Fic: White Rabbits (Star Wars, 32/?)
Sep. 3rd, 2005 12:28 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
butterflyTitle: White Rabbits
Part: 32/?
Author: Diana Michelle (
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif){kind=small}
butterfly)Warnings: Spoilers for Revenge of the Sith.
Pairings: Anakin/Obi-Wan; Leia/Han.
Rating: R/NC-17 (overall -- PG in this part)
Summary: Han and Leia meet up with Luke, who has a lot on his mind.
Disclaimer: Not Lucas, don't own a thing, not making any money.
Chapter Index
Leia let out an unsteady breath and Han glanced over at her, noticing that her knuckles were white from holding onto the arms of her chair. She’d been jumpy for the last fifteen minutes and he couldn’t wait to ask anymore.
xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Han asked, as he landed gently on his designated strip on top of the xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /
“Luke’s… not happy,” Leia said.
“Okay, I don’t think you could have made that less helpful if you’d tried,” Han said. Leia shrugged, looking out the cockpit window, towards the rooftop door. She could probably sense Luke right now. And as the person who sensed Luke in any way, he might think that she’d feel obligated to clear things up. Sure, he could figure out Luke’s intentions after giving the kid a good staring-at, but it’d be nice to know before, at least once in a while.
“There’s nothing more specific than that,” she said. “I can’t read his mind, Han. I just get the general idea, not the details.”
“Doesn’t really seem like the most useful gift in the world,” Han grumbled. “Give me five seconds looking at him and I can tell you what Luke’s feeling.”
“Well, I can tell you that he’s about to walk through that door down there,” Leia said, getting up from her seat. Han saw the door push open, a figure making its way outside.
“And I can tell you that he’s just walked through it,” Han said, getting up and following Leia down to the cargo bay door. “What good is a one-second warning system?”
“In some situations, a one-second warning is invaluable,” Leia said.
“Not here, though,” Han pointed out, casually slamming his hand on the button that opened the door.
“Well, no, not here,” Leia said. “But in some situations.”
Luke hopped up onto the ramp before it had finished lowering, easily keeping his balance as it hit the ground. One of his hands was fingering a side pouch on his belt and, at first, it seemed like he was too distracted to notice that they were waiting for him. Then he blinked and looked at them, the look in his eyes sharpening.
“Hi, Leia, Han,” he said. He glanced around the cargo hold. “Where’s Threepio?”
“How should I know?” Han asked. “He’s off in some corner of the ship, doing who knows what.”
“He is behaving oddly,” Leia said, reaching out to touch Luke’s arm. “Do you know anything about that?”
“Actually, I do,” Luke said, and he looked a little guilty, from what Han could see. “Apparently, Threepio used to belong to our father.”
“What?” Leia said, stepping away from Luke and waving Han away when he started towards her. “No, that’s impossible. He was a member of Captain Antilles’ staff for as long as I can remember. He’s an Alderaan droid.”
“They wiped his memory, after… after Anakin fell to the dark side,” Luke said. “And then Anakin brought it back.”
“He brought back…” Leia said. “No, he has to be lying. Maybe he reprogrammed Threepio, but there’s no way he could reverse a memory-wipe. When a droid’s memory is erased, it’s just gone. There’s nothing to bring back.”
“That’s what I thought, at first, but it’s the truth,” Luke said. “And that’s why I’d really like to talk to Threepio.”
“I used to play with him, when I was a child,” Leia said, distantly. “He would fuss about me getting my clothes dirty and try to tell me to be careful.”
“Leia…” Luke said, softly. Leia looked up at him, and then shook her head.
“I’ll be fine,” she said. “It just seems that everything goes back to him. Threepio used to be a reminder of home, of my family.” She paused then, her voice shaking slightly as she held Luke’s gaze. “My adoptive family.”
Han reached out again, and this time, Leia let him wrap his arms around her. She was trembling, like she had that night on Endor, after Luke had gone off on his own.
“He really reversed a memory-wipe?” Han asked Luke quietly, as he stroked Leia’s hair.
“Actually, apparently what he did was protect against the wipe in the first place,” Luke said. “He had back-ups of Threepio’s memory buried in subroutines.”
“That’s… pretty impressive,” Han said, remembering Anakin’s sure hands with Han’s engine. And Leia’d been right, about the Falcon running a little smoother after Anakin had tinkered with it. “He’s quite the mechanic.”
“So it seems,” Luke said.
