Senator Bail Organa stood on one of the landing pads of the Royal Alderaanian Palace even as a gentle breeze flew past and over him.
He was looking calm and collected, even as an imperial shuttle could be seen, nearing the landing pad he was standing on.
Soon, the shuttle landed and Bail felt himself getting nervous as he beheld none other than the figure of Darth Vader stepping out of the shuttle.
However, what he noticed next surprised him.
There were no soldiers behind him.
And there was a small red haired girl walking with him, her hand in his hand.
Mara looked all around in awe as she took into her eyes the beauty of Alderaan.
Throughout the entire journey, while Darth Vader, or rather Uncle Ani as she had been calling him throughout the entire journey, well, after take off, had not been as warm and affectionate as Aunty Padmé, he had no doubt asked her if she had needed anything and had made sure she was comfortable.
Even as they approached Bail, the latter spoke, "Greetings Lord Vader, for what purpose do you approach our peaceful world of Alderaan?"
Vader replied, "Bail Organa, you are a well known humanitarian and both the Emperor and I have our suspicions of you being a rebel."
Bail gulped in fear and said, "My Lord, I assure you, I…"
Vader cut him off saying, "But that is not why I am here, Organa."
Bail was surprised, but maintained his cool.
Vader brought the child forward and said, "This is Mara Jade, of age seven standard years. Her parents were killed, and despite your activities, you would seem to be the best person to take care of her. It has come to my attention that you have been unable to have a child for years."
Bail was stunned to hear what Darth Vader, the Emperor's right hand man had just said.
His mouth remained open for a few moments before he regained his composure and said, "I, I can't believe this! Are you not going to arrest me?"
Vader responded, "I actually should suspect you and keep an eye on you like a hawk, especially since I know that you hid a fugitive of justice."
Bail said, "Whoever it may have been…"
Vader finished, "It isn't justice. Yes, I know you are bound to view things that way. But that is not the point. My question is, are you willing to take care of her?"
Bail looked at Mara, who was looking up at him in curiosity.
Mara herself felt curious upon seeing this nice man who was Aunty Padmé's friend.
She said, "Hello. Are you Mister Bail?"
Bail smiled at Mara and said, "Yes I am. And what is your good name, little one?"
Mara replied, "My name is Mara and Aunty Padmé said you were nice."
Bail smiled at this, and turning to Vader, he said, "I will take her in. Breha and I have talked about adopting ourselves. I know Mara is seven and quite not so little, but I'll love her as my own, and so will Breha."
Vader asked, "Will your wife accept this?"
Bail was about to speak when suddenly, a female voice interrupted them, "I will."
Bail turned to see his wife, Breha Organa, standing behind him.
She said, "I was standing nearby and heard everything. Bail and I have talked about adopting ourselves, and she may not be so small, but she looks so sweet and innocent. I will love her as my own child, I can assure you of that."
Mara looked up at the woman, who smiled at her and held out her arms.
Mara looked at her for one second, and then burst into her arms.
The hug that followed didn't feel quite the same as Aunty Padmé's, but it was warm and affectionate.
Mara allowed Breha to lift her up, even as Bail placed out a loving hand towards her.
Mara took it and allowed Bail to take her from Breha and hold her in his arms even as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
She may have only met them for a few seconds, but they didn't feel like strangers at all.
Inwardly, behind the mask, Vader couldn't help feeling warm in his chest at the sight.
He couldn't tell what he should do, but somehow, it just felt good, and for some reason, more satisfying.
No, he needed the dark side. It was what fueled him to stay strong.
Or was it?
Did he really want to be loyal to Sidious anymore, after knowing that he had deceived him and made him believe his mother to be dead at the hands of the Jedi, when it had been a Jedi that had saved her?
Vader shook himself from his thoughts, and said, "You are now the official guardians of Mara Jade. You must keep her away from the Emperor as much as possible. Do not bring her to the capital if you can help it. He must not have his hands on her."
Bail said, "I will protect her from the Emperor, even if it costs me my life."
He then asked, "Is Padmé Amidala alive?"
Vader responded, "Yes she is. In fact, she was the one that convinced me to bring little Mara here. However, I must be going now. Take good care of her."
Breha said, "We will."
Vader was about to turn around when he suddenly heard Mara crying out, "Goodbye Uncle Ani. Aunty Padmé says you're good, even if you don't seem to be good."
