CHAPTER-6- CROSSING LINES.

Leia sat on top of a rock on a hill. She had closed her eyes and had connected to the force. Revan paced in front of her.

"Focus." He said slowly.

"I'm trying to." She replied immediately.

"By your reply, I know you aren't." he replied irritating her further. She never got it, to sit in patience and feel something which she knew she could use. She never got the purpose behind it. She was strong with the force. All she needed was to train further and she could go. But Revan insisted that she had to be trained a lot more than she had expected. She tried all she could to contain her anger which was raising slowly. She just wanted to be over with this quick and wanted to go join her brother and help him lead the rebellion. The Empire was going tougher on the people and the rebellion had to fight harder. She knew that Senator Mothma would be restraining the leadership and restricting it to only select few members. She had been far from them for about ten months at the point. All she wanted to do was go back. But Revan wouldn't let her.

"You're focusing on politics and other things which are other than the force." Revan broke her from her line of thoughts which would help her at least pretend like she was meditating. Her anger which was held by a curtain broke out.

"What even is the purpose of all of this? I know the force. I am strong with it. I know how to use it. Why are you making me do all of this?" she blurted out in anger.

"My, my, the anger of a Skywalker." He commented placing a hand on his mouth.

"Ugh, stop teasing me. Just let me get out of here."

"Am I tying you here, milady? You're free to go anytime, just that your means of going has been damaged by your own hand." He replied calmly.

"I hate this place." she commented as she kicked a rock and sat down.

"I don't understand what's wrong with this place. I mean you've got good food, flora, fauna and a woman now." He replied.

"So says a ghost." She replied.

"Hey, now that's rude. Go and run around the cliff again." he ordered her.

"What? You want me to run all around the cliff? Again? You're kidding me. I mean, why? Why make me run again?"

"You're being rude. Now get going. Go, now, shoo." He shooed her.

"You know what, I'm not doing it. I'm not running." she replied as she sat down.

"What do I see? Missy's trying to be tough, uh?" he replied. The next thing Leia knew was that messing with him was not a good choice.

"Revan, let me out. I'll go and run twice. Let me out of this thing." She yelled from the pit where she was stuck in. Revan had carried her and dropped her into a pit full of insects. He then covered the pit and sat on top of it.

"Lower your arrogance, missy." Revan's voice came through the pit.

"Oh, come on." She swore more to herself than to him. "Revan, please. Please let me out. I'll behave myself. Please…." She yelled in a soft voice.

