'Supposed to' is not really a set of words that apply to the Imperial Princess. Words that do apply to the Imperial Princess: 'startled', 'eeping', 'falling flat on her ass'.

Also: 'smoking hot', 'a total babe', 'somewhat shorter than she looks in the holos'.

Leia yelps - tries to stumble back before they collide - fails, and then falls on the other girl instead, catching herself on her outstretched palms, on either side of the girls' torso.

Nice tits.

"...Hi there."

Oh no.

" - Hi."

"So not that I mind the view or anything, but do you think you could move? Or at least let us roll over, the guards'll be very cranky if they catch up and you still have me pinned."

" - Sorry!"

This dress is not made for scrambling to your feet in. Leia forgets that for exactly long enough to end up falling over - to the side at least, so she doesn't have the other girl pinned.

This plausibly falls under the heading of 'allowing them to roll over.'

Dalia takes the opportunity to get on top of the other girl she so nicely provided.

"That's better," she says. "So, what's your name?"

Leia has absolutely no reason to be nervous.

So she won't be. Simple.

"Leia Organa, Princess of Alderaan and aide to Senator Bail Organa," she says as haughtily as she can.

"...What's your name?"

"Dalia Palpatine, Imperial Princess. Nice to meet you, Leia."

Her brain short circuits. That's the only excuse for what she says next.

" - I thought you were taller."

"It's a rider on all the contracts for the holovid directors if they want to use my character. They have to make me look tall."

She startles a bit, then snorts despite herself. "And hire only the prettiest actresses?"

She possibly shouldn't flirt with anyone from the evil family of evil, but also Leia's pretty sure that's the type of thing suave Rebel spies do, so, therefore...

"Personally vetted and approved by me."

"You must keep busy, then."

(For Leia's entire childhood, it was illegal to show people defying the Empire as anything other than ugly buffoons (and you needed special permission and quite a lot of vetting to show even that much). And then, very shortly after she hit puberty, the codes were relaxed enough to allow plots where Imperial agents - many of them with a coincidental resemblance to an adult version of the Imperial Princess, and increasingly recently the character of the Princess herself - do things like investigate Rebel cells and subvert or capture very attractive Rebels. Still requiring permission and vetting, of course, but they're popular enough more directors are willing to go for it.)

(Leia is not the kind of girl who watches silly romance action flicks, but she'd been a bit desperate for any portrayal of people who could recognize the Empire as wrong.)

"It's important work, you know. And I personally find it very... fulfilling."

"Are you who I have to thank for all those spy holos?"

"Are you a fan?" she asks excitedly. "Which ones're your favorites- I think Steyr's been doing some good work lately but of course Val Leka is practically a classic by now-"

The enthusiasm is a little bit contagious, maybe.

She's got a lot of fondness for the classics, of course Val Leka was possibly her first ever media crush, but her current favorites really are Steyr's work - especially the holos that're more about political intrigue or seducing enemies than about madcap races to stop Evil Rebel Plots. Leia's not that much of an action fan, honestly. Even if Val Leka is very hot with a blaster in her hands. 

(...Is Dalia ever going to let her up. Leia isn't going to mention that because she's pretty sure this is a good angle to figure out who's on the Empire's censorship committees - which, all that type of stuff is obnoxiously hard to find out, even if it's not really classified - and she doesn't want to stop Dalia from rambling. Totally just for information gathering purposes.)

Dalia seems to only be making herself more comfortable on top of Leia over the course of her rambles. Which she's happy to continue more or less indefinitely. (She talks like she's in charge of the censorship committees herself. And refers to the other members by first name only.)

(Leia can get a lot with just a first name and a gender.)

She'd been coming back from a message delivery with no reply, so she's not exactly in a rush, but, her dad's going to be looking for her eventually... Also she's going to need to use the bathroom eventually.

Leia squirms a little bit a pretty good and honestly probably too long way into the conversation, then says, "Oh - sorry, just realized I need to comm the Senator to let him know that I've been held up."

"Oh, I can do that for you," she offers. "Alderaan office, right?"

"Ah, yeah, that's right."

She pulls out her comm and punches in the code. "This is Princess Palpatine. Is Senator Organa available?"

