Perron Solo sat at the edge of the Kivvidan celebration, getting quietly smashed on nintwine. The music was rapid, excited. It had been all night. And the natives danced and leapt like it was a matter of life or death. Watching them he was entranced, as always, with their form and colour. Small humanoids with a lustrous, red-gold skin. Such a handsome race. Doomed to extinction...
He emptied his cup and poured another. Damn the Empire and everything it stands for. How dare they come in here and...
The music stopped sharply, breaking his train of thought. Every one of the dancers had frozen in mid-movement, and were waiting. Waiting for the beat. The life-beat that would turn this festival into a fertility festival. That choice was in the hands of the Shaman, who got his enlightenment from the gods themselves. If the life-beat was called it would bode well for the tribe.
Perron believed the Shaman would call. Tribal morale required it. Only two days ago the entire northern tribe had been incinerated. The Empire was not interested in relocating a particularly vicious bunch of savages, especially when they hampered its progress at every opportunity.
Laughter trickled down from the platform above, taking the drama out of the enforced quiet. Perron frowned up at them, willing them to shut up, and hoping the Shaman would hurry before the moment was ruined completely.
The Shaman was no fool; he had every intention of calling the life-dance. But the four strangers boded portents of immense proportions. And the fact that one of them had killed the lazech while another had survived poisoning by the kibrivask vine meant that they were obviously well favoured by the gods. Too well favoured to kill. And any favour shown to them may well rub off on the tribe. The Shaman had wanted to include them in the ceremony, but the alien medicine man would have none of it. He claimed the girl was too sick. Shaman knew she had suffered hurt from the lazech too, but he also knew the power of nintwine; and the laughter from above proved it.
He looked at the pale-skinned off-worlder and smiled, then started the life-beat low, not letting it drown out the laughter, rather using it as an accompaniment. He would bring the strangers into the dance whether the alien medicine man wanted it or not. With the nintwine in their veins they could not help but join in. So she might not dance with one of the Kivvidan as he hoped, but she would dance with one of her own, which was maybe what the gods preferred.
"The music's stopped!" Luke announced, stating the obvious as he swayed into the doorway. The others crammed up beside him and they all looked out at the torchlit platform that held them, and the impenetrable blackness of the night-time jungle beyond. It told them nothing.
"What do you suppose they're doing?" Luke wanted to know.
"Getting ready for the first sacrifice?" Solo suggested.
For some reason, Leia found the suggestion funny and snickered.
"What's so funny?" Solo looked down at her, squashed between Luke and himself. "It's probably us."
Leia tried to contain it, failed, and burst out laughing.
Luke and Solo looked at her and then each other, and burst out laughing too. They all fell back into the hut, feeding on each other's mirth. Chewbacca regarded them, amused, but his size had left him nowhere near as drunk, and he decided he would take a quick look over the platform just to reassure himself that the natives did not have those sort of designs on them after all.
He stepped out and walked over to the edge. He could hear the music again now. It hadn't stopped after all, just got suddenly quiet. The sound of his friends laughing seemed very loud. He looked over the edge and couldn't make out much at this distance. Bright firelight, surrounded by natives... He decided to go back for the macrobinocs in his pouch.
By the time he got back to the hut, a matter of metres, the music volume had increased markedly and was joined by many native voices. Solo immediately started parodying it and was swiftly joined by Luke and the princess, bouncing around the hut pretending to be natives. Chewie ignored them, fetched the binocs and moved back out.
Solo and Luke crashed together accidentally and fell in a heap, both their heads impacting on the wooden floor with a resounding thunk. They suffered for five seconds then grinned at each other as the nintwine replaced it with something very pleasant.
"Ahh!" they both said.
Leia was still dancing, oblivious, writhing and twisting with the sort of abandon neither man had seen from her before. She had let her hair down and it swung around her head like it had a life of its own. Both watched her for a moment then grinned at each other and said, "Ahh!"
Perron watched the natives, his mind in turmoil. He knew what the Shaman was doing and glared at him, powerless to stop it. Perron knew he should go up to the group in his hut; warn them. Or at least move the princess away. But then there'd be more chance of the Shaman getting to her. No, she was safer where she was. With his son? Who was he kidding? He should at least go up and warn her about his son. His son, who had been instrumental in the destruction of the Death Star. Who had been with the Rebellion for over five months now. His son? Han... Perron winced, remembering old arguments, shame and bitter disappointment. Such disappointment.
