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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Beyond - Legends The God of Second Chances (DDC 2015) 12/23/15 (OCs, Solos) Complete (Cover posted 4/24/17)

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by divapilot, Jan 3, 2015.

  1. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    [48]
    Things have been going so well for us lately. Blue has passed the six month mark, and his sobriety is just as strong as ever. He keeps committed to his programme and it’s truly helping. I’ve almost finished my first semester and I’m proud to say I have done well in all my classes. Our lives are secure and stable.

    But there is this strange ache that has been churning in me. I can’t explain why I feel this way, but despite all our blessings there is something missing in my life. I know what it is, and I needed to share my feelings with Blue. I decided to broach the subject at lunch.

    As it happened, Blue and I were eating at Rosella’s again. I was finishing my salad and Blue had plowed through a toasted sandwich and was in the process of cleaning up his fried tubers. (That man can eat like it’s his one and only job in life when he’s hungry.) Eventually our meal was almost done and the conversation turned from “how was your day?” to more personal topics. This was the time for me to tell him how I had been feeling.

    I put down my utensil, tilted my head, and looked at him. “Blue, if I asked you for something that was within your power to give me, would you get it for me?”

    He didn’t look up from his meal as he popped another fried tuber into his mouth. “Without hesitation.”

    I took a breath. Here goes. “I want a baby. I want to be pregnant again.”

    He hesitated.

    “Are you sure? I mean, are you ready? It’s been less than a year. I want to make sure you’re healthy.”

    “I’m fine. You said so yourself. Are you healthy enough?”

    He shrugged. “Physically, yeah. My addiction’s under control. Emotionally…” He sighed.

    I reached over and held his hand. “My love, I know it’s hard. But we can’t keep mourning the loss of our first baby so long that we don’t welcome a second.”

    He thought for a minute as he stared at his hand in mine. “I guess you have a point.”

    I caressed his fingers and he ran his thumb down the back of my hand. “We’re happy,” I said. “We know each other better than we ever have before. I think this is the time where we should welcome a child into our lives.”

    He lifted his gaze from our hands and looked me in the eyes. “Would it make you happy, Bree?”

    “I wouldn’t ask this if the answer was anything but yes. And I think it would make you happy, too, Blue. I can see you sitting there, with a little one crawling all over you, calling you ‘Papa.’”

    He glanced down at the table and smiled too, then, and I knew I had his heart. He squeezed my hand before letting it go. “All right. I’ll put the repressors away.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “We should get started right away. It may take some time.”

    “Right now? This minute?” I smiled slyly. “You mean, throw these dishes on the floor and climb up on the table? I’m game.”

    “Rosella will throw us out."

    “Oh, Rosella will charge admission.” I laughed as I glanced around in case anyone had caught our conversation. “Maybe you can find an excuse to come home early today,” I said, lowering my voice. I bit my lower lip as I reached over and began lightly tracing little circles with my fingertips against the back of his hand.

    “You’re making it hard for me to leave. Even if I sign out early, I still have most of my shift to go through.”

    We were both smiling broadly now. “Just come home quickly tonight, husband,” I said.

    “Count on it, wife.” He checked the wall chrono, then stood up. Leaning down, he kissed my cheek. “I love you, my Bree,” he whispered into my ear.

    “I’ll always love you, my Blue,” I whispered back. He smiled and then, taking his medical backpack, he left to return to the hospital.

    I know it’s far too early to tell anything, but I can’t help but wonder if a tiny wisp has begun. My hands instinctively graze my belly, and at night I dream of a little blue-haired miracle in my arms.
     
  2. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! The tenderness of their talk and the ensuing romantic banter. :) :) There is absolutely, understandably the lingering question - is it time - is it too soon, versus waiting and postponing. I agree with Bree that they're more ready than they were the first time - each is more centered within themselves and their relationship is stronger. :D
     
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  3. Chyntuck

    Chyntuck Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Jul 11, 2014
    Oh squee-squee-double-triple-squee [face_love] Everything Nyota's Heart said and more. I love how life on Naboo helps them stabilise their relationship to the point that they're ready to take a big step forward (and not only one) and away from all the mess they went through on the Alisander.

    Plus,
    [face_rofl]
     
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  4. JadeLotus

    JadeLotus Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2005
    All caught up, and what a lovely collection of chapters to read - I loved the appearance from Anakin to give Bree strength, and I teared up at the wedding - so beautiful, and all of the gods were so fascinating. And now Bree's ready to have another child, that makes my heart happy!
     
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  5. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    Replies December 1

    Thank you for the comments, @Nyota's Heart ! There is definitely the lingering question – they have both been through a lot and they don’t want to start the pain all over again. But they are in a more stable place now, as you note, both together and within themselves.


    Naboo was a good choice for them. It’s familiar enough to be homey but new enough to allow them to define themselves and their relationship in their own way. Getting married was a huge step forward; becoming a family is the next step. They have come a long way. Thank you, Chyntuck, for your reply.



    Thank you for taking the time to read all that and reply, JadeLotus! I appreciate it. Hope your trip was wonderful.

