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Chapter 57
Another Happy Landing!

A few moments after Grievous broke the window, the automatic safety measures kicked in and durasteel shutters snapped into place to plug the hole. The sucking gale of escaping air ceased and they sank back down to the floor. As they panted for breath, it took a moment for the atmosphere on the bridge to stabilize again.

Ugh, ears kinda hurt. Vader groaned as he stiffly rolled to his feet. Grievous is just as big a jerk as Dooku is…was…bah.

The ship suddenly lurched under their feet, almost sending Vader back down onto the deck. Looking through the remaining windows, Vader noted that Coruscant seemed rather large…and was getting larger. Oh this is bad.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Obi-Wan muttered as he strode towards the pilot consoles.

Vader followed him and settled into the pilot's seat. "All the escape pods have been launched," he frowned as he scanned the read-outs while Artoo jacked in beside him.

"Grievous," Obi-Wan muttered, naming the cause of the problem. "Can you fly a cruiser like this?" He asked Vader a tad worriedly.

"You mean, do I know how to fly what's left of this thing?" Vader snorted as he noticed just how damaged the ship was. "Under the circumstances, I'd say the ability to pilot this thing is irrelevant," he muttered. Behind him he could feel Palpatine hovering over his shoulder. "Strap yourselves in."

His hands flew over the controls as he wrestling the tumbling hulk into a safe trajectory that would keep them from burning up in the atmosphere. Obi-Wan took a seat next to him and the Chancellor selected a seat just off to the side, thankfully out of the way. "Fire all braking thrusters and extend all flaps and drag fins," he ordered distractedly. That helped some, slowing them down. But then…

The Invisible Hand gave a mighty jerk and there was a shrill but muffled sound of tearing metal. Artoo made a sound that sounded suspiciously like 'uh-oh!' in response.

"We lost something," Vader scowled.

"Not to worry," Obi-Wan replied, studying a display. "We are still flying half a ship." He announced in an almost cheerful tone.

Oh that's friggin' fantastic Obi-Wan! Vader grumbled sarcastically. "Here, take these controls and try to keep her level." He ordered, gesturing towards the joystick of a different control console. That's the problem with big ships, they spread the steering out over two or three different stations…

Obi-Wan took the stick and did his best with it while he studied some display at his elbow. He muttered some numbers under his breath, making some sort of mental calculation. "We're in the atmosphere." He announced.

"Keep her steady Artoo," Vader mumbled as he fought with the barely responding controls. He caught sight of some of the hull temperature readings and swallowed a curse. "We're coming in too hot!" He hissed.

They were now lurching drunkenly through the Coruscanti sky. Vader had aimed them towards one of the major spaceports, built especially to service the new fleet of Star Destroyers. He'd locked them on to the emergency runway, but whether they'd make it was debatable.

"Fireships on the left and right," Obi-Wan announced as several Coruscanti firefighters appeared in their specially equipped airspeeders. He exchanged a few words with them over the comm and the firefighters began hosing down the ship's hull in an attempt to keep it from melting.

And then they reached the spaceport and its emergency runway…

They crashed into the long wide slab of duracrete still moving at insane speeds. What remained of the Invisible Hand screeched and groaned its way down the runway, demolishing a control tower as it went. And just when it seemed that they'd keep going off the end of the runway and crash into some buildings…they stopped.

"Another happy landing!" Obi-Wan cheerfully declared.

You're welcome. Vader sighed, slumping back in the pilot's seat. Do I get a vacation for this?

Obi-Wan sighed in relief as they settled into an airbus that would take them back to the Senate rotunda. Grievous had escaped, but Count Dooku would no longer be a problem. And they had successfully rescued the Supreme Chancellor without sustaining any serious injury. All in all, Obi-Wan decided to cautiously consider this insane mission a victory.

He kept a polite smile on his face while Palpatine continually gushed praise on them for saving his life. Vader, he could sense, was having a slightly harder time keeping his expression politely neutral while Palpatine babbled. Thankfully the Chancellor's comm chimed and he moved to the opposite end of the otherwise empty transport to take it.

Now 'alone' Obi-Wan slumped into his seat and rubbed at his throbbing head. Vader abandoned his previous set across the aisle to sit next to Obi-Wan on the opposite side from the Chancellor. He slumped down and apparently was trying to disappear. Obi-Wan cast Vader an inquiring look.

