Here ya go!
***
Chapter Thirteen-End of Day 1 and Start of Day 2 (or ED1 to SD2)
6 April 2010
LEIA was confused. The woman before her made no sense whatsoever.
She hated that the way she had handled her refusals had stirred a reluctant admiration for the woman. The princess knew that with admiration came respect, then devotion, then, horribly, a sickening sense of reverence, perhaps worship.
She needed to find a way to get the woman to say something vile and repulsive. She said, softly, "I don't suppose that you are accustomed to holding up your part of the deal without prodding from others."
The empress had started to eat the food. She paused, fork halfway to her mouth, and lifted a perfectly sculpted eyebrow. "I suppose that statement comes from one who must have poor enough judgement to make deals with those who daren't effectuate their portion of a deal." She put the fork down, perhaps a bit more gently than needed. "I assure you, Princess, I have never, and will never, back out on any deal. Would you like it in writing?"
Leia barely controlled her flinch. That was a low comment. But it had been in very well concealed anger. The way the empress had released the fork had shown exaggerated control.
But she did not know how to rebut the first claim; she snapped in response to the last, "How is anything going to be accomplished by insignificant papers? The witness would be one of your peoples; any civilian grabbed off the street would not dare go against the beast that is the empire."
The empress sighed, nodding. "I suppose you will have to trust me, Princess. You do not have any other options with this 'beast' of an empire looming before your resisting self." She tilted her head slightly. "But within a few months people should not be fearing the empire so. My husband and I intend on changing it for the better, so that we slowly can return to something more democratic. And perhaps you will find an ally amongst my troops here. You may get the papers signed then."
Yes, and then we may skip through the meadows hand in hand, Leia thought darkly. You and that disgusting husband of yours. She said coldly, "That is as likely as your husband being a decent being."
The empress merely stared. "If you think I have not received enough grief over my husband then you are sorely mistaken. Comments as such are whispered, both behind me and to me, and I care not about them. But I assure you, Leia, that he has changed. Eat your vegetables."
Leia felt her features morph themselves into pure astonishment and doubt before she could control them. The last sentence had been spoken in that soft yet vehement tone that all the previous ones had possessed. Slowly, she grabbed something green off of her plate.
So Padmé thought that Vader had changed. Luke did too. But Leia refused to think such things. He had tortured her, managed to hurt her brother—his son!—, and almost killed her significant other. Vader was evil.
As she chewed, Padmé spoke. "Undoubtedly you doubt me." She allowed herself a half-amused smile at the sentence. "But perhaps you would deign to meet him now?"
Leia froze. See Vader? Goose-bumps sprinted up her arms. The stirring of fear that resided in the labyrinth of her heart slowly began the correct path out. She felt her lips purse. "Seeing him will not change a thing. I will make my opinions based on the things he does."
"A wise decision. Am I incorrect to assume you will do the same with me? Or am I going to be judged as though Anakin and I are the same entity?"
Anakin. Leia stared, narrowing her eyes. "You chose to go with Vader. How would you judge yourself were you in my position?"
The empress permitted herself a frown. "You do not know my husband."
"He tortured me!" Leia hissed, stunned. "Of course I know him!"
"Vader did that," corrected the empress. "Anakin would never."
Leia exhaled sharply in frustration, lifting her gaze to the ceiling and shaking her head. "I-"
"No," Padmé said sharply. "I am not here to provoke you. You said you would judge after you met him; I must trust your word, and you mine."
"You have promised nothing!"
"What would you have me promise? And I vowed to return you, did I not?"
The first question hovered in the air. Leia paused. She asked, snidely, "Are you just going to keep me here, locked up like a royal pet? Or will I have been granted the honour of being in your presences?"
"You may go anywhere in the palace."
"You are caging me?!" Leia all but shrieked.
"Let me finish, Princess," Padmé answered, but coolly. "And you are allowed outside with a guard."
