iShe/i was the last person he wanted to see.
With all the contempt and disgust that Darth Vader held for Leia Organa, a small part of him pitied her as she lay asleep in the small bunk room. He realized now, that it was not the bunk room of a ship, but a small, military bunking quarters. Rebel quarters.
The princess lay sleeping soundly, half covered by a wool blanket. Her hair was taken down from the Alderaanian hairstyle that the princess often wore, and it fell in a cascade over her body and spilled, like a waterfall, over the edge of her bed. Her cheeks were red and tear-stained, and a few teardrops still rested on her cheek.
She looked as if she had been broken.
But no, she wasn't broken. The Princess always stood her ground, always kept on keeping on. Surely she would not defer now...
Wincing at the use of his wife's words, Vader recalled the first time he'd met Princess Leia Organa. He'd been attending an Alderaanian ball, and having the worst of times, for Alderaan reminded him of Naboo and Naboo reminded him of other things he didn't want to think of. And then, on top of all of that, a brown streak of lightning had crashed straight into him.
i"Excuse me, Lord Vader." the girl said. Her voice had no embarrasment in it (for it should have, she was standing in front of the Emperor's second-in-command wearing nothing but her nightgown and her hair all a mess) she stood with confidence, nodding curtly as she moved swiftly off into the corridors. Vader, unnerrved by the incident, looked confusedly after her.
"Ami?" he said softly. /i
He had not realized until later that the same girl he'd ran into in the halls was a member of the royal family of whom he was a guest. The Princess had intrigued him greatly. He'd even, once, dared a friendship with her.
Until the Rebellion made their first strike, that is.
Staring at her now, she reminded him more of Amidala than she had when he'd first met her. Something inside of him smiled...
Just then, the door slid silently open...and a touseled blonde head entered the room, followed quickly by the rest of a teenage boy.
Vader recognized him as the boy who had been with Kenobi. As Vader stared into the hauntingly familiar blue eyes, the enormity of the boy's Force presence hit him. Yoda's eyes widened with amusement as Vader took it all in.
As he watched the boy stroke Leia's hair away from her face, Vader could not keep a suffocating fear from overwhelming him.
This boy would be important.
Just then, the teenage boy's commlink went off.
"Solo to Skywalker.."
The boy smiled. "Skywalker here."
Vader could only stare.
_____________________________
Two distinct Force signatures--one of a small, wizened alien, living, and the stronger presence of the spirit of a Jedi Knight--weighed heavy in the small room. Vader thought he felt a familiar presence--it was almost subconscious. However, when the shock of what he saw before him was worn off and he realized the truth of the situation, he ignored what he had sensed and gave way to the storm of emotions that battled within him.
Anakin inside him jumped for joy. iI'm a father! He is my son!/i
Vader felt no joy, only betrayal. iPadme, why didn't you tell me?/i
The only physical manifestation of Vader's inner struggle was the clenching of his right hand, and the deep, heavy sighs he made as he fought back the bitter tears that threatened to spill.
While Vader struggled with this inner conflict, Yoda was conversing inside himself as well. He was not, however, speaking to himself. He was speaking, throught the Force, to Qui-Gon Jinn.
iI feel that he will return to us soon. His presence in the Dark side is slowly…diminishing. Moreover, that Force-spot, the empty one where Ani's signature used to be, is filling. I can almost feel Anakin struggling to break free of Vader's bonds. That is why we have to help him.
Know this for absolute, do you?
I have seen it in a vision.
Always in motion is the future. False, this dream could be.
I have faith in Anakin.
Said that before, you have. Did you no good then. Why now?
It will be different this time.
Risking all, I am, by the revealing the boy. So sure you are about this?
Absolutely.
Yoda sighed inwardly. Trust him, I do not!
Rightly, you shouldn't trust Vader, not at all. However, Anakin Skywalker is a trustworthy man. He just needs to be set free of a prison where he has been trapped.
I do not--
Look at Anakin and stop your excuses, Yoda./i
Turning his head, Yoda's little eyes widened as he gazed upon the towering form of Vader. His eyes sparkled with unshed tears, and a black gloved hand reached out to lay a hand on the boy's face. The boy had been keeping watch over the Princess with frequent calls to his partner 'Solo' until then, when he looked up, as if he sensed something. His eyes narrowed, and he seemed to look straight at Vader.
"Ben?" he said tentatively.
Vader realized shortly that his son could not see him, but looked in the direction that the Force pointed him. He also realized, after a time of contemplation, that "Ben" was Obi-wan. The boy's Force presence still had the lingering existence of a Master-Padawan bond--something Vader hadn't sensed in ages. Obi-wan had been his Master.
"What is his name?" Vader said, his voice breaking.
Yoda sighed. "Luke. Luke Skywalker, his name is."
