Saga Nobody's Baby (UPC) ~ A Mos Eisley Cantina Story~*Complete*~ Author's thanks

Shada!

That's quite a turn of events for Baby - she's a smart gal. Now if she can just stay out of trouble long enough to stay alive...


Thanks for the PM!

 

I love this story. It is so well thought out and realistic. I love the way you've portrayed the bargaining and distrust of every interaction on Tatooine. What a lawless and Force forsaken planet, huh? I hope Baby can continue to stay one step ahead and be the one that outsmarts Pat.

 

oooooooooooohhhhhhhh we're getting to the scene where she gets to cuddle with Han! Lucky girl!

 

Lucky little girl...gah.

*realizes she delurked* Ahh! I mean....hahaha

This is an awesome story!!

*relurks*

 

Giving an UP! and Still riveted and intrigued by "Baby's" sitch.

 

I can honestly say that this story took me off guard, diva. More off the beaten path than I'm used to seeing you go (i.e.: no cutiepie farmboy!). However, I can also say with honesty that I think it's my favorite work of yours to date. Baby is a great character, and the way she deals with with her life is intriguing. She's spunky, smart, and although not perfect (hey, I'd fall for him too), she makes the best of hairy situations. You have a nice blend of humor, personal story and intrigue going on. Loved the cameo with Han and Chewie. I think the best part of this all so far is the absolutely serious way you've dealt with the challenge rhyme! That's talent right there, baby.

 

Where's baby and is she sitting on Han's lap yet???

 

Jade_Eyes: Thanks, Jade_Eyes! Things are starting to align, and the characters are all moving into position for a very famous cantina scene. Yes, Baby keeps a cool head. But she?s been living all on her own since age 15, so she?d have to be smart and cool to survive. She?s a bit of an opportunist, but who isn?t in Mos Eisley?

Thanks for the support for this fic, and for the kind up.


Ginchy: Thank you, Ginchy! That?s so sweet. Baby is tough. She got her heart hurt, but in her circumstances, she doesn?t have the luxury of mourning the heartbreak. Now that she?s committing herself to selling out Pat, getting off Tatooine is becoming more urgent.


Jade_Pilot: ?After all, what else could possibly happen today??
Star Wars famous last words...

Yup! That?s usually what gets said right before all you-know-what breaks loose! Thank you, Jade_Pilot, for supporting this story. Baby will be back soon, and taking a very comfortable and envious seat at the cantina.


Rogue_Pilot_2347: Why did she have to ask that? Now I'm positive something else will happen!!!!!!

Thanks! Yes, Shada and Karoly are not about to leave without their stolen components, and they know the best way to get them back. Why shouldn?t Baby make a profit off it too?


Jedi_Trace: Yup, Shada?s here! She?ll be back, too. Now Baby has an obligation to Shada and Karoly. (And Baby?s smart enough to be a little afraid of them, too.) Baby knows that profits don?t come without risks, and there?s a potentially big payoff here ? if she can get around the big risks.


ROTS_fan: I love the way you've portrayed the bargaining and distrust of every interaction on Tatooine. What a lawless and Force forsaken planet, huh?

Thanks! Tatooine is Vegas without the glitz -- or the police. Everything is a roll of the chance cubes. Baby is smart, and she knows a trick or two. She?s made a deal that will get her off planet with Han and Chewie, and just in time because when Pat finds out what she?s done?


Jedi_Eruanne: Thank you! And thanks for delurking and stopping in!


Furrylittlebantha: Thank you, Furry. This is a change for me, but Baby grabbed ahold and wouldn?t let go! I?ve tried to keep the humor going (that?s one of the things that we love about SW, isn?t it?) but RL hasn?t been too cooperative. Maybe now I can get back into Baby?s head and see the humor in living on a nowhere planet where no one trusts anyone.

And yeah, whoda thunk ?Pat-a cake? would generate this story??


Thanks to everyone who has been following Baby?s story. I should have an update soon. (Crosses fingers)

 

Chapter 7.

Do you ever get to a point where you suddenly realize that you are way, way, way over your head? That?s exactly how I felt when the two women who were disguised as the Tonnika twins left me.

