A/N: Okay, here we go with my first venture into modern AU territory! Ahh…

Ten minutes pass since the last parent trudges out of the room, child in tow. Then twenty. Then another five and Padme begins to wonder why exactly she's still here. Almost all her colleagues have already gone; having grabbed at the first opportunity to get out of here they could. They're probably at "The Temple" grabbing a few drinks, celebrating the end of parent teacher conferences. Part of her wants to just pack up and join them – she should! Hasn't she waited long enough by now? But she can't… He'll be here, eventually.

Little Leia Skywalker deserves to have her father hear all about how wonderful a student she's blossoming into. No child in her class works harder or is more driven than that little girl and though perhaps she shouldn't, Padme has developed a fierce fondness for the girl. Always so polite, so kind not only to her, but the other students and staff too. It's heart-warming. For five years old she's very independent, really she's further advanced than the other children in the class, and displays this at every opportunity, yet she's always the first to grab her hand as the class walks through the hallway.

Padme isn't sure whether to find this slightly bittersweet or not.

As she waits, she shifts through the girl's drawings and classwork, pausing at the most recent painting. She'd had the class paint their family and plans to display them on the wall to the left, parents always enjoy seeing such things whenever they're here and the children enjoy showing them off even more. Leia's however… It caught her attention. There's more than one child of a single parent in the class, it's nothing unusual in this day and age, however the painting has no grandparents, no aunts or uncles… Merely her father and herself.

Leia has always given the impression of coming from a small family; she's struggled not only with sharing but also with relating to other children from time to time about talk of siblings or family parties. There is nothing wrong with such upbringings, Padme only wishes to discuss certain options with Leia's father, little changes she believes the girl would benefit greatly from.

Through the open classroom door, she hears the sound of a child's delighted squeal and the thunder of little footsteps before Leia herself bursts through the door, laughing so much her little head falls back. Seconds later, her father appears, feigning exhaustion, as if the little one has just outrun him along the hallway. It's very sweet. The blonde man turns to face her, smile turning something close to sheepish as he approaches the desk. Padme stands to shake his hand, returning his smile easily.

"Thank you for waiting for us, I know you probably have a million other things you'd rather be doing." He winces, glancing at the chair before settling down. By his side Leia scrambles into her own chair, and Padme watches the girl cross one leg over the other in a way the class assistant, Dorme, is prone to doing. Very cute. "I would have been here sooner, it can be impossible to get away from work sometimes." Leaning her forearms on the desk, she tries to smile reassuringly. Really, waiting is no big ask at all, and it's been clear since the letters went out how eager he has been to attend this conference.

"You're a mechanic right?" She asks while she sorts the papers out before her. There is no need to get into the formalities right away, not until he's stopped worrying about keeping her here at least.

"Yeah, 'Watto's', down near the mall." Ah, yes, she knows the place. Sola swears by them for car repairs. Maybe she'll try them out next time her own car plays up… "The boss – Watto – can be a real slave driver sometimes. Sorry you had to wait around." He smiles that sheepish smile once more and Padme shakes her head. He is not the first parent to arrive a little later than planned… And he shall not be the last.

"Really Mr Skywalker, it's alright. I would have been here anyway." She lies smoothly, and he seems to believe her, visibly relaxing into the far too small chair. "And how are you Leia?" She asks the girl, watching her little legs swing as she listens to them speaking. The children do tend to get bored of all the grown up talk pretty quickly, so Padme always tries to make a special effort to keep occupied at these things.

"Good!" The girl gives her a toothy grin, and she nods in response, leaning a little further over the table to speak to her playfully.

"You know… I have a bowl of candy right over there by the window. Why don't you go grab a piece and finish that colouring we worked on today?" Padme watches the girl look at her father for permission which is granted with an amused tip of his head. At once she's off, speeding across the room as fast as her little legs can carry her.

