Summary: Five years after Mustafar, Darth Vader is but a shadow of the powerful Sith Lord he should be. To the point where the emperor must use the apprentice bond to force Vader to act. But why?

Chalk it up to two undaunted women who will not let even death stop them from saving the soul of the man they both loved.

Based on StarWarrior72's "The strength to do for his child"

Force-Speech

*Thoughts*

~Force Vision~

Disclaimer - I neither own copyright nor receive money for anything. I write to improve my ability and for enjoyment.

We all need something to fight for:

Chapter 19 : Healing the Broken Wings

Anakin had left Luke to spend his last night with his aunt and uncle. He would have stayed in the house with Luke but for Owen's complete anomosity towards him. Anakin hardly wanted his son to feel any more pain that night. Instead, he moved to bed down with his troops, the loyal clones of the 501st. Indeed he could already see Obi-wan sitting next to Rex and reminiscing about their days in the Clone Wars. The camp-fire burned like a welcoming beacon in the chill night and Anakin could hardly wait to reach it.

The Force had other plans for him though. As he moved towards his mentor and Captain Rex, he could see Qui-gon standing at the opening to the mound that had been his shelter the night before. Anakin paused and looked longingly at the fire and his friends. Then squaring his shoulders, he went to join Qui-gon at the opening. The look on the elder Jedi's face was somber, almost disturbed. Anakin, there is someone else that needs your help. I had thought that when you managed to reach Obi-wan that her pain would pass, but it seems that she has fallen out of our reach as well.

The young man's face twisted into a painful grimace. "Is it Leia? Was it something I did when 'settling' things that affected her?" he asked anxiously. No Anakin. Leia is fine for now. In fact, she's being well protected. The Force has granted several of us the chance to reach the living. Unfortunately that has it's own risks with the Darkness growing. Despite being one with the Force, we can make mistakes. And some mistakes carry a heavier price then others. Qui-gon said solemnly.

Anakin's expression smoothed somewhat but he was still puzzled. "I don't understand Master. What do you mean by 'heavier price'? And what can I do about it?" The Shade merely sighed. I would be far more open with you about this if I could Anakin. Yet the Force tells me that it would do great harm, and leave you incapable of aiding the one I spoke of. You must return to the dream-meadow that you would meet Luke at. And you must go now before your son notices.

Anakin seethed inwardly at the notion as he follow Qui-gon inside the mound. While the 'dream-meadow' had been a welcome and beautiful place for him to rest away from the world, he'd only needed it to escape the hideousness that was his reality. He no longer needed such a crutch, his son had given him something to believe in again, someone who believed in him! To go back now, it would only remind him of the bitterly wasted years.

Ahni, that is exactly why you must go back, Shmi said as Qui-gon moved to stand beside her. If you don't, then no one will ever go to that place and she will be trapped there, in great pain. Anakin drew up short at that. Someone Qui-gon and his mother had known, who was important to him and wasn't his daughter? A look of dawning horror crossed his scarred face. "Mom, please. Please tell me it isn't..." Shmi turned her head away, which was all the comfirmation he needed. His mother would never, ever, lie to him.

Anakin closed his eyes for a moment as Shmi and Qui-gon exchanged worried glances. Then they snapped back open with a look that had Obi-wan been there, he would have reconized in his younger brother at once. Simply put, it was the look Anakin would take on when he became a walking avatar of the Force itself, virtually unstoppable. "Can you send me there if I'm willing? Or do I have to 'go to sleep'?" The question seemed to surprise Qui-gon a bit, but Shmi merely smiled.

Qui-gon, are you truly that surprised? Yes you could not tell him, but once he found out on his own, there would be nothing he would not do for her. Shmi said calmly and then turned back to her son. You won't have much time before Luke ends up joining you, Anakin. And if he did so while she is like this, I shudder to think of the consquences. It has been only on rare occasions that Padme was able to leave Alderaan and come visit Luke. He barely knows her and only speaks of her as my 'nice lady friend', the one that watches his sister. She has hidden her identity from him so he would focus on you. But now, she will no longer be able to do so.

Anakin nodded, slowly moving to a spot where he could sit in a meditative pose comfortably. Without the armor on, his movements were far less restricted. "And as deeply as Luke can feel anything that pains me, once he realized Padme was his mother.. " he trailed of as he found the spot he was looking for and sank down with an akward grace. Qui-gon nodded as both he and Shmi came to stand next to him. Exactly, which is why you must go and go now. Luke is already sensing the pain his mother's spirit is in, but doesn't understand where it is coming from. Leia also will feel it soon enough and then both of the twins will be drawn there. Which in turn will alert Sidious to their exsistance.

