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For the Guest who said this should have a TVTropes: Thank you for your enthusiasm but I doubt this story (or any of mine I ever create) will ever get a TVTropes. Lol
Chapter 10
When Shmi Skywalker woke up, her hand fell over the small scar on her neck. She'd faced worse wounds before, but the feeling of something being withdrawn from your body was an odd one indeed.
The dark-robed rescuer came down like the lightest of the brightest sun and freed both her and her son from slavery. A beacon of hope amid darkness. He had been unique. She almost forgot a time long passed when she wasn't enslaved. There was no reason to believe that she would ever be freed. That hope ended long ago.
She would admit that part of her believed that he was another slaver, someone who got pissed off with Watto and came to forcibly claim her and Anakin, bringing her into an even worse life.
It wouldn't be the first time. Shmi had a difficult childhood, taken from one system to another by several masters while serving as a house servant. Upon reaching adulthood, she was dropped from house servant status and forced into cleaning work. While some of these masters were cruel, others were kind—notably Pi-Lippa. Though Pi-Lippa had planned to free Shmi, she'd died before she could, and Shmi instead became the property of one of Pi-Lippa's relatives, who did not want to free her.
Shmi's heart tightened painfully at the thought of her old friend, and a sea of sadness crashed over her. The woman. She went out of her way to teach Skywalker technical skills. The skills that Pi-Lippa taught Skywalker increased her value to her later enslavers, and she continued to apply them in her daily life. They'd eventually ended up with Watto. The Toydarian was most certainly not the best, but he wasn't the worst. He treated Anakin and Shmi mostly like workers, not sex slaves or whatever else that other slaves had to go through.
Her thoughts transversed back to their savior: Luke Skywalker, the man who shared their surname, was their liberator. His generosity extended to not only her but her son and that little servant droid her Ani constructed.
Whatever the man was, she knew that she was safe. She pushed herself upright, feeling ashamed now. She shouldn't assume the worst of people, but she couldn't help that old instinct.
Was he a distant relative?
A long lost one perhaps from an ocean of another?
It had been a long time since Shmi thought about her parents. They were freighter pilots, she reminisced that much, and their ship was attacked, by pirates. Her parents died and she was captured and sold into slavery.
Her thoughts were cut short by the door opening.
"Madam," the guard stood straight. "Queen Amidala and Jedi Master Luke Skywalker wanted to give you this."
She frowned in curiosity when the guard gently laid a... book next to her.
"Thank you," she nodded.
The guard smiled and exited.
Shmi gripped the book and stood up, placing it on the nearby desk. She walked over to the water dispenser next to the entrance and poured some water into a little replaceable cup.
She didn't consider it would be this easy. But now the fun part. She took a sip; it had a smooth, loving taste. She would've killed herself if only to get Anakin this.
She placed it on a small table nearby and retrieved her loving diary. She doubted the kind young ladies would mind. Padmé, Rabé, and Eirtaé seemed just as generous as Luke.
Shmi opened the journal, guiding the empty pages with her hand. Observing them, she frowned in curiosity. She'd always loved writing. It was one of the things she secretly did with Anakin when they weren't expected to work. She repeatedly drilled in his head not to make it obvious.
A small communication device was planted on the side. She touched the button.
"Mistress Skywalker," the familiar form of Luke Skywalker materialized, "since your son has awoken before you have, I taken the liberty to monitor him while you recover. In the meantime, the Queen and I have arranged for you to have a diary. This is yours. You don't have to worry about someone taking it from you. I promise."
She believed him. Something about him was extremely trustworthy. She had no reason to doubt him...
She gripped the writing utensil that slid effortlessly on the side of the journal and went back to the first page. So much she had to say. So little time...
But she might as well try...
'It's a odd feeling. To be freed from slavery. For years, me and my little Ani had no choice but to listen to a master. I taught him how to read, how to write, how to live; but I never thought I would have been freed too. I always knew there was something special about him. I always knew that he wasn't going to be another slave. And now I can watch him grow into a man with Tatooine behind us...'
Taking another sip, she looked at her new diary. Hers. All hers. It was selfish, she knew, but she couldn't help it.
Tears of relief exited her eyes, now, causing her to wipe at her face. Here, she didn't have to worry about judgment from anyone. Here, she didn't have to worry about a master charging in and physically assaulting her.
Shmi Skywalker was truly free.
Luke knew it was a bit of fanciful thinking on his part.
But he had wished that his mother hadn't made that call. Valorum was in all meanings a Banshee bird. That was why he turned to the Jedi for help with the blockade crisis: because there was nothing else he could do at that point. Any attempt to, for example, dispatch Republic military forces to Naboo would have been blocked in the Senate by the Trade Federation (publicly) and Sidious from the shadows; Luke knew this from the way that Lott Dod had enough support to continue stalling even after his mother personally attested to the invasion.
