First Order: A Herevan Rose

[Ara Zambrano]

Ara nodded politely to both, her eyebrow winging up at the curt greeting from the woman. She chuckled darkly, releasing [member="Kaalia Voldaren"]'s arm for the first time since entering. "I apologize if I interrupted something. I assumed the way this gentlemen was staring, he was interested in conversation." Her tone was a light purr and she turned her gaze back to the Hapan in front of her, a smile curling her lips up softly.

She returned his bow with a polite nod. "No apology needed. A lady always likes to feel appreciated. I have never been to Hapes, unfortunately. If I had, I'm sure I wouldn't have forgotten someone as lovely as you." She gave him an appraising glance from his dress uniform up to the chiseled features, lingering for a moment on the scar. She smile grew, the expression one of appreciation of the view in front of her, the scar not a deterrent, but a symbol of his dedication to their cause.

She smiled slyly at her friend as the man tried to put Kaalia at ease, knowing it would do little good. "I'm sure she'll get over her nerves better if she has someone lovely to dance with, or another drink." Her eyes twinkled with mischief.

She offered a hand as she introduced herself. "A pleasure to meet you Captain Draken. Thank you for your service. I am Ara." She chuckled softly and brushed her long hair back over one shoulder.

"Honestly, I am surprised to see another Hapan myself. It seems we are few and far between." She sipped from her flute of champagne and handed the empty glass off to a passing waiter. "Would you care to dance, Captain?"

Quickly glancing at the two other women, she shrugged sheepishly. "If you both don't mind of course." Her expression dared Kaalia to stay and converse with the woman. "And why don't you get another drink?" She glanced at the almost empty flute in her friend's hand.

As she turned, confident that the man would accept her request, she spotted [member="Connor Harrison"] conversing with an unknown woman. If he glanced her direction, she'd offer a knowing smile and a wink.

Another unknown gentleman approached and Ara paused, her smile practically blinding. She nodded respectfully and laughed. "Good evening. I'm afraid you know our names, but I don't know yours."

[member="Pharazon Draken"] | [member="FN-888"] | [member="Jaron Lesan"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

As [member="Eldaah Aderyn"] spoke, Connor clocked eye contact with one known as [member="Jaron Lesan"] and gave him a small nod and polite smile as he moved on. Right now, he was here to make as many friends and potential allies and contacts as possible – it would be difficult to shake the name, let alone the former standing.

"Business,” was the answer. "You know me. I find it hard to find pleasure in anything. But, to be fair, this IS pleasurable in itself. I’m here to hopefully join the Order, and find a future. A place to have purpose.”

He took a sip of the drink.

"New faces, new names, all that. Just need to be careful because I’m sure certain people may not have like a certain CH of the SJ mingling around, so, yeah. Treading carefully tonight. I mean, if you know anyone in the First Order I should talk to, please, do tell.”

Glancing back to where Jaron went towards [member="Ara Ren"] and her squad, he caught her smile and wink. That was nice. He winked back quickly, tipping his glass. At least he made good on his word - and hopefully she would like the change from "former Jedi" to this.

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

Even from across the crowded room, she could see that the eyes of [member="Lady Kay"] and [member="Darlyn Excron"] had found her. Hyori could even see their lips moving in conversation. She took a couple of steps away from the wall, an invitation for them to approach. Indeed, news of Kay’s new position as Queen of Commenor had reached her. It wasn’t difficult to keep tabs on someone that had such a presence in the galaxy. As for Mr. Excron, the file Hyori kept in her office had been untouched since the last time they met on Bespin. She remembered that he was a bit brash and reckless, but his skills had been of some use. It was also noted that he demonstrated loyalty to Kay, something that was still quite evident tonight.

“Good evening, your majesty.” Hyori canted her head to the side politely, her eyes shifted to Darlyn and she offered a silent nod in greeting. “Thank you, for the kind words. You look lovely as well.”

