#Anakin may have been far more dangerous and terrifying to luke than aunt beru and uncle Owen but he still identified himself as Luke’s DAD

[gch1995]

Hi! Been thinking about Luke and Vader. How do you think Luke went from wanting to die to believing there was good in Vader? What caused that change/acceptance?

I have a lot of sympathy for Anakin/Darth Vader, and I don’t think it’s fair to place blame on just him for becoming such a deeply dysfunctional and horrifying human disaster as an adult, considering how deeply compromised his agency was his entire life under a series of abusive, hypocritical, and oppressive authority figures within a dystopian galaxy’s fucked up institutions. However, that doesn’t mean Luke wouldn’t have still had absolutely every right to hate his father for hurting him, his friends, and the many other people throughout the galaxy either.

Yet, ultimately Luke didn’t hate his father, even after Darth Vader reached out to him through the force by torturing his son’s friends, stalking him, abducting him, terrorizing him, threatening him, and cutting off his hand to try to coerce him to join the dark side in Empire Strikes Back.

Why?

I think the most obvious reason is that, with a little space and time to recover from the trauma that his father put him through in his efforts to find him and recruit him to the dark side, Luke ultimately sensed the good within Anakin beneath the darkness after he revealed that he was doing all this because Luke was his son, his family, who wanted freedom from Sidious and someone better to bond with than that sadistic asshole his current master was.

Also, in spite of how awful and dangerous it was for Anakin to terrorize Luke, cut off his hand, and threaten him like that on Bespin to try to recruit him to the dark side, he intentionally goes out of his way to avoid outright killing his son by going easy on him battle, giving him chances to escape, and trying to recruit him to the dark side to bond with his son and gain freedom, rather than bringing him to the Emperor.

Yes, he’s being awful, cowardly, and selfish in his methods, but Anakin is also trying to more easily avoid the possibility of one of them getting killed by Palpatine or one another by going after his son to try to recruit him to the dark side to overthrow the Emperor because he knows his master will do worse to Luke and/or himself if he finds out the truth about his son still being alive and a Jedi.

In Empire Strikes Back, Anakin also tells Luke “Don’t make me destroy you” when his son skitters away from him in terror. Though he went about looking for Luke pretty obsessively to try to recruit him for the dark side, once his son actually refuses to be swayed to the dark side by his father on Bespin after being abducted, terrorized, and amputated by him, Anakin notably doesn’t keep hunting down Luke to try to recruit him to the dark side or personally kill him for refusing after he runs away in terror in the movie. He’s upset about it, sure, but he really never wanted for Luke to be killed or hurt long term either.

Then, you also have to examine the fact that Luke didn’t really ever view Owen and Beru Lars as his parents. Though they loved Luke, and he loved them, Owen and Beru still never encouraged Luke to view them as his parents either. They were Aunt Beru and Uncle Owen to Luke, but never mom and dad to him. Luke really wanted someone to be able to identify as his parents. Anakin, flawed as he was, was the first person in Luke’s life to identify themselves as one his parents he had been missing his whole life, which is also why he was particularly desperate to bond with his father and inspire him to turn back to the light side.

If you guys want to chime in, you can!

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[gffa]