    I’m glad you liked the wedding. They tried so hard to include everyone, making it a Naboo/Alderaanian/Corellian/Barolian affair. But ultimately, it was for each other. Their accommodations to the other’s traditions is an essential part of the way Bree and Blue value each other. And she has the baby ache bad. She will be a great mom, and Blue will absolutely be smitten with his child. They deserve it after the awful way they lost their first.
     
  6. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    [49]

    I couldn’t wait for Blue to meet me for lunch today. I know I probably should have talked to him privately but I wanted to see him as soon as I could. Of course, of all days, today he was late. I waited anxiously outside the diner’s entrance for him, glancing up the avenue to where the hospital rises several stories, waiting for him to walk across the park that separates the hospital grounds from the city street. Finally I saw him, dressed in his tan scrubs with his medic’s pack slung across one shoulder. When he finally got to the diner, one look at me told him we had something important to discuss.

    Blue held the strap of his medpack with his right hand and wrapped his arm around my shoulders with his left, then kissed my cheek. He pulled away slightly, then studied my face. “What is it?” he said, a hopeful smile beginning on his face.

    I couldn’t hold it in anymore. “I’m pregnant,” I blurted out.

    “Really?” He took my hand as I nodded, then he pulled me in close and put his arms around me. “My sweet Bree. That’s fantastic news. This time, I know everything will go right. And in a few months from now, there’ll be a baby in our home. We’ll be a family.”

    He’s right of course. I can already feel this. I know it will be fine. Maybe it’s the Force or one of Dad’s famous hunches or just my own intuition, but I already know this pregnancy will work out. I can already see this baby in my mind’s eye and feel him or her in my heart.

    How do I explain why it matters so much? It’s more than just a child to care for, a little youngling to adore. This baby is our devotion to each other made real and tangible, a testimony that for a brief time in this vast galaxy, Blue and I were here and we loved each other. Our lives will carry on in our child’s, and our love will shine in his or her eyes.

    We were still embracing when Simon came out of the diner. He glanced over at us as he shrugged on his blue healer’s jacket. Simon uses a cane as a result of permanent injury to his leg suffered while he was a political prisoner years ago, so he fumbled as he tried to balance himself, hold the cane, and put on his jacket. Blue and I both saw this and came over quickly to help him, me steadying Simon with a friendly hand on his arm and Blue taking his jacket and holding it out so that Simon could slip his arms into it. Once he was properly attired, he turned and thanked us.

    “You’re very welcome, Doctor Kerevic,” Blue said respectfully. He stepped back and stood beside me again.

    I turned to Blue, my brows furrowed in confusion. “You know Simon?” I asked.

    “I know Doctor Kerevic. Everyone knows Doctor Kerevic. He’s one of the lead doctors in the trauma department.”

    Simon smiled at us both. “You must be Blue, my friend Breha’s husband.” He held out his hand and Blue shook it. “I’ve seen you in the hospital. But then, I believe you are the only Barolian working here.” He leaned in toward Blue and said, in a stage whisper, “Breha talks about you all the time. I think she’s sweet on you.”

    Blue laughed and put his arm around my waist. I don’t know what possessed me, but I had to share our happiness, and Simon was such a dear man and a good friend. “We have wonderful news, Simon. We’re expecting a baby.”

    Simon smiled kindly. “That truly is wonderful. How my wife and I would have loved a child.” He sighed, almost imperceptibly. “Congratulations to you both. I am very happy for you.” I leaned against Blue and smiled as Blue thanked him.

    We chatted for a little while, then Simon made his goodbyes and began to head back to the hospital. He had only gotten a few steps from us when he turned, as if he had a last, almost forgotten thing to say. Simon leaned on his cane as he spoke to Blue. “Breha has told me about the work you and she did with the refugees. She told me about how caring and dedicated you are with those who have struggled in life. It made me think about my own past, and our fight to help others hurt by imperial cruelty.” Simon paused for a moment, then he retrieved a small disc from his pocket. “Your wife has mentioned how much you would like to continue your education. I’ve watched you work with patients here at the hospital, and I’ve read the recommendation your former captain sent to us when you were hired. From what I’ve seen, you have the potential to be a great doctor, Blue, and I guess I see a little of my old idealism in you. I can help you get past some of the obstacles holding you back; I still have some pull at the Royal Academy from my teaching days. This is my personal comm information. Send me your resume and I will talk to the admissions board.”

    Blue took the disc from Simon’s proffered hand. “Thank you,” he said, sincerely grateful.

    Simon bowed slightly, then he straightened up and got ready to leave. “Well, I won’t take up any more of your time. Congratulations again. And I am looking forward to speaking with you, young man.”

    He left us to head back up the avenue toward the hospital. Blue, still holding the data disc in his hand, turned to me in astonishment. What an amazing day. Somehow I feel a new chapter, a wonderful chapter, has started.
     
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  7. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Oh, room without a roof happy happy dance! [face_dancing] Terrific personal news and Simon wants to help out. Magnificent! :D :D :D

    How Bree feels about a new life coming into their lives as an expression of their love - just nummy! @};-
     
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  8. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    Thank you for reading and replying! Yes, the year is ending for the diary and things are smoothing out for Bree and Blue Solo. They are finally finding peace and happiness in each other and in themselves.

