The sands of desert terrain whisked by creating a smog of tan that
blurred the sky. The grains entwined to create a dance as the wind lent
it's breath to join more grains in the hypnotic dance.
Padme sat on the interior leather seat nervously, her perfect hair reduced to only strands blowing in the wind furiously trying to join the sand. Along side her sat two young children, one with hair that blended into the sand around them and the other with deep chocolate braids. They both looked at their mother's long face with their curious blue eyes. She turned to them and smiled confidently but when her eyes turned back to the sand the lines on her face creased in doubt once more.
"Mommy, why is daddy out here in this place? It's too sandy." The girl questioned spitting out flying sand from her mouth. Even if she was dressed lavishly in elegant pink clothing it had been so engulfed in sand to even tell she was important.
"I told you Leia honey, we are visiting Daddy and would have to travel over a desert to find him." Padme answered continuing to drive the speeder along the sands.
"Maybe Daddy is a sand beast." Luke blurted covering his eyes up and roaring at Leia to make her scream.
"Mommy!"
"That's enough Luke." Padme sternly said glaring back over her shoulder at Luke who shrunk back in his seat. Even if Padme was a loving mother, when the children argued she went into her ruthless senator ways that were enough to scare even a grown man.
"Sorry. . ."
Padme turned her face back to the tan screen out in front of them and let out a small sigh. Leia could tell her mother was looking for something and wished she could help but she didn't know how. Upset, she lay her head over on the side of the speeder but she saw two other speeder bikes going full speed after theirs. She straightened up and tugged at her mother sleeve impatiently.
Padme turned and glared down at Leia, "I don't care what Luke is doing now, you're a grown girl and should be able to handle your brother."
"No but mommy!" Leia pleaded.
"I didn't do anything!" Luke chimed in by habit.
"Be quiet both of you! I don't want to hear another word!" Padme cried as her children retreated back into the safety of their seats.
A few seconds went by with nothing said but as soon as Leia opened her mouth Luke quickly said, "Word."
"That's it, Luke Skywalker you are grounded mister!" Padme reprehended.
"Aww but mom." Luke whined.
"Mom speeders off to your right!" Leia finally screamed over her mother's oncoming reprehending.
Padme looked quickly as the two bikes came right on the side of hers, one on either side. The two storm troopers looked like phantoms that haunted the deserts with their cold black eyes seeing every movement made.
"Stop the bike you are in violation of the Empire!" One of them shouted.
Padme looked menacingly at him and replied, "Catch me first."
"That's not a wise choice with children." The other trooper advised.
"You won't do anything to them once you find out who they belong to! My husband well known to you very well and he would never harm his own children!"
The storm troopers watched in disbelief as Padme reared her bike and sped off faster leaving a dark trail behind her. Leia and Luke held onto each other and shut their eyes tightly as the whirr of wind howled in their ears. Luke could tell Leia was shaking as each kick back on the bike sent a tingle through her small body.
"Sorry kids hang on! Never drive like mommy when you're older." Padme cried back as she leaned side to side to avoid sand dunes.
The storm troopers then followed behind her closing riding her rear bumper. They took the nose of their speeders and knocked the back end of Padme's bike trying to tip the bike over but Padme stayed steady. The bikes hummed in unison but nothing seemed to break Padme's free will until an unseen sand dune blocked her way. Her bike went head first into the slur of sand as Leia, Luke and her were thrown from their seats to join the same fate.
The storm troopers saw this opportunity and jumped off their bikes to point blaster guns down at each emerging face from the sand. Padme scowled at the barrels as she pulled herself from the sand to help her children out.
"Please the children had no say in this, let them off." She requested with some pride.
"That will be for Lord Vader to decide." One storm trooper said as he placed a blaster gun to her back and shoved her over to his bike.
"Mommy what is going on? These men don't look nice." Leia observed as an arm wrapped around hers.
"They look funny. . ." Luke added as he poked at storm trooper.
Padme sighed as she looked at her two helpless children knowing her journey was now lost, "Honey just let the nice man give you a ride."
~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~
Walking through the long hallways of the Death Star only made Padme more nervous for her children. The storm trooper held Luke and Leia up by their arms and swinging them back and forth.
"Stop that you could hurt their arms!"
"But it's fun mommy!" Luke cried giggling.
Leia looked pissed, "I am a princess, daughter of a queen and do not like to be swung by my arms like a doll."
The storm trooper cocked a blaster gun as a sign for all of them to shut up as they entered a large control room with many flashing lights and shining white heads of storm troopers.
