DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN STAR WARS.

Anakin, having just landed his speeder, was rushing through the hallways of the senate building to the Supreme Chancellor's office.

A while ago, he had revealed to the High Master of the Order, Mace Windu that Chancellor Palpatine was the Sith Lord whom the Jedi had been searching for.

But before this, Palpatine had told Anakin of knowledge that he had; knowledge of the dark side, of a power with which he could save his wife, Padmé.

Meanwhile, in the Chancellor's office, Mace Windu delivered a kick to the Sith Lord's hand which knocked his red lightsaber away. Palpatine fell on his back and quickly backed away from the Jedi Master, till he was against the end of the viewport, now without glass.

At that moment, Anakin stormed into the office, just as Mace Windu was holding his lightsaber threateningly at Palpatine, or rather, Darth Sidious.

Mace Windu stated, "You are under arrest, my lord."

Just then, he glanced towards the right and saw Anakin nearing them.

Even as he signaled Anakin to stop where he was, Palpatine, in a sickly desperate voice cried out, "Anakin, I told you it would come to this. I was right. The Jedi are taking over."

Mace Windu declared, "The oppression of the Sith will never return. You have lost."

"No, no, no," Palpatine snarled, showing his true colors, raising his voice as he spoke, "You shall die!" and suddenly unleashed a stream of force lightning upon the Jedi Master who just managed to block it with his purple lightsaber.

Anakin briefly looked away, shielding his eyes from the scene, then slowly moved his hand away and looked upon the scene before him.

"Traitor," Palpatine cried out even as Mace slowly pushed his lightsaber forwards.

"He is the traitor, ahhh," Mace cried out even as he pushed on, slowly but surely putting Palpatine on the defensive.

Palpatine looked at Anakin in desperation and cried out, "I have the power to save the one you love!"

Anakin, upon hearing this, looked upon him worriedly.

"Don't listen to him Anakin, uhhh," Mace cried out, even as he managed to get closer.

The lightning was being deflected back onto Palpatine, and was disfiguring his face.

"Help me," Palpatine cried out, his voice weakening, "I can't hold on any longer. I, I, I, I, I can't… I, I'm weak, I'm too weak. Anakin, help me."

And with that, he stopped the onslaught.

Mace instantly pointed his lightsaber towards him.

"I, I, I can't hold on any longer," the Chancellor said weakly.

Mace Windu declared, "I am going to end this, once and for all."

"You can't," Anakin suddenly spoke up, "He must stand trial."

Mace explained firmly, "He has control of the senate and the courts. He's too dangerous to be left alive."

"Oh," Palpatine pleaded, "I'm too weak. Don't kill me."

Mace Windu raised his lightsaber for the fatal blow, even as Palpatine continued to plead on.

Anakin was conflicted. What was he to do? The Jedi would show no mercy to Palpatine, but he needed him to save Padmé.

And then suddenly, he held out his hands and cried out, "WAIT!"

Mace stopped what would have been a strike and he and Palpatine both looked at Anakin.

Anakin looked at the Sith Lord.

This was the Sith Lord who could save his wife.

But he had also played both sides, orchestrated the clone wars; killed several people.

And then, Anakin thought, "I need his power to save Padmé, but the Jedi will not show him mercy. If I help him… wait, I'll probably be… no, I'll have to join the dark side, join him; this is what he wants. He's the one behind the war. He'll probably destroy democracy and I'll be helping him! No, I can't, Padmé would never want help from him! He'll destroy everything she loves, liberty! And to help him will be like killing her myself, breaking her heart, destroying… No, I won't help him, for Padmé."

And, with that flash of realization, he declared, "No Chancellor Palpatine, to help you is to betray the Jedi, and join the dark side, you. And that's as good as me killing Padmé myself! You're behind this war! You're responsible for multiple attempts on Padmé's life! I'll never join you! I'll never join the dark side! I am a Jedi, Padmé's Jedi!"

Mace looked at Anakin with a strange but somewhat approving look. As for Palpatine, there was an expression of horror on his face.

But suddenly, it contorted with demonic rage and he snarled, "No, if you will not turn, you will DIE!"

Even as he spoke, he unleashed a stronger barrage of lightning at Mace who had just started to bring his blade down.

Mace tried to block it, but was not fast enough. Even as his lightsaber fell to the floor and he let out a scream of pain, Darth Sidious yelled, "POWER! UNLIMITED POWER!"

All of a sudden, there was a scream of "NO!" and a blue blade blocked the lightning and saved the Jedi Master who collapsed onto the floor near his deactivated lightsaber.

