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Wedge Antilles was mixing drinks and maintaining a cheerful banter with the better than usual Saturday afternoon crowd at The Hangar. The cantina was a fun little side business for Wedge and his business partners Wes Janson and Hobbie Klivian. The casual place provided a great hangout as well as part-time job opportunities for Alliance veterans and those now known as “New Republic” military personnel.
Han Solo and Luke Skywalker were there in the same capacity as the rest of the patrons, having a few drinks while watching the holovised smashball championship quarterfinals between the Corellian Drednaughts and Lando Calrissian’s favorite team, the Infuriated Savages. The atmosphere wasn’t quite that of the Drednaughts’ stadium, but the ale here was hells of a lot cheaper.
“Best thing ever happened for business was you becoming a Jedi,” Wes Janson waved his hand around the packed room before slapping Luke on the back. “Influx of new clientele all hoping to get a glimpse of a real-live Force afficianado.”
“Ha, ha,” the youthful Skywalker responded with mild sarcasm. “The Force is not intended to be co-opted for you to sell more alcohol, Wes,” Luke shook his head in mock horror. “Everyone is here for the game.”
Wes chuckled, pulling a chair up to the end of the booth Luke shared with his brother-in-law. “Calrissian commed from Corellia. Lucky bastard scored tickets. Reports they’re charging fifteen credits for nine lukewarm ounces of brew at the stadium! And the ale guzzling, sports-loving morons pay it!"
“Don’t knock it,” Han drawled. “Fans who couldn’t get to Corellia are jammin' your joint right now.”
Wes shook his head, “Probably should have raised the price…” Janson’s musing was interrupted by a small, yet serious, voice.
“ ‘Scuse me. ‘Scuse me. Daddy?” Tiny fingers, plump with baby fat, patted Han’s knee.
“What’s up, sweetheart?” Solo smiled down at his three-year-old daughter. Jaina Solo had toddled away from her game of pool with Hobbie Klivian. Well, not quite an actual game. Hobbie had been rolling the solid and striped balls to the little girl as she sat in the center of the felted table. Jaina would grab each ball, push it into a pocket and gleefully clap with every “thunk.”
She leaned into her father’s knee, a concerned pout forming on rosebud lips. “Wey-Wey’s cwying.”
Solo turned to the back room where he saw Hobbie anxiously attempting to soothe what appeared to be an inconsolable Breha Solo. Han gazed down at his eldest daughter, hazel eyes meeting their match, his voice taking on her serious tone. “What do you think I should do about it, J.?”
“You needs to hode her.”
“Ahhh. Hold her? That is a brilliant solution. You are the smartest girl on the entire planet!”
Jaina beamed at her father. Han gently tugged the curled tip of a beribboned braid before conspiratorially stage whispering to her, “Will you keep an eye on Luke while I check on Breha, Big Girl?”
“Daddy!” she giggled. “You so silly. Lu Lu’s a gwowed up!”
Han grinned, kissed his little girl’s forehead then ambled over to the pool room to check on his 10-month-old.
“Hobbie don’t know what to do,” Jaina astutely noted to her Uncle Luke as she happily climbed onto his lap.
Luke had to work to contain a laugh. “I agree, J. Hobbie most definitely don’t know what to do.”
Klivian - the Rogue Squadron pilot-cum-bar owner-cum babysitter - was relieved to see that the cavalry, in the form of Han Solo, had arrived. With a relieved sigh, Hobbie handed the unhappy baby over to her father.
“Don’t know what happened, Han! One minute we were having a good time rolling billiard balls then, the next thing I know, Little Bit here just starts bawling.”
“Hey, baby girl, what’s wrong?” Han’s voice was all soothing sympathy as he lifted his youngest child into his arms. The chubby baby, dressed in her sister’s hand-me-down miniature Rogue Squadron jumpsuit, seemed less disturbed in her father’s familiar embrace, but distraught nonetheless. “Da da,” she sniffed as she clung to her father’s neck.
“She wet?” Hobbie eyeballed the green felt surface of the game table. “Wes’ll have a fit if Rey-Rey leaked on the pool table.”
