Leia Skywalker Chapter Two
A/N: So sorry for a delayed update! Anyway, I hope you liked that first chapter! I'm not totally sure yet how I want this to head toward the end I have in mind, but we'll see how this thought baby grows. I tried to make it longer, because I noticed how short my chapters have been thus far. So, I will try to make these longer from here on out.
I also thought Vader was really OOC in the last chapter, so I tried to correct that here. Let's just say he was stunned into Anakin mode with the sudden arrival of his not-so-dead daughter.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars.
Recap: Leia found out she was adopted and decided to find out who her birth parents were. Once she found out everything, she went to find her biological father: Darth Vader. Artoo plotted this for quite a while because he thinks Leia can save her father from the darkness that has consumed him. Threepio is clueless until Vader restores his memory. And Vader has suddenly found himself the proud father of his precious little girl—oh no! He's turning into a softy. Don't worry, he's still a big, bad Sith Lord.
Vjun, Bast Castle, Kitchens
"Do you know how to cook?" The question took him by surprise.
"Do I know how to cook?" Vader repeated the question. Leia nodded. "Yes, I know how to cook. Why do you ask?"
"You do know how!? That's awesome!" Leia cheered. "Could you teach me how?" Leia looked up at him through her long lashes.
"Hmm. Perhaps," Vader noncommittedly agreed.
"Do you have any recipes that are special to you?" Leia quizzed, wanting to know his favorite foods.
"Yes, I have all my mother's recipes memorized," Vader admitted, without thinking.
"Oh wow! That's so cool!"
'What am I doing? I haven't strolled down memory lane like this in years!' Vader berated himself mentally.
'She's your daughter. She deserves to know.' A decidedly Anakin-sounding voice whispered from the corner of his mind.
'She is my daughter, but I am a Sith Lord. She must forget all these fantasies!' the Vader-sounding portion of his mind hissed back.
'She's just a kid.' Anakin whispered in return.
'She's a spoiled brat!' the Vader part bellowed.
'She's our spoiled brat.' Anakin had pride in his faint voice.
'I do not know how you've escaped your prison but go back! Before I kill you.'
'Yeah, right. Like you could kill me.'
Anakin had a point. Vader had not successfully driven him fully through death's door in the past six years. Leia's presence had made Anakin stronger, if only marginally. But Vader wasn't about to admit that to the Jedi.
"Dad?" Leia asked, starting to get concerned.
"Hmm?"
"You didn't answer my question," Leia stated.
"What was your question?" he prompted, exasperated.
"If you can't eat, how do you get the important stuff eating gives you?"
Vader's exasperation faded slightly.
"My suit has a system that injects that "important stuff" directly into my blood stream, which is where your body would eventually put it," Vader explained.
"What is the important stuff?"
"Nutrients, mostly."
"Oh," Leia seemed to be contemplating something. She was staring down at her food, pushing it around.
"What is it?" Leia's head shot up, surprised.
"Oh, uhh, well," she paused, collecting her thoughts. "I was thinking. And I know you said you wanted to arrest my fake parents, but idontreallyknowhowIfeelaboutthat," she spoke quickly and quietly at the end of her sentence.
Vader, caught unprepared, was unable to decipher what she had said. "Say that again, but slower and louder so that I can hear you," he ordered, once again trying, and failing, to be gentle.
Leia flinched at his tone; Vader winced. "I- uh—dunno if I want you to hurt my fake parents."
"Why?"
Leia was surprised he hadn't flipped the table. "Well, it's just, they've been really nice to me, and I think they're nice people. And prison's a bad place and I don't want them hurt in prison."
"You already informed me that they are rebels," Vader countered, not even stopping to wonder how his six-year-old child knew prison was a 'bad place'. "That is not being "nice people.""
"But they are! I think they just see the baddest parts of the Empire!"
"The bad parts?"
"Yeah, like the starving people that come to Alderaan because stormtroopers burned their homes down," she told him.
"Why would stormtroopers burn random houses down?"
"I don't know! But Daddy Bail and Momma Breha think it's wrong and that's why they're rebels!"
"I see," Vader sat back, contemplating. Making a decision, he leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "There are parts of the Empire that need to be fixed, certainly. I have tried to fix some of the issues I find most catastrophic; however, I cannot improve much beyond the military. Furthermore, I am sure those houses were not destroyed randomly. I would like to figure out why you seem to think they were."
