The title of this chapter is misleading, but you will understand soon enough ;) Thank you all, amazing readers!

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In the cockpit of his ship, Luke seated beside him, Han was dreading the imminent arrival of the woman who had broken his heart. Both he and his temporary co-pilot were busy running last minute diagnostics on all systems. Han was glad that Luke hadn't questioned the need for his presence on this mission.

"All systems check out on this end," the Kid said with confidence.

The cockpit door slid open and Han tensed. Luke spun around.

"Hey, Leia. We're just about ready to take off."

"Great," she replied, her voice tight. "Hi, Han."

"Hey," he grunted quickly.

The ensuing silence was strained. Finally, Leia took a seat behind him in the navigator's chair. Han was painfully aware of her presence.

"You ever been to Ord Mantell before, Han?" Luke asked.

"Yeah."

"I heard it's pretty dangerous."

"I wouldn't want you going alone, Kid, let's put it that way."

Luke grinned. "I think I can handle myself."

"I'm sure you do." From the corner of his eye, he saw Luke shake his head. "All right, we're good to go. Bring 'er up, Kid."

Luke engaged the sublight engines and they whined to life. Han adjusted various settings and lifted the Falcon out of the hangar, trying to concentrate only on that task.

As Han set the coordinates on the navicomputer, Leia spoke from behind him.

"We should all sit down and discuss the details of the mission."

Han felt his defenses rise. "No, thanks, Your Highnessness. I'm just the pilot on this one." He waited stoically for the impending argument. She surprised him with a long silence before he heard the cockpit door open, her light footsteps, and the door closing behind her. He let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding.

"What's going on with you and Leia?" Luke asked.

"Whadda you mean?" Han answered a bit too quickly.

"You two don't even talk anymore. What happened?"

It took Han a moment to formulate a response. "Her Worship and I don't see eye-to-eye on everything."

"That's hardly new." Luke's voice held a hint of humor.

Han hardened inside. What could he possibly say? "Why don't you ask her," he growled.

"I have. Several times."

"And?"

"You know Leia. She can be almost as tight-lipped as you."

Han scowled and said nothing as he pulled back the level to propel them to hyperspace. As the stars streaked by with comforting familiarity, Luke's quiet voice broke the silence.

"Why did you two break up?"

Han's head twisted towards his friend, mouth open in astonishment. "What're you talking about?"

Luke gazed at him levelly, not wavering. "I'm not stupid, Han. I know you two were together."

He felt an absurd urge to deny it. Instead, he scrunched his mouth to one side. "How'd you know?"

The younger man's expression was somber. "I didn't notice at first. Then there were rumors all through the Alliance, whispers and jokes I overheard. And I started to pay attention and watch you two together. It was obvious. The way you smiled at each other, like you were sharing a secret. How she lingered behind with you all the time. And I thought about it." He shrugged. "You two make sense."

Han looked down, thinking that clearly they didn't make as much sense as Luke thought. He looked back to Luke with a grimace. "Why didn't you say something?"

"Because if you or Leia wanted me to know, you would've told me."

Han sighed. So much for secrets. He wondered if Leia realized her efforts had been in vain.

"So, what happened?" Luke asked for the second time.

Han shook his head glumly. "It's complicated."

"I really hate this," Luke admitted. "My two best friends, not speaking." He paused and a smile spread across his features. "Y'know, there was a time when I would've been really jealous of you."

A familiar trace of remorse rolled through the Corellian.

"But, I got over that little crush I had on Leia a while back."

Little? Han thought, keeping the amusement from his face.

Luke continued, "You both seemed really happy when you were together. It changed Leia. She was softer and her smile was so much more…real."

Han couldn't bring himself to respond. Luke's observations were bringing back to full force all the sadness he had initially felt when he had ended things. It had dulled to a manageable ache. He needed to keep it there.

Standing abruptly, he broke the melancholy of the moment. "I laid in the course for Ord Mantell. Got some stuff to do." He left as quickly as he could.

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Contrary to his words, when Leia and Luke sat in the crew lounge, discussing the mission, Han planted himself at the computer console and pretended he wasn't listening. At least, Luke assumed he was pretending, since he hadn't uttered a word.

When Leia mentioned to Luke where they were meeting the contact, Han's chair swiveled around faster than Luke could've imagined.

"You got a map of where this place is?" he asked sharply.

Leia manipulated some data on her pad and held it out to him. There was a long, awkward moment where it appeared to Luke that Han would not rise to retrieve it and Leia would not stand to deliver it. He looked from one stubborn face to the other then sighed. Taking the datapad from her hand, he stood and handed it to his friend.

Han looked it over carefully. "This area's bad news. I'm gonna have to go with you."

"I thought you were just the pilot on this mission," Leia said speculatively.

Han looked at her for the first time since she had boarded. "I won't get paid if anything happens to you, Your Worship."

Luke glanced at her and could just see the glint of hurt beneath her cool exterior. His heart went out to her. For all the coldness she affected for the benefit of those who did not know her well, Luke knew that the people she cared about could hurt her in one fell swoop. And it was quite obvious to Luke that, not only did she care about Han, she was in love with him. And Luke was fairly certain that Han returned her feelings, although he doubted his stubborn friend would admit it aloud.

"Who is this contact, anyway? You sure you can trust him?" Han asked.

"Very much so," Leia replied. "I knew him on Alderaan." Her eyes lowered to the table.

Luke saw something subtle shift in the set of Han's jaw and his eyes hardened further. The tension between his friends was starting to get to him. "How did you know him on Alderaan?" he asked softly, deciding to ignore Han's antagonism.

Leia turned towards him. "He was a close family friend. He was planted in the Imperial Navy ten years ago as a spy for the Rebellion."

Luke's eyebrows rose. "Wow. That's very risky."

"Exactly. I trust him completely. He's given up his life for the Alliance. He's supplied us with information that the Empire is undergoing a massive construction project that will double the Fleet."

A cold wave of anxiety passed through him. The Empire's Fleet already outnumbered the Alliance's resources by higher numbers than Luke could imagine.

Leia continued. "Now, he has information that will provide us with key locations where we can place detonators inside the shipyards."

A small smile curved one side of Luke's mouth. "Sounds like that will be one risky mission."

Leia grimaced. "It will be. But, if we can stop the construction, we may save the future of the Rebellion." She took an anxious breath. "If they double the Fleet, they will crush us."

"We're not going to let that happen, Leia." He placed a hand over hers and squeezed gently.

Her smile was small and grateful.

Luke had forgotten that Han was sitting nearby until he heard him stand and storm from the lounge with angry footsteps. They both watched him leave and when Luke's gaze returned to Leia, her eyes were sad as they remained on the spot where he had disappeared from sight. Maybe he could get Leia to talk about it.

"Why don't you and Han get along anymore?" he asked for perhaps the fifth time in as many months.

Her eyes flew downward and her mouth became pinched. She shook her head quickly. "It's a long story."

Luke smiled and squeezed her hand again. "We've got several hours to kill."

Now, she smiled wryly. "I'll pass."

Luke chuckled and moved closer to her on the acceleration couch. He placed an affectionate arm around her and hugged her, wishing he could help her resolve her issues with Han. They were the two most hard-headed beings he had ever