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wlntrsldler · 1 month

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poisoned mercury | pink skies

a/n: bf!luke, who else cheered?; suggests that five star and luke spent the night but nothing explicit! i decided not to let the angst monster touch them. they're my babies!!!! five star and luke get behind me!!!

viii. pink skies by lany

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there were many things about luke castellan that surprised you. one being that he wore glasses, or at least is supposed to wear glasses. he refused to wear them, against the sound medical advice of his optometrist and his mom’s insistence. his first adult responsibility was buying his own contacts because his mom refused to set up the appointments for him out of spite. he only wore his glasses when he was around the boys and poisoned mercury’s management team, but never out in public, and definitely never on stage.

two, he loved jazz music. only a handful of people knew this about him and half of those who do, don’t believe him. he supposed it was hard for people to believe that a pop punk lead singer would have an appreciation for jazz music, but luke loved it. jazz always sounded romantic and sensual and there was something calming about it. he listened to jazz before each show. he’ll never admit this unless you twist his arm, but he wept like a goddamn baby when he first watched la la land.

third, he was a polyglot, which he says is a little ironic because according to his mom, he spoke his first words in english significantly later than his peers, but he picked up on other languages quickly. he first found out about his talent in high school when he started hanging out at the rodriguez household and chris’ mom and sisters started saying phrases to him in spanish. he started taking spanish classes in high school and kept teaching himself when he dropped out. so far he can speak spanish, italian, and a bit of french. he attempted to learn greek, but it never clicked for him. he knew how to read it but his pronunciation was atrocious. he promised he’d try again sometime soon, but who knows if that’ll happen.

fourth, his idea of pillow talk was the two of you asking random questions to each other to get to know each other better, which is how you learned all these things about him. after one thing led to another last night, you fell asleep to the sound of luke’s voice against your ear. it wasn’t even that late; the group hadn’t come back from their trip to get food after they left the party, but you and luke were sleepy as you lay in the tangled sheets of your bed, at peace.

you learned that he was ticklish on the side of his ribs and that he planned to get a tattoo there but when the artist tried to put the stencil on his skin, he giggled and moved around so much that the artist warned him about his placement. he didn’t end up getting the tattoo there, but instead got it a little lower on his torso. luke had six tattoos, making him the one in the band with the least amount. the stolls were tattoo fiends and made it their mission to get a small tattoo from each place they visited on tour. luke’s personal favorite was the single line on the side of their index finger. it was a messily done stick-n-poke after one too many drinks in new jersey.

when he was younger, he used to climb on the roof of his house in connecticut. his parents warned him that he was going to hurt himself one day, but he, being the rascal that he was, never listened. until one day, after a light rain, he’d gone up there and slipped on the shingles and fell face-first against the roof. he scratched his face pretty badly, hence the scar on his face now. he told people that he got the scar from a bar fight because it sounded cooler. one day his childhood pictures will be posted on some website and his cover story won’t be as believable anymore, but that’s a bridge he’ll cross when he gets there.

it was weird to fall asleep next to someone. you hadn’t found yourself in this position in a long time, longer than you’d care to admit. when you hooked up with people in college, you purposefully made up some excuse about why they had to leave before sun up. “my roommate will be back soon.” “i have a huge test tomorrow morning.” “my friend just called and said she needed my help so i gotta go.” but with luke, you didn’t feel the need to make up an excuse to kick him out. you didn’t want him to go.

he asked the silent question as he was putting his clothes back on, hesitantly approaching your bedroom door to exit. he didn’t know if he was overstaying his welcome. he didn’t want to rush you when it came to things like this. so when he’d asked where his other shoe went, not caring about where it landed in the heat of the moment, you shrugged your shoulders and said, “dunno. we’ll figure it out in the morning, come back to bed.”

you didn’t need to tell him twice.

luke woke up before you did. you were lying on his chest, face pressed into the crook of his neck. your breaths made his skin tingle. he twirled the ends of your hair around his fingers, taking in the view of you next to him. he could get used to waking up like this every morning, he thought. he couldn’t imagine a better way to start his day.

you stirred, craning your head to face him as your eyes fluttered open, a subdued smile on your face, “g’mornin.”

“g’mornin’, five star,” he replied, lips immediately leaning over to press against yours. he frowned when you pulled back, shaking your head, “let me kiss you.”

“i have morning breath,” you cringed, moving your arm from under you to caress the nape of his neck. you placed a kiss on the corner of his lips, making him groan.

“i don’t care,” he pouted, nudging your nose with his own. you rolled your eyes but let him kiss you. the kiss was lazy and languid, lips moving gracefully against each other. it was sweet and slow like you were both trying to soak in this feeling with each other. you broke the kiss when you broke out into a smile, suddenly feeling shy.

“it’s noon,” you said, glancing at your clock behind luke. “we need to get up soon.”

“five more minutes,” he placed a string of kisses on your shoulder blade, grinning at the red marks he left on your skin from last night. “let’s stay here a little longer.”

you had a feeling here meant something more than just the comfort of your bed. here was the bubble you both allowed yourself to stay in for the last twelve hours, a little universe that was just for the two of you. it was different kissing luke in the darkness of the night. you could blame it on the secrecy of it all, shadows hiding your feelings for him, no expectations or weight of the dreaded conversation, but in the morning light, you felt vulnerable. you knew the mature thing to do was to ask him about what last night meant. was it just a one-time thing? would things change between the two of you now that the chase was over? you didn’t know.

little did you know, luke was thinking the same things as you. he would prolong this safe haven for as long as he could in case he would never get to experience it again. luke tightened his grip around your waist, breathing in the scent of your shampoo as he kissed your forehead. he couldn’t stop himself. he got a taste of what it was like to be with you and now, he couldn’t get enough. he’d find any excuse to have his lips on you. he grinned at you as he pulled away, “you snore, you know that?”

you buried your face in your pillow, embarrassed, “stop it.”

he laughed, “it’s cute, five star! i don’t mind it.”

“are you sure?” you asked, scrunching your face up in disgust, “i can’t in good conscience let you sleep over again if you don’t even get any sleep because i snore.”

“consider your conscience cleared because i really don’t mind,” luke pressed his lips against yours again. gods, he couldn’t get enough of you. “this makes up for it.”

“ew,” you shoved him playfully, sitting up to start getting ready for the day. luke remained flat on his back on your bed, “you’re so fucking corny.”

he propped his head up on his extended elbow, a smirk on his face. the rays of sunlight that peeked through your blinds illuminated his toned chest. faint scratches and pink marks contrasted his tanned skin. “guilty.”

you got up from bed, digging out a clean sweater from your closet. you wandered around your room, organizing things as you went on. luke watched you from your bed, eyes following your every move. his white shirt was peeking out from under the sweater. your sleep shorts showed off your toned legs perfectly. your hair was a mess, braids undone, but you still looked gorgeous. he blinked as your eyes darted to him, “you look beautiful.”

you rolled your eyes, narrowing your eyes at him, “you can’t even see me properly. you don’t have your contacts in.”

he’d taken them off before he fell asleep. he hated sleeping with contacts in. he’d snuck out in the middle of the night to grab his glasses from his nightstand before slipping back into bed with you. he was thankful you were a pretty heavy sleeper because he didn’t want you to think he was sneaking out to leave you by yourself after last night. when luke returned to his side of the bed, you rolled over and cuddled into him in your sleep, like you’d been waiting for him to return.

luke reached over to retrieve his glasses from your bedside table and placed them on his face. he pushed them up on the bridge of his nose and shrugged, “still beautiful.”

you walked over to him, sitting on his lap with your thighs caging him in. you held his face in your hands, admiring how he looked with the frames on his face. luke’s hands made their way to your waist, steadying you. you smiled, “i like how you look with your glasses.”

a lopsided smile appeared on his face, boyish and charming. “yeah?”

“mhm,” you hummed, “you look like a nerd. s’cute.”

“pfft,” he scoffed, poking your side, “i’m not a nerd. i’m a rockstar.”

“shut the fuck up,” there was no venom in your voice, despite your words. you couldn’t muster any resemblance of annoyance when he was looking at you all doe-eyed and pouty-lipped. you moved from on top of him, crawling over to your empty spot, “luke?”

he turned to you, “five star?”

“what are we doing?”

“we’re spending the day in bed,” he replied, ignoring the sinking feeling in his stomach. he knew that the conversation was coming in soon. he was scared of what you’d say next.

your smile vanished as your shoulders hunched over, “you know what i mean.”

luke rubbed his jaw, “you tell me.”

luke didn’t know what he should say. he didn’t want to say that last night meant nothing to him because he’d be lying if he said that and he didn’t want to lie to you, but he also didn’t want to scare you off by telling you how he really felt. it felt like a situation he couldn’t win. his pessimism was hounding him. he didn’t want to mess this up before it had the chance to start.

“are we just fucking around? is this casual because i–”

at first he thought he could handle it. he’ll let you take the lead, he’ll follow you. whatever you wanted, he’s game for it, even if it meant that he got hurt along the way. but then the word casual left your lips and it felt like he was slapped across the face. he thought he could handle it if you wanted you guys to be casual or friends who kiss sometimes or friends who occasionally do more than kissing sometimes, but actually hearing you use those words made him tense.

“please don’t ever use those words about us again,” luke breathed out, tongue poking the inside of his cheek. “i don’t know if you’ve noticed five star, but there’s nothing casual about how i feel about you.”

“i think we need to start talking to each other more,” you pondered. “because there’s nothing casual about how i feel about you either.”

“throw a guy a bone sometimes. you’ve tormented me for two months. how was i supposed to know that?” he teased.

you cocked an eyebrow, “but yet you like me so really what does it say about you?”

just like that, the indecision faded. it was back to just you and luke. the same way you’d always teased each other and pushed each other’s buttons. you’d both been stressed about what the other was thinking when you should’ve just talked to each other. perhaps all the poets and the writers in the world were onto something when they said that communication is key because you two wasted so much time running away from what this could be. it was funny really, how the two of you were both keeping these things to yourself, too scared of how you felt for each other to make a move. how much sooner could this have happened if you told him how you felt the minute you realized it? would he have kissed you a month ago? would you have been waking up with him beside you on your bed for weeks? who knows?

“it says more about you, to be honest,” he said, “you’re irresistible. even when you’re mean to me, i adore you.”

“you’re such a flirt, castellan.”

“i need to up my game,” luke chuckled, “yeah, i got the girl but now i gotta work to keep you.”

you placed a hand on your chin, pretending to think, “i don’t recall being asked to be anyone’s girl.”

“you’re breaking my heart, five star,” he sighed dramatically, clutching his chest. he dropped his body weight on yours, making you squeal and attempt to push him off. he laughed at your efforts. “be my girl?”

“on one condition.”

“anything.”

“let me hear the song.”

luke let out a full belly laugh, rolling over on the bed. he shook his head, biting his bottom lip. there was never a moment where he wasn’t on his toes when he was with you. he didn’t expect you to say that. you really were stubborn when it came to things you put your mind to. that fucking song. “no, i told you it’s not ready!”

you stuck your tongue out at him, “then no.”

luke’s eyes rolled to the back of his head as a goofy grin appeared on his face. he pulled you on his lap again, back pressed against his chest. he moved your hair to one side, kissing down the other side of your neck in soft, quick motions. he mumbled into your skin, “fine, but i’m following you around like a lost puppy. i’m yours.”

you sighed dreamily, reaching over to place a hand on his arm. you couldn’t help but make fun of him despite the butterflies in your stomach, “simp.”

you felt him nod against your body, “that’s me.”

“we really need to get out of bed.”

“five more minutes?”

it had been at least fifteen since he last asked for more time, but you couldn’t bring yourself to deny him. you gave in and got back under your covers with him. you let him be the small spoon this time, your arms wrapped around his toned back, smiling at the soft sighs that left his lips when you ran your fingers down his spine. he kissed your collarbones, face relaxing as sleep overtook him again.

you watched him fall asleep and reached for your phone, trying not to disturb his rest. you snapped a quick picture of him, smiling as you admired his features. you were falling for luke castellan.

#frances writes #poisoned mercury #luke castellan x reader #luke castellan imagine #luke castellan #luke castellan pjo #luke castellan x you #luke castellan x yn #luke castellan fanfic #luke castellan x y/n #percy jackson fanfic #percy jackson

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david-talks-sw · 9 months

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An allergy to the Prequels

While I'm putting together a post about the evolution Lucasfilm's transmedia strategies, this part kinda turned into its own thing!

So I'm not sure if anyone else noticed, but, uh... there hasn't been that much Prequel content since the Disney sale, right?

'Couple novels and comics, some episodes... but nothing meaningful.

The more I look into it, the more it feels like a deliberate avoidance to touch on anything Prequel-related - beyond the required quota, that is - to a point where they'd rather tell stories set during periods that are Prequel-adjacent (Dark Times, High Republic) than something set around Episodes I, II and III.

On-screen policy: "pretend they never happened"

I mean, this one's no secret. When The Force Awakens had been announced, with J.J. Abrams at the helm, everyone sighed in relief. "Finally, George Lucas won't keep ruining the franchise."

When Abrams had been announced as the director of Episode VII, I remember this cringey animated video started circulating online, titled "4 Rules To Make Star Wars Great Again" or "Dear JJ Abrams":

“Star Wars isn’t shiny and clean... Star Wars is a western.”

If you ask me, those two things are not mutually exclusive.

'Cause Star Wars has always been both, for many Prequel kids. Both clean and dusty, Coruscant and Tatooine. There was never a disconnect between the Original Trilogy (OT) and the Prequel Trilogy.

Even the documentary The People vs George Lucas shows Prequel-hating fans begrudgingly admit their kids felt all six episodes tied seamlessly.

Abrams, on the other hand, said: "I think [the "Dear JJ" video] was right on." Later on, he also said:

he considered "putting Jar Jar Binks's bones in the desert" on Jakku, somewhere, and

he intentionally made the lightsaber fights "rougher", "primitive" and "more powerful" unlike the fast-paced ones in the Prequels.

Later, we found out he wanted to blow up Coruscant.

It's clear he wasn't a big fan of the Prequels.

But y'know what? Not many fans over 20 were, at the time. And when The Force Awakens came out, most them celebrated it as a wonderful love letter to the OT.

Star Wars is cool again. Mission accomplished 🙌 !

However movies keep coming out, and references to the Prequels - if there are any - are literally just that... references.

Sometimes in the shape of a cameo ("hey look, Genevieve O'Reilly from the Ep. III deleted scenes is playing Mon Mothma again!")

Sometimes in a name (Luke name-dropped "Darth Sidious"!)

But nothing set during the Prequel era, and nothing treating the events that happened in that period as relevant or impactful, beyond subtextual nods.

In fact, the trend of avoiding anything Prequel-related continues as the final film in the Skywalker Saga comes out:

The Rise of Skywalker has a secret Sith society that chants the name "Palpatine" instead of his Sith name "Darth Sidious",

the film pretends the Kaminoans never existed,

and neither TROS nor Trevorrow's Duel of the Fates script even try to bring Hayden Christensen's Anakin Skywalker back on screen. Let that sink in, we're talking about the Chosen One, Skywalker Senior, whose sins caused this whole mess... and his name isn't even uttered once in the final chapter of what Disney dubbed the *Skywalker* Saga (or the entire Sequel trilogy, for that matter).

But hey, The Clone Wars got renewed for one last Season! That's cool right? So many stories had gone unfinished and somehow the animation looks even better than befo--

-- oh. It's not 22 episodes? Only 12?

Four of which had already been shown to us, but hey! We need to set-up the Bad Batch series, so let's shoehorn those episodes in there, and forget Son of Dathomir, Dark Disciple or Crystal Crisis.

*sigh* Better than nothing, I guess.

In other mediums: "just not a priority"

Now this is something that I'll explore more in the transmedia post (and purely my interpretation), but the noticeable change between Lucasfilm's transmedia strategy *post-ROTS* and the one post-Disney sale is that:

Before, the games, comics and novels were the main content. After all, Revenge of the Sith had been released, so that was it, for the movies. Thus, a variety of other content was being cranked out to keep the Star Wars franchise relevant. There were comics set 100 years after Episode 6, comics set 25,000 years prior, games set in the Old Republic era, other stories in the New Republic era, novels galore, a couple of parody films and an animated show, The Clone Wars, which sometimes received its own tie-in comics, novels and games.

After the sale and ever since, most of the transmedia products have had only one goal: promoting the films & streaming shows.

So while in 2015 you won't see an abundance of Prequel content... you'll see an avalanche of OT books and comics come out.

Why? Because the heroes of that era will be in the Sequel Trilogy movies. It provided context to the kids who hadn't seen the OT yet, and reintroduced those films to a new generation of fans, while priming them for the Sequels.

A multimedia marketing strategy that ultimately proved successful.

However, it continued even after The Force Awakens came out.

Don't believe me? Compare how many comics there have been set during the Prequel era vs the OT era.

If they make comics about the Prequels, they're limited runs.

Case in point: before the current Yoda series, the best any Disney Prequel-set comic series ever got was 6 issues.

Note: it's worth pointing out that the frequency of mini-series aren't just a Star Wars-specific thing, it's a comic book industry thing. The readership for comics is dwindling, many people are reading scans online, and so no publisher wants to commit to a story that lasts more than 4-6 issues. My problem is: there absolutely would be readership for a Prequel comic series to warrant an extended run instead of a mini-series.

Let's talk books. There have been give or 64 canon novels published since the Disney sale.

Only 11 of them are set during the Prequel era. And even those stories only came out when the planets were aligned.

Almost half of them were released while being a part of some bigger multimedia push.

Example:

Before the Obi-Wan Kenobi series was being released on Disney Plus, we'd had one novel and like two comic stories about him during the Prequels... released between 2012 and end 2021. That's about three pieces of content in almost ten years.

Clearly a low frequency.

Then, when the series is around the corner, two books and a comic story comes out in the space of months, plus an anthology book with an alt cover with his face on it and a comic with a story of him and Anakin in the first issue, all in 2022.

My takeaway: short of there being a film or series that needs to be promoted, you'll rarely get any Prequel comics or books.

And this is OBI-WAN we're talking about. The character who even the Prequel haters love. Imagine how little attention the other ones get.

Gaming-wise, Battlefront had no Prequel content at all (again, 2015 was the year where OT content was shoved down the consumer's throats to prep them for Episode VII), and Battlefront 2 only released Prequel content a full year later.

All that being said, we did seen some Prequel elements here and there. After all, some actors got to reprise their roles, books and comics came out featuring Prequel characters... but there's a catch.

The stories they appear in are set in-between Episodes III and IV, a time-period known as "the Dark Times" or the "Imperial era".

"Dark Times" being used instead of the Prequel era

It's easy to see the appeal of this era. You keep the same threat from the Original Trilogy - the Empire - but redress it with Prequel elements... while also cherry-picking the best characters of both the OT and the Prequels and giving them a chance to shine again.

The situation is more clear cut, as opposed to the complex one in the Prequels. Bad guys are stormtroopers, good guys are anyone else. And the stories no longer take place in the shiny capital, you're back on the frontier.

But at this point... it feels like a cop-out.

When you consider how much content has been set during the Dark Times, it's nothing to sneeze at. Since the sale, we've had:

2 movies (Solo, Rogue One)

4 series set in that time-period (namely The Bad Batch, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Andor, and Star Wars: Rebels).

2 video-games (Jedi: Fallen Order and Jedi: Survivor).

17 novels (such as Ahsoka, Lords of the Sith, the new Thrawn books, etc)

And just a whole bunch of comic book series & mini-series (like Kanan, Princess Leia, various Vader-centric comics including Darth Vader: Lord of the Sith, many tie-in mini-series promoting Rogue One, Jedi: Fallen Order, Obi-Wan Kenobi, etc).

There's been so much content made for this time-period that it feels like an unwillingness to do the work and create something set something during the Prequel era, let alone something that follows its Jedi.

After all, why make a story set in the Prequels (disliked by vocal fans) when you can just take the characters in that story and put them in an OT setting (which will appease the Prequel-haters)?

Maybe these stories get relegated to the Dark Times because:

there seems to be a perception that anything set in the Prequel era won't sell?

or maybe the current SW writers weren't fond of Episodes I, II and III, and don't find those Jedi characters likable, thinking they're too righteous and dogmatic which makes it hard to craft a story around them.

Or maybe it's because they're under the impression that the Prequel Jedi are bad. Like, canonically, in the narrative. Not just in a "I don't like them" sense, but also in a "the story is all about them becoming corrupted" sense.

Let's expand on that last point.

Retconning the Prequels as the "Fall of the Jedi" era

Somehow the rare stories set during the Prequels that we do get seem to automatically be about how "the Jedi lost their way/failed".

The series Tales of the Jedi is explicit about it...

... and I already explained why it contradicts what George Lucas established here and here.

You also see it in Rebels and the new season of The Clone Wars...

... in comics...

... in games...

It gets to a point where the Prequels era has now been redubbed the "Fall of the Jedi" era by Lucasfilm.

You wanna know what that period was referred to before the Disney sale? The "Rise of the Empire" Era.

Because - and I'll never get tired of saying this cuz it's factual - the Prequels aren't about the fall of the Jedi, they're about the fall of the Republic and Anakin, and rise of the Empire and Vader.

So in addition to being overdone, the "Jedi lost their way" is not even the intended narrative of the Prequels (if one puts any stock in Lucas' words). It's a minor subplot at best, hardly the focus of the films, let alone a whole time period.

But dubbing it "Fall of the Jedi" implies that there's another era in which the Jedi were in their heyday.

