A MESSED UP DESTINY

A STAR WARS STORY

Chapter 32

Disclaimer: Disney owns everything and I make no profit from this.

Hello there everyone and welcome to chapter 32 of the story! I know the preview for this one had a comedic note, but that's because I wanted to end things on a lighter note, hence the jokes. In all seriousness, this chapter is from Padme's point of view and deals with a surprise visit from the family, and the dinner that follows. It also gives an answer as to what it was that Anakin and Padme discussed after the Malevolence Crisis.

Now…without further ado…let's dive right into it!

Dearest Family! As Senator Padme Amidala deals with a surprise family visit, Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker senses a disturbance in the Force, signaling the danger they've all unknowingly put themselves in. Meanwhile, the nefarious Sith Lord Darth Sidious plans to eliminate the Senator, who has been a thorn in his side for far too long. Will our heroes survive the night, or will a simple dinner turn tragic in the blink of an eye?

500 Republica, Padme's apartment, Padme's point of view:

Everything had been going well so far. Keyword 'had been', of course, since it didn't take long for things to go south after what happened at the Landing Pad with Anakin and Chancellor Palpatine, or as I now know him, Darth Sidious. Anakin had revealed his identity to me on the way back to Coruscant after the defeat of Grievous aboard the Malevolence, and while it had come as a shock at first, it made perfect sense as soon as I started looking back to everything that's happened since Geonosis.

Anakin and Master Jinn had already told me that Palpatine wasn't to be trusted before that, but the danger he posed became clear as soon as my Ani and I had returned from a medical leave on my hone world, where I had been told that War had officially been declared against the CIS. Palpatine wasn't the one to put the motion forward of course, but with his emergency powers –that I now knew Jar Jar had been tricked into giving him- he was to become Supreme Commander of the GAR, with visibly no opposition to any order he'd give out. Even the Jedi couldn't have stopped him, not that they wanted to.

Things had started to worsen in the Senate, especially after the Battle of Jabiim. Anakin had rushed over two days later and told me everything, but in that time, Palpatine had used the Republic's decisive victory as an excuse to grant himself more power, in order to 'put a swift end to this horrible War', as he had said. Bail and I hadn't believed a word, but the majority of the Senate did, and so more emergency powers were given to the Chancellor.

Then came Christophsis, and with it, news from Anakin. Word about the possibility of Dooku working with us had been the first thing out of his mouth as soon as we spoke, and while I was –and still am- skeptical about the Count's true allegiance, Palpatine now had all major Hyperspace Routes in the Outer Rim under his control. Had Dooku succeeded it would have still been the same, but now he had free reign in an area of the Galaxy with many secluded or lifeless worlds, a fact that had greatly worried Anakin at the time.

The last thing to come while Ani was away were news of an assassin called 'The Phantom'. Many had thought he was a Separatist, but that changed when –after exactly fifteen murders- the Coruscant Guard's Headquarters were broken into, and evidence of all the victims having committed hideous crimes was thrown into the open for everyone to see. At the time, Bail and I had been more worried with what this would do to the people's faith in the Republic, and the Chancellor seemed to share these concerns, but now things were different.

After Anakin told me about his real identity, he also caught me up to speed with most of his plans to act against him in the future, including something he and Revan called 'Operation Lord's Rise'. It had taken me a good second to figure out that this was a joke between the two, being the opposite of 'Operation Knightfall'.

This plan was very simple, but also very difficult to put in motion. They wanted to gather evidence of Sidious' wrongdoings and convict him so that they wouldn't repeat the mistake a Jedi Master –we wouldn't tell me which one- had made when he pulled a group together and went to kill him without warning anyone else, which factored into the Senate's acceptance of the Jedi Order's death. The main problem they were facing –apart from the Sith Lord's secretive nature- was that many politicians in the Republic were corrupt and on his payroll, so they had to get rid of them first. Hence Phantom and everything else that had been spoken in hushed whispers inside the Senate Building's halls.

