Log Date:
	4/1/97, 4/2/97

Log Cast:
	Shenner, Dr. Molari Canto (NPC), Paul Nighman

Log Intro:
	After a few days' absence from the NR base and the company of the
people with whom he'd come to Calamari in the first place, Paul Nighman
has not been around to witness the beginning of a subtle but startling
transformation in Shenner. Having told him she is in love with him only to
have him flee her, Shenner has tried to console herself by throwing
herself headlong into busking on Coral City's streets; this time, though,
she's got credits to spend, and she's splurged on a new silk shirt, velvet
pants, and even a feather earcuff to wear while she's making music. Paul
has found Shenner thus attired, and, after a shy exchange, come back to
the base with her... only to turn right around and flee again, following
an argument with Jessalyn.
	Shenner has stayed up for a good portion of that night, troubled
by Paul and Jessalyn's argument. She's talked a little with Luke, only to
be interrupted by the arrival of a grim General Calhoun, who has reported
that following a bar fight, Jessalyn is in the hospital.
	Now, this morning, after spending the night in the hospital with
Jessalyn, Shenner has also learned from Calhoun that Paul was also in the
fight, and that he has been hurt. Alarmed, Shenner has gone off in search
of Paul, trailing him to the academy at which he's told her he's
studying... only to be redirected from there to the home of a Dr. Molari
Canto....

----------
As Shenner draws near to the address in question, she finds a rather simple 
  looking house on the edge of the campus. While it isn't very large or fancy, 
  it is kept in immaculate condition. There are combinations of flower gardens 
  and coral gardens along the front of the house, with larger ones visible to 
  the back of the house. The property borders along a cliff edge, with the 
  ocean just beyond surging back and forth, pounding the rocks below. There 
  are a few pieces of artifacts - large stone sculptures and the like, 
  scattered here and there about the property. The house has large windows, 
  especially torward the side facing the ocean. Most of the curtains are 
  currently shut.

Nervous, tense, Shenner hastens towards the nearest entrance she can find, 
  after doublechecking the address with the scribbled note on the back of 
  Paul's card. Yes; this is the place. She steps up to the door, and looks for 
  a buzzer or a chime to activate.

There is an old fashioned knocker on the door - in the shape of an octopus 
  type sea creature, made of brass.

Shenner swallows, grasps the knocker in her free hand, and then lets it fall 
  against the door with a loud *TOK*.

There is no immediate response to the single knock at the door.

_This has gotta be the place... it's gotta...._ Shenner fidgets on the 
  doorstep, and after a few moments' wait, uses the knocker again, staring 
  anxiously at the door as though she can make it open by sheer force of will.

After a few moments, the door opens and the very large eyes of a very aged 
  looking Mon Calamari looks at you. He blinks a few times and taking you for 
  a student says, "I'm terribly sorry, but I'm not available for consultations 
  or office hours today. The office will be open tomorrow and you can make an 
  appointment with my assistant there." His tone is polite, but he looks as 
  though he were concerned with something else and had not slept well the 
  night before.

Shenner starts, as though not expecting the door to actually be answered. 
  Almost before the being before her finishes speaking, she blurts out, "I'm 
  sorry to bother you, uhm, are you Dr. Canto? I'm lookin' for a friend of 
  mine, it's _real_ important, and your office said you were here...?" Her 
  green eyes reflect immense worry, slightly hollow in her thin face.

The large eyes whirl about and focus you your face a little more intently. The 
  tall Mon Calamari leans foward, as if to get a better look at you. "Yes, he 
  replies after a moment, his voice carrying a natural quality of authority, 
  "I am Dr. Canto. Now who are you exactly, and who is it that you are looking 
  for?" he asks in return.

"My name's Shenner, sir," the kid begins, keeping herself from babbling with a 
  visible effort. "And I'm lookin' for my friend Paul, Paul Nighman, have you 
  seen him? Please?"

Standing back, the professor considers you for a moment, then opens the door 
  wider and steps back, gesturing inward with one hand. "Please come in and 
  take a seat in the main room," he offers, without commenting on request.

Shenner swallows, then nods rapidly, and moves where directed. "Thank you, 
  sir... if you can just tell me if you've seen him, I been told he's been 
  hurt, see?"
Shenner pads with trepidation into the house, looking quickly in all 
  directions, as if perhaps hoping to see Paul materialize out of nowhere.

The house is very simple and elegant inside, tastefully done with light cream 
  colored walls and sea green's and blues for the rug, furniture, and drapes. 
  There are many beautiful sculptures and artifacts carefully placed about the 
  room. The room, however, is more of a showcase for the wall long window that 
  faces the ocean. Here is both a seascape below of rushing water against 
  rocks, but also a sky scape of giant slowly rolling clouds. You hear the 
  door close behind you as you enter, and the Mon Calamari follows you in.
From behind you the voice of Dr. Canto rumbles forth. "If you just wish to 
  know whether I've seen him and how he is, then my reply would be yes and 
  acceptable, respectively."

The sight of the ocean is enough to give Shenner pause... and at any other 
  time she might gaze at it in wide-eyed wonder. Now, though, she simply 
  fidgets, standing in the middle of the room, one hand tapping restlessly 
  against her thigh. As you speak, though, she whirls back to you, and pipes 
  anxiously, "So he _is_ okay? Where is he? Please, I gotta find him....!"

Dr. Canto watches the girl for a moment and then gestures to a large 
  comfortable looking chair. "I'm afraid it is not that simple," he murmurs 
  softly. "Would you please take a seat?"

Shenner's brow furrows; something in the Calamari's tone reaches her, and, 
  gingerly, she sinks down into the chair in question. But her expression is 
  still urgent, still worried. "What's goin' on?" she blurts.

Dr. Canto seats himself down across from Shenner, slowly, as if his age was 
  finally catching up with him. Placing his arms on the chair's rest his gaze 
  turns to the view for a moment and then back to Shenner. "First of all, 
  since you are obviously concerned, Dr. Nighman is staying here and his 
  health is an acceptable condition."

At the 'Dr.' before Paul's surname, Shenner blinks a bit, momentarily wearing 
  a 'huh?' expression, before it yields to vivid relief. Almost. There's a 
  frown of query on her face, as she says, "But?"

"I'm afraid that I need to ask you a few questions before I can allow you to 
  see him, if you will permit me?" he replies, the eyes impaling you with the 
  intensity of their stare ... or perhaps it is just their size that makes it 
  seem that way.

The girl blinks again, taken aback, her expression lapsing into confusion. 
  "Well... sure...."

The aged Calamari nods approvingly at Shenner's aquiescence. "Now, what I need 
  to understand is who you are, what are you to Dr. Nighman, and why it is 
  that you need to see him."

Another blink of those big green eyes... well, big for a human youngster, at 
  any rate. Shenner blushes a little, and stammers, "Well, uh, I'm... Shenner. 
  He knows me 'cause he got me offa Belsavis, and, uh, well, left me on 
  Tatooine, and then we run into each other on Palanhi, then we come here."

You think you see a hint of a smile on the Calamari's face, but then who can 
  really tell with that kind of a mouth? Dr. Canto shakes his head sadly from 
  side to side. "My dear child, you will have to do better than that," he 
  replies gently. "Try again."

Shenner frowns, bristling. "Well... whaddya want me to say?" she snaps, voice 
  cracking slightly, as she struggles to pretend there's no frantic edge to 
  her words. She can't keep her hands from fidgeting restlessly in her lap, 
  either.

Dr. Canto frowns and then rises up, heading toward the door. "I don't think 
  you need to say anything more, you've already shown me what I needed to 
  know." He opens the door and turns back to look at Shenner. "I'll tell Dr. 
  Nighman that you came inquiring about him."

Shenner freezes, then her face goes white and stiff. Blinking rapidly, trying 
  to clear a sudden welling of tears from her eyes, the kid rises and stalks 
  towards the door. "Fine," she snarls, or at least tries to; her voice has 
  abruptly thickened, as though she tries to speak around a lump in her throat.

Dr. Canto watches the girl approach him and cannot help but feel a little 
  sorry for her. Still, he has his priorities clear and she is not one of 
  them. As Shenner reaches the door he adds, "I'm sorry I could not be of more 
  help to you, but I will not allow anyone to disturb Dr. Nighman right now, 
  and if you cannot control yourself, then you leave me no other choice."

Shen determines that her hands are trembling; irritated, she thrusts them into 
  her pockets. Not breaking stride, she tosses in a hoarse-edged voice over 
  her shoulder, "Pardon the hell outta me for bein' worried sick about him, 
  then!" And with that, the girl is out the door and in motion down the path 
  away.

The aged Mon Calamari watches the girl storm off and then sighs, leaning his 
  head against the doorway. "Well," he murmurs softly to himself, "then that 
  would make two of us, now wouldn't it?" His eyes turn concernedly back to 
  the cliff view, frowning and then sadly shaking his head again, he closes 
  the door and heads back into the house.