There was a very slight hint of mild warmth to her tone, but a slight stiffness to her words remained. Giving and receiving compliments was still quite foreign to her. Her dark gaze lingered on Kay for a moment. While the agent was not force-sensitive, even she could tell that there was something… different about her. Hyori let her gaze shift to Darlyn, noting that he was now part of her security detail.

“Yes, how could I forget Mr. Excron?” She offered a small smile, “I do hope both of you enjoy yourselves tonight. The venue is quite grand, is it not?”

Hyori decided to attempt small talk, but made a mental reminder to add some additional notes to Darlyn’s file when she returned to the office. She did not doubt that he would be on his best behavior tonight; Hyori imagined that he would certainly not want to risk sullying Kay’s image.

 

[Darlyn Excron]

Darlyn was close behind Kay as she made her approach, almost nervously fiddling with the tie around his neck. Not only was the situation, shall one say, somewhat awkward for the man, but the tie itself felt not unlike a noose slowly tightening. Perhaps it was only because Tal herself was aware of most of his capabilities, and he'd hardly seen her in action. As such, it almost felt like meeting someone for the first time who had known you all your life, and such a disadvantage was unnerving.

But, he was overthinking it. This was polite conversation, certainly he knew enough of the agent to commit to that much. So he offered a small smile and nod to her words to him. "Well, I'm quite grateful you remember me, Agent Tal. I'm afraid I don't know another Bespin mining platform we could have visited to jog your memory if you hadn't." And there was the still joking nature shining through as always. Why he hadn't been shot for cracking jokes yet was a mystery and miracle unto itself.

"Yes, it is quite lovely. Very large, very grandiose. Must have cost a rather sizable fortune to construct." He ran a hand through his hair as he spoke, keeping himself calm around [member="Hyori Tal"]. [member="Lady Kay"] no doubt remembered her rather professional opinion on Bespin, and while Darlyn cared little about it, but it did make the interaction somewhat, tense for Darlyn. "Can't say I've frequented such events, never been much of a party person.."

 

[Jaron Lesan]

"Excuse me," he said with a nod, "Jaron Lesan. My master and I were founders, until he betrayed me and the First Order. I've been in hiding for a time until he could be dealt with."

Jaron offered no indication he was a Knight of Ren, though his robes would indicate he was a force user. The reference to Belis Ren's betrayal would say enough to any who were familiar with it. The two had been a formidable pair before that time, and since that betrayal Jaron had been working alone. It forced him to leave behind several things he had held dear, but they were slowly becoming his again.

His empty glass was set on a passing tray, and he smiled, though lacking some of the life which had been there. Jaron's most exciting moments were his missions or spars with [member="Isla Ashen"]. Of all the Ren he had allowed to work with him, she was the one who seemed to be the most natural compliment to his style. They were both committed to the order and to the mission. Jaron was looking for others who were the same. His job was not one of fighting in the front lines, but of infiltration, scouting, espionage. He was not just a hand of the supreme leader, but Jaron was the hand's shadow.

"I do seem to be interrupting, my apologies," he said with a nod.

[member="Ara Ren"] | [member="Pharazon Draken"] | [member="FN-888"] | [member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Hyori Tal"] seemed a little awkward in this situation. Maybe not so much with [member="Darlyn Excron"] and herself being there in conversation with her, but with being at the event itself. And this was the first time tgat either of them had seen the agent out of uniform.

Kay bowed her head at the compliment. Her eyes were then drawn to the venue as a whole. "It is rather stunning. I'll have to visit when there isn't this many people inside so that I can admire the architecture without obstruction."

She spotted [member="Samka Derith"] and was puzzled as the representative for the First Order had decided to colour her hair. Perhaps it was some new fad among the younglings, or maybe, just like Kay, she was trying to blend in.

[member="Connor Harrison"] was mingling with others still, probably still completely unaware that she was there. Perhaps that was a sign of things to come. Her mind drifted to thoughts of her government. It was smaller than when she was President, much smaller. Loyalty is so hard to find these days. Yet she was learning to just let things go. It was far better than letting it eat her up inside.

