The Wedding of Luke Skywalker
By Ash Darklighter
Chapter 14
Disclaimer: The characters and situations in this story are the property of Lucasfilm Ltd. I am not making so much as a credit from this endeavour. Thanks to the girls as usual. Without you this story would be nowhere.
Luke pulled Mara closer until he could feel every curve of her lithe body pressed against his own. He knew this was wrong but it felt so good. They had to first build up the trust between them. They'd both said and done things that they should not have done – things that hurt. But… Stars! How could he resist her? He let his head lower until his lips met hers. Force, this was good.
He should have been more honest from the start even though part of him suspected that an obvious ploy to win her affection would have driven her away from him quicker than smugglers invited to visit spaceport security. They'd been friends for ten years and not once had they crossed that imaginary line between friends and lovers until he had kissed her at her door two days ago. Luke admitted to himself that he had wanted to cross that line long ago but Mara had never shown the slightest inclination of seeing him in a romantic light. So he'd waited… had gotten involved in other disastrous relationships and eventually convinced himself that falling in love was not for him.
Until the day the Force had woken him up. He could have ignored the Force promptings…. He could have survived the nightmares but he had been weak and wanting. The Force had shown him everything he ever wanted and once he had seen that vision he would never be the same.
"Oh, Mara!"
"I know."
He ran his hands across her back where seductive, perfumed skin met soft, dark velvet cloth. Luke gazed deeply into her eyes and lowered his head once more, her lips parting automatically under his.
**********************************
She'd appeared in front of him, dressed and ready to go to the reception. After picking his jaw up from the floor, Luke immediately had to check his traitorous body. He'd been hard inside his new pants ever since. The temptation to immediately contact his sister, tell her he had a mission in the uncharted regions and throw Mara Jade across his bed and strip the gown off her perfect figure was almost overpowering. Then he'd make love with her until neither of them could walk.
But Jedi Masters couldn't do that. They had responsibilities and certain expectations placed upon them like… the way they had to behave and what they were supposed to do and when, if ever they were to marry. Where was his free choice? Where did Luke Skywalker get to do what he wanted to do? The future is always in motion, yet the Force controlled his actions and directed his thoughts. He wasn't supposed to have urges. Yoda had been nine hundred years old. He assumed sex wasn't top of your list at that age. Luke shuddered and banished the disturbing thought of 'Yoda and sex' in the same sentence from his mind, never to be recalled.
He had done all his duty dances and had hoped to then sit in a corner with his lower half concealed underneath a darkened table. It hadn't worked out like that. Mara had issued her challenge to dance with her. Could any torture be more wonderful or more terrible?
Luke wanted this woman with everything that was in his heart and mind. He couldn't have her… could he? Her attitude had changed since he'd kissed her for the first time. She had not fled Coruscant but had stayed and had come to see him. Yesterday… in the midst of all the accusations and the pain, Luke could have sworn that she was jealous. He loved her deeply but was unsure of her feelings for him. She desired him but desire wasn't love. It was a start - perhaps this time he could court her honestly and properly. Do it the way he should have done. Make sure she knew that he wanted her and no other. She said that she knew – did she really? What exactly did Mara think that she knew?
'When you are calm and at peace.' Obi-Wan and Yoda's oft repeated phrase drifted through his mind. If it were only that easy? Luke hadn't been at peace since he was eighteen years old. He'd been fighting ever since then – first against the Empire and then for the Jedi. When was the last time he fought for something for himself?
He lifted his head and stared down at the woman in his arms, his eyes glittering like two blue polished jewels. He was fighting for this. It crossed his mind that his target wasn't exactly fighting back. Strategy – that was what he needed. A good strategy.
"Luke…" Mara moaned his name, a mere breath of sound, her arms curving around his neck pulling him down to her again and he was lost. All his strategy was gone.
They lost track of the time. Mara was unsure how long she'd stood, pressed against his hard body, her arms wrapped around his neck, her lips fastened to his.
Luke was the one to pull away. "Mara, we still have to talk."
