jedidryad

[jedidryad]

WIP: Destiny calls

For context, I spent a fair bit of time considering the timing of the Zahn short story Jade Solitaire -in which Mara acquires the Jade's Fire. I always assumed it had taken place between Children of the Jedi and Darksaber because Mara visits Luke in Darksaber and shows off her sleek new ship. So imagine my surprise when Wook and the official timelines set Jade Solitaire mere months before the Corellian trilogy!! This would mean that Mara shows Luke some other fabulous ship in Darksaber, and that she would have owned the Fire for barely a year before its sacrifice in Vision of the Future. That didn't seem like enough time for her to make the ship her home, and it's certainly not enough time for Luke understand the significance of it to her. There's also no canon reason for her not to have the ship sooner.

Therefore, just as I brought Mara and Mirax together earlier, I am setting Jade Solitaire a few weeks before Darksaber and, as I hint in this excerpt, the events are life changing for Mara in more ways than just the acquisition of the ship. Dialogue by Timothy Zahn:

“Excuse me, folks - I’m looking for Talon Karrde.”

It was a genial voice, affable even, but there was steel under it and I felt my shoulders lock up in response to the inherent threat.

Who was this and what was he doing on Karrde’s ship?

Chin’s expression from across the console mirrored mine as I got to my feet to greet the intruder.

“Captain Karrde isn’t here right now.” I replied as I scrutinized the burly human in the bridge doorway. There was nothing familiar about him but his attitude, “how did you get in here?”

The vague unease grew as  the stranger declared that Dankin had let him in and that he and Karrde went way back. He wondered when he was going to return. My eyes darted to Chin who shrugged almost imperceptibly. Chin had no idea who this guy was either. 

“If you’d like, you can leave a message.” I offered, coating my voice with a geniality I doubt fooled the intruder. Who was this? He was too young to be the elusive Car’das.

“No, I’m afraid that won’t do.” He continued as he casually waved a hand at the viewport as though he was about to start a speech. 

The vague unease sharpened into a flash of my danger sense and I reached for my blaster – too late. The man’s hand had split down the middle revealing it to be a prosthetic hiding a blaster of his own: a stingbeam if I had it right, and we were certainly in range for the deadly weapon.

Fierfek.

“My employer would like a word with you all.” Our attacker declared. Of course he was working for someone else. That hidden blaster trick screamed hired gun, “he’d prefer you arrive undamaged but he’d understand if that’s not possible.”

My lip twisted of its own accord. That threat was not for me. Alone, I could take this guy and make him regret ever setting foot on the Wild Karrde. But I wasn’t alone and his weapon was pointed at Chin. And since Dankin and the local crew hadn’t burst in yet, our attacker wasn’t alone either. 

There were no good choices.

“I would hate to disappoint him.” I responded cooly. I held my hands away from my body in surrender. Three days. I’d been home for three days!

Trick Blaster’s employer turned out to be Ja Bardrin, the industrialist who had most of Uoti sewed up in his pocket. And he’d heard of me. I supposed I should be flattered, but one of the most disconcerting follow ups to that sort of recognition by that sort of man is the phrase “you’ll do nicely.” And that’s what he said.

Do nicely for what?

Tired of any sort of games, I repeated  myself, “what do you want?”

I didn’t know it at the time, but the task he blackmailed me into would change my fortune and my future in ways I could never have predicted. 

I was sent to rescue his daughter, Sansia.

[jedidryad]

WIP Wednesday: Finding a dream

When Mara's life is shattered and then revealed to be a lie, she loses any dreams and ideals she once had. She maintains a moral code and a skilled competence most of us can only imagine, but she loses her ability to imagine building a life for herself and dreaming of what that life might be like. Rediscovering hopes and dreams are part of the healing process, and I've decided that she takes a step here, on Kessel near the beginning of Champions of the Force:

As I settled into a close orbit over the moon, I accomplished another task as well. There, below me, was a sleek, beautiful craft that was easily recognized as The Lady Luck. Calrissian had whined to me about how he’d lost his ship here and how he’d expected the poor thing would be stripped down for parts by now as though by roverines.

That did not seem to be the case.

I did a once about the Luck to inspect it. It looked okay. I couldn’t see any obviously missing pieces, or anti-flight devices. It looked intact and sealed up tight. 

