Miriah looked up at the report that was downloading onto her datapad. "The Republic forces are seeing increased fighting on all fronts, but the Iokath one," she said, and frowned. That was curious, and she found herself muttering to herself about why and to what end. She had seen the note that more jumps were being made from Empire held planets to an unknown coordinate, along an ancient route, and that had her mind whirring too. There was a whisper in the force, one she'd felt off and on, but she'd yet to mention it to anyone, figuring that the other force users in the base would have felt it as well and said something if it were important. Still, it bothered her, as much as all the troop movements and trade issued did. She glanced over at Corso. He's been quiet today, she noted, and turned in her chair to face him. "Sugar, are you feeling well?" she asked, and saw him draw himself back from wherever his thoughts had been to smile at her.
"Right as rain, darlin'. Want to go visit Coleen and the little one?" he asked, and Miriah saw him start to stand.
"I told Lana I'd be here. She's trying to get things together for her daughter," she said, and saw Corso's face soften.
"I'd forgotten, love. You're right. How 'bout some hot cocoa and cookies then?" She could see he wanted to move around now that he'd broken out of his thoughts, and nodded. He kissed her on the head and left, and she watched him, a smile still on her face. He'd been talking about going to Dantooine, to the ranch, the past few days. She'd considered it, but with the Jorgan's grandchild still in intensive care and Lana welcoming her new daughter, it seemed like a bad time to put additional stress on them with a trip. She sighed, she'd rather be shot than see Corso unhappy, but she knew she couldn't accommodate him right now. I could tell him to go, though, she considered. Maybe Devin and Logan would like to go as well. Caly was too wrapped up with Torian, but if they both went, then maybe. She was still thinking through it all when Corso returned, whistling. She knew better than to get his hopes up before she'd worked through the details. She joined him on the sofa, listening to him tell her about the new ships, and the new shipyard being readied in Haven, and they enjoyed the break in their day.
Lana had brought Tali home two days ago, to her newly painted room with the princess bed and pretty clothes in the closet. Tali had been quiet, but the books all said she might be. All Lana knew was that the med scans showed Tali to be four years old, a bit underweight for her age, and suffering from the trauma of being without a parent in an emotionally cold environment. Now, Lana watched the little girl eat pancakes like there was no tomorrow, and had to smile. They'd said little, but Tali did respond with one or two word answers to questions. Today Lana wanted to take her to have her hair trimmed and let her play outside, knowing she only had another week to gain Tali's trust before she returned to the office. Miriah had already set aside afternoons even then so that she could spend time with Tali, and just the thought made Lana smile.
"Milk?" Tali asked, and Lana rose to refill the cup.
"Is that good?" Lana asked, and was rewarded with a shy smile and nod. They'd made it through a bubble bath the evening before, and Tali had smiled nonstop. Nico had put several toys in her room, and her favorite was the stuffed nekarr cat she had in the chair beside her. When it looked like she was finally full, Lana took her to wash her hands, talking to her all the while. "We can go choose something pretty to wear and go outside," she said, and her eyes met Tali's in the mirror. Lana felt a shiver from the child and saw a brief flash of fear cross her little face. "It's okay, Tali. We'll do what we want to do, and I'll be right beside you. Okay?" Tali nodded and followed Lana to her room, picking out a top and leggings, and when she'd dressed she looked around for her old, worn shoes. Lana remembered that she didn't know what size shoes to get her, and had bought a couple of sizes in each style. She brought them to Tali's room and sat with her as she picked the ones she wanted, and tried them on, finding ones that fit comfortably. Tali hugged Lana tightly then, and they set off for a day of fun.
Aric had almost completed his list of soldiers, with only a few falling out of the parameters for Odessen. The list had been run against known enemies of the Alliance as well as familial associations with those enemies. If nothing else, the Saresh debacle showed me that, he thought. Still, he wasn't ready to approve the list. Something was making him doubt himself, his gut telling him that there was someone in that bunch that didn't have pure motives on Odessen. He sat back in the desk chair and decided to visit Caitlin. Maura had been working with Miriah since Lana was off on personal leave, and he knew Coleen would be alone. He was walking across the war room when he saw Corso heading to the elevator and let him go, noting that the Mantellian looked happy.
Coleen had been sitting at Caitlin's side, stroking her baby with a finger. Aric saw them and the nurse allowed him to scrub up and enter the area, and his eyes shone with happiness. "She's just beautiful," he said in a low voice. He rubbed Coleen's shoulders and felt her fatigue wearing her down. "Hon, you need to rest, too, you know."
"I don't ever want her to think that I've left her," Coleen said, and felt a tear roll down her face. "I did this, Dad. At first, I didn't want her to be here." Her breath caught, and Aric stayed quiet. "I wished she would just not grow, that I wasn't pregnant." She straightened but didn't stand. "Then, when I heard her heartbeat, I just knew she was special. I couldn't ignore her any longer." She turned and fell into Aric's embrace. "I feel so terrible that I ever thought that, and maybe that's why she came so early."
Aric held his daughter and felt her tremble against him. "Coleen, you know that unless you're a Jedi, your thoughts are just that. Abstract things that enter your mind. I know lots of mothers who initially didn't want to be mothers at the time, but once they were, they wouldn't trade the experience for anything. You did nothing but be normal." He felt her sobs slow and finally she lifted her face.
