The Inquisitor left, storming off with the promise that pain was still coming for Leia and the child had a chance to catch her breath.

Never in her life had she been so afraid and alone. Ben…or Obi-Wan, as the horrible lady had called him, wasn't coming this time. He was dead. Her father didn't know where she was.

Tala…maybe Tala was coming for her! Tala would come. The strong, smart, fierce woman was everything Leia wanted to be and she had been pretending she was Tala the whole time since being captured. Tala had to come.

'Tala wouldn't cry.' Leia told herself. 'You need to breathe. You need to get away! No crying. Crying is useless.'

The guards clearly didn't care if a child was killed or tortured, so Leia didn't even bother trying to appeal to their compassion. They had none.

What she needed was-

'No. Nononono. This was it. There was no way out.'

Leia's breathing quickened again as the harsh reality crushed down on her and that cold, icy terror closed in around her again. She wouldn't see her mother or father again. She wouldn't climb trees, she was going to-

The lights went out.

What was it? A new technique? Had the torture started?

Leia held her breath as silence stretched for a minute and the guards shuffled in their spots.

Deadly humming burst the air as blue light illuminated the room to her right, arching and slashing the trooper to the ground. Then it went dark again. In the dull hue of red from her spot on the floor, Leia couldn't see anything, but she felt dizzy with relief.

A lightsaber. A Jedi. Someone came.

In that brief moment of light, Leia thought she saw-

"There's no way out! Stand where you are!" The remaining trooper ordered, waving his blaster around at no target in particular.

Blue flashed once more, two strokes and the trooper was down. This time Leia could see who it was.

In seconds Ben was jumping over the body and releasing her. A small laugh of disbelief huffed out of her chest as she stared at the face of the Jedi.

He lifted her down, hands gently patting her shoulders as he searched her face.

"You're alive!" Leia breathed, barely keeping herself from flinging her arms around the man. She felt now was not the time, and if she did, she might break. Tala wouldn't cry. Tala wouldn't fling her arms around Ben and cry like a baby. Leia wouldn't either. She sobered as she put her brave face on again. "They told me you were dead. I didn't tell them anything."

"I know." Ben told her, pride and pain flooding his aura. He rose and his big calloused hand took hers. "Come with me. I'm going to get you home."

Just as they moved to the left of the table, they heard a blaster being trained on them.

"Hands where I can see them!"

The voice of a stormtrooper crackled through the helmet into the dark and Leia clutched Ben's hand a little tighter, slipping behind him without any prompting.

Blaster fire erupted before he even had the chance to draw his lightsaber. The trooper fell to the ground with an audible thud. Moments later a man's voice drifted to them with shaking bravado, as if he were in pain but trying to hide it.

"Not a bad aim for someone who can't see…or stand."

"I told you to stay put!" Ben scolded, a familiar exasperation present in his tone. It pleased Leia that she wasn't the only one who had it directed at her.

"You're welcome." The voice near the door grumbled.

Ben tugged on her hand and they moved toward the speaker. Leia hurried, feeling the urgency in her protector's step.

The man by the door was slumped against the wall, clinging to a blaster with his eyes closed. He was clad in only pants, his limbs were shaking with the effort it took to keep him standing and in the dim red lights Leia was almost positive she could see ribs poking out from beneath the skin. It was amazing he was even able to breathe. He looked like he should be dead.

"Who are you?" She asked, fear making her voice sound more demanding than she meant as a mix of wariness and disgust crept in. How could the empire do such things to people?

The man grimaced as he slid slowly down the wall to the floor. "Anakin Skywalker, at your service. Thought you might need some help."

"You look like you need help." Leia told him frankly, though she had to admit she was impressed he was so carefree despite how weak he was.

"She's right. You never listen to me." Ben leaned down and hoisted him up so that one arm was slung over his shoulder. "You should have rested. How am I going to get you both out of here?"

"We've been in worse jams…just have a little faith, master." The man-Anakin said, a smile on his lips even as he grimaced in pain.

