A/N: In this version of the story, I have the trip to Bespin quite short. I imagine they leave Hoth, fly around space and arrive Bespin within a 24 hour period. Here they have arrived, perhaps around midday, and after chatting with Lando for awhile, they are left alone in the suite. This is the fun and fluffy part, doom and gloom to come. (Thank you, jennycbs for your help with this fic!)
...
"Please let me know immediately if there is anything else you need while you are here." Lando said to Han before turning to Leia, gallantly offering his hand once again. "Your beauty would shine through the thickest clouds." He kissed her hand, and with a swoosh of his cape, he left. Han looked at Chewie and rolled his eyes. Chewie nodded and continued his perusal of the apartment. Han should have known Lando would pull out all of his charm for Leia. He looked and saw Leia was watching him with a small smile. He cleared his throat.
"Well, your Worship, do you like this?" He gestured to the large, lavish room.
She gave him a droll look. "It's big."
"And warm."
She gave him a small smile. "Very warm."
Han blinked in surprise, his smile growing at her easy demeanor. "I bet we could find you could find something cooler to wear than that old snow suit." He walked to her, putting just a little swagger to his steps. "I'm sure we could find a little shop or something. I could help you look."
"You know so much about clothes now, do you?"
He was quite pleased when she didn't back away from him. "I know enough. I could help you get ready..." he gently tugged on the collar of her vest.
"That's all right. I think I can manage." She smiled as she crossed her arms in front of her. He sighed dramatically.
"Suit yourself. I was only trying to help." He smiled down at her, enjoying the blush that came to her cheeks. Wow, if kissing her just that once brought this lovely change to her, he was going to have to try it again. Soon.
She adjusted her vest slightly and walked towards the window. "So anyways. Now what? Do we just wait here for the ship to be fixed?"
Chewie growled at Han from across the room, succinctly telling him what he thought about that idea. Han waved him off and followed Leia.
"I guess so. Not such a bad place to be stranded though." She looked up at him. "What's that look for? It's a nice place. May as well enjoy it. We could use some comfort for a change."
"I suppose."
"What's wrong with it? We get a nice apartment, free food, the ship is being fixed while I stand here doing nothing, and by tomorrow we'll be on our way back to your precious rebellion. What could be better?"
"I don't know. Something just doesn't feel right."
"You're just not used to comfort."
"Maybe."
He reached over to put his arm around her shoulders and was pleasantly surprised when she turned to embrace him fully. She rested her head against his chest. "Let's just not stay any longer than necessary, okay?"
"You got it. I don't want to be here any more than you do. Lando might decide he wants to add you to his harem, but he'd have to find a way to get rid of me first and, you know, I'm kind of attached to me."
**We can tell,** Chewie growled under his breath.
"Who asked you?" Han called over his shoulder.
Chewie chuckled. Han ignored him and looked down at Leia.
"Anyway. Don't worry, we'll be out of here before you know it. Might as well enjoy it while we can though. What do you say we find ourselves some decent food?"
Chewbacca roared in approval.
...
Leia looked down at her bare feet as she waited for the water to heat for her tea. They'd been out to dinner with Lando, eating the most extravagant food imaginable. Han had commented that Lando didn't need to go all out for them, but he had insisted on what he proudly proclaimed to be the finest imported foods and wine. She hadn't cared much for the food, it was too rich and too strange. She was glad to be back to the apartment, with her shoes off and Lando gone. She didn't care for him much either.
She did however, adore the dress she was wearing. Earlier, a woman claiming to be Lando's personal stylist had brought a rack packed full of beautiful dresses for her to choose from. Leia had chosen this one, imagining Han's eyes lighting up when he saw her. She had not been disappointed. At times it had been hard to focus on the conversation with Lando because she could feel Han's eyes on her. He had always kept an eye on her. Whether on missions or just hanging around the base, she knew he was watching her. It sometimes irritated her, but mostly she knew he just wanted to make sure she was safe and took comfort in that. Not that she'd ever admit it...
She looked down at her dress again. It was black, sleeveless, a flattering and modest neckline, then form fitting, flaring out just right as it reached her knees. She did a little turn to watch the skirt flare. There was a slight shimmer in the fabric that caught the light just right sometimes, making it look like a midnight sky. She twirled again and found Han standing on the other side of the bar.
"Hey," he said, smiling.
"Hi," she said, almost choking. She felt the heat pour into her face as she tried to calmly stir her tea.
"Watcha doin'? he asked as he moved around the counter.
