NEW! 5 Humor/Fluff/Other ficlets
Time for some humor/fluff and Other ficlets to off set the angst of the last batch!
Here are Anakin & Obi-Wan, as well as general h/c and angst.
Here are War-related ficlets
Here are Anakin & Ahsoka
Here are post-RotS-based ficlets
Title: Morning Glow
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: daylight
Word Count: 253
Characters: Anakin, Padme
Rating: PG
Summary: A morning during the War
Author's Notes: I wrote Anakin/Padme fluff! OMG! Title and cut-text from "Morning Glow" from the musical Pippin.
-----
Daylight spills across the bed in slatted rays, the dawn making itself gently known. Padme shifts, feeling for the familiar-yet-unfamiliar weight of her husband beside her. Her hand flings out and meets empty space where he should be (they'd gone to bed together last night, he'd said he'd be here in the morning), and she feels a brief moment of fear, what-ifs flying through her head. She rises, wrapping herself in her soft dressing gown, padding gently through the apartment, trying to find evidence of where he might be. His lightsaber is still on the bedside table - he wouldn't have left without it, even if he'd been in a hurry.
She finally finds him on the veranda, hands clasped loosely behind his back, eyes closed, face raised to the sun. She is brought back a year, to Varykino, to a hurting young man trying to meditate away his nightmares. "Ani?" she prods, gently. "Are you okay?"
He nods, the sunlight enveloping him; his hair, brown and radiation-bleached in streaks, looks lit from the inside. He practically glows in the early morning light. "Just enjoying the morning," he says, turns to her, looking almost shy. "I didn't want to wake you." He looks tired, and Padme knows he's trying to play off the fact he didn't sleep well. He holds out a hand, and she approaches, letting him wrap his arm around her waist.
"I love you," she says, never more sure of anything, and they stand together as the sun warms them.
-----
Title: Dream Within a Dream
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: cannibal
Word Count: 262
Characters: Anakin, Obi-Wan
Rating: PG
Summary: "So, who are we going to eat first?"
-----
"So who are we going to eat first?"
The question was so far out from left field that, for a moment, Obi-Wan wasn't sure he'd heard it. When he realized he had, he snapped his head up to glare at his former Padawan. "Pardon me?"
"We're out of rations," Anakin pointed out. "And we're trapped in here. Who are we going to eat first? I think we should probably draw straws or something."
Obi-Wan was fairly certain his protege had gone mad from claustrophobia. Except Anakin wasn't claustrophobic, and they'd been in worse predicaments before. Not a lot worse, mind, but worse. "Nobody is eating anybody," Obi-Wan informed him.
"I mean, you and me'll probably be okay." Obi-Wan resisted the urge to correct the young man's grammar. "But the men need food. Oddball was looking a little weak, how about him?"
"We're not eating Oddball," Obi-Wan replied, sharply.
Anakin looked somewhat sheepish. "Uh, it might be a little too late. I thought you'd be okay with it, so I told them it was okay..."
Obi-Wan closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he was staring at a white ceiling under a mound of blankets. "What?"
"Master! You're awake!" Anakin sounded beside himself with relief. He sat next to Obi-Wan on the bed, which Obi-Wan suddenly realized was in the med-bay of a Republic cruiser. "I was so worried!" He scrutinized Obi-Wan closely. "You were dreaming. It seemed bad. Was it bad?"
Obi-Wan blinked, the last vestiges of the dream fading from his memory. "No," he said. "It was just a dream."
-----
Title: Damsels in Distress
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: homage
Word Count: 202
Characters: Anakin, nameless OC
Rating: PG
Summary: Mistaken identity and confusion during a "rescue"
Author's Notes: I'm sure this has been done before. Apologies for anyone I inadvertantly have ripped off.
-----
"Aren't you a little tall for a Clone trooper?" The Princess arched a perfectly-sculpted eyebrow as the aforementioned too-tall Clone trooper tilted his head in confusion.
"Wha? Oh, the uniform!" He pulled the helmet off revealing a pair of the bluest eyes the princess had ever seen. "I'm Anakin Skywalker, I'm here to rescue you!"
The princess was unimpressed and made it clear, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back against the wall of her room. "You're who?"
