"Disclaimer": contains characters from George Lucas, and Timothy
   Zahn. Copyrights belong to them. No infringement intended. It is
   merely my interpretation

                                                           --1--

      Possibly the only thing that Mara Jade Skywalker despised about living on Yavin 4 was winter on the jungle moon.Whenever the season approached,the humid,sunny days would become fewer and farther between,and be replaced by endless weeks of cloud and rain.Mist blanketed the thick jungles here like nowhere else in the galaxy that Mara had been,and it still boggled her mind that one planet's climate would be enough to keep even the most hearty of adventurers locked in their quarters for a good few months.
        The winter this year was especially gloomy,Mara thought,and gazed out the wide windows lining the back wall of her quarters in the Jedi Academy.Fat raindrops rolled down the fogged-up panes of glass,and the metal floor was freezing underneath her bare feet.She pulled on her spaceboots for warmth,but even her old,stretched smuggler's boots were cold inside.
       "You know," she said to Luke Skywalker,who was stretched out on their bed,reading,"for a planet that's supposed to be known for it's eternal heat,it's incredibly cold in here."
He peered at her from over the top of his data screen and narrowed his blue eyes.
"Go take a walk outside,then.It's always cold in here,you just don't notice it.It's a fact of life at the Academy,because this temple's made of stone."
       She cocked her head to the side.
"Thank you,professor Skywalker,"she said sarcastically."Maybe I will take a walk."
"Outside?" he asked quietly,hiding a smile.
She just glared at him a moment,then rose from her seat,wondering why she had so much energy all of a sudden.All that week,lethargy had seemed to settle over her,and just curling up in her chair with her imagination was her favorite daily activity.It was fun to pretend that it was still hot outside.
     Mara let the heavy wooden door swing shut behind her,and sauntered casually down the darkened,mossy-walled corridor to the common room at the front of the giant Jedi temple.
    Inside the common room,nearly half the Jedi students sat scattered around on the overstuffed chairs and couches that dotted the room.
    No one at all was training.
In front of the holoscreen,Jaina Solo and her twin brother Jacen were watching an old horrorvid.Mara raised her eyebrows in surprise.The film must have been a good fifteen years old-she fleetingly remembered seeing it with Talon Karrde and the gang back in the good old days aboard the Wild Karrde.On the screen,a tearful and frightened Anise Pathem was about to open the door to a bent and twisted spaceship,thinking that her lover was inside.Mara decided to let Jaina and Jacen find out for themselves that she got shot within the next ten minutes.
      Amidst the actress's dying screams,Mara sank onto a chair at the long wooden table at the back,and,to her delight,discovered Han,Leia,and Anakin engrossed in a card game.
"Are you playing Interstellar Fish?" she asked,stifling a laugh at Anakin's pokerface.
Leia blushed and nodded."I won't let Han teach the kids any gambling games-too risky."
Mara shook her head while Anakin groaned.
"She won't even let me learn Sabacc!" he exclaimed,hoping to recieve some sympathy from his aunt.
Mara glanced at Leia in surprise."Not even Sabacc?" she asked."That isn't too bad."
     Leia shook her head firmly."Not even Sabacc,"she said,"and that's that.It's your go,Han."
Looking bored,Han flicked his gaze over the cards he held in his hand,and mumbled,"do you have the ten of sabres,Leia?"
    Delighted,Leia shook her head and yelled,"Interstellar Fish,Han!"
She slammed her cards down on the table and let out a triumphant whoop."I win!"
"Good,"Han said,then added hopefully,"that means you're the champ-twelve games straight.You don't want to play again,right?"
Leia regarded him strangely."Only if you want to play..."
Han shook his head vigorously."That's quite alright."
     He stood up and stretched,running a hand through his hair and succeeding in electrically charging it.It stood on end in wispy strands.Mara debated whether or not to tell him,but decided against it,grinning wickedly.
"I'm going to get a sweater,Leia.I'll be right back," Han said,and stalked out of the room.
"I'm going to grab a snack,"Anakin announced,and followed him.
      Once Mara and Leia were relatively alone,Mara got it in her head to inform the other woman of the plan that had been formulating in her head all afternoon while she daydreamed by the window.
"Leia,you need some excitement in your life,"she said,and Leia glanced up sharply,dropping the cards she'd been shuffling.
"My life is exciting!" she said."I just won twelve games of Interstellar Fish...isn't that exciting enough?"
Mara rolled her eyes."Whoop-de-doo.Leia,it's Interstellar Fish.Not the most challenging card game in the world."
Leia pushed the cards back into their box with more force than was necessary,and scowled when the bottom fell out of the case.
"Why,what sort of 'excitement' do you have in mind,Mara?" she asked,still frowning.
Mara smiled,a secretive sort of smile.
"Well...I was thinking...what would you think of making a little bet? You know,a friendly wager?"
Leia's scowl deepened.
"Mara,you know I don't gamble."
"It's not gambling!" Mara said quickly,"it's just...a contest,of sorts."
"What are the terms?" Leia asked suspiciously,habitually pressing a finger to her lips.
"You and Han against me and Luke," Mara answered,the beginnings of a smile beginning to play around the corners of her mouth.
"What's the contest?"
The smile was in full shine now.
"Dancing," Mara said simply,shrugging."I assume you know how to dance?"
Leia blushed."Well,I had a few lessons when I was younger...what are you implying?"
"I mean,we'll set a time limit,and judges.In the time allotted,you have to teach Han one dance of my choice,and I have to teach Luke one dance of your choice."
Leia's jaw dropped.
"Have you discussed this with Luke?"
"He has no idea,"Mara answered."It's just an idea...you can accept-if you aren't too scared of losing."
     In the corner of the room,the holovid player emitted a high-pitched wail that made Mara's skin crawl.She could hear Jaina's nervous,frightened laughter.
"How much is this bet for?" Leia asked finally,narrowing her eyes.
Mara pretended to think carefully.
"10 000 credits?"
"Ten thousand!" Leia shrieked,and Jacen stared over at her in surprise.She lowered her voice again."That's way too much,Mara."
"It'll be worth your while if you win," Mara said,and smiled.
Leia stared at the tabletop,tracing the grain of the dusty wood with one pink-laquered fingernail.
"What do you say?" Mara prompted her,becoming impatient.
"Fine," Leia folded,and thrust out her hand to shake Mara's."But I'm warning you,you've got me fired up now.And when I'm inspired...I play to win."
    Mara grinned.Winter on Yavin 4 was just about to get a heck of a lot more interesting.