"Most of the people said it was 'cuz they weren't not listening to the governor guy that the Empire put in charge on their planet," Leia supplied.
"I see," Vader repeated. "Disobeying an Imperial Governor is a punishable offense, but burning houses down is overkill. I believe the correct punishment is a short time in a cell. Times would vary depending on the level of disobedience," Vader explained, trying to use simpler terms to not confuse his daughter.
"I dunno what all happened to all those people, that's just what I heard."
"I am not saying you are wrong, Leia. I know plenty governors that are corrupt enough to punish disobedience in such a way. It is unfortunate the Emperor staffs his Empire with such men."
"At least you're not like that," Leia said, now happily munching on her food.
"Hmmm. I should hope so, at least," Vader said, reevaluating himself and thus reentering an unwanted mental dialogue between himself and Anakin.
They sat in silence, only broken by Vader's measured breathing, while Leia finished her food. This did not take long. It wasn't like Leia could be quiet in the presence of her father for very long, anyway.
"Hey, dad," Leia started, getting up and taking her dishes to the sink.
"Yes?"
"Can I get a tour of this place?" After setting her dishes in the sink, with her father's assistance, necessary due to her height, Leia turned to him and yawned.
"No, sweet child. Not tonight. It appears you would not make very far without falling asleep."
"No! I can—" another yawn interrupted her. "I can stay awake!"
"Oh, sure. Even if you could," he set his hand on his daughter's back and began guiding her through the halls, "I doubt you would be able to remember any significant amount of Bast in the morning."
"But-!"
"No. My decision is final. You are going to bed. We can take a tour tomorrow, after you eat breakfast."
"Fine," Leia crossed her arms. Vader was startled by how much his daughter resembled a young Anakin in that moment.
The duo stopped once they reached Leia's quarters.
"Why did we stop outside?" Leia asked, still peeved she wasn't getting a tour.
"I thought you would like to set up your own passkey for your quarters," Vader answered, finding it humorous that his daughter really wanted to go on a tour still.
"OH!" she brightened immediately. "Do you have to know it?"
"No, I have already programmed a master code into every door in the castle, including this one. Your password can be something you do not want anyone to know. I would actually prefer it if you told no one."
Artoo beeped, letting his displeasure be known.
"Hush. You will get the master code, Artoo. I trust you to be responsible with it. I hope you will not have to use it, but I like to be prepared for anything."
Artoo beeped his agreement to this mentality, knowing of it already due to the years they shared during the clone wars.
"Leia," Vader turned back to the girl, who was trying to come up with a doorkey. "you will have to share your passkey with Threepio, otherwise he will manage to get himself locked out of your room." Turning to the droid in question, he threatened him to never ever reveal Leia's doorkey unless he himself, and no one else, asked it of him.
Threepio, of course, agreed to Vader's terms quickly, quite shaken.
Leia decided her password and set it. Then the group finally entered the room.
"Given that all your previous time in this room was spent shopping, I know you have not gotten the change to explore your new quarters. However, it is bedtime. You will be able to discover your rooms in their entirety in the morning. That being said, the fresher is over there," Vader pointed to a door nearest Leia's bed. "Anything else is not necessary for you to know of at this time. Now, do you have a pair of pajamas?"
"Yeah, I brought a nightgown," Leia said, before her eyes went wide. "DAD! I didn't order any nightgowns or pajamas!"
Vader sighed. "That is another activity to do tomorrow."
"But there's so much to do tomorrow already!"
"I'm sure you will have time. If not, it is not the end of the world if you do not get new pajamas immediately."
Leia shrugged, supposing he was right. "Hey dad?"
"Yes, child?"
"I don't wanna help you arrest my fake parents."
"That is alright. I should not have pressured you."
"You're okay with that?" Leia asked, dubiously.
"Yes. If I truly wish to take care them, I should not exploit my six-year-old child to do so. I apologize, Leia," Vader rested a hand on her shoulder, kneeling down to her level.
"They really aren't bad people, daddy. I know they took me from you, but they probably didn't know you weren't not dead," Leia looked like she was about ready to cry.
"Somehow, I doubt that, Leia. However, I once knew Bail, through your mother, and I remember him to be a decent man. Furthermore, they raised you well."
