Chapter Text
Luke had been awake long before dawn.
He’d tried meditation.
Then flimsiwork.
Made a pot of tarine tea that he left to go cold
Something kept pulling at him - the smallest of nudges, persistent as breath.
It hummed quietly for nearly an hour, loose and shapeless.
When it finally snapped tight, he flinched hard enough that his cup clattered.
Not danger - not yet. But distress, sharp and sudden, like a spark against bare skin.
He rose, crossed the room and pressed his palms flat to the cool stone wall. He let the Force run through him in the quiet way that almost felt like cheating; gentle curiosity, no push, no reach—
And there it was again. A flicker; a flash. A sharp pulse of something bright and unnamable, and beneath it - just for an instant - fear.
Luke inhaled slowly.
He didn’t say her name, though it came to him like a breath. He didn’t have enough to go on, not really; the sensation was distant, blurred by hyperspace, distorted like an underwater voice.
But he recognised the signature. He always did.
He pushed off the wall and crossed to his desk, hand hovering indecisively above his comm unit.
He’d promised not to be pushy.
He never wanted to push.
But then the pulse came again - hotter, brighter, threaded with pain this time - and his hand closed around the comm before he’d consciously decided to move. He typed one line before he could second guess himself:
SKYWALKER:
Are you safe?
He hesitated.
Deleted.
Tried again.
SKYWALKER:
No pressure. Just… if you can, let me know you’re all right.
He sent it before he could retreat into caution.
For a long time nothing answered but the thump of his heart. Outside his window, mist curled along the treeline, blue-pale in the first edge of light. A training bell sounded far below in the courtyard. The temple slowly started waking up.
Then,
JADE:
I had a power surge
He replied right away.
SKYWALKER:
The kind that feels like it belongs to you?
The pause for her reply was a lot shorter this time.
JADE:
The kind that kills ships
He started to write a reply, encouraging her to land somewhere safe or at least talk to him while flying - and then it happened again.
This time the sensation slammed into him so hard he almost staggered. His vision flashed white.
Something uncontrolled and volatile and dangerous.
Something frightened behind gritted teeth.
When it passed, everything fell still. The noise of the jungle filtered back into sense.
He exhaled shakily.
Luke stood there for a long moment, the comm warm in his hand, knowing the line he was about to cross. He decided he’d rather have her angry than hurt.
He typed another message:
SKYWALKER:
Consider this an exception - I’m going to push.
Come to Yavin. Let me help.
His thumb hovered over “send.”
He should soften it.
He should phrase it more gently.
He should give her an easy way out.
He hit send.
Outside, the sun broke the horizon, dazzling white. The first rays broke through the tree canopy like bolts of soft morning lightning.
Luke murmured, to nobody, “Please be safe.” Then he went to wait - patient, steady, and hopeful - for Mara to come.