Last time: Jayne met a little girl that reminded her of someone else... but who?

Now: Jayne is invited out with Lara and Lacie.

Chapter 6- Drinks With The Girls

"This is a yearly event?" Jayne asked, looking around at the preparations. There were volunteers from the town stringing up lights, and a large repulsor truck where it looked like an entire family was setting up straw bales as a base for a slightly elevated stage above a dance floor. The town square was alive with activity in the early evening as finishing touches were being put up, and more people were out in a festive mood for a night on the town before the main event tomorrow.

"Yeah. Every year around this time, we have this huge harvest festival," Lara explained, looking around. "It usually marks the time that the farms only have a few weeks before snow starts falling to finish harvesting all their goods. And it's also a celebration before schools get back into session."

"Probably one of the last nights of the year when everyone would want to be outside for something like this as well." Jayne observed from behind rosey cheeks as she pulled her jacket a little tighter, and her breath lightly fogged around her every time she exhaled.

"Yeah, and it's going to get a lot colder as the weeks go by," Lara added with a nod as she rubbed her hands together before stuffing them in her jacket pockets.

"Something about that feels like home." Jayne commented, with a bit of a smile. "Enjoying the snow with a warm cup of hot chocolate by a fire sounds nice."

"Oh that sounds relaxing," Lara said, wistfully. "Taner learned to make a really good mug of hot chocolate from my husband. He uses chocolate chips. It's a game changer."

Jayne stopped as a memory tried to fight its way forward. Something about that phrasing, something about the way Lara said it triggered something deep as she furrowed her brow, trying to bring the memory to light through the wall of fog it was obscured behind.

Lara stopped and turned to her. "What is it? A memory?" She asked as she was starting to recognize when Jayne tried to remember something.

"Yeah." Jayne said annoyedly as it disappeared behind the wall again. "Why do I have so many memories associated with sweets?" She asked, confusedly. "Zherries, cookies, hot chocolate." She listed off as her annoyance mixed with a smirk.

"I'm not sure. Maybe it has to do with your pregnancy or maybe it has to do with your family," Lara guessed. "But the memories with those sweets are very important to you. And hopefully they will spark something." She said hopefully.

"Maybe…" Jayne replied. "Perhaps I'm married to a baker, or something, and that was what he used to woo me." She joked. "Or I have a sister that's a famous pastry chef on Naboo."

Lara chuckled. "Maybe, maybe. But any man who woos a woman with sweets is a smart man. At least in my book."

"I admit the idea of meeting my husband again is all the more enticing if he has a pan of brownies in hand." Jayne said mischievously.

Lara burst into laughter at that. "Now that would be quite the homecoming."

"What's this about brownies and homecomings?" Sheriff Dunweather said as she walked up to the two of them approaching The Moonshine.

"Oh we were just talking about if her husband might be the reason she has memories of sweets," Lara explained, her laughter dying down.

"Really, are you starting to remember stuff, Jayne?" Lacie asked, her interest piqued.

Jayne shook her head. "No, just… memories of memories you might say. Things triggering that I have memories of them, but I'm not able to figure them out." She said with annoyance. She shrugged. "At least they are there, which means that soon I might actually start remembering."

"Blech, that sounds awful." Lacie said. Jayne furrowed her brow slightly at the same sort of feeling about 'blech' but it was not nearly as profound as the others had been. "Anyway, shall we commence to drinking and gossiping and drinking?" Lacie asked, stepping forward and holding the door open for the other two.

"Definitely," Lara said as she led them into the bar.

"Thank you." Jayne said as she went through the door into the lively pub. There was laughing and the sound of merriment all through the place. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, and folksy music emanated from a lit stage where a small band was playing fun music on stringed instruments and a woodwind of some kind.

Lara led them over to the nearest table. "Does this work?"

"Sure!" Lacie said, taking a seat as Jayne sat down next to Lara.

"Alright, the first round is on me," Lara offered. "What do you guys want?"

"I'll have one of their Harvestfest Ales, thanks Lara." Lacie said.

"Umm, I'll…" Jayne said, not sure what they might have. "Do you think they have a dar'gal goopirur?" She asked.

Lara blinked at that, visibly confused. "Uh… what?" She asked.

"Me'ven?" Jayne asked, confused as she gestured as though she was handling a glass. "Gar kay'tayl, goopirur a'dar'gal?"

Lacie looked at Lara, as Jayne looked at both of them confused. "Is that huttese?" Laci asked.

"I don't think so," Lara said, completely lost at what Jayne was saying. "But it's obvious you're fluent."

Jayne looked between them extremely confused. "Tion'am I sirbur?" She asked.

"Wait." Lacie said. "'Sirbur'? That sounds kind of like shabuir. I stole that curse from a pilot, I don't know what it's from, though."

"Shabuir?" Jayned asked, looking down at the table. "What?" She asked, shaking her head to clear it, and she started speaking very carefully. "I was asking for a goo-" She stopped then continued. "… apple cider." She said. "This is like the dalru's all over again." She groused.

