(no subject)

[anghraine]

I had my first day of stats today. I have trouble hearing the prof or reading her handwriting, and I've forgotten just about everything from the prereq course, which I took TWO YEARS ago. Also, for some reason the sun turned a neon orange-red this morning. Second thought: 'what a strange atmospheric effect!' First thought: 'OMG WE'RE CHARN.'

Anyway, this chapter took ages to write, mostly because a good chunk of it comes straight from scenes that were actually filmed. One's a cut scene, but the rest (one pretty infamously) remain in the final cut.

title: The Imperial Menace (6/8)
verse: Lucy
notes/warnings: canonical incest vibes

CHAPTER SIX: LEIA

Leia didn't sleep that night. She rarely slept well, anyway, and with Commander Antilles, Lucy, and Han all missing, there was no point.

When they arrived in Hoth, she'd insisted on placing Lucy's quarters next to hers, away from the men. Lucy, after a few token protests about not wanting special treatment—while Han and the squadron just laughed at her—had cheerfully agreed. Over the last few months, Leia had grown used to hearing Lucy rattling around at night. With Lucy gone, the silence seemed to beat against her eardrums.

The following morning, Leia sent out the search parties as soon as possible, and paced back and forth, ignoring Threepio's babble and Artoo's soft whirrs. She froze when Zev Senesca's voice crackled through the transmitter.

“Echo Base, I've got something. Not much, but it could be a life form.”

Leia didn't move, her eyes fixed on the machinery. A few minutes dragged by. Then:

“Echo Base, this is Rogue Two. I found them. Repeat, I found them!”

The control room erupted into cheers. General Rieekan briefly dropped his hand on Leia's shoulder, offering a vaguely paternal smile. She nodded, then ran out to order preparations for their care. It was impossible to know their condition, but it couldn't be good.

She was standing at the gate when Wedge, Lucy, and Han were brought in. Wedge and Lucy were both on stretchers—he seemed by far the worse-off, and the medics rushed him to the medical bay. Lucy was at least lucid, if dazed, weakly complaining that she could walk, really. And Han, trailing behind—

“Disgustingly healthy,” he announced. “Were you worrying about me, sweetheart?”

Leia just gave an exasperated shake of her head and went to receive a proper report from the medical droids. Wedge might or might not survive, but would certainly lose both his legs; they could replace them, of course, but it was still a terrible loss for him, and he'd be out of commission for a few weeks. Lucy, she was relieved to hear, hadn't suffered anything worse than mild hypothermia and a sprained ankle, and should recover quickly.

Leia was there when Lucy woke up.

“What's going on?” Lucy sat up, glancing around in confusion. She ran her fingers through her loose hair, pushing it out of her face, and her eyes landed on her friend. “Leia!”

“Good morning to you too,” said Leia. She rose from the chair where she'd been waiting. “You're looking better already. There's a bacta patch on your ankle. It should be completely healed in an hour or so.”

“Thanks,” said Lucy, still dazed. “Wedge?”

“He's going to make it. We're preparing the best possible prosthetics for him. Han's fine, too.”

Lucy nodded, her expression growing more alert. She looked up and flinched, her eyes narrowing against the bright medical lights. Leia smiled sympathetically down at her.

“Does it still hurt?” she asked, brushing her fingers against Lucy's temples.

Lucy's answering smile was almost wry. “No, I'm fine.”

But she could easily have died. They could all have died, and it'd have been just like—Leia didn't want to think about it. Lucy's skin was warm and alive under her fingertips. It was fine, it was all fine. Her eyes finally began to burn (but that was because she hadn't slept, she was tired); Leia distracted herself with stroking Lucy's untidy blonde hair, trying to tidy it. It was pointless, but soothed her a bit; taking care of Lucy always did.

“Leia?”

Leia gave an encouraging murmur, still fussing over Lucy's hair.

When I was out there in that storm, I . . .” Lucy's voice trailed off and she lowered her gaze.

“I was really worried,” Leia admitted, tucking a few wayward strands behind Lucy's ear.

Lucy's eyes danced. “You were worried!”

They grinned at each other, then Lucy sobered.

“But . . . it got me thinking, you know.” She darted an almost timid glance up at Leia. “I might never get the chance to say—” Lucy closed her eyes and sighed.

“What?”

Lucy just shook her head.

“Tell me,” Leia ordered.

Lucy met her eyes. “You've . . . I want . . . you've always been a good friend to me, Leia. You've done so much.”

“You were worried you wouldn't get to tell me that?” said Leia, not quite hiding her incredulity. “You've said so dozens of times. It's nothing.”

“I know, but I—” Lucy twisted her blanket between her fingers. “It's hard to explain. And I don't want to—to say anything I shouldn't.”

“Oh, spit it out,” said Leia.

“Well,” Lucy said, “I'm sure you know—you're my best friend. You're the best friend I've ever had. I care . . . I care more about you than anything.”