"Alright Mr Skywalker, before we begin, is there anything you'd like to ask me?" The man in question shifts uncomfortably in the plastic chair as almost all parents do, and gives a little shrug.

"Anakin, please. And I suppose I'm just wondering… How she's doing in class? She's always raving about you at home." Anakin grins, chuckling quietly. "You're her hero." Padme glances at Leia over her father's shoulder, not bothering to hide her own smile. Such a darling little girl. What he says isn't surprising to hear; she's always receiving little flowers from Leia or classwork art being dedicated to her. There's a whole stack of such drawings in her house, Padme can never bear to throw away anything her students give her, it would just feel wrong.

"Alright, Anakin then. Well to answer your question, Leia is doing wonderfully in class. More than that, she's further advanced than her peers what with being able to read almost fluently already." She still remembers her surprise at the discovery… By the time she'd handed out the books to everyone in class Leia had finished, looking around for something else to do. "The only downside of this is she tends to get a little bored from time to time. Unfortunately she has to wait around for everyone else to catch up to her reading levels before I can let her move on."

"Ah… Should I not have taught her? She just ready, you know? Always asking me what the words said. It seemed like a good idea at the time-"

"No, no, I think it's wonderful! A great bonding experience for the two of you. Once the class is caught up, the issue will resolve itself. Keep working on it with her, but stick to the level of reading she's already on."

They talk for a little longer about Leia, her progress and where she hopes the girl will be with her studies by the end of the year before Padme reaches for the painting she looked at earlier and slides it across the table so Anakin can see it too. She just hopes she isn't about to overstep the mark with this. "This is something Leia painted. Her family." His rather striking blue eyes glance at the picture before flicking up meet her gaze. Despite this being a strictly professional relationship, she allows herself to look at him sometimes. He's very… Handsome. She's heard some of the mother's gossiping and giggling about him in the schoolyard more than once.

"Yeah…" He winces again, pressing his lips together in a thin line for a moment as his eyes scan the painting. "It's a little… Lacking, right?"

"Excuse me for asking, but what about Leia's mother?" Normally she would never dare ask such a thing, but right now she believes he'll forgive her such frankness if it means discussing the welfare of his daughter. Anyone can tell how Anakin dotes on the little girl, she's seen it countless times out in the yard before school begins or when he's there to pick her up, and heard about it even more from Leia's own lips. This man is the type of father to buy his little girl roses on Valentine's day, teach her to read by himself and even takes part in her little tea parties from time to time. She just hopes he doesn't take what she says as an insult to the life he gives his daughter because that is far from her intention.

Anakin swallows and glances at Leia who is happy enough colouring in the outline of the Princess she'd started in class today. At the mere mention of her mother his whole body tenses once more, though this time it isn't from nervousness. "She uh, well if I may speak candidly," Padme nods, leaning somewhat closer so he may lower his voice. "Her mother never had any real interest in being, you know, a mother to her. She hasn't been around since Leia was a baby."

"Oh, I'm so sorry…" That poor little girl, how could anyone just abandon her like that? Padme simply cannot fathom such a thing and Leia is merely her student.

"No, no it's alright… We get along just fine." Nodding, she takes back the painting, placing it off to the side of the desk. Yes, they certainly do get along perfectly well, better than many of the other parents she has had the pleasure of meeting in the past few years.

"My advice, if you wish to hear it, is Leia needs a little more female influence in her life." For a moment his eyebrows knit together and she realises what he's thinking. Oh dear. "I- I mean, I'm not suggesting you run out and begin dating or introducing her to woman for that purpose – of course not. What I mean is, perhaps have her friends over for little slumber parties from time to time, have her go to their homes too. Make it a regular occurrence. Deep down Leia is a girl's girl, but I think we both know all about that tough little exterior she has."

Anakin smiles, genuinely amused for a moment. "Yeah, you're not wrong with that."

