Author's Note: Sorry for the lack of updating this in awhile.

Mon made her way thru the hangar, her white cape billowing behind her, flanked by two guards, walking in unison beside her. General Rieekan followed them, a few steps behind. The base personal stopped whatever work they were doing, looking at the chancellor was she passed, an unusual quiet falling throughout the normally noisy hanger in her presence. Mon rarely went down to the hangar, if she needed to speak to someone directly, she would call them to her office or the message was relayed thru a superior to them.

Two pilots leaned against the side of their X wings, watching as the group past them, clearly heading in the direction of the Falcon.

"She's looking for General Solo" one of the pilots whispered to his friend standing besides him, watching Mon in the distance stopping in front of the Falcon's ramp.

"Solo's probably in deep shit if Mothma came down here directly for him" the other pilot replied, his voice low as he watched Han in the distance descend down the ramp to meet the group.

"Think she found out he finally knocked up the Princess?" the first pilot laughed quietly, causing the other man to roll his eyes.

"That's just a rumor. They've only been married for what, like a week?" his friend quipped back. He had heard the rumors about the Princess and the General that floated thru the mess hall as much as everyone else had, hardly believing much truth behind any of them, some so ludicrous he couldn't believe that people actually believed them.

"You know what they say about Corellians though" the pilot laughed as he picked up a hydrospanner and turned to resume his work.

Leia had been busy finishing up inventory of things on the Falcon when she faintly heard Han's boot steps descending the ramp and Mon's voice in the distance. She set her data pad down and tip toed down the hall of the ship towards the lounge, intrigued by what Mon and Han could have to discuss with each other and what could possibly have made Mon come to the ship directly. She carefully pressed herself in a corner to try and hear the conversation better, her eavesdropping skills ones that she had perfected as a child in the Alderaanian palace, always curious about what her father discussed in his meetings, long before she ever was included in them.

"General Solo. I trust that your ship is about ready to leave?" Mon asked Han, looking him up and down as she spoke. His shirt was flecked with spots of ship grease, his hair slightly disheveled and in need of a cut, shaggy strands flipping out along the neckline of his shirt collar and around his ears. Mon silently had hoped that Leia would had cleaned her new husband up a little during their time off, hoping she could make Han look a bit more like General and less like a common freighter Captain.

"We are" Han replied, wondering what in the hells Mon was doing down here awaiting to speak with him outside of his own ship. All coordinates and details of the mission had already been sent to Leia, normal Alliance protocol of any mission they had been sent on. Leia had mentioned nothing to him earlier about Mon needing to speak with him, usually she was the messenger between the two and Han wished it would had stayed that way.

"I also trust that you will try to avoid any entanglements on this mission". Han instantly detected the snippiness in Mon's voice, thinly veiled behind a fake diplomatic tone. He wasn't stupid, he could see right thru it, knowing she was using the same tricks that Leia sometimes would use to hide true emotions in a conversation.

"You won't have any additional reports to fill out when we get back this time" Han abruptly retorted back at Mon, pressing back the surge of annoyance within him at her comment. He really wanted to tell Mon to go shove her mission right up a bantha's ass and never surprise him outside of his own ship again. "The last place I want the Falcon to end up is in the surface of a planet".

"Wish you could say the same thing about Alliance ships" Mon chided to him.

"Wish I could have had any control over a situation that wasn't my fault" Han countered, hardly caring what position Mon held anymore. He wasn't about to let Mon blame him for what happened on the supply run with Luke. He felt as though Mon wanted to find any excuse to send him off as soon as possible upon returning and he didn't like the politics she was trying play one bit.

Mon took a deep breath, knowing when to bow out of a conversation and politely saluted Han, excusing herself before words could grow harsher between them. "I will let you get on your way, General. May the force be with you".

Mon turned and began making her way back across the hanger, her silent guards following suit behind her. Han pursed his lips at her retreating figure, shooting Mon's back a snarky look, hardly noticing General Rieekan stepping towards him.

