Horizons ( Luke Skywalker )

chapter XVII

The wedding was quick and quiet, the best that Mara Jade could have asked for. There was no pomp and circumstance, no grande outdated traditions. Yet, it was official and sound. A bond was formed nearly as permanent as the mental link she already shared with her new husband. Taking advantage of the once resented link, she tried to find any hesitation in him, any rationality. If he had any real doubt, it had been wiped away by the emperor for Mara found none.

There was a reason Jedi Knights were never supposed to marry, Mara mused as she admired the sun shining through her husband's hair. Luke only became the newest example. It made manipulation too easy, it paved the way for dark influences in a pure Jedi's life. His commitment to the empire solidified with the ceremony that legally tied him to Mara.

It was guilt. That was her heartbreaking realization. She felt guilt for what she had helped turn Luke into. She had fallen in love with the Rebel and now she was married to a pawn. Nothing she could ever do would atone for what she had already done. Luke was lost, possibly for forever, even as he walked beside her.

"You've been questioning your allegiance," he noted quietly, pulling his hand from hers to lock his fingers together behind his back. She wondered if he was also taking advantage of their force bond, if he could understand her feelings as clearly as his own. Or, perhaps, did he simply understand her? Had her body language, her facial expressions, her tone of voice given her away? Did he truly know her as a husband did a wife?

Either way, it made her uneasy. Privacy, it appeared, was now a thing of the past.

"Don't," she warned, slowing down as to draw further behind him.  "Not know, Skywalker." He seemed unconcerned to have her at his back where he couldn't see her. Luke trusted her in a way that no one else ever had. No one besides, perhaps, the emperor. If it wasn't trust in her, it was trust in his own ability to best her in a fight, even if she happened to take him by surprise.

"What is it that's causing your doubt?" he continued without hesitation, his stride slowing to match hers. "I can feel it lurking in the back of your mind."

"Kriffing shut it," she snapped, finally stopping to stand in place. When he turned to face her, there's confusion written across his features, as if he couldn't understand what caused her anger. Not just anger; she was fuming and she was afraid. If Luke could so easily discover her most troubled doubts, then surely the emperor knew of them as well. Such insight would prove disastrous for her health. Stepping close towards him, she lowered her voice and asked, "Do you understand what you're saying?"

"It's the truth," he heatedly insisted. She saw anger flash in his eyes as well. She couldn't tell if the anger is on behalf of Palpatine or if it's something more personal. After all, after everything he's done to change, Mara's unquestionable loyalty began to waver. He had a right to be upset. "You can't even try to deny it," he continued more softly. "It's dangerous for me to say so; it's even more dangerous for you to feel such things." Bringing a hand up, his fingers gently brushed across her forehead. There's nothing she could to do escape him, even if she wanted to. Had she pushed away his touch, he would still be everywhere.

"You promised to stay out of my head," she ground out.

And then he kissed her. All of their frustration, fear, want, need, it all poured into the kiss. She vaguely felt his hands on the back of her head, pulling her closer, but more than that, she felt the urgency in his lips. They're as soft as they are demanding and her head rushes at the sweetness of it.

"I wouldn't turn you over, wife," he promised when he pulled away. "You know me better than that. Just remember where your allegiance lies."