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This whole idea had started after a few too many glasses of a Corellian reserve which Han had smuggled back from one of his many trips across the years he and Leia had been together. Whether it had been that Leia had been too preoccupied with matters of the senate, or whether Han had been away roaming the furthest corners of the galaxy for parts - they had yet to take the next step.
There had been discussions, of course. Late night conversations across a dinner table, and early morning whispers while the rays of the suns had shone in through the window of their bedroom; they had discussed their lives together at great length, but neither of them had made the next pivotal move.
The conversation had drifted towards Alderaan - the place Leia had called home. The destruction of the planet had broken Leia across levels of her soul she had not yet discovered, and she had never truly dealt with those fractured pieces of her emotions. It had been easier to mask the pain with her mission to bring the Empire to it’s knees. She wanted to avenge the millions of lives that had been lost by bringing peace to the galaxy.
It was only with Han that she truly opened up, and even then it had taken years for him to be able to peel back the layers that made up Leia Organa. But he loved nothing more than to sit with Leia relaxing against him, his arm around her shoulders protectively, listening as she regaled him with tales of life on Alderaan.
Her eyes would light up when she spoke of her parents, of the rolling green valleys and tall mountains. She would reminisce about how she was brought up within the walls of the palace, and how TwoVee had always been super strict, but her mother was the opposite.
One of his favourite tales had been a memory from when she was a mere youngling, no older than ten years old. It had rained and rained, and Leia had been forbidden from going outside. She loved the grounds of the palace, the smells of the Alderaanian roses her mother grew and the bright colours of the fruit-bearing trees - and she loved to explore the gardens. However, TwoVee, her droid, had already scolded Leia that morning about not ruining her dresses by going outside. Han had scoffed at the mere audacity that the droid would ever think she would listen to him.
Same old Leia, stubborn and determined.
Of course, she had pushed open the towering doors and ran barefoot into the grass. She described effortlessly how it had felt to twirl and twirl in the rain until she had managed to knock herself off her equilibrium, sending her falling into a large puddle of mud just as Breha had come rushing to the door.
The young princess had expected to be scolded; the dress had surely been ruined and her braided hair hung messily against her shoulders. But instead of a scolding, Breha joined Leia in the garden, and the two of them played in the summer rain. Breha and Leia were Queen and Princess of Alderaan respectively, but in that moment, they were simply mother and daughter.
Han swore he could practically feel the palpable excitement from his girlfriend’s radiant face, beaming at the memory. That was how they had moved onto the discussion of braids.
Alderaanian braids signified many things - status, age, wealth, relationships, and Leia had worn her hair in braids ever since she were a young girl. Of course, her braids would signify royalty and wealth, but as she had gotten older they had changed with what she had felt her purpose in life had become. Breha would often twist her hair into elegant and sophisticated buns as she spoke of Leia’s birth mother, Padmé. She had wanted to ensure that Leia would know of her heritage, of the Naberrie line - of Naboo.
Han, who didn’t have the slightest interest in hairstyles or in anything to do with personal grooming, had been listening though the technical terms were pretty overwhelming.
“All you need to know,” Leia laughs, her soft chuckle swirling the red wine in her glass gently as she tilts her head up to look at Han as she lays against his chest. “Is that a braid isn’t just a braid. Depending on the style, the way it’s woven into the hair, they can make several statements. Braids can show significant power, they can show familiarity in the company being kept that day, they can show wealth, knowledge, age and relationship status if required,” she says, ending her sentence with a curt nod. “But the one thing that all styles have in common, is that they would typically only be let down by the person wearing them.”
Cocking an eyebrow, Han suddenly found his interest a little more piqued. “Typically? There’s exceptions to this rule? Doesn’t seem like there’s much room for exceptions in your life, Princess,” he smirks - his trademark expression.
“I have plenty of room for exceptions, I just don’t find many of them favourable. But yes, there are. The biggest of all would be to have somebody else take them down for you,” she explains, sitting up slightly. It was easier, and much more fun to be able to see the curiosity crossing Han’s face this way. “That’s considered one of the most intimate acts of all.”
“I’m pretty sure we’ve been much more intimate than me pulling a few pins from your hair,” Han retorts with a sly grin, before lifting the glass to his mouth to take a pretty generous gulp of his wine at the mere thought.
“It’s much more than physical, Han. It’s letting somebody see you for who you truly are. It’s letting your boundaries down and inviting somebody in. It’s commitment, it’s everlasting,” she explains, without even a slight sign of a smile.
