One Chance--OT/TPM AU starring Luke & Qui--In the hands of other authors now.

Hello Darth_Breezy,
Good to see you over here. So, using A/P as bait worked. If you haven't already, read through the earlier posts too.

This is a quickie chapter until I can post the larger one on Friday.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At that moment, both Skywalker sons turned to gaze at the velvet sky searching for the Suns of Tatooine.

A quiet happiness filled the air outside the palace of Theed. Inside the hanger, though, something stirred and a metallic clattering echoed by the doors.

?Master, master, I must find them. I must find them all.?
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

< camps on the thread for the next post >

Good stuff, Falls the Shadow!

 

Like the other astromech droids owned by the Royal House of Naboo, R2-D2 was recharging in the hanger. Unlike the others, he was not completely shut down. Credit his maker, perhaps, but this droid was gifted with a need to think creatively. It would seem a waste in just an astromech droid.

So it was R2-D2 that was the first to notice that metallic clanging deep within the hanger. The metal dome rotated, and the droid glided towards the disturbance. The configuration of the hanger created echoes worthy of a music hall, so R2 heard his own sounds coming back to him with greater and greater frequency.

Finding the source of the disturbance, he stopped. Near the doors beside the central shaft, an astromech droid, obviously damaged, was furiously chirping. Was this a wayward Trade Federation droid? The scans seemed to say no. Rather, this was the same model of astromech droid used by the Royal House of Naboo. R2-D2 decided to investigate further.

In the whirls and chirps of his voice, he began:
?Droid, identify yourself.?
The damaged droid began cautiously. ?Identify yourself. Who are you to question me??
?This is R2-D2 of the Queen?s Service.?
The damaged droid?s brain struggled around the damaged areas, the blanks, and the locks within. ?You mean the Princess, not the Queen, right? Alderaan?s queen is long gone as are . . .?
?No, I am First Astromech, in the service of Her Majesty, Amidala, Queen of the Naboo. Now identify yourself.?
Naboo, Amidala, these words were foreign yet somehow known to the damaged droid, but at least this inquisitive droid was of the same type. There must be parts here. Moreover, with a queen, instead of a governor in control, this world must be beyond the reach of the enemy. At least, he must hope so and must find the masters.
?I am R2-D2, loyal servant of Her Highness, Leia Organa, Princess of Alderaan, now at her request guardian of Jedi Skywalker. I have been damaged in our journey, and I need repair.?
The Nubian R2 was puzzled. ?A droid guarding a Jedi? You sound like you have been spending too much time with the haughty protocol droids.?
?Indeed, I have,? chuckled the battered droid, ?but guardian I am nonetheless.?
The Nubian R2 calculated. ?Jedi Skywalker is young and vulnerable. He does need a good navigator. Come to the repair station, if you can.? It was still puzzling how word had spread to Alderaan already about the child, but this droid was in need of repair. Strange that he shared the same name.
?I can follow, show the way.?
Even in the dim light of the hanger, the silvery royal cruisers sitting side by side along the path that the two R2s took reflected their images into infinity until one could not tell which R2-D2 was which.

 

This story is awesome. Keep it up.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate it.

 

So future R2 and past R2 meet. Cute! And confusing.

More soon, please!


~*^SARA^*~

 

Hope this is updated soon.

 

In the quiet of the garden, the silent stargazing was interrupted by a yawn from Ani. The sugar crash from the cakes, added to the long day, all at once caught up with him.

The yawn broke Luke from his silent reverie. ?A busy day we?ve have had and tomorrow will be another one. It is time for sleep,? he quietly whispered.

All this time, Leia had kept her gaze upon the Skywalker sons, son and father, elder and younger. Still kneeling, she reached out her arms to scoop up the sleepy child. Though she was petite, she could still carry the child in her arms, slinging him on her hip. Ani?s arms were draped around her neck and shoulder, and he rested his head in the crook of her shoulder. It felt so familiar and comforting to be around children, something she hadn?t felt since . . .

Ghosts invaded her peace. ?Cousin Leia, but I am not sleepy and you will be gone for so long,? said the raven-haired tot as he rested his head in the crook of young Leia?s shoulder, deftly avoiding her hair bun.
?Time for dreams, Radrij Organa,? the young Leia softly chided. ?Besides, this diplomatic mission will be only one week.?
?But I am afraid of the monsters in the dark, Leia. I?m so afraid.?
?There are no monsters here, Radrij, I promise you.?