Anakin gritted his teeth and held on even as he fought the Sith Lord, clearly angry with this man for what he had done.

And then suddenly, Palpatine stopped his onslaught and used the force to blast Anakin backwards. Anakin hit the other end but managed to quickly roll away from the edge and get up, his lightsaber ready in his hand.

Even as Mace Windu slowly got up and activated his purple lightsaber, Darth Sidious, putting on a hood, declared, "You will regret this Anakin Skywalker. Soon, the Jedi shall be no more and the galaxy shall bow to me!"

And with that, he smiled maliciously and jumped out of the window.

He smiled as he fell and used the force to guide himself and land safely on a speeder. He was quick to throw the one and only unlucky occupant, a dug, out of the driver's seat, sending him plummeting to his doom.

The Sith Lord then flew the speeder a little distance away from the senate building before pulling out a hand-held holo communication device from his robes. He then activated it and contacted a native Kaminoan.

"All has not gone as expected. It is time for my backup plan," he said, "You must bring my backup apprentice out of stasis. Are you nearby on Coruscant?"

The Kaminoan replied in a female voice, "Yes my lord. I am in the industrial zone in the prescribed hangar."

"Very good," the Sith Lord replied, "I shall come there at once."

With that, he quickly ended the transmission and set off for the meeting place.

As he drove, he dialed in a frequency and the hologram of the infamous bounty hunter appeared.

"Ah, Cad Bane," Sidious spoke, "I require your services. Are you on Coruscant?"

"My Lord," Cad Bane replied, "I am currently within the Coruscant System. What do you require of me?"

The Sith Lord ordered, "Abduct Senator Amidala and bring her to the Separatist base on Mustafar. My apprentice Darth Vader shall meet you there."

Cad Bane replied, "I've been up against senators before. This shouldn't be hard at all. I shall soon have her in your hands."

"Good," Palpatine replied and with that, he closed the transmission.

As he entered the industrial zone of Coruscant, he smiled wickedly and sneered, "If Skywalker will not destroy the Jedi, Vader will. My dear boy, you have foolishly cast me aside, ignored the power of the dark side. Now, I shall destroy everything you love."

And with that, he let out an evil cackle of laughter.

Meanwhile, Anakin and Mace Windu stood staring out through the viewport, quite upset that they had not been able to prevent the Sith Lord from escaping.

After some moments, Mace Windu turned to Anakin and spoke, "Anakin, you saved my life. I owe you for that. But I also must ask you something. I told you specifically to stay in the council chambers. Why did you disobey a direct order? I'm glad that you realized what Palpatine was doing to you and refused to help him, but why were you trying to stop me in the first place? Why were you insistent that he should live? I need you to answer me."

Anakin looked at the Jedi Master, knowing that he would have to explain everything.

He spoke, "Master Windu, I'm sorry. I broke the code by marrying Senator Padmé Amidala three years ago after Geonosis. She's pregnant with a child, and I've recently been having dreams, visions about her dying in childbirth. When the Chancellor revealed himself to be a Sith Lord, he also offered me a power to save Padmé. I was afraid of not getting that help, but just now, when I said wait, I thought about what I was doing and realized that I'd have to join the dark side, and end up turning against the Jedi. And it would be like killing Padmé myself. She would never want that kind of help, and I would end up destroying everything she loves. When I realized this, I refused to help him. I know that I have been wrong, and if I had just listened to you and stayed there, he would not have escaped."

Mace Windu looked at Anakin seriously for a long time and finally said, "I did tell you specifically to remain there. That was a direct order. Yet, you did not obey that instruction. Not to mention, you have gone against the code. You know what this means, don't you?"

Anakin sighed and replied, "I do. I understand if I must be expelled."

Mace then held Anakin's shoulders and asked, "Do you remember that I was one of those who said you should not be trained? Do you remember how much I have always doubted you and mistrusted you? Do you remember how I treated Ahsoka when she was accused of bombing the Jedi temple? Do you remember how we, the council got Master Kenobi to fake his death, without considering how it would affect you? Do you remember how we never did anything to help your mother when we could have?"

Anakin replied a little vehemently, his volume increasing as he spoke, "I do, and to be honest, I hold much resentment for that. I resent the council very much. They have always doubted me and put me down, but the Obi Wan Rako Hardeen business was too much. But worse than that was how you expelled Ahsoka just like that and did nothing while Padmé and I were fighting for her, and then afterwards, you just dismissed it all saying it was her big trial instead of apologizing like you should have…"

He suddenly stopped himself, and then spoke respectfully, "I'm sorry for how I said that, but this is what I feel. I have not forgotten it."