                                                                 --2--

        Luke Skywalker crossed his arms,pouted,and flat-out refused to participate.
"Oh,come on,Luke!" Mara protested,"why not?"
His spread his hands incredulously and glared at her.
"For one thing,if Leia wins,that's ten thousand credits we don't have,and in case you'd forgotten,I don't dance!"
"You danced at our wedding,"Mara said,frowning at him.He turned to the window,and pulled the blue curtains shut.
"That was different," he said softly."This is just a silly game devised to ease your boredom."
"But it'll be fun,even if we don't win...and I fully intend on winning!" She reached up and squeezed his shoulder.He shrugged her hand away and sighed."Come on,Luke...the odds are completely in our favor."
"I guess I'm obligated now,aren't I,"he grumbled."Still,I wish you'd tell me these wild ideas before you bet ten thousand credits on them."
       Mara smiled,a wide smile such as reminded Luke of the smile of a used spacecraft dealer.
"I knew you'd agree...you love me too much to say no!"
Luke rolled his eyes,but grinned.
"So...exactly what kind of dance do you have in mind for me?"
Mara reddened and looked at the floor.
"Well,that's the real problem,isn't it.Leia picked the dance."
"Why do I get the feeling I'm not going to like this?" Luke asked,turning his gaze to the ceiling."Go on,get it over with."
"She wants us to do the Grind and Hustle," Mara whispered meekly,her cheeks flushing a deep crimson colour.
"She WHAT?" Luke yelled,and Mara cringed,covering her face with her hands."Mara!"
"What?" Mara whined,"it's not so bad!"
"Mara,they do that dance in places like Jabba's Palace,and all those clubs in Mos Eisley! That's disgusting!"
"Well,I know it....we can clean it up!" she insisted."Besides,this one wasn't my fault.How Leia dreamed that up,I have no idea."
"She shouldn't even know what that is!" Luke cried,sinking into a chair and moaning with despair.
"And how exactly do you know what it is,hmmm?" Mara asked,slightly amused.
"That's beside the point!" Luke exclaimed."Who's judging this competition?"
Mara actually let a giggle escape her lips.
"Anakin and and the twins volunteered to do the honours," she said,and watched Luke's expression go from angry to embarrassed to disbelieving.
"Does Leia know she's contributing to the delinquency of minors?" Luke asked incredulously.His wife's full-blown hysterical laughter frightened him.How could she take this so easily?
"I'm sure she does!" Mara could barely get the words out,she was laughing so hard.
"I'm definitely not doing some...some stripper dance!" Luke declared,and buried his forehead into the arm of his chair."That's final," he mumbled a minute later,while Mara still laughed in his face.

                                                          --3--

      "I can't believe I'm doing this," Luke stated flatly.It was one of the rare winter days that the sun actually did shine,and Mara and Luke stood in the bright sunlight of the landing pad,clothed in baggy shirts and pants.Mara held a portable disc player in her right hand,and her lightsaber in her left.The lightsaber was for balance,the disc player for music.
    "I can't believe you're doing it,either,after all that fuss last night," Mara said,squinting in the light.
Luke raised a hand to his brow to shield his eyes from the sun,and stared all around at the temple before him.
"You're sure no one's watching us?" he asked,eyeing the darkened windows.
"Positive," Mara assured him."The rules are that no one's allowed to watch until the big day anyway,so calm down."
      Luke heaved a resigned sigh,and took up his lightsaber.
"Now,remember what I told you," Mara said,setting the disc player on the stones at her feet and readying their music,"we're changing the nasty parts! Just follow my lead."
    Blushing furiously,Luke watched as she brought her finger down on the 'play' button,then stood,her arms out to the sides.He mimicked her posture,and took in her tightly set jaw,the look of pure determination written all over her face.
    A steady,pulsating beat suddenly filled the humid jungle air,louder than Luke expected.Mara tapped her foot eight times,then,whirled into action.
"Left,left,left,spin,right,right,right,spin,repeat,arms up,give me your hand...Luke,what are you doing?" Her commands trailed off,and the music kept playing behind her.
"I don't know," Luke admitted.He'd lost her at the first spin."You're going too fast."
"It's a fast dance,Luke!" she cried incredulously,stepping on the 'stop' button.Silence fell over the landing pad.
"I didn't think it was that fast," he complained,"it's way too hard!"
He winced when he felt her angry wave of emotions.
"We have a total of three days to get this looking good! We're already halfway through the first one,and you can't even get the rhythm right?" She smacked his shoulder lightly with the handle of her lightsaber,and he yelped.
"Ow! What's wrong with you?" he cried angrily."I didn't have to agree to this,you know!"
She gave him a Jade-patented sarcastic glare.
"I made you agree.We have ten thousand credits on the line,here."
     Luke closed his eyes and sighed miserably.Both the heat and the thought of the high kicks Mara was planning to make him perform were starting to bother him,and he realized he'd much rather be inside,doing anything but this ridiculous dance.Even teaching classes would have been better.At least he enjoyed lightsaber duels.
    "Let's try it again," Mara said,taking several deep,calming breaths.She bent down,and reset the music.Then,she pressed play,and got back into position.
Luke's evidently bruised shoulder was telling him he'd better get the steps right this time.
      When the music started,he kept his own beat,and Mara started right in with the steps and spins after eight beats,like he'd calculated.
    Mara actually smiled at him when he took her hand,spun her around,and bent her backwards over the stones.
"Doing good,Luke,"she said breathlessly.He set his jaw,and focused on the interlocking bricks beneath his feet,listening to the hypercharged music.He made a mental note to ask Mara which one of the teenagers she'd borrowed this disc from.
      "Time for the kicks," she announced,and the music abruptly sped up,if that was at all possible.Luke gulped,and tightened his fingers around the shaft of his lightsaber.
He linked his arm in hers,and pressed his thumb against the metal handle,as if that might somehow help him.
      Of course,he wasn't expecting the lightsaber's green blade to lance out suddenly,the force with which it was thrust out of it's casing throwing Luke backwards.
    Both he and Mara yelled simultaneously as their legs were pulled out from under them,and they both staggered wildly.
"Luke!" Mara yelled angrily,struggling to regain her balance.Luke wrestled with the lightsaber,pressing the button again and again.
"It won't turn off!" he shouted helplessly.It was true.The button was stuck down hard.
Mara glanced sharply at him."What do you mean,it won't turn off?" she asked,alarmed.
"I mean,it won't turn off!" he repeated,the gyroscopic effect of the glowing blade still sending him off balance.
      Mara jumped behind him and wrapped her hands around his,trying unsuccessfully to pry the button loose with her fingernails.The handle was frighteningly hot in her palms.
"Is it supposed to be that hot?" she cried frantically,accidentally kicking Luke in the shin as his lack of equilibrium nearly sent them both backwards onto the permacrete.
"No!" he answered,feeling horribly frustrated."It's overheating!"
She shut her eyes tight and groaned.The lightsaber bucked out of control despite their double strength,and Luke dropped it,leaping out of the way of it's deadly,white-hot blade.
"It's going to explode," he murmured fearfully,watching the lightsaber writhing on it's own on the landing pad,scarring the stones with long gashes.
"Well,don't just stand there!" Mara shouted,already running towards the jungle."Run!"
     He didn't need to be told twice.Breaking into a swift jog,he sprinted past Mara,grabbing her wrist and pulling her along.
    The lightsaber detonated itself just as both Mara and Luke dove for cover in the mud behind a tall hedge.
An incredible roar and a bang sounded from the landing pad,and Mara watched in horror as the portable disc player was blown to smithereens,the pieces of metal flying every which way.One particularly jagged fragment whapped her in the forehead,and she fell back onto her knees,yelling curses.
     When the smoke and shrapnel cleared,Luke pulled Mara onto her feet,and they peered nervously out over the hedge.A charred mess of wires and melted plasteel lay in a twisted hulk in a middle of a shallow crater on the landing pad where there had once been a disc player.The lightsaber-bomb lay a few feet away,smoke still pouring from it's gutted innards.
     Mara put her head in her hands and began to wail.She imagined the ten thousand credits she was sure she'd win disappearing into the air right along with the quickly thinning smoke.Luke just shook his head and wondered even more who's disc player had been the unfortunate victim of the suicide lightsaber that couldn't possibly have been Luke's own.