“He’s just full of surprises,” Leia said, pulling away from Han, a determined look on her face. “You’re right, Luke. We need more information. We need to talk to Threepio.”
“Well, we have to find him first,” Luke said. Han rolled his eyes and hit the cargo bay's main comm button.
“Attention to See-Threepio. Get your shiny gold ass down to the cargo hold. Luke wants to see you,” Han said, leaning forward towards the panel. His words echoed through the ship.
“Or we could just call for him,” Luke said, raising an eyebrow and smiling at Han.
“If I let you, you’d do everything the hard way," Han said, reaching forward and ruffling Luke’s hair. “It’s not always as tough as all that.”
“And on the subject of learning more about Vader, Han has something to tell you,” Leia said.
“Oh, I do, do I?” Han asked, shooting Leia an annoyed look. She just smirked at him.
“What is it?” Luke asked earnestly.
“Well, my contact may have known him,” Han said, as casually as possible. Luke’s eyes widened slightly. “At least, he implied that he’d known a Jedi that was named Skywalker. It’s not that uncommon a name, so it might not be about your old man, but there’s a good chance.”
“Han, you were around ten or so when the
“I do,” Han said, wincing at the looks the twins gave him. “Hey, it’s nothing helpful. Honestly, I didn’t even remember until my contact Dex mentioned that it was interesting that the Jedi I’d been hanging out with was a Skywalker. And I was never much for heroes, even when I was a kid.”
Hell, he hadn’t even connected Luke with that Skywalker, not until he’d thought about it – why would he, after all? Skywalker had been on the HoloNet all the time and he’d never acted like someone who’d just had a pair of kids.
“Even a little is more than I know,” Luke said.
“I just remember that there were kids who thought that Kenobi and Skywalker could ignite stars and turn back time if they wanted to,” Han said. “There was this girl, Her-un, probably around twelve – she wore black for over a year after Kenobi was killed. Which apparently he wasn’t, so she shouldn’t have bothered.”
“Do you remember anything else?” Leia asked, hesitantly.
“After they died… didn’t die, whatever, nobody talked about them,” Han said. “They were supposed to save us all. They didn’t.”
Han stopped there. He’d locked away his childhood when the Empire had risen. There was no point in going over it now. Kenobi and Skywalker – they were kid stuff, proven by this new appearance of them. This Kenobi and Skywalker weren’t what he remembered. Skywalker sure as hell hadn't turned out to be a hero, in the end.
And he hadn’t even realized until recently that Luke’s Kenobi had been that Kenobi, because Kenobi had been believed dead for almost twenty years.
Luke wasn’t the only one seeing ghosts, these days.
“There’s something that I think you two need to see,” Luke said, pulling something out of that pouch he’d been playing with. It appeared to be a data chip. “We’ll need a projector.”
“There’s still that old one over in the corner,” Han said, waving towards it. “Haven’t had a chance to unload it yet.”
“Do you really think that you will?” Leia asked. “How many people are in the market for a ten-year-old holoprojector?”
“More than you’d think,” Han said, defensively.
“You got ripped off,” Leia said. “You might as well just dump it.”
“I’ll sell it. It’s still good, I just need to find the right sort of buyer,” Han said.
“Good luck with that,” Leia muttered.
The holoprojector slowly whirred on, and a soft-spoken female voice said, “This is one of the few files-”
Luke hit a button on the projector, halting the recording.
“Hey, I thought you wanted us to watch that,” Han objected.
“I was just thinking that it might be a good idea to wait for Threepio,” Luke said. “He might have more answers for us.”
“More answers about what, Master Luke?” Threepio asked from behind Han. Han turned around slowly, and yeah, Threepio was looking a little odd. Distracted, if that was the right word to use for a droid.
“Do you know who Qui-Gon Jinn is?” Luke asked, intently.
“Qui-Gon Jinn?” Threepio repeated. “Why, yes, I do. He’s the Jedi that took Master Anakin away.”
“What happened to him?” Luke asked.
“Well, he must have died,” Threepio said.
“You don’t know?” Luke asked. “But I thought you were Anakin’s droid.”
“Master Anakin didn’t take me with him the first time he left, sir,” Threepio said. “It was when he returned with your mother and Artoo that he reclaimed me. And that was… over ten years later.”
“Wait, so you stayed on Tatooine for ten years?” Luke asked. “Where?”
“First, with Master Anakin’s mother and with Master Watto,” Threepio said. “Later, after Master Anakin’s mother married Cliegg Lars, we lived with them.”
