ACROSS THE STARS || STAR WARS AU

Once In A Blue Moon

Absorbed in the music playing through his earbuds, Han restocked the shelves with soda, bobbing his head along to the beat. Although he was listening to the tune, and even mouthing some of the lyrics, his mind remained elsewhere.

In less than 24 hours, he and Leia went to visit Lando, Leia found her brother who turned out to be Luke, Leia met Owen and Beru, Han found out more about Leia's mission, Leia trained Luke, and Han and Lando started repairing the ship.

And now here he was back in the convenient store, restocking. What a way to close out such an eventful day.

Han sighed, shutting the refrigerator door. He knew his life was pretty boring, but he hadn't realized just how bad it was until this moment.

Until Leia showed up.

His mind lingered on the name, thinking about what she was doing right now. Had she finished training Luke? From what he knew of her, she would train him until the sun rose the next morning.

Was she getting ready for bed then? It was close to eleven and even Han was beginning to feel the fatigue hit him. He'd probably need three cups of coffee just to get through his shift, maybe just through the hour. Today had been exhausting.

Han paused at the thought, stopping the cart filled with candy and chips midway through the aisle. If she was preparing to go to sleep, then did that mean she was back at the house? Was she looking for him, expecting him to be there?

Just as Han began to reach for a bag of Lay's, the door chime rang from the front.

"Han? You here?" A male voice called out.

"Yeah, over here!" Han answered back, continuing to stock the shelf.

Luke appeared from the side with what Han thought was the biggest smile he'd ever seen. "We stopped by the house earlier, but you weren't there. So I figured you would be here and it turns out I was right!"

"I'm surprised you didn't say you used the Force to locate me," he retorted. How Luke looked so fresh and energetic, Han had no idea.

"Why is it so bright in here?" Another voice spoke. "It feels like I am at a Medcenter, about to go in for surgery."

Han squinted his tired eyes towards the front of the store, where the voice had come from. In a matter of seconds, Leia emerged beside her brother, looking just as drained as Han.

"Uh-oh, someone's grumpy," Han noted, finishing up with the aisle. "Do you need a Slurpee?"

"Do not patronize me, Han." Leia glared. "And you're not fairing much better yourself."

"Because I spent all day chasing after you and fixing your ship!" He marched up to her, leaving the cart behind. "While you were just doing cartwheels and hand-stands!"

Leia scoffed. "It was much more complicated than that. Using the Force requires all your mental and physical strength, especially training a new user like Luke!"

Before Han could fire back at her, Leia calmly changed the subject with ease.

"Speaking of the ship, I would like to see it. We stopped by your home for that reason in the first place."

"Ah, so it was out of no love for me. You just cared about seeing the ship," Han teased. "Well, you can go see it. You know where it's at. You don't need me there."

Leia hesitated for a second. "I might need you there in case something's wrong. If there is, you will need to know."

Han looked at Luke for an answer. The younger boy shrugged, nodding his head in agreement. "That's true. It would be better if you saw the problem. If there is one, of course," He quickly added.

With an incoherent grumble, Han relented. "Alright."

At least that would be infinitely more interesting than stocking shelves all night.

Even if he was listening to Queen to help pass the time.

~

Entering the ship a second time allowed Han to take in more details that he hadn't noticed before. The first time he had been in here he did not look around or care to notice the interior, focusing mostly on Lando and the engine.

The ship was completely white on the inside, which shouldn't have surprised him as much as it did. The outside and even Leia's dress were white, showing that she had a preference for the color.

But it was the kind of white that reminded him of hospitals. The white that is sterile and spotless. The white that is unfriendly and cold.

The hostile white.

Han quickly shook these thoughts away, turning his attention towards Luke instead. The young man was fixated on the ship, studying each nook and cranny with a sense of awe.

"Han, this is amazing," He whispered. "Everything looks advanced."

Han went up to the control panel Luke was standing beside, staring at their reflections in the black screens. His impulsive finger glided over the screen, but nothing happened like he had hoped. The screen remained shut off and his reflection continued looking back at him; its eyebrows now furrowed and mouth slightly agape.

"I'm not sure what you and Lando did, but everything looks great." Leia popped her head out of the floor panel.

"Wait, really?" Han had to do double-take to make sure he heard her right.

"Yes." She climbed up to the cockpit. "I am... impressed. And satisfied with your work so far."

Han watched as she brushed her gown off, trying to formulate something to say. "Uh.. thanks?"

"Of course, there is still much more that needs to be done," she said. "You two will be back tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure." Han detected the question in her tone instead of the usual demand. "Well, if that's everything we should go back to the house. I'm tired as hell and I'm sure you must be too-"

"I'm not going back to the house," She interrupted, gazing at her brother. "I am going to stay with Luke at the ranch."

"Oh... right," Han agreed with a sheepish chuckle. "Do you need to get anything though?"

"No, everything I have is on me," Leia answered. "Luke, are you ready to go back?"

"Yeah, I'm starting to get sleepy," he yawned, following his sister out of the ship. "I already told Beru to prepare a bed for you."

"We will see you tomorrow then, Han." She gave him a weary smile before walking away.

"Yeah, see you. Goodnight." He waved to the siblings. He remained there beside the damaged ship for a few seconds afterward, looking up at the desert stars.

~

By the time Han returned home, it was nearly midnight. Darkness enveloped the near-silent house. There was no moonlight creeping inside tonight to guide him through.

Han could hear Chewie's light snoring coming from the bedroom, and not wanting to disturb the dog he chose not to turn on a light. He groped around in the dark towards the living room, deciding to sleep on the couch. He was tired enough that it would be no trouble.

However, his back would probably not forgive him the next morning.

Settling on the rigid couch, Han stared up at the ceiling as he tried to get comfortable. But no matter how many times he tossed and turned, his eyelids would not shut.

With a growl of frustration, Han sat up and looked around the room. He could not see anything of course, but that did not prevent him from trying his best to make out the shapes around him.

He knew exactly why he could not sleep; he knew as soon as he entered. The house was too quiet.

But then again, it usually was.

So then why did it feel so empty?

Why did he feel so lonely?