Tears flow more readily as Shenner gets farther away from the house. Irritated 
  anew by them, she halts by a tree, scowling, and scrubbing a hand across her 
  eyes. _Can't control myself, huh?_ she thinks, viciously. _Gettin' _real_ 
  karkin' tired of bein' called a kid...._

Molari sighs softly in frustration and walks toward the incredible view, 
  staring out at the landscape, but with no pleasure in his eyes. He leans his 
  head against the glass and stares at the edge of the cliff intently. "Paul I 
  am so sorry ..." he murmurs softly. "I wish you would talk to me," he 
  mutters to no one, since there isn't anyone around to listen to him.

Fifteen minutes elapse; fifteen minutes in which Shenner struggles to calm 
  herself down, and eventually, succeeds. With a long sigh, she turns, eyes 
  the house, and strides back to it determinedly. Her thin hand lifts to the 
  knocker, and knocks, once.

After a moment, the door opens again, and the tired face of Dr. Canto stares 
  out at Shenner, his eyes widening when he sees that she is back. He stands 
  in the doorway, looking down at her with an expression that is both wary and 
  hopeful. "Yes?" he intones deeply.

Her face still white, but set and composed, Shenner says stiffly, "I wanna 
  apologize for actin' like a child, sir, and if you'd be willin' to talk to 
  me still, I really want to find Paul."

The Mon Calamari nods at her request and opens the door to her again. "Please 
  come in and make yourself comfortable," he replies. "Is there anything that 
  I can get for you? Something to drink?" he adds in a tone both polite and 
  inviting.

Her hands once more in her pockets, Shenner slips past the Calamari, giving 
  him a wary look as she does so, then managing a somewhat mannerly, "Thanks. 
  Yeah, that'd be okay."

Dr. Canto nods slowly and gestures with one hand toward the main room, then 
  turns to head into the kitchen on his left. When he returns he is carrying 
  two glasses of a slightly amber colored liquid with a piece of pink fruit 
  floating at the top. He hands Shenner a glass. "Now, let us start again, and 
  this time, let me explain to you why it is that I need to understand the 
  circumstances surrounding Dr. Nighman and yourself."

Accepting the glass, Shenner murmurs awkwardly, "Okay...." And, belatedly, 
  another small thank you, as she sits.

Dr. Canto sits across from Shenner and he gaze turns to the view yet again, 
  frowing slightly. "I have know Dr. Nighman," and then he pauses and frowns 
  again, "no, I have known -Paul- for a very long time ... since he was about 
  seven years old actually." He takes a sip of his drink before continuing.

Experimentally, Shenner sniffs at the drink, then tastes it, and, at last, is 
  distracted by the notion of Paul as a seven-year-old. "Oh," she murmurs, 
  listening now.

The drink is light and has an almost smokey quality to it, mixed with a 
  fragrant fruit flavor. Dr. Canto continues to stare out of the window and he 
  continues with his explanation. "We've been collegues for a long time now, 
  but before that I was colleagues with his father ... that's how I first came 
  to know Paul." He smiles gently at the memory. "He was an interesting child 
  - extremely mature and intelligent for his age, but rather small of stature 
  and physical build. It put him at something of a disadvantage I'm afraid ... 
  being so smart that he skipped grades ... and smaller than most kids his own 
  age, let alone upper classmates. He got beat up alot," he murmurs, his mind 
  traveling off on a tangent, "I can recall one afternoon working out the 
  detail of a dig site with his father when Paul came home with a black eye, a 
  bloody nose, and two cracked teeth ... he didn't cry, he didn't even said a 
  word, just went upstairs with his schoolbooks." The Mon Calamari frowns 
  again that this point, remembering the moment vividly, "And of course his 
  father, well ..." and his tone winds away, obviously both angry and 
  unwilling to speak ill of his colleague. "Well, he didn't have a talent for 
  children." he finally finishes.

Shenner might be seen to wince a bit at the idea of Paul getting beaten up as 
  a child; that slides aside to a general astonished bemusement, as the girl 
  listens to all of his, eyes dark. When you're done, she offers, "Okay...", 
  shyly, by way of letting you know she's still listening.

At Shenner's voice, Dr. Canto seems to return from his uneasy nostalgia and 
  turns back to the girl. "I'm afraid you'll have to forgive me," he notes 
  somewhat wryly, "I am after all rather old and have a tendency to ramble."

"It's okay," Shenner says, tautly, her tone suggesting she's still somewhat 
  uneasy and not sure whether she'll blow this second chance at finding her 
  friend. Then she smiles wanly.
With some difficulty, Shenner keeps herself from fidgeting... much... and goes 
  on, "So, uh... you're kinda family to Paul, huh?"

Dr. Canto nods again and leans back in his chair again. "Well, what I am 
  trying to tell you here is that Paul and I have a long history together and 
  despite that, I have yet to have him call me friend to my face. He is an 
  extremely guarded man and has never let anyone very close to him. I think 
  that he would like to," he adds thoughtfully, "but I think he is too scared 
  to ... which of course he would never -could- never admit ... to himself or 
  anyone else." Taking another sip from the glass the professor clears his 
  throat. "So in short, last night Paul shows up on my doorway looking like 
  death himself and won't even talk to me, moves like a zombie." The Mon 
  Calamari's face looks suddenly tired and even older than it's considerable 
  years. "He allowed me to be more of a friend to him last night than in all 
  of the 20 some years that I've known him, and yet he still won't talk to 
  me." He turns his gaze back to Shenner's and again you get the feeling that 
  you were being measured up by a large guard dog. "So, now I am going to do 
  what I should have done years ago. I need to understand what is going on 
  now, why he is like this, and before I let anyone see him, I am going to 
  make sure that they are not going to hurt him any more."

The girl swallows, forgetting about her drink, which she simply just holds 
  there as you speak. Finally, uneasily, she asks, "How... d'you want me to 
  start?"

"I need you to tell me who you are, what you mean to Paul, why you want to see 
  him, and if you know, what has been going on and what happened to him last 
  night," he replies succinctly, placing his glass down on the table next to 
  him and folding his hands in his lap.

Again, the girl swallows, then she sighs, turning the glass about in her 
  hands. "Well... my name's Shenner. I'm from Belsavis. I met Paul about a 
  year ago, when he came to my homeworld and I-I, uh, needed to get off. I 
  didn't have much money. But he took me anyhow, for what money I had, and for 
  helpin' out on his ship, see?"

The tall Calamari nods encouragingly, but says nothing.

"So, uh. I wanted to go to the New Republic, and we were gonna do that, but 
  Paul had to stop on Tatooine, and uh, well...." Shenner looks away, 
  uneasily, towards the wide windows and the seascape beyond. "Paul... kinda 
  got moody and upset, when we got there, he didn't tell me why at the time, 
  and hone night he goes out, not tellin' me where he's goin'. I'm sittin' in 
  the _Bolt_ and talkin' to Alx -- he's the computer -- when Paul comes back, 
  drunk, I mean, _real_ drunk, and...." She slows, uncertain whether she 
  should be saying this. "I only found out from him later that he thought I 
  was somebody else. Didn't know it at the time. Uh..."

"Serent," Dr. Canto fills in helpfully. "Yes, I know about her peripherally."

"Oh..." That you know about the woman seems to comfort the kid, somewhat. 
  Nevertheless, she starts blushing crimson as she mumbles, "Well, uh, he 
  thought I was her, and, kinda kissed me, and, uh, I kinda hit him. And took 
  off off the ship."

Dr. Canto blinks in surprise. "Hmmmm-mm, well I didn't hear about -that-," he 
  replies. "Go on," he urges gently.

Still blushing, Shenner runs a fingertip around the top of her glass, then 
  gulps down a mouthful of its contents, before she continues, "Well, so, I 
  kinda ran off.... and found out the next day that Paul was gone. Took the 
  ship and left. Didn't see him again till a coupla weeks ago on Palanhi... " 
  She trails off, thinking hard, trying to decide how much of the intervening 
  year she should talk about.

Dr. Canto nods again. "Yes, he felt rather bad about that as I recall," he 
  notes idly. "So how did you and Paul meet up again?" he asks curiously.

Shenner sighs. "Well, uh. I was with some folks from the NR, see... they were 
  lookin' for a friend of theirs, and I just... bumped into Paul on the 
  streets of the city, yah know? And, uh, I-I kinda fought with him, but he 
  apologized, and since it was pretty dangerous tryin' to find the guy we were 
  lookin' for, Luke said Paul could stay with us on the _Dragon_... that was 
  Luke's ship.... and so Paul did, and he and Luke and Grathix.... uhm, 
  Grathix used to be my boss... they got into talking about doing this job 
  findin' some artifacts somewhere, which I guess they're still gonna do. But 
  we left Palanhi and came here."