It was a nice ship. I understood why he had worried. The Lady Luck was a Sorosuub 3000. Sorusuub had been making luxury starcraft for over 5000 years, and they were impeccable about it. Legend said that their workmanship was so good there were Sorosuub ships flying around with pre Imperial hyperdrives that had never needed repair. I’d certainly never been called upon to repair one. Their 3000 model was the cutting edge in technological innovation and modifiable to the point that each ship was basically custom built. And, now that I was seeing one close up, I could see it was also gorgeous.

The only weakness I could find was that it took me less than 30 seconds to crack the code on the lock panel and gain access, but that spoke more to Calrissian’s lack of interest in security than to the manufacturer. Maybe this mission for Karrde wouldn’t be so bad if this was our method of transport.

Despite the craft being seemingly untouched, I ran a full inspection and systems check before starting the power up sequence. 

“Oh I want one.” I murmured to myself as the ship came online. It was a pointless thing to say out loud, even just to myself. There were many things I could want in the universe and most of them were unlikely enough that there was no point in even dreaming of them. I wasn’t sure why this desire coalesced enough in my mind for me to recognize it for what it was, but I clamped down on the thought with a snort of derision.

“Dream on, Mara.” I scolded myself as the repulsors engaged and the yacht lifted off the planet’s surface as smoothly as an avian.

“Mother of Kwath!” I blurted out as the controls responded to my touch with a measured power that made me a little giddy. Even when my missions had been outfitted by Palpatine himself, I’d never had the chance to fly a Sorosuub. My heart was racing and I knew my face was flushed. Something had come alive in me that I wasn’t sure what to do with.

[jedidryad]

I am so excited about this!! Check out @jedimordsith’s latest installment in her delightfully sweet, sexy, and fluffy series.

PART 4 of Sweet on You: WEDDING CAKE

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64286074/chapters/165013270

I cannot get the AO3 link to work correctly, but if you need some fluffy Luke/Mara fic, please have this installment of Sweet on You in which Luke cheerfully blackmails Mara into marrying him for a good cause. (Also, there’s cake! And ritualistic public sex!)

[jedidryad]

So, this isn't from part 3, but I needed something lighthearted right now and a lot of part 3 isn't. This may never turn into anything more than this but it's a snippet of a what if that lodged itself in my brain while writing Darkness Kicks Back. What if Luke and Mara wind up in bed together on Coruscant while Karrde is meeting with Leia and Fey'lya et al about the Katana fleet. What if Luke, in escorting Mara towards her suite, gets in her way just enough to kiss her... and then what would the afterglow bring?

As the waves of euphoria dissipated, she could feel his arms around her. He was murmuring low sounds in her ear as he softly stroked her hair. She was enveloped by a sense of safety so novel she had no interest in fighting it and drifted off to sleep.

The anger filled her. His eyes staring into hers, golden with rage. Lightning pulsed through her body, agony seizing her mind like helpless prey. She had forgotten her mission. She deserved this pain.

You will kill Luke Skywalker.

Mara shot straight up in bed with a gasp. 

She blinked and wiped grit from her eyes as they adjusted to the glow of the afternoon light streaming in through the windows.

You will kill Luke Skywalker.

She was naked.

“What’s wrong?”

She turned towards the new husky voice and found herself gazing into the concerned face of the man she was going to kill.

Mara scrambled to get out of the bed, the sheets tangling around her limbs like a team of dia noga desperate for lunch. She yanked them aside and got some distance between herself and the man in her bed.

“I’m going to kill you.” she blurted out. In silence, she watched Skywalker sit up. The sunlight bounced off his sculpted form as he ran a hand through his tousled hair, clearly contemplating her words. Mara’s breath left her in a whoosh. She remembered the way that hair felt between her fingers. She bit her lip.

“But you don’t want to.” He repeated her words from earlier.

She shook her head, defeated. She should not be admitting that.

“Who wants you to do it?” He asked the question like he already knew the answer. She thought about throwing that in his face. If he was so clever, why make her answer the question. But she knew why. He wanted her to say it out loud. He wanted her to hear herself say it.

“Palpatine.” 

He nodded.

“He orders me to kill you. In my head.”

You will kill Luke Skywalker.

“He’s doing it right now.”

She watched his mouth fall open slightly as his brow furrowed. Maybe she’d been wrong. He hadn’t known?

In the other room, she heard the beep of a validated passcard and the woosh of an opening door.

Karrde was back.

“Mara?” He called. 

