(Star Wars) Gangsta #TheRiseAwards

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"Where's my brother?"

    Satine walked into the dance room, seeing Padmé holding onto one of the dancer's poles. "He abruptly cut our lunch date short and claimed he had an emergency... What kind of an emergency, I don't know but he rushed off as fast as he could." Padmé leaned out to the side, letting her bodyweight help her fall back into a spin. "Did you need something? I could help you if you do." It was a scenario that the blonde had been waiting forever since her conversation with Ben in the pool. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something, but I wanted to make sure Vader wasn't here."

    "Are you in some sort of trouble?" Padmé sat down on the floor, her back against the pole. "No, not yet at least." Satine joined her, mirroring the singer's position from the second dancer's pole. "I couldn't help but notice both our brother's acting awfully shady this past weekend. Do you have any idea what's going on with them?"

    "Goddesses, I wish I knew..." Padmé frowned, pouting a bit. "V keeps more and more of his dealings private from me. I know he keeps the gang stuff separate, but it just seems like anything he's up to lately has become off-limits." She turned to her beau's sisters. "Why the sudden interest?" Satine cleared her throat, folding her hands neatly over her knees. "Well... I was thinking we throw my brother for a loop. Have you ever heard of the Mandalorians?" She watched Padmé shake her head. "Well, they're an elite race of humans on Mandalore. They're the most stealthy, most deadly bounty hunters in the entire galaxy - and I used to be one of them." She pulled up her shirt, showing a tiny Mando symbol beneath her left breast. "I could teach you to defend yourself better, learn how to shoot... Of course, I know Vader wouldn't allow you to partake in such activities. We wouldn't want his canary getting hurt, would we?"

    "Who says we have to tell him?" Padmé's attention was immediately peaked. "I want to be able to protect myself in case Vader isn't around to do so..." She straightened up from slouching against the pole. "Wait a second... What exactly would you want me to do with these skills? Surely you have something other than self-defense in mind." Satine chuckled, nodding her impressment. "You're a clever girl, Naberrie... Let me tell you a little bit about my time with the Mandalorians."

    "I spent a total of three years with them - two of which, I spent with an elite all-female squadron. Not to be a stereotype, but we called ourselves the Femme Fatale pack. It was myself and five other women, kicking ass and staking our claim on whatever our hearts desired." Satine reminisced, thinking about her fallen mates. "I was the leader, then it was Mira, Rose, Harley, Pamela, and Celine. We had a hell of a time together..." Padmé perked up, picking up on the forlorn tone in her voice. "What happened to them?"

    'Death Watch happened... Technically, just their leaders; we had a treaty with them, seeing as we were an extension of their faction. We were calling too much attention to ourselves, making the wrong people mad, disrespecting their values..." Satine bit the inside of her lip. "My girls were executed by firing squad. I was forced to watch them die..." Ever the empath, Padmé crawled over to her. "Tine..."

    "They spared me because of my ties to the Sith." The blonde continued, comforted by the petite girl beside her. "Funny enough, when I get back, my brother informs me that I'm not allowed back into his clan because I left... Which is part of why I bring this to you." Satine turned so that they faced each other, gently taking Padmé's hands. "I want to be able to run like I used to, but not alone. I see how my brother treats you - like a queen, but one who's not allowed outside of her tower. I know you're more than just a pretty face and fantastic artist; you're not just a baby to me."

    Padmé remained quiet, processing through all of the new information she'd been given. Part of her instantly recoiled back; the thought of doing something behind Vader's back was scary. She'd seen his anger before, but was never the source or cause of it. The idea that they could train and maybe do something with their training on his turf... It sent a chill down her spine but not one of fear. For the most part, Padmé was excited and very interested at seeing where things could go with Satine. "How would we hide this from your brother? V and I don't have secrets with each other."