So this fic is completely written, and so you'll have 15 more days of updates and then I have two one shots and need to write the final part of the fic. Thank you to everyone still reading. If you can leave a review, it makes me actually want to write.

Thank you, and enjoy!

Chapter 5

They returned to Coruscant early the next day, and kindly enough did not have to attend classes. Luke made his way home alone lost in his thoughts. How could Obi-Wan possibly have become a ghost? Luke didn't think there was such a thing as ghosts, and yet he could have sworn that Ben, dead Ben, was there. It simply didn't make sense.

No, the boy decided, it didn't make sense because it wasn't real. My eyes were blurry from crying and that's that. It was much easier to believe that it was just a figment of his imagination, or even that he was going insane, than it was to believe that after all these years he was being haunted by Ben Kenobi. (Because if all those Luke had accidentally gotten killed haunted him Luke would constantly be surrounded.)

Firm in his decision, Luke made his way home to find it empty. He was surprised, not even when he saw the note saying his father would be gone for at least a week and would see him when Luke got back from Tatooine. Still, as he cooked dinner and C-3PO dictated bedtimes and such Luke suddenly was not so sure this 'freedom' thing was much fun.

Despite, or perhaps because of, the silence that night Luke barely got any sleep. When he dragged himself into school the next day he was fifteen minutes late and looked like he'd been run over by a speeder. In fact he actually debated telling the secretary that he had been run over by a speeder, but figured that then his father would rush back to Coruscant and they'd both be in a world of trouble. So, Luke settled on the truth and won himself a detention. Of course now he'd be late for gymnastics, which would make Couch Dug angry again, so the day was just off to a brilliant start.

And he had history first period, which was always painful, but especially painful in this case because when Luke walked in the word Jedi was up on the board.

"Ah, Luke, I'm glad you made it," his teacher, Mr. Blue, greeted as Luke handed him the tardy pass. Rickon and Leah sat in the back, both offering Luke a questioning look, but since freaking Brandon was in Luke's usual seat he had to sit in the very front.

"I was just explaining how after the Sith Wars the Jedi were left unchecked," Mr. Blue explained, looking quite a bit nervous. Luke didn't blame him either. It had to be awkward teaching about Jedi, but to teach it to the son of a Sith who rumor had it was being trained as a Jedi… well that had to be very awkward.

Still, Mr. Blue charged on. "The Jedi grew in power within the Republic. Most of their deeds were good. They managed to keep the galaxy from war, keep what appeared to be a good peace, but it was really a lie. In fact the Jedi drafted laws that allowed them to take any Force-Sensitive child from his or her parents without their permission. They allowed slavery to spread in Hutt controlled outer rim territories. The sat there encouraging the Republic to squabble and fight, until about fifty years ago. The Jedi order became corrupt just as the Senate was. They began to arrange themselves to gain more power. They were ruthless in the Clone Wars, sacrificing civilians and clones without a second thought. Now during the Clone Wars there were two Jedi- Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker. They were renowned throughout the galaxy for their skill in combat and negotiation. When then Chancellor Palpatine was kidnapped by Separatist leader Count Dooku, they went to retrieve him. They did, but something happened during that mission. Anakin Skywalker was very young, the greatest Jedi Knight, but inexperienced and naïve. He was loyal though, to the Republic, but more importantly to Chancellor Palpatine. The Chancellor arranged it so Skywalker would be given a seat on the Jedi High Council, and the Jedi allowed it, with the condition that Skywalker spy on the Chancellor. This troubled Skywalker, and he confessed his hidden mission to the Chancellor. Chancellor Palpatine admitted that he had suspected for some time that the Jedi sought to overthrow him and take over the Republic. Them asking Skywalker to spy was proof enough. Chancellor Palpatine asked Skywalker to return to the temple and try to find more evidence, and the loyal Jedi did so. But the Jedi were far crueler than anyone knew, and they killed Skywalker when he returned to the temple. From there the Jedi marched on the Chancellor's office, where, as you know from your earlier school years, they were defeated by the Clones and Darth Vader. The Chancellor took over as Emperor that day, and dedicated himself to eliminating the sick corruption that plagued the senate and Jedi order. Now, that's a story you all know, but what we're going to analyze today is why this happened. History tells us the Jedi Order truly was good for thousands of years, but what happened to make them turn? Now, the first evidence is actually as old as the Order- the Jedi code. Now this goes 'There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. Thee is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is nothing but the Order.' Now you can see the mindset that… Yes Luke?'

