Healing – Chapter 2
By Sienn (2001)
Rating (for chapter): PG-13
Protagonists: Luke/Mara
Category: Angst/Romance
Series: Part II of "Soul's Trial" Trilogy
Time Frame: 26 A.Y. (immediately after "Soul's Trial I: Jedi Dawn")
Spoilers:
See Chapter 1
Disclaimer:
See Chapter 1
Chandrila, Day 1
When they had finally finished unpacking their stuff, the sun was about to set, offering everyone that cared a stunning view.
From a metallic, silver colour in daylight, the sea seemed to be set afire, its cool shimmering turning into a radiating, almost blinding, rich red-gold. The bedroom in the spacious bungalow Mara had borrowed from Lando seemed all the more cosy and inviting in the dusk - whoever had chosen the colours for the walls, the furniture and the covers, he or she had had good taste. Light and earthy browns dominated the rooms in this estate and with the evening sun shining directly into them, not blocked by walls, but let through by the transparisteel, it almost glowed with warmth.
Mara pushed the last of the now empty bags into the farthest corner of the small storage compartment that was accessible below the bed, hidden by wood that had most intricate patterns on it. Rising and turning towards the large window, she gave a silent smile.
Luke sat in the window frame, staring out over the sea, his expression almost spell-bound to the sun and the hordes of birds that dove into the water, chasing prey. Even in the few hours they had been here, Mara had been able to see how much he already loved this place. It was quiet here - there was no noise from speeders, ships, other people or droids. There were no people except the two of them. And the air - the air was rich of smells, fresh and healthy.
Though his skin hadn't reached the slightly tanned tone she loved so much, he had gained colour since he'd been breathing the Chandrilan air. He seemed to be more awake and he had smiled quite a few times over the day. Just until she had found him sleeping in here and had woken him up. Frowning slightly, leaning against the wall and keeping her eyes on her husband's face, admiring the way his eyes seemed to have turned into glittering diamonds, she once again tried to review what had happened and make sense of it.
She had triggered a bad memory by waking him the way she had, so much was obvious to her. Mara even allowed herself the conclusion that it must have been the words she had said. She had woken him quite a few times during their voyage here and in the clinic back on Coruscant and he had never reacted like this before. Her gentle questions, though, which she had tried to pose all through the afternoon, he hadn't answered - at least nothing very helpful to her. She was not entirely sure whether he really didn't know what he had unconsciously remembered or whether he just didn't want to tell her. Either way, it bugged her.
She was pretty sure that this hadn't been the reason for his almost-escape from her when she had teased him. Something had gone totally wrong there, but what exactly hadn't yet revealed itself to Mara. She had her guesses, but even those were not awesomely detailed or anything near to logical. All she had noted was that Luke was back to being hesitant and extremely shy around her after he had come back from the ship, their bags on his shoulders.
Somehow, she mused, she prompted him to act this way - but she didn't have any clue how and why. It was as if Luke were afraid to do something wrong in her presence. Had she done this much damage by leaving him? Until this very day, she had just assumed that his trust in her had been what had suffered the most when she had left him on Ithor. Could it be that the damage to his self-esteem had been far worse? Luke seemed to trust her as much as before - he hadn't yet told her anything about his imprisonment and his torture, but that was more than understandable. It had nothing to do with the trust he had in her.
It was a simple matter of it being too fresh to be spoken out loud - at least that's what everyone, from Cilghal to Han, had been telling Mara before they had left Coruscant. And of course it made sense - whatever they had done to him, it must have been something terrible. The injuries, the way they had found him on the Shaper's ship, were witness enough to that fact.
So he didn't trust himself to do the right things in her presence - that was something Mara strongly suspected. In a way, it relieved her immensely. Luke had had problems of this sort before, she knew that. Trust and confidence in himself had never been something Luke Skywalker had possessed a lot of. Mara also knew how to deal with this.