"So talk," she murmured dreamily from kiss-swollen lips, her eyes heavy-lidded and sultry. "There are other things I'd rather be doing."
Luke knew what those were, the ache in his groin was testament to that fact but he couldn't do this to her. Not until they'd cleared things properly and he was sure she understood what she was getting into. There had to be no doubt in her mind. "I'll take you home."
"That's not talking." She ran her tongue over her red, swollen lips and was gratified to see Luke's eyes flash with some sort of inner reaction and hear the gasp that he tried to hide. "Do we have to talk? We could…ah… instead."
"Come on," he said, steeling himself, and took a step away from her.
Mara stared at him and then looked down at the tips of her shoes peeping from underneath the hem of her gown and appeared almost to deflate. "Okay," she whispered resignedly.
Luke held out his hand and Mara slipped hers into it.
Luke wandered slowly past the still dancing couples, giving a wave here and there until they'd left the ballroom.
"We're alone," Mara said quietly. "Start talking."
Luke nodded, but said nothing as they walked. The silence grew comforting. The Grand Corridor was almost deserted at this hour, despite the reception taking place in the ballroom. The sound of their footsteps on the marble flooring echoed in the emptiness.
"The Force sent me visions that I was to marry. I suspected it might be a test of some sort. I felt bitter and resentful…" He stared down at the woman by his side. "I didn't believe it was real. Why this particular woman and why now? Because I already…" Luke pressed his lips together unable to complete the sentence. He gave her a wan smile. "Then in addition to the Force visions something strange happened to me on a trip out on the Rim."
"What?"
Luke slowed his steady steps, his eyes closing. "I can't say yet. I don't know how to describe it but it left me in no doubt that this was real. I tried to ignore it as much as I could until the dreams came."
"Every night?"
He nodded, his thumb rubbing gently over her hand. "Every night, for over two months," he confirmed wearily. "You were the one person I knew could save me. But I was on Yavin IV and I didn't know where in the galaxy you were. It's a big place after all. I called out to you but you didn't answer."
"I was too far away."
"Yes, until I arrived on Coruscant. I used you and I'm sorry. I wasn't completely honest. I thought if I told you the truth you would leave immediately and I didn't want that."
"I saw what I wanted to see, Luke. I was jealous."
"You were?" His voice cracked.
"…Jealous and cruel. I should know you better than that. I could see that Khata was the wrong woman for you but I never took time to think this whole thing through properly. I just let my temper get the better of me and lashed out at you. You seemed different with her. I was the old friend who helped you out of those troublesome situations you managed to regularly land yourself in, not someone you would ever consider as a lover. She was one of your dedicated Jedi students, young, untainted by a past spent serving evil, and she seemed to worship you."
"You're not tainted by evil. Your soul shines brightly in the Force - pure and clean. Why won't you believe me?" Luke muttered. "And anyway, I don't want to be worshipped."
"It can get wearing, I suppose. You didn't want someone to worship you." Her voice lowered. "You wanted a real woman - someone who was your equal. I knew Khata Ellynin could never be that."
"Khata was never in the holo frame, Mara. She's a talented Jedi and strong in the Force but she isn't you. I suspected you had a candidate for me in mind but I was so caught up in every thing that was happening around me - my forthcoming marriage, the Jedi Centre, the knighting ceremony, the Remembrance Day - that I never sat down to consider who it could be. I didn't examine your accusations until it was too late." His eyes caught hers, earnest, mesmerising. "I'm sorry, too. I thought if you went out with me on a couple of 'dates' then…" His words dried up.
"So is the 'Wedding of Luke Skywalker' still on?"
"I don't know." Luke's voice was distant, his voice strained.
"You'll send me an invitation?" Mara's eyes held a calculating gleam which Luke missed as he climbed into the air taxi.
"An invitation?" He held out his hands and fastened them around her waist as he lifted her down into the transport.
"To your wedding…"
"Would you gatecrash if I didn't?"
"I might."
"I suspect you'll be there," Luke said gravely.
