A/N: I tried to put in some more of Luke for this chapter. I really do like to focus on Han and Leia, because I feel like I can grasp their characters well, but Luke is still essential to the plot.

I also wanted to address a really sweet review I received two days ago that you can read in the reviews section of the story. It said, in short: "I...like stories better when the galaxy and our heroes were still what they used to be..." I wanted to thank you for this nice comment, because my goal is to write something similar to a script that could have played in between ANH and ESB. I wanted to keep the characters original, because I know my love for them comes from who their are in the films/canon novels.

Additionally, even though it has been a few days, I wanted to send my deepest regrets out about the loss of Glenn Frey. Yes, I am only 22, but the Eagles are one of my favorite bands, and the news struck me hard. I listened to Desperado and Lyin Eyes, two of my favorites, while writing this chapter in tribute.

Lastly, please read and review to let me know what you think!

VI

It was no surprise that Renn Tharen expected the same thing out of Han Solo that his niece, Eris, did. Han didn't seem to be respected that much on Corellia. He didn't want to admit it, but it made sense. The time he had spent on the planet had been nothing but robberies and begging on the streets. He worked hard for his life, but got into a lot of trouble when he was younger. When he finally got out of the system, he realized he needed his own ship. Renn had helped him with it because of Bria, but once it was ready to go, Han had undercut him and taken most of Renn's droids as a starting crew on the Millennium Falcon.

"Trouble? Well, it's a long story, really..."Solo stammered.

Han tried to play it off cool. He knew Renn had never forgiven him for taking off as he did. He was worried that the term 'friend' wasn't the best to use.

Renn Tharen heaved a sigh and folded his arms in his cloak. Luke kept his gaze on the old man; he reminded him of Obi-Wan Kenobi with the way he stood and his choice of wardrobe. The dark brown cloak just barely grazed the ground in the wind. It made sense on the warm planet, just as it did on Tatooine; the light fabric kept the debris away, along with the heat.

Artoo beeped a few times, agreeing with Luke's thoughts.

"Yes, Artoo," Luke whispered to the droid at his hip. "But he's not a Kenobi."

"A Kenobi?!" Threepio gasped, his robotic voice breaking at a high tone in surprise.

"No," Luke chuckled, trying to quiet the droid. "Just the same clothing, that's all."

Han looked at the ground in annoyance at Luke's side comments; he had been muttering something about Obi-Wan and the Force since he witnessed his mentor being assassinated by Darth Vader on the Death Star before they escaped with Leia. He never believed in that Jedi stuff, but it was starting to make more sense to him as of late.

"There's always a long story," Renn grumbled, finally replying to Han.

Solo shrugged and took a deep breath as he said, "Have I ever not been able to get out of it?"

Renn studied him for a moment and then relaxed. "I suppose you're right," he told his old friend. "But your luck might run out one day, Solo."

"Well, that's the thing..." Han lead on, hoping Renn would ease up on him.

"What? Run out of money again?" Tharen could sense Han's troubled mind.

"We're on our way to Naboo and we need a ship," Leia interrupted. "The rest of the Rebllion is waiting, and Han has lost his ship."

She was getting impatient with the banter back and forth between Han and Renn. They needed to meet with their scouts on the new planet before the Imperials tracked them down.

Han immediately turned towards Leia and gave her a look that dared to ask why she had blurted out all of that information. Then, it hit him. She had accused him of losing his ship.

"Watch it, Princess!" he ordered.

Chewie gargled a defensive yell as Leia accused his companion of misplacing the Falcon. He was obviously upset with her putting him in the spotlight as the bad guy, even though he was the one who had let the ship slip from his grasp. When he stepped forward, though, Han made sure he remembered that.

"You stay out of this, too, fur ball," Solo told him as he pointed a finger in his direction.

"Naboo?" Renn asked. "What's on Naboo?"

Han was thankful; Renn didn't bother to ask where the Falcon was. Instead, he asked about the other thing he didn't have an answer to.

Solo began another shrug, but when Leia sensed his made up reply, she stepped in again.

"The Rebellion has joined with the remnants of the officials from the old Senate," she told him.

"Senate?" Luke asked, stunned. "That was nearly twenty years ago!"

Leia loved how she always was able to confuse the boys. She simply listened to everything going on around her at base. They ran past and didn't have the interest that she did. They were boys; they wanted to accomplish their goals and blow things up. Even if Luke was a Jedi in training, he had similarities to Han that the two would never openly realize.

"Yes," Leia told him, glancing in his direction. "The Emperor may have tried to kill the Jedi, but not the entire Senate."

"We have to go find them!"

"What do you think I'm trying to do here?" Leia snapped.

Luke softened immediately; he wasn't one to get into arguments. He was just curious. Unfortunately, Renn took the break of quietness to jump into the next question.

"What happened to the Millennium Falcon?" he asked Han, who was busy taking in what the Princess had just told them.

"The big oaf over here lost it to some bounty hunter," Solo told Renn, throwing his arm over his shoulder to gesture towards Chewie as he spoke.

The Wookie rumbled in frustration again, but he knew Han would forgive him eventually. Listening to him, Han rolled his eyes and fought the urge to reply and start another fight.

"So you need a ship," Renn concluded.

Han faked a smile in an awkward silence that approved what Renn had suspected.

"I should be out to get you, after you ran out like you did last time!" the old man complained.