“You never let me take your braids down,” he states, raising his eyebrow as he lowers his wine glass, setting it on the side of the sofa.
“Han,” Leia scoffs a little, sitting up on the sofa so that she can look at the smuggler. “You’re usually asleep by the time I get to take my braids out.” Truthfully, she didn’t know where their relationship was heading. He was a smuggler who had always done what he wanted, when he wanted and gone wherever he wanted. She couldn’t expect him to give up his nomad lifestyle for her, and she wouldn’t necessarily ask him too, either.
“Well, what about letting me put your braids in?” He asks, and Leia immediately softens as she laughs and finishes her wine, prompting Han to get up to retrieve the bottle to top up their glasses. “What’s so funny, Princess? Don’t think a scoundrel like me is capable?” He asks with a challenging lilt to his voice.
“Well, it’s just that.... well, no,” Leia admits, shaking her head. “Tinkering with those parts for the falcon? That I can imagine you doing - but braiding hair? Come on, Han, it’s not exactly a skill that’s in your repertoire. Besides, that would mean I would have to take these braids down for you, and we aren’t in a position to do that just yet,” she explains with a light shrug of her shoulders.
“Easy,” Han says defiantly as he rubs his hands together. “I’ll just sit behind you, and you can sit here,” he nods, standing up to move so that she could scoot over to the other seat.
“Han,” Leia laughs, rolling her eyes. She isn’t sure that this is a conversation that Han would ever want to have. Their relationship felt like it had fallen haphazardly into their laps - they hadn’t discussed it and things had often been rocky due to their equally stubborn personalities. But she looks to him, and he’s gesticulating with his hands for her to move, so she does.
She quickly removes her braids - he’s seen her with her hair down before. The first time had been in the Endor Forest and he had been shocked by the sheer length of her hair. When it had been collected into her buns of her braided crowns, it hadn’t looked half as long as it did now that it was let down. Han spent most of the evening running his fingers through the ends of her hair and it had become one of her favourite sensations.
Leia had expected a lot of hair tugging and pulling. Clumsy and reckless were Han’s middle names, but as soon as he starts working on her hair, she’s surprised to find that he’s gentle. His fingers feel caring and careful - precise. If she were to close her eyes, she wouldn’t be able to tell whether it was Han or one of the handmaidens who used to do her hair at the palace.
He’s finished within minutes, and immediately has his hands on his hips, staring at Leia with his signature smirk. “Well? What do you think, your highness?”
She stands and moves over to the fresher, turning on the light so that she could see what she was doing. “I’ve got to say - that was a lot less painful than I imagined,” she says, before she positions herself in the mirror.
Her breath hitches in her chest when she sees it. The intricate and delicate pattern of her hair, collecting on one side of her neck. There’s not a strand of hair out of place, and Leia doesn’t know how he knows about this, or how he learnt to do this but Han Solo has managed to leave Leia speechless.
“This is...” she says, before she turns to leave the fresher, stopping in her tracks as she reaches the doorway. Her hand steadies herself as her eyes fall upon Han, who is kneeling in the middle of the floor with something small and sparkling pinched between his thumb and index finger.
“An engagement braid,” Han nods, with the biggest grin crossing his face. If he could frame the look of stunned shock, delight and confusion all etched into Leia’s face at one time, he could. “So, whaddya say, Princess? Fancy spending the rest of your life with me?”
Leia steps closer to Han, her hand still covering her mouth which had dropped open the minute she had seen Han down on one knee. “How did you know how to do that? Where did you..” she asks, but she’s promptly cut off.
“The traditional answer is yes or no,” He reminds her with a smirk. There’s great pleasure to be taken every time he manages to leave Leia speechless, but even this time, he feels like he’s outdone himself. “What’s it gonna be?”
The princess blinks and then nods her head as she walks towards him, with tears springing to her eyes as she holds out her hand to him, allowing him to slip the ring onto her finger. She leans down with a bright smile and she’s nodding enthusiastically as she wraps her arms around his neck tightly. “Oh, Han. Of course I will!”
Han quickly stands up, hoisting Leia into his arms before he kisses her happily. “A good man never reveals his secrets,” he mumbles against her lips, in answer to her earlier questions.
When she finally pulls back to look at Han, she can’t help the laugh that escapes her lips. “I told you I liked good men.”
Later that night, she would allow Han to take her braids down.