Molari's expression becomes somewhat confused as Shenner begins to speed up 
  her tale. He holds up one hand for clarification, "Alright, so you met Paul 
  on Palhani? And there was some kind of danger involved? And now you and Paul 
  are what, friends? And who is this Luke person? You need to slow down a bit, 
  I don't want to miss anything important," he notes gently.

Her eyes crinkling around their edges in strain and agitation, Shenner takes a 
  moment to visibly restrain herself. She finally explains roughly, "Luke 
  is... Luke Skywalker. You know who Luke Skywalker is?"

He nods affirmatively. "And so Luke Skywalker and this Grathix person are 
  hiring Paul to do some archeaology exploration for them?"

"Yeah... I don't really know much about it, see... 'cept that they're goin' to 
  Mandalore, at least when they get everything worked out." Shenner calms a 
  bit, with the subject diverted, at least for the nonce, away from herself.

One eye widens slightly more than the other one for a moment, as if in 
  recogonition. "Alright," he notes, "So now you and Paul are what, friends or 
  just ship mates?"

At this, though, the girl looks down almost shyly. "Well... he's been real 
  real nice to me, see, and I guess we're friends now, except after the other 
  night... I'm..." Her face reflects internal struggle, as she tries again to 
  calm herself. "I'm... kinda scared that... I made him mad at me." This comes 
  out of her slightly overswift, as though she's unthrilled to be saying the 
  words but wants to get them said as quickly as possible.

The Mon Calamari regards you steadily and then leans forward, placing a hand 
  lightly on your arm. "My dear," he replies aplogetically, "I am sorry if I 
  am making you uncomfortable, but I'm afraid I really must ask you why you 
  think so." His expression is sympathetic.

Shenner can be seen to blush, and her arm, touched, can be felt to tremble. 
  She closes her eyes, and says as level a voice as she can manage, "I... 
  kissed him, when he was drunk, and he wound up kissin' me, and... then I 
  told him I loved him, and he... ran off."

The Mon Calamari's eyes open up very wide at that and he grips your arm 
  tightly, "Oh my dear, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean you had to tell me 
  anything so personal!" He sighs regretfully. "I must admit I feel rather 
  ashamed at putting you through this ... and I'm also not surprised that Paul 
  fled after you said that, though I very much doubt he was angry with you in 
  the slightest. So this was what happened last night?"

Shenner mumbles, "Well, y-you wanted to know why I gotta find him...."

"Well, yes, this certainly does clarify a few things. I just have three 
  questions then. First, when did this ah, event, happen?"

"Few nights ago," Shenner answers lowly, staring down at her drink as if 
  finding something fascinating in its color.

A thoughtful look crosses the Mon Calamari's face, "So that would have been 
  just before he came to visit here the first time," he murmurs curiously, as 
  one more piece of the puzzle fits into the picture. "Alright then," he says, 
  his attention returning to Shenner, "who is Jessalyn?"

_That_ startles the girl. She looks up awkwardly, then swallows, and says, 
  "She's... a Major. With the NR. She was with us on Palanhi, and she's here 
  now, and.... she and Paul... fight a lot."

"Fight? Really? How so?" Dr. Canto inquires curiously.

"Mostly about.... " Again, Shenner sighs, looking distraught, and wrestling 
  with it. "About how... Jessalyn cares for somebody, somebody else, see, 
  except it's makin' her miserable and Paul's been tryin' to help her feel 
  better, except that it... just kinda keeps comin' out that they snap each 
  other's heads off."

Dr. Canto's eyes narrow slightly and he asks, "Cares for somebody else? Are 
  you implying that she used to care for Paul and doesn't any more?"

In answer to that, Shenner blinks at you, and blurts, "I.... I don't think 
  so..." Her face suddenly falls, as though the notion of such feelings 
  between Paul and Jessalyn hadn't occurred to her, and is now not striking 
  her very well.

Watching the girls suddenly depressed expression, Dr. Canto pats her arm 
  reassuringly. "Well, just because they are fighting a lot doesn't mean that 
  they are in love or anything ... they probably just aren't communicating 
  well. Paul has a desperate need to help others and not himself. If she is 
  suffering from unrequited love or some such thing, then I'm sure Paul is 
  just trying to help her out." Then, in an effort to distract the girl he 
  asks, "So what happened last night?"

It takes Shenner another noticeable effort to compose herself before she 
  stammers, "I.... I ran into Paul... in the square, while I was busking.... 
  and.... he said he was gonna come back to the base where we were stayin'.... 
  and we did. I-I went for a shower and when I came back.... he and Jessa were 
  fightin' again. She left... and then... he left, and I was gonna go to bed, 
  but I couldn't sleep, and... I was up talkin' to Luke. General Calhoun 
  showed up, then.... said Jessalyn got hurt and she was in the hospital." 
  Shenner sniffles, just a little. "I-I stayed at the hospital with Jessalyn, 
  and.... then, this morning, General Calhoun said that some aliens tried to 
  kill Jess, and he and Paul stopped 'em, but... Paul got hurt." She finishes 
  desperately, green eyes fixing on you, "You said he's okay, right?"

Dr. Canto draws himself straight up in the chair for a moment, his mind 
  shuffling the various puzzle pieces, trying to match up the edges. "I see," 
  he finally murmurs softly, and then his eyes turn to Shenner. "My dear," he 
  says, his voice dark and a tad urgent, "I want you to try to talk to Paul 
  ... he hasn't said much more than two words to me all day, so don't be 
  surprised if he offers you as few. If I am guessing correctly, I believe 
  that Paul thinks that he is somehow responsible for this Jessalyn's 
  injuries, from what you have just told me and what he murmured in his sleep 
  last night." He frowns slightly. "I know that there must be much more behind 
  that to justify his reaction of last night, but that was the catalyst, I'm 
  sure of it."

Shenner's eyes turn very full, and she breathes, "So... you'll tell me where 
  he is?"

The Mon Calamari points out the giant windows toward the cliffs edge. "If you 
  go out the back, you'll find a little garden path that leads to the cliff's 
  edge ... there you'll find that you can climb down and perch there. He was 
  sitting out there looking at the sea, last time I saw him."

The young girl's face somehow... shifts, as if the same emotion filling her 
  eyes tries to expand to fill her features, and cannot quite fit. She rises, 
  setting her half-forgotten glass down in the first place she can find. 
  "Thank you.... thank you," she murmurs hoarsely.

Dr. Canto smiles at Shenner warmly, personally surprised that the girl didn't 
  burst up and fly out the door seconds after he told her where Paul was. He 
  leans forward toward her and says, "Good luck Miss Shenner," his voice 
  hinting that he wishes her well in more ways than just getting Paul to talk 
  to her. "I think you are just what he needs right now," he adds, his meaning 
  vague.

"Thank you...." Instantly, then, Shen's gaze tracks to the back of the house, 
  and her feet carry her swiftly to the door. Out through it she goes, 
  initially trying to keep to a restrained pace, then bursting into a run for 
  the last few meters of the garden path. Around her, flowers and coral go 
  unnoticed, holding no interest the moment they are marked as not doing the 
  duty of backdrop for a particular light-brown-haired figure.
Only when she reaches the cliff's edge does Shenner skid to a halt, 
  momentarily floored by the stunning sight of that boundless expanse of blue 
  rolling out to the horizon. The smell of the air -- crisp, clean, salty -- 
  and the distant rolling of waves strike her next, and she pauses there, more 
  than a little overwhelmed, before she remembers her purpose and drops her 
  gaze downward to scan for Paul. And then, finding him, she swallows hard.

While not instantly apparent, after a little more looking Paul's form becomes 
  visible about 10 or 12 yards away. He is sitting crosslegged on a jutting 
  piece of rock, his gaze facing out to the sea. From this distance you can 
  tell that he is wearing only his pants, which seemed to be stained, and a 
  rather large white bandage on the back of his neck.

To call out to him, or climb down? Shenner unnervedly peers over the cliff, 
  then resolves to do both. She starts clambering down to the rock, while 
  calling out Paul's name.

The wind whipping along the cliff's edge is brisk, but warm. The cliff is not 
  very steep or all that deep ... Paul's form sitting perhaps half way between 
  the top and the waters edge. Your voice sound very small against the roar 
  and crash of the waves and the wind whisks it up and back over the cliff's 
  edge behind you.

All this wind.... Shenner squints into it, suddenly grateful her hair isn't 
  long enough to get into her face. She skitters down a little further, then, 
  reluctant to just sneak up on Paul, she calls out again, more loudly, "Paul? 
  Hey, Paul?"

As you get closer and closer to Paul, your voice finally reaches his ears and 
  he turns his head slightly, the wind whipping his hair in front of his face. 
  He immediately straightens his head though with a violent wince, his hand 
  lifting to the bandage at the back of his neck.

Shenner winces a bit in immediate sympathy, but with an effort, straightens 
  out her face. "Hi, pal... uhm.... can I siddown with yah?"