Her eyes scanned the people even further while Darlyn conversed with the agent. Couples were everywhere, but there were those that seem to have come on their own as well. So she wasn't by herself in that regard. But maybe the time will come that she would need to change that.

Kay returned her attention back to Darlyn and Agent Tal. "You'll find that many events such as these are similar. If you watch, you can note the different patterns of behaviour. Some retreat to the balconies, others remain near the food and drinks. Some mingle from person to person and others ignore everyone completely and just dance with their companions. If ever one wanted to study human behaviour, this would be the place to be."

 

[Rocu]

"Y-yes, ma'am," replied Rocu to [member="BE-183"].

Amber ale, amber ale... mused Rocu in his thoughts. He ducked down below the counter to find the amber ale. Unbeknownst to him, the drawer above his head slid open, as if on its own. He grabbed the bottle of amber ale and went to stand up when his head slammed against the underside of the opened drawer. With a sharp, but short, cry of surprise and pain, he moved his head out from under and closed the drawer.

Off to the side of the bar, a mischievous noble started laughing before she turned and walked away from the scene of her Force-abusing prank. With one hand on the bottle and the other rubbing the back of his sore head, he set the bottle down on the counter and looked for a glass. Having procured one, he filled it a third of the way and passed it to the impressively built woman.

"S-sorry about the wait, ma'am," said Rocu.

____________________________________________________​

​

"Of course, sir," replied Rocu to [member="Connor Harrison"].

That one was simple enough and the stranger's kind, calm demeanor helped allay a bit of his performance fright. He was doing just fine, besides the drawer fiasco. He filled the glass a third of the way up and dropped two ice cubes inside with a pair of tongs. He gave the man his drink and moved on to the next thirsty soul.

He did the same thing with the lady's tonic water, except he remained silent. Her demeanor was passively intimidating and the fear rose up in his throat. This made him choke back etiquette by mistake, but he hoped she wouldn't care enough to punish him for it. [member="Eldaah Aderyn"]

 

[Asharad Graush]

After he had laid eyes upon the woman just moments ago, she was approaching him and introducing herself. The High Marshal hid his surprise well, though a raised brow in question had certainly followed the concealment, though his seemingly neutral facade cracked, as it should've been expected when an attractive woman approached you.

"Greetings," he said, evidently still capable of summoning some form of warmth into his speech. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady DuSang," he said, ever polite in a public setting. His amber orbs glowed lowly as he said, "Gene- High Marshal Graush," he introduced himself, only momentarily forgetting his actual station before he corrected himself. "I'd be honoured," he finished, following her gaze to [member="Rolf Amsel"] briefly, if only to showcase a brief nod, a short acknowledgement before turning away to offer [member="Aria DuSang"] his left arm, since healed after Kaeshana.

Once she presumably took it, the Sith Lord guided them through the various group of people, whether they be military or government, until they got to a bar counter.

"Tell me of yourself, Aria DuSang," he said.

 

[BE-183]

Bee hadn't joined in on the flag-waving litany. While staunch as any stormtrooper, she wasn't one for performances, perhaps apart from those which were martial in nature.

Nervous little feller. Must've been new to the job. "Uh..." There was an odd shift in the air. She pressed against the bar and halfway raised a finger when she spotted the drawer slide open, but heard a thud and a yelp before thinking to warn the bartender. "... Ouch."

