A/N: The introduction and romance of Vaderkin with Amidala is meant to be a little sudden as there will be some romance at first, then angst, then more romance as the plot progresses. I managed to squeeze this chapter out as I'm currently finishing A Light Through Her Darkness, which still has quite a few chapters to go. Anyway, please enjoy this next chapter!
Dormé was fixing Padmé's hair after she had applied makeup. The two were running a little behind, but it wasn't like there was someone watching the clock, so they weren't rushed. Padmé still had a warm feeling in her belly from her conversation with Anakin the previous night, so much to the point where she was having to conceal her smiles from her best friend so she wouldn't notice anything yet. It was too soon, much too soon, but it felt so right.
"You forgot to brush your hair out last night after your bath, Padmé", Dormé said as she did her best to work a hair style that was becoming of a senator. She always referred to Padmé by her name éwhen they weren't at the Senate or in public as they were the best kriffing friends that two women could have.
Damn her, she always noticed the small details. "I was a little tired and just wanted to throw myself in bed, Dormé. I stayed at the office much too late last night, I was afraid you would come and get me but thankfully you were asleep by the time I got home", the resplendent senator said.
"That's because I know that when I make a threat, you take it seriously. But you never know when I'll stay awake just to catch you off your guard, Padmé", Dormé said.
"I'm sure you will, darling", Padmé muttered. She admired her friend's watchful attitude towards her, she really did. It was good that someone in this wretched galaxy had her back in such a way as to go the distance for her, aside from her family on Naboo that is.
"So, when do I get to meet him?", Dormé asked.
Padmé felt like she was just run over by a wild shaak. "Meet who?", she hazarded.
"Meet the man you were chatting with over the comms last night while you were having your bath. You forget how thin the wall is between your fresher and my bedroom", Dormé said with a sly grin on her face.
"Damn you, woman, I was trying to keep this under wraps for the time being", Padmé said with a groan. "I suppose you of all people would be the one to find out first."
"Well, come on give me the details", Dormé said expectedly.
"Alright, his name is Anakin Skywalker. He's a tall, dreamy man with dark blond hair, the most peculiar yellow eyes, scars on his face, but a heart throbbing gentleman and a flirt", Padmé said feeling the warmth spread throughout her entire body.
"Really?", Dormé asked as she paused her work. "How in the hell did the two of you meet?"
Padmé blushed. "I was hurrying to leave the office and was carrying several data pads when I literally walked in front of him when I exited causing me and the pads to fly everywhere. I was so fucking embarrassed I could have died, but he just pulled me up, collected my pads and we began a marvelous chat while he escorted me to my speeder. I was so enamored with him, I gave him my comms frequency just dying for him to call me and when I was taking my bath, bam, he called me, and we had the most marvelous chat."
Dormé stared at her in the mirror. "That's a fucking fairy tale of a meeting if I ever heard of one, Padmé!", she exclaimed. "What's next for the two of you?"
"Well, he invited me to the upcoming gala, and I accepted and may have suggested that we grab some dinner sometime this week which he agreed to. I was so nervous when I asked, I could have fainted and drowned in the damned tub", Padmé said.
"That's so amazing, Padmé", Dormé said as she bent down to give her friend a kiss on the cheek. "I am so happy for you. I'll be thinking good thoughts that the two of you will work out splendidly."
"Thank you, darling", Padmé said in a chipper tone.
"So, what does he do in the Senate that he would be there at such an odd hour?", Dormé asked.
Of course, she would ask such a question. Damn her and her curiosity. "He's a military contractor, a civilian, but a contractor. I'm not sure what he does, he was rather hush hush about it, but it seemed to be of something of importance by his nearly military attire and the way he carried himself. And how kriffing strong he is. When he offered me his arm to escort me, my eyes nearly popped out of my sockets at how strong he felt", Padmé said.
"A military contractor?", Dormé asked. "For the Empire? Padmé, have you lost your mind?"
"Now, Dormé, just because he's a contractor doesn't mean he takes the fight to the Rebellion or anything. Not that you or I know much about that group. He could be a weapons officer for all I know, but I intend to pump him for information, don't you worry", Padmé assured her friend.
"I imagine you'll be pumping him for a variety of reasons", Dormé said with a chuckle.