I was just a cantina waitress. I wasn?t supposed to get all tangled up in a mess like this. Just a few weeks before, my biggest worry was whether or not I would make enough tips to get a decent meal. And yet, there I was, stringing out connections to Pat?s stolen radian couplings, Greedo?s soon-to-be murder attempt, and Jabba?s embezzled fortune, and now, I was stringing these two military women who were pretending to be the Tonnika twins, and whose real names I didn?t even know. I had tossed out just enough string to strangle myself if I wasn?t careful and if the odds turned against me.

But I knew the risk, and even more importantly, I knew the payoff. I had dreams of getting off this scorching rock since before Ma died. I knew that was Ma?s dream for me. But I sure wasn?t going to get passage on a waitress?s tips. If I was going to go, I had to go big.

I just hadn?t intended to go this big.

But I was in for the whole ante now. I pushed my rising anxiety aside, took a breath, and went in through the side door to Chalmun?s cantina. I promised Han I would help him, and unlike Pat, my word actually meant something.

Besides, I kind of liked Han. He seemed nice. Scruffy, but nice underneath. He had actually listened to me and given me a chance. And it wasn?t fair that Greedo was going to make Han and Chewie pay the price for Greedo?s dirty tricks. It didn?t hurt that Han was handsome, either. He was tall and dark-haired, with that kind of slender grace that some men just seem to have naturally. And when he smiled, his mouth kind of made this adorable little bend in the corner.

But I wasn?t going to let his charm get in my way. I wasn?t stupid. This was business. I had information he needed, and he had a way for me to get out of here.

My eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness inside the cantina, and I saw Han and Chewie at a table in the corner, under that little window. I stood at the waitress?s station over at the bar and did a quick room scan. Liru was working the tables, and the cantina looked pretty full. She saw me and waved, then came over.

?Busy day?? I asked.

She sighed. ?Yes, it is. Of course, having all the stormies crawling everywhere just makes cantinas like this even more crowded. Drives everyone inside.?

She was right, the place was packed already. Over at the far end of the bar, wearing the gray jumpsuits and with their hair in those high braids, were the two women who were pretending to be the Tonnika sisters. I had just spoken with them, but they looked like they had been sitting there for hours. Then there were a couple others I had seen before, like Ponda Baba, that Aqualish bully, and his creepy doctor friend, who were sitting at the bar and slowing drinking their way to a fight.

?Can I ask a favor, Liru?? I asked.

She leaned against the bar. ?Depends. What do you need??

I held up my slingbag. ?I don?t want to leave this in plain sight. I have something important in it. I know how things can disappear when a place like this gets busy.? Of course I knew. I used to make a pretty good supplemental income pick-pocketing while I lived with Ma.

Liru nodded knowingly. ?Sure. Use my waitress?s spot under the bar. It?s got a security code. Watch.? She punched in a simple key code, and a cabinet door popped open. I remembered the numbers easily. Her purse was already in there.

Chalmun glared at her from behind the bar. ?Liru! You?ve got customers. Socialize on your own time,? he yelled.

Liru rolled her eyes. ?Gotta go. Just lock up when you?re done, okay?? She took her tray and disappeared into the smoky room.

The Tonnika sisters looked up at the bartender?s voice, then lazily glanced at me over their smoking pipes. We acknowledged each other without saying anything. Seeing them made me feel a little guilty. It had been bothering me that I

 

NOOO!!! So close!

I really like this chapter. Especially how she got away from Pat. And I love the line about stormtroopers being stored in the basement. That's ingenious. Is there more? I hope so!

You know, she could probably sell Pat's speeder and buy passage off that way. That's how Luke and Ben got off.

 

I enjoyed that very much!! Baby's a great actress LOL Man, she almost made it!!! Is there a next chapter or an epilogue?

 

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy! An update!!!! This so rocks, girl! I love Baby and how you've weaved her throughout this story. Great job!

LOL Moment: "If I was going to go, I had to go big. I just hadn?t intended to go this big."

Ain't that always the way, Sister-pilot???

Bravo!

 

*delurks* Aw heck, I'll just stay.

Noooooo!!! Poor Baby!!!!!!!!!!!! I hope Shada and K-somethin' can spring themselves and get her off Tatooine!

 

Oh, no!! She was so close--and she's so clever, but now she's stuck! Will she ever get off that blasted planet? She's been pumped up all day and now she'll have to come down off the high and use those smarts to keep her safe. I hope good things are in store for Baby!

