Changing

[Arya Ravenwing]

<center>Right Before Your Eyes
Hoobastank

When the door shuts
Don’t worry about me
Its not attention that I want from you
I need you to trust who I’m gonna be
And in everything I’m going to do

Cause I’m not afraid
Of what I don’t know
For understanding is all that I earn
What is for sure is I’m gonna to go
I’m gonna to live and I’m going to learn

And I know there will be mistakes that I will make
But I know they’re not worse than chances I don’t take, take
Right before your eyes I am changing, changing
New life on the inside I am changing, changing

When the door shuts
It shuts in front of me
A new person that I have become
I follow my heart to my destiny
But living in fear and sorrow is done

There will be no more feeling that I’m all alone
I will surround myself with things that help me grow, grow
Right before your eyes I am changing, changing
New life on the inside I am changing, changing

Right before your eyes I am changing, changing
New life on the inside I am changing, changing
Right before your eyes I am changing, changing
New life on the inside I am changing, changing

Right before your eyes
Right before your eyes</center>

In the circle that has often been ascribed to Life, we tread in it, never changing, always holding to our course due to fear of change. Fearing to come out of our comfort zones. It is like a habit: we do the same things we detest in ourselves time and time again because we don’t take the strength to change course. We look ourselves in the mirror and hate what we see, but we still never change. We always want to be who we want to be, not who we need to be. But sometimes, the circle kinks... Suddenly our comfort zones are kicked aside. And we have to rise up and be something we never thought we could be.

Hyperspace slid by silently, starlines streaking across the viewscreen in a brilliant display. The person in the cockpit wasn't enjoying the view, however, feet up on the console and head resting on a carefully propped arm. The smuggler yawned, eyelids heavy from lack of sleep, and shifted as various body parts threatened to go numb.

It had been a long day. No, a long two days. Frell, I'm getting old. I can't go without sleep like I used to. At thirty-three, Arya Ravenwing was still a 'fine figure of a woman,' as some men illadvisedly said, but she was feeling the march of years.

Five years ago she'd been a small time smuggler trying to make enough money to get by. And now she was still a small time smuggler trying to make enough money to get by. It was depressing to think about how much hadn't changed.

Arya tried to stifle another yawn, failed, and curled up in the pilot's seat, drawing her legs up underneath her. Her boots were uncomfortable, but she never took them off, and maybe they'd help keep her awake. She was heading towards Coruscant, doing a drop for her latest employer, Dan the mysterioso. "Da nooba tai chak towei ao voncho da parab." Trust him as far as you can throw him.

"Frell, I need the money, so I take his money." Her Basic was lightly accented, due to it not being her first language. No, she'd grown up on Ryloth, underground, and learnt Twi'lek from her playmates. She could barely remember even talking to her mother, Lysa, in any language other than Twi'lek. Lysa Ravenwing had slumped into a passive sort of insanity after the assassination of her husband while pregnant with Arya.

She'd learnt a new language in their hideaway home on Ryloth. Hiding from them, the mysterious killers of her father, Rynon. Who her father had been, or why people would want to kill his only heir, was never explained to young Arya. She'd been given a medallion, the seal of the Ravenwings, apparently, and something her father had worn. It was imprinted with symbols she couldn't read or understand, and had a raven's head on one side.

When Arya was seventeen, Lysa went on to be with Rynon (who she'd talked to every day in the mirror, much to Arya's embarrassment), and Arya had left to see what the world would hold for her.

It held love, and danger, and heartbreak. The smuggler yawned again, the old heartbreak not quite the raw wound it had been. The Job had ensnared her, and here she was, falling asleep after two days of keeping her eyes open for anything suspicious. She didn't trust Dan; he seemed to have a sadistic side that she was sure he'd eventually level at her.

And so as long as his cargo was on board, she'd not been able to sleep. Of course, now that Coruscant was nearing and she had to be awake, she was falling asleep. Hyperspace swirls danced in front of her eyes, and she blinked heavily. Just a few more minutes until the reversion...

The dark haired smuggler yawned again, head leaning back against the seat as the countdown timer reached five minutes. Four minutes. Three minutes. Two minutes.

One minute... thirty seconds...

Her eyes were closed, and her mouth open as the light blinked and the ship made the transisition from hyperspace to realspace, jostling her rudely awake. Arya snatched her blaster from its holster as she fell against the console, pointing it at the co-pilot's seat. "Gah." Now I'm jumping at shadows and daydreams.

