Beyond - Legends "Shadow Prince" (NJO/NEU/Marvel AU; Kylo, others, backstory)

Author's Note: Instead of ignoring, or outright speculating, in the NEU backstory, I'm taking a bit from Column A, a bit from Column B, and mixing ...

This is a bit of backstory to the larger AU I'm working on; "Marvel," here, refers to an AU of their 616 timeline, not the Marvel Cinematic Universe (although there's certainly that here, also). But more on that in later works (although there's a hint or two here, also ...).

Right now, I want to explore just who might be a "spoiled Jedi prince," and where they came from ...

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16 ABY: Yavin 4:
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"So, tell me - was it the Wookiees, or your sister's glare that made the Duskhan League roll over?"

Luke smiled across the bed at his unexpected - albeit very welcome - visitor, her hands folded behind her head as he raised a sandy-brown eyebrow at her. "I'm glad you're the one saying that, Mara," he laughed, kissing her hand as she ruffled his hair.

"The Chief of State and I have an understanding. I don't tell her how to run a government, she doesn't ask for details when I show up with documentation that helps her keep it running," Mara Jade said with a straight face.

She let herself enjoy the view as she relaxed; while she didn't hold any particular grudge against Ming, the departure of the ... complicated other woman, combined with the seemingly never-ending array of threats and crises involving Luke had convinced the former Emperor's Hand to decide to stake a claim.

Just easier without the not-exactly-alive Jedi Knight around, Mara mused, wondering if it'd be bad form to mention the tale Palpatine had once told her about the undead Darth Sion.

Something drew her attention, then - a flicker in her abdomen, a Force-presence of some kind - ?

She half-closed her eyes, concentrating, noticing Luke's presence seem to ... double.

No ... triple. And the latter two signatures were -

"FARMBOY!" Mara growled, swatting him with the pillow in only-partially-mock outrage.

"Mara, what - !?" Luke stammered, confused until Mara grabbed his hand and let him listen.

She tried not to roll her eyes as he grinned; his happiness was a delight to her, weighty situation aside.

"I - you know I'll be there for you - for them - us - !?" Luke stammered, until Mara held his face.

"I know that, you ignoramus. But so help me, we are NOT having a state wedding," she warned.

The banter was all well and good, but she was - for the first time in a long while - afraid.

It's all well and good when it's you and your crew, maybe an astromech, Mara reflected.

But bringing children into the galaxy ... and all that implies ...

"You'll be an amazing mother. And we won't repeat the mistakes that, yes, I caused Han and Leia when they were starting out with their kids," Luke promised, kissing Mara's neck.

"Oh? So you admit that hiding the Solo kids away was a bad idea as far as bonding with their parents was concerned?" Mara jabbed, still mildly irritated that she'd let herself wind up in this predicament.

Luke gave a minor smile of admission, nodding as he replied, "It caused more problems than I'd anticipated. I was worried about the kids having some kind of early 'infection' of the dark side."

"True, we still don't know a lot about the Jedi having children - I've heard contradictory stories. But look at how Corran and Kam turned out - OK, the latter example isn't exactly ideal," Mara allowed.

Luke looked troubled at that, but said, "Kam's issues were more my father's interference. Besides, Kam's more than overcome all that, wouldn't you say?"

"Precisely. Now I have to go find Cilghal before someone has a Force-induced vision of the two of us with cribs and booties and starts shouting the news," Mara said, her usual smirk returning.

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25 ABY: Coruscant:
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Oh, for the love of the Force ...

Kylo looked up from his homework - he much preferred astrogation and history to the "soft" sciences of biology and healing, which his twin Jemma just delighted in (as much as she delighted in spukamae, which showed to Kylo just how much his sister really thought about the real galaxy).

"... You practice," the 8-year-old Skywalker heir heard float down the Falcon's hallway - Anakin, whining again.

"I spend more time alone than you do," Jacen replied, and Kylo rolled his eyes at his cousins.

Jemma was back on Yavin, studying wildlife with Master Cilghal and Tahiri, which was just as well; Kylo enjoyed any chance he could get to spend time in space, especially aboard the Falcon.

It'd help if my cousins - Father's "worthy" apprentices - weren't such rivals all the time, he fumed.

Kylo saved his work and stood, pushing black curls out of his brown eyes. Some people were confused at how the son of a red-haired mother and a sandy-blond haired father had black hair, until Kylo pointed out the holo of Great-Grandmother Shmi that Aunt Leia had recovered from Tatooine.