She had overcome his shyness once - he had been everything but daring after they had confessed their feelings for each other. Luke had been disappointed too often in his life - had given too much when receiving nothing in return. It had surprised Mara that she had been that patient - now, when she remembered back, she could see that they had both helped each other in this regard. While she had taught him to enjoy getting something back, even expecting to get something back, he had taught her how to give feelings and love without feeling weak.
It had worked out wonderfully and Mara's love for him had grown to a size she'd never have expected. She would do anything for him and she would help him to restore his self-confidence - to see him laugh again. Not only smile, even if genuinely, but also laugh. She missed his laughter a lot.
Only after her marriage had she come to see what a funny, normal guy Luke could be if he stopped talking about Jedi Knights, the galaxy or any political mess the New Republic was in - again. It had enticed her and with every time she had heard him laugh or joke, she had fallen more in love with him. With the reckless, idealistic, funny and curious farmboy he had somehow managed to contain in himself despite all he had been through.
No one and nothing - neither her own stupidity nor the cruel schemes of aliens from another galaxy - would destroy that. Not as long as she lived to prevent it from happening.
Rising to her feet and reflexively brushing off non-existing filth from her trousers she went over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. She felt him tense uncharacteristically, then, after a few seconds that seemed like an eternity, relax a little bit. But not fully. It would not be easy, she told herself.
"What are you thinking of?" she asked quietly, leaning against the wall and gently pressing his shoulder, feeling his muscles move when he shifted slightly to look at her. He smiled, this curious smile: "The birds."
Mara perched an eyebrow, focusing on one of the rather clumsy looking animals that turned into fantastic swimmers once they had changed the element. "Not particularly beautiful," she commented
A sarcastic, yet gentle snort could be heard, then Luke shook his head: "You're not much into admiring nature, are you, Mar?"
Mara stared at him, drinking in his sight, grinned mischievously: "I was admiring something else, farmboy."
Luke's soft smirk vanished. For a moment she had the feeling of him frowning, though no wrinkle creased his forehead. Turning once again towards the sea, he murmured: "I have missed birds. Those are beautiful in comparison to hawk-bats."
As soon as he had turned, Mara allowed her surprise and bafflement to be seen on her features. Not only that he hadn't reacted in the slightest way to her compliment, he had even seemed startled by it. Startled and irritated. Something was going IMMENSELY wrong here. It frustrated Mara to no end that she wasn't able to figure it out. Even more so, it made her feel insensible and clumsy towards him. She wanted nothing more than to help him forget the ordeal he had been through, to relax and enjoy himself.
Instead, she continuously managed to either irritate or frighten him. Narrowing her eyes, focussing on his face, she tried to find a sign of what had been her fault this time. There was not much for her to read, except that his eyes now held a sort of sadness and a kind of surprise, bafflement, which was making her extremely uncomfortable.
His expression seemingly serene, except the eyes, he looked absolutely perfect. The sun had almost sunk into the sea and the light it cast was now soft, not blinding, hiding his paleness. Instead, his face seemed beautiful and almost painted there, in a soft, golden tone, with his eyes sparkling while reflecting the few rays that still found their way into the house.
Instinctively, overwhelmed by the urge to touch him after this long a time - Force, it had been more than two months - she reached out, cupped his cheek and turned his face towards her. The moment the sun only met the back of his head, his eyes turned back into the hypnotising blue that had always fascinated her. He didn't say a word and he didn't have to. A look into his eyes was everything Mara needed to tell what he thought - it had always been this way since the day they had shared their first kiss.
Since then, Luke had never put up his barriers if it came to her. And he didn't do it now, either. Nonetheless, what she saw in these big orbs she couldn't interpret. They stared at her, the azure swirling with thoughts, insecurity and surprise - it was a mess she hadn't yet brought order into and Mara couldn't guess when she would even begin with it.
Originally, she had wanted to kiss him, but the look in his eyes stopped her. Somehow, she knew that this was not what she should do now. It seemed to have taken an eternity for her to come to this conclusion - having been only seconds in reality - and she resorted to lightly strike his cheek with her thumb. It was silky smooth - shaving once a week was all he needed. It was some Force thing - if he didn't want a beard, then he didn't grow one. It was that simple.
