Downtime
Author: Kimara
Rating: NC-17
Category: Smutlett
Disclaimer: All things Star Wars belong to George Lucas and company. I'm only
borrowing them and will return them unharmed.
Summary: Even Jedi Masters need to take a little time for personal pleasures.

Mara Jade Skywalker stood at the back of the lecture hall, watching the scene
that was playing out before her with amusement. Her husband, Jedi Master Luke
Skywalker sat in the center of a three tiered semi-circle surrounded by a very
diverse group of students who were bombarding him with questions. The first
scooped row consisted of the youngest initiates, ranging in age from six to nine
standard years. These sat as close as possible to the Master and looked upon him
with the love and trust given to a special teacher. The second row contained the
preteen group whose ages ranged from ten to fourteen. These youngsters sat in a
similar orderly circle but positioned themselves a bit further away. Their awe
struck gaze was locked on Luke with the reverence they would give to someone
whom they thought was perfect and incapable of making a mistake. The fifteen to
nineteen year old students were scattered along the outer circle, grouped into
small clusters of friends. They attempted to portray an air of nonchalance as
they listened to Luke's teachings. Taught from a young age not to trust blindly,
they were caught between respect for this man who had been their mentor for many
years and had accomplished so much and their own growing convictions that they
could make their own decisions.

As she listened to both the lecture itself and his responses, Mara was once
again surprised by the ease with which Luke spoke. When teaching a large group
like this one, he had a special talent for keeping his instruction simple enough
for the youngest students without allowing boredom to overtake the oldest. He
answered every question with thought and patience and never seemed to feel the
slightest bit of annoyance at being asked the same question six different ways.
He was a born teacher instinctively building a fluent style that usually came
only after years of intense study and practice. How a boy who had grown up
secluded on a backwater planet had developed into this powerful and intuitive
man was a question she had not yet been able to answer.

A smile blossomed on her face as Mara considered what Luke's response to her
query would be. She could almost hear his calm retort in her mind, 'the Force
has shown me everything I need to know.' But she still wondered what kind of
person Luke would have been if he could have grown up with the kind of support
and training he was giving these children. Or for that matter, what kind of
person would she have become with this type of influence replacing Palpatine's
darkness. Luke's mental voce intruded on her musings. *Our experiences have made
us who we are and I wouldn't change one thing about the woman I love.*
Mara looked up to see that Luke's attention had not wavered from the children
even as he chided her. 'I'm sure you could have done without having me point a
blaster at your head,' she sent back with a mental snort. A Force caress brushed
her cheek as he replied. *We will definitely have some interesting stories to
tell our children and grandchildren.*

Mara chuckled silently at that notion then turned and walked out of the lecture
hall. They had been married a little over a year and their desire to have a
child had grown steadily during that time. The idea of creating a life from
their love and raising that child in a warm, loving family setting was very
appealing. The thought of Luke teaching their own children brought a bright
smile to her face. Still smiling, she moved to a somewhat open but semi-private
part of the garden and began a series of stretches to warm up for her afternoon
workout. Within moments, she was total absorbed in the pattern of the movements.

A short time later, Luke dismissed his students and extended along the bond for
his wife. He was not surprised to find that Mara was in her favorite section of
the garden. He moved silently into a partially obscured grove and looked
longingly at her lithe body as she completed the final exercises of her workout.
Even though she was in her early forties, Mara still had a dancer's figure and
turned heads wherever they went. His mind had begun imagining the things he
would like to be doing to her beautiful body when a half stern mental voice
broke into his thoughts. *Unless you want every teenage boy on Yavin erupting
into lustful escapades, you'd better tamp down on your passions, Master.*
Prompted by his wife's mental teasing. Luke strode through the garden to stand
before her. After making sure they were still alone, he pulled Mara into his
arms. He covered her lips with his, kissing her deeply and exploring the depths
of her mouth until they were both breathless. He nipped lightly at her earlobe
before whispering seductively. "Maybe you should take me somewhere where I can
release my passions without influencing the students."

Mara responded by initiating a probing kiss of her own while running her hand
lightly down the front of Luke's body. When she reached the evidence of his
desire for her, she pressed more firmly. "You still have not learned control,
Master," she teased.

Luke grabbed the wandering hand, clasped it tightly in his and tugged Mara
behind him out of the garden and towards their quarters. "Control is overrated,"
he growled as he increased their pace.

They had almost reached their quarters when a voice called out from behind them.
"Master Skywalker, could I speak to you for a moment?"

Breathing a sigh of frustration at the interruption, Luke schooled his
expression to one of patient teacher as he turned to face the owner of the
voice. "Yes Keara, what can I help you with?"

"I'm still confused about a few things from your lecture," Keara said. "Do you
have time to review it with me again?

