Hello all! I have decided to start an ongoing series based around different snapshots of Princess Leia Organa's life. They are in no particular order, and please be prepared not everything will be strictly canon. I am also taking prompt requests so let me know if you would like me to write something specific (:

I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the characters used in this fanfiction.

'Clank. Clank. Clank.'

Boots clomp across the metallic ground and gloved hands grasp her forearms tightly as she's all but dragged down the cold corridor of the prison block on the Death Star. The cold nor the burning friction of the binders clenched around her wrists registers through the deafening ringing in her ears. Not even the grating mechanical breathing of Darth Vader at her back fazes the young princess. Her mind is blank. Everything's blank. Gone. Gone.

Far too soon she's jolted to a halt, the Trooper at her right opens the blaster door and she's shoved unceremoniously into her cell. The back of Leia's knees hit the hard bunk, the only thing in her otherwise bare cell, and she crashes onto its surface. Her head swimming the senator lifts her chocolate brown eyes to the doorway of her cell, Vader stands there motionless, arms folded across his broad chest. If only she had the energy Leia would have gladly stared Vader down heatedly, but all of her fight, all of her will is gone.

She's physically and mentally exhausted, all she can do is rest her too warm forehead on the chilly surface of her bunk. Her eyes slide shut and she can still hear his breathing, loud and trumpeting in the otherwise still room, for only a moment more before the whisper of his cape and the clank of the blaster door announce his departure. She spares a moment to wonder why the dark lord left her so easily after all he had put her through, but the thought flutters away from her consciousness before it is truly pondered upon.

Silence. It fills the tiny cell of the equally tiny princess curled in an undignified ball. The pure white of her dress stained and dull, her brown hair askew around her soft heart shaped face, dark eyelashes kissing the rosy apples of her cheeks. Slim fingers clench and unclench slowly around the edge of her voluminous sleeves, twisting and pulling anxiously. Princess Leia Organa is numb, the ringing in her ears has thankfully ceased however it has left an unnatural silence in its absence. The hum of the space station, the muffled sounds of footsteps beyond her cell, not even her own breaths can be heard. The princess can't decide if she prefers this unnatural silence or the agony she felt in the control room after...Alderaan...

Alderaan is gone. Just like that. No what information she had given, no matter how much she pleaded and begged it hadn't been enough. Her home-world is gone. Her people gone. Her family…dead. A rattling inhale breaks the unnerving silence, the princess' chest collapses inward with the weight of the too-cold air rushing into her lungs. The chill settles into her bones making her shiver violently, she curls into herself in an attempt to keep warm.

She could have saved them.

But her damn pride had gotten in the way.

"No! Alderaan is peaceful. We have no weapons. You can't possibly...!" The young princess' eyes widened in fear and panic as she all but pounced at the Grand Moff in her desperation. Leia's aloof, confident façade had completely dissolved at Tarkin's words.

"You would prefer another target? A military target? Then name the system!" The Grand Moff leaned in close to the young senator's face causing Leia to unconsciously step back into the solid form of Darth Vader. "I grow tired of asking this. So it'll be the last time. Where is the Rebel base?"

Her eyes flitted from the Moff's face to her home planet through the window in the control room, her jaw clenched as she struggled to figure out what to do. What would her father do in this situation? Would he betray the Rebel Alliance in exchange for the safety of Alderaan? His Family? She closed her eyes in defeat as she sagged against Vader.

"Dantooine…" Leia's head bowed as the half-truth easily slipped from her lips, "They're on Dantooine…"

Tarkin smirked in triumph as his glassy eyes slid from the princess to the imposing form of Darth Vader behind her.

"There. You see Lord Vader, she can be reasonable." The Grand Moff turned to Admiral Motti, "Continue with the operation. You may fire when ready."

Leia's breath caught in her throat, "What!?" The princess squeaked out in protest. Tarkin turned to look at her over his shoulder almost lazily.

"You're far too trusting. Dantooine is too remote to make an effective demonstration. But don't worry. We will deal with your Rebel frIends soon enough." He waved a dismissive hand toward her as he turned back to the wide window framing her helpless home planet.