Vader nodded, looking at the boy, memorizing his features. Everything of his coloring--his blue eyes, and his tan skin, and the golden shade of his hair--had been inherited from Anakin. His frame and the features of his face, however, had been inherited from his mother.
Suddenly Luke stood up, giving Leia's thin blanket one more tug over her slim body. She mumbled and shifted positions.
"Luke…Han…"
A smile cracked across the young Skywalker's face, and he spoke into his commlink.
"She's fine now, Han. I'm coming in."
"Hurry it up, kid, you're missing the party!"
Luke's smile was his father's.
____________________________________________
Without a word of warning from tiny little Jedi, the little room was gone, and a new setting took it's place. All around them they were surrounded by grass and flowers--it was a very, very large meadow. A stream ran through the middle of it, bubbling and tripping over stones and branches of a tree that had fallen into it's path. His eye's rested on the sky, which was clouded, with several very large thunderclouds thick with rain. It's was just beginning to sprinkle, and the air was thick with the smell of a coming downpour.
Standing in the grass, a strange sensation came over Vader. He suddenly realized he was no longer wearing the black of his Imperial garments. The Imperial issue sleepwear was gone, replaced by the long brown of Jedi robes. His hand flew to his head--where he was surprised to find something thick and blonde growing. A small braid brushed his shoulder.
Rushing over to the stream, Vader examined his reflection.
His shock blazed through the Force, as he realized the man in the water was not Darth Vader.
Not Vader, but Anakin Skywalker.
From his spot in the grass not far away, Yoda stared at him strangely. The Master's confusion was evident--he squinted his eyes and scratched his head, mystified.
iWhat is this, Qui-Gon? Planned, this was not.
I know. It's a last-minute contribution from some very eager young children. Anakin got so close when he saw Luke--well, I just thought that maybe we'd bring him closer if…
If? What if? Children? Up there too long, I think you have been, Qui.
Through the Force, Yoda could feel Qui-Gon smile. Yoda gave an annoyed little grimace and spoke. What say you, Qui-gon? See I can, that you're mind cannot be changed.
Just do as I tell you, Master Yoda./i
____________________________________________
When Anakin turned back around, he was surprised to find that Yoda was nowhere to be found. He searched everywhere in that long meadow, under the tree over the stream, and over near the lake where the stream emptied out, but the little green man was nowhere to be found.
"Master!" he called.
Nothing. He gave a sigh, which very much resembled that of who he had been, and sat down on the ground like a frustrated child. He picked at a handful of grass and twirled his padawan braid around one finger, unsure of what to do. He was slowly, more and more, slipping into the persona of Anakin Skywalker, and the part of him that was Vader was angry.
He stayed in that position for a few minutes longer, picking at the grass around him and playing with the braid that hung on his shoulder. Presently, he heard a splash and a very childlike scream.
"Anakin!"
His head snapped up, and he looked towards the lake, from which the sound had come. He could see nothing, because bushes blocked his vison. The screaming continued, however, and he was able to follow it. Whoever it was seemed to know him very well, for they screamed his name repeatedly.
"Anakin, oh, Anakin, hold on, we're getting help!"
Anakin narrowed his eyes as he arrived at the scene. Two small children, a boy and a girl who couldn't have been any older than twelve, were pulling another child, a younger one, out of the lake. The younger boy looked unconscious, and the other two had looks of panic on their faces.
Forgetting that most of the people in his dreams had been unable to see him, Anakin rushed over to the trio. The girl cradled her younger brother's head in her lap, weeping.
"Oh Anakin, Anakin, please wake up!"
The other boy looked over at Anakin, who was still trying to understand why the girl kept calling his name. He ran over to Anakin, wiping his wet, unruly brown hair out of his eyes. He hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Our brother jumped in the lake! He can't swim, and he's almost drowned over there, sir. Please, can you help us?"
Anakin nodded without hesitation, and walked over to the child. He stretched out through the Force--forgetting this was all a vision--and was knocked backwards by the strength of the boy's force presence. After his initial shock, though, he managed to give the boy a little strength.
Laying the boy's head back on his sister's lap, Anakin sighed. He stared hard at the familiarity of the children, and narrowed his eyes.
"Who are you?" he said softly.
The two exchanged a smile, a wicked smile that told Anakin that she knew something he didn't.
"My name is Jaina, this is Jacen, and that," she nodded towards the younger brother. "is our little brother Anakin."
At the mention of his name, Anakin's eyes widened. The older boy smiled.
"You can call us the Trio of Christmases That Might Have Been."
_______________________________________________________________________
Sorry I wasn't able to finish it on time, guys. I will try to finish it by the end of the week.
Love always,
Kadie
Remember this:
Jesus is the Reason for the Season!
