Chapter Six
When the girls returned to the living room, Dal ran up to meet them. "Look at the fire we built!" he exclaimed, pointing out the flames dancing merrily in the fireplace. "I didn't know you had to build a fire. I thought you just turned it on."
"You're thinking of a gas fire," Bail pointed out, kneeling down next to the fireplace so he could admire Dal's handiwork. "They're very easy, but not nearly as fun as a good, old-fashioned log fire. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Oh, yes!" Dal exclaimed. "And it's so much bigger and noisier."
"And hotter," the governor added. "You might want to move back a bit, son, or you'll get burned." He glanced at Bail. "It appears I have a budding pyromaniac on my hands."
Teena squeezed her way among the crowd gathered by the fire, tugging on Bail's sleeve. "I helped build it, too!"
"And what a fine job you did," said Bail. "This fire will keep us all quite toasty tonight."
Leia held back from the group, still feeling out of sorts. Sometimes she really hated sharing her father with guests. But Winter pressed forward. "Are we going to roast nutroots, Tatu?"
Teena and Dal looked up eagerly, but Bail only said, "Later on. Let's not use up all our fun at once. What about that puzzle?"
"What puzzle?" Dal asked. He could hardly keep up with all the new and exciting things to do at Shadowcliff. "I didn't see a projection table."
Bail stood up, brushing ashes from his knees. "It's not a holo-puzzle. It's tri-D. You'll see." He crossed the room to the game cabinet, Dal, Teena, and Winter at his heels. Glancing over to where Leia stood at the side, he offered, "Leia, would you like to suggest a puzzle that our guests might enjoy?"
Warm affection blossomed in Leia's chest. He had noticed her. Papa never forgot her. She took a step closer. "Maybe the seascape one?"
"Ah, yes. Our favorite," Bail commented, with a special smile meant just for her. He opened the cabinet and browsed through the boxes while the Naraud children wondered at the array of games. "Here it is," Bail said, carefully sliding a box from its place. "Over to the table, now. The old-fashioned kind that doesn't plug into a power source."
As the children scampered to the table and scrambled for seats, the governor observed, "'Old-fashioned' seems to be a favorite phrase of yours, Viceroy. Is it just you, or do all Alderaani favor such primitive pastimes?"
"Primitive?" Bail laughed, setting the box on the table so the children could get at the pieces. "We Alderaani appreciate the benefits of modern technology as much as anyone else, but we do cling to our 'primitive' pastimes as well. After all, technology can never substitute for family and friends."
The governor chuckled and clapped a hand on Bail's shoulder. "I like that, Viceroy! People have warned me about your strange ideas, but maybe some of your ideas aren't half bad."
"I'll take that as a complement," Bail returned good-naturedly.
The children had set up the board, and now the pieces were scattered across the table. "Meyra, Jaffia," the governor called, "come join us!"
Lady Naraud scarcely looked up from her datapad. "You go right ahead. I'll join you later."
Jaffia, who had lost interest in the program she'd been watching on the holoviewer, was peering over the back of her chair at the group gathered around the table. She rose and slowly approached them, as if she hadn't made up her mind whether or not such a "primitive pastime" was beneath her. But she couldn't completely conceal her curiosity. "How do you play?" she asked.
Winter explained, "We use all these pieces to build a seascape. There are fish and plants and corals --"
"-- and boats!" Leia added.
"Look at this thing!" Dal exclaimed, holding up a large, eel-like creature with big teeth.
Winter continued, "Every time you work the puzzle, it's different."
Jaffia's brow furrowed in confusion. "There's no right way to do it? Then how do you win?"
"You win by keeping the puzzle from falling apart," Leia explained with a touch of impatience. "We have to work together. Otherwise the puzzle gets out of balance and won't hold together."
Jaffia slowly shook her head. "I still don't get it," she said, but she took a seat next to her father anyway and picked through the puzzle pieces.
