[b]Chapter Twenty-three[/b]

Jaina grumbled as the door chime rang for the fifth time in five minutes. She had been asleep when it first rang. Jag had already left for his patrol hours ago. Davin and Ani were still asleep. Whoever was at the door better have important news, Jaina thought. She didn't know why they couldn't leave a message.

Jaina opened the door and started; it was Danni. "Hello, Danni."

"I'm sorry to bother you Jaina, but I need to talk to Jag and he's not answering his comm," she said breathlessly.

"He's on patrol. Is something wrong?" Jaina asked. Danni's eyes were wild with surprise and excitement. "Come on in."

Danni followed her inside. Jaina motioned for her to sit at the small table near the kitchenette. She asked, "What's up?"

"I heard from Master Skywalker. He thinks he knows why Csilla was destroyed," Danni answered excitedly.

Jaina listened in shock as Danni described what Luke had told her. She hoped they were right, just so the mystery would be solved. She was worried about Jacen and Tahiri, though.

"I can't tell any of the officials yet. I need more proof. But I promised Jag I'd tell him if I found out anything. He did steal the rock for me, after all," Danni concluded.

"Jag stole something?" Jaina asked with amusement. "I haven't heard that story."

"You'll have to ask him for the details," Danni admitted. "He smuggled a chunk of Csilla to me."

Jaina chuckled as she shook her head, "Oh, I will. And I'll tell him to find you."

"Thank you so much," Danni said as she stood up. "I leave you alone now. I'm sure you're busy."

"It's not a problem," Jaina responded as she walked Danni to the door. "I'll see you later."

"See you around," Danni said as she walked out the door. Jaina closed it behind her. She smiled as Davin walked out of his bedroom.

"Mommy!" he said excitedly as he ran over to her. She crouched down to catch him, hugging him tightly. She knew that he had probably sensed her when he woke up, but actually seeing her erased any fears he still held.

"Did you get home while I was sleeping?" he asked.

"Yes," Jaina told him. She stood up and led him over to the kitchenette. "Sit down for breakfast."

"Daddy's working with Kyp, right?" Davin asked after he climbed into his chair.

"Yes," Jaina told him. "He'll be back before you go to sleep tonight."

"Oh," Davin said somewhat dejectedly.

"You can stay up until he comes home," Jaina promised. "But then you have to go straight to bed."

"Okay, I promise," he said. Jaina set a bowl of cereal in front of him, along with a glass of juice. "Does Ani need to wake up?"

"Not yet. She can sleep a little longer," Jaina told him.

"Do you have to go to work?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," Jaina told him.

"Okay."

Jaina smiled softly at her son as he ate his breakfast. He looked more like his father every day. Sometimes it was hard for her to believe that she was married with two wonderful children. Her life had been so busy for years that she couldn't imagine what it would be like when the war ended. She would fight until the Yuuzhan Vong were finally defeated. She didn't want Davin and Ani to grow up fearing their lives. Jaina hoped that she had been able to shelter them from some of the pain.

"Mama!" Ani squealed as she raced to the table. Jaina picked her up and set her in her lap. Ani wrapped her arms around her neck in excitement. "You home!"

Jaina kissed the side of her head and said, "I missed you and Davin."

"And Daddy?"

"Yes, and Daddy," Jaina answered with a chuckle. "Are you ready for breakfast?"

"Uh huh," Ani said. Jaina stood up and deposited her into the chair. As soon as she had placed Ani's food on the table, the door chimed again.

"Who now?" Jaina muttered as she stalked to the door and opened it.

Wedge was standing there, looking solemn. "May I come in?"

"Yes," Jaina said slowly. "Is this something the children can hear?"

Wedge glanced over at Ani and Davin. Ani smiled at him while Davin gave him a suspicious look. He turned back to Jaina and said, "Is there somewhere we can talk?"

"The kids' room," she told him. She pointed to the door, and then turned to her children, "You two stay put."

Wedge sat in the room's only chair between the two small beds. Jaina sat down on Ani's unmade bed and asked, "What's going on?"

