Author's Notes: As always, thank you so much for your comments, everyone. You have no idea how encouraging it is to see people taking interest- especially enough to take the time to give feedback. It is much appreciated. Also, again something that will become quickly outdated: thank you for your patience. I'm back now! Answers to comments:

Ann: Aha! A very helpful comment. I'm glad you shared that opinion with me. I see what you mean about Luke being more decisive (I just watched ROTJ again recently). Here's what my original reasoning was: Luke is at a point in his life where I think he's trying to figure out his purpose as the last Jedi of the old Order (or the first of the New, as the almost cliché phrasing of the EU goes) as is evidenced in several of the EU novels around this time period. So he sort of subconsciously brings that conflict to his thoughts about Leia's dilemma, making him unsure of the path she should take: personal happiness/truth to self, or "greatest good for the greatest number," similar to what is going on with his own life at the moment. So that's why I wrote him as somewhat indecisive. I realize that I went a little strong on the wishy-washy-ness in his inner thoughts though. I'll work on that…

Stormygurlz: Good point about the Luke/Leia relationship. What I was trying to portray was how Luke was stuck between the two aspects of the problem, like I mentioned in my response to Ann, above, but I think I got it mixed up with his relationship with Leia. Being that I've never been in this sort of situation, I think I'm going to have to work on imagining it some more. You're definitely right that they should be very close- I'll put more effort into writing them that way in future chapters.

Audreidi: Heehee…you're right. Having Han kidnap Isolder could've been immensely entertaining. That could make for an extremely amusing AU. I'm glad that's how Luke came off as to you (previously simple minded and fitting into big shoes), because that's exactly what I want him to be like- so that he brings his overall confusion into everything he does. Although that may or may not be the right way to think about it…I'll ponder that some more. As for Han…well, juvenile rage was what I was going for, so at least it came out like I intended. As to whether it was right for the situation…eh, that's a whole different story. I kind of wanted him to be so amazingly angry at Leia's seeming thickheaded-ness that he sort of lost all logic/sense/sanity and went completely nuts. (You know how he goes into almost-juvenile moments like "it's not my fault!" and stuff like that? With really impressive sarcasm and such? Yeah…that's what I wanted. Obviously, I can't compare to the great George Lucas who wrote him originally, though.) I don't know that I want him being stoic about the possibility of losing Leia, though…I had him playing the angry, cold-shoulder, "Just fine, see if I care," type with the whole storming out thing a few chapters ago, so I wanted to show how his upset-ness had escalated.

Clare: Why, thank you! I think he may still need tweaking though. But I'm glad you think I'm on the right track!

Pitdroid: Thank you very much! I'm glad you think so.

Koolgirl1808: Well, here it is; enjoy!

Sweetdeath04: Thanks! I sure will.

Mara look-a-like: Yeah, I completely agree about Luke being hard to figure out. It might just be me, but I see him as slightly more closed off from the rest of his peers and also from the audience in the movies, which makes it hard to get into his head and see what he's thinking. Could just be me, though.

Princess-Kinky: (SPOILER WARNING) Now, how do you know there's going to be a wedding? Just teasing. Well, I'll do my best!

Ann: Sorry for the delay! Just got back the day before yesterday! And I think I addressed the rest of your comment up in my first response… J

Chapter 6:

Han dozed fitfully in his pilot's chair, his feet propped up on the control board and his mind filled with images of Leia and Isolder: holding hands, kissing, exchanging flowers…exchanging vows. He jerked awake, smashing his head against something hanging down from the ceiling (something that probably should have been better attached) and the sound of an alarm filled his head. So it wasn't the dream that had awoken him. Something was actually wrong. (Not that there wasn't something wrong with Leia kissing Isolder, but maybe this was a situation he could actually do something about.)

He glanced rapidly over the control panel and the display screens that filled the cockpit. He uttered a few choice curses in guttural Corellian as he realized he'd been pulled out of hyperspace. Not a good thing at all. His right hand covering the controls familiarly and his left hand flipping switches rapidly, he tried to bring the ship under some measure of control…and fervently wished he'd brought Chewie along after all. Not that Chewie would have agreed to come with him. Heck, he probably wouldn't even have let Han go.

"What do you think you're going to do once you get there? What are you going to accomplish by making this trip to some strange planet? What are you going to prove?" he'd have asked, pointing out all of the weak logic in Han's decision with unfailing accuracy.

Good questions, Han thought angrily to himself. Why'd Chewie always have to go and be right, damnit! (Especially when he wasn't even present.)

The poor Falcon finally stopped shuddering and bucking and allowed Han to get his bearings for a few minutes without threatening to fly to pieces. He looked around at the different display screens and was surprised to find a planet on one of them, pretty close by.

What the…? Had he gotten to Dathomir early? He checked the coordinates. No, he was nowhere near where Dathomir should be. He was actually still in the Middle Rim, more towards the Core than towards the Outer Rim. And there was a planet here. What was it? How come it wasn't on his charts anywhere? All of these questions spun around in his head in a maddening swirl of unknowns. Well, guess I'll just re-plot the course to Dathomir and see what happens. Still, I wonder what took me out of hyperspace in the first place…hope nothing's wrong with the engine…too bad Chewie isn't here to check it out. If it's going to blow up or space me or put me permanently in hyperspace, this'll be an awfully lonely way to die…

Well, it seemed he had more immediate worries. His hands reached over to the navicomputer and stopped. Why the hell is the ship moving over there? I can't have gotten sucked into that planet's orbit already, can I? From way out here? It was apparently quite possible, because the ship was moving with a quickening pace towards the un-named planet as if caught in a tractor beam. Han watched dumbfounded as his ship went right through the orbit levels and started into the atmosphere.

The pressure change in the cabin immediately brought him out of his stupor and he flicked a switch to engage the pressure-compensator and atmospheric regulator, full throttle. He gripped the control lever so tightly his knuckles turned white, still not understanding what was happening, but determined to get down to the surface alive. Not that he knew what the surface was. For all he knew he was going to land in some huge volcano or in the middle of an ocean. He glanced curiously at the screen displaying climate and environmental statistics, and was relieved to see that, not only did the planet contain an atmosphere with perfectly breathable oxygen, but also a nice flat field with some sort of grass-like covering. I've landed on worse, he decided, and released his grip a little. His hand and the lever were both sweaty.

It seemed a rough, bumpy eternity before the ship finally settled (somewhat) gently into the field. Han breathed a noisy sigh of relief, and slumped back into his chair. This calls for some celebration, he decided, and got up to see how outdated the most recent ration-pack in the galley was while contemplating what could possibly have pulled him out of hyperspace so abruptly.

A few hours later, he was rising from his bunk, refreshed after a long sonic shower, a hearty meal of three ration bars (only one of them outdated by more than a month), and a three-hour nap. He peered out of one of the viewports, eyeing the single setting sun. So it was evening. He wondered how long a day cycle was here. Well, time to go meet the natives, he thought to himself, chuckling at the old Corellian saying, which meant that it was time to take some action concerning one's situation. He strapped his blaster belt around his waist, letting it hang at a cocky angle, and took a deep breath before pressing the hatch-release control.

His first thought when he neared the bottom of the hatch-ramp and saw the odd looking people surrounding his ship was hm- wasn't too far off about those natives. It was quickly followed by, stang; I gotta do something about that atmospheric detector- breathable atmosphere, my ass.

Six standard days later, Leia stomped around the main room of her apartment in frustration. She hadn't heard from Han for a full week. Ten whole days. He'd never gone that long without at least sending her a message. Oh, shut up, Leia, it doesn't matter, remember? You told him yourself to get out of the room, out of your life! Why did you have to be so stubborn and selfish and stupid? And why did he have to be so…Han? And that wasn't even her only problem. Isolder visited her every day, now, bringing her flowers, kissing her hand, and always hinting that he wouldn't mind kissing other places, too. And now his mother was due to arrive in a few days. He'd said that she just wanted to meet Leia, the girl of her son's dreams. Leia knew better. Her own special way of saying 'get a move on, Organa, we haven't got all eternity, here!' Might just take all eternity, though, she thought glumly. How could you possibly make the decision between your mind and your heart in anything less?

Almost mercifully, a beeping sound from her holo-messenger broke into her thoughts. She strode purposefully over to it, glad to have a useful distraction of some sort and praying that it wasn't some ridiculous advertisement.

On second thought, maybe that would've been better, she reflected when she saw the notification blinking on the screen. It was Han's emergency distress call. And not just any emergency distress call. It was the one the ship sent out automatically when the pilot hadn't checked in for over whatever the set time limit was. It was a handy system: the pilot would set a time limit for how long he was supposed to be gone and usually a little extra in case of minor delays. And if he hadn't checked in by that time, the ship would relay and emergency signal to the people who had been designated to receive it when the system had been installed. Luke, Lando, Chewie, and likely Han's command group would all have gotten one, she decided, trying to distract her mind from the awful message the little beeping box on the screen conveyed. Han was in trouble. And they didn't even know where he was. Her com-link sounded from across the room, and she dashed over to pick it up. Chewie's indication number was flashing on the display.

"Chewie?" she answered it.

"Did you get Han's signal?" he asked.

"Yes. Do you know where he is? Why aren't you with him?" she immediately regretted the accusatory tone of her voice. Why is that I'm always hurting people these days? She questioned herself silently. Then again, it's not as if no one ever hurts me…but she shut the memory of Han's words out and concentrated on the Chewie's words instead, trying to understand the panicked wookiee.

"He left by himself? Without telling you?"

Chewie confirmed.

"Why the hell would he do a stupid thing like that?" she paused before resuming, "then again, that's just like him- going off and not telling anyone and getting lost and hurt and probably killed and just being the gods-damned nerf-herder he is!" she ranted in a furious tone.

"It's all right, Princess. I'm sure he's fine," Chewie soothed, his growling voice gentler than usual.

"Right. I'm sure you're right. Sorry I yelled at you, Chewie," she apologized in embarrassment, glad no one could see the pink shade her cheeks were turning. How was it that Han could make her lose her composure even when he wasn't anywhere around…maybe not even alive? Won't think about that. Won't think about that…

"That's all right. I understand. Would you like me to come over before I go look for him?" Chewie offered. Leia's heart jumped. Look for him?

"Look for him? All by yourself? And lose both of you? But you don't even know where he is!" she exclaimed, her voice shrilly going up an octave.

"I'm going to trace the signal back to where it came from, and then go looking for him at those coordinates," Chewie explained reasonably, deciding he felt touched (as opposed to mildly annoyed) at the Princess' concern.

"I can get you access to a really good tracer, hacker, navicomp, whatever you need!" Leia said excitedly, "just come over here. I'll get Luke to bring Artoo, and between the three of you, you should be able to figure it out in no time!"

"All right," Chewie acquiesced. Of course, he could trace the signal without too much difficulty, but he understood the Princess' need to be involved. After all, wouldn't he be just the same if something were to happen to Mallatobuck, no matter how many experts were on the case? Not that Malla was anywhere near as rash as Han, of course…

"Great! See you in a little while, then, Chewie," Leia said in an all too cheerful and rather false tone of voice. Chewie shook his head. It must be rough when your mate was as hotheaded as Han. Then again, being the Princess' mate couldn't be a piece of krul-biscuit either. Of course, they weren't really mates yet…have to work on that, reflected Chewie, I don't know how much longer I can stand them being like this.

Less than an hour later, Leia, Luke, Chewie, and Artoo were gathered in Leia's office. Leia's aides, accompanied by Threepio, had been kept busy bringing back and forth files and datacards of information concerning gravitic anomalies, star charts, and ready-plotted courses, all concerning the coordinates Chewie and Artoo had deciphered.

