Author Note: A couple of reviewers pointed out that Ahsoka should have known that Anakin had become Vader. I went into AU land obviously. In this fic, she didn't know, hence, the hurling of objects.
Imperial Courtyard #2
Imperial Palace
Coruscant
1 day later
Ahsoka Tano followed Leia down a path, past a series of flowering bushes and stately gardens.
"It's lovely," she commented to the princess.
Leia stopped to gaze at a particularly vibrant bevy of blue Ithorian roses.
"It is beautiful," she said, and sighed, "But it costs an incredible amount to keep these gardens in their current state. Luke and I spent a few minutes discussing whether we could open the gardens, since the public is effectively paying the cost for the gardeners and droids and fertilizers and all that. We think there would be security concerns this close to the palace"
Tano looked a little startled, "You and your brother certainly have a very egalitarian view of the local populace. I like that."
"Luke grew up on a desert planet, as I told you. He keeps me honest. It is very easy to take luxuries for granted. I can see now that I was quite the spoiled little princess back in the day."
The tall Togruta smiled at her, "I think you're doing very well, Leia."
The grave look vanished, and Leia's mouth curved upwards, "Thanks. I sense Luke up here."
They meandered around another path and past a soaring fountain which had, at its center, a statute of …
"Oh, that's disgusting!" Ahsoka said indignantly.
"Yes, that will need to come down," Luke Skywalker said, rising from a crosslegged position on the grass.
"I'd like to do it myself," the former Jedi padawan snarled, grabbing her lightsabers, which Vader had returned to her only two hours previously.
Luke chuckled and laid a hand on her arm, "We're supposed to be working on Mind Healing, Ahsoka Tano. I think cutting Palpatine's statue into a million pieces would be fun, but maybe not quite the relaxing vibe we are looking for her."
"It would make me feel really good," she shot back, her eyes narrowing. It was at least 8 meters in height, cut out of expensive larmelstone, and displayed a 'heroic' Emperor Palpatine standing with arm outstretched, his frozen gaze bent toward the lovely gardens.
"I think I'd find mind healing much easier if that was down. But I suppose it would make quite a mess," Tano added.
"I don't mind a mess," Leia said, her eyes suddenly sparkling.
Luke gazed at his twin, grinned, and nodded, "Let's do it then!"
Ten minutes later, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn appeared in the garden in a midst of a scattered vista of rocks.
"Hey!" Qui-Gon yelped indignantly as Palpatine's rocky right hand passed through his ephemeral form.
"Oh, hi Master Jinn!" Luke called cheerfully, dropping 5 meters to the ground, "How are you?"
The ghost glanced around with interest, then smiled, "I am well, Luke. It looks like you children are having fun."
"Children!" Ahsoka huffed, "I'm closing in on 40 standard years old, you know."
"From our perspective, that is very young," Kenobi replied, "It is good to see you again, Ahsoka."
The Togruta shook her head, her montrals swaying slightly, "It's incredible to see you, Master Kenobi. When Leia told me that you had learned the secret to returning from beyond death, I confess I wondered if she was, ah ..."
"Delusional?" Luke inquired helpfully.
Ahsoka looked slightly embarrassed, and Leia laughed, "I understand. It does sound odd."
"Would you like us to come back to work on Mind Healing later?" Jinn asked politely, "After you have finished obliterating Palpatine's statue?"
Luke glanced at the other two and chuckled, "No, I think we'll stretch it out a bit. It's great stress relief, but harder work than I realized. Lightsabers cut through that stone rather slowly, which is interesting. And I'm looking forward to learning about Mind Healing, with Ahsoka as our willing test subject."
Tano rolled her eyes slightly, "You'd better not mess my mind up, that's all I have to say ..."
/-
1 day later
Holocall between Mara Jade and Luke Skywalker
"So how did it go today, Mara?"
"It went ... I guess it went well. I mean, they were upset and angry but I think that it brought them some closure. I wasn't directly involved in the assassination, which helped. And I know they appreciated finding out he didn't commit suicide. There is a certain ... rejection in thinking someone didn't care enough to stick around.
"Did they take any credits?"
"No, I didn't offer them credits because it's not culturally appropriate. To take money would make them feel like they were profiting from the death of a relative. But I feel badly – they are obviously hurting financially."
"Why?"
"Oh, the Gungans have been subjugated seriously under Palpatine, and many of their underwater domains have suffered from pollution due to Imperial mining and other less than ethical practices."
"It's going to take such a long time to clean up Palpatine's mess, Mara."
"Skywalker, you can only do what you can do. You can't fix everything."
"Yeah, I know. It's just frustrating. Anyway, what do you think of Naboo?"
