in return, ‘what sort of gentleman would I be if I stood up a lady as lovely as yourself?’

She then skipped off to tell her mentor, rather than ask. Unfortunately asking permission meant racing all the way back to the handmaidens’ quarters and waiting for Dané to finish speaking with Saché about something. Dormé didn’t really pay attention to what they were chatting about because she was too giddy with excitement. She was going to an actual lakehouse! Once she was able to speak with Saché, she stated her case with much joy and anticipation. With much reluctance, her mentor couldn’t forbid it, as there was quite an entourage accompanying them. Dormé was pleased at this news, but decided she ought to wear the necklace he had given her and the matching hairpiece...and perhaps the replacement shoes... Once she was ready, she raced back to where Anakin was at the dojo.

Unfortunately for the young prince, Dormé’s long departure began to leave him wondering if in reality he was the one who had been stood up. However, despite his fears the young prince continued to cling onto the hope that his friend had been stalled along the way. He didn’t dare let himself believe that she wouldn’t want to be around him for it made little sense. After all she was as happy to see him as he was to see her wasn’t she? But as the minutes ticked away the Jedi prince grew fearful and began to doubt things between them. As he drew his lightsaber to begin a little training of his own, Anakin found himself replaying his actions once more. While Dormé didn’t register the prince’s obvious infatuation, it was obvious to everyone else. As such, Anakin grew paranoid thinking someone had told her and thus had given her second thoughts or perhaps it was the fact he held her a little too long when they were greeting each other, though he hardly thought that was inappropriate.

Then he recalled his daydreaming while she was still sparring. The thought made his cheeks burn at the memory. For his brother once told him that he could always tell when he was daydreaming because of his expression. Anakin couldn’t understand what he meant by that but feared the worst and desperately hoped that Dormé hadn’t seen him ogling her. Biting his lip to the thought while completing a complicated lightsaber formation, he felt the familiar Force signature of his friend. Turning to the dojo’s entrance, he caught sight of the young handmaiden-in-training rushing in. Immediately all fears were forgotten as he de-activated his lightsaber and moved to greet her eagerly. ‘And here you were worried about me not being here upon your return? I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to return yourself,’ Anakin teased with a wink. At the sight of her all dressed up, he couldn’t help but stare as he took in her beauty. He felt his cheeks warm slightly at the sight of the jewellery he got her and was so glad she liked them. Giving her a shy smile swiftly de-activated his lightsaber and re-hooked it to his belt.

Upon seeing him training and his comment about the time, she realised just how long her had been waiting and immediately felt bad. Despite his teasing, she apologised, but his shy smile seemed to erase her fears that she might have offended him.

‘Do you want to leave now or are there other matters you need to tend to first?’ he asked in kind but excited tones. He was certain this was going to be the best trip he ever had.

‘We can leave anytime!’ she said happily, excited about this trip. She had a feeling it would be one of the most memorable experiences of her life, though she had no idea just why that would be yet.

‘I hope you like it,’ he said in hopeful tones. ‘My mom enjoys gardens or as she puts it ‘greenery’ so there’re lots of gardens and creeks with little falls,’ he explained eagerly. Though he wasn’t a fan of the watery aspects of the lakehouse he knew Dormé lacked his fear and felt she would appreciate such things. ‘So if your training doesn’t begin till tomorrow morning does that mean you’ll be able to stay the night at the lakehouse?’ Anakin asked not bothering to hide the hope in his voice. But soon he recalled his manners or rather he imagined his brother’s stern reaction to his words and soon added. ‘I mean the lakehouse was designed for having guests over, so we have many rooms for you to stay in if you like,’ he said as his cheeks warmed.

Dormé beamed and nodded, not considering the connotations such an offer held. When he stumbled over his explanation, she was slightly confused by his reaction, but merely said how much she was already looking forward to going there and seeing everything, including the gardens his mother liked.

It wasn’t long before they were approaching the docking bays and as they entered Anakin glanced back to his friend as he gave a proud smile. ‘I almost forgot to tell you, I have my own ship now. It’s still being customized so it’s not entirely how I want it to be, but it’s all right for now,’ he said with a wink before adding. ‘I’ve only flown it a couple of times so it’s quite new. I’ve yet to even name it, I’m sorry to say,’ he concluded sheepishly.

‘You’re own ship?!’ she exclaimed. Dormé knew she shouldn’t be surprised, but couldn’t help being fascinated. She wasn’t envious of her friend, but amazed at all of these new experiences and thing she never expected to see or witness thanks to her tentative position of handmaiden-in-training. Dormé was a bit too caught up with her imagination running wild that she missed the part about naming a ship, since it was something foreign to her. ‘Well what are we waiting for?’ she asked, practically bouncing with excitement. This would only be the second ship she had ever seen up close, let alone rode in.

The young prince didn’t mind too much as he was eager to leave as well and soon moved to take her hand. After causing opening the cockpit’s cover, he moved to assist Dormé into the small but cosy ship. ‘I’m sorry, it’s not very roomy, but what it lacks in space, it makes up in speed,’ he explained proudly.

Dormé couldn’t believe her eyes. ‘It’s amazing,’ she gasped, only tearing her eyes away when he took her hand to help her board. She had to sit very close to Anakin, but she didn’t mind in the least. Luckily she wasn’t very big to begin with so there was plenty of room for her.

‘That’s the other reason why I need you to help me to name it. I want it reflect its skill -and represent you,’ he admitted as his cheeks began to burn. ‘But only if you don’t mind of course,’ he added quickly. ‘I just thought, well, I mean...I know you can’t join me on my missions and such but...if the ship is named after you then it would be like you’re with me in a way—’ he fell silent then as he realized just how obvious he sounded. If only he knew how to turn back time or at least take back his final words but it was too late and now he was practically glowing in embarrassment.

She was deeply flattered by his suggestion. Though she didn’t know what he truly meant behind this, she did register that she felt unworthy of such a gesture. ‘Not to say that I’m not flattered by this, but are you sure? I mean, I’m not even a handmaiden...let alone someone worthy of having such a noble ship named after me...maybe the queen would be a better choice since she’s regal...’

Anakin though aware of the cramped space was hardly complaining. He rather enjoyed the close proximity of his friend and hardly minded the fact the small area had become that much smaller. ‘Of course I’m sure!’ Anakin said with a reassuring grin. ‘You’re my best friend Dormé why wouldn’t I name the ship after you? After all every pilot names their ship after someone that’s important to them,’ the Jedi prince continued proudly. ‘And I can’t think of anyone who is more worthy as you put it or more deserving than yourself.’

Dormé was overwhelmed when her best friend told her he couldn’t think of anyone he would rather name his ship after. ‘I didn’t know that pilots name their ships to begin with,’ she admitted.

‘I don’t know if it’s just a Coruscanti tradition, but all the pilots I know always seemed to name theirs so I couldn’t resist,’ he admitted sheepishly before grinning as she agreed.

