Chapter 7
Luke moved his hand up to touch his face trying to ease the pain but
Mara reached over and pulled his hand down.
"Mara, I didn't intend for him to hit me, things like that just tend to happen." Luke tried to explain as he reached over and pulled his shirt over his head wincing as the fabric rested on his cut up back.
"They don't just happen Luke." She told him as he angrily shoved him back. Her green eyes glittered with a fire that wasn't going to dim anytime soon. She was angrier with him than he had seen in a while.
"You don't go out much with Han, do you?" Luke asked trying to humor her a little bit. It wasn't working.
"Let me rephrase: They don't just happen right before me wedding." Mara snarled as she forcefully handed him his jacket as she emphasized the word my letting him know that she was going to make some one pay and the first person in her range was Luke as she seethed.
Luke shook his head a he shrugged on his jacket and unconsciously brought his hand to his face again. "I should have known something would happen." He said softly, "Given the premonitions of that nightmare . . ."
Mara brought her hand to his cheek and ran placed it over his directing his gaze back towards her face, her eyes softening. "Well, here. A kiss to banish those worries and to help you heal," she said, her voice barely a whisper, full of love for him alone.
Her hands moved down and settled on his waist pressing close to Luke's chest.
"You can banish all me nightmares, Mara." He whispered, "A kiss, a smile, just being here." He put one arm out and his fingertips trailed down her arm and rested them by her waist.
"Master Skywalker," she said in fake shock, "Are you becoming a romantic?"
"No, Mara, a husband with a wife who inspires him."
"That's something I hope to do for the rest of our lives, Luke, together and forever."
Luke leaned forward closer, lowering his head and kissing her strongly.
Mara melted into his embrace and considered again just how lucky she actually was. She loved him more than anything; she didn't know what had made her so angry, when he had been hurt. After a pause in her thoughts she knew, she loved him more than life itself and nothing would
____________________ It's all so beautiful. Like an illusion ... a dream. Mara whispered then paused to ponder. She couldn't see her surrounding but she held a large bouquet and her gaze was directed towards the sky as her veil covered her face.
Too beautiful ... has to be a nightmare.
She looked down to see her gown; it had been changed to Stormtrooper armor with a flowing train behind. The flowers woven into her hair turned black. The bouquet fell apart and coiled through it was a serpentine dragon.
Not really what I had in mind for my gown. So many people were surrounding her, glaring and leering at her. Leia, Mirax, Chewie, Kueller, Isard, Tarkin, Wedge. So many others all angry with her.
Dress design comes because they suggested a return to Imperial Chic. She ran, ran away from all the shadows.
They're present because Imperial Chic reminds me of the old days. If the old days never died they would have.
She slipped and fell, Jedi surrounding her, bleeding and dead.
And their plans would have kept the Empire and would have required the death of all the Jedi, she paused as they disappeared and the light glinted off the black armor of the menacing Lord Vader.
Death of all, save the betrayer, Vader disappeared and she looked up to see a figure wrapped in a black cloak. Standing on a floating piece of land. And his son. He's the one to whom I'll be given, the one to who I'll be sacrificed.
Luke turned towards her and Mara saw a glint of something in his eyes.
By the one I most trusted. Her Master towered over her letting loose the lightning. It surrounded her and as she fell her heart stopped beating and she died. Mara pushed herself out of bed and was breathing hard, her hair in disarray as she let herself drop down again.
The evidence of so much evil at our wedding as if all that brought us together had been horribly undone. An omen, perhaps, of some one who wants it to be undone?
___________________ Luke shot awake from the feelings of sadness and fear, terror that permeated his senses. He reached out for the source of the emotions because he knew they weren't his own. Mara!
Luke!
What's wrong?
Nothing.
Don't give me that, Luke tiredly pulled on some clothes and got out of bed. I'll meet you on the roof.
Yes.
___________________ Luke was standing at the edge looking over across the cityscape, his arms crossed over his chest and the wind tousled his hair.
