Okay, guys, here's my humble entry. This is worlds apart from
everybody else's, but then we wanted variety, right? It's quite
long, too, relatively speaking, and more on the serious side.

And thanks to Lori for her editing help. You never saw such a flurry
of last-minute emails back and forth today!

Michele

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"Happy Birthday, Papa"

by Michele

~~~~~

Waning cries of nightbats and morning whistles of jubba birds
filtered through Dagobah's foliage. Mara Jade Skywalker, drifting
awake inside the main cabin of the Jade Shadow, couldn't hear the
noises outside, however. What she did hear was a soft voice next to
her.

"I can't wait to meet you, my son. I only hope the galaxy will be a
safer place by the time you arrive."

It will be if I have anything to say about it, Mara thought to
herself. She reached down and tousled her husband's silky hair. He
looked up, smiled sheepishly, and scooted up to give her a warm kiss.

"Good morning, Papa," Mara cooed, returning his kiss, "and happy
birthday."

"Hmmm. Thanks."

They lay together in silence, heads nestled together on one pillow,
joined hands resting on Mara's swollen abdomen.

"When are they coming?" Luke murmured.

"Han estimated it would be late morning, our time," Mara returned.

Luke ran one hand up under her sleeping shift. "Then I have time to
unwrap my present."

"You are incorrigible, Luke Skywalker," Mara retorted teasingly,
enjoying her husband's caresses.

He continued his ministrations up her body, pausing at her firm
breasts. "And you, my love, are blossoming all over."

"Without even looking, I can see the smirk on your face." Mara
railed back by tugging on the waistband of his sleep pants. She
could sense a flicker of apprehension from him. "Don't worry. I
told you before, he can't see anything," she assured him, laughing.

"I know that," Luke replied defensively. "It's just ... well ...
you're getting bigger ... and we should be careful."

"You don't have to keep reminding me," Mara admonished gently,
pulling his face down to kiss him once more. "I'll be fine, and
he'll be fine. Now quit worrying, and start making me forget about
how big I'm becoming."

Luke helped her ease on top of him and they made love -- slowly,
ardently, tenderly -- always heedful of the new life they had created
with just such an act some four and a half months earlier.

Afterwards, they snuggled once more under the soft coverlet, clinging
to each other as if to block out all the unpleasantness in the galaxy
that had shattered their world. Luke pressed himself close to Mara's
body, rejoicing at the sensation of feeling his son's movements, and
at the same time wondering what kind of father brought a child into a
realm of terror and hatred -- a world where he was in danger even
before he was born.

Similar thoughts ran through Mara's mind as she felt her husband's
strong heartbeat next to her own. She had never been one to concern
herself with what others thought; still, she couldn't help but wonder
what kind of reaction her in-laws would have at the unexpected news
she and Luke had "neglected" to reveal.

It had been two months since they had all blasted away from Duro; two
frenzied months since Tsavong Lah issued his ultimatum to have all
Jedi turned in, in exchange for a false promise of refuge from the
Yuuzhan Vong's onslaught.

Luke had aged ten years in those two months, Mara thought. It was
the Jedi purges all over again. Only this time, instead of Palpatine
and Vader hunting down the Jedi, it was ordinary citizens. The same
citizens the Jedi had sworn to protect.

By the time the Skywalkers and Solos had reached home on Coruscant,
they found they no longer had a home on the capital city. Kenth
Hamner, Cilghal, and the other Jedi had all been forced into hiding.
Han had been frantic, torn between the need to get Leia to a medical
facility immediately, and the knowledge that his wife and children
could be mobbed and captured as soon as the Falcon's ramp was
lowered. In the end, Admiral Kre'fey had managed to get them aboard
his flagship. Jaina and Jacen had stayed with their parents, while
Anakin accompanied his aunt and uncle in a desperate flight to
evacuate Yavin.

During that time, Anakin had finally noticed there was a new presence
in the Force hovering about his aunt, and that she wasn't as firm as
usual in rebuffing Uncle Luke's protective gestures. Respecting
their wishes, he kept their announcement to himself, dampening down
any outward signs of boastfulness that they had entrusted him with
such a monumental secret.