‘I would be honoured,’ she added with a smile.

‘Wonderful! Now we have to think of a name that best represents you,’ he said eagerly as he started up the ship. He was so grateful to know that Dormé didn’t mind he name the ship after her. After admitting his thoughts to Padmé the teasing he had received over it left him a little hesitant. Then again, Dormé seemed to understand him in ways no one else ever did and her lack of teasing and eager acceptance seemed to reflect this with the young prince.

It was then her thoughts drifted to their journey and she saw they were leaving Naboo. When he spoke of Delaya, she had, in all honesty, thought it was an area of Naboo, since she wasn’t very familiar with the lake country. Now that she was seeing stars, it was quite clearly not the case. Instead of being nervous about it, she was eager to see the home even more because she would also be seeing another planet in the process.

Anakin could feel Dormé’s awe and excitement through the Force as well as see it in her expression. He loved how she enjoyed flying as much as he did and how the stars never ceased to be a marvel for her. This too marked a silent connection between them that he couldn’t hope to understand at this point in his life.

‘I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this,’ she remarked in a dreamlike fashion as she gazed out at the passing ships.

The young prince gave her a gentle smile as he studied her quietly. ‘I think I know the feeling,’ he admitted softly.

When one shipped passed too closely, she automatically flinched, but to her surprise, she didn’t feel the vibration such a close passing would cause if they were on a planet. Since they were in space, there were not enough molecules to create such a force, nor was there wind in space. Though she had recently learnt about such things, it was entirely different experiencing it in person.

Anakin once more fell prey to his habit of showing off and once they were in space the prince began to showcase his skills as a pilot. Flying close to the ships and weaving in between them Anakin grinned and chuckled noting her reaction. However this time he wasn’t so foolish as not to be mindful of their surroundings or of the effect his actions would have on the ship.

But as the stars and ships became more familiar to her, her eyes drifted to the pilot instead, finding studying him was just as interesting, or perhaps even more so. It was a rare occasion she was able to sit so long near him and in such close proximity. She couldn’t help her thoughts wandering to what he did with the Jedi, what his normal day was like, whom he talked to besides his older brother. She wanted to know anything, everything...but was hesitant to ask, since part of her still adhered to the social restrictions and mandates of interactions between their ranks. It was something that would continue to remind her how lucky she was to call the prince her friend.

In time, the young prince began to feel his friend’s eyes settling on him instead of the window outside. Though he was used to having much attention on him feeling Dormé’s eyes on him reminded Anakin of their close proximity and it made his cheeks warm. It would be so easy to slip his arm around her or reach out and release the pins holding her hair and play with the long locks. But ultimately what he really wanted to do was listen to her talk about herself. She was such an enigma to him and the more he came to learn about her the more he wanted to know. ‘So when can I teach you how to fly? Or did you already learn as part of your training?’ he began curiously deciding this would be a good place to begin. ‘What else do they teach you in your training outside of security and swordsmanship I mean.’ he continued eagerly.

‘Ah...er, no, I haven’t learnt to fly. I don’t think that’s part of our training, at least, not that I’m aware of...’ Dormé replied, slightly caught off-guard by his question. She then went on to speak of the history and other academics, including speech and voice lessons the girls were required to be adept in. There were some electives, such as hairdressing or organizational skills that one could choose, but Dormé admitted, she preferred fighting because it was something she was good at.

Anakin didn’t look disappointed at her words and in fact looked almost excited. The possibility of teaching his friend something she had yet to learn was a wonderful prospect indeed and he was already looking forward to it. ‘Then perhaps you could let me teach you to fly, that is if you don’t mind,’

‘Oh I don’t know...’ she said about flying. ‘It seems incredibly difficult. I haven’t even driven a speeder, let alone a ship! I wouldn’t want to ruin anything...’ The offer was more intimidating than anything else and the last thing she wanted was to crash his new ship. Anakin’s excitement about the prospect of teaching her was intoxicating and she couldn’t help agreeing to it, if only to make him happy. She liked it when he looked at her like that.

The young prince just gave her a reassuring smile and shook his head. ‘Oh it’s not that hard. But if you want, I can teach you how to ride a speeder first so you can get a feel for the controls,’ he offered sensing her hesitancy. ‘Besides, it’s not like I won’t be right beside you at all times. So if you have any questions or need help, I’ll be able to take care of it,’ he said in kind tones.

‘Oh I wouldn’t even think about trying it without you,’ she said quite firmly, knowing she would be too afraid to try if he wasn’t there. ‘So are you still solely learning under the tutelage of your brother or are you able to learn from other Jedi as well? What about specialized skills?’ She was just as curious about him as he was of her.

‘As a Padawan, almost all of my training comes from my master or in my case my brother. I still have the occasional brief lesson with some of the other knights that are -what did you call it? Electives? Secondary training, anyway. You know specialized fields that usually involve healing and more academic learning that one can choose to follow if one likes. I find most of it to be boring beyond words,’ he said before admitting he much preferred fighting as well. ‘That’s something else we must do when we have time -we should spar together,’ Anakin suggested with a smile before adding, ‘We could do it during your stay at the lakehouse. My mom made sure to have a training hall set up so I could practice when I stayed there. Although I’m sure there are some good places to spar in the gardens as well,’ he continued.

‘I’ve thought about sparring with you as well, but you’ve already got such an advantage over me with that Force power thing. It really wouldn’t be a far fight, now would it?’ she teased.

‘I just won’t use it that’s all and it’s not like I have much experience with metal blades anyways. I’m so used to handling a lightsaber so it would be fairer than you think,’ he said marking his obvious interest.

Dormé was far more comfortable talking about sparring, since it was more familiar to her and she was quite skilled. Though she had far to go in hre training, she felt quite at ease with a blade in her hand, though that witch Mistress Tamé kept reprimanding her for being too fierce, telling her she needed to pull back and restrain herself or else she would lose all control and be defeated. ‘I didn’t know there was a difference with lightsabers and blades.’ She blushed, promptly upon realising she hadn’t even seen one before. ‘I’m not really sure what a lightsaber is...’

‘I’ve been told you might begin training as a decoy for Padmé is that true? Does that mean you get to pretend to be the queen during diplomatic visits?’ he asked all hopeful. His mind immediately began to conjure up the many possibilities that this could bring and the thought caused him to smile. If this were indeed the case then it could mean he would be able to see Dormé more often. Perhaps, just maybe, even properly court her one day without the rise of scandal or placing her position at risk. If everyone thought she was Padmé no one would find err in the fact that Anakin was courting her. And he knew that this would give Padmé a chance to be properly free from the pressures given to her by her parents -and his own- as they would believe the ruse as well. It was too perfect not to embrace though for the moment he kept this idea to himself.

