Chapter 11 - Oh, My Little Girl

It was Chewie who had finally managed to convince Leia and Jaina to go get some sleep; he'd basically banished them both from the medbay until morning, with a promise to let them know immediately if there was any change in Han's condition.

Jaina snuggled under the covers of her parents' bed as Leia tucked her in, kissing her goodnight.

"I won't be long," Leia promised. Since she'd been away from command for most of the day, she knew she would sleep better if she checked in quickly before turning in.

She wasn't surprised to find her daughter still awake when she returned, but was surprised to see Jaina tossing and turning restlessly in the bed.

Leia hung up her robe and climbed in beside her. "You okay?" she asked gently.

Jaina shifted uncomfortably again. "Yeah. Haven't slept very well lately," she admitted.

Leia gently smoothed Jaina's hair back from her face. "Bad dreams?"

"Yeah," Jaina said quietly. "Visions." She paused for a moment, then spoke almost at a whisper. "I've seen Ben stab Dad five or six times now."

Leia was crushed. Oh, my sweet girl. Seeing it once had been horrible enough; she could hardly imagine… But then again, she'd lost count of the times she'd seen Alderaan explode in her own dreams.

"Oh, Jainey-love," she said, placing a kiss on her daughter's temple. "I'm so sorry."

"You didn't do it," Jaina answered.

Leia didn't say anything, but held her tenderly as Jaina snuggled further into her arms. The hum of the ventilation system was the only sound in the room.

"It feels a little weird," Jaina admitted after a few minutes. She was practically whispering, but her words sounded loud in the darkness.

"What feels weird?" Leia asked.

"Making you stay with me. I'm 17 and I can't sleep without my mommy." Leia could almost hear her daughter rolling her eyes at herself.

Leia chuckled and held Jaina closer, smoothing her forehead now. "You don't ever need to feel weird about that. I wasn't there to be your mommy for a long time. We're overdue. Besides," she reflected, "I still want my mommy sometimes, and she's been dead for more than 30 years."

"I like your hair," complimented Wedge, as Rey and Jaina joined him and Luke for breakfast the next morning.

"Thanks," Rey said shyly. It had been a rather overwhelming morning already; with Jaina's help (and, she suspected, the General's support), she'd experienced her first water shower, washed and combed out her hair, and dressed in some Resistance-issue clothing while her scavenger outfit was being cleaned. Her hair was down out of her usual buns and hanging loose, except for a small portion pulled up into a knot at the crown of her head.

Wedge turned to Luke. "Now we just have to take care of you," he teased.

Luke hadn't been expecting that. "What?"

"Well, it's not that I'm not thrilled that you're back, but—what is happening with…this?" Wedge asked, gesturing to Luke's wild mane of hair and his long beard.

Jaina laughed. "I told you," she sang softly, cocking her eyebrow at Luke. She turned to Wedge. "It would've been worse, but I made him let me trim it occasionally."

"It was worse?" Wedge made a face, and Rey laughed. She was rather grateful not to be the center of attention, and was enjoying the gentle back-and-forth among Jaina's family.

Luke, on the other hand, was mildly peeved to be ganged up on by his husband and his niece. "Hey, I thought you loved me no matter what I looked like!" he protested.

Wedge soothed him with his usual charm. "I do, but I like it better when I don't have to go on an expedition to find your face," he said, kissing Luke gently on the cheek. Jaina rolled her eyes good-naturedly.

Luke pecked him on the cheek and then changed the subject, turning to Rey. "I understand you're interested in meditating with us," he said.

Rey nodded. Since Jaina had taught her to find Finn in the Force, she'd been practicing it regularly, each time delighted to discover Finn's light. Jaina had been telling her a little about the Force training she'd done with Luke, but was obviously trying not to oversell it and scare Rey off. Honestly, Rey still wasn't sure how much she really wanted to have to do with the Force, but meditation seemed relatively safe.

"How about after breakfast?" Luke suggested.

"Can't," put in Jaina. "They're doing the debriefing for the Starkiller Base mission this morning. Rey's going to relieve Poe with Finn. And I need to be back with Dad before Mom leaves," she explained.

"I thought Chewie was with him," said Wedge.

Jaina chuckled mildly. "Chewie kicked us out last night, so Mom and I did it to him this morning."

