Grian’s unsurprised, when he heads back into Decked Out, to find Tango in the waiting room. He’s lying on the marble floor, one hand pressed against the moss, staring up at the fake sun shining down. In here, away from the much dimmer, bluer light of the citadel, he looks pale. Far too gaunt and skinny. His eyes seem a little sunken-in.
He’s smiling, though. There’s wonder in those sunken eyes. He keeps on looking around with something so fragile in his expression. Grian doesn’t really want to interrupt, but…
“You know you’re not supposed to stare at it, right?”
“Oh! Uh, Grian!” Tango says.
“‘Course, we made it so it wasn’t actually the bright bit. Can look at the sun all you want from here.”
“Yeah,” agrees Tango. “I sure can.”
“Touch grass,” Grian continues.
“I mean, technically it’s moss,” Tango says, drawing his hand away almost self-consciously. Grian swears in his head. Stupid. He wasn’t trying to…
“There were a lot of us hanging out,” Grian says. “It’s a nice room, isn’t it? All fun and cheerful.”
“Yeah. Yeah, it sure is,” Tango says. “Hey, Grian—”
“Nope. Not with me. Not gonna bother you about it. Just—you made something really cool, Tango. Plus, it was nice to see you. Haven’t seen you not in a hole in the ground for a while, you know? This isn’t quite the same thing, but since we’ll all be waiting in here for a while anyway…”
Slowly, Tango puts his hand back on the moss “Don’t worry. I’m happy,” Tango says. “I’m really, really happy. Hey, tomorrow, do you think just as many…”
“Tango, don’t be stupid. There might even be more of us.”
Tango sighs. It’s like some tension Grian can’t even name has left him. It should be nice, but there’s also something almost unsettling about it. The amount of contentment on Tango’s face—well, then again, Grian would be that kind of happy too, if he’d finished something that took over a year, and then it worked and everyone loved it.
“Yeah. That’s good. This is all really good. Yeah, I’m happy with this.”
But there’s something about how he’s showing it.
“Eat some more food while you’re up here. Scar’s been worried about you, and for some ungodly reason he’s been making it my problem. Do you hear me? Do you know how annoying it is when Scar makes something your problem?”
“Trust me, I know. Who else do you think he keeps bothering?”
“Fair enough. And don’t break our queue system! We worked really hard! I think Etho would kill you.”
Tango laughs. There are tears in his eyes, Grian realizes.
“I’m just—it’s so bright in here. And you all were laughing so much. And loved it so much. I’m so… happy. I’m so happy.”
Grian softens. “Yeah. Be proud.”
Tango beams. Grian goes back out of the waiting room. Something about it feels private, like he hadn’t been meant to intrude. He’ll dissect all that later. He’d just wanted to check in, since he’s here to add his decorations to the many cubbies everyone has decorated. Everyone really does love it. Tango’s going to be busy; between maintenance and everyone wanting to talk to him about what they’re doing, he’s never going to get a moment of peace alone. Might as well give him a little bit while he still can.
It feels important, somehow, for Tango to lie there and bask in it, in the moments he can.
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Fox is in the middle of decoding a message when Breha runs into the room.
Fox doesn't need to look at her for more than a second to see that she is frightened.
"What is it?" He asks. He is already on his feet before he has gotten all the words out of his mouth. "What's going on?"
"They know", Breha says, and Fox's insides turn to ice.
He is not thinking about the message anymore. He is not thinking about anything he had been doing just a moment before.
The only thing he is thinking about right now is Leia.
Leia, who is sleeping just in the next room over. Breha runs in there, and Fox starts to grab anything that is around him.
Comlink. Weapons. The little clothes the nanny droid has just piled up from the laundry.
He doesn't have the time to pack much more, because Breha is already running back, with blearily blinking Leia in her arms, still wrapped inside her blanket. She gives Fox a look, and Fox leaves everything else and follows her out of the room.
