When I came home, Mother was lounging in the den with a holonovel. "How was your date, dear?" she asked, not taking her eyes from the screen.

I held up my hand with my engagement ring on in response. I couldn't keep my eyes off the ring. It was gorgeous. The center was a black rutilated diamond with pristine white diamonds surrounding it. It glistened in the light with each movement of my hand. He gave it to me. I was wearing his ring.

Mother didn't look up.

"Mom," I said pointedly.

She glanced up for a moment then realization occurred.

"It happened!" she exclaimed, leaping from her seat. "Enoch! He proposed!" She yelled to my father, grabbing my hand to examine the ring. "Oh, he did well, Aniasis," Mother commented.

"Are we being robbed?" Enceladus asked about the commotion, coming down the stairs.

"He proposed!" Mother replied.

"No way," Enceladus hurried to my side, looking at the ring too. "Damn, you could put someone's eye out with that thing."

Father came down the stairs with Enoch and Kenna, a broad smile on his face. "My darling, girl, I knew it was only a matter of time!" He hugged me tightly and kissed my cheek.

"Did he ask you, Father?" I asked.

"Ask me what?"

"For my hand?"

"No, he didn't."

I was a little miffed that Lord Vader went against tradition, but I wasn't sure what I was expecting him to do anyway.

"Oh, we need to start planning!" Mother said happily, "ET-KT, pull up my planner!" She called, hurrying off to her office.

It was a few hours before Mother settled, bouncing wedding ideas, venues, dates, and décor off me and allowed me to go to bed. She had saved every Holonet article, lookbook, and inspiration board that caught her eye. By the amount of content, it looked like she had been saving for years. Since I was the first of us to get married and none of my other siblings had any indications that a wedding of their own was on the horizon, Mother would live vicariously through me. I wasn't asleep for very long before I felt someone slide into bed with me.

"It's just me," Enceladus said, pulling the covers over us. We faced each other in the darkness, just us, our other half. It was common that Enceladus would come to my bed, she's done it since we were children. Even as infants, we never wanted to be apart for too long.

"I'm happy for you," she whispered.

I just smiled, looking into my face which was also hers. She did the same.

"It's not who I expected," She teased, "I thought maybe some dweeb from Chandrila, not" She put her hands on her hips in a powerful stance and hardened her face.

I laughed, "Shut up!"

There was a pause, "Don't leave me," she said.

I took her hand in mine, "I could never."

The next morning, Mother was abound with more wedding ideas. She almost had it completely planned, without any other input. "What about rose gold and silver for the colors?" She asked over breakfast.

"Look at these invitations, Sissy, do you like them?" She said, handing me her datapad.

"Now dear, it's Lord Vader's wedding as well," Father gently chided, "Not only that it must follow the Imperial standards of ceremony. We shouldn't get too far ahead of ourselves until we know our parameters." He gave me a knowing wink.

I was completely overwhelmed with my mother's excitement, that I could barely feel my own. I wasn't even ready to think about a wedding. I just wanted to sit in the moment for a while, but that was Mother, your accomplishments became hers.

"When's your next event?" Kenna asked, changing the subject.

I took a drink and replied, "Tonight. I'm throwing the opening pitch at the Army vs. Navy Grav-ball game."

Once again, my outfit was picked for me, this time by the public relations council. It was a jersey in the Imperial colorway, a pair of black leggings, and running shoes. The back said 'Vader' and the number was '501'. This was my first job as a propagandist for The Empire and it was always to 'make it look good.' I did my job well throughout my life; impassioned speeches denouncing The Rebel Alliance, Mon Mothma, and Bail Organa, as terrorists bent on causing chaos, faux diplomatic aid missions to war-torn worlds with cams everywhere, urging the citizenry to support the troops and the veterans.

I was a little taken aback at the name. I hadn't yet realized that my name would change. Aniasis Vader. Lady Aniasis Vader. Lady Vader. A tingle went up my spine at the thought. Lord Vader, however, was not at the game and I didn't expect him to be.

"Are you nervous?" Suna asked.

"A little," I replied, exhaling.

"Don't be. Everyone is already drunk and filled with carbs and sugar. You'll be fine. Here, drink some water."