"Oh? I'm allowed on the grounds? What an honour!" The sarcasm dripped from her voice and formed a puddle at their feet.
"No, Leia. Outside as in all of Naboo."
Leia opened her mouth but failed to say anything particularly witty other than a mumbled "oh." The whole planet?
"Yes. It is far too beautiful here to stay indoors."
Leia found herself agreeing before she could help herself. She glanced at the woman beside her, expecting to see a glimmer of triumph. But she saw none. She saw a smile, genuine and pleased. There was nothing mocking. It was like…
"So you do like the planet! I was hoping you would. It's my home planet, but I never spent much time on it. I was always on Coruscant…"
It was like delight. A "you like my house?"delight. Leia considered the woman's sudden change in mannerism with the last sentences. So much choppier, much less eloquent…
She couldn't control herself. "How old are you?" she blurted.
The empress slipped back into her normal façade, brow creasing in distaste. "I assumed Bail would have told you—"
"He told me how you died," Leia snapped, anxious to protect her beloved father. He, after all, had raised her. He deserved the credit. "But he never told me who you were."
The woman's breath hitched. For a split second she looked as though someone had dared to slap her across the face, but she swiftly recovered, with the grace of royalty. "I see," she said, voice normal. "I was twenty-seven when I died."
She's less than four years older than me! Leia realised, dumbfounded. She whispered, "Then everything my father told me was false? With you being queen and senator?" She realised, too late, she sounded like a petulant child.
"No. I was queen. I was a senator. I got a political start at fourteen."
Gods, this woman was merciful. She could have been beaten down after all she had asked. She shook her head. Now that her first questions had been answered, she wanted all of her questions answered. They rested at the tip of her tongue, fighting to get out. More than once she opened her mouth. She was sure that she was giving a remarkable dying fish impression. With that thought, she clasped her lips tightly together.
The empress stared placidly. She sensed, Leia realised, that she was done with the questions. Padmé would not pressure her.
Leia sighed, and for a half second her shoulders slumped.
Someone knocked on the door. Padmé softly bid the knocker to enter. It was a handmaiden.
Leia studied the woman as she crossed the room to the empress. She stiffened, feeling threatened by the unknown lady-in-waiting. She glanced at Padmé unconsciously. Padmé glanced back, then looked at the maiden. "Calla?"
"My Lady," greeted the handmaiden. "Forgive me for entering, but…." The rest of the sentence was said in a different tongue. Leia froze.
Padmé rose. "Outside? Seven hours…?" Her voice grew icy.
Calla winced. "Padmé, please, it isn't my fault. Go chew the security guards out."
Padmé sat back gracefully. "Of course. I'm sorry. This is a rather tender subject for the both of us. What did Anakin do? And where is his old friend now?"
"We're uncertain. Your husband is meditating. "
"Are you checking the logs? Check surveillance cameras. It is mandatory for shops in Theed to have them. Check where Leia was staying. Sometimes the best hiding spot is under our noses. And for that matter, have the troopers patrol the ground."
Leia felt her blood run cold. She opened her mouth.
Padmé continued, "And have the blasters set for stun. Tell them to be courteous to the civilians and to their target. Anyone harmed will be on their heads. Anything harmed will be on their heads as well. The people cannot afford a complete destruction of the town."
Calla curtseyed and trotted away.
Padmé smoothed an eyebrow with a finger, then put her cheek in her palm.
"What's going on?" Leia demanded.
"Jedi," the empress responded, her tone still imperial and cold. "Master Kenobi was seen on the steps of the palace."
Leia noted, shocked, that there was no sense of anger or hatred in the woman's voice. Just irritation. "Oh? Is he dead now?"
Padmé's gaze rose so quickly that Leia jerked back in surprise. "I would never harm Obi-Wan. He was a dear friend of mine, a noble friend, and I have him to thank that you and your brother are not mindless servants of the Dark side. Never insinuate that I even think poorly of him again."