                                                                                      --4--

      Both Leia and Han heard the explosion from where they rehearsed in the grand audience chamber of the temple.Abruptly,Leia glanced up from where she and her husband stood,on the wooden altar at the front of the chamber,and gazed up at the skylights lining the ceiling.
"What was that?" Leia asked.A thin plume of smoke drifted over the clear glass panes above her,and the source of the loud bang suddenly dawned on her.She began to laugh.
"Leia...?" Han raised his eyebrows at his wife's sudden burst of hysterics."What's going on?"
      Leia was gasping for breath and clutching her stomach.Tears ran down her cheeks,and Han had to grab her to keep her from falling headfirst off the table onto the marble floor.
"Tell me!" he demanded.Leia regarded him,grinning,and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt.
"It's Luke and Mara,"she giggled,her lip trembling,threatening another burst of laughter."They must have found that prank lightsaber...gosh,is Luke ever gullible!"
     She sat down on the edge of the table,her shoulders still shaking with giddiness.
"Prank lightsaber?" Han asked,mystified,which started Leia laughing all over again.
"It was some invention of Anakin's...I switched it with Luke's own lightsaber...and he fell for it!"
Han stifled a laugh of his own,imagining the destruction undoubtedly associated with the bang he'd overheard.
"We'll win for sure,now!" Leia crowed triumphantly.
"Leia...isn't that cheating?" Han asked.
She turned her neck to look up at him skeptically.
"When have you ever been one to care about cheating,Han? 'Cheater' is your middle name!"
"Not true!" Han protested,hiding a roguish grin,"I'm fairly sure my middle name is Edwin..."
Leia stood up and smacked his shoulder.
"You are so full of it,Han.Stop worrying about 'the rules',and let's get back to work."
     Han sighed resignedly,not quite believing that Leia was being so flippant about her little deception.
He'd agreed to this bet without too much fuss-he'd learned from his years of smuggling that ten thousand credits was just too good an offer to be ignored,especially when the ten thousand credits came from his own brother-in-law's pocket.
     Leia crossed the table and gave a kick to the disc player they'd borrowed from Anakin.Mara had borrowed Jaina's-Leia hoped it was still in one piece,for Mara's sake.
     Mara had chosen an easy dance for Leia to teach to Han,one she'd done many times in her eighteen years of high court on Alderaan.Although it was slightly racy,she didn't think anything could top the one she'd devilishly chosen for Mara in return.She realized how much she was looking forward to seeing exactly how she and Luke would pull it off...
     Laughing again,she grabbed Han's arm as the music began to play,and started the dance.Han was a surprisingly good dancer,as she'd found out at their wedding,and he had an excellent sense of rhythm.He spun her across the tabletop by her fingers,and she imagined wearing a long,flowing skirt that would enhance the effect even more.
     The tablecloth beneath their socked feet was twisted and crumpled with all the sliding motion going on above it.Leia disregarded that fact until,when the music reached a part that required both dancers to slide across the length of the table on their knees,she realized that the table cloth just wouldn't have it.
     She dug her fingernails into Han's arm,and tried to draw up the courage to tell him to stop,but he was already pulling her down for their grand finish.
"Wait-" she cried haltingly,and suddenly found herself sliding across the polished surface of the table,dragging the tablecloth behind her.The rough fabric of the linen made her bare knees itchy,and she shuddered.It was as if she was dragging her fingernails across the hull of a spaceship,but the sensation stemmed from her knees.
      It all happened so fast,she didn't even have time to cry out until both she and Han crashed to the floor in a heap of crumpled fabric and flailing arms.
     "Owwwww," Leia moaned,"Han,my ankle!"
Han tried to shift his weight to find enough strength to stand,but only succeeded in making Leia scream louder at him.
"Now you're on my wrist!" she shouted,and shoved him out of the way.He yelped in surprise,and his foot shot out to connect with the leg of the table with a sickening crack.He then rolled down the three stairs of the altar to land before a long bench,wrapped in the tablecloth.
     Leia rubbed her ankle,moaning in pain.She didn't even notice the table slowly beginning to wobble on it's broken leg.
     Seconds later,the entire altar,tablecloth,disc player and all,collapsed on top of Leia with a clatter and the sound of wood splitting in half.The noise echoed around the chamber for what seemed like hours,incredibly loud.
    Han ducked and pulled the tablecloth over his head,suddenly fearful of his wife.
"Leia,before you start yelling-" he started,but it was too late.Leia was already throwing a massive tantrum like Han had never seen before,screaming and wailing and throwing the masses of broken junk on top of her aside.She leapt up and straightened her hair,continuing to scream.Han stuck his fingers in his ears as if he were a boy being scolded by his mother.
"It's not my fault!" he announced from underneath the tablecloth,and spread his hands.Leia quoted his own words back to him,mockingly.
"It's never your fault!" she hollered."You're the one who broke the table!"
Han winced.Leia's diplomatic skills had become greatly unused since she'd moved into the Academy,and,by the looks of things,were desperately rusty.
     When she'd screamed herself raw,she sat down hard on the top step and scowled at the floor,holding in her hand the broken-off leg of the table.Savagely,she beat it against the marble,sending splinters of wood flying into the air.
"I'll bet you anything Mara's behind this.I'll bet she sabotaged the table.She probably sawed the legs beforehand.She probably even greased the tablecloth!"
"Doesn't feel greasy to me," Han said meekly,passing his hand along the inside of the tablecloth."Don't blame Mara...it was an honest mishap!"
"What is with you today,Han?" Leia cried incredulously,and mocked him fiercely." 'Isn't that cheating,Leia?',now you say,'an honest mishap'? This is not the Han Solo I married!"
     Han wasn't sure what to say,so he pulled the tablecloth tight around his shoulders,and shut his mouth even tighter.
"We have ten thousand credits at stake!" she hollered to the skylight,and some rodent squealed in a shadowy corner of the room.
Then,quieter,with an edge of deadly determination in her voice,she murmured,"The Skywalkers are going down."