It seems like Paul would like to turn and look at you, but the injury to his 
  neck seems to prevent him from turning his head much. Instead he settles for 
  nodding in response and moving over to make room for you, his gaze still 
  fixed forward on the ocean. As you sit down you can see that the stain on 
  his pants looks like blood and that there is a little blood staining the 
  bandage on his neck. His feet and torso are bare, and his skin is starting 
  to turn just a hint red, as if he'd been outside and in the sun for several 
  hours.

Shenner clambers down to sit beside you, uncertainly. She studies your rumpled 
  appearance, eyes darkening a little at the bloodstains she can see, then she 
  offers, "How you doin'?"

Paul starts to turn his head toward Shen and then stops himself and instead 
  looks at you from the corner of his eye. "I'm alright," he answers, his 
  voice a little raspy.

The girl doesn't quite look like she buys it, but she nods, consideringly. "I, 
  uh, well... found out somethin' of what happened last night... had to come 
  find yah. Hope you don't mind." She looks down, then out to the water, and 
  adds shyly, "I was worried about yah."

Pauls gaze wanders back to the ocean. When you mention the events of the 
  previous night, the hands resting on his knees tense against the fabric 
  briefly. "No, I don't mind," he replies, giving you two more words than he 
  did Molari today.

Shenner chews her lower lip, watching that brief tension in your hands, then 
  says awkwardly, "Ain't never been this close to an ocean before... it's 
  awful pretty..."

Paul's eyes are squinted against the glare of the sun as he watches the waves 
  pound the shoreline. "It's perfect," he murmurs softly. For awhile he just 
  sits there watching it, and then out of the blue he adds, "It was nice of 
  you to come Shen."

She smiles a little, and, impulsively reaches over to pat your hand. "Hey... 
  what're friends for, huh?"

Paul turns his right hand palm up to take Shenners hand in his own and then 
  reaches out with his left hand and covers her hand as well, clasping it 
  there. He stares down at their hands for a moment and then looks back out to 
  the ocean. "You're a good friend," he replies softly.

Shenner blinks, a trifle surprised by Paul's reaching so quickly for her hand, 
  but she nevertheless just lets him do that, while gently squeezing the hand 
  she's holding. "You too," she murmurs. Then, after a moment: "Been out here 
  a while, huh?"

Paul's hands squeeze yours briefly and then he releases his grip, leaving your 
  hand in the palm of his right one and returning the left to rest on his 
  thigh. He answers your questions in order by replying, "I don't think so," 
  in a slightly bitter tone and then, after a short pause and in a lighter 
  tone, "Most of the day."

Again, Shenner squeezes your hand, keeping hers around it as long as you don't 
  seem to mind. Unsurely, she asks, "Wanna talk about it?"

"I don't think so," he replies faintly. He raises his head slightly, letting 
  the sun paint light along the slightly burnt planes of his face. Then, 
  despite his assertion he suddenly states, "I'm like an alkaloid - useful in 
  small doses but in larger quantities, poison."

The girl's brow crinkles. She doesn't know what an alkaloid is, but she 
  supposes that, at least right now, she doesn't need to. Pondering a moment, 
  she then smiles tentatively, and ventures, "Uhm, well. Maybe I'm buildin' up 
  an immunity or somethin'."

For a short moment, Paul's face cracks into a small smirk-like grin. He gives 
  Shen another glance out of the corner of his eye. "Well, you've been 
  warned," he notes in an almost teasing voice.

As you glance at her, you might see her smile a little more, though her eyes 
  are still very full, her gaze soft as it rests on you. "I'm warned," she 
  acknowledges, and falls silent, unwilling to press you too hard to talk, 
  equally unwilling to leave you alone unless you show some sign that you want 
  her to.

Paul shows absolutely no desire to see Shen leave. In fact as your hand 
  remains on his he returns his upward grip, holding her hand gently in his 
  large palm. He sighs and then suddenly asks, "And Jessa?" He winces then, as 
  if he hadn't meant to say anything and then blurts out quickly, "I called 
  the hospital and they said she was fine, but, well, you know how they are," 
  he finishes lamely.

"I spent the night with her at the hospital," Shenner tells you quietly. "She 
  was sleepin' when I left her this morning. She was talkin' and stuff, 
  though. And General Calhoun says she's gonna be okay, and I trust him, if 
  that helps."
Shen considers, then adds musingly, "She asked for you when I got there last 
  night, too."

Paul holds your hand tightly as you speak, his gaze on the distant horizon. "I 
  can't face her," he replies, his voice sounding hoarse, and then after a 
  heartbeat he adds, "It's my fault."

"What is, Paul?" Shenner asks, very softly.

"Jessa," he croaks out and then breaks off and swallows hard. "I'm always 
  hurting people that I, that I care about ..." He pauses for a moment his 
  gaze locked on the horizon like a lifeline. "We're always hurting each 
  other, and now I'm responsible for her being in the hospital."

Remembering Dr. Canto's question about whether Jessalyn cared for Paul, 
  Shenner winces ever so slightly, now, at Paul's admission... and tries hard 
  not to wonder whether it means what she thinks it does, as she says slowly, 
  "Well, I... I don't think she's mad at you. She sounded worried. And... 
  afraid that you... hate her."

Paul just sits there for a long time before he finally replies, "No, I don't 
  hate her, and she probably feels awful about slapping me ... we never stay 
  mad at each other for long ... that's the problem ... just leads to us 
  hurting each other over and over again. I think ... I think that I need to 
  break the chain now." His voice gets softer and softer as he talks until it 
  is nearly a whisper at the end, just barely audible over the crashing of the 
  surf.

"You're... gonna go away?" Shenner asks, timidly. But her grip remains on your 
  hand, unwavering.

Letting out a deep and heavy sigh, Paul turns his head, grimacing slightly, 
  but keeping his head toward you nonetheless. In the bright sunlight his 
  pupils are mere specks in the sea of his iris, floating in large circles of 
  green surrounded by a hazel shoreline. "Shen, you know that I am leaving 
  eventually ... I have a job to complete. Am I leaving now? No."

"I'm glad," Shenner murmurs, looking up into your face. "Anything I can... do?"

Paul continues to stare at you. "I dunno," he replies softly, "what did you 
  have in mind?"

The girl shrugs a little, shyly. "I dunno... just... bein' a friend, I guess?"

The edges of Paul's lips curl upward ever so slightly in the approximation of 
  a smile. "Well, that would be pretty novel for me," he murmurs softly. His 
  smile is fleeting though, and slips away with the wash of the next tide. "I 
  actually do need to ask you for a favor though," he says, as a thought 
  crosses his mind. "I need you to take a letter to Jessalyn for me."

"Sure thing, pal," Shenner murmurs back. "Anything you want."

Paul nods and then turns back to the view and lets out a deep breath. "I'm 
  gonna stay here until it's time to go, most likely, but you're welcome to 
  come over whenever you like," he tells Shenner earnestly, "or any time you 
  need to, day or night, y'know?" he tags on randomly.

"I'd be happy to..." Shenner assures you, steadily, even as she watches you 
  look away. A beat, then she adds, "... if you need the company."

Paul reaches up with one hand to gently rub at his neck, his eyes far away. 
  Thoughts flit through his mind, distracting him and making his speech 
  patterns oddly disconnected. "Well, I'm okay," he murmurs, "I mean you're 
  welcome to stay but don't feel like you need to babysit me or anything ... 
  I've got Molari and I'll be fine on my own," he murmurs absently. "I need to 
  pick up a few things ... some new clothes would be good ... that's the 
  second shirt I've lost in less than two weeks ... and maybe something to 
  play would be nice, yeah, that's a good idea. I'll need you to wait a bit 
  while I pen a letter to Jessalyn, boy is she going to be pissed ... if she 
  doesn't hate me now, she will after this," and his face seems to crumple a 
  bit for a moment before he frowns and mentally shakes it off. "Probably just 
  as well really ... but what a shitty cowardly thing to do," he growls, and 
  it is obvious that he has somewhere along the line of his rambling forgotten 
  that you are listening to all of this.

Shenner holds your other hand all the time that you speak, waiting patiently, 
  eyes liquid. "I'll be happy to wait while you write," she murmurs.

Paul turns his head, carefully, once again and smiles gratefully, then frowns 
  at the tears burgeoning in Shenner's eyes, and he leans forward, reaching up 
  to her face with his free hand. "Shenner? What is it? Did I upset you?" he 
  asks worriedly, his face frowning in annoyance at himself for causing even 
  more distress.

"No! No, I swear!" Shenner replies instantly, without hesitation. "It's okay, 
  Paul. Really. I'm okay."

Paul's frown of worry slowly dissolves, although a small crinkle remains 
  between his eyebrows. His hand cups your jaw line gently, tipping your face 
  up so he can examine your eyes more closely. "You don't look okay," he 
  murmurs softly, "you look upset. Am I scaring you?" he asks, uncertain of 
  what to do now.

