A.N. Here is a little Han/Leia goodie for y'all! It's been tumbling around in my head for a while. Feel free to review, and most of all, enjoy! As always, neither Han, Leia, the trees of Yavin IV, or the invention of running belong to me.
Han Solo thrashed restlessly in his bunk for what he though was the hundredth time, his sheets tangling around his legs. With a frustrated grumble and a few curse words, he wrestled himself out of the blankets, threw them to the other side of his cabin, and swung his legs to touch the floor.
"What time is it?" He moaned, his calloused hand moved over his unshaven face and up into his unruly hair. His other hand moved to position the chrono into view, the time reading, "04:30." Another two hours until he needed to get up. And it had already been six, long hours that he had been awake, since the second his head hit the pillow.
"Guess I'm not sleeping tonight. Or this morning," Han said as he slowly got up and moved to the fresher. He figured he could work on the Falcon for a couple hours, as long as he didn't wake Chewie.
Han exited the Falcon into the hangar as quietly as possible. As he started to examine the ship's interior, a familiar silhouette appeared at the edge of the hangar, facing out towards the jungles of Yavin IV.
Now distracted from the Falcon, Han began to approach the figure in the distance. Her hair was tied in one, long braid down her back, and she wore a light blue jumpsuit. Han had seen her at the awards ceremony with a hairstyle not too different and a radiant white gown, but something about her now was infinitely more beautiful.
He sauntered up to her side and said, "Good morning, Your Highness."
Leia Organa jumped a little at his sudden presence, and her face turned into an immediate scowl.
"What are you doing here, Captain Solo?"
"Couldn't sleep. Had images of you keeping me up all night," he said with a mischievous grin.
Leia rolled her eyes and started to stretch her thighs.
"I could ask the same about you. Why in all the planets' names are you up at 04:30 in the morning?"
"Unlike some people," Leia cast a disparaging glance Han's way. "I have a million things to get done during the day, so I start my day early to make sure I can. While there are no distractions."
"So you don't sleep?"
"Not as much as most." Leia started to do some lunges. Han walked over and crouched down to Leia's height.
"Thinking of me? Been keeping you up?" He flashed a smile and set his hazel eyes on her.
He expected Leia's eyes to turn fiery and for her to snap at him like the many times he's flirted with her before, but instead her face fell a little and her deep brown eyes grew sad.
I wish, Leia thought. "No, just other things." Han's face fell too and she abruptly stood up and broke their gaze.
Han felt like an idiot for bringing up Leia's negative feelings, and images of the rubble of Alderaan floating past the Falcon's cockpit flashed through his mind.
"So what are you doing?" Han asked, gesturing towards her stretching, and hoping to change the subject. "It doesn't necessarily look like work."
"Well, all of the work I can do on my own is miraculously done, and I realized that I haven't gone for a run in ages."
"A run?" Han's eyebrows shot up. "Why do you want to run?"
Leia could sense judgment in his tone and quickly snapped to face him.
"As it so happens, Captain Solo, I used to run a lot when I lived..." Leia's voice cracked and faded, but she quickly recovered. "As a princess. I was training in combat and I was taught that taking care of your body was as important as reading or politics. One's body is a treasure and you are responsible for taking care of it."
Han's face broke into a small grin of admiration. "So you ran."
Leia shook her head firmly. "I ran for miles. It felt so freeing. Like nothing could ever catch me; all I had was a destination. I've realized now that I haven't been taking care of myself since we arrived on Yavin IV. If I...want to honor my people, I should honor what they taught me. Honor one of the last Alderaanian bodies left."
Han was stunned into silence, taken aback by another layer of depth uncovered by the Princess. She certainly was different than the princess he thought he was rescuing on the Death Star.
"So if you'll excuse me-" Leia began to run into the jungle.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Han called to her. "I want in on this body-treasure-thing too. And I have a great idea."
"Oh, I can't wait to hear this," Leia muttered sarcastically.
"A race."
"A race? Han, we're not ten."
Han couldn't help but feel his heart leap when Leia called him by his first name. "With stakes."
"And not everyone is a lowlife gambler like you!"
"Come on, it'll be fun!"
"I run for endurance, not for speed."