Luke looked back apologetically at Mara then replied. "Sure. Why don't we head
into the dining hall? There's still an hour before late meal so it should be
rather empty." Luke turned back to his wife and asked, "would you care to join
us, Mara?"

Keara looked at her teacher as he waited for Mara to answer and realized that
she was probably infringing on their infrequent personal time. "I'm sorry Master
Skywalker. I shouldn't be bothering you outside of class time. You and Knight
Mara appeared to be headed somewhere."

Luke had to fight back a blush as his wife's mental voice rang in his mind, *if
she only knew.* Mara spoke to the young girl and quickly put her at ease. "It's
fine, Keara. I have a few things I need to take care of anyway." She looked back
over her shoulder as she continued walking towards their quarters. "See you
later, Luke?"

"I won't be too long," Luke responded. Mentally he added, *I plan on seeing
quite a bit of you later, among other things.*

*I'll hold you to that, Master,* Mara sent in reply as she disappeared around
the corner.

Luke released the small burst of frustration he felt at having his
responsibilities again take precedence over his personal life and turned back to
Keara. "So what are you confused about?"

*********

After what seemed like endless demands for his attention, Luke was waiting while
the dining hall cook packed up some items for he and Mara's dinner. During the
hour since he had sent Keara off to join her classmates for late meal, Tionne,
Streen, two of the older students and his nephew Jason, had all corralled him
with issues and questions. He blew out a sigh of frustration, wondering not for
the first time this afternoon if the Force was conspiring against his plans for
some personal time with Mara. A voice pulled him back from his thoughts.
"Here you go, Master Skywalker," the matronly cook said as she handed him a
handled bag filled with various plastene containers. "If there is anything else
that you or Mrs. Skywalker would like, just call on the comm and I?ll send one
of the young ones over with it."

"I?m sure that you thought of everything, Yvette," Luke said with a warm smile.
"Thanks for getting the things together so quickly."

"It was my pleasure, Master Skywalker. Have a nice dinner," Yvette replied with
a knowing smile.

Luke blushed slightly then headed from the dining hall. He sent a brief probe
across the bond letting Mara know he was finally on his way to their quarters.
He received a muted mental acknowledgment of his message but Mara's thoughts
were cloudy as if she was concentrating heavily on something. He wondered
vaguely about it but wasn't really concerned as sometimes Mara could be very
intense when she was focused on a task. He walked the remaining distance
quickly, anticipating the opportunity to spend some private time with his wife
and mentally planning the more intimate activities that he hoped would
constitute dessert.

As he walked through the door of their quarters into the common room, Luke was
surprised to find it empty. He had fully expected Mara to be waiting for him as
he entered. Extending his senses he found her slightly shielded presence in
their bedroom. Dropping the bag of food containers on the table on the way by,
he headed to find her. He walked though the open doorway of their bedchamber and
was frozen in place by the sight that greeted him.

Clad only in a sheer sleeveless tunic that barely reached the top of her thighs,
Mara was lying back on the bed. Leaning against the two pillows propped against
the headboard, one knee bent at an enticing angle, she was a vision of feminine
beauty that would have served as inspiration to any artist. Her creamy skin
glowed in the waning light flooding through the open skylight and her red gold
tresses flowed in waves over her neck and shoulders. Green eyes bore into him
and he found himself drawn forward to her side almost without conscious thought.

"I thought you?d never get here," Mara whispered huskily. "I was beginning to
think that the illustrious Master was going to fail to keep his word."
"I?m sorry, Mara," Luke said guiltily. "It seemed like there wasn?t a person on
all of Yavin IV that didn?t need something from me today." He ran his fingertips
lightly along her thigh, stopping when he reached the gauzy fabric that covered
the juncture of her hip. "I?m sure I can find a way to make it up to you," he
drawled.

"Well, I have been waiting for you for quite some time," Mara responded softly.
"Compensation for my patience would definitely be in order."

Luke sat on the edge of the bed and caressed Mara?s cheek with his fingers. "I
will do my best." With that he leaned forward and covered his wife?s lips with
his own. The kiss began lightly but soon deepened as his tongue slipped between
her lips and began dueling with hers. With brief pauses to draw in air, the
kisses continued until they were both breathless. When he finally pulled back,
he asked softly. "Was that acceptable compensation?"

"It is sufficient as a preliminary payment but I will expect more full
compensation to be forthcoming," Mara stated dryly. She pulled on his tunic
until he once again melded their lips and tongues. The mouths remained locked
together, tongues exploring and tasting each other until they were breathless
and panting.

Luke began raining kisses over Mara?s face then moved on to her neck and
shoulders. After taking a moment to remove the gauzy fabric that covered her, he
slid downward until his lips came into contact with the rounded flesh of her
breast. He kissed and nipped the creamy skin along the outer edge, moving in a
circular path until he reached the rosy center. He ran his tongue across the
pink circle until it stiffened into a hard peak then suckled it into his mouth.
Hearing her soft moans spurred him on to release this nipple and moved on to
repeat his attention on her other breast.

