She laughs. "They serve very many roles."

"That's what it sounded like."

"Eager to join, then?"

"Definitely."

"We can make that a priority."

"It's a good priority."

Hmm she wants to bring the other thing up but it doesn't seem like a good time...

Her master nods.

"Speaking of... I'll be going back to Coruscant soon - it's not safe for you to join me yet, but we'll be focusing more intensely on your training until then."

Nod.

"...I wanted to ask about your early training."

"...What about it."

"What it. What it was like. To help you do it different, this time."

"...Ah."

"Just - the events, or - ?"

She chews her bottom lip. "I think the whole picture is probably gonna be important."

"...Maybe."

She thinks for a few moments, then - "I met Plagueis when I was about your age. I didn't know who he truly was yet, and I wouldn't for some time. He presented himself as his - everyday identity, Hego Damask. The banking clans were interested in seeing Naboo opened to galactic trade more, so he was putting his support behind Tapalo. My family was supporting Tapalo's opponent."

"I was angry at my father and I supported Tapalo, so I leaked some embarrassing information, which caused a pretty big shift in public opinion towards Tapalo. I thought I'd covered my tracks, but - Damask Holdings found me out, and Magister Damask approached me. I was busy with classes, but - he convinced me to set aside everything I was working on and give him a tour of Theed. He spoke to me at length - flattered me a bit, gave me a gift - "

She shrugs. "And he convinced me he didn't want anything - that I didn't know about. He asked me to spy for Damask Holdings on my father and the campaign, and convinced me doing so was in Naboo's best interests. I agreed. And we continued meeting even outside of - business like that. Just - casually. We spoke about - everything except the truth about him. He got me to trust him, and nudged me into confiding in him - convinced me he understood me."

"I... Didn't have any kind of direct political ambitions at the time; I had opinions on government, but so do street sweepers, and I would've been content to put someone competent in charge. I'd found the Youth Legislature boring, and that it took up time I could've spent on furthering my studies. He encouraged me to go into politics, to - see myself as the 'someone competent.' He nudged me a lot - influenced what I studied, how I was spending my free time. I knew he was doing it, and that he was manipulating me, but - he'd convinced me I was getting something out of it, too. That because I could see some of the manipulation, I could see all of it, and therefore he was being honest and I could - rely on him, in a way I couldn't rely on my family. I benefited from our arrangement, too - in material gifts, in favors, in attention... So it seemed - all reasonable. And I wasn't used to that much positive attention focused on me - even your father tended to be... Busy when he was with me."

"My father, of course, objected to me developing a friendship with an alien. With someone who supported his political opponents, who made him feel as small and worthless as he actually was. He tried to separate us, and - Magister Damask provoked him until he pulled me out of my school with the intent of sending me to some family friends on a remote colony. My father had guards force me onto a ship with him, and took off, not letting me - have any say."

"Magister Damask had been - stoking my anger even as he stoked my ambition. He'd been nudging me into seeing my family as a chain, one that would last for an eternity if I didn't cast it off. I was a young idiot, and I - believed that. That some minor setback during my adolescence would trap me forever. That I didn't have any other options than reaching for my freedom in a violent burst."

"I reached for the dark side properly for the first time in my life. I killed my parents, and my siblings, and all their guards - everyone on the ship - and then as the rush faded I called Magister Damask. I was - panicked, and also angry, and something in me felt - both nauseous and exhilarated. I knew he'd manipulated me towards that point. He denied it, said it was all my doing - then switched, that he'd acted to bring out my potential - "

"He does that a lot. The - subtly switching what he's saying, even in the middle of a conversation. It's disorienting even when I'm on the lookout for it."

"He told me what to do to hide the crime, and then while I was still in the aftermath, he revealed the existence of the Sith to me, that what I had drawn on was the dark side, and then he had me swear myself to him. He didn't swear anything to me in turn."

...Danni think Palpatine needs a hug about this.

So she gives her one.

...She's a bit confused about the hug but accepts it.

"I think you're already doing better than Plagueis, in a lot of ways. When my father had to die, you didn't manipulate me into doing it, you told me what was going to happen and then kept me safe. And before that you were genuinely taking care of me as a kid, not just- bribing your way into my favor. And... you're teaching me now because it's what I need, not what you need."

"...I think - Plagueis has convinced himself, especially since taking me on as his apprentice, that - he cares about me, and he's acting for my own good. That he's making me stronger."

"Yeah, but what do you think? Do you agree with him?"

"...I - usually disagree with him when I'm away from him. I think he - genuinely believes that, and cares for me in - some fucked up way - but I think even if he's made me stronger, he hasn't done it well."

"But I don't feel that way about you."

Slow nod.

"...I don't want you to be held back."

"If I start feeling like that, I'll tell you."

Soft smile. "Thank you."

And then her smile fades.

"...What I told you was - not sufficient to make me even dislike him, let alone want him dead. Even my early apprenticeship was - tough, but not - bad in every way."

"How did it get worse?"