DISCLAIMER: GEORGE LUCAS WE LOVE YOU! Not that that does anything for me, I don't own the characters but could rant on and on about how I wished I did but I'll stop so you can keep your sanity you're welcome.

Alright... the twins are six when we peek in on them here...still slaves, I see...

As always, enjoy!


Sound of Footsteps

SIX YEARS LATER

"Kai! For the last time, stop!" came an exasperated woman's voice.

"But S'ratha..." a female child-like voice, still oddly mature for her age, but childlike all the same, came and met her ears.

"That is quite enough, my young lady. Down!"

Obeying the older healer for once, the young girl jumped down from the roof, quickly followed by her twin, Ele. Kai stood up proudly and smiled, a mischevious glint in her eyes.

"How many times have I told you not to jump like that? You could break a leg, fall...anything could happen, foolish child!" S'ratha knew very well that neither of them had ever fallen or broken anything in their life, nor would they fall. They always seemed to have their acts put together or be at the right place at the right time. How, she knew not, only that it happened. Quite often. Once, she had even gotten her implant almost removed... for herself and Ele.

Watching the two march off to the slave quarters hand in hand, she recalled the day they were born. The woman's agonzing screams and shrieks of pain still haunted her, as did the eerie silence of the twins who were still that close.


"Bring me the girls," a massive voice issued. This voice belonged to the huge Hutt, Hajja. He was a cross one, not only large but with an even larger temper. Surrounded by scantily clad girls of many races, he turned his attention to their attire and lack thereof. A few moments later, Kai and Ele, showing no fear, were brought into his presence.

Without a word, the girls were communicating. In their minds, they could hear each other. In their thoughts, they could sense that which was unknown.

"You have been incredibly persistent in your efforts lately, girls... Here is your... reward." Motioning a man forward, a laser whip snaked out, brightening the smoky and dark room. The whip-wielder expected screams, as was usual, particularly from youngsters, but these children offered no entertainment at all. They did not cry out, simply faced their punishment. To his amazement, whenever he tried to whip either of them, one of the girls would always dive, take the blow, saving her sister from this. Finally, the meaty Hutt gave the whip-master what he wanted. With a hand signal, he flipped the whip on lethal. Enough of these blows could-and would-kill.

It should only take about three times to kill a child, so I'll stop at two.. he paused. He had children at home.

The girl sitting behind her sister, protected, said quietly, yet at the same time loudly for everyone to hear them,

"You do not want to do this. We can go home now."

To no one's amazement, since they were all captivated by the spell put over them with the girl's voice, Hajja the Hutt responded saying, "I don't want to kill you. Go home."

With that, they were literally thrown out. Kai could barely walk, and was bleeding from sustained exposure to lasers, particularly a weaponized form.


"Ow... ow... it hurts..." Kai was moaning, now well past mere pain and bleeding into the point where she could no longer clearly think, delirious. Ele sat by her side, holding her hand, as her body temperature dropped and heart rate increased with each passing moment. She was going into a laser-induced form of shock. S'ratha tried her best, but then turned to Ele.

"I can help her no longer. Do as you deem fit," she ordered the young slave. Nodding, Ele placed her hands on her twin, carefully gathering the energy from within her...


Hours later, Ele was exhausted, totally drained of energy. The healing had taken its toll. But in return, Kai was sleeping instead of being in her near-comatose state. Anything to make her better. The tired girl slumped to the cold stone floor, falling to her knees and then collapsing forward, at the same time sensing a small disturbance as she closed her eyes.

In her dreams, she saw things through a distorted haze--the future perhaps?

A woman dragged herself and Kai through the corridors, yelling something.

A man in woolen robes stood before a Hutt.

Twin beams of light reflected blaster fire.

Two small starships took off into flight.

Sadness.

Joy.

Love.

Attachment.

Adoration.

Wonder.

And finally... returned love, the feel of being cared for in return...


Rough hands grabbed a shook the little girl on the floor awake.

"Huh?" the child asked, in protest, when her eyes at last fluttered open.

"Up! Now, slave. You're going to your new home," ordered the man, now backed by another, the one with the whip from before. With only a glance she saw her sister, firmly held in yet another man's grasp. She still had a needle protruding from her arm; apparently she had been drugged. The man who had awoken her had sandy blond hair and cruel steel-grey eyes, much like herself and her sister.

"Where? Is S'ratha coming?" she asked, quick to adapt to the situation at hand.

"Just come on!" yelled the man, exasperated. Grabbing her again, he threw her over his shoulder.

"S'ratha! S'ratha!" Ele's urgent cries filled the air.

Nearby, the old woman heard the yells and cries; knew what was going on. With a sigh of sadness she restrained herself from running to them. The more they resisted, the harder Jabba the Hutt would be on the poor girls.

Whispering, she let out a pent-up breath as the screams began to recede.

"I'm sorry, Marea... so sorry..." with that tears began to flow freely, droplets hitting the dry and dusty surface of the floor as sobs racked S'ratha's body.


Yeah. I'm mean.

Sorry I have to stop here, but I did promise a quick update. And so... ta da!

Here you are. Enjoy it... there may not be another chapter posted for about a week.

Please. Hang in there.

And we've arranged it so Yavie writes the odd-number chapters, I (Anij) write the even number chapters.

And...guess what... Qui-Gon comes next chapter! Yay!

So we'll be back soon. This wasn't the greatest chapter ever, but it serves as a turning point in the girls' lives.

-Anij Jinn