Changing Course

by bactaqueen

Jaina Solo had a tough road back from the Dark Side after the death of her brother. In the process, she earned Colonel Fel. But what if she hadn't? What if Kyp Durron was her redemption?

13. Chapter Thirteen

Title: Changing Course
Chapter: Chapter Thirteen
Author: bactaqueen
Author's e-mail:
Category: New Jedi Order, Alternate Universe
Keywords: Kyp Durron, Jaina Solo, NJO
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: New Jedi Order up to Rebel Stand
Summary: Jaina Solo had a tough road back from the Dark Side after the death of her brother. In the process, according to canon, she earned Colonel Fel. But what if she hadn't? What if Kyp Durron was her redemption?
Disclaimer: "Star Wars" copyright George Lucas. Characters copyright respective owners. No profit is being made and no infringement is intended. Characters and situations inspired by the Enemy Lines duology, written by Aaron Allston, and in some cases, the situations have been modified for the purposes of this story. Again, here, no profit is being made and no infringement is intended.

Changing Course: Chapter Thirteen

The carpet was a neutral gray and the walls had recently been repainted. The color was indefinable, not that anyone even noticed. It was a narrow side corridor designed to look as unimportant as a 'fresher and far less interesting.

Appearances could be deceiving, but glaring inaccuracies would tip off even the most oblivious of spies. Which is exactly what the two special duty uniforms posted outside the conference room were supposed to do. They were an incredibly visible portion of the Goddess's security, which had been increased with the recent attempt on her person.

They stood stoic and unmoving, guarding the wrong conference room.

Jaina gave them a curious look as she passed them. They were heavily armed, but at least they weren't young. It had been her experience that the younger the armed guard, the more trigger-happy. It would seem that the Goddess rated experience. That was nice to know.

It was 0958 the next day. She was late for her meeting, but she'd been told to be late for everything. It was as good an excuse as "I slept really well and didn't want to get up this morning," and it was far less embarrassing to think about.

Because now, in the light of day, she wasn't sure what to think of herself and her behavior the night before.

Jaina tried to push those thoughts away. A kiss was nothing to be embarrassed about. Nor were two, three kisses. Sleeping the night through without nightmares was even something to be thankful for. Waking up relaxed and rested had been pleasant.

Waking up in Kyp's arms had made it all the more pleasant. But Jaina was confused about what it meant. Her confusion met with other emotions, and together, they all seemed to create just a tight feeling of embarrassment.

And that was the best she could do for now. She had a meeting to get to. She had damage to control.

Jaina halted before the door that was identical to every other door that lined the hall. She let out a long sigh and smoothed her hand down the front of her clean burgundy jump suit. They were waiting for her in there.

Despite it all, she wasn't prepared to handle what she thought they might dish out. Sharr Latt and Voort "Piggy" saBinring were both more experienced and more senior officers and pilots. She was sure that they, like Wedge, would be chastising and disapproving.

Jaina punched in her access code. The door slid away to reveal a large, well-lit conference room. A table dominated the space. It was long and wide, made of duraplast that had been polished to a dangerous sheen. The sixteen chairs that edged the table were also white. They were comfortable-looking, egg-shaped things.

One of the room's walls was completely bare. Its purpose, Jaina knew, was as a projection surface. The room's other three walls were unremarkable.

Jaina stepped into the conference room, unnoticed by the two occupants. As the door closed behind her, she took in the scene before her.

Sharr Latt was a large man. His hair was only a few shades from pure white, and he had a full head of it. He also happened to possess a nauseating fashion sense. Jaina had yet to determine if he dressed like that by nature, habit, or if he did it especially for her.

Today, for example, he wore tunic and pants of the same poisonous yellow trimmed in neon green. A sash tied at his waist looked to be made of a standard-issue pilot's jumpsuit: it was that awful orange. His head band was made of the same cloth.

'Of course, he could just be colorblind.'

His companion was even more unusual. Voort "Piggy" saBinring was a Gamorrean, one of the porcine species native to the planet Gamorr in the Outer Rim. Gamorrean males who left the planet were usually relegated to low-level security and manual labor jobs; for the most part, they were big on brawn and short on brains.

Piggy was a special case. He'd been genetically modified: his violent impulses were controlled and his intelligence was astounding. He was a math genius and proficient in small-unit starfighter tactics. In addition, he was an intelligence operative and an X-wing pilot.

They were both Wraiths, on loan to Jaina from New Republic Intelligence. And they were currently in the midst of an argument.

Sharr was glaring at Piggy. "I want that pastry."

Piggy held in one of his massive hands a rectangular square of sweetbread. Red jelly filling oozed out of the sides. He met his wing mate's gaze evenly. He did not have to try to be intimidating. "I got it first."

