Saga "Keep It" (AotC Alternative Ending, A/P)

Title: ?Keep It?
Timeframe: Attack of the Clones
Characters: Padmé Amidala, Anakin Skywalker
Genre: Corny
Keywords: Episode II, missing scene
Summary: A scene that ought to have taken place at the end of Episode II.

Disclaimer: Goes without saying. Lucasfilm owns all the rights to Star Wars. I don?t. No infringement is intended or profit to be made by me.

A/N: This fic was entirely inspired by a scene in the film 'The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers'. It's the closest thing I've written to a cross-over fic. Another unbeta'd shortie, I denied my baser instincts and stayed up to write one of the random plot bunnies that always seem to come into my head just when I'm turning down the bedspread at night.

A/N2: Padmé and Anakin's characterisations are a little off. It is an AU after all. There are some parts that are too corny for words. If this fic was sugar, it would be the syrupy kind that gums to your teeth... You have been warned.

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[b]?KEEP IT?[/b]


The gentle breeze teased the petals of the red carnation plants, drafting their fragrance in circles of melancholy around the silent couple at the balcony as it played its bittersweet tune above the still lake.

She was incandescent in white, her pale skin glowing against her dark long hair, her tiny frame dwarfed beside his imposing height; his dark robes were almost indistinguishable from the surrounding night, his golden hair glinting against his tanned skin.

They held hands, fingers as intertwined as their souls. Blue eyes stared into brown, a gaze filled with such poignant expectation that the breeze quieted, stilled, the very air seeming to hold its breath for them.

She finally spoke.

?You have the chance to be great and glorious, to use your gifts to do much good in the galaxy, and to fulfil your destiny. I cannot take that away from you.?

The words were said with love, and it echoed in her eyes, in the tears that stood in them.

He swallowed, forcing down the lump of panic. When he spoke, his voice was harsh.

?Padmé...?

She smiled sweetly.

?It means ?flower?.?

The mundane answer startled him.

?What??

?My name. It means ?flower? in Naboo. I come from a planet whose symbols are the earth and the sea. Your name is Skywalker. You were born from the air. You were meant to walk the skies.? The tears slipped, fell and her fingers were free of his.

He grasped for them but they flew out of his reach and hid in the refuge of her throat. He would have grasped for the woman herself but he knew that like her hands, she had already slipped away from him.

?Why are you saying this?? He gasped. He wanted to grab her shoulders, draw her to himself, make her feel the mortal lesions that were breaking open in his soul at her words, even as she refused to acknowledge her own wounds, her self-inflicted pain.

She pulled her hands from her throat, letting one fall and reaching for his own with the other. For a moment, he dared hope she had come back to him and his fist closed desperately over her palm. Then he felt the rough thread resting in softness and he looked down.

His ribs closed over his heart.

?I am a Senator. You?re a Jedi.? Each word was enunciated with the precision of arrows aimed at a target. ?It was a dream, Anakin, nothing more.?

The tears were rivulets of silver on her face. Her gaze fell to their hands, to the carved pendant of japor snippet that hung from the worn thread.

?This belongs to you.?

Like the release of an indrawn breath, the air broke its stillness. Sighing, it touched the couple, lifting hair, tracking pain along the paths of tears on cheeks.

He forced his heart to keep beating even as d

 

great story!

did i get the first post?
yay i got the first post!

 

That was quite good, although sad...

 

jedilauren266; Yep, you did! Thanks for reviewing...

Jaster Mereel: Sad is good.

 

I liked this one. The imagery was quite lovely and it wasn't too sugar sweet. Nicely done.

 

Good job, although I can't agree it's the way AotC "should have" ended....

 

Hmmm..... why could you be writing this...

Lovely though.

 

Beautifully done. You captured the emotions of lovers who simply cannot be together because their roles in life will not allow it. Poignant and sweet, very nicely done!

 

Oh... wow, just, wow!

Don't tell anybody, but I think you've just certified yourself as my favorite writer on the boards with this one, leia. The imagry of the two lovers and their ephemeral emotions for each other was fantastic.

I have to say that if you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have recognized it as inspired by LOTR.

Again, well done.

 

You have a very interesting way of switching the male/female sides of the original argument in the Two Towers, and, no, it's not that sugary. More stories of this quality would certainly be welcome.

 

I like. Very rich and colorful. It seems to have the same purity as its inspirational scene - where everything except the primary characters just fades into a beautiful background.

 

Sob! Sob! That's so sad! It can't end that way for them. Nooooo!

Beautifully written, though completely heartbreaking!

 

.

Even sadder than canon, if that's possible.

--MissPadme

 

Well written as always.

I didn't think it was too sugary.

I just think it's a terrible ending. I mean, really, who needs three years of the Clone Wars to destroy Anakin's soul when Padme can just crush him right then and there? That darkness surrounding him without her isn't metaphorical...

Neat plot bunny, though.

 

So sad, but beautifully written. Wonderful imagery. I loved it.

 

dianethx: Nicely done. Thank you!

stacysatrip: I can't agree it's the way AotC "should have" ended... One against! (See my post to VaderLVR64 below)...
And permit me my little joke... It depends on how you view the role Padme played in Anakin's turning...

RebelScum77: why could you be writing this... I have no idea!

VaderLVR64: You captured the emotions of lovers who simply cannot be together because their roles in life will not allow it.
And one for... (See my reply to stacysatrip above.)

Knight-Ander:



Lordban: no, it's not that sugary. You should see some of the stuff I usually write... More stories of this quality would certainly be welcome. What a nice thing to say... Thank you!

Reihla: I loved that scene in TT! Thanks for saying this came close to it.

Dally: ***puzzled over your tears*** honey, it didn't end like that!

MissPadme: Even sadder than canon, if that's possible. [face_shocked] No way! And thanks for reviewing!

DarthLex: I just think it's a terrible ending. Well you certainly don't mince words, do you? who needs three years of the Clone Wars to destroy Anakin's soul when Padme can just crush him right then and there? <gasps!> You do not know the import of your words! Thanks for reviewing though, despite your strong feelings against!

Gina: I loved it Thanks

 

Beautiful... But count me as against!

This ending was really great but it leaves me frustrated... And you're right the real one is more tragic. Tragic is good.

 

Padlei:
Tragic is good. A girl after my heart!

 

How sad.... but how well written! I *loved* that scene in LOTR even though many fans didn't like Arwen's role but I did and I like the way you've reversed it because of course, it's Padme that's the *rational* one here and Anakin is the *immortal* and Anakin gave Padme a pendant. Oh, I hope you continue this because it is so promising and different!

 

Jedi_Bant: Wow, you're popping up everywhere! ~~~I *loved* that scene in LOTR ~So did I! I had no problems whatsoever with Arwen's role either, but I hadn't read the books then. ~~~ it's Padme that's the *rational* one here and Anakin is the *immortal* and Anakin gave Padme a pendant. ~ You caught that didn't you? ~~~ Oh, I hope you continue this because it is so promising and different! ~ Let's see! Thanks for reviewing!