With all the contempt and disgust that Darth Vader held for Leia Organa, a small part of him pitied her as she lay asleep in the small bunk room. He realized now, that it was not the bunk room of a ship, but a small, military bunking quarters. Rebel quarters.
The princess lay sleeping soundly, half covered by a wool blanket. Her hair was taken down from the Alderaanian hairstyle that the princess often wore, and it fell in a cascade over her body and spilled, like a waterfall, over the edge of her bed. Her cheeks were red and tear-stained, and a few teardrops still rested on her cheek.
She looked as if she had been broken.
But no, she wasn't broken. The Princess always stood her ground, always kept on keeping on. Surely she would not defer now...
Wincing at the use of his wife's words, Vader recalled the first time he'd met Princess Leia Organa. He'd been attending an Alderaanian ball, and having the worst of times, for Alderaan reminded him of Naboo and Naboo reminded him of other things he didn't want to think of. And then, on top of all of that, a brown streak of lightning had crashed straight into him.
i"Excuse me, Lord Vader." the girl said. Her voice had no embarrasment in it (for it should have, she was standing in front of the Emperor's second-in-command wearing nothing but her nightgown and her hair all a mess) she stood with confidence, nodding curtly as she moved swiftly off into the corridors. Vader, unnerrved by the incident, looked confusedly after her.
"Ami?" he said softly. /i
He had not realized until later that the same girl he'd ran into in the halls was a member of the royal family of whom he was a guest. The Princess had intrigued him greatly. He'd even, once, dared a friendship with her.
Until the Rebellion made their first strike, that is.
Staring at her now, she reminded him more of Amidala than she had when he'd first met her. Something inside of him smiled...
Just then, the door slid silently open...and a touseled blonde head entered the room, followed quickly by the rest of a teenage boy.
Vader recognized him as the boy who had been with Kenobi. As Vader stared into the hauntingly familiar blue eyes, the enormity of the boy's Force presence hit him. Yoda's eyes widened with amusement as Vader took it all in.
As he watched the boy stroke Leia's hair away from her face, Vader could not keep a suffocating fear from overwhelming him.
This boy would be important.
Just then, the teenage boy's commlink went off.
"Solo to Skywalker.."
The boy smiled. "Skywalker here."
Vader could only stare.
_____________________________
Two distinct Force signatures--one of a small, wizened alien, living, and the stronger presence of the spirit of a Jedi Knight--weighed heavy in the small room. Vader thought he felt a familiar presence--it was almost subconscious. However, when the shock of what he saw before him was worn off and he realized the truth of the situation, he ignored what he had sensed and gave way to the storm of emotions that battled within him.
Anakin inside him jumped for joy. iI'm a father! He is my son!/i
Vader felt no joy, only betrayal. iPadme, why didn't you tell me?/i
The only physical manifestation of Vader's inner struggle was the clenching of his right hand, and the deep, heavy sighs he made as he fought back the bitter tears that threatened to spill.
While Vader struggled with this inner conflict, Yoda was conversing inside himself as well. He was not, however, speaking to himself. He was speaking, throught the Force, to Qui-Gon Jinn.
iI feel that he will return to us soon. His presence in the Dark side is slowly…diminishing. Moreover, that Force-spot, the empty one where Ani's signature used to be, is filling. I can almost feel Anakin struggling to break free of Vader's bonds. That is why we have to help him.
Know this for absolute, do you?
I have seen it in a vision.
Always in motion is the future. False, this dream could be.
I have faith in Anakin.
Said that before, you have. Did you no good then. Why now?
It will be different this time.
Risking all, I am, by the revealing the boy. So sure you are about this?
Absolutely.
Yoda sighed inwardly. Trust him, I do not!
Rightly, you shouldn't trust Vader, not at all. However, Anakin Skywalker is a trustworthy man. He just needs to be set free of a prison where he has been trapped.
I do not--
Look at Anakin and stop your excuses, Yoda./i
Turning his head, Yoda's little eyes widened as he gazed upon the towering form of Vader. His eyes sparkled with unshed tears, and a black gloved hand reached out to lay a hand on the boy's face. The boy had been keeping watch over the Princess with frequent calls to his partner 'Solo' until then, when he looked up, as if he sensed something. His eyes narrowed, and he seemed to look straight at Vader.
"Ben?" he said tentatively.
Vader realized shortly that his son could not see him, but looked in the direction that the Force pointed him. He also realized, after a time of contemplation, that "Ben" was Obi-wan. The boy's Force presence still had the lingering existence of a Master-Padawan bond--something Vader hadn't sensed in ages. Obi-wan had been his Master.
"What is his name?" Vader said, his voice breaking.
Yoda sighed. "Luke. Luke Skywalker, his name is."