When everyone had selected the pieces they wanted to work with, they began to construct the puzzle, building up layers and adding flora, fauna, and other odds and ends. Seven heads bent over the table, conferring about where to put the coral reef and how deep to make the trench. Dal got particularly excited over the possibility of an underwater volcano, but he was outvoted by the others, who said there wouldn't be room for it. He had to content himself with a sunken ship instead.
They'd been working on the puzzle for about an hour, when the governor pushed his chair back from the table, stretching. "Good heavens! I'm getting a crick in my neck from looking at all those tiny pieces." He called out to his wife, "Come on, Meyra, put that datapad down and take my place at the puzzle. It's really quite fun. I need to walk around for a bit and work the kinks out of my spine."
Lady Naraud closed down her 'pad and joined the others at the table while her husband took a turn around the room, inspecting the array of pictures decorating the walls. The Naraud children eagerly showed their mother their creations. Even Jaffia was rather proud of the trench she'd been working on.
"Look! This one has tentacles!" Teena said, holding up a cephalopod.
"Mother," Jaffia whined, "Teena's been holding onto that thing all night. Tell her she has to put it in the puzzle."
"No!" Teena protested, clutching her beloved tentacle-beast to her chest.
"You should find a place for it, Teena," her mother said.
Dal suggested, "Put it in my sunken ship. It can eat this school of fish."
"I don't wanna!" scowled Teena.
While the children argued, the governor over by the picture wall called out, "Viceroy, who is this with you here?" He pointed at one of the images. "The face looks so familiar, but I can't place it."
Leia looked up and froze when she saw where the governor was pointing. Her eyes shot over to her father, who stood and slowly crossed the room to the governor's side.
"Ah, yes," Bail said, with a perfect air of nonchalance. "That's an old friend of mine."
"Yes, but who is it? I feel like I should know him."
Bail only barely paused. "That's Obi-Wan Kenobi."
"Kenobi," Naraud repeated, tapping his chin as he searched his memory. "Now I remember. He was a general." His eyes narrowed as he shot a suspicious glance at Bail. "He was a Jedi. In fact, he is on the Emperor's 'Most Wanted' list."
"Is he? I was under the impression that he died in the purge."
Leia's eyes widened slightly. It unnerved her to know that her father could lie so convincingly. They had both seen General Kenobi alive only two years earlier.
"His death has never been confirmed," Naraud said. "Really, your Highness, I am amazed to find an image of such a wanted criminal in your family home."
Bail merely shrugged. "I've made many friends throughout my career, Governor. I first met Kenobi shortly after a became a senator. That was, what, almost thirty years ago? Certainly long before the Empire existed. He wasn't an enemy of the state back then."
"Still, I have to wonder at your choice of friends. If you saw or heard anything of this man again, I hope you would remember your duty as a loyal member of the Empire."
"I never forget my duty, Governor," was Bail's calm reply. "If I hear anything of him, I will certainly let you know."
Naraud answered with a curt nod. "And I hope in the future you will choose your friends with greater care."
"Of course," Bail smiled. "That's why I'm so glad you and your family are here as my guests."
Leia concealed her grimace by lowering her head over the puzzle. Fortunately, no one else was looking at her. Their attention was focused on the puzzle - all except Jaffia, who watched her father and Bail with a suspicious expression. Leia studied Jaffia, wondering what the girl was thinking, when she turned and met Leia's gaze. They stared silently at one another for a moment, sizing each other up like a dare, neither wanting to be the first to look away. The stare-down only ended when the two fathers returned to the table to join in the puzzle once more.
They continued working on it for another half hour or so. The puzzle was almost complete when Aris entered the room and silently approached Leia's father, leaning down to whisper discreetly in his ear. He nodded and glanced over at Leia and Winter. "Winter, your mother is calling you from Coruscant. I'll have Aris direct the call to my room so we won't disturb the others." He stood and gave a short bow to the governor. "If you'll excuse us?"