Mara lifted her eyes from the holocall transmitter. She was sitting in public transmission station, an open air one, and a few meters from her was an almost painfully picturesque scene composed of an archetypal courtyard with a stone walk and happy families roaming around; one young woman was even guiding a pet nuna on a leash, which Mara found quite an amusing sight.
"It's, ah, beautiful. I guess. I am not used to thinking about the ambiance of a place. I'm used to being in mission mode. But it is charming, even pastoral."
"That's good. Leia and I need to get back to Naboo sometime and not be captured by evil people bent on dismembering and killing us. Our mother was from Naboo, you know."
"Yes, I know."
"So, you want to hear a little about Mind Healing?"
"Not really, but you're like water dripping incessantly on rock and finally wearing a hole. I might as well get it over with."
"I really think it would help you, Mara ..."
/-
Milp's Budget Accommodations
Corellia
2 weeks later
Mara slipped off her shoes with a sigh of relief, and flopped into a rather dilapidated chair in her dingy sleeping room. She grabbed a remote and turned on the holoscreen, which was showing a thoroughly stupid show entitled, "Princess Thieves", about a merry band of princesses who lived in an exotic cave system and repeatedly waylaid the rich to get money to rescue their father who ...
Blah blah blah. The acting was terrible and the fighting ridiculous.
She found her eyes closing. It was at least soothing.
When she woke up, a quick glance at her chrono showed it was 3 hours later. A wiggle later and her neck was straightened out. Her eyes focused on the holoscreen, which was now showing the Relinka Spetzv, the more flamboyant main news anchor for Imperial Network News.
The inset holo in the corner of the screen made Mara perk up slightly. Remote cams were showing the large foyer in the Imperial Palace, and a host of exotically dressed individuals were climbing a shallow set of stairs, where the looming form of Emperor Darth Vader stood in what was, for him, a welcoming manner. Next to him were two much smaller forms, ones that Mara recognized with ease as Luke Skywalker, and the other as Leia Organa Solo.
Mara grinned slightly. Oh, Skywalker was probably having so much fun!
Casually, she reached for a bottle of blue milk, which had grown on her, and began sucking it down.
Relinka Spetzv was finishing her spiel with characteristic enthusiasm, "With limited tickets, this ball is indeed the party of the century."
She turned now, her green hair waving in her enthusiasm, "And for our next segment, Fashion Expert Yeesha Quam."
"Yeesha," she said, addressing the exotically dressed woman with a scarlet hat drooping precariously on her head, "Please give our viewers your expert insight into the attire of the prince and princess, Emperor Vader's children."
Yeesha's eyes widened dramatically, "Relinka, I have to say that while Princess Leia's clothing is beautiful, and I promise I will get to her, I feel I must focus on Prince Luke! It has been years, maybe even a decade, since a young member of the elite has been so bold. The unremitting black, of course, matches him with his father. But I like the extra touch of semi-military look of the collar, yet it is different enough that he will not be mistaken for a military man, or at least not by an expert. The boots – well, I just don't know where he gets them, but once I find out I will let you know and I know his bootmaker will be swamped. They are so elegant, and those random scratches give the impression that our sovereign's son is actually out in the trenches, fixing, I don't know, a ship or something! Absolutely audacious. And last, but certainly not least, the facsimile of the weapon is amazing. The fact that he and his father and his sister are all sporting a handle like a Sith weapon is a remarkable accouterment to their 'look'."
Relinka, who had been gazing raptly at her guest, glanced briefly at a message on her datapad and now interrupted with enthusiasm, "I have been told, Yeesha, that the weapons are real! Each member of the Imperial family is carrying what is, I believe, called a lightsaber into the ball!"
Yeesha gasped and clutched her chest, "Amazing, just amazing. And if I may be permitted to say it, I do believe that the Prince carries off the menacing weapon look the very best. He is, without a doubt, the new fashion icon of the Empire."
Mara, whose face had grown slack through this incredible interview, now began chuckling, then laughing aloud, and then found herself rolling around on her lumpy bed in an ecstasy of amusement.
/-
Gallery #4
The 'Auction of the Century'
The Alderaanian Collection
1 hour later
"Are you sure there isn't anything you would like, Princess Leia?"
Leia, who had sensed her biological father approaching long before she heard his iconic breathing, shook her head, "No, it is right that everyone have an opportunity to bid on these items. I will not use my position to circumvent the system."
Vader nodded, unsurprised. His daughter had, along with many enthusiastic associates from the Alliance, worked through Palpatine's extensive art collection in search of treasures to auction off for the needs of the poor in general, and the Alderaanian diaspora in particular.
He followed her eyes, and her Force sense now. She kept glancing at one particular art piece in particular.
After a rather uncomfortable moment, Vader strode out of the gallery and into the main banquet area.
"Find me Solo," he ordered Commander Tregast, who had appeared as if by magic at his side.
"Yes, your Highness."
