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ANAKIN'S REDEMPTION

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Chapter 3 – Burying Grudges

In the shadows, lurked an old enemy. Someone thought to be dead. He was waiting, biding his time for the perfect opportunity to take his revenge. Shutting down his macrobinoculars, he returned to his ship and prepared to make the next move.

----

Leia paced back and forth across the room. Her holo projecter was overheating while she raced aroundfrantically calling and sending messages to as many people as she could.

"Yes, yes, it's true I'm afraid. Yes, Vader survived the Death Star blast. Umm…no…I'm not really sure how. I think he might have had help…from an incredibly stupid person. No I don't know who. Yes, we need to get ourselves organized before Vader has time to rally up the Imperial Troops. Declare himself Emperor? Oh…I hadn't even thought of that...we'll get moving as soon as we can."

She clicked her comlink shut and swore under her breath. "You idiot Luke," she muttered. "How could you be so stupid."

----

Luke and Anakin stood outside the door to Leia's Ewok hut, listening to the commotion inside.
"I guess you have to face Leia sooner or later," said Luke, not sounding terribly confident.
"Yes," said Anakin. "It would be a little silly to hide from her."
"I agree."

They stood a few moments, neither moving.

"The best way to handle Leia," advised Luke, "Is to just agree with everything she says."
Anakin nodded. "I'll try to remember that while she's beating me with my own mechanical limbs."

Father and son stood staring at the door.

Luke looked at Anakin expectantly. "Should we go in?"
"Uh, it's probably better if you go before me," suggested Anakin.
"Yeah, that way she can kill me first and you have time to run away while she disposes of my body," said Luke disdainfully. He hesitantly knocked. "Leia? It's Luke?"
"I'm not speaking to you," her muffled voice sounded through the door. Luke took a deep breath before he opened the door anyway and entered.
"Luke, I thought I told you not to – "

Anakin walked in behind Luke with uncertainty. Leia's eyes widened in shock, then quickly narrowed and became dark with seething rage.
"You!" she hissed. "How DARE you walk in here. After all you've done! Luke, how could you save this piece of filth? How could you bring this…this MONSTER in here?"
"He saved my life," said Luke simply. "And he is our father."
"Father." Leia spat out the word as though it were poison. "He is no father."
"Leia," said Anakin, trying to take her arm. She recoiled in disgust.
"Don't TOUCH me," she fumed. "You sicken me."
"Leia, he's changed now. I told you, he has turned back to the light. He is no longer Darth Vader. This is Anakin Skywalker, our father," Luke tried to tell her.

Leia's expression said it all. "He will always be Darth Vader. This is the man who tortured me on the Death Star. This is the man who held me back as Tarkin destroyed my home and family on Alderaan. He is pure evil, and I will never forgive him. Never." Leia spoke through gritted teeth, her eyes blazing.

"If I can forgive him, so can you," Luke persisted.
"You are a complete imbecile, Luke," she glowered. She turned to Anakin. "Give me one good reason why I don't take out my blaster and blow you away right this moment." Both Luke and Anakin were taken aback by the vicious expression on her face.

Anakin just looked at her. "I understand Leia," he said sadly. "I wouldn't be able to forgive me either, in your position. I don't expect you to. But I can help you. I'm the only one who can call off the Imperial Troops. I can end the fighting. I'm the only one who knows how the old Republic was. I can help you to establish your own government, renew the Jedi Order…"
"The hell you will," snapped Leia. "Luke, you fool, you have brought the leader of the Empire right into the Rebellion. He knows where we are now, he can destroy us! What have you done Luke?"
"I told you, he's finished with the Empire now. I know you don't believe us yet, but he will show you."
Anakin nodded. "Yes. After time, you will see I have changed. I will prove myself to you..."
"I'll believe it when I see it." Leia pushed past them and stalked icily through the door. "Until then – stay the hell away from me."

Luke and Anakin stood in the hut and looked at each other. "That went surprisingly well, actually," they agreed.

---

Han and Chewie were, as usual, making much needed repairs on the Millennium Falcon. Their banging and tinkering could be heard through the otherwise tranquil forest.

"Pass me the vibroblade! You got any transparisteel back there? Well find some!"

