Chapter 13

by Saber Girl Leia

I'd like to thank Mara look-a-like for pointing out something to include in this chapter.

SailorLeia: You know fanfiction wouldn't be half as much fun if they could stay out of trouble... Thanks for the compliments! Much love! Hooray for the update!

Ariapaige: You're right, Mara can totally go two different ways here. I bet Luke and her are going to have a bit of an argument over that. It would be fun to see her rip them to shreds...

Ellie is so smart! Heehee! Awww, don't slap poor Luke... that's Mara's job. P

Glad you liked the part with Ellie, I am trying to get her back into the story a bit more, because she has been annoyingly absent from the last few chapters. Which is my fault, but I can still be annoyed about it.

And here is the update! Hooray!

Mara look-a-like: Yes! Go help Mara take her down! You're right, she certainly deserves it. Thanks for pointing out that she didn't talk about Ellie much. Knowing what is happening, I don't notice little things like that all the time. I will try to incorporate some of that into this chapter. And you'll find out what she was sorry about, too.

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"What!" Leia and Luke exclaimed.

"I should have told you I didn't like that Cordiva person. I knew there was something wrong with her, but I thought I was just being a distrusting jerk so I didn't do anything about it." Small tears escaped and she tried to hide them. Luke sat down beside her and slipped a gentle arm around her shoulders.

Leia, looking on, was slightly shocked at first. They weren't really... Were they? But she could see the ease and care that Luke held Mara with, and she decided that if the two of them ever were to get together, she would support the match. She wondered who Cordiva was.

"No, Mara," he was whispering to her as he patted Ellie in reassurance. Then he put both arms around the woman and spoke to the brilliant hair masking her bowed face. "Please don't blame yourself. I should have noticed something, and I didn't. It is not your fault."

"You would have noticed, if I'd told you. I've always had a better danger sense, you know. It's not your fault- you probably are not used to Zenriffians- perhaps their thought patterns are different..."

"Luke, Mara," Leia cut in, distracting them for a moment from each other, "blaming yourselves isn't going to help anything. We need to accept what's happened, and think up a rational solution. Listen, if you want, I will go do my best to hold off the reporters and the public now, and call you back in a little bit, once you've both had a chance to calm down." They agreed, and the hologram vanished with a little click.

Luke, his arms still around Mara, brushed a strand of hair out of her face. He released her slowly, crouched down by Ellie, and helped his daughter to the sofa. She nestled between the two adults, again looking back and forth as if trying to understand why they were so upset.

"Shh, it's okay Ellie," Luke murmured. Mara stroked the girl's hair.

"That's part of what really gets me mad, Luke," she said softly, but her voice slowly grew in intensity. "I'm used to stupid unfounded rumors about me, and I know there are plenty about you out there, too, and I know you can deal with them. But Ellie... She- they had no right! They don't even know Ellie! How can they judge her like that! It's inappropriate and disgusting. And she can't defend herself."

Ellie gripped a lock of Mara's hair and babbled to her. The redhead could not stop the tiny smile which slipped through her anger. "Don't worry, Ellie," she whispered, "I'll always be here for you. I love you, baby."

Luke glanced over at two of the people he loved most in the galaxy. Why did life always have to be so complicated? "Listen, Mara. Maybe the best thing is if I go to Coruscant and make a few speeches and try to dispel the bad rumors, and you just disappear for a while to avoid some of the backlash."

He watched her face go through a sudden transformation to outrage. "What, you think I can't stand up for myself, now? You think you're going to play the hero and save me or something? Listen, Skywaker, I'm not a damsel in distress. I can take care of myself a lot better than you can! Don't get all noble and send me away. I won't go."

"I- I'm sorry," he managed, "I only meant-"

"Shut up. We both know what you meant. If you go, I'm coming."

Luke sighed. "When do you presume we leave?"

"I think we need to talk to Leia about that," Mara answered, calmer now.

"All right. She said she would call back soon. We'll ask her then." There was an uneasy silence for a few moments, but it cleared soon. They went to read the articles.

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"Luke, if I read one more thing about what one or the other or both of us has allegedly done, I'm going to crack."

"I know what you mean," he sighed. "But I'm not sure I'd mind too much if you did seduce me..." he added slyly.

"Luke Skywalker!"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Shut up," she grinned at him and he grinned sheepishly back.

He offered her his arm. "I believe it's time for your dinner, Miss Jade." She took it, laughing.

"I'm honored."

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Later that night

Luke awoke suddenly to the sound of Ellie crying. At first her was not sure what it was, as he had become used to Mara, she being the one nearest Ellie, helping the girl if she woke in the middle of the night. Not to mention that Ellie had been getting better and better at sleeping through the night in the past few weeks.

