#the people of mos espa calling anakin 'little ani' i-

[skyyworker]

anakin staining his clothes with grease, some of it ends up in his hair, some of it on his cheeks.

anakin stuffing random objects in his mouth while he’s fixing a droid because he only has two hands but he needs the bolts and screwdrivers of different sizes within reach.

anakin spending most of his days back at the temple locked in his room tinkering with droid parts or in the hangar making... adjustments to his ship.

anakin falling asleep on his most recent project and obi-wan gently moving him into a more comfortable position before covering him with a blanket.

anakin bringing his little projects on missions because he wants to test them on the field and being put off when, at times, they get blown up in the heat of the moment.

[adragonsfriend]

*emerges out of the mist* I heard something about gender in Amatakka. Please, tell me everything, I want to hear your take on it (can you tell this is also my special interest?)

*falls out of a tree and floats gracefully back and forth several times before alighting on the ground like a leaf* part of this explanation is in my spreadsheet but there's so much more detail and reasoning to talk about.

ok so I started from the claim that there are four accepted genders among Amavikka people (which is a whole other conversation about how if you make a third/fourth gender accepted and normal in a culture you might eventually get a queer bitch (me) going "I need a fifth gender so i can disrupt this paradigm"), female, male, nonbinary, and genderfluid.

introductions

Fialleril said the introductions have a gender particle? word? thing? attached to them. It goes "Ek masa nu [name] [gender particle]." Which is probably best translated as, "I am named [name], [pronouns]."

Feminine: Ek masa nu Shmi ku. 3rd Gender: Ek masa nu Anakin ki. Masculine: Ek masa nu Owen Lars ka. Fluid: Ek masa nu Ekkreth kai.*

*Note: I have seen others use ke for the fluid gender, but I like kai because it's a pun on kai meaning "yes," ala, "What are your pronouns?" "Yes."

Also I said the fluid option could choose to do a "Ek masa nu [name] kai [other gender particle]," to indicate their current pronouns. More casually, maybe you could say, "Ek masa kai [other particle]." or "Ek [other particle]." (I have a thing about how you can drop any subject pronoun in a sentence except "ek," so that's about as short as it can get)

gender assumption

But anyway, the general concept of these gender particles means that it's immediately evident upon introduction what pronouns & gendered words the person you're talking to uses, which is really cool, but it still leaves the gap of people that you haven't been introduced to, if you forgot someone's pronouns, if you haven't seen someone in a long time and their pronouns could've changed, if your genderfluid friend hasn't told you what gender they're feeling today, etcetera. Basically, there are still lots of situations where you wouldn't know someone's gender.

I haven't introduced grammatical gender (ala french where nouns have gender that affects what articles you use), but since people have gender, and that affects both adjectives and verbs, that means that there has to be a choice made about what gender is assumed when you don't know someone's gender.

In English we are blessed to have singular they available to use for both unknown gender and (the majority of) nonbinary people, but I didn't want to make the assumption that this overlap was the same in Amatakka.

Instead what I landed on is that the feminine forms are assumed in the case of unknown gender, for two reasons. First, I think it presents more of a different look at gender to have the third gender not be associated with neutrality at all. Second, in the mythology we get Ar-amu, a woman, as the most foundational figure, as well as the story keepers being called Grandmothers in general despite the lack of any apparent prohibition on men or 3rd gender ppl taking on the role. Point being, Fialleril has already introduced the feminine as the assumptive gender.

translating gender

This creates an interesting little translation tidbit when translating back to english, where if you said, say,

"Zeechev masabu Mos Espa sip. Shu masabu uumanu*," -> "A stranger is in Mos Espa. They are human." --an imagined statement about Qui-Gon Jinn in the phantom menace

*i decided just now that human, and most other species, are probably cognates with other languages in Amatakka, hence uuman is the base form of the adjective "human"

you actually are translating "shu" (she) in Amatakka into singular they in English. If someone actually knew Qui-Gon and knew he was a man they would use the masculine pronoun, conjugation and agreement,

"Qui-gon masaba Mos Espa sip. Sha masaba uumana." -> "Qui-Gon is in Most Espa. He is human."

Talking about Padme being in Mos Espa, you would use the feminine form if you didn't know her gender, and then continue to use it once you found out she was a woman.

For the plural, there's just one third person pronoun for all three genders regardless of the make up of the group being talked about, which would translate as plural they in english. It's "shun," which is obviously using the feminine "shu" as a base.

So going back to the 3rd gender pronouns, it wouldn't be incorrect to translate them (the subject pronoun is "shi") as singular they/them since those cover a range of non-binary genders in English, but because I specifically don't really want the 3rd gender in Amatakka to be associated with neutrality at all, I usually translate 3rd gender pronouns as ze/zir neopronouns.

disrespectful form

There is also the disrespectful form, used to talk about slavers (depuran) and other people who actively uphold the system of slavery, and (sometimes) people who are in keekta-du or depukreta type situations, which isn't gendered at all in the pronouns, conjugation, or agreement, though of course other gendered words are still relevant to those people. The disrespectful form would be translated to English as whatever gender that person would usually use.

"Jabba Hutt reeue du. Sur masue du Amavikke." -> "Jabba the Hutt doesn't fly. He is not Amavikka."

The reason I'm actually attached to the disrespectful form as a concept is because of the "sometimes" I mentioned with depukreta people. Specifically because it means that by the end of Return of the Jedi, where another Amavikka person might say,

"Darth Vader masur depukrete," -> "Darth Vader is a chain-healer."

Luke would say,

"Shi masabi depukretu." -> "He is a chain-healer."

Ergo his decision to try and redeem Anakin would be evident even down to his word choice.

inanimate objects

Oh also there's a separate pronouns, conjugations, and agreements for inanimate objects

Anyway this has been a lecture on gender and other things that function in the same area of grammar in Amatakka, according to me. i hope it all made sense. if anyone feels like asking me more questions about this or has their own opinions about Amatakka i will include you in my will

[xxxcertifiednerdxxx]

Boba Fett really is the biggest cringefail pathetic lil meow meow in all of Star Wars. I know Anakin was pretty bad, but at least a lot of his cringefail moments furthered the story of Star Wars.

i personally feel like boba has never really done anything that cool. This doesn’t mean I dislike him. On the contrary, I love him because he is a loser.

as a kid, he sees his dad get beheaded in front of him. So starts his journey to being pathetic and a wannabe killer.

Some time goes by and he tries to assassinate Mace for killing Jango, but he fails. He is still a kid, so I’ll go easy on him.

He works with Aurra Sing and some other bounty hunters as he continues to try to get revenge on Mace, but he wimps out on killing any clones which actually as I’m writing this makes sense bc they are kind of his brothers. Wow what the butt aurra that was kind of messed up to kill those clones next to the number one clone. Anyways more cringefail energy from our lil boi

Later he becomes a bounty hunter, and he is still a kid. Admitted he has become reputable enough to be calling shots, but from what we actually see when he works with Ventress, he is too overconfident and gets in over his head. Mmm there’s probably more stuff I’m not remembering from the clone wars but this is a rant at almost midnight so nothing I say means anything and death is inevitable 🤪

his big debut was in the empire strikes back, and he was cool bc he was a bounty hunter with awesome armor. Idk how far George was with the lore, so idk if he already knew boba was a clone and all the mandalorian stuff, but boba delivered Han to Jabba. Whoop dee doo.

I don’t even know how he got to this point, but I’m guessing he has killed enough people to be a poor lil meow meow now.

he then falls in the sarlacc pit like a chump.

I’ll give him points for surviving the sarlacc, and his time with the Tusken Raiders is kind of honorable. But still not particularly gripping. It’s like we are following the life of just some guy, which I guess is most of Star Wars, but this just Doesn’t hit the same.

he joins up with fennec shand, who becomes less cool when she decides to have honor (unlike everyone else, she was cooler when she was a work alone lady, but it’s ok, i love ming na wen, so fennec can never be ruined for me hopefully maybe).

They go help din djarin, which is a fun little side quest. No I still don’t understand why they had that whole tiff when he could have just said his dad was a mandalorian foundling. Boba does some more killing, some more lil meow meow type stuff.

then he rules Mos Espa with Fennec and doesn’t do a very good job, typical of our cringefail fave. Has a showdown with Cad, which is pretty cool if you like Cad, but he’s actually never been a fave of mine. Sorry

and uh yeah i think that’s about everything. Anyways stan our cringefail pathetic lil meow meow boba fett

[violetjedisylveon]

I had a crazy Star Wars AU idea, lemme tell you bout it

It's based on the idea of some Jedi lady showing up and having Anakin with Shmi, he's still the chosen one and it works cause he still doesn't have a father because they conceived through the Force.

And Anakin's Jedi mom is chaotic good sometimes batshit crazy force to be reckoned with. Just like him.

I expanded on the concept under the cut:

It starts with this one Mirialan Jedi knight, Imma call her Zelli, going to Tatooine to help with some of the problems there, like slavery and all that shit.

She wasn't sanctioned by the order and did this by herself, and she was just another missing Jedi of that time to the order.

Zelli got to Tatooine and set up in Mos Espa to get to work, she started scouting the city for anyone who would need help, obviously keeping the Jedi thing a little secret, and started doing some good work for the people there where she could.

Then she meet a slave woman named Shmi Skywalker and started to help her out with all that stuff and eventually wound up just killing Watto when she found him punishing Shmi.

So Shmi is free now.

And they start to work together to get more done in Mos Espa, Shmi had more knowledge of underground opperations by slaves and people advocating/helping the slaves out, and Zelli had the Force and tactical training.

They did lots of work together and fell in love eventually.

Stuff happens and they topple the corrupt government of Mos Espa and replace it with one of their own and the Hutts leave it alone cause this Jedi is a little crazy and they don't wanna mess with her cause she could destroy them. Zelli is a crazy chaotic good type of person.

The Jedi and Republic still have no idea what's going on here by the way.

Shmi and Zelli get married, Zelli is a Skywalker now, and continue fighting corruption on Tatooine.

They adopt some orphan kids, and conceive a baby with the Force and boom, Shmi is prego with baby Ani.

He still the Chosen One, the Force decided Shmi and Zelli could make the chosen one for it. The Force supports gay rights.

Zelli noticed that Anakin was Force sensitive, she wasn't surprised since she and Shmi literally conceived him through the Force, and chose not to mention it to anyone and do some basic training by herself with him.

So instead of being a slave, Anakin's parents are some of the most well known and wel respected warriors and leaders on Tatooine and they are awesome and loving and the best.

Tatooine is a lot better off by the time of the battle of Naboo, and when Qui-gon and co land, they are surprised by the change because no one was paying attention to Tatooine for at least twenty years.

The Hutts are totally gone now and an efficient, powerful, functional non corrupt government took it's place and the Tusken Raiders are valued and respected as the original inhabitants of Tatooine basically the entire planet wound up like Boba when he was with the Tuskens at the end.

Shmi and Zelli are the leaders of Mos Espa alongside a Tusken chief, Shmi got really good at politics, so Qui-gon meets with Shmi when looking for a hyperdrive, Zelli is also a very good mechanic and taught Anakin a lot of what she knew and they have their own repair shop in the Mos Espa gov building because fuck it, Zelli does what she wants, so they have a hyperdrive for sale in their shop.

It is very awkward when Qui-gon both notices that this mechanic-leader is a Jedi and knows who she is.

Everyone assumed she'd been dead for like, twenty-five years.

Zelli sells the hyperdrive and tries to get Qui-gon to leave before he notices Anakin because she wants to train him and keep him a secret until he's older.

Qui-gon does see Anakin, he was pretty easy to pick out among all their other adopted children, he's the only human-Mirialan hybrid so Qui-gon kinda puts two and two together.

He asks Shmi about him and who Anakin's father is and gets the he has no father bit from the movie but added that she and Zelli conceived him with the Force, so he still fits the chosen one prophecy.

He brings this up to Zelli and that Anakin should be taken to the temple and they argue about it, eventually they come to the agreement that they should see what the counsel says.

One of Ani's older siblings is left in charge of the shop when they go to Coruscant. Shmi goes with them too and when Maul attacks for the first time, he is fought off by Shmi and Zelli cause he was gonna kill their son for no frickin reason.

It goes the way the movie does, but with Zelli getting a bit of a scolding for all she did but they do agree that she did more in ~25 years than the Republic or Jedi did in 3000 for Tatooine and is clearly doing something right.

The Jedi decline Qui-gon's request to bring Anakin into the order, and Zelli says I told you so before offering Qui-gon, and maybe Obi-Wan, a place on Tatooine if they really wanted to help train Anakin.

They all go to Naboo and the Skywalker family takes out the battleship together while Qui-gon and Obi fight Maul(he didn't fight Zelli cause he's scared of her now, do not mess with any of her family you will not survive)

Unlike most of the Jedi, Zelli picks up bad vibes from Palpatine, and consistently puts herself between the creepy old guy with groomer vibes and her son. And since Anakin has parents in this au, he's not as susceptible or vulnerable to Palpatine's manipulation, he's got less trauma to be used against him.

Zelli and Shmi allow Obi-Wan to be Anakin's offical Jedi appointed mentor, but they still do stuff with him, so Anakin is less insecure in general and able to talk about his emotions and the crush he has on Padmé.

Obi-Wan basically winds up getting adopted by Shmi and Zelli and he just goes with it cause why not.

They were at the "secret" wedding of Anakin and Padmé, they shared it cause they are proud mamas, it's basically an open secret.

The clone wars still happens, Shmi and Zelli decide to have Tatooine be neutral, Anakin gets Ahsoka to train and she gets adopted into this crazy family too as Anakin's child/sister.

And Anakin DOES like sand, there's no negativity around it now and it reminds him of home and good things.

Ahsoka just moves to Tatooine after leaving the Jedi, Zelli conceived her to.

In rots, there is definitely a baby shower cause the Skymoms are very happy for their son and, Palpatine has a lot less to turn Anakin to the darkside with, so there's three options here.

1, Palpatine tries to take over, it outed/killed as a sith lord and the one who started this war and all the problems for the galaxy and, cause the Republic is already pretty ineffective already, it gets replaced with something functional and way better and everything is great!

2, Palpatine does get the Empire and executes order 66, but has no Vader so a lot more Jedi survive. Now the Skymoms, who now control Hutt space cause why tf not at this point, put all their effort into being the biggest pain in the ass for the Empire, all that rebellion stuff happens as it does, only now Hutt space is backing all rebellions and Darth Vader do nit exist and so Padmé is not dead and happy Skywalker family, minus Ahsoka for a bit, she's busy getting a farmer girlfriend but she'll join eventually.

3, Vader somehow does happen and so the Skymoms give Vader a scolding and talk him out of the darkside cause obviously this would kill Padmé, then Vader ends up crying for a bit cause he just killed a bunch of children. And the Skymoms give the biggest beat down the Sith have ever faced.

In the case of the second option, when the first order shows up, they pop out from Hutt space to again be a pain in ol Palpy's side and just hang around the rebellion giving thumbs up to all the awkwardly queer rebellion baby's attempts at flirting. Yeah I know they'd be super old but what the hell, this is already a crazy ass idea anyway.

Thiz is what happens when I have ideas and ni supervision or guidelines or not specific enough guidelines, I get creative and I get crazy and you all get to deal with whatever bs is the result. Ngl, this idea is a very fun brain toy!