"I don't like him." Vader muttered in a voice so low that Obi-Wan had to lean in a bit to hear him.

"Well I really don't like him either," Obi-Wan muttered back. "He is a politician."

"He's worse. He's Hutt slime," Vader grumbled, "and I don't ever want to see him again."

Obi-Wan's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Oh? And what makes you say that?"

Vader took a quick glance over at the Chancellor to make sure he was still occupied before answering. "For one, he ordered me to kill Dooku. And for another, he wanted me to leave you to die on the observation deck and just save his own skin."

Obi-Wan didn't immediately reply to that. He couldn't. Those were very serious accusations. The first one he might be able to believe, but the second was hard to swallow, and put together it all seemed impossible.

"You don't believe me." Vader sighed softly.

"Those are some…very heavy accusations." Obi-Wan stated neutrally.

"Yeah," Vader shrugged slightly, "so why would I make it up?"

Good point, Obi-Wan frowned thoughtfully, stroking his beard.

Before he could think much on that, the Chancellor returned to sit across from them and it was back to the polite smiles and nods. If what Vader said was true, and Obi-Wan thought that at least some of it was, then he could completely understand why he was having so much trouble being all smiley and nice to the Chancellor. But, whether it was true or not, there wasn't anything he could do about it right now.

Thankfully the ride was soon over. The airbus lumbered over to a side entrance of the grand Senate rotunda and landed. The doors hissed open and let the Chancellor off.

There was a small crowd of other Senators standing there, waiting for their beloved leader to be returned to them. Most of those present were strong supporters of Palpatine, but there were a few exceptions. Obi-Wan spied Bail Organa there who, while close to the Chancellor, didn't seem to be as enthusiastic about Palpatine's policies as he had been when the Chancellor was first elected.

Palpatine eagerly disembarked and hurried over to meet with the anxiously waiting Senators. Obi-Wan held back for a moment, as did Vader. There would be just enough time to chat a bit before they had to briefly part ways.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay here, meet with the politicians?" Obi-Wan teased.

"Oh no," Vader snorted, "I've had more than enough for one day. I'll have some aspirin waiting for you when you make it back." He smirked.

"Thank you," Obi-Wan sighed exasperatedly, rubbing briefly at his head. I hate it when I get knocked unconscious.

"Bye Master, see you at the Temple!" Vader cheerfully waved, his earlier worries temporarily forgotten.

"Good bye," Obi-Wan waved as the airbus left, taking Vader back to the Temple where he would wait.

Letting out another sigh, Obi-Wan turned and started after the Chancellor. He almost wished that Vader was the type to adore attention and not try to keep a low profile. That way he could send Vader off to schmooze with the politicians and reporters sometimes instead of doing all that work himself. But he didn't have much choice in the matter. Vader didn't want to be known, so he wouldn't be known.

He caught up to the Chancellor just as he had run into Master Windu, who was also there waiting. Obi-Wan bowed briefly to his fellow Master and then stood beside him. After exchanging the silent greeting with Obi-Wan, Mace turned his full attention to the Chancellor.

"Chancellor Palpatine, are you alright?" Mace asked with concern.

"Yes, thanks to your two Jedi Knights," Palpatine replied, not bothering to make any distinction in rank. "They killed Count Dooku, but" – he sighed deeply – "General Grievous has escaped, once again."

"General Grievous will run and hide as he always does," Mace assured him. "He's a coward."

"But with Count Dooku dead, he is the leader of the droid army." The Chancellor pointed out. "And I assure the Senate will vote to continue the war as long as Grievous is alive." He added with quiet confidence.

"Then the Jedi Council will make finding Grievous our highest priority." Master Windu declared and Obi-Wan silently nodded his agreement.

The Chancellor accepted this reply and moved on to the interior of the rotunda. Mace left to return to the Temple himself. But Obi-Wan, out of necessity, remained behind.

Most Senators graced him with a polite nod, but their main concern was clearly their recently restored leader. Some were truly worried about his well-being, but Obi-Wan suspected a good number of them only played at concern in an attempt to forge closer ties with the powerful and influential leader. Obi-Wan just shrugged and went with the flow of things.

"Master Kenobi?" Senator Bail Organa of Alderaan asked quietly, coming over to walk alongside Obi-Wan.

"Yes?" Obi-Wan replied, slowing his pace a bit.

"I have to thank you for your actions today," Bail murmured appreciatively. "The Republic is once again in your debt."

