Dusk descended upon Coruscant, the horizon glowing in a near perfect golden hue. From high up in the Jedi temple, the view was spectacular, utterly breathtaking. The city landscape stretched out as far as the eye could see, a multitude of vehicles of all shapes and sizes arrayed in designated traffic lanes. Below, hundreds of people strolled along winding pedwalks and bridges, leading towards public transports as well as private garages. Indeed, it was a beautiful view to welcome the evening.
Two young people standing within a transparasteel lift tube thought differently it seemed.
Jaina Solo had her arms slung around Jagged Fel's neck, smiling at him with dark, glossy eyes. Her look held the promise of passion if they could indeed find a few long minutes of alone-time in their hectic lives. Jag touched his forehead to hers and sighed contently. "I'd rather skip this dinner and go home with you."
She curled her fingers into his short soft hair and closed her eyes, simply reveling in the fact that she was with the man she loved and no matter what came their way, they would manage it together. Even this unofficial Jedi dinner or banquet or whatever-you-wanted-to-call-it. They would sit through all the boring talk, all the annoying banter and all the newbie questions until it was time for them to leave.
"You know," Jaina whispered suddenly, the amused edge in her voice making Jag arch a brow. She leaned closer, inhaled his spicy scent and gently grazed his jaw with her teeth. "Underneath all this Jedi stuff," She giggled, a very girly, un-Jaina thing to do but Jag loved it. He squeezed her hips and placed a row of kisses along her neck. "I am…" Kiss on his chin. "…completely…" Kiss on the corner of his mouth. "…naked."
As if on cue, the lift doors opened and the sounds of chatter assaulted their ears. Jag stood completely still, staring at Jaina with an expressionless look on his face. Words failed him at that moment. Maybe he hadn't heard her right. But going by the evil grin she presented to him, she'd planned something to spice up this long and boring evening.
He could hardly wait.
So he let a small boyish grin appear on his face while Jaina stepped back and took his hand, pulling him along a winding corridor that led to the foyer of the Jedi temple. An enormous hall, the walls were decorated with holograms depicting legendary Jedi with blazing lightsabers as well as Masters in meditation poses. To make the foyer seem friendlier, cleaning droids had put up plants and flowers from all over the galaxy. Star flowers bloomed a beautiful yellow and green while a miniature Zonabi tree with silver petals stood all alone on the front desk.
Jaina scanned the hall and nodded hello, waved here and there while she gripped Jag's hand tighter and led him towards the dining hall. Half the invited guests were already there, talking loudly. It was surprising to see the Masters and the Knights gathered in unity, without anyone bickering, without anyone yelling. They were talking like civilized people.
Who'd have thought?
When Jaina and Jag entered, the talk quieted down just a bit while dozens of eyes watched them descend the short flight of stairs. Glasses clinked on the tabletop, two serving droids whizzed around refilling drinks – Jaina stepped around an old R3 unit to get to her seat.
She stopped in mid stride though and turned towards Jag, placing her palm on his chest. "There's been a change of plans."
Jag arched a brow. "How so?"
"We can't sit next to each other."
Feeling peeved by this statement was childish, Jag knew. He was a grown man, he could deal with not sitting next to Jaina, right?
Of course.
Jaina gestured towards a vacant seat next to Jedi Master Durron and shrugged. "You can keep Kyp company. Just don't get him drunk again, okay?"
Jag grinned ever so slightly, leaned forward to place a small kiss on Jaina's cheek before wandering over to take his designated seat. At least Jaina was sitting across from him. He could look at her all evening without drawing too much attention. That was a good thing at least.
He couldn't shake the feeling that Jaina was up to something. Turning him on like that in the lift tube was downright evil. He knew for a fact that the next few hours would involve major fantasies about Jaina stripping out of that Jedi robe of hers. Inch by inch, the fabric would slip off her perfect, alabaster skin while her hair would fall around slender shoulders. Her eyes would twinkle mischievously and she'd sway her hips while she came closer, closer and closer still –
"Look alive, Fel."
Jag glanced down towards Kyp while he pulled out his chair and planted his rear-end with a little huff. Jaina smiled at him from the other side of the table. She stood talking with one of the younger Jedi Knights, a human girl Jag hadn't seen before.