"It's fine," Lara said, reassuringly. "This just means you are bilingual and that it's your natural habit to speak it whenever. I've heard that could happen with amnesia. Similar to how you have muscle memory."

Jayne furrowed her brow. "I didn't even realize I was speaking something different." She stated. "I'm very strange." She said under her breath.

"You're not strange, you're unique," Lara said, giving her a small smile. "And there is nothing wrong with that."

"I'll take your word for it." Jayne said, a little worriedly.

"Well, it keeps life interesting." Lacie said with a smile. "And if we can learn more insults that people won't understand, that's always a plus."

Lara chuckled. "I second that." She said as she stood up. "Alright, so one ale, one cider, and one mead for me. Be right back." She said then walked over towards the bar to order.

There was a moment of slightly awkward silence after Lara left before Lacie spoke up. "So, Jayne, how are you liking working at the medical center?" She asked.

"Oh, it's intriguing. A little dull, I suppose but there is something nice about being able to help out there. Wesley has been very patient teaching me everything I need to know to do up at the front desk." She said.

"He commented that you're a quick learner." Lacie said, "I know he's been a little annoyed that he got stuck up at the front desk so he's really appreciated you stepping in to help."

"Oh, that's good to know." Jayne replied, "I felt like I was just slowing him down and I was worried he'd see it as more of a babysitting job that would just get in his way even more." She said sheepishly.

"Nah." Lacie said, waving her hand dismissively. "Wes really appreciates it. He said in another week or two you'd be able to fully take over the job and he can return to being a nurse full time, and that actually had him kind of excited."

"Huh." Jayne said. The idea of actually settling into a job and a life here suddenly struck her. She hadn't really thought about what to do, long term. All her life, that she knew of, had been spent here, in the company of the kind people in Durasteel Springs. And part of her that knew that she had some other life had expected that to sweep in and take her back to it, they would look in the database and find out who she was and she'd be able to go home, wherever that was. But the prospect of settling here and continuing this life, if that didn't happen, hadn't really occurred to her. But here she was, with a job, and out with friends, and she could see continuing that, in a way. It was, frankly, all she had ever known so it made perfect sense. "That makes me glad." She said.

Lacie smiled. "Also everyone around town has been dying of curiosity about you. Every time I talk with someone they're asking about 'that new woman that Lara's looking after'. This whole thing is the most exciting thing to happen in town in years."

Jayne shrank a little from that. "Really?"

"Yep." Lacie said with a smirk.

Lara returned at that moment with three drinks at hand. She placed the right drinks in front of the right person before taking her seat. "So what did I miss?" She asked as she sat down.

"I was just embarrassing Jayne by telling her she's doing a good job." Lacie said with a smirk as she reached for her ale.

"See? I'm not the only one who thinks you are doing a great job," Lara said, smiling at Jayne as she took a sip of her mead.

Jayne looked at them sourly as she reached for her glass and took a sip so she could hide behind her drink for a moment. Her eyes widened as she tried the cider. "This is amazing!" She said, looking at her drink in astonishment as she lowered it back to the table.

"The cider here is really great," Lara said, lowering her glass. "Local import from a brewery on the other side of the planet."

"I wonder if I like to drink." Jayne said. "I guess I won't find out for a while." She said with a bit of a chuckle, looking down at the twins.

"When are you due?" Lacie asked.

"I, uh… I don't know. You said I was about six months along?" Jayne asked, looking to Lara.

"Yeah, a little over six," Lara clarified. "But that means the little ones will be here in about three months time or sooner."

Jayne looked down at the twins again, the thought suddenly striking her that she would have to care for them alone if things didn't change. She swallowed. "Well that's good to know they'll be here soon. I can't remember what it's like to not be pregnant." She said with an exaggerated roll of her eyes and a smirk.

"You'll remember," Lara said comfortingly. "And if they do arrive early, we'll be here to support you and them until your memory gets back if, worst case scenario, your memories haven't completely returned by then. But I am sure they will or the patient Lacie brought in will wake up and remember you."

"I hope so." Jayne said. "Perhaps dessert will bring some other revelation about myself." She said shaking her head.

"Then here's to dessert!" Lacie said, excitedly raising her glass for a toast.

Lara raised her glass. "Here, here."

Jayne raised her glass as well and then took a hearty drink along with the other three.

"Speaking of which, you guys want some cheese curds or something?" Lacie asked.

"Sure," Lara said as she lowered her glass.

"Okay, I'll be right back." Lacie said as she stepped away.

"So since we were talking about it earlier, but are you excited to check out the festival tomorrow?" Lara asked, curiously.

"Yes." Jayne said smiling. "Just seeing how excited everyone is and the decorations going up, it looks like it will be really fun."

"Oh it will be," Lara nodded. "There will be food, games, live music, contests, prizes, and lots of fun."

"That sounds amazing." Jayne said with a bigger smile. "I can't wait."

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