"Is she okay? What's wrong with her?" Han Solo demanded as he stared down at his niece in worry. His niece who was the only living person they were able to find amongst the wreckage of the Jedi Temple.

Leia got a feeling a few hours ago. A bad one according to her. She tried to contact Luke through the Force but all he asked was for her help. It felt awful. It felt just like the feeling she had when Alderaan was blown up by the Empire. The feeling was heart wrenching and miserable. Something she'd never think she'd feel twice in a lifetime.

But she felt it this time.

When they arrived on Dantooine, all that could be seen was flames and ash. The Jedi Temple they visited a handful of times was nothing but ruins of what it once was. Young Jedi students were slaughtered, and their corpses left scattered across the temple. Leia and Han assumed it was the First Order which were still rising in its ranks.

However, there was no sign of Luke or Vesper.

The only two Jedi Masters in existence.

They found their niece in the midst of all the destruction. She was unconscious and looked wounded. Leia tried to salvage what she could from the destruction but there wasn't much left. Han thought it was best to take Padmé and ask her questions when she woke up, so Chewie scooped her up into his arms before running back to the Falcon. They took off not long after, knowing that they didn't want to hang around too long in case who ever destroyed the temple came back.

The damage they left told Han and Leia that these weren't people to mess around with only a few crew members onboard the Falcon.

"From what I can see, it appears she's been stabbed," Harter Kalonia said. The older medic was an old friend of Leia's and someone she met during the rebellion. She was perhaps one of few people Leia trusted undoubtedly.

"Although I can see certain bruises forming. She's also got a nasty gash on her head but I'm mostly worried about this wound here."

The medic pointed to the teenager's abdomen which showed the wound. It looked like a stab wound but the skin also looked badly burned. The redhead's pale skin was also inflamed around the wound area and bubbling up with blisters.

"Why isn't she bleeding then?" Han asked and his wife looked out the window of the Millennium Falcon. Something felt horribly wrong here and deep down she thought she might've even known what it was.

"It's odd. It seems like the wound was cauterized," Harter told him, and Han sneered.

"Do I look like I understand your medical lingo, Doc?" Han asked sarcastically and Harter took a moment to explain.

"Cauterized means that heat was applied to the wound, using a piece of medical equipment or utensil-" Harter started to say and Leia interrupted as she turned back to them.

"Or from a lightsaber," Leia told them and the both of them looked back at her in surprise. Han stared at her for a moment before returning his attention to the doctor.

"It's not a likely outcome but it could very well be a lightsaber," Harter told the former smuggler. "I've stabilized her now, but she needs medical attention when we get back to Coruscant."

"I'm not sure taking her to Coruscant is a good idea," Leia said thoughtfully. "Obviously, whoever attacked the temple on Dantooine will be looking for her."

"They might think she's dead," Han told his wife. "Apparently she's been stabbed with a lightsaber, and I don't know how many people survive that."

"It's only because whoever stabbed her missed any vital organs or arteries. Otherwise, she would've been dead within minutes," Harter informed them. Leia shook her head.

"I say we take her to some trusted allies. Old friends from the Rebellion," Leia suggested. "The planet closest to us is Yavin 4 and there's plenty of old Rebellion members there. Plenty that would want to help Padmé."

"Yavin 4 is all forests and farmland. I'm not sure they have the grade of medical supplies and equipment that we need right now," Harter told her and Leia sighed. "As far as I know, they don't even have a proper medical center. Certainly, no Bacta tank."

"We don't have a choice. Coruscant's not safe," Leia told her. "It's been getting worse since the First Order started rising and something tells me that the Jedi Temple being attacked is no coincidence."

"Fine," Han said in agreement as he looked back towards the cockpit. "Chewie! Looks we're heading to Yavin 4. Forget Coruscant. Punch it."

Leia turned away as she stared at her niece who resembled Vesper so much. She always thought Padmé was her mother's daughter while Aayla was her father's daughter. Padmé was patient, kind, fair, and compassionate while Aayla was inpatient, temperamental, reckless, and questioned everything. They were like night and day but somehow that made their sisterly bond stronger.

The former princess was broken out of her thoughts by the sudden gasp of breath from her niece who frantically looked around the ship in a panicked state…almost as if she was looking for something…or someone. Leia, Han, and Harter all stared at the teenager with apprehension in their eyes.


