-Special-
They take Allana to Hapes to visit her mother. It's mid-autumn on Shedu Maad, but early summer on Hapes, the weather beautiful. While Jaina visits with Tenel Ka, Kyp goes hunting. Jaina may have popped the question, but he wants to find her the perfect ring. He can't compete with the enormous sparkler she'd received from Jag; he doesn't have that kind of money. He isn't, after all, either Head of State or Emperor. He's a Jedi Master with very little to his name, though he has some credits set aside, tucked away in case of emergencies, relocated to a bank here on Hapes after the Jedi left Coruscant.
He fingers the sleeve of his robes, realising they're getting a bit worn. Jaina's remark about blood on his clothes comes back to him, and he absentmindedly rubs his shoulder. The wound is long healed, but the memory brings a phantom ache.
Tenel Ka is aware of what he's doing; he asked her for advice and she swore to keep Jaina occupied and give him plenty of shopping time. She also recommended a few jewellers he could visit.
Kyp's at the second one when he finds it. He doesn't know much about jewellery, really, but it's simpler than the ring Jaina had before, made special not by an elaborate design, but by the oblong, cushion cut rainbow gem from Gallinore. It's not a big one-he can't afford a big one-but it's haloed by tiny diamonds, all set in a silver metal.
He winces a little at the price, but he knows it's perfect for her. It's even in her size, which makes him think maybe he was meant to buy this ring. It takes a sizeable chunk out of those emergency savings, but he does it anyway.
Back at the palace, Kyp finds Jaina in their room, the room she had so many years ago and he raided to locate her lightsaber the night of her brother's funeral. Jaina told him when they arrived that it's essentially her official room at the palace, since she's the aunt of the heir to the throne.
"We should move in here," he jokes as he enters the room. "It's much nicer than home."
She laughs. She's in the middle of dressing for dinner, and she has her hair up in a towel. "I don't think I could handle it. Too many courtiers and I'd punch someone. What do you think, these earrings or these other ones? I don't want to dress up, but we have to. It's some fancy to-do."
Kyp reaches around her, pulling her back against him, and holds up the ring. "Whatever goes best with this."
Her mouth drops open. She grabs it and whirls in his arms. "Kyp!"
"Is it okay? I wasn't sure, but it felt right."
She looks down at the ring, her other hand pressed to her mouth. "It's gorgeous."
He plucks the ring from her fingers and slides it onto her hand. "It's nothing compared to your other one."
Jaina runs a fingertip over the centre stone. "It's perfect. I never really liked the other one. Jag picked it but didn't take my preferences into consideration. I put up with it because, well, it was so expensive. This is . . . it's beautiful."
"You're not just saying that so you don't hurt my feelings?" He says it jokingly, but the fear is there.
She shakes her head, then loops her arms around his neck. "I love it. Thank you."
"I wanted something special. I remembered you talking to Tenel Ka about the rainbow gems being living things, and I thought, when I saw this, that it was perfect. I don't know if it hurt to be faceted, or not, but if you really focus on it, you can feel that it's alive."
"It's a good symbol for us," she says softly. "I want our marriage to be a living thing, so to speak. Living and growing."
"Exactly what I was thinking." He kisses her softly.
Jaina pulls out of his arms with clear reluctance. "I think I'll wear the blue earrings. One of the outfits Trista brought for you has a blue shirt. So I'll go with the blue dress, too, instead of the black. We can match."
"No red dress?" he asks mournfully.
She grins at him. "Sadly, no. It's almost twenty years out of fashion and I'm not allowed to wear it."
"Wait. You have it?"
"I do. And if you're good and behave yourself at this party, I may put it on later."
He swears to be on his best behaviour for the duration.
