Luke stood there waiting patiently for her as she approached him. When she was close enough for him to speak, he straightened himself up and said with a smirk, "I heard the Falcon had been hijacked."

"Word travels fast."

"I also heard you got engaged."

"Hmph."

"Does one have to do with the other?"

"What do you think?" She shook her head and exhaled heavily, "I don't need this right now, Luke."

"Ok. I'm sorry. How about I walk you home then?" He put his arm around her and squeezed her at the shoulders. The tears came. Sizing up the situation quickly, Luke shuffled her out of the crowded hangar and got her home.

She didn't know why Luke had stopped walking until she realized that they were standing in front of her door. She palmed the door open and whispered, "Thank you," and walked into the apartment.

It took her a moment to realize that the door had cycled shut and her brother had not entered the apartment with her. Turning around and palming the door open, she found him standing where she had left him. He was smiling.

"Are you coming in?" she asked.

"I wasn't sure if you wanted company."

"You're not company." That's not an answer. Luke stared at her in silence until she sighed and added, "Please come in, Luke."

Unlike the drunken side effect from the night before, Luke was often able to read Leia's thoughts with such an ease that it was sometimes hard to control. Leia was aware of this and she was able to block him if she so desired. Her thoughts just then, as he stood in the doorway, were so loud and clear that he knew that she most likely meant for him to hear her or was too exhausted to block him, he thought he might be in for another interesting conversation…

"So, how are things?" Luke asked the question very casually as he entered her apartment, as if he hadn't just witnessed the "hijacking" of the Falcon and had to practically carry her weeping form most of the way home.

"Things are complicated." She sighed as she answered him and walked towards the sofa. Motioning for him to join her, they sat down sideways, facing each other.

"Between you and Han?"

"Han and I aren't complicated. The world around us is."

"The Hapans?"

"For one."

"What else?"

"I don't know." Me.

"I think you do."

"Please don't pull your Jedi wisdom on me, OK? I already got it all from the Wookiee philosopher earlier today."

"What do you want me to tell you then, Leia?"

"Instead of everyone speaking in analogies and open-ended questions, why don't you try a novel approach and just tell me what to do?" She heard her words echo in her mind and she thought how she sounded defeated.

"I can't tell you what to do. No one can tell you what to do."

"I know." But that would be so much easier than this. Leia noticed a quick smirk cross her brother's face and wondered just how much of her thoughts he was able to decipher, she was too tired to block him.

"What is it you want, Leia? When everything in your world is in turmoil, it helps to focus on the one thing that you know will make you happy."

I want Han. That's what she wanted to say. But she didn't. Instead she said, "It's not that simple." Luke smirked again…

"It's complicated. It's not that simple. Isn't this all the same way of saying that you can't decide?"

"No. I can't believe that." She shook her head and looked away from him. His expression revealed that he knew that she knew that he was right.

Luke shuffled uncomfortably in his seat and after looking down at his hands for a moment he looked back up at his twin and said pointedly, "I love you and Han together. You compliment each other well. I often wonder why you two haven't gotten married yet." He paused, ensuring that she met his gaze before he added, "I know he asked you."

"Four years ago." She lamely replied.

"And?"

"I wasn't ready four years ago." She snapped but it didn't faze him. She knew he was familiar with her temperament and she knew that he was pushing her.

"And now?"

"And now everything is messed up because of this idiotic marriage proposal."

"The Hapans?"

"Yes, who else?"

"I thought maybe Han had asked you again."

He knew. He knows. "If you know that, then you know it was in anger and haste."

"If you call four years haste. And a lot of things happen between the two of you in anger."

"So what are you trying to say, Luke? Are you saying I should marry Han?"

"I can't tell you that, Leia. I'm only trying to figure out your state of mind."

"That's a black hole you do not want to get lost in." she huffed.

"You think your mind is a black hole?" He asked as if he had just discovered something about her.

"Can it, Luke. You know what I mean."

"No, I don't."

"You're exhausting me. Where did you learn your interrogation techniques, on the Death Star?"

He smiled at her, "We can stop whenever you want. I thought you wanted to talk things out."

"I told you. I don't know what I want."

"I think you do. I think when you're ready it will all be perfectly clear to you. The path will open and there will be no hesitation to follow it."

"That's comforting."

"I can offer you lies and false hopes to comfort you if you want. The truth is often disconcerting, but I know you prefer it."

There was silence for a long while. Leia stared off into the distance as she felt her twin brother watching her. "Leia?" His voice was soft.

She didn't look at him, but answered, "Um-huh?"

"You've given your mind, body and soul to the New Republic. Do you really want to give them your heart?"

