Leia glared at her reflection in the mirror for a good minute before biting down on her bottom lip and trying again. She remembered when she was young and living on Alderaan; Bail Organa would always tease her that if she couldn't get something, she wasn't holding her mouth right. By now, Leia wasn't sure what to do because she was pretty sure she had twisted her lips in every look there was. No matter how hard she tried though, the snap on her pants refused to close. Leia hardly even minded that she was showing- in fact, there was something oddly fulfilling about it- but she knew that meant she wouldn't be able to hide it much longer. She was close to it becoming quite visible and her uncooperative pants were a daily reminder. She wasn't sure she even had a problem with that, but it was getting frustrating when she tried getting dressed in the morning. The last week or so, she'd made it by wearing dresses and skirts, but her closet was only so big and putting in a request for new clothes would not go over well with High Command which was the big, all-seeing eye of the rebellion and jumped at every chance to complain about Leia and the difficulties her pregnancy brought up.

No one else in the rebellion or even aboard Home One knew about her pregnancy besides all of High Command, Luke, Rieekan, Lando, and Chewie. Leia knew others would figure it out soon enough and she would let them. Their opinions didn't matter to her.

As another month had passed by and now Leia was nearing the end of her first trimester, she was tired, but seeing her belly grow with her babies made the whole thing real in a way it hadn't been before. But as it became more real, it also became harder to bear thoughts of Han and continuing without him.

Leia stopped fumbling with her button and took a second to examine her figure. With a loving touch, she caressed her bump, smoothing out all the folds and wrinkles in her shirt to better see. "Hey, there, kiddos," she cooed. "You're both growing fast, aren't you? Yeah, Mommy can tell. I'm getting a little too big for my clothes." Leia's gaze suddenly found its way to her closet where she remembered she had hidden away one of the shirts Han had let her wear during their trip to Bespin; one of Han's shirts. "No!" Leia shouted at herself before she realized how she was going to react to her own thought. Once she said it, though, she understood. The last thing she needed were constant reminders of Han and the fact that he couldn't be with her now. That still hurt. Every day was a struggle in its own right; when she woke up from dreams of Han, memories of Bespin always came like a flood. A torturous flood that took her down with its waves as they crashed over her, drowning her in grief and sorrow. Their time together had ended too soon. They hadn't had nearly long enough to understand what had happened between them, what had shifted that could never be undone.

Leia slipped her hands back to their respective place over her belly. Thinking about how she wished she didn't have to go through this without him. She wished he was here so that she could have told him and they could have dealt with this by now and she wouldn't have to wonder how she would tell him when he got back. She could only imagine how hard it would be to explain to him what had happened that he'd missed. And when would they finally find him? Would Leia still be pregnant, still carrying their children when she had to explain it to him? Or would their babies already be out of the womb, out in the world and Leia would have to show him two children and explain that they were his. And how would the twins themselves adjust to that? Suddenly having a father that was never there? Would Han even want to be a father?

Leia slammed down on those thoughts, reprimanding herself. She couldn't handle those thoughts right now. It was enough to worry about her pregnancy, but with Han missing, she often drove herself crazy with stress and worry. During a particular mood swing, Rieekan had told her not to worry about Han. Leia remembered him promising that he, Lando, and Chewie were going to find him. He had told her that the only thing she needed to worry about was herself and the twins, but it was proving to be harder with every day as the impact of the pregnancy slowly sunk in more and more.

"Kriff that," Leia muttered, giving up on her waistband. She untucked her dark blouse from her pants so that the hem hid her untended button. Leia then picked a pair of sandals from her closet, grabbed her daily stack of notes, and headed to the mess for breakfast. Though the looks and murmurs had died down since she'd returned from Cloud City, no one smiled at her in the halls or offered to help carry her load. No one hardly acknowledged her as she passed, so she didn't acknowledge them. She took the most direct path to the mess, then dropped her pile at her usual spot where Luke sat picking at his portion of morning rice on his tray. "There you are," he said, sounding relieved. "I've been waiting for you."

"And I told you I was fine."

"What took you so long?"

"I had to fight the button again," she said simply. This had quickly become how they referred to the scenario and Luke would always smile, amused, and ask, "Well, who won today?"

Leia frowned at him, grabbing her identichip and lunch pass from her pocket. "The button."

"Too bad."

Leia rolled her eyes and fell into the diminishing breakfast line. At the head of the line, Leia flashed her cards and the meal dealer harshly passed her a tray of crusty hotcakes, dried rice, and a small portion of diced fruits. "Thank you," Leia said as she always did, then rejoined Luke at their table. Now, Lando and Chewie were with them as well as a few of Luke's squadron friends including Wedge Antilles and "Hobbie". "Morning, Princess," Hobbie greeted, his mouth full of soggy hotcake bites. Wedge slapped his arm and half a hotcake fell from his mouth. Leia quickly clamped her mouth shut. As if her gag reflex wasn't trigger-happy enough . . .

"That's enough, Hobbie," Wedge said, casting him a look.

"We are in the presence of the princess," Janson teased, offering Leia an exaggerated, and clumsy, bow.