"You cheeky bitch!", Padmé replied. "Gods damn, do you have to be so graphic about those things?"
"Padmé, we're not in our teens, of course I'll be graphic about such things. Besides, it's true. Gods know that you haven't had a proper lay in a couple of years, so it'll be good for you, regardless of what the man does", Dormé teased.
Padmé remained silent but blushed purple. It wasn't that she was woefully inexperienced with sex, well, she was intermediate at best, but it was the principle of the matter.
"Anyway, regardless of that, I'm sure that you'll have a nice date night and then wow the gala with the ravishing, good looks of the man that seems to have caught your attention", Dormé said as she finished her final touches on Padmé's hair. "Now, what do you think of my handy work?"
Padmé studied herself in the mirror. As always, Dormé was a miracle worker. "It looks divine, love. Thanks, and let's get going so we can get this damned day over with."
"Of course, Milady", Dormé said playfully.
…
Vader looked at himself in the mirror as he finished shaving. He detested having facial hair, not that he was a fucking prissy boy, he wasn't, it was just difficult to maintain and got dirty fairly easily. He rinsed his face and applied alcohol, enjoying the burning sensation and ready for the day.
What had pleased him the most last night was his conversation with Padmé. The beautiful woman was shy yet courageous, which was an odd combination but for her personality, it worked. He was flabbergasted when she asked him out on a date, which he was glad to accept. Maybe this tour of duty would be a good thing, he never had a steady woman to call his own, at least for the time being. Assuming that he was still seeing her by the time he was unveiled as Darth Vader, she would likely be given a freight, but that was just to be expected. Dammit, nothing was ever simple in his role, which is maybe why he didn't form relationships, but with her… it just seemed right for some reason.
Growling, he donned his attire, being certain to shove his lightsaber into his tunic to avoid suspicion and made his way downstairs, ready for what was expectantly an arduous day at the Senate pretending to be Anakin Skywalker, the contractor and hero of the fallen Republic. As brilliant as the backstory he created for himself, he still wanted to gag at it. He was a gods damned Sith Lord, not a contractor or a hero of the Republic. At the downfall of the Republic, he was behind the scenes, orchestrating the greatest galactic scheme in history at nearly twenty one years of age. To hell with being an ordinary person, he was far from ordinary. He was exceptional in ever way. At least that's what he thought. His master just toyed around with him like he was a second rate underlying which was far below his station. Sidious wouldn't be half the man he was without his aid, and the old fool would do well to remember it.
Regardless, he made his way to the first floor, ready to pounce into his speeder and start the day.
"Master Vader! I'm glad I caught you. I have prepared a breakfast for you to get you started for the day!", Threepio exclaimed which made Vader groan.
"Threepio, thank you, but I'm running a little behind. Perhaps some other time, alright?", Vader suggested.
"Oh. Of course, Master Vader", Threepio said, sounding deflated.
"It'll be alright Threepio, just give me some advanced warning before you go through so much trouble the next time", Vader said.
"Of course, Master. I will be sure and do just that", Threepio said.
"Alright, I'll see you this evening. I'll be late, so no need to prepare dinner", Vader said as he walked out of the double doors, not waiting for Threepio's response. Damn, that droid was loyal, but almost too loyal. He didn't need someone doting over him at every whim, he just needed some basic functions. Well, he did program the droid, so he supposed it was his fault anyway.
Hopping into his speeder, he rushed through traffic, swerving and dodging lines of traffic, not giving a shit about traffic regulations. He supposed it wouldn't do him well if the authorities attempted to cite him for traffic violations, but he was still a gods damned Sith Lord. He would do as he wished, damn the rest of the populace.
Making it to the Senate in record time, he uncharacteristically parked in the zone where the senators landed their speeders. He did a quick search for Padmé's speeder and saw the posh Corellian speeder not too far from his own. Good, the object of his affection was at work today, but he didn't know if it was too soon to approach her in person at work. Maybe it would be best for him to focus on his clandestine activities for the moment.
Walking his way through security, he flashed a pass that was scanned as high importance and resisted the urge to smirk when the Stormtroopers stiffened, not knowing whether to salute or not. They better gods damned not salute or it would be their asses under the fire, not his.
