Chapter 5

The night was young as the many important guests began to arrive to the Coronet Capital Ball Room. All were dress in the most elegance styles, all were well versed in the highest of formal affairs, – but most importantly – all were there with a specific reason in mind. Few came simply to enjoy the splendor of the celebration, for through and through it was a political gathering.

The majestic ballroom was decorated to impress its visitors for sure. The grand staircase that lead down to the main floor had a regal purple carpet running down the center as a path and the railing was decorated with jade roses. The marble floor shined like glass as the light from the extravagant, crystal chandeliers reflected off the ground. Giant, velvet drapes framed the ceiling-to-floor windows and the moonlight shimmered into the grand room like a million candles.

People who arrived were generally known by all, but recognized publicly by few. They walked down the staircase and quickly joined a group, hoping to gain some influence or connections. The guests were mixed together and rank was seemingly dismissed. The wealthy space merchant would talk with a representative and it would not be counted as suspicious in any way.

As the party began, Senator Bel Iblis and his wife eagerly mingled with the crowd. The senator wore his finest robes of blue and gold – the family colors – while Adeline was dress in a gown with mixed fabrics of satin and velvet. While they talked, Logan stood anxiously by the stairs wearing his finest blue uniform. He hoped that Lizabea would appear soon as he had become more worrisome due to her late appearance.

He didn't have to wait long. Bea showed up at the top of the stairs smiling with excitement in her glittering yellow dress. She waved enthusiastically to Logan just to make sure that he saw her. Her cheeks were rosy pink with anticipation of the Victory Day Ball. Logan grinned up at her and winked. He was glad to see that she was okay. But his jaw dropped in surprise when he saw Katiara walk up and take Lizabea's hand to lead the young girl down the stairs.

The blonde Jedi was dress in a blood red gown that floored to the floor like the petal of a rose. The dress had no straps and the bodice was decorated with a subtle, white pattern that sparkled in the light. She wore a pair of silky white gloves on her hands, which made her looked even statelier. Her hair was partially up in a bun, but the rest fell down over her shoulders in gentle curls. She was a picture of confidence and beauty.

Katiara's main goal was to prove herself to all those who thought her unworthy to continue Senator Cacilya Ky'Varm's legacy. But of course a less important objective was to impress Logan, to show him how simple it was to be a princess. Though she was surprised to find that she actually didn't mind feeling like a princess.

Once they reached the bottom of the stairs, Lizabea let go of Katiara's hand to embrace her brother. He seemed to have forgotten she was there, but remembered at her touch and hugged her affectionately in return. "Can I go see Papa?" Bea asked Katiara, who took her hand once more in affirmation.

As they began to walk away from Logan, Katiara leaned close. "Surprised?" she whispered into his ear with a definite sense of challenge and assumed triumph. She didn't wait for a reply, but walked over to the Senator and his wife. She noticed out of the corner of her eye that Logan had followed them rather casually.

"Papa!" Lizabea cried and fell on her father in another tender embrace. He squeezed her tight before letting her go. "Look Papa! I got all dressed up and I even got my hair done pretty!" she told him, touching the flowers in her hair gently to make sure they were still there.

"Why yes, you look like the princess of the galaxy!" he told her as he stroked her head gently and smiled down at her. Then he turned his attention to the taller people around him. He glanced at Katiara, but was distracted by his wife. Adeline's mouth was gaping wide in astonishment. She obviously expected Katiara to come wearing her cargo pants and a worn tank top, so seeing the young woman in a dress must have been quite a surprise. "Don't be so silly, darling," Garm Bel Iblis told her in amusement.

"I will only be attending until Lizabea's bedtime, which will only be one hour later than its normal time," Katiara said, she tried to sound elegant and well versed. She looked down at Bea, who smiled wider at the prospect of staying up even a little past her usual bedtime. "Throughout the evening, I shall remain with Lizabea to be sure that she is keep under close watch."

"My dear, you mustn't think of it!" Adeline said in protest. Katiara lifted an eyebrow, surprised at the older woman's statement. Apparently the senator's wife thought a bit too much of the Jedi now. "Balls are supposed to be a place to have fun! You should enjoy yourself tonight, take a break and…"

"I'm sorry, but I won't abandon my duties here and leave Bea unprotected just to have 'fun'," Katiara said. She couldn't help but let her usual tone and way of talking slip in. Plus, it didn't seem to her like any of the people present were there simply to hav this 'fun'. She crossed her arms, wishing the night would end then and there. Katiara remembered why she hated attending banquets with her mother when she was younger.

