Chapter 17: Siblings

After helping Mara settle into her quarters, Luke sat alone in own cabin onboard the Home One. He leaned back in his chair, thankful for the opportunity to relax for even a short time. Sometimes, he felt as if the weight of the galaxy was on his shoulders and he was thankful for even a brief respite from his responsibilities. The next day he would once again be thrust into the roles of commander and Jedi, but for now, he could take an opportunity to unwind. As the tension in his muscles faded away, Luke was about to doze off when he the electronic tone of the door chime.

Luke was tempted to just ignore his visitor, but there was always a possibility it was Mara. Now awake at the thought of his red haired companion, Luke rose from his seat to answer the door. He tried to keep the disappointment from showing when the door opened to reveal not Mara, but Leia. Luke knew that he should be more excited to see Leia, but he still wished to be in Mara's company once more. He loved his sister, but the feelings he was developing for Mara were something else entirely. Luke found Mara's presence to be intoxicating.

"Hello, Leia." The slightly annoyed look on his sister's face as she entered the room told Luke that he hadn't done as good a job as he had hoped in covering up his disappointment. It looked like he was in for an uncomfortable discussion with his sister. Luke just hoped he could keep her calm enough to avoid a shouting match. He knew that Leia was displeased and she wasn't one to hold back when she was angry even if the cause of her ire was her own brother.

"Expecting someone else, little brother?"

Luke swallowed involuntarily at the glare Leia was giving him. "No."

"Really? You've barely trained me in the Force at all and even I could sense the disappointment coming off of you." Luke remained silent, unable to formulate a coherent response. His sister had knocked him off balance and Luke knew that recovering wasn't going to be easy against Leia. "So did you find whatever it is you were looking for while you were away?"

Luke didn't know why his sister had changed subjects so quickly, but he was thankful for it nonetheless. At least now she was asking questions that he actually had answers to even if he knew that, ultimately, Leia wasn't going to drop the subject of his disappointment at her arrival. Sooner or later, Luke knew the topic of conversation would shift to the attention he was giving Mara. "I found some answers, but those answers just raise more questions."

Leia nodded, recognizing the truth in Luke's words. Answers to any questions of real importance were rarely simple and usually only served to bring about more questions. At least he had come back safe and sound this time. Luke's usual quests involved coming back and spending a few days in a bacta tank, but this time he had returned without a scratch. Leia had to know how her brother pulled that one off. "Well, it's good to have you back. Of course, it would have been nice to know where to find you. We could have used you in a few of those battles."

"I know and I'm sorry. But I needed time away and I knew that if I was in contact with you I would have come back only to need time away once more. It was easier this way."

Leia didn't especially like Luke's answer, but she could accept it. Everyone was entitled to some time to take care of themselves, especially her brother. Luke had already been through more in his life than most people could even dream of. He had earned his leave even if he hadn't gone about it in the best manner. "If you don't mind me asking, where have you been the last two months?"

"I spent most of my time on Naboo, but I did stop by Tatooine briefly."

"Naboo?" Leia had heard of the small mid rim system, but had never been there personally. All she could remember was that it was a temperate planet that was relatively closed off due to Imperial orders. She definitely didn't have a clue why Luke would have gone to an out of the way planet that he had likely never heard of in his life.

"Yes. When I left, I had no set destination. I just opened up the star charts and let the Force guide me. It led me to Naboo." Luke turned to face his sister. Naboo was now important to more than just him. It wasn't just his mother that had come from that planet, but their mother. "When I was there, I learned about our mother. She was from Naboo."

Leia's eyes went wide at Luke's statement. She never imagined that Luke would have returned with information about their mother. Leia had assumed that finding out anything about her would have been difficult considering how thorough the Emperor had been about wiping out all evidence of their father's past life, but Luke had found something. "How did you find this out?"

"The whole time I was there, I was drawn to the same spot by the Force. Later, Father came to speak me through the Force in much the same way as Obi-Wan. It turned out that the spot I was gravitating toward was the same place where they were married. Her maiden name was Padmé Naberrie, formerly Queen and Senator Amidala of the Naboo. I tried to find more, but most of the records were destroyed. Someday, I want to go back with you and search for more."

Leia sat down during the course of Luke's statements. The name Padmé Naberrie was unfamiliar to her, but Leia had heard Bail speak of Senator Amidala before with more respect than she had ever heard him speak of anyone. Those stories had helped Leia to decide to enter politics in the first place. She had followed in her mother's footsteps without even knowing it. "Of course. Someday, the Empire will be driven off Naboo and then we'll look for a link to our mother together."

Luke smiled in response to Leia's determined response. Knowing her like he did, Leia would probably end up leading the charge whenever it came time to liberate the planet. Of course, he would probably be following right behind her. Luke was shaken from his thoughts of fighting for the planet he had come to adore when Leia spoke once more. "This still doesn't explain your new student. How did you come across Mara?"

Luke rubbed his gloved hand over his chin for a moment, unsure of how to respond to Leia's question without immediately alarming her. He finally realized that Leia would worry regardless of how he broke the news so it would be best to just be straightforward and deal with her concerns as they arose. "I found her in a lake."

Leia raised in eyebrow at Luke's statement. She hadn't expected that answer. "In a lake?"

"She was drowning and I pulled her out."

"So she latched on to her rescuer."

"Not exactly. If Mara had her way, we likely would have parted ways right after she came to, but she didn't have anywhere to go. She has amnesia."

Leia gave her brother a stunned expression. This kind of thing would only happen to Luke. Her brother had a way of gravitating toward bizarre situations. "Does she remember anything?"

"Any abilities she had before the accident are intact, but her memory is only returning in buts and pieces." Luke took a deep breath and met Leia's eyes. Now came the hard part. He just hoped Leia wouldn't overreact. "I think she's a former Imperial. Emphasis on the former."

"You brought an Imperial agent here!"

"Leia, we can trust her. I'm sure of it. The Force tells me I can trust her. And if that's not enough, we were attacked by a squad of stormtroopers on Naboo. They were after her, not me. The Empire is after Mara. This is the safest place for her. And she may prove invaluable once her memory returns. I think she may have access to a secret or two."

"And what makes you think that?"

"I think she answered to the Emperor personally."

Leia gripped the bridge of her nose between her fingers. Her brother had to be the most trusting individual in the galaxy. If she hadn't learned to trust Luke's Force instincts, Leia would have already called for Mara to be arrested on the spot. That still didn't make her comfortable with the idea of having a Force strong and likely deadly former Imperial agent in such close proximity to her brother. "Are you sure about this?"

"The Force doesn't lead me astray. I'm supposed to be helping her."

Leia looked up to meet her brother's eyes once more. The determination she saw in Luke's blue eyes was enough to allay her worries for the time being, but she would have to keep an eye on Mara. No one hurt her brother. But first Leia had to know just how much Mara would be capable of hurting Luke. "And you're sure this is the Force talking and not your hormones?"

Luke's eyes narrowed slightly, but he wasn't mad at Leia. However, he wasn't sure if it was because there was some truth to her statement of the fact that he just didn't know what was going on between him and Mara. "Yes. And I don't like what you're insinuating. She's my student and I wouldn't do anything to take advantage of her amnesia."

"I never said you were taking advantage of her. She seemed quite protective of you back in the hangar. So, what is going on between the two of you?"

Luke remained silent for a moment, facing the wall that separated his quarters from Mara's. They had kissed, but he didn't know what Mara had felt. For all he knew, she was just showing her gratitude physically, but it had been more than that to Luke. He felt a connection to her that he hoped Mara felt too. "I wish I knew."