"Oh, I will be there. You can count on that, Skywalker."
"Where to?" the burly human driver enquired.
Luke gave Mara's apartment level and sat back, his hand automatically reaching for Mara's as if he couldn't bear not to be touching her. The journey was short and neither of them said anything more.
Mara climbed out and waited as Luke handed over some credits.
"Come on," he said, reaching for her hand again as if it was natural to do so, and headed for the turbo lift.
"Would you like to come in?" Mara asked as they stepped out of the lift.
"I'd better not."
Mara's face fell.
"I have Bebo and Khata's wedding tomorrow afternoon. Will you be there?"
"I can be, if only to make sure that the right couple gets married."
Luke gave a wry smile. "There will be no danger of anything else but that happening. Khata and Bebo are convinced that they were destined to meet and love from birth."
"Nice to be so sure," Mara commented lightly.
"But afterwards… Dinner tomorrow night?" he asked. "No practice dates – a real one. Just you and me?"
"I… yes."
"Goodnight then." Luke took a step backwards.
"What!"
"Goodnight."
"Goodnight," she murmured in return, but then acting upon a wish to start controlling her destiny, made a decision. "Luke…" Mara moved after him and caught his arm. "You forgot something."
"I did… what?"
"This." Mara curled her arms around his neck and brought his head down for a kiss.
"Mara…"
"Ssh, farmboy. Let it happen." Her sweetl-smelling breath whispered across his suddenly sensitised skin.
As her lips met his, Mara's lashes fluttered closed and she sank unashamedly into his embrace. She felt the hint of beard stubble against the softness of her cheek. His tongue teased against the corners of her lips and the irresistible combination of instinct and appetite did the rest. The kiss deepened until Mara whimpered, pressing herself against him wanting more.
Luke broke the kiss with a muffled oath, feeling his erection straining against the too tight confines of his pants. "Dinner tomorrow," he whispered hoarsely, his eyes wide and very blue. With one last searing glance at her, he turned and disappeared into the turbolift.
Mara clutched weakly at her door frame. She had some planning to do. The groom was not unwilling, just reluctant for some unfathomable Skywalker reason but the bride… Mara couldn't believe she had changed so much in such a short period of time but she had. He was hers, she vowed with a primitiveness that delighted her. Luke Skywalker had met his match.
Mara removed her dark green velvet gown and readied herself for bed, her whole body continuing to throb with frustration. "Sith-born bastard," she muttered. "I have to feel like this because he has an attack of ethics?"
Finally she lay in her bed still aching for his touch, his kisses, and more. She'd been so blind, she thought, but she'd never had any reason to believe that Luke thought of her as anything more than a good friend. When had he started wanting more with their relationship? When had she?
Leia's voice surfaced in her mind. 'He sees all the ethical and moral problems that occur, even with something that affects only himself.' Mara's eyes were wide open in the darkness. The Force suggested that Mara should be his bride. His sister was convinced that her brother was already in love with someone but reluctant to take the next step because he'd been hurt too many times before. Luke had decided that he would never find the right woman willing to share his often dangerous lifestyle. That and Mara Jade would never even consider him as a mate.
Mara shifted in the bed, hearing the mattress springs creak. She realised that Luke had been jealous when he'd talked about her supposed affair with Lando Calrissian. His words had been a dead giveaway. He had mentioned her beauty, desirability, wit and fire; his confidence that Lando could not have handled her. She would have always needed more. Mara's insides turned to jelly at the thought of Luke handling her.
Mara knew now. Her Jedi side would always have called out to be nurtured by Luke but it was more than that – more than one Jedi connecting with another through the Force. He was imprinted on her soul. Luke's mysterious bride-to-be had been her all along.
She had been jealous, too. Jealous of all the other women he had ever looked at, certain that none of them were even remotely good enough for him. She recalled how she had retreated every time he'd had some sort of relationship. She'd told herself that it didn't matter but every time Luke gazed longingly into the eyes of another woman, she'd felt empty inside. Mara reached out and snapped on her bedside lamp. "It was me he reached out for," she murmured wonderingly. "I was the one he saw in his dreams. Luke loves me."