While I didn't entirely agree with the method in which they were doing this, I couldn't deny that those people had done horrible things and that they were criminals, who the Courts would never convict. I understood that if we wanted to prevent the Chancellor's victory and preserve actual peace and freedom across the Galaxy that things had to be done, but it still felt a bit too drastic. I'd have to talk to Anakin when he got here. Maybe there was another way to solve this without needless death.

"Padme?", Sabé asked from behind me. "You've been staring at that Datapad since Anakin called a few minutes ago. Did something happen?", she asked, voice full of concern and worry.

While I knew Sabé would never admit it, she had warmed up to Anakin over the last year. Where their scuffles once seemed unapologetic and close to actual arguments, they had both fallen into this game of teasing each other to death whenever they'd meet, not unlike what Sola and I used to do every day when we were kids. We still do that, sometimes.

I smiled fondly at the memory of a time where I was carefree and didn't feel like the entire Galaxy's fate rested on my shoulders. I had forgotten that feeling soon after I became Queen of Naboo, and then Senator of my people. When the War had started I had been afraid, I still was sometimes. The small tingles at the back of my head were the only thing that could calm me down in those moments, because that's when Anakin tried to communicate through our Force Bond. It usually wasn't more than emotions, but there were the times where entire words or sentences would come through, usually when I felt more relaxed and peaceful.

"Padme!", Sabé shouted suddenly, and I realized she'd been shaking my shoulder.

Taking a single glance at her, I could see that Sabé was scanning my face for those tell-tale signs that something was wrong. She found nothing, since I wasn't actually upset. "I'm fine.", I told her once she let out a long sigh, tired as she was of looking after me all day.

Getting up from my chair I turned look at her, noticing that Jar Jar was behind her, a cake in hand. "Jar Jar! How nice to see you!", I told him, and the feeling was genuine. Goofy and aloof as he may often be, Jar Jar Binks had a good heart, and only wanted to do good for others.

"Hallo Senator. Meesa bring you a gift! Mister Palpatine's chef make it. Sais sorry for you almost going boom!", he explained and I did my best to keep a straight face, so that he wouldn't think anything was wrong. Jar Jar probably didn't know about what happened at the Landing Pad earlier, and he was genuinely happy to be delivering this 'gift'. His body language said it all.

I smiled politely at him. "Thank you Jar Jar. I'll just put it over here…", I said, reaching for the –probably poisoned- cake, trying to make sure I'd get as far away from his as I could.

"No no Senator. Let meesa help!", he exclaimed again, voice expressing happiness at the thought. Oh Jar Jar…If only you knew…

I opened my mouth to protest as soon as he tried to move the cake out of my reach, but no words managed to come out before Jar Jar tripped on the carpet, the cake ending up splattered across the fabric. At least the Republic would cover its replacement…

"Looks like someone made a mess…", someone said from the door, and once I turned around, I saw him. Anakin. He was finally here.

The second I laid eyes on him, he disappeared from view, only to appear behind me a moment later, helping Jar Jar off the floor. It took our Gungan friend by surprise –he probably hadn't been expecting Anakin to show up-, but he quickly left after that, saying that we both looked tired and that he'd leave us be. Anakin's right hand twitched when Jar Jar said that, probably thinking that he knew about us. No…that's absurd…Jar Jar couldn't possibly…no. He's just being nice, no need to panic.

The second Jar Jar was out of the door, Anakin looked me the eyes, asking the silent question. "Don't be absurd. It's Jar Jar.", I reminded him, feeling a little bad for calling the Gungan out on his aloof nature.

"Right." Anakin chuckled. "How've you two been?", he asked suddenly, wanting to change the subject.

Sabé shot him a glance whose meaning I couldn't decipher, but relented after a moment or two, choosing to respond with no sing of teasing in her tone. "Fine, I suppose. Can't really say with how things have been. This Phantom nonsense is getting in my head…", she admitted, only to slap a hand over her mouth in surprise.

Anakin laughed at Sabé, though the teasing was good-natured. "I can see that. And you, Padme? Any news from Naboo?", he inquired. I'd told him about how I wanted to call my parent this evening to see what they were doing, but work –and a poisoned cake- had caught up to me, so I hadn't gotten to it yet.

