"Wow."

Han Solo's jaw had dropped so far that the word actually sounded like "Uuowh," but Leia knew exactly to what he was referring. She shifted her stance a little and smiled at him flirtatiously. The smile merely made his eyes bug out of his head and his jaw to drop another two centimeters.

Clearly dazed, Solo tried to collect his senses. "Uh, wha – "

"Doesn't she look amazing?" A hand came up to Leia's shoulder and squeezed gently. "I swear she looks exactly like Nemdek Ilucon. Don't you think so?"

"Uh, yeah, um, right." The captain seemed to be having difficulties connecting his brain to his mouth. Then again, that connection has never worked before, anyway. Leia was fully enjoying the effect she was having on him. And while feeling decidedly ridiculous and idiotic, she also reveled in the sense of being gawked. Princesses don't get lustful stares. We get marriage proposals from uninteresting princes. And Leia couldn't hide from herself that she found the change exhilarating.

Leia was completely transformed. Following the interview incident, Rimmas Stribur had invited herself into Leia's cabin again, this time when Leia was actually accomplishing something productive. She was going through an assortment of clothes she had brought, trying to create a safe disguise in which to leave the Falcon. She needed a persona that was different from her own, but not absolutely ridiculous.

And while she was rummaging through dresses and Alliance uniforms, Stribur had brought out her own bag.

"Lemme try to make you look your age, Princess," she had said.

Is this really what I would be wearing if I didn't have fatigues? She was modestly dressed, which Leia found incongruous to the whole ensemble, but Stribur had waved off her objections.

"You wouldn't feel comfortable anyways. Plus it's sometimes fun to let their imaginations run wild. " Stribur had winked, and Leia had blushed. Imaginations?

And so Leia was dressed in black. A lacy fitted top that ran down the lengths of her arms to hang over her hands in a slightly flared sleeve and a neckline that stayed protectively, but not unstylishly, close to her neck. A pair of tight pants, holding close to the skin at her thighs that flared out slightly just below the knee and ended over a pair of stiletto-heeled boots. At least I'm trained to handle high-heeled shoes. She felt covered and safe, but mysteriously alluring.

The rest made her feel decidedly uncomfortable. Her skin had been left at it's natural color, but sharp contrasting powder had darkened up her cheekbones almost to the point of comic effect. Her eyes had received the most attention they ever had. Dark eyeliner had been applied both on her top and bottom lids and eye shadow had been used in plethora quantities of brown and gold and red.

Stribur called her eyes sultry. Leia had called them spice-user dark.

And the last part – the last part had been the most difficult to do because it had been permanent. Or relatively. Vibrant red streaks, beginning at her part and fading out at her shoulders, rained down and contrasted insanely with her dark hair. Stribur had left it down, but curled, so that it looked like a living thing freed. The color wouldn't ever wash out, Stribur had hesitatingly warned, but a similar color to her hair could be found. After re-dying it, the red wouldn't show up at all.

So Leia Organa, Princess of the lost world Alderaan, respectable and loyal Senator and High Council member of the Rebel Alliance stepped out into the hold of the iFalcon/i to the startled expression of Han Solo. It was worth every uncomfortable element of her disguise.

"Captain. We're landing?" She almost laughed at his expression.

"Yeah. Right." With one more astonished look, Solo turned and walked toward the cockpit, muttering to himself.

Stribur glanced at Leia. "Wow. A speechless Han Solo."

Leia looked back at her curiously.

"You've done the impossible, Princess."

Leia laughed quietly. "You did it, Lieutenant."

Stribur shook her head and reciprocated Leia's laughter. "No, your Highness, that was all you."

Idiot! Leia shifted her image reflector to the left as she walked, pretending to be checking her hair as she watched the man actively trailing her. What are you, some Intel rookie? Chastising herself while trying to shake the man behind her, Leia ducked into a market stall, hoping to lose him in a crowd.

Pushing past a wall of tall, muscular women – I didn't know human females were able to reach that height – she took a fast right and busied herself with a pair of wildly obnoxious red earrings as she eyed the entrance out of her peripheral vision. Yep, there he comes. Turning slowly, earrings in hand, Leia motioned for the nearest salesrep and inquired as to the price, keeping a close eye on the entrance.

"Ten hun – you! What are you doing?"

Knowing exactly to whom the rep was referring, Leia launched herself into the back room of the stall. Seeing an escape, she rushed the back door and began to mingle into the crowd. She glanced down at her hands and scowled at the annoying red earrings.Great. Traitorous war criminal, about two thousand counts of first degree murder, and now petty theft. What other illegal activities can I add to the list today?

She sighed.