"Just having some hot tea." Not spinning around like a small child.
"I see." She could hear the smile in his voice. Blast it. She was thankful for the dim light, at least maybe he wouldn't notice the slight tremble in her fingers as she tried to sip her tea. When she looked up he was appraising her from head to her bare toes.
"You look nice. Haven't seen you in a dress in a long time."
"They're highly impractical." She set her cup down, not sure she could keep from spilling it if he kept moving closer.
"I like it." He looked down at her feet. "I don't know if I've ever seen your feet before. They're cute."
She glanced down. "Cute?"
"Yeah, cute. And your shoulders..." he reached for her then, caressing her shoulders as if testing them, "are soft," he finished. He took another step.
"Soft?" She cringed at her sudden lack of vocabulary. But she had to admit, after months of being bound up in heavy snow gear, the light massage on her skin felt so good. Plus, she loved this dress, she wanted him to admire it. She also wanted him to...She looked up at his face, now quite close, and glanced at his lips. He caught the look, of course, and smiled.
"Yeah. Soft." His voice was low as he gently pulled her closer. She didn't resist and when he bent down, her arms seemed to spring up around his neck of their own accord. His lips, soft and warm, moved gently against her mouth. With his arms around her, holding her tight, she felt safe. What had she been afraid of for so long? Why had she ever tried to stay away from him? The only thing she wanted was to feel him holding her, kissing her. Then he stopped. His dark eyes studied her for a moment, as if gauging her reaction. She felt a sense of tenderness and affection that he would let her decide whether or not to continue. She smiled slightly as she brought her arms down and around his waist. He kissed her forehead. He kissed her cheek, her jaw. She then turned to meet his lips with her own. All of a sudden she felt excited and bold. Was it only yesterday he had kissed her aboard the Falcon? She'd loved it, but had been so nervous and unprepared that she had been afraid to move. Now, however, she wanted more than to simply be kissed; she wanted to kiss. She wanted to feel his arms around her, she wanted-
"Rrrwwwaaaarrr!?"
Leia jumped, and not realizing she had stepped up on Han's boots, she lost her footing. He held her to steady her, but didn't let go.
"What does it look like I'm doing?" Han yelled back at him.
"Rrrroooowwwwer ooorggggh?!"
"You watch your language! Calm down, I'm coming. Give me a minute, will ya?"
Chewie muttered under his breath as he walked back out.
"Just ignore that old mop. He's worried about the ship and the nerf-brains working on it. He wants us, him and me, to go over it tonight to make sure everything was done right."
"Oh. Okay."
"We'll probably sleep on the ship so nobody messes with it overnight." He hesitated for a moment. "You could...come with me?"
She took a breath and hoped her voice sounded somewhat normal. "I don't think that's what Chewie has in mind for tonight."
"He'll throw a fit. But he'll get over it."
Leia smiled. "I think I should stay." But oh, how she wanted to go.
Han nodded. "Okay. Will you be all right here?"
She wanted to say no. She had an uneasy feeling about this place, and between that and disappointment over his leaving, she wasn't sure how to feel. "I'll be fine."
He looked at her carefully. "You sure?"
"Yes. If you two can get us out of here faster, I'm all for it."
"Yeah. Well. Tonight was fun, eh?" He brushed a hair from her forehead. "Never seen food move like that before."
She nodded, smiling slightly. Chewie was the only one who ate the moving food, she wasn't even sure Lando tried it.
"You sure you'll be okay?"
"Yes."
"All right. I'd better go then. Lock the door behind me." He kissed her softly. "See you in the morning. Comm me if you need me." He grabbed his jacket from the back of a chair and left.
Leia walked to the door, locking it. Comm him if she needed him? She looked over at her comlink sitting on the table. She wanted him to come back, but she also desperately wanted to leave this place. She looked at the door, wishing he would suddenly appear in the doorway. She wanted to melt back into his warm arms and just stay there for awhile. Standing alone in the huge room, she suddenly felt cold and lonely.
She walked to the table, looking at her comlink bleakly. Her thoughts spun from one thing to another. Where was Threepio? And what was wrong with this place anyway? Vader kept popping into her mind. Probably because she knew he was on their trail, but it was unnerving to feel like he was watching her. She hadn't felt this way since she was on the Death Star. She shuddered. Suddenly she felt overwhelmed and a bit upset with Han for leaving her. She turned off the lights and headed for the bedroom. There was a giant tub in the 'fresher, and she was going to fill it to the brim with hot, steamy water. She was not going to imagine Han being in it with her.