    A/N - I don't want to be remiss in thanking Chyntuck for allowing me to borrow her character of Simon Kerevic from her story. You can read more about Simon http://boards.theforce.net/threads/oc-index-thread-index-updated-08-oct-2015.50026711/#post-52120022]here.[/url]




    [50]

    <data corrupted – unrecoverable error> that makes it any easier. Evenings are better, though. Blue has been putting in some crazy hours as he makes his way through his classes, but we both knew medical school would be difficult on us, especially with the baby. He’s exhausted but happy.

    Lelila is such a good baby, she hardly fusses at all. She is so beautiful. Every mother thinks her child is beautiful, but Lelila really, truly is. And she’s intelligent, always looking around and taking in everything. (Of course her first instinct is to take things into her little mouth, which keeps us both on the alert. I think her first words will be “No! Not food!” because that’s all she hears from us.)

    It’s amazing how Lelila has both some of Blue and some of me in her. Her eyes are such a deep purple, an indigo really, just like her papa’s eyes. How amazing is it to see the eyes of the one I love so dearly repeated in hers. The structure is like his too, narrower than mine. But that hair is mostly dark brown, like my hair (although it’s fairly straight like his and I can see some streaks of blue in it).

    She laughs at everything. She’s got the Solo grin, and everything is amazing and hysterically funny to her. She loves playing “there you are” with us, and she squeals and giggles when we put our hands down and she sees us again.

    The other night I was up late anyway, nursing Lelila, when Blue came home. He took off his jacket and dropped it on the couch, nodded hello, then he came over to stand beside me. He put his hand on my shoulder and together we both looked down at our little miracle of a daughter.

    I got up and very carefully, so as not to wake her, passed Lelila over to him. Then he took her over to the couch, sat down, and held that baby close. I leaned over and kissed his cheek, and he looked up at me with such love shining in his eyes. Gratefully, I took the opportunity to stretch, take a little personal break, and grab a bite to eat before it was time to put Lelila into her crib.

    When I came back to the living room there was Blue, cradling his daughter and singing softly to her. I leaned against the door and watched him. Then he bent over and placed the sweetest of kisses on her forehead.

    I walked quietly over to him and sat down next to him. He turned to me, still rocking Lelila gently. “I know your birthday is still a few weeks away, but I have something for you,” he said. With his free hand he reached over to his jacket, which still lay on the back of the sofa where he put it when he came home from class, and pulled a folded piece of flimsy out of the pocket. He seemed a little hesitant, but then he handed it to me.

    I glanced at him, then opened it up. It was written in his familiar blocky aurebesh, and I could see places where he started, erased, and began again. I read it through teary eyes.


    My own Bree:

    I’m not good at words like you are, but I’ve thought a long time about what I wanted to say to you and I thought maybe if I wrote it down then I wouldn’t mess up the words so much and you would understand. I know how busy you and I have been, with my classes and your work just starting up and both of us trying to be home with Lelila as much as we can. I just wanted to be sure that I tell you that I know I have so much to be thankful for. You’re the best wife any man could ever want and over the past five months since Lelila was born I’m convinced you are the best mother too.

    I remember years ago, when I was in prison, I would sit in the dark in my cell at night, all alone, thinking that my life was over. I was so lost in my own problems that I didn’t see why I should bother to live, so I prayed to Ianos to show me life was worth it by sending me a second chance. I made deals that if I only got another chance I would do things right, I would stop partying and stay clean and not get into trouble. I would help people instead of try to get as much out of them as I could. I made all these promises if only Ianos would give me another shot at my life.

    I guess I thought that my second chance would be earning parole so I wouldn’t have to live in that cold, lonely place anymore. I thought my second chance would be somehow finding money by getting a decent job and getting financially set. I really thought my second chance would be dragging myself through thirteen empty years so that at age 33 I could run home again and somehow pick up where I left off at 20, right back where I was when my sentence started.

    I was so wrong.

    I learned that my second chance wasn’t something given to me like a prize. I can’t just make deals with the gods and expect that they will simply hand me such a thing. It turns out that asking for things and making deals doesn’t get you anything. You only get things when you give of yourself first. I had to empty myself completely, without any expectation of anything in return. I had to find dignity in owning nothing. I had to find joy through making others happy, not myself. Most of all, I had to find love by taking my heart and giving it completely to you, trusting that you will take the best care of it. You and Lelila, my beautiful girls, are the reason why the gods let me live through my addiction, my imprisonment, my grief, my exile, my homelessness and namelessness and all the other things that have tried to tear me down.

    When Ianos answered my prayer, it turned out that my second chance wasn’t a place, or a job, or an opportunity at all. My second chance was waiting for me right here, all along.

    It was you.
     
  9. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    I will never ever read anything more stunning or real than that. =D= =D= Dissolves into total goo! ^:)^ That was just. Perfect.

    Lelila -- now she reminds me of Kahara's Lydia [face_laugh] into everything. No, not food indeed! [face_rofl]
     
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  10. JadeLotus

    JadeLotus Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2005
    Wow, what a time jump, and although I do wonder at the data that was lost (what a clever way to do it!) I do appreciate that I won't be biting my nails worrying about the baby.

    And what a beautiful letter! [face_love][face_love] Wonderfully written, full of wisdom and life experience, and right from Blue's heart. Perfect.
     