Leia did start crying. She was obviously exhausted. Vader moved his hand to the back of her head. He moved his other arm to her back and pulled her to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her cheek against his armored shoulder. Vader rubbed circles on her back, trying to calm her, while simultaneously sending soothing waves to her through the Force. Once her tears became mere hiccups, he moved the arm at her back to below her and picked her up, still holding her head to his shoulder. Moving to the bed against the far wall, he decided she could just sleep in the clothes she was wearing. Using the Force, he pulled back the covers. Gently, he laid her down, easing her arms out from around his neck; said arms tightened, not wanted to let him go. Eventually, she gave up and relaxed against the bed. Vader leaned away from his exhausted child and tucked the covers around her. Reaching his hand out, he brushed a loose chocolate curl off her forehead. He let his hand rest on the side of her face for a moment.
"Good night, Leia," Vader murmured.
"G'night, Daddy," Leia mumbled back, already fighting sleep.
"Sweet dreams," Vader finished, lightly planting a sleep suggestion in his daughter's mind to ensure she would not get out of bed to explore immediately after he left. Not knowing how to fight that, she fell right asleep. Smiling, he removed his hand and turned to the droids.
"Sir—" Threepio began, before Vader cut him off.
"Yes, Threepio, you are free to power down. There is a power source in the corner if you need it."
"Ahh, thank you, Master," Threepio finished as he walked over to the power source Vader mentioned. Artoo rolled over to Leia and turned on his safety program before also powering off, beeping a 'good night' to Vader before doing so.
Vader stood in the center of the room for a moment, letting the new reality of his life settle. Shaking his head, he silently left the room. As he walked to his quarters, he started planning how he would include Leia in his life without his master discovering her. Upon arriving at his quarters, he moved to his hyperbaric chamber. Finally, he sat down and let the machines in the chamber remove his helmet. Leaning into his chair, he relished breathing. After a short while, he sat up and accessed his terminal. The first thing he did was set up parental locks and protocols on all the devices Leia had access to, or would—once she discovered them. After that was accomplished, he then ordered the items she had picked out. Then, he remembered that she did not have new nightclothes, he ordered some similar to what Padmé had favored, figuring Leia would appreciate them. As he logged out of his terminal, he wondered if he should contact Organa.
Deciding he should think on it more, he relaxed back into his chair and began to meditate.
Early Evening, Aldera Palace, Alderaan
"Bail, I'm getting worried. What 'safe place' would Artoo have taken Leia?" Breha asked her husband, having been kept in the dark of Bail and Obi-Wan's suspicions.
Bail sighed, realizing he would have to tell her the truth. "Well, Breha, I think I—"
"Viceroy!"
Bail turned to face an aide. "Yes?"
"Sir," the aide was trying to catch his breath, obviously having run to get Bail.
"Have you found Artoo or the princess?" Breha questioned, a hand on her chest.
"No, my queen, sorry. No, the Viceroy is receiving a holocall.
"A holocall? Who would be calling me?"
"Uhh, sir, you should come see for yourself."
"Very well," turning to Breha, he said, "I'll be back shortly to explain."
He let the aide led him to his office. They stopped outside the doors, the aide excused himself quite quickly, which made Bail think whoever was calling him was not doing so for a pleasant chat. Steeling himself for an unpleasant conversation, Bail opened the doors to his office and stepped inside. Once inside, he froze at the sight of the life-size hologram of none other than Darth Vader.
"L—Lord Vader," Bail stammered. "This is a surprise!"
In his typical fashion, Vader ignored the pleasantries and cut right to it. "I believe you have a lot of explaining to do," he growled.
"Explaining, Milord? I—uh—don't know what you mean."
"Do not act stupid, Organa. I understand you recently had a princess go missing," Vader stated, threateningly.
Bail's heart dropped. Vader knew.
"Organa."
"Leia," Bail whispered. Raising his voice, he asked, "Is she okay?"
Vader said nothing, he simply crossed his arms and waited. Bail sharply realized Leia, too, would do this if she received an answer she didn't like. He supposed he was looking at where she got that from. Maybe he could read Vader better than he thought. No, that could not be so, Leia was very expressive with her face; Vader was undoubtably the same, Anakin certainly had been, but Bail could not rely on that blasted mask for anything.