“Who’s… Watto?” Leia asked, tilting her head.
“Why, he was Master Anakin’s owner,” Threepio said, as if it were the most obvious answer in the world.
“Owner?” Luke asked, and Han winced.
“He was a slave?” Leia asked. Her lips pressed together thoughtfully and her words were quiet, as if she were talking to herself. “I thought slavery was against the law in the
“Tatooine has always been run by the Hutts,” Luke said, distastefully. “And they have nothing against slavery.”
“Quite true,” Threepio said. “Mistress Shmi, that was Master Anakin’s mother, was very happy when Master Qui-Gon took him away to become a Jedi. She talked about him all the time, and she always mentioned how wonderful it was that he was free.”
“No one ever mentioned it,” Luke said. “Uncle Owen told me that he’d been a good pilot, like me. That he’d piloted a freighter and that he’d died very soon after I was born. When I was sixteen, Aunt Beru told me once that he was very brave, the only human to ever win a Podrace. I can remember going and checking the town records, seeing his name there. It mentioned that he was sponsored by a parts store, but nothing about being owned.”
“Hey, kid, he got away from it,” Han said, placing a hand on Luke’s shoulder. “He got out.”
“But this… this could explain so much,” Luke said, passionate and determined. “I just… need to work out how.”
Han sighed and started wondering if he'd actually get a chance to sleep tonight.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-03 11:51 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 12:22 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-03 12:17 pm (UTC)Poor Leia. Her world really gets shaken up quite fiercely.
Until she came face to face with Anakin, no doubt she had tried not to think about Vader being her father.
Now the presence of Anakin forces her to think about her relationship to her biological father.
And in addition to this she has to learn that 3PO, her childhood companion, is not connected to Alderaan as much as to Anakin.
(I guess Luke will feel odd as well when he realizes how close R2D2 and Anakin are.)
“But this… this could explain so much,” Luke said, passionate and determined. “I just… need to work out how.”
Yes, the information that Anakin was once a slave is quite important. It's good to see Luke understands this. I hope he talks to Anakin about it.
Anakin usually is an expert at avoiding introspection - quite the opposite of Luke really. Therefore I believe that Anakin will try to steer around the conversation, especially since his memories of being enslaved are most likely connected to his mother and her death.
If Luke stays persistent (and persistence equals Luke :-)), there's a good chance more things will come to the surface. And Anakin *needs* to confront his actions, accept responsibility - without ending up in self-hatred and the urge to destroy himself.
And I was never much for heroes, even when I was a kid.”
Sorry, Han, I don't believe you. From the rest of what you're saying I get the feeling that Kenobi and Skywalker *were* your heroes. But when they failed to save you, you lost faith in everything heroic. And because this hurt a lot, you pushed away all memories of them.
All in all a great new chapter! It shows so clearly that *all* characters have issues they have to work through.
Things will become even more complex when R2 and Chewbacca finally arrive.
A question: Have you seen the Clone Wars Cartoons?
Especially the second season has some great Anakin/Obi-Wan moments and a wonderful Anakin plot.
In the final minutes of the last episode there's this wonderful scene of Anakin talking to R2 while they both work on repairing his mechanic arm. This is followed by another moment of Anakin avoiding introspection by jumping into action. He's got so much energy. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 12:25 am (UTC)Poor Leia. Her world really gets shaken up quite fiercely.
Until she came face to face with Anakin, no doubt she had tried not to think about Vader being her father.
Now the presence of Anakin forces her to think about her relationship to her biological father.
And in addition to this she has to learn that 3PO, her childhood companion, is not connected to Alderaan as much as to Anakin.
(I guess Luke will feel odd as well when he realizes how close R2D2 and Anakin are.)
Yeah, their past really is much closer than Luke or Leia ever realized.
Yes, the information that Anakin was once a slave is quite important. It's good to see Luke understands this. I hope he talks to Anakin about it.
Anakin usually is an expert at avoiding introspection - quite the opposite of Luke really. Therefore I believe that Anakin will try to steer around the conversation, especially since his memories of being enslaved are most likely connected to his mother and her death.
If Luke stays persistent (and persistence equals Luke :-)), there's a good chance more things will come to the surface. And Anakin *needs* to confront his actions, accept responsibility - without ending up in self-hatred and the urge to destroy himself.
Persistence is most definitely Luke.