Turning and glaring when she heard the laugh, Bee put two and two together. "Harpy." Her chilled gaze settling back on the youth, she eased off the counter and grabbed the drink with an appreciative nod. "No worries. Cheers," she expressed her thanks, taking an unceremonious swig. "You alright?" she inquired with a tap to the back of her head. ([member=Rocu])

 

[Hansen]

Joan Lunor
Reimalai Opera House and Theatre

"The previous Officer Commanding of the Ironguard was killed by a sniper. In fact, every single officer commanding of the Ironguard when killed, has been killed by a Sniper. Some superstitious troopers believe the position is cursed." Joan's arms fold over breast and offered a simple gesture with left-hand to Pharazon. "I too am in a similar position with my previous platoon sergeant and squad leaders. I'm recommending two of them for promotion. Sergeant Cain has a good sense of initiative which is a must for effective officers." Joan's blue spheres shift towards the woman approaching them, something seems off-putting about the yet unnamed woman. Although Joan was cautious around the chain of command until she could verify who this woman was Joan would demonstrate extra filter to what was going to be said. She glances back to Pharazon and offers an approving nod. "Balcony access is this way." Joan goes to pull away before being interrupted in this movement by the voice of Ara Ren. Joan pivots in her boots, facing the woman. As Pharazon leans in, Joan instinctively leans back until it is obvious he searches for her ear. Joan turns her head and offers Captain Draken her ear for a moment. A shiver jolts down Joan's spine and the hairs stand erect on nape. Joan offers Pharazon a nod and gives Ara Ren a dip of the head with her arrival. "If you'll excuse me Ma'am. I must take my leave." Of course, Joan doesn't actually wait for the woman's permission, she steps off briskly towards an archway that had a crimson carpet laid over a spiralling set of steps leading up to the balcony floor. Joan's thoughts are left dwelling on Pharazon's meaning 'courtly mask' did he mean to put on an act for the mysterious woman?

[member="Pharazon Draken"] [member="Ara Ren"] [member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Darth Metus]

Striok...

Made a concerted effort not to step on any toes as he maneuvered about the ballroom. After all, some of the folks surrounding him paid more for their shoes than he did for...well...anything. That, and there wasn't any greater offense than having one's toes obliterated by a gigantic ape. So, whilst the Behemoth tip-toed through the blissful crowd, his pursuit of a beverage continued. The platter of champagne he spotted was rapidly depleting, and only exceptional coordination would see him swipe a glass before some gaudy businessmen. He bobbed! He weaved! He...was about thirty seconds too slow. By the time he finally caught up with the server, the platter's final beverage had been pilfered.

He ape's nostril's flared.

"Woo else got drink?" he inquired. The server, clearly intimidated by the agitated gorilla-man, pointed in the direction of a fellow staffer. Striok turned, bracing himself for the next perilous journey through the crowd...only to find his furry heart flutter. Across the ballroom floor, past the gaggle of pamper faces, was a shiny, alabaster god. His hair was perfection, his face was divine...and oh gods he was winking in his direction. Glass raised. "...Well...I 'id promise not ta touch da gals..." he muttered, before eagerly rubbing his hands together.

Striok made his approach, pausing only to briefly slick back his unkempt hair. He had to look appealing for that God amongst men. After a few moments (and callous shoves), [member="Connor Harrison"] would find himself face to face with the Behemoth.

"Greetins masta, might I troble ya for a dahnce?"

 

[Rocu]

She was looking at him and speaking directly to him. She looked scary, like she could force him to take his medicine, but her words were kind, as though she held concern for his harm. No one showed concern for Rocu and he wasn't sure if it was a good thing even if they did. Of course, there was Jarven, but his interactions were largely cursory and temporary, since he was a busy man and only here for this event. He only ever knew people to care about whether he lived or died so that they could hurt him again. You can't hurt dead people.

Despite his life, Rocu didn't want to die. There was comfort to be found sinking into the security of shadows, free running where he pleased and experiencing the good pieces of life he was denied. Why, last night was the first night he'd unwrapped a bar of chocolate! He wasn't entirely sure, but he guessed that's what Love must taste like, if it had a taste.

He looked up nervously at [member="BE-183"]. The end of his tail was tapping a furtive tempo against his leg, causing the bottom of the left leg of his nice, black pants to shift ever so slightly. He instinctively raised his hand to the back of his head, as she was doing, and his eyes closed slightly in pain. He didn't audibly wince or make any other suggestion that his head was stinging. It wasn't so bad. It was similar to the pain he'd experience after every time the men would extract spinal fluid from him or give him yet another shot.

