Stars and Sabers

Don't Leave Me

In which Luke prepares to leave on a mission and Jalani doesn't want him to go. Occurs in between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes back and after Speeder Slip.

"Do you really have to go?" I ask again for at least the fifth time that day. Luke's blue eyes meet my own. He lets out a slow frustrated breath.

"I'll be back before you know it, Lani. Han's going too. I'll be fine," he says as he finishes screwing a panel on his X-wing back into place. I watch him and lean against the side of the small fighter. I'm so bored and he hasn't even left yet. Leia and I hardly know each other even though I was there helping her escape from the Death Star about a year ago. Let's just say we have one thing common...Luke and he also drives us apart. Luke looks up at me and tosses the tool he was using into the red toolbox.

"I don't know what to do. There's no one here to talk to," I say quietly. C-3P0 walks up to the two of us and Luke smirks at him as he approaches.

"He'll keep you company," he says with a slight laugh before turning to his other droid R2D2, who accompanies him on all of his flights, "Okay, R2, that should be fixed. You should be good to start it." A happy whistle resounds from the top of the fighter where R2 sits when they go flying.

3P0 makes his approach. I suppress the urge to groan. He's a really nice droid, he really is. He just...

NEVER SHUTS UP!!! EVER!!!

It drives me crazy. I don't understand how Luke deals with it. He also spends a lot more time with R2 than he does with 3P0 which explains why the two of them are so close. Maybe I could sneak 3P0 onto the Falcon with Han and Chewie. Han would LOVE that for sure.

"Hey, 3P0!" I call out as he starts to approach, "I think Han and Chewie needed help translating something on the Falcon."

"Oh my!! I don't recall Han telling me that but I will go and see," 3P0 responds with the dignified manner that he always does. He turns to R2 and Luke, "Safe travels, Master Luke and R2!" He then walks off towards the Falcon in the robot walk that I often find humorous.

"Han's not going to be happy with you," Luke mutters as he waits for the signal to get into his cockpit, "3P0 really doesn't mean to annoy either one of you."

"I know. I'll deal with him when he gets back," I say with a smirk on my face. I lean up against the X-wing again to talk to Luke some more. R2 starts to make happy whistling sounds from his place on top of the X-wing. Luke climbs into the cockpit to see what he's saying. He rolls his eyes before climbing back down. I chuckle as R2 makes some sort of offended noise in response to Luke climbing down.

"You can tell me how happy you are to be up there once we get going. I'm talking to Lani right now," he responds, "Don't get offended." R2 starts to beep and whistle at Luke again. I don't understand droids very well but I've hung around R2 and Luke long enough to know when R2 is talking about either Luke or I. I understand our names in his beeps and that's about it. Sure enough, I catch my name multiple times and apparently Luke does too because he shoots R2 another look. 

"R2, quit talking about me. Besides, you'll miss me as much as Luke does once you're on the mission," I call out to the little droid. He makes some sort of noise that once again indicates that he's appalled that I suggested such an idea. Luke laughs at the exchange.

"It's true. He just won't admit it," Luke says, "The last time we left he was asking if you were coming with us."

"Why would he ask that? He knows I'm not a pilot," I say with a shake of my head.

"I don't know. He's very protective of us though," Luke says with a chuckle.

"A little too protective," I say, nudging Luke in the shoulder. As I walk by and nudge Luke, I reach down and unclip his lightsaber from his belt. He carries it and his blaster with him every where he goes now. I haven't seen him train with it in awhile. Maybe he does when I'm not around, even though most of the time I'm with him so there's isn't really a waking hour where we're not together. Luke looks around making sure that he has everything. He looks down his bright orange flight suit.