Saga A Tale of Knights and Queens - A/P The Fairy Tale- cover art by red_rose_knight added!

I want to send out a HUGE thank you to red_rose_knight for doing this amazing cover art. I am so envious of her talent and so grateful she was willing to put it to use to make this for me. Thank you!

[image=http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v466/VadersLover/Knightscoverart.bmp]





I want to thank Gina for taking a look at this and telling me it wasn't a stupid idea!




A Tale of Knights and Queens



?Come along, little one, it is time for you to go to bed,? the father said as he led her through the hallway.

?But I?m not tired,? she said with a frown.

?You should be, you?ve been running around all day,? he replied.

?Well, I?m not,? she said firmly. ?Mama says I have more energy than a herd of gundarks.?

The man laughed. ?And so you do, but even you need to rest.?

He looked down and saw the pout beginning to form on her face. As always, his heart squeezed at the sight and he relented just a bit. ?How would you like it if I told you a story??

She brightened at the offer. ?Which one??

?I don?t think you?ve heard this one before. It is a tale of knights and queens,? he said.

She smiled brightly. ?That sounds like a good one, Papa.?


There was once a beautiful young queen, no more than a girl, who ruled wisely over her people. She was beloved by those in her kingdom and dedicated her life in service to her subjects.

Then one day, her lands were invaded by a terrible enemy. With no regard for her own safety, she led them to victory, vanquishing the enemy swiftly. Her people celebrated her bravery and cunning. She reigned over the rich and gentle lands for years, growing to become a beautiful woman.

The wise young queen served her people well and they prospered. Then the day came that a new, even more dangerous enemy tried to strike at the fair queen. This new enemy sent assassins to slay the virtuous ruler, attempting to invade her rich lands once more.

But a handsome young knight with magical abilities came to her aid and defeated her enemies. After his victory, he bowed before the queen and declared his love for her, placing his noble heart at her feet.

The queen looked upon the brave knight with favor, and presented him with her own heart in return. They knew their love would last forever, and so they pledged their lives to each other, taking secret vows of marriage that bound them one to another for all time.



?More, Papa! Please?? the little girl pleaded.

?Isn?t it past your bedtime already?? he asked with an indulgent smile.

She shook her head emphatically. ?No, Papa, really it isn?t! Mama said I could stay up late because of the celebrations.?

?All right, now where were we?? he asked her.

?The queen and the knight got married,? she replied quickly.

?Are you sure?? he asked, a teasing glint in his eyes.

?Yes, Papa.? She tilted her head to the side and looked up at her father. ?But why did the queen and the knight have to keep it a secret??

Her father sighed and pulled her closer to him as she sat on his lap. ?The knight was not supposed to marry; he had given his vow to dedicate his life in service to the galaxy.?

She frowned. ?He couldn?t do both??

The father laughed and shook his head. ?Perhaps, poppet, but he had made a promise. When he married the queen he broke that promise.?

?Does that mean he was bad, Papa?? The little girl?s voice was sad.

?No, it just means he loved her very, very much.?

She gave him a relieved smile and then snuggled up to him. ?That?s good. Now tell me more, Papa.?

?All right, so the queen and the knight got married??



The beautiful young queen and the brave knight tried to keep their feelings hidden, but such was the strength of their love for each other that soon others began to suspect that the knight loved the queen, and that she loved him as well.

The knight was then sent off to war. He faced many battles and was soon weary and heartsick. He began to grow more and more fearful that something would harm his fair

 

You know how much I love this, the idea of putting the story of Anakin and Padme into the context of a fairy tale, for it is indeed a fairy tale, albeit one with
a sad ending, until their children rewrite that ending for them.

?Well, I?m not,? she said firmly. ?Mama says I have the energy of a herd of gundarks.?

LOL! I can SO picture that.

I think this is one of the most beautiful vignettes you have written, and that is saying a lot, because you have written a treasure trove of wonderful pieces.

 

Not a stupid idea at all! I love the idea. How very unique to present Leia's history to her in a fairy tale. A delightful tale.

 

Aw, a very nice story Vader - and as usual, a wonderfully constructed and original piece The way you told the story, and particularly the way the girl finished it, was a great and imaginative way of retelling the legendary story that forms the centrepiece to the galaxy. Very well done!

 

A great idea-- a perfect way for children to understand the Star Wars universe-- thanks for sharing it!

 

Beautifully, wonderfully written, VL. Just a gorgeous, amazing piece of writing. I could see Bail sitting there with little Leia, sharing her history with her in such a way that someday she would understand where she had come from.

Shaindl

 

Aw, that's just beautiful! I was surprised to find it was Bail telling Leia the story (thought I don't know why. It was very apropos.)

For a while there I was seeing "The Princess Bride" (sans silly humor) in the father/daughter scenes between story sections. I love that technique for the way it shows off the cute relationship that develops between loving storyteller and child.