"I do not really know how to explain my daughter."
"That is simple, Viceroy. You do not have one," Vader stated, coldly. "You should explain why you took my daughter from me."
Bail gulped. He was positively sweating bullets, despite the cold mountain air blowing into the room from the open window on the nearby wall.
"Well," Bail swallowed, trying to clear his throat, and thanking all the Alderaanian gods that Vader wasn't here in person. "I was there when she died, and Leia needed a place to go, and Breha and I were planning to adopt a little girl around that time anyway, so we took Leia in."
"Who named her?" Bail blinked, not expecting the seemingly random question.
"Well, Padmé did," Bail answered honestly. "About a minute or so before she died, she was able to name Leia."
Vader said nothing. Bail couldn't tell how that news impacted the Sith Lord.
Bail started rambling. He told Vader what happened on Polis Massa, managing to exclude everything about Luke. He told him how they made Padmé look like she had died pregnant for Leia's—and Luke's, but Vader didn't need to know that—safety. He told Vader how he and Breha had raised and loved Leia like their own. He told Vader about all of Leia's firsts: her first words, her first steps, her first booboo, her first day in classes, her first gala and party experience, her first lost tooth, everything. He also told Vader that Artoo had it all recorded. Every last bit of it, Artoo had it all. Eventually, Bail ran out of Leia things to ramble about.
Vader had stood silently throughout everything Bail said, soaking it all up.
"Due to your cooperation, I will offer you a truce of sorts," Vader finally said, after letting a beat pass after Bail had stopped talking. "You will release a statement to the public that reveals that the princess was told she was adopted and elected to find her biological parents. Having met them, she decided she wanted to live with them. Since they are private citizens, their identity and location are to be kept secret."
"Why would I do this?"
"What else could you do? Challenge me in a lawsuit? That would end well for you," Vader growled, sarcastically; Bail had to give him that, it was true. "No, I am being considerably generous to you by offering this opportunity. If you release the statement, all proof of your previous Rebellious dealings will be erased."
Bail nodded, quickly, realization dawning. 'He doesn't want Palpatine to know about Leia.' "Yes, yes, I understand. And your terms are perfectly reasonable. I—it's just," Bail trailed off, his mind working overtime to find a solution to this mess. "Well, would it be at all possible for Leia to visit?"
"I do not wish to contact you again, Organa," Vader redirected the conversation, ignoring Bail's question. "However, should you cause problems, I will deal with them. That would not be good for you."
"Y—yes, I understand," Bail stammered in agreement, hoping Vader would answer his question but knowing he would not.
Vader's image vanished without another word. Bail collapsed against the wall and slid to the floor. He covered his face with his hands and burst into tears.
Late Night/Early Morning, Vjun, Bast Castle
"I believe you have a lot of explaining to do," Vader grumbled at the Viceroy of Alderaan. He had not been kept waiting. The aide that had answered Vader's holocall, after soiling himself upon seeing who the caller was, had promptly gotten Organa. If the man had not been so spineless, Vader would have admired his competence.
"Explaining, Milord? I—uh—don't know what you mean," Organa failed to convince Vader.
"Do not act stupid, Organa. I understand you recently had a princess go missing," Vader mentioned, trying to prompt the man without losing his authority. Organa's reaction was priceless. Vader could feel the Viceroy's fear fueling the dark side. Despite the deliciousness of this fear, Vader wanted answers. "Organa," he prompted.
Organa whispered his daughter's name before asking about her wellbeing. 'She is perfectly fine, you ignorant fool! Do you honestly think I would hurt my own daughter?'
'You haven't given him any good reason to believe otherwise," Anakin whispered.
Vader froze. 'You do not belong here! You know nothing of which you speak!' he hissed.
Anakin laughed. The sound echoed through their mind, despite his weakened state. 'You are more foolish than either of us thought if you truly believe that, Sith. I saw what you did to my Padmé.'
'Our Padmé!' Vader corrected, roaring in anger.
'She was never your anything. Only mine. She didn't marry a monster.'
'She knew I existed! You told her about the Tuskens," Vader hissed with a hint of a malicious smile in his voice.
'I believe that was you. It was me who cried.'