Leia made to step forward whether to grab Tarkin and plead for her planet or to leap through the glass to save Alderaan somehow, she didn't know, but Vader's large hand clamped down on her slender shoulder and he pulled her back into his chest painfully hard effectively restraining her.

"No!"

Time stood still as the princess helplessly drank in the sight of her planet in tact. A steady hum rumbled under her feet as the Death Star's weapon began to charge, and then there is a flash of sickly green as the beam charged towards Alderaan. She clenched her eyes shut but she could still see the emerald light that washed over the control room through her eyelids. A loud crack rends space, and the room sways ever so slightly from the aftershock of the nova.

Leia's breath suddenly quickens a hand flies up to clutch at the place right over her rapidly beating heart, hot tears pool under her tightly closed eye-lids. High pitched squealing echoes in her ears. Shrieks. Thousands upon thousands of voices shrieking. Crying out in agony. She bites down on her bottom lip and her fingers clench around her temples futility trying to ease the pressure in her head. It feels as if the entire universe has settled onto her chest, weighing her down, she can't breathe. Blood floods her mouth as her teeth break the skin of her bottom lip, through the pain she barely hears Tarkin command Vader to return her to her cell. And then as suddenly as it came it stopped. The shrieks are gone leaving behind a deafening ringing and Leia can only blindly follow as Vader grabs her upper arm to steer her out of the room.

She had prepared herself for the...methods the Empire would use to wring information out of her. The location of the Death Star plans, the Alliance's secrets, such information was too precious to be flippantly handed over without a fight. The young senator had kept her wits about her, doling out barbed words and glowering steely eyes in the face of the Empire's attempts to interrogate her. Even when Vader himself had tried, she had very nearly cracked, she never broke. But this? Oh how she had wanted to hand over every piece of valuable information right then and there, anything to save her family from imminent death. But she didn't. Why didn't she? Why didn't she just give Tarkin what he wanted?

Because of her kriffing sense of duty.

From a very young age Leia had a very strong personality, she only saw the world in black or white. Good or bad. Nothing in between. Although she was as non-traditional as a princess could get in her earlier years, that deep-ingrained passion and fire to be good, to defeat evil and let justice reign was ever present. That passion had much to do with the princess' fascination with politics, crooked and warped though they were Leia was determined to make a difference. To give the people a voice.

Her parents, especially her father, were quite proud of her efforts in becoming the youngest senator in the Galactic Empire. Helping her father with the Alliance was just the next step, working with the rebels fueled her more adventurous side. Outside of marbled walls and sparkling chandeliers, heavy senatorial robes and diplomatic missions, Leia was free to be out on the front lines toiling with the rebels. Fighting against the Empire in a struggle that had been going on since before she was born.

Yes Princess Leia had always done her duty, without question or complaint. And she always would.

Even at the cost of her planet. With its towering snow-capped mountains, glittering oceans, the greenest grass you would ever see in the galaxy, the beautiful flowers and limbering trees that surrounded the capital where she lived. No longer would she be able to walk the hidden paths in the palace gardens, breathing in the crisp cool air of Alderaan as she scaled the trees much to the chagrin of her private instructor. Her mother, Breha, would never again run a soft brush through Leia's long dark hair as she sang to her softly in the waning light of day spilling in through the open windows. The princess could never again escape into her father's study when she became overwhelmed, to sip at spiced Alderaanian wine that warmed her belly as she listened to her father's soft baritone voice wash over her as they spoke genially together.

A low moan escaped the princess' throat, tears stained her flushed cheeks as she bit down on her clenched fist. A whisper that was both soft and clamoring at once was breathed out between her heaving breaths.

"I'm so sorry..."

Just to clarify, the part where Leia says she hears "shrieking" in the control room is actually a reference to an entry on Wookieepedia. Apparently Leia, being force-sensitive, had sensed the disturbance in the Force just as Ben Kenobi had when Alderaan was destroyed. Of course she didn't know what it was at the time, I just thought it added a pretty cool element to the story.

Like I said if you have any prompt requests send me them in a review, I have a couple ideas that I'm already working on so I should hopefully have something else up very soon.

Thank you for reading! Reviews always make me happy(: