I've been so busy with my move and job training! But I promise I'll get back to updating on a regular basis once everything settles down here. Short and sweet little update here!

Dance Lesson

"So? How're my girls holdin' up?"

She rolled her eyes slightly, as if to say – Cute, but becoming the father of a daughter doesn't give you permission to slip into gendered tropes, just as becoming the mother of a daughter didn't make me stop being hyperaware of the politics of sex and power in interpersonal dynamics, which is to say, I'm still you and you're still me. "We're fine," she said, shifting her grasp on the baby and pursuing her lips at the holo image of her husband. "Nothing urgent – if you're in the middle of something critical…"

"Can always make time – how're you doin' sweetie? You takin' care of your mama for me?"

Lynnie, who was standing on a chair so to be seen and twisting anxiously, her face pressed to Leia's side, shrugged a little before burying her face again in the fold of Leia's dress.

"What! What was that? What're you up to, hidin' in there? Huh?"

But she didn't take the bait, just sort of rubbed her face against Leia's hip and shifted.

"Hey, cutie – what's wrong?" His little blue visage peering at her, frown deepening. "Lei? What's going on here?"

"Ask him what you asked me, honey." Leia's voice, then, quite firm but still kind. She reached down and slowly pried the baby's face from against her. "Lynnie? Demandez-lui ce que te m'avez demandé. For Mama, come on now. Like we discussed."

A long pause, and then, in the tiniest voice in the world, so small and anxious, the baby looking at her feet. "...Daddy?" That teeny-tiny voice, all hushed and worried, how she was glancing up through her eyelashes. She still called him that only rarely, when she was – when she needed him most. Something still foreign, sort of scary, sort of impossible – him, most. Needing him. Her, relying on him. "... do I talk funny?"

This shocking thing, too: how in a second, all of the air could be knocked out of him, because of her. "What? 'Course not, Kriff – who told you that, baby?"

She sort of shifted her weight and pressed her face back to Leia, said nothing.

"Lynnie? Who told you that?"

"Someone at dance," Leia said, her voice lowered, looking at him meaningfully. "One of the other children."

"Ah. Gotcha," he said, setting his jaw.

Lynnie burrowed against her further, and Leia sighed, stroking her hair. "And now she doesn't want to go to class, and she has that R-E-C-I-T-A-L..."

"Yeah, understood – baby? C'you look at me?"

Lynnie shook her head a little, keeping close to Leia, and he felt another pang – she looked – ashamed, like she was ashamed… like she couldn't look at him… how could someone have made her feel ashamed? How could he have let someone––

"Y'can't look at me, sweetie? Come on now…"

After a long pause: "Are s'il vous plaît is a word…?"

"What was that?"

"Mona K say not is a word."

"Mona K says it's not a word," he echoed, nodding slowly, stiffly, the look on Leia's face saying everything, saying now's the time to model an appropriate response for her – Han, do not get angry.

"Mona K say not is a word and Mona K say I talk funny, Daddy, do I talk funny?"

"You don't talk funny, and it is a word, alright? Just in a different language, you know that. Your Mama says all the same words as you and they're all real pretty, okay?"

"Otay…" she whispered, still not moving far from pressing tightly against Leia.

"Lynnie. Look at me? Hey, c'mere."

"No c'mere. 'Cause you is there," she whispered, her lower lip trembling, wiggling her fingers at the holo projection in demonstration.

He let out a loud sigh, raking a hand through his hair. "Oh, baby…"

Leia looked at him and twitched her mouth sympathetically, holding Lynnie closer. "We just miss you very much, don't we?" she said, giving a sad smile as if to say, I understand, there's only so much you can do, from there.

Sure enough, he could hear his name being called, but he ignored it. "Listen, kiddo. I promise, you talk – beautiful. Beautifully. Okay? I promise. You gotta ignore people like that – Mona K, whatever. Can't let them keep you from doin' what you love."

"I don' wanna go dance s'il vous plaît. Otay?"

"No, not okay – Lynnie, baby, you can't just give it up––"

"No wanna," she mumbled against Leia's shirt, clearly beginning to disengage – if only he could be there, hold her hand, tickle under her chin, grab her and make her do that overwhelmed high-pitched giggle. He felt so helpless, he felt so…

He squatted slightly, trying to get level with her. "Hey. Hon. Hey. Look at me." He waited, too, until she finally pried herself from Leia to squint at him, anxious and wobbly. "C'you show me some of what you're doing? Huh? At dance? 'Cause I really miss seeing you dance."

She blushed a little, shaking her head.

"C'mon. Please? You don't have to go back to class if you don't wanna. Okay? Just wanna see you dance."

"Daddy no…" she was saying softly, shaking her head again, a small smile finally escaping, all those itty-bitty teeth. "Silly…"

"So what if it's silly? I miss my girl, wanna see her dance, 'cause she's so so good."

"Ne m'en souviens pas…"

"Well, maybe I can help you remember. Okay? C'mon, please?"

She flushed again and pressed against Leia. "... a lil otay?"

"Okay, just a little. I'll take it. So. What comes first?"

She nuzzled against Leia a bit, then slowly peeled away and moved her hands to meet above her head, her arms rounded. "First dis."

He nodded seriously, observing. And then, to her complete and utter delight, he put up his arms in the exact same way. "What's next?" he said casually before winking at her.

Her face broke into a wide, shocked, delighted smile, and both hands flew up as if involuntarily to cover her mouth. Leia smiled softly, petting her hair. "Next dis…" She let her arms fall out so they were extended out straight, and when he did the same she practically shrieked, pointing at the holo excitedly.

"Well? What's next?"

"Ummm… next dis!" And she spun around eagerly, and, he couldn't help but think proudly, gracefully, so fluid, so sweet…

He did the same, moving through a full-on twirl and giving a crooked smile, and she literally jumped up and down, squealing – "Da-a-a-addy!"

"Eh, I think I need to do it one more time, just to make sure I got it right… watch my form, alright? Gonna want notes."

He did another twirl, very serious, and she jumped and screamed again, so shocked and thrilled, and he was too busy trying to draw that reaction out of her again and again that he didn't notice––

"Captain – Captain Solo – er, sir, what are you––"

"S'it look like I'm doing?" he said, raising his eyebrows. "M'gettin' notes on my form from the galaxy's top dancer." He gestured, then also nodded at Leia. "And her crazy stage-mom."

Leia rolled her eyes, and gave a kind nod to the recruit's hasty, "Your Highness!"

"We're sorry to monopolize – he'll be with you shortly," she said, grinning a little. "You can see the rest of the routine later, Captain."

"Alright. That sound good, Lynnie?"

She nodded, shy again, pressing her face to Leia's side but smiling. "I go practice?"

"Yes – genius idea. Take after your mama, huh? You better practice. Practice makes perfect, alright?"

"Yes-yes," she agreed, smiling again, still that shocked look on her face, like it was always a pleasant surprise, that she was theirs. It felt like that sometimes to him, too: a perfect, pleasant surprise, each time she was there. And then, in a super quick, shy rush, blurting out: "Buh-bye-Daddy-I-love-you."

Leia raised her eyebrows a little, her smile small but sweet. "Same here."

"Bye you guys," he said, giving a mock salute, trying to hide his little smile. "Love you too."

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