Shadows of the Past and Visions of the Future

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Tatooine. It had been twenty years since Varulla'aba had been on the windy world of blowing sands and decrepit buildings made of mud and stone, and for her it represented in one single package everything that was wrong with the universe. The world was run by the Hutts, who cared nothing for anyone or anything apart from their own wealth and twisted pleasures, and it was filled by those who willfully turned blind eyes to the suffering of their neighbors. People who'd turned a blind eye to her own suffering.

She'd been a slave once on this world, completely subservient to a cruel master who'd left her with scars in more than one way. He'd whipped her, he'd beat her with fists, bottles, and belts. And then he'd taken away her innocence. He'd raped her.

Var had only been five years old, just shy of her sixth birthday. She'd been an old five, aged prematurely by her experience, but she'd always had a strange innocence about her despite everything around her, but not after that day. It had tainted her permanently.

Now... Now she was a grown woman, if not particularly strong in the Dark Side, she was at least strong enough to get revenge for what had been taken from her. Now she was capable woman, and he'd pay for what he did to her. Oh he'd scream for mercy before she was done with him, she'd gut him open like a fish and make his last moments of life pure agony. And she'd relish every minute.

And then, when it was all over, she'd have peace. She'd sleep well, she'd sleep freely, and she'd know that man could never hurt her, ever again. And he'd never be able to hurt another little girl either, and that would make a difference.

The pale Twi'lek Sith stood in the door of her room onboard 'the bucket' as Donnie had christened the battered freighter that carried them both across the galaxy. It had been a very long trip, and technically speaking they weren't here for Var's revenge. They were here to recover a Sith artifact for one of the Masters at the Temple. But Var could have cared a lot less about that. What mattered today was her.

She took a deep breath and lowered her gloved hand to the hilt of her silver lightsaber. She traced its contours gently with her finger and contemplated what she was about to do with it, and what she'd done with it. Ever since she'd made it, the weapon had served her faithfully. It fit comfortably in her hand, and there was a sensation of confidence and power that it gave her. She needed the weapon. It was a part of her.

Var clipped it to her belt and stepped out from the room, putting on a mask of confidence despite her own nagging doubts. Would she be ready to face him again? There was only one way to tell. Of course she didn't really have to hide from Donnie. The other, younger and prettier, Twi'lek knew everything. Well, almost everything. She wasn't very adept in the realm of feelings, and she probably couldn't understand just what Var felt. But then, Var didn't expect her to. In fact, she cared enough for her friend that she hoped Donnie would never be able to.

The pale Twi'lek with cream-tinged skin peered around the corridor of the freighter and reached out with her senses to find Donnie in the... cargo bay. That was fortunate, as the entrance/exit was there too. It was just a simple matter of walking down the corridor to the end, then clambering down the bizarre combination ladder/stairs that connected the two.

The very second she was done, she spoke up loudly with as much confidence as she could muster.

"Donnie! I'm going out. I'll return by nightfall."

[The Conman]

Donnie had been in the cargo hold since shortly after they'd landed at Mos Eisley. The ship wasn't in the best shape, with the "enhancements" she'd borrowed from the Sith military being rendered off-line due to...well, she had no idea. They'd taken hits on the way out of Murkhana, and lost bits and pieces on reentry into Zeltros and Tatooine's atmospheres.

Needless to say, Donnie had a repair list as long as he leeku. That meant she had to get an idea of what they had onboard, and what she'd need to beg borrow or steal. For about an hour or so, the tall twi'lek had been taking stock of the tools and spare parts that were kicking around in the cargo bay. Much to her delight, there were a fair number of odds and ends there that she'd "liberated" from the Sith base during their tenure there a few weeks ago.

Still, she knew an engine was needed, as were panels for the outer hull, and possibly structural members. The enhancements were spotty either because of a power issue, or a computer issue. Or some mythical combination there of.

Doneeda huffed, entering the last of the usable spares into her list. It was going to be a long couple of days for her.

That said, she wasn't about to hop on the repairs immediately. Being a Twi'lek, who had spent a good chunk of her life, 12 years or so, on Tatooine, Donnie was used to, and even liked, the heat. The simple fact of the matter was that she wasn't about to let the chance to sunbathe under a pair of suns pass by.

Donnie put the tablet down as Var clambered down the steps from the living areas. She was about to say good morning, but Var beat her to the punch, and confidently declared she was departing.

Uh...Kay...

Donnie muttered, watching Var depart.

- 30 minutes later -

Donnie picked up her towel and admired herself in the mirror in her quarters. The dark blue bikini covered what needed to be covered. But didn't leave a whole lot to the imagination, front or back. She headed outside, down the ramp, and expertly climbed the series of external hand-holds and foot pegs to get onto the top of the bucket.

Donnie then, put her towel down on the left wing, facing the suns, took off her bikini top, and laid down on it, picking up her tablet and scrolling through the online inventories for the local retailers.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Twenty Minutes Later

Var stopped and stood in a patch of sunlight, feeling the heat traveling through her sleeve and into her skin. It was soothing for the moment rather than uncomfortable. But as the day grew older it would be. Even a lifetime away from Tatooine hadn’t changed the little memories. The weather, the smells, and even the sounds were all exactly as she remembered. Even the light breeze flapping against her body was a reminder.

Everything was very much the same as it had been, with the streets and buildings unchanged. Her sense of direction hadn't failed her, and she could feel in her heart that she was almost at her destination, at the site of her lost youth.

She’d tried to forget it, but it still haunted her dreams. Peace was for the weak, but she’d allow herself to seek it this once. Revenge would be sweet, but the rewards were her real goal. Perhaps she’d have been content to leave her past behind if it would disappear, but the universe didn’t work that way. Instead she would seek revenge, the time-honored spirit of justice. She would make him suffer as she had suffered at his hands. And when he was dead the Twi’lek would be at peace whenever she slept, or at the very least her dreams would end with satisfaction.

She turned onto her own street now, her boots kicking up the dust slightly as she walked through the dirty alley. Var could easily recognize the canvas for her own portrait of misery looming ahead of her on the corner. It was a two-story building on the corner of an intersection, with a shop below and living space above. To the uninformed it was a pawn shop, but to the Twi’lek Sith it was a prison cell, the walls of which were forever etched into the darkest recesses of her mind. She closed the distance with confidence, but as she stood on the threshold her mind strayed. For a brief moment she was the frightened little girl again, stumbling into the street and fleeing barefoot down the road through the crowd.

Only today there was no crowd, and the scrawny child had been replaced by a woman strong in the Dark Side. Without further hesitation, Var stepped into the shop and braced herself for the deluge of memories she knew would come flooding back. But she was prepared for them, they would only enhance her hatred and give her more power. Her fingertips brushed the hilt of her lightsaber, its cool metallic presence reassuring her.

The inside of the shop was much the same as it had been two decades ago. Different bits and pieces of junk littered the shelves now, and the interior was even more dingy, but it was unmistakably the same. Still, a few subtle touches indicated a change had taken place. Bits of décor showed another hand was at work here. It was a nuance not lost on Varulla’aba. Someone else besides Tolrin was here, and one was approaching her. She tensed up and turned to look, only to be totally disarmed as an old woman entered the main level of the shop. Perhaps she’d been mistaken and the shop had changed ownership? But no, everything else was the same…

“How can I help you dear?” the woman asked, brushing a strand of graying brown hair away from her face as she slid behind the counter and started to examine the register.

Var was definitely caught off guard, but she wasn’t going to be deterred. “I need to speak with Tolrin.” The Twi’lek kept her voice even and calm, despite the nervous churning sensation in her stomach.

The rather mousy-looking woman nodded. “Oh yes, my husband…” A distant look came into her eyes.

Var’s own eyes widened a good deal. “Your husband?” She repeated the words incredulously. She’d never expected that half-Gamorrean beast to marry anyone. He was a monster, how could anyone love a monster?

The woman didn’t seem to pick up on Var’s distaste, instead making it out as curiosity. “Oh, did you know him then?” She asked politely with all the intelligence of a granite slug.

A fire appeared in the Twi’lek Sith’s eyes, and a sour expression tugged at the corner of her mouth. “You could say that, yes. In fact, I think I’ll wait right here to meet him. I'm sure he'll be surprised to see me again.” She leaned against the wall and crossed her arms.

“I’m sorry dear, but no amount of waiting will help you. He died last year.”

Var’s jaw dropped and she took a half step back. It wasn’t true, it couldn’t be true. How could this be happening? How could revenge be taken out of her hands? It- It wasn’t fair. She needed to kill him, she needed to see him die. Var needed the closure that would bring, and needed it badly. She’d been waiting for the chance to turn the tables ever since she’d become a Sith, and now it was snatched out of her hands.