He swallowed down the last of his cup and reached for the bladder of nintwine nearby. He was about to pour another cup when he noticed the Shaman staring up at their platform.
Chewie peered down at the natives through the macrobinocs and it didn't take him long to figure out what was going on. Definitely not a sacrifice; quite the opposite. They were pairing off at an exponential rate, keeping to the rhythm of the music. In fact the music had changed quite markedly, taking on a much more seductive tone. He glanced back at the hut, wondering if the effect was being felt in there. He looked through the binocs again and found Solo's father sitting by himself, drinking.
The princess started singing, and he looked back at the hut for a moment, intrigued. It was an uncanny match to the natives' music. Then she stopped. Chewbacca guessed the similarity to whatever song it had reminded the princess of had ended. He turned back to the binocs and focussed on a few of the natives. What he saw left a smile on his face and he decided that Han would never forgive him if he didn't share it. Nevertheless, he dallied, fascinated.
The princess started singing again; the same phrase. And Chewbacca realised the music was the same again too. Sure enough, a moment later she stopped. The Wookiee chuckled to himself. The princess drunk was not a sight he ever thought he'd have the pleasure of witnessing. He wondered what sort of hangover they'd have in the morning.
She was singing again, and the Shaman was excited beyond words. She knew the music! Maybe she was one of the gods incarnate? She'd survived the kibrivask hadn't she? Even before the alien medicine man's interference. There was no doubt now - he had to have her. He looked for the large, pale-skinned man, hoping to find him gone, but he was still there. Shaman called one of the women and instructed her to life-dance him and to make sure he was occupied all night.
Then he settled down to wait, thrilling in the sound of her voice each time it drifted down.
Solo was not so thrilled. Once or twice was vaguely funny, but this constant repetition of the same line was seriously irritating. She sang it again and he growled, "Will you please stop?"
Leia paused and looked at him. She was standing by the doorway looking anything but regal.
"No."
Luke looked like he very much wanted her to stop too.
Solo moved towards her. "Why not?"
The princess grinned. "Because you wish it."
Solo glowered at her and it took him a moment, then he finally said, "You like the music so much, why don't you go down and join 'em?"
"Because I'd have to take all my clothes off and I don't want to do that."
"Why not?" he said, giving her a grinning leer. "I'm sure they'd get a kick out of it."
Leia shot him a look. "Besides, they probably wouldn't let me sing."
"This is sounding better and better."
She regarded him defiantly and the music came around again. Leia opened her mouth to sing and stopped with Solo's hand centimetres from her face.
"Not a note," he threatened and Leia had to fight to keep a straight face.
"What'll you do?"
Solo was racking his befogged brain trying to think of something. "You really want to know?"
She leaned towards him and said in a low voice, "I'm quaking with anticipation."
Solo was momentarily taken aback, then he smiled, "Really?" He moved in close and said quietly, "Maybe we shouldn't waste it?"
For a moment their eyes locked and the smiles slipped from their faces.
Leia took a deep breath and looked away. "I'm not myself..."
Chewbacca bustled into the hut, snatching Solo's attention with a tirade of growls and barks.
Solo looked at him with amused disbelief. "What?" The Wookiee handed him the binocs with more instructions and Solo charged out. Not about to be left behind, Luke and Leia hurried out after him.
Solo moved to the edge of the platform and quickly decided that he did not feel sober enough to stand at the edge of such a height. He dropped to his stomach and peered over the edge with the binocs.
"What?" Luke asked, likewise dropping to his belly beside him. "What is it?"
Solo was chuckling in a sordid sort of way. "Oh... yes..."
"What?" Luke insisted.
Leia squinted down at the firelight far below, trying to make sense out of the flickering shadows. Solo changed focus and snorted. Luke grabbed at the binocs, tired of waiting, and Solo jerked them out of reach.
"Come on, Han!"
Solo regarded him briefly then smiled and passed the binocs over. "Look 'n learn, kid."
