morally_cryptic | daddy daughter field trips [for organa]

Leia was grateful to get away. She was used to being the one cooped up safely beyond the war's reaches, having often been the one at the forefront of the fighting, dishing out orders on the fly when she wasn't wielding a blaster herself. Being back aboard a ship full of officers and soldiers felt more like the world she knew than any place on Coruscant had in the past year. She really should've tried to leave the planet on one of these missions sooner.

All that time spent at the Jedi Temple, however, wasn't for naught. She trained with not only her father, but the other Jedi Masters on the Council, learning a variety of lightsaber techniques and ways to control and refine her abilities that she wouldn't have been able to pick up anywhere else. There was only so much to go by when listening to instinct, and Luke had received a crash course at best with what he was able to learn. In many ways, Leia had received a more thorough lesson in how to be a Jedi than her brother had, though he too was broadening his Jedi horizons by way of being able to train with the greats that were absent from their dismal future.

Greats that would be around for much longer than they were, if she had anything to say about it.

"Of course I am," the princess responds, reaching for the hilt holstered at her hip. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You might have had second thoughts," he teases, tossing his cloak over the wing of his starfighter to an annoyed blat from Artoo. "I wouldn't blame you if you did."

She'd just never hear the end of it. Ever. He'd be a Force ghost and still reminding her of it.

"Maybe," she admits with a light shrug, "but in my experience, second thoughts aren't always a good enough reason to back down."

Especially when someone was as stubborn enough as the daughter of Padmé Amidala and Anakin Skywalker.

He tosses her a salute she might find reminiscent of the one Luke gave at Jabba's sail barge.

"Truer words were never spoken," he raises his lightsaber and thumbs it to life. "Shall we?"

It is. A little too reminiscent, and for a moment her mind misinterprets spacial turbulence for hovering across Tatooine's harsh and rugged landscape. She has to forcibly remind herself that she is not on that awful world and while Jabba may still be thriving here in the past, he's nowhere near her. That the one who wronged her (and Han) is dead by her own hands.

"Let's begin."

If anything, the unwelcomed reminder does well to rile her up, and her lightsaber leaps obediently into her hand, the green blade springing to life.

She might sense a flicker of confusion from him for a moment before he shakes it off. Maybe later he'll ask her what he did this time that reminded her of something else although he can't imagine the dark figure she's seen of him in the future would have been quite so flippant.

With her lightsaber at the ready, he settles down to business. No careful probing of her defenses here, he jumps right into the thick of it, aiming to see just how far she can be pushed and where her actual limits might be.

Some would argue that isn't fair, but he'd argue that Ventress wouldn't play fair if it was she Leia was facing off.

This would be one of those rare instances where something he did didn't remind her of Darth Vader. Instead, it was the resemblance he bore to his son and a different awful situation where someone else was wearing that figurative dark cape. Vader was corrupted, misled, and manipulated. Jabba the Hutt was simply rotten to the core. In many ways, she held the slimy gangster in far greater disdain than she ever would the man who held her in place while Alderaan was obliterated.

Fair or not, Leia appreciates that he doesn't hold back — an enemy wouldn't, and she needs to be ready. As battle-hardened as she may be, the truth remains that while she might be a seasoned military commander, she is a Jedi novice who hasn't had the years worth of training that other lightsaber wielders do. Having the blood of a Force-spawned being flowing through her veins might give her something of an advantage in some areas, but there's still much to learn. Much more that she needs to be prepared for that she didn't see within the sheltered walls of the Jedi Temple.

She ducks, dodges, and parries, blocking his blade. Her style is unrefined, a mix of previous experience in swinging a vibrosword and the various techniques taught to her over the past year by practitioners of various forms. Maybe she ought to nail down a preferred form of her own, but she's hoping that mixing it up makes her all the more unpredictable.

While Anakin has studied all of the lightsaber forms to some extent or other over the years, he still tends to prefer Form V for the way it takes advantage of his natural strength to overpower opponents. When he had had the training of Leia, he'd had her focus more on the style Obi-Wan favored, since it allowed one to defend oneself without having to expend so much energy.