"There are days I want to give her the same look" Rieekan smiled. Han's expression quickly softened, realizing that Rieekan had just caught him clearly giving the chancellor of the New Republic a very dirty look. "Don't let her get to you. I'm sorry you and the Princess are being sent off so quickly after your return. How is the Princess doing?" Rieekan asked, his voice showing his genuine concern for Leia.

"She wasn't exactly happy about the news" Han truthfully answered. He knew Rieekan was one of the few people in the Alliance who showed personal concern for anyone, especially when it came to Leia, one of the many reasons he respected Rieekan for.

"I knew she wouldn't be. I tried to convince the Chancellor to send someone else. We have plenty of people who are growing restless on base, wanting to go anywhere but stay here. I never would have thought that rebuilding from war would sometimes be more difficult than the war itself".

"I don't think the Princess has had a chance to really figure everything out yet, as much as she thinks she has" Han shifted his weight from one foot to another, his temper from the exchange with Mon cooling off.

"She's a strong and stubborn woman isn't she?" Rieekan's expression softened as he spoke.

"She can be. Most good women are" Han chuckled.

"You're a good man, Solo. I know you'll do what's best for you and the Princess. Don't let the Chancellor get to you". Rieekan extended his hand, shaking Han's firmly before turning to leave.

Han made his way to the opposite side of his ship, ducking his head under the Falcon, his fingers grazing across the belly of the ship as he finished the last of the required pre-flight checks so they could leave. He tried not to think of Mon's words to him as he double checked the shield generators, unaware to the fact Leia had overheard the conversation and was now silently making her way down the ramp on the other side of the ship. He gave the side of his ship a friendly pat, everything on the Falcon seemed to be in working order as he headed back around to the ramp, calling out to Leia as reached the top of it.

"Hey, sweetheart!" his voice echoed thru the ship as he called out for his wife. He received no answer as made his way to the cockpit where Chewie was already waiting for him in his co-pilot's chair.

[Everything good?] Chewbacca growled as he flipped a few switches, the Falcon's engine roaring to life around them.

"Where's Leia?" he asked, expecting her to already be waiting for him, if anything, slightly annoyed at him that they were already running behind the official Alliance schedule for the mission they have been given.

[She was taking inventory last I saw her]

Han turned from the cockpit and briskly walked down the hall, calling out to Leia again, his voice louder now to reach over the low roar of the Falcon's warming engines, wondering where she could possibly be. He stopped for a moment and picked up her data pad from the grating of the hallway floor, curious of why his normally organized wife would just leave her pad carelessly on the floor. He palmed the door to their bunk open, only to find an empty room. He set her data pad onto her nightstand before turning back to the hall, shouting out her name again, still with no response, confusion now overtaking him as he made his way back to the cockpit.

"I can't find her" Han stated as he leaned against the doorway of the cockpit and looked at his Wookiee co-pilot.

[What do you mean?]

"She's not on the ship. Where in the hells is she? Shut it down, Chewie" he ordered, confusion and worry apparent in his voice. The Wookiee flipped the engines off, the roar of the ship's engines fading to a silence.

[Let's go check the base] Chewie woofed, already rising from his seat, ready to find the Princess, figuring she probably had run somewhere last minute and that Han was making a big deal out of nothing.

"No, it's okay. I'll go find her. You stay here" Han ordered to the Wookiee.

Leia walked thru the hanger, her head low, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone, not that her presence would raise any suspicions the way Mon's had earlier. She had made her way outside of the base, her pace quickening as she walked down the street, the usually warm summer sun absent from the sky today, replaced by a thick overcast of clouds. Her mind raced, her rational side screaming at her to turn around, to go back to base and how stupid she was being for just walking away when she knew they needed to be leaving on a mission. Where do you think you are going to go? You think you can just walk away from the Alliance and no one will notice you're gone? Her steps did not slow any, her feet continued to stomp against the ground in frustration. After everything I've done for them, for the galaxy, everything I've been thru, I'm still just a little piece in their holo chess game. Oh ship Leia off and drag Han along, it's okay, she'll make everything better for us. No one ever asked if we are okay with any of this she grumbled to herself.

