Disclaimers: *lines up the characters in this story* Mr. Lucas, can you identify these characters? Yes? Okay, then, they're all yours.

Author's Notes: Wow! This is a short book, isn't it? Well...okay...consider it a *short* story! :o) Yes, there will be a sequel...how can I resist? hehe. *ponders the new directions*

For some reason, italics don't show up on my stories anymore. Gah! And I'm beta-less. So don't hesitate to point out my mistakes! PLEASE point out my mistakes.



Does It Matter When We Bleed?



Obi-Wan held Luke Skywalker close, shielding him from the biting wind, praying the child would remain silent.

He wasn't sure why he felt so uneasy. Amidala had called him, explained that Anakin had escaped...and had come to see her. They'd decided to hide the children immediately.



"Stay with him," I said dryly. We'd been following my former Master for a while now. He seemed to know he was being followed, that was the problem. But all the backtracking in the world couldn't keep me from my son.

But first, I had to ensure his place on the throne.

The half dozen Imperial guards-Sidious called them Storm troopers, but to me, they were little more than clones of expandable crew members-nodded obediently. I turned back to my Master's apartment complex.

I snorted in disgust; a Sith Lord, about to become Emperor of the entire galaxy...living in an apartment. He said it offered privacy, made him appear more humble than the other Senators. Who needed that when no one dared complain?

And no one would dare complain about me. I would offer no public face; the public would see and fear me for what I truly was.

Darth Sidious doubted me. He knew I was prone to violence (he had, after all, seen what I did to myself...though that would have to stop once I had Luke). He didn't truly believe in my cunning. Oh, but I do.

I hacked into the largest holonews network. I sent in the various conversations he had shared with me over the past year-omitting my own replies, for now. I felt the shock of the Coruscant citizens.

I waited until the police arrived to arrest him, and helped them to subdue the old man, all the while remaining hidden above on a neighbor's balcony. Palpatine certainly knew what I was doing; but he hadn't realized how far I had come in the ways of the Force. He was too surprised, and too strangled for oxygen, to launch any attacks against the police.

"Farewell, Master," I breathed as he was dragged away to be executed as a traitor. I would be grateful to him for what he had taught me, always. But he had outlived his usefulness.

Now to find my son.



"Tell me, Obi-Wan," Anakin slowly stepped into the ring of light under a street lamp. "How much do you care for my wife?"

"More than you do," he answered softly after a long moment spent watching Darth Vader and the various white armored guards.

"Truly." the blond Sith Lord stopped. "Then hand over the child."

"Never."

"I won't hurt my own son, Kenobi. Give him to me and Amidala will go free." he glared at the Jedi Master. "And you will be with her."

"What do you think she'd want?"

"Does it matter?" Anakin shook his head slightly. "I think the question you should be asking yourself is, 'Can I live with myself knowing I'm responsible for the death of another woman I loved'."

That hit hard. Anakin didn't smile; nothing broke that dismaying confidence on his hardened, still boyish face.

"Why haven't you taken Leia?" Obi-Wan softly broke the stifling quiet.

"That is none of your business," the Sith Lord snarled. "But since you ask, I may as well point out how bad I would be for her. Ami...Padme will help her. As I'm sure you will."

That wasn't entirely true, Obi-Wan knew. Luke was far more Force sensitive than his twin. "I'm tired of this," Vader snapped. He reached out one hand towards the Jedi.

Obi-Wan looked towards the Senate. Reluctantly, he stepped forward and presented Luke Skywalker to the most dangerous man in the known galaxy.



Oh, yes, Master. I know what you think. "Save the Queen now, rescue the prince later."

But that won't work. "Will it, Luke?" I gaze down at my son. He is a tiny blond cherub, sleeping peacefully in my arms, born to rule, and as of this moment the most powerful child alive.

Yes. The child who belongs with me.