"Karrde." She hissed quietly and looked over at Skywalker in horror as she realized her clothes were strewn all over the entrance way to the suite. There wasn’t a single thing in the room for her to put on. Not only that, there was a similarly naked Jedi in her bed.

She dropped her head in her hands muttering a string of curses under her breath. What exactly had made her think this would be okay? What had taken over her brain and made her destroy everything like this?

"Here." Luke whispered. Mara glanced up and saw he was holding a standard guest suite robe. Right. Skywalker had somehow convinced her. He’d seduced her in a turbolift.

With a nod, she took it from him and slipped into it. As she knotted it at her waist, she put her finger to her lips and shot him a pointed look intended as an order to stay put and stay quiet. Then she went out to the main room to play out her bluff.

“Ah, there you are, Mara.” Karrde’s voice was calm and unruffled even as he surveyed her robe and the articles of clothing strewn across the space between them.

“How was the meeting?” She opened, trying to keep her voice from cracking. There was nothing appropriate about the situation. She never should have let Skywalker walk her anywhere.

She crossed her arms across her chest and then felt her jaw drop in horror as she heard the door to the bedroom behind her slide open.

“Hello, Skywalker.” This time Karrde sounded decidedly smug. The Jedi was wearing a robe that matched hers. Mara wished for the floor to open up and swallow her.

“I told you to stay in the room.” She hissed at him as he calmly started rummaging through the clothing

“I know,” he answered, “But I figured it was kind of pointless. This,” he continued retrieving his belt and the silver cylinder attached to it, “is a dead giveaway after all.”

Mara bit back a groan of embarrassment. This was getting worse by the moment. She stole a glance at Karrde who appeared amused. Of course he did. He’d been suggesting Skywalker might be interested in her ever since she’d found the Jedi lost in space. 

“The meeting went strangely.” Karrde broke in, “I asked Councillor Organa Solo to come by to clarify a few things. She should be here shortly.”

Skywalker nodded and continued calmly collecting his clothing, untangling his articles from hers, until she simply could not stand it anymore.

“You need to leave!” She snapped at him. The prospect of Organa Solo arriving and finding the two of them in robes was beyond unacceptable, “now!”

He simply nodded and handed her a bundle of her clothes before disappearing back into the bedroom. He returned less than a minute later, fully dressed and fastening his belt around his waist.

He stopped in front of her: “Come find me when you’re done. We have things to discuss.”

She knew he caught her expression of denial, but then suddenly his lips were on hers again. Soft, sweet. She was flung back to that first kiss an hour earlier. She was wrapped in the sense of him as she had been on the bed mere feet away. She couldn’t think. She could barely breathe.

And then he backed off and left.

She turned to Karrde: “I can explain.”

“No need. What you do on your time is your business.”  He still looked rather pleased with himself, “Go get dressed. I’ll put the caf on.”

[jedidryad]

During the height of Covid, my library started offering surprise bundles in paper bags as part of the curb side service. People would walk away with 4 or 5 of them at a time. They were definitely getting their shopping hit, and it was great for all of us.

unsung benefit i think a lot of ppl are sleeping on with using the public library is that i think its a great replacement for the dopamine hit some ppl get from online shopping. it kind of fills that niche of reserving something that you then get to anticipate the arrival of and enjoy when it arrives, but without like, the waste and the money.

[jedidryad]

This!! About Mara that is. I'm not particularly prepared to tackle the whole Grey Jedi concept except to say that if Grey Jedi are about recognizing that everyone encounters the dark side and one slip up isn't enough to make you evil forever (counter to Yoda's ESB thoughts) then I'm in. Jedi are not pure. I'm okay with that. But that if Grey Jedi are a step on the path to "there is no light or dark only what you do with it" or something like that, I'm out.

But Mara!! and that Mara's ambivalence to the Force and the Jedi is about her traumatic experience with the dark side as a child and young person is exactly what I'm about.

Mara's journey is just that: her struggle with her past and her eventual embrace of her Force abilities and the Jedi (both plural and singular <3). And her struggle is based in real issues and very valid.

She fought so hard to get away from Palpatine and is constantly hit with the consequences of her work for him. It's not as clear in the pro-fic where it gets mentioned and then glossed over, but, as I work through the memoir, she seems to be confronted with revelations and reminders at every turn, and there's no way those reminders wouldn't impact her when it comes to considering using the Force and becoming a Jedi. And she definitely takes the concept with the seriousness of someone who knows way too much about what she is getting into.