Rey continued to watch them all as she ate her breakfast. Niima Outpost had been a place for loners; about the best way you could show someone friendship there was to watch their back but leave them the hell alone. Jaina and her family were so different, yet it felt oddly comfortable for Rey to be around them. Not to mention entertaining. Yesterday, she'd watched Jaina try to convince Wedge that Jaina and Rey were ready to take up some X-wings ("C'mon, I've been flying the Falcon since I was thirteen! Rey flew it through a firefight!"), tease Luke relentlessly, have a lively discussion with Chewie in Shryiiwook (also about flying, as far as Rey could tell), and laugh with the General. Rey wasn't sure what would happen when everyone woke up, but she was happy to be with all of them for now.

Jaina looked at her chrono, then at Rey. "Time for us to get back."

"Don't forget the muffins," Rey reminded her.

"Thank you." Jaina looked at Wedge and Luke, who were observing with interest. "Mom only had kaffe this morning, so we're going to have Poe bring muffins to the briefing so she'll eat something," she explained.

Wedge smirked at her. "You're going to do that to poor Poe?"

"Do what? Oh…" Jaina grinned, understanding. "You mean because he has that crush on Mom. And then he brings breakfast to the briefing for her…"

Wedge nodded. "Not exactly subtle."

"It's not like he's hiding it," Jaina countered. Wedge gave her a look. "Wait, he thinks he's hiding it?"

Rey tugged her arm. "It was Poe's idea, anyway," she said. "C'mon, we don't want them to be late."

Han's eyelids fluttered open. His vision was a little foggy at first, but he immediately recognized the face emerging in front of him. Those eyes, just like Leia's. That smile, a mirror of his.

"Jaina," he breathed, trying to reach his hand up to cup her cheek, the way he had Ben's. Wait, he thought, suddenly recalling what had happened with Ben. Am I dead? Is she dead? Are we in the Force?

Maybe not. He remembered, after he fell, hearing Luke's voice. "You didn't think I was going to let you go out like that, did you?" Luke had asked, and if Han had been capable of laughing at that point, he would have. Of course Luke would show up to rescue him from a fall into a chasm, in the middle of a First Order thermal oscillator set to explode, after Han had been 'sabered in the chest by his own kriffing son. The kid had always had a flair for the dramatic. Not to mention a fondness for the daring last-minute rescue.

"Daddy," Jaina said softly, taking his hand. Her hand was warm and soft. No, they were definitely alive.

"How're you doin', baby girl?" he responded. His voice was rough and weak, like he'd been feasting on gravel.

She gave him a mock-reproachful look of the kind her mother had perfected, complete with raised eyebrow. "I'm a Jedi now, Daddy," she corrected. All grown up, or just about.

His face broke out in a crooked grin. "Hells yeah you are." Jaina grinned back at him, and he held out his arms. "C'mere, kiddo."

Jaina bent forward and carefully hugged him, although it was a little difficult with him still in the bed. He squeezed her and patted her back gently. "Really missed you, Jai," he said, his voice almost breaking a little.

"Missed you too, Daddy." She let him go, but not before giving him a little kiss on the cheek.

Han started looking around. "Where's—"

"Mom? She's on her way. She was in a briefing, but I told Uncle Luke and he told her when you woke up," Jaina explained.

Ah, communication by Force user. Han would never quite get used to that. And Jaina must still be hidden, if she couldn't communicate with Leia directly through the Force yet. Also, if Leia was okay, that meant that the Starkiller mission had been at least somewhat successful. And Luke was around here somewhere. Hell, how long have I been out?

"Two days," Jaina answered, smiling at him. "Sorry. I know you hate it when I do that."

Han grinned. "I don't know. Was gettin' a little boring around the ship without somebody tryin' to do their Jedi mind thing," he teased.

The mock-reproachful look came back, a little less mocking this time. "Daddy. You know that only works on the weak-minded." She raised her eyebrow higher. "And boring? Really?"

Despite his teasing, Han was feeling pretty emotional. Jaina, here. Safe. And gods, looking more like her mother than ever.

Just then, Leia walked into the room, as if he'd managed to summon her with that thought. He sat up a little in bed as she approached. "Hey, Princess."

She placed one hand on his shoulder and another on his cheek, smiling at him. "Hey," she said quietly. Her brown eyes were shining, and she was looking at him carefully, like she was trying to memorize his face.

He smiled lovingly at her. Gods, I've missed you, Sweetheart. "I'm all right," he promised, his voice stronger now.