"I-I'm fine, thank you."

He wasn't stuttering so much, now that he'd gotten into a sort of groove here at the bar.

"You don't have to worry, really, ma'am. It'll heal..."

One source of nervousness replaced another. Instead of being afraid of harm and getting fired, he was now afraid of socializing and making a goof of himself. He was very much out of practice in terms of small talk. The men only wanted straight answers and didn't want to get attached to Rocu.

 

[Connor Harrison]

[member="Rocu"] had poured a good drink with a good ratio of ice. Nice selection.

There was a little fuss and bother to one side, and Connor casually glanced over and saw a rather large herbivorous ape - [member="Malok"] - shoving and lumbering through. With an amused chuckle, he turned to the Dark Lady to mention it, but suddenly the ape was upon him, towering over like some giant king...asking to...dance?

Connor swallowed and gave a flustered noise, half-way between confused laugh and polite decline.

"We...well, I...I...I...now, I'm no king of the swingers, oh...” he stammered, not REALLY knowing how to let down a beast wanting to dance, "...but thank you, thank you...really. I just...I just don't really dance...”

With a charming smile, he took a more than generous mouthful of drink and threw in an awkward shrug.

Here's hoping the ape didn't land a right-hook or something.

 

[Jaya Tandris]

The tipsy Jaya laughed at what [member="Dax Fyre"] had to say. "That. Is. Amazing." She watched him take a good swig from the bottle before receiving it back. "I should hang out with you more often, it seems you're always in interesting situations." She took another sip herself before answering Dax' question. "I was supposed to be part of the security for tonight, but they rejected me last minute because apparently I don't have enough class. Those stuck up..." Cupcake grumbled. "Don't they know who I am? I run the best damn street crew on Bavva! Nothing escapes my eye!" It wasn't like she loved balls, the music was awful, you had to be careful around everything, there was a severe lack of drunk people and there were no fights. Where's the fun in that?

"Alright, listen." Jaya straighted up, with a determined fire in her eyes. "This bottle is running empty, and I know they have fancy schmancy drinks in there. I need to find a way in. It would give me something to do as well while I wait for my transport back in the morning. You in?" She extended her fist, offering a fistbump to Dax. "I mean, how hard can it be? Your fancy Force powers should make it a piece of cake!"

 

[Aran Piett]

Aran held his dance partner properly, and was leading like a gentleman. Though he still felt weird dancing, it really wasn't his thing. But it was what his date wanted and well he kept saying to himself anything to make her happy.​

​

"Sorry if my dancing is a bit terrible, it isn't something I do on many occasions."​

​

[member="Sara Lee Jones"]​

 

[Dax Perl]

'Let's go sneak into a ball full of guys who are gonna try and kill you and get drunk.' That was essentially what Jaya's request boiled down too. Well feth it. That was Dax's original plan anyways. Go in there and learn things. Might as well get drunk while he was at it! After a few brief moments the Master bumped fists with the punch-happy woman. "Alright fine. But if I get executed or something, I'm coming back and haunting your ass, just saying."

The man turned to gaze back to the large building, "So, how we gonna do this? Sneak around back? Disguise ourselves as waiters or something? Sky dive through the ceiling?" Dax wasn't certain by any degree that any of those would actually work. All he knew was that he hoped that being wasted didn't make the woman any more inclined to violence than she already was...because that would definitely end well...

[member="Jaya Tandris"]

 

[Rocu]

[member="Connor Harrison"]

Seeing the unfortunate man in distress, Rocu reached around with the whiskey and gave him another pour.

"H-here, sir. I think you'll need it."

He then, backed up, gulped and hoped the ape-man didn't look at him.