"Didn't get the chance to call. Dealing with Senate meetings and poisoned cakes isn't the easiest job in the world, you know?", I replied with a smile, easing the surprise Anakin felt at the latter part of my sentence. He raised a questioning eyebrow, the slightest of yellow glows creeping into his iris, so I made sure to assure him that everything was fine.

I gestured to the cake which was now decorating my carpet and Anakin chuckled. "Sometimes he can be really unoriginal…", he muttered under his breath, though he seemed to address someone else, Revan or Qui Gon probably.

"Guess so.", I added, ignoring the look of curiosity on Sabé's face at the mention of what –in her mind- was an assassination attempt. "Not sure what would've happened if Jar Jar hadn't told me who it was from…", I said, causing Sabé to recoil in shock, though that was probably due to the casual nature of the conversation.

Anakin certainly noticed, but said nothing. He probably didn't want to get into it unless asked, so he just moved to the couch -careful not to step in any cake- and quickly Force Pulled a small piece of the desert in his hand. Examining it for a moment, he then tossed it back on the floor, where the rest it lay.

"Moonglow.", he said. "Extremely tasty from what I've heard, but also very poisonous. A ninety seven-step process is required for consumption and I can bet the Chef made an 'honest mistake' during his preparation. Nothing to scoff at in terms of a plan, and easy to dismiss as an accident.", he elaborated, "Not bad Sidious. Not bad at all.", he added under his breath, though I was surprised at the mention of the exotic fruit. Very few people in the Galaxy know how to prepare it and even fewer are allowed to, even the most high-end restaurants on Coruscant.

"Anakin?", I asked, another unspoken question lying in wait.

He nodded a negative to me, shooting a smile before replying. "I think that's it for today. He did his best, but also has more immediate problems. Heard something about this 'Phantom' being sighted in the Works, so he's monitoring the situation there. Hopefully that should keep him distracted.", Anakin said, not letting on that he knew more, and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. We could spend a quiet afternoon without worry for keeping secrets or staying alive, at least for tonight.

"May I ask who it you're talking about?", Sabé asked, voice betraying anger that she wanted to keep hidden. Anakin must have sensed it, for he stopped himself from twitching and nervously cleared his throat.

Ani then sent a glance to me, as if to apologize, before turning to face Sabé. Raising his right hand and waving it in front of her, he looked as if he hated himself for doing this. "You did not hear anything.", he said, and it hit me. He was performing a Mind Trick.

"I-I…I didn't…", Sabé stuttered, trying to resist. "I did not hear anything.", she said out loud, eyes blank and slightly glassy, if only for a second. I'd have missed it if I wasn't looking. She then shook her head, as if dizzy, before looking around, confused.

"What…what just happened?", Sabé asked, puzzled. I was about to respond, but Anakin cut me off before I could.

He felt terrible for doing that to her, I could see it his eyes. If I tried to focus, I could even feel regret coming from where his feelings usually did. That one spot in the back of my head. "I used a Mind Trick on you.", he immediately admitted. Sabé looked taken aback, then furious.

"You did what? How could you!", she exclaimed, clearly hurt. I tried to step in, but then thought better of it. Anakin was taking responsibility for his action, I should let him handle this.

Anakin's eyes went to the floor. I felt that he couldn't even bare to look at her. "…I'm sorry.", he muttered suddenly. "You heard something that would've have put you in danger-I…I don't want anyone to get hurt.", he explained to her.

It was then that Sabé turned to me. Her eyes were on fire from the anger she felt, and I couldn't blame her. She looked into mine, searching for answers I wanted to give her…but I knew she'd only be hurt from them. I couldn't tell her what was going on with Palpatine, with Dooku and the Jedi. No one could know anything about Darth Sidious until he was thrown in jail, or at least that's what I hoped would happen. Anakin had said he was too dangerous to be left alive, and I trusted him, so was probably right about the Sith Lord.