Naraud waved a hand. "Not at all."
Winter rose to follow Bail, with Leia hard on her heels. Leia tingled with excitement. Winter's mother worked in the Alderaani senate office on Coruscant, where she also maintained contact with the Alliance network. This was no family call. She almost certainly had important news to report.
They followed her father and Aris down the long hall to Bail's room at the far end of the lodge. Bail opened the door to admit the girls, pausing to glance at Aris. "The room is secure," she assured him.
"Thank you, Aris," Bail answered. He entered the room and closed the door, leaving Aris in the hall where she could pretend to be dusting so as to keep an eye out in case any of the Narauds approached.
Beneath its homey appearance, the Viceroy's room in Shadowcliff was as equipped and secure as any battle command center. High-tech sensors jammed any listening devices, and the windows were shielded against surveillance. Bail approached a moss painting hanging on the wall. He pressed the buttons of the climate control panel in a certain sequence, and the painting slid up to reveal a communications panel hidden beneath it. A few more buttons, and the monitor sparked to life.
A middle-aged woman appeared on the screen. She smiled at Winter. "How are you, my dear?"
"I'm fine, Mother."
"Are you enjoy yourself? And behaving, I hope?"
The girl rolled her eyes. "Of course!"
Winter's mother smiled again, then looked at Bail. "I'm sorry to disturb you, your Highness."
"Not at all, Faria. What is it?"
"Nothing definite, I'm afraid. I just wanted to reiterate how important it is for you to keep alert to anything the governor might say. The occupation of Cyrene is moving far too quickly. We're beginning to suspect that the attack against them was more than just punishment, but was in fact an excuse to move in and take Cyrene over. The Empire wants something on Cyrene, but we don't know what."
"That's rather vague," Bail said. "The governor has been reluctant to talk about Cyrene. I have to be very careful, or he'll grow suspicious."
"Of course. Anything you can find out will be extremely helpful." She turned once more to the girls. "Winter, Leia, don't forget to study for your test."
Winter sighed. "Yes, mother."
They said their goodbyes, and the screen darkened, the moss painting sliding once more into place.
"Papa," Leia said, hesitating. "Have you noticed how Lady Naraud keeps working on her datapad?" She didn't want to hand her secret mission over to her father, but on the other hand, she wasn't really supposed to be doing spy work. It wouldn't be right to withhold information from him.
"Yes, I've noticed."
"Maybe she's doing Imperial work on it," Leia suggested.
"That is possible," he conceded. "But she is unlikely to be carrying important secrets around on that datapad."
Leia suppressed a scowl. Winter had said almost the exact same thing. How did anyone think the Alliance could ever make any progress if they refused to take initiative? "But don't you think it would be a good idea to check it out?"
"Leia, as a ranking Imperial official, Lady Naraud will have strict security on that 'pad. If she discovered that we tampered with it, we would be in serious trouble. She guards that 'pad closely, but I did manage to catch a glimpse of something she was working on today."
Eagerly the girls perked up. "What was it?"
Bail raised a stern eyebrow at them. "She was writing a letter to the headmaster of Jaffia's new school. We're unlikely to learn anything important from that datapad, and the risks are too great. I'm afraid we'll just have to do this the old-fashioned way."
Leia sighed. The governor was right. That really was her father's favorite phrase. "Mouth shut, eyes and ears open," she dutifully recited.
"Right. I know it's not as exciting, but there it is. And girls -- stay away from that datapad."
"Yes, sir," Winter answered, and Leia just knew her friend was secretly relieved to have been forbidden to pursue the dangerous datapad mission. Leia merely nodded, praying that her apparent assent would satisfy her father.
It seemed to, for he extracted no further promise from her. "All right, then. Let's rejoin the others, shall we?"
They left the room and headed down the hall. Winter's step was light, and she smiled broadly as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. But Leia's resolve was all the more firm. She *had* to see that datapad.