 

[Pharazon Draken]

[SIZE=11pt]Pharazon nodded at Joan’s words that effectively described his own situation, he was considering recommending Cain for a proper commission, and by considering he meant he had already done it and had not told Cain yet.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“Cursed or not, I am sure you are up to the challenge” Pharazon said kindly and genuinely before returning his attention to their seemingly growing crowd of [/SIZE][SIZE=14.6667px]revellers[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt].[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]He first turned to the Hapan women, this Ara as she called herself. ([member="Ara Ren"])[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“A pleasure to make your acquaintance Ara, and thank you for your kind words, it makes my duty easier to hear that my service is appreciated” Pharazon said, inclining his head in a respectful nod once again. Of course, Pharazon would describe his current situation as servitude rather than service, given the rather uncommon circumstances of his entrance into the First Order and the Stormtrooper Corps. However, she did not need to know this and he knew he had not let anything slip in his tone to suggest he meant anything other than what he had said.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“Do not worry yourself over any supposed interruption, I do believe pleasant[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] interaction is the point of this soiree and as you say I did catch your attention so if any is to blame it would be myself”[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] Pharazon said jovially, attempting to keep everyone at ease with an easy grin and some self deprecating commentary.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“It is a shame you have not at least visited the homeworld, it is a beautiful place though given my… characteristics you will forgive me in saying that I would not stay there for much longer than a visit, and I dare say there are far lovelier[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] males on Hapes than myself”[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]Pharazon said, catching onto her thinly veiled flirting, and unconsciously scratching at his cheek scar. As much as he found it flattering, he was not able to hide completely his hatred of Hapes and it seeped into his words like a hidden viper lurking just beyond his tongue. He also hoped that she knew enough of Hapan culture to know which characteristic Pharazon had hinted at as to why he did not want to remain there. Males seldom lived freely or had many opportunities within the heart of the Consortium. His scar would also mark him out as a social and cultural pariah should he ever return.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“Though as you say, there are not many of us beyond the Transitory Mists, the old customs still rule in the Consortium and our people seldom travel the stars” Pharazon said, sharing a knowing glance with Ara. She may not be culturally Hapan, Pharazon thought, but it was nice to see someone he shared common ancestry with again. He was able to suppress his dislike of Hapes and simply appreciate being in the company of another Hapan.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]He nodded and offered his name and greeting to this Jaron Lesan, assuring him as well that he was not interrupting as far as Pharazon was concerned. ([member="Jaron Lesan"])[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]However, he also felt that he should put this [member="Kaalia Voldaren"] at ease, no matter how much he liked letting people know he knew things about them he also remembered how much he used to hate these types of things.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“[/SIZE]Do not worry my lady, I certainly meant no offence or insult, I myself used to despise occasions such as these, I am sure you will overcome your misgivings, after all, you also have a friend to look after you, do not concern yourself overly with these things, it is merely a social event, not a battlefield”[SIZE=11pt] Pharazon said, offering her a genuine smile and reassuring look. Of course, Pharazon knew that social events were sometimes the most dangerous and important events and places to be in the galaxy, but he did not want to [/SIZE][SIZE=14.6667px]embarrass[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] the woman more so than he already had and did want to help her calm down, that was the first step to mastering events such as these.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]Pharazon could remember only too vividly an occasion where he had literally been dragged into a servant’s quarters and beaten as a child because he had left a few of his tunic buttons undone. He could remember all the horrible looks and sneers people would give him freely and without consequence before he had grown large and intimidating. Being born illegitimate on Hapes was bad enough as a commoner, let alone the son of a wealthy and great noble house connected with the Queen Mother herself albeit distantly. He genuinely felt sorry for this woman, however, now that she and Ara were closer to him now, he could feel [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]that there was something more to each of them, and it frightened him to his very core. Ensuring that he controlled his breathing and expression, Pharazon set about ensuring that he kept his fear caged, he could not show weakness in front of anyone in this room, but most certainly not these two. He suspected that while they might be socially eccentric in their own ways, that they were capable of significant violence and rapid changes in mood. He needed to be cautious, but if there was anything that he had mastered while growing up within the Royal Palace, it was how to expertly hide his true feelings. That was his mask, and it had kept him alive more times than he could remember.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]Returning his attention to Ara, Pharazon smiled at her and nodded his head slightly. “I would be delighted to share a dance with you” he said, catching her gaze and seeing the twinkle in her eye. He was not entirely sure what he was doing beyond enjoying his old courtly mannerisms and cunning, however, this Ara did intrigue him. He knew there was something more about her, and he was going to find out. Anything else would be a pleasant after thought.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]Seeing that Captain Lunor was somewhat uncomfortable with suddenly being accosted with multiple other people and clearly desiring to find her seat, Pharazon decided he would intervene. ( [member="FN-888"] )[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“Feel free to take your seat for the performance without me, if it is quite alright with you I should like to stay and share at least a single dance with Lady Ara” Pharazon said, giving Joan a polite exit from the group, if any of the others did not like it they could argue the matter with Pharazon.[/SIZE]

