thebibliosphere:

swan2swan:

I just realized that Han never knew that Luke got his hand chopped off while he was in carbonite and I don’t know which path I want to follow with this information:

1. Han seeing Luke’s injured hand after the sail barge battle and thinking that Luke has been a robot the whole time

2. Luke shaking his hand with a super-firm grip and Han just thinking “Wow this kid has gotten…absurdly strong.”

3. Luke just pulls off his hand one day and throws it at Han.

4. Luke picks up a spacechicken carcass and crushes it with his bare hand and Han is intimidated

5. Han says “It’s good to see you’re all right” and then Luke says “well, actually…” and pulls off his hand and Han falls over the back of his chair

6. Han says “It’s good to see you’re all right” and everyone gasps and Leia says “Too soon!” and Han is confused and they all just rag on him

7. Han needs a battery and Luke just opens up his hand and pulls out a battery and gives it to him and Han just stares

8. Luke reappears after a mission with all the synthflesh off and Han says “I thought it was easy but you LOST YOUR HAND?” and Luke just says “Oh, no, I lost this before Endor” and Han is hurt and betrayed.

9. Luke keeps making hand puns and limb puns and raising his right hand to high-five Han and Han just never gets it

10. Luke excitedly tells Han as they’re waiting to be taken to the Sarlacc because it’s been a whole year that he’s wanted to tell the guy. 

This is all excellent, but I feel your missing a great opportunity, for Han “My Smart Pretty Mouth Has Gotten Me Slapped More Times Than I Can Count And I Can Count Pretty High” Solo, to be the one making all the “hey Luke could you give me a hand” jokes, because it helps Luke feel normal.

A lot of major shit changes between the time they flee Hoth and they finally reunite. And you can headcanon this before or after the Battle of Endor if you’d like, but Han notices far more than anyone really gives him credit for, and you can already see the title of Jedi weighing Luke down even before he becomes the Luke Skywalker we see in the new canon. People are already treating him differently, people he’s known for years. Sure he was always been that pilot who made that one in a million shot, but now he’s something separate from the Alliance too. He’s something viewed with veneration, and more than a little bit of fear.

And Han would be having none of it. The Kid might have gone off and gotten all Force smart and lost his hand or whatever, but he’s still Luke. He’s still The Kid.

And he needs that. He needs Han endlessly riding his ass like “gee I dunno junior, kinda looks like you’ve got everything in hand”, and elbowing him in the ribs until he cracks. He needs it after battles when he’s sitting there battered and bruised and worn down to the bone staring at the metal digits where his synthetic flesh melted away, and Han who is in the middle of wrapping a bacta patch around a blaster wound says, “I know that didn’t go to plan, but on the other hand you came out all right” and it pulls the tiniest of begrudged smiles to his split lips.

He needs the person who stands back sarcastically applauding amidst the stunned crowd shouting “come on give the guy a hand, no seriously, please, someone give this man a hand, he only has the one.”

(Leia silently despairing in the background is a given)

He needs the person who stands up for him and angrily yells at the senate when they’re asking too much, “he already gave you his right hand, what more do you want?” Because he’s just a kid. No matter how old they grow. And you can pry Han “Holy Shit Someone Needs To Look After These Kids, How Do I Keep Ending Up In These Situations” Solo from my cold cybernetic hands.