A black head turned gleaming above them breathing in and out with heavy gasps. His triangle for a mouth admitted a metallic sound as light on his chest blinked back and forth. Swooping his cape around him he breathed, "Padme. . ."
Padme snapped her arms away from the troopers around her and looked up at her husband with glassy eyes filled with tears. Her emotions welled up inside of her and she didn't know whether to smack him or kiss him. . .that is if he could kiss.
"Why Anakin. . ." is the only thing that escaped her lips.
"I have more power than I ever expected. . .I have reached my full potential that no one would let me do.. I have used my anger towards something."
"Anakin. . ." Padme whispered as her tears overflowed. Anakin reached out his android hand to her but she only stared back at him with the same defensive senator look she gave her enemies.
"Join me. . ."
"NEVER!" Padme screamed, "Anakin this is crazy, come home. . ."
"I will never go home! I will never leave my position I worked hard to get!"
Luke looked at the man in black and smiles, "Daddy looks like a bat."
"Luke honey. . ." Padme hushed.
"Daddy! Daddy! I am no father!"
This only set Padme off further and her face flushed with anger, "You are to a father, TWICE OVER! Here are your children! I have brought them to you!"
Anakin looked down at Luke first and then Leia apprehensively and then back at his wife who stood looking angrily at him. "Just to sway me to come back with you I presume, I can see right through your traps."
"It was no trap, they wanted to see their father, and now I am sorry I have brought them. . ." Padme snarled.
Anakin breathed harshly and then commanded, "Get her out of my site, take the children away with her also."
Leia screamed as she was throw into her mothers arms but Luke was faster and kicked the storm trooper in the shin and stood before his towering machine father looking up at him with his sharp blue eyes.
"Don't hurt mommy daddy, she cries at night for you. Leia and I wanted to see our Daddy because we miss you."
With reflective gleaming black eyes Darth Vader looked at his son standing proud before him. He knew that if he let them go his bloodline would be lost. Breathing in another heavy metallic gasp he looked at Padme and told her, "Choose one child to go back with you. . .the other stays with me."
"What! But you can't take care of a child!" Padme protested.
Luke wailed and ran into his mother's other open arm thinking his father had turned on him and was going to hurt his mother. "Don't hurt mommy!"
"So who is it going to be. . .Luke or Leia?" Darth Vader asked. Padme just held both of her children tightly in both of her arms, tears flowing down her face unsure of why her husband was so cruel to corce her to make a choice like this.
Padme sat on the interior leather seat nervously, her perfect hair reduced to only strands blowing in the wind furiously trying to join the sand. Along side her sat two young children, one with hair that blended into the sand around them and the other with deep chocolate braids. They both looked at their mother's long face with their curious blue eyes. She turned to them and smiled confidently but when her eyes turned back to the sand the lines on her face creased in doubt once more.
"Mommy, why is daddy out here in this place? It's too sandy." The girl questioned spitting out flying sand from her mouth. Even if she was dressed lavishly in elegant pink clothing it had been so engulfed in sand to even tell she was important.
"I told you Leia honey, we are visiting Daddy and would have to travel over a desert to find him." Padme answered continuing to drive the speeder along the sands.
"Maybe Daddy is a sand beast." Luke blurted covering his eyes up and roaring at Leia to make her scream.
"Mommy!"
"That's enough Luke." Padme sternly said glaring back over her shoulder at Luke who shrunk back in his seat. Even if Padme was a loving mother, when the children argued she went into her ruthless senator ways that were enough to scare even a grown man.
"Sorry. . ."
Padme turned her face back to the tan screen out in front of them and let out a small sigh. Leia could tell her mother was looking for something and wished she could help but she didn't know how. Upset, she lay her head over on the side of the speeder but she saw two other speeder bikes going full speed after theirs. She straightened up and tugged at her mother sleeve impatiently.
Padme turned and glared down at Leia, "I don't care what Luke is doing now, you're a grown girl and should be able to handle your brother."
"No but mommy!" Leia pleaded.
"I didn't do anything!" Luke chimed in by habit.
"Be quiet both of you! I don't want to hear another word!" Padme cried as her children retreated back into the safety of their seats.
A few seconds went by with nothing said but as soon as Leia opened her mouth Luke quickly said, "Word."
"That's it, Luke Skywalker you are grounded mister!" Padme reprehended.
"Aww but mom." Luke whined.
"Mom speeders off to your right!" Leia finally screamed over her mother's oncoming reprehending.
Padme looked quickly as the two bikes came right on the side of hers, one on either side. The two storm troopers looked like phantoms that haunted the deserts with their cold black eyes seeing every movement made.