"Mara I might warn you I haven't had much sleep and I'm in a generally bad mood, my head is pounding, and my face still hurts so just cut to the chase and tell me what's going on."
"I didn't know you could be in a bad mood, dear."
"If you believe that ask Wedge or any of the old rogues. They've been on the receiving end before."
"The wedding, I'm afraid something is going to happen to destroy it. The future, we're taking a huge step. What if something happens?"
Luke's glower melted into a warm, comforting smile as he turned around and took her in his arms. "Don't worry about it Mara. Everything will be fine, I promise."
Mara melted into him and buried her face into his chest. It was comforting having him so near, it felt like nothing could harm her.
"Anything else?"
"No," she whispered. She wasn't going to tell him about the nightmare but she worried. Luke had had one and some one had tried to kill him, twice. She wasn't only afraid for herself, she was afraid for him.
"Luke?" she whispered and pressed closer to him.
"I know, I know." He kissed her on the forehead, "it'll be alright, I promise."
___________________ "You what?!" Moff Takkar screamed at the idiots that claimed to be Imperials. One of these days he would finish these fools. It was Banner and his weak conscience; it had to be. "You saved Skywalker?"
"But, we thought," Iry protested before he was interrupted again.
"Idiots!!!" He screamed at them. Banner seemed to be able to convince anyone of anything, he was a liability. "You're not paid to think!"
"We're getting paid?" Iry and Chik asked as they looked at each other expressions of astonishment spread over their faces.
"Skywalker dying in a cantina tangle won't make a statement." Banner began trying to force his belief on the Moff the same he did to the others. It didn't work. He seemed to be failing.
"How's this one: Jedi Hero slain in drunken brawl?" Takkar's tone was mocking as he took out his anger on them. They were absolute idiots!
Chik dropped his head knowing where this was going. "Wish I'd thought of that." Iry said with a shocked expression.
Takkar clenched his fists and threw his arms up in exasperation. "I wish you'd thought!" He screamed.
"Because of your ineptness, now we are left with no choice but to attack the gardens during the ceremony!"
"That was the plan," Chala pointed out trying to make a point. It wasn't working. "Chik and I checked there because of the plan."
"That was a plan, not the plan." Takkar snarled at them, furious. "If you had shown some initiative, we'd need no more planning."
Takkar sighed exhausted as he glanced back at his wife. "No wonder we lost it all. I have to do everything."
She stared down at her nails as she continued filing them, ignoring them. She didn't know where her husband had found these men. She had chosen her husband because he was so easy to manipulate. But this Banner was something else. He had a brain, wasn't another unthinking Imp man. "Meaning you'll win nothing, husband of mine."
He glared at her, "how can you say that?"
She glanced up at him wearily. He was an idiot "You trained me to dear. You taught me to look at history and repeat what works. Think on it Derran," she continued, her voice a silky whisper. "Daala, Isard, Leonia Tavira; these were women and they made life miserable in the New Republic. This is a delicate matter and needs a women's touch."
"You think?" Iry asked.
"Gosh," Chala said astounded.
"This is trouble." Banner whispered worried. He was trying to keep this from happening but it was getting so far out of his hands that he no longer had control over it.
There was a glimmer in Takkar's eyes. "Your vector on Skywalker is?"
She glanced back down at her nails once again. "The weak point, the dress."
"With the dress you get the women and Skywalker's heart." He said in amazement at his wife's genius. "But no one knows who is doing the dress"
"Leave that to me." Takkar's wife pronounced. Murder was nothing new to her. If it meant the survival of the Empire she would even kill her own child. Banner seemed afraid and it left her wondering if he actually had any guts. He was a man, wasn't he? "I'll find it, I'll find her." She hissed. "Then Chik will kill her and this will be done."
Banner drew back away from the crowd. He needed to stop this somehow, if he couldn't... if he couldn't it would be the end of Skywalker, the Peace, and the entire New Republic. It was up to him, but he wasn't so sure. After what Skywalker was, what he stood for, how could Banner save him?
