Title: Jaina in Wonderland
Author(s): FelsGoddess
Timeframe: Post-NJO
Characters: Jaina Solo
Genre: Dare Challenge
Keywords: Dare Challenge Response, Jaina, Wonderland
Summary: Jaina finds herself in Wonderland.
Notes: 2010 Dare Challenge Response
Disclaimer: Lucas's playground.
The Dare:
"I dare you to write a story where Jaina Solo (as a young adult) travels to Wonderland and interacts with the characters there. Channeling of the "literary nonsense" of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass is strongly encouraged, and bonus points for re-imagining Wonderland à la Alice TV miniseries by Syfy. Just for kicks, please include Jawas and have Jaina attempt to explain how they got to Wonderland in an attempt to get herself out of trouble, but get it terribly wrong."
Wind whipped sand around the barren wasteland of Tatooine. A lone figure, wrapped from head to toe in protective gear, trekked across the sand towards a broken dwelling. Her speeder bike sat next to the old hovel. Five minutes ago she tended to the old, rusted moisture vaporator, surprised that it was still there.
The young woman entered the hovel. She pulled back her hood, revealing shoulder-length chocolate brown hair and tired, brandy-brown eyes.
Jaina Solo sighed. Her uncle Luke Skywalker sent her to Obi-Wan Kenobi's home on Tatooine to seek out information on raids in the Outer Rim.
Jaina rose from the chair to look around. Her uncle hadn't been here in years. A table, a couple chairs, food prep unit and chest were the only furniture she could see. She saw two closed doors towards the back of the room. One was a bedroom. The mattress looked like something had made a nest of it years ago. Jaina hoped that whatever had done it was long gone. She didn't posses her twin's abilities to calm creatures.
Jaina opened the other door. It led to a refresher unit. A quick inspection ensured Jaina it was still functioning. All she had to do was wait for the moist vaporator to work.
Crash!
Jaina whirled around and ran out of the refresher. She cursed when she saw what had made the noise.
It was the two Jawas who'd been following her around since she landed at the Darklighters' farm.
The Jawas chattered non-stop to her. Jaina rolled her eyes and went back into the 'fresher. She wasn't going to hang around in the bedroom, and she needed to think.
Jaina stared at herself in the small mirror on the wall. It was dirty. The corner was chipped. She ran her hand over the intricate design on the top.
The Jawas appeared in the doorway, frantic. One pointed to the mirror while the other one kept squeaking. It ran towards her, smacking into her legs. Jaina tried to untangle the Jawa from her with little success. She tripped and reached out to steady herself. Her hand pushed through the mirror.
"What the hell…" she murmured as she continued to push. Her arm went all the way through. She glanced down at the Jawa gripped her leg. She tried to shake it off. It squealed suddenly and Jaina felt herself fall through the mirror.
Jaina fell for an eternity. All around, she could see the stars and planets. She noticed the stars began to wash out and turn blinding white. She cringed as she sensed the ground's approach. She slammed down on the ground and her vision turned black.
--
Jaina woke with a start. She was sitting in a small room. She did a quick scan for injuries and the area. She couldn't sense any danger, at least not yet. She stood up, dusting off her clothes. She could see a hallway. She hoped it was the way out. The faster she got out of here, the better. She needed to finish Uncle Luke's mission so she could get back to Ossus before Ben's birthday.
Jaina saw an old-fashioned door at the end of the hallway. She approached slowly. The hallway seemed to shrink as she neared the door.
Crash!
Jaina spun around, half-expected to see those blasted Jawas again. Instead, a white furred creature raced past her, muttering something about running late and the Red Queen. Jaina jumped back and watched as it raced through the doorway and disappeared.
Now Jaina was curious. She ran to the end of the hallway, dunking her head and the ceiling seemed to drop. She opened the door and squeezed through and found herself standing on Ithor.
This is impossible, Jaina thought. Ithor had been destroyed years ago at the beginning of the war with the Yuuzhong Vong. Jaina laid a hand on her lightsaber as she walked through the brush. She had a feeling that the white creature was important. She was going to find it.
Jaina sensed two creatures approach. She ducked behind a fallen log and watched as two overweight young men stepped into view.
"We see you-"
"-hiding in the bush."
Jaina stood slowly and asked, "Who are you?"
"Tweedledee is he."
"And Tweedledum is him."
Jaina raised an eyebrow in surprise. The two men seemed very close and were identical in appearance. They must be twins, she concluded.
