Work Text:
They’ve been floating through space for some time now, between jobs and practically bored out of their minds. Charles has retreated to his room, muttering something about ‘sleeping while he can’. Carlos seems to have taken it upon himself to reorganise their weapons room—well, it’s less of a room and more a closet, with how small it is.
Lando’s decided to leave them both to it, choosing instead to sit in the cockpit and stare aimlessly out of the viewport.
He really doesn’t know what to do. They can’t stay out here forever; it won’t be long before they run out of fuel—or rations. Still, they have no jobs to do, nowhere really to go in their free time. Or at least nowhere nearby.
They could go back to Tatooine; pester Oscar until something comes up—or until Mark kicks them out. Whichever comes first, probably the latter.
But, Lando doesn’t know how long they’d be there and he’s not sure he can be around Oscar for that long without doing something recklessly stupid. The mechanic always looks so unfairly good under the Tatooine suns and wielding a spanner or whatever.
He lets out a sigh and kicks off the dash. His chair turns slowly. There’s other people he can reach out to in his boredom but they’re all towards the coreworlds and he’s not even sure if they’d want to see him. He wonders if Carlos or Charles have people they can reach out to.
Oh, who is he kidding? Carlos used to be Imperial before Lando met him and Charles is a Jedi survivor—all his friends are probably dead.
He sighs again and lets his head loll back against the headrest.
“This is so boring.” He groans, dragging out the vowels. He spins his chair again, rolling his eyes, dramatically.
If he was on Tatooine, Oscar would tell him to do something productive. Or go for a walk.
He pushes the thought aside. He can’t exactly ‘go for a walk’ and Carlos is already organising the weapons. What’s he supposed to do? Organise the rations?
No, Oscar, you don’t understand. There’s nothing to do.
Oscar would roll his eyes at him for that then go back to fixing whatever machine he’s been tasked with.
Lando can’t help but smile at the thought. Oscar would have a lot of opinions on his dramatic complaints. But they’re too far from Tatooine. He doubts they have enough fuel to get all the way to the Outer Rim.
He holds back another sigh of annoyance. Maybe he should just go pester Carlos. Brainstorm some ideas.
A flashing of one of the instruments in front of him catches his attention and he sits up. His feet fall to the floor and he leans forward in his chair. The flashing red light illuminates his face as he stares at it.
Who could be calling at this hour?
He glances back into the hallway. His companions still go about their business. Lando hesitates before he reaches out and answers the call.
It blinks then a blue hologram appears. Lando leans back and stares at it. That’s the last person he expected to see today.
“Lando? Lando.”
George Russell stares back at him, his Senatorial robes are simple but elegant, shimmering brightly with the blue hologram. His blonde hair is styled neatly and a silver pin tucks some of it back behind his ear.
“George?” Lando sits back in his chair, with a frown, “This is a… surprise..?”
George raises an amused eyebrow; his hands come forward to clasp together in front of him.
“Nice to know you’re happy to see me.” He remarks. Lando rolls his eyes.
“You never call. You’re always busy with your Senate.” He smirks.
George shakes his head, “So, you didn’t miss me?”
Lando leans back even more and props his feet up on the copilot’s chair.
“I missed Alex.” Lando grins, “You with him?”
George releases a short, breathy laugh, “He’s at home. We’re on Naboo.”
“How have you been?” He asks next.
Lando shrugs, “Alright. We’re kind of between jobs at the moment so I'm a bit bored.”
‘Bit’ is more of an understatement.
“You could… come visit us, y’know.” George suggests, “It’s been a while since we’ve all seen each other.”
Lando frowns, “You want to meet up? Why?”
“Like I said, it’s been a while.”
“There’s no ulterior motive?” Lando raises his eyebrows, smiling slightly, “You’re not trying to get me to do something for your… friends.”
George says nothing. Lando chuckles, “Of course.”
“Are you coming or not?”
Lando pouts, dramatically, pretending to think hard about the idea. George rolls his eyes and watches on with a small smile.
“Just get down here.” He pushes, “I know you probably want to. It’s been years since we’ve seen you. And, you said yourself, you’re bored in between jobs.”
Lando bites back a grin.
