Post 19

That evening…

"I'll sleep on the couch Kyp. Just give her my room." Jaina rolled her eyes as the boys fought over the sleeping arrangements. She sat across the room from them, Ben sitting next to her and Zekk and Jared a few chairs down, quietly making fun of Kyp and Jag.

Jade was being released today, and she couldn't move back to the house until it was fixed. Actually, they weren't even sure she was going to be able to move back in at all. The structural damage had been quite extensive, but she'd taken the news in stride. If Jaina had to guess, it was probably because the house didn't exactly hold good memories anymore.

After five more minutes of them arguing back and forth, Jaina had had enough. "For force sake! Jade can have Jag's room and Jag can stay with me. Can't you guys make a decision?!" Ben snorted beside her and both Jag and Kyp looked at her in surprise.

"My room is right down the hall so if you two miss each other you can come make out on the couch." She added, trying not to laugh at the look Jag gave her. Kyp jumped right on the bandwagon.

"How can you sit there and make fun of mine and Jag's feelings." Kyp said, as he put his arm around Jag's shoulders and placed an audible kiss on his roommate's head. The room burst into laughter.

"How about I stay with Jaina and you two can stay with each other." A voice to Kyp's right came. He looked to see Jade standing there, a little pale, but a huge smile on her face. "We would hate to break you two up."

Kyp laughed and stood up to embrace her.

"Easy there, Durron. I'm not 100% yet." She told him and he relaxed the pressure of his arms, burying his face in her hair. It still smelled slightly of smoke, but he didn't care. He was just glad he was able to hold her at all.

He heard someone quietly leave the room behind him, but he didn't turn around.

"You ready to go?" He asked her softly. She nodded and the group left the room.

"They said that you could go in and get some things from the house." Kyp told her as they walked down the hall to leave. Zekk and Ben were walking in front of them with Jag, Jaina and Jared behind them. Kyp frowned for a minute, then turned to give Jaina a look. She just grinned and he raised an eyebrow.

"What are you guys up to?" He stopped and turned to face her fully. Jag answered the question.

"Those two," he said, pointing to Zekk and Ben, "are running point. We three, "he continued, motioning to himself, Jaina and Jared, "are bringing up the rear. It's simple defense master Durron."

"But why?" Kyp asked, feeling Jade's amusement from beside him.

Jared jumped up and down, holding his hand in the air and Kyp sent him a glare. "Because Mr. Storm asked for it. Nothing against you Kyp, he just wanted a little extra when she was leaving the med center."

Kyp shook his head, more at Jared's actions than what he had said, and turned to continue down the hall.

/____________________________________\

They arrived at the house not too long afterwards. From the front it looked completely normal. Once she stepped inside however, it was a whole other story. Iella had told her about the devastation, but seeing it floored her. Her first thought was how they hadn't been injured worse.

Most of the back wall of the living room was gone, along with the small wall that separated the kitchen from that room. Glass shards still littered the floor and sparkled in the afternoon sunlight that was coming from the kitchen window.

Her second thought was bittersweet. The house held so many memories, good and bad. Pushing depressing thoughts out of her mind, she walked upstairs to her room and pulled a suitcase out of the closet. Kyp hadn't followed her and she was glad. Her emotions were still so scattered and she felt like she was going to lose it any minute.

Jade packed the suitcase with most of her clothes, then grabbed a smaller bag to put some other things in. She by no means needed all her clothes, but she didn't know how long she would be gone. Having packed, she just needed a few things from her office. She set the bags outside her office door and walked in. When the Flash Detonator had gone off downstairs it had shaken the whole house. There hadn't been a lot of knick-knacks in her bedroom, but her office was a different story. The art that had been on the wall, now lay haphazardly on the floor. Holo discs littered the room near where her bookcase had turned over. Walking over to the shelf behind her desk she gingerly picked up a holo of her and her brother that had fallen over. She turned it off and gathered the other holos of her family and placed them on the desk. After about 10 minutes, she had collected a pile of things to take with her.

She moved to pick them all up, when she spied a blue box on the floor, underneath her desk. Kneeling down, she smiled as she picked the ribbon-tied item and dusted it off. Kyp's lifeday present. She hadn't had a chance to give it to him last night. Now she was going to be staying at his apartment. The implications didn't escape her, but she didn't really care at the moment. Her father had said she would be safer there and he would do a press release to that extent and Iella had agreed.