 

Beautiful and very touching.

 

Nice job on this one, Mom! I liked the fairy tale, it reminds of the stuff you used to make up to tell us. And it's very Princess Bride!

 

That was sooooo sweet!!!! Stupid? Who thought it was stupid? it was lovely and well thought up and well written!

Yeah, Princess Bride drifted thru my mind too hehehehe the grandfather reading to his supposedly sick grandson. hehehe

Great job!!! Loved how he (Bail) said she could finish it someday, unbeknownst to her it was her mum's tale *snrk*

Awesome work!!!

 

That was just about the best fairy-tale rendering of this that I've ever seen. Loved the magician Leia hates so much!

 

wonderful! What a quaint and sweet tale! I loved it--thank you for sharing it! *sigh* if only Anakin could have told his kids this story, with a better ending and everything!

 

Sad and yet uplifting at the same time. Make sense? Amazed I am.

 

And the princess and the young knight learned of the bond they shared as brother and sister. The brother learned of a mother long dead, and the sister learned of a father long corrupted.

Wow.....wow. This sorty was so beautifully written. You have such a talent. I wish I could write as elegantly and eloquently. Maybe in a hundred years.

I look forward to future stories. By the way, speaking of Princess Bride, I've been working on a Princess Bride version of A New Hope with Leia, Han, and the gang. I don't know if it has been done or not. I'd hate to steal someone's thunder.

Anyway back on topic...VaderLVR64 you are gifted. Keep up the fantastic work.

 

That was so sweet! I love the idea of giving her the story of her parents in a fairy tale, that would have been a great way to do it so that nothing got back to Palpy! Great job.

 

*grins* I just finished reading this aloud to the four year old boy sitting on my lap. He adores Star Wars (favorite character is Darth Vader), and he understood and enjoyed this story very much.

"I get it! Pamme is the queen and Dawth Vaduw is the knight and the Empewow is the wizard guy. But where's Chewie?"

He, too, was disturbed by the thought of Padme dying before I reminded him of the Luke/Leia scene in ROTJ. "Oh yeah," came the response.

LOL I think we both enjoyed this "fairy tale," VaderLVR. Congrats!

 

This is a beautiful fairy tale. You have really captured the style of fairy tales too. I like that it seems like Bail is extending the story a bit into the future too.

I loved this one. I'll have to read it to my daughter soon.

KD

 

Very sweet. I like the the story as a fairy tale. It fits it very well.

 

I never guessed that it was Leia. I was thinking that maybe it was Luke or Han telling the story to their daughter. But having it be Leia was beautiful.

*green_eyes*

 

Gina Thank you SO MUCH! You know how unsure I was of this one, and your words of encouragement when you read it for me helped immensely!

AnakinsHeir Thanks! It started out as just the fairy tale and then I thought it would be nice to have Bail telling it to Leia. I hope it worked!

Mjsullivan Thanks! I used to make up stories to tell my kids, and I just kind of went with that.

Shmi02 Thank you! I'll be telling this one to a little friend of mine, too.

Shaindl Thank you! That is what I wanted, a way for Leia to hear her history without endangering her.

Reihla Thank you! I was definitely thinking Princess Bride, and I'm flattered it has that "feel."

Dally Thank you so much!

VadersMistress And do you remember the story about the angel cleaning the stars with her diaper? That one was YOURS, sweetie! Thanks for reading this one!

Kynstar I was worried it was a dumb idea, but Gina was very kind and reassured me quite nicely! Thanks for reading.

DarthIshtar Well, there's a magician in almost every fairy tale, and Palpy makes a good BAD guy, so there it was! Thanks for reading!

SarkaVrae I wish it could have happened that way, too! Thank you so much!

obi_ew Thank you! I'll take that as quite a compliment. I'm glad you liked it.

SkalenFehl I've got a lot of words to use up, I gave up writing for more than ten years. I'm glad you liked it and thank you so much for your kind words!

LukesTheMan Thank you!

nadenaberrie Welcome! So glad to see you on these boards! That four year old boy sounds like my kind of kid! Tell him I'll try to include Chewie the next time! Thanks for reading (as usual-you've been inflicted with a lot of my stuff!)

Knight_Dilettante Thank you! I'm glad you liked it.

PadawanKitara Their story has always reminded me of a fairy tale, not exactly a happy ending, but still a fairy tale. Thanks for reading!

green_eyes Thank you! I thought Bail might try to lay the ground work for her to understand things in the future.

 

Hauting. Beautiful. Well done.

 

Bravo! That was terrific.

 

Reallly liked the fairy tale format of their story! How sweet of Bail to share this with Leia!

 

Beautiful fairy tale! I like the idea of making Anakin and Padme's story into a fairy tale.

 

Wow. This was very brillant. Beautifully put; though sad, very soft and kind. Wonderful job!