And I was never much for heroes, even when I was a kid.”
Sorry, Han, I don't believe you. From the rest of what you're saying I get the feeling that Kenobi and Skywalker *were* your heroes. But when they failed to save you, you lost faith in everything heroic. And because this hurt a lot, you pushed away all memories of them.
*pets Han*
All in all a great new chapter! It shows so clearly that *all* characters have issues they have to work through.
Things will become even more complex when R2 and Chewbacca finally arrive.
Yes, none of them is issueless. Even Chewie has his secrets.
A question: Have you seen the Clone Wars Cartoons?
I have only seen the first season. Woe.
Especially the second season has some great Anakin/Obi-Wan moments and a wonderful Anakin plot.
In the final minutes of the last episode there's this wonderful scene of Anakin talking to R2 while they both work on repairing his mechanic arm. This is followed by another moment of Anakin avoiding introspection by jumping into action. He's got so much energy.
He really does. I really do need to watch the second season. I really enjoyed the first one.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 08:56 am (UTC)I have only seen the first season. Woe
Be a naughty monkey and download the second season (http://www.livejournal.com/users/marilla_pm67/33548.html). There are some issues that get addressed -- like the fact that Anakin didn't go through a Trial of Spirit (Facing the Mirror aka the Dark Tree on Dagobah) before his Knighting -- that you might find interesting.
Also, Obi-Wan wandering around in partial storm-trooper armor bounces between cute and disturbing. And Anakin's idea of a well-foraged meal -- well, let's just say it's good that no one connected Vader with Anakin Skywalker because it's hard to completely fear a man you've seen eating *that*.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-06 09:37 am (UTC)I've already downloaded it all, and I've watched the first three chapters. Very interesting stuff (and this was all created before the release of RotS, right? Because Anakin's hand is still the way it looked at the end of AotC and not the way it ends up looking in RotS).
And Anakin eating the grubs... I buy it, but it's just hilarious. And agreed on Obi-Wan. Cute and yet discomforting.
There are some things that I've seen so far that I like and some that, quite clearly, my fic has no room for (ex. the way Anakin flashes his shiny arm all over the place -- even when he ends up wearing gloves later on, it's on both hands, not just the false one like in RotS. Plus, I like the twisted psychology of my way better).
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-06 10:19 am (UTC)And Anakin is so adorakable in the 'toons. Even when he's going all scary (ch.19), he's so EARNEST.
The running theme of Obi-Wan running around with Imperial gear just keeps freaking me out. It makes sense, given that the Republic turned into the Empire, but I keep having little mental "image does not compute" moments when he shows up in Stormtrooper armor, or flies a mini TIE fighter or something.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-07 07:05 am (UTC)Now that I've seen them all, I know what you mean. It really does just set-up the movie. Very cool.
And Anakin is so adorakable in the 'toons. Even when he's going all scary (ch.19), he's so EARNEST.
He is! Highly adorable.
The running theme of Obi-Wan running around with Imperial gear just keeps freaking me out. It makes sense, given that the Republic turned into the Empire, but I keep having little mental "image does not compute" moments when he shows up in Stormtrooper armor, or flies a mini TIE fighter or something.
Yes, it's a bit creepy. I'm rather glad he stayed in Jedi gear in the movie, because that would have been too much. Eeep.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 10:30 pm (UTC)The first season is good, the second is better. And that means a lot.
You can watch a small version on the official site here:
http://www.starwars.com/clonewars/microseries/chapter/21.html
Only for the large version do you need to have hyperspace access.
Enjoy!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-06 09:38 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-06 06:47 pm (UTC)I love the scene where they are stationed on the planet: Obi-Wan is suffering because of the rain whereas Anakin is all chipper and eager for adventures. I think Anakin special insect snack is partly motivated by the wish to shock Obi-Wan. *g*
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-07 07:06 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-09 11:30 pm (UTC)And they both overdo their reactions on purpose:
Anakin gets a kick out of being all excited in the face of Obi-Wan's grumpiness; Obi-Wan delights in pretending to be grumpy in order to temper Anakin's enthusiasm.
They have such a nice balance!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-10 06:58 pm (UTC)Which just reminds me of how glad I am that they did get a happy ending in RotJ. Because post-RotS Obi-Wan would have been too depressing otherwise.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-03 03:15 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 12:26 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-03 10:54 pm (UTC)Also, Luke's suspicion that Anakin's past as a slave might have something to do with his turn is excellent. Not many fics really and truly go into what lasting effects that had on Anakin (desire to control things, forming strong attachments to people, etc).