[the-far-bright-center]

You're both right and you should say it. On a related note, I'm always so exasperated when people act like there was ever even some kind of 'choice' being made between Obi-Wan and Anakin in the first place. I even saw a post a while back where someone claimed Padme must have had a 'crush' on Obi-Wan in TPM. Um, how? why? As @good-call-my-young-padawan states, in TPM, Padme was a 14 yr old child-queen entirely preoccupied with trying to save her people and her world from the Trade Federation. She and Obi-Wan barely even have any scenes together. If anything, her handmaidens spent wayyy more time with him alone on board the ship while Padme, Qui-Gon, and Jar-Jar went to Mos Espa and met Shmi and little Ani. But even when they are back aboard the ship, Padme has a tender scene where she comforts little Ani who is cold and missing his mom. Nothing about Obi-Wan whatsoever.

Moving on to AotC, when the three of them reunite at the beginning it's clear that Padme is pretty, uh, 'taken' with Anakin despite herself ('my, you've grown', lol). And there is literally no reason to think she even 'notices' Obi-Wan *like that* at all. Believe it or not, not everyone finds Obi-Wan attractive. (Gasp, yes, it's true. I am one of those people. I think Ewan McGregor is absolutely brilliant as Obi-Wan, but I don't fancy him whatsoever.) And more importantly, why would Padme, a galactic senator, even be considering Obi-Wan as some kind of suitor at that point? He's a Jedi, committed to the Order. Just like Anakin is (supposed to be). It's only later when she and Anakin are alone on the transport ship that they have the heart-to-heart about how Jedi aren't supposed to love, and Anakin makes it clear that he wishes it were otherwise. Whereas Obi-Wan gives no such indication in Padme's presence, in fact, quite the opposite (he is regularly reprimanding Anakin's ‘improper’ behaviour in front of her). And if we take The Clone Wars series into consideration, then we see that Obi-Wan's affections lie elsewhere. If he were going to leave the Order for anyone in a romantic sense, it would have been Satine Kryze, but only if she'd 'said the word'. Since she did not, he remained in the Order. If Obi-Wan didn't leave it for Satine, whom he actually fell in love with while spending an entire year as her protector, then why would he even be considering doing so for a woman he only just re-met and who has shown zero interest in him (and with whom his own padawan is clearly infatuated)??

I am always baffled when people act like Prequels-era Jedi are just going around being viewed as potential love interests by other characters in the story. Sure, the patrons of the Outlander club 'check out' Anakin when he walks in, but they are merely sizing up his physical looks, not considering him as an actual romantic partner. The entire point of Attack of the Clones is that...the Jedi aren't allowed to love. Anakin and Padme's relationship is forbidden. Fandom likes to joke about 'haha, it's not that secret', but the whole 'forbidden love' element *is* crucially important to, you know, the entire plot of the story. Not sure how people just... forget this??

i mean obi-wan is cute and all but anakin is literally a demi god so 👀👀👀consider that the next time u wonder why padmé chose him

[padme-amitabha]

Anidala Week 2021

Day 3: Mythology/Fairy Tales or Favorite Touches

A Serpent in the Garden of Eden

This is based on Hindu mythology about two lovers named Behula and Lakhindar. Some aspects of the original story have been tweaked :)

Once upon a time, two seraphs in the kingdom of heaven fell in love – a love so deep and profound they would attract the envy of the other angels who served in the court of gods. They were Vader and Amidala, the most beautiful out of all the angels.

Vader was descended from the bloodline of the Father himself, creator of the heavens. Vader with his enormous black wings – a black as sinful as midnight – was the angel of death. He could be as beautiful or terrible as the person whose soul he intended to take with him.

Amidala was descended from the Sister, the deity of light, love and purity. She was the queen of the celestial maidens. She inspired all to follow her and was well loved by the citizens of Zion. Her soft wings were as white and pure as snow itself.

This couple’s union caused quite a stir in court and attracted the attention of everyone. The gods felt they were an excellent match and gave them their blessing to marry. They lived together in harmony for centuries and had many children including the twins Luke and Leia, who became deities of the sun and the moon. But after a while, like most immortal beings, they grew weary of living eternal life and craved adventure. They desired to be reincarnated and sent to Earth so that they could find each other and fall in love with each other all over again. The gods granted them this request.

Amidala, being the elder of the two angels, was sent to earth first as the youngest daughter in a well-off family in Theed. Four years later, Vader was sent as the son of a woman named Shmi. Shmi Skywalker was a middle-aged woman who lived on her own in a city called Mos Espa. It so happened that her family had been cursed and killed by the god of snakes and destruction, Sheev due to a grudge he bore against the Skywalkers. He had spared her since she was a child at the time, intending her to become his devotee, but the iron-willed Shmi vowed never to worship the god who had taken away her family.

Sheev, a vindictive god, was affronted by her refusal and placed a curse on her. Any child born of her would never reach adulthood. Shmi went on to have six sons and all of them died under mysterious circumstances in their infancy and Shmi suspected it was from snakebites. Which made sense, of course, since snakes were associated with the conniving god and it was said that was how he took the lives of people who incurred his wrath.

When she found herself with child again, she briefly considered giving in to Sheev. This seventh son was conceived without a Father and Shmi suspected a divine intervention. The child was born with stars in his eyes that reflected infinite wisdom. He was too aware as a child and emitted a godly aura. Shmi knew he was no ordinary human child as soon as she held him in her arms. With his unnaturally bright blue eyes and soft golden curls, he looked like an angel descended from the heavens. Shmi named him Anakin.

Shmi was fiercely protective of her boy and always kept a close eye on him. Anakin was not to step a foot out of their extremely safeguarded house. Anakin, naturally because Vader’s essence still lived inside him, was born with the desire to explore worlds and make a name for himself. But he was aware that his mother’s overprotectiveness came from the sorrows she had endured so he (mostly) remained an obedient child. He dreamed of leaving his house once he reached the age of twenty-one for that would render the curse null and void. 

As a child, he had discovered he was an excellent craftsman and a natural artist. He painted everything he had heard Shmi talk about the world beyond Mos Espa and even Tatooine. Sometimes, images would flash in his mind about a place where there was only happiness. These visions would also show him a strangely familiar face.

Anakin hadn’t seen many girls and most of the women he had encountered were his mother’s age but he knew she was the most beautiful girl in the world. He wasn’t certain she really existed and perhaps, she was just a figment of his imagination and he decided to bring her to life with a portrait. He deftly painted her big brown eyes, delicate features and soft brown hair. It proved to be his finest work.

Meanwhile, Shmi began looking for a potential bride for Anakin. She knew he was lonely and she knew she wouldn’t be around forever to look after him and Anakin had just turned twenty. He had been mostly nonchalant to the girls she had considered for him and spent an awful amount of time thinking about some fictitious girl of his dreams.

She went to Jira, the fruit seller, who lived nearby. The old woman knew every girl in vicinity and she had doted on Anakin since he was little. Shmi told herabout Anakin’s reluctance to marry.

“Don’t look so down, Shmi. I have good news for you,” Jira assured her. “I know about Anakin’s curse and it seems like we have found a solution. A month ago, I visited my sister in Theed and heard the most interesting news. The Naberries are devotes of Shiraya and on a recent visit to the temple, they have heard a prophecy about their second daughter. It is said she would never be a widow.”

Shmi rejoiced at the news. If Anakin were to wed this girl, that would secure his life. “Where can I find this girl?” she asked.

Anakin did not want to marry this girl. His mother had gushed about her countless qualities. Shmi believed she was as special as her own son.  She was well known in all of Theed for being wits, virtues and beauty. But he was growing weary of living life as a prisoner inside his own home and he longed to live a normal life. Maybe this Naberrie girl was the answer. He agreed to meet her.

All his initial reluctance faded once he saw her. It was her. The girl from his dreams.

Anakin immediately agreed to marry Padmé, who seemed just as much taken with him as he was with her.

On their wedding night, Shmi prepared a chamber for them and took every precaution to keep out any snakes that could slither in. Unfortunately, Sheev was one step ahead of her. He conspired with Watto, the builder, to sabotage their accommodation and leave a carefully concealed hole.

Anakin and Padmé were fast asleep on their wedding night, after conversing for hours about their shared visions and memories. The snake upon gazing at the couple felt a pang of regret and hesitated to bring misfortune upon the innocent young couple. Sheev then used his godly powers to compel the serpent and charmed Padmé to fall into a deep slumber. The snake caused the lamp kept next to the couple’s bed to topple and the spills of hot oil forced Padmé to wake and she found her husband bitten by the serpent. She took out the dagger she always carried with her and with she threw it at the snake, which caused its tail to be chopped in half.

Shmi rushed to her son’s side but it was too late. The poison was already in his system and within a few hours, Anakin was dead. Shmi was inconsolable with grief and so was Padmé after becoming a widow at such a young age.

As per the tradition, Anakin’s body was to be put on a raft and set to sail on the river as was done to people who died from snake bites. Padmé refused to accept his death.

All her life, she had known her husband would never die before her. She wished to be on the raft and accompany him. The people thought she had lost her mind from the grief. She waited for them to leave after the ritual and then sneaked in the raft and started sailing on the river. She prayed to the gods to not let the raft sink.

It was said if you went far enough, you would reach the heavens. And that exactly was Padmé’s intention. She would enter heaven and beg the gods to restore Anakin back to life.

The gods were impressed by her perseverance and put her through many trails along the way. Padmé, with Amidala’s essence in her, proved she was worthy and passed them all.

When she reached the heavens, the gods welcomed her.

“We are impressed by your devotion to your husband,” said Yoda, the god of wisdom.

“Then help me by bringing him back to life,” pleaded Padmé.

“It is too late,” said Sheev, ever the schemer. “You have taken too long to reach here. We can only resurrect him within 3 days of his death. You have taken a week.”

Padmé was heartbroken. She besought them to find another way for her to be reunited with her Anakin again or take her life as well.

“There is a way,” said Qui-Gon, the god of compassion, thoughtfully.

“We can make him a god again, as he was once. But he would be bound to serve another god for eternity. That is the price you must pay.”

Sheev was quick to step up and offer to be Anakin’s master and Shmi, realizing her son’s life was more important to her, allowed Anakin to be Palpatine’s apprentice.

Shaak Ti, the goddess of power, was impressed by Padmé and offered to take her in if she was willing to give up her mortal life. Padmé agreed without a second thought. Anakin was restored to life and he was euphoric on seeing his beloved at his side. He felt very fortunate on having such a capable woman as his wife. In the end, Padmé’s endurance and good faith was rewarded. The couple was welcomed back in heaven as gods, reunited after the adventure of a lifetime, and as the happiest of husbands and wives.  

[wonderlandleighleigh]

Sand in Your Shoes

Anakin goes with Ahsoka and Rex to Mandalore. Things still wind up sucking, but maybe a little less. 

Under the cut 

It’s a whirlwind until the fighting stops. 

So many dead. 

And having to kill his own men. 

Anakin Skywalker’s hands shake. 

Why? 

Why had the 501’st turned on him?

“You did the right thing, sending Rex and Tano away,” Bo Katan tells him grimly. “Getting them out of here, making sure they had a fighting chance. It was the right call. Where will you go now?” 

The throne room of the Palace is littered with the dead, but Anakin can only look at his own hands. 

“Coruscant,” he croaks out. “I have to go to Coruscant.” 

She shakes her head. “You should stay here. There are reports coming in that the entire planet is on fire, with the Clones turning on all of the Jedi. And the Chancellor has taken complete control of the Republic, calling it his new Empire.” 

Anakin blinks as Bo Katan pulls up the holonet, showing him the footage from inside the Senate. 

A deep freeze settles all over Anakin’s body. 

“Kriff,” he mutters, his shoulders slumping as realization dawns on him. “He’s the sith lord.” 

“What?” Bo Katan snaps. “If that’s true then you can’t go back to Coruscant. They’ll kill you.” 

“I’m not dead yet,” he snaps back. “And there’s someone I need to find.” 

She shakes her head grimly. “Fine. I’ll...I’ll send word out that you were killed in the battle. That the Clones killed you.” 

He nods, a numbness filling him. “I need to make a call.” 

***** 

“Ani?” 

“I’m here,” he says grimly. “Where are you?” 

“Leaving Coruscant,” Padme tells him over the commlink. “Where are you?” 

“Getting ready to leave Mandalore for Coruscant. Can you wait?” 

“No,” she says firmly, panic in her voice. “Anakin-” She stops and sighs. “I’ll ask Bail to meet you in the hanger. But do not stay longer than you have to.” 

“Where should I meet you?” Anakin asks, his brow furrowing in confusion. 

“Anakin.” Her voice is gentle and sad, and he knows. 

He knows. 

“I love you,” he says. “I’ve always loved you and...and I’ll find a way for us to be together. I will.” 

“I love you, too, Ani,” she says with tears in her voice. “I have to go.” 

“Padme-” 

When the line goes dead, he hangs his head in sorrow. He may never see her again. 

**** 

As promised, Bail is waiting for him on Coruscant in the hanger when he lands. 

But he’s not alone. 

“She couldn’t reach you to tell you,” Bail says as he settles the infant - not anymore than a day or so old - into Anakin’s arms. 

He gazes down at the little boy in wonder and grief. 

“She named him Luke,” Bail tells him. “Look, everyone thinks you’re dead. Padme is in hiding. You need to leave.” 

“The Order,” Anakin argues. “And Obi-Wan-” 

“We don’t know where Obi-Wan is,” Bail tells him. “Sheev Palpetine played all of us. He’s murdered most of the Jedi, and he’s got people searching for whoever is left. It...it appears that this was his plan all along.” A wave of sadness washes over the older man’s face. “I have to go, and so do you. If you stay any longer, the Clones will find you.” 

They say their goodbyes, and Bail disappears towards his own ship, leaving Anakin with the infant in his arms. 

“Luke,” he says softly. “You picked a hell of a time to be born, son.” 

***** 

Tatooine it is. 

Outer rim. Ass-end of the Galaxy. 

The great thing about Tatooine is that hiding in plain sight is easy, and he still knows exactly how to navigate this hellish place because it doesn’t ever really change.

He scores a few rooms not far from where he and his mother used to live in Mos Espa. It’s a little more spacious, which is nice. He stows his lightsaber, his Jedi robes, and his mechno-arm in a chest under his bed, cuts his hair, gets really tan really fast, and becomes Ani Naberrie, father of one. 

The local fix-it shop hires him in a heartbeat when he fixes a droid blind-folded in under five minutes, and he spends his days fixing small appliances and droids with a pouch on his back where Luke naps and watches the world go by from inside the cool, cavernous shop. 

This new life is...eerily like Anakin’s old life. 

But at least he is alive. 

And at least he has Luke. 

And somewhere in the Galaxy, his wife is still alive, but he can’t reach out to her, or Ahsoka or Obi-Wan. He forces himself not to use the Force. He’s heard rumors of inquisitors sent out by Palpetine and his new Sith apprentice, and the last thing he needs is to be tracked down with his infant son in his care. 

A chill runs down Anakin’s spine as he thinks on that while walking home, a sleeping Luke nestled into the sack over his shoulder. 

That could have been Anakin. The new Sith Apprentice. Slaughtering Jedi and doing Sidious’ bidding; enslaved to a new master. 

He wonders who the new one is now. He’d have heard if it was someone he knew...wouldn’t he?

***** 

Desert nights are cold, even with the little heater Anakin rigged up in the bedroom, and more often than not, he pulls his outer Jedi robes from their hiding place to wrap Luke in them. 

He’s a good baby, bright like sunshine, and Anakin is deeply grateful to have his son in all of this...he just wishes Padme were with them. Wishes he knew where Ahsoka, Rex and Obi-Wan were. 

“One day, we’ll be together again, son,” he tells Luke softly as he rocks the infant to sleep. “I can’t wait for you to see your mama again. You’ll make her so happy...and your Aunt Snips and Uncle Obi-Wan and Rex, too.” 

Luke gives his father a big, toothless smile, and then an equally big yawn.

Anakin chuckles softly, and then yawns himself. 

Tomorrow would be another day at the fixit shop. Another day with Luke in the hot desert sun. 

