Leia raised a hand and gently rubbed the side of her head where she bumped it against the side of the cockpit. Her head felt clearer since she had some sleep and the pain was down to a dull ache. Her stomach growled indicating she could maybe finally eat something without bringing it back up.

She stood up noting her balance was far better then it was last night. The sun was just beginning to light up the tent walls indicating morning. The temperature was slowly rising in the tent. She walked out of the tent and looked towards the tree where Artoo was keeping Vader company. It was a little confusing, it was almost like the droid and him used to be friends.

That didn't sound right. Considering her father owned the droid for as long as she could remember. She approached Vader noting he hadn't moved from the day before. She was beginning to suspect he was injured during the crash.

"You look better this morning," Vader observed as his head tilted to the side a bit causing Leia to nod.

"I am," Leia answered honestly as she stopped walking and watched him. 'Artoo kept you company. How do you know him?"

"It's a long story," Vader answered honestly as Artoo beeped and whistled at Leia. "Artoo says you wouldn't believe me if I told you," which caused Vader to sharply look at the droid.

"You understand him?" Leia questioned in curiosity.

"Sometimes it's hard to follow but I get the gist of his responses," Vader answered as his head snapped to the north as Leia heard a bird squawking off in the distance. "He's been attempting to help repair the damage. The damage is beyond repair making it almost impossible to walk."

Leia chewed on her lower lip. Part of her wanted to leave him here and seek out a village but part of her felt she couldn't leave him alone either. He may not have his lightsaber, but he wasn't completely defenseless. She walked over to the smoldering coals and started to rebuild the fire. "So how about the part when you met Artoo? We got time."

Vader remained silent as she glanced at him as he watched her. It was almost like she was suppose to know him but didn't. She couldn't quite shake that feeling. She placed the pot on the steel grate and waited for the water to boil. She was famished. As she waited she picked up a nutritional shake and guzzled it down.

Leia picked up another one and walked over to where Vader was sitting and handed it to him. "You don't want to tell me, do you?"

"Not really," Vader answered honestly as he accepted the shake from her hand. "It may change your life and perspective."

"I highly doubt it," Leia said as she walked back over to the fire. "It'll help pass the time."

"I was eight when I met him," Vader started off causing Leia to look at Vader sharply. "I warned you, it is a long story."

Eight, he was eight? That meant he didn't always live in the armor. It made her begin to wonder what exactly happened to Vader to cause him to live in a life support suit. "I'm game."

"Very well," Vader answered he started to tell his story. A sinking feeling settled into the pit of her stomach when he mentioned about his pregnant wife, he referred to him self as a monster at this point. To live with the memories of what he had done was punishment in itself. She had this feeling he was leaving things out. What happened to the child she was with or did she die with the child? That only brought up more questions making her more curious about his background. The part that really got her was the fact he was Threepio's maker. She had a feeling they wiped the droid's memory but for what purpose, unless it was to hide something. More questions she thought as the water started to boil.

Luke sat down as Fress paced in front of him. He never saw her this anxious before. Which made him wonder just how much she knew about Vader's background and where he came from. He had a feeling that Vader spoke the truth about being Anakin Skywalker his father. "Fress?" Fress stopped pacing as she turned her attention to Ahsoka and Jess.

"We have to tell him, Fress. Vader's already beaten you to the punch," Ahsoka spoke up causing Luke to lower his head into his hands.

"I can sense it's the truth, Ben lied to me," Luke spoke up as he turned his attention to Fress who had a sorrowful expression on her face. "Vader is Anakin Skywalker, my father, isn't he?"

"Yes he is," Fress answered honestly. "Obi-Wan made us promise not to say anything to you when you joined the Rebellion. He felt you weren't ready for your father's heavy burden. Vader is and isn't Anakin. Vader's spirit inhabits your father's body. He's no longer the man we knew or looked up too during our time in the Clone Wars."

"Anakin was a good friend to us all," Ahsoka spoke up with a frown. "We loved him like a father figure. You can't compare Anakin to Vader, it's like trying to compare night to day."

"Can you tell me about him?" Luke questioned with a curious expression. "I want to know everything."

"I bet you do," Jess said with a small encouraging smile. That smile didn't reach his eyes, all he saw was pain and betrayal. "He was known as the hero with no fear and not to mention the poster boy of the Jedi."

"Poster boy?" Luke questioned with a raised brow. "Was he good looking or something?"

"Every bar we walked into, there was at least one or two females checking him out," Ahsoka answered with a small smirk. "So yeah I guess you could say that. I also called him Sky Guy and gun dark boy. We ended up rescuing Obi-Wan and Anakin from more then a few gun dark nests. In turn he nicknamed me snips."

Luke smiled a bit as he realized Anakin had a sarcastic wit. "He was sarcastic?"

"I called him snarky and in turn he referred to me as firecracker," Fress answered with a small smile. "Yes, your father had a sarcastic sense of humor. He was a smart man."

"What about my mother?" Luke questioned as he began to realize his time to ask questions was running short. They planned to leave soon on the rescue mission.

"Her name was Padme Amidala. She was kind, gentle, and loyal. She knew how to handle a blaster and was a good shot for a senator, before that she was the queen of her planet. She was from Naboo," Fress answered in a saddened tone. "She loved you so much that she died to protect you from Vader. I'm sorry Luke. She passed away shortly after giving birth to you. She would be so proud of you."

"Thanks," Luke felt saddened that his mother was no longer among the living but there was a chance he could turn Anakin back to the light side. He felt there was still good in him. Vader could've killed him but didn't. He did not want to voice this part out loud. He sensed they would be against him. "So what happens to me now? Do I have to leave the Alliance?"

"No one has to know," Fress answered with a reassuring smile. "Nothing will happen. We kept silent for your sake. We didn't want anyone to know the truth about your heritage. You would've been kicked out before having a chance to prove yourself."

"You've already proven without a doubt on which side you're on," Jess spoke up as he leaned against the wall. "You took down the Death Star and risked your neck more times then anyone can count. No one has to know the truth unless you chose to tell. We're the only ones that know the truth. We won't say anything. You have our promise on that."

"Thank you, I appreciate it," Luke said with a small smile as Fress's comlink went off.

"Go ahead," Fress spoke into the comlink than paused to listen. "Good work, we'll be leaving shortly," she turned her attention to Jess and Ahsoka and gave a small grin. "We have our coordinates. We should get going if we want to beat the Imperials."

"Good luck. I hope you bring both of them back, that's if Leia decides not to kill him first," Luke spoke as they all nodded and walked out of the room leaving him alone with his thoughts again. He sensed they were not telling him everything, he also had a feeling there was a lot to tell and their time to reach Leia and Vader was running short. If they survived, there will be time for all of that later. He still had a lot of questions.