10 The Epic: THE EMPEROR VISITS RELATIVES

AUTHOR'S NOTE : This would read more potently if the two characters on Naboo were Palpatine's siblings instead. However I will respect the storyline established by James Luceno in Darth Plagueis, where Palpatine's siblings were deceased at this time frame.

Palpatine and the entourage didn't actually stay on Naboo. His Star Dreadnought, the Eclipse, floated above the capital city and transports were taken down for brief visits. Eva had never seen anything as remotely stunning as Naboo, for its architecture or natural beauty. Royal guards, retinue, shock troopers and miscellaneous officials convened upon a pleasant residence in the center of Theed. This was a childhood home of the Emperor, it was explained. It was so very odd, to use the words 'child' and 'Emperor' in the same sentence.

Sentries were posted throughout the neighborhood. Streets were blocked. Air space was shut off to all but the Imperial craft darting noisily above. Inside, security did a walk through as Eva was tasked with sorting through the home's staff of droids, having them arrange the temperature, dim the lights, and close the window coverings. A group of onlookers was forming outside the low wall around the gardens.

Eva fell in love with the home instantly. What a charmed childhood it would have provided! Elegant and distinguished, yet possessing genuine warmth, it was ornate in a fashion to please, not impress. It did not seem like an overly wealthy person's home, but Eva was unaware of the costliness of central city real estate. The residence was so opposite the uninspired dwelling from her own upbringing.

While the Emperor's relatives and old acquaintances streamed in, the downstairs was becoming crowded to the point of absurdity. Half the Imperials relocated outside, as the Emperor and more entourage were about to land. Eva was free to mix while they waited, and she studied the relatives with curiosity. The other Courtiers surprised her by their willingness to point them out (she hadn't yet realized, how much Courtiers thrived on insight and gossip). Eva was fixated with the Emperor's nephew Evan, who was actually similar in age and looked much like Palpatine should, had he not been disfigured. Evan was a statesman and notable in his own right, though his sphere of influence did not reach beyond Naboo. This whole extended family, had been carrying on, living normal lives, without fanfare or security.

A patter of rain began at dusk but the number of onlookers outside did not thin, None of the Imperials came inside from the garden. As the Emperor stepped through the doorway the group fell silent. As far as she could tell, the effect on those who had gathered to see him on this exceedingly rare public appearance, was profound. While they closed in (clearly less than four arm's distance), Palpatine made his way through to the stairs leading to where his aunt rested. He quietly acknowledged a few, and stopped longer before one slim young man- his son from a dissolved marriage long before. The tension was measurable. They hadn't spoken in years. "You have a daughter now? Did you bring her?" The young man slowly shook his head.

Eva was left behind for the night, ostensibly as a favor to help the family. The cousins were more accommodating than she would have expected, even asking her to dine with them.

The nephew, Evan, hadn't yet left and was sitting alone by the fireplace, glass in hand.

"I apologize for my intrusion. It's not by my choice. May I?" Eva indicated the chair across from him.

He motioned her to be seated. "It's alright, I can imagine the complexity necessary for Sheev's arrangements. It was good of him to come see his aunt."

"Have you seen him often?"

Evan smirked. The weak chin with clef, the cheeks; it was a mannerism so much like the Emperor. "Little, but more than I care to. What is your position, exactly? And you can remove that ridiculous headdress, Eva. I won't tell."

She obliged and fussed a moment with her hair, but it was setting a bad precedent. "Do you know about the Greater and the Lesser Courtiers?"

"Yes, but go on. I want to hear it in your own words."

"I'm being groomed to be a Greater Courtier. A personal aid to the Emperor. The Lesser Courtiers are more ceremonial, and interface between the Emperor and the public. Well, such that the 'public' is allowed to intrude. But a position of Greater Courtier is far more prestigious."

"Will he listen to you?"

Eva found herself enthralled with the man's face, his voice and its similarity to the Emperor. The feeling was somewhat unsettling. "I don't know, I'm not there yet. I can't imagine he would." Eva wasn't exactly sure where the line in this conversation should be.

Evan held his drink out to her, offering to share. Eva accepted easily. He continued, "And why you? Why did they pick you for the job?"

Here she needed to tread lightly. She rose to locate the decanter, and refilled his glass before returning it. "I'm 'infamous' of sorts. Previously, you know the courtiers have been drawn from the noble houses of the past- an appeasement to the royal families. And it cements the prestige of the position. Palpatine…Sheev…is making a statement by now choosing from his 'own house.' As a decorated officer, I'm the closest the Imperials have." Almost over the line.

"That's half an answer."

