CHAPTER TWO
FAMILY BUSINESS
THE DAY BRYN WAS SUPPOSED TO LEAVE for Naboo was the first time in months she'd seen her mother.
Celly had been helping her out in the shipyard, fixing up the Tantive as best she could while Bail and Breha continued to discuss both wedding plans and politics. Force, the only reason she was allowed to use the ship was because Bail had decided to pay a visit to Davik in the senate after getting word of unrest near the Mid Rim Territories.
His term would be up by the end of this year, and with Chancellor Valorum constantly appearing on the holonet for his inability to pass bills and laws without taking longer than a cycle, Bail wasn't sure that Valorum would be re-elected, which meant that there was a good chance Davik's usefulness had run out as well.
Bryn walked up to the freshly washed starship, dressed in black pants with a navy blue shirt and a brown cargo vest, her hair braided up in a halo to keep it off her back. A holster hung at her side where a blaster sat unused, and hopefully it would remain that way.
Her more regal wardrobe had been packed onto the ship already. Naboo wasn't more than a few parsecs away by hyperspeed, but Bryn still wanted to be comfortable when faced with any unplanned snags in the journey.
"Is she ready to go?" Bryn asked as her boots slapped the metal of the dock, her brother dressed in Organa blue with a contemplative look on his face, hand stroking his new goatee.
Bail turned to face her and his mouth widened into a smile, "I would say she's never looked better," He replied, pulling Bryn in for a side hug.
"Thanks to me, you mean?" A dark ponytail popped out from underneath the ship, Celly pulling herself free from the confines of the space and leaning her elbows on the hover scooter, "Considering I did most of the work."
Bryn rolled her eyes, "Yeah, but I was the one giving the orders, it doesn't take a genius to know how to work a wrench."
Celly scoffed and pushed herself up, "It does when you're dealing with the flagship of the Royal Navy of Alderaan,"
"Oh come on, a droid could've done that–"
"Oh is that why you asked me? Didn't want the trouble of–"
'You know that's not why Cel–"
"You can't let anyone take credit can you–"
"Celly, I promise that's not–"
"Okay! Okay!" Bail's soothing voice cut off both his sisters at the same time and Bryn resisted the urge to smile, "Now, Bryn, I think all Celly wants is some recognition for her hard work, can we agree on that?"
Bryn rolled her eyes again and stared at her younger sister, barely fourteen and already a menace to society. "Fine, thank you for helping me fix up the Tantive."
Celly pressed her tongue to her cheek, "Unbelievable, you can't even give me–" She cut herself off when she caught Bail's disapproving gaze on her and let out a sigh, "You're welcome, thank you for asking me to help."
"There we go," Bail placed both his hands on his sisters' shoulders, drawing them both in for a hug, "Now was that so hard?"
"Yes." Both girls answered at the same time.
The three siblings burst into short laughter as Bryn pressed her cheek into Bail's chest and rested her arm on Celly's tattooed shoulder. She knew she'd only be gone for a couple weeks, but everytime she left it felt like an eternity.
"Always the negotiator," a familiar voice sent ice running through Bryn's veins and the Organa siblings promptly broke apart from each other.
Celly threw on her jacket to hide the tattoos, Bail brushed the nonexistent dust from his tunic, and Bryn could feel the muscles in her back ache as she tried to straighten her already perfectly straight posture.
Macizia Organa stood at the entrance of the dock, dressed in black and gold, the sleeves of her gown dragging on the ground as she strode over to her three children, a rare smile on her face.
"Mother!" Bail's voice was strained, almost a hiss through his teeth as he forced a smile on his face, "I wasn't expecting you to see us off."
Like most of her smiles, Macizia's didn't reach her eyes as she pulled her eldest in for a kiss on the cheek, "I wouldn't miss a chance to say goodbye."
Bryn tried not to fidget with her clothes as she stood beside Bail, anxiously waiting for the disapproving look that always accompanied her mother when dealing with her eldest daughter.
Instead she was surprised by a warm embrace and Macizia brushing a stray piece of hair out of her face, "My beautiful starflower," She began, Bryn's chest twisting at the use of the nickname her father had often called her, "While I would have liked to have seen you rule as I once did, I am grateful you found a place among us here," Macizia's hand came to rest on Bryn's cheek, and she resisted every urge to pull away, trying not to keep the confusion off her face.
Her mother pulled her in for an embrace again, dropping her voice until it was below a whisper, "You did well gaining the trust of the Queen," Bryn's veins turned to ice, "If this mission to Naboo is a success, then all of Alderaan will know who truly runs the planet."
Bryn's heart sank into her stomach, the beginnings of a lump forming in the back of her throat at her mother's words.
Had that been her goal this entire time?
To undermine Breha not in public but in private? To ensure that the Organas were so successful with their respective tasks that royalty would always be synonymous with their name?
To place her son in Coruscant and her daughter in Naboo while Breha never left Alderaan?
Bryn didn't trust herself to say something that wouldn't disappoint her mother, so she instead remained silent, a polite smile tugging on the edge of her lips as Macizia pulled away, a knowing look sent her direction.
"I have something for you," Her mother continued, breaking the silence that stood between the three siblings. Celly melted into the crowd of workers, thankful to escape their mother's scrutinizing gaze, and Bail was anxiously looking between the ship and the palace. Bryn gulped down her nerves and watched as her mother reached into the pocket of her gown and procured a possession Bryn hadn't seen in over a year.
It was a lone kyber crystal, gleaming in the golden sunlight of the planet, dangling from a brown leather cord that had remained around Prestor Organa's neck until the moment of his death.
Their father had never taken the pendant off, and Bryn recalled hours of sitting in her bed as a child asking for stories about what it meant and how he'd gotten it.
"It was gifted to me a long time ago," He had said, refusing to elaborate beyond that, "I was very young, maybe nine or ten, and it is the last remaining possession of my life before I married your mother, my starflower. Perhaps one day I'll tell you the entire story."
He never did.
It was the one thing Bryn never knew about her father, and now her mother was handing the pendant down to her.
"I had planned to give this to you on your coronation day," Macizia began, the corners of her eyes growing wet, "But seeing as that will never come–" Bryn resisted the urge to roll her eyes, "-I wanted you to have this as you left on your first official mission as Ambassador to Alderaan."
Her mother's hands felt strange and foreign as they draped the leather cord around Bryn's neck, the crystal hitting just below her collarbone, small enough to seem innocuous to anyone who didn't know better.
Bryn could feel the pressure building behind her eyes, threatening to burst if she stared at the pendant any longer than she already had. So she moved to meet her mother's gaze, which had softened, "Thank you, mother. I shall treasure it always."
Macizia bowed her head gracefully and turned toward Captain Tarrik, the warmth draining from her face as her queenly visage returned, "I trust you know your duty, Captain. Protect my children."
Tarrik bowed steeply, "With my life, Your Majesty."
And without another word, Macizia shot another look at her children and disappeared behind the doors of the dock.
Bryn turned to face her brother, both of them wearing similar expressions of confusion on their faces as they moved up the ramp of the Tantive.
"That was unusual," Bail commented, Tarrik falling in place behind them as the crew of the starship moved out of the way to let the siblings adjust themselves to their surroundings, "But I suppose if she's turning over a new leaf..."
Bryn was still fingering the necklace, trying to decide whether or not their mother was being genuine, "I will never understand her," She finally admitted, stopping at the top of the ramp and grabbing her brother's arm, "Are you sure it's alright that I have this?"
Bail smiled, a genuine smile that crinkled the corners of his eyes, "Absolutely. You and father were always close, you deserve something to remember him by."
Bryn shook her head and twirled her ring, "I just...you deserve something of his too."