Leia exhaled with relief. Then she smirked at him, shaking her head. "Nerfherder."

Han reflexively started to give her his best "What'd I do?" face, when she pulled him to her and kissed him. Well, all right. Either I'm finally home, or I'm dead and having the best afterlife ever. He kissed her back.

Jaina had backed away to give her parents a little space. When they finally pulled apart a few minutes later, she gave a little laugh. "Huh. Less than five minutes. Chewie wins."

"Wins what?" Han demanded.

Jaina had a smug look on her face. "We had a bet. How long it would take after Dad woke up for you two to start making out."

Both her parents laughed. Leia sat down beside Han on the edge of his bed. He scooted over slightly to make room and sat up a little more, putting an arm around her. "Who all was betting?" Leia asked.

"The uncles, pretty much. Chewie said the first five minutes. Uncle Wedge had twenty minutes, Uncle Luke thought it would be thirty. I had fifteen minutes. Rey didn't want to bet."

"What about Big—er, Finn?" Han asked.

Both Leia's and Jaina's faces fell. "Finn's still unconscious," Leia told Han. "Had a run-in with…the same lightsaber you did."

Kriffing hell, thought Han. But at least Finn was still alive. He and Leia needed to talk about Ben. If she didn't already know, he would have to break it to her. Our son is dead. Kylo Ren killed him. But he was pretty sure she already knew.

"So…I'm gonna go, so you guys can…make out some more or whatever," Jaina said with a little wave of her hand. "I'll be back." She leaned down to give her father another kiss on the cheek.

Han squeezed her hand. "Bye, Sweetheart."

Before she reached the door, she turned around. "Oh, yeah, almost forgot. I'm supposed to tell you something." Jaina arranged her face into a gruff expression and, in a perfect imitation of her father, said, "That's two you owe me, old man," holding up two fingers.

Not bad, kid, not bad at all. Han and Leia were still laughing when Jaina left the room.

Leia was in another briefing when Luke finally made his appearance in Han's room. Luke had finally cut his hair and trimmed his beard, and had traded what Wedge referred to as "those ghastly robes" for a black shirt and pants. After both teasing and praising Luke for his wardrobe changes, Jaina decided to give her father and her uncle some time alone.

"You did a pretty great job with her, kid," Han said after Jaina left the room. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Luke laughed. "I guess it was too much to expect that you'd stop calling me 'kid.'"

Han grinned. "'Course. You're still that kid in Mos Eisley who thought he was gonna fly his own damn self to Alderaan."

"And you're still that smuggler who thought we should've heard of his piece of junk ship before," Luke said, playing along.

Han grabbed Luke's hand. They were so much more than that. They'd always been more than that, they knew. It didn't need to be said.

The voice broke Rey out of her thoughts. "Rey."

Jaina approached, combing her hair through her hands and tucking a chunk behind her ear. She looked fairly exhausted, but that wasn't surprising, considering that Jaina had spent most of the day looking after Han, as well as about an hour helping Finn with some additional Force healing. If Force healing felt anything like convincing that trooper to release her restraints had, Rey was surprised Jaina was still able to move.

But if Jaina was tired, Rey observed, she seemed to be putting it aside to reach out.

"How's he doing?" Jaina asked, gesturing to Finn.

"Still stable," Rey answered, "whatever that means."

"I have a good feeling," Jaina told her. "I think he's going to wake up soon." She put her hand gently on Rey's shoulder. "Dad's asking for you."

Rey was not expecting that. "Me? Why?"

Jaina smiled warmly. "He wants to see you. Mom's in there with him, but she sent me to come get you."

Rey hesitated, looking down at Finn.

"You can find him in the Force anytime you need to," Jaina reminded her. "And I can stay with him for awhile, if you'd like."

"Thanks." Rey rose up from her seat slowly. She did want to see Han, especially now that he was awake, but with Jaina back—she felt like she was treading on something that maybe she shouldn't. She was heading toward the door when Jaina's voice stopped her again.

"Rey?"

She turned around.

There was that warm smile again, with a bit of a wink that reminded Rey of Han. "I've always kind of wanted a sister," Jaina said.

Can't you understand
Oh, my little girl
All I ever wanted, all I ever needed
Is here, in my arms…

-"Enjoy the Silence," Depeche Mode (cover version by Tori Amos)