Drifting in and out of sleep, Luke's head suddenly jerked upward in
surprise.

"They're early!" He could sense the Millennium Falcon entering
Dagobah's atmosphere, accompanied by Anakin in his X-wing. As he
hurried through a shower, he picked out the individual senses of
Leia, Han, Jaina and Jacen aboard the weathered ship. Luke gave Mara
a quick kiss as they passed in the refresher, she also rushing to get
ready for their visitors.

Luke caught a sense of good wishes from Leia, causing him to smile as
he traversed the corridors of the Shadow. He bounded down the ramp
just as the still matte-black Falcon was touching down in the small
clearing Luke had maintained over the years, no easy task in view of
the constant overgrowth of jungle vines.

Jaina and Jacen descended first, greeting their uncle then turning to
their younger brother who had hopped lightly down from his
snubfighter. Just heading in from a mission with Kam Solusar, Anakin
had covertly rendezvoused with his family several hours earlier in
deep space, and they had all headed to Yoda's former home in
anticipation of the first family reunion they'd have in much too long
a time.

Luke looked up to see his sister standing at the top of the Falcon's
boarding ramp. He nearly leapt up the ramp, picking her up and
swinging her around enthusiastically. Hearing a clatter, he saw
Leia's cane falling onto the deckplates.

"Happy birthday, my brother," Leia cried, holding him tightly.

"And to you, my dear sister," Luke returned warmly. Smiling, he ran
a hand over her soft crown of hair. "New hairstyle for your
birthday, huh? Another ten years and you'll be wrapping it into buns
again."

"That's right, you haven't seen my new look, have you?" Leia grinned
widely as she clung to him. Somehow things always looked brighter
when Luke was near.

"No," he replied, "though Mara gave me a good description."

"Hey, hey, break it up out here," thundered a deep voice behind
them. "That's MY wife you've got a stranglehold on, kid."

"Han!" Luke released Leia just long enough to give Han a welcoming
embrace. "It's good to see you again," he said, instantly sensing
the peace of mind that his brother-in-law had reacquired.

"You too," Han sent back. "And happy birthday, by the way. Now,
where's your own lovely bride?"

"Finishing getting dressed. We weren't expecting you quite this
early." Luke could feel Leia reaching out with the Force to send
Mara a greeting, and quickly moved to distract her by bending to
retrieve her cane. "How are your legs doing?" he asked as the trio
ambled down the ramp.

"Much better," Leia assured him as she shuffled along. "I can get
around on smooth floors without this thing," she said, waving the
walking stick in the air. "But these three fusspots I'm surrounded
by were afraid I'd trip over some root here on your swamp hideaway."

Luke frowned slightly at the implication that he was 'hiding,' but
let the remark pass. "Ahh, here comes Mara now," he announced as his
wife strode briskly across the clearing.

"Mara? In Jedi robes?" Leia laughed in astonishment at her sister-in-
law's normally despised attire. "I never thought I'd see the day!"

"Hello, Leia." Leaning forward, Mara embraced the other woman's slim
shoulders. "I'm so glad to see you looking well."

"And you're ... " Leia stopped suddenly, giving Mara a shrewd
look, "... positively glowing." Leia's eyes opened wide as
realization dawned on her, and she glanced down at Mara's swathed
figure. "Mara?" Not receiving an immediate response, she turned to
her brother. "Luke?"

Luke was doing his best to fight back an unabashed grin. He merely
nodded, knowing Mara would kill him if he blurted out the news before
she could speak.

Han glanced at the three of them with that same puzzled look he
always got when some "Jedi thing" was going on. "Is somebody going
to let me in on what's going on?"

"Well, you see, Han..." Mara began, but she was interrupted by the
arrival of the Solo twins.

"Mom? Aunt Mara?" Jaina queried, feeling the joy radiating from her
mother and her aunt and uncle. She looked sideways at Jacen, who had
a slow smile growing on his own face.

