Chapter Text
32 BBY
Rabé had known Padmé Nabierré for years when the other girl had chosen to put herself forward as a candidate for Queen of Naboo, even if they had only been thirteen when she’d won the election.
She and Sabé might have been twins, but more than once their parents had joked during their childhood that they might as well been triplets considering how the three of them had been inseparable. They’d shared everything, and kept no secrets for each other, and so they’d been the first to know when Padmé had thought about entering public office at twelve, and they’d been the first to support her when she’d done so.
Sabé had been the one to consider how with their similar faces, they could easily be candidates for the Queen’s handmaidens if Padmé won. So, as Padmé won the hearts of their people, they’d trained to act as her body doubles and as her bodyguards.
Her sister had joked about then, when Padmé joined them for practice some days, few could tell them apart and that instead of one queen, Naboo would gain three with Padmé.
Padmé had laughed, and said it was for the best, then they could split the paperwork that her father had warned her about and no one would know.
Rabé remembered that laughter when Padmé became queen, and there was little time for fun and games between them anymore. Not as they tried to get an audience with the Gungan to try and mend a centuries’ old rift between their peoples and were rebuffed time and time again. Not as they tried to argue that Naboo didn’t require a standing military, but that some sort of weapons training should be mandatory. Not as Kelé, another handmaiden and a new friend, died while pretending to be Padmé during a court dinner. Not as they argued with their senate about selling their excess water to planets like Tatooine and using the money to free slaves.
Another handmaiden and friend, Lalé, died when Naboo was invaded.
They didn’t have time to grieve as thousands of Naboo were rounded up and pushed out of the cities and into camps, and the droids not caring about how many they shot herding them this way or that, nor about how those camps were not prepared for living prisoners.
Lalé died as she’d lived, with a smile on her face.
She’d shoved Padmé around a corner, taken up a fallen guard’s blaster, then ran in another direction pretending to be guiding Padmé away, loudly. She’d been shot in the back as the droids talked to each other about how only the Queen was required to be taken alive.
Rabé had seen how Padmé nearly doubled back to stay with Lalé as she’d died, that she’d only hesitated because it would make the other girl’s sacrifice for nothing, before Lalé had yelled out for Padmé to run.
Sabé had grabbed one arm, and she the other, and they’d pulled Padmé away the few steps it had taken her to go along. Eirtaé pulling Yané and Saché from where they’d stopped, staring in horror because Lalé had been everything to them and she’d died in front of them.
None of them had said anything about the tears in all of their eyes, just ran.
If they had been made of anything less than they were, they would have burst into tears of relief when they ran into the two Jedi.
~
Rabé had shared a look with her twin after Padmé had left with the Jedi Master Jinn, while in the guise of a handmaiden to the Queen, who her twin was currently dressed as and who Eirtaé was attending with dazed eyes, barely present in the now as she worried over the other two of their number.
They had not agreed with Padmé leaving them behind here, but neither had been able to say anything without ruining their cover. It did not matter that they had their suspicions that the two Jedi had figured out which of them was really the Queen, they would not confirm it without due cause. Not when arguing to go with Padmé was better done in private, where the three of them could disagree all they wanted and the only ones to know would be them and Captain Panaka.
Tatooine was a dangerous planet and they had lost too many friends already today to be willing to risk another for a fit of rebellion like she wanted to say this was.
But they understood why Padmé had gone, and it didn’t matter if it was the main reason or a pleasant consequence, because no matter how much they tried, it would be safer for her to be with the Jedi Master and Padmé had to reach the Senate.
Their wounded pride was secondary to her safety.
~
Sabé stood next to her as Padmé stood in front of the Senate in full regalia as Queen Amidala, and they listened in silence as she passionately pleaded with the Senate to come to Naboo’s aid, and all but demanding that help be deployed in defense of her citizens.
Rabé couldn’t be prouder of her friend as she challenged the Senate to get off their fat asses and come to the aid of defenseless people being brutalized, murdered, starved, by the Trade Federation while they sat there and debated if they even had the right to.
Just watching them deliberate and go in circles, when every moment they wasted was another one of her people’s life snuffed out, it made her doubt in the good the Senate did.
It broke her heart seeing them squabble and accuse and refuse to consider their presence, their words, their authority as sovereign of Naboo as valid. It would hurt no one to send Jedi to Naboo, prepared to help and fight ‘if what they said was true’, if for no other reason than to take them seriously as one of the oldest members of the Republic. Doing nothing killed their people with inaction.
Then Senator Palpatine suggested calling a Vote of No Confidence in their current Chancellor, if he would not rally the Senate for their cause.
Sabé had shared a look with her, because Chancellor Valorum was clearly sympathetic and was already in favor of sending the Jedi to Naboo’s aid. They both knew it was not his fault, and a Vote would do nothing but cause power to change hands, when the real problem here was the corruption and divided loyalties of the Senators between their pocketbooks and the Republic.
Padmé hesitated to call for a Vote.
The clock was ticking for their people though and they had to try everything, so she did because she needed to do something or Lalé’s death was in vain.
Then she left the convincing and wrangling of the Senate to come to their aid in the hands of their Senator, while she walked to the side of the two Jedi who had offered their help to see this through.
~
When the battle was over, and their losses had started to be counted, they’d celebrated their survival.
They would mourn for each name they recognized on the list of the dead being compiled, for each person who couldn’t be reached nor found, but that would be for tomorrow.
Today they would celebrate their victory, and the person who had made it possible by destroying the droid’s command-ship: Anakin Skywalker.
Padmé had been smiling as she’d hugged the boy and thanked him personally for helping to save her people, and they’d smiled at how red the boy had gone from attention from his ‘Angel’.
Sabé had elbowed her sharply when they’d seen the two Jedi enter the room.
Rabé, with a single look, shut down the pilot who had opened his mouth to loudly greet them, not needing more than a second to see that Obi-Wan wasn’t supporting the older man but dragging the taller Jedi beside him while crying.
They’d run to him, and helped direct him to a room less crowded so he could grieve in peace. Because he was already trying to stifle his sobs, trying to wipe the tears from his eyes, trying to bring himself under control as to imitate the serenity Jedi were known for if only outwardly.
He was failing though, trying and trying but failing, unable to stop the tears running down his cheeks, radiating his distress where even they, Force-nulls, could sense it while never letting go of the older man even after they had.
If anyone ever tried to tell them Jedi were emotion-less, they would never believe it now, because right in front of them was pure emotion. It was more emotion than they knew anyone else to feel, consuming him, like his very soul had been torn in two with the loss of his Master.
They were sure that if he’d been alone, and wouldn’t be disturbed by people looking for him, he’d be wailing.
Sabé looked to the side, trying to give him as much space as they could offer without leaving so he could grieve without judgement, and she choked on a cry.
Rabé followed her sister’s gaze and knew why she had turned into her shoulder and was now crying herself.
Because they had unknowingly led Obi-Wan to the room Lalé had died in. Her body had been moved though, dragged to a wall to sit up with her blaster in hand and two handmaiden’s robes laid over her legs. Yané and Saché had gone back for her, then disappeared in the chaos.
Seeing those robes, which they were rarely without while acting as a Handmaiden, told them why they’d not seen either of them since they’d returned to Naboo.
Rabé looked at the Jedi, and could see him struggling to stop crying, and before she thought about it, she reached out and caught his arm then tugged him closer. He went without protest, still crying and she didn’t say anything as she tried to rub comforting circles into both his back as well as her sister’s, and let her own tears flow freely.
They stayed there until their tears slowed, then they went and did as duty commanded each of them.
Returning to their charges and wearing masks of calm over their still-rampant grief.