Ouch. Leia recoiled, and instantly berated herself for allowing such weakness. But that tone!
And the woman actually cared. That was eerie.
For a split second, a horrible thought passed through Leia's mind: If she cares about the same people the Alliance cares about, then why are we fighting? The orders she gave are so like orders my real father would have given.
She nodded, meekly, in response to Padmé's snapped order, trying to clear the nausea from her stomach at the thought of agreeing with her.
Padmé rose again. "I must go to supervise this."
Leia stiffened, clenching the sofa. She was terrified of the notion of being left alone in a massive, unfamiliar room in a massive, unfamiliar palace. Imperials could come and mock her and do… other things… while she was still weak.
She felt safer in the empress's presence.
She hated it.
"Lovely," she bit out haughtily.
Padmé studied her. "What was Obi-Wan doing on Naboo?"
Leia bristled. "I will not deign to answer that question."
The empress lifted a brow a fraction. "Perhaps you will explain why you dislike Obi-Wan so much."
"I don't dislike him!" Leia retorted, appalled.
"But you do not like him."
"I do not like what he follows." The words were out before Leia could control herself. She felt the remaining blood drain from her face. It was the first time she had mentioned the deep thought aloud. And to the empress of all people!
But again the empress responded reassuringly. "It is a noble culture, the Jedi Order. But some of it is wrong." Padmé lifted her gaze to the ceiling.
Yes! Leia wanted to scream. She was delighted that someone understood how she felt.
"The Jedi," Padmé mused aloud, "never permitted relationships. That was my largest area of discontent. What was yours?" Leia remained silent.
"Very well. Would you like to come with me?"
Leia narrowed her eyes. "I do not like being coerced into doing things I do not wish to do." It was the answer to both questions.
The barest hint of a smile danced at the elder woman's lips. She understood. "Obi-Wan will not be harmed, Leia." She began to glide gracefully to the door, where yet another handmaiden waited. "If you need anything, do not hesitate to ask."
The princess threw her a poisonous glare. "Go away."
"Already in the process, Princess. Do catch up." The empress threw a delighted "ha, I got the last word!" smile at her and closed the elegant door as she left. *
Damn that woman! Leia swore mentally, refusing to give the cameras the pleasure of catching her reacting in anger.
Leia glanced at the cream coloured furniture on the balcony. She resisted the urge to throw it into the falls. She sighed, looking at the place where she had attempted to shoot the empress.
She felt an unwanted emotion worming its way inside her icy heart. Guilt.
"Oh, nononono," she whispered aloud. "She is a vicious, heartless woman that deserves to die."
She wondered if a vicious woman could relate to her in the ways Padmé had not ten minutes earlier. Apparently so.
Then she remembered something the woman had said. "The Jedi never permitted relationships. That was my largest area of discontent."
Leia frowned. The empire had been founded on her birthday. Her "mother" —she could hardly call the woman who left her assigned room mother—had died in childbirth the day her "father" had died. Luke said that going over to another side of the Force was like dying. So her "father" had died on Empire Day, which meant that he and Padmé had carried on a relationship that was forbidden.
Like her and Han.
Indirectly, they—Padmé and Leia— were both victims of the Jedi's foolish laws.
Leia watched a leaf fall to the falls as the wind blew.
Padmé knew of her boyfriend. She hadn't shown any signs of revulsion.
What did it mean?
And what did the promise that Padmé had made with her signify? After six months she would be returned. But would the woman uphold her part of the bargain?
The door opened after a quick knock. She turned, expecting to see the empress but stopped upon seeing a young man around her age.
He stopped too. He went scarlet. He walked quickly to her, and bowed, quickly, and said sharply, "Hello, Your Highness. I'm Captain Dill Spencer. I was looking for Her Majesty. We had a status report."