[madeofsplinters]

for the symbols ask, would you mind all of them that you havent yet done for vader? you have very good opinions on him and i would like to hear them

Aw, thank you! Although man that is A LOT of Vader headcanons left to do :D But I like writing random stuff about him, soooo... Sad:

Vader still remembers all the Jedi younglings' names.

Angry/Violent:

I mean, what in Darth Vader's life *isn't* angry/violent? Lol. The particular way that he uses the Dark Side produces a really fucked up feedback loop: he's angry and in various forms of pain all the time, which produces an energy he can channel into violence, which produces self-hate and further pain, which produces more energy. Lather, rinse, repeat.

A lot of Palpatine's work with Vader is simply about managing this loop and adjusting as necessary. Giving him enough outlets for his rage that he doesn't just combust where he stands and start breaking things he isn't supposed to; tormenting him enough, and giving him the tools to self-torment, so that it never quite subsides into peace.

This isn't the only way of using the Dark Side, but it's a common one for Sith warriors; both Maul and Kylo Ren use something similar.

Sex:

Disabled people can, too have sex - it just takes a little more creativity. Vader has plenty of creativity, as well as magic super powers. If he doesn't indulge in such things - which, honestly, in canon he probably doesn't - then it's due to psychological factors: a conservative upbringing and ascetic lifestyle, unresolved grief for his wife, self-hate, depression, not wanting to let anyone in that close, etc.

Anyways if I see one more "BuT hIs DiCk DoEsN't WoRk" post here on Tumblr dot com, as if that body part is all that sex boils down to, I may actually scream.

Living Quarters:

When he's meditating in his stupid lava fortress, Vader senses the Dark Side nexus underneath him as if it's a living being, a kind of elemental lava spirit. Sometimes he talks to it in his head. (Is it "really talking" back to him? Is he just carrying out a strange symbolic drama in his own head? Don't ask - if you don't intuitively understand how a spiritual experience can be both these things at once, then you're not on Darth Vader's level.)

His favorite thing about the lava river is that it isn't Palpatine. Vader of all people knows how destructive lava is, but lava is direct and straightforward. It doesn't lie to him. It doesn't play games on purpose just to jerk him around. It just flows on and burns what's in its path, and there are days when Vader finds that both relatable and soothing.

Romantic:

Vader has a weakness for partners who are older than him, brave, smart, outwardly stable (the insides may vary), have a cute accent and strong negotiation and leadership skills, feed him attention in measured amounts, and are convinced they know better than him about everything. Padmé and Tarkin (and Obi-Wan, for that matter) all fit this type...

Friendship:

I mean, Vader doesn't really have friends, though. He is capable of forming really intense attachments to a few specific people, and tolerating others because of their competence, but anything in between those ends of the spectrum? Doesn't really compute. Vader does not chill or hang out or make pleasant conversation, not a lot of room for friends here.

Even as Anakin, he was a little like this. It was harder to tell, because his social circle was a lot bigger then - there were way more people in the "would die for them" circle, and way more who he went out of his way to be nice to, even if they weren't exactly close. But all of these social relationships involve some kind of power relation. Anakin has masters and fellow generals and an apprentice; he has favorite loyal troops and a favorite droid; he has a Supreme Chancellor who is being very nice to him for some reason. These are all people he works with, or who want something from him; he doesn't really have anyone he hangs out with just for the sake of hanging out with them. Padmé is the closest he gets to that, and even with her, he’s acting out a romantic role in the way that he thinks is expected of him so that he’ll deserve her love. (And doing a bad job of it, because Anakin is awkward, but never mind.)

Anakin has a huge heart and many attachments, don't get me wrong. But I don't think he's ever fully grasped the idea of a social connection that doesn't revolve around one of the people involved being useful to the other.

Quirks/Hobbies:

(I already did a “workshop/tinkering” one, so here’s a “flying” one...)

Vader's special experimental prototype TIE fighter is in constant need of repairs because of how recklessly he flies. It's not even that he crashes into things - it's just wear and tear because you're not actually supposed to yank the throttle that hard every damn time you turn the ship, Lord Vader, seriously how are you not passing out from those g-forces.

Vader is genuinely confused why the techs keep complaining. Podracers are used to having to rebuild their entire pod after every race. By that standard, he's doing great.

Childhood:

Tiny little bb Anakin wasn't actually any angrier than normal, at least by the standards of traumatized child slaves. Like, he was about at par. There were plenty of angrier ones. You couldn't have looked at him, in comparison to the other child slaves doing similar jobs in Mos Espa, and said "oh yeah that one in particular is gonna have anger and attachment issues."

He did stand out from the other kids, though, on account of just being a weird little nerd. He built a whole droid and a racing pod by himself and his master didn't even make him do it! He keeps talking about how he's going to be a Jedi and fly all around the galaxy and save the planet and marry a queen, when everybody knows there are at least three good reasons why that's wrong. He thinks random customers who come into his shop are his new friends! Anakin is just... weird. Off in his own little world. The other local slave kids know not to be too mean to him because he will always help you out in a pinch, and he is really good with machines, but other than that, I dunno, would you wanna hang out with Mr. I’m Gonna Be A Special Jedi?

Shmi sees this dynamic happening, but there's not much she can do, except to give Anakin all the love and reassurance that she wishes he was getting from his peers.

Cooking/Food:

Idk the Wookieepedia says that Vader can eat nutrient paste out of a straw in his mask if he wants to, but he doesn't want to because it tastes awful. So my questions here are (a) considering everything else they have to do, how can the suit's recesses possibly fit enough nutrient paste inside them for Vader's needs, and (b) seriously we're how many years in the future and we can't even make a nutrient paste that tastes good? We haven't even hit on "bland"? For the Emperor's chief enforcer, whose personal care budget is virtually unlimited? Yeah no, I'm calling canon error on this one. He can't eat, or it's too much trouble to get food into him with the other life support, so he's tube-fed. That's my headcanon.

Appearance:

Vader is very muscular. (This isn't really a "head"canon? He's literally played by a bodybuilder? But some fans disagree, so, eh.) He was already tall and strong when he was Anakin, but the suit adds height and it adds a LOT of extra weight that he has to be able to carry around with him literally every time he moves.

His recovery process after Revenge of the Sith involved having to learn how to move again, with new prosthetic limbs and horrifying new chronic injuries, basically from the ground up, and having to do it well enough that he could sword-fight Jedi Masters to the death, and he had to put on a ton of muscle in order to do that.

Palpatine was very strict in the nutrition and exercise regimes he imposed for this purpose. I have a sneaking suspicion that steroids were also involved.

[capricornus-rex]

A Shadow of What You Used to Be (10)

Chapter 10: A Home Away | Cal Kestis x Irele Skywalker

Cal Kestis x Fem! OC

Requested by Anon

Summary: There is another! Years after young Anakin Skywalker departed Tatooine, his mother Shmi delivers a second child—this time, a daughter. Whilst the circumstance of the girl’s birth remains unexplained, Irele Skywalker has yet to choose the true path between those laid out for her.

Tags: Fem! OC, Irele Skywalker, Force-sensitive! OC, Anakin’s Younger Sister, Skywalker! OC, Darth Vader’s Secret Apprentice, Long-lost Sibling

Requesting to be tagged: @heavenly1927​

Also in AO3

Chapters: Prelude – 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7 – 8 | Previous: Part 9 | Next: Part 11 | Masterlist

11 of ?

The maintenance droids only needed an hour to prepare a dorm for Irele within the command ship. Not that she would need a personal room in every ship she boards, but it would help if she did in the near future. The human guards did not need to wait for Irele to come to, they barged into the cell, pulled the poor girl by the arm to stand her up and then drag her out of the prison block while she could barely use her own two feet.

Irele’s eyes have not adjusted to the changing tones and gradients of lights of each part of the ship she passes through. She thought she said the question “Where are we going?” when the guards only heard an incoherent groaning at the throat.

The way from the prison block to her new chambers was a ten-minute walk, if one marched faster it would have been lesser. Upon reaching their destination, only one escorted her into her room and sat her down on the bed—to which she immediately fell limp and ended up lying down instead. While she was out cold, a nanny droid entered her bedroom to tend to whatever it can in the quarters; it took its time, in fact, until the girl came to. The droid’s sensors picked up the spike from Irele’s heart rate from slow to normal, it briskly turned around.

“It is fortunate that you’ve come to, milady. The serum from the probe has completely worn off. Should you feel slight nausea, do not be alarmed for it is normal as well. I can administer some painkillers to you with your choice of pill or syrup.”

The droid is programmed to speak in Basic and had a rather lulling, female voice—perhaps the most appropriate if you are to manufacture and program a droid for nursing.

“Milady? What are you talking about? Who are you? What are you?”

“You are here as a ward under the strict order of Master Vader. I am HY-L33, Nanny Droid,” it brought its head into a bow, “At your service, Milady Irele.”

“Why call me Milady when I’m kept hostage here?” she sits up and examines the room.

“Oh, you are mistaken, Milady. You are Lord Vader’s ward,” HY-L33 corrects. “And I have been tasked to take care of your basic needs and whims, if need be.”

“What I need is to go home! I don’t like being holed up in anywhere!”

The nurse droid lowered its head slowly, it stayed like so for a moment; with a rather sympathetic voice, HY-L33 responds, “I’m sorry, but I am incapable of fulfilling that whim, milady. I would suggest that you make yourself comfortable in this new one.”

Irele sighed, knowing that she’s talking to a wall here. She gave herself time to calm down and breathe. She passed her hands across her face and sighed.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be lashing out to you…” Irele inhaled. “What are you called again?”

“HY-L33, madam.”

Irele quietly parroted the name, “That’s a mouthful. How about I call you Haylee, is that alright?”

“If it proves to be more convenient for you, milady. Although personally, I do adore the name you’ve given me.”

Irele hummed as she managed a small smile, she hinted the chirp from the droid’s voice, relieved that she found some company out of the droid in this inorganic, cold room, she walked around to get a better feel of it now that the serum from the interrogation droid has worn off.

“Say, Haylee, do you know where we are?”

“We are aboard the command ship Anathema, the ship is within the Ulgoro system, and we are passing by the orbit of the planet Yelen.”

“How far are we from Tatooine?”

Haylee ran a quick scan from her processors, “We are approximately twenty-five parsecs away from the said Outer Rim planet.”

Irele breathed deeply, her heart sank, “That’s so far away…”

The droid’s photoreceptors picked up Irele’s increased heart rate and temperature. The girl was manifesting signs of anxiety: shivering hands, failing voice, and cold sweat.

“You are suffering from homesickness. Unfortunately, I do not have the appropriate medication for that, milady. Neither can I administer any medication for you. This is absolutely natural as you have been extracted from your real home to your current location.”

Irele took the deepest sigh and made a mantra.

Don’t lash out on the droid, you just screamed at it ten minutes ago.

She told this to herself mentally until she’s calmed herself down.

“Yeah, I am homesick. I left my family behind and…” she trailed off, realizing that the last people she was with were her friends. “My friends. They must be all worried sick about me.”

“You will be well taken care of here, Lady Irele.”

“Heh,” the girl huffed. “No need to be so formal. Just call me Irele.”

“As you wish… Mistress Irele.”

“Droids, gotta love ‘em…” she mumbled very quietly, knowing how acute droids’ hearing could be—depending on the model, that is.

–

Fortunately enough, Irele is indeed being taken care of.

Ever since she was moved to her own chambers in the Star Destroyer Anathema, she was thoroughly pampered—more or less—than anyone else in the ship, aside from Darth Vader. Never has she ever been well-fed in sixteen years! The serving portions were generous and they were quite tasty, but she had her moments where the food somewhat reminded her of home.

A uniformed officer enters Vader’s quarters to report of Irele’s adjustment to the new environment. Most of the officers feared that they’re speaking like a broken record, reporting the same thing to Vader every week—they had probably imagined it vexed him to be hearing the same thing over and over; it did them little comfort when adding their own personal observations of her such as asking for seconds with her food and interacting with the nanny droid, since she’s still shy and cautious from everyone else on board.Additionally, she was not yet allowed to wander off alone beyond her room. So, by all means, she is pretty much a hostage still—a rather pampered one, at the very least.

“Has she stopped her erratic behavior?”

“Fortunately so, Lord Vader, she has. Perhaps about a week and a half since her extraction, she had become somewhat… docile.”

Vader paused. He had presumed it was the effects of the interrogator droid’s syringe, but surely during the time the nanny droid was tending to the girl, the substance has flushed out since. Realizing that he truly knows nothing of what kind of person Irele is—compared from his earliest reference of her—he sighs with a quiet frustration under his mask.

“Very well. We are right on schedule. Carry on, captain.”

“Yes sir,” the captain bowed and dismissed himself militarily. His true posture showed when he rejoined his companion who had been waiting for him by the door. He hissed, “I didn’t conscript myself to the Imperial Fleet to be a babysitter!”

“Be more frustrated when Lord Vader does appoint you the official babysitter of the girl.”

“She’s quite a handful, don’t you think so?”

“Temperamental, to say the least,”

Only Vader and the droid, HY-L33, know what’s in store for Irele. Very soon, the plans for her life under the Empire’s wing—unknowingly under her brother’s care, or the walking shell of him perhaps—will be put into play.

For many weeks, HY-L33 patiently watched over Irele—especially in the medical aspect—and a mandate was programmed into her that once a diagnosis of the teenager would show optimum by the end of three weeks since her extraction from Tatooine, Irele would be considered physically eligible and be subjected to training. Eventually, HY-L33 was the only companion she has ever had in this ship since day one; so in exchange for medical knowledge and advice from HY-L33, Irele repays it with stories from her homeworld of Tatooine, but knowing that the droid is under Imperial property, she was cautious of what she ought to say, and rather told her adventures she had done on her own or with a friend instead of her family life.

“It seems as though your rigorous lifestyle has contributed to your increased stamina throughout your developmental stage.” HYL-33 commented once while listening to Irele recall one job she did where she would deliver goods door-to-door across the town of Mos Espa.

“Yeah well, I had to work. Because if I didn’t work, that just meant, I’ll be sleeping hungry—or if I’m lucky, with a half-full stomach.”

HY-L33, being the medical nanny droid that she is, went on to lecture Irele that it was ill-advised to sleep on an empty stomach for it will cause ulcers. The girl politely listened and heeded the advice, until she calmed down the droid that she had been fine for the rest of the time she was growing up.

She had only been staying for a week and a half. HY-L33’s sensors indicate a lesser trace of homesickness and anxiety within Irele, her body mass index has not changed drastically at all since her food intake was increased rather than imposing an eating strike—a few of HY-L33’s references cite that most human teenagers are more rebellious, especially when it comes to being fed after being thrown into a stressful situation. However, this was not the case with Irele, which made the nurse droid’s circuits cooler.

Eventually, the three weeks were over. Irele noticed HY-L33 seeming to be in full preparation. She did not mind this, but kept a close eye, until she could find the right timing to ask. After lunch, Irele went to the bath by rote, and quickly dressed herself in a dark gray shirt, black pants, and low boots.

Irele could truly sense something different in their routine.

“Haylee?”

“Yes, Miss Irele?”

“Is there something new added into the routine?”

“Yes, Miss Irele, we are about to perform a full health assessment on you. Please follow me and I will escort you to the medical ward.”

This was the first time Irele had been outside of her bedroom. For three weeks, she had been holed up in that metal room with no one and nothing else but HY-L33—to which she had grown fond of anyway—and then she finally comes out for a medical check-up.

Along the way, she could not look into the eyes of the crew, although she perfectly blended in with her gray and black clothes. She was nervous and afraid of what they’re thinking of her—because she felt like she knows what they’re saying about her, it’s a feeling that she can’t explain but it still manifests in her. Eager to avoid the stares and attention, Irele walked directly behind HY-L33 until they got to the said medical ward.