"It's just, I worry about her sometimes. Perhaps I should have called you when it happened, but there's this boy, a year or two older than her, Han Solo. He's… Well renowned for stealing lunch money so to speak. Last week he attempted to take Leia's and well…" Trailing off, Padme swallows, thinking back to the incident. If the boy's parents were a little more interested then there would have been more than one full blown parent teacher meeting concerning Leia's actions. While perhaps, she can't blame the girl for what happened, it was still very wrong.

"Well?" Anakin demands, sitting up straight and worried suddenly.

"She pulled his hair, pushed him down onto the ground and began slapping the boy's face… Until he cried." Following her words Padme sighs, raising her gaze to the ceiling for several long moments. That had been quite a day. Principal Palpatine was furious, demanding punishments be delivered and perhaps she should have at least given Leia detention but at the time she couldn't. After all she did the wrong thing for the right reasons. Instead she'd given the girl – and then later the entire class – a lengthy talk on what one should do when bullying occurs.

When her gaze once more returns to Anakin's, the glimmer of amusement in his eyes is clear to see, he doesn't try to hide it. He's on the verge of laughing! "That's my girl…" He mutters proudly. Padme narrows her eyes, fighting the urge to shake her head. Behaviour like that is neither something he should be proud of or encouraging. She really should have scheduled a meeting…

"Mr Skywalker-" the man in question gives her a look at the use of titles and Padme sighs for the umpteenth time this evening. "Anakin. Leia could have gotten into very serious trouble if Han's parents had escalated the matter." The Principal had certainly pushed for severe punishment, but he is far too harsh, nor suited to such a role of leadership – especially where children are involved. The man has no patience for the kids, and even less interest in them. Vice Principal Organa would be a much more fitting replacement in her eyes.

"So you think it's wrong for her to defend herself?"

"Well, no of course not, but-"

"But nothing Miss Naberrie – Padme – I get it, the way she went about it was wrong and I'll talk to her about it, but you can't expect me to be angry with her for kicking a bully to the curb." Anakin looks at Leia again who is looking up at them from the bowl of candy, hand deep within its contents, frozen and eyes wide as she realises she's been caught. Pressing her lips together Padme barely manages to keep from laughing. Her father turns to meet catch her eye, once more not bothering to hide his amusement at his daughter's antics.

"What're you doing Princess?" Anakin asks the girl who swallows nervously much like her father has multiple times tonight and slowly withdraws her hand from the bowl. The sight warms her heart… God she is the sweetest little thing… It's wrong because she is her teacher and should not form such attachments, but she adores this girl.

"Nothing daddy…" Leia lies, reaching behind the bowl for a fresh piece of paper instead. Keeping up the ruse, she returns to her seat as if nothing has just happened. Looking at the table, Padme shakes her head giggling quietly. While she admires the girl's quick thinking in lifting the paper, she cannot let her know this. It would only encourage her little nefarious acts after all and what kind of a teacher would she be if she did such a thing? When she meets Anakin's eye again, he's watching her closely and silence descends for a moment between them… He really is handsome…. It's a wonder he has remained single all this time.

"Leia really is a wonderful student…" She begins, trailing off quietly. Where was she going with this again? "One of the best I've ever had." Stop looking at him like that! God, she must look like a complete moron right now, gawking at him like this. "You should be very proud of her."

"I am, she's the best thing to ever happen to me." He means this, every word is laced with such sincerity that it makes Padme smile. The honest love Anakin has for his daughter is beautiful, there are few parents so fully dedicated to their child as he is and she truly admires it. Something like that should be nurtured, encouraged in every way possible… The way he is with Leia is what she wants, someone to start her own family with, someone who adores any child they may have completely and utterly. "Do you have any of your own?" He asks suddenly, as if reading her mind and she tries with all her might not to reveal how flustered she feels.

"Oh, no… No, I don't." She shakes her head and Anakin leans forward, resting his forearm on the wood of her desk as she speaks.

