Contains a bit of an extended flashback, but starts with Atton's conversation with Bao-Dur about the Exile.
"So do you think, maybe she and I might…"
"You're being serious." Bao-Dur's eyes widened, but he managed to sound bored.
Atton misinterpreted his response. "You said you wouldn't laugh!" Little did he know that Bao-Dur was far from laughing.
"Atton, she was a general, and I was just a tech. Your guess is as good as mine." Atton finally accepted the futility of this line of questioning, and left Bao-Dur to his despondent reflections. Realizing that Atton had feelings for the General had forced him to admit his feelings for their contrary leader, and he had been happily denying anything but protectiveness up until that point. Damn Atton!
Fortunately for Bao-Dur's peace of mind, he was almost positive that the General didn't return Atton's infatuation. Atton was not what could be called subtle, and in several ways over the past days he had made himself very clear. Jaelyn just seemed to ignore it though, just as she had done during the war when men had tried to get too close. He remembered it well, even after all these years. Often on long intersystem flights the men got…restless. Restless men took chances, became more forward than they might have been otherwise, and Jaelyn had been, and still was, easily the most stunning General those poor recruits had ever seen. Bao-Dur had been a green tech the first time he'd seen her unique style of discouraging displays of male interest...
Early on in Jaelyn's career, he'd later learned, she's decided that she didn't want to be an aloof commander, so she had tried to become an accepted part of all levels of the crew. She'd particularly enjoyed the pilots' and techs' weekly games of Pazaak and Dejarik. Bao-Dur recalled that although she was only an amateur Pazaak player, she could take all comers in Dejarik. The first week he'd been on board the General's vessel he was taken to the games by his roommate, a sociable Twi'lek by the name of Drig. When he'd first seen her she'd been barely holding her own in Pazaak against a short Rodian. When she eventually lost, she merely grinned ruefully, handed over her credits, and moved over to the Dejarik boards.
She sat down for her game across from a handsome, dark-haired human who was a notorious flirt with the female techs and pilots, or so he was promptly informed by Drig. Curious to see how this young commander would handle the overconfident human, Bao-Dur edged closer. Tall Dark and Handsome appeared confident that his flirtation would not be unwelcome, and barely noticed his defeat at Dejarik, so intent was he on his pickup lines. He seemed unaware of the General's pointed stares of dislike, and proceeded to make an utter fool of himself, with no encouragement from her, culminating in the suggestion that they 'take this back to my room'. The General, drawing herself up to all of her five feet four inches, snorted and issued her challenge.
"You seem very confident of yourself, soldier, so I'll make you a deal. You have offended me with your blatant disrespect, lack of common sense, and chauvinism. I would like to know why you assumed it would be your room I'd want to go to, rather than mine." A chuckle ran around the circle that had gathered to see Tall Dark and Handsome humiliated, while he appeared unsure of whether to take her response as encouragement. Jaelyn's mouth quirked in acknowledgment of the crew's amusement, then she returned to her victim. "I am, however, willing to give you another chance. Since you are proposing that I take advantage of your 'superior masculinity'…" She was all sarcasm. "I propose that we test it first. If you can best me in hand-to-hand combat, no weapons, no Force tricks, nothing but hand and feet, you can carry me off slung over your shoulders." The males assembled almost salivated. "But…if I win, you will never behave in a disrespectful manner to me again. Deal?" The moron readily accepted, and the duel was set for the next morning, which was a day off for most of the ship.
The duel was held in the same hall as the games had been the night before. A large space had been cleared in the middle, with benches encircling it to accommodate a large crowd. The men, eager for new entertainment, were expected to turn out in droves. The General strode in five minutes before the fight was bout to begin, and there was an almost universal jaw drop at the sight of her. The men, used to seeing her in concealing Jedi robes, were stunned at the sight of her in an only slightly loose, draping outfit that allowed for a much wider range of movement. Bao-Dur remembered noticing rather dazedly that the outfit's shade of blue almost exactly matched her eyes.