She shoulda taken up with the farm kid. He's going places.

 

I Got an Idea!!!

Use Pat's Ship

-DarkScorpion-

 

You have skill - that was a great update!

And, oh bummer-she just barely missed joining Han and Chewie! I really hope there's another way for her to get off Tattooine.

He may have played me for a fool, but I didn?t intend to let him get away without paying for it. If the radians truly belonged to the women, then let them have it back. For a reasonable price, of course.

She's a Tattoinian to the core. A good person, but you can certainly tell how she thinks.

?That?s just it!? I wailed. ?He?s out in that sandstorm right now! He started drinking again this afternoon. He said he didn?t want the droids anymore, and he was going to dump the droids where no one would ever be able to find them again. He has them right now, and the scorching idiot took them into that sandstorm! He?s gonna get himself killed, driving that old silver and green speeder with the dent on the front of it into a sandstorm!? I looked at the officer, my lower lip quivering. ?He went out through Landstars Road, headed toward the connection to Mainfare One. You can probably catch him if you hurry.?

That's hilarious. So she would like them to go find her endangered boyfriend, in the silver and green speeder with the dent on the front of it, southbound, license #....

And the storm troopers are just dense enought to buy it.

 

Oh wow! Fantastic job weaving this story into the actual scene. She's one smart cookie, this gal. But she missed her ride. Now what's she gonna do? I'm thinking she's made some enemies and her life might get a little harder...


Can't wait for the next update!

 

Rogue_Pilot_2347: NOOO!!! So close! You know, she could probably sell Pat's speeder and buy passage off that way. That's how Luke and Ben got off.
Thank you for the reply! Selling the speeder would get her money, but there?s still a fortune out there in the Oven and Pat?s got a fast car? There?s more. Pat is going to be furious after he sweet-talks his way out of the stormtroopers. She knows that she?s only slowed him down.


Jade_Eyes: I enjoyed that very much!! Baby's a great actress LOL Man, she almost made it!!! Is there a next chapter or an epilogue?
Thanks! Yes, she can pour it on when she has to. She?s a bit of a con artist. There are still a couple of chapters left. I got a lot of mileage out of that nursery rhyme.


Jade_Pilot: Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy! An update!!!!
Thank you! I like this character and the way she thinks. She?s a clever girl, a true survivor. Now if she can only survive Pat. (Hey, it?s me! What do you think? )


Jedi_Eruanne: *delurks* Aw heck, I'll just stay. I hope Shada and K-somethin' can spring themselves and get her off Tatooine!
Thank you for staying around! I?m so glad you like this. Shada and Karoly are still around. According to Zahn?s short story ?Hammertong,? right now they are in the local jail because the authorities think they really are the Tonnika Sisters, but they don?t stay there for long.



Ginchy: She's been pumped up all day and now she'll have to come down off the high and use those smarts to keep her safe. I hope good things are in store for Baby! She shoulda taken up with the farm kid. He's going places.
Well, you know there?s no sassy brunette on the Millennium Falcon when it leaves Tatooine. (And I wasn?t talking about Han or Chewie. ) But Baby?s not out of options yet. And that farm kid? The one with the weird haircut? Well, Baby?s a smuggler?s kind of gal. It wouldn?t work out.



-DarkScorpion-: I Got an Idea!!! Use Pat's Ship
Thanks for replying! Yes, Pat?s ship is still in a docking bay. But can Baby fly it?


ROTSfan: She's a Tattoinian to the core. A good person, but you can certainly tell how she thinks.
Absolutely. She was pretty much raised in seedy cantinas and on the streets, so her survival instinct is pretty well honed. Everything has a price.

So she would like them to go find her endangered boyfriend, in the silver and green speeder with the dent on the front of it, southbound, license #.... And the storm troopers are just dense enought to buy it.
LOL! Exactly! I?m tickled that you caught that. She gives the stormtroopers such a delicious bait to go after, then gives them everything except the license number to find it. The Imperials don?t suspect anything because they don?t think like a Tatooine native. At least, though, that?ll slow Pat down. Thank you very much for reading and for the reply.


