Padme laid there in the pre-dawn hour, just listening to the sounds of the birds starting to wake up and start the morning singing.
' I remember not so long ago, my friends and I would lay on the sandy beach of the island and just listening to the sounds of the birds and guessing which ones made the call.' Padme thought to herself. ' I just wish I could do that again.'
The door opened up and in crept one of the handmaidens. She went to the window and opened up the curtains, so that the sun could come shining through the windows and light up the room. " Good morning, Your Majesty," Yane` went over to the closet and getting the clothes out.
Padme sat up rubbing her eyes, trying to get them focus, " Good morning, Yane`. Where is Sabe` this morning?"
Turning around to face her Queen, she had this worried look come across her young face. " Um... there seems to be some kind of small issue that happened overnight. Her and Captain Panaka are seeing to it."
" I see. Please, inform the Governor that there will be a meeting this afternoon and also inform him, that it will be after lunch. Heaven forbid, that I interrupt that man's eating schedule."
" Yes, Your Majesty. He does get very cranky, when his lunch schedule is interrupted. Oh and speaking of food, breakfast will be served in twenty minutes." Yane` laughed, when the mention of the Governor's lunch being interrupted for meeting last week.
" Thank you, Yane`." Padme laughed too, thinking about last week's meeting and how grumpy that the Governor was, because he couldn't finish his lunch.
,p>The young handmaiden left the room for a couple minutes, so she could go and inform the Governor's household of the upcoming meeting for the afternoon.
Padme got out of the bed and grabbed the robe that was at the end of the bed. Putting on the robe, Padme walked over the double doors, which led to balcony. Going outside, she went over to the stone railing and looking out towards the ocean.
' I wonder what kind of issue that has my head handmaiden and head of security looking into?' Padme thought to herself again.
Yane` came back into room, but didn't see Padme in the room, but she did see that the double doors to the balcony was wide open.
Walking outside, she sees her young Queen in deep thought.
" Um... excuse me, Your Highness, but breakfast is ready. Would you like me to help you get dressed for breakfast?"
Padme turned around and looked at the young girl. " No, that won't be necessary. I would like to have breakfast sent up here, please. Please, tell everyone that I don't want to be bothered, unless it's very important."
Yane` bowed her head, " Yes, Your Majesty. I will tell Sabe`, when she is finishing doing whatever her and Captain Panaka is doing." she said, before heading out of the room.
Padme began to think that the issue that her handmaiden and security guard looking into, is the rumors of the Trade Federation orbiting the planet.
A couple of weeks ago, she had received a message from the Viceroy. He had threatened her into signing a Treaty with them. The only thing she told them, was that her and her people didn't think it was a good idea signing anything with them, and now she has a feeling that he sent his ships here to carry out some kind of threat, not only to her, but to her people.
The bedroom creaked open and Yane` and her other handmaiden Eirtae` came into the room, with her breakfast and putting it on the table in her private apartment.
Padme waked into the room and headed into the living room. She saw that the plate of food was sitting on the table, along with her cup of Caf. Sitting down at the table, Padme began eating her breakfast, as she picked up her personal data pad and was looking at her schedule for today. It the one time she was looking forward to was having lunch with her family this afternoon. Taking a sip of the Caf, the door opened up and both Sabe` and Captain Panaka came into the room. They had this pissed off look on their faces. Padme looked up from her schedule. " What is?"
Both Sabe` and Panaka looked at each other, " We got message from the Viceroy and he demands that you make contact with him now."
Padme raised an eyebrow at the two people standing in front of her, " I see. I want you to go contact him back and tell him that I will contact him, whenever I feel like it."
Both Sabe` and Panaka had a huge smile on their faces, because they knew that their Queen wasn't going let anyone tell her what she should do. " Yes, Your Highness, with pleasure." Sabe` left the room, with a smile on her face.
Captain Panaka bowed, before leaving the room and followed the handmaiden down to the communication center of the palace.
Twenty minutes later, Yane` and Eirtae` came back into the apartment to help Padme get ready for the day. Yane` went into the bedroom, while Eirtae` took the plate back to the kitchen. Padme got up from the table and headed into the bedroom, while Yane` helped her get dressed, do her hair and putting on her make up.
She was putting on the last touches of her make up ,when Sabe` and Panaka came back into the room. Padme looked at the two people, as Yane` was putting on her head dress. " I take it that the Viceroy didn't like the idea of waiting for me to contact him?"
" Yes, Your Majesty. He was slightly pissed, when I told him that you had other things going on at the time, and that you were not going to be ordered to do anything that you didn't have to." Sabe` looked at the Queen, with a smile on her face.
Padme laughed, just wishing she could have seen the look on his face, when Sabe` told him that she wasn't going to rush. " Good. Well, lets get going and see what he wants from me."
Turning away from the mirror, and seeing that all the handmaids where there and dressed in their robes.
Sabe` and Yane` grabbed their robes from two other handmaidens. Putting the robes on, they followed their Queen down to the Throne Room.
Walking into the Throne Room, and going to her Throne, she sat down, as her handmaidens surrounded her throne.
" The Trade Federation is pleased you have chosen to come before us, Your Highness," the viceroy began very smoothly.
" You will not be so pleased, when you hear what I have to say, Viceroy," Padme said, flatly, and cutting him short. " Your trade boycott is ended."
Padme sat there and watched Nute fight down his shock. She could tell that he was trying to regain his composure, before smirking at Rune. " Really, Your Highness? I wasn't aware -"
" I have word that the Senate is finally voting on this matter," Padme continued, as she was ignoring him.
" I take it, you know the outcome already, then." Nute felt a measure of uncertainty to take hold. " I wonder why they bother to vote at all."
Leaning forward slightly, and the Neimoidian could see the fire in the young Queen's brown eyes. " I have had enough of pretense, Viceroy. I am aware that the supreme chancellor's ambassadors are with you now, and that you have been commanded to reach a settlement. What is it to be?"
Nute Gunray felt a deep hole open in his waning confidence. " I know nothing about any ambassadors. You must be mistaken."
There was a flicker of surprise come across the Queen's face, as she studied the viceroy very carefully. " Beware, Viceroy," Padme said softly. " The Federation has gone way to far this time." Padme watched as Nute Gunray shook his head quickly, before drawing himself up in a defensive posture.
" Your Highness, we would never do anything in defiance of the Senate's will. You assume too much."
Padme sat there motionless, as her brown eyes fixed on him - as if she could see the truth he was trying to hide, as if he were made of glass. " We shall see," she said softly, before ending the communication with the Federation.
She looked at the Captain and nodded before getting up and headed back to her apartments. She tried to think what happened to the two ambassadors that were supposed to meet with the Viceroy. Once she was inside her apartment, she went into her sleeping area, went over to the mirror, and took off the heavy headdress.
Closing her eyes, she felt the tears of frustrations welling up in her eyes. She looked into the mirror and her reflection looked back at her. Then, she began to wonder if she is really too young for this job that is weighting down on her shoulders.