AU where Padmé joins Anakin to the dark side and becomes Empiress. Warning for possessive language.
Darth Vader walks into the room with heavy steps. His very presence seeming to vibrate with power but as he gets closer to the throne, he kneels in submission. "You called for me, my Empiress?"
Padmé sits up, her black and red dress flowing over her throne like blood. Her headdress is made of thin wires and shines a sharp silver against her black hair. Her nails are long and pointed as she reaches out to him.
"Vader. Come here." She beckons him with an even expression. He stands without hesitation. She stops him once her hand can caress his helmet. "My husband…"
Vader does not speak. He knows not to.
"Kneel before me." He does as he's told. "Good. Very good."
Her fingers graze against the top, falling down to the edges. They curl under, then ride up again until she's touching the metal cheek once more. He can't feel it and Padmé finds that she doesn't like that at all.
"Take it off for me."
At this, Vader hesitates. "My Empiress." He doesn't need to explain. She knows what he looks like. She knows he will be tipping over the edge of suffocating as soon as the helmet is removed, but that's part of why she ordered it.
"Now, Love. I have little patience."
A perfect image of obedience, Vader unclamps it from his suit. It lifts with a hiss, then Vader sets it in front of him. His head is still bowed to her.
This time, he can feel her touch. She's careful not to scratch as she runs her knuckles against his cheek, pulling his eyes to her. Despite the changes he suffered, his eyes have stayed the same. Well, aside from their vibrant yellow color but that's a change she very much likes.
"You are beautiful, Love." She tells him, but his expression turns to sorrow as he shakes his head.
"No." He protests and while she wouldn't usually tolerate such things, this isn't by disobedience. This is his pain.
Padmé leans forward, her movements slow and elegant. She holds his jaw with gentle fingers, her eyes taking in his every feature. Ruined, pale skin stretched over his face. Bald and wounded. But still charming.
Again, she tells him. "You are beautiful, Darth Vader. You make me powerful, just as you did before." Even now, she can feel her body react to his proximity. His undying trust of her.
Her entire being screams mine, mine, mine!
He sighs when she kisses him, slow and controlled. He isn't allowed to press or move things along. All he can do is submit.
When she sits up again, she can see the lack of oxygen taking effect. He's starting to sway, his eyes struggling to stay open. It's only once he stumbles that she nods. "Breathe."
He replaces his helmet and the even breaths return. In, out. In, out.
"Do you see now? Do you see that I love you so dearly?"
He hesitates and she smiles. He's being honest. "I think I do, Empiress."
"Then you may leave." And he does. Standing swiftly, he bows one more time, then walks away from her throne. His cape flows behind him, something she knows he enjoys thoroughly.
It's funny. Even now, with her husband turned to the dark side and the empire within the palm of her hand, some things stay the same.
Yes, the entire galaxy may know that Darth Vader belong to her and her alone, but they do not see these moments. Moments that were once kept a secret and are now undeserving of an audience.
Moments when she can remember Anakin.