"I bet I know," Jacen said smugly. "Concentrate on Aunt Mara," he
directed his twin.

"I didn't say anything!" Anakin avowed in response to the glare that
Mara was sending his way.

"Wow," Jaina finally acknowledged. "This is ... quite a surprise."
She gave her aunt a wary embrace, clearly showing she had mixed
feelings about the revelation.

"Will somebody ...please ...!" Han practically shouted impatiently.

Mara laughed and took his arm soothingly. "The farmboy and I have
been busy, Solo," she winked, patting her stomach.

"You mean ... ? Whoa!" Han pulled Mara into a tight hug, regardless
of whether she appreciated the gesture or not. Releasing her, he
turned and clapped Luke on the back heartily. "About time, kid. I
thought you two had given up on the idea, especially as these
birthdays keep rolling by."

"Maybe they should have," Jaina mumbled.

"Jaina!" Leia reprimanded her daughter. Mara stepped in to
intercede, though, and to turn the discussion in a new direction.

"Now, now, we didn't meet here to talk about my having a baby. I
believe we have a birthday party to attend to." Mara turned her
attention to her brother-in-law. "Han, did you bring those supplies
we talked about?"

"Uh, sure, Mara." Han gave his children a parental glare. "Kids,
there's a crate in the cargo hold marked 'party.' Go bring it
to ...." He turned back to Mara. "Where are we having this shindig
anyway? You two have some kind of campsite set up?"

Luke shook his head. "No. We've been staying on the Shadow. It
gets too cool and damp here at night for ... well ..."

"And we thought he was overprotective before!" Mara laughed. "We'll
just have the party in the ship's lounge."

Just then Threepio shuffled his way out of the Falcon. "Oh, Master
Luke, Mistress Mara, it is so good to see you both well. I trust
Artoo hasn't been causing you any trouble?"

"No, of course not, Threepio," Luke answered.

"We manage to get into enough trouble on our own," Mara added in a
low voice.

Luke shook his head at her. "Artoo's waiting on the ship for you,
Threepio. He doesn't like the swamp any more than you do."

Jaina, Jacen and Anakin retrieved the crate from the Falcon, and
everyone made their way to the Jade Shadow.

Just as Mara continually tried to shift everyone's attention away
from her condition, the topic refused to disappear.

"How far along are you?" Leia questioned as Han served her a piece of
birthday ryshcate.

"About eighteen weeks," was Mara's succinct reply. All of the Solos
paused, calculating in their heads.

"So you were already two months pregnant when you were on Duro?" Leia
waited for Mara's confirmation.

"Yes."

"That's why you wouldn't chase down Nom Anor in the tunnel," Jaina
reasoned, scowling. "You shouldn't have even been there. That cave-
in of the rocks could have killed you or your baby. Uncle Luke, I
can't believe you let her go."

"That'll be enough, young lady," Han growled. Mara herself was
showing remarkable restraint at her former apprentice's words.

"Now, Jaina," Luke began, not sure how to even respond. He himself
had had serious afterthoughts when he heard about Mara and Jaina's
harrowing escape.

"In fact, I don't think you even have any business having a baby, now
of all times." Jaina's voice rose as she continued undaunted, eyeing
both her aunt and uncle. "I thought you had more sense than to bring
a baby into the middle of a war." She swung around to face her Aunt
Mara. "And what if your disease comes back? Didn't you even think
of that? Is that why you didn't tell me or Mom on Duro? You were
ashamed?"

"Jaina Solo!" Leia stood shakily, holding onto the table. "You
apologize this instant!"

"For what?!" Jaina retorted. "I'm not the one foolish enough to get
pregnant." Jaina stormed out of the ship, into the mists of
Dagobah's swamps.

Han started to rise, to follow her, but Mara waved him back
down. "Let her go, Han. She's disappointed in me, and maybe she has
a right to be. Give her a chance to cool down."

Jacen and Anakin both stood, nervously shifting from one foot to
another. "We'll keep an eye on her, from a distance," they said to
the adults. Mara nodded in acknowledgement and the brothers quietly
exited.