                                                               --5--

       "Okay,Luke.It's day two...maybe we'll be luckier today,"Mara announced cheerfully the next morning,throwing open the curtains to let unusually bright sun filter into the room.
Luke groaned and pulled the blankets over his head."But,Mara,it's...." he glanced at the chronometer on his wrist,"...only two hours past sunrise!"
      She strode around to his side of the bed and flung aside the covers.
"Get up,you big sissy," she snapped."You used to go without sleep for days on end,back when we were battling the Empire..now you suddenly have the urge to sleep all day?"
"I'm making up for lost time!" he protested as Mara grabbed his wrists and pulled him up.
"Time,shmime.Get dressed,"she ordered."Remember,ten thousand credits says it all."

        Back out on the landing pad,they managed to run through the dance twice without any mishaps.Mara had borrowed Jacen Solo's disc player this time,and it sat safely in the shadow of the jungle trees where not even Luke's clumsiness could destroy it.Jaina had been royally upset about the loss of her own disc player,and was flatly refusing to speak to either Mara or Luke,but Jacen had been kind enough to offer to talk to his twin and let Mara use his for the time being.
"I'm rooting for you guys," he'd said,grinning.
     Her nephew's encouraging words echoed in her mind now as she whirled around the permacrete,arms raised above her head.Dancing like this brought back memories of being the Emperor's Hand,going on spy missions which required her dancer's figure and expertise.Jabba's Palace had been her biggest venue-her alter-ego Arica had proved quite successful for gaining a few credits and information about her quarry-Luke Skywalker.
      Her "quarry" stood now,yawning,barely watching as Mara walked him through the steps of the proclaimed "stripper dance" one more time.His constant tripping and stumbling frustrated Mara,and she stopped.
"Are you even listening to me,Luke?" she asked,placing her hands on her hips and glaring at him.
"What?" he answered,too quickly,and Mara knew she'd caught him while he was distracted.She exhaled noisily,and tried again.
"Exactly what is so interesting about that corner of the temple?"
Luke squinted,and continued to peer at the unused doorway where Jaina's hammock hung in shadow.
"I could swear there's someone watching us,"he said quietly,and Mara groaned.
"Could you please put your ego aside and concentrate on where you're putting your feet? My toes are covered with bruises!"
"It's not my ego,"Luke insisted,meeting her angry gaze."I'm serious...someone's there,behind that door."
     Mara reached out with her mind,and sure enough,she could feel the faint glimmer of a presence,a human one,lurking behind the tightly closed door.
"I'm sure it's nothing...I mean,there are someone's quarters behind that wall."
"Yeah..."Luke said slowly,"Han and Leia's quarters."
He heard Mara's sharp intake of breath,but brushed it off as nothing.
"Let's get back to work," he said softly,just to please her.She nodded curtly,and jogged into the jungle shadows to start the music again.
"Ready to try it at full speed?" she called to him,and he nodded,smiling.She grinned back,and hit 'play'.
     Her eight beats of rest were spent on her running back to Luke's side,so the minute she had a hold on his arm,she started moving.Luke was momentarily dazed,forgetting for one awful second what came after the first spin.Mara tugged his hand,pulling him to the right.After that,everything fell naturally into place.
    By the end of the song,both were shrieking with childish laughter,partially because Luke had lasted the whole dance without messing up,and partially because they were having fun.
"Yippee!" Mara shouted,and triumphantly punched the air."Skywalker the invincible strikes again!"
"Which Skywalker?" Luke asked coyly.
Mara pretended to think about it.
Luke raised a mockingly warning finger.
"Mara,the last name is just borrowed!" he said,grinning.
"Really," she answered skeptically,raising her eyebrows."I was under the impression that it was mine to keep!"
"For as long as you want," he relented,and,in one of his moments of affection that had become so rare in recent days,kissed her ear playfully.She just giggled, so flirtatiously it would ordinarily have made her gag,but she couldn't help herself.
     In the midst of their teasing,neither one noticed the sudden flurry of movement from behind the unused door.
     Hidden in shadow,Leia had slid open the door that usually remained locked,and eased stealthily around her daughter's hammock.Now,she leaned against the stonebrick wall,her ingenious little weapon hidden safely in the pocket of her grey jumpsuit.She was taking a big risk,forfeiting a day of practice for getting even with Mara,but her ankle was so badly swollen from the previous day's accident,she couldn't have danced if she wanted to.Han was repairing the broken table-and Leia hadn't even had to tell him to-he simply felt guilty for destroying a piece of Jedi furniture.
"Isn't it against their religion or something?" he'd asked,protective goggles on his head,a hydrodrill in his hand,and a sheepish smile on his face.Leia had just shaken her head and shooed him out the door.
     Back in the present,the couple fooling around on the landing pad had finally decided to get back to work,and it was time for Leia to spring her trap.
     In her pocket was a weapon of who's name she wasn't sure,but had seen used many times in all her years of combat.It was her own version of the contraption,and involved a small reel of thin but durable cable,and spring-loaded trigger attached to the cable.Welded onto the end of the length of cable was a tiny grappling hook-for multiple purposes.All of them were malicious.
     Stifling an evil-sounding laugh,she watched as Luke and Mara struggled along to the pulsating beat coming from Jacen's disc player.She had to give them credit,though-evidently,Luke had commanded Mara to clean the racy dance up a lot.
     Moving into position,her back perpendicular to the doorway,she waited until they reached a segment of their dance that required the infamous high kicks.It made her laugh out loud this time to see her brother stumbling along,barely lifting his leg at all,while Mara managed to get her foot to incredible heights.
    She almost hated to disturb them.They looked like they were having fun.
But,she set her doubts aside,drew her weapon,and squeezed the trigger.The cable,weighted by the grappling hook,sailed beautifully through the air and latched onto Mara's pant leg.Leia's sister-in-law didn't even notice.
     Leia waited for the perfect opportunity to put the rest of her plan into action,knowing somehow that as she did so,she was delving dangerously into the dark side.Her throbbing ankle only renewed and fed her anger at Mara,and the thought of ten thousand credits teased her swiftly weakening mind.
    Upon Mara's next kick,Leia sprung out of the shadows,yanked back hard on the case of the weapon,and pulled the cable tight.Tripping backwards with the effort,Leia grunted and pulled again,and this time,Mara couldn't help but notice as her feet were drawn out from under her,leaving her suspended in mid air before crashing into Luke.
   Leia snickered,released the weapon from her hand,and disappeared back through the open door.Mara's shrieks of surprise and pain drifted to her ears long after she'd carefully closed the door without a sound.She could only picture the chaos as Mara's own distracted panic made the tangle of the cable even worse,so that it wrapped around Luke as well,leaving them in a tightly wound heap on the permacrete.
    Above it all,the beat went on.