"Yes, Your Highness," comes the crisp voice of one of the Senator's secretaries. "I'll patch you through now."

There's a moment of silence, then an older man's voice comes on the line. "Your Highness," he says, "How may I be of service?"

"Hello, Senator. I just wanted to let you know that I ran into your daughter in the hall," she winks at Leia, "and her return will be delayed by our conversation."

"Thank you for the update, Your Highness." 

"You're welcome!" she chirps. "Don't worry, I'll keep her safe."

"Thank you, Your Highness. Though, it would set an old man's heart at ease if you returned her by dinner," he says, tone laced with a gentle humor. (Only Leia or his wife would be able to say if he's worried.)

"I'll see what I can do. For the sake of your old man's heart. Until then." She ends the call.

"Thanks," Leia says, in the tone of someone who has no idea if she's been done a favor or not.

"You're welcome," Dalia says. She also tries out the 'predatory smile' her mom's been having her practice.

She raises an eyebrow. "Will you let me up now?" she asks.

Siiiiiiggggghhhhhh.

"If you insist."

Hmmmm...

"I do."

Dalia hops to her feet and offers Leia a hand up.

She smiles and takes Dalia's hand. She doesn't let go first. 

And, regally: "Thank you."

Oh, she's much better at 'regal' than 'predatory'.

"It is the obligation of the ruler to raise up the worthy among her subjects."

"All subjects are worthy; a queen serves every last one of her people."

(Leia is physically incapable of keeping her mouth shut, sometimes. Only sometimes.)

"Alas, I am only mortal, so I need to pick and choose."

"Some forms of service are more efficient than others."

Giggle.

"There's a lot of pretty girls in the galaxy, though. And if you focus too much on efficiency you lose the fun."

- Wait when did the topic change -

Leia blushes. Just a little.

Heeee.

"You're cute," Dalia informs her.

"Ah - thank you." Her expression is a little bit stunned.

Manners, Leia, they exist. She can almost hear her aunt chiding her to compliment her peers in turn, but you shouldn't simply repeat their words -

"You're hot," she blurts out.

"Mhm!" she agrees. "I'm glad you noticed."

"It's very hard not to."

"Good. I've been practicing."

"Seems like a useful skill to have."

"That's what Mom said. Of course, I mostly enjoy it for its own sake."

Ew Emperor Palpatine is not allowed to notice sexuality exists as a concept.

"You're talented at it. I mostly only manage cute, respectable, or regal."

"I can give you tips if you want."

Giggle. "If it wouldn't be a burden."

"Not at all. There's lots of time before dinner."

"Then I'd like tips."

"Then it's time for shopping!"

" - Shopping isn't usually my thing."

"It's fine, I'm buying. All you have to do is try stuff on."

She presses the button on her comm to page a handmaiden, non-urgent, and lets them know she needs transport.

"That's the part I'm bad at!"

"Good place to start with tips, then."

She makes a dubious face.

"Trust me! It'll be fun."

"...Okay."

Eeeee! Yay!

She grabs Leia's hand. "Come on, the speeder's already being warmed up."

She smiles despite herself. "Your staff are efficient."

"You either learn to be efficient quick or you don't last long in the Imperial household. Mom's a real stickler for that with the servants."

"Ah."

That seems... Like yet another unpleasant thing here.

"Come on, come on." She tugs Leia onward to the nearest bank of turbolifts.

"Hey, I can't move quickly in this dress - "

She lets herself be tugged, though. At an (all too slow) pace that won't interfere with the obnoxiousness that is this year's court fashion in the bloc including Alderaan.

...Maybe she can convince the Imperial Princess of the fashionable value of clothes you could, say, theoretically get into a fight or tumble around in without any clothing-related mishaps. Though aligning herself with the Imperial family's bloc's fashion would be the obnoxious sort of thing people think is a statement.

Maybe Papa will let her do it anyways. Just in the interest of Leia having more protective clothes, given her profile.

"Do you need me to carry you?" she asks while they wait for the lift.

"That'd be undignified," she says, primly.

"It'd be fun, though. No one else is gonna be at the landing pad..."

...Hm.

"Only if you promise our first stop is for clothes I can move in."

"Deal!"

"Alright then."

"Plan to just sweep me off my feet, then?"