"Think nothing of it," Obi-Wan snorted, "it's my job after all."

"Of course," Bail nodded. "But thank you anyway."

"Humph, you can thank me by helping the Senate bring the war to a speedy end." Obi-Wan sighed.

"I will do my best," Bail promised, "but with General Grievous still out there I fear the Senate will resist any attempt to end the fighting until he is taken care of."

"So you agree with Chancellor Palpatine?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Yes," Bail agreed somewhat reluctantly. "Fear is a great motivator for many Senators and they are leery of ending the war until all serious threats are cancelled out. Count Dooku's death is a start, but General Grievous is nearly as deadly."

"True," Obi-Wan conceded. "I see your point."

"I shouldn't keep you," Bail apologized, "you must have to get back to the Council."

"Not for another hour," Obi-Wan sighed. Unfortunately.

"Oh?" Bail blinked in surprise.

"I have to put in an appearance for the Order before I can return home." Obi-Wan shrugged.

"Couldn't you have had your young friend do this?" Bail wondered.

Obi-Wan shook his head and smothered a chuckle. Earlier in the war, Bail Organa and some other Senators had traveled to a conference to meet with undecided worlds and try to sway them to the Republic's cause. But the Separatists had cut them off and stranded them before they could return to Coruscant. Rescuing them was when Obi-Wan had first had any prolonged contact with Bail Organa. And during this mission Bail had stumbled over Vader who had been doing his level best to avoid being seen by any non-Jedi. Bail, it seemed, still recalled the odd young Padawan.

"I would very much like to dump this little duty on him," Obi-Wan chuckled, "but he is as allergic as ever to high concentrations of Senators."

"That's a pity," Bail smiled, "I would've very much liked to have seen him again."

"I'll let him know that you wanted to see him," Obi-Wan promised.

"Thank you," Bail nodded, "I appreciate that. So how did the sieges go?"

Obi-Wan took a deep breath before replying. "Well…"

Vader sighed in relief as he hopped out of the airbus just in front of the Jedi Temple. He'd gotten through the nightmare above Coruscant, beaten Dooku, and managed to get out of spending anymore time with Palpatine and the rest of the Senate. Now things would get better.

"Vader!" Someone called just as he made it into the Temple foyer.

The smile died before it even had a chance to form on his face. Oh no… No, no, no, no, please don't let it be – oh crap! …It is.

Darra scampered into view, beaming. "When did you make it back?"

"Just now," Vader swallowed tensely as he brushed past her.

"Really?" Darra murmured as she fell in step beside him. "I just got in yesterday."

Fantastic… "That's nice," Vader muttered as he made a beeline for his apartment.

"So where did you make it back from?" She asked curiously.

"Dantooine," Vader replied. "Ferus was there too."

"Dantooine…I don't think I've ever been there. What's it like?" Darra inquired.

"It's very purple." Vader shrugged. "And very empty."

"What are the natives like?" Darra wondered.

"I don't know, I didn't meet any." Vader shrugged again. "From what I read, Dantooine is home to a scattering of nomadic tribes that depend on herding."

"Interesting," Darra nodded, though she really didn't sound all that interested.

Vader held back a sigh as he forged ahead towards his apartment and (hopefully) sanctuary. There was a chance, though, that he wouldn't be able to escape from her unwanted attentions. She could very well corner him in his apartment and force him to confront her. He really didn't want to have to do that. He'd rather let her little crush burn out on its own.

"So, do you have any plans for the rest of the day?" Darra asked, drawing a bit closer to him.

Force save me… "I was thinking of a quick nap before I have to go before the Council and give my report." Vader answered.

"Oh," Darra muttered, disappointed. "Hey, did you hear about what just happened with the Chancellor?"

"What?" Vader frowned. Did that jerk get recaptured already?

"He was captured by General Grievous, but Master Kenobi was recalled and rescued him." Darra informed him cheerfully.

"Right," Vader blinked after a moment. Somebody left their brain turned off today… "I knew that."

"No you didn't," Darra laughed. When he stayed silent, her laughter died. "You did?"

"I follow Master Kenobi around pretty much everywhere he goes, remember?" Vader smirked. Ah ha! He silently cheered as his apartment door came into view around the corner.

"So you were…?" She pointed vaguely upwards. "I thought you said you were just on Dantooine!"