Vader turned around in surprise at having been addressed like that.
He then said, "Goodbye little Mara. Be a good girl, and take care. May the Force be with you, little Mara."
Mara replied, "May the Force be with you Uncle Ani."
Vader nodded in acknowledgement and walked towards his shuttle for take off.
Bail, Breha and Mara watched on and waved even as the shuttle took off.
Vader exited the planet's atmosphere and jumped to lightspeed.
As he sat in his seat in the cockpit, he sighed, lost in thought.
When he had given Mara to Bail Organa, a feeling of warmth had spread through his chest, and he could not deny it had felt good.
Sure, the dark side did feel good, but somehow, this was more satisfying, and it made the dark side a cause for a nagging feeling he had begun to have in his chest.
He couldn't tell what was happening to him, but he knew that it had started ever since Padmé had told him the truth about what had happened to his mother.
And now, she would never accept him.
Bitterness coursed itself in his blood as he thought about everything he had lost.
He couldn't deny that he had felt some sort of longing when he had seen little Mara being given affection by Padmé and the Organas.
And now, he found himself thinking about something different.
He had begun to think about Padmé more often. He couldn't explain it, but a desire for her attention had somehow crept its way into his mind.
Padmé had actually listened to him before telling him the truth, unlike Mace Windu who had been unwilling to even hear him out.
It was the reason he had confided in her about what had happened to him, why he had become Vader.
And then, a thought came to him, "She's beautiful. I wish we could…"
No, he couldn't. It was not possible. Sith were not meant to love. He couldn't be with her. And, of course, she would never accept someone like him.
He could of course force her into being his, but somehow, he just wouldn't.
Well, in a way, he probably already had, as he wouldn't let her leave his quarters.
But in other ways, he pretty much hadn't.
But there was something which he was sure about.
He was starting to question everything about himself, about the Sith, about what he had become, about what Palpatine had done to him.
Soon, aboard Vader's flagship, in his quarters…
Vader was standing by the viewport, looking out at the stars, lost in thought.
He had to admit, he couldn't decide what he wanted to do, what he should do.
The Sith were all he had known for the past two years, and he had believed that the Jedi had killed his mother, after having seen that fake recording.
His entire situation was a mess.
His mother would never accept him, now that he was Vader, and Palpatine had been drilling it into his head that darkness was all that he had now.
He had to admit, he didn't do what he had done for Mara out of concern for her. In fact, he had not been concerned for her, but had done it for some reason.
He couldn't tell what it was.
Was it that Padmé had some sort of influence over him? Sure, she did.
What sort of influence, so strong did she seem to have over him?
He didn't know what to make of himself, but the more he thought of it, the more lost he felt.
And then, he heard a soft voice, "Anakin, is something wrong?"
He turned around to see Padmé staring at him.
Vader looked at her and said, "I'm confused, I'm lost. I was a Sith for two whole years, believing that the Jedi had killed my mother, and only just recently, I heard that it was all a lie. And now I'm not as strong as the Sith I should be, yet I find myself wondering whether I should be loyal to Sidious anymore."
Padmé said, "He framed you, he tried to have your mother killed, is that not enough reason to turn against him? Are you going to let this tyrant control your life? Or is it that you have no regard?"
Vader said, "I have no choice. I may have not given Mara to him, but that was just one thing, and I didn't do it for her or anything like that. In fact, I'm wondering why I did it. But one small thing does not change who I am. I am Darth Vader, and my mother will never accept me. No one will. I have no choice."
Padmé said, "Anakin, back then, you didn't have a choice, but now you do. You lied to him to protect me from him. You yourself brought Mara to the Organas instead of giving her to the Emperor. Don't those actions mean something to you? There must be some reason as to why you have done those things. Whatever it is, it proves that you do have a choice. You can change. I'm telling you, please stop following this tyrant who has ruined your life and caused so much strife to you and to the galaxy."
Vader said, "Even if I were to change, who would accept me? Tell me, who in the galaxy would accept someone like me?"
With that, he turned away and looked out of the viewport.
And then, he suddenly heard Padmé say, "I would."
He was surprised to say the least when he heard that.
He turned around to look at her, stunned by her response.
Padmé continued, "I would, because I know that you have been through so much suffering, and not just that, because you are my friend and I want to help you. I am a friend, and a friend's responsibility is to help their friend, even if it means pointing out their mistakes."