Little did she know that when she tucked Radrij into bed that night, it was the last she would see of him and one of the last nights of Alderaan.

In the days and years since, she forestalled as much grief for as long as possible, channeling all into the Rebellion and into guarding those loved ones she could still help. Luke, her second self. Han, the scoundrel who stole her broken heart away from despair and gave it back to her again. Even Chewie, who often teased her that he would rather be a walking carpet than the lovesick Han who let Leia walk all over him.

Only now, she wondered, was Radrij sound asleep when the nightmare fell? Or was he fully aware when the monster struck from the sky? Once again, she saw the soft blue globe in the window, helplessly watching. Once again, she felt about her the grip of the arms of another monster in the dark.

The same arms that were around her now.

The chill struck Leia to the core and she stopped mid-stride. Anakin stirred, as much from her pain he felt in the Force as from the sudden stop in movement.

Luke, who had been a few steps behind, felt the pain too and raced up to his sister.

?Take him, Luke, please. He is too much for me to bear.?

 

Woo. Creepy, in a good way. That would be really freaky, carrying your innocent child father, having gone through what Leia's been through because of his adult self. "Take him, Luke, please. He is too much for me to bear." Perfect line, significant in several ways.

 

Enigma_X,
Woo. Creepy, in a good way.

Now you know why I earned the title "Official Bearer of Bummerdom."

It is creepy, more in the Halloween mood, belatedly. A ghost story that I must remember for Halloween next year.

"Take him, Luke, please. He is too much for me to bear." Perfect line, significant in several ways.

Thank you. The multiple meanings were the intended.

 

Another great post Shadow! That would be so weird to be holding your father like that....especially if he was so many years younger than you!
That was perfect, the way Leia was thinking about Alderaan, and she told Luke to take Ani.

Awesome work, more soon!


~*^SARA^*~

 

Luke gently accepted the burden from Leia. Their eyes met briefly, and in the dark pools of her gaze, full of glistening tears, Luke could see the implosion of Alderaan.

?Mom?? the sleepyhead questioned, still in the midst of dreams of home.

The kind word was a cruel weapon.

?Leia, I have him. I have him. Why don?t you go on ahead??

?And you thought I was the stronger one, Luke.?

?You are the stronger one, but you are human. Besides, I?m sure that Han is in trouble and needs you.?

A brief hint of light flashed in Leia?s eyes as she turned to walk quickly, nearly running, disappearing into the twisting hedges of the lush garden.

The child had quickly returned to full slumber, leaving Luke alone with his own ghosts as he strode the garden path. The brief, momentous encounters with his father played in his mind in reverse. First, he saw the literal ghosts of Obi-Wan, Yoda, and Anakin. He could feel the heat from the funeral pyre and smell the acrid fumes from the burning suit. The tearful, vulnerable gaze revealed. The unexpected rescue after the furious duel where hand was taken for hand. The remorse at hearing the name Anakin once more. The offer refused. The destruction of his own blue Jedi lightsaber. The menace in the trench run. The murder of Obi-Wan.

Taking these memories into account, he recalled his childhood dreams about the adventurous pilot who disappeared into the stars. Dreams that Obi-Wan used to advantage, rightly or wrongly. Dreams Obi-Wan magnified when he revealed the father?s lightsaber, deepened with a tale of betrayal by a dark lord. Looking at the tender moppet on his shoulder, Luke could believe that Obi-Wan truly believed that Ani and Vader were not the same. No, rather, Luke could understand why Obi-Wan could not believe that the two were one.

?Tell your sister, you were right about me. Tell her that you were right about me.? Even then, Anakin had known that Leia would not be able to accept him as easily as Luke had. Oddly, the hand was of little consequence. Luke knew the problem: Vader stood by and made Leia watch her family and whole world destroyed because that family and that world were dear to her. Later, he made her a helpless witness again to the freezing of Han. At least Luke could take comfort that the search for the droids would have been ruthless no matter who had bought them from the Jawas.

Alongside the ballroom lay sitting rooms shooting off the corridors that lead to the Royal Chambers and guest rooms. Avoiding the revelries and music that still echoed from the ballroom, Luke neared the north corridor.

Luke doubted that he could ever tell his sister about Anakin and convince her. Perhaps now, she could instead see.