'HA! You admit your weakness!' With that, Vader shoved Anakin back into his corner, refocusing on his conversation with Organa.
"… not know how to explain my daughter," Organa was saying.
Vader scowled under his mask, the nerve of this man. "That is simple, Viceroy. You do not have one," Vader paused, once again relishing in Organa's fear. "You should explain why you took my daughter from me," he ordered.
Organa clearly blanched, even the blue of the holonet showed it. Organa did not try to disprove what Vader already knew. Instead, the viceroy started explaining how Leia came to be in his possession.
His explanation was short, straight to the point, but it lacked detail. A question escaped Vader's lips before he realized what he was asking, likely Anakin's fault.
"Who named her?"
All Vader heard was "Padmé did."
His world shattered. Anakin was suddenly stronger. 'Padmé did name our daughter Leia. I knew it! She used the name I chose! I named Leia!'
Vader had no defense to this. Anakin was right, after all. And there was no gray area to exploit.
Bail Organa was still talking. Vader tuned in. He was going on and on about Leia's childhood. Vader, or maybe it was Anakin, was suddenly very grateful he had recorded this encounter. He could rewatch the entire conversation and not miss a thing this time. Organa was a good resource for information. More importantly, and surprisingly, it did not take much to get him talking, at least, not when it came to Leia.
Organa eventually ceased rambling. Vader would not have minded if he had kept going; however, he now knew that Artoo had a wealth of Leia content that Vader would explore later.
Vader decided that Organa's cooperation deserved some reward. So, he outlined terms of an agreement. Organa eventually agreed, after asking if Leia would be able to visit. Vader could not fathom why Organa would even believe for a second that he would even consider such a request. And he certainly did not want to imagine his daughter returning to the people who kidnapped her. So, he did the only thing he could do without losing his control: he ignored the question entirely.
Done with the conversation, he promptly disconnected, not caring if Organa was still speaking.
"That was perhaps not my best idea," Vader spoke to himself.
'Yeah, no kidding, dufus,' Anakin insulted with a laugh, his voice now stronger than a mere whisper.
"Shut up!"
'Oh, I see. We're talking out loud now, aren't we?' Anakin mocked.
Vader decided his best course of action was to ignore the Jedi.
Late Morning/Next Day
Leia awoke to Threepio powering up. Opening her eyes, and ignoring Threepio, she yawned and stretched. She suddenly realized that she was not on the ship. Sitting up quickly, she hustled to get out of bed before she remembered yesterday's events. She had met her real dad. And he wanted her to stay. And she was still a Princess, but an Imperial Princess this time. Continuing out of bed, she headed for the refresher. After she relieved herself, she explored her room.
Starting at the door that led to the hallway, she studied what she could see. If she had just entered, all that could be seen was the bed on the wall opposite the door, and the door that led to the fresher was clearly off to the side. There was a small power station in the corner closest to the door. On the adjacent wall by the power station, a small wooden desk with industrial legs was pressed up against the wall, with a standard chair in front of it. This was where she had worked yesterday. In the center of the large room was a sitting area. There were two black sofas that faced each other; they were surprisingly plush looking than normal Imperial sofas, but they were still sleek in design. To compliment the sofas, there was a large, cool gray, plush chair that sat at the ends of the sofas closest to the bed. There was a small table, designed similarly to the desk, in between the sofas, and a dark gray, woolen rug was underneath everything. Other than that, there seemed to be nothing else to the room, excluding the light purple curtains that decorated the far wall, on either side of the bed. Leia knew that could not be all her room and went over to the curtains.
Pulling one aside, she saw that it led into another room. She quickly realized that the other curtain had to lead to another area of her rooms, as well. Investigating this new room, she realized it was a small library. The far wall was a bookcase. Both adjacent walls were lined with indents that served as shelving for either more holobooks or other things. Leia imagined she would put holos in some of them, and maybe some other decorations. At the center of the room sat another desk; it faced the door, so that if she was working at the desk, she could face anyone who might walk through the curtain. The chair that sat behind the desk was large and comfy looking, very different from the chair that sat by the power station. As she studied the room, something told Leia there was more to this room that just a small library.
