Two days later

The Millennium Falcon was fueled, and preflight checks successfully performed. The family was packed, and the children were excited for their first off-planet adventure. Off-planet being the keyword, since the Solo children had never been confined to the Bastion. They attended a local private school and traveled throughout Naboo. Usually they were escorted by Victor, but occasionally their parents were allowed a furlough to accompany the children. At first, all day trips were supervised by either Victor or a trusted Imperial guard, but in later years Leia and Han could attend school functions with the children with only the KX security droid as an escort.

Solo and Chewbacca said their goodbyes to Leia and the kids and wasted no time firing up the Falcon and taking off at high speed followed by a totally unnecessary aileron roll before leaving the planet's atmosphere. Victor watched the smuggler depart then returned his attention back to Leia and her children. "Are you ready?"

The younglings shouted excitedly as they ran up the ramp of the Imperial Shuttle followed by Leia and Victor. Once the children were strapped in, each having a small datapad to keep them occupied, Leia walked up to the flight deck. "Do you mind if I take the copilot seat?"

Victor motioned for her to go ahead as he did his preflight checks. Once everything checked out, he lifted off leaving the Bastion behind. The children chatted excitedly for a long time until they either became engrossed in something on their datapad or fell asleep.

Leia was silent, but Victor could sense she was building up the courage to say something. Eventually the stillness became awkward, and he spoke. "You mentioned you wanted to discuss something? Does this have to do with your release or the senate?"

She shook her head. "No, it is about Force training."

Victor relaxed a bit. That was a subject he was an expert on. "What would you like to know?"

Leia shifted in her seat, so she was facing Victor fully. "Luke said he senses Force potential in me. Do you agree?"

"Yes."

She nodded while running her hand over her chin in thought. "When Luke told me that he was my brother he advised me to reach out with the Force and I would be able to sense the truth of his words. I couldn't feel it then but over the years it has become clear. I can sense my relationship to him through the Force. He is my brother."

Victor remained silent, unsure where she was going with this conversation.

"After a while I could sense the connection between my children and Luke and I could also feel the family bond between Luke, Mara and their children."

"Yes, their Force essence is similar," he said warily, suspecting what subject she was trying to broach.

"I was surprised when I didn't feel that same familiarity between you and your daughter, Mara," Leia said softly. "But I did feel that similarity between you and Luke...and me...and my children."

Victor's posture stiffened.

"When I first met you, I felt there was something familiar about you...which was ridiculous because it took months before I even saw your face. I thought it was something about your walk, your voice, posture, or body shape that reminded me of somebody I once knew. But now I believe I subconsciously recognized your Force signature."

Victor closed his eyes briefly before heaving a sigh.

"I don't know how you did it, but you are Darth Vader. You are my father. Am I right?"

There was no use denying the fact. She was obviously stronger in the Force than he suspected. "Yes."

"How...how is it possible?"

"I'm a clone."

Her face scrunched up. "A clone...you mean you are not the man who tortured me, but someone born in a lab that lived a different life?" She thought for a second before adding. "Luke told me Palpatine was doing clone experiments. Was Darth Vader a clone? Did Palpatine create him?"

The thought never once occurred to Victor. His mother, Shmi Skywalker, always told him he had no father. He always assumed that meant she didn't know who the father was...not that his mother was promiscuous. She was a slave...and things happened to slaves...unseemly things. Could she have been an unwilling participant in an early Palpatine cloning experiment? Was she implanted with a fertilized embryo and then her memory wiped?

"Victor!" Leia's voice pulled him out of his musings. "Who are you?"

"I am Anakin Skywalker reborn," he said softly. "I transferred my memories, Force essence and soul into a new body."

She had been leaning toward him but now quickly pulled back with a gasp. "So, you are Vader in a healthy new body."

"I am Anakin Skywalker." He turned to her making eye contact. "Do you feel the malevolence that once permeated Darth Vader?"

She looked away. "No." She shook her head in disgust. "You let me, and my family grow to love you. The children adore you. They call you uncle. How could you?"

Victor sighed deeply. "When Luke revealed to you your paternity you told Mara that if Luke had any other secrets to reveal, he should keep them to himself."

She gave him a look of disgust before turning to stare out of the flight deck viewport silently.

