The Misunderstood - JA, AU

Well, I didn't intend to start posting this now, but decided to go ahead with it anyway. Yes...I'm still working on "Return to Cardaria" and will hopefully have a new post ready for it tomorrow. For those of you incensed and offended by unfair prejudice and persecution, you should enjoy this story:


The Misunderstood
BY: p_stotts
CATEGORY: JA, AU
SETTING: 4 years pre-TPM, Obi-Wan is 21.
SUMMARY: The Jedi assist two victims of prejudice recover from a brutal attack.
RATING: PG-13 for violence.
DISCLAIMER: Well, since George isn?t likely to give them up anytime soon...I still don?t
make any money off this. I?m only in it for the fun.
SPECIAL THANKS TO: Moonscribe, my beta-buddy.
NOTE: For the purposes of this story, I?m making up my own rules regarding vampires.
This isn?t a horror fic, so don?t run away screaming yet.

Part 1

Qui-Gon Jinn looked around in disgust as Republic security forces herded the last of the pirates onto a prison frigate. The pirates had raided a relief ship carrying refugees from the war-torn planet of Pregae, taking all the passengers except the very old and the very young. It was obvious they were heading for the Hutt slave markets in the Outer Rim...which was where they?d finally caught up with them.

Medical relief workers boarded the ship as soon as the last of the pirates had been taken off. They found the refugees huddled together in cramped prison cells...dirty and hungry, but alive.

?I think that?s all of them, Master Jinn,? said one of the medics.

?Master!?

Qui-Gon turned toward the sound of his padawan?s voice and after a moment Obi-Wan?s
face peeked around the corner of a room down the passageway. ?In here!?

Spurred on by the urgency in his apprentice?s voice, Qui-Gon sprinted down the
passageway, coming to a sudden stop when he entered the chamber...too shocked by what he saw to move for a moment.

It was a large meeting room of some kind, but the pirates had obviously been using it for a party. There were plates of food and bottles of liquor scattered everywhere, but what had caught Obi-Wan?s attention were the three people left in the room.

In the middle of the chamber, hanging by chains attached to his wrists, was the body of a man who looked to be in his mid-twenties. The man?s shirt had been stripped off him and his torso was covered with a myriad of cuts and deep gashes, the pool of blood at his feet attesting to how long he?d been hanging there.

Over on the opposite wall from the unfortunate man, but well within his line of vision, hung a woman...probably the man?s wife. She?d been similarly tortured, and probably raped...but what was most disturbing was the stake that had been driven through her chest.

Over in the far corner, confined in a cage, was a young boy, probably no older than five. He?d obviously witnessed everything that had been done to the two adults.

?Obi-Wan,? ordered Qui-Gon, his voice barely above a whisper, ?cut the man down.?

?Yes, Master,? replied the apprentice as he ignited his lightsaber and cut through the
chains, using the Force to gently lower the unfortunate prisoner to the floor.

Meanwhile, Qui-Gon made his way over to the cage, using his lightsaber to cut through
the lock on the door. Crouching down, he slowly opened the cage, trying not to scare the child with any sudden movements. The boy cowered in the far corner from him,
whimpering and shaking all over...trying to get as far away from Qui-Gon as possible.

?It?s all right,? Qui-Gon said in a soft voice, sending out gentle Force waves to try and calm the child. ?I won?t hurt you,? he said, extending his hand, but coming no closer to the frightened boy.

?Master,? called Obi-Wan from across the room, ?this man is still alive.?

Qui-Gon looked over his shoulder, the child momentarily forgotten. Quickly making his
way to the center of the room where Obi-Wan had laid the man out on the floor, he did a
quick examination with the Force. Incredibly, the man was still breathing, even though the amount of blood

 

I like it Vampires make for interesting reading, though I usually prefer Laurell K. Hamilton to Anne Rice I can't wait to see your take on them, m'lady author.

 

Very interesting Peggy! I've never thought of Vampires as good people... I should be smacked!


I can't wait for more!

 

Thanks Artemis and Luney! Yeah, it never occurred to me either until I got the idea for this story. Glad you're liking it so far. Okay, back to writing "Return to Cardaria." I do have another part written for this story, though and have even started on part 3. So, check back for more tomorrow!

 

Hey this is pertty good now keep with the story please

 

I always love a good vampire fic. Bravo for crossing that horror line.

 

Up!

 

What an interesting idea for a story! I've never thought of vampires as good either but I defintely like this story.

 

Here's the next part. Now, Moonscribe said she thought it was a very tender scene, even if we are talking about suckling blood. So, don't get squigged...okay? Ready, here we go:

Part 2

?You need what?? asked the medic.

?Blood,? repeated Obi-Wan. ?Any kind will do. Do you have any??

?Are they bleeding or something?? asked the medic. ?If so, they need a bacta tank, not
blood.?

?No, you don?t understand,? Obi-Wan tried to explain. ?They don?t need it for a
transfusion, they need it for food.?

The medic stared at the young Jedi in shock, his face going white. ?Vampires?? he
whispered. ?You mean they?re blood suckers??