Han frowned. “I just changed her! It’s probably....” Han gently pulled the baby’s lower lip down to reveal red and swollen gums. “Yeah, she’s cuttin’ more teeth.”
“You sound just like...whatzizname...Mr. Spock, man!” said Hobbie, impressed by Han’s quick diagnosis for Rey’s distress.
“It’s Doctor Spock, Hobbie. And he’s old news....oh, never mind. Poor little gal’s been miserable off and on for weeks with this.” Solo softly rubbed his child’s back. “Those ol’ toofies givin’ you hell again, Rey? C’mon,” he said, kissing the child’s damp cheek, “Dad’s gonna fix you up.”
“Da daaa,” Breha whisper cried as she clung to her father, teeny fingers grasping at the hair at the nape of his neck. Her crying wound down several notches from hiccuping sobs to soft whimpers as Han carried her off toward the bar. Only an occasional tear now escaped her deep brown eyes.
“Wes, can you put some crushed ice into a clean napkin for me?” Han settled into the last empty seat at the bar, cradling his baby girl in his arms. “And a shot of Whyren’s.”
“Sure thing. Oh, is Little Bit having a bad day?”
“Teething,” Han knowingly stated.
“Shame that growing up has to hurt sometimes.” Wes dropped a generous spoonful of chipped ice into a clean cloth napkin and handed it to the baby’s daddy.
“And especially to be feeling bad on the day you watch your first Dreadnaughts’ game with all your uncles,” Wedge chimed in from behind the bar. “How’d she like it, Han?”
“Wouldn’t know,” Solo shrugged. “She slept through the first quarter. I spent the next two trying to get the candy Hobbie gave her out of her sister’s hair.” He slipped a corner of the ice-filled cloth into the baby’s mouth. “Feels good, huh, Rey?”
Little Rey seemed to sigh at the relief the cold cloth provided her aching mouth. She clamped her gums down harder onto the icy napkin.
“By the start of the fourth quarter, the ‘Naughts made a lineup change and Rey needed one, too. That’s when I gave up trying to get the girls to watch and let them play pool with Hobbie.”
“At least Hobbie had a fighting chance to win,” Wes laughed.
Ignoring Janson’s jibe about Hobbie's pool skills, Wedge addressed Han sympathetically. “Well, there’ll be plenty more games for you to watch with them. I’m surprised their mama let them come to the cantina on game day.”
“Leia wasn’t crazy about the idea. But she had some stuff to do and didn’t need two little helpers."
Wes watched with a raised eyebrow as Han dipped a finger into the glass of Whyren’s and then rub it onto the baby’s sore gums.
"And, don’t tell her about this,” Solo waved his whiskey-soaked finger at Wes. “Old Corellian remedy.”
Wes snorted, eyeing Han and Wedge. “No wonder you two can handle your whiskey. You’ve been building up a tolerance since infancy!”
“Didn’t hurt me, Wedge or Jaina any,” Han gestured to his three-year-old who was having a grand time dumping a container of snacks onto the table as her Uncle “Lu Lu” helplessly watched.
A slight breeze fluttered through the room as the cantina door opened. A half-dozen or more folks wandered in, Leia Organa Solo among them.
“Mommy!” Jaina squealed, jumping off Luke’s lap and into her mother’s arms.
Leia made smootching sounds as she kissed her child’s cheek. “Mmmmmmm...I missed you!” She smiled over at her brother. “Hi, Luke. Jaina babysitting you again?”
“Yes and she did an outstanding job. Of course, I was a very good boy.”
“He weally was, Mommy,” Jaina nodded in agreement. “But,” she shook her head, “Daddy said a bad wowd!”
“Only one?” Leia shook her head in amusement, then addressed her brother. “I take it the ‘Naughts aren’t winning?”
“Tough third quarter,” Luke replied, intently watching his sister interact with her daughter. “Because I was such a good boy,” Luke grinned at Leia, “I’m getting another beer. Can I bring you something?”
“Water would be great, thanks.” Leia kissed her daughter again. “Why are you so sticky? Where’s Daddy and your sister?” Her eyes darted around the room, finally resting on her husband. He was hobnobbing with some of the new arrivals, shaking hands and showing off Rey in the process.
