TATOOINE
It didn't take long for the group to reach Mos Eisley, not that they had planned on it too much. But they arrived nevertheless. Luke was now controlling the speeder and Rene sat in the back with the droids, QT silently comforting her with her hardships. He was a therapy droid after all, he was there to comfort her, to assist her and Rene was there to. . .order him around. She thought back at the times she had caused Beru problems and felt the guilt weigh down on her chest. After all, this was all her fault.
She narrowed her eyes as they were stopped by a group of troopers, one stepping up with his orange pauldron upon his shoulder. He was their captain. Was it likely that he was the one that called the destruction of Beru and Owen's lives?
It seemed of no bother to the desert trooper as he stepped up, his voice static like yet smooth as it came out. "How long have you had these droids?" He demanded.
"About three or four seasons." Luke answered, his voice a little uneasy. He wasn't made for this, for espionage. Luke was one to head things straight on but it wasn't like he was all too brave. He was. . .soft? Rene wasn't sure how to describe her brother except not Rebel material nor Imperial.
"They're for sale if you want them," Obi-Wan spoke, eyes twinkling with mischievousness.
"Let me see your identification."
Luke let out a shaky laugh, fumbling through his belt to try and find the ID while Rene and Obi-Wan remained calm. Rene raised a brow, wanting to see what Obi-Wan could possibly offer to this situation. "You don't need to see his identification." He waved a hand and try to keep the smug smirk off his face as the trooper straightened.
"We don't need to see his identification."
"These are not the droids you're looking for."
"These aren't the droids we're looking for."
"He can go about his business."
"You can go about your business."
Obi-wan looked to Luke, who sat with his jaw practically hanging open. The ex-Jedi gave a little smirk of his own and waved a hand forward. "Move along."
As if still caught in his trance, the trooper repeated. "Move along."
Luke moved the speeder forward, shaking his head to rid himself of his shock. Rene glared over her shoulder at the trooper, her fingers pinched on her lap and smirking when she heard the trooper give a choke. They rounded a corner and the Rebel spy could no longer feel his presence, or at least one she could rid of. She turned her attention to Obi-Wan with narrowed eyes.
"You're getting very cocky for a man who's been in hiding for almost 20 years." Rene pointed out sharply.
He gave her a look, nodding. "I suppose so."
They arrive at the cantina not many moments later, everyone filing out swiftly. Rene assisted the droids. She ignored the Jawa that was looking at their speeder with heightened interest, running their little hand over the hood of it, murmuring in awe of the almost perfect condition of the speeder. Rene's lips twitched, shaking her head.
Luke joined Obi-Wan's side, staring at him with awe. "I can't understand how we got by those troopers." He blew air out of his mouth. "I thought we were dead."
"The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded." Obi-Wan answered, fondly gazing at the young man.
"Yeah, then it can get you in trouble with the well-minded." Rene said, squeezing between them. Her hands on her hips and eyes scrutinizing her uncle. Rene looked to Luke, pointing a finger at him with a warning glint in her eyes. "You have to be very trained for that sort of thing. Have to tell when it's the right time and the wrong time."
"Yes, Rene." Luke nodded, mumbling.
She then sighed and moved to the entrance of the cantina, throwing the door open as if she owned the place.
Obi-Wan grinned. "Much like your father, very. . .parental." He stated fondly.
"That's what Aunt Beru always said, Owen had a hard time with it for some reason." Luke said, his fingers rubbing together in a nervous way. Owen had many troubles with his nephew and niece. Distantly, Luke could remember him loudly declaring that Rene wasn't his child and was just doing their father a favor by taking care of her. Luke always knew it was different for him; he was only a baby when delivered to Beru and Owen, he was molded into their own son while Rene remained Anakin Skywalker's child. Guilt took his gut, causing a shy smile to form as he and Obi-Wan entered the cantina themselves.
Obi-Wan was quick to survey the room, quickly catching sight of Rene at the bar counter, a Wookiee and a tall woman speaking to her with interest in their eyes. Smugglers for sure. He jumped from the steps and joined her.