Mara remembered this day - one of the first mornings they had woken up together. She had been startled because he had never been shaving. And then she had teased him for weeks about this "arrogant and futile" way of using the Force. Never had she told him that she would shave him personally if he ever got the insane idea to let himself grow a beard. She liked him just like he was.
Now, Luke didn't say a word, just stared at her, obviously contemplating something, too. But somehow Mara suspected it was quite different from what she had in her head right now. He didn't shy away from her hand, though, like he had done on Kwaad's ship and she didn't feel the need to let go of him just now.
*~~
If he hadn't caught himself in the last moment, Luke would have gaped at Mara's comment. She couldn't mean him, could she? She could certainly not be admiring him. No, he said silently to himself, that was impossible and nonsense.
But why did she do that? Why? He just didn't understand the way she acted. One time, she gave him clear messages and he had been comfortable with her being just there. Like friends. He wished for more, but after he had accepted that there was no way, he had been really content with her mere presence. The embraces had surprised him, had made him insecure, but he had recognised that they were meant to be friendly. He had thought they could be friends - he would always love her, of course, but he would never demand something similar from her.
So, he had really begun to feel at ease and enjoy it here. He liked this planet extremely, felt safe and happy here and enjoyed the quiet, beautiful nature.
Then everything had changed - it had been his fault. He had become too daring, had stupidly hoped that something had changed. She had made clear that it had not and he had gotten the hint.
And now…. now she was standing in front of him, stroking his cheek. He could do nothing but sit still, staring at her, and didn't know what to think or what to do. She was so beautiful, Luke thought. The light of dusk made her hair look like flames, stray rays of the sun setting glittering, golden highlights into it. This underlined the green of her eyes - they looked brilliant. The well-known scent of her perfume permeated his senses and he felt, most unwelcome, the urge to take her into his arms and kiss her.
But that would be just the wrong thing to do, wouldn't it? It would be the same mistake he had made repeatedly. She had made clear to him what she wanted and what not, abundantly clear, and he would act according to it.
What startled him were the changes of her behaviour - she reinforced what she had said, then she baited him, lured him. Perhaps she wanted to test him, he mused. Relieved, he gave a mental nod. Yes, that must be it. She wanted to test him, make sure that he had understood what she wanted and that she could trust him to respect her wishes. And she COULD trust him, Luke would make sure that she knew that.
Relieved that he had solved this riddle for now, Luke smiled at her.
*~~
Mara was delighted when her husband smiled at her; somewhat shyly, but he smiled. At first she had had the feeling he was a tad uncomfortable with her portrayed affection, but now, he seemed to enjoy it - sort of.
Intensifying her contemplation of his boyish yet mature features, she caught the first signs of fatigue. "We should go to bed. You look exhausted," she said softly, taking her hand away and stretching a little bit.
Immediately, a haunted look replaced the content in Luke's face. He didn't answer her, just shifted a little bit in the window frame, biting his lip. Mara's expression changed into one of compassion and she took his hands in hers. "Luke, I know you're afraid. But you HAVE to sleep and you know that."
"I can't anyway," he murmured defensively, frustrated. Mara sighed softly. This was a problem even the Force couldn't help him with. As soon as he fell asleep, he was assaulted by nightmares - more than enough times, she had shaken him awake when he had screamed and cried in his slumber, never succeeding in making him tell her what exactly he had dreamed.
In fact, he never said a single word after those nightmares, but simply brushed her soul in gratitude and drew back into himself, willing himself into a trance or taking a sleeping pill when even this wouldn't work. Mara felt that she would be able to help him a great deal if he only told her what he dreamt, but she knew better than to push him into talking about it. With time, he would confide into her - at least that was what she hoped.
Pressing his hand to reassure him, she turned towards the small stairway down into the living room: "Just get ready, Luke, I'm going to make you some Hila tea." He nodded not entirely persuaded and headed off to the bathroom while Mara went down into the living room and from there into the kitchen.