Noticing that his wife had arrived, Han offered her a lopsided grin and a raised eyebrow. Leia responded with a radiant smile and a nod as she shifted Jaina up on her hip and slipped into the booth. Han and baby Rey soon joined the rest of their family.
“Awww, precious, is your mouth sore?” Leia sighed, stroking the baby’s cheek. Rey smiled for the first time since the onset of her teething troubles and stretched out to her mother.
Reaching over with one arm, Han plucked Jaina onto his lap, passing little Breha to her mother.
“Han, why does our baby smell like Whyren’s Reserve?” Leia eyed her husband with a roll of her lovely brown eyes.
“Might’ve spilled a little on her when we scored that last goal.” He grinned at his wife, brushing her cheek with his free hand and murmured, “Well? When?”
“Perfectly enough, just around Life Day.”
Laughing like giddy school kids, their lips met in a soft kiss before falling into a deeper embrace.
“DADDY!” A muffled voice cried from between them. “You smooshing me!”
“Sorry, J., sorry!” Han laughed. “I really needed to give Mommy a hug.” Jaina’s parents kissed again, more careful this time of the two little people in their laps.
“Kriff!” Wes Janson cried, having wandered over to greet Leia and slip Han a fresh bottle of Corellian ale. “Knock that crap off! Gonna give the place a bad name. Nobody wants to see married people fooling around like that in public. Cantina’s supposed to be a place to get away from the ball and chain, not where you go acting all happy about the life sentence.”
“Hey!” Leia complained, indignant.
“I’m not saying YOU’RE the ball and chain, Leia,” Janson winked at her.
Han scowled back at the bartending Rogue who ignored both him and Jaina’s inhaled ‘you said a bad word’ accusation. Wes focused on Leia. “Can I get you something from the bar, Ms. Solo?”
“Maryshee chawwees, pwease?” a younger Ms. Solo replied.
Her parents smiled at Jaina’s presumption, though Wes didn’t understand her polite request.
“Maraschino cherries,” Han translated. “She loves ‘em.”
“But only...” Leia held up two fingers as Wes hoisted Jaina up onto his shoulder. “They’re pure sugar.”
“So, how ‘bout for the other Ms. S?”
“Luke’s bringing me something, Wes. Thanks,” Leia replied, nodding toward her brother who was caught in a conversation at the bar.
Han leaned back in the booth, happily watching his wife as she blew a kiss to their daughter. Jaina pretended to catch it and patted it onto her cheek while Wes carried her off to fetch the sweet garnish. “Well,” he said, brushing her hand with his thumb. “That was your first chance.”
“For what?”
“You said you wanted to be the first one to tell...”
“Han, WE haven’t even had a chance to really talk about it yet and...”
“What’s to talk about? We planned this for months. We’ve known for a week. Today was just...official confirmation.” He lifted her free hand and kissed her fingertips. “Seems to me now’s as good a time as any.”
Leia gently pulled the damp napkin from her now sleeping daughter’s mouth. “I don’t’ know,” she sighed, kissing the baby as she handed her to her father. Han nestled Breha into the reclined seat of her stroller for a more comfortable nap. “It’s still so early and I...I kind of want us to be able to savor it a little longer...just you and me...this being the last time and all.”
“Whatever makes you happy, Sweetheart.” Laps and hands now free of offspring, they were able to enjoy a more thorough embrace.
“A-hem!” It was Luke. “Wes said you were over here acting as hormonal as you did on Hoth and complaining that your kid's destroying his profit margin by eating all his cocktail cherries….” he trailed off, staring into his sister's eyes as he placed a glass of water in front of her. Luke watched Leia fidget in her seat and exchange an awkward look with Han.
A smile curled across Luke’s narrow lips. He tilted his chin toward Han. “So, he finally convinced you to try for a boy?”
Leia inhaled deeply.
“You knew you couldn’t keep it from Mr. Jedi Mindreader,” Han shrugged.
“We are NOT trying for a boy,” Leia huffed. “We just thought we should keep everybody around the same age and get all the diapers and other baby things over with at once. This is the LAST time.”
Luke grinned, “Uh-huh.”
Leia took a breath. “And, we’re not ready to tell anybody, yet...”
