Beyond - Legends Into Our Intended Place - Legacy Child April Challenge Response - Ben Skywalker

Title: Into Our Intended Place
Author: VaderLVR64
Characters: OC, Ben Skywalker
Summary: Our choices determine our paths.
Notes: Written in response to the April Legacy Child challenge. The words sobriquet, scion, aberrant and felicity must be included.



Into Our Intended Place

He was an old man when I met him, bent over with age, his skin marked by the passage of decades spent under the harsh suns of Tatooine, the lines of his face creating a map of mystery and secrets on his wizened countenance. There were whispers about him of course; as there always are about those who are different and refuse to remain in the place society would assign to them. Perhaps that is why I was drawn to him, for I, too, had flown down from the pedestal that my family would have given me and found a kind of refuge on that desolate planet.

I had always been a strange child, a changeling as my siblings called me, thinking their words a taunt. To me, however, they were a comfort, an explanation as to why I was so?different. I did not care for my peers, I found no felicity in lording our wealth over the poor, I did not want to assume my ?rightful? role in our world. I was the scion of a great house, and I was a traitor to it.

The despair of my parents, I was the aberrant fruit of their loins, the wild offspring who had driven my grandparents to early graves, or so I was informed by my distraught mother. I was the shame of the family, the girl about whom none of them talked if they could help it. I was an outside in the midst of my own home. Yet none of that mattered, because I simply was not one of them.

I was?alone. I was me, and I knew no other person to be.

My escape from that cage, my desperate rebellion, had brought me to Tatooine and I found a place among the rustic inhabitants. There were no parties to plan, no marriages to be arranged, no place to take in society. I did not want a place, I wanted a life. It was a strange desire, almost perverted in my family?s eyes, which they could never comprehend.

The whispers about the old man were both cruel and kind, depending on the mouths from which they came. The blade of gossip had been sharpened more than once on my own carcass, and I had long ago learned to ignore the wicked things that the envious and stupid seem to find such joy in repeating. To me, he was merely an interesting figure that shuffled in and out of our lives, elusive and intriguing.

My fascination with the old man began one day when I caught a glimpse of his eyes. They were as gray as the skies of my homeworld in the midst of a storm, one of those terrifying displays of natural power that had always enthralled me. Those storm-colored eyes held centuries of secrets and a hint of amusement, as if he quietly laughed at the frantic scurrying about of the mortals around him. His laughter did not seem unkind; it was merely a sad acceptance that none of us knew what was truly important and let the troubles of the day overwhelm us. Foolishness his amusement seemed to say. Foolishness, all of it.

So that single glimpse drew me, drew me along as firmly as a kusak pup on a leash, eager to learn what he might teach me. For weeks, I trailed behind him on his infrequent forays into town, slipping into shadows and dodging in between bodies much bigger than my own. For once, I did not curse my small frame, but used it to my advantage.

Then one day, he turned suddenly and smiled at me. ?Hello,? he said softly. ?Why do you follow me??

I could only gape at him for a moment, struck dumb by my shock at being discovered and my joy at actually hearing his voice. I could hardly tell him that I wanted to learn all his secrets, so I merely shrugged and answered as honestly as I could, ?I don?t really know.?

He tilted his head and his gray eyes shone for a moment, reflecting the twin suns that blazed above. ?Perhaps you would like to walk beside me rather than behind me,? he said dryly.

Happy to be given permission, I walked at his sid

 

Lovely vignette!!!!

C S

 

I really liked this... it was beautifully written! I love the parrallels you showed between Ben and 'the other' Ben who lived a large portion of his life in the Tatooine deserts.

I like how you showed Ben finding peace with his life, even though his family didn't exactly agree with his decisions... anonymity has been one thing that every member of the Skywalker family has missed out on since the day Anakin left Tatooine the first time.

wonderful!

jcs

 

I really like this!

 

*gasp* Wonderful! I loved it. I gotta go read it again!

 

Just beautiful.


He once told me that he had discovered long ago that he could be Ben, or he could be a Skywalker, but he could never be both. ?This skin isn?t big enough for those two men, and so I chose to be Ben.? That, I think, is what drove him to his father?s world. He said he meant to do what his father and grandfather both should have done and die on Tatooine.

That was my favorite passage. Well done.

 

Beautiful Vader. I love seeing it from another's point of view. Well done.

 

That was amazing!

I love how the story was told from the girls POV... it added a very nice touch!

?Oh yes, they loved me,? Ben said. ?Even when I didn?t fit into their world ? they still loved me.?
And I loved this! It brought a smile to my face that Ben knew his parents loved him no matter what.

?Isn?t it odd what ? and who ? you find in the desert??
This is such a great line! It was a wonderful way to break her shock and for him to show her that he is the person that she has gotten to know, but now she just knows a little more of him!

?Tatooine accepts us, breathes a kind of peace into the Skywalkers with its harsh desert winds,? Ben said. ?Leaving it has only brought us heartache.?
What a very sad, but true statement!

?It?s the Force?and it?s waiting for?me??
He died at that moment, taken away by the Force he had denied but which had always loved him.
This brought a smile to my face... that even though he had abandoned the Force it had not abandoned him.

The tender weight of a hand on my shoulder made me lift my head and for just a moment, I found myself staring into kind gray eyes. He smiled at me, giving me one last gift and then?
Ben Skywalker was gone.
What a perfect ending! That was so sweet!

A wonderful story, VaderLVR!

 

That was a great viggie VaderLvr64!

 

I really loved this! Ben unconsiously mirroring who he was named for, great touch! And I love that in the end Ben learned that the Force was there for him, even if he wasn't a Jedi. Great piece!

 

wow. *tear*

That was... great. Loved that little passage where she describes his words like adding color or shadows to a portrait.

Really nice.

 

Courtney_Solo Thank you!

jaina_clan_solo Well, he was named after "Old Ben" so it seemed a possible scenario!

SilSolo Thanks!

Jade_Pilot I'm glad you liked it.

JediMaster_Jen Thanks! I loved your response to this challenge so much! It was absolutely lovely!

ZaraValinor Thanks for such an inspirational challenge!

mavjade I thought it would be interesting to see what an outsider thought of him.

Kidan Thank you!

Healer_Leona Thank you for reading! Now go give Qui-Gon a big kiss!

ginchy He could deny the Force, but the Force would not deny him.

Maul Brady Thanks! I'm flattered that you liked it.

 

Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful. Wonderful response to the challenge!

 

Meredith_Kenobi Thank you!

 

That was beautiful. *wipes eyes* Wonder fic.

Good job.

jacky

 

jackyyy17 Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!