of me--or at least used to having me around--but it went on for more than a
year! I couldn't sleep, I jumped at shadows. I was a wreck, and that made
her feel sorry for me ... so she clung even tighter!
"And I couldn't leave! On Dargul they mate for life. Life! She'll never give
up searching, and she'll never take another mate as long as I live." Tymmo
looked as if a scream hovered on his lips. "I'll never be free of her! I had
to escape."
"Well, it looks like you've finally found a way out," Slish Fondine said in
an angry voice. "As an admitted scam artist, you'll be promptly executed
under the laws of Umgul."
To Lando's surprise Tymmo didn't even try to defend himself. He seemed
resigned to his fate.
But Lando wasn't so sure about the idea. "Let's think about this a minute,
Mr. Fondine. Did you say there's a million-credit reward for his safe return
to the duchess, Artoo?"
Artoo chirped an affirmative.
"Now, Mr. Fondine, think of what a wonderful gift of state this would be for
the upcoming visit of the duchess, returning her consort in time to ease her
loneliness."
Tymmo groaned in misery.
"On the other hand, if you were to execute him, knowing he is her missing
consort, things could get very unpleasant between Umgul and your sister
planet. Might even be cause for war."
Fondine's face darkened with the possibilities, but his honor had been so
offended that the choice was not clear to him. He sighed. "We will leave it
up to the prisoner himself. Tymmo, or Dack, or whatever your name is--do you
wish to be executed or returned to the Duchess Mistal?"
Tymmo swallowed hard. "How long do I have to think about it?"
"It's not a trick question!" Lando said.
Tymmo sighed. "Can I at least be allowed to rest until she gets here? I'm
going to need all my strength."
The Lady Luck cruised out of the huge grotto of Umgul's spaceport, rising
above the mists into the sky. Slish Fondine had insisted, out of fairness,
that he would transfer half of the duchess's reward into Lando's account
when she arrived.
No longer penniless, Lando would have seed money to invest in some new
operation, some other scheme that could excite him. He had tried the molten
metal mines on Nkllon, and the Tibanna gas mines on Bespin. He wondered what
he might find next.
Though he had tried his best to track down a worthy candidate for Luke's
Jedi academy, he hated to return empty-handed to Coruscant. But he knew
there would be others.
Threepio remained uncharacteristically silent as the Lady Luck burst into
hyperspace, heading home.
Images of starships whirled through space like pinpoints of fire around
Coruscant. The holographic map of the system showed the locations of all
vessels in range and plotted approved approach orbits on a huge spherical
grid. Data terminals spewed information on vessel sizes and landing
requirements, keeping track of anyone reporting impaired control. A
scattering of red danger zones marked debris clouds of wrecked ships that
had not yet been removed from the battle over Coruscant.
Dozens of space-traffic controllers stood at their stations around the 3-D
map of the planet, pointing at images with light pens and drawing
safe-approach vectors or prioritizing landing patterns. One of the
war-damaged spaceports on the western end of Imperial City had just been
brought back on-line in the last week, and much of the shuttle traffic was
being rerouted there to ease the burden on landing platforms around the
Imperial Palace.
Leia Organa Solo stood beside one of the traffic controllers. Seeing how
busy the woman was directing space traffic, Leia tried not to ask too many
questions, but she found it difficult to wait.
"There's something." The traffic controller reached up with the light pen to
indicate a squarish violet icon used for Small Starship--Type Unknown.
"Could that be the one you're waiting for, Minister Organa Solo? Just popped
out of hyperspace. Unable to determine previous vector."
Leia felt a surge of excitement. "Yes, that's the one. Have they requested
clearance yet?"
The traffic controller touched a receiver implant at her temple. "Coming in
now. The pilot sends only her name. Sounds like some kind of code. Winter?"
Leia smiled. "No, that's her real name. Give her clearance to land on the
top northside platform of the Imperial Palace, my authorization." She drew
in a deep breath, feeling her heart pound faster. "I'll go meet her
personally." She turned and took two quick steps away before she remembered
to thank the traffic controller for her help. "Come on, Threepio," Leia said
as she bustled past him.
The protocol droid snapped to attention, then hurried after her with his
stiff-legged gait. He had returned to Coruscant with Artoo and Lando three
days earlier and spent four hours in a luxurious lubricant-and-scrubber
bath. Now he gleamed like new, with all traces of blob mucus removed from
his finish.