Luke barely even realized his hand had shot up, but now that he'd been called upon the teen had something to say. "You're wrong."

Mr. Blue was generally relaxed and amiable, but even he seemed angered by Luke's blunt comment. "Excuse me?"

"I mean that uh, that's not the code," Luke attempted to correct himself, face blushing red. He hadn't meant to come off as so cross but it had been a long morning. "The last line is wrong. It's "there is no death, there is the Force."

Mr. Blue rubbed his neck awardly, and turned back towards the board, away from Luke, as he spoke, "Perhaps that's how the Sith say it but the Jedi…"

"The Sith don't say the Jedi code. That would be ridiculous," Luke interrupted, unsure himself where this was coming from. Why did he care if they all thought the Jedi were horrible? They had been horrible! They forbade love; they stole Luke from his father; they would have taken control of the Republic. Why did Luke feel the need to defend them? Sure, he'd been training like a Jedi for years but all to become a Sith eventually. He was supposed to hate the Jedi, so why would he defend them?

Yet Luke couldn't help himself, and carried on despite the ire in Mr. Blue's eyes. "Besides, the last line you said makes no sense. It doesn't fit the pattern!"

It seemed like a logical argument, and the students around Luke were nodding. None of them knew either way, but they could easily see Luke Skywalker knowing more about the Jedi than Mr. Blue. After all, Luke's father was dedicated to the task of destroying all Jedi; know thy enemy, right? And if Vader knew the true code it would make sense for Luke to as well….

"That's enough Luke," Mr. Blue told the teen, thoroughly aware of the dangerous waters they had crossed into. The class could not start getting the idea that perhaps their textbook was wrong. This was the imperially ascribed Empire Week curriculum for their age group. This was what they would learn. "History tells us that that is how the code went. Now, as I was saying the philosophy behind this debated last line is apparent. The Jedi cared about nothing but themselves and their order by the end. When they saw the Clone Wars were coming to an end, when they saw that they would lose their power and have to stand trial for all their wartime actions, they panicked. The Jedi Council claimed that Chancellor Palpatine was breaking the Constitution and sought to kill him."

One of the many consequences of Luke not waking up that morning was his missed meditation time. Perhaps if the teen had taken the time to center himself in the Force as he normally did he would have had the prudence not to whisper the next comment under his breath, "Well he was breaking the Constitution. There were specific safeguards against dictatorships which he ignored or amended to suit his needs."

The real reason sitting in the front was never a good idea was how blue Mr. Blue's face was as he wrote a note and sent Luke straight towards the headmaster's office.

Mr. Raybag was in a meeting when Luke arrived at the office, and so the teen has a good half hour to sulk. He knew he was being moody and ridiculous but it was just so stupid! How could no one see that right or not what Palpatine did was illegal? Maybe the Jedi had been horrible, but they were correct. And surely Palpatine did just as many horrible things. Luke's father did numerous horrible things; it was the Sith way. Perhaps moreover it was the way of all 'civilized' life.

Knowing that the negative thoughts were no good Luke attempted to force himself into meditation, but couldn't. Perhaps the Force was as annoyed as Luke was, or perhaps he was just too distracted by the constant clicking of the chronometer on the wall.

Finally though Mr. Raybag came out of his meeting, and Luke forced himself into the man's office. As he looked around Luke's annoyance was replaced by fear. Force, he'd been so stupid. He was lucky not to be in a prison cell, never mind the office.