"We've gathered intelligence stating that the Vong are planning retaliation against the Jedi for Yavin IV and the successes Jag's operatives have had. Because of this, it's been decided that all of the members of Jag's group are being sent in the field by the end of the week. We need to weaken the Vong from the inside before they attack," Wedge explained.

Jaina's brow furrowed in thought. There was more. Wedge didn't need to come to her home and tell her about this. She would have found out either through Jag or at a meeting. "What do you need from me?"

"Jaina, we want you to take control of the Crux Squadron. You're the best for the job. It's your choice, but we really need you," Wedge told her.

"So now that Jag has proven his idea works, the military wants to take advantage of it," Jaina stated, ignoring Wedge's request. She couldn't deal with that at the moment.

"Yes and no," Wedge told her. "We've been planning something like this for months, after Jag first brought up the idea."

"Does he know?"

"Not yet. I'm going to catch him after patrol," Wedge responded, and then asked, "About the squadron?"

"I don't know, Wedge," Jaina said slowly. "Jag's already gone most of the time as it is. We brought the children back out here for a reason. Besides, it will take a lot more time to take over the squadron…"

"What if I told you that you are partnering with an old friend?" Wedge told her. There was a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Oh no. No. I already did that," Jaina said, shaking her head. "Kyp has his own squadron. Jag's his second-in-command. You can't put me in charge of them again."

"We're pulling half of Kyp's pilots and sending them with Corran to help the Jedi on Yavin IV. The remaining Crux pilots will take their places. Kyp already knows this and is fine with it. Jag is being pulled to focus on his operation."

"Oh that's going to go over well," Jaina said sarcastically.

Wedge winced, "I know, but…"

"You have no choice," Jaina stated, "I'll give you an answer after I talk to Jag."

Wedge stood up. Before he exited the room, he said, "I'm sorry, Jaina."

Jaina heard him leave the apartment. She toyed with a tassel on Ani's blanket. As much as she would love to run her own squadron again, she didn't know if she could. She knew that there was more than Wedge was letting on. She also knew that Jag would want to go on one of the missions himself.

"Mama?" Ani called as she came into the room. She climbed onto the bed and sat next to Jaina. "Are you sad?"

"Nope," Jaina told her as she pulled Ani onto her lap. "I can't be sad when I have you and your brother all to myself for the day."

"The whole day?" Ani asked with wide eyes.

"The whole day."

Kit scooped some of the unidentifiable mush onto his wooden spoon. He sat at a makeshift table with seven other slaves. He didn't want to know what he was eating. It was similar to what he had eaten the last time he had been captured. A couple of the other slaves had spared him a glance; he hadn't spoken to anyone.

Two beings sat down on either side of him. One was a tall human male with blond hair and brown eyes. He wore a dirty brown sleeveless shirt. A black cord was wrapped about his wrist. The other was a Wookiee. Kit didn't know its gender.

"This is Myyse and I'm Tu'Ebb," the man said. "We know everyone here and we don't know you."

Kit eyed the two. Myyse bared her fangs in warning. They both seemed to be in charge. Kit said, "My name is Kit."

"How did you get here?" Tu'Ebb asked.

"Are you the leader?" Kit asked. He had strict instructions to talk to the leader of the enclave. He didn't want just anyone to know about the plan.

Tu'Ebb eyed him suspiciously. He motioned for Kit to follow him. Kit disposed of his dish and spoon in a bin by the doorway leading out of the room. Tu'Ebb led him out of the building. Tu'Ebb took Kit into one of the dorms.

Kit began to explain his assignment. He showed them what Telma had implanted into him and described what each chemical would do. Tu'Ebb and Myyse exchanged glances while they listened to his tale. Kit could tell that they didn't believe him.

"Come here," he said. "I'll prove it. Let me put something on one of your slave seeds."

"If you are telling the truth, let's try it on Taia. Stay with him, Myyse. I'll get her," Tu'Ebb said and left.

Kit was nervous. He'd never been around a Wookiee before. He couldn't understand her. He was fairly confident she was female. Myyse sounded like a feminine name. He rocked back and forth on his heels as he waited.

He didn't have to wait long. Tu'Ebb appeared with an elderly woman. Growths covered her back, arms and legs. She walked hunched over.