/-
Corellia and Coruscant
Holocall between Mara Jade and Luke Skywalker
1 day later
"So, Skywalker, how does it feel to be the fashion icon of the Empire."
Luke groaned and buried his face in his hands, then lifted his knees up and pretend sobbed for a few seconds.
"Hey, don't overdo the drama, Skywalker. It doesn't become you."
Luke looked up and started laughing out loud, "It's pretty crazy. I heard there was a nutty interview with some lady named ... uh ... Yesha or something ..."
"Yeesha, Yeesha Quam. Fashion expert and consultant. Yes, she thinks your outfit at the ball was amazing and will start a new wave. She particularly liked the artistically added scratches in your boots."
"Mara, this is nuts!"
"Skywalker, this is your life!"
/-
Imperial Palace
Coruscant
"So you will release all political prisoners from the Lusankya and other prisons here on Imperial Center, Emperor Vader?"
"Yes, Mon Mothma, if they are imprisoned for purely political reasons. I am aware that many prisoners are being held under bogus charges, but there are genuine murderers and terrorists in the mix whom I am unwilling to set loose on an unsuspecting population. It will take some time to ascertain which charges are valid and which are falsified."
"Lord Vader?"
"Yes, Princess Leia?"
"General Jan Dodonna has provided us with a list of known Rebel operatives who were aboard the Lusankya. I propose that all those prisoners be freed immediately. And we have lists of other Rebels who have gone missing. If we can identify those sentients in Imperial prison cells, they should be freed immediately."
"As you wish, princess."
/-
One week later
Holocall between Mara Jade and Luke Skywalker
"So what do you think about marriage, Jade?"
"Generally or specifically?"
"Generally."
"I don't know. I have never considered it for myself. I mean, I believe it can be a beautiful thing, but I always thought I'd serve my Master until my death, and there was no possible room in my life for a husband."
"That's sad, really."
"Weren't the Jedi forbidden to marry? Didn't you say that was part of your father's problem with the Jedi Order?"
"Yes, that's true. Leia's driven her own personal stake through the heart of that stupid rule, though."
"So you think you might get married someday, Skywalker?"
"If you'll marry me."
"What?!"
"Or someone like you. I mean, not you in particular. Maybe you? Ok, I'm digging a hole for myself, Mara. Sorry. But I want a woman who loves me, cares for me, for me, not because I'm the Prince of the Empire, not because I'm the new fashion icon. Which is completely absurd. They are seriously selling fake lightsaber hilts and people are wearing them around, Mara! It's insane! And people are wearing black, and putting scratches in their boots on purpose. I could tell some people the sky is green and they would agree with me."
"So, is that a proposal for marriage, Skywalker?"
"If it was, what would you say?"
Mara laughed even as she blushed, "I don't know you well enough. Seriously, Skywalker, we hardly know each other."
"You're right, Mara," Luke said, his face lightening, "You don't. See, that is a sensible answer. We talk fairly often and I enjoy our talks a great deal. But you are working things out in your life as am I. I'm not ready for marriage. But if I asked the 178 single young women who attended the ball to marry me, I think 100 at least would say yes."
"More than that," Mara said with a sly grin, "I'd say more like 150 of them would say yes."
Luke shook his head and leaned back against the chair in his rather Spartan quarters in the Imperial Palace, "Mara, I'm a backwards hick from a farm on Tatooine. I say the wrong thing, I don't know the correct protocol, but because the Emperor is my father everyone pretends that I'm awesome. And though I try not to impinge on anyone with the Force disrespectfully, sometimes I can feel their disdain even while they mouth platitudes and compliments. It's disgusting."
Mara smiled wickedly, "Welcome to court life, Luke."
Luke looked startled.
"What?"
"I think that's the first time you've called me Luke, Mara."
/-
1 week later
Imperial Palace
Coruscant
Training Room
Emperor Vader and Ahsoka Tano were sparring.
"How are you doing, Snips?"
"Well. Really well. Luke has a tremendous gift with Mind Healing."
"I am ... proud of him, of both of them."
Tano leaped over her former master and spun around so rapidly that he riposted with some difficulty.
"You should be, Skyguy."
/-
The Solo apartment
Imperial Center
Coruscant
1 week later
"Is that ... oh Han, it is!"
"Yep, the Killik Twilight. The Big Guy thought you'd want it and had me buy it for you. Quietly and anonymously."
"Oh Han, he shouldn't have bought it. I know it went for millions. I checked."
Solo pulled his wife close, "Of course he should, Leia. He's your father and he cares about you. You should have this to remember Alderaan."
Author Note: The Killik Twilight is from the book Tatooine Ghost by Troy Denning. It is an Alderaanian moss painting. I went into AU land about what happened to it since it ends up in Palpatine's art collection here.
