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Jedi Headquarters, Imperial City, Coruscant
Tahiri Veila had taken Ben for a walk around the building, giving Luke a moment of quiet as he entered his apartment. "Mara?" Luke called as he stepped into the living room.
Receiving no answer, Luke checked the master bedroom to see if she was sleeping. Finding the room empty, Luke assumed she had gone to see Cilghal like he’d asked. Mixed feelings stirred in his breast as he exited his bedroom and made his way to the living room. He had been looking forward to a few moments alone... with Mara. He was glad she had gone to see Cilghal, but why couldn’t she have done it earlier?
Or maybe she had gone earlier, but was still at the infirmary? Luke began to worry as he headed over to the com station to check his messages. He didn’t think anything was seriously wrong with her, he’d just wanted to make sure. The door to their apartment opened as Luke was about to retrieve his messages, causing him to turn around. Mara stepped in, looking tired, but her green eyes shone.
Smiling, Luke crossed the apartment to meet her. "Good news, I trust?"
Mara cocked her head. "Depends on how you look at it, Skywalker." She stepped into him, took his right hand and pressed it to her abdomen. "Somehow, you’ve managed to do it again."
"Mara," Luke said hoarsely, his heart swelling with joy. Using his left hand, Luke drew her closer to him, pressing his lips to hers. Guided by Mara’s return kiss and response to his Force touch, Luke sought out the presence of the new baby. Still a tiny cluster of cells, Luke couldn’t tell whether it was a boy or girl. Regardless, he thought of the baby as she, and was sure he could feel her try to return his touch.
Breaking off the kiss, Mara looked up into Luke’s eyes. "You thought Ben was a girl, too."
"True," Luke agreed, running his hand up her back. "But this time I’m right."
"How can you be so sure?" Mara asked skeptically.
"Call it fatherly intuition," Luke replied, kissing her.
"More like fatherly hope," Mara said in between kisses.
Luke shrugged his shoulders, kissing the left side of her neck. "I can’t help wanting two beautiful girls in my life."
Mara smiled, releasing his hand to run her hands up his chest. "This kind of behavior got us into this situation in the first place, you know."
"I know." Luke cupped her cheek with his right hand, kissing her firmly on the lips. Mara opened her mouth, deepening the kiss, when someone knocked on the door. Luke began to pull away, but Mara pressed into him, seizing his lips in a passionate kiss.
Ignore it, Mara whispered in his mind.
It may be something important, Luke replied, reluctantly breaking the kiss.
"It better be," Mara scowled. "Or there’ll be Kessel to pay."
***
Richard Naberrie had learned in history classes that the whole of Coruscant was covered by one great big city, but he’d been reluctant to believe it until now. The landing in the Imperial Palace’s spaceport had been uneventful, though the staff stared openly as Richard and Claria Daris descended the landing platform. Not one to waste time dawdling, Richard sent his attendants to check them into the Mayan hotel, and carry their luggage there, while he and Claria sought out Luke and Leia, Richard carrying a black briefcase. A spaceport worker directed them to the Jedi Headquarters where Luke lived, which just happened to be across the street from the spaceport. Deciding to see Luke first, Richard led Claria to the Jedi Headquarters building, his guards following at a discrete distance.
A young blonde haired girl stood outside of the building, carrying a small baby in her arms. As they approached her, Richard realized with a start that she was barefoot. "Hello," Richard greeted her, smiling as the girl turned to face him.
"Hi," the girl said, sizing him up with her watery green eyes. "Who are you?"
"I am Richard Naberrie," he said, setting down his briefcase and offering her his hand. The girl just stared at him, raising an eyebrow. He gestured to his cousin. "And this is Claria Daris."
The girl stared at Claria. "Julie’s mother?"
Claria nodded. "Yes, Julie is my daughter. And you are..."
"Tahiri Veila," the girl replied proudly. "Are you here to see Julie?"
"No," Richard answered. "We are here to see Luke Skywalker, can you take us to him?"
"Yeah, sure," Tahiri tilted her head. "If you don’t mind taking Ben for me." She offered the baby to Richard. "He’s starting to kill my arms."
"Certainly," Richard said, holding the baby somewhat awkwardly before him. He noted Claria’s smirk as she lifted the briefcase for him, giving him a wink. "Is this child yours?" Richard asked, moving his head to avoid the baby’s probing fingers.
"No!" Tahiri exclaimed. "Don’t you think I’m too young?" she asked, studying his face.
"Only you can be the judge of that, Tahiri," Richard said seriously, hugging Ben against his shoulder. "If he isn’t yours, then whose?"