She obviously wasn't going to get much sleep, she thought as she pushed her pillows into place. She recalled his awkward flirting, his gifts… the silk lingerie still lying on her dressing table, and finally his kisses. Until then it hadn't seemed real that Luke wasn't marrying another woman. She'd convinced herself he was sacrificing himself out of some misplaced duty and not love.
'Someone who is very dear to me but I don't think she's ready for marriage. I don't think she'll ever be ready to marry me."
Mara shut off the light and finally lay sleepily in the darkness. "Wanna bet?" she mumbled.
************************************
Bebo and Khata's wedding, held in the same hall at the Knighting Ceremony, went off without a hitch. Mara had slipped in at the last minute and sat almost unnoticed at the back but Luke had known she was there. She'd sensed his relief, quickly shielded. He'd thought she wouldn't come? Mara settled back in the dark and watched the two former students pledge their lives not only to the Jedi but to one another.
Bebo and Khata were leaving Coruscant to visit their families just after the ceremony but first there was a small buffet meal. Mara just picked at her plate of delicious looking items, nibbling on one or two of the pastries. She was saving herself for later. Luke's hoarse voice asking her to dinner was enough of an incentive.
He, on the other hand, had filled his plate and was eating as if he'd never seen food. Mara knew he would have a full meal later on, too. Where did he put it? She'd never met someone who ate so much and yet showed none of the effects.
'It's my metabolism, Mara,' he spoke in her head.
'Eavesdropping, Skywalker?' She could see him shrug at the far end of the room.
'You were broadcasting loudly, Jade. You're… saving yourself for dinner?'
Mara grinned. 'You bet I am, Skywalker.'
Luke choked on something, recovering with a cough and Mara chuckled.
Khata Ellynin Magnot stared at Mara Jade with interest. She hadn't realised that the red-haired Jedi would be at her wedding. The Master must have asked her. The Mirialan was pleased that Mara had attended. It gave her the chance to say one or two things to the woman. She had the feeling that Mara Jade did not like her and wondered why because before last week, Khata had never met Mara Jade or had anything to do with her. Mara had appeared to actively avoid Khata since she'd arrived on Coruscant. The younger Jedi had never come across someone who disliked her before.
"Mara Jade!"
She turned around in surprise. "Oh!" she said. "You startled me." There was an awkward silence until Mara said quietly, "Congratulations."
Khata smiled. "Thank you."
Mara searched around her suddenly blank mind trying to compel her tongue to move in an intelligent manner. "Luke tells me you're leaving today."
Khata nodded. "We are spending time with our families before heading out into the galaxy. Master Luke calls us 'Jedi Consulars.'"
"Ah, yes. You work through diplomatic channels aiding disputes where needed."
"Yes." Khata was surprised, although she felt she should not have been. Master Luke had trained Mara Jade and she was strong in the power of the Force. Much stronger than Khata was. "Bebo and I are a ready-made team. We work well together. As do you and Master Skywalker. You should work together more often."
Mara stiffened. This was none of the young woman's business.
"I sense that you do not like me and I wondered why?"
"You're very direct for a diplomat," Mara commented.
"You would not respond to any other method."
"True." Mara sighed. "I don't dislike you. I don't know you. We have little in common."
"We are Jedi, we have the Force…"
"I have a lot on my mind and…"
"The Master?"
"I…"
"He's a good man. I used to be a little bit in love with him. It was a youthful infatuation until I met Bebo." She gazed longingly at her husband and Mara could see the devotion in her dark eyes. When she turned her dark eyes on the Jedi Master, Khata frowned. "I sense he's not been happy; he looks tired."
"He's had a lot going on. This is always a difficult time for him…"
"The Remembrance Day?"
Mara nodded. "Yes, and add to that the Knighting Ceremony and your wedding."
"And his love for you."