The girl swallows a little at the touch to her jaw; delicate little bones 
  she's got, there. She tells you shyly, "I'm just... worried about yah, yah 
  know?"

Paul keeps his hand there for a moment longer before dropping it away slowly. 
  "Well, don't worry," he murmurs soothingly. "I may crack a bit, but I don't 
  break."

Shenner half-smiles, beginning to look relieved. "Good..." And she squeezes 
  both your hands, taking them in her smaller ones.

Paul watches her for a moment longer and then gently disengages his hands from 
  hers, saying, "Well alright then I'll just pen that note to Jessalyn now," 
  and he begins to get up, slowly, since he'd been sitting there for a long 
  time. After shaking the cramps out of his legs he looks down at Shen and 
  says, "So do you just want to wait here and take in the view, or do you want 
  to come back up to the house?" He raises his eyes to the horizon, the sun 
  just beginning to sink down toward it. "If you like," he murmurs, "I could 
  make us some dinner and we could watch the sun set ...." and his voice 
  wavers off, as if he were uncertain of her response.

"I'll come with," Shenner answers, rising with a young and uninjured body's 
  ease. And she grins hesitantly. "You can cook?"

Paul nods and without thinking about it, offers her his hand for the climb 
  back up. "Yeah, if yer a bachelor and you want to eat, you learn how to 
  cook," he notes wryly. "Anything particular that you like?"

Shenner folds her hand into yours, beginning the climb up with you, and 
  chuckles. "I dunno, really... I'll eat anything once! Bet this is a helluva
  planet for seafood, though, huh?"

As you both reach the top Paul hums absently to himself. "Well, you'd be 
  surprised," he murmurs idly. "Some of the Mon Calamari have a real thing 
  about eating their ancestors, but as I recall Molari isn't much of a kelp 
  eater ... there should be something decent in the Cooler to rustle up."

Brightening, as you seem to return more to your normal self, Shenner 
  nevertheless quite contentedly hangs onto your hand as you both crest the 
  cliff and make your way back towards Dr. Canto's home. The girl does cast a 
  look over her shoulder out at the ocean, though, and you can hear her utter 
  a soft gasp as she spies how the sunset is beginning to splash color and 
  light across both the sky and the water.

Pausing for a moment to let Shen look for a little longer, Paul turns around 
  himself and grins. "Yeah, Molari really pushed to get this house ... think 
  he even forced one of the Deans to sacrifice it for him before he accepted 
  the position here." You looks at Shen's dazzled face and asks her softly, 
  "You sure you wouldn't rather wait out here ... I'd understand," he adds, in 
  case her worry over him was what made her come with him in the first place.

Shenner starts, then looks back around to you, and says shyly, "I'll come with 
  you...."

Paul nods and pulls on Shenner's hand gently, leading her back into the house. 
  Unbeknowst to both of you is the figure of Dr. Molari Canto watching your 
  approach from one of the bedroom windows. His head leans against the glass 
  in a gesture of relief before he slips from view, closing the drapes.

Following her companion up into the house, Shenner smiles, now, letting 
  herself be led, and watching Paul move as she does so. She takes in his 
  expressions, too, and the tones of his voice.

Letting go of Shen's hand, Paul opens the door for her, and galantly waves his 
  hand to indicate to her that she should precede him. He keeps humming softly 
  under his breath as he follows her in. "You can take a seat in the main room 
  while I rustle something up," he notes, pointing to the chairs. "That way 
  you can watch the sunset for awhile." He looks about the room for a moment 
  and then calls out, "Molari?" but when there is no response he shrugs his 
  shoulders and heads for the kitchen. "He musta stepped out," he murmurs to 
  himself as he pads across the hallway.

Much assured by Paul's improved mood, Shenner settles herself where bid in the 
  big comfortable seat Dr. Canto had had her use before. She wrestles with the 
  urge to kick off her boots and tuck her feet up under herself, and, not sure 
  whether she has that liberty in this place, settles for glancing into the 
  kitchen and peeking at Paul bustling about. "Does he do that a lot?" she 
  calls, inquiringly.

Paul pokes his head out through a window like opening that bridges the gap 
  between the kitchen and the main room. He's holding some kind of fish in his 
  hands and looks puzzled. "Do what a lot?" he asks .. and then notes off the 
  cuff, "Oh, feel free to make yourself comfortable."

"Step out," pipes Shenner. She ohs, then smiles lopsidedly and moves to pull 
  off her boots. "Can I help do somethin'?"

Paul grins at Shen and replies, "No thanks, it's a surprise," and ducks his 
  head back into the kitchen. His voice floats out, echoing slightly, "I 
  couldn't really tell you ... I've known Molari for years, but this is the 
  first time I've ever imposed on him this much." You hear Paul bustling about 
  in the kitchen for a few moments, opening cabinets and every once in awhile 
  ah-ing in pleasant surprise. "I think he has more than earned the right, 
  considering what I put him through these last 12 hours." he adds belatedly.

"He seems pretty nice.... I, uh, kinda hollered at him," Shen confesses. She 
  listens to you bustle and smiles to herself, curling up in the chair, and 
  finding herself astonished to be sitting on such a soft thing.

There is a rattle of dishes and then a moment of silence before Paul says, 
  "You did what?" His tone is part horrified and part amused.

"Hollered at him," Shen repeats, ruefully.

There is an even longer pause of silence before you hear Paul's voice again. 
  "You hollered at him? And he didn't twist your ear off?" He sounds faintly 
  astonished.

"Well, uh, he kicked me out," the girl admits, voice small.

The rattling starts up again and Paul's voice rings out, "Well, that sounds 
  about right ... they don't call him The Beast of the Basin behind his back 
  for nothing," he notes wryly. The clattering goes on for a bit, and Paul 
  makes strange little contented noises before it goes quiet again. "So if he 
  kicked you out, how did you find me?" he asks, his tone somewhat suspicious.

Shenner pauses herself, before she admits sheepishly, "Well, uh, I quit actin' 
  like a kid pitchin' a temperfit, and came back and apologized."

Paul's clattering starts up again, "Very mature," he notes, "Molari would 
  respect that kind of response." The noises continue for a bit longer and 
  then settle down. You hear some chopping and scraping sounds intermingling 
  with Paul's humming.

Shenner feels a sudden glow spring up in her chest, and she beams foolishly, 
  with Paul safely in the other room where he can't see. With an effort, she 
  manages to keep her voice steady, as she calls back, simply, "Thanks!"

Paul's voice starts to ask, "What for?" but is cut off by a sharp oath and a 
  loud crash following it. It's quiet for a second and then you can hear him 
  growling to himself.

Shenner calls, "Sure you don't need any help?"

"No," he barks sharply. Then as if realizing his tone was a bit harsh he tries 
  again with a more normal voice, "No thanks, just me being stupid and 
  forgetting I have a hole in the back of my neck. Everything is under control 
  now." His voice turns a little teasing and he mimics an Enforcer by saying, 
  "Nothing to see here, move along, move along." under his breath.

For a moment, Shenner thinks, then calls into the kitchen, "Okay... well, you 
  take your time, okay? I been hungry enough that I know how to wait for food."

Paul comes shuffling out of the kitchen and smiles wanly. "Well, it's in the 
  oven, so that part's done." He stares down at himself and wrinkles his nose. 
  "I'm just gonna go see if I have anything a little cleaner to change into."

Shenner nods to you, not _quite_ looking directly at you, as she tells you 
  almost chirpily, "You go clean up, sure... I, uh, I'll wait right here, 
  'kay?"

After realizing that not only did his clothes need a little refreshing, but 
  himself as well, Paul took advantage of the fact that Shen seemed willing to 
  wait and the food would happily cook itself. The only clothes left that were 
  at all decently clean were his black breeches and his green vest with the 
  black lining and brown trim. Putting these on, he began to head out toward 
  the main room, only to catch a glance of himself in the mirror. "Jeez," he 
  growled in annoyance, "give me an eyepatch and I could be a Corellian pirate 
  of the deep seas." To break the image he sticks his tongue out at his 
  reflection and then chuckles deeply. "That's better." Opening the door of 
  his room, Paul strides back into the main room, his eyes casting about the 
  room casually to see where Shenner might have wandered to, his nose 
  appreciatively sniffing the scents wafting from the kitchen.

Shenner has not, in fact, wandered anywhere. Still in the big overstuffed 
  chair on which she'd parked, she has curled up against its back, head lolled 
  slightly sideways; she appears to have dozed off, lightly.

Paul tiptoes over to the kid and looks at her for a moment, uncertain if he 
  should let her sleep or not. Glancing out the window he sees that the sunset 
  is in its full glory, the sun only just now touching the horizon, shooting 
  bands of amber, pink, and gold upward through the violet and indigo clouds. 
  The deep blue of the ocean is gilded in gold with touches of copper. He 
  sighs softly, appreciatively. Hunkering down next to her he whispers softly, 
  "Shen?"

