Chapter 9 – Bake my biscuit

I ain't got no flour, I ain't got no meal ,
If you got no man, you've got to rob and steal.
I'm might tell you somethin', don't know if I'm right,
But if you want my bread, you got to stay all night.
Come here, come here, won't you come here now,
Boy, I ain't got time cause my bread ain't brown.

Mazzy Star

A loud rumpling noise woke Luke from his slumber the next morning. Right in front of him was a bloody severed animal cranium. He jerked back on instinct and retreated till his back was against the wall. Darth Pyra erupted in laughter and signaled her presence in the room.

- This is your idea of a stupid joke? The Jedi snapped getting up and dusting himself off. He stared outside and saw that it was morning.

- No… this is my idea of a good joke, she elaborated and continued giggling.

She left the room and entered the kitchen, dropping the carcass on a metal table. Luke rubbed the sleep from his eyes and followed her. He had a head ache and his stomach growled. He was feeling almost as bad as Darth Pyra looked. She had scrapes and bruises all over her body, including a scratch over her left eyebrow that was still bleeding. The animal she had killed however looked much worse. Being decapitated and all. It was some kind of furry bipedal herbivore, but he didn't recognize the species. It was about the size of a tauntaun only it had brown fur instead of gray. Its limbs were twisted and his body full of wounds covered in dry blood. A lightsaber didn't cause wounds like that…

- What did you to it? Luke asked crouching down to inspect the creature.

- Her… She put up quite a fight, Darth Pyra answered opening cabinets.

- I see that, he said running his hands over the animal's fur. Did you have to torture it like this? Couldn't you just use your lightsaber? It would've been less messy at least.

- I happen to like messy, Pyra stated. This is what I hate about you jedi, she said continuing her search.

- Among other things I suppose.

- Among a lot of other things. I hate your so-called "humanity". You think it's more humane to kill with a lightsaber. To make it quick and clean, like life is just a mechanism that you can simply shut off, without any feeling whatsoever. I admit, I fought this creature with my bare hands, for more then an hour. And during that time it did everything it could to stay alive. It scratched and bit and yelled and bled, before I finally got the upper hand and snapped its neck. What do you call that?

- Brutality.

- Well I call it respect. Because first of all I gave it a chance to fight back. If it can kill me, it deserves to live. And second, at least before it died it felt alive. But you wouldn't know anything about that…

She turned around and continued to ransack the storage containers. For a bunch of scientists, the utensils in the kitchen were primitive, right down to the old fashioned stove and oven.

- What are you looking for? Luke asked frustrated.

- We're in a kitchen… What do you think I'm looking for?

- I already searched the place yesterday for food…

- I have food, she said gesturing to the dead animal. Now I have to prepare it. And for that I need some basic utensils, she said hidden away in a pantry. She came out with a huge round pot that she placed on a table.

- Don't tell me you can cook, Luke asked raising an eyebrow and coming up behind her.

- I'm just like that…

- Domestic?

- Full of surprises, she said with a smirk turning around with a hatchet in her hand.

The carcass suddenly started hovering above the floor and twirling around slowly. Mara flicked her wrist and the animal's skin was stripped from its body with a loud wet sound. Luke was splashed over the face with blood. He wiped it off disgusted. The pile of meat came to rest on a table. Darth Pyra picked up the skin and turned it over a couple of times.

"Mama's getting a new fur coat" she thought happily. She noticed Skywalker's disgusted look.

- Don't get queasy on me now, she said sharpening her hatchet with a pile.

- I don't see the purpose of this display. There's plenty of fruit outside. You really love meat so much?

- Well, I for one wouldn't recommend the salad in this place, she casually said as she started working on slicing the meat. Haven't you noticed something Skywalker?

Luke searched through his memories but didn't come up with anything. Even when he fell asleep last night it had been quiet. Too quiet…

- We're supposed to be in a jungle, she continued. Where is all the noise? Have you seen any animals because I haven't. No rodents, no predators, no birds. I haven't even seen a single bug. Why do you think that is?

- There must be something wrong with the vegetation, Luke answered after a while.

- Riiight. Give the boy a prize.

- But if that's true then where did you find…

- You know how far I had to walk to find this baby? All the way to the beach. The seashore is the only place I've even seen any wildlife.

- It must have something to do strictly with the chemical composition of the plants.

- Right, enough of the biology lessons. How are the repairs going?

- I brought the power cells here but it's going to take time to line them up properly and connect them to the hyperdrive, especially since I don't have the proper tools.

- You're the jedi. Be creative.

Luke got back to the basement. He decided it would be better to move the ship outside and take advantage of the daylight, instead of always having to work by the light of the fire. Luckily, there were two metal doors right above it that led outside. Using the force he opened them and then made the ship levitate. He set her down on a launching pad behind the complex, and continued his work, although his mind was on anything except installing the connectors between the two power cells.

