Jaina sighed against his chest, still wearing the dress she had found. The makeshift blanket was pulled up to her neck, keeping her warm against the chill in the room. The fire had burned out hours ago but Jag didn't want to disturb Jaina from her sleep. Not only that, he was too comfortable to move. He tightened his grip around her back and felt Jaina shift toward him with the movement. The room was beginning to brighten with the onset of day, yet Jag still felt as if he was shrouded in darkness.

He had not been prepared for last night or the emotions that the evening brought out in him. He had enjoyed talking with Jaina about their favourite things and sharing stories from their childhood. They had danced a number of times to the songs that she had found in the armoire, each taking turns teaching the other complicated footwork. They had enjoyed a dinner of soup and ration bars, drank wine that tasted sweet and potent enough to tarnish their sobriety. They had been serious in nature and they had laughed.

Jag blew out a long breath, his stare on the ceiling. When he had come back to the dining hall with the wine and wood for the fire, Jaina had been wearing the dress she had found. It seemed as though it had been tailor made for her. The material hugged her body like a second skin. He had been struck at how beautiful she looked. He didn't think she could be more radiant that she already was, however at that moment, when she turned to face him, the blush on her cheeks contradicting the mischief in her smile, he knew that he could no longer deny his feelings for her.

There was a war raging outside Drognan for the very survival of the galaxy and here they were kissing and holding each other as if they were the only two people in the universe.

It was an odd time to fall in love.

*This is the perfect place for us, Jag. This is our place. What happens here, between us, stays that way. No one will have to know what we did.* Jag closed his eyes as the memory of Jaina's lovely brandy-brown eyes pleading with him came rushing back. She had been both innocent and seductive and it had taken all of his strength to refrain from giving in to the temptation she had presented him with. They couldn't give in to their attraction and even as she tried to convince him otherwise, Jaina had already known the outcome of the evening.

His eyes opened and Jag turned his head slightly to study the sleeping beauty next to him. Jaina loved him. He had confessed his love for her. He had been perplexed about the new and wondrous feelings emerging from deep inside him. Now, he felt as if he were more confused than before. It made absolutely no sense to him and he hated that his emotions were slowly slipping from his control.

*If this is what my father felt like when he was falling in love with Mother then I understand why he suffered from migraine headaches when he was younger.*

Jaina sighed again and she stretched an arm out across his chest. Jag watched her as she slowly woke from her slumber, her face turning instantly to meet his gaze. Her eyes were heavy with sleep and her left cheek was a little red from being pressed against his chest all night. Stifling a yawn, she grinned.

"Good morning, handsome."

"Good morning, beautiful."

Her grin lengthened. "If you think I look beautiful in the morning, then you've fallen out of your Clawcraft too many times."

"Hey, I only fell out of my ship once."

"Once that you're confessing to." She snuggled against him, the fingers of the hand on his chest gently caressing his bare skin. "How did you sleep?"

"Better than I have since we've been here. You?"

"The most peaceful sleep I've had in a long time."

"Well, it certainly didn't sound peaceful."

"What do you mean? Did I move around a lot?"

"No. You snore like a herd of banthas."

Jag braced himself for her reply and wasn't disappointed. Jaina punched him in the gut and he huffed in pain. "I most certainly do not snore!"

"Just because you're a Jedi doesn't mean that you're immune to making long, loud sounds while you sleep." Jag laughed as the second blow nailed him.

"You better watch what you say to me, Fel. My hand is in a precarious spot right now and I could inflict a lot of pain."

That made him wince. "Affirmative."

Jaina smiled and Jag was thankful to feel her hand shift from his stomach to his shoulder. She draped a leg over his, effectively pinning him on the floor. He got the impression that she favoured this position since every night she fell asleep against him like this.

Either that or she enjoyed torturing him.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"You can ask me anything."

Jag felt her breath against his skin, warm and sweet. "Why did you want to go on this recon mission alone?"

The image of his uncle and Luke Skywalker standing in Wedge's office came back to him, the conversation played in his mind as if it had just occurred. "As I mentioned before, the Chiss are not willing to make any commitments to the war right now and I've been feeling as if I'm not contributing enough to the cause. Politically, it may not be my war, however technically, it is. This battle doesn't just affect the New Republic, it affects all of us." He paused briefly. "I just felt that I had to do more."

