Docking Bay 49 (119/365)
Han Solo, Captain of the Millenium Falcon, stepped onto the escalator beside his co-pilot, Chewbacca, and let the ascending stairs carry him up to the second floor of the Xafilah World Trade Convention Centre. The sights and smells of this unfamiliar place brought a typically condescending sneer to his lips. A miniature feline life form, coming to no more than 100 cms, maybe a little less, with a head the size of a large Rodian Verbeek Pie, dressed in a short pink and white dress, backed up on her metal step and bumped into his knee. A much taller, much curvier female of primate descent -- some sort of mammalian off-shoot -- took the catlike giant-headed thing by the hand and looked over her shoulder at Han.
"Sorry about that," she said with a smile.
"No problem at all, right Chewie? Unless she decides to blast me."
The female primate looked confused for a moment, gave Han a slightly uncomfortable, gap -toothed smile then moved up a step, widening the gap between Han and his Wookie companion.
Out of the corner of his mouth, Han grumbled, none-too-quietly, "Touchy."
Chewbacca "gronked" his agreement, and chuckled his throaty chuckle.
The female primate and her feline charge stepped off the escalator and cut through a crowd to another small group waiting near a wall to the left. A large male primate, with silver-grey hair on his crown, perhaps a mate of the female's, and a pair of mammalian children, one with long blonde hair, a winged helmet and a mighty war hammer, the other dressed in a practical, khaki work jumpsuit, with her hair in two tight buns and flowery shirt beneath seemed to be waiting for their companions. The female primate said something to her mate, and he made immediate eye contact with Solo. The Corellian Pilot smiled, and the male primate gave him a kind wave, seemingly happy to see him.
Han nudged Chewie in the side with his elbow and said, "Over there, big guy, let's see when the competition begins."
The pair walked off towards a table directly across from the escalators, where a group of humanoids sat distributing programs of the weekend's happenings.
Han Solo, cautious as always, strode across the floor with confidence, but he took everything in. To the right was an odd box structure. Navy blue in colour, words in common declared it as "Police -- public call -- Box." To the left of the Box stood a multi-hued humanoid with a brown board, had-painted sign that read, "The End is Nigh," while, to the right, was a thin, almost emaciated, gold man covered in piercings. Han raised his eyebrows and appreciated the fact that there was no Imperial presence to speak of -- at least not yet.
"I'll set us up at the Sabacc tables, Chewie. You go and find Lando."
Chewbacca responded with a happy growl and set off down the hall to the left as Han stood in line at what he thought was the competition table.
"Hey, Chewie!" The Wookie stopped and turned back to his captain. "Be careful, okay? And meet me in the bazaar in a a quarter of an hour."
Chewbacca growled in the affirmative -- on both counts -- and started his search for Lando Calrissian.