"Uh uh, nope. You're staying there till I decide it's enough." He replied. Leia swore out loudly and kicked the wall of the pit. The moment she did that a dozen of insects fell on her. To say that she was disgusted was an understatement. She brushed off the insects which were on her. She couldn't even sit down in order to meditate or at least try to meditate and wait till he opened the lid. She could use the force to push it open but then he would push her back in and Force knew what else. She had to get out in one way or another. She still had her lightsaber with her. She could ignite it and light the insects on fire and stay warm at least. She was grateful that the pit was wide enough for her to even sleep. But sleeping on a ground swarming with insects wasn't advisable. She ignited her lightsaber and gently touched it to a few insects which were on the wall. They burned and fell down to the ground. The smell of the burning insects was disgusting. She continued burning insects till there was a spot to place her hand neatly. When she placed her hand on the wall she realized that it wasn't even a real wall. She ignited her lightsaber again and poked the wall. The lightsaber went through the wall. She managed to cut a hole. She then pushed it and poked her head inside. Behind the wall was a platform of sorts. It had a staircase leading down. She could hear a faint hum and could see a soft almost invisible glow. She walked into the platform and followed the stairs down to an underground waterfall. The falls were gigantic. They were white and emitted a bright silver glow. The water flowed outside through a tiny, wide hole. The scenery was beautiful and breathtaking. There were all kinds of flowers, even the ones one could find on Alderaan. The water smelled mellow. The hum which came from the gushing waters reminded Leia of the lullabies her mother, Breha, sang to her. Something shone behind the falls. Leia walked up to the falls and extended her hand. The water was so soft and gentle. It felt as though she was holding cotton drapes. She made a cup with her hands and drank the water. It felt refreshing. She then bent and checked behind the falls. It was a dark cave which led out to somewhere. She ignited her lightsaber and walked into the cave. The soft blue light bounced on the wall of the caves. The soft glow of the water chimed with the blue light. She placed a gentle hand on the wall. It was moist. She kept on following the moist till it became dry and arid. The melodious hum was no longer audible. All that was left was a pitch black darkness illuminated by her blue lightsaber and an eerie silence made bearable by the soft sound of her breath. She followed the dry wall till she bumped into a thin wall of sorts. It was more like a firm sheet wrapped tightly around the cave. She used the force to feel what was beyond the thing. But she could feel nothing. It was a void calling her to come and fall into it. This void sung a hum which brought chills to her spine. The hum was sorrowful and filled with pain. She closed her eyes tightly as images began to form in front of her. Images of pain and suffering. Images she never wanted to see again. She felt a heavy weight grow on her shoulders. Her knees felt as though they had no strength to continue anymore. She fell to the ground. Screams of past reached her ears and gnawed at her. She dropped her lightsaber and covered her ears. The screams were high pitched. Images of pain and suffering flashed before her mind. She grunted. The weight on her shoulders threatened to kill her. She dropped to the ground. She was in a fetal position, too scared to move and too scared to open her eyes. Her mind drifted back to a memory of hers.

"Knock, knock, a general of the rebellion needs sleep and coffee." A soft voice called from the door of a tiny office. A young man of the age nineteen or eighteen entered the room with two mugs. He handed one to a girl of the same age and sat beside her.

"I know." She replied as she accepted the mug. "It's just that there are way too many people depending on me to lead them and all. Ever since I was young, I was told that I was meant to help people. So all I knew is to help people."

"Nobody asks you to not help people, Leia. They don't ask anything till we do something. But the main thing is that one must remember who they are before anything else. You, Leia, are a leader. You are the source of hope for the entire rebellion. You are the bearer of the rebellion. Of course, people expect a lot from you but I and our tiny found-family asks for only one thing, for you to be true to yourself. Now drink the coffee and go to sleep. I'll deal with the rest." He told her softly.

"I might be the source of hope for the entire rebellion but you are my source of hope. Thank you, brother." She replied softly. The two then turned towards the portrait of Alderanian Mountains.

"I prefer Tatooine." Luke said suddenly.

"Hmm?" Leia asked.

"Compared to Hoth, I prefer Tatooine. It's warm and will keep you warm. Though, yeah, it'll be a bit messy to live there. It's better than this freezing ball." Luke reasoned.

"I didn't like the two of the planets. One has too much snow, while the other has too much sand." Leia replied with a chuckle.

"Not all planets are like Alderaan, Leia. Few planets are just different. Many aren't. But maybe that's how it was meant to be. Ask the force."

"Maybe that's how things are meant to be, different while being the same."

"Maybe that's how they should be, different while being same."

Leia opened her eyes slowly. She stood up slowly. The bone chilling cold still lingered in the air. The fear of the void behind the semi-solid wall existed but was pushed deep inside. She took a deep breath and ignited her lightsaber. She raised it and slashed the wall horizontally. The yellow embers which had started from the contact of the lightsaber and the wall continued and became orange embers which burned the entire wall. The ashes formed a serene line. It had become a line of satisfaction. Leia pushed down the howling fears and crossed the line.

Revan opened his eyes immediately the moment he felt the disturbance in the force.

-lll-

Literature: She wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts. She's cheer captain and I'm on the bleachers. Dreamin' about the day when you wake up and find that what you're looking for has been here the whole time.

Me, going through existential dread, holding a cigarette: Literally, wtf?