                                                      --6--

         "Alright,where is she?" Mara sneered angrily.She stormed through the hallways of the temple,dragging Luke by his collar,despite his fearful reminders to keep her anger in check.
"Mara-" he started for the hundredth time,but his wife wasn't having it.
"Don't say it,Luke.I'm perfectly aware that I'm in danger of turning to the dark side,but it's not going to happen.And definitely do not defend her just because she's your sister!"
Luke bit his lip,out of fear for both women.They were taking this bet way too seriously!
      Mara burst into the common room,even her hair seeming dull and lifeless when compared with the insane flame of her rage.The sunburn on her cheeks only added to her menacing appearance,and if she had not been clutching his collar,Luke would've shrunk back in fear-as his Jedi students were doing now.
"Where is Leia?" Mara asked,her voice low and threatening.She strode across the room in three steps,and smiled a fake smile at Jaina.
"Has your mother been in here this morning?" she asked sweetly.Jaina shook her head quickly,gazing up at Mara in wide-eyed fear.
"She...she's not awake yet,"the girl stammered.Mara could tell by the way the colour drained from her face that she was lying.
     She tightened her grip on Luke's collar,and he shuddered.Already,he could feel waves of dark energy oozing out from Mara's mind like thick poison.
She's going to destroy herself,if she doesn't calm down,Luke thought,feeling fear constricting his throat muscles.He swallowed twice,tasted blood in his mouth.
"Mara..."he tried again,but trailed off as she shot him an ugly look.
She backed away from Jaina,peering through narrowed eyes at every person in the room.Han was not among them.
    Neither was Leia.
"Okay..." Mara muttered under her breath."There's more than one place in this temple she could be."
"Mara,please!" Luke begged."Reconsider...she is your sister,too,after all."
"Sister-in-law,"Mara snapped back."No blood relation,thank the maker."
"Why are you being so mean?" Luke asked incredulously."It's only an innocent bet!"
Mara chose not to answer that until they were out in the hall again,and safe on the other side of the door to the common room.
"Yeah,Luke.It's also only ten thousand credits."
"You're just afraid Leia will win,"Luke accused mischeviously.
"I am not!" Mara retorted.
"Then why are you so angry? You made the bet!"
"Because she's cheating! According to my rules,cheaters must die!"
Luke burst out laughing.Mara was being so incredibly melodramatic.Her flaming hair was swept crazily over one of her piercing green eyes,and her teeth were bared.She had one hand on Luke's collar still,and the other was pointing a warning finger at his chest,as if she would gore him with her fingernail.
"I'm glad you think this is funny,mister 'I'm-not-doing-any-stripper-dance'!" she snapped sarcastically,and jabbed the tip of her finger into his skin.He barely felt it at all.
"Mara..at least wait until tomorrow.Please.Tomorrow's the contest,and then we'll see who wins."
Mara heaved an incredibly heavy sigh.She knew by the slow,deliberate motions that Luke was massaging her shoulders with that he was using the Force to calm her down.She felt almost ready to sleep,felt her eyelids beginning to close...and then Luke removed his hands from her back.
"Well don't just stop," she protested,her eyes opening wide again.The sleepiness disappeared,but the sense of dreamy peace persisted.
Luke just smiled."Works every time," he said softly to himself as he steered her back down the hall to their room.

     In the common room,Leia crawled slowly out from behind the gigantic holoscreen,and exhaled noisily.
"I've never seen her so mad," she murmured giddily.Part of her was pleased with herself,part of her knew that making Mara so angry was just wrong.
"Leia...you're treading on dangerous ground now," Han said,also emerging from where he'd ducked under the table."Not even the most hardened smugglers cheat like this!"
"I guess I learned more from you than I thought!" Leia laughed back.
Han dusted off the backs of his legs,and dust motes danced in the light slanting through the window.
"But...even bringing the kids into it..." he said softly.The twins and Anakin had gone for lunch in the dining room with the other students,pretending nothing had happened,but Jaina had been visibly shaken by her aunt's burst of temper.She hated lying,even if it was for her mother's sake.
"If Mara were here," he added,"she'd accuse you so badly.And you'd be guilty of all charges."
Leia felt her cheeks reddening with guilt,but it was too late to turn back now.
"She...she made me so mad when she offered the bet! If I back out now,after giving her that whole speech about 'playing to win',she'll never let me live it down!"
    Han shook his head sadly.
"And if we do win?"
Leia looked at the floor,knowing full well what would happen.Mara's fierce pride would be shattered,and along with it...
"You run the risk of destroying a carefully-built friendship,"Han finished for her.
Leia balled her hands into fists,feeling tears stabbing at her eyes.She blinked them away,hating to be told she was wrong,especially by her own husband.
"I don't care!" she announced with renewed vigour."I don't care...I really don't,Han!"
"Suit yourself," Han said,and left the common room to go and practice his steps.

                                                               --7--

        The day of the contest dawned grey and rainy.A heavy drizzle pelted down on the jungle,and a frigid mist enveloped everything,making even the closest trees hard to see.The streak of uncommonly sunny weather had ended,and winter was in it's prime again.The atmosphere only further dampened Mara's spirits.
Even Luke was more enthusiastic about the impending competition as he tried to drag Mara out of bed.
"Please don't do this," he groaned,grabbing her wrists and pulling her off the mattress."Not today,Mara.You're the inspired one in this duo...what is this going to look like if you don't even try?"
"Who cares?" Mara mumbled into her pillow,and hooked her feet around the edge of the bedframe."We might as well call the whole thing off...with Leia's incredible cheating,she's practically already won!"
"Mara!" Luke cried in frustration,and fended off an angry kick from his disparaging wife."You're being ridiculous!"
"I'm not getting up!" she snapped,and blindly swung her fist above her head,not raising her face from the pillow."As long as Leia remains a greedy little cheat,I refuse to go through with this."
"A 'greedy little cheat'?" Luke echoed,giving up on Mara's determination to stay in bed.
"Don't say it,Luke.I can read your mind,remember?"
"I feel like we've switched roles," Luke observed."You're there,refusing to participate in your own silly game,and I'm here,ready to go and prove your attitude wrong.You were the one who said this could be fun."
     He sat down on the edge of the bed and placed a hand on Mara's quivering shoulders.He knew she was crying,although she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of revealing her tears.
"Please don't be like this,Mara," he said softly,stroking her hair."We can win this.Besides..."
He hesitated,unsure of how Mara would react to his next revelation.
"Besides,you can always say that you were above Leia's level of immaturity."
     Mara sucked in a breath and held it,something she'd picked up as a child growing up in the Imperial Palace.Whenever she didn't get her way,she'd hold her breath,either until she fainted,or some dignitary forced air into her lungs.Luke wasn't fazed.He gave her a hefty smack on the back,making her cough,making her struggle for air again.
"Don't do that," he admonished quietly."It doesn't work anymore.I'm not as gullible as the Emperor was."
"I can't believe," Mara said,finally lifting her head from the pillow,"that in all your infinite wisdom as a Jedi,you're treating Leia and I as if we were preschoolers."
"But you're acting like preschoolers!" Luke felt his own anger rising in him."You've been going around pulling petty pranks on each other,reacting out of greed and boredom and stupid rivalry.What kind of example are you setting for the other students,if you can't even keep the peace among the teachers?"
"I don't know," Mara admitted,suddenly recalling sitting in a cold,windowless room in front of a nanny droid,reciting the Imperial anthem...the Emperor had been so fussy.
     She brushed her tears away and without realizing it,sank into Luke's arms for a comforting hug.
"Are we still going to do this?" she asked meekly,resting her chin on his shoulder blade.
"Yes,but not like Leia does it,"Luke said mysteriously."Not meaning to sound cheesy,but,how about just having fun?"
"Sounds good to me," Mara answered,and Luke felt her smile against his shirt."But not the silly kind of fun,"she added seriously."I'm still in this to win."
"Excellent,"Luke grinned."I have a feeling that this is going to be an afternoon to remember."
"What are you planning?" Mara asked,glancing up sharply."Don't say you're going to get even,not after that whole big speech about being immature and greedy."
Luke just shook his head and smoothed his wife's hair.
"Better go get ready.We should run through the dance one more time..."