Luke scowled and looked through them at the natives, and froze. He lowered the binocs from his eyes and looked sharply at Solo, and found him grinning like a lunatic.
"What are they doing?" Leia reached for the binocs and demanded, "Give them to me."
Luke pulled away from her, keeping the binocs out of reach. "No!"
Leia unthinkingly snatched at them with her right hand and was rewarded with searing pain up her arm and right side. She pulled back automatically, gasping, then moaned and buried her face in the wood of the platform as an explosion of pleasure threatened to wipe her out.
"Feel good, Princess?" Solo jibed mercilessly.
"Shut up," she said, her words muffled by her arm and the platform.
Solo nudged Luke with his elbow. "Run your hand over her."
Luke frowned, not understanding and feeling guilty for causing her pain. "What?"
A muffled, "Don't you dare," came from the princess.
Solo indicated a seductive caress with his hand. "Like this."
Luke baulked. "No!"
"Oh, go on," Solo encouraged devilishly. "It'll freak her completely."
"Don't you touch me," Leia said as she raised her head. "Give me the binocs."
"Leia," Luke began, "you don't need - "
"Give her the binocs," Solo insisted. Luke gave the Corellian an exasperated look and he grinned delightedly. "That's what she wants."
Luke reluctantly handed them over and Leia held them to her eyes and adjusted the focus. It took her a moment, then she pulled the binocs away and frowned. "What...?" She looked again and Solo held his breath to stop himself hooting with mirth. "What are they doing?"
"What does it look like?!" Solo hooted, unable to contain his amusement.
Leia's blush was obvious, even in the torchlit darkness. But she contained it well. She said matter of factly, "They've turned it into a fertility festival."
Solo grinned and waggled his eyebrows suggestively at her. "Still want to go down and join 'em?"
Leia shot him a look and Luke smothered a smile with his hand. Leia looked back through the binocs and asked, "Is your father with them?"
"Probably." Solo reached for the binocs. "Give 'em here." Leia handed them across and Solo aimed them at the fireside gathering below.
"Do you suppose he's...?" Luke didn't know how to put it.
Solo grinned behind the binocs. "Participating? Bound to be."
"Like father, like son," the princess muttered.
"Ha, ha," Solo said through the binocs and Luke snickered.
The clatter of the ropes caught them by surprise and they all looked guiltily over their shoulders. There was a mad scramble for the hut, but natives, elaborately painted and otherwise naked, suddenly blocked the way.
The Falcon crew closed ranks and a small, painted man stepped into the space between them and the hut. Unlike the other natives, this one wore some items of clothing; in particular, shoulder and calf panels of gleaming white stormtrooper armour. He pointed at the princess and yabbered.
Solo and Luke immediately put themselves between him and the princess, and he gestured angrily at them, obviously displeased, his words unintelligible.
"Well, I'm sure!" Solo responded sarcastically. "But if you'd just let us past, we'd like to go inside now."
The native slashed at him with what looked like a claw, tearing his shirt and raking his abdomen. Solo jerked back out of reach and automatically went for his blaster, which he now cursed himself for removing earlier in the evening.
"Son-of-a-sith-" he started, anger sobering him dramatically, and Perron alighted onto the platform behind the natives.
"I told you to stay in the hut!" he yelled at them.
The natives all turned to look at the professor, and Luke and Leia took the opportunity to hurry past them into the hut, trying to drag Solo with them. But Han ran a hand across his abdomen and it came back with blood.
"Son of a bitch!" Outrage overwhelmed good sense and he shrugged Skywalker and the princess off with the intention of taking the small native on.
Chewbacca bellowed hideously and the natives' attention switched to him. Fifteen centimetre claws demanded enormous respect and the natives fled. All except the one wearing the stormtrooper trophies, and Perron launched into a shouting match with him. Solo stalked up to them, prepared to say his bit and fully intending to hit the little savage, but his father turned on him and bellowed, "I told you to stay in the hut!"
"Look what he did!" Solo all but shrieked, thrusting his bloody hand under his father's nose.