“I will join you afterwards if I am able to and you would allow it... but until then I would still like to brush up on some of my old talents before I settle in for the performance and dinner”[SIZE=11pt] Pharazon said wryly, giving Joan a genuine look and a knowing wink. He knew she could tell he was presenting a facade, he had told her so after all, he did not think she knew why, but he did want to subtly let her know that he was not simply abandoning her company for these other women. Besides, not only did he wish to continue immersing himself in keeping his cunning and social skills sharp, his legs could also [/SIZE][SIZE=14.6667px]legitimately[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] use a stretch to work out the last of the strain he had [/SIZE][SIZE=14.6667px]received[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] from his medical treatment and injuries. As long as Ara thought he was talking about dancing and Joan thought he was talking about scheming he had succeeded.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]Turning back to Ara, Pharazon offered his arm so as to lead her toward the ball room, he was not entirely sure how their dance would go given the quite substantial height and weight difference between the two, but Pharazon knew he was going to find out very soon. This is going to be very interesting, though in what way I do not know, I feel I may come to regret this, this Ara seems too confident… I hope I will not regret learning why… [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]Pharazon thought as he continued to perfectly manage his facial expressions and body posture.[/SIZE]

 

[Valae Heavenshield]

The corner of Hyori’s smile twitched at Darlyn’s attempt at humor, but she managed to offer a small laugh. It sounded natural enough, but it was merely used to ease tension from social situations – it was never genuine. However, it seemed that tonight she had something in common with [member="Darlyn Excron"]. “Indeed,” she said with a nod, she’d never been one for parties either – but they probably knew that.

“Yes, I agree.” She said, looking down towards her drink for a moment. “These events do offer plenty of opportunity to mingle.”

The agent was aware of the work [member="Lady Kay"] with the First Order to construct an embassy; however, she was unsure whether or not the Queen had pursued further relations. But for tonight, she would keep this thought in the back of her mind. Hyori’s sharp gaze noted the way that Kay’s eyes traveled the crowd, momentarily lighting up with recognition. She allowed her own eyes to turn in response. There were likely others here that wished to greet the Queen.

“Please, do not let me keep you.” Hyori took a step back, a genial smile remained. “It was nice to see both of you; I hope you have a pleasant evening.”

With a polite incline of her head, the agent turned to walk off, but glanced back at the Queen and her security detail. “Perhaps we will meet again, your majesty.”

 

[Eldaah Aderyn]

"I keep my head down for the most part, so I don't know anyone here on a personal basis," she replied, chuckling. "I merely... observe and watch. You're on your own for figuring out how to join the First Order, Master Harrison." The master was accompanied by a sarcastic infliction as she could feel he wasn't as strong as he was during their encounters on Kulthis and Galidraan. She had to repress an amused smirk as [member="Malok"] came over and asked [member="Connor Harrison"] to dance.

"Now, now Harrison, it is only polite to go through with his request for at least one dance," she said, barely hiding her amusement physically, but she was bleeding it into the Force.