The group had finally escaped from Jabba the Hutt's sail barge and they were now making their way back to the Millennium Falcon through a fierce sandstorm with Luke still carrying Peri and the little girl had fainted a few moments after escaping.
"So what was the deal with the kid being there in the first place?" Han asked "what on earth would that slime ball want with a little girl?"
"She told me her parents got into some serious debt with Jabba" Leia explained "but they failed to pay up so he sent a bounty hunter to despose of them but Peri was spared and got taken prisoner instead. Guess he was using her to taunt her about her parent's death." When they reached the falcon, Luke had taken Peri to where the beds where whilst Leia and Han discussed what they should do with the child.
"Guess she'll just have to stay with us" Leia suggested but Han wasn't too sure on the idea, he was after all, not used to having a small child being around on the falcon.
"I'm not really good with kids" he pointed out as Luke appeared from the bed area "I've never really handled little kids in my entire life."
"Well Peri's been through a tough time and her parents are dead, she doesn't have anywhere else to go" Leia replied before turning to Luke "how is she?"
"Well I worked out why she fainted on the way over here, it appears she hasn't eaten anything for a few days" he explained "did she mention anything about not been given any food whilst she was there." Leia began explaining how she had tried to escape about five or six days before they came but she had got caught and her punishment was not to be given any food until they said. Just then, a small sobbing sound came from the back of the falcon and the three rushed over to find that Peri was beginning to come round and when she finally opened her eyes, she looked over to see the three people that had rescued her before looking around with a confused and scared expression.
"Where am I?" she asked, panicking.
"It's okay, you don't have to be scared" Leia reassured the little girl "you're in the Millennium falcon, we brought you back here after we rescued you." Peri then began to remember what had happened during the last few hours and now realized that she was now free from her being held captive for nearly three months.
"What happened to them all?" she asked, sitting up slightly "they're not still out there are they, what if they find me here and take me again. Oh please, don't let them take me back to that horrible place, I don't want to go back and put in chains again." Peri began to sob at the thought of one of Jabba's bounty hunters tracking her down and taking her back to his palace to be held prisoner yet again.
"They won't be coming here and taking you away" Luke said as he knelt down and took the little girl's hands in his own "they all blew up when we escaped, they won't be coming to get you."
"I didn't see them get blown up" Peri replied.
"Well you were almost passed out after we got you off Jabba's sail barge and it blew up right after we got away and even if that didn't happen, we wouldn't let them take you again if they did come here" Leia explained to the child who was now beginning to feel a little relieved after almost three months of nothing but taunts about her parent's deaths and being held in captivity which was possibly the worst experience that the Nine year old girl had been through.
"You know something kid, I suprised you managed to get through almost a week without eating anything" Han pointed out.
"It wasn't good, not being allowed to eat anything" Peri replied, bringing her knees up to her chest "they were punishing me for trying to escape."
"Yeah, Leia did tell us about all that" Luke pointed out "that's why you fainted." Peri nodded and began to explain that the last thing she remembered before collapsing was seeing Luke on the other sail barge, giving a salute and Leia catching her before she fell to the ground.
"I think we should get you some food right now, bet that stomach of yours is started to feel lonely without having any food in there" Han teased which made the little girl smile for the first time since she woke up.
"Okay honey, let me help you" Leia said as she helped Peri off the bed and took her towards the falcon's small kitchen area where they ran into the wookie and the two droids from the palace.
"Oh, I see the young mistress has recovered" the gold droid pointed out. The wookie made a grunting noise as he looked at the small human girl with a puzzled expression and the dome headed droid rolled towards her.
"Peri, we would like you to meet R2-D2, C-3po and Chewbacca but you can call him Chewie for short" Han told her as she smiled shyly, giving a small wave.
"They were at the palace, I remember" she stated "we never got introduced properly back then." Chewbacca hollered and picked the girl up in a hug as the others laughed.