Where to start, he wasn't certain. Perhaps he could simply roam the halls of the Senate for the time being, taking in the thoughts of the senators to see if he could detect any nefarious actions. That would be the most obvious answer, but sooner or later he would have to actually engage them in conversation. That would be his real test, his real determination on whether or not he would be able to successfully identify the treason filled bastards that were plaguing the body of government.
Choosing a particular corridor, he walked slowly, trying not to march with the precision that he was accustomed to. This alone made him feel uneasy as did exposing his face for so many people to see. Padmé had been different for some reason, he actually liked her and didn't mind showing his face. The rest of these beings didn't deserve such a gift to be graced with his presence sans the hood, but that was what his master had commanded.
The thoughts of the senators were overwhelming, filled with the most useless drivel that he could imagine. Why the hell was he doing this? This would be akin to finding a dropped blaster in the middle of a rough ocean. But not every task that he took would be such a challenge and he did enjoy a challenge. Spying a group of senators talking quietly in a corner he approached them.
"Hi, I don't mean to interrupt, I just thought that I would introduce myself. My name is Anakin Skywalker and I'm a military consultant here at the Senate. I was wondering if any of you could point me to the military subcommittee's office", he said in a friendly tone.
All of the senators looked uneasy, which was a slight red flag for the Sith Lord, but he filed it away as nervousness at them meeting someone affiliated with the military.
"I believe it's on the fifth floor near the Senate hall", a man said.
"Thank you. May I possibly have your name?", Vader asked.
"I'm Senator Clovis", the man said with his chest puffed out with false bravado. Interesting, the man appeared to be a coward from what he could tell from the deep recesses of his mind, but there was no indication that he was a traitor.
"I'm Senator Mothma", a woman declared proudly. Now this one, this one was no coward. She spoke with an aura of pure confidence and there was something deeper there, like she was trying to introduce herself in a way that would make herself known in a way that she could possibly be useful to him, or vice versa. She would be one to watch closely.
The other senators were silent, but Vader just detected uneasiness from them. Not to the point of suspicion, but merely to the point where they were simply nervous of the newcomer.
"Well, Senator Mothma and Senator Clovis, thank you both for the introduction. Perhaps we could run into each other again some time so I can pick your brains on the inner workings of this fine institution.", Vader said diplomatically.
"That would be lovely. I'm sure that we could certainly assist a contractor that works with our esteemed military", Mothma said quickly. A little too quickly.
Senator Clovis merely deflated somewhat and nodded. The coward obviously was too terrified to speak with him again regardless of his initial vocalization. Vader quickly wrote him off as a nobody within the Senate, someone that would be a waste of time in speaking with any further.
"Splendid, I look forward to it. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get to the subcommittee to observe", Vader said with a simple bow of his head.
He quickly turned on his heel and walked off, feeling encouraged that he identified at least one person of interest that he would need to further investigate. Perhaps this assignment would be worth the effort after all.
Making his way up to the fifth floor, he found the military subcommittee room where he quickly found a seat to listen to the senators debate various topics. They were apparently discussing Sidious' new command for additional Star Destroyers. There were only a few detractors, stating that the Imperial navy was already powerful enough and that the branch of the military didn't need any additional ships of that size. Vader tried to probe their minds for subterfuge, but he only detected ire towards the Empire. That wasn't a crime in itself, but it certainly wasn't a good sign that they supported the regime change.
The supporters of Sidious' command mostly seemed genuine, but there was a senator that seemed to be a little disingenuous with his arguments. Senator Kaylen from Christophsis. What are you hiding Senator? Why would you falsely support the bill for additional Star Destroyers if your mind obviously went against them? Interesting to say the least. Vader filed that name away for further investigation as well.
Having heard enough, he quickly exited the room and made his way down to the fourth floor, looking for other signs of subterfuge. The halls were jammed packed with senators from a wide variety of planets. Some species that Vader didn't even recognize, speaking in languages that he was only somewhat fluent in. He walked past them, looking for slights of hand that would indicate that there would be a passage of information from one person to another, but again he couldn't detect any.
Maybe these senators were on the up and up so to speak, or maybe they weren't simply due for an exchange of information that day. Either way, he would continue his search, which would appear to be arduous at best.
After a while of walking the corridors, it was nearly noon. He figured that he would blend in and eat lunch in the dinning hall. Making his way down to the area, he selected a salad and a cup of caff to keep him alert. He picked a table and sat down and began eating.
