Chapter Eighty-Five: Counterproposal
Vader heard Ahsoka arrive back at the apartment hours after his declaration that she was the only person he'd give any of his executive power. When she didn't immediately come to their room, he went to see what was keeping her. He found her looking at the evening view in front of the large reinforced glass window that covered the wall in the public sitting area.
"You're a piece of work. You know that?" Ahsoka asked, sensing him headed to join her despite his silent steps.
"So I've been told," Vader teased as he stood next to her and gazed at the sight of the Imperial Palace in the distance. The Former Jedi Temple.
Ahsoka had unequivocally informed him weeks ago that she hoped he didn't plan on taking residence there as emperor because she wouldn't be. Neither would the children, she'd added. Vader had no intention of arguing with her. Though the dark rot of Palpatine's presence was slowly leaving the planet and the palace, the former sacred temple still felt wrong. Vader didn't want to subject himself to that, let alone force Ahsoka and the children to.
"I can't be an empress. I'm not a politician. I'm a freedom fighter at best."
The irritation and indignation that had been in her entire demeanor when she tried to argue with him about it before were gone. At least, enough to have thought this through and come up with reasons to convince him that his idea was a bad one.
Vader would take them all in stride.
"Maybe a freedom fighter is what this galaxy needs. Not a politician," Vader said in a quiet tone to mitigate some of the rasp in his voice. He hadn't realized how dependent his vocal cords had gotten on the modulator and vocoder until he'd been forced into talking in these conferences all day without the help of his suit.
"Anakin," Ahsoka sighed.
She sounded tired. Vader didn't blame her. It had been a long week. A long month and a half and some days, actually. He'd save her the trouble and just explain his reasoning.
"Hear me out."
"I'm listening."
"I'm not just picking you because I think you'll be on my side in everything. In fact, I foresee endless clashing between us about how to effectively rule." He fought the smile tugging at his lips at the thought of their future clashes. If their back and forths over the last week and a half of this conference were anything to go by, there would never be a dull moment.
Through the reflection in the glass, he saw Ahsoka roll her eyes, lips twitching like she was trying to fight a smile. Across the bond, he even sensed something like anticipation from her. She'd gotten just as much excitement and pleasure out their conflict throughout this partnership as he had—despite how exasperating it had been—though she would never admit it. While his intention had been to give her just about all the power of the executive office and only retain power as Supreme Commander of the Imperial fleet, the continuation of their rivalry excited him.
"I choose you," Vader continued, "because I trust you to always try to do the right thing. To know that you'll compromise only when possible and when it doesn't violate the core values of freedom, justice, and what's right even if it's difficult. I can at least admit that I've proven I don't exactly know how to do that."
"Any of the high ranking members of the Alliance could do that."
Vader didn't believe that. But being totally combative and inflexible with Ahsoka had never gotten him anywhere. Not efficiently.
"From a certain point of view, perhaps. But you were the one in there that fought against lines and provisions of the revised Imperial constitution that would suppress the voices of the people and would also hinder the ability to efficiently rule them. You gave voice to the slaves and downtrodden in the Outer Rim, who you inspired to stand up and fight back, which got us control of the hyperspace lanes in the Outer Rim." Vader then added in a softer tone, "It was almost like listening to Padmé in there."
It didn't occur to him until afterward that she could take that to mean that he saw her as a replacement or stand-in for Padmé. He didn't. Though perhaps he'd never made that clear. However, before he could decide whether he might need to clarify that, he sensed something like amusement from her across the bond. He wasn't sure why, but she apparently hadn't taken it the wrong way.
Vader continued, "Not just that, though. The bureaucrats and people who've held power for way too long might not like you, but you've got the people's trust. They know who you are. You fought next to them on the battlefield and risked your life for them and the ideas you instilled in them. If we want them to trust this new era of the Empire, if we want them to trust someone to help rule them, they need to see someone they can know, trust, and relate to at the head. That's none of the Alliance members or the senators and certainly not the moffs. That's not even me anymore. I betrayed them when I helped Sidious come to power even though I helped overthrow him. Our best chance at this and not going to war again is you. You know it as well as I do. The Force even agrees."
"You had a vision," Ahsoka stated.