Hila tea was something Tionne had introduced her to when she had come to visit Luke on Coruscant. It had the effect of a light sedative, calming down those who drank it, and was a much used, natural way to ease peoples' insomnia. It helped Luke to at least fall asleep and have some hours of rest, even if the Jedi Master mostly refused to drink even a single cup.
He was stubborn, this husband of hers, she mused. He wanted to get through it by himself - of all his family, Mara was the one who was able to deal with this best. She would act the exact same way if she were in his position. In one corner of the kitchen, R2 had plugged into a small energy station and tooted a greeting when she entered. It was followed by a slow twittering that sounded like a question. Mara could very well guess what the little droid wanted to know.
"He's fine, R2. I'm going to make him some tea and then he'll sleep - I hope." R2 hooted his doubts about that, but Mara ignored him. Considering the fact that droids weren't supposed to have any feelings at all, this astromech unit offered an annoying amount of pessimism, no matter what the situation.
It took Mara only a couple of minutes to prepare the tea - she had brewed it a little bit stronger than usual, so that Luke would only have to take a cup. He didn't particularly like its taste, which was rather bitter.
Almost humming to herself, cheered up by the knowledge that Luke reacted extremely well to sedatives when he turned off his Force barriers, which meant he would probably have a good night's rest, she stopped short when she entered the bedroom again. If she hadn't been Mara Jade, ex-Emperor's Hand and Jedi Master, she would have dropped the cup. Clad in a wide cut shirt and trousers of black colour, Luke had already snuggled into the bed, or was in the process to do just that, showing her his back. What had caused Mara's reaction was the fact that he had separated the double bed. He had just separated it. Between the right and the left half, there was now a space of some one and a half meter. Mara didn't know whether to be infuriated or amused. Was this some sort of joke?
She was about to give a comment when Luke turned, smiling at her brilliantly, obviously not even suspecting that anything was wrong. Mara caught herself in the last moment, deciding to accept this for now. Judging by his state of mind, she would rather confront him about all this when she had figured out the full scale of his problems. Until then, she'd just go with him.
Forcing herself to smile back, she went towards him and put the steaming cup into his hands. "There. I'm going to get ready for bed and you're going to drink that." He made a face and sipped hesitantly at it. Mara quipped an eyebrow and folded her arms before her chest. "Luke!" she growled.
He sighed, then shrugged: "Ok, ok, I'll drink it, I'll drink it." Satisfied, she nodded and went towards the bathroom. "That doesn't mean I've got to like it, though," she heard him mumble, causing her to smile broadly.
Thinking about what had caused him to separate their beds, Mara undressed, washed and put on one of Luke's old shirts that went just to her knees. By the time she sat down on her own bed, Luke was dozing with eyes closed, sprawled onto his stomach in a relaxed, quite enticing way. The now empty cup was situated on the floor and Mara chuckled softly. As she had thought - as soon as Luke didn't use the Force to fight against the sedating ingredients, he fell prey to them within minutes. Like every normal human.
It was astonishing how surprised you could be about things that were normal for average people, just because it was about Luke Skywalker. Covering him up again, for the blanket had slipped down to his knees, she brushed her lips over his forehead. "Good night, my love," she said softly.
He sighed, turned on his back, then was quiet again. Out cold, Mara thought amused. Lying down herself in her bed, shaking her head in irritation about this new quirk of his, she settled in and closed her eyes. She didn't have to solve all the riddles in one day. She had time enough to go slow. Listening to Luke's quiet, deep breathing, Mara soon fell asleep.
Chandrila, Day 2
A shrill cry woke Mara, but she didn't open her eyes yet. Rather, she enjoyed the sounds of the sea that came from the beach some kilometre away and the sounds of the birds that just awoke. The air was still cool and fresh and she felt wonderful lying there - comfortable and cosy. Stretching, she extended one of her arms to touch her husband, but her hand met only empty air.
Mara couldn't help but sigh very deeply when she remembered that he was sleeping in the other half of the bed, one and a half meters away from her. The morning was not entirely perfect, she mused annoyed.
