A companion piece to A Matter of Manners. This time, it's Han who gets an education on a rather hard-to-read Princess. Enjoy.
Han Solo stormed into the hangar bay. His rig, complete with DL-44 heavy blaster, rattled around on his hips as he approached the Millennium Falcon and his first mate, Chewbacca. Chewie roared a greeting, but Han didn't respond; he seemed lost in his own tirade.
"That woman is insufferable! All I ask for is a small piece of equipment, which was damaged in a run for her Rebellion no less, and what does she say?" he ranted, " 'It's not a crucial piece of equipment,' she says, 'Perhaps if you were an official member of the Alliance, we could spare a little more for your sake.' I swear she does that just to get me…well, like this!" He had paced around the Falcon twice now, and Chewie finally jumped down to block his path. But Han merely rounded on him.
"I swear she has no sympathy for anyone who isn't her or her precious Rebellion. The Ice Princess strikes again. And then she has the nerve to order me out of her office, then she shuts the door on me!" Finally he seemed finished and he strode over to the makeshift workbench, grabbed a micro-fuser, and set to work silently fuming. Chewie shook his shaggy head and returned to rewiring the panels.
After several hours of work, Han had finally had enough. He needed that part, whether Princess Frost realized it or not. Sparing Chewie a look and a less than truthful destination, he left the hangar. He intended to give Her High and Mighty-ness a piece of his mind, and it wasn't going to be a pristine piece either. He readied some of his most nasty comments, intent on giving her the worst tongue-lashing she'd ever received. He stopped in front of her door, steeling his nerves, and pounded very loudly. When he received no answer, he pounded again, this time receiving a rather curt reply from Threepio.
"The Princess wishes to not be disturbed at this time. I will, however, convey a message to Her Royal Highness should you so desire." The door still hadn't opened, but the droid's annoying voice carried through the comm. system.
"Threepio, tell Her Royal Highness that I want to see her…now!" Silence answered him for a moment before Threepio replied.
"I'm sorry, Captain Solo, but the Princess is not to be disturbed. She simply has too much..." but Han tuned him out for a moment. By now, Her Royal Iciness would have answered herself, if not just to give him another scathing comment. That meant she wasn't in her office. And her shift in the Command Center didn't start until after dinner. That meant there was only one other place she could be. Leaving Threepio to ramble at the empty hallway, he took off in the direction of the sleeping quarters.
His announce at her door received no reply; apparently she was intent on ignoring the outside world. Without so much as a courtesy knock, he rewired the door and it slid open easily.
The room was dark, save for the refresher light shining in, and he could barely make out the shape of a small person lying curled up on the bed. His imminent rant was brought up short as he neared the bed. The low-light streaming in from the open door illuminated her face, and Han recognized the signs of a face that had been crying for several hours.
Her eyes were red and puffy, and Han could make out the pool of tears that had seeped into her pillow. His eyes wandered for a moment to her bedside table. A still-active pad lay there just out of her grasp, and Han couldn't resist peeking. Stepping over quietly, he picked it up from the table and thumbed through it.
DATE: 3.4.12 ABY
TO: Her Royal Highness, Princess Leia Organa
FROM: The Office of General Carlist Rieekan
SUBJECT: Casualty Report – Last 4 standard weeks
Number of personnel injured: 123
Number of personnel missing or dead: 542
The following list contains the declassified names of the Alliance members who were killed in battle:
Adri, Kellin
Altair, Fiolla
Bailar, Gavin
Bane, Adriav
Bey, Mebba
Bruvumon, Torill
Han looked up from the seemingly endless list, his eyes falling on the petite figure before him. Briefly, a thought ran through his mind, and his eyes roamed the rest of her quarters. A half-opened drawer teased him from the cabinets beside the refresher, and he barely resisted the urge to move quietly over and take a look. Pads filled the drawer, all titled similarly to the one he held in his hand. At that moment, Han realized she had kept the name of every person who'd died in the Alliance. Hell, she'd even cried for them.
Slowly, before the Princess awoke and broke the peaceful silence that had settled over the room, he set the pad back down in the exact spot he'd found it and left the room.
He walked slowly back to the hangar, thinking about this new glimpse into Princess Leia. He had always known she was passionate about the Alliance, and that she cared about every member that served under her. But Han was beginning to realize just how much responsibility she took for every person in the Alliance. Something in his chest tightened for a moment as he recalled the state in which he'd found her. He'd never actually seen her cry, but he had witnessed the aftermath of one of her "episodes" after the destruction of the Death Star. She hadn't wanted to talk then, and he knew she wouldn't want to talk now, but he promised himself as he entered the hangar bay that he'd do his part to make her work load a little lighter on his end. He commed up to the Command Center, asking to speak with General Rieekan.
"Yes, Captain?" the man sounded somewhat surprised to hear from Solo. "What can I do for you?"
"I need a new motivator for my secondary coolant system. Her Worship seems to think it's not a crucial piece of equipment, but I can assure you it is. Without it my entire hyper-drive loses its heat syncs." Han knew the General was coming up with a way he could elicit a service out of Han; he and the older man had always had an agreement when it came to Han's service to the Alliance. While he was never official, Han did enjoy a few repair benefits (provided they were legitimate and the Alliance could spare it), and Han provided the Alliance with much needed piloting and tactical skills. Finally, Rieekan's voice sounded over the comm.
"We've got one or two lying around. Would you mind heading out on a scout patrol with Commander Skywalker? I'm sure Chewbacca could install the part while you're out." Han didn't much like the cold, but he needed that part – getting in on the black market would take weeks, and Han knew he didn't have that kind of time. His debt to Jabba was getting more dangerous all the time.
"Fine, General, I'll let Chewie know to expect the part. Which bay is Luke in?"
"He's at the South Entrance. You'll have to take Tauntauns. Our vehicles aren't quite adapted yet. Thank you, Captain."
"My pleasure, General. Solo out." Han sighed and trudged off in the direction of the South Entrance after comming Chewie to inform him of their new acquisition.
He spared the Princess one last thought before Luke asked him a quick question about his riding experience.
"Just watch and learn, junior. And be careful. We have no idea what's out there." Luke nodded.
"You too, pal. See you out there." Luke spurred his Tauntaun and he was off, followed soon by Han. He threw a glance back at the base, his thoughts resting on his newfound respect (and, dare he think it, something more?) for a certain sleeping Princess.
So, what do you think? I've had this idea rattling around for a while (Leia keeping up with the casualty reports). I may expand on this idea in a future story, but for now it's a good companion piece to A Matter of Manners. Please review and let me know what you think.
Solo Shodan