Okay so I've got got about three more chapters just about ready, but I'm not sure now whether I'm just slowing down the story. It's been ten chapters already and Leia's not even been in the palace a full day yet! However I've got something ready that I'm sure you'll all appreciate once this story arc comes full circle. After that I promise I'll try and get to the Fett/Leia chapter... I know many of you have been waiting for that. I've decided to add a bit more content to add to the story, even if it's not entirely canon.

Please review, as that will make these updates come out faster and hopefully better. Thanks to those who have posted reviews.

Forging Friendships

Against her better judgment, Leia decided that she could not wait any longer. She absolutely needed to find Han, and there was only a single door keeping them apart. After meeting up with Lando again, he agreed to reconfigured her slave collar so that Leia could gain access to the dungeons... but that she would only have a limited time, as he would need to reset it before the change was discovered.

So that didn't leave Leia much time to make this happen, but she was too committed at this point to stop now. The slave quarters were now mostly vacant, save for Malare and Duqua. Anij had since been summoned to sit upon Jabba's throne where Leia had spent the previous night. Diana was dispatched to assist elsewhere in the palace, while Rila and Falere trained in the Dancer's pit. Leia was likewise ordered to report to the Dancer's pit, but she was given an hour of free time to prepare herself.

Given how little sleep she got the previous evening, it might have been wise to take a short nap; but Leia's heart wouldn't allow her any rest while Han and Chewie rotted away in a dungeon. And given that she was now operating under a time limit, there was really no other choice but to go forward and make this all happen. Hopefully seeing Han again and confirming that everything was alright between the two of them... maybe then her servitude to Jabba might be more bearable.

Leia didn't know whether to be surprised or not that there wasn't any privacy even within the slave quarters, as the lockers containing their various outfits were concentrated within the same chamber as the beds. Anij had since shared some of the basics on managing their attire, of which Leia was glad to have paid attention. Each slave had her own locker, of which contained two sets of outfits. At the bottom was where they would store their 'elite slave' costumes in their respective boxes... of which Leia only had one thus far. Above that were a number of 'casual' outfits that the slaves wore during free periods or for dance training. Given that outfits such as her gold bikini were so obscenely designed, they weren't intended as a slave's primary attire... and Leia was eager to get rid of it.

Examining the contents of her locker, it didn't exactly come as a surprise to Leia that her other outfits were no less revealing than the one she was currently wearing. Given as Jabba wanted Leia to report to the dancer's pit, she searched for at least one such outfit which would fit that purpose. Eventually she pulled out a brilliant red bikini of which was highlighted by silver studs along the waistband and bordering the 'V' of the top piece. Despite the outfit being about as sheer as one could get, it was at least made of a fabric, to which Leia vastly preferred over metal plates and a rigid brassier.

Despite being in the presence of two other women, Leia paid little concern to them as she went about removing that absurd gold bikini. She knew that Duqua was passively watching, but that didn't bother the enslaved princess as much as if it were Jabba in the room with her. Leia unfastened the strings holding up that rather heavy bra, and allowed it to fall freely to the stone floor. Drawing in a breath of intense relief, she rubbed her bare shoulders where the stings had since caused creases in her flesh. She then reached down with her left hand and unclasped the lower piece, allowing it to join its counterpart near her feet.

Finally out of the confines of her bikini, Leia took a generous moment to savor the full freedom of movement it awarded. Never had removing a garment given her so much relief as getting rid of that thing. Unfortunately she really didn't have much time to savor the sensation, as her window of opportunity to meet up with Han was closing. And so Leia kicked the pieces of the outfit into her locker and quickly slipped herself into the red bikini. However just as she shot herself around to leave, Leia's path to the door was unexpectedly blocked off.

The first time she had interacted with Duqua was when the Zabrak servant offered Leia a seat at the table in the living area, but now she towered over the much-shorter human in a very intimidating manner. It wasn't until Leia nearly ran into her that Duqua finally spoke to her directly. "You should treat your outfits with more respect."

Having already heard this from Lyn Me, Leia wasn't inclined to hear it again. "If Jabba has a problem with it, he can take it up with me."

As Leia attempted to go around Duqua, she was stopped yet again by Duqua's outstretched arm between her and the door. "You're not the only one with a stake in this, you know. Whenever one of us misbehaves, the rest of us suffer. And so if you choose to act like a spoiled, rich girl... don't expect us to be too kind to you."

Leia clenched her fists, angry that everyone seemed to believe her as being no different than their master. Having been forced to endure Anij's condemnation for nearly an hour, Leia was just about ready to shout back... unwilling to let such an insult go unanswered. Only when she took notice of Malare on the opposite side of the chamber did Leia hold herself back. The pregnant slave looked as though she'd seen such confrontations before, and silently pleaded for Leia to do as she was told.

