A/N: I know it's been a little while…I am truly sorry. DRL hit me very hard for a while and I completely lost my muse. But I think I've got it back now, so hopefully there won't be quite as long a gap between this chapter and the next one. Scificritic, thanks for the review. I wasn't sure anyone was still reading this story! Glad to know at least one person is. Hope this part doesn't disappoint you, although it's kind of an interlude. Not too much action, but that's coming soon, I promise!

"Are you going to make a move anytime soon?"

"When I'm ready. Shut up."

"You know you're gonna lose. Why don't you just go ahead and make a move?"

"Solo…" Mara said in a warning tone as she continued to study the dejarik board. He did have her in a bind, she had to admit, but there had to be a way out of it somehow.

"Oh, my, will you look at that? While we've been waiting for Mara to make a move, we've already made it all the way to Bespin!"

"I am not taking that long!"

"You've been sitting there, staring at the board, for nearly a half hour! You're gonna lose anyway. Make a move!"

Frustrated, Mara reached down and pulled the power supply for the dejarik game out of the socket. Han watched in disbelief as his winning game sputtered and disappeared. "There! I made a move! You happy?"

Tempers had been flaring recently aboard the Falcon. They were only three weeks into their six-week journey and the tension and uncertainty of the situation was getting to all three of them. Even Mara and Chewbacca had been arguing and that was unusual. Most of the disagreements had stemmed from whose fault the Falcon's hyperdrive problems were and the fact that they had been unable to raise anyone from the Alliance on the comm.

Han and Mara stood glaring at one another for a long moment before she ducked her head with a sigh.

"I'm sorry, Han. I didn't mean…"

Han immediately felt guilt flood his senses and that was not an emotion he was familiar, or comfortable, with. But Mara was one of the most important people in the galaxy to him and he realized that he might have gone a little too far.

"Look, Mara, I know things have been a little tense. I shouldn't have teased you," Han said, a little gruffly. He was not a man who apologized easily.

"You're right, you shouldn't have." Han resumed his angry glare. "But you were beating me," she offered as a truce.

His glare melted into his trademark lopsided smile. "I was, wasn't I?"

"All right, all right, there's no need to rub it in. Unless you want to start up that argument again?" Mara muttered.

Han raised his hands in a conciliatory gesture. "Nah, I think you've learned your lesson."

Mara gave an exasperated groan. "You just can't quit, can you?"

"It's part of my charm."

Mara decided she'd really better let it drop at that or they would get angry with one another again. They sat back down at the dejarik table, neither feeling the need to speak for a moment. But Han had never been able to stand silence for long.

"Wonder how Luke and Wedge are doing?"

"Ah, well, I don't know about Wedge, but I imagine Luke is pretty busy right about now," Mara said, a little nervously. She hadn't yet found the words to tell Han about Luke's trip to Dagobah, but she guessed now was as good a time as any.

"What are you talking about? Why would he be any busier than Wedge?"

"Um, he didn't exactly go to the rendezvous with the rest of the fleet."

Han remained amazingly calm. "He didn't. And just where did he go?"

"He went to Dagobah to finish his Jedi training."

"He what?!" Han exploded. "What is the kid thinking!? Doesn't he realize there's a huge price on his head? Doesn't he know what the Imps will do to him if they catch him alone? And what's with this Jedi garbage anyway? It's all a bunch of mumbo-jumbo and nonsense. There ain't no such thing as the Force and Luke Skywalker ain't no Jedi!"

"Han! How can you say that? You know how important this is to him. It's his legacy. His father and General Kenobi--"

"Kenobi! That old fossil? He was the one responsible for putting those stupid dreams in the kid's head to begin with!" He paused in his rant as he realized something. "You knew about this before we left Hoth. And you didn't say anything to stop him."

"No, I did not. As a matter of fact, I gave him my support and encouragement," Mara said vehemently.

"How could you do that? Are you touched in the head, too?" Han demanded.

Mara's eyes blazed with righteous indignation as she stood and wagged her finger in Han's face.

"You listen to me, Solo, and you listen good! The Jedi and the Force are real and that is who Luke Skywalker is! If you can't see that, then you don't know him very well, after all. We have known all along that there's something special about him. Well, the Force is part of what that something is. And for him to be able to complete his training is not only important to Luke, it could be vital for the Alliance, as well. If you're his friend, you will support him in this just like I am."

She took a deep breath and sat back down in her chair, feeling a little drained after that outburst. Han looked at her incredulously.

"You really believe that?"

"I do."

"Huh. Well, I guess I could have spoken a tad hastily…" He squirmed under Mara's knowing glance. "So he told you about this before he left?"

Mara's cheeks suddenly flushed and she nodded. Han's gaze narrowed as he caught the blush.

"Did…anything else happen that day, Jade?" Han asked, knowingly.

Mara mumbled something and Han said, "Sorry, I didn't catch that?"

"I said, he kissed me!" Mara said, blushing furiously.

"Really? How…interesting!" Han said with an infuriatingly smug smile. "Tell me, did you kiss him, or did he kiss you, or was it kind of a mutual thing?"

"What in the stars does that matter?" Mara asked in confusion.

"Ah, no reason, no reason!" Han said quickly. He sat back down and looked at her intently. "So?"

"So what?" she asked.

"So how was it?"

"Han!" she shouted indignantly. "That's none of your business!"

He just continued to look at her, his brow slowly arching. She blushed again.

"It was…amazing," she whispered.

To her embarrassment, Han burst out laughing. "You sure can't have kissed many guys, Jade! The kid? Amazing? He's probably as innocent as you are!"

His laughter abruptly ended in a howl of pain as the toe of her boot made sharp contact with his shin. She was glaring at him as fiercely as he was glaring back.

"You big, dumb nerf!" she shouted before stomping off to her cabin.

"Women!" Han muttered, rubbing his sore leg. But then he had to chuckle. "Kid, you have no idea what you're getting into."

************************************

Arica had never killed anyone without orders from her Master before. At the moment, however, she was almost prepared to commit mass homicide. She had made it to the rendezvous point safely, not an easy task when Vader's troops didn't know she was undercover and were trying to kill her just as they were trying to kill the rebels.

But she had managed to elude them and join this Alliance--she couldn't help sneering at the lofty title they gave themselves--at the designated place and time. The only problem was, Skywalker had not.

Not only was he absent, Solo, Jade and the Wookiee had failed to show as well. And the rebels had no clue where the four of them might be! She wondered how this miserable band of outlaws had managed to escape Lord Vader for as long as they had--they were utterly incompetent.

Arica prided herself on her courage, but she was near to feeling real fear at the thought of her Master's reaction to this bit of news. Unfortunately, she could not contact him. She had to await his call to her and in the meantime, her anxiety was only increasing.

She was pacing back and forth in front of her ship when she spied that pilot that was always hanging around with the four missing rebels. What was his name? Antilles!

"Antilles!" she called to him.

Wedge had been heading towards his assigned quarters on Home One, having just landed from a reconnaissance mission. He was exhausted and for a moment, he couldn't place the woman who'd just hailed him. What was her name? Arica, that was it.

He paused as he waited for her to reach him, watching her walk towards him with a small frown on his face. She stopped a few feet away from him and he almost smiled as he realized she seemed nervous. He didn't know her very well at all, but that was not something he would have expected from someone with her aura of self-assurance.

"Hi," she smiled at him. "Arica Alie, I'm not sure if you remember--"

"I remember you. I was one of the pilots in the squadron that rescued you from those TIEs when you first joined us."

The word 'rescued' made her bristle, but she was far too well-trained to show it. "Right. Listen, I was just wondering if you'd heard anything from Skywalker or Solo."

Wedge's face immediately went blank. That damned over- protectiveness rearing its head again, Arica thought to herself.

"Why would that matter to you?"

"I suppose it doesn't, not really. It's just that Skywalker has been one of the few members of the Alliance who's truly accepted me and I…well, I kind of appreciate that, I guess."

Wedge's eyes narrowed as he continued to study her, as though he were trying to read her. Good luck, flyboy, better men than you have tried, she smirked inwardly.

He heaved a sigh, and his gaze dropped to the floor. "No, we haven't heard anything from Luke, Han or Mara."

"Oh. Is this sort of thing…normal for them?"

Wedge hesitated, eyeing her again, and for a long moment, she thought he wasn't going to answer her.

"Maybe for Han. He occasionally took off for smuggling jobs when he first joined us, but definitely not for Luke or Mara. They're utterly devoted to our cause."

There was an awkward pause between them. Wedge was still looking at her with suspicion in his eyes when Arica felt the niggling at the base of her skull that signified her Master was about to contact her.

"Thanks for the update, Antilles. I'll speak with you later," she said and turned sharply to head back to the Windrider.

