But like it or not, he was stuck on a seemingly never-ending circuit of receptions and tours, watching his mom walk side by side with the Togruta regasa while he trudged behind, forced into making small talk with delegates he barely knew and avoiding Norel Quo at all costs. The last thing he needed was the creepy Koorivar nagging him to “stand up straight” or to “smile like you mean it” for the umpteenth time.

It wasn’t all bad. He liked Rhil Dairo, even though he suspected she was just warming him up for an interview.

“What do you think?” the reporter asked as they were treated to a preview of the United in Song exhibit in the Faith and Life zone.

“The coordinator was right,” he stammered. “It’s very … catchy.”

The reporter had leaned in, smiling conspiratorially. “So’s Dantari flu.”

That made him laugh, although he could have done without the blasted tune crawling into his head. The performance itself had been created over a twelve-month period, children from dozens of Republic worlds recorded individually and then mapped together as part of a gigantic holochoir that numbered in the thousands, standing side by side on a revolving stage. Kip pitied anyone working nearby. He couldn’t imagine anything worse than hearing the saccharine lyrics looped over and over again.

We are one, we are many,

We are me, we are you,

So much joy, so much love,

So much peace, it is true,

From distant worlds, distant planets,

We stand together and sing,

The future’s bright and united,

Let the galaxy ring.

“You’ll be humming that all night,” a voice said beside them. Kip turned to see the mayor’s son beaming at him with his perfect teeth and mop of ginger hair.

“Yeah,” Kip stammered, suddenly finding it impossible to speak.

“Although he doesn’t look very happy about it,” the boy said, indicating an Ikkrukki Jedi who was frowning so hard, it looked like his face would crack.

Kip laughed, drawing a smile from Rhil.

“I’ll leave you to it,” she said, turning to go.

“You don’t have to,” Kip told her, a little too quickly.

“Needs must,” she said, her cam droid swooping after her as she walked off. “Places to go, soundbites to gather, but don’t think I’ve forgotten that we have an interview booked in the morning, Jom.”

“I’ll be there,” the mayor’s son said, before adding a quick “no, I won’t” under his breath as soon as the reporter was out of earshot. “I don’t know about you, but I’m determined to avoid the cam droids as much as possible.”

“Me, too.”

Jom grinned. “Maybe we could avoid them together … unless you’d rather spend time with Ms. Dairo.”

“No,” Kip said, flustered. “I mean, she’s great and everything …”

“Pretty, too.”

“Yeah, I guess, but …”

“Not your type.”