"I called dibs on it."

"So? You aren't allowed to call dibs."

"Since when?" Sharr demanded.

"Since I am three times your mass and you do not want me to sit on you."

"Fine." Sharr crossed his arms over his chest. "Eat it. I'll tell the Goddess."

Piggy took a bite. Half the pastry disappeared. "What will you tell her?"

Sharr watched him eat. "That's not fair. You always get the best ones."

"You should move faster."

Jaina shook her head. "Are the two of you finished behaving like six-year-olds?"

Sharr glanced at her. "She's here."

"She's comparing us to human children," Piggy remarked thoughtfully, eyeing her.

"She's late," Sharr pointed out.

Piggy heaved a long-suffering sigh. "Of course she's late. She's supposed to be late. It was your idea, remember?"

Sharr shrugged and plucked another pastry off the tray on the table. "She's a Solo. I didn't expect her to listen to me."

Shaking his head, Piggy turned to Jaina. "Good morning, Your Greatness." He brushed crumbs off of his flight suit. The orange material clashed sickeningly with his green skin. "Did you sleep well?"

"How are those double-occupancy beds over on the north side?" Sharr queried, feigning innocence. "Cozy?"

Jaina froze. Then she narrowed her eyes.

Piggy shook his head sadly. "Now you've done it. Did you wake up this morning and hope for a display of divine wrath?"

Sharr's smile was mocking. "Something like that," he said to his friend, then turned to Jaina. He thrust out his lower lip in an exaggerated pout. "I wasn't feeling too good last night, either. And my bed's bigger."

Jaina felt her chest tighten and wondered what her reaction meant. Then she relaxed. Her smile was sugary. She'd play his game. "Yes, but what have you done for me lately?"

"I'm teaching you to play Goddess, aren't I?"

She shrugged and dropped into one of the egg chairs. "Sure. But that isn't for me, and it isn't enough to make me that grateful."

Sharr sighed as a man long-suffering. He turned a scowl on Piggy. "You lied to me."

Piggy stared.

"You lied to me," Sharr repeated. "Everything you told me about human women was wrong."

Piggy looked thoughtful. After a moment, he nodded. "That's probably correct. But you've been human as long as I have. So why did you listen to me?"

Sharr opened his mouth for immediate reply and closed it again. He said, "That's a good question," and left it at that.

Jaina chuckled softly. They never failed to entertain her. "Would one of you laser brains fix me a cup of caf?"

Sharr smiled again. It was that smile that could be interpreted as insincere or mocking or both. "She's learning."

"An insult and a request." Piggy lowered his head and sniffled loudly. "I'm so proud."

"Well, you heard her." Sharr gestured at his wing mate.

"There is nothing wrong with your hearing."

"You're the laser brain."

The big Gamorrean growled menacingly. "Do I have to threaten to bite your head off again?"

"Never mind," Jaina broke in, amused. "I don't really need it, anyway."

"Oh, no, Your Greatness." Sharr moved to the pitcher of caf. "What the lady wants, the lady gets. But one mortal must wonder-where is your manservant to do your bidding?" He poured steaming black caf into a plain white mug and added sweetener.

Jaina smiled indulgently. "Didn't I tell you, Sharr? You've been promoted."

"My lady!" Sharr dropped to his knees before her chair and offered up the mug as if it were some bloody sacrifice. "I await your command."

Jaina chuckled at his theatrics and accepted the drink. "I know." She sipped the drink, enjoying the heady aroma of well-brewed caf. She sighed softly. "You can start by making me feel better about what I did yesterday."

"Okay." In a flat voice devoid of enthusiasm, he said, "Kyp Durron isn't a bad guy and-"

Jaina held up her hand. "Professionally. When I want your advice about my personal life, I'll ask for it specifically."

"And I didn't even have anything bad to say about him today."

Jaina simply smiled.

"Right. Moving on." Sharr pushed himself up from his kneeling position. His knees popped. "We're not here to make you feel better. We're here to prevent you from making stupid mistakes-"

"Great work yesterday," she said.

He scowled and continued, "And we're here to clean up the messes we can't stop you from making."

Piggy nodded solemnly. "You're a very stubborn young woman."

Sharr snorted. "That's putting it mildly." He shook his head. "Your Greatness, I don't think we could have stopped you yesterday. You were hell-bent. So. What did the Great General have to say?"

Jaina breathed in. "A number of things. Among them, we're grounded."

Sharr winced.

Piggy grunted. "Good. More time to sleep."

"How long are we down?" Sharr wanted to know.

"Indefinite," she said. "Pending evaluation, I think."

Sharr nodded thoughtfully and sank into one of the other egg-shaped chairs. Piggy remained standing.