Tall Dark and Handsome entered not soon after, and his jaw dropped just like the rest when he saw his commanding officer. He had little time to gape, though, because as soon as he stepped into the ring she leapt forward and landed a hard kick to his side. What followed was probably the most embarrassing five minutes of that unfortunate soldier's life. It couldn't have been much more than five minutes before he was on the ground, the wind knocked out of him. All the onlookers knew she had gone ridiculously easy on the poor fool. Bao-Dur decided then and there that she was the most amazing thing he had ever seen.
Later that night Drig rhapsodized aloud on each and every aspect of the General to a highly amused Bao-Dur, who secretly agreed with his love struck roommate. He would never have admitted it to Drig, but it was there nonetheless. He only became more impressed with her over time, but he had seen her reject too many men by then to entertain any delusions about his chances. By nature a solitary person, and made unusually reticent by emotion, he never worked up the courage to even talk to her, let alone try to play her at the weekly game nights. And then came Malachor…
Jaelyn tired quickly of Atton's attempts to play Nar Shadaa rule Pazaak and left the cockpit after only a scant five minutes. She tried to ignore her pilot's crestfallen look and went in search of T3-M4, hoping for a report on some repairs he was doing. She finally found him ion the garage, getting some upgrades from Bao-Dur. As she watched him work, head bent over T3 and arm glowing distractingly in the dim light of the garage, she began to feel as if she did remember him, at least vaguely, but as soon as she concentrated on this thought it slipped away, and she was distracted from it as Bao-Dur finished his task, straightened up, and noticed her. Giving a bit of a start, his eyes met hers for probably the first time since she had admitted to not remembering him, back on Telos, and for a moment they were on the same level somehow, rather than leader and subservient follower. The moment was broken, however, when Jaelyn felt a strange surge of unidentifiable emotion from him, and she was startled into breaking eye contact. He seemed to take this very negatively, and stared at her boots for long moments while she was simply trying to process what had just happened. The fact that he had just projected his emotions like that, however unreadable, could mean only one thing. Her reliable tech was Force-Sensitive, and strongly so. Unsure how to approach him about it, she merely smiled and stood there for a minute, until he cleared his throat uncomfortably.
"Something you need, General?" He seemed cautious now, and very aware that he had revealed himself to her. Realizing that she needed to tread carefully, she merely smiled a bit and assumed an air of easy camaraderie
"Nothing in particular, just wondering…" She trailed off, not able to think on her feet in the light of recent developments. An awkward silence fell, broken only when Bao-Dur worked up the courage to ask a question that had been on his mind recently.
"General, is there a reason you don't carry a lightsaber anymore?" Seeing her without it bothered him. His fondest memories of the war ware of her bent over a workbench, upgrading her lightsaber. She'd had no knack for it, but it was obvious how much she cared for her blade.
"My lightsaber was taken from me by the council." The depth of sadness in her eyes made him want to do something, anything, to alleviate it. Before his brain caught up with his mouth, he found himself offering to help her build a new lightsaber.
Jaelyn was astonished. She had no idea where he had learned lightsaber construction, but it was a good thing he had, because she had never been more than barely competent when it came to technology, and after all these years she very much doubted she would remember how to construct one on her own. She was deeply grateful to Bao-Dur for offering, and she conceded that he was right. Getting her old blade back was impossible, but wielding a lightsaber was a big part of who she was. She felt confident that, in Bao-Dur's hands, it would be only the best, and she could only hope that the construction of her lightsaber would lead to a conversation about the construction of his.
A/N—Well, how do you like it so far? Again, thanks go out to Niobe Asha for giving me someone to write for, she's been great encouragement. Please, leave me a review! I can't know how you like it if you don't tell me. Am I going too fast? Too slow? I'm sure you have an opinion, and I want to hear it! Thanks for reading!