Bail's eyes twinkled and his smile grew wider, "I think it's perfect, Bryn. You have father's pendant and I have mother's ring. We each have something, and besides, father did leave me the viceroyship."
Bryn playfully shoved her brother's shoulder and shook her head, staring down at the pendant once again with a small smile.
"Your Highnesses–" A familiar voice pulled the two siblings out of their reveries and they turned to face a stocky man with dirty blonde hair dressed in a pilot's uniform. Bryn recognized him immediately, "Forgive the intrusion, but we must head out immediately if we are to reach Naboo and Coruscant in time."
"Of course, Captain Antilles," Bail responded with his most stately voice, "Set our course immediately, we have no time to waste."
The Captain bowed his head and moved back toward the cockpit.
Bryn turned toward the transparisteel windows and stared out at Alderaan, catching sight of her younger sister waving wildly as the starship began to take flight, Breha and the rest of the High Council watching from one of the domes near the top of the palace.
Bail's arm wrapped itself around Bryn's shoulder and they kept their gazes fixated on their home planet until the warped stars of lightspeed replaced the view.
THE TRANSFER ON CORUSCANT from the Tantive to another ship took little to no time, as Breha had already contacted Davik ahead of time to arrange travel for Bryn to Naboo before they'd left.
Bryn didn't know what strings Breha had to pull in order to get Davik to agree to such a move, but she was grateful for it regardless.
The initial meeting had been–for the most part–painless, Davik greeting Bail with a brotherly embrace and Bryn with a cold nod as he designated which port she would be leaving from.
Both her and Bail had agreed that they would each take a separate guard with them, so while Bail insisted Captain Tarrik accompany Bryn to Naboo, he was left with Raymus Antilles as his protection along with Davik's personal security.
Bryn had protested as much as she could, but Bail–like most Organas–was stubborn to a fault, and so now Bryn was boarding a shuttle with Captain Tarrik and a now-working HK-34 Guardian Unit she'd spent the last several cycles fixing up, finally managing to put the finishing touches on the droid during their journey to Coruscant.
"HacheKay," She called out to the droid as they continued to load the remaining luggage onto the shuttle, "Make sure the straps are secure, we don't want any of the wine crates to accidentally spill onto the art crates."
"Yes, Mistress," the silver droid's electronic voice replied, sounding vaguely threatening with each word it spoke, "I shall secure the crates to your liking."
Bryn thanked the droid and continued to examine the ship, trying to decide if Davik had ripped her off by choosing a less than stellar vehicle to send her to Naboo in.
So far the shuttle seemed to be in good shape, if a little patchy in areas, although that wasn't unusual for a ship like this.
"Is there a problem with my ship, Miss..."
Bryn whipped around to face the new voice and met the mysterious gaze of an olive skinned man dressed in pilot's colors. He wasn't wearing an official uniform, but the pin on his chest designated his status well enough, and his dark hair was cut short with the sides cropped to his skull.
Must be the pilot, Bryn thought to herself. She stuck out her hand in a gesture of friendship, "Bryn Organa, your newest passenger."
Something playful danced in his gaze, his calloused hand grasping hers, "Commander Jacen Andor of the Republic Navy, at your service."
Republic Navy? So it seems that Davik didn't skimp on accommodations at all. She would have to remember to ask Breha how she had achieved such a feat when she returned.
Jacen dropped his hand and moved further into the shuttle, leaning against a panel, "Senator Antilles informed me that I would be carrying important passengers but he failed to specify that it would be the Princess herself."
Bryn chuckled lightly, trying to ignore the blood rushing to her cheeks as he continued to stare at her with a cocksure smile, "I was unaware Senator Antilles was so...accommodating."
The pilot scratched his cheek as a strained chuckle passed his lips, "That's one way to put it."
Bryn shook her head and crossed her arms, "Let me guess, the Senator made an offer you couldn't refuse?"
