Vader's Child (Star Wars story)

You may be looking for the Star Wars zine published in 2006 called Vader's Child.

Fanfiction
Title:	Vader's Child
Author(s):	Elizabeth Stuart
Date(s):	1997
Length:
Genre:	slash
Fandom:	Star Wars
External Links:	Vader’s Child
Click here for related articles on Fanlore.

Vader's Child is a rare Vader/Luke story by Elizabeth Stuart.

It was printed in Dark Fantasies #5 where it had illos by Cat.

from Dark Fantasies #5, illo by Cat

Comments from the Author

...I'd seen slashy undertones in the V/L exchanges in the movies and had my private fantasies about them, but I couldn't find anyone else interested…to say the least. The reactions I received at cons when I hinted about such a pairing was shock, horror, and even a few lectures about propriety. There was no widespread internet usage like there is today, so I had to rely on in-person conversations and discreet snail-mails. Eventually I found someone who sent to me, after swearing me to absolute secrecy as to whom I got it from (since this was such a scandalous pairing), a 3-page copy of a kinky story that involved Luke as Vader's prisoner.

[snipped]

In the meanwhile, I'd been searching for SW zines. In pre-internet days, if you didn't already know that such things as fandom and zines existed, you'd never know to go looking for them. I sent letters to different people I remembered from past fandoms and eventually found a couple links to SW zines. But they were all genzines. After talking (in snail-mail—that took FOREVER!) to many people, I found ZP Florian, who was editing a groundbreaking zine that would be the first 'adult' SW zine (The Rest of the Garbage). ZP was determined to do the zine but a little worried, since Lucas had come down on a zine that had a Han/Leia sex scene (he gave them a 'cease-and-desist', so they pulled the offending pages from the zine and mailed them separately to people who asked for them) . I wrote ZP and asked what sort of story she'd be interested in. She didn't know me at all, and she said that she'd be glad to read what I sent but couldn't promise to use it—then proceeded to give me a list of kinky-nesses that she found acceptable (which was pretty much everything). So I incorporated a lot of them into "Defeat", and also included a tiny V/L moment. Happily, she accepted it and was fine with V/L, but the publication did nothing to bring any V/L fans out of hiding.

Sometime later I was at MediaWest Con, standing at Joanne McCoy's table, flipping through copies of her zine, Dark Fantasies, looking for SW stories. There were none, but she said she'd love to have some. I suggested V/L and she agreed, with a little trepidation and a lot of interest. So I wrote "Vader's Child" to fit Dark Fantasies guidelines, which were a bit on the S/M side. It even had a couple of illos—one of Luke sitting naked at Vader's feet.

Keep in mind there was still no internet, which meant very little feedback. About three people snail-mailed Joanne with feedback on the story—they liked it, but were shocked at their own interest and expressed no desire to read any more V/L. *sigh* Once I posted it online, I received occasional emails, mostly dismayed, but several from readers who were interested in the pairing. I tried to encourage people to write V/L, but for a long time I was the only pervert in town.....

I gave up on the idea of writing V/L. There was no audience… until the last couple years when V/L fans start appearing and I began finding the occasional V/L story on the web. You can imagine how happy I was (and am)! ....And now there are lists and LJ's about V/L. For me, it's like every holiday rolled into one.

Reactions and Reviews

When Luke's desire to have a father overshadows his need to help his friends and the Rebellion, he finds himself traveling down a very dark path.

This is, by far, one of the more chilling stories I've found in the 'turns to the dark side' genre. Masterfully manipulated by his father, Luke's gradual descent into the darkness is both horrifying and fascinating to read, both because he's consenting without fully knowing what exactly he's consenting to and because he believes, firmly, that it'll enable his father and himself a life together. Even the sex, which is dubious and dark, is eventually given the full backing by Luke because he believes it's another step to bringing father and son to their rightful destiny.

While I'm usually not a huge fan of darkfic in general, this is one of those stories that sucked me, kept me reading, and managed to find its way onto my favorites list without my even knowing it.