"That is none of…"
"My business?" Khata asked. "Maybe not, but you have been making him unhappy for a long time. You know that he loves you?"
Mara scowled. Khata took that as an agreement.
"If you know that he loves you, I guess that's progress. He's been unhappy because of you. Everyone knows it."
"Everyone!" Mara exclaimed.
"Maybe I'm exaggerating…"
"Maybe you should mind your own business?" Mara reminded her.
Luke lifted his head and searched for Mara. He had suddenly felt consternation coming from her. 'Oh, sith!' she was talking to Khata. At least she knew that Khata wasn't a threat any longer. "Bebo," he patted the Twi'lek on the shoulder. "Isn't it about time you and your wife were leaving?"
"Our transport leaves in three hours so, yes, we had better get going."
Luke moved to intercept Mara and Khata. "Madam Magnot," he said as jovially as he could manage. Mara looked as if she'd been stunned. "I think your husband is looking for you." He pressed his hand on Mara's shoulder. "Hi," he whispered. "You okay?"
Mara gave her head a little shake and gazed up into the concerned blue gaze. "Yeah, I'm fine." He always knew, just as she did with him. She'd had ample evidence over the last few days of the way that other people regarded her relationship with the Jedi Master. 'Everyone? Oh Sithspit!'
She watched as Luke said goodbye to the Jedi couple and wondered if she was as transparent as these people made her seem.
**********************************
The dinner was wonderful and romantic and Luke was the perfect gentleman – too perfect. Mara was a little confused. Oh, he'd made it quite clear that there was only one woman on his agenda and she knew without him saying a word exactly who that woman was. But Mara wanted more. Again he saw her to her apartment door. The words, 'would you like to come in…' formed on her tongue as Luke's head dropped to kiss her eagerly. Wrapping her arms around him, her mind blurred as his body pushed her back against the door.
"P- p-practice tomorrow?" he managed to stammer out between kisses.
"Yes… oh, yes…" she breathed huskily.
Luke stepped back, his hot blue gaze riveted on her aroused features. "Goodnight." He turned away, his shoulders stiff, and didn't look back as he entered the turbolift. Mara stared after him in disbelief; she was aching inside with desire. The 'would you like to come in' died on her lips.
He'd kissed her senseless and then left. She spent another frustrated night unable to sleep. At least he didn't seem to be suffering from the nightmares any more. When she did manage to fall asleep her dreams were erotic fantasies involving herself and a certain blue-eyed Jedi. Force, life was hard.
The following day they met for a practice session late in the afternoon. The pent-up emotions made the duel fiercer than anything the small group of observing Jedi had seen. After that Luke took her to a concert. When the concert was finished he walked her to her door and as they stood gazing at one another, Luke let out a strangled groan and swept her into his arms. 'I'll see you tomorrow?' his voice whispered through her head.
"Wha-a…" Mara murmured, trying to find the door control panel so that she could drag him inside.
"Goodnight," he said faintly, his chest rising and falling with the effort to keep upright. He stepped forward, dropped a tender kiss on her forehead and then swivelled on his booted heel and marched into the turbolift.
Mara was again left grasping the door frame. "Goodnight," she called but he had gone and she was amazed to hear how her voice shook.
The following evening Luke took her to a gallery opening. It was one of the most eagerly sought-after events in the Coruscant social calendar. Leia and Han had been invited too but had been unable to attend. Mara and Luke wandered around the gallery discussing the merits or demerits of the articles on display, each clutching a glass of red wine and a plate with the superb cuisine that had been provided. Luke was glad he had something to occupy his hands with. The temptation to reach for Mara otherwise would have been too great. She stood there, the black silk of her dress outlining every sensuous curve.
"Ready to go? he asked her.
Mara nodded. "Ready."
Like all the other nights she found herself back in front of her apartment door. This time he kissed her until she was clinging to the wall, her arms rising possessively to wind around his neck. He was not unaffected; she could feel the evidence of his desire as it rose to meet her. "Luke…" she breathed huskily, her mouth swollen from the passion of his kisses, her hand fumbling at the door controls. The door slid open as Luke stepped away from her. "I'll see you tomorrow? Goodnight," he said, his lips barely moving.
