Sola looked at herself in the mirror and took a deep breath. Uri had taken her directly to the refresher when they'd entered, telling her to freshen herself up before going out onto the court floor. She had wiped the mascara that had smeared from her face and no longer looked like she'd been crying. She was lucky that way—her pale skin, almost lavender in the bright light, recovered quickly. A gift, she suspected, from her Astaraxxi mother.

Uri was waiting for her when she came out, leaning the far wall and talking with a young man, a flirtatious look on his face. The young man was blushing slightly. Her first thought was, I am going to have to find another ride home, but when Uri saw her, he pushed himself off from wall and nodded to the young man, leaving him where he was.

"Making friends and influencing people?" she teased.

He put his arm around her and pulled her tightly to him. "The Light of the Navy has to shine," he told her.

"I don't think that's what the Navy meant when they gave you that moniker," she chuckled. "Did you get his com information?"

"I did," he said with a wink. "After all, I'm on-world for three whole days. He's a junior senator from some mid-world. He'll be on Coruscant for quite some time."

"You don't even remember what world he's from?" she admonished. "Uri!"

"I'm allowed to look and not pay attention to the prattle," Uri said. "Who cares where he's from. And the night is young, my dear. I might meet someone who is more interesting before the night is through."

Sola shook her head good naturedly. "You and your shenanigans."

"You remember the last junior senator I was with," Uri said, looking far away. "She was something…too bad she was so young. I could have done some amazing things with her."

"As I recall, you did do amazing things with her," Sola muttered.

Uri winked. "I did. I'm sorry your time for doing amazing things with people was cut short."

She shook her head, hearing the derision in the last sentence he spoke. "Don't feel sorry for me," she told him. She didn't want his or anyone's pity. She didn't need it. "I'm happy."

He looked at her dubiously, but then pulled her even closer and kissed her on top of her head. "If you say so."

A group of people looked their way, unapproving looks on their faces. "...a little too close if you ask me," Sola heard one of them say.

"Shall we start with them?" Uri asked, throwing his head in the direction of the people.

They turned away from them, their voices becoming hushed.

"No," Sola said. She wasn't in the mood for a fight with anyone, even if she had to pretend to be happy when she did it. "I'd prefer something a little gentler, I think."

As they worked their way farther into the room, several people approached them, or rather Uri, with a flirtatious attitude. To Sola's gratitude, he did not indulge any of them, but kept his arm firmly around her shoulders, pulling her against him occasionally, showing those present where his attention was that night. She felt a warm wave in her chest that brought tears to her eyes, and laid her head against his arm more than once.

"Are you alright, dear?" said an elderly woman who they'd been speaking with. She leaned in closer, peering at Sola's face.

"I'm fine," Sola assured her, blinking back her tears and smiling. "I'm grateful for the time I get to spend with my brother." She took the hand that was around her shoulders in her own and gave him a squeeze.

"I hear you're off-world quite a bit these days, your highness, with the two of you visiting each other," said someone else.

How someone had heard that, she didn't know. Her comings and goings were hardly noteworthy. "With the children both away at school now, I have time to visit with family more," she said.

"I have to settle for visiting family whenever I can squeeze them in," Uri chimed in with a dramatic roll of his eyes. "Cousins, cousins everywhere, with no time to tend to them all."

"I'm sure the royal household invites you both often," said the elderly woman in a knowing fashion.

So it was going to be that kind of night, Sola thought, dealing with people who wanted to be associated with royalty because they weren't. They thought it gave them a leg up on those around them. She'd dealt with these kinds of people her entire life, and knew they'd be horribly disappointed to find out that any prestige they managed to get was solely false and based only on the image portrayed to others. But that's what court is for, isn't it? she reminded herself. Try and get in with whomever has power and hope to get a glimpse of the Emperor or the vizir or Lord Vader or…

"Will Grand Admiral Thrawn be joining us tonight?" a senator broke into her thoughts.

She blinked at the unexpected question. "No," she said slowly. Was she supposed to be the one who knew that. "Not that I know of."

"I'm sure that he'd have told you," said a man in a civilian civil servant uniform, "with you being such good friends and all." She didn't like the emphasis that he put on friends.

"I'm not his keeper," Sola said, leaning into Uri as she spoke.

"It's Thrawn," said another uniformed civilian. "He doesn't have any friends."