"Yes." Not really. He hadn't been able to see her when he'd prodded the Force about her place in the Empire in recent years. But he was beginning to suspect that scene of her the Force gave to him just after her trial had been an indication of this future.
Before she could chide him, because they both knew his history with visions, Vader said, "I meditated on it. I think this is a good choice for the here and now and the immediate future too. And if it also brings my vision into fruition, well…" Vader trailed off. When Ahsoka didn't say anything, he kept going. "And think. It'll also help improve the human and non-human relationships and combat the anti-nonhuman agenda that Sidious championed. A togruta empress. Even in the Republic, it had been a while since there was a non-human chancellor."
Ahsoka didn't say anything, but Vader sensed that she was considering his words.
Finally, she said, "There's a lot of people who aren't going to like that."
Vader shrugged. "What do I care? It makes sense. I get to do what I do best at the helm of the army. The Alliance can stop sweating about my future awful rule, and the Senate gets some of their power back with you at the helm to make sure it doesn't devolve into the inefficient squabbling of the Republic where people's self-interests and their credits ruled the agenda."
"And what do I get out of all this?"
"You get to call yourself empress of the galaxy all at the ripe old age of twenty-eight." At least, he thought she'd turned twenty-eight by now. Neither of them kept up with their birthdays. For her, a habit from her Jedi days. For him, not just a habit from his Jedi days that carried over when he became a Sith, but also from Tatooine. It had been wise back on his homeworld to be flexible about one's birthday. He was just sure that her birthday came a couple of months before his. "Quite the accomplishment if you ask me."
"You know I'm never going to be that ruler that sits in the Senate debating all day and trusts other people to inform me about what's going on?"
He smirked. She was coming around already. At this rate, he'd have her agreeing to her new position by the end of the evening.
"Oh, I know. I'll have to show you the designs for the luxury Imperial cruiser that will be your flagship."
Ahsoka's brow furrowed. "How long have you planned to make me the empress?"
"I've flirted with the idea for a couple of years. Long before we were anything other than intimately close friends," he said before she could point out the obvious. "I'm simply far more effective and comfortable handling military affairs than state ones."
Ahsoka crossed her arms and turned to look at him before saying, "Suppose I do this. Suppose I become empress. Could I ask for something in exchange?"
He turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow. He supposed that was fair.
"I'm listening."
"Marry me."
Vader couldn't stop his surprise from vibrating across their bond. He really needed to give up thinking that he had Ahsoka completely figured out. Somehow, she always found new and creative ways to surprise him.
"Relax," Ahsoka said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "It has nothing to do with some misguided desire for you to prove your devotion to me or something. Nor is it convenience. There's nothing you could give me in a marriage that you haven't already given me. Even without being empress, I have little to no benefit from a marriage to you, despite you being the most powerful man in the galaxy right now."
That might have all been true.
Still.
"Great to know how little you need me."
"Don't be so sour. You know what I mean."
"Then why demand it?"
"It's politics, my old friend," Ahsoka said, poking him in the chest. "This is a great time of uncertainty for the people. They don't know what's going on. Whether things will just be as bad as they were with Sidious in power or if they're just going to be much worse. They dare not hope for better. But a marriage? A state marriage? That will give them hope, distract them, and appeal to people's traditional sensibilities. Show that we value family in this new era of the Empire and plan to make it a priority. It will also help prove that we'll be making it a priority to do away with Sidious' anti-nonhuman agenda."
"You becoming empress will do that just as well."
"Maybe. But our marriage will bring around those unconvinced by it. And it'll help your image and reputation among the Empire. Especially if we make it a grand state affair because surely the empress who the people trust so much wouldn't willingly marry someone who was only capable of evil."
A grin formed on her face, and Vader sensed that she was looking forward to putting him through such a torture.
He narrowed his eyes and said, "This has nothing to do with politics. Or my image. This is petty revenge."
"I actually did discuss with Mon and Bail over how to make you more… palatable to the broader public. Though I didn't specifically suggest marrying you." She paused, looking up to the side in contemplation before adding, "That said, it is partly revenge."
Vader got the distinct feeling that there was something Ahsoka wasn't telling him. That there was a lot more to her sudden request than she was letting on. It had been a long day, though, and he didn't feel like trying to tease it out of her. Especially if she'd gone through so much trouble to give an alternative reason.