"I was, but I had a small stopover just beyond the atmosphere, that's all." Vader shrugged, picking up the pace a bit to reach his door faster.

"You helped rescue the Supreme Chancellor?" Darra sputtered disbelievingly.

"Yep," Vader replied, opening the door and stepping inside. "And by the way," he turned around to face her as she stood just outside the doorway, "Ferus says hi!" And then he shut the door in her face.

He waited near the door anxiously to see what she'd do. Please go away…please, please, please! For a moment it almost felt like she was going to reach over and press the door chime, but then he sensed her turn and walk away.

Thank the Force! He sighed and smiled in relief as he left the door behind in favor of the couch. And now for some well-deserved rest and relaxation!

The caf in her cup had long gone cold, but Sabé failed to notice it. In spite of all her, Moteé's, and Captain Typho's pleadings, Padmé had decided to go to the Senate rotunda after the attacking ships had lifted back off into space. Typho had gone with her, but still Sabé was beside herself with worry.

What is she thinking! Sabé fumed. She's not just putting her life in danger, she's risking her baby too!

Yet somehow Sabé couldn't find it in herself to be surprised by this. While she had altered her behavior to keep her condition secret from the public, when she was in private, she didn't act like anything had changed. She still buried herself in her work without any concern for her own well-being.

Sabé sighed wearily and shook her head. Padmé should be thinking up baby names, collecting baby clothes and supplies, preparing a room, just enjoying the fact that she's going to be a mother soon. But here she is, reading reports, composing speeches, worrying about votes, running around to meetings, just being busy, busy, busy!

Oh Padmé, Sabé swallowed hard, do you even realize what you're missing out on? Do you even care? Or has your dedication to your post completely consumed you?

Idly swishing her cup of cold caf, Sabé stared out the glass walls of Padmé's common room, her eyes fixed on the trails of smoke that still rose high into the air. Throughout the battle that had raged just beyond the atmosphere, ruined ships, mainly small fighters, had spiraled out of control and crashed into the city below. Firefighters were probably running all over trying to put the fires out, but it would be hours until they would be finished.

And so the war finally makes its way here to Coruscant, Sabé mused. After nearly three years of fighting in far off places, it's suddenly right here on the Senate's doorstep. I wonder if this will make things real for a lot of Senators whose worlds remain untouched…

She sincerely hoped that this close call did motivate the many Senators who had remained complacent or apathetic. She hoped this would inspire them to end the war swiftly. She was tired of hearing about the endless suffering and death on the news channels every night.

Squeezing her eyes shut she desperately tried to forget the latest rumor being spread and sensationalized by the newscasters. It's not true, she told herself. They just jump to shocking conclusions to boost viewership and make money. Obi-Wan is fine.

The latest 'big story' was that Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, the famed Negotiator had been killed somewhere out in the far reaches of the Outer Rim. No one had reported seeing him and the news agencies had lost track of him, so of course he must be dead! Sabé wasn't inclined to take that line of reasoning as anything credible.

He was a Jedi Master after all, not someone who could be easily killed. He'd probably just found his way to a place where it was difficult to keep in communications with the rest of the galaxy. He would be back. And he would bring Vader back with him.

It's strange how Obi-Wan is always all over the news, yet Vader is almost never mentioned, and when he is it's never by name. Sabé finally got up to poor her wasted caf down the drain. I wonder why. It's not like Vader is some ugly mean creature, he's actually rather photogenic. I'd think the reporters and photographers would be all over him.

The door hissed open and Sabé perked up immediately. She hurried towards the lift and, sure enough, Padmé and Captain Typho had returned. Sabé smiled weakly in relief.

"Welcome back," Sabé sighed, letting her distant Handmaiden act slip a bit. "How did it go?"

"Oh I don't know," Padmé groaned, hobbling her way over to the couch.

"Well what happened?" Sabé inquired.

"General Grievous captured the Chancellor, but Master Kenobi rescued him and returned him to the Senate." Padmé sighed as she sank down onto the couch and got off her feet.

Sabé felt another wave of relief hit her as she learned that Obi-Wan was indeed alright. She helped Padmé prop up her feet and removed her shoes so that her friend and employer's ankles could recover. Settling down beside her, she prepared to ask some harder questions.

"So Master Kenobi was there?" Sabé asked.

"Yes," Padmé nodded.

"Did you talk to him?" Sabé inquired.

"No," Padmé replied.

"Why not?" Sabé frowned.