When they got there, the interior of the medical ward was a little bit brighter than most of the rooms in the ship. The walls were still metal, of course, but it was a cooler shade of gray which somewhat eased the people who are admitted and confined here—instead of the intimidating dark grays and blacks on other parts of the ship. At the center of operations was a 2-1B surgical droid stationed by a medical bed; it was approached by HY-L33 and Irele, when the droid’s photoreceptors saw the girl’s face, a deep male tone started speaking in a monotonous, continuous fashion.

“Irele Skywalker, human female, age is sixteen standard years, height stands at five feet and three inches…”

“Okay, okay, I think we got enough of my vitals already!” Irele interrupted.

“Were you briefed of your purpose here?”

Irele made a side-eyed glance at HY-L33, who didn’t move at all, “I was only told I was getting a check-up.”

“Correct.”

The surgical droid cleared out what HY-L33 failed to when they were still in the bedroom. It started with the physical examination—taking down her age, height, and weight, until it pored into analyzing the fluid levels and vitals of her organs to see if they were normal. It was all strange for little Irele, but she held up and did as she was told. She wasn’t getting hurt by the droids anyway, save the one pinprick that they had to do in order to conduct a blood test.

From Vader’s chamber, he was receiving real-time transmissions of the medical ward’s database. Whatever diagnosis the droids encode into the database under Irele’s profile, Vader saw it all firsthand—every revision, every new entry, every number.

Midichlorian count: 20,598.

Seeing this number and then recalling his impression on Irele baffled Darth Vader.

This child has lived sixteen years in a backwater planet, with a high midichlorian count… and yet her sensitivity is dormant.

[wallisjewellie]

Original Obidala concept by Lucas

Hear me out on the original Obidala concept by George Lucas.

Having read it, three things are obvious to me:

1. Padmé is an even more powerful and precious character than she appears to be based on the traits she exhibits in The Phantom Menace.

2. She and Obi-Wan have a more central role in the original plot (both together and separately) than in the final version.

3. While Padmé has a rather significant and overt attraction towards Obi-Wan (who does not seem to reciprocate it, but certainly notices it), she demonstrates contempt and disdain towards Anakin.

Here I only present the parts which are relevant concerning the Obidala and Anidala pairings. For the entire text please refer to the following source: http://fd.noneinc.com/secrethistoryofstarwarscom/secrethistoryofstarwars.com/thebeginning.html

“Qui Gon did not enter the film until the Coruscant section and so it is mainly the story of Obi Wan Kenobi, an older, full Jedi Knight, who uncovers the invasion of Utapau (Naboo in the film), rescues the queen, lands on Tatooine and recruits a young boy named Anakin Skywalker to become a Jedi. [...]

Below is the collection of annotations from the CD-ROM. These [are] transcribed nearly word-for-word from the CD. Enjoy reading the earliest version of Episode I: The Beginning.

Before it was known as "The Phantom Menace," the working title of Episode I was simply "The Beginning." [...] In the revised rough draft, the [opening] scroll reads:

"It is a time of decay in the Republic. The taxation of trade routes to the tiny planet of Utapau is in dispute. Hoping to force a resolution with a blockade of deadly Star Destroyers, the greedy Federation of Galactic Traders has cut off all shipping and supplies to the small, peaceful planet. While the Congress of the Republic endlessly debates the alarming chain of events, the Supreme Chancellor has secretly dispatched a young Jedi Knight to settle the conflict...."

Naboo is known as Utapau.

It is only Obi-Wan who is sent to investigate the trade dispute. Qui-Gon doesn't appear until much later. Obi-Wan's characterization was essentially what became Qui-Gon in the final film, having many of the same lines and mannerisms. Obi-Wan is described as being about thirty years old and wears all black. [...]

Amidala's age is "hard to determine, but she is a young woman." [Editor’s remark: therefore NOT a child queen. Her age possibly corresponds to the age of actress Natalie Portman at that time.] While her planet is called Utapau, the people she rules over are referred to as the "people of Naboo." [...]

The actual invasion of Theed (or Naboo City) is more detailed in the revised rough draft. [...] There is more racial tension between the Gungans and the Naboo. Amidala tries to prevent Jar Jar from entering her ship. Obi-Wan argues and wins the point, but Amidala insists that the Gungan be kept in the droid hold. Racial prejudice had been considered a factor in the fall of the Republic for a long time. It was mentioned in the second draft of A New Hope, which stated that the founders of the Empire incited race wars. [...]

Upon Tatooine's arrival in the revised rough draft, Obi-Wan - dressed as a moisture farmer - leads the group into Mos Espa since Qui-Gon hadn't appeared at this point. [...] Just as in the film, Padme joins the group at the request of the Queen.

There are hints of a Padme crush on Obi-Wan. When Kenobi argued with "Amidala" about Jar Jar on Naboo, Padme was impressed that Obi-Wan was able to stand up to the "Queen". As they enter Mos Espa, she "gives Obi-Wan a long, adoring look." In Mos Espa, Padme watches Kenobi with interest and respect, making Kenobi very nervous.

Padme is well-trained in self-defense. Upon entering Mos Espa, she is grabbed by a creature. She hits the creature, causing it to double over in pain. This attracts the attention of the local merchants, and they clear the way for the entourage. Obi-Wan warns Padme to save her skills until they are truly needed.

When Anakin meets Padme, there is no mention of Jar Jar's clumsy antics with the little droid in the shop. Also in this draft, Anakin announces to Padmé that he will marry her someday. [...]

The dinner occurrences take place differently in the revised rough draft. While Padme, Obi-Wan, Shmi and Jar Jar eat together, Anakin is outside working on the podracer. Padme questions Obi-wan's decision to put their fate in Anakin's hands. She is obviously upset about this, and decides to take Anakin something to eat. [...]

Outside, Padmé thanks Anakin for helping them. Anakin admits that he was seeking a way to enter the podrace without losing his vehicle to Watto, who can claim ownership over everything that Anakin possesses. By this reasoning, Anakin displays more unusual wisdom for a boy his age in saying:

ANAKIN: We're helping each other. That's the natural way of things.

Padmé asks Anakin if slavery is natural too.

ANAKIN: Of course not. But the stupidity of many creatures is.

Padmé confesses that she has never met anyone like Anakin. Returning the sentiment, Anakin leans over and gives Padmé a kiss on the cheek. [Editor’s remark: in the concept art it is obvious that Padmé is taken aback by this bold act, pulling away with a surprised, wide-eyed look on her face. https://www.thethings.com/15-surprising-ways-the-phantom-menace-was-almost-a-very-different-movie/]

[...] Just before they depart for the podrace, Padme notices Obi-Wan staring out a window of the hovel.

PADME: You look like you're trying to solve the problems of the universe.

OBI-WAN: Only our own, but maybe they will become the problems of the universe. I don't know...

It appears that Obi-Wan senses that this seemingly small-scale struggle will have larger, darker ramifications for the galaxy as a whole. [...]

After Obi-Wan cuts down the Sith probe, he identifies it for Anakin. [...] Obi-Wan and Darth Maul are the ones to duel, and they exhibit much more Jedi powers than do Qui-Gon and Maul in the final film. [...] Obi-Wan discusses his mysterious attacker with Panaka and Padmé. Obi-wan suspects Maul to be a Sith, though they all agree that the Sith should no longer exist. [...]

The Queen exhibits the same disdain for "strays" as Obi-Wan does in the final film, but to a great degree. Not only is she not pleased with having Jar Jar on her ship, but also feels the same way about Anakin.

AMIDALA: Must we pick up every strange creature along the way? Our journey is most serious and perilous. The fate of an entire people is at stake here.

OBI-WAN: I am an agent of the Republic, and the boy falls under the same protection as you.

The Queen concedes the debate.

Qui-Gon Jinn's first scene is here on the landing platform on Coruscant, standing alongside Palpatine and Valorum. [...] In introducing Qui-Gon to his Jar Jar, Obi-Wan says, "He is my mentor and good friend.” [...]

Before returning to Utapau, Amidala, Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Palpatine, Panaka, and the handmaiden Eirte discuss strategy. The situation has become desperate, as all government officials have been imprisoned and food and water supplies run dangerously low. Palpatine also fears that some senators will continue to try and block Amidala's appearance before the Senate, thus stalling any action. Qui-Gon tells the Queen that both he and Obi-Wan have been assigned to protect her.

Amidala decides that she and her followers will attempt to retake possession of Utapau. Her plan is to organize the populace and attack the Traders in any way possible. Nearly everyone disagrees with the course of action, including Obi-Wan, who points out that the Naboo are untrained, poorly equipped, and unprepared to fight the droid army. [...] She then decides to return to Utapau. [...]

Palpatine tells Valorum of the Queen's plans to take back her planet. Valorum thinks the Queen is "very reckless" in doing this, but Palpatine says that she is merely "bold". Frustrated, Valorum resolves to "force the Senate to take up this issue before it turns into a disaster" for Palpatine and his people. This confrontation with the Senate, however, eventually leads to his removal from office by the end of the story, and Palpatine replaces him. [...]

The heroes meet with a small group of "Rebels" prior to the final battle. This meeting takes place in a hidden Rebel headquarters, and is attended by Anakin, R2, Padme, Eirtae, Amidala, Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon, and Panaka. It is also attended by the Rebel leaders Captain Autter and Captain Ural. During this scene, Padme steps forward and reveals, "The Queen has been using her surrogate on this trip." [...]

Obi-Wan and Padme agree to allow Anakin to participate in the battle. Padme invites Anakin and R2 to join her in 2-person starfighter. While Anakin familiarizes himself with the controls, Padme flies them into the battle. But, when Anakin spots the massive Traders' Star Destroyers, Anakin voices his doubts about the attack. Padme says, "We will disable them or drive them off. If we don't our ground forces will not succeed..." When Anakin asks her how such a feat is possible, she replies by telling him that they will rely on faith. [...]

In order to defeat the Trader's army, Padme and Anakin realize that they must first find and destroy the battleship responsible for emitting the signals to the droid army. [...]

Qui-Gon confronts Darth Maul alone when Obi-Wan is pushed off the gantry. As Kenobi hurries to rejoin the fight, the energetic Maul quickly wears down Obi-Wan's mentor. Eventually, Qui-Gon slips and is cut down. Obi-Wan and Maul then clash in the complex. Battle droids attempt to enter into the facility and aid Maul, but Kenobi uses the Force to "slam the door shut, crushing several droids in the process". [...] Eventually, the battle droids do make their way into the facility. Distracted by these new arrivals, Obi-Wan is nearly killed by Maul. [...] When Maul attempts to cut Obi-Wan in half, the Jedi leaps right into the midst of the battle droids.

Soon afterwards, Padme and Anakin destroy the primary droid control ship, and the battle droids in the generator area begin running into the walls. As Maul wades through the droids, cutting them down in his quest to kill Kenobi, the Jedi uses the Force to hurl droids at his enemy. Finally, they stand face-to-face.

OBI-WAN: Your style of fighting is old, but I understand it now.

MAUL: You learn fast.

OBI-WAN: You don't bother to learn.

MAUL: I don't have to.

Before Maul can act, Kenobi lashes out and cuts the Sith warrior in half. He studies his fallen enemy and says: "Learn not...live not, my master always says."

Meanwhile, Anakin and Padme spot on heavily-armed battleship, and believe it to be the command ship. They prepare to attack the pilot's tower, but the tower's deflector shields prove incredibly strong. Padme orders two pilots, Teeter and Potts, to attack the ship's shield generator. They are successful in damaging the shields. Then, while Anakin pilots the ship, Padme serves as gunner. Despite the heavy flak surrounding them, Padme remains focused on her objective. As the deflector shield fluctuates, she fires several missiles, which destroy the control tower and cause the chain reaction that obliterates the command ship.

[padawanlost]

Hi, sry this is a rough topic. Maybe bc Im not american I don’t understand the pov where people heavily like to bash Anakin for killing tusken raiders. I understand killing woman and children is wrong and no Im not getting him off the hook with that and I think he pays for it with his humanity in ep3 when he kills the younglings anyways. However, there are many who just call them “innocents” and I find that OOC...[]

[…] In the movies we only hear about how terrible and “monstrous” they are, and unofficial guide books shows how much of awful beings they’re supposed to be. Someone said it’s racist thing and again not an american so Idk about that, but the overall canon shows that they are indeed not so innocent adult or children alike. I’m just trying to understand where all the sympathy is coming from? Is it just another Anakin hate? What do you think? 

Hey!

Well, what Anakindid was wrong so many people hate him for it, that part is simple. Everything else, isn’t. I’ve seen peoplesay Anakin killed them because he was entitled, because he was “crazy”, he was afascist, etc. None of that is true, the movie make his reasons for slaughteringthat group pretty obvious. He did it because of what was done to Shmi.

However,what Anakin did was also textbook genocide. The moment Anakin slaughtered everyone who he identified as a TuskenRaider, instead of slaughtering only the responsible for the Shmi’s death hiscrimes evolved from murder motivated by revenge to genocide motivated by revenge*(more on this later). But, to be fair, that’s only part of story. We only seeAnakin’s real genocidal tendencies once he becomes Vader. Now, Vader was deeplymotivated by his prejudice against the Tusken and Tatooine in general.

 This world means as much to me as a speck of dust, and all its inhabitants might as well be dust too. As he returned to the Devastator, Vader considered the fact that Tatooine could be reduced to dust by the Death Star. He wondered if watching the sand planet’s obliteration might bring him any pleasure. It was a possibility he wouldn’t rule out. [The Rise and Fall of Darth Vaderby Ryder Windham]

Here is the thing: Anakin didcommit genocide and the Tusken did tortured Shmi. Honestly, I think the situationway too complex to label any of the parts simply as innocent or guilty.

People sympathizewith Tusken because they don’t like Anakin but, also, because the anti-TuskenRaiders movement was very real and widespread in Tatooine.

“What is driving them so close to thefarms?” Owen asked. “It’s been too longsince we’ve organized anything against them,” Cliegg replied gruffly. “We let the beasts run free, and they’re forgettingthe lessons we taught them in the past.” He looked hard at Owen’s skepticalexpression. “You have to go out thereand teach the Tuskens their manners every now and again.” Owen just stoodthere, having no response. “See how long it’s been?” Cliegg said with a snort.“You don’t even remember the last timewe went out and chased off the Tuskens! There’s the problem, right there!” [R.A.Salvatore’s Attack of the Clones]

The Lars family was being serenadedthrough yet another night by the lowing of many banthas. None of the four hadany doubt that Tuskens were out there, not far from the farm, perhaps even thenwatching its lights. “They’re wildbeasts, and we should have gotten the Mos Eisley authorities to exterminatethem like the vermin they are. Them and the stinking Jawas!” Shmi sighedand put her hand on her husband’s tense forearm. “The Jawas have helped us,”she reminded him gently. “Then not the Jawas!” Cliegg roared back, and Shmi jumped.Taking note of Shmi’s horrified expression, Cliegg calmed at once. “I’m sorry.Not the Jawas, then. But the Tuskens.They kill and steal whenever and wherever they can. No good comes of them!”[R.A. Salvatore’s Attack of the Clones]

The Tuskenraiders were victims. They were one of the native civilizations of Tatooine andthey were invaded over and over again for centuries. So, of course, they were forcedto adapt to survive and so also developed an understanding hatred of outsiders.And that hatred turned into violence and that violence affected both sides ofthe conflict. We all know what happens when a society invades another, and whathappened in Tatooine and the Tuskens wasn’t all that different from our ownworld. Their culture was “incompatible” with the invaders and, being outnumberand overpowered, they become the ostracized group (the savages, instead one ofthe rightful owners of the land). That created a cycle of violence thatresulted in many deaths on all sides.

