▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

ANAKIN SKYWALKER'S FALL FROM GRACE ALWAYS FASCINATED CLARA.

At four, she watched Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith for the first time. One hand tightly grasping her mother's, the other shoving down mouthfuls of popcorn, Clara realized what love was. It was giving up everything for another.

It was surrounding oneself in darkness, if only to cast light in a lover's life.

Anakin was darkness, his Padme was light.

Clara understood the premise of the movie early on, but that didn't stop the tears from falling each time thereafter the movie was played.

Her heart ached with Anakin's transformation to Vader — though, if she were honest with herself, Vader was a huge smash — and while her brother, Peter, grew interested in Legos based off the saga, Clara spent her nights reading and writing stories that redeemed Anakin.

And as toxic as Anakin Skywalker's character was, Clara knew he was never ill-intentioned. Even as Vader, he believed himself bringing justice and peace to the galaxy by any means.

As Anakin, he only wanted to save his galaxy; his sister, his best friend, and his wife. But when his galaxy was destroyed — so too was his light.

And without the love of his life at his side, he felt no need to reign in his anger and focused solely on gaining power.

But in the end, he was brought back by love.

Because who was Anakin Skywalker without love?

His mother's love raised him and helped him through child slavery, Obi-Wan's love helped him through the Jedi, and Padme's love through the war.

Anakin was the embodiment of love — he simply wasn't allowed to show it.

Peter and Clara debated often about his fall. Peter said he wouldn't have come back without Luke, but Clara argued that even as Vader, he was searching for something to cling to. Someone truly gone wouldn't have desired to come back at all, even if only to save his son.

Both agreed that Padme was the most attractive character.

(Though they held Obi-Wan to an entirely different standard — the siblings had eyes and Ewan McGregor was insanely attractive.)

But Clara's heart always belonged to Anakin.

Even as she navigated through different relationships, none stuck around long enough to compare to the boy that she made the blueprint for any man.

As a child, Clara often spoke to the conflicted Jedi. He was alone in his movies and she was alone in her life. She didn't want either of them to be alone anymore. Her imaginary friend as a young girl was a boy named Anakin, and she wrote "dear Ani" in her diaries instead of Peter's "hi journal, it's peter again."

It was a deep-rooted longing that Clara felt for the fictional character. A love she could never quite articulate, a love that surpassed every word Clara bled onto pages. Her hands stained with ink as her thoughts became art, but her muse forever void of descriptions.

Because how could one describe such an innate connection to someone imaginary?

As delusional as it was, Clara believed that in another universe Anakin was her soulmate.

It was only after Peter got bit by a radioactive spider and became a superhero that Clara began to have bigger things to worry about.

Her brother struggled with his powers at first, but Clara was eager to help.

So eager, in fact, that she snuck into an open battlefield in armor — designed by a very begrudging Tony Stark, who only wanted her to be safe, but knew she'd jump into action anyway if it meant keeping Peter safe — and met her fate with the space stone.

She recalled seeing it for the first time, feeling the intense wave of nostalgia and longing rush over her. The same feeling that sank her heart deep into her stomach when she thought of Anakin.

Transfixed by the blue gem stuck into a golden gauntlet, Clara reached her hand out. If only to touch it for a moment. If only to feel safe in its embrace. If only to share a longing, a security, a need for something tangible.

And to Clara's surprise, the stone reached back.

There, in the midst of a war, Clara's entire body changed.

Every inch of her transformed into something else.

Something stronger.

Something more powerful.

And something so deep-rooted in love that one day, it would destroy her.

And then she was gone.

▃▃▃▃▃▃▃

ik this doesn't make too much sense, but we'll get more clarity as the story goes on, and more details about the scene where she & the space stone interact
trust the process lol
also fun fact, this story is super personal to me because if anyone shifts, a lot of the playlist is from me and anakin, and all of the little tidbits about her childhood are all from mine.
i used to look up to the stars every night as a kid and pray to either the doctor (because i didn't believe in god) to come and save me, anakin to show me that love was real, or for peter pan to take me away soooo sad sob story about my childhood lmaoooo.
hope you enjoyed the prologueeeeee i'm so excited for this book ahhhh