"I'll watch Lizabea," Logan said suddenly, startling Katiara slightly for she had no idea he was standing next to her. The young man took Bea's hand, who looked up at him in admiration, obviously liking the idea of spending the night with him better than staying under Katiara's watchful eye.

"No, no, my son," Adeline said. It seemed that she had an agenda for everyone attending the celebration ball. She took Bea's hand out from Logan's gently and held it in her own. She leaned close to Logan as if to whisper something she intended no one to hear. Unfortunately for him, Katiara heard most of her words. "You must be social. If you insist on choosing your betrothed then you must make some effort towards it."

Finally, the senator spoke up as he swept Lizabea up into his arms. "All this non-sense over my pretty little girl and who shall watch her," he said playfully after he had kissed his daughter on the cheek. "I have a solution to satisfy all of you. I will watch Bea for the first dance." – he glanced at Lizabea - "Maybe we shall dance it together, dear?" he said quickly to his daughter before returning to his train of thought. "Both Katiara and Logan can dance that first dance to have this 'fun' you speak of, my dear. Then Katiara may return to her duties and Logan may return to his."

Though neither Logan nor Katiara agreed to this, it seemed to appease Adeline Bel Iblis. And, apparently, that was the only objective. The blonde Jedi crossed her arms in silent defiance. She hated dancing, much less with just some political stranger. She would have to listen to them ramble on about some completely boring subject. Not the ideal situation.

"Really, m'lady," Katiara began to protest, but then she noticed Logan smirking confidently. She knew he was expecting her to back down. That would be victory for him and utter defeat for her. "Uh, really, m'lady, thank you. Though be assured that I must return to my duties afterward for the rest of the evening." The smirk disappeared. The game was still on. Then Logan crossed his arms not liking the situation.

"I must find you someone good to dance with then, dearie," the older lady said as she began to look over the whole room for a proper partner for Katiara, who immediately began to object to this idea. But she was instantly cut off by the Senator's boisterous laugh.

"Oh my, Adeline. Will you have Bea's bodyguard dancing with a pompous stranger?" He inquired, which gained a stiff glare from his wife. "Surely if you must force her to dance – yes, my dear, you are forcing her – then at least give her some company she will truly enjoy. Why I'm sure that the proposal of dancing with our son here will be more appealing than a stranger."

"But, Garm. Logan must get out. He will never be married if…" Adeline began. Obviously, Katiara wasn't the model betrothal for a senator's son. Logan's cheeks gained some color, embarrassed that his mother was so persistent on the issue of marriage despite the fact that he was barely twenty-three years of age. But still, to both of the rivals, even the thought of dancing together was absurd.

"Pish posh. If our son is to ever be married, I hardly doubt his type is any that you would choose. At least I would hope my future daughter-in-law doesn't wear feathers up to her nose," he said, laughing again. Apparently, it did not matter one bit what Katiara or Logan thought of anything being discussed and simply stood by hoping for something to be resolved. Not dancing at all would be best.

"Very well, love. Logan, go take Miss Orrin to the dance floor," Adeline commanded rather roughly, letting her husband win the debate. Her son glanced at the Jedi who looked back. Both were surprised by this abrupt demand. "Go on now, take her arm." Katiara took this as a challenge and made up her mind that she was going to win this 'dance off' against her very own partner. Logan obviously had the same thought, smiling like he would triumph with no effort.

He held out his arm and she took it with ease. As they began to walk away, she heard Mrs. Bel Iblis mutter to her husband "I only hope that she knows how to dance. I won't want my Logan looking like a fool because of some…" They both walked with misplaced pride and confidence, both certain that they would be the better partner.

"Do you even remember how to dance?" Logan questioned with a smirk, though he didn't turn his head to look at Katiara.

"Do you?" she simply inquired back with the same haughty smile. Then reached the dance floor and quite a few other couples had taken their places. Katiara stood in front of Logan with her hands on her hips, acting as if she had know idea what she was doing. It was what everyone expected of her.

"We'll see I suppose," Logan replied as he put a hand on Katiara's waist and held out his other for her to hold. She took his hand and put the other on his shoulder. She raised an eyebrow but didn't say a word as they both waited impatiently for the music to begin. Finally, it did.

