Chapter 5
Leia was too stunned to react. Her initial reaction was to dismiss the man in front of her as a fraud, but somehow she knew that what he said was true. That he was her father. Her incredulity was then replaced by rage; rage which was only exacerbated by the pained expression on her father's face, as if he was trying to convey remorse. She wouldn't let him; what he had done was unforgiveable and no amount of remorse could change that in her eyes.
As if acting on instinct, she grabbed her lightsaber and ignited it, the blue blade humming menacingly at her side. Seemingly unfazed by Leia's visceral reaction, Anakin took a step forward out of the shadows. Leia noticed that he was young, probably no older than herself. A jagged scar around his left eye the only mar on his otherwise handsome face. He looked nothing like she had ever imagined.
"I'm not here to apologize," he said, breaking the silence. "I know there's nothing I could say to change your mind anyway."
When he took another step forward, Leia pointed her lightsaber at his chest, her arm trembling. "Don't come any closer," she threatened. A glimmer of amusement passed over Anakin's face, but he acquiesced to her demand regardless.
"As you wish," he said simply, holding his hands in the air.
Playing the role as mediator, Luke stepped forward. "Leia, put your lightsaber away," he said calmly. "You can't touch him anyway, he's a ghost."
Keeping her eyes on her father, Leia slowly lowered the blade and extinguished it. After a few moments, she asked "How is this even possible?"
"Death is not necessarily the end," Luke told his sister. "Through the Force, the spirits of the deceased can communicate with us."
"How long have you been talking with him?" she asked in a low voice.
Luke hesitated, knowing that Leia would interpret his answer as a betrayal. Noticing his son's dilemma, Anakin responded instead. "I have been in communication with Luke ever since I died."
"Is that so?" Leia snarled, turning her attention to Luke. Unnerved by the Leia's vicious glare, Luke looked away. "Bonded, have you?"
Regaining his courage, Luke met his sister's gaze. "Leia, please. He's only here to tell us about our mother. Here him out, would you?"
"Here him out?" Leia replied indignantly. Part of her was outraged that Luke had been consorting with the devil all this time, but the other part was desperately curious to know more about her mother. Even if it meant talking with Vader.
"Fine," she said bitterly. "Talk."
"What do you wish to know?"
"Did you ever love her?" Leia asked in an accusatory tone.
"From the moment I met her."
Leia faltered at that, as she had never considered Vader of having the capacity to love. But it was clear that he was being truthful with her. He's still a monster she reminded herself, this doesn't change anything.
"What was her name?" she heard Luke ask softly.
"She had many," Anakin replied. "But to me she was always Padme."
"What do you mean she had many?" Leia asked, her bitterness giving way to her curiosity.
"Her birth name was Padme Naberrie, but when she became queen of Naboo she adopted the regal name Amidala. I suppose when she married me, she became a Skywalker as well, although we could never tell anyone of our marriage."
Leia was too stunned for words. Senator Amidala is my mother?
"She was a queen?" she heard Luke ask incredulously.
This is too much Leia thought, her head spinning. How could this possibly be true?
"She was elected queen when she was fourteen," Anakin told him. "After her term ended she represented Naboo as a senator."
"Leia, are you all right," Luke asked, noticing his sister's ashen expression.
Leia shook her head slowly, her eyes still transfixed on Anakin's ghostly figure. "This is too much…" she mumbled to herself. "I'm sorry, I just… I can't do this."
"Leia…" Luke called after her as she stumbled past Anakin out of the kitchen. Anakin sighed, a sullen expression on his face.
"Hey, that went better than I think either of us though it would," Luke told Anakin. "She'll come around eventually."
Anakin smiled at his son, wishing he could share his optimism. "I hope so," he said wistfully. "Until then, I suggest you go to Naboo. It was at Varykino in the Lake Country where your mother and I fell in love and were married."
Luke nodded, eager to visit the planet renowned for its beauty. "I'll have to ask Leia. Perhaps this is what she needs."
"Perhaps," Anakin mused, his lips pursed. "In the meantime, I think it best if we avoided talking to each other."
Luke nodded, agreeing on a rational level but he couldn't help but feel sad.
Recognizing his son's mood, Anakin reached out and put his hand on Luke's shoulder. While he of course couldn't feel his father's hand, the gesture made Luke smile nonetheless.
"Until then, goodbye my son."
"Goodbye father." With that, Luke was left alone in the middle of the kitchen. His brief reprieve was interrupted however, when he heard heavy, familiar footsteps approaching.
"Morning, Han," Luke said wearily without looking up,
"What's up with you?"
Luke snorted as he turned to fix himself something to eat. "More family drama," he said.
"You get into another fight with Leia?" Han asked.
"In a sense."
"What does that mean?"
Luke sighed, not sure how much he wanted to disclose to Han without his sister's consent. Besides, it's not as if Han would believe him anyway if he told him exactly what had just gone down.
"I think Leia should be the one to tell you," Luke said eventually. "You just missed her, she stormed off to her room a minute ago."
Since when did I become a therapist? Han thought to himself, not looking forward to confronting Leia. "OK, I will. But not until after breakfast. Lesson number one about women," Han told Luke seriously, holding up a finger. "Never talk to them on an empty stomach."
Luke laughed for what felt like the first time in weeks. "It's good to have you back, Han."
Later that morning, Han went upstairs to Leia's room. Taking a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for the daunting task ahead of him, he knocked on Leia's door. "It's Han. I want to talk to you." Hearing no response, Han pushed the door open slowly, highly conscious that he may be entering the proverbial lion's den. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Han made out Leia's petite figure sitting cross-legged on the bed. In her hand, she clutched a datapad which provided the only light in the room apart from that from the hallway. As he approached the bed cautiously, Han saw that Leia was staring raptly at the portrait of a regal looking woman on the datapad.
"Who are you looking at?" Han asked gently, totally out of his element.
Leia didn't respond, not even acknowledging Han's presence. As his eyes better adjusted to the darkness, he was startled to see that Leia's face was wet with tears. Acting on instinct, Han reached out and put his hand on her knee.
"When I was growing up on Alderaan," Leia began softly almost in a whisper. "I always idolized her. She was my hero, I wanted to be just like her." Suddenly embarrassed, Leia wiped away her tears with her sleeve. Clearing her throat, she continued in a stronger voice. "I felt connected to her for as long as I can remember. We were both royalty, after all."
Han nodded, unsure of where Leia was going with this but wisely decided not to say anything.
"When I became a politician, my… guardians were so proud of me. Dad even told me that…" Leia's face scrunched up, but she willed herself not to cry in front of Han. "He told me that I was just like her." She began to shake as her emotions began to bubble over, fresh tears cascading down her cheek. Han put his other arm on Leia's back, gently caressing it.
After a while, Leia regained her composure and sat up strait, taking a deep breath as she did so. Swinging her legs off the other side of the bed, she stood up with surprising grace. "Where's Luke?" she asked, the vulnerability suddenly gone from her voice, replaced by an ominous steeliness.
"Down stairs, I think he's still in the kitchen," Han replied, surprised by her rapid transformation.
Leia nodded. "Good, we need to talk."