Vader looked at her and asked, "How can you consider me as your friend? Do you not hate me for what I've done? You have every right to hate me. How is it that you don't?"
Padmé replied, "Because I knew you as Anakin Skywalker, a sweet boy who was willing to go out of his way to help others in need, and I know that deep down, buried within that darkness, there is still good in you. Why else would you have lied to protect me? Why else would you have listened to me and not given Mara to Palpatine like he would have expected you to?"
Vader was silent even as Padmé continued, "You have a choice Anakin, don't let this monster dominate you throughout your life. I'm begging you as a friend, don't let this tyrant who has done nothing but use you and play with your life. Once he gets what he wants, he'll crush you, just like he has tried to kill me, just like he killed the Jedi. I know you are angry with them for what they did to you back then, but there were Jedi who supported you back then, not just Obi Wan. Mace Windu may have cast you aside, but Obi Wan would never cast you out like that. Please, Anakin, don't let this tyrant Palpatine dictate your life."
Vader looked at Padmé, not knowing what to say.
Finally, he said, "You are right. There were some who supported me. I remember a few masters voted not to expel me, but it didn't help. There were just too many who were against me. And all I've known since then is pain, pain and rejection, darkness, anger, hatred. But now, I'm not sure of myself. I think I need a little time alone."
Padmé said, "Think about what I said Ani, I know you are a good person, even if you won't believe it yourself. I think I'll turn in. Goodnight Ani."
Vader flinched slightly, hearing Padmé address him by that nickname.
He replied, "Goodnight Padmé."
Padmé went to the bedroom and closed the door.
Vader continued to stand there, looking out of the viewport, feeling lost.
Padmé was right. He had allowed Palpatine to use him. He should not have lost his faith in Obi Wan, and now it seemed too late.
But Padmé kept on insisting that he had a choice.
But what choice did he have?
Would the remaining Jedi forgive him?
Most likely not. They would just want him dead.
The rebels would not accept him either.
He couldn't help feeling lost.
At that moment, he suddenly remembered the smiling faces of the ones who had cared for him.
Qui Gon, Obi Wan, his mother, Padmé…
Qui Gon! What would have happened had Qui Gon lived?
Would he have trained Vader himself, or would Obi Wan have still trained him?
Still, he could say for sure that Qui Gon would not have abandoned him like many of the Jedi had when he had been framed years ago.
He would have fought relentlessly for him, just like he had done when the Jedi Council had initially said that Vader was too old to be trained.
Perhaps none of this would have happened.
Perhaps he would have been a Jedi Knight, like Obi Wan had wanted for him.
Obi Wan, Qui Gon…
What would Qui Gon think of him now?
Was he all alone?
He felt so alone at that moment.
No one wanted him, no one loved him, no one had come for him, and now no one would accept him for who he was.
Except Padmé.
She had just said that she would accept him.
Was it true, or was it just a far fetched statement?
How he wished things could be different.
And then, he heard a male voice, a gentle one speak, "I sense your pain young Anakin. You have been through a lot of pain and sorrow."
Vader turned around but did not see anyone.
He asked, "Who are you?"
At once, a misty, ethereal form slowly materialized in front of him, a very familiar form, with a beard, long hair, and wearing Jedi robes.
And the figure said, "It's good to finally be able to talk to you Anakin, though it has been a very long time."
Vader's eyes widened in amazement and he exclaimed, "Qui Gon?! Is it you?!"
Qui Gon Jinn replied, "It is me indeed, although I can only come to you as a force ghost."
Vader asked, "I thought you were dead!"
Qui Gon explained, "Yes, in a way, I am dead, but I have found a way to retain my consciousness after death. I am one with the living force, and the force has permitted me to speak to you, seeing that you have finally started to allow the light back into yourself."
Vader asked, "Why didn't you come to me sooner?"
Qui Gon replied, "I was always beside you, but you were so steeped in darkness that you could not sense me. When Palpatine started torturing you, I came and tried to help you to stay strong, for Obi Wan, for your mother, but eventually, your anger towards Sidious and Mace Windu grew so much that it blocked me out. I was there, right beside you, but you could not sense me."
A flashback came to Anakin at that moment.
Anakin was kneeling on the floor, shackled to the wall, and was sobbing with his head in his hands.
