The diplomat carefully evaluated her options in that moment. Much as she wanted to dance with Rene immediately, there was the implication that once they did so that there would be an opening for another male to challenge the right to seek the duchess as his mate. Solae did not want her first impression to defined as beginning with two men battling over her, especially since the courtship ritual apparently had little or nothing to do with her feelings on potential suitors, and could lend itself to arguments that humanity was warlike in nature. They could not entirely avoid dancing- nor would she try- but it was possible to navigate the room to engage in pleasant conversation beforehand. Hopefully she could establish herself as an intelligent, compassionate representative of her race and government, creating a positive bias before conflict and debate. She had also noticed how her soldier beau grimaced when the topic of sparring was broached. A few delays would undoubtedly be appreciated before he had his mettle tested in front of a large audience.

With a nod to Lithyll to express her gratitude, as well as one to Yarue and Dasin to indicate they would be separating temporarily, she moved to a side of the event hall, Rosaria in tow. Truth be told, the Syshin would have greatly preferred to stay in close proximity to the humans they knew rather than speak with strangers, but the linguist had impressed upon them how important it was for them to make this venture on their own. In this formal setting it would be inappropriate to rely upon them as bodyguards barring an act of terrorism or assassination attempt. Solae could spend the rest of her life advocating for the aliens, but they had to make steps to gain their independence as well. Some of the resistance exhibited by Yarue and Dasin was because this new environment was stressful, some was because they did not have many similarities evident with the Kalderi, and though they did not voice it aloud, some was because they had spent years being a slave without agency. As empathetic as she was to their frustrations and struggles, this felt like a safe foray for them into the universe, a way to make a subset of the galaxy recognize them as Syshin, not just subjugated imperial citizens.

Although the Kalderi expressed apprehension about the humans, as was conveyed in their body languages and the subtleties of their interactions, curiosity overruled their reservations. By no stretch of the imagination were they a patriarchy, but some of them seemed surprised that it was Solae who was the person of greater importance, either because they perceived the Stellar Empire to favor men or because their own culture had such bias. The first group she approached was the most hesitant, but she broke the ice by complimenting their attire, delicately inquiring their names and about their passions, they warmed quickly. Soon she was was fielding more questions about humanity than she had prepared for- about nuances of their governing body, biology, culinary achievements, animal domestication, technology improvements at the opposite end of the borders (where the Kalderi could not observe), and ancient history. Here she relied on Rene intermittently to catch her breath. A few queries would have been frowned upon in the imperial courts, such as details of their physiology or personal lives, but the aristocrat didn't want to refuse them and breach etiquette.

What fascinated the Kalderi even more than a congenial wealth of information available in the form of Solae and Rene were the circumstances of their arrival. A few were obviously skeptical about the motivations of these seemingly overly generous humans, but they were sincerely amazed that the pair had [i]chosen[/i] to free the Syshin they had gone out of their way to save, then making them employees who were compensated and respected for their contributions. Equally intriguing was Rosaria, the youth at their side who was not biologically related to them, yet they fed her, sheltered her, and taught her, treating her with affection. What little interaction the Kalderi had with humanity since the ancient days of hostility was from afar, a few trading with art pieces. They did not think the other bipedals were necessarily villainous, but they had come to assume they did not have a robust sense of community and cooperation, that they centered more on self than their peers. Solae's actions contradicted this assumption.

"This is boring," Rosaria complained to Rene quietly as she listened to the adults drone on about the contributions of sculpture to modern imperial architecture. Turning to look around her expression brightened suddenly. "Hey, I think a Kalderi is wandering over here to challenge you for Solae!" She did not share his sense of dread for melee; since she wasn't involved personally, she was quite excited to see the swordplay.

True to her word, there was an male Kalderi that was pointedly crossing the floor, albeit around the couples already dancing, his eyes fixed on the duchess whose back was turned.