Despite this, he understood where his mother was standing. It was not like she had any choice but to give into Palpatine's manipulations, nor did she know what he would one day do to the galaxy, being far worse than the Invasion of Naboo.
The small communication beeped, and Luke stared up, confirming his worst fears. While put out in sweetening terms, the Senate decided that "unfortunately assistance for Naboo no matter of the proof obtained would have to be delayed until a new Chancellor is elected." Bloody corrupted politicians.
How was he going to save this fraking system that elected Palpatine to the position of the Emperor with nigh support?
Could the Republic even be saved?
Anakin was sitting in a chair, now working on his device.
"What are you building, young one?" Luke inquired gently, quashing the temptation to charge into that body of delegates and shake them back into reality.
Anakin smiled slightly as he pushed the wrench up with some effort. "A device I have been working on to track down slave transmitters," he answered.
Luke's eyes widened. "Oh, if the device can be reworked to deactivate transmitters and duplicated-"
"Then we can free more slaves," Anakin smiled.
Luke slapped his shoulder in appraisement.
"That's the type of hard work we need before we can move against them. Throughout your training you will be given time."
"Still got some work to do," the boy said softly. "I have to reprogram and recalibrate its original intention for our operations."
"Take your time," Luke advised, "and don't be afraid of errors."
Anakin paused and looked back down at his device, hands moving much slower. "...What if I fall to the Dark Side in my training? Will you give up on me?"
The unexpected question threw Luke off-guard. "Wha-"
"If I lose to it, will you send me back to Tatooine? Sell me? Get rid of me?"
"No," Luke answered, shocked.
"Then..." The boy swallowed.
"If you fall to the Dark Side, it will be my personal failing," he answered. "As I have failed you, it will be my responsibility to bring you back."
He wrapped his arms around the boy and allowed him to stay there.
"But I think you're too strong to fall. Too light. Too... good."
Anakin welcomed the unexpected gesture, settling in his lap.
"Oh, am I'm interrupting something?" A voice thundered behind them, and the Muun from earlier, approached tenderly, looking guilty.
"No," Luke answered, as always willing to welcome his heart to anyone. The Muun stepped closer, a slight smile falling across his lips.
"Greetings, young human, I'm pretty sure you remember me from earlier..."
"Hojo Damask?" Anakin asked shyly, pushing the device aside and standing up with Luke following, the boy's small hand grabbing the Muun's outstretched own. A grimace fell over the Muun's expression.
"Hego," the Muun corrected in a far more clipped tone, looking annoyed for a few seconds, while Anakin shrunk behind him, and the Muun closed his eyes. After a few seconds of standing there and suspending his frustration that rose suddenly quickly, the Muun continued. "Forgive my manners, I... uh value my name heavily, and it's been stressful times here on Coruscant, young one."
Ummm... short-tempered perhaps. A little bit rude. But many people were.
"Oh, okay..." Anakin said, though remained behind Luke in a funny role of irony, depending on him for protection.
Luke placed a hand on his shoulder in support, staring up at the Muun. "Can we help you?"
"I just wanted to check on Young Anakin here. I am a very dear friend to the Senator of Naboo, Palpatine. He works so very hard to do his job, but he felt saddened about knowing this young one and his mother's history and wished for me to check to make sure they were settling alright." Damask explained, smiling in generosity. "So, how are you, little one?"
"Oh, I'm fine," Anakin answered lowly. "So you're a friend of Palpatine, huh? I didn't get the impression he had many friends."
Luke had a hard time keeping a snort from escaping him. If only it could remain that way... Hego's eyes landed on him, wondering.
"Is something wrong, sir?" Was that "impetuosity" in his tone?
"Oh, don't mind my tone, Magister," Luke stated, doing his best to keep his tone imperturbably. He looked down at Anakin, still smiling, hoping that it wasn't strained. "Palpatine has his own friends, I imagine, Anakin, just know many politicians don't like meeting potential backstabbers in the Senate."
"Indeed," the Muun agreed, looking at him strangely, his right hand falling to his chin.
"So you're self-taught?" Luke inquired, arching his eyebrows.
"Hmm?"
"Force sensitive? I sense it from you."
Alarm blared off of the Muun for a moment.
"I won't tell the Jedi." he offered sympathetically. "May I ask how?" He pressed.
The feeling receded. Damask gave a wounded look. "In my younger days, as a slip of a child, I had ran into a... wielder of the Force. He isn't like the Jedi. He'd gone by the name of Tenebrous."
Tenebrous? Tenebrous?