Padmé tried to catch her breath frantically, fear in her eyes, as she tried to figure out where she was. All she could remember was the sight of the Jedi Temple being burned to the ground.

Her dead friends.

Dead parents.

Emerald green eyes that burned with hatred and anger.

The betrayal she felt as the lightsaber of someone, she loved like a brother, pierced through her flesh.

"Padmé…" Han said softly as he stared at the young girl with sympathy in his eyes. If Padmé wasn't mistaken, there was a small glimmer of hope there. As if she could tell him all his doubts were misplaced and that his son was okay. Padmé quickly looked away from her uncle and looked at her aunt.

"W-where am I?" She questioned as she sat up from her position on the small cot. Padmé swallowed hard before wincing in pain as she felt a burning sensation in her side. "What happened?"

"I felt something in the force," Leia explained slowly as she tried to slowly break the news to Padmé. "Your mother. She cried out to me, so your uncle and I came to the academy. When we got there, we found everything in flames and all the students dead. The only survivor we found was you."

Padmé felt overcome with emotion, almost forgetting the intense pain she felt, as she stared back at her aunt and uncle. It wasn't just the pain from the wound she felt. This was a different sort of pain. Padmé felt like she'd been torn apart from the seams.

"What happened?" Han asked her. "We couldn't find your parents anywhere. Where's Ben and Aayla? Was it the First Order? Did they take them?"

"I can't tell you," Padmé told her uncle, tears streaming down her face as she sniffled. Han gave her a confused look while Leia just stared at her. Deep down, Leia knew exactly what happened.

"Why not?" Han demanded, completely confused by his niece's statement.

"I don't want to hurt you," Padmé said, crying as she could barely look her aunt and uncle in the eyes.

"You won't hurt us," Leia told Padmé softly. "Just tell us what happened."

"You don't want to know," Padmé said, looking down at her lap. She couldn't bear to tell her aunt and uncle what happened. She knew it would ruin them.

"Just tell us, Kid," Han finally said, growing a bit inpatient because he needed to know what happened. Something to relieve him of the fear he felt. The fear of the truth.

"It was Ben and Aayla," Padmé finally said, shaking with every sob she gave. Leia and Han both stood in shock as they stared at their niece. Harter busied herself with some medical equipment in the back to give them space although she too was in shock of what Padmé just said. "They did it. They killed them all."

"Killed who?" Han questioned and Padmé shook her head.

"All of them," Padmé cried, trying to get the image of them out of her head. The image of the angry and hateful beings they turned into. "I woke up and everyone was dead. I couldn't find mom and dad. Everything was on fire and then I found the students in the temple. Slaughtered…all of them. I didn't want to believe it but somehow I knew it was them."

Both Han and Leia fell silent as they listened to the teenager's account of the events that had transpired at the academy. She was right. They didn't think they wanted to know what happened but at the same time they just had to know.

They had to know the truth.

"I confronted them, and they told me what they did. They said Snoke had showed them things and dad was afraid of them because they were too powerful," Padmé said, trying to keep her voice calm and steady as she told them everything. "They wanted me to join them, but I couldn't. They were talking about how the dark side wasn't what dad said it was. It was all wrong."

"I tried to stop them…to get them to see sense but they were too far gone," Padmé said softly, trying to make sense of everything that happened. "Snoke warped their minds, so we fought. I couldn't beat them. They had years of training on them, and I don't think I wanted to beat them. I couldn't do it."

"Who hurt you?" Leia asked, almost frightened to hear of the answer. Padmé sniffled before looking her aunt in the eyes. Blue meeting brown. Eyes that were so much like her son's eyes. Eyes that looked down at her anger as she laid helpless on the ground.

"Ben," Padmé admitted, causing Han to look away. He was unable to fathom the idea of Ben hurting Padmé. The same Ben who'd been so excited for the birth of another cousin that he begged his aunt and uncle to let Padmé stay with them. "It was Ben."

"And Aayla…she k-killed mom," Padmé said, tears flooding her eyes again as she remembered the fact that her mother was dead. "She told me she did. And they said they killed dad too."

"My God…" Han said under his breath as he tried to process everything Padmé just told them. He looked away. Leia took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, before looking at her niece.

