Previously on Young Jedi In Love...

Tahiri is a spy?!…

Kyp broke Jysella's heart?

Jaina finally saw Jag for the first time since their breakup?

And Jacen is… Jacen?

Season 2
Episode 2

Love will abide, take things in stride
Sounds like good advice but there's no one at my side
And time washes clean love's wounds unseen
That's what someone told me but I don't know what it means.

'Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think I'm gonna love you for a long long time ?

Caught in my fears, blinking back the tears
I can't say you hurt me when you never let me near
And I never drew one response from you
All the while you fell all over girls you never knew
'Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think it's gonna hurt me for a long long time ?

Wait for the day, you'll go away
Knowing that you warned me of the price I'd have to pay
And life's full of flaws, Who knows the cause?
Living in the memory of a love that never was
'Cause I've done everything I know to try and change your mind
And I think I'm gonna miss you for a long long time

Long, Long Time/Gary White

Offices of Leia Organa Solo, Jedi Liaison to GFFA Intelligence
Senate Building, Senate City, Coruscant
40 ABY
Ten Years After The Yuuzhan Vong War

Jaina sat in her office staring out the transparisteel window. She was supposed to be looking over the agenda for the negotiations that were scheduled for the following week, but instead she was thinking about Jag. They had run into each other on numerous occasions since their meeting at the Hapan Embassy, their encounters going from barely civil to tense; neither one of them referring to their past relationship, or giving any hint as to the importance that they once held in each other's lives.

Her family, on the other hand, spoke of nothing else and it was beginning to get on Jaina's nerves. Was it not bad enough that her family hadn't liked a single man she had dated in the last year? Did they have to like her ex so much? For that matter, did she have to like her ex so much?

They all knew that Jag was engaged to the stunning brunette they'd met at the Hapan party, but for some reason they all seemed intent on reporting every encounter any of them had with Jag. Han had commed the other day to rave about Jag's score in that morning's round of slingball; apparently his skills put Wedge and even Jacen to shame.

Leia had worked with Jag on a refugee funding committee and had been so impressed with how thoughtful and intelligent he was. She had reminded Jaina about the time she and Han had worked with him on the Hydian Way during the war, and his conviction when he had spoken to the Imperial councilor about the war.

Mara and Luke had seen him at a benefit for the Yuuzhan Vong Survivors' Community on Zonama Sekot and spent the evening chatting with him, then told Jaina all about how wonderful he was. They hadn't mentioned the fiancée, though Jaina assumed that she was wonderful too.

Jacen was the only member of her family that didn't make a point of telling her about his every interaction with her ex. She would like to think that Jacen was being sensitive to her feelings, but the reality was probably that he was too engrossed in his own ponderings to care about the state of her personal life. Or, more likely… Jacen's lack of mentioning Jag was an extension of the devotion he'd shown to Jag since she had ended the relationship.

They all needed to let it go. Jag and the beautiful brunette were getting married in a few months. Despite what her family seemed to think, it really was over between Jaina and Jag. She hadn't treated him fairly. She had taken his feelings for granted. She had been too long 'engrossed in her own ponderings' and had let the love of her life slip away. The best Jaina could hope for now was that eventually Jag would forgive her enough that they could have a friendly conversation now and then. She did miss his friendship, for despite their ups and downs, they had been friends.

Now, in less than a week, they would be mediating a treaty negotiation together. It wasn't unusual to have a Jedi Council member, which Jag was, and a Jedi, which Jaina was, involved in such things, but the fact that she and Jag were partnered for this particular assignment stunk of Aunt Mara involvement. Jaina was certain that when it came time to assign a co-mediator her name came up because Jag was already attached and she was not looking forward to it.

Jaina was brought out of her thoughts by the chirping of her office comm. She pushed a series of buttons on her desk console and the shimmering image of Zekk appeared.

"Hey there." Zekk said. "Are we still on for tonight? It's your last chance to see me before I go back to Ossus."