She nodded against him. "That's why you feared losing your father's respect."

Jag was surprised she remembered that. "Yes. I was sent as a scout, to gather information and return to my father with my findings. He's not going to be pleased to learn that I've made a commitment to Twin Suns."

"What does Shawnkyr think?"

His lips pursed in thought. "I haven't really talked to her about it. She's not going to be happy about it since my commitment to Uncle Wedge will mean she may have to stay as well."

Jaina shifted, bringing herself to rest on her stomach. She tucked her hands underneath her chin, propping her head to study him better and she winced a little at the pressure against her broken ribs. "So, you're doing this to prove a point to your father?"

Jag pondered that for a moment. "No. At least, I don't think I'm doing this to prove a point. I don't like sitting around doing nothing when I know that I can help in some way."

"Well, I think I can speak for many when I say that we're grateful for any assistance you can provide us."

He grinned, leaning forward a little to kiss her forehead. Jaina closed her eyes at the touch. "I'll do what I can."

"Can I ask you another question?" she asked, opening her eyes.

Jag smirked. "Are you always this inquisitive in the morning?"

"No, but I've been wondering something for a while now and I kept forgetting to ask you about it. I figure I better get it out now before it slips my mind again."

"All right. What is it?"

Jaina paused while she chose her words. "Back on Hapes you said something to me that made me angry and I want to know why you said it."

"If I recall, we both said a lot of things on Hapes that made the other angry. What did I say?"

"You said that I should keep to my rank. That anything more would be 'redundant'. Given the fact that we've kissed a number of times in the last few days, I'm now confused by what you meant by that."

Jag raised an eyebrow. "What did you think I meant by that?"

A blush hit her cheeks and she looked away from him briefly. "I thought you were trying to tell me, in your own warped way, that I wasn't good enough for you and that I shouldn't entertain the notion that you and I might become more than friends."

He felt the laughter bubble in his throat but he kept it in. He didn't think Jaina would appreciate it. "I thought that you may have read something into that statement that I never intended."

She turned back to him, her expression puzzled. "Well, what did you mean?"

This time he felt his cheeks flush. "I was trying to tell you not to marry Prince Isolder, without actually coming out and saying it. I guess I'll never make a good politician since it's clear I'm terrible with words."

Jaina laughed, bringing one hand down to rest against his. "You thought I was going to marry Tenal Ka's father?"

"You know that her grandmother was trying to arrange it. I thought---"

"Jagged Fel, were you jealous?"

"What?" He blinked and wondered how his face could feel even hotter than it was. Sitting up a little, he looked at Jaina, surprised. "No! That's not what I was going to say---"

"So, you weren't jealous then?" Her eyes sparkled with amusement.

"Well, no--I mean, yes, I guess I was a little, but---"

She laughed again and leaned up to kiss him. Her lips were soft and moist, the kiss short yet sweet. "You are so cute when you're tongue-tied."

He made a face. "I don't like being tongue-tied."

Jaina's smile turned mischievous. "Are you sure about that?"

Before he could answer, she kissed him again, her tongue tracing the seam of his lips, teasing him until Jag opened his mouth to hers. He savoured the taste of her, deepening the kiss. Sweetly, slowly, instilling in the kiss all the unspoken emotions he felt swell in his heart.

She broke the kiss, pulling away from him a little, the smile gone from her face. Her expression was solemn, her eyes no longer sparkling. They were sad.

Reaching out, he ran his fingers softly through her hair. "What is it?"

"Do you hear that?"

Jag frowned, glancing briefly around the room. He listened and after a moment he understood the source of her unhappiness. He looked back to her and noticed unshed tears in Jaina's eyes.

Silence.

Gently disentangling himself from her embrace, Jag pushed himself up from the floor and walked to the window. The stone floor was cold against his feet, a shiver ran along his spine. Outside the ground was white, mounds of snow were piled high against the stone house, the green of the trees was unnoticeable and the lake near the house was frozen over. Slow moving clouds rolled in from the west and a gentle wind shook the shrubbery surrounding the structure.

The storm was over.