I gratefully took the water bottle she offered.

"Remember how badly Quin Diphda's toss went at the Galactic World Cup last year?"

Quin Diphda was an actress who accidentally lobbed the ball at a child in the stands. She was the butt of every late-night comedian for that entire news cycle.

I laughed a bit.

"See, you can't do any worse than her!" Suna assured.

The music swelled and The Imperial Flag was walked onto the field as players, active and retired soldiers hovered in their grav boots at attention. The Imperial Anthem was sung by Stride Crescentweaver, a classically trained tenor as TIEs screamed overhead at the crescendo.

I hurriedly fastened my own grav boots on top of my running shoes. "Ladies and gentlemen, the soon-to-be Lady Aniasis Vader will be throwing out the first pitch." The announcer said.

I hovered onto the field of blinding lights and thousands of cheering fans. I put on my best smile and waved to the crowd in each direction. Mother would be proud. I took the ball and gave it my best throw. It at least went near the goal.

Many important events were on the horizon, including my birthday and the first anniversary of my courtship with Lord Vader. I had been meaning to ask Lord Vader about his own birthday, but I never found out until four years into our marriage.

The first thing locked down for the wedding was the date, set for a year later, which gave me plenty of time to plan. Once Mother learned all the needed specifics of the wedding as a state event, she lost interest and shelved her ideas for the next one of us to get married.

Lord Vader would have been away during the dates of my birthday and our first anniversary, but they were celebrated quietly together ahead of time. Although I was not sure if he knew the significance of them. Again, Vaneé was working behind the scenes.

Vaneé became my right-hand man when it came to my assimilation into the House of Vader and was the liaison between my family planning the wedding and the Empire's recognition and celebration of it. It wasn't just my wedding or Lord Vader's; it was the Empire's and I had to play by its rules. It had to be on a day that did not conflict with Lord Vader's duties, any other Imperial holiday or observance, these people must be invited, Vaneé was a great help in assuring everyone's needs were met.

"As part of your duties to Lord Vader, you must meet with his doctor," Vaneé explained. "Lord Vader requires much assistance with his health, and you must be aware of his current condition at all times."

I nodded; I made it my goal to become an expert in Lord Vader's condition.

One bright morning, I was ushered to EmPalSurRecon, where Lord Vader spent his first few days in his life support suit several years ago, where his team of doctors was located. All his surgeries and procedures were droid manned but still had a team of humans observing and maintaining his treatment plan.

"I am Doctor Leran, head of Lord Vader's medical team." He was a middle-aged man from Eislomi, dressed in the standard white coat of his profession over his teal scrubs. Doctor Leran would be killed by Lord Vader at the end of the decade for mentioning Lord Vader's need for certain age-related medical exams and promptly replaced.

He sat down at his desk, and I took a seat in front of it.

"I see you have a background in medicine?"

I gave him an inquiring look.

"Sorry, Imperial Times published your biography a few weeks ago. Also, I saw your handiwork on his arm. Excellent work, your technique is flawless."

I had no idea if it was a genuine compliment or just flattery because of my status. My stitchwork was nothing to write home about.

"As you can expect, it takes a skilled team to keep him in an albeit fragile homeostasis. I'm not sure how much, err, contact you've had with him."

Finally, I was able to ask the question I, and likely most of the galaxy had been dying to ask, "So what happened to him?"

"I was not there for the initial surgery following the incident. My understanding is that he was in perfect health and condition beforehand. This is what the Emperor has told me: Lord Vader was battling the Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi on Mustafar. At the end of the battle, Lord Vader tried to jump over Kenobi, who took the opportunity to hack at Lord Vader's arm and legs with his lightsaber. He fell onto the ground where his clothing caught on fire. It traveled up his body. He was burned over roughly between 95%-97% of his body, ranging from second-degree burns to third-degree and deeper."