He'd known about Tenebrous from that Book of Sith-amid the ruins of the Emperor's storehouses of Mount Tantiss on Wayland, after stumbling upon a chamber that, until that year, remained hidden.
"He never treated me well. One day, during an accidental explosion in a mine he and myself were in and, while Tenebrous was using the Force to curtail the explosion, the cave we were in collapsed on top of him. He wasn't quite dead, though, until I had to make the regretful decision of breaking his neck."
Remorse and shame poured into the Force. But something else. Something DARK.
'Don't leave Anakin with him alone,' Luke thought strangely.
"I have indulged myself into science and try to not live by those experiences."
"I see..." Luke stated, trying to keep his incredulity hidden.
He would have to do research about Hego Damask. Something about him just didn't feel right.
Before Luke could ponder on this further, the doors opened, and Queen Amidala and her Handmaidens walked inside.
"Magister," the Queen stated, surprised.
"Oh, your majesty, I was just speaking with Master Skywalker about concerns for the boy," Damask stated, bowing slightly. "I do wish your planet well. Good day."
The Muun departed, giving one last nod to the Queen before he did so.
"Something about that Muun is weird," Sabé voiced what Luke was thinking in far from sweeter terms.
"You think everyone is weird," Eirtaé laughed.
"Shut up."
"She's not wrong though," Rabé grinned, looking at Sabé who chuckled.
"Okay, okay, I sometimes overdo it."
"Sometimes?" Both chorused, arching eyebrows.
As the young ladies bantered, the Queen strode to the window and stood there. Eventually, the Handmaidens sat down. Anakin remained silent, as one of the Handmaidens - Sabé - fetched him something to eat, which the boy consumed gladly, receiving a few snickers from the women. But that was all.
Apparently, Jar Jar didn't get the hint.
"Yousa thinkin yousa people gonna die?"
Luke couldn't fault the Gungan. He was concerned and trying his hardest here. That was more than half of the galaxy could say.
The Queen remained silent.
"...Wesa got a grand army. That's why yousa no like us mesa thinks."
The door chimed again, and in approached Panaka and... Palpatine.
The now Senator glanced at him for a moment. "Ah, yes, Master Skywalker." He shook his hand, much to his quiet disdain. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance again so soon."
"Likewise, Senator," Luke replied, hoping his tone didn't sound too snappy here.
"Your Majesty, I feel confident our situation will create a strong sympathy vote for us... I will be Chancellor." Luke could see he was enjoying this situation and the power. He could not hide his quest for power-a temporarily slipping the mask to show the insidiousness inside.
He was in the stage where even if everything went wrong from here on out, the Sith would still do an untold amount of damage to the Republic. Expected from a thousand years of planning...
"And if I am elected, I promise to put an end to corruption."
'Or make it worse,' Luke couldn't help but think bitterly.
"I fear by the time you have control of the bureaucrats senator there will be nothing left of our people, our way of life," the Queen said, the anger in her voice clear as she moved to the nearby table and looked out the window.
"I understand your concern, Your Majesty, unfortunately, the Federation has possession of our planet," he responded, seemingly resigned. "If you are to avoid bloodshed and violence, I'm afraid you might have to sign the treaty because it's the right thing to do."
"Surely, a Jedi's word could be enough?" The Queen pressed, only barely hiding her agitation as she flipped around on the Senator.
Palpatine shook his head. "We cannot use the Jedi's testimony, as their mission was not officially sanctioned by the Senate."
The Jedi should not answer to the Senate. Would the Order ever realize that?
"They were sent as a personal favor to Valorum." He sighed. "I promise you this corruption will be handled by my administration as soon as possible."
Luke found Sabé's eyes narrowing a fraction in skepticism at Palpatine. None of Padmé's Handmaidens. Not even his mother. Not a thousand delegates. Not even the Jedi. But her...
She could almost see it.
"What about Luke Skywalker? He just crashed landed on Naboo, I believe."
"There's no reason that the public wouldn't believe that Master Skywalker was sent as a personal favor to Valorum as well." He sighed and lowered his head. "What a tragic case to have to use the Vote of No Confidence, but it was necessary at the end for the former Chancellor. I fear his accusers may have been correct about his corruption."
"Well, there's only one thing I can do," the Queen stated, "Senator... this is your arena..." she continued, "...I feel I must return to mine."
Palpatine twitched ever so slightly.
The Queen slowly turned around. "I've decided to go back to Naboo."
"G-Go back?" Palpatine stood, doing a clever display of stammering over his words, "But Your Majesty, be realistic t-they'll force you to sign the treaty!"
"I'll sign no treaty Senator, my fate will be no different than that of our people," the Queen stated abruptly, "Captain, ready my ship."
