Chapter Seven

Leia woke up slowly, the early morning beams of sunshine casting rays on the soft flooring. She sensed that Han was already awake, and rolled over to gaze up at him. He was sitting, shirtless, leaning against their fawn colored, cushioned headboard while looking his datapad, his face intensely focused on what he was reading.

"Luke's going to be coming back today," Leia said, covering her mouth as she yawned and stretching out her other arm.

"I remember," Han said, glancing down at her with a smile. "Three days? That was way too short of a honeymoon. Ours is gonna be two weeks, at the very minimum."

"Sounds wonderful," Leia replied. "But where will we go that you won't spend all your time signing non-stop autographs, or having to pose for holo-pics, or kiss women constantly?" Of all three, the kissing part annoyed Leia the most, although she'd never tell Han. She knew it meant no more to him emotionally than signing his name, and it seemed to thrill his fans. Still, a part of her wanted that thrill reserved for just her lips alone.

"Nar Shadda?" Han asked, restraining a smirk.

"Hmmm. That sounds about your style."

"How about Naboo?" Han said, his expression turning serious. "It's a beautiful planet and it's very peaceful. I've done a few concerts there. It's a really nice place."

"That's not a bad choice, actually," Leia said, pulling herself to sit up beside Han against the headboard, then leaning against his chest. "But aren't you very well known on Naboo?"

"Sweetheart, I'm very well known everywhere," Han bragged, and even though Leia knew he was joking, she punched him lightly in the arm. He thumbed through his datapad again until he found what he was looking for. "Take a look at this place." He handed the small device over to her.

"A private island?"

"Yup, and it comes with its own chef and a hair and nail stylist and a masseuse. I immediately thought of you when I saw the hair stylist," Han said, watching for her reaction.

"So the masseuse is for you, then?"

"Only if she's pretty." When Leia just rolled her eyes, he reached over and pointed at the screen. "Lots of security, gorgeous scenery, and private boats so we can water ski."

"Do you know how to water ski?" Leia asked curiously. Considering his rough and desperate early life, water skiing didn't seem like a past time he'd ever been able to learn to enjoy. Leia, on the other hand, spent many hours on a boat skiing the crystal clear blue lakes of Alderaan. It had been many years, but she was certain it was a pursuit she'd be able to pick up again without much effort.

Han grinned. "How hard can it be?"

"I might enjoy teaching you how to ski," Leia said, picturing Han tumbling into the water as he learned the nuances of keeping his balance on hover-skis. The teasing factor was almost too good to pass up. "Skiing would be something I'd be better at than you, anyway."

"For a few time parts, anyway."

She punched him again in his arm, slightly harder. "You're never lacking for confidence, are you?"

He shrugged, his mood shifting slightly. "I dunno about that. Wedge asked me if he and Iella could have tickets the next time I do a show on either Coruscant or Corellia, and I'm ending the tour at a venue in Coronet City. He said Winter was askin' if she could go along, too. I'm not sure I can handle having all those people in the audience, knowing who I am."

Again, Leia felt a rush of guilt over her drunken comments. "Winter and Iella don't know."

"I told Corran he could tell his wife, if he wanted to," Han mumbled, flushing and swiping his hand over his face. "Told Wedge the same thing."

"Why?"

"'Cuz if their wives find out in a few years, or even a few months, it could create an argument. I don't want anyone having martial problems 'cuz of me."

"I never thought about that, Evin," Leia said. "I suppose keeping a secret like that from your spouse could cause some strife."

Han face darkened. "You can call me 'Han' in private. I was just upset when I told you to call me 'Evin.' It don't matter anymore, really."

Even though Han's looks and voice were very much different than the man she'd originally fallen in love with, for Leia it was his Force presence that overrode his appearance. It sometimes surprised her when she woke up in the morning and looked at his face, since his essence still so strongly radiated 'Han Solo.' In truth, she very much missed what he looked like, and how he sounded in his former existence. Occasionally she felt guilty over those feelings, too, since she suspected he missed his former body as well. Han could have ended up in a body that looked like Grand Moff Tarkin, she thought in with combination of amusement and horror. And that wouldn't have been his fault, either, although her mental adjustment toward his appearance would have been much, much more difficult if that were the case. On the bright side, she continued musing, she wouldn't have to be resentful over hoards of females fans if he looked like Tarkin.

"Thank you. I really do prefer to call you 'Han' since I think of 'Evin' as just your stage name. I know a lot of entertainers use a pseudonym for performing purposes, but I'll try much harder to use the name 'Evin' when we're in public," Leia said, deciding to keep her mental ruminations about Tarkin to herself. "If Luke can easily do it, then I should be able to, as well."

"I'd 'preciate that. An' I'll try not to have a dewback if you slip up, uh, when you slip up."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Flyboy." Leia restrained the urge to tickle his stomach and said softly, "So, I suppose Tycho could tell Winter, if and when they get married. The amount of people that knows your secret seems to be growing, mostly thanks to me."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Han said. "I suppose you can tell your friend, too," he said with a sigh. "I wouldn't care that much if they didn't want to come to a show. This was all so much easier when I could just disassociate Evin Daysun from Han Solo."

Leia reached over and gave him a kiss on his cheek. "Ill bet if they find out, they'll still be fans anyway. Winter is so crazy about you that I'm not sure if I should be jealous or flattered."

