Author's note: Star Wars AU, woooop! :D Lotsa digital huggles for ladyalatariel on tumblr, my resident go-to-gal when it comes to anything Star Wars, who was willing to read and nitpick. Thank you, darling! :D
Characters: Ruby Lucas, Archie Hopper, brief cameo by Marco and August, mentions of Granny
Pairing: Red Cricket friendship (with the possibility of something more down the line…)
. o O o .
Ruby Lucas had more than once heard the other colonists refer to her as a "wild child"; usually it was said derisively after a fight with the other children (where she always came out on top). Her Granny no doubt did her best, they whispered among themselves, but who could possibly hope to control such a child? She'd end up on the dark side unless someone could find a way to keep her in check, of that they all seemed certain.
That's why Ruby was there now, in the grand capital of the Galactic Republic far, far away from home, sullen and frightened and homesick; waiting in a large room with half a dozen or so other children, all younger than her. She would be interviewed by a council of Jedi, the adults had told her. The council would determine if she was a worthy candidate, and if she was she would be given to a Jedi master who would train her in the ways of the Force. Ruby kinda liked the thought of becoming a Jedi, but she didn't like being away from home.
The council was a sombre bunch, Ruby thought when she finally was admitted; serious and a little scary-looking. She did her best to answer their questions honestly and politely like Granny had told her to, but she didn't know how it went, didn't know how they judged a kid worthy or not. She had a feeling it had gone terribly when she was silently led back to the large room to wait. The other kids were gone by then and Ruby sat alone.
After what felt like forever the door at the far end of the room finally opened and a red-haired man in dark green robes stepped out of the council chamber. He had been in the room during her interview but she didn't think he was part of the council because he had not been seated with the others, instead standing in the shadows by the far wall, observing silently. She had seen him earlier that day, too, when she and the other children had been herded into the Jedi temple; he had met her hesitant, nervous gaze and smiled warmly, the first person who had done so since she left home, and it had made some of the ice of uncertainty and fear melt from around Ruby's heart.
When he reached her now he crouched down so they were at eye-level instead of looming over her like the other grown-ups had done.
"Hi," he said, smiling that same reassuring smile. "My name is Archie."
"I'm Ruby," she said, and instantly felt silly. Of course he already knew that!
But he just nodded and held out his hand. "Nice to meet you properly, Ruby."
She took his hand and shook it solemnly, feeling a little more at ease.
"Nice to meet you too, Master Archie."
He chuckled. "Just Archie is fine, Ruby." He sobered a little, but his eyes were still warm. "I need to talk to you about something, Ruby, and I need you to answer me honestly, okay?"
Swallowing her sudden reappearing nervousness Ruby nodded.
"Some of the council members are a little worried about a darkness they sense in you," he said, and the straightforward way he said it took her by surprise. All the adults she had encountered since she had been taken from home had been evasive, vague, using a lot of words she didn't understand and even what she did understand was said in such a way that made her constantly having to re-think things to be sure she had not misunderstood after all. Archie was frank, matter-of-fact, he said things like they were, just like her grandmother did. Only he sounded nicer when he said it.
"More than a little worried, actually," he continued. "Worried enough that they want to send you home. And that's what I wanted to talk to you about, Ruby. Because I know that the darkness they sense could very well be... shades of grey, as it were." He paused to give her time to process his words. "I wanted to hear your thoughts about all of this. I believe you should have a say in your future. How do you feel about this whole situation? Do you want to become a Jedi?"
For a long moment Ruby didn't speak. She sensed that her answer would be important, maybe the single most important answer of her life; it would either send her home or send her to the Jedi academy, and she wanted to make sure the answer was the right one. Whatever that was. It was tempting to try to tell him what he wanted to hear - but she didn't know what that might be. She didn't know what the "right" answer was.
Archie waited patiently, kindly, not rushing her, giving her time to gather her thoughts.
No, never mind the "right" answer, Ruby decided, she'd just have to give him her answer… Whatever that was. No one had thought to ask her what she wanted until now, they had just... told her. Did she want to become a Jedi? Yes. No. She didn't know. She wanted to go home. But she also wanted to see the galaxy instead of living the rest of her life on the backwater planet she had been born on. Just thinking about staying at home, stuck, never to leave, never to amount to anything, never live... the thought filled her with impotent dread and dull anger.