 

this needs an Up.

 

I agree this does need an up. perhaps later I will write a post. perhaps,perhaps.

 

As Leia had discussed the political rise of the Empire, Han kept himself in the background. During her discussion with the Jedi, Leia resumed the mask of the diplomat, the one Han often saw her put to good use to calm bickering Rebellion leaders. The effective composure also gave her a serene beauty, almost frozen like a statute of a forgotten deity. Recalling the award ceremony after the destruction of the first Death Star, Han put that image of Leia in her robes and compared it with the young monarch in the robe of petals at the head of the ballroom. Leia was her mother?s daughter, no doubt about it. Not for the first time, he fancied Leia as a Clawdite shapeshifter, turning from genteel leader into the quick-tempered and sarcastic woman that was handy with a blaster and ready to jump into whatever garbage life handed her. The odds of a girl like her falling for a guy like him were lesser than a time warp, but Han was never one to take heed of the odds.

Han?s reverie ceased as the discussion ended.

?Thank you for your insights, your Highness,? Qui-Gon said in a calm tone. "My padawan, I mean, my fellow knight, Obi-Wan, and I will speak with you more in the morning.? The elder Jedi glanced from Han to Leia and back again. ?You have to attend to other matters now, I see.? With a deep bow, the knights departed.

With a quick look towards the royal table, Qui-Gon saw that his newest padawan was safe for the moment, so he could attend more to his newly old padawan.

About twenty paces away, the young knight gave into his curiosity. ?Other matters, Master Qui-Gon??

Qui grinned at his brave but naïve student. ?It is not Jedi business, I assure you.?

Han was admiring Leia like a lovesick schoolboy, and Han knew it and did not care. He wanted to just take her away, yet he was wise enough to know that Leia was in no mood for such things now.

?I am calling it a night. Your faithful kitchen boy has to make ready for his morning duties.?

Smiling somewhat, Leia replied, ?At least you have earned a promotion from nerfherder, Solo.?

?Goodnight, Leia.?

By day he might be a servant, but Solo?s living quarters were princely. Each of the time travelers had a sitting room, a bedroom, a fresher, and a balcony. Thankfully, the quarters were away from the raucous music that was still playing.

Solo stood in the hot shower until he had no sense of the time had passed. Now that was a thought. A mundane question that he could no longer answer: what is the time? Apparently it was a time when the ordinary clothing for men was ornate velvet. As soon as he reached his room, Han took off that velvet mess. Now out of the shower and dry, he put on the sleeping uniform of the Nubian Security, deep blue loose leggings with a matching blue shirt.

He was about to drift into sleep, but something was nagging him, urging him to stay awake. Restless, he left his bed and went out onto the balcony, just in time to see a familiar whirl through the labyrinth of the garden hedges, headed towards the living quarters. Alarmed, Han went to his door that opened up on to the hallway that connected his room to the others. Just as he opened his door, Leia was passing by. Startled, her dark eyes were red from crying.

?Leia, it?s me. What?s wrong?? The night before the Endor battle was the last time he had seen her so fragile.

Now, as then (or as will be?) Leia pleaded, ?Hold me, please.?

Leia nearly tackled Han with her embrace as they backed into his sitting room. No more words passed between them that night. They sat on the couch in front of the fireplace until Leia finally passed into a deep sleep on Han?s shoulder. Gently, he extricated himself from her and returned with extra pillows and blankets. Once Leia was wrapped in her blanket and resting on a pillow, Solo took his set and put it out on the floor.

?Good night, my princess,? Han softly whispered.

 

*claps delightedly* I was worried about this story disappearing into the mists, so I'm glad you've adopted it, FTS. You're doing a great job so far.

 

Thank you for the feedback. Between Darth Real Life and Darth Writer's Block, I really could not put much up. Writing Han and Leia, especially that wise-cracking humor that Clarus et al caught, is hard.

Looking back, I noticed that I am putting all of the characters to sleep, but hopefully not the audience.

I do have an ending and a plot line, but I know this started out as round-robin and I know that I cannot post weekly.

In the meantime, I will be reading up on writing action sequences.

 

Uppity!

 

Enigma_X, Thanks. No new post this week. I am sorry. I am looking at 1-2 posts a month.

DRL has me by the throat, including a lingering head cold that has become worse. What ideas I have are for stories of others.

I might put the story back up for adoption or maybe back into round robin format.

