Episode IV S : The Rebel Retreat - COMPLETED

XVI

The planet of Naboo was full of life. The people, themselves, weren't present, but the atmosphere was bountiful.

When Leia stepped off of the transport, she breathed in warm, pure air – something she hadn't had since she left Alderaan. Around her, fields of green grass rose into hilltops. A city lay in her sights, with tall buildings and round rooftops. Statues lined the entrance, and a large courtyard stood before it.

Everything was quiet. The transport had dropped among the fighter jets that had docked in one of the plains. Next to it, the Falcon made an easy descent.

Leia looked around. When she finally saw Luke travel down the Falcon's loading ramp, her heart leapt in relief. She ran into his arms instantly, as though suddenly needing to hug her friend.

"Luke!" she called before she reached him. And then, they embraced.

Before she backed away, Leia planted a soft kiss on Luke's cheek, making him blush in surprise. He hadn't forgotten their kiss on the Death Star, but it still didn't make this easy. He never had much interaction with girls growing up, especially not in a romantic sense. The Princess always caught him off guard.

Then, as if on instinct, Luke remembered Solo. "Han," he whispered, breaking away from their hug.

Leia let her shoulders drop as she relaxed. "Luke, I told you, Han and I are only friends."

Luke rolled his eyes and pushed past her. "No, Han. Where is he?"

Embarrassed, Leia tried her best to hide her face. She felt shame creeping up on her. Thankfully, Threepio emerged on the ground in front of them, taking the attention away from her before she could answer.

"Master Luke!" the droid called cheerfully. His arms waved about in the air. "Oh, how wonderful it is to see you again!" he cried. "And the Millennium Falcon! Captain Solo will be so relieved to see that she's okay."

"Hey, Threepio," Luke greeted kindly. "Where is Han, anyhow?"

"Oh, dear, he's quite sick, sir."

Then, Chewbacca appeared in the entrance to the transport. The figure of a person leaning on his shoulder stood hunched over next to him. He was, at least, able to stand on his own two feet.

A yowl rumbled from the Wookie's throat as he helped his friend down to meet the others. Solo wobbled on his feet, but was able to walk easily to meet them.

"Easy, Chewie! I'm all right!" Han barked at his companion. Then, he caught a glimpse of what lay ahead of him. Luke and the Millennium Falcon. "You found her!" he announced in astonishment, keeping his eyes on his toy.

Luke raised an eyebrow and smiled, admiring his friend's devotion to his ship. "A bounty hunter had her."

"Bounty hunter?" Solo snapped. His head whipped back around to look at Luke. "From who?"

It seemed like an urgent question.

"I'm not sure," Luke said with doubt in his voice. "She told me she worked for the Empire, but I found them on Tatooine."

"Tatooine..." Solo whispered, biting his lip. He was in deep thought.

"Yeah," Luke confirmed. "I wonder why she'd be taking her there."

Han took in a breath and shook his head. "No idea..." he lied. It was easier to put it in the back of his mind than it would be to explain it all to his Rebellion friends.

Then, Han dropped his hands to his knees in attempt to catch his breath. The world was spinning from where he stood.

Chewie cried out in worry and lifted him up onto his feet again so the big fur ball could act as support once more. Han put up a small fuss, but then accepted it.