"Well…they have criteria: They don't want people with families. They seek cultivation, tact. Loyalty, obedience. Distinctive personalities that keep their mouths shut. Discretion." She smirked. "With some qualities, I fare weaker." Now to find out if it was worth it. "Favor for a favor?"

He nodded. "Fair enough."

"Did you know your uncle had changed? Could you tell when it happened?"

He passed her the glass. "You mean when he picked up on that murky alchemy cult he subscribes to? He was up and gone for one. A long period before he came back and entered politics. But no, you will never know what's going on in Sheev's mind. That weakness the rest of us possess, to confide, to have at least one person near—it was always beyond him. And he's a master of deceptive expression. If you read anything, it's because he wants you to. Favor for a favor. Are you in over your head?"

"Absolutely." She returned the glass for him to continue.

"...And in particular, don't be gullible to Sheev's rare acts of kindness. 'Generosity' would be obvious. Instead, he's thoughtful with uncanny insight that blindsides you. His temper…it's real enough…but again, he's only revealing for effect. He is so driven, so effective, that it will astonish you his maliciousness is not only for gain. For him it's pleasure." He pressed. "What does 'personal aid' mean, exactly?"

She rose to gently refill the glass in his hand, and bowed her head. "A glorified server, for one…"

Eva stayed up all evening in the room with the aunt, offering her whatever human touches she could manage aside the medical droid. In her waking moments she spoke. Eva wasn't sure she understood who she was.

"You came with Sheev?"

"Yes, I did. I hope you don't mind my being here."

"He's so able a Senator."

Eva had leaned down over the bed to glimpse the night sky out the window beyond, as if she could tell which light among the stars came from the Emperor's Dreadnought. "Oh, he's much more than that now."

"There's a 'Marius' and a speeder outside to collect you, " the cousin announced and held out a cup of warm caf to wake her. Eva sat up in the chair with a start, quickly replaced her headdress and grabbed her commlink. Then Eva was hurrying out of the house into the crisp morning air, purple robes flapping, one hand on her headdress. She stopped to look back at the gardens in full bloom. The fountain could be heard above the Imperial craft passing above. The early light filtered through the leaves and warmly lit the façade in patches. In a fleeting sense of peace, she decided it was her most favorite place in the entire universe.

Not many meters away was a final stop- A token tribute for the holocameras. Palpatine had resisted Sate Pestage's suggestion to make a show of respect at the mausoleum. But now inside, he was finding amusement with the two women before him.

Eva was practically wide-eyed. It's really her. Padmé Amidala.

Palpatine's thoughts had been of a different nature; The folly of the Naboo, to grant a pubescent girl such influence. I wonder how many night's sleep you lost, recalling your vote of no confidence in Chancellor Valorum pushing me to power?

He had sensed a slight repulsion from her, even when he was a youthful Senator. Padmé Amidala Naberrie could do little to recoil now. Lord Vader so acutely desired that some part of her still existed, but Palpatine sensed nothing as he leaned up against the sarcophagus. He smiled at Eva. How does it make you feel, unable to compete with a rotting corpse?

His cane clacked the cold stone floor. He was waiting for Eva to continue.

"...to a certain extent, Evan resents that you have not offered a place for him in your government. He's jealous. Of your success, the fanfare. He is not always discrete, when he speaks of you."

"Aren't we fortunate, you can hold your alcohol," he spat. Silence creeped in but he made no move to leave. "What else did you learn?" He was waiting. After a time he said, "Come over here, Cescily."

Eva stiffened at the sound of it. The Emperor had begun to call her by her birth name, though only when they were unaccompanied. She did not know what to make of it – a petty slight on Vader's authority? Or a feigned familiarity with her previous life? Was it a reminder he knew more about her than the official records - the records Aloo was reciting when they first met?

She approached him at the head of the sarcophagus, stopping at four arm's length. Her head was respectfully tilted downward but her eyes remained steady within his despite the expression of malevolent mischievousness. That she could hold his gaze was a rare quality he appreciated. This was not the repugnance Padmé felt. This had become altogether something else, a morbid fascination perhaps. Eva was flattered by the attention of the galaxy's most powerful man. But her knees were weakening and her stomach began to knot.

He had turned so that he faced her. "Closer."

Eva reluctantly obliged. He took the bundle of flowers she had been assigned to carry and discarded them on the lid. Then he extended the long fingers of his hand, inviting her to take it within her own.

Eva remained motionless. "I heard a rumor. About your parents."

"They were in an accident. You know that." And he watched her, a glint in the gold luminescence of his eye.

He knows. He must know everything. He just wants me to believe I can keep some things hidden.