"Got it in one."

And Dalia scoops her up just as the lift arrives.

Eeep! (She does not shriek, but, well, she does make a small surprised noise and then starts giggling.)

Ehehe. She enters the lift and spins around so Leia can reach the panel.

"Hit five, three, then thirty-seven," she tells her passenger.

That takes a small bit of adjusting her balance - she does so. "I haven't used this landing pad before."

(There's a vague sense outside the inertial dampers that the lift is moving much more quickly than usual.)

"That's because it's my personal landing pad."

(She should commit the code to memory, then...)

"A convenient thing to have."

"Being the Imperial Princess has its perks."

"At least a few."

Giggle.

They arrive at the appropriate floor and the lift doors open, revealing that among the other perks of being an Imperial Princess is a shiny new model sporty airspeeder.

Leia's opinion on speeders is mostly that 'does it go the direction you're pointing it?' is the main important question. She doesn't look more than briefly at the airspeeder, evaluating it and finding it serviceable before her gaze goes to the rest of the platform in a quick scan - establishing to herself where they are in relation to the rest of the Senate building, mostly.

(It's a cleverly tucked-away alcove that's not visible from most exterior angles.)

Dalia carries Leia over to the speeder and sets her gently down on her feet before opening the door for her. "Your Highness."

"Thank you, Your Highness." She slides into the seat and buckles herself in.

She skips around to the other side and hops in the driver's seat.

And then they're off. Dalia is a very fast driver. (If Leia is paying attention, she might notice they've picked up a couple discreet tails.)

She doesn't mind the fast driving! (She's no longer allowed to drive herself places given she drives like this, too, just with notably less finesse.)

(She intentionally checks for her own tails, and spots some of Dalia's on that scan. Leia has the sneaking suspicion she's going to need to apologize to the Alderaanian delegation's security after dinner today. Suddenly needing to coordinate with the Imperial family's personal security sounds like it's rarely fun.)

(...Dalia's probably going to keep talking to Leia for a while. Leia should arrange a bonus for her security staff, maybe run another round of hiring by her father...)

She tries not to laugh too much while Dalia's driving, though - there's efficient (which is what Leia's driving is, dad), and then there's reckless, and she doesn't want to encourage too much of the latter. Really, she doesn't.

"Where are we going first?"

"Madam Jessin's, it's this boutique off CoreStar Plaza. They mostly do off-the-rack, but they've got the best selection when you're trying to put a new look together, then you can go other places to get the tailored stuff."

"Stuff that's easy to move in almost never needs to be fitted, anyways," she says with a shrug. Then she pauses. "Unless you're trying to add a hidden holster or something, sometimes..."

"Or a sheathe for a knife."

"That's a bit easier to hide under a loose skirt, though."

"Or," she holds up her arm and twists her wrist in a certain way-

And a slender stiletto pops out of her jacket sleeve and into her hand. "Ta-da!"

She makes a very interested noise. "Clever," she says, then gestures to her own bare arms. "Unfortunately..."

"So you want to look at tops with sleeves first?"

"And bottoms with good legs." Her gaze flicks down Dalia's body.

"Oh, she can make innuendos too!"

"No idea what you're talking about," she says with a smirk.

"Maybe I have more education to do, then."

"On how Princesses speak in the Imperial Palace?"

"On the explication of your implications."

"And what would that teaching look like?"

"Well... First I'd take you out somewhere we can spend time talking in private, maybe something that expands your horizons a bit. Buy you something pretty to keep me in your mind. Invite you to something else, maybe a social function, deepen our connection... Then take you back to my rooms."

Blush!

"Well," she says musingly, trying to play it cool, "You'll need to convince me at each step that the next will be worth my time..."

"That's true. But each step builds on the one before it, so it's not like I'm starting from scratch each time."

"The threshold gets much higher, though."

"That's what you think from down here."

"We'll see."

"So we shall."

She tucks the speeder into a neat landing, and goes to open Leia's door.

She gets out, looking around.

It's one of the busier areas of Coruscant, close enough to the palace and high enough that it's also populated by the respectable class of criminals, the ones that mug you from behind a desk with a notarized affidavit rather than in a back alley with a stained vibroblade.

