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selenakThose were all great prompts. Here are the first three answers, as I'll be working in Berlin tomorrow and thus probably won't be able to post:
Five things Padmé regrets, for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
artaxastra
1.) Not having tried to become Chancellor. She doesn’t regret the vote of no confidence which ousted Valorum, even though in retrospect she realizes Palpatine had manipulated her into it; she still thinks Valorum, though well meaning, wasn’t a good ruler, and unable to get things done. And of course she wishes she’d have seen through Palpatine, but is realist enough to be aware she shares that blindness with the Jedi Council and most of the galaxy. However, she was popular and successful enough a Senator to make a genuine bid for the Chancellorship herself, and as Palpatine had always taken great care to emphasize his Naboo connection and the fact he was her mentor, he could not have opposed her. She’s sure he’d have tried to get her assassinated again, but if he hadn’t succeeded, she might have been able to stop him in a democractic way. The reason she didn’t go there: a) after her two terms as Queen of Naboo, she really didn’t want to govern again, and b) later on, when that wouldn’t have mattered anymore because of the dire situation, she had an Achilles heel through her secret marriage to Anakin.
2.) Not having bought Shmi Skywalker from Watto. She didn’t want to participate in slavery or encourage it in any way and was fourteen at the time, so didn’t see the obvious compromise.
3.) The fact Sabé quit as her chief handmaiden and bodyguard. On the other hand, considering what happened to Cordé, this probably saved Sabé`s life, but she was Padmé’s dearest friend among the handmaidens, and she never stopped missing her. Rumour has it that Sabé became a pirate in the increasingly chaotic final decade of the Republic, and a very successful one, too, but it might be a rumour circulated by Padmé’s political opponents.
4.) Not having offered Anakin a home on Naboo after Qui-Gon died. She’s quite sure that between the adoration he had for her even at age 9 and the fact that the Jedi didn’t want him (except for Obi-Wan, who was obliged to), he’d have accepted. This might have meant they would not have never become lovers because she would have taken on a maternal/big sister role, and sometimes, she’s not sure whether that would not have been for the best. More to the point, though, Anakin wouldn’t have become a Jedi and probably would have been far happier.
5.) Not having made love to Anakin directly after he came back. Yes, it would have been in a public (albeit semi-deserted) place, crazy, unthinkable and what not, but they had missed each other desperately, and it would have been the last time without either of them being conscious of fears for the future. When they did have sex later on, even before Anakin had his nightmare about her death, it was tender and considerate, but she kept thinking about what having a child would mean, and whether she would lose it or Anakin or both to the Jedi once the inevitable disclosure had happened.
Five famous contemporaries Darla did not kill, forcallmesandy
1) Charles II and Nell Gwyn. Which actually makes two, but let’s count it as one occasion. She had a highly entertaining threesome with them, and the reason why she didn’t kill either is obvious: too high profile. Regicides were hunted down by people other than Watchers. And Nelly, well, there was the admiration of a pro for a pro.
2) Artemisia Gentileschi. She appreciated the bloodthirstyness of the Judith paintings Artemisia did and the exquisite detail, and wanted Artemisia to paint her portrait. Of course there would be been the option of siring her, but really, Darla had just secured the permission to go on trips of her own from the Master in those days; she didn’t want to be tagged down by a fledgling. So Artemisia survived, remained human, and did paint Darla’s portrait. Sadly, Darla lost sight of it somewhere in the late 1600s; either the Watchers have it stored somewhere, or the Immortal bought it later, though he denies it.
3) James Boswell. Not that he was famous when she met him, but she later figured out who the Scottish lad entertaining the bored theatre crowd by mooing and clowning in the stalls must have been. At any rate, she was there looking for victims and did have a snack (someone else, who never wrote anyone’s biography, let alone entertaining journals), but she was amused. Especially when he began to promote his book about Corsica while the crowd still liked him.
4) Sarah Bernhardt. Her favourite actress, whereas Angelus championed Eleonora Duse. Then Angelus got the soul, and Darla needed an excuse to rage and cry in public now and then without losing face in front of Dru and Spike, so she made it a point to catch every performance of Sarah’s she happened to be in the same town for. As the divine Sarah was touring all the time, those were quite a lot of performances.