It had already been a very trying day. Leaving the Falcon, a set of Stridur's blinding clothes folded away in the knapsack at her shoulder, Leia had felt decently comfortable with the upcoming events. She was to arrive at the rendezvous within the hour, negotiate with the Corporate Board of GansCorp the rest of today and spilling into tomorrow, and leave on the Falcon when she was finished, approved arms agreement or no. Han and Luke were on comm support there, prepared to lift off the minute she showed up on the platform.

That's obviously not going to happen.

She first had seen her trail about ten minutes ago, leaning against a wall in front of her and then conspicuously leaving it after she'd gone past. She'd been trying to lose him since, and had been incapable of it. And I'm not out of place. She was dressed much the same way as many of her companions in the marketplace, presumably here to register for the University. So this is what I would be wearing if I wasn't in fatigues. She concluded that her pursuit had been waiting for her, had known of her mission before she had arrived onworld. That meant that the mission was compromised. That meant she possibly was already identified. That meant they probably had the Falcon under surveillance.

That meant she had nowhere to go.

Rushing through the marketplace, she ran towards the one other area, besides the marketplace, that she could find a large group of people her own age. A place to hide.

Assuming that he's not stupid, he won't make a scene.

Leia held onto this logic, hoping she wasn't already identified as herself and put immediately on the death-hit list. He hasn't shot me yet. Guess that's a good sign. She sighed and subconsciously swept her right hand against her thigh, where her blaster usually sat. Idiotic move. No blaster. No way to defend –

"Ow!" She turned sharply at the jab at her left elbow.

"Oh, damn. I'm so sorry, I'm, uh, gods, sorry. Are you hurt?" The nauseating girl in purple and orange flashed a hand onto Leia's left shoulder. Leia shook her head and turned away from the sight, afraid that she'd begin to laugh in the girl's face.

Can't do that. Can't break cover.

Leia glanced around herself and decided that this was perhaps not the best plan she'd ever had. She had decided that safety in numbers, no matter how revoltingly dressed, was appealing in order to slip away from unwanted trailers. She had quickly followed a large group of girls to the University and their registration lines, watching her pursuit avidly as he continued to follow her. Hoping to blend into the young crowd of incoming students at registration, Leia had ducked into the center line and pretended not to act too awkward.

Problem is, pursuit is not as dumb as I had hoped.

He was mingling in the back, watching her as she stood in line. She took that to mean he hadn't actually discovered her identity, was waiting for her to back down and show herself as not a student. Which probably meant that the Falcon was also being watched but had not been identified. Leia felt beads of sweat accumulate on her forehead and glanced around the pool of young people surrounding her. Great. This is just wonderful. Feeling an idea formulate, Leia grabbed her comlink and switched it to the Falcon's frequency.

"Mum? Dad, are you there? I''m'a in line at school." And if you know what's good for you, you'll check the location on the comm.

"Copy, Worship. We've got you – "

Leia forced a girlish giggle and fought her annoyance at her callsign. "Jace, stop it! Get my parents on. Are they there?"

Leia almost sighed in frustration when Han's voice returned a few moments later. "Negative, Worship. What the hell are you – "

"Jace, I got somethin' important to tell 'em. Could ya give Mum a message for me? Tell 'er that I saw your neighbors looking in the house again, eh?" She paused for a second, heard shuffling and a slight raising of voices over the other end. "Hey, Jace! Guess who I just saw? Jemmy, from Olsen Twelve. Remember her? She's the one that went to Nivay a year ago, broke her arm in the fight with her boyfriend? 'member 'er?"

Yavin. Nivay. Think Yavin, Han. She paused, hoping – praying – Han would understand what she was trying to tell him. Leia held her breath as more deliberation was audible.

"Hey, ah Rims, you see anyone else there? I'd kinda like to know who ya gonna be with over there for awhile."

Rims. Rimmas. Stribur's first name. And he wants me to stay put for the time being. "Nah, no one else. Just Jemmy."

"Cool. Look, I'll look out for anyone else over here, a'right? Quiet, seems like, huh?"

"Lotta people 'round 'ere, Jace. I would keep an eye out, 'kay?"

She felt extreme relief when he answered immediately, obviously catching on to her drift. "Yeah, okay. Hey, call me when ya're in ya room, hey? Lemme know how the roommate is? If ya see Jemmy anytime soon?"

Call when I'm away from the trail, if I see anyone else. "You betcha. I'll see ya later, Jace."

She heard a slight waver enter Han's voice. "Hey'a, Rims, don't eat a buncha crap down there, eh? Try to take care'a yourself?"

Interesting. Are you concerned, Captain? "Yep. See'ya."

"See'ya."

She broke the connection and pocketed the comm. So much for a short weekend here.

And Reviewers shall be praised henceforth forever and ever and ever . . .

KR