When the girls returned to the living room, Dal ran up to meet them. "Look at the fire we built!" he exclaimed, pointing out the flames dancing merrily in the fireplace. "I didn't know you had to build a fire. I thought you just turned it on."
"You're thinking of a gas fire," Bail pointed out, kneeling down next to the fireplace so he could admire Dal's handiwork. "They're very easy, but not nearly as fun as a good, old-fashioned log fire. Wouldn't you agree?"
"Oh, yes!" Dal exclaimed. "And it's so much bigger and noisier."
"And hotter," the governor added. "You might want to move back a bit, son, or you'll get burned." He glanced at Bail. "It appears I have a budding pyromaniac on my hands."
Teena squeezed her way among the crowd gathered by the fire, tugging on Bail's sleeve. "I helped build it, too!"
"And what a fine job you did," said Bail. "This fire will keep us all quite toasty tonight."
Leia held back from the group, still feeling out of sorts. Sometimes she really hated sharing her father with guests. But Winter pressed forward. "Are we going to roast nutroots, Tatu?"
Teena and Dal looked up eagerly, but Bail only said, "Later on. Let's not use up all our fun at once. What about that puzzle?"
"What puzzle?" Dal asked. He could hardly keep up with all the new and exciting things to do at Shadowcliff. "I didn't see a projection table."
Bail stood up, brushing ashes from his knees. "It's not a holo-puzzle. It's tri-D. You'll see." He crossed the room to the game cabinet, Dal, Teena, and Winter at his heels. Glancing over to where Leia stood at the side, he offered, "Leia, would you like to suggest a puzzle that our guests might enjoy?"
Warm affection blossomed in Leia's chest. He had noticed her. Papa never forgot her. She took a step closer. "Maybe the seascape one?"
"Ah, yes. Our favorite," Bail commented, with a special smile meant just for her. He opened the cabinet and browsed through the boxes while the Naraud children wondered at the array of games. "Here it is," Bail said, carefully sliding a box from its place. "Over to the table, now. The old-fashioned kind that doesn't plug into a power source."
As the children scampered to the table and scrambled for seats, the governor observed, "'Old-fashioned' seems to be a favorite phrase of yours, Viceroy. Is it just you, or do all Alderaani favor such primitive pastimes?"
"Primitive?" Bail laughed, setting the box on the table so the children could get at the pieces. "We Alderaani appreciate the benefits of modern technology as much as anyone else, but we do cling to our 'primitive' pastimes as well. After all, technology can never substitute for family and friends."
The governor chuckled and clapped a hand on Bail's shoulder. "I like that, Viceroy! People have warned me about your strange ideas, but maybe some of your ideas aren't half bad."
"I'll take that as a complement," Bail returned good-naturedly.
The children had set up the board, and now the pieces were scattered across the table. "Meyra, Jaffia," the governor called, "come join us!"
Lady Naraud scarcely looked up from her datapad. "You go right ahead. I'll join you later."
Jaffia, who had lost interest in the program she'd been watching on the holoviewer, was peering over the back of her chair at the group gathered around the table. She rose and slowly approached them, as if she hadn't made up her mind whether or not such a "primitive pastime" was beneath her. But she couldn't completely conceal her curiosity. "How do you play?" she asked.
Winter explained, "We use all these pieces to build a seascape. There are fish and plants and corals --"
"-- and boats!" Leia added.
"Look at this thing!" Dal exclaimed, holding up a large, eel-like creature with big teeth.
Winter continued, "Every time you work the puzzle, it's different."
Jaffia's brow furrowed in confusion. "There's no right way to do it? Then how do you win?"
"You win by keeping the puzzle from falling apart," Leia explained with a touch of impatience. "We have to work together. Otherwise the puzzle gets out of balance and won't hold together."
Jaffia slowly shook her head. "I still don't get it," she said, but she took a seat next to her father anyway and picked through the puzzle pieces.
