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of them were grinning ear to ear.
    “It fits!” cried Ygabba. “I knew it would!”
    Boba stared at her. “You did this?”
    “Yes! With his help.” She cocked a thumb at her father. “Why do you think we were so careful to get your height measurement last time you were here? We knew you’d grow
from that—and it looks like we were right!”
    Boba shook his head. He looked down at his new body armor, then at Ygabba and Gab’borah.
    “This is the best thing anyone has ever given me,” he said. He held up his helmet. “Except for this. And this—”
    He reached for his father’s book, carefully slipped it into a pocket. “Ygabba. Gab’borah. How can I ever thank you?”
    Gab’borah shook his head. “You saved my daughter from that horrible Neimoidian, Gilramos,” he said. “I will forever be in your debt.”
    “And don’t forget—you saved all those other kids, too, Boba,” said Ygabba. She looked at him, then pointed to his helmet, grinning. “I hope you didn’t mind
me picking that up for you from
Slave I.
I thought you’d want to try it on with the rest of your body armor. And you know, it wasn’t the first time I’ve held on to that
helmet for you.”
    Boba laughed. When he first met Ygabba, she had been a street urchin, forced to steal for the evil Gilramos Libkath. And one of the things she’d tried to steal was his helmet!
    “It sure wasn’t,” he said. “But it might be the last. Jabba is sending me on another bounty hunt.”
    “So soon?” said Gab’borah.
    Boba nodded. “Yeah. But this is the great thing—it’s my first job off-planet!”
    “Awesome!” said Ygabba. Her voice held a touch of envy. “Where?”
    Boba hesitated. More than anything, he wanted to tell them of his prize assignment. After all, Gab’borah and Ygabba were the closest thing Boba had to a family.
    But he could not afford the risk. He was in the first rank of Jabba’s bounty hunters now.
    And he wanted to stay there.
    “I can’t tell you,” he said. “It would be too risky. Not just for me, but for you, too.”
    Ygabba looked disappointed, but her father nodded.
    “We understand,” he said. His voice sounded wistful, but his blue eyes shone. “We are very proud of you, Boba. Your father would be proud, too.”
    Gab’borah reached into the pocket of his chef’s robe and withdrew a small packet. “Here. These will last a long time. Wherever you’re going, you’ll need
food.” Boba took the packet. He peeled back a corner to see what was inside.
    “Gleb rations!” He made a face, then said, “I mean, thank you, Gab’borah.” Gleb rations didn’t taste very good, but a single small cube provided enough energy
and nutrients for a day’s hard work.
    “We’d better go,” said Ygabba. She gave Boba a wistful smile. “I have one more thing for you. Not as exciting as gleb rations, but…”
    She held out a small object, about the size of Boba’s hand.
    “What is it?” he asked, taking the object. It was heaver than it looked, encased in a gray plasteel container.
    “A surprise,” said Ygabba. “Wait till you get wherever it is you’re going. Then open it.”
    Boba nodded. “Thanks, Ygabba.”
    “You’re welcome. I hope it helps.” She grinned at Boba, pointing at his helmet. “You take care of that, too. I won’t be around to watch it for you!”
    Boba smiled. “Don’t worry,” he said, waving good-bye as the two of them turned and walked back down the hall. “I will.”

CHAPTER FIVE
    Boba had been off-planet before, of course.
    He had been born on rainswept Kamino, and had buried his father on Geonosis, a desert planet even more desolate than Tatooine. He had been to Aargau, where he retrieved what remained of his
father’s fortune and explored the planet’s treacherous, mazelike Undercity. And before that he had been on a moon of Bogden, and the poisoned world of Raxus Prime. Raxus Prime was where
Boba had met up with the man his father had called “The