The whole castle is in alarmed by the time they have made it to the main corridor. Sateen is there when they turn towards the hangar.
"Where's Bail?" Fox asks. They don't have any time to spare. They need every second in order to get as far away as possible.
In order to get away at all.
"He's packing up the ship", Sateen says. He joins them as they make their way downstairs. "He sent me to meet up with you. Your armor is already in the ship."
Fox had not even thought about his armor. He had not even touched the entire thing after leaving Coruscant. He had not needed it, not with going through all the treatments and physical therapy, and then focusing on tending to Leia and helping the Rebellion.
He had thought that his days of fighting inside an armor had been long gone.
Leia whines against Breha's shoulder. She is more awake now, and even if she doesn't understand a word any of them are saying, she looks like she understands fully that something is wrong. Her eyes are wide, and she looks scared as she looks at Fox.
Breha wraps her arms tighter around her and shushes her. It makes Leia quiet down, but doesn't make the look in her eyes go away.
For a second, there is an image that forces its way into Fox's mind, of Leia, with that same, scared look on her face, in the arms of someone entirely else, someone cold and dark.
He pushes it away. He would rather die again than let it happen.
Bail is waiting next to the ship when they make it to the bay. It is not one of the ships they usually use, nor is it any of their personal vessels. Fox is fully aware that they had aqcuired one, of an entirely different model and make than all the other ships they were known to use, and seeing it now makes the sitation settle in even further.
"Is everything ready?" Breha asks. Bail nods. He looks too grim, the seriousness casting a deep shadow on his features.
Breha nods as well, and then draws a deep breath. She pulls Leia off of her shoulder, and looks at her for a second, two, three, with a look of grief and finality on her face that Fox hates.
Then she kisses Leia on her forehead, on her cheeks, rapidly, like she is trying to kiss her as many times as possible with one, single breath, and then she turns to Fox.
Without word, she pushes Leia onto Fox's arms.
Somehow, Fox gets even more cold.
"Breha-" he tries to say, but Breha sushes him, and lets go of Leia, in order to reach for Fox now. Her fingers brush up on Fox's face, and she looks at him too, silently, for a couple brief seconds, before she reaches up and presses a hasty kiss on his lips, on his cheeks, everywhere she can reach in her hurry.
"I love you", she says, and then she lets go of Fox too, and turns around and runs back towards the Palace.
"Breha!" Fox calls after her, but then Bail's hand is on his shoulder, gripping it hard.
"Fox", Bail says. His other hand grabs at Fox's arm, and he turns Fox around.
Fox looks up at him.
Bail looks sad.
Fox hates it, too.
He hates it, especially when the understanding dawns on him.
"Bail", Fox says. He is not pleading or begging, no matter how much he wants to. "Do not do this."
Bail looks sad. He shakes his head.
"I'm sorry", he says, and he leans down, and kisses Leia on the forehead. He lets go of Fox's arm, and he cups Fox's face and traces his thumb over Fox's cheek, slowly and carefully, like he is doing it for the last time. "I love you."
"Bail." Fox is pleading, now.
"I'm sorry", Bail says, again, and then he leans to kiss Fox.
Then he steps away, and just like Breha, he turns his back on Fox and Leia, and runs after her.
Fox stands there, staring after them, his entire body freezing cold, his hands gripping onto the blanket around Leia.
"Fox", Sateen says. Fox cannot turn to look at him. "Fox, you need to go, now."
Leia's hand reached out from inside the blanket, and it curls around the collar of Fox's shirt.
Fox rips his eyes away from the receding forms of Breha and Bail, and turns towards the ship.
Without another word, he climbs in, with Leia in his arms.
The door closes after them.
Fox doesn't bother to put Leia down as he sits on the pilot's seat and starts the engine. Leia holds onto him, quietly, as he flies the ship out of the hangar.
She stays quiet as Fox flies the ship out of Alderaan's atmosphere.
Fox holds her closer as the ship jumps into hyperspace.
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