She made her way thru the tall glass down to the shore of the lake, kicking a small rock in front of her, sending the pebble rickashaying into the water. She sat down under the large tree her and Han had sat under weeks ago, first discussing their future together. She looked out at the lake, her mind still racing. Her face felt hot. She could no longer contain the tears welling in her eyes as they began to roll down her cheeks. She pulled her knees to her chest and wept into the fabric of her skirt, her breath heaving in between sobs. She hated how Mon treated Han like he was somehow not good enough for either her or the Alliance, despite everything he had done for the both of them. She wanted to scream out in frustration at it all, but only more tears came.

Han was a loss of where Leia could have gone. He had sprinted thru the halls of the base, checking her office and the mess hall, not quite sure where exactly a wayward Princess would be hiding. He darted back thru the hanger, quickly thinking that she might had gone somewhere off base. He paused for a moment outside, trying to decide which direction he should go in. He decided to head towards the lake, figuring if anything to at least check and see if Leia might have sought solitude there.

Han spotted his wife's familiar figure sitting under the large tree and quickened his pace, a slight relief that he had found Leia but his mind still racing at the fact it had taken so long for him to find her, worried someone at the base had caught on that they had not left yet. They should had been gone over an hour ago, the Falcon still sitting in the hanger, a giant red flag to the fact they were disobeying Alliance orders.

He made his way to her and knelt down next to her, running his hand across the back of her shoulders. Leia's arms were still wrapped around her, her face buried into her dress.

"Leia, sweetheart" he quietly whispered to her.

She picked her head up, her face stained with tears and looked at her husband in silence. Han was unable to read her, her expression blank as she looked at him. He sat down and she leaned against him, his arms encircling her body. He wasn't sure if he should say anything more to her or wait for her to speak. He held her in silence, kissing the top of her head, hoping any gesture from him would reassure her.

"I can't do this anymore" she mumbled into his chest, finally breaking the silence between them.

"Can't do what?" Han's mind raced for a moment, his inner doubts about himself making his thoughts instantly jump to that she made a mistake with their marriage, wondering what could have possibly lead her to think that.

"All of this. The Alliance, the missions, the way Mon doesn't think twice about just sending us off. I'm just a pawn to her and because of that, you get dragged into everything too " she sighed, a stray tear running down her cheek.

"Oh." Han breathed a sigh of relief that he wasn't about to lose her, refocusing his attention to the real situation at hand. He needed to get both of them back to the ship. His own feelings about the Alliance and his earlier conversation with Mon boiled within him again. It felt strange to him that he was being the voice of reason between them again, a position usually taken by Leia. He wasn't quite sure how to comprehend everything they were both feeling. He held her tight, hoping he was providing her some kind of reassurance to her. "The Alliance has always been so important to you though" he stated, not sure what sort of reaction his statement would bring from her.

"It was. It was my life. It was all I had. Now I have you and I feel like they are going to tear us apart" she quietly explained. She had used her work as a constant distraction from everything, a way to suppress the pain of the losses in her life, to wage a war for a cause she believed in. She wasn't sure of anything anymore, the war was over and while she would forever be haunted by her past, everything in the galaxy she wanted for her future was sitting next to her right now.

"Half the reason why I stuck around for so long at first was because I knew it meant so much to you" he reminded her gently.

"Yes, but we were at war and you had a bounty on your head. What was the other half of the reason?" she sheepishly asked as she pulled her face from his chest, her dark eyes meeting his.

"You. I wanted you. You know that, I would do anything for you, so I stayed". He kissed her softly. She still was upset, Han could see it in her eyes as he pulled away from the kiss and looked at her again.

"And I love you for that, for everything you've done for me". She paused as she took a deep breath. "I just don't know if I can go back, if either of us should go".

"What are you saying, sweetheart?" Han tried to make sense of everything Leia was saying, her words sounding so unlike the Leia he had always known, always one to defend the Alliance, to tell him how important they were to the good of the galaxy.