“Alright.” He gives in, “I’ll double check with Carlos and Charles but… why not?”
George nods in approval, “Sounds good. Get here soon, yeah?”
“You not too busy?” Lando asks, leaning forward.
George shoots him a look. Lando raises his eyebrows and shakes his head before ending the call. The cockpit lights dim and the space falls quiet again.
Well, guess that’s the plan, then.
Lando blinks then gets to his feet. Right, time to organise. Unfortunately, seeing Oscar’ll have to wait. A weird pang appears in his chest at that thought but he’s quick to dismiss it. He disappears into the hallway, heading further into the ship to inform his company of the new plan.
***
It doesn’t take long to get to Naboo through hyperspace, though it turns out they’re lower on fuel than Lando initially thought so they really didn’t have enough to go anywhere else, to be honest. Thankfully, it’s enough to get by and soon enough Carlos and him are guiding the McLaren towards Naboo’s capital of Theed.
The landscape never ceases to amaze Lando whenever they fly over. A small smile graces his lips as he peers down to look at the stone buildings and beautiful flora that decorates the architecture. The Theed Palace only adds to the city's beauty, its green, domed roofing shimmers in the beating-down sun. The waterfall out the back of the palace only adds to its beauty.
Carlos helps guide the ship away from the capital and towards the villas a couple miles away. There’s a large space to land outside the Russell-Albon residence, and they lower the ship down beside the large villa.
Lando remembers spending summers in this place. When he was a teen he’d visit George and Alex here at least once a year. It always awed him how gorgeous the planet is—their villa in the Lake Country is even prettier.
“It’s been ages since we’ve seen George and Alex.” Charles remarks as they make their way out of the ship. A small smile graces the former-Jedi’s face as he looks at the climbing flowers beside the villa entrance.
“I hope Alex has cooked something.” Carlos adds and Lando nods in agreement.
“Yeah. I’m starving.”
The three of them descend the ramp and Lando can’t help smiling too when he spots who greets them.
George is no longer in his Senate Outfit, now wearing a simple pair of slacks and a shirt. Beside him, Alex is practically bouncing on his toes. He moves forward first, pulling Lando into a hug, as George greets the other two.
“It’s so good to see you again.” Alex whispers in his ear, his happiness clear in his voice. Gods, Lando has missed him.
He grins in return, “Good to see you too, mate!”
They pull apart. Alex greets Carlos next and George comes over and wraps an arm around Lando’s shoulders. Lando turns his grin to him and can’t help but roll in his eyes at the mischievous sparkle in his friend’s eyes.
“Do you get shorter every time we see you?” George asks. Lando elbows him away and George laughs loudly.
“Good to see you too, Lando.”
“You’re such a dick.” Lando chuckles.
“Come inside!” Alex beckons, “I cooked.”
“Yes! Vamos!” Carlos cheers, leading the way through the open double doors. The others all follow shortly behind, Lando and George pulling up the rear. The smuggler glances up at the holo-pictures as they pass. His own face looks back at him on occasion, fond memories washing over him. Good times.
He slows beside one. It’s a field trip to Spira—a tropical planet covered in beaches and owned mansions. He watches himself chase Alex down the seafront, sand in his curls, while George laughs at the edge of the frame. He smiles, watching the movement loop over and over. He remembers that day, smooth sand and rolling oceans. He’s not been since that trip but the sand reminds him of Tatooine.
Tatooine is so different from Spira. On Tatooine, the winds are harsh and the sand is sharp. The other difference is that Spira doesn’t have Oscar.
He turns away and follows after the disappearing backs of his friends. Lunch is already spread out across the dining room table and almost immediately the five of them crowd around and begin loading their plates. Alex’s food is well-known. At least among their friends. He always pulls together a delicious meal, even if it’s last minute. Lando’s mouth waters at the sight. The room fills with conversation as they eat, accompanied by praise about the food that makes Alex flush deeply.
As their plates begin to empty, the conversations start to die away.
“So,” Charles lightly wipes the corners of his mouth with a napkin, “what’s this really about, then?”
Carlos hums in agreement, crossing his arms across his chest and leaning back in his chair. Lando smirks slightly at the gesture. It’s hard to lie when Carlos looks at you like that. George and Alex exchange a look.
