Chapter Text
The Force knows everything.It knows how this story began and it knows all the ways it might end. The Force has brought its chosen one, its own child into the galaxy and its heart bleeds for his fate. If it could, it would let its tears flow free for its grandchildren, separated to protect them from their own father. So, while the Force weeps in silence and watches, it has an idea. One small detail that just might change everything. One simple deviation from fate, that might just save the galaxy.
(And it does.)
Leia Organa had had quite a busy week. Each Senate session became more tenuous than the last, with the power of the senate diminished, and most Senators becoming more and more corrupt as time went on. At the end of the day she just wanted to fall into her bed.
She had always had rather vivid dreams, ever since she had been a child, when she had dreamed of sunny meadows, deserts with two suns and a blond, blue-eyed boy.
So perhaps she should not have been surprised when she dreamed of a man with the same blue eyes and a woman with the kindest smile.
“He keeps kicking,“ the woman smiled radiantly at the man, while pressing his hand to her swollen belly.
“He? I thought you’d ordered your medical droid not to spoil the surprise?” The man asked mildly.
“Oh I didn’t get this from the Emdee. It’s my…” her smile went softly sly, “…motherly intuition.”
He smiled back at her, until he must have felt the baby and his face morphed into an expression of wonder, before starting to grin again.
“With a kick that hard? Definitely a girl!“
Somehow she knew these were her parents. Her biological ones. The ones that had died when she had barely been born.
Their love and anticipation for their child was unmistakable, and Leia’s heart throbbed violently for never being able to get to know them.
Suddenly the happy scene shifted, and she was standing in what seemed to be an office. Battlefield more likely, as there were several bodies laying on the floor, unmoving. The big window showing off the Coruscant skyline, had been shattered and in front of it she could make out the silhouette of a man.
As she walked up to him, she recognized his distorted features as the ones belonging to the Emperor himself. When he began to speak, she almost recoiled.
“A powerful Sith you will become. Henceforth you shall be known as…Darth Vader.”
And there kneeling in front of him, her father. The one she had just witnessed grinning unabashedly, now pledging himself to Palpatine.
It couldn’t be true. She just couldn’t be the daughter of that monster. This must simply be a nightmare. After all, he didn’t even look like anyone that could be under that horrible mask.
So, she didn’t really think about the consequences, when she let loose and started cussing at the Emperor.
Darth Vader had had quite a busy day. First of all, his return to Imperial Center had been as nerve racking as it always was. His Master had been very displeased with recent developments in the Outer Rim, and even more upset about Vader’s rather violent solution.
As punishment he had been forced to oversee the training of multiple new ISB officers, a task far below his station.
And, worst of all, he was due to sleep again.
Whenever possible, he avoided this most dreadful task by siphoning energy from the Force. Sleeping brought dreams and he hated nothing more, save for his master and his own failings, than the dreams.
Today, it had started out as pleasantly as could be expected for him, which meant the dreams brought only grief and not excruciating pain.
He dreamed of her. Padmé Amidala, his wife, his angel, his everything. She smiled at him, happy like only he could make her. ”He keeps kicking,” she told him while she pressed his flesh hand against her belly, where their child laid.
He remembered exactly word for word what he had told her at that very moment. Their last happy memory, really.
“He? I thought you’d ordered your medical droid not to spoil the surprise?” He spoke far calmer and happier than he felt.
“Oh I didn’t get this from the Emdee. It’s my…” her smile went softly sly. “…motherly intuition.”
What he wouldn’t do to see that smile again. Tears were already gathering in his eyes, as he readied himself to sink to his knees and plead for her forgiveness. For not only taking her life’s work and her life from her, but also killing their child. Groveling was all he could do in the face of her, her radiance and happiness, crushed by his foolishness.
Then suddenly he felt his child kick, too, in what he was sure was a protest to her mother’s assessment.
”With a kick that hard? Definitely a girl,” he held himself long enough together to say, without sobbing.
Padmé only grinned at him. And if the scene hadn’t suddenly changed, he would have sunk to the floor in front of her.
Suddenly, he was on his knees, but it wasn’t Padmé sitting comfortably on her couch before him. Instead the wrinkled face of his Master had appeared.
Evidently, he had been wrong after all. This time the dreams would show him everything he had done wrong and what it had cost him. He hated this scene almost as much as he hated himself.
