Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars; all rights belong to the genius we know as George Lucas. Mara Jade is the creation of another genius named Timothy Zahn, while Callista Ming was created by Barbra Hambly another gifted individual. I'm just borrowing. I'm not making any type of profit off this story, I'm writing for my own enjoyment and hopefully to the enjoyment of others.

Author's Notes: Ever wonder what goes on in Mara's mind?

Han's face appeared before him through the holoprojector, "What no 'hellos,' or 'how are the kids?'"

"Han, I'm really not in the mood for the small talk."

Han blinked; Luke was never this brusque; the pair must have gotten into a fight. He shrugged before getting to the business at hand, "Well, it seems that for some reason or another, we won't be getting the missiles you asked for."

"What? I thought we had that cleared weeks ago. I filed all of the necessary permits on time."

"Yeah, well they're claiming that they didn't get them. Of course if you wired them an extra 50,000 creds; they're sure that it was just a filing error." Han shrugged, "Bureaucrats, what can you do?"

Luke sighed. "Have you checked with Karrde? Maybe he has some handy."

"First person I called; he doesn't."

"Booster?"

"Sorry, Kid."

"What about your own contacts?"

"I made a couple of calls. It looks like I may be able to swing something."

"Do I want to know how?"

His best friend smirked at the camera, "No."

"Then what's the problem?"

"It'll take them longer to get here, an extra 2 days at least, but they'll give us an honest rate for them."

Luke paused, he could swing the extra time needed to stay planetside, the question became, did he want to, or would Mara want to, considering who was on the surface.

"Luke?"

"Yeah, I'm still here. Let's go with your plan; I'll think of something to tell Mara."

"She hasn't figured anything out yet, has she?"

Luke shook his head. "No...we've been a bit distracted."

Han gave him his patented crooked grin, "I'll bet."

Luke grimaced at his friend's insinuation. His frustration level was starting to rise again. "Callista's planetside," he blurted out.

His friend's grin suddenly became a thin line. "Does Mara know?"

"She was there when we ran into her."

"Want me to get Leia?"

He was about to tell Han not to bother her, but then thought the better of it. "Actually, could you?" The other man nodded before leaving the scope of the holocam to retrieve his wife. Luke could hear their muffled voices and then a faint incredulous shriek, then he heard an incensed "How dare she? Where's a bunch of Noghri assassins when you need them?" and in the next minute he was looking into the face of his very livid sister.

"What in the Emperor's name is SHE doing there?" Fury and scorn dripped from her every word.

"Leia-"

"So what? She found out about the wedding and decided to sabotage your honeymoon? The nerve of that woman! She didn't ask you to take her back did she? How did Mara react? Did she hurt that woman? I hope Mara used her blaster on her; oh wait, Mayastria doesn't allow blasters. Did she have her vibroknife with her, ooh, even better did she use her lightsaber?"

As his twin continued with her tirade, Luke couldn't help but chuckle in amusement. How like his sister to become indignant and infuriated over what she considered an affront to him and his happiness. "Leia, calm down."

"But Luke-"

"She didn't know we'd be down there. Leia, she didn't even know we were married."

"Oh," Leia expression softened at his words, "how did she find you?"

"We found her actually;" seeing Leia's brows furrow in confusion Luke began to clarify. "Mara and I were just walking on a street when we..."

"Luke?"

Luke's eyes widened as he realized what exactly had happened out in the street, "We felt her."

"I don't- Luke you're not making sense."

"Callista," He told her through clenched teeth. "We felt Callista before we saw her."

Leia paused apprehending the implications of his statement, "She found her way back to the Force?"

Luke's eyes became unfocused as he relived the moment Mara and he stood in the busy street. He was about to suggest a small café when he felt her presence. It was faint, like a star's light dimming before it burns out, but it was there. Luke's mind came back to the present, "It was her." He confirmed, "But it was very weak, like it was being muted, not by her though." His eyes became pained, "Why didn't she contact me? Why didn't she let me know?"

His sister's tone was sympathetic, "Maybe she wasn't ready to face you; maybe she just felt like she didn't have the right." Leia decided to change the subject, "How did she take the news?"