"What'd I tell you?!" Perron yelled back. "I told you to stay in the hut or they'd kill you!" Solo glared at his father for a moment then turned and stalked towards the hut. "Why you can't follow the simplest command is beyond my comprehension!" the older man yelled after him.
Solo turned and smiled ingratiatingly. "Hey, I wouldn't want your life to be boring!" Perron glared at him and pointed at the hut. "We're in the hut," Solo assured him, shoving Luke and Leia, who had been watching the scene from the doorway, ahead of him.
"Are you alright?" Leia asked urgently. "Does it hurt?"
"Are you kidding?" Solo snapped and reached for his bag. There was no pain. The complete opposite in fact, and Solo understood why it had peeved the princess so much. The pleasure side demanded something more of him. Something that was not available here. He found the antiseptic gel and, without thinking, applied some to the wound. It stung like blazes for maybe half a second, then…
Solo groaned and leaned on the workbench.
"Han?"
He heard Luke approach and held up a hand to stop him.
"It's the nintwine," Leia said quietly.
Solo found himself fantasising about testing the aphrodisiac qualities of the nintwine with the princess and looked at her. A moment of understanding passed between them and Solo nodded.
Done yelling at the Shaman, Perron stormed into the hut and picked up yelling at his son.
"What the hell were you thinking?!"
"Just enjoying the culture," Solo replied tightly, still waiting for the pain/pleasure thing to pass.
"Well the only thing stopping that culture from swallowing you whole is me!"
"We're in the hut," Solo insisted and pulled his shirt off over his head to examine the wound more carefully.
"I can't impress on you enough how dangerous it is out there for you," Perron said, gesturing out the door. He turned to the princess. "Especially you." Leia had the grace to look abashed and he sighed. She and Skywalker looked most affected by the wine; in fact Skywalker looked like he was going to pass out at any minute. He heard the princess gasp, followed her gaze to his son who had also heard her gasp and had turned to look at her.
"What?" Solo asked.
Leia searched for the right words and came up empty. "Your back…" she murmured.
"Oh." Solo turned back to what he was doing and now they could all see what had so shocked the princess. The Corellian's right shoulder blade carried a large, ugly scar and his entire back bore the fine scar lines that could only have come from a flogging. "Old news, sweetheart," he said dismissively.
Perron was appalled. "What the hell happened to you, boy?"
"You were never interested before, Dad. Why start now?"
It was muttered carelessly, but the truth of the words struck Perron Solo deeply. And it was the very carelessness with which the words were uttered that drove them home so hard. No outrage or bitterness, just fact.
"Aww," Solo growled irritably as he completed his examination. "This is gonna need stitches!"
Perron moved to a drawer and pulled out a tube of skin-glue. "Lie down," he said, indicating the bench so recently occupied by the princess. His son reluctantly complied and Perron immediately set to work, 'stitching' the laceration left by the Shaman.
"What happened to your back, Han?" Perron asked quietly.
"You know me: just couldn't follow the simplest command," was the glib reply, and Perron thought, I deserved that.
"I gotta sit down…" Skywalker muttered suddenly and promptly fell in a heap.
"Luke!" Leia cried, and rushed to his side, but bending made her head spin.
Solo and Chewie laughed and Perron assured her gruffly, "He'll be alright." Then indicated to his son that he had finished. Solo sat up carefully and got off the bench.
"Thanks," he said, running his fingers over the careful join.
Leia was trying to straighten Luke out, to make him more comfortable, when the young man jerked into sudden wakefulness and sat up with a yell. Leia jumped but the others looked amused.
Solo moved closer to Luke and said sagely, "Don't fret it, kid. You're drunk."
Luke frowned at him then looked at the princess with something akin to mortification.
"Luke, what's wrong?" she asked, obviously disturbed.
"He's drunk, sweetheart," Solo said, as though trying to explain it to a two-year-old.
"I just saw a baby being born," Luke said in a shocked whisper, and Solo could have sworn he heard fear in the younger man's voice.
Solo laughed. "What?" Who the hell had nightmares about babies? Unless Luke had been careless with some woman and was stewing about it… But Solo was pretty sure Luke hadn't even been with a woman.
The princess seemed to recognise the look in the younger man's eyes and diagnosed seriously, "Spice dream."