Because Star Wars authors are in luck! Yet another alternative has presented itself in the shape of a new transmedia initiative, and it's even better than the "let's set it during the Dark Times" solution:

A new transmedia initiative: The High Republic

You wanna deal with the Jedi before the Empire, but for some reason you wanna avoid dealing with the ones seen in the Prequels?

Look no further. Meet the Jedi of the High Republic.

Noble, adventurous, inspired by the Knights of the Round Table, they're everything the OT kids dreamed about when they heard ol' Ben Kenobi talk about the Knights of the Old Republic.

That's more like it!

Note: the High Republic was created for other reasons and has many more upsides than the ones mentioned above. Namely, a fresh new spot in the timeline that allows for creative freedom and a beautifully-coordinated transmedia storytelling effort where retcons are non-existent. However it does seem evident that not having to deal with the 'unlikable' Prequel Jedi and their "fall" is one of those upsides.

Another perk that the High Republic era offers is more freedom in terms of storytelling compared to the Prequels.

In 2016, Pablo Hidalgo tweeted he still quotes to authors the following excerpt of West End Games' guide for aspiring Star Wars writers, from 1994.

You can't write "this was the best day in Luke Skywalker's life", for example, because another author may want to write a better day than the one you just wrote.

My guess is that a similar approach applies to how all characters from the movies are treated. They're massively iconic. So you can't write a book that drastically changes how Mace or Yoda or Obi-Wan are perceived overall.

The stories need to be self-contained, disregardable if necessary, because you'll have dozens of writers coming up with new stories for those same characters, and you need to leave them some room.

Examples:

Notice how in the book Dooku: Jedi Lost we never see how Dooku turns to the Dark Side and joins the Sith.

Same goes for crossover comic book arcs of the Star Wars issues, like Vader Down or Crimson Reign... the characters don't really change by much in those comics. You could stick to just watching the movies and you wouldn't really miss anything.

But with The High Republic, you indeed can develop these characters as much as you want.

All stories featuring Avar Kriss leave an impact on her, you can nail down who she is perfectly in one book or one comic arc, both being just as meaningful to her character.

The fact that she's not as iconic/famous a character as Mace Windu means that authors can go to town on crafting an interesting and nuanced character arc for her that'll have a beginning, middle and end... something Mace will never really get.

CONCLUSION:

Back in 2015... let's not kid ourselves. The Prequels were unpopular and Disney is a multi-billion dollar corporation. Opting to make as much money as possible is what they do.

It's the same reason they decided not to go with George Lucas' original plans for the Sequels, in 2012.

I mean, imagine you're Disney. You just dropped 4 billion dollars, with a B, on this franchise. Your next Star Wars movie needs to be worth the price tag. Now, you can pick between two options:

Option #1 is uncharted territory and it explores the midi-chlorians (the cursed word…!) and the guy who presented you with this option also openly admits that a big chunk of customers won’t like it, but he wants this to be done because it’s his vision.

Option #2 is very simple: a soft reboot, that plays on nostalgia that the same chunk of customers (aka the 'boomer and Gen-X fans who grew up with the Original Trilogy and now have kids, grandkids and MONEY) will like.

It's a no-brainer. They gave the customers what they wanted.

But time has passed, the fans who were children when the Prequels first came out have grown up, and grew up with characters like Yoda, Mace, Plo Koon, Kit Fisto and other Jedi as their heroes, aside from main characters like Anakin and Obi-Wan and Ahsoka.

Can we maybe expand on them, flesh them out more?

No, let's either ignoring the storytelling potential of these characters or reducing it to them being "righteous, arrogant and dogmatic".

God forbid we get a story showing the Prequel Jedi in a *gasp* more positive light? One where their POV is more understandable, instead of the same old "we brought this on ourselves" storyline.

There's a whole decade between The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones... you're telling me there's no space to show us Anakin's training and how he formed bonds with the Jedi we later see in The Clone Wars? I tried my hand at it here:

Interesting or fun Prequel-set ideas from other pro-Jedi fans on Tumblr can be found here, here and here.

And y'know, part of the Star Wars intent is for fans to take the ideas in the movies and come up with their own stories. You're supposed to create headcanons.

What I'm saying is fans of the Prequels are being given less "imagination food" than the rest, and many of us who like the Jedi in particular are forced to rely on headcanons only. "Better than nothing" is no longer an acceptable standard.

There's a range of recognizable Jedi characters that have already been established in films and TCW, can we maybe expand on them, flesh them out more, instead of whole new ones?

#jedi order #star wars #sw meta #long post #meta #lucasfilm #star wars prequels #prequel trilogy #sw prequels #high republic #the high republic #dark times #imperial era #the clone wars #tcw #sw negativity

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wendingways · 10 months

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Wendingways' Star Wars fic recs

The vast majority of these are fix-its. Some are time travel/time loop. Most revolve around PT, TCW, and OT characters. A lot are also gen, as it turns out.

The order of the list has nothing to do with how much I enjoyed each fic, because I've enjoyed them all in different ways, for different reasons! Fics that seem to be really popular have been placed toward the bottom of each section, because I'm guessing they already appear on a lot of other rec lists. Aside from that, the order is pretty much random.

*Chapter and word counts may not be up to date. I try to go through once in a while to update the details for WIPS, but it's a lot to keep track of!

Complete multichapter fics

Finding Obi-Wan; T, 86.9k. Obi-Wan, having disappeared from the Jedi Temple, wakes up with no idea who he is or what the Force is and gets pulled into all manner of messes (yes, Hondo gets involved, of course he does), while Anakin refuses to believe he's dead and struggles to find him.

Blood and Copper Oxide; T, 36.3k. "Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader crash land on a planet that shouldn't have existed. Luke can't escape Vader and survive the planet at the same time. Darth Vader can't capture Luke and fight off the innumerable threats the planet sends his way. They might have to work together instead." Very cool story!

The Skywalker Secret; T, 39.8k. Anakin time travels back to the Clone Wars following Endor. The story is told mostly through the eyes of perplexed observers, and has an excellent ending; it's very satisfying and lovely!

Lunches at Anakin's; T, 93.1k. After Endor, thanks to the Force's meddling, Anakin finds himself alive but stuck on Tatooine, where he ends up reluctantly mentoring a Force-sensitive girl. (Technically complete, but part of a series which is not complete.)

(Tooka)Cat Scratch Fever; not rated, 17.7k. Luke adopts a tooka which turns out to be his father, under a curse by Sidious. (I would probably rate this one as T.)

In the Tall Grass; T, 18.5k. "After a failed order 66, in which many Jedi still died but the Sith were defeated, an exiled warrior and a boy wander a distant planet and attempt to get along." This one is so cool, it has such a fairytale feel to it! And there's a sequel!

Shadows of the Future; K+, 129.3k. Obi-Wan dies on Mustafar and is sent back to TPM, where he bonds with Anakin and begins to change the future for the better.

Gut Feeling; T, 7.5k. Amusing little multichapter wherein Piett is assigned a new aide who goes by the name of Lucas Starkiller (who is clearly not Luke Skywalker, definitely not), and from there becomes embroiled in treason.

May Death Find You Alive; T, 11.0k. Anakin gets stuck in a time loop where Obi-Wan keeps dying.

Empire Reimagined; series, T, 341.7k. A saga of Luke, Vader/Anakin, Piett, Veers, and Leia covering from ESB-era to post-ROTJ. Epic friendships abound! (Series not marked complete, but the last completed fic doesn't leave you hanging.)

Mirjahaal; T, 132.8k. Another lovely Wishful fic in the spirit of Empire Reimagined, involving favorite characters and somebody else who's a surprise!

The Exiled; T, 20.1k. "Leia has tried everything to help her baby son. She has turned to every expert on the Force she knows-- all but one. (Ben and Grandpa go camping)" (Visible to registered AO3 users only.)

Cloudy Symbols of High Romance; G, 22.1k. This one's a bit of a relict! Posted pre-AOTC, way back in 2001, it's a cool take on how Anakin and Padmé's AOTC-era reunion happened, and omg, it's so much better than AOTC. It's actually cute, and you can see why they like each other, and man does it make the knowledge of what's coming so much the worse.

Kintsugi; T, 16.7k. Quietly tragic, even though nobody dies and it's broadly a fix-it. Not a comfy fic, but one which is well done.

What Lurks in the Dark; T, 155.4k. "A simple mission to check out an abandoned weapons factory turns into a dangerous fight for survival. Trust is broken, loyalties will be tested, and dark secrets are brought to light. Because sooner or later, the truth always comes out."

The Beauty in the Beast; T, 46.1k. "When the Force decides it's had enough of Darth Vader and wants Anakin Skywalker back, it dumps his long-lost teenage son on his doorstep with an ultimatum: unless Vader renounces the Sith and turns back to the Light within three months, Luke will die."

Sibling Revelry; T, 24.9k. "After Bespin and before Endor, Darth Vader is shocked to discover that Luke and Leia are twins. Especially since Imperial Intelligence just told him that Organa and Skywalker are, erm, a tad closer than previously suspected..." A hilarious comedy of misunderstandings!

The Sith Who Brought Life Day; G, 13.3k. A rather entertaining take on how Vader found out who blew up the Death Star.

This Life of Ours; T, 53.9k. "On the run from the empire and the remaining Jedi alike, Vader must come to terms with his past and his future, all the while learning to care for the boy that is his only connection to his life as Anakin Skywalker." (Visible to registered AO3 users only.)

Teach the Padawan. Save the Galaxy.; series, T, 387.4k. 4 books complete, but the series itself is not complete. Ben Kenobi goes back in time and becomes Obi-Wan's master instead of Qui-Gon.

Legacy; G, 175.5k. Post-ROTJ Luke and Leia time travel to the Clone Wars.

there but for the grace of god; T, 49.2k. Young Luke winds up time traveling to the Clone Wars, where he causes both confusion and conversations that will lead to a brighter future for the TCW crew and the galaxy in general.

Precipice; M, 231.7k. "An AU in which Anakin Skywalker does not follow Mace Windu and the others to Palpatine’s office after they leave to arrest the Chancellor. As a result, he doesn’t get that final push over the edge, and doesn’t Fall." Padmé and Anakin each raise a twin and work to bring Palpatine down.

Don't Look Back; M, series, 533.7k. 2 books complete, 1 in progress. Leia gets sent back to AOTC-era, and omg is she a force to be reckoned with! Very detailed, very political series.

Oneshots

Negative Static Stability; G, 8.1k. Vader and Leia meet when Leia is 5; lessons on the workings of ships ensue, along with some good old Artoo scheming. Adorable!

Palpatine's Greatest Hits II: Imperial Boogaloo; T, 1.3k. Just Palpatine being salty. It's very fun! "Fortress Dramaticus" has got to be one of my favorite bits, coupled with Palpatine's ongoing disgust at its lack of shields and certain people's inability to learn certain lessons. And his disgust at Vader's Kenobi obsession. Okay, the whole thing is great. Go read it!

Dust to Dust; T, 4.7k. "Darth Vader goes back in time. The Galaxy is saved; he is not."

Puppet Kings; series, T-M, 18.8k. Really nicely done, dark oneshot trilogy (complete) about Luke, Vader, & Co. I'm not usually one for horror and tragedy, but I read the first fic in the series and didn't want to stop!

Amelioration; T, 8.2k. "A recently liberated Vader attempts to ameliorate the future by changing the past." A different sort of angle, and an interesting fic!

The Horrendous Space Kablooie; T, 6.2k. "9 year old Anakin wakes up on the Executor. Chaos ensues." Well worth reading! Can't say more because I don't want to spoil anything.

The Agony of Tarkin; G, 4.8k. "An extra in the Imperial Opera Company discovers he has been assigned the role of Darth Vader in its upcoming production of The Agony of Tarkin." Another hilarious fic in the vein of The Sith Who Brought Life Day and Accountant Non-Heroes of the Republic.

Accountant Non-Heroes of the Republic; G, 7.0k. "Palpatine makes a choice to hide his fiscal manoeuvres in the Financial Department. The Financial Department takes advantage of this lack of transparency to do whatever they want. This saved the Republic." It's always fun to watch Palpatine shoot himself in the foot, and all the better when it comes completely out of left field.

Out of Step; T, 4.9k. Nice little oneshot with post OT-era Obi-Wan and Anakin stuck into their TPM-era selves.

FIVE HUNDRED AND ONE THING THE MEMBERS OF THE 501ST LEGION OF THE GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO; T, 4.9k. A hilarious list composed by General Kenobi. I laugh myself silly every time I read this. (Visible to registered AO3 users only.)

501 MORE THINGS THE 501ST ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DO; T, 3.4k. A sequel to the 501st list fic, also very funny, although it only has about 250 entries, not 501. (Visible to registered AO3 users only.) Listed with oneshots because the extant 250 entries can be read as a complete list.

Where Have We Come?; T, 2.0k. "The first time was one of the hardest and the easiest. Obi-Wan loses at Mustafar, but instead of dying he wakes up at the dawn of the last day of the republic, doomed to repeat the worst day of his life, over and over again." Time loop!

you drew stars around my scars (but now i'm bleeding); not rated, 1.1k. Post-Twilight of the Apprentice, Ahsoka and Anakin. I'd rate G or T. (Visible to registered AO3 users only.)

still dancing with your ghosts (sleeping with your memories); M, 1.1k. "Everyone knows about the Massacre, and how no Jedi made it out alive. The Jedi refuse to let anyone forget." I do not cry easily at fics. This one made me cry.

The Trick is to Keep Breathing; T, 3.5k. "She's older now, and so is he. Far older now. She wonders: will he have lost any power with his age? Will he be shorter, weaker? An old man on a ventilator? It's hard to imagine that he won't still be dangerous. But then, that's exactly what she's counting on."

Tuning up your TIE-Fighter to prove you’re better than the bastard currently running the TIE-Fighter Program for fun and profit; G, 7.1K. "As a rule, Vader didn't really do anything with his social media account, but then the rant of some kid from Tatooine about the inefficiency of TIE Fighters began trending, the pilots and engineers on the Devastator started fixing their ships and Vader got invested."

Multichapter fics that are incomplete but still appear to be alive as of now

Turning Point; T, 9.8k. After Vader dies on the second Death Star, he's sent back in time to the year 69 BBY, on Naboo, where he picks up an unfortunate barnacle in the person of the teenage Sheev Palpatine. Quite entertaining, and I can't wait to see where it goes!

The Good He Seeks; T, 70.1k. "After killing the Emperor, Darth Vader agreed to serve the fledgling New Republic and destroy the last true-believers of the Empire he had once helped create. But he's living on borrowed time." Though I do enjoy pure fix-its, there's just something that really gets me about fics that are fix-it-ish, but life is messy, the characters are messy, there are no easy answers or perfect solutions, and every positive development really feels earned. So far, this is one of those fics, and I'm loving it!

The Galaxy Revolves at a Million Miles a Day (Around Me); T, 40.7k. After dying on Executor during the battle of Endor, Piett finds himself trapped in a time loop which he must break. I'm a sucker for time loops, and this is such a good one!

The Sleepover to Restore the Republic; T, 56.1k. This many Skywalkers, clones, and associated friends, relatives, and coworkers were never intended to be thrown together, and when they are, boy oh boy. Gloriously chaotic and funny. (Visible to registered AO3 users only.)

Nameless, on the Edge of Nowhere; M, 100.7k. Vader survives ROTJ, but both he and Luke made it out of the second Death Star via random hyperspace jumps in separate ships. After getting by for a time, the not-fully-Sith-but-not-fully-redeemed Vader ends up with the Rebellion, where Leia becomes his handler. Slow build, and a really rewarding read thus far! (Also, I love the OCs in this one; they all feel very natural and vivid, and like people in their own right.)

Multichapter fics/series for those okay with living on the edge (inconsistent updates, long hiatus, or abandoned)

Headaches; T, 31.2K. "When Luke overhears his aunt and uncle arguing, he follows old Ben to Daiyu. Skywalker shenanigans ensues." Oh my goodness, the pure child chaos that is in this fic, it's an excellent time. Hasn't updated in almost a year, but what's there is so good!

Balance on the knife edge; T, 136.6k. After dying on Malachor, Ahsoka time travels back to Mortis, during the Clone Wars.

The Thunder Answered Back; M, 13.1k. "Count Dooku survives his duel with Anakin Skywalker only to wake up as a captive in the Jedi Temple on the evening of Order 66 and the siege. Betrayed, maimed, and surrounded by slaughter on every side, he must choose his path forward - and choose it quickly. RotS AU." Featuring Jocasta Nu.

Synchronous; G, 67.9k. "It's the usual time-entangling fiasco: 'Find the disturbance. Rectify the wrong. Fix the anomaly. Bring balance to the past so the Force may be balanced in the future.' There is a slight miscalculation, however, and Luke Skywalker finds himself in the Clone Wars while having to masquerade in the body of his late father Anakin Skywalker. Leia and Han aren't so helpful either."

In the Midst of Darkness Lays a Sleeping Light; T, 26.0k. Series, wherein Palpatine turns Vader into a dragon. (It goes great for both of them. Totally.) Angsty and enjoyable, and an interesting exploration of dehumanization/rehumanization.

To Set Up a Sith; T, 35.2k. "Teenage Luke tries to help his unwitting Sith father make a friend, with a little help from his ghost mom and the Force." Interesting story with fun and sweet bits, and I'm super curious about how it will turn out if it's ever finished!

like a lazy ocean hugs the shore; T, 10.7k. After Vader kills him, Fox gets stuck in a time loop around the time when Fives is killed.

Living Every Day; T, 82.9k. "When Satine Kryze survives her encounter with Darth Maul, it changes the galaxy. But even more than that, it changes the lives of Obi-Wan Kenobi and the Skywalker family."

Dancing with Ghosts in Your Garden; T, 979.3k. Star Wars PT and TCW characters, but in a Hogwarts setting. It works surprisingly well! There's a little more teenage romance than is my personal preference, but it's a cool AU and quite long if you're looking for a fun, imaginative fic to absolutely bury yourself in for a while. (And it looks like Ahsoka might finally be entering during the next year of the fic!!)

What We've Become; T, 82.0K. "Darth Vader and Ahsoka’s fight on Malachor takes a different path, and Ahsoka actually is able to save her master. Or rather, she’s able to convince him to save himself. Diverges from canon in the last few minutes of Twilight of the Apprentice and goes increasingly AU from there."

better late than never; G, 41.4k. Ahsoka wins at Malachor, Vader redemption fic.

Madhouse Promenade; T, 13.0k. "In a bid to save his new apprentice's life, Darth Sidious siphoned the life force from Padmé Amidala, ultimately killing her. Ten years later, after finding out the truth, Darth Vader finds himself haunted by her ghost, and Padmé finds herself face-to-face with what her husband has become."

Hard Reset; T, 33.4k. "Anakin Skywalker wakes up to his worst nightmare, and he doesn't even know all of it yet." Aka Vader gets amnesia, and Anakin is confused about everything. (Visible to registered AO3 users only.)

The Ghosts on Coruscant; T, 143.6k. After surviving Mustafar and living as a rebel for eight years, Padmé is captured by the Empire, and Vader finds out.

Of Queens, Knights, and Pawns; T, 616.6k. ST-era Leia time travels back to ANH.

Old Man Luke; M, 109.4. ST-era Luke and Leia time travel to the Clone Wars.

Comics (all wips)

Dark Chasm; T, 21 chapters. "On Bespin, the truth is revealed, and Vader bids for Luke to join him. Luke looks down into the dark chasm and makes a choice."

Imperial Babysitters; T, 17 chapters. Cute comic/art series with Luke being raised by Vader, Piett, and Veers.

Our New Hope; T, 57 chapters. "After Ahsoka Tano discovers 12-year-old Luke Skywalker on Tatooine, she takes him under her wing and around the Galaxy. Meanwhile, Darth Vader has found Bail Organa's force-sensitive daughter and has started training her as a Junior Inquisitor. A chance encounter between the twins brings their worlds together."

The Tinies; G, 76 chapters. Cute comic with Vader and Padmé raising Luke and Leia.

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lavandula-ipsum · 2 months

Text

Those Wistful Asphodels

Asphodels ch. 1/2

Tags: dark!Luke x Fem!Reader, force sensitive reader, reader is injured, death of secondary characters mentioned, porn with plot, no really most of this is plot, angst, smut, cuffs, non penetrative sex, handjobs, edging, light degradation

Wordcount: 7.4k

Summary: Since Luke Skywalker fell to the dark side, the Rebellion has been facing a fast annihilation. In these dire times when lights go out in the galaxy one after another, a rebel captain with the mission of rescuing the survivors of a fallen base finds herself injured and alone. And, on top of that, the worst of her temptations appears out of the blue.

Asphodels is a sequel to Pomegranate, a short smut series that has kinda ended up growing a plot. I do think you can enjoy this part without the previous one, since you can infer enough of their dynamic from context. Feel free to check the previous chapters if you feel like it!

WARNING (or the opposite to it?) Even though this is a dark Luke fic, all that happens during the more intimate scenes is completely consensual. Still, Reader isn't in a good place mentally, hence the angst tag. I wanted to make it clear, there's nothing dubious here in that regard.

Enjoy!

The Empire has a new face, one that has brought unprecedented darkness to the galaxy. All kinds of stories have popped up around the new royal core of the regime. From the old throne of the Emperor now rules he who was his loyal shadow, his most deadly hand. And at his side stands a son. Their combined strength has turned the war into a fixed hunt, a pitiful game in which the Rebel Alliance can't but wriggle like a doomed scurrier in a trap.