Every time I try to sum up why I love STAR WARS fandom and the fic so much, I’m just sort of at a loss and can only flail wildly in the direction of about three dozen different fics to encompass everything that is just so good. Sometimes I want happy fic, sometimes I want fic that will break my heart further, sometimes I want to focus on the characters that don’t get enough story (LEIA ORGANA AND PADME AMIDALA BOTH DESERVE MORE STORY, ALSO PLEASE TELL ME MORE ABOUT APHRA AND BREHA AND MORE) or I want to roll around in shippy feelings, sometimes I want to read time travel fix it fic, sometimes I want a completely different universe! And Star Wars fic really provides so, so many different things, that there should hopefully be at least something for almost everyone, no matter what you’re here for! I have a lot of love for this fandom and I just want to share it with everyone! So, here, please read a bunch of fic and cry from feelings with me. STAR WARS FIC RECS: PREQUELS RECS: ✦ The Uses of a Sandwich by Laura Kaye (laurakaye), obi-wan & qui-gon & oc & cast, 17.6k    A few months after being taken as a Padawan, Obi-Wan Kenobi faces a challenge: meeting his Master’s first apprentice. ✦ Ghosts of the Present by randomlyimagine, plo & aayla & jedi & cast, 5k wip    Every single Jedi killed during Order 66 becomes a Force ghost, often before their bodies even hit the floor. ✦ Soaked by CJinn, obi-wan & cast, 1.8k    Little Obi-Wan Kenobi is left behind in the garden during a rainshower. Oneshot. ✦ Night Shift at the Temple by ReneeoftheStars, oc jedi & cast, 1.8k    A Jedi Temple Guard sees all, speaks to few, and has attachments to no one. One must be prepared for any threats that may arise, especially at night, while most of the Temple sleeps. ✦ Problems with the Neighbors by spaceyquill, obi-wan & ahsoka, 1.1k    Ahsoka visits Obi-Wan for the first time on Tatooine and gets wrapped up in a sudden scheme against the local Jawas. ✦ Frayed At The Edges by zed_pm, obi-wan & anakin, 1.5k    Anakin counts Obi-Wan’s wounds. ✦ Jedi of Light by Sannah, obi-wan/anakin/padme & mace & yoda & plo & even & jocasta & cast, 7k wip    Out of irritation with the war and with permission from the Council, several talk show hosts create a show that airs weekly about the Jedi. They name the show *Jedi of Light,* and go around following Jedi and asking them questions. ✦ Every Moment Points Toward the Aftermath by HiNerdsItsCat (HiLarpItsCat), obi-wan & anakin/padme & palpatine & mace & cast, 5.9k    In a strange sort of way, this is the story of how, in the final days of the Clone Wars, Mace Windu saved the galaxy by taking a nap. ✦ untitled by elfpen, obi-wan & qui-gon, 3.1k    Anonymous asked: if you’re still accepting prompts: smol padawan obi-wan letting slip his law abiding exterior and letting loose the terrifying intensity beneath it. preferably in defense of qui-gon or something. ✦ Shadows of Dathomir by Artemis1000, asajj/padme, 3.5k    Hunted by the Emperor, Padmé Amidala needs a sanctuary for herself and her newborn twins. Asajj Ventress is an unlikely protector and Dathomir an even more unlikely sanctuary, but beggars can’t be choosers. It’s a sensible arrangement. Padmé certainly hadn’t expected that she would ever care so much. ✦ Falling Upwards by Pandora151, obi-wan & anakin & ahsoka & cast, 1.8k    He didn’t exactly remember how he ended up here. He remembered returning to the apartment after a long Council meeting. He remembered thinking about making himself some tea because of the headache that pounded in his skull. ✦ Sith of Old by esama, obi-wan & anakin & asajj & ahsoka & rex & asssassin’s creed characters, crossover, 22.6k wip    In which generals Skywalker and Kenobi investigate an Ancient Sith Temple and Desmond Miles isn’t really a Sith, promise. ✦ still burning by skatzaa, ahsoka/kaeden, 2.9k    “Sith spit,” she hisses, reaching out and jabbing at the far wall of the ‘fresher with her free hand until the water turns off entirely. The skin on her arm and shoulder is tender and inflamed when she steps out into the rest of the room, dripping water on the durasteel floor. ✦ untitled by stonefreeak, yoda & ellé & cast, 1.2k    Worried, Yoda is. Brought up a terrible thought, his conversation with young Skywalker and Tano did. ✦ yoda would vape send tweet by destiny919, yoda & mace, ~1k    A few years before even the Battle of Naboo, Master Yoda agrees to retire as Grand Master of the Order. ✦ To Live and Die and Live Again by AriesOnMars, ahsoka/barriss, 12.9k    Ahsoka has escaped from the Sith Temple with the knowledge of who Darth Vader truly is and she begins to seek help to understand what it was that could change him so completely. Intel leads her to believe Barriss is still alive and Ahsoka goes to find her, thinking that by undestanding her former friend’s fall from grace she can better understand her Master’s. ✦ The will of the Force by Lysore, obi-wan & yoda & qui-gon, 2.7k    Obi-Wan piqued Yoda’s interest early on, except the Grand Master of the Order had known for just as long that the Initiate was destined to be Qui-Gon Jinn’s Padawan. OBI-WAN/ANAKIN RECS: ✦ Alcohol and demonic rituals don’t mix by anecdotalist, obi-wan/anakin, supernatural au, modern au, 1.4k    Written for the prompt: “Do you guys hear the demonic frat-chanting outside too?” ✦ Bedroom Hymns