"Mara, I didn't intend for him to hit me, things like that just tend to happen." Luke tried to explain as he reached over and pulled his shirt over his head wincing as the fabric rested on his cut up back.
"They don't just happen Luke." She told him as he angrily shoved him back. Her green eyes glittered with a fire that wasn't going to dim anytime soon. She was angrier with him than he had seen in a while.
"You don't go out much with Han, do you?" Luke asked trying to humor her a little bit. It wasn't working.
"Let me rephrase: They don't just happen right before me wedding." Mara snarled as she forcefully handed him his jacket as she emphasized the word my letting him know that she was going to make some one pay and the first person in her range was Luke as she seethed.
Luke shook his head a he shrugged on his jacket and unconsciously brought his hand to his face again. "I should have known something would happen." He said softly, "Given the premonitions of that nightmare . . ."
Mara brought her hand to his cheek and ran placed it over his directing his gaze back towards her face, her eyes softening. "Well, here. A kiss to banish those worries and to help you heal," she said, her voice barely a whisper, full of love for him alone.
Her hands moved down and settled on his waist pressing close to Luke's chest.
"You can banish all me nightmares, Mara." He whispered, "A kiss, a smile, just being here." He put one arm out and his fingertips trailed down her arm and rested them by her waist.
"Master Skywalker," she said in fake shock, "Are you becoming a romantic?"
"No, Mara, a husband with a wife who inspires him."
"That's something I hope to do for the rest of our lives, Luke, together and forever."
Luke leaned forward closer, lowering his head and kissing her strongly.
Mara melted into his embrace and considered again just how lucky she actually was. She loved him more than anything; she didn't know what had made her so angry, when he had been hurt. After a pause in her thoughts she knew, she loved him more than life itself and nothing would
____________________ It's all so beautiful. Like an illusion ... a dream. Mara whispered then paused to ponder. She couldn't see her surrounding but she held a large bouquet and her gaze was directed towards the sky as her veil covered her face.
Too beautiful ... has to be a nightmare.
She looked down to see her gown; it had been changed to Stormtrooper armor with a flowing train behind. The flowers woven into her hair turned black. The bouquet fell apart and coiled through it was a serpentine dragon.
Not really what I had in mind for my gown. So many people were surrounding her, glaring and leering at her. Leia, Mirax, Chewie, Kueller, Isard, Tarkin, Wedge. So many others all angry with her.
Dress design comes because they suggested a return to Imperial Chic. She ran, ran away from all the shadows.
They're present because Imperial Chic reminds me of the old days. If the old days never died they would have.
She slipped and fell, Jedi surrounding her, bleeding and dead.
And their plans would have kept the Empire and would have required the death of all the Jedi, she paused as they disappeared and the light glinted off the black armor of the menacing Lord Vader.
Death of all, save the betrayer, Vader disappeared and she looked up to see a figure wrapped in a black cloak. Standing on a floating piece of land. And his son. He's the one to whom I'll be given, the one to who I'll be sacrificed.
Luke turned towards her and Mara saw a glint of something in his eyes.
By the one I most trusted. Her Master towered over her letting loose the lightning. It surrounded her and as she fell her heart stopped beating and she died. Mara pushed herself out of bed and was breathing hard, her hair in disarray as she let herself drop down again.
The evidence of so much evil at our wedding as if all that brought us together had been horribly undone. An omen, perhaps, of some one who wants it to be undone?
___________________ Luke shot awake from the feelings of sadness and fear, terror that permeated his senses. He reached out for the source of the emotions because he knew they weren't his own. Mara!
Luke!
What's wrong?
Nothing.
Don't give me that, Luke tiredly pulled on some clothes and got out of bed. I'll meet you on the roof.
Yes.
___________________ Luke was standing at the edge looking over across the cityscape, his arms crossed over his chest and the wind tousled his hair.