"I'm so sorry," Leia apologized, turning to her brother and his
wife. "She's been so temperamental lately."

"We understand," Luke replied, putting one arm comfortingly around
his wife's shoulders. "We knew this would be a shock, and that
everyone would have their own reaction."

"And believe me, no one was more shocked than us." Mara gave her
husband a sideways glance and weak smile.

Han and Leia exchanged surprised looks. "So you weren't trying to
have a child?" Leia said tentatively.

Luke shook his head negatively. "No, we thought we were being
careful. Not careful enough, apparently."

"Luke has his own theory of what went wrong," Mara supplied. Han and
Leia both swiveled their heads toward the Jedi Master, curiosity
plainly showing on their faces.

"I think it was Vergere's tears," he explained. "While they acted as
an antitoxin for Mara's disease, I believe they could have also
counteracted her repress meds. We didn't even think of that at the
time."

"Jaina was right, in one respect," Mara conceded. "This is lousy
timing. But...," She squeezed her husband's knee. "We want this
child, more than anything. And we'll do everything it takes to
protect him."

"Him?" Han smiled. "You're having a boy?"

"Yes, even though Luke was hoping for a daughter," Mara laughed. "It
seems the powerful Jedi Master can't control everything."

"I just wanted a little girl as beautiful as her mother," Luke
defended himself. "But I'm overjoyed to be having a son. Our son,"
he added, giving Mara a kiss on the cheek. Han noticed that Mara
didn't seem the least bit embarrassed. "And he's healthy, as far as
we can tell."

"Have you seen a medic?" Leia spoke up.

"Yes," Mara answered.

"No," Luke said simultaneously, frowning at his wife. "I wanted her
to see Cilghal, but she refused."

"I was checked out by a droid," Mara countered, then turned to
Leia. "When we blasted off Yavin, I discovered Luke had crammed the
Academy's Emdee-Five unit into the cargo hold of his X-wing. He
claimed his only thought was to save it from an ignoble death at the
hands of the Vong." Mara gave a little laugh at her husband's
expense. "Even after all these years of living with me, he's still
pathetic at being devious."

Han and Leia joined in the moment of levity, chuckling at Mara's
customary harassment of her beloved husband.

"Believe me, Leia, you were lucky Han couldn't detect every little
nuance of your pregnancies. Luke's convinced this kid's going to be
a great swordsman." Mara rubbed her abdomen soothingly. "And as
much as this little guy moves around in there, he could be right."

"Just be glad he doesn't have a twin to duel with," Leia chuckled.

"I don't think I could handle twins," Mara groaned in relief.

"I think you could handle anything." Leia rose and gave Mara a loose
hug. "I know this happened when you weren't ready, but if ever there
were two people who could handle what life throws at them, it's the
both of you ."

"Thanks," Luke and Mara replied in unison.

Leia sat back down, giving Mara a mock frown. "But you could have
told me on Duro, you know."

"You had enough to worry about at the moment," Mara explained. "None
of us could have predicted it would be so long before we saw each
other again."

Mara was silent a moment, then gave Luke's hand a quick squeeze and
rose. "I'm going to find Jaina," she informed the others.

Leia and Han nodded in assent. Jaina had always respected her aunt,
up until today that is, Leia reflected. She watched as Mara whisked
out the hatchway, Jedi robes fluttering in her wake.

"I'm so happy for you, Luke," Leia reiterated to her brother after
Mara left. "I've always known you'd make a wonderful father someday."

"Well, that remains to be seen." Luke chuckled. "But I'm sure
looking forward to finally having that chance." He stared at his
clasped hands, resting on the table in front of him. "Fourteen years
ago, I had given up on the idea of ever being a father," he shrugged,
his voice turning more solemn. "Callista had told me it wouldn't be
right to bring a child into less than ideal conditions. She said she
was talking about her lack of the Force, but I read into it a deeper
meaning. I think she was referring both to the state of the galaxy,
and to my own heritage."

