Chapter 27

Yaga Minor and the remainder of the Imperial fleet resolved in her canopy, and Jaina's excitement peaked. Jag was most certainly awake and waiting for her by now. That's where she wanted to be. By his side.

The Roughshod loomed closer, alongside the Chimaera and numerous other battle cruisers. Jaina swerved towards the docking bay of her flagship, knowing they would recognize her transponder code. She sailed smoothly inside the opening and settled on the deck, anticipation making her hands tremble slightly on the control stick. She powered down and popped the rounded canopy, stood and stretched. The pretense of aloofness didn't last, and she jumped lightly onto the deck and walked briskly towards the turbolifts.

She was met halfway there by a young aide. "General Solo-Fel?"

Jaina turned to look at him over her shoulder. "Yes?"

"The Grand Admiral wanted me to tell you when you arrived that he needed you on the Chimaera. Something about a meeting with the Moff Council and the New Republic Chief of State."

Jaina gritted her teeth. Priorities; she needed to remain cognizant of her priorities. And as he had been for the past five months, Jag was her priority. "Tell him I'm sorry, but I still have thirty-six hours left in my leave of absence, and I plan to make full use of it. I'll report in when my time is up."

She turned quickly from the confused aide and jumped inside the turbolift. The ride to the MedCenter was one of the longest of her life, and by the time the door swished open she was practically bouncing with excitement. She hurried outside and down the cooridor, turned the corner into his room—

And stopped short as she saw the empty bed. Fear grabbed her in a choke hold, and for a tense moment she couldn't breathe. An Emdee droid trundled through the cubical to another, and Jaina called out to him. "Where is he?" she yelled desperately, hoping he had just been moved, or taken out of the Intensive Care Unit...

"Looking for me?"

Jaina flipped around to see a perfectly healthy Jag grinning like a Kowakian monkey lizard. She froze, caught between shock and joy and a feeling not too unlike starvation. And then she was caught between his strong arms and solid chest, being kissed like there was no tomorrow. She reached up and pulled him down closer, savoring the taste that had been absent for far too long.

Finally he broke for air, his hand caressing her chestnut hair lovingly. "Force, I missed you," he gasped.

Jaina looked up at him in incredulity, still trying to register the fact that he was actually there. How many times had she dreamed of this moment? Almost every night since she had seen him last, it seemed. Love and passion flared in her chest, and she kissed him again in answer, forcefully. She only pulled away when she realized they were two generals in the Imperial Navy making out in a public corridor, not just Jaina and Jag reuniting after months apart. She buried her face in his chest and sighed, content with the universe.

"I'm so sorry about your Dad, Jaina," he spoke into the following silence.

Jaina pulled out of his embrace but kept both his hands clasped in hers. "Thank you. But I'm resolved to it. Nothing will ever make up for his loss, but there's good come from it. It gave me a chance to talk to my mother, and I think she's opening up talks with the Admiral and the Asendancy to join the war."

Jag's face blossomed. "That's wonderful!"

Jaina smiled, reaching up to trace the scar on his forehead fondly. "How long has it been since I told you I loved you?"

He leaned down to kiss her brow, then pressed his to her own, bringing their lips centimeters apart. "Too long." She tried to kiss him, but he pulled away suddenly with a roguish grin. "But I never was one for words." He tugged on her hand lightly as he spoke, leading her down the corridor.

Jaina's mouth turned up as well when she recognized his intentions, and let herself be led eagerly back to their quarters.

Jaina was caught in the world that existed between awareness and sleep, falling intermittently between the two. Her mind worked, but not fully or with ease. Mostly her head was full of random thoughts and feelings, emotions. There was love, spilling out of her like a fountain in the desert. Even in sleep she knew she was again in her lover's arms. There was also sorrow, an unhealed wound that had been opened at her father's death. In the back of her mind were the less open and prominent feelings, the ones she kept secreted deep inside where no one could see. Bitterness towards the path her life had been forced onto, tempered with thankfulness that it had led her to love. Anger at her mother, recently diluted by gratefulness that she had for once done something for the interest of someone other than herself.

But Jaina herself didn't recognize any of them, just floated inside them. They were there, part of her. They made up who she was. But there was something else, something she had never realized made up her spiritual self before. Its alieness piqued her interest, made the segment of her mind that was cognizant turn inward and examine the place she was in. What was it? She shifted from blissfully unaware to introspective in a millisecond, going from asleep to self-examining in an instant. What was it? As she reached out to touch the part of her she had never before seen, she was jolted suddenly awake.