 

Even with his eyes closed, Luke could feel the double suns of Tatooine slowing arising above the horizon, ready to pour their furious light down upon the sand that returned almost as much as it received. If he hurried in the speeder, Uncle Owen wouldn?t realize that the astromech droid had escaped. Thankfully, it was now secure in the rear of his speeder. As much as he liked something about that old hermit, Luke wasn?t going to risk taking the droid out there now, but he wouldn?t do the memory wipe either, not until he learned more about that girl in the message.

The half globes of the Lars Homestead appeared on the horizon. He must not have been gone as long as he felt because it was still fairly dark, as if he had returned earlier than he left. It was too dark to safely travel, what had he been thinking?

At least he was home safe though. The homestead buildings glisten with the silvery light of the Triple Moons overhead. As he approached further, he saw that there were dust devils near the perimeter of the homestead. NO not dust devils, smoke circling around two corpses, turned to all but skeletons by blaster fire.

?Aunt Beru! Uncle Owen! Nooooo,? came the scream.

A third corpse lay behind them; face down and closer to the main building. It was a woman with long dark hair bound up. She had whipping gashes where her back should have been, the shoulder blades exposed like two white islands in a red sea.

Suddenly, a Tusken emerged from the door of the Lars home in a full run. The farmer?s nephew was immobile as if he had been set in duracrete, utterly powerless against the approaching fury. The Tusken carried neither gaffi stick nor blaster. Instead, in a perfect arc, he drew another weapon. Luke first smelled roasted flesh that only a lightsaber gave, as he knew from bitter experience. The Tusken continued the arc of his blue lightsaber, and only then did Luke realize he had been torn in two across the torso. A Force push completed the attack. The Tusken pursued his prey further, until he stood looking down the tortured face of Luke. The Tusken removed his mask, revealing a familiar tall blond youth with icy blue eyes.

?Anakin??

?Animals! I hate you!?

He knelt astride Luke and began to shake him, and shake him, and shake . . .

?Master Luke! Master Luke! Wake up,? urged Ani as he shook this Jedi as Shmi used to do to stop his night terrors.

Luke recoiled in icy fear and gasped for breath.

?You were having a nightmare, right? I saw it too and it woke me up.?

?You saw it?? Luke stammered between his heaving breath.

?You were with Padmé, I mean, Queen Amidala, and you were both running, each of you with a,? Ani paused. Qui Gon said he could see things before they happen; not telling Master Luke wouldn?t stop it. Even without the Force one could see how this master and the Queen danced together. ?A baby, each of you were holding a baby, and you were in trouble and needed me to come help. That is when I woke up heard you call my name. I don?t understand, though. I thought Jedi were so strong that they don?t have nightmares.?

The horror had resolved itself into awe and bewilderment in Luke?s soul. In these early hours before dawn, the small blue eyes, so much like his own, held not fury, but caring and fear.

?Trust me, Padawan, Jedi have nightmares, they do have nightmares. Now, go back to sleep before Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan start to worry about you.?

?If you say so, Master Luke.?

The small footsteps pattered softly towards the door, and Luke closed his eyes to hide his distress. Just as Ani was at the threshold, Luke couldn?t help but open his eyes briefly to see the child backlit by the hall lights. Luke could swear that the shadow cast into his room was that of Vader.

There would be no more sleep for Luke. The shadows of the future saw to that.

 

Dawn extended her delicate pink fingers over the horizon of Theed. Looking at the changing of the night and morning staff, one would hardly think that the palace was so recently the scene of a battle. That is, if one ignored the blaster burns on the marble. Quietly, guards, handmaidens, and other servants went about their duties.

Not all of the servants were quiet. Han Solo groaned as the door to his room closed behind him. For Leia?s sake, he had kept silent until he left, hopefully giving her a few more hours of the peace that might be found in sleep. He stumbled into the hallway as the early light assaulted his eyes, thanks to the Correlian spirits of the night before. Even at a normal time, sleeping on the floor was not something he should do anymore. It wasn?t the years; it was the parsecs full of fighting, scheming, and blaster bolts. Now dishpan hands could be added to the battle scars. Shaking his head, Han thought, ?There has to be someway to escape this KP duty, now that Luke is all chummy with the Jedi and the Queen. Hmm, Luke had even danced with the girl. Who thought the farmboy could be so smooth?

