A/N: Mara Jade does not exist in canon anymore, so I felt free to give her my own version of a back story. I've never read a Mara Jade E.U. book, so I have no idea if this is similar at all. All I have to go on is what I briefly skimmed through on Wookieepedia. I may be essentially making up an entirely new character that simply has the same name and colouring as the E.U. Mara Jade. I don't know, but I hope you like her.

Luke's story is partially canon and partially my A.U.

Mara Jade's Names

D148/14 BBY, Coruscant

The First Sister carried the unconscious red haired child into the Dark Lord's throne room, as requested. She'd had to make the brat sleep almost the entire trip here, which took almost two days from the girl's remote home planet of Kirtania in the Outer Rim, because she WAILED whenever she was awake, screaming for her parents. The First Sister had to Force her to eat and use the refresher, turning her into a puppet. It almost made her feel bad. But not quite, as all feelings had been torn from her long ago when she'd been imprisoned and abandoned by her fellow Jedi who'd refused to listen to her.

Now she worked for the Emperor, and in some ways it was most satisfying. Because it meant that she had been right. In other ways, it just made her colder as the years went by, the brutality of her job as a Jedi hunter wearing on the sliver of her heart left that remembered who she used to be.

The other part of her job was to seek out Force sensitive children under the age of three and execute any that were older than that.

This girl had been easy to find, she was so bright with the Force. Her parents hadn't liked the idea of giving up their daughter, though. Those pathetic souls were long cold and dead by now, having felt the First Sister's icy disdain over their pitiful attempts to stop her from taking their rather talented child.

Hopefully she was what the Sith Master wanted, despite being a few months too old. The last dozen children the First Sister had found for him hadn't been strong enough in the Force for his liking, but they'd been kept nonetheless, to be trained as Inquisitors or spies.

The First Sister approached the dark cloaked man staring out into the night of Coruscant that never slept. "My Lord, I think I have found a suitable candidate."

Darth Sidious turned around slowly, his hands tucked in his sleeves and his grotesque face shadowed by the hood of his robes. "We shall see," he said in the voice that never failed to send chills down the First Sister's already cold spine.

She set the child on the cold marble floor. "Wake her," he said. So she did, releasing her hold on the girl's mind.

The girl almost immediately awoke, sitting up and looking around frantically before she started WAILING again for her parents. The awful racket stopped almost immediately, though, as soon as the girl's wide green eyes landed on the darkly enshrouded Emperor. She gulped and scrambled away from him, not stopping until she bumped into the First Sister's legs. Then she actually huddled against her like she was a place of safety.

The First Sister didn't know what to think about that. She was supposed to be a scary Darksider too, but obviously not. Not in comparison to HIM, anyway.

"Come here, child," he said.

She shook her head and actually wrapped her arms around one of the First Sister's legs. She not so gently removed the thin arms and took a step back, not wanting to get in the middle of this.

"Come here, child," he said again, the tone of his voice becoming more demanding and filled with compulsion. It was all the First Sister could do not to rush too him herself.

Sensing that she had no choice, the child slowly rose on her trembling legs and walked up to the Emperor, staring up at him with disdain and fear radiating from her. "I want to go home," she said to him in a surprisingly steady and articulate voice.

Sidious merely looked down at her, expressionless. "You are home now. Can you accept that?"

Her little fists balled as anger took over the fear. "Never! I. WANT. MY. MOMMY. AND. DADDY. You ugly monster!" As she spoke, the Force in the room swelled and whirled, small objects lifting on the currents she was creating.

The First Sister could sense that Sidious was pleased with the display. Very pleased. He ALMOST smiled at the girl. (What a scary sight that would be.) "Good," he said in that creepy voice. "Your anger is very good."

The girl was obviously surprised by this, as the Force stilled and the objects fell. "But Mommy always said that we mustn't get angry. Mommy says that anger hurts people."

"That's the idea," Sidious replied, and the girl took a step back again, shaking her head in denial. He ignored her as he turned his attention to the First Sister. "You have done well. Take her to her quarters and make sure she has everything she needs to remain alive, but nothing more. This one, I shall train myself."

