Luke didn't say a word as we stepped into the turbolift, which was fine by me. And he was silent – still – as we boarded our private shuttle to the event. Surprising, but I prefer the quiet anyway. When we had arrived at the Great Hall and I still hadn't heard a peep from him, I knew it was serious and I'd have to initiate the conversation.

Not wanting to spend the entire evening with a grumpy Jedi on my arm, I pulled Luke aside before we made our entrance. But just as I was about to speak, he lifted the embargo on his silence with a question.

"Why did you agree to come with me tonight, Mara? You obviously had much more important things to do with your time."

Where did that come from? Where is he going with this? Confused, I answered honestly, "I came because you asked me."

The brief look of sour frustration that passed across his face before once again resting in a state of Jedi calm told me that my response was, in fact, not the answer he was looking for. "No, Mara. Why did you agree to come when you just can't stand me?"

"Skywalker, what are you talking about?" I still wasn't sure what he was getting at. Why is he so upset? Didn't we spend half the day together sparring?

"I'm talking about you. And how you can't be civil to me for ten minutes. If you dislike my company so much, why in the name of the Force would you agree to spend a whole evening with me?" His expression darkened, leaving me even more confused.

I really wasn't sure what to say. I've never been at a total loss for words, but they were definitely coming much slower than normal, "I…Luke, I don't know where this is coming from. What's going on?" Befuddled, I could feel my brow start to wrinkle. I stood there waiting for nearly half a minute before I saw something. A flicker or glint in his eyes. Something clicked in his mind and the darkness went away. He seemed to look at me differently, and I didn't understand why. "Luke?"

The Jedi's expression softened a bit and he even smiled, "I'm sorry Mara, never mind. Shall we go inside?"

Now wait just a minute. A second ago, he was ready to have it out with me. I want to know what's going on! I closed my eyes to quickly gather my concentration, then opened them again as I stretched out with my limited Force abilities. I tasted everything around me in an instant: the gentle din of the party a few meters away, the sharp attention of the guards beside the doorway, the lazy complacence of the trees against the walls, and the warmth and blinding light coming from the man right in front of me. Touching Luke through the Force was like spending a day at a Hapan luxury spa, it left me feeling relaxed and refreshed. I guess he really is okay... It seemed that whatever was troubling him before had resolved itself.

Apparently, my meager attempt to manipulate the Force was enough to register with the Jedi Master, because he beamed at me. He actually beamed at me.

"That was great, Mara! Really great! You know, you – "

"I know, I know. I should continue my training, spare me the lecture." I tried to sound annoyed, but it came out as more of a reluctant acceptance (which made him smile even more). Somehow, the thought of getting on with my training didn't sound all that bad, though. "How 'bout we settle for just getting inside right now?"

Skywalker's face settled into a grin and he offered me his arm, which I took. "Have I told you how breathtaking you look tonight, Mara?"

I looked back into his sparkling blue eyes. They honestly are such a brilliant shade, how could I not have noticed before? Smiling, I tugged on his coat sleeve, "Thanks, Luke. You look pretty darn good yourself."

I still wasn't sure what had brought about this sudden change, but I had plenty of time left before the end of the night to figure it out.