AN:  Thank you Kitty and Rem for you reviews.  And thanks to all for being patient.

Disclaimer:  Same as before, you all know the drill  J

It took Ari a moment to let her eyes adjust to the dimmer lighting environment and was shocked by all the different humans, humanoids, and aliens she saw.  There was an alien band playing while many stories were being told, conversations were being had, and deals were being made, many that should have been made under the table were made in the open.  No one was going to question anyone else's business.

            She quickly scanned the area, walking down towards the bar, hoping to fit in, pulling her cloak's hood back.  No one seemed to pay much attention to her, for which she was thankful.  She gave a nod to the bartender, who gave her a weird look, but put a glass down for her and she sipped at it, glancing around the bar.  She looked up and finally saw Ben Kenobi sitting at table with a large furry creature, a Wookie, Ari thought, trying to remember.  She gave a small mental shrug, almost certain she was right.  With him was a cocky man, probably a pilot.  The next figure was the most familiar.  Luke.

            Ari was tempted to run and just throw her arms around him, but held back.  Luke had said he didn't want her to follow and she wasn't going to interrupt what looked to be a serious conversation.  She saw a few of the looks that passed but tried not to stare or anything.  She saw at one point that Luke looked shocked about something and looked about ready to argue but Ben spoke up. This caused the pilot to smile and a few more words were spoken though Ari couldn't hear them. 

            She was starting to get frustrated with not knowing but strained to listen, blocking out other noises like she had been able to do before a few times. 

            "Looks like someone is beginning to take an interest in your handiwork," she heard the pilot say.  He seemed pretty sure of himself, giving off an aura of confidence.  Ari didn't concentrate on that though and instead her gaze traveled back to the door where she saw two stormtroopers talking to another creature who was pointing them to where Ben, Luke and the other two sat.  She slowly turned back to the table, worried but was surprised when all she saw was the pilot and alien, who kept their faces stern and uninterested as the troopers walked past. 

            Once the troopers past, however, she saw they were smiling and looking excited.  She couldn't tell what they were saying exactly but saw the pilot tell something what she figured was his co-pilot.  Certain that eventually she would run into Luke through these two, she followed the Wookie, at a safe distance of course.  He went out a back door and Ari followed slowly, trying to act casual. 

            Walking back into the sunlight, Ari blinked and shaded her eyes with her hand until her eyes adjusted to the bright suns.  Seeing that the Wookie was already on his way to the hangers, his strides long, Ari quickly had to make sure to keep up and not loose him in the crowd.

Ari kept her eyes on the Wookie but doing her best to blend in with the rest of the crowd. She made certain not to make direct eye contact with any of them, not wanting to start a fight of any sort. She kept one hand over her pouch slightly, to make sure no one could grab it. A few look tempted but when they saw her blaster they made sure to stay back.

At one point the Wookie paused then quickly turned. Ari felt her breath catch in her throat as she made sure to keep her eyes down, glad that the hood of her cloak was helping hide her.  She felt the Wookie's eyes glance over the crowd, herself included. Force don't let him see me she thought to herself. She dared to glance up and saw the Wookie just as he turned back around and Ari felt herself let out a breath she didn't even know she had been holding.

"Hey Chewie," a voice came out of the crowd and the Wookie turned around again. Ari pretended to be preoccupied but saw the pilot from before walk over to the alien. They started off towards a hanger bay, the Wookie, Chewie, as the pilot had called him, was 'talking' to him in a series of growls and barks. Ari followed at an almost unsafe distance and was able to hear what was being said

"Hey, you know it isn't my job to ask questions. If the old man is going to give us 17,000 I am not going to bother with questions. I'm just going to get this job done to pay off Jabba." Ari gasped slightly. 'Jabba? Uh oh.' Even with Ari's parents had tried to sheild her from some of the bad things that happened by trying to immerse her more in studies like history, politics, etiquetee and other such things, she still knew of Jabba the Hutt. He was a gangster, and a dangerous one at that.

She stayed back in the shadows as much as she could as they came closer to the bay. "Solo!" she heard a voice call followed by something in a language she couldn't understand. 

Feeling either more curious or more brave, which was uncertain and unimportant, Ari slowly looked up and held back a gasp.  It was none other than Jabba the Hutt himself.  She heard the Captain, Solo, she was certain his name was, answer but his words didn't register over her pounding heart. 

A moment later, Ari's eyes fell over the numerous other creatures, almost all armored to the teeth with blasters, vibroblades and dozens of other weapons.

Fighting back a quick wave of fear, Ari noted how they were all around Jabba, who looked like a giant worm, and they fanned out slightly around, looking almost ready to shoot Solo, who wore a small cocky grin.
Ari turned her attention to Solo realizing, like in the cantina, she had missed part of the conversation, even with the Hutt's booming voice, that should have grabbed her attention.

"Next time, don't send one of those twerps.  If you've got something to say, come see me yourself," the Captain replied, casually walking over to the Hutt.

The Hutt spoke but Ari didn't really know Huttenese.  Her father had always considered it to be a language for smugglers and outlaws.  It seemed to be true at that moment.  She did catch the word 'Han' a few times and figure it must have been the Captain's name

"Han Solo," she mouthed and nodded. It seemed to fit him perfectly.

"You know even I get boarded sometimes," Ari gave a small gasp as he stepped onto the Hutt's tail, digging his heel in. She was certain that Jabba would have him killed then and there. "You think I had a choice?" Han continued. "But I've got a nice easy charter now and I can pay back. Plus a little extra. I just need more time."
Ari watched, her blue eyes flashing like a cat's, taking in what she could as the Hutt spoke again. She attempted to understand with the few words she had learned around Anchorhead. She wasn't very successful but was good at telling things by the tone of voice and body language of people and some aliens, and she used this as best she could with Solo, the Hutt and the Wookie, Chewie.
"You're a wonderful human being," Han grinned and Ari hid a laugh, clasping a hand over her mouth. 'A smuggler with a sense of humor, who would have thought?' she asked herself.
Jabba looked at Han and Chewie once more, dull eyes blinking just once before slithering away, followed closely by his bevy of associates.
"Can you believe this, Chewie?" Han exclaimed after they were gone, his calm composure faded into one of frustration. "First, Greedo tries to fry me and now this. I can't wait until we get out of here. Get that money and be done with Jabba."
Ari bristled slightly. This guy was nothing more than a mercenary with an attitude.
"Go wait for the kid, old man and droids by the entrance out there. The sooner we get off this dusty rock the better," Han instructed Chewie, who growled in response and lumbered out to the entrance.

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