open open open forever D:

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

The Sensorium was (once again, for this particular occupant) reflecting the glowing opulence of an upper level in the Imperial Palace.

Mara Jade Skywalker's hair was swept up off the base of her neck and she wore a very flowy, light green dress as she leaned against a balcony railing, watching imaginary traffic sweep past her. Above, below, across, the speeders were just flashes of light.

Every so often, a servant or some nameless Imperial would wander by and she would tense, idly worried that her subconscious would prompt Stacy to bring in someone less savory. Like her former Master.

For now, though, it was just traffic and night air.

Comments

[restoresbalance.livejournal.com]

Luke stood in an open breezeway, leaning against a pillar and watching his wife. He'd never been to Coruscant at the height of its Imperial elegance, and so somehow he'd always imagined it to be cold and unwelcoming. But looking at it this way, through the lens of Mara's memories, it hardly seemed to be.

Still, Luke felt a little out of place here in his Jedi robes, particularly when he laid eyes on Mara. He'd always thought she would look beautiful in anything she wore, even a grain sack. But seeing her like this, in the finery she wore when she was the Emperor's Hand years before they ever met--it was breathtaking.

And since his breath was stolen by how lovely she looked, all lit up by Imperial Coruscant's lights, Luke said nothing, just reached out to her mind lovingly.

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

She hesitated for half a second, torn between letting her husband look, and acknowledging him. Looking back at him wins out -- it always does -- and when she looks over her shoulder at him, her smile was soft.

His touch to her mind was returned, and she held one hand out to him, to urge him closer. "Hey."

[restoresbalance.livejournal.com]

"Hey, yourself." He came closer, taking her hand and folding it up in his and leaning on the railing beside her. "So this is what it was like," he said.

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"A happy memory's version." Mara lifted his hand to her lips to press a kiss against his fingers. "I had some of those -- happy memories. I'm paranoid that Palpatine's going to walk through at any moment though."

[restoresbalance.livejournal.com]

He leaned over to return with a kiss to the corner of her mouth. "I could only ever saw this place through the eyes of a Rebel," Luke said when he pulled back.

"It would make me paranoid, too. When we took Coruscant, I argued against setting up government in this place. It felt too much like... him. It wasn't the same feeling I'd had when I got to his throne room on Death Star. This was more pervasive, like evil had crept into every nook and cranny and made a nest, and didn't want to be eradicated."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"I honestly believe that to be true." Mara murmured. "His evil lingers and even in a fake environment, I can still feel it."

[restoresbalance.livejournal.com]

"Me too. Though maybe he's just upset that I'm not dressed right for the party." Luke spread the arm not pressed up to Mara's shoulder. "I don't think Jediwear would have gone over well at Court."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"Oh, maybe at a costume party." Mara smirked, eyebrows raised. "But otherwise, not at all."

[restoresbalance.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, these robes are more of a morning look than an evening look," Luke said idly. "But if this is what you wore to parties here, I'm sure nobody was able to outshine you." His expression softened, as it always did when he thought about how lucky he was to have married Mara. "You're so beautiful."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

Mara pursed her lips as she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him quickly -- and then again, a little longer this time. "You already married me," She murmured against his mouth.

"You don't have to say such sweet things."

[restoresbalance.livejournal.com]

"I like to. Just to see you smile at me." Luke put his hand on her waist and shifted his grip on the one he held, so that he could twirl her in a couple dance steps. He'd never been very good at it, but he'd had to be at least passable for their wedding, and still remembered the instruction.

"Besides, I love you. As a good husband, I think I'd be in trouble if I didn't compliment my beautiful wife."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

She smiled at his dance steps, all teeth and soft laughter. "You are...a good husband. A wonderful one."

Leaning forward, she drew her lips across his cheek, his lips. "A perfect one."

HI LUKEWIFEMOM

[craaazyisland]

Steve had not been near the sensoriums since his little incident with GLaDOS, but as far as he was concerned, he was traumatized by enough stupid things that he didn't need another one added to the mix. And he was quite determined to kick the aversion.

As always, he seemed to have trouble deciding when the sensorium already had someone in it, and accidentally barged in on Mara.

"Ah- sorry!" he said quickly, and attempted to head right back out the door. "Sorry! Didn't know it was taken."

HI FAKESON :3

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

Mara held a hand up as she turned to look at Steve, her expression vaguely amused. "Steve. It's okay. You can stay."

[craaazyisland]

He didn't look quite so sure about that. "Are you sure? If you're busy, I just- I was just going to pop in for just a second..."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

Her hand moved in an idle fashion as she shook her head. "I'm not busy, just...traffic watching. Thinking. I can do that anywhere and I can do that with someone in here too."

[craaazyisland]

Actually getting a look at the surroundings seemed to attract Steve away from the idea of running away. He slowly stepped away from the door and over towards the balcony, marveling at the city around them. This was sort of the first time he'd seen anything from Luke's, uh... "world."

"What's this place?"

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"The Imperial Palace...at the height of the Empire, from when I was around...eight, I believe. I went to my first party here when I was eight. Happy memories of this place only come from when I was a child, really."

[craaazyisland]

That didn't explain all the spaceships, but Steve wasn't about to ask about them and look stupid.

"It's pretty. The lights and the ships, I mean." Stunning conversation there, kiddo.

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"It is, yes." She glanced over her shoulder at the speeders flashing by again. "This is on Coruscant, one giant city planet. Traffic is nonstop and so it always looks like this, no matter what time of day."

[craaazyisland]

"Sounds like New York." Yeah, because she totally knows what that is.

"We don't have ships where I come from, so the idea of traffic that goes vertical is just... mind-boggling to me."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"Would you like to drive around this area? I can take you." Mara offered, her fingers gripping the balcony. "I think I could still manage to steal Tarkin's speeder like I used to."

[craaazyisland]

His expression looked slightly like she had just chucked a bucket of cold water in his face. "Huh? You mean like, in one of those?"

He didn't want to impose, especially if it meant stealing something, but his inner gearhead won before he could protest. "Uh... sure! If it's not a problem."

[jaded-jedi.livejournal.com]

"Awesome." Mara flashed him a quick and toothy grin. "As long as Stacy doesn't decide that Tarkin needs to show up in time to catch us, this'll be a piece of cake."

[starlightace]

Nanoha had seen a lot of cities on a lot of worlds - Mid-Childa itself was a very urban planet.

But none of them had ever been like this before. None of them had ever had spires that extended quite so high or depths that seemed to descend so infinitely low. While she was aware that she was probably intruding on someone else's memory (and hoped fervently that her presence wouldn't bother that person), she couldn't help herself but swoop around the buildings and through all the flying traffic.

Don't look now, Mara, but one of those speeders is actually a 19-year-old girl leaving a trail of magical magenta light in her wake.