Invisible Smoke ➵ l.s. (editing)

fifteen

❝ I don't want your body

But I hate to think about you
with somebody else

Our love has gone cold

You're intertwining your soul
with somebody else ❞

"Threepio," Leia circled the whole condo in search of the protocol droid. She barged into the refresher of her and Elara's shared room, catching off guard the girl who was touching up her makeup, "Ellie, have you seen Threepio?"

"Ow," Elara cried out after Leia's abrupt entrance caused her to stab her eye with her mascara wand, "I haven't seen him. But I can see this all over my face now. Didn't you used to knock, Leia?"

"Oh please, you left the door open," Leia picked up a package of remover wipes, and passed them over to Elara, "are you sure you haven't seen him? He's nowhere to be found."

"I haven't seen him since we got here last night," she dabbed the mascara off with one of the wipes, "have you talked to Flynn?"

"Yes. He hasn't seen him either. Chewie just left to go look."

"That just adds to the list of weird things about this place. How can a droid that never shuts up just vanish into thin air?" Elara placed her mascara back in a small zip up bag, and turned around to face Leia.

"I don't like it," Leia shook her head, "c'mon. I wanna talk to Han."

Elara followed after Leia into the main room, but Han was nowhere to be found. Leia paces around the window. "Of course he just runs off."

As if on cue, the room's door slides open to reveal the charismatic smuggler. "The ship's almost finished. Two or three more things and we're in great shape."

"The sooner the better," Leia makes her way across the room to Han, "something's wrong here. No one has seen or knows anything about Threepio. He's been gone too long to have gotten lost."

Han pecks Leia's forehead. "Relax. I'll talk to Lando and see what I can find out."

Leia sits down. "I don't trust Lando!"

"We'll me neither, but he is my friend," Han comforts her, "besides. Soon enough, we'll be gone."

"Then you're as good as gone, aren't you?"

Flynn wanders out of a side room to the window where Elara was standing. "What'd I miss?"

"Let's see, we still can't find Threepio but the Falcon is almost fixed," she sighed, "and, Han's still –"

Chewie's frantic entrance cut her off. In his arms he held what had him so distraught. A box filled with a dismantled Threepio. "What happened?"

Chewie sets the box on the sofa, roaring something to Han. "Where? You found him in a junk pile?"

"Oh what a mess. Chewie, do you think you can repair him?" Leia tries to comfort the Wookiee, who responded with a roar of assurance.

"Lando's got people that can fix him." Han offered.

"No thanks."

"Speak of the devil." Elara whispered to Flynn as Lando strutted in unannounced.

"I'm sorry. Am I interrupting anything?" He gestures to the box containing Threepio.

"Not really." Leia lied.

"Having trouble with your droid?"

"No, no problem. Why?" Han stepped in, reading Leia's wary body language. The Princess did not want Lando or his men anywhere near her beloved (yet, annoying) droid.

Han's sudden hostility took Lando off guard, and it was another second before he spoke again. "Would you join me for a little refreshment? Everyone's invited of course."

Lando led them through a bustling corridor, with deafening silence despite the noise of other residents of the city. Elara's curious voice pierced the blanket of silence; not only did she despise these types of silence, but also to pry out of him a definite reason to prove her suspicions. "So, have you ever had any run-ins with the Empire out here?"

"So you see, since we're a small operation, we don't fall into the... uh... jurisdiction of the Empire."

Leia picked up on Elara's thought process, and pried another question. "So you're part of the mining guild, then?"

"No, not actually. Our operation is small enough not to be noticed... which is advantageous for everybody since our customers are anxious to avoid attracting attention to themselves."

Flynn leaned into Elara's ear. "This is a small operation?"

"There's no way the Empire and the mining guilds don't know about this place." she whispered back, pausing in the hall so they won't be overheard by the rest of the group.

"Aren't you afraid the Empire's going to find out about this little operation and shut you down?" They could hear Han press the scenario.

"That's always been a danger looming like a shadow over everything we've built here.  But things have developed that will insure security. I've just made a deal that will keep the Empire out of here forever." Lando pauses in front of a set of grand double doors, unaware of the two Rebels who strayed behind.

"I've got a bad feeling about that deal," Elara narrows her eyes at the opening door. She didn't even have to see inside to know who was behind them — no one else in the Galaxy had such an ominous presence, "on my count, Flynn, run."

Within seconds, the firing of Han's blaster into the room incites chaos into the corridor. "Now!"

Elara virtually drug Flynn through the corridor. "Where are we going?"

"Anywhere! Just keep your head down." She shoved through every person in their way, aimlessly searching for any room to take refuge, until a cloaked figure freezes her with a flick of a hand.

"Why are you running? I thought we were gonna catch up over some drinks," the figure pulled his cloak down to reveal himself as none other than Oliver, "and don't worry, they're non alcoholic. If I do remember correctly my love –"

"Don't you dare call me that."

"Oh yeah, I forgot you've got a new boyfriend now. Quite the coincidence if I do say so myself. My ex girlfriend and the son of Darth Vader, wow," he maliciously teased, changing his attention to Flynn "and you, my best friend and the Princess of Alderaan? Now that was a shocker. I'm not surprised you didn't work out."

"You son of a–" Flynn spat.

"Whoa now, calm down. I thought we were catching up," Oliver narrowed his eyes back to Elara, who had an unmistakable expression of shock written over her face, "wait. Did you not know that little tidbit about him?"

"The only thing you'll be catching is my foot up your ass, you liar." She seethed as he leaned closer into her.

"Well wouldn't I like to see you try? Last time I checked you didn't have the strength," he laughed as she tried to break from the Force stun he held her in, "you're under my control now, my love," he wandered around her, and flicked his finger down. She crumpled to the ground, and into his arms, "now how about those drinks."

a/n
hi if u are confused why u may be seeing this again, I did in fact unpublish and republish this chapter. anyways with college being well underway, updates will be sporadic but I do hope u all enjoy this one and I'll try to get the next ones up in between studying for exams! stay safe y'all and I will see ya in the next chapter!