The First Sister nodded, eyes almost sympathetic behind her mask. The girl would not have an easy time of it. "Yes, My Lord."

She waved a hand and put the panicking girl back to sleep, not wanting to carry her wailing and struggling form through the hallways (been there, done that), and scooped her up off the floor.

D160/14 BBY

Darth Vader first heard about the girl a little more than two weeks later. He'd been away from Coruscant, putting the finishing touches on his castle on Mustafar, a project his Master knew about to cover any seeping thoughts of his other castle, the secret one on Vjun, his sanctuary.

Now he strode through the halls of his Master's palace, once a place were countless Jedi used to reside, curiosity eating at him over the rumours that Sidious had found a child he wanted to train himself. Usually, the children were trained by himself or the Grand Inquisitor, whenever they had time, or by the First Sister and a few other Inquisitors when they didn't.

If his Master was already thinking about replacing him, Vader knew his own plans for destroying the Sith Lord would have to be stepped up. His search for his own secret apprentice would have to become a little more focused.

Following his sense of his Master, he found him in his personal training chamber, running through Forms effortlessly in complete defiance of his haggard and stooped appearance.

He didn't see the girl at first, she'd shrunk herself so far into a corner. But when he did, Vader almost felt alarmed at her appearance. Something within him knew this wasn't right, but he would never say it. Nor even dare really think it. Master was far too good at serving pain to any who opposed him. Even his 'Apprentice'. Maybe even ESPECIALLY his Apprentice.

She was chained to the wall, her tiny wrists and ankles bloody from struggling against the manacles. Her clothing was filthy and her hair that might be red under the grime had been shorn off close to the scalp. The only real colour left in her gaunt face was her brilliant green eyes which he bet changed shade with her emotions. Right now, despite her obvious pain and hunger, they shone with cold fury as they watched Sidious train.

Vader should never have even dared to think it in the presence of his Master, but he did anyway. In this tiny life form, he may have finally found the ally he needed to overthrow his Master. It would be a long wait though. The girl was barely three years old if she was a day, judging by her small size. Vader would continue to work on his own plans, because he wasn't stupid. The girl could become just another mindless slave to the Emperor just as easily as keep that spirit of defiance.

He would have to wait and see.

Somewhere along the long painful road he'd embarked on, Vader had finally learnt patience.

To cover his thoughts, Vader drew his lightsabre and offered to spar with his Master. Sidious gladly accepted, of course, always pleased to take another opportunity to defeat his Apprentice.

Vader hated how limited his movements were in his suit compared to how agile he used to be, but he was learning to compensate. Every year spent in it was another year he came closer to being able to defeat his Master in training. Until then, he would simply keep accepting the inevitable and LEARN.

He was very careful to express the bare minimum of interest in the child when they finished training, somehow finding the perfect blend of curiosity but couldn't-care-less-what-his-Master-did-with-her attitude that appeased his Lordship.

How Vader hated him.

D271/14 BBY

It was months before Vader found the opportunity to speak to the girl without getting caught. He'd become adept at finding her Force signature, bright little thing that it was, and the day finally came when Sidious left the girl chained in his training chamber while he was called away to an emergency Senate meeting.

Usually, Sidious took her back to her quarters (cell) and locked her in, he also being the only one who knew the code. Any attempts to override the system would immediately trigger alarms, so Vader hadn't been able to sneak in to her room.

He felt bad for the girl, whose only source of food or water or 'freedom' was the most vile man in the galaxy. Vader knew he was a very close second, but even he had some standards left over. He could not stand to see anyone be treated like they were a slave. And this girl, she was the most obvious slave of all of them. Technically, anyone who served the Emperor was enslaved to him, having not much of a will of their own, but they still had the illusion of freedom.

This girl had nothing.

Not even a name anymore. Sidious had stripped her of everything she valued; her family, her freedom, her pretty hair, her name.