Dr. Leran quietly pushed a folder of X-rays and other scans forward and sat back. I opened the folder to a full-body holo of Lord Vader without his suit, dated the previous month. His skin was deathly pale with angry burn scars mapping his entire natural body. Medical ports and other medical devices were implanted in his skin. I turned the page, and it was a similar holo, this time at the beginning of last year, each page documented his healing and thus worsened with each entry. My eyes widened in horror. Next were internal images. I could barely orient myself with what structure I was looking at on any given image. Bloodwork and other levels were nearly incompatible with life. Biopsies, exploratory surgeries, he had just about everything imaginable done to him. It made my eyes water and my throat run dry. It felt like I was looking at a body horror movie.

"That Jedi mangled him," I said, covering my mouth. I had always heard that Master Kenobi was noble and level-headed but if this is what their most noble and level-headed could do, then the Jedi truly were monsters.

"Please, take a moment. It can be a lot." Leran soothed.

I turned my head away and closed my eyes, shutting the folder and putting it back on the desk.

I hated that this was the first time I saw what my husband looked like, like a medical oddity, a freak.

"His arm? You said, arm, singular. Does that mean he has one natural limb remaining?"

"Unfortunately, no. He had lost his right arm earlier in life and lost the left and his legs to Kenobi. Forgive me, I may have those confused. He has had so many injuries, it's difficult to keep up with without my notes."

"Does he still need to wear compression garments? Nasal dilators?" Compression garments smooth out the scars of burns and nasal airways tend to collapse and heal closed. Nasal dilators are small plastic tubes that keep the nostrils from collapsing.

"No, as you saw, he is mostly healed now and the ultimate goal was and will always be survival, not aesthetics. We still have a handful of mild to moderate sores that we are still treating but we have otherwise completed treating his burns. His lungs are another story. I want you to watch this recording."

Dr. Leran typed on his computer and turned the screen to me.

I watched a recording of his lungs, they were an angry red in some places, black and shriveled in others. I watched as Lord Vader's chest expanded for a breath and his lungs struggle and flutter uselessly to take it in.

"He's barely getting any air at all," I commented.

"Yes, this is without his respirator. An oximeter measured him at an average of 80% without."

Anything below 88% is cause for concern.

"I'm sending you the schematics of his mobile life support suit. It was constructed in a hurry, as you can imagine, so it can be a bit spotty in places regarding information, but there's enough there."

My datapad dinged with the transmission from inside my purse.

"Lord Vader can function as a normal human being outside of his life support suit if he is in a pressurized environment. The effect on healthy lungs such as your own is negligible. You shouldn't see any complications other than some dizziness during your first few exposures. His vocal cords were scarred in the incident, but he can speak somewhat normally. It does tend to wear out at the end of the day or after exertion such as yelling. His eye and ear structures were rebuilt during the initial surgery. I have yet to test his natural eyesight and hearing but his eyesight as he reports without the mask is fine. I prescribed him medicated eyedrops since he does say they bother him occasionally. His hearing, well, I cannot tell if he can't hear me or he's ignoring me because I asked a stupid question." Dr. Leran chuckled, "I would prefer he wears his nasal cannula for supplemental oxygen when he is without the suit and an inhaler for any moments of congestion, but I doubt he follows my recommendations."

"Children?"

"Yes, he is capable."

"Medications?"

"An immunosuppression to ward off any rejection and a broad-spectrum antibiotic which we will start weaning him off in a few short months. We know he was on the ground for several hours with heavily contaminated opened burns. A bronchodilator to keep the internal pathways open."

"Nothing for pain?"

"He refused."

"Prognosis?"

"I don't know that my Lady. It is completely uncertain. If everything goes as they have for the last three or so years, he can live a normal life expectancy. However, he is a military man. It's completely possible that he will die in the line of duty before he sees any real complications. If he takes care of himself and performs regular maintenance, he will be fine. However, he doesn't always adhere to his treatment plan." Dr. Leran said knowingly.

I believed that this was a part of my duties, "You want me to make sure he does that?"

"It would make my job much easier. He's young, I want you to give him something to live for. He seems to have some executive dysfunction that borders on self-harm. However, the biggest obstacle we face is the uncertainty of his life support. While it's made to last, it's better to err on the side of caution. And I cannot stress the importance enough of self-isolation if you feel ill. Lord Vader is considered immunocompromised due to several medications he is on to avoid rejection of his cybernetics and their components. If you must interact with him while you are ill, you both must wear a mask, preferably he would wear his life support mask as it filters all contaminates."