"Ahhhh… you have no idea how exhausted I am."

"Come on, Jay. Jacen, Valin, and Lowie are meeting us and I think Tesar and Alema might even come. We're all going to Tahiri's show afterward."

"Tahiri's here? Does Jacen know?"

"What rock have you been living under?" Zekk asked. "Do you not watch the holo?"

"What are you talking about? That is pretty much all I've been doing for the last several weeks." Jaina defended.

"I mean, besides the Galactic Senate Report?"

"Oh…" She sighed as she leaned back in her chair. "I guess you have me there. You'd better fill me in on all the hot entertainment gossip."

"Tahiri's shows are the most coveted tickets on Coruscant. It's all anyone's talking about. And yes, Jacen knows she's here; she's staying with him, as she always does when they're on the same planet. Actually, I think Jacen might have a thing for our wee Tahiri."

"Ewh! She's like a little sister to him. He's just protective of her because of Anakin."

"After a dozen years? I don't think so."

Jaina thought about what Zekk was saying, but just couldn't get her head around it. Jacen and Tahiri? No. But, then again, she and Jacen hadn't really talked in a while. At least not about anything important. And here only moments ago, she had mentally accused Jacen of being self-absorbed.

Suddenly remembering her conversation with her twin on the way to the Hapan gala, she said, "Wait, Tahiri's in a relationship. You're on spice, buddy. There is nothing going on between her and Jacen."

Zekk seemed amused by the revulsion in her voice. "I didn't say there was, and to be fair, I'm sure he thinks no one knows he's attracted to her, least of all her. And since we all know that Jacen would never make a move on his own, it's really kind of a moot and slightly pathetic thing."

Jaina giggled at Zekk's description of her brother so he continued.

"When we lived at Happy House Valin and I teased them for coming home from bad dates and curling up together on the couch like an old married couple. And you didn't see him when they came back from that mission on Capza."

"She saved his life. He was very grateful to her." Jaina thought more about the prospect. "But… could you imagine them together?"

Zekk laughed. "No, but onto more important things: are you coming with us or not?"

"It would be good to see Tahiri. I've never been to one of her shows. Okay. Where are we eating?"

"A Corellian restaurant near the club."

"Does anyone ever eat any other kind of food?"

"Sorry, Goddess, would you prefer Vong?"

"When did you get a sense of humor?"

"Ithorian? Kuati?"

Jaina laughed as he continued. "No. It's just that the last three dates I've been on have taken me to Corellian restaurants and none of them were very good."

"Well, you can't compare them all to Han's cooking, but this is one of his new favorite places. He and Wedge took Jacen there for lunch last week."

"Okay, Okay… pick us up at my place."

House of Pain, Senate City, Coruscant

Dinner might have been fun, if either Jaina had left Kyp at home, or Valin hadn't shown up with Jysella.

The tension between the former master and apprentice was palpable when they had all sat down. Fortunately all those not intimately familiar with the situation assumed that Kyp's issue was disapproval of Jysella's recent decision to leave the Order. Valin wasn't thrilled with his sister either, so he seemed to be siding with Kyp… which Jaina could tell made Jacen feel bad. Of course, if Valin had known the real circumstances leading up to Jysella's departure, he might have had a different point of view.

Thankfully no Corellian restaurant ignored the value of plying their customers with alcohol, and no one in this group was shy about their desire to consume, so the longer they sat at their table… the easier it got for everyone.

Now, as Jaina stuck close to Jacen, taking in her surroundings and continuing her night-long study of her brother, she marveled at both the way he navigated through the nightclub and his distant demeanor.

The club was what you would expect from an exclusive hang out. Since the 'lower levels' of Coruscant no longer existed the seediness of the clubs of old had to be manufactured to give the new hotspots the taint of disrepute that tended to draw the youth of any community. One of the things that rarely changed from planet to planet was the relative location of 'hot' clubs; this one was in an industrial section of the city.