5) Marion Davies. Not her favourite actress (or anyone else’s, save for W.H. Hearst), but a delightful, fun person, and her Darla had actually meant to kill after an enjoyable evening of killing both W. and Chaplin in front of her first, but then W. had his jealous fit about Chaplin which resulted in him shooting Ince by mistake, and as a result, Hearst’s publicity people and police which had to be bought off were all over the place. Darla decided she was no one’s follow-up act and left.
Five things about Connor which remind Angel of Darla, fornolivingman
1) His eyes. This was how Angel recognized him at once when Connor came back; Connor has Darla’s eyes.
2) The way he smiles when he’s being maliciously vengeful, though Angel didn’t actually put it together the first time this happened (which was when Connor said “let’s give it a try” after asking Angel to show him some more martial arts moves; otherwise he might have clued in to Connor’s revenging-Holtz-plan); he did pay attention the second time, but that was when he was soulless (during their encounter in the basement), and we shall not go into what Angelus planned to do about that smile if Cordy hadn’t come in.
3) The way he laughs when he’s genuinenly delighted about something. Which, pre-mindwipe, was rare enough, but did happen, as during their first sparring session in the alley. (Alleys are lucky for Angel and his family, or not, depending on how one looks at it, and speaking of looking, Holtz watched that particular encounter with fatal results.)
4) His writing. Darla never learned to write in her first human life and aquired the knowledge later on, with the result that her letters looked like an odd mixture of English, Italian and German style through the 1600s and 1700s. Connor, who was taught by Holtz and then retaught by Fred, somehow ended up with a similar style. Angel wasn’t kidding when offering help that last day.
5) The expression of utter betrayal in Connor’s face when Jasmine said Fred had infected Angel, and Connor turned to Angel and saw it was true. It was the same expression Darla had on three occasions: when realizing Angel had a soul, when Angel refused to kill the baby in China, and when Angel told her to get dressed and get out after the night which produced Connor. In both cases, he knew what they were expecting of him was wrong, but that expression still stays with him. Perversely, this is partly because it’s in those moments that he can be absolutely sure Connor and Darla love him, no matter what they claim to the contrary.
Five things Padmé regrets, for
artaxastra1.) Not having tried to become Chancellor. She doesn’t regret the vote of no confidence which ousted Valorum, even though in retrospect she realizes Palpatine had manipulated her into it; she still thinks Valorum, though well meaning, wasn’t a good ruler, and unable to get things done. And of course she wishes she’d have seen through Palpatine, but is realist enough to be aware she shares that blindness with the Jedi Council and most of the galaxy. However, she was popular and successful enough a Senator to make a genuine bid for the Chancellorship herself, and as Palpatine had always taken great care to emphasize his Naboo connection and the fact he was her mentor, he could not have opposed her. She’s sure he’d have tried to get her assassinated again, but if he hadn’t succeeded, she might have been able to stop him in a democractic way. The reason she didn’t go there: a) after her two terms as Queen of Naboo, she really didn’t want to govern again, and b) later on, when that wouldn’t have mattered anymore because of the dire situation, she had an Achilles heel through her secret marriage to Anakin.
2.) Not having bought Shmi Skywalker from Watto. She didn’t want to participate in slavery or encourage it in any way and was fourteen at the time, so didn’t see the obvious compromise.
3.) The fact Sabé quit as her chief handmaiden and bodyguard. On the other hand, considering what happened to Cordé, this probably saved Sabé`s life, but she was Padmé’s dearest friend among the handmaidens, and she never stopped missing her. Rumour has it that Sabé became a pirate in the increasingly chaotic final decade of the Republic, and a very successful one, too, but it might be a rumour circulated by Padmé’s political opponents.
4.) Not having offered Anakin a home on Naboo after Qui-Gon died. She’s quite sure that between the adoration he had for her even at age 9 and the fact that the Jedi didn’t want him (except for Obi-Wan, who was obliged to), he’d have accepted. This might have meant they would not have never become lovers because she would have taken on a maternal/big sister role, and sometimes, she’s not sure whether that would not have been for the best. More to the point, though, Anakin wouldn’t have become a Jedi and probably would have been far happier.
