A/N: So, a couple of days off the schedule another chapter is up!

You know, people, I'd really appreciate if you reviewed. ;) This story is reaching its crucial point, and I'm really interested in your opinion about it. Or is it my punishment for not being able to always reply to your reviews? I guess this is the case…

I do have an excuse, though a feeble one for the world of fan fiction – my exams are approaching with a light speed, and therefore my time online is cut very, very short. And as my muse is very productive now, at the time when I don't have time to write, I try to spend a couple of hours for writing as well. So, I'm very, very SORRY for being such an irresponsible author!

Otherwise, enjoy and thanks for putting this story to your favourite or alert list (even though I've never heard from at least a hundred out of you. :D)

CrazyAni

Chapter Twenty-Five

A Stab In the Back

Luke hurried down the halls of the Jedi Temple to where he was supposed to meet Obi-Wan. When he arrived at his destination, he spotted his father and Obi-Wan arguing about something. Anakin's face was red with anger, and Obi-Wan's aura radiated weariness and sadness.

"Give me a reason to trust them," Luke heard Anakin saying as he approached. His father's face was dark, but something about his eyes made Luke's stomach twist with compassion. They were haunted and blank.

Obi-Wan didn't know how to answer. "They are the Council," he said at last. "They know what is right."

All traces of anger left Anakin's face. He looked lost and in pain, and at that moment he resembled Vader the least. He was just a lost, confused young man, hardly older than a boy. Luke felt bitter amazement rise within him as he was once again reminded of how young Anakin had been when he turned.

"They are wrong," Anakin said quietly. It seemed that he had no more strength left to yell. "Everything is wrong…so wrong."

"Anakin-" Obi-Wan began anxiously, worried about his friend, but Anakin raised his gloved hand in a gesture of silence.

"Don't, Obi-Wan," he said wearily. "You have already said everything."

Anakin locked eyes with Obi-Wan, who was watching him guiltily. The moment stretched into minutes. At last, Anakin looked away. "I'll leave you to have another secret conversation with Luke Solo," he said shortly, casting an unreadable glance at Luke.

Luke wanted to tell him that he should stay and let them help him, but Anakin didn't give him any opportunity. He stormed off immediately, and after few seconds his black cloak was out of sight range.

"What happened?" Luke asked quietly.

Obi-Wan exhaled a shaky breath and leaned against the wall. He was afraid that his legs wouldn't be able to support him.

"Anakin has been appointed to the Council, but hasn't been granted the rank of Master," he said flatly. "He lost his temper in front of the whole Council."

"This isn't good," Luke said anxiously. "But how did he get to be on the Council without being Master?"

"Palpatine," Obi-wan said briskly. The name left a sour after-taste in his mouth. "It's all his actions. He is pulling the strings, and we all are just marionettes in his hands…"

Luke cursed under his breath in a language Obi-Wan didn't understand. Another thing he learned from his father…In other circumstances, Obi-Wan would have laughed at his former Padawan's ability to exert so much influence on everyone, but now he was too drained.

"But that's not all," Obi-Wan continued. His insides squirmed again, and felt as if snakes were crawling all over him. "The Council assigned Anakin to spy on Palaptine."

Luke looked as if he had been struck by a bolt of lightning. "But Palpatine is Father's best friend," he said in shock.

"Exactly," Obi-Wan confirmed sadly. He tried not to let Luke see how much the words stung. Palpatine is Father's best friend. Not Obi-Wan, Palpatine. Could he still call himself Anakin's friend after what he had put him through today?

"The only thing Anakin can't cope with is betrayal. And just now I asked him to betray a friend."

Anakin's pained face swam before his eyes, his blue eyes watching him reproachingly. Would he ever trust him again?

Luke was deadly pale, and Obi-Wan didn't think he looked any better. With each day the situation got worse, and the distance between them and Anakin grew. Obi-Wan couldn't help but marvel at Palpatine's brilliance. It was a perfect move, and now their hands were tied. If Anakin would have to choose between Obi-Wan and Palpatine, who would he choose?

"What if we told Anakin that Palpatine is the Sith Lord?" Obi-Wan asked even though he knew the answer. Do you think he would believe you after what you have just asked of him?

Luke shook his head. "We can't," he said bitterly. "Then we would lose that little bit of trust we still have. And if we told the Council, it would raise too many questions. And they could expel father-"

"Anakin has always questioned the way of the Jedi. He has never felt accepted," Obi-Wan said bleakly. He walked away from Luke and watched the clone troops load a battle cruiser in the distance, but he could still see only Anakin's pained face. His voice trembled. "He doesn't trust the Council. And after what just happened, I don't think that he has any reason to."

Luke observed a young Padawan talking to his Master nearby. "Father has been forced to become a double agent, right?"

