Chapter Five

The Firerunner touched down in the middle of a lush valley, amidst a large thunderstorm. Not ideal weather for repairing a ship, by any means. Jaina looked towards her brother, and he simply shrugged. Nothing was making much sense right now, and no one was sure what to do next.

First of all, their escape to the far moon of Najeme III had met with little resistance. Sure, Ganner had distracted the attackers so that they did not pursue, but each of the Jedi found it hard to believe that no one stationed on the planet did not alert the pilots that their prey was escaping. Secondly, Jaina was correct about the planet being undeveloped. But it was teaming with life. It reminded her of Dagobah, a planet Uncle Luke had told her about many times. They had selected a large dip in the land, in between two mile-high mountains. There they felt secluded from any ship that may be passing over them. Since there was no clearing in the dense underbrush, the Firerunner had had a difficult time settling down onto the ground, and Jaina still wasn't sure that the ship was even touching solid land. To make matters worse, it was pouring outside, and no one wanted to leave to fine out if the landing gear was in place.

Jaina could barely see out of the transparensteel viewport because the rain was hitting it so hard. The clinks of water droplets hitting the metal hull of the ship were beginning to annoy her. And she certainly did not want to join Jacen and Rhysode doing "research" on whatever may be out there for them to encounter as they repaired the ship. So she snuck back to her quarters to meditate.

Upon entering her tiny cabin, which was sparsely furnished with only a bunk and a large metal trunk, Jaina slipped out of her gaudy diplomat robes and into a tight black jumpsuit she often wore while training. She sat down on her bunk, and crossing her legs, slipped into a trance.

She was rudely awakened a few minutes later by a knock at her door. Standing up to stretch out her legs, she said loudly, "Come in!"

Mat Lehada entered still clothed in his diplomat's robes.

"Back to your old self," Lehada commented, motioning to her outfit.

"Yeah," Jaina scoffed, "and you still look like a senator."

Lehada sat down on the edge of her bunk. "Make yourself at home," Jaina muttered.

"Nice place," he commented, looking around. Jaina raised an eyebrow. "I just want to know why you get your own and I have to share with your brother and Rhysode."

"Cause I'm special," Jaina mock-smiled.

"Yeah, that's it," he laughed. Then his smiled faded. Jaina squinted and looked at him. Their eyes met, and she quickly looked away.

"So..." she continued after a moment. "You're here because...?"

"I don't do research," he said flatly, as if it was below him to even consider such a thing. "And Kamik-Ir is doing some nonsense water evaluation to see if the water is drinkable."

"So you came to bother me?" Jaina questioned.

"Yeah, something like that," he said, flashing her that cocky smile again.

Having a lasting conversation in her bunk with this guy was the last thing she wanted to do. However, there was rumor that Lehada was the best new sparer at the Academy. Jaina wanted to see if his was true.

Jaina played with her lightsaber, which hung at her hip. "Haven't used this in awhile," she said.

"Me neither," he responded, eyes brightening, pushing back his vest to expose his weapon. "It seems like forever since I've had a real fight with these things." He looked at her. "You're getting out of shape, anyways," he smiled. "You could use some practice."

Jaina unhooked her sword. "Really? I was just thinking the same thing about you."

"You want to go?" he challenged, unhooking his saber.

"Always," Jaina replied. "But there's not enough room in here. How about the supply room?"

"Sure," he responded. "But you're gonna regret it, Solo."

"I'm sure," she said. They walked quickly back to the storage room, and moving some boxes and trunks out of the way, prepared to fight. It had been forever since she had sparred; she hoped that Lehada was out of shape and that she could still take him. She was one of the best.

They began slowly, Jaina the aggressor, Lehada blocking every shot. Then they fell into a groove, one attacking, the other parrying. This went on for several minutes before Jaina decided that it was getting boring. She began to throw in some jumps, twists, and flips, and Lehada joined in. They were each getting a good workout, and after awhile, Jaina decided that she needed to end it.

As Lehada spun around to block one of her shots, Jaina dropped to the floor, swinging her leg out, and causing him to fall to the side. He landed on one knee, and Jaina thrust her saber at him. He blocked it, but slipped to the ground, taking her with him.

He landed on top of her, their faces nearly touching, both breathing heavily, trying to catch his or her breath.

He didn't move, but stayed lying on top of her for several moments. He looked into her eyes and said softly, "Nice try."

"Good fight," she whispered back. She didn't make eye contact; instead, her eyes darted nervously across his face. She wiggled slightly, and Lehada didn't budge. "Could you please get off of me now?"

He smiled, and shifted slightly, but stayed where he was. "Come on, Solo, you know you like it."

Jaina smiled mischievously, and then quickly twisted her body, flipping him over, and landed on top of him. "Actually, I prefer being on top," she responded, staying where she was for a moment, then quickly standing up. She turned on her heal and walked to the wall, where a drink dispenser was held. She approached and was making her selection, when he came up behind her, too close for comfort. Jaina moved out of the way, spilling her drink all over Mat.

Jaina laughed nervously and grabbed a towel. "Sorry," she whispered, handing him the cloth.

"It's ok," he replied. "My shirt's all sweaty anyway," he added, taking off the tunic. Jaina watched him pull off the shirt, and tried not to swoon when she saw how chiseled his body was.

"What?" he said, noticing that she was looking at him.

"Nothing," Jaina muttered uncomfortably. 'Just that I lied about you not being in shape,' she thought to herself.

"You're in shape too," he replied.

Jaina put her hands on her hips. "Stay out of my head!" she said sharply.

"Maybe you shouldn't think so loudly," he responded smoothly. Jaina just frowned and glared at him. "But I mean it. You looked great before...in that getup..."

"And I don't look great now?" she said, raising an eyebrow. "Thanks a lot."

"I just can't win with you, can I?" he said, moving closer and putting his hand on her hip.

She glanced down at his large hand, then looked back up at his face. "No one ever can," she whispered slyly, looking into his eyes.

"Maybe I can change that," he whispered back, moving his face closer to hers.

"Umm...I think I'm going to go see how Jacen and Ganner are coming along," she said quickly, and backed away from him and out of the room.

Lehada just shook his head.