She nodded matter-of-factly, not finding the question to be actually leading places having to do with courtship. Courtship wasn’t something she ever thought of aside from the fantasies all young girls have that are more fairytale than realistic. In truth, the prince she fantasized about sweeping her off her feet and running away with was beginning to look more like Anakin in her dreams, though she wasn’t consciously aware of this. For now, she didn’t even consider the fact that she might like him as more than a friend, let alone think it was possible that he fancied her. ‘I actually just started decoy training,’ she said proudly. ‘We have to learn to speak and act like the queen...and her mannerisms and bearing.’

Though he had less-than-professional connotations in mind, Anakin did find this to be fascinating. It reminded him of espionage and spies, where one had to sneak about and wear guises in order to get close to their prey. While it wasn’t something he’d be best suited, for Anakin enjoyed the concept. ‘So it’s like being an actor isn’t it? You literally have to become Padmé right down to the smallest detail,’ he said as he tried to imagine Dormé posing as the queen. It was a novel idea but in reality, he much preferred to see Dormé as herself. Then of course there was the obvious risks involved which caused his concern to grow though he knew it was part of her duty.

‘It’s like pretending to be her, but I have a feeling it’s mostly for travelling than the actual political part. However, we do learn about the conduct for political meetings. Even the slightest mistake could reveal the decoy and place the queen’s life in danger.’

‘Travelling...’ he began as he furrowed his brow. ‘Doesn’t it frighten you even a little bit? I mean that you could be in the direct line of fire -that an assassin would see you—’ he fell silent not wanting to conclude this thought for it troubled him too much.

‘Does it frighten you to go on missions?’ she asked, impishly turning the question back on him with a raised eyebrow. Dormé placed little value on her own life in comparison to the queen. It was her duty and an honour to die in service to the queen, but Dormé also wasn’t aware just what dangers awaited her in the position. Theorizing and assuming was nothing compared to what her mentors and had lived and seen, though Dormé was too naive to know or value the truth of it.

‘Just promise me when the time comes you’ll be careful,’ he remarked softly in sincere tones.

Dormé didn’t promise him she would be careful. Instead, she said, ‘I don’t even know if I’ll be picked anyway,’ dismissing it as she shook her head.

Though he knew it was her duty he couldn’t help but feel protective of his friend and wished there could be some way he could ensure her safety. Furrowing his brow the young prince tried to clear his thoughts of his fears as he was reminded of his brother’s words. There was no use in dwelling on what might never come to pass yet even so it didn’t stop him from trying to ask Dormé to be careful at the very least. Her lack of response did little to ease his nerves. ‘I think you’ll definitely be chosen. A more dedicated and skilled handmaiden, Padmé will never find,’ he said before adding just as Delaya slowly came into view. ‘Not only do you have the skills and dedication, you’re not easily intimidated nor do you cower in the face of threats,’ he added with a wry grin. ‘I can still remember you mouthing off to the hag’s counterpart when I first saw you! That was great!’ he said in admiring tones. ‘I’ll never forget that moment,’ he said in more wistful tones before growing serious as he saw Delaya in view.

Even though it made her slightly embarrassed, she couldn’t help laughing at the memory of the first time she saw the prince. She had been shocked to learn he had overheard her talking back to her mentor, but as the years went on, she was pleased he had for it turned out to be another thing they had in common.

‘It looks like we’re almost there. A few more minutes and we’ll be in the atmosphere,’ he concluded.

Soon her attention was drawn back to the space around them. It was a gorgeous site to behold and she couldn’t help gasping in awe as they flew through the atmosphere, over the waters and mountains, towards the Skywalker lakehouse. She was amazed at the scenery and also at Anakin’s skills to land the ship so smoothly. It was a far cry from their first adventure off Naboo.

The landing proved simple, despite the windy and cloudy weather marking that it was nearing fall on Delaya. Upon landing, the young prince gave his friend a lopsided grin as he raised a brow. ‘I bet you thought I was going to crash it again, didn’t you?’ he teased with a wink.

Dormé looked to her friend’s raised eyebrow and sent him an incredulous look as if to be sceptical, but she couldn’t help smiling. ‘Maybe,’ she said. As though she were a professional pilot, she surveyed the landing, ‘Hmm, I suppose this one was all right...I’ve seen better.’ Dormé tried to be serious, but it was a losing battle and she laughed.

Making a face at her assessment, the young prince soon was laughing himself as he poked out his tongue at her. ‘Oh come on it wasn’t that bad! At least I didn’t set a forest on fire this time,’ he teased before opening the hatch and moving to help her out of the ship.

‘You can do that?’ she asked, hoping it wasn’t the case that a ship could cause a forest fire. It sounded awful, but she took his hand and exiting the ship.

Anakin turned crimson at her question as he recalled their first trip together. Since then he had greatly improved but even so, the memory always made him sheepish. ‘...Normally it’s nearly impossible...unless of course you have my luck,’ he muttered.

Dormé was soon distracted by the scenery. She didn’t even notice that she latched onto his arm as she looked around.

She wasn’t really paying attention to what Anakin was saying outside of something about a garden. She didn’t really care where they went so long as she was able to spend time with her friend.

Almost immediately, Anakin felt Dormé latching onto his arm and this made his heart race in joy. Unaware that this was caused because of her awe over the scenery, the Jedi Prince saw this as a good sign and took it to heart. ‘The lakehouse is just a little ways away, though from here you can already see my mom’s gardens,’ Anakin stated before adding with grin. ‘We should explore it later on tonight when it’s dark, apparently my mom has these flowers that bloom only in moonlight,’ he said with a shrug. ‘Personally I’m more interested in the fact it sorta resembles a maze or so I’m told.’

‘Sorry, what was that?’ she asked after hearing something about a maze.

Anakin just smiled as he shook his head. Her awe was contagious and her presence soothing. ‘It’s all right it wasn’t anything important anyways,’ he murmured as he studied her intently taking in the beauty and mystery of her amber eyes.

‘It’s so beautiful here,’ she murmured.

At her final remarks, his smile widened as he decided to take the chance and gingerly touch her cheek. ‘Indeed,’ he murmured in reply as his expression softened.

Dormé simply smiled at Anakin, still quite distracted with all of the new things. She didn’t think much on Anakin’s actions, nor did she register that her friend had quite other intentions on this particular outing.

The evening went even better than Anakin could have asked. At his request, his mother and step-father left them alone thus encouraging the feeling that this was a real date. Dormé enjoyed much of the food which had been another fear for the young prince, but he put to memory details pertaining to her food preferences for future reference as well as the discussion shared.

Dinner was wonderful and Dormé tried a little bit of everything, even some of the fruits she found she didn’t like. In the back of her head, she did wonder where his parents were, as she had been told they were staying here as well. However, by the conclusion of the meal, it was dark outside and Anakin explained to her about the mysterious nocturnally blooming flowers he wanted to show her. Dormé tagged along, knowing this was a chance to witness something only out of fairytales in her mind. It was a gorgeous night, though a bit cool, so she donned one of her thicker handmaiden cloaks as they walked along.