“No… that just can’t be true, it can’t be.” Var whispered hoarsely as she stared distantly at the woman.

“I’m afraid it is. I know we miss him very much. He was a good and kind man, but he’s gone to be in a better place now.”

Var resisted the urge to scream ‘No he isn’t.’ If there was a god, if there was a hell, he was in it for what he’d done to her. He was neither a good man nor a kind man. The only thing she missed was the chance to kill him with her own hands.

“How did you know him dearie?” The mousy woman asked, running a hand over her bun of graying hair.

With a perverse pleasure Var stared deep into the woman’s eyes and projected all her pain into one glance. “He raped me.” Her voice dripped with loathing, every bit of disgust she felt mingled with the lingering pain to produce a haunting quality to her voice. One she’d never before had, and likely never would again. A lifetime of sadness, pain, bitterness, and contempt blended together in perfect harmony.

The effect of the statement was profound in the woman as well. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She stood there trying to form words and failing, merely producing a stuttering and awkward mess of aborted sentences strung together. “That isn’t- I just- You’re lying!” Tolrin’s widow settled on denial.

“Why would I?” Var snapped. “I was his slave as a little girl, and it wasn’t enough for him to beat me every day. For some reason he had to take the only thing I had left. He took more than just my dignity, he took my innocence from me.”

“No! Tolrin would never do anything like that! Never, you’re lying!” The wife protested loudly. She’d made her choice, and it was to ignore reality.

“Schutta!!” The Twi’lek yelled. “I didn’t travel all the way here just to be called a liar by some wakamancha stupa of a woman who doesn’t know what kind of monster she lived with.”

“How dare you call him a monster! Have you no respect for the dead?”

“Have you any respect for the living? You-“

The woman cut Var off with a genuine flash of anger in her voice. “Be quiet you- you Twi’lek sleeper!”

Var suddenly turned to ice and her hands balled into fists inside her gloves. Her teeth gritted together and she seethed inside. Her green eyes were piercing, and her gaze was withering. When she spoke, her voice was cold. “What... did you say?”

“I,” the woman choked slightly, “I said you were a sleeper and a liar.”

Var raised one gloved hand and took the woman’s throat into a force grip. She kept it at a gentle pressure, just enough to remind her who had the power.

“All I have to do is squeeze and I can end your life. Don’t tempt me.”

“Hey!” A voice called out from the stairs, “What are you doing to my mother?”

Var spun to face the source of the voice. It was a teenage boy, almost a grown man, maybe the better part of ten years younger than she was. He was holding a blaster pistol and pointing it at her. He was the spitting image of Tolrin, only thinner, less lined, and with a full head of hair. His was a face she hated, so much like the face she’d lie awake at night afraid of and furious with. She felt the compulsive need to hurt him, to make him feel her pain.

“This doesn’t concern you, boy,” Var snapped. “Stay out of the business of others if you know what’s good for you.”She tightened her hand, increasing the grip around the woman’s throat.

That was when the youth pulled the trigger on the blaster. Var sensed it a second before it happened, and the red blade of her lightsaber shimmered into existence just in time to catch the bolt and deflect it harmlessly into the ceiling. Simultaneously she grabbed the weapon from his hands telekinetically and threw it across the room.

His jaw dropped, and his eyes focused on the lightsaber in her hand. “You’re a Jedi?” He asked incredulously, wondering how a Jedi could be so mean. He didn’t realize how off-base he was.

Var remained stonily silent.

"No, you can't be! Jedi are good, and bright people who do good. You're just an evil woman who hurt my mother. I bet you don't care about anyone but yourself. Sure, you think you're all that for coming in and scaring an old woman, but you're nothing. You're just a sad, cruel woman. And I hope you learn to change. For your sake."

It was at that moment Var had realized she'd started to cry. Her eyes were misty, and it was getting progressively harder to see. He was right damn it. And that hurt. She was an evil woman, and she hadn't cared about anything besides herself. But why did he have to tell her that at her most vulnerable?

She deactivated her lightsaber and returned it to her belt, seriously contemplating leaving. But no, she couldn't she just couldn't. Something had to give, something had to be done...

The pale Twi'lek woman let out an agonized scream, both mournful and full of fury, and with her bare hands she started to toppled shelves, throw bits and pieces of junk, and cause as much destruction to this cursed place as she could. It was like she was in a daze, taking out her pent-up anger on things instead of people. She threw a set of plates into the wall and watched them shatter, she threw old droid parts onto the floor. She even kicked over a rack with her boot.

And then, abruptly, she stopped.

Sitting on the shelf, right before her, was a little stuffed bantha. It was small, and worn, but it had on its face a happy smile. Gingerly she reached out to touch it, picking it up with gloved hands as if it were a priceless artifact. There'd been one just like this those many years ago, and she'd taken it off a shelf just like this to lie with it on lonely nights when she had no other companionship. It had been there as the sting of her open wounds kept her awake, it had been there when all hope was lost.

It was here now.

Var cradled it to her chest and started to cry freely, walking slowly out of the shop, past the mother and son paralyzed with fear and astonishment, and out into the sandy street. She made it around to the side of the building before she collapsed against it, sinking to the ground and crying, for the first time audibly.

[Jazen]

For a planet that he found utterly horrid and wanted nothing to do with, Tatooine had an amazing gift for finding ways to drag Shine back to it.

The twin suns were already high in the sky when the Black Cat roared down through the planet's atmosphere, bleeding off some of the gathered heat as the ship finally exited the protective layer's around the planet. The ship's cockpit had polarized in response to the sun's glare, meaning the blinding shine from the planet itself was also dulled. For a planet covered in nothing but a vast desert, it had the amazing ability to reflect those deadly light rays into the eyes of any incoming ship.

Shine's mind was only half on the task of guiding his craft down to the planet. Worse come to worse, Vis would easily take over piloting the ship if Shine veered dangerously off course. With that little tid bit ensuring they'd survive landing, Shine had a few extra moments to ponder how in the Force he was coming back here again.

His first visit to the planet had been to simply look for work, a hunt that lead him to the Hutt crimelord known as Greegar. Shine hadn't really wanted to work for the slug, but work had been tight at the time and he needed the money. Of course, that had lead him to joining Sev, Athar and Sam in a mission to free an imprisoned comrade of theirs. The whole event had been quite the wild ride and although they accomplished the task, it had left targets on Sam and Athar's backs. Not even Shine got away unscathed from that day.

He'd vowed not to come back if he could help it after that, on the off chance the Hutt realized he had helped in the escape. It didn't take long to break that vow, however, as circumstances following a job had forced him to make the decision to come back to the planet of sand in order to effect repairs. That time, the visit was actually beneficial to him; he had met Whiskey and brought her aboard his ship as part of his crew. Well, not much of a crew, it being just him, Whiskey and Vis, but it was the only word that described his relation to her at this time. She wasn't a lover and he wasn't even sure she would consider them friends; crew mate fit for now. He'd had sand in his shoes and clothes for a week after that visit, but it balanced out.

And now here he was again, maneuvering the Cat into one of the many hangars that were placed around the city. Not by willing choice mind you. Shine would have rather gone anywhere else in the galaxy to get what he had come here to collect; unfortunately, his search for the parts he required had yielded only one destination. A dealer somewhere in this settlement had what he needed to boost his engines another small percent and he needed that boost. Even if it meant coming to this damned planet once again, with its heat and its glaring sun and its sand that got into EVERYTHING! If he never had to clean sand out of his nether regions again, it would be too soon.

The thinking had managed to occupy the time required for him to land the ship in a thump on the dusty ground of the hangar. Without really paying attention to his actions, Shine powered down the ship, the engines whining down and the groaning of the ship slowly dimming. It was something he'd done thousands of times; it was almost instinctive now. Checking to see if anything was reading wrong, killing power to the engines and making sure he could feed power right back to them at a moment's notice. Double checking the ship's security features to ensure that anyone with grabby hands would lose them painfully if they dared to grab his ship. And finally, reminding his skippy co-pilot that they were here for a deal, not for sight seeing.

Twenty minutes later, equipped for the heat of the Tatooine sun, Shine was making his way through street after street just trying to find the place. His informant had told him it was on the third street from the right of the To-Cosnito Cantina, then the next left, right, left left, up two streets and then finally at the end of a long stretch of second hand shops. Shine mused that he should have just gotten them to upload the coordinates into his ship's nav; then at least Vis could track where he was going.

"We're lost, aren't we?" Vis, settled on his shoulder and covered with a small cloak to shield his inner body from the glaring sun, shifted to make himself more comfortable on Shine's shoulder without being a pain for Shine. He had that done to almost a sweet science now.

"We're not lost. Its the next left, you'll see. And maybe if someone had downloaded the spec of the city when I asked him to, you'd know that for sure."