Leia heard Threepio's motivators humming as he followed. She ignored him,
lost in her own conflicting thoughts. Han should have been back from Kessel
two days ago, but still she had heard no word from him. He'd probably fallen
in with some of his old smuggling buddies, had too much to drink, gambled
far into the late hours, and completely forgotten about his other
obligations. It was a good thing Chewbacca had sworn a blood oath to protect
him, because Han was going to have to face her when he got back, and he was
going to need a Wookiee's protection. How dare he forget something like
this?
For now, Leia would welcome her twin children home. Alone.
Standing on the top deck of the palace, Leia craned her neck and searched
the hazy skies. Coruscant's aurora shimmered through the twilight, eclipsed
by the complex matrix of the great orbiting shipyards.
"Threepio, tell me the minute you see them coming." The breeze tossed loose
strands of hair in front of her eyes.
"Yes, Mistress Leia. I'm searching." In an imitation of a human gesture,
Threepio cupped two golden hands around his optical sensors as if it would
help him focus better. "Don't you think it would be wiser for us to step
back slightly from the edge?"
Leia held her breath. Her children were coming home. They had not set foot
on Coruscant for nearly two years, but now they would be back to stay. She
could be a real mother to them, at last.
Just after their birth the twins had been sequestered on a secret planet
uncovered by Luke and Admiral Ackbar. It was a world unrecorded on any
chart, but habitable and protected. Luke and Ackbar had established a
heavily guarded base there, leaving Leia's trusted servant Winter behind to
watch over the Jedi children.
She suspected Luke had given the children a bit more than just Winter for
protection, though.
During their protective isolation Leia had managed to visit Jacen, Jaina,
and Anakin every few months, usually with Han in tow. At a prearranged time
Winter would pop out of hyperspace in a long-distance shuttle. Without ever
knowing their destination, Leia and Han would climb aboard the shuttle, be
sealed in the back passenger compartment, and Winter would take them to the
protected planet. The New Republic Senate was appalled at Leia's mysterious
movements, but Luke and Ackbar had silenced their objections.
Leia hoped she would be able to find the time to visit her baby boy, little
Anakin, now that she had the twins to watch over. It would be a tragedy if
she had to be even less of a mother to the baby than she had been to these
two.
"There it is, Mistress Leia!" Threepio pointed up at a flickering point of
light that grew brighter every second. "A shuttle is coming down."
She felt a spasm of anxiety mixed with a thrill of excitement.
The shuttle approached, winking red and green lights in the twilight sky. It
circled the former Imperial Palace, then activated its repulsorlifts to come
down with a gentle sigh on the landing platform. Angular and bug-like, the
shuttle bore no markings, no indication of its planet of origin.
With a hiss of equalizing pressure, the hatch of the shuttle's passenger
compartment split open, gently extending a ramp. Leia bit her lip and took a
step forward, squinting into the sharp shadows. The shuttle blocked most of
the breeze, leaving the area still and silent.
The young twins stepped out side by side and waited at the top of the ramp.
Leia stared at Jacen and Jaina, both self-composed and dark-haired, with
wide avid eyes and small faces that looked like the ghosts of Han and Leia.
After a second's hesitation Leia ran up the ramp, gathering the children in
her arms. Both Jacen and Jaina hugged their mother. "Welcome home!" she
said, whispering.
She sensed fear and reservation in them; Leia realized with a pang that she
was a virtual stranger to them. Winter had been their nanny for as long as
they could remember. Leia had been just a visitor whenever she could find
time in her duties. But she would make it up to them. She promised herself
that much.
All the outstanding obligations rose up in her mind, haunting her with the
specter of duty. She still had to deal with the Caridan ambassador and a
thousand other delicate tasks to hold the New Republic together. Dozens of
planetary systems were on the verge of joining the Republic if a skilled
representative--Leia herself--showed good faith by making a visit of state.
If Mon Mothma summoned Leia to help ratify a treaty, or to take her place at
a state dinner, how could Leia refuse? The fate of the galaxy hung in the
balance, clearly dependent on what she did.
How could mere children take precedence over that? And what kind of a mother
did it make her even to think about it?
"Where's Daddy?" Jacen asked.
Anger went through Leia like a spear of ice. "He's not here right now."
Winter finally worked her way back from the pilot compartment. Leia looked
up at her friend and confidante, and warm memories washed over her.
