Penpals 31: Darth Vader

Darth Vader marched down the long glistening hallway of Executor towards the detention deck, Princess Leia beside him. Although her hands were manacled together, she still acted regally like a member of the Senate. Her chin was held high and not a strand of hair from her elaborate coif was out of place. The more he watched her walk beside him; the more and more he was reminded of Padme. The Princess had that same fiery spirit that just wouldn't quit no matter what. Although Padme's beauty had first attracted him, it was her fire that had kept him captivated like no other. He had been willing to do anything for her, no matter the cost and he had done exactly that. She had been his world and he had lost her. It had been more than he could stand and his fall to the Dark Side had been complete. But these last few days have been brighter, more filled with hope. And now he felt that Padme herself was here, somewhere, invisible just beyond the next turn in the long hall…

/Why can't I stop thinking of her?./

She used to haunt his dreams at night and now she haunted him during the days in this look-alike. Funny how he had never noticed the similarities before…

Still, he mustn't forget that Leia Organa was a Rebel. Although her words in the shuttle had been kind and she had seemed like a caring person, she was still one of the leaders of the Alliance. She would have to answer his questions on Alliance procedure, why his son almost died on that desolate waste called Hoth. And no matter what wild excuses he came up with, it was still sheer foolishness and carelessness to send a boy from a desert world out into the artic wilderness. Yes, he would make her see the light, make her see the error of her ways. Perhaps if he were lucky she might even switch sides. That would be good, as Luke would be with him soon.

/Luke cares about this one./

The stormtroopers that accompanied them clanked loudly but the Sith Lord ignored the noise. Yes, it was clear that for whatever reasons Luke had become close friends with the Princess. If he were to ever truly gain his son's trust, then he'd have to leave Leia Organa alone, unharmed. To do otherwise would be to court disaster. And the last thing he wanted was to loose his son over a woman. His mind went back to the ill-fated Death Star and the rumors he had heard after the Falcon had escaped the docking bay. There had been talk of a dashing young man in white swinging over the deep pit, a beautiful woman in his grasp. He had no doubt that had been his son playing the hero. Not only was his son honest, kind and helpful, he was apparently also attracted to fairy-tale type ideas. The thought of rescuing a real princess had no doubt fueled his brain cells, attracted him to go running off to space.

/But this will work in my favor…/

Yes, Luke will come running to rescue the fair maiden once again. He was sure of it.

/And then I will be with my son at last!./

Anticipation of the meeting burned within him and he could hardly wait. When he had felt Luke's presence on Hoth fade and disappear, it had crushed him. To be so close and to fail, it had been unbearable. The desire to have his son with him burned like his need for air or water. But soon that need would be quenched, he was sure of it. The lift was just up ahead and he watched her enter it, black-and-white armored troopers on both sides. Although she was unarmed, they were taking no chances. She had escaped once before and now she was just too valuable.

/She will be my key to Luke…/

Vader joined them in the lift and he watched the flashes of white light that signaled other decks passing. Soon the doors opened again and he stalked out, gray uniformed officers rising at the sight of him. He ignored their polite greetings and instead marched directly to the plain cell that would be the Princess' new home.

She passed him without a fuss and entered it, her head still held high. Walking to the very back, she turned around and faced him. "Look, you don't have to do this. Can't you see it's wrong what Palpatine is doing?"

Vader entered the cell and dismissed the guards with a wave of his hand. He wanted to be alone with the Princess. Knowing her, she'd bring up more sordid details from his past and the last thing he wanted was for stormtroopers to know he used to be a slave. Besides, with the Force on his side he could easily handle her on his own. It wasn't like she was a threat. Still, he didn't want the entire ship to know his past or that he was exchanging personal letters with a Rebel, especially if that Rebel was his son. That could be bothersome to explain, especially if word got back to his Master. Holding himself perfectly straight, he answered her in his mechanical voice. "Palpatine, whether you like it or not, is the rightful government. Do you deny the acts of terrorism you have committed?"

"Acts of terrorism? Are you blind?" Leia cried, a look of pure anguish on her face. "Your so called government is wrongfully enslaving alien races just because they're not human! Surely you can't think it's correct to do that?"