Obi-Wan could only give a feeble nod. He watched as the Jedi Master smiled approvingly at his apprentice and patted him on the back. The boy burst with pride at the insignifigant gesture, and followed his Master. How often did he let Anakin know that he was proud of him? That the Jedi were proud of him? That he belonged with the Order and was needed there?

"I don't think that Father will pull through," Luke's quiet voice pierced the shroud of semi-awareness blanketing Obi-Wan's mind. "What the Council requested of him stands against all his principles. And considering he fears that Mother is going to die in childbirth…It's too much pressure for one man to take."

"Anakin is very strong," Obi-Wan contradicted determinedly, ignoring the little voice of doubt. "He will deal with it. He has never failed to cope with anything yet."

"There is always a first time," Luke said quietly. He glanced at Obi-Wan, his blue eyes haunted and full of fear. Fear for his father. "I'm afraid that we won't be able to help him. I'm afraid that he'll slip so far that we won't be able to reach him."

Obi-Wan stepped closer to Luke and put his hand on the younger man's shoulder. "We will think of something, Luke," he said softly, but Luke averted his eyes. "Anakin won't be lost to darkness…and he won't be lost to us."

----------

Leia sat on the couch in Padmé's guestroom, feeling slightly nervous. How would her mother react to her after she had taken her place on Grievous's ship? Footsteps approached from behind and Leia sprang up.

Leia turned around and saw her mother walking towards her, her face inscrutable. Padmé had always been so good at hiding her feelings…She swallowed nervously.

"Padmé-" Leia began, but broke off abruptly as Padmé scooped her into a hug. Her mother buried her head on Leia's shoulder, and she could have sworn that Padmé gave out a tiny sob. It felt warm and comfortable to be in her mother's arms. She had never been embraced by her mother… At last, Padmé broke their connection. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her eyes were glistering.

"What made you do it?" she asked furiously, but her lower lip was trembling. "Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

Leia hung her head in a gesture of guilt although she didn't have any reason to feel guilty. What choice did she have?

"I'm sorry," she said simply. "I didn't mean to worry you."

Padmé stamped her foot and broke into tears so suddenly that Leia didn't see it coming. Leia moved to her and rubbed her back awkwardly, feeling awful for making her mother's life even harder. The pregnancy affected her strongly, and the endless atrocities of the war had made the things even more difficult.

"I'm sorry for my outburst," Padmé sniffed embarrassedly after several moments. "The pregnancy is my only excuse, and I'm carrying twins."

"Twins?" Leia gaped at her in astonishment, though she had no reason to be surprised.

Padmé smiled at her, wiping her tears with her sleeve. "Anakin told me yesterday."

"Why would Knight Skywalker tell you that?" Leia asked innocently.

Padmé grinned. "Anakin is my husband and father of my children and you know that, Leia."

A silence hung between them.

"Would you have told me?" Leia asked her quietly, her insides clenching in tension as she waited to find out the answer to this seemingly simple question.

Padmé took her time with replying. "I don't know," she said slowly. "But I don't regret that you found out. It's so much easier this way."

"I think so too," Leia said evenly, a smile of relief gracing her features. "And you weren't good at hiding your pregnancy from me, Padmé. Women who aren't pregnant don't burst in tears if they run out of blue milk, nor do they eat a supper of the size of a Bantha."

Padmé blushed. "Anakin has spent only one night with me, but he's already started teasing me," she said in reproach, but Leia could see that the corners of her mouth were twitching. "You know, the two of you are too much alike for comfort."

Leia flashed an uncertain grin, but her skills as a politician hid the flood of hot blood flushing to her cheeks. "Do you already know the gender of the twins?" she hurried to change the subject.

"I carry two sons," Padmé said, stroking her belly. "And they are worried for their father," she added under her breath in a dark undertone.

Leia thought that "worried" was an understatement for the feeling of cold dread every time she thought about her father. The memory of cold mechanical breathing filled her head, and Leia had to suppress an involuntary shudder at the idea that history would repeat itself.

"Why should my little daughters be worried about me?" a male voice came from behind them.

Anakin stepped into the room. He was deadly pale, and there was no twinkle in his eyes – they were void and listless. He tried to smile, but his lips merely stretched into a hollow grin.

"Ani, what happened?" Padmé exclaimed anxiously. She ran to him and hugged him tightly. Anakin rested his head on her shoulder and closed his eyes, drawing a shaky breath.

"What happened?" Padmé repeated, rubbing his arm. Anakin didn't seem to notice Leia's presence, and Padmé seemed to have forgotten that she hadn't been alone

"Council business," Anakin said weakly, his eyes bearing the pained look of someone who had just been stabbed in the back. "Everything has gone wrong, so wrong…How are the babies?"