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 12:28 am (UTC)More amazing stuff. I love your characterization of Han - and bringing up the fact he undoubtedly would have heard of Kenobi and Skywalker was a great detail.
Thank you. Han's a much more casual character to write than most of them, and requires a bit of a attitude shift in a lot of ways.
Also, Luke's suspicion that Anakin's past as a slave might have something to do with his turn is excellent. Not many fics really and truly go into what lasting effects that had on Anakin (desire to control things, forming strong attachments to people, etc).
Oh, but they should. It really does explain so much about Anakin and why he didn't buy into the whole 'Republic' thing.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-04 03:04 am (UTC)It's nice to see that Anakin's slavery is going to be brought up. That is sure to be an interesting and highly defensive conversation.
“That’s... pretty impressive,” Han said, remembering Anakin’s sure hands with Han’s engine.
*choke* Well. That must have been a missing scene. ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 12:30 am (UTC)It's nice to see that Anakin's slavery is going to be brought up. That is sure to be an interesting and highly defensive conversation.
Defensive is a good word to choose there.
“That’s... pretty impressive,” Han said, remembering Anakin’s sure hands with Han’s engine.
*choke* Well. That must have been a missing scene.
You people and your dirty minds.
*tsks loudly*
*grins*
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-04 04:02 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 12:30 am (UTC)Yeah, Leia's day isn't getting any better.
Thank you.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-05 08:47 am (UTC)I love Han when he's being a pain in the butt.
He’s an Alderaan droid.”
It seems like C3PO's model was pretty generic, as they popped up everywhere. Leia must know that C3PO could have been manufactured anywhere. She's having a hard time with any additional tie to Anakin, isn't she?
Han stopped there. He’d locked away his childhood when the Empire had risen. There was no point in going over it now.
Oooo... so cool. What backstory do you have for Han here? I can imagine him living a happy if not rich life as a kidlet, and having it blown to splinters during the Clone Wars and the rise of the Empire. He's Corellian, which is a core world, so that would have been engulfed in the Empire right away, unlike Luke's Tatooine (had stormtroopers when he was 18, but not when he was an infant).
“Do you know who Qui-Gon Jinn is?” Luke asked, intently.
Luke's asking questions. He's probably desperate for information, what with the history archives being wiped out and his only 'reliable' source having a habit of editing out details. He's going to have a devil of a time rebuilding the Jedi Order. I wonder if he knows about AgriCorps (if you're using any of the JA novels as canon) because searching out the Jedi wash-outs who were sent into the Corps might be his best bet for a new foundation -- people who raised in the Temple and had the foundational training.
. It mentioned that he was sponsored by a parts store, but nothing about being owned
Yes, that must have been a shock, even to Tatooine-raised Luke, who wouldn't be repulsed by the idea of humans being slaves as Alderaan-raised Leia would. But Luke's from a free family, and the idea that it wasn't always so...
But Luke also now has Shmi's name. I wonder if Owen and Beru ever talked about his grandmother and step-grandfather to him? I suppose Cleigg could have been alive when Luke was small -- he wasn't that old in AotC and it was only three years later that Luke was brought to the Larses -- and if he talked about his wife at all.
But this… this could explain so much,” Luke said, passionate and determined. “I just… need to work out how.”
Luke probably does know more about how freedmen think than the Old Republic Jedi do -- I think that they handled Anakin badly in part because they weren't used to children who weren't raised to control their emotions, and a newly freed slave is going to have a lot of issues.
I love that Han is not looking forward to the all night thinking sesssion. He probably wanted to snuggle Leia more than sleep, but he's not going to get either one.
And I do wonder when Leia's inquiries will bear fruit. She's got more high-level interstellar and governmental contacts than Luke or Han, so I'd think she'd have pull to get things out of closed planetary archives and the like...
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-06 09:49 am (UTC)Only on days ending in 'y', then?
It seems like C3PO's model was pretty generic, as they popped up everywhere. Leia must know that C3PO could have been manufactured anywhere. She's having a hard time with any additional tie to Anakin, isn't she?
Yeah. Leia was really hoping she could just put the fact that DV was her biological daddy in a little box, hide it under a floor panel, and then never think about it again.