"Master Skywalker’s," Tahiri replied, leading the way into the building. She gave Richard a sly smile. "He started having children late in life."
"Evidently," Richard agreed, turning his head to look at Ben, who was trying to grab his ear. Noticing he had Richard’s attention, Ben’s lips curled into a toothless grin. Richard had to smile, amazed that his sons Richard and Armand had ever been that age.
"He’s certainly a cute little guy," Claria observed, letting Ben grasp her thumb.
Tahiri snorted as they entered the building. "Sure he’s cute now, when he’s not in one of his crying fits."
Claria smiled. "Teething?"
"Is he ever!" Tahiri exclaimed. "I was giving Master Skywalker a break from it."
Richard patted Ben’s back sympathetically as they made their way down the hall. Richard thought the building seemed pretty empty, causing him to wonder how many Jedi Luke had been able to train. "How many Jedi are currently living here, Tahiri?"
"A little over fifty," Tahiri replied. "We took some losses during the Vong war."
"Do you know my daughter well?" Claria asked, changing the subject.
Tahiri shrugged her shoulders. "Not really." Tahiri pursed her lips. "Anakin does, though."
Richard detected a hint of jealousy in Tahiri’s last statement, but chose not to comment on it. Ben squirmed, fussing a bit in his arms. Richard bounced him gently, rubbing his back.
"Here we are!" Tahiri announced, pausing in front of a door. She knocked on the door, then stepped back.
Ben made a strange noise, and Richard felt a sudden wetness on his left shoulder, followed by the smell of rotten milk. Shocked, Richard held the baby away from him, realizing he’d been spit up on.
Claria, noticing the look on Richard’s face, and the wet spot on his Nuban white silk jacket, burst out laughing. Tahiri knocked once more, than turned to see what Claria was laughing about, and quickly joined her once noticing Richard’s predicament. "Here," she said, stifling another laughing fit. "Let me take him."
Richard handed Ben over, then stripped off his jacket. The spit up had soaked into his shirt. He was going to make an interesting first impression on Luke Skywalker.
***
Lainey stared at Armand, stunned, unsure of what to say. He certainly acted, spoke, and carried himself like a Prince. That had been the major discrepancy about him: he worked a menial job as a spaceship mechanic, but had the mannerisms of the aristocracy. Julya Daris had snuck out of Naboo to train to be a Jedi Knight. Perhaps Armand had escaped too...to be a space mechanic? Maybe it was the only job he could get for now. Puzzled, she cocked her head. "So you ran away from Naboo, too? Are things that bad over there?"
"What?" Armand asked, shocked.
"Things would have to be bad for Naboo’s own Prince to leave," Lainey explained.
Armand laughed lightly. "You misunderstand the situation. I am here at the request of my father, to investigate the New Republic. Things aren’t bad there at all. I believe my father’s actions will make Naboo even better."
"Oh," a blushing Lainey said, for lack of anything better to say.
"Coming from what I know about you, I have no idea," Armand jested, smiling as they stepped up onto the curb.
Lainey returned his smile, but was unable to hold it. Armand was going to have to leave. "If you’re from Naboo, a Prince of Naboo, you’re going to have to go back there, aren’t you?" When Armand nodded, Lainey pursed her lips. "When?"
"I intend to open negotiations with the New Republic tomorrow," Armand replied. Lainey hung her head, he'd be leaving even sooner than she thought. Why couldn't he just be a space mechanic? They walked in silence towards the temple, each consumed by their own thoughts. Just as they reached the temple grounds, Armand spoke up. "I could act as the Naboo Ambassador to the New Republic, maybe build an Embassy here on Coruscant."
"You’re not going to be King?" Lainey inquired, looking at the tall fence, trying to find a gate. She couldn't see anyone close enough to them, and the bars were spread far enough part that she was sure she could fit through them. Beckoning Armand, she slipped her body through the bars.
"I have the chance, if I choose to run," Armand replied, maneuvering his larger frame through the same bars she did, getting almost stuck halfway through.
"Are you going to?" Lainey asked, pausing to look up at the decrepit pyramid that was once the Great Jedi Temple. It had once been beautiful, the very symbol of peace and prosperity. She had never imagined it would fall.
"No," Armand said, coming up to stand beside her.
"Why?" Lainey asked, turning to Armand for a distraction from the ruined grounds. Weeds had sprouted where there used to be grass and flowers. Pieces of duracrete lay in burned pieces of land, starting to rust over. Lainey wondered how anyone could leave it like that for so long, perhaps to discourage tourists and explorers from going in there. Remembering the stories she'd heard about it at the Spaceport, she figured that had to be it.
