Duties, I'll take. [ They don't carry the expectation of reciprocity, which Leia thinks is entirely inappropriate for a relationship built on a fundamental power imbalance. Not that this is something she was raised to think about carefully, or anything...
She leans back in her chair with the ease of someone on their own furniture, and props her chin on one hand, elbow on the arm rest. ]
I'm curious what you think, before I say anything myself.
I thought so, too -- and I'm sorry you didn't get more detail on the ones you were interested in -- but I ended up having a short conversation with him about Wardens abusing their authority. He promised to consider any requests I made for assistance.
[ Leia had been quite satisfied with that. In his position, that's the most she'd have promised, too, though she'd have been less obfuscatory about it, as Gertrude had put it. ]
He seems much more willing to discuss the specifics of your job than the specifics of where his powers come from and what they can do.
[She's giving Leia a long, even stare at that. Her own concerns have absolutely not been addressed. If anything, the deliberate avoidance of an answer to those questions has made her more certain that it is something the Admiral does not believe they would like to hear.]
It only makes sense -- given that he has a clear investment in your success.
[ Leia had obviously noticed that distinction as well, but it hadn't surprised her; she doesn't expect a ruler to be all that forthcoming in the first place. ]
I could say the same thing about you, [ Leia notes. ] Aren't we all more willing to discuss our jobs than our supernatural abilities?
I'm not saying the Admiral is beyond reproach, but not everything you don't know ends up being an evil plan.
Oh, I don't mind giving you specifics, if you're asking.
[Very dryly.]
And I do freely admit that my powers come from a willing collaboration with evil. In my experience, people do not hide information for no reason. The reason could be foolish or benign, but there is one.
[ Hearing it said that straightforwardly makes Leia frown, but she still doesn't know what to make of it, exactly. She's too much of a trained diplomat to feel ready to judge someone else's culture and circumstances when she has so little concept of them. But the idea does make her uncomfortable. Her collaborations with the Empire could never have been described as willing, not really.
Maybe Gertrude is so suspicious because she doesn't even trust herself. Leia doesn't tend to openly psychoanalyze others, so she keeps that thought to herself -- however, it does seem like it's time to lay her cards on the table, unsarcastically. ]
I haven't seen enough credible evidence to think there's something awful going on, and I do think there's real good being done here. But I won't discount the possibility, or your opinion, Gertrude. If you want to keep looking into it, I'm willing to help.
I would agree that good is being done here. I still hesitate over not knowing what the cost may be.
[Her tone is cool, but still matter-of-fact.]
Am I saying something awful is certainly going on? Not necessarily. But I can't help but notice that the Admiral keeps certain secrets better than others, and I cannot help but think there is a reason for it.
That's all well and good, but what are you going to do if you can't find out?
[ Leia's nature is to press people, to push them, not to be more personal but to be less passive. And to confront the unpleasant realities of their situation. It had taken the Alliance years upon years to start to unearth some of the secrets behind the Empire, and she doesn't expect it to be a simple project here, either.
In the meantime, what is she going to do? Leia always lives in a state of being reconciled to the practical day-to-day reality, always stays focused on what she can do rather than what she can't. It's no different on the Barge than at home. ]
Plenty of opportunities? [ Leia huffs. ] It's been a standard month, and I feel like I'm going stir crazy.
Anyway, even if you're right, whatever's going on would have to be truly awful to make me give up on my deal. [ Leia has straightened up in her chair, and subconsciously is looking at her own surroundings with a pensive expression. ] I've done enough research to find out that the Admiral really can make good on his promises.
[Her expression smooths to neutrality at that, although she's watching Leia, too. Is her deal to have her home back? Or is it people she's subconsciously expecting to see here who she hopes to regain?
Whichever it is, it seems the Admiral does indeed hold up his end of his bargains. If he can expel the entities from Gertrude's world, he can give Leia whatever it might be that she wants.]
You just have to find your own things to do in the meantime... and let others go their own way, of course.
[ She's no stranger to making moral compromises in order to achieve her own ends, and Leia won't dismiss this opportunity out of hand if something nefarious is going on here. She'd have to assess the trade-off based on whatever it actually was.
Secretly, after talking to Jon, Leia's thinking the same thing -- if the Admiral can reverse a literal apocalypse, certainly he could restore Alderaan, and all the people and buildings with it. ]
Afraid I'm going to meddle, or try to convince you to give up on your suspicions? [ Leia asks, with a hint of a smirk. ]
I want my deal, but not at any cost. [ Leia frowns. That's how she'd lost Alderaan in the first place; saving it wasn't worth giving up the Alliance, and that's a decision she's had to live with. ]
I'll rock the boat if I have to. If you find anything out, I want to know about it.
[She sits back in the couch, looking around the delicately furnished, beautiful room with its decor styled in a way that isn't quite reminiscent of any style she's acquainted with of Earth.
[ Leia jolts a little, wrapped up in her own memories enough not to expect the question. When she'd first arrived, she'd thought it too much to burden her eventual Inmate with, that they'd feel too much pressure to graduate on her behalf and it would just be cruel. But in the month and change she's been here, Leia's realized that perspective is a bit egotistical.
