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❝𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯. ❞
                              - 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐬é 𝐀. 𝐀𝐦𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐚 𝐍𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞

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»»-----------►Ｃｌａｒｉｓｓé

❝𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐑𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓? ❞ Padmé practically screeched at me, her voice booming across the elegant bedroom the two of us were located in.

"Yes, I know, I'm aware," I brushed off, not wanting to upset her any further than I already have.

"No, Clarissé!" She shouted, angry at me for blowing my safety away like a spec of dust, "you don't know and you don't understand! You are in grave danger and instead of hiding like you are supposed to be doing, you want to play around with your safety by dressing up as a handmaiden! What were you thinking?"

I sighed deeply, wanting Padmé to agree that this was the best option for Naboo and for myself.

"Padmé," I breathed out, trying to explain, "I need you to understand that this is the best option for myself and Naboo. Yes, I won't be tucked away in some corner of Naboo to find, but I need to leave. We won't stand a chance against the Trade Federation if I am here amongst everyone. Please understand where my decision came from."

Padmé turned around, her back facing me as she had silent thoughts on the matter of my grand escape.

"Will you come with me?" I whimpered at my older sister, praying to the Force that she would accept my request. I needed her with me on my mission. Without her, I'd be lost.

My sister was essentially all I had left in this galaxy, the one who stuck by me throughout all my good, and all my bad.

She was my best friend, and I wasn't sure I could complete this mission without her.

No, I knew I couldn't handle this without her.

Padmé suddenly whipped back around at my words, her face showing one of stark shock at my words of requesting.

"Of course I'll come with you," she almost whispered, moving closer towards me until she dropped to her knees and wrapped her warm, inviting arms around me. Padmé has extremely nice hugs.

I snuggled into her warmth, letting a few hot tears myself.

Padmé eventually pulled away, looking at me with love and compassion dripping into her beautiful features.

"I'll always come with you, Clarissé. No matter what I agree with or don't. You're my little sister, and I'll do anything to make sure this nasty Trade Federation doesn't lay so much as a pinky on you. I love you more than words could know. We're in this together, remember?"

I laughed slightly and nodded at her words of encouragement, my boiling tears causing my white foundation to smear off, the red accents of my look washing away with it. It didn't matter anymore. I would have to take it off in a little bit anyway and nothing mattered to me more than Padmé and her sisterly love in that moment. I never liked the difficult makeup anyway, it was only a requirement.

I snuggled back into my loving sister, my head in the crook of her neck. My elegant updo of my nutty brown hair in a crescent like shape started to come undone, strands of chocolate hair floating around me. Padmé herself had done my hair along with my makeup and dress.

"I love you, Paddy," I whispered, snuggling my head further into her soft neck.

I could tell Padmé started to smile as she pulled back just enough to kiss my forehead soothingly, as if she was my mother. In a way, she was. Our true mother couldn't come down to Naboo to visit because Padmé and I were both extremely busy. Padmé took on the roll of my mother with great ease, knowing that I needed one to keep me afloat for Naboo.

I softly fluttered my eyes shut, almost falling asleep to Padmé rubbing my back with care and affection, the soft motion making me tired. The weight of Naboo came crashing down on me at a young age, at a great speed, but Padmé was always there to calm me down, saying that we had to share the burden together.

"I love you too, Clarie."

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»»-----------►Ｆｏｒｃｅ

𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐒É 𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐃𝐀𝐋𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐃 into the mirror with a solemn expression plastered onto her beautiful, youthful face.

Her long nut brown hair was placed into two tight buns on the sides of her head. Her face was clear of any makeup, the only traces being a permanent pinkish tint to her lips due to the blood red lipstick. She didn't mind the absence of her queenly attire and makeup, as she always felt that it took away from her, the real her. Plus, it always was difficult to wear weighty gowns made of gold and pounds of makeup to hide her identity. Her pale skin seemed even paler now, especially in the warm glow of her bedroom. Even her colorful eyes were not glowing with the familiar curious spark in them. The green was dull and lifeless.

As was Clarissé Amidala in that moment.