Some, those who were labeled as hopeless pessimists, would say it all ended the very same day of the betrayal. After all, the Rebellion could stand to lose a commander, no matter how invaluable the feats achieved by Luke Skywalker were. But it was a blow nonetheless. Right after the news came out countless rebels fled their posts trying to save their lives, but it was for nothing. Nowadays even deflectors get mercilessly hunted down by the Empire. Like marked by a curse, every single person who ever belonged to the Rebellion, or even just sympathized with it, gets found. No tiny spark of resistance escapes, lest it ignite new fires of rebellion in the future. Even those who were hopeful at first seriously doubt that prospect a little more every day with each new of lost squadrons and assassinated leaders.

General Organa remains as one of the last remnants of light in these dark days, even though she’s faded into obscurity. Her whereabouts are kept a secret, much to her own distaste. But it isn’t the time for her to come out at the front of some suicidal attack, it’s the time for caution. To hide and prepare. Fate has taken down yet another path she didn’t want for herself, but also one she’s starting to dread to be unfit for this time.

And meanwhile, (Y/N) wonders how long will it take for the idea that the Rebellion has disappeared to settle. The rebel captain isn’t one to express out loud how hopeless she’s become, not in front of her dwindling companions. But there is not denying it. Rogue squadron is no more. It lasted longer than the others even when it became the most sought after by unrelenting TIE squadrons. (Y/N) knows who leads that imperial offensive, it’s written in the precise counter attacks that always surprise the rebel pilots in all of their maneuvers, every evasion. There is only one person who knows them that well, just one pilot with that kind of talent. (Y/N) gets sick just thinking of his hand on the trigger, the aim set on another friend. No matter what the rebels try, they’re doomed to fail. Recently she got the news that the last one of the once acclaimed X-wings was shot down. Kriff, not even Wedge made it. She can just cross her fingers and hope that the Millennium Falcon, the most wanted starship in the galaxy, will remain hidden for a little longer.

Even Han has given up all hope. The captain of the Falcon was never a man of faith, but (Y/N) trusts his resolve to help keep alive those few of them who still survive, scattered across the stars. It’s all she has left now, especially when she’s starting to suspect that she won’t be coming back from this mission.

It was her who insisted on making the effort to come here with the mission to establish contact with the rebel cell hiding in the base of Jolah after it went silent. It was her assignment and it has failed even more spectacularly than anyone could have expected. The ambush hit them as soon as they came out of hyperspace to a system crawling with squadrons of TIE fighters and imperial patrols. In the unexpected dogfight, (Y/N)’s starfighter got hit and her pitiful role in the operation suddenly evaporated as she was reduced to managing the crashing of her craft in the middle of the sadistic fireworks around her, fighting the controls to make an emergency landing on the surface of Jolah. Each vertiginous spin separates further away from her companions while they fall to the imperial cannons.

Her damaged X-wing crashes in the middle of lush woodlands, up in the mountains. She hurries to leave the cockpit, fearful because of the black smoke coming out of the engines that the craft might explode. A sharp pain paralyzes her as she reaches for the edge to prop herself up. Even though she can’t move her leg, suddenly heavy and uncooperative, she still tries to get down the ship, slipping when her limbs clumsily let go of her commands. Hitting the ground brings her all the pain she’s been unable to feel until now. This is when she finally sees a piece of a durasteel lever buried deep in her thigh.

The stranded captain huffs, turning her gaze up to the barely visible battle going on just over the atmosphere. She’s far from a military genius, but she can see that it’s over for her squadron. Even calling it a battle is generous when they were trapped so quickly, like helpless flies.

But she can’t just sit here and contemplate the butchery from afar, there’s no time to despair in the middle of nowhere. Even in this thick forest the Empire will find her vessel soon, so she better put some distance between it and herself. So she just grabs the end of the lever lodged in her leg and pulls, white pain burning through all of her senses while biting on the edge of her glove to try to drown her screams a little. A shriek escapes her when the durasteel finally flies out of her flesh. Thick blood gushes out until she puts pressure on the wound, bandaging it as best as she can with the sleeve she just tore from her shirt.

Walking will be difficult, but she can’t do much else other than start dragging her aching limbs through the mud and the pain. The feeling that she might faint soon only grows, blood drenching through her poor attempt at a bandage and dripping down her thigh. The beauty around, threads of light cutting through the trees lighting up a forest floor splattered with little white flowers, all seem to be mocking her. At least she finds a fallen branch she can use as a walking stick. However, the sounds of the search party, the buzzing of speeders echoing through the trees, keep her awake and moving.

Daylight fades along with the signs of imps in the area. It seems she’s safe for now, but she still doesn’t dare to stop for the rest she so direly needs, since she can’t trust herself to not fall asleep. At least her present predicament is easy enough to understand. Imperials running after her life while she bleeds alone in the cold with nothing but a blaster to protect herself. Those are circumstances that make her forgotten rebel resolve bloom again. The dream might be dead but, this way, at least she gets to die a rebel.

(Y/N) keeps avoiding the distant speeders, wondering how long before she’s found. Her fingers have lost sensitivity due to the biting cold, which she takes advantage of to keep dragging herself forward until she’s alone with the faint echoes of birds and the occasional critter running to hide. And, for the first time in months, she lets her sore mind loosen down a little to graze the currents of the Force she’s been fearfully avoiding.

At least I get to die a rebel.

She expected the sensation of opening her mind to be uncomfortable, even painful, but the Force takes her right back, as if she never closed herself off from it. Even if she’s forgotten herself, the Force hasn’t.

Who knows, maybe it’s because of all the blood she’s lost, but she’s never felt closer to its embrace. Ah, it’s all almost over.

Mixed in with the cool currents filling the dried river beds of her mind another flow enters. Her eyes fly open at the realization of what she inadvertently has done. A single tear falls down her cheek as she scrambles to rebuild the barriers that she so irresponsibly let down. In hiding her signature, her brain complains of being denied from the full expanse of Force once again. The trance she was falling in insists on lingering inside of her as she fights to wake up from it. She was ready to let herself fall in the arms of the Force at that time when she’d close her eyes for good to let herself go in peace.

But it is too late now. He has seen her.

There’s no denying his intoxicating presence, a warmth dueling the cold of the forest and looming death inside of her, getting closer by the second. But how? He isn’t supposed to be in the system. His presence pokes at hers, impatience domineering over any intention at gentleness. Where are you? echoes in her brain, like pliers forcing her mind open.

The rebel huffs and whimpers when she hears the TIE fighter over her head, its buzzing fading as the darkness throbbing at the corners of her vision expands. Desperation alone is keeping her standing, but she has stopped running now. This is as far as she was able to go.

She doesn’t need to turn around to feel the man wrapped in a black cloak right behind her, or his rushed breath as he quickly approaches, or the bursting heart in his chest.

At least I get to die a rebel, she repeats.

In spite of his speed, his steps barely make a sound on the mud, but each of them is a jab inside of (Y/N). A shiver runs down her back thinking how all the times she’s tried to prepare herself for this have been useless. She isn’t ready to face him again and, most of all, she hates that he finds her like this, unarmed and defenseless, on the verge of passing out.

For a second, her mind gives out and everything turns dark. Cold climbs into her as she collapses forward, only for her fall to be stopped mid air. Her walking stick drops with a soft splash on the puddle before her, and suddenly she can hear the clatter of rain. For how long has it been raining? While she scolds herself for letting the panic wash over the awareness of her surroundings, her attention focuses on the arm holding her by the waist, then to the silhouette towering over her. Another reason to be disappointed with herself. She’d expected to be terrified by this encounter but, instead, under the hood, she finds a sad gaze she can’t bring herself to hate.

Her blood drips over the little white flowers growing on the ground, defiling them with dark spots.

The longer she stares into the icy blue more memories flood her good conscience. The first time she saw him in that hangar so long ago, when she mistook him for a mechanic, it was him who looked helpless and alone.

I’m sorry it took so long to tell you, he said the last time they spoke.

Ashamed, she tries waving her childish longings away, afraid to know if they are still shared, and fights to stand up on her own. But her leg screams in pain and buckles, her body betraying her resolve by letting out a pained moan. His arms support her through it all.

“Are you handcuffing me before I bleed to death or shall we wait some more?” she hisses.

She holds a red hand in front of her face and curses under her breath, which prompts a flare of alarm in his aura as he examines her. Judging by her darkened, drenched clothes, it’s a miracle that she hasn’t lost consciousness yet.

“Who did this to you?” It must be the blood loss, but Luke’s presence didn’t feel fully real before hearing his voice. She has always been afraid of his anger because of the choice that came with each one of those scarlet flares, even if they’ve never been directed at her. But that stopped mattering long ago.

Little raindrops run down his dark hood, dripping over the edge. She fights the urge to fix his hair with her fingers. She offers a bitter answer instead. “What do you think? One of your friends, like the ones waiting behind those bushes.”

“I’m alone.”

“I don’t believe you,” she spits. Lately, being lied to feels more comfortable than the alternative when it comes to him. Luke seems saddened by the comment.

“You need to have that looked at. Where is your lightsaber?”

She isn’t willing to answer either of those questions. Instead, his grip tightens around her. Ah, he’s so warm. She yearns to fall asleep in his arms.

She’s so submerged in his signature that she doesn’t notice the movements around them until a branch cracks not far from them. (Y/N) takes advantage of the split second of distraction to reach for his lightsaber. This is it, the moment she's been dreading. She didn't want to do this, she really didn't. But her desires are meaningless now. If she's to fall defending her companions, she will. Luke gazes at her with a mix of surprise and betrayal, but stays still. From the bushes emerges a group of rebels armed with blasters and fiery eyes sunken in their dirty faces. But there’s something wrong. They’re little more than children.

(Y/N) has found the rebel survivors of Jolah at the worst time possible. The act of tearing herself away from Luke’s arms cost her every drop of will she has left, but she manages to strike what must be a very unconvincing defensive stance. Even if she was ready to give up the fight a moment ago, now she owes it to these people.

His first reaction is to extend a protective arm in front of her, a gesture that the rebels interpret as an attempt to leverage a prisoner to try and escape the situation. She feels the needle sink painfully into his mind as he realizes they want to protect her from him.

“Release her, you imp. You're surrounded.”

She can feel the shadows leave her surroundings, leaving behind a pale reflection of the forest, of the kids’ angry and scared faces circling in around them. That darkness gathers into the young man's palms, dancing across his fingers with whispers of destruction. And (Y/N) fears, ready to jump into action down a path she’s been running from.

After a moment to carefully consider the situation, Luke slowly raises his hands. “It seems I'm outnumbered,” he declares calmly.

The rebel captain is still processing what he just said when he offers up his wrists to his new captors. Soon they’re bound in a pair of stun cuffs. It seems it won’t be her wearing them for now.

****

(Y/N) doesn’t remember when she finally collapsed. Maybe the feeling of being surrounded by allies allowed her body to give out, or the vision of Luke being taken flooded her with that impotence she’s become so familiar with. But the first thought that bubbles up as she recovers consciousness is that she doesn’t think those kids ever let her hit the ground.

When she wakes a gentle fire fills the chamber with orange light. The cool sky of a darkening evening at the other side of the narrow crevice in the rock wall reveals that she’s been asleep for at least a whole day. The chamber around her belongs to a humble abode built under rock, rough but cozy. The smell of the herbs hanging from the ceiling fills the room made up of only crooked lines and handmade furniture. Over the fire, a pot simmers.

Her injuries have finally been stitched bandaged properly, and a strong, earthy smell comes out of them. She doesn’t know what kind of medicine they’ve used on her, but she doesn’t feel the need to distrust it. Her flight suit hangs close to the fire, left to dry, though it still has some faint stains of blood. She's been dressed with a comfortable tunic, long down to her ankles, which her injured thigh is thankful for.

“You’re lucky to be alive,” a raspy voice says. An old man just comes through the door, an axe resting on his shoulder. “You almost bled to death. Does it hurt?

“Less than before.”

He hums approvingly and, leaving the axe resting against the irregular wall, sits by the fire on one of the mismatched chairs. “Calm down, lass. Anyone that still has the guts to face those pigs is welcome in my home.”

She realizes now that her whole body has tensed up. The thought crosses her mind that the old man, even if he seems fit for his age, wouldn’t probably mean a concerning threat to her now that he’s unarmed. It disgusts her. He saved her life and she can’t bring herself to trust even a little. Then again, she can’t sense any ill intention radiating from him. Trusting the Force has not been an easy task in recent times, but she’s too weak now not to listen to it.

“I thank you for your help, sir.”

“Imoviah. None of that sir nonsense. Tell me, what happened to you? I’m dying for some good gossip. It’s been ages without news other than that bantha poodoo propaganda they feed the local stations around here. We didn’t know about the battle until it was raging over our heads”

“The base on the moon of Jolah was blown up three weeks ago,” she explains, pointing at the pale satellite hanging in the sky. “A small squad was sent to look for surviving rebels, but we had a trap waiting for us. We were following rumors that spoke about some of the survivors making it to the surface of the planet, but nothing sure.”

“So finally someone came looking for it.”

The face of a scruffy child, with tattered clothes and dirt on his face, pokes shyly through the entrance before coming in. He exchanges a few whispers with the old man and, now that she gets to look at him under the light of the flames, she recognizes him.

“Ab?” she asks. “You’re Elise’s kid, right? Your mom is a mechanic in the Rebellion.”

The kid just nods sheepishly just before the old man slaps his knees and gets up.

“I’m afraid that the ones that made it here are just those who couldn’t fight. Those up there in the base got them out trying not to get the Empire’s attention.”

“And they didn’t run themselves?”

The old man gives her a knowing stare, “Things are not what they were. This isn’t a war anymore. Come, I’ll show you the rest.”

After finding a walking stick for her, Imoviah guides her through dark tunnels carved in the rock, little Ab holding his hand. As they get deeper, (Y/N) can feel more and more pairs of eyes fixed on her from the shadows. Their fear reaches her through the Force. This is the last shelter for the Rebellion left in the Jolah system, keeping those who were left behind safely hidden in these dark and humid passages. Here survive the children of her companions, most of them fallen now, and a few rebels that were too severely injured to flee or fight, all trapped and surrounded by the enemy, their lives depending on the secret of their existence.

And she’s brought the enemy right into their last refuge.

These old passageways have become their fortress. (Y/N) is received as a hero, the first good news in way too long. She’s warned not to venture far on her own, since they don’t know how far the tunnels go or what dangers might she fall into. The adults keep the living area clean and safe for a functioning community of around sixty people, but there are strict rules not to wander, since those who get lost don’t usually come back. The oldest among those who can still fight, mostly between thirteen and sixteen, have stepped up to lead the group. Roles are carefully distributed, since their survival depends on all of them doing their job right. They live off whatever the forest can provide and the help of some sympathizers living in the town half a day away. But Imoviah, a local who’s lived in these woods all his life brewing ardees, is the only one who knows exactly the location of their hiding spot, since he comes and goes on supply runs.

The competence the kids display saddens her. The war of their parents has made soldiers out of them.

(Y/N) is glad that the chance to rest her injuries for a bit came while she was unconscious, or she would’ve had trouble hiding from them like a moody teenager. She feels bad for wanting to be left alone, but each of their constant questions poke at her heart. What battles she’s fought, what heroes she knew. The rebel came to Jolah on a mission to evacuate them, but after the attack that took her companion’s lives she doesn’t have any resources to do so. If she doesn’t figure it out, they’re all lost. They can’t keep hiding forever, since it’s only a matter of time before the Empire finds them, and that’s just they haven’t been found already.

Her senses timidly tread down the corridors, to where the prisoner is being kept. She doesn't feel strong enough to face him yet, so she can just wonder what kind of trick Luke is trying to pull by surrendering himself.

So she lets her allies show her around and feed her while she yearns for the moment she can finally be excused. Of course, after she goes to rest that night, nightmares don’t take long to wake her. She’s used to it by now so, knowing that she won’t be able to fall asleep for a few hours, she decides to walk the scare off and maybe relieve whomever happens to be on watch duty.

However, as soon as she steps out of the chamber she was sleeping in, a cool gust hits her face. The whisper of a voice follows right after, faintly calling. Can it really be her name? She chases after the exhalation through the passages in the dark, enthralled by a strange tingling sensation in the back of her head.

Then she wakes up in an unfamiliar place. Stars flicker above her head, and the cold air hits her face. She’s outside. The instinct to flee back to safety kicks in, but she can’t help notice the concentric circles carved on the floor, lighting up with a bluish glow that turns brighter with the vibrations in her aura getting stronger. As she tries to put a finger on where she has seen the carved patterns before, the lights continue to vibrate in tune with her own signature. She’s no doubt standing in a sanctuary.The symbols climb up to some sort of table, perhaps even an altar, made out of the same rock. She is known by this place, though she doesn’t remember ever being to somewhere so strong in the Force. It feels like she could reach with her hand and touch it. The swaying of its currents invites her to stay, promising healing and peace. Oh, how dearly she has missed the light, unambiguous and true. She lets the nostalgia wash over her, one that doesn’t belong to her, a gaze turned to years past before this place was abandoned and forgotten.

However, she isn’t a stranger to those feelings of loss that fill the carved terrace. Where she once held hope, now she grieves for the loss of her comrades and the future that should have been, one where Jedi would rediscover this place. Now that will never happen, and she can’t help the feeling that she has a hand in the erasure of their kind. Not long ago, she still dreamt of being knighted someday, but that path has disappeared forever. The Jedi are dead.

A dreadful realization creeps over her. She hasn’t just led the enemy into a rebel base, but also into a Jedi sanctuary. It seems to have been built on top of the rocky formation under which the tunnels hide, on a high spot unreachable from the outside. It has probably been thanks to its benevolent influence that the refugees have managed to remain hidden but now, because of her, this sacred place won’t be able to protect them anymore.

She runs down the stairs, back to the darkness, flooded by the guilty need to do something.

***

The guard she finds watching over the heavy door of the cell, a teenager holding a blaster awkwardly, insists that she should go back to rest, but she ignores the warning. She needs to talk to the prisoner, for unselfish reasons this time.

“Go take a walk, will you?” she tells him.

On the way here she’s been forming the idea that maybe she’ll be able to exchange her precious hostage for safe passage out of the planet, at least for those hiding in the tunnels. Suddenly, these children might stand a chance. And maybe she won’t be responsible for their capture.

However, as soon as she steps into the dungeon she’s shaken by her own body’s betrayal, choosing now of all times to remind her of that embrace from earlier that afternoon. Luke’s warmth hasn’t left her yet, nor the memory of his cloak shielding her from the rain with the promise of more to be found under those layers of black robes. It brings a displeased sigh to her lips.

As the heavy door closes behind her, the rebel finds her prisoner standing next to the tiny opening in the wall that serves as a window, his expectant expression immediately turned to her. Those stubborn wildflowers have made their way down there, their pure white heads shyly poking through the opening in the rock. Instinctively, Luke steps towards her, but quickly reminds himself to stop in his tracks. Good. She finds a twisted pleasure in making him wait and wonder, reveling in the agitation of his contradicting thoughts. It makes her feel a little less alone in her uncertainty. After they’re finally alone behind a locked gate she takes her time to sit on a stool, to try and get comfortable in spite of her injured leg, all while avoiding his gaze. She doesn’t know where to start.

“What are you trying?” At her question, Luke opens his mouth to talk, but interrupts himself. (Y/N) groans. “We both know it’s not a great military strategy to go after an enemy on your own and let yourself be captured by a bunch of children.”

“I had to see you.”

“Why?”

“You know why.”

Again, doubt. She waves away the whispers of the Force, too angry to listen to his emotions reaching her.

“Actually, no, I don’t. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been a little busy trying not to get killed by your people. Forgive me if I haven’t been considering your feelings while I saw my friends die and starve in the mud. Tell me, how long before your hounds come for these children? Are you gonna kill them? Or do you prefer washing their brains to turn them into soldiers that would go murder their own parents and everything they fight for? The ones you haven't orphaned already, that is.”

In the middle of those accusations, he flinches. One of them makes him angry, then that initial jab turns to a deeper pain. She doesn’t even care which one did it.

“I came here on my own, I swear. No one else knows.”

“Save your promises. I’ve seen how you keep them.”

“I’ve never lied to you,” he insists, his exasperation growing.

“Oh, no, of course not. You’re a saint. I remember you said that, next time we crossed paths, I’d get the rebel treatment.”

Luke raises his bound wrists, like that’s enough of an answer. “Isn’t that what you’re doing? Playing the rebel part?” She scoffs, but he’s not done. “Listen, I understand why you’re doing this. But I hoped you’d realize-” he interrupts himself again.

“What?”

Luke swallows thickly, fearing the storm he’s about to summon. “That this isn’t helping anyone. If you just took the help that’s being offered to you…”

“I can manage perfectly on my own, thank you,“ she spits.

“I see how well that’s working out for you.”

His petulant tone makes (Y/N) stand up from her seat with just the strength of her rage, ignoring the painful flare that runs down her leg. “Listen carefully. You’re free to come fight me, imprison me, even try to kill me and it would all be fair. That's what I get for getting into a war. But I won’t hear this talk about how much I need your protection or pity. You don’t get to disrespect me like that.”

Luke clenches his jaw and just stares at her, visibly holding his tongue. There it is again, the darkness congregating in his hands, making his blood pump with wrath. How far does she have to push before he gives in to it?

“And it tears me apart that you'd treat me as your pet,” she spits, more sincere than she’d like.