Still, with a slave’s obedience he dipped his head and awaited his Master’s commands.
“A powerful Sith you will become. Henceforth you shall be known as…Darth Vader.”
Not willing to delay his inevitable suffering further he opened his mouth to thank his wretched Master, when suddenly he felt a commotion in the Force.
“Bitch, you better be joking. Fuck you with your fucking wrinkled face and your foul breath. I hope you get hit by lightning while you’re sitting on the toilet. You stupid fucking bastard of a shitty Emperor. Die. Your mother never loved you, no one loves you and when you finally fucking die I will dance on your fucking grave.”
Vader was absolutely shocked. This hadn’t happened. No one in this office, save for his Master and him, were still alive. But when he turned he was suddenly met with…Padmé?
It took him a moment to realize that the petite brunette furiously insulting the Emperor was not his angel, even though she looked almost exactly like her. Aside from their resemblance he was sure he had met her before.
The girl hadn’t even noticed that he was watching her now. She still threw profanity after profanity at the Emperor, frozen in the moment. Her eyes were blazing with rage, her eyebrows furrowed and her lips pursed. It reminded him of … himself.
That was when it hit him. He had in fact met her before. This was Leia Organa, Princess of Alderaan and currently the Senator that annoyed his Master the most, a legacy of her righteous parents no doubt. What was she doing in his nightmares?
Her tirade had finally stopped, but she seemed ready to start hurling insults all over again when her eyes landed on him. He was kneeling on the floor, not yet having had the energy to rise. Still, he wasn’t that far below her eye level. She was tiny, he thought numbly, his brain not being able to comprehend what was going on around him.
“What got you all gobsmacked?” she asked him, full of venom.
“What?” was all he could ask, in turn. Nothing about this made sense. The confusion must have been evident on his face, as hers softened a little. He rose back to his feet, trying to reorganize his thoughts and maybe even wake up.
Standing, he noticed how she was truly tiny, barely reaching to his chest. Even without his suit and enhanced limbs he towered over her.
“Interesting question,” she mocked him. “I really must be stressed out to come up with something as insane as this,” she murmured, now more to herself than to him.
“Imagining things? You are part of my imagination, your Highness,” he shot back. Why exactly he was seeing her in his dreams remained a mystery to him.
“See, this already proves my point,” she explained to him, as if he were stupid, “My biological father could never have known I was adopted by the Organas, as he was already dead at the time. Therefore you must be a figment of my imagination.”
This made his head spin. It couldn’t be true. He was either having a complete mental breakdown or his medication had caused permanent brain damage or something.
Still, all he could blurt out was, “Biological father?” Half praying it was a lie and half hoping it was true.
“Yes,” she told him matter of factly, “I’m assuming you are my biological father. Perhaps you were even present at my birth and that’s how my subconsciousness remembers you.”
Darth Vader was about to throw up. The Force was as present in his dreams as it was when he was awake and it was screaming at him that the princess was telling the truth.
“You are my daughter?” he asked again, dumbly.
“Yeah, I did not get my intellect from you, did I?” his daughter looked at him questioningly.
“Oh no, you definitely got that from your mother. She was a Senator too, you know? Damn good one. She would be so proud of you!” he was so flabbergasted, he began babbling, “You look a lot like her. But you got your temper from me!”
“Thanks. I…guess?” Leia seemed pleased.
He grinned at her. Daughter. He had a daughter.
A daughter, who, he realized, still had no idea he was Darth Vader.
He was about to tell her that he was, in fact, very much dreaming too. Most likely they were sharing a Vision of sorts, but Leia suddenly disappeared.
He started freaking out so much, he awoke himself.
Now he was sitting in his sterile meditation pod, wondering about what to do next. He had no experience in how to be a parent, especially one to a child you hadn’t known you had. At first he just wanted to travel to Alderaan and demand answers from the Organas, why Leia had been hidden from him, but he decided against it.
If he came face to face with the people who had stolen his daughter, he would hardly be able to control himself. That seemed like something Leia would not appreciate.
So, all out of options, and woefully unprepared on how to deal with this situation, Vader activated the holonet terminal in his pod and started to dig through any parenting forum he could find. He may have been a Sith Lord, but he was also aware that teenagers were a whole other breed.