The small orchestra began to play a typical Corellian waltz: simple and sophisticated with a hint of spirit. Holding her head high, Katiara began to let her feet trace the steps of the rather common dance. Logan followed her lead, though it was obvious he was struggling to take control of the dance. Finally after a few moments, Katiara gave him the privilege of leading.

At first nothing was said as they floated around the dance floor, looking into the other's eyes competitively. Focusing on intimidating the other seemed to have little effect as neither faultered in confidence. After a few minutes of silence, a dialogue between them began.

"So I guess you did retain some of your mother's attributes," Logan said, though Katiara was uncertain if the comment was meant as an insult or a compliment.

"Oh, lucky me," she responded with sarcasm. She was a Jedi and a smuggler, after all. She had no use for frilliness and manners.

"Why are you so offensive about nobility?" Logan responded harshly, careful to keep his voice low, though his annoyance was quite obvious. "Afraid it's gonna…"

"Oh, la-de-dah! So what if it was my mother's legacy, the senate never gets anything done anyways. Everyone knows Palpatine is going to do whatever he wants whether or not the senate votes in his favor."

"Shh!" Logan chided, looking around to be sure no one had heard and it appeared that he had nothing to be so worried about. "Well, if everyone just gave up completely, things would be a lot easier for the emperor. Also, without the connection through loyal senators, the rebellion would never have a clue what the emperor was up to."

"With Lord Vader on our tail it's a miracle that we still have those connections. But it's not like they are doing us much good anyways."

"You know well enough Vader is only after the Rebel Alliance because of their connection to the Jedi. He's not after them – at least not yet – he's after you."

"And that would be the reason why I won't let him find me through them. The senators may have known my mother but that's as close as they will get to me," Katiara responded. She was really starting to hate all this political nonsense. Too bad no one was going to be assassinating the emperor anytime soon. At least it didn't appear like that was on the agenda. "Sure, I agree with the cause of the Rebels. That's why I'm here. But that doesn't mean that I'm going to let my guard down and tell them all my secrets."

Logan dipped Katiara back suddenly in synchronization with the other couples, only perhaps a bit more violently. Katiara glared at him as hard as she could but also held on tightly to his arm so she didn't fall. "So I'm guessing you're not going to let me get very close either then. Am I right?" He teased and then snapped her back up, causing Katiara to seem a bit on edge.

"You're already too close for comfort," she replied hastily.

"Already?" Logan replied with a smirk before they separated, holding only one hand as they repeated the steps. Katiara spun in as the other ladies did and Logan caught her, holding her closer than the other gentlemen seemed to be. "Then how's this?" He whispered, but Katiara couldn't decide if it was a flirt or a challenge. Katiara spun out again and then previous, traditional dance positions were assumed.

"I'm sure you liked it," she told him with a smirk and raised eyebrow. "But personally I would rather be on Byss, in the arms of a Hutt than here," she said bluntly and was surprised when she sensed that he had somehow been hurt by her honesty. Luckily, the dance had ended. Katiara gave a graceful curtsy while Logan bowed. Everyone began to clap, but the blonde Jedi simply walked off the dance floor towards Senator Bel Iblis without a single glance back.

Katiara was shocked and concerned when she noticed Lizabea was not where she had left her, with the Senator and his wife. Garm Bel Iblis began to inquire about the dance but Katiara cut him off quickly. "Where is Bea?" She demanded forcefully.

"No need to fret, she is over by the beverage table getting some punch," he told her and pointed to a long table halfway across the room. There, a little girl in a yellow dress stood with a cup of red liquid. Katiara was too frustrated to yell at the senator, but she sure did feel like it. Sometimes she wished the assassin would just shoot down the politician where he stood. Maybe then he would fully understand the situation. She ran over to Lizabea and grabbed her hand harshly, causing the little girl to spill a bit of punch onto the floor.

"Don't run off, okay? I don't want you getting hurt," she told the little girl who was confused as to what she had done wrong. Katiara figured it was simplier to just not go into the specifics. The little girl nodded and sipped her drink, seemingly without any second thoughts on what had just happened.

As they were walking back over to the Senator, a shriek was heard from near the hallway. Katiara turned sharply and then time Bea dropped her cup completely and the red juice splashed all over the floor. But Katiara was too preoccupied to care. Someone shouted that the woman had simply fainted and was just drunk. But when the lady revived, Katiara heard her mention one thing over and over: "But I did, I saw them. I saw a nek."