A Midnight Talk
By Wendy
A solitary figure stood upon one of the many balconies carved into the framework of the Imperial Palace on Coruscant. Darkness had fallen over the grand city several hours earlier and most of its respectable citizens had long retired to their homes. In the near distance music from the many cantinas and restaurants on the lower sections of the city wafted up and disturbed the somber mood of the lone figure.
Jedi Master Luke Skywalker peered out over the dark sky above, glittering with millions of stars and wondered if Callista was doing the same thing wherever she was. The thought of her gazing out upon the sky and perhaps thinking of him brought little comfort to his aching heart...nothing could possibly ease the sadness and longing he felt for the woman he loved...the woman he knew loved him in return...and yet disappeared from his life....
Leia Organa Solo paused in the corridor of the Imperial Palace, just inside the doorway leading out onto the balcony upon which her brother stood. His overwhelming loneliness had called to her in her sleep and awakened her. She knew that Luke probably wasn't aware of how much his sadness had leaked over into the connection they had...the unbreakable bond that had steadily grown stronger over the years and with her training in the Force techniques that Luke had taught her.
Quietly she had slipped out of bed so as not to disturb Han, pulled on a robe over her nightgown and quietly left the Solo quarters. Leia hadn't really known where to look for Luke, but had simply used her Force connection with her brother to locate him. She stood in indecision, wanting to move forward and console him in some way, yet not wanting to intrude upon his solitude.
"You are up late."
The words were softly spoken, yet they startled Leia. Luke's ability to sense even the slightest of movements or sounds was uncanny and unnerved her.
"I couldn't sleep." Leia replied as she stepped out onto the balcony towards him.
Luke sensed her response for what it was. He had thought that he had clamped down harder on his feelings so as not to alarm Leia. He didn't hide his feelings entirely from her...they were too close...too connected to do that...but he could regulate just how strongly she felt them. He turned away from the balcony to face her as she approached...not bothered in the least by her appearance.
"I'm sorry Leia. I don't mean to disturb you." he told her quietly.
"Isn't that my line?" Leia said as she came to a stop beside him. Her concerned brown eyes swept lovingly over his face...while she sent love and compassion flowing over him in the Force.
Luke smiled through his pain, marveling at how Leia's Force abilities had grown in so short a time and how welcome her affectionate caresses were to his wounded soul.
"Your abilities have grown." Luke said.
"I've been practicing," Leia admitted. "Alhough I don't think that I will ever be quite as adept at using the Force as you."
Luke frowned at her. "Using the Force isn't about competing. It's about learning to become one with it. A Jedi uses the Force to find a balance within them and in everything that they strive to do. It does not matter whether it's piloting a fighter, leading a government, or picking up a pebble."
It was Leia's turn to smile at the authoritative tone Luke's voice had taken on. "Yes, Master."
"Sorry. I don't believe you came out here to get a late night lesson."
"No...I came out here to see if you were alright. To listen to you if you needed to talk....or just sit with you if you want." Leia told him.
"I'm not quite up to talking about it yet...it's still too painful...to mention her name....to think of life without her." Luke's voice grew hoarser as emotions inside of him welled up.
"Then we'll sit and watch the sun rise together." Leia answered. She wrapped her brother lovingly in a hug and held him for several moments. Then, as if one, the two siblings moved toward a grouping of chairs and settled themselves into them...and gazed up at the sky overhead their fingers intertwined.
The dark sky over Coruscant was just beginning to lighten as Luke escorted Leia back to the Solo quarters. They hadn't talked much the rest of the time they had sat out on the balcony together, but Leia could feel that Luke's pain had lessened a little just knowing that she was there with him. There relationship as brother and sister were still new to the both of them. They had been friends for quite some time before Luke had learned from Obi Wan "Ben" Kenobi that he had a twin. Luke had told her that he had known right away that she was his twin. Both of them had sensed a sudden connection between them that neither of them had understood at first. Gradually they had come to realize that their paths had meant to cross, and that they were destined to become someone special in each other's life. She and Luke both had mistakenly attributed the connection that they felt as an attraction, but had soon learned that the feeling that they had for one another went far deeper than that.