Standing, Jade picked up all the items and walked out into the hallway.

/____________________________________\

Kyp had decided on the way home that he would just have Jade take his bed and he would sleep in Jag's. He tried not to think about what his two best friends might have been doing in it since he had been on this assignment. Not really somewhere he wanted to go. Jag and Jaina had walked in the temple with them, the others going off to do other things.

Feeling unusually tired, Jade had decided to humor Kyp on his suggestion to sit on the couch and kick her feet up. Her head still hurt a little, but a nap should take care of that. Putting her feet up on the table, she leaned back into the couch cushions and promptly fell asleep. This was how the trio found her a short time later.

"You two behave." Jaina told Kyp as she and Jag left the apartment and Kyp just chuckled to himself. He should be telling them that. Turning back around, he stood there to watch Jade for a few minutes. She looked completely relaxed for once. He wasn't sure he had ever seen her like that. Walking over to the couch, he started to cover her up with a blanket when she opened her eyes.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." He told her quietly as he sat down next to her. Jade leaned her head on his shoulder and wrapped him up in the blanket with her.

"You didn't." She whispered as she settled herself against him. Kyp moved his arm to go around her and kicked his feet up onto the table next to hers.

"Why didn't you stay with your parents?" Kyp asked her quietly. He could feel her face turn up in the briefest of smiles on his shoulder.

"Because whoever is after me apparently isn't afraid to go through other people. I don't want to put my family in danger."

Kyp nodded, even though she couldn't see him. Her parents had arrived on planet last night to prepare for their attendance at the ball in a few days. The fact that the attack had happened was just coincidence. He hoped. They were staying in a local hotel, but Iella had made sure they had surveillance on their room the entire time.

"You still don't think it's Bela, do you." She said, making it more of a statement, then a question. Kyp thought about his answer before he said anything.

"No I don't. If he wanted to get rid of you, there's easier ways to do it than to blow up your house. He would have made it a more personal murder. These attacks are personal, but they're not neat. I'm not saying they're sloppy either. They don't seem to care who gets taken out in the process, as long as you are included in the casualties. Does that make sense?" She nodded her head and he sighed.

"I think the safest place you could be right now is here. You'll be constantly surrounded by jedi for one thing." He added. "Are you hungry?" Jade shook her head. "Thirsty?" Her face shifted up to look at his and he found her glaring at him.

"I'm fine Kyp. Right now I'm just content to snuggle on the couch with you."

Kyp found a smile coming to his face and he leaned down to capture her lips in a gentle kiss. He brought his hand up to cup her cheek and it brushed across a scratch that marred it. One of the few reminders left by the shrapnel from the blast. He sensed her fatigue through their bond and ended the kiss sooner than he would have liked.

"As much as I would like to sit here all day and do this, you probably would like to take a nap." He told her quietly, running his thumb over her injury.

"That would be nice. I have something to give you first." She said, then started to stand up. Kyp pulled her back to the couch and got up himself.

"I'll get it, just tell me where it is."

"Kyp, I'm not an invalid. I'm just tired. I can get it." Jade started to get up again and he put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

"Let me take care of you for once." She looked at him confused and he smiled.

"You don't even realize it do you?" Shaking her head no, Jade acquiesced and stayed on the couch.

"Realize what?"

"The little ways you take care of other people. Like always clearing the dishes when people are talking and they don't realize what you're doing. Making sure I always had fresh towels and sheets in my room, even though you had to do it yourself and you have a maid. Remembering your staff's life days." She looked surprised at his last item on the list.

"Seena told me you always give your staff something on their life days. And it's not a damn fruit basket. I believe you gave her and her boyfriend tickets to the opera last month, correct?" He smiled at the blush that came to her cheeks. "You didn't think I sat out in your lobby and just started at the wall, did you?" He asked. "Now, where's the thing you want to give me?"

"In my small bag. Front pocket." She said quietly. Kyp walked down the hall to his room, reaching into the front pocket of her bag and taking the small blue box out. His curiosity peaked, but knowing better than to open it at the moment, he walked back out to the living room.

Jade was standing by the window, looking out over the skyline, the blanket wrapped around her shoulders. He walked over to her and went to hand her the box, when she shook her head.

