━━ CHAPTER TWO / test flight

Poe had once again lost in Dejarik to Eliana, the reigning champion. It always put in a sour mood but it left Eliana flying high when she was called into Leia's office. It wasn't a formal meeting by any means but Eliana always saw Leia as someone far far above her. Leia was a hero in the galaxy and no family heritage would change that.

Her office was clean, sleek. Only containing what she needed and her droid always stood in the corner. Never interrupting, only recording whatever Leia told her to. The droid had made Eliana uneasy at first but now, she mostly forgot she was there unless Leia spoke it. It became a regular part of life.

"How was your test flight?" Leia asked as Eliana sat down across from her. The brunette pulled her leg up to rest underneath the other and settled back.

"Good. The modifications have improved the experience but we're going to need a few more test flights before anyone takes them out into the field," Eliana responded. Leia raised an eyebrow at the assertion. The older woman had assumed that they were field ready. All their maintenance checks had been approved and the mechanics had assured her, "The controls are a little more sensitive than we are used to. It's no fault of the modifications themselves but I found it a little difficult to adjust. So, it would be unwise to use them in the field without the pilots having adjusted beforehand. I nearly knocked into the hangar wall on landing but otherwise, the flights are smoother than before and the change in gravity field feels a lot better. There was less nausea this time." The brunette explained.

Usually, in the older X-Wings, she would still be feeling the after effects of the change in gravity fields but between Poe distracting her and the smoother transitions between gravity, she felt okay. If she stood up too quickly, she knew the nausea would hit her like a truck but that was nothing she hadn't dealt with before.

"Noted," Leia nodded. Eliana smiled. She wasn't sure what else there was to say. She just hoped it could be of some help. Leia glanced over at her holopad and Eliana watched as the cogs whirred in her brain, "Do you miss Coruscant?" That question was not one Eliana had been expecting and she found herself floundering.

Her mouth opened but no words seemed to come out. Nobody had asked her that. Not in the years she'd been with the resistance. Nobody even really knew that she was originally from there. Not everyone liked to talk about their pasts.

"I suppose, sometimes. I miss my friends and watching the sunrise from the roof of our tower block. I miss the Senate and how routine and easy it felt to be in that position. I miss parts of it but, I don't prefer it," Eliana rambled slightly. She knew she was but it was something she hadn't prepared for, "Why?" Leia seemed hesitant for a moment before she sighed.

"An opportunity has opened up to return but if you would rather stay on base, I can allow it," Leia explained. Eliana's head turned slightly and she raised an eyebrow. An opportunity to go back to Coruscant, she would take. It was still her home even if it was a giant shithole.

"What would the op involve?"

"You'd be undercover to try and discover some issues within certain Senators. The connections to the Senate is why I considered you first. You have the background knowledge of the Senate and the planet. You're smart," Leia explained. Eliana nodded and tugged on the jacket around her shoulders. The thought of going to Coruscant filled her heart with an odd sense of joy especially if it meant that return to familiarity.

"If you deem it appropriate, I would be happy to join," Eliana responded. Leia nodded and it was only a few minutes later that they wrapped up the meeting. And Eliana headed back to her bunk. She knew that her bunkmate Maymie would be gone. She was one of the mechanics and would be busy until after Eliana's test flights later in the day.

So she could consider everything that had happened in the day, in peace and quiet. She needed the solace before her test flights. She'd have to readjust to the old X-Wings controls and just the thought of the test flights made her feel exhausted. Being the leader of a Green Squadron and Commander of the Starfighter Corps was good until she had to actually lead them and commit to test flights on days when all she wanted was to sleep.

But she had a few hours before her test flights so a nap was in order. She just hoped she woke up with more of a will to command.

-

The testflights had gone exceptionally well. Almost everyone's time had decreased which meant they were getting faster even without the modifications. The X-Wings all seemed to be in relatively good shape bar from Green-7's repulsorlift not getting enough power so it short-ed itself out on take off but it was an easy fix and sorted. And now they were free.

So Eliana took the opportunity to go straight to the mess hall for food. She was exhausted and starving. Her attempt at a nap turned into entertaining Nettie and Dow, two of her Squadron pilots and her closest friends on base. They wanted to know all about the new X-Wing and despite her attempts to dissuade them, they eventually got it out of her.