A popping orange and yellow ombré dress was placed upon the young queen, replacing the regal gold and burgundy dress she wore for her meeting.

It was a handmaidens outfit, surely not very fitting for the queen of a prosperous nation and planet, but Clarissé didn't mind. She preferred it over the tight fabric her royal outfits provided. Besides, it's not like the young queen had a choice, after all. She was doing this to protect her people, her country.

The young girl sighed with troublesome thoughts and reluctantly reached behind her. She felt the soft material in between her pale, little fingers, but the feeling of the fabric melted onto her skin did very little to comfort her.

The little girl pulled the fabric up and over, resting the hood over the entirety of her head. No one could see her face. If people did, they'd see her eyes, and that was the last thing poor Clarissé Amidala needed at that moment. Her eyes were not only talked about all over Naboo, but over the whole galaxy. If one were to see the vibrant, one of a kind shade of green, the whole cover would be blown.

After the hood was placed upon her head, Clarissé backed away from her spot in front of the mirror and made her way out of her bedroom.

She shut the ornate door, but felt a pull to it, as if it was to vanish in thin air. In a way, it was. Who knew how long the Queen would be gone. Days, weeks, maybe even months.

The Queen shuddered a breath, and started to walk to Padmé's room on the other side of the stretched out hall.

The girl stopped in front of her sister's door, and with battered breath, knocked gently three times.

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

Padmé Naberrie opened the door, expecting to see her little sister tell her she was done from changing.

The fourteen year old girl was also dressed as a handmaiden, as she had to blend in with her sister.

Low and behold, the older girl saw her younger sister standing there in a maids dress, looking too stressed to look like a nine year old girl.

"Are you ready to go?" Padmé questioned, looking with unease at the deep bags underneath the saddened green eyes of her sister.

The young Amidala nodded her head once. A simple nod.

"Okay, come on."

As the fourteen girl led her nine year old sister through the halls of the palace to the throne room, the younger of the two stopped to stare out a massive window parallel to her forgotten room.

She often looked out this window, as it was her favorite place in the palace, asking the stars for help when she most needed it. It was comforting, in a way, and the stars guided her more than anyone ever had before. They were wise and seemed to speak to her in ways that no one had before. She loved them like they were old friends, or perhaps they were more like family. She never really knew.

The queen did not look at the stars this time, though.

No. She looked down at the crowds of people going throughout their business, the innocent people with families and lives before her. She loved them all, in her own way. They were her people and she would do anything for them.

A tear silently made its way down her smooth face and over the tiny freckles on her cheekbones.

And so, she reluctantly tore herself away from the crystal window, praying to the Force that she'd get to see her stars, and people, again.

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»»-----------►Ｆｏｒｃｅ

𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐄 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐍𝐔𝐓𝐄 were never patient.

Ever since they were little children they've never felt an ounce of patience in their grey bodies.

Impatient was how the two aliens felt when they softly landed in the center of Theed Plaza, the street just before the grand palace of Naboo.

A ramp was slowly lowered onto the warm cobblestone as the two viceroys made their way out of their transport.

A B1 battle droid by the name of OOM-9 stepped forward as he delivered some increasingly good news for the Trade Federation in his mechanical voice.

"Viceroy, we have successfully captured the Queen."

Nute smiled mischievously at the joyous news he just received, laughing at the victorious plan he and his partner achieved.

"Ah, victory!"

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»»-----------►Ｃｌａｒｉｓｓé

❝𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐘𝐎𝐔 explain this invasion to the Senate?❞ Bibble questioned as the horrible viceroys trudged our group down the glorious stone steps of the palace.

"The Queen and I will sign a treaty that will legitimize our occupation here," Nute informed, looking towards the elderly governor on his left, "I assurances it will be ratified by the Senate."

Indirá, dressed up in a black gown with a raven feather headdress, looked back at me walking with the rest of my handmaidens, all of us casting our eyes down at the floor.

I looked up at the noticeable eye contact she was making with me, her brown eyes drilling into mine with a question in them.

What do I say?

I lifted my arm up and tapped with my index and middle fingers three times on my wrist, hoping that she remembered the hand signals I had made with her earlier that day.