Mara held onto the door long after he had vanished into the turbolift. Her wildly raging pulse, as well as her body's frustration at being denied again, was really starting to get to her. "Devious, twisted…." Mara stared down at the front of her black silk dress. The outline of her hard, pointed nipples could clearly be seen beneath the fabric.
Mara stomped around her apartment flinging things in frustration. "This has to stop," she vowed darkly as she stripped the dress from her body and headed into the shower. With a sigh she trailed her hands across the curve of her breasts and lower. Luke's desertion had left her to alleviate the situation all by herself. "I'll give him dreams" she vowed. She needed a plan.
********************************
The following morning Mara was up bright and early and decided to pay a visit to the Jedi Master in his lair. "If the Noghri won't go to Wayland then Wayland must go to the Noghri," she muttered under her breath. The guard gave her a smile of recognition. "Trader Jade. Master Skywalker has cleared you for all future visits, Ma'am."
"Thank you…?"
"Barris, Ma'am."
"Thank you, Barris," Mara said sweetly as she pressed the button calling the turbolift.
The sounds of building work in progress met Mara's ears as she walked down the corridor to the central office. The sounds of metal hitting metal and a couple of muffled curses in what she recognised as 'Old Corellian' made her smile. She spotted a pair of legs lying half out of some ventilation shaft. "Hello?" she called carefully.
"Jade!"
Mara frowned. That sounded like Corran. "Horn?"
The legs wriggled forward and the grinning face of the Corellian pilot emerged. "Just helping out. You here to work?"
"I came to see Lu… er Skywalker."
"He's around. Reach out with the Force and you'll…"
"Horn, shut up! I can feel him. I don't need to do any 'reaching', thank you."
Luke was in the main exercise facility, suspended high up in the roof, hanging ropes and other such pieces of equipment the Jedi might use for training. When he saw her, he grabbed a rope and slid down landing lightly in front of her.
"Hi," he said quietly with a warm smile.
Mara stepped in towards him and curling her arm around his neck brought his face down for a kiss. "Hi, yourself."
Luke couldn't believe she was now relaxed enough with him to do that. When she kissed him, he began to feel anything but relaxed. Just the simplest of kisses from Mara had him hot and ready… Luke clamped down on his inconvenient desires. "You here to help? I'm trying to get as much done while the majority of the Jedi are still on Coruscant. Even Han and Leia are on their way." He moved in a bit closer and lowered his head once more, covering her lips with his, teasing them apart, and letting his tongue duel erotically with hers. They were quite happily involved with each other when Leia and Han walked in and then immediately walked out.
"I never thought I'd see the day," Han commented. "Luke and Mara in a public place in broad daylight. Have you started with those wedding plans?"
"Of course. But I can't do too much until things become finalised and it's not exactly a public place."
"Things?"
Leia pointed inside the exercise hall. "I don't think he's asked her to marry him yet. Knowing Luke, he's probably not even mentioned it."
"Perhaps it's time we took a more active role," Han suggested slyly.
Leia's face brightened mischievously. "Perhaps it is. You talk to Luke and I'll talk to Mara… That way she may stay on planet."
"Hey! Are you suggesting I would say the wrong thing?" Han's voice turned truculent.
"No, darling. I just think you could have a man to man chat with my brother. I want to see if Mara is as willing as she appears."
"According to Horn and the other Jedi, she's been here every day since they arrived. They thought there was an uncomfortable point one day…" He glanced back inside the hall. "However, they seem to have sorted it out between them."
"There was." Leia's voice was flat. "I felt it. He's been a lot happier since."
"And you didn't interfere?"
Leia fixed her husband in place with a glare that reminded him of a rebel princess running a rebellion and trying to keep a scruffy smuggler in his place.
"Of course, Khata's married now," Han commented thoughtfully.