Jaina was impressed by both the massive marquee outside the large club, brilliantly displaying Tahiri's name, and the size of the crowd. The place was packed, and a long line extended out the door; beings of all species vying to get in. Jaina hadn't realized that the evening had been arranged by Jacen, and it was his word to a bouncer at the back door, who he seemed to know, that got the group in, seemingly without the need for tickets.

Their friends followed Jacen through a series of hallways in the back of the club and finally arrived at Tahiri's dressing room.

"Honey, I'm home," Jacen called out as he opened the door, drawing laughs from the group as they followed him into the room.

"If you forgot to pick up milk on the way you're in trouble," Tahiri shot back from behind a dressing screen.

"Better, I picked up friends."

"Hey guys! Make yourselves comfy. I'm just finishing getting dressed."

They all squeezed into the room and began chatting again, continuing the conversations from dinner and Jaina leaned over to Jacen and whispered, "Hey brother, you've been awfully quiet tonight. Is it just the situation with Kyp and Jysella?"

Jacen smiled slightly and quirked one eyebrow. "That was unpleasant. If I had known you were bringing Kyp, I would have warned Jysella."

Jaina immediately returned, "If I had known you were bringing Jysella, I would have left Kyp at home."

"I'm just glad he didn't come back to see Tahiri. She doesn't need that kind of stress before a show."

Jaina was a little insulted on Kyp's behalf. "He wouldn't have said anything inappropriate or mean."

Again Jacen smiled at her, but this time it was a little more forced. "He wouldn't have to. He's said plenty in the past."

Jaina sighed. She couldn't argue with that, so she decided to change the topic. "Is anything else going on? You seem extra quiet tonight."

"Naw, just had a busy day. Trying to recoup some of my energy."

"For any specific reason?"

"You know. A little of this, a little of that, dancing, drinking, that sort of stuff."

Their attention was drawn to Tahiri as she asked, "Jace, where's Valin?"

"He's out front with the two Twi'lek girls he picked up at the restaurant. He said to give you pre-show love and he'll talk to you later."

Tahiri chuckled and said, "Tell him I said thanks and asked if he's figured out if it's the Terrik or Horn line that has Falleen in it." Everyone laughed before she continued, "And you brought Tahiri Junior with you?"

Jaina cringed at that question, and the implication that Jysella might receive the same treatment Tahiri had. She really hated to think about how unsympathetic some of the Jedi had been when Tahiri had left and wasn't sure if she was more upset with those who had made the comments or herself for not sticking up for Tahiri more forcefully at the time.

Jacen let out a long sigh, then asked, "What did I tell you this morning?"

Tahiri laughed again as she walked out from behind the screen. "I believe your exact words were; '... are you trying to make this worse?'"

Before anyone had a chance to ask for clarification on whatever it was Jacen and Tahiri had discussed regarding Jysella, she began to hug their friends, chatting with each one and thanking them all for coming, reminding Jaina of Leia at a diplomatic function.

Finally, Tahiri stood away from the others and, standing up on tiptoes, she asked, "So, what do we think of the dress? I just got it today."

The fabric was delicate and light enough to move freely and was a beautiful aqua blue color that had just the right hint of green to accentuate her eyes. The dress seemed to be made of one piece of shimmer-silk that wrapped around her body, hugging her curves, and then crossing over her bare back, wrapping under her arms and joining again in a knot at the back of her neck. If that tie came undone... Jaina knew the dress wouldn't stay up.

Tahiri's shoulder-length hair had darkened somewhat as she'd grown up, but still had white and honey highlights, and the halo of soft curls looked as silky as they had been when she was child. She still used bangs to cover the scars on her forehead, but they had faded to the point that her bangs could be brushed aside and the marks were hardly visible. Her hair and her emerald eyes shone brightly against her sun-kissed skin. The dress suited her perfectly; she looked like a tropical goddess.

