The gang is heading to Alderaan, and since the Death Star is not operational yet, they're all safe; don't worry ;)
I also introduce an OC who Luke will have a little fling with. I really wanted to put in Mara Jade somewhere, but I am afraid I'm not familiar enough with the EU to write her faithfully. The OC's name is Mariamne.
Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars!
The Millennium Falcon took off from Mos Eisley a few minutes later with some of the most important cargo it had ever carried; the future Emperor, and the Princess of Alderaan sat in the seats behind Han Solo and Chewbacca. But to him, they were just Luke and Leia, the unlikely twins that he was transporting to Alderaan with some strange old man by the name of Obi-Wan Kenobi. It wasn't the weirdest thing to happen on the Falcon, however. Han knew that for sure. Luke seemed a lot more at ease than usual, but looked out of place dressed as a little farm boy from Tatooine. Han was used seeing Luke in his favorite brown pants and white shirt, his black boots smudged and scuffed from casual use. The all-white ensemble made Luke look younger than his eighteen standard years, and Han wasn't sure he liked it. His sister, on the other hand, looked like an angel in her white jumpsuit and blue cloak; Han thought she was a complete and utter dream. He couldn't wait to see more of her. The journey to Alderaan would not take an obscenely long amount of time, but it was long enough for Han to put on the charm.
"Ever been to Alderaan?" Luke asked him, his imperialist manners not completely erased as he sat stiffly in the passenger seat behind Chewie. Han knew a drink or two would get that right out of him, but he could see the potential for a new Luke without any alcohol involved.
"No," Han responded. "I've heard nice things about it, though. And its exports are extremely pleasing to my eye, so it can't be that bad." Leia scowled behind him with a huff. Luke chuckled a little bit, and he heard a rather loud smack, so Han assumed that Leia had hit her brother. The old Jedi Master seated behind the twins sighed irritably, and he couldn't help but think that Kenobi saw himself as the Skywalker twins' babysitter.
"Enough, children," he chided. "If this how you're going to behave the entire trip, I'm afraid it's going to be an unbearable one. You're worse than your father at this age." Obi-Wan looked at Luke as if recalling a memory from long ago; perhaps one from the Clone Wars. "No," he decided after a moment of recollection, "you, Luke, are exactly like your father at this age. Brave, stubborn, defiant... But you have your mother's kindness."
"You knew Padmé Amidala?" Leia questioned, turning to face Obi-Wan with an eager expression on her face. Her father had spoken fondly of the woman, and Leia had grown up idolizing the former Queen and late Senator of Naboo. It was said that she had been a great beauty, and an equally remarkable diplomat and negotiator. Kenobi smiled wistfully at her.
"Oh, I knew your mother," he sighed. "I knew her as well as anyone. Well, except for perhaps your father, but he got to know her on a level that he was not supposed to know her. She was the most empathetic person I have ever known, but strong and capable of taking care of herself. Your father and mother were opposites; black and white, fire and water, chaos and order... But when they were together, well, there was nothing that could stand in their way. I'm sure, Luke, your father had told you much about her before his own passing."
Luke shook his head. "No, he didn't," he stated. "I'm afraid mother was the one topic that was off-limits in our household. I think it was because of Palpatine; he knew my mother hadn't supported the Empire, and the more her memory was kept alive the more he feared he'd lose my father to the rebellion. But my stepmother, Sabé, had been one of my mother's handmaidens. When I was young she would tell me stories about her, and about living on Naboo. My earliest memories consist of those tales, and of wanting to go there. Did you ever go to Naboo, Master Kenobi?" The old man chuckled, overtaken by a wave of nostalgia.
"Oh yes, I went to Naboo plenty," he said. "I had visited the Royal Palace in Theed when your mother had been queen. She had been so young at the time, younger than you two are now, but already one of Naboo's best and brightest. I admired your mother very much." Kenobi left his memories at that, and Luke couldn't help but think that Obi-Wan was avoiding telling more. He imagined that perhaps Obi-Wan had loved his mother, but his sense of order had kept him from acting on such feelings the way his father had. Leia had sensed some feeling of unrequited love, but was not bold enough to call him out on it.
"Tell us about yourself, Mr. Solo," Leia stated in an attempt to move the conversation along. Han sighed, annoyed that he was going to be forced to discuss himself with people he didn't really care about beside the fact that he wanted to get a chance to sleep with Leia before they arrived at Alderaan. Not that he probably would; they were making good time. Luke leaned forward in interest, though he knew about Han's past vaguely.
"Not much to tell," Han sighed. "I've been flying for as long as I can remember, and this is my life. I'm a smuggler by trade so I don't stick around, so if you're expecting me to join your little crusade I'm afraid you're gonna be out of luck." Chewie howled in agreement. Leia rolled her eyes and sat back, and Luke smirked at his friend's frank mannerisms. It was Han's usual manner of speaking, and most people either loved it or hated it; Luke admired the fact that he didn't have to worry about offending anyone, while Leia hated the disrespectful way he'd assessed her. "Sorry, sweetheart, that's just how I am."
"I'm just disappointed you don't want to share with us," Leia said nonchalantly. Han kicked the ship out of hyperspeed, and the beautiful planet of Alderaan appeared before them. Leia provided Han with a clearance code, and the Millennium Falcon was allowed to land outside the royal palace. Bail Organa was waiting on the landing pad, greeting his daughter as she ran down from the ramp. Obi-Wan followed closely behind, with Chewie and Han exiting after him. Luke slowly came down the ramp, hoping Bail wouldn't recognize him without his usual clothes. He was wrong, of course, and Organa pointed at him in warning.