Anakin shuddered at the thought. Bad enough to think that his beloved wife's spirit was in torment but to expose the living embodiment of their love for one another to that monster?

He took a deep breath and then let it out in a long sigh. "I'm ready." he told them as he closed his eyes.

~The meadow had been a calming and peaceful place. It would remind him of Naboo and the precious times that they had been together and at peace. Now however, a violent wind whipped around him and an icy rain lashed at his body. The grass had blackend and a fetid smell of rot filled the air. Not only that but ice was starting to pelt the ground. One piece smacked him in the face, leaving him blinking from the pain. Over the shrieking wind, he could hear choked, painfilled cries. "PADME!" he screamed into the wind, hoping she could hear him. The cries continued though, and were fast becoming hysterical screams. He'd have to find her, hold her and soothe the pain away. Shield her from the cold and the hail raining down. He could barely see as he started to run but that didn't matter, he wouldn't stumble. Yet no matter how much he ran or how hard he looked, he couldn't find her and the screams tore at his heart, driving away what sanity remained to him. He wasn't going to loose her again!

"Look for her in the Force Anakin. You'll never find her like this. Look for her in the Force and you will be with her." Qui-gon's voice echoed in his head faintly. He was right, Qui-gon was right. Trying to find her by his own efforts without the aid of the Force was futile. Anakin stood still and his eys narrowed to slits as he looked inward towards that place in his broken heart that had always been and always would be his angel's. And then he could sense her, feel the pain she was in, the terror and torment. As maddening as it was to go slowly, Anakin forced himself to move only one step at a time, terrified of loosing his faint sense of her pressence. Every instinct in him screamed for him to rush things, hurry, run to her now and STOP this. Yet this was his trial, he had to go against his deepest desires to aid her. It was the only thing that helped, and it was the knowledge that he would make things worse for them both that was enough.

Finally though, he sensed she was in front of him. Just in time for the storm had become dangerously intense. Lightning rippled over the ground and hailstones pelted the rotting grass. Clumps of debries were pulled up from the ground by the roaring wind along with rocks. It came at him from every direction and as he looked down he could see how she'd been cut and brusied already. Blood seeped from dozens of small and large gashes and the very sight drove every sane thought out of his mind. He flung himself down next to her, taking her ever so gently in his arms, his Jedi clock pulled up around them both to shield them from the elements.

She didn't fight him as Obi-wan had. Only for a second did she stiffen against him, and then buried her face into his shoulder, shaking uncontrolablly. "Sh, sh, Angel. I'm here. I won't leave you." he told her softly. Even as he held her the earth beneath them started to shake, and her terror intensified. It took every once of what little control remained to him to not give in to the urge to DEMAND that this stop, to command the Force to cease. Instead, using his love for her and their children, he tightened his grip on her as he asked.

Asked the Force to give them shelter from the Darkness. To give him the strength to fight away her terror, steal her pain from her and let him handle it. He was used to pain, he lived in pain every second he still breathed. He would gladly take the pain that she was in even if it was multiplied a thousand times over. It could never make up for what he had done to her, his doubt and his accusation of betrayal. His use of his ablitiy in the Force to punish her for something that she had not done. No, nothing he could ever do could make up for that night. But he would try anyways.

And the shaking intensified as colums of earth rippled up over them. For a heart-stopping second, he thought they were about to both be buried deep within the earth. Then he realized his plea had been answered. For they continued upward, creating a cave, a haven away from the Darkness storming outside. One made of crystal prisms that reflected a gentle glow of pure beauty. He smiled slightly and then turned back to the one who had kept the Darkness in him at bay for so long. His angel, whose spirit had nearly been broken again. Her spirit were her wings and now with them battered and bruised, she was fallen.

"You're safe Padme. You're safe with me." he told her as he rocked her slight form. Her pain was slowly fading and he could feel her calming down. He stood up with Padme in his arms to step further away from the raging tempest outside. where they could be safe and he could concentrate on one thing. Sending her all the love he still had for her, the love that had consumed his life and still did.

"I've missed you so much Padme," he told her as he settled the both of them on a ledge by a still pool deep inside. It was soft and smelled of fresh flowers. She sighed and looked up at him with her head on his shoulder. "I love you Anakin. I always will," she said tremulously. What ever else she would have said was silenced by his lips on hers. He'd only needed to her her beautiful voice once, and with that declartion of her love he was swept away.