I had told her to say no to the viceroy.

She discretely nodded and turned back to the viceroy in record speed.

"I will not co-operate," Indirá asserted sternly, trying to sound like me when I turned an offer down, also trying to keep her dark brown irises down towards the ground to avoid the Viceroy of the Federation recognizing her as a fake, due to the fact that she didn't have the vibrant green eyes everyone in the galaxy talked about the young nine year old queen of Naboo having. The hand signals only gave her the general perspective of what I wanted to say. It was up to her to figure out the way to deliver that message across.

Padmé stood next to me, holding my shaking, tiny hand and rubbing her thumb absentmindedly across my delicate knuckles, letting me know she was there. I looked up at her slightly and smiled.

Padmé had said she was never going to leave my side, and she had stayed true to her word. She always was next to me, which I had appreciated greatly. It was nice to have my older sister right next to me while I had to escape the clutches of a greedy federation.

Nute shook his shriveled grey head in mock sympathy.

Why this greedy, hunk of space scum!

"Now, now, your Highness. In time, the suffering of your precious people of Naboo will persuade you to see our point of view."

I clenched my jaw and fists together, my teeth grinding together. My nails left bloody indents in the soft palms of my hand. I didn't care. I couldn't care when I had an invasion of my people occurring just outside the palace. Padmé noticed this and grabbed my hand once more, squeezing it with concern. I looked at her and softened my hardened face, letting her know I was fine.

"Commander?" Nute called for the leader of his droid army, the skinny robot making its way towards the grey alien in charge.

"Yes, sir!" It responded with the loyal tone only a droid could have.

"Process them," Nute ordered with cold authority. I hated him and his lack of caring for the destruction and suffering he was causing my people. I was usually a very civil and kind person, but sometimes certain people really grind my gears.

Nute was at the top of my list, currently.

The droid turned to the captain of his squad.

"Captain, take them to Camp Four."

"Roger, roger," the captain complied, marching us back down the stone steps of the beautiful palace, away to certain doom with no one to rescue us.

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»»-----------►Ｃｌａｒｉｓｓé

𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐅𝐓 𝐆𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐏, minus Nute and Rune who had left us at the entrance to the palace, walked out onto Theed Plaza, everyone but Indira keeping their heads down and their eyes to the ground.

We walked for a little bit more, our feet moving with ease at the fear of being shot at, until a stroke of movement caught my attention by a set of pillars covered in lilies.

Two people, a man and what looked to be a teenage boy stood with a Gungan at the base of the pillars, pulling out some sort of a short stick of metal. I took a closer look at the object and realized it was a lightsaber.

Jedi. Jedi were the only ones who used lightsabers.

Who were these men? Surely they weren't Jedi? Were they?

I reluctantly tore my eyes away from the two of them, keeping my head down and thanking the Force that they didn't notice me discovering them.

Our group and I walked through the plaza of Naboo, until the two men and Gungan from earlier dropped down from the pillars above the certain archway our group was about to walk through.

The two men, who I now considered to be Jedi, engaged into battle from there.

They took out their lightsabers, the older man igniting his into a brilliant, glowing green. The teenage boy had one the color of the sky, its blue hue clashing with its counterpart, the green and blue meshing together in perfect harmony.

They slashed through the battle droids with perfect unison, taking out the majority of the skinny robots with their sabers alone.

Meanwhile, my older sister had slightly pushed my smaller figure behind her, another example of her attempting to keep me safe.

I was heavily impressed by the skillful work of the men in front of me. I've only seen a handful of Jedi in my life, but seeing them actually fight was a whole other experience. It was mesmerizing to watch.

At this point, there were two more battle droids, the said droids dropping their weapons and trying to run away. The older man was quick though, and raised his hand up in the air, his long fingers outstretched towards the two runaway droids.

The two robots flew into the stone wall just behind them, their circuits immediately frying at the harsh impact. Glorious sparks crackled in the clear, warm air from the dead droid bodies. In a way, I felt bad for the two. They were only droids who were doing what they were told to do. But then I remembered that these droids were assisting in the invasion of my people, and I suddenly didn't feel quite guilty for the droids anymore.