Luke though, was taking in the sights. He had never been in a cantina before. It was never really of any interest to him and. . .Biggs had managed to get him to try something called Grog. It was horrible and made a bitter taste go through his body. Luke wasn't exactly an enthusiast of alcohol, of any kind. He gazed around, thankful to quickly find both Rene and Obi-Wan at the counter.
A voice cut Luke's adventure off quickly. "We don't serve their kind here!"
The music stopped and all eyes turned to the boy who turned a stop light red, Luke spared the three droids behind him a glance. 3PO seemed rather uncomfortable while R2 and QT just beeped with offense. Luke turned back to the bartender, his voice nothing more than an innocent squeak. "What?"
"Your droids," The Bartender proceeded to elaborate. "They'll have to wait outside. We don't want them here."
Luke blinked, begging mentally for Obi-Wan and Rene to give him a hand. Rene gave a nod then turned her attention back to the Wookiee and the woman, gesturing toward Luke and causing the woman to seemingly snort. Luke sighed and gave a sympathetic smile to the droids. "Listen, why don't you wait out by the speeder? We don't want any trouble."
3PO was the quickest and only one to agree, shuffling out with R2 and QT. The cantina went back to normal with a burst of music and the bar-goers went back to their drinks and conversations. Luke's chest deflated in a relief filled way. All his concerns about that issue are gone but now he was just nervous he would do something wrong here. That he'd upset the wrong person.
Luke made his way to the bar island and waited a long moment before reaching over, tugging on the bartender's tunic. He turned, eyes dark with irritation due to Luke's constant bother. The farmboy sheepishly pointed toward the only thing that didn't look like alcohol, blue milk. The bartender shrugged, getting him a glass and then moving away in hopes that he would leave him alone.
Luke's attention went to the area around him, getting an eye full of the Wookiee that spoke with Rene and Obi-Wan. He had few Wookiees in his time, but never this close. He had heard from travellers that they were great companions, very loyal. But of course, he wasn't sure if those were the type of people to hold them as slaves. A concept that made Luke shudder.
It was odd to think that Vader had came to Tatooine many years ago, went to Jabba the Hutt himself and demanded that slavery be abolished in the lands. It was a stalemate for a long time until they reached an agreement, Jabba could keep his slaves as long as he ensured that everyone else would be released. Luke had heard about the terrible things the slaves went through, he even heard that they had special chips implanted and if they dared to escape, they'd be blown to pieces. It made Luke thankful that Owen and Beru put up with him.
Luke is jolted out of his thoughts by a hand pushing him, he looked over with wide eyes in confusion. Meeting the gaze, or gazes, of a multiple eyed creature. "Negola dewaghi wooldugger?!" They exclaimed, a bitter look on their face.
Unfortunately, Luke had never learned this language, sure, he knew some Huttese but it wasn't like he was sitting in his room learning every language under the suns. He respectfully turned back to his drink, trying to bring himself out of the situation. He needed to prove to Obi-Wan and Rene that he could take care of himself and, more so, himself.
It was quickly demolished by another creature that seemed to have suffered some type of trauma. "He doesn't like you." He growled, nodding back at his friend.
Luke isn't sure how to react, he mumbled. "I'm sorry."
"I don't like you either." The humanoid man hissed. "You just watch yourself. We're wanted men. I have the death sentence in twelve systems."
Just as Luke was going to retort, Rene slipped in front of him, gripping the man's tunic in her hand. The farm boy looked down at her other hand, it was itching toward the lightsaber tucked under her own tunic. But quickly went to rest against the blaster on her thigh holster.
"Then I ought to cash out that bounty then, hm?" Rene retorted, she pushed the man back, eyes dark and narrowed. "Back off, we don't want trouble."
The humanoid man chortled darkly, sizing her up. "What are you going to do girl?"
"Girl." Rene murmured to herself.
