Beyond - Legends The Last Dance - L/M - Author's Thanks

Title: The Last Dance
Author(s): RedGold
Timeframe: After ROTJ - slight AU
Characters: Mara, Luke,
Genre: Romance
Keywords: Luke, Mara, romance
Summary: During a masked ball, two strangers meet.

The Last Dance

Luke bowed gracefully as he moved away from his dance partner, such a formal way to run away. He had been invited to the ball by Leia who insisted that he make an appearance, but that seemed to defy logic. The ball was a masked one, a tradition dating back to before the Republic. It was the Day of Rebirth, when Coruscant would start again on its journey around its sun. This was less than a standard year in length, but celebrated regardless.

Dressed in the darkest blacks and richest crimsons, socialites fluttered around the ballroom floor, their sweeping dresses and tailored jackets trimmed in silver and jewels. But nothing more elaborate than the masks? some full faced, others only partial, all flamboyant and reckless.

He had to admit, it was nice to have a bit of anonymity, but after Leia introduced him to several people, he lost even that much.

?Leaving so soon?? Leia cornered him as he tried to sneak his way toward the exit.

?I?ve been here for two hours,? Luke shifted his mask on his face. He had opted for a partial one which only covered from his nose and up, and he blamed the whine in his voice on the mask affecting his nasal areas. ?Surely I?ve put in enough of an appearance??

?Won?t you stay till the bell hour?? she was wearing a full mask, but he could just imagine her frowning.

He tried not to let his own frown show. The bell hour was still an hour away. ?I?ve had a busy day, I?m not sure I could stay up that late.?

?I?ve seen you handle worse,? she gave him a light hug, ?just stay for me, and after the bells toll you can head out. Han and I were planning to stay.?

?I?ll see what I can do,? he conceded, she was his only sister after all, and this would probably be the only Day of Rebirth celebration he would ever attend. It was only because it happened to coincide with the fall of the Empire that anyone made a big deal about this one.

One of the large ballrooms in the Imperial Palace had been reserved for the celebration, and the music reverberated off the marble walls and etched itself into his very bones. Leia moved away as the Coruscantis twirled and danced towards his direction, the hypnotic movements of flowing dresses and feathered masks.

He turned to move out of their way when dancers twirled their partners in sync and the mass opened, his attention drawn to the woman at the end of the path.

Her body was curvy in all the right places, her dark green dress hugging it just enough to show off her attributes but also leaving much to his now overactive imagination. She was strong, that was obvious, the long, lean leg that was exposed by the slit of the dress showed as much. As she turned, her attention elsewhere, her movements were that of a gracefulness he had never seen before.

In the Force she was like a shattering beacon.

Briefly her eyes behind her half mask turned towards his and he was stopped by their beauty, their vibrancy. As he gained the willpower to move again, the dancers twirled, blocking his way, and she was gone.

* * *

Mara saw her chance and went for it. Didn?t these rebels know better than to leave themselves open and blind? Amateurs.

She?d been trying for weeks to figure out how to get into the Senatorial offices in order to procure the information she needed for the Remnant. Too bad the Rebels had been smart enough to find and deal with all the secret passages she had been so fond of using back when she was the Emperor?s personal spy.

Now look at her, reduced to helping out the dwindling Remnant. Oh well, at least it gave her something to do.

A masked ball in the main audience hall under the Senatorial offices of the Imperial Palace, she couldn?t have asked for an easier setup. She dawned her most alluring dress, a mask to hide her identity, and she simpl

 

Wow!

Hehehe.... this is exacly what I needed to read right now!

cheers,

Verybusy

 

loved it. please add me to your pm list.

 

Awesome RedGold!!...hopefully there will be more of this..lol..you can add me to the PM list too.


MaraJ

 

*the lovely ginchy preens*

Thanks, gal!

You know I love the fic... I love L/M meeting earlier and having ... uh... encounters. And you did this one so well, Luke is such a farmboy, but so endearing... how could Mara say no? Well, obviously, she couldn't.