Because she would crumble down if she looked away, she bravely maintains contact with his unbearable gaze, seeing in it how he considers making her do what he wants. A rotten part of her wishes to see him try, shattering in the process all remains of tenderness they might still harbor for each other. And even though it inspires genuine horror in her, her anger makes her swallow it up whole. It’s all because of this dark thread buried deep in her chest, pulling out towards him. Until now, she’s been able to drown that pull as background noise as she carried out her duties, but now that Luke is this close it’s brutal. Like a black hole, deep inside she wants to give into the attraction and disappear in his shadow.

And then she realizes she has stood up. She feels like a fool, standing confused and defensive in the middle of the room, her chest pounding furious as if she just climbed up a mountain. The rebel stares at him up and down as she sits again, breathless.

“Stop.”

“I’m not doing anything. It’s all you.”

She stares at the floor, shaken by shame. After all the work of hardening her heart, of convincing herself that she hated him, she feels herself slip down again. Luke's voice is but a mere whisper, like he's talking to himself.

“You can’t lie to me either, can you?”

“It’s just…” As her mental shields come down she can’t help feeling like a lost child. “I didn’t expect this to be so cold.”

Instantly, Luke has come to kneel before her, eyes raised up to her with a question. It makes it so easy for her to reach for his left hand to softly rest the back against her cheek. Gently melting into each other’s space, she curses herself for letting him in her mind, for having let things go so far in the first place.

“I bet you regret not killing me when you had the chance,” she says, unsure of why she expects him to laugh. Maybe because it would be easier to stomach than seeing him tilt his head, between horrified and exhausted, and answer earnestly.

“I’m not giving you up. I tried to deny it too at first, before I knew that you felt the same way.”

Luke’s signature wraps around her like a lover’s caress, welding itself with hers perfectly as he delves deeper into her open defenses. It is the warmth, the sweet warmth she has missed, that eases the many loads she’s been carrying on her own. The rebel presses a kiss on his knuckles.

“I hate you.”

Luke offers a soft grin in response, knowing she can pile that on top of all of the other messed up feelings she holds for him. He’s so willing to take them all. “I probably deserve it.”

The one that weighs more now, though, is the void of his absence finally filled again. Her tears for it dried so much suffering ago. His bound hands trace up the shapes of her neck, a reminder that this weakness is shared. She tastes this irresponsible consolation for her sins as her fingers delve into his hair. One defeat after another, loss after loss, (Y/N) has grown small and spent, too tainted with hatred to try and bring him back. She has filled all the time away from him with a half hearted search for hope, and she hasn’t found it.

His breath on her throat relieves her cold skin.

“What are we going to do?”

“You talk as if there was an option we weren’t to regret.”

“Is that what you want? Something regrettable?” Luke offers, his closeness alluring as she grabs the collar of his tabard and brings him closer. However, they only dare allow their lips to brush lightly in passing. “We could escape from everything. Disappear to some remote place where no one knows who we are.”

“We both know we won’t do that,” she chuckles. A slight smile tugs at the corner of his mouth.

“Seeing you consider it for a second was nice, though.”

What’s out there still finds the way to invade their intimacy, much to (Y/N)’s growing feelings of dread. “I can either be a good rebel and take you prisoner or fuck you and go on pretending nothing happened afterwards. Not both. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m in a bit of a predicament at the moment.”

Even now, she finds herself playing the twisted game of seeing how far she can take him, maybe in the hopes of finding something ugly to punish herself with. Instead, Luke opens up to her.

"Alright. Use me then.” Luke lets out a brief laugh, though a certain bitterness can be felt through it, as if even he resents his own impulsive streak. “Ask for any ransom you want and you will have it."

"Like I'd trust the Empire."

"You wouldn't have to. You'll use my personal code to talk directly to the person you need.”

(Y/N) stands up from her seat, too exhausted to feign dismay, and takes clunky steps around the room. She really hadn’t woken up contemplating that she’d be ending her day with a chat with Vader. Luke stays down, next to the stool, as if he didn’t have the upper hand in this in spite of being captive.

“Same issue.”

“Whatever I promise to you, he will honor it. I swear.” Heavens, he’s a brat. “I get it, you loathe the idea. But I also might be getting a feeling that you have some urgent demands.”

“What do you want in exchange?”

“The Jedi sanctuary.”

Her jaw tightens. “Not really mine to give away, is it?”

“Then it won’t hurt, will it?” Her nostrils flare at the comment, but she keeps silent. Even if she doesn’t fully comprehend its importance, she’s not keen on the idea of letting this sacred place be potentially defiled. However, it’s true that she really doesn’t have much of a choice.

“There’s something else I want,” he continues.

“Spit it out.”

“I just want you to answer some questions.” Her eyes narrow. That is too vague and she has too many secrets she’s not willing to give away. “Don’t worry, they won’t endanger anyone’s life.”

The rebel snaps her tongue and shifts in her seat. But nods. “Alright. You’ll have them answered.”

Well, as much as she hates the situation, maybe she has the chance to take this to good port. Do something good. Hell, she can’t remember the last time she thought of herself as a good person, back when she was so eager to struggle for reasons she can’t even remember anymore. Acting in hopes of making her dead master proud, like he could see her, feel foolish now. However, there’s one thing she misses from her past righteous little self, and that’s knowing how to fight. Yeah, perhaps she was too hard on herself back then. Maybe she was good. However, that illusion fades as she voices this one command.

"Put your hands against the wall.” This is far from wise and she hates herself for it. However, her common sense has been taken captive by the lovely confusion blooming on Luke’s face. “You can either do it or wait for me to change my mind."

That candid expression she’d missed so much in him dissolves into a bratty smirk. "Yes, ma'am."

She doesn’t appreciate the attitude, not when she’s this angry. There’s a second when he’s with his back turned to her, handcuffed wrists against the wall of the cell, that she considers listening to reason and leaving. Instead, the challenge becomes appetizing. Afraid to let her doubt be read, she steps closer. Luke inhales sharply as she reaches around and, carefully at first, palms over his trousers. She quickly finds what she’s come looking for.

“Is this your usual reaction whenever you come chasing after me? No wonder you put so much effort in hunting me down.”

Luke shudders when she presses on his erection more boldly this time, revealing the prolonged aching he’s been hiding. Exactly what she needs to hastily undo the fastenings, eager to make most of the little time they might have for this. The rebel lightly rakes down the soft, light brunette hairs of his happy trail, making him sigh. Satisfied with her first little incursion and desirous for another one, she gives a generous lick to her palm before sliding it into his pants, while her other hand tugs down on the waistband of his underwear before digging her fingers into his hip. She rubs wet circles around the sensitive head of his cock, already painfully swollen and pink, and takes delight in the soft whimper she gets in response to her slightly aggressive and sudden attentions. But she decides to be merciful and softens the touch with the first stroke down the full length. She intends for this to be quick but she still wants to enjoy it a little.

“Here I come to talk business while your thoughts drift somewhere else entirely,” she teases. Luke hums something that’s meant to sound like an apology. It succeeds at softening her tone. “Don’t worry about it, I got you. Next time, just ask.”

While he leans against the wall, he can get a good view of everything she’s doing. It’s only fair, since she loves to watch his enthralled face progressively let go of that put together facade he exhibited at first, the red deepening across his cheeks and his eyes brimming with filthy pleas, like he doesn’t believe this is happening to him.

Suddenly, a gloved hand grabs her collar and brings her up, her back hitting the wall. Before she can protest her lips are captured in his, needy and warm and sloppy, as his palms cup her cheeks, one burning hot and the other cool leather.

“Please, love. Faster,” Luke begs through the tiny gap he allows, making the grip between her legs tighten around nothing. The mere touch of her own clothes there has her already burning for more. The rebel melts at the sight of need painted in the glossy eyes of her enemy, at being held so sweetly after so long, and realizes that she can’t get angry at him.

“That’s it. Ask me anything,” as she happily complies, her hand dancing with soft movements of his hips, a low moan forms from the back of his throat. “I can’t get enough of your pretty face when you do.”

Whispering more praise, she covers Luke’s throat with open kisses. Her free hand climbs up his torso, hard fingers tracing the toned shapes under the black robes. Upon reaching his chest she pinches and twists slightly, stealing a surprised whimper that tells her that she's succeeded at finding a nipple

Suddenly, rustling on the other side of the door freezes them both in place. Her hand suddenly stops, but she keeps it tightly wrapped around him.

“(Y/N),” Imoviah calls, “are you alright in there?”

“Yes, I’m fine,” (Y/N) answers, enjoying the sudden shame spreading all over her lover’s face. “Negotiations are going well.”

“Are you sure you don’t need any help?”

Luke’s hips start rolling with short, irregular movements. He’s tried, but he can’t help himself any longer. She covers his mouth and gives his dick a light squeeze and twist that brings out a delicious, hot moan to be muffled against her palm.

“Not for now. The prisoner has proven to be quite cooperative.”

“Alright, then. Give me a holler if you need anything.”

“Thank you, Imoviah. I’ll be with you shortly”

As the steps walk away, she slowly resumes her thrusts, slightly opening the fingers over Luke’s mouth to trace over his lips. Not before long, he’s sucking on them.

“Suddenly worried about your reputation? That's cute.”

He just whines through her fingers, a glint of hurt pride in his teary eyes. Slowly, his hands descend from the wall to sweetly stroke down her face, down her throat. However, as soon as they reach her collar, a violent flare of fear blares inside her brain, bouncing through every corner that makes her abruptly grab his bound wrists and return them to their original position, over her head and against the wall.

Luke calls her name with visible concern, but before he can voice it she grabs the back of his hair and increases the pace until he’s out of breath and out of words. And she’s not done yet, because then she retreats her hand so she gets to watch him grow desperate, throbbing miserably, shameful pleas molten into incoherent whining.

“See? You know how to behave.” Finally, she decides it’s time to reward him with more stimulation, swirling the precum around his pink head with thorough fingers before resuming the long awaited strokes. “I’m so in love with your cock.”

The answer is little more than a sighed strain of clumsy thank yous. Pleased with how cute he’s become from just fucking her hand, she brings him closer now, and allows him to rest his head in the crook of her shoulder. No one knows, not a single soul, that the deadliest man alive becomes a squirming mess both when he’s touched and when he isn’t. Her hand answers to his desperate motions with the fast pace he’s begging for, set on bringing him over the edge this time. While words seem to be escaping Luke right now, the soft whimpers in her ear confess how close he is, how hopelessly he craves for his own undoing by her hand.

However, her attentions are suddenly interrupted by the sound of steps outside the cell again. They’re faster this time, with a sense of urgency to them.

“Miss,” the guard, again. “It’s the Imps! They’re scouting the area. They haven’t found any of the entrances yet, but there’s talk of running away.”

“No, that would be more dangerous. Round everyone inside. I’ll be there in a minute.”

Luke drowns a frustrated whine in her shoulder. The rebel turns her head back to the man panting against her neck, and gently runs a hand through his hair.

“You gotta go,” he groans.

“Luke…”

“It’s fine, really. Go,” he insists, gently pushing her hands away. The pain travels through their bond to her in the form of an unbearable thirst, as if it wasn’t perfectly visible to her already. She’d hate leaving him like this, so he distracts her with a hasty, breathless kiss. “There’s no time now, sweetheart. You gotta run or you’re gonna regret it. And be sure to bring my comlink, quick.”

#sorry to leave it at that i promise the next one has all the spice #pomegranate #my writing #luke skywalker smut #luke skywalker x reader #star wars fanfiction #x reader #smut #dark luke skywalker #sith luke skywalker #is it a slow burn in the smut scale if they've reached this point without penetrative sex

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un1verse · 4 months

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(Long post I was rambling but I needed to get this out of my system)

Ok, why so little fics about dark percy???

why waste such potential???????

why not letting him get angry??????

He deserves that! like there is so much oportunities for him to just go "Fuck it I'll do it this way" and show how powerful he is, yes he already does that, but, does he? no he doesn't, he just goes on insctinct and follows Annabeth or Jason or whoever is in charge even if he's the one in charge he follows his own morals to a point he has to remember himself in which side is he on, all because he loves his mom and she deserves happiness.

But sally isn't going to be happy worrying about a son that might survive or not to a profecy, to a war, to a mission sent all the way to the other end of the world. nuh uh.

Percy knows that but because the gods don't care and see the demigods as their chess pieces, they don't know the demigods themselves could be another player. that's what Luke did on the first book! he just decided to become a player, yet he was a piece at the same time controled by another player that was only able to play thanks to him.

Poseidon said Percy was his favorite child, BUT IT DIDN'T FEEL LIKE IT AFTER THAT!

What the fuck was that whole ordeal if in the end Percy ended up getting manhadled by hera and put into a come where he lost time of his short life compared to the one of a god and bam Poseidon didn't do anything about it!

HOW COULD HE? didn't he said he was his favorite??? nah, he was following Zeus' orders because his brother was driven by paranoia and didn't question it.

Percy could've shown much more of his abilities to the gods, not his demigod friends, but yes, he hasn't mastered his powers, but like, why doesn't he try to practice??

Why can't fanfic authors just put him to practice when he's alone, thinking and questioning all of that?

In the first book and most of the series it's clear he doesn't like the life of a demigod but is grateful about it because of all the experiences he's had. but he's had bad thoughts ever since he was twelve, TWELVE, like that's not okay! at all!

Why is it always just refering to the House of Hades book?? like, it could've started alll the way back from book one, percy killed crusty quite agresively and no one bat an eye to that! he was ready to get revenge! like bruh

So, anyways...... give more credit when it comes to dark percy because he's always been, just, in a passive agresive way.

At least that's what I plan to use in my fic :]

Sorry for all that hehehehe

#percy jackson fandom #percy jackson #pjo fanfic #pjo fandom #percy pjo #dark percy #Uni's thoughts #ramblings

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myevilmouse · 6 months

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“Ben won’t come out of his room,” Mara said.

Her tone was, to Luke’s hearing, deliberately even, nothing to read into the words except stark fact.

“I shouldn’t have let him go on the mission, that’s what you mean?”

“Not what I said.”

“What you meant,” Luke repeated.

“It’s the Sith coven all over again,” Mara said. “Sometimes I wish Ben hadn’t inherited your reckless optimism. We can’t save everyone; he should know that by now.”

“That’s a hard lesson to learn,” Luke admitted. “Even for me.”

“But a necessary one,” Mara retorted. “Now go teach your son, Master Skywalker.”

This drabble is sort of a sequel or cousin to three from my #yearofluke2023 drabble series, for April and May and June, which Mara refers to here.

#angstober2023 #mara jade #star wars legends #ben skywalker #mara jade skywalker #married skywalkers #luke/mara #luke x mara #luke skywalker #evilmousetober23 #drabble #100 words #drabbles

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mandalorianchronicles · 1 year

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Din and Grogu’s Story Arc

So one of the things that a lot of people seem to be struggling with this season is the direction of the storytelling. Where is the plot? Why is Din being made a side character in his own show? Why is Bo-Katan getting such a prominent role, when she’s barely been in the series thus far? When is the bad guy going to come into play?

One of the things that the Mandalorian has always done is blend its storytelling techniques - balancing the episodes that have a specific crisis, solution, execution, and conclusion within that one 30-50 min block with episodes that are more focused on advancing the ongoing narrative. Allow me to offer a brief recap of the story as it pertains to Din and Grogu:

Season 1: 1-3 - Din is hired to deliver Grogu to the Empire and saves him instead 4-6 - Din makes a living doing what he does, but now as a single parent 7-8 - Din protects his child from Moff Gideon who is trying to steal him Season 2: 1-3 - Din is looking for Mandalorians who can point him to a Jedi so Grogu can be with his own kind 4 - Din goes on a side quest that reveals why the Empire wanted Grogu 5 - Din meets an ex-Jedi who won’t train his son, but who shows him how to reach other Jedi 6-8 - Grogu is taken by the Empire; Din works with Mandos + friends to get him back; Din accidentally acquires an important heirloom; Grogu leaves with Luke The Book of Boba Fett Grogu decides to leave Luke and return to Din Season 3: 1-3 - Din redeems himself so he and Grogu can be accepted back into the Covert - they bring a now homeless Bo-Katan with them 4 - Din begins training Grogu as a Mandalorian; he and Bo work to save another Mandalorian’s child 5 - Din (with Grogu) and Bo lead a mission that gives the Covert a new home on Nevarro where their children can be free to “play in the sun” 6 - Din, Bo, and Grogo begin a quest to find other Mandalorians so they can reclaim their home planet and have a permanent place to call home; Din returns the Darksaber to the person he believes will best lead their people

There are two chapters left of season 3, but when we recap the story just focusing on Din and Grogu, is there any real confusion about what the focus of the plot is? It’s the same as it always was: Din is trying to do what is best for his little clan of two (perhaps soon to be three). First, he was just trying to protect Grogu from those who would harm him. Then, he was trying to what was best for the child by returning him to the people he thought were better suited to raise him. Then, in Book of Boba Fett (which is mostly about finding your tribe, a central theme to Mandalorian culture), Grogu returns to where he truly belongs - with Din.

Now that Grogu is with Din, Din’s focus changes. He is no longer content to just be a bounty hunter or a mercenary for hire. He is a father now, so he is looking to lay down roots. He wants what all parents want most - a better life for their children than the one they had. His many adventures along the way have broadened his understanding of his own culture. He wants to restore Mandalore, but he doesn’t want to do it with the motivation of leading the clans. He wants to do it so his son can have a stable and fulfilling life. He never wanted the Darksaber. He never wanted to be Mand’alor. He just wants to be a dad...but if I’m reading the room right, I believe he’s starting to consider the possibility of raising his son alongside someone who he trusts and might be beginning to love. And in typical Din “reluctant main character” Djarin fashion - the person he is beginning to care for is the once and future Mand’alor, Bo-Katan Kryze. And I believe she is beginning to care for him.

That’s the story they’re telling - it’s a story about a growing Mandalorian family. We’re still in the early days of “will they, won’t they” with Din and Bo-Katan, but the writers couldn’t be more obvious that they’re hinting it as a possibility. That may please you or disappoint you - but if you’re stuck on the idea of Din Djarin needing to be a powerful leader in order to be relevant to the show, you probably ought to be rooting for him and Bo-Katan to get together. If you want it to go back to being the adventures of Din and Grogu, Clan of Two...you won’t be rooting for the “Dinbo” ship to put to sea.

One last thought: if this isn’t the story that you envisioned them telling, I can empathize. After all, I did not enjoy the story they told in the Sequels, for all that it damaged the stories already written. But just because something did not go the way we wanted it to, does not necessarily mean that it is a bad story. We, as fans, must remember that we are not the storytellers. Sit back and listen to story being told. If, when you reach the end of it, you decide you didn’t like it - that’s your prerogative. But there are a great many fans who do enjoy the story that The Mandalorian is telling. And trust me, the plot isn’t lost. The story isn’t disjointed. It’s all right there.

#the mandalorian #the mandalorian spoilers #din djarin #bo-katan kryze #grogu #mand'alor #the darksaber #the book of boba fett #star wars

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r-2-peepoo · 1 year

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Here is my personal headcanon for why Cody isn’t in ANH.

My fun headcanon is the Empire doesn’t exist so ANH doesn’t even happen, but my realistic one revolves around the idea that Codywan aren’t stuck on Tatooine the entire time. Obi Wan agreed at the end of his series to let Owen and Beru protect Luke and he would distance himself from them, which gives him more freedom than he would’ve had previously. I think they would certainly take missions now and then, maybe local ones on Tatooine but maybe with the Rebellion too.

They trust each other not to have to be together constantly, so I think it’s actually perfectly believable that Cody could’ve been off-world at the time of ANH. Maybe he’d come back to a note from Obi Wan, promising to be back soon, and then he’d wait for him to return. After enough time, he wasn’t coming back.

Maybe he’d run into Luke eventually and find out, maybe he’d search for him himself. Maybe he’d finally get to meet Leia. If Rex was at the battle of Endor, realistically Cody could be too. He’d wanted to stay with Obi Wan, but there’s nothing keeping him on Tatooine anymore. He’d be so old by then but he’d do what he could to help because he knew Obi Wan believed in Luke and Leia, so he wouldn’t give up on them.

#codywan #commander cody #obi wan kenobi #clone wars #star wars #star wars prequels #also if he didn’t hate anakin already he definitely would after what ani did to obi so he’d want to help defeat him.

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kanerallels · 1 month

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So... what SW Legends stuff would you recommend? I've already started reading Heir to the Empire, if that helps?

Ooooh!! Okay Heir to the Empire is the PERFECT starting place, that's where I started too! (I think. I also vaguely remembering reading these Darth Bane books when I was younger, but I digress)

(edit: also, I am not an expert on Legends, so if anyone who knows it better would like to offer any other recs (in a respectful manner that doesn't involve talking about how much you hate the sequels) feel free to add to this post!)

Others that I would recommend would definitely depend on what era you're looking for, but most of the stuff I know is post Return of the Jedi. If it's not, I'll make sure you know! (I'm gonna put part of this under a cut, it got kinda long)

The Hand of Thrawn duology. It's set like ten years after Heir to the Empire, and wraps up the events of those books super well! Plus it has more Talon Karrde, who is my favorite background character ever. The first book is Specter of the Past, by Timothy Zahn!