"The data on this settlement is outdated, by a few years at best. On a planet such as this, the chances of a single store remaining in the same place are in favor of it moving. We're better off asking the locals."

"You know Vis, you still could have downloaded them. Then even if its moved from where it shows on the map, then we'd at least be going to the person who likely forced them to move and as such, get a better lead then if we asked some random stranger on the street. But I'll ask, if only to get out of this fragging heat."

Shine turned towards a small shop nearby, where a old man was just exiting out into the street. Stepping towards him, Shine smiled, excused himself and politely asked where he could find a place that sold engine bits. He couldn't remember the name, but he did know something about the owner. It appeared to be enough to help the man realize what he was looking for, because he lifted his arm and pointed to a nearby street...the street Shine was going to turn down.

"It's at the end of that street. Careful though; the man there likes to overcharge."

Smiling, Shine flicked the man a credit. "Don't worry; I know how to haggle my way out of those charges. Thanks for the help." Turning, Shine quickly moved around that corner, giving Vis a "I told you so" look that got a flicker of color from the droids whiskers in return. Then Shine turned back to worry about his destination, stalking along the long sandy street quickly.

He had almost reached the place when something made him pause. The wind was low that day, so Shine was able to hear, barely, the sound of heaving sobs from just around the corner ahead. A strange sound to hear to say the least, especially in a place that was known for having some of the toughest bad asses this side of the galaxy. Curious as a cat, Shine stepped forward to peer around the corner...and the sight before him actually stalled his breath. A woman, a Twi'lek woman at that, huddled against the side of one of the buildings, a stuffed bantha clutched tight to her chest. She was crying openly, the tears as clear on her face as her sobs were audible to his ears. Behind her, some kind of commotion in a shop just a few steps back, someone inside panicking over something. He put that aside; right now, he wanted to make sure this woman wasn't hurt.

Nodding to Vis, Shine unbuckled his blaster holster, watching around the area for a possible trap, then stepped closer and crouched down to bring himself to her eye level. He kept his hands away from his blaster from now, but Vis already knew that if something went wrong, Shine would be able to draw it in no time flat. And that he was to get clear so Shine could move freely. Taking a breath(and feeling Vis tense on his shoulder as well), Shine cleared his throat to get the woman's attention.

"Miss? Miss, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"Miss? Miss, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"

Varulla'aba practically jumped as a man's voice broke through the sound of a quiet breeze and her own sobbing. She'd lost her guard completely, without a shred of defenses. If someone had wanted to kill her it would have been as simple as pulling a trigger and she would have been gone. And the strange thing was, she wouldn't have minded. There was absolutely nothing left to live for, and every fiber of her being was empty, like a cup whose contents had been dumped out. She felt like an empty shell.

She stared up at him through tear-filled green eyes that had an ineffable sadness about them, locking her gaze onto him and holding it in a long minute of silence. When it was over, she looked away, down at the ground. In a barely audible voice she mournfully whispered a reply.

"I deserve to be hurt."

Var buried her face into the fur of the plush bantha, lamenting her own weakness internally even as she questioned what the purpose was. Everything she'd worked for for years had been for this one chance, to kill the man who ruined her life and left her scarred. Her waking and sleeping thoughts had revolved around him and the retribution she wanted. She'd been so fixated on it, and then- Then he'd been dead and her chance was gone. Everything she'd worked for and dreamed of was gone.

And to top it all off, she'd been weak and not behaved like a true Sith. She should have slaughtered the widow and butchered the son, wreaked her vengeance on the last of that bloodline, punish the son for the sins of the father. She should have delighted in their suffering. But she hadn't. Instead she'd collapsed in on herself, breaking down like some weak- some weak-

Some weak little girl.

Tatooine had been a full circle for her. Twenty years ago in this city her innocence had been ripped away from her, and now- Now she was curled up on the ground with her face planted firmly in a stuffed toy, crying. It was a restoration of her innocence, and something far more important. Despite her corruption, despite following the Dark Side, some small voice had persisted and stayed her hand. Maybe it was because of the exposure she'd had to normal people and a normal life, something unprecedented in her life, but whatever it was, a part of her was changed.

And another part hated herself for it. That was the part that knew she deserved to suffer, because that was the penalty for subpar performance. It always had been. Yes, she'd always been subpar and she'd paid for it. Fate had destined her for what had happened and-

No! That wasn't it, that couldn't be it. She'd never deserved any of that, not the beatings, not the rape, and not the years of feeling inadequate.

She just- She didn't know what to think anymore, what to feel anymore. She was just alive now, breathing in and out, and conscience of little more than her own emotional pain.

[The Conman]

Donnie quietly giggled as a ship nearly missed the control tower. For the third time. She covered the sun with her hand and watched as it made a sudden course correction, narrowly avoiding collision with not only the tower, but a departing freighter.

The twins had a way of causing chaos like that.

As for her job, of finding a replacement engine, she might as well have been turning dirt. The place was plentiful with scrap to repair the hull, and replacement parts for the C&C systems. Engines, engines that would work, was a different story.

She'd found engines bigger, smaller, older, newer, but none that would properly fit. It was somewhat frustrating, having to keep limping around with a destroyed maneuvering thruster, but such was life on the 'rim.

She rolled over, giggling as another ship suddenly veered back onto it's heading, her thong bottoms not leaving anything to the imagination. She clicked the device on, and started scrolling, looking for a co-processor for the computer. Hopefully it would help with the issues she was having keeping the upgrades online.

So far, the ship's shields and jammer had worked precisely once.

After about 20 minutes, she got a hit. It was at a local shop, for a good price. Donnie figured she'd be able to chat the guy up, and in the process, work down his price. To that end, the Twi'lek got up, and put her top back on, then clambered down the side of the ship.

- About 17 minutes later -

Donnie pulled on her tanktop, a rather boring black tanktop with a bright orange Arik logo in the middle, which was a circle with a stylized A and a snake around it. She was wearing shortshorts and a pair of black running shoes. The Twi'lek grabbed her swoop helmet and keys and headed down to the cargo bay.

She flipped the "Rep.Psv" switch after inserting the key, causing the bike's repulsors to come on to simply hover it, as she pushed it down the loading ramp and out into the hot desert suns. She looked around, put on her helmet, and flipped the key to "start". The reactor and thruster suddenly jumped to life, and she grabbed the brake handle as the thruster came to idle.

The young twi'lek grinned, she hadn't had a chance to ride her swoop in awhile. Zeltros didn't count. The open, limitless expanses of desert on Tatooine were her idea of paradise.

Doneeda unceremoniously guided the unwieldy swoop out of the dockyard, and out onto the cities streets. She had a few long straights to her destination, and was determined to get there in a hurry.

She twisted the throttle, and was off in a flurry of sand and dust. The sensation of speed making the woman's heart race, a familiar and very welcome feeling. She twisted and turned through the streets, dodging pedestrians, speeders, and other swoops, while going alltogether too quickly. She chanced a glance at her speedometer at one point, noting it was north of 200kph, eliciting a grin from her.

A minute or two later, she slid sideways into the front of the shop, panting like she'd just had a very satisfying roll in the hay.

Yeah...this is almost better...

She joked to herself, as she dismounted the bike and headed inside.

The shop, was, in a word, a mess. Though, the whole planet was. She remembered that much from her time in the rim, years and years ago. It wasn't that the place was dirty. There was just stuff. Everywhere.

Doneeda figured she'd just get whoever ran the joint to give her some help, and adjusted "things". She pulled her shorts down that tiny amount to give some more skin, made sure the money makers were in view, and walked over to the shopkeeper's desk, with a mock-confused look on her face. Even though she could probably name every single part she laid eyes on, and it's manufacturer, the Twi'lek figured she'd let this one think he was doing her a favour.

Why, what haaave we here...

The owner mused, a scruffy looking human, in Basic.

Donnie did what she did best. Cocked her head with a confused look on her face.

You don't understand me, do yah?

He asked. Donnie did, but she wasn't letting on.

The man let out a guffaw, and boarishly looked Doneeda up and down. He made a gesture, pointing to the floor.

WAIT.

he said, pointing to his wrist, then to the floor.

HERE.

He said loudly. As if he thought she was deaf, not unable to speak basic. Which, Doneeda, was neither.

The man disappeared into the back, and an orange Twi'lek, who was dressed in scruffy rags and had a disgusted look on her face came rocketing out, as if she'd been hit with a cattle prod.

Donnie's eyes nearly fell out of her head. The girl was her spitting image. About 5 years younger, she looked to be about 16, but aside from the coloration, it was like she was looking into a rather dirty mirror. Oddly enough, Donnie hadn't gotten her "twins" until only a couple of years ago. Same with the junk for her trunk. She'd been a tall rake until she was about 17. Not nearly as thin as the girl who stood before her currently, but Donnie had a good idea what she'd look like in a few years.

