Everything belongs to Naughty Dog, just writing for fun here :)
For days Keira avoided speaking to her father. She didn't want him to ask about why she and Jak hadn't spoken. Luckily, it was easy to stay out of his way. Samos was occupied at all hours of the day and night, trying to formulate strategies for the war. From what Keira heard when she was in the command center, things were getting worse than ever. The city was absolutely clogged with Metal Heads and robots, and the defenders' forces had been cut in half. There were times when they could faintly hear the KG bots slamming into the doors of the command center and being repelled by the electrical force field.
When things like this happened, Keira set her mouth in a grim line and did what repairs she could to the systems, burying her fear as deep as she could. She ran errands for her father and for others, helping the same way she had for weeks and weeks. Everything began to feel that it would be the same forever: trapped in one building, surrounded by murderous creatures and never seeing peace again.
Keira's first instinct was to avoid the main command room, but she tried her best not to. Samos and Ashelin often spoke to Jak over the holo-communicator, and there was absolutely no reason why she should leave the room when they did so. She was able to calmly continue her work without looking up when his voice crackled over the system. And if she worried about Jak, Keira told herself that it was simple concern for an old friend getting himself into dangerous situations. Nothing more.
One day the monotony was broken by the shrill sound of Daxter's voice. At first Keira ignored it, thinking that it was just another transmission, but then she realized that the sound had no crackling, and the holo-communicator wasn't even activated. Slowly Keira raised her head to see Jak and Daxter walking in the room. For a second she was tempted to ignore them and let everyone else speak to them as usual, but then she decided not to be so immature. He can still be my friend, she reasoned.
"Daxter! Jak! You did it" she exclaimed with a smile, clapping her hands together. Jak looked at her for a moment and almost looked like he would say something, but Samos interrupted, and Jak turned his eyes away.
Keira took a deep, slow breath through her nose. That was ok, she thought. I was congratulating both of them for doing something great. Nothing pathetic there. She narrowed her eyes and placed both hands on the holo-projector.
"Also, the large number of eco crystals being moved about can mean only one thing," she interjected smoothly, just after Samos finished speaking. "Someone is trying to awaken vast precursor technology." For one second she looked Jak straight in the eye.
Her heart sank a bit when Jak seemed to direct his response at Ashelin more than anyone else, but she quickly squashed that thought. That doesn't matter one bit, she told herself forcefully. He can talk to whoever he wants.
Just as quickly as they came, Jak and Daxter left the building to defend against another assault. Keira felt her father's eyes on her, but she ignored him and settled down to tinker with one of the machinery panels on the opposite side of the room. When she came out of her mini trance, her father called her over to the holo panel again to show her how Jak had almost singlehandedly repelled the attack. KG robots were scattering across the screen, retreating in every direction.
Keira shook her head. "He really is something," she said quietly. Moments later the main doors opened and Jak was back, walking toward the control table like he'd never left.
"Nice moves, my boy!" exclaimed Samos. "You're the best man we've got to lead an expedition to the catacombs."
Keira was about to say something too when, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Ashelin smiling at Jak. Not just a smile, either – after a moment she gave him a subtle wink. Jak didn't exactly smile back, but he looked rather more pleased than Keira would have hoped. She clamped her hands together, trying to not to watch Ashelin quirk her eyebrows at Jak. Thankfully, she was spared from having to pretend indifference by the sudden entrance of Count Veger.
"Please, please, let us not be too hasty," he intoned smoothly. "Are you sure you want this dark eco freak contaminating the halls of our glorious precursors?" The count shot a contemptuous glance at Jak. "I should lead the expedition myself."
Ashelin didn't seem phased. "We're tired of your scheming, Veger."
He put his arm around her and leaned in close. "But I have the answer you're looking for. My Precursor monks have given me the knowledge of how to turn on the planetary defense grid. I will… if you beg me to do so."
No one said anything. Keira looked around the room in amazement. Surely they weren't considering his offer? She hesitated for only a second, then looked right at Veger. "Jak's always gotten us through thick and thin. I'm with him."
As the others voiced their agreement and Ashelin put Veger in his place, Keira watched Jak. Surely I deserve some acknowledgement for sticking up for him like that, she thought sourly. But he never looked at her, even after Veger left in a rage. In fact, she realized, he was determinedly looking anywhere but at her. After a moment or two, Keira gave up and sat on the edge of the holo-table and tried to tune back into what Ashelin was saying. In the end, it was decided that Jak had to climb through the sewers and turn on an old power box for some eco grids.
And just like that, he was gone again, on another dangerous mission with no certainty that he would ever come back. She sat down next to the holo-table and dragged her toolbox over, opening it to clean each tool for what felt like the thousandth time that week. I wish he wouldn't ignore me like that. The thought slid into her mind without warning. Even if he has changed his mind about me, he still could act a little nicer.