Winter had had snow-white hair for as long as Leia could remember, a serene
face that rarely allowed even a twinge of anger to show through. Noticing
Han's absence, Winter raised her eyebrows, filling her face with questions,
but she remained silent.
"Where's baby Anakin?" Jaina asked.
"He has to stay with me for a while longer," Winter said, nudging the two
children down the ramp. "Come, now, we'll take you to your new home."
The two children dutifully marched ahead, with Leia following close beside
them. Threepio didn't seem to know what he was expected to do during the
reunion, so he just followed, waving his arms and making flustered
exclamations.
"How long we stay here?" Jacen asked.
"Where's our room?" Jaina said.
Leia smiled at the questions and took a deep breath before answering them.
From now on she had a feeling she would be hearing a lot of questions.
When Leia finally kissed the twins good night, Threepio couldn't decide
whether mother or twins looked more exhausted. Leia pushed loose dark hair
away from her eyes as she stood at the doorway to their room and blew
another kiss.
After adjusting his servomotors to allow a little more flexibility in his
joints, Threepio hunkered down between the twins' beds. He had already taken
care of important details such as providing fresh cups of water for the
children and installing small night-lights in the dark corners.
"You two be good for Threepio," Leia said. "He'll stay here until you go to
sleep. You've had exciting things happen today, and we'll do a lot more
tomorrow. I'm so glad to have you back." Leia flashed a heartfelt smile at
them, showing joy even through the weariness on her face.
"I'm certain I can handle this, Mistress Leia," Threepio said. "I have
reviewed most of the available child psychology databases, except for those
recommended by the Emperor, of course."
Leia's answering look seemed to carry a bit of skepticism, which puzzled
Threepio.
"Don't wanna go sleep," Jacen said, sitting up in bed.
Leia still smiled. "But you need your rest. Maybe Threepio will tell you a
bedtime story if you're good." She waved once more, then faded back into the
main living area.
The children had indeed had a busy day. After their journey with Winter they
had been taken on a quick tour of the Imperial Palace, then shown their new
quarters. Even with her duties as Minister of State, Leia had managed to
redecorate the twins' bedchamber in warm, soothing colors.
Threepio would have offered his own assistance in the project, but at the
time he had been with Lando Calrissian at the blob races. Thinking back,
Threepio would have preferred the decorating chores.
Several times during the tour Leia was interrupted by insistent calls,
documents that needed to be authorized, brief conversations that could not
be delayed. Each time Leia looked guilty, as if realizing this was an
indication of things to come.
The twins, though filled with excitement and wonder of the new things around
them, grew cranky as they became tired. They had been overwhelmed by too
much strangeness in one day, given a new home, and told to sleep in an
unfamiliar room. According to the information Threepio had recently
uploaded, it was perfectly normal for the children to cause minor
difficulties.
"Don't wanna bedtime story," Jacen said, crossing his small hands over his
chest and looking defiantly at Threepio.
"No story," Jaina echoed.
"Of course you do," Threepio insisted. "I have scoured the collected works
of children's literature on thousands of planetary systems. I have selected
what I believe will be a truly enjoyable story. It is called The Little Lost
Bantha Cub, a classic that has been popular for generations with children of
your age."
He had been looking forward to telling this story, recalling how much he had
enjoyed telling the Ewoks of his adventures with Master Luke and Captain
Solo. He had even selected some very exciting sound effects for approp
riate
points in the Bantha Cub story. Threepio had never actually been close to a
live bantha during his time on Tatooine, but bantha riders--the Tusken
Raiders--had dismantled him during their first attack on Master Luke. He
supposed that gave him some small claim to expertise.
"Don't wanna story!" Jacen repeated. Both children had unruly dark hair, and
the deep brown eyes of their mother. Right now the young boy had a
determined and stubborn look on his face that Threepio had often seen on Han
Solo.
Threepio realized that the issue at hand had very little to do with the
actual story. According to his new information on young children, the twins
were right now feeling displaced and helpless. With so many things out of
their control, they needed to exert their power, to insist on some tiny spot
of stability. Jacen needed to see that he could have some effect on his
surroundings. Right now the boy was very upset; Jaina, picking up on her
brother's distress, seemed on the verge of tears.
"Very well, young Master Jacen. I will tell you the story some other time."
Threepio knew just the trick to keep the twins happy and let them drift off
to sleep. He was, after all, fluent in over six million forms of
communication. He could sing lullabyes in any number of languages, any
number of styles.
He selected a few that were guaranteed to please the twins. Jacen and Jaina
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