The girl exhales, and mumbles, "Hrmmm?"

Paul watches her for a moment and tries to decide what to do. If she is really 
  asleep, then putting her to bed would be the best thing. He touches her 
  shoulder gently, "Shen, you wanna sleep or eat?" he murmurs softly, moving 
  his head a little closer to hers.

Shenner sits up, and smiles drowsily. "I'm okay.... just didn't get much sleep 
  last night, yah know? Is the food done?" She rubs at one green eye with a 
  balled hand, making herself look very young.

Settling back on his heels, Paul eyes her with concern. "Yes, food is done and 
  I was wondering if you wanted to eat inside or out?" he offers, nodding his 
  head to the astonishing scape to his right.

Shenner's gaze turns out to the windows, and you can see her gasp, her eyes 
  widening.

Paul chuckles deeply at her reaction and repeats, "So which is it? In or out?"

"Out? Can we go out?" Even before she finishes asking the question, the girl 
  is on her feet and hastening to the back door.

Paul grins and stands. "Uh Shen, we might like to take some things with us ... 
  like the food?"

Startled, Shenner halts, looks back at you, then abruptly giggles -- a very 
  rare noise for her. Belatedly registering the smells now filling the room, 
  she blinks and beams. "Wow!"

Paul chuckles again, "Damn but you are easy to please," he teases her and then 
  brushes past her on his way to the kitchen. Calling back to her he says, "So 
  why don't you take the picnic gear and I'll bring the food?"

"What's a picnic?" Shen asks, blankly, as she steps into the kitchen in your 
  wake.

The vest covering Paul's shoulders ripples at his surprise and he slowly turns 
  around. "You don't know what a picnic is?" he seems both surprised and 
  charmed.

"Nope.... should I?"

Paul shrugs his shoulders and replies, "I keep forgetting you've had a 
  deprived childhood." Bending down he starts rummaging through the shelves, 
  pulling out glasses, a basket, dishes, silverware, and the like. "Do me a 
  favor and pull that giant green throw blanket out of the hallway closet?"

Shenner nods, bemusedly, moving to do as you ask. She comes back with the 
  blanket curled up in a ball in her arms, and she says, "Okay.... now wh--" 
  And cuts off as she sees all the things you're getting out. "Wow."

Paul finishes stuffing the rest of the stuff into a large basket and hands it 
  to Shen. "Can you this carry this alright, shouldn't be too heavy. I'll 
  handle the food," he adds, standing up and picking up a large silver domed 
  container with delicious aroma's escaping from it.

"Sure..." Clearly intrigued, Shenner takes up the basket, shifting the blanket 
  over onto her other arm. "Out now?" Her gaze shoots back to the brightening 
  sunset out over the distant water.

Paul nods, letting Shen go first. "Yeah, just head back out the way we came 
  and then find a spot to sit and watch the sunset ... I'll do all the work."

The girl flashes you a radiant grin and hastens out of the house and into the 
  open stretch of yard behind it, not quite running -- laden as she is -- but 
  visibly eager to be out where she can have an unobstructed view of the 
  horizon. She gets ahead of you quickly, and then pauses where she stands, 
  gazing out raptly to the ocean.

Paul eventually catches up and then gently takes the basket from her. "You 
  stay here ... I'll call you when I'm ready for you," he says, and then turns 
  away and heads off slightly to one side of the cliff, taking a different 
  path down.

You startle Shenner as you come up behind her, but she nods and lets you take 
  the basket, most of her attention clearly on the breathtaking display of 
  color and light spilling across the sky.

A fair short amount of time passes as you gaze at sun bleeding onto the 
  surface of the sea in a wash of magenta, gold and amber. Paul's voice 
  finally comes over the cliff to your left, "Shenner! Supper's ready!"

Unable to keep herself from grinning ear to ear, Shenner ambles off towards 
  the direction you've gone in, calling back, "Comin'...." And she appears 
  just up the cliff.

This path, which is barely visible, leads to another little jaunt down the 
  cliffside. Only this particular slab of stone has been terraformed. It looks 
  out onto the ocean, the view unimpeded. There is a small hand made tidal 
  pool with a plethora of tiny sea creatures darting about within it at the 
  very tip of the rock. Behind that and facing the ocean is Paul and all the 
  stuff. The blanket has been spread out and lying on top of it are two 
  beautiful place settings of silver carved with oceanic creatures and 
  beautiful crystal dishes. Paul is pouring some kind of bubbly wine into two 
  tall fluted glasses. The silver domed container has been opened up to reveal 
  a large piece of some kind of red colored fish, filleted and seasoned with a 
  light cream sauce, and surrounded by a colorful feast of various cooked 
  vegetables. In the center is a large stainglass lamp, not electric, but lit 
  with a flame. Occasionally a warm breeze filters into the slightly protected 
  alcove.

Shenner actively gapes at the sight before her, actually distracted from the 
  panoply of hues out over the water. Three heartbeats of gaping finally 
  elapse before the girl makes her way down to join you, staring round-eyed at 
  everything. "Wow."

Paul finishes pouring the glass and then grins at her obvious astonishment. "I 
  think I might have gone a little overboard," he notes ruefully, "but to a 
  certain extent this still qualifies as a picnic."

Gingerly, Shenner sits down on the blanket, and laughs a little, dazed. 
  "Okay... I think I like it.... wow!"

Paul cuts up the fish, which slices like butter and places a large slab on 
  your plate along with some of the vegetables and a slice of some thick 
  crusty bread that has been doused in butter and herbs. "Well, then dig in," 
  he says happily, passing her the plate.

Amazed, and delighted, Shenner obeys, attacking the food indelicately but all 
  the more elated when she actually starts getting some down. Between 
  swallows, she beams practically giddily at you, her features lighting up 
  without assistance needed from the sunset.

The blanket beneath you is thick and soft, protective against the roughness of 
  the rock and fluffy warm to the touch. Paul turns his gaze back to the 
  sunset after seeing the approval of the food in Shenner's eyes. He balances 
  his plate on one knee with one hand and eats with the other.

"Wow," Shenner manages again. She notices the campagne and takes up one glass 
  to drink from, blinking yet again, and pausing to stare at the stuff. 
  "What's this?"

Paul turns his torso to look back at Shenner. He raises one eyebrow slightly 
  and says, "It's a sparkling wine, do you like it?"

She sips, considers, and grins again at you, bobbing her head. "It's great. 
  All of this..." She gazes around herself, awed, wondering, till her eyes 
  finally return to you. "It's great."

Paul smiles warmly at Shen and then carefully turns back to the view before 
  them. "Yeah, makes me tempted to find a nice academy with a good view and 
  settle down myself," he jokes lightly.

Shenner gazes longly, softly at the man across the blanket from her, as if 
  finding him ranking among the amazing sights of the evening, though the 
  chuckle she gives you is at odds with her melting look. "What, with a wife 
  and nine kids and a cushy teaching job? No way!"

Paul barks out a short laugh that flows into a trickling chuckle. "Yeah, I 
  don't quite fit the part, do I?" he notes good humoredly. 
Paul continues to eat his dinner, enjoying the view, the company and the
  food. He occasionally looks at Shenner to make sure that she is enjoying
  her food and occasionally refills her glass.
After finishing up the last few bites of dinner Paul casually asks, "So Shen, 
  have you decided what it is that you want .... er, to do?" The last two 
  words sound like they were very much tacked on to change the potential 
  intent of the question.

"Oh, well..." Shenner distracts herself with the wine and the view, and 
  babbles a little as she answers, "Well, not really.... Jessalyn asked me if 
  I wanted to go to Yavin with her, but I-I'm still kinda thinkin' about it 
  all, I guess."

Paul nods, his eyes narrow, but it's hard to tell if that is in response to 
  the reflections off the water or something else. "Well, if you don't go to 
  Yavin, what are your other options?"

Shenner huhs. "Well... I could stay here, I guess... Luke and General Calhoun 
  both kinda dropped hints at me before about hookin' up with the NR, but 
  damned if I know what I'd do for 'em... or I could just busk, I guess.... I 
  can make money doin' that. Ain't really got anywhere else to go..."

The quietly lapping waves are your reply, the tide slipping out and reducing 
  the roar of the sea. "Well, then what do you -want- to do? What feels right 
  to you?"

Trailing off, Shenner slides you a shy look. "I wanna be with Jessalyn," she 
  answers readily enough. "She's my friend. But..." And her eyes linger on 
  you, unsure again.

Paul takes another bite and then washes it down with a healthy swallow of the 
  wine. "Well, that's good," he says a tad brightly. "Jessa really needs 
  friends right now until she can get her footing again." He takes a few more 
  bites and then, as if reaching a decision says, "Okay, well just because you 
  make a choice doesn't mean that you're stuck with it for the rest of your 
  life, y'know," he notes quietly. "You can always change your mind later and 
  do something different."