"I…there is someone. On Coruscant. They know how to read minds.", I told her, and Anakin looked at me in warning. It's not that he didn't approve of me telling her, but that he truly didn't want to drag anyone else into this fight. It wasn't Sabé's battle, and if Ani had it his, it would only be his. "I…I know how to shield mine, but you are vulnerable and they are very powerful. Dangerous. If they knew that we know they so much as exist, we're all going to die.", I added, careful not to let my voice crack at the dark thought.

It was then that I felt Anakin's presence in my mind, even though he was only a meter away. Feelings of love and warmth flooded my headspace, making me smile fondly. Gods…this is why I love you, Anakin Skywalker.

'Why thank you milady…", Ani's voice teased inside my head, but he didn't go any further, turning his attention back to the matter at hand.

Sabé still seemed to be processing what little information I'd given her, and her face changed from one of anger, to fear, to worry, concern, and finally, acceptance. "…I understand. So long as you stay safe, I'm willing to forgive this. But if you need me for anything, just say the word. That goes for both of you." Anakin smiled at her as soon as she looked in his direction, grateful for her acceptance of what he viewed as a major transgression. Sabé shot him a small smile of her own before clearing her throat and moving towards the Kitchen to prepare dinner.

Seeing this, Anakin followed closely behind. When Sabé glanced at him questioningly, he shrugged. "I'm helping. Least I can do as an apology." My Handmaiden and childhood friend accepted this quickly enough, letting Ani help her in the Kitchen. Threepio had shut himself down about an hour ago, so he wouldn't be able to make us dinner tonight, but at least I wouldn't have to hear him complain about everything. I swear, whining must be a planet-wide occurrence on Ani's home world.

Ignoring the mental 'I resent that' Ani sent my way, having picked up on the thought, I took a seat on the couch, mentally preparing myself to relax and have a good time. The doorbell rang just as I was about to take my shoes off, disrupting my thoughts again. I went to get up, but Anakin indirectly stopped me by yelling out that he'd get it. Such a sweetheart…

"Senator Organa!", Anakin's voice exclaimed with surprise. "How nice to see you my friend!", he said, completely genuine. It seemed like whatever malice Darth Vader had once held for my colleague had died with him, and that the friendship between him and Anakin had returned in full force.

"Knight Skywalker!", Bail replied, also surprised at seeing him there. In hindsight, I probably should have been the one to answer the door, since Ani shouldn't be seen here. "I admit, I didn't expect to see you here.", Bail said, chuckling.

"Oh!", Ani exclaimed, probably realizing that he shouldn't be seen here. "Well…Senator Amidala invited me for dinner after the mess that was the Malevolence Mission. Between me and you, I think it's a 'thank you' for saving her life, but she hasn't said anything so far.", Anakin told him, expertly delivering an explanation for his presence here. Had I not personally known him and to the degree I did, I probably would've bought it myself.

Bail laughed at Anakin's response, though a passing thought from Anakin's mind indicated that he might have caught on to what was going on here. "Oh my friend, Padme is very unlikely to admit to such a thing! I assume the heroic rescue made her want to make up for it?", he joked, and Anakin laughed along.

"Not exactly, Senator. She did turn a good three dozen droids to scrap on her own. Really made my job easy, you know?", Ani said, falling back onto banter to keep the conversation going.

"In any case, I'm only here because the four of them got lost.", Bail replied, puzzling me. All my Handmaidens knew the way here like the back of their hands, and I'd already dismissed them almost as soon as I came back. "I only came to make sure that our other colleagues wouldn't be disturbed at this hour.", he added, though I could hear a veiled distain in his voice. Couldn't blame him. Senator Ta lived just down the hall, after all. Force knowns no one would want to see him during his off-time.

"Of course Senator Organa. I'll be sure to inform Senator Amidala of their arrival right away.", Anakin said politely.

"May the Force be with you.", Bail responded kindly.

"And with you, Senator."

