This is my first ever Star Wars fanfic so don't kill me. I was originally going to have this in 3rd person narrative, but it didn't feel right so I switched it to 1st person. Star Wars is owned by George Lucas, not me :( Please review!

Note: I know this is ESB almost verbatim, but it's necessary to set up the rest of the story, the big difference being that Leia chooses to act rather than submit.

CLANG. The door to my cell sprang open. Two stormtroopers stood waiting. Desperate and afraid of the inevitable should I come quietly, I lunged for one trooper's gun, diving between them as I went. They tried to grab me, but their plastisteel armor hindered them as much as it protected them. I sprinted down the corridor, blaster in hand. I heard them yelling behind me, but I was too fast for them. Then the klaxon-like alarms began to sound. I dove down a side passage, but soon I discovered to my despair that it was a dead end. I felt despair seeping into my bones. I was alone in the bowels of Cloud City armed with only a blaster against the might of the Empire.

But even as I felt myself start slipping into abject misery, I heard a little voice inside my head. Grow a backbone already, "Princess"! The little voice, which sounded a lot like Han at his most aggravating, motivated me as nothing else could. I was Leia Organa, crown princess of Lost Alderran, and I was not about to let some clanking robot of a Sith destroy the only man I had ever cared for. I crept to the end of the corridor, just in time to hear the hurried tramp of a squadron of stormtroopers. I waited until they were almost abreast of my corridor, then bolted out and started shooting. They were thrown into disarray, just enough for me to escape through them, dealing out some choice kicks as I went. I sprinted back the way I came, expecting to be shot in the back at any time. To my surprise, I heard no blasters being fired. I stopped in shocked realization. They wanted me alive. They wanted me to see whatever they had in store for Han. They wanted to watch me suffer. I muttered some choice words I hadn't learned as crown princess and started running again.

I sprinted up a rise in the corridor and around a corner…only to run straight into another squadron, only this one had obviously taken measures to protect themselves. They had Han and Chebacca, both with blasters leveled at their heads. I aimed my blaster at their leader, an Imperial captain by his markings, and said, "Tell your men to drop their weapons."

He only laughed. "My dear princess, are you leaving us so soon? Lord Vader will be quite disappointed. He is looking forward to having a little chat with you after this piece of scum has his dance with carbonite," he said, dealing Han a blow over the head with his blaster. Han almost fell, crying out through gritted teeth as blood began trickling down his face. He looked up at me and said grimly, "Don't you dare drop that blaster, princess." Even as he said this, the squadron that I had just escaped from came pounding up behind me, all with their blasters primed and ready. I glared at the captain in disgust. "You win," I said, throwing down my blaster. He smiled triumphantly and gestured one of the stormtroopers forward. He stepped up and handcuffed my hands behind my back. I couldn't meet Han's eyes. Chewbacca, Han and I were shoved into a forced jog with the stormtroopers behind us.

"Why did you do that?" a soft voice said in my ear.

"Han, you know why I did that. You would have done the same thing," I retorted, equally as soft.

"I'm on my way to my death anyway. Why prolong it?"

I looked at him. I had only seen him this bitter once, and that was when Lando Calrissian, his so-called friend, betrayed us to Darth Vader. "Han, look at me," I said firmly. He turned slowly to me and looked me in the eye. "You have 7 to 1 odds. Wouldn't you take that in sabacc? I've known you to take much higher odds." "Yeah, but I also wasn't betting my life on those odds," he replied sarcastically, making him sound more like his normal self.

Soon we were marching up a ramp to a platform with a round black disc highlighted by glowing orange strips. The stormtrooper behind me kept a crushing grip on my arm. I had started to wonder what we were waiting for when a dark, masked figure walked down the stairs on the opposite side of the platform. I immediately felt a rush of mixed emotions – anger, hatred, but above all, fear. This thing had not only destroyed my home, he was about to destroy the only man besides my father who had ever been able to make me laugh. I started struggling against my bonds, but they held fast. Chewbacca started to roar. He used his cuffed hands as a club, sending stormtroopers flying like bowling pins. Over Chewbacca's roars, I heard Han yell, "CHEWIE! Hey Chewie! Stop this! It's not doing me any good. Save your strength for a different time!" Chewbacca responded in a plaintive moan, but stopped nonetheless. "No Chewie!" Han yelled back. "Your duty now is to the princess – keep her safe! Ya got that?" Chewbacca looked over at me. I met his eyes and said quietly, "We'll get him back Chewie. I swear it." He turned back to Han and gave a mournful bellow. Han nodded solemnly at him, then turned to me. To my shame, I felt tears starting to well up in my eyes. His gaze softened as he looked at me. He lifted his bound hands and wiped away my tears. "Come on, princess, it's not all bad," he said, now back to his normal cocky self. "You won't have to put up with this scruffy nerfherder for a while, now will you?" "But that's the point!" I cried out in anguish. "I want to have to put up with you." Then suddenly we were kissing as we never had before. Thousands of unsaid things passed between us. Worlds might have come and gone and we would not have noticed. Then just as suddenly, he was being pulled away by the stormtroopers. I watched, powerless to help, as he was placed in the middle of the black disc. I held his gaze, not feeling the tears stream down my cheeks. On an impulse, I cried out, "I love you." He looked calmly at me and said, "I know." I stood on the side of the carbonite pit, my pulse pounding in my ears. Chewbacca roared defiantly and tried in vain to break out of the handcuffs that bound him. Then I watched helplessly as Han, cocky and courageous Han, vanished in a rush of steam.