"I need to take a nap," she said weakly, and he assisted her to stand, putting his arm around her and leading her to the room down the hall. Once there, the nurse came in to help her get settled, and Aric thought he would just leave, but Coleen held our her hand. "Stay with me, Dad?"
"Of course," he replied, and sat in the chair, Coleen's tiny hand in his much larger one, and felt her give in to her recovering body.
Tali hid herself behind Lana's leg. They were in the salon, and the sudden influx of unfamiliar faces, in a place that was a hive of activity, had her nervous. Lana realized she was scared and bent to her level. "Honey, these are nice people who want to trim your hair. Remember we talked about it this morning?" Tali nodded but slowly, and Lana felt her heart go out to the child. "You know what, we don't have to do this." Lana stood to leave but Tali stood rooted to the spot. Lana returned to crouch beside her. "Tali, do you want to get your hair cut?" Tali nodded again. "I'm going to lift you up so you can see the different styles." Lana sat her in the tall chair and Tali looked in the mirror, pointing to Lana. "You want your hair like mine?" Lana asked, and Tali nodded vigorously. "Are you sure?"
"Yes," Tali said and her face was covered with a huge smile. Lana accompanied her to the shampoo section and held her hand as the lengths of old, matted hair fell away. When they were finished, the stylist put a clip with a purple bow, to match Tali's top, in her hair and Tali's eyes shone with happiness.
Miriah and Maura had been fielding calls and reports all day, and finally Maura stretched. "How do you and Lana do this every day without always being in a bad mood?" she asked, and Miriah giggled.
"Sometimes your husband bears the burden of that aggravation," Miriah replied, and Maura nodded. "He's got his hands full working with the new soldiers that want to come here. I've gotten Lana's list of immigrants but until we have our meeting tomorrow about them, I'm not inclined to open the gates just yet. Did you get a message back yet about the temporary lodging? Or is it still being used for barracks?"
"The new barracks should be up by the end of the week, those Mandalorian guys work fast," Maura replied, looking through the different datapads to find the message about lodging. "We have three hundred recruits graduating next week, you'll be there, right?"
"Mmhmm," Miriah said absently. Her thoughts were on Corso, who was going to play with James at the park this afternoon. I should be there, she thought, and sighed. "Maura, let's leave it for today," she said, and Maura smiled.
"I'm good with that, I'm missing Caitlin," she grinned, and they put their work away. Miriah waited for the detail to form up and directed them outside, hoping she hadn't missed seeing her grandson play.
Corso sat on the bench with Lara, James playing nearby. "You look great," he told his daughter in law and she blushed.
"I feel huge," she said. "And I still have three months to go."
"It'll pass quickly, and then you'll have even more to do," he teased. He looked over his shoulder and saw Lana with a child, and realized it must be Tali. The little girl pulled back as they approached, but he smiled at her and held out his hand, and she took it, crawling into his lap.
Lana looked on, astonished. "She is still wary of Nico, but greets you like an old friend," she marveled.
Corso chuckled. "I have a way with kids," he said, and smiled down at Tali. She was content for a few minutes, then slid down his leg to cautiously approach James as he played in the sand.
"She's lovely," Lara said softly, and Lana smiled.
"She's still getting used to everything, but overall, we've been getting along well." They chatted for a bit, and when the phalanx of troopers made their way out of the path and toward the playground, Tali panicked and ran to Lana, silently crying. Lana held her close, and when the sound of the troopers stopped, Tali finally turned around to see Miriah come out of the protection. James ran to his grandmother, who lifted him up then swung him around, his giggles filling the air. Tali's eyes were wide but she was fascinated by the scene, her tears drying on her little face. James led Miriah to the speeders and heavy equipment toys he'd been playing with, and Miriah sat on the ground with him. Tali wanted to play too, but she hesitated. Lana didn't push her, and after a few minutes, she slid to the ground again, taking small steps over to them.
Miriah looked up and saw Tali hesitantly walking toward them. "Lara, you're looking well. Lana, things are going smoothly?" she asked, pointedly ignoring Tali, letting her choose to come over rather than scaring her. Tali was a few steps away when Miriah smiled at her, and Tali sat down with them. James handed her one of the larger toys, and the children lost themselves playing. Miriah stood and joined the adults. "I just couldn't miss seeing James," she said, "and then I got to meet Tali, too."
"She's still a little skittish, but I think she's beginning to feel safer than she did," Lana said. "Although she greeted Corso as a long lost friend."
Miriah chuckled. "Children love him," she said. Leaning close to him, she whispered, "I do, too." and was rewarded with his grin.
Aric had returned to the small office, his datapads around him. There was still something off about this, he thought, and decided to ask Solasta to take a look. He was gathering his things when Sarai entered, and he stood to hug her. "Mom, how are things?" he asked her, and saw her sigh.
"I just saw Caitlin, and she's going to be just fine, Aric. I wanted to pick your brain. Have you heard of a planet called Ossus?" She sat on the chair opposite the desk.
"Ossus? I can't say that I know it, but there's something about that word that seems familiar, somehow," he replied, and pulled up the database that held charted space, keying in the name. "Why?"
Sarai explained her interest in the planet, and Aric's head snapped up at the mention of Jedi not returning from Ossus. When the computer dinged, Aric's eyes widened. "Ossus is where Miriah noted some troop movement by the Empire." He jumped up, wanting to rush to find Miriah. He hugged Sarai again, and shot out of the office, knowing this might just be the thing that forces them into war again.