"Jaina?"

Her eyes snapped open, her body going rigid. Jag lay on the cot beside her, propped up on one elbow and the other draped over her waist. "Huhn?" she asked groggily.

Jag furrowed his brow, his look slightly curious and concerned. "You okay?"

Jaina wiped a hand over her face. "Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"

He shrugged and lowered himself back down beside her, pulling her into the curve of his arm. "You were sleeping, and then you went all stiff and started jerking."

"I did?"

He nodded.

Jaina looked away. "I was having a dream," she said. "I think."

He kissed the nape of her neck tenderly. "That's why I woke you up."

Jaina allowed herself a tight smile. "Is it?"

He chuckled deep in his throat, the noise close to her ear. "Well..."

Pellaeon tapped his fingers on the desk in a clearly disapproving manner. "That a was very important meeting, Generals."

Jaina resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "You were the one who gave me leave, Admiral. I was just using it."

Pellaeon's scowl deepened. "The point is that I summoned you to a gathering that it was imperative you attend, and you refused. I had to tell Chief of State Organa Solo I had to delay the peace talks we've been waiting for for years because two important members of my staff were tardy. Can you even fathom how embarrassing that was?"

Jaina tossed Jag—who had remained mostly silent—a look, then turned back to the Grand Admiral. "Don't worry about her. Letting her know you're not going to bow and scrape for her help is a good thing, trust me. I know her. Give her a centimeter and she'll take a kilometer."

"It would be better than angering her until she backs out of the agreement all together."

"Trust me, she's not going to do that."

"How do you know?" Pellaeon questioned.

"Because I'm the one that talked her into it."

Silence reigned in the Admiral's office. Both Pellaeon and Jag stared at her in incredulity. "You went to Coruscant?" Pellaeon sputtered finally.

Jaina raised her chin. "I had to be there for my father's funeral."

"I can understand that. But it should have been done diplomatically, with an envoy and permission given from their office to this one. You went about it in the wrong way."

Jag shifted in his seat. "Cut her some slack, Admiral. Her father had just died."

Pellaeon's countenance softened slightly. "I know that. But that doesn't make it any more diplomatic."

"I didn't go as a representative of this government, Admiral. I went as a daughter, and a sister, and a Jedi," Jaina explained. "And as a daughter I convinced my mother to do the right thing, to defend the New Republic and join with us, for their own sake. You don't need to fear political repercussions."

"Let us hope so," Pellaeon sighed. "But I fully and completely expect the both of you to be present tomorrow at the rescheduled conference."

Taking that as their cue, the two Imperials stood. Jag offered a salute, and Jaina followed with a little sloppier version. "We'll be there, Admiral," he replied.

"Good," Pellaeon returned. "If this goes well, I might be able to forgive you your small indiscretion."

"And I was so worried," Jaina said with a wink, then turned and left, too soon to see the Admiral smile after her.

For at least the tenth time that night, Jaina shifted in her seat and ran a fidgety hand through her hair. Jag sighed but said nothing. He wasn't sure she even knew she was doing it. But he did. Something was bothering her, and had been since she had woken that morning. She had thus far been silent all through their dinner, and kept getting a far away look in her eyes. When she did speak it was usually just to answer him, and in small sentences.

"So how are your brothers handling everything?" Jag asked, trying to phrase his question so she would have to answer with more than one word.

Jaina twirled her fork around aimlessly in her mashed protato. "Jacen seemed to be holding up well. But I think Anakin took it really hard. That's understandable, considering he knew even less about Dad than I did, though. But he'll get over it. He'll have to."

Jag smiled. "He'll be fine, I'm sure."

Jaina just nodded. Jag sighed, unable to keep up the charade any longer. "What's wrong, Jaina?"

"What do you mean?" she asked, feigning confusion.

"You haven't been yourself all day. What's bothering you? Did I do something?"

Jaina grabbed his hand quickly, looking aghast. "No! No, it has nothing to do with you, Jag. Being back with you has been wonderful. It's just...I feel a little, I don't know, off."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure."

"Is there anything I can do?"