A light rap of the bedroom door interrupted their conversation. "Mistress Leia?" Threepio's worried voice filtered through the door. "Mistress Isabell is awake and attempting to crawl out of her bed. Please do hurry! I am afraid she might fall and harm herself."

Shaking her head, Leia grabbed her night robe and called out to the droid. "I'm coming, Threepio." She looked back at Han. "Your honeymoon idea sounds great, even if we do have to bring Threepio along with us."

Han sank back into the bed and shut his eyes, groaning. "Nooo... please!"

"It's either that, or Isabell stays with us in the same bedroom. I'm not leaving her behind for two weeks while we head off to some fantastic tropical, private island."

"Threepio's comin' along." Han quickly capitulated. The idea of Isabell coming with them wasn't something that bothered him. She was part of the package that was now Princess Leia, and it was a package he dearly loved with his heart and soul.

"At least he won't be coming with us to Dantooine." She headed to the door, turning slightly as she opened it. "Luke messaged me last night and wants us to leave in two days."

The Corellian pulled a pillow over his face and his voice was muffled as he spoke, "Your brother can be a real pain in the ass, Princess."

"Just humor him," Leia said as she disappeared across the hallway. "I know I do."

Coruscant

Nexx Turner frowned at his computer terminal screen. Nothing about this research was making much sense. According the the few interviews Evin Daysun had given reporters, he was an orphan that grew up on the streets. This, by itself, was not unusual. Corellia had far more than its share of homeless younglings wandering the streets of large, inner cities, begging for handouts and wearing ragged clothes. But what the planet didn't have was large numbers of homeless children in the smaller, rural towns. In fact, it was almost unheard of for a orphan child to stay on the streets outside of large urban areas like Coronet City. Evin Daysun's accent was outlier. Rural. It didn't mesh. Even if Daysun had been born in a rural area, and if he somehow ended up in a large city as a child, he would have lost that particular accent as he grew up. If it were the other way around, and he ended up in a rural area when he was already older after living on the streets of a large city, he would not have picked up the outlier accent.

To complicate matters further, Evin Daysun claimed to have joined the Imperial Navy and deserted after less than two years into his service. There was absolutely no record anywhere of a Cadet Daysun, and no record of either a Cadet Daysun or Lieutenant Daysun deserting, either. The Empire was not known for its leniency when it came to deserters, and they certainly wouldn't have purged those records for anyone, especially a nobody from the streets.

And then there was the mysterious Princess Leia Organa. Formally adopted right after birth by Viceroy Bail Organa and Queen Breha Organa. This problem was compounded by the fact Alderaan was gone, and all records destroyed along with the planet. Was the Princess a love-child of Viceroy Organa? Was she somehow connected through the bloodline of Queen Breha? Was she simply a child purchased illegally from a destitute woman that couldn't afford to keep her? The only way Turner knew he could find out was, if by some miracle, the Princess had been born on some other system, a system that kept medical records.

He tapped a few keys on the computer terminal. What he needed to hire was a hacker. Someone excellent at those skills, and someone with no scruples. He needed to find someone that could worm his way into the New Republic Medical Records, retrieve the DNA profiles of both Princess Leia and Evin Daysun. It would take time, of course, not only to find and hire a hacker, but to run those DNA records against every DNA record the New Republic had in its data banks until he found a match. But he had time, and Nexx Turner was a patient man.

The Wookiee Princess, over Dantooine

"The Crystal Cave is located on the Khoonda plains, so we'll need to set down there," Luke instructed. "The entrance to the cave we have to get into has been dug out by kinraths."

Chewie let out a howl of disgust and worry. *I do not like the sound of that! We have kinraths on Kashyyyk! They are nasty!*

Han glanced back at Luke, who was sitting in the navigator's seat, located directly behind the pilot's chair. "Do I dare ask what the hell's a kinrath?"

The Jedi coughed slightly. "Well, it's an arachnoid."

"A freaking spider? Big enough to dig human sized tunnels!?"

"Yes, they're big," Luke said, looking over and seeing Leia's unhappy expression. "About four meters tall, and poisonous, to boot."

"Fuck," Han grumbled. "Let me get this straight. We have to go spelunking in a cave guarded by four meter tall poisonous spiders just to find a KRIFFIN' ROCK?"

"It's not just a rock," Luke argued. "It's a special crystal. You can only make a lightsaber if you have one of those types of crystals, and they're not found just any place in the galaxy."

"Remind me again why I need a lightsaber?"

*Because Luke says so,* Chewie barked out. *And I might have told you that you had to make a lightsaber because Luke said it was necessary. But I might be having second thoughts.*

"Glad someone is coming to their senses," Han mumbled as he entered the landing coordinates in the computer. "At least you just have to stay and watch the ship, Chewie."

*For once, I am glad to temporarily turn over my Life Debt to the Little Jedi, although he is one of the very few I would trust with keeping you safe,* Chewie wuffed, then shuddered. *I have bad memories of kinraths.*

"Any other issues we're gonna face while we're down there?" Han asked.

"The caves are very hard to navigate, since there are so many tunnels. We have to stick close together. If we get separated, it's going to be easy to get permanently lost down there."

Han looked over at Leia. "You're being awfully quiet, Princess."

"I hate spiders," Leia stated flatly.