CHAPTER 15:

Leia cried out as the bregal leek's claws dug into her calf, and she knew the inevitable was going to happen. Still, she wasn't going to give in to this beast without a fight. She furiously kicked with her uninjured leg. But her efforts were futile. The bregal leek continued to overpower her.

"Leia!" Han shot at the beast from his prone position, but his injured arm prevented him from hitting his target. "Luke, help Leia!"

Luke glanced over his shoulder. He was the only one between Han and the blaster shots the remaining men fired, and he was barely keeping Han from being hit. Panic addled his brain and blurred his concentration. Luke dodged a shot with a quick drop and roll, yet somehow he managed to still cover Han.

Leia cried out again, igniting Luke's rage. His vision turned red as he went on the offensive, slashing at trees and branches as he continued to volley the frantic shots of the retreating men. Luke batted a laser blast back at the shooter, and the man fell dead. Two left. He continued advanced on the remaining men.

Leia's heart turned ice cold, and she couldn't move a muscle, leaving her prone to the relentless attack of the bregal leek. She could sense the raw desire of the beast as it prepared to bring this fight to an end.

But the end never came. The bregal leek released her. Leia rolled onto her back and opened her eyes. The bregal leek didn't release her on its own record. Her large dark eyes widened as she watched a great Wookie tear the beast apart with his bare hands.

"Chewie," she sighed.

Han lowered his blaster, and he remembered to breathe. He smiled up at his best friend. Chewbacca turned toward Leia, intending to inspect her wounds. But Leia had other things on her mind. She crawled over to Han, took his blaster, and sat up as straight as she could manage. With one eye closed, she fired two shots that zipped dangerously close to Luke. Han's mouth dropped open as her shots hit their marks and dropped the two remaining men.

Luke froze where he was, and his chest rose and fell as he regained control of his respiration. He shoulders slumped forward and he dropped his light saber without deactivating it. It sizzled as it came into contact with the mossy ground before it shut itself off.

Leia gazed at Luke until Han grabbed her and pulled her close with his one good arm.

"I thought…" Han's eyes searched out Chewie's. "I don't think I've ever been happier to see you, you big furry oaf."

"Your shoulder," Leia reached out toward his wound but then retracted her hand.

"You hurt?" Han searched her face.

Leia blinked twice before she leaned in and pressed her lips to his. Han's eyes widened as he tried to catch up with her kiss. Her lips moved ever so slightly, ever so gently over his. Before he could comprehend that this kiss was truly happening, she broke their connection.

"What?"

"Leia?" Han released her from his embrace.

The princess fell back, but Chewbacca caught her before she hit the ground. He groaned as he noticed the blood on Leia's skirt and the lacerations on her arms.

"Oh, Sith," he cursed. "At least these on your arms don't seem so deep. He started to lift her skirt but he noticed she didn't seem to be paying any attention to him.

Instead, Leia's attention focused completely on Luke. Chewbacca's steely blue eyes followed her gaze and he whorfled. Han winced as he turned toward Luke.

"Hey, Kid!" he yelled. "She's okay." He then looked at her with quizzical eyes, "I think."

When Luke didn't respond, Chewbacca called out to him. Still, the young Jedi remained lost in his own thoughts.

"Luke," Leia whispered.

Luke dropped his head, slowly bent down, and retrieved his light saber. With tentative and careful steps he made his way back to his friends.

Han's brow knitted together, "You okay?"

Luke nodded but refused to make eye contact with any of his friends. "You guys?"

Han glanced over at Leia whose worried eyes unsuccessfully willed Luke to look at her.

"Thanks to Chewie," she answered somewhat breathlessly.

"Where did you come from?"

Chewbacca whorpled and hamocked, and Han rolled his eyes, "It's not like we always find ourselves in 'difficult situations'." Chewie shook his head and whorpled again. Han sighed, "It's not like you always have to save my ass."

"Han's right," Leia lifted her chin, though she still rested against Chewie.

Both Han's and Chewie's brow lowered.

"Sometimes I have to step in and save his ass," she smugly smiled despite the effort it took for her to speak.

An indignant scowl marred Han's features, "You're not one to be talking here."

"Hey," she sucked in a breath, "I was defending you."

"Some defense."

"And then Luke's come to your rescue oh…" her eyes shifted up as she tapped her lip with her index finger, "how many times, Luke?"

