Beyond - Legends Old Wisdom (Repost, old Movie Quote Challenge response)

Title: Old Wisdom
Author: SabyneAmberle
Genre: Drama, AU
Characters: Luke Skywalker, Jolee Bindo
Era: (Barely) Post-RotJ
Summary: After all the events that have transpired, Luke finds guidance in a most unlikely source...
Notes: Yup, another repost! This was a fun story to write, and I wanted to pop it up here for others to read in full. It was a response to another Movie Quote Challenge, with my quote being 'I'm the ghost with the most, babe!' from Beetlejuice. This would also technically qualify as an AU of sorts, since I wrote it before Revan was given an official gender in SW canon. Enjoy!

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Luke stood sleeplessly outside one of the Ewok huts, watching the horizon as the sun began to make its appearance. With each passing minute, the sun rose a fraction higher, bathing a bit more of the tree-covered land below in its ruddy golden light. In the surrounding trees, he could hear muffled rustling noises as the planet’s inhabitants began to stir, their calls breaking the serene silence every few minutes. A few early risers among the Ewoks began making their way out of their huts, regarding the silent Jedi for a curious moment before going about their own days.

Lost in his thoughts, Luke wandered along until he had reached a quieter corner of the village. He missed Ben, wanted to speak with him now more than ever. The events of the past day still swirled in his mind; the last confrontation with his father, the temptation of Emperor Palpatine and his subsequent demise, the loss of his father so soon after finding him…it all crowded in his memories until he thought he would go insane from the stress.

He thought of confiding in his sister, of telling Leia of his troubles, but he continued to restrain himself. This was conflict that he alone had faced, and had defeated. He feared she would not understand, that drawing her into his confidence would accomplish nothing.

“Ben…” he whispered into the growing morning light. “I need to speak with you. Please…”

He turned suddenly as a bout of laughter interrupted the silence of the new day. Behind him stood the spirit of a man dressed in the robes of a Jedi Master, who leaned against the rail behind him with an almost cocky casualness. As Luke took in his visitor, the first thing that registered in his mind was that it wasn’t Ben.

Luke narrowed his eyes in a mixture of surprise and disbelief. “Who…who are you?” he asked, his voice betraying his surprise.

The figure shrugged. “Just call me Obi-Wan by proxy,” he said in a semi-serious tone. “I’m Jolee. Jolee Bindo.”

“Bindo…” Luke echoed dully. “I can’t say I've ever heard of you.”

The figure threw his hands in the air. “Of course, you haven’t! I only lived four thousand years before you even took your first breath!” he fumed. “And I thought the kids in my day disrespected their elders. Hmph.”

Too late, Luke realized his error. This may not be Obi-Wan, but he was still a Jedi Master, and thus should have been greeted more respectfully “I…I apologize, Master Bindo. I meant no insult,” he hurriedly assured the form before him. “I’m just so used to speaking with Ben…”

“And instead you get sent a wrinkled old coot that no one’s even heard of in the past four millennia.” The figure chuckled roughly, but seemed forgiving. “Ah, that’s all right, sonny. I’m sure seeing a strange Jedi Master would have anyone’s defenses up in an instant.”

In spite of his reservations, Luke felt himself smile. He may have never heard of Jolee Bindo, but the kind –if not cantankerous- spirit of the old Jedi was enough to put anyone at ease. “So tell me, Master…”

“Jolee.” The wizened spirit corrected him. “I never was a fan of titles. Pointless pompous grandeur is all they’re good for, I say.”

“All right.” Luke replied with a slight nod. Truth be told, he was a simple individual himself, unaccustomed to the titles that had been bestowed on him during the Rebellion. “So tell me, Jolee,” He began again. “Why are you here?”

“You mean why me instead of Obi-Wan, like you’re used to? Well, it’s a long story, but I think I can shave it down to its basics. It seems your father’s arrival on this side of the Forcehas…unnerved the spirits of the other Jedi Masters who exist within the Force. Yet both Master Kenobi and Master Yoda knew you would be having difficulty dealing with the aftermath of recent events. They were both occupied with this new spirit, yet they wished to have someone here to speak with you.”

“And that’s where you come in?” Luke asked.

“Yup. That’s where I come in. Truth be told, I had been curious about the son of the great Anakin Skywalker. Greatest Jedi in recent history, though even he pales in comparison to the great Jedis of the past, like Exar Kun and Revan…”

“Revan?”

“In a minute, sonny. I’m old and I ramble, so you might as well get used to it now.” The pause seemed to break the old Master’s concentration, and he paused in his speech to sort through and recollect his thoughts. “Ah, yes, I remember now. Great Jedi, your father, though not nearly as great as the Jedi I knew in my lifetime.”

Luke nodded. “I’m sure you’ve seen many powerful Jedi in your time,” he replied, hoping his response sounded diplomatic.

“Don’t coddle me, kid. It won’t work,” Jolee said chidingly. “But yes, I did.” Clearing his throat, Jolee moved to sit down on a stump near the rail. “Now, I get the feeling from you that you’re going to play the martyr in all this.” he continued. Seeing Luke’s puzzled expression, he clarified. “I can feel through the Force that you think you’re the only one who can ‘carry this burden’, that ‘no one will ever be able to understand, no matter how close they are’ to you, all that nonsense. Well, I’ll inform you right now that keeping all your problems foisted on your own shoulders is no way to live.”