"Revenge isn't the way of the Jedi."
"Family isn't the way of the Sith, but you've got children. So here we are," Ahsoka said with a shrug.
"No."
Not that he was unwilling to marry her. He would if that was what she wanted. They'd never discussed it. Vader hadn't been sure they'd get the chance to. He hadn't been sure their relationship wouldn't fizzle out on its own in the months they'd been apart, and they'd just go back to their complicated friendship. But he wouldn't marry her like this.
Ahsoka continued to insist.
"Yes. Maybe we could even get Obi-wan to officiate. Get the rest of the Jedi sympathizers on our side," Ahsoka joked.
Vader held back a snort. She was trying to goad him into irritation now. She had to be. Obi-wan? Officiate? Even if he did agree to this insanity, he wouldn't agree to that.
Before Vader could outright refuse, Ahsoka went on. "Look. If I have to deal with the headache of being empress for years until one of those sleeping children comes of age to rule and takes over, so I don't have to, then you can deal with a couple of months leading up to our grand state wedding and the day of for the sake of peace in the galaxy."
She poked him in the chest again to punctuate her point, and he rolled his eyes at her. If she was serious about this, and he hoped she wasn't, then forget making the transfer of power that would make her Empress painless. Sabé would complain about him giving her yet another task, but one thing he knew about the Naboo was that they enjoyed throwing a celebration. And they knew how to do it with just enough opulence to not be gaudy while being extremely tasteful. Ahsoka would hate every minute of it, and he'd enjoy every minute of putting her through it. That was if he really wasn't able to talk her out of this idea.
"We'll continue this discussion tomorrow when we reconvene about the constitution and the structure of the government with the Alliance and Imperial leaders," Vader said, turning back to the window.
Ahsoka did the same with a small smile.
"I look forward to it, my heart," she said.
They ended up not officially reconvening the next day. But that didn't mean, unofficially, Ahsoka didn't invite the members of her High Command, including Bail Organa and Mon Mothma, over to discuss with Vader how they would proceed. That was just a formal way of saying they were going to try to get him to change his mind about all this. Ahsoka suggested he invite some of his own high-ranking officers, intelligence, and politicians, but Vader dismissed it. He let those more politically minded speak for him and the Empire on things of lesser matters. On this issue, though, only his opinion mattered. If he declared Ahsoka the empress, they would follow, and most would keep their doubts to themselves.
Their conversations over glasses of sparkling wine went more or less the same as his discussion with Ahsoka went the evening before. But without the marriage proposal. Finally, Vader became fed up with all the back and forth and subtle jabs. He hadn't had a good night's sleep in years, but somehow it had gotten worse in the last few weeks. He was dealing with the peace conference negotiations; working to keep the Empire stable; helping take care of a newborn at night when he might otherwise get a little rest. To say that his patience was running thin for this nonsense was an understatement. So, he snapped the question that he probably should have asked a long time ago.
"What the kriff were you all's plans after the war if you'd actually beat the Empire if not to make her the next leader of your new kriffing government?"
The question took the whole room by surprise. By surprise because he'd asked (or the way he'd asked) and not because they hadn't thought about it, Vader hoped.
"She's been the one working behind the scenes to get your movement off the ground, regardless of whether or not you like her methods. She's the face of your movement. She reaches out to and talks to those who want to be part of it. She directed your military. Who else did you plan to make your first official government leader if you had taken down the Empire?"
Vader wasn't unaware of some of the politics of the Rebellion. Ahsoka didn't complain about it often, but he did know that she'd frequently clashed with High Command over her unorthodox ways. The way she repeatedly challenged the status quo that even the noblest of them upheld. The way she didn't hold her punches—both proverbial and actual—for anyone. They might not have wanted her to be the leader of their new government, whatever they'd thought it would be. But surely even they—in all their Republic loyalist rhetoric and dedication to a purely democratic government—had seen that the best way to move forward was making Ahsoka the top official. The person people were most familiar with and knew the most. At least until they could publicize a few more faces. Mon seemed to be the favorite.
Finally, Ahsoka said, "We hadn't gotten around to officially talking about it yet. We didn't expect this to all end so soon."
It wasn't a lie, for certain. But the Force told him that wasn't the entire story, and the silence of the rest of her allies was telling.