5.) Not having made love to Anakin directly after he came back. Yes, it would have been in a public (albeit semi-deserted) place, crazy, unthinkable and what not, but they had missed each other desperately, and it would have been the last time without either of them being conscious of fears for the future. When they did have sex later on, even before Anakin had his nightmare about her death, it was tender and considerate, but she kept thinking about what having a child would mean, and whether she would lose it or Anakin or both to the Jedi once the inevitable disclosure had happened.
Five famous contemporaries Darla did not kill, for
callmesandy1) Charles II and Nell Gwyn. Which actually makes two, but let’s count it as one occasion. She had a highly entertaining threesome with them, and the reason why she didn’t kill either is obvious: too high profile. Regicides were hunted down by people other than Watchers. And Nelly, well, there was the admiration of a pro for a pro.
2) Artemisia Gentileschi. She appreciated the bloodthirstyness of the Judith paintings Artemisia did and the exquisite detail, and wanted Artemisia to paint her portrait. Of course there would be been the option of siring her, but really, Darla had just secured the permission to go on trips of her own from the Master in those days; she didn’t want to be tagged down by a fledgling. So Artemisia survived, remained human, and did paint Darla’s portrait. Sadly, Darla lost sight of it somewhere in the late 1600s; either the Watchers have it stored somewhere, or the Immortal bought it later, though he denies it.
3) James Boswell. Not that he was famous when she met him, but she later figured out who the Scottish lad entertaining the bored theatre crowd by mooing and clowning in the stalls must have been. At any rate, she was there looking for victims and did have a snack (someone else, who never wrote anyone’s biography, let alone entertaining journals), but she was amused. Especially when he began to promote his book about Corsica while the crowd still liked him.
4) Sarah Bernhardt. Her favourite actress, whereas Angelus championed Eleonora Duse. Then Angelus got the soul, and Darla needed an excuse to rage and cry in public now and then without losing face in front of Dru and Spike, so she made it a point to catch every performance of Sarah’s she happened to be in the same town for. As the divine Sarah was touring all the time, those were quite a lot of performances.
5) Marion Davies. Not her favourite actress (or anyone else’s, save for W.H. Hearst), but a delightful, fun person, and her Darla had actually meant to kill after an enjoyable evening of killing both W. and Chaplin in front of her first, but then W. had his jealous fit about Chaplin which resulted in him shooting Ince by mistake, and as a result, Hearst’s publicity people and police which had to be bought off were all over the place. Darla decided she was no one’s follow-up act and left.
Five things about Connor which remind Angel of Darla, for
nolivingman1) His eyes. This was how Angel recognized him at once when Connor came back; Connor has Darla’s eyes.
2) The way he smiles when he’s being maliciously vengeful, though Angel didn’t actually put it together the first time this happened (which was when Connor said “let’s give it a try” after asking Angel to show him some more martial arts moves; otherwise he might have clued in to Connor’s revenging-Holtz-plan); he did pay attention the second time, but that was when he was soulless (during their encounter in the basement), and we shall not go into what Angelus planned to do about that smile if Cordy hadn’t come in.
3) The way he laughs when he’s genuinenly delighted about something. Which, pre-mindwipe, was rare enough, but did happen, as during their first sparring session in the alley. (Alleys are lucky for Angel and his family, or not, depending on how one looks at it, and speaking of looking, Holtz watched that particular encounter with fatal results.)
4) His writing. Darla never learned to write in her first human life and aquired the knowledge later on, with the result that her letters looked like an odd mixture of English, Italian and German style through the 1600s and 1700s. Connor, who was taught by Holtz and then retaught by Fred, somehow ended up with a similar style. Angel wasn’t kidding when offering help that last day.
5) The expression of utter betrayal in Connor’s face when Jasmine said Fred had infected Angel, and Connor turned to Angel and saw it was true. It was the same expression Darla had on three occasions: when realizing Angel had a soul, when Angel refused to kill the baby in China, and when Angel told her to get dressed and get out after the night which produced Connor. In both cases, he knew what they were expecting of him was wrong, but that expression still stays with him. Perversely, this is partly because it’s in those moments that he can be absolutely sure Connor and Darla love him, no matter what they claim to the contrary.