Fearsome desert savages inhabiting the rocky JundlandWastes, Tusken Raiders are the foremost reason Tatooine colonists do not wanderfar from their isolated communities. Extremelyterritorial and xenophobic, Tusken Raiders will attack with very littleprovocation. They show no allegiance toeven their native world-mates, as these nomads have attacked Jawa scoutingparties on occasion. They have even gathered numbers large enough to attack theoutskirts of smaller towns like Anchorhead. [x]

The Tuskenwere victims, but that doesn’t meanthey were innocent. Understanding thereasons behind their behavior, doesn’t mean we can excuse it. Very much likeAnakin, you can be a victim and still be responsible for atrocious actions.

 Annie was [Shmi] comfort, her placeto hide from the pain the Tuskens had, and were, exacting upon her batteredbody. Every day they came in andtortured her a bit more, prodding her with sharp spears or beating her with theblunt shafts and short whips. It was more than a desire to inflict pain, Shmirealized, though she didn’t speak their croaking language. This was the Tuskenway of measuring their enemies, and from the nods and the tone of their voices,she realized that her resilience had impressed them. [R.A. Salvatore’s Attackof the Clones]

In Shmi’scase, they were not defending their territory against trespassers or securingtheir resources. There was no moral justification for what they did. The self-defenserhetoric doesn’t work here. There’re no excuse for Anakin’s actions but thereare no excuses for this cruelty either. One crime doesn’t justify another. TheTuskens being ostracized by Tatooine’s powerful groups, doesn’t make it alrightfrom them to kill and torture people. What Anakin did was terribly wrong but it’sobvious that his actions were motivated by vengeance, fear and rage, notmadness, racism or entitlement.

Don’t getme wrong, racism against Tusken Raiders in Tatooine did exist. But Anakin’sactions that particular night was not motivated by it. Anakin andShmi were victims of the Tusken. But that doesn’t make Anakin innocent. The sameway they had no right to torture and kill Shmi, Anakin had no right to slaughterthem. 

Anakin, too, had heard the voice ofQui-Gon, imploring him to restrain himself, to deny the rage. He hadn’t recognized it, though, for he was too full of pain and anger. He spotted a Tusken woman to theside, in front of another of the tents, carrying a pail of dirty water, and sawa Tusken child in the shadows of another nearby hut, staring at him with anincredulous expression. Then he was moving, though he was hardly aware of hisactions. [R.A. Salvatore’s Attack of the Clones]

Anakin had nothing against the Tusken before Shmi’s death. He and Shmi were one of the few people in Tatooine who were willing to help them. In fact,before Shmi’s death, Anakin risked his own life to help Tusken Raiders. As achild here is what he thought about Tusken Raiders:

The residents of Mos Espa, themselvesa less than respectable citizenry, hated the Sand People with a passion. Anakin had not yet made up his mind aboutthem. The stories were chilling, but he knew enough of life to know there weretwo sides to every story and mostly only one being told. He was intrigued bythe wild, free nature of the Tuskens, of a life without responsibility orboundaries, of a community in which everyone was considered equal. [The Phantom Menace by TerryBrooks]

“Master Anakin, we really shouldn’tbe out here at night,” the droid observed after a moment. “This country isquite dangerous.” “But we couldn’t leavehim, could we?” “Oh, well, that’s a very difficult determination to make.” […]TheTusken regarded him intently for a long minute, then slowly eased into asitting position, his wounded leg stretched out in front of him. “Uh, hello,”Anakin said, trying out a smile. The Tusken Raider made no response. “Are you thirsty?” the boy asked.[…] Finallyhe spoke again. The boy looked quickly at C-3PO. “He wants to know what you aregoing to do with him, Master Anakin,” the droid translated. Anakin looked backat the Tusken, confused. “Tell him I’m not going to do anything with him,” hesaid. “I’m just trying to help him getwell.” [The Phantom Menace by Terry Brooks]

That doesn’tsound like the thoughts of a person corrupted and motivated by prejudice. Andonce he left the Tatooine, his views didn’t change because here is whathappened when he met A'Sharad Hett (aJedi and Tusken):

As Obi-Wan approached the balcony, hecaught Anakin in the middle of asking astream of questions while the masked figure stood silently, watching thestars emerge over the vast cityscape. “You’re from Tatooine, too?” Anakin saidto his unresponsive companion. “Can you understand Basic? You might not believethis, but not too long ago, I actually saved a Tusken Raider’s life! I foundhim when I was out in the Xelric Draw. He was a bit bigger than you. Maybe he’sa friend of yours? Do you know where the Xelric Draw is? Or maybe your peoplehave another name for it? Did you ever see —?” [Ryder Windham’s The Life andLegend of Obi-Wan Kenobi]

Obi-Wan bowed slightly and said, “Iam Obi-Wan Kenobi.” Before the figure could respond, Anakin interjected, “Ithink he’s a Tusken Raider from Tatooine!” Pointing to the weapons at theTusken’s belt, Anakin added, “But he’s aJedi too, like us. Only he has two lightsabers.” Indeed, the quiet figureon the balcony was, by all appearances, a Tusken Raider. Obi-Wan could see hisown reflection as he peered into the red lenses of the Tusken Jedi’s goggles.“Please forgive my impetuous Padawan’s manners,” Obi-Wan said. “We welcome youto the Jedi Order, A’Sharad Hett.” [Ryder Windham’s The Life and Legend ofObi-Wan Kenobi]

Anakins, despitegrowing up surrounded by people hating on Tusken Raiders, was actually surprisinglyaccepting of them. He demonstrated no fear, no hate and no reservations, only ahealthy childish curiosity.

His viewsonly changed after Shmi’s death. and even then, he still managed to work with  A'Sharad Hett, who re-humanized the Tusken Raidersin Anakin’s eyes by removing his mask and showing him how similar they were.Anakin even confessed to Hett what happened in Tatooine. Unfortunately, after the war, as Vader, hewas too consumed by fear and hate to ever deal with what he did and change howhe looked at the Tusken.

To put it simply: the Tuskens were victims. That’s clear byhow some characters talk about them. But that doesn’t mean they are beyondreproach or are morally justified in everything they do. And it also doesn’tmean that what happened to Shmi wasn’t terrible crime or that Anakin killed thembecause he was entitled, privileged or racist.

Fans sympathize with the Tusken Raiders because they are were ostracized and killedby a violent and corrupt society that completely dehumanized them. And somepeople do try to make it all about Anakin and how Anakin is the worst™, whenin truth, the situation is much more complex than that.

The key here, imo, is to understand that though the Tusken Raiders were violent and victimized many Tatooine residents, they were also victims and have been victimized themselves. And that Anakin, though guilty of many crimes, wasn’t part of this particular problem until Shmi was killed. There victims on both sides, not many innocents.

[fialleril]

Hi! It's my birthday and I am full of Shmi Skywalker feels. I am absolutely fascinated by her role in Anabasis. Is there any snippet you'd be willing to share featuring her? If not, can you just spec about what she would be like as a mother-in-law/grandma? Feel free to ignore, of course, it's just that content with her is so sparse, especially with her actually alive.

Hi, anon! And happy birthday!

Although Shmi is a pretty important character in Anabasis, all of the bits I have written with her so far are...pretty bleak, tbh. At this point in the story, Anakin kind of hates her (because she sent him with Palpatine as a child, believing Palpatine to be a Jedi). It’s awful. I promise that they will reconcile and eventually have a very good relationship, but all of the snippets I could share right now would basically be nothing but pain.

I do, however, have a number of happier Shmi snippets from the Jedi Reformation AU to offer, if that interests you? I’m gonna take a risk and assume it does, so here’s the reunion scene between Anakin and Shmi in this universe’s version of AOTC. (With a bonus introduction to Theed’s Little Tatooine district, and some extra Threepio feels on the side.)

Padmé is eager to go home, but their first stop on landingis a visit with Queen Jamillia, who expresses her dismay at the threats againstPadmé, and offers her the use of the Varykino lake retreat for the duration ofher time in hiding, if she wants it. Padmé thanks her, but she hasn’t fullydecided yet. Varykino would certainly be more secure, but it’s also more remotefrom communication with Coruscant. And there’s so much she wants to do here inTheed.

And it seems that, during their three days of travel whenthey were on radio silence, another transport from Tatooine has arrived.Jamillia is watching Anakin closely as she tells them about it, and then sheadds, “There probably won’t be anyone looking for the Senator from Naboo in LittleTatooine.”

Anakin’s entire face lights up like he’s never wantedanything so desperately in his life, but he doesn’t say anything. Instead, heturns to her.

Here’s something that hasn’t changed, at least, Padméthinks. She never could resist that hopeful look of his.

Little Tatooine is a rapidly growing enclave in the heart ofTheed. The buildings here are old, intricate and graceful constructions ofstone, the streets still cobbled and dotted with countless fountains andgardens and historical markers of Naboo’s past.

The architecture is purely Naboo, but everything else isTatooine. The air is rich with the warm, spicy smells of amee and laara andpikot. Woven tapestries in deep reds and browns, blacks and tans hang frombalconies and windows. Vendors fill the streets, offering Tatooine staples andNaboo produce cooked Tatooine style, along with the specialties of a dozenother worlds.

Anakin stops and stares, and Padmé stops to watch him.There’s an unadulterated wonder in his face that makes something in her ache.

“This is – Padmé, this is amazing,” he breathes. “I’ve readyour descriptions, but this – it feels like –” He doesn’t say home, but hedoesn’t need to.

He’s gazing rapidly from side to side, even turning in placeto take everything in, like a child on his first trip to the market, and he’sbeaming as bright as the twin suns. Padmé’s visited Little Tatooine herself manytimes before, but everything feels new and exhilarating seen through Anakin’seyes.

Artoo seems every bit as excited, spinning in circles aroundAni’s legs and trilling out a string of binary too fast for Padmé to catch allof it. Anakin laughs in response, though Padmé can’t tell if he understoodeverything himself or if he’s just happy.

It’s good to see him happy.

She watches as his eyes flick back and forth between her andone of the food stalls, and she just manages to hold back a laugh when heblushes and stutters, “Can we –”

“Lunch sounds amazing, actually,” she says, taking pity onhim. “But not here. I know the best place in Little Tatooine. Come on.”

He looks bemused, but he follows her without question,through the market district with all its wonderful smells, through a park witha small pond, into what’s clearly a residential neighborhood. Now he looksdownright puzzled, but he doesn’t say anything until they stop in front of asmall stone house with a red wooden door.

“Padmé, what –” he begins, but at that moment the door opensand a woman steps out, followed by a young man.

Anakin’s face goes still. “Mom,” he breathes.

Shmi lets out a soft cry. “Ani!” she says, and then they’vecrossed the few short steps separating them, and Anakin’s forehead is pressedagainst his mother’s, their eyes closed, speaking secret words in a soft litanynot meant for anyone else.

Padmé steps to one side, letting them have a private moment,and catches Kitster’s eye. He shoots her a wide grin and mouths, “Thank you.”

Shmi pulls back and eyes her child critically. “You’re allgrown up, Ani,” she says, and if there’s something wistful in her voice, itdoesn’t show in her smile. “Look at you. You’ve gotten so tall!”

Anakin groans. “Everyone keeps saying that,” he mutters, buthe’s still smiling.

“Well, I for one feel cheated,” Kitster says, steppingforward for a hug of his own. “I distinctly remember us agreeing that I wasgoing to be the tall one.”

Padmé and Shmi exchange a laughing glance. Kitster can’t beany more than a few centimeters shorter than Ani.

Shmi invites them all in for lunch. Artoo follows afterPadmé, until he spots Threepio studying a datapad and speeds across the room toblurt something horribly rude at the protocol droid. Anakin follows rapidlyafter him, grinning and exclaiming, “Threepio! You look amazing!”

That at least distracts Threepio from Artoo’s ongoinginvective, and he turns to preen at Anakin. “Oh, the Maker!” he says.“Goodness, Artoo, you didn’t tell me you were travelling with Ani. And MissPadmé! I am delighted to see you again!”

Padmé watches as Anakin’s smile fades in surprise, and thenreturns a hundredfold. “Threepio?” he says, beaming, and then turns to Shmi.“Mom, you did it! You did it!”

“Did what, Ani?” Threepio asks.

Anakin laughs in delight, grabbing Threepio by the arms andspinning him around while the droid exclaims, “Goodness me!” and Artoo trillsin fond derision.

“You didn’t call me Master,” Anakin says, still grinninglike he’s received the best present imaginable. “Mom fixed your programming!”He steps back and gives Threepio a quick once over. “And you’ve got coveringsnow. Very stylish.”

“Oh, thank you!” Threepio says, sounding distinctly pleased.“They are rather nice, aren’t they?”

Artoo lets out a derisive-sounding blatt, and Threepio turnson him in affront. “Well, I never! How very rude!”

Artoo’s answer sounds very much like a snicker.

“I most certainly do not!” Threepio huffs as Artoo beginswheeling away. “Get back here, you bucket of bolts!”

Shmi looks as resigned as Padmé feels, but Anakin giggles asthe two droids disappear into a back room, apparently to continue theirargument in peace.

Shmi serves her famed tarmish, and Ani consumes it like he’snever tasted food before. They all laugh at him, but he just grimaces and says,“If you’d ever experienced the Temple refectory, you’d understand.” Shmi giveshim a wry smile and another helping.

She’s just returned to Naboo herself only yesterday,bringing with her another eighteen people from Mos Espa. There’s a fresh redscar across her left forearm, hidden by her sleeve until she insists on washingthe dishes. “Mom,” Ani breathes, catching at her hand, and Shmi places herright hand over his and whispers, “Hush, akku.”Padmé slips quietly out of the kitchen.

When the dishes are done, they really talk.

Padmé’s never been able to determine if heavy conversationover a meal is a taboo in Tatooine society, or simply something Shmi discourages,but when the tzai is served, when everyone becomes family in the sharing of thedrink, then there are no taboos.

“There was a bounty hunter,” Shmi says, and Padmé thinks ofexplosions and venomous creatures in the night, and Cordé lying twisted up onthe duracrete. “One of the Hutts’ people. Beru took care of it, and we didn’t loseanyone.”

Anakin’s jaw is tight as he says, “That’s good.”

Beru and her boyfriend Owen aren’t there right now. Owen hada scare with the bounty hunter and he’s finally managed to drag Beru off on avacation to the lake country like he’s been threatening for months, Kitstersays, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. “They’ll probably come back married,”he says with a grin.

“If they do, I hope we’ll still be on planet,” Anakin says,shooting an almost shy glance at Padmé. “I’d like to actually meet my sisterand her husband.”

“How are you here,Ani?” Shmi asks. “Have the Jedi changed their minds about visiting?”

“Have the Hutts declared universal emancipation?” Anakinsays with a snort, and then looks startled and a little embarrassed at theimmediacy of his reaction. But he doesn’t apologize. “No. I’m on assignment,actually. I’m…not sure how long it will last.”

He’s pointedly not looking at Padmé, and she appreciates hisattempt at discretion, but it isn’t needed here. Not with Shmi and Kitster.“He’s my bodyguard,” she says.

Kitster lets out a low whistle. Shmi leans forward inconcern. “The Hutts?” she asks.

“We don’t know,” Padmé says, almost at the same time thatAnakin says, “Obi-Wan is investigating.”

There’s a moment of silence, then Kitster says, verydeliberately, “You missed my graduation, Ani.”

“I know,” Anakin says. “You’d better have holos.”

There are holos, and quite a lot of them. Shmi insists onshowing them all, even the ones Kitster would plainly rather not have Anakinsee. The Kitster in the holos is dressed in the formal regalia of a Queen’sPoet, the highest distinction conferred in the dramatic arts. And there’s alovely dark-skinned woman with a thick cloud of dark hair standing beside himin most of the images and beaming widely.