"I know you can't resist competition. Especially against me, Your Highness."
Leia was about to yell at Han about that stupid nickname when her face lit up. She started to walk back to Han slowly, a slight sway in her hips.
"All right. We'll race. From here to the lookout post in the center of the jungle. And if I win, you stop calling me, 'Your Highness.'" She placed her hands on her hips and looked up at Han with a mischievous grin.
Han took a step closer to Leia until they were a mere inch apart. "Okay then, Your Highness. And if I win, you kiss me."
"A kiss?" Leia's expression didn't falter.
"A kiss," Han said with a deep tone. "If that's all right with you," he added.
"Sure."
"Really?" Han was surprised at the speed of her reply.
"Yeah. I know I'm going to win so I'm not concerned," she said with a gleam in her eye.
"Don't be so sure! I've been running from stuff my whole life, I've got plenty of experience."
"Well, you don't have the Falcon on your side this time. Let's see you make those twelve parsecs on foot," Leia teased, competitive edge creeping into her voice. She stuck out her hand and Han grasped it firmly in a resolute handshake. She couldn't help but notice how her stomach flipped a little when their hands met.
"All right, on the count of three," Han said.
"One..."
"Two..."
"Three!" They both shouted and took off into the jungle.
Greenery whipped around them as they sped through the trees, their feet pounding the dirt below.
Side-by-side, neck-in-neck, they sprinted onwards, breaths heavy and in rhythm with their feet. Han marveled at Leia's endurance and form. She seemed like she couldn't tire, and her pace stayed even with his own. There was something about running beside her that he loved. Instead of racing each other, they seemed like a symbiotic team.
Leia was also impressed by Han's skills. She was shocked to find him keeping his pace with hers, assuming he only ever needed to run to get out of a bar fight or seedy alley. Or the Death Star. Leia suddenly realized that this was the first time she was running since the Death Star. Since she boarded the Millennium Falcon in a hurry with Luke and Han. But something felt different this time, something felt freer, even though she was running to free herself last time. Finally, she wasn't running away. She was running towards something. Her pace began to quicken as excitement flooded through her and freedom began to course through her veins. She could feel Han separating from her side and a part of her wanted to simply run by his side. But in this moment she was a lone young girl, running on Alderaan once more.
Before she knew it, Leia reached the lookout post and slapped her hand against it in victory.
"Yes!" She called out, her breaths coming in heavy pants.
Han was not too far off, but still behind, and he slowed his pace to a jog and collapsed on the ground at Leia's feet. He looked up at her and said between gasps, "How...did you learn...to run...like that?"
"I've been running all my life too," Leia said with a grin. "I win! I win! I win!" She chanted while dancing around Han's body. Han couldn't help but chuckle upon seeing Leia like this. She was so happy, so carefree. This was a Leia anyone rarely got to see, and he felt honored to witness it.
Han struggled to his feet and faced the victor. "All right, you win this time."
"Ohhh, this time?" Leia said giddily. "Is that a challenge?"
"Tomorrow. Same time. I won't let a chance to kiss you slip away this easy."
"You think you're such a charmer, don't you? What if I don't want to kiss you?"
"Then I won't make you."
Leia's expression became puzzled. "Really?"
"Nope. Like you said, your body is a treasure. I'm going to honor it too."
Leia's jaw dropped slightly, overwhelmed by this moment of tenderness from such a typically cocky man. Maybe there was more to Han Solo than she thought.
"But the thing is, I think you do want to kiss me. So we'll just have to race again," Han stated, giving her his lopsided grin.
Leia rolled her eyes and gave Han a playful shove to the shoulder. "We'll just wait and see, hotshot." With that she turned around and started to head back to the base. Han watched her walk for a bit, wondering how he got so lucky to be in her presence, to maybe even be her friend.
Leia swiveled around and gestured towards the trail ahead. "Coming?"
"Yes, Your Highnessness!"
"Hey!"
"What? It's not 'Your Highness.'"
Leia grumbled and continued walking back, while Han jogged to catch up. The pair walked side-by-side, their hands sometimes brushing together. Leia rambled excitedly about some new plan for the Rebellion, and Han simply smiled at how her eyes lit up with fire. Everything about her was a treasure.