Everything happened in a blink of an eye, Luke was pushed back into Obi-Wan while Rene threw a punch at the man's face. His friend that didn't know Basic stepped up and Rene pulled out her blaster with agility no man could match. Just as the bartender demanded that no blasters be used, Rene shot the man in the leg then in the arm. Both of them lie on the ground pathetically while she placed her blaster back in its place.
Luke stared at her in shock as she calmly turned to the bartender who pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sorry about the mess." The cantina, once again, returned to its normalcy. Rene placed a hand on his shoulder causing Luke to frown, her face now held nothing but concern. "You okay?"
"Yeah, thanks." He nodded, lips twitching up.
"Luke," Obi-Wan said, eyes lingered on Rene as if saying 'we'll speak about this later'. He gestured toward the Wookiee and the woman. "This is Amilie Solo and Chewbacca. First and second-mate on the Millenium Falcon."
"Nice to meet you, kid." Amilie smiled sultry. Her hand gripped Luke's shaking it firmly, his face heated up and Chewbacca gave a roar causing the pilot to laugh, retracting her hand. The three starred on in confusion and Amilie elaborated, eyes shifting to Rene. "He said you have great reflexes for a farm girl."
"Farm girl?" Rene repeated with a frown. "How do you know?"
Amilie leaned against Chewbacca, arms crossed as she pointed at her appearance. "The clothes say it all. Too tight for a bounty hunter, which you claimed to be." She didn't leave much room for argument as she patted her friend's chest softly. "I'll get Han while you lead our gracious benefactors to a table."
Chewbacca gave a soft roar of agreement. Amilie headed for a booth while Chewbacca led the trio to a table, he rolled out a long and sarcastic arm to the chairs and they took them. The Wookiee sat across from Obi-Wan and it wasn't very long before Amilie Solo and a man with similar features, the one Rene assumed to be Han. He slipped in easily into the booth side of the table, eyes dancing from Luke and Obi-Wan then rested with interest on Rene. She kept her gaze cool and uninterested but she would admit to herself that Han had some looks going for him.
"Han Solo. I'm the captain of the Millennium Falcon." He introduced himself, flashing a zealous smirk at Rene. "Ami here tells me you're looking for passage to the Alderaan system."
"Yes, indeed. If it's a fast ship."
Obi-Wan's words caused Han's face to scrunch his nose like he smelt something spoiled. "'Fast ship'?" He looked at Amillie who held an amused smile, her fingers playing with cracks in the wooden table. "You've never heard of the Millennium Falcon?"
Obi-Wan's eyebrow raised coldly. "Should I have?"
Han's jaw muscles clenched and he leaned forward. "It's the ship that made the Kessel run in less than twelve parasecs!"
Rene let out a scoff, gaining his eyes again except they weren't filled with smugness this time. "Twelve parsecs? That's impossible, no one can do the Kessel Run in twelve parsecs."
"Well, I did, sweetheart." Han shot back, jabbing a thumb at himself. "Look, I've outrun Imperial starships, not the local bulk-cruisers, mind you. I'm talking about the big Corellian ships now. She's fast enough for you, old man. What's the cargo?"
Obi-Wan seemed satisfied enough. "Only passengers. Myself, the boy, her, three droids, and no questions asked." He said the last slowly and with so much intensity that Rene herself glanced at him.
"What kind of trouble could a bunch of farmers get into?" Amilie inquired, her interest peaked. "Imperial problems?"
"Along those lines, yes." The ex-Jedi answered.
"Well, that's the trick, isn't it?" Han mused. "And it's going to cost you something extra. Ten thousand in advance."
Rene's eyes widened and jaw dropped but Luke was the only one to voice his disagreement to the estimation. "Ten thousand? We could almost buy our own ship for that!" He exclaimed, looking to Obi-Wan as if to ask him to reconsider.
Han's eyebrows raised. "But who's gonna fly it, kid? You?"
Luke's eyes darkened and he scoffed. "You bet I could. I'm not such a bad pilot myself!" He went to stand up, shaking his head. "We don't have to sit here and listen-"
"Luke," Obi-Wan tried.
"No, Luke's right. He could outfly this guy and we have our own ship." Rene pushed her chair back and stood, looking down at Obi-Wan. "We don't need this."
