Shattered Remembrance

 

 

Chapter Nineteen

 

Mara blinked rapidly as the figure moved inside, allowing the glaring light from the corridor to fill the pod.  Squinting, she sat up quickly, just barely managing not to bump her head on the low ceiling.

 

"Luke?"

 

"Mara, what are you doing in the escape pod?" Luke repeated, crouching down in front of her.

 

"That's what I'd like to know, too," a second voice echoed through the hatch.  "I don't appreciate stowaways on my ship."

 

Luke glanced back and forth at the two women.  "Uh, Callista, do you know—"

 

"Mara Jade," Callista said evenly, eyeing Mara with a cool gray gaze.  "The Emperor's Hand."

 

"Former Hand," Mara corrected coldly.  She forced her brief flare of anger to burn down into resignation.  She'd been caught, that's all there was to it.  "And don't you think it's getting a little crowded in here?"

 

Callista backed away without a word, allowing Luke and Mara to exit the pod.  She stood ramrod straight, crossing her arms expectantly.

 

Luke cleared his throat and took the initiative.  "Mara, why were you hiding on Callista's ship?"  He paused, his brow furrowed with uncertainty.  "Did Leia send you?"

 

"No, she did not," Mara ground out, then mentally kicked herself for passing up what would've been a plausible excuse.   No matter.  She would take responsibility for her own actions.

 

"So you were spying on me of your own accord."  Luke's blue eyes darkened as he stared at her, and Mara could hear the resentment building in his voice.   "I thought you, of all people, believed in my ability to take care of myself."

 

"I do, Luke."  Mara knew she had to tread carefully.  "It's just ... you haven't been off-planet since your accident, and I was concerned for your safety."

 

Callista's eyes narrowed in obvious indignation. "Why wouldn't he be safe?  Luke's well-being is my primary consideration."

 

Mine, too, you claim-jumper.   "That's good to hear.  Anytime someone sweeps in out of the blue and spirits away a friend of mine, I get suspicious."

 

"Anytime someone sneaks aboard my ship, I get suspicious."

 

Luke had been hanging back along the bulkhead, glancing back and forth at the two women.  Now he stepped forward, palms up in supplication.  "I'm fine, Mara.  Really.  And Callista, I'm sure Mara's reasons are just as she says.  We did leave rather abruptly."

 

"All right, Luke."  Callista's posture softened ever so slightly.  "If you vouch for her, that's good enough for me."  

 

 Shaking her head, Mara looked Luke square in the eye, ignoring the ship's owner.  "How did you know I was in the escape pod?"

 

"I ... I'm not sure," Luke faltered.  "I was thinking about you, and then I just knew.  It was like I could sense you."

 

Except that Mara knew she'd been hiding her presence, even as she slept.  It was as if their Force bond, which she feared had been lost, was fighting to resurrect itself.

 

"Many times Jedi can sense each other," Mara returned, falling back into the role of teacher.

 

"I was not aware that you are a Jedi Knight," Callista said, both her tone and face expressionless.

 

"Of course she is," Luke interjected before Mara could answer.

 

"If you say so, Luke."  A simpering smile appeared on Callista's face, and it was all Mara could do not to groan in disgust.  "Regardless of why you felt the need to intrude onto our journey, Mara Jade, you're here now, and we shall make the best of it.  I have finished preparing evening meal, so you are welcome to join us."

 

Mara couldn't deny that she was hungry, and she really didn't want to let Luke out of her sight, anyway.  "Thank you, that would be appreciated."

 

 

*** 

 

Dinner that evening was the most strained meal Mara could ever remember having.  Callista didn't exactly fawn over Luke, but she was ridiculously attentive to his every need – refilling his glass after each sip, shoveling second helpings onto his plate, offering a dozen different seasoning shakers to him before he could ask for any of them.  Luke was clearly uncomfortable, keeping his gaze fixed on his meal while mumbling 'thank you' every few minutes.

 

When Callista did take time to nibble at her own plateful of food, it was a methodical tasting of each dish in turn.  Mara swore the woman chewed exactly the same number of times with each forkful.  She could remember etiquette teachers in the palace drilling rules like that into her head.  Did the woman have to be so kriffin' perfect?

 

As to her own dining, Mara was famished enough to devour everything set before her, and distracted enough to not remember anything she ate.  She spent a good portion of the meal trying to get a read on Luke's thoughts, but she'd taught him too well when it came to mental shields.  His mind was locked up tighter than a Hutt's treasure vault.   He glanced her direction a few times, only to avert his eyes when she met his gaze.

 

Finally laying down her fork and leaning forward, Mara asked the question that had been hammering at her since the previous night: "Do I get to know where we're heading, or is it some galactic secret?"

 

"Not a secret," Callista answered slowly, and it seemed to Mara, reluctantly.   "But I was hoping to keep it a surprise for Luke."