The man returned ,and, whacked her on the back of the head. Donnie cringed. That would have hurt, he was aiming for the base of her leeku.

Your going to translate. Got it? No tricks, no games, this is a customer, so do your job well and you'll get to eat tonight...maybe.

He said with a wicked grin, pointing to Doneeda.

The girl only nodded, looking mostly at the floor, only glancing at Donnie once.

Thi'a Daros. Ees chop...What you luk fo.

She managed to spit out, in broken Huttese. Doneeda cocked her head, it took her a moment to realize what she was looking at, but when the girl stepped forward, waiting for a response, it became clear.

The Slave's jaw had been broken. At least twice, she was having difficulty opening her mouth, and it looked like one side of her face wasn't responding to her brain's instructions.

Doneeda, unlike Var, wasn't all about vengeance. She felt bad for the girl, but knew that there were far worse fates than what she currently had. It was entirely possible that her current owner hadn't inflicted the wounds. Then again, it was entirely possible that he had. She took a breath, and spoke.

I'm looking for a Markath Ex-187 Co-Processor you guys had on your website.

The girl nodded, and turned around to speak to the man.

Che look fo'ta Mrkat Escx-Uh..Uh..-

She was cutoff, the man open-hand slapped the side of her head, on her ear-cone. Donne cringed. Again. He knew how to hurt her. She was putting the pieces together. It was probably him who did it. She wanted to do something, but, she also wasn't stupid.

He was probably packin'. That and he would have no issue shooting her dead at the first sign of trouble. You don't stay in business on the 'Rim long without that policy. She tucked her anger and pity into a small box in her mind and locked it.

I know what she's after, Do you have any idea how much those Basic lessons are costing me? Do you? and for what, you lazy tramp. Those injuries you have are your fault, if you'd done a better job I wouldn't have had to hurt you...stupid fraking Twi'lek...Gods I overpayed for you.

He paused, pulled out a flask, and took a long swig.

Tell her we have it, and the price.

The girl, who, to Doneeda's surprise wasn't crying, or showing any expression for that matter, turned back to her.

We've id. Prize'a 375 krds.

She said, through a jaw that exhibited a total of 1 inch of movement.

Doneeda nodded, then responded.

375. You serious? You translated wrong, kid. Get it right. Tell him I'll give him 275, not a credit more.

The Twi'lek's eyes suddenly looked fearful, moreso than when she'd arrived.

She looked back at her master.

che'say to-onner-endie-ive...

Surprisingly, the master didn't whack her. He gently responded.

Then tell her to go pound salt, 360, no less...

This went back and fourth until they settled on a price of 320 Credits. Not to shabby. Donnie realized she'd overpayed, but cut a deal whereby she'd give him the difference if he could find an engine for her freighter. The man told her to wait at the shop, he was going to talk to one of his buddies, apparently they had a lead.

As soon as he was out the door, she walked over to the slave, and grabbed her chin. The weak slave really couldn't do much to push the strong mechanic off, and gave up after a few seconds.

Donnie felt with her fingers and looked over the scar on the side of her face.

Did he do this to you?

She asked, looking over at the door to indicate her owner. The slave was looking at the floor, and silently nodded.

[Jazen]

Shine almost jumped himself when the woman he approached jumped in response to his voice. He hadn't considered she'd be distracted from the world that she hadn't noticed his approach, but her reaction to his arrival told him he'd been wrong. For a brief moment, his mind played out what her next action would be; from simply ignoring him to lashing out for no other reason then she could.

Any thought that lead to danger vanished the instant the woman turned her head to look up him. Briefly, Shine recalled where he had seen eyes like hers before...he couldn't exactly when he had seen them, but he knew who he'd seen them on. His mother, on the day Shine had told her he was leaving the planet. They were eyes filled with the pain and sadness of seeing something they had hoped for and cared about being ripped away from them. Shine knew the situation wasn't likely the same here, but it gave him a bit of insight into possible reasons for the sadness.

Shine held her gaze for as long as she held his, deciding silence was probably the best for the moment. When the gaze finally broke, it was the woman who broke it first, glancing back down to the swirling sand at their feet before muttering something. Shine just barely managed to catch it, and for the briefest moment wondered what in the sand hells she was talking about. Then he realized, or rather came to the conclusion, that she had done something terrible and was feeling equally terrible about it. Shine wasn't about to assume that yet, but it might give him a basis later for understanding.

Nodding to Vis, Shine stood and moved closer to her. Her body language told him he should comfort her, simply be a being who she could bury herself into until she gained control of her own emotions. Shine could have done that, but he'd run into too many women of late to know that wasn't always the best course. The thought made him pause internally for a moment as he asked himself a question; how the heck did he keep running into strange women in this galaxy? Then he pushed the thought aside and reached over to put a hand on the woman's arm and shoulder.

"Hey hey there...no one deserves to be hurt. Come on...the heat of the day is coming. Let's get you settled down inside somewhere and maybe, if you're willing, you can tell me what's wrong. Easy does it now..."

When he gently pulled her up, he found she didn't seem to resist the action at all. She was likely buried in her emotions, letting them dominate her thoughts so that anything else that happened didn't matter to her. Frowning in his mind, Shine acted as both her legs and mind, guiding her across the street and down a few shops to a nearby building that was listed as a small cantina. Passing through the arched doorway into the dimly lit nest of filth, Shine helped the woman down the small set of steps and started guiding her towards a booth away from the main group of patrons.

"Oi, you! We don't accept droids in this establishment O' mine. Either get rid of it or get out of my sight."

Shine glanced up to the bartender, scowling at the man, then sighed and turned to look at Vis on his shoulder. Whispering, he tilted his head closer to him so that no one would overhear him, save the woman perhaps. "Head outside and get yourself to the roof. There's likely to be a place for you to charge if you want; otherwise, find a way to sneak inside and wait for my signal. I might need you later."

"Crawling through vents again...I feel like such a pest."

"Think of it more like a high stakes recon mission. Remember, you get to be all sneaky like and stealthily."

"Oh...I like that idea. Vistal the spy." Beeming, the little droid bounced off his shoulder and quickly vanished out the cantina's door into the heat of the day. Waiting until his friend was out of sight, Shine then turned back to the woman, who'd he settled into a seat just before Vis took off. Seating himself across from her, Shine signaled the bartender for a pair of simple drinks. When they were ready, Shine walked over and paid the man for them before returning to the table with the drinks in hand, placing one in front of the woman while he sipped at his. He'd gotten some simple tea like drink for them both, deciding a heavy drink wasn't best for this situation.

"So...I'm Shine. Who might I have the pleasure of addressing?"

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"Hey hey there...no one deserves to be hurt. Come on...the heat of the day is coming. Let's get you settled down inside somewhere and maybe, if you're willing, you can tell me what's wrong. Easy does it now..."

Var shook her head slowly from side to side, indicating her reluctance to believe those soothing words. Maybe he was right and no one deserved to be hurt, but if anyone did it was her. She was a horrible person, and even worse, she was a lost person. She couldn't banish that man's words from her mind.

You're just a sad, cruel woman.

Sad. Cruel. Everything she'd been ashamed of and dominated by since her fall to the Dark Side. She'd been lonely and living in constant fear. The only lights in her life had been Donnie and Koeing, and she hid them away just as secretly.

Yes, she was cruel in a way. And now she felt guilt over it. So many wrong acts, and so much violence in her life... All the hate, all the darkness... It was almost too much to bear. It was a heavy burden to bear, one she didn't think she could carry any more. Not on top of her burden already.

And I hope you learn to change. For your sake.

How could she change? She'd already made her choice the day she left the Jedi. She was doomed now, doomed to walk the road of a Sith... But how could she still be a Sith when she'd failed so utterly to do what a woman strong in the Dark Side would do? It was as if there was enough good left in her to taunt her, to mock her inadequacy as a Sith Initiate. But there wasn't enough good left in her to be a Jedi.

Both doors were shut on her now. She was no Jedi, with a quick temper and a sharp tongue, but she was no Sith either. She was weak, and she had more internal anger than external now. Just a week or so ago she'd been able to kill a man for insulting her. Now? Now she wasn't so certain she'd be able to repeat that feat.

What had done this to her? How had she come to this point?

Var vaguely felt the stranger lift her up to her feet, and she docilely followed him along as he politely but firmly lead her onward. Her eyes were looking but not truly seeing. Yes, there was a familiar street in front of her, and the bright sun overhead, but it didn't matter to her. She wasn't concerned with it. Nothing seemed to exist apart from her and the stranger.