The Clone-who-was-not-a-Clone let out a frustrated puff of air. "Are you serious?" he asked. "Look, come on, I'm rescuing you, let's go."
The princess laughed. "Rescuing me from what?" she asked. "I live here. I'm not a prisoner."
Anakin Skywalker, who was there to rescue her, stared at her. "Wait, but I thought... They said there was a princess and..."
"And you thought, of course, princesses need rescuing by manly men like yourself, right?" The princess snorted. "Go home, little boy. You're embarrassing yourself."
"But..."
The princess sighed. "Look, if I ever really do need rescuing, I'll know who to call."
That seemed to appease him, and he left, muttering darkly that he never hoped to meet another princess like her again.
-----
Title: Celebration
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: auspicious
Word Count: 149
Characters: Palpatine, Obi-Wan, Anakin
Rating: PG
Summary: Reflections of a celebration during TPM
-----
Cheers and bellows fill the square in front of Theed Palace. Senator Palpatine - no, Chancellor Palpatine, now - watches the celebrations with a mild sense of accomplishment. Everything has proceeded as he had forseen, though not, he admits, the discovery of the boy. He'd wanted the desert to mold him a little longer, to hone his bitterness and anger. He hadn't wanted the Jedi to ever get their hands on his apprentice-to-be, but now that they had, Palpatine knew he would just have to make sure that worked in his favor.
He watches the boy, wide-eyed, marvelling at the water and the pomp and circumstance, looking proud in his Jedi garb and new Padawan braid. He sticks close to Kenobi, who looks distant, numb. Palpatine knows, then, that Kenobi will never be the kind of Master Anakin Skywalker needs. And that, he knows, will be the Jedi's downfall.
-----
Title: always at home with his back to the wall
Challenge: SWMININANO
Prompt: hero
Word Count: 489
Characters: Anakin, Ventress, Ahsoka, mentions of Obi-Wan
Rating: R
Summary: The death of Asajj Ventress - again.
Author's Notes: This kind of melds TCW and comic canon. Title from "Angry Young Man" by Billy Joel
-----
He ducks beneath her crimson blades and backs up, trying to swallow his fury as she forces him to give ground. He lifts his lightsaber to block her onslaught, and she scowls at him. He lets his legs give out and slides under her, on his feet at her back before she can react.
Dashing to the corner of the dim room, Anakin kneels, pushing Ventress across the room with the Force. He lifts Ahsoka into his lap, feels for a pulse. She is alive, but unconscious. He feels relief flood through him like a cold wave, but it does nothing to slake his anger. Ventress cares nothing about life, about those she might hurt, and he is dedicated to making her hurt in return.
If Obi-Wan were here, he'd point out that Ventress' path could have very easily been Anakin's. And Anakin would have ignored him, and the implications, and gotten on with the fight. But Obi-Wan is not here, so Anakin pushes the thought to the back of his mind and rises back to his feet, placing himself between Ventress and his apprentice.
"So noble," Ventress mocks, coming closer, pale eyes flashing in the light made purple by their combined blades.
Anakin scowls at her, leveling his 'saber in Djem So ready; he will not allow her to make him give ground, this time. He rushes forward, striking with all of his considerable strength, teeth clenched so tightly he can feel a ringing in his ears.
They are well-matched, their techniques similar. Anakin has greater control over the Force, has Jedi discipline on his side, but that discipline is a temporary thing, something he only remembers occasionally when in the heat of the battle. He does not hold back against Ventress, focuses all of his energy and anger and fear, and his attacks increase in strength.
He reaches out with the Force, invisible fingers wrapping around her throat, pulling her into the air. He cups the fingers of his right hand, lightsaber dropping to his side, and she scrabbles at her neck. "How does that feel?" Anakin growls at her. "That's what you made my Padawan feel. Do you like it?" He tightens his grip and she glares at him with nothing but venom.
He throws her against the wall and she slumps down to the floor. He is tempted to run her through with his lightsaber, but manages to stay his hand. "How many times do I have to kill you?" he snarls, and wraps his hand around her throat, lifting her to her feet. She kicks, feebly, at him, her energy spent. He walks her to one of the narrow, slatted windows and gives her one long, last furious stare. He throws her out, hears her scream, hears her body slam with a cracking thud on the rocks below.