by JediMistress, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, spanking, bondage, bdsm, d/s, 16k wip    Anakin Skywalker is a young student with some kinky interests, and his search for a Dom leads him to Obi-Wan, a former professional. Obi-Wan has retired, but their purely professional kinky relationship changes the lives of both men. How long can they keep it professional? And what happens when they start falling for each other? ✦ One touch and I ignite by Paper_cut, obi-wan/anakin & ahsoka & padme & cast, nsfw, 59k    Anakin makes a bit different choices, and learns better communication. So does Obi-Wan. Eventually. ✦ Passionate Reunion by bluebell26, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 2.4k    Obi-Wan comes back to the Jedi Temple after a dangerous mission. In the privacy of their shared apartment, he meets with Anakin, with whom he shares a secret relationship, and passion ensues. ✦ Upfall by bell (belldreams), obi-wan/anakin & anakin/padme & obi-wan/satine & ahsoka & cast, NSFW, 27.2k wip    Anakin is doing just about everything he can to hold himself together; it won’t last. ✦ Across the Darkness by xpityx, obi-wan/anakin & anakin/padme & clones & cast, 12.4k wip    Obi-Wan knew they had hit the temple’s inner security measures when Anakin went from calm to clutching both Obi-Wan and his lightsaber between one step and the next. ✦ Drums in the deep by liv_k, obi-wan/anakin & cast, 6.5k    On the inside, Anakin was devoured by his own inner fire. A moth to the flame, Obi-Wan knew that sooner or later he would be caught in the firestorm too. ✦ Maintenance by orphan_account, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, spanking, ~1k    Written for the FFA 1000 Prompt and Fill Fest. Obi-Wan ends up with Anakin over his lap and learns a new trick. ✦ Stability by SingManyFaces, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, mild d/s, mild bondage implied, ~1k    Anakin loves it when Obi-Wan quiets the noise in his head, Obi-Wan loves taking care of him after. ✦ You Don’t Know the Hair of the Dark Side by SmileAndASong, obi-wan/anakin & luke & leia, modern au, 3.5k    Obi-Wan comes home one night and discovers that Luke decided to give Anakin an impromptu haircut. Why? To defeat the dark side, of course. ✦ Penciling in sleep by anecdotalist, obi-wan/anakin, 2.6k    It’s two years after the Battle of Geonosis. Obi-Wan Kenobi is the Jedi War General and leads the GAR. Anakin Skywalker had just been Knighted 6 months ago after completing supplemental healer training under Master Che and is now the Commander of the Relief and Support Forces. He’s just returned from a trip and learned that Obi-Wan has not been taking care of himself so he takes matters into his own hands. ✦ untitled by subskywalker, obi-wan/anakin, NSFW, 1k    Obi-Wan kissed his shoulders as he settled behind him. “Oh, dear one, you’re so very beautiful like this. You’re such a good boy for me Anakin.” ✦ Rumpled Collar by Corde_And_Dorme, obi-wan/padme (/anakin?) & cast, white collar fusion, 3.4k    The White Collar! AU that absolutely NOBODY asked for except one Discord channel like… months ago. ORIGINAL TRILOGY RECS: ✦ cinched by spookykingdomstarlight, aphra & padme, 4.7k    The woman leaned forward and folded her hands over her knees. “What would it take? For you to tell me about him?” ✦ Coming Home by Ljparis, bail/breha & leia, 1.4k    Wherein Bail returns home to Alderaan from Coruscant and brings with him surprises for both his wife and daughter. ✦ Endings and Beginnings by AngelQueen, bail/brehan & leia & cast, 2k    Leia is four hours old the first time Bail holds her. ✦ The Forking Path by McBangle, obi-wan & leia & cast, 1.6k    Leia Skywalker had long known there was more to Ben Kenobi than her Uncle Owen had told her. Once she realized that her aunt and uncle didn’t want her to ask about the strange hermit, she was too stubborn not to track him down. ✦ The Joy of Cooking by victoria_p (musesfool), obi-wan & anakin & leia & kanan & finn, 1.5k    “Cooking is like flying. Once you’ve got the basics down, you just do what feels right.” ✦ Salvage by celeste9, obi-wan/owen/beru & luke, 1k    Luke takes to rescuing the abandoned droids of Tatooine, much to the perplexity of his guardians. ✦ At Sunrise on the Forest Moon by victoria_p (musesfool), luke & ahsoka, ~1k    She finds her way to Luke’s side at the site of Vader’s pyre, after the flames have died down to embers. SEQUELS RECS: ✦ Coins, Flasks, Sabers, Staves by Meggory, rey & chewbacca & r2-d2 & lando & maz & hondo & cast, 5.8k    Chewie and Rey set out from D'Qar to find Luke Skywalker, but that bantha’s arse can wait, because Chewie has something he has to do, first. ✦ a gate to many wonders by melannen, luke & yoda & han & anakin & ben & cast, force ghosts, 3.6k    Dying, for a Jedi Master in the line of Yoda, was a gentle thing. or “Hi, Not Listening To This Anymore,” Han said, appearing suddenly. “I’m dead.” ✦ Mother and Child Reunion by victoria_p (musesfool), leia & ben, 1.3k    “I’m your mother and I will always love you, but I can’t save you from this path you’ve chosen. Only you can do that.” ✦ out of the dust by maplemood, han & rey & chewbacca & ben, 3.1k    He drops by Jakku for a steal on old engine parts and leaves with a half-starved, more than half-feral child. FULL DETAILS + RECS HERE!