The Scene Is Set...

Mara slipped quietly into a dark booth in the back of the Cantina with her drink in her hand. Finally out of the reach of prying eyes, she allowed herself to lean back against the cool surface of the booth and relax a bit. She reached back, loosened her hair from its ponytail, and ran her fingers through it slowly, mind racing over the previous few day's events.

Mara leaned forward, agony appearing in her eyes, and the fingers in her hair suddenly started to pull at it, as if by that action she could rid herself of the voice in her mind. Her hands flewup to cover her face and her head dropped onto the table. "I tried," she whispered, fighting back tears. "But I failed you again....again." Her usually cool demeanor collapsed into almost childlike fear of failure.

After a moment, she raised herself back up and took a long drink. "You keep finding a way to escape me," she thought bitterly. And just then from her hidden vantage point she noticed Nerik striding into the Cantina. The self-assured walk, the calm "I've seen it all" demeanor; this was definitely a smuggler. A smile tinged her lips as she remembered her thought. "But not for long," she whispered to herself, something like triumph appearing in her expression.

She leaned out of the booth and caught Nerik's attention, smiling vividly. As he caught sight of her, his pace quickened and his eyes lit up as he walked toward her.

Mara chuckled to herself. "He probably thinks I'm smiling like this because I'm excited to see him," she thought. She mentally shrugged and finished the thought, "No matter. He can think what he likes as long as he takes me to Skywalker..."