Vader nodded, looking at the boy, memorizing his features. Everything of his coloring--his blue eyes, and his tan skin, and the golden shade of his hair--had been inherited from Anakin. His frame and the features of his face, however, had been inherited from his mother.
Suddenly Luke stood up, giving Leia's thin blanket one more tug over her slim body. She mumbled and shifted positions.
"Luke…Han…"
A smile cracked across the young Skywalker's face, and he spoke into his commlink.
"She's fine now, Han. I'm coming in."
"Hurry it up, kid, you're missing the party!"
Luke's smile was his father's.
____________________________________________
Without a word of warning from tiny little Jedi, the little room was gone, and a new setting took it's place. All around them they were surrounded by grass and flowers--it was a very, very large meadow. A stream ran through the middle of it, bubbling and tripping over stones and branches of a tree that had fallen into it's path. His eye's rested on the sky, which was clouded, with several very large thunderclouds thick with rain. It's was just beginning to sprinkle, and the air was thick with the smell of a coming downpour.
Standing in the grass, a strange sensation came over Vader. He suddenly realized he was no longer wearing the black of his Imperial garments. The Imperial issue sleepwear was gone, replaced by the long brown of Jedi robes. His hand flew to his head--where he was surprised to find something thick and blonde growing. A small braid brushed his shoulder.
Rushing over to the stream, Vader examined his reflection.
His shock blazed through the Force, as he realized the man in the water was not Darth Vader.
Not Vader, but Anakin Skywalker.
From his spot in the grass not far away, Yoda stared at him strangely. The Master's confusion was evident--he squinted his eyes and scratched his head, mystified.
iWhat is this, Qui-Gon? Planned, this was not.
I know. It's a last-minute contribution from some very eager young children. Anakin got so close when he saw Luke--well, I just thought that maybe we'd bring him closer if…
If? What if? Children? Up there too long, I think you have been, Qui.
Through the Force, Yoda could feel Qui-Gon smile. Yoda gave an annoyed little grimace and spoke. What say you, Qui-gon? See I can, that you're mind cannot be changed.
Just do as I tell you, Master Yoda./i
____________________________________________
When Anakin turned back around, he was surprised to find that Yoda was nowhere to be found. He searched everywhere in that long meadow, under the tree over the stream, and over near the lake where the stream emptied out, but the little green man was nowhere to be found.
"Master!" he called.
Nothing. He gave a sigh, which very much resembled that of who he had been, and sat down on the ground like a frustrated child. He picked at a handful of grass and twirled his padawan braid around one finger, unsure of what to do. He was slowly, more and more, slipping into the persona of Anakin Skywalker, and the part of him that was Vader was angry.
He stayed in that position for a few minutes longer, picking at the grass around him and playing with the braid that hung on his shoulder. Presently, he heard a splash and a very childlike scream.
"Anakin!"
His head snapped up, and he looked towards the lake, from which the sound had come. He could see nothing, because bushes blocked his vison. The screaming continued, however, and he was able to follow it. Whoever it was seemed to know him very well, for they screamed his name repeatedly.
"Anakin, oh, Anakin, hold on, we're getting help!"
Anakin narrowed his eyes as he arrived at the scene. Two small children, a boy and a girl who couldn't have been any older than twelve, were pulling another child, a younger one, out of the lake. The younger boy looked unconscious, and the other two had looks of panic on their faces.
Forgetting that most of the people in his dreams had been unable to see him, Anakin rushed over to the trio. The girl cradled her younger brother's head in her lap, weeping.
"Oh Anakin, Anakin, please wake up!"
The other boy looked over at Anakin, who was still trying to understand why the girl kept calling his name. He ran over to Anakin, wiping his wet, unruly brown hair out of his eyes. He hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Our brother jumped in the lake! He can't swim, and he's almost drowned over there, sir. Please, can you help us?"
Anakin nodded without hesitation, and walked over to the child. He stretched out through the Force--forgetting this was all a vision--and was knocked backwards by the strength of the boy's force presence. After his initial shock, though, he managed to give the boy a little strength.
Laying the boy's head back on his sister's lap, Anakin sighed. He stared hard at the familiarity of the children, and narrowed his eyes.
"Who are you?" he said softly.
The two exchanged a smile, a wicked smile that told Anakin that she knew something he didn't.
"My name is Jaina, this is Jacen, and that," she nodded towards the younger brother. "is our little brother Anakin."
At the mention of his name, Anakin's eyes widened. The older boy smiled.
"You can call us the Trio of Christmases That Might Have Been."
_______________________________________________________________________
Sorry I wasn't able to finish it on time, guys. I will try to finish it by the end of the week.
Love always,
Kadie
Remember this:
Jesus is the Reason for the Season!