In her confusion over the equally strong feelings that she had regarding Han Solo, Leila had kissed Luke to try to prove to herself, and to Han, too, that she was not interested in him in the very least. Leia and Luke both had realized then that there could never be anything physical between them, although they didn't find out for some time later that they were actually siblings, twins.
Leia wouldn't want things any other way between her and Luke or her and Han. Han was her lover, her husband, her soul mate. The relationship that she shared with Luke was equally as important to her. Now that she had found out that she wasn't an only child after all, but a twin, she couldn't bare the thought of ever living her life without Luke in it. He was more than just her brother, but an integral part of her being that would be lost without him.
"I didn't mean to make you so melancholy Leia." Luke's gently spoken words startled Leia out of her reverie.
"You didn't. I was just reflecting on how much my life has grown, changed since you and Han became a part of it." Leia replied honestly.
"How we created chaos in it you mean?" Luke said teasingly.
Leia smiled at him. It did her heart good to see him smiling and teasing. "That too I suppose. Even so, the two of you have made it all the more fuller, richer, and less lonely."
"I'm glad. You may never know the full extent of how very glad I am for your presence in my life...and for Han's and the children too. I could never get through this loss if I had to do it alone." Luke said.
Leia reached up and wiped a single tear off of Luke's face. It was only in moments like these, when the two of them were alone that Luke really felt free to openly express his feelings. Though he was in pain, Leia was glad that he trusted her enough to show them to her. Later on this very day, she knew...Luke would carefully tuck them away behind Force barriers so no one would be able to see them...
"You'll never be truly alone again Luke as long as I can help it."
Leia told him.
"Neither will you. Go on in now. Go back to your warm bed and to
Han." Luke urged.
"Try to get some rest." Leia said as she hugged Luke, planted a kiss upon his cheek and opened the doors to her quarters.
"I will." Luke promised, although he felt doubtful of succeeding. He would try though because he had promised her.
They shared one last look between them before Leia closed the door and Luke headed to his own quarters.
Leia leaned against the heavy wooden door of the Solo quarters with a sigh. Her heart was heavy with longing to ease the torment Luke was in. To find a way to help him through his pain in some other way than just being there to listen when he needed to talk...and when he didn't. He had been alone for so long before finding Callista. Leia shook her head to clear it of the disconcerting thoughts knowing that Luke would sense her feelings and be more burdened by them. She was still deep in thought that she didn't sense another presence moving around the suite until a deep voice startled her from its proximity.
"Something wrong, princess?" Han asked softly, his voice low so as not to awaken the children. He stood only about ten feet from her, his chestnut hair muffled from sleep, dressed only in a pair of pajama bottoms. As he waited for her to answer, Han unconsciously ran a hand through the dark tresses in order to smooth them out.
Leia smiled lovingly over at him, amazed at how often Han seemed to accurately judge her feelings and moods, of always knowing when she needed him, of loving her the way she needed to be loved...without having abilities in the Force to aide him.
"No. Well, no not really." Leia began, trying to find the right words to explain without revealing any of the feelings and thoughts she was getting from Luke.
"How's Luke doing?" Han asked, stepping closer in order to take her into his arms. Though he wasn't ever comfortable with revealing the depth of his feelings for his family members, Luke included, he felt their hurt just as keenly. Luke had gone from being the annoying do-good farm boy he had met in the Mos Eisley cantina on Tattoine long ago to a close friend, a brother even, next to Chewie.
Leia snuggled her head against Han's chest, accepting the comfort only his arms could give. "Not too good. Course he'd never make it known to anyone else outside the family. If only I could do something to help him."
"You are doing something sweetheart. Luke knows he can talk to you whenever he needs to and that you love and support him. There's nothing else you can do. As hard as it is for you to witness, Luke e has to go through this alone in order to get over it. Although, I don't think I would handle it as well if it was me." Han told her, stroking her head.
"Me neither." Leia whispered and brought her lips up to meet Han's. The kiss lasted along time and was full of the deep love each had for the other.
"Come on, let's go back to bed. You'll need some sleep to deal with all those Senators tomorrow." Han said and without waiting for her reply, started back across the sitting room toward their bedroom with Leia still wrapped in his arms.