"Really? You have your own ship?" Han inquired.
Rene nodded, "That's right."
Han eyed her, leaning back in his chair. His hands came to rest behind his head and was clearly asking for the woman to size up his Corellian freighter. Amilie didn't seem amused by Han's actions but he still whispered something to her and then chuckled. "What kind is this ship of yours?" He asked.
"A light freighter, YT-2400." Rene answered, raising her chin in defiance. She hardly heard Luke's groan, they both knew that she was difficult and always stepped up to a challenge.
Han's eyebrows raised. "A YT-2400, I didn't expect to hear that one, sweetheart." Now, he was more interested and leaned forward again, resting his elbows on the table. "Where'd you get it?"
"A friend of a friend." Rene smirked, crossing her arms. "She's a strong one though, her name is the Outrider. She's got reinforced bulkhead frames double-armored plating. Plus dual lasers, which helps in a speedy getaway."
"Hmpfh. You do know your stuff." Han smiled in approval.
"What's so special about that?" Luke asked.
"There better than what he has. Although, Corellian ingenuity, I gotta give it to 'em. They know their stuff." Rene waved a hand, leaning against the back of her chair.
"You've got spunk. You single?" Han asked, raising a brow.
Rene narrowed her eyes. "Thankfully I'm not interested."
Luke rolled his eyes, looking quite disgusted at the events transpiring in front of him. "Can we negotiate prices?"
"Yes-"
"Ten thousand, no negotiations." Han cut Amile off causing her to roll her eyes.
Rene squinted at him. "That's a very specific price, Solo, got a bounty on your little head?"
Han frowned. "You a bounty hunter or something?" Rene could almost feel his hand itch towards the blaster on his thigh, yet she was impressed with the facade he put on- true Imperial work.
"No, I just know a good prince when I hear one and that's definitely a bounty price." Rene didn't have to guess what he might've gotten himself into, smugglers seemed to attract more attention then they had to, they were loud and cocky, surely nothing they needed right now when trying to sneak past the Empire. She wanted some type of reassurance that this guy was legit, so far his smirks and plays at sizing her up were doing more harm than good. Solo seemed like the type of guy that could charm the wits out of women but when it came to Rene, she wouldn't easily be charmed by the likes of him- he was a no good smuggler...maybe if they turned him in then they could afford to buy his own ship.
"So who's put it on your head? Jabba, I presume?" She continued to question him, seeing all the details right in front of her. They were being pursued by the Empire for having two droids while Solo and his two companions were being hunted by a band of bounty hunters, maybe even Boba Fett himself. Surely a great mixture to have right at the moment, something that wouldn't end up in a great catastrophe.
Han eyed her with suspicion, his chin tilted up defiantly. "You would presume right.." he let out a gruff and tapped Chewbacca's arm which triggered the Wookiee to stand. "Look, seeing as you all can't seem to agree on a price- we'll be taking our business elsewhere."
It was of little ache to Rene as she leaned back, crossing her arms and glaring at the man in front of her. Although he seemed amused by her mood. Luke let out a huff while Obi-Wan took his chance to speak: "We can give you 2,000 now, plus 15,000 when we reach Alderaan."
Solo stiffened while Amilie raised one of her barely visible eyebrows, glancing towards her older brother then repeated what Obi-Wan said in a breath: "17,000?" Meanwhile, Luke blinked- looking between Obi-Wan and Rene, silently questioning where they had 17,000 credits lying around. Rene met his eyes and gave a subtle shake of her head, a distant memory conjured up. "If you want to bargain, you have to give them something they can't resist."
Solo met Amilie's eyes and she gave a nod, rather obvious with her agreement to the deal while Chewbacca gave a small roar: "I'm not an idiot like you!" Something that made the corners of Rene's mouth twitch up which she hid behind her gloved hand. Han squinted at her before meeting the older man's eyes firmly. "Okay. You guys got yourself a ship. We'll leave as soon as you're ready. Docking bay 94."
Obi-Wan nodded while stroking his beard, "94." He repeated.