Following her instincts, she moved past the desk and pulled out a holobook that was almost out of her reach. It did not pull out all the way, however, and she quickly let go of it, giving up. However, as she did this, the middle section of the bookcase moved backwards and then to the side, revealing a more personal sitting room. The sofas were larger and fluffier, this time they were a purplish-gray, and there were two end chairs instead of one, both of which were a light blue. The kaf table consisted of two large dark chocolate slabs of wood stacked on top of each other with sleek metal feet. The rug underneath everything was fluffy and soft and the same purple as the curtains. She went to the carpet first, loving its fuzzy texture. Looking up, she noticed that the coffee table sported a holoreceiver; from here, she could make or take calls or, most importantly in her opinion, watch holotelevision. Moving back to the door so she could get a good look at the remainder of the room, she saw three bookshelves. Two of the three had glass doors, as if what was inside was not supposed to come out. She would have to ask her dad, to be sure though, because there was nothing in them. The two bookshelves with the glass were both stationed to the right of two archways. One of the archways was to the left of the sitting area, but the second was in the far-left corner. The final bookcase, the one without the glass, was to the right of a door that was near the far-right corner of the room.
Heading to the door first, she found a small, private medical room on the opposite side. The room was just large enough to hold a storage closet, a long but thin countertop with cabinets over it, a medical cot, a bacta tank, two chairs, and an MD droid shut off in the corner by the bed.
Strange, why would she need a private medical room? She made a mental note to ask about this, as well as the bookshelves.
Moving to the nearest archway, the one in the corner, she entered a large, empty room. The floor was weird, though. It almost looked tiled, but it was a standard floor, just with geometric gaps in the floor. Looking around the room, she noticed it was not just the floor that was like this, but the walls and ceiling as well. Interesting. This was yet another thing to ask her father about.
Glancing through the room again, she noticed two doors she had missed. The first door she noticed was at the far wall, but since the room was really strange, she did not venture over to the other room; she decided she would wait for her father before exploring that room. She did, however, peek into the second door as it was just to her right. It led into a utilitarian fresher sort of room. Though, it was more of a small locker room, with the storage space and shelving. There was a small island toward the left wall, where the shelving was. Adjacent from the shelving, but opposite Leia, who stood at the door, was a row of lockers. They did not appear to be empty, but the room outside was making her feel weird, so she decided to wait to see what was in the lockers when she was with her father. In the right corner, nearest Leia, was a small shower. Looking at the shower made her realize she did not really take in the fresher near her bed.
Leaving the small locker room and the weird, empty room, Leia moved to the second archway. This one led to a long, narrow table that looked like it could service as either a dining table or a conference table. Past the table, at the far wall and tucked into the corner was a kitchenette.
Leia investigated to see if there were any snacks, but all that was there was ingredients. 'Threepio knows how to cook! I'll make him make me stuff!' Leia thought to herself, suddenly realizing she had not had breakfast just yet.
To the left of the kitchenette was a single black sofa, this one looked like a standard Imperial sofa. Sitting down to test it, she found that it was deceptively comfortable. After bouncing a few times to make sure the sofa was actually comfy, Leia noticed that it was facing a stone fireplace. It seemed almost out of place in the setting, but Leia liked it. It made her feel at home somehow. Looking to her left, to make sure there was nothing else in the room, Leia saw another door.
Hopping off the sofa, she skipped to the door and palmed it open. Her father's breathing reached her ears before the door opened fully. Sure enough, there he was, sitting at a large desk at the far side of the room. She immediately noticed that her father's desk was far larger than any of the desks in her rooms, but that it also had two sides, one facing her and the other facing the wall to the right.
"Good morning, Leia," her father greeted. Leia had not even realized he had seen her. Looking closer, she realized he had not, in fact.
"How'd you know I was here?" she asked, failing to respond to her father's greeting. She walked in front of her father's desk, sitting in the nearest of the two Imperial-style chairs. She made a face as she realized these chairs' looks were not deceiving.
"I felt your presence," he answered, patiently.
"My presence? You felt me?"
"Yes, I felt your presence in the Force," he explained. "I'll teach you how to do that, and more."
Leia gasped. "Really?" At Vader's nod, Leia started bouncing, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, in excitement.
"Calm down," Vader ordered, but his voice was gentle.
"Sorry," Leia mumbled, not actually sorry at all, but stilling her movement.
"Did you explore all your rooms?" Vader asked, knowing if she was anything like he was at her age she had indeed already done so.