But if she left she would miss her grandmother terribly. Granny was all she had and Ruby was all Granny had, and if Ruby left Granny would be all alone... and she wasn't getting any younger. Ruby couldn't just be selfish, she had Granny to think of, too.
"My grandmother…" She trailed off without finishing the sentence but Archie nodded as if he understood her perfectly.
"But if you knew your grandmother would be safe, well taken care of, and close enough to the academy for you to visit her every now and then, how would you feel about the situation then?"
"But that's not possible."
"Just for a second, pretend it was possible," he insisted gently. "Would you want to become a Jedi then?"
Ruby was good at pretending. Good at daydreaming. Too good, many back home thought. 'Be realistic, girl!' they had taken great pleasure in telling her. 'Don't even think about it, you'll never amount to anything! There's no escaping this dump, you'll only torment yourself if you hope for change!' But Archie was looking at her with an open, kind expression and Ruby knew he would never tell her such hateful things.
So she closed her eyes and imagined, just like he asked her to; she imagined feeling safe in the knowledge that she didn't have to worry about Granny, and she imagined training to be a Jedi, imagined travelling the galaxy, meeting strange and wonderful creatures in strange and wonderful places. She imagined herself with a purpose, she imagined herself protecting people, she imagined herself happy.
When she opened her eyes Archie was smiling warmly at her and she wondered if he had felt the soaring of her heart because he nodded as if she had actually said something which had made perfect sense - instead of saying nothing at all, which was actually the case. He rose from his crouch with an air of satisfied determination.
"I'll do what I can, Ruby, I promise."
And even though she didn't quite know exactly what he was promising she knew with bone deep certainty that he would keep his word.
"In the meantime you should get a tour of the city, I think."
She tried to hide her excitement at the prospect of exploring the incredible city but judging by the amused look on his face she was failing spectacularly. He motioned her to follow him and they started making their way back down to the reassignment quarter. He kept his pace slow and she didn't have any trouble keeping up with him despite his longer stride.
"I have arranged for an old friend of mine to serve as your guide," he explained as they descended from the tower. "And he has a little boy, you know, about your age, so you don't have to worry about being stuck alone with a boring grown-up all day!"
She giggled at that and his smile softened.
"I predict a great future ahead for you, Ruby Lucas. You will do great things."
The way he said it made it sound true. Ruby puffed herself up. She would prove him right!
They reached the public entrance and an older gentleman with a broad smile lifted a hand in greeting, a little boy cautiously peering out from behind his back.
"Ah, Marco, August! Good to see you!" Archie put his hand on Ruby's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "This is the girl I told you about. Ruby Lucas, this is Marco Collodi and his son August."
Mr. Collodi nodded in greeting and the boy blushed as Ruby gave a hesitant wave. Archie crouched down beside her again, voice pitched low so only she could hear.
"You ready to see the city, Ruby? August is a little shy at first, as you can see, but I have no doubt you'll charm him before long and you two will be fast friends."
"But… aren't you coming with us?" She reached out without thinking and grasped his hand, feeling suddenly a little frightened. He was the only one she knew here, he couldn't leave her!
He smiled but shook his head. "Not this time, I'm afraid. You go ahead, enjoy your day. Marco will keep you both safe and entertained until it's time for you to get back to the dormitories."
"The transport leaves tomorrow morning..."
She wanted him to say that oh, in that case he'd come along after all! Would be a shame to waste the opportunity since she was leaving the next day! If the Jedi council decided not to accept her - a distinct possibility - she'd be sent home and she'd probably never come back to Coruscant ever again. She'd be stuck at home then, and people like Archie never visited stupid boring planets like hers…
But he just gave her hand a squeeze before rising again and gently pushed her toward Mr. Collodi and his son.
"Have faith, Ruby," he said. "Do your best to keep despair from your heart. Everything will be fine, one way or another, I promise."
She turned and looked back at him and he nodded, urging her on.
"May the Force be with you, Master Archie," she said, giving him the best - and only - blessing she knew.
"And with you, Ruby Lucas."
With a final encouraging smile to her and a wave to the other two he went back the way they had come and all too soon his green-clad form was lost in the crowd of visitors. Ruby had a distinct feeling that he was going to fight for her future. How, she didn't know, but her heart felt lighter as she walked over to the old gentleman and his son and they left together to see the city.
. o O o .