"Well, it looks like you and I had the same idea. Mind if I sit Mister Skywalker?"
Vader looked up and saw Mothma. Excellent.
"Not at all, please join me", Vader said, feeling like an opportunity just landed in his lap.
Mothma sat down and began eating. "So, what brings a military consultant to the Senate?", she asked.
It was time to launch into the acting mode. "I'm here mainly to provide oversight and guidance. I served in the clone wars as an officer, so it makes me a perfect fit", Vader said.
"I must admit, I took a look at your service record. Quite impressive, especially given the wounds you sustained. I'm sure it was a harrowing experience". Mothma said.
"I would say it was more of a learning experience", Vader replied. "War teaches you a great many things." Especially mental wars involving plenty of agony. Those were the wars that Vader was well seasoned with, along with conventional warfare.
Mothma was silent for a moment and Vader could detect a conflict of emotions from her. It was like she wanted to say something positive, but at the same time she loathed the idea that a former Republic officer would be helping he Empire's war machine. Bingo, target set and matched.
"I would imagine so", she finally said.
"What about you? How has it been for you given the regime change?", Vader asked, wanting to get to the point.
A new wave of bitterness washed over her mind. She certainly loathed the Empire, but he detected a glimmer of hope. What did that hope mean? What was it compared to the rest of the of the emotions? Was it hope that the Rebellion would take over? Interesting.
"I would say it was a shock, but I'm eager to serve in whatever capacity I can", Mothma said.
Excellent, a wave of deception passed over her mind. Vader was nearly convinced that she was a Rebel operative, he just needed proof. Proof that may be difficult to obtain, but there was always a way. He would break into her office tonight and look for details that might point to her treason.
The pair finished their lunch and parted ways. This spy shit was beginning to become more and more interesting to the Sith Lord. He was certain that if he could identify one target, it would lead him to others and that was what was most important.
…
Padmé cautiously approached the corridor where she would make her next drop. There was always the possibility the corridors were bugged, so she had to be extra cautious. Today she would be dropping a disc that contained the intelligence that she had collected from Mothma the previous day. It was imperative that the information be delivered as soon as possible. Identifying her contact, she slipped the disc into the palm of her left hand and passed it off with ease. She continued to casually stroll the corridor and froze when she looked down.
She saw Anakin finishing his lunch in the dining hall below. Damn, the man could have invited her to lunch, but she figured that he was busy doing whatever the hell a consultant would do. She would have to see if he called her later this evening for a chat. Hopefully he would, the mere thought of it excited her.
Continuing down the corridors for another ten minutes, she made it back to her office, feeling safe that she wouldn't be seen as suspicious.
Dormé was busy munching on a salad and returning messages to constituents, so there wouldn't be a lecture if she at lunch or not.
Sitting at her desk, she quietly opened her secret compartment of papers and pulled up the data pad with information on fleet movements. She continued to take notes, eager to get this business out of the way.
She froze when she heard the door open and quickly slid her papers into the desk with ease.
Oh no, it was Senator Clovis. Damn her luck, she hoped to never interact with the man again. They weren't even on the same subcommittees.
"Padmé, it's good to see you", he said like he was a man in heat. Revolting.
"Senator Clovis, it is nice to see you as well. What do I owe the pleasure of your visit?", Padmé asked formally, hoping her professional attitude would throw him off, but realizing that it probably wouldn't.
"I never received a response to the message I sent yesterday about escorting you to the gala, so I figured I would make an appearance instead", Clovis said. No shit, that's because she didn't want to go to the gala with him.
Padmé felt a wave of relief. She already had a date, one that she was becoming enamored with.
"I'm sorry, Senator Clovis. I've already accepted an invitation to the gala. I'm sure you can understand that thing move quickly", she replied smoothly, hoping to deter him as quickly as possible.
"With who?", Clovis asked in shock.
"He's a military contractor that's working for the Senate", Padmé replied nonchalantly. He didn't deserve any details; it wasn't his concern.
"You're going to the gala with Anakin Skywalker?", Clovis said in disbelief. "But you could have barely just met him."
"Oh, you know of him? He seems like a good man, doesn't he? I apologize again, I'm certain that there will be other opportunities for you", Padmé said. Please let this just be over, this man is unstable as hell and is a complete freak.
