Between Two Worlds-Luxsoka

alone

The box was sinking in, water seeping through the cracks. The soggy cardboard quickly turning into mush.

An empty stomach yearns for the satisfaction of anything willing to crunch between teeth.

Shivering, Ahsoka Tano slipped from the broken box to the sopping rain. She'd be cold anyway.

Holding her empty belly, Ahsoka walked the scum-level of Coruscant that she resided, desperately looking for any way to earn a few credits.

A pub to the right of her flickered an "Open" sign. She hesitated, since the pub looked shady, but what choice did she have? She was starving.

Ahsoka slid the heavy door open, and saw customers lying drunkenly on stools. The barista, an older-looking Mon Calamari, gave an eye-roll at the young Togruta.

"What do you want?" The Mon Calamari grunted.

Ahsoka hesitated before speaking. "I need credits—"

"Get outta here!" snapped the barista. "I don't give stuff to beggars."

"I will work for them," Ahsoka quickly responded. "I just, need credits for some food. I'll work, I'll earn every last credit! Please." Ahsoka took a breath, she was way out of her head here. "I'm so hungry," she whispered.

The Mon Calamari closed his eyes, as if he was debating whether or not to give this girl something to do. He opened his eyes, took a deep breath, and slapped a flipper against his hip before he responded. "I guess I do need some glasses washed. Come with me, kid."

Ahsoka nearly bounced off the walls in excitement. I'm going to have dinner tonight! Ahsoka followed her new employer to the back, and her jaw dropped seeing the pile of cups for her to clean.

"Clean 'em up, then we can talk about said payment." And Ahsoka was left to her own devices.

Ahsoka scrubbed the alcohol-stained glasses for what seemed like a few hours. Carefully drying the glasses, she neatly stacked them in a pile close to the dispensers.

"Sir," the exhausted Togruta spoke, "I'm finished."

The Mon Calamari looked at the girl, who was clearly malnourished and weak, and sighed. "Okay," he said, walking to the back to check her work. He was impressed, this girl was thorough.

He pulled a single credit out of his apron pocket and handed it to the Togruta. Eagerly, she took it, but looked up questioningly at the barista.

"Sorry, kid," he started. "It's the slums. I can't be handing away free credits like that. Now shoo, before I make you hand that back."

Ahsoka's blue eyes grew in fear as she quickly nodded and turned for the door, exiting as tho Dooku were behind her.

Ahsoka looked down at the meager credit, and hoped she could maybe buy portion bread with it, but how much, she wasn't sure.

It's okay, Ahsoka, she thought. It'll be okay.

Ahsoka wandered aimlessly through the streets—narrowly escaping drunks that would use her for more than she'd be willing—looking for anyplace that would sell her some bread for a credit. However, the stores refused her anything.

Feeling hopeless, Ahsoka stuffed the credit in her bra, and searched for more work. But, it seemed, everyone either turned her down, or threatened to to beat her up if she didn't scram.

It was well into the next rotation when Ahsoka finally sat down in a corner to rest.

Her stomach growled. Her body felt like collapsing. I can't do this anymore.

Her eyes felt heavy. Not here. Not now. Ahsoka tried fighting off the sleepiness; and finally, she decided to only close her eyes. She was not going to fall asleep.

It probably wasn't more than five minutes before Ahsoka felt a disturbance in the Force. l

Ahsoka had tried blocking any form from the Force, and it worked. Until then. The disturbance was so strong, it made Ahsoka want to follow it, to see what it was.

She followed the sense of the Force; winding around corners and ducking under bridges and platforms.

Ahsoka stopped; head pounding. Briefly, she closed her eyes, trying to sense where the disturbance is. When she opened her eyes again, her stomach lurched.

It was a poster of her.

Wanted, was written in basic underneath her picture, with a reward of credits, too. It was faded, so it was at least several rotations old, but it still brought Ahsoka to the horror that only happened a few weeks ago.

Ahsoka's stomach released its empty contents onto the floor. Nothing was in there, yet it still managed to remove many many things by the mouth.

Ahsoka, hunched over, wiped her cracked lips, and groaned. She wasn't hungry anymore.

Moments later, the floor seemed to sway beneath her feet, and the nausea returned. Ahsoka put an orange hand against the poster to steady herself, but her view kept spinning around her.

Then her world went black.