Holly Starstorm
Holo News Network Journalist
Today, she was covering the first day of school.
She stood near the center of Kalinda University's sprawling campus with one hand resting on her hip and the other curled around a small recorder, watching students stream past in every direction. Some hurried toward lecture halls with datapads clutched against their chests, others gathered beneath the trees in noisy little groups, and more than a few wandered around wearing the unmistakable expression of someone who had absolutely no idea where they were going but would rather die than admit it.
Behind Holly, her Bothan cameraman adjusted the holocamera mounted against his shoulder.
"Don't," Holly said without looking at him.
The Bothan's ears twitched. "I didn't say anything."
"You were about to."
"I was going to say this seems nice."
Holly slowly turned her head toward him.
He wisely looked through the camera instead.
Nice.
That was exactly the problem.
Her editor had called it a human-interest piece. Holly had called it a waste of perfectly good newsroom resources.
The argument had lasted nearly fifteen minutes.
Go talk to the students, Holly.
About what?
The first day. New beginnings. Their hopes for the year.
You want me to ask eighteen-year-olds how excited they are about homework?
Yes.
That isn't news.
Today it is.
She had tried pointing out that there were approximately twelve thousand more important things happening in the galaxy. She had even arrived at the meeting with three perfectly respectable story pitches of her own.
Her chief had listened patiently.
Then he had handed her the Kalinda assignment.
So here she was.
Holly exhaled through her nose and glanced around the campus again. A group of students approached along the walkway. She straightened almost automatically, irritation disappearing behind the polished expression of a professional reporter. Whatever she thought of the assignment, she wasn't going to do it badly.
She stepped toward the passing crowd, lifting her recorder.
"Hi," she called, offering the nearest student a pleasant smile. "Holly Starstorm, Holo News Network. Do you have a minute to talk about your first day at Kalinda?"
The student immediately looked terrified and hurried in the opposite direction.
Holly watched them go.
Her smile disappeared.
"One down," the Bothan observed.
She scowled at him.
There had to be someone on this campus who would talk to her.