“We need to ask you something.” George begins.
The McLaren crew share uncertain looks. This’ll be good, Lando thinks. He’s all too familiar with debts, having been in a few himself. He has a few people in debt to him too—no smuggler doesn’t. Being in debt to friends is different though. It’s more like a favour. Lando frowns briefly.
“We’re having trouble transporting through the Outer Rim.” George says, “Our shipments keep getting disrupted, either by criminals or the Empire. It’s delaying important resources and rations from reaching worlds who desperately need them.”
“Don’t you have any groups out there who can help?” Carlos asks.
“Or other allies?” Charles adds.
“We had a few out there.” Alex admits, “But Guanyu, Fred and Mick recently joined the Massassi Group and our other contact is based mostly in the Lothal Sector. We were hoping you could help us out?”
Carlos exhales slowly and Charles frowns. Helping the Rebellion? This really is turning out to be a ‘favour’ situation.
Lando looks away from his friends and to the mushrooms shoved into the corner of his plate. This isn’t the first time George and Alex have asked him about helping them out. He’s denied them in the past, when it was just him and he didn’t want to get involved in the Empire. Instead, he just hid in the Outer Rim—at least until he met Oscar and became a bit more open with the idea of making friends again.
Alex had asked once, in a fit of anger, whether it was because of the actions of the Rebellion, that he refused to help him out. Lando had hesitated in replying. He didn’t have an answer to that, and he’s felt guilty about it ever since.
After Carlos and Charles joined him, George and Alex hadn’t mentioned helping the Rebellion. A part of Lando wondered whether it was because of his crew’s history with the Empire.
He should’ve known it would only be a matter of time before the question came up again.
He doesn’t know if he can say no this time. The Empire has been affecting business lately and Lando knows some of those desperate worlds. Helping them out would ease the guilt. He glances over at Charles and Carlos. Charles seems to be contemplating it and Carlos is watching Lando, waiting for his reaction. The pilot raises a questioning eyebrow.
Carlos thinks it’s a decent idea then.
Lando looks back at Charles. He knows the former Jedi’s worries. Charles had watched his family die. He knows how much Charles fears the Empire discovering the truth. Lando furrows his brows for a second; he doesn’t know how well he can protect his friend if something bad happens.
Lando’s eyes flicker away from Charles and he bites back the bitter taste of guilt. He lifts his gaze to George and Alex. Understanding is painted across both their faces but Lando can glimpse the desperation there.
This is serious.
He sighs quietly. Once again he finds himself wondering what Oscar would say. Calm, sensible Oscar. He’d likely say yes, or think of a logical way to help. Smuggling won’t last forever; the Empire’s beginning to spread into the Outer Rim and it’s only so long before it reaches him. Reaches Oscar…
“Charles?” Lando turns back to look at his friend, his mind already part-made up.
The brunette returns his gaze, his brow still scrunched. Charles then looks at Carlos and the pilot nods once.
“What sectors would we be working in?” Charles questions the two politicians, facing them both again.
“We’re looking at the sectors stretching from Savereen to Hutt Space.” Alex tells them.
“You’re aware Savereen is a criminal hotspot, particularly for Crimson Dawn.” Carlos says, raising an eyebrow and looking at them both like they’ve missed something important.
“And Hutt Space is its own explanation.” Charles mumbles under his breath. Carlos snorts quietly.
“Guys,” George sighs, “we know it’s a lot to ask but you’d really help us out. The Rebellion is growing but so is the attention on us. The Empire is increasing its efforts and starting to attack our supply lines. We need smuggling routes and ships that can get through blockades almost undetected.”
“And the McLaren is that ship.” Lando fills in.
“Yes.”
The three share looks again. Carlos seems convinced. Charles looks half-way there. Lando raises an eyebrow at him and nods once. They can do it. If only for a while.
The guilt in his chest starts to ebb away.
It’s what Oscar would do.
“We’ll help.” Lando smiles, “But it’ll start case-by-case.”
Alex and George grin.
“Thanks guys.”
Charles snorts before reaching over and snatching up a macaroon.
“So what’s for dessert?”