The Twi'lek just felt incredibly lonely now. Donnie was nowhere to be found, and even if she was there her comforting skills were limited, and Koeing? The love of her life was gone, alone somewhere far away from her arms. Everyone who ever understood her or cared for her was so far away or dead, and her only chance at peace was gone.

Without revenge, how could her life truly be her own again?

Silent tears fell again, staining her alabaster cheeks as the man walked her into a cantina.

She must have been quite the site there, a grown woman in black robes with a lightsaber at her belt, clutching a child's toy to her chest and weeping openly. However she was beyond caring about what other people thought. They didn't matter, none of it did.

Var was placed into a seat and didn't resist, instead passively staring at the wall as a gloved hand stroked the fur of the toy bantha as if it were a living creature instead of an inanimate object.

Everything had changed, except that one toy. Could it have been like Var, unwanted so badly as to go twenty years without being claimed? It had taken her that long to be wanted by another soul, truly loved and cared for. Well maybe she was providing the same for the bantha that Koeing had for her.

The stranger slid into the seat across from her, placing a steaming mug before her and introduced himself.


"So...I'm Shine. Who might I have the pleasure of addressing?"

Var wiped her tears from her cheeks with the backs of her black leather gloves and stared at him with a distant look. There was no questioning she wasn't recovered yet from her ordeal.

"... Var..." She whispered as she reached automatically for the tea, raising the mug to her lips and sipping the hot, soothing liquid.

It started it's work immediately, and she started to feel a little more at ease. The world wasn't over. She was still alive and whole. Yes, there was nagging pain and dismay still playing out in her eyes, but she was at least trying to fight them now.

"My name is Varulla'aba." She managed in a voice a little more confident, but still obviously shaken. The depression was also woefully apparent in her voice, and she sounded like a woman who didn't know what she was living for.

[Jazen]

It took a considerable amount of will to keep Shine from getting up and sitting on the same side of the woman, throw his arm over her shoulders and pull her into a consoling hug. The woman "bled" sadness and Shine didn't need to be no Jedi to see that. It was written in the way she'd walked on their way here, in the distant and blank looks in her eyes, in the despair that lined every inch of her frame, This woman was in pain of the emotional kind; pain that wasn't always mended.

But Shine remained where he was, silent, his golden eyes watching and waiting for the woman to come back to at least this plane of existence. Hopefully she'd be willing to speak; even if she didn't, Shine wouldn't hold that against her. People were entitled to secrets and Shine had no right to ask this woman about hers. If she chose to speak of why her eyes were so empty, then he would listen. Otherwise, he'd attend to her as best he could and then get her to where she needed to go.

He wasn't without his cautions though; this entire thing could be a massive act in order to scam him. It was one of the reasons Vis was hidden above, watching, waiting. If something went wrong, it would be his job to find Whiskey and appropriate her assistance in either saving Shine's bacon or helping him deal with the matter. So far, parts of this situation made him skeptical, but for the most part, he saw no con or scam in this situation. Shine just hoped it stayed that way.

Finally, the woman's eyes fluttered to life and a reply to his question managed to find its way past her lips. But it was barely spoken, a whisper on the wind, as if she was unsure if that was who she was anymore. The woman took that moment to indulge in the beverage Shine had gotten for her, warm clouts of steam floating to vanish in the musty air of the cantina.

The tea must have had special effects Shine wasn't aware of, because in the moments after her first drink, a light started to burn in those lifeless eyes. The pain was still there, waging war within her, but it wasn't alone any longer. Now it had competition for dominance within this Twi'lek; determination. Will. Life. The change was subtle in her body language, but Shine knew it when it happened, especially as it translated into her speaking voice finding a much easier to hear pitch.

"Varulla'aba, is it? A most wonderful name. And if my ears didn't fail me, you whispered Var before, so I'm going to assume that's what most people address you by. In any case, a pleasure to meet you Var."

Shine took that moment to take a drink from his own beverage before laying it to the side and turning his eyes back to her. With a finger, he pointed to the stuffed bantha clutched within her grip.

"Now, I know its likely none of my business, but I'd like to ask anyway. Feel free to ignore it entirely but...might I ask why you think you deserve to be hurt? Would it have something to do with that bantha you're clutching so protectively to your being, as if it were your life and you didn't wish to part with it? I'm sorry if I'm being intrusive but it just strikes me odd to see a grown woman making steam on the sand."

An odd way of asking why she was in tears, but she looked smart. It wouldn't take much to figure out what he was talking about.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

"Varulla'aba, is it? A most wonderful name. And if my ears didn't fail me, you whispered Var before, so I'm going to assume that's what most people address you by. In any case, a pleasure to meet you Var."

Var listened to the sound of the man's voice, trying to let it soothe her. Someone had seen fit to talk to her, and was trying to comfort her. That was more than most had ever done for her in her life. Just her few friends really. Donnie. And before her Jarvik, and then- What had been her name? Jia. That was it. A Mirialan youngling Var had met as a teenager, maybe a year or so before her fall to the Dark side.

They'd been the only people to care now. Them and this stranger.

Strangers. They'd proven to be so much more than she'd expected so far, and they had a knack for turning into more than just nameless faces. Everyone she was close to had started as a stranger once, including Koeing. And he'd turned out more special than she could ever imagine.

Even the mundane ones that she'd encountered, like that Echani on Zeltros, had been surprisingly empathic and kind to her. It was a far cry from the ranks of the Sith, where she'd have been killed for her weakness by now. Luckily no one had witnessed her collapse but her would-be victims and this man.

Her hackles were down right now. She had to admit there was the possibility that if she wasn't an attractive woman he might not have been interested, but that didn't matter. She liked hearing what he had to say. Wonderful name. A pleasure to meet her.

She'd never been a pleasure to meet before in her life, ranging from a nuisance to an obligation, but never pleasure. She wasn't pleasant, being hardly sociable, and dismally introverted. But he'd kindly said it anyway, working to cheer her up.

And her name. No one had ever said it was wonderful. It meant midnight in Twi'leki, but no one had ever commented on it, calling it beautiful or thinking it to be special. It had simply been too long for most, and it had been clipped to Var, cut short for the sake of convenience on alien tongues. A sign of her past, severed from Twi'lek culture.

But this man, this Shine, liked her name. Or at least he could say that without lying through his teeth. Either way, she was grateful for that, and she tried to smile feebly.

"Now, I know its likely none of my business, but I'd like to ask anyway. Feel free to ignore it entirely but...might I ask why you think you deserve to be hurt? Would it have something to do with that bantha you're clutching so protectively to your being, as if it were your life and you didn't wish to part with it? I'm sorry if I'm being intrusive but it just strikes me odd to see a grown woman making steam on the sand."

Var stared down at the bantha she was holding and again realized how odd she must have looked. Fortunately she didn't care. That stuffed animal was her comfort right now, her special something. She wasn't giving it up for anything. She could tell from the stains and the frayed fur that this was the very same bantha she'd held close to her chest as a little girl, and she wasn't about to let go of it again.

As to why she deserved to be hurt... There were just so many reasons. A lifetime of everything done wrong, of bad choices and of wrong choices. She'd let so many people down, failed to live up to expectations, lowered herself below the standards. She'd left behind failed lives without so much as a word goodbye. For all that, she deserved to be hurt.

The only thing to do was to try to give him the concise form of her story and hope he'd understand why she was so distraught. It took a great deal of effort to open her mouth and form the requisite words, but she began. Slowly.

"I- used to live here in Anchorhead as a little girl. A long time ago. A man hurt me. Badly." The haunted look in her eyes as she let those words roll across her tongue provided the subtext. Hurt meant more than mere pain. it meant disgrace, an injury to the soul as much as the body.

She decided there was no sense talking around it though, and with a pained look she leveled with him. "He beat me for three years and he raped me. I was his slave."

With great force of will, Var reached down to her tea and raised it to her lips again, letting the warm liquid flow down her throat. It soothed her enough to continue, though her voice was still taut and she seemed tense again.

"I came back here because I wanted to face him, I wanted to confront him for what he did to me. But he was dead. I wanted to kill his widow and his son, I wanted to so badly. But I couldn't. I screamed, I threw things. I toppled shelves. And then I saw this and- and-"

Var clutched the bantha closer to her chest and started to cry again, tears rolling down her alabaster cheeks, staining her exquisite skin. These tears weren't accompanied by sobs now, just a tightened voice.

"This toy was the only company I had until I was six. There was nothing else for me. And it was still there, just like nothing had changed."

The pale Twi'lek buried her face into the rather mangy fur and let her tears absorb into it for a few long seconds before she looked up again, working to regain her control. She tucked it under her chin, folding her arms over each other and it. On the whole, she looked very pathetic, like a lost little girl. And like a lost little girl, the one thing she had was her faithful companion toy.