"Mara I might warn you I haven't had much sleep and I'm in a generally bad mood, my head is pounding, and my face still hurts so just cut to the chase and tell me what's going on."
"I didn't know you could be in a bad mood, dear."
"If you believe that ask Wedge or any of the old rogues. They've been on the receiving end before."
"The wedding, I'm afraid something is going to happen to destroy it. The future, we're taking a huge step. What if something happens?"
Luke's glower melted into a warm, comforting smile as he turned around and took her in his arms. "Don't worry about it Mara. Everything will be fine, I promise."
Mara melted into him and buried her face into his chest. It was comforting having him so near, it felt like nothing could harm her.
"Anything else?"
"No," she whispered. She wasn't going to tell him about the nightmare but she worried. Luke had had one and some one had tried to kill him, twice. She wasn't only afraid for herself, she was afraid for him.
"Luke?" she whispered and pressed closer to him.
"I know, I know." He kissed her on the forehead, "it'll be alright, I promise."
___________________ "You what?!" Moff Takkar screamed at the idiots that claimed to be Imperials. One of these days he would finish these fools. It was Banner and his weak conscience; it had to be. "You saved Skywalker?"
"But, we thought," Iry protested before he was interrupted again.
"Idiots!!!" He screamed at them. Banner seemed to be able to convince anyone of anything, he was a liability. "You're not paid to think!"
"We're getting paid?" Iry and Chik asked as they looked at each other expressions of astonishment spread over their faces.
"Skywalker dying in a cantina tangle won't make a statement." Banner began trying to force his belief on the Moff the same he did to the others. It didn't work. He seemed to be failing.
"How's this one: Jedi Hero slain in drunken brawl?" Takkar's tone was mocking as he took out his anger on them. They were absolute idiots!
Chik dropped his head knowing where this was going. "Wish I'd thought of that." Iry said with a shocked expression.
Takkar clenched his fists and threw his arms up in exasperation. "I wish you'd thought!" He screamed.
"Because of your ineptness, now we are left with no choice but to attack the gardens during the ceremony!"
"That was the plan," Chala pointed out trying to make a point. It wasn't working. "Chik and I checked there because of the plan."
"That was a plan, not the plan." Takkar snarled at them, furious. "If you had shown some initiative, we'd need no more planning."
Takkar sighed exhausted as he glanced back at his wife. "No wonder we lost it all. I have to do everything."
She stared down at her nails as she continued filing them, ignoring them. She didn't know where her husband had found these men. She had chosen her husband because he was so easy to manipulate. But this Banner was something else. He had a brain, wasn't another unthinking Imp man. "Meaning you'll win nothing, husband of mine."
He glared at her, "how can you say that?"
She glanced up at him wearily. He was an idiot "You trained me to dear. You taught me to look at history and repeat what works. Think on it Derran," she continued, her voice a silky whisper. "Daala, Isard, Leonia Tavira; these were women and they made life miserable in the New Republic. This is a delicate matter and needs a women's touch."
"You think?" Iry asked.
"Gosh," Chala said astounded.
"This is trouble." Banner whispered worried. He was trying to keep this from happening but it was getting so far out of his hands that he no longer had control over it.
There was a glimmer in Takkar's eyes. "Your vector on Skywalker is?"
She glanced back down at her nails once again. "The weak point, the dress."
"With the dress you get the women and Skywalker's heart." He said in amazement at his wife's genius. "But no one knows who is doing the dress"
"Leave that to me." Takkar's wife pronounced. Murder was nothing new to her. If it meant the survival of the Empire she would even kill her own child. Banner seemed afraid and it left her wondering if he actually had any guts. He was a man, wasn't he? "I'll find it, I'll find her." She hissed. "Then Chik will kill her and this will be done."
Banner drew back away from the crowd. He needed to stop this somehow, if he couldn't... if he couldn't it would be the end of Skywalker, the Peace, and the entire New Republic. It was up to him, but he wasn't so sure. After what Skywalker was, what he stood for, how could Banner save him?