Opening her eyes for the first time, she glanced over to the bed her husband was lying in. It was still untouched by the sun, but she could see him clearly. Now, in sleep, he looked relaxed and fine. Lying on his side, facing her, the seemingly ever-present frown when he didn't take a cup of the Hila tea before sleeping, was nowhere to be found.
There was nothing that spoiled his beauty now. Even the slight, fine lines in the corner of his eyes were something Mara loved. She eagerly awaited the moment where they would deepen - when Luke laughed and his eyes would twinkle in the way she was used to.
Moving soundlessly, she got out of the bed and made her way towards the kitchen. Even if she didn't know yet what to do to heal his soul, she could at least begin with his body. And nothing was better for him than a good breakfast after a night of deep sleep.
It took her half an hour, then she returned to the bedroom with a tray filled with all possible things. She was not much of a cook, so she had taken everything that had seemed edible and what she knew Luke liked. Someone had brought fresh bread from the city - she had ordered this before they had come here, thinking it would be nice not to have to go shopping every day.
Luke had still not awoken, though he had shifted a few times, now lying on his back, his arm above his head, his lips slightly parted. Again, she wanted to kiss him, but after her experiences with waking him up, she decided to go for a simple version of it. Brushing the hair - which had grown quite a bit since she had left him on Ithor - out of his forehead, she said aloud: "Breakfast's ready, flyboy!"
He blinked lazily, the blue of his eyes dark and cloudy from sleep and the tea. In this moment, he looked very vulnerable, though this impression vanished after he had stretched and blinked a few times more.
Stifling a yawn, he sat up and looked around. Finally focussing on Mara, he shook his head: "I don't like this tea."
She laughed at that, putting the tray onto the bed just beside his feet. "It has helped you to have a calm night. You've slept like a baby." He sighed, but smiled: "I can't even remember falling asleep, but well - I'm not complaining anymore."
Mara nodded appreciatively: "Good. Now let's eat. You're going to need it." He took a closer look at the tray and finally chose a piece of bread and something that looked like marmalade of some sort. "More surprises?" he asked, eyeing her curiously, yet a little bit uncomfortable.
She grinned: "You bet. I'm sure you'll like it. But we still have time to eat." Mara enjoyed the way he kept looking at her, curiosity shining from his eyes, chewing on his bread. After the breakfast, she felt pretty content - he hadn't eaten as much as she remembered him to eat, but he HAD eaten. Normally, Luke Skywalker was ALWAYS hungry - another thing that had changed.
They talked a little bit, Mara trying to get him to have a normal discussion with her as they had had it before Ithor. It worked partially, even if she had the feeling he tried to avoid contradicting her too much, choosing topics he knew they'd agree on.
As much as it annoyed her, she didn't want it to spoil her fun and his surprise. Grabbing a bag she had prepared the evening before, while unpacking, she rose and gestured at Luke to follow her.
"Your surprise is waiting."
*~~
They had to take quite a long walk, but Mara didn't mind that. Even less so when she noticed how Luke grew more and more comfortable with her holding his hand. He was rather attentive, though at first they just went the way he knew from the day before. He already began to frown, recalling nothing special about that place, nothing that would surprise him, when she dragged him further, in the direction of one of the cliffs that blocked the way to one side of the beach.
Or so Luke had thought. "You've been researching this place?" he asked amazed, when Mara showed him a small cave that extended into the cliff and whose opening was obviously at the other side, for it was lit softly.
She grinned: "Don't I always do that?" He laughed: "And I'm supposed to crawl through this now? What's at the other side?" "You'll see. Now get moving, Skywalker!"
Luke hesitated for a moment, then shrugged and crawled behind Mara through the cave. It was not as far as he had thought by looking into it and when he wiggled out of it, he stared once again open-mouthed at the treasure Mara had led him to. It was a small bay, with calm water that wasn't rippled by wind and therefore transparent. Stones and coloured coral were visible on the ground that descended into depths that he couldn't see from where he stood.