Despite her weird dream, interrupted by her alarm ringing, courtesy of not having been shut off during the weekend, Leia had slept perfectly fine. She felt more energized than she had in weeks and had to keep herself from humming a newly popular song while she walked up to the stairs leading to the balcony of Nifty’s Breakfast Club.
The Breakfast Club was not exactly famous for their breakfast, but rather the traditional sunday brunches it served. Virtually every member of the imperial high society attended them. To miss one of these events could be excused, but missing two in a row while officially on Coruscant, would be a scandal.
After all, there was nothing most members of these circles enjoyed more than showing off and gossiping about everyone around them while doing so.
Leia quite frankly hated these gatherings, but as a senator and princess of Alderaan, it was her duty to comply with customs and keep up her facade as an upstanding imperial citizen.
Unfortunately, Pooja Narberrie was nowhere to be found. The Senator had returned to her home planet of Naboo for family reasons and wasn’t due to return anytime soon. The woman, only six years her senior, was one of the few colleges Leia could actually stand.
Under these circumstances, she decided she would just sit on her own, and try to enjoy Coruscant's gleaming city as well as the artificial weather. Sighing, she wished she were sitting on her parent’s private balcony right now. From there you could look out all the way to Appenza Peak.
She ordered her usual, traditional alderaanian breakfast with the complementary tea while also taking stock of her surroundings. Because she had lounged around in bed the majority of the morning, trying to decipher her prophetic dream, she had arrived long after the rush hour.
Technically, it was already noon, but there were still some Senators and Moffs enjoying their food around her.
The serving droid brought her meal to her table and she thanked him with a smile. Looking out over the sprawling concrete and metal buildings of Coruscant, she began to dig in.
Halfway through her first braid bread, she heard the Senator from the hosnian system, somewhere to her right, making a sharp inhale.
A mechanized breathing echoed over the balcony, its distinctive sound announcing the arrival of none other than Darth Vader.
Leia blinked. He never came for brunch. She wasn’t even sure he could eat. Rumour had it he only showed up at any social event the Emperor forced him to.
Palpatine’s words from her dream were suddenly ringing in her ears again. She mentally shook herself. It wasn’t real, but Vader was. Whatever he was doing here, could provide vital information for the Rebellion, she told herself.
She tried to appear casual, completely unbothered by his heavy steps, coming closer and closer to her table.
She poured herself a cup of tea, pretending to be entirely unaware of anything going on around her.
At that moment the sun was blocked. She looked up, straight into the mask of Darth Vader, standing at her table.
“Your Highness,” he greeted her.
“Lord Vader,” she blurted out, her brain trying to catch up,”whatever are you doing here on this fine morning?” She smiled at him, her most perfect and saccharine smile.
“I have come to see you,“ Vader told her matter of factly and all her wit left her.
Did he know about the Rebellion? No, not even Vader would come here to arrest her, right? Unless she was supposed to be used as an example. Then she was in real danger. But she couldn’t run, as it would only make her look more suspicious. Leia was racking her brain, trying to come up with anything she could say in response.
She was given a few precious seconds longer, as the Senator from the Hosnian System straight off, fled from his place. Taking that as their cue to disappear themselves, all other patrons of the club followed his example.
Apparently their fear of Vader was greater than their thirst for gossip. Now Leia was alone on the patio, together with the Emperor‘s second in command.
Dammit, she could have used the audience to support her when she would be claiming to be innocent, and demand her diplomatic immunity be enough to protect her against all accusations.
Vader seemed to be unbothered by the reaction to his presence, his eyes still fixed on her. He gave a sound that was probably supposed to be him clearing his throat, but was completely warbled by the vocoder.
“I must apologize, I would have come sooner, but I found some very interesting forums about parenting and lost track of time,” Vader stated, sounding slightly embarrassed.
Leia was still so shocked, his words took a moment to register in her brain.
“You..parenting forums?” Leia questioned him, without having meant to.
“Yes. They suggested I should leave you some space, as you are currently in your rebellious phase,” Vader nodded, as if he were suddenly an expert on the matter,”But, I also read that I should bond with you over activities you enjoy. So I came here to see you.”
“Hold up, what?” Was all Leia could blurt out in response.
“The articles I found were quite helpful, in fact. And very interesting. Were you aware that an entire system of new neurons is currently building in your brain?”
Leia only stared at him unblinkingly. How old did he think she was? She was the Senator of Alderaan damnit, her irrational years of puberty were long over.
