~Tagged~ A Long Handmaiden Fanfic - Prelude in the Archive

Here it is, as promised!
I'm kinda not satisfied with everything about these scenes, especially the Yane/Laivene/Thane part. Ah well, that's why it's called a rough draft.

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Sabé was transfixed. Not only by his brillant green eyes or his roguish smile but by his whole demeanor and boldness. After several seconds of silence, she groped for words to reply with.

?Ahhh, thank you,? she stuttered.

He smiled at her. ?Of course. You come here often??

?I?ve been here a couple times,? she said casually.

?You look like you?re used to being in such a royal setting.?

?Really??

?Yeah. Do you work with the Queen??

Sabé laughed nervously. ?I wish!? Nobody was supposed to know that she was a handmaiden- especailly the decoy handmaiden. Since the handmaidens were covert bodyguards, nobody except Panaka and Padmé knew their real identities. It was all done for Padmé?s safety. Panaka had told her to conceal her part as the decoy handmaiden at all costs. And with the Diiran Raxt case still not completely closed, they had to be extra careful...

?Do you come here a lot?? Sabé asked, unintentionally letting an accusing tone seep into her voice.

?Not a lot, but sometimes,? he said. ?I?m Alfed?s nephew.?

Sabé nodded knowingly.

?Ah-ha!? he said, pointing his finger at her as his eyes sparkled. ?You must work here if you konw who Alfed is!?

Horrified at her clusminess, Sabé couldn?t thinkg of anything to say. Reluctantly, she smiled. ?I guess you?ve got me.?

The mystreious young man flashed his rogueish smile again. ?It?s okay. You?re secret?s safe with me.? He shifted his position, leaning with one arm on the balcony railing. ?You look a little young to work in the Palace, considering they don?t hire minors. I know because I?ve tried to get a job here. How old are you??

?Sixteen,? Sabé said, then regretted it. She shouldn?t be telling him anything. But...he was so easy to talk to. She turned casually to look out over the gardens. Maybe if she didn?t look at him, he wouldn?t be able to tear down all her defenses.

?Do you dance??

Sabé turned back to him, surprised. Caught off guard again, she admonished herself. ?What??

?Do you dance??

Oh, he?s smiling again! Sabé thought wistfully. ?Yes, a little.?

He bowed. ?Then I would be honored to have this dance, Miss...?

?Kaité,? Sabé said on impulse. It was her mother?s name. ?I?m Kaité.?

The mysterious young man slid her arm through his and lead her back toward the ballroom. He leaned down to her ear. ?Then let?s dance.?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the silent depths of the Palace, a lone man sat at a radar terminal, his feet propped up on his desk, eating his dinner. To his right, a smaller security screen showed the Great Ballroom and the party going on there. Every few minutes he would check the radar. It showed a large green orb- Naboo- with a half a dozen blue dots orbitting it. Halfway into his shift, he stopped looking at the radar screen all together. In the two years that he had worked for the Air Traffic and Securtiy department, he had never seen one red blip enter the system.

Some Naboo still say that if this young man had been doing his job, the Invasion never would have happened.

The Queen had just arrived at the party, and all the guests were dancing to the traditional sonata. He stared at the screen, noting the beautiful women and the silly old men in ruffled suits. His gaze stopped at the sight of Palace Security hauling away a drunken man, then moved on to a woman with brillant red hair. He sighed. Nothing that interesting. Just the usual, dull ball.

He checked the radar, and suddenly sat up straight, dropping his dinner plate.

A half-circle of red blips ringed the eastern side of the green orb of Naboo, more dots appearing each second as the dropped out of hyperspace. He sat there, mesmerized for a few minutes, staring

 

Mwahahahaha...first poster again.

Awwwwww, you guys--I mean gals... It's nice to come back to such a warm welcome. It made me feel about a million times better than I have been.

Anyhoo, I don't see anything not to be happy with in that post, Eirtaé. I thought it was great! It's a shame that Thane couldn't have stayed away from the alcohol for this one night. But at least he didn't hurt Yané or her mom and it looks like Yané didn't even see him.
Sabé's mystery man sounds a lot like a guy I just met and I don't blame her for being charmed a bit. Meeting that certain kind of guy can do strange things to otherwise level-headed women!
I just hope he isn't up to no good or something.