“Oh!” Leia's face softened. “I was expecting something a bit more offensive, Lucy. You're my closest friend, too. Didn't you know?”

Lucy's smile was a bit brighter this time. “It's just—things are complicated sometimes, but I—ever since I saw you in the hologram, I've—before, I always felt like I wasn't quite whole. Like some part of me was missing.”

“Not just missing,” said Leia. “Ripped out, right?”

“Well, yes.” Lucy stared at her. “You too?”

This time, it was Leia who glanced away. “As long as I can remember.”

“And—I was always—I wasn't a good niece. I could never—” Lucy twisted her fingers again. “I couldn't live like that. But it all changed when I met you.”

“I know,” Leia said gently.

“I can leave,” Lucy forged on—Leia frowned—“but I can't sacrifice your friendship for anything, okay? I'd rather give up anything else than that. And if something happens to me, I want . . . I want you to be happy. I'd much rather you were happy than me!”

And then Leia understood. She took Lucy's hands between hers. “You're talking about Han?”

“Mm,” said Lucy.

“He is an arrogant, uncivilized, self-absorbed—” Leia cut herself off. “I'm sorry. I know you care for him.”

“I do,” Lucy said. “He's a good friend. He risked his life to find me. I care a lot about him. But I'd rather be your friend than his lover.”

“Well, I don't like him anyway,” said Leia. “But even if I did, you wouldn't magically become my enemy instead of my friend. I like men plenty, believe me, but not enough to fight you for one. I won't be your rival, Lucy—no matter what he thinks.”

Lucy relaxed. “I don't want to be yours either,” she said, squeezing her fingers about Leia's.

With a beep and a clattered, Artoo and Threepio bustled into the room.

“Oh, Mistress Lucy,” burbled Threepio, “I'm so glad to see that you're fully functional again!”

Leia hugged Lucy, then headed out. “Get some rest now. I'll be back later.”

“Leia!” Lucy called after her. She looked even more nervous than she had before. “I have to go away for awhile.”

Leia stiffened.

“What?” she snapped, feeling absurdly betrayed. Han was like everyone else, here today and gone tomorrow, but Lucy? “Where are you going?”

Lucy hesitated. “To . . . another system. It's not far from here.”

“Great,” Leia said, tapping her foot. What had she even been going on about if she was just going to leave? “That's just great. Why doesn't everybody just take off?”

Lucy's expression turned alarmed. “What are you talking about?”

“First Han, now you—” Leia dropped her clenched hand on the doorjamb. “When am I going to learn not to count on anyone but myself?”

“I didn't know he was leaving,” Lucy said helplessly. “Calm—” She coughed. “Tell me about Han.”

“Oh, he's got to pay off that criminal he's in debt to,” said Leia.

“Jabba the Hutt?”

As if she kept track of Han's various unsavoury associates. Leia scowled. “You know—”

“Hey, girl!” Han 's voice, obnoxiously cheerful, preceded him into the room. He and Chewbacca strolled in and examined Lucy. “How are you feeling? You look fine to me. Strong enough to pull the ears off a Gundark.”

“Thanks to you,” Lucy said, in her usual friendly tone.

“That's two you owe me, sister.” He caught sight of Leia and grinned. “Well, your Worship, looks like you managed to keep me around for a little while longer.”

“I had nothing to do with it,” said Leia coolly. “General Rieekan thinks it's dangerous for any ships to leave the system until we've activated the energy shield.”

“That's a good story,” he said, still laughing. “I think you just can't bear to let a gorgeous guy like me out of your sight.”

Leia rolled her eyes. “I don't know where you get your delusions, laserbrain.”

Chewie chortled.

“Laugh it up, fuzzball,” Han retorted. “You didn't see us alone in the south passage.” He draped an arm over Leia's shoulders.

Leia didn't know what he was playing at—it was bad enough when it was just the two of them, but with Lucy right here? In a hospital bed? She was almost certain she saw a flicker of dismay cross Lucy's face; it was enough to erase all her previous annoyance. Leia jerked away, glaring at him.

“She expressed her true feelings for me,” Han informed Lucy, watching her narrowly even as he smirked.

Did he even know what he was after?

“My—! Why, you—” cried Leia, too outraged to string a coherent sentence together. “You stuck-up, half-witted, scruffy-looking nerfherder!”

“Who's scruffy-looking?” Han said, pretending to be offended before turning back to Lucy. “Help me out here, Lucy. I must have hit her pretty close to the mark to get her all riled up like that, right?”

Leia wasn't—they weren't—it wasn't a game, they were friends, more to each other than Han Solo could ever be to anyone, and she'd rejected him as many ways as she knew how, and Lucy still had that awful blank look she kept getting these days. Leia wanted nothing so much as to wipe that smirk right off his face.

Fine.

“Well, I guess you don't know everything about women yet,” Leia told him haughtily.