"You know why not." Padmé shrugged.

"Oh?" Sabé's frown deepened. "Tell me anyway."

"He's a Jedi first of all," Padmé explained. "No matter how concealing my dress, there's still a chance he could sense something. And second of all he's a member of the Jedi Council and he knows that Vader and I had…relations. Vader may not have gotten in trouble for a minor, one-time infraction such as that, but this will definitely get him into trouble."

"You don't know that for sure," Sabé pointed out. "And at the very least, Master Kenobi can pass along a message to Vader that you wish to see him."

"But I don't wish to see him," Padmé retorted.

Sabé felt her heart sink. "And why not? Are you suddenly not friends with him anymore?"

"It's not that at all," Padmé frowned, awkwardly reaching over to rub at one of her swollen ankles. "He has enough on his mind with the war and whatever lingering guilt and regret he might feel from just sleeping with me. I don't want to worry him unnecessarily with this."

"Padmé!" Sabé sputtered in frustration, making it sound more like a whine than anything else. "He could help you! Or at the very least offer some emotional support! You have to remember that he's half responsible for this baby."

"He's a Jedi. Attachments are forbidden. This" – she placed a hand on her rounded stomach – "is an attachment if I ever saw one. I'm not about to get him into trouble or put him under more stress than is necessary."

"But Padmé…" Sabé sighed pleadingly. "What if he comes over here? You gave him an open invitation to come over whenever he wants and he has the codes for the door."

Padmé was silent for a few minutes. "If he comes over, I'll deal with it then." She decided. "If he finds out, he finds out. But I won't tell him and I won't seek him out."

Sabé was so frustrated she wanted to scream. "Fine, be that way. But, for the record, I think you should be open and honest with Vader right now. You don't want to talk with your family about the baby? Fine, I can understand that, they're all the way on Naboo. But Vader is right here, right now."

"He could still be in the Outer Rim," Padmé countered. "I only saw Master Kenobi at the Senate rotunda."

"You know perfectly well that wherever Master Kenobi goes, Vader is sure to follow if he isn't already right there with him." Sabé scowled.

Padmé only shook her head and refused to reply.

Feeling fed up, Sabé got up off the couch and stalked into the kitchen. She was frustrated and angry and there was no firing range that she could run off to for target practice. So she fell back on a slightly older method she used for stress relief. She started to bake some cookies, venting her pent-up frustrations in mixing up the cookie dough.

Padmé sighed in exhaustion as Sabé stormed off to the kitchen and slumped over to lay down on her couch. Captain Typho had already returned to his post in the building's security center and Moteé was most likely out running some errand or other, leaving her pretty much alone in the apartment. Shifting carefully into a comfortable position that wouldn't ruin her hairstyle, she closed her eyes and hoped to catch a quick nap.

A solid thump in the side of her abdomen drew her hand to the spot in seconds. She rubbed at the area and felt a few more kicks (or maybe they were punches) before the baby calmed down. Hush little boy, hush…

She didn't know the baby's gender, she'd commanded the medical droid she saw for check-ups not to tell her. But she always had a strong feeling it would be a boy. She believed it was motherly intuition (though perhaps it could just be wishful thinking).

Her family was a family of girls. Her mother had had her and her sister. Her sister had had her nieces Ryoo and Pooja. There was never a son, a brother, a nephew. The only men in the house were those who married into the family. If she had a son it would be a nice change.

If she could keep him.

The possibility that her baby could turn out to be Jedi material had been growing in her mind lately. If he had the potential, she would send him to the Temple to be trained as a Jedi. Some people would think her cold and uncaring to send her baby away, but who was she to deny her son his full potential? If he had the ability to be a Jedi, then he should be. Gods knew the Jedi Order would need many new Initiates to rebuild itself after the war.

Giving him up would hurt though. It would hurt a lot. She held no illusions about that. And that was part of the reason why she worked so obsessively. She didn't want to get too attached to her son and the idea of motherhood. It would only intensify the pain of separation…if it came to that.

Forcibly turning her thoughts away from her baby and his future, she instead focused on the present. After the terror of the surprise attack and the relief at Palpatine's safe return, the Senate had gone into recess to allow the rattled Senators to recover their wits. But before she had returned to the apartment, Bail Organa had approached her with an invitation.