He can tell, however, she's been branching out. Which is something he can certainly approve of so long as she doesn't get hung up in the transitions from one form to another.

Because certainly if she does, or as she starts to tire, he will be there to take advantage.

"What I want to know," he says as he backs off for just a moment, "is how you got Windu to work with you."

"You forget," Leia pants out as she takes a few steps back herself, passing her lightsaber from one hand to the other as she shrugs off one of the outer layers of her robes. "I was the leading diplomat when I was with the Alliance. I argued my case, and you'd be surprised what a good convincing argument can do."

Edited 2016-05-22 04:02 (UTC)

He smiles, "I've seen a few convincing arguments in my time. Mine don't usually work on him though."

Of course that's because he's not Padme Amidala.

And while she's suitable distracted, he starts in yet again.

"He doesn't care for me much," she says between swings. "Likely, because he really doesn't seem to care for you, and I've been told I inherited several of your mannerisms. But he's smart enough to realize I have real potential. Potential that I was going to use with—"

Leia sidesteps to avoid catching her arm on his blade, "—or without his help. Better that I know how to do things properly than hazarding guesses of debatable educational merit."

Something he likely saw during the weeks he spent with Luke. Her brother couldn't be faulted for the leaps he was forced to make while learning how to be a Jedi, but there was no denying that he went about some things in ways the Jedi in this time period didn't. Either because he simply didn't know or there hadn't been enough time for Yoda to finish teaching it to him. His best guess was as good as it got.

"He never wanted me to be trained," Anakin says as he twists out of the way of her blade before using the spin to add more power to a swing of his own. "But you're not wrong."

Which might be the only reason Mace actually ended up relenting on the subject of his training. Once he'd become aware of his ability with the Force, there was no telling what he would have gotten up to without formal training. Which could have been far more disastrous.

Especially if Palpatine had gotten his hands on him then.

Having spent quality time with the father she never knew makes it easy to envision a world where Anakin Skywalker wasn't consumed by darkness. But a world in which he never learned the ways of the Force — at least properly, the Jedi way — is surprisingly difficult to fathom. Which wasn't to say that there wasn't far more to him than just being a Jedi, but it was the one thing that stood out. The one thing Luke had known about him that was fact at some point in the man's life. A constant.

"I think you were always meant to be a Jedi," she says firmly, breathing a little ragged as the duel catches up with her.

Leia's experienced, but she's far more practiced with a blaster and her past opponents are nowhere near being up to par with her father. He's quicker than she is, and she's having to jump back to avoid joining armless family ranks.

[ooc: I mean there's also the possibility he fell in with someone else before Palpatine got to him because reasons and then he grew up and went to Tatooine to start an insurrection against the Hutts...]

He just grins at her, all teeth, before finally calling a halt. "I think that's enough for today, young one." His tone, is of course, teasing. "Unless you want to practice against some remotes for a while." Which in some ways is actually better practice for fighting droids.

They've attracted a bit of an audience though the clones in question are now quite studiously attending to their weaponry or ships or whatever excuse they have for being in the vicinity.

( ooc | well, i do only have two weeks of work left, then i'm on summer vacation for 2½ months, so now is the time to talk au shop. ;3 )

The clones are his saving grace. If not for their presence, Leia would have thrown the hilt of her lightsaber at his head while reminding him that father or not, they're about the same age.

He gets a mirthless look instead as she bends down to retrieve her outer robe, dabbing the fabric against the sweat that beaded up against her hairline. She doesn't know whether the Jedi on the Council had simply been holding back with her or if her father was a far more formidable opponent than any of them could ever hope to be, but he'd pushed her limits more than they ever did.

"Maybe later," she says, still a bit winded. "After you brief me on where we're headed."

[ooc: ah, the joys of summer vacay. I don't remember them anymore. Though that said, I'm still planning on going here tomorrow.]

"And that," he points at her robe, "is why we drop them before we start fighting." Though honestly, he's not entirely sure why they wore them when it wasn't actually cold anyway. But it's become habit now.

