He turned slowly....his eyes coming to focus on Jai....eyes seeming to dilate open, the virbant portals of color shifting....deepening as he studied her...

"A woman i used to know said that a lot...but i don't suppose she had much time to dance....not after her coronation. Those were good days, full of life, full of diversity. Before the coming darkness, before the dark times set in...."

" Jai what would Mr. Darklighter say about all your boyfriends, over there Tex said, gesturing to the group of men that were now camped out behind Jai's chair. quite the fan club Tex said as Tex gave Jai his famous I'm only kidding look.

Tex could tell that John was in a state of reminiscing. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> A far better time for him, I hope Tex thought. A time when life was simpler for this man, a time that was simpler for all Tex thought.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END--> Tex wanted to ask John what he was thinking about , but thought better of it,

"So Jander where did you disappear to earlier? You were here one minute and, gone the next."

Jander had been enjoying the party and watching Jaina dance for the most part since he returned. For the time being, the urges he'd had to explore past events was soothed. He studied Sheridan closely as he spoke, hearing the pain present in his voice and saw signs of it etched in his face. He could see there was much more hidden behind those blue eyes as well. Suddenly Terex spoke and he smiled slightly as he replied.

"Well Terex, you could say I was doing much the same as John here. Like him I've had past adventures here on Naboo, though this wasn't as eventful as some others. I was involved in a fairly nasty brawl with some odd people in a bar not to far from here many about thirty years ago. I thought I'd visit that site, see if the bar was still running. It is, being run by the former owners son. Amazingly, one of the blaster burns still remains. Not that many shots were fired, it was a close quarters battle, and those that were didn't miss."

With a sharp look from Jai, her 'fan club' soon dissipated and found other woman to pester.

Jai look back at John, and felt something very odd comming from him. Her force powers werent what they use to be, but they still gave off signals now and then.

"Mr. Sheridan, you make me sad."

That was an odd and rather blunt statement comming from Jai.

"Here you are, at the grandest party that I've been to in ages, that anyone's been to...and still you seem so sad. You don't seem to be enjoying yourself and this troubles me. Is there anything I can do to make this evening better for you, John?"

"Jai, there are a million million things in the darkness between the stars. We are specks in the grand scheme of the cosmos, playing a very small part and doing very little to change the universe truly. We are all made of the same components, carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, the same as the stars themselves."

"Some may claim to be superior, claiming that they alone have the right to choose the course of desstiny, seemingly altering the course of fate by themselves. But does it really matter who claims to be in charge?"

"No, we are all made of the same elements....the same molecules...the same bits and pieces of the very creation of all things. I am just an older bit of star stuff, not so old as my cousins up there." He looked into the night sky, studying the stars once, letting his gaze fall across the fullness of the night sky. "There are very few things in the stars left that i know. But it is good to be here again, after being gone so very long, gone in that darkness between the stars..."

Jai was dumbstruck by John's infinately wise words. She had never heard anyone talk in such a way. For once in her life, words escaped her. To her, his words were to perfect to tack a silly, Solo-ish comment to on behind.

The Gand's eyes twinkled as he saw Jaina's reaction to Sheridan's words. He knew striking her speechless didn't happen often. She was a Solo after all. At the same time, there was certainly reason for her reaction. John had spoken very eloquently, his feelings coming through in his words. It was almost like in the holo's, the hero's soliquy of loss. As he had listened to the older human he felt a connection to the man. They both had long pasts, and had been reminiscing about them for some time.

"Well put John. Well put." Like Jaina he really didn't know what to say. Unlike the other two, he'd known Sheridan before this party, but not very well. Jander wondered what horrors terrorized his memories. If his past was anything like Sunstar's own, the Gand knew they must be quite bad.

Tex looked at John with an all new powerful respect.<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> I thought I had been through a lot in my 27 years plus he thought. What this man must know about these stars baffles me the people and, the things he must of seen. Its true I have only known this man a few hours, but, after the party breaks up a little later on I'm going to see if he'll talk about some of his adventures. Tex thought.<!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

Tex looked at Jai's face as she sat there speechless and had to laugh.Tex looked over at Jander who he could tell was feeling the same thing as he was.<!--EZCODE ITALIC START--> I came to this party just because Jai dragged me, I'm walking out of the palace with something so much more important he thought. Wisdom <!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->

OOC: Well, Boys. It doesn't get much better than that. We've got a speechless Solo, and wiser Datooinian, a reflecting Gand, and a wise...well...whatever John is. I say we end it while were still on top. Leave 'em hangin'. As far as I'm concerned, I say this thread is through, Boys.

ooc: I guess that's ok. I'm just curious, were Owen and Cairo tongue tied too, or something? There was never a reply that I saw after Tec's speech on fireworks.....Anyways, Jai, will you forgive me for last night on aim? Please?