The ride for Tenel Ka was quiet, which allowed her time to gather her thoughts. She prepared certain topics to talk about and certain greetings, in varied languages, to remember.

The speeder pulled up to the large building a half after eight. The trip had taken longer than expected, due to the traffic. She had preference over some other though, due to her title and the speeder driver was guided to the front of a few lines. She was helped out by a very handsome man, who then accompanied her up the grand steps to the door. He bowed and kissed her hand before leaving her to descend back down the stairs. Tenel Ka took a deep breath and walked forward.

The door opened for her at the hand of another male attendant. She stepped inside and was immediately relieved of her shawl. She was directed to the main entrance where she was to be introduced to those in attendance. She stood quietly, swaying a bit to the music that wafted out of the large ballroom. Finally she stood at the door, her heart fluttering a mile a minute. She wondered if he was there already, if he would look up when he heard her name. She took another deep breath and stepped forward to the sound of her name, and titles, being called out over the comm. unit. She didn't even notice if they'd gotten it all right, she'd heard it enough before.

Her grey eyes quickly scanned the crowd assembled as she descended the grand stair case. She looked, and felt the part of Queen Mother and captivated many eyes as she hit the floor and glided around quickly. Another name was called and many of the eyes were diverted again, leaving Tenel Ka alone.

She felt a hang on her shoulder and jumped. How could he have jumped up on her? She turned to find Leia Organa Solo smiling back at her. She hugged the older woman who had taken her under her wing since her own mother had died.

"Tenel Ka, you look amazing. I hardly recognized you. You seem to be fitting into your new role wonderfully. All the things I've heard out of Hapes have been positive. You're to be congratulated for your success at pulling your system out of the war the quickest," Leia said, her hands never leaving Tenel Ka's shoulders. Her husband, Han Solo, appeared over her shoulder and smiled at Tenel Ka.

Tenel Ka bowed to the couple, a smile hinted off her lips.

"I have had great advisors to help me. I could not have done it without them."

Leia smiled at the hidden thank you in that statement and let her hands fall from Tenel Ka's shoulders.

"Well you just arrived. I should let you do your rounds." Leia bowed slightly then led Han away, leaving Tenel Ka to find someone else to talk to.

She was trained to visit every powerful leader in the room, as well as a few less powerful to let them know their friendship to Hapes was just as important, and have a short, cordial conversation with them. How was the family? The weather? Non-political things that would accompany the mood.

After a while of greeting other dignitaries and galaxy celebrities Tenel Ka spotted Jacen. He was near one of the buffet tables set up in a darkened corner of the hall. He had half an empty drink in his hand and his eyes were hooded. They seemed to be following her everywhere she went. She started for a moment when she realized she was being watched. She shook it off, or tried to, and continued to greet people.

As the evening went on, however, there seemed to be a growing negative presence in her mind. When it finally got to oppressive, Tenel Ka excused herself from the conversation she was having with Senator So and So, she had forgotten, and walked out into a darkened hallway at the far end of the hall. She crossed to a small balcony and opened the large glass double doors, stepping into the moonlight. Closing the doors behind her she drank in the salty Mon Calamari air. She crossed to the decorative rail and leaned heavily on it. The moon's light danced across the waves on the ocean. In the distance a large sea creature of some sort breached, sending a large spout of water into the air. Its sad song came to Tenel Ka across the still night air. She closed her eyes and tried to enjoy this silent moment.

Things change however when Tenel K heard the doors click open behind her. She scanned the new presence using the Force and found it was friendly. However, she didn't know who it belonged to.

The presence joined her at the railing, not speaking to Tenel Ka. She turned to see who it was and was taken aback.

He was about her age, maybe a year or two older. He was a few inches taller than she was, with broad shoulders and a muscular frame. He was wearing a rich black suit with the jacket on his arm. His white button up shirt was pulled tight over his sculpted chest. The face seemed to be chiseled out of stone under the hands of a master artist. It was his eyes that were most stunning. They seemed familiar as they scanned the horizon. She couldn't tell what color they were but they were alight with moon beams. His hair was a shaggy, curled brown mop, held in place tonight against the winds that came whipping off the sea.

Tenel Ka was amazed at how much he looked like Jacen Solo. She turned back to gaze across the sea as she felt a sudden heat race into her cheeks. This heat only increased when she felt his eyes turn toward her and study her features.

"You must be the Hapen Queen Mother. My name is Isan Fal. I'm a pilot in the air force here," the man finally said.

As per custom Tenel Ka offered her hand to Isan, who lightly took it and kissed the back of her tanned skin. The kiss lingered a bit longer than she felt comfortable with. He looked up at her from his lowered position and smiled without letting go of her hand. His smile cause a warm shiver to race down Tenel Ka's spine, warming her whole body. She was sure that this sudden heat was showing up in her face. Quickly she took her hand back and turned away from Isan. This only made him smile harder, stepping closer to Tenel Ka

She could feel his presence close behind her but didn't move. For some reason she felt comfortable, almost safe, around this stranger. He felt like an old friend, maybe more, which worried her.

Tenel Ka jumped when she felt Isan's finder grazing the soft skin on the backs of her arms, both of them. He stopped just short of her amputation and worked his way back up her arm. His light touch tickled her, but it was a wonderful feeling. No one aside from medical staff had ever touched her left arm before like that. It struck a cord in her heart and she had to swallow to fight back her emotions.

"I'd like to get to know you better, Your Highness. Beyond the public image, I mean. If that's all right with you," Isan whispered in her right ear, his lips lightly grazing the sensitive skin behind her ear. Another warm shudder sped through Tenel Ka's body.

"Of course, but I must return home tomorrow morning," Tenel Ka replied turning to her right to look at Isan. His eyes were sparkling in the moonlight, full of apparent joy. A wide, open smile had paralyzed his face.

"Wonderful. Let us try to find someplace a bit warmer to talk. Someplace a bit more private. I wouldn't want to confuse your consortium by having roving holonews cameras spying on us. Unless of course, that's what you want," Isan said, taking her right hand in his left.

"I… I…," Tenel Ka stammered, lost for words for the first time in her life. His touch only caused the fire smoldering inside her to flare to life. It stormed through her body and threatened to escape her body by contact with Isan's.

"I take it that's a yes," Isan said, his smile never fading.

Tenel Ka collected herself and nodded, fearful her voice would give her away.

Isan tightened his grip on her hand and pulled her back toward the doors. He slowly opened them and led her back into the dark hall. In the distance a slow tune could be heard from the ball. Tenel Ka wished she was on the dance floor, with Isan. She was glad he was slightly ahead of her as she felt her cheeks warm. She was blushing.

Isan stopped abruptly and turned to Tenel Ka in the middle of the hall. It was empty and their footsteps echoed against all the stone. He smiled softly at Tenel Ka and stepped closer, collecting her in his arms. He began to sway in time with the music, right in the middle of the hall. Tenel Ka let go of his hand and tried her best to wrap her arms around his neck.

Only one other man had made her remotely feel this way before. And he was watching from the shadows, despair filling his heart.