A/N: I think I'll upload an extended one shot of the Han / Leia scene at the end of this tomorrow.

I also wanted to note that I'm attempting to write this in the style that George Lucas wrote From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker before it was listed under his ghost writer. I hope it satisfies.

As always, reviews are very helpful. Beginning to think this isn't any good...but I hope it's decent!

III

"You let the Falcon get stolen?!"

Solo was in shock that his friend would allow their home to be taken so easily. As long as he had known him, both of them would do anything they had to to keep what was theirs. It was part of being smugglers, after all.

Chewie shrugged and tried to explain, but Han wasn't having it. The Wookie rumbled more apologizes as his captain threw his arm angrily across a table to his side and sent equipment crashing to the ground. No one spoke as he stormed out of the command center.

When the doors closed securely behind him and left the room safe to engage in conversation again, Leia stepped forward to examine the holo.

"Artoo," she beckoned calmly. "Can you seal everything but the south corridor and prepare the bunker for evacuation?"

"Why the south corridor?" Luke asked as he stood tall again. "Won't that be the easiest for them to access?" It didn't make sense to him.

"Easiest," she confirmed. "But not the smartest. They'll think we're dumb enough to expect them there," she told her surrounding officers. "If we don't make it out of here by then, that is," she added.

"Oh, we'll make it out, all right!" Luke concluded.

He was eager to show the Imperials that they meant business, and was confident that the rebels could relocate successfully if they chose the right place. His voice implied this to ensure Leia felt the same as he did. There was no other way to prepare the Rebellion.

Leia took a deep breath and stabilized herself. Then, she looked around the room to the officers listening in, waiting for her command.

"Luke, you take Rollin and Geena and get the ships ready for takeoff. Anyone that can pilot one of those things will. I was the transporters ready and waiting for my command."

Luke nodded at her order, meeting the eyes of who would accompany him.

"Let's get the halls evacuated, everyone in the bunks needs a weapon if they don't already have one. Chewie, you can take care of that, can't you?"

He growled an agreement.

"Anyone else, monitor the systems with Artoo and alert one of us if anything changes," Leia ordered.

"Excuse me, Princess," Threepio called as the others took to their stations and sent the command room into chaos. "What shall I do?"

"Threepio..." Leia murmured while she thought. Truthfully, she didn't have a need for him in their evacuation plans, but she couldn't have him feel left out. "Well I'll need you here to translate Artoo, of course!" she told him.

Thankfully, the droid happily accepted her offer.

Back on Coruscant, a fleet of Stormtroopers were standing in filed packs on the loading docks of the Imperial landing zones. They were addressed in military style, each group getting its own assignment for which transport it would be taking to Chad to annihilate the rebel units. The skies were still stormy, but the day that came with the decision to attack brought a small amount of light to illuminate the planet while it prepared.

Vader oversaw the loading of the fleets onto their ships. He watched from the back of the landing dock, in a separate room that had glass walls and could look over the ships. The room was elevated, allowing the Dark Lord to prove that he was better than his troops once again.

"The first transports are cleared for dispatch, my lord," the commanding officer, a Shadowtrooper, told Darth Vader as he cleared the ship on his electronic pad.

"How long until they find Skywalker?" Vader rumbled. He only cared about one thing.

The commander frowned under his helmet. "Not until they land, sir."

Vader sensed his actions. "If I wanted the obvious, I would have known by now!" he lectured angrily. "When they land, I want the first troops to enter the South door."

Vader turned and paced back and forth as he watched more troops load onto their ships. The next groups moved forward, continuing the military pattern.

"But sir-" the commander argued. He was worried, but still needed to express his thoughts.

"Do you dare to question my orders?" Vader asked.

The leader of the Dark Side lifted his hand in a threat to the commanding officer, letting him know he could handle the Force with one flick of the wrist. He wasn't one to give second chances, so this was a steal for the Shadowtrooper.

"No, sir..." the commander stuttered. "It's just..."

"What?" Vader roared.

He swallowed in nervousness. "The rebels will surely be waiting for us at the South door," he gulped.

Vader threw his hand down, and with it went the commander's pad. The Shadowtrooper jumped back on his feet a little and moved away from the Dark Lord, but never let his gaze waver. He feared death, but wouldn't put himself in its path intentionally.

"You will enter at the South door, and will not question my decisions again!" Vader demanded.

As though he had agreed all along, the commanding officer replied with, "They'll enter at the South door, sir."

"Good," Vader answered and lowered his arm. "Now prepare my ship."

"Yes, my lord."

Clothes and other belongings were scattered across the room in Han Solo's personal bunk, located across from Chewie's room near the landing docks. He needed to make sure he could easily access the Falcon, when he had it, anyway, so he demanded he would be allowed the closest bunk to the ship.

Han sat on the edge of his bunk with his forehead rested in his hands. His arms were supported by his knees. Ruffled hair fell in his face while his head was drooped, but he didn't care. All that was on his mind was the whereabouts of the Falcon. She had only been close to stolen once since he acquired her before he left Corellia, and that was when he had lost a bargain with Jabba the Hutt a few years back. He was able to keep her by promising him more money; more money that he never returned after rescuing the Princess and destroying the Death Star.