"So she is. That's what it was." Leia's voice was definite. "You made Mara jealous by suggesting that Luke could be interested in Khata."
"Mara managed to do that to herself without my help, Leia. I didn't have to add very much to whatever else she had jumbling around in that fiery head of hers."
"Khata's out of the picture and there is no one else on the scene apart from Mara."
"Not to my, or Horn's, or Karrde's knowledge, for that matter."
Leia gave her husband a look.
"I checked."
"Nerf!"
"They came to your reception together."
"That's not unusual." Leia pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Luke and Mara do attend functions together if they're on-planet at the same time. Mara's not stupid so I can't quite understand why she didn't guess what Luke was up to."
"Not stupid – never that. She was just oblivious. I mean, the kid ain't subtle."
"I think she knows now."
Han grinned. "The way she was examining his tonsils, I hope so."
"Han Solo!" his wife exclaimed. "Really!"
"Shall we enter again but loudly this time?"
"It seems a shame…"
"Leia…"
"Oh, all right."
"It's showtime." He raised his voice. "Where did Horn say Luke was?"
"He's in the all-terrain exercise hall."
"The what?"
"The all-terrain…" Leia repeated. "It mimics places like Yavin and Tatooine."
"But without the greenery or the sand."
"It uses stone and metal structures to..."
"I know the place. It's like a playground for big kids."
Leia groaned. "You can be too much sometimes."
"But you love me, right?"
"Luke!" Leia called.
"Hey, kid! Mara," Han said as they entered the hall. Mara and Luke walked towards them.
"Hello, you old pirate."
"Less of the old," Han grumbled. His eyes took in the space Luke had created by removing floors and knocking down walls. "The Falcon could fly around in here."
"Hardly," Luke said, as he greeted his sister by dropping a kiss on her cheek.
"The Falcon and your X-wing could fly around in here."
Luke rolled his eyes at Mara and Leia.
"Hello, Mara," Leia murmured politely at the red-headed trader. "You here to help?"
"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Mara asked plaintively.
"We're all here to help," Leia said.
Luke grinned. "Eventually you'll cave in and say…"
"What would you like me to do?" she said with a sigh.
"You read my mind… Could you help Leia sort out some of the stuff in my apartment?"
"Sure," she said.
"Han, could you help me secure some of the equipment in here?"
"No problem, buddy."
"Good."
******************************************************
The women entered the tiny lift and stood in silence as it bore them up to the habitation area.
"Wait," said Mara, as Leia began entering the code to Luke's apartment.
"What for?"
"I want to see in here again." Mara stared at the beautifully crafted doors to the meditation room. It couldn't possibly have been as beautiful as she remembered.
"That's the…"
"Meditation Room. Yes, I know." Mara ran her hand gently over the beautifully wrought door handles. "I think it is the most beautiful room I have ever seen."
"It reminds me of the 'High Alderaanian' style but it's not that," Leia murmured. "Although there are definite influences."
"It's Naboo. The Naboo were an artistically accomplished people. Still are, but they now choose to keep it to themselves. They were not in favour of Palpatine and lived to regret it or didn't live which is perhaps more accurate."
"Naboo," Leia echoed, wondering at the faint memory before shaking her head as it disappeared. "Are they members of the New Republic?"
"I wouldn't think so."
"Oh!"
Mara reached out gently with the Force and the doors swung towards her. She gave Leia a satisfied smile and walked inside. There were steps leading from a small platform down into the centre. She lifted her face and caught the rays of the sun as it shone through the stained glass windows.
Leia gaped as Mara turned into a magical creature in front of her eyes, her hair a rope of fire hanging down her straight little back, her hands raised in the air towards the light.
"I'm getting married in here," she whispered, echoing Luke's comment of a few days previous. It seemed that he'd said it months ago, not merely days. "Yes," she breathed. This was the place.
Leia blinked in shock, her hand moving to cover her mouth. Had Mara Jade just said what Leia thought she had said?
Mara rubbed her eyes and then remembered that she was not alone. Her mouth formed an 'oh' of appalled horror.
