Anakin sat beside his lawyer. Occasionally, she looked at him. He knew his breathing apparatus was off putting. Turning as he sensed Luke enter the courtroom with Leia, he saw them sit near the back. He didn't bother smiling, as the smile wouldn't get through his mask anyway.
"All rise for his honor."
Anakin stood with the rest of the courtroom. The judge entered and took his seat. "Sit." He waited until everybody did, and then nodded at Leon to call forward his witness.
Leon stood. "I'd like to call forward one of the handmaidens of Amidala, once a ruler of the Sovran System of Naboo."
The handmaiden entered. Anakin studied her closely. There was something familiar about her. He didn't know what, though.
"Do you recognize her?"
"It's either Sabé or Dormé. All of Amidala's handmaidens looked alike so she could switch with any of them at any time. So I'm not entirely sure."
The handmaiden was sworn to tell the truth and nothing but the truth. She then took the stand. The prosecutor then started his questioning. Mainly asking the handmaiden about the time Anakin had turned to the dark side. He was soon finished and smiling smugly at Yasmine, as if to say "Beat that!"
Yasmine frowned at him as she moved to stand in front of her place. She asked the handmaiden to state her name for the record.
"Amidala Naberrie," the handmaiden replied.
"Are you your own handmaiden?"
"My handmaidens were chosen, not just for their skills in self defense and protecting me, but also for their similar appearance to me. This gave me the choice to switch places with any one of my handmaidens in times of danger. Normally, I switched with Sabé, as she was the one who had the closet appearance to me. So, in a way, yes, I am my own handmaiden."
"State your relationship with the defendant, please."
"Objection! Irrelevant!"
"Objection overruled. Answer the question."
Amidala mumbled the answer under her breath. "I'm sorry," Yasmine said. "Can you repeat that louder so that everybody can hear the answer?"
"I hate you for this, Ani."
"It's Palpatine you hate, Ami."
Yasmine turned to Anakin as if to say "Shut your mouth!" Turning again to Amidala, she said, "Please answer the question."
"I married Anakin Skywalker, the man Vader destroyed."
There was movement at the back of the courtroom and Leia left.
"You explained to us earlier that Anakin fell to the Dark Side. How was this possible when Anakin had no contact with this Dark Lord, Palpatine?"
"You must be mistaken. Ani was very friendly with Palpatine."
"Is it possible, then, that Palpatine corrupted Anakin right from the beginning?"
"It is possible and highly likely."
"Did you see this corruption start?"
"No. By the time I had mistrusting feelings about Palpatine, it was already too late to save my husband."
"Tell us about when you first met Anakin Skywalker."
"I was fourteen and had just been elected Queen of Naboo. The Trade Federation attacked Naboo and I escaped with my handmaidens and a number of others in my royal cruiser. The ship was damaged and we were forced to land on Tatooine. We met the young slave boy, Anakin, there. He gave us shelter and a chance to fix our ship without ever thinking of reward for himself. That is why Qui-Gon freed the boy."
"Was it his choice to be a slave?"
"No. He told me that he had been a slave since he was really little. He had always dreamed of being a Jedi."
"Did Anakin ever finish his training?"
"No?"
"Why?"
"Because he fell."
"Have you heard of Anakin Skywalker coming back to the light?"
"No. How do you know that?"
"One of the witnesses said that he felt Anakin return to the light side after battling the Dark Lord, Vader. The commander told us of his last encounter with the Dark Lord and his master. How can you explain this?"
"The commander must have Jedi abilities to know that or else he is under the influence of Darth Vader himself."
"I can assure you he's not. The commander is Anakin's own son."
"Luke?"
"I assume you know him?"
"I haven't seen my son for almost twenty-two years. Obi-Wan Kenobi took him to Tatooine."
"Tell us about this Obi-Wan Kenobi. Was he a friend of yours?"
"For my part. He was Anakin's teacher and he was a good friend. He swore to protect Luke, even if that meant giving up his own life."
"From what?"
"Finding out the truth about his father."
