Disclaimer: All of the characters, except Cari, are not my own in any way, shape or form, and I do not claim them as such.
Synopsis: The introduction of a new player drastically changes the course of the original story.
Chapter 1: A Strange Response
During the end of The Empire Strikes Back
Slipping through the panicky crowd on Cloud City, Cari, daughter of the Emperor Palpatine, ruler of the Galactic Empire, was almost completely unnoticed. What was occurring here - the desperate attempts of everyone to vacate the city before the Imperial troops decided to notice them - was of little concern to her. Neither was the battle between Vader and the Jedi Skywalker of anything more than a slight interest to her. Rounding a corner, she came to a silent corridor. Everyone had long gone. She slipped through the door at the end, keeping alert for anyone who might be around, but the landing pad through the door also was deserted, except for the X-wing that stood on it.
She smiled in satisfaction. The troops had obviously neglected to do anything with it, more concerned with capturing the renegades who were trying to escape from the city. Walking over to it she climbed inside. Unfamiliar with the controls, she spent some time studying them before attempting anything, concerned that she might accidentally damage the information that she was looking for. Finally, she reached out, and checked the flight logs. Just as she'd hoped, the young Jedi had left them untouched, obviously assuming that he would be able to get back to his ship after the confrontation.
The second name in the logs she assumed was the one she was looking for, and the third one confirmed it. Most recent was the destination of Cloud City, and before that was the planet of Dagobah. After that was the ice planet of Hoth, which the Rebellion had, until recently, had their main base on. So ... Dagobah.
What Cari, Vader and her own father had noticed was that Skywalker had been growing in power since he'd left Hoth. What neither of them seemed to have realised, as far as she could tell, was that for this to happen, someone must have been training him. The growth in power and skill she could feel was too strong for it to be self-taught. Perhaps the other two assumed that he had been taught enough by Obi-Wan Kenobi before his death for Skywalker to now teach himself, but after consulting records, and making a trip to Tatooine, Cari had determined that before appearing in Mos Eisley Spaceport a few years before, Luke Skywalker had lived with his Aunt and Uncle, with little or no connection with Kenobi. The time he had spent with him shouldn't have been adequate for real tuition. So, there had to be another teacher.
Smiling to herself, Cari manipulated the controls, and sent the X-wing soaring through the atmosphere, into space. She was momentarily surprised to see the ship she recognised as the Millennium Falcon skimming through space, with Skywalker's presence on it obvious through his presence in the Force. So, Vader had obviously failed to some degree at least. Smiling, she shook her head, and entered co-ordinates in the X-wing's nav-computer, planning to go somewhere quiet and consider the report she would make to her father about her beliefs of Skywalker's tuition. She caught Vader's message through the Force to his son, obviously still attempting to turn him. That he hadn't given up didn't surprise her. What did was Skywalker's response to it. She felt through him fear, anger and desperation, but also something that felt surprisingly like love. Weak, faint but definitely there. Cari laughed, the sound echoing within the confined cockpit. Everything the Empire had done to him, and he still thought he could love his father? However, the response from Vader was even more ... confusing. She felt mild frustration, but also a blend of amusement, pride, and even a vague hint of affection glinting at the edge of his mind. Where was the bitter anger that usually characterised him? The lethal response to any kind of frustration? Incredulous, she laughed again, "seeing" in Vader's mind the offer he had made to his to his son during their confrontation, to join together and overthrow the Emperor, ruling together. He actually wanted his son for family's sake, not just as someone to turn and use. Vader cared about his own son?
Slowly, her laughter died. But she could still hear echoes of it in the cockpit. Bitter and somehow angry, it was the sound of amusement at something that actually wasn't very amusing, but was painful to someone. A familiar sound, she heard it often from her father. She didn't ever think she'd heard him laugh properly. You've never felt any love from him either, a little voice whispered, and for a second the view in front of her seemed to waver. Then her anger crystallised, and her vision steadied. I serve him, she declared. My father is great, and powerful, and he's taught me everything I know. Strangely, as she pulled the lever that sent the X-wing through hyperspace, the thought wasn't as comforting as it should have been.