Chapter Two
The family's Risarva celebration was more subdued than usual. They moved the traditional dinner to lunchtime and passed on the usual family hike through the Meti foothills in the hopes that they'd hear from Caia sooner rather than later. Every so often, Han would make some noise about using the longtrans comm to see if he could get a hold of Dak or ask one of his Force-adept children if they could sense anything from Caia, and someone would have to talk him down.
Six hours passed, and still nothing.
"This sucks," sighed Jaina as she leaned against her father's shoulder and focused on the smashball match on the holo.
"Sure does, Littlest Princess," said Han as he planted a kiss on his youngest's head. "Everybody has some idea of what's going on except us."
"I was talking about the game. It's going to double overtime," Jaina looked up at her father, her exasperation with him so clear and so identical to looks Leia was sure she had given Han over the years that Leia had to bite her lip to stifle a laugh. She didn't want to laugh at her husband now; the poor man was tied up in emotional knots.
"I think we have achieved baby," Bail said, his eyes never leaving the holo. "Hey, Jax, you big nerf, gimme the cracklesnaps, you're eating them all."
Leia concentrated on Caia, feeling only her exhaustion. But she'd learned not to question Bail about these things over the years. Ever since he was a tiny infant, Bail had been different than the other Solo children – more focused, more circumspect. While the others jumped at any kind of reckless adventure, often to their detriment (including that ill-conceived slide from the roof that Jax had conceived when he was twelve), Bail preferred to think, and to think hard. Han always said that Bail was just how Leia would have turned out if the galaxy had given her the opportunity.
Leia wasn't entirely sure that was true, as Bail's strength in the Force put hers to shame and Bail hated the idea of killing anyone, no matter how much they might deserve it. Leia had to admit she was thoroughly proud of taking out some of the more evil characters she'd run into over the years. Bail had instead insisted upon putting his powers toward healing. He'd grudgingly gone through all the training Han and Leia had required of all the children so that they could adequately protect themselves from the Dark Side. He could wield both a blaster and a light saber as well as his siblings and channel the Force better than anyone other than Luke, but when it came to going to the Academy and becoming a fully-trained Jedi, which Luke desperately wanted him to do, Bail – at a very early age - had put his foot down, and Han and Leia had supported him. It had been one of the biggest arguments that Han, Leia, and Luke had ever had. After a lot of difficulty, Luke had finally come around to Leia's position – that being a Force-adept trained in the Jedi tradition could not mean that a person had to travel the road of a Jedi and accept the duties of a Jedi. Han had just argued that neither his – nor anyone else's children should be anything unless they desired it. Caia had jumped at the opportunity to become a fully-trained Jedi with all the over-achieving nature of a firstborn and had set out for the Academy on the day after she reached majority. Jax, studying history at the Corellian University, was still on the fence about whether he'd attend the Academy after he completed his studies.
Bail had turned sixteen, finished his parentally-mandated studies in control of the Force, and simply refused to go further. He did not want to use the Force for killing, no matter how just the cause. It wasn't in his nature. He would use his talent in the Force to be a healer and a medic. So off he had gone to Florsias for more training in the sciences. He was in his second year of study and, unlike Jax and Caia, he'd yet faced his temptation by the Dark Side. His parents knew it was coming, though. They both assumed that once he started treating patients, the Dark Side would find its way in and his struggle would be to acknowledge that his powers – as strong as they may be—were limited. The Dark Side would tempt him towards greater power to save lives, but at the price of his compassion. Leia knew this temptation all too well. It was the same temptation she had faced at the hands of Essag.
Finally, the longtrans comm beeped. Han was up and answering it before anyone else could even move.
"Mom, you ever consider that Dad has Jedi reflexes when he wants to?"
"He'd tell you they're Corellian reflexes," Leia murmured as the family joined Han at the comm.
"Little Princess?" said Han as he commed on.
Dak's beaming face filled the holocomm. "It's me, Han. They gave Caia a med to make her sleep for a while after the birth. It was a long labor—"
"Is she okay?" Han pressed. After Jaina's birth, Leia had certainly NOT been okay.
"She's fine. Just exhausted."
"The baby?"
"It's a boy!"
Han grinned as he turned to Jaina. "About time we found out, huh?"
When Han turned back to the holo, happy tears had welled up in Dak's eyes. "He's beautiful. He's perfect. He's…"
Han recognized exactly how the younger man felt. He'd felt that way each time one of his newborn children had been place in his arms.
"A miracle," Han finished for his choked-up son in law. Maybe this kid wasn't so bad after all.
Dak nodded as Leia squeezed Han's shoulder and leaned into the viewer. "Dak, I know my husband is itching to ask – when can we come?"
"Now!" Dak said. "Please, come now. We only wanted you to stay home in case something went wrong. You've been through too much, and if you were here – Caia didn't want you to have to live that in real time too."
Leia chuckled softly. She understood her daughter's reasoning, but now that Caia could hold her own son in her arms, Caia would understand why Leia and Han would choose to be there even if – especially if – things went wrong. No fear of grief or pain, would keep a parent away from their child. At least not in the Solo family.
"Oh, but…" Dak said, embarrassed, "Umm…just so you know, we're not inviting my parents yet. My mom can be a little…much…so I want to give Caia some breathing room."
"Got it. We'll be there in twelve parts," Han said, wanting to get on the Falcon and get moving.
"Perfect," Dake replied, as the sound of a baby starting to cry could be heard over the holo. "Gotta go."
"Yeah, so do we," said Han. "Tell Little Princess we love her. And son…congratulations. You have no idea yet, but this is going to be the best adventure of your life."
"Thanks, Dad," Dak said as he commed off.
"Ready to go?" Han turned to his family, all of whom were looking at him with a mix of bemusement and mischief.
"Son?" Jax said.
"Dad?" Jaina added.
Leia knew that none of their kids would miss the opportunity to comment on that exchange. They wouldn't be Solos if they didn't. She was just happy that the shared experience of fatherhood had started to thaw the awkward relationship between protective father and son-in-law.
"Cut it out, ya monsters," Han nearly blushed at his own sudden sentimentality as he took Leia's hand to lead her toward the speeder outside that would bring them to the Falcon.