As far as lightsaber skill went, it was likely a little of both. She should watch him spar with someone with more experience sometime. He and Obi-Wan typically fought each other to a draw.

Then he sighs expansively, "fine, over something cold to drink, mm?"

Edited (edited for bragging) 2016-05-22 06:36 (UTC)

( ooc | one of the few perks of working in education is summer vacation — though i use "vacation" loosely, since workshops put limitations on leaving the area when you absolutely have to be back for them. and nice! have fun!! )

"We," she says, deliberately stretching the word as if to remind herself that she is now part of the Jedi equation, "wear far too many layers. I may have to shed some of them."

Unless they were going somewhere cold. Then she was bundling up, something she was an expert at doing thanks to months spent lying in wait beneath Hoth's frozen surface.

Leia tosses the robe over her shoulder and gestures for him to led the way. "Please."

[ooc: mostly I like trying to find sea glass :)]

"They're there to provide a little bit of cushion when you fall. Or bandaging. Or something. I didn't come up with the uniform." Not that it was entirely a uniform. Or at least not explicitly required. Certainly he'd gone in a somewhat different direction with his own garb than many of the other Jedi, but there were those like Quinlan Vos that didn't even really make so much as a passing nod at the 'traditional' robes.

But that said, he leads the way down to what passes for the officers' mess on the Resolute so they can talk in something resembling privacy. Also it tended to make the clones uncomfortable to have their Jedi generals hanging about in such proximity when they'd otherwise get the opportunity to be casual with one another. If he gets some completely undignified fruit fizzy thing, well...it's cold, isn't it?

( ooc | oh man. i've never seen sea glass on our gulf beaches. )

In all honesty, Leia wouldn't have made so much of an effort to adhere to tradition if she weren't bound determined to blend in. She needed to be as inconspicuous as possible, especially while on Coruscant and within the Emperor's reach. But now that they were away from Palpatine and the unspoken dangers that came with remaining on the capital, maybe she could step away from aspects of the Jedi look for a while.

Once inside the somewhat sanctity of the officers' mess, Leia lets her hair down. Literally. One of the loops she'd twisted into had begun to unravel during their fight, and it was easier to shake her hair out and pull it up into something else than to try and repin it without a mirror. It gives her father a rare glance at how long his daughter's hair actually is, and by the time she sits down, she's got one long braid plaited over one shoulder.

"So, what does a ship like this even have to offer in terms of cold drinks?"

Was it even possible to be undignified in front of your daughter at this point, Anakin?

And now he's speculating on whether Leia can put her hair into some of the more ridiculous constructions he's seen Padme wear. Certainly her hair is rather long as well, but more than a few had required extensions, especially--he found out later--the ones she'd worn as Queen.

"Haven't you ever been on a military cruiser before? Not much in the way of alcohol," he suspected Yularen kept a flask on him for those times when Anakin did something particularly outrageous in the midst of battle but as a general rule it wasn't something served, "but water of course and various other beverages. I am getting a ruby bliel."

Which may or may not have been stocked precisely because someone discovered Anakin had a taste for them.

Edited (typo) 2016-05-22 07:57 (UTC)

It's possible, though would likely require assistance from Padmé's handmaidens in order to get all the strands in their proper places. Leia was good with her own hair, but it's been quite some time since she's had it up in anything too elaborate. There was never time or resources for that sort of thing during the war that waged in her own time. Even her wardrobe then was made up only a handful of gowns that were constantly altered and mended to appear different and new.

But she could, if necessary, probably pretend to be her mother. Probably far better in some areas than her best handmaiden with Leia's own political savvy. It's a thought that's crossed her mind, but one that she's been hesitant to voice out of fear (or certainty) that it would be shot down by all parties involved.

"I practically lived on them and had rooms like this to myself," she reminds him. Though the quip about having a room to herself was a lie, as even the high ranking and royal had to share. "But we weren't even close to having the resources you have at your disposal. Even on large ships like this, we'd often be reduced to rations and have to portion off our food to make sure the reserves stayed stocked until we were able to resupply."

