As I walk, I pass many people. All of those people are familiar people.
That's not a good thing either. We're all so young. We shouldn't have to be
here.
I walk to the edge and sit down; dangling my feet over, realizing there is nothing to catch me if I fall. But who cares if I fall. It's not like I have anything to lose. I sneer to myself.
I've already lost everything.
My husband, Anakin Skywalker, is gone. Now Darth Vader, the greatest evil the galaxy has known, has risen from his ashes. Anakin is lost inside the dark pitch-blackness that is Darth Vader.
I lost all of my family. My father, Ruwee Naberrie, my mother, Jobal Naberrie, my sister Sola Naberrie and her two children, Ryoo and Pooja. They're all gone. Ruthlessly murdered by my old "friend" Palpatine, with the aid of Darth Vader.
My friends, fellow dignitaries in the Senate. They're gone too. Once again because of Palpatine, and the good man who was once my husband.
I've lost my children. They are not dead as the others are, but still are gone. They were taken from me at birth, to be separated from each other and me in order to protect their lives from their father. I don't particularly believe in a religion, but if there are any gods out there, please protect Luke and Leia, my babies, who will never know their mother, or father.
Once again I will say, I have lost everything. Including my life. I died for different reasons than the others, and Darth Vader did not assist in my death. I'm not actually sure if Vader knows I'm dead.
I died because I was the wife of Anakin Skywalker; I died because I was the mother of Luke and Leia Skywalker. I died because I was one of the leaders of the Rebel Alliance. I died because of hate, prejudice and greed.
Many others died from the same. But I was an exception. My death was because of a very twisted man.
Palpatine. Now known as the Emperor or Darth Sidious. Or to Darth Vader, as Master.
I cannot even help the few who survived, because I am here. I am no longer living. I am dead. I am a vision, a ghost. I don't exist in the present.
All I can do is sit here and watch as these evil men Sidious and Vader continue destroying lives. Those lives including my children.
Ah, my children. The one happy thought that I can live with. Luke and Leia. The children of Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala Naberrie Skywalker. The children who will grow up, never knowing the times of peace, never knowing their mother, never knowing their father, never knowing each other.
But as I watch time whisk away in the galaxy below me, I find one small thread of hope.
Obi-Wan Kenobi came. He sacrificed himself for my son. He now watches the events of the galaxy below with me. He is there if I need a shoulder to cry on, or a soul to confide in. And I the same for him.
We watch as a Death Star is destroyed. We watch as Darth Vader searches desperately for my son. We watch as they continue with their difficult lives, oblivious that we are watching them.
Obi-Wan believes I should venture down to the galaxy as a vision, as he does. He believes Vader may listen if I talk. I however, am not so sure. I do not think I am ready, I told him. He just nodded his head and looked back down in silence. His words however make me think.
Once again I watch. I watch as Darth Vader slices off Luke's hand. The same hand that Anakin lost in that battle with Count Dooku so long ago....
I stand up and shout as Vader tells Luke he is his father. I shout as loud as I can, though I know I cannot be heard. I shout that Darth Vader, never is, was, or will be Luke's father. Luke's father was Anakin Skywalker, not this monster clad in black.
Obi-Wan just listens to me scream, and comforts me. I am grateful for that. We are grateful for each other, to have each other to talk too, knowing we are going through a trauma that is very much alike.
We continue to watch, as the vile Jabba the Hutt binds my daughter in chains. We watch as Luke is almost killed by a rancor. We watch as Han Solo and Leia become closer. We watch as Luke trains on Dagobah. We watch as Yoda dies. I watch as Obi-Wan confronts Luke about his father, and reveals that Leia is his sister.
We watch for time and time on end. Sleep seems not to exist for us.
I smile, though I know it must look very sad, as we watch Luke ask Leia about her mother. I continue my sad smile as Luke tells Leia, the truth about Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader being their father.
Obi-Wan and I both sit, tears sliding down our cheeks, as Luke embraces the Dark Side of the Force. We hug as Luke throws his lightsaber, claiming he is a Jedi, like his father Anakin Skywalker. Yet we weep silent tears as Luke twists on the floor, beneath the power of Palpatine's evil Force- lightning.