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  11. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    Replies 15 December


    Thank you so much! Blue tries his best to tell her how he feels – he doesn’t think he can say it but it comes across very well. And Lelila – what a little firecracker she is. She’s got her mom’s spirit of adventure.

    Thank you very much for reading and replying! Thanks – I wanted to do a time jump and this seemed the best way, as if there were pages torn from her diary. And this is the baby that shows up as a young child in the epilogue to “True Blue.” Blue is always trying to find the right words, and he hit a home run here. He has grown so much from the beginning of this story, and he is a different person almost from the man he was in “True Blue,” They have become a true team and they balance each other beautifully.



     
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  12. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    [51]

    </data corrupted – unrecoverable error/>

    </recorder on – new entry/>

    To celebrate our eighth wedding anniversary, my parents gave us a wonderful gift – they took our Lelila Amidala for the week. I missed her terribly, and Ry did too, although he didn’t admit it. At first, we both kind of walked aimlessly around the house, as if expecting her to pop out at us. But I know she is in great hands. Mom loves to take her out and spoil her, and Dad lets her sit in the co-pilot seat sometimes when he takes the Falcon out. (He even made her a little booster seat.) He calls her his Little Hotshot and says she’s going to be a great pilot like her Tanta Jaina someday. She adores her grandparents and they love her right back.

    I knew Ryoki had something planned for our anniversary tonight, when he got back from his practice in the city. He had been cagey all week about it, so when he asked me to wait up for him when he got back, I stayed up. He got in late, as he often does when he visits his in-hospital patients. But this time, instead of us just going to bed, he asked me to come with him down to the beach. We changed into our swim clothes and headed to the ocean.

    Our house is only a short walk from the water and we go there all the time so I could find my way down the sand in the dark, a skill which came in handy. He held my hand to steady me as we made it past the dunes and the palms, out to the shore. There, he had a paddle boat ready for us.

    “I told you once that I dreamed of kissing you under the moonlight, out past the breakers where the water is calmer,” he told me. “Do you remember that?”

    I nodded my head and smiled. Of course I remembered, and he waited all these years until the time was perfect. Together we pushed the paddle boat out into the water, and we got in. I got a little wet but the water was warm and the waves were gentle so it was not a bother. He took the stern of the boat and I took the prow, paddling past the waves that broke along the shore. Sure enough, there was an area where the cross-tides intersected and left a calm area in its centre.

    We slowed down and we put our paddles in the boat. I turned around to face him, then slid closer to him and he reached out his hand to hold mine. Above us, the five moons of Baroli glowed like lanterns. The colours mirrored in the water, like jewels strewn by the Elementals across the rippling sea. Brilliant silvers, reds, yellows, and greens reflected in little fragments, ever-changing as the water undulated. Tiny phosphorescent creatures darted beneath the surface, tracing their delicate white lines. He is the water and I am the air, our elemental forces intersecting in this shimmering explosion of colour dancing along the ocean’s surface.

    He moved even closer and we sat facing each other. I slowly rubbed my belly, and he smiled. “How’s our daughter doing today?” he asked.

    “She’s been a little quiet, but still good,” I answered.

    Ryoki smiled widely, then gently placed his hand on my stomach. “I can’t wait to see her.”

    “Well, you’ll be the first,” I said, covering his hands with my own. “You’re delivering Hanna, just like you delivered Lelila.”

    “If I recall, you said something along the lines of ‘you put her in there, you can take her out’ when Lelila was born.”

    I laughed. Then I looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. “I seem to recall you saying something about a kiss,” I said.

    “Oh yeah. Right. A kiss.”

    He pulled closer to me, and I leaned in as far as my belly would allow. His hand went around the back of my head and I held his arm to steady myself in the gently rocking boat. Then he kissed me, little kisses across my cheek and neck at first, then his mouth found mine and he kissed me with such love and passion that my heart felt as if it would break from joy. When it was over, we held each other tightly.

    He ran his fingers through my hair, then brought his hands down to cup my face. “Happy anniversary, my Bree,” he whispered. “My own love.”

    “Happy anniversary, my sweet Ryoki. My love. My true home. My everything.”
     
  13. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    I am so melted! Beautiful, beautiful. Loving and so ineffably tender! This pairing's unfailing love and courageous commitment to one another has been an unmitigated joy! [:D] [face_love]
     
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  14. JadeLotus

    JadeLotus Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2005
    [face_love][face_love]

    Beautiful! I'm so happy Bree and Blue are happy, and expecting again.

    This is wonderful! A big happy Organa-Solo family *sigh* "Little Hotshot" is such a cute nickname.
     
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  15. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005

    Thank you! I have enjoyed writing them. Thank you for inspiring the creation of these two characters. They love each other very much and they are strong enough to share that love openly.



    Thank you so much! They have become a very happy family, and now there are more little Solos to love. Thank you so much for sticking with this story!
     
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  16. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005
    [52]

    What was my life before him? I can’t remember now. In my mind’s eye I still see him as he was on the first day I met him, head tilted to one side, his leather jacket rainslick and shiny. What if I had not turned around when he called to me and asked my name? What if I had ignored him, unwilling to take a chance with a stranger? His life and mine would have gone on, surely. I would have forgotten the details of his face in time, and he would have blurred into the thousand other lives that intersected mine. One moment, one glance, and everything would have been different.