Short, sweet, and to the point. And efficient Imperial. Was he a walking oxymoron? (Or, as my Spanish professor likes to say, a moron who was oxidised.) Leia looked at him. "She's not here. I don't know where she is. I am stuck in this room to rot away. Get out, and do something useful." She tilted her head. "Assuming you know what the definition of useful is. Might I define it for you, noble captain?"
She waited, expectant, for the flash of anger and hurt that would cross his face. Lashing out would make her feel better, and, perhaps, get this little boy out of the military.
But he grinned. "Certainly. Define away, even if your royal self, if you would forgive me for saying so, my Princess, does not need any definition. Your pastime out there is unbelievably productive."
Well. The boy could snap back. She blinked, picking up something she hadn't noticed before. Two things, really. One: the guy was drop dead gorgeous. Curly blonde hair that was cropped at ear length, with golden skin and grey eyes. She berated herself for even noticing. And second: the guy was from Alderaan. Or so she thought.
"You're from Alderaan," she said, more softly. "You speak like a northerner." She'd never met an Alderaanian that sided with the Empire.
He shrugged. "Yes. My father and I were off planet when it happened." His voice darkened slightly.
"And you serve the Empire?!" Leia all but snarled, livid. How dare he turn his back on his people? He sounded angry!
"I serve Her Majesty, and, by default, the Empire. I am indebted to her; she saved my life once. I am proud of my position. The empress is a good woman."
"That woman does not look as though she ever lifts a finger!" Leia rasped, trying not to yell.
"She totally kicks ass though. She knows like fifty kinds of fighting styles and—" He went scarlet and bowed again. "Begging Her Highness's pardon. I did not mean to speak to you in such a manner."
Leia instantly liked him. She could tell, from the blush, that he was a good man. A normal Imp wouldn't have taken it so seriously. Her hatred began to ebb. But first a test…
"What were you going to tell the empress?"
He stared at her with narrowed eyes. After a moment he said, "It is a complete broach of security to tell you that Master Kenobi is not on the palace grounds. I dare not mention it." He said it perfectly straight faced.
"Thank you, Captain Spencer, for not divulging any important information," a very dry voice said from the door. They both turned. Another woman that looked exactly like the empress stood there, arms crossed.
"Lady Wyldon. I didn't that the information would have been harmful. I apologise if I have overstepped," Spencer said, paling. His fingers twitched by his side.
"I do believe that you have overstepped physically. You know men are not permitted in this room without Her Highness's permission." Lady Wyldon nodded her head at Leia. "That is the only issue."
"I came looking for the empress, my lady. Do you know her present location?"
The lady looked amused. "She was with her husband in the 'war room,'" she murmured slowly. Spencer bowed, quickly, at both of them, and hastily asked for leave and fled.
Lady Wyldon lifted an eyebrow, looking exactly like the empress.
Leia glared at her in irritation.
"Good night, Princess," the woman murmured.
Leia spun. Indeed, it was black outside. She blinked, looking down at the clothes.
"The closet," supplied the handmaiden. "It will have all the things you need." She paused. "The empress will come and collect you at around eleven. Breakfast is a buffet. Too much food to carry back here."
She's finally getting me into public, Leia panicked silently. She merely stared at her, unable to respond. The door closed.
Leia swallowed.
Day Two
LEIA managed to find clothes the previous night. To her delight, it had been an old baggy t-shirt and some shorts that served as night-wear. A far cry from the royal garb of the previous day.
She fell into the bed, into an astonishingly peaceful sleep.
She woke, for one of the first times in at least six years, because a servant had been shaking her gently. She slapped the hand away. The woman stepped back, but said calmly, "Good morning, Your Highness. It is oh-nine-hundred."
Leia stared at her, sleep groggy. The room was dark. Very dark. Shades had been drawn. She scowled. Those hadn't been there before.
"Not a morning person, hmm?" queried the woman.
Leia then remembered that she was in the presence of the enemy. She sat up, so quickly that the room spun. "I am too. Leave me be."
