DISCLAIMER: Star Wars and all publicly recognisable characters, names and references, etc are the sole property of George Lucas, Lucasfilm Ltd, Lucasarts Inc, 20th Century Fox, Timothy Zahn, Barbara Hambly, YKW and the other writers of the expanded Star Wars Universe. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author.
In spite of her attempts to assure her that she was okay with it, Luke could tell that that memory of her parents had shaken her harder than even she realized. Mara didn't smile much for the next few days. The old worry-line on her forehead returned, even though Luke had thought it long-gone. She was even scowling like she used to, her face going into all those old sharp lines and angles it had once been. If he hadn't known her so well, he would be afraid it was the old Mara resurfacing.
At night, the thoughts swirled in her head, sometimes so loud they kept him awake right along with her. Why would the Emperor go to such trouble to kill her parents? Why hadn't he just killed her, too? Why was she special? It wasn't like she was so important, not really. She and Luke hadn't fallen in love until long after the Emperor was dead. Her existence, either as his hand or as just an ordinary citizen of the Empire, did not bear much signifigance in history. In fact, if she had not been the Emperor's Hand, it was very likely that she would never have even MET Luke Skywalker.
Of course, there was that Last Command thing she had been dealing with. What better way to keep her and Skywalker from falling in love than to make her kill him? Perhaps the Emperor, so keen on destiny as he was, had seen the two of them together and had wanted to prevent it. But why? Just out of spite? It seemed like a lot of trouble to go through just to spite them.
Then, one night, as Mara drifted off into a sleep she had been denying herself for days, she had another vision. This one wasn't of the past, but of the future. She had had it before, briefly, on the observation deck where she and Luke had talked about their upcoming marriage, and Luke had asked her why she wanted to marry him. He had wanted her to say it, tell him why she loved him. The businesswoman in her had wanted to throw "gain and loss" reasons at him, but the Jedi Knight she had become refused to let it go at that. And she had crossed that final line, broken down that final barrier, and admitted that Skywalker was a part of her, and that she wanted it that way.
She had had a brief vision then, of their children. Nothing too clear, just abstracts. She saw the vision again this time, more clearly. Two children, one a grown woman entering her twenties, and another, half that age, looking nothing like his mother or father. The woman was striking, a fusion between her parents, all strawberry blond hair and blue-green eyes, the color of Mara's lightsaber. And there was a light coming from her, something like the most peaceful flow of the Force...but greater. Something far greater.
Something beyond anything Mara could even imagine.
Then, the woman lit her brilliant violet lightsaber and held it up, saluting Mara and giving her a sad smile. Then she turned, and Mara saw something behind her, something dark and ugly, something that reminded her of Palpatine but was far worse. This thing was all darkness, no shred of a form, no chance of hope. And the woman, her daughter......*Callista?*...was turning into it, her lightsaber lit and ready to strike. And she disappeared, the vision dissolving, and Mara felt a horrible, overwhelming despair.
She jerked her eyes awake. Luke rolled over, propping himself up on his elbow, his face all in shadows like it had been that night in Wayland, when Cy'Both had tried to take control of her mind and the ysalamari had suddenly cut him off.
"What is it?" he said, his voice hoarse.
"You didn't see it?" Mara said, her voice shaking. Her heart had started to pound in her ears, and she could feel the sweat on her brow. Yet she lay frozen on her back. She was sure that one had been traumatizing enough for Luke to share.
"No, all I saw was darkness. I tried to see," and here he actually sounded a little guilty, "because I could feel how afraid you were, but there wasn't anything. I just caught a name....strangely enough." He frowned, leaning forward a bit more, looking down into her face with a strange amusement. "Callista?"
Mara shut her eyes. She was suddenly completely exhausted. The mention of the name sent all the adreneline out of her body, and now she found that she couldn't keep her eyes open. "I didn't get that part either," she sighed. "Look, we'll talk about it in the morning, okay?"
"Will we?" Luke asked, his eyebrow arched.
She smiled at him, a small, weak smile, but a smile nonetheless. "Yes. And I promise I won't send any more visions your way. At least not tonight. Okay?"
"Okay." He sounded skeptical, but he bent down and kissed her anyway, then lay down beside her and tried to go back to sleep.
Mara didn't even have to try. The second she shut her eyes, the world became black and dreamless.