Chapter 10

Luke spent the next morning packing in solitude, as neither Han nor Leia had yet to emerge from their respective rooms. Han was understandably still shocked and perhaps even frightened about the proverbial bombshell he and Leia had dropped on him last night. Meanwhile, Leia had been crestfallen at Han's negative reaction, convinced that by telling him the truth she had lost Han forever. None of Luke's reassurances seemed to have had any effect on her, and Luke had finally given up trying to cheer her up.

Once he had finished packing what few belongings they had brought with them, Luke left the chamber to go find Han and Leia. Stopping at Han's room first, Luke rapped on the door, hoping Han would agree to take them to Naboo. A disheveled Han answered the door, tussled hair and dark rings around his eyes indicating he had not got much sleep.

"Hey, kid," he mumbled, yawning loudly.

"Hey," Luke replied, encouraged that Han had bothered to answer the door. "I've finished packing, I wanted to know if you've decided to come with us."

Han gave Luke a puzzled look. "Oh, right," he said, realizing what Luke was talking about. "Yeah, I uh…"

"Look, you don't have to come with us if you're uncomfortable," Look told him.

"What? You thought I was going to let you fly my ship without me? Of course I'm going with you," he said matter-of-factly.

Luke grinned broadly and reached out to grasp Han's hand enthusiastically. "That's fantastic! I'd like to leave in an hour or so, will that work?"

"Sure, I don't have much to pack anyway."

"Great, I'll see you at the Falcon soon then," Luke said. Turning away to go tell Leia the good news, Luke didn't see Han's smile fade into a frown behind him.

A few hours later, Luke and Han were in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon preparing to take off. Han had given a concerted effort to appear as if nothing was wrong, but Luke could sense an underlying tension and trepidation in his friend; it was clear that Han had yet to come to terms with Luke and Leia's parentage.

"You sure you're up for this?" Han asked Luke for the umpteenth time. "I know you can fly, kid, but being a co-pilot is a bit different."

Luke rolled his eyes, more amused than annoyed by Han's lack of confidence in him. "I can handle it, Han."

Han gave Luke a doubtful look, but said no more as he did a final check up on the ship. Leaving Han in the cockpit, Luke wandered off to the main hold where he found Leia sitting alone at the holographic game board.

"We're about to take off," he told her as he approached.

Leia looked up and gave him a weak smile. "I can't wait," she told him. "I've always wanted to go to Naboo."

"Me too," Luke told her truthfully. "Maybe we both knew deep down that we belonged there."

Leia looked down at the table in front of her, her expression indiscernible. "Do you remember sitting here after we escaped the Death Star?" she asked suddenly.

"Of course," Luke replied, surprised by the subject change.

"I remember wondering why I was the one comforting you," she said, smiling faintly. "After all, I had just witnessed my planet get destroyed."

Luke gave her a sheepish look, embarrassed by how inconsiderate he had been at the time.

"I couldn't bear to see you look so depressed, though," Leia continued. "I felt so close to you, even then. At the time I thought it was just because I felt indebted to you for having rescued me, but deep down I must have always known."

Luke sat down next to her, suddenly intrigued. "What do you mean you knew?" he asked.

Leia shrugged. "It's not really knowing," she said after a moment's deliberation. "But from the moment you stormed into my cell on the Death Star, I felt a connection with you that I had never had with anyone else before." Pausing for a moment, she continued: "I felt the same way towards Senator… towards our mother, even though I had never met her."

Luke stared at her in awe, realizing how strong his sister was with the Force without her even knowing it. Just then, Luke heard footsteps approaching.

"Luke, have you gone deaf?" he heard Han call from the hallway. "I need you in the…" Han faltered as he entered the main hold and saw Leia. "Erm…" he said, clearing his throat to try and hide his obvious discomfort. "We're ready to take off," he said brusquely.

"I'll be right there," Luke told him. Nodding, Han scurried off to the cockpit. Noticing the forlorn expression on Leia's face, Luke put a reassuring hand on his sister's shoulder.

"He'll come around eventually, you'll see," he told her, fervently hoping that he was right. When Leia made no reply, Luke stood up to leave. "I'll see you when we enter hyperspace," he told her as he exited the main hold.

Taking off from Ilum's snowy surface, the Millennium Falcon glided out of the atmosphere without any issues. Leaving the holy planet behind, Han busied himself with the calculations for the trip to Naboo.

"Naboo's pretty far away, right?" Luke asked, although he already knew the answer.

"Yeah, it's on the other side of the galaxy," Han replied. "We won't be there for a few days."

Remembering the palpable tension between Han and Leia a few minutes ago in the main hold, Luke cringed internally. This is not going to be a fun trip Luke thought to himself. The two friends sat in silence for a few minutes as Han double checked his calculations. Luke watched Han curiously as he worked. It was becoming abundantly clear to Luke that there was much more to Han than what met the eye. In other words, the persona of the self-made space pirate was just a façade, carefully designed to hide his vulnerable interior. He must be as afraid to lose Leia as she is of losing him, Luke realized. Then why is he pushing her away?

"All set," Han declared, rousing Luke from his thoughts. "Entering hyperspace in 3…2…1…" Pushing the lever, the two were pushed back in their seats as the Millennium Falcon accelerated rapidly into hyperspace. Verifying once again that everything was as it should be, Han unbuckled himself from his chair, not sure what to do with himself now that they were in hyperspace.

Noticing Han's predicament, Luke stood up. "Come on," he told him. "Leia and I want to talk with you."

Han wringed his hands, his eyes fixated on the controls panel.

"Han, please join us," Luke pleaded.

Realizing that he couldn't avoid Leia forever, Han stood up. "OK, I'm coming."

Grinning boyishly, Luke clapped Han on the back before turning around to leave the cockpit. Just as he did, however, they heard a scream from the main hold.

"Get away from me!" they heard Leia's yell, followed by the unmistakable sound of a lightsaber being activated. "Leave me alone!"

Giving Han a startled look, Luke grabbed his own lightsaber and ran off to the main hold.