He called her 'Girl', and when she insisted that she had a name, he punished her to yet another day without food. Vader had heard through the gossip mill that she'd finally stopped insisting that she be called by her former name. In the end, it was probably for the best. It was easier to become a new person if you didn't cling to things like your old name, or your memories, or your dreams...

He shut down that line of thought quickly as he strode into the training chamber like he belonged there. The girl might not be able to keep her old name, but that didn't mean she couldn't have a new one. She just had to keep it to herself until Sidious was in the right mood to call her by a name that wasn't 'Girl'. She could suggest it then.

Vader strode across the large room to the girl's usual corner, finding her with her arms wrapped around her knees and her eyes barely peeking up at him over the edge of her arms, distrust readily apparent in their depths. She was still a little too thin, but at least she was clean. She must have been well behaved enough lately to earn her a bath and clean clothes. Vader remembered baths wistfully. He used to love immersing himself in water. He particularly remembered baths with Padme...

And... he's slamming the door shut on those memories too. It had been five years, and it still hurt just as much as the day he'd lost her. Only to himself, would Vader ever admit that he was still a wreck of a man, longing for what he once had, and loathing himself for losing it all.

Emmy watched the man in the breathing suit come towards her and immediately suspected the worst.

So far, no one in this horrible place had been nice to her. She missed her parents terribly, but she'd lost the ability to cry weeks ago. Any time the Evil One caught her crying he filled her with pain just by thinking her nerves into trying to jump out of her skin. Now she didn't bother with showing her pain in any outward fashion anymore. It only brought more.

Emmy was a very smart girl, and she wasn't stupid enough to incite more pain if she didn't have to.

She was also learning to control her temper and the powers it brought. The Evil One liked it when she made things float, so she was learning to summon her anger at will (not hard to do, in her current state) and float whatever was available.

But she missed the other things she used to do with her powers before she was captured. She missed sitting in the forest as Mommy painted pretty pictures and she would close her eyes and FEEL the rainforest around her. When she did that, she could play with the swinging creatures in the trees high above, or fly with a bird as it soared above the canopy, or crawl amongst the fallen leaves with the tiniest of bugs. She'd had a million adventures while never moving a muscle and she MISSED it.

She also missed the hours spent in her daddy's lap as they read books together. She'd been learning to read on her own, and she'd loved impressing him by plucking the words she didn't know out of his mind and saying them confidently. Daddy had always given her a hug and a kiss on her head when she said something difficult like 'ensconced'. (She still didn't know what that meant, but she could say it if she saw it.)

Emmy was terribly afraid that she was never going to see her parents again. The lady in black had made her sleep when she'd screamed, sensing her ill intent. The last time she'd seen her parents, they'd been running towards her, fear on their faces as she was snatched from the fenced backyard of their home.

The next time Emmy remembered being awake, she'd been on a ship in the middle of space somewhere and no matter how far she'd stretched her mind, she couldn't FEEL her parents. She didn't like to think about what that might mean, but she was afraid she knew.

The breathing man stopped in front of her, towering like an ancient tree high above her. He surprised her when he slowly lowered himself into a crouching position, his cape settling around him like a black pool.

Emmy scooted back a fraction out of reflex, but made herself stop. Flinching never resulted in anything good either. She made herself meet the cold black eyes of his mask, summoning all the courage she had. "What do you want?" she accused him.

The man reached into his utility belt and pulled out a wrapped protein bar and held it towards her. "I thought you might be hungry," he said in his deep mechanical voice.

Emmy stared at the offering suspiciously. She didn't trust this man. He was associated with the Evil One. She'd seem them training together with the red swords that snapped and hissed and cried in her mind with years of built up pain. Their swords were alive and they HURT. If they didn't know that they'd made their swords hurt, that was yet another thing to despise about them.

"What do you want me to do for it?" she asked, as she'd already long ago learnt that nothing came for free. If she wanted to eat, she had to perform. If she wanted to sleep, she had to watch hours of holovids about how to hurt and kill other people first. She rarely slept now, because she continued to see the vids in her nightmares, but they changed so SHE was the one doing the killing. Somehow, Emmy knew this is what the Evil One had planned for her. He'd never outright said it, but she knew.

