Disclaimer: George Lucas is the sole proprieter of the characters I am about to talk about. But since he hasn't been handling them well, I've decided to take things into my own hands.
Spoilers: NJO up to "Balance Point."
Author's Note: This is a story about Mara Jade. Maybe it's not the all-holy Mara Jade some
of you have come to worship, but this is Mara Jade to me. This is the Mara that should have
logically grown out of our first encounter with her, IMHO. I never disliked Mara; I just
didn't want her with Luke. And the original Mara would have known that too. So this is
why I'm bringing Mara back to what she was, while still showing her as an evolving being.
Consider it AU if you want (all of the novels are anyway), but for me, this is a continuation
of the story. Hopefully I'll save some characters along the way.
RETURN TO SELF--PROLOGUE
Mara peered into the bassinette next to her bed. Blue-green eyes stared back at her, a small
smile on her infant son's face. His dirty blond hair was barely visible in the low light of the
Skywalker apartments. The eerie Force-silence which surrounded the child had been a
cause of concern for both parents. It reminded them of the yslarmmi they had experienced
when they had first met.
She put her calloused fingers within his reach, and the baby grabbed on, cooing happily.
She smiled briefly, but it didn't reach her green eyes. The longer Luke was meeting with his
new Jedi Council, the more trips he had to make to Yavin IV to oversee this or that, the less
happy she became. She had been trapped on Coruscant for six months, restricted to
intra-planetary travel only. Her disease was still too uncertain to risk space travel while
pregnant.
But Luke's life as Jedi Master had not slowed down, and she had told him to go and save the
galaxy for her, because she was bedridden. He had smiled, and kissed her on the forehead,
and left sadly, demanding updates of any changes in her health or the baby's. She had
willingly obliged--for a time.
With time to think about their whirlwind marriage and every problem they'd faced since
before they said "I do," Mara began to realize that this wasn't what she wanted. Maybe the
illness had dulled her ability to think clearly, or she had just fallen into the notion of
"happily ever after" for a time, but this was not the life she was meant to lead. She would
not trade her young son for anything, but she was not a mother figure. She had been an
apprentice to the Emperor, a trader, and many other things. There was a need to be active in
her; a need to roam and explore.
The child, seeming to pick up on the negative thoughts of his mother, whimpered a little and
Mara picked him up instinctively. She rocked him back in forth, cradling his head gently.
The silence got louder around him, but she didn't care.
"I'm sorry that you had to hear that, Ryft." She kissed the top of his head. "Mommy loves
you very much, and I will always be here, but there is something I have to do with my life. This can't be it."
*****
Mara sat with her sister-in-law, pouring over reports of disappearing Jedi. Some had been
incapacitated and sent to Duros, others had simply vanished. Whether they were in hiding
or dead, no one knew for certain.
Leia sighed, running her fingers through her very short brown hair. The decontamination,
and chance to reunite her family had cost her the brown locks her husband loved and had
made her famous. Now, grey was coming into the once dark brunette color that had covered
her head. She looked older.
Scratching absently at the side of her hip where the new synthe-skin had been placed, Leia
finally looked up from her plasti-pad.
"Fear does strange things to people," she declared.
Mara nodded. "And the Jedi, with their creed about fear leading to the Dark Side, are
succumbing too. The galaxy needs them now, more than ever."
"Them?" Leia asked, eyebrow raised. "Aren't you a Jedi, Mara?"
She coughed. "Well, yes, but I'm not of much use to anyone. Your brother won't let me
leave the planet, even though we all know I can defend my son better in my ship than I can in
an apartment."
Leia smiled sadly. "You've given him something he never knew he wanted, Mara. He
doesn't want to lose either of you."
"I know."
*****
Having given young Anakin babysitting duties, Mara made her way through the buildings and
corridors that formed the surface of Coruscant. She wasn't really sure if this gamble would
even pay off, but she had to try. She couldn't say good bye to her new family unless she had
somewhere else to go.
The floors that made up New Republic's Intelligence Branch were bustling with activity.
