"If you insist."

"I do." And teasingly: "I can't pick you up later if you never drop me off."

"That's a really good point. Okay, let's go."

Onward, then.

Back home for Leia.

"See you later!"

"See you."

She waves as Dalia drives off.

Dalia waves back for perhaps longer than is strictly safe.

Leia tries not to look too amused about that.

(But she likes Dalia, a lot.)

(Probably too much.)

She messages Dalia that night, with a link to a fanfiction she found, shipping Val Leka's character with one of Steyr's character's more bad-girl loves from a past installment (who redeemed herself by sacrificing her life for the Empire, of course; the story is giving her a happy ending. In multiple senses of the word.) It's very politically correct, too; the site's in full and strict compliance with the censorship committee. (Leia knows she's going to need to work her way up to challenging certain views.)

Dalia's reply is excited keyboard mashing and stream-of-consciousness reactions to the fic.

She sends back a growing assortment of heart emojis.

!! <3 <3 <333!!!

<3333!!!!

She sends her own comments and impressions and thoughts, then. Elaborations on what she thinks this or that part means, what she thinks is being hinted at here...

Hmmm yes there's definitely a deep well of literary analysis and character work to be drawn on here. And then the plotty bits, even.

One of the best things about fanfiction.

During a brief lull in the conversation, Dalia sends Leia a link to her favorite fanfiction. It's almost entirely smut, but surprisingly well-written.

And she sends her own live commentary back. (She reads very quickly.)

Excellent! Dalia is only maybe fishing for what kinks Leia seems most interested in.

She's a bit teasing about revealing those, and - well, Dalia's going to have trouble getting a very good look tonight.

But Leia sends her another story the next evening, and the one after that...

(Danger. Danger and high stakes and big emotions, wild freedom, something like revenge, something like seduction...)

(Sounds like there's some roleplay in their future.)

(Remains to be seen.)

Leia talks to Dalia every single night - and then shows up early to get her the night of the sleepover.

"Eager to see me, huh?"

"Only a little bit."

Heee.

"I just need to pack a few more things, if you can wait a minute." Such as her lacy undergarments.

"Just don't take too long."

"Gonna run off to our sleepover without me?"