Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars.

Chapter 3: A Sith or a Jedi?

A/N: Fair warning, Han gets a little vulgar in this chapter.

Leia stumbled outside, her knees hitting the sand. She pressed her hands to her head and closed her eyes, wrinkling them in a tight pained expression. She was trying to push out Vader. His voice was crashing through her walls, so deep and calm that it was quite unsettling to the princess.

Leia, my daughter.

We do not have to fight. I am not bloodthirsty to kill off what little troops your rebellion has left.

Surrender yourself to me, and your friends won't have to die.

"Get out of my head!" Leia cried out, tugging at her hair. She pulled on her braids and began crunching herself closer to the ground "Get out! Get out! Get o-"

I have no qualms in killing them, however. Daughter or not, your allies are a disruption to my plan and should be murdered where they stand. The only way that you can ensure their survival is to come to me. You know where my base is. Look deep within your mind, and you will know where to find me.

"You underestimate the rebellion's power!" Leia shouted in anger. She did not like the threats he was making. "I am not naïve enough to think you will have mercy! Your heart is black and cold. You don't value any form of humanity. If you wanted someone who would believe your false act of kindness, you came to the wrong child!"

While I may have known Luke was my son much longer, I have had the pleasure to deal with your insolence for years. You were a strong and willful child, but I know that you are broken. I was the one that broke you. I have felt your fear and anger boiling ever since the destruction of Alderaan. If it weren't for Emperor Palpatine's adamant craving for Luke, I would have made you my apprentice long ago. I saw potential, and now that I know you are my daughter, I know that this can be done.

"You will not speak of Alderaan." Her voice was low. "And I will never join you. I would rather die than be on your side."

Leia felt a hand land on her shoulder. She opened her eyes and saw Han crouching next to her. His face was filled with concern, eyes brimming with worry. She noticed Luke pacing a few yards away from them.

"Sweetheart?" Han asked, grabbing her hands from her hair and holding them in his own. "You're okay?" His thumb began rubbing her palms in a soothing manner.

She looked at him and slowly nodded.

"What did he say to you?" Han broached, glancing back at Luke, who walked a little closer to the pair.

"Nothing important." She brushed Han's hand away and pushed herself up from the ground.

"Leia…" He stood up with her.

"Honestly, he said nothing that should be of any concern. He was just trying to scare me."

Han let out a sigh and ran his hand over the scar on his chin. Leia didn't want to give Han any more reason to worry. She didn't want him thinking that Vader was severely messing with her mind.

She flicked her eyes over to Luke. He was frowning at her. "You don't have to spare us anything, Leia"

"I know." She smiled at them. "But, I promise it is nothing. I have been through worse with him."

Han grunted and turned to Luke. He jutted his finger in his face. "You need to find out what that piece of shit is saying to her."

"Hey, I am doing the best that I can!" Luke crossed his arms defensively. "This isn't a black and white thing, Han. There is a lot of grey area and right now I-"

"Give Luke some credit." Leia cut in. "This isn't easy on any of us."

"Yeah, yeah, but we don't Vader in our heads trying to screw with us." Han replied rather harshly. "I have little sympathy for the guy who spared the pshycopath's life because the Jedi, who conviently aren't talking to him now, told him it wasn't the 'right time'."

Luke let out a low breath and spoke slowly. "If you only understood how the Force works, you wouldn't be so-"

"Fuck the Force, Luke!" He shouted, flinging his hands in the air. "It hasn't done us any good! Hell, if it wasn't for the Force, we wouldn't be in this fucking mess in the first place!"

Leia stood quietly, waiting for Luke to reply. Her brother was always calm, even when he was experiencing a lot of stress. While she could see Han's side of the argument, she took pity on Luke. He was trying the best that he could. She could not imagine being in his shoes at the moment. Everyone expected him to know information that was impossible for him to know.

"Without the Force, you would still be frozen in Carbonite." Luke replied, his voice on edge. "You seem to only want to think about all the things wrong with the Force, and not the things that it has done to help you."

Han glared at him. "If the Force didn't exist, I never would have been in a situation like that in the first place. The Force will never be a good thing."

"So, what are you saying? Are you implying that Leia and I aren't good things?"

"Don't try and twist my words around, kid." Han shook his head, narrowing his eyes. "All I'm saying is as long as there are Jedi, there will be Sith."

Leia flinched at that statement.

If I die, you will become the next Sith, even if I don't train you. If you destroy me, you become me. If you join me, you become me. It is your destiny, Leia.

Vader's voice was clear, his words echoing in her mind.

"Yes! You're right!" Luke's tone grew bitter. "That's why it is called a balance!"

"Why call it a balance when there is more evil than good?"

"There isn't more evil than good! There is one Jedi and one Sith! It is balanced!"

"Well, what does that make me?" Leia's question caused both men to turn their attention to her. "If it is balanced, than what am I? If there is more evil than good, does that make me a Sith?"

Han and Luke both started speaking at once.

"No, you aren't a Sith."

"Sweetheart, you're not evil."

As they both continued to try and reverse what their argument had implied, Leia shrugged them off.

"Please, just stop fighting." It came out much more pathetic sounding than she meant for it to. "It's not helping anyone."

"Yeah, okay." Han said. Luke nodded in agreement.

"Thank you." She replied. "Now, let's go back inside and deal with the war issue at hand."

"Are you sure?" Luke ventured.

Leia gave a small smile and gestured for them to go ahead of her. The two of them looked at each other, knowing that her smile was fake, and then began walking back to the tent.

As she began to follow them, she felt Vader's voice re-enter her mind.

You know what you are, daughter. Do not try to fight it, because in your heart, you know what you are.