If you're a Mace Windu fan, Shatterpoint by Matthew Stover was really good! It's set near the end of the Clone Wars, and is about a mission he went on to find his missing apprentice. It was fun to read from Mace's point of view, and see how he's actually a lot more caring than a lot of fans depict him. Also, he headbutts a shocking amount of people. Mace is not immune to the chaos gene that comes with being Force sensitive

Technically, these are kids books and I might only like them because nostaglia, but the Last of the Jedi series by Jude Watson is fun! It's set directly after Order 66, and follows a former Jedi who grew up with Anakin, and the escapades and hijinks he gets up to

The Rogue Squadron books by Michael A. Stackpole are pretty good, especially if you like fighter pilot shenanigans. Rogue Squadron is Wedge Antilles's elite squad of pilots, and the main character is Corran Horn, who is a former Corellian Security member (basically a cop) and gets into all KINDS of trouble. I've only technically read a couple of those books, and admittedly, I don't like them as much as their follow up series. But if you do enjoy these books, you should check out I, Jedi, by Michael A. Stackpole, which is about Corran in later life

The follow up series is the Wraith Squadron books by Aaron Allston. It's also about a squadron Wedge put together, but it's made up of washouts and rejects, and they end up as a black ops division. It's simultaneously really sad and some of the funniest Star Wars I've ever read, and there's a running joke about an Ewok lieutenant

I'm gonna recommend the Republic Commando series by Karen Traviss, but with a caveat. Karen Traviss, for some reason, seems to really, really hate the Jedi. And that is reflected in her writing, but it's almost worth it for the Mandalorians adopting clones and the TRAGEDY. This one is set during the end of the Clone War, through Order 66. It also does not end super satisfyingly, but it's weirdly good anyways. So it's really up to you whether or not you think you can handle the rampant loathing of Jedi

Uhhh let's see, what else. There are so so many Legends books. The Jedi Academy Trilogy by Kevin J Anderson isn't the best written, but it gives you a really good look at what Luke's new Jedi Order looks like as he's building (and also happens, timeline-wise, at the same time as I, Jedi)

I think those are the main ones I know well enough to recommend! In my experience, anything by Timothy Zahn or Aaron Allston is pretty good. Avoid Troy Denning at all cost-- he does not, in my experience, write stuff that is particularly admirable, and it can be kinda gross. If you end up with a particular character you like a lot who you're looking for more content of, there's a good chance there's more out there! Feel free to send me any other questions you have, and don't feel pressure to read all of it. No one can possibly be an expert on all of Star Wars, there's just. Way too much of it (of course that's not really gonna stop me from trying)

#thanks for the ask!!#star wars legends #thanks for letting me rant i much appreciate it #and now i really wanna check out some more legends books it's been too long

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just-dreaming-marvel · 1 year

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The Bond Between Us ~ 75

THE BOND BETWEEN US MASTERLIST

< previous chapter

Word Count: 1,540ish

Summary: Victory is celebrated, even after loss.

Notes: I cried while writing this. No shame. I also have a one shot that goes with this chapter but it won’t be out until the series is over (which will be soon!).

It took a lot for you and Luke to get Anakin up. The three of you were each extremely weak. You and Luke both took an arm, placing it over your shoulders as you dragged Anakin along. The alarms were blaring, signaling that the Alliance was close to finish their mission. Storm troopers and commanders were rushing everyone, especially once the three of you reached the hanger. None of them paid you any mind, just trying to get to a ship themselves.

As the three of you reach the ramp of the Imperial shuttle, you collapse under the strain. Before Luke could collapse, he gently sets his father down beside you.

“Luke,” Anakin called in a broken whisper, “help me take this mask off.”

“No!” You said, moving to kneel beside Anakin.

“But you’ll die,” Luke argued.

“Nothing can stop that now,” Anakin replied. “Just for once… let me look on you with my own eyes… let me see my sister, one last time.”

Hesitantly, Luke helped remove the Vader mask from Anakin’s face. Tears fall down your face as you see your brother’s scares and eyes after all these years. They were no longer gold. His eyes flick over to yours.

“I’m sorry… sis…” He struggles to say. “For everything…”

“Ssshhh,” you try to shush and comfort him through your tears. “It’s alright… All is forgiven.”

“I killed… I killed… Obi-Wan… so you… would feel… my… pain… I’ve caused you… so much… pain…”

“It’s alright, Anakin. It’s alright…” Your breath quivered as you inhaled. “You did it though… you fought off the darkness. You won… You were the Chosen One.”

A hint of a smile graced Anakin’s lips. “I… I guess… so…” He coughed slightly. “Always thought it would be you…”

Anakin’s eyes moved so that he could take in his son. You could see the regret swimming in his eyes. How you wish you could go back and change the past for him.

“Now, go, both of you… leave me,” Anakin requested.

“No,” Luke shook his head adamantly as he responded. “You’re coming with us. I can’t leave you here. I’ve got to save you.”

“You already have, Luke… You and Y/N were right about me. Tell your sister… you were right.”

“Father, I won’t leave you.”

You gasped as you felt Anakin’s life Force leave him. “Ani?” You called. “Ani, please… please don’t leave me.” You curled in on Anakin’s body, sobbing.

A huge explosion rocked the hangar bay. Luke looked around, realizing that you were running out of time.

“Y/N, we’ve got to go,” Luke tried to pry you away from Anakin.

“No!” You cried, grasping onto his body further. “I won’t leave him… not again… never again.”

“Let’s get his body onto the ship.”

You let Luke pull your back from Anakin’s body. Shakily, you stood up as Luke half dragged, half carried Anakin’s body into the shuttle. He placed him in the center of the hold before rushing to the cockpit. You fell to your knees beside his body. Your trembling hands rested in the center of the Vader suit Anakin’s body was still trapped in. As Luke flew the shuttle, you kept your eyes on Anakin’s face. Though it had changed over the years, you were grateful to have seen it for one last time.

~~~

Han, Leia, Chewie, 3PO, R2, the Rebel troops, and the Ewoks all looked to the sky as the Death Star blew. They cheered happily.

“They did it!” 3PO exclaimed.

Han looked down from the sky to Leia, concern written on his face. Leia looked to the sky as though listening for a silent voice.

“I’m sure Luke and Y/N weren’t on that thing when it blew,” Han said.

“They weren’t,” Leia replied. “I can feel it.”

“You love him, don’t you?”

Leia smiled, a bit puzzled. “Yes.”

“Alright. I understand.” Han nodded slightly. “Fine. When he comes back, I won’t get in the way.”

“Oh. No, it’s not like that at all.” Leia smiled. “He’s my brother. And, I guess it’s not a secret anymore, Y/N’s my aunt.”

Han is stunned by the news. Leia smiled, pulling Han into an embrace.

“Y/N’s your aunt?” Han muttered in disbelief. “Luke is your brother? No wonder Y/N wanted be to drop it when I joke that she had sex with Luke.”

Leia laughed, shaking her head slightly against Han’s chest.

~~~

You took a shaky breath before placing the flaming torch on the logs stacked under a funeral pyre. Anakin’s body lied on top, the Vader helmet back over his face. You stepped back in line with Luke, eyes watching as the flames leap higher and higher. Tears trailed down your cheeks as the fire consumed Anakin Skywalker.

In the sky above, fireworks exploded and Rebel fighters zoomed above the forest. You wished that you could celebrate the fall of the Empire, but you couldn’t. The fall of the Empire and truly caused you to lose your brother. And… there was still a darkness in the air. You knew that there would always be a darkness, it’s how balance truly happens. But this was different.

“There’s still a heavy darkness in the Galaxy,” you whispered, eyes fixated on Vader’s melting helmet. “This isn’t the end of it.”

“I’m sure that you’re just—“

“You don’t have enough knowledge of the past Luke, but quickly learn not to question what I sense,” your tone was firm, making it clear to Luke that you were serious. “If the Jedi Council hadn’t questioned what I sensed, we wouldn’t be in this position… our family would be whole.”

Luke nodded, taking it in. “What do we do?”