"I have orders to help dress you."
Leia gave a harsh, mocking laugh. "I am not four, and I will not condone being treated as such. Tell your empress to stop wasting her time."
"You tell her."
"I shall! Take me to her!"
"Certainly. Would you have me take you through the halls in that?" The woman gestured to the shirt. Leia swore under her breath and stalked to the closet. Again she chose something simple and fast. The servant frowned in distaste, obviously hoping to have been able to dress her in something more stylish.
Glaring hatefully at her, Leia dared her mentally to say something, anything, anything at all about her choice in attire.
The servant did comment, stiffly. "I am not at liberty to question you yet. But I suggest changing into something more appropriate for one of your stature. The empress will physically change you into something else."
Leia snorted. Like she was going to believe that.
TEN-THIRTY came along. Padmé took one look at her and practically sniffed, "Change. We are going into public."
Leia lifted her chin. "Absolutely not. I am not a dress up doll."
Her Majesty seemed to grow thirty feet in the next second. Leia actually shrank away as the woman hissed, "I ask very little of you while here. Yesterday you seemed to be very concerned about my holding up of the bargain, but what of yours? Change."
Leia stood, floored. Half of her was actually nervous about incurring the woman's wrath; her other half was strongly defiant. And besides, her sense of self preservance had long since been lacking. She bit out, "There was no deal on my part, nothing that would bind me! It was all you. I cannot believe you suggest such a thing!"
Padmé stared, emotionless. Mentally she was furious that she had not bothered to have Leia take up an oath of some sort, but it was too late to go back on the deal now. She said simply, "Change, or we do it for you."
Leia scoffed again.
Eight people later, she was dressed more elegantly.
LEIA was fuming. Though the clothes were considerably more comfortable than the ones she had grown accustomed to, she had had her personal space bubble popped. Gently, mind you, as the handmaidens that had magically assembled behind the empress were very careful not to hurt her in any way. Even her hair had been brushed so that not even the slightest twinge of pain had been registered.
Thankfully she got out without makeup covering her face. The handmaidens had enthusiastically tried, but Padmé had firmly put her heeled foot down.
And now they walked—she was half dragged by two of the handmaidens—to the kitchen.
"What is your favourite breakfast food?" Padmé asked, quietly, trying to start a conversation.
Leia glared furiously, anger threatening to cloud her vision. She did not answer.
Padmé instead smiled. "A grudge holder, I see. Were you hurt?"
Mutely, she shook her head.
"Good. If you would just wear appropriate clothes, then you should not have to go through such an ordeal. It is your own fault. I'm not asking you to jump off a cliff."
I would rather, Leia thought poisonously.
Padmé shot her a semi-glare. "Did you give Breha this much trouble?"
"She died when I was six," Leia said flatly. "And yes. And the handmaidens after that too."
Padmé looked genuinely saddened. "I was close friends with her. I'm sorry you knew her for such a short amount of time."
Leia swallowed. Damn this woman and the sincere tone of voice! "It doesn't matter," she said, brusquely, glancing out of a window. "I'll meet her again someday."
"That you will," the empress murmured. "Turn here."
Leia pulled herself out of the handmaidens' grasp and stepped forward quickly—
—and collided with a man's chest.
She bounced back almost comically, tilting her head slightly to see the man's face. She blinked. He looked just like… Luke.
Wait… She felt a sense of heavy dread careen into her. It was him.
She unwillingly stepped back, until she was touching the empress, a twisted instinct telling her that Padmé could be trusted. She remembered, suddenly, that nobody in the palace could be trusted. Especially not the empress.
Preparing for some kind of assault, she rolled her shoulders back and said, icily, "Vader."
The man before her was gorgeous. Curly-ish hair, blue eyes, flawless skin. Tall and mysterious. He looked nothing like Vader. But he simply inclined his head and said, "Leia."
Yes. Vader indeed.