I stared at the man who had lowered his hand by now, quickly moving in front of Indirá to address her. I was shocked but amazed at the sheer talent it took to do such a thing. The Jedi seemed to amaze me the more I got to see them, which wasn't very often.

"We should leave the streets, your Highness," the man suggested, a suggestion I immediately agreed with.

Sio Bibble placed a hand on Indirá's back, moving her forward gently while discreetly placing his idle hand on my shoulder, attempting to keep me close to the decoy queen.

I had to stay very close to Indirá for my own safety. Wherever she went, I was required to go with her. As was Padmé, as she was to never leave my side, a request she herself had made.

The two Jedi's stayed behind to collect the weapons left by the mess of destroyed battle droid parts, while the rest of our group moved up another set of stairs to the right. The Gungan had also said something that I could not hear very well from my position of heading up the stone steps.

"We're the Ambassadors," the older Jedi starts, "for the Supreme Chancellor."

Jedi? Why would the Chancellor employ Jedi? It made me quite curious, to say the least.

"Your negotiations seemed to have failed, Ambassador," Bibble stated, looking at the man in grey robes.

"The negotiations never took place," the Jedi replied, looking behind him, "It's urgent we make contact with the republic."

Captain Panaka stepped forward to address the Jedi Ambassador.

"They've knocked out all our communications."

The Jedi looked behind him once more.

"Do you have transports?"

My head slightly tilted at that. I didn't want to run away, I really didn't. A queen does not run from her people, but I needed to get out of Naboo to Coruscant, where I would hopefully present my case to the Senate and have the disgusting viceroys arrested for their crimes against the galaxy. I couldn't help but think of my people and the horror they must be going through.

Panaka nodded at the Jedi.

"In the main hanger. This way."

Panaka stepped forward to lead us all the way to our hanger, Indirá and Bibble following close behind, the two Jedi right on their trail, finally followed by the handmaidens led by Padmé and I.

Panaka led us to the hanger, grouping us behind the wall of the main entrance. Battle droids were everywhere, making escape almost impossible at the moment. Faint alarms could be heard ringing in the distance, most likely from the battle droid massacre found on Theed Plaza.

"There are too many of them," Panaka observed, looking back towards the Jedi and referring to the fifty battle droids surrounding the transports.

"That won't be a problem," the Jedi turned to Indirá, "Your Highness, under the circumstances, I suggest you come to Coruscant with us."

I moved forward a couple of inches to be next to Indirá and lightly tapped the back of her shoulder five times.

I had told her to decline.

"Thank you, Ambassador," she started, staring at me from the corner of her dark brown eyes, "but my place is here with my people."

I slightly nodded and smiled at the excellent job my decoy was doing. I knew I had picked the right person.

"They will kill you if you stay," the Jedi informed, looking at Indirá with calm yet curious eyes.

"They wouldn't dare," Bibble interjected, looking at me with a confident expression on his plump, elderly face.

"They need her to sign a treaty to make this invasion of theirs legal. They can't afford to kill her," Panaka informed the Jedi, looking at me with concern and worry laced through his dark eyes. He was worried for me and the impending threat on not only his queen, but also his planet. I glanced at Panaka with a soft expression, hopefully letting him know I would be okay, even though I wasn't so sure of my, or my planet's, safety anymore.

"There is something else behind all of this, your Highness," the Jedi stated, looking over Indirá thoughtfully, "There is no logic in the Federation's move here. My feelings tell me they will destroy you."

I gulped at his prediction, suddenly feeling scared for not my own life, but for my people's. For Bibble's and Panaka's. For Padmé's. I was terrified of what would happen to them. With me dead, who would protect them? Who would lead them through an invasion? It was a disaster, and my head was a swirling hurricane of horrible thoughts at the moment. I needed my stars, I needed their guidance and wisdom. I needed to clear my mind. I couldn't think when my thoughts were all jumbled. Meditation usually helped with the clearance of my thoughts.

Everyone else who knew of