“Unfortunately, all we can do is wait and make sure that we are not as blindsided as we were the first time.”

~~~

Many of the surviving members of the Alliance, who had fought that day, met in the tree huts where the Ewoks lived. You and Luke were no exception. The celebrations were well in full swing and you were even slightly eager to celebrate despite the heaviness of your heart.

Leia was the first to notice you and Luke enter the area. She lit up as she rushed over and embraced Luke. Han quickly followed, taking you in his arms.

“Glad to see you in one piece, kid,” Han told you. You could feel how genuine he met it.

“Same with you,” you responded.

Pulling back, Han and Leia switched who they were hugging. Leia held you tight.

“I’m so glad you’re safe,” she whispered.

“I’m glad you’re safe,” you replied.

Leia pulled back and looked in your eyes. She could tell that you were feeling the loss of your brother—her father. She didn’t know what happened, she honestly didn’t know if she really wanted to, but she knew that she needed to do her best to help you.

“General!” Lando greeted, interrupting you and Leia.

“Lando,” you smiled, going in to hug him.

Your group moved over to the sidelines as the Ewoks and Rebels celebrated together. You were watching the flames of the flicker bonfire at the center when you heard him.

“Little star.”

You inhaled sharply, glancing around the area. You felt pulled to walk out of the area slightly. Moving around a large tree trunk, you saw Obi-Wan’s shimmering Force ghost waiting for you. He smiled at you as you rushed to him.

“My little star,” he said proudly as the two of you embraced. “I’m so proud of you.” He kissed your head.

“Proud of you, we both are,” Yoda said appearing on the railing beside the couple.

“It is not me you need to be proud of,” you shook your head. “Anakin is the one who stopped the Emperor.”

“Hmm, yes. Seemed to be the Chosen One. Proud we are of him as well.”

“Is he…?”

“I’m right here.”

You turned to see Anakin’s younger self as a Force Ghost beside Obi-Wan. “Ani.”

Anakin smiled widely. “Hello, sis.”

“Y/N?” Luke called, walking around the corner. He stopped and smiled at the sight of the Force ghosts near you.

“Go,” Obi-Wan told you. You looked at him, clearly not wanting to leave his side. “Celebrate with the others. Start a new Republic with Leia. Start a new adventure. I’ll be right here when you need me.”

“Oh, Obi… I love you.”

“And I love you, little star.”

Obi-Wan pulled you in for a brief kiss, causing noises of playful disgust to come from Anakin. You laughed as you pulled away and looked over at him.

“Don’t cause too much trouble, Ani,” you teased.

“Can’t make any promises,” he smirked. “Thank you, Y/N, for never giving up on me.”

“You’re my brother, Ani, giving up on your was never an option.”

You gave Obi-Wan one last peck before slowly walking backwards to where Luke was standing. He smiled at the Force ghosts watching over the celebration proudly. Leia came up from behind the two of you, pulling you towards the celebrations. You and Luke spared once last glance over your shoulders before joining in.

Though you felt like the fight against the darkness was not over, you could at least enjoy this victory.

next chapter >

TAGLIST IS CLOSED - Taglist Information

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skywalker-swift · 1 year

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Ao3 Masterpost

Hi friends! I've decided to make a masterpost of all of my work on Ao3, where my username is casuallysavingtheworld. If you see a fic you recognize and didn't know it was me who wrote it, hi! My name is Kate, I write mostly Dinluke/Star Wars fanfic!

Currently, you have to be a registered user to leave comments on my works. This is because I've had a couple of shitty people hiding behind the internet being rude. If you do not have an ao3 account, but would like to say some nice things about my works, please send me an ask! I love talking to people about my writing. Kindness is always appreciate it!

This masterpost will be updated periodically with new works as I continue to write! Please read the tags of each story on Ao3 before reading.

Thank you!

wherever you stray, i follow series

Republic never fell, and Anakin didn't go to the Dark Side AU. Luke is an ambassador to Mandalore and Din is the Mand'alor.

wreck my plans, that's my man | Rated E | Part 1 -Dinluke, with background HanLeia, and super light Boba/Fennec and Cara/Bo-Katan Luke Skywalker-Naberrie is sent on a diplomatic mission to Mandalore, on behalf of the Republic. He plans on getting the work done and leaving as soon as he can after the two years is up, but that was before he meets the Mand'alor.

i take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover | Rated T | Part 2 -Dinluke, with background Anidala, Hanleia Anakin, quite frankly, is sick of his son’s shit.

(Luke comes back from a mission on Mandalore with a surprise, a husband and a child. Anakin doesn't know how to handle this.)

all along there was a invisible string tying you to me series

A golden string of fate soulmate AU.

one single thread of gold tied me to you | Rated T | Part 1 -Dinluke with background HanLeia Luke just sits and stares, as it’s all he can do, hoping one day, he’ll be able to follow his string, all the way to whoever is on the opposite end of it. He bets they’re beautiful, no matter what they look like. At night, in Luke’s dreams, he catches glimpses of deep brown eyes, a pre-empire ship, armor and a silver helmet.

(Luke Skywalker has a golden string attached to his finger, that floats into the sky, leading him somewhere, to someone. He's the only one who can see them. During the adventure of a lifetime, he searches for answers, eventually leading him exactly where he needs to be)

hell was the journey but it brought me heaven | Rated T | Part 2 -Dinluke, no background relationships He hates that he can see the strings, something he realizes no one else around him can do, and Din hates them. His string wants to lead him away from the things he’s come to know, the life he wants to live. He’s trying to be brave, god damn it, and the string keeps pulling and tugging, trying to get him to follow it.

(Din Djarin has a golden string attached to his finger, that floats into the sky, leading him somewhere. He's the only person he knows who can see them. He runs from it, hating that they exist, which leads him exactly where he's supposed to go.)

honey, life is just a classroom series

College AU series, with both Dinluke and RoseRey.

up on the roof with a schoolgirl crush | rated T | currently the only part, working on the next part! -RoseRey, with background DinLuke Professor Djarin looks disheveled. Professor Djarin never looks disheveled.

On one of the last Fridays of the semester, Professor Djarin is late to class. Rose wants to figure out why, and why he's acting so anxious, all while trying to keep sneaking glances at Rey, her long-time crush.

Where only the sweetest words remain

Hades/Persephone AU. I will not be writing more in this AU, series complete.

when suddenly I saw you | Rated T | Only one part of this series -Dinluke, no background relationships This story is about two people. One was considered life. The other was considered death. It starts like this. (Or a retelling of the story of Hades and Persephone, with Din as Hades and Luke as Persephone)

all's well that ends well to end up with you

Canon fix-it, post season 2 of the Mandalorian. Series completed.

what must it be like, to grow up so beautiful? | Rated T | Part 1 -Dinluke, background Hanleia if you squint Grinding his teeth down, Din was once again, grateful for his famed helmet to hide how he was really feeling. Leaning against a wall, away from the rest of the party guests, the party Leia had crafted, Din couldn’t help but think about the moments he realized he had feelings for the Jedi. (Din thinks about all the moments he realized he had feelings for a certain Jedi)

you drew stars all around my scars | Rated T | Part 2 -Dinluke, family relationships Din’s eyes catch the pale scars that line many parts of the Jedi’s body. They are all parts of Luke’s past, which led him here to this moment with Din.

#dinluke #roserey #skydalorian #reyrose #star wars #fic masterpost #fic rec

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twoidiotwriters1 · 3 months

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The Curse of Oenone (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: *Cradles Logan's Percy in my hands* I don't get you but I'd still kill for you -Danny Words: 2,288 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Listen to: 'Starting Line' -by Luke Hemmings

IX: Sorry I Threatened to Kill You, It Will Happen Again

"What do you mean?" I stare at the goddess. "I've been obedient, I never complain—who cursed me?"

Aphrodite moves a strand of hair out of my face with a pitiful expression. "It's not something you caused, my dear."

"Am I an actual arae?" I ask in horror. "My father did this?"

"Oh no, it wasn't his intention to curse you when he named you Arae," Aphrodite makes a face. "He had the brain of a monkey, but oh, if there was ever a mortal with charmspeak, that was your father..."

"Lady Aphrodite," I frown. "Focus?"

She pushes the plate of cookies toward me. "You've seen Janus."

"Yeah, but he didn't talk to me this time. I thought he was taunting me," I state.

"I'm here to warn you," she continues. "In this lifetime, you are my daughter, so I can grant you an advantage. Take it as a birthday present."

I want the gods to think about what they consider a proper gift, 'cause telling a young girl that she's got a centuries-old curse on her ain't it.

"That's generous," I say.

"Your first time around," the goddess sinks into the beauty of whatever memory she's revisiting. "People traveled from afar just to catch a glimpse of you. You were perfect..." she wrinkles her nose. "And wasted. Given to an empty carcass of a man."

"Okay," I reply, not following. "And when did this happen, exactly?"

"Then he came," Aphrodite sighs, not listening to me. "Young and charming—I saw him for what he was: your match!"

I feel like she's about to drop a bomb on me. "Cute."

Her eyes focus on me again. "It wasn't cute. It was destiny. I had to give you to him, you see, your union would jumpstart my son's mission. The end of the golden age for Greek Heroes had come at last."

I've heard that sentence before. Not when talking about my love life, but during my lessons with Jason. "Mom," I start, voice shaky. "Are you talking about the Trojan War?"

Aphrodite looks at me."You understand, then?"

"That's crazy," I blurt out.

"Don't lie!" The goddess takes the plate of cookies away. "I've given you enough clues throughout the years for you to figure it out, and you were born my smartest child, Arae. If you ignore it, you'll never break the curse—"

"What curse?" I exclaim in frustration. "I haven't heard anything about a curse!"

"Oenone's curse," Aphrodite declares. "She put it in place when Paris left her."

Ara drops the hammer and holds her injured finger cussing under her breath. This is the third time that she's hurt herself by not paying attention to what her hands are doing, which is not ideal when you're repairing a ship.

She thinks of her conversation with Leo last night. Ara has to tell him about the curse, but it's the kind of stuff that no matter when or how you say it, is bound to make things worse, and the more she waits, the more it scares her. She doesn't want to lose Leo.

Annabeth hands her a pair of safety gloves. "Won't do much to stop you from cutting off a finger, but it can help with the scratches and stuff."

"Thanks," Ara shakes her hand to get rid of the ache and then puts on the gloves. "I can't focus today... I don't know if Lily talked to you before we sailed..."

"I heard the screams," the girl replies, though she keeps it vague. "Wanna talk about it?"

Ara looks at the boards in front of her, lining them in place. "I don't even know where to start..."

"What do you mean?"

She goes back to work while she explains. "At first, it was about Nico, and then... I said things I'd never intended to say out loud and then Lily snapped too. I know I've been... difficult—"

"That's a way to put it," Annabeth walks past her.

"I thought it was for the best if, you know, if we didn't talk about... Michael," she clears her throat. "I had to look after our camp, I could grieve later, after making sure we were all okay."

The older girl sighs. "You wanna know what I think?"

Ara stops a second time and looks at her friend. "Always."

Annabeth leans against the mast, kicking some pieces of splintered wood as she gathers her thoughts.

"After what happened to Michael, you kept Lily in place until you smothered her." The girl points at the dagger hanging from Ara's belt. "You care about what everyone thinks a little too much and you forget about your feelings. I think this is exactly what you two needed, she can process her grief like she wants to, and you do the same. Codependency between members of a good team is still toxic."

Ara rubs her nose with the back of her hand and leaves a smudge of dirt on it. "But when I leave her alone, all she does is get in her way."

Annabeth laughs. "Look who's talking!"

"That's not me!" She argues. "I've always gone after the things I want!"

"Have you considered that never stopping is just as bad as not moving?" The girl raises a brow. "Next time, Ara, try sitting down instead of... what was your last near-death experience?"

Ara pouts. "Are you implying I rather die than take a nap? Do you really think I'm that insane?"

"I grew up with you, I know you are. Which reminds me," Annabeth walks up to her and grabs her by the shoulders. "Talk to Percy. He's super bummed out. I don't know what happened but he hasn't seen you in months and now you don't wanna talk to him 'cause you're too busy coddling Leo."

"Percy has you to coddle him," Ara replies grumpily.

"But you're his sister," her friend insists. "Girlfriends and boyfriends are good, but you two need each other. I know it because I know you both." Something behind Ara catches Annabeth's eye. She squints. "Blackjack?"

"Wait—wait," I start pacing the room. "Leo and I... are Helen and Paris?"

The statement sounds like something I'd say on my deathbed if I were in a soap opera. But my mom shrugs like this isn't news to her.

"Your soul once inhabited Helen's body, which is not the same as being her. You're Arae Jackson, the current curse bearer."

"But I was Helen of Troy once," I repeat numbly. "And Leo was Paris the loser."

Aphrodite gasps. "He wasn't a loser! He was one of the best romantic leads of ancient times! And that boy you love is carrying his curse!"

I wave my hand around to dismiss that. "Fine. Let's say we are, because why the Tartarus not, right? I died and was born again—and what, I found Leo and then... and then..."

I stop. It's been so long since I had those dreams that I'd almost forgotten about them, but now they're back all at once.

"Agape," I whisper, my heart pounding as I speak. "All those people in my dreams... they were all Leo?"

"Oh, you have regressions?" Aphrodite beams. "How lovely!"

"That's what they are?" I frown.

"Well, when a soul has been around for too long, they develop a slight immunity to the Lethe's powers, it creates a crevice in the mind. Some humans get to dream about their past lives, or they spend their first years with those memories until they're old enough to become a new person."

"But I..." I sit down slowly. "In all those... I'm never really with... Leo."

It's weird to pinpoint all those faces to a single name.

The second realization hits me like a train: In some of my dreams, I've gotten this feeling, like a part of me knows I died too soon. My hands go up and over my mouth, but they can't stop me from talking.

"Oenone's curse... kills us?"

Aphrodite looks away. "At first, I loved it. A nymph's heart so broken that marked several lifetimes, how romantic! I thought it'd be one of those petty curses that lasted one lifetime, then the arai would let you go... but you came back and found each other. And it happened again, exactly like the first time."

"Why do you say it like it's a bad thing?" I hesitate. "Shouldn't you be glad that I'm still fighting against it?"

"Each time, you live blindly," she tells me. "There was a time when you could've chosen to stay dead and wander the Asphodels fields for eternity, but you came back, and the arai like to play with you."

"We keep making the same mistakes..." Suddenly I feel exhausted, like all the centuries my soul has lived through are finally weighing on me.

Aphrodite seems genuinely sad. "I think it's because you keep dying young. You never grew out of that youthful optimism, convinced that you'll break the curse on your next try." She leans and holds my hands tightly. "But I think this time you made the right choice when you came back, my dear."

"What? Why?" I'm unable to release my hands.

"The fates have granted you a chance," she cups my face. "They gave you a prophecy."

"My prophecy's about Oenone's curse?"

"I'm sure of it!" My surroundings start to get fuzzy, I'm starting to wake up. "You've failed too many times, Ara, don't do it again!"

When Piper arrives with Percy and Jason both unconscious, Ara heaves a sigh and carries them to the sick bay with Coach's help.

"At this rate, we're going to run out of ambrosia," he groans while helping Ara to patch up the boys. "How come I never get invited on these violent trips?"

"'Cause I don't have enough stuff to put your limbs back in place," Ara grumbles.

"Leo, are we ready to sail?" Piper asks.

"Yeah, but—"

"Set course for Atlanta. I'll explain later."

"But..." He sees the urgency in the girl's eyes and gives in. "Okay."

"What hit him?" Annabeth examines Percy's injury and winces.

"Blackjack."

"What?"

"They got possessed, just like Leo," Piper explains. "Fought each other and would've probably died in the process if Blackjack hadn't shown up."

By the time she finishes the story, Jason and Percy are awake but still out of it. They don't remember much, and they can't get up either.

"Knocked out twice in two days. Some demigod." Jason makes a face when he looks at Percy. "Sorry, man. I didn't mean to blast you."

Percy's body isn't as hurt as Ara's when she got hit by lightning, probably because he's more resilient. "Not the first time. Your big sister got me good once at camp."

Ara smiles while she puts away the unused bandages. "Same year I met Apollo."

"And Nico," Percy reminds her.

"Couldn't be a perfect year."

"Yeah, but..." Jason shifts awkwardly. "I could have killed you."

"Or I could have killed you," Percy replies.

"If there'd been an ocean in Kansas, maybe."

"I don't need an ocean—"

"Boys, I'm sure you both would've been wonderful at killing each other. But right now, you need some rest," Annabeth says.

"Food first," Percy sighs. "Please? And we really need to talk. Bacchus said some things that don't—"

"Bacchus?" Annabeth interrupts him. "Okay, fine. We need to talk. Mess hall. Ten minutes. I'll tell the others. And please, Percy... change your clothes. You smell like you've been run over by an electric horse."

Ara moves to the side so Annabeth can leave. Piper stays for a few more minutes and then takes Jason away to get him changed. Percy and Ara are left alone.

"You're lucky Blackjack didn't kick right through your hollow skull," she taunts him. "Mom would've killed me if all I'd brought back was a jigsaw of her son."

"Yeah, not ideal..." he rubs the back of his neck. "How is she? And Paul?"

"Worried, but when we located you, things got better. Not much, but they improved a bit. Dad decided to make repairs so Leo could visit more and—"

"Leo knows our parents?"

Ara leans against a cabinet and crosses her arms. "I told you, Percy, we've been dating for half a year. Everyone back home knows him."

He runs a hand through his hair, touches the bump at the back, and winces. "Crap. Does that mean you were thrown to the lake already?"

Ara wrinkles her nose. "Yeah, it was cold."

"Aw, man," he pouts and leans against the wall. "You hate the cold. Can't believe I missed it!"

"But you're back, and you'll be present at other stuff—and now that you've been possessed you'll cut Leo some slack, right?"

He sighs, pulling on the loose strands of his battered shirt. "Yeah, being possessed isn't fun."

She pats his knee with affection. "Let's get you changed."

He groans as he gets on his feet. "So how'd you two meet?"

"That's a fun story," she smiles. "I was looking for you with Annabeth, she'd had a dream the night before..."

As they make their way through the corridors, the stairs, and towards the cabins, Ara tells him about the first encounter she had with Leo, how bad it went, and then how it didn't matter because Leo still won her over.

Percy's sad that he couldn't witness the whole thing, and he'll have to ask Lily for details later. The girl's name causes Ara's gaze to shift for a brief second. Percy notices her expression and pauses. "What's wrong?"

"Lily and I fought," she confesses. "And now that Nico's been taken, if I don't get him on time... She might never speak to me again."

Percy squeezes her shoulder. "So that's what's been bothering you this whole time?"

"Not exactly..." Ara makes a face. "I'm sorry I was mean to you—"

"I wasn't any better..."

"You don't want me to get hurt," she says with understanding. "I get it, but my relationship with Leo is the one thing I can control, and I need to feel in control. When you questioned it, I got angry."

"Well, it happens to all of us," he pats her head. "No need to ruffle your feathers over it, Birdy. We'll rescue Nico."

Ara scowls. "Again."

"Again," Percy chuckles and guides her out of the room. "Hasn't been that many times though..."

"Speak for yourself," she scoffs.

Next Chapter –>

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @asnyox-the-hoarder @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris @obxstiles @ellipsisspelled @thepixiechicks

#twoidiots writing #percy jackson and the olympians #heroes of olympus #leo valdez x oc #leo valdez fanfic #doo

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cantsayidont · 6 months

Text

August 1979. Modern reprints of old comics are digitally recolored and usually printed on much heavier, whiter paper stock than the cheap newsprint that was the norm through the mid-1980s. While modern print production usually gives much sharper reproduction than was possible 40 or more years ago, when it comes to color, the results aren't always an improvement. Some modern editions take significant liberties with original palette, adding tones and highlights and/or digital effects that were neither envisioned nor possible when the original version was published. (Dark Horse's EC ARCHIVES are absolutely ruinous in this regard, an insult to the memory of original colorist Marie Severin.) Even when the reconstruction follows the original palette closely, it often fails to take into account the way different paper stocks absorb ink, which frequently makes the color art look gaudy in a way it originally didn't.

Here's a comparative example from issue #26 of the original Marvel STAR WARS series. This sequence is noteworthy because original colorist Petra Goldberg did an outstanding job in establishing the mood of an unusual and evocative scene. Luke Skywalker, piloting a captured TIE Fighter, has just destroyed a House of Tagge facility located deep within the atmosphere of Yavin, a gas giant. Although he was able to follow a Tagge beacon on his way in, he's just destroyed that beacon, and the storms and strong magnetic field of Yavin make both visual navigation and instruments useless, as Luke had been warned prior to the mission. The original page:

Next, here's the digitally recolored version:

First, note that the reconstruction has eliminated the orange and yellow that Goldberg used to indicate the explosion. In the original version, the center of the explosion is yellow, surrounded by an area of orange that branches out into the lines of force indicating the shockwave. The digital version has replaced the yellow with white and the orange with pink, making the explosion less distinct from the surrounding clouds; in the original, the orange and yellow make clear that the clouds are being lit by the explosion, which isn't the case in the digital version. In the second panel, the digital version makes Bob Wiacek's Zipatone texture fills much more apparent (maybe more than they need to be) and has eliminated what appear to be unintended splotches of purple on Luke, but the pale yellow of the original shading on his face and helmet has been changed to white. The third panel sticks to the original palette, but is a couple of shades brighter, and the highlights on the purple cloud behind the ship look less sickly, losing the sense that the light is fading.

Here's the following page:

And the digitally recolored version:

There are fewer coloring liberties this time (although notice that the shading on the center ridge of Luke's helmet in the first panel has gone), but the final panel reveals a Zipatone fill on Luke's face that's not at all evident in the original panel — whether it's just not visible in the printed comic or was added in the reconstruction, I couldn't say without seeing the original pages. The principal dilemma here is that that the colors appear both brighter and crisper, which is not at all what Goldberg was going for originally. The point of this scene is that Luke is lost in the clouds, flying blind, so on newsprint, even the lighter blues and pinks are more muted and variegated. By in effect turning up the brightness and contrast, the original sense of claustrophobia is dampened, which isn't an improvement.

This kind of recoloring is always going to be a compromise, and some of the challenges it presents don't have straightforward answers. (For instance, should you fix obvious coloring errors in the original? Should that extend to altering colors to match how characters appeared in later stories?) However, ill-considered or sloppy digital coloring can do significant aesthetic harm.

#comics #star wars #marvel star wars #archie goodwin #carmine infantino #bob wiacek #petra goldberg

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the-pjo-analyst · 4 months

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Chapter 20 - I Battle My Jerk Relative

Theme of the day: War

Y’all I’m gonna do it. I’m gonna finish these last few chapters before the tv show comes out!! This year really didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to go but by the gods I’ll have at least one goal done no matter how skewed it got 😅 I was really like I’ll be able to read all the Olympus series in a year sjkdfhsd shit happens.

On to the chapter, “war” seems a bit self explanatory since this is when Percy confronts Ares. While Ares isn’t the one to have formed the idea of pitting the Big Three against each other, but he’s enticed by the idea of WWIII, a three-way war. Luke was lucky that it was Ares who caught him, since he probably was the easiest of the Olympians to manipulate (like hey... you could turn me in or you could let me go and start a giant war 😏). It really was a brilliant plan, as I said in my last chapter post, because it takes advantage of the Olympians’ weaknesses and paranoia. And the only way for it to go wrong was for a child to complete his quest against all odds despite having to 1) trek across the country, 2) face countless monsters, 3) thwart trickery from evil masterminds, and 4) trek across the country again. Percy really had very low chances to make it out alive. But he also lives off of spite and proving people wrong lol.

It’s interesting how each pjo book up until the final one is about Percy delaying a war in some way (kinda a theme with Riordan’s books lmao). The start of the chapter shows the beginnings of war with Hades’ army starting to rise up from the Underworld, causing massive earthquakes and fires and general chaos. Like a harbinger of a greater battle. In the immediate sense, it’s a taste of what could happen if an Olympic civil war occurs, but it’s also a bit of foreshadowing to the actual war that will take place in the future. Just like this whole book, it’s setting up what’s to come.

Continuing on that theme, Percy’s battle with Ares really culminates everything he’s learned on how to fight so far, and it sets the stage for what the readers should expect the rest of his battles to go in the series. It makes me think of the final climax of The Last Olympian, how Percy chooses to use his brain and his heart rather than his brawn against Luke, because those are the things that truly matter in the end. In this case, while Percy does use his strength and demigod powers, the reason he wins against Ares is because he uses his intelligence. It really correlates his battle with Echidna, since at that point he didn’t have enough experience to fight with more than just instincts. Actually since St. Louis, Percy has had to rely on his brain when confronting enemies, maybe that encounter influenced him to do that more. And with Ares, he finds that just his instincts doesn’t cut it. He forms a strategy vs Ares’ brute force. Percy even remembers Annabeth’s words from an earlier chapter: “Ares has strength. That’s all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes.” Like the old saying, the pen is mightier than the sword! Which is really ironic in this context lmao. Speaking of irony, it’s funny how Luke’s advice on how to sword fight helps Percy in his battle. The very man behind the robbery and evil plot being a reason Percy survives this quest lol. I know it’s addressed in hoo, but it’s strange how Ares is all brute force and no strategy, because the latter is such a huge part of war?? And it’s not like the ancient Greeks didn’t use strategy in their battles. But ig that’s what Athena is for 🤔

Other ways war and its effects is sprinkled in the chapter without an actual war in bullets bc I’m too tired to fully analyze these very sad things:

Percy mourning losing his mom (again)

Percy compartmentalizing his grief to focus on his mission

Despite winning his battle, Percy not feeling very victorious but instead feeling drained bc there’s no true winner for those in a war

Moving on to something a bit opposite, I can’t not talk about Annabeth giving Percy her camp necklace. Two people, potential enemies, reconciling as Annabeth says. The act is a physical symbol of Annabeth’s words from ch 16 (moreso than the oreos lol). She’s showing how she’s truly on Percy’s side, setting aside an ancient rivalry. In the face of war, Annabeth will fight with Percy and not against him. Kinda mirrors their moment in Blood of Olympus under the Parthenon doesn’t it? 🥹💖

Small things:

Can you believe a child taunted a literal god and the god fell for it

Like Ares could’ve been you’re beneath me and let him feel the wrath of Hades but instead he was like y’know what Ima fight this kid. he called me a coward.

Percy attributes his ability to observe things with his ADHD so ig that is a demigod trait. But he is extremely good at it.

Previous: Chapter 19 - We Find Out the Truth, Sort Of

Next: Chapter 21 - I Settle My Tab

#i will finish this book before the 20th if its the last thing i do #percy jackson #ares #annabeth chase #luke castellan #pjo #percy jackson and the olympians #the lightning thief #tlt analysis #pjo analysis #pjo meta #also thank you to all the nice comments on my posts!#i see them. i see you. you're very appreciated <3

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hwalovs · 2 years

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A Smuggler and A Jedi 5/?

CHAPTER FIVE: SHU TORUN

Pairing; Luke Skywalker, Reader Warning; we love a slow-burn, more kind of fluff/kind of angst. Off screen stuff that gets mentioned. more denial of feeling. miscommunication. still no kiss- you’ll get one i promise. Word Count; 10.2k

ONE TWO THREE FOUR SIX

Summary; Queen Trios of Shu-Torun’s betrayal allowed the evil Galactic Empire to launch a surprise attack against the Rebel Alliance’s fleet, scattering the rebels and nearly crushing their heroic cause once and for all. Princess Leia Organa, Jedi-in-training Luke Skywalker, and smuggling duo (Y/n) (L/n) and Han Solo narrowly escaped the assault and reunited with the Alliance thanks to the aid of new allies. Now, Leia has a score to settle with the Empire- and with Queen Trios...

THIS IS NOT EDITED

oh my god?? the last comic-centered chapter?? we’re almost to the endgame now kids, and I CANNOT wait for this to pick up with the remaining chapters. Sorry for the long wait on this one! I had a busy July and August, but hopefully I’m back on my monthly post update :>> also this is probably one of the hardest to write for me. Empire Strikes Back here we gOoOooOo

While Meorti continued to fix the minor problems still present on the Falcon’s outer shell, Leia dragged your group into the main hold with furrowed eyebrows and stern eyes. Her hair was kept in a bun at the top of her head, but two smaller braids hung down from it. She wore a tight grey jumpsuit, a hood stitched into the top with her holster snuggly secured to her waist and upper hip.

You sat on the curved couch, legs thrown over Hans’ lap while picking slowly at the skin around your nails. Han had perched his legs on top of the game console, slowly pressing the tips of his fingers together while looking at Leia with raised eyebrows and thinned lips. Chewie separated you and Han from the others. Luke, who was sitting on the other edge of the couch, a tan jacket zipped up fully while his leg bounced. The two droids, never being apart from one another recently, were talking animatedly to each other.

In front of Leia was a bright red hologram of a planet. You’d made a whisper to Han about how it looked like a vegetable, but he could only spare a small, tight-lipped smile.

“This is Shu-Torun. It’s one of the primary Imperial resource sites in the whole galaxy,” she gestures to the red planet, “I think we can take it all down.”

Chewie barks out a response, and Luke shuffles in his seat, rolling his shoulders.

“It’s about time, after everything Queen Trios is responsible for.”

R2 spins his head, a series of whistles and beeps following, “what Artoo?” Threepio asks, “‘I never trusted her?’ this is a little late in the day to disown her, you-”

“This is a strategic attack! This is about hurting Imperial production. This is us seizing an opportunity that Trios didn’t realize she was giving us,” Leia’s glaring at the two droids, sighing as she looks back over the group once more, calming herself.

You smirk, rubbing your forehead, “and giving some much-needed payback for destroying most of the fleet, right?”

“This isn’t a revenge mission,” she emphasizes, “Or, not just a revenge mission.”

She raises her hands in surrender, rubbing her cheeks before turning back to the hologram, “At Mako-ta, when we sliced her ship’s computer, we gained access to much more than they realized. I have the full plans of Shu-Torun’s infrastructure. It’s a strange, intricate and fascinating system by which they colonized an entire hostile world-”

“Like those weird hill bugs on Kashyyyk,” Han jokes, elbowing your side.

“But it is also uniquely vulnerable It only takes a little push in the right place, and the whole system will come crashing down.”

“But safely?” Luke says, raising his hand with furrowed eyebrows. Leia doesn’t say anything, and Han slowly pushes your legs off of his lap, leaning to place his elbows on his knees.

“Kid’s got a point,” he smiles back at Leia. “Hey, princess, you haven’t gone full Darth Vader on us, have ya?”

She just waves her hand, rubbing at her eyes gently, “It’s not that kind of disaster. The population won't be hurt. Its perfect, we just need a handful of the right people.”

Luke stands from his place on the sofa, stretching his arms up to expose a small sliver of his stomach. “Great,” he says, “when can we begin?”

Leia frowns, shaking her head lightly, “No. I said we need the right people, a few more hands, and a couple of specialists.”

“Like who,” Han strains, resting his elbows on his knees. Turning back to the hologram, Leia points, “First, we need a shape-changer.”

Groaning, you let your head fall back, “Oh great.”

Han slaps your knee, pushing himself up from the couch, “what did Tunga say he was going to do next?”

Gralack was one of the outer planets you would rather not go back to if it was your choice. It was dark and most of the alleyways were slimy and the worst creatures lurked in the bars and clubs.

Being a dark and slimy planet, it was easy to land the Falcon and sneak into the back of a theatre. Since the show was going on, almost nobody was backstage. Crates and large bins of costumes and props littered the area, doors leading into changing rooms. You can faintly hear the show, Han walking closer to the side stage to watch what was going on.

“Oh you’ve got to be kidding me,” he grumbles, hands placed on his hips. Walking to his side, you have to slap a hand over your mouth to stop yourself from laughing.

It was a show about you guys. Humans dressed as Mon Calamari, and the others dressed as your group. You could pick out Tunga, though. Since it looked like Luke was the actor on stage.

“Oh, Luc Swordswinger!” an actor cries. You can’t help yourself, you let your laughter bubble past as you slap Han’s shoulder, hiding your face in his shirt. Tunga didn’t even have a lightsaber, it was a long light that illuminated a bright blue.

“Luc Swordswinger?” Han chuckles, watching the show play out.

You didn’t know where the others were, and when glancing back, you can see Luke and Leia peeking into other, empty, dressing rooms.

Han suddenly grabs your arm, pushing you towards stacked crates while whisper shouting to the others, waving his hands frantically.

“Troops are here! Hide!” is all he manages to say. Screams erupted in the main showroom, and background actors rushed to the back and out the only available door outside.

Luke, with furrowed eyebrows and worried eyes, tries to make his way over to you, but Leia grabs his arm to hide behind another stack of crates. You don’t look his way, but you can feel his eyes on you.

Tunga and the other actors run backstage, hiding behind anything that would conceal their bodies. Tunga, having dropped the visual of your Luke, rushes past and almost falls when sharply turning to hide.

“Everyone down on the floor,” a trooper yells, “you’re under arrest-”

You don't see it, but Leia tries to grab Luke’s arm as he stands, grabbing his saber from his belt and standing in the trooper’s way. Peering around the crate, you can count multiple beginning to the crowd.

“Back off and leave them alone.”

The main trooper, sighing as he relaxes his shoulders, steps closer to him, “C’mon, Tunga. We get it. You’re a famous actor, but you’re not going to intimidate us with a prop.”

Luke’s shoulders tense, and he frowns, igniting his lightsaber and immediately cutting down the group.

Standing, you grip your blaster and stand by his side, hearing the troopers from outside yelling to each other, “so,” you hum, sideglancing at the blonde, “you couldn’t play along?”

Scoffing, he rolls his shoulders, more troopers coming into view, “you would like that, wouldn’t you?”

“I would, yeah!” You scoff, shooting a trooper, “it won't kill you to relax for a second!”

He slices through another trooper, pushing him away with his boot, “we were relaxing for a whole month on that maker-forsaken planet, doing absolutely nothing!”

“Luke! (Y/n)! Let's go!” Leia yells, waving the both of you to the hallway that leads outside. Tunga waits for you, a smile on his face, “Your timing is as perfect as always, how did you find me?”

Leia pulls her hood back on, gesturing to the large poster on the wall, “You advertised the show.”

Han was leading the group, reading over the poster with squinted eyes. Lukes's hand pressed lightly to your lower back, and you fight the urge to slap him away.

“Luc Swordswinger? Really?”

Tunga only shrugs, “My agent recommended the name changes for tedious reasons involving contracts.”

“But Ham Nogo?!” Han stands, hand on his hip as he glares at the clawdite. Laughing, you push past Han to read over the name, slapping his back, “oh that's amazing!”

“Names are never my strong suit. And he’s a classically trained actor!” Tunga tries to defend himself, but its heard by deaf ears.

“It’s not like yours is any better,”: Han hisses, elbowing your side, “I mean come on-”

“We don’t have time for this,” Leia yells, grabbing Tunga’s arm to drag him towards the alley, “Tunga, we need your talents.”

Passing by the others, you’re still snickering with Han about the names and even the storyline of the play. While Leia explained a bit of the mission, you continued to tease Han, and he continued to elbow your side and try to defend his honor.

“To be honest, there are fewer credits in the rebel-hailing entertainment market than I was hoping,” Tunga sighs, “a new role a long way away from here, is most appealing.”

It would've been an understatement to say Chewie didn’t take the news of not being in the play well. He had his fuzzy paws wrapped around Tunga’s throat, lifting him a foot above the ground, shaking him violently. He was yelling, voice animated as he continued to shake the Clawdite.

“I’m sorry!” He cries, gripping Chewie’s fur, “There were simply too many parts! Someone had to be cut! And you never really felt like a speaking role, I-”

Wincing, you lay back on the couch, briefly covering your eyes when Chewie throws the other to the ground, throwing his hands up to yell more.

Han tries to step in, holding his hands in surrender, “Hey, look on the bright side, Chewie. If I’m Ham Nogo, you don't want to know what he’d have done to you.”

“Yeah, Chewie,” you speak up, smiling at the Wookiee, “mine was horrendous, you wouldn’t wanna be in the play anyways- it would taint your image.”

“Oh, (Y/n)!” Tunga cries from his spot on the floor, “you don’t mean that! My story was crafted with the utmost care and love!”

You wave him off, going back to picking at the skin around your nails, “uh-huh, sure Tunga.”

“So,” Han draws in a breath, “we have our shape-changer. Next stop?”

He drops down into his seat in front of the engineering station, spinning the chair around. Leia rubs her arms, crossing them as she leans against the hull, “normal rebel troops won’t be enough. We need people used to fighting in a hell world.”

Groaning, you let your head fall back, “But that planet is worse than Tatooine!”

Luke falls down onto the couch next to you, far enough away from you, crossing his arms, “so, back to Jedha.”

You hated Jedha more than you hated Tatooine. The planet always seemed to be in a dust storm and paired with constant lightning strikes, it made getting around extremely difficult. Instead of going with Han and Luke to the Temple on the other side of the planet, you went with Leia.

With your hood up as far as it could go, a cloak covering your chest and draping down your shoulders and back, you stood with your arms crossed, waiting for Benthic to arrive back from dealing with the remnants of the Empire.

“I hate this planet,” you grumble, squinting your eyes to try and keep the sharp sand out, but it failed.

She gives you a sympathetic smile, tilting her head, “its only for a while, you’ll survive.”

“Of course, I’ll survive,” you rub the sand from your cheeks, “doesn’t make staying here less terrible.”

Thankfully, Tognath was one of the languages you had learned through your years, working closely with a fellow smuggler for a year or two. It made listening in on Tognath conversations easy, grabbing information about a top-secret job or a product drop-off location.

“I thought we would have seen the last of the great rebel princess and her smuggler counterpart,” Benthic hisses, voice pitched higher and more robotic. You shivered when seeing him again, the insectoid-mammalian mix kind of freaked you out. There was a faint hiss when he breathed, and the metal weapons lined across his back and sides clanged against each other when he shifted.

“I presume you have more to ask of us.”

Leia pushed her hood off, turning to look him over for a moment, standing beside you closely, “Yes, I need the partisans elsewhere.”

Benthic tilts his head, beady eyes flickering over the others before settling on you for a moment, his breathing slow and steady, and his eyes flicker back to Leia.

“Our work is not yet finished. The Imperials still defile Jedha.”

More sand billows around, and you scrunch your face to avoid getting it into your eyes and nose.

“From what I understand, the Imperials are making a few last speculative mining missions.”

His hand extends towards her, head tilting, “After what they did to Jedha? So many dead? They can’t have this world.”

Scoffing, you push off your hood, “So its ego, then? Here I thought the partisans were the practical ones, not the romantics.”

Benthic’s hand moves to his belt, sliding a thick knife from one of its holsters, “Insulting us, also not practical.”

Leia’s eyebrows pinch, glaring at him while lightly grabbing your wrist.

“You stay here, and you deny the Emporer trinkets. You come with me, and you deny them the riches of a whole world.”

There's a pause, the knife slowly lowering until he slides it back into its holder, humming as he nods his head. “You make a compelling argument, we will prepare to evacuate.” He glances behind you both for a moment, “where are your other companions?”

Leia sighs, “Luke, had other business here.”

“Han’s joining him.”

Benthic doesn't say anything, only looks between you both before turning to begin evacuation. You finally let your chest settle, shaking out your hands while walking back out of the small camp they made in a ravine. Leia follows closely, her hand brushing yours until you both have to pull your hoods back up, stopping just before the ongoing storm.

“Trinkets and the whole world, eh?” You ask, glancing at Leia. She sighs, shoulders tensing slightly.

“What else should I have said?” her voice was low, just breaking over the thunder, “I persuaded them, that’s what matters.”

You both continue to wait in silence, occasionally brushing off the sand from your cheeks or from your eyes or lips. You can already feel it embedding under your nails, slipping up under your tunic and pants and into your shoes.

Finally, you suck in a breath and cross your arms, “I’m sorry about what happened on Hubin,” you clear your throat, shifting your feet, “with Han and everything.”

“I should’ve told you guys about the transmission and the planning, so its my fault too,” she smiles softly, leaning over to bump your shoulder, “I’m also sorry about Luke.”

Your heart pangs, but you brush it off.

“He was happy with her, she seemed to be happy too.”

“But you weren't happy, were you? Me and Han- whatever we were doing. And they,” she pauses, looking at you with furrowed eyebrows, “I’ve never seen you so quiet.”

“I was fine,” you pan, “Luke can be with whoever he wants.”

She steps closer, sighing, “but were you happy?”

You let your silence be the answer. Your throat hurts, your tongue pushing your cheek while looking into the sky to find the Falcon flying closer. You wanted to leave, you wanted to go back to Home One to relax before going to Shu-Torun.

Back on Home One, you sit on top of a crate of supplies waiting to be put into the Falcons storage bays. Meorti continued to work on the outer hull, testing wires and reworking some that didn’t work.

Luke kicked at a small piece of broken metal, crossing his arms, “I wish Sana didn’t have to make that run to the other side of the rim, but this is a great team. We’ve got nearly everyone we need.”

Leia settles her hands on her hips, “nearly isn’t good enough. We need a slicer. A good slicer.”

“I’m going to pretend to not be offended,” you tease, glaring over at her.

Scoffing, Han slaps your knee lightly, “the last time you tried to slice something, you overheated the entire system ad caused a lockdown.”

“Does anyone have any ideas?” Leia asks, rubbing her forehead.”

“That's always hard,” Meorti cuts in, talking over her shoulder. “At least half of them are criminals, and half the ones left are ex-criminals. I think there was a good one of the geist. People ask me why I got into engineering, and I tell them stories about slicers, they are awful people,” she rants, continuing her work on more wiring. Leia smiles, turning around to face the other woman.

“Meorti,” she hums, “are you a slicer?”

Meorti shrugs, turning in her spot, “well, I used to be. I kept up with the field and,” she catches herself ranting again, “why do you ask?”

“So, you’re finishing up with the Falcon. Looking for a new assignment?”

“What do you have in mind?”

You almost fall off the crates when jumping off to follow after Leia, who grabbed Meortis's hand and dragged her inside of the ship. You manage to push past the partisans and sit next to Tunga, who was sitting on the curved couch. Han stands beside you, and Luke next to him.

“This is not what I had in mind,” Meorti groans softly, standing between two partisans.

“Thanks, everyone, for joining us. I’m sorry about the secrecy, but its necessary. The rebellion has had patchy security recently,” Leia says, gathering everyone's attention.

“Together, we’re going to take down Shu-Torun.”

Benthic moves to stand in front of his group, humming, “hmm. The world of the queen who betrayed the rebellion. “ He reaches back down to grab his knife once more, spinning it in his grip, “The queen with blood on her hands. The queen who must be made an example of,” he moves to stand beside Leia, gesturing to her with the tip of his blade.

“I see why you came to us partisans.”

Leia is quick to correct him, “No, Benthic. This isn’t about that. Yes, that Trios will be deposed is an advantage. But this isn't about punishment. This is an economic strike. This is showing we’re better than them. And no one who doesn’t deserve it is going to be hurt.”

You keep trying to tell yourself that the flight to Shu-Torun isn’t hot or unbearable when sitting next to Tunga, across from Benthic and Luke. When the Flacon finally touches down, you’re the first to exit out off the ramp, breathing in the hot, humid, air. Leia and Luke aren’t far behind, Han pulling in the rear as he grumbles under his breath about how hot the planet was.

“How’s anyone supposed to live here?” you ask, “let alone thrive.”

Leia shrugs, pulling up her hood as she stands on the edge of a drop-off. Peeking over the side, you feel weak in the knees at the sheer drop down to the ocean of lava. Up ahead, stood the spike you were supposed to infiltrate and take down. Around it, jagged rocks and lava fall made it seem like an evil lair. Bright orange lightning crackled between the building and the stones, the ground under your feet vibrating lightly.

The heat and humidity were one thing, but the wind made it all worse. Ash and tiny rocks smacked your cheeks with the wind, your eyes watering. You wondered how the queen found this place appealing, was it perhaps the river of lava? Or the black, molten, rock you were standing on?

“It’s almost incomprehensible,” Leia says, in awe of the building. Ash sticks to her gray suit, and you refrain from reaching out to brush it off.

“We’re going to take down that, and Shu-Torun with it.”

Kissing your teeth, you narrow your eyes at her, watching her tense shoulders and tight-lipped look.

“Don’t say you’re getting cold feet already.”

Han grabs your wrist lightly, pulling you back towards the Falcon. Meorti stands by the ramp, squinting to protect her eyes from the wind.

“It’s not too late to back out and do something less suicidal instead,” Han says, letting go of your wrist as you board the ship once more.

“Suicidal?!” Meorti squeaks, eyebrows furrowing. Luke shrugs his shoulders, downplaying it all. “It’s not. Han just likes to be dramatic. It's a good plan.”

You turn your head towards Luke, smirking, “a good plan can be suicidal too, you know.”

He only raises his eyebrows, leaning in close, “I’m trying to lighten the mood-”

“Sometimes, moods don’t need to be lightened.”

He huffs, moving around you to go deeper in the Falcon. Benthic waited by the ramp, leaning against a side wall with one of his blades in hand.

“Death is a small thing,” he hums, the pads of his fingers lightly touching the metal. Tunga looked star-eyed, almost like he was about to start drooling, “Oh my! All this posturing!”

Leia pushes down her hood once the ramp begins to close, squeezing past you and Han.

“I thought I was a great actor, but you, my tube-faced friend, are incredible.”

You shake your head, “here we go.”

“The spike runs through the core of the planet. It fuels all the energy shields. They keep an area habitable, then are repositioned when they need to exploit another area, like dams on a water world.” Leia places her hands on her hips, shrugging her tense shoulders as she looks around the main hold. “If we knew exactly which engines to blow up, the energies would tear themselves apart. If we do it right, victory will come with an absolute minimum of casualties. But we’d need the plans to know that.”

Han raises an arm, letting R2 roll forwards, already displaying the inner workings of the spike, “and would you look at that!” he muses, faux surprise lacing his voice, “plans!”

Leia ignores him, standing close to the plans to point out specific parts, “We hit our targets and no more spike. No more spike? No more energy shields. They run on its storage reservoir. One by one its systems fail, with plenty of time to evacuate.”

With her eyebrows scrunched, she turns back and glances over the small crowd of people, “Shu-Torun turns from one of the marvels of the galaxy into a standard mining world.”

“Even I know the spike’s one of the most heavily defended places imaginable.” Tunga crosses his arms, sternly looking at Leia. “The energy shields alone are one thing, but I daresay it has quite the number of aggressive fellows with blaster guns.”

“Oh my,” Threepio sighs, looking down at R2, and then to you, “I was so happy with my limbs all back as well. I knew it couldn’t last long.”

You finally let yourself begin to relax, slowly piecing together what the full plan is and how you’ll make it out alive once more.

“I won’t lie, it won’t be easy.” You look back up at Leia, already seeing her smiling softly, “We’re not going to be fighting all of them. The problem with Shu-Torun is that it has a top-down system of government and is highly technological. This wonderful infrastructure is controlled from on high-”

Luke can see the confusion written on everyone's faces the more Leia speaks, so he huffs, standing beside her, “You remember at Mako-ta when they locked down all our ships? If we can get access to the master security controls, we can do the same for them. Every single door we don’t want open will be sealed.”

“The path is so obvious, why are we still sitting here?”

Benthic spoke like he was the only one understanding everything Leia was saying. Sometimes, you wanted to smack Benthic, but the multiple holsters of guns and knives stopped you.

“The controls are in the Imperial retreat. Only Queen Trios can activate them. We have the access codes in the data we stole from her ship, but there's an eye scan.”

“Why does this keep getting more and more intricate?” You grumble, leaning against Han as you rub your eyes. He laughs softly, lightly patting your head, “too many big words for you?”

Slapping his shoulder, you send him a glare, “no, you womp-rat. I just want to get this over with, the more time we waste, the more time is shredded off my life.”

“Surly we can’t just kidnap her? She’s a Queen. People tend to be somewhat protective of their heads of state, in my experience.” Tunga points at himself, “admittedly, my experience is more marital than martial, but I'm sure the point remains-”

“She’s holding a party for the ore dukes tonight,” Leia shouts. “We kidnap an ore duke, impersonate him and use it as an excuse to get close enough to Trios to get a good scan of her eye.”

“So let me get this straight,” Meorti rubs her forehead, “We go right into the heart of her stronghold, at risk of being discovered at any moment, just to get a scan of her eye.”

“Then, before they realize, we go to this other stronghold, get in, and I use all the above to slice their systems and lock down this whole society? And Finally, before they manage to break out, we go and infiltrate the enormous spike system and blow it up according to a bunch of stolen plans?”

“Sounds like a death wish when you put it like that,” you sigh, crossing your arms over your chest.

Leia chuckles nervously, squinting her eyes slightly, “uh, yes? Though we’ll have two teams. We’ll go to the retreat. Luke, (Y/n), and Benthic will go to the Spike.”

At the mention of your name, you listen back in and catch the very end of what she was saying, your shoulders tensing at the thought of being alone with Luke and Benthic. Han tries to conceal his humor, his shoulder jolting with laughter at the thought.

“Shut up,” you hiss, roughly jabbing your elbow in his side. He yelps lightly but doesn't drop his teasing smile.

“I see no problem with the plan,” Benthic muses, standing at Meorti’s side, “do you have a problem, engineer?”

Her eyebrows furrow, but she doesn’t step away, “no, I guess. So how are we going to capture an ore duke?” She nods her head over her shoulder, “is it something to do with that speeder in the hold?”

Leia finally smiles, “It does. In fact, we need to be on our way if we want to make the drop on an Ore Duke. Han, Threepio, Tunga, you, and I will be going in the speeder while the rest of you stay back and wait for our signal on the jump to the spike.”

“I can’t just leave the Falcon!” Han whines, standing from the couch while positioning his hands on his hips. He may have been complaining, but he was following the others into the back of the ship towards the speeder.

“I’ll take good care of her, Han!” You tease, laughing at the glare he tosses over his shoulder. Chewie walks to stand beside you, ruffling your hair to get your attention as the others begin the undocking process.

“Yeah, yeah,” you hum, following Chewie back into the cockpit, taking a seat in Hans’ chair. It was in better condition than Chewie’s, but the leather was still cracking and worn, faded from the constant brush of his hands and clothes.

“Are you fit to fly?” Benthic hums from the doorway, hands gripping his belt. You scoff, flicking switches and monitoring the statistics coming from the main drive.

“I know a lot more than you think, Benthic.”

“I find a lack of enthusiasm in your tone, do you not want to participate in this mission?”

You turn your head, giving him a forced smile. Chewie does the same, your heads almost touching in the middle, “and I find your lack of minding your own business quite disturbing, Benthic. Why don’t you go and study the plans more, eh? “

Not hearing a reply, only the fading sounds of boots, you let your shoulders relax and turn your focus back onto the control panel, making sure the coms were on, and that the deflector shields were working properly.

When you double-check everything was ready for the departure to the Spike, you lean back in Han’s chair and close your eyes. Chewie was growling and huffing under his breath, and you could slowly piece together some words. You were getting better, but still nowhere near Han when it came to understanding Chewie.

“Chewie, can you make sure they don't break anything? Han will have my head if he finds so much as a dent,” you mumble, hearing him stand from his chair. He departs but makes sure to ruffle your hair. When you’re alone in the cock pit, you finally let your body slouch into the seat. Watching the large spike across the lava ocean, ash and pebbles hitting the windshield.

The speeder left a little while ago, and now it was just a waiting game for when they would contact you about any updates. You just hoped they were safe, the last thing you needed was a bloody and bruised Han whining all day.

“So this is where you’ve been hiding,” Luke muses. He gives a lopsided smile while sitting in Chewie's chair, and you almost jump out of your skin.

