Adrift Through Time

Chapter 3 - Until The End Of Time

Author's Note: Shmi's way too smart to have NOT picked up on Vader being Anakin, so even if Leia hadn't told her, she'd have figured it out on her own. Anakin's her son. :)

~ Amina Gila

Shmi has no idea what to think of anything that Vader – Anakin – told her. Force, Vader is Anakin. It's no wonder there were moments that he seemed so familiar, so...

But it had seemed so impossible for him to be her Ani, with how dark and broken he seemed, that the thought hadn't even crossed her mind. That childish spark of constant energy is nearly invisible in him now.

He is so close to broken, even if she can still see the traces of that fire and determination that he always used to have when he was young. And she has absolutely no idea what happened to him.

From what he said, the Jedi obviously weren't good to him at all, and she doesn't know what to think about that. She sent him there to be safe, cared for. She looked up to the Jedi, never had a reason to think they wouldn't take care of him, at least better than Watto did.

And she has no idea how much of his present mentality came from Sidious versus whatever it was like for him as a Jedi, but it couldn't have been good there if the person who raised him was willing to – to nearly kill him. She can understand this Obi-Wan's anger, if Anakin destroyed the entire Order, but that doesn't mean dealing with it like this. Not if he was his caretaker.

But regardless of the reasons, it's not something Shmi can begin to excuse. Her Ani is on life-support because of someone, and it makes her more than a little angry. He's her child, and she'd still do anything at all to protect him, no matter what it took, if she had to. And that someone would hurt him like this, and that Sidious is still hurting him –

It was something she had to grow accustomed to Tatooine, no matter how much it upset her. It was a constant part of life – she couldn't protect him from everything, even if she tried her best. But the chances of finding freedom seem far greater out here. Even if it seems so unreal, for them both to be free together, it's something she's going to try to achieve if it's truly possible. For Anakin.

Though the other thing that bothers her is that... her little Ani was willing to... kill people like that. Back on Tatooine, he would never hurt anyone. He always wanted to help people.

That wasn't something that changed until after he left Tatooine. Until after he became a Jedi, clearly if he turned on them before he'd really been a Sith long. Which means... They must've been using him as a weapon, just as much as Sidious is now.

That doesn't mean Shmi is any less grateful to Qui-Gon for freeing Anakin, especially knowing how easily Jabba could've come into possession of him after he won that race, but it doesn't seem like where Anakin ended up is any better. It's destroying him. And this is a situation she has to get him out of, no matter what it takes.

But to start with, she needs to address the other question that she desperately needs the answer to.

About Leia.

That Vader was going to name his daughter Leia is almost too convenient to be real, and Shmi goes back to talk to her as soon as she's able to recollect herself. She's in the same room as her other friends now and seems... slightly less wary than before.

"We haven't reached a decision yet," the girl says, arms crossed.

Now that Shmi's actually looking, Leia really does bear a strong resemblance to fourteen-year-old Padme. It's hard to imagine her as being Anakin's... wife. To be fair, it's still hard to imagine that he's not a little boy anymore. He's probably as old as, if not older than, she is now.