"Stop the bike you are in violation of the Empire!" One of them shouted.
Padme looked menacingly at him and replied, "Catch me first."
"That's not a wise choice with children." The other trooper advised.
"You won't do anything to them once you find out who they belong to! My husband well known to you very well and he would never harm his own children!"
The storm troopers watched in disbelief as Padme reared her bike and sped off faster leaving a dark trail behind her. Leia and Luke held onto each other and shut their eyes tightly as the whirr of wind howled in their ears. Luke could tell Leia was shaking as each kick back on the bike sent a tingle through her small body.
"Sorry kids hang on! Never drive like mommy when you're older." Padme cried back as she leaned side to side to avoid sand dunes.
The storm troopers then followed behind her closing riding her rear bumper. They took the nose of their speeders and knocked the back end of Padme's bike trying to tip the bike over but Padme stayed steady. The bikes hummed in unison but nothing seemed to break Padme's free will until an unseen sand dune blocked her way. Her bike went head first into the slur of sand as Leia, Luke and her were thrown from their seats to join the same fate.
The storm troopers saw this opportunity and jumped off their bikes to point blaster guns down at each emerging face from the sand. Padme scowled at the barrels as she pulled herself from the sand to help her children out.
"Please the children had no say in this, let them off." She requested with some pride.
"That will be for Lord Vader to decide." One storm trooper said as he placed a blaster gun to her back and shoved her over to his bike.
"Mommy what is going on? These men don't look nice." Leia observed as an arm wrapped around hers.
"They look funny. . ." Luke added as he poked at storm trooper.
Padme sighed as she looked at her two helpless children knowing her journey was now lost, "Honey just let the nice man give you a ride."
~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~
Walking through the long hallways of the Death Star only made Padme more nervous for her children. The storm trooper held Luke and Leia up by their arms and swinging them back and forth.
"Stop that you could hurt their arms!"
"But it's fun mommy!" Luke cried giggling.
Leia looked pissed, "I am a princess, daughter of a queen and do not like to be swung by my arms like a doll."
The storm trooper cocked a blaster gun as a sign for all of them to shut up as they entered a large control room with many flashing lights and shining white heads of storm troopers.
A black head turned gleaming above them breathing in and out with heavy gasps. His triangle for a mouth admitted a metallic sound as light on his chest blinked back and forth. Swooping his cape around him he breathed, "Padme. . ."
Padme snapped her arms away from the troopers around her and looked up at her husband with glassy eyes filled with tears. Her emotions welled up inside of her and she didn't know whether to smack him or kiss him. . .that is if he could kiss.
"Why Anakin. . ." is the only thing that escaped her lips.
"I have more power than I ever expected. . .I have reached my full potential that no one would let me do.. I have used my anger towards something."
"Anakin. . ." Padme whispered as her tears overflowed. Anakin reached out his android hand to her but she only stared back at him with the same defensive senator look she gave her enemies.
"Join me. . ."
"NEVER!" Padme screamed, "Anakin this is crazy, come home. . ."
"I will never go home! I will never leave my position I worked hard to get!"
Luke looked at the man in black and smiles, "Daddy looks like a bat."
"Luke honey. . ." Padme hushed.
"Daddy! Daddy! I am no father!"
This only set Padme off further and her face flushed with anger, "You are to a father, TWICE OVER! Here are your children! I have brought them to you!"
Anakin looked down at Luke first and then Leia apprehensively and then back at his wife who stood looking angrily at him. "Just to sway me to come back with you I presume, I can see right through your traps."
"It was no trap, they wanted to see their father, and now I am sorry I have brought them. . ." Padme snarled.
Anakin breathed harshly and then commanded, "Get her out of my site, take the children away with her also."
Leia screamed as she was throw into her mothers arms but Luke was faster and kicked the storm trooper in the shin and stood before his towering machine father looking up at him with his sharp blue eyes.
"Don't hurt mommy daddy, she cries at night for you. Leia and I wanted to see our Daddy because we miss you."
With reflective gleaming black eyes Darth Vader looked at his son standing proud before him. He knew that if he let them go his bloodline would be lost. Breathing in another heavy metallic gasp he looked at Padme and told her, "Choose one child to go back with you. . .the other stays with me."
"What! But you can't take care of a child!" Padme protested.
Luke wailed and ran into his mother's other open arm thinking his father had turned on him and was going to hurt his mother. "Don't hurt mommy!"
"So who is it going to be. . .Luke or Leia?" Darth Vader asked. Padme just held both of her children tightly in both of her arms, tears flowing down her face unsure of why her husband was so cruel to corce her to make a choice like this.
