Chapter 22 – Victories and Victims

"I feel absolutely ridiculous."

Luke and Padmé were out on the patio enjoying the last few minutes of daylight before the sun dipped beneath the horizon. He was standing in between the two couches with a piece of cloth covering his eyes. He heard his mother laugh and he spun around toward the sound.

"Come on, it'll be fun," she said.

"For you, maybe," Luke grumbled.

Despite his disgruntled display, Luke was actually quite encouraged to find himself standing out here with a blindfold about to be pelted with apples. It had been his mother's idea – ostensibly for the sake of his Jedi training, but Luke suspected it was primarily for her own entertainment. She had been so sullen all afternoon, so he was glad to see her lighten up.

"You've got to keep in shape, Luke," he heard her say. "And this will help with your Jedi senses, or whatever."

"Let's just get this over with," Luke said in response.

"We'll start easy. Ready?"

Luke sighed as he bent his knees. "Ready," he said.

Stretching out with his feelings as Obi-Wan taught him to do, Luke sensed his mother standing in front of him. He had become intimately familiar with her Force presence and he could recognize her instantly without even having to see her.

"And… catch."

She threw an apple at him and Luke caught it easily. "Really?" he asked. "You can't tell me when you're going to throw it. That'd be too easy."

"Alright, alright," Padmé said as she took the apple out of his hands. "That was just a test run."

"Good, because if you really want to test me, you're going to have to –" Luke stopped talking when he felt something hit him in the chest. "Ow!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Were you saying something?"

"You threw it?"

"Your guard was down. I took advantage."

Luke rubbed his chest tenderly before reassuming his ready position. "Point taken," he said. "I'm ready now."

"You better be."

Luke swayed back and forth as he followed his mother's steps. She was circling him, preparing for her next strike…

Without thinking, Luke thrust his hand out and snagged the apple right out of the air before it could hit him in the face.

"Well done," his mother praised.

Luke didn't respond as he dropped the apple to the ground and continued to follow her movements. He wasn't going to drop his guard a second time.

His vigilance was rewarded when he sensed two projectiles coming at him at different trajectories. Acting once again on pure instinct, Luke dodged the first apple aimed at his neck and stopped the second one with the Force just before it plunged down onto the top of his head. He left it suspended there as he gave his mother a triumphant look.

"Is that all you got?" he challenged.

She didn't respond. Instead, Luke found himself the recipient of a hailstorm of apples from every which angle. He struggled to keep up, catching the few that he was able and dodging the rest. After nearly a minute, the onslaught came to an abrupt end.

"Why'd you stop?" Luke asked. Tearing off his blindfold, he did a double take when he saw not his mother, but Vader staring back at him from the far end of the patio. Standing next to him was Leia, a perplexed expression etched across her face as she glanced down at the two dozen or so apples at his feet.

"Why are you throwing apples at our son?" Vader asked.

Only then did Luke realize that Padmé was behind him. She took two steps forward so she could stand by his side. Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she stared Vader down without answering his question.

The tense silence was finally interrupted when Leia spoke up. "I don't know about you, but I'm famished," she said.

"Want an apple?" Luke asked.

Leia laughed and Luke found himself startled by the cheerful sound. Had he ever heard her laugh like that? What had happened to her? She seemed… happy. Of all the adjectives one could ascribe to her, happy had never been one of them. Was Vader responsible for this change? If so, how?

"I think I'll go inside," a blithe Leia said. She left Vader's flank and walked around Padmé and himself. Luke turned around to watch her walk up the stairs and toward the apartment.

"Would you care to know how the negotiations went?" Vader asked and Luke slowly turned back around to face him.

"You're going to tell me either way," Padmé said, the hostility in her tone belying her evident curiosity.

Vader frowned. Without responding to this comment, Vader flourished his cape and walked toward them. At once, Luke registered a flash of panic from his mother. Extending his arm in front of her, Luke sidestepped Vader as the man went marching passed them without a second glance. Luke turned to watch as Vader climbed the stairs two steps at a time and followed after Leia.

Luke's quickened pulse and sweaty brow could be attributed to the exercise, but in reality he knew it was because he was afraid. Ever since he had seen his mother's dream, Luke couldn't look at Vader in the same way. Terror seized his senses whenever the man was around. The memory of being strangled to death caused his throat to constrict, his heart to pound, and his whole body to stiffen.

He relaxed a fraction when Padmé placed a hand on his shoulder. "Come on," she said. "Let's go inside."

Leaving the apples strewn all over the patio, Luke and Padmé walked side by side back toward the apartment. Luke gave his mother a sideways glance as they traversed the patio. The conflict was plainly evident to him now. Up until this morning, she had maintained the steadfast position that she despised Vader and there was nothing he could do to change that. Luke had always suspected that that wasn't the full truth, and now he knew that to be the case.

But why? What was it about Vader – or rather, Anakin – that allowed them to love him in spite of everything he had done? He exuded a special charisma which Luke could begrudgingly acknowledge was exceptionally appealing. He and Padmé had managed to resist it, yet Leia had not. She had been captured in Vader's gravity, and now Luke faced the daunting task of having to wrench her free of his inexorable grasp.

