DYNASTY ( sw.. ) ✔

o5. crystal lake..

"This is the best place in the galaxy," Lorna sighed in absolute bliss as she finally got used to the temperature of the water. Since the mistakes of the last missions have been forgiven and forgotten, they started leaving Coruscant again.

"You say that about every place we visit," Luke chuckled, removing his clothes, so he could join Lorna in the water of the lake they happened across before the mission brief.

Considering that they ought to be rested and fully functional during the late hours of the night that day, Lorna managed to convince Luke a bath in the hidden forest lake was all they needed. Of course, having to remove their clothes, leaving them bare in underware was a bit of an impediment, at least for Luke.

Yet even that faded away because after a long flight, he did feel like he needed a bath. By the time he stepped into the lake too, grimacing at the coldness, Lorna was floating in the middle of it, eyes closed and hair already soaked. Even wet, her hair was curled visibly and Luke could only imagine its beauty underwater.

"Oh, this is so cold," Luke complained in small whisper. A few steps into the lake and the depth has already increased enough to force him to swim the rest of the distance to reach Lorna.

"You'll get used, don't be a child about it," she mumbled.

Luke swam closer, amused by how it sounded for Lorna to get ticked off by childlike behavior. The lake was indeed splendid, hidden as very few rays of light fell through the tall trees above down onto the water.

The surface was see-through and clean, refreshing after the pressures of their days spent on missions. Despite the lake being small and deeper than expected, Luke felt like it was a serene place to be, in fact, it seemed as if the Force vibrated through those rocks surrounding it, and now them too. He couldn't explain that hunch, but the moment he thought about it, his mind unfortunately fell pray to also remembering the last discussion he had with Leia.

"Luke, wait," Leia called him over before he could head for the docking area, where Lorna was waiting by the X-Wings, as always.

He halted his step and turned around to wait for his sister. "Is there something else about the mission?" He was quick to assume.

Instead of seeing her seriousness and impartiality she usually showed when it came to such formal matters, Leia placed her hand on his shoulder. "It's not about the mission. It's about you and Lorna..."

Obviously, all Luke could imagine then was that Han told Leia what he had seen in the temple without giving her the context. Guilt made the Jedi's face lit in faint red and he looked down, like a sad puppy, embarassed even of his actions. "I solved the matter. It was a mistake, that's all. Han must have explained it wrongly to you and..."

Leia furrowed her brows, then, in realization, she laughed. "Oh, no. Not that, Luke! Han did tell me and I made sure to let him know that he shouldn't stick his nose in other people's relationships like that. What I wanted to discuss was something Lorna asked me about some time ago. Tell me, have you also felt like you somehow know what she's feeling without struggling lately?"

Luke lifted his eyes and met Leia's with confusion, "Why?" He trusted his sister, but he couldn't imagine why Lorna would ask for her advice over his, nor how this could be linked to what he has been worrying about too.

Indeed, with questionable ease, Luke was able to tell when Lorna felt certain things, even if distance was considerable between them. And he was confirmed that was truly happening back in their first mission when despite not knowing of her actions in the arena, he felt her getting hurt.

"Lorna came to me because she noticed she experienced the same nightmare as you during a night. And she didn't just experience it as an image or knowledge, but in the sense that it echoed your emotions into hers."