She could feel his stare burning between her shoulder blades but she pushed all thoughts of Wedge Antilles determinedly out of her mind as she walked up the ramp to her ship, closing it behind her.

She sat down on the floor of her cabin with her legs crossed and relaxed her body and mind, waiting for her Master's voice.

*My Hand. I would expect that you are on your way to Coruscant right now with young Skywalker.* The angry, sarcastic tone of his voice in her head told her he knew very well that she was not.

*Master, I have run into a slight obstacle. Lord Vader showed up at Hoth and the rebels fled. They were to regroup at a previously designated rendezvous point. Most of the rebels arrived here within a standard week. It's now been three weeks and Skywalker has yet to appear. Is it possible that Lord Vader was able to apprehend him?*

She was holding her breath as she awaited his reply to her disappointing report. She had never failed him before and now she felt unworthy to even call herself his Hand any longer. There was a long silence and for a moment, Arica feared he had cut her off and that he was going to abandon her here for her miserable failure.

*That is indeed unwelcome news, my Hand. But no, I am certain that Lord Vader does not have him. I have enough spies watching him on the Executor that he would be unable to keep that from me.*

*Is it possible that Skywalker was killed in the escape from Hoth, Master?*

*No, I would have felt his death.* She could hear the irritation in his tone and feared what his final reaction to this news was going to be.

*I do not have to tell you that I am supremely disappointed with your progress on this matter, my dear. I would have thought this would be a simple task for one such as yourself.*

*I…apologize, Master. What would you have me do?*

*I believe young Skywalker will show up at the rebel rendezvous sooner or later. I have foreseen you bringing him to me. You will ensure that this will happen, Hand.*

*I swear it will be done, Master.* She felt a tiny surge of relief flow through her body. He still trusted in her.

*But to make certain that you realize that such sloppy work will not be acceptable in the future…*

Arica had only a second to tense, as she well understood what those words meant. Punishment. A wave of agonizing pain flowed over their connection and through every nerve ending in her body. She cried out and toppled over to the floor of her cabin, her entire body feeling as if it were on fire.

It probably only lasted seconds, but it felt much longer and afterwards she lay there shaking, gasping for breath. She pressed her face to the cool metal of the floor, seeking relief from the searing heat flooding her senses.

*This is your last chance, Leia. Do not fail me again.*

*I…won't…Master. I swear.* He cut the connection and it was a long time before she found the strength to stand. His use of her true name was another indicator that he was deadly serious. If she didn't bring Skywalker to him soon, she would pay for her failure with her life.

***********************************************

Luke lay on the bedroll that Master Yoda had provided for him in the front room of his small hut. It was certainly a good thing that Luke was not Han's height or he might not have been able to fit into the tiny space. He stared at the ceiling, feeling the disappointment and the frustration welling up inside him.

He couldn't sleep because his mind kept going over and over the events in the Dark Side cave earlier that day. He felt like a miserable failure and right now he was certain that Master Yoda was seriously regretting taking him on as an apprentice.

He rolled over to his side with a deep sigh. What had his vision meant? It had disturbed him greatly, seeing his own face in Darth Vader's mask. Was it an omen? Was he doomed to follow the Sith Lord's path of evil and destruction? And why would Master Yoda not discuss it with him?

The Jedi training was arduous and exhausting, but sometimes he felt better equipped to deal with the physical aspects of it more than the mental ones. Luke had always led an active, physical life, from his time on the moisture farm to his adventures with the Alliance. That part of the training came almost ridiculously easy.

The mental part on the other hand… He realized his own character flaws. He knew that he was impatient and too quick to anger. What he didn't know was how to not be those things. And sometimes it seemed that Master Yoda was keeping more things from him than he was showing to him.

His thoughts roamed to Mara. Force, how he missed her. He replayed that kiss every night in his dreams. He ached to see her again and hoped that it wouldn't be much longer before he could. He wondered despondently just how long Jedi training was supposed to take. Somehow, he had the feeling that he'd barely scratched the surface of the knowledge that Ben and Yoda seemed to take for granted. What if this took years? How could he possibly justify being away from the Alliance--and Mara, a sneaky voice in the back of his mind whispered--for that long?

He closed his eyes and tried to will himself to sleep, making a silent vow that, come the morning, he would have a renewed focus. He would give the Jedi training everything he had and then some. And hopefully, he would be able to see Mara again soon. Perhaps share more than a simple kiss with her. There was a tiny smile playing across his lips as he finally drifted off to sleep.

The first nightmare came that night.