"Fine", Clovis said as he stalked out of the office, leaving Padmé relieved.
"I heard most of that", Dormé said from her desk. "Good way to tell him off, though I'm surprised he didn't cry about it."
"Me too", Padmé said with a chuckle. She fully expected the disgraced senator would cry about it later, but that wasn't her concern. She had made it clear numerous times that she wasn't interested in anything other than a professional relationship.
"So, when is your new love interest going to take you out on a date like you mentioned?", Dormé asked. Blast it, did she have to ask that question? Keeping this man off her mind was nearly impossible.
"I'm not sure", Padmé said with a pouty expression. "Hopefully soon, I can't wait to get to know more about him. He seems so mysterious, like there's something about him I can't quite put a finger on, but I'm sure it's just nerves." Maybe a little more than nerves, but she shook it off as jitters from not having been in a relationship for so long. Kriffing hell, she felt unprepared for this.
"Well, from the way he literally bumped into you, I can imagine there's a bit of mystery there", Dormé said. "You'll have to try and corner him if you see him here at the Senate. I'm sure he'd like to speak with you a bit more."
"I'll definitely do that", Padmé said. "Alright, enough of this talk about my love life, let's get back to it." There was an endless amount of information she would need to scour through in order to be able to get something accomplished today.
The two women continued their work for the next several hours, toiling over the most tedious work. Tedious work was the norm for them, but it didn't make it any easier on them. Maybe that was for the best, hard work made the day go by faster. That's one thing Padmé wanted, for the day to go by faster. She had done her duty by making a drop and had made more notes based off the data pad that held the information that the Rebellion desperately needed to begin striking targets.
After what seemed like an eternity, Dormé stood up. "I'm going home, Padmé. Are you coming with me?"
Padmé was tempted to say yes, but there was still so much to be done. "I'll be home in a couple of hours, I just have a few more reports to get through", she said. "I promise it won't be anything longer than that." There was just too much work to do, and too little time to do it in.
"Okay, because you know what'll happen if you stay too late", Dormé warned. There it was, the kriffing warning that she detested. She was a big girl; she knew her limits. Well, sort of.
"Yes, yes, I know. You'll come back and drag me by the hair and send me off back home", Padmé said quickly. "I won't be long. Off with you."
Dormé left and Padmé was left alone to complete her work. She figured she had risked accessing the classified information once today, so she put the rest of it off for tomorrow. There were several reports from her home world that needed to be attended to. The Nubian people were starting to express that they no longer felt like they were able to have adequate representation in the grand galactic scheme, which Padmé more or less agreed with. Her people were proud, having fought off the Trade Federation when she was a fourteen year old Queen. They took their status in the Empire seriously as they wanted to avoid any such travesty from occurring again.
Diving into the reports, Padmé began drafting a bill that would ensure that the Nubian people would have their fair share of say in the votes that were cast amongst the Senate. The bill would likely be passed given the tenure that Padmé had accumulated along with the respect that she had earned over the years of working hard to ensure that there was fairness amongst the galaxy. Of course, with the Empire, there wasn't a way to ensure fairness and equality, but that was something that she would still work hard to aspire to.
Having had her fill of legislation, she decided to look up her newly found crush, Anakin Skywalker and take a look at his credentials to see if he was the man, he said he was. Pulling up his credentials, she was shocked. Not only had he been a junior officer in the Republic navy during the war with the CIS, but he had been awarded serval citations to include ones for various injuries. No wonder why he was so scarred. He was a kriffing war hero.
That was attractive, incredibly attractive. She didn't care who anyone was, any person that would willingly risk their lives in such a way was a god amongst men. Certainly, better than Senator Clovis of all people. It looked like she had hit the jackpot.
"You know, staring at one of those things for too long isn't good for your eyesight."
Padmé looked up sharply and Anakin was standing in the doorway, his arms folded across his brawny chest with an amused expression on his face. Padmé had to shake herself from the surprise and sat back in her chair.
"Well, I'm not doing it for my health anyway, but I assume your various activities aren't done for your health either", Padmé hazarded.
"So, you looked me up", Vader said amusedly as he stalked into the room. "I don't mind of course, it's public information. But you could always ask me questions and I would be delighted to answer them."
