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            This fic was originally posted on theforce.net, where I go by the screenname of SaberBlade.  If you recognize this, don't worry, it isn't plagiarized; I'm simply reposting it here also.

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            General Disclaimer:  Star Wars belongs to George Lucas and the characters belong to their respective authors.  Anything you don't recognize is mine; please respect my muse.  I don't intend any infringement with this fic; it was created because I have an abiding love for Star Wars and a wish to share my interpretation of it with the world.

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            Details:

            Name: Whole

            Time Frame: Post-NJO

            Pairing: Kyp Durron and Jaina Solo

            Rating: PG to PG-13

            Post: Chapter 4 of ?

            Story Status: Work in Progress

            Notes: There is a prequel, Broken, which can be found both on this site and on theforce.net.  I recommend reading it before this fic, though it isn't technically needed.  This story starts a few hours after Broken ends.

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            As always, reviews are appreciated.

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For the second time that night, Jaina watched as a child was securely tucked into bed.  Mara bent gently brushed her son's red hair- so like her own- off his face.  "You need to sleep if you want to stay up for the Council tomorrow," she told him.  "So no more adventures tonight."

            "Okay, Mama," Ben said on the end of a yawn.  "I love you."

            Mara Jade Skywalker, former Emperor's Hand, former assassin, now Jedi Master and mother, smiled softly and pressed a kiss to her child's forehead.  "I love you too, Ben.  Now go to sleep."

            "Night, Mama," he said, shutting his eyes.  "Night, Jaya."

            "Sleep well," Jaina murmured from the doorway.  Her aunt stood- still slender and swift- and palmed the lights off.  Ben's breathing had already evened out; the boy would be asleep in minutes.

            Mara pulled the door shut quietly, leaving it barely cracked open.  Then she motioned Jaina out into the main room.  She sank gracefully into one of the chairs, and, waving Jaina over to another, spoke.  "Something changed.  And changed tonight."

            Trust Mara to attack the main problem directly.  Jaina smiled faintly.  "Yes."

            Mara waited for her to continue, but when Jaina didn't elaborate, she sighed.  "You didn't leave the party to come and sit here and not tell me anything."

            "I guess I'm trying to figure out where to start," she answered honestly. 

            "I think I can answer that one for you," Mara said.  Her eyes narrowed.  "Kyp Durron.  Why don't you start there?"

            Jaina lifted her head and met her aunt's eyes, refusing to give her aunt the satisfaction of seeing her startled.  "I talked with him tonight before Mom and Dad arrived.  He's agreed to help me put myself back together." 

            "That's it?"  Mara was clearly skeptical. 

            Jaina nodded.  "That's it.  He helped me before, when I fell.  We talked things over, and I asked him to stay and help me now.  He said he would."

            Mara leaned back, green eyes pensive.  "Why?"

            Jaina hesitated, and looked down at her hands.  She smoothed out the fabric of her skirt.  "I think he felt guilty," she said finally, without meeting Mara's eyes.  "That he wasn't here when I needed him."

            "Hmph."  Mara still sounded doubtful.  "And has he helped at all?"

            In response, Jaina smiled and dropped her now-habitual shields, letting Mara sense her completely.  She felt her aunt's quick and thorough probe, and then Mara retreated. 

            "You're better.  Much better," Mara conceded.  "Whatever you two did worked."

            Jaina shrugged.  "Talked, mostly."

            "But you're still not fully back," her former Jedi Master warned. 

            "I know."  Jaina stood and began to pace up and down the room.  "It's been there for years.  Not even Kyp can fix everything at once.  We're going to work on it while we're both on Mon Calamari."

            Mara frowned.  "How much ground time do you get before you're out again?"

            Jaina absently pulled her loose hair over her shoulder and began to braid it.  "Not much.  Trickster Squadron's getting pulled from escort service.  We're going to head Coreward and see if we can do something about the Insh'shilan pirates.  They're starting to cause some serious problems, and the Admiral is having trouble predicting their moves."

            Mara laughed.  "So they send for the only fighter squadron led by a Jedi."

            Jaina finished her braid and tossed it back over her shoulder, and grinned at her aunt.  "Basically.  I think the Admiral might even ask Uncle Luke for more Jedi to help him.  I bet that's part of why the High Council was called."

            "When are you shipping out again?"

            Jaina shrugged and resumed pacing.  "Five days.  That gives my pilots some ground time before we head back into the thick of things.  And it'll give me time with my family."

            "Can you and Kyp fix things in five days?"

            She shrugged again and tried to keep her voice steady.  "I don't know.  But we'll try, and now that he knows what's wrong- that something's wrong," she corrected herself, "we'll keep in touch a bit more."

            Mara was still pensive, still considering, as though she was replaying things through her head again.  At last, she asked, "How do you know he won't hurt you again?"

            Jaina stopped pacing and stared at her.  How had Mara figured out that it had been Kyp's absence that had been the whole in her life?  How had she realized that . . . no, Jaina realized, she wasn't referring to his absence, though that was the main hurt now associated with Kyp in Jaina's mind.  She smiled, relieved.  Mara was still stuck on Sernpidal. 

            "That was years ago, Aunt Mara.  He wouldn't do that again."