“Are you alright? Has someone poisoned or drugged you? I can kill them,” he told her, voice full of concern and eagerness.
“No!” Leia shouted, suddenly very glad the restaurant had become vacant,”I don’t want you to kill anyone, Lord Vader, I have not been drugged or poisoned. However, I would love an explanation from you.”
“Right, I didn’t have more time to speak with you before our shared vision was interrupted,” Vader acknowledged her.
“Shared Vision?” Leia interjected, even though she knew it was rude to,”Are you referring to the weird dream I had last night? How do you even know about that?”
“Leia, you were not dreaming. The Force sent us both a vision, to finally reveal our relationship. I am your father, Leia. As I remember, you even figured it out before me,” Vader told her, shattering her entire galaxy in a few short sentences.
So her dream had been real. All of it? She couldn’t process this. Her father was Bail Organa not…not this stranger. Not Darth Vader, the Emperor’s loyal attack dog, who had personally wiped out the Jedi.
Vader continued, unaware of her inner turmoil,“I need you to understand that I did not willingly remain ignorant of your existence. You were a blessing to both me and your mother. I intend to make up for all the time we have already lost.“
Darth Vader wanted to spend time with her. Because he was her father. And he saw her as a blessing. This was just too ridiculous.
Leia did not usually do this, but she felt dire circumstances called for dire solutions and waved the serving droid over to them.
“Please take a seat,“ Leia eventually invited Vader, falling back on her manners. He seemed very pleased with the offer. The flimsy chair creaked under his weight, but held.
When the serving droid reached her table, she ordered a mimosa for herself. If Vader wanted anything he could ask for it himself, he was a grown man, old enough to be her father, who he also was.
The droid left, as Vader stayed silent. Something about him seemed suddenly disapproving, although none of his appearance had changed. He was completely covered in his black armour after all.
“I feel you should not consume alcohol this time of the day, but if it is what you want to do and what makes you comfortable, I will give you all my support, as I know you are testing your limits right now and eager for new experiences,“ Vader recited some of the classic lines that could be found in any parenting guide.
Spirits, the man actually had read those parenting forums. The idea almost made Leia laugh. If anyone in the Empire knew…
“Yes, I feel like it is something that would make me more comfortable,“ Leia mirrored his phrasing, sarcasm dripping from each word.
Vader didn’t seem to catch that as he answered, “I acknowledge your feelings and accept your choice. I’m glad we could openly communicate our concerns.“
He was really proud of himself, Leia somehow read in the way he crossed his arms.
Darth Vader trying to learn how to communicate in a healthy manner. Pooja would be rioting if she were here.
“I’m glad we addressed them, as well,“ Leia responded,“Still, I would love to hear what your plans are now, especially concerning our…future relationship.“
If Leia had any say in it, she would just ignore it. She had no stake in this. She had her parents and did not need him. At least that was what she told the small part of herself that had always wanted to know her biological parents. And the maybe slightly bigger part that remebered her elation at being confronted with the first scene of her dream.
“As I have already stated, I am here to get to know you better and in a more personal manner,“ Vader explained his motivation to just burst into her brunch unannounced.
“I see,“ was all Leia could say to that.
Now both of them were silent, not knowing how to address the other. Leia got the vague feeling that Vader was wringing his hands beneath the tablecloth. She felt just as uneasy as him, but her education and professionalism prevented her from fidgeting. Where was her damned drink?
Finally, after a drawn out and uncomfortable silence, the serving droid returned, the bright orange drink in hand. He set it down infront of her.
Vader had gotten agitated on her behalf and admonished the droid, “What took you so long? The place is empty!“
Leia hadn’t taken much of an issue with the wait time and wanted to apologize to the droid for Vader’s behavior, when he mumbled something in binary.
Whatever he had said, apparently offended Vader, as he spat something back in binary as well, anger and open threats clear from his voice.
Leia had never met a single person that spoke binary. The vocoder garbled the sounds a little, but they were still clear. She, like most of the galaxy, didn't even understand the chimes and beeps without an interpreter, but here Vader sat speaking droid.
The droid shrunk back in fear, if it was capable of such a feeling. He hurried away from their table without another word.
Vader seemed thoroughly satisfied at having defended them from….their server.
Leia took a big gulp, the alcohol burning her throat. She wasn’t used to drinking and hadn’t eaten all that much and felt light headed rather quickly.