“So,” says Anakin, his eyebrows waggling in an obviousimitation of Kitster himself. “Who’s this?”

Kitster gives him a scowl that’s somehow still a smile. “Hername’s Imer Moonspinner, and don’t you start.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Anakin snickers. Kitster is in formonths of teasing and he clearly knows it.

“I see you haven’tgraduated yet,” Kitster says, giving Anakin’s padawan braid a laughing tug. Butthen his face goes oddly serious as he says, “Still got the dep, huh?”

“Still got the dep,”Anakin says, and for once Padmé can’t read his expression at all.

Later, after they’ve left Shmi’s house and are heading forPadmé’s family home, she asks him what that word means.

He looks away and mutters to the cobblestones, “It means achain.”

Dep, Padmé thinks.The root of depur. Master.

“Does it bother you?” she asks in a whisper of her own.“Calling the Jedi ‘master,’ I mean.”

Anakin hesitates for a moment. Then he says, “It’s not thesame. Master means something different, for the Jedi.”

“That’s not really an answer,” Padmé says.

He looks up and offers her a smile she can’t decipher. “It’sa Jedi answer,” he says.

*

Owen and Beru do indeed come back married. You can read that snippet, complete with Shmi presiding over a Tatooine marriage celebration, here.

[jupitermelichios]

How I’d fix The Phantom Menace

So I kinda spent 2 hours in the middle of the bloody night fixing Star Wars. Specifically the prequels. See, everyone says the first one is the best of the three, and from a film-making perspective they’re not wrong. But it’s also the foundation stone of the whole trilogy, and in some ways the whole franchise, and as that it is an utter miserable failure. It sets up nothing except that Anakin exists. It adds nothing to the world except Gungans. It doesn’t work. So I rewrote it.

Opening Crawl: Turmoil has engulfed the Galactic Republic. The Trade Federation are exploiting discontent among the planets of the outer-rim, encouraging their rebellion in order to further their own ends.

The Galactic Senate endlessly debate who is to blame, seemingly uncaring that civil war looms. The small planet of Naboo is being blamed by many, after it was revealed that the King Consort has been selling illegal clones to the outer rim as slave labour.

We open in a courtyard of the Naboo Royal palace. The nobles and politicians have gathered to watch the trial of Prince Sci-Fi Name. The queen watches her husband led in in chains, and the charges are read. He is sentenced to death. We briefly cut to nine-year-old Padme, playing alone in her room. Back in the courtyard, the queen announces that she is commuting the sentence to life imprisonment, for the sake of their child and because he is her husband and she once loved him. The Prince declares that he would rather die than owe his life to Amidala Sr, grabs a laser knife or whatever off one of the guards and stabs himself. Cut to Padme, who hears the commotion and runs out to the balcony, looking down at her father's body.

Cut to Trade Federation ship, in orbit around an outer-rim planet. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are negotiating with Viceroy Nute Gunray (only he has a less stupid name this time, and also isn't a Viceroy because that makes no sense when the Trade Federation isn't a monarchy). Qui-Gon is arguing that the Outer-rim planets are obliged to obey the laws of the Republic, and that the Republic protects them. Gunray argues that the Republic doesn't care about them, and also if Naboo can get away with trading clones clearly the law doesn't apply to core planets.

Count Douku tells Gunray via an earpiece to keep stalling, but Qui-Gon senses that something is wrong and calls Gunray on his bullshit. He and a load of battle droids attack the Jedi, who are able to fight him off and escape to their ship.

Cut to Amidala Sr who is in a meeting with her advisors. They are discussing what can be done to repair Naboo's reputation. Amidala says that she will take her husband's place in the senate, but first she must undo the damage he did. She wants to go to the planet where he sold the clones as slave labour and free them. Her advisors beg her to request a Jedi escort, since they are in charge of enforcing law and mediating disputes. She agrees.

Cut to Jedi ship. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan receive a message from the council, giving them order to help Amidala since they're already nearby. Obi-Wan is disappointed to learn that they will be meeting her on her ship, rather than getting to visit Naboo itself, since he's never been. (The impression we want the audience to have is that Naboo is considered remote and exotic by the other core planets.)

Cut to Amidala Sr's ship. The queen greets the Jedi. Obi-Wan is surprised to discover that Padme is also there, but Amidala replies that it is important that her daughter see diplomacy at work. She also says she did not wish to leave Padme at home with only servants for company, and Qui-Gon offers condolences on the loss of her husband.

Cut to int. ship, now on Tatooine's surface. Qui-Gon explains that they have set down near the one of the largest towns. Obi-Wan offers to go into the town to ask around about the clones, but Amidala Sr insists they all go. They leave the 2 other people (generic pilot/guard redshirts) and R2 to watch the ship.

Cut to Mos Espa. The adults are asking about the clones, and not getting anywhere with locals who clearly distrust outsiders and Jedi. Padme is clearly bored, and drifts away to watch a group of children talking about Pod Racing. She asks what Pod Racing is, and they tell her that it's super cool. Then Anakin arrives, and the child introduce him as a star Pod Racer. Padme is impressed, and Anakin offers to show her his Pod. She agrees and they head back to Watto's.

Meanwhile the adults have found what they need and are now frantically searching for the lost princess. Eventually they find her at Watto's, just as Anakin is introducing her to C3PO. Amidala Sr rushes in, hugging her child tightly.

Anakin's mother comes in to see what the noise is about, and is surprised but pleased to see the guests. She comments that while most folk out here don't trust the Jedi, she was raised to believe in the force. Qui-Gon asks about her son, who is strong with the force, and she tells him the whole virgin birth bullshit. Qui-Gon asks to take the boy to train, and she says she would like him to have a better life but she can't sent him away because they're slaves. She also comments that she didn't think children from the outer rim could be Jedi, but Qui-Gon says that while it's unusual, it is the duty of the Jedi to take in any force sensitive children no matter what planet they're from.

Anakin says that it's nearly time for the race, and his mother tries to persuade him not to race. When Amidala Sr asks what Pod Racing is, she gets a very different explanation from Anakin's mother than the one Padme got – Pod Racing is horrifically dangerous, kills most contestants. Amidala Sr is horrified and asks how it is legal for a child to compete. Obi-Wan comments that Pod Racing isn't legal at all, but the Jedi don't have enough people to enforce the ban so it still happens.

Qui-Gon speaks to Watto (who isn't an offensive Jewish stereotype this time around) and tries to claim Anakin as Jedi property, but Watto says Jedi law doesn't apply here. Qui-Gon tries to buy him, but Watto says the boy makes him good money. Also he treats them well for slaves, not like slaves who do hard labour so why should the boy want to go. So instead Qui-Gon bets him that he wins Anakin if Anakin wins his Pod Race.

Cut to Darth Sidious telling Darth Maul that he must go to Tatooine. The Jedi must not be allowed to find the clones, since their existence could endanger the clone labs, which he has plans for.

Pod Racing scene happens more or less as in the original, but with Padme cheering Anakin on along with his friends. He wins, but is heartbroken to discover that this means he must leave his mother. They say tearful goodbyes, and we see Padme comforting him as they walk away. Anakin's mother makes the Jedi swear to treat Anakin kindly, and Amidala Sr says that she will make sure they do.

The group travel to the location of the Clones, only to find they have been slaughtered. The Jedi and guards are attacked by Darth Maul. The guards are killed but the Jedi escape back to the ship, but he follows them, damaging the ship. They are forced to make an emergency landing on a new planet.

Maul follows them, and fires on them but instead nearly hits a passing Gungan. Obi-Wan blocks the blast, saving Jar-Jar's life.

Maul reports to Sidious and he sends an attack force of robots to the planet.

Jar Jar comments that he's surprised a Jedi would save him when everyone knows the Jedi are bad guys who don't care what happens to people on the outer rim. Before they can respond, the first droids arrive and start shooting at them. They run away, arguing about how the Jedi don't care vs the Jedi are understaffed and overstretched and they're doing their best.

Jar Jar realises that he needs to allert the Gungan that an invasion force is coming, and since the Jedi helped him he agrees to take them all with him. They all swim down to Boss Nass's palace. (3PO gets left in the ship with R2). They are made to wait before seeing him, and we get a little bit of light-hearted comedy with awkward silence and Jar Jar being nervous. But we also get a moment when Jar Jar asks Anakin where he's from, and when he starts to answer, Obi Wan cuts him off to say that he's a Jedi now, and they have no home except the temple.

When Boss Nas agrees to see him, they try to persuade him that he needs to fight the Trade Federation bots that are arriving. He argues that they are safe underwater, and why should he care what happens on the surface? They will not be found, and anyway the Trade Federation aren't their best friends or anything but they trade directly with the Gungans, unlike the humans living on the planet who came to take the resources and don't pay for them. Qui Gon tries to argue in favour of the Republic, but Boss Nas and the other Gungan say they don't like the Republic because it abandoned them when the humans came. Then Amidala Sr reveals herself to be a Queen, and says that she will fight for the Gungan's in the senate and get the human settlers evicted.

We cut to the surface, where the robot army is searching for the Jedi, leaving a trail of destruction behind them and killing the human settlers.

Back in the Gungan city, Boss Nas agrees that he will help in exchange for Amidala's support. The Gungans will attack the droids to provide cover while Amidala and Padme go to the Senate to argue the case for the Gungans, and Anakin, Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon search for Darth Maul. Anakin and Padme say an emotional farewell and promise that they will always remember one another and will meet again some day.

The Gungan v Droid battle sequence is actually probably the best bit of the original film, striking the right balance of comical and silly with real peril. I'd even keep the bit where Jar Jar gets promoted by accident, because he's a useful character to keep around for the second and third films to provide exposition.

Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan follow Maul to Sidious's ship, they duel. Qui-Gon is killed. Obi-Wan avenges him. They find out Darth Sidious's name, but nothing else about who he is. With his dying breath, Qui-Gon chages Obi-Wan to train Anakin. Obi-Wan argues that Anakin is too old, and he is too young, it would never be allowed, but Qui-Gon makes him swear.

We then get a stinger scene (could be post credits if desired) where Amidala is telling Palpatine about plight of the Gungans. Palpatine tells her that she's more use to him dead than alive, and force chokes her. This is the first reveal of Palpatine as both Sith and head of the Senate.

The key things here are that we establish Anakin and Padme as equals, and as people with shared life experiences. She’s not his sexy babysitter he has a crush on, she’s a friend. Someone who has experiences some very hard things in her life, and therefore someone he can turn to and confide in in the second and third films.

The other key thing we establish here is the existence of clones and cloning, and we give Obi-Wan a reason to be obsessive about tracking down illegal cloning operations, in the hope of finding the people responsible for Qui-Gon’s death.

And finally, we establish the Jedi as both falible, and fading. These are really the twilight years of the Jedi order - even if Anakin hadn’t gone all evil, I don’t think the order as it is shown in the films would have survived that much longer. They’re understaffed and ineffective. With this version we establish from the beginning that Anakin as a slave from the outer rim has every reason to distrust the Jedi, and once he is one, more reason than most to resent them.

With this foundation, there is much less that needs changing in the second and third films, because they’re building on a solid foundation. Themes and characters have been establish. Jar Jar was only in the film for about a 3rd of it, so audience members over the age of 10 haven’t had a change to develop a seething hatred for him yet. Anakin and Padme’s relationship is something sweet and wholesome that the audience is invested in.

That said, if people are interested I may give the same treatment to the second and third films.

[swfanficbyjz]

The Knights of Adamas - SW AU

Hey guys, found another story I completely forgot about, but I wanted to share it. It’s a bit different from my normal ones that I try very hard to keep as close to canon as possible, but it still fits in with the story line a bit. 

What if Ahsoka was Obi wan’s padawan? And what if Qui gon and Padme had never found Anakin on Tatooine? (Also in this story, Anakin and Ahsoka are the same age). It starts at the Clone Wars movie time period to answer those questions. I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 1:

Ahsoka pulled the cloak tight around her montrals. This place was strange to her. She’d never been to such a varied and depressing place. She shivered despite the heat from the twin suns above. Everywhere she looked it was just beige; the sand, the buildings, peoples’ clothes… all of it. It even felt beige, if that were possible. There was nothing particularly remarkable about Mos Espa, but for the vibe that lived beneath the surface. Despite the drab surroundings, people actually lived here; they settled here, they made it home. She noted the occasional decoration intended to bring color and life to their houses.

 She knew little about Tatooine, except for a quick perusal of the datapad her master had handed her before departing. Water was scarce, the main source of it was using towers to pull it from the very air. The way the suns beat down on her made her wonder how they even extracted enough to survive. The domed buildings were dwarfed by dozens of tall white towers reflecting the sun. The city was dirty, pests and rodents could be seen and smelled everywhere. She brought one hand up to pinch her nose. Sometimes she hated having a better sense of smell than most. It was also loud. Merchants shouted in the street, spaceships rumbled overhead, eclectic music streamed from cantinas that were spaced almost every block. There was always someone shouting, sometimes you could hear fighting, or blaster fire. Droids and machines beeped incessantly.

 She’d grown up on Coruscant, the planet that never sleeps, but in the peaceful Jedi temple, it hardly seemed too much. There she’d been mostly isolated from the outside world and what it was like. And she didn’t remember much of Shili, her home planet.

 She kept one hand near her lightsaber, this place was dangerous, her master had told her. A hive of scum and villainy. A haven for gangsters, runaways and all manner of life unwanted elsewhere.

 As she scurried to keep up with his longer strides, she couldn’t help but take note of every detail and every face. As it were, she was always at least several paces behind him, constantly distracted by the sights and sounds. It was hard to focus here. A rush of wind threw the hood of her cloak back and she felt someone grab her arm. She jumped in surprise, turning to look at a strange looking alien with purple skin. Even though he seemed to walk on his arms with his legs up in the air, he was still almost taller than her.

 “A Togruta?” it slurred as though it had been drinking. She glanced down and saw several bottles tipped over on the table next to it. “We don’t get many of you around these parts.” It looked her up and down making her uncomfortable. Her master had told her not to use her lightsaber unless absolutely necessary; Jedi were not typically welcome in places like these. She tugged at her robe to hide hers. “You’re of fine stock though, well-muscled, able to put in a day’s worth of labor.” It breathed on her and she coughed, waving her hand in front of her face to clear the smell of its breath. “What brings a child like you to this place?” he asked.

 “As if I’d tell you.” She snapped. “Let me go.” The creature rose up higher.

 “You dare speak back to your new master? Do you know what we do to unattended children in these parts? We put bombs inside their head and force them to work for us.”

 She screwed up her face in disgust about to spit on him. But before she could, her master was by her side, waving a hand in front of the creature’s face. “You will let her go and forget you saw us.” He said.

 The creature released her. “I will let her go and forget I saw you.” He repeated trance-like.

 “Stay close, Ahsoka.” He whispered, turning his back on her again.

 “Yes, master.” She murmured, throwing up her hood and hurrying after him.

 She followed him closely through the winding streets, trying to not let herself get distracted or too close to people. But as they moved through the town, she started feeling something. At first it was just a tickle of awareness, something she couldn’t make sense of. Like a whisper too soft to hear. It slowly got stronger though. It felt like it was pounding on her senses to pay attention.

 “Master! Master Kenobi!” she called up to him, running to get close enough to tug on his robes. He didn’t act as though he felt it, but he must. He was far more experienced in the force than her.

 “What is it, padawan?” he asked tiredly. She was trying to be a good and obedient padawan, but she had been unprepared for just how many questions she’d have once out in the galaxy. He must have been unprepared for it too. She often felt his impatience when she got curious about things.

