The party was over: the medals have been given out, all the cheers cheered, every song sang, morale was sky-high for the first time in a very, very long time. Leia should have been happy. She should have been celebrating with the rest of the rebels. After all, she played a huge role in the destruction of the Death Star. But no: Princess Leia Organa didn't feel much like celebrating at all. She smiled when Han winked at her, and she felt the beginnings of a crush on the man, even though he had enough ego for 3 Hutts. Luke gave her a hug and spun her around in his arms, which made her laugh. None of that really mattered at the moment.

Leia had just lost everything. Everything. Her family, her friends, most of her personal belongings, hells, she lost her entire home planet to Darth Vader. Stars, how she loathed that Sith. Just thinking about the moment she saw the explosion made her sick.

Don't be so selfish, she thought to herself, other people lost things, too. Which was true: almost all of their squadron didn't survive the mission; this wasn't the first costly victory. Anyone involved in the Rebel Alliance had lost someone or something dear to them in the war. Before the grief and anger consumed her, she resolved to escape the base compound so no one could see her break down. Leia was supposed to be the strong leader. What kind of strong leader fell apart after every battle? Enough was enough. Silently, she crept away from the base and walked in a random direction, unsure of where she was going or what she was looking for.

Back in the hangar, Luke was helping Han finish the last few repairs to the Millennium Falcon. Luke had grown to like Han, despite their rocky introduction on Tatooine, and didn't mind helping him fix up the ship. Not to mention Han more or less saved Luke's life in that final trench run…

"Didn't Leia say she was gonna come over here after the party?" Luke asked when he noticed the absence of his friend. Han perked up at the mention of her name.

"Yeah, she did, didn't she? Ah, whatever. You know how she can be," Han drawled while focusing intently on straightening out a stray antenna. As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized he might have overshot and came across as too harsh. He was trying his best to sound unaffected but he was secretly hoping she would show up. Unfortunately for him, Luke saw through his façade.

"You know, she just lost almost everything she's ever known in less than a day. I'm surprised she was even at the medal ceremony," Luke said. Han looked up form his work.

"Besides, if I were her, I would want to be alone right now. Might as well let her be," he continued. That made Han think: if he were a sad princess, where would he go to be alone? When no ideas came to mind, he asked himself a different question: where would he go if he wanted to be alone? Memories of a garden, an empty bit of wooded land, and other nature-filled places flooded his mind. As a boy, he often escaped to the lesser-populated parts of Corellia to decompress. It just so happened that the lesser-populated areas happened to be on the edge of the city, where there was still some wildlife left. Suddenly, an idea hit him. He threw down his tools and told Chewie to take over. Chewie wasn't too pleased, and growled his disapproval.

"Hey, I said I'll be back soon! Take it easy, it's only a busted antenna." Han pretend not to hear the colorful swears his co-pilot uttered after him. With any luck, Luke's Shyriiwook wouldn't be advanced enough to understand it.

Han walked out of the base as fast as he could without gathering attention. He gazed around and took off in a random direction, hoping for the best.

Leia arrived at a small clearing in the Yavin woods. What appeared to be a dried-up riverbed ran through the far edge of the clearing, and there were several fallen trees lying in a not-quite square shape. Leaves littered the ground; the only sound to be heard was a soft breeze. This would do just fine. She sat down, leaned her back against a downed tree, and expected tears to flood her eyes. When they didn't come, she was even more disappointed: she couldn't even cry to express her grief. Gently, she curled up and rested her forehead against her knees. Time to ignore the world.

Han loped through the woods, grumbling every time he tripped over a root or stepped in mud. She has to be around here somewhere, he thought.

"Oh, princess? Oh, your highnessness?" he muttered to himself as he stumbled through the forest. It wasn't long until he found what he was searching for: a small figure, dressed in white, curled up in a ball against a tree trunk. A wry smile crept across his face. With a deep breath and a shake of his head, Han decided to try his hand at comforting Leia, as Luke suggested. Maybe some of that hocus-pocus magic Luke kept going on about would come through today. Softly, he approached her.

"Hey, are you okay?" he asked tenderly. When Han's voice echoed in her ears, anger and happiness surged through her at the same, and she didn't know how to react. She froze. Slowly, Leia picked her head up to see her friend gently approaching her and kneeling next to her.

"Leave me alone," she said in the most menacing voice she could muster, even though she wasn't sure if she wanted to be left alone. She was thoroughly confused as to why that moon jockey with an ego the size of a space freighter wanted to see if she way okay. Han ran a hand through his hair as he sat down next to her.

"I, uh, noticed you weren't around. That was some crazy stuff that happened back there. I just wanted to, you know, see if you were alright." Han surprised himself at how caring he could be when he tried.

"I'm fine," Leia said, "I just needed some time alone. I- I don't even know what to think. It's like I can't even feel anything at all. Just- totally numb."

Han nodded in response, careful not to open his mouth and ruin everything, as he was apt to do.

"Everything is gone. Everything." Leia's voice faltered on the last word. Yet, she still couldn't find any tears. For once, Han was speechless. What could he say in response to that?
Leia's hand was resting on her knees, gripping so tightly her knuckles were turning white, and Han felt the need to do something, anything, so comfort the princess. He placed his hand over hers with as much softness as he could muster. It was a foreign sensation, comforting a distressed young woman, but he wasn't about to give up just yet. Leia instantly curled her fingers around his. Her digits laced between his much larger ones in a symbol of acceptance and friendship- and maybe the beginnings of something more.

Neither one of them felt the need to say anything. It wasn't awkward or weirdly tense, it was just them. No one was relying on them for direction, or to save the day. No battles or danger to escape. There were only two people, tired and hurt, and needing the other's company. Leia even surprised herself when she leaned into Han's embrace. She could stay like this forever, she decided. A feeling in her soul told her whatever was going on, it was good. It was right. Han didn't mind either: this was the best he'd felt in a very long time. He recognized the unidentifiable good feeling as well. The two stayed in the clearing, holding each other close, until the sun began to sink lower in the trees.

"It's getting late, princess. Want to head back?" Han asked quietly. Leia leaned up from the embrace.

"No. I think I'll stay here a little longer. I'll come back later."

"You better-" he paused to stand up and brush some leaves from his pants, "or I'll come looking for you!" Leia smiled genuinely for the first time that day.

"Go on, Captain Solo. I'll be back before dark." He began to walk away, when he heard her call out to him,

"Han?"

"Yes, your highnessness?" She rolled her eyes at his nickname for her.

"I'm glad you found me here. Seriously. Thank You." He gave a crooked smile.

"Anytime, Leia. At least now I'll know where to find you when you disappear."

And it was true: now they had somewhere to go that only they knew, like children with a secret hiding spot. Even though death and loss was everywhere, there was also something good coming to life within them.