Sola felt the heat rise in her face. Surely she'd heard him wrong. She glanced around the group of people. No one said anything. "That isn't true," she said vehemently, turning on the civilian. "I'm his friend!" She looked up at her brother. "He's his friend!"

"Best to watch how you speak about my colleagues in front of me," said Uri haughtily.

The uniformed civilian swallowed, his face contrite. "Quite sorry, Admiral," he said. "It's just…it's what we've heard through the grapevine."

"You shouldn't trust those kinds of grapes," Sola chimed in. "Sometimes they're terribly sour." She turned, twisting out of Uri's arms, and left the group to talk amongst themselves.

Looking about the hall, she caught sight of Governor Pryce, speaking with a group of people that included Governor Ophun of Astarrax. She made her way over to them, inserting herself in the circle of speakers and listening to their conversation. It was boring, about new policies that Governor Pryce was instituting on Lothal that she thought would do well within the entirety of the Outer Rim concerning errant youth.

"Wouldn't having greater infrastructure work to lower the rates?" Sola asked for a pause. "Like instituting mandatory schooling?"

"These are working families, cousin," said Ophun, using the Basic term 'cousin' for the more formal term of extended cousin that it would have been in Astarraxi. "They need their children at home to help them with their businesses."

"But if the youth are errant they aren't helping with businesses," Sola said. "Could it be they are errant simply because there is nowhere for them to be?"

"They can always join the Navy," Uri slid up beside his sister and put his arm around her shoulders once more.

"We have an Academy on Lothal," Pryce said proudly. "The best in the Outer Rim."

"Astarrax has considered an Academy," Ophun said.

"The reason that the Core Worlds don't have such an errant youth problem is because they have access to schooling, even in the poorer areas," Sola continued. "That shows that occupying young people in some capacity, even if it is in schooling, keeps them off the streets."

"And who is to make them go to school?" Pryce asked. "Even if cheap or free options were available?"

"You make it very unpleasant for them not to be there," Sola explained. "You have a military presence, it can be strongly encouraged that they be in school."

Uri chuckled.

"Again, these families need their children to work," Ophun said, glancing from Uri to Sola and back again.

Sola took a deep breath to say something, and then decided against it. She changed tactics. Turning to Pryce, she smiled and said, "I'd love to see the Academy on Lothal sometime. It's been a while since I've been to a school."

"She created the general year 11 curriculum, you know," Uri said proudly.

Pryce didn't answer, but merely raised her eyebrows.

"Excuse me, your highness," said a quiet voice next to her. She turned, unaware that someone had come to stand beside her, to see a governor standing next to her. On his arm was a woman, both of whom were smiling at her. "A moment of your time?"

She disengaged from Uri and turned to the man. The thought occurred to her to correct his address of her, but she decided against it. Tonight, she would be a princess. "Yes?"

"I'm Governor Gardjinn," he said, "this is my wife." He gestured to the woman beside him.

"We received your lovely bouquet," his wife said sweetly. "You were very punctual with a reply."

For a moment, Sola was confused as to what they were talking about. It had been a while since she'd sent an answering bouquet to anyone, and she never sent initial flowers. She had no need to. Uri contacted people directly after the flower exchanging took place.

Suddenly, Sola remembered what they were talking about. This was one of Thrawn's baskets! They wanted to meet him socially. That almost always meant one wanted to make either a threat or an alliance. She didn't get the impression the basket had been a threat. "Of course," she answered graciously. "I wouldn't want to keep you waiting. I sent it as soon as I knew Thrawn's reply."

"We were thrilled to see you here, your highness," Madame Gardjinn said. "We'd love for you and Grand Admiral Thrawn to visit our villa on Edam. The two of us should settle on a time."

Sola blinked. "Me?" she asked.

"Of course, you," Madame Gardjinn laughed. "Why would we not want you to come also?"

Because the basket had been for Thrawn, she thought, and I have nothing to do with his social life. She smiled and inclined her head. "I can contact Admiral Thrawn and see when he is available." She chuckled, feeling very much like a social secretary, a role she'd rather enjoyed when doing it for Uri.

"Good!" Madame Gardjinn held out her arm for Sola to grasp. When she did so, she gasped. "Oh, your highness!" she exclaimed. "How did you get that awful bruise on your arm?"

Sola looked at her arm in surprise. On her forearm was an ugly, large brown and purple patch. It seemed to loom in her vision as she tried to blink it away. "I hit it on the counter of my dressing table," she said finally. She looked up at them, both of their faces concerned. "It's nothing. Honest."