"This is Taia," Tu'Ebb introduced. "She can hardly move because her implants are so bad. You help her and I'll believe you."

Tu'Ebb guided her to sit down on a cot. She gripped his hand as she lowered onto the cot. Kit grasped the tiny metal prong on one of the capsules from his leg. Pulling a smooth cylinder out of his skin was disgusting. He felt like something was crawling through his veins. A small trail of blood trickled out of the small hole. He snapped off the cap.

"Lean forward," he instructed. He shook the powder onto the base of the seed. He repeated the action on other seeds until he was out of powder.

"How long will it take to work?" Tu'Ebb asked.

"Not long. It'll weaken the bond to her bones and the connection with the dhyuram," he explained. "It should provide her some relief."

It took about ten minutes. They couldn't see a change on the seeds themselves, but Taia looked more relaxed. She rubbed the back of the large cone-shaped seed located at the back of her neck.

"How do you feel, Taia?" Tu'Ebb asked.

"A little better," she said. She slid off the bed. She rested a hand on Kit's cheek, "Bless you."

"I'm convinced," Tu'Ebb said. "Tell me what you want me to do."

Kit grinned, "Good. Is it safe to stay here longer?"

"No. We can go down in the tunnels to work and talk there," he said. "Let's go."

Kit smiled to himself. It was starting to come together.

Jag pressed his lips into a thin line as he stared at Jaina. They were in their bedroom. After he had returned from patrol, he'd received new orders from the high command. Jaina had found him and told him about what Danni had found out and her promotion to squadron leader. She told him that she hadn't agreed to the position yet. Rather than have the discussion in public, they'd gone back to the apartment. Ani and Davin were in their room playing. The discussion was not going well.

"You are going to take it," Jag stated from his position by the wall.

Jaina was seated on the bed, hands resting in her lap, "I don't think I have a choice."

"You know I can't get out of this," Jag stated. He had no problem with Jaina running her own squadron again, but the timing was awful. "We're not going to be home much."

"I know," Jaina said. "I don't like it any more than you."

"Kyp will help," Jag offered. He knew that Jaina could handle it herself, but he hoped that she would accept the Jedi's aid.

"He better," Jaina muttered.

"Ask him to take on whatever needs done," Jag reiterated. "Between the two of you, you should be able to spend time here."

Jaina's eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms. She accused, "Are you going somewhere, Jagged?"

Jag ran a hand through his hair as he took a deep breath and it out. "Uncle Wedge told me that there's a push to end this mess. I don't know all the details. I'm not sure he knows."

"You are planning on leaving. You are going to get yourself captured again," Jaina said quietly. She stood up from the bed. "Are you crazy? Why do you want to do this? You could die, Jag. It was a miracle that you escaped last time."

"I know, Jaina," he said as he placed his hands on her shoulders, "We need everyone available. I don't want to, but…"

"No, you don't have to. You don't have to do anything. We came back. We sent away our children. We've done every assignment we've been asked to do. You can't volunteer," Jaina argued. "We're not kids anymore, Jag. This isn't like Hapes or Borelais when we could throw ourselves in the fight. That's not us anymore. Years ago, you promised me that our baby would always have his parents. Doing this… it's irresponsible and reckless. You can't."

"Jay…"

"No," Jaina said as she pushed away from him. "You haven't changed your mind. If you leave, you can go explain to Davin and Ani why their father probably won't be coming home. Again."

Dinner that night was an awkward event. Jaina knew that Davin and Ani were aware something was wrong. Ani pushed her vegetables around her plate while Davin kept looking back and forth between his parents.

"Ani, quit playing with your food," Jag scolded. She glared at him as she stabbed her fork into her food. She rolled her eyes as she shoved it in her mouth and chewed.

"Ani…" Jag said, "Enough. Finish your dinner."

Ani dropped her fork on her plate. She crossed her arms over her chest and stated, "No."

Davin's eyes grew wide in shock. He had never seen Ani say no to their parents. Jaina looked towards Jag, wondering what he was going to do. His eyes narrowed slightly as Ani uncrossed her arms and moved to push her plate.

Jag snatched the plate away from her, "You're done."

Ani threw down her fork and closed her eyes. Jaina could feel her trying to reach out with the Force. Jaina was able to block Ani's efforts. She hated doing that, but she had little choice.

"Ani, you know better than that," Jaina admonished once her daughter had stopped.

"Go to your room. Now," Jag stated firmly. Ani shrank back in her seat. She stuck out her lower lip as she slowly slid off her chair. She stormed off to her room.

Davin shifted in his chair. Jag gestured for him to continue eating. Davin bit his lip, but did as he was told. He kept looking at the now-closed bedroom door. Jaina was struck with the memory of whenever she, Jacen or Anakin would be punished. If one was in trouble, they all would suffer. Jaina just couldn't let Jacen or Anakin sit by themselves.

"Davin, clean up and go watch a holo," Jag instructed. Davin quickly dumped his plate and walked over to the couch.

Jag ran his hand through his hair. He looked Jaina in the eye for the first time in hours and asked, "Should you talk to her or should I?"

"It's all you," she responded as she stood up. She began to clear the table. "She knows she's not supposed to use the Force like that. You can handle it."

Jaina scraped the plates and placed them inside the dishwasher. She could hear Jag go into the children's room. Jaina leaned against the sink and closed her eyes. She understood why Jag felt he needed to go. He felt that as the person behind the operation, he should be in the middle of it. It was different then being in a cockpit. What he wanted to do was insane. She knew she was being selfish; most of those who fought had left someone behind. But Jaina couldn't fathom losing Jag again. She didn't think she could do it. She knew she couldn't look her son and daughter in the eye and tell them their father was gone again.

What irritated Jaina even more was that if the situation was reversed, she would do the same thing.

"Mommy?"

Jaina turned around to face Davin. He wrapped an arm around her pants leg and said, "What's wrong?"

Jaina crouched down to pick him up. It wouldn't be much longer before he would be too big for her to hold. She was struck with a memory of him as a toddler. He would rest his head against her chest as she talked to him.

She carried him to the couch and sat down. She stroked his hair as she spoke, "You have nothing to worry about."

"You're mad at Daddy," he stated.

He was always surprising her. She should be used to how observant he was. She said, "A little, but we'll work it out."

"That's why Ani was being bad," he said.

"I imagine so," Jaina responded quietly. She, Anakin and Jacen had behaved similarly as children when their parents argued. She decided they both needed a distraction. "Would you like to work on your Star Destroyer?"

Davin nodded with excitement. He slid of her lap and took her hand. He led her over to the corner of the room where his model sat. Jaina followed his instructions as he told her how to put together the turbolasers.

"See, Mommy, this one goes in the front. Grandpa 'Tir says it gets the Rebels," Davin told her.

Jaina started laughing, "Your Grandpa Han and Grandma Leia were Rebels."

Davin let out an exaggerated sigh, "I know that. They're the good Rebels."

"The good Rebels?"

"Yeah. They aren't bad like that Fey'lya guy. There are bad Imperials, too, like Palpatine and Daala and Iceheart. "

"No more history lessons with your grandfathers," Jaina stated. She would have to remind them, again, to stop trying to convert her children's viewpoints.

"They fight about Thrawn."

"Well, your father and I don't agree about him, either," Jaina commented.

"Grandpa Han says Thrawn tried to take you and Uncle Jacen," he said.

"He did."

"But Grandpa 'Tir says he was really smart. Smart people should know not to take people," Davin stated.

Jaina smiled softly at him as she said, "They should."

"I don't get it."

"It's…" Jaina began, but she didn't know how to explain it.

"Something for grown-ups?" he said knowingly.

"Exactly," Jaina said as she leaned over and kissed his forehead. "You are very smart, Davin."

Davin grinned, "Can Grandpa Han teach me to fly the Falcon yet?"

"No," Jaina told him, chucking. He shrugged and turned back to his Star Destroyer model. She heard him mumble that it was worth a try. Jaina glanced back at the closed bedroom door. She couldn't sense anything wrong. She knew later that night she needed to talk to Jag.

She needed to him to understand.