"Maybe not officially discussed, but you had to have an unofficial plan. You're all politicians and strategists. You can't have been so stupid—"
"Vader."
"—that you planned on making a virtual stranger to the galaxy your top official in an unstable post-war galaxy. You had to have at least planned on making her interim Chancellor or President or something."
Ahsoka began to say something, probably to dismiss the entire conversation and get back on point, but she paused. Body turning slightly in the direction of the hall past the kitchen and dining area. In the next moment, the monitor sitting a little ways off on the marble fireplace mantel began to crackle with Mé's whimpers.
Vader would have used the excuse to get away if not for the opportunity this gave him.
"She's probably hungry," Vader commented.
"Probably," Ahsoka said as she went to cut off the monitor, seeming all too eager to get away herself.
"Don't hurry. We'll wrap things up here," Vader said.
Ahsoka paused and turned back to give him a warning glance before leaving. When he was sure she was gone, Vader turned to the rest of her High Command with his arms crossed.
"Let's settle this once and for all," he decided. He didn't give them a chance to speak. "When you dreamed of a free galaxy, for you, that meant the obliteration of the Empire and a reversion back to a completely democratic Republic. The last thing you wanted was to be working with the Empire. I sympathize. If it weren't for Ahsoka and with the armies under my control, the end of this conflict would have meant the obliteration of your Rebellion. But that's not happening. So let's both temper our expectations and talk straight. You didn't like it, but you had every intention of making her your head of state when everything was over. What changed?"
"You is what," said General Dodonna, one of Ahsoka's High Generals and a traitor to the Empire.
"Oh?"
Mon glanced at Dodonna and began to speak, but Bail set a hand on her own to stop her.
Once he'd placed his hand back in his lap, Bail said, "With all due respect, that was before we were made aware that all this time, Ahsoka's sympathies more strongly lay with you and the Empire."
Vader frowned at that. Ahsoka's sympathies lay with him and the Empire no more than it had eight years ago when they came up with this plan. Well, perhaps a little more, all things considered. But her politics hadn't changed much over the years. She'd always been middle ground when it came to the Republic and the Empire, having been burned by both. No one on her High Command could be blind to the fact that her war declaration said nothing about restoring the Republic. If anything, it was his politics that had changed over the years. He was a lot more Imperial than Ahsoka was by lightyears, but not as extreme as he'd been in his youth. He understood that some democratic processes needed to remain and that the star systems needed to retain some autonomy. But Ahsoka had been consistent in many of her stances. Vader would know. They infuriated him to no end.
The thought suddenly struck Vader that, of course, he would know that. Even when their relationship was at its worst, Ahsoka had never hidden her true thoughts from him. But she had hidden them from everyone else. For good reasons. To protect herself. The twins. Him. But for the Rebellion, everything suddenly changed. Palpatine was dead, Vader extended a truce, and they were being told that their worst enemy had actually been their ally and romantically involved with their leader. If it hadn't been clear before yesterday, it was also apparent that their enemy was the father of the child said leader hadn't disclosed she was pregnant with. Ahsoka hadn't changed. She'd made good on her promise. But in light of new revelations, everything had been recontextualized.
Vader resisted the urge to cringe. When boiled down to that, even he could see how that could shake High Command's faith in Ahsoka. But even though he might understand it, that didn't mean they weren't wrong.
Finally, Vader replied, "So what? You wouldn't even be here having this conversation without her. Perhaps she wasn't totally transparent about her personal life, but she never let that get in the way of leading you. She's led you and stood between you and danger every step of your way here. Even when I was the danger. She's more than proven herself to you. More than that, she's proven herself to the galaxy. She's the only one who hasn't let them down yet, which is more than can be said of anyone in this room." Vader included himself in that whether the Rebel Alliance knew it or not. "She's not just our best chance at another thousand years of peace. She's our only chance." Vader paused to make sure Ahsoka was still occupied before he continued. "So here's what it's going to be. I'll hand over part of my executive power to her. She'll be the first galactic empress. You get to make sure I no longer have the majority of the political clout, and I get what I want."
"And what is it that you want?" Mon asked carefully.