"There's not supposed to be anything there," protested Leia for at least the tenth time, "it's nowhere on the charts."

"Well aware of that, Leia," Luke muttered. Tempers were running a little short. Leia said nothing, but leaned in closer over his shoulder to see what he was looking at now.

"The only way to find out and to help Han at all is to go there," Chewie said, also not for the first time. Luke refrained from commenting. Artoo twittered something that only Luke managed to decipher.

"No kidding, Artoo," he answered wearily. Both Leia and Chewie frowned in annoyance.

"Artoo says that in order to-" Threepio translated, tottering in from the next room.

"Never mind, Threepio. Artoo, if you haven't got anything nice to say…" Luke began tiredly. Chewie growled something under his breath. Maybe he'd understood after all…

Leia straightened up, placing both hands on the small of her back. Everyone in the room (even the droids, it seemed) was irritated and frustrated. And they hadn't made any significant progress since they'd discovered Han's location. And it didn't look like they were going to start making any anytime soon.

"Okay, guys. This isn't getting anywhere. I'm taking one of the Council ships tomorrow and going," she announced. Luke and Chewie turned to look up at her, surprised expressions on their faces and protestations on their lips. The door opened and Threepio was attempting to apologize for something when a tall, handsome figure swept in past him.

"Going where, Leia?" it asked, planting a kiss on her forehead and thrusting some flowers into her hands. It was Isolder. He put his arms around her and started to massage her lower back, "bit stiff here," was his comment, though it sounded something like an excuse to Leia's ears. But that might just have been the objections to being kissed and touched so familiarly by him when all of her thoughts and emotions were with Han at the moment. Not to mention that everyone else in the room was doing a rather paltry job of averting their eyes, which wasn't helping Leia with her efforts to not blush red as the suns of Tatooine.

She disengaged herself, trying not to be too abrupt about it, ever mindful of the lurking media.

"Long story," she said, sighing, "but it includes canceling our lunch meeting tomorrow."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Isolder told her, seeming genuine. There was something about his manner that Leia was beginning to see through, though.

"I was looking forward to it," he added, glancing around the room.

"So…are you all going somewhere together, then? And it's managed to escape the media?" he inquired politely.

"Well, I…" Leia stalled, trying to think of something to say. No, she hadn't necessarily planned on bringing everyone with her (maybe just the droids, if anyone) but if she said that, it was obvious that Isolder would offer to accompany her. Luke must have understood.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, we were. Sort of an unplanned vacation, you know," he said, smiling what he hoped was his best 'polite smile' and wondering how Leia did this for hours on end every day of her life.

"Oh, how pleasant," Isolder said, smiling and not letting go of Leia's hand. She tried not to fidget. But, ever the gentleman, he seemed to notice her discomfort and stepped away from her, kissing her hand once more first, "well, I'll let you continue your planning in peace. You'll let me know when you leave so I can see you off?"

"Of course," Leia smiled a charming smile and closed the door behind him. Usually she would have slumped against it, sighed, and done her best not to cry for thinking of Han and how every time she spoke with Isolder, she was stabbed over and over by the feeling that she was betraying Han. Now, however, she had to keep up the charade for the very people she should have been able to be honest with.

"So, I guess we're all going together, then," she said, trying to smile for them to and rubbing the palms of her hands into her eyes, instead.

"Good. I'll go see what sort of ship we can get. I don't think we can take a government vehicle without them noticing, can we, Princess?" Chewie asked. Leia shook her head. It'll be hard enough for me to get out of here without them noticing, let alone take a Council ship with me, come to I think of it.

"Whatever you can get will be fine."

"It'll be just like old times," Luke offered, trying to lighten up the atmosphere. Leia didn't have the heart to answer. How could anything be like 'old times' when Han wasn't around and she was practically engaged to another man?