"Why is Lord Vader not a candidate for cloned lungs or skin grafts? Better prosthesis?"

"Lord Vader has had several rounds of skin grafting to close what was essentially a body-wide open wound, but he is still very scarred. He can no longer sweat, so he's prone to overheating. As for the cloned lungs and prostheses, I am told by Emperor Palpatine that Lord Vader is not a viable candidate. Cloned lungs would disturb his connection to his psychic powers. As for his prosthesis, they were implanted in a hurry with what was available. Now that Lord Vader has gotten used to them, Emperor Palpatine wishes to not disturb that. A new one, let alone all of his limbs, would mean that Lord Vader would have to undergo more physical therapy and completely relearn his battle stance and techniques. We simply do not have that time. To put it bluntly, he's our best weapon."

"What is next for his treatment?"

"At the end of the year, we're looking at surgery for ablation and stenting of the lung tissue. I hope to remove some of the scar tissue and open the alveoli and hopefully increase his breathing."

I sat, taking all the information in, and spent the rest of the day and night studying my fiancé's condition.

I awoke the next morning to a silent, heavy feeling home. I knew something was wrong. I crept out of bed as quietly as I could, not wanting to become a misplaced target. I looked out the kitchen window that overlooked the driveway. Everyone but Kenna's speeder was parked.

"Sis!"

I whipped around, Enceladus was motioning for me to quickly come to her room. I hurriedly tiptoed to her. She closed the door softly. She must have done the good stuff recently since her room was somewhat clean.

"What happened?" I whispered. I was positive Mother and Father were getting a divorce or that someone was dead.

"Look," She handed me her cracked datapad. On it was a video of Kenna, ready to play.

Kenna was in her room, her eyes puffy with tears.

"I have been lying this whole time," She started. "I am an alcoholic. Mother, Papa, Nick, Sissy, Ence, Mira, Eri, I am so sorry. I have let you down, all of you. I'm too much of a coward to tell you in person that I need help.

"I've woken up without remembering the night before, in strangers' beds. My liver is probably shot. I'm tired of being…fake, of brushing my teeth to hide the smell of vomit and pretending that everything is okay. I have checked myself into rehab at Leaurette on Sedratis. I will stay as long as I need." She paused and looked away before ending the video.

It was then I noticed the logo of a prominent video-sharing social network in the corner. She had posted it and it already had 30,000 views. This absolutely cracked the image that Mother and Father wanted our family to portray.

"She posted this!?"

"Did you not hear the gigantic fight Mom and Dad had? It's probably the worst they ever had. They're blaming each other and Dad's freaking out about damage control. Mom's freaking out about our reputation and image."

Suddenly, the door opened and closed, I gasped, thinking it was Father or worse, Mother.

"You girls okay?" Enoch asked.

"Yeah," Enecaldus replied.

"What about Mira and Eri?" I asked.

"They're still asleep but I'm about to wake them up and whisk them off for the day. Let things settle down."

"That's a good idea," I spoke. It was an unspoken agreement between my siblings and me, we all may be complete wrecks of humans, but we would all do what we could to spare Mira and Eri from similar fates.

"Yeah." Enceladus nodded.

"I gotta get out of here," I said, suddenly feeling like a caged animal.

I hurried down the hall with my siblings hurrying after. I sent a text comm to Vaneé asking for a ride.

"Where are you going?" Enceladus tersed as Enoch shut my bedroom door behind him.

"I'm going to stay with Lord Vader. I can't be here. I can't take it." I said grabbing an overnight bag and packing the bare essentials.

"Sis, no. C'mon, you and Enceladus will go with Mira and Eri and me." Enoch said.

I stopped packing, "Why not? He's my fiancé."

"Because he's Darth fucking Vader! I don't wanna have to scrap my twin off the sidewalk because he threw you out the window for dragging him into this mess!"