"Look, there's Han," Luke pointed out to Anakin, who sighed.
"Another person I owe an apology to," he muttered reluctantly.

"Chewie something is wrong with the alluvial dampers! I don't care, just fix it!" Han was shouting.
"Why doesn't he just get a new ship?" Anakin asked out of the corner of his mouth.
Luke smirked in amusement. "Hey Han!"

Han wiped his hands on a dirty rag and came over. "Hi Luke…who are you?" he asked, noticing the tall, disfigured man beside him.
"This is…well this is my father, Anakin Skywalker," introduced Luke tentatively.
Han raised his eyebrows. "Your father? But Leia told me that your father is Darth…" Han looked down and noticed the black suit, the cape. "…Vader." He took an involuntary step back. "You're Darth Vader."
Anakin nodded. "Yes…well I was Darth Vader. But not anymore. Darth Vader is dead. I am Anakin Skywalker now."

"Ooo-kaaay," said Han, not looking convinced one bit. "And you're fine with this Luke?" He waved his finger between the two.
"Yes Han. He is my father. I know you don't believe in the Force and you don't understand about the dark side, but I can tell you that he is not Darth Vader anymore."
Han looked back and forth between them. "I don't know about this…what did Leia say?"
Luke and Anakin looked at each other. "Well…" said Luke.
"I think I can guess," said Han. Chewie, who was listening on top of the Falcon, roared in agreement.

Anakin stepped forward. "Han I must apologize for torturing you on Bespin. I seem to be doing a lot of apologizing lately, and you're on that very long list of people."
Han glared at him. "There's just one thing I never understood. How come you never asked me any questions? Why torture me?"
"It was a ploy to draw Luke to you. As a Jedi, he can pick up on the suffering of those he cares about. I knew your pain would bring him to you," clarified Anakin. "And then him to me…I can offer no real excuses for what I did other than to say I was under the control of the Emperor at the time. I've done a lot of terrible things but I'm doing all I can to make things right."

Han took a breath. "Well I suppose if I can forgive Lando, I can forgive you too," he said grudgingly. "But I'm with Leia on this. I don't trust you, and you've got a lot of proving to do." He jabbed a finger in Anakin's direction to make his point.
"I understand," agreed Anakin amiably. "I can't ask for anything more."
"Well okay then," said Han gruffly. "So uh, Luke, when are we leaving this little Teddy Bear planet and making a move? Has Leia said anything about what we do next?"
"She mentioned something about Coruscant," said Luke. "The Rebels are going to establish a new leadership, or something like that."
"I'd better go and talk to her myself, find out if she's planning to come with us in the Falcon…" Han looked at Luke and Anakin. "Do you guys…uh…need a ride too?" Chewie growled. Neither of them looked too thrilled with the idea of riding with Darth Vader.
"We have our own ship," said Luke. "But thanks."
"No problem kid," said Han, still not taking his wary eyes off Anakin. "Let's go."

There was an uncomfortable silence as they trudged through the forest back to the Ewok community. Han broke the silence, in typical Han fashion. "So…Vader," he began. "Or do you prefer Darth?"
"You may call me Anakin," he said evenly.
"Ok…so Anakin. Sorry to sound a little blunt," said Han. "But what the hell is wrong with your face?" Chewie growled a warning to Han to shut up. "Well," defended Han. "He's all messed up. Now we know what the mask was hiding."

Even Luke looked horrified. Chewie just clapped an enormous paw over his face and howled.

Anakin laughed. He admired Han's spunk."It's ok, you can ask. I fell into a lava pit and caught fire."
"Huh," said Han. "I heard that but never knew if it was true. But…I don't get it. Don't they have ways of fixing your face? I mean Luke here got messed up by a Wampa, looked pretty bad too, a few days in a bacta tank and he's his old handsome self again." He ruffled Luke's hair, as Luke elbowed him in embarrassed irritation. "But…couldn't you…well…fix yourself?" Chewie growled something that translated to "Oh, Han."

