Chapter 2

The negations went well and two weeks later found them on Coruscant. After landing at the Jedi Temple hanger and after a brief rest, Jacen, Jysella and Ben stood before the nine attending Council members to give their report.

Jacen being the Jedi Master in charge of the mission stepped forward and bowed his head in respect and greeting, and then he said, "Masters, I would like to report the mission was a total success. The Director of Operations and the management of the Drive Yards agreed with minimal contention to the demands of the labor union. However," he glanced over at Jysella and let a slight smile touch his lips, "that success was mostly due to Knight Horn's excellent skill as a negotiator."

Jacen sensed her surprise before she looked up at him with slightly widened eyes. He only let the smile linger on his lips. She hastily looked back at Luke who was saying, "Then we would like to hear of your insightfulness concerning this."

She bowed and swallowed; Jacen couldn't help but be intrigued by her. Then she said, "I really only listened to both sides and then gave them my opinions as to why their ideas would or wouldn't work then I presented them to the other side and gave them the same synopsis."

Luke smiled and nodded, "That is exactly what a good negotiator does. Now, tell the Council exactly what was agreed to."

An hour later they left the Council chamber and the three of them said their farewells. Jacen and Ben made their way back to the rooms that were assigned to them whenever they stayed at the Temple on Coruscant. As they entered the living room of the small apartment, Jacen couldn't help but feel Ben's disconcertment again. He had been feeling it for several days now and it was beginning to weigh on him because Jacen had an odd feeling that it was directed at him.

"Ben what is bothering you?" Jacen inquired as he watched the younger man move through the living space into the small food prep area. Ben ignored him and instead opened the refrigeration unit and stared at the mostly empty space.

Finally, not finding what he was looking for, if he was indeed looking for something, Ben closed the door and gave Jacen a scowl, "I'm going to find something to drink." And with that he stalked back out the front door, leaving Jacen truly puzzled.

After a moment Jacen shrugged and headed into his bedroom to begin unpacking. He had no idea what was up with his Apprentice. He had been acting like this ever since the tenth day of the Kuat negotiations. Jacen then racked his brain trying to figure out just what could cause such emotions in Ben. He had never seen him like this before.

However, thinking back to that day only brought to Jacen the memory of Jysella. He didn't know what it was about her that fascinated him so much. She was beautiful but she wasn't the first beautiful woman he'd encountered. She was intelligent and witty, but there again those factors never commanded his attention before in other women. But, there was still something profound that attracted him to her like he hadn't been attracted to a woman in a long time.

On the day in question they had finished the day's talks and then had free reign of their section of the Toryaz Station. Ben and Jysella were sitting in the sitting room of their hotel suite talking and laughing. Ben had just finished telling her about a mission on Agamar that hadn't gone all to plan when Jacen entered and sat down on a couch across from them. He remembered smiling at Jysella, she had a beautiful bell-like laugh that made Jacen's heart skip a beat every time he heard it. Jysella then turned her attention to Jacen and he'd never forget how easily he nearly got lost in her green eyes in that moment.

Finally, after a moment Ben broke into his thoughts and pulled his gaze from hers, "Did you need something, Jace?"

Jacen shook his head, smiled at Jysella and said, "No, but I was wondering if you, Jysella, would like to go on a walk with me?"

She smiled again and he had marveled at the slight pink tint he saw rise on her cheeks as she looked away. Was she embarrassed? he had wondered. However, she quickly recovered and met his gaze again, "That would be wonderful, Jacen."

Jacen hadn't missed Ben's hurt expression which he quickly covered, or his sudden slamming down of his shields. Jacen suddenly wondered if his interest in Jysella was what was bothering Ben.

As Jacen finished putting his things away he cleared his bed and then stretched out on top of the coverlet with his arms folded behind his head. His mind drifted back to that night, a night he would never forget:

They wandered the graceful corridors of the luxury station talking about family and common friends. Jacen, who had been slightly out of touch for several months, was surprised to hear about Valin Horn and Tahiri Veila seeing each other after they completed a mission together. Jacen had to admit that he was ecstatic that Tahiri had finally healed enough to consider moving on.

As they came around a turn they discovered they were at the entrance to the spectacular water gardens. They entered and were instantly surrounded by the wonderful sounds of the massive waterfall, which appeared to fall from the side of a mountain, but in reality came out of a large opening at least fifty meters above. The exotic tropical water flowers also filled the air with an intoxicating fragrance. They made their way through the garden following a pebbled stone path to the edge of the collection pool for the waterfall. There they stopped and sat on one of benches by the water's edge.

The water was crystal clear and with in it Jacen could see various types of colorful fish. He began to stretch out into the Force and easily touched them. He was suddenly was at a loss of what to talk about. But he didn't want to go back to their rooms yet. He simply enjoyed her company.

Finally, Jysella turned to Jacen and smiled one of her alluring smiles, "Okay, I've given you the scoop on my brother. So, what's the story concerning your sister?"

Jacen gave her a puzzled grin and quickly looked back at the pool, where an amazing array of colorful fish began to gather at the surface. He reached out into the Force and called out to them again.