"The more accurate question is-"
"who are you?"
Jaina chuckled to herself. Her and her twin used to finish each other sentences as young children.
"Jaina," she responded.
"Jaina. What are you-"
"doing here?"
"I'm looking for someone," she answered.
"The white rabbit?"
"Of course the white rabbit."
"Yes, do you know where he went?" Jaina asked, at the same time thinking 'What the Force is a rabbit'
"Into the forest-"
"to see the Red Queen."
"Who is the Red Queen?" Jaina asked.
"The Red Queen sits on point-"
"and falls to devil behind her."
Jaina blinked in confusion. The twins continued to argue about devils and points and rocks and cards. Jaina had no idea what they were talking about. She walked past the bickering twins and made her way through the forest, careful not to disturb the sacred Ithorian forest.
Even though it shouldn't be here.
Jaina walked along a path, lightsaber in hand. She wrinkled her nose as a putrid smell entered the air. She entered a clearing to see a man sitting on a spongy piece of wildlife. He was smoking a hokum. Jaina had seen that design in a hutt's chambers on Nal Hutta on a mission two months ago.
"Whooo are yoouuuuu?" he asked with a sinister purr to his voice.
"Jaina," she responded simple, "Who are you?"
"That's none of your business."
"Then why did you ask me?"
"You didn't have to answer."
Jaina rolled her eyes. This was getting ridiculous. The man was taller than her by a good six inches. His dark blond hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. His dark blue eyes were glassed over and red-rimmed.
"You aren't from here," he stated, taking a puff from his pipe.
"Obviously. I'm trying to get out of this loony bin," she snapped and turned to walk away. She didn't have time to deal with him.
"I think you are the loon here, my dear," he said with a grin, wagging his eyebrows at her.
Jaina rolled her eyes again. She was sorely tempted to ignite her lightsaber just to shut him up.
"In order to leave here, you must come back the way came."
"How do I come back the way I came? That doesn't make any sense," she snapped.
"Figure it out," he said with a shrug.
Jaina huffed and turned to leave. She reached out with the Force and knocked over his hokum. She heard him gasp and she took off with a run.
Jaina continued through the forest. She reached a clearing and froze. A city lay before her. It looked like Corescant. How the blazes had she gone from Tatooine to Ithor to Corescant?
I'm going on vacation when this is over, Jaina thought. Clearly, she was going crazy.
Jaina walked to the city. She saw a small speeder rental booth and rented a small air speeder. She took off and located a building with the word "Information" engraved on it. She parked and went inside.
"Can I help you?" a voice said.
Jaina looked up and saw a furred creature sitting behind a desk. It looked at her with a wide, toothy grin.
"Yes, where am I, exactly?" she asked, wincing at how stupid she knew she sounded.
"You are in my office, girl."
"I mean what planet," Jaina ground out through clenched teeth. First she had to deal with those twins, then that infuriating man and now this annoying creature. She was beginning to think that getting a straight answer would be impossible.
"Wonderland."
"Wonderland?" Jaina asked in disbelief.
"That's what I said."
"How do I get out of here?"
"How did you get here?"
"I don't know. I fell through a kriffing mirror!" she snapped.
"Then you do know."
"Is there a spaceport around here?" Jaina ground out.
"Spaceport? No. Why would we have that?"
Jaina stared at the creature in irritation. What was going on? She had to be dreaming. There was no way she could fall through a mirror and travel multiple planets on foot, especially when one of them was destroyed.
"This isn't a dream. You are quite real."
"I didn't say anything."
"You don't have to. You are annoyingly transparent."
"I am not transparent!"
"Suit yourself. If you want to leave, I'd go down to the castle. Sneak inside. The Red Queen has what you are looking for."
"The mirror?"
"You're way out. The Red Queen's wrath is one to behold."
Jaina scoffed. She wasn't worried about some queen's petty temper. She had dealt with Ta'a Chume of Hapes.
"The Heart Queen seeks power, like you. She is what you are and are what you want."
"What does that mean?"
"Figure it out, Jaina. Have you learned nothing of your time here? The rain falls up, the grass grows down and the heart will consume you and leave you."
Jaina wanted to bash her head against the wall. Actually, she wanted to bash the creature's head into the wall. She had no idea what he was talking about, a trend that seemed to increase with each second.
"Head down the black street to the red arch. There you find your queen and your freedom."