She is terrified of being fooled again. She gave her life to Palpatine and it was all a lie. Anything that looks like that is going to fill her with suspicion, and becoming a Jedi, especially with a brooding, isolated Luke at the helm, is going to look just a bit too much like her past for her to settle in easily. And, there's nothing simple about her relationship with Luke. There never was. She met him with preconceived notions of who he was, and an obsessive zeal about her plans for him. And he is so intertwined with the Jedi that I doubt she can see one without the other. It makes sense that she must sort out her relationship with the Force and becoming a Jedi before she can sort out her relationship with Luke.

local woman makes herself angry thinking about the idea of Grey Jedi

[jedidryad]

WIP: I did get a break from Lando

Mara and Lando's pretend relationship has been a challenge for me for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that "pretend relationship" is a pretty solid romance trope that these two managed to evade quite handily. So we need two people who like eachother well enough to spend time together, plot together etc. but not so much that we expect them to fall into bed together.

It's a challenging chemistry line to walk. Here's another attempt at it. Lando might be giving Mara some fairly pointed relationship advice here, really.

One being I did get a break from though was Lando. After a quick jump back to Malastare, I reunited him with his Lady Luck and we went our separate ways. I had the feeling he was just as grateful for the time apart as I was. It had been more than a year of the happy couple charade and I have no doubt it had worn on him too. 

Being publicly linked to Mara Jade regardless of how vague and open we’d made it seem, limited his options for other companionship as we’d discovered on our first trip to Malastare. No one was willing to risk my wrath. I had a well earned reputation for being ill tempered and my past as an assassin wasn’t much of a secret anymore. I offered him another public break up but we decided that might draw Sukarian’s attention and we didn’t need that.

“Besides,” as Lando reminded me, “you might still need me. We don’t know where this Exocron place is yet.”

“So, we find Exocron and then we break up?”

“That was my thinking. We could make a big show of it so there are no doubts, and then we can give each other some space and renew our friendship somewhere down the line so you can seem as forgiving as you actually are.”

“I’m not forgiving.”

“Oh? Who have you assassinated lately?”

“Are you asking to be next?”

“All I’m saying is it wouldn’t actually hurt for people to know you’re actually very caring and loyal.”

“I don’t give a drukload.”

“Well, if we were actually in a relationship, I might care about who you actually are.”

“Well we’re not.”

“True, but think about it.”

[jedidryad]

Oh look it’s my soapbox!

Gentle reminder that Luke Skywalker is kind and driven by a sense of humanity, but he is also resourceful and sneaky.

Luke Skywalker, hours after escaping from his home planet having lost everything he’s known and everyone he loves, convinces a cynical, world weary smuggler and his “pull people’s arms off” partner into rescuing a princess from the most secure prison in the galaxy using a plan he came up with in 5 seconds that was 97% brazen bluff

…and it worked.

I mean it worked well enough that they got out of there, which is wild when you think about it.

He may be inexperienced (that changes) and lacking in socially expected self interest (that does not - ask Mara) but he’s not gullible or clueless.

Luke Skywalker, a farm boy who grew up on Tatooine, with the worst scum of the Galaxy around him any time he goes to any town, would not be a naive wimp.

He is a kind kid, yes, Owen was a bit overprotective but that would NOT be enough.

Realistically speaking, Luke would have :

- enough stamina to work for a few hours in the sun, without breaks (so possibly even longer in a more gentle climate)

- an alcohol tolerance rivaling that of most Rebellion veterans (I refuse to believe blue milk is his go-to and that drinking age on Tatooine is even a thing),

- quite possibly knowledge on how to make moonshine out of dirt, sticks and a little water, because what else did they have on Tatooine,

- street intelligence, not highlighted enough in the movies I feel - he is a trouble magnet and if he lived to be 17 then, he had to have something to make up for it,

- large amounts of knowledge about slave trade, water trade and Hutt politics, because whether he likes it or not he would pick them up casually, just by living in a society,

- a lot of random everyday skills that people like Leia would not have, mending clothes, creating makeshift tools, home health remedies etc.

Say it with me - LUKE IS A FARM BOY.

Farm boys rarely can afford to be naive or trusting for no reason. Farm boys have to be street smart. Luke would be more competent than some people like to think.

