"Wait!" she called to him. "I'd like to make a deal."

Vader hesitated a moment, but his curiosity got the best of him and he slowly turned around. Making his way closer to Padmé, he lowered his voice. "What sort of deal?"

"An exchange," Padmé answered. "Something that will benefit both of us mentally."

Vader was now very confused. Mentally? He took a seat at the other end of the padded bench, careful not to invade her personal space. "Tell me, Senator."

"My company," she answered simply. "An ear to listen, shoulder to cry on…a friend." He could tell she choked a bit on that last word.

"In exchange for?" Vader prompted.

"No more questions," Padmé proposed. "No more questions about my friends or anything to do with the rebellion. If you really want me to trust you, then this is a topic we can't discuss because I know you will go out and do something I wouldn't approve of. And you wouldn't be able to trust me because you know I will never tell you what you want to hear. I won't tell you the location of every rebel base or make a list of all the former Republic Senators that are a part of the movement. We both have very strong, differing views and hold tightly to them."

"Then, what would you suggest we talk about, Senator?" Vader asked, crossing his arms.

"I guess…we'll just have to find something we have in common," Padmé replied. "I don't know, you're the one who said you wanted my company."

Vader chewed on his lip behind his mask. He did yearn for her presence- that was the sole reason he was keeping her on board, after all. And it would be nice not to fight. Although he found Padmé's headstrong personality quite attractive, the man inside the monster could use a bit of normal conversation here and there. Someone to eat meals with. Or something.

I am Darth Vader, a Sith Lord. I should have no attachments.

He cleared his throat and stood. "I shall consider your proposal and return in the morning with an answer."

Padmé nodded. The bags under her eyes were a sign of noticeable exhaustion. Vader felt a bit guilty for waking her up again.

I don't feel guilty for murdering countless civilizations or torturing helpless people, but I feel bad for interrupting Padmé's sleep.

I am Darth Vader, a Sith Lord. I should have no attachments.

He pushed aside the constant nagging of the voice inside his head and left her without a goodbye, hoping to catch some sleep himself. He had a very important conversation to prepare for, and it wasn't with Padmé.


Vader sat impatiently on his mattress, waiting for the communicator to beep. He had been notified that the Emperor would contact him "around 10:00 standard hours". It was now 10:23. It frustrated Vader that the Emperor could just call anytime he damn well pleased, but if Vader was 30 seconds late for something, he would be zapped with Force lightning.

Finally, at 10:26, the Emperor's hologram appeared before him and Vader knelt. "What is thy bidding, my Master?"

"Rise, Lord Vader," the Emperor commanded. "Some disturbing news has reached me, and I do hope there is not any truth in this."

He knows. He knows about Padmé. Goddamit Piett…

"What is this news?" Vader asked nonchalantly.

"That your little operation on Dantooine was a failure," the Emperor responded. "Quite a large failure, I might add."

Vader felt a small sense of relief that Padmé was safe, at least for now. But he dreaded the personal consequences if he was unable to talk his way out of this situation.

"What you have heard is true, my Master," Vader replied. "It was a severe error in judgment that will not happen again."

"I trust that it won't," said the Emperor. "The Empire cannot afford to look weak or else more people will likely turn to the rebel cause. Are you weak, Lord Vader?"

"No, Master," Vader answered. "The Dark Side and your teachings flow through me. I feel the power."

"Good," Sidious responded with something that resembled a sort of slithery cackle. "But I would like you to prove your words to me. You will discover the real location of the base and you will not just send a few of your silly soldiers to kill the construction crew, but you will wait until the base is finished and occupied by the rebel leaders. At that time, you, personally, will lead an attack and annihilate every rebel in your sight. We will remind them who holds the power and where their allegiances should lie. Is that understood?"

"Clearly," Vader answered. "It shall be done."

Vader expected the Emperor to end the call here, but there was a long pause. He shivered, fearful of whatever he was waiting for.

"I sense a change in you, Lord Vader," Sidious stated.

"What sort of change, Master?" Vader inquired.