 

"He doesn't remember the places he's been," Mara returned.  "Thinking any particular place would surprise him is useless."

 

Luke finished swallowing a spoonful of rold-peas and started to open his mouth to speak up, but Mara and Callista forged on without him.

 

"And if Luke prefers to be surprised?" Callista said in that irritatingly sultry, husky voice of hers.

 

"I happen to believe he doesn't," Mara countered.

 

"Uh, I'm right here," Luke interjected, waving his spoon over the table.

 

"It doesn't matter anyway," Mara continued.  "I don't like surprises, and I demand to know our destination."

 

"You demand?" Callista said coolly.   "You are an interloper who has no business being here."

 

"I'm an interloper?"  A tiny part of Mara's brain was wondering why her fork hadn't bent yet, she was gripping it so hard.  "I didn't invite myself to Calrissian's wedding.  I didn't invite myself to Luke's apartment.  I didn't invite myself into his life seven years after having disappeared."

 

"Still here," Luke mumbled, almost to himself.

 

"Am I to understand that you are his social secretary now?"  Callista's voice didn't change pitch, which only served to further Mara's irritation.  "Should I have made an appointment with you to visit my former lover?"

 

"You certainly should have consulted with someone close to him before whisking him off."

 

"Luke is a grown man.  I don't believe—"

 

"Excuse me."  The two women continued to argue, until Luke finally stood up.  "Excuse me!" he practically shouted, then waited until they turned their attention to him.  "Don't I get a say in this?"

 

Mara felt ashamed for allowing Luke to witness her debasing herself into a shouting match with her rival.  Even Callista had the decency to look abashed.

 

"Of course, Luke," Callista said.   "I will tell you anything you'd like to know."

 

Luke sat back down, obviously both satisfied that he was finally being listened to, and self-conscious now that all the attention was on him.  "I would like to know our destination, please."

 

"Very well."  Callista smiled warmly.  "Our first stop is Bakura."

 

Mara seethed inside.  All Luke had to do was bat those baby blues – which she loved – and Callista melted like a snowball on  Wait a minute.  Wait just one minute.

 

"Bakura!?"  Mara said, willing her voice not to screech.  "You and Luke never went to Bakura together."

 

Luke raised one eyebrow questioningly as he turned to Callista.

 

"I never stated that we did," Callista replied smoothly.

 

"You specifically told me we were going to visit places that we'd visited together."  Luke's jaw clenched in a reaction that Mara had seen both recently and in years past.  He didn't like to be lied to.

 

"So we shall."  Callista didn't act the least bit contrite, or secretive.  "Bakura is only a brief stopover.  Then we may journey to wherever you like."

 

"So why Bakura?"  Luke's expression was taut with what seemed like a mixture of curiosity and wariness.  Mara was more than willing to let him take over the interrogation, since he apparently was much more likely to get answers out of Callista than she was.

 

"Please believe me when I say there's nothing sinister or dangerous about our visit there."  Callista sounded sincere, but Mara had learned long ago not to take anything at face value.  "I have an acquaintance there who wishes to meet you."

 

"I have lots of old acquaintances lining up to meet me," Luke said evenly.  "Why should yours be any different?"

 

"You helped him and his family many years ago, and he wants to thank you personally."

 

Luke's eyes narrowed, and Mara hoped he was having the same suspicions that she was.  "Why didn't he thank me many years ago, then?" he asked. 

 

"He was only a child on Bakura when you saved him by default, in that you saved the entire population.  He was not lucky enough to meet you in person at the time."

 

"The attack by the Ssi-ruuk," Mara interjected, and Callista nodded in acknowledgement.

 

Luke frowned, most likely pulling the name out of the recesses of his mind.  The Ssi-ruuvi invasion had been summarized in one of the displays in the Galactic Museum of History.  "So why doesn't he come to Coruscant, instead of sending you to bring me to him under false pretenses?"

 

"It's not easy for an ordinary citizen to gain a private audience with the master of the Jedi Order," Callista explained, unintentionally reminding Mara of how she'd always hated it when Callista had gone out of her way to emphasize Luke's title.  "And it's well-known how humble you are, Luke.  We didn't think you'd journey to Bakura merely to receive accolades for what you saw as your duty."

 

Mara couldn't stand it any longer.  "Who the blazes is this mystery man?" she blurted out.  "And how did you get hooked up with him?"

 

"His name is not important," Callista began.

 

"I'd like to know it," Luke said, leaning forward.

 

Callista nodded.  "Ra'uf Buaran."

 

Luke glanced sideways at Mara, and she felt as baffled as he looked.  "Never heard of him," she said.

 

"As I said, he was but a child then, from an insignificant family.  Only in recent years has his station in life allowed him to realize his dream of thanking Luke personally."

 

How Mara wished she could get a read on Callista's emotions.  Nothing about her demeanor suggested she was lying.  "And you fit into this great dream realization how?"