Amilie's attention seemingly went away and she raised an eyebrow, one of her fingers secretly pointing in the direction of the entrance where stormtroopers now occupied. "You've caught someone's eye." She turned back to the trio and gave a smile. "You ought to make your swift and timely exit."
"Right," Rene said stiffly, standing up and waiting for Luke to stand when she nodded to the back. "There's an exit back here, come on."
"Sweetheart, don't get into too much trouble without us." Han called with an easy-going grin, his shoulders rested on the top of the chair, sending her a wink. Rene didn't give him a glance back but Luke made sure to give him the sharpest glare he could muster, it must've not have been much because Han let out a chuckle. The group vanished just in time for the troopers to stop at the Solo table, Chewbacca gave them a little snarl while Han stared straight ahead and Ami picked at her hands. It wasn't long before they decided they were wasting their time and moved on, that's when Han jumped up and almost sent the table in front to the ground. "17,000! Those guys must really be desperate. This could really save our necks."
Ami glared at him and smacked him on the back of the head, making Han cry out quietly as she stood, brushing her overcoat off. "That's for making that woman uncomfortable." She explained before he could possibly whine out. She looked to Chewbacca and crooked a finger towards him. "We're going to go back to the ship and get her ready while you learn how to behave."
Ami gave her brother a lazy salute and left with Chewbacca while Han let out a huff, shaking his head. He rolled up his sleeves a bit and reached into his pocket to bring out the three credits when he felt a point press into his upper back, it didn't take an inspector to know it was a blaster- it was more of who was behind that blaster that worried the smuggler. Han let out a heavy sigh and called over his shoulder: "Can you at least let me pay for my drinks?"
"Take a seat, Solo," Han grimaced at the clickling voice, highly annoyed and done with the bounty hunters lately. Especially with the green Rodian, Greedo, the slimy bug was always looking for some reason to come after Han and this was his big opportunity. Han took a seat, bringing his leg to rest on the table top while Greedo kept his gun steady and on the taller man the whole time. "I'm going to assume you were taking a trip off world?"
"As a matter of fact, yes, I was. I was going to get the money Jabba wanted." Han answered in his usual relaxed matter, his one hand going to pick at the paint on the wall while the other unclasped his blaster from the holster.
"It's too late," Greedo snapped, sounding satisfied, "you should have paid him when you had the chance. Jabba's put a price on your family's head, so large that every bounty hunter in the galaxy will be looking for you. I'm lucky I found you first."
'Certainly not the first, just the first without Chewie around.' Han thought and sighed again. "Yeah, but this time I got the money."
"If you give it to me, I might forget I found you." Greedo bargained.
Han turned his attention back to the wall and picked at the chipped pain again. "I don't have it with me. Tell Jabba-"
Greedo cut him off, "Jabba's through with you. He has no time for smugglers who droid their shipments at the first sign of an Imperial cruiser."
"Even I get boarded sometimes." Han shot back, becoming more annoyed that his life was being reduced to a petty argument on how he could've been boarded. So what, he dropped some of that spice in the middle of space so he could safe his own skin! Han agreed to do these jobs 10 years ago but he never said he'd give his life for it. If there was one thing about Han Solo the universe should know is that he never stuck around for too long and didn't put his neck out for just anybody. "Do you think I had a choice?"
"What I think is of no weight," Greedo said with a chirp. "But Jabba has agreed that he'll only take your ship...and turn your sister into one of his dancers."
A churning rage boiled in Han's skin and his jaw tightened as he leaned forward. "Over my dead body." He snapped through his teeth, glaring deeply into Greedo's galaxy like eyes.
"That's the idea." Greedo leaned forward himself. "I've been looking forward to killing you for a long time."
Han's eyebrows raised, "Yes, I bet you have." In an instant, two blasters were raised and both went off and only one made its target. Greedo's chair fell back and the Rodian didn't back up, Han reached up to feel where the Rodian's blast grazed his ear and then turned his deep green eyes up at the black scorch on the wall, letting out a low whistle. If that had been him he wouldn't be giving anyone a ride to nowhere and Jabba would probably have Chewbacca and Ami in chains...he shuddered at the thought and stood, clearing his throat as eyes landed on him. He walked up to the bartender and gave him a sympathetic gesture, giving him five credits. "Sorry about the mess."