In a way it might have been strangely adorable if it wasn't so sad.

"So now you know," Var whispered.

[Jazen]

The woman was silent for the most part. Quiet, withdrawn, her attention more fixed on the steaming mug before her, the toy in her hands or, as Shine noted, a vacant part of space behind him. Most men might have become impatient at his point, wanting her to get it out or to simply let them get something out. Well, Shine wasn't looking for her "company" in the regard, though a part of his mind did register her beauty.

No, his mind was dominated by the part of him that had been buried inside him during his upbringing. The man that might have been a soldier, a good one at that, or if that route didn't work, an officer of the law. He had seen a woman in what appeared to be distress and he approached her with the intent to help. Now that hardest part of wanting to help was arriving; the waiting part. Var had obviously gone though some ordeal that had stung her deeply; pushing for it would either make it worse or force her to recline in on herself. Neither were options Shine knew were practical. He'd had enough experience with those in pain to know that. Var had to want to talk about it; there was nothing else to it.

So Shine watched her, giving her calm, reassuring smiles. He didn't move to her, didn't make any moves towards her, he simply held his gaze on her and waited. It was fast approaching the time when he had expected to tell her to nevermind when suddenly she just..opened up.

Words came slowly from her at first, weak as her voice struggled to find strength they no longer had in the face of her trauma. Then they came, a bit stronger then before,as emotion found a way to give her voice the proper purchase required to transmit her pain clearly for him to hear. Her story was short and to the point, but it told him much as the words rolled from her tongue to find his ear. Life on Tatooine as a young girl. Taken as a slave most likely from the sound of her words. Treated horribly and used in a manner that no living being deserved to suffer, let alone a small child. She didn't say how she got away or what she'd been doing leading up to her return, but the anger and pain in her voice at what she should have done and couldn't told him she'd lived a life that made her tough enough to believe she was capable of murder. And then it was all stripped away from her by hands not her own and amidst it all, she'd found something that tied her to the past.

Tears were falling now, an unstoppable tide as the pain of her past overcame her strength. Shine's eyes watched her pain, watched her sob uncontrolled into that bantha toy of hers. When she finally lifted her head, the little girl of her youth was there for a moment, shining in her eyes and in her expression. Then the woman returned and it made the scene even more saddening.

For a few long moments, Shine said nothing and did nothing. Then, moving slowly, he drank another sip from his drink, set it down on the table and stood. Stepping slowly, he walked around to her side of the table and extended an arm. Slowly, showing he meant no harm, he placed it on her shoulder and gave her a firm, reassuring grip. "That was no easy tale to tell Var. I'm sorry I asked, but I'm glad you told me. It's hard to tell these kind of things, I know, especially to a stranger. The fact that you could shows you're stronger then you look; and I'm sure that's the woman that came here today and will return stronger then ever because of this."

Then he sat, slowly and easily, beside her and turned to face her. "But I won't ask that woman to take command back so easily or until she's ready. Cry the tears you feel need to be cried, release your pain. Then surpass it. I'm not gonna lie to you Var, not killing them was for the best. The pain he inflicted on you can never be taken back and inflicting harm on those he might have cared about matters for not when the man himself is dead. He proved that he was a monster that could possibly have changed; don't fall to the level that he once was towards you.

For what it's worth, I'll listen if you want. Or just stick around for a while to keep you company. Strange thing to do for a stranger but well, I'm just that strange sometimes."

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Var listened in silence to Shine as he talked to her, his voice soothing and steady, a reassuring constant presence for her now. And she had to admit she was glad it was him, a stranger. Donnie wouldn't understand these emotions the way some did, would have trouble realizing the grief and the agony she felt. And she was ambivalent if it was Koeing. He was strong, very much so. And she was afraid he'd be angry with her for her failings, her inability to do the powerful thing. But still, he was her one love, and she hoped he'd understand. Hoped he'd accept her weakness, and understand the way she was. She... wanted him to love her as she was, with her weaknesses as well. And she certainly hoped he would. But they were both Sith, a dangerous and fickle breed.

The firm presence of the man's hand on her shoulder provided a measure of physical contact she could embrace, and she barely resisted the urge to rest her head against it as she simply closed her eyes and listened.

She was strong? Stronger than she looked? Koeing had described her as strong too, and maybe, just maybe, there was something to it. She'd lived through so much after all, and she'd even managed to talk about it now. Now that she'd done so...

Var didn't feel judged. She didn't feel lessened. In fact, there was something almost therapeutic about it, about admitting what had happened to someone she didn't know, about not facing condemnation for her trauma, not facing scorn or mockery. Maybe... Maybe it did make her feel strong.

That was an odd change. She'd always thought of it as lessening her as a person, showing she was damaged and weak. The idea of people seeing her as strong for living through it was unusual, and foreign to her, but maybe there was something to it. Maybe she'd just known the wrong people all her life, the people who proved the rule as an exception. So far what she'd seen supported this strange new conclusion, and she had to say it was a bit of a relief.

The hand was removed from her shoulder and Shine sat next to her, looking at her with those catlike eyes. Var opened her own green ones and made eye contact. He spoke, and she listened again intently, and part of what he said rattled around in her mind.

Could possibly have changed.

She was of two minds. One part of her failed to see how the man who beat and raped a five year old girl could ever be anything but a monster, and then another part of her looked at the facts. A shocked family who genuinely didn't seem to recognize the man she'd described, and now her toy bantha still in the shop twenty years later? Maybe- Maybe he'd known what he'd done was wrong. Maybe he'd regretted it and kept her toy as a memory of his guilt. Maybe he'd genuinely changed and atoned for what he did. Maybe he'd died having done the right thing for once.

An extremely thoughtful look played out on her alabaster face as she thought over that possibility. She did take note of his offer however, to stay by her side and keep her company. She appreciated that. It wasn't every day that strangers wanted to spend time around Varulla'aba.

"I," Var swallowed as she began again, wiping tears from her large eyes, "I don't really know what to talk about. I don't ever talk about any of this with anyone. It's not like I ever had family to talk with. I can barely remember Ryloth, and I'm not even sure I remember my mother's name right. Just her face. No one was ever around for me, I was alone. Always alone. I don't even know what happened to my parents, whether they're alive or dead. For all I know they could both be out there somewhere, giving up all hope of ever seeing me again. The way I gave up all hope of seeing them..."

Var held the mug of tea in her slender, black-gloved hands as she blinked the moistness out of her eyes. She took a sip of the warm liquid and worked to let it restore her strength, building up her emotional integrity again.

She hadn't cried like this since she'd been drunk on Murkhana with Donnie, which had been the first time she'd ever told another soul what happened to her. Flash forward a few weeks and free of substances she was sharing with a total stranger. That was either bravery and fledgling self-confidence or utter stupidity. Maybe even both.

"This probably sounds foolish to you, a girl missing her long lost parents. They're probably dead and I'm probably an orphan now."

[Jazen]

Add another point to Shine's lucky stars. There was a fifty fifty chance his approach to helping this woman would work out as he hoped it would. Not many women in this grip of depression responded kindly to a physical presence, but Shine knew there were some that needed something real to cling to, to bring them back to reality. Again, benefits of having a family that practically breathed law and order.

Tears continued to spill down from her eyes and Shine suppressed an urge to wipe them away with his own hand. He had done what was needed to help her regain her senses and seeing as his only motive here was to help do that, going that extra step was unneeded. Everything was in her court now; if she wanted to talk, he would listen. If she wanted him to leave, he would. If she wanted...well, he doubted that and he wouldn't be able to offer that anyway. He had those priorities someplace else. But if he was any good at reading people, then she was likely too....

Her words came out then, as she wiped those tears away herself. What she did manage to say wasn't much, more words of a past she had lost and didn't think she could ever regain again. Talk of her parents, who she believed were long dead or someplace she'd never see them again. Shine couldn't relate in that regard; he knew both his parents would still be alive and kicking. And the only person that was keeping him from seeing them again was himself. Returning to Corellia...well, that would be something he'd need an another reason then just seeing his family to go back for. Those memories and the likely vengeance that would come with it were something he didn't want to revisit so eagerly.

When she quieted, Shine let out a sigh and leaned back in the seat a moment, tending to his own thoughts. When they were handled, he leaned forward again so he could maintain eye contact before speaking.

"Nah, it's not foolish at all. Provided parents are good to you, every being would miss their parents after a long time. In your case, much longer then just a trip to some fancy place for a week. So nope, not foolish at all.

Now, I wouldn't go thinking along those lines. Your parents are probably alive, well and doing just fine on Ryloth or wherever they come home right now. So let's not compound your worries with something I believe you don't have to worry about.