"Well, mostly. I didn't check behind the other curtain and I didn't really look at my fresher."
"That's sufficient. You can finish exploring once you eat."
"There's a baby kitchen right in here!" Leia excitedly informed him, pointing at the kitchenette, and once again bouncing in place.
"Yes, I am aware. However, the kitchenette is not stocked with breakfast items."
"What? Why not?" Leia asked, growing still, and dropping her arm.
"To encourage you to exit your rooms," Vader replied.
"Wait, actually?" Leia questioned, thinking that was a silly reason.
"No. Not yet at least," Vader answered, knowing his previous response may be necessary when Leia was a teenager. "Nutritional breakfast items typically expire faster than anything else. Therefore, only foodstuffs with a longer shelf time are kept back here."
"Oh," Leia paused, thinking. "Well, why couldn't a cleaning droid take care of that stuff?"
"No one but us, Threepio, and Artoo are allowed past your curtains."
"What about the MD droid in the medi-room thing?"
"The MD is prohibited from leaving that room."
"Well, then why is that table so big?"
Vader sighed, growing tired of all these questions, but knowing it was necessary to answer them. "That is for the rare occasion that we host officers," Vader waved a hand, as if he was dismissing the question. "But it also doubles as a workspace. You can work on projects on that table."
"Oh cool!" Leia once again started bouncing. She slowed her bouncing as a thought came to her.
Her father answered her question before it left her mouth. "If we ever host anyone back here, they will have come through my quarters, not yours."
"Through your quarters?" Leia repeated, glancing around the room, trying to find the door that led to his rooms. She found another bookshelf to the left of the door she had just entered through, but no door. Looking behind her, she found the only other door in the room on the wall opposite her and her father. "Oh. Does that go to your room?"
"Yes. But you are not allowed through that door unless it is an emergency."
"Why only in an emergency?" Leia wondered, turning back around to face her father.
"There is some—delicate equipment in my quarters that is designed specifically for me. The things in there allow me to be outside of my suit. I would rather not run the risk of you accidentally breaking something unless I must."
"You can take your suit of?" Leia asked, excitedly.
Vader sighed. "Yes, but only in my hyperbaric chamber."
"What's that?"
"I just told you."
"Oh."
Before Leia could ask another question, Vader stood. "Come on, child. You need to eat."
Leia quickly stood up as well and trotted after her father as he headed straight through the door she had come through.
"Hey, Dad?"
"Yes?"
"That room through the corner, why is it so weird?"
Vader smiled under his mask. She was observant for a six-year-old. "Come, young one. I will explain."
Vader led her through the small multi-purpose room and back into the foyer. Resting his hand on his daughter's shoulder, he guided her to the other archway.
"This is a training room," he started. "It is for you specifically, as I have a separate one."
"What's that door over there?" Leia asked, pointing to the door on the far wall.
"That leads to my training room," Vader answered. "If you want to find me and it is not an emergency, look there or in my office."
"Is your office where I found you this morning?"
"Yes, child."
"Okay," Leia noted. "What are in the lockers in that room?" Leia now pointed to the only other door in the room.
"The lockers are filled with training material. You are not to touch anything you are not familiar with," Vader commanded. "With time, you will learn to use everything. However, that time is far from now."
Leia nodded, before asking another question as her father guided her out of the training room. "Dad, why do those bookshelves have glass fronts?"
"So you can move them," Vader answered. "The archways obviously cannot close, so the bookcases are there to block the entrances if you so choose. The glass is there to prevent a mess."
"How would I move them?"
"With the Force."
"What can't you do with the Force?"
"I will teach you to do many things with the Force, but even I do not know everything about it, Leia."
Leia contemplated on this as her father guided her through her rooms. When she got to her bedroom, she immediately lost her train of thought as she ran around to the other side of her bed to discover what was behind the left side of the curtains.
On the other side was a large closet. The entire back wall and the sides were racks where clothes would hang. She felt giddy looking at it and remembered all the clothes she had ordered that would go there. Then, she noticed that there were two islands on either side of the closet, they both had drawers on both sides. The curtain did not command the entire wall, and instead there was a door and shoe racks. This closet was perfect!