Luke sat down in the chair, and wondered when it had gotten so small. He hadn't been in Mr. Raybag's office since his first year, right after his true identity came out. The chair had been so big then. Now it was as if someone had shrunk it.

"So," Mr. Raybag finally began after watching Luke squirm. "Is your father onworld?"

Luke shook his head, blond locks covering his eyes as he did so. He hadn't even thought about what his father was going to say! Force he would be lucky to escape with his life. Anyone else wouldn't even have the chance of doing that. "No, sir."

Mr. Raybag nodded, seemingly unsurprised. "But you live with a nanny correct, for when he's not around?"

"Not anymore sir," Luke admitted, and this appeared to have surprised the headmaster. "She resigned a few days ago because of family needs. My father has decided I am old enough to take care of myself when he cannot be around. And I have a protocol droid that helps with the housekeeping and such."

Mr. Raybag nodded again, smiling knowingly. It bothered Luke, the way this man seemed to think he knew exactly what was going on. There was no way he could, which meant this was surely going to be an awkward conversation. "Well then. Why don't you tell me exactly what happened? All Mr. Blue wrote was that you had made some 'borderline treasonous' remarks about the Jedi."

"I wasn't trying to be disrespectful, really. But the code he was reading was wrong, and then I was annoyed and made a comment about the Emperor and… Everything I said was true!"

Mr. Raybag had the reputation of an old-fashioned stickler, but he actually looked sympathetic to Luke. Perhaps he just felt bad for the son of Vader. "Luke, something you'll understand as you age is that truth and reality might not always coincide. What you have been told is reality, what you think is truth, might not actually be the truth. Truth is a matter of context, and within this society truth is what our great Emperor says is truth. In this school we only teach truth, do you understand?"

No, Luke certainly didn't understand. Sure, he knew from literature that sometimes truth went beyond reality, but reality was never not true. You can't just pretend something didn't happen because you're being told it didn't. Luke had the odd sense that whatever truth was it was not what Mr. Raybag said it was. Yet he didn't say so. Luke held his tongue, hoping that perhaps they would forget to call his father.

"Besides, whatever you said was probably not the reality of the situation either. After all, everything we know about the Jedi we know from your father, which means you know it's true as well. Now I know it must be hard having a father of such importance and sometimes you think that if you act out- by drawing a rebel symbol or saying lies in class- you'll draw his attention but…"

Luke stood up involuntarily, staring at Mr. Raybag in shock. "Wait, you think I'm doing this to get attention? I know I shouldn't have said those things but it was just a spur of the moment mistake. I'm not trying to get my father's attention, and I did not draw those rebel symbols!"

Mr. Raybag nodded, but both the Force and his smile told Luke the man didn't believe him. "Of course, I'm just saying that it's natural to want your father's attention, especially when you are without a mother. Just next time tell him instead of your whole history class, alright?"

Luke felt sick doing so, but he nodded. Anything to get out of that office. It must have done the trick, because Mr. Raybag smiled again, and wrote out a slip. "I saw you were late this morning, so why don't we just extend your detention to an hour and I won't even tell your father."

On some level Luke knew Mr. Raybag was just worried that if Vader knew Luke was in trouble the headmaster would be the one punished, but he didn't mind. Oh, he would be in so much trouble for missing a whole hour of gymnastics, but his father wouldn't know. That was all that mattered.

Luke managed to get through the rest of the morning without incident, despite the whispered words in the hall. For the second time that week everyone was wondering if Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader's son, had somehow turned rebel. Luke tried to block it out, but the Force was really not cooperating, and so when he arrived at the stupid Empire day play practice Luke was thoroughly agitated.

To make it even worse neither Leah nor Rickon were in the show, and Brandon was to be playing the emperor. Luke actually thought that to be quite a fitting role. They were both falsely kind, and then turned in the blink of an eye.