"Like you'd expect. She was surprised; then she left."

"How about you? How are you taking it?"

"The shock is beginning to wear off, otherwise I'm all right."

"Really?"

"Well, I am feeling some guilt." Seeing Leia's puzzled face, Luke started to explain, "She shouldn't have found out like that."

Leia gave him a small sympathetic smile, "It wasn't like you could send her a message or tell her in person. You didn't even know where she was, Luke."

"I told her I'd love her forever."

"She shouldn't have expected you to wait forever," Leia countered. "Besides, she left you. Twice. As far as I'm concern, she had her chance and she didn't take it. It's not unrealistic that you would have moved on. Speaking of which, how is Mara taking all of this?"

Luke winced at the mention of his wife's name, "I'm not sure. She pretty much shut me out once we saw Callista."

"Didn't you talk about it?"

At once, Luke started to feel defensive, "We were going to talk when we got back here, but then I got Han's message, and she left."

Leia's eyes went wide; her next words were slow and deliberate. "And. You. Didn't. Go. After. Her?"

Luke gulped. "She didn't want me to." I guess I was right about that clueless farm boy transformation.

Then came the explosion, "And that's your excuse for not going? What's wrong with you?" Yes, definitively the clueless farm boy right now. "You should have made her stay and talked things out."

"Leia, do you really think I could 'make' Mara do anything?"

Now, it was Leia's turn to wince at Luke's words, "You do have a point..."

She wasn't really paying attention to where she was going. All Mara knew was that she just wanted to be alone to think. She was lost in her thoughts that she didn't see the sign marking where crews were blasting land for construction; luckily, a worker saw her and stopped her from entering the zone. Figuring the native knew the area better than she did, Mara asked the man if he could tell her where to find a couple of quiet places. He gave her the directions to a nearby waterfall, but warned her not to get to close to the edge since they were still blasting and even from that distance she would feel tremors. Once again she tried to locate the source of her anxiety. It's like I feel threatened by her. Mara rolled her eyes at the thought. No way! Why would I feel threatened by that body snatcher? She thought disdainfully. "Great, now I sound like a jealous wife," she muttered as she came to the falling water. I'm not jealous of her. I have no reason to be jealous of Callista; if anything I should pity her. She had a long-term relationship with Luke; if she wanted to she could have stayed, could have made it work. But she didn't. Her choice, her loss, not my problem. It should have been as cut and dry as Mara was trying to make it. However, no matter how she tried, she couldn't. In her mind an insidious thought kept running through her mind. Callista was a Jedi Knight.

Well, I am now too.

She was a Knight of the Old Republic. She came back from the dead to be with him.

I threatened to kill Luke several times and never did. That counts. Even as she repeated the words to herself, they seemed weak.

She was the type of person people expected Luke to be with. A Jedi Knight, respected, serene, wasn't an Imperial Agent.

Luke accepted my past; that's all that matters.

She got to spend a lot of time with him. She even agreed to live with him on Yavin IV

Oh, please, she was there for what? Less than a year? I spend time with Luke!

Sure you do, when you know it'll only be for a couple of weeks, and then you're off again. At least she was willing to make a long-term commitment to him.

Hey, I have responsibilities! Mara shouted to that annoying little voice her head. 'Sides, Skywalker and I already talked about this. We both understand why I didn't, why I can't stay at Yavin IV.

But the voice wouldn't stop. Then you had to go along with that silly cover story about you and Lando.

What is this? Remind Mara-of-all-of-the-stupid-things-she's-done hour?

No...well...yes...yes...I suppose this is.

This must be some type of mind control.

Wouldn't that be convenient? The voice mentioned playfully. Unfortunately, you're stuck with me.

And what are you? My worst fears personified?

Close.

Then why don't I hear you more often.

Usually, you don't hear me, because, well, you usually repress me.

Hmph, next time I'll just kill you.

Temper, temper, the voice tsked her, remember Anger is of the Dark Side.

Oh, will you just get to your krffing point?

Gladly, like I was saying, I'm the part of you that lets you know when you're just full of bantha fodder. Most of the time you don't need me, but every once in a while...