"Padmé, we couldn't find any trace of your father," Leia told her gently. "Just Artoo who's apparently in low power mode. I'll have someone take a look at him when I get a chance."

"What do you mean?" Padmé said in confusion, suddenly feeling very hot. She was in a cold sweat and had been ever since she woke up. Padmé didn't know if it was because of her injury or everything that happened to her at the academy. "Maybe he's with the Force now. With mom."

"We couldn't find him, but we also noticed his X-wing was missing too," Leia told her and Padmé shook her head.

"Maybe Ben and Aayla stole it," Padmé suggested, and Leia just stared at her, sympathy in her brown eyes.

"Padmé, we'd both know if he were dead. We'd feel it with the Force," Leia told her, trying to get her to see logic.

"I don't sense your mother anymore but him…I feel him but at the same time I don't. It's like he's ignoring me. I think he's cut himself off from the Force."

"You're saying he left me?" Padmé questioned in disbelief, shaking her head furiously. "That he left me there to die? That he's still alive out there but just left mom and me like that?"

"I'm saying that we don't know what happened to him," Leia answered her as Padmé began panicking. "He's gone."

"He left," Padmé cried, and Leia pulled her in for a hug. She soothingly stroked her back as she tried to give the young girl, at least, some comfort.

"He'll come back," Leia promised her although Han gave her a look from over Padmé's shoulder. There was no way that they could've known that. They didn't even know where Luke was right now or why he would leave his daughter behind.

"Aunt Leia, it hurts," Padmé cried out in pain as the pain in her side became unbearable. Leia pulled away and looked at her niece in concern.

"What hurts?" Leia said as she tried to comfort her. The teenager didn't look well. Her skin was covered in a cold sweat, and she was breathing harshly. Harter came over to check up on Padmé.

"She's going into shock," Harter noted as she looked into Padmé's eyes and noticed her dilated pupils. "From her injuries more than likely. I can take care of this for now, but she needs to get to a facility with better medical equipment and fast."

"We're about twenty minutes out from Yavin 4," Han confirmed as he looked down in worry at Padmé. The redhead's eyes were squeezed shut as she whimpered in pain. He was still in a bit of a daze from Padmé's admission of Ben turning to the dark side. In all honesty, Han couldn't think about that right now. He couldn't think of all the death and destruction his son caused and he couldn't think of his son in Snoke's clutches.

His son willingly in Snoke's clutches.

"What happened?!" Leia asked in alarm as Padmé's eyes rolled into the back of her head before closing. Harter felt her pulse before sighing.

"She's fallen unconscious. The pain is too much for her, I'm afraid," Harter told her and Leia just swallowed hard before nodding.

There was an immense amount of guilt that rested on both Leia's and Han's shoulders. Especially after discovering that Ben was the one who did this to Padmé. Padmé who Ben once adored yet that didn't stop him from stabbing her with his lightsaber.

Leia shook her head in disbelief, a tear falling from her eye, as she looked away from her niece and then gazed out the window of the Falcon. Her beautiful son did this to Padmé. Padmé who was only a fifteen-year-old girl. She'd seen so much pain and horror in one night. More than most people saw in a lifetime. She saw things that Leia didn't think she could stomach thinking about.

Han rested a hand on her shoulder, but Leia didn't react. She just stared out the window as she begged the force to let her niece survive this.

Luke, Leia allowed herself to think in an attempt to reach out to him, please come back. Padmé needs you. I don't think she can take any more pain.

Leia waited for a response but there was only silence.

Deafening silence.

The former princess would hold out hope for her brother to respond but he never would.

Not then and not the next day.

Nor the coming years.


"I hate you!"

"I wish you were never born!"

"You were always the bane of my existence!"

"You're either with us or against us."

Padmé woke up startled from her nightmare and opened her eyes, expecting to see the familiar setting of the Falcon. She looked around in alarm to see that she wasn't on the Falcon but somewhere completely foreign to her.

It was a bedroom of sorts but not her room in the hut she shared with her sister and cousin.

It was a room inside a home which was something familiar to her from the times she spent visiting her aunt and uncle in between studying at the Jedi Temple on Dantooine.

This bedroom was not the guest bedroom she remembered her aunt and uncle having.