As Han left the cantia, he asked himself one question:
Who the hell had shot first?
When Ami entered the hangar, she hadn't expected to see a whole bunch of bounty hunters and Jabba outside the Falcon. Chewbacca let out an angry and protective roar as he stepped in front of Ami, his bowcaster pointed in the direction of their guests. Some of the men turned towards them, their blasters pointed in their direction. The tall woman reached forward and pulled Chewbacca's furry arm down as she took a step towards Jabba who laughed.
"Jabba, Han isn't here." Ami crossed her arms.
"Ho, ho, ho, ho. Ha, ha, ha, ha. Then you will stand in his place, Little Solo." Jabba waved a hand and his best hunter, Boba Fett stepped towards them with binders in hand. Ami grabbed her blaster and pointed it at Boba, Jabba let out another laugh. "Negotiations will short, child, and end with your death."
Ami held up her hands, "Now, now, Jabba. You can't scare me like you can with Han, I will talk to you peacefully." She said sharply.
"Don't worry, Ami, you won't need to." Han entered the hangar with an angry stride, eyes narrowed at the slug in front of him. "Jabba, I've been waiting for you."
"I expected you would be." Jabba huffed. Han didn't look too happy and he walked past Ami and Chewbacca to Jabba's side. The slug attempted to wrap a slimy arm around Han's waist. "Han, my boy, there are times when you disappoint me...why haven't you paid me? And why did you have to fry poor Greedo like that...after all we've been through together."
Ami looked to Han with raised eyebrow, frowning as she whispered to Chewbacca: "When did we kill Greedo?" The Wookiee let out a confused gruff.
Han moved away from his arm, "You sent Greedo to blast me."
Jabba gasped in a mock surprise, his big eyes appearing even bigger. "Han, why you're the best smuggler in the business." Ami and Chewbacca let out their own noises making Han look over with a wink. Jabba continued, "You're too valuable to fry. He was only relaying my concern about your delays. He wasn't going to blast you."
Han scoffed, rolling his eyes. "He thought he was." The tall man jabbed a finger in Jabba's direction. "Next time don't send one of those twerps. If you've got something to say to me- or my crew- come see me yourself."
"Han, Han!" Jabba exclaimed, "If only you hadn't had to dump that shipment of spice...you understand. I just can't make an exception. Where would I be if every pilot who smuggled for me dumped their shipment at the first sign of an Imperial starship? It's not good business."
Han's shoulders slumped and his hand ran down his face in an exhausted manner. "You know, even I get boarded sometimes, Jabba. I had no choice, but I've got a charter now and I can pay you back, plus a little extra. I just need some more time."
Jabba stared at Han long and hard before he raised his small hand to wave: "Put your blasters away. Han, my boy, I'm only doing this because you're the best and I need you. So, for an extra, say 20% I'll give you a little more time...but this is it. If you disappoint me again, I'll put a price on your hard so large you won't be able to go near a civilized system for the rest of your short life."
"17%, don't get cocky." Ami stepped up and faced him head on without trepidation.
Jabba grumbled lowly and agreed with a nod making Han chuckle. "Jabba, you're an amazing human being." Han slung an arm around his sister's shoulders and tugged her towards the Falcon. "Come on, Chewie, we've gotta prepare for our guests."
"You'll have to sell your speeder," Obi-Wan spoke from under his cloak, the group weaving themselves through the crowd. Rene pulled her hat down a little more and kept her head down, she couldn't risk any of the troopers recognising her.
