Han raced through the semi-deserted streets and finally pulled up to a scenic overlook of the ocean. "All right, everybody out!" he ordered. With Chewie's help, Han then pushed the speeder over the edge. It crashed into the water below, much to the amazement of passers-by.

"What about your deposit?" Leia quipped.

Solo couldn't help a grin. "Just add it to my bill."

"I thought this was a free ride."

"I changed my mind."

They walked hurriedly onto one of the docks that jutted out into the water and tried to appear inconspicuous as Chewie hot-wired a private hoversloop. Soon they were bouncing along the waves, passing an outcropping of the shoreline. Leia and Emil sighed in relief, thinking the whole ordeal behind them. Leia smiled at Han's back as he made adjustments to their course.

He turned around. "Okay, everybody goes for a swim."

"What?" Leia cried. Emil, still hugging the small child, looked up in weary shock. Chewie, too, complained with a whiny growl.

"I set this thing's course for open water to get Port Security off our trail. They'll be chasing this empty sloop, and we'll be back at Nida's. But first, we've got to swim back to shore."

Leia frowned but kept silent. Han knew what he was doing.

"Can you make it?" Solo asked Emil. His attitude toward the agent had softened a bit upon seeing the child.

"I--I think so."

The shore was about six hundred meters away. Han placed the child, Kerri, upon the Wookiee's broad shoulders and looped some of the grappling line under her arms and around Chewie's chest. With a last mournful howl (Wookiees took many timeparts to dry), Chewbacca leapt into the water. Han, Leia noted with wry amusement, kicked off his shiny brown boots and slipped them under his belt. She'd have to leave hers, as her belt had gone the way of her confiscated laser pistol.

In they dove, and the sloop continued on its way to deep waters. Tired though she was, the princess felt a rush of adrenaline rise to the challenge of the cold brine. Chewie was already a good distance ahead; Han took up the rear position.

The sun was rising as they climbed, shivering, out of the water. Chewie was cradling the child in his great hairy arms, making small crooning sounds to soothe her. Emil staggered and Han caught him before he fell. They trudged slowly along the beach. It was amazing, thought Solo, as they sloshed along in the cool morning air. After all that--the rescue, the escape, the boat, the swim, no sleep in too many timeparts to remember--and still he found himself stimulated by the way Leia's wet jumpersuit was clinging to her slender body. With a crooked grin, he wondered if Chewie could smell him now. Leia glanced back, giving him a tired smile. What kind of spirit was that? A tough little shivik this princess be! A resilience matched only by his own. Well, she'd better be damned appreciative of all that I've gone through,he thought in his best tough-guy tones.

Thanks to the strange bathing rituals practiced by the unending diversity of life forms passing through or living on Ord Mantell, no one paid a lot of attention to the disheveled group as they made their way up the long plastiform stairway to the rear of Nida's place.

When Nida caught sight of them, her long-unused motherly skills got quite a workout. She immediately relieved Chewie of his precious cargo. "Awww! Poor baby!" she cooed. Nida took them all up to their room and provided them all with hot showers and blankets. She ordered up an extra cot and promised them a large hot meal whenever they were ready.

"Nida, honey," Han said in a tired voice, "You're the greatest. Now, if anyone comes calling, we aren't home, okay?"

"Han, can't you ever stay out of trouble?" Nida scolded as she tucked the sleeping Kerri into the large bed. "I'll send out some feelers for you, son," she whispered on her way out. Leia was truly thankful that Han had such discreet friends. She stopped Nida at the door.

"If we're any trouble, I'm sorry. We shouldn't be here much longer."

"Don't you worry about it, sweetie." Nida closed the door quietly.

The next to leave was E Rafiel. Emil had assured her that the only clue that the Empire had as to her identity was that drop box. Excited now with the success of her first independent action on behalf of the rebellion, E was eager to fill Sonel's position here on Ord Mantell. Equipped with a comlink, she left them with a promise to call every six timeparts or so to let them know if all was well with her cover.

Emil had crawled into bed with his daughter. Chewbacca was already snoring rhythmically upon the cot Nida had sent up. Han was setting the lock on their door. Leia looked longingly at the soft, inviting couch.

"We'd better get some rest, huh?" she asked.

Han looked at the couch, then back to Leia. "Yeah, I guess so."

They were both silent for a moment, neither one wanting to be greedy. Finally, Leia spoke. "I'll share the couch..."

Great!thought Han. Just what I've been waiting for and we've got a whole room full of people here! And she's too tired, no doubt, to protest, but I'm too tired to give her anything to protest about.Still, the thought of snuggling up with her was damn inviting.