    Sometimes I wish I didn’t love him so much. How much easier it would be to treat his suffering with indifference, to regard his joy with idle bemusement, to let his hand slip through mine and not care. But that isn’t my fate. I was destined to love him. There is no other explanation.

    Sometimes I wish I didn’t love him so much. How easier it would be to lose him if I didn’t love him this way.

    I don’t fear my own death. I am not afraid to step beyond this plane and into the iridescent realm of the Force. The gods have blessed me with an incredible life, and I do not regret one moment of it. What terrifies me is losing him.

    One day his heart will quiver and grow still. His eyes, so quick and piercing, will glaze over into stony dullness. He will leave me, and the colour of my life will vanish with him. All I will have are the memories to sustain me until I can finally be with him again.

    The air in my lungs is the breath of his kiss. The sound of his voice fills the space between my heartbeats. He tilts his face to the sky, stretches out his hand, and illuminates the stars for me. I am his and he is mine, and our love will always be unbreakable.

    </recording terminated/>

    </end file/>
     
  17. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Now if that is not the most poignant gorgeous thingy ever. I love her musings that their marvelous life together hinged upon a moment's glance /notice, or not! That is one daunting realization!

    The air in my lungs is the breath of his kiss. The sound of his voice fills the space between my heartbeats. He tilts his face to the sky, stretches out his hand, and illuminates the stars for me. I am his and he is mine, and our love will always be unbreakable.

    That is the OED definition of an OTP. :) [face_sigh] [face_love] [face_love]
     
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  18. Ewok Poet

    Ewok Poet Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 31, 2014
    I need to go through 43-51, but before that, there is a song that reminds me of 52, so...you'll be getting comments in wrong order. :p

    Against Me!'s Two Coffins, from their last year's album, explores a similar idea. Laura Jane Grace, the band's singer, imagines the world without her daughter, who was an infant at the time of writing it. Sure, it's a child, not a loved one, but this chapter still reminded me of it.

    With great love, comes great fear, which is why we have to live for the moment and never fail to tell others how much we love and appreciate them. IMHO, there is no love without fear of the loved one dying someday. And being a muggle, Bree is allowed to feel that way.

    The air in my lungs is the breath of his kiss. The sound of his voice fills the space between my heartbeats. He tilts his face to the sky, stretches out his hand, and illuminates the stars for me. I am his and he is mine, and our love will always be unbreakable.

    And this is absolutely beautiful.

    Congrats on completing your DDC!
     
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  19. JadeLotus

    JadeLotus Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Mar 27, 2005
    Beautiful ending and congrats on such a wonderful and completed diary! It's been a joy to read.
     
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  20. Chyntuck

    Chyntuck Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Jul 11, 2014
    Well, you know through my 'likes' on your posts that I've been keeping up with the story even though I didn't leave reviews, but now that I re-read the last entries I'm once again a puddle of gooey feels. [face_love]

    I'm going to start with a self-centred comment and say that I absolutely love what you did with Simon here and how you got him involved in Bree and Blue's lives. It was a great narrative trick to have Bree, who met him at the diner, know him actually better than Blue, and “I think she’s sweet on you” is totally the sort of thing Simon would say. (Plus, well, you know, the cane, Naboo and all that stuff :p ) So I'm the one thanking you for the wonderful development you gave to this character!

    Blue's letter to Bree in entry 50 was really the highlight of this story, the moment when it all comes full circle. They both struggled against their inner demons and won -- we already saw Bree have her second chance earlier, but for Blue she was really another chance at a life worth living.

    I loved the time jumps and the idea that they moved back to Baroli after Blue/Ryoki has completed his sentence. I remember you saying earlier that the end of this story would go beyond True Blue, and now I see why. This diary wasn't only about them getting their second chance, but actually living it -- and, ultimately, knowing that there is a moment when it will move into another plane of existence. The very last entry was very touching in that Bree realises that things could have been different if they hadn't both been in the right place at the right time. What would their second chance have been?

    Congrats on completing the challenge -- although I have to say I'm almost sad to see this story end, it's been one of my absolute favourite reads this year!

    ^:)^
     
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  21. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005

    Thank you! It all came from one moment, one decision on his part to ask her name and one decision on hers to answer. And look what a love grew from there. Kind of like a certain someone who threw a dare my way a couple years ago, and look what a story grew from that! Thank you for your continued support of this story and these characters.


    Thank you for your kind reply! Great love means great risk, and that means taking the chance that you might lose everything. Bree found this when her brother died, but eventually she learned that loving Blue was worth the chance of losing him. Even if she did lose him, the experience was worth it. It’s so true – we should tell people every day that they mean so much to us. Bree can’t see the future or have visions to clue her into future outcomes, which makes her love so much more powerful because she doesn’t know what tomorrow brings. She loves for today.
    Thanks for the congrats! It was a fun project to write. I’ve appreciated your very thoughtful and helpful comments along the way.


    Aw, thanks! So has yours! Thank you for being such a loyal reader.