“Tell anybody what?” Wedge suddenly appeared beside Luke.
“It seems,” Luke stated matter-of-factly, “that the Solo family will be adding a new member.”
Both Leia and Han shot Luke a stunned look. Didn’t he hear them say they weren’t ready to make an announcement?
“GREAT!” Wedge bubbled with enthusiasm. “Every kid should have a dog! My advice: golden or lab.”
Wedge didn’t notice Leia and Han’s uncomfortable silence or Luke’s silly smile. He simply continued. “I mean, sure they’re big and all but they’re really good with kids. Heck, they’re used to big furry beings with Chewie around.” Wedge looked around and motioned to Janson. “I’ll walk Jaina next door and see how she likes Galaxy,” he offered, referring to the massive yellow dog that resided at the gift shop adjacent to the cantina.
“What’s up?” Janson ambled over to the group. Jaina was in his arms, her mouth stuffed with cherries. Hobbie was trailing behind them.
“Solos are getting a dog,” Wes stated.
“Good Gods!” Leia moaned.
“DOGGY!” Jaina gasped, bright red juice trickling down her chin. “Doggy!” she exclaimed, squirming out of Wes’s arms and into her father’s lap to deliver sticky kisses. “I YUV you, Daddy!”
“Thanks a lot, Antilles,” Han groaned.
“Just don’t get one of those foofy-assed poodles or...or...one of those scrawny rat dogs,” Wes advised.
“Oh, I HATE those rat dogs!” Hobbie concurred.
“Doggy. Doggy. Doggy,” Jaina happily chanted, jumping on her father’s leg.
Relishing the confusion, Luke decided to add to it. “NOT a dog.”
“A CAT!” Hobbie was aghast. “No! Cats can crawl up in little Rey’s bed at night and suck the breath right out of her!”
“That’s an old wives’ tale, Hobbie,” Wes defended the felines of the world. “We had a great old cat when I was a kid. Even the big dogs were afraid of old Fluffball.”
“Hells, Wes, I’d be mean, too, if I had a lame-assed name like Fluffball,” Wedge snickered. “Dogs are better.”
Leia turned to Han with an exasperated look. Jaina informed her parents, “They says bad wowds.”
Wes continued. “Hey, cats are cool, too. You never had one or you’d know.”
“Doggy?” Jaina sent a pleading look to her mother, unsure of what was transpiring. The Rogues continued arguing the virtues of canine vs. feline.
“For Gods’ sake!” Leia practically shouted. “We’re NOT getting a dog. OR a cat, alright? I’m pregnant.”
“Again?!” It was Wes Janson who voiced the thought the others had the good manners or the good sense to keep to themselves.
Then, silence.
“Thank you for your hearty congratulations,” Han grumbled, breaking the quiet.
“Really.” Leia sounded hurt. “I thought somebody’d be happy for us besides us.”
“No, no, no,” Wes backpedaled. “That’s great news. Really. Congratulations. I was...WE were,” his eyes darted to Wedge and Hobbie hoping they’d bail him out. “We were just...surprised.” Unfortunately, he didn’t know when to leave well enough alone. “You gotta’ admit, though, you guys are like boom, boom, boom.”
Wedge winced at Wes’ faux pas and hurriedly pumped Han’s hand, kissed Leia’s cheek. “When will we be meeting the newest Solo?”
“Around Life Day,” Leia smiled back. Her friend’s more positive reaction somewhat smoothed her ruffled feelings.
“Doggy?” Jaina hopefully looked up at her father.
“No, no doggy. Sorry, sweetheart.”
The little girl’s cherry-stained lower lip started to quiver.
“Oh, but Jainey!” Leia clapped her hands together enthusiastically. “You’re going to be getting something even BETTER! A new baby brother or sister! Isn’t that wonderful?”
Jaina’s eyes narrowed as she peered into the stroller at her sleeping sister. “Doggy,” she sighed mournfully.
“Maybe you can just call the new kid ‘Doggy’ and everybody’ll be happy,” Hobbie suggested.
“Strike ‘Derek’ off the potential boy names list,” Han groused to Leia.
“Twenty credits says this one’s another girl,” Wes called out. "Who’s in?”
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