Curious as to who Bail had brought, especially since Anakin was freely allowing them in with no warning or attempt to reveal their identities to me, I got up from the couch and took a few steps towards the door, where Anakin stood, exchanging greetings with them. As the visitors finally came into view, a wave of shock overcame me, since I hadn't expected them to be here! Not tonight of all nights!

"Surprise!", five voices yelled in unison, Anakin having joined in with them.

"Mom? Dad? Darred? Sola?", I asked, completely bewildered at seeing my family at my doorstep.

"Isn't this great Padme? We haven't seen our daughter in such a long time!", Mom exclaimed.

"Yeah…great…"

And…scene! There you have it everyone! Chapter 32 of A Messed Up Destiny! Well 32 and a half to be exact. I originally planned to switch to Anakin's POV right after this, but I simply won't have the time to write the rest of the chapter and keep up with the updating schedule. Since Schools and Universities have started again, I'll be very busy with assignments from now and until…well, Christmas Vacation, really. I'll still keep to one chapter a week as always, but they will be shorter by necessity.

So, Dearest Family part 2 will be coming next week, but until then, let's dive right into some exposition!

Firstly, Anakin revealing Sidious' identity. The reason for this is a very simple one. Now that Sidious has tried to assassinate her once already by sending her on a suicide mission, Padme will need to know who she's really dealing with to survive while Anakin is fighting in the War.

Also, when Padme mentions that she knows how to shield her mind, she means that Anakin taught her a little bit (either in person or through Force Bond) so she could guard her thoughts from Sidious. This is something that Anakin would have brought up in the second part of this chapter, but I have to make it clear here since I'm splitting the chapter up.

Secondly, the cake. The Cake is a Lie, as we all know! Or better yet, a great tool for assassinations! …In most cases anyways… Anyhow, the cake didn't actually contain any poison like Padme thought at first, but did have inside it a fruit known as Moonglow, which is extremely poisonous if not prepared properly before consumption. It's also one of those more obscure things from Star Wars media that I like to include, like the fact that Glass is called Transparisteel for some reason. Plastic still has the same name though…so I don't know why that is.

Long story short, I wanted to include a lesser piece of Star Wars media in this chapter and the Moonglow is a good way to do that, since Palpatine is one of the only people in the Galaxy with a personal Moonglow chef (a chef specifically trained in this ninety-seven step process Anakin mentions) and it makes him look smart because there's no way to pin the blame on him since it would just be an accident.

Thirdly, Anakin doing the Mind Trick on Sabé. I personally didn't want to write this scene because while small, it hurts a bit if you think about it. It's similar to what happened when he was talking to Dooku in some ways, with Anakin ready to do what needs to be done in order to protect those he cares about, but it's much more personal because it's Sabé, whose relationship with Anakin is something Padme compares to the one with her own sister, Sola, an aspect taken directly from Legends continuity.

Anakin doesn't want to impose his Will on her in any way, not even to make her forget something with a Jedi Mind Trick. This is (apart from the fact that she is his friend) because Anakin has always had other people imposing their Will on him in some way. First Watto, then the Jedi Council, then the Emperor. He hates doing that to other people because he's been on the other side of it, hence why he's (so far) almost never ordered the Clones to do anything at all, or at least didn't expect them to blindly follow his orders. The only exception is Oddball, but that's when Master Koon was in immediate danger and had to be rescued, so it doesn't count.

Lastly, Padme's family coming to visit. This segment isn't so much an explanation, but a question for you guys. What do you guys think is going to happen next chapter? Domestic Anidala is to be expected, but is there something else you'll think will happen?

Next time: Now unexpectedly finding himself having dinner with his wife's…err…girlfriend's family, Anakin Skywalker tasks himself with the most important mission (bar from defeating the Emperor) he has ever had to date. Not making himself look like a fool in front of them, but will he succeed when faced with Sola's relentless teasing and an endless line of questions from her and Padme's parents, who want to know everything about the boy who stole their youngest daughter's heart?

That's all for now everyone! Reviews are always welcome, whether it be to ask question or to chat, and I'll see you all next chapter, but until then, May the Force be with you!