Luke let out a bitter breath, eyes dancing around the crowd as he spat out: "It's fine. I'm never coming back to this planet again." He had no desire to return to the place that had held him prisoner for almost twenty years of his life. There was a sick satisfaction in Luke's mind for his departure from Tatooine, although he didn't quite imagine it in this fashion- going off to help the Rebellion and deliver them a message from some princess, all of it was thrilling. Yet..Beru, his mind constantly clicked and chirped with the woman's name like a constant reminder that he should've been there to hold off the Empire. The woman that he had called mother in secret was now dead, gone and no one seemed to blink an eye.
"Careful, Luke, you almost sound bitter." Rene warned teasingly, glancing his way with sympathetic eyes almost saying that she understood what he was feeling. His eyes went down and he felt a little guilty for his words, he probably should've been thankful for all the time he spent on Tatooine but he couldn't help but feel..resentful of his life. Maybe he could stay on Alderaan and offer them his help, start new and fresh on a different planet. He wondered if they had plants like Beru had in her garden with the softest leaves and brightest greens, he wondered if anyone else had touched that type of beauty before.
Rene paused and looked to Obi-Wan, "I have to go back to my ship to collect my things. Could you possibly take care of this speeder business?" She was already turned towards the hangars, ignoring the silent huff the older man gave but what stopped her was Luke's hesitant voice: "Can I come with you?"
She hesitated. Rene wasn't sure if she wanted her brother inside of that ship simply because of the possibility of being contacted by Vader, if she saw him now, heard his mechanical breathing- she would lose it. He had to sign off on that attack, that Beru's death was on his blood covered hands; it shouldn't affect him much seeing as he has been killing for the Empire since day one. Yet in the back of Rene's mind she wanted him to feel their pain, for Vader to suffer the same way that his troopers had made Beru suffer.
"Sure," Rene watched that child-like grin take his lips and his hands together happily as he joined her side. She smiled briefly and turned her attention to Artoo: "Make sure Obi-Wan doesn't get swindled, 'kay?"
Artoo gave a firmitive twitter while Obi-Wan gave a flat look at the woman. "I can negotiate prices by myself." He shook his head. "I don't need a droid to do that for me."
"Oh, I know." Rene gave him a wink and waved, turning on her heel once again. "Come on, Luke."
Luke waved at the two droids and Obi-Wan until they were out of sight, that's when Rene reached up and pulled his wrist down gently to avoid prying eyes. He turned somber with the silence that enveloped them upon entering the alleys leading towards the hangars, with a secret glance towards his sister he could tell that her mind was in another system. Luke hid his hands under the soft brown poncho he wore, trudging behind his sister like a little boy- his own mind pulled away to the terrible images of his aunt and uncle's bodies, the wind whistled in his ears. He blinked and in a flury the images and sounds were gone and replaced again with his sister's back.
Would that always haunt him, would he never truly get away from Tatooine or was he still in shock? He'd never seen bones before. Sure, he'd seen them in the womp rats and various other creatures but never...never human bones before. That's what made disgust twist even deeper into Luke's mind as he took every detail, Beru and Owen didn't stand a chance with whatever the Empire had used against them. The sand blonde boy just hoped that it wasn't too painful.
Again, his attention went back to Rene and he squinted hard at the back of his head, questions forming in his mind. She seemed oddly calm for having lost their only family outside of themselves and the fact that they were being hunted by the Empire. Rene's cold eyes never seemed to break the facade that she was nervous or upset, her every action appeared to be neutral and strategic, the actions just seemed to be of little consequence to her. Luke frowned deeply as he thought of that smuggler that had obviously been trying to make advances on Rene, was that what all smugglers were like? He made a disgusted sound and shook his head, he'd rather not focus on that.
"You'll have to work on that," Rene looked over her shoulder and met his eyes. Luke sputtered, feeling exposed but Rene waved a hand. "Shielding is one of the hardest things to master but with Obi-Wan's help you'll get it soon."
"Shielding? Wait, did you read my mind?" Luke went to stop but Rene reached back and grabbed his arm, moving forward.
She brought him next to her to whisper to him: "Jedi and the Force are highly restricted concepts in the Empire. Ultimately meaning you are illegal." Rene turned them into a hangar where a rather large Corellian ship. Luke stopped at the entrance while Rene walked towards the ramp. "You can't speak about this to anyone outside of me and Obi-Wan."