"How could it have come to this?" Anakin wept, "Why did you just throw me out? Obi Wan, why did you leave me?"
He had started to lose hope that Obi Wan would come for him.
Just then, he heard a voice saying, "Anakin, you are not alone."
Anakin was startled and he said, "Who are you? Show yourself!"
The voice responded, "It is I, Qui Gon Jinn."
Anakin said, "No, Qui Gon died eight years ago. This has to be some sort of trick."
The voice replied, "I promise you, this is no trick. I may be dead on the physical plane, but I am one with the force, and I can still communicate with you through the force. I cannot be with you in a physical form, but I can speak to you."
Anakin said, "Qui Gon, why did this have to happen to me?"
Qui Gon replied, "It was a cruel thing that the Jedi Council did to you, but the universe has its own plans that even we cannot comprehend."
Anakin asked, "So this was the will of the force?"
Qui Gon replied, "I follow the living force, unlike the Sith who seek to wield the dark side of the force, seeing it as the ultimate reality. From Sidious' point of view, it would be the will of the dark side of the force to turn you, but from my point of view, I do not believe that the force would just abandon its chosen one. Whatever is meant to happen must happen, but know this Anakin, you are never alone."
Anakin asked, "What do you mean?"
Qui Gon replied, "I am with you, inside you, just as you found a place in my heart all those years ago. Obi Wan loves you like his brother and is tearing across the galaxy to find you. The place that you currently are in, is strong in the force, and the force has allowed me to speak to you, which is why, I am able to speak to you. Not only me and Obi Wan, but Masters Plo Koon, Kit Fisto, and Shaak Ti are on your side. And your mother loves you even now, though she has not seen you nor have you seen her for years."
Anakin did not say anything at this point.
Qui Gon said, "Anakin, Sidious will keep moving you from place to place, and I will not be able to interact with you all the time, but you have to stay strong, for your mother, for Obi Wan, for Plo Koon, for Kit Fisto, for Shaak Ti, for me. Please, stay strong Anakin."
Vader was silent as he remembered that incident.
Qui Gon said, "After that, you tried, but eventually, your anger and resentment became so strong that it blocked me out, and I could not contact you."
Vader asked, "Then how are you able to speak to me right now?"
Qui Gon replied, "Because now, you have begun to question everything about yourself, and you have started to allow the light to flow through you, whether you believe it or not. You have allowed the good in you to manifest itself, you know it."
Vader asked, "What am I supposed to do Qui Gon?"
Qui Gon replied, "Follow what your heart tells you. Don't continue to be a tool in Palpatine's hands. Don't let the darkness that he has instilled in you enslave you for the rest of your life. Walk away from it while you still can. And remember Anakin, you are not alone."
With that, Qui Gon's force ghost slowly faded away.
Vader stared into empty space, trying to comprehend what Qui Gon had just said.
And then, he suddenly heard a different voice, "You may have fallen to the dark side, but I was the one that pushed you towards it, indirectly as it may have been on my part."
Vader turned around and saw another force ghost, but it was not that of Qui Gon.
It was the force ghost of the last person that he ever wanted to talk to.
It was Mace Windu, looking remorseful.
Vader shouted, "You just stay away from me!"
Mace said, "I understand why you hate me Anakin, but please, give me a chance to talk to you."
Vader nearly shouted, "LIKE YOU EVEN WANTED TO HEAR ME OUT! YOU WOULDN'T EVEN LISTEN TO ME! YOU THREW ME ASIDE LIKE I WAS A CRIMINAL, AND NOW LOOK WHAT I HAVE BECOME! YOU MADE ME THIS WAY!"
Mace said, "I don't deny it. And it was the worst thing I ever could have done, but please, let me say something to you."
Vader hissed, "Fine, tell me and be gone!"
He then went and sat on one of the sofas.
Mace walked over and sat next to him.
He then said, "I know you've been through a lot, and it was because of me. But I want you to know that I never would have killed your mother."
Vader turned to face him and snarled, "You may have not killed my mother, but you certainly were responsible for the death of her son! You never liked me! You always hated me, and then when you got your chance, you threw me out and left me to die!"
Mace did not even adopt a stern expression.
Instead, he waited for Vader to say something, and when some moments of silence had passed, he slowly said, "Anakin, I was wrong. I was arrogant, and I never tried to understand you. I was of the opinion that you should not have been accepted when you first showed up at the Jedi temple. But when Obi Wan, convinced that you were the chosen one, insisted upon training you, many of us were still against it, but he would not break his promise to train you, and so we accepted it."
