Arani Jakal was not ready to be stranded on an unfamiliar planet, causing her whole life to change. But in the chaos, a friend or two popped up - seemingly from nowhere - wishing to help. Ari gladly accepted and quickly became part of a small town...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
⊱⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊶⊷⊰
AS QUICKLY AS BEFORE, the two starships found their way to another planet. This one, however, was familiar, very familiar. Ari could not help the smile that crept onto her face at the thought of seeing her old friends once again. Many changes had been made, the city was still surrounded by ash and lava but within the walls, it was alive and bright.
"You're going to love Nevarro," she told Haro as they walked through the crowded streets. "This is where I got my headscarf, and the people here are wonderful. Oh! I'm sure the friends Din and I have can hook you up with some newer outer-rim tec so you can catch more slave carriers in the future."
Haro glanced over his shoulder, finding Din to be behind them. He paused a moment so he was in step with him and crossed his arms. "I don't ever remember her being like this when it was just me and her. She like this often with you?"
His question brought Din out of his daze. He had been soaking in the moment, remembering every detail and line of Ari's face. The Armourer was right: he did not know how long he'd have with her. He was determined to appreciate every second. Din shook his head, brow furrowed. "No . . ." He glanced about and moved slightly when a white droid came passing through. "A lot has changed around here."
"Isn't it wonderful?" Ari asked, grinning wide. A group of schoolchildren passed, running around her. She paused, laughing quietly. "Excuse me."
They came to the middle of the square and stumbled upon a statue. Ari did not know the whole story, but by the way, Din and Grogu gazed at it, she could tell the droid had been important.
"Do you remember your old friend?" Din asked the Kid, who responded with a babble.
"Mando!" A loud, familiar voice shouted from the other side of the courtyard. The group turned to find Greef Karga walking down a set of steps, two small droids trailing behind him, carrying the ends of his rope.
Greef laughed. "I heard you were back, but I didn't believe it."
"Magistrate Karga," Din greeted.
"That's High Magistrate Karga to you," he said jokingly. His smile widened tremendously when his eyes landed on Arani. "But to you, it will always be Greef. Come here, my dear." Waving her over, she jumped on him and the two wrapped each other in a tight embrace, not breaking apart for some time. "How have you been?" Greef asked when they pulled apart.
Ari shrugged. "The last few weeks have been good, but the last year . . . well, that's a story for a different environment."
Greef cocked his head. "What the hell has Mando been putting you through?" He wasn't looking for a response as he moved on quickly to Haro. "And who's this?"