[ooc: it just occurred to me that in one of the un-aired episodes of Clone Wars Obi-Wan and Anakin go to try and prevent the Separatists from taking control of a rather large focusing crystal. You know. The sort that might be used for a moon-sized superweapon...that's probably not this mission though.]

"Then consider this a luxury cruise with a lot of soldiers," he quips right back before pulling a smallish holovid device out and resting it on the table in order to project the image of the planet they're heading for. "Akiva wouldn't really be that important except that the Separatists have a large droid factory there." He flicks a button and the hologram turns from an image of the planet to partial map of the underground facility in question. "It's under ground which is...awkward. And we don't know just how big it actually is." Republic Intelligence had been able to do only so much. "I have a feeling this might turn into a longer mission than you were really interested in."

Of note, Leia might know the planet as the first Outer Rim planet to swear allegiance to the New Republic following the battle of Endor.

( ooc | future mission, perhaps? after anakin learns padmé's got a bun in the oven? )

Perhaps she would have, had she not been dispatched almost immediately following the battle to Bakura. The temporal divergence which brought her here plucked her from the middle of her trip back to Endor, preventing her from being briefed on anything that transpired while she was away and considerably out of range of standard communications. Things that she needed to be informed of, but were best not to trouble her with while she wasn't in any position to do anything about them.

But the name is familiar, even if doesn't ring bells for the reasons it ought to.

"I've heard of that world," she says, leaning over the table to peer closer at the map.

And she can't help the momentary pang of regret that surges through her when he mentions how long they're likely to be out here. It's not that she doesn't want to be here so much as it's just now hitting her how long she's going to be away from Han. She can reach out and touch Luke at any time, no matter the distance between them, but Han is another story.

[ooc: seems like good timing :)]

He cocks his head, watching her reaction and trying to parse it. "Heard of it good or bad?"

And then he sighs and takes a sip of his recently arrived drink. "If Intel is right about this part at least, they don't have any major ships defending the planet itself." Just, you know, a lot of ground forces that they can keep reproducing. At least until their raw material runs out but he has no more interest in a long, drawn-out siege than she does.

A shrug. She's heard both good and bad things, but having not been there herself, she can't say one way or the other whether the planet was good or bad. But as a presently Separatist controlled world and one that allied itself with the Empire in her time, the gist isn't necessarily bright. Especially if they're mass manufacturing battle droids.

"If they don't have a lot of traffic, that means their resources must come from the planet itself."

Like the asteroids that were hollowed out clean, leaving behind empty skeleton-like shells.

"That'd be just great."

Not.

"We might just have to go in and deal with them directly."

And by we he means himself and Rex and a couple commandos.

She gets what he means, which is why she's planting her hands on her hips and fixing him with a borderline outraged look.

"And what, leave me up here on the ship to handle things from above?"

Edited (whoops, left out a few words there...) 2016-05-22 22:12 (UTC)

He gives her a completely guileless look. "The thought had crossed my mind."

It wasn't that he doubted her ability to look after herself, it was more that he doubted his ability to just let her do it.

"Oh, I'm sure it did. Multiple times."

She doesn't approve. Yes, she's perfectly capable of running things from orbit, but she doesn't prefer it. Leia wants to get her hands dirty, needs to hit something before she implodes. She's been itching for a fight for months, and she's not going to satisfy that craving by ordering around a bunch of officers unaccustomed to being under her command while he wrangles all the battle droids on the ground.

"But then I decided," he looks at her pointedly, "that you'd go whether I liked it or not so I might as well keep you where I can see you."

She reminded him of ~~himself~~ Ahsoka that way.

Edited 2016-05-22 22:29 (UTC)

"I don't need to be watched."

And yet, time and time again, she's done things to prove that she does. Reckless things — dangerous things that could have very well gotten her killed if people like Han weren't constantly watching her back, regardless of whether she wants them to or not.

He snorts, expressively. "Right. Of course. Forgive my assumption."

Sarcasm is strong with this family.

"You're still going to be watched. Just be glad I didn't give you your very own pair of troops."

Though if she's very very good maybe one day she'll get her own squad to lead.