Leia stepped forward, blocking the door just in case Mara decided to escape. "So he's asked you then?"
She had to get Mara talking or the woman would react by leaving. She had to prevent that at all costs. But Mara showed no signs of running. She just stood there, her eyes wide.
"Luke has asked you to marry him?" Leia repeated, as if talking to a child.
"No," she said in a voice so faint it could hardly be heard. "He has not."
"It makes a lot of sense. You would be perfect for my brother and I can see why the Force would approve. But there's more than just the Force's approval between you and my brother. There's love."
Mara swallowed, her eyes very bright in her white face. "I'm not mistaken, am I? He is in love with me?"
Leia was surprised to see the desperate look of mingled hope and dread in Mara's eyes. That was her most important question answered without her having to ask. Mara Jade was besotted by Leia's gentle brother as he was with her. "He's in love with you and probably has been for years. Do you love him?" She asked the question anyway.
Mara's voice and face was full of wonder and pain. "Oh, yes. I hadn't realised he was courting me… and now that I do, he's taken this step backwards. I'm not as convinced as I was a day or so ago. I thought I'd ruined everything with my jealousy."
"Khata Ellynin?"
Mara gave Leia an embarrassed nod.
Leia sighed. "And now that you know he's not going to marry Khata…?"
"I realise that he never treated her differently from any of his other students. It was all in my mind. But he's backed away. When we reconciled, I knew how he felt, but now his shields are working overtime and I cannot tell what he's thinking or feeling."
"You must be able to pick up something."
"Very little. We've met every single night for a meal or an outing of some description. He kisses me goodnight and leaves."
Leia hesitated. This was awkward. There wasn't a tactful way to ask. "The kiss - is it…?"
Mara sighed. "He kisses me senseless, kisses me until I can barely stand upright, Leia, and I can feel that he…" She flushed, her voice fading away.
"He wants more," Leia completed the sentence dryly. Her brother was a Jedi Master but still a man and there was only so much the Jedi could control. She hadn't yet heard of hormones being one of them.
"Yes."
"You feel awkward talking to me about something so personal. Don't worry. I consider myself to be quite unshockable these days. I've been married to Han for too long and he isn't one to hold back on certain topics of conversation. There are many occasions where I've had to drag more than just Han's foot out of his mouth."
"I don't talk about my feelings. The Emperor didn't want to know about my sex life or if I even had one. As long as it didn't interfere with what he wanted me to do." Mara opened the doors with the Force and watched as they swung shut behind her. She could feel the control and the discipline of this small act.
"Come on," Leia soothed gently. "We'll get this sorted out." Leia moved to Luke's keypad and started the entrance sequence. The door slid aside and Leia ushered Mara inside. "So Luke wants more?"
"I think so, but he just takes a deep breath, steps back a pace, gabbles goodnight and then leaves."
"Ah!"
Mara sank onto the sofa, still in the same place it was the night she slept on it. "He kisses me and then… just as I think… Oh, stars!"
"He bows like a perfect gentleman and walks away."
"Yes," Mara replied glumly. "I don't think I'll ever figure him out."
"Not a problem," Leia said confidently.
"I glad you're so sure." Mara gave a helpless little laugh.
"He's trying to give you time and court you properly."
"Just like his Uncle Owen courted his Aunt Beru," Mara murmured. "He told me about that."
"So just enjoy it."
"I want more. I have the right to make my own decisions and that sithspawned, no-good… has taken it out of my hands again. First he used the pretext it was for another woman and I was going to help him learn how to go out with a woman after years of being out of the game. I don't want time." Mara almost ground her teeth with frustration.
"So make a plan."
"I've tried," Mara almost wailed.
"There is one plan which no man, however determined, can withstand once a determined woman puts her mind to it."
"Oh sure, what's that one?" Mara scoffed.
"I'm surprised you haven't attempted it already."
"And this plan is?"
"Seduce him," Leia suggested slyly.
"What!"
"Take the decision out his hands. Make him an offer he cannot refuse."
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