The smuggler tossed her blaster into the seat beside her, and set herself to the task of checking the ship's systems and calling Coruscant Flight Control for a spot in the traffic leading into the city planet. The Wing of the Raven had been identified as Lady of Ale, and she was soon shunted off into a viable space lane.

She sat back, scrubbing sleep from her eyes and fighting another yawn, as she followed the sublight glow from the yacht in front of her. Nothing to it. And she'd probably still be doing this five years from now. Not trying to get into Coruscant - traffic was bad, but not that bad - but scraping by from credit to credit, scrounging what jobs she could get. It wasn't that she wasn't paid a lot, it was just that her overhead was so high. She couldn't afford another ship, and Wing of the Raven was always ready for more upgrades. Which were costly.

But they also kept her out of jail, which was worth it. She yawned. Nothing ever changed, and traffic into Coruscant certainly hadn't changed at all. Arya checked her chrono. She'd be about twenty minutes late to her drop if things didn't speed up. Frell.

ooc: PM if you would like to enter the thread, give a reason that's good enough, and permission will be granted. /ic

[General Dan]

tick...tick...tick...

The oil wet the rag, glistening in the dim articicial light. Careful fingers guided the rag to its mark, wasting not a single drop. They glided the cloth down long and graceful contours of steel, careful not to miss a single recess.

Dan set the cloth aside after much consideration, and studied his work well. In the reflection of his gun, he saw the tell-tale hands of his desk chronometer.

She was late.

[Arya Ravenwing]

"Frelling dunes of Tattooine!" Arya pounded the console with her fist in frustration as a larger freighter cut off the Chevvette77. "I was frelling here first you piece of dren!" A rude hand gesture was directed towards the other freighter's sublights as she followed it down to the spaceport.

When she finally docked in the appropriate bay she was steaming mad, and twenty five minutes behind schedule. Of course, she wasn't used to working with such a precise time schedule. A simple "three days from now" was what she usually dealt with. The smuggler slapped the hull of the Wing of the Raven with an open palm, and looked around once just as a precaution.

The only beings visible were a few mechanics wandering around in greasy coveralls, and they were far enough away not to make any difference. Of course, a blaster bolt would travel fast and far, but her minds eye wasn't putting up any sort of warnings on these few fellows. There could always be a Wraith hiding in a dark corner, but she contented herself with one hand on the railgun on her hip as she opened up the cargo bay's airlock.

Threepio wasn't in the hold for once, she'd left the droid up in the cockpit to keep an eye on things (two optical sensors, to be precise). Arya's boots clanged loudly on the metal deck plating as she strode across the mostly empty hold and reached the dull silver briefcase that was resting upright in a secure spot near the bulkhead.

Her long fingers grasped the smooth black handle, and she lifted it up and out of it's spot with a gentle heave. Ten quick strides and she was out of the freighter and locking it up. She placed the briefcase by her feet as she activated the security codes, but picked it up as soon as she was finished.

Arya didn't like operating with one hand occupied, but as long as her right hand was free she felt confident enough. Now, just a fast taxi away from Dan and payday. If she was quick enough on the ground, she could make up a bit of the lost time.

And indeed, when the smuggler exited the repulsor cab in the Chun district she had managed to cut her time to a mere ten minutes behind schedule. She tipped the driver an extra thirty creds, as promised, and waslked briskly into the building she'd been dropped off at.

She entered the turbolift, and pressed the button for the top floor, briefcase resting lightly against her left thigh as she held it firmly in her hand.

[General Dan]

The turbolift door peeled back, revealing the furnishings of Dan's penthouse interior. The assassin sat relaxed on an oversized leather couch, with one of his ornate blasters laying clean and gleaming across his lap. Across the room, a fireplace full of orange embers glowed, giving the room an inviting feeling. The broad walkway in between was taken up by a hologram. An old Twi'leki martial arts holo-film, originally in Huttese and dubbed into Basic. The current scene featured a sagely white Twi'lek, kneeling in a candle-lit cave. It was both dramatic and cheesy at the same time.

"Hello Smuggler."

Dan's eyes panned sideways to the approaching woman, lingering for a moment before returning to the film.

"Have a seat."

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya walked through the opened doors into the penthouse and gave it the once over as Dan's voice greeted her. The holo-film re-took his attention, and she sat carefully on the edge of the leather armchair he offered her.

The briefcase she put carefully by the side of the armchair. "That's a classic." She nodded toward the holo.