Slowly, Obi-Wan turns to me. "It is time for you to go." He said gently, resting his hand on my arm. I could feel the warmth of his hand, could see the firmness in his eyes, could see the gentle expression etched in his wrinkled face. The years had been hard on him physically, but he still had his soul.
I just nod, knowing what I have to do.
For the first time, I venture down to the galaxy. It is such a different place then when I saw it last.
I find myself on the second Death Star, in the Emperor's Throne Room. Who am I standing directly in front of, but Darth Vader. He just stares.
"Anakin, come back." I whisper gently as Vader looks around, to see if anyone else notices me.
"They can't see me Ani, I'm not of this world anymore." I can hear my voice say.
He just continues staring. Padme? I can hear his thoughts call out to me.
I give him a small smile, "Yes Ani, it's me."
Padme, his thoughts continue over and over.
He continued to say something but I didn't hear what, because I stopped him in mid-sentence.
"Anakin, I know you are in this darkness somewhere. You have to come back. Luke's depending on you. The galaxy is depending on you, I- I'm depending on you. This monster you're trying to be isn't really you, I know that deep down, your still Anakin Skywalker, the man I married. Why don't you come back?"
And having said what I came to say, I walked forward, as slowly as I could, and felt my feet lift off the ground until I was slightly higher up than Vader was. I leaned down and kissed the top of his helmet. Then taking a few steps back, just watching him, I vanished.
Or, vanished is what he more or less thought. I had actually returned to my place above the galaxy, next to Obi-Wan, just watching. Obi-Wan looked at me and rested his hand on my shoulder. I leaned into him, and rested there, grateful to have him as a friend.
And there, Obi-Wan and I watched smiling as Vader destroyed the Emperor, saving Luke's life, and the lives of thousands of others in the galaxy.
Once again, I am in the 'Galaxy Below'. Luke does not know it, but I am standing next to him. He thinks he is alone, but he is not. He does not realize, that the mother he never knew all those years is right beside him.
I put my arm around him, and we watched as Anakin Skywalker began his journey to my home above. But as soon as he had started up, he stopped and reached out his hand towards me. I kissed Luke's forehead, and accepted Anakin's hand.
I realize that things will never be the same again, but at least I have my Ani back.
I walk to the edge and sit down; dangling my feet over, realizing there is nothing to catch me if I fall. But who cares if I fall. It's not like I have anything to lose. I sneer to myself.
I've already lost everything.
My husband, Anakin Skywalker, is gone. Now Darth Vader, the greatest evil the galaxy has known, has risen from his ashes. Anakin is lost inside the dark pitch-blackness that is Darth Vader.
I lost all of my family. My father, Ruwee Naberrie, my mother, Jobal Naberrie, my sister Sola Naberrie and her two children, Ryoo and Pooja. They're all gone. Ruthlessly murdered by my old "friend" Palpatine, with the aid of Darth Vader.
My friends, fellow dignitaries in the Senate. They're gone too. Once again because of Palpatine, and the good man who was once my husband.
I've lost my children. They are not dead as the others are, but still are gone. They were taken from me at birth, to be separated from each other and me in order to protect their lives from their father. I don't particularly believe in a religion, but if there are any gods out there, please protect Luke and Leia, my babies, who will never know their mother, or father.
Once again I will say, I have lost everything. Including my life. I died for different reasons than the others, and Darth Vader did not assist in my death. I'm not actually sure if Vader knows I'm dead.
I died because I was the wife of Anakin Skywalker; I died because I was the mother of Luke and Leia Skywalker. I died because I was one of the leaders of the Rebel Alliance. I died because of hate, prejudice and greed.
Many others died from the same. But I was an exception. My death was because of a very twisted man.
Palpatine. Now known as the Emperor or Darth Sidious. Or to Darth Vader, as Master.
I cannot even help the few who survived, because I am here. I am no longer living. I am dead. I am a vision, a ghost. I don't exist in the present.
All I can do is sit here and watch as these evil men Sidious and Vader continue destroying lives. Those lives including my children.
Ah, my children. The one happy thought that I can live with. Luke and Leia. The children of Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala Naberrie Skywalker. The children who will grow up, never knowing the times of peace, never knowing their mother, never knowing their father, never knowing each other.