"Well, I hate to break it to you both but he's Darth fucking Vader and he already knows all of our shit. He knew it all before I even came along. Do you not think he didn't do a background check on all of us? Father's hiding of our messes can only go so deep, Ence. Maybe that's why I love him. He deals with his problems, they don't stagnate. Here…it's like waiting for the other shoe to fall regardless of if it's your fault. Look at us! We're adults, hiding in our room from our parents like we're in trouble. At least with Lord Vader, the other shoe falls quickly." I took a breath, "Now Enceladus, will you show me how to sneak out through that window?"

Vaneé greeted me in the hangar. It was the first time I had ever seen Lord Vader's palace in person.

"Lord Vader is currently meditating at the moment, but he will be with you as soon as he's done." He took me to a sitting room and hurried off. Vanee' was a tightly wound little man, obsessed with serving Lord Vader, a heart attack waiting to happen.

I sat down on a fine leather chair and waited.

'This will be my home,' I thought and sunk into the chair.

There would be no more harsh silences, no more arguing, no more pretending. Here I could live my life. Suddenly, a hiss came from all the corners of the room. The room was beginning to pressurize. Lord Vader was coming.

I don't know if it were my nerves about seeing him without his suit for the first time or the air, but I started to feel lightheaded, my heart raced in anticipation and the air became thick. It was like a ghost, a harbinger was nearby. A door at the back of the room opened.

"Aniasis."

My heart leaped, his natural voice! It was sultry and masculine despite the strain of vocal scarring. It was a voice I wanted to hear for the rest of my life.

"My Lord?"

He remained hidden in the shadows; I could only see his massive silhouette. "You saw me,"

He was talking about his medical reports.

"Are you still…interested?"

"Yes," I replied calmly.

He emerged from the darkness, dressed in black sleeping pants and an open black robe. He was horrifically scarred, yes, but that didn't skew the tremendous breadth of his torso, strong shoulders, and perfectly honed muscles. He was an Adonis come to life.

His earlobes were, for lack of a better term, melted to the side of his head, almost like they were connected naturally. It would be a simple surgery to release them. His head was bald and scarred, but all his other facial features remained intact. He had medical ports and cybernetics implanted that the base of his throat and over his heart. Yes, I was very much attracted to this man.

I knew I had only moments to appease him, and it had to be perfect. "I've seen worse," I replied casually with a nonchalant shrug of my shoulder. I smiled at him, offering my hand.

Lord Vader inched from the shadows and finally took my hand. His warm metallic fingers entwined with mine. I released a breath I did not know I was holding. I felt safe. Yes, these hands have slain hundreds, but I didn't care. I only cared about the person they were attached to. I never felt this safe at home. Even if I was to be killed, I would want it to be by him.

"I'm a monster." He stated.

"You were injured," I countered. With my free hand, and never letting go of his, I slowly reached up and gently traced a nearly faded scar over his right eye. It looked vaguely familiar to me. His eyes fluttered shut and seemed to relish the contact. I did the same with the much angrier scar that swooped across his cheek.

"Your eyes, My Lord, they're blue," I commented. For some reason, the imposing and fearsome Darth Vader having blue eyes tickled me.

He knew what I was talking about. Not opening them, he replied, "They change upon my connection to the Force."

"You don't feel connected right now?"

"I always feel the connection," He said, opening his eyes and looking at me, "I am not immersed at the moment."

There was a calm pause. I looked into his eyes. They held so much pain. I couldn't fathom what this poor man had gone through. Here I was, barging into his life with my drama. My family, who couldn't talk about our problems and only swept them under the rug, who pretended we were the Imperial standard, was nothing compared to Lord Vader's trauma. I should be ashamed.

"You're angry." He noted.

"I'm…fucking pissed," I replied. I had rarely used such coarse language, but it was what I felt.

"Come with me."

He led me to his training room, and I followed dutifully. The walls were lined with every weapon imaginable; numerous makes and models of blasters, electrostaffs, vibroblades, gaffi, anything for melee or hand-to-hand combat, he had. Lord Vader reveled in the bedlam of battle.

He took his lightsaber from his hip and took my hands, placing the revered weapon in them.
"When I finished constructing my lightsaber. My master said to me, this weapon is your life. This weapon is my life. It's yours."