“That was…something,” she started the conversation anew,”How come you can speak binary?”
Vader looked shy at the question, even though he had come here to talk to her, hadn’t he? “I always liked droids. It seemed rude to me to only speak with them in my language.”
Darth Vader, the man who left discarded choking victims behind everywhere he went, thought it was so rude to only speak basic, he had learned binary. If someone had told Leia yesterday, she would already be rolling on the floor from laughter.
But he seemed as if he had meant every word of his statement and Leia found herself agreeing to his position. She liked droids, too. Artoo and Threpioo were featuring in her earliest memories and she often remebered her childhood companion Lola fondly.
Perhaps it was the drink, perhaps the small part of her that longed for her biological family, no matter how irrational, a part of her that wasn’t as small as she often pretended it to be, but she asked Vader, “Could you teach me?”
Vader was positively shocked by her question, but also pleased. She didn’t know exactly how she read his emotions, but she did and she knew she was right. Maybe it was the mystical power he could wield. Maybe she had inherited it from him.
“If it means we will see each other on a regular basis, gladly,” was his admission.
Leia bit her lip. “I would like that,” but now her paractical part was kicking in, remembering the Rebellion, her parents, her position in the senate…
“But I can’t be seen frolicking around with Darth Vader, can I?”
“I don’t do frolicking,” Vader frowned, but he seemed thoughtful,too. “Revealing our relation to the public is out of the question anyways. No one may find out, or it could jepordize you.”
“Yeah, because suddenly showing up to the social event on Coruscant, that doesn’t have to do with the Senate was all that subtle,” she snorted.
“All of these members of the ‘Imperial Elite’ are fools, they’ll never figure it out,” Vader waved off her concerns.
Of course she agreed with him, but she hadn’t thought he would so openly admit that the Imperial Elite was brainless. Also, if he wasn’t afraid of her colleagues, who else was a danger to her?
“We will need a ploy,” he announced, breaking her out of her thoughts,”Maybe even a double-ploy…”
“A ploy? What would you have in mind, we are both trying to spy on the other?” She challenged him.
“That is a great idea! You are so smart. Most people suspect you to be a member of the Rebellion anyways, it wouldn’t be to far fetched…,” Vader dropped quite the bombshell on her.
“Hold up, what? Who thinks I’m…,” she was freaking out now. If she was revealed to be a spy, it would fall back on Alderaan and her parents.
“Relax, not even I could gather enough evidence to convict you. And now I’ll protect you anyways,” Vader tried to console her.
He had suspected her enough to dig into her? Leia had evidently thought she did a much better job than she actually did. Then again, it was hard to hide your contempt for the Empire when you were sitting in the center of it.
“You tell any of your…allies,” he empathized the last word, not very happy with her situation, which only made Leia sit up straighter in defiance, “that you are spying on me. I tell the Emperor that I am spying on you. Anyone else we tell…,” now he drifted off, trying to come up with something fitting to suggest to the larger public.
“We tell them you are teaching me binary. That way we can actually speak in public without fear of people eavesdropping,” she finished for him.
He was preening, his pride at her cunning a bright shining thing. Leia liked it, despite herself.
“Two things, though. We have to meet in public for this to work. Otherwise nothing we say will lower suspicions. I’m constantly being watched. Furthermore, I have no idea what your schedule looks like…,” She continued, contemplating all the options of meeting spots and times.
“My schedule can be…chaotic. I’m not even that often on Coruscant…but I’ll make time for you whenever you need,” he vowed to her, his devotion overwhelming her. He meant every word. Darth Vader would stop whatever he was doing in the moment whenever she called for him.
It was daunting but Leia also felt his underlying love for her beneath. How she didn’t know, as her rational part was still doubting everything he said, but there was a voice inside of her telling her to trust him.
“How about this? We actually make this brunch meeting a tradition? Doesn’t that count as bonding? I’m here anyways, usually at 11 and if you are on the planet you can come, too.” Leia proposed, as this was the most logical choice.
After a short contemplation on his part, he nodded in agreement. Leia took another sip from her Mimosa satisfied with herself. This would be good. They could work this out, together.
Her father leaned slightly forward, resting his elbows on the table. “So now that that is out of the way…Do you like flying?”
Leia grinned to herself and put her glass down. The future Sunday brunches would be far more interesting.