A few trees were situated against the cliff that encircled the whole bay, just up to a rather narrow opening to the sea. "It is wonderful," he said, taking a few steps on the fine, warm sand and looking around. It really wasn't big, but that was what made it that special.
"It IS big," Mara said, rummaging through the bag she had brought with her. Sensing her secretiveness, Luke hadn't even asked about its contents. "Below the water, that is. The beach is tiny, relatively, but we are only two, so I guess there's no problem, is there?"
Luke grinned and shook his head no. Then he focussed on the plants around him, curious as ever. He just wanted to go off exploring the bushes when Mara practically stabbed something into his face. Startled, he took a step back and stared at it, trying to recognise what it embodied. It was black, small and at the first view, he was at a total loss, Mara having cramped it into an almost-ball in her hand.
He frowned and looked quizzically at her, which made her snort: "Take a look at it. It's a bathing short, weirdo!" "Oh..!" Luke mouthed, then hesitantly grabbed it. "THAT'S the surprise?!" he then added, staring at her sheepishly.
Mara rolled her eyes: "Of course not. Just put it on and I'm showing you the surprise." Luke took it, stared at it for while, fidgeting nervously. Mara didn't seem to notice while she took her own bathing dress out of the bag and put it on. Luke was riveted for a moment by her slender, but well-trained form and the silky, white skin when she stood there undressed before him. He hadn't much time to admire her, though, for she slipped immediately into a tight-fitting, black dress.
Shaking himself awake, sort of, he used the time she was focused on her own clothing to slip out of his and put the swimming short on. Mara's frown at his haste and obvious effort to keep her eyes away from himself did go unnoticed when he looked at her with a mix of excitement and nervousness.
She pushed something slimy into his hand, then took his wrist and dragged him into the water. Recognising one of the living breathing masks of the Mon Calamari, Luke put it on and let himself be dragged with her. The water was cool, but not uncomfortably so and the ground was soft and wonderful to walk on.
"Mara, I know how to swim. That's not exactly..." he began, but was interrupted by a grinning Mara who dragged powerfully at his arm, making him loose his balance and fall face-first into the water. His first thought was that he was going to hit the ground hard, but he didn't. When he opened his eyes again, he was floating in the silver, crystal clear water, Mara just in front of him.
The swimming suit fit her perfectly and when she moved, she looked like the legendary nixes he had been told about by his aunt, way back when he was a little boy. Her hair was a glittering mass that flowed around her freely. She was a picture of perfect beauty and Luke couldn't help but smile enchanted.
She didn't seem to catch that, though, and when he kept his eyes on her, she gestured impatiently for him to look around. Nodding foolishly, he did. And if he hadn't had this breathing mask on, he'd have gasped in surprise. If he found the planet above the water beautiful, this was something he had never seen - the whole sea ground was covered with sparkling corals in all possible colours and green water plants and hordes of equally colourful fish were swimming around. They were obviously living at the ground, for they never came to where Luke and Mara floated, directly under the surface.
Luke was riveted by it. He had seen pictures and heard tales about coral reefs, of course, but had never seen one. All these years he had been off Tatooine, he had never found the time to actually visit a planet just to see what was worth to see. Now that he had the opportunity, it preoccupied his mind. Nature was something beautiful; everything here was beautiful and it erased all memories of the Yuuzhan Vong temporarily.
At the first moment, he even forgot that Mara was there, turning around and swimming down to the ground, slowly, so as to not disturb the fish too much, in order to examine those things more closely.
*~~
Mara didn't mind that he turned away from her immediately and went exploring. She had expected and hoped for just that. Had hoped to fascinate him with this world he didn't know. A world of quiet, serenity, beauty and peace. And it worked. She had seen the way his eyes had widened, had seen this fascination in them, and that was enough for her to be happy.
Floating for a moment longer, she used the opportunity to admire him a little more. During the time they had needed to get here, he had begun to eat normally again. He wasn't back to how he had been when she had left him, but he wasn't terribly thin anymore either.