He immediately reached out to both of them through the Force as he rolled out of bed and straightened his pajamas. Ellie seemed fine, she had just had a normal infant nightmare; he could calm her down easily enough. But Mara... she was not in the bedroom, for some reason. And she seemed slightly uneasy. He wished to know more, but knew if he even prodded the slightest bit more, Mara would slam up her shields and later berate him.

Luke went to Ellie first. Just sitting and cooing some nonsense in baby-talk seemed to make her feel better. He replaced the covers that she had batted off.

As he closed the door behind him, Luke could hear Mara arguing over the com.

"Karrde, I can't. Lu- Skywalker needs help. I can't just abandon him and Ellanore. You know this is going to be hard on him."

"Mara, I understand. But I need you for this mission. You're one of the only competent members of the organization whom I trust enough. You are my second in command."

"Karrde, I..." Mara's strained voice trailed off.

Luke entered the room and set a hand on her shoulder. "Go, Mara. We'll be all right."

Mara felt herself get suddenly angry. He would just brush her off like that? After all she had done for him? With him? After all she was trying to do still. She spun towards him. "You may be fine Skywalker, but what about the baby!" she yelled. "I'm practically giving up my job for the two of you and you want me to leave!"

Luke stared at her. "Perhaps we'd better call you back," he said, speaking to Karrde, but with his eyes never leaving Mara's face. Karrde nodded, and Luke switched off the com. Mara was still seething at him.

If he had asked her then, the woman probably could not have explained what she was feeling. She was confused and no longer knew what she wanted. Once, the mission and the freedom it would have brought her would have been the obvious choice. But now... A fierce desire gripped her. Luke and Ellie were very dear to her... she didn't want to leave them.

She had thought... She had dared hope... O blast it all! He had kissed her for Sith's sake!

And now he was telling her to leave.

"Mara?" Luke called softly.

"What?" she yelled back, more harshly than she meant to.

"Maybe we should stop and get some water before this gets out of hand." She nodded ad walked to the kitchen with him just behind. He got two glasses of ice water and they sat at the table. There was an awkward silence.

She finally broke it. "Skywalker, why do you want me to leave so badly all of the sudden?"

"I don't want you to leave, it's just that, well... I don't want to ground you. You always said that your independence was one of the most important things in the galaxy to you... I don't want you to lose your job, either.

"And Leia will be there, on Coruscant, to help me with Ellie if we need it. It isn't that I don't want you with me, Mara, far from it. I've very much enjoyed our time together.

"And also- if you came with us, I doubt it's going to help with the rumors or our reputations."

"Since when have I cared what they think?" she asked hoarsely, intensely.

"Mara," he pleaded once more, "it won't be for so long. I'll be away anyway." He was struggling. Every fiber of his being cried out to him to take her in his arms and make her stay. But Ellie... his first duty was, and always would be, to Ellie.

"Think of Ellie, if not of yourself!" Mara yelled, and it hit Luke like a slap in the face. He was thinking of no one but Ellie!

He was unconsciously broadcasting his thought, an unusual occurrence for the Jedi Master. Mara should have known he was thinking of Ellie. She felt herself blush. "Luke... I'm sorry. I-"

"It's fine. Don't feel bad about it." Luke dismissed her with a wave. He stalked off, and Mara ran after him.

Luke threw himself onto the sofa and let his head fall into his hands. Mara perched beside him and reached out a nervous hand. "Luke..." He opened up to look at her. Tentatively, Mara crawled into his lap. He stiffened slightly, but said nothing.

"Maybe it is time that you thought about yourself a little," she murmured in his ear. Then she added, more quietly, "Just because I'm not her mother doesn't mean I don't love her and won't care for her. I do."

Her head was against his shoulder, as it had been in the dream. But her words were reassuring, and Luke willed himself to relax. He slipped his arms around her; she was already clinging to his neck.

She took this as an opportunity to bury her face in his neck. Her breath was warm and moist and rhythmic against him. For a long moment, they were just still. Quiet.

Until she leaned up and kissed him. And he kissed back.

They finally broke the kiss, but she remained in his embrace, her head once again on his shoulder. "I love you, Mara," Luke whispered. She did not respond.

It had taken courage, but his declaration had come from the heart. It took another moment for him to gather his nerves once more. Why did she not answer?

He would have liked to go down on one knee, or have a ring, or something traditional, but he did not want to risk letting go of his love. So he simply threw caution to the winds before he could lose his nerve and, trembling, asked her.

"Mara, will you marry me?"

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REVIEW! Constructive criticism welcome!