When everyone had selected the pieces they wanted to work with, they began to construct the puzzle, building up layers and adding flora, fauna, and other odds and ends. Seven heads bent over the table, conferring about where to put the coral reef and how deep to make the trench. Dal got particularly excited over the possibility of an underwater volcano, but he was outvoted by the others, who said there wouldn't be room for it. He had to content himself with a sunken ship instead.
They'd been working on the puzzle for about an hour, when the governor pushed his chair back from the table, stretching. "Good heavens! I'm getting a crick in my neck from looking at all those tiny pieces." He called out to his wife, "Come on, Meyra, put that datapad down and take my place at the puzzle. It's really quite fun. I need to walk around for a bit and work the kinks out of my spine."
Lady Naraud closed down her 'pad and joined the others at the table while her husband took a turn around the room, inspecting the array of pictures decorating the walls. The Naraud children eagerly showed their mother their creations. Even Jaffia was rather proud of the trench she'd been working on.
"Look! This one has tentacles!" Teena said, holding up a cephalopod.
"Mother," Jaffia whined, "Teena's been holding onto that thing all night. Tell her she has to put it in the puzzle."
"No!" Teena protested, clutching her beloved tentacle-beast to her chest.
"You should find a place for it, Teena," her mother said.
Dal suggested, "Put it in my sunken ship. It can eat this school of fish."
"I don't wanna!" scowled Teena.
While the children argued, the governor over by the picture wall called out, "Viceroy, who is this with you here?" He pointed at one of the images. "The face looks so familiar, but I can't place it."
Leia looked up and froze when she saw where the governor was pointing. Her eyes shot over to her father, who stood and slowly crossed the room to the governor's side.
"Ah, yes," Bail said, with a perfect air of nonchalance. "That's an old friend of mine."
"Yes, but who is it? I feel like I should know him."
Bail only barely paused. "That's Obi-Wan Kenobi."
"Kenobi," Naraud repeated, tapping his chin as he searched his memory. "Now I remember. He was a general." His eyes narrowed as he shot a suspicious glance at Bail. "He was a Jedi. In fact, he is on the Emperor's 'Most Wanted' list."
"Is he? I was under the impression that he died in the purge."
Leia's eyes widened slightly. It unnerved her to know that her father could lie so convincingly. They had both seen General Kenobi alive only two years earlier.
"His death has never been confirmed," Naraud said. "Really, your Highness, I am amazed to find an image of such a wanted criminal in your family home."
Bail merely shrugged. "I've made many friends throughout my career, Governor. I first met Kenobi shortly after a became a senator. That was, what, almost thirty years ago? Certainly long before the Empire existed. He wasn't an enemy of the state back then."
"Still, I have to wonder at your choice of friends. If you saw or heard anything of this man again, I hope you would remember your duty as a loyal member of the Empire."
"I never forget my duty, Governor," was Bail's calm reply. "If I hear anything of him, I will certainly let you know."
Naraud answered with a curt nod. "And I hope in the future you will choose your friends with greater care."
"Of course," Bail smiled. "That's why I'm so glad you and your family are here as my guests."
Leia concealed her grimace by lowering her head over the puzzle. Fortunately, no one else was looking at her. Their attention was focused on the puzzle - all except Jaffia, who watched her father and Bail with a suspicious expression. Leia studied Jaffia, wondering what the girl was thinking, when she turned and met Leia's gaze. They stared silently at one another for a moment, sizing each other up like a dare, neither wanting to be the first to look away. The stare-down only ended when the two fathers returned to the table to join in the puzzle once more.
They continued working on it for another half hour or so. The puzzle was almost complete when Aris entered the room and silently approached Leia's father, leaning down to whisper discreetly in his ear. He nodded and glanced over at Leia and Winter. "Winter, your mother is calling you from Coruscant. I'll have Aris direct the call to my room so we won't disturb the others." He stood and gave a short bow to the governor. "If you'll excuse us?"