"How long do you suppose this dinner will take?" Jag asked, reaching up to loosen his collar.
Kyp shrugged, taking a sip from a clear, sweet smelling liquid. "Don't know. Anxious to get back home?" He asked with a grin, his eyes moving from Jag to Jaina and back again. "You young people – just can't keep your hands off of each other."
"Shut up."
The dark haired Jedi Master chuckled. "Just stating the obvious."
Jag watched as Jaina sat down directly in front of him, graciously accepting a glass of water from a tall serving droid. She placed the glass to her lips and took a quick sip before setting it down on the table.
While others around him started up their conversations again, Jag wanted to take Jaina and go home. For Force's sake, she was naked underneath those robes! This was absolute torture for his senses. He felt like his hormones were spiraling about uncontrollably and making his brain tell his blood to collect somewhere where it would become increasingly uncomfortable for him throughout the evening.
And as that thought crossed his mind, he had no choice but to shift his weight on the chair.
"You're fidgeting." Kyp said with a grin.
"Did I just not tell you to shut up?"
Kyp chuckled softly before going back to his quiet conversation with his neighbor.
The doors on the other side of the dining room opened slowly and Master Skywalker stepped in, completely dressed in black. For a moment there, Jag thought the man had gotten ready for a funeral. The blond Grand Master smiled warmly, blue eyes taking in the room with one sweep. Nothing ever escaped Master Skywalker's notice – which made Jag take extra care not to…fidget too much.
"I am pleased to see that, even in these difficult times, we've found the opportunity to sit amongst our friends and loved-ones to enjoy a quiet meal together."
Jag was only listening with half an ear as Master Skywalker began his speech. With his head inclined to the side, Jag watched as Jaina leaned forward just a bit, smiling at her uncle with pride. With everything their family had been through, it was indeed a blessing to be peacefully seated at a table together.
Just as Jag took a deep breath to calm his frayed nerves, Jaina reached forward to grab her glass and the front lapels of her robe opened just an inch. Not even an inch really but enough for Jag to take a glimpse of bare flesh.
She hadn't been lying.
Good Gods!
Jag sat up straight and crossed his legs at the ankles. Master Skywalker was all but forgotten. Jaina grinned at him and caught his gaze, biting her lower lip in a way that just begged for Jag to drag her out of the dining hall. He wanted to kiss her, he wanted to do much more than that.
It was then that Jag felt something touch his leg underneath the table. He sat completely still, rigidly unmoving. It took a moment for him to realize why Jaina was smiling the way she was. Jag felt his heart rocket up towards his throat as Jaina's foot wandered up higher along his leg.
He tried to keep his calm, he really did. But the way she tossed her dark hair over her shoulder, the way she moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue…
And all this without really drawing attention to herself. Jag took a quick look around – the protective part of him didn't want anyone else enjoying the show but thankfully, everyone else was listening to Master Skywalker.
Jaina settled her foot on Jag's chair, right between his legs. He didn't move. He couldn't move. It would have been bad if he moved. He stared at her across the table – obviously, the woman was smiling.
Evil was too easy a word for her.
Now Jag knew how to behave himself. Etiquette had been drilled into him since he could remember. So he knew that interrupting Master Skywalker's speech in any way, would not only be humiliating but downright rude. But when Jaina wiggled her foot and touched a specific part of his anatomy, he threw all that etiquette right out the window.
Or better yet, he didn't have much of a choice in the matter.
His knees jerked upward, banging against the table in the quiet of the dining hall. Almost instantly he felt a warm blush rise into his cheeks. Jaina, on the other hand, seemed to be having the time of her life.
Jag cleared his throat as he noticed all eyes on him. Everyone was giving him a curious look, besides Jaina.
"Is everything alright?" Master Skywalker asked and there was definite worry in his voice.
"Fine." Jag more or less squeaked. He cleared his throat again, loudly. "I apologize for interrupting. Please continue."
Once Master Skywalker went on with what he wanted to say, Jag whipped his head around towards Jaina and sent a glare her way. He ground his teeth, wishing he could send her a little feisty message through the Force. She moved her foot again, though. Only this time he caught himself, extending his arm forward to grab his glass of water.
He drank the whole thing.
This was going to be a very, very long evening.