"Surely you didn't let that influence you?" Leia pressed. "You and
Mara have waited a long time, I know, but ..."

"No," Luke smiled faintly. "We just got too busy, with reorganizing
the Academy, her traveling with Mirax, our getting used to being
married. And then she came down with that illness. That was when we
both started to have misgivings that maybe we waited too long."

Leia nodded, remembering Mara's anxiety when the disease attacked her
womb.

"How long are you planning to stay on Dagobah?" Han spoke
up. "Things are getting worse every day. From what we hear, riots
are breaking out in the plazas all over Coruscant. Citizens are
demanding that all the Jedi surrender, even the children. They're
crazy if they think the Vong would keep their word."

"I know, but they're desperate to protect their families." Luke bit
his lip in frustration, thinking that he understood exactly how those
beings felt. "I need to be back out there now, to encourage the
others to stay strong. But Mara will want to go with me."

"And you think she should stay here," Leia stated matter-of-factly.

Luke nodded yes. "I know she'll do everything possible to keep the
baby safe, but what if that's not enough? How valuable a sacrifice
would the Vong consider the pregnant wife of a Jedi Master, who is a
Master herself? And she wants to go after Nom Anor, I'm sure of it.
She doesn't say so out loud, probably to forestall any lectures on
revenge, but ..."

"Oh, Luke," Leia returned in sympathy. "Mara's not happy if she's
not in the thick of things. I'm surprised you got her to stay here
this long."

"Yup," Han drawled, leaning back on his couch. "Lucky for me, I've
got a meek little wife who always does what I tell her."

Leia's brown eyes blazed, then softened at her husband's jesting.

Luke glanced at the two of them, smiling.

"What?" Han questioned, noticing Luke's gaze.

"Just happy to see you both getting along so well. In fact, it
nearly makes me want to change my mind about what I was going to ask
you, Leia."

"And what was that, Luke?"

"If you would consider staying here with Mara, while I go start
acting like the leader I'm supposed to be. She'd go stir crazy by
herself here, and I don't want her to be alone, anyway." Luke raised
his eyebrows hopefully at his twin.

"You want me to bear the brunt of Mara's wrath while you're out
flying around the galaxy?" Leia asked incredulously. "I'm not that
brave."

"She enjoys your company, and she'd listen to you," Luke
implored. "You are the savvy diplomat of the family."

"Savvy enough to propose this:" Leia stated. "YOU convince her to
stay behind, voluntarily and without bodily harm to you, and I will
stay with her, if she so chooses, for whatever length of time both of
you agree on."

Luke worked his jaw in thought. "I was hoping you would help me
convince her ..."

"No, no, brother." Leia wagged her finger at him. "YOU alone."

Han laughed out loud. "You think Leia of all people could convince
someone to take it easy while pregnant?!"

Luke stared at his sister, remembering her confrontation with the
Noghri while carrying the twins, and then with the reborn Emperor
while expecting Anakin. He heaved a sigh in resignation. "Point
taken. I'll talk to her tonight."

"You never thought marriage to Mara would be easy, did you?" Han
ribbed him.

"No." Luke grinned widely. "But it's worth every minute."

Mara had no trouble sensing her niece amid Dagobah's ancient gnarl-
trees. She nodded as she passed Anakin and Jacen, quietly talking to
themselves halfway between the ship and their sister. At least the
boys seemed to have accepted her condition, Mara thought to herself.

Jaina was instantly aware of her aunt's approach, but remained
resolutely silent, not even turning around.

"Jaina," Mara murmured, coming up to stand next to the recalcitrant
teenager.

"Master," Jaina responded automatically, in a flat emotionless voice.

Mara sighed in frustration, then wondered to herself just when along
the line she had picked up that habit from Luke. "Jaina," she
repeated, in a tranquil, soothing voice. "Ever since I married your
uncle, I've thought of you as a sort of surrogate daughter, and I
would never do anything to jeopardize our friendship. I know I've
failed occasionally in your expectations of what a Jedi Knight should
be ..."

"But you're a Jedi Master!" Jaina interrupted, clutching the stump of
the petrified tree trunk she stood beside. "And we're in the midst
of a terrible war, with no end in sight!"

Mara laid one hand on her niece's shoulder and turned her around to
face her. "Jaina, I am also a woman, a wife, and soon, a mother. I
cannot live my life on some high Jedi pedestal, above normal feelings
and actions. Your uncle did that for years, and it nearly destroyed
any chance of happiness for him. None of us can let some aliens from
another galaxy control our lives. Your uncle and I love each other
very much, and we already love our son."

Jaina looked up at the word 'son,' but didn't speak.

"We know this is not the timing we had hoped for. But fate, and the
Force, has granted us this miracle of new life." Mara lowered her
hand from Jaina, and paced slowly around the small area, ignoring the
nearby butcherbug spinning its deadly wireweb. "I know the danger my
child could face because of my illness. There isn't one moment of
the day it's not in the back of my mind. It was the first thing I
thought of when I discovered I was expecting. When I voiced my
concerns to your uncle, you want to know what he told me?"

Jaina arched an eyebrow, waiting.

"He reminded me that any one of us could die, at any time. The Vong
could pull down another moon, or we could fall out a window." Mara
chuckled at the memory. "Now there's the wisdom of a Master."

Jaina finally looked straight at her Aunt Mara, tears welling in her
eyes.

"I've been a selfish brat. I thought I knew better than you or Uncle
Luke, or Mom or Dad, or even my brothers." Jaina squeezed her eyes
shut against the pain of self-reproach. "I thought because I've been
in a few space battles, I had a clear grasp of how everyone around me
should be acting. I'm so sorry, Aunt Mara."

Mara reached out and tilted Jaina's chin to face her. "Jaina Solo,
you are the most mature, level-headed young lady I've ever met. It
is my privilege to be your aunt, your teacher, and your friend."
Mara gave her niece a warm hug. "Now, I believe they're saving you a
piece of ryshcate."

As the two women walked through the dense foliage back to the Jade
Shadow, Jaina spoke up suddenly. "So you're going to have a boy?"

"Yes," Mara smiled.

"At least you won't have to put up with a stubborn daughter like Mom
does." Before Mara could respond, she continued. "Have you picked
out any names?"

"No, not really," Mara replied. "I suspect Luke may want 'Ben' in
there somewhere. But I'll put my foot down if he even suggests 'Yoda
Skywalker.'"

Jaina joined Mara in laughter at the thought of the diminutive Jedi
Master being a namesake for a tiny infant.

Late that evening found everyone once more crowded into the Shadow's
lounge, discussing both old worries and new hopes.

"I heard Octa Ramis narrowly avoided capture on Commenor," Jacen was
saying, "and even Kyp and his group have had to resort to firing on
private ships just to escape."

Mara grasped Luke's arm tightly. "Luke, we need to be back out
there, before something terrible happens."

Luke gave her a rather odd glance. "Uh, sweetheart, I've been
meaning to talk to you about that."

Han and Leia suddenly rose from their places. "We should be getting
over to the Falcon. It's been a long day. Come along, kids."

"But I was going to stay here on the Shadow," Anakin objected. "It's
too crowded on the Falcon."

"We'll make space," Han declared, leaving no room for
argument. "Let's go." He and Leia were already ushering their
bewildered children out of the lounge.

Mara narrowed her emerald eyes dangerously. "What's going on here?"
She turned and eyed her husband's innocent expression. "Skywalker!"

Luke merely shrugged his shoulders. "Guess they're tired."

"You're a terrible liar," she growled. "Leia? Han?"

"Goodnight, Mara, Luke," Leia sent over her shoulder, her cane
tapping briskly over the metal decking. *Good luck, Luke,* she sent
mentally.

Just as the Solos filed down the lowered ramp into the murky night,
Mara's voice could be heard shrieking at full volume. "YOU THOUGHT
WHAT?!"

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Okay, that's it. Would Mara consent to being left behind? You make
the call.