Dalia escorts Leia to their target store with a broad smile.

(She likes the ones with blades better, honestly. No one gets annoyed if she shoots them.)

She glances in the windows, and: "It does look like they have a lot of athletic clothes..."

"Leia." Dalia has a very serious face on. "We're here to make you look hot, not just find something you can move in."

"Finding me something I can move, hide a blaster, and look hot in might impress me, though," she teases.

"There's more to life than High Core dresses and sportswear!"

"That I can also wear to work?"

"Depends how conservative your father is about his daughter's attire."

"I need to match the rest of the delegation, but be subtly set apart as the heir of Alderaan and my father's likely successor, without seeming too young or desperate for attention."

"And the delegation's style is very closely dictated by the current fashion, following or intentionally subverting it as appropriate."

"I can work with that," she says.

"I look forward to it."

Then into the shop.

Dalia cracks her knuckles and gets to work.

It's much easier to find casual clothes that fit Leia's requirements, of course - but she carries herself well, and it'd be difficult to make her anything other than hot.

She seems to have a bit of a disdain for showing skin, though, gravitating towards looser, more covering outfits.

Showing skin and tight clothes are hot, though.

That's okay, Dalia will rise to the challenge. Maybe they can accessorize. Belts, hats, scarves..

No hats. Her hair is an Alderaanian royal woman's pride; it'd be shameful to cover it like that.

She can be convinced on belts and scarves, though (and she has very many opinions on hair accessories that highlight but do not hide her hair).

No hats, then. But there's hair sticks and pins and barrettes and chains- They'll have to visit a secondary shop. This calls for a specialist purveyor.

The best accessories do - and Leia can give Dalia some help with her hair, even. Repay the favor.

They can get matching designs!!

They'll have to pick clothes that are in harmony, then - your hair is part of you, and is integral to your entire presentation.

Oh no, that means more shopping they will definitely have to abort the whole endeavor haha just kidding Dalia already knows how to match the rest of their outfits.

Dalia doesn't seem the kind to mind more shopping, anyways.

It's fun! Leia's having at least a little bit of fun, too, she can tell.

Maybe more than a little.

That's good.

Grin. Then, with a smirk (trying very hard to cover up her nerves): "You know... There's a lot of social occasions where it'd be very rude for me to not wear gifts you've given me, even if they'd be otherwise not part of the professional dress code... Especially if I was there by your invitation."

"It's my seventeenth birthday next week," she says slyly. "I'm having a party. Do you want to come?"

" - Oh!"

That's not a bad 'oh,' but: "Ah, Empire Day, right? - That's my birthday, too, though I was just going to have a nice breakfast with my dad and a holocall with my mom - "

"But I'd love to come, especially if the timing works out."

"It's an evening party. Evening and night."

"Perfect."

"That's the plan."

She laughs. "My assistants might not find having only a week to put together an imperial birthday gift very perfect, though."

"Tell them I said you wearing the outfit I picked for you would be gift enough."

"It'd be a matter of professional pride to go beyond that, I bet, since it's a minimum expectation. Though, if there's something I can give you personally..."

She could strip out of the outfit Dalia picked.

"How about a kiss?" she suggests.

(Shiver.)

"A fairy-tale sort of gift," she teases, to try to disguise the way her heartbeat is fluttering.

"You only get to invite another princess to your seventeenth birthday once."

"I'd have thought you could have every princess in the galaxy at your parties if you wanted."

"But then I'd be too busy kissing them all to do anything else."

Giggle. "Maybe."

"Besides, I think it's better to personally vet all the princesses one is going to invite to their parties. There are some real boors out there, a girl's gotta be careful."

"I'm glad I met your standards, then," she says, tone dry.

"You should be! They're very exacting and high quality. Definitely an accurate assessment of a princess's worth."

"Ah-huh." She doesn't sound entirely convinced.

"Of course, if you'd like corroboration immediately, we can skip waiting for the party and go back to my rooms now for the complete multi-point inspection."

"It'll be a better birthday gift if it's a first kiss, you know."

She sticks her tongue out.

"I won't tell if you don't."

Smirk.

"An impressive first kiss is what I want for my birthday, though, and I expect punctuality there."