I nearly swooned at his words, my face heating with a blush, "Oh you're smooth."

The quickest of grins graced his face. He called up a training droid and set to not retaliate or engage.

With his thumb over mine, he helped me ignite the lightsaber.

"Your anger, use it."

Unsure, I inched toward the training droid and nervously, awkwardly brought the blade down on its shoulder. I felt silly.

"You can do better than that, I can feel it." Lord Vader goaded. "Think! You're the forgotten Brahe sister, your sisters, both addicts, your brother and mother the same. Remember each time they let you down, each time you were passed over in favor of one of them. Your own father sees you as damaged goods and for all you know has a new family somewhere else. A better one. What vices do you think the youngest twins will pick up? Mira and Eri, are their names? The bottle? Spice? Something worse?"

A storm welled up inside me, I began to hammer at the droid with Lord Vader's lightsaber. Each blow wrought a strangled, pained cry that I had suppressed for decades. Each forgotten birthday, Mother's cutting remarks, why won't she just eat! Why won't Enceladus end her addictions! Why can't I be enough! Why is no one thinking about Mira and Eri!

I gasped for breath between tears. The droid was a sizzling mess of wires and metal at my feet. The storm had quelled, taking a significant weight off my shoulders.

"You have pleased me, Aniasis. That is enough for now." He turned to leave through another door, signaling that it was time for us to part.

"My Lord?" He turned back to me, "May I kiss you?"

He paused for a moment, "You may."

Lord Vader towered above me, even without his suit he was still at least a foot taller than me. I stood on my toes and craned my neck, he stooped down a bit for our lips to reach.

It was a chaste kiss at first, but soon he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me to his body. I opened my mouth for his tongue as they met. I needed to feel every inch of him against me, my hands on his bare chest, clinging to his shoulders under his robe. He has stolen my breath enough times to fill his own lungs. I would happily give up my breath for him.

I went to bed that night in what would soon be our marriage bed. Lord Vader would continue his meditations in his bacta chamber, but that didn't mean he was gone. I knew he put those dreams in my head. I could feel his weight, his warmth on top of me as he ravaged me, his hard length hitting that secret spot with each stroke. He battered my body with bites, his unrelenting grip left bruises.

"You are mine," he said, admiring his manhandling-like artwork.

"I will wear them with pride," I replied breathlessly.

I could hear his powerful, animalistic grunts and bellows, either in his natural voice or his vocoder. Then his fine leather gauntlets would caress my clit. Sometimes he would be in his suit or as naked as I was. I rode those thick, strong thighs until I saw stars, staring into the mask that symbolized certain death to his enemies. I would part my legs, completely drenched for him and only him as his face disappeared between them.

I awoke to the most powerful orgasm I had yet to have.

I returned home the following afternoon. Mother was waiting for me in the sitting room. That was her thing, she usually would wait for as long as she needed for when Enceladus finally came crawling home, or Kenna, or Enoch. She'd sit there like a stone, ignoring the rest of the world. It was her way of a guilt trip; 'I worry about you so much that I just sit and wait, hoping you come home safely,"

She had never done so with me because I never got out of line. Until then. But there was no use in her guilt trip. I just had the best few hours of my life.

Mother stumbled over her words, "Ken-Encela-ANIASIS!" She finally spat out.

"Lord Vader knows my name." I thought. I rolled my eyes and disappeared to my room, awaiting the day my dark knight could whisk me away.

Looking back, I think Lord Vader chose me because I was convenient. I was already utterly besotted. He knew could tell me to jump off a cliff and I would. My fertility status was debatable so that appeased Sidious enough. They both wanted to make the Empire look good and I was used for propaganda.

More and more, Lord Vader wanted me to see the persona and not the person. More and more, I saw the person and less of the persona. The person who intentionally scratches a bit of paint off a new speeder or TIE for luck, who puts too much salt and pepper on his food, supposedly even before his tastebuds were damaged, who still tries to crack his knuckles even though his natural joints are gone, and who puts electrical tape on the too indicator bright lights on his medical ports. I didn't care about the silences, just being near him was enough. Still, he kept me at arm's length, but that was the closest anyone ever got.