"You have a right to be mad at me," Victor said hoarsely, his voice full of emotion. "I deceived you to fulfill my selfish desires. I wanted to have a relationship with my daughter and my grandchildren. I knew I was wrong in deceiving you. I justified my actions by promising myself that I would be the man, father and grandfather that would have made my late wife proud. I had a second chance, and I would use it to make amends."

His heart sunk as Leia remained facing away from him. He could partially see her face in the reflection of the transparisteel window and it was obvious she was tearing up. He reached to the side console and pushed a button closing the door to the flight deck. If she wanted to cry and shout at him there was no need for the children to hear. "I understand your anger and disappointment. You will never have to see me again. I will go no-contact with your family."

She turned to him sharply. "Oh no you won't!"

Victor was taken aback by the ferocity of her answer. "I won't?"

"No, my children love you. You are the man they want to train them to be future Imperial Knights. Han thinks you are his best friend. If you broke contact with the family I would have to explain why. Knowing you are Vader will devastate Han. He hated Vader for what he did to me...the torture and then making me watch as Moff Tarkin destroyed my home world. If Han found out who you truly are... he would attempt to kill you and would probably die trying. I am not going to lose my husband. My children will not lose their father."

Victor stared at her in stunned silence.

"You," Leia pointed a finger him while emphasizing the word, "will continue to be the loving 'uncle' to my children. You will train them to be upstanding Knights and to avoid the darkside. You will keep them from making the same stupid darkside mistakes you made as a young man. And you will continue to be nice to Han."

"I wasn't faking being Han's friend," he insisted.

"I didn't say you were," Leia said tersely. "I could feel your affection for him, the kids, and for me. That is the reason, the only reason, I am not cutting you out of our lives like a cancer." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Luke told me you found redemption. Mara said she learned to love you like a father. My children love you." She paused as she took a calming breath. "I can't help but believe that you did find salvation. I may never fully forgive you, but I see no need to traumatize my family with the truth. If today was the first time we met, I would have sent you packing, but you wormed your way into our family and excising you from our household entirely would cause my children pain."

Victor gave a curt nod. "If you hate me, the children will sense it."

She gave a scathing laugh. "Do you think I had an epiphany this morning? I suspected for quite some time. You mentioned to Han that you fought in the Battle of Christophsis. You must have forgotten that my father Bail Organa was organizing the relief effort on that planet. I knew Kenobi and Skywalker served on that mission. In addition, Luke almost always calls you father, but Mara usually calls you Victor. Also, when around you, Luke and Mara call their oldest son 'Little Anakin', but when you are not around, they call him Anakin. I assume they do this to differentiate between the two. It may be subconscious on their part, but they do it." She glanced away. "My point is...I've suspected for quite a while, and I made my peace with that knowledge. The children haven't felt any simmering animosity coming from their mother because I now see you as Victor Jade and not Darth Vader."

Victor let out a breath of relief. "What is our relationship now?"

She turned back to him. "You are Mara's father, and I will treat you with the respect you deserve but I will never consider you as my father. I had a father—Bail Organa."

Victor nodded. "Fair enough...no, it is more than fair. I will be the best 'uncle' possible to your children."

"You better," she said tersely.

He glanced over to his daughter and reflected on how much she reminded him of Padme ́. "I will," he reassured her. "One problem, If you sensed the familiar connection between us through the Force...the children will eventually sense the same thing."

Leia nodded. "Yes, there is that possibility. If it comes up, we will address it then. I was reaching out and purposely trying to utilize that Force ability to verify Luke's story. I don't believe it is something that becomes obvious unless you are looking for it." She turned to him and glared. "Unless you tortured me knowing I was your daughter."

He looked away, regret flooding through him. "No, I did not."

She gave him a tight smile. "If the strongest Jedi turned Sith couldn't figure out that I was his own flesh and blood, then perhaps his grandchildren won't sense through the Force that Victor Jade is truly a Skywalker."

"And if they do?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Then the truth will come out and hopefully it will not tear the family apart."

"Hopefully," he whispered.

"So," she said slowly. "When this body gets old...what then? Are you going to a get new body, again and again for perpetuity?"

"No!" he said adamantly. "I don't want another body?"

"That is hard to believe. Who wouldn't want to be immortal?"

The question filled him with melancholy. "Princess...would you want to outlive your children?"

She took in a sharp breath at the thought. "No...no I wouldn't."

His eyes met hers, direct and penetrating, "Neither would I, Princess, neither would I."