"You're sure about this arrangement?" Padmé asks me.

"He may be a Jedi in training, but I think he'll be a good choice," I tell her. "If the threat was less prominent, I'd be with you."

"I understand. Well, I hope you solve this mystery fast so things can go back to normal."

"I don't think 'normal' is in our vocabulary." I chuckle.

"Be safe."

I nod. "We'll see each other again soon." I part from Padmé as Captain Typho and a handmaiden take my place to talk to her. I meander over to my brother and Obi-Wan.

"Anakin, you stay put on Naboo," Obi-Wan insists. "Do not attract any attention. Do absolutely nothing without checking in with me or the Council."

"Yes, Master," is my brother's automatic response.

Obi-Wan addresses Padmé. "I will get to the bottom of this plot quickly, milady. You'll be back here in no time."

"I will be most grateful for your speed, Master Jedi," the senator replies.

"Time to go," Anakin tells her.

"I know."

Padmé hugs her handmaiden goodbye as Anakin grabs the luggage.

"May the Force be with you," Obi-Wan tells my brother. My brother utters the same notion back.

I raise a brow as Padmé and Anakin leave, with an R2 unit trailing behind them. "Conducting your own investigation, Master Kenobi? I don't know if you remember, but I put the task on myself," I remind my friend.

"I remember. It would do well to have more than one person on this, don't you think?"

I purse my lips. "Perhaps. But I don't recall the Jedi being investigators."

"Neither are bodyguards."

"It comes with the job description." I snort. Captain Typho joins us as Padmé, Anakin, and the R2 unit disappear into the crowd of the spaceport freighter docks.

"I hope he doesn't try anything foolish," Obi-Wan whispers.

"I'd be more concerned about her doing something than him," says the Captain.

"Since we're investigating this case together," I say casually to Obi-Wan as Captain Typho moves away, "any idea how we start?"

"We can start with this." He pulls out the toxic dart from last night. "There may be something in the archives in the Temple."

* * *

The Jedi Temple brought back a lot of memories, most good, some bad, and some haunting. If we hadn't been on a serious task, I would've sought out my old master to see what she was up to these days now that I was no longer under her wing.

Our luck didn't pan out. There was nothing in the archives about the dart we'd found at the crime scene. Luckily for us, Obi-Wan claimed he knew someone who could help us out with this case.

I was expecting this person to be in some sort of fancy shop, definitely not an alien diner. It's in a sketchy area of Coruscant too.

"This person will help us?" I ask him.

"If anyone can, it would be him."

"I'll have to take your word for it."

"You sound reluctant to do so."

"Well, considering I don't know who we're going to be talking to..."

"He's a friend, Thea."

"Your friend, not mine."

When we get into the diner, I take note of how we stand out. I barely hear Obi-Wan talk to a waitress droid. My senses are all on high alert. I feel a calm wash over me, coming from beside me.

"There's no danger here," he mutters out of the corner of his mouth.

"I've been trained to be ready for anything."

"Obi-Wan!" A huge head pokes through the kitchen hatch behind the counter.

"Hey, Dex," says Obi-Wan.

"Take a seat! Be right with ya!"

"You want a cup of jamba juice?" asks the waitress.

I take the inside of the booth, closest to the window so I can look. I don't have to for very long, because Obi-Wan's friend, Dex, waddles towards us. He's a huge, balding alien. At first glance, he looks like someone you don't want to meet in an alley.

"Hey, ol' buddy!" Dex says as he hugs Obi-Wan. I sit awkwardly in the booth. "Who's the fine young lady?"

My cheeks heat up a bit. "Thea. I've heard little to nothing about you." I lean forward. "And I've known this man," I gesture to Obi-Wan, "for some time."

Dex sits himself across from us, and Obi-Wan takes his seat beside me. The waitress droid puts three mugs in front of us. "So, my friend. What can I do for ya?"

"You can tell us what this is." Obi-Wan puts the dart on the table.

Dex's eyes widen. "Well, what do you know...?" He picks the dart up delicately between his beefy fingers. "I ain't seen one of these since I was prospecting on Subterrel beyond the Outer rim!"

"Do you know where it came from?" I ask curiously.

"This baby belongs to them cloners. What you got here is a Kamino saberdart."

"Kamino saberdart," Obi-Wan repeats. "I wonder why it didn't show up in any analysis archive."

"It's these funny little cuts on the side that give it away. Those analysis droids you've got over there only focus on symbols, you know. I should think you Jedi would have more respect for the difference between knowledge and wisdom."

"Well, if droids could think, we wouldn't be here, would we? Kamino...doesn't sound familiar. Is it part of the Republic?"

"No, it's beyond the Outer Rim. I'd say about twelve parsecs outside the Rishi Maze, towards the south. It should be easy to find, even for those droids in your archive to find. Those Kaminoans keep to themselves. They're cloners. Damned good ones, too."

"Cloners?" I ask as Dex looks at the dart again. "Are they friendly?"

"It depends."

"On what, Dex?"

"On how good your manners are...and how big your pocketbook is."

Obi-Wan and I exchange a look. It's definitely the lead we've been looking for. Whether it's going to work in our favor remains to be seen.