In the Aftermath

Cut Through All This Red Tape

Despite not being personally acquainted with the members of the Jedi council, Padmé was familiar with a few of the faces through reputation.  Specifically, she knew that it was Master Jedi Mace Windu who was currently giving her such a hardened look.  The rest of the council appeared in complete awe of her story, with most abandoning any semblance of neutrality in their facial expressions.  Even the holographic image of Obi-Wan appeared a bit disturbed, though Padmé suspected he believed her all the same.  Anakin stood outside of the circle, his arms crossed and his eyes focusing on the different members before Padmé.  He had told her before how uncomfortable the council chambers always made him, even when he wasn't the one "on trial."

Padmé didn't want to think of this situation in such a pessimistic way, but as she stood there, pleading her case in front of a group of people she barely knew, it all made her feel as though she was fifteen again.  However, there was no one hovering over her shoulder to give directions this time, and she wasn't a child anymore.  It wasn't hard to link Palpatine to the occupation of their home planet all those years ago, it was what won him the chancellor's office after all.  The thought that Palpatine had been laying the groundwork for his empire even back then made Padmé's skin crawl, and knowing how he used her to do it, only made the feeling intensify. She would rectify her mistake in judgement, she owed it to the galaxy.

Now, if only the Jedi will actually let me...

No matter the council's decision that night, Padmé wasn't going to give up on her plans. They were too intricate and far reaching for a lack of cooperation to sink them at this point. The only real wrench could lie in how the Jedi choose to handle Palpatine. Should they do something reckless and accidentally tip of the chancellor to the true extent of her active involvement in his takedown, Padmé holds no doubt that Palpatine would strike her down. He was more than willing to do so when she only threatened to have him unseated from his throne, and she could only imagine his ire if he discovered her actual plot.  Besides, if anything happened to her, Padmé knew Anakin would surely fall to the dark side.  Of course, it wasn't like the council could know just how precarious her husband's mental well-being currently was.

"Senator Amidala," Master Windu finally spoke up, snapping Padmé out of her thoughts.  "You do realize that these are serious allegations you have levied against not only the leader of the free galaxy, but against the entire Republic military as well?"

Padmé didn't shrink at his accusatory tone, but she could see a few of the council members flinch slightly. 

"I am well aware, Master Jedi," Padmé replied with her senator's voice.  "However, I would not have come to you with anything less than what I believe to be a tangible threat."

"From a vision?"  Windu asked, almost patronizingly.

"No, from experience."  She glared back at him.  "I was there.  I met people, I was told of what had happened to the Jedi in our current time, and," Padmé clenched her fists, "I SAW him!  Make no mistake about that, Master Jedi."

"I am not discounting what you 'saw', Senator.  I am merely suggesting that there will repercussions should the Jedi choose to pursue your claims. As such, this council needs to be absolutely certain of all of the facts before rushing into anything as important as accusing the chancellor of treason."

Padmé could easily understand why Anakin always complained about his dealings with the council. It was nearly as frustrating as the senate could be, and that at least had hundreds of voices jockeying to be heard, the council only possessed twelve.

"Let's focus on another matter," a different council member suggested. "You said that there were two, ahem, Lords of the Sith, in control of this galactic empire?"