It's not mine to give. She didn't answer him vocally and they sat in silence once again as she contemplated his words. Growing tired she turned to him and said, "Thank you, Luke - for everything."

"You're welcome." Realizing how late it was and that Han probably wasn't coming home tonight, he added, "Do you want me to stay here tonight?"

Luke had lived with Han and Leia before he rented his own apartment in town and their apartment still had several empty guest rooms. She reached across to him and squeezed his hand as she said, "Would you mind?"

The twins hugged each other and went off to their separate bedrooms. Leia cleaned up and climbed into bed. It was late. She was sure Han must be sleeping on the Falcon tonight. Reliving the last couple of days in her mind she fell into a restless slumber.

The following morning, Leia woke before her alarm. Taking the time to grab her datapad, she reviewed her daily meeting schedule. Leia cursed at the offending object. I forgot about that krethin' meeting!

Back at the Millineum Falcon on the previous day, while Leia had gone off with Luke, Chewie and Han worked on a much damaged star ship. The removal of the limit switch by Han earlier that day allowed an overload on the stabilizer circuits when the Falcon was taken to the skies. Once again working in silence together, Han and Chewie tried to repair the damage that was done so the ship would be ready for the new part the next day.

Finally giving in to hunger and exhaustion, Han trotted up the boarding ramp and yelled to Chewie, "Let's shut it down for the night, Chewie. I'm about to drop."

[Way ahead of you, cub. Dinner's almost ready.]

"What the hell, Chewie? I've been asking you to run tests for the last half a time part."

[It didn't hurt anything. I would have heard or smelled something before things got bad.]

"Fuck it. You're lucky I'm too tired to whip your ass."

[I think we proved what happens in that scenario last night.]

"I wouldn't bring up last night if I were you, smart ass."

[Go clean up. I'll have dinner on the table when you come out.]

A clean and still exhausted Han Solo exited the fresher and got dressed. As he walked from his cabin to the lounge he thought of the day's events and chuckled. The woman is a wild one. Nothing she does should surprise me.

As he slid onto the banquette and eyed up the meal served up on the holochess table, he shouted at the Wookiee still in the galley, "Looks great, Chewie."

[What do you want to drink, cub?]

"Anything sans alcohol, buddy. After last night I'm off the sauce for awhile."

Chewie joined Han at the holochess table with two large mugs of womp juice. Hungry and tired the two ate like starved rancors barely coming up for air.

With swelling bellies and drooping eyelids it was Chewie who began to speak first, [You going home tonight?]

"I'm too tired to make it to my cabin, much less across town."

[Did you at least speak to the princess while you fucked up the ship?] Chewie asked calmly.

"Hey! I didn't fuck up the ship, she did!" You never give up, do you?

[Did you talk?]

"No, I was a little busy between being locked out of my cockpit and then taking control of my ship to discuss our future."

[You should not let this sit between you. Little one is obviously not thinking straight.]

Straining to keep womp juice from spewing out of his nose, Han swallowed and bellowed back, "What makes you think that?"

[I'm serious, cub. Other people will be influencing her during this time. Your absence is dangerous.]

"Well, I ain't draggin' my ass across Coruscant tonight, buddy. I don't care what you say; I can guarantee the High Council ain't at my apartment at this hour."

[Perhaps it is not the High Council you have to worry about being at your apartment at this hour.]

"Alright, I was going to offer to clean up, but I can see that you're in a mood so I'll leave the mess for you." Leia might not be thinking straight, but she ain't sleepin' with nobody but me, buddy. And I'd bet the Falcon on them odds!

[And that's different than any other night, how?] Chewie howled as he watched Han walk down the corridor towards the crew's quarters.

"G'night, Chewie." Han yelled back.

Han could only blame his exhaustion as the reason he was able to fall asleep so quickly. Being light years away from Leia allowed him to sleep without her with relative ease, but the knowledge that she was sleeping alone on the same planet just a quick walk away, would usually wreak havoc with his ability to rest.

Enjoying an especially pleasant dream involving said princess, Han was jerked out of slumber by a howling Wookiee and his cabin lights flicking on full power.

[You're going to miss the meeting.]

Sitting up and opening his eyes to wrap his head around the situation, Han realized he had slept on the Falcon and that Chewie was annoyingly waking him up in the same vain that he had annoyingly driven him to go to bed last night.

"For sith's sake, Chewie! I thought you had a life debt to me, not an aggravate-me-to-death debt!"

[You have a meeting with the High Council this morning, but if you wish to sleep through it…] Chewie palmed off the cabin lights, exited the room and shut the door behind him.

"Godsdamnit!" Han fell back in the bunk as he ran his fingers through his hair. "I forgot about that krethin' meeting!"