"Please Your Majesty, stay here where its safe!" the Senator pleaded.
The Queen turned to address him one last time. "It is clear to me now that the Republic no longer functions. I pray you will bring sanity and compassion back to the Senate."
She departed-the Handmaidens beckoning Anakin to come along, leaving behind only the two.
"Master Skywalker..." The evident poison inside of his voice made the air cool over.
"Senator..." Luke returned.
Sidious wisely chose not to say anything else. Luke did not as well. If the time traveler attacked now, he had no doubt he would be able to kill the Dark Lord of the Sith, but there would be far too many problems. Despite his dissenters, Sheev Palpatine was universally beloved-as beloved as one could be. He would be a martyr. The Jedi's credibility would be significantly damaged beyond even his timeline, but the Republic would continue as it did with no preparation for changing, and no time to ready for the Vong. The Core and Rim would continue to grow apart now that the latter have the means to retaliate. That was why he was an effective con man. Not only did he lied effectively through his speech, but he backed it up with his body language. It took decades of practice to manipulate all around him.
And even now, despite the ire in his voice, his face was smooth over in a fragile controlled mask, his chin held high.
Holding his glare with his own, the time traveler exited, the door closing behind him.
He folded his arms across his chest and smiled knowingly, allowing his fury to dissolve into the Force.
"I know you're there."
Slowly, a head popped into sight, followed by a body, and the woman moved, her eyes glued on him. She was a human female with short gray hair, an aquiline nose, and large, ultramarine eyes. She was short and thin.
"I take it you are here because of the Council," he said, smiling.
"Not all of us answer to the Council." she shrugged. "I very rarely be on Coruscant until I felt that you were with the Naboo party," she declared, all too freely.
Luke's smile didn't fall. "I understand. I am Luke Skywalker." No point in trying to come up with some false alias now. He was in too deep.
"I am Master Thracia Cho Leem. I take it you're not manipulating the Queen." She sounded too enthusiastic.
"No," he shook his head, "I do sincerely wish to help her." He waited.
She probed him for a few seconds. "You're... different. The Force is strong with you."
"Oh?" Luke darted his right eyebrow.
"You have regained the strength forsaken in the old temples of Tython, to embrace the Light Side and bring the Dark Side within you into captivity and reverse the Dark Side's enslavement upon itself. Curious..."
The Force sharpened around them.
"However, some of us has kids, Master Skywalker, and we would so appreciate the next time you send a disturbance through the Force like that, be careful. Some of them are still young and unprepared for shockwaves through the Force. Thankfully, they didn't startle out of their beds." She landed him with a look Luke knew all too well. Leia and Mara were fiercely overprotective when they became mothers.
Luke bowed his head, knowing that almost nothing would get in the way of a mother's love for her child. Not even the future Grandmaster was that bold. "My apologies, madam, I will keep that in mind."
She smiled, her smile all-teeth, almost a physical warning. "Perfect. Good day..."
Luke knew instantly that wouldn't be the last time he'd met Thracia Cho Leem.
Author's note: Shmi actually owned a diary in the EU that Leia found in Tatooine's Ghost that helped her forgive Anakin. What type of criminal would I be not to show Padmé and Shmi? A lot of Luke's time travel stories always shows Luke and Obi-Wan's bonding, and while I love the latter, Padmé and Shmi also should be fleshed out in my opinion.
I was thinking about some people's suggestions for Luke to convince Padmé to not call that vote, but would that have changed anything? If Palpatine were to lose somehow, I suspect he'd just try again. Make the new Chancellor (or Valorum) seem incompetent, or kill them if needed, and make sure the votes go the right way the second time around. Essentially the Naboo crisis would've put Palpatine in the spotlight regardless of whether he won, and once he had that he wouldn't just let it go. The Grand Plan had waited for centuries, it can wait for a few more years. In my opinion, EVERYTHING could go wrong for the Sith from here on out and everyone (the Jedi and galaxy) would still lose nevertheless. This plan has been going on for literal centuries.
Aside from that, I feel like I should mention: that just because I decided to mention Grogu and the events of the first two seasons of Mandalorian, there's almost nothing else post-ROTJ Disney. In this story, there's no Rey, no Kylo Ren, no Finn, no Poe Dameron, no Luke being exiled or celibate, no Han being a deadbeat, no Leia never forgiving Anakin, no Ahsoka shamelessly taking Luke's place in Heir to the Empire, no Mandalorian season 3, no Book of Boba Fett, no Ahsoka, no Acolyte, and the New Republic will be EU accurate. Meaning that Mon Mothma believed in militarization after the fall of the Empire. I do not want people to be misguided by notions of events such as "Why isn't X, Y, Z in this story?"
May the Force be with you all always.