"Open it." She told him, turning so she could watch him open it. Jade chuckled as he was careful in his unwrapping and he threw the ribbon in her direction once he got it off. When he opened it up he crinkled his brow in curiosity, as he removed the padding from the top of the item.

Nestled underneath was a round pendant of polished silver, a little over 5 cm wide with a hole of about 2 cm in the middle. He gingerly lifted it out and laid the box on the side table. There were words etched around the circle and he spoke them as he read.

"Keep the peace within yourself, then…bring peace to others." Kyp ran his thumb over the words, and gathered the dangling chain up in his hand. Jade spoke before he could.

"I found it when I was out looking for my dress the other day. Well, the pendant I did. I had the words etched on. My dad pounded that phrase into our heads when we were growing up. I thought that with all you've been through in your life, you've probably had to struggle with the concept of peace in your soul. And since Jedi were the original peacekeepers, I just thought it was appropriate." Kyp still hadn't looked away from the pendant. Jade could feel his emotions churn and wondered if she had just stepped over the line. "Just in the short time we've had together, you're brought a peace to my life that I didn't realize was missing. This is just a small thank you for that." She whispered as his gaze still centered on the pendant. "You don't have to wear it, I just…"

Kyp silenced her with his lips, pouring his inability to thank her into their bond. He felt the connection between them flare as he deepened the kiss, pulling her as close to him as he could. Jade curled her hands into the front of his shirt and had no choice but to be swept away by the feelings coming from him. It overwhelmed her, but she didn't pull back. She relished it, never having felt so loved in her life, as much as she did now.

Eventually, he reined himself in and rested his forehead against hers. Jade kept her eyes closed, concentrating on breathing and finding herself again after having her mind so meshed with his. When she finally managed to open her eyes, she found a ghost of a smile on his lips.

"Guess you like it." She said breathlessly. Kyp kissed her nose and chuckled.

"I love it. Thank you."

Jade was silent for a while and he started to get worried. "Are you ok?" He asked, concern lacing his voice. Jade nodded slowly and closed her eyes again.

"I feel like I just took a plunge off the top of the senate building." She said, awe evident in her voice.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

She smiled at him and finally let his shirt fall from her grasp. "You should." Shaking her head slightly, she picked the blanket up off the floor where it had fallen.

"I think I'm going to go and lay down. Will you wake me in an hour?" She asked him.

"Just an hour?"

"I want to be able to sleep tonight." She explained. Kyp nodded and watched as she walked down the hall to his room, the pendant clutched tightly in his hand.

/____________________________________\

"Hey Iella, you have a package." She looked up to see Rien standing in front of her desk, holding a small package in her hands.

"Thanks. Just set it there." The other agent did and then quietly left the room. Iella went back to her work, but couldn't stop glancing at the package. Finally she threw her datapad down in disgust and reached over for it.

/____________________________________\

Kyp walked into the bedroom to wake Jade an hour later, as she had asked, and found himself reluctant to do so. She was on her back, one arm thrown above her head, resting on her halo of hair, the other lying next to her. Her face was one of serenity and he stood there burning the image into his brain.

What he really wanted to do was climb into bed with her and stay there. He sat on the side of the bed, her face turned towards him and reached out to smooth the back of his fingers over her neck. A shiver ran through her and he couldn't help but smile. She stirred slightly, her head turning the other direction and her arm coming down to mirror the other one. Kyp smiled and leaned down to kiss her neck, her movements having left him an opening to do so. His lips barely brushed her skin and when she didn't move, he repeated the kiss adding a little more pressure this time.

After three more kisses, he finally felt her starting to come around, but he didn't move. He saw her mouth turn up into a gentle smile and knew she was finally awake. Jade turned her head back towards him, bringing their lips within millimeters of one another.

"Hi." He said quietly, then kissed her. It wasn't a long kiss, and certainly not as intense as he wanted to give her right now, but he restrained himself. He pulled back to look at her.

"Is that how you greet all your guests?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down onto the bed with her. Kyp now found himself lying practically on top of her. Bracing himself on his elbows he gave her another soft kiss.

"No. Just Jag." He felt her laughter rumble through him and wished that he could have the luxury of waking her like this for the next 50 years or so. He had tried not to think about what the future would bring, just live in the moment. But eventually, his assignment would end and he had no idea what would happen to them then. Jade would inevitably be an unattached woman, but would she want to jump right back into another relationship? And if she did, would it be with him?