Shifting her focus to the door, she went through it and found herself in a big refresher unit. On the far side of the fresher was an in-ground jacuzzi and a nice shower, which had indented shelving for soaps and such. The towel rack was inside the shower. 'That's how big it is!' Beside the shower was the toilet. Across from that was a storage shelf for towels and extra soaps. Then, to her right was a large vanity with a singular sink. The mirror took up the entire length of the vanity and went from the top of the counter to the ceiling. To her left, and beside the toilet, there was a full-length mirror. 'I can check out my outfits there!' Then, to the left of the mirror was another door. She went through this door and found herself back in her bedroom.
Her father was in the corner where Threepio had been recharging during the night. Threepio had apparently stayed in that corner and Artoo had joined him. It seemed her father was laying ground rules for them. Noticing that she was done with her escapade, her father finished with the droids and turned to face her.
"Okay, I'm ready to eat!"
"You are still in yesterday's clothes, Leia," her father pointed out. "Do you want to change?"
Leia looked down, embarrassed that she hadn't even noticed her clothes. "Uh, yeah. That's a good idea." She found her bag, that had somehow ended up in the indented shelves above her bed, probably her father's doing, and snatched a change of clothes before rushing to the fresher. She changed as fast as she could; unfortunately, this led to her losing her balance and falling over a few times as she tried to change her pants. Apparently, this concerned her father, as she heard him knock on the door, then ask if she was alright.
"Yeah, I'm fine, just tripped."
She didn't quite hear what he said in response, but it sounded something like installing a bench and a reckless bloodline.
Finally getting herself redressed, she exited the fresher. Her father was standing nearby, his body facing the door leading outside her rooms, but his head was turned in her direction. He looked decidedly sassy standing there with his weight shifted onto one leg and his arms crossed. Leia copied his stance. He sighed, centering his weight, and letting his arms fall to his sides. Leia beamed at him.
"You need to eat breakfast. Come on."
He waited until Leia was at his side before moving. Leia grabbed his hand as he began walking out the door. Vader looked down at her without breaking his stride, seemingly amazed by her gesture. This went unnoticed by Leia, who was just happy to have her real dad by her side. Something, the Force, she assumed, made her feel warm and fuzzy when she was with her dad.
"Do you remember where the mess hall is?" Vader asked as Leia pulled him out the door.
"Uhhh—no?" Leia sheepishly looked at her father over her shoulder.
"Hmmm. Perhaps when you take the lead, you should know the way." Vader lectured.
"Right. Yeah," Leia turned her head back around. "That didn't stopped me from leading Artoo and Threepio here."
"Oh yes, of course," Vader chuckled to himself. "As if Artoo did not nudge you in the right direction."
Leia stopped. Vader pushed her gently forward.
"Are you sayin' that Artooie led me here?"
"Yes, sweet girl."
"Nu-uh. Because I am the one who decided to come here."
"Right, you did," Vader relented, slightly. "However, Artoo planted the idea."
"No, he didn't!"
"Whose idea was it to break into the medical wing?"
"…Artoo's…" Leia mumbled, before perking up. "But it's not like he said something I didn't want to do! He jus' gave me answers to some of the questions I had that my fake parents didn't answer."
"Of course. And I'm glad he did," Vader murmured. "Otherwise, I would have never met you."
Leia looked up at Vader, who slowed his pace as she did. "Did Artoo trick me into coming here?"
Vader was silent, thinking things through. 'He did, in a way, did he not? Not in a bad way, though. Artoo is loyal to this family and was simply doing what he thought was best.' "I—suppose you could say that he did. However, he had no malevolent purpose behind it. I am sure he did that in an effort to not scare you."
"So, he tricked me to help me?"
"Yes, essentially. I can only speculate, though. To get the entire truth, you would have to ask him."
"I think I will do that. After breakfast," Leia decided, nodding her head firmly and strutting down the hallway.
Vader shook his head, smiling under his mask. 'She is so confident. Look at her, she has no clue where she is going but is making it look as if she does. So much like her mother. '
Vader wasn't sure if those were Anakin's thoughts or not.
A/N: So sorry it took me so long to update! Life's been hectic lately and will be for a bit. I promise I'm working on stuff to post! Please be patient with me!
I'm also trying to plan out my stories more, so that they aren't so random. Some minor details may change about this story, just fyi.
Sorry again for a late update and thank you for reading!