"I think Chewie's taken a liking to you" Luke said as Chewbacca hugged the girl "okay I think you should put her down now." They then took Peri into a small kitchen area and after they gave her some food, she began to greedily devour it and began to feel a little better after having some food in her system.
"So what's going to happen to me now?" she asked after she finished eating "my parents are dead and I don't have any one else."
"We'll look after you" Leia reassured her "it wouldn't be right leaving a child on their own to fend for themselves if they don't have any family to look after them. There's a lot of evil people in this world." Peri nodded and let out a huge yawn, indicating that she was tired and Leia took her by the hand and led her back to the where the beds were and as soon as her head hit the pillow, the little girl had fallen asleep almost instantly.
"How is she?" Luke asked when Leia came into the seating area where the others where.
"She seems fine, I think she was just exhausted, she has had a pretty tough time these past few months and properly didn't get a decent nights sleep whilst being kept on a chain like some animal" Leia replied "I can't still can't believe what they did to her, she's just a little girl."
"Well Jabba didn't care if she was only a kid or not" Han pointed out "he was just an evil old space slug and took pleasure in taunting her about the killing of her parents by one of his bounty hunters." A few moments later, they heard a high pitch squeal come from the bed area followed by Peri yelling out like she was in trouble.
"Nooooo, let me go, let me go."
"It's Peri" Leia indicated, a hint of concern in her voice "sounds like she's in trouble. What if one of Jabba's henchmen escaped and somehow got into the falcon and they're trying to take her."
"I can't see how that's possible, Jabba's been blown to smithereens, he wouldn't have much use for Peri if he's dust" Han pointed out as the child called yet again, screaming in terror and Luke immediately ignited his lightsaber and headed towards the bed area, telling Han and Leia that if something was trying to harm, Peri, he was going to fend it off. When he got to the bed area, he saw that there wasn't anything trying to harm Peri but the girl was wriggling around in her sleep, crying in her sleep with her auburn coloured hair tangled around the pillow and Luke knew that she must be having some kind of nightmare. He switched off his lightsaber and walked over to Peri, crouching down next to her bed as her fist gripped the sheets.
"Mommy, Daddy" she called out "don't leave me, don't go, Mommy, Daddy, don't leave me. Please."
"Peri, wake up" Luke said, putting his hand on her shoulder, using the force to calm her "you're just having a bad dream." Peri stopped wriggling and relaxed before slowly opening her eyes.
"They're dead, my Mommy and Daddy" she whispered "I saw them die."
"What happened, did you have a nightmare about your parents dying?" Luke asked and Peri nodded before turning her head to face him and Luke could see that her eyes where red from crying.
"I have the same nightmare every time I go to sleep" Peri explained "I'm in my house and the bounty hunter comes round, telling my Daddy that he and Mommy owe Jabba a lot of money, Daddy tells him they haven't got it so then he tells my Daddy that Jabba is done with their fooling around and he shoots him. Me and Mommy try to get away but he shoots her too, I see them both lying there, dead and the bounty hunter turns to me, saying that Jabba might have some use for me and then he grabs me, dragging me away and that's when I wake up." The little girl then completely broke down and Luke helped her sit up, putting a comforting arm around her shoulders as she sobbed with her whole body trembling and shaking.
"Is that what happened on the day you got taken?" he asked and Peri nodded, wiping her eyes "bet it must be terrible, having to relive it every time you go to sleep."
"It scares me" Peri replied "sometimes I'm too scared to go back to sleep because I know I'll have that same nightmare, I just wish they would go away, why won't they go away." She burst into tears, bringing her knees up to her chest and burying her face in her knees, her little body shaking with every sob.
"Well if you try not to think about it, maybe your nightmares will go away" Luke suggested "you don't have to be scared anymore, me, Leia, Han, Chewie and the droids are going to take care of you now."
"Really?" Peri asked, slowly lifting her head up "thank you."
"Don't worry about it little one" Luke replied, using his thumbs to wipe the tears away from Peri's face "you're safe now and from now on, well make sure that it'll we stay that way, no one will ever harm you ever again."
