Author's Note: For disclaimers, see first chapter. I am a lot younger than George Lucas and I am not capable of growing a beard. Thus I am not him.

Jadea Skywalker: Thanks! Here's more.

Ten-sixty-three: Thanks for the review!

Francesca: I'm glad you liked it. As for the ending…well, see below.

Nubian Queen: Thanks for reviewing. I've tried to get this up quickly!

SSG Michael B Jackson: Thanks! Again, with the ending…see below.

Labrisa: I didn't mean to make everyone cry. Well, not exactly. :)

Okay, about the ending: This was not originally supposed to end happily! It was supposed to have a bittersweet ending, resulting in a shifted but similar universe. But now everyone seems to want a happy ending, and I find myself moving more and more to that camp, and abandoning the bittersweet ending (and perhaps a future story).

So – all this to say we'll see what happens! – Kaitie

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She was in the garden, braiding Leia's hair. The flowers were blooming, and the birds were singing; Luke was crawling around on his hands and knees, chasing a caterpillar and managing to get incredibly grubby in the process. Obi-Wan and Anakin were talking, over by the fountain, and as she watched, Obi-Wan threw back his head and laughed long and hard. Anakin followed with his deep chuckle, and she smiled. As if sensing her, Ani turned and smiled back.

Then he was there, kneeling beside the bench, looking up into her eyes. And she saw the love in his eyes, but there was conflict there, and pain…what was wrong with Ani? She tried to speak, but found she could not…And Luke and Leia and Obi-Wan had disappeared…And he reached for her hand, and she put her hand in his, joined forever, for eternity…And he was saying something to her, his eyes intent and agonized on hers, and she was answering…

And he was fading, and slipping away…and the garden was fading…and someone was calling her name.

"Ani, love?" The words came out at last.

"Padmè! Padmè, can you hear me?"

It wasn't Ani. Her insides twisted.

"Padmè, open your eyes." It was Obi-Wan, and he sounded panicked. That was strange. Obi-Wan never panicked. But she didn't want to open her eyes and give up her dream…

"Is Mommy going to be okay?" That was Luke.

She opened her eyes. "I'm fine, Lukie, I'm fine."

"Luke, go sit in the cockpit with your sister."

"But I want to see Mommy!"

"No questions, Luke, do as you're told." Obi-Wan's voice was unaccustomedly sharp. Luke looked hurt, and hurried out of the room.

She looked up at Obi-Wan. "You didn't have to say it like that, Ben." She made her voice lightly scolding, but not harsh. For some reason, she didn't seem to possess the ability to be sharp or harsh right now.

He was looking at her with an inscrutable expression. "Padmè, I think Vader knows who Leia is."

"What?" She didn't seem to possess the ability to become excited or furious either.

He told her what had happened, quickly and in a few words. She closed her eyes, remembering, and somehow it seemed that she could see the events as they happened, as if she had actually been there.

He finished. "Don't you see, Padmè, he stared at Leia for such a long time – and it was as if he was staring i through</i her, not at her – he must have been seeing the resemblance between the two of you."

"No. He doesn't know who Leia is."

"How do you know?" He was frustrated now. She had the feeling he would be relieved if she got up and threw something. It was more like her. This calmness must be unnerving him. But somehow, it was right…and more of the dream came back to her, and her heart began to race.

Let this be my last gift to you, Angel…

"I…Ben…I just know." She looked away from him, her hands wringing back and forth, fidgeting together.

She could feel him looking at her. "Padmè, there's something you're not telling me."

Yes.

"Ben…" Oh, Padmè, you cannot know how much I love you Suddenly, inexplicably, tears were raining down her face, and she brought her hands up, sobbing.

She could feel Obi-Wan's concern, his fear, his frustration…Wait. She could feel them? She put the thought aside, although it unsettled her.

"Ben," she said through her tears, "Ben, I talked to him. I don't know how…but I talked to him, Ben."

"WHAT?"

"In my head, Ben. He was there…and he was himself, without the suit…"

"What did he say?"

She sniffled, trying to gather the cobwebs and weave them together into a memory. "He called to me, as if I was dead…and he loves me still, Ben, I felt it radiating through him, pain and love and loss…and he said that letting Leia go was like a gift to me, his last gift to me…"

Obi-Wan was very quiet, letting Padmè cry. Presently, she gained control of herself and wiped her eyes fiercely.

"Ben, please go get Leia for me. I need to talk to her."

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He had no idea if it had been minutes or hours, since the ship took off.

Vader stood exactly as he had stood then. He was a massive black statue in the midst of a large gray hangar.

He was searching, searching for centeredness. Somehow, not only had he lost his centeredness while talking to the girl, but he had lost his connection to the Dark Side of the Force. Now both sides of the Force were yammering on either side of him, and he could not seem to latch onto the Dark Side.

He was beginning to grow tired, as he tried fruitlessly to find his center. He was due to report on Coruscant soon, and if he could not get a grip on himself the Emperor would not be pleased.

"Milord?"

A stormtrooper was standing nervously in front of him. Usually, Vader would have been irritated at the interruption, but he didn't seem to be capable of being irritated right now. "Yes?"

"Milord. We were checking the hangar for any signs of further insurgents, and we found this, sir, in a fighter that is marked as having been grounded. I thought you would want it, milord."

Vader stared at the man, and at the object he was holding. Suddenly, the situation seemed ludicrous, and he fought the urge to laugh. Once he realized that he was fighting the urge to laugh, however, it shocked him into his senses again. He held out his hand.

"Dismissed, trooper. Take your squadron back to their base."

"Milord, that would leave you alone…"

"Are you questioning me, trooper?" It was a simple question, without the menacing overtone it usually had.

But the trooper didn't seem to notice the difference. "No, milord," he practically squeaked, and hurried off to relay the order.

Vader looked down at the object in his hand. A teddy bear?

A/N: What'd you think? Let me know- Kaitie