Chapter Fourteen:

Mara stared at him with her mouth ajar, not caring for those long, drawn-out seconds how foolish she looked.

He was Darth Vader's son?

Vader had had a son?

She sat back, closing her mouth as she thought it over. Now that Mara had the piece she hadn't known was missing, she was able to link several pieces of the puzzle that had been Vader those last years.

It had all started when the Empire learned the name of the pilot who took down the first Death Star:

Vader's endless search for Skywalker, his seeming waste of money and resources for a single man when he should have been focused on taking out the Rebellion itself.

Darth's brooding frame of mind— more so than normal— after his failure at Hoth.

Then there were the tense months that had happened after Bespin. Vader had emerged from that a different Sith Lord.

Why Vader had allowed a Rebel shuttle bearing a known Jedi onto Endor's forested surface.

And why Vader had helped destroy the Emperor.

Wait, did he do it, or was that Luke? Mara wondered.

When she refocused on Luke, it was to find him looking down now. She could feel his hesitation to stay, afraid that his revelation had pushed her away. Mara eyed him openly, studying him both with her physical senses and the Force.

How in space could such a kind and loving soul have been produced by one of the darkest Sith Lords to ever walk the galaxy? Was Luke the opposite of Vader as a point to be made by the Force itself?

Thinning her lips, Mara realized that Luke had also released her hand, instead playing with his fingers nervously in his lap.

"Look at me," Mara ordered gently.

Luke's gaze sprang up to meet hers, and she held it fast, gazing into the very heart of the man. Who cared about the Jedi, or the son of a Sith Lord? She wasn't falling in love with those personas.

She was yearning for the touch of the man who'd shown her that it was okay not to be perfect. The one who'd not even once thought to judge her, even after learning her past.

With a soft smile and a warming heart, Mara reached out a hand invitingly. Luke glanced to it uncertainly, and then met her emerald gaze again. When Mara held still, he tentatively placed his palm in hers.

"We're quite the pair, aren't we, Luke?" Mara murmured, interlacing her fingers with his and staring at their entwined extremities.

He cocked his head curiously, but did not dare speak.

"Me; the former servant of the Emperor, and you… the son of his henchman." Mara chuckled sardonically. "I must admit that there have been a great many questions answered for me now as well."

"Um…" Luke began gingerly, almost afraid to ask. "Are you angry with me?"

Mara shook her head. "No." she said with complete honesty. "I don't hate you. Quite the opposite in fact."

She felt his surprise at her revelation, and smirked.

"But…" Mara added, lifting a finger. "I have to know…"

"What would you like to know?" Luke asked when she trailed off.

"How did Palpatine die? Was it by your hand, or Vaders… or both?"

Luke shifted where he sat, and cleared his throat. "In the end it was my father who killed him. I had surrendered to Vader in an attempt to get him to come away with me. I was foolishly convinced that I could draw him from the dark just because I was his son."

He looked away. "I have rarely been so wrong in my life. The only thing to top that mistake was Bespin." Clenching his right hand, Luke went on. "Anyway, Vader took me before Palpatine, and they worked together to try turning me to the Dark Side. Eventually the Emperor goaded me into drawing my weapon, and Vader and I ended up in a duel.

"I tried even then to reach Anakin Skywalker: the man Vader had once been. It wasn't until I'd thrown my lightsaber away in favor of killing my own father that Palpatine himself got physical with me. He electrocuted me, and I was near death by the time my pleas to Vader got through. He picked his master up and threw him down the nearest reactor shaft."

Mara took this in with rapt attention, nodding at the conclusion of what had obviously been a summary of actual events.

"So that was why he wanted you dead," she mused quietly.

Upon catching his wary expression, Mara elaborated. "The second time I mean. He told me to kill you just before he disappeared."

Luke cocked his head, frowning curiously. "How did he tell you from that the Death Star?"

"Ah." Mara shifted now too. "You know already that I am Force sensitive."

At Luke's confirming nod, she continued. "Well, sometimes Force sensitive's have… special talents, if you will: certain aspects that they are naturally proficient or highly gifted in. My special aptitude was the ability to both hear and communicate with my master… from anywhere in the galaxy. I did so via the Force, and I think this ability made me a more valuable asset to him for long-distance missions and highly-secretive operations."

Mara thinned her lips. "I am especially glad now that I defied Palpatine's last command for me to kill you. And," she added before he could make a quip, "I now know that his last command to me was meant to be an act of revenge from him to Vader. I was supposed to play his loyal patsy one last time."

"But you didn't." Luke finished for her.

"No. And that means I win, ultimately." Mara glared at her balled fists. "He controlled my life during his own, and I will be dammed if he continued to do so from beyond his fiery grave. I am actually free now, because he did not have all-power over me as I once thought he did."

Luke nodded in understanding, appearing thoughtful. "May I ask…"

"Go ahead."

"… how you ended up with Garris?" Luke finished, trying to be tactful.

Mara actually blushed, causing Luke's interest to grow exponentially. "That is a tale I am not especially proud of. It's… rather embarrassing considering my elite training."

Luke's mouth quirked into a daring smirk, and he couldn't stop himself from replying. "Okay, now you have to spill the carno beans."

Mara smacked him in the arm, causing him to chuckle. She marveled at how… freeform she was with Luke, and how he was so open with her already as well.

"Alright, but promise not to laugh at me."

"Deal," Luke agreed.

"When Palpatine died, our connection was severed abruptly and without warning. That event caused me immense agony and I was unable to think straight," she said. "When I attempted to flee the Imperial Palace while the citizens of Imperial Center ransacked it, I got caught up in the crowds. Some bloke recognized me and led a man-hunt for my hide. I only escaped because I kept ahead of them and merged with the crowd. But when I got into a darkened ally, I was met by a stranger who offered me passage offworld."

She snorted. "I guess I should have said no, because it sounded too good to be true, but I was quite literally also losing my mind, so I agreed. Next thing I knew I woke up in that blasted room."

Luke nodded slowly, processing her words. "I still cannot quite believe that you lasted as long as you did without… you know."

"Yeah." Mara agreed softly, looking down in a moment of self-deprecation.

"Hey," Luke said gently, reaching over to tenderly lift her chin. "Don't feel ashamed. I am beyond impressed by your strength of will, and I think you're a wonderful woman." He worked his throat nervously for a second. "And— now please don't take my head off for this— I… I was blown away by your beauty when I first saw you in the flesh. Mara, you are so gorgeous!"

She felt her eyes mist, and it was suddenly hard to swallow. And as his blue gaze continued to hold hers, she found herself wondering what it would be like to kiss those lips of his.

Before she realized she was even moving, Mara leaned toward him, but then stopped when her brain caught up with her. Her heart was pounding, and her palms were slightly shaky, but all that ceased when Luke closed the distance to caress her mouth with his.

She gasped against him and he tensed, obviously thinking he'd gone too far, but as he started to pull back, Mara scooted closer and wrapped a hand around his head. Drawing him a little closer, Mara continued the tender embrace of their lips.

Her mouth tingled, and Mara's nerves were on sweet fire from the taste of Luke Skywalker.

As he brought his arms around her in turn, and drew her closer to his body, all of Mara's insecurities faded away. Shedding the heavy cloak of her past, Mara took an enormous leap of faith and stepped into the abyss of the unknown future.

To her great delight and surprise, Luke was there to catch her, taking her by the hand and holding fast.

At last they parted, both in serious need of air, and rested their foreheads together.

"Wow!" Luke breathed shakily.

"Wow indeed." Mara agreed evenly.