[General Dan]

"I didn't know you were a fan of Ryloth Shadow Fist films."

Dan once again diverted his attention to Arya, marginally impressed.

"I've always enjoyed them. Never very well acted, and the plots are always predictable. But, the symbolism is so very well done."

In the film, the sagely old Twi'lek was interrupted by a green-skinned one, in a tight black tunic.

"The bad guy, for one, is always wearing black. Its something so simple, yet so ludicrous once you think about it."

[Arya Ravenwing]

She shrugged lightly. "I grew up on a steady diet of old Shadow Fist films. I loved this one - the apprentice of the master has to avenge his..." The green Twi-lek began to battle the elder, lekku flailing as they flew into a complex form of martial arts that she'd forgotten the name of.

"Well, I wouldn't want to ruin it for you." She remained sitting on the edge of the chair, but reached for the briefcase, ready to bring it to Dan.

[General Dan]

"...his master's death at the hand of the rival school." Dan finished, and then smiled.

"I've seen this movie dozens of times. You're a woman after my heart, Miss Ravenwing."

Reaching to the wooden lampstand adjacent to the couch, Dan hit the pause button on a remote, freezing the holograms mid-kick.

"That being said, you're still late."

He turned to face her fully, and whatever pleastantries had been on his face before had evaporated.

[Arya Ravenwing]

She kept her eyes flat, matching his reptillian stare. "Yes. The secret to smuggling is not attracting un-due attention, which is why I obeyed the traffic laws coming in-planet. CSA&G decided to close one of the available lanes from the side I approached from, and I did not have enough advance warning to change my plans accordingly. I -" she stifled a yawn, "I am late by ten minutes."

Arya kept her eyes on his, and her hand on the briefcase by her legs.

[General Dan]

"I didn't ask for an excuse."

Dan leaned back on the couch, looking away from the smuggler.

"I asked you to do the job. Do I pay you well?"

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya took measured breaths, and her face remained still, even though her anger was bubbling up inside. "So far."

She watched him carefully, drawing both her hands up to her lap and leaving the case on the floor.

[General Dan]

"Why do I pay you so well? I'll make no mystery about it. I like you, Smuggler. I've liked you since I met you. But its not why I'm paying you. I'm paying you because I expect you to sweat the small stuff."

Dan pointed to the case.

"That's a little case."

He pointed to the chrono.

"And that's a little past. Thus, the small stuff's self evident."

He leaned forward, demeanor deadly serious.

"Miss Ravenwing, you're working for an organization that does not tolerate failure. Don't ever forget who I am."

[Arya Ravenwing]

She blinked at that. Working for an organization? "Actually, the most you've ever told me is that you're someone who can put your money where your mouth is. And you have, so far."

Arya stood to her feet, leaving the briefcase on the ground. "Your case is here. If you don't want to pay me, feel free to say so. Frankly, I'm running a little behind today, and I don't have time to sit here and listen to you." Her eyes flashed a bit of the fire she was feeling inside.

[General Dan]

"Sit down."

It was the closest thing to an imperative statement that Arya had heard from the man.

"I'm trying to talk to you, and all you've got in your head is the money."

A droid seemed to detatch itself from the wall and approached the table in front of Arya, depositing a small pouch.

"Fifty thousand, various origination chits."

-click-

Dan drew back the actuator on his blaster, which hadn't left his lap.

"Don't touch it till I'm finished."

Keeping the blaster in a steady hand, he continued.

"It may seem almost idealistic for me to say this, not that you haven't heard it before, but there's more to what we do than the money. The task I sent you on, I sent you to fail."

[Arya Ravenwing]

She sat. She was mad at herself for doing it, but a blaster didn't allow her much room for argument. Her eyes strayed to the bundle of credits on the table, but snapped back quickly to Dan's eyes.

Ah well, good job there Dan, I certainly seemed to have failed. Here we go, idealistic rant about the state of aliens and humans these days and how you're about to set up the master race, or some such nonsense, and I was sent to fail to prove that women can't be in the workplace. The situation was serious, yet her thoughts had taken such a silly turn that she had to work at keeping her face still.

There didn't seem to be anything to say in reply to his revelation, so Arya simply waited for Dan to explain his statement.

[General Dan]

"How we fail is at the very least as important as how we succeed, Miss Ravenwing. You may find my panache for character to be archaic, but it's every bit as important as the bottom line. That and excuses are terrible epitaphs.