Then she strode back over to the bed and pressed her lips against Lucy's. Leia could feel Lucy's gasp of astonishment against her mouth, but nothing else; she certainly didn't pull away.

Leia had never kissed another woman before. She'd never even imagined what it might be like. Lucy's lips were softer than any of the men Leia had kissed, and so was the skin beneath Leia's fingers, of course, and the long hair catching in Leia's hands. Leia's arms brushed against Lucy's breasts as she bent over her—all right, that was different—and none of their frequent hugs had ever brought them quite so near before. Leia's eyes closed and she felt an odd, confused rush of familiarity.

The two of them in darkness, eyes unseeing and bodies close. Lucy's heart, thudding against her—like when they'd swung over the abyss in the Death Star, or—or something else. They'd been like this before, but also not like this, it shouldn't be like this. They'd only known each other for twenty months but it all seemed so long ago—long ago and far away, her mother used to sing—and then, for some reason, she was seeing her other mother's face again, the natural mother she knew only in cloudy memories.

Leia stepped back, relieved that her cheeks weren't even warm. Lucy was blinking, but she didn't seem angry. Lucy was safe, after all. Her best friend, and—

Han was gaping at them. Leia couldn't resist grinning at Lucy, who smiled right back, her eyes dancing. With one smug glance at Han, Leia sailed off.

#

Han joined her on her way to the control room, where the transmitters had picked up an anomalous reading in zone twelve. When Han and Chewie went to investigate, however, they found only a droid that instantly deconstructed.

“An Imperial probe droid,” Leia said.

Han's voice was somber. “It's a good bet the Empire knows we're here.”

“We better start the evacuation,” said Rieekan.

The next hour passed in organized chaos. Everyone worked to move the most salvageable supplies into the transport ships, the soldiers readied their speeders and central control raised the shields. Leia saw Han a few times, working frantically on the Falcon. She only passed Lucy once.

“You're all right?” she asked.

Lucy nodded. “I have to lead the Rogues against whatever the Empire throws at us. They don't know yet if Wedge'll even fly again.”

“You're staying?” said Leia, surprised.

“No. He—and General Rieekan—offered me his position, but . . . no.” Lucy took a deep breath. “I've got other duties. But I'll help with the evacuation.”

“Good luck,” said Leia, hugging her. Then she froze. “Oh, I just remembered—about earlier—”

“It's fine. You should have seen the look on his face!” Lucy kissed her cheek. “May the Force be with you.”

“And you,” Leia echoed, and they ran in opposite directions, Lucy to finish preparing for the ground assault, and Leia to return to the command center. She stood next to General Rieekan, refusing to show any fear as they listened to the first deployment. The cannons took out one Imperial Destroyer and the first transport escaped into hyperspace. One down.

The walkers released onto the planet, however, seemed to be utterly impregnable. Leia listened as speeder after speeder was destroyed, her fists clenched tight. They could grieve later. Today, they just had to survive.

Lucy and some of her Rogues managed to take out two more, just as the icy walls of the base began to crumble. Leia and Rieekan studied the computer screens.

“I don't think we can protect to two transports at the same time,” said Rieekan.

Leia's lips thinned. “It's risky, but we can't hold out much longer. We have no choice.”

They gave their orders into their comlinks, sending away as many people as they could afford. Rieekan finally left; Leia stayed where she was, determined to hold the command together as long as she could.

Han rushed in. “You all right?”

“Why are you still here?” Leia snapped.

“I heard the command center had been hit.”

“You got your clearance to leave,” said Leia, returning her attention to the faltering computer.

Han glowered at her. “Don't worry, I'll leave. First I'm going to take you to your ship.”

Leia ignored him, continuing to deliver orders.

“Imperial troops have entered the base!” an announcer shouted.

“Come on,” urged Han. “That's it!”

Leia swallowed and turned to the head controller. “Give the evacuation code signal. And get to your transports!”

She'd barely finished speaking before Han grabbed her wrist. They raced through the corridors, but not before an explosion caved in the path before them. Han promptly ordered her transport to leave, dragging her towards the Falcon instead. For all Han's boasts, it seemed even less functional than usual.

“How's this?” Han called out, throwing a switch.

Chewie howled something less than encouraging at him.

Leia, feeling the beginnings of panic, folded her arms. “Would it help if I got out and pushed?” she asked acidly.

“It might,” snarled Han.

By some miracle of machinery—or, as Leia half-expected, the intervention of the Force—the Falcon finally took to the skies, Han and Chewie evading a field full of Imperial starships only for the hyperdrive to fail. Han rushed off to try repairing it—and then the ship careened, buffeted by what looked like hundreds of asteroids.

Han rushed into the cockpit.

“Asteroids!” Leia said, jumping out of the captain's chair.

“Chewie,” said Han, “set two-seven-one.”

She watched incredulously. “What are you doing? You're not actually going into an asteroid field?”

Han just laughed. “They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they?”