Something about this invitation was special. Bail had led her aside, but still stayed close enough to other chatting Senators to mask what he was going to say. And something about the way that he invited her to his meeting gave her the impression that it was important, special. He would give her no details other than the time (tomorrow) and place (his office) of the meeting. But something about his tone of voice and the look in his eyes caught her attention.

She accepted the invitation, of course. Bail was her friend and she respected him greatly. Not only was he the Viceroy of Alderaan (a largely ceremonial position at this time) but he was the elected Senator of Alderaan. He was a pacifist by nature just like she was and he held the Jedi Order in high respect. Whatever Bail's meeting was about, it would likely be something she agreed with. Bail was a good man and he would only get involved with good causes.

Sabé probably won't be happy that I have another meeting tomorrow, Padmé sighed. Sabé doesn't like anything I do anymore. She sighed and lightly massaged her stomach. But just one more month. One more month and then I can go home.

Vader settled himself down on one of the low circular cushioned chairs that populated Master Yoda's meditation chamber. Obi-Wan also took a seat, choosing the little stool next to Vader. Master Yoda and Master Windu were already there, seated and waiting.

"Anything to add, have you?" Master Yoda asked without preamble. His question referred to the debriefing by the entire Council less then a half hour earlier that had focused on what had happened on board the Invisible Hand.

Obi-Wan had already said everything that he had to say. But he'd been unconscious part of the time. Vader hadn't, and that was conveniently when all the really bad stuff happened.

"When I had Count Dooku at my mercy, Supreme Chancellor Palpatine pressured me to kill him." Vader began bluntly.

Both of the Masters were shocked. Vader couldn't say that he blamed them. It was a shocking thing to hear about a man that they had worked with for years. Master Windu found his voice again first.

"Did you do as he requested?" Mace asked.

"Not intentionally," Vader frowned. "But Dooku did lunge at the Chancellor as though he was going to attack and that's when and why I killed him." He shook his head at the whole mess. "Then after that, he was very calm and relaxed. I guess he tried to soothe my apparent guilty conscience by saying that Dooku was a great threat and that it was good that I killed him, that it was a move that defended the rest of the Order."

"Hmm," Yoda grunted, disturbed by what he was hearing. "More is there?"

"Unfortunately," Vader sighed. "After all that with Dooku, he tried to rush me in leaving the observation deck. When I stopped to collect Master Kenobi, he pressured me to leave him behind so that we could escape faster. I ignored that order of course." He snorted in disgust.

Yoda and Mace eyed each other before responding.

"Strong accusations these are," Yoda murmured. "Perhaps exaggerating the events you might be?"

"Why would I do something stupid like that?" Vader scowled. "I wouldn't make this stuff up, I have no motive to."

"What is your personal opinion of the Supreme Chancellor?" Mace inquired.

"I don't like him at all." Vader stated firmly. "I didn't like him when I first met him at the Senate charity ball six months ago and I like him even less now. I would be perfectly happy to never see him ever again."

The two Masters studied him for a long minute or two, testing his sincerity and his emotions. Vader stared right back at them, confident that they would find nothing wrong with his expanded account because he knew he was right. Apparently satisfied with what they found, they nodded to him.

"Dismissed you are," Master Yoda told them.

"May the Force be with you," Master Windu added.

Vader and Obi-Wan echoed the ancient greeting and departed. They walked back to their apartment without saying a word. But once their door had closed behind them, the silence ended.

"Do you have any plans for tomorrow?" Obi-Wan asked.

"No, nothing in particular," Vader shrugged. "Why?"

"I'll be running a briefing on the Outer Rim sieges just before noon," Obi-Wan replied. "Feel up to helping me with it?"

"Sure," Vader nodded. "So long as you do all the talking and I get to play with the clicker that advances the graphics." He smirked.

"Fine," Obi-Wan chuckled. "You can run the holo-projector if you want to."

"Hooray!" Vader grinned sarcastically, heading for his room. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night," Obi-Wan called after him.

"'Night!" Vader called back before the door shut behind him.

It was a bit early, the sun was still up and all, but after all the insanity just beyond the atmosphere, he was ready to turn in. He quickly shrugged off his cloak, removed his belts and boots and glove, and shed his tunics. After swapping his regular pants for sleep pants he settled onto his little bed and started to relax.

I wonder how Padmé's doing. Vader sighed and cheated, using the Force to switch off the lights without getting up. I should go visit her, he decided. Maybe tomorrow, after Obi-Wan's briefing thing…