It is, and she'd say it's an inherited trait from both sides of the fence. Bail Organa was sarcastic at times, but he was nowhere near as acerbic as his adoptive daughter could be.

"You mean my own entourage? Because I've had several of those, and let me tell you, I was very good at losing them."

"You haven't met our ARC troopers."

That at least might be entertaining to watch but they all have better uses of their time.

"Either way. We can make better arrangements. I wouldn't mind the backup."

"No, but I've had plenty of experience with what they become."

Entertaining for as long as they managed to survive her wrath. The armor the clones donned was unsettling enough as it is. She hadn't spent near as much time around them as Luke had. Certainly not enough to forget that they were the stormtroopers' predecessors.

Leia folded her arms. "From me or them?"

He flashes a scowl at her for the comment. Considering they're his men, no matter what they become, he doesn't exactly appreciate the reminder. Maybe he just identifies with their situation a little too much.

"I meant you could be my backup." There, olive branch extended.

They may be his men now, men that are hardwired to be loyal to the Republic and the Jedi they answer to, but she fears that may not always be so. Something happened to make them turn against the Jedi, to support the formation of the Empire. And after observing how dutiful the clones are, she can't help but wonder what exactly that something was. (Or if it's destined to happen again.)

She doesn't voice her concerns, though, opting to take that proverbial olive branch. Leia knows a pointless argument when she sees one, and the last thing this ship needs is two hotheaded Skywalkers shouting at one another when there were other, more pressing matters to attend to.

"I'd still like to carry a blaster when we go down there. If anything, they won't expect a woman in Jedi robes to have one."

Or to have vibroknives hidden in both her boots.

[ooc: i just now don't remember if anything else really happened with that after that]

"That's because I can't think of any Jedi I've ever met who preferred to carry a blaster alongside a lightsaber." He's not saying it shouldn't be done, more just agreeing that it'd be unusual. He would definitely agree with the knife thing though.

"And we've got some time to kill still before we get there. You should get in some more practice. With remotes this time."

( ooc | ...i totally forgot about that too, oops. i don't think anything else happened beyond that, though? )

"Precisely why the element of surprise would be working in our favor," she points out.

Running through more drills, though, she's less enthusiastic about in spite of agreeing with their necessity. Naturally skilled or not, she's still a novice, and will benefit from any sort of practice she's able to get in before engaging in her first official fight with a lightsaber.

"As long as you're not shouting critique from the sidelines."

[ooc: i don't think anything was explicitly said. maybe rex and fives are off quietly de-chipping clones as they get the opportunity]

He couldn't resist a small laugh at that. "I'll whisper the critique from the sidelines. It'll make it more of a challenge for you to figure out what you're doing wrong."

Standing, he holds his hand out to her, mischief in his eyes. "Of course, I'd be happy to demonstrate the best way first, if you think you can keep from swooning.""

( ooc | let's roll with that. sounds like something they'd do. and I'M FREE! summer workshops aside, no more work until august! \o/ )

The princess rolls her eyes at that swoon comment, but takes his hand anyway, shaking her head.

"I won't argue that I need the practice, but you do realize this isn't my first battle," she reminds him. "It's just my first battle with a lightsaber, is all. If I can't handle it, well then, I'll just have to improvise."

A humble shrug of her shoulders. She'd gotten herself out of stickier situations before, and while she might not have Han to watch her back, there was no doubt in her mind that her father would be watching it in his place. Regardless of whether he could actually see her or not. Leia would certainly be doing the same for him, even if he didn't really need his quasi-trained daughter keeping an eye out for him.

Edited 2016-06-08 06:37 (UTC)

He gives her hand a gentle squeeze and offers up a smile as they head back toward the hangar. "Nothing against improvisation. Sometimes it's even better than planning."

Everyone knew plans fell apart once you actually started fighting anyway.

daddy daughter field trips [for organa]

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and now i want an au of this

oh man

:DDD Just imagine if she'd jumped through universes instead of just time~

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hahaha oops, he and han did do the fives thing, technically they know about the brain!chips

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