"Said he would pay me handsomely if I shipped a valuable piece of cargo to Naboo from Coruscant," His eyes followed her up and down.
"Course flying through a Federation Trade Zone costs extra so..."
Bryn chuckled and crossed her arms, "So you're a smuggler?"
"Force, no!" His voice grew sharp before dipping his eyes in shame, "Just looking for a bit of extra income. Navy's great but it doesn't exactly pay."
Bryn bit down on her lip.
She remembered hearing stories about those in the republic military system striking against the poor conditions they'd been made to suffer before Valorum became Chancellor.
It had been the big ticket Valorum had used for re-election.
Although now it looked like nothing had really changed in the long run.
Bryn examined the man before her, finally recognizing just how young he was.
He couldn't have been more than sixteen or seventeen at the most.
Only a year younger than her.
"I didn't realize," Bryn stepped forward, shame curling in her stomach, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed–"
"It's alright, Your Highness–"
"Please," Bryn cut him off with a smile, "Call me Bryn, it sounds much less stuffy."
The pilot's eyes lit up, "Alright then. It's fine, Bryn. You're not the first one to make that mistake."
He pressed the button to the ship doors as HK loaded the last of the crates onto the ship and Captain Tarrik reappeared on the deck.
"Everything is set for take off, Your Highness," Tarrik shot a look toward Jacen but cleared his throat when he caught sight of the republic pin, "Whenever you're ready."
Bryn faced her guard and sent him a small smile, "Thank you, Tarrik, please feel free to find a place to relax before we leave, I know how your stomach gets."
A chuckle left Jacen's lips before he was cut off by one of Tarrik's trademark death glares.
"Thank you, Princess," Tarrik slipped into a position of ease, arms hanging at his sides rather than clenched behind his back. He stared down the young pilot a moment more before moving toward the seats decorating the back wall where HK had already made his home.
Tarrik moved a seat away from the droid, eyeing the silver automaton warily.
"There is space next to me, Captain." The droid's strange accent cut through the air again but Tarrik politely turned down the droid which tilted its head, "Are you sure? I can provide assistance–"
"It's fine, Hachekay," Bryn interrupted, cringing internally at the lack of protocol her droid possessed. She struggled to hold in a laugh as she turned back to face Jacen.
"Well, at least we know he wouldn't make a good protocol droid."
The pilot burst into raucous laughter at her words and she found herself joining in, the two of them watching HK and Captain Tarrik go back and forth about why he didn't want to sit next to the droid.
And when HK unfastened his restraints to move over a seat, Bryn had to lean against the support railing of the door to keep herself standing up.
"Force Almighty," Jacen spoke through catching breaths as Bryn met his gaze again.
It was easy to forget that she was only eighteen.
It was easy to forget that she was still a kid.
"You ready, Princess?"
Bryn stared at the pilot for a moment before her gaze drifted to the cockpit behind him.
The shuttle wasn't very glamorous but it didn't have to be.
It was a simple cargo shuttle with few seats that had been patched up over the years with a loving hand.
She would know.
Instead of answering his question, she simply marched past him and settled into the co-pilot's seat, blowing away a stray hair which had fallen from her braids.
"Ready, Captain." She shot back with a smile.
Jacen shook his head with that same cocksure smile she saw earlier and settled in beside her, the two turning in their seats until they faced the transparisteel window which opened into the Coruscant skies.
"It's not Captain yet," He reminded her, pressing several buttons that Bryn recognized, the royal already following the pilot's thought process when it came to starting up the shuttle, "But I'll get there some day, force willing."
He reached over the dashboard and bopped the head of a dormant explorer droid, the unit slowly waking up and stretching out its tiny legs before moving about the ship as a companion droid should.
"Alright, everyone secure?"
Bryn nodded as she gripped the arms of her seat, her stomach bubbling as her lips spread into a smile.
Jacen turned to face her with another smile and the explorer droid beeped excitedly.
He pushed the lever forward and they sped off toward their destination.