FATHER OF THE BRIDE
Chapter 4: Rehearsal for the Rehearsal
It was the week before Jaina's and Jag's wedding. The couple had chosen the Botanical Gardens of The Capital City. As Jaina was a Jedi, the couple could have been married at the Jedi Temple, but they selected - to the amazement of everyone - to be close to nature, which seemed a bit strange for pilots whose natural habitat was the stars. But there was an earthbound side to both of them and wished to be married outdoors. Nine months of the year could be guaranteed to be rain free, but there were three of them that threatened to melt human flesh and were decidedly ruinous to droids. Jaina and Jag chose the time in the first of the warm months. Temperatures would be warm but no one was likely to faint from heat exhaustion.
The last few months had been a flurry of activity at the House of Solo - flowers, invitations, catering, guest lists, seating charts, fitting the bridesmaids and groomsmen, what type of candles would work best.
It was activity that mostly excluded Han. His primary function was to hand over credits to accommodate the event, but he was not consulted otherwise. It didn't bother him that he wasn't asked to be responsible for any of those; he disliked those activities. But it did make him acutely aware of how peripheral his role in his daughter's life had become.
And that stung. More than a little.
Jaina had flown on jobs with him, and they'd had laughs and done repairs together, but it was obvious that it was her impending new life that Jaina's mind was on.
He'd used the time to work on Jarik's racers with his youngest son, and that was fun and satisfying. The trio of teen racers - Jarik and his two best friends Sark and Quall - enjoyed hearing stories of Han's exploits and experiences. Jarik would be the last to turn seventeen, and the three agreed that for his birthday, they wanted Han to take them to Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina. Han said he'd get back to them on that. He had a pretty good idea of what Leia would think of the idea. Fortunately, he had a couple of years to put together a good denial to the guys or an adequate defense to Leia. It would take at least that long.
He and Luke would still get together and watch smashball. The band wasn't playing out anymore, but on the rare occasions he could get together with Jacen they'd get out their guitars and jam. Jacen and heavily pregnant Tenel Ka lived four kilometers away but their schedules were jam packed. Sometimes he and Leia took Allana overnight to give her parents some breathing space. She was a delight, but as was typical of most Solos and their descendants, she was exhausting.
The countdown had now begun in earnest. One more week, and it would all be over. Han welcomed the end of the craziness, but he dreaded losing his daughter. Despite assurances from Leia and Jaina that it would all be well, he wasn't feeling it.
Han walked into the bedroom. Jaina's wedding gown was hung from the top of the walk in closet. He ran his finger along the shimmersilk fabric of the best quality. The design was simple and elegant, totally Jaina. There was a veil attached to Leia's diadem, which served as 'something old.' Han thought back to his and Leia's wedding day. He remembered being so happy that he thought he might burst as he watched Leia walk down the very long aisle at Cantham House. His only thoughts were of her, and the thousand guests might not as well have existed. He remembered how radiant her smile was, how happy she looked. They had their whole lives ahead of them, so full of promise. They didn't know what was ahead; no one ever did. The joy of one's wedding day was not to be tainted.
Han didn't place a lot of stake in faith, but he'd learned that marriage was the ultimate act of it. He and Leia and had walked through fire more than once in theirs. He knew that there was no way to safeguard his children from their trials, and they would have them. Everyone did.
He wanted to protect all of his children from life's vagaries, but especially his only daughter. It wasn't as if Jaina was made of porcelain; she was feisty and sharp and smart and spirited and damn good with a blaster or lightsaber. She was a terrific pilot. She was as tough as her mother, but like Leia, there was a fragility to her heart; when Jaina loved, like her mother, she gave all of it.
Han just hoped Jag recognized how lucky he was to have Jaina's love. She'd already experienced heartbreak at his hands. But she was also an optimist, at least where love was concerned.
And Han had to admit that he was as well. He smiled as he remembered being in the cockpit with Luke and asking if he thought a princess and a guy like him...
"And the rest is history," Han said softly to himself, touching the wedding dress one last time before heading out and at least pretending to be sociable. The party atmosphere was usually one that Han enjoyed, but right now, he was pensive, and he'd allowed himself to brood for a few minutes.
Luke, Mara, Ben and Lilith were there, along with some of Jaina and Jag's friends. He could hear the laughter filling the apartment. Han decided that it was time to get in the spirit of things, literally. There were plenty of intoxicants and Han was ready to lift a few glasses.
Luke encountered him first. "I didn't think you'd had all that much to drink yet," the Jedi kidded him. Luke's face was always bright red when he was imbibing, and tonight was no different. His cheeks and nose were a bright scarlet.
"I haven't. I need to do some serious catching up."
"So what's the father of the bride's pleasure?"
"The bride being five again."
Luke chuckled. "You really do need a stiff one, don't you?"
"When you're talking about a stiff one, it had better be a drink, kid," Han said, cracking a smile. Luke was far less earnest than he had been two decades ago, but Han would still try to make him blush. It was fun and he succeeded this time.
"TMI, bro, TMI," Luke said, laughing.
"Just because you're a Jedi Knight doesn't mean you don't have your mind in the gutter," Han teased.
"Guilty as charged," Luke said, grabbing an ale for Han and one for himself. "I don't know about you, but the noise level in here is gonna make the both of us deaf before we even get old."
"So, now that you're fifty, I'm not old anymore?"
"Well, I'm not old. Now you - "
"Bite it. I get old jokes from all corners these days."
"Where's Chewie?"
"At some Wookiee gathering. He'll be here in about an hour. Why, are you running out of material?"
"This may come as a surprise, but I'm not here to bust your chops."
"Oh, we had such a good thing going with that! Why stop now?"
The two headed out to the balcony, one of the few square meters of space that was at present uninhabited.
"You know, when Leia and I bought this place, it seemed huge," Han commented as he and Luke looked down at the street scene 83 stories below them.
"When we had Ben, we figured we'd be fine in the temple apartment. I was like, how much room does a baby take up, anyway?"
"A lot more than I could imagine."
"And you could always imagine a lot," Luke added. "I couldn't believe it. Before we had Ben, we didn't comprehend just how tired you and Leia were. How old were they when you stopped being exhausted?"
Han gave his brother in law a wry smile. "I'll let you know when it happens."
The two drank in silence for a couple of minutes. Luke spoke first.
"You seem pretty upset these days," Luke said to Han.
"Is this something the Force is telling you?" Han asked, his tone brittle.
"There's that, but also, I've known you since I was nineteen."
Han didn't respond.
"You're upset that your only daughter's getting married," Luke said to him, very softly.
"I don't wanna talk about it," Han replied quietly.
"You know she'll always be your daughter."
"I know. But it'll be different."
"Different doesn't always mean bad."
Han turned to face Luke. "How old is Lilith now?"
"Eight."
"Do you ever contemplate what it'll be like when she discovers the opposite sex?"
"I try not to," Luke laughed softly.
"I tried that. As you can see, I'm marrying off my baby girl in a week."
"Yeah. I know. It's inevitable."
"You did good with her," Luke assured him. "Jaina's strong."
"She's also got a heart that's easily broken."
"Don't we all?"
"She's been in love with him since she's been fifteen. And he hasn't always been easy on her."
"Do you really think Jag's going to make her miserable? I don't get that at all. He's a good guy."
Han sighed. "Yeah, he is. I know he loves Jaina."
"I think you might try being a little nicer to him," Luke suggested tentatively. "He might even come to think of you as a father."
"Now let's not get carried away, kid." But Luke had succeeded in getting Han to laugh.
"How about we grab another round?" Luke suggested.
"At least another. And maybe another and another..."