        Half an hour before the contest,Mara stood with Luke in front of the mirror in their room,and both skeptically regarded their appearances.
"Something about this get-up doesn't feel right to me," Mara announced,and pulled her short little green skirt further down over her matching tights.
"You're telling me,"Luke agreed,fidgeting nervously with his silky tie."Where did you get these outfits,anyway?"
Mara laughed strangely.
"They were way at the back of our wardrobe.I think I must have worn this skirt when I was a teenager!"
"Wow,"Luke joked,"they really are old!"
She elbowed him in the ribs and he yelped in surprise.
"Hey,I was only joking!" he protested.
"Yeah right," she retorted."Don't forget,you've been around longer than I have!"
Luke pretended to scowl,and gave his fitted dark green jacket one last tug.
    Then,a knock came at their door.
"Tionne?" Luke asked in surprise when he opened the door to see several of his Jedi students standing there."Kirana? Kyp? What are you guys doing here?"
"We came to wish you good luck," Tionne said,giggling softly.Her laugh was high and musical,and her eerie silver eyes sparkled.Behind her,Kirana Ti,clad as usual in full reptilian battle armor, nodded.
"Also,we came to ask you if you want to go first," Kyp Durron added,habitually scratching the top of his head.
Mara paled visibly.
"I don't know," she said,and grimaced."What do you think,Luke?"
"Sure," he said,grinning a mysterious sort of grin."We'll go first."
     Mara's stomach heaved with the first hint of anxiety she'd felt all morning.
"Are you alright?" Luke asked after his students had left.Mara nodded quickly,swallowing.She felt a lump rising in her throat,but forced it down again and grabbed Luke's hand for comfort.
"I'll be fine once we get onstage.You'll see.I used to do this for a living,remember?"
"Yeah,but this time,you won't be worrying about the next victim on your list,or plotting how you're going to try and kill me next."
"Ah,don't be so sure," Mara laughed,and squeezed his hand to show him she was only kidding.

       "Boy,the students really went all out,didn't they," Leia stated in awe as she glanced around the grand audience chamber where she and Han had practiced only days ago.Since then,the pristine,intimidating room had been transformed into some kind of otherworldly nightclub.The skylights had been painted a strangely opaque gold-black colour,and it was completely dark except for bright,flashing lights of every shade,hung from vines and windows and trelasses.The narrow aisle between the rows of dignified benches had been lined with tiny twinkling gold lights to lead the way into the rows.Up on the stairs,all the furniture had been removed,and there were only two tall columns of frozen water standing on either side.Inside the water,little bubbles had been made on purpose,and within each bubble was contained a tiny speck of gold or silver glitter.
      "I don't even want to know how they did those water things,"Han muttered in amazement."They couldn't have done it all by hand,could they?"
"It probably had something to do with the Force...not even the tiniest of fingers are that precise."
     Leia had an incredible feeling of confidence.She and Han's dance was practically perfect,and she knew that if she could count on Luke to keep Mara from doing anything rash,they would win for sure.It was wonderful to be so sure of herself,but it was an ugly feeling at the same time.Somehow,she knew that she should not have naggled Mara so much...
     She didn't have any more time to think,though,because abruptly,the Jedi students burst into the chamber,their excited exclamations echoing off the dark walls.
"Leia," Kirana Ti said,"Mara and Luke volunteered to go first."
Leia narrowed her eyes.What exactly were the Skywalkers planning?
She smiled at Kirana,though,and thanked her.
"I assume we'll be beginning soon?" she added.
"As soon as Luke and Mara are ready," Tionne said,and the coloured lights danced on the reflective surface of her silver hair.
"Are the kids all set up with the judging sheets or whatever?" Han asked."Honestly,they've been slaving over this contest like it's the most important thing in the universe."
Tionne shot a glance at Kirana Ti,and both fought back the urge to shake their heads in dismay.They knew all too well about the pranks that had been going on in the last few days.It had been their job to piece together Jaina's disc player again after it had been destroyed in the first mishap.
       "The twins and Anakin are fine," Tionne answered quickly."They're all set up in the front row."
Han grinned and gave Leia a little peck for good luck.
"Let's go grab a seat,shall we,and sit back and enjoy the show!"

      Standing behind the closed doors to the grand audience chamber,Luke gave Mara a few last-minute instructions.
"We follow the basic plan that you devised,except...well,you'll see.You'll know in a second."
Mystified,Mara wrapped her arms around his shoulders and gave him in a quick,soft kiss.
"Break a leg," she murmured."'Course,knowing us,we probably will!"
"Don't say things like that,"Luke said,cracking a smile."It might set an infamous Jedi Hunch in motion."
"Well,we don't want to disturb the even thought process,do we?" Mara laughed quietly,and gently pushed open the door with one trembling hand.
      Off to the side,Tionne saw the door swing open without a creak,and carefully began the tape.Jaina's disc player sat at her feet,wrapped in what seemed like miles of black repair tape.
     The music began,and Luke and Mara walked jauntily in,each one counting the beats silently in their heads,in time with their steps.
"Ready," Luke said under his breath,mounting the last step onto the stage.
"Set," Mara continued,following.
"Go!" they murmured together,and swung into action.
"Yahoo!" Mara whooped,and grabbed Luke's hand for her first spin.Her back arched and she dropped backwards on her hands.The tips of her hair,left down against her will,brushed the marble floor.
      Springing back,she jumped twice,pounding her feet onto the solid surface in time with the pulsating beat.Luke imitated her action.
"Lookin' good," he hissed between his teeth."Now things get interesting."
     Suddenly,he grabbed Mara by her waist and flung her upwards into the air.She fought back the urge to scream in shock,fearful that he'd let her crash to the floor.
Her fears were unfounded,for she was suspended high above the stage,held in place by the Force.She smiled broadly,feeling,quite literally,uplifted.
    "Do it," Luke mouthed,and she gave him a thumbs up.
"And a five,six,seven,eight," she counted,then,slamming her heel on an invisible platform,she swung her leg high above her head in a dazzling kick.
She heard the startled gasp from the audience,and pictured Leia's jaw dropping to the floor.
    Enlightened,she laughed and performed her kicks again and again.Below her,Luke was improvising completely,carried away by the music and the cheers and whistles from his surprised Jedi students.
"Way to go,Framjen Spathen," Mara mumbled,giggling,recognizing the moves Luke had borrowed from the aging holovid star.
    In a sudden flash of inspiration,he ran to one end of the stage,threw off his jacket,punched the air in silent tribute to Mara for dragging him to the theatre so often to see those terribly corny holos,and slid across the marble on his knees! Rising to his feet on trembling legs,his lips pressed tight together with the effort of suspending Mara at the same time,he slid again,recklessly this time.Without the careful aim of the Force,he came crashing to a stop in front of one column of icewater.He stood,dizzy,and dusted his pant leg before waving madly at Mara,high above him.
     Mara realized how near it was to the end of the music.She forced herself to tear her eyes from Luke's amusing,if not riveting performance,and,using her own abilities,broke free of Luke's Force suspension,and backflipped neatly to the ground.
    They both fell back into step for their grand finish,stomping merrily on the tiles and grinning the whole way.Then,together they jumped into the air,kicked out at the audience,and landed neatly,back to back,on the stage,their arms raised in triumph.
     The Jedi students were standing before the performers had even caught their breath.
Mara couldn't stop smiling.Part of her felt like she could fly if she wanted to,without even Luke's help,and part of her wanted to just stick out her tongue at Leia and sing,"Nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah!" in the most annoying voice possible.
    She simply beamed out at the audience whose faces were invisible under the glare of the hot lights,proud to be standing at Luke's side and picturing Leia's carefully formulated plans swirling away into nothingness.
Luke read her thought,and squeezed her elbow.
"That was only half of it," he whispered,and Mara's smile disappeared.
"There's more?" she asked,dipping into a bow while the students still cheered.
"Way more.Leia and Han still have to perform,remember?"
Mara nodded solemnly,and led her husband offstage.His jacket still lay unmoved at the side.