"Too many to remember." Although Luke's mood remained somber, he offered a small smile to his friends.

"Awow!" Leia winced as Han tried to examine her wounds on her leg.

Luke grimaced, "There's a first aid kit in the pack. I'll go get it."

Luke disappeared into the oilet tree, and Chewbacca moaned. Han glanced at the oilet tree, "I wonder what's up with him?"

Chewie shrugged, but he didn't have time to answer. Luke returned with the back pack and the blankets that he had laid out inside the tree.

"We don't have much, but it'll have to do," he started to hand the first aid kit to Han but then remembered his older friend's wounded shoulder.

Chewbacca took the kit and opened it up. Luke knelt down next to Han, took out a tube of bacta salve.

"Take off your tunic," he ordered.

"Leia's wounds are much worse," Han held up Leia's skirt to punctuate his words.

She attempted to pull her skirt from his grasp, "I wasn't shot."

"No, just mauled by an animal."

Chewbacca grumbled and Han pulled a face. Then he removed his shirt and exposed his wounded shoulder to Luke. Luke then rubbed the salve on Han's blast wound, and Han bit his lip as he endured the pain. Then Luke passed the salve to Chewie who then tended to Leia's visible lacerations.

"I'm going to rig a sling for your arm to take the pressure off of your shoulder," Luke explained as he finished bandaging Han's wound.

"I don't—ah!" Han grimaced as Luke released his arm.

"What were you saying?" Leia smirked. "Awh!"

Chewie mumbled an apology and a lecture on empathy while she blankly stared up at him. Luke used a vibroblade to cut a perfect triangle from one of the blankets. Then he carefully secured it around Han's arm and uninjured shoulder.

"Makes shooting a blaster a little difficult," Han frowned as he looked at it.

"Let's hope we won't have to do anymore blasting for the rest of the night," Leia commented, and Luke nodded.

"So what now?" Han glanced around.

Chewie let out a stream of woofs and rumbles. Han smiled, "I knew you'd come through with something."

"What's that something?"

"Chewie has us transportation not too far from here," Han reported. "He says that we can stay at a safe house on the outskirts of the city."

"Safe house?"

"Turns out one of the non-Humans Leia freed made it. He offered to help Chewie out."

Chewbacca wrapped a blanket around Leia, carefully lifted her into his arms, and stood up. Luke helped Han despite the older man's scowling mien. The four rebels made their way through the thickening woods in silence. Leia rested her head against the large Wookie's chest, exhausted from the day's, and now night's, events.

Han walked behind Chewie and Leia, keeping pace with Luke. Han's brow lowered at the sight of the pensive look marring Luke's features. He wanted to ask his young friend what was bothering him, but Han sensed that Luke was in no mood to talk about it.

"Thanks for watching my back out there," Han commented. "You're getting' better with that light saber of yours."

"I suppose."

Han stayed quiet for a while. He kept his eyes on the ground, "Glad Leia made it out alive."

"Yeah," Luke pressed his lips together. "Glad we all made it out alive."

"Yeah."

Han ran his hand threw his hair as he racked his brain for a way to comfort Luke. But how could he comfort him if Han didn't know what was bothering him? Chewbacca growled, and Han looked up to see a dumpy blue coup in front of him.

"Nice ride, Chewie."

Chewbacca glanced over his shoulder and bared his teeth.

Han held up his good hand, "Hey, I'm not complaining. Anything is better than walkin'."

Chewbacca put Leia down and she carefully climbed into the tight spot behind the driver's seat. Luke climbed in next to her, and Han took the front seat.

"You can rest your head on my lap," Luke suggested to the princess. "That way you can lie down."

"Thank you," she smiled as she tentatively repositioned herself.

Han took a quick glance at the pair in the back seat and tried to push down the gurgling jealousy in his stomach. He slouched down in his seat and stared out the window into the nothingness. But then that strange, spontaneous kiss Leia gave him filled his thoughts and squelched any jealousy brewing. She kissed him, not Luke. Why? He wasn't sure, but it left him with an appetite for more.

Han glanced back at her again. She was pale and her eyes were closed. Luke stared out the window as he absentmindedly stroked her hair. His hand moved over her messed up tresses, but Han could tell that she wasn't in Luke's thoughts. No, she wasn't there at all, but she was consuming Han's thoughts, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that.