Anakin sighed. "Well, back when I first got burned they didn't have the same access to bacta as we do now. I never even got treated for my burns. They just put me straight into the suit."
"Why did you need that big contraption anyway?" asked Han.
"I needed the respirator to breathe, after my lungs were destroyed by breathing sulfur," explained Anakin. "My entire body was burned, and the suit protected me from infection and temperature. The helmet helped to keep the air at the correct level. And these -" he waved his arms and legs, "These are mechanical limbs."
"You have no arms or legs?" asked Han in astonishment. "How'd you lose those?"
"Obi-Wan Kenobi cut them off," answered Anakin.
"That old fossil?" quipped Han. "Wow, that old guy was full of surprises."

"But the technology has improved since then," Luke pointed out. "Why didn't you use it?"
Anakin thought for a moment. "Well I guess I had a few reasons. One thing is that, with burned skin and artificial limbs, I couldn't feel anything."
"Luke can feel with his fake hand, can't you Luke?" interrupted Han.
"These are older models," said Anakin, looking down at his left arm, then to his severed right arm. "They're only mechanical, not this bio-organic material that Luke has. Not being able to feel has its benefits when you're trying to hide from pain. And also…I must admit I'm a rather stubborn man. I thought I could heal myself with the Force. I've been trying for the last twenty years…not with much success though…anyway, the suit and mask had the very useful effect of intimidating those I wished to intimidate. Which, let's face it, was everyone," he admitted.
"Couldn't you do something now?" prodded Han. "Or do you want to go around looking like a Bith for the rest of your life?"
"Han!" objected Luke. Chewie roared something to the effect of "What the hell are you saying? This is Darth Vader!"
Anakin just laughed again. "I never really cared before. What was the point? But now…yes, it might be a good idea to look into some treatments."

"The best place would be Coruscant," said Han, rubbing his jaw thoughtfully. "Centre of the galaxy, they probably have the best medical centres there. We're on our way there anyway, hopefully anarchy has not broken out since the Emperor bought a one way ticket to hell…oh..." He looked at Anakin. "Oh sorry…he was your friend and all…you're probably sad."
"Sad?" said Anakin with a sneer. "I was the one who killed him!"
"I thought Luke did! At least that's the story that's going around. Have you been taking the credit for your father's work here?" Han accused Luke.
"Hey I never said it was me!" cried Luke. "The Emperor was about to kill me, Father saved me and killed him."
"Wow, really?" said Han turning back to Anakin with new respect in his eyes. "So you really didn't like him?"

"That's putting it mildly," said Anakin. "He destroyed my whole life. I finally paid him back."

---

Leia had already packed up her things and was waiting impatiently for Han.
"Where have you been Han?" she demanded. "I've been ready for hours while you've been tinkering with that bucket of bolts. I have important work to do."
"Yes your highnessness. Your ship awaits you, mi'lady."
"Don't get smart with me."

Leia marched down the ramp way. A group of Ewoks, led by Wicket, gathered together.
Her face softened. "Thankyou for all your help," she said. "Especially you, little one." She patted Wicket on the head. He said something to her and handed her a handcrafted necklace.
"It appears that he is giving you a departure gift, as you are considered part of his tribe," translated Threepio.
"Well thankyou," Leia smiled warmly. "I will treasure it." She tied the piece around her neck. "Goodbye, friends." The Ewoks cheered and waved goodbye as Leia, Han and Threepio walked away.

As they approached the ship, they passed Luke and Anakin.
"He better not be coming with us," said Leia through her clenched jaw.
"Don't worry." Luke was rolling his eyes. "We're taking the Imperial Shuttle. You ride with Han and Chewie."
"May I strongly suggest you ride with us too?" said Leia, a false smile plastered on her face.
"I'm riding with my father," said Luke with a determined expression at Leia.
"Suit yourself." She did not acknowledge Anakin as she strode past him. He watched after her as she boarded the Falcon.
Han looked at Luke and Anakin with a "What can you do?" expression and shrugged. He and Chewie followed her on the ship.

Anakin stood, still staring after Leia. "Come, father," said Luke, taking his arm and leading him back to the shuttle.

As the two ships took off, nobody noticed a third ship rising up from the other side of Endor. And none of them had noticed the small tracking device on the Falcon's hull. Han punched in the hyperspace coordinates for Coruscant and they shot off, unaware of the danger behind them.