DISCLAIMER: Star Wars and all publicly recognisable characters, names and references, etc are the sole property of George Lucas, Lucasfilm Ltd, Lucasarts Inc and 20th Century Fox. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author.
They reached the stall that Obi-Wan had seen the scarves in. The items were gone and there was no attendant.
After examining the stall and collecting what evidence he could, Uzza shook his head. "There'll be another day. At least we have a lead with the men we got." Then he smiled. "Jedi, you'll be joining us at the ball, of course. You'd better go get changed. It's going to be a grand night."
Obi-Wan sensed that Uzza wanted to avoid having the Jedi involved in this. Since it was an internal matter, he understood and didn't protest. "Of course, Lieutenant. I look forward to the evening. And my compliments to you on the training of your daughter. She handled the situation very well."
"Thank you, Jedi. I'm very proud of all that's she's done. She's quite a young woman, not only because of her role in taking back the Palace, but also how well she's coped with becoming a widow during our attack on that Trade Federation ship, and raising a child alone," Uzza said. He hesitated, narrowing his eyes and studying Obi-Wan's reaction. Obi-Wan's face betrayed his suprise at this information for only a moment, but it was long enough for the sharp-eyed officer to catch.
"Anyway, I won't bore you with family details. I'm sure you have much to do. Be seeing you." Uzza nodded, and left.
Obi-Wan returned to his room and got out the robe he was to wear. He cast a disdainful glance on the outfit as he laid out the pieces of the ensemble. The tunic and pants were made of a spruce green velvet, trimmed in black, and decorated with elaborate tone on tone embroidery. The cloak's velvet matched the green, but its embroidery was gold thread done in a leaf pattern. Highly polished black boots were provided to complete the set. He realized that for the Naboo, this was understated, so he would don what he saw as ostentatious clothing, and play along. After all, it was only one night.
He got to the Ballroom of the Palace early, too early to sneak in and avoid being announced. All eyes were on him, as he was brought in, honored once again and presented before the Queen. She nodded, and flashed him a hint of a smile.
He bowed, gracefully as usual, and scanned the area of the court. He had hoped Sabé would be here, that she would be able to introduce him to some of these people and give him guidence on who they were. It would be nice to have a friendly and familiar presence to get him situated. But she was not there, or at least had not arrived yet. In the meantime, he was getting quite enough attention from many of the young single women wondering if they could approach. None of them was as interested as Handmaiden Lirae, still on duty, quietly watching from beside the Queen.
Some time later, Sabé rushed into the back entrance to the Ballroom. There was an area where the Queen, Handmaidens, and staff could prepare or refresh themselves, and she wanted to make sure she looked right before she appeared in public. It had been a rough night with what had happened earlier. Filing the report on Jaquill and his accomplices had taken longer than she would have preferred, then she had to go back home to change from the clothing she tore during the brief fight into a fresh gown, and fix her hair. All that activity had roused Meira, so it took time to get her settled back down, even with a babysitter that the child liked in attendance. Finally, she had made it, and even though she had missed some of the presentations and dancing, she was still determined to make a night of it.
The Handmaidens were allowed to take turns leaving their duties for short periods of time to enjoy the festivities. Amidala was just releasing Lirae when Sabé emerged from behind the curtains. The Minister spoke quietly to the Queen, relating the news of the fight as Lirae stepped down, and slinked to Obi-Wan.
Sabé scanned the room and could find the Jedi, even with his back to her and wearing unfamilar clothing. She was waiting for him to turn so she could catch his eye and see if he wanted to dance. As she watched, Lirae smoothly walked up to Obi-Wan and set her snare. She had been concealed in the green cloak that the Handmaidens wore that night, but on the way to her target, she threw the hood back to reveal waves of red hair spilling out. She undid the front clasp to show her gown, low cut at the top, and a slit running to mid thigh. The men she passed stared, but she paid them no mind.
As she reached Obi-Wan's side, she turned and looked back for just a moment. Her eyes met Sabé's. She smiled at the Minister, reached over and very deliberatly patted his rear.
Sabé assumed a cool demeanor. The other Handmaidens looked at her with wide eyes, wondering what her next move would be. She remained calm, letting no hint of her thoughts show on her face.
Obi-Wan jumped in surprise. Lirae batted her eyes.
"Jedi, would you like to dance?" she asked.