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Sometimes between her lessons and training Leia and Winter preferred to stay in Sabé's classroom rather than walk around the palace gardens, that day Sabé was listening to the girls talking about the courtship of some girls who lived in the court while she examined some documents that Bail had sent her earlier that day.
This wasn't one of the two girls' main topics of conversation normally, but it still appeared from time to time since they both entered their teen years. That brought Sabé a little satisfaction, even with the empire's constant threat there were things that would always remain the same in all the worlds.
"And you? When you were our age you were in love with someone?" Leia suddenly asked.
Winter scolded Leia with her eyes after the other girl asked the question. Leia didn't seem to mind, that brought a smile to Sabé's face.
"Yes." Sabé said. It would have been easy to lie to girls, but she didn't feel compelled to do so. Lying was what she always had to do when she was working as a spy for the rebellion, so while she was performing her duties as a mentor she tried to avoid doing so.
"And what was he like?"
"It wasn't a he, it was a she."
"Okay, how was she like?"
"Brilliant ... and kind."
"Did you date her for a long time?"
"We never dated."
"Why not? She didn't like you that way?"
"To be honest to this day I don't know, sometimes I thought so, sometimes I think she thought of me as a sister. And our circumstances were not as simple as that of the young girls of Alderaan's court, there were politics, and wars, and much more at stake. So I decided to wait for calmer times."
"Sounds like a wise choice, that's what I would probably do the same if I were under the same circumstances."
"I also thought it to be, until the republic was destroyed and I was informed of her death."
Her sentence seemed to startle both girls.
"I'm so sorry." they both said at almost the same time.
"Thank you"
"Do you have any regrets?" Winter asked, and this time it was Leia who scolded her friend with her eyes.
"Too many to count. But now let's put the past aside, and get back to your lessons, this break has already lasted too long"
The two girls nodded and put the matter aside.
She wanted to say more, but she felt that she was in danger of saying the wrong thing, that not telling Padmé was the safest, least complicated option, to postpone seemed comfortable until it stopped being. That the prudent thing to do is not always the best, and that is very easy for something that seemed to be always tangible suddenly to become a memory.