Questions, what questions should she ask? Oh, hell she was so damned inept at those things. "I'm not entirely certain what to ask. It's been so long since I've dated that I'm ashamed to say I'm woefully inept at such things", Padmé said with a blush. This man was going to wreak havoc on her, she just knew it, but hopefully in a very good way.
"How about I start", Vader said as he sat down on one of the chairs in front of her desk. "How was it to be the Queen of Naboo at only fourteen years old?"
"You looked me up too, you sneak", Padmé teased causing Vader to smirk widely. "I think that being a Queen so young was a challenge, but a good challenge, nonetheless. It helped me do many good things for my people, especially during the Trade Federation invasion. We had a part that we needed to acquire for our ship, and we had to land on Tatooine. Isn't that where you're from?"
She could have sworn that Vader tensed up at that. Odd, why would that cause him to react in such a fashion?"
"I did grow up there", he said. "I was born and raised in Mos Espa."
"Really?", Padmé asked in shock. "That's exactly where we landed to get a part for my ship. We stopped to get the part from the most dreadful beast, Watto. He was a junk dealer that made us jump through hoops to get what we needed."
A scowl spread across Vader's features and Padmé was certain that the conversation was displeasing him. "I knew him", he said quietly. "I actually worked for him at one point in my life, but I was very young."
"Anakin, I'm sorry if I brought up something that upset you", Padmé gushed. "I really thought it was just a harmless coincidence."
Vader's demeanor changed instantly. A smile spread across his face exposing his white teeth. "It's alright, Padmé. It's just part of a past that I'm not particularly fond of, but there was certainly no harm in asking."
Padmé felt relieved. She thought she had kriffed everything up. "Well, to continue my answer, being Queen was difficult along with the good. Sometimes I wished I had waited until I was a little older until I had obtained the position, but that's the past. I never had a normal teenage lifestyle."
"You and I have that in common", Vader said cryptically. "I would be remiss if I didn't say that not having a normal teenaged lifestyle brings new opportunities at an accelerated rate."
Padmé swallowed a bit. "I suppose you're right."
"Enough of the serious talk. It's late and I should probably show you to your speeder if you'd like", Vader inquired.
"I would like that, thank you", Padmé said with a smile as she stood, unconsciously leaving her stack of pads on the desk. They could wait until the following day. It wasn't like she would ever be caught up anyway.
Vader stood and offered Padmé his arm, which she graciously accepted, feeling like a princess being escorted by her prince. It was a silly notion, she knew that, but she wanted to indulge in the feeling while she could. It wasn't every day that a handsome man wanted anything to do with her, so there was no harm in it. Right?
They strolled through the halls of the Senate at a leisurely pace.
"So, where do you live here? In some barracks or do you have a private residence?", Padmé asked.
Vader laughed. "I've had my fair share of living in military housing. No, I have my establishments not too far from here. It's a little over the top, but when you're a contractor for the military, the salary is a little ridiculous", he said. "Besides, I can't be too far from the Senate."
"Oh, that sounds charming", Padmé said, somewhat intrigued by his use of the word establishments. "Maybe one of these days you could show them to me."
Vader turned and looked at her with a smirk. "I think that could be arranged, Milady."
Padmé felt herself flush and immediately felt embarrassed at her reaction.
"So, where do you live? No, wait… let me guess… you live at Five Hundred Republica", Vader said confidently.
Padmé looked at him with an open mouth. "How could you possibly know that?" That had to be more than just a lucky guess.
Vader chuckled. "You seem refined enough to live at the most exclusive apartment on Coruscant near the Senate", he said. "Refined in a good way that is."
Oh, he's very good, she thought. Too damned good, but to hell with it, why not. "Well, I certainly thank you for the lavish compliment, Anakin. I'm just one of the people though, just another citizen in this grand galactic scheme."
"One that holds considerable power within the Senate", Vader mused. "But I see your point, we're all just flesh and blood when it comes down to it. There's an excellent poem that I read the other day. 'To he who thinks they are better than most, they are not only mistaken but befuddled, a true person is one that defines their self worth as something intangible, almost like the nature of a planet, unrelenting and unstoppable by those who lord over them'."