Anakin led Dormé outside and shyly guided her to the garden maze. Though his intentions weren’t entirely pure, the young prince did sincerely value his friend’s company. Though he’d never be able to ever properly explain it, Anakin just felt more comfortable in his own skin when Dormé was around. The moons and stars shown brightly as Anakin moved to take her hand and lead the way. It was Anakin’s hope to have the chance to share his very first kiss with the mysterious handmaiden.

The night air was refreshing and as much as she enjoyed the garden maze, she also liked the warmth of his hand in hers. Though Dormé had much to learn when it came to romantic feelings, or genuine affection for that matter, she knew she was happy spending time with Anakin. He seemed to understand her better than any of her fellow handmaidens-in-training and actually seemed to care about her opinion. When she was with him, she didn’t feel like an outsider. It would take time for her to allow herself to open up enough to allow herself to admit her budding feelings for him outside of friendship. Dormé was not Padmé in any sense of the word. She was much younger than her mistress and less worldly. She had no idea that this entire evening had actually been a ploy to steal a kiss from her, nor was she aware of the prince’s true feelings for her.

As Anakin led her to where the nocturnal flowers were now in full bloom, the young prince’s thoughts were less than gentlemanly. Taking in her beauty accentuated by the moonlights, Anakin found himself growing a bit nervous as well as excited. If he had read her actions right, it would seem she really did fancy him as much as he did her, making this the perfect opportunity to take a chance. Speaking of what little he knew of the plants, Anakin did his best to recall the tales that went behind some of the more exotic ones. He knew that Dormé enjoyed such legends and was more than happy to share what he knew about them with her. It was, after all, another thing they had in common and one he secretly cherished. But as his last tale drew to a close, he found himself falling silent as once more he studied her intently, enjoying how the pale light cast shadows on her porcelain skin, just as he enjoyed how her amber eyes shone in contentment and peace. Soon his gaze fell to her lips and with it, all coherent thought began to scatter as his heart raced.

Reaching out with his free hand, the Jedi Prince gingerly touched Dormé’s cheek that was farthest from him. Gently, Anakin guided her attentions to him and gave her a shy smile. Through the Force, he tried to sense her emotions, but it was hard as he was in reality quite nervous for he had never kissed before.

When Anakin touched her cheek to get her to look at him, she noticed there was something funny in the way he was looking at her, but she didn’t know what it was exactly. Before she had a chance to tease him or say anything, he softly kissed her. Dormé’s eyes bugged out and she was frozen in place. Caught off guard, she didn’t really know what to make of it all. She wasn’t thinking about her status as a handmaiden-in-training, nor that he was a prince, but rather that her friend was kissing her. It wasn’t at all like she thought such a thing would be.

Anakin was far more confident this time that his attempts would prove successful. Almost as soon as his lips met hers, the young prince felt a sharp shift in her emotions and immediately realized he had once more overstepped his bounds. Drawing back quickly, Anakin tried to hide his disappointment and embarrassment as he registered his mistake. His burning cheeks were a dead give away. Glancing away, he let his hand slip out of hers as he grew apologetic.

After he kissed her, she just looked at him with shock. She didn’t know what this was supposed to mean or why he had kissed her, although it’s not to say that she didn’t mind it...

‘I’m sorry—I just thought...I mean—I thought...I’m sorry,’ he murmured, wishing that there were a way to turn time back or make himself disappear. It was strange that the disappointment he felt at Padmé’s rejection wasn’t nearly as bad as this. He had presumed too much once again and was now paying the price for it. ‘I didn’t mean to offend you. I just thought you felt the same way that’s all,’ he said shyly, trying to ignore the fact this hurt so much more than his attempts to kiss Padmé.

‘Wha—’ began Dormé, confused by the kiss and then by his apologies. He seemed much farther away from her physically than he had been all night. She didn’t know that her actions had been leading him to believe she felt the same way he did. In fact, she didn’t know how he felt, nor what this kiss was supposed to mean. ‘Why are you apologising exactly?’ she asked. ‘I didn’t—I mean, I haven’t erm, kissed anyone before.’ She was blushing herself now and bowed her head for a moment before looking him in the eyes. She was thinking about the legends and fairytales she had read. It wasn’t like anything she had imagined it would be, but she couldn’t say she hated it either.

Anakin studied her in confusion now as Dormé asked him why he was apologizing. He had figured the reason was clear enough, but when she admitted that she had never kissed anyone before, he immediately clung onto the hope that this was the reason for her shock. Giving her another sheepish look as their eyes met, Anakin soon bowed his head, feeling his cheeks burn further. ‘That’s all right,’ he said shyly as he glanced back to her. ‘I’ve never kissed anyone before either,’ he sheepishly admitted, feeling relieved to know he wasn’t the only one.

She exhaled in relief to hear that he hadn’t ever kissed anyone before either. She didn’t know for sure why, but knowing he was a few years older than her, she also felt something in her heart that made her happy to know she was his first kiss. It would not be for some time until she knew just why she was glad for it. ‘Same way as what?’ she asked naively, studying him curiously.

Surely, she knew what he was talking about? As he studied her Force signature, the young prince had no doubt in his mind that she was serious. Glancing away, he struggled to find a way to properly explain himself. ‘I mean I thought we felt the same way about each other...I just thought that you’d—well I was hoping I mean—that you’d want to be,’ he faltered grateful that no one else was here to witness this. ‘I was just hoping you’d want to be my girlfriend,’ he blurted out with an apologetic smile.

Dormé slightly tilted her head to the said. Girl friend? ‘I thought I already was,’ she confessed, thinking he meant female friend, for Basic wasn’t her first language. She smiled shyly.

He blinked in surprise at her confession and he looked at her with a lopsided grin, feeling his heart soar in joy. ‘Really? Oh, I didn’t realise,’ he said returning her shy smile with one of his own.

Dormé wondered why he didn’t think that she thought of him as her friend when they had clearly, or so she thought, been friends for a few years already. At least that’s clarified, she thought, glad to see him smiling again. She always liked it when he smiled.

Biting his lip, he then quietly studied her only this time in a far shier and gentle fashion than before. ‘So does this mean I can kiss you again?’ he only semi-teased figuring that now they were official, this would be a given.

Dormé thought perhaps this was something from his culture that she was not familiar with. If that’s what friends do in his culture, I don’t see why not... After all, she figured, she didn’t hate it. ‘I don’t see why not,’ she replied with a shrug, biting her lip momentarily. This was quite new to her.

Anakin couldn’t help but wonder now why he hadn’t figured this out sooner. Had he known, he wouldn’t have waited so long before kissing her in the first place. While normally such a flippant remark would have discouraged anyone else, for the young prince, her relaxed attitude was a sign of encouragement. He shyly moved to slip his arms around her petite waist. Though he was confident that he wouldn’t offend her by doing this, Anakin still felt shy, as this was equally new to him though not to the same degree as Dormé. Leaning in once more, he moved to kiss her lips once again, this time silently gauging her reaction and emotions in order to make their second kiss as perfect as possible.