It was only a dream-world in his mind, created by himself and Luke for them to communicate. The Darkness had taken it to taint it and torment the one he loved most, his soul mate. He had fought back though and given her the shelter she needed. And now he gave himself, happy and content at last. It was only later when her head was once again nestle against his bare shoulder that they both realized that they could feel pain and fear coming from the entrance.

Qui-gon's words of warning flashed through Anakin's mind at that moment. Padme lifted her head and stared up back the way they had come, fear in her beautiful face. A fear he remembered only from his own mother. "Luke and Leia, they're outside and hurt!" she gasped. "Not for long, Padme. Not for long." he told her as he stood up. "LUKE! Follow my voice! The cave"s entrance isn't that far away!" "Anakin, we have to go to them!" Padme insisted as she joined her husband. "Don't worry Angel, we'll find them." Anakin said with all the confidence he could muster. "They can't be too far away. I can feel Luke close by."

Side by side they came to the entrance and the madness raging outside. Gone was any semblance of peace, for the sky was nothing but lowering black clouds. Lightning licked through them and rippled the ground, the color a sickinging shade of pale blue. Rain poured from the inky clouds, but with the color and texture of fresh blood. Anakin and Padme looked at each other in shock, one thought foremost on their minds. Where were their children in this chaos.

Anakin had been right though. The twins were not far away but were stricken with fright at the terrible scene, unable to move.

"Padme, stay here. I can use the Force to shield me and get them both." Anakin said quietly, but with more then an edge of his usual impatience. "Leia's never met you Ani, and she's only been to this place once. She knows me, knows I was her mother. We both have to go get them," Padme told him urgently. She was right and as much as he wanted to keep her from going back out into this, he knew better. "Then let's go get our children and get them to shelter," he smirked at her boldly. "Together!"

Luke had never had a nightmare, nothing like this. Worse his little sister was with him and she had already been beaten up by someone. When she appeared besided him crying and shaking, all Luke could think was someone was gonna regret hurting his sister. But that was quickly washed away by the terror that this place had become. This was suppose to be his dream-place, the nice green world that he'd come to meet with his father! Not a twisted violent place straight from the 'bad man'! Luke grabbed his sister to shield her from the worst of the debris and they both wailed their terror out into the dark.

And loving arms grabbed them both and picked them up in the dash to safety. Luke felt the strong arms of his father and buried his face into Anakin's chest crying in desperate relief. Leia was doing the same with the nice lady that came to visit his Nana once or twice a year. As the twins both calmed down, Anakin reached out and pulled Padme in closer. Luke's eyes suddenly widened with realization. "You're my mom." he whispered up at her. Padme smiled, her eyes misting with happiness. "Yes, Luke. I didn't want you to feel left alone by me so I never told you. But I always asked the Force to send me to Tatooine around your Life-Day. I had to choose between watching over you and watching over your sister. I knew that Obi-wan would watch over you and that Shmi would be there as well. But no one else could watch over Leia like I could."

"I don't mind Mom. Really I don't. I'm just glad that my little sister had someone to watch her like I've had." Luke told her earnestly. Then he frowned. "Somebody hurt her though. She's all beat up!" Leia managed to let out a moan as Padme pulled her away from her tight embrace. "Leia? Who did this to you? I ask Master Plo to watch over you!" she said in agitation.

"He and his friend are watching me Mom. It was his friend that my cousins were attacking. Kinel accused her of being a 'stinking Jedi' and I got mad cause he was making her feel worse. I told him that he'd be sorry for making her feel bad and he punched me. Then it all went dark till I woke up here. But I could hear Master Plo speaking to her about what she did to Kinel. They were in my room, waiting for me to wke up. Only Daddy Bail doesn't think I will any time soon."

Anakin let out a sigh and looked down at his daughter. "You probably won't wake up until I get there Leia," he told her softly. "I saw this once or twice in the Clone Wars. If a youngling took a traumatic enough injury and was fairly 'close' to one of the Masters, their minds would flee and launch onto the Master in question. And if the Master happened to ignore the child or worse reject them, then the youngling would die."

"So I'm going to die, Papa?" Leia asked him. Anakin was flabbergasted. How in the...? Leia gave a small smile at her father's shock. "No I knew you were my Papa cause Luke's my brother. And I knew the Emperor was a meanine. I thought you were just a bully like Kinel until I came with Luke one night. That's why I got so mad, cause I knew you've been hurting because of that mean ol' Palpatine."

Anakin let out a low chuckle. "That's one way to describe him, princess. No, you won't die Leia. You've latched onto your mother's spirit. And I can and WILL support you both till we get to Alderaan." He looked down at his son and back to his wife then a wide grin lit both his face and the cave around them.

"We should just relax here while we can. It's the first time we're together as a family after all."~