Playlist:

❶ "Holmes and Elizabeth"—Young Sherlock Holmes OST

❷ "From This Moment On"—Shania Twain and Bryan White

❸ "Marion's Theme"—Raiders of the Lost Ark OST

"Naluma?" The timid voice of Kallay Flo'et echoed through the intercom. "You awake yet?"

She yelled from where she stood in front of the mirror holding up her purple gown. Her purple lace lingerie scratched her abdomen. "Come in."

The Jedi Master turned to see Kallay holding a garment bag. Jannah followed behind her with a cosmetics case.

"What's that?" Naluma pointed to the bag as she laid her dress on the bed and sat down. Kallay joined her while Jannah arranged the make-up kit on Naluma's dresser.

"Um, I never delivered my mission report last week when I came in." She raised her eyes to the ceiling and scrunched her face. "Sorry."

"Not a big deal. Do it tomorrow."

Kallay shook her head. "You know how you're always telling me to follow the Force's leading?"

Naluma nodded, not sure where this was going.

"I did." She looked down and fiddled with the zip on the back. "I didn't finish the mission on Arbooine. I finished it on Naboo."

"Go on."

"Just had this compulsion to go there. Carllili did to." Kallay stopped for a moment. "And the funny thing is ... when we got back to our A-wings, coordinates were already set for the planet."

Jannah joined them on the bed while Naluma leaned in. "Did you see any Force-ghosts?"

Kallay shook her head. "No. It's funny though. I thought we were headed to Theed, the capital, but it took us to this villa on Lake Varykino up in the mountains."

"How'd you get that?" Naluma pointed to the bag.

"A funny old woman, not even sure what her species is. Short. Maybe a little taller than a meter. She had a jetpack strapped to her back and repulsor rifle in her hand. I'll never forget those eyes and the way she looked at me when she removed her special lenses." Kally stared at the ceiling as if remembering the details. "Anyway, she met us at the lake shore and handed me a small case. She said, 'Take it. For the Jedi Master's bride. His father wants her to have it. Go now, before they catch us.'"

Kallay started unzipping the bag. "We stopped at a space station. Didn't want to risk bringing a bomb in or something. When we opened it, we found this." She handed Naluma an old holodisc. Then she removed a white lace gown from the bag and hung it over the refresher door jamb.

When Naluma activated the disc, a distorted image of a couple on a terrace appeared. The woman was wearing the dress. A young Anakin stood beside her, holding her hand. Naluma gasped as a tear ran down her cheek. "That's Luke's father. But who's the woman?"

Jannah peered at the image. "She looks very familiar. I just can't place her. How old is this holo?"

"Close to forty years old, I'd imagine. Anakin's still a Padawan. See his braid?" Naluma pointed to it.

"Thank the Force Padawan don't have to wear those anymore." The blonde smiled at Naluma. "Well, now that we know what you're wearing, let's get you ready. Come over here so I can work on your hair."

Naluma fingered the white lace. "Whoever she was, she must have been loaded. This lace is hand knitted. Ultra-fine threads. And those beads are hand sewn. This belongs in a museum."

Kallay grinned at her. "I think that's where it came from."

Silver and blue streamers on towering poles swayed in the breeze above the courtyard. Round tables draped with navy blue tablecloths and silver-sequined table runners cluttered the terrace. White wildflowers in squat, blocky vases adorned the tables. The good china, crystal, and silverware from the deep storage sparkled in the late afternoon sun.

At the far end where the dilapidated wing once stood, silver tulle draped the chunky bridal arbor and extended above the gathered the chairs. Luke stood in his formal silk uniform, his light brown hair freshly trimmed and combed.

Luke caught a pale blue blur by the three kedari trees across the patio. Squinting, he recognized the wavering image of his father. He nodded and smiled at his father, and received one in return.

But nothing could prepare him for the sight of his love. She stood by the double doors. A white lace dress clung to her body, the train extending behind her for almost a meter. Jannah had coifed her hair in a half updo, curling the trailing ends. She had pinned an arc of tiny white flowers at the back of the head before the fall. Her hands clutched a bouquet of white kevina flowers and purple and blue lungtha flowers cascading from her waist to her knees.

Luke's fingers itched to run through those tresses. He thought back to the first weeks he knew her, how she felt this bond but he had denied it. How her love was the only thing that saved him from the darkness.