Jedi_Trace: She's one smart cookie, this gal. But she missed her ride. Now what's she gonna do? I'm thinking she's made some enemies and her life might get a little harder...
Thanks, Trace! Yes, she?s smart. But you are right, there?s no way Pat?s going to let her get away with this. There?s a fortune at stake, and Pat is a killer. But Baby?s got the home turf advantage and is already using it.



Thanks to everyone who stopped in to read and/or reply!

 

I smell an update coming!!

 

Wow... good story! If you've got a PM list, would you mind adding me? I love how you took the nursery rhyme and used it in the story and how you used a canon character. Very clever!

 

I was just a cantina waitress. I wasn?t supposed to get all tangled up in a mess like this. Just a few weeks before, my biggest worry was whether or not I would make enough tips to get a decent meal. And yet, there I was, stringing out connections to Pat?s stolen radian couplings, Greedo?s soon-to-be murder attempt, and Jabba?s embezzled fortune, and now, I was stringing these two military women who were pretending to be the Tonnika twins, and whose real names I didn?t even know.


Funny how that can happen every now and then.

It didn?t hurt that Han was handsome, either. He was tall and dark-haired, with that kind of slender grace that some men just seem to have naturally. And when he smiled, his mouth kind of made this adorable little bend in the corner.

Yup, yup, yup.

You know what you do better than anyone, diva? High stealth prose. Invisible writing, like a glass pane into a vivid world, into the mind of this unique gal. High stealth, that is, until it drops on you every now and then with this explosive grace and elegance that just makes you think, wow. That's writing. So many people are squarely in one of the two camps--that writing has to be either fine turns of phrase all the time or religiously minimalistic and utilitarian. I think the best writers strike a balance. Like you do. [/shameless brown-nosing to beta]

We sat there for a few more minutes, just talking about nothing. I decided to scoot onto Han?s lap. ?Makes this set-up look more real,? I assured him. Han seemed surprised for a second, then, as his hand went around my waist, I guess he decided he kind of liked that after all.

I scanned the room once more, and this time I felt my skin crawl. I reached over and kissed Han?s cheek, then whispered in his ear. ?It?s the Rodian. The one in the spacer?s jacket. His name is Greedo.?

Han nuzzled my neck. ?What?s his weakness?? he murmured.

?Other than he?s an arrogant fool? He aims his blaster too high.?

Oh my gosh, how cute.

And can you believe it, the dumb farm kid decides to try to bring his droids in. Into a cantina! He really must have come straight here from working on the moisture vaporator.

LOL!!

I dragged my hands through my hair. ?You see, that?s the thing. My boyfriend, when he drinks, he does stupid things. Like just the other day, he went and spent my whole paycheck on a couple of droids. Droids! Like we could ever use a protocol droid. What was he thinking??

...And the crowd goes wild. Go Baby!!!!!!!!

I was so stunned I stood there for a moment, then my knees gave out. I slid down the wall and sat down heavily on the floor. My heart seemed to split in two from the shock. The speck that had been my escape from this miserable place grew smaller, then winked out. I had just missed them.








Please update sometime soon!

 

Jade_Pilot: Hey, Sister Pilot! There is an update coming, but not right away. Soon, though. Thanks for the support.


MystralGurl: Thank you! Glad you liked this. It?s been a challenge! I?m happy to put you on the PM list.


Furrylittlebantha: Thank you, thank you for such a wonderful compliment! You are such a sweetheart for saying that.

I?m having a lot of fun with Baby (a.k.a Jenny). Who knew she had so much to say?

---

Thank you very much for the noms![face_hugs]

 

This is excellent. Taking an incredibly minor character and giving her the full backstory is great work. The first chapter is just excellent writing with not a word too much. Loved how you've tied this altogether.

Two thumbs up from me!

Can I get a PM please?

 

ccmdc: Thank you very much! I tried to take a character who would be like a female Han, if she was from Tatooine. Kind of a gangster's moll. She's trying to be a good person, but the environment she lives in doesn't seem to encourage that. I'll be happy to put you on the PM list!

PM list:

ccmdc
Mystralgurl
ROTSfan
Rogue_Pilot_2347
Jedi Trace
Ginchy
Jade_Pilot
G__Anakin

---

Thank you so much for supporting this fic! It has qualified for:
Best Response to a Challenge
Best Villain
Best All-Around.

I'm honored that you have enjoyed this so much.

[face_hugs] divapilot

 

stoopa double post.