    Thank you for letting me borrow the character! Bree is naturally chatty and gregarious, and she would hone in on another Coruscanti so far from home. I see Simon quietly living in his elder years, keeping to himself, going in a few days a week just to keep up with things. He probably doesn’t have many close friends, so this young woman from Coruscant would be a pleasing diversion for him. He probably comes to the diner more now just to see if she is there. He sees some of the young love that he and Uumana shared in Blue and Bree.


    I totally agree. Blue has been one of those characters who revealed himself to me as I wrote him - I really didn’t understand him until then. But you hit it exactly – he had a life before Bree, but it wasn’t worth living. It was existing, marking time as he waited for a release from his parole, and living with a dull terror that he would somehow screw it up and wind up back in jail. Compounding it was the enormous guilt and shame that crippled him, and all the while he was dealing with the physical limitations brought on by his addiction. It wasn’t until Bree showed him that he was worthy of being loved that he felt his life had a purpose and a value.


    They have completely integrated into each other’s lives. In a sense, his dreams have literally come true – they are living by the beach on his homeworld, and he kisses the woman he loves under the moonlight. But she has so seamlessly slipped into his culture, his religion, his life that they can’t really be apart now. They have their children and their home, and they have each other. Bree does realize how fortunate they are. If they hadn’t met, she would have continued to struggle with her insecurities and her lack of a focus; he would have probably eked by a living, narrowly avoiding another spiral into addiction and never truly overcoming it; and neither would have ever connected with such a deep and strong love.


    Thank you! And thank you for your support and comments!

    Thank you also to Kahara. Gemma, Ginchy, AzureAngel, and everyone else who stopped in to comment, and thank you to all who stopped in to read. I hope you enjoyed it.

    A HUGE thank you to those who voted for this story for the DDC 2015! I am so thrilled to have this story chosen as one of the two best of the year! It has been a joy to write this, and I appreciate the honor.@};-
     
  22. Ewok Poet

    Ewok Poet Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 31, 2014
    Don't you hate it when that one pesky slowpoke comes around and leaves replies after your author replies? For the second time in the past year or so? Yeah. :p

    [43]

    Is it me or is this one longer than all others? Could've been two of them. XD

    Naboo seems to be the perfect place for Bree and Blue - cosmopolitan enough and traditional enough at the same time. And they're both stable enough at this point to know that it's precisely what they need - balance. It makes sense that the first steps they take there are not completely rosey and that there are problems, too.

    When she was visiting a few weeks ago, we went to the open market in Theed and then we had lunch at an outdoor café.

    I toooooootally have no idea where you got the idea of an open market in Theed. :p

    I turned to face him. He stood beside me and took my hand in his. “I lived so long as a number, a nobody under an alias, a throwaway parolee, that I forget sometimes what it means to be a real person. Your humanity makes me feel human again. You make me feel loved and valued. I don’t want an angel. I want you, a real woman, by my side.”

    Reading this *after* TFA has been released and realising that it was written *before* the film was out is kinda trippy. It's like you wrote Rey and Finn's friendship, as the whole business with a "real woman" does not have to refer to a romantic partner. Perhaps these are the motifs that linger on through the entire Saga and all of its offshots? If so, it's kinda cool whenever they wind up in somebody's story, as I thiiiink we choose to use them subconsciously.

    P.S. I cannot thank you enough for pointing me to Varykino: my next longfic is supposed to start there and I didn't know the name of the place! #FAIL


    [44]

    This was heavy in so many ways and while I'm not sure if it was intentionally meant to go straight from blunt materialism with the necklace, over the carnal pleasures to something far deeper, that is what I will choose to believe. :)

    What I find most interesting is that Anakin Solo was probably really, really just a product of lucid dreaming and the reasons for that are pretty obvious: Bree is not a Force-sensitive, a brother should not be looking at his little sister in the nude and there wouldn't have been a way for him to have been familiar with the Barolian religion, unless he had a crash-course in overall beliefs around the Galaxy. And just like a quote I need to elaborate on for one of the challenges says, "our dreams are a second life". Sometimes, they hold the answers that we may be too afraid to determine when awake, and when our guard is down, when all inhibitions are lost, those answers will come, in the form of something or somebody that has left a huge mark on us.


    [45]

    There's something deliciously pagan about this wedding ritual here. The gods and goddesses. I know you already wrote about Barolian religion, but I really wanted to see a practical example. :) The four doors are an incredible concept and I wonder if they can be applied to other things in life as well.

    And then, on the opposite end of the spectrum, there is Magnifique. EEEEK EEEK EEEK EEEK EEEK EEEK.


    Love it that Blue's middle name is Jonn! Anything derived from "god is gratious" makes sense here. And I'm not saying this just because I have a variant of that name myself. :p

    However, he added “Blue Solo” as his legal secondary name. Now, finally, Blue has a last name.

    And I totally did not expect this! Though it makes sense. Our names are, in some way, like anchors in the pier.


    Although Zara came with a lovely young lady who was clearly smitten with her, it seemed that Zara danced with nearly everyone.

    Those Zeltrons...tsk tsk. :D


    Uncle Lando and Aunt Tendra sent their love and a generous financial gift.

    And that Tendra...:p She needs to listen to Jessie J more! :p
    He had danced with the Queen of Hapes.

    I may be slightly creepy here, but how does one hold an one-armed person in dance?