Luke stared up at the ship in awe, he only saw things of beauty from afar as they bolted from the atmosphere. The ship was a light grey with black accents around it, he pondered how long it had been Rene's possession because it looked almost brand new. Rene stopped halfway up the ramp to look back at her brother, "Are you coming?"
Luke nodded and rushed up the ramp behind her, taking in the interior except he was kinda disappointed. The air was stale and cold, the lights dim and the metal seemed to add an evil and ominous feeling to it. Once again, Luke hid his arms in his poncho but- for the first time in his life he was cold. Rene walked right past unbothered by his big eyes looking around with what seemed to be fear; she went to a door and it slid open to reveal various bags and jackets. She reached in and grabbed a bag that seemed to be hidden deep within the small room while Luke glanced around, walking a little deeper in the ship. There was seemingly a lounge area down one of the corridors and then down the right was ladders leading up and then down, in front of him was another door that he assumed would lead to the cockpit.
Rene was deep within the closet when a trill rang through the ship, one that made her freeze and slowly look down to her wrist. With great hesitancy, she clicked the flashing button and allowed Darth Vader's helmet clad face to appear in hologram form; her mask fell over and she stared at him blankly.
"General Lars, I'm glad to have made contact with you."
'Glad? You're glad, you over-baked-no-good-piece-of-trash!' Rene said in her mind but her true response with hollow: "Lord Vader, I'm in the middle of my mission a transmission-"
"The men who have killed your parents have been executed."
Rene froze and stared down at his unwavering mask, wondering what universe she was in that Vader would seek revenge for her. She didn't dare tears take her eyes, just stared down at him with nothing but bitterness. "T...Thank you, Lord."
Vader seemed either unaffected or didn't want her to know of his thoughts. "What progress have you made?" He changed the subject.
Rene cleared her throat, walking from the closet. "Not much, Lord. The droids seemingly vanished." She lied smoothly like it was second nature. Vader gave a low hum and Rene raised her chin. "I have to go, I'm following up on a lead."
"Don't disappoint me, General." Then the hologram was gone and Rene's anger flared up like a raging dragon. She clenched her hands and eyes closed briefly to regain some type of composure, who had signed off on the death sentence and why the hell was Darth Vader avenging Beru and Owen's deaths? It was certainly out of his character seeing as he was usually the one defending off the vendettas.
"What did he mean by 'executions'?"
Luke was standing almost menacingly at the intersection of the corridors, he stared at her with suspicion and anger. Rene took a deep breath in from her nose and out through her mouth, stepping forward. "That was Darth Vader...a Sith Lord that works for the Emperor closely. A merciless beast-"
"But he executed Beru and Owen's murderers?" Something within Luke's eyes confused Rene greatly.
"..Yes? Luke, he-"
"Then there has to be some type of good in him." Luke shrugged.
Rene blinked and then let out a barking laugh, "Good?! Okay, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt because you've been here on Tatooine and haven't seen what I have; Darth Vader doesn't care about anyone or anything, he'll kill and kill with little consequence to himself." She threw her hands about and pointed a slim finger towards Luke. "He probably wrote that death warrant for Beru and Owen and he's just trying to get me to find Threepio and Artoo. He'll kill me the moment I hand them over."
Luke blinked, frowning in thought before he shrugged. "Well, it's a good thing that you're bringing them to the Rebellion." He smiled, how teeth showing and eyes crinkled in the corners. Like a naive child, the farmboy ignored Rene's obvious attempts at warning him what was to come; death, pain, and never ending games of cat and mouse until Darth Vader inevitably found them. Rene wanted to tell him that he was being a child, blind and stupid for his statements but..she simply couldn't find it in herself to knock down his small happiness. Although she sensed pain clutching at his heart, she couldn't help but realize that he was joking with her.
Rene rolled her eyes, picking up her bag, nodding towards the exit as she spoke: "Some day, that optimistic view on everything will get you killed." She placed her arm in the crook of his, smiling softly.