 “Do you feel that?” she squeaked.

 “Feel what?”

 “I don’t know, something or someone in the force. It’s strong.” She replied, screwing up her face in concentration. Quieting the outside world caused the feeling to hit her with twice the intensity, making her stagger in order to not fall over.

 “I don’t feel anything. Come on, padawan. We must focus on our mission.” He replied.

 “Are there other Jedi here?” she asked stumbling after him.

 “Not that I’m aware of. Jedi tend to avoid planets like this.”

 “But why? Isn’t it a Jedi’s responsibility to help people everywhere?”

 “A Jedi’s responsibility is upholding the rights and values of the Republic by keeping the peace and protecting the planets that align themselves with the democracy. Unfortunately, child, you’ll learn that in times of war, we must focus our efforts on planets that are of strategic value to us. Tatooine is ruled by the Hutt cartel; a family of vile gangsters that allow such conditions to exist and encourages lifestyles swamped in violence.”

 “Then why are we here to help Jabba?” she asked. What he said bothered her. Regardless of the politics of a planet, the people should still be viewed as valuable and important. She strongly suspected that not all of them chose this life. Especially after what that creature had said about what they did to unaccompanied children.

 “We’re here to broker a temporary treaty with him in order to use the hyperspace lanes he controls to move our armies. That is all. The situation here, is unfortunate, but it is not our problem.” She could tell by his tone that it was the end of their discussion. It didn’t make any sense to her. She could feel the suffering from all around them. This planet may not be valuable to the Republic, but didn’t Jedi have a responsibility to light and justice too? Even if those in need of justice lived somewhere that the Republic didn’t care about?

 She bowed her head solemnly and followed him in silence. She clearly had much to learn about what it meant to be a Jedi. She needed to put her opinions to the side and listen to her master. She stopped suddenly as though the force had put a wall in front of her. The feeling had hit her even stronger than before. Whatever or whoever she was sensing was close, and she had a hunch she’d regret ignoring her instincts to go check it out. She slipped her consciousness into the force, allowing it to guide her to the right down an alley. The path opened up into a larger market and she looked around, feeling for what the force was trying to show her. At first, the place was a blur of noise and movement. But then she saw one person across the way become suddenly clear.

 He was just a boy from all she could tell. No older than herself. He was wearing tattered clothes and he had dirty blonde hair. He looked up, meeting her gaze across the crowded plaza as though he sensed her as strongly as she sensed him. Even from the distance she saw the bright blue of his eyes. She stared at him in confusion. He was very strong in the force. His appearance was nothing remarkable just like the city around him, but she could feel deeper layers surrounding him. Her curiosity got the better of her and she moved towards him, completely forgetting caution.

 She was halfway across the busy intersection when she felt it too late. “Look out!” she heard someone shout and then she went flying backwards, rolling a few times as someone grabbed her and ended up tangled up with her on the sandy ground. She coughed a few times, trying to blow the dust away from her face so she could see again. After a few blinks, she finally saw who was laying on top of her. It was the boy.

 “Are you okay?” she asked him, touching him on the shoulder. He sat back, shaking the dust out of his hair and pushing it behind his ear and looking at her.

 “Yeah. You?” he said. She sneezed as the dust fell down to her nose.

 “I think so.” She replied. “What happened?”

 “You walked right into the path of a bantha and those things are nasty when startled like that.” He replied, getting to his feet and reaching out a hand to help her up.

 “Thank you.” She said taking his hand and standing up, brushing herself off. “You have good reflexes.”

 “I’m the only human around that can survive podracing!” he exclaimed with a laugh as though that explained it all. She had no idea what podracing even was. He seemed to notice her confusion. “You’re not from around here. Do you know what podracing is?”

 “Well I can guess about the racing part, but no…” she said stubbornly.

 “Come on, I’ll show you the one I’ve been working on.” He said. She followed him back to the shop he’d been working at and around to the back. He pushed a button to open a door, but it moved only a few inches and then stopped. “Kriffing thing!” he yelled, kicking the door and then pressing and holding the button to reset it. The door closed again and then opened properly. She followed him into a garage piled to the brim of seemingly useless junk.

 He pulled a cloth off something in the corner. It looked like a weird landspeeder. But the way he admired it, it must have been something special. To her, ships were just ships. He rubbed his hand along it as though it were the most precious thing in the world to him.

 “Isn’t it beautiful?” he asked, she didn’t want to say no. Not when she saw the way the smile crossed his lips and the spark in his eyes. She didn’t see anything particularly special about it, but then again, she wasn’t one to knock someone’s passion. Especially when there wasn’t much else to do or care about on this dusty world.

 “How does it work?” she asked, not trusting herself to lie about liking the cold machine in front of her.

 “Well it doesn’t work just yet. I’ve been working on it for over a year. But parts are hard to come by. When it flies though, it will be the fastest podracer the galaxy has ever seen. Here, I’ll show you the one I built a few years ago and won my first race in.” he said, marching out of the garage and around the corner to another shed. He punched in a code and this door opened smoother. This one at least looked like a vehicle. Although a very unsafe one.

 “Impressive.” She said trying to sound enthusiastic. “But you still haven’t told me what podracing is.”

 “Oh!” he said lighting up. He went on for a while describing all the ins and outs of podracing, the rules and why it’s so incredible that he can do it. To hear him talk about the danger though, she wasn’t very surprised that he was good at it. Jedi have good reflexes because they can sense things in the force just before they happen. So, racing through narrow canyons at outrageous speeds? Not a problem for a force sensitive. She had a hunch that he’d truly be an incredible Jedi, if only he’d been found early enough to be trained.

 She was suddenly sad, thinking what a waste it was that someone with his potential was stuck on such a horrible planet. 

 She snapped back to attention when she heard him say ‘master’, but it wasn’t in the same way she used it. “You’re a slave?” she asked, hearing the resentment in his voice.

 “No, my name is Anakin Skywalker, and I’m a person!” he emphasized the last part as though it were too easy to forget that. 

 "I'm sorry," she whispered. Why had the force brought her to this boy? Was she suppose to free him? He closed the garage door behind them as silence fell.

 "Little Ani found himself a girlfriend!" A Rodian boy called from down the alley. She blushed vividly and threw up the hood of her cloak. "Trust me, you can do better than that slave trash!" 

 "Like you?" She hollered back, fists curling into a ball. 

 "Yeah baby! Like me!" He said picking up a rock and chucking it in their direction. It missed, but the boy's friends also picked up rocks and started throwing them too.

 "Ignore them." Anakin said softly from behind her. "They're not worth the time. Greedo and his lackeys; just neighborhood bullies." She watched a stone hit him in the arm and he didn't even flinch. It made her mad, she didn't like bullies. 

 She turned facing the boy he'd called Greedo and his friends. "Hey slimo!" She yelled. "How about you come a little closer, and I'll show you what I like." 

 The Rodian puffed up his chest like he was all that, glanced at his friends and marched forward. The moment he was within range, she stomped her foot on the ground, twirled around and punched him square between the eyes. He fell backwards. "You're going to pay for that!" He cried. His friends charged in to defend him. She ducked under their punches, twirled around knocking one of them out. The other one she flipped over her shoulder. Greedo got back on his feet and she blocked three swings, stepped on his foot and kneed him in the groin. 

 When they were all on the ground in varying states of shock and pain, she said, "now run along and find something better to do." They obliged, she didn't have to say it twice. She smirked to herself as the one that started it all, waddled away holding his crotch. 

 When she turned around Anakin was looking at her eyes wide. "Who are you, anyways? And where'd you learn to fight like that?"

 "My name is Ahsoka." She said, "and that's not important." She looked down and saw blood dribbling from his arm. "You're bleeding." 

 He glanced down. "So I am." He sounded so calm as though this happened all the time. She wasn't sure why she felt such compassion for him, she hardly knew him. He turned and walked around to the front of the shop and she followed him. "I've finished my chores for the day, may I go now?" He asked the Toydarian inside the shop. His master just waved him away vaguely like he didn't really care. 

 She wasn't sure why she was still following him, he hadn't invited her to come along. But she didn't like the way he walked staring at his feet. His stride was long too, but he was walking slowly. Even though he hadn't spoken since they'd left the marketplace, she felt as though his pace was slow so she could keep up without running. 

[arielsojourner]

Vader Strikes Back - Part the 8th

Not beta read/really rough/not really proof read/plot holes and OUT of order.  Also spoilers for the original first story in AO3 Back From the Future: Episode VI The Clone Wars.  Check the tag #vader strikes back on my page for the other parts to this mess/fic outline. 

I am on a ROLL. Ha-ha!  This first of three major story arcs for this fic are FINALLY coming together even in this rough draft form! I may even have more to post in the next day or so. I have IDEAS! Such ideas, I cannot tell you. Let us just see if they actually WORK together so bear with me. 

Please note that we are jumping around in time. Not all of Part 8 happens AFTER sections of Part 7. The snippets in this post may seem completely out of order and they are. I will rearrange the order of the various parts when I finalize this for posting on AO3. So please don’t be too confused. This is just the order that my muse is interested in writing these scenes and there will be more related to this part. 

Finally, you may see some familiar hints of Tatooine slave culture and use of Amatakka in this section and future sections. I asked and received permission from the amazing @fialleril ahead of time to use some words from this language. They are just an amazing author. Follow them on tumblr. If you have not already, READ EVERYTHING they have ever written on AO3. I am not kidding. They are amazing! 

*

A month into the Tatooine campaign and Rex was at his wits end. He felt that he’d crisscrossed the planet at least a dozen times, been to palaces, mansions, cities, towns, and villages, (and places that had delusions and fever dreams of village-hood). He’d been to the race course, the fighting pits, just about every cantina and watering hole on the planet and he was still always ten steps behind Vader.

Vader moved across the planet like a force of nature, leaving a swath of destruction in his wake at the level of most planetary disasters. Rex had seen some remarkable feats of martial strength by Jedi and Sith alike, but nothing compared to this.

The problem was, with Vader always on the move, the clone Captain could hardly plan an effective strategy! While finding an organized Underground on Tatooine was a relief and a blessing, the Trail runners were not trained to follow the chain of command and had their own very distinct ideas of how to wage a slave revolt and revolution.  

(Rex never again wanted to witness unarmed civilians both young and old throwing themselves on the weapons of the enemy to open up a way for his men attack. He didn’t want to see slaves, knowing their transmitters were about to be triggered, using themselves as sentient bombs to help others escape. Rex could have lived his entire life without knowing that with an effective scanner, slaves would undergo invasive surgery to free themselves from implanted bombs with no anesthesia and little to no way to provide sterile conditions. Bearing witness  during one such surgery to test out the effectiveness of the scanner Vader had designed was enough to put him off food for days and he was a veteran of some of the bloodiest fighting of the Clone Wars!)

If only they had more support from the GAR, but no, he had to plan and implement the campaign with the scant resources they had. Things would be a lot easier if Vader would just give him some idea of his plan of attack so Rex could arrange for a more effective liberation effort. But Vader never seemed to sit still. Rex would catch up to him at one location, finish the attack and relief effort, turn to consult with the man and find him gone.

Even when Vader did not immediately leave a town or palace or farmstead, he did not seem to rest. He would wander out into the fast approaching night, like some sort of silent specter, always moving, never still.

(Some of the locals would whisper  . . . something as he passed by. It wasn’t in any language that Rex or even Echo recognized).

Rex knew there was a human man underneath that armor but since Luke had died, no one would believe it.

Vader didn’t sleep. He didn’t eat. He had not gone back to the sealed chambers he had aboard the Dauntless since they’d first made planet fall. Rex seriously wondered how long Vader could continue like this.

The only solution that Rex could figure out would be to move with Vader and talk to him as they traveled. Spying the dark cloaked figure heading out through the twists and turns of the city, Rex grabbed a datapad and his helmet and ran off after him.

*

Vader walked.

When he wasn’t killing slavers, he walked. His feet took him to many places. Many he’d seen before when Palpatine had ordered him to treat with Jabba on behalf of the Empire (one of the Emperor’s favorite sadistic games). Other places were remnants of his childhood. (The slaver quarters looked the same all over the planet. One weather beaten hovel was very much like the next. Junk shops and garages were ubiquitous.)

He was alone while he walked.

“I’ve never seen Mos Espa,” the voice to his left said in the growing dusk. “I’ve seen Mos Eisley and I’ve flown Beggar’s Canyon enough times, but I never got as far as this.”

Vader turned a corner and then another, halting to let some children run passed him.

(It was so strange that despite his mask, no child shrank in fright from him here.)

“It really is something, especially the race track. I wonder if they are still flying your old racing colors. You did win the Classic after all. Shall we go and look?”

Vader hesitated. To the right down through the market, passed Watto’s old shop, was the way to the track. To the left was the winding route to the quarters.

He turned left.

There was no one to show the flag off to anyway. No one living cared about such things, least of all him. But when he entered the old shabby courtyard of the slave quarters he wondered if he’d made a mistake in turning left, because the grandmother of the quarters was sitting and telling stories to a host of children who had flocked to her, children waiting and hoping that some family member may soon be free and come and find them.

Vader didn’t want to hear any stories. He didn’t want to remember. He wanted to finish this campaign, kill every single slaver and crime lord he could get his hands on and then leave and never return.

“I know this one,” the voice said excitedly. “Listen, this is the best part!”

Vader edged around the crowd and finally ducked down a narrow alleyway, the old woman’s voice fading.

He hurried forward not wanting to listen for a moment, only stopping when he finally reached a familiar door. It was so much smaller than he remembered. He looked at the frame and noted the symbols etched innocuously around it, easily mistaken for scratches and wear and tear. To those who knew how to read them though, they provided an access code and informed visitors that no one was living in the hovel currently. Vader went inside and out of a long forgotten habit, he shook himself from head to toe, trying to dislodge as much sand as he could.

The place was dark. The air wasn’t something that Vader could smell or taste but he was sure it was stale from long abandonment. There was no furniture except a few worn chairs at a familiar table, but Vader knew that behind a false back of one of the kitchen cupboards would be a hidden storage space with a few necessities if anyone was traveling the Trail and needed a place to rest.

He stood in the entry way, lost. He didn’t know where to go or what to do next. He didn’t want to remember. 

Which begged the question, why then had he come here?

“I think you came because do want to remember,” the voice said quietly. “I think . . . I think you’ve been keekta-du since long before you went by the name Vader. But you can remember where you came from.  Your feet know the Trail to take. We are desert people. Desert people don’t forget.”

Vader didn’t respond. There was nothing and no one to respond to.

He wasn’t sure how long he stood there in the dark until he heard a tapping on the door. The Force easily supplied him with the identity of who had followed him. He turned and opened the door to let Captain Rex and some of Luke’s students enter.

“Be sure to shake the sand off,” he counseled as he headed into the kitchen.

*

Anakin did not look away from the viewscreen but at Obi-Wan’s request he did pause the holovid, the image of Hardcase futility digging into the side of a mountain frozen in front of him.

“What do you want, Master?” he asked dully.

Obi-Wan paused, not sure what to say. Tatooine had long been a forbidden subject between them. Not since the very earliest days of their lives together had Anakin so much has hinted at his background or mentioned much of his past, (his nightmares about his mother’s death notwithstanding). Obi-Wan couldn’t pin point when Anakin had stopped talking about his past, but the words had dried up. Then the quirky strange things little Anakin used to do back in the beginning had ceased and his accent and way of talking had changed. At the time, Obi-Wan had thought Anakin had “let go” of the past.

He’d obviously been wrong about that as he had about so many things when it came to Anakin.

But things were different now. Things were supposed to be different between them. No more pretending. No more lying. He steeled himself and stepped closer and placed a hand on Anakin’s tense shoulder.

He counted it as a victory when Anakin does not shrug him off.