Face it, he thought to himself. You might never see her again.

Solo's solemn thoughts about the loss of his ship were interrupted when the door slid open to his bunk. He looked up instantly and straightened up his body, afraid someone would catch him in his fragile state.

Leia stepped in gracefully as she always did and made her way to Han's bunk. Standing before him, she tried to be as nice as she could. This time, there would be no banter. She truly felt bad for her...her...well, she could call him her friend.

"He didn't mean it, you know," Leia told Han softly.

Han stared up at Leia, silent. A mix of annoyance and sorrow filled his eyes, but she could tell he was doing all he could not to completely take it out on her. Still, it wasn't like him to not mess with her head, so he had to snap at her a little bit.

"Thanks, your Worship, but I don't need your sympathy," he spat back.

Leia kept a straight face and placed her hand on his shoulder.

"Han," she murmured.

He had never heard her voice so sincere since the celebration of the destruction of the Death Star. Still, it was different from then, too. In a way he did feel bad for how he treated her, but they could never cooperate without the help of Luke and Chewie.

Leia took a step closer but then Han shook her hand off of his shoulder and scowled.

"Don't," he ordered.

"What?" She was actually curious.

Solo looked at Leia with determination as she sat down on the bunk next to him. "Look," he told her and turned to face her. "I'll lose my life before I lose the Falcon."

"I know."

Han ignored her.

"Chewie might've lost her, but it's up to us to find her," he continued.

Leia shook her head and looked down at her knees. Then she smiled a bright, kind smile and faced Solo again.

"Han," she chuckled. She could tell her humor annoyed him, but she didn't care. "It's up to all of us to find her," she informed him.

"All of us?" Solo questioned. "She's my ship!" He was infuriated again. "I don't know where you got the idea that she belongs to you, Princess, but believe me-"

Leia silenced him with a roll of her eyes.

"Don't you give me that," he warned.

"Maybe if you took a second to not be such a self centered air head, you'd see that we're just trying to help!" Leia argued, raising her voice.

Han frowned in frustration. "We're? Oh, so now it's you and Luke, is it?"

"Yes," Leia answered right off the bat.

Solo was tired of hearing about Luke from the Princess. Everything between them lead back to the Jedi in training. Perhaps they could get along better if she would concentrate on treating him like any other soldier in the Rebellion, instead of comparing him to her crush all the time.

Leia took his moment of quietness to try to soothe the matter again.

"We're your friends, Han," she told the Corellian softly.

Deciding it was best to return her kindness, Solo let his guard down and was nice to Leia for once.

"Thank you," was all he gave her.

Seizing the opportunity, Leia decided to talk business with Han while he was calm.

"I need your help," she told him and smiled when his eyes met hers.

"My help?" Solo repeated. "With what?"

"Someone needs to pilot our ship."

"What ship?"

Han spoke in disgust. He had never even thought about piloting anything but the Millennium Falcon.

"The command fleet," she told him. She didn't know the name of the ship, just that she would accompany the rest on their departure to Naboo.

"That piece of junk?" Solo retorted.

He rolled his eyes and waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. Then, he stood from his bunk and paced the room. The waiting for information about his ship was going to drive him crazy if he sat any longer.

"It's all we've got."

"You'll be lucky if she makes it even a third of the way there," he told Leia, slowing until he stood against the wall by the door to his bunk.

Han reached behind him to play with the dirt that formed the walls of the bunk. He looked over Leia and waited for her reaction at his news. He didn't want to be the downer, but it was the truth; the Falcon was the only ship the rebels had that would make it across the galaxy without a pit stop.

"What do you suggest then?"

Leia stood as well, but stayed across the room from Solo.

He thought for a moment, then paused to ask her, "do we have time for a stop in the core?"

Leia thought for a moment, but answered quickly. "What did you have in mind?"

"Naboo is across the galaxy. I know a guy on Corellia who can get us a better ship," Solo told her.

"Corellia?" Leia repeated. "Your home, Corellia?" she specified.

The pilot nodded. "The guy who got me the Falcon helped me fix her up. I owe him a couple favors, but I bet I could get him to help us out," he told her.

Leia stepped towards the door in a hurry, eager to give the others the order to set coordinates to the Corellian system. As she was reaching for the pad to allow her access out, Han pulled on her arm an turned her around to face him.

"Stop that," she ordered. "We're short on time here, or have you forgotten?"

"You sure you want to burst out there so soon, Princess?" Solo teased. "I'm sure we have a little bit of extra time..."

He smiled his half smile, crooked, but alluring. He couldn't let her go without attempting to charm her at least a little bit. Besides, he loved seeing her mad at him.

"Let go," Leia demanded.

"Okay, okay, your Highness." Han let his hand go and lifted both arms in surrender. "Whatever you say."

Thankfully for Leia, her radioed barked an incoming call from Luke on the landing docks.

"Leia?" he called over the speaker. "Our X-wings are ready to go."

"Set all coordinates to the Corellian system," she radioed back. "Wait for my order."