At the base of the Theed waterfalls, master and apprentice sat facing the horizon, each crossed-legged, palms lightly placed on the knees, eyes closed. This was the Jedi meditation posture that each had learned so long ago that neither could remember not knowing it.

Obi-Wan searched for order that he craved in best way that he knew. Silently, he chanted the Jedi Code:

There is no emotion; there is peace.
There is no ignorance; there is knowledge.
There is no passion; there is serenity.
There is no death; there is the Force.

When thinking of the Force, Obi-Wan thought of it as the mother of the universe. Now, his prayer took the form of the pleas of child awakening from a nightmare calling for his mother. Despite the glowing day blooming, he could feel that his mother was lost to him in the darkness.

The training bond of an apprentice and master was in mental form, as strong as the umbilical cord between child and mother and after the end of the apprenticeship, the bond remained strong for life. Even now, he could feel that Qui-Gon was simply enjoying the roaring sound of the waterfall and the warmth of the budding Nubian sun on his face, as if this were a normal day.

Obi-Wan continued to ruminate. How in any reality could an apprentice of his become so evil? It was as unimaginable as a soothsayer telling Obi-Wan that he would be known as hollovideo star. Hollovideo? From where did that thought come?

Obi-Wan opened his eyes and turned towards his master. As he suspected, he found a quiet grin on Qui-Gon?s face. ?And if you continue these thoughts of despair and self-flagellation, I will imagine you as the star of a musical holovideo, winning the ladylove with singing and dancing.?

While Obi-Wan didn?t share Qui-Gon?s tactics, the elder master was correct. The anxiety could be self-fulfilling.

?Me singing? Now that would be a disturbance in the Force.?

Both erupted into full laughter, for the first time in far too long.

In the distance, Luke approached. Watching the transformation from calm meditation to belly laughter, the hope he once held as a farmboy in Kenobi?s cell was revived. Right before his eyes, he could see the Jedi before the Dark Times.

 

Wow, this story has undergone a bit of a morph from its original path. Very interesting! I'm enjoying it immensely - keep up the good work!

 

Thanks. This 1 to 2 posts per month pace has worked so far. If I find that either outside obligations or a writer's block interferes too much, I will kick this back out to round-robin.

This excercise in Luke and Leia confronting their origins has spawned a few plot bunnies for an intertrilogy story and post-ROTJ story for me. Both are in rough draft and not yet online.

 

Returning Naboo to normalcy also meant a return of Amidala to the formal robes of her office. As Rabé, Saché, and Yané helped her dress, set her coiffure, and complete the ceremonial makeup, Amidala took advantage of the time to think.

At least this overtunic was a pale blue, and so would reflect the sun on the unusually hot spring day that was to come. Her hair would be in a foreknot over the padded roll and trimmed with suspensas and a finial of silver, the same style that she last wore as she decided to leave Courscant. Like the robes, the hairstyle would combine formality and practicality. After all, an attack of heatstroke wouldn?t instill the people?s confidence, or the confidence of the newly elected Chancellor Palpatine as he left this morning to begin his term.

Hopefully, this garb would blot out of Palpatine?s mind her dancing last night. Hopefully too, the garb would have the same effect on her mind. There were far too many distractions from her from her duties, mainly centered on the third Jedi, Luke, and his two traveling companions, a Correlian pilot and a woman from Alderaan who was maddenly familiar yet a total stranger. Amidala had heard the Correlian call her Organa, and that might be the answer. The legitimate offspring of the House of Organa were almost as numerous as the natural offspring. Following the Alderaani custom, all were recognized and carried their father?s surname. That would explain why Leia would be a woman equally at home at the royal court and the markets of Mos Espa. Judging by Luke?s hint, the mother must have been Nubian.

The handmaidens were taking longer than usual because they too were distracted. After the Chancellor departed, all but one or two of the handmaidens would begin their leave with family. The one or two remaining would then depart when their teammates returned from leave. Like the Queen, the handmaidens usually saw their families only a few times a year. Usually though, they had not just guided the planet through invasion and victory, countless times risking their lives for hers. Amidala insisted that they do this, partly because she wished she too could return to her family?s villa. For now, the brief holomessage from her parents reassuring her that all was well would have to suffice. For Naboo, she must endure the distance from her family.

 

Good post, falls the shadow, I'm glad this fic has picked up again. It's too good to trow away.