Chewbacca stomped into the cockpit and barked a question at Han, holding up a handful of wires and a piece of metal showing definite signs of scorching.

"I know, I know," said Han. "But it was all they had in our price range. I'm amazed it lasted as long as it did."

Leia didn't need a translator to understand the next noise Chewbacca made.

"Just, I don't know, route around it! We can replace it if we ever get out of this asteroid field."

Chewbacca dumped the mess in Han's lap and left again.

Han picked up the mass of cables and sighed. "What am I supposed to do with this? Wookiees." He turned to her with a sharp grin. "And how about you? Still think you'd rather kiss a Wookiee?"

"Maybe I would," she snapped. "Is that a thing you do a lot? Try to set up Chewbacca with your friends?"

He snorted. "Chewie can arrange his own hookups. He's not as good as I am, of course—"

"Of course," she repeated sweetly.

"But he can pull them when he wants to. He prefers them... tall. Strong. No complications. If they don't look like they can break you over their knee, he's not interested."

Han could tell he was making her uncomfortable and was going in for the kill, as he always did. She was not feeling disgruntled because a Wookiee – one she had in the not-so-distant past referred to as a walking carpet – would not find her attractive. That would be ridiculous.

"Isn't that right, Chewie?" Han repeated his previous statement for context, while Leia silently willed him into a pit of voles.

Chewie growled something and stomped over to open a panel on the other side of the room.

Han snorted but didn't deign to translate the comment.

"He says," said C-3PO, who had apparently followed Chewbacca into the cockpit, "that he's not going to be used as an accessory in your flirtation."

"I'm sorry," said Leia. "That was inappropriate and insensitive of us."

Chewbacca added something else. "He says he only lets Mr Solo arrange things if Mr Solo will be involved. And that he'll make exceptions for very spirited smaller aliens. Oh, my. I don't want to be caught in the middle of this either. I'm sorry, Princess."

"That's quite all right, 3PO," said Leia. Her cheeks were burning. "Why don't you, er, take a rest for a while. It looks like we'll be stuck here a while."

"Thank you, Princess." 3PO clunked his way out into the bowels of the ship.

Han was looking at Chewbacca with an expression somewhere between horrified and intrigued.

Leia wasn't sure how she'd got from illicitly kissing Han Solo in a corridor to discussing a potential three way liaison with his co-pilot.

"Look," said Leia. "I'm flattered. But we're hiding out from an Imperial Star Destroyer in an asteroid field in a ship with a broken hyperspace drive."

"So? We could die today, we could die tomorrow. Seize the moment."

"I just don't want any of us to make any decisions we might regret. So once we're out of this... situation, we can talk about it. All of us. All right?"

"If that's the way you want it, Princess," Han drawled.

Chewbacca shrugged and closed the panel. He rumbled something that made Han roll his eyes.

"Yes, you're very smart," said Han. "Let's go back to getting this ship into hyperspace." He sounded a little too eager.

Leia leant back in her chair and pondered the best way to start learning Shyriiwook.