"Kyp?" Her voice brought him back to reality. "What are you thinking about?"

He shook his head and smiled. "Nothing."

"Liar. Whatever it was, it made you melancholy." She threw back. "Talk to me." Jade pleaded.

"Really, it's nothing. Just thinking about the future." He said quietly as he rolled off of her and pulled her to him. Kyp buried his face in her neck and sighed.

"Kyp?" He could hear the worry in her voice now. She was like Jaina. Jade wouldn't leave this alone until he told her something.

"I was just thinking about how long it's going to take to break the case open." He said quietly.

Jade didn't say anything for a minute, then she turned in his arms and shot him a look that said, "excuse me?"

"You're lying in bed with me and thinking about when you don't have to anymore?"

Kyp chuckled and tried to pull her back to him. "No, I'm trying NOT to think about being in bed with you."

Jade shook her head, then went to stand up. Kyp kicked himself mentally for not just kissing her senseless until she forgot about his musings, but he knew that wouldn't have worked. He didn't sense she was mad, in fact she seemed quite content. Turning onto his back he put his hands under his head and watched her walk around the bed.

"Guess snuggle time is over." He pouted, but she just rolled her eyes at him.

"I need to take a shower." She told him as she was rummaging in her bag for some clothes.

"Nah, you smell fine." He told her, standing up to go over to her. She looked up at him from where she was bent over her bag and cocked an eyebrow.

"You do." He said adamantly. Jade shook her head, then walked into the fresher. "Women." He mumbled under his breath, and started to walk after her when he heard his comm go off.

"Sith!" This had better be an emergency. "Durron." He ground out a little more forcefully than he meant to.

"Kyp?" Iella's voice came to him, shot through with concern.

"Sorry, yeah what's up?" He said as he walked into the other room and kept his emotions in check. If this was bad, he didn't want to tell Jade just yet.

"Do you have time to stop by my office in the morning?"

Kyp frowned. "Yeah. Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, just be here at 0600."

/____________________________________\

"So, you wanna bet on if Kyp sleeps in your bed tonight?" Jaina asked quietly. Jag chuckled and pulled her closer to him. They had just finished watching a movie and Jaina was half on Jag and half on the couch. They would have been a lot more comfortable if they'd gotten up and gone to bed, but that was no fun.

"No bets." He told her, his hand running down her back. Jag heard her sigh contentedly and smiled.

"Chicken."

"No, I just prefer to spend my credits on other things." He told her. Jaina lifted her head up to give him a strange look.

"Were you thinking of something in particular?" She asked.

"Were you wanting something in particular?" He said, avoiding her question.

"No, your comment just sounded suspicious."

"Jaina, you think everything is suspicious." He chuckled, then grunted as she smacked him in the stomach. Jag grabbed her hand and brought it up to his mouth, planting a kiss on her knuckles, then her wrist.

"You know, if you wanted to make out with me, you just had to say so." He whispered in her ear. Jaina didn't disappoint him. Swiftly, she sat up and stradled his torso, holding his arms down over his head. Jaina leaned down to capture his lips in a possessive kiss and Jag met her halfway.

He let her lead for a few minutes, then tried to free his hands from her grasp. She broke the kiss, but didn't move back from him.

"Uh uh, flyboy. I'm driving." She told him sweetly.

Jag cocked his scarred brow at her and then grinned. He managed to get out "yes ma'am" before Jaina claimed his mouth again.

/____________________________________\

While Jade had been in the shower, Kyp had gotten another call. From Luke.

"This day just keeps getting better and better." He spat under his breath.

"How's that?" Jade's voice came from behind him.

"I have to go and see Luke."

"Now?" Kyp still hadn't turned to face her and he had pretty much closed himself off from her. This couldn't be good.

"Yeah. Jared is coming down to stay while I'm gone."

"What do you think it's about?" She asked as she came around to stand in front of him. Kyp had his eyes closed and a frown on his face.

"Probably what your brother and Iella had to say." The door chime sounded, and whatever Jade had been about to say was pushed aside as Kyp walked over to answer it.

"What did you do now Durron?" Jared joked as he walked in the room. His smile faded as he looked over at Jade, then back to the master.

"I'll try not to be gone too long." He said before he walked out the door.

/____________________________________\

"Was it delivered?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Have someone prepare my ship. I want to see the show."

/____________________________________\