Dear Jennifer,

You were right - seeing your handwriting did make me feel better. Enough to wonder if seeing mine might not reassure you a little, too. So maybe we can do at least some of this the old-fashioned way, as Hawk called it when he saw your letter. Hand-writing a letter just feels more personal than typing or dictating one, anyway. I'll take whatever personal contact we can get right now.

It's good to hear that you're getting a chance to rest and to heal. That just means you'll be back here with us – with me – that much faster. You're right – it's not the same as having a conversation, but it's the best we can do right now.

Don't worry about us having a place to rest. It turns out that my father had a back-up plan of sorts. We're all safe and hidden again. It is nice to have someplace to call home, I'll admit that. Thought it would be better if we had you here to work some of the kinks out. Matt actually found a box of my dad's personal things in a storage closet. I haven't had a chance to go through them yet, though. One of these days when I have a spare minute…yeah, I know.

So tell me a little more about Kelly. You mentioned her several times in your letter. It sounds like you've found a dependable friend, especially if she's willing to bring in reading material for you. The courier we've been dealing with is a friend of hers, apparently. When we see him, he's always willing to give us an update on you as best he can. He also said Kelly talks about you quite a bit, and that you two seem to have connected. It makes me feel better that you've found someone like that. See, you don't need us to be comfortable – you do just fine on your own. We miss you too, though. The guys are sending some letters along with mine so that maybe we can keep you from getting too bored. I think they want to hear from you almost as much as I do. Almost. Scout keeps complaining that no one is as good a sounding board for technical problems as you are, and I really think Tank misses your history discussions. Hawk mentioned the other day that it's not quite the same around here without your smile. I couldn't agree more. But, since we all were pretty sure we weren't going to see you smile ever again there for a little while, we're all willing to have you there where you can recover for a while so that you can come back to us.

I'll go now and let you rest. I have night duty tonight, and I wanted to write this before I headed out there. It just seemed a little more personal to "talk" to you here in my quarters. I'll write as many times as I can before we meet the courier the next time.

I love you,

Jon

Oh…about that game of chess? The one even slightly bright spot I can come up with for you being gone is that I at least have time to brush up on my strategies. Mentor's chess subroutines are going to get a workout.

"So, this captain of yours is pretty funny, huh?"

Jennifer looked up from re-reading Jon's letter with a grin. She had chuckled out loud at the idea of Jon brushing up on his chess skills with Mentor while on night duty. "Kind of. It's a bit of an..." What did Hawk call it? "An inside joke."

"Ah. Those are sometimes the best kind," Kelly smirked. "Tell me about him."

"Who? Jon?"

"No, the orderly who brings you your breakfast every morning. Yes, you goofball, Jon."

Jennifer sat back and thought for a moment as Kelly wrote some things on her chart. "He's serious most of the time – funny isn't really a word most people would choose to describe him. At least, not anyone who doesn't know him very well. He's dedicated to life – preserving it, protecting it. It doesn't leave a lot of time for fun. His father died when he was fifteen, and he's been fighting in his place ever since."

"That doesn't sound like a life that would lead to a lot of laughs," Kelly agreed.

"No," Jennifer agreed. "But when we were back at the base, and we had a few minutes to relax, he laughed a lot. We'd talk about everything – literature, games, things he did when he was younger…our missions, too, but we talked a lot about normal, everyday things. That's how we got to know each other better." She sat for a moment, lost in thought. "He listens. He doesn't judge, and he doesn't get upset. He just listens."

"That's an important quality to have in a significant other."

"Significant other?"

"You know, someone you're in a relationship with. It's an older term, I guess."

"I guess it fits – he is significant to me," Jennifer said softly.

"The two of you haven't been at this for long, have you?" Kelly asked.

"No…why do you ask?"

"You're still a little shy when you talk about him," Kelly said with a knowing smile. "Let me guess…you two have been dancing around each other for a while, but you being hurt finally got you talking."

"Yes…and no," Jennifer said with a smile. "We actually started to talk about it, but we were interrupted. We never had a chance to go back to it. We were supposed to talk after we completed the mission, but it ended up being a trap."

"That explains a little," Kelly said.

"Explains what?"