"You'd be great at it… I-I mean if that's something you want of course." He stutters nervously and the sight of him reaching back to scratch his neck awkwardly pulls another amused giggle from the teacher. Just like Leia, he is adorable, it's easy to see where she gets it – no, she can't think like that. It's inappropriate. He is the father of one of her students; she shouldn't find him adorable… Or breath takingly good looking either for that matter. It's a battle she's been fighting since they were first introduced and it's just not fair.

"I do. One day." The sooner the better as far as her mother is concerned… But that is an issue for another time, with a very large glass of wine.

"Yeah? Well, like I said… You'd be great." Anakin grins and for a moment Padme swears her stomach flips. Good God she has to get a hold of herself! This is ridiculous; she is a grown woman, not a blushing school girl. She's never felt like this before; not even with past boyfriends or crushes… She barely knows him yet she constantly finds herself searching for him in the yard when she comes out to lead the kids inside, or when she brings them out at the end of the day. And Dorme's constant teasing doesn't help matters either.

"Daddy I'm hungry!" Leia appears by her father's side pouting, picture in hand and preforming the little bounce girls her age seem to when they want something. Padme watches the girl climb up onto Anakin's lap, perfect pout still in place. She has him wrapped around her little finger as all daddies' girls do.

He checks his watch and winces, "yeah, we have been here a while huh?" Standing up, he holds Leia up with only one arm as small chubby arms wrap around his neck and Padme stands with them. She's said all she planned to, and perhaps more than she should have. If it benefits the little girl he holds then she's done the right thing. "Thank you again – for waiting I mean. Not every teacher would have."

"It's alright. I really don't mind. Though I hope you'll keep what I said in mind…" Stepping around the table, she smiles first at Anakin before her gaze wonders to Leia. It's already past six, no wonder she's hungry. It's a wonder she waited this long before complaining about it in the first place. She's been very well behaved tonight, even considering the attempted candy robbery, better than she could have hoped for. Anakin really should be proud of her.

"I will. Hear that Princess? We're hosting all the slumber parties from now on." The girl's face lights up at the prospect and immediate excitement bursts into her dark eyes. She can almost see the gears working in her little head, planning all the fun she can have with her friends when the time comes. This is exactly why she suggested such a thing, Leia needs an outlet for such things, and being around more girls will do her a world of good. And poor Han Solo's face too apparently.

"Really? Can Miss Naberrie come too?" Anakin's laugh drowns out her own quieter one. He almost looks embarrassed as she walks them toward the door, and the feeling is mutual. Children. If only they understood exactly what they said from time to time.

"Well, that's really up to her sweetheart." He plants a kiss to Leia's cheek before setting her done again. "Run along to the hallway doors and wait there alright?" She's off a second later, the sounds of little footsteps echoing along the abandoned hall, filling the silence until she's gone.

"So… Leia will need to bring back that permission slip for the field trip by Monday." Padme begins, slipping casually – easily – into the role of teacher again. It ends the quiet between them despite how forced the act feels suddenly, especially when he's looking at her like that and oh God why is he looking at her like that? How is she supposed to keep things professional when those striking blue eyes are flicking down to her lips and back? This is ridiculous… So utterly ridiculous… And now she's doing it to him too… Wonderful. "…And she'll need a lunch packed and spending money… I'd recommend around ten dollars at most…"

"Do you wanna get coffee sometime?" He asks and her eyes almost pop out of their sockets. What? Did he just ask her out? What is she supposed to say? Half of her screams yes! She'd be mad to say no, her mom would smack her upside the head if she did and she can only imagine Sola and Dorme's reactions. But the other half knows it's unprofessional… Palpatine is just looking for a reason to reprimand her and dating the father of one of her students would be just the ammunition he needs. She can't. It would be stupid, improper, and dangerous to her career.

"I'd love to."

Will there be follow ups to this? Absolutely! Please leave a review and let me know what you think!