It looked to be the bedroom of a teenaged boy. The room was filled with models of X-wing fighters, a poster of a New Republic cruiser, and small trinkets that littered the shelves in the room. Padmé looked down in confusion at the blankets she was wrapped up in which were decorated with an X-Wing pattern.

This was definitely odd.

She then turned her head and noticed light streaming in from the window.

The sun.

So, this definitely wasn't the Falcon, after all.

Padmé might've thought she was back on Dantooine but she knew it couldn't be true. She knew deep down that the Jedi Temple where she grew up was nothing but ash by now. Perhaps even further destroyed by the First Order who were bound to have searched it to destroy all trace of the Jedi.

"You're awake," Leia said as she walked into the room. "We were worried. It's been a couple days, but Dr. Kalonia said you were recovering."

Padmé lifted the loose shirt she was wearing and stared at where Ben stabbed her with the lightsaber. The wound was covered with a bandage. There was still stinging feeling of pain in her side, but it didn't feel as torturous as before. It was a blinding pain when she was on the Falcon but now it was reduced to a lingering pain.

"How long was I out?" Padmé asked her aunt as she looked back up at her. Leia smiled faintly.

"Three days," Leia answered and Padmé nodded.

"My father?" Padmé asked, hope in her voice which was extinguished when her aunt shook her head.

"We still haven't heard from him, I'm afraid," Leia told her softly and Padmé nodded to herself as she willed herself not to cry. Aayla always teased her about being a baby.

Aayla.

Padmé felt a different sort of pain as she remembered her sister.

The memory of angry green eyes flashed in Padmé's head, and she looked down at the X-wing blanket in sadness. Her heart felt like it had been shattered in a million pieces. Her sister and cousin's betrayal was far more painful than any lightsaber stab wound could ever be.

"Where am I?" Padmé asked in an attempt to try and distract herself from the betrayal of her sister.

"We're on Yavin 4," Leia informed her, leaning against the doorway. "It was the closest place we were able to find from Dantooine. It's also the safest…for now. There's a lot of old friends from the Rebellion hanging out. They were all too happy to lend a helping hand."

"We can't go back to Dantooine, can we?" Padmé asked quietly, her blue eyes held a dimness that Leia didn't think she'd ever seen before. Padmé was always a happy child. Carefree, kind, and happy. Leia remembered her as a baby. She used to smile and laugh at whoever walked into the room.

Luke used to compare Padmé's smile to the twin suns on Tatooine at sunset.

The sunset which made life on Tatooine worth it.

Padmé's smile which made life feel special.

"No, we can't. It's more than likely swarming with stormtroopers by now," Leia told her softly and Padmé nodded.

"Where's Uncle Han and Chewie?" Padmé asked.

"They're in the kitchen with our friend who's kindly hosting us," Leia said and Padmé felt relief. Relief because her uncle was still there. Unlike her father who still hadn't come back for her. Would he come back for her? It'd been three days…he should've come back by now. "I think your parents met him a couple times."

"What happens now?" Padmé asked her curiously and Leia sighed heavily. She should've known that question would've come up sooner or later. Leia just didn't know if she had all the answers for her.

At least, not yet.

"Are you feeling well enough to walk around?" Leia asked her and Padmé slowly nodded. The pain she felt was lingering but not unbearable like before. Her rest must've helped heal her in some ways although she still had some healing to do.

"I think so," Padmé told her, and Leia gestured for her to follow her.

"Let's get you something to eat and I'll explain everything," Leia told her and Padmé watched her aunt walk away.

She was still processing everything that happened since the other night. Padmé was clearly no closer to figuring everything out. The teenager had so many questions about her sister and cousin's actions, but she knew that the questions might never be answered. Not to mention she hadn't fully accepted everything that happened.

That the life she knew was now lost to her forever.

Her sister and cousin turned to the dark side.

Her mother was dead.

Her father left.

Padmé felt that if she truly sat down and tried to process everything at once, she would have a mental break-down which was the last thing she needed right now. No, she needed her aunt to tell her what was next and from there Padmé would figure the rest out. There was no other choice.

It was either follow her aunt or grow mad.

Padmé chose following her aunt.


