Chapter 7- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Danni sped through the corridors of the Jade Shadow in a hurry to create a safe distance between herself and Jacen Solo. After the kiss they had just shared in his quarters, her mind was-to put it lightly-rather scattered, and she needed time away from him to gather them back together.

And what a kiss it had been!

It might have been a bit awkward at the start; their noses bumping and getting into the way, but neither of them had much experience in the kissing department. Soon enough though, their lips had figured out the details, and if Luke hadn't commed when he did, Danni might never have stopped kissing Jacen.

That thought troubled her. Never had she been so overwhelmed by someone like she had just been by Jacen. When he had pulled her in more closely and deepened the kiss, she could feel her walls crumbling-her resistance diminishing, and she hadn't cared in the least. The loss of control had been exhilarating-a brand new experience all the way around. 'What were you thinking!' she scolded herself as she recalled telling him about the 'touching' research, which had somehow ended up with her in his arms.

What had urged her to do such a silly thing?

Maybe it was because she'd been exposed to his fully matured masculinity all morning as he patiently tried to teach her to use a lightsaber. He did look awfully appealing in his sleeveless training shirt, she rationalized. Or maybe it was his silly sense of humor. He'd been trying to during the whole trip to get her to laugh whenever he had the opportunity, and while his jokes were usually quite lame, she still found him very attractive. Perhaps, though, it was how sweetly he had tucked her in the night before after carrying her all the way from the Imperial ship to her room. For all that he'd been through, Jacen Solo still retained a positive outlook on life. The childlike faith that he still held onto called to her very soul. His really strong arms and handsome face didn't hurt either, she mused.

She shook her head to clear it of such ridiculous nonsense. If she admitted that Jacen was now a man, then she'd also have to admit that she was attracted to him and that the two of them together was an actual possibility. Danni didn't know if she was ready to take that step just yet.

'Being tied to a man only holds you back, Danni.' She still remembered her mother giving her 'the talk' as a young teenager. 'If you want to be a successful astrophysicist, focus only on your work--- not the boys.'

Over the years, Danni had taken her mother's advice, despite the many suitors who had crossed her path. In fact, up until now it had been easy to put relationships on the back burner. Her studies, a career with Ex- Gal, and now her work with the Jedi against the Vong had kept her occupied, leaving her with no desire to pursue anything non-related to her duties. The plain truth was that until Jacen Solo, she had never met anyone who interested and intrigued her so much that she was emotionally befuddled. For the first time in her life, she was wishing she had a little more experience when it came to men. Oh, sure, she could tell when they were interested, and she was a master at shutting them down usually before they could even make a first move.

But now it was different. She wasn't so sure she wanted to 'shut' Jacen down. Part of her-a huge part-wanted to pursue that option as far as it would go. Maybe it would go nowhere beyond that one kiss. "But then, on the other hand," she argued, "it just might last a lifetime." If the way he kissed her was any indication, they could find a lot to keep them busy for years to come.

'No woman worth her weight needs a man,' she kept hearing her mother say. "Only women with no confidence or intelligence feel the desperate need to latch on to a male. You're better off without them.'

Danni paused for a moment before entering the cockpit, mulling over her mother's words, and a tiny grin eventually lifted the corners of her mouth. Her mother may have thought she knew what she was talking about, but then her mother had never been kissed by Jacen Solo.

"All finished with your 'training'?"

Danni stopped in the entryway to the cockpit of the Jade Shadow, the question from Mara Skywalker freezing her in her tracks. The smirk on the older woman's face was clear. She wanted to make Danni uncomfortable, and she had succeeded. Danni glanced helplessly over to Luke, and he extended a look of sympathy.

Just then Jacen appeared behind Danni, and she felt the heat as his body moved closer. He placed a hestitant hand on her back, and she turned to look up into his face. She read the unspoken question in his eyes and quickly looked away, not prepared to answer it just then. He dropped his hand to his side, and Danni moved aside so that he could step into the room. For now there were more pressing matters to attend to.

"What is it, Uncle Luke?" Jacen asked.

"Take a look," he said motioning for the two new arrivals to take a look at his monitor screen. After only a brief glance, Danni and Jacen exchanged mutual expressions of terror and disbelief.