The Yuuzhan Vong had not gone away, despite the impending birth of Master Luke
Skywalker's first child. In fact, their announcement that the flushing out of "Jeedai" could
save the Core Worlds made young Ryft's birth even more pressing.
It took her several minutes of searching before she found the door she wanted. She knocked
confidently, despite the flexible nature of the situation. She would either be welcomed with
open arms or shunned and then promptly sent to Duros for purification.
A C-3PO droid answered the door and ushered her in to the office and then left, the door
sliding silently shut.
"Mara Jade Skywalker, your call was a surprise," the man behind the desk said in a voice
mixing joviality and apprehension. "What can I do for you?"
"I want to help," she blurted out. That hadn't been the articulate speech she had prepared,
but it got the point across.
He nodded slowly. "Yes, I gathered as much. Did you have a way in which you planned to
deliver this aid?"
She shook her head. "I hadn't gotten that far yet, actually. I just know that I need to do
something to stop the Yuuzhan Vong. The military doesn't need me, but you might."
"Need you for what?" he asked, sounding intrigued.
"I'm a Jedi; the Vong want Jedi. You need an operative in there." She raised a hand to cut
off his impending objection. "I know Wurth Skidder tried it and got killed, but he was alone
in there. He didn't have the NRI keeping an eye on him."
The man leaned back in his chair, hands peaked in consideration. "How would we monitor
you? The Vong would remove any technology they found and destroy it. And then most
likely you. We don't need to sacrifice more of you than is truly neccessary."
Mara smiled. "Implants."
He raised an eyebrow. "Implants?"
She nodded. "Yes--one in my ear, one in my mouth. That way, you could talk to me, and I
could talk to you. You'd also be able to hear anything said near me."
He opened and closed his mouth experimentally. "How did you know we had developed
those? We've had them under lock and key for months."
She grinned. "I'm Jedi, what can I say?"
He glared at her. "Does your husband know about this?"
"If Luke knew about this, he would never let me go." Mara shook her head. "Nobody
knows about this; in case any of the others get turned over, I don't want them to expose me."
A smile crept on to the man's face. "You've thought of everything, haven't you?"
"Basically, yes."
He reached down to push the com button. "Let's get you started then."
Spoilers: NJO up to "Balance Point."
Author's Note: This is a story about Mara Jade. Maybe it's not the all-holy Mara Jade some
of you have come to worship, but this is Mara Jade to me. This is the Mara that should have
logically grown out of our first encounter with her, IMHO. I never disliked Mara; I just
didn't want her with Luke. And the original Mara would have known that too. So this is
why I'm bringing Mara back to what she was, while still showing her as an evolving being.
Consider it AU if you want (all of the novels are anyway), but for me, this is a continuation
of the story. Hopefully I'll save some characters along the way.
RETURN TO SELF--PROLOGUE
Mara peered into the bassinette next to her bed. Blue-green eyes stared back at her, a small
smile on her infant son's face. His dirty blond hair was barely visible in the low light of the
Skywalker apartments. The eerie Force-silence which surrounded the child had been a
cause of concern for both parents. It reminded them of the yslarmmi they had experienced
when they had first met.
She put her calloused fingers within his reach, and the baby grabbed on, cooing happily.
She smiled briefly, but it didn't reach her green eyes. The longer Luke was meeting with his
new Jedi Council, the more trips he had to make to Yavin IV to oversee this or that, the less
happy she became. She had been trapped on Coruscant for six months, restricted to
intra-planetary travel only. Her disease was still too uncertain to risk space travel while
pregnant.
But Luke's life as Jedi Master had not slowed down, and she had told him to go and save the
galaxy for her, because she was bedridden. He had smiled, and kissed her on the forehead,
and left sadly, demanding updates of any changes in her health or the baby's. She had
willingly obliged--for a time.
With time to think about their whirlwind marriage and every problem they'd faced since
before they said "I do," Mara began to realize that this wasn't what she wanted. Maybe the
illness had dulled her ability to think clearly, or she had just fallen into the notion of
"happily ever after" for a time, but this was not the life she was meant to lead. She would
not trade her young son for anything, but she was not a mother figure. She had been an
apprentice to the Emperor, a trader, and many other things. There was a need to be active in
her; a need to roam and explore.
