A/N I've written this little postscript to the story because half way through writing it, I realised I'd left a plot hole of not mentioning how Mara would have got past the Skywalker-Solo's Noghri guards (Mara's good, but personally I don't think she's THAT good). I HATE plot holes, so I wrote this. It's a bit silly. Sorrynotsorry!

Epilogue

Artoo rolled to the terminal that the Noghri Cakhmaim sat at filling out security reports for the night before. The Noghri shot Artoo what he assumed was a sour look as he extended his data jack and plugged into the terminal so that he could converse with the alien. Cakhmaim had not been at all keen on the idea of coordinating with Artoo on the security of his master, but Artoo, ever vigilant, had insisted and, after some intervention from Master Luke, got his own way. Now he received a copy of their reports daily, although generally the short aliens still avoided talking to him directly about it.

Artoo ran through the report document Cakhmaim was compiling. As expected, an entirely quiet night with no concerns, and only one visitor…

Wait. What? What visitor?

Mara Jade had entered the apartment at 1.45am.

What?!

To his chagrin, Artoo realised it coincided with the twenty minutes he had powered down for a systems update, assuming the Noghri could handle matters for such a short time.

MARA JADE ENTERED THE APARTMENT AT 1.45 AM? He asked Cakhmaim through the terminal messaging suite.

The Noghri looked down at him and growled "Yes," shortly.

MASTER LUKE WAS AWAKE TO INVITE HER IN?

"No," came the short reply.

THEN HOW DID SHE GET IN THE APARTMENT?

The Noghri frowned down at him. "She used the key pad."

MARA JADE SHOULD NOT HAVE ACCESS TO HIS DOOR CODE. WAS MASTER LUKE AWAKE DURING HER VISIT?

The Noghri's eyes flicked down from the screen to the little droid. "No, he was asleep for the entire time."

Artoo's dome spun around in agitation, accompanied by a range of outraged squeals.

AND YOU DID NOT THINK THIS WAS A PROBLEM?! HOW DID SHE EVEN GET TO THE RESIDENTIAL FLOORS OF THIS WING? SHE DOES NOT HAVE SECURITY CLEARANCE FOR THIS AREA!

To Artoo's surprise, Cakhmaim shrugged. He did not seem to be treating the incident with the severity it deserved. "She very effectively circumvented the palace guards then used one of the Emperor's secret passages to get up to this floor. Her skills at subterfuge are reasonably impressive, for a human."

AND YOU DIDN'T THINK TO STOP HER?

Another casual shrug. "We were watching her the whole time. We did not think Son of Vader would want us to stop her."

STOP HER BREAKING INTO HIS APARTMENT AT NIGHT WHILE HE WAS SLEEPING? WHY DO YOU THINK HE WOULD NOT WANT THAT?

For the first time, Cakhmaim seemed to take in that there may be a problem in this. "We would not wish to interfere with mating rituals."

MATING RITUALS?! WHAAAT?!

"Demonstrating our skills at subterfuge and hunting is an important part of winning the respect of a mate. Amongst the Noghri, it is traditional, at a particular stage of a courtship, for one to infiltrate their prospective mate's home as they sleep and leave a gift for them without waking them. We assumed this was the same for humans."

NO! NO, I HAVE NEVER OBSERVED THIS BEING A NORMAL PART OF HUMAN MATING PROCESSES. QUITE THE OPPOSITE. AND WHAT MADE YOU THINK THEY HAD REACHED ANY STAGE IN COURTSHIP?!

"From our observations of their interaction together, the way they work well together, their willingness to make sacrifices for each other, and finally Son of Vader's personal gift to her yesterday, this seemed an obvious next step." Cakhmaim crooked his head at the droid. "Was our evaluation incorrect?"

Artoo processed his points for a few moments. They were good ones, and the scenario seemed likely. Except for the part where she broke in without permission!

YES. THIS MAY BE NORMAL MATING RITUALS FOR NOGHRI, BUT IT IS NOT FOR HUMANS. IN FUTURE, PLEASE STOP POTENTIAL MATES FROM ENTERING PRIVATE ROOMS WITHOUT PERMISSION. IT IS WHAT I BELIEVE HUMANS REFER TO AS 'CREEPY'.

Cakhmaim nodded. "Very well. I apologise sincerely for this misunderstanding. Should we inform Son of Vader of this transgression?"

Artoo twisted his dome from side to side, processing the matter. On the one hand, it was inappropriate and strange behaviour. On the other hand, there did seem to be some potential between Master Luke and Mara Jade. Revealing this might ruin that. And she hadn't actually done anything whilst here, as far as he could see from the report. Just went in his bedroom, looked at him for a minute, then left.

NO. IT IS UNNECESSARY ON THIS OCCASION. JUST DON'T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN.

Cakhmaim nodded, some version of relief crossing his strange face.