She watched the way his muscles moved when he swam through the water, powerful and fast, yet very graceful and giving the impression of a being that actually belonged into the water. She made a mental note to ask him where he had learnt to swim like this, being raised on a desert planet, then followed him.
*~~
Luke was just about to make friends - well, sort of - with a swarm of little, yellow fish that had been following him while he had examined a couple of deep purple corals that looked just like a small town, when he felt Mara come up near him. He turned, staring right into her face; the shimmering mass of the breathing mask didn't diminish her beauty and when he saw her smile, he smiled broadly and genuinely back at her. She was so beautiful and this was so beautiful - he was overwhelmed. Taking her hand, he took her with him to show her what he had already found. The rest, they would examine together. For the first time in almost a year, he had completely forgotten the Yuuzhan Vong, the war and the pain.
*~~
Mara's heart jumped in delight when her husband smiled back at her, broadly, his eyes shining, even as they travelled through her face. Now he was Luke again. It had been about time. His delicate nose and full lips had always seemed extremely handsome to her and the big eyes completed the picture. The mop of his hair was floating around him, letting him seem even more boyish than usual. Only too happy to have him in this mood, she accepted his guidance.
*~~
It was already afternoon when they splashed back onto the beach, a little exhausted, but happy. Drenched and laughing, they chased each other just up to the shore, then dropped onto the hot sand, panting from swimming all the time.
"Now... was that a surprise or what?" Mara breathed, throwing the breathing mask back into the bag. Luke followed her example, smiling and nodding. "It was wonderful. You have found us a paradise, Mara." Taking her hand and squeezing it, he added: "Thank you."
Mara smiled, squeezing his hand back. He sighed happily, then closed his eyes, relaxing and letting the sun dry him. Mara, though, didn't close her eyes. She rather relished the sight of him lying sprawled out there, drops of water glittering on his fine-boned shoulders and his back. Following his spine with her eyes, she let her gaze travel over his well-formed backside and equally well-trained legs, which had been the part of his body to get back its previous form fastest. Gods, she loved him so much.
"Luke?"
"Hmm?" he huffed, stretching with cat-like grace.
Mara wetted her lips upon seeing his slender form like this. The salty smell of the seawater added to his own was a wonderful experience. Chuckling to herself, she decided to dump him more often into salty water.
"You know what I feel for you, don't you?"
He opened his eyes, smiling at her, then nodded: "Yes."
Mara grinned happily. Without hesitation, she stole over to him and planted a kiss on his sun-warmed shoulder, trailing his spine with her finger and fidgeting at his wet shorts. Perhaps she shouldn't have chosen tight fitting ones, she mused - difficult to get off if they were wet. She felt Luke tense below her and took it as a shuddering of comfort first. In this moment, she had the feeling everything would be fine again. Everything.
Unfortunately, that was all it was. A moment. In the next second, she felt herself being practically pushed away - not violently, but rather strongly. One moment intertwined with the man she craved so much, she found herself sitting rather dumbfounded on the sand the next one.
Staring up in exasperation, she caught Luke dragging his trousers frantically over his legs, pale like a ghost.
"Luke ---!" she began, opening and closing her mouth, not quite knowing what to say. Mara got up, walking over to him, extending a hand to touch him. He shied away, grabbing his shirt. Pushing a few wet strands out of his forehead, he headed off towards the cave, vanishing into it before she could say another word.
When Mara had grabbed the rest of their things and crawled out onto the beach on the other side of the cliff, she only saw his slender form climbing the cliff path at a dead run.
"Luke!" she shouted, quickening her pace, too. Either he didn't hear her or he didn't want to. He kept on running until she couldn't see him anymore. Feeling herself shake with shock and irritation, she became slower, but continued her slow progress towards the bungalow. She felt horrified, as if she had seen a terrible truth - but if she had indeed understood what had just happened, it had been on a subconscious level. For her conscious just felt irritation. And worry - worry for Luke. She felt only panic coming from him. Once again, she quickened her steps. She had to talk to him. Immediately.