It was then that Leia opened her fists and placed her arms behind her back to respond in at least a moderately respectful manner with Duqua. "Why are you making an issue of this? They're my clothes... not yours."

Duqua gave Leia a sharp expression, wishing to emphasize a point. "No they're not, they belong to Master Jabba. And he's entrusting you to take proper care of them. He takes great pride in our appearance, and that outfit you just flippantly tossed on the floor is what you'll be wearing at special events, where our appearance means everything." She then lead Leia back over to the locker and opened it to point to the 'casual' wear. "These are made to be worn, but your ball gowns require special care."

Leia couldn't help rolling her eyes, wondering how anyone in her right mind could possibly classify her golden slave bikini as a ball gown. Sure it had a lashaa-silk skirt, but that was about the minimal extent to which one could possibly call it as such.

Unfortunately Duqua didn't appreciate Leia's expression, and hoped that the enslaved princess might have had a shred of decency to heed a warning. "It's hard enough for us having to kick Diana in line every time she resists... we can't afford to have the same behavior from you, especially that you're the Master's second servant now."

Leia remembered being briefed about becoming Jabba's second slave, Anij retaining her rank as first. Given that she was of great importance to the Rebel Alliance, and a crown jewel to any Hutt's collection of condemned souls, it only made sense that she'd start out at a higher rank than the other slaves. And seeing how her actions would no doubt reflect badly upon the others, Leia again swallowed her pride and accepted her new place. "You're right... I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, just take some pride in your presentation. We're all expected to make such sacrifices." Duqua twisted her head to gesture at Leia's locker. "Please put it away properly, and be sure to include all the adornments along with it."

Of course Leia wasn't enthused about losing any more time dealing with something so trivial as repackaging her gold bikini, but she decided it was best to maintain a good relationship with the other slaves. They no doubt spent much time around Jabba and may have had some useful intel that she could use against him.

Sure enough it was often through trivial acts that close friendships were forged.

Not long after that did Leia and Duqua strike up an intimate conversation where Duqua revealed much of her history... not exactly what Leia had sought, but she didn't regret a moment of it. With only the window of about an hour, Leia knew all to well that every moment she spent talking to Duqua was one less she'd have with Han. And yet this may have been the perfect opportunity to make nice with the entire harem through Duqua. Making a friend here was simply too important an opportunity for her to pass up.

It turned out that Duqua was in fact once a professional Limmie player of whom had turned down a promising career to enlist in the Imperial Military. It was almost 20 years ago that the Old Republic's clone trooper units started being retired from service, and the new Empire began recruiting ordinary citizens to take their place.

Duqua and Leia each exchanged stories, and the Zabrak woman was quite surprised to learn that Leia had followed a similar path to her own. She certainly opened up a lot more once they found such intimate common ground. This was exactly the kind of dialog that Leia had hoped for.

Unfortunately it was also saddening to listen to yet another tragic story, as Duqua might never have been captured had she not been so willing to serve and protect. And given that she was both a woman and an alien, Duqua wasn't well received by such a human-centric organization as the Imperial Army. From basic training all the way up to her capture, Duqua knew that she would face discrimination throughout her career; and yet she did so proudly. Unfortunately choosing service above the fame and fortune of professional Limmie earned much recognition throughout the Empire, of whom they used as something of a poster child to promote enlisting. Jabba likewise took notice of the celebrity and wanted Duqua for himself.

"You were betrayed?!" Leia tried restraining her rage.

For reasons that Leia couldn't understand, Duqua remained quite calm as she so casually spoke of the events leading up to her enslavement. "Yes. I and three others got separated from our platoon and we were lead into an ambush... or at least that's what I initially thought. I learned later on that one of them had accepted a bounty for my capture."

"How much of a bounty?"

"Fifteen thousand credits. That's all it took to convince one of my units to betray me and two others." Duqua exhaled deeply and rested her head upon her open palm, still quite saddened at how easily she was betrayed. "The only comfort I got was knowing that the bastard didn't live long enough to collect it. Jabba's men killed the others... two good men, Thangavelu and Ehrlich. And my betrayer... Eric Roizman." She annunciated that last name with all the hatred and pain of a life time.

Leia waited an appropriate length of time before breaking the passionate silence of that moment. "How long ago?"

Duqua needed some time to actually remember how long ago it had been... it wasn't as though she were actually keeping track of the days and years of her life that have since been stolen away by the very slug she's been forced to serve ever since. Upon coming up with a rough estimate, she flatly said sixteen years.

"Sixteen years?" Leia sorrowfully repeated. "How does one endure for so long in a place like this?"

Duqua took another piece of fruit from the bowl on the table, and displayed it to Leia. "Life for us really isn't so bad compared to some of the other slaves. Because Jabba values us so greatly, we get good food, luxurious quarters, and overall a very comfortable lifestyle."

"But surly it must have been difficult being stripped of your freedom and forced to obey all of his commands?"