The child, seeming to pick up on the negative thoughts of his mother, whimpered a little and
Mara picked him up instinctively. She rocked him back in forth, cradling his head gently.
The silence got louder around him, but she didn't care.
"I'm sorry that you had to hear that, Ryft." She kissed the top of his head. "Mommy loves
you very much, and I will always be here, but there is something I have to do with my life. This can't be it."
*****
Mara sat with her sister-in-law, pouring over reports of disappearing Jedi. Some had been
incapacitated and sent to Duros, others had simply vanished. Whether they were in hiding
or dead, no one knew for certain.
Leia sighed, running her fingers through her very short brown hair. The decontamination,
and chance to reunite her family had cost her the brown locks her husband loved and had
made her famous. Now, grey was coming into the once dark brunette color that had covered
her head. She looked older.
Scratching absently at the side of her hip where the new synthe-skin had been placed, Leia
finally looked up from her plasti-pad.
"Fear does strange things to people," she declared.
Mara nodded. "And the Jedi, with their creed about fear leading to the Dark Side, are
succumbing too. The galaxy needs them now, more than ever."
"Them?" Leia asked, eyebrow raised. "Aren't you a Jedi, Mara?"
She coughed. "Well, yes, but I'm not of much use to anyone. Your brother won't let me
leave the planet, even though we all know I can defend my son better in my ship than I can in
an apartment."
Leia smiled sadly. "You've given him something he never knew he wanted, Mara. He
doesn't want to lose either of you."
"I know."
*****
Having given young Anakin babysitting duties, Mara made her way through the buildings and
corridors that formed the surface of Coruscant. She wasn't really sure if this gamble would
even pay off, but she had to try. She couldn't say good bye to her new family unless she had
somewhere else to go.
The floors that made up New Republic's Intelligence Branch were bustling with activity.
The Yuuzhan Vong had not gone away, despite the impending birth of Master Luke
Skywalker's first child. In fact, their announcement that the flushing out of "Jeedai" could
save the Core Worlds made young Ryft's birth even more pressing.
It took her several minutes of searching before she found the door she wanted. She knocked
confidently, despite the flexible nature of the situation. She would either be welcomed with
open arms or shunned and then promptly sent to Duros for purification.
A C-3PO droid answered the door and ushered her in to the office and then left, the door
sliding silently shut.
"Mara Jade Skywalker, your call was a surprise," the man behind the desk said in a voice
mixing joviality and apprehension. "What can I do for you?"
"I want to help," she blurted out. That hadn't been the articulate speech she had prepared,
but it got the point across.
He nodded slowly. "Yes, I gathered as much. Did you have a way in which you planned to
deliver this aid?"
She shook her head. "I hadn't gotten that far yet, actually. I just know that I need to do
something to stop the Yuuzhan Vong. The military doesn't need me, but you might."
"Need you for what?" he asked, sounding intrigued.
"I'm a Jedi; the Vong want Jedi. You need an operative in there." She raised a hand to cut
off his impending objection. "I know Wurth Skidder tried it and got killed, but he was alone
in there. He didn't have the NRI keeping an eye on him."
The man leaned back in his chair, hands peaked in consideration. "How would we monitor
you? The Vong would remove any technology they found and destroy it. And then most
likely you. We don't need to sacrifice more of you than is truly neccessary."
Mara smiled. "Implants."
He raised an eyebrow. "Implants?"
She nodded. "Yes--one in my ear, one in my mouth. That way, you could talk to me, and I
could talk to you. You'd also be able to hear anything said near me."
He opened and closed his mouth experimentally. "How did you know we had developed
those? We've had them under lock and key for months."
She grinned. "I'm Jedi, what can I say?"
He glared at her. "Does your husband know about this?"
"If Luke knew about this, he would never let me go." Mara shook her head. "Nobody
knows about this; in case any of the others get turned over, I don't want them to expose me."
A smile crept on to the man's face. "You've thought of everything, haven't you?"
"Basically, yes."
He reached down to push the com button. "Let's get you started then."