Jaina shook her head and walked out of the building. She should have known she wouldn't learn anything useful here. No one in this blasted place knew what they were talking about.
Jaina climbed back into her speeder and drove towards the red arch off in the distance. She didn't know exactly what type of person this Red Queen or Heart Queen or whoever was, but she knew that she could take her down.
Jaina parked her speeder outside the red arch. She unclipped her lightsaber from her belt and gripped it in her hand. She walked through the arch. A large, formal garden saw in front of her. She walked through the garden slowly, using hedges and bushes as cover. She climbed up a trellis on the north side of the castle and stepped onto a balcony. She crept inside the room, sensing two beings just inside. She quickly stunned the guards with the hilt of her lightsaber and crept forward.
"Ah, Jaina, at last you arrive."
Jaina whirled around to see a regal woman approach.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
"I am the Red Queen, my dear. And it's you that I want."
"What do you mean?" Jaina asked as she ignited her lightsaber.
"Why my dear, you are the Queen of Hearts. Did you not know?"
"What are you talking about?" Jaina asked, circling the woman slowly.
"My dear, look," the Red Queen said as she pointed to a mirror in the corner of the room.
Jaina looked and gasped. She could see herself dressed in a deep red gown. She was screaming at a man lying crumpled on the ground for his decapitation. Jaina could see hundreds of beings cowering in fear past the man.
"That's not me," Jaina snapped in denial.
"Of course it is. This is your world, Jaina. You are the ruler. How do you not know this? Can't you see what your insides call to you?"
"Why can't anyone here speak plain Basic!" Jaina shouted in frustration.
The Red Queen ignored her, "Chess is the answer. Logic, reason. The strongest player must fall to win the game. You, Jaina, are the strongest player."
"Chess? Player? Is this another blasted Sword of the Jedi speech?" Jaina asked, flabbergasted.
"You have two choices, Jaina. Either you take the strongest player or you fall."
"You just said I was the strongest player? I take myself? How will that possibly help?" Jaina asked.
"You have to save us, Jaina. Save us. Look at me," the Red Queen demanded.
Jaina locked gazes with her. She reached out with the Force and could feel a cool, calculated anger in the woman. She crumpled to the floor as she was assaulted with the images of planned tactics and determination powered by controlled fury. It reminded Jaina of her Aunt Mara Jade Skywalker. More images flashed through her mind of herself screaming for the deaths of hundreds out of pure uncontrolled anger. Jaina felt passion, angry and frustration pour from the Queen of Hearts, herself.
Jaina saw the Red Queen face the Queen of Hearts. She could see reach out to each other. The Queen of Hearts screamed for the Red Queen's death. The Red Queen, in turn, pulled out a lightsaber to fight back.
Jaina's eyes flew open. She stared at the Red Queen.
"How did you get here, Jaina?" another voice called.
Jaina gasped in surprise to see the Queen of Hearts in the room.
"I fell through a mirror."
"No, you did not. You are here to kill me. You are here to kill me and take my place. Off with her head!"
Jaina jumped up, confused. The Red Queen had disappeared. Jaina stared at an angry clone of herself. She grabbed for her lightsaber, only to realize it was gone. Jaina stared up at her own brandy-brown eyes.
"What do you want with me?"
"Tell me how you got here! I may let you live," she heard her voice snap.
"I fell through a mirror," Jaina repeated.
"A mirror? You think you fell through a mirror? How stupid do you find me?"
"I was in the refresher and a Jawa knocked me over. My arm went into the mirror and I went through. I tried to get rid of the Jawa and ended up falling through," Jaina snapped.
"You expect me to believe that? A Jawa? What is that? You are a liar, Jaina Solo."
Jaina growled, "No. I. Am. Not."
"I'm done with her. Off with her head!" the Queen of Hearts screamed.
The guards knocked her down and tied her up. Jaina closed her eyes, praying she would wake up from this nightmare. She could hear the hum of her lightsaber as it approached her throat. She screamed as she felt the blade cut her throat.
--
Jaina Solo awoke suddenly in the refresher in Obi-Wan Kenobi's home. The Jawas were chattering in front of her. Jaina touched her head and felt a cut. The events of the past hours rushed back to her and she understood.
Jaina was the Queen of Hearts, always acting on her passions and not reason. It was a dangerous path she had walked her whole life. At 24, she had acted on her passions and gotten into trouble far too many times.
It was time for change, starting now.