Leia Organa was the Princess of Alderaan during the reign of the Galactic Empire. She was the daughter of Imperial Senator Bail Organa and Alderaanian Queen Breha Organa, as well as the adoptive sister of Winter Celchu. Organa grew up in the Aldera Palace as a member of Alderaan’s high society, although she later became friends with and developed feelings for a nerf herder named Epin Lanmaw, who was the same age as her. As a member of the noble class, Organa attended Madame Vesta's Select Academy in the capital city of Aldera, and as of 7 BBY she was set to attend a matching event, which she felt would force her into an unwanted relationship.
Years later, the Sith Lord Darth Vader attempted to make Organa his secret Sith apprentice after the princess had discovered she had a darker side within the Force.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Leia Organa was adopted by the Organa family, the royal family of the planet Alderaan. While Organa was a child, her parents, Imperial Senator Bail Organa and Alderaanian Queen Breha Organa,[1] also adopted Winter Celchu, giving Organa a sister.[2] During her youth, Organa became acquainted with Epin Lanmaw, a nerf herder Organa’s age who would deliver goods to the Aldera Palace, although they would only talk for a few minutes with what Epin described as friendly banter.[1] Although it was unknown to Organa, Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi periodically had holo-conversations with her father to check in on her and ensure that she was safe.[3]
Like other children in Alderaan’s noble class, Organa was enrolled in Madame Vesta's Select Academy. She did not enjoy her time with Madame Vesta, the headmistress of the academy, eventually referring to Vesta as a rancor.[1] Senator Organa seemed to share his daughter's opinion about Vesta; when Organa referred to Vesta as an “old hag”, her father would correct her and call her “Old Hag Madame Vesta”.[4] Sometime during her schooling, and according to her mother, Organa began confining herself to her room and not speaking to anyone. Her mother believed it was due to some sort of recurring nightmare, although the queen did not know anything more because Organa would not answer, change the subject or leave the room.[5]
Courtship[]
While Organa was walking home from Madame Vesta’s academy one evening, she came upon a group of upper class boys called the Sons of Alderaan beating up Epin Lanmaw.[6] After chasing the boys off, Organa checked on Lanmaw to make sure he was alright, and the two began talking. Lanmaw admitted that he had hoped they would one day have a conversation, as well as that he thought she was pretty. Although embarrassed, Organa let Lanmaw walk her back home to the palace.[1]
After arriving at the palace, Organa and Lanmaw were greeted by Bail Organa, who was worried that his daughter had not arrived home sooner. After Lanmaw and Organa said goodnight, Bail Organa saw Lanmaw off while his daughter went to her room for bed. When she arrived in her room, she told Winter what had happened with Lanmaw, and Winter made fun of her when Organa partially admitted that she liked Lanmaw as more than a friend. Queen Organa also teased her after coming in to say goodnight to the girls.[4] The next day, Organa began to be more open with her family, no longer confining herself to her room. Queen Organa attributed this change in her daughter to Lanmaw walking her home, believing that it lifted the princess’s spirits. The queen also believed that this was due to the fact that Lanmaw told Organa that he thought she was pretty.[5]
Soon thereafter, Organa traveled with her father to the Lanmaw family farm outside the capital city of Aldera. Organa and Lanmaw talked about a matching event that the princess had to attend, where she would meet male upper class youths to be potentially matched with in a relationship. Organa had no interest in going, as she felt she would be forced to be with someone who was only interested in her name. Lanmaw agreed, and Organa left the farm after she kissed Lanmaw on the cheek.[3] She later found out that the Lanmaw family had been invited to the Aldera Palace for dinner that evening, which she looked forward to.[7]
The Lanmaws arrived at the palace a few hours later, and Organa and Lanmaw attempted to formally greet one another. They ended up, however, knocking their heads together, causing Leia to become embarrassed. Once inside, Organa took Lanmaw on a tour of the palace, during which time Lanmaw pointed out that a supposed nerf rug in the palace was actually a fake. After they inadvertently held hands, the two made their way to dinner.[7]
Darker emotions[]