Can't wait for more, Eirtaé!!

 

Ooooh... Sabé's mystery man seems really really charming.... I hope he's not a bad guy or anything. Great posts!!!

 

I loved it HMEirtae!!

Sabe's mystery man was quite dashing and I really liked the little interlude with the Radar Guy being stupid and not noticing the warships!!! Ack!! Trade Federation is on it's way!!

And then Yane and her mom. That is quite sweet how Lairvene (yeah, I spelled it wrong, sorry) is all happy for her. And how she got the guards to kick Thane out....HA! Serves him right, the drunk....

As usually, I can't wait for more...

~Obischick

 

I WANT MORE!!!!!!!! *WAH!!!*SOB*SOB*SOB*

UP!!

~Obischick

 

Okay, I'm on pins and needles here! Quick! please post more. Mmmmm... hot guys for everyone.... mmmmm. ;p

 

Whoops, double post. Sorry, all!

 

no no no UP you go!!

~Obischick

 

UUUUUUUUUUUUPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!

~Obischick

 

Up? Where are you HandmaidenEirtaé?

 

I'm so sorry I haven't been able to post more. This week has been so busy. Now that I'm getting closer to Episode 1, I have to watch the beginning of the moive a couple of times or so so I don't screw it up entirely. But I do come online every once in a while and seeing all your compliments and ups make me so happy. Thank you! I shall try to get more posted ASAP.
Eirtae

 

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.............

You better post quick!!!

~Obischick

 

Again, UUUUUUUUUUUUUPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!!!!!!

~Obischick

 

Here, Obischick, this post's for your!

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?Eirtaé Firenzé Denala!?

Eirtaé jerked away from Ched and spun around. Her mother stood in one of the glass doorways, silhouetted by the light pouring from the ballroom. Countess Denala?s face was turning a brilliant shade of red.

?Just what do you think you?re doing?!? Countess Denala swept toward her daughter, her eyes narrowing like a hawk?s. Eirtaé shrank back.

?What?s going on here, young lady?? Countess Denala demanded. She peered at Ched, who was looking at her in a cool, almost amused way. ?Who is this??

?Ched Jarden,? he said, bowing slightly. ?It?s a pleasure to meet you.?

?I can?t say the same,? Countess Denala snapped. ?Now look here, young man, I forbid you-?

?Eirtaé!?

Eirtaé turned away from her mother, grateful for the interruption. Rabé hurried up, curtsying quickly to Countess Denala before turning to the other handmaiden. ?Her Highness said that she needs to see us immediately, that it?s an emergency.?

Eirtaé nodded, and Rabé hurried off to find Sabé. Eirtaé turned back to the others. ?I have to go.?

Ched nodded knowingly. Countess Denala glowered.

Eirtaé curtsied to her mother- grudgingly- then gave Ched a quick kiss on the cheek, squeezing his hand. Countess Denala instantly opened her mouth to object, but Eirtaé was already hurrying away. Countess Denala threw Ched a contemptuous glare before turning and stalking back into the ballroom.

Ched sighed and shook his head, smiling faintly. It wasn?t the way he had planned to meet the mother-in-law.

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Sabé whisked across the dance floor in the arms of her mysterious dance partner. She had only taken a few crash courses in proper dancing, and the fast-paced waltz was keeping her on her toes. So was her dance partner. He kept making charming compliments, flashing her heart-melting smiles, and slipping in nosy questions- most of which she politely but firmly refused to answer.

?You dance very well,? he remarked. ?Do you come from a noble family??

?Yes,? Sabé replied, stepping away from him and twirling under his arm.

?Here in Theed??

?Uh-huh.?

He laughed as he pulled her back and wrapped his arm around her waist. ?You don?t talk a lot about yourself, do you, Kaité??

?Not really.?

They danced in silence for a moment. Sabé simply stared into his emerald eyes as he grinned at her.

?Why don?t you talk about yourself?? Sabé asked suddenly.