"Hey, kid," Han greeted as Padmé walked into the kitchen right behind Leia. She was immediately met with the sight of her uncle who smiled at her, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. It didn't escape Padmé's notice that her uncle looked incredibly tired and just plain drained. A part of her wished she hadn't told her aunt and uncle who Ben had turned into but in the end, she knew she never could've hid that from them. Even if she wished she could've spared them the knowledge. "We thought you'd never wake up."

Chewie mumbled something in agreement as he also looked at her. Padmé smiled politely at Chewie and she didn't fail to notice the sadness in his eyes either as he looked at her. She then turned and noticed an older man sitting at the table next to her uncle.

He must've been around the same age as her Uncle Han.

More or less.

Although, he was quite a bit shorter. His eyes were a warm brown color, his hair dark and peppered with gray, and his smile was warm and welcoming. Padmé had met some of her parents' friends from the Rebellion over the years, but she was sure she'd never met this friend.

"This is Kes Dameron by the way," Han introduced as the man smiled at her although she could still detect the sympathy in his eyes. Padmé uncomfortably shifted. Something about the look in his eyes made her feel odd. It was the same look everyone else seemed to be giving her as well. A pitiful look. "He was a path-finder during the Rebellion. We worked a couple missions together back in those days."

"That we did," Kes said, smiling at Han before looking back over at the younger girl in question. His expression grew sad. "I accompanied your mother on some of those missions too. I was devastated when your aunt and uncle informed me of what happened at the Jedi Temple. I can't begin to tell you how wonderful your mother was."

"Was…" Padmé said softly to herself. "I guess I haven't really processed the fact that she's gone yet. That's going to take some getting used to."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you," Kes insisted and Padmé shook her head.

"It's alright. I'm going to have to accept it eventually," Padmé said quietly before plastering the most genuine smile she could muster on her face. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Dameron. Thank you for letting me stay here."

"It's no problem, Miss Skywalker," Kes told her, his smile returning. "After everything your parents did for the Rebellion, it's an honor to have you in my home. I just hope you don't mind the décor in my son's old room. It's not exactly tasteful but the boy's head has always been in a cockpit, I'm afraid."

"Is your son here?" Padmé asked curiously, wondering if there was anyone else, she'd be bumping into while staying with Mr. Dameron. He just grinned before shaking his head, a certain pride in his eyes as he spoke of his son.

"He's serving in the New Republic Defense Fleet on Coruscant," Kes told her and Padmé nodded. She assumed his son must've been her age judging from his room but then again, he might've been away from home for quite some time. If he was serving in the New Republic's Defense Fleet, then he was more than likely a lot older than her. Probably closer to Ben and Aayla's age.

Ben and Aayla.

There it was.

That same painful feeling that really wasn't from her wound.

Padmé forced herself not to think of them because it would only lead her into a downwards spiral that there was no coming back from.

"Is he really?" Han said in surprise, and he smiled at the man. Padmé thought he was a little too interested in hearing about Kes's son. Probably for the same reason as Padmé.

They all needed the distraction.

"Well, he got into some trouble when he was around Padmé's age, but he straightened himself out and enlisted," Kes told Han. "He's been with the New Republic ever since."

"That's good to hear," Han stated before things grew quiet again. Kes looked back up at Padmé, offering her another smile.

"Would you like some breakfast?" Kes asked her politely. "You were out for a long time. You're probably starving."

"I guess I could eat," Padmé said shyly as Kes gestured for her to take a seat at the table and Padmé obliged, taking a seat next to her aunt. She honestly didn't feel hungry. Her appetite was probably the last thing on her mind right now, but she didn't want her aunt and uncle to worry about her.

It was quiet for several minutes as they all ate.

No one seemed to know what exactly to say to each other.

There were definitely no words to make the situation better.

Especially not after the tragedy that was looming over all of their heads, so Padmé was left with no choice but to speak up.

Speaking up was never her strong suit, after all.

It was more of Aayla's skill.

"What happens now?" Padmé said quietly and everyone stopped, turning to look at her. She begrudgingly met her aunt's gaze. "You said that the First Order is probably raiding what's left of the Jedi Temple. Mom's dead. Everyone's dead. Dad's gone while Ben and Aayla are…well, who knows where but definitely in Snoke's clutches. What happens to me?"

"We're still working on the details," Han said seriously as he looked at his niece who was unusually quiet. Not that Padmé was particularly talkative, but she was definitely never this quiet. "Your aunt and I have been discussing that while you were asleep. A lot's happened and there's still a lot left up in the air."