She must've had the patience of an Iegan angel, if Grandfather was half so annoying as Anakin. And Jacen's just as bad, the boy grumbled, stomping to the back hold - this stupidity had to stop.

"QUIET!" Kylo yelled, blushing at how high-pitched his voice was, as he stopped at the entrance to the hold and Jacen and Anakin both looked at him in surprise.

"Hey, Ky - we're sorry -" Anakin started to say, but Kylo scowled - he HAD a real name.

"Yeah, you are - sorry excuses for Jedi. Fighting like two nek dogs over philosophy?" the boy spat.

Jacen gave him a condescending smile, but Kylo turned to him and growled - well, tried to growl - "Don't EVEN start, you moongazing bantha calf! You're just bullying Anakin because you don't like dealing with the real world! 'Luminous beings are we,' sure, but we're also flesh and blood!"

The boy spun on Anakin as the younger Solo brother started to smirk, and Kylo snapped, "And you. You want t'save the galaxy, but remember the lesson of Bespin. Go running off looking for action, swinging your lightsaber around without thinking A LITTLE, and who might you hurt?"

Anakin went a little pale, and Kylo sighed. "Sorry. I'm not trying to compare you to Grandfather," the Skywalker heir added, taking a step back as Jacen glowered at him and leaned down.

"That's quite a mouth you've got there, Kylo. This was a private conversation," Jacen warned.

He blinked as Kylo glared BACK at him and growled, "Not with you two carrying on like banthas."

"He's got a point, Jasa. We're sorry we interrupted your homework, cous. Anyone ever tell you you don't talk like a little kid?" Anakin asked, patting Kylo on the back dismissively.

The black-haired boy tried not to snap back, merely saying, "If you want adults to listen to you, you can't make them feel like idiots. But I'm not gonna hide my brains if I don't have to, either."

He started toward the door, then looked back over his shoulder and warned, "One of the two of you needs another Jedi Master. Look up the Qel-Droma brothers to see what happened to the most infamous pair of Alderaanian siblings taught by one Jedi."

That shut up the Solo brothers; anybody who knew anything about Jedi history knew about Ulic Qel-Droma's disastrous career. And he'd killed his brother Cay during his fall.

Jacen wants to learn some new stuff about the Jedi, but he doesn't think on what we do know, Kylo thought, rather proudly, as he went back to finish his homework.

He sat back at the dejarik board/desk, turned his datapad back on, and tried to focus ... but he admitted that there was one Jedi who he wanted to know as much about as he could.

Grandfather ...

Mother - she insisted Kylo call her "Mom," but he didn't mean to be disrespectful, just factual - never liked it when Father talked about Grandfather Anakin. "There's only one lesson there," she'd say.

I know the dark side's dangerous. I just want to know why he fell ... Kylo wondered.

And he wondered, if maybe - just maybe - there was an answer there for his mother's illness.

The adults didn't say much about it, but ever since that awful mission to Monor II, Mother hadn't ... felt right, in the Force. Jemma cried sometimes about it, telling Kylo she was scared ... and so was he.

Mother's sick, and even if the adults are trying to help, nobody's getting anywhere, he worried.

He didn't think the answer was in his grandfather being Sith - no good had ever come of that, Master Tionne's stories had proven - but the light side of the Force didn't seem to be helping.

Kylo sighed; he might be smarter than his cousins - or just think clearer - but he had no answers.

Yet, he promised. I will someday.

If I have to be the strongest Jedi who ever lived, I'll help my mother.

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Whoa! Someone needs a nap...

Interesting start!

 

Oh I like this one! Duh. Tag me for this when it continues and the thingy it's the backstory for too. Can never ever have too much L/M stuff and especially when they have triplets.

 

Unusual for me to get through a piece so easily.

That was really well written, and Kylo was a very engaging character. Good job having one of the cousins point out that he did not sound like a little boy, cos he is very well read and knowledgeable for an eight-year-old.

That last line..., prophetic.

 

Findswoman - Thanks. This was actually a test run for the current continuity I'm working on (there, L/M did have triplets, and Rey's been rescued from Jakku at age 8, while Kylo was kidnapped by the First Order and Jemma's ... somewhere else).

Ulic and Cay, certainly, are an eerie (and prophetic?) example of why "one Master, one Apprentice" seems like such a better idea for Jedi. (Excepting crisis periods where the Order's been decimated, etc.) Admittedly, Jacen didn't kill Anakin, but one brother died and the other fell.

I certainly accept - and like - the new canon, but there's just too many characters and elements from Legends to ignore (at least for my work; I've seen a lot of great NEU 'fics ).

- Thanks,
Onderon1