"You are distracted," he answered. "You have been thinking of Anakin."

"Anakin is dead to me," Vader replied, enraged by his accusations that a tiny piece of him knew, but would not admit, to be true.

"I do hope so," Sidious responded. "I do not need reason to doubt your loyalty."

"My loyalty is and always will be to you and to the Galactic Empire," said Vader, his eyes fixed on the communicator, waiting for the Emperor to end the call so he could smash it.

"Excellent," the Emperor replied. "I shall speak with you again soon, my apprentice."

Vader nodded and waited for the connection to end before throwing the device to the ground and crashing his boot down on it multiple times, gaining satisfaction from its destruction. After he had taken a few deep breaths, he picked it up and casually handed it to one of the guards outside his quarters as he passed by. It was a routine after infuriating conversations- the trooper would deliver it to a technician and Vader would have a brand new one by the time he returned.

The conversation had, however, helped Vader reach a decision regarding Padmé's proposal. Perhaps if he played nice with her, she would eventually reveal the information he needed to track down the real base and carry out his Master's orders. Having no other source, he did not see another choice but to attempt this plan.


Padmé had slept much better after Vader had returned her Japor snippet, and was waiting almost a bit too eagerly for his return. She was craving conversation and another human presence, even if it was from the Dark Lord. She still wasn't entirely convinced that Vader was human, but was leaning toward this theory.

Kurt had delivered a new book this morning- a fictional drama called A Tale of Two Smugglers. Padmé had not read anything fictional since she was a little girl. As soon as she entered the world of politics, everything she read was somehow government-related. She had noticed immediately that certain sentences of this book were blacked out and sometimes even whole pages were missing. She assumed this was the Empire's way of censoring anything related to the Republic or the rebellion or anything at all that could possibly convince someone to question the Empire.

Vader's entrance was swift and this time Padmé immediately closed the book instead of pretending to finish the page. She no longer cared if Vader knew she wanted to see him. In fact, it might work to her advantage in her whole "gain his trust so he'll let me go home" plan.

"I have decided to accept your proposal, Senator," said Vader.

A very long pause ensued, neither knowing who should be the first to speak. Vader leaned on the wall across from her, obviously staring at her in his usual intense way. Padmé, therefore, decided to take the initiative, starting with the first "find something in common" question that came to mind. "So, you've obviously been a lot of places…in the whole galaxy, what is the greatest place you've ever been?"

"Great in what way, Senator?" Vader asked.

"Well, like…you just liked it there. You felt happy or safe," Padmé responded.

"I don't feel happy and I have nothing to fear," Vader replied.

"There must have been at least one place you've been that you particularly enjoyed," Padmé prompted.

"Well, what about you, Senator?" Vader asked. "What is your 'happy, safe place'?"

Padmé didn't really care if he was mocking her. She was determined to make progress. "Actually, my home planet of Naboo. It's filled with luscious forests and stunning views and wonderful beaches." And I would very much like to go there now, please.

"I don't like sand," Vader replied. "It's coarse and rough and irritating and gets everywhere."

"So, no beaches, then…" said Padmé, mostly to herself. "What about cities?"

"What is your fascination with picking one place to stay? One place to enjoy, as you put it?" Vader interrupted. "Why live in one spot when you can go everywhere?"

"Well…I guess because not everyone has the luxury of living on the most prestigious Imperial ship and going anywhere they want whenever they want to go there," Padmé answered, realizing she might be overstepping boundaries but not caring. "You don't know what it's like to be settled."

"Oh, believe me, Padmé," Vader interjected, "I know exactly what it's like to be stuck somewhere and I am never going back to that life."

Padmé was now curious about Vader's past and wanted to ask more, but he started heading for the door with a simple, "That's enough for today, Senator."

She sighed, resuming her position in A Tale of Two Smugglers.

What have I gotten myself into?


Hey guys! So, I know it's just been a lot of dialogue lately, but I promise you there will be some action (and a change of setting) coming up next, so stay tuned.