She's hardly the first, or only, Warden to have a deal on that scale. And it's not like she could possibly keep the destruction of Alderaan a secret. That was never the idea. ]
The whole planet, [ she says plainly, without reservation or grief. The likes of Tarkin, Vader and Palpatine are not going to cow her, not then and not years later. But she does sneer faintly in disgust as she goes on, ] It was destroyed as a demonstration, because of me and my family's actions against the Empire.
I won't do whatever it takes to get it back, but I'll put up with this circus.
[A flick of her own eyebrows upwards; she refolds her hands on her knee.]
While I remain uninterested in seeking redemption for myself, I can't say I was particularly upset that my successor managed to find it for his inmate. His deal was for our world.
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She leans back in her chair with the ease of someone on their own furniture, and props her chin on one hand, elbow on the arm rest. ]
I'm curious what you think, before I say anything myself.
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Some of them are deliberately obfuscatory or dismissive.
It's interesting to see which are which.
[She taps one fingernail against the communicator's screen.]
Five and six: obfuscatory. Seven: dismissive.
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[ Leia had been quite satisfied with that. In his position, that's the most she'd have promised, too, though she'd have been less obfuscatory about it, as Gertrude had put it. ]
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[She's giving Leia a long, even stare at that. Her own concerns have absolutely not been addressed. If anything, the deliberate avoidance of an answer to those questions has made her more certain that it is something the Admiral does not believe they would like to hear.]
It only makes sense -- given that he has a clear investment in your success.
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I could say the same thing about you, [ Leia notes. ] Aren't we all more willing to discuss our jobs than our supernatural abilities?
I'm not saying the Admiral is beyond reproach, but not everything you don't know ends up being an evil plan.
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[Very dryly.]
And I do freely admit that my powers come from a willing collaboration with evil. In my experience, people do not hide information for no reason. The reason could be foolish or benign, but there is one.
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Maybe Gertrude is so suspicious because she doesn't even trust herself. Leia doesn't tend to openly psychoanalyze others, so she keeps that thought to herself -- however, it does seem like it's time to lay her cards on the table, unsarcastically. ]
I haven't seen enough credible evidence to think there's something awful going on, and I do think there's real good being done here. But I won't discount the possibility, or your opinion, Gertrude. If you want to keep looking into it, I'm willing to help.
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[Her tone is cool, but still matter-of-fact.]
Am I saying something awful is certainly going on? Not necessarily. But I can't help but notice that the Admiral keeps certain secrets better than others, and I cannot help but think there is a reason for it.
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[ Leia's nature is to press people, to push them, not to be more personal but to be less passive. And to confront the unpleasant realities of their situation. It had taken the Alliance years upon years to start to unearth some of the secrets behind the Empire, and she doesn't expect it to be a simple project here, either.
In the meantime, what is she going to do? Leia always lives in a state of being reconciled to the practical day-to-day reality, always stays focused on what she can do rather than what she can't. It's no different on the Barge than at home. ]
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When I find out, I might be willing.
[She raises her eyebrows.] It seems there are plenty of opportunities to do things here in the meantime, of course.
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Anyway, even if you're right, whatever's going on would have to be truly awful to make me give up on my deal. [ Leia has straightened up in her chair, and subconsciously is looking at her own surroundings with a pensive expression. ] I've done enough research to find out that the Admiral really can make good on his promises.
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[Her expression smooths to neutrality at that, although she's watching Leia, too. Is her deal to have her home back? Or is it people she's subconsciously expecting to see here who she hopes to regain?
Whichever it is, it seems the Admiral does indeed hold up his end of his bargains. If he can expel the entities from Gertrude's world, he can give Leia whatever it might be that she wants.]
You just have to find your own things to do in the meantime... and let others go their own way, of course.
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Secretly, after talking to Jon, Leia's thinking the same thing -- if the Admiral can reverse a literal apocalypse, certainly he could restore Alderaan, and all the people and buildings with it. ]
Afraid I'm going to meddle, or try to convince you to give up on your suspicions? [ Leia asks, with a hint of a smirk. ]
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[Succeeding, of course, is another matter. Gertrude shakes her head.]
No, I just meant that if you plan to work your way towards your deal, it may prove counterproductive to... rock the boat.
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I'll rock the boat if I have to. If you find anything out, I want to know about it.
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[She sits back in the couch, looking around the delicately furnished, beautiful room with its decor styled in a way that isn't quite reminiscent of any style she's acquainted with of Earth.
After a moment, she speaks again.]
Is it your home you're trying to get back?
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She's hardly the first, or only, Warden to have a deal on that scale. And it's not like she could possibly keep the destruction of Alderaan a secret. That was never the idea. ]
The whole planet, [ she says plainly, without reservation or grief. The likes of Tarkin, Vader and Palpatine are not going to cow her, not then and not years later. But she does sneer faintly in disgust as she goes on, ] It was destroyed as a demonstration, because of me and my family's actions against the Empire.
I won't do whatever it takes to get it back, but I'll put up with this circus.
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[A flick of her own eyebrows upwards; she refolds her hands on her knee.]
While I remain uninterested in seeking redemption for myself, I can't say I was particularly upset that my successor managed to find it for his inmate. His deal was for our world.
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Do you mean Jon? He told me about that --
[ Leia smiles wryly. ] I found it reassuring that I wasn't wasting my time.
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