Beyond - Legends Pre-Flight Prep (LOTF AU; L/M mush/humor)

Author's Note: While I continue to fight the never-ending battle with writer's block , I did have a need to write SOMETHING. And I'd never actually written what I'd call mush, specifically ... this is something of an experiment.

This takes place during the roughly 24 hours between the end of The Shifting Tides:

http://boards.theforce.net/beyond_the_saga/b10477/29839467/p1/?1

And its' sequel, Karrde Reign:

http://boards.theforce.net/beyond_the_saga/b10477/30111885/p1/?0

But those aren't necessary to understand this ...

DISCLAIMER: LFL's are LFL's. Marvel's are Marvel's. OCs are their own. No money is being made off of this. This is a work of fiction. Please don't sue.

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40.4 ABY:
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Luke looked at Mara as Cilghal finished a scan - the third in as many hours - and held Mara's hand, unable to keep from looking at the swell of her abdomen between glancing at his soulmate's expression: Bemusement mixed with concern.

You're beautiful, Luke reassured Mara, and she turned that baleful-and-laughing green gaze on him that just melted him.

Not that her face was the only part of her that was beautiful. She shone in the Force - so brightly that Luke was awed, even more than usual.

She, and their unborn daughter, who laughed with him.

The child they'd never dreamed of having - Ben alone was a miracle, and thank the Force the three of them had reconnected so well after Luke's excessive focus on being the Grand Master -

- and the child, who, thanks to the Phoenix Force that was Mara's heritage by her birth parents, John and Elaine Grey, had gone from a speck to almost ready to arrive in the space of a day.

So sue me if I'm worried, Farmboy. The firebird helped us cure me when I gave birth to Ben; now it's sped up this pregnancy. At a terrible time - we know where Earth is, and who my parents are. If I can't go see them ... Mara thought, determined both to see her parents and protect their baby.

She'd find a way to win. Luke was just as determined to help her -

"I can't see any reason not to go."

"You're sure?" Luke asked Cilghal - while this wasn't nearly as risky as Mara's first pregnancy, neither was he going to take any chances.

(Or be suicidal enough to insist that she listen; he'd suggest.)

But Cilghal would know if it was safe.

Their old friend smiled, her wide eyes blinking as she looked at Mara's abdomen, then Mara. "The baby could be born at any minute, true. But you're in vastly better health than you were when Ben was born, and the X-Men are said to have medical technology that rivals our own. I'd suggest going," Cilghal advised.

"Thanks," Mara said - relief washed from her, almost embarrassingly so, and she watched Cilghal leave her and Luke's apartment before looking over at Farmboy.

He was just drinking her in, and she tried not to blush - only he could have that effect.

"You're glad," Mara accused, thanking him as he poured her a glass of water and started giving her a foot massage.

"Yes. I'm as excited as you are to learn about your past - and from all that Betsy Braddock's told us about Earth, I want to visit it too," Luke said, trying to hold back his happiness -

but he gushed, beaming at her and the baby, who giggled in the Force, and said, "And there'll be another one of us to enjoy it all."

He couldn't help but be happy - things were serious, true; Luke's heart ached with sympathy for Corran and Mirax, after Jysella had fallen to the dark, killed Nelani Dinn, and vanished with Vader's Sith holocron.

And there was still One Sith. Krayt, with his Sith sorceror-advisor Wyyrlok, and Darth Tantiss - Luke's crazy clone, Luuke Skywalker - and Lumiya, had all managed to escape in the craziness following the attack of the Shi'ar and the Shadow King.

But Mara destroyed the Sh

 

With all your bigger stuff you'd been working on lately I'd forgotten just how good you are at these little slice of life pieces.

 

Thanks.

I felt like there were a lot of questions left unanswered by the end of Tides; this was an attempt to deal with some of the most glaring ones - "why would a pregnant woman risk going thousands of light-years so near her due date?" and "wait, where are the Sith?"

- Onderon1