"That's a kriffing good poem", Padmé said. "I take it you read very often?" Seriously, if the man was well read in the arts he most certainly was a damned keeper. Strong and brainy meant the total package, which was something that would be of a success.
"I read when I get the chance, which isn't as often as I prefer, but I try and get a book in every month. The library at my establishments is stocked full of different books with a variety of languages. Most I'm fluent in, some I can barely read", Vader admitted.
"You're a linguist? That's always something I've wanted to accomplish, but I don't ever have the time", Padmé said. Damn, he really was a jack of all trades.
"You've got to immerse yourself in a culture to truly pick it up", Vader said. "That's the easiest and most effective way to go about it."
"I imagine I'll have to do that someday", Padmé said cheerfully.
"I'm sure you will, you've already accomplished a lot in your life. One more thing should be an easy task for you to master", Vader replied. "In fact, you might find yourself in a situation such as that sooner than you realize it."
"Oh really? Is fortune telling one of your strengths too?", Padmé teased.
"I'm not a fortune teller per se, I'm more of a noticer of trends. I'm beginning to learn yours", he responded.
Interesting, what trends did he notice? "And what trends would those be, Anakin?", she asked, putting on her best doe eyes for him as he looked down at her.
"That you're a beautiful and talented woman, capable of things that you may not realize", Vader said smoothly.
Padmé felt herself become flushed again. "You're really good at making a girl feel special", she admitted. Special and desirable. A combination she had only felt once before.
"Only the special ones like you", Vader said with a chuckle. "I'm honestly not that great with women but talking with you seems so natural."
"I doubt that you're not great with women", Padmé friendly chided. "Although, I must admit that talking with you seems natural for me as well." There, she returned the compliment and felt great about it. Whoever this man was, she was falling for him quickly.
"Then I suppose that makes us something special then", Vader replied.
By that time, they made it to her speeder, Padmé was saddened that the conversation was over. It had been such a lovely leisurely stroll, but she figured that she would have another opportunity with him soon.
"I promised dinner. How about tomorrow night? I can pick you up at your place, but you'll have to let me know where some of the upscale restaurants are. It's been a while since I've done some fine dining here on Coruscant", Vader said.
That made Padmé's heart skip a beat. "I'll pick something nice, just be sure and dress smashingly", she said.
"I most certainly will. Goodnight, Padmé", Vader said as he kissed her cheek.
Padmé nearly fainted over the kiss. It was like her cheek had been burned in the most wonderful of ways, intoxicating her with its aftermath.
"Goodnight, Anakin", she replied.
As with the previous evening, she watched him stalk back into the Senate building. She would have to figure out what exactly he did at the Senate so late in the evening, especially being a military consultant.
But that was another question for another day.
…
Vader smirked as he walked back into the Senate. He didn't think he still had his charm about him, but obviously he had. This Padmé was worth the effort though, she was unlike any other woman that he encountered, and he felt obligated to get to know her more. Much more. But that would have to wait until the previous evening. Right now he had to break into Senator Mothma's office and see if he could detect any subterfuge that would be damning enough for an arrest. A permanent arrest, well, as permanent as torture and then murder that is.
He stalked to her office, reaching out with the Force to identify anyone that might possibly see him. There was no one, not even a cleaning person. Good, that would make things much easier on him. Carefully navigating his way to her office, he mapped out the best way to escape if someone was close to discovering his clandestine activity.
Once he reached the Senator's office, he entered in a command code that would disable all surveillance footage and erase the footage of him at the door. Then he entered in another command code to slide the door open. Quickly stepping through, he began his search. Her desk was the first obvious place to begin, so he flicked on one of the soft lights near it and began to skim through the various pads on her desk, looking for any file that may be encrypted.
After going through nearly half a stack of data pads, he finally reached one that was interesting. There was a rather large encrypted file, which he easily broke through. Frowning, he quickly read over the information. It was movements of various fleets throughout the galaxy, particularly identifying ships that were lightly guarded or isolated. They would be the perfect targets for Rebels to strike at. He would need to alert fucking high command at once so the ships could divert their routes before the enemy engaged. Gods fucking dammit, this wasn't good at all. Chances were that she had an operative slip the information to other operatives who would disseminate the information to the Rebellion.