"Okay, so we're just going to begin with a read through. Now the script isn't set in stone so if anyone has any comments or wants to tweak a line or two now is the time to do that. And we also need to figure out props. The art class is working on a set but we need lightsabers. We could use sticks or…" she trailed off, and everyone followed her gaze towards Luke.

The teen sighed, knowing full well what they wanted. Well his father was going to be offworld until long after the show was done so what was the harm. "I have a few training sabers that just sting a bit. But I'm not sure if they're legal so…"

Nil suddenly remembered that they were doing a skit where half the cast were playing outlaws, and shook her head furiously, "Right, sticks. Um, okay, so um and does anyone have like a toy Vader mask or…"

"Oh, my father didn't have a mask yet so we don't need one."

Everyone stared at Luke, and the teen wondered if they even knew Vader had ever gone without a mask. Sure, Luke had heard people say that they thought Vader wasn't human but surely Luke's humanity proved otherwise…

"So, what did he look like then?" Garoche Tarkin, the Grand Moff's eighteen year old son, finally got up the courage to ask. Everyone's eyes widened at his bravery, but Luke only laughed. They were all pretty ridiculous sometimes.

"A lot like me I guess, just taller."

Everyone laughed a bit awkwardly, and began to read the script. Luke flipped through it a bit, and was glad to find that his father didn't show up until page ten. Well, technically his father showed up on page two as the play practically began with Anakin Skywalker's death but…

Finally they made it to the point where the Jedi came to kill the Emperor, and 'Vader' made his entrance. Luke read through the lines with ease, considering there were about two, but got up out of the reading circle to show them all how to do a proper lightsaber duel. Garoche was the only one brave enough to try and go against Luke, and while he was promptly defeated it certainly was a good show.

"Yeah, we definitely need some of that. You know Garoche if you wore an alien mask you could be a Jedi in that scene and we could have a big duel between you and Luke. Luke, do you think you could teach him?" Nil asked.

Luke felt uneasy, knowing his father would not approve, but nodded slightly. "I can show him a bit. It took me years of gymnastics and training to do that, but I can show him enough to make it a good show."

Pleased with how cool it was surely going to turn out, they turned the page to where Vader was leading a raid on the Jedi temple. Suddenly Luke felt sick. He couldn't help but think back to the horrifying images Ben Kenobi showed him all those years ago…

"This is wrong," Luke whispered as 'hundreds of Jedi attack Vader and the clones'. "There weren't that many Jedi in the temple. Most of them were cut down by clones in the field. The temple was mostly just the old and the young."

One of the youngest students looked up at Luke her blue eyes watering, "It's not nice to joke! Everyone at the temple died and Darth Vader would never kill kids."

"My father will kill anyone for the Empire, as any law-abiding citizen is called to," Luke spit out, scaring the girl but too angry to notice. It had been a terrible morning, and now Luke was forced to face the truth he'd been hiding from for years. His father killed kids, and the galaxy called it a good thing. "The Empire kills kids all the time! They starve or they're casualties in a battle or they're drafted into the navy as stormtroopers and die in a tie-fighter because we're too cheap to have shielding or…"

Everyone was staring at Luke, and he realized that Mr. Raybag had just walked into the room and was looking disapprovedly at look. No words were spoken, but with a sigh Luke grabbed his things and followed the headmaster from the room. Just as he reached the doorway, Luke heard Brandon tell the others, "I don't care who his dad is. He's treasonous rebel scum."

Apparently Mr. Raybag agreed, because he didn't even say anything as he locked Luke in the office. When the door finally opened the teen was met with the sight of Admiral Cassel. "Sithspit. Am I being arrested as a rebel again?"

Admiral Cassel chuckled, but his eyes held no humor, "You wish kid. Unfortunately you're just stuck with me as an emergency contact when your father is offworld and you're being sent home for the rest of the day until someone can get in contact with your father and ask if he'd like to murder you yourself or if I should do it."

Of course it was the absolute worst thing Luke could say, but he was so incredibly fed up he couldn't help himself. "I'd suggest the Emperor. He's been wanting to for years I'm sure."