The Hero With No Fear turns his back on the carnage, and returns to his apprentice.
Here are Anakin & Obi-Wan, as well as general h/c and angst.
Here are War-related ficlets
Here are Anakin & Ahsoka
Here are post-RotS-based ficlets
Title: Morning Glow
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: daylight
Word Count: 253
Characters: Anakin, Padme
Rating: PG
Summary: A morning during the War
Author's Notes: I wrote Anakin/Padme fluff! OMG! Title and cut-text from "Morning Glow" from the musical Pippin.
-----
Daylight spills across the bed in slatted rays, the dawn making itself gently known. Padme shifts, feeling for the familiar-yet-unfamiliar weight of her husband beside her. Her hand flings out and meets empty space where he should be (they'd gone to bed together last night, he'd said he'd be here in the morning), and she feels a brief moment of fear, what-ifs flying through her head. She rises, wrapping herself in her soft dressing gown, padding gently through the apartment, trying to find evidence of where he might be. His lightsaber is still on the bedside table - he wouldn't have left without it, even if he'd been in a hurry.
She finally finds him on the veranda, hands clasped loosely behind his back, eyes closed, face raised to the sun. She is brought back a year, to Varykino, to a hurting young man trying to meditate away his nightmares. "Ani?" she prods, gently. "Are you okay?"
He nods, the sunlight enveloping him; his hair, brown and radiation-bleached in streaks, looks lit from the inside. He practically glows in the early morning light. "Just enjoying the morning," he says, turns to her, looking almost shy. "I didn't want to wake you." He looks tired, and Padme knows he's trying to play off the fact he didn't sleep well. He holds out a hand, and she approaches, letting him wrap his arm around her waist.
"I love you," she says, never more sure of anything, and they stand together as the sun warms them.
-----
Title: Dream Within a Dream
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: cannibal
Word Count: 262
Characters: Anakin, Obi-Wan
Rating: PG
Summary: "So, who are we going to eat first?"
-----
"So who are we going to eat first?"
The question was so far out from left field that, for a moment, Obi-Wan wasn't sure he'd heard it. When he realized he had, he snapped his head up to glare at his former Padawan. "Pardon me?"
"We're out of rations," Anakin pointed out. "And we're trapped in here. Who are we going to eat first? I think we should probably draw straws or something."
Obi-Wan was fairly certain his protege had gone mad from claustrophobia. Except Anakin wasn't claustrophobic, and they'd been in worse predicaments before. Not a lot worse, mind, but worse. "Nobody is eating anybody," Obi-Wan informed him.
"I mean, you and me'll probably be okay." Obi-Wan resisted the urge to correct the young man's grammar. "But the men need food. Oddball was looking a little weak, how about him?"
"We're not eating Oddball," Obi-Wan replied, sharply.
Anakin looked somewhat sheepish. "Uh, it might be a little too late. I thought you'd be okay with it, so I told them it was okay..."
Obi-Wan closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he was staring at a white ceiling under a mound of blankets. "What?"
"Master! You're awake!" Anakin sounded beside himself with relief. He sat next to Obi-Wan on the bed, which Obi-Wan suddenly realized was in the med-bay of a Republic cruiser. "I was so worried!" He scrutinized Obi-Wan closely. "You were dreaming. It seemed bad. Was it bad?"
Obi-Wan blinked, the last vestiges of the dream fading from his memory. "No," he said. "It was just a dream."
-----
Title: Damsels in Distress
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: homage
Word Count: 202
Characters: Anakin, nameless OC
Rating: PG
Summary: Mistaken identity and confusion during a "rescue"
Author's Notes: I'm sure this has been done before. Apologies for anyone I inadvertantly have ripped off.
-----
"Aren't you a little tall for a Clone trooper?" The Princess arched a perfectly-sculpted eyebrow as the aforementioned too-tall Clone trooper tilted his head in confusion.
"Wha? Oh, the uniform!" He pulled the helmet off revealing a pair of the bluest eyes the princess had ever seen. "I'm Anakin Skywalker, I'm here to rescue you!"
The princess was unimpressed and made it clear, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back against the wall of her room. "You're who?"
The Clone-who-was-not-a-Clone let out a frustrated puff of air. "Are you serious?" he asked. "Look, come on, I'm rescuing you, let's go."