Taking out a small recording device, he transferred the entire contents of the pad to it. Evidence number one. Then he ran a small device over the pad to capture her fingerprints on the pad, which was easy, given that only hers were on it. Growling at the blatant security leak, he skimmed through the rest of the pads for additional information but found nothing. There had to be more than this though.
Searching through various drawers in the desk, he found nothing out of the ordinary. Merely papers on legislation, but nothing that stood out to him as a code for other Rebel operatives. Reaching out with the Force, he tried to ascertain if there was a hidden compartment. There was, it was under the fucking desk. He knelt down and quickly scanned for an alarm that would notify the Senator that her hiding place had been compromised. Finding none, he unlatched the drawer and pulled it open. Inside, there were a plethora of treasonous material, including a gods damned Rebellion insignia. The woman had to be mad to keep such an item inside of the Senate. There were also several papers that contained coded handwritten notes. Vader took out a small holocamera and began taking snap shots of all of the notes, the insignia, and what appeared to be a communications device. He looked over it for a moment and the settings were set at zero, meaning that only she knew the frequency. It would have to be tortured out of her.
Placing all of the items back into the drawer with great care, he secured it and began scanning the rest of the office for additional material including her aid's desk. Nothing. Oh well, there was plenty of evidence to warrant her death after interrogation, all clandestine of course. But he shouldn't be too hasty, he would need to track whoever came in contact with her to see if they too were determined to be spies. But first he had to fucking warn high command of the fleet activities so he wouldn't lose any of his damned ships. He was still the kriffing Commander of all Imperial Forces, those were his ships, his men and women. The Rebellion had no right to ambush them in such a way.
Making his way to his speeder, he proceeded directly to high command which was located in the subterranean levels of the Imperial Palace. He placed the hood of his robes on his head, so his men would know he wasn't fucking around with this one. He was still their fucking superior and they better well treat him with the gods damned respect that he demanded.
Marching his way down the hallway, he nodded to several officers and Stormtroopers who rendered him a salute. Upon entering high command, he spied Admiral Durrell.
"Milord, what an unexpected pleasure", Durrell said.
"Unexpected is fucking right Admiral. There's been a security breach", Vader said as he loaded the contents of the various fleet movements. "I obtained this from a treasonous senator's office this evening. It's more than likely that there are already Rebel ships moving to attack the lesser protected convoys or solitary ships. I need you and your specialized team to immediately change courses of all the fleets and ships to let them know that their routes of been compromised. Have them scramble to the nearest hyperspace jump point and make two jumps after that to await for additional instructions", Vader commanded.
"My gods, Milord. This is insanity. I must caution you it will take my specialized team longer to get the messages across and to get new courses set", Durrell said.
"Admiral, this had to come from high fucking command", Vader snapped. "Obviously, there's a mole within the organization that we'll have to rat out. That being said, I need your personal team on it and I mean now. No one sleeps in this office until it is done, am I understood?", Vader demanded.
"Of course, Lord Vader. I shall make this a priority at once", Durrell said.
"Good", Vader snarled as he stalked away. He was tired and annoyed that his good evening with Padmé had been sullied by a gods damned traitor. In the morning he would have to order bugs to be planted in her office and private residence. There must be a way to identify persons of interest that would be going to her to obtain information to pass along. There had to be. A tail of her movements would also have to be established. Gods dammit, this bitch was going to make for a hell of a lot of work.
Taking his speeder back to his establishments, he stalked through the double doors.
"Master! How good it is that you're home. I noticed you missed dinner time, would you like for me to prepare something for you?", Threepio asked.
"No, Threepio, I'm not hungry. I just want to go to sleep", Vader replied. "Thank you though."
"Oh, not a problem, Master. Have a good night", Threepio said.
Vader simply nodded at the droid and marched up the stairs. He stripped out of his attire and headed into the fresher for a scalding hot shower to release the tension of knowing that his fleets and ships were compromised. There might even be an engagement going on at this very second.
After toweling off, he slipped on a pair of sleep pants and went to an end table where his decanter was and poured himself a generous glass of bourbon. Downing it in record time, he poured another one and did the same. Setting the glass down, he practically dove into bed and snapped off the light, taking a few moments to meditate. Sons of bitches in the Rebellion had through him for a loop, but that's why Sidious had given him this gods forsaken assignment in the first place. He would make certain that all involved would pay dearly.
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