So, are you just going to tell me that I am threatened by Callista's presence?

No.

No?

Well, a tiny bit of you is threatened, but that's normal and typical, and you can handle that on your own without me. No, you're worried about something else.

Mind enlightening me?

You know, I'm surprised Disdain isn't of the Dark Side. Anyway, back to the million credit question, well it's-

Mara never got to hear that little voice finish. The snapping of a branch warned her of someone's presence; she grimaced as she realized that she didn't detect another person nearby. That's what happens when I have conversations with myself. Turning around she half expected her husband and had some choice words to impart to him. However, it wasn't Luke. She scowled at the intruder of her solitude, "Are you following me?" Callista recoiled at the harshness of Mara's tone, but her reaction only confirmed Mara's suspicions. Her eyes narrowed into her patented death glare, and she crossed her arms, "Why?"

Callista gave her a awkward smile, "I guess I needed to make sure that what I learned was true. I guess I needed convincing that you were really together."

Mara could understand that reasoning, but she also knew that Callista was holding something else back. "You could have just accessed information about us over the HoloNet. Still doesn't explain why you were following me."

Callista opened her mouth to answer, but she closed it again. Obviously, she was having trouble finding an appropriate answer. Good, I'm making her squirm. Callista stared at the water for a moment before turning around again. "I suppose I just wanted to make sure that you really did care for him. That you wouldn't hurt him."

Mara's jaw dropped. The nerve of that, that, insignificant, inarticulate, Delusional, Paranoid, BANTHA BRAINED, SPICE ADDLED NUMB WIT! "You think," her words were venomous and hissed as they left her mouth, "you think that I would hurt him? Looked in a mirror lately?" How dare she imply; what right did she have? Mara's mind was so focused in her anger that she almost missed it.

It was a small flicker like a flame was being lit only to be blown out. It was enough for Mara to realize that something was about to happen, but not enough for her to avoid what occurred next. The pair heard in the distance the sound of a blast, then the large fluttering of birds as they tried to escape the debris and dirt. Both women tried to hunch down to avoid the winged animals; although Callista moved quickly, she just wasn't quick enough. She ended up in the path of some of the birds. To avoid getting hurt she instinctively raised her hands and moved backwards. Towards the cliff. Mara's mind grasped the danger and without conscious thought, shot out her arm to grab the other woman.

The idea was for Mara to reach Callista, and then pull her back towards safe ground. It would have worked, but Mara missed a crucial detail. She forgot about the tremors, from the blasting. As Mara moved, the ground moved; and Mara was unprepared. The shaking ground made the Jedi loose her balance, giving her more forward momentum, more than she had intended, and she didn't have time to reverse herself. So instead of catching Callista, Mara effectively grabbed the woman before they fell over the cliff's edge.

When one starts to free-fall down a steep slope, Mara knew the instinct is to scream. To scream in hopes that one's voice is heard over the crashing of rushing white water over rocks. To scream in hopes that a person will come to help, that somehow, somebody would find a way to stop one's descent. To scream because gravity and panic paralyzes the rest of the body from reacting, and all one can do is scream. Mara opened her mouth, but found she had no voice. Her descent was too quick and it seemed like her vocal cords were locked in a vacuum. Fear of her own mortality began to overtake her. She had only one thought as she plummeted towards the raging waters.

LUKE!

"Are you sure you'll be all right?" Leia asked her twin.

"Yes, Leia, I'll be fine. I really should go find Mara. I know she said she'd be back, but I should have gone after her."

Leia nodded at his words, "Did you want to say good-bye to Han?"

"No, let him have his fun. Thank him again for me, would you?"

She snorted, "He should be thanking you. The last time Chewie and he looked so excited it was because they were installing a new custom shield on the Falcon. Now they get to customize a whole ship." Leia grinned, "I just wish I could see Mara's reaction when she sees it. Love you."

Luke returned his sister's smile, "Love you too." Then the projector shut off. After talking to his sister, Luke started to feel more optimistic. Hopefully, by now Mara wouldn't be angry with him for defying her wishes. He was halfway out of the room when he felt it. He doubled over as his wife's panic flooded him.

(LUKE!)

And then there was silence.