"Nah, s'okay." He watched her reaction with great pleasure. He could swear that she was disappointed. "I'll bunk on the floor. I need the sleep, you know." He let his lips curve up seductively.

"I was only offering the couch." Leia gazed at him coolly, wishing to herself that he didn't need the sleep.

They slept soundly all afternoon. Evening was drawing near when a knock on the door brought Solo, blaster in hand, to his feet. He was instantly alert. He stepped up to the door. "Yeah?"

A muffled voice carried through the door. "Nida sent up some food."

"Let him in!" Leia cried. Chewie roused himself and agreed enthusiastically. Solo rolled his eyes skyward, even though he was starving as well.

They all gathered around Nida's bountiful offerings. Everyone agreed that food had never tasted so good. The atmosphere was relaxed and three of the diners broke into laughter after Leia, once bitten twice shy, asked Han to identify one of the dishes before she would taste it.

Emil, though, remained quiet and withdrawn. He ate mechanically and without much vigor. His daughter, on the other hand, ate all that was placed before her. She was a lovely young girl, laughing simply because everyone else did. She was especially taken by Chewbacca. She even asked him to take her swimming again. He rumbled acquiescently. She turned to her father excitedly and asked if mommy could come swimming this time. A blanket of uneasy silence enveloped the group and the blood drained from Emil's face. His hand froze halfway to his mouth. Sensing the change, Kerri's lower lip began to tremble.

"Daddy?" she whimpered. Emil got up suddenly and left the table. He headed out to the balcony.

Leia moved to his chair and said softly, "No, Mommy can't come next time. Just Daddy."

"Where's my Mommy?" she asked in a frightened little voice. Leia looked helplessly after Emil.

"I don't know, sweetheart. I'll go ask your father." She got up and followed Emil outside. Han, who had tried to give his food full attention during the uncomfortable exchange, pointed to Kerri's plate.

"Finish your dinner," he instructed paternally, "or I'll give your dessert to Chewbacca."

Sonel stood at the terrace rail, looking out over the water. Leia rested her hand gently upon his shoulder. His head dropped.

"I don't know what to tell her," he mumbled. "I can't even come to terms with it myself."

"I wish I knew what to tell you, Emil," Leia said. "But whatever happens now, she needs you! You can't shut her out, you're all she has!"

"I can't do it. I should be strong enough for both of us, but I--"

"No," Leia interrupted, "you can share your grief with her. She's young, she'll recover faster than you will. Tell her, Emil. She won't understand why her mother had to die, not now, but she'll understand that you are as sad as she is, that you'll miss her, too." Leia squeezed his shoulder. "Maybe you can help each other."

"I hope so," he breathed raggedly. Turning to face Leia, he said, "After what I've done, you've been very kind. Thank you. Thank you for not leaving us back there."

After only a moment of indecision, Leia went on. "Emil, I had no right to say what I said back there in the cell. I'm terribly sorry. If anything, we have that one thing in common. You made me see things in a different light. I'm grateful for all you've done for us here, and we'll see that you get off this planet safely." He could hear the sorrow in her voice as she continued. "About Alderaan," she whispered. "Someday, I know that the nightmares will end. If it had been as you say, and I had actually been there, heard them, seen them, maybe I couldn't live with my decision. But I am living with it. Whatever you decide to do, after we leave, is up to you. You and I, we've been fighting for that one freedom, the right to choose. In the end, that's what all this suffering will earn us."

Emil reached for her hand. He realized that his wife wouldn't have hesitated to give her own life that her child might have that right.

"Daddy?" They turned to see Kerri waiting timidly by the open wall.

Leia left them alone out there, turning the privacy shield up so that the sound of their voices became inaudible. Han Solo was waiting for her inside. He could read the emotions so close to the surface and openly displayed upon her face, and it moved him deeply.

"Maybe you were right about commitment..." she told him huskily.

Han shook his head. "No." He watched the tears begin to roll down her cheeks. "No, this is why you go on fighting. You've been right about that all along. Things can't go on like this."

Leia tried to voice her appreciation, but the words wouldn't come. Impulsively, she stepped up to him and Solo pulled her into his arms and held her close. Leia accepted his comfort eagerly.

"Y'know, Princess, you're going to need some help with that new base, wherever it is. I think that I could manage a commitment until then."

Leia felt a rush of love for this man. For all his unpredictability, all his annoying habits, his feigned callousness. She gave in to an irrational desire to kiss him, but his participation was so immediately intense that she pushed him away in self-conscious confusion.

All at once, Han was elated, excited, embarrassed, and insulted. In true Corellian form, he blurted, "Couldn't resist, could ya?"

Leia's lips formed an angry O. She spun on her heel and marched into the only place where she could be alone, the annex.