"I want to disappear, Han. You know how to not be found. Isn't that what made you a good smuggler?" she pleaded to him. She wished for nothing more at the moment then to vanish into the depths of the Outer Rim, for Han to take her away to the far reaches of the galaxy where no one knew she had any ties to the New Republic, somewhere where no one would question who she was or where she came from, somewhere that no one knew she was a Princess or that Han was a General. She longed for complete anonymity, a normal life without the weight of the galaxy pressing up against her at every moment, a life where no one shuffled her to one place or the next for their own political gains.

Han looked at his wife in disbelief. Even after everything Mon had said to him earlier, he never thought that he would run from anything again in his life, let alone of all people, Leia, suggesting that they should. If he had learned anything over the years, running from problems was no way to solve them, but he felt a small part of his former self creeping in on his thoughts. "You want us to go AWOL? Are you kidding me right now, Leia?" he questioned to her in disbelief.

The first few drops of rain began to splash against them followed by a low rumble of thunder in the distance. Han glanced above them, pitch black clouds now rolling above them, a flash of lightning zig zagging across the sky.

"Sweetheart, come on" He loosened his embrace around her as he stood from the ground and bent to lift his wife up to her feet. He knew they needed to get inside before the storm hit, the conversation they were having could wait for a minute. He took her hand as they began to make their way back towards the base. The rain began to fall steadily as they made their way thru the tall grass, Han's steps quickening as he lead Leia along thru it. Another flash of lightning followed by a loud crackle of thunder rang out in the sky, this one much closer to them then the last, causing Leia to jump and tighten her grip on Han's hand. The rain was now coming down in larger drops and the wind was picking up around them. They both began to sprint, the tall grass giving way to pavement of the street. The fabric of Leia's dress was soaked and sticking to the tops of her legs, her hair becoming wet and heavy in the pinned braids on top of her head. They both quickly ducked into the hanger, watching for a moment as the rain sheeted past them, the sky unleashing the worst of the storm right as they had made it to cover. Leia looked at Han, his hair wet and pressed against his forehead, his shirt clinging to his chest.

"Let's go to the Falcon, get you in some dry clothes" Han instructed to his soaking wet Princess, knowing the conversation the storm interrupted was not one they should finish until they were in the safe confines of the ship.

Han followed Leia up the ramp and into the lounge to find Chewbacca sitting at the holo chess table, awaiting their return.

[You found her. Everything okay? Looks like you took a bath in the process] the Wookiee growled to Han.

"Everything's fine, Chewie. Can you give us a moment?" Han asked, pulling his soaking wet vest from his body as he spoke.

Chewbacca grunted at him in understanding, figuring whatever needed to be sorted out between Han and the Princess and the storm raging outside, they might not leave for the mission today after all. He rose from the table and made his way to his quarters, knowing it might be awhile if the two had differences to settle.

Leia began pulling pins from her hair, her long chestnut locks tumbling down in wet waves from her braids. She slowly twisted her hair in her fingers, hoping to release some of the water from them as she slid into the bench next to Han.

"I'm sorry" she whispered to her husband.

"For what, my princess?"

"For taking off like that. You shouldn't have had to come looking for me. I heard what Mon said to you earlier" she admitted to him, the way Mon had stated things to him still stinging as she mulled over them.

"She's never liked me, you know that".

"But for her to say all that to you? For her to personally come down to the hanger to say it to your face?

"We'll figure things out, my Princess".

Han pulled a dry shirt over his head as he entered the cockpit, settling into his captain's chair, feeling slightly better after changing out of his rain soaked clothing. He started the Falcon, the low hum of the engines surrounding him as Chewie made his way into the cockpit and assumed his position in his co-pilot's seat. The ship levitated above the ground for a moment before shooting off from the hanger, breaking thru the heavy cloud cover of Chandrila and into the blackness to space. Han looked out into the distance, a few stars twinkling faintly against the velvet backdrop of nothingness in front of the Falcon's viewscreen. He glanced at his wife behind him from the corner of his eye, wondering if she was still thinking the same thoughts she had expressed to him earlier. He punched the coordinates for Bordel into the navi-computer and settled back into his seat, easing the throttle forward on the control panel as the ship launched into hyperspace. Maybe Leia was right. Maybe they could disappear into nothingness, leaving any trace of their old life behind them...