Vader said, "Only because he fought for me."
He suddenly stopped, realizing what he had just said.
He had just said something positive about Obi Wan, which he had not done in a long, long time.
Mace said, "When you were accepted as a Padawan, you ended up having to start to train from scratch, taking lessons that two or three year olds had been taking. And if you were to be a good Jedi, you had to work hard, and apart from your age, you also had a tendency to play a lot of pranks."
Vader did not say anything.
Mace then said, "I may not have been the nicest person, and I did not trust you, but I want you to know this. I never ever hated you Anakin."
Vader looked perplexed at this statement and asked, "Then why were you so critical of me? Why were you so hard on me?"
Mace explained, "I knew you were talented, and had a passion for mechanics, and I honestly have to say, you baffled me with that knowledge, plus your piloting skills. I knew you had a lot of potential, but you were behind and also into pranks. And you are the Chosen One. Therefore, if that prophecy was to be true, then you needed to be a good, skilled Jedi. I started to realize that you had to be trained by us, to be a good Jedi and bring balance to the force. That's why I was hard on you, that's why I would often stop you and ask you random questions, that's why I would make you work hard when Obi Wan didn't take you on missions, because I wanted to make you a better Jedi."
Vader looked up at him, obviously surprised to say the least about Mace Windu's explanation.
And a memory came to his mind.
Eleven year old Anakin was lying on the ground, having been bested by Mace Windu in a sparring session.
"Padawan," Mace called out sternly, "Once again, you've let your need for victory distract you. Come on, pick up your lightsaber and stand up."
Anakin picked up his lightsaber and charged at Mace.
Mace blocked his lightsaber with one hand and suddenly punched his left hand out.
Anakin saw that coming and managed to duck.
He rolled away and swung his lightsaber towards the legs, causing Mace to jump.
Mace landed on his feet and Anakin attempted to knock Mace's blade out of his hands with a strike. Unfortunately, that did not work and instead, his own lightsaber went flying out of his hands.
Mace stared at Anakin sternly and said, "Again Skywalker, you've made the biggest mistake. Never lose your grip on your lightsaber."
Anakin said, "I was trying to knock yours out of your hand."
Mace said, "I would not recommend that until you're stronger in your arms. As it is, you already have a habit of losing your grip on your lightsaber. First work on improving your grip and not losing your lightsaber before you start trying to put all your strength into it and trying all sorts of tricks."
Anakin replied, "Understood Master."
Mace looked at Anakin, and then put his hand on his shoulder and said, "Good work."
Anakin looked up in surprise and stammered, "What... What did you say?"
Mace Windu answered, "I said good work Anakin. You've consistently improved, and I can see that you really are trying to get better and better in combat. I'm quite impressed with that move you made towards my legs. Honestly, I was not expecting that. And I have to say, good work. You have skill, but you just have to work on a few things here and there."
Anakin said, "Thanks Master Windu."
Mace then said, "You must be hungry, and given that it's been a good day's work, how about something special for once? Would you like to go to Dex's tonight?"
"Dex's Diner?!" Anakin cried out, "Can I get pizza?! Alderaanian Pizza?! You mean it?!"
Mace smiled a rare smile at him and replied, "I do, and I'd say you deserve it, although you're not getting it without something healthy alongside it. I think Nabooian cabbage soup would be a good idea. Your master told me you're really fond of it."
Soon, Anakin and Mace were sitting in a booth in Dex's Diner, eating Alderaanian pizza with extra cheese, Nabooian cabbage soup, and even a sweet from Mace's home planet Harun Kal, all of which were luckily available at the restaurant.
Vader couldn't help smiling at the memory.
He said, "I admit, I just completely forgot that."
Mace said, "I understand. When you were framed, and the evidence was pointing to you, all my distrust towards you, the feeling that you should not be trained, and a fear of you turning dark or something all arose in me, and I believed I was doing what was right. But even then, a small part of me felt that something was not right, and I ignored it. It was the worst mistake of my life."
Vader did not say anything.
Mace continued, "Towards the end of the Clone Wars, we tracked down Aurra Sing during a mission and killed her in a battle. As she was dying, she revealed that all that had happened to you was a setup and that we were all fools and would die. She was right."