Mace listened patiently to all of it, and then suddenly, he pulled Anakin into a hug and exclaimed, "I have never been so wrong before!"

Anakin, having not expected this, was completely stunned. His mouth hung open, and then he wrapped his arms around and hugged Mace back, tears flowing from his eyes.

Mace said, "I'm so sorry for all I have done. I should have tried to understand you better. I can't imagine what would have happened if Qui Gon and Obi Wan hadn't stood up for you, if Obi Wan hadn't taken you under his wing. The Sith would have gotten to you more easily."

Anakin was now crying into Mace's shoulder, releasing the pent up emotions that had been carrying for a long time, and had worsened in the past few days but had been kept hidden within except for a few occasions like how he had expressed his outrage when he had been denied the rank of Jedi Master.

After a few minutes, Mace and Anakin ended the hug. Anakin had calmed down although his face was still wet with tears.

Mace said, "I was wrong about you, and if I was wrong about you, then I was wrong about Ahsoka as well. You were literally the only one that actually did anything about it while all we did was blindly flow along and obey the Senate's wishes."

Anakin asked, "Are you going to turn me in?"

Mace replied, "No. That is something you must explain yourself, but I can tell you this, you have my complete trust and support in this matter. I believe your love has saved you. Now, according to the Jedi rules, attachment is forbidden. I think you understand why we have said this. The Sith always exploit these kinds of things, like how Palpatine tried to use your love for your wife to turn you. In fact, I bet he planted those visions in your mind hoping that he could make you desperate enough to join him. But you didn't let that happen. You realized what he was doing to you and you also used your love to turn the tables on him. You used it against him by refusing to join him for Senator Amidala's sake. And one more thing, I will do everything I can to save your wife; although I am sure she will live through childbirth."

Anakin looked at Mace in amazement and gratefully replied, "Thank you Master. That means a lot to me."

Mace spoke, "But now the senator will be in danger. We should get her to leave the planet at once."

Padmé was standing outside on her balcony worriedly when she heard a beeping sound and went inside to find her protocol droid C-3PO that Anakin had given to her after marriage waiting for her.

"Mistress Padmé," C-3PO stated, "There is a transmission for you. I believe it concerns where Master Anakin is now."

Padmé walked towards a holo-table and accepted the call, to be greeted by the holograms of Mace Windu and Anakin.

"Master Jedi," Padmé spoke, "What can I do for you?"

Mace explained, "This is a matter of utmost importance. It turns out the Supreme Chancellor is the Sith Lord. He was behind the war the entire time. He has been masquerading as a 'seemingly benevolent' leader to gain mare power in the Senate this whole time. A strike team of Jedi including myself attempted to arrest him, but he escaped and all the other members of our team are dead. Only Anakin and I survived."

Padmé gasped in horror and covered her mouth.

Anakin spoke, "Palpatine knows about us. He's known this entire time. He tried to turn me to the dark side saying he can save you from dying, but then I realized what I would end up doing, to the Jedi, to you, and I said no. That's like… no, I…"

Padmé said a little desperately, "Anakin, just say it."

Anakin replied, "I'd be destroying everything you love, I'd end up killing you."

Padmé looked at the holograms in horror and tears came to her eyes.

Anakin balled his hands into fists and yelled, "When I realized that, I swore I would never join him! I'll never join that conniving monster!"

He then lowered his voice and said, "Padmé, I love you and I always will. I'll never join him, I promise."

Padmé held her hands crossed across her chest and said, "I love you Ani. You'd never join him. You're a good person. I know it. I love you and I always will."

Anakin then said, "By the way, Master Windu knows about us now. He won't tell the council. I'll have to do that myself, but he says he will support us."

Padmé turned to the hologram of Mace Windu and spoke, "Master Windu, we…"

Mace spoke, "No need to explain. I understand. In fact, I believe your love for your husband and his for you is what saved him. But more importantly, you need to leave the planet. Palpatine knows about you, and I'm sure he'll target you and your child. You need to leave now."

Padmé replied, "I understand. Thank you Master. I'll pack up and leave for Naboo. I'll be at my parents' house."

Anakin said, "Go there as soon as you can. Let me know when you reach."

Padmé replied, "Alright I will. Ani, be careful out there. Come to me as soon as you can."

"I will Angel," Anakin replied, "I love you."

"I love you too Ani," Padmé replied before ending the transmission.