"Do you think it any more correct to send a desert-born boy into the artic tundra?" Vader demanded to know as he stepped closer. His tall figure hulked over her menacingly, her head reaching only to his shoulder. Although he knew he couldn't harm her, that did mean he couldn't use other tactics. He knew the Princess was slightly scared of him, her fear filling the room like a sour smell for those with the ability to sniff it out. Her brown eyes widened but she stubbornly held her ground, refusing to back away from him. She had guts indeed and he admired it. "I do not appreciate that my son almost died because of poor planning on the part of the Alliance. Do not think I will treat such an act lightly. As of now, he is the most important thing in my life and I will have him at my side."

"Luke is more important to me than you can ever know!" Leia shot back at him, her eyes narrowed and her hands tightened into fists. "If you wouldn't be chasing us across the entire galaxy, we wouldn't have to hide on horrible worlds like Hoth!"

"And if you wouldn't be doing illegal activities…" Vader replied smoothly, unaffected by her anger.

"Look, we do the best we can!" Leia replied as she tried to rake in her anger. Insulting Vader or getting into a fight with him now wasn't the best thing to do. In fact, it would hurt her cause further. But if she could maybe influence him somehow, get him to see things from her point of view; he could be a huge help to the Rebellion. She knew Luke certainly had gained his ear. Could she do the same? "Luke wasn't out there alone. For one, he volunteered to ride patrol. He's an adult and can make his own choices. We supplied him with cold weather gear and he even had a special tent on his tauntaun. If for whatever reason he couldn't return to base, he could have set the tent up and spent the night within it. How could we have known that a dangerous ice creature was living out there? There's no local food for it to feed on, so the existence of a predator was unexpected."

The Sith Lord's breath was loud in the small cell. He had been unaware that the Rebels had given Luke a tent. Still, that didn't make up for the lack of survival training the boy should have received. He still could have died out there. "That is not an excuse for the lack of proper training. One does not go into that sort of situation unprepared and not knowing the basics of survival under those conditions."

Leia sighed loudly. It was clear to her Anakin was still upset about the near lost of his son. From the letters she knew he was emotional and could swing quickly in either direction. Nor could she allow bad memories or his hulking figure intimidate her, as he was trying to do. Pushing her uneasiness away, she reached out and gently placed a hand on his armor-clad arm. "I know you're upset about Luke almost dying. I was, too! No one knew those things were out there. As far as we knew, nothing lived out there at all. But Luke was victorious! He not only managed to pull his lightsaber from the ice using that magical power he possesses, but he cut the arm off that thing! It's probably dead by now…"

"Luke did that?" Vader asked, surprise in his voice.

/My son is developing his powers!./

Pride swelled through him and a weak smile broke out from underneath his mask. His son was slowly learning to harness his powers, even without instruction from anyone. It was the most glorious news he had heard in a long time.

"Yes, he did." Leia's feelings eased and she grew slightly more relaxed. Apparently the Sith Lord enjoyed hearing about his son and at the moment, she was his only source of information. His black, angled visage wasn't as scary as it had been a moment before and she begun to see a bit of what Luke saw in this powerful man. "I don't really understand it, but from what Luke told me, his lightsaber was stuck in some ice. It was out of his reach. So he just … reached out mentally, I guess. Then it was in his hand. I'm sure you understand it better than I do."

"Impressive." Vader replied. "Luke has had no real training to do such a feat…."

/Yes, Luke will be a most powerful Jedi…./

"I stayed up all night when he was out there. I wanted to keep the doors open but the others wouldn't hear of it. Han went out and got him…" Leia said, her face sad as she remembered that horrible night. "It was the longest night of my life…"

"I did not sleep well either that night." Vader admitted. She had just confirmed what he had expected all along, that his son's other friend was the smuggler, Han Solo. Then his mind drifted back to the recent attack of Hoth and he grew worried. What if his rash actions had alienated his son forever? "I … do you think I have scared Luke off? I just wanted to rescue him, not cause him to flee!"

Leia couldn't help but hide a smile. The two men were so similar, both second guessing their actions and worrying about stuff. Also, both tended to run off and do things without thinking first! It was uncanny how alike the two really were. Her hand still on his arm, she patted his armor. "Oh, I think Luke will be back."

"Are you sure?" He asked, uncertainty in his voice.

The smile broke out. "Yes, I'm sure! In fact, I bet he already wrote you a letter…."

/A letter! Poodoo! I forgot to check my mail!./

Without another word, Vader rushed out of the cell and strode to the lift as fast as possible. He needed to go check his mail!

To be continued…

Sorry so short! I'll update really soon!