"Should we make it a sleepover the night before then? Stay up til midnight together?"

She laughs. "As long as you don't mind me ducking out to meet my dad for breakfast."

"There's lots of time between midnight and breakfast."

"Several hours, even."

"Then it's a date?"

She shouldn't agree to dating the Imperial Princess just like that -

"It is."

"Excellent."

Heeeee.

"You're cute."

"So're you. That's an important point on the princess grading scale, you know."

"What are the major points?"

"That," she says, "would be telling."

"I don't get to know how I'm being graded, then?"

"If you did, you might try to game the system. Can't have that."

"Wouldn't that just be self improvement?"

"A balanced and healthy arc of personal growth without regard for her stature is also an important princess metric," Dalia says virtuously.

"And how am I supposed to grow if I don't know my goals?"

"You set them for yourself."

Grin. "Something I'm also good at."

"You're multi-talented."

"I've worked hard for it."

"I can tell."

"Do you wanna go out somewhere else between now and the sleepover?"

"Definitely."

"How about a movie?"

"Only if it's something exciting."

"Like an advance screening of Star Princess 2?"

"Just like that."

"Luckily, that is entirely within my power to arrange."

"What day, then?"

"Day after tomorrow, let's say."

Hum. "The evening works for me, then."

"Great! I'll send a note with more details when I have them."

"Thanks."

Bright grin.

Grin!

On to finish up shopping, then? (Dinnertime is approaching...)

Yep. There's just a few last pieces to pick up, and then she'll take Leia back to the Senate Tower.

"Today's been a lot of fun."

"I'm glad you ran into me, then."

"You stole my line," she teases. "I was going to say I'm glad I ran into you."

"I think it's better that I said it first. Gives you the tacit forgiveness and all."

"Less of the arrogance, though."

"Arrogance is best as a sometimes trait."

"I only apply it appropriately and proportionately, of course."

Giggle.

"So far!"

"I'm sure it's a pattern I'll keep up."

"I'll be keeping a close watch to see that you do, Princess Leia."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, Princess Dalia."

And back to the Senate?

Back to the Senate.

Shall Dalia escort her all the way back to her father's offices?

If she'd be so kind...

Does she need to be carried?

Dalia can offer her arm instead if that's too undignified.

A bit undignified. But Leia takes Dalia's arm happily.

And she takes her back to the Alderaanian offices.

"I'll see you later, Princess Dalia," she says once they arrive. "Thank you again for today."

"It was my sincere pleasure, Princess Leia. I do look forward to our next meeting." She takes Leia's hand and kisses it.

She bows - appropriate for the pants Dalia got her into. "I as well."

"Until then, farewell."

"Farewell."

And she steps into Alderaan's offices.

(She... Maybe has some explaining to do to her father...)

And Dalia heads back to the palace.

She'll have a good story tonight if her mother shows up to dinner.

She often does, and tonight is no exception. 

"Did you have an interesting day, dear?" she asks, like she doesn't already know the answer.

"I ran into the Alderaanian senator's daughter. Or, well, she ran into me, but I ended up on top."

"You always do."

"We went out shopping and I invited her to my birthday party. And a sleepover the day before and a movie in two days."

Hum. "What's your impression of her?"

"She likes my spy movies. But I think she'd rather be the antagonist than the protagonists."

"Not too surprising."

"Her parents have been investigated several times for potential rebel connections - though nothing has ever come of it, and they feign a reserved patriotism well enough."

Wow it is just like her spy movies.

"So this is a good chance for us to find out what's really going on."

"Perhaps."

"I'm more concerned about leverage, here - I have enough that I would have already moved against someone with less ability to be... Obnoxious, let's say, if their peers object to their treatment. I need either enough to obviate those rather inevitable complaints, or for Alderaan to return more fully to the fold."

"Getting their princess into my power would be pretty good leverage."

"All the moreso with their heir." She sips her tea. "Leia seems favored to replace her father in the Senate, soon."

"She'll be here on Coruscant a lot, then."

"Yes. Perhaps even more often than he is, at least until she's ready for the seat. Perhaps less often, if he doesn't yet trust her out of his influence."

"She'll argue to stay if her father wants to take her back. She's got ambition."

"Of what sort?"

"She'd take your job, if she could."