[jedidryad]

WIP Wednesday: Darkness is sneaky

When they meet up on the Errant Venture in I, Jedi, Mara and Corran have a conversation about the dark side, and Corran expresses the belief that Kyp should not be a Jedi after his dark side experience. Mara does not seem to agree with him, and I interpret his comments as being quite hurtful to her considering her past. But friendships can survive rifts, and Mara and Corran deserve a chance to try the conversation again...after Corran has his own brush with darkness in the form of temptation...

“Do you think [Kyp] is worthy to be a Jedi?” Horn asked.

I wasn’t certain if becoming a Jedi was a matter of worthiness and I said as much.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you’re not the only one who doesn’t think Durron should be a Jedi.” I thought of the utter weariness in Skywalker’s voice as we watched Kyp’s body float in bacta,  “I just don’t get the sense he has that much of a choice in the matter.”

“Once a Jedi always a Jedi?”

I shrugged, “I don’t know, but I know I can’t think that he should be executed for his crimes while I’m walking around with mine.”

I thought of what I’d been doing at Durron’s age, and under whose influence. 

“It’s not the same thing. You’ve more than proven yourself.”

“I was given a chance to.” and it didn’t escape me that Skywalker was a major reason I had been given that chance. Mirax had referred to me as ‘Luke Skywalker approved’ after all.

“You’re saying I should give Kyp another chance?”

“I’m saying I have to.”

He sighed.

“Do I have to like him?”

“Probably not.” I chuckled.

“I can be an ally without being a friend.” Corran nodded, clearly considering the idea.

“I think that’s all that’s being asked.”

“By Luke.” Corran met my gaze steadily, “Do you trust Kyp?” “No, but I don’t exactly trust myself around this stuff either. I mean I used the dark side for years and didn’t even know it.”

“Darkness is sneaky,” Corran agreed, “it gets in through your weaknesses.”

“Which weakness?”

“Sex.” Mirax said as she came back into the room with a plate of cookies and a pot of elba, “Although I’d say it’s also one of his strengths.”

[jedidryad]

There is not enough Fen and Ghitsa in the galaxy so thank you to @celinamarniss for this treat to start 2025!

The Coruscant Job

by celinamarniss, gen, Fenig Nabon/Ghitsa Dogder Fenig and Ghitsa are stuck in the worst possible place when the news of Palpatine's death breaks: Coruscant traffic.

[jedidryad]

My dear fabulous artist, I love this! This is Luke and Mara at their best. This is the OTP dynamic I love. Mara makes Luke laugh with some, no doubt, wry, cynical, and yet deeply true declaration that only he can hear and it relieves something deep inside him, releasing him from the role he plays. And his laughter brings her all the joy because he gets her. The earnest, overly optimistic pillar of light, gets her dark humour. And neither is alone.

It’s an hour till midnight and I still haven’t finished my inktober (😫 )but here’s a practice sketch I did a few days ago of Luke and Mara Jade #inktober2018 #inktober #lukeskywalker #marajade #lukexmara #starwarseu #pensketch #starwarsart #drawing sketch https://www.instagram.com/p/Boa4711g3Wq/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=yyq6wvrwdvfk

[jedidryad]

Something up, Luke?

The more time I spend working on piecing together Mara and Lando's misadventures and sham relationship, the more surprised I am that this conversation never took place while Luke and Lando were off on Lando's courting mission (aka his wife hunt). Lando must have been biting his tongue so hard...

“Something up Luke?”

“Why?” Luke glanced over from his place in the co pilot’s seat where he had been staring, brow furrowed, out the viewport.

“You’ve been extra quiet. Like something is bugging you.”

The younger man flinched ever so slightly, a reminder that he had not always been a mysterious Jedi Master, “I’m just wondering if you’ve told Mara about this new mission of yours?”

Lando shrugged, “haven’t seen her much lately. I think you’ve spent more time with her than I have.”

“That seems unlikely. I haven’t seen her since Almania.”

Lando refrained from pointing out that had only been a couple of months earlier.

“Why would I discuss it with her?” 

“You have a past.” Luke’s tone was mildly rebuking,  “she might appreciate the heads up before you show up married.”

“Nah that’s long over, whatever it was.”

“Whatever it was? What does that mean?”

“It means I was just along for the ride.”

“Ride?” Luke sounded offended.

“What? Does it bother you that Mara might have been looking for some casual fun?”

“No.” Luke caught his raised eyebrow,  “of course not. It just, just didn’t seem like her style.”