"We're going to have to announce your mother's death soon," Leia told her softly, meeting her eyes as she looked at her. "She was a hero of the Rebellion and loved by many, so the news of her death won't be secret for long."

"Okay," Padmé said, thinking that her aunt was going to discuss funeral plans with her. However, she never could've guessed what her aunt said next.

"We were also thinking that we would announce your death as well," Leia finally said and Padmé stared at her in shock. She then glanced around the table as if she were trying to see if any of this was a joke.

No one laughed.

"What?" She asked in disbelief and Leia sighed before answering.

"The last time something of this magnitude happened was when your grandfather Anakin fell to the dark side and made it his life's mission as Darth Vader to kill every last Jedi," Leia informed her as Padmé listened intently.

"Anyone who was a threat to Palpatine. It was called Order 66."

"I don't understand what you're saying," Padmé said in confusion.

"We think that Snoke might have Ben and Aayla do the same thing," Leia admitted and Padmé stared silently at her aunt. "They think they killed you on Dantooine. You very well could've died there if we hadn't made it in time. If Snoke knew you, both a Skywalker and a Kenobi, were still alive, he'd either have you killed or turned."

"Won't Aayla and Ben know that I'm alive?" Padmé questioned, still trying not to think about how her sister and cousin might want to come back to finish her off once they found out she wasn't dead. It was still a hard concept for her to fathom. "They'll be able to sense it. Just as I can sense that they're still alive."

"Someone's been blocking your Force signature," Leia told her and Padmé was even more confused at this point. "I feared that you were already dead when we landed on Dantooine because I couldn't feel your presence anymore…until we found you very much alive."

"Who's blocking it?" Padmé asked and Leia shook her head.

"I'm not sure but I don't think it's Luke," Leia said, not completely sure herself as to who was helping Padmé. "It must be a Jedi who already passed on with the Force. Your mother perhaps or even one of your grandfathers. They're protecting you."

"So you're saying the only way I can be safe is if everyone thinks I died?" Padmé said softly and Leia gave her a sad look.

"Snoke won't try to look for you if he thinks you're already dead," Leia said in response. "Right now, you and your father are the biggest threat to Snoke and the First Order. You and your father truly are the last Jedi. If he knew you were alive, he would do everything in his power to find you."

"The last Jedi," Padmé said softly, still trying to process the fact that everything her parents had built was destroyed in the matter of a night. Her parents had tried to resurrect the Jedi and build what had once been destroyed by the Empire, but their attempts were for nothing.

"We're planning a memorial service for your mother on Naboo next week. She always loved Naboo," Leia said softly. "Much more than Tatooine but I think the memorial service will be yours too. Just so Snoke and the First Order know that you died with the others at the Jedi Temple."

"I can't even attend my own mother's funeral, can I?" Padmé said, her voice pained, and Leia looked at her sympathetically.

"I don't think so. No," Leia said sadly. Padmé nodded to herself as everyone else felt pity towards the young girl. Her whole life had been turned upside down and now she had no other option but to fake her own death.

"We're currently forging documents for a new identity," Han added, steering the conversation in a different direction. "I know a guy."

Padmé wanted to make some snark-filled retort to her uncle like she always did but she didn't have it in her anymore. At least, not now.

"I was thinking that you could assume the name Naberrie. Your grandmother's surname," Leia suggested. "The Naberrie family is big enough where it isn't odd that a new family member pops up occasionally. Your cover story is that your parents were killed by the First Order. You're the granddaughter of Sola Naberrie and I'm one of your last living relatives so I took custody of you following your parents' deaths."

"This is it then," Padmé said sadly. "I'm to live a life of lies now. All because of…because of what happened. I have to pretend to be someone I'm not."

"It's for your own protection, Padmé," Leia told her seriously. "Your mother would never forgive us if anything happened to you."

"This is the way things are going to have to be from now on," Han said grimly. "Sorry, kiddo."

"It's going to be alright," Leia tried to assure her niece, but Padmé just stared at her breakfast like she'd never seen food before. She was so lost in her thoughts about how quickly everything was changing. And none of it for the good.

Padmé loved her aunt, but she was almost certain nothing was going to be alright.

How could it?

Everything she knew and loved was gone.

Forever.