"Here comes the bride! Here comes the bride!" Thane chanted as he and Ciena escaped the prison's walls. Even at sunset, the desert heat was unbearable. It would cool down quickly when night fell, though. Ciena had been on Jakku long enough to know that.

Thane took her hands in his and spun her around. The two danced in front of a squadron of New Republic guards, ignoring the glares shot their way as they did. Ciena laughed at Thane's antics. The whole thing felt like a dream. "I swear, I'm about to wake up and lose you again. I'm too happy right now."

"Well believe it, Ciena. I'm here for you," Thane promised, cupping her face as he did so. "I'll never leave you again."

"I hope not," Ciena replied, placing her hand over his. "We have too much to catch up on to spend any more time apart."

"I'm so glad you agree." Thane beamed, leading her to his ship. He'd taken an empty cargo transport for this trip. It was no beauty, but it was the only ship (save his single passenger X-wing) he'd been able to commandeer on short notice, and Thane had been more concerned with getting his provision passed than securing transportation. But he had remembered one other thing. "Here, take these clothes. They're Kendy's. They may not fit you perfectly, but it's better than wearing an inmate uniform everywhere."

Ciena caught the bundle he threw to her. "Thank you, Thane. I'll change on the ship." She paused. "Where are we headed?"

"Hanna City, Chandrila. We have a celebration to attend."

"A celebration?" Ciena unfolded the clothes, noticing just then that Thane had handed her a dress and shoes. "Of what?"

"Formally, the end of a legislative session, one topped off with the passage of a great victory protecting all New Republic soldiers from the petty reprisal of bitter ex-Imperial bureaucrats… plus their wives and families, of course." Thane winked, ushering her onto the ship. He closed the door behind them. "Less formally, our wedding. There are some people I'm dying for you to meet!"

Ciena gulped. "Do these people know I'll be joining you?"

Thane paused, noticing her concern. "Yeah, I told a bunch of people about my plans to propose to you. Not the senators I talked to about including the provision, of course, but you'll be welcome at the party. Why, do you not feel like celebrating?"

That was a good question. Didn't Ciena want to celebrate? This was everything she'd ever wanted. Far more than she'd ever let herself hope for. However Thane had done it exactly, he'd kept his promise to talk to others on her behalf. He'd saved her from potential decades behind bars. But after years of feeling trapped in a metaphorical cage and a month inside a literal one, it was hard for Ciena to imagine herself ever being free. Free and alive, that is.

Maybe a party was just what she needed, then. It could serve as a physical reminder that yes, this was real. Ciena really was free. She really was married to Thane.

"I'd love to attend with you, Thane. I… I think I'm still a bit shocked, that's all." She sighed, forcing her shoulders to relax. "I've had such an eventful day already."

"Well, just relax back here on the ship. I'll handle all the flying back to Chandrila. We won't get there right away, and if you change your mind along the way, just tell me and we won't go." Thane babbled on as he entered the cockpit. "We'll stop by my place first so I can freshen up as well. If you need anything there, my stuff is your stuff. The party is at Chancellor Mothma's private residence. We'll stay for as long as we like, then head back. Then we can really have fun."

Ciena laughed. She doubted she would feel up for anything but sleep by that point. It wasn't that she didn't want to consummate their marriage, but prison really knew how to zap someone's energy. She was bound to be exhausted by the end of the night.

And… dear stars, Chancellor Mothma? How did Thane even know someone so high up in the bureaucracy? The rebellion, obviously, but that didn't clarify any of the specifics. Ciena would have to ask Thane later.

Ciena took another look at the dress Thane had procured for her. It was a modest black dress, nothing shabby, but most certainly not enough for a high class gathering. Ciena had been better dressed for her graduate's ball on Coruscant all those years ago, and even then she remembered being one of the most underdressed people there. And of course Thane hadn't had time to remember the existence of cosmetics. Ciena would look like a ruffian! She didn't want to meet his rebel friends like this.

No, not rebel. Republic. They were official now. They were the victors. The legitimate government. Ciena couldn't say anything to suggest otherwise, now could she?

Ciena frowned, slipping off her prison clothes in the back of the cargo hold soon after the ship launched into hyperspace. She'd forgotten how nice civilian clothes could feel. Their fabrics could be chosen for comfort, not just cheap mass production.

Thane's breath hitched behind her. She turned around, waiting for him to finish taking her in. "You look beautiful in that."

"You were right that it might not fit exactly." Even the shoes were a size too loose. That'll be fun later.

"It doesn't matter." Thane dismissed the issue. "I know it's not quite wedding attire, but we'll have time to put on a ceremony later."