The princess laughed. "Rescuing me from what?" she asked. "I live here. I'm not a prisoner."
Anakin Skywalker, who was there to rescue her, stared at her. "Wait, but I thought... They said there was a princess and..."
"And you thought, of course, princesses need rescuing by manly men like yourself, right?" The princess snorted. "Go home, little boy. You're embarrassing yourself."
"But..."
The princess sighed. "Look, if I ever really do need rescuing, I'll know who to call."
That seemed to appease him, and he left, muttering darkly that he never hoped to meet another princess like her again.
-----
Title: Celebration
Challenge: SWMININANO2
Prompt: auspicious
Word Count: 149
Characters: Palpatine, Obi-Wan, Anakin
Rating: PG
Summary: Reflections of a celebration during TPM
-----
Cheers and bellows fill the square in front of Theed Palace. Senator Palpatine - no, Chancellor Palpatine, now - watches the celebrations with a mild sense of accomplishment. Everything has proceeded as he had forseen, though not, he admits, the discovery of the boy. He'd wanted the desert to mold him a little longer, to hone his bitterness and anger. He hadn't wanted the Jedi to ever get their hands on his apprentice-to-be, but now that they had, Palpatine knew he would just have to make sure that worked in his favor.
He watches the boy, wide-eyed, marvelling at the water and the pomp and circumstance, looking proud in his Jedi garb and new Padawan braid. He sticks close to Kenobi, who looks distant, numb. Palpatine knows, then, that Kenobi will never be the kind of Master Anakin Skywalker needs. And that, he knows, will be the Jedi's downfall.
-----
Title: always at home with his back to the wall
Challenge: SWMININANO
Prompt: hero
Word Count: 489
Characters: Anakin, Ventress, Ahsoka, mentions of Obi-Wan
Rating: R
Summary: The death of Asajj Ventress - again.
Author's Notes: This kind of melds TCW and comic canon. Title from "Angry Young Man" by Billy Joel
-----
He ducks beneath her crimson blades and backs up, trying to swallow his fury as she forces him to give ground. He lifts his lightsaber to block her onslaught, and she scowls at him. He lets his legs give out and slides under her, on his feet at her back before she can react.
Dashing to the corner of the dim room, Anakin kneels, pushing Ventress across the room with the Force. He lifts Ahsoka into his lap, feels for a pulse. She is alive, but unconscious. He feels relief flood through him like a cold wave, but it does nothing to slake his anger. Ventress cares nothing about life, about those she might hurt, and he is dedicated to making her hurt in return.
If Obi-Wan were here, he'd point out that Ventress' path could have very easily been Anakin's. And Anakin would have ignored him, and the implications, and gotten on with the fight. But Obi-Wan is not here, so Anakin pushes the thought to the back of his mind and rises back to his feet, placing himself between Ventress and his apprentice.
"So noble," Ventress mocks, coming closer, pale eyes flashing in the light made purple by their combined blades.
Anakin scowls at her, leveling his 'saber in Djem So ready; he will not allow her to make him give ground, this time. He rushes forward, striking with all of his considerable strength, teeth clenched so tightly he can feel a ringing in his ears.
They are well-matched, their techniques similar. Anakin has greater control over the Force, has Jedi discipline on his side, but that discipline is a temporary thing, something he only remembers occasionally when in the heat of the battle. He does not hold back against Ventress, focuses all of his energy and anger and fear, and his attacks increase in strength.
He reaches out with the Force, invisible fingers wrapping around her throat, pulling her into the air. He cups the fingers of his right hand, lightsaber dropping to his side, and she scrabbles at her neck. "How does that feel?" Anakin growls at her. "That's what you made my Padawan feel. Do you like it?" He tightens his grip and she glares at him with nothing but venom.
He throws her against the wall and she slumps down to the floor. He is tempted to run her through with his lightsaber, but manages to stay his hand. "How many times do I have to kill you?" he snarls, and wraps his hand around her throat, lifting her to her feet. She kicks, feebly, at him, her energy spent. He walks her to one of the narrow, slatted windows and gives her one long, last furious stare. He throws her out, hears her scream, hears her body slam with a cracking thud on the rocks below.
The Hero With No Fear turns his back on the carnage, and returns to his apprentice.