Solo looked sheepishly over to Chewbacca, who merely shook his head in wonder at his partner's massive lack of tact. This little incident guaranteed to make the rest of this trip very interesting, if not extremely hostile.

It took two days before Leia was certain that E Rafiel would be able to carry on as Emil's replacement. Han Solo made arrangements with some of the local underground and managed to scrape up an adequate sending unit for her while the princess made several trips back and forth between Nida's and Rafiel's to give her additional instruction. Everyone else was lying low. Especially Chewbacca. Wookiees weren't that common on the civilized worlds. Nida successfully fielded the troopers who came and made a "routine" investigation at the tavern, but it was apparent that the Empire knew a good bit about whom they were looking for now. The troops being on the alert made Leia's excursions extremely hazardous but she insisted on completing her mission. Han offered to accompany her, but Leia refused icily. She was very irritated by his boldness of two days ago, and quite annoyed at herself as well, for she had let the situation get out of hand. Her anger made it easy to forget how he'd been softening up lately, how supportive he'd been, and how exciting she had found his embrace, his kiss.

Han, however, acted like nothing at all had happened. He had come very close to doing something that he had sworn a long time ago not to ever do again. That was frightening to him and he was a little relieved to fall back into their old pattern of annoying each other. He liked knowing where she stood, but that didn't help his apprehension when Leia left for E Rafiel's. He knew that he was going to be very glad to put Ord Mantell behind him.

So, on the second day after rescuing Emil, Han settled up with Nida. He and Chewbacca hugged her warmly while Leia, Emil, and Kerri looked on.

"You take care of that Rim business, you hear?" she cautioned. "You don't need that kind of trouble right now." Leia looked sharply at Han. She knew that there had been something that he hadn't been telling her.

"Don't worry," Han assured. "I can handle it."

Nida gave Kerri a hug and bid farewell to Leia and Emil. It was dark and they made their way stealthily along the less well-lit streets. They managed to acquire a robo-cab and headed for the docking bay. It seemed as if everything would go well, but Han was wary.

Boba Fett had returned to the Falcon'sdocking bay after his meeting with Chewbacca. He'd noticed that the Wookiee had been holding several crates. They probably contained some equipment purchased at the Trade Show and on a hunch, Fett supposed that they would either take it back to their ship, or have it sent there. So he returned to await them. As fortune--or misfortune, depending on your point of view--would have it, a courier delivered the merchandise. It was with practiced ease that Fett slipped into the bay while the droids unlocked the crates and the pitman opened the great blast door. As the door was closing, Fett unhooked the pit monitor.

Now, Fett had been waiting three days. He sat silently behind the crates, waiting patiently. He wasn't worried about the passage of time, he really had nothing else to do, nowhere to go. On the emergency rations that he carried with him, he could easily last another three days. But, he wouldn't have to. He started at the sound of the lock hissing on the door. He was grateful for the darkness as he cocked his rifle and aimed it at the opening.

Han peered into the bay. He could see the two crates that they had sent ahead of them. All was silent, which in itself was an indication that something was amiss. The pit monitor that Chewie had set up should've been blaring an alarm. Han glanced at the remote he carried and pushed the test button several times. Nothing. He realized that someone had disconnected the monitor and at that same moment, Fett rose from behind the crates. Han heard Leia, Emil, and Threepio stop behind him.

"Prepare to come quietly, Solo," Boba ordered. "Your head is good dead or alive."

"Han, what is this?" Leia whispered angrily.

Han ignored her and called out to Fett, rather loudly, "What about my partner?"

"What about him?"

"Will you let him and my friends here go?" Han called out, then said under his breath to the princess, "Get ready to run for the ship on Chewie's signal."

"If you come quietly. One wrong move and I'll kill them." Fett was suddenly aware that the Wookiee was nowhere to be seen. This absence caused him concern...

All at once a small sphere arced over the blast walls and fell to the ground only meters away from the bounty hunter. With a small explosion, it began to eject a noxious fog. Fett hesitated for only a split second; he aimed and fired at the female and the man who ran for the ship. Han Solo drew his blaster and fired at Fett. The hunter ducked and the energy bolt hit the largest crate.

"Careful!" Solo called as Fett aimed another shot past him and nearly hit the escaping princess. Or nearly missed, Han realized as, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Leia stagger and fall. Han fired in panic and hit the crate behind which Fett hid time and time again.

With the crate being blasted apart before him, Boba Fett knew that time had come to retreat. He darted into the clouds of poisonous fog, aware that he'd have to get out of the bay before the blast doors slid shut and the Falconstarted up her power plant.

Chewbacca was lumbering into the bay and hurried up to the Corellian who was still out in the open, firing away. He roared a warning and Han came to his senses and followed his partner to the ship. Emil was helping Leia to her feet.

