Skywalker Apartment, Coruscant. 32 ABY.
The mid-afternoon breeze drifted in from the open balcony, bringing the sallow, fading sounds of Coruscant winding down. The soft afternoon sun highlighted the gold in her hair, and played across her skin, tinting it a deep bronze colour. For a moment, Luke almost forgot why he'd come as he stood mutely in the doorway of the bedroom. He watched his wife, lightly dozing on the bed, her boots still securely fastened to her feet and her Jedi robe flung carelessly over a repulsor-chair.
Luke started towards her carefully, very aware of the precious gift he carried on the tray in his arms. He set in gently down on the side-table and sat next to his wife on the bed. He wouldn't wake her just yet. No, Luke Skywalker enjoyed these silent moments of contemplation, watching the curve of her eyelashes, the arc of her neck as it met her perfect shoulder. The light fluttering of her eyelids and the slight, silent words that her dreams formed on her mouth. He had seen the image more times than he could count, but he never ceased to be fascinated by it. Or to remind himself how lucky he was.
It wasn't long before his thoughts began to bleed into her consciousness, because he could see the slight movement to her lips in the beginnings of a smile. He leaned over and placed a soft kiss to the upturned corner of her mouth. When he pulled back, he was rewarded by the fluttering of her eyelids, revealing the smoky jade depths beneath them. Mara's smile became wider as she focused on his face, bestowing him with an adorning gaze.
"What were you dreaming?" Luke asked gently, reaching for her hand.
Her smile became secretive, her eyes drifting closed again for a few moments. When she opened them again, they were completely clear, twinkling mischievously.
"It doesn't matter," she whispered, holding his hand in both of hers. "Being awake is so much more enjoyable." She tugged his hand slightly, and he obligingly lay down beside her, his forehead pressed against hers.
"It's not like you to sleep during the day," Luke said softly, his hand moving slowly down her waist to rest on her hip.
A small crease formed between Mara's eyes as she glanced at the wall chrono. "No." If Luke didn't know better, he was sure she seemed embarrassed. "I suppose running around after Ben today finally caught up with me." She gave him a reassuring smile and moved more tightly into his embrace. "He has your stamina, Skywalker," she added teasingly.
Luke was just about to snap a witty retort back to her when he remembered the tray beside the bed, and reluctantly untangled himself from his wife.
"I have something for you," he whispered, kissing her softly as he rose.
Looking inquisitive, Mara sat up, stretching the cramped muscles in her neck and eyeing him eagerly. The look faded to scepticism when Luke handed her a small teacup. Luke smiled and nodded encouragingly as Mara regarded the beverage he'd prepared for her. He watched as she catalogued the slight purplish colour to the tea, the strong aroma that wafted from the cup, and waited for her to make the connection. After a few moments, a wide smile appeared on her face.
"Massassi tea." She took a small sip and did not blanche at the bitter taste. "But I don't have a fever," she eyed him teasingly.
"Oh, I don't know," Luke shifted closer, very pleased with himself. "It is rather hot in here." He placed a soft kiss to the juncture between her neck and shoulder.
"You're just trying to keep me in your bed, Skywalker." Mara smiled, taking another sip, trying her best to ignore his ministrations.
"You read me like a datapad, Jade." Luke moved up to the spot just below her ear. He was pleased when Mara didn't answer, and he reached out to take the cup from her fingers, placing it out of danger. He shifted closer to her and was surprised when Mara's hand came to rest on his chest, gently stopping him from progressing with what he had in mind. The smile on her face had disappeared; instead she wore a serious, intent expression.
"I never thanked you for that." Mara's eyes deepened as she spoke, an almost imperceptible clouding of her mind.
Luke gave her a gentle smile and placed his hand over hers where it rested against his chest, entwining their fingers. They'd never spoken of that time spent in his quarters on Yavin - he'd never really thought it necessary to bring it up.
Mara tugged on his hand, pulling him towards her and into a crushing embrace. "Thank you," she whispered hoarsely, her voice thick with emotion. His arms wound around her in return, and he smiled into her hair. Gently, he pushed Mara back down onto the bedspread, covering her body with his own.
She sighed, and accepted the movement, her previous anxiety forgotten and he gently pressed a sweet kiss to her lips. She accepted him, and Luke hands slipped down to her waist, resting on the trim of her tunic.
Mara broke the kiss and smiled teasingly up at him. "So, what occasion warrants this gift, Luke? I know the Massassi extract couldn't have been easy to find."
It hadn't, but to Luke that was of little consequence. The smile on her face when she'd drunk the tea had been worth it, at it had arrived just in time.
"I'm surprised you don't remember, Mara." His fingers gently brushed over the swell of her lips. "The anniversary of our first kiss." He bestowed another on her, as a reminder.
"Hmmmm. Almost drowning on an outer-rim world trying to prevent the rise of a new Empire is certainly a reason to celebrate," she pestered him, albeit breathlessly.
Not to be dissuaded by her teasing, Luke began to place small, sucking kisses down the arch of her neck.
"Well, I've always thought so." He nuzzled her collarbone mischievously. He was rewarded with a slight giggle, and he knew he'd found one of her most ticklish spots.