"All of it? Or merely the idea of what she sees?"

"I don't think she has the, um, reach for the full package."

"Some people might surprise you."

"But very, very few can reach the heights I have."

"That's because you're the best."

Soft smirk. "That's been seen in a millinneum at least."

"And it'll be another millennium before someone could match you."

She laughs. "You're quite the flatterer, dear."

"I've been practicing," she grins.

"On senators' daughters?"

"Among others."

Servants, courtiers, courtier's children her own age, an actress or two from her movies...

"It's important to practice in a variety of circumstances."

"I'm very diligent about looking for opportunities!"

"You've learned well."

Giggle.

"As expected of my daughter."

Then she turns the conversation to getting more details on Leia and Dalia's encounter with her. 

Dalia was observing, behind all the fun, and she knows what details her mother wants to hear.

"You've done well, dear."

"Thanks!!"

"Thank you."

She steers the conversation on again, to Dalia's recent classes, to her homework and studying, and to her birthday, if the guest list has any other changes, what she's excited about... Hints she'll be getting Dalia a very interesting gift. 

Ooh, a tantalizing mystery.

Part of the gift. Dalia's mother knows how much she enjoys the anticipation. 

Wiggle!

Of course, it sounds like she has an exciting few days ahead... Perhaps her mother should leave her to it, now.

Okay! She's got some arrangement to make.

"Have fun, dear."

"I always do."

Dinner wraps up after, as two of Dalia's mothers handmaidens coming to take away the food and dishes. 

And Dalia retires to set up the private screening, send an invitation to Leia, make some changes to her birthday plans, send that invitation to Leia...

Leia sends back her acceptance of the invitations very promptly.

Oh good. Then she can consider today to be a job well done.

She has other princess matters to occupy herself with until the evening after next and her date with Leia.

Leia keeps busy, too.

And she's right on time to be picked up by Dalia from her father's apartment. She's dressed in loose slacks and a tough-looking jacket over a tank top; worlds away from her clothing as a senatorial aide.

She waves as Dalia pulls up.

"Hey cutie. Need a lift?"

"If you're offering, lovely."

She pops the door.

"Hop in."

She slides in beside Dalia. "Where you heading?"

"Somewhere exciting."

"My kind of place, then."

"That's the hope."

And they're off. Dalia's rented out small, fancy holotheater, the type that usually shows independent films and old classics. The attached cafe is also doing catering for them.

"I don't go out to the theater often..." Leia says, looking around.

"This isn't quite the typical experience. Unless you're me."

"I am a princess," she says, teasingly. "I could get a private screening on Alderaan pretty easily."

Wink. "You're pretty close to being me."

"There's still some distance, though."

Like whether their family is evil.

"The gap's closing."

"How so?"

"'Cause I'm introducing you to my world!"

She laughs. "Fair enough."

"Want to get a snack before the movie starts?"

"Sure."

Dalia suggests a double-size milkshake. With two straws. To share.

Of course. It's only economical. They can share their other snacks, too.

Sounds like a plan!

Chocolate coated raisins seem essential...

And they'll have to decide how to share the snacks - they could put them in the seat between them, but then they won't be sitting next to each other...

One of the perks of taking over the theater is that you can tell them to put whatever sort of furniture arrangement you want in. This isn't an amphitheater-type screen anyway, so they can have two chairs next to each other and a low table in front for their snacks.

Perfect, then - though Leia prefers more of a couch setup.

They can do a couch too!

So long as Dalia's joining Leia on it.

She absolutely will.

Good.

Leia sits herself with her back to one side of the couch, first, and puts her feet up on the seat.

Dalia puts her share of the snacks on the table, then plops down and nestles herself in the curve of Leia's body.

She laughs, wrapping an arm around Dalia. "Hello, cutie."

"Hi there."

She leans her cheek on Dalia's head. "You're cozy."

Snuggle. "That's the goal."

Giggle. "You're good at reaching your goals, then."

"Yep!"

Snuggle.

And: movie?

Movie! Star Princess 2 absolutely lives up the hype of its predecessor. The fights are fightier, the plot plottier, the romantic scenes steamier.

Leia's absolutely captivated! Especially at the climatic infiltration scene, which rather masterfully ratchets up the narrative tension.