"Company's coming, kids," Mara announced, voicing the fear of everyone present as Saba and Tekli joined the group.

"How many and how long?" Jacen asked, his brow knit into a serious frown.

Luke shook his head. "We're not sure. A couple of squadrons, maybe more. They're still too far away for us to get a definite read, and we may not have any more than an hour or two," Luke explained. "Bottom line is we have to get out of here before they get here." He looked pointedly at Jacen. "I think it's time, Jacen," he stated cryptically.

Danni glanced from man to man and back again. "Time for what?" she inquired. Surely she wasn't the only one who had no clue about what Luke had mentioned.

Jacen gazed quietly out the viewport for several moments before heaving a deep sigh. "I think you're right, Uncle Luke," he agreed.

Danni continued to wait for a response, which didn't come fast enough for her liking. "What? What is he right about?" she asked again, growing a bit more irritated with each second she was ignored.

Luke spoke, but not to her. "Jacen, I know it's a lot to ask, and that you wanted to avoid having it revealed if possible, but it may be our only way out of this."

Saba and Tekli stood by silently, not understanding the veiled conversation anymore than Danni, but did not dare to intrude between the two men. Mara, on the other hand, was carefully watching the proceedings, just waiting for the perfect time to interrupt, and by the look on Danni Quee's face, now was that time.

"Um, Luke darling?" He and Jacen paused and glanced at her. "Mind filling the rest of us in on what exactly you two are talking about? We feel a little left out."

Inwardly, Danni sighed in relief. So then, she wasn't the only frustrated one in the cockpit. Mara's interruption had nearly been her own.

Luke blushed. "Sorry, Mara. I didn't mean to keep you all out of the loop. Jacen, why don't you explain?"

The four females turned their attention to the younger man who was a bit ruffled by the sudden attention. He shifted uneasily from foot to foot as he struggled with where to begin. Mara, astute observer and blunt speaker that she was, helped him.

"Since we're pressed for time, just give us the short version," she suggested.

Jacen grinned, but seemed relieved by his aunt's word. "Okay-um, the short of it is, ever since my ordeal on Coruscant, I've been able to communicate with some types of Vong life. It's like a - a 'Vongsense', if that even makes any sense at all. Uncle Luke thinks I might be able to use it on the dovin basal mines to help get us out of here."

A brief moment of silence filled the air before nods of understanding and agreement came from the other Jedi, except for Danni. She simply stood mute, staring at Jacen, trying to digest what she had just heard. Her scientific mind organized all of the information so that she could meditate on the implications. Upon further examination, she came to a conclusion that unsettled her. Jacen Solo could 'talk' to Vong lifeforms. Jacen Solo had known this ever since his return several months ago. Just yesterday she had been working frantically to figure out how to do what he apparently already knew how to do; thus, effectually wasting her time and energy on something completely unnecessary.

She was mad.

Anger wasn't an emotion Danni Quee experienced very often. It led to wasted time and wasted energy-two things she couldn't stand. Hence, the anger. What irony!

Mara once again broke the silence. "Well, then, I think you'd better get to 'chatting it up' with our little friends out there before their big friends show up and have us for dinner."

"Yeah, Jace. What do you need to get started?" Luke asked.

Jacen stammered as he contemplated his answer. "Um, nothing really. I just need to go back over to the Widowmaker so that I can be close to the captured mine. Sometimes it helps if I can actually touch the creature I'm trying to communicate with."

Mara swiveled her pilot's chair around to the console. "I'm on it. Jade Shadow hailing Widowmaker," she began.

"Anything else?" Luke asked. "Would you like me to come with you?"

Jacen shook his head. "No, I'll be okay. You stay here and be ready to blast off if it works. Danni?" He turned to look at her, surprised by the strange look on her face. "Will you come with me?"

Danni clenched her jaw tightly, biting back the anger she felt at being patronized and lied to. After a moment in which she seriously contemplated saying no, she finally nodded her head 'yes'.

Luke smiled and clapped his hands. "Great! Then you're all set. May the Force be with you and may we soon be out of this mess!" he added.