A/N: Sorry about the delay. Between coronavirus, my druggie aunt driving my grandfather to his grave, a funeral (not for said grandfather… yet), work, school, a new girlfriend, and everything else, updates will come when they come. Speaking of which, enjoy Barriss's attempt to ask Riyo on a date.

"Ok Barriss, you can do this," Barriss reassured herself, "Just remember what Skywalker and Secura taught you… well, what Secura taught you." Despite Anakin's best attempts, his advice was mostly useless. Who would use "I don't like sand" as a pickup line? More importantly how did it work? Maybe as stupid as it sounded it actually was sound. Walking through the Senate halls she would eventually find Senator Chuchi, it was just a matter of remembering where her office was in this gargantuan, terrifying, imposing building filled with imposing, terrifying people. She shook her head, "Stop it! Don't let your nerves win!" She had been doing Skywalker's confidence exercises every day, Secura had taught her how to use makeup, she had practiced and re-practiced her opening lines again and again. There. She had finally found it again, Chuchi's office. Her hands were shaking as she nervously tried to sense if anybody was in there. It seemed to be only the Senator. Taking a deep breath she nocked on the door. Standing for a few moments she hesitated to knock again, but the silence was deafening. Maybe she didn't hear her? She straightened her dress, tucked the loose locks of hair under her headscarf, muttered under her breath, "I am brave, I am beautiful, I am smart, and I deserve love. I am brave, I am beautiful, I am smart, and I deserve love. I am brave, I am beautiful, I am smart, and I deserve love," and knocked again.

Chuchi looked like a complete mess. Shaking from exhaustion she tried, and failed, to straighten the notes she had prepared for the debate tomorrow morning. Bleary-eyed she took a quick look at a mirrored shelf in her office and almost screamed for help before she recognized that this was her reflection and not some random drug addict who broke in. Her hair was a complete mess, she hadn't changed her clothes in three days and had gone almost as long without sleeping, being powered solely by questionably safe amounts of caffeine at this point. She had barely even moved from her desk in almost 36 hours except twice to use the fresher. Cha had since fled/been relieved of duty for the day as she prepared everything for this new military spending bill. She had everything she could have possibly hoped to get, Republic budgets, debt accounts, Senator Dodd's personal self-interests in keeping the war going for as long as possible, the average price and training time per clone as compared with a battle droid. She just had to pray that Chancellor Palpatine would actually let the debates play out this time. Despite sharing a planet and Party with Padmé they couldn't be more different on the matter of who was the war-hawk.

"Kriff I need a nap and a shower. I can hear banging in head." Then it dawned on her that somebody was knocking on her door. Probably Cha, he left his backpack when he practically ran out the door as she was going on another insane rant to herself, punctuated with ever-so-slightly unhinged laughter going on her 50th hour without sleep. Getting up and half-hobbling, half-stumbling over to the door she opened it to reveal Ahsoka's cute Mirialan friend, dolled up and wearing a much… tighter, dress than before, which really accentuated her curves. Suddenly remembering her current state and feeling both embarrassed and horrified when she saw the look of surprise on Barriss's face, Riyo immediately closed the door and tried to flatten out the disaster area that was her hair and at least attempt to make her filthy clothes semi-presentable. "Kriff, shit, kriff, shit, kriff, shit, kriff, shit, kriff, kriff, kriff, kriff, kriff, kriff, kriff, kriff, shit, kriff! Why did this have to happen now?!"

Despite the soul crushing and heart stomping that accompanied that door shutting in her face, Barriss's spirits were soon lifted at the string of curses she heard on the other side preceding a loud rustling. The door was soon opened and her Pantoran crush greeted her with a smile. "Forgive the mess! I wasn't expecting guests and I've been in a mad rush the past few days."

"Are you ok?"

"Hmm? Oh! Yeah, I just haven't slept in the past few days is all. A ton of research I've had to do."

"Oh, you poor baby! Haven't you had anybody to help?"

"I did. Sent him home yesterday," Riyo yawned. She was really cute when she yawned. "I think I've" yawning again but not stopping her sentence, "got everything ready now."

Barriss took a look around the room and noticed the surprisingly large number of caf cups hurriedly slung into the trash. "Are you sure you're ok?"

The Senator barely looked at the padawan and nodded a few times in her general direction.

"Do you need somebody to take you home?"

"No, no. I can fly."

"NO YOU CAN'T," Barriss corrected her, "not without killing yourself or other people! I'll fly your speeder and take you home."

Grabbing her notes, Riyo affirmed "Ok, you're probably right."

Half-stumbling, half-being carried, Riyo led her to her speeder on the parking levels. Once the pair were properly strapped in, Barriss started up the engine and flew towards 500 Republica. Clearing her throat, she glanced over to talk to Riyo only to see she was already solidly passed out and snoring. Smiling she looked back at the lanes for a few minutes. Riyo turned a bit in the seat and flopped towards the driver's side, leaning against Barriss's shoulder. The Mirialan's heart leapt in her chest but kept quiet until the reached their destination. Shaking the Senator awake, "Senator Chuchi? Riyo? Come on, there's a retinal scanner."

"Mmmm, fifteen minutes, please."

"I imagine a bed feels better than a speeder's seat."

"Ugh."

"I'll carry you again."

Scanning for entry, the pair took the lift to Chuchi's Coruscant apartment. It seemed like something out of a magazine to Barriss, with a droid cleaning the floor greeting the pair as she carried its owner to her bedroom. Muttering, barely awake, Riyo opened her eyes just enough to see Barriss laying her onto her bed and quietly asked, "Are you an angel?"

Barriss froze for a moment, remembering what Anakin had told her about how he met his wife as a child. She smiled and attempted to be coy, "Well I kept you from flying home. I guess I am your guardian angel."

"Do you like girls?"

Now Barriss was really surprised, especially considering that is exactly what she had wanted to ask Riyo a few minutes ago.

"Y-yes?"

"Me too. They're so pretty."

"A lot of women are."

"Like you."

Barriss couldn't help the brilliant blush rushing to her cheeks "O-Oh! Uhm… well, I wanted to ask you something before you went to sleep?"

"Yeah?"

"Would you like to go to dinner with me? Just the two of us…" then she remembered the blitzkrieg of teasing and/or life-ending repercussions she might experience if she didn't add this detail, "Ahsoka doesn't have to know."

"I'd love to. Just talk with Martha," the M4R-TH4 maid droid outside in the living area, "to schedule a time and place. I'll be there."

Before Barriss could even say anything else the pretty blue girl was already fast asleep again. Smiling, she resisted the temptation to kiss the Senator's forehead and went to go schedule a date with the droid. Her first date. She could hardly believe it.