“I don’t think I’d be of use out there, you’re better around others,” you reply, sitting back up. Clearing your throat, you try and look at anything but him. The radar was clear, and so was the surrounding perimeter.

“That’s not true,” he chuckles, “you’re always saving deals with Han and I can barely haggle down the price of anything.”

You chuckle, remembering the flustered look Luke wore as he continued to try and haggle for the first time. Cheeks red and eyebrows furrowed in frustration.

“Well,” you tilt your head, “smuggling is different than normal haggling, Blondie.”

It was nice talking to Luke like this again, it was so easy to tease him. You let your eyebrows relax, and your shoulders relax while in his presence again. If you tried hard enough, you can ignore the thought of the Partisans and Chewie walking in.

“I haven’t heard that in a while.”

“What, blondie?”

“Yeah,” he hums, turning his head to smile softly, “I haven’t heard that since before Hubin.”

Just like that, he had to go and remind you of the worst two months you’ve had in a long time. You clear your throat, shift in your seat, and scoff.

“I just haven’t found a reason to, yeah?” You don't look at him, but you can imagine the hurt look in his eyes. His head turns back to the control panel, and his lips thin as he nods.

“We have a job to do, and I’d rather not talk about that.”

You thank the Maker when Chewie comes back in, he looks between you both before gesturing for Luke to move from his seat. He sits back down, glancing over the controls before leaning back and closing his eyes.

It felt like the air had gotten thick and heavy after you and Luke spoke. Your throat hurt from thinking about the secluded planet you were trapped on. Sure, it brought Han and Leia together, but all it did for you and Luke was drive a stake in your tight-knit relationship. You refused to talk about it, scared of tears that might cloud your vision. What would Han think of you after you spill your guts about your feelings towards the Jedi?

“Chewie?” Leia’s voice cracks over the intercom, “We’re heading to the abyssal rooms, we’ll get Trios’ data, and then get to the castle to slice. Ready?”

You knew that Luke would never leave the cockpit when Leia started talking, he leaned in between you and Chewie, blonde hair almost reaching his lashes.

“We’re ready when you are.”

“Just make sure none of Benthic’s guys mess with the Flacon and- oh, just look after her,” Han insisted.

“Don’t worry Han, nothing will happen to your baby,” you joke, smiling lightly.

The com went silent after that, and you shifted in your seat at the lack of response on his end. Han is either really nervous, or really really nervous about leaving the Falcon with a bunch of Partisans in the main hold.

When your shoulders finally started to relax, and your head resting against the seat with your eyes closed, you actually almost began to doze off. You blame it on Chewie, his presence is always the best on the Falcon when it comes to these kinds of missions.

“Luke, (Y/n), we’ve got everything we need for the slice, are you ready to storm the Spike and set the explosives when we take control?” Leia’s voice chimed in over the com. You sit back up, groaning softly as you start up the Falcon once more. The engine rumbles under your feet, and you can hear the hissing of the vents and different systems.

“Just launching now,” you grip the joystick, rolling your shoulders, “we’ll wait on your signal.”

“Benthic,” Luke stated, turning to look at the spying hunter, who was hunched against the doorway.

“Get the rest of the Partisans ready for deployment, we’ll be going in fast.”

Chuckling, you flip more switches, the Falcon beginning to ascend, “fast doesn't really do my flying justice.”

Chewie barks, the com making jerking noises until Han’s stern voice cuts in once more, “Just take good care of the Falcon. Don’t let any of those fanatics do something dumb with her-” Chewie has to interrupt him to stop him from saying anything else more incriminating with the Partisans, “What do you mean Benthic’s there? Now he’ll- Is he still there?” He didn’t wait for Chewie to respond, “Benthic! I was joking! Joking!”

You steer the Falcon away from the ledge, beginning to speed towards the Spike, “Relax you bantha! The biggest worry for the Falcon? You not getting the shields down in time.”

With the Falcon ready for acceleration, you make sure to settle your heart rate, they would get it done in time. They always do. Staring down the Spike, you can faintly see the glow of its shield, and internally, you note to get yourself a Port In a Storm when this is all over.

Benthic and Luke sit in the seats behind yours, waiting for the signal.

“(Y/n), we’ve done it. You can make your run.”

“Understood,” you jerk your head over your shoulder, keeping your eyes ahead, “you guys might wanna hold on.”

You can just imagine Luke’s confusion as you accelerate the Falcon, your body jerking back into your seat. Chewie barks and growls, but you only throw him a smile as the ship continues to gain in speed.

“At last.” Benthic hums, unfazed, “I want to make it look just like Jedha.”

Laughing sarcastically, you narrow your eyes, “at least wait until we’re off the Spike, yeah? I have no plans on joining the afterlife.”

“Let’s see if Leia’s opened up access,” Luke interjects, leaning in-between you and Chewie.

As the shield comes closer, you’re internally freaking out. Your palms are slick against the leather joystick, and your knees can’t stop from bouncing.

When you make contact with the light blue wall, it doesn't stop the Falcon, but opens to allow you through. The Spike is gigantic when you’re so close, and you wonder how long it’ll actually take you to rig it up with the explosives. Benthic and Luke both get up from their seats, leaving the cockpit in rushed footsteps as you set the Falcon down gently on one of the small docking bays that clung to the side of the Spike.

Shutting down the Falcon, you stand from the seat and ensure your blaster is still holstered securely to your side, your few knifes still strapped to your calves and thigh. Chewie waited for you in the doorway, crossbow in hand. Nodding, you follow him out and onto the tarmac. Luke lead the group, saber hilt in hand as R2 followed him closely. The partisans followed Benthic, who was following you and Chewie.

Grumbling, Chewie jogs beside Luke, who chuckles once, “Yeah, its strange. We land on a hostel base, and we expect everything to be exploding and them charging us.”

“The other times they knew we were coming, did they not?” You interject, standing beside Luke as you approach the hanger door. Light purple lights boarder the metal, and Luke ignited his lightsaber, talking softly down at his droid.

“This time we have control of everything. Artoo? When you’re ready.”

As R2 begins disarming the doors, you grab your blaster, checking the rounds and making sure it was working properly. You can feel Lukes’ eyes on you, and when you look at him, you try not to stare at the way the light blue glow of his saber made his eyes twinkle.

He licks his lips, looking nervous, “I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m glad I’m here too,” you smile, raising an eyebrow,” couldn’t let you boys have all the fun, right?”

R2 whistles, cutting Luke off from saying anything else, rolling away from the doors to let Chewie and Luke stand in front. The doors hiss open, and Chewie roars, already charging in at the unexpecting guards. Charging in, you rush to the nearest guard, smashing the hilt of your blaster into their neck, right between the plates of their armor. Her goes down with a yelp, and you shoot his leg to ensure he couldn’t follow.

It wasn’t long before each guard was down, some groaning and others lying still. Luke stands by the closed inner door, R2 at his side.

“We’re finished here. Secure the prisoners and-”

Benthic doesn’t hesitate when he kills the remaining guards, standing tall over them as he shoots them.

“Benthic!” You shout, glaring at him. He doesn’t look at you, but continues surveying the small tunnel, “You asked the partisans to join you. Do not be surprised when they act like Partisans.”

“And besides, we cannot risk leaving anyone to our rear.”

“You-”

“Just don't push it,” Luke interjects, shaking his head lightly at you, “we have all the advantages here.”

Benthic finally turns around to look at the blonde, and when he does, Luke stands a little taller, “Only we can open doors, we make our way to each of the cores, blow them up and bring the Spike down,” he points to the doors R2 was disarming, “this way!”

Placing a hand on Benthic’s shoulder, Luke tilts his head slightly, “all we have to do is stick together.”

You want to stand next to Chewie, waiting for Luke to join your small group instead of talking to Benthic.

Luke finally turn back when the doors slide open, standing in-between you and Chewie.

“Chewie, get back to the ship and keep contact with the princess,” he says, giving the Wookiee a soft smile when he begins whining.

“You’re the only one Han really trusts, Chewie,” you pipe up, shrugging your shoulders. Luke smiles softly, waiting until Chewie walks out, albeit grumbling the whole way, to start walking.

“You think Han doesn’t trust you?” He asks, glancing back at the Partisans. Shaking your head, you wave your hand, “last time I was left in charge of the Falcon alone, I ditched him on a planet for a few days before coming back with a new paint job.”

The hallway was short when coming up to the first core, the light sound of talking guards on the other side. Your blaster was heavy in your hand, but it was one you were familiar with when shifting it around. With your back pressed up against the wall, you wait for R2 to open the doors. Your blaster wasn’t set to stun, which made it somewhat better to aim for you.

Benthic was at your side, Luke on the other side of the doorway. The partisan was going over his daggers and blasters, mechanical breathing making your shoulders tense.

When the doors open, you crouch when rushing into the room. It took a moment for the guards to notice your group, but when they did, shouting commands spread quickly while blaster bolts began raining your way. You throw yourself up against one of the storage tanks, peeking around and taking shots when you can. Once or twice, a bolt whizzed right past your head, almost burning off your hair.

“Be careful!” Luke shouts, running past you to make his way towards Benthic, who was reloading his blaster.

“Says you!”

Finally making it to Benthic, breathing heavily as you look between the two, you groan at the glint in the blondes eye.

“You’re going to rush them, aren’t you?”

“We were waiting for your assistance of cover,” Benthic responds, looking over his shoulder.

“Ready?”

Luke breathes a chuckle, rolling his shoulders, “not really, Benthic. But that never seems to matter.”

Lending cover fire was easier with a Partisan at your side, he was a great shot, not missing any of his targets as he shoots down the guards closest to Luke.

Luke, always one to accidentally show off, was spinning his ignited lightsaber as he shot down a guard, jumping over the control panel, and then the last one went down, and it was silent.

“If this is how its going to be for every room, I regret not going with Chewie,” you grumble, holstering your blaster and standing beside R2, who had rolled in casually when there was no more blaster fire.

“Room clear. Set it to explode, Artoo.”

The others were already leaving the room to head to the other core, but you stayed back with Luke and R2.

Whistling, R2 hooks up to the core, his head spinning back and forth.

Luke scoffs, leaning his weight onto one foot, “that’s right, now! Let’s go!”

When R2 was finished, you all had to run out before you were blown up with the core. Then came the others, with four cores down, you only had one more before the mission from your end was completed.

“Okay,” Luke said breathlessly, running beside you, “that’s four down, one more to go and we can get back to the Falcon.”

He shifts his head to look at R2, “still no contact?” whistling and beeping in return.

“They might have their hands full, Luke. Give them time.”

“I wouldn’t expect any,” Benthic chimes, “We’re just too deep. We’re on our own.”

His other men were paused in the final doorway, eyes flickering from you, to Luke, to Benthic. One man lowered his gaze when you narrowed your eyes, and a thick feeling began to bubble in your chest.

“Then let’s make this quick and get back!”

Much like the other rooms, the guards weren’t aware of your presence, being overtaken in little to no time. Just to be sure, you kicked away their blasters, tapping their helmets with the tip of your shoe while wincing.

“Room secure!” You call back, hearing R2 chime before entering the room. Turning, you go to the doorway, ready to make your escape back to the safety of the Falcon. Benthic stood by the main control panel, his rifle still in hand.

“Last charge to set, then out.” Luke pointed over his shoulder, “Artoo? Get to work.”

“And i thought Han was mean to droids,” you lean against the doorway, tilting your head at the blonde who only shrugs his shoulders.

“If you could understand him, you would be a little mean too.”

“I’m good, gives me a reason to not listen too much.”

You can see the beginning of a smile, but it falls when the core begins to brighten. The once quiet humming grew louder, the machine seeming to work overtime.

“Benthic? We’re supposed to blow it up,” you holler, pushing away from the door frame. Luke fully turns, his hand gripping his blaster as he strides towards the group, “what are you doing?”

“It is none of your concern.”

Luke scoffs, “It is. Artoo, stop. No more.”

“You have fought alongside the Partisans. You know what we are.”

You can see the other’s stepping closer to Benthic, and it makes you step closer to Luke. Tensions were rising, and you were cautious when taking a breath.

“We do not hurt our enemies when we can kill them. If we do this, we won’t just hurt the Imperial bookkeepers’ ledgers. We can tear this world apart. We can make it Jedha’s twin.” His laugh is mechanical, “Just, is it not?”

“No. it’s not just. Its not fair.”

Benthic sighs, raising a finger, “we disagree.”

The other Partisans raise their blasters, some pointed at you, others at Luke. You knew that you couldn’t go against them, so you raised your hands, mirroring Luke.

“I see,” he tsk’s. Face relaxed as he raises his hands in surrender. He glances at you, eyes soft, before looking down at R2.

“Artoo. I guess we have no other choice, right?”

You almost laugh, you’ve had enough of these two. He was beginning to sound like Han, always having a trick up his sleeve to get out of a tight spot.

With a trill, R2 opens six canisters and begins dispensing thick white smoke. It spreads immediately, and Luke grabs your hand while diving out of the line of fire. He doesn’t let go of your hand when you’re racing down the halls, dodging blaster fire with R2 on your trail.

“They’ve gone crazy,” you say, ducking your head when a bullet flies over your head. Luke huffs, turning sharply down a different hallway.

“You’re telling me?!”

“I knew this was a bad idea! Nobody listens to me!”

“Now’s not the time for this!” Luke frowns, “there has to be a way to stop them.”

“If they’re on such a schedule, why don't we give them every second we can.”

“Good idea,” Luke breathes, smirking lightly as he holsters his blaster and unsheathes his saber, igniting the blue blade. When you get through one of the blast doors, he all but throws you in while slicing the control panel, the large doors closing with a crash behind you.

“This will slow them down.”

“For now,” you grumble, trying to catch your breath. “I didn’t come here to fight Rebels, Artoo, but we only came here to destroy this machine, not the whole planet!” He looks down at his droid, saber clutched in his hand while he runs a hand through his hair, “but if we keep you out of Benthic’s hands, they can’t blow up the whole world.”

The metal door jolts, multiple pairs of feet underneath. “Well, slow down isn’t stop.”

Luke steps towards you, grabbing your hand to drag you closer to R2, “you two hide, I’ll lead them away-”

“What? Hide? Are you crazy?”

“You have to stay safe!”

“And so do you! Artoo can hide, I’m coming with you.”

R2 whistles as he rolls into a small opening within the wall, and the door begins rising with a groan. Luke glares, grumbling under his breath, but doesn’t stop you from following after him as he runs down the hallway.

“After them!”

You took not one, but two turns before you came to a dead end. The partisans were on your tail, and there was no where else for you to go. Turning, you aim your blaster, but that wouldn’t last the long. And Luke had his saber, but you were heavily out numbered.

“No way through,” Luke grumbled, stepping closer.

“So, it will be this. Slicing down fellow Rebels in a fight you can’t win? What are you, Luke?”

“What are you, Benthic? Capturing us doesn’t make a difference anyway, you need Artoo.”

“Bring them.”

The core was no longer overheating, back to its original color now that R2 wasn’t controlling it. The room still had the fallen guards, weapons still kicked away. The barrel of a blaster was digging into your back, and you tried not to turn around and snatch the blaster away.

“Broadcast me.”

Benthic steps off to the side, resting his hands on his hips. You’re forced towards the core, standing beside Luke.

“Yes, Benthic, channel open.”

“Droid! You can hear this. You come here, or we kill your master.”

“He’s not going to listen to you,” you comment, Benthic only moves his head slightly in your direction.

“He’s a stubborn little thing, doesn’t listen at all-”

There he was., the little droid, stubborn R2-D2 unit that made your life a living hell when accompanied by Threepio. He was rolling into the room, quickly, on his own mission to save Luke.

“Seems you’re wrong, smuggler. Overload the system, droid.”

Luke is just as surprised as you, “No! My life doesn’t matter compared to this! I order you-” but he’s already rolling past, not even acknowledging him. Luke walking along side him, but gets stopped by a Partisan. This time, he sounds desperate, “please, Artoo- you don’t have to do this, you-”

R2 hooks back up to the core, the machine beginning to overheat slowly.

“Benthic! Stop! You’re going to kill everyone on this planet!”

Luke was right. If the core was overheated, it would drive the planet down the middle. Effectively destroying anything and everyone on its surface.

“Yes. Including us. Anything to ensure this Hellish planet dies.”

“You’re insane!” You yell, ready to charge at him, but another grabs your arm. You try to push back, but you feel the barrel digging into your back again.

“Set perimeter, they’ll come now. We must be willing to defend the dream. And tie those two up. They’re proving a distraction.”

The barrel is removed from your back, and you refrain from struggling too much as they wrap a cord around your wrists and elbows, connecting that to your waist so there was no way to move your arms.

As the core continued overheating, it began lighting up with electricity. Large bolts crawled up the side as the core ran to its limit. Stormtroopers began to flood into the room, and for once you were hoping they would be able to aim and take down the Partisans. Maybe they would set you free in time to escape the meltdown. But it was unlikely.

“I’d never thought I’d be hoping stormtroopers would beat the rebels,” Luke says softly, watching the onslaught from beside you. Chuckling, you let your head fall back against the control panel, “I never thought I would die next to a stubborn droid and a blonde Jedi-in-training.”

“We’re not going to die here.”

“Face the facts Luke, Benthic isn’t going to crack under our pressure, he barely trusts you, let alone a smuggler like me.”

For once, you were envious of Luke’s determination at making it out of dire situations.

“Just let me think-”

“At least you got to kiss a pretty lady before you die, I never got that-”

“Stop talking like that!” he hisses, narrowing his eyes. With pink cheeks, he shakes his head, “I’m not going to let either of us die here.”

“If you say so, blondie.”

“Benthic! You can’t do this-”

Towering over the pair of you, Benthic watches the core struggle to keep going, “Nothing can stop us now.”

“Benthic!” you hear from the entrance, “What are you-”

You almost smile when you see Leia and Han, but they’re rained on with blaster fire, disappearing around the door. There's a brief pause, Benthic waiting patiently until Leia reappears, her arms raised high in surrender.

“Benthic, please- just listen to me.”

She inches forwards, the Partisans all aiming their blasters at her and she walks closer to Benthic, who meets her somewhat in the middle.

“Princess,” his voice is almost cocky, “this is logical. Alderaan and Jedha, sisters in pain, the Shu-Torun are all complicit. Their death will warn others what will happen to them is they follow the Empires path.”

Leia lowers her hands, eyebrow knit tightly together, “I’ve heard that plan before. Planetary annihilation to keep dissenters in line, Tarkin and his Death Star.”

“The dream of overthrowing them. They’ve taken everything from us.”

By now they were standing close, talking like two friends debating which cantina is better.

“They haven’t. If you do this,” she gestures to the core, “then they take everything. If you do this, even if we win, they win. Because they’re them. Yes, Shu-Torun dies if you do this- but your dream dies too.”

The others seemed to freeze, the only sound filtering around was the buzzing of the core, and the snapping of lightning from the excess power.

“Return to the Princess’ plan, release the prisoners,” Benthic said sternly, his voice barely heard from where you and Luke were sitting, “let us leave this place of errors behind.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, you let the Partisans untie you before helping them untie Luke, pulling him from the ground and rushing out of the room. Han grabbed your hand, glaring at you as he led the group, “I can’t leave you alone at all, can I?”

“Clearly not, everything goes wrong without you.”

You dont throw yourself in Chewie’s arms when you see him, he was waiting in the cockpit for everyone to return, the Falcon already ready for take-off.

Han all but throws himself into his seat, Luke and Leia taking their’s behind the two. You wee left to stand, but you didn’t mind. You liked to be inbetween Han and Chewie, gripping onto the backs of their chairs, you bend down onto one knee. The cockpit door slid shut, Threepio talking to R2 as the Falcon quickly starts to ascend.

“Where’s Tunga?” You ask, looking around for the small green shapechanger that you’ve grown fond of. Han shakes his head, telling you what you needed to know. You just hope he went out in a blaze of glory, he was dramatic like that, he would want everyone to remember him.

You dont know when the Empire arried, but there was already multiple Tie’s after you, shooting down from above.

The radar began beeping erratically, and when you bend down to read it, you whistle. Han shifts his gaze to look as well, and he scoffs lightly.

“So they’ve got an orbital blockade and a sky full of ties, and we’ve got no chance of blasting our way out. Two options for you, Princess.”

You groan, already hating where this was going.

“Do we surrender, or do I try something extreme?”

“No surrender!” Luke interjects, leaning over the arm of his chair to see out the front, Leia nodding lightly, “and they’d kill us anyways.”

Smirking, Han grips onto the joystick, “Well, if you put it like that-”

“Han, please,” you plead, gripping onto the seats like that was going to help you. Han was reckless when given the option.

He pulls on the joystick, the Falcon spinning up and around the Ties, the force makes you yelp, the force pushing you back. Luke and Leia both grab your arms to stop you from flying into the cockpit door, stifling their laughter at your constant cursing.

“Han?” Leia calls, almost falling out of her seat to hold onto you, “where are we going?”

“Han! I’m going to kill you!” You yell. The Falcon heading straight back towards the collapsing Spike.

“You’re flying us into the remains of the Spike?!”

Han shrugs, furrowing his eyebrows, “you got it. It went right through Shu-Torun, that tunnel is still collapsing. Maybe we can make it to the other side. Maybe.”

While flying into the Spike, he levels out the Falcon, allowing you to sit on the floor without fear of lying into the wall. The Tie’s find nothing wrong with this, following right after the Falcon. Out the front, you can see the fiery inside of the planet, which was collapsing quickly. Multiple small lights on the control panel began to blink, a high pitched alarm sounding.

“Keep the shields up!’ Han calls.

“I am!” Meorti’s voice is stern when sounding through the com, her breathing heavy as the alarms sounded around her as well, “But shields aren’t meant to hold against the temperature of a planet core! We’ve got seconds!”

Pushing yourself up from the floor, you kneel in-between the two pilots and scan the radar, the Tie’s were exploding from the temperature, but not before trying to shoot you down.

“How long do we have? Can we make it?” You ask, looking at Han.

“I already told you,” he hisses, the exit coming closer, “Maybe!”

Right as you fly out, the entire Spike collapses, an explosion of fire and lava following you out into space. You can finally breathe a sigh of relief, sinking down onto the floor as Han jumps into hyperspace. Leia and Luke both cheer, leaning over the small space to hug each other.

“I’m never doing anything with you guys again.”

“So, same time next rotation?” Han jokes, standing from his seat and stretching.

“Great flying, Han. that was incredible.”

From the back of the cockpit, you can hear R2 and Threepio, “Really, Artoo? I never thought you’d be a mystic.”

Luke turns in his seat, raising an eyebrow, “what did he say? He made the same noises earlier.

“‘Trust the Force’, master Luke. ‘Trust the Force’”

Back in the main hold, Benthic waited with the other Partisans, still holding their weapons.

“What do we do with this ship full of traitors?” Luke asks, tilting his head while crossing his arms.

“Be careful, boy,” Benthic hisses, “We still outnumber you.”

“We drop them off. Benthic and his troops go back to their fight, whatever that means now, and we all learn from this,” Leia answers, stepping closer to Han, who raises his eyebrow, “where you going? Back to Jedha?”

Benthic looks down, shaking his head lightly, “Not Jedha. Somewhere else, something else for the Partisans.”

This leads you to stop by Salobea, a forested planet covered in thick fog and disgusting humidity that made your tunic stick to your body right as you stepped off the Falcon to say your final goodbyes. Luke stood by your side while Leia and Han talked to Benthic, the blonde shifting his weight on his feet before finally turning to you.

“Did you mean it? What you say when we were tied up?”

You raise an eyebrow, “what? That you got to kiss a pretty girl? And I didn't?”

“Yeah,” he murmurs, scratching his head as he looks back to the others.

“I did, Tula was a keeper, and you seemed happy with her,” you can feel your chest squeeze, your stomach turning.

“Well,” Luke hums, keeping his voice down as Leia begins her walk back to the Falcon, Han on her trail, “I would’ve rather been with someone else.”

Freezing, you turn to look at him, but he’s already smiling at Leia.

You should’ve known, the signs were all there and still, you were naïve.

Piling back into the Falcon, you sit in your usual seat in the cockpit and close your eyes, trying to find rest while you made your way bank to Home One, then you can finally get your hands on a drink.

“She’s so beautiful. I never thought I’d see her again,” Meorti sighs, standing between you and Leia as the Falcon begins docking.

“Do you didn’t get a taste for being out there?” Luke asks, placing a hand onto her shoulder.

She scoffs, shaking her head, “No! Give me a reactor about to go critical any day. I can handle being in a nice big ship being shot at, but don't shoot me directly! And I keep on thinking, poor Tunga!”

When the Falcon docks, you all stride off and greet the docking crew, who begin refueling and checking the Falcon for anything major, and Han shoo’s them away.

“Don’t worry master Meorti. I’m sure he’s in a better place,” Threepio comforts, but she's already striding away, “that makes two of us. It’s been interesting-” she’s out of ear shot before she finishes talking. You stretch your arms, leaning against the Falcons landing ramp pistons, groaning.

“Thanks again for the repairs!” Threepio calls, “they were splendid! They- oh. She’s gone.”

R2 trills, Threepio turning back to nod down at him, “yes, Artoo, she is walking very fast.”

Placing his hands on his hips, Han walks closer to Leia, “so, princess. What next for your people?”

“Mon Mothma has requested us fro a job. A little recon.”

Groaning, you push away from the landing gear and furrow your eyebrows, looking over her shoulder at the tablet she was holding, different requests and data blinking on the screen.

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Jan Dodonna was always planning for the future,” she says, smiling at you, “he had preliminary scans for possible new rebel bases.”

“Gimme a look at that,” Han grumbled, snatching the tablet from her, and scrolling down the list.

“Atanu, Jabone IV, Lonania Prime, Hoth, Mupin XII?” He scoffs, handing the tablet back to her, “Mupin XII? Really? Did he make that one up? What are these places?”

Luke smirks, throwing an arm around Leia’s shoulder, “one of them? It’s our new home.”

“Can I at least get something to drink first?” you say, rubbing your eyes as han throws an arm around your shoulder, shaking you lightly.

“Where we’re going to be going, you won't need a drink!”

“With you guys? I always need a drink.”

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