"We are fine," Padmé said hurriedly, flashing a reassuring smile at him. "But tell me what's troubling you. You look horrible!"

"Obi-Wan-" Anakin began as his gaze fell on Leia. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to visit your wife," Leia said calmly.

Anakin groaned and rubbed his face with his gloved hand. "I'm not going to ask how you found out about us," he said at last. His eyes hardened. "But why did you come here alone, without a guard?"

"I've done that thousand of times, Knight Skywalker," Leia said, ignoring the frown on Anakin's face. "I don't think that it is dangerous."

"I do," Anakin retorted, crossing his arms across his chest. "We live in perilous times, and I fear that your life might be in danger, Leia."

"Why?"

"I can just sense it," Anakin said darkly. "Something bad is about to happen."

Leia stiffened at his last words. If the Republic fell and the Empire took its place, Leia had no doubt that the Rebel Alliance would eventually restore the freedom with such allies as Jedi at their side, and it would take them less than two decades to do so. But if Anakin fell and become Vader once again, the Alliance would have even harder time than before. Leia had sworn to herself that she would never let the duel between her father and Obi-Wan happen, even if she and Luke would have to drag them by their legs.

"As your Jedi protector I forbid you to leave your apartment alone," Anakin said sternly. "It is dangerous for you to be on your own. Times have changed, and even Coruscant isn't safe any longer."

"You can't command me, Anakin," Leia said coolly. "I thought you'd learnt that lesson from the Invisible Hand."

Anakin snorted in an exasperated manner. "And I was right back there, just as I am now. Besides, you could be in danger."

"From what? From a fly?" Leia asked sarcastically.

"I'm just worried about you wandering on Coruscant all alone, that's all," Anakin said evenly.

Leia wanted to retort something in return, but Padmé stepped between them, watching as Anakin's eyes narrowed.

"It's a good thing we're having boys," she said hastily.

"Daughters-"

"Otherwise I would have to fear for their sanity, Ani," she said, the tone of her voice light. "You're an impossible, overprotective Jedi guard, and I wonder what will you be like with your own children."

Leia grinned uncertainly, a mental image of Anakin chasing after Han with his lightsaber flashing in her mind. In spite of the dire situation she wondered how well would Anakin and Han get along. They were so much alike – both of them were brave beyond the boundaries of reason, compassionate, loyal and annoying.

Anakin feigned a smile. "Fortunately for her, Leia is not my daughter," he said calmly. "But as her Jedi guard I have every right to request that she not leave the apartment and not go out on her own."

Leia raised her chin. "I've never listened to any authorities," she said defiantly. "And as you're not my father, I have no reason to listen to you. Besides, I'm older than you."

Anakin snorted. "By a year?"

"By two years. My birthday is in less than a standard month-"

My birthday is less than in a month. The meaning of her words flooded her with the power of a giant, destructive wave, and she felt her knees trembling, her stomach becoming heavy and foreign to her. A feeling of cold fear spread within her, making it impossible to breathe, to feel, to think. As if struck by a bolt of lightning, Leia understood that her father's dream would come true, and Padmé would die in childbirth. However, his turn to the Dark Side would be the cause of her death. Only one month until the Apocalypse, until the Republic would fall, until her parents would die – one spiritually, the other from the broken heart…

"Leia, are you alright?" she heard a tender voice asking her. She turned her head and found herself staring at Padmé's worried eyes. In only a month those eyes would become filled with immeasurable pain for all eternity, as they had been in the only memory Leia had of her mother.

"I'm alright," Leia said weakly. Suddenly, she felt so tired… "Knight Skywalker, could you please walk me home?"

Anakin nodded. "I'll try to come tonight," he said to Padmé, giving her a quick kiss. She didn't say anything, but her eyes spoke better than any words.

Once outside, Anakin made a step towards his speeder, but Leia grabbed his arm. "Can we walk?" she asked quietly. She felt that she needed fresh air.

"Of course," Anakin said casually. "I know a shortcut."

The sun hid behind a large cloud, and everything was still. It was the calm before the storm. Even the speeders whooshed by silently, casting ominous shadows on the pavement. Leia couldn't get rid of the eerie feeling as if someone was watching them. They walked in silence, each too pre-occupied with their worries. Nevertheless, Leia enjoyed the company of her father. His mere presence helped her draw comfort and pull herself together.

"Why are you so certain that at least one of your children is a girl?" Leia asked her father as they turned from the main street into a smaller passage. They were the only ones who walked there. The feeling of being watched intensified, but she shoved it into the back of her mind. Anakin glanced over his shoulder, obviously sensing something as well. But there was nothing menacing around.