    [46]

    When we came to the Grand Anteroom, a wide open, vaulted area where the portraits of the great rulers of Naboo were displayed, we saw a prominently displayed portrait of a young woman about my age, maybe a little younger. I stared at the portrait. We had the same dark eyes, same serious expression; we even held our posture the same way. In the portrait, Padmé had long, wavy dark hair that she wore in a complicated design whereas my own wavy dark hair was much shorter and simpler, but otherwise we were eerily similar in appearance. Blue and I grew quiet as we studied the painting.

    Hmmm...:)

    Interesting crescendo, culminating with the last paragraph.

    I took my husband’s other hand in mine so that we stood facing each other, our hands joined. One pair of hands bore our wedding rings, the other our marriage tattoos. I stared at these symbols, then I drew him closer and held him tightly. We would not make the same mistake as my grandparents did. We will love in the open.

    This ties well with the lesson Bree's mind gave her in form of her deceased brother. No matter what they say about Blue, no matter how many times he's rejected at these work interviews, he's not somebody Bree should be ashamed of.

    And I have an appropriate music video to go with this. Funny enough, the song was atypical and surprising for the band, just like Bree going for Blue. Same with the video. It's almost surprising!

    Imagine these surreal singing ducks in the second chorus were quadducks in the Solleu river. We shall ignore the crematorium ashes for this purpose. :D



    And, last but not the least, glad that Blue is no longer feeling like drowning his frustrations in spice and alcohol! His support network is strong on Naboo, and as a Solo. A good contrast to that name, too. :p

    [47]

    Like Nyota's Heart said, "I love how caringly compassionate the Barolians as a whole seem to be, welcoming Bree and being considerate of Blue's sensitivities."

    That makes their religion more loving than most that we know of. I bet their top dog, I mean, top god, is secretly a girl.

    Loved Blue's continuing teetotalism.

    And OMG, Simon! And his similarities with Bree. I can totally see them! And, as weird as this may be, that injury came at the right time, almost by Force itself.

    [48]

    Now, that's a strange, strange mood switch, from gloomy to a romcom kind of a moment. Hugh Grant would've approved it. :D

    “Right now? This minute?” I smiled slyly. “You mean, throw these dishes on the floor and climb up on the table? I’m game.”

    “Rosella will throw us out."

    “Oh, Rosella will charge admission.”

    Oooooook. O___________o LOL

    On the serious side, I like the idea of pregnancy being a joint decision.

    [49]

    This was very much Simon's chapter. While it's somewhat heartbreaking that he gets to see all that never happened for him and Uumana, he's seen the world, he's truly been around and he can handle that.

    [50]

    That was a really sneaky way to skip ahead. :p I...may borrow it in case I ever need it. XD

    I can see that Lelila was named after her grandmother, given that Lelila is how Bail and Breha used to call Leia in Legends, or is it? So many sweet, tender moments here!

    As for the latter, a person cannot be completed by another person, but another person can be a piece of their puzzle, yes.


    [51]

    OK, that was even sneakier. BREE, FORMAT THAT DEVICE, WILL YOU? :p

    Wait, they're on Baroli now? I guess that's what happens with a time skip and corrupted data....




    ...

    Once again, thanks for this story. :)
     
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  23. divapilot

    divapilot Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2005

    All good, my friend. All good.


    They are more balanced living on Naboo. It’s cosmopolitan and country, old and new. That duality again. And they are adjusting to living together in a permanent setting, so there are bound to be rocky moments. He gets cranky and she gets a little presumptuous, but the important thing is that they don’t let their spats override their affection for each other.

    I hadn’t thought of that, but you’re right, it’s very much like Finn and Rey. She (and Poe) teach Finn how to be a person and not a number. Blue has struggled, not only in this story but in the predecessor, True Blue, to be considered a person and to be thought of as equal to others. Her acceptance of him makes it easier to feel validated.



    I have to agree, also because when the “visit” is over, even though she sat up to talk with Anakin, she is in the exact same position she was in when she fell asleep (resting on Blue’s chest). She actually wished for Anakin to come back to talk with her when she was on Ossus, but whether or not it was really his ghost or if it was her own imagination, the end is the same. She has reconciled herself to Anakin’s loss and she has made the decision to devote herself to her future.



    Thanks, I spent a lot of time planning this scene out. The idea is that each person comes in of their own accord, and if they want to back out, there’s (literally) the door. No one will judge you.


    Cool that this is what your name means, too! I just wanted Blue to have a more Anglicized middle name since I deliberately avoided an Anglicized one for his first name. And in my headcannon, he keeps the “Solo” part after his parole is ove and he earns back his own name, becoming Ryoki Solo Akahai. Being a Solo is part of that “anchor in the pier” for him.


    Bree is tired of running and hiding. She knows now that she has people who will always have her back. There is nothing to be afraid of, and she needn’t hide the fact that she loves Blue. She’s not ashamed of him and she won’t deny him or her relationship with him.