Somewhat more prepared this time, Dormé was far more relaxed about the whole thing. Her eyes slowly closed as she drew closer to him as well, placing a hand tentatively on his chest. The result was much better this time, though she was plagued with curious nerves that she hadn’t ever felt before and didn’t know how to place.

The fact she didn’t feel as cold, that her heart was beating faster, that she enjoyed this...none of this made her consciously consider the implications. For all she knew, it might be a foreign custom she was unfamiliar with. If so, she certainly enjoyed practicing it with her friend and wished they would have done so ages ago.

This enthusiasm was not lost in the kiss as she began to claim it as her own. Soon her arms were around his neck with one hand fiddling with his Padawan braid and all thoughts of lack of experience flew to the back of her head as she kissed him back.

Anakin was more mindful of Dormé’s feelings this time though he had yet to figure out that she wasn’t even remotely of the same understanding as him. Feeling her hand touch his chest, he immediately felt his heart skip a beat. This was far more how he imagined their first kiss would be and it wasn’t long before he grew lost in the moment. Instinctively he moved a hand to her cheek and then slipped into her thick hair. It was even softer than he imagined it would be and as Dormé began to return his kiss, the Jedi prince too forgot his lack of experience and just enjoyed the moment shared. It was a moment he would forever cherish and would haunt his dreams during their times apart.

As nice as the flowers surrounding them were, Dormé found she preferred the way Anakin smelled and tasted. Though she would not yet admit it to herself, there was something so right about being here in his arms. The kiss was far from perfect as one would imagine in a dream, but it was real and honest. His hand moving from her cheek to her hair was warm and soothing. Dormé decided she very much enjoyed this activity with her friend and hoped it would be a custom he too felt was worth repeating.

Anakin couldn’t ignore how perfect this kiss felt to him despite the fact it was their first. It was as though there was a silent connection between them that he couldn’t hope to understand. He loved the feel of her fingers playing with his braid, the taste of her lips and the way she felt in his arms. Unfortunately for the young prince the feelings she felt paled in comparison to his own, leaving him ignorant to the fact Dormé viewed this to be a tradition of his people and not a symbol of relations. As such, he truly believed that he was now courting his best friend and couldn’t have imagined a more perfect moment to begin.

Unbeknownst to Anakin, they weren’t the only ones who wanted to enjoy the nocturnal blooms. His mother who loved gardening and grew exotic plants, as a hobby was out to tend to her nocturnal flowers when she accidentally stumbled upon her son and the Naboo handmaiden. Furrowing her brow in concern, she didn’t say a word nor remained for long and quietly departed out of respect for their privacy. Though she wasn’t one to cast judgment, the sight troubled her and she couldn’t help but feel protective of her son. It was with his future in mind that she decided it would be best if she spoke to him about the matter when the moment availed itself.

There was a slight break where they just looked at each other and she smiled at him before leaning in to give him a kiss of her own.

As their kiss drew to a brief close, the young prince smiled at her taking in her beauty and peaceful contentment. His thoughts were open to her, despite the fact he knew that Dormé couldn’t read them and this too only added to the feeling of perfection. But before he could let his thoughts wander further, Dormé was leaning in to kiss him in turn which he eagerly returned it. But with his kiss, his more primal thoughts took another turn and he began to wonder if she would be offended if he were to invite her back to his quarters...

Dormé’s heart was beating faster and she was feeling far warmer now than she had when she pulled her cloak on tightly. She was thoroughly enjoying this and hoped many more occasions would present themselves for the two of them to do things like this. Though she was naive to his true intentions, she most certainly wasn’t naive about where such passionate kissing would head. She just wasn’t sure if that was something he was interested in or not. Well, that was until she felt him. ‘Anakin,’ she said breathily, ‘maybe we should go inside...to continue our conversation.’ It would be the first and the last time she would ever suggest a different location, but this would mark her first time fooling around with a boy and it was a little cold to do such a thing outside.

With fingers tangled in her hair and lips swollen by their kisses shared, Anakin felt as though he were in heaven and was hardly in a coherent state of mind when Dormé spoke. At her words, he gave a lopsided grin as he nodded at her words before moving to steal another kiss before finally registering the meaning of her words.

‘You read my mind,’ he murmured between kisses before leading her back to the lakehouse. However, the journey that should have been short took far longer than normal as the Jedi Prince paused often to steal more kisses from his lady love for he didn’t want to be parted from her lips for long.

Upon entering the lakehouse, Dormé felt as though it were entirely their own, rather than belonging to his family. She wasn’t familiar with the layout of the large estate, nor could she tell where her quarters were, since he had shown her so quickly upon their first arrival. Since she didn’t really think about that or care, she was promptly removing her cloak and tossing it across somewhere and moving to remove his cloak as well as they stumbled down one of the long hallways, whilst stealing kisses along the way.

Anakin’s entire universe consisted of Dormé. To be able to openly show his affections without restraint was a wonderful feeling to say the least. Even more wondrous was the fact she returned them—or so he believed. In time, his room was found and soon he was leading her inside only to promptly kiss her once more even before the door shut behind them. While this was hardly what he had in mind for his first time—it was fare more rushed than he imagined—Anakin really didn’t care all too much. He was enjoying this too much to question it or Dormé’s true thoughts on the matter. She was in his arms and he couldn’t have been happier.

She attempted to undo his tunic, but was having little luck. She eventually had to breakaway from their kiss to struggle with it, grumbling, ‘I can’t get this gisdu thing undone!’ The fact that it wasn’t exactly a very well lit room didn’t help things.

Anakin didn’t hesitate to take advantage of the situation and was attempting to undo Dormé elaborate gown. But like Dormé, he had no experience in such matters and therefore had little, if any luck at it. As she broke away from their kiss to undo his tunic, Anakin frowned understanding her frustration all too well himself.

‘Forget it, let’s just undo ourselves and go from there,’ he murmured after another failed attempt before moving to slip out of his garbs. Then moving to kiss her once more, he tried to lead her to where his bed was located in the hopes of continuing where they left off.

After removing her gown, it was a little chilly, but Anakin seemed to have anticipated this as he gave her a kiss. Dormé sat on the bed, not quite sure what she was supposed to do exactly, but certainly not minding the view, allowing her eyes to linger on his form. Rather than resume kissing him, she touched his naked chest for the first time. It was hard, yet smooth and this was quite interesting to her. She met his eyes to judge his reaction to her touch.

Anakin felt his awkwardness returning as she joined him on the bed, as she took a seat the Jedi prince found himself putting her image to memory. Though he wasn’t certain what to do, he presumed that instinct would take over and everything would fall into place as it should. He would soon learn just how wrong he truly was. He enjoyed the feel of her skin against his own and yet it made him incredibly shy as well. Deciding it was only fair to return the favour Anakin let his fingers gingerly slip to her petite waist. Relishing the soft touch of her flesh, he let his palm linger before doing half circles over her belly button with his thumb. In time, his bravery and impatience return and soon his fingers were venturing elsewhere with naive, but passionate curiosity.