Shenner half-grins, swallowing down a good bit of her glass's contents before 
  grinning more steadily. "Yeah. I'm young, right? Kid like me has all kindsa 
  time... big ol' galaxy to look at, and all that."

"That's right," he replies and then his expression gets a little more serious. 
  "Which brings me to why I came back last night in the first place." He takes 
  another sip of the wine and then puts it down. "What about what happened 
  between us the other night?" he asks curiously, but his tone is anything but 
  casual.

Shenner abruptly blushes, though perhaps that isn't noticeably in the sunset's 
  light. She _does_ noticeably jerk her gaze down to her plate, and she 
  gobbles down several bites, along with a gulp of the wine, before she 
  answers as easily as she can manage, "What's to say?"

Paul shifts uncomfortably and then turns his torso again so that he can see 
  Shenner's face in the dying rays of the sunset. "Well the first thing that 
  -I- should say is that I'm sorry if I treated you like a kid."

Surprised, Shenner looks up at you. "Thought I was a kid," she mumbles, trying 
  to smile and not making it.

Paul smiles slightly and shakes his head. "Well, that is a matter of opinion 
  ... you're right on the cusp and depending upon where you go and what you 
  do, people will judge you by one side of the coin or the other. The point 
  is, whether or not you -are- a kid is irrelevant ... I shouldn't have 
  -treated- you like a kid."

"Don't see why not," the girl replies gruffly. "After all, if it squeals like 
  a mookla..."

Paul sighs softly and reaches out taking Shenner's chin gently in his grasp 
  and raising it till her eyes meet his. "Treating someone as a child only 
  reinforces that image to them and others. I had no right to assume that you 
  are suffering from a crush, even if I believe it to be true. And even if I 
  am right, a crush is nothing to trivialize."

Shenner swallows, but looks up at you steadily enough as you lift her face to 
  you. Weakly, she tries for another half-smile, even as she asks you, "You 
  tryin' to... put me off easy, Paul?" Her voice is very small.

At Shenner's question, Paul's expression becomes puzzled, but he doesn't 
  release his hold on her face. "What do you mean 'put you off easy'?" he 
  asks, obviously confused by the phrase. "You mean let you down easy?"

You can feel her nod against your grasp, and her eyes are plaintive as they 
  meet yours.

His hand grips your chin for a moment before Paul can forcibly relax it. "If 
  you think this is easy," he growls softly, "then you can think again. I 
  didn't kiss you because I thought you were a kid."

Her eyes widen, looking very green in the twilight, and for a moment, she 
  stops breathing. "Wh-what're you... tryin' to tell me?" she whispers.

Paul stares at you hard and then drops his gaze uncomfortably to the ground. 
  His hand releases your chin and returns to his knee. "I'm telling you that 
  I'm sorry and I'm asking you to tell me how you feel about all this."

"I.... I kinda understand... why you... left," Shenner mumbles huskily. "After 
  thinkin' about it, I-I mean."

"And why do you think I left?" he asks, letting his earlier question slide for 
  the moment. His gaze lifts again to Shenner's.

Shenner answers hesitantly, "You... and Jessa been havin' all your problems 
  gettin' along, and... well, you were drunk, and I didn't have no right just 
  up and doin' what I did..." She looks away, uneasily, and adds in a mumble, 
  "Sayin' what I said..."

"So now you're apologizing to me?" Paul's gaze wavers and he looks out to the 
  ocean. "Maybe I'm going about this all wrong." He turns back to Shen and his 
  face has a tight set look to it. "Why don't I just tell you what I've been 
  thinking and then you can respond, alright?"

Again, Shenner swallows, and she gives you a wordless nod.

Taking a deep breath Paul pulls himself away from you a little, as if gaining 
  a little distance would help him. "You scared me," he lets out on a huff. 
  and he eyes you for a moment before continuing. "At first I was furious ... 
  I well, I hadn't gone out planning to pick anyone up, but then I met that 
  woman and thought, "Well, hey, why not?"" He frowns as if knowing that this 
  makes him sound shallow and deliberately doesn't look at Shen. "It's been 
  awhile since I've slept with anyone, and it seemed like a nice idea at the 
  time. When you interupted in what I could only see as spite, well, I was 
  furious ... but also confused and I guess a little intrigued somewhere in 
  the back of my mind. That's why I went after you. Then you just kept pushing 
  my buttons over and over again and that's when I just well, that's when I 
  kissed you." He frowns in rememberance of his behavior.

The girl across from you is silent as you say all of this. "Sorry I made yah 
  mad," she mutters at last. "Didn't mean to."

He shrugs his shoulders. "Didn't much matter ... didn't last long. I thought 
  at first I would scare you, hurt you with the kiss ... but then you, ah 
  responded," he murmurs softly and his eyes seek out the barely visible 
  horizon. "I found that, ah, irresistable," he says in a muffled voice that 
  can barely be heard,"and so I kissed you back ... for real." He waits to see 
  if Shen has any response to this before continuing, his eyes fastened to the 
  water on his left.

Without looking at her, you cannot see her expression turn very full, the same 
  sort of look Dr. Canto saw on her before... as though feelings in her head 
  are swelling through her a little too tightly to be easily contained in her 
  face. "Yeah," she murmurs, by way of acknowledgement, of signal that she's 
  listening.

Paul takes in a deep breath of fresh sea air, letting it flow through his 
  system, strengthen him, before continuing. "What I told you was true ... I 
  could very easily have not let it stop there ... but then I drew away for a 
  moment ... and you were so willing, so eager ...." he swallows hard, 
  uncomfortably, "and so helpless. Don't you see Shen, here I am, finally 
  coming to my senses to find an innocent young woman in my arms being 
  completely seduced ... I knew then that if I wanted you I could have you ... 
  and that scared the shit out of me because I care about you and I came so 
  ... so close to seriously hurting you." He stops for a moment, his face 
  quite red and distressed. "And then when you insisted that you were ready, I 
  thought that telling you would frighten you, scare you off ... and then you 
  just came back with that "knowing what parts went where" line and that 
  scared me worse." Taking another deep breath Paul closes his eyes for a 
  moment to gather his thoughts.

"I didn't wanna scare you," Shenner whispers, sounding aghast at the very 
  idea. She scoots a bit closer on the blanket, and starts to reach a hand in 
  your direction, though she pauses as if thinking better of it.

Paul nods. "I know that wasn't your intention. The fear was more my own ... 
  because I didn't know how to handle you, didn't know what to do. I also 
  found it extremely hard to believe that you were in love with me.I just 
  don't see how it is possible. I think that a crush is probable and I know 
  that my behavior hasn't made things any easier for you. We had a somewhat 
  tempestous past to begin with, and then all the insanity that's been going 
  on, and you're recently coming out as female, and then all of the attention 
  that I've been paying to you..." Paul takes another breath. "That's why I 
  think you should take your own advice Shen ... you are young, you have lots 
  of time and a big galaxy to look at. I can't say that your age isn't a huge 
  stepping stone to me ... it is. I can't tell you that I am in love with you, 
  only that I care about you. If we were to, well to become involved as more 
  than just friends I think it would end disasterously." He takes a deep 
  breath and holds it for a moment before turning to you again, and his eyes 
  are dark and his brow crinkled. As bluntly as he started this he ends, "I 
  can see making love with you, but I can't see that without me hurting you 
  .... badly."

Shenner, you can see, is now sitting very still, her plate and glass abandoned 
  beside her and forgotten. Her eyes look huge in her young face, glimmering 
  tearily in the last vestiges of dusk; her hands have clenched into one 
  another, tightly. It is with a voice that sounds like it's trying to make 
  its way past an asteroid-sized lump in her throat that she mumbles out, 
  "I.... I understand."

Paul watches her for a moment. "You do?" he asks, his voice a tad suspicious 
  and concerned that she might have heard something other than what he said. 
  "What do you understand?"

"I... know you... mean well, really, don't wanna hurt me, I appreciate that, I 
  really do," the girl answers, the words coming out of her at a faltering 
  pace -- first slow and then rapid, as though she's vocally staggering. She 
  fastens her gaze on her hands, watching them fidget of their own accord. 
  "I-I know it's prob'ly hard for you to open up, I-I-I-I mean, you're a real 
  private guy, i-i-it's okay..."

Paul's eyes narrow fraction by fraction as Shenner splutters, her 
  understanding having nothing to do with what he was saying. His hands reach 
  out and grab her arms in an overly tight grip. "Private?" he practically 
  hisses, "You think that I'm being discreet or something here? You saying 
  that I'm not being open with you? Damnit Shen I've been more open with you 
  then practically anyone I've ever known!" he finally roars, his eyes angry 
  and hurt.