Luke stared at her for a long moment then wiped his hand across his eyes. The Spice was an element Solo realised he hadn't considered, but then why would he? The minuscule amount, which he had been able to taste in the wine, was hardly likely to produce the drug's hallucinogenic effect. Not in a normal person, anyway. Luke, it seemed, was proving once again how abnormal he was.
Solo leaned towards him and teased, "Whose?"
Skywalker seemed to consider for a moment, then looked strangely at the Corellian and answered, "Yours."
Perron and the Wookiee laughed and the princess grinned.
Solo looked appalled. "Mine?"
Leia held her ribs as she laughed. "Looks like your reputation's going to jump up and bite you, Han! Oooh," she teased mercilessly, "I wonder who the mother will be?"
Luke's eyes riveted on the princess involuntarily and he quickly looked away. But it did not go unnoticed by Perron or the sharp-eyed Wookiee.
"What'd she look like?" Solo demanded.
Luke's gaze turned inward, focussing on the memory. "She had red hair…"
Leia shrieked gleefully, "Gizela!" She hit Solo on the arm. "You're gonna have a baby with Gizela!" Solo looked totally flabbergasted. He was very fond of the princess' medic friend; had actually known her years before… But the thought of having a relationship with her was something he had never considered. Gizela Shalleron was like a sister to him.
"No," Luke corrected. "The baby had red hair."
Solo turned on Luke and growled intolerantly, "I don't care what the baby looked like! What'd the mother look like?"
"So he'll know who to avoid," Perron put in helpfully and Chewie sniggered.
Solo glared at them then fixed an expectant gaze on Luke. Skywalker turned away from him. "I don't know."
"Your mother had red hair," Perron added, deliberately messing with his son's head even more, but Solo forced himself to concentrate on Luke, certain the kid had just lied to him.
"Now, see here, kid-"
"A red-haired daughter!" Leia crowed, obviously revelling in his discomfort. She moved in close to him, grinning, and said, "I hope I get to see it."
"You will," Luke muttered without thinking, then added hurriedly, "We all will."
Solo was deeply suspicious. "Alright, kid, what aren't you telling us?"
"Nothing." Luke hung his head in his hands for a moment, then rested it on his knees and looked up at Han. "It's just a dream, Han."
"A Spice dream," Leia crooned portentously.
Solo shot her an irritated glance then appealed to Luke, "At least tell me what she looks like?"
Luke reached out and pulled a blanket from the bed. "My head's spinning," he said dismissively. "I'm going to sleep."
"Luke-" Solo started.
"Go to sleep, Han," Luke said, arranging the blanket under himself and not looking at the Corellian. "Maybe you'll dream about her."
Leia giggled and Solo scowled at him, peeved. Luke settled himself, bade them a general 'goodnight' and rolled so that his back was facing them, pulling the blanket around himself as he did.
"You'd all do well to follow his example," Perron said. "We'll need to be out of here early." He turned to his son. "Will you be alright?" Solo leaned against the workbench and nodded. "And you?" Perron asked the princess, who had to tear her highly amused gaze from Solo to reply.
"I'll be fine," she said.
Perron inclined his head towards the Wookiee, wordlessly querying his well being, and got a softly rumbled response.
"Back to the party, huh, Dad?" Perron turned to find his son regarding him, arrogantly. "Well tell your little friend that the next time I see him I'm gonna kick his butt all the way to Coruscant."
Perron smiled tolerantly. "He's their Shaman."
"I don't care if he thinks he's the fucking emperor," Solo responded. "I'm still gonna kick his butt! You tell him."
"I'll tell him," Perron said. "Goodnight."
He left the hut and they heard the rope system clatter as he used it to descend to the lower platform. Solo looked at the princess and she grinned at him and teased, "I'd better warn Gizela."
Solo rolled his eyes at her and went to stand in the doorway, wondering why he felt so certain Gizela would not be the mother, and irritated with himself for being affected by such portentous rubbish.
Chewbacca rumbled at him and sat on the floor at the end of the bed.
"Don't worry; go to sleep," Solo growled, and the Wookiee spoke to the princess.
Leia hazarded a guess, smiled and responded, "Goodnight, Chewie."