"Can we have our wedding on Jelucan?"

"Of course! We'll hold the ceremony wherever and however you want it," Thane promised, then frowned. "We may have to wait a bit for Jelucan, though."

"What do you mean?"

"Were you given a chance to contact home while you were in prison?"

"No." Well, technically yes. Ciena had been offered the opportunity to call home once or twice during her stay on Jakku, but she'd been too caught up in her own head to accept. She couldn't face her father now that she'd tried to take the dishonorable way out. No matter how Ciena explained her actions to her father, it wouldn't change the fact that she'd attempted suicide, the coward's way of avoiding their word. Then once the opportunities passed, Ciena would feel guilt that she didn't tell her father she was still alive when, with all the chaos in the galaxy, he must think he was alone in the world. Then she would only feel worse as she spiraled deeper into depression and would snap at Mr. Wright all throughout their meetings until-

"Ciena, you still there?" Thane asked, waving his hand in front of her face. "I know this isn't good news, but the New Republic is working on it. No warlord can hold onto territory forever. For the first time in… wow, forever, we can see real elections happen on Jelucan. Isn't that something?"

"I can hardly believe it." It was the only true thing Ciena could say on the subject. Well, that and: "I hope my father is okay."

"Me too. Your father, I mean." Thane was quick to clarify. "And your mother. If she's still alive, she'll be liberated too. Your whole family, back together again. Bigger than ever before now."

Ciena nodded, smiling for Thane's benefit. "I would like that. I want them to take part in our wedding."

"Then they will. It's as good as done."

Not quite. But Ciena didn't feel like arguing the finer details. She and Thane had argued enough in the past few years. No one wanted to start their marriage with a fight. No one wanted to start their marriage in a prison cell, either.

For a while, she and Thane sat together in silence. Not even touching, just… enjoying each other's company. Because they could do that now. They had time to do that now.

Not all strange feelings were bad ones, as it turned out.


"Here we are. Chancellor Mon Mothma's place." Thane threw his arms out, letting Ciena take in the giant mansion behind him. She and Thane were some of the last people to arrive at the party, it seemed. "She lived here when she was a senator, but had to abandon it during the rebellion. I hear she was overjoyed when she returned for the first time and found everything in working order."

Ciena could only imagine. It wasn't as fancy as the Emperor's palace had been, but the mansion was still far more extravagant than any structure on Jelucan. The sheer amount of wealth that existed in the galaxy blew her mind every time she encountered it. And even though she'd been able to wash her face and style her hair at Thane's place, Ciena still felt undeserving of entry. Thane standing next to her in an only slightly nicer dress uniform helped, but just a little.

They walked up to the protocol droid taking names at the door. "Please give me your name, sir and madam. I will ensure you are on the guest list."

"Thane Kyrell. This is my wife, a plus one."

"Kyrell… Kyrell… Ah. I have your last name, image, and rank in my databank, but your first name is listed as 'Engine Room Hooch Man'. That is a unique name, sir. You must be so proud of it! Whyever use a nickname?" The droid cocked his head at Thane, who was trying his best not to laugh. "I suppose it doesn't matter. You may enter. You as well, Mrs. Kyrell. Enjoy the party!"

Thane and Ciena slid past the droid into a crowd of New Republic sophisticates. Ciena turned to him once they were a sufficient distance away from the entrance. "'Engine Room Hooch Man'?"

Thane shook his head. "It was a long time ago. I first met Chancellor Mothma while under the influence. I doubt she put that on the guest list herself. It was probably one of her aides. And to think, I told him that story in confidence!" He laughed, prompting Ciena to laugh as well. Inside, she was mortified at the thought of appearing drunk in front of such a high ranking person.

"How did Chancellor Mothma react to seeing you in such a state?"

"She was understanding about it, actually. It was right after the Battle of Hoth." Thane paused, then continued. "I… told her about you, then. If we get a chance to talk to her tonight, which I doubt will happen with all the people here, I'll be sure to introduce you."

Ciena hoped not. "Is Kendy here? I know she offered to testify for me, but I never got a chance to see her while I was," she looked around, checking to see if anyone was listening, "delayed on Jakku."

Thane wrinkled his brow. "I don't think so. She doesn't get involved in politics as much as I do. She should still be on Chandrila, though. We'll visit her another time. In the meantime, let's go find those people I mentioned. You'll like them, Ciena. They're very honorable. But first: refreshments."

She followed Thane to the food tables on the other side of the room. Ciena didn't know what half the food items were, so she let Thane set the pace, taking smaller portions of anything he picked up with one exception: the alcohol. He took a glass of whiskey while she opted for wine. Even at her worst of times, Ciena had never been one for losing her head.