She enjoyed the way it seemed like she could feel his emotions through his eyes, but soon he was beginning to explore her body as well. After their hurried kisses that really needed more practice, it was nice to have this brief interlude to discover things about Anakin, what he liked or didn’t like.

Anakin found this to be quite enjoyable despite his inexperience and was for the most part trying to be sensitive to her emotions through the Force. For a time it seemed like everything was going well thus giving him confidence despite his obvious need of practice. However with confidence came ignorance and soon the Jedi prince was thinking of his own emotions instead of her and grew a bit too rough for it.

Dormé’s musings over his body were abruptly interrupted when Anakin was a little too rough in his explorations. With her eyes wide open, she yelped before cursing, ‘Araru! That hurt—’Without waiting for an apology, as though not expecting one, her hands moved lower to do some exploring of their own.

Before he had a chance to at least say he was sorry, Dormé was taking matters into her own hands and with it came pain the likes he had never known. Crying out in shock, his half-closed eyes snapped open as he instinctively used the Force to shove her back slightly as a means of protecting himself. ‘You wretched llujchi! What the iquicha was that for?’ he snapped while trying to hide his obvious pain.

The last thing Dormé expected from her ministrations was to be touching him one moment and for her hand to be swiped away via the Force. That, along with his cursing, only added to her agitation. ‘I don’t know, I thought I would repay the gesture!’ she hissed back at him.

‘Repay the gesture!?’ Anakin snapped as he looked at her as though she were mad. ‘You think I’d hurt you on purpose? Force, Dormé how was I supposed to know? Does it look like I know what I’m doing?’ he growled back as he wondered if she mistook this experience for a torture session. It certainly felt like it.

‘I’m sorry...’ she said, knowing she had meant to get him back. Dormé blushed bright red, knowing she was in the wrong. She bit her bottom lip and hoped he wouldn’t be angry with her.

Anakin frowned at her but upon sensing her apology his mood soon shifted and grew sheepish once more. He honestly didn’t mean to harm her and felt bad that she believed otherwise. Bowing his head slightly he took her hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze. ‘I’m sorry too,’ he said quietly before adding. ‘I would never hurt you on purpose, I just don’t...I’m just— I’m not entirely certain how to go about this,’ he admitted sheepishly as he gave her a shy smile.

‘Me either,’ she said, also feeling a bit shy now about the whole thing. Dormé thought this was a lot easier when she was kissing him and not thinking about anything at all. But as all of this was new to her, maybe they had been rushing a bit too much.

‘So can we call it truce?’ he offered in the hopes she’d be willing to try this again.

She nodded, adding, ‘Maybe something like this would help...’ as she guided his hand and fingertips and a softer fashion, figuring he might aid her in returning the favour as she leant in to kiss him again.

It was a comfort to know he wasn’t the only one who was uncertain about it all. Following her guidance he gave a shy smile before returning the favour as he took her hand and guided her as well. Anakin eagerly found himself returning it deciding that perhaps this wasn’t as difficult as he had begun to fear. Unfortunately for him, it was only too easy to lose himself in the rush of sensations and the emotions it encouraged. Leaving him to once more forget that this was as much about giving as it was about taking. It wasn’t long before he became more greedy in his actions and less considerate about how Dormé would be affected by it. This too would become a lesson that would soon be learnt and not so easily forgotten.

Despite initial hesitancy, Dormé felt very comfortable with Anakin. Had it been anyone else, she wasn’t so sure she would have been able to get this far, at least not without some apprehension. She found she liked this very much and was glad to be able to share this with him. She too found it incredibly hard to concentrate on her actions with the new feelings and sensations caused by his touch. However, Anakin seemed to be able to compensate for that.

Anakin was more than a little overjoyed at the prospect of being able to do this with Dormé. The thought of being able to refer to her openly as his girlfriend was wonderful enough, nevermind this. However he still had far to go and despite his enjoyment of the moment the young prince had yet to learn that relationships involved more than just physical attraction. Just as he had yet to understand that a relationship wasn’t about selfish needs.

When she found he was no longer focused on her, solely focused on his own pleasure, she broke away from their kiss to look at him. Part of her liked that she was able to make him feel good, yet the other part of her felt a little cheated by this. She concluded that perhaps it would just be easier to tend to his desires and then he would do so for her in turn, or so she assumed.

It took her completely withdrawing her own hand to register that something was wrong. Drawing back his eyes snapped open as he studied her in confusion. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked obviously not understanding what should have been clear to him.

‘Nothing.’ Though Dormé liked making her friend happy, she also liked having fun too, which is what she thought this whole thing was about in the first place. She also had much to learn about, though it was more about Anakin’s true intentions and what this sort of activity would mean to him. Placing her hands on his waist, she tilted her head to the side, her eyes crawling up his chest to his eyes, saying, ‘I just thought it was my turn now...’

Nodding in agreement, the Jedi prince gave his entire attentions to her and moved in to kiss her once more. This time, he was more mindful of his actions and did his best—as best as one could hope given his experience—to bask in Dormé’s presence as she had basked in his moments ago.

Beginning to recline on the bed, she slid her hands from his waist to his back while continuing to kiss him. The kissing became more difficult as she moaned in response to his touch.

He soon learnt that there was much enjoyment to be found in giving as well as receiving. Despite this, his thoughts turned selfish once more and his actions began to turn from gentle to more aggressive. This went well for a time, but the prince was selfish by nature and soon his desires overrode his consideration, leaving his actions to become more aggressive, which could have been enjoyable in its own right had he known what he was doing...

Dormé accidentally kicked him as she pushed him away, exclaiming in her native tongue that he hurt her again. ‘Ashrusshu e talputa!’

Anakin winced and cried out in pain and shock before growling something entirely rude in Huttese at her. ‘Dammit, you did that on purpose, you wretched woman! Force, what is with you trying to kill me?!’ he hissed while trying to regain his composure. He had no idea what he did wrong this time and now wondered just what he did wrong to deserve this.

When Dormé realised she had kicked him there, her eyes went wide and she promptly apologised. Anakin seemed to think differently. ‘I didn’t mean to kick you! I’m sorry—’ she began feeling wretched about it. ‘It was just getting a bit...rough...and I was only trying to...ishab... I’m sorry, all right?!’

Had Anakin been more aware of Dormé’s emotions he would have realized a great deal of things but for now he was lost to his own. Cursing more and attempting to use the Force to numb the pain, the Jedi prince just glared at her as he scowled. ‘Rough!? You’re the one who is doing the beating around here not me!’ Anakin snarled as he struggled not to whimper at the pain. ‘Geez, at this rate, I’m going to be dead by morning...’he muttered to himself.

‘I told you I didn’t mean to!’ she yelled at him. Dormé could have sworn that Jedi had faster reflexes anyway.