Upon arriving in the living room, he and Padmé both turned toward the sound of activity in the kitchen. The shared a look before silently agreeing to carry on.

"You know, I doubt it will even take three days for them to agree," he heard Leia say.

"What makes you say that?" Vader asked.

Luke arrived in the kitchen to see Leia shrug at this question. She was leaning against the marble counter by the food replicator which was busy churning out something for her to eat.

"Call it intuition, I guess," she said. Seeing him and Padmé, Leia pushed herself away from the counter and walked over toward the island where Vader was. "You will not believe how well it went," she told them. Her eyes were shining with enthusiasm as she leaned over the island and rested her forearms against the surface. Her ebullient expression faltered a fraction when nobody engaged with her. "Don't you want to hear?" she asked.

"Of course," Luke said hastily.

Placated, Leia stood back upright and gave Vader an appreciative nod. "I can't take any of the credit really," Leia said. "He was amazing."

"Oh, I don't think –" Vader began to say, but Leia cut him off.

"The way you just took control over the room? That was incredible!" she said. "Mothma and Ackbar were absolutely terrified of you!"

"Fear alone is not an effective motivator," Vader said.

"Of course not, but that's why you needed me there," Leia said. "It worked so well. You two should have seen Mothma's face. She was speechless!"

"What did you offer, exactly?" Padmé asked.

"You didn't tell her?" Leia asked Vader. When he shook his head, she spun back to Padmé with bright eyes. "We're going to restore the Republic," she said.

"You're… what?" Padmé asked.

"Well, not exactly," Vader amended. "It's not going to be the same."

"We'll work everything out with the Alliance leadership, but essentially the idea is that the Imperial apparatus is going to be transitioned into a democratic system," Leia explained. "Once the Moffs submit back to Imperial rule, they'll be stripped of their military authority and become beholden to their subjects once again. We won't remove them from office directly, but the people will be able to vote them out when elections are reinstated. So what do you think?"

Padmé blinked a few times as Leia gave her an expectant look. "It's very… thorough," she said finally.

"Actually, it's pretty barebones at the moment," Leia said modestly. "There are still a lot of details to work out."

"And you are okay with this?" Padmé asked Vader.

He shrugged. "I trust Leia," he said.

Padmé's eyebrows shot up her forehead at this comment "You what?"

"I've never cared for politics, you know that," Vader said. "If Leia believes this is for the best, I will do what I can to support her."

"I don't believe this," Padmé scoffed. "Do you have no values whatsoever?"

"Pardon?"

Padmé's expression turned livid. "You spent twenty years propping up Palpatine's Empire, and now you're going to throw it all away?"

"I'm sorry, do you want me to preserve the Empire?"

"I want you to stop manipulating my daughter!" Vader flared his nostrils at this demand and he seemed too indignant to come up with a retort. "You'll give her anything she wants just so she won't hate you!" Padmé accused, pointing a finger at a startled Leia.

"Is that such a bad thing?" Vader asked.

Stumped by this question, Padmé clenched her jaw and broiled in her anger. "How can we believe you?" Luke asked on his mother's behalf. "How do we know you're going to hold up your end of the bargain?"

Before Vader could defend himself, Leia jumped back into the fray. "Here's an idea, Luke. How about you show him some faith?"

"Faith?" Luke repeated.

"Yeah," she said, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Give it a try, won't you?"

"Leia, you don't –"

"He's been nothing but good to you," she interrupted. "To both of you!" she added, gesturing to Padmé. "He's trying so hard, but you just shut him down! You won't even give him a chance!"

"A chance? Oh, I gave him a chance," Padmé said with bitter acrimony. "Twenty years ago, I gave him a chance. But you didn't take it, did you, Anakin? Do you remember what you told me instead?"

Vader's face twitched. Rather than answering, he reached down and scooped up his helmet from the island. He stuffed it over his head while Padmé began taunting him mercilessly.

"I'm so powerful, Padmé! I'm more powerful than the Chancellor, I can overthrow him! Remember that, Anakin? Remember? Oh, I don't care for politics. You liar! What was it you said? We could rule the galaxy together? Make things the way they're supposed to be. Oh, that's right! Just walk away! Just leave!"

"Mom, stop," Luke said, placing a hand on her shoulder when she tried to go after Vader who had stormed out of the kitchen. "That's enough."

Padmé unclenched her fists and exhaled slowly before nodding at Luke. "I'm sorry," she said. "I got a little carried away."

"You think?"

Luke and Padmé both spun around toward Leia's voice. She was seething at them, fingertips digging into the island counter while her eyes flashed furiously.

"What is wrong with you?" she asked Padmé. When she didn't respond, Leia pointed a contemptuous finger at her. "I thought you'd be happy about this, but all you can do is criticize Vader!"

Aggrieved, Padmé was roused back to her senses. "Can't you see? He's only doing this to get you to trust him!" she exclaimed.

"Who cares? He's doing it, isn't he? That's all that really matters!"

"You're not seeing things clearly, Leia."

"No, you're the one who isn't seeing things clearly. You've forgotten what we're fighting against. The Empire is the enemy, not Vader! If Vader's going to help us bring down the Empire, then he's our ally!"