"That makes sense," Sharr said. "He'll need to evaluate your fitness to lead. I'm surprised he didn't do it before."

"He didn't need to before," Piggy pointed out. "She was never unstable."

Jaina winced. "No."

"So. The problem," Sharr began, "is how do we explain that the Goddess has been grounded by a mere mortal, even if he is a living legend?" He glanced between his companions. "Any ideas?"

Jaina sipped her caf. "I suppose it has to be directly linked to yesterday's events."

Sharr's blue eyes gleamed. He started to say something.

Piggy beat him to it, shooting the man a dangerous look. "Yes."

"And we have to have a good reason for you not to fly," Sharr said, his tone as mocking as the smile on his face.

"What happened yesterday that we can use?" Jaina asked, thinking aloud more than she was looking for an answer.

"Well. There was that sneak attack," Sharr remarked. "No warning. It just wasn't fair."

Jaina cocked an eyebrow. "This is war. It isn't supposed to be fair."

"And," Piggy broke in, "you're the Trickster goddess. You don't believe in fair." He smiled, and it was full of teeth. "But Sharr is on the right track."

"I am?"

"He is?"

Sharr narrowed his eyes. "How?" he asked suspiciously.

"The sneak attack."

Silence fell. Jaina considered what Piggy said. The sneak attack yesterday hadn't exactly been sneaky. They had known that the enemy was coming. What they hadn't known was why. They also hadn't understood the motivation of the Vong.

If they'd understood the enemy's plan from the beginning-if they hadn't assumed that the target would be the Starlancer vehicles-maybe Jaina wouldn't have been in the position to make bad command decisions.

"Can I blame the New Republic?"

Piggy smiled, and it was eerily human. "Goddess's prerogative."

Jaina was quiet for several moments. Then, "What if I said I refused to fly?"

"Instead of...?" Sharr prompted.

"Saying I was grounded. I couldn't fly."

He nodded slowly. "But why are you refusing to fly?"

"I'm insulted?" she ventured.

"Hmm."

Jaina gave it a little more thought. "Not just by the New Republic or the Vong, not one or the other-both."

"Why are you insulted?" Sharr pressed.

"The New Republic didn't protect me. I'm a deity and I've thrown in with them, and they can't even take care of me or my people."

"And the Vong?"

"I'm insulted by their arrogance," she said haughtily. "They dared to attempt to capture Yun-Harla?"

"She said that like she believes it," Piggy commented.

The grin Sharr gave Jaina was almost sincere. "Maybe she does."

The mess from breakfast had been cleared away. Only the scents of fresh pastries and gourmet caf lingered. It was afternoon, after most of Twin Suns had eaten lunch. Jaina had called a squadron meeting.

She sat at the head of the conference table, as far away from the door as possible. Her datapad lay on the table before her, plugged into the data jack. A pitcher of distilled water sat on the tabletop to her right; a matching glass was beside it.

Jaina waited and watched as her pilots trickled in, alone and in groups of two and three. Sharr had put the call out; he and Piggy were already present, bickering about some trivial matter. Piggy was winning as far as she could tell. He'd probably threatened to bite Sharr's head off again.

Tany, Nelea, and Ganner came in together, smiling and laughing. Ganner was charming them-he was good at that. She watched him hold first Nelea's, then Tany's, chair out. Jaina hid a smile. Ganner had a monopoly on the women.

Tesar and Alema followed them, talking quietly. Jaina hadn't expected the two of them to get along so well, despite the ties of the strike team bond and shared experiences. Most non-Barabel didn't understand Tesar's humor. Alema was downright frightening. But for some reason, the two Jedi were friends. Maybe it was the fact that both of them had irrepressible hunting natures.

Zekk followed close behind, swathed in Jedi robes. His dark hair was damp from a recent shower. He'd been at lightsaber practice with Lowbacca. He gave her a small smile as his eyes met hers. It was a genuine smile, so different from the ones she'd been receiving of late. She smiled back. Zekk took a chair two down from her right, near Piggy. Close at hand, she thought.

The rest of Sharr's flight came in moments later. Wing mates and bunkmates, it seemed that Kale Darden and Jen de Fesdo had fallen into a fast friendship. That was good; it promoted unit cohesion. That was something Jaina was especially thankful for.

Lowbacca followed. Wordless, he took his place in the seat beside Jaina. She gave him a smile but said nothing. The Wookiee's nose twitched, and Jaina sensed a sudden change in her friend. It was barely perceptible; where there had been contentment there was now curiosity.

Jaina frowned. Lowie frowned. He wanted to ask a question.

But her attention was diverted with the arrival of the final member of her squadron.