But now, they were sitting in the mess hall with a tray of food and Eliana still found herself talking about the new X-Wing. She was raving about the smoothness of the controls and being in the old ones definitely gave her a new perspective. The controls were still sensitive with the new modifications but everything else was so much better.

The nausea was clawing at the side of Eliana's eyes and despite how ravenously hungry she was, she was worried that would throw it all up. Not that it stopped her eating. She needed to. The nausea aside, even just how smooth the ship was flying through the air was different. Not massively but still noticeable. It was an odd change but a good one if all the X-Wings were given the same modifications.

"You are so lucky to have been given first rights," Nettie mumbled before she shovelled more of the mash into her mouth. Eliana rolled her eyes and swallowed down what she was already eating, gently shaking her head.

"I was but would you rather it be me or Dameron?" Eliana asked, cocking an eyebrow. Dow grimaced at the thought, "His ego would be so much worse. At least, you get the inside scoop from me." There was a little shrug at the end and Dow nodded in agreement. Nettie shrugged and glanced over. Poe had just come in with a few of his pilots from his squadron and he looked smug. Though he always did, he looked particularly smug that day.

"How are things with Dameron?" Nettie asked. Eliana cocked an eyebrow, practically glaring the woman down, "I saw you talking after your test flight this morning," She added, throwing her hands up in mock surrender. Eliana rolled her eyes and continued to eat, shaking her head slightly.

"Everything is fine. He just wanted to know how the flight went. So, we talked about it," Eliana shrugged. Dow glanced at Poe - who was getting suspiciously close to the trio - before he looked back at Eliana.

"Apparently you went into the changing rooms together. That's a lot more than talking," Dow mumbled. There was no malice in his tone but the implication alone made Eliana curl up inside. Poe was attractive but he was a player, across every gender. She would not become another pilot he fucked. He was making his way through the Resistance nicely without adding her name to the list.

"Yeah and he sat outside the cubicle like a good boy and we talked about the flights. If I hear one more rumour that we fucked..." Eliana left it as an empty threat. Though that was mainly because Poe appeared and sat down beside her. He didn't have his food with him, he just came to brag.

"Is the idea of fucking me that bad?" He asked. Eliana rolled her eyes and shoved some more food into her mouth.

"What's got you looking more smug than usual?" Nettie asked. Her fingers running through her pastel pink hair. Nettie wouldn't admit it but she had always had a slight infatuation with Poe. Nothing real, nothing serious but he made her nervous. Very nervous. He was unattainable and she had one of those crushes that if they were even reciprocated, she would be disgusted by it. Eliana found it vaguely amusing to watch her squirm when he was around.

"I had a meeting with Organa before our test flight," Poe shrugged. Eliana cocked her head towards him, silently asking him what it was about, "She's sending me on an important op." That sent alarm bells ringing in her head. There was only one important op that Leia had mentioned and that was Coruscant.

"Can't be that important if you're on it," Eliana snapped as she turned back to her food. Dow snorted at that and Nettie hid her face and amusement before her hand. Poe glared at Eliana before he shuffled closer to her on the bench.

"Don't be so bitter. You'll get the next one," His voice lowered, practically whispering into her ear. And it happened again. Her stomach turned in that nervous, happy way and her whole body lighting on fire. His breath was so close to her face, his lips so close to her neck. But she shut those thoughts down instantly.

However, before she could snap back at him, Poe had stood up and sauntered off to get his food. Eliana took a deep breath and gently shook her head. It was ridiculous.

"Can you really blame us for thinking you're fucking when you act like that?" Dow asked and Eliana picked up her fruit from her tray and threw it at him. He narrowly dodged it and they both watched as it slapped against the floor.

"We aren't fucking, he is just a raging flirt," Eliana shrugged. Dow hummed in response and the brunette rolled her eyes, eating the rest of her dinner.

-

NOTE; it's simply them your honour, i love poe and eliana so much and i literally got this fic idea like two days ago, simply them. also hate how i wrote leia in this chapter but idk how to write her so we will ignore, hope u enjoyed and thank u all for reading <3