"Things aren't that simple."

"Only because you have to complicate them!" Padmé growled in frustration, yet Leia refused to be intimidated. "You're blinded by your hatred!" she said. "You've let this personal vendetta get so big that you can't think of anything else!"

"There isn't anything else!" Padmé roared. Luke and Leia both flinched at her shrill voice. "Don't you get it? I have nothing! You and Luke are all I have left, and he's trying to take you away from me! I won't let him! Do you understand? I won't let him get away with it again!"

Stunned silence met this explosion. Luke glanced over at Leia who couldn't find anything to say. Her mouth was hanging ajar and the fierce glint in her eyes had been replaced by something far more melancholy.

She seemed to be in awe, and Luke could understand why. This was the first genuine truth her mother had ever said to her, and it was a horrifically tragic one. After all the deception, he hoped that Leia could finally see her for who she really was.

A victim.

Later that afternoon, Luke left his mother to go out onto the patio. He had tried to talk to her, but it seemed like she just wanted to be alone right now.

Having donned a cloak in preparation for the late afternoon chill, Luke grabbed the folds and wrapped them around him tighter when he stepped outside. A few meters away, Luke could make out Vader's distinctive figure at the bottom of the stairs. He was seated cross-legged on the marble floor. Standing behind him was a shivering Leia. She evidently had not shared Luke's foresight and was still wearing the sleeveless blue dress from earlier. She had let her hair down and looked remarkably comfortable in Vader's presence. Perhaps seeking to fend off the cold, she began pacing behind him.

"You are upset," he heard Vader remark.

"You're not?" she asked.

When Vader didn't respond, Luke inched forward toward the end of the hallway and hid behind a column. He had intended on finding Leia out here, but he hadn't known that Vader would still be around. Wishing to keep his interactions with the man at a minimum, Luke elected to observe from afar. Perhaps this way he could gain some insight into their enigmatic camaraderie.

"Is there nothing you could do?" Leia asked.

Vader craned his head languidly to look at her. "Such as?"

"I don't know!" Leia huffed. "Something other than what you're doing." Vader smiled thinly and looked away back toward the skyline. "What are you doing, by the way?"

"I was trying to meditate," he responded.

"Meditate? Why?"

Vader chuckled. "I see Ahsoka did not teach you about the art."

"No, she didn't."

"I'm not surprised. I didn't spend much time teaching it to her, after all. I used to think it was a waste of time."

"What changed?"

Luke could feel the levity slip away at this painful question. "Everything," Vader muttered.

In spite of the darkness, Luke could make out Leia's regretful expression. Rubbing her arms together, she looked away from Vader who let out a heavy sigh. A lingering silence stretched on until Leia finally summoned up the courage to speak again. "Will you teach me?" she asked.

"In time," Vader said, his voice weary. "You have had a long day. It would be best if you got some rest." Leia sagged her shoulders at this instruction. Sensing her disappointment, Vader got to his feet and turned to face her. "Have patience," he advised.

"Ahsoka used to tell me that all the time," complained Leia.

Vader smiled ever so faintly. "I taught her well," he said. His expression turned rueful. "Or perhaps she learned it on her own," he amended. "I was never the best teacher."

"I don't think that's true," said Leia.

Vader bowed his head for a moment before returning his gaze to Leia. "I failed her," he said bluntly. Reaching out with his gloved hand, Vader tentatively ran a finger down Leia's cheek. Luke's eyes widened at this tender gesture. Not only was he surprised that Vader had done it, but he was amazed that Leia had let him. She hadn't recoiled. Indeed, she didn't even tense. She was treating it like the most natural thing in the galaxy. Finally, Vader retracted his hand and inclined his chin. "I won't fail you like I failed her," he said resolutely.

At once, Luke could sense the sincerity of Vader's words. The vigor with which he spoke was laced with a heartfelt remorse which not even Luke could dismiss as disingenuous. Conflict brewing within him, Luke bit his tongue and looked away.

He pretended as if he didn't understand why Leia had chosen to side with Vader, but in reality he understood it perfectly well. Of all the criticisms one could heap upon Vader, disingenuous wasn't one of them. Inversely, that was the only valid criticism one could make of Padmé. Her penchant for stretching the truth had bothered Leia far more than it had Luke. So whenever she heard what Padmé had to say, she always had a seed of doubt in her mind.

With Vader, however, there could be no doubt as to what his intentions were. He was as honest as they come. Although he was perhaps not as forthright as one could hope, he certainly was not duplicitous like Padmé had demonstrated herself to be. On top of that, he had been nothing but gentle, considerate, and paternal toward Leia. It was no wonder she had been swayed to his side.

"I will see you in the morning," he heard Vader say. Returning his attention to them, Luke watched as Vader picked up his helmet from the ground. "Goodnight, Leia," he said as he made to leave.

"Goodnight," Leia said in return. She hesitated for a moment before adding: "Father."

Luke and Vader both inhaled sharply, but whereas the latter smiled, the former winced. Pushing himself away from the column he had been hiding behind, Luke slipped away back toward the apartment and away from his guilt.