Kyp entered and made little eye contact with anyone in the room. Jaina watched him. She hadn't seen him since this morning. He'd rolled over to face the wall after mumbling a sleepy good-bye and gone back to sleep.

How did he feel? She made some silent mental plea for him to look at her. She wanted to find the answers in his gaze.

Kyp settled into a chair close to the other end of the table. He lifted his head, met her gaze. She saw nothing there. And when she probed with the Force, she found that he'd closed the connection between them.

Jaina kept the pain and confusion from her face. She cleared her throat. "So. You're all here."

She heard Sharr whisper to Piggy, "She can count, too."

She sent them a mock glare. "This is going to be a short meeting," she addressed them all. "You all need to know that Twin Suns is grounded. The events of yesterday have caused me to doubt the competence of the New Republic forces we're flying with. Until they prove to me that they are worthy of our protection, we will not fly."

She offered a tight smile. "This isn't as bad for us as it could be. Piggy has pointed out that he's going to get more sleep. Of course, I expect the rest of you to keep up in the sims and keep your comms on." Jaina glanced around the table. "Any questions?"

Tany spoke up. "How long will we be grounded, Your Greatness?"

"As long as we need to be. Once the general realizes I'm serious, I expect him to devote himself to regaining my esteem. It really shouldn't be that long." 'I hope.'

That satisfied Tany. She settled back in her seat.

"Anyone else?"

Kale's hand went up. "May I ask, Your Worship, what brought this on?"

"We were attacked yesterday, Darden. We were not protected. I was even ordered to sacrifice one of my own people to save myself. It never should have come to this."

Jen spoke next. "Does General Antilles know?"

Jaina turned her gaze on the young man. "General Antilles is aware of my decision. I spoke to him yesterday, immediately after we landed." And she'd spoken to him less than an hour before this meeting, too. Wedge was still not pleased, but at least he'd cracked a smile when she'd told him the cover story she and Sharr and Piggy had come up with.

"Of course you find a way to blame it all on me, Solo," he'd grumbled.

Jaina had worried. "Is this okay, sir?"

"Iella will like it. It's going to do something for us, too. I'm just not sure what."

"What did he say?" Jen asked, still curious. His question brought Jaina back to the present.

"What could he say?" she countered. "He accepted my decision. He didn't have much choice."

Jen nodded. Jaina's gaze drifted over the pilots assembled. Most met her gaze. Kyp didn't.

"Any more?"

No one said anything.

Jaina nodded once. "All right, then. Keep an eye on your messages for our next meeting. You're dismissed."

Kyp was the first one out the door. That stung. The others trickled out slowly. Jaina barely saw.

Lowbacca landed a paw on her shoulder and growled, telling her that he'd be in the hangar working on the Sleight of Hand if she needed him. Or just wanted to talk.

She squeezed his paw. "Thanks, Lowie."

He growled that it wasn't any problem. Then he left.

Zekk simply sat, staring across the space at her.

Jaina offered a smile. "Hi."

"Where were you last night? I was worried."

As she slumped back in her chair, Jaina had the sense of having been here and done this before. "I was with Kyp." The difference was in him: with Zekk, she was comfortable. There weren't many questions Zekk would ask that Jaina wouldn't answer.

And he knew that. "You were."

She searched his face and saw there what she'd expected. Disappointment-or something like it-flashed in his eyes, then there was resigned acceptance. Though she knew she didn't have to, she explained, "He was drained and it was my fault. I asked him to do that. So I went..." She trailed off, almost feeling like a traitor. "I stayed. I slept last night, Zekk. No nightmares."

"You deserve to be happy, Jaina." A sly smile tugged at his lips. "I bet he kisses you better than I did."

For too long, she just stared at him. Then she gave an unladylike snort to hide the pain as her gaze slid to the door. "I'm not sure it matters anymore."

"Of course it does." Zekk pushed himself out of the chair and moved toward her. "I think you were right about him. There's more to Kyp than anyone realizes. But I also think that maybe he wasn't ready for any of this. Jaina, he isn't usually just accepted with open arms."

"I know," she said softly.

"Let him figure it out," Zekk urged. "He's got a lot to think about, you know." He flashed her a warm smile, gently teasing. "Nothing with you is ever easy, Goddess. Give a guy a break."

"Sympathizing, Zekk?"

He chuckled. "I never thought I'd be sympathizing with Kyp Durron, but we have too much in common for me not to." Zekk reached for her hand, and his fingers slid around hers. Once, that touch had sent electricity shooting through her. Now, it was a comforting warmth and reassurance that made her feel real and whole. "Jaina, whatever happens, you still have me. Remember that."

She smiled up at him. "I know, Zekk. And you have no idea how much that means to me."