Actually, I've got an idea. I've got some business to handle here still, sunblast the fact that only this planet has the business I need, but after that I'm completely free. If you'd like, I could make a trip to Ryloth to look into your parents. Maybe take you to look into your parents if you've got nothing better waiting for you. And now that I think about it, what is your parents names? My, um...droid is fairly good looking people up, so he might be able to find something out in the meantime."

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Var ran a gloved hand over her lekku as she gathered her memories about her. She closed her green eyes and started to calm herself, to let the memories flow out, trying to remember their names and their fates as best as she could. There were force techniques to use to improve concentration and to help remember, and she used them now, reaching back into the shadows of her past to find those bright and airy early days, and to remember when they'd come crashing down.

It had been when she was very little, maybe 3, but thanks to the memory enhancing techniques things started to become clear. With clarity came discomfort as she remembered the look on her mother's face. The look on her face as an armored man ripped her away. Her last words.

“Make me proud Varulla! I love you!”

And then there'd been her father. His tears, his strong face haunted by events. She remembered how he'd go to his work every day, and then one day he'd never come back for her. She'd played with her wood blocks alone for hours, waiting and waiting for her only caregiver. She'd been hungry, she'd been alone.

And then with no family, she'd been easy prey for slavers, picking a little girl who could grow into the job. She had no living relatives left. Terana and Vorin had been the only people in the whole galaxy that she'd had. Without them she was lost and unhappy. But the ignorance of a child was a shield against the hurt of a grown woman. Unfortunately that shield had been ripped away from trauma, and she'd grown up faster than any little girl should have to.

The slender Twi'lek woman took a deep breath and began to relate what she'd just remembered, in a steady voice despite her desire to shiver.

"Terana'aba and Vorin'aba. I was barely more than a toddler when they took my mother away, men in armor. A Mandalorian. And then my father disappeared one day. He went to work and never came back. He left me alone. And then after what seemed like days, they took me as a slave."

Var sighed and hung her head as she stared angrily at her tea. It was amazing how sadness could turn to anger. And how the opposite was just as true. She was angry again at what had happened to her, about the loss of her parents. But it was outside her control, and all she could do was make herself sad through unrealized anger.

She hadn't even brought herself to challenge it, because despite her years as a Dark Jedi and her brief time as a Sith, she wasn't that tainted by the Dark Side. Her conscience was still intact. She was scared yes, and angry, but evil? No. The pale Twi'lek cuddling a stuffed toy wasn't evil. That trait had been averted by fate, or the Force. Her destiny didn't lie with the Sith did it?

The alabaster woman drained the last of her tea and looked Shine in the eye.

"Your... kindness... is appreciated. Not very many people have been kind to me in my life. I don't know why you'd help a random stranger like this. I don't know if I'd do the same thing if the roles were reversed..."

That was a truth about her she wasn't comfortable with. But there was time to change, wasn't there? Or was it too late for her?

[Jazen]

Shine watched quietly while Var turned her attention to what he guessed was the past. Shine knew he could be completely wrong on that note, but his thoughts weren't without backing. Var had reached up and calmly stroked a hand down her lekku before her attention to him waned. And Twi'leks, as Shine knew, had their memories stored within those long fleshy extensions. They were also used in relation to their emotions he believed, but that was for another time.

While he waited for her to collect her thoughts and words, Shine motioned to the bartender to bring them another order of the same drinks. Doubtless another cup of warm tea would help her out and Shine himself could use another drink to wet his thirst. By the time Var finally opened her eyes and turned to speak,, their new drinks had arrived. Carefully placing the tea before her and sliding her empty cup away, Shine set down his own drink to listen.

Shine wasn't the only one listening to Var speak. Above them, neatly fit into the cantina's dusty old ventilation systems, Vistal sat. As per Shine's request, Vis had quickly exited the cantina and found the fastest route to gain access to the building's roof. After that, it was simple to uncover the protected vent that allowed him access to the many durasteel vents that filtered air out of the old building. What took longer was finding where Shine himself was sitting, but the smuggler had even been smart about that. He'd chosen a spot directly under one of the vent openings, a fact that allowed Vis the ability to hear everything that was said uncontested by the wall.

As the woman Var spoke her parents names, Vistal quickly recorded them, contemplated how they were spelled based on the way she had sounded them out, then when he was reasonably sure he had the correct spelling, put those names through a search within his vast database. He also put through several possible alternate ways to spell them, to cover all the bases.

Below, kept his attention on Var. "Hey, thank my parents. They're the ones who managed to drill this sense of goodwill in me. As for why I'd help...no reason really. I saw someone who looked like they could use someone to talk to. So I talked to them. Besides, one can never have too many people they could call friends; especially one with a special gift not many have."

Sighing, Shine heard his datapad beep and glanced down to see what the incoming message was. After quick scrolling it, a smile crossed his face and he turned back towards Var.

"Listen; I've got my associate looking into your parents. It'll take a bit though, depending on certain factors, ranging from a few hours to a few days. I'm betting more on the latter one but surprises do come in threes. While we wait, I was wondering if you'd like to accompany me while I handle what I came here to do. You never know; his search might yield something quicker then even I can anticipate."

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Thank his parents.

What would she have been like if they'd been there for her, to raise her normally? How differently would Var have turned out? She'd have the same eyes and fair skin, but underneath the appearances how different would she have been? Would she still seethe with anger, feel powerless? Would she chafe under the control of her own dark nature, still struggle to resist? Or would she have been like any of the normal people she’d encountered so far away from the ranks of Force-users. They’d have raised her to be normal, and a happy young woman.

She took a sip of the refilled tea and mulled over her answer to this unexpected bit of charity. It wasn’t something easy to grasp, that a total stranger would undertake a daunting investigation to find out about her parents. Shine was beyond generous. And that was just so foreign to her, someone reaching out to take all these efforts on her behalf without expecting a single thing in return. Just because she was sad.

Kindness. Generosity. Charity. She’d known of the concepts yes, but never seen them in practice so dramatically before. Among the Jedi no one ever would have helped like this. They’d have lectured her about non-attachment, about giving up your ties to the past. Not one of them would have launched an investigation. And the Dark Jedi? She knew better than to expose one iota of this to them, knowing it was dangerous. Her entire past could be a tool against her among the followers of the Dark Side. It was vulnerability.

And here outside the groups of Force users, her past wasn’t a liability or a thing to be hidden. It was simply a part of her, and no one looked down on her for it. And that was such a welcome change that she actually managed a thin smile. Her full, pale lips came up ever so slightly into what barely qualified, but was still a tired smile.

”Thank you Shine. I’ve waited over two decades, I can afford to wait a few more days…

She pulled off one of her tight-fitting black leather gloves, and rubbed her eyes with her pale hand, slender fingers playing over her face as she rubbed away the tears, regaining composure fully.

There was no doubt that today Varulla’aba had changed had found a new person inside her. Her hard shell had cracked away and revealed another woman who had been waiting to emerge. And now she needed to nurture this side of her, to turn her back on what had once been.

”I need to repay you for this somehow. Take me with you. It’s been years, but I still know my way around the city. I’ll never be able to forget it, so I might as well put it to use and help you find whatever you’re looking for.”

[Jazen]

The hint of a smile on Var's features was the first sign that Shine's words were truly hitting home. It wasn't much of an indication, but Var was no longer crying and her entire body composure had changed, from one of sorrowful defeat to one that Shine would come to expect of a woman like her. He'd seen the shiny cylinder clipped to her belt, and it didn't take much to put two and two together. Var was a Jedi...or perhaps had once been one, like Ervisa was. There was several other ways she could have that weapon but they were less likely.

No need to press that point, not unless there was a good reason for it. Smiling himself, Shine reached over across her shoulders and gripped the far one firmly, shaking her lightly as he chuckled. "I'm glad to be of some help. Oddly enough, I don't think we'll even have to wait that long, but you never know."

He waited calmly for her to finish recovering her composure, taking the moment to finish downing his drink. Nothing truly alcohol, as he had no doubt he'd be flying again soon enough, but something sweet enough to kick his mind awake, and cold enough to dull the desert heat. Setting the empty mug down, Shine slid out from his seat and shook his clothes of the dust and sand that had accumulated upon them.

Turning back to Var, Shine lifted a hand to assist her in rising from her seat. "It would be my pleasure to keep you in company for a while longer. It'll give me something to focus on other then the blaring heat of this planet's wicked suns. And of course, I welcome anyone who knows which way to go in this sand blasted maze."

Shine would wait till she was ready before tossing the appropriate number of credits to the bartender for the drinks and leading the way out of the cantina. On his way out, Shine whistled sharply just before he slipped through the curtain that shielded the open doorway. The blazing heat of the Tatooine suns quickly reasserted their power upon him, the sweat lines forming so fast Shine swore they had never left.