Thane navigated the crowd like an expert. Except for the people he specifically stopped to greet, no one seemed to notice the pair of them existed. Ciena had no idea which people Thane wanted her to meet and which ones to whom he only wished to say hello, so she opted not to speak unless spoken to. Finally, they stopped in front of a fashionable pair of people with starkly different tastes, one man and one woman. "General Rieekan, Countessa. Good to see you again."

"You don't have to call me 'Countessa' anymore, Kyrell," the woman corrected, then broke into a half smile. "Madame President is fine."

Thane gave a full grin back. "Madame President, then."

"Is this the one?" General Rieekan nodded to Ciena, an appraising tone to his voice. Ciena knew before he even glanced at her that his appraisal would find her wanting. She held her head high regardless. "This is the woman you couldn't let slip away?"

"Yessir!" Thane held her hand up in his with pride. "This is Ciena Ree. My oldest friend and newest wife."

"You say that like you've been married before," Madame President noted, amused. "I'm glad you are happy. How are you, Ciena Ree… or do you prefer Captain?"

"Ciena is fine," she demurred. "I'm overwhelmed, of course. I knew Thane had promised he would come back for me, but I hadn't expected him to help me, um, leave Jakku so soon. I had no idea how he planned to do it until it happened."

"I can imagine. His plan certainly wouldn't have worked in the Empire." Rieekan wasn't done assessing her. "Are you relieved the war is over?"

"Most relieved, General sir. I never expected I'd live to see the end of it."

"You very nearly didn't. Crashing a Star Destroyer into the nearest planet just to keep it out of Republic hands? The New Republic would have liked that ship, you know."

Ciena felt her cheeks burn. "It was my last act as an Imperial officer. That time of my life is over now."

"One can certainly hope so."

"General, please." Madame President intervened. "We've met so many regretful Imperials over the past few months. Give some of them the chance to reinvent themselves. This New Republic is a restoration of hope for everyone, not just those who fought for it." She waited for General Rieekan to respond. When he did not, she switched gears. "You must be so excited to finally be married, Ciena. Your circumstances are unusual, but everyone's lives were changed by the war. From the way your husband speaks, the two of you have loved each other for some time."

Ciena nodded, thankful for the change in subject. "We have. The two of us became friends when we were eight. We… we were always close."

"That's right. Ciena was and still is my closest friend, the only woman I have ever truly loved. My life wouldn't be complete without her by my side."

General Rieekan frowned, forcing himself to stay civil regarding his subordinate's performance of emotion. "I remember when Kyrell thought you'd died in the Battle of Endor. He mourned you for a year, meditating and tying fabric around his arm. It was a… unique display of grief."

"You followed the valley traditions? For me?" Ciena looked to Thane with wide eyes. "But you… you didn't grow up in the valley."

"It's what you would have done for me. I'm sure of it." Thane held her hand up to his chest. "And I am valley kindred now. I haven't recognized my family as such for years. I am a part of your house now. Your traditions are my traditions. I respect what you respect."

"Jelucani traditions, you mean?" Madame President asked, to which Thane nodded.

Ciena was moved. This time, she's the one who moved to embrace Thane. For a split second, she was able to forget about everyone else in the room.

So maybe Thane didn't share her same sense of honor yet. Maybe there was still a bit of his heritage in him when he made backroom political deals or omitted important facts. But Thane didn't want to be that person. He wanted to adopt the ways of the valley kindred with her. Perhaps she would not become Ciena Kyrell, but he Thane Ree.

"Well, I see the paperwork has already been sent in. This is a done deal for you, legally speaking. I hope you have a long, peaceful marriage, young pilot. You should apply for extended shore leave, enjoy it a little," General Rieekan suggested. "Come, Madame President, I think those… um, senators are still waiting to hear from us."

"Oh, yes." Madame President followed the general's lead, leaving the two newlyweds alone. The corner they disappeared to was suspiciously devoid of senators.

Not that Thane noticed. Or cared. "I think I'll take General Rieekan's suggestion. How does two more extra weeks on Chandrila sound? That brings my shore leave total to four weeks. Is my place comfy enough for the two of us?"

"It's fine. I would love for you to stay with me awhile before you fly out again. I don't… aside from Kendy, I don't think I know anyone else on this planet."

"Well, that's another thing this party's for. Make some friends. Who knows, someone here might even have a job you can do… if you're ready to start work again, that is. There's no rush if you aren't. We can live on my salary for some ti… and there's no reason we have to discuss all this now. Let's just enjoy the night." Thane's mouth kept pace with his thoughts, wandering all about before settling on nothing.