"If that's not clear, then perhaps I give you far too much credit, and I give you little as it is," Vader stated dryly. "Regardless, either get with the program or don't. But make no mistake. If you betray her, if you try to oust her or undermine her in any way, shape, or form, if you decide to expand your crusade against me to her out of your own spite and selfishness, I'll start my own war against you. You will be certain to lose it, and it will not end until I have obliterated every trace of your betrayal."
Vader stood. "I'm done here. You can squabble over this ultimatum elsewhere."
He turned to the maiden, who was silently standing in the shadows of the foyer.
"Escort them out for me, will you?" he asked her.
He barely waited for her to nod before going to find Ahsoka, already lying Mé back down in her bassinet.
"You're done already?" she asked.
"There wasn't a lot left to say," Vader said, tossing off his cape and beginning to unclasp his gloves.
Silence filled the space in the room, a silence Vader didn't feel the need to break. But he got the feeling Ahsoka did.
He was proven right when she said, "You didn't have to say those things, you know."
He looked up at her and said, "What—"
He stopped at the sight of the baby monitor in her hand.
"I unmuted the sound from the other end just to make sure you didn't decide to kill anyone while I was gone," she joked.
"I only threatened to eliminate anyone who decided to betray you. Not the entire Rebellion."
"I'm not talking about that. Well, I am. But not specifically. That's actually progress for you. I'm talking about…" She paused to collect her words. "I don't need you standing up to people for me. I could have dealt with High Command. They mean well. This has just been a lot for everyone."
"You could have. Now you don't have to."
Ahsoka didn't say anything. Just climbed onto the side of the bed closest to the bassinet. Vader joined her after clicking off the lights. She shifted close to him and threw a leg over his hip. It wasn't an invitation for anything more. Both of them were too exhausted, and Mé would probably be up again soon. But just the close contact was soothing and helped them both release pent up tension.
"If I agree to this whole… empress thing," Ahsoka began.
Two and a half of Imperial Center's moons streamed enough light into the room that Vader saw the wry look she gave him.
She continued, "Do I have to be called empress? Can we call it something else?"
"You can call yourself general kriffing supreme of the galaxy, for all I care, as long as you do it." Then, remembering her proposal from the previous night, he added, "But I won't marry you. Not for politics. I will if that's what you really want. If you really don't mind being forever associated with me."
Vader gave her time to think it over. He wouldn't care one way or another if she took it back. He'd understand it. Because for all that their relationship was no secret to those who knew them personally, it was still an uncertainty to those who didn't. Even though she'd come clean to High Command, Vader could tell they weren't sure how concrete the parameters of their relationship were. Like they were waiting for them to inevitably fall apart because there was no way someone as kind as Ahsoka could be with someone as cruel as Vader long term. The Imperials just knew not to ask, but they also wondered.
Getting married would remove all that uncertainty, make it clear where Ahsoka stood, and probably make her allies more untrusting of and angry with her for a while. It would also put the spotlight on their relationship for the entire galaxy to see. To make a scandal out of based on the way the media kept pushing what they could get away with now that Vader had lifted Palpatine's harsher censoring laws. Tedious as it was, there was a degree of safety and shielding behind keeping their relationship somewhat secret and shrouded in a cloud of uncertainty.
Ahsoka replied, "I don't want us to be a secret. I'm tired of secrets. What better way to get rid of that secret than to make it official with a public engagement and a marriage?"
And though he would have understood if she took it back, there was a part of Vader that was relieved.
He smirked and said, "I guess we're getting married then."
Ahsoka raised an eye marking and said, "I guess we are."
AN: I don't have much to say about this except that with the first part of this, the dialogue is copy and pasted from Force Distortion but the introspection and narration is new because in Force Distortion, this was from Ahsoka's pov. Also, like when I wrote Ahsoka mulling over whether she'd go through with her pregnancy, I wanted the reason for the two of them to get married to be personal to them. I mean, generally people get married for the same few reasons. But like Ahsoka says in this chapter. Neither one of them is going anywhere. At the very very least, they would always be some kind of platonic partners even if the romance did fizzle out. So in the end, the reason was the reason for a lot of the revelations and uncoverings of the last couple of chapters. They're tired of secrets.
Anywho, hope you enjoyed this midnight update. The last chapter is already edited, proofread and beta'd. I might be persuaded to upload it tomorrow (Wednesday EST time). In the meantime, review, favorite, and follow. I appreciate the support and your insights.