    That video was perfect for them! Although Bree doesn’t come from a castle and Blue isn’t exactly living in a cardboard box, the idea is the same. I always figured I was writing “Space Aladdin.”
    So to return the favor, here is the song I think best shows how Blue thinks about Bree: (I’ll give you the lyrics because the video really doesn’t connect the same way.)
    Her (Majid Jordan)

    I got her in the palm of my hand
    She knows I love her
    I got her, thought I lost her again

    But life’s so quick, sometimes
    Just blinking you might miss it when you close your eyes
    It’s been a while since we kicked it but the answer’s on her lips tonight

    I’m on the way
    To finding out exactly how to treat her right
    Another day, and I’ve been waiting my whole life to find
    Someone like her

    I’m glad I made it this far
    Sometimes you just don’t know
    So many days spent apart but now
    I’m finally yours (so won’t you)

    Move my body, do it right
    Left, right, side, side
    Not about to waste my time, waiting all night

    She knows I got her
    She knows I love her
    She knows I got her
    She knows I love her
    But it’s cool because
    It’s me she loves
    She knows, she does


    And here is the song that shows how Bree feels about him, especially regarding him and his demons: (again, just the lyrics as there is no official video of this song.)
    “This Love” (Taylor Swift)

    Clear blue water, high tide came and brought you in
    And I could go on and on, on and on, and I will
    Skies grew darker, currents swept you out again
    And you were just gone and gone, gone and gone

    In silent screams
    In wildest dreams
    I never dreamed of this

    This love is good, this love is bad
    This love is alive back from the dead
    These hands had to let it go free
    And this love came back to me

    Tossing, turning, struggled through the night with someone new
    And I could go on and on, on and on
    Lantern burning, flickered in the night for only you
    But you’re still gone, gone, gone

    Been losing grip
    Oh, sinking ship
    You showed up just in time

    This love is good, this love is bad
    This love is alive back from the dead
    These hands had to let it go free
    And this love came back to me

    This love left a permanent mark
    This love is glowing in the dark
    These hands had to let it go free
    And this love came back to me

    This love, this love, this love, this love

    Your kiss, my cheek, I watched you leave
    Your smile, my ghost, I fell to my knees
    When you’re young you just run
    But you come back to what you need

    This love is good, this love is bad
    This love is alive back from the dead
    These hands had to let it go free
    And this love came back to me

    This love left a permanent mark
    This love is glowing in the dark
    These hands had to let it go free
    And this love came back to me

    This love, this love, this love, this love


    So if you opened these now you know that I spend far too much time with imaginary people.



    Blue is happier and stronger than he has ever been. He knows he owes it to Bree. It’s always going to be a struggle to fight the addiction but now he knows, just like Bree has discovered, that there are people who will have his back. He isn’t alone any more, and that is a huge, life-changing revelation to him.


    The injury might have been a bit deux ex machina on my part, but I needed a reason why Blue would come onto Simon’s radar, so to speak. Bree can talk all she wants about how talented Blue is, but it means more if Simon sees for himself.

    Everything they do is a joint decision as much as possible. Bree was unsure that Blue would be willing to do this, not because he doesn’t want children but because they are so balanced right now that he might hesitate to risk that, but he wants her to be happy.

    True. Theirs is the life that Simon would have wanted. He knows that this part of his life is over; he will not have another wife or chance for a child. However, Simon is a good man and understands that it’s Bree and Blue’s time to have the experiences he and Uumana never got to have.



    Yes, she’s named for her grandmother. Lelila was Leia’s nickname. Bree and Blue are hopelessly in love with their little girl. There are sweet moments here, but then again they are so happy at this point. It’s like all their hard work has paid off. It’s true that it’s not healthy to be completely dependent on someone else, to rely on them to complete you, but they are so integrated at this point that neither is really who they were before.


    To be honest, there was another, final entry that would have better explained the time skips better than Bree forgetting to format her journal. PM me for that chapter. But yeah, they are on Baroli now, she calls him Ryoki and not Blue, and she has adapted to his customs and his religion. They are happy, and they are living a normal, quiet life. When you think about it, this is the best that we can hope for.



    It was a joy to write. Thank you for supporting it.
     
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  24. Kahara

    Kahara FFoF Hostess Extraordinaire star 4 VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Mar 3, 2001
    Again, congrats on the Diary Challenge! :) This is a really involving diary and I've been following it even though my brain-space for commenting took a dive this winter.

    The wedding on Naboo (and I'm glad they got to spend some time there, it's one of my favorite planets in the GFFA) was beautiful and the details like Blue's flowers were nifty. =D=

    And the dream Bree had where she talked to Anakin was wonderful, whether "real" or not -- the GFFA is a strange reality and I wouldn't bet against Bree's dreamscape tapping into some aspect of it.

    It was great that we got to see Simon, and that he was able to help Blue after meeting Bree. It's realistic that many wouldn't give him a chance (and makes for a good way to show how both he and Bree have grown in how they deal much better with the strain), but of course I liked that Blue eventually got a break career-wise.

    The ending with them living on Baroli with their kids is really sweet (so glad that Lelila's okay and things look good for Hanna too), and I love the description of what it's like there -- that skyscape sounds spectacular and makes a wonderful backdrop to the relationship these two have built. @};-
     
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  25. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Those songs -- oh how they fit Ayesha/Thrawn too. LOL when you have an OTP they kinda squeeze themselves into every song you even hear about much less listen to directly. ^:)^

    This diary seriously will always be one of my all-time fic-faves. :D
     
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