[Third Person]
On the balcony of Theed Palace, beneath the soft glow of holographic butterflies, Kaelen and Padmé clung to their moment of peace. He held her, relieved to have made her smile. She nestled against him, feeling safe and loved. It was a picture of perfect marital harmony.
And then, Padmé pulled back slightly, just enough to look into his eyes. The tender expression on her face began to change. Her soft smile sharpened, becoming cunning, intelligent, and with an unmistakable glint of mischief.
Kaelen looked at her, bewildered by the sudden shift. "Padmé? What's wrong?"
She didn't answer immediately. Instead, she rose on her tiptoes and leaned into his ear, as if to share the most intimate of secrets. Her breath was warm against his skin.
"I've forgiven you for the supervillain laughter," she whispered, her voice a seductive, dangerous purr. "But now... let's discuss a matter of true importance."
She paused, letting the anticipation build.
"Let's discuss your father."
Kaelen's body tensed slightly.
"He betrayed you," she continued, her whisper now a sting. "He left you locked in with me, at the mercy of my high-heeled shoe, to save his own hide. That, my love, is an act of betrayal that cannot go unanswered."
She pulled back so she could look him in the eye, her smile now a conspiratorial grin.
"I want you to get revenge on Rick."
Kaelen stared at her, dumbfounded. And then, he burst into silent, happy laughter. He had expected her to want him to make amends, to be the adult. Never, in a million years, did he expect her to want revenge.
"Oh, my," he said, utterly delighted. "Senator Amidala, I didn't know you had such a deliciously vengeful side."
"I learned from the best," she replied with a wink. "I've spent years in the Senate. Subtle revenge is practically an art form there. And Rick has earned a masterpiece."
"I've fallen in love with you all over again," Kaelen said, his mind already working, the possibilities swirling. "Alright. Revenge. But how? We can't attack him directly. It's like trying to punch a hurricane."
"Exactly," Padmé said, her political mind kicking in. "It can't be an attack on his power. It has to be an attack on his ego. Something he can't fix with a weapon, something that subtly humiliates him. Something... aesthetically painful."
They retreated to their quarters, and what followed was the strangest brainstorming session in the history of rebellion.
"We could replace all his alcohol with a non-alcoholic substitute that tastes and smells exactly the same!" Kaelen suggested. "He'll suffer the agony of sobriety while thinking he's drunk! It's a nihilist's personal hell!"
"Too complex," Padmé countered. "He'd notice the chemical change. It needs to be simpler. More... irritating."
"I can reprogram his lab coat to subtly pinch him in uncomfortable places every time he says the word 'Morty'!"
"Subtle, but not public enough," she mused.
They fell silent for a moment, thinking. Then, Kaelen's eyes lit up. "His portal gun."
Padmé smiled. "His most prized possession. His symbol of power."
"Exactly," Kaelen said, rubbing his hands together. "We won't break it. That would be declaring war. We'll... enhance it."
The plan was simple, petty, and absolutely brilliant.
That night, they waited until Kaelen's sensors indicated Rick had fallen into a deep, alcohol-induced sleep in his lab. Like two spies, they slipped through the silent palace corridors to his door.
"You keep watch," Kaelen whispered.
"Of course," Padmé replied, adopting a guard stance.
Kaelen entered the chaotic lab. He found Rick's portal gun on a table, next to a half-empty bottle of something green and bubbling. With the delicacy of a surgeon and the knowledge of a god, Kaelen opened the weapon's casing. He didn't touch the main mechanisms. He went directly to the color matrix modulator and the audio emitter.
With a few adjustments, a quick code change, and the addition of a small sound chip he had "borrowed" from an Earth greeting card, the job was done. He left the lab and gave Padmé a thumbs-up.
They returned to their room, feeling like two teenagers who had just pulled a prank on the principal.
"No one betrays my husband and gets away with it," Padmé whispered as she snuggled beside him in bed.
Kaelen held her, his heart filled with renewed love and admiration. I've fallen in love with a political genius, a warrior queen, and, apparently, a master of petty revenge, he thought. I am the luckiest man in the multiverse.
Both fell asleep with smiles on their faces, eagerly awaiting the chaos the next morning would undoubtedly bring.