Leia set up her tray with all her utensils, placed her water cup closer to herself, then laid a hand on the table between her tray and Luke. Luke quickly shoved a couple vitamins under her hand and Leia pretended to yawn as she tossed them down her throat.

"Feeling under the weather, Princess?"

Leia jumped, her gaze darting to Commander Antilles. "Excuse me?"

He offered her a sympathetic look and nodded to where her hand had been just a moment before. "The pills. I know it's still been tough with Han gone. If there's any way us Rogues can help, feel free to give us a shout."

"Oh," Leia almost smiled in her relief. He thought they were anxiety meds. "Of course. Thank you, Wedge. It has been hard. If I need anything, I'll be sure to send a message via Luke."

Hobbie nodded, swallowing his hotcakes. "You do that, Princess."

"Please," Leia insisted with a shake of her head. "There's no need for that here."

Hobbie winked at her, calling her, "Leia."

"Really, though, Leia," Wedge persisted. "Are you alright?"

"I think I'll be okay," she assured him. "Thank you, Wedge."

"Of course, Leia."

Leia made quick work of finishing her light meal, hoping to avoid any more questions about Han and the possibility of someone else coming to the realization that they weren't anxiety meds Leia had taken. Luke took notice of her rush and choked down his last few bites to catch up with her. She got up from their table to put away her tray and started out of the commons area and down the hall.

"Whoa!" Luke hurried after her. "Slow down. Where are you headed to?"

"Anywhere but here."

When he finally caught up to her, Luke grabbed Leia's arm and pulled her back around to face him. She glared at him. "What on Coruscant is wrong? Could you please try to stifle down your exaggerated emotions for five seconds and tell me what's bothering you?"

Leia held back a sigh. "I don't know. I just feel- I'm really tired. And annoyed. And afraid." Leia took Luke's arm and pulled him out of the middle of the hallway and to a less conspicuous place to talk. Luke didn't take his gaze off of her.

"For three months, Luke, I've been trying to grasp what's happening and I couldn't, but . . . "

When she didn't finish her thought, but instead let her gaze wander away, Luke's gaze turned to the empathetic and attentively listening look he sometimes got; the one that meant he was really listening. "But now what?" he asked. "Is it getting harder?"

Leia shook her head as her chin dropped and her gaze fell to her stomach. "It's starting to sink in," she assured him. "And now I can't deny it. And that's kind of scary."
"It shouldn't be scary," Luke shook his head and said, "Rieekan and I are here-"

"I know that, Luke. You both constantly assure me of that. I never forget that I'm not alone. It's just . . . everything else."

"Everything-?"

"Everything from thinking about Han to wondering how I'm going to provide for the babies to- there's no way on Coruscant I'm having twins- and how will I keep them safe? How am I supposed to take care of myself when I don't have clothes that fit? Am I supposed to make some official announcement to the rest of the Alliance, explaining that I'm pregnant with Captain Solo's children? . . . " Her face fell and she suddenly found the words to explain the fear and terror that had so suddenly gripped her heart. "I'm being really dramatic, aren't I?" Luke scrunched his nose and raised a hand to show his thumb and forefinger nearly touching. Leia laughed, covering her face with her hands. When she relaxed, she told him simply, "I'm scared, Luke. I'm terrified and I don't know what the fierfek I'm supposed to do."

Luke paused. "Maybe we should go to one of our quarters."

Leia glanced over his shoulder and nodded. "I think we should."

"Okay, Lei, relax," Luke said as soon as they were in the privacy of his quarters. Leia sat on the edge of his bed and bit her lip, watching him nervously. "First of all, you need to calm down. Second of all, I think it might help if you were a little more specific."

Leia sighed, grabbing the frayed ends of Luke's blanket and pulling at the tattered edges. "I don't think I can be any more specific than I already was. Luke, I'm not ready to be a mother."

"Well, that's rough."

Leia frowned, upset, and threw his pillow. "I'm serious, Luke! I don't know what to do."

"You're overwhelming yourself," Luke admonished. He pulled out a water bottle from his mini freezing unit and handed it to Leia. He took a seat beside her, pulled her into his arms. "Rieekan and I already told you; you don't have to worry about everything at once. That's what I'm here for."

"No," Leia shook her head against his chest. "I have to be sure everything is taken care of."

"Again. Me and Rieekan's job."

"It shouldn't be."

"Yes, it should. Otherwise, you'll be too stressed to care for the twins." Luke gave her a firm look, drawing a sigh from Leia. "The least you could do is take a nap before your appointment today. You know Denun is worried about your stress levels."

"And how am I supposed to control that?"

"Leave your work at the office. Talk to me. Focus on the exciting things. I don't know, but anything has to be better than sitting here, stressing over everything. It's like you're trying to miscarry."

Leia was fast to turn a sharp glare on Luke, but he only shrugged, slowly rising from the bed. "What?" Luke said softly, "Am I wrong?" He held her gaze and it quickly became too much for Leia and she looked away.

"Leia, I'm not trying to be mean-"

"I know you aren't. You're just telling me the truth."

Luke kneeled before her. "And?"

She took a shuddering breath and when she found the courage to once again hold his gaze, tears were gathering in her soft eyes. "I want to do everything I can to keep my babies healthy."

