#papa and lelila

[lukeleiahan]

Bail Organa is not a ‘child stealer’

I just got a review on one of my fics, claiming that Bail Organa is “a certified child thief. Glorifying him feels wrong.“. Because the reviewer is on anon, I can’t answer that directly, but I’m pissed enough that I feel I should address this. Therefore, have a rant.

If Bail Organa is a child stealer, who did he steal Leia from? Honest question. Let’s go though it:

Padme Amidala, the biological mother. She’s dead.

Anakin Skywalker, the biological father. He literally just murdered a bunch of actual children, and therefore kinda permanently disqualified himself from being left alone with any child, much less parenting anyone. Then he attacked his wife, Leia’s mother, while she was heavily pregnant. Bail has to consider Leia’s safety here, not Anakin’s feelings, and Anakin after he has fallen is not at all a safe person for anyone to be around. Also, at that point, there is reason to believe he might be dead as well.

Shmi Skywalker, the biological paternal grandmother. Also dead.

Ruwal, Jobee and Sola Naberrie, the biological maternal grandparents and aunt. Alive, and capable of raising a child, but also the very first address Palpatine and/or Vader would look for if they went searching for Padme’s child. Especially with how thoroughly Palpatine planned his rise to Emperor, it would be a huge oversight not to watch the Naberries closely, which Bail as a former mentee of Palpatine’s and just in general a decent strategician would realize. Bringing Leia to them would be essentially presenting her to Palpatine on a silver platter.

Owen and Beru Whitesun Lars. The biological paternal step uncle and aunt. Alive, and capable of taking care of a child. At the point where Bail says he’s going to adopt Leia, there is a decent chance he doesn’t know they exist, though, Obi-Wan mentiones them only later. Also, they go on to raise Luke. It was Yoda and Obi-Wan who decided that the twins must be separated. Bail didn’t fight that, but well, Yoda and Obi-Wan were Jedi masters, and they had to protect the twins from two Sith, so it makes sense that he assumed they knew what they were talking about. So, leaving Leia with the Lars is also out.

And... that’s it. Those where the possibilities. You could argue the handmaidens, but we honestly speaking have to little on them canonically to know whether they would have wanted that/were that trustworthy/wouldn’t have been under just as much scrutiny as the Naberries.

Now, Bail Organa. He’s from what we can see in the movies one of Padme’s closest friends. If you add TCW into it, you even have a decent argument that he’s her best friend. He already knows pretty much all the dark secrets. He has a stable home to raise a child in, he’s willing to protect Leia. He wanted to adopt a child anyway, and as vice roy of Alderaan he’s capable of fudging some records so that Leia’s adoption doesn’t raise any red flags. He can and probably did tell her about Padme, if not as her biological mother then as his old friend. He hired Sabe, one of Padme’s first handmaidens and oldest friends as a governess, probably so that Leia can have even more of a connection to her biological mother without it raising any red flags.

And he and Breha do raise Leia wonderfully. She grows up loved, supported, a part of good, strong family. The young woman we see in the movies... she’s not that way because she is Anakin and Padme’s biological daughter. She’s that way because she’s Leia Organa, raised that way by Bail and Breha Organa. Sure, there are some traits that will be inhereted from her biological parents, I’d point to her anger and determination as things she got from Anakin and Padme respectively, but her morals? Her political mind? That’s Bail and Breha.

TLDR: Bail Organa did not steal Leia. He adopted a young girl who was orphaned, by death on her mother’s side and by choice of murdering children on her fathers. He and his wife Breha did an amazing job raising her. Nobody has time for your hate.

[rise-above-the-grave]

prompt: leia/bail/breha have some fluffy family time

Bail lays on his stomach on the living room floor, making speeder sounds as he rolls right, then left, for a Leia perched happily on his back. She grips his shirt with tiny fists, and giggles with delight each time he makes a particularly loud “vrooooom” sound.

“Fastah, Papa,” she says, wiggling and kicking bare feet against his neck.

In response, Bail says, “Hold tight, Lelila,” and climbs onto his hands and knees.

Leia shrieks and giggles some more as her father crawls around the living room, circling the couch and picking his way carefully through the blocks and toys strewn across the floor.

There is a laugh at the doorway. Bail cranes his head around to see his wife standing there, hip propped against the door frame, still dressed in full court regalia. She’d had a meeting with the Councilors of Foreign Affairs that afternoon; she looked drained and wan, face pale beneath the rouge and powder, though there was a smile curling her painted lips.

“Truly a sight becoming of the Prince of Alderaan,” she comments dryly.

Bail shrugs his shoulders, to yet another giggle from Leia. “My daughter demanded it of me,” he says innocently.

Breha laughs again, and comes into the room. Bail, halted a few feet away, watches her come over, and swoop down to scoop their daughter up into her arms. Leia shrieks in delight as her mother tosses her into the air, catches her, then tenderly touches their noses together.

“And how’s my Lelila doing today?” she asks.

“Mama,” Leia says happily, touching Breha’s face and smearing her makeup. 

Breha laughs, and blows a raspberry on Leia’s stomach. Then she lowers Leia back to her father’s back.

“I think a dinner in would be good tonight,” she says, arching an eyebrow at her husband.

“Agreed,” Bail says. “Go get changed--I’ll watch her.”

Breha smiles, and disappears toward their bedroom.

“Now,” Bail says, looking over his shoulder at Leia once more perched happily on his shoulders, “what do you want to do while your mother gets changed?”

“Fastah!” Leia demands. 

Bail laughs, and obliges.

send me a prompt

[littledemonlorne]

Lelila Skywalker

Learned to shoot from Leia.

Used Ben for target practice. (Stunned him only.)

Has two fathers. (I headcannon Luke as Bi.)

Is in a relationship with two women. (Who know this.)

While Luke calls her ‘Starlight’ while her other Father calls her ‘Moonbeam’.

Is a few inches taller than Luke.

Calls Luke ‘Papa’.

Believes Ben could be redeemed.

Also she’s 2 years younger than him.