Saga Empire Day -- 1/1, Pre ANH, Leia is visited by her adoptive father for the final time.

Title: "Empire Day"
Author: Kelli_LB
Timeframe: Three months before ANH
Characters: Bail Organa, Leia Organa
Genre: Drama
Summary: On an Imperial holiday, Leia Organa gets a visit from her adoptive father for the final time.
Disclaimer: I own nothing, Lucas owns everything; I'm just playing with his creations. I promise I'll put them back where they belong when I'm finished.

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It was not even 0500 when Princess Leia Organa awoke. She was normally an early riser but lately sleep had become even more difficult for her. There was far too much on her mind. It had been a little over two years since the Princess had been appointed to the Imperial Senate representing her home planet of Alderaan and in that short time she had already developed a reputation for outspokeness among her colleagues.

What no one, but for a select few, knew was that Leia Organa was more than the representative of her home planet of Alderaan in the Imperial Senate. She was also a member of the Rebel Alliance that was working to defeat the government that she was a nominal part of. She, like the other clandestine rebel senators, had to publicly express support the Emperor to keep their covers secure. While they were inside, these senators were able to gather information and help direct funds to support certain charitable causes that helped funnel military armaments to the Alliance.

Leia tried to go back to sleep, but it was impossible. At 0515 she decided to stop trying and get up. She did have much to do. This day was different than usual. It was Empire Day. Early in his reign, the Emperor declared that the anniversary of the founding of his regime would be celebrated across the galaxy. It was the first and only official Imperial holiday, and every member of the Imperial Senate was expected to attend the celebrations on Coruscant. It was doubly important for senators that also had sworn allegiance to the Alliance to attend to make certain that their loyalty to the Empire would not be questioned by the authorities.

The princess quickly dressed and went into the informal dining area of her large residence. After making herself a cup of tea she sat down to review her appointments for the day. Empire Day was always full of activity, but this year was different than the last. The night before Leia received a surprise, but very welcome, visitor. Her father, Bail Organa, had arrived.

Leia was thrilled to see him. She had missed him so much since she had left Alderaan. Ever since her mother had tragically passed away years before, she had grown closer to him. He was more than her father. He was also her mentor in all things political. During her teenage years, Bail had taught her how to navigate the complicated Imperial system in a way that was an advantage to the Alliance.

After only a few minutes, the princess heard the door to the room her father was staying in open. Leia looked up and smiled. "Good morning Father, how did you sleep?"

Bail poured himself a cup of tea and sat down at the table. "I tossed and turned all night." He admitted.

The princess frowned, "I'm sorry, was the bed uncomfortable?"

"No, you forget I used to sleep in it almost every night." Bail reminded her with a smile. The large, luxurious apartment in [i]500 Republica[/i] was owned by the Alderaanian government for whoever was appointed to the Senate seat. For years, Bail Organa had lived here while he held the seat.

"Are you feeling all right?" When he had arrived the day before, Leia was shocked to see just how old that her father appeared. It had been two years since she had been home and she was saddened to see the change in such a short time period. She wondered if the responsibility of being one of the leaders of the Alliance had prematurely aged him.

Seeing his daughter's expression, Bail immediately spoke up, "Now don't you start treating me like an invalid. I'm not that old."

Leia shook her head, "I didn't say that." She would never say something like that out loud, but it was on her mind. In truth, seeing her father aging so f

 

I always wondered what could have been said between Bail and Leia before the events of ANH. There's so very little available on it. Very well done!

 

Thank you for reading.

Bail has always been a favorite character to write, and I wish there was more canon sources available regarding the rebellion during the early days of the Empire.

 

Wow! I really loved this story. The interaction between Bail and Leia is so natural that I can reallysee it happening as I read it.

I've also got to say that I really loved the look at Bail that you gave us. The Organa's have always fascinated me, even though there isn't much info about them.

I can't begin to imagine the kind of courage it took to take in a child and love her, all the while knowing that at any time someone could burst in and take her. If that wasn't enough, Bail was also one of the core members of the Rebellion, all the while being a member of the Imperial Senate.

I always figured that the Organa's must have been an incredible people to shoulder so much burden and responsibility on themselves...and you managed to convey all of that and more in this one-shot. Fantastic job!!!

 

I absolutely loved this. Very poignant, interesting and well-written. I'm intrigued by Leia's time in the Imperial Senate, all the while also working for the Alliance. This section in particular really got to me:

Makes you wonder what Leia and Luke would have learned if Bail and/or Obi-Wan had actually lived to see them. Beautiful!

 

That was lovely and bittersweet. Well done.

 

Really nice insight to the precursor of ANH. I really liked this.

 

An enjoyable read. It gives a lot of depth/insight into Leia's character.

 

A beautiful read and a really nice insight in the relationship between Leia and Bail. XD Thanks for writing!!

~LL.

 

Thank you very much everyone for reading and commenting. I especially want to thank everyone who nominated this for the Saga Fanfic awards. That was such a wonderful surprise. I'm so honored.

Thank you very much. I'm always concerned that the interaction between the characters I write isn't natural. I always imagined that a scene like this would have taken place between Bail and Leia, I'm glad you like my rendition of it.

That's what I wondered as well. Would the secret of her parentage have been revealed if Leia had been able to bring Obi-Wan to her father on Alderaan? How would things have changed? Ack, now I'm getting plot bunnies for a new AU. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing.

Thank you so much.

Thank you for reading and commenting. I appreciate every single one of them.

Thank you. I've always wished there was more canon between ROTS and ANH, that's why most of my fics are within this period.

Thank you for reading and commenting. I really appreciate the kind words.