“One question at a time, kids,” Han said, laughing and holding his hands palm out at chest level, as if to ward off an oncoming charge. “There’ve been a few problems in the Outer Rim recently, so in her official capacity, the New Republic’s Chief of State—”
“You mean Mom,” Jaina said.
“Right.” Han’s grin was boyish. “Anyway, she’s been after me and Luke to do some scouting for her. Says I need to keep busy or I’ll get old too fast. And ever since he started this Jedi academy, your uncle’s made it a practice to spend some time away from Yavin 4, just to make sure his skills stay at their peak performance. Still, we figured it might be a good idea to keep a low profile, though, so—”
“You disguised yourself and the Millennium Falcon,” Jacen finished for him. Jaina continued to stare at all the lumpy, patchwork modifications to the light freighter.
“And Luke, too.” Han Solo nodded behind them to where their uncle, clad in a rumpled brown flight suit, emerged from the base of the temple. “Hey, Han, did you bring the last components for those new shield generators?” Luke called. He brushed a greasy hand down the front of his stained outfit. He looked very much like a down-and-out pilot who had deserted his post.
“You bet, Luke,” Han said. “Leia’s worried about your Jedi academy with the Second Imperium on the loose, so we’ve got to install those new shield generators and get them running with enough power to stop an attack.”
“I still think my Jedi Knights would do a good enough job defending themselves if it came to that,” Luke said, smiling at the trainees standing around the temple. “The Shadow Academy would be foolish to underestimate us.”
Han shrugged. “Doesn’t matter what you say, Luke—indulge me, or Leia will never sleep a wink.”
Laughing, Luke called for Jedi students to unload the heavy components from the Falcon’s storage bay. “I’ll have some of my students install the systems while you and I are away.”
The disguised Jedi Master strode over to the pair of Wookiees, who stood in earnest conversation. He seemed to be bidding Chewbacca farewell. Jaina thought she heard Luke say something about the time being near, but before she could ask about it, her brother spoke up.
“But what about Chewie?” Jacen asked. “Isn’t he going to be your copilot this time?”
Their father looked a bit uncomfortable. “I’ll manage without him somehow. Back home on Kashyyyk, he and Lowie have kind of a family emergency, you might say.”
“Emergency?” Jaina said. “Is anyone hurt?”
“Naw, nothing that simple. You’ve never met Lowie’s sister Sirra, have you?” Han lifted his chin to point in the direction of his Wookiee copilot, who was deep in conversation with Lowbacca. “Anyway, give the two of ’em a chance to talk first. Afterwards I have a feeling Lowie’ll tell you all about it. Meanwhile, I’ve brought messages from your mom and Anakin—and I’ve got a couple of surprises for you on the Falcon.”
“Uh-oh,” Jaina said. “More surprises on the Falcon?”
Han chuckled and put an arm around each of the twins’ shoulders. “Yeah, presents for you two.”
“Hey, that reminds me,” Jacen said, “I’ve got a new joke. Wanna hear it?” Before either of them could talk him out of it, he forged ahead. “What do Jawas have that no other creature in the galaxy has? Give up?” He raised his eyebrows. “Baby Jawas!”
Even their father had difficulty feigning amusement. Jaina studied her brother in silence for a moment, then turned to Han, getting back to the subject at hand. “So, what were you saying about those gifts you brought us?”
“Well, I brought a mate for Jacen’s stump lizard, along with some of those starflower blossoms they like to eat so much, and a refurbished micromotivator that still needs some tinkering. ’Course, you two’ll have to fight over who gets which gift,” he added, ruffling the twins’ hair as they walked up the boarding ramp together.
Jaina snorted indelicately. “That shouldn’t take long.”
In her quarters, Tenel Ka sat fascinated by the tiny holographic image of dark-haired Anakin Skywalker holding a cluster of brightly colored twine. She couldn’t figure out why the twins’ little brother would have sent her a message. She had only met the boy once, on Coruscant not long ago.
“I know how independent you are, Tenel Ka, so I hope you don’t mind my doing this,” Anakin’s recorded voice said. “But when Jacen and Jaina told me how hard it is for you to braid your hair since the accident, I took it as a problem to solve. You may have figured out a bunch of this stuff for yourself already”—Anakin’s holographic face smiled faintly—“but even if you have, it was still a challenging puzzle, and I enjoyed it.”
The Solo twins, who had delivered the holographic message to Tenel Ka after a long visit with their father, sat nearby on the floor of her chambers. Jaina rolled her eyes and chuckled. “That’s my little brother.”
“This is a fact,” Tenel Ka said, shifting her concentration back to the glowing hologram.
The boy’s image held the multicolored twine in one hand and threaded the fingers of the other hand through it, neatly separating the colors into individual clumps. Tenel Ka unconsciously lifted her hand to her head and threaded her fingers through some unbraided strands of her red-gold hair.
Moving with deliberate precision, Anakin slid his hands down the brightly colored strands, twining them together with the fingers of one hand as he went. “See, it can be done, if you approach the task from a different perspective.” The sequence cycled through again in slow motion while Anakin said, “I tried adding decorations several ways, but it worked best for me if I put the bead or feather in my mouth first. That way I didn’t have to let go of the braid to pick it up.”
“Ah.” Tenel Ka nodded her approval of the logic. “Aha.” Experimentally, her fingers began to twine a few strands of hair, following the single-handed technique Anakin had concocted.
The hologram shifted to a different scene, Anakin standing beside a fall of long glossy brown hair, caught up in a dozen Dathomiran warrior braids decorated with feathers and beads. The view pulled back, and Anakin gestured to his handiwork, looking both pleased and a bit embarrassed. “As you can see, Mom let me practice on her.” The tiny holographic image of Chief of State Leia Organa Solo turned with a warm smile and then spun in a graceful pirouette to give a better view of the braids.
As the holorecording ended, Tenel Ka nodded seriously, considering the new technique. With practice, she thought she could manage it herself.
A loud questioning growl sounded from the doorway of Tenel Ka’s quarters. She looked up to see Lowbacca standing at the arched entrance.
“Enter, friend,” Tenel Ka said, indicating a spot on the floor beside her. “Sit with us if you wish.”
“Lowie, is everything all right?” Jaina asked with a look of concern.
The lanky ginger-furred Wookiee ambled over and sat between Tenel Ka and Jaina on the floor. For a long time none of the companions spoke. Then Lowbacca reached toward his belt and flicked a small switch on Em Teedee’s back. “Ah, thank you, Master Lowbacca,” Em Teedee said. “That was indeed a refreshing shutdown cycle, although considerably longer than I had anticipated. Oh, look—we have company.”
Lowbacca interrupted the little droid with a rumble and a short bark. “Why, most assuredly, Master Lowbacca. I’d be delighted to provide a translation. That is my primary function, you know. I am fluent in over six forms of communication.”