"Nothing," the breathing man replied. "It's yours. I can feel your hunger. Please take it."

Emmy tentatively reached forward with one hand and grabbed it quickly, then tore the wrapping open and bit off a tiny corner, chewing slowly and savouring the bland flavour. She'd also learnt to make every bite count, because she was never sure when the next meal would be offered.

She studied the breathing man, trying to read his intentions, but coming up against a solid wall. "Why are you really here?"

Emmy felt his amusement now. He'd opened up his shields a fraction. "You are a smart one, aren't you?"

Emmy nodded once in answer as she chewed another small bite. She patiently waited for him to explain himself.

He tilted his head to the side slightly. "How good are your shields, Emmy?"

Emmy's eyes widened as she realized that he'd plucked her thoughts from her mind easily, just like she did to Daddy and Mommy. "I don't know," she answered. "HE isn't teaching me how to shield. HE likes to have direct access to my mind. It's easier for him to control me that way."

The breathing man nodded once in understanding.

He was amused by how she saw him. It was unfortunately very accurate. His breathing ruled his life. "Vader," he said. "My name is Vader."

Emmy tilted her head to the side in a mirror of his earlier pose. "Okay, Vader. Can you teach me shields?"

"Yes, but you'll have to shield that you learnt how from me. But you'll be able to keep a part of yourself free from HIM. You won't be entirely his puppet."

Emmy thought about that as she slowly chewed through another bite. She liked that idea. She liked it a lot. She could hide the warm parts of her that the Evil One was trying to turn to ice. She could keep the memories of her parents locked in that little haven.

"All right. You can teach me," she told Vader.

He let her feel his approval and that made her a little bit warmer inside. The only thing the Evil One's approval made her feel was colder, so this was a welcome change.

"I want you to think of your name, your real name. All of it, not just the nickname part, and I want you to bury it deep at the back of your mind and then build the biggest, thickest wall of durasteel around it that you can imagine. That will be your place of safety where HE can't get in."

Emmy let his deep voice rumble through her as she closed her eyes and pictured what he was saying. Emerald Maratosi became a tiny bit of information and slowly disappeared behind a massive wall thicker than the rainforest canopy that more often than not hid the sun.

"That is very good," he said as softly as his mechanical voice could probably go. "Now here's the real test. I want you to think up a new name for yourself. Something that you won't mind HIM calling you in the future. Something that will be your ONLY name from now on, but don't let him know until he grants you permission to have a new name. Think of this name without letting me hear your decision process and hide it from me in your shield. Do you understand?"

Emmy nodded, eyes scrunched tightly shut, protein bar forgotten in her hand. She hid behind her wall with her real name and THOUGHT. A new name. It had to be simple. It had to be familiar. She wanted something that would bring her a modicum of comfort. She thought back to a conversation she had with her daddy only a few days before she was taken as they were discussing different types of precious stones during a lesson. She'd come across a picture of a bright green stone with the label of 'emerald' and gotten all excited.

"That's my name, Daddy!"

"Yes, it is, sweetpea," he said, stroking her long curls fondly. "We named you after the colour of your pretty green eyes. But we almost called you Jade, since they look that colour too, in a different light."

Emmy turned the pages in the picture book until she found a lighter green stone labelled 'jade' and touched it fondly. "Jade. That's a pretty stone too, Daddy. I wouldn't have minded if you called me that."

The memory decided it for her. She had her new name.

She opened her eyes and looked at the mask of Vader again. "I know what I want to be called."

"And I don't know what it is," he said, more warm approval flowing over her. "You did very well. Now finish your bar and I'll take the wrapper. No one can know that I helped you, so you need to bury that under your shield too, okay?"

She nodded quickly and ate the rest of the bar in three quick bites. She didn't want to get him in trouble, not if he was going to help her. And she sensed that he would whenever he could. He was letting her feel that. The newly renamed Jade didn't feel quite so alone now.

She wouldn't say she'd made a friend exactly, but he most certainly wasn't her enemy.