"Let's call it a Force-sensitive father's intuition," he said vaguely. His eyes took a dreamy look, and a true smile touched his handsome features, making the hollowness of his stare go away. "I know that my daughter will be as beautiful as her mother. I can't wait until she takes her first steps, says her first words. I want to see how she grows up, how the boys will chase after her."

But you never saw it.

"And will you let the boys chase after your daughter?" Leia asked mockingly, trying to lighten her mood, as sad thoughts of what her life would have been like swirled in her mind .

Anakin smirked mischievously. "Of course. But I'll chase after them."

Poor Han. "Your poor daughter," Leia muttered. "But what if your actions scare everyone away and your daughter will be forced to spend her days alone, never finding a true love?"

Anakin sent her a dirty look. "If the young man truly loves her, a menacing Jedi father won't scare him away," he said lightly. "And if she's my daughter, I'm sure that she'll find a way to sneak away and meet her lover in secret from everyone."

"And if you found out about them?"

Anakin snorted, a sparkle of amusement lighting his eyes for the first time since Leia had seen him on Coruscant. "I'd probably freeze the young man alive first, then give them my blessing."

Well, the first part is already done.

Leia wanted to make a comment, but at that very moment she felt her hair standing up, and the sense of upcoming danger overwhelmed her. Before her mind could register it, she felt herself being pushed roughly to the ground, and a blaster shot missed her by inches.

She looked around and saw a dozen battle droids surrounding them. Anakin stood in the middle of the circle with his lightsaber ignited.

"Jedi, hand us the girl and we won't harm you," one of them said in an emotionless, mechanical voice.

Anakin raised an eyebrow. "Go away, and I probably won't harm you."

Leia felt indignation bursting in her. These pieces of walking metal came to claim her, and she would let her father defend her once again as if she were a helpless princess? She stood up and joined Anakin.

"If you want me, try to get me," she said coldly. "But I think old models like you will drop dead before even being able to take a step." Anakin sent her a disapproving look, the resemblance to Obi-Wan so strong that Leia had to grin mentally.

The droids reacted to her words with stunned silence. Leia suspected that they weren't programmed for being insulted.

"You made them angry, and now they will strike," Anakin said emotionlessly, but his eyes were watching her with disappointment. Her insides squirming uncomfortably under her father's piercing stare, Leia opened her mouth to apologise when to her utter astonishment, Anakin broke into a broad grin. "That's good," he said. "Now I can turn them into a heap of scrap metal."

"We can," Leia said stubbornly. "And I'll help you with bare hands if I have to."

Mechanical voice intervened into their conversation. "Kill them!"

Blaster bolts flew at them, and Anakin started deflecting them. A droid with armour that seemed to have been damaged from a previous battle aimed at Leia, but he was destroyed by his own fire.

"Can you handle a blaster?" Anakin asked her suddenly.

"Wha-"

Without asking twice, the young Jedi extended his hand and the blaster flew out of the grip of the destroyed droid right into his outstretched hand. He shoved the weapon at Leia.

She took it and aimed a shot at the droid's leader. It found its target, and in the next moment a blue lightsaber returned blaster fire so skilfully that two droids fell onto the ground. Leia kept shooting, adrenaline surging through her. Anakin worked mostly defensively, covering both of them, while she was the cause of the decrease in hostile forces.

She had never fought side by side with Bail…

She pulled the trigger, and the last droid dropped to the ground with an eerie sound. With a hum, the turquoise blade retracted into the hilt, and Leia lowered her blaster. Panting slightly, she turned to Anakin who looked impressed.

"Not bad for a princess," he said simply.

He walked to the droid which looked least damaged, and opened its armour. A set of wires and microchips was exposed to Leia's sight.

"What are you doing?" Leia asked curiously, watching as Anakin rummaged through the complicated mechanism. He moved some wires aside and carefully pulled a small box out.

"I'm trying to find a tracer to determine who sent them," he said darkly, pulling a small instrument from his belt. "These droids are primitively constructed, so it's easy to break through the system defences. Got it!" he exclaimed excitedly.

A screen Leia hadn't noticed earlier appeared on the box, and a set of coordinates displayed on it.

"Let's go," Anakin said firmly, putting the box into his cloak. "You should be resting, and I need to pay a visit to the person who set the droids for you."

They resumed their walking. Leia was sure about the identity of the villain behind the assassination attempt on her life, but she doubted that it was the Sith Lord himself who sent the droids.

This monster knows perfectly how much Anakin cared about me and Luke, Leia thought contemptuously. He has found a perfect way to use his loyalty to the loved ones...

Anakin's voice disrupted the train of her thoughts.

"I would be proud if my daughter were anything like you."

Leia glanced up and saw his blue eyes smiling at her. She feigned a smile in return, feeling a lump forming in her throat.

I am your daughter, father. But you can never find out about me.

In a month, it won't be important anyway.