The girl's face crumples over, and her eyes flood with tears. "I-I-I know 
  that!" she mumbles. "I-I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." She pulls away from you, 
  or tries to, expression quite clearly devastated.

Paul's features snap as Shen starts crying and with a muffled curse he stands 
  up, pulling her with him and away from all the stuff between them and 
  crushes her against him. "Shit, Shen please don't cry, I'm sorry, I'm 
  sorry," he growls, his voice cracking with his distress. "Damnit it, don't 
  you see, I'm hurting you already," he croaks out against her hair.

Shenner can't help it; she sobs. Just sobs.

Paul's frame goes stiff when she releases her anguish against his form. It is 
  one thing to be a comforting shoulder, but when the shoulder that's being 
  cried on is the same one that's being cried over, well, it is a completely 
  different situation. With one quick sweep, Paul drags Shenner up into his 
  arms and carries her away from the disaster site and back to the house, 
  cradling her in his arms and making soft crooning noises and murmuring 
  soothing words against her brow. His own eyes are wet with unshed tears and 
  his throat feels like he just swallowed a handful of cotton balls.

For the briefest of instants, Shenner's frame tightens when you lift her up, 
  as though she fleetingly considers protesting. But she's still sobbing 
  vehemently, and she cries all the harder when she's up in your arms. Shenner 
  continues crying all the way back to the house.

Once inside the house Paul looks around to find Molari standing there with a 
  shocked expression on his face. Paul looks at his old mentor with anguish in 
  his eyes and jerks his head, indicating, pleading, that he leave the two of 
  you alone. His eyes are wide, but Molari nods in agreement and carefully 
  withdrawls, dimming the lights down as he leaves. Paul carries Shen over to 
  one of the huge chairs and then carefully sits himself down it, cradling her 
  against his chest, now soaked with her tears. He continues to rock her, 
  almost desperately, although he no longer pleads with her to stop crying. He 
  punctuates his soft words and comforting hands with small kisses that he 
  places upon her brow.

Many long minutes pass as the hurricane of weeping finishes blowing through 
  the girl; eventually, she falls silent, and her shoulders slow and then 
  finally cease their shaking.

Paul holds her tenderly, his voice having fallen into a soft rumbling litany 
  that he repeats over and over again against her brow. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, 
  it's alright, you'll be okay, I promise you, I'm sorry, you're not to blame, 
  it's all my fault, you're alright, shhh-hhh, I'm sorry, I won't hurt you any 
  more, shhh-hhh, you're safe now, it's okay, I'm here for you..." As Shen's 
  trembling form eases and her tears stop pouring down on him, the litany 
  becomes softer and softer, till it is barely audible, but he doesn't stop 
  repeating it.

"But you're gonna _go_," Shenner mumbles, strangledly. "I-I-I better go, 
  Paul... I-I better go..."

Paul keeps his hold on Shenner but draws back from her slightly so he can look 
  into her face. His own is wet with tears and his eyes tormented. "I can't 
  let you go like this," he says firmly, if somewhat soft in volume.

"'Mokay," Shenner mumbles thickly, trying to avoid your gaze.

Paul goes still for a moment in astonishment at her easy aquiecence and hugs 
  her again gratefully. He lets out a deep sigh and drawing back again stares 
  at her ruefully. "So I make you this great dinner and then go right ahead 
  and spoil the whole thing," he jokes, the humor genuine, but a tad forced.

"You cook real good," Shenner mumbles, still not looking at you.

Paul strokes Shenner's hair gently and after a moment replies, "Thank you." He 
  remains quiet for a long time, seemingly content just to hold you and stroke 
  his fingers through your hair, his gaze focusing on the stars and clouds 
  outside the window.

Shenner does not speak. She doesn't dare try. She simply huddles there, curled 
  in as tiny a ball as she can make of herself in your arms.

A very long time passes as the two of you cling together in the dark room. 
  Paul struggles with what to do, what to say and finally after a long time he 
  finally murmurs gently, "Shen, what can I do? What do you need from me? 
  Honestly, no deceptions, no trying to avoid the truth, no trying to worm out 
  of this ... okay? Please?" It is when he reaches the word "please" that 
  Paul's warm voice rises slightly in pitch, almost cracking but not quite.

She doesn't answer you at first. And when she finally does answer you, it's in 
  such a tiny voice that she almost might go unheard: "Dunno if I can talk 
  about this now."

Paul sits still for a moment, his hand resting against her hair. "Shen," he 
  whispers brokenly, "I'm so sorry, this is exactly what I was afraid of doing 
  ... and the last thing that I wanted to do to you." The hand trembles 
  slightly against her hair. "If I let you go, will you come back, or will you 
  just disappear?" he asks hoarsely.

"I'll go back to the NR base," Shenner mumbles, her voice sounding strangely 
  dulled.

Paul tightens his grip, "So are you telling me that you don't ever want to see 
  me again?" he asks you very very carefully.

Shenner still doesn't uncurl, still doesn't look up at you. And her voice is 
  still tiny and wounded, as she tells you, "I dunno."

Paul closes his eyes at the prick of fresh tears. Clenching his teeth at the 
  unexpected rush of hurt, he waits for it to abate. Part of his mind says, 
  "Hey, so you did what you set out to do, albeit a little clumsily," while 
  another part rails at him for being the stupidest Corellian the universe 
  ever had the misfortune of setting its eyes on. In a strangled tone, of the 
  likes no one has heard uttered from him in over eight years, Paul manages to 
  choke out. "Oh."

Does she sense your own crying? Perhaps, for you can feel her shift a bit in 
  your arms, her face turning to your shoulder, and she tells you meekly, "I 
  don't wanna not see you..." Something in her tone speaks of a raw ache at 
  the back of her throat.
Something in Shenner's tone, too, suggests that her words are something akin 
  to 'I don't wanna hafta cut my own arm off.'

Paul holds her tightly against him feeling flashes of pain and flashes of 
  relief pulse through his system. A shudder rushes though his system as Paul 
  realizes that you don't feel this strongly about people you just like. His 
  hand moves of its own volition, trembling as he prepares to say something 
  he hasn't said to anyone in a very long time. He gently draws Shen's face 
  away from its buried spot in his shoulder so that she is looking up with 
  him. His eyes are dark, still bright with unshed tears and his face is 
  flushed. "Shen, I can't tell you that I am -in- love with you ... but I, I 
  can tell you that I do l-love you," manages to say in a voice more breath 
  than word.

Her eyelashes glisten wetly, still; her eyes reflect out what little light 
  there is in the room, as well as the starlight from outside. Shenner starts 
  to wince, but the expression falters as you breathe your confession to her, 
  and she winds up just blinking at you in dazed, startled confusion.

Paul stares down into Shen's face, frowning in distress at her tears. He 
  gently wipes them away with his right hand. His eyes don't seem to be able 
  to meet yours any longer, as he busies himself with cleaning up your face.

Shenner's eyes shiver closed at that gentle touch, and her head leans slightly 
  towards your hand. Her mouth presses together.

Paul wavers with indecision at Shenner's reaction to his touch. Fearing making 
  the wrong choice in either direction he settles for something inbetween and 
  infinitely safer. Cupping her cheek gently in his hand he leans down and 
  kisses her gently on the forehead before sitting back again.

She shivers in your arms... and sniffles, once, before mumbling, "C-can I lie 
  down?"

Paul nods. "Yeah sure, hold on," he murmurs softly and then rising he softly 
  quips, "Elevator, second floor, linens, pillows, stuffed animals, everybody 
  out," and begins to carry you toward the hallway.

Shenner lets herself be carried, as passively as an exhausted child might. A 
  noise part giggle but mostly sniffle escapes her at the small jest.

Paul carries Shen to his bedroom and kicks the door open gently with one foot. 
  He lays her out on the bed gently and settles her in as if she were a small 
  child. He covers her with a blanket and tucks it in around her and then 
  resting a hand on hers he says, "Hold on one second," and is gone. There is 
  the sound of running water and within seconds he is back with a wash cloth. 
  He tenderly wipes Shen's face with the cool cloth, cleaning away the last of 
  the tears.

"Thanks," comes a tiny mumble in Shenner's husky near-tenor. She closes her 
  eyes again as you dab at her face.

"Sure thing," Paul murmurs soothingly. "Now, if you should have a bad dream or 
  need me for any reason, any reason at all, I'll be right in the main room on 
  the couch, okay?"

Her head bobs a little, and she shifts, nestling down into the pillow, rolling 
  onto her side. You can see her curling back up into a ball under the blanket 
  you've draped over her.

Paul stands slowly, wiping his own face with the cool washcloth before 
  dropping it on the bedside table. Quietly he gathers up a spare pillow and a 
  blanket and stares out the window, wondering if he should clean up first. A 
  huge yawn on his part makes him realize that it can wait till tomorrow. He 
  waits a moment, making sure that Shenner is asleep, and then he quietly 
  tiptoes out, closing the door silently behind him.

[End log.]