"Oh, come on, Jacen. The rumor is that she can't make up her mind," she chuckled softly.

Jacen sighed and abandoned his calling to the fish. Then he shrugged and said, "And why should Jaina's love life interest anyone?" It seemed everyone wondered way too much on why Jaina kept both Kyp Durron and Zekk around but at arms length. But Jacen knew the real reason, she wasn't sure if she truly loved either one of them. Her heart still in many ways belonged to Jag Fel. But he wasn't going to divulge that information, no matter how innocent Jysella's interest.

She laughed, "Because many of us wonder if either one of you will ever settle down. Okay, you don't want to discuss Jaina, what of you Master Solo? Has anyone stolen your heart?"

Jacen stared at her suddenly wondering what his answer would be. He couldn't tell her about Tenel Ka or their daughter Allana. He loved the Queen Mother and tried to see her and Allana as much as he possibly could. Each rendezvous was filled with undeniable passion and love. But, as Jacen again found himself being lost in the sea-green pools of Jysella's eyes and becoming intoxicated by her charm, Jacen wondered what he was feeling. Suddenly, Tenel Ka seemed so far away and Jysella was right there. He couldn't deny that he was more that just a little attracted to her. He swallowed hard and finally quietly said his voice slightly husky, "I'm not sure. I think someone is trying to steal it away this very moment."

Jysella swallowed and Jacen watched a blush settle over her sculpted cheeks as his meaning sunk in. She looked away abruptly but just as quickly gazed back at him and gave him a small smile as she said just above a whisper, "Master, I'm not sure about your meaning."

Jacen continued to gaze at her, finding he was moving closer to her. He reached up with his hand and gently brushed the back of his fingers along her cheek. He had never wanted to kiss anyone as much as he did her in that moment. However, before he could really contemplate that very action, he heard his name being called from behind them, "Jacen, Jysella, there you are," Ben said in an unusually tight voice and Jacen immediately dropped his hand from her face, while Jysella blushed and looked away. Ben went on, "You've just received a call from the union reps."

Jacen turned around and was visibly shaken by the emotion he was feeling but he swallowed and recovered quickly, "When? Now?"

"Yes," Ben stepped closer and looked over at Jysella who was still blushing, but had recovered most of her composure. Jacen didn't miss the intense look Ben gave her. "They want to speak with Jysella."

"Well, then," Jacen said as he stood, the magic of the moment ruined. He held out his hand to Jysella, she took it and stood. Jacen was amazed at how soft and yet strong her hand was, it felt so right in his. "We can't keep them waiting. Maybe they had come to agreement."

Jacen and Jysella had no time after that night to continue or even discuss what nearly happened but Jacen very much wanted to. He wasn't sure what he wished to gain from the encounter but he wanted to explore what Jysella promised in her green eyes. He knew it was dangerous considering he still felt a deep love for Tenel Ka. He then wondered if it was just desire he felt for Jysella, but he didn't think it was just lust, it was more that.

He then sat up and decided that he needed to talk to her. He needed to see her. With a suddenly rapidly beating heart he entered the refresher and quickly showered. Afterward, he dressed in simple black trousers and white tunic. Without further thought as to what was bothering his suddenly moody Apprentice, he headed out to go to Jysella's apartment which was on the floor below his.

X

Ben made his way through the Temple wondering why this was happening to him. But he just couldn't believe what Jacen was doing. Ben liked Jysella, he liked her a lot, he admitted to himself. Why couldn't Jacen just leave her alone? He already had Tenel Ka, or was he just going to forget about her. Jacen didn't know that Ben knew about his occasional trips to Hapes or that Allana was his daughter. However, Ben knew a lot more than that; he knew that Jacen had erased his memories of the first time he had met the baby nearly eight years ago. Ben couldn't explain why he began to remember the real memories. The only explanation he could come up with was that he was strong enough in the Force that over the years he was able to over ride the fake memories Jacen implanted and the real ones resurfaced.

At first, Ben was angry and hurt that his cousin and master could do that to him. He loved Jacen, in many ways Ben thought of Jacen as the brother he never had. Ben never confronted him about what he had done, instead after the memories of Tenel Ka and Allana began to come to him about a year or so ago, he started to question some of Jacen's teachings. Ben wondered if all that Jacen believed and taught was really the truth. Was his Dad and centuries of Jedi teaching really that wrong? Ben shook his head, Jacen often did things a lot differently and now he was going after a woman much too young for him.

Ben scowled at that thought, Isn't that what his biggest gripe about Kyp Durron being with Jaina? That he is too old for her?

Ben finally, made his way back to the apartment he shared with Jacen. He was still upset that Jacen would set his sights on Jysella but he was equally upset that she still considered him a kid. He entered the darkened rooms and instantly wondered where Jacen was. However, he really didn't want to talk to him anyway. He went into his bedroom and began to unpack hoping that he was wrong about Jacen and Jysella and that he was just over reacting as Jacen so often told him he did.

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