Beyond - Legends The Firebird in Skywalker's Court (SW/Marvel AU; L/M, kids, many others; updated 2/5)

A/N: At long overdue last () - a piece focusing on Hope Skywalker, introduced in The Suppression Crusades:

http://boards.theforce.net/beyond_the_saga/b10477/30840854/p1/

This is also in the same timeline as Technomancer: http://boards.theforce.net/beyond_the_saga/b10477/31856792/p1/

And The Birdcage Girl and the Too-Old Boy: http://boards.theforce.net/beyond_the_saga/b10477/31845953/p1/

DISCLAIMER: LFL's are LFL's. Marvel's are Marvel's. OCs are their own. This is a work of fiction. No money is being made off of this. Please don't sue.

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28.1 ABY: Heurkea Floating City, Mon Calamari,
Calamari Sector, Outer Rim Territories:
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Everything was so new and loud and big.

"Hope," they called her - the female presence, who was comforting and almost always present, and the male presence, happy and strong and sometimes around, sometimes not. And there was the other - male, closer to her age, curious but sometimes shy. "Ben," she thought they called him.

She quickly came to understand, at least at a subconscious level, the idea of Mother and Father and brother. They were all unique through the Force.

But none were around as much as the Bird. Not that she knew, exactly yet, what a bird was, but the concept was clear.

Flying, fiery, female. Pretty simple ideas, even for a newborn.

The Bird was in Hope, had sped up her growth inside her mother - not too fast, just fast enough to bring Hope into the world quickly.

Much to do. Much to see, the Bird would say, encouraging Hope to touch, to taste, to sense.

To just be, for right now.

And to dream. Of great fiery spheres and a deep, cold vastness - and flying in that vastness.

Sometimes when Hope dreamed, she would levitate in imitation of her dreams. Even if she fell, the Bird would catch her.

This is just the beginning, the Bird would coo, sending Hope back to sleep.

It wouldn't be until later that she learned the Bird's name.

Phoenix.

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31.8 ABY: Senate Building, Coruscant, Coruscant
System, Coruscant Sector, Core Worlds:
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"Now stay close, Hope. This is an important day," Aunt Betsy - Betsy Braddock, Hope's holdmother and nanny and teacher - said.

"OK," Hope said, trying not to sigh. She was a big girl now, after all - 3 years old - and Momma had said sighing and pouting was for babies. Even if the Senate was boring.

They were on Coruscant after vacation on Tython, to see Cousin Jacen get another award. He and his soliders in the Guard got lots of awards for fighting Sith. Momma wasn't always happy about that, and Daddy wasn't either, for some reason, but they weren't mad about it either.

Jon says Jacen fights Sith so we don't have to. So no more Jedi have to die like Valin did, Hope remembered, waving at her nephew Jon where he stood with his mom, Lyska, who was Ben and Hope's big sister. Lyska was Daddy's daughter by Callista, and she'd been born before Daddy and Momma had gotten married, Ben said. It was hard sometimes to keep track of everyone in their family.

Ben doesn't know everything either, though. He's too busy playing with machines and talking with Artoo, Hope thought, trying not to be mean while she looked at where Ben stood beside Artoo and Threepio. Ben wasn't too bad for a big brother - he didn't tease Hope or take her toys. Much.

Coric, their baby brother, was OK, too, even if he crawled around and got into things and fell over sometimes when he tried to walk. Momma was holding him, while Jacen walked up to Chief Omas and a bunch of Senators and other soldiers and all sorts of people.

Chief Omas said something loud, but Hope didn't catch it; too many people applauded, and then the Force got cold, and she heard, Danger.

Phoenix?[

 

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34.1 ABY: Ossus Praxeum, Ossus,
Auril Sector, Outer Rim Territories:
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"Aunt Betsy?"

Betsy Braddock nodded, looking up from the report she'd received from her recently-Knighted former Padawan, K'urod Var-Tasik. He'd accepted a post helping restore Obroa-skai's great library, rather unsurprising given the Zabrak youth's fascination with lore of all kinds. While Psylocke missed her apprentice a bit, she was happy for his accomplishments - and she had another responsibility to keep her occupied.

"Hope. What can I do for you?" the Force-sensitive telepath asked, smiling at her holddaughter and waving for the 6-year-old to enter Betsy's quarters. Between saving Chewbacca on Sernpidal and Anakin Solo at Myrkr - and helping Luke and Leia find their mother, Padme', alive in stasis on Polis Massa - Betsy had become like family to the Skywalkers, and she'd provided moral support to Mara during all of the red-haired Jedi Master's pregnancies.

That, and having been a member of the X-Men before being teleported to Sernpidal years earlier, Betsy was the Order's expert in dealing with Hope's psychic "tenant."

"I need to know more about the Phoenix. I heard Dad tell Mom that it might be the - 'intelligent will of the Force,' or something. The other Masters say the Force has a will, but we have t'be real quiet and listen for it. 'Cept, the Phoenix isn't quiet, not to me. It doesn't yell, but it's not quiet," Hope asked, sitting down on a footstool and putting one hand on her chin.

Oh, dear ... we knew this day was going to arrive sooner or later. I suppose we'd hoped too much that it'd be later than sooner, Betsy considered, concentrating.

She switched to her mutant telepathy instead of her Force-speech, finding Luke and Mara's minds - the elder Skywalkers were in two different locations on campus, with Luke focused on something bureaucratic-sounding and Mara fussing over Coric, her youngest. ~We have something of a situation,~ Betsy "said," filling Luke and Mara in on the specifics.

Mara's frustration and concern were clear over the psi-link, while Luke was both embarrassed and worried. Farmboy - ! I should've known our kid would listen in on the worst conversation she could pick. Betsy, you could just tell her to wait, Mara advised.

And let her get more frustrated? Hope's good about not acting out, Mara, but you were the one who suggested we tell her the truth. Which I agree with, but the question is, how much do we tell her, Luke considered, his usual good-natured calm undercut by understandable parental care.

~I'll field her questions, and try not to reveal anything too unsettling. I'll keep you advised of how it turns out,~ Betsy suggested. Both Skywalkers radiated assent, and Betsy ended the telepathic call before sitting in her formflow chair and returning Hope's intent gaze.

"You were talking with Mom and Dad, weren't you? I could see the shadowmoth over your head," Hope said, her voice an eerily younger echo of Mara's occasional smug satisfaction.

"Yes, I was. Your parents agreed that you're old enough to know some more information about the Phoenix. But I reserve the right not to tell you things that might scare you, or be too much for you to comprehend yet. You're very smart, Hope, but you're still only 6," Betsy said, holding up her hand to forestall a happy exclamation from Hope.

Hope sighed rather melodramatically, but just nodded. "I get it. It's like a holocron - it only tells you what the gatekeeper thinks is safe," she said, growing quiet and introspective on the last words.

When she wants to listen, Hope will do so. She just has Mara's tendency to demand that the other speaker get to the point, sometimes too quickly, Betsy thought, thinking what to say next.

"Something like that, yes. Someday, we will tell you everything you need to know - and, I don't doubt, the Phoenix will tell you more - but we h