Zekk clapped and said, "You look hot! Jace, you agree?"

"Humm?"

Everybody laughed at Jacen being Jacen, and for a moment Jaina was reminded of simpler times.

"And your parents wonder why you haven't found a nice girl to settle down with," Tahiri teased.

"Ah, jokes at my expense."

"Better than jokes that you tell." Tesar offered.

That caused them all to laugh again. Even after all these years Tesar's Barabel sense of humor continued to elude them, so him calling Jacen out about his humor was funny.

As the room quieted again Tahiri walked to the vanity, patting Jacen on the cheek as she passed him. "Go easy on him guys… when Jacen's hormones wake up, some girl is going to be very lucky."

"Thank you, Tahiri, it's nice to know that someone has faith in my potential."

Jaina watched Tahiri smile at his reflection in the mirror. "You know I'm your biggest fan, Master Solo."

"Hey! Why does he get the praise and the sexy voice? I was the one that said you were hot!"

Tahiri stood up and walked over to Zekk and kissed him on the lips. "And I thank you for that."

Turning to the door, she opened it and swung her arm as though the hallway was the grandest prize she could bestow, "Alright, everybody out. It's standing room only so you better get up there before you can't find your way to the stage."

They all filed out, kissing or hugging Tahiri as they passed, wishing her luck, then followed Jacen back through the maze of hallways until they reached the front of the club and made their way down to the front of the audience.

Tahiri's Dressing Room, House of Pain Club, Senate City, Coruscant

Morcheeba started their last song at the same timeTahiri heard a knock on her door.

"What'd you forget?" She called out as she finished strapping on her shoe. Receiving no answer, she probed the presence outside with the Force and jumped up in excitement, running to throw open the door.

"Jag!"

"Were you expecting someone else?"

Tahiri jumped into his arms and hugged him tightly. "You're at my show!" She said into his neck.

"And how many have I missed?" Jag set her down and stepped back, giving her a brilliant smile that made his pale green eyes twinkle. "You look amazing," he said as he leaned in to kiss her forehead. "I know you're about to start. I just wanted to wish you luck; strictly as a loving brother… we'll do business later."

"Well, thank you."

"On with you, I don't want to be the reason you're late. I'll get pummeled by your adoring fans."

Tahiri smiled at him.

"Comm me at the office tomorrow; I want to set up a good amount of time to go over what I'm giving you."

Tahiri got excited for a moment. "Oh, Jag… do we have something on him?"

Her elation immediately died when she saw the pained expression on his face.

"No, Ri. I'm sorry. But there is some stuff I want you to watch out for. It turns out the intel on your Rabeeta Farkonic is interesting. I haven't found anything on where she was born, but she studied advanced chemistry and microbiology. I'm a little concerned with why someone with her education would be working as Tarkin's secretary."

Tahiri felt the cold sense of foreboding she always got when she thought about Rabeeta. The woman seriously creeped her out and she was beginning to think that she needed to be even more careful around her than she already was.

"Well, I'm glad I had you check her out."

Tahiri reached up and put her hand into Jag's hair and brought his head down to hers. She kissed him on the cheek and held him there for a minute. "It's so good to see you." She finally pulled back but still held his head. "Are you good?"

"I'm okay. Jaina's here."

"I know… she was back here earlier. You just missed her."

Jag smiled again. "No. I just avoided her."

"How long are you going to…"

Jag raised his hand and touched a finger to her lips to stop her question. "I will not actively seek to avoid Noya meeting Jaina tonight. I will also not go out of my way to see that they do meet."

The other band had finished and Tahiri could hear them thanking the crowd for the applause.

"Good thing for you your wingman is here."

Jag ignored the accusation in her statement and simply replied, "Knock 'em dead, Tahiri."

"I always do, Jagged."

Next time on Fear and Love...

Tahiri entertains the masses...

Kyp is not amused...

And Jaina does more pondering...