?Not much to tell, really,? he said. ?I?m from a merchant family here in Theed. My mother and father are floating around her somewhere. The only reason we were invited to the ball is because of Alfed. How?d you get invited??

?Family connections,? Sabé said simply.

?I?m surprised you aren?t with your family, then. All the noble families I know are very protective of their daughters, especially when they know that there will be plenty of young men around competing for her attention. Why aren?t your parents as stifling??

Sabé was running out of answers. ?Because-?

?Sabé!?

The pair stopped dancing, and Sabé looked around. Rabé was slipping through the dancing people, anxiety on her face.

?What is it?? Sabé asked as Rabé reached them. ?What?s wrong??

?The Queen wants to see us,? Rabé said quietly, looking at Sabé?s dancing partner. ?In her office. I think it?s very important.?

Sabé nodded. ?I?ll be right there.?

Sabé scanned the room quickly as Rabé left. Padmé wasn?t in sight. What could possible be important enough for Padmé to call us in the middle of a ball? she wondered.

?So you?re leaving me, are you??

Sabé turned back to him and smiled. ?Yes. My sister just told me my parents want to see me.?

?I hope I haven?t gotten you into any trouble.??

Sabé laughed. She didn?t really want to leave him. ?No, I doubt that.?

She curtsied and started to walk away, but he gabbe

 

Oh my gosh, I'm getting excited. Please post some more. Hey! I posted first!

 

Oh, Handmaiden Eirtae, you are so wonderful at writing!! As usually, I can't wait for more. BTW, thanks for the dedication!


Okay, more detailed thoughts:

1. I loved Ched and Eirtae getting caught!! ooooohhh, Eirtae's mother is sooo annoying!! Ched's thoughts as Eirtae leaves are great!! "Ched sighed and shook his head, smiling faintly. It wasn?t the way he had planned to meet the mother-in-law." Wonderful!!! Classicly male!

2. The way Sabe's mysterious stranger is sooo suave and knew her name and all!! Soooo Coool!!! Both Sabe and Eirtae getting saved by Rabe!! Sweet!! They owe her!! well, maybe not Sabe, but especially Eirtae!! hehe!!

3. the people's nervousness that is associated with Padme's sudden dissaperence and Ched and the mysterious stranger watching the girls leave.

4. Padme's anxiety over the invasion and over switching with Sabe. Her asking Eirtae's and Sabe's advice was cool also.

As usually, waiting eagerly for more.....

need it soon.....loosing sanity.........

~Obischick

 

Again, UUUUUUUPPPPPP!!!!!

~Obischick

 

I didn't find this fanfic until today. All I can say is: WOW. This is so great! It's nice to see fiction about the handmaidens. They, besides Amidala herself, are my favorite characters.

This story is beautifully written. You have a true gift for writing. MORE!

 

UP!!!

Hi LadyAnakinSkywalker nice to meet/see you. I totally agree, doesn't this fic rock????

~Obischick

 

Hey ObisChick. I am TOTALLY addicted to this fiction, I love it. I can dying for more.

 

Great post!!! This is getting even more exciting!

 

Cool post, Eirtaé! Sorry I didn't read it sooner.
Obischick listed all the things I liked best about it already, so I'll just ditto what she said.

Can't wait for the next post!!



BTW, if any of you have been wondering why I haven't been around very much lately, check out the link in my sig...

 

Thank you all so much!
Ugh, it's so hard to find time to write. Hopefully I'll have something up tomorrow, but I have to do some research first. I just bought the Episode 1 DVD, and now I realize I shoulda bought the script! Well, I figure there's still one standard month until the Invasion, so that should give me a little more time to do whatever I want without making sure that it goes with the movie.
Welcome, LadyAnakinSkywalker. I'm so glad your enjoying it. You and Obischick and everyone else are too nice.
Thankx again.
~Eirtae

 

Hehe!! Thou art to kind, thouself, Handmaiden Eirtae!! (sorry, I'm feeling silly!! )

Uppers!!

~Obischick

 

GAH!!! I want more!! Donde estan!??! Que PAsa???

*throws hand against forehead and pretends to faint* Ooooohhhh!! I feel weak without my handmaiden stories!

UP!

~Obischick