"I hate to tell you this, Luke," she forced out, between gasps and slight laughter. "But that wasn't our first kiss."
He stopped his attentions immediately, his head whipping up to regard her curiously. "I'm sorry?"
"The time after you proposed wasn't the first kiss we shared," Mara clarified.
Luke was beyond confused and he sat up to regard her. "I'm sure I kissed you a few times on the cheek, but I hardly think... "
Mara laughed disbelievingly and sat up as well. "I can't believe that after all this time, you still don't remember." She crossed her arms over her chest, her face the picture of amusement.
"Remember what?" Luke said, exasperated. There were very few times when his wife could truly confuse and irritate him, but her cryptic answers were beginning to get the better of his patience. Probably sensing his annoyance, Mara simply shrugged, a smug smile gracing her face.
"Never mind." She lay back down on the bed, inviting him to continue their previous activities.
But Luke would not be placated nor distracted - the curiosity and confusion driving him mad. He shut his eyes, using the Force to probe his mind, searching for any hidden or suppressed memories regarding him and Mara before their encounter at Nirauan.
Eventually he stumbled across a hazy, clouded image, locked within the recesses of his psyche. He saw his wife, much younger, but no less vibrant or beautiful. He saw himself seated next to her, dishevelled and bleary-eyed. He heard his own slurred voice, the ghostly reverberations of his words echoing around his mind. Saw himself brushing his fingers across her neck and face, winding through her hair, and - oh stars - reaching in determinately to kiss her.
Luke drew himself out of his trance, giving Mara a shamefaced expression of regret. She was smiling slightly at him, but he could tell it was false. He'd hurt her deeply that night. Luke cautiously lay back down beside her, pulling her gently into his embrace. Suddenly, he saw all too acutely exactly why Mara had reacted to Callista's reappearance so fiercely. It was in part the remembered pain of his advances on her, so soon after he had been abandoned. Luke felt the warm colour rise to his cheeks. She must have seen herself as a replacement,that he had sought her out to ease his grief and nothing more.
"I'm so sorry, Mara," he whispered in her ear. If only he had remembered - had been able to apologise to her. If only he'd had the sense to recognise his feeling for what they were, made her understand why he had kissed her, made himself...
She must have picked up on his thoughts, because Mara turned around in his arms.
"No, Luke," she shook her head softly. "I wouldn't have been ready...you wouldn't have been ready." Her deft fingers caressed his cheek. "We needed the time apart."
He nodded. "I just wish... " he trailed off, unsure of what he wanted to say.
Mara placed a soft kiss to his lips. "I don't consider those wasted years, Luke. Not at all." She played absently with the small beads that hung around her neck, the ones that he had carved for her from the bark of the Massassi trees. During her convalescence on Yavin after she'd been struck down by Massassi fever she'd watched him whittle small carvings for his niece and nephews. She'd refused his offer of a gift as well but he'd promised that one day he would make something for her. It wasn't until years later, during the Vong war, that he'd fulfilled that vow.
"I said I couldn't think of anything I'd want," she said quietly, picking up on his thoughts and twirling the beads between her fingers.
Luke smiled self-consciously. "I doubt that you ever wanted those, but you still wear them." It had been an odd gift, Luke could admit that to himself, but it had been the only thing he could think of to make from the bark at the time.
"Of course," Mara said earnestly. "Because I can think of something I want now. You."
It was an uncharacteristically simple declaration of affection, the kind it had taken Mara many years to learn how to make. But that only made the love in Luke's heart blossom as his arms tightened against her. She was right that they needed to find themselves before they found each other, but now that they had he wasn't ever going to let go. She lay her head against his chest and sighed happily as he kissed her hair.
"I love you, Mara," he whispered into her red-gold curls, seeing the smile on her lips, feeling the smile in her heart.
"I'll never doubt it," she answered, her voice muffled slightly by his tunic. But he felt the emotion of her words, the weight of them filling the empty spaces of his soul. He stroked her hair gently, rhythmically, easing her back into a gentle sleep, feeling the pull of his own eyes willing to close. Luke yawned and settled deeper into the bed, closer to his wife, for once untroubled by his fear for the Jedi, for his family. Contentment flowed through him easily, freely, and he marveled at the sensation.
It was that he heard soft footsteps in the hall, at the entrance to the room. Luke peered over his wife's shoulder, smiling at the small strawberry-blonde crop of hair that had appeared in the doorway. Without words, Luke gestured for his son to join them, and Ben bounced happily and perhaps a little too excitedly onto the bed. Luke pressed a stern finger to his lips and looked pointedly at Mara, who was already deeply asleep.
Ben looked sheepish, and crawled very slowly and quietly into the space between his father and mother. Luke lifted his arm to accept him into the fold of their embrace, and Ben snuggled down into the warm, loving cocoon. Luke smiled again, a true, unfettered smile at the two people he loved most, safe in his arms, before finally allowing his eyes to drift closed in contentment.
They fell asleep like that, Mara pressed close to her husband's side, Ben nestled in tightly with his head pillowed against his mother's waist, and Luke with his arms around the both of them.