She shook her head. "I think this is just something I have to work out in my head."

Jag regarded her over the table. "Does it have anything to do with your dad?"

"Maybe." She put on a brave smile. "It'll be okay. I'll sleep on it, and let you know in the morning."

Leia was dressed in her signature white, her hair pulled into intricate patterns and curls and piled onto the crown of her head. Even through the hologram she managed to convey a sense of elegance and propriety. Jaina leaned forward in her seat, eager to hear the Grand Admiral's response.

Gilad Pellaeon fingered his drooping mustache. "I hardly think that's necessary."

Leia shrugged. "It's the only thing that will satisfy the senate."

"Full access to our navy? Be reasonable, Leia. It would be easier to forge two separate wars on the Vong."

"Why shouldn't we join, Gilad? It seems only logically. The Remnant has held out for over two decades, don't you think it's time to finally give in?"

"I will not give up the Empire's independence. We are two separate nations, and it's going to stay that way. What I want is a mutual agreement to help each other in this endeavor against our shared enemy. There is no reason why that cannot happen."

Leia cocked her head slightly. "Is my daughter with you, Admiral?"

It was the first time Jaina's defection had been mentioned, and Jaina tensed in anticipation of his answer. Pellaeon shifted his footing. "I'm not sure the location of one of my officers is pertinent to this conversation."

"Perhaps not, but I ask it anyway," Leia responded cooly.

Pellaeon's eyes narrowed. "General Solo-Fel is currently a part of my fleet group, yes."

"Is she in the room with you, Gilad?"

Pellaeon looked through the hologram to where Jaina sat on the other side, the question in his eyes. Where is she going with this? Jaina thought. She nodded curtly. What could it hurt?

"She is a member of of my inner council, so yes, you should be able to expect her to be at any high-level meetings."

A hint of a smile colored her mouth. "May I speak with her?"

"No."

There was a hushed silence between the two. "Fine," Leia answered at last. "Then I will speak openly. My life has been dedicated to the New Republic, and Jaina can attest to this, even if you won't let her now. I have and will give everything to keep it safe. It's all I have left. I know that a treaty with the Empire is the best way of doing that. Factions of the Senate, however, do not see things so clearly. If we're going to make this work, you need to make some sort of concession, Gilad, for them to trust you. You need to help me in this."

Pellaeon's gaze again flicked to where Jaina sat. Jaina simply hiked a thumb at Jag , who stood in a corner with his arms crossed over his chest. He shrugged. Pellaeon nodded in understanding.

"Leia, if you're wanting me to give your daughter back into New Republic hands as a term of the treaty, you are wasting your time. Even if I was willing to give up the valuable resources she provides, it's simply not something I am authorized to do. Joining the Empire was her own decision, and it will be her decision when she leaves."

Jaina couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had traded her off for a treaty, and now she was trying to buy her back for one? What was the sense in that? She looked to Jag, motioning him to come to where she sat. He came to kneel beside her. "What's her motive?" she whispered.

Jag kept his eyes fixed on the hologram above the table. "If I had to guess, I'd say the Chiss are blaming the Republic for our defection. Getting us back would go a long way towards paving the road to a successful relationship with them and with the Empire."

Jaina chewed on her lower lip. "It was a stupid deal in the first place, and I won't be a pawn in it again."

Jag shook his head emphatically. "Don't worry. Pellaeon won't let us down."

Leia's eyebrows shot up at Pellaeon's words. "I never suggested anything of the kind."

"Of course not," the aging Imperial smiled. "Listen Leia, I never was one for politics. Let's not beat around the proverbial bush. You need us, and we both know it."

"You need us as well," Leia interjected.

"We would have, if Generals Fel had not defected. But we now have all the knowledge of the enemy we need."

"And we have the resources," Leia finished.

Pellaeon inclined his head in acknowledgment. "So why can't that be enough of a reason, enough of an incentive? Let's think logically. There is no need to give up what we both hold dear, either our independence or our very existence."

Leia stood unmoving for so long Jaina began to wonder if the hologram had frozen. Finally she let out a great sigh and lowered her head. "What are your terms?"

And so the actual forming of the alliance commenced. Jaina sat back in her chair with a smile, and reached for Jag's hand. He squeezed back, a smile spreading over his usually solemn features. Whatever the future held, it was suddenly looking a whole lot brighter.