Oooo... so cool. What backstory do you have for Han here? I can imagine him living a happy if not rich life as a kidlet, and having it blown to splinters during the Clone Wars and the rise of the Empire. He's Corellian, which is a core world, so that would have been engulfed in the Empire right away, unlike Luke's Tatooine (had stormtroopers when he was 18, but not when he was an infant).
I'm uncertain how much I'll end up getting into Han's backstory in the finished fic, but yes, he definitely experience a drastic change in his lifestyle during the birth of the Empire.
Luke's asking questions. He's probably desperate for information, what with the history archives being wiped out and his only 'reliable' source having a habit of editing out details. He's going to have a devil of a time rebuilding the Jedi Order. I wonder if he knows about AgriCorps (if you're using any of the JA novels as canon) because searching out the Jedi wash-outs who were sent into the Corps might be his best bet for a new foundation -- people who raised in the Temple and had the foundational training.
I only consider the movies 'hard' canon, but in my background thoughts, I use what bits of EU canon that I've picked up that feels like it makes sense to me. And since we know that the Jedi Order has very strict limits on who actually becomes a Jedi, it makes sense for them to do something useful with the people who didn't make the cut.
Luke probably does know more about how freedmen think than the Old Republic Jedi do -- I think that they handled Anakin badly in part because they weren't used to children who weren't raised to control their emotions, and a newly freed slave is going to have a lot of issues.
Right. He's definitely going to have a better handle on just how Anakin is messed up than, say, our dearly beloved Obi-Wan (who I adore, but who really could have used a few more clues).
And I do wonder when Leia's inquiries will bear fruit. She's got more high-level interstellar and governmental contacts than Luke or Han, so I'd think she'd have pull to get things out of closed planetary archives and the like...
Leia's contacts will definitely be useful.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-08 01:55 pm (UTC)Running off now to see what Luke's figured out so far!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-09-10 06:58 pm (UTC)Han's fun.
re: Fic: White Rabbits (Star Wars, 32: A Question of Ownership
Date: 2006-03-20 07:59 am (UTC)Han and Leia's dialogue throughout this chapter, btw, is just so good--I can hear them. :)
“He’s just full of surprises,” Leia said Love the film echo here! Like son, like father. ;)
“If I let you, you’d do everything the hard way," Han said, reaching forward and ruffling Luke’s hair. “It’s not always as tough as all that.”
Love the playfulness here!
I felt rather sorry for Leia, learning that 3PO once belonged to Anakin. And it's heart-breaking for Han to have to remember the old days. His line about the Team that was going to save them all and didn't is truly tragic.
He’d locked away his childhood when the Empire had risen. There was no point in going over it now. Kenobi and Skywalker – they were kid stuff, proven by this new appearance of them. This Kenobi and Skywalker weren’t what he remembered. Skywalker sure as hell hadn't turned out to be a hero, in the end.
Quite often our heroes turn out to be just normal people, with feet of clay, like anyone else. But that's rather difficult to accept when one has put them on a pedestal. There's some famous people that I've met that I wish I hadn't; on the other hand, there's some famous people that I've met and was glad to have been that lucky, as they turned out to be quite lovely folk. I think that Han is wishing that he had never met *this* Team Kenobi and Skywalker. :(
Next, there's a lovely bit between Han and Leia that lightens thing up.
“Good luck with that,” Leia muttered.
This rated a snort from me!
But then the story turns grim again with 3PO finally (!) telling the trio of some of Anakin's history. They're all stunned by his revelations and rightly so. A Princess finding out that her bio-father was a slave, Luke realizing once again that there was so much that Owen and Beru could have told him and didn't, a former smuggler seeing that he wasn't the only one with a rough life--all this and more will change the way the trio views Anakin, and by extension, Obi-Wan as well.
“But this… this could explain so much,” Luke said, passionate and determined. “I just… need to work out how.”
Luke does so think!
I'm wondering what 3PO will have to say to R2 once they are together again.
Last, but not least, the title of this chapter has levels of meaning, quite complex.
Re: Fic: White Rabbits (Star Wars, 32: A Question of Ownership
Date: 2006-04-07 08:24 am (UTC)But then the story turns grim again with 3PO finally (!) telling the trio of some of Anakin's history. They're all stunned by his revelations and rightly so. A Princess finding out that her bio-father was a slave, Luke realizing once again that there was so much that Owen and Beru could have told him and didn't, a former smuggler seeing that he wasn't the only one with a rough life--all this and more will change the way the trio views Anakin, and by extension, Obi-Wan as well.
It's a lot to take in.