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"Blast this- kriffing thing!"
Luke dropped the base of his lightsaber onto the table and leaned back in his chair, running a hand through his hair.
Leia stared at it from where she was leaning on the wall. "You can't construct a new one, can you?"
Luke sighed, picking up the heirloom and attempting to push the loose panel back into place. "I don't know how. Ben never told me."
She moved to sit on his bed, motioning for him to toss it to her. "How old is this thing anyway?" she asked, examining it.
He shrugged. "I dunno. It was my father's. 40, maybe 50 years old?"
"Huh..."
Leia ran her fingers over its various scars and blemishes. A burn here, a scrape there. Each one a story, a battle, a defining moment in their galaxy's history. Lightsabers almost had personalities, she realized then. Lives. "It's beautiful."
Luke scoffed. "It's a piece of junk is what it is."
Her fingers stopped on a scorch mark that looked vaguely like a bantha. "Were you not fond of your father then?"
He turned his chair to face her place on the bed. "Why do you say that?"
She held up the lightsaber in display. "You just said the only thing you have left of him is junk."
He made a noncommittal noise. "I never knew him."
Leia blinked. "At all?"
He shook his head. "He died before I was born. All I know is that he was a Jedi. And a pilot."
She sat up straighter. "And he was from Tattooine?"
"I guess so. How come?"
"There was a General Skywalker, back in the Clone Wars. He was a Jedi, from Tatooine. There's a chance he could be your father. You've at least got to be related."
Luke raised an eyebrow. "Do you know anything else about him?"
"Not much. I just remember learning a bit about him in my lessons. My father didn't allow my tutors to give many lessons about the actual battles of Clone Wars. He always said I'd learn it if I had to."
"Your father fought in the Clone Wars?"
Leia laughed. "No, no. He was in the Senate. Voted, spoke on behalf of Alderaan. That kind of thing. He was there when the Emperor took over." She paused as a small smile came over her face. "He was the best leader Alderaan ever had."
"You miss him?"
"Of course. More than anything. He and my mother were the most important
people in my life."
Luke looked down at his fidgeting hands. "I never knew my mother either. Just my aunt and uncle."
Leia smirked. "You know, they say General Skywalker was having an affair with Senator Amidala. Maybe they had a son no one knew about."
"Very funny." He shook his head. "Force, can you imagine? If I was the son of a queen? Prince Luke. Kind of has a ring to it, huh?"
Leia laughed lightly. "You sound like Han."
Luke chuckled with her. "I think if my mother had been a queen, or senator, or whatever, I wouldn't have grown up on a moisture farm on Tatooine. Besides, things like affairs always turn out to be just rumors. No one can hide much of their personal life in war, Leia."
"Yeah, everyone on base knows YOUR philosophy on secrets, after Wedge's birthday party..."
He ignored her. "Not that you'd know anything about wartime romance, would you, Leia?"
She turned her head to look away from him. "I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about."
"Really? Because the rest of us do."
She scoffed. "You can't know of something that doesn't exist."
"I think Han would beg to differ."
She tried to throw the lightsaber base at him, but when she missed, it hit the wall with a loud click.
Luke picked it back up, turning it to see all sides. "Huh. You fixed it."
She got up to look at the saber from over his shoulder. "Well, look at that." She poked at the panel that had previously been falling out.
He held it out in front of him, turning it on. The faint buzz filled the room, the glow illuminating their faces. "Well that's that I guess." He looked up at his friend. "Thanks."
She smiled as he turned it back off. "Oh, sure. It took incredible skill."
He rolled his eyes. "Whatever you did, worked. I'd been trying to pop that back into place for days."
"You're welcome. Comm me next time
you need it fixed." She started walking towards the door, pushing the button to slide it open. "I'll try to improve my aim by then."