And at the end, of course, the Princess claims back her ancestral treasure thus securing her right to rule, and her love interest (who had secretly helped to steal the treasure because she thought the Princess would be happier without the burden of rulership) sees the light and agrees to rule the galaxy at her side.

A fun romp. Even if the ending is a bit predictable.

"I love a happy ending."

"Dunno. Getting on a ship and running away from it all has a certain appeal..."

"If it was with you, I might consider it."

She laughs. "With you - yeah, I'd be so tempted." And not just because removing the Imperial Princess from the game board might be helpful.

Then she sighs. "I wouldn't be able to stay away from it all, though. Knowing me, I'd go riding off into the sunset and then turn around two days later for the sequel."

Giggle. "A good character to have in a franchise, then."

"Keep people on their toes about if this is actually the last installment."

"Exactly."

"Though eventually you'll stop having suspense and just have a running joke of opening the next holo with our eternally hardworking princess turning her ship around after hearing about the latest nonsense."

"Might have to kill the series before it gets to that point."

"But then how else would you have a plot where her girlfriend runs around intercepting every single possible distraction?"

"Genre swap to a comedy?"

"Keep the franchise fresh."

"Hopefully that won't alienate the fanbase."

"Might draw in new fans."

"Possibly!"

She giggles. "Of course, it might have trouble getting past the censorship committees..."

"If the script's good enough..."

"An advantage to being on the committee."

"A little bit of favoritism is like oil in the bureaucratic machine."

Noncommittal hum.

"You don't agree?"

"Depends on who's being favored, for what, and why."

"If the position needs trust - then you want to appoint people you can trust. If it needs someone who will cooperate with you and the rest of the system - then you want to appoint people you can work with. If the position needs competence - then you want to appoint competent people, even if you don't like them personally."

"You shouldn't give people important roles only because you like them, or only to repay them for some past help that doesn't reflect on their ability to do the job. Pure favoritism introduces friction, because you risk adding poorly fitted parts."

"I did say a little."

"Exercising your good judgement about which people are excellent isn't favoritism, either."

"Sure, sure." She nods.

She snorts.

"And movies are inherently judgement calls anyways."

"So basically what you're saying is that sometimes it's okay."

She elbows Dalia, snickering.

She laughs.

Leia... Really can't wait for their sleepover.

(She's regretting saying she won't kiss Dalia until their birthdays a little bit. Not enough to back down, though.)

"I hope you had fun today."

"I did."

"I like spending time with you. You have good thoughts."

"I enjoy sharing them, so."

"We'll have to do this again sometime."

"Beyond the sleepover, even."

"Yeah!!"

Heee.

"Will you come pick me up for that, too?"

"If you'd rather have it at my place, absolutely."

"I'd rather not have Papa in the next room."

"That's probably a good idea."

"Better for everyone's sanity."

"Of course, not being able to hear us might cause its own kind of worry..."

She makes a face. "I'd rather he not think about it..."

Giggle. "It's too late for that, trust me."

"Well... Hopefully he's trying not to think about - " she waves her hand, "Private stuff, just politics." Sigh.

"Burdens of being a princess. Everyone's always watching."

"Hopefully not in my bedroom, though."

"Usually not," she grants.

She eyes Dalia.

"On the other hand, our apartment does have very thick walls. Papa wouldn't hear anything. And then I could treat you."

"I suppose I'll leave the choice of where up to you."

Giggle. "My apartment, then."

"Okay!"

"It'll make me meeting my parents for breakfast easier, too."

"So we can stay up late without fear of missing that."

"And you could sleep in without missing me leaving."

Dalia sticks her tongue out at Leia. "I can rise with the sun! Sometimes."

"You shouldn't have to get up early on your birthday, though. Unless you're secretly a morning person."

Squint.

"Are you secretly a morning person?"

"That assumes I sleep."

"Oh, so that's how it is."

"My sleep schedule," she says, primly, "Is entirely reasonable."

"Does it exist? At all?"

"It definitely exists!"

"As like, a pencil smudge on the calendar, once a month or so?"

"You're being very rude," she says, "Interrogating a lady about her sleep habits."

"Curiosity is my besetting sin, alas."