Naraud waved a hand. "Not at all."
Winter rose to follow Bail, with Leia hard on her heels. Leia tingled with excitement. Winter's mother worked in the Alderaani senate office on Coruscant, where she also maintained contact with the Alliance network. This was no family call. She almost certainly had important news to report.
They followed her father and Aris down the long hall to Bail's room at the far end of the lodge. Bail opened the door to admit the girls, pausing to glance at Aris. "The room is secure," she assured him.
"Thank you, Aris," Bail answered. He entered the room and closed the door, leaving Aris in the hall where she could pretend to be dusting so as to keep an eye out in case any of the Narauds approached.
Beneath its homey appearance, the Viceroy's room in Shadowcliff was as equipped and secure as any battle command center. High-tech sensors jammed any listening devices, and the windows were shielded against surveillance. Bail approached a moss painting hanging on the wall. He pressed the buttons of the climate control panel in a certain sequence, and the painting slid up to reveal a communications panel hidden beneath it. A few more buttons, and the monitor sparked to life.
A middle-aged woman appeared on the screen. She smiled at Winter. "How are you, my dear?"
"I'm fine, Mother."
"Are you enjoy yourself? And behaving, I hope?"
The girl rolled her eyes. "Of course!"
Winter's mother smiled again, then looked at Bail. "I'm sorry to disturb you, your Highness."
"Not at all, Faria. What is it?"
"Nothing definite, I'm afraid. I just wanted to reiterate how important it is for you to keep alert to anything the governor might say. The occupation of Cyrene is moving far too quickly. We're beginning to suspect that the attack against them was more than just punishment, but was in fact an excuse to move in and take Cyrene over. The Empire wants something on Cyrene, but we don't know what."
"That's rather vague," Bail said. "The governor has been reluctant to talk about Cyrene. I have to be very careful, or he'll grow suspicious."
"Of course. Anything you can find out will be extremely helpful." She turned once more to the girls. "Winter, Leia, don't forget to study for your test."
Winter sighed. "Yes, mother."
They said their goodbyes, and the screen darkened, the moss painting sliding once more into place.
"Papa," Leia said, hesitating. "Have you noticed how Lady Naraud keeps working on her datapad?" She didn't want to hand her secret mission over to her father, but on the other hand, she wasn't really supposed to be doing spy work. It wouldn't be right to withhold information from him.
"Yes, I've noticed."
"Maybe she's doing Imperial work on it," Leia suggested.
"That is possible," he conceded. "But she is unlikely to be carrying important secrets around on that datapad."
Leia suppressed a scowl. Winter had said almost the exact same thing. How did anyone think the Alliance could ever make any progress if they refused to take initiative? "But don't you think it would be a good idea to check it out?"
"Leia, as a ranking Imperial official, Lady Naraud will have strict security on that 'pad. If she discovered that we tampered with it, we would be in serious trouble. She guards that 'pad closely, but I did manage to catch a glimpse of something she was working on today."
Eagerly the girls perked up. "What was it?"
Bail raised a stern eyebrow at them. "She was writing a letter to the headmaster of Jaffia's new school. We're unlikely to learn anything important from that datapad, and the risks are too great. I'm afraid we'll just have to do this the old-fashioned way."
Leia sighed. The governor was right. That really was her father's favorite phrase. "Mouth shut, eyes and ears open," she dutifully recited.
"Right. I know it's not as exciting, but there it is. And girls -- stay away from that datapad."
"Yes, sir," Winter answered, and Leia just knew her friend was secretly relieved to have been forbidden to pursue the dangerous datapad mission. Leia merely nodded, praying that her apparent assent would satisfy her father.
It seemed to, for he extracted no further promise from her. "All right, then. Let's rejoin the others, shall we?"
They left the room and headed down the hall. Winter's step was light, and she smiled broadly as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. But Leia's resolve was all the more firm. She *had* to see that datapad.