"I can't think of one at the moment worse than this. Still can't believe it's you, Anakin…I thought…nevermind. It has to wait." Ben's voice was husky with emotion as he dragged Anakin along. "Leia, come on his other side, see if you can help me with him. If we run into trouble I want you to drag him out of the way if you can-."

"Wait." Leia stopped moving as she connected the dots of his name and the same one Ben had whispered in the transport when they escaped Daiyu. "Anakin…but Anakin is the person you were so afraid of! His name made you hurt…no…you were horrified! They hurt you and-"

"Not now, Leia. This man-this man is NOT that man."

"What!? What do you mean 'Anakin' hurt Obi-Wan and that he's afraid of me!?" The man supported by Ben went rigid.

"Not now, Anakin. I'll explain everything later." Ben all but snapped. "Leia, trust me. Please. I wouldn't let him near you if I thought he would hurt us. Now would you please help him? It's all right."

"How do we know it's not a trick?"

"Now who's being pessimistic and doubtful?" Ben sighed, though she could tell her words got to him because he shifted uncomfortably. "We'll deal with it as it comes. I'm not leaving him here."

Reluctantly, Leia took Anakin's elbow and let him use her as a balancing aid. He was so tall he had to hold her arms up to reach him. She eyed him warily as they stole along the corridors in the semi dark.

"Pretty sure you could take me down single handedly right now…Leia was it?" Anakin murmured, his eyes still closed. "You can relax. Whatever you've heard, it wasn't me. I could never hurt Obi-Wan, or you, and even if I wanted to, I can hardly even keep this blaster in my hand at the moment."

"I could carry it for you." Leia offered, keeping her voice sweet and innocent as she eyed the weapon. He'd killed a stormtrooper easily enough with it. Should they really be letting him keep it?

"Sure if that would make you feel better." He answered, moving as though to hand it to her.

"Do NOT give the child a blaster, Anakin. She's ten!"

"Ten is plenty old enough to hold a blaster! We gave a lightsaber to younger children than ten!" Anakin wheezed, although his grip tightened on the blaster once more. "I'm sure she would handle it wonderfully."

Leia felt a spark of pride despite herself at his words and her shoulders squared. Of course she could handle a blaster. She wasn't a baby. Tala used a blaster, so she could too.

"Nevermind that. Leia I want you to close your eyes and don't open them until I tell you to."

"Why?"

"Leia. Please, just do it. I don't want you to see this."

Ben's voice cracked a little, so Leia obeyed leaving Ben to lead two sightless people from the depths of the fortress. All she could feel with Anakin's bony elbow in her hand and the sweat building from the effort it was taking for him to walk. It was cold all around them, like a dank, moldy, never ending night of fear and despair. Leia longed to open her eyes. Maybe the light would chase away the feeling that at any moment she would be snatched away, back to that chamber that promised pain.

Beside her Anakin drew a long, quiet, deep breath and released it. And then another. And another.

Slow. Steady. Calming.

The atmosphere around them shifted as she listened and warmth rippled around them like a lake on a summer's day. Light broke through the clouds in her mind as she found herself breathing deeper as well.

"We're out, Leia. You can open your eyes now." Ben whispered.

"I'd open mine, but I can't." Anakin mumbled almost sulkily. "Probably because of the drugs they pumped into me. I think it's starting to fade though! My legs feel stronger and-"

"Shh." Leia glared up at the tall man beside her. "You'll get us caught. We have to be stealthy. Don't you know how to be stealthy?"

"Don't shush me. I know how to be stealthy."

Leia muttered under her breath, "You sure don't seem like you do."

"My eyes may have problems, but my hearing is excellent." Anakin whispered.

"You-"

"Enough, both of you!" Ben hissed. "I'm having enough trouble here without you two bickering!"

Leia clicked her mouth shut, but glared at Anakin again for good measure even though he couldn't see it. Somehow, she got the impression he knew anyway because he had the audacity to smile.