But as I watch time whisk away in the galaxy below me, I find one small thread of hope.
Obi-Wan Kenobi came. He sacrificed himself for my son. He now watches the events of the galaxy below with me. He is there if I need a shoulder to cry on, or a soul to confide in. And I the same for him.
We watch as a Death Star is destroyed. We watch as Darth Vader searches desperately for my son. We watch as they continue with their difficult lives, oblivious that we are watching them.
Obi-Wan believes I should venture down to the galaxy as a vision, as he does. He believes Vader may listen if I talk. I however, am not so sure. I do not think I am ready, I told him. He just nodded his head and looked back down in silence. His words however make me think.
Once again I watch. I watch as Darth Vader slices off Luke's hand. The same hand that Anakin lost in that battle with Count Dooku so long ago....
I stand up and shout as Vader tells Luke he is his father. I shout as loud as I can, though I know I cannot be heard. I shout that Darth Vader, never is, was, or will be Luke's father. Luke's father was Anakin Skywalker, not this monster clad in black.
Obi-Wan just listens to me scream, and comforts me. I am grateful for that. We are grateful for each other, to have each other to talk too, knowing we are going through a trauma that is very much alike.
We continue to watch, as the vile Jabba the Hutt binds my daughter in chains. We watch as Luke is almost killed by a rancor. We watch as Han Solo and Leia become closer. We watch as Luke trains on Dagobah. We watch as Yoda dies. I watch as Obi-Wan confronts Luke about his father, and reveals that Leia is his sister.
We watch for time and time on end. Sleep seems not to exist for us.
I smile, though I know it must look very sad, as we watch Luke ask Leia about her mother. I continue my sad smile as Luke tells Leia, the truth about Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader being their father.
Obi-Wan and I both sit, tears sliding down our cheeks, as Luke embraces the Dark Side of the Force. We hug as Luke throws his lightsaber, claiming he is a Jedi, like his father Anakin Skywalker. Yet we weep silent tears as Luke twists on the floor, beneath the power of Palpatine's evil Force- lightning.
Slowly, Obi-Wan turns to me. "It is time for you to go." He said gently, resting his hand on my arm. I could feel the warmth of his hand, could see the firmness in his eyes, could see the gentle expression etched in his wrinkled face. The years had been hard on him physically, but he still had his soul.
I just nod, knowing what I have to do.
For the first time, I venture down to the galaxy. It is such a different place then when I saw it last.
I find myself on the second Death Star, in the Emperor's Throne Room. Who am I standing directly in front of, but Darth Vader. He just stares.
"Anakin, come back." I whisper gently as Vader looks around, to see if anyone else notices me.
"They can't see me Ani, I'm not of this world anymore." I can hear my voice say.
He just continues staring. Padme? I can hear his thoughts call out to me.
I give him a small smile, "Yes Ani, it's me."
Padme, his thoughts continue over and over.
He continued to say something but I didn't hear what, because I stopped him in mid-sentence.
"Anakin, I know you are in this darkness somewhere. You have to come back. Luke's depending on you. The galaxy is depending on you, I- I'm depending on you. This monster you're trying to be isn't really you, I know that deep down, your still Anakin Skywalker, the man I married. Why don't you come back?"
And having said what I came to say, I walked forward, as slowly as I could, and felt my feet lift off the ground until I was slightly higher up than Vader was. I leaned down and kissed the top of his helmet. Then taking a few steps back, just watching him, I vanished.
Or, vanished is what he more or less thought. I had actually returned to my place above the galaxy, next to Obi-Wan, just watching. Obi-Wan looked at me and rested his hand on my shoulder. I leaned into him, and rested there, grateful to have him as a friend.
And there, Obi-Wan and I watched smiling as Vader destroyed the Emperor, saving Luke's life, and the lives of thousands of others in the galaxy.
Once again, I am in the 'Galaxy Below'. Luke does not know it, but I am standing next to him. He thinks he is alone, but he is not. He does not realize, that the mother he never knew all those years is right beside him.
I put my arm around him, and we watched as Anakin Skywalker began his journey to my home above. But as soon as he had started up, he stopped and reached out his hand towards me. I kissed Luke's forehead, and accepted Anakin's hand.
I realize that things will never be the same again, but at least I have my Ani back.