He hurrumpfed contentedly and lay down.
Watching him settle, Leia wondered again at the relationship between the Corellian and the Wookiee. She looked at Solo, standing in the doorway, staring out at…what? It was totally dark out there; what could he be looking at? With a sudden flash of understanding, Leia realised it wasn't a question of where he was looking but when. He was thinking about his father. Old news. Her gaze shifted to the scars on his back and she winced at the thought of the pain he must have suffered and found herself wishing he would tell her what had happened to him.
"Han?" she said, approaching him, and Solo eyed her warily. "What does Chewie call me?"
The wariness was replaced by vague amusement. "What?"
"There's a sound I've noticed he uses when he's talking to me," she explained. "Is it my name?"
Solo regarded her for a long moment and Leia got the feeling he was impressed. "Most human's don't pick up those subtleties," he said, and his mouth quirked up on one side. "You trying to learn Shri-Wook, Princess?"
"Not actively," she admitted and made a mental note to consider it. "It was just something I'd noticed, that's all."
As if punctuating the conversation, the Wookiee snored, making them both smile.
"The direct translation?" Solo asked and Leia nodded. "Wroshr canopy twig." He couldn't help smiling at the look of consternation that swept across her face and relented, adding, "Which, in our term of reference, means something like 'Little Princess'," he said.
Leia smiled. Little Princess. That was rather nice. At least it wasn't anything derogatory, but then that was Solo's department, not Chewie's. "And you?" she asked, warming to the subject. "What does he call you?"
Solo grinned. "Apart from all the ones I can't repeat you mean?"
"Yes."
"Cub, mostly."
"Cub?" That was interesting. "So he sees you as his child?" Leia expected him to take offence and was about to kick herself for ruining the flow of what had been the most personal information she had been able to drag out of the Corellian yet. But, surprisingly, he didn't.
"No. No not at all. He has a son. And a mate."
"But a Life Debt to you?" Solo nodded and Leia couldn't stop herself asking, "What did you do?"
"Saved his life."
The response was matter-of-fact, deliberately stating the obvious, and Leia sensed the information line was about to dry up. She was getting too close. Nevertheless, she asked, "How?"
"Does it matter?"
"It mattered to Chewie."
"But why does it matter to you?"
"I'm just interested," she said, feeling vaguely defensive.
Solo studied her, and for one hopeful moment, Leia suspected he might actually open up to her, but a bright light flickering through the leaves caught both their attention.
"What is that?" Leia asked, frowning out at it, visions of Imperial troops descending on them dancing through her head. Solo looked just as concerned. The light was intensifying, slowly but steadily getting bigger and, as she realised this, Leia gasped and took a step back. "It's getting closer!"
Watching the light carefully, Solo listened for the natives, for the sounds of blaster-fire and screaming. But none of it happened; the native music didn't even stop. It changed tempo, and they could both hear the native voices singing with it, and still the light continued to get brighter.
Abruptly Solo got it, and chuckled with relief. "It's the moon," he said to the princess' look of alarm. "The first moon."
Leia looked back at the leaf-shattered light and almost laughed as well. Moonrise. Of course! "I feel like such an idiot," she muttered, wiping her hand across her face.
Solo smiled at her and admitted, "Had us both going for a minute there!"
Leia let relief wash over her, surprised at how stressed she had suddenly felt, and leaned against the doorpost for support. General Rieekan had been careful of his selection of missions for her since Yavin; this being the first since her ordeal on the Death Star that was likely to bring her in contact with the Empire. An ordeal she had discussed with no one and had no intention of ever doing so. They all knew or suspected she'd been tortured. Gizela Shalleron had treated her physical needs, was aware of her nightmares, but none of them knew what Vader had done… Or what she had been forced to watch…
A familiar wave of desolation washed over her and Leia gave a shuddering sigh.
Solo looked at her, concerned. "Are you alright?"
Leia forced herself to nod and took a deep breath, trying to dispel the nausea that always accompanied the feeling she had recently labelled the 'Death of Alderaan'. "Tired, I guess," she murmured. Any excuse.
"Why don't you go to bed?" he asked gently. "You could probably use a good night's sleep."
