REVIEW RESPONSES: To SWaddict1986: Thank you; I'm quite fond of those names as well. Yeah, and she's going to need it a lot more before the story's out. Thank you again. To Black Dragon of Destruction: Slightly unexpected yes, but as you said, makes for a good story. To General Antilles: Your review made my day. Here's the update.

Chapter 4: Argue

Dinner was tense and silent. After an awkward hug between mother and daughter, the family (with the addition of Tenel Ka and Lowie) moved into the grand dining room. Jaina sat in her usual seat feeling as she always felt around her mother, judged, stifled; it was always the same.

"Jaina, get your elbow off the table; did you forget all your manners while you were gone?"

Jaina complied with her mother's demand but did not let her comment slide. "So that's how it's going to be?"

"How what is going to be, Jaina?"

"We pretend I was just on vacation. I mean, I get that we would do that for the public, but now I'm not allowed to talk about it in our home, is that it?"

"Jaina –"

"I just want to be clear. Are there certain times I'm allowed to talk or maybe I can only talk about it if I'm in my room, or am I even allowed to talk about it there? I can still think about it, right? There's no need to have my memory erased and a new, President-approved memory installed, is there?"

"Jaina, that's enough. We are not going to argue in front of guests."

"It's Teekay and Lowie. I don't think you get counted as a guest if you've had you own bedroom somewhere for eleven years."

"Jaina, I simply asked you take your elbows off of the table."

"You deliberately made it seem like –"

"Where you have been for the past two and half months is hardly suitable dinner –"

"Rehab, you can say it. I've been in rehab. And you're the one who shipped me off to stay there. I bet you were so happy while I was gone too –"

"That is enough! We will not have this conversation any more. If your father was here, you wouldn't dare –"

"If Dad was here, I could actually stand being in the room!" Jaina picked her napkin off her lap and threw it on the table. "I'm not hungry," she said as she stormed out of the room.

Jaina kept going until she hit the stairs. By the sound of it, another person left the dining room. She looked back and saw her mother heading towards her study. Jaina turned back and ran all the way to her room.

"Notebook thing," she began as soon as the door was closed and she was lying across her bed.

"Three entries in one day is getting to be a little unreasonable, but you're all I have. I suspect one of the usual group will be up here in a minute to try to calm me down.

"Sometimes, most times, I really hate my mother. She wants to pretend like this summer never happened. I mean, I guess that that is not a huge shock; I knew she would do anything possible to keep it from leaking to the press, but I figured I'd at least be able to talk about it in the privacy of our own house. But no, it's forbidden. I wish Dad had been home. I know that he wants to be; he even called just before I left to let me know that he loves me and will be home as soon as he possibly can. Dad's never lied to me before, I know that.

"Hold on there's a knock at the door. Three guesses who.

"Later,

"Solo out."

Jaina got up and went to the door. Her baby brother was leaning up against the jamb.

"Pick the short straw?"

He grinned and brushed past her into the bedroom. "Lost rock-paper-scissors, actually. Jacen was rock, I was scissors."

"Right." Jaina did not doubt a word of it; she knew that no one, even her best friends, would be very eager to try to talk her down. Well, one of them would, but that person was not here, so it didn't matter. She closed the door and turned to face Anakin who had made himself comfortable on her bed. Thank God she had closed her notebook.

"So you want to talk, yell, rant, rave? All four and in no particular order?"

"I'm good."

"You sure? Because the great Princess cume ta Djo told me that I wasn't allowed to come down until you were calm."

She held out her arms and indicated to herself. "Don't I look calm?"

"So it's going to be a slow, quiet seething then?" he asked in a wise, pondering sort of way.

"I'm not seething." Anakin crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Much," she corrected.

He stood up and walked over to her. After gathering her up in his arms, he rested his chin on her head.

"When did you get to be so tall?" she teased, though it was a serious question. She didn't remember her little Ani being so tall.

"Last year," he answered.

"Huh, I never noticed."

"You never let me get close enough for you to tell," he responded seriously. She reached up and ruffled his hair.

"I'm really sorry, Ani."

"I know you are, Jaya, I know you are." He grabbed her hand and pulled her to the door. "C'mon," he said, suddenly playful again. "We've got a surprise waiting for you downstairs."