"This is just one of those days… he thought. Started bad, looks like it's going to stay that way. And something tells me tomorrow won't be any different, or the day after tomorrow. Or any day I spend in the company of that… that she-demon." and he continued to insert some very nasty insults, whatever his food deprived mind could put together.

And speaking of food deprivation…

...

Luke opened his eyes and found himself in the living area, in front of a cozy fire. He sat up straight and tried to piece together what happened. Last thing he remembered he was working on the shuttle… and then everything faded to black. It was already evening he dtermined, after looking outside the window.

- You fainted, he heard Darth Pyra say. She stood in a corner, shrouded in shadows. Her green eyes sparkled by the light of the fire. Not eating will do that to you, she concluded and hit something with her foot. A plate with a slice of roasted meat slided on the floor next to where he was sitting. He looked at it for a while and then replied:

- I'm not playing your mind games, he said preparing to kick the plate away.

He stood to get up but the woman moved faster then he'd seen anyone move in his life, and she was beside him holding his neck down with her foot.

- You can either eat yourself or I'm pushing it down your neck, but you're not leaving this room with an empty stomach. Understood?

He nodded and she let him go… At first he ate with one eye on the woman, thinking this was another one of her tricks, but the meal tasted surprisingly good, and soon enough that was the only focus of his attention. Meanwhile Pyra tended to the fire and watched it burn to its own natural rhythm. After Skywalker finished his dinner, she noticed he was fidgeting.

- What is it?

- That was… surprisingly good, he answered honestly.

- Are you, gasp, making me a compliment?

- Yes, Mara. Try not to faint.

Her expression suddenly turned serious at the sound of her name. It was his turn to ask:

- What?

- How do you know my real name?

- You introduced yourself to that girl, back on the Liberator. Daria.

- Oh… you saw that? she asked looking back into the fire.

- Yes.

- I suppose you're just waiting to comment on it.

- Actually I'd rather avoid the subject altogether.

- Oh... why?

- Because rather then dwelling on how I got here I prefer to focus on how I shall leave, he answered and got up.

- Where are you going?

- Weren't you paying attention? I just told you…

- It's so nice and warm here, She interrupted him.

- Ok… I don't know what your angle is but you better stop it.

- Excuse me?

- Stop being so civil. You're scaring me.

- Maybe I don't have any angle, she said looking up at him from her seated position on the floor. Maybe I never had to apologize before now and I'm not very good at it...

- Apologize? He asked raising an eyebrow.

- Yes. I'm … would you mind sitting down! My neck is starting to hurt.

Luke waited a few seconds, undecided… and then sat down beside her. He leaned on his left hand, which was at a very close distance to her hip. Her lightsaber dangled on her belt on her other side.

- You were saying? He asked casually.

- You don't trust me do you?

He snorted and burst into laughter.

- I'm sorry… is that a rhetorical question?

Mara rolled her eyes at the statement and tended to the fire with a metal rod, rolling the logs around.

- Never mind, she quickly added.

- So far you've done nothing but either abuse me, ridicule me or torture me. That doesn't exactly inspire confidence…

- I'm just playing by the rules we're both supposed to follow. If it would've been the other way around…

- …and not to mention that everything about you is an act.

- Not everything, she stated looking him straight in the eyes. That moment we shared when we first met… that was [i]real[/i].

Light blue met emerald green, as the two looked on each other. They both realized how close they were actually standing to each other. A scarcely clad jedi and a half naked sith, making idle conversation near the burning fire.

- I mean, Mara continued leaning in, you wanted me, I wanted you, before everything got so complicated…

Her head came to rest on his shoulder and she let out a dreamy sigh.

- I didn't know who you were, Luke whispered.

- I guess it's true what they say… She held up her head and Luke could feel her breath on his cheek. His right arm went around her waist, circling her body. Ignorance is bliss, she concluded, turning his face around and leaning in for a kiss.

She only got to brush her lips on his, because Luke grabbed her lightsaber and yanked it off her belt. He took a flip back and hit her in the face with both his feet. Her head swung back from the blow. Luke activated the red lightsaber and took an attack stance. Mara glared at him from the floor, wiping blood off her chin.

- You sneaky little bastard… taking advantage of a girl like that.

- I don't see any girls around here, he said holding the red blade of energy right beside her neck, but I do see some sith trash. Don't move, don't blink, don't even breathe loud, unless you want to find yourself missing a head.

- Well junior, she said leaning on her hands, making herself comfortable, it seems you finally have the upper hand. What was it that gave me away?

Luke slowly kneeled down, but kept the lightsaber close to her neck.

- The entire idea of you seducing me is laughable.

- Like my daddy used to say before I killed him: never underestimate the predictability of stupidity.

- Now I'm going to ask you some questions, and I better like the answers…

AN: I think this would be a good time to mention that reviews are like crack to me.