Obi-Wan?s face became an unreadable mask. ?They?re sentient beings who?ve been
brutally tortured and are in need of food,? he stated firmly. ?Now, do you have any, or
not??

?No,? the medic shook his head, ?and don?t expect me to come back in that room
anymore, either. If I?d known for one moment what those things were, I?d have never
touched them in the first place.?

?Don?t worry,? replied Obi-Wan, using every calming technique he could think of to keep
from slapping the man, ?my master and I will take care of them until we reach Coruscant.
The healers at the Jedi Temple will take over their care from there.?

?Well...just make sure you keep them away from my patients,? warned the medic, turning
his back on the young Jedi, effectively terminating the conversation.

*****

Qui-Gon looked up expectantly as Obi-Wan came back into the room, his eyebrows
raising in a question when he saw the young man?s hands were empty.

?The medic says they don?t have any blood,? Obi-Wan reported. ?Personally, I think he?s
lying, but he?s refusing to help them.?

?You told him they were vampires?? asked Qui-Gon.

?He guessed,? answered Obi-Wan. ?He said if they were bleeding, then they needed a
bacta treatment. I told him they needed food, and well...he surmised the rest.?

Qui-Gon nodded. ?There wasn?t much else you could do.?

?We?re on our own now, too, as far as their care goes,? added Obi-Wan, ?at least until we
reach Coruscant. The medic says he won?t be coming back in here, and he was quite firm
about telling me that we?d better keep them in here.?

The Jedi master sighed heavily. ?He?s probably spread the word all over the ship by now. Which could mean trouble. We?ll have to be extra alert.?

?Yes, Master,? nodded Obi-Wan. ?What can we do for them in the meantime??

Qui-Gon locked eyes with his apprentice. ?Ever donated blood before??

Obi-Wan smiled. ?I?ll go get what we?ll need,? he said, before turning and exiting the room again.

*****

Obi-Wan hit the wall in frustration. Everywhere he?d gone on the ship, the medical
personnel had refused to help him. Word had indeed spread about the vampires on board,
and all the staff had been ordered not to give help of any kind. Obi-Wan and his master were more than willing to assume full responsibility for the pair, but they at least needed the minimal equipment if they were going to donate blood to keep the father and son fed until they reached Coruscant...which wouldn?t be for another two days. The father could probably hold out until then, but the boy could very well starve to death.

Obi-Wan did have some prior knowledge of vampires. Master Yoda?s only other
surviving padawan besides his master, was a vampire...Master Garrick. The vampire was
the second oldest Jedi alive, being five hundred some years old, and being Master Yoda?s former padawan, Master Garrick had been around Obi-Wan quite a bit since the young man had become apprenticed to Qui-Gon.

It astounded the young Jedi that such a gentle, peace-loving race of beings could be so feared and maligned throughout the galaxy simply because they fed on blood...and usually on the blood of other vampires at that, whenever possible. But still, their feeding habits were what made other beings fear them...and, as they?d seen on the pirate ship, persecute them. That persecution had been responsible for the decimation of

 

Boy, the boards are kind of sluggish this morning. Helloooooo! *voice echos through the empty chamber* Anyone?

 

I was going to run away screaming....



But i decided to give it a chance. I like it! it's different, and well i like it!

 

I'm here Peggy!! That was wasn't distrubing at all! It was kinda sweet actually, when Obi let the kid feed off him since he knew he needed food and the father was too weak and the (insert bad word here) crew wasn't going to help. More please?

 

Thanks guys! Glad somebody's reading it.

 

Hmmmm..this is unusual, but very very intresting! Looking forward to seeing more!

 

I'm a fan of vampires, too, so I was very excited when Peg started this story. Now, if only someone would write a story about Jedi shapeshifters.

 

hmm, interesting so far, more soon?

 

Wow you started already! I'm a big fan of vampire books so this looks like a lot of fun. Such a pity for the poor vampires, hunted almost to extinction. Looking forward to your next post.

 

Never read anyhting quite like this before! Original! I like it! More soon?

 

awww that was kind of sweet.

 

A shadowy figure slowly turns around, wrapped in an inky black cloak, "Don't be afraid, I only want to.......read your posts!"

Someone turns on the lights and the cloaked figure is revealed to be....

JediCandy

What!!?? Where you expecting Dracula? Not on MY salary!

 

Wow. I like it!!

I mean, the first bit was a little, eh, yucky, but after that it was great!

The idea in particular is really cool. My Aunt is really into vampires. She even named her computer company 'Cassandra Software'.

I agree, Kaylla, that last part was sweet.

MORE!!

Sarah >^,,^<

 

AAAAWWWWW that was sweet those poor vampires

 

Nothing like a little predjudice to remind you of the worse part of human nature At least we can rely on our favorite Jedi to rise above such things

Moonscribe: shapeshifters(Shi'ido{sp?}) or lycanthropes(werewolves, etc)?

 

hey i just found this and i love it already and i can't wait for more i just love your stories as you know peggy.....