Being reminded of that most strenuous time of her life, Leia could tell by the change of Duqua's tone just how much mental anguish she had endured in the last decade and a half. "Yes it was. Never in my life was I forced to endure such... humiliation. Jabba made it known to all the galaxy that I was his prize. I was something of a celebrity at that point, so I was accustomed to being in front of cameras. But that was due first to my early career in Limmie, and then for joining the Imperial Army." She gestured to herself, now forever condemned to wearing slave attire. "... not like this."

Leia placed a hand upon Duqua's shoulder. "I know exactly what you mean. Did you by chance witness my indoctrination last night?"

Duqua shook her head. "I'm sure it was brutal."

Leia nodded. "Yes, it was. Jabba stripped me naked before his guests, gave them my name and listed off all my credentials and accomplishments... and even that wasn't enough." Leia sighed and then looked away, trying to point herself in the general direction she thought Han and Chewie were in the palace. "I now have two friends locked away in the dungeon, and Jabba said that if I weren't afraid of torture or death... he'd harm them instead."

Duqua's eyes widened. "So Master Jabba essentially has you at his mercy?"

Leia smiled and nodded quite grimly.

An uncomfortable moment elapsed amongst the slaves in the chamber. Malare had in fact been eavesdropping on their conversation from the beginning, but found she didn't have much to add to the conversation. It wasn't until Duqua gestured her to join them that Malare finally uttered a word. "Leia, can I ask you a serious question?"

She turned her attention to Malare and nodded.

"Your rebel alliance is the single greatest threat to the Empire since its founding... can you tell me honestly..." Malare hesitated, cautiously selecting her words. "...what hope is there...? I mean do they really...?"

"Can we defeat the Empire?" Leia just posed the question, and then paused a moment before giving an answer. "I'd be lying if I said I expect us to win; but what I can say for sure is that we do stand a reasonable chance. If we continue winning support as we have done so in the past, we'll keep fighting until we've brought freedom to the galaxy."

Duqua took notice at the way Leia seemingly transformed from a submissive slave girl back into the strong, militant leader she truly was.

Leia continued. "We destroyed the Death Star a few years back, followed by the Tarkin more recently. We took out their Dark Trooper project. And their fleet of phantom fighters. We've recruited hundreds of free systems to our cause... people willing to fight and die to restore freedom to the galaxy." She smiled enthusiastically. "So yes, we do stand a very real chance against them... but only if we're not afraid to fight for what we know is right."

Duqua couldn't help but smile at Leia's righteousness. "You sound as though you're an important figure within that organization."

Malare answered, somewhat surprised that Duqua didn't know anything of the rebellion or Leia. "Come on, surly you've heard of Leia and the important role she played in destroying the Death Star. Just about everyone in the galaxy knows of her." Malare smiled prominently and gestured to the enslaved princess. "We're in the presence of a goddess. It's no wonder that Anij feels threatened... I'm surprised that Leia isn't Jabba's first slave already."

Duqua maintained a stern expression. "I'm afraid that the rebellion was before my time. All that I know of them is what I overhear from Master Jabba and his associates." It was then that she looked at Leia with a great sense of curiosity. "However I can say for a fact there's no one who'll ever replace Anij. She's probably the only one of us whom Jabba really seems to care about."

This was it... that was exactly what Leia had been waiting for... something to use against Jabba. "Why makes Anij so special? What do you know of her prior life?"

Duqua didn't quite know how to answer that question, considering how little she really knew for certain about the Zeltron slave she's lived with for the last sixteen years. "I'm afraid that Anij is something of an enigma. While she's certainly the most intriguing lady I've ever known, she carries a great pain that she refuses to share with anyone... not even me. Unlike the rest of us, no one knows anything of her past."

Malare added a detail of her own. "I've heard that she's almost eighty years old... but I can't see how. Zeltrons don't live much longer than we do. She doesn't even look old enough to be my mother, let alone my grandmother."

Duqua confirmed the claim. "She's been in Jabba's service for at least forty years, and I've been told she was already a mature woman with a history before she was enslaved."

Leia lowered her brow, obviously very interested. "Where did you learn of this?"

"Two other slaves who aren't with us anymore... they told me that Anij had been taken from a previous life and that she's been in Jabba's service at least twenty years longer than I have." Duqua sighed and shook her head. "Every time I ask her about it, Anij never answers me directly... she does admit to 'having served Master Jabba faithfully for forty years,' but never confirms nor denies having a previous life."

"So no one knows anything about her?" Leia asked.

"Master Jabba certainly must, and yet even he won't tell us anything. He said that if Anij didn't wish us to know of her past, that we should honor her wishes." Duqua shrugged her shoulders. "By now there's probably more rumors and legend than real facts about her anyway. I consider myself as close a friend as she's ever going to get, and she's still just as closed off to me as the day we met."

Leia soon realized that this had to be exactly the kind of weakness she could exploit.