Anakin in time managed to regain a little of his composure -though none of his pride. ‘Well you sure could have fooled me!’ he growled as she yelled back at him.

Dormé folded her arms and frowned at him, thinking to herself that if she had aimed to do it on purpose it would have been much harder of a kick and more directly aimed, for that matter. She wanted to know if he had tired of her already and was willing to leave if this wasn’t going to be fun anymore. ‘Look, do you want me to leave or something?’ she sighed.

The prince’s expression soften as he shook his head. His thoughts now a bit clearer revealed the truth and growing apologetic himself he bit his lip as he studied her shyly. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t mean to hurt you either...I’d rather you stay...I mean if you want to that is...’ he sheepishly admitted.

She sat up on her knees facing him. ‘I do want to... I thought this sort of thing would be easier,’ she admitted shyly.

Despite the initial mishaps and inevitable damage caused, Anakin wasn’t ready to completely give up and now was more than determined to try again. He felt his cheeks burning as he nodded sheepishly. ‘I did too,’ he admitted quietly before moving to touch her cheek. ‘I’ll try to be more careful this time. But if I am messing things up please tell me instead of beating me to a pulp all right?’ he teased gently feeling his hope in the situation return once more.

Dormé smiled shyly and leant into his touch, but at his words, she teased, ‘Well I would have been able to if your tongue wasn’t in my mouth at the time.’ She drew closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. If anyone was going to figure this out, Dormé would and there was no one else she would rather give it a shot with.

Mindful of her emotions and careful to be sensitive, things began to fall into place as they should—or as much as one could expect given the situation and his lack of experience. Unfortunately, for the young prince who was Force sensitive, the entire experience proved to be a bit overwhelming. Caught up in Dormé’s emotions—which seemed to mingle and intertwine with his own—Anakin soon found himself struggling to maintain the control needed for the moment. In the end, it proved to be a losing battle. Lost to the rush of new sensations as well as the heady emotions that were both Dormé’s and his own, Anakin, much to his utter humiliation, could no longer contain himself. As such, he soon brought the entire memorable experience to a pre-mature close. Frustrated and more than a little shamed by this, he was speechless to say the least and once more found himself wishing he would have taken his compatriot’s advice and invested in the legendary harem.

Things went far better this time and Dormé felt once they practiced a bit more, it would be perfect. Anakin seemed more in tune with her than before and soon she too was lost in this new bliss they were creating together. However, just as they figured out how to come together, she feeling a slight twinge of pain, it was over. Dormé looked over at Anakin incredulously, as if to say, ‘That’s it? That’s what the big fuss was about?’

Anakin glanced away, cursing himself and praying to all the powers that be to just open a floor in the bed and swallow him whole.

Dormé didn’t know that much about how all of this worked, nor was she incredibly familiar with how the male body functions. She didn’t consider the fact he was very young and such things took time to learn. She also didn’t take into consideration the same Force abilities that would prove to be a great asset later were to blame this time for his inability to keep himself in control. She was also unaware that it would not be long for him to be able to try again, that is, if they didn’t end this on a sour note. Though she could tell he was humiliated, she was a bit put off herself. ‘I thought Jedi had more control...’ she muttered, a bit frustrated.

Cursing softly in Huttese, he scowled and drew back moving to grab his things. Though this was clearly his quarters, he decided he would much rather be anywhere that was away from her and the embarrassment of the situation. ‘I would have if I had experience,’ he grumbled under his breath before adding in equally agitated tones, ‘Had I known it would have been this difficult, I would have saved us the effort and practiced with a harem first.’

‘A harem?!’ she balked at him, also rising from the bed, but not in an attempt to retrieve her clothes. Dormé was far too angered to consider her lack of clothing.

Anakin frowned as he stumbled about to put on his garments but with little success. ‘Seeing that I’m to up to your standards, what else am I to do?’ he hissed back as his embarrassment turned to frustration once more.

She stormed over to him, grabbing him by the arm. ‘You mean pay girls to have sex with you? Or would they be your slaves? Isthab baraed!’

‘I don’t pay them—’ he began in agitation before attempting to yell over her voice. ‘And they are not slaves! It’s considered an honoured position one that—’

‘I’m never speaking to you again if you do!’ She didn’t know what compelled her, but she felt incredibly possessive of her friend and didn’t like the idea of sharing him with anyone else, especially not slaves.

‘Force, what do you want from me? First you tell me I’m not good enough, that I lack control. Then you’re telling me that I can’t practice on others in order to improve? What in the blazes do you want from me?’ he growled moving to yank his arm free.

‘Practice on others?!!’ she screeched as he shook his arm free from her grasp.

‘Well it’s not like I’m good enough to practice on you, now is it!’ he shouted back before continuing as his pride demanded he explained himself. In truth. a harem was the last thing he wanted, for he thought it was rather tasteless to use girls for sex. He would rather it was with someone he cared about and was involved with. But not wanting to appear any more pathetic than he felt, Anakin put on his best act and ploughed onwards.

‘What would possess you—’

‘How the iquicha am I supposed to get experience? You think I can just gain it from reading some books?’ he snapped feeling his wounded pride grow worse.

Dormé froze. For a moment, she just stared at him. ‘Fine... Sure...’ She took steps towards the exit, grabbing the gown she tossed haphazardly on the floor earlier. If he truly preferred this idea of a harem, she saw no point in staying.

The prince began to panic and swiftly used the Force to cause the nearby dresser like shelving to slide swiftly to the door -blocking her exit. Then trying to close the distance, he attempted to stand between her the dresser and the door hoping to make sense of the madness that had unfolded.

When the dresser blocked her exit, Dormé gasped and dropped the gown. Before she knew it, he was standing between her and the dresser and yelling at her. Infuriated that he was yelling at her as if this was her fault, she was tempted to slap him, but she didn’t.

‘Echuta! What is your problem! You’re making no sense at all. First you beat me for every iquicha mistake I make, then you tell me I lack control. I try to offer ways of mending the problem and you’re pissed off at me again!’ he snapped in confused frustration.

‘I SAID I HADN’T MEANT TO HURT YOU!’ she yelled.

Her shouted reply caused him to narrow his eyes in agitation but ultimately it was her muttering that left its mark. Deep down, he felt terrible for making her feel this way but was too determined to win this fruitless battle to bother apologizing. ‘Force help me, you are the most confusing woman I’ve ever met!’

‘Solving problems indeed. I was just about to go fetch that harem for you since you obviously would rather have all those other girls instead of me...’ She concluded her tirade with a string of Uriashian curses as she reached for whatever was closest that she could throw at him.