“Sounds to me like it bothers you. You should ask her about it.”

“It’s none of my business.”

“Kind of sounds like you’d like to make it your business.”

“If Mara wanted it to be my business, she’d have talked to me about it.”

“She didn’t?”

“No.”

“Not even when you asked?”

“I didn’t ask.”

“You didn’t?”

“No, it’s none of my business.”

“But you’re asking me now.”

“Well, now I know about your plan to get married. And I know Mara’s not big on surprises.”

Lando contemplated Luke for a moment, weighing his loyalties.

“She really didn’t tell you anything about us?”

“Not a word.” 

“And you really never thought to ask?”

“It’s not my business.” Luke was insistent enough that Lando fought hard to keep a straight face.

“Yes, you’ve said that, several times.” He took in his friend in silence a moment remembering the look on Mara’s face when Luke introduced her to Callista: a sort of frozen impassivity that revealed nothing of the frantic determination of the prior hour during which she’d altered hyperspace routes, and faced down armed Gamorreans to make sure the Jedi was safe.

Luke wore the same expression.

“So you think Mara would be upset that I’m hoping to marry someone else?”

“You were together a long time. I figured you’d wind up together.” If anything his face closed up further.

“Jade and me?” Lando laughed, "you think we made sense?

“You have connections in the same community. You know how to dance and which fork to use.”

“I do, but Jade’s not really all that into that.”

Luke blinked, “but you’ve spent years together.”

“Business. We had work together, a project that took a number of years. It was easier to let people think what they wanted.”

“She didn’t tell me that.”

“You already said you didn’t ask. She probably thought you didn’t care.”

Luke sucked in a breath and the impassivity seemed to drain out of his expression, leaving something unexpectedly agonized behind.

“Oh.”

“You really thought we were together?”

Luke nodded. 

Lando smirked, “she really let you think that.”

“She would,” Luke murmured. “If she didn’t want me to know, she wouldn’t share.”

Lando looked away so Luke couldn’t see him roll his eyes. Stars, he was even worse at this than Mara!

[jedidryad]

Best Christmas present ever!!

Hey there gorgeous.. any chance of an image of Luke with his black ROTJ top ripped open? Need some sexy Luke today! ❤️

I think the entire Luke Skywalker fandom owes you thanks for making this request. Sorry it took so long, was a bit of a challenge but I’m happy with the way it turned out :3c

(Sfw) cropped and lightning scar versions under the cut:

[jedidryad]

WIP Wednesday: I'm not a fan of theft, but this guy deserves to have his safe gutted

Mara Jade will admit to many questionable acts in her life but petty theft just for the sake of it is not one of them. In VOTF, she explains to Luke that she gutted Vicebaron Sukarian's safe and wanted him to know it had been her who did it.

And, well, she needs a good reason to decide to steal his treasures. Here is an excerpt from my attempt to give her a reason - and to make him all the more detestable...

I kept up the act as we stepped into Sukarian’s office. I hung off Lando’s arm like I was intoxicated and responded to the Vicebaron’s inappropriate remarks with a disarming giggle.

We sat down in  the repulsor chairs across from his massive desk and, as I turned to set my eyes on Calrissian as though he were the only thing in the room, my gaze swept across a display shelf behind Sukarian’s desk.

Holding an obvious place of honour was a glowing crystalline polyhedron: it was unmistakably a holocron.

I fought to keep my gaze moving as though that particular object was no more interesting than anything else in the room. I plastered an admiring expression on my face as I took in the tapestry of H’drachi toiling in the fields. It made my skin crawl, but I could see by the way it draped to the floor that there was a storage safe behind it.

As Lando turned on the charm to try to work the name Jorj Cardas into the conversation about his spice dealings, I leaned back against him and started playing with the fringe on the cape he’d slung over his shoulder.

Sukarian seemed disinterested in discussing Corellia this afternoon. Maybe we should try to get him to talk about something else. 

“Aren’t you bored with this conversation, my dear?” He leaned towards me, belt straining across his belly as he moved in his chair. 

“Yes.” I agreed guilelessly, “but there are so many interesting things in your office.” I took the opportunity to run my eyes around the room again: one camera on the wall opposite the safe, outputs for motion sensors and security beams, and a control panel for all of it on the Vicebaron’s desk.

“I have many treasures.” His smile had a noticeably cruel edge, “is there anything in particular that interests you?”

