CHAPTER 7
The rustling and crunching of twigs and dead leaves closed in on Han Solo and Princess Leia. Han held his blaster ready, though it was dead and would be of no help.
"The fire!" Leia hissed. She stretched forward to extinguish the fire with dirt but gasped in pain.
Han's attention flew to the slumped princess. He dropped his blaster and grabbed her around her chest, sitting her back up, "You okay?"
She sucked in a breath, "I'll be ready for whatever comes."
Han pressed his lips together, "We're pretty defensive, Leia."
Leia lifted her head. She whispered as the rustling got louder, "Well, no one has to know that." She picked up the blaster and handed it back to him.
"Just hope I won't have to shoot it."
Solo got up and kicked some dirt on the small fire. He then positioned himself between the approaching threat and the princess.
"Han! Leia!"
Han exhaled as Luke emerged from the woods. He holstered the useless blaster, "Kid! What took ya' so long?"
"It's pretty dark out here," the young man frowned. "Leia! You must be freezing." Luke took off his jacket and rushed over to Leia. He placed it around her shoulders and helped her into it.
Han watched Luke move to embrace the princess, "Careful, she's wounded."
"I'm okay," Leia smiled at him, but Luke took care as he hugged her.
"Where's the rest of the rescue party?" Han interrupted.
Luke stood up, "Oh yeah." He unhooked his comlink from his belt and tapped out a code. "They'll be here soon. We split up cos you weren't where we expected."
"We had a run in with some Rulians," Leia explained.
"After an encounter with a guy who crash landed somewhere northeast of here," Han placed his hands on his hips.
"What happened?" Luke crouched down next to the princess again. "How'd you get wounded?"
"The man had a knife," Leia explained as she pulled his jacket closed. "It's not so bad."
Han frowned at the princess. That knife was meant for him. How she knew the man had it in his hand….Han hadn't seen it coming. Lucky for him she did. Unlucky for her. He looked away.
"Maybe you should contact the rescue party again. She needs medical attention."
"You dressed it well, Han. I think I'll survive until they get here."
"Han's right." Luke took out his comlink.
Just as he began tapping out the code, Wedge emerged into the small clearing with a couple of medics.
"Hey, Han," Wedge clapped Solo on the back. "Glad to see you in one piece." He turned his attention to Leia, "Hello, Princess. Where are you wounded?"
"I was scratched by a knife," she explained as she opened Luke's jacket and lifted the edge of her tank top.
"Oh, Leia," Luke breathed as he saw the bloodied bandage.
"It can wait until we get back to the base," Leia allowed the two medics to scrutinize Han's handiwork.
"You've lost a lot of blood," Han argued.
"It can wait," she repeated. "There are Rulians out here."
"Rulians?" Wedge shuddered. "Can she wait?"
"At least until we get back to the transport," the medic closed Luke's jacket around her. "Good work, Solo."
Han nodded but said nothing.
"Let's get moving," the princess ordered as she tried to get to her feet. Luke positioned her under her arm and offered her support.
Han walked over to her, "I got this." Before Luke could protest, Han lifted her into his arms and followed Wedge's lead to the transport.
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Han Solo leaned against the doorway and watched the princess sleep. Color had returned to her cheeks and there was a touch of a smile on her pouty lips. She looked so different, so relaxed and so young lying there. At least she was getting the rest she needed.
He rubbed the scar on his chin and frowned. Her wound was worse than she let on, but the medics were quick and skilled, cutting off the source of the bleeding. Both he and Leia were dehydrated, but nothing more serious. Han allowed them to give him IV fluids, but he wasn't going to put up with any more nursing. All he wanted to do was get back to the Falcon.
So what was he doing standing here in the doorway of the princess' room? He shoved his hands in his pockets. There was no reason to be worried about her anymore. She'd recover fully. Something else kept him where he was. He crossed one leg over the other. Maybe she wasn't as irritating as he had originally thought. In between their bickering during their latest adventure, they got along quite well. He even told her something about his past, something he hadn't shared with anyone other than Chewbacca. How easily she got that out of him. And she certainly could ride a speeder bike and could definitely hold her own when it counted. He would be lying there instead of her, or worse, if it wasn't for her gutsy move.
Han pushed himself off of the doorway. There was definitely more to Princess Leia Organa than he had originally given her credit for. He smiled to himself as he headed back to the Falcon. The day didn't turn out how he expected, but in the end, it wasn't so bad.
