Alderaan. Friday evening.
Apr. 3rd, 2010 01:12 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
likes_scoundrelsWhen Leia arrived home on Alderaan, Bail Organa was waiting for her, and she rushed into his arms. "Lelila, what's wrong?" he said, giving her a hug then pulling back enough that he could look her over.
"Nothing," she lied. "I just missed you and Mother and Winter and wanted to visit."
Her father wasn't fooled. "There's something you're not telling me," he said.
Oh, if he only knew. "Not here," she said quietly. "I'd rather talk to you privately. Somewhere no one can eavesdrop." Like any servants who might be Imperial spies. They were discovered in the palace from time to time -- her mother's own sister Deara had been one -- and she had promised Anakin she would be careful.
"My office," Bail said. "But go say hello to your mother first, or she'll never forgive us for running off to talk politics while making her wait to see you."
After spending an hour seeing her mother, Queen Breha; and her aunts Tia, Rouge, and Celly, and pretending everything was fine, Leia went to Bail's office to find him waiting for her. "Have a seat," he said, gesturing to one of the chairs in front of his desk. "And tell me what's wrong."
She didn't waste any time getting straight to her question. "Father -- what is my mother's name? My real mother?"
The look on Bail's face told her he certainly wasn't expecting that question. "That hasn't been important to you for sixteen years," he said carefully. "Why do you want to know now?"
"It wasn't important before," Leia said. Not until she'd met her father. "Please, just tell me. I deserve to know, don't I? It won't change how I feel about you and Mother at all, but I need to know where I came from."
Bail was quiet for a long moment, studying her. "If I tell you, you cannot speak of it openly," he said. "You can't tell anyone, not even Winter." He waited for her answering nod, then continued. "Your mother was a colleague of mine, a colleague and a friend. We served in the Senate together. Her name was Padmé Amidala."
"Padmé Amidala," Leia repeated. Not a Jedi Knight like she'd mistakenly assumed, but a senator. "You've told me of her. She opposed Chancellor Palpatine's rise to power as you did. What happened to her?"
"She died shortly after you were born," Bail said. "I was there, and there was nothing we could do to save her." He fell silent again, watching her absorb the information. "Why aren't you asking about your father?" he finally asked.
"Because...I already know who he is," Leia said softly. "He is one of my teachers in Fandom."
The blood seemed to drain from Bail's face. "That's not possible," he said. "He's dead."
"Anakin Skywalker is very much alive," Leia said. "And I know I have a twin brother as well. Why did you never tell me?" She wasn't about to get into alternate universes and timelines and future children at this point; her father's head was probably exploding enough already.
Bail rose and walked around to the other side of his desk, where he crouched beside Leia's chair and took her hands. "For your own safety. No one can know who your parents are. It would put you in grave danger."
Leia managed a wry smile. "You sound like Master Skywalker now," she said. "He told me the same thing. And he refused to tell me my mother's name -- he said that had to be your decision."
She had no idea what was going through her father's head right now (most of which consisted of OMG WTF MUST CONTACT OBI-WAN), but he was doing a good job of keeping his face calm. Mostly. "He's right," he said (grudgingly). "No one must know. If word ever reached the Emperor or Vader...."
"I know," Leia said. "Because I could be trained to become a Jedi, like my father. And I could become corrupted by the Dark Side." That was another thing she wasn't going to get into with Bail -- that she'd had a glimpse of a possible future where she had been Vader's apprentice. Some things were just best left unsaid.
Bail released her hands and stood. "I know Winter is eager to see you," he said. "Why don't you go relax with her for awhile. We'll talk more later."
Leia rose and gave her father another hug. "Thank you," she said. "And I love you."
"I love you, too," Bail said. "And it's good to have you home." (Or it would be one he stopped flailing internally. Which might be awhile.)
"Nothing," she lied. "I just missed you and Mother and Winter and wanted to visit."
Her father wasn't fooled. "There's something you're not telling me," he said.
Oh, if he only knew. "Not here," she said quietly. "I'd rather talk to you privately. Somewhere no one can eavesdrop." Like any servants who might be Imperial spies. They were discovered in the palace from time to time -- her mother's own sister Deara had been one -- and she had promised Anakin she would be careful.
"My office," Bail said. "But go say hello to your mother first, or she'll never forgive us for running off to talk politics while making her wait to see you."
After spending an hour seeing her mother, Queen Breha; and her aunts Tia, Rouge, and Celly, and pretending everything was fine, Leia went to Bail's office to find him waiting for her. "Have a seat," he said, gesturing to one of the chairs in front of his desk. "And tell me what's wrong."
She didn't waste any time getting straight to her question. "Father -- what is my mother's name? My real mother?"
The look on Bail's face told her he certainly wasn't expecting that question. "That hasn't been important to you for sixteen years," he said carefully. "Why do you want to know now?"
"It wasn't important before," Leia said. Not until she'd met her father. "Please, just tell me. I deserve to know, don't I? It won't change how I feel about you and Mother at all, but I need to know where I came from."
Bail was quiet for a long moment, studying her. "If I tell you, you cannot speak of it openly," he said. "You can't tell anyone, not even Winter." He waited for her answering nod, then continued. "Your mother was a colleague of mine, a colleague and a friend. We served in the Senate together. Her name was Padmé Amidala."
"Padmé Amidala," Leia repeated. Not a Jedi Knight like she'd mistakenly assumed, but a senator. "You've told me of her. She opposed Chancellor Palpatine's rise to power as you did. What happened to her?"
"She died shortly after you were born," Bail said. "I was there, and there was nothing we could do to save her." He fell silent again, watching her absorb the information. "Why aren't you asking about your father?" he finally asked.
"Because...I already know who he is," Leia said softly. "He is one of my teachers in Fandom."
The blood seemed to drain from Bail's face. "That's not possible," he said. "He's dead."
"Anakin Skywalker is very much alive," Leia said. "And I know I have a twin brother as well. Why did you never tell me?" She wasn't about to get into alternate universes and timelines and future children at this point; her father's head was probably exploding enough already.
Bail rose and walked around to the other side of his desk, where he crouched beside Leia's chair and took her hands. "For your own safety. No one can know who your parents are. It would put you in grave danger."
Leia managed a wry smile. "You sound like Master Skywalker now," she said. "He told me the same thing. And he refused to tell me my mother's name -- he said that had to be your decision."
She had no idea what was going through her father's head right now (most of which consisted of OMG WTF MUST CONTACT OBI-WAN), but he was doing a good job of keeping his face calm. Mostly. "He's right," he said (grudgingly). "No one must know. If word ever reached the Emperor or Vader...."
"I know," Leia said. "Because I could be trained to become a Jedi, like my father. And I could become corrupted by the Dark Side." That was another thing she wasn't going to get into with Bail -- that she'd had a glimpse of a possible future where she had been Vader's apprentice. Some things were just best left unsaid.
Bail released her hands and stood. "I know Winter is eager to see you," he said. "Why don't you go relax with her for awhile. We'll talk more later."
Leia rose and gave her father another hug. "Thank you," she said. "And I love you."
"I love you, too," Bail said. "And it's good to have you home." (Or it would be one he stopped flailing internally. Which might be awhile.)