"You," he growled, "we don't need your kind on this planet." Obi-Wan sighed and reached for Organa's arm, lowering his hand. "Kenobi, you know who raised him. He is dangerous."
"He has changed," Obi-Wan informed. "He has decided to leave the teachings of the dark side behind to learn the light side of the Force. I believe in time he will prove to a great Grey Jedi, like my former master Qui-Gon. He can bring balance to the Force." Bail didn't seem impressed.
"We'll see," he stated.
"Father, please," Leia pleaded. "Let him stay with us. He is my brother regardless." Bail sighed, ever the pushover when it came to his daughter. Leia recognized his usual look of surrender and smiled, grabbing Luke's hand and leading him into the palace. They were immediately swarmed by a goggle of handmaidens. Leia greeted them all by name, and Luke decided that he might like staying with the Organas if he would find himself surrounded by pretty girls all the time. He noted that most of them held some resemblance to Leia, much like his mother's handmaidens had. One handmaiden in particular caught his eye; she stood toward the back, her hair framing her face in wild curls, a coy smile on her pouty lips. Leia followed his gaze with a giggle, elbowing him in the side.
"That's Mariamne Varhil," she whispered in his ear. "She comes from a fairly important family on Naboo; her father sent her here when she was six. Lovely, isn't she?" Luke managed a nod and Leia smiled warmly at the other handmaidens who were all still giggling at Luke incessantly. "Girls, girls! There's more than enough of him to go around!"
"I can't believe he's your brother, Leia!" One of the girls exclaimed.
"Yes!" Another agreed. "He's so handsome!"
"He looks nothing like Prince Organa," one of them noted. "How can he be her brother?"
"He isn't Prince Organa's son, stupid," an older handmaiden spat. "He's the son of Anakin Skywalker!" The handmaiden she had reprimanded nodded, but then looked confused.
"But... if he's Anakin Skywalker's son, then how-"
"Leia is ADOPTED," the older girl huffed. "She is the daughter of Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala; Luke is her twin brother. Do you understand now?"
Luke had since slipped from his trapped position surrounded by the girls to where Mariamne was watching amusedly. He reminded her of the holo he had seen of his mother once that was taken sometime after she had married his father. Her hazel eyes twinkled apprehensively at the sight of him and Luke knew that some sort of snide comment was about to come his way.
"The Imperial Prince," she stated with a smirk. "What a surprise it is to have you here on Alderaan. Most Imperials avoid this system like the plague." Luke blushed slightly, charmed already. She was not an insipid young woman like the other handmaidens; she was coy and clever like Leia was. He imagined they were good friends.
"My lady," Luke gave a small, teasing bow. "You are not wrong in your opinions on Imperials; most prefer to stay close to Coruscant. But as I have ventured so far out as to recover my sister from Tatooine, I'm afraid I'm quite the lousy Imperial. After all, what self-respecting Imperial dresses like this?" He gestured to his clothes, making Mariamne laugh. Bail walked in on the scene, and was almost amused at the sight of Luke trying to charm Leia's closest confidant. Skywalkers being charmed by Nubian women - some things never changed, he supposed.
"Mariamne," he greeted. The young woman curtsied to him, her head bowed respectively. "You will show... Master Skywalker to the chambers he will be staying in for the length of his visit. Make sure he's comfortable." Bail then turned to Luke. "You're invited to dine with the family this evening. 1800 hours. I do not tolerate tardiness, young Skywalker."
"Of course," Luke said cautiously. "I'll make sure to be prompt. Thank you, Prince Consort." Mariamne held back a giggle and led Luke off into the residential part of the palace. He watched her longingly as her hips swayed back and forth. She knew exactly what she was doing to him. They reached his chambers, which were soft and light and airy; the opposite of his chambers on Coruscant. It was a refreshing change, in Luke's opinion.
Mariamne was about to leave the room when Luke cleared his throat behind her.
"Master Skywalker?" she turned around, eyebrows raised questioningly. Luke smiled.
"I'm not comfortable," he told her with a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. Mariamne rolled her eyes and walked closer to him, lingering a modest distance away from him.
"And what can I do to fix that for you?"
"I think you know."
Luke pulled her to him and kissed her, long and hard, the two of them tumbling back into bed. Clothes went flying in random directions and before long Luke had Mariamne pinned beneath him, her long curls covering the peaks of her breasts. Luke touched her waist gingerly; it had been a while - by his standards, at least - since he'd been with a woman.
"Well?" she breathed up at him, eyes wide in anticipation. He smiled down at her, kissing her longingly as he took her, silencing the little moan before it had a chance to reach her lips.
Leia walked past her brother's room and smirked at the sounds of Luke and her dear friend's lovemaking; she hadn't taken Luke for being so fast with women, but it appeared that she had misjudged her brother.
Afterward, Mariamne rested her head on Luke's chest, sighing to herself. He lazily played with one of her curls, grinning contently to himself.
"You are very much your father's child, aren't you?" she murmured. Luke chuckled and looked down at her adoringly. He had never felt such a connection with one of his bed partners before.
"So I've been told," he chuckled with a grin. "And coming from Naboo, I'm sure you've heard you look like my mother." Mariamne shifted off of him, propping herself up on one elbow.
"Many times," she said. "You know, when all this madness is over, I'll go back home. And Naboo will restore their old government, and they will be in need of a queen."
"And you hope to be that queen?"
"Yes," she stated. "And every queen needs a consort..."
So as you can see, Mariamne has big plans for Luke. And herself. She's a bit of a schemer. I don't know if she'll stick around much, but I think she has good character potential. What do you all think?
~ Class