Luke could only stare at the Jedi spirit before him incredulously. “But…but how can I share this with anyone else?” he asked. “They haven’t walked in my shoes, or on my path…”

Jolee waved his hand dismissively. “Yes, yes. I’ve heard all this before, back when I was alive,” he countered. “It makes no difference. You still should rely on others to make your walk easier.”

Sensing that Luke was about to raise even more objections, Jolee sighed. “Tell you what. How about I tell you a little story, hmm? That should make it easier for you to see why it’s important not to keep all your problems bottled up inside.”

Luke shook his head. “I don’t see how it’ll help, but I’ll listen,” he replied. “Go ahead.”

The old Jedi scowled briefly before he began. “Back when I was still alive, I knew a young Jedi who was quite strong in the Force…”

“And this was Revan?” Luke interrupted before he could catch himself.

“Shush!” Jolee scolded. “Yes, it was Revan. She had been known by a few names by then –a consequence of decisions made in the heat of desperation- but she ultimately returned to being known as ‘Revan’. She was easily one of the strongest Jedi I had ever been acquainted with. Even after she defied the Order and joined the Mandalorian Wars, even after she returned from the Wars as a Sith with her friend at her side as her apprentice, and even when Malak -her friend and apprentice- betrayed her in order to seize control of the Sith for himself, her strength never wavered.”

Luke’s eyes widened a bit as he listened to the old Master’s words. “Amazing…” he whispered.

“Oh, indeed it was,” Jolee nodded. “I did not make her acquaintance until well after these events. I had chosen a self-exile of sorts, for mistakes I had made as a young man, yet never been punished for. Revan made me see that keeping my problems bottled up inside me was no way to live a life, no matter what my crimes were. Shame really that she never seemed to learn that lesson.”

“What do you mean?”

“When Revan learned that she had once been Darth Revan, feared Sith Lord, she was extremely distressed. Add to that the fact she remembered very little of her past actions, thanks in large part to Malak’s traitorous attack on her, and it’s a wonder she remained as composed as she did. Even after Malak was defeated, she kept her pain and her torment hidden inside her, until her memories began to return. Once they did, there was no stopping her.”

“No stopping her? What did she do?” It may have been a long story, but Luke was captivated by the old Master’s words.

“Well, no one really knew for sure, except Revan herself. She just up and left for the Unknown Regions one day. She didn’t tell anyone, didn’t say goodbye, she just left. It was five long years before she returned to those who cared about her. Five long years before she married Carth Onasi, the Republic pilot who had aided her fight against Malak. In the five years she was gone, the Republic nearly collapsed, the Jedi nearly were extinct. It took the actions of the few remaining Jedi to help stabilize both the Republic and the Order in her absence. I can’t even begin to fathom the mountain of problems she carried with her even when she returned to us. Poor lass.”

Luke’s expression had become unreadable as he listened to Jolee. A strange feeling rose within him, one he was familiar with even after so many years. “Are you trying to preach to me, Jolee?” he finally asked.

“If I was, that was hardly my intention,” Jolee replied with a dry chuckle. “Truth is, I’d hate to see you hurt yourself to spare others from aiding you. And if you wind up hurt, Master Kenobi will likely turn rogue spirit and hunt this old coot for the rest of eternity. So I felt the need to save my wrinkled butt one way or the other.”

In spite of himself, Luke heard himself laugh. The thought of Ben turning on a fellow Jedi, even if it would never happen, was so out of character for the old Jedi he knew that he found it amusing. His laughter shattered the tightly-coiled tension that had been wound inside his mind, and upon calming himself, he found he was better able to deal with the thoughts that still lingered.

“There, you see? All you had to do was distract yourself from all that worrying, and you’re already much better.” The wizened Master smiled at his new friend. “Now, isn't there something you need to attend to?”

Luke seemed confused for a split-second before realization dawned on him. “Yes. There is,” he replied thoughtfully. “I need to speak with my sister. Difficult as it will be to tell her, it’s only fair that she know what I know.”

As he began to leave, he regarded the spirit before him kindly. “Thank you for your assistance, Jolee,” he said. “Without that extra push, I’d likely still be sitting here, stewing in my thoughts.”

“Ah yes. Stew is a good meal until you find yourself the main ingredient,” Jolee winked at Luke. “I’m sure Master Kenobi will be pleased to know he doesn't have to hunt me from one end of the Galaxy to the other.”

Once again, Luke laughed. “That much is good to hear, anyway,” he replied. “I hope we can talk again sometime.”

“I’m sure we will, sonny. In fact I’ll make sure of it. After all, I’m the ghost with the most, babe!” With another rich bout of laughter, the spirit of the old Jedi Master vanished into the sunlight.

It took Luke a couple minutes to let the Master’s final words sink in. As they did, he felt his face turn slightly red as he remembered Jolee’s parting words.

“Wait a minute.” he said to himself. “Did he call me ‘babe’ before he left?”

 

ROTFL. Oh man.

Jolee's no Jedi Master, he's a Sass Master. Extraordinaire. But this was still a touching and poignant story and a hilariously sweet way to knock some sense into Luke. I love my Farmboy, but he always needs someone to pull him out of his Mope Mode.

 

An early riser right here, reading this.

I had a good laugh at that twist at the end. It reminded me of a friend who had a phase where he would call everybody "chicken", which is, in our native language, also an endearment. It got weird when he used it in a convo with an older man at a paper/stationery shop. It's the same way it goes weird here, basically. Thanks for the laughs.

 

Jolee is a hoot! He has a lot of wisdom, indeed. Just what Luke needed to hear.