Supernova || Luke Skywalker

Four

Luke Skywalker. Lian turned the name over in his mind as he watched the blonde admire the storm. The young man stood there until the sky darkened with sunset and the fly bay was empty. Lian and bodhi had stayed longer than the other pilots. The two of them ripping parts of the inner walls of their ship out for refurbishment. Every now and then Lian would glance over to the blonde admiring the rain. Eventually, Leia walked up to Luke and brought the blonde inside. He seemed sad as the princess led him away. Lian felt sad watching the rain. The first rain in monsoon season on jedha had been a ceremony where the entire city would be out under the downpour. Lian got the sense that Luke wanted to do the same.

After that, he saw Luke often around the rebel base. Missions had been reduced to mostly spy work and supply runs since the destruction of the Death Star. The destruction had knocked the Imps back a step but they would regroup soon. The resistance was concentrating on trying to find out what the Imps next plan was. That meant that their strike force had to lay low and regroup. They had suffered losses at scarif and on the Death Star attack. It was taking time to train up new fighter pilots and recruits. Luckily, the destruction of the Death Star brought a wave of new people ready to join up. Still, Lian and Bodhi continued to work on their ship. But when Lian would meditate on the landing ramp, he would see Luke with a blue r2 unit working on his x-wing or with the Wookiee and the smuggler working on the big ship in the corner. (Lian had no idea what type of ship that was other than a very deceptive piece of junk. How it even took off was beyond him).

He saw Luke everywhere. The blonde head standing out amongst the crowd like a beacon. At first, he thought that it was the force swirling around his figure, making it easier for Lian to notice him. But no, it seemed as time grew on that it was part of Luke's personality. The boy seemed to make friends with everyone. People flocked to him, drawn by awe and then staying because of Luke's loveable personality. When he wasn't off in missions with Han and Chewie (Lian finally heard their names) he was everywhere. Lian could spot him in the centre of the canteen with the other members of the x-squadron when he grabbed breakfast. He could spot him working on his X-wing with his R2 droid during the day. He would be roaming the corridors with his friends when Lian was walking to bed. The guardian would duck into his scarf and press himself to the stone wall as the crowd moved past. The barely noticed him. But the sudden meetings were so coincidental that it was weird.

"I feel like the force is trying to tell me something", he muttered one night to Bodhi. He was lying on his cot, stripped down to his black vest and his long red wrap skirt. His face was bare, scarf bundled under his head. Bodhi was in nothing but a tshirt and boxers on his own cot. A data pad on his lap as he scribbled down his calculations for the ship. They had expanded the fresher and had added four fold up bunks. Now Bodhi was thinking about adding a small cooking area and enhancing the engines so that the ship could go faster.

"And what is it trying to tell you?" Bodhi mumbled back, barely looking up from his pad. His hair was loose and long around his shoulders and his goggles were actually on his bedside table rather than his head. Lian scowled at him, frustrated but unsure why.

"I don't know. It feels restless slightly. Like it wants me to do something".

"Have you given any more thought to what the Princess asked?" Bodhi finally looked up. It hade been three months and Lian had yet given an answer. They hadn't seen much of Leia. When the princess wasn't in meetings and plans, she was with her friends and neither of them had much courage to seek her out. (Courage in battle and courage in social situations were completely different things).

Lian hummed. Maybe that was what the force wanted, for him to help the new Jedi. "I should, as a guardian, I really should. But"- his voice cut off and quietened. "How can I when I can barley speak to strangers?" Bodhi frowned.

"Yeah that does put a bolt in the cogs. But I'm sure they'll understand. I can explain it to them".

"You don't speak much either", Lian pointed out.

"Hey, people are scary".

Bodhi grinned as Lian gave him a 'tell me about it' look. The scars on his face had faded into a dark red. The skin all healed but still distorted with reds and whites from healed tissue. The burn streak hint across his upper back, neck and side of his face was bubbly and red. The blaster line on his other cheek distorting when he smiled. "But do you think this person is really a Jedi?" Lian murmured thoughtfully. "Chirrut always told me growing up that there were Jedi who escaped the massacre of the temples. Just like the older guardians when the imps first invaded the temples. It's weird to think that one could be here".

"Hey you're the one who can speak with the force", Bodhi pointed out. "Imagine how it weird it is for us who are null".

Lian snorted. "The force doesn't really speak to me. Not like it did with Chirrut. I'm not as sensitive as he was".

"I thought the whole point about being a guardian was that you could learn".

"Sort of. Natural born talent plays a part too". Lian hummed as he stood up. His skirt flowing around his legs. He grabbed his scarf and wound it around his neck, hiding the burns exposed by his vest. "I'm going to go and train".

"It's the middle of the night", Bodhi stated. "Want me to come with you?" It was a question but he was already getting up and pulling on his trousers. Lian nodded and tugged on his boots. He didn't bother with his own trousers. He had his underwear on under his skirt and the material was long and thick enough that he didn't care about flashing his legs. But he grabbed a black robe someone had salvaged for him and wrapped it over his vest and skirt. It was similar to the jedhan fashion but not the same. Probably a old tourist mimicry from a gift shop. Still, he had been glad that Bodhi had found it amongst the boxes of available clothing for anyone who needed it. 

Bodhi yawned and tucked his data pad under his arm. He pressed the button to open the door of their room as Lian grabbed his staff. The jungle based planet they were on was humid and warm enough that night that they didn't need coats. Some of the rebels were struggling under the heat but Lian and Bodhi were from a desert moon. They were used to it. Lian tugged his scarf further up his face. "Come on", he muttered to Bodhi. "Or I'll make you meditate with me".

Unedited