“Yes.” I blurted out, “what’s that?” I pointed rudely at the Holocron.

Calrissian tugged my hand back into his and squeezed warningly. He’d also recognized the glowing object for what it really was.

“Ah, the young lady Zasia has noticed my holocron. It is one of my favourite possessions. I am a collector of Jedi antiquities. This device was used for communication purposes.

“Like a holocomm?”

He chuckled indulgently, “Of course not, my dear. The Jedi used their mysterious Force powers to make them work. I might have the last one in the galaxy. Isn’t that exciting?”

He spoke to me like I was about Jaina’s age so I gave a wide eyed nod, “it’s pretty.”

“I’m so glad you like it. Let me show you something else. He stood up and ushered me over to his display shelf. Calrissian reluctantly let go of my hand as I stepped forward and surveyed the other objects. They were all Jedi tools: a focusing crystal, wobble ball, training remote, even some components I recognized as being commonly used for lightsaber construction. 

He collected them and, considering his explanation of the holocron, he clearly didn’t have a clue what any of them actually were.

[jedidryad]

So I totally appreciate the importance of pacing and editing, but I really wish this Luke didn’t get left on the cutting room floor.

Luke never gets to be this playful again in canon.

"listen to how quiet i am. you can barely hear me."

[jedidryad]

WIP Wednesday: Where's Skywalker?

In Children of the Jedi, Luke is prevented from dying in the Eye of Palpatine when Cray stuns him and sends him off in the escape shuttle with all the other victims of the automated processes that indoctrinated various creatures into believing they were stormtroopers. He is horribly injured, battling a massive fever and infection, and utterly heartbroken by the apparent loss of Callista. The story notes that it is Mara who meets the shuttle in the aftermath of the explosion. Here's how I imagine some of that might have gone...

We docked with the shuttle and I remember fumbling for the door. My hands were shaking and I could feel Lando’s eyes on me. Worried.

As we cleared the airlock, Pothman greeted us and introduced himself.

“Welcome back”, Lando said dryly.

“Where’s Skywalker?,” I snapped, cutting off any further small talk.

I was far less polite than that poor trooper deserved. He hadn’t done anything wrong, except get conscripted by the Empire around 30 years ago and he’d clearly been through a traumatic experience. I probably should have apologized later, but I didn’t see him again. And right then I was as single minded as I had ever been.

He looked scared and a little sheepish when he told me Luke was in the hold. They'd had to knock him out in order to get him on board, he explained.

He’d wanted to stay behind in a doomed dreadnought. I would have asked what he was thinking, but there were too many selfless, heroic possibilities to make it a reasonable question to answer.

My reaction must have shown on my face because Pothman shrugged, clearly unwilling to get into details. That was fine. I didn't have time for a story.

I strode off to where he pointed. Behind me, Lando said he was going to call Solo on planet. I waved him off and realized I could hear C-3PO from down the corridor calling for Master Calrissian at the top of his anodized lungs.

That should soothe any of Pothman’s concerns about us, and, if it weren't for the waves of pain I felt streaming from Skywalker, the droid’s presence would have made me feel better about the situation too.

My way into the hold was blocked by two nasty looking Gamorreans. They wore bits of stormtrooper armour and carried carbines.

“State your authorization,” they barked in vaguely passable Basic. I hadn’t realized Gammoreans could vocalize in Basic. And these two stood at guard to demonstrate their commitment to military protocol.

Yes, this project had definitely gone very wrong. What a mess!

Authorization? Well it was worth a shot.

I drew myself into the required formal position.

“Step aside! Authorization: Hapspir barrini corbolan triaxsis.”

Their eyes grew wide and they quickly stepped aside with a near reverential bow. Apparently, the brainwashing was the only solid part of this disaster. Figured.

From behind me I heard Lando whistle low.

[jedidryad]

This has long been one of my favourite little details about Mara and it adds such a wild dimension to her relationship with Luke that I would love to explore more. I always hope the two of them do dig into it occasionally once they're a couple. It's also the reason I have a bit of a soft spot for the "what if Obi Wan was Mara's father" scenario. The symmetry would be delightful.

The fact that Mara Jade's father-in-law is not only Vader/Anakin but also just that one broody co-worker who used to act like he hated her is honestly such an underappreciated Star Wars detail lmao. Imagine if she met his Force ghost, that'd be one of the most awkward "meet the in-laws" moments in the history of anything ever