Lor San Tekka cleared his throat as Wei'ahtt extended his arm to Naluma to lead her down the aisle. "Gentle beings, we gather here today on this early morning to celebrate two lives joining as one. Over these last ten years that I have known them, I have seen no greater example in my lifetime of self-sacrifice and unconditional love. It is my honor to solemnify this love by officiating this marriage."

The audience sighed before he continued. "Do you, Luke Skywalker, take Naluma Fau as your lawfully wedded wife?"

❶ Luke clasped Naluma's hands in his and gazed deeply into her black eyes. "I, Luke Skywalker, do take you, Naluma Fau, to be my lawfully wedded wife." He lifted his hand to her face. "Naluma, you are my light. Without you, I would be lost in darkness. You are my other half, and I am incomplete without you." She pulled his hand back to hers. "I promise to be your consoler ... your sidekick ... your best friend. I promise faithfulness and patience, respect and protection, but most of all my undying love. I will celebrate your triumphs and uphold you through our failures, for all the days of my life and hereafter."

Lor San Tekka asked, "Do you, Naluma Fau, promise to take Luke Skywalker as your lawfully wedded husband?"

Naluma looked into his eyes, tears streaming down her face and smudging her make-up. "I, Naluma Fau, do take you, Luke Skywalker, as my lawfully wedded husband." She smiled at him. "Luke, you are my light, my strength." She laughed lightly. "My accomplice and my comrade-in-arms—my true counterpart. I will love you, respect you, and cherish you for all the days of my life and hereafter."

The priest spoke again. "Before you on the altar lies a tiny kedari seed. Only fire can open its protective husk. This seed represents your joining together. When the fires rage, your love will grow, because only together can you overcome your trials. Join your hands and give new life to this seed. Nourish it. Make it grow."

Luke took Naluma's right hand. Their Force-bond arced together, intertwining. She nodded at him. Then they sent forth the Force, letting their combined power encompass the seed. With a small spark, the husk shriveled. A few seconds later, it sprouted, a green leaf and stem bursting upward.

Together, they lifted the new life and planted it in the waiting glass filled with soil. Luke sprinkled a few flakes of fertilizer and Naluma poured a few drops of water on the new seedling.

"Like this seedling, your marriage will not thrive without water and nutrients."

❷ Luke helped Naluma kneel in front of the altar. They joined in meditation as Zeke and Benae sang of their love, their bond. As the lyrics flowed, Luke wrapped his arm around her shoulders and vowed, "I will never leave your side, my love."

She nestled her head on his shoulder and whispered, "I will love you forever—in the Force we will always be together."

The tendrils of the Force wrapped around them, swirling in blues and purples and greens and pinks. To the Force-sensitive eye, it looked like it was sprinkling glitter, bathing them in its sparkling light.

The music swelled at the end of the song as the vocalists repeated the refrain one last time, the words echoing their sacred devotion to one another.

They stood on cue. Luke took Naluma's wedding ring from Han, just a simple platinum band, while Naluma handed her bouquet to Kallay. He clasped her hand and held her finger up as he slid the ring on it.

❸ "With this ring, I promise you that from this day forward you will not walk alone. May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home. May we walk together through all things. I am honored to call you my wife."

Naluma took Luke's ring from Kallay and placed it on his finger. "I give you this ring as a sign that I choose you. Wear it and think of me and know that I will love you always."

"I now pronounce you bonded in marriage. Let what the Force has brought together never be separated."

Luke pulled Naluma to him and pressed his lips to hers with a gentle kiss. I love you, 'Luma.

Love you more.

She smiled with a wicked glint in her eye as she took him by his head and pulled him toward her. She mashed her lips to his, her desire spiking over their Force-bond.

Luke broke away, gasping for air.

She winked at him. When does the honeymoon start?

Patience, Padawan. 

Did you know ...

● Luke and Naluma's wedding breaks a boundary—first Jedi/Jedi wedding recorded in new timeline. (If you wish #Naluke were canon, give a shout-out here.)

● The location of the graduation and the wedding has a purpose that will be revealed by the end of the next book.

● If you want to know what happened on the wedding night, you'll have to hop to one of my fan's accounts naluke83 and read Sacred Devotions (Warning: Rated Mature).

● The sequel to this book, The Rise of Ren, is completed. Lots of #Naluke love, trials, and triumphs. Go read it now!

Tell me what you think ...

● Compare the wedding at the beginning of this book with this one. Based on the vows, how do you think each marriage will differ or be the same?

● What do you think the wedding night is going to be like based on Naluma's last question to Luke?