Renn had a soft heart, though. He could hold a grudge and take it out on Han, who had finally returned, but he knew his past and he knew how that never seemed to matter in the long run. Solo always accepted his punishment, but still came out swinging in the end. After all, the droids he had taken were only prototypes, and after Bria died, Eris had helped Renn make better ones.

"Listen," Han started. "I've got two good droids here that I can lend you to make up for those ones I took with me, but-"

"Oh!" Threepio shouted in agony, cutting off Han mid sentence. "Master Luke, surely you wouldn't get rid of us!"

Luke told the droid to quiet down, but assured him that wouldn't be the case. He valued him more than the golden robot knew.

"Don't worry, Solo," Renn replied calmly. "Bria would want me to get over that. She'd have me help."

Han smiled a genuine smile this time. Bria, he thought. He hadn't remembered her in a long time, so it was hard to hear those words from Renn. He was grateful, but it came with a price.

"Have your friends get a drink and rest," the father figure offered. "We can find something that suits you while they wait."

Accepting his invitation, Leia and Luke gathered the others, except for Chewie, who would be helping Han with his search, for a trip back to the trading post with Eris. Han and Chewie followed Renn into the warehouse, ready to talk business with Renn.

"I want to go check out those parts over there," Luke excitedly told Leia as he began to rush off with Threepio struggling to keep up behind him. "Maybe we can put a new radar system together once we get to Naboo!" he yelled over his shoulder.

Leia shook her head. As much as she loved Luke, she hated how he acted like a little kid sometimes. Maybe it was just that she was forced to be an adult at such an early age when she had to help govern Alderaan, or maybe it was putting up with that low life, smuggler scum that she sometimes called her friend, but she felt more adult that the rest on an everyday basis.

"He certainly has a lot of energy," Eris observed as Luke ran away.

Leia almost forgot the girl was still standing with them. She had escorted the group back, but she was quiet.

"He definitely does," she agreed.

Eris smiled. "Let me go find something for you all to drink," she offered, and was gone before Leia could decline the offer.

"It's okay, Artoo," she muttered to the droid standing at her hip. "We'll find someone who wants our company to talk to."

Leia and the Artoo unit began their walk through the trading post tent and wandered the tables to pass time, hoping Han and Renn would be fast.

Eris stood at her table in the trading post, tiding up her belongings. As she did so, she scanned the area, monitoring who was near. Luke and Leia, along with the droids, were off and about far in the distance. There was no doubt that they couldn't hear her behind her store. She knew she only had a few moments to herself; she promised Leia a beverage and would be expected back quickly.

Pulling out a radio that resembled Han's small, cylinder droid caller that he always carried on his belt, the Tharen girl radioed a recipient that wasn't on Corellia.

"Commander Shrike," she greeted in a sing song voice over the radio. "You'll never guess what I've got here for you today."

A few seconds went by and then a static sounded through the system before a low, male voice replied back to her call.

"Eris."

All that was needed was one word to probe the girl into saying more.

"That Corellian boy you've been looking for," she murmured darkly. "He's here."

Silence.

Eris was confused, and didn't know if she should repeat herself, but eventually the voice spoke again.

"The Solo kid," it confirmed in surprise.

"Yes," she told him. "He's with a Wookie, a Princess, a boy, and two droids. Renn is speaking with him."

"Keep him busy," Shrike ordered. "It's time for him to pay after what he did to Garris."

"Yes, sir," Eris confirmed. Then, she was hesitant. "And the money?" she asked quietly.

"It will be delivered by one of my droids after we have him."

On the other side of the trading post, Luke was jumping into a table full of rusty parts that a small, reptile-like being was trying to pawn off on him for what seemed like a low price.

"Sir, perhaps we should get a new radiator for Artoo while we're here," Threepio suggested to Luke, who was picking apart a box of metal remains from an AT-AT that had stumbled through a long time ago.

"A new radiator?" the boy asked. "Why? He's still working just fine!"

"Well, between you and me, sir," Threepio stammered. "Artoo gets himself into a lot of trouble. It would be wise to invest in replacement parts for the next time he malfunctions."

"We can get those anywhere," Luke argued.

He was genuinely interested in a refractor from the old Imperial walker to help out the scope on the Falcon's blaster canons once they got it back. He picked up the small eyeglass and examined it, watching how the light seared through the lens. Then he attempted to see something in the distance of the field they had landed in through it.

When Luke scanned the horizontal skyline for their Rebellion transport, he caught glimpse of another ship touching down in the grassy moor. It wasn't as big as theirs; it looked more like a passenger ship to carry three or four officers.

The tiny ship landed and extended its loading ramp. When it was still and powered down, two guards came out first, followed by an officer and a Wookie that looked a bit smaller than Chewie, along with two backing guards.

He tried to make out the officer's unit, but it was still too far away. They weren't Imperial officers; the man in the middle was decorated. He walked with a limp, but tried desperately to keep his body upright to show his authority. One arm was hidden behind a cape that covered the side of his body, along with his back.

Slowly, Luke lowered the lens back to his waist but kept his stare ahead of him.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," he murmured, shaking his head.

Then, he put the refractor back on the table and turned to run back into the crowd of Corellian bargainers.

"We have to find Leia and get back to Han!" the young Jedi called to his droid, who jumped a little in surprise before attempting to speed walk after his mater. "Come on, Threepio! Let's get out of here!"

Threepio wanted to tell the boy that he couldn't run as fast as him, especially in a crowd, but it wouldn't matter. Instead, all he said was, "I'm right behind you, Master Luke!"