Var was quick to follow in his wake and a moment later, a shadow jumped from the building to his shoulder. Vis perched easily upon his partners shoulder, settling in to tilt his head at Var, his perceptors wide and curious. "Oh yes, this is my companion, Vistal. Meet Varulla'aba Vis, or Var as seems easier to call her."

"Greetings to you, Ms Var. I should have the results of the search in short order, depending on your mother's level of activity in society and several other factors. I hope." Chuckling, Shine waved them forward, and motioned for Var to take the lead, giving her the name of the shop they needed to find; Ruff's Maintenance and Garage, along with the possible location for it. After that, it was all in the hands of what Shine figured was a truly capable woman.

[Lemur, The Kool-Aid Guy]

Var nodded to the diminutive droid as it spoke politely to her, and she blinked a little in response as well. She was never quite used to how to react to droids. She'd never really been around any of them, and to an extent she resented them. No, not them. The universe. It was a strange universe that had droids of every make and model to do every task imaginable, that still had slaves and slavery.

No, she didn't resent droids. She just didn't know how to deal with creations that emulated life so well. In a way the old bottom-of-the-line models were easier to interact with because they were less like people. Vistal seemed much more like a sentient being to her, and that made him harder to deal with.

She managed a polite reply and a nod, which was all she could really manage.

Luckily she was a survivor. She'd lived through hell and back, and she could be crushed, but never broken. Already she was recovering. Life had taught her many of the wrong lessons, but it had instilled certain values in her. The morning after every beating, at the dawn after she'd been crying, life continued. Life was continuing now too.

She tucked the stuffed bantha under her arm and stepped out from the doorway and into the desert heat, something she'd grown used to from her earliest days. She was from a desert species after all, and she'd spent her childhood here. Or what passed for it. Tatooine was unfortunately in her blood. While sweat was forming on Shine, her skin remained by and large normal.

Their destination was a maintenance shop and garage, one which sounded vaguely familiar. Of course in Anchorhead they were all circled around the spaceport, kept convenient. And they weren't all that far from the hangars. That was the way it was on a settlement whose major attraction was as a stopping point. The cantinas, the shops, and the garages were all centered around the ports. The residences were on the outskirts.

She found her way along the edge, scanning the Huttese signs one by one at the dusty entries of the ships, heading to every maintenance yard she could remember on a planet that only hand a handful. As it happened, it was the second one she remembered, under new management with a new name.

Var walked through the door into the shop, coming to an abrupt stop as she saw Donnie, face to face with a scarred orange Twi'lek girl, maybe 16, and painfully skinny. And with a look in her eye.

That was what made Var freeze. She knew that look. There was a hunted and pained look in those eyes, old eyes that had been through something. Something terrible.

For one brief instant of eye contact, Var was pulled back in time. She was lying on the ground with the sting of a whip cracking across her back. And then, just as fast, it was over. She was back in a dusty shop on Tatooine, staring at a vision of what she could have been like if she hadn't been rescued.

A pained look appeared in her green eyes and she took a few hesitant steps closer, before whispering two words in Huttese.

"How long?" She asked, completely ignoring Donnie.

[The Conman]

Donnie was opening her mouth to respond when the entrance bell rang, heralding a customer's arrival. She turned around, hoping the man had come back, instead, it was Var.

FRAK.

Was the only thought that went through her head at that particular moment.

Donnie wasn't a hero. Though she thought what was happening to the girl was terrible, she literally couldn't do anything about it. Not only was she terrible with a blaster, but she wasn't a fighter. Donnie's solution, if any, would be to toss the girl the keys to a speeder and say "run".

However the look forming on Var's face, and the fact that this girl's similarities to Var's situation were so striking, it didn't take a Jedi to figure out what was going through her lighter-skinned companion's head. Though nothing prepared her for Var's question.

How long?

The youngest, thinnest of them all, looked at Var intently after being asked. If she was thinking, she wasn't giving it away. Truth be told, she didn't have an answer.

The twi'lek wasn't entirely sure herself how old she was. Old enough to have a figure, old enough to draw glances, but any real number? She truly had no idea, which her small shrug of her shoulders and minimal shake of her head seemed to indicate.

Donnie, this time, piped up.

You don't know, do yah?

She said, trying to keep her usually loud voice in check.

Why don't we start with your name?

Donnie continued. In huttese.

The girl's orange eyes darted from her, back to Var, then back to her then finally settling on Var.

An awkward silence passed. Donnie finally gave in first, realizing she was expecting a directive, not an implication. She smirked, then asked.

Uhm, hon, what's your name?

Almost before she finished, the girl spoke.

Raja.

She said simply. Donnie nodded approvingly. She was really in foreign territory by this point. Doneeda hadn't been abused. Neglected, yes, but not abused. Dealing with Var on a bad day was a bit of a handful, but this girl seemed to be so far beyond the pale that it worried her.

That's a pretty name, Raja. Why don't you give this lady and myself a minute or two.

Donnie's tone indicated she wasn't asking. Though kind and consoling. Well, as consoling as Doneeda could be, she was telling the girl to disappear for a bit. This wasn't out of spite or malice. No, Doneeda needed to discuss with Var the ramifications of any action by Var on her pending business transaction with the proprietor. More specifically, that transaction's effect on the ship's continued functionality.

Raja nodded obeisantly and headed for the back of the shop. Donnie, in turn, stepped in front of Var.

First off, Hi, nice to see you t-

She stopped, noticing a new person behind Var who'd come in with her.

Who's that?

She asked in Huttese, her train of thought being entirely derailed by the new person in tow.

[Jazen]

The maze of buildings and people that made up Anchorhead flew by as Shine followed in Var's wake. As their footsteps kicked up sand, Shine glanced at his new friend and sensible guide. In the glaring heat of the sun, his entire body felt like it was burning apart from the inside out. Sweat gleamed on his brow and Shine could feel his clothes staining from the constant heat.

But Var? She walked the streets in clothes that, at least to his eyes, weren't styled to minimize heat like his were. And yet she didn't seem to be sweating in the slightest. Perhaps it was because she had been raised here and she had naturally adapted to the conditions here. Maybe it was just in her blood to stand up to these kinds of temperatures. Whatever the reason, Shine envied her a bit for that. At least she wouldn't have to dry her clothes later simply because she'd sweated too much in them.

She led the way quickly, obviously knowing just where said shop was and how to get there. Shine watched as the streets soon became familiar, even to him, as the sight of open hangars and docking bays told him that he had been in this area, not long ago. Smiling, Shine was tempted to smack his forehead at the sheer obvious; of course a shop like that would be near the hangars.

Shine and Vis joined Var as they passed shop after shop, scanning them for any sign of their destination. Vis would be the likely one to spot it first, his mind translating the words almost instantly into clear Basic. Shine knew enough Huttese though to at least be able to spot the one they would want, provided the sign read as advertised. In the end, it was Var that spied the shop first, indicating it with a wave of her hand as she made for the open door that most buildings on this planet seemed to favor. A good idea, considering an enclosed box full of heat producing ship parts would likely be murder to its inhabitants.

Stepping through the door after Var, Shine had to stop suddenly to avoid crashing into the Twi'lek. Var had not taken two steps inside before stopping cold, her body rigid with tension. Stepping slightly to the side to see past her, Shine took a moment to assess the situation. And to stay back from it until he fully understood what was going on.

It didn't take long for the meaning of Var's sudden stop to come to light. Two other beings filled the room, a woman who's face changed to one of surprise and recognition at Var, the other a young Twi'lek girl who bore scars that damaged an otherwise pretty girl. A cold silence had filled the room at his and Var's arrival, a silence that was soon broken by Var herself, who moved suddenly to speak to the young girl. Shine cast Vis a glance, then folded his arms and waited.

By the end of their small chat, Shine had worked out what had made Var freeze. The girl was her, years ago, in the same situation Var had explained to him. It made Shine's heart weep and his teeth grit; no being deserved that fate and those who gave it be damned. And this one wasn't likely to have changed their colors. Go figure that this was the place that had the part he needed; fate was cruel. The girl and the other woman had a brief conversation, all in Huttese as if to discourage listeners; again, Shine was able to pick up most of it and what he didn't, Vis whispered into his ear. After a moment, the girl glanced at them once more then retreated. And the woman addressed Shine for the first time, though her question was directed at Var.

Smiling, Shine stepped to Var's side and offered a hand. "Shine Albartos, at your service. A pleasure. By the way, though I can understand it to a degree, Huttese is a pain to keep up with. Mind if we speak in Basic from now on?" Turning his head, he nodded to Var. "I see you've got a friend I was unaware of. Now then...what shall we do about the situation we find tossed into our laps?"