"Mark was telling me last night that he hadn't seen anyone as torn up as your captain was when Mark arrived to bring you here. He expected to see this strong, confident Resistance captain and instead he saw someone who was on the verge of falling apart." Kelly saw the concern and guilt radiating from Jennifer's eyes and continued, sitting on the side of her patient's bed and laying a hand on hers. "But he also told me about the transformation he's seen in the captain the last few times he's met him. Mark says that now he sees that strong, confident, dedicated man that we've all pictured Captain Power to be from all the stories we've heard about him. It's like he's a new person. The only thing we can think of is that your progress, and your letters, are the reason for that."

"I don't know –"

"And that's why I figured this was pretty new to you," Kelly went on. "You don't have any idea how much impact you have on him. Do you think he'd clear his schedule out once a week to meet Mark for just anyone?"

"He'd want word about any of his team that were hurt-" Jennifer began.

"But there's a difference between getting updates on a hurt team member – which he could send any of the other team members to do – and making sure that he's there in person, every week, to meet Mark and ask him questions about how you're doing." Jennifer blushed a little, and Kelly squeezed her hand. "I'm telling you, that man's got it bad for you. He tells you in his letters, I hope?" Jennifer nodded. "Well, there you go. I know what getting his letters has done for you – you need to realize that getting your letters gives him the same kind of boost. Trust me, if Mark can see that Power is head over heels for you, it's got to be real."

"What does that mean?" Jennifer laughed. She had noticed the frustrated expression that had crossed her new friend's face as she made that comment.

It was Kelly's turn to blush. "Let's just say he's not the most observant man in the universe," she said cryptically.

"How long have you and Mark known each other?" Jennifer asked, sensing there was more to it. "You seem to be pretty close."

Jennifer didn't miss the sigh that preceded Kelly's explanation. "Mark was my older brother's best friend when we were kids. He was at the house all the time – it was just him and his dad, and he got a kick out of the way my mom fussed over him. He was at our house more than he was at his own! I was ten when the world fell apart out there, which meant Mark was about 14. That day was so chaotic – there was no way of knowing who, if anyone, from home had survived. I hadn't heard anything about him until he got here a year or so ago. He saw me one day on the street – ran up and gave me this bear hug out of nowhere. I didn't even recognize him at first. He was so excited to see me…then he heard what had happened to my family."

"What did happen?" Jennifer prodded gently.

"They were gone," Kelly said simply. "I was the only one left. I have an aunt and uncle that I came here with, but my parents died in the attack on the town, and my brother died six years later. He was defending a settlement we were living in when the biomechs attacked. I thought Mark was going to collapse there on the street when he heard," she added softly. "He and Ben were brothers in every sense of the word." After a moment, she shook her head and seemed to pull herself back together. "He's been trying to be a surrogate big brother to me ever since – walking me home from my shifts, checking in on me several times a week. It gets a little annoying sometimes," she smiled.

Jennifer thought that maybe there was something else there. She hoped Kelly wouldn't mind if she prodded. "With as much as you talk about him, I thought at first that he was your… significant other."

"What? Oh, no – we're just good friends," Kelly said brusquely. But this time the blush was much more pronounced. "He looks at me and sees a kid sister, I'm pretty sure."

"Is that ok with you?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" Kelly asked, standing up and gathering her things.

"No reason…you just sounded like maybe it wasn't." Jennifer didn't want to make her new friend uncomfortable. "I'm sorry – I'm not always the greatest at reading people. It must come from being the only female on my team," she added, pulling from a comment Vi had made when she'd been visiting earlier. I don't know how you made it all that time, being the only woman at that base. I think I'd have gone crazy. That many men are too much work to deal with on a daily basis.

Kelly stopped her nervous fiddling and smiled. "No, it's ok. At one point…I think I wanted there to be something else. I had this massive crush on him when I was a kid. But so much has changed. I'm just thankful for the fact that he's here, and he's safe. I couldn't ask for a better friend."

"I've come to realize that life would be pretty empty without good friends," Jennifer nodded.

At that, Kelly's smile became very genuine. "Yes, it would. And, though I wouldn't ever wish the injuries that you had on anyone, I'm very glad that I was on duty the day they brought you here. I have a feeling we're going to be very good friends." She was happy to see an equally genuine smile appear on Jennifer's face. "And, speaking of that, I was wondering if you'd like hang out for a while tomorrow."

"Isn't tomorrow your day off?" Jennifer had learned Kelly's schedule well. She missed the woman's teasing and joking terribly when she wasn't around.

"Yep. That's why I'll have lots of time, not just these short spurts. I was thinking of taking you on a tour outside. What do you think?"

Jennifer's eyes twinkled up at her. "Outside? You mean, they're going to let me get up and get out of this room for a while? I'd love to!"