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"Castle, this is tower. How's she doing?"
"Handles like a dream!" Jaina crowed, gently pushing the yoke of the all-new Shrike-class fighter jet forward, until it was as far as it could get. She couldn't believe how much had changed since she first rode a Ferris Aircraft jet. At Ferris, they were always creating something new, going bigger, better, faster, more powerful. And that was just fine with Jaina.
On the ground below, Jessica covered her ears as the jet roared above, but she couldn't help sneaking a glance or two out of one eye up at the jet carrying her mentor.
"She'll be just fine," Carol reached out to pat the nervous girl's shoulder, but thought better of it. "Jaina's the best pilot in the universe."
"I-I'm not worried," Jessica straightened up, forcing her arms down at her sides. Jaina had been surprised when Jessica suggested she come see Jaina at work, to learn how to deal with loud noises like Ferris Aircraft jets.
She jumped a foot in the air as Jaina broke the sound barrier. Carol smiled an held up her walkie talkie. "That's good for now Castle, bring her in."
Jaina screeched to a stop on the asphalt runway and leaped out of the cockpit before the ground crews could reach her.
"Think I could trade in my X-wing for one of these babies?"
"That's actually the only one we've got right now, but I might consider it if you let me and my people look over your hyper-light-speed drive." Carol offered, all business.
"Hyperdrive," Jaina corrected, wiping her forehead on the towel Jessica offered her. Bee ran between their legs eagerly, and Jessica knelt down to pat the strange droid's dome.
"You do know I'm being serious, right?" Carol said as the three started back towards the hangar. "If I suddenly got my hands on something like that, everyone would start making the connection between me and the JL."
"Not that they don't already do that because Green Lantern always manages to show up and save you at the last second," Jaina snickered.
Carol stuck out her bottom lip in mock deep thought. "Actually, Star Sapphire manages to save herself most of the time."
Jaina stopped in her tracks. "That son of a gundark lied to me!" She realized.
Carol laughed. "Hal has a habit of doing that, sweetie."
Jaina let herself laugh, too, but not for long. Laughing reminded her of Jacen too much.
"Hey Jessica," she changed the subject, and Carol dashed off to file more paperwork, "do you still wanna go to Raquel's bridal shower?"
"Uh...yeah, why?" Jessica asked. Jaina almost jumped at the change in pitch Jessica made when asking her question.
"I, uh...just thought you might be a little overwhelmed from all the excitement and noise of the jets, I thought maybe you'd need a break." Jaina mumbled, wondering if her worries weren't appreciated.
Bee gave a low beep, and Jessica shook her head. "I think I can deal with it, so long as you're there. But..."
"Yeah?"
Jessica wrung her hands. "Can we stop by the mountain, just real quick? I wanna get a few minutes in the waterfall room."
"Sure!" Jaina smiled. "Whatever makes you feel better!"
"Can we bring Bee?"
Jaina hesitated.
"You know what, sure. Yeah. The droid is coming with us."
-------
"Hey, excuse me, Jessica?" Jaime intercepted them the moment the tubes announced their arrival, Bart at his side with an empty bag of freeze-dried chicken whizzies,
"Y-yeah?" Jessica glanced over her shoulder to make sure that Jaina was still there. Jaina pretended to not be paying attention to Jaime, though she stayed right at Jessica's back, which made Jaime even more nervous.
"Um...I was...well, I was wondering..." Jaime mumbled, wringing his hands. "I know...I know you get really overwhelmed with what goes on at the cave, what with everyone on the team hanging out here, and all the missions we've got, and I was wondering, well, would you like to come over to my house sometime? It's out of the way, it's just got me, my parents, and my little sister, so you'd get some peace and quiet, and I know you like that...plus, my dad makes a mean quesadilla."
"Oh!" Jessica was surprised by his offer, but Jaina could tell it was a good kind of surprise by the tiny smile on her lips.
Jaime was too nervous to figure it out for himself, however, "I- you don't have to if you don't want to! N-no pressure, I promise," He said quickly.
"Come on, Blue!" Bart tugged at Jaime's arm, "I thought we were gonna go get chicken whizzies!"
Jessica gave a small laugh as Bart dragged Jaime off, and Jaina put her arm around her apprentice. It was the first time she'd ever heard Jessica laugh.
"So, are you gonna take his offer?" She asked as Bee caught up with them.
"Maybe," Jessica tucked some hair behind her ear, her cheeks dusted