"Who else do you want me to meet?"

Thane introduced her to loads of people after that. A young junior aide to Chancellor Mothma, the one who'd changed Thane's name on the guestlist and paled at the mention of Ciena, two more of Thane's squad members, who measured their words around her, a few New Republic Senators, who didn't recognize her name and neither Thane nor Ciena felt the need to clarify matters for, and an old scholarly woman, one here in official capacity to take "historical documentation" of the event. The New Republic was obsessed with writing the official history of the war now that it was over, it seemed. The last woman was the kindest to Ciena out of everyone.

As she and Thane made their way around the party, Ciena began to hear her name in places she'd never spoken it. First out of General Rieekan and Madame President's corner, then from the aide to his friends, and then out of the mouths of people Thane never spoke to that whole night. She caught only a small portion of what these elites said about her, but none of it was good. The list included such phrases as: "Imp loyalist", "conniving whore", "scheming cheat", and, of course, "filthy war criminal". If Thane noticed the chatter, he didn't comment on it.

Ciena wilted under the glares she received. No matter where she looked, they loomed everywhere. She tried to focus on Thane, hold onto his side and enjoy his affections, but that only made the whispers worse. Ciena found herself reaching for wine again and again, forcing herself to stop when she noticed she'd grabbed a fourth glass.

No. This was not the proper way to handle the matter. Getting drunk solved nothing.

So Ciena put the glass back on the tray, every drop still inside. These people were right to question her honor. She could not deny their words held a kernel of truth in them. She had not schemed or seduced in order to escape her cell, but how would they know that? Anything she or Thane claimed to the contrary would not be heard by their ears. Politicians heard what they wanted to hear, what they thought they could use in speeches later. And this room was full of politicians that only pretended to be different from the ones once in the Empire. The more things changed, the more they stayed the same.

"I want to go back," she announced to Thane.

"Aw, already? It's not that late. Come on, Ciena, you've barely had anything except wine." Thane's words slurred a bit.

"I'm exhausted. I want to go back to our lodging. Didn't you say I could decide when we leave?"

"Did I? I guess I kinda did. Okay, if you're tired." Thane tossed an arm over her shoulder and steered her towards the exit. "Whatever you say, Ciena. Wait." He stopped in the middle of the room. "Lemme say some goodbyes real quick."

Thane was not quick. He took almost a half hour to say his farewells to everyone he found deserving. Ciena offered polite goodbyes herself, but she was mostly ignored.

By the time they got back to Thane's speeder, he was hardly in any condition to drive. Ciena would have offered to take over, but she wasn't much better herself. She'd consumed less alcohol, yes, but she was also far lighter than Thane. And Ciena was in the minority in that she'd never found the symptoms of drunkenness pleasant. So she sat in anxious silence as Thane drove them back to where he lived. Where they lived, now.

"I think that went pretty well," Thane commented as he stumbled through the door. "Sorry we didn't get a chance to speak to Chancellor Mothma. I don't think I even saw her. Did you?"

Ciena shook her head. "Those people at the party. I heard them gossiping about me all night."

"...No. It's not like that. A couple people were surprised at you, yeah. Maybe some of them didn't agree with you being there, but that's jus… just because they don't know you. If they knew what a great person you were, they wouldn't have a single bad thing to say 'bout you. That… that's why I wanted them to meet you, Ciena. So they'd all finally… believe me." And with that, he drifted off, falling asleep uniform and all across the bed. So much for consummation. Not that Ciena was feeling it either.

She took Kendy's dress off, found one of Thane's undershirts she could use as a nightgown, and prepared herself for bed. All throughout the night, Thane's words stayed with her.

Was the New Republic's rejection of her really just temporary? Or should Ciena have known better than to think leaving her cell was the same as leaving her Imperial service behind?


A/N's: I know it's been over three months, but a fic I started around the same time as this one got a far bigger reader reaction (especially on AO3), motivating me to keep updating it until finally, Master of the House was a 50K Thraro Meet the Parents/Murder Mystery fic. When I finished it last week, I decided this is one of the fics I wanted to circle back to and update before writing any more Thrawn-related stories.

So in this chapter we see a few drawbacks to Thane's genius plan of freeing Ciena via marriage. I would say this story is a happy ending fic only until reality ensues. Our Lost Stars protags still love each other, obviously, but not all the obstacles keeping them apart collapsed with the Empire. There's still some conflict to be had in this sequel. I can't say much else without spoilers, but know that my prediction of ten chapters for this fic is a pretty well educated guess.

Thank you to everyone who waited patiently for this update and for the support I've received recently. I appreciate all of you. Until next time!