Luke smiled gently at her. He nodded once. "I know you do."

Leia folded into his embrace and rested her chin on Luke's shoulder. "Then, tell me how I'm supposed to keep going."

Luke gathered her in his arms and laid her out in his bed. He pulled the blankets over her small form and tucked her in like she was still a child. "Relax," he told her. "Get some rest before your appointment. I'll let you worry later."

"Alright," Denun smiled at Leia, sitting forward in her desk chair. "Let's see!"

Leia dropped her gaze to her stomach and her fingers slowly moved to start pulling down the zipper to her dark jacket. She slid her arms out of the sleeves and Luke stood to take it from her. Leia slid off the medbunk and stood up straight. Denun's mouth opened. Leia didn't even need to smooth out the wrinkles of her shirt for her new belly to be apparent. It already had a small rounded shape to it and Denun could have chided herself for being so surprised.

The doctor wagged a finger up and down and instructed Leia, "Pull up your shirt. I'll measure you, then we can check your weight."

Ka'ila Denun tied a tape measure around Leia's abdomen, recorded the number, then gestured for Leia to stand on a scale. Leia slid off her shoes and stepped onto the scale, choosing to watch the doctor's face rather than the number at her feet. The doctor frowned and, over the period of several seconds, her frown only deepened.
"What's wrong?"

The Ho'Din brought her gaze back up to Leia and she squeezed her lips in a firm line. "Your weight, Leia. You've hardly gained six pounds."

Leia frowned back. "Well, how much do you expect me to have gained?"

"At least ten would be favorable."

"Ten?"

"I don't think that's really asking much, Leia." Denun sighed, turning to the datapad she'd been taking notes on for the last several minutes. "You're carrying twins. They need the extra weight. You need it. But you've only gained six pounds and they're all in your belly. Ten is only what I was expecting as of right now."

"Well, how much am I supposed to gain by the end of my pregnancy?"

"Typically, women carrying twins should gain 35 to 45 pounds."

Leia laughed shortly, though her expression was humorless. "45? Denun, I'm almost a third of the way through my pregnancy and I've only gained six pounds. You expect me to gain 45 poundsby the end of my third trimester?"

Denun gave a quick shrug. "35 to 45," she repeated. "How much of your portions are you eating at each meal?"

Leia crossed her arms. "I've been finishing all of my meals. Luke will tell you!"

Before Denun could object, Luke nodded. "She is, actually."

At first, Denun just sighed, dropping her head and rubbing at her greenish-yellowish clammy forehead. "I'm sure you are, actually. That's not the problem. No, they just aren't feeding you enough."

Leia blinked in surprise. "I should be eating more?"

"Well, you are pregnant!"

Leia looked at Luke, her brow furrowed in confusion. "I know nothing."

He chuckled softly at her while Denun began jotting away furiously on a flimsi sheet. "Bring this to Councilor Mothma," she said, tearing off a portion of the flimsi and handing it to Leia. "Whatever they're feeding you now, I want your portions nearly doubled." She said this with big, urgent eyes and Leia almost smiled.

"So, I'm supposed to be eating a lot more."

"Not necessarily, though I do think it would do you some good considering how skinny you are. Usually, with a pregnancy, it's just important to be sure you're getting all the proteins and calories you need. However, since you started traveling with the fleet three years ago, I believe your medical records show you're already underweight. So, yes; I do want you eating more. But I also want you eating real food."

Luke took his turn to frown, turning his head to look Denun's way. "I don't think the Alliance cooks serve any of that."

Denun sighed. "Talk to Mothma," she repeated, nodding at the flimsi in Leia's hand. "If she doesn't cooperate, send her to me."

Now, Leia smirked. "Wait. Let me get this straight. You want me to eat more."

Denun looked at her and nodded. "Yes."

"Oh, this is too good!" Leia beamed, smoothing out the piece of flimsi between her fingers.

"Leia, I'm serious, though. You need to gain weight. Fast."

"And if I don't?"

The Ho'Din doctor glanced briefly at Leia's rounding baby bump, then flicked her gaze back to hers. "If you want to ensure that both of your children are born healthy let alone alive . . . " The color instantly left Leia's face and Luke jumped to his feet, fearful that she was about to collapse. Denun continued, "Go talk to Mothma about your portions."

A young, gossipy pilot of Gold Squadron smiled to herself, turning back down the corridor. This was just too good, she thought. Surely, the Rogues would get a kick out of it. And those who had betted in favor of the princess losing her innocence to the Corellian pirate were going to be paid healthily by the rest of the poor betters. Because a new detail to the princess's trip with Captain Solo had slipped and the pilot girl couldn't wait to see the looks on the others' faces when they heard all that had transpired between the couple. And what was going to happen.

She walked with confidence and a kick to her step because Wes Janson had betted against her, firm in the belief that there was no way Princess Leia Organa would let Solo into her pants. With a bright, sly smile, she found the Rogues' usual spot and smirked at the jolly men. "Janson, Hobbie, Liber! You're not going to believe what I just heard. I was in the medical wing when I saw someone else was paying a special visit . . . "