In a matter of minutes, Mara was squirming and writhing under his touches.
"Luke, please," she whispered.

Luke raised his head and looked into the sparkling green eyes of the woman who
shared his soul. At the entreaty in her gaze, he felt his own arousal spike and
fought to control it. He rose from the bed and quickly divested himself of his
clothing before moving to kneel between her legs. With arousal and lust clearly
evident in his darkened blue eyes, he said huskily. "I must make sure that you
are fully compensated for your waiting." He leaned forward and sucked gently at
her navel as he ran his fingers through the reddish curls that lay below.
Mara reached down in an attempt to pull her husband back up the bed but he
twisted from her grasp. Luke kissed a path down the center of her abdomen,
through her curls until he reached the folds of her womanhood. He ran his tongue
over the folds while he slid two fingers into the opening to her body. He was
rewarded by a gasp of pleasure and he continued until the sounds coming from his
wife became totally incoherent. With a last kiss, he rose up until he was again
kneeling between her legs.

After taking her legs and resting her thighs against his chest, Luke placed one
hand under each buttock and lifted Mara until his shaft was pressing lightly
against the opening to her body. With a slight forward push, he slid fully into
the welcoming warmth of her body. He remained still for a few moments, just
savoring the feeling of her wetness surrounding him. But soon the temptation
became too much and he had to move. He thrust slowly at first, pulling himself
fully from her body before slowing pushing back within it.

They became lost in the slow rhythm with the only sounds their soft moans or the
slap of their flesh against each other. Soon the passion of their lovemaking
began to overtake them and the slow thrusts increased in pace and depth. Mara
pushed back against Luke?s forward motion and the pattern continued to spiral
upward in its intensity. Their surroundings faded away until the only thing that
existed was their physical and emotional connection. The Force flowed easily
between them, enhancing their love and the desire.

Finally the tide of their passion could no longer being contained and their
climaxes flowed through them. Even as her body shuddered in passion, Mara could
feel the warmth of Luke?s release pulsing into her body. She slid her legs back
onto the bed and wrapped her arms around the collapsing form of her husband?s
spent body. They lay intertwined until their heartbeats and breathing slowed to
a more normal level.

Luke rolled his weight from Mara?s body and position himself beside her. Her
expression was very intent and her eyes had a rather far way look. "What are you
thinking about?"

Mara looked back at her husband and smiled. "When I was watching you with the
students this afternoon, I was thinking about what it would be like for you to
be teaching our children." Her expression became a bit more serious and she
said. "Impatient, I guess. I would have thought that after stopping the repress
meds I would have gotten pregnant by now."

"It will happen Mara. We have both seen it," Luke replied confidently. "We just
have to trust that the Force will bless us with a child when the time is right."

"I know you?re right," Mara agreed. "But patience has never been one of my
strengths." Smiling she changed the subject. "What happened to you getting
food?"

Allowing the quick change of topic, Luke looked down at her and smiled. "I
brought back dinner but you were rather distracting. Would you like me to get it
now?"

"Maybe later," Mara replied sleepily. She curled up into his arms and resting
her head against Luke?s chest, drifted off to sleep. Snuggling her more tightly
against him, he closed his eyes as well.

Luke came awake a short time later to find that Mara was still asleep. Gazing
down at her relaxed facial features and closed eyes, he again thanked the Force
that they finally came to realize their love for each other. As he watched a
crinkle formed between her red brows and her breathing quickened. He felt a
shift in the currents of the Force and he could see tendrils wisping around her.
Not wanting to disrupt the moment, he extended his own Force sense and waited.
As suddenly as they began, the tendrils dissipated and Mara?s breathing returned
to normal.

After a few moments, Mara opened her eyes and looked up into Luke?s concerned
blue ones. "Did you see that too?" she asked somewhat confused.

"I felt the Force shift but I didn?t see anything, Mara," Luke answered. "Was it
a vision?"

"I think so," Mara replied. "We were in the apartment on Coruscant and we seemed
to be a little older. There was a strong sense of foreboding to the scene but I
could see no imminent threat." She stopped and took a deep breath before looking
intently at Luke and continuing. "The only thing that I?m sure of is that I was
pregnant, very pregnant."

Luke felt his breath hitch in his chest as Mara?s words settled within him.
Although he had continued to reassure Mara that they would have a child, they
had not had even the slightest reassurance from the Force since their original
vision in the observation room of the Chimaera. Taking a calming breath of his
own he pulled her into his embrace and said. "The pregnancy is all that matters,
Mara. Whatever else is going on at the time, we will deal with together. We
defeated Palpatine and the Empire. Nothing can possibly be worse than that."

The End.