Years later, Organa recognized that she had a darker side within the the Force, which caused the Sith Lord Darth Vader to attempt to convince her to be his secret Sith apprentice. This caused some animosity with Kane Starkiller, the Dark Commander of the Dark Guardians of Lettow, who was already considered Vader's de facto apprentice.[8]
Personality and traits[]
Organa was looked at as being a kind and helpful young woman. In an act that surprised many, including the Lanmaw family, Organa was willing to confront a group of multiple young men in order to help Epin Lanmaw.[6] Although she was royalty and had the ability to command them away, Lanmaw still looked at it as a generous act of kindness and helpfulness.[1] The Lanmaw family was also grateful for Organa’s help, and the Organa family was in turn grateful for the perceived kindness that Lanmaw showed their daughter.[5]
Despite being royalty, Organa did not fully embrace the life of a princess. She did not approve of matching events, feeling that they were nothing more than parents attempting to force their children into marriage, although her father explained to her that it was a tradition that needed to be carried out. Her father also explained that as royalty, she would sometimes have to think of her people before herself no matter how hard it was. It was something she would have to consider later in her life.[7]
As a princess, Organa was accustomed to being in public, although she was still seen as being somewhat shy. She saw her feelings for Lanmaw as being a very personal matter, and felt embarrassed when Winter and their mother teased her about them. Organa did not outright admit that she had feelings for Lanmaw, although she stumbled over responses where she attempted to say that she did not. It led Queen Organa and Winter to believe that there were feelings, although the princess would not have admitted it at the time.[2] Nevertheless, she did end up kissing Lanmaw on the cheek while she was on his farm,[3] something her father also teased her about.[7]
Behind the scenes[]
Development[]
In the Alternative Star Wars Saga novel series, Leia Organa is the re-imagining of the canon Leia Organa-Solo, a central character in the original Star Wars film trilogy and the Expanded Universe of novels, comics and other mediums. Originally, Organa was not going to appear in the Alternative Saga until Alternative Saga co-author Brandon Rhea began writing her into his stories.[9] On September 10, 2008, however, fellow Alternative Saga co-author Wayne Lipman III requested to expand upon Organa’s story in the article about her on the Star Wars Fanon Wiki.[10] Rhea preferred only sourced information,[11] so Lipman decided to write a short story in order to source information about Organa. This short story eventually became the currently in-progress novel Star Wars: The Alderaan Affair.[12]
Before the creation of The Alderaan Affair, Rhea intended to have Organa portrayed by actress Keira Knightley.[13] For The Alderaan Affair, and with Lipman’s consent, Rhea began uploading images of actress Rachel Hurd-Wood from the 2003 film Peter Pan to portray the young Organa. Lipman was also able to gain new inspiration for The Alderaan Affair after viewing the images.[14]
Reception[]
Leia Organa in the Alternative Saga has been generally well received. On February 15, 2009, the character won the Best Rebel Individual Award in the Fourth Star Wars Fanon Wiki Awards, garnering five votes compared to four for Sardi Airth by Squishy Vic Series author Victor Dorantes and three for Darth Tyler, a widely panned Force-sensitive battle droid written by Star Wars Fanon user Darthtyler. During the vote, Imperial Treachery author Josh Bender stated that he “[loved] the direction [the character] is going”.[15]
Appearances[]
- Star Wars: The Alderaan Affair (First appearance)
- Star Wars: Episode IV (Announced)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 The Alderaan Affair: Part II - A Girl Named Leia
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Alderaan Affair: Part IV - Family Values
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Alderaan Affair: Part VI - Ghosts of the Past
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 The Alderaan Affair: Part III - Bail Organa
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 The Alderaan Affair: Part V - Aldera Palace
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Alderaan Affair: Part I - A Boy Named Epin
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 The Alderaan Affair: Part VII - A Match Made on Alderaan
- ↑ Brandon Rhea discusses Star Wars: Episode IV
- ↑ Brandon Rhea discusses Leia ideas
- ↑ Brandon Rhea and Wayne Lipman III discuss Leia Organa
- ↑ Brandon Rhea discusses sourcing
- ↑ Brandon Rhea and Wayne Lipman III discuss short stories
- ↑ Keira Knightley as Leia
- ↑ Brandon Rhea and Wayne Lipman III discuss Leia images
- ↑ The Fourth Star Wars Fanon Wiki Awards