                                                           --8--

     When Luke and Mara had taken their seats on the hard wooden benches,Leia and Han were already backstage,waiting for the perfect moment to begin their routine.
Mara was feeling confident that her husband would execute another brilliant plan that would propel them to the ten-thousand-credit-richer mark.
The look on Luke's face would have suggested otherwise;his jaw was set in a tight line,and his cheeks were pale,even after all the exercise.Unknowingly,his hands fiddled with his silken tie,tying it into fat knots at the bottom and then untying them,twisting and untwisting the neckband.
"Stop fidgeting," Mara hissed,grabbing his hand and holding it between both of hers."Why are you being such a nervous wreck? It's all over! We've won!"
"We haven't won yet," Luke murmured back distractedly,not meeting her gaze.
    Teasingly,she turned his face to hers and leaned in to kiss him.When he only offered a halfhearted smile,she pulled away again.
"You don't get a kiss until you smile," she said,and,in front of them,Kyp Durron suppressed a laugh.
Luke never got his kiss,for seconds later,the door opened,and Han and Leia's chosen music blared from the speakers.
     It was an old Pekkie Blu and the Starboys tune,one that Luke remembered well from his days with Callista.He could have sung the words from memory if he wasn't so busy concentrating on Han and Leia's every move as they strutted merrily onto the stage.
"What dance is this?" Luke asked Mara,leaning towards her.
Mara didn't answer,but bit one fingernail.Her expression was stricken.
"They're good," she murmured sadly."Really good.I had no idea Han was so...coordinated."
    Han had incredible stage presence,and Mara found herself quite unable to refrain from watching him as he jumped back and forth with Leia in his arms.Her mind wasn't on the suggestive way he swung his hips,but rather the ease and well-practiced manner with which he did it.
"They're too good,Luke!" she cried in protest.Her husband remained silent,and Mara looked at him in alarm.
    Luke's eyes were half shut,both his hands no longer fidgeting,but spread in front of him,fingers outstretched.
     Mara watched him grind his teeth in concentration,turned her eyes once more to the disbelieving looks on both Han and Leia's faces,glanced at Luke again,and nearly fell off her bench as Luke's plan hit her like a lightsaber through her heart.
    He was making them good!
"Luke! What are you doing?!" Mara hissed in disbelief."Why are you helping them?"
Luke didn't respond,but clenched his teeth,shut his eyes tight,and pointed one finger upward.
    To Mara's utmost horror,the couple was levitated off the stage,and were at Luke's complete command.
Leia uttered a barely audible scream,and glared first at Mara,then at Luke.She kept dancing,while the Jedi students gasped in shock and delight.
"I didn't think Leia was that Force-strong!" Mara heard Kirana Ti exclaim to Kyp.
"I know," Kyp agreed,shaking his head in disbelief."What talent!"
Mara felt anger boiling within her,and she fought back the urge to murder either her husband or the two blind students in front of her.
She wanted to scream,"Gullible fools! They're nothing but cheats!" but she clamped her lips tight,and dug her fingernails into Luke's arm.He didn't even flinch,but made Leia and Han's routine so...so perfect,it was inevitable that they would win.One flick of Mara's gaze at the faces of the judges-Leia's own enamoured children-spoke volumes.
     When Luke set the performers gently down on their feet again,he began to clap right along with the others.Mara bit her tongue so hard,it bled.
    Minutes later,Jaina Solo rose from her seat with stately elegance,and smiled out over the crowd of students as the lights in the room came up and the ethereal coloured glow disappeared.Pink lights shone from within the columns of icewater.
"It is the judges' esteemed decision that the winner of this contest is..."
Mara sucked in her breath and held it,her stomach jumping with a hopeless kind of anxiety.Beside her,Luke was slumped in his seat,looking oddly relaxed.
"The Solo team!" Jaina announced,and swept her arms above her head with a dramatic flourish.
Luke laughed in relief,and tears sprung to Mara's eyes.Leia was positively thrilled,hugging and kissing everyone in sight,and taking great,egotistical bows,her hair and skirts swirling madly.
     Everything was a blaze of light and colour to Mara,who felt her sanity slipping away into nothingness and being replaced with a hopeless despair that not even the Force could fight.For once in her life,she'd lost a bet.The worst thing was,the bet had been on her own terms,and she'd still lost!
"How did you do that,Leia?" Luke asked quietly,inconsequentially,when Leia ran to her brother's side,crying fake tears of joy.
      Mara couldn't take it any longer.
So angry she was almost crying,she leapt to her feet and shoved Leia backwards into the aisle.Han caught her arm and barely kept her from falling.
"I know how she did it!" Mara yelled,and Leia shrieked in surprise.
"Go on,then,spill it,Mara! You're just jealous!" Leia retorted,her own anger flaring.Han and Luke glanced incredulously back and forth between their wives.
"Jealous? Jealous?" Mara howled."Jealous that you're a lying little cheat?"
"Of all the nerve!" Leia retorted,and shoved Mara back."I have no idea what she's talking about!"
"Liar!" Mara shouted,and jabbed an accusing finger at Leia.
"Sore loser!"
"Cheat!"
"Trollop!"
"Leia!"
    The last remark from Leia sent Han reeling in shock.
"Trollop?" Mara bellowed."Why,you...."
She screamed the nastiest word she could think of and lunged forward to slap Leia full across her beaming face.
    Leia was quite happy to slap her right back,and the cacaphony of screams and howls and scratches that followed was enough to send both Luke and Han into a deep state of dismay.
"Mara!" Luke cried,and plunged into the fray.He grabbed his wife's arm-was it even hers? and tried to pull her off of Leia.
But Mara was hellbent on destroying Leia once and for all,so deep in rage was she.
"Han,help me!" Luke yelled to his brother-in-law,who stood on the sidelines with his jaw dropped long in disbelief.
"What?" he yelled back over the noise.
"Help!"
"Mara,Leia! Stop it!" Tionne came running over,frowning deeply."This is so ridiculous!"
Luke succeeded in dragging Mara halfway across the floor,with Leia holding on to the other woman's ankles.
"Get off!" Mara screamed,and kicked Leia hard.Leia just swiped her nails across Mara's leg,and cut her right through the thin fabric of her tights.
"Han!" Luke tried again.
     This time,Han reacted,and grabbed Leia's waist.The fight rapidly became less about the two women,and more about how to get their meddling husbands out of the picture.Between the horrible insults flying through the air,and the echoes of screams and blind punches and alarmed remarks,the grand audience chamber of the Jedi Academy had become a scene of utter chaos.
     Still struggling desperately on his knees,his arms wrapped around Mara's rib cage,Luke felt embarrassed to be there.In a last-ditch effort to break the fight,his hand flew to his waist,and drew his real lightsaber.
    The green blade flashed out,and,guided by the Force,was sent flying through the air to slice neatly through one of the columns of ice.
    The sound of glass and ice shattering on marble floor was deafening,and the rush of melted water that gushed down the stairs in a frightening waterfall was enough to send the hall into abrupt,startled peace.
   Breathing hard and soaked to the skin,Luke called his lightsaber back into his hand,and the blade vanished.
"Now..." he said breathlessly,"please,let's just work this out."
    He drew Mara close to him,feeling her shoulders shaking with devastated sobs against his chest.
"It's alright," he murmured,almost feeling sorry for her.
Leia didn't cry,but blushed furiously,realizing the consequence of her actions and refusing to look at anyone as a result.
"What the hell is going on here?" Han cried in frustration."Why am I the only one who was left in the dark?"
"Mara,you seem to know the story best," Luke whispered to her."Without overreacting,please tell us what in the galaxy just happened?"
    Mara somehow pulled herself together,and rose to her feet,trembling like a leaf on a branch in autumn,looking very much to Luke like she was about to faint from over-exertion.
"Leia," she began quietly,"cheated.She made Luke's lightsaber detonate...she designed that stupid claw-weapon-very resourceful,I must admit,but sleazy nonetheless...and even you helped them win,Luke.It was an unfair bet from the very beginning."
Leia shook her head."Mara,don't forget...you set the terms of the bet.How could it have been an unfair bet if you designed the rules?"
"I might have designed the rules," Mara answered matter-of-factly,"but you broke them."
      An uncomfortable silence drifted down and lay across everyone's shoulders like an unbearably heavy blanket.
"Why did you do it,Leia?" Luke asked."Everyone knew you were behind the pranks,and yet you continued..."
Leia continued to stare at the floor.
"Mara made me so angry," she admitted."Her cocksure confidence gave me the determination to beat her,no matter what the cost.And now I have beaten her..."
"But how does it feel?"
"Like cheating," Leia said softly,and sighed."Alright,I acted incredibly stupid.What's my sentence?"
"And mine,for that matter," Mara added.
"I think that's Jaina's decision," Luke answered.
    All heads turned to the eldest Solo child.
Jaina shrugged and looked helplessly at her siblings.
"Well,let's see...you both inadvertently destroyed my disc player,practiced several dealings of the dark side,acted like hooligans,cheated..."
      Anakin's face registered a mischevious smile,and he motioned for Jaina and Jacen to come closer.After a brief whispered conference,the three stood side by side and faced the forlorn competitors.
"We've reached another decision,and,although,hasty,we feel it a worthwhile punishment.Leia,you are ordered to pay Mara and Luke Skywalker ten thousand standard credits-"
Leia opened her mouth to protest,but Jaina raised a hand to silence her mother.
"-and Mara and Luke will be asked to pay Leia and Han Solo ten thousand standard credits in return."
"That's the most assinine thing I've ever heard!" Leia cried,apparently forgetting that she was speaking to her own children."No one gets any more money than the other!"
"That's the point,Mother dearest," Jacen said,smirking."This whole bet,although interesting,was the stupidest thing I think any of you have ever done in your lives."
    The boy passed his condescending gaze over the sheepish faces of his elders.
"Now," he added,"all of you kiss and make up."
Jaina and Anakin burst out laughing,and patted Jacen's shoulder in thanks.