A sly smile tugged at the corners of Armand’s mouth. "You’re going to make me reason this out, aren’t you?"
Lainey had to smile. "It’s the diplomatic thing to do," she teased.
Grinning, Armand took her hand and led her towards the temple. "At first, it was because I saw what little freedom I had slip away with a King’s mantle. But after a couple of weeks living here, being an ordinary citizen, I found a new reason."
"What’s that?" Lainey prompted.
"Well, if you can imagine, people, my people, have never dared speak to me directly. Even the Nobles, especially the Nobles," he corrected himself, "use caution. This may sound weird, but the first time a customer yelled at me, I was more amazed than angry. I actually liked it." He shook his head in disbelief. "It was a nice change from the hidden agendas and fake smiles of the royal court." Anticipating Lainey’s next remark, he continued, "It wasn’t just the fact that people would dare yell at me, it was the fact that they were so...open. Whether it was a customer with a complaint, a co-worker wanting to get together after work for drinks, or even this lady I met, Carlotta, who...hugged me for offering to help her."
"You felt like a fellow person, instead of someone in power," Lainey observed, completely understanding what he was trying to say.
"Exactly," Armand agreed, not sounding the least bit surprised she understood.
"What does that have to do with your not wanting to be King?" Lainey asked, approaching huge main doors.
"That’s it. I want people to be as open, as personal to me on Naboo, as they are here. It may work for the small area I am Lord over, but not a whole world."
"Thanks," Armand said, studying the main doors. "It’s strange that this door would still be open, after all these years."
"Decades," Lainey corrected him. "And I think it is open, because someone has probably been here recently."
"They could still be here, we'll have to be careful," Armand said, as Lainey started to step in through the doors. Gently squeezing her shoulder, he moved in front of her. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
For a moment Lainey’s resolve wavered, recognizing that he was providing a way for her to get out of it. It would be very simple to walk away now, perhaps forgetting what she knew about the letter. She could go on, being nothing more than Luke Skywalker’s Jedi and Corran Horn’s apprentice. Yes, that was definitely the easiest, most seductive path. Therefore, it was the path she had to avoid at all cost. She met Armand’s concerned stare. "I have to."
"Okay, I understand," he touched her cheek. "And I will be with you here."
Lainey nodded, anxiously sliding past Armand, taking his hand to tug him behind her. The room they entered was a vast, dark chamber; the light from the doorway illuminating a small rectangle of the floor. It was strangely cold, with a sickeningly sweet smell underlying the musty scent of dust and mildew. She released his hand. "We should have thought to bring a light source," Lainey observed, stepping further into the room.
"Perhaps we can find a working glowrod?" Armand suggested, already stooping down to feel for one on the floor.
"Maybe." Lainey scanned the gloomy greyness, carefully ignoring the small rectangle of light which reached the edge of a cloak at its tip. "It is possible to create a small ball of light with the Force..."
Armand gazed at her. "But you’re hesitant to do so. Why?"
Lainey sighed. "Because it would require me to touch the Force." Which would magnify the gloomy feeling here, she thought to herself. She gave him a rueful smile. "But that’s the point in coming here, isn’t it?"
Nodding, Armand rose to his feet. "I think there was a battle fought here." He showed her a crumpled cloak, and had picked up an old fashioned blaster.
"There was," Lainey confirmed. "We’re standing in the entrance, after all." She ran her hand across her forehead, stepping deeper into the darkness. She felt Armand’s hand on her arm as she reached out to the Force, wincing at the tainted feel of it. Taking a deep breath, she further emerged herself in the Force, sensing the taint grow into the shadows of the past, long forgotten, stir at finding a receptive audience.
Images of a thousand sparkling fountains, Jedi walking the long corridors, the echoes of creche children’s laughter pervading the courtyards. The Chosen One standing before the crowded Jedi in all his glory. And, barely heard above the thunderous clapping, Master Yoda’s voice: Hard to see, the Darkside is...
The fountains changed into rivers of fire, fallen Jedi lined the crumbling corridors, wails of pain and fear saturated the sterile courtyards. Covered in black armor and empowered by the Darkside, the Chosen One stood among the Jedi, groans of the injured and the silence of the dead replacing applause. Master Yoda’s voice once more floated from the depths of darkness: Great danger I feared, with his training.
Lainey wavered under the assault, recognizing many of the faces of the dead. Unable to fight the strong emotions the images evoked, she dropped shuddering to her knees, falling into blessed unconsciousness.
Copyright 2002 by Luney.
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