If you stay honest with me...honest with yourself...you'll find that success is more than just winning and losing."

Noting that his monologue was going over with melba toast's dryness, Dan split the tension with a smile.

"You sat & heard me out. The money's yours. Just take what I have to say seriously."

Dan stood up, stretched a bit, and tossed his blaster to Arya, who quickly discovered that not a single cyllinder held a power cell. The assassin walked across the room, looking at a cabinet behind the penthouse's bar.

[Arya Ravenwing]

She snagged the blaster out of the air, catching it by the butt, and discretely checked the power cells. I should have known. It was empty.

With her free hand, Arya picked up the bag of chits and slipped it into the inside pocket of her nerfhide jacket. The smuggler got to her feet again, and queried her employer, "Do you want me to put the briefcase somewhere for you?"

She looked around the penthouse, peering through the holo-film that was paused in the middle of a whirling fight sequence. It was an expansive, tastefully decorated masterpiece, but didn't seem to quite reflect Dan, the man. It seemed... "Enjoying your new place?" A gutsy guess, but she was suddenly sure she was right. He had not lived here long, a few months, tops.

New to money, then? What organization am I working for?

[General Dan]

Dan waved a dismissive hand.

"Leave it. I'll get to it later."

Inspecting a few bottles, he pulled a hexagonal blown glass decanter, removing the stopper from the top. Arya inquired about his penthouse.

"It's got an appeal, I'll give it that. A bit more than what I'm used to."

He set the bottle on the counter, and looked across to her. He could almost see another question, forming on her mind like a storm cloud.

[Arya Ravenwing]

She focused, and managed to stop herself from asking the questions piling up in her mind. Be careful what you ask - you might not enjoy the answers. But then, wasn't it better just to know the truth?

Arya shrugged in response to his answer. "I suppose that given enough time, one could get used to anything. Even a gilded cage." She half winked, but caught herself, and tried to stop. It was easy to forget herself around Dan, he was easy going when he wasn't calmly pointing a blaster at you and promising death in the same tone of voice most people used when composing their grocery lists.

"Ah..." Her comm pinged and she hesitated. "Do you mind?" Arya pulled her comm off her belt, and looked at Dan.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

Dan gave permission to proceed and Arya turned away, lifting the comm unit to her ear. The line was quiet, though some background noise broke the silence – wind perhaps, or fire. Then, an unfamiliar voice spoke. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything important, Miss Ravenwing.”

Whoever was calling wasn’t local, at least not to the Hub. The accent rang of some backwater planet in the Outer Rim, the kind where everyone was related to everyone else somehow, and babies were born with one too many toes.

“Please, excuse yourself from your company for a moment. We have some business to discuss.”

[Arya Ravenwing]

Dan paused, with a look of benign irritation on his face. He made a dismissive gesture by lightly waving a hand. "By all means. I'll take my nightcap to the balcony. Mi casa, Su casa, or whatever."

Pouring tequila into a tiny glass, he corked the bottle and returned it to its shelf, removing himself and his drink from earshot of whatever business Arya had.

____


The smuggler leaned back in her seat, turned slightly away from the balcony so she could keep an eye on her employer while he enjoyed the balcony. "I'm alone." Her eyes narrowed as she pondered the accent. "Who is this, and how did you get this number?"

Whoever it was, Threepio better have a damn good reason for forwarding this call while she was on a job. I swear I'm going to take you apart bolt by bolt when I get back to the ship.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

“Your good friend Loklorien sIlancy was kind enough to give it to me. She speaks very highly of you, Arya. Are you deserving of all the praise she heaps on you?” The voice paused, though not long enough to wait for an answer.

“I don’t imagine she’ll have mentioned me to you in the past – we’ve only recently become acquainted, you see. My name is Vega Van-Derveld. Now, are there any other questions you’d like me to answer before we continue?”

[Arya Ravenwing]

s'Il? That was interesting. s'Ilancy usually didn't forward jobs, unless it was something she needed help with. "No, that's good enough for me. s'Il and I go way back." Arya tapped a finger against her cheekbone before running her hand through her black hair.

Her eyes tracked back to where Dan still stood, leaning on the wall that surrounded his balcony and looking out over the city with his tequila in his hands. He'd never said she couldn't take other jobs, and she'd done it before between 'errands' for him. The work Dan was giving her seemed to be getting more and more ridiculous as time went on, as though he was thinking up excuses to keep her near him.