                                                            --9--

     That evening,Mara lay on her side in bed,unmoving,watching the glowing numbers on her bedside chronometer ticking away through the hours.She could hear the sounds of night on Yavin 4 drifting through the open window,mingling with the scent of damp and the pattering of raindrops on the glass.Something about the rain was calming,but she had too much weighing on her conscience to sleep.The past three days had become a blur in her memory,and the only things she could remember were disjointed fragments of desperation,anger,determination,depression...
   The dark side.
"Why aren't you asleep yet,Mara?" Luke mumbled from beside her.
"Why aren't you?" she asked back.
"I can't sleep until you do," he answered,and she sighed.
"Neither can I."
"Well,that's twice today we've broken even."
Mara rolled over to face her husband.
"What did you do with the ten thousand credits?" she asked.
"Put them back in safekeeping where they belong," he said,cracking a grin.
"Excellent," she murmured,then added thoughtfully," you know,I still feel like we won somehow...our performance just blew theirs out of the water,even with your help.I had no idea you were so resourceful,Framjen."
Luke blushed,recalling the reckless ease with which he'd slid across the stage,the movement of the stale air creating fresh wind against his face.
"That was pretty fast thinking of me,wasn't it," he laughed,and Mara reached out to stroke his cheek.
"I love you," she whispered,and his cheeks reddened even further.
"I love you,too," he whispered back,"even if you do throw pretty impressive tantrums."
"That was enough of a tantrum to last the rest of my life without ever having to throw one again,thank you very much," she admitted,and delighted in his chuckle.
"Did you actually learn anything from this whole experience?" Luke asked gravely,becoming serious again.
"You mean,besides never to bet Leia anything?"
Luke rolled his eyes and nodded,but his smile was genuine."Besides that?"
"Is this the moral of the story or what?" she asked,frowning.
"It's part of your training," he answered devilishly.
"Alright," she sighed."I learned not to cheat,not to lie,not to gamble,and how to clean up dirty dances."
Luke stared at her in silence for a moment,but broke into a wide smile.
"Hey..." Mara said,suddenly remembering something."You finally smiled! For real,I mean.Looks like you deserve that kiss I promised you!"
    She pressed her lips against his,and indulged him in a slow,soft kiss.
When she finally pulled away,Luke held her against him and kept smiling,satisfied.
"You know," he said," all things considered,those were possibly the most worthwhile ten thousand credits I ever payed anyone."