‘Oh and you expect me to believe that you’d rather practice with me instead of someone who knows what they’re doing?’ he challenged licking the wounds of his pride. ‘Or is the reason why you wanted me all along was so you could have your own personal punching—!!’ Anakin cried out suddenly as a rather heavy mechanical device that even he couldn’t quite figure out -but enjoyed building- slammed him square on in the head. Stunned and soon enraged he glared at her in shock. ‘What in the great abyssal was that for!? Was kicking not enough for you? Now you have to work up to throwing things at me!? You do realize I could press charges for what you’ve done!’ he snarled wanting desperately to punch her back but unable to bring himself to do it. After all, she was a girl and such behaviour was frowned upon, even for a prince of an empire.

Dormé hurled whatever she could grab at Anakin, but when he said he could press charges, she ceased. Just when she thought she had the upper hand, he stopped her with words that were like a slap in the face. How dare he! Tears came to her eyes as she faced him off, though she couldn’t deny there was something else there as she looked at him, something that was incredibly...intoxicating in his anger. ‘I don’t want anyone else. Nisaba why do you have to be so haramu difficult?!!’ If anyone was confusing, it was him.

The sight of her tears marked the fact he had crossed the line. But her words once more caused him to stop dead in his tracks confusing him further just as the sight of her so furious seemed to cause the room to warm. As though sensing her own warped attraction to his agitation Anakin suddenly found it hard to think clearly nevermind give a glib reply. ‘I’m difficult!? You’re the one who keeps giving me mixed messages! First you want me, then you don’t, now you do...’ Almost as soon as the words came out of his mouth, the young prince picked up its meaning and soon found his legs moving of their own accord. Without another word, he moved to slip his arms around her to draw the young handmaiden in for a passionate kiss.

Just when Dormé was unable to stand it any longer, he was back in her arms where he belonged. Internally, she had to admit they were getting better at this, however, losing themselves to their emotions while still un-practiced and unfamiliar with each other’s bodies, was not exactly the best idea...not that it stopped them. All Dormé could register at that moment was his warm skin against her own, how right it felt to hold and be held by him. It was not long before they were reclined on the bed once more, Anakin positioned above her, leaving her with little control which would leave its mark on her later.

At first things went smoothly and Anakin feeling more confident soon allowed himself to fully enjoy the moment. Unfortunately, that meant falling prey to the rush of emotions and sensations, which for the selfish prince meant forgetting all about Dormé’s emotions. As a result, he grew more aggressive as primal instinct took over leaving him unaware of the pain he was causing. Though the young handmaiden-to-be tried to catch his attentions it was virtually impossible as the young prince was too lost to the moment.

Dormé attempted to request Anakin slow down, but he wasn’t paying heed to her. ‘Anakin—’

Dormé had been trying to get used to him, but she had little time to and it was really starting to hurt. ‘Anakin, stop!’ She pushed him away, but he was physically stronger and larger than her. Having a bit of a time struggling against him, she dug her nails deep into his skin in an effort to get his attention.

The foolish boy misread the actions and only moved slightly figuring she was uncomfortable but that he wasn’t the direct cause. However as her nails pierced his flesh the message desperately being sent had finally pierced through his hazy lust-filled thoughts. Cursing loudly, Anakin’s attention finally settled onto the young maiden as he glared at her in confusion. ‘What am I doing now!?’ he groused before noticing with some shock that she had drawn blood. ‘By the Force you’re even more dangerous than a Krayt Dragon,’ he muttered half in jest and half in awe.

‘You were—hurting me, Anakin,’ she gasped out, not even aware of his ‘awe’ at her strength.

Anakin blinked unaware he was causing any pain at all and sensing only his own. But as the clouds cleared from his thoughts the answer soon revealed itself and he felt a rush of shame. ‘...I’m sorry I didn’t realize...I just...’ he fell silent as he bit his lip. While he had been told everything in life was a learning process, the young prince wasn’t one who liked to fail on first try. And right now he felt every bit the failure he didn’t want to be. ‘...Okay this obviously isn’t working. Maybe we should do as we were doing before where we showed each other what worked best for us,’ he sheepishly admitted. Part of him feared that she was going to hate him by morning while the other was more concerned about coming out of this in one piece.

Once Dormé caught her breath and heard his apology, she touched his cheek. It was as if she knew somehow that he needed reassurance that they would figure this out.

Dormé’s touch as always was soothing and reassuring in its own right. Though he couldn’t explain it Anakin could sense that she knew what he was feeling, that he was fearful of failing her. While it would be some time before he would fully understand the true reasons for this unspoken connection, Anakin couldn’t deny his appreciation of it right now.

‘OK,’ she whispered, leaning in to kiss him as she manoeuvred to her side, facing him. ‘Just slower, OK?’ she said between kisses. ‘Like this...’

At her gentle whisper he gave a shy smile as she kissed him. Then adjusting herself and flipping her hair—which caught him in the face and caused him to shake his head in dismay—Dormé instructed him on how she preferred things between kisses. Eager to learn and to make the most of this already disastrous situation Anakin nodded slightly between kisses himself. Then he did his best to comply to the request given while showing her in a shy manner his own preferences.

It took awhile to find a pace that suited both of them and, as this was all new, it led to a few more disappointments and frustrations on either end. There continued to be instances where Anakin was carried away with himself and his own feelings and desires that Dormé had to call him on, or rather claw at him or end up slapping him in an effort to get his attention. Apparently, or so she assumed, Anakin couldn’t tell the difference between calling out his name in pleasure versus when she was in pain. Moderate aggression on her part seemed to be the only solution, though she would be incredibly embarrassed about it later. Amongst the Huttese and Uriashian explicatives, there was plenty of laughter to accompany it.

Dormé was able to enjoy a good portion of their experimentation, which was a feat in itself, given their inexperience. In truth, it was due to Anakin getting tired, which she could tell from his lazy kisses. Much later, she would come to realise the significance of how open they were to each other and how though it was awkward, it was contrast quite relaxing when it came down to it.

The evening despite its ups and downs proved to be quite an adventure and not an entirely unenjoyable one at that. Anakin continued to struggle with his emotions which let him get carried away far too easily but seemed to do better with maintaining control. But despite his best attempts he still had far to go—as did Dormé in his humble opinion—and soon earned himself some well deserved ‘battle’ wounds. Between the colourful language and punishment, as he later teased, there was much to be enjoyed. In the end, it was Anakin’s exhaustion that drew the adventure to a close.

In the end, Dormé felt the best part of it all was holding him after they ‘gave up’ for the evening. Dormé felt rather comfortable and warm in his arms, she fiddled with his Padawan braid absentmindedly. If Harmony could be found anywhere, it had to be somewhere like this, she mused as she gazed at him, smiling serenely. Everything else would come in time.

Though it was far from perfection, Anakin had faith that in time things would improve as they grew more comfortable with each other. Little did he realise that despite everything that had transpired they had accomplished more than they could have possibly understood. For now, Anakin was more than content to hold Dormé close as he let his fingers wander through her hair. Just as hers played with his Padawan braid. Despite the welts and claw marks, Anakin was feeling quite at peace with himself and with his relationship with what he believed to be his now significant other.