“I’ve received a message from Coruscant. There’s an emergency meeting called by the High Council. Do you want to listen in?”

Obi-Wan had been making this offer since they’d come to Naboo, breaking all traditions, rules and protocols by allowing his former Padawan to view meetings that should be shrouded in Silence. But it was more important now to demonstrate trust, to change the habits of a life time that nearly destroyed Anakin, the Order, and the entire galaxy. Obi-Wan may lose sleep over a lot of things, but breaking this rule was not one of them.

“It’s going to be about Tatooine,” Anakin said in a small voice, his fingers tracing the edges of the comm array buttons in front of him. “These holovids haven’t leaked onto the Galactic Holonet, but they’re all over the GAR servers. Every Jedi officer and every one of the troops have access to these vids.”

“Very likely, yes,” Obi-Wan agreed. He’d watched a few himself (just a few as it turned his stomach to watch, as all he could see was Anakin in the face of every liberated slave). 

“And what is the Council going to do about it? They’ve already sent Master Windu out  . . . hunting Vader.”

Obi-Wan shook his head. “I don’t know.”

Anakin turned in his seat, his eyes burning as he looked at his former Master. “Will the Council use Vader as an excuse to interfere with the campaign?”

“I don’t know.”

Anakin clenched his jaw. “You don’t know. You don’t know.” He stood suddenly, pushing the hand off his shoulder and began to pace. “He’s liberating the planet. He killed Jabba. He’s freeing the slaves. How is that a bad thing?”

“It’s not a bad thing,” Obi-Wan insisted, hoping to calm his friend. “It’s not.”

“Slavery’s supposed to be illegal, not that anyone would know looking at the galaxy.”

“It is illegal, Anakin.”  

“They why don’t you know what the Council is going to do?!” Anakin exploded. “This is simple. This is so, so simple. Slavery bad. Liberation good. What is there to decide?”

Obi-Wan hesitated but then pressed on to disclose the most damning piece of news he had. “Master Yoda’s message setting the meeting mentioned a petitioner from the Hutt Clans.”

Anakin visibly recoiled as if struck. Items around the room started to vibrate and rattle. Obi-Wan raised a hand, trying to calm him, but Anakin was having none of it. “So the Hutts are going to beg the Jedi Order to intervene and protect them and the Order’s going to agree, is that it? Slaves begging for the Order’s help, well, the Council doesn’t have time for that but when an emissary of that slime ridden filth comes knocking there’s a special session of the Council? Is that what this is? My troops and innocent civilians all fighting, dying, for freedom but because of politics, because Vader is leading the charge, the Order is going to help the Hutts?!”

Anakin turned his head to the side and let out a spitting curse in a language that Obi-Wan had never heard before, but was so obviously vile it resonated through the Force like a slap in the face.

“I will not support that, Anakin,” Obi-Wan said, trying to forget the mission the Council had forced upon his student-- the rescue of Jabba’s son, the securing of Hutt hyperspace lanes for the war effort, (a sham war, a fake conflict orchestrated by a Sith, where he and other Jedi had compromised and compromised until there was nearly nothing left that made them Jedi to begin with).  “Listen to me, I will not support the Hutts.”

Anakin looked at him, eyes searching his face, his feelings searching the Force. 

(Anakin was checking. Obi-Wan hadn’t realized it before. He’d seen Anakin do this throughout his years of teaching him, but until recently Obi-Wan had never put two and two together. He thought his former Padawan was sulky and silent, and at times arrogant. Now Obi-Wan could see what before he never could. Anakin was checking to see if Obi-Wan was lying).

Obi-Wan was not lying. He was done with lying, no matter how painful it was.

Because he’d seen the consequences of lying that day the twins were born and Palpatine was defeated. 

He never wanted to see Anakin that close to Falling ever again. 

(He never wanted to see Anakin become the tortured violent shell of a man that was Vader.)

Anakin must have found him to be sincere because he did not turn his still visible anger against his brother. “And if the Council decides to help the Hutts retake Tatooine anyway?” he asked bitterly.

“They better not,” Padme’s interjected sharply. She entered the room and handed Anakin one of the twins to carry without a by your leave.

Immediately, everything in the room stilled, the cloud of anger evaporated like morning fog as Anakin cradled Leia in his arms.  

Obi-Wan blinked at the sudden lifting of Anakin’s spirits. Nothing and no technique Obi-Wan had ever taught him (or that Anakin had taught himself) had ever worked as well to ground Anakin in the light like his children. It was awe inspiring each time Obi-Wan witnessed it.

But Padme was still talking and her tone of command was quick to refocus Obi-Wan’s thoughts. “I’ve already conferred with Satine and Bail on this. The Republic will not get involved in Tatooine.  I can’t convince them to officially help given the current precarious political and economic knife’s edge we find ourselves on, especially with the Accords not finalized, but the Republic won’t interfere. We won’t provide aide to the Hutts to stop the liberation. When Vader manages to secure the planet, reconstruction funding and resources will be available through the League’s free market. That much I can do. But you make sure you tell them that, Obi-Wan,” she said, rocking Luke in her arms. “You tell the Council that if they back the Hutts to undo all the good that is happening on Tatooine I will personally see to it that each and every one of them regret it until their dying day,” she said with a finality of a death knell.  “In the most legal and ethically way possible, of course,” she added after a beat of stunned silence.

“Of course,” Obi-Wan echoed weakly, more than a little unnerved. Sometimes he forgot that at 14 Padme had ruled a planet and fought a war to protect it from the Trade Federation (no doubt to Palpatine’s total consternation, he realized with bitter remembrance and hindsight). He really shouldn’t forget that. He spared a glance over to Anakin, who had managed to take his eyes off his daughter’s face to gaze at his terrifying wife with stars in his eyes. (As per usual, Anakin was largely useless in curbing the Senator’s more vicious tendencies and obviously found them to be a wildly attractive quality.) “Well,” he said shaking himself. “I’d best comm the Council.”

Padme nodded and then she and Anakin took a seat on the couch out of holocamera range to watch.

Obi-Wan took his seat and a deep breath, and activated the comm system.

*

[miriannemiri]

Krayt’s Bargain, Part 4

Continuing on to actually meeting Leia.  And her reaction to this situation, of course.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

For all that Bestine was what passed for a capital on Tatooine, the greater official presence was in either Mos Eisley or Mos Espa, depending on where there had been more trouble recently.  Those were the ports that criminals headed through.  While the official outpost was in Bestine, few troops were posted there.  Besides, it was close to Jabba’s Palace, and much as Vader hated it, the Hutts did have an arrangement with the Empire.

Bestine was also the closest thing to a luxury destination the desert planet had.  It had a nice place to stay, at least, and Vader had booked the suite where he and Luke waited.  Rather, he’d sent Veers in civilian clothes to book the room; Vader had no intention of letting the irritating Princess find out he was on the planet until she was already in the room.  Bringing Veers into the secrets surrounding this trip had been a risk but a minimal one; he knew he held the general’s loyalty.

Now, Veers was keeping watch somewhere nearby, waiting for what would come of this meeting.

In the suite, Luke was pacing the sitting room.  Vader was sitting in a shadowed corner, out of easy sight with his respirator set to stealth mode.  Normally, he couldn’t leave it that way for an extended period; it was slightly less effective, and the loss of support got very painful all too quickly and would eventually be dangerous.  Now, however. . .

Much as he disliked admitting it, calling on the Light side of the Force had helped him somehow.  Oh, he wasn’t healed, could no more do without the life support the suit offered than he could have right after Mustafar, but the fight to breathe was a little less painful, a little less of a struggle.  The respirator didn’t have to work quite so hard to force air into his ruined lungs.

The decrease in pain, from even such a small change, was staggering.

He doubted it would ever be enough to free him of dependence on a respirator, but he’d take any improvement he could get after more than twenty years of nothing but bad news where his health was concerned.

Especially now, when he actually had someone to live for.

Though he’d tried, twice, to get Luke to calm down a bit, it hadn’t worked.  In fact, reminding Luke he was there seemed to make the boy’s nerves worse, so he’d stopped trying.  He wasn’t quite willing to offer to leave, much as he disliked seeing the child so upset.

Yoda was back at the estate, much to the old Jedi’s dismay.  He hadn’t wanted to let them leave without his supervision, but the medical droid’s report had dictated that he needed to spend at least a week under care for a late stage illness.  With that care, it was curable.  Without it, the illness would be terminal.  Vader had refused any arguments to come after getting that information, and they’d all known that putting off this meeting too long would only make it more difficult.

Yoda had, eventually, been convinced.  Or at least had conceded that he wasn’t going to win the fight that would be necessary to convince Vader otherwise.  Vader suspected that watching him train his son, in purely Light side techniques and while drawing on the Light himself, had been a big contributing factor to Yoda’s eventual agreement.  He knew it was not something the Order thought a Sith capable of—he’d believed the same, once.  Only his Oath had pushed him to try.

Vader hadn’t said it, but he was relieved Yoda had agreed for more than just keeping the old master alive for his son’s sake.  This meeting was going to be unpleasant enough.

And a knock at the door warned that it was time.  Vader sank further into the shadows in his corner.  Luke had frozen at the sound.  Now, he shot one half-frantic glance over his shoulder at Vader.

Go on, Kraytling.

Luke nodded, started for the door, and froze again.  His expression this time was more incredulous than the near panic it had been a moment ago.  Then he shook his head and walked over to open the door.

Vader felt his mouth curve in a small smirk.

“Leia!” Luke grabbed her and hugged her as soon as he got the door open.  

Contrary to Imperial rumors, Vader sensed no hint of romantic feelings between them.  He wasn’t sure what to make of that revelation.

“Come in,” Luke continued.

“What’s this about a new plan?” the princess demanded once she was inside the room with the door shut behind her.  “Chewie and the droids are on the Falcon, and Lando says everything’s ready at Jabba’s Palace.  Isn’t it a bit late in the planning for you to change everything up?”

“I have a new ally,” the child said slowly.  Vader could feel the boy choosing every word.  “One who will make rescuing Han go far more smoothly than the original plan.”

“You met someone who wants to join the Rebellion on your last mission?”

Vader’s eyes narrowed, but Luke was already shaking his head.

“No,” Luke said.  “He’s allied to me, not the Rebellion.  He is, like me, from Tatooine.  On this planet, there’s a custom of a type of binding pact, one that you don’t break.  The cultural consequences are. . .unpleasant.  I tricked him into such a pact, and he considers it as binding as I do, though I didn’t expect all the consequences.”

The princess’s eyes narrowed.  “Who is this person?  What aren’t you telling me?”

“This isn’t a trap.  I haven’t betrayed you.  I swear it.”

“That isn’t making me feel better.”

Luke flinched.

“I believe you,” Leia said with a sigh.  “You know I trust you.”

When Luke took a deep breath and a step back from her, Vader adjusted his respirator back to its standard configuration.  The controls were not designed for him to use with ease, but the Force compensated.  He watched both his child and the princess stiffen at the sound that carried through the room.

“Vader.”

“Your Highness.”

She straightened with all the imperious, regal bearing she’d carried in the Senate—or at a court gala.  “What is happening here?” she asked, voice icy.

“The boy told you that.  He tricked me into a pact that is culturally binding for both of us, leaving us as tentative allies.”

The princess’s eyes narrowed.  “He also said that both he and his ‘new ally’ are from Tatooine.  Luke, I knew.  You, I find difficult to believe.”

“Hard to believe or not, it is the truth.”

She took a half step back, eyes wide at that simple answer.  “But you’re—I mean, everyone thinks you’re a former Jedi.”

Luke tensed, but Vader merely rolled his eyes behind his mask.  He’d heard that rumor for years.  “Your point?”

“Jedi were raised in the Order.  Are you lying to Luke?”

“He isn’t,” Luke said immediately.  “I’d sense it.”  Though he did glance at Vader with a frown.  I take it that you had a childhood outside the Order wasn’t typical?

Yoda and Obi-Wan have told you nothing, then.  He looked back at the princess.  “I am not lying, as he says.  Your friend is quite sensitive to the Force.  He would know.”

“Then how?  And how would Luke know?  He’s never mentioned it.”

Vader hesitated.  He would not be the one to reveal their shared blood if his son didn’t want her to know of it.

But Luke took a deep breath.  “I found out at Bespin.  He told me, when he told me why he was really chasing me.  But I’d always known he spent his childhood on Tatooine.  I just didn’t connect the knowledge to Vader.  You’re right that he’s a former Jedi, by the way.  Obi-Wan’s old student.  And partner.”  He met the princess’s eyes.  “He’s my father.”

Her eyes widened.  She took a deep breath.  A second one.  “All right.  Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker.  Is Darth Vader.”

Though Vader tensed at the sound of his old name, he stifled any response.

“That does explain the shared Tatooine heritage,” she continued after a moment.  “And that you let yourself get tricked into such a pact.”

“My son’s life was at stake,” Vader said quietly.  “I do not consider this pact too great a price to pay.”

“I’m surprised you care.”

Vader stalked forward a step, furious with the arrogant, condescending princess.  “I thought he was dead for twenty years.  When I found out, I pursued him.  But our familial matters are hardly your concern, Your Highness.”

Her chin went up, but she nodded after a moment.  “Fine.  What are the stipulations of this pact?”

“The first one was simple,” Luke said.  “He swore he wouldn’t let me fall.  It was the only way I’d let him pull me up, when I was at risk of literally falling to my death.  But I meant more than just a fall to my death.  I also meant a Fall to the Dark side.  And Father knows it.”

Though Organa flinched at the honorific Luke used, she kept the reaction off her face.  She was very much a politician, and she also latched onto the part of that pact that was causing the current situation.  A situation Vader no longer considered a problem, as such, but was sure would still be considered one at best in the princess’s eyes.

“‘Let,’ you said?” she asked sharply.

“Let,” Vader confirmed.  “I will not break our bargain.  I told Luke as much.”

“He insisted we talk but gave his word he wouldn’t hold me.”

“But you’re still with him?”

“We did talk.  We negotiated, to be precise.  Father is the one who gave his word, but I would not be the one to force him to break that pact without cause.  That is not as culturally prohibited as Father breaking his word would be, but it still. . .isn’t done.”

“I find it hard to believe a cultural imperative from an Outer Rim planet you haven’t lived on in decades is so binding to you, of all people, Lord Vader.”

“I came to the Order late,” Vader said coldly.  “My childhood was on Tatooine.  Cultural imperatives learned in childhood are not so easily set aside.”

“All right, fine.  I may not understand the cultural imperatives or approve of this situation, but I recognize that a shared cultural background seems to have led here.  Luke said you negotiated.  I take it your presence here on Tatooine is a result of that negotiation?”

“My son wanted your scoundrel rescued.  That is one of my concessions, in return for his agreement to let me train him.”  He held up a hand when the princess bristled.  “In the Light side, Your Highness.  Give him more credit than that.  As you have long suspected and now have confirmed, I have Jedi training.  Between that and the Jedi Master Luke trained under after Hoth, we will manage.”

The princess planted her fists on her hips and glared up at Vader.  “What other terms did the two of you agree to, then?”

“I agreed to stay with him.  Well, on his estate when he’s busy; I’m not going to live on his Star Destroyer.  I’m free to come and go as I please, though I agreed to tell him before I leave, and you, Han, Chewie, and the droids will be welcome to come and go as well.  He and Yoda will both train me.”

The princess looked between Luke and Vader for a moment.  Luke wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and she accepted the gesture for a moment.  Then she stepped away and glided to the table by the window.  She sat down, and Luke moved to sit beside her.  Vader watched until she turned and looked at him.  “Join us, Lord Vader.  Tell me your plan for Han.”

After a moment’s pause, Vader nodded slightly and stalked across the room.  He took the third chair and began to explain.