Vader asked, "And how did you feel after that?"
Mace said, "I had nightmares, nightmares of your screams for mercy, how you begged us to listen to you, to help you, and I did nothing, not to mention I threw you out and ended up offering you to the hands of the Sith. I even had nights where I cried, thinking about what I had done."
Vader asked, "The night that you died; You were trying to say something. If I had let you speak, what would have told me?"
Mace replied, "The truth, everything. The moment I saw your face, I knew that something terrible had happened to you, something worse than death had happened to you because of me, and I wanted to help you. I would have told you the truth, that I never would have killed your mother, and about how sorry I was, how sorry I am even now."
Vader sighed and said, "I don't think I can forgive you."
Mace said, "I don't expect you to right now. But I do want to make a request of you. Don't push anyone away from you just as I pushed you away when you needed my help. Don't let this tyrant control your life. Remember, you have a choice, a choice to be a better person, and you are not alone."
Vader didn't say anything but simply looked ahead even as the force ghost of the Jedi Master faded away.
He then stood up and walked towards the viewport.
Looking out, he could not help feeling stuck, despite all that he had heard.
Recently, he had made choices that would be seen as acts of betrayal towards Sidious, but he had also learnt some much needed truths.
But no matter what, he did not feel like he could change.
It was too late for him.
But maybe it wasn't too late for others.
And then suddenly, it hit him.
Padmé had said that she would accept him.
She had been the one to support him when he had been framed.
And now, she had told him the truth about his mother, and then she had declared that she herself would accept him.
Perhaps there was hope for him after all.
—-
A little while later…
Padmé, unable to sleep, was standing near the viewport of the living room, watching the view.
A lot had changed in the last few days that she had spent aboard the Devastator.
For one thing, she had not expected to be reunited with the one she had considered as her friend, and that too, in a completely different state than how she had known him.
And to think that he had been tortured and lied to, in the most crude manner possible.
She turned around and saw something.
Vader was there, fast asleep on the couch, his eyes closed, lying on his side.
She went and stood near him.
She could see his face, and if it had not been for the fact that she knew he was Darth Vader, she could have sworn, based on the expression, that Anakin and Vader were two completely different people.
For, this face bore no evil.
His face looked sad, so sad, like he had known nothing of happiness for a long, long time.
And yes, he had been through so much pain, from the time that he had been framed.
He looked so sad, yet so handsome.
Padmé felt something about him.
There was just something about him that seemed to make her feel so, so…
So drawn to him.
When she had first seen him as Vader, she had been shocked and heartbroken that a dear friend could become so cruel and twisted.
But when he had revealed everything to her, she had realized just how he had been used.
After he had saved her from Ventress, she had really begun to strongly feel that there was good in him, and now, after he had given Mara to Bail and Breha, that feeling had intensified.
And not only that.
She had started feeling more drawn and drawn towards him ever since he had given his word that he would not give Mara to Palpatine.
And those feelings had been getting stronger with each passing hour.
She thought, "What's making me feel like this towards him? There's just something about him which makes me feel like, I don't want to leave him, but no, he's Vader, I can't stay here forever. I have to fight for freedom, but no, I can't just go. Why?!"
And then suddenly, a thought hit her.
Was she actually starting to fall in love with him?
No, it couldn't be.
He was Vader, and even if he hadn't turned to the dark side, it could never have happened. The Jedi would not allow it, and she had been a senator.
But then, he was also Anakin, and there was good in him, all the more reason for her to be attracted to him.
And yet, that didn't change her situation at all, being in Vader's chambers.
Padmé could not tell why she couldn't just decide to try and walk away towards freedom.
Was it because of the fear that she would be apprehended?
Or was it something else?
No, it could not be just fear. She had been in situations like this before and had escaped unharmed.
But this was something else.
Looking at Vader, she couldn't help feeling sad for him.
If one month ago, she had been asked to describe Vader in one word, it would have no doubt been 'MONSTER'.
But that had been before she had truly come to know him, before she had heard what had happened to him, before hearing why he had joined the dark side and become Darth Vader.
Anakin's life had been turned upside down, and he had been all alone. Having no one to guide him, lost in grief, and tortured and lied to, he had given up and given himself to darkness.
And now, if she were to be asked that same question, to describe Darth Vader in one word, she knew very well what it would be;
'GRIEF'.