A good night's sleep? How long was it since she'd had one of those? Ironically, the only place Leia didn't have nightmares was the Falcon. Why, she couldn't fathom. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she'd been rescued in the Falcon? Or maybe it was just some deity playing with her? It made about as much sense. But, twice now, in a moment of desperation, she'd been guilty of sneaking aboard the freighter when she knew its captain and co-pilot were elsewhere, and had herself eight hours sleep. What she would have said had either of them caught her, Leia had no idea.
The thought of trying to sleep now, while seductive, was out of the question. Sleep would lead to nightmares, nightmares would lead to questions, and questions would involve people and make her think about… things… Leia shuddered.
"No," she murmured, finally answering him. "Not yet." And wondered if she could drink herself into unconsciousness? "Do you want some more nintwine?"
Solo shook his head and she moved back into the hut. Watching as she downed a full cup of the potent wine, Solo suspected she was avoiding sleep. It didn't take much intelligence to figure out the type of nightmares she was subject to and hence trying to avoid. For a moment he wondered what he could do to distract her. Leave her alone, the sensible part of him snapped. When she wants your help, she'll ask for it! Would she though? Three weeks ago, while docked on the Rebel ship, he had found her sound asleep in his bunk on the Falcon and, while part of him wanted to read some sort of sexual innuendo into it, Solo knew that was not the case. So he had left her to sleep and not mentioned finding her there.
"Trying to drink yourself into oblivion, sweetheart?" he said as she rejoined him in the doorway.
"Something like that," she muttered.
A shout came up from the natives and they both looked out.
"Second moon's coming up," Solo surmised, seeing a second light-source flickering through the leaves, further south. The twin moons created enough light between them to make some of the world outside the hut visible, but the shifting shadows made it almost impossible to decipher.
The music still drifted up from the natives below and Solo noticed Leia had started moving unconsciously in time to the beat, oblivious to the movements her body was making or how seductive they were. The shirt she was wearing, his father's shirt, was too big and had fallen off one shoulder and Solo found himself moving towards her.
Stop now, he told himself. Before you make a complete idiot of yourself.
But he didn't. Instead Solo stepped up behind her and lifted the shirt back up onto her shoulder. Leia half turned to look at him and the shirt slid off her shoulder again.
Solo smiled and looked at the moons. "Nice view," he said.
"Yes," she agreed.
He looked at her. "Almost romantic."
Leia narrowed her eyes suspiciously then smiled. "You're drunk."
Solo smiled. "So're you." He touched her bare shoulder, running his finger across the powdery warmth of the skin to her neck. She pulled away from him and lifted the shirt back up. "But what made you kiss Luke?" he said, leaning towards her. "You weren't drunk then."
Leia suppressed a smug smile and glanced sideways at him. "Maybe he kissed me?"
Solo chuckled. "Yeah, and maybe the Emperor's a really nice guy."
"If you must know," Leia admitted, guardedly. "I was thanking him for saving my life."
"And my efforts were meaningless?"
"Of course not."
"I could get bitchy about this."
"Or?"
"You could kiss me."
Leia took a deep breath, trying to ignore the nintwine. "What about Chewie?"
"Chewie?"
"He helped as much as you or Luke."
"You want to kiss Chewie?"
"I'd rather not, but if you're going to insist on what's fair…" She smiled at his look of chagrin and decided to indulge him.
Taking his face in her hands to ensure she could control matters, Leia pressed her lips softly against his, intending it to be brief, and felt a frisson of pleasure run through her as he responded in kind
For half a second. After that, Solo increased the pressure dramatically.
It lasted longer than either of them intended and awakened something neither of them recognised. Both put it down to the nintwine.
Leia took a step back, feeling lightheaded and unable to look him in the eye. "Thankyou, Han."
Solo swallowed and smiled tightly. "Anytime." And found himself wishing she would kiss him again.
"I'd better lie down," she said, turning her back on the moonlight.
Solo watched her climb onto the bed and moved over beside the snoring Wookiee.
"Goodnight, Han," she said quietly.
"'Night, Leia," he said.
Leia held her breath. Not 'Princess', not 'Holiness': but 'Leia'. She rolled onto her left side, touching her lips with her fingers. Leia.