"Where are you hit?" Han asked, his voice thick with concern. He slipped his arm under hers as well.

"I'm not..." She gasped as her weight sent a lancing pain through her leg. "It's my ankle, I think." Han felt a small measure of relief. He picked her up and carried her on board.

Boba Fett could hear the sound of the heavy, armored blast door rolling shut, but due to the clouds of noxious gas, he couldn't see it. The blast door was now his only means to escape the bay before the Falcon'spower plant started up. Fett's respirator cut in as he ran towards the sound of the closing door. At last he could glimpse the door through the fog and dove under it just at the last possible moment. He heard the Falcon'sengines come to life inside the bay. He knew that he could never make it back to his ship in time to give chase. The hunter couldn't have known that Solo had been expecting to run into some kind of Imperial resistance and had taken the precaution of sending his first mate and the grenade around the docking bay as a precaution. Fett swore an oath to get Solo if it was the last thing he did. Somehow,he thought, the Corellian had outguessed him and no one--no one--had ever done that before!

It wouldn't be the first time Solo had blasted off without the proper clearances. The Falconhurtled skyward, oblivious to SPC's protests. Han hastily programmed the hyperspace coordinates and sent his ship into the misty void of supralight speed. After checking the instruments for any sign of pursuit, he went back to the hold to see to Leia. Chewbacca was howling mournfully about the ruined long-range sensor package that they had left behind.

"Well, really," Threepio admonished the Wookiee, "You should just be glad I am safe. After all, I am carrying valuable information and it was I who saved the princess from being harmed by that dreadful renegade!" With interest, Chewie inspected the laser burn that scored the droid's shoulder.

Emil and Leia were in the main cabin. Sonel showed Solo the scan he had taken of the injured leg. Her ankle was broken. Not too bad, but with the Falcon'slimited resources, not much could be done for it until they reached the base's med center. Han produced some powerful painkillers and soon Leia was resting comfortably in Han's bunk.

"How'd you do this, anyway?" he wondered as he helped her into bed. "Did you step in a hole?"

"No," she grinned. "Threepio tripped me."

Han sat back, stunned. Leia wanted to talk to Emil, so Han went back up to the cockpit. He studied the laser scoring lining Threepio's shoulder and for the rest of the trip, he vowed he would not say anything degrading about droids or, most especially, Threepio himself. He also berated himself for not having told Leia about the bounty hunter. Well, it was too late to worry about that. He'd have to go settle his debt with Jabba before this got totally out of hand. Fett had almost killed Leia.

After a while, Leia asked for Han. She looked groggy. Solo assumed it was the drugs.

"Emil wants s'out," she slurred. "Can we drop 'em off near...near Romeal?"

"They gonna be okay?" Emil had Han's sympathy.

"Yesh. He knowsh shomeone there. I've..." Leia's eyes seemed to wander. "I've given him shome creditsh."

"Sure, Princess, I'll adjust our course." Han turned to leave but Leia stopped him.

"Han?" She was motioning him closer. Solo went over and knelt by the side of her bunk.

"Han?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think that we both can be right?"

"What do you mean? Right about what?"

"About..." Leia closed her eyes. "About commitment?"

Han sighed. "I don't know. Maybe it's just one big compromise, sweetheart. Maybe you just gotta know when to get 'uncommitted'."

"Han? I had fun..."

"You did?" No doubt about it, the woman was delirious.

"Shure...lotsh of fun...got to go shwimming...try new foodsh..." Han smiled. Not delirious, just a good sense of humor. "Han?" It was only a whisper.

"Yes, Leia?"

"Ya goin' to be around...for a while?"

Solo reached out and squeezed her hand. "For a while."

Leia smiled and then fell asleep. Han stayed for a while to watch over her.

A few days later Leia was hobbling back to her quarters after a long day of preparations to move the transports to the new Hoth base. Hoth,she thought. A miserable place by Luke's account. Poor Luke.His lips were almost back to their normal size. Leia had apologized for the snowball ruse, but Luke had laughed it off easily. Too easily, as Leia was to learn.

She keyed her door open and limped over to the bunk. Something on the desk caught her eye. It was a small food-pak. There was a note on it.

Heard that you worked through your dinner slot tonight,it read, Han and I think you've been skipping too many meals lately. I know that the mess fare isn't the best, so I picked up something special for you. Enjoy! Love, Luke.

Leia smiled to herself. How sweet!She sat down and eagerly lifted the lid off of the tray. Picking up a fork, she started to dig in. She froze, though, her fork poised over the only "entree" the food-pak featured. The "entree" which was beginning to crawl slowly off the edges of her tray.