But... other jobs were few, unless one wanted to try running the Calan blockade. After her last trip, she was understandably skittish about it. At least, until she got the engine upgrades she'd been saving for. Well, saving, in a loose interpetation of the word. She didn't actually have any money set aside, yet...

Arya felt the weight of the bag of chits in her jacket pocket, and knew that was going to buy food. Maybe some beer, too. "What can I help you with, Mr. Van-Derveld?"

[Vega Van-Derveld]

“I have a number of delicate items in storage on Coruscant that I need transporting to Arcan IV. I’ve no doubt that I don’t need to tell you that when I say this cargo is delicate I mean that it would be in your best interests to ensure that it is kept under firm lock and key, and away from the prying eyes of the Republic.

Of course, you will be paid handsomely for your efforts. Lok trusts you, and therefore so do I… so you will receive a quarter of your payment on collection of the cargo, a quarter upon your arrival on Arcan and the final fifty percent upon delivery and a personal meeting. All in all, a total of six-hundred thousand credits.”

The line went silent, as Vega allowed all of this to settle.

“It is paramount that this cargo arrives with haste, Miss Ravenwing. I need an answer now. Yes or no.”

[Arya Ravenwing]

Six hundred thousand? "Yes. I'll do it." She shot a glance back at Dan, but he still had his back to her. "Arcan IV? Been there before - it's a drenhole of a place. Well," she amended, "at least it was."

She shook her head a little bit, as if to clear it, and studied the shapes of the holomovie twi'leks that were frozen in the middle of the room. "Where's the storage? I can be there tomorrow morning." This money will solve a lot of problems for me. Like, getting her out of reach of Dan for a few days. And paying for those engine upgrades.

[Vega Van-Derveld]

“The cargo is being stored in an old construction company warehouse in the Dacho District. You won’t be able to miss it. There will be some men expecting your arrival, there to help with transferring the cargo to your ship. I’ve taken the liberty of leaving my contact details and the co-ordinates of the drop off with your protocol droid.”

Unseen, Vega smiled. “I think… that’s everything covered… if you’d like to get back to enjoying your evening…?”

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya had the uncomfortable feeling that Van-Derveld knew exactly what she was up to and where she was. "That's it." She lowered her voice a bit, just in case. "As long as the credits are there in the morning, shouldn't be a problem. Arya out." She clicked her comm off and slipped it into her jacket.

The smuggler looked over at where Dan was idling on the balcony, and started going over in her mind how she was going to excuse herself for a few days. Getting to her feet, she walked towards him.

[General Dan]

He turned toward her as she approached.

"Sounds like a busy evening."

He turned his glass about in his hand, causing the two ice cubes to tumble about within.

[Arya Ravenwing]

She shrugged, "Threepio's always freaking out about something. Looks like there might be something wrong with one of the droid brains on my ship. I'm going to have to take her in for a proper diagnostic tomorrow."

Arya leaned against the balustrade, and rolled her eyes. "You know how it is." She looked at him. "Well, maybe you don't." The smuggler stood up, and took a step away from the railing. "Anyway, the job's done. Am I getting a drink, or just leaving?"

[General Dan]

"I was going to ask you the same."

Dan removed himself from the balcony railing, and walked back inside.

"If you're inquiring about the mercenary nature of our time together, then I reckon we're all squared. Then again, you're standing there like you got something else on the tip of your tongue, so I'm all ears."

[Arya Ravenwing]

She trailed behind him, and surprised them both with a huge yawn. Arya's eyes watered, and she shook her head. "Nope. Just a pleasure doing business with you, as always. I don't want to keep you from your movie."

Arya put out a hand to the wall so she could lean a little bit. Three days with no sleep, and she was starting another job in the morning? "I think I'm just going to go to bed. Before," another yawn, "before I have to find a mech for the frieghter."

She clapped her other hand over her open mouth as a third yawn came fast and furious on the heels of the last.

[General Dan]

"mm"

Dan offered nothing in response to Arya's reasoning for excusing herself. He returned to the bar to refill his drink.

[Arya Ravenwing]

She wasn't expecting him to hold her arm and escort her to the door, but usually he was a bit more courteous and at least showed her out. Courteous - or perhaps paranoid that she'd snoop around.

Arya patted her jacket to make sure the bag of credits was still there, and walked towards the entry and the turbolift. Her boots clomped loudly on the flooring, but she didn't care. She checked over her shoulder as she pressed the button to call the 'lift up to the penthouse floor.