 

"He is my employer.  I assist him in many aspects of his business, overseeing shipments, dealing with employee concerns.  When he learned that I knew Master Skywalker, he asked if I would bring Luke to meet him."

 

"What kind of business is he in?" Luke asked.

 

"Repulsor manufacturing," Callista answered.

 

From what Mara could remember of Bakura, that part was believable.  Repulsors were big business there.   "And you just decided to help your boss out of the goodness of your heart.   No ulterior motive whatsoever."

 

Callista reached over and laid her hand lightly over Luke's.  "I admit that I did want to see Luke again."

 

Mara wanted to jerk that hand away so badly, it was laughable.

 

A chime rang through the ship, effectively bringing about the result that Mara had wanted to do with her vibroblade.

 

"We'll soon be reversing to realspace for a course correction," Callista announced, rising from her seat.   "If you will excuse me ..."

 

Mara waited until the other woman's footfalls could no longer be heard before turning all her attention to Luke.  "What do you think?"

 

"Me?"  Luke seemed surprised that Mara was asking his opinion.  "Is this the kind of thing that happened to me often?"

 

"As a matter of fact ..."  Mara allowed a smirk to grace her face.

 

"Well, okay."  Luke took a breath as he gathered his thoughts.  "Her story sounded plausible, I suppose.  Though it's hard for us to know for certain."  He looked Mara square in the eye.  "You know Callista better than I do, at the moment.  Do you think she's telling the truth?  Or is she the type of person who would deceive me or try to harm me?"

 

Mara bit her lip.  Luke wanted her honest opinion and she owed it to him to give it.  And unfortunately, her danger sense was being obstinately silent.  "The only time I remember her deceiving you was when she let you believe she was dead, at least for a short while.  And that was only so you wouldn't recklessly try to follow her."  She exhaled wearily.  "I can't say I ever liked her especially.  But no, the Callista I remember wouldn't deliberately put you in danger."

 

"Then you think we should agree to accompany her to Bakura?"

 

Her heart swelled at how he was considering them a team.  It was 'them' against 'her.'  "I think ..."  She drummed her fingers on the table's plasteel top.  "I think we need to comm your sister as soon as we drop out of hyperspace.  Let her know what's going on.  Maybe they can run a check on this Buaran person."  Mara smiled warmly at Luke.  "And if we find out he's not some mass-murdering Sith, then perhaps it wouldn't hurt to go along with Callista's itinerary.  I doubt she'd take kindly to having to turn around and return to Coruscant, anyway." 

 

"And after Bakura?"  Luke shifted nervously.  "I don't think I want to travel around the galaxy with just her.  She may have been an important part of my old life, but I'm not that person anymore."

 

Joy erupted inside Mara, its flow hampered by the acknowledgement that Luke's confession didn't translate into an admission of love for her.  That, and the strange look that came over his face.  Tighten your shields, you fool.

 

A tinny voice sounded through the intercom:  "Please strap in back there.  Reversion in one minute."

 

Luke and Mara rose at the same time, moving toward the acceleration couches in the ship's small lounge.   As Luke paused at the doorway to let Mara exit first, he suddenly grasped her arm.

 

"Mara," he began quietly, "Why are you here, really?   I can't believe you think I'm so incompetent that I can't be trusted on my own.   You already said that Callista isn't a danger to me."

 

"Not physically."  Mara traced the lines of his face with her gaze, wishing she could do so with her fingers.  "She broke your heart when she left you, Luke.  I care about you.  I don't want that to happen again."

 

Luke nodded as they continued on to the lounge.   "She asked my forgiveness for her past actions.  But how do you forgive someone when you can't remember their betrayal?"  He settled into a seat next to Mara, his shoulder grazing hers.   "I know I haven't shown it, but I'm glad you came after me, Mara.  I've come to consider you a friend.  A good friend, even though our first meeting was less than ideal."

 

"It was, wasn't it?" Mara concurred, her lips quirking as she thought of a first meeting ten years earlier.

 

"So thank you, Mara.  And whether I decide to go to Yavin, or stay on Coruscant awhile longer, I hope ...  I hope we can stay in touch."

 

"Definitely," Mara breathed, as the pair pulled their seat straps tight.

 

"And maybe, if you'd like, we could go out to dinner together sometime," Luke said, hope shining in his eyes.  "I mean, some place nice, not the diner.  I've been saving any extra credits I have."

 

A slow smile blossomed on Mara's face.  "Like ... a date?"  A dinner date, before a marriage proposal.  This new Luke had potential after all.

 

"I guess you could call it that."  He had such an earnest expression that Mara nearly laughed aloud.  "So, will you?"

 

"You mean when we return to Coruscant?"

 

"I mean anywhere.  Bakura.  Yavin.  Anywhere."

 

She hadn't made him sweat, waiting for an answer on Nirauan.  She wasn't about to now.

 

"Yes," she said.  "I will."