            Mara leaned back.  "Are you sure?"

            Her answer was swift and absolute.  "Yes."

            "Well then," Mara sighed, closing her eyes.  "Then I'll wish you luck."

            "Thank you," Jaina said, and stood uncertainly for a moment.  "I guess I'll head off to bed.  Anything else you wanted to talk about?"

            "Not really," Mara murmured.  "I'll see you tomorrow outside the High Council?"

            "Yeah."  Jaina waited a moment, then, deciding her aunt was tired, turned away.  "Good night, Aunt Mara."

            She was halfway through the door when her aunt called her name.  "Jaina?"  She turned back.  Mara was standing, green eyes glinting in the shadowed room.  Her next question was simple.  "Do you trust him?"

            There was only one answer to give, and it didn't required thought.

            "With my life," she said simply, and shut the door behind her.

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            Luke was surprised to find Mara still awake when he returned to their rooms.

            "You're back late," she said softly, rising and coming over to embrace him. 

            His arms settled around her with no conscious thought; he pulled her close and smiled into her hair.  "Cal wanted to talk.  Tomorrow's going to be a mess."  He rubbed her back.  "You're still up."

            "I've been thinking."  She sounded resigned, and Luke opened his eyes and pulled away just far enough to look into her eyes. 

            "About what?"

            "Jaina," his wife said.  She waited a moment, then added, "And Kyp."

            Luke frowned.  Something about her tone of voice told him it wasn't about Jedi matters.  "Why?"

            A hint of a smile flitted across her face.  "You really are blind, farmboy."

            "Which is why I married you.  You notice things I don't.  Tell me what I missed."

            "Kyp Durron, destroyer of worlds, former Sith Lord, rogue Jedi Master, now semi-respected member of the High Council and leader of Kyp's Dozen, is in love with your niece." 

            Luke stared down at the love of his life in disbelief.  "What?"

            "And your niece, Jedi Knight, General of the Galactic Alliance and commander of the Tricksters, is well on her way to loving him back."

            "What?" Luke repeated.  But his wife merely met his eyes evenly, completely serious.  "I think you need to explain a bit more."  He steered her to the couch, and practically collapsed onto it, all thoughts of sleep driven from his mind.  "How did you figure that out?"

            Mara shifted her weight to face him.  "True or false: Durron's always looked out for Jaina."

            That was an easy question.  "True."

            "True or false: after he lied to her at Sernpidal, he's never once done something to hurt her."

            That required more thought; eventually, "True," Luke admitted.

            "True or false: he's risked his life to keep her safe and happy."

            Luke didn't like where this was leading.  "True."

            Mara, somehow sensing he was beginning to see her line of reasoning, pressed on.  "True or false: Durron's changed since he helped Jaina come back from the Dark Side."

            "True.  But Jaina's changed too."

            "Mmhm.  True or false: Jaina gets away with doing things to Durron no one else could."

            Luke frowned.  "What do you mean by that?"

            Mara picked up his hand and entwined her fingers through his.  "Have you ever made him feel guilty?"

            Luke's grin was involuntary.  "Nope.  I'm not sure that's even possible."

            "Jaina did.  Or how about, have you known anyone to ever hit Kyp and be able to walk away from it?"

            Luke's grin faded.  "Jaina hit Kyp?  When was this?"

            "After Sernpidal, I think.  Mind you, I've only heard the rumor secondhand."  She smiled at his shock.  "She was my apprentice, you know.  Given everything he'd put her through, he's lucky she only slapped him."

            Luke shook his head, amazed.  "I'd have paid good credits to see that," he murmured.  "All right, I understand the first part of your logic.  Not sure if I agree just yet, but it makes enough sense.  What about Jaina?"

            Mara paused in thought before speaking.  "She's not afraid of him," she said at last.  "Almost everyone is, just a little bit.  You are, I am, every Jedi is.  Even the non-Jedi know what he's done and what he could do.  But Jaina's not afraid of him.  She knows what he is, and it doesn't seem to matter."

            "She's fallen too," Luke pointed out.

            Mara shrugged.  "So have you and I and Kam, in our own ways.  And we're more comfortable around him because of it.  But we're all still afraid of him- of what he might do- because we know what he went through.  Jaina's not afraid of him at all."

            Luke was silent for a moment, thinking that one through.  It fit in with the other pieces of the puzzle.  "Why?" he finally asked.

            Mara shrugged, then turned and nestled against him.  He put his arm around her shoulder and let her rest her head on his shoulder.  "She doesn't think Kyp will hurt her."

            Luke tangled his fingers into her hair.  "Why not?"

            Mara tilted her head.  "Do you trust Kyp?"

            Luke hesitated, then nodded.  "Yes."

            "So does Jaina.  But she didn't even have to think about it."

            He understood Mara's reasoning, and could follow her concerns.  He sat in silence for a long while, thinking and turning things over in his head.  Kyp Durron and Jaina.  He wasn't quite sure how he felt about it.  He looked down at his wife.  "What are we going to do about this?"

            Mara's eyes fluttered shut as a smile spread across her face.  "What I promised myself I'd never do to her."

            "And that would be?"

            "Meddle."

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Thanks!

-Keth

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