Great fic, lady!!! Thanks for letting me write the outtake bit.

 

Luke just can't stop blushing, can he?

 

I LOVED THAT!!!
L/M dancing ... one of my favorite things for them to do together.
So ... Mara was never intentionally going to stay for the dance but she was magnetically drawn to him as he was to her

Gotta have a dance scene like this in Union's Shadow, at the reception perhaps? Whee!!!
Funny thing, how a post from you makes me ... want more uppies ... Yeppers, your L/M is electric, sensual and sizzling!

 

You go girl!

 

Hehehe--that was so much fun. I loved seeing them meet earlier at this ball. Luke was wonderfully awkward and shy--perfect farmboy. I laughed out loud when Mara discovered who he really was. I love knowing that they do eventually find each other again... Loved Han's little interjections too. Rebirth, of course.

So much fun, RG! Much

 

I take it there will be more of this?

Kat

 

oh, my. (fans self.) My, My.

How come I never get invited to dances like that? (Unless I'm being asked to chaperone, in which case my job is to keep the little darlings from winding up like those two...)

 

In skimming over other readers' replies, seems like there's an impression this little viggie will turn into something more? If so, I have to be on the PM Train too.
Whee!! How delightful this is gonna be! Oh, my! Possibilities!!

 

I love the morning-after remorse there. Ha! Great little story.

 

That was a fun read! I'm glad all she did was leave after she realized who he was. It could've been one of those 'black widow' scenarios.

 

I'd like to read more of this. The part with L/M dancing was

 

Ah poor Luke. He finally has a night to remember and Han has just got to tease him about it!

I found it very amusing Mara ended up having a one night stand with her biggest ememy.

That was a lovely story. Great job!

 

You wrote it!

Wonderful, gal! I love how they focused on each other's eyes first. And you know a tango with those two would be steamy.

You'll have to PM me the rest. I think y'all broke SWFF.

 

Brilliant fic!

Love the concept of Luke and Mara being masked, but still being attracted to one another through the Force. Luke was just gorgeous, being so nervous and a bumbling romantic - and their connection, through a shared loneliness and wish to be fulfilled was just so sweet.

Off to read the extended version!

 

verybusy - Glad to hear that! L/M mush is so much fun!

Tatooine_Ghost - Thanks! I will!

MaraJade1225 - Well, there wasn't going to be any, but ginchy talked me into it. Hope you enjoy what comes next!

ginchy - I blame this fic on you! And you're going to be writing more girl!

PonyTricks - But he's so cute when he does.

Jade_eyes - L/M always have this connection, and seeing them dance just shows that off. As for the reception in Union's Shadow... I have much more interesting ideas... bbuuuuwwwaahahahahaha

Jade_Pilot -

Luna_Nightshade - Luke is just so cute when he's like this. And yes, they will find each other again.

Kat - That wasn't the plan... but the muse is with me.

divapilot - I want to be invited to those dances too... but it won't happen...

Jade_eyes - Yes, it will turn into something more, I got your number.

Darth Marrs - One night stands are not without their problems, but this is L/M

Jedi-2B - Yeah, that would have put a damper on things.

desertgirl - That can be done. Thanks!

KELIA - What is Han there for if not to tease? and imagine how Mara feels?

Jedi Trace - Eyes are windows to the soul, but yes, those two are steamy enough to break SWFF.

JadeLotus - L/M have a wonderful connection, that's what we love about them! And Luke is so romantic and cute...

 

Well, here is the second part of this fic, it was supposed to be posted yesterday for Christmas, sorry for the delay. Enjoy!

Part 2: The Midwinter Festival

"You should get out there and dance, Luke," his sister goaded him, though she was hard to take seriously with the wings on her back and bells on her shoes.

Han laughed next to her, "Remember last time he danced at a big costume ball?"

Groaning he turned away and stared out over the floor of the ballroom. It was time for the Midwinter Festival, a throwback from where there was actually a winter on Coruscant, but when the center of the holiday is dressing up as the Midwinter Gods, one of which gives children toys, the other alcohol to adults, it wasn't hard to see why it was still such a popular holiday.

"That is true," Leia replied thoughtfully though he knew she wore a grin on her face, "can't have him picking up more strange women and taking them home..."

"She was not strange," he turned around and growled out, "just a stranger."

"But you were good friends afterwards," Han gave a wink and patted his shoulder. "We're just teasing ya, kid. It's great you actually let loose for a night, it did you good."

He tried to come up with something to say, but couldn't. Even though his mysterious Mara had left him after that night of passion he had felt more vitalized than ever, despite his obvious sadness at her departure. He had a feeling that he would be seeing her again soon, and with the next Rebirth Ball just two months away, he was counting the days.

"Come on, Preeni Pi," Han took his wife's hand which was also covered in bangles, her costume being that of the midwinter goddess of goodwill who brings presents to good little children, her costume complete with wings, bells, and a dangly hat, "let's go raid the buffet table now that the Bothan's have left."

"And just what will you raid, Baccuri Ti?" she teased as Han was wearing the brown robes of the god of wine and merriment.

The couple sidled off and Luke smiled at them. They were happy and in love with the future ahead of them. One day that would be him, he promised himself, but first he needed to complete the work on the new Jedi Academy and train the Force sensitive students that he had recently located.

There was one Force sensitive though that he wanted to find again... and his heart almost stopped when he her saw standing across the room. She was dressed similarly from before, a figure hugging green thin strapped dress with a slit up the side to show off her shapely legs.

Her face may have been covered by the mask of Doreena Da, but he knew every inch of that body.

* * *

There was no mission today, no need to sneak around amongst the rebels, but here she was. Why? Because she knew he would be here, she had read it on the holonet as they boasted about this year's midwinter festival, and how it would be an event to remember...

She only remembered him, Luke Skywalker, and no matter what she tried she could not get the imprint of him off her body or soul.

"A dance, milady?" an unmistakable request.

"Do you dance?" she coolly teased as she turned around.

He was even more handsome in the light, no mask to cover his twinkling eyes. Dressed as the god of knowledge and remembrance he was once again tapered out in a long jacket, this one dark blue with the silver symbols of Aterious Ys.

"I have been known to," he just as coolly replied, "from time to time."

She lifted up her hand, gesturing him to start the dance, "And when was the last time you danced?"

"It was awhile back," he gently guided her to the dance floor, "had an amazing partner."

"Was she now?" she was having too much fun now, both of them dancing around the obvious as they loosely embraced and slowly twirled to the beat.

"She had her... moments," he stopped any retort by dipping her suddenly. His breath was hot on the exposed parts of her neck and bosom and she moaned without realizing it, her body already reacting to being near him.

When he pulled her back

 

You know what this fic needs? Some ginchy-shine.

Oh, wait.. *starts typing*



Great update, lady! Great to see your plotbunny mixed with some of my romantic ideas come to form! Love how Luke has imprinted himself on Mara's psyche. And I do love my Preeni Pi! She's fun, huh? Love how you expanded on the idea of her, and the other gods/goddesses you made up to go along with her.

Great update!!

 

Wow! That is a wonderful update! What a nice Christmas present!

Great job!!

AG88

 

loved it can not wait for the next post.

 

Thanks for the PM.
Wow! So, Luke's really serious and Mara's trying to blow him off like he's less than nothing, while convincing no one. There's too much emotional and physical chemistry for that.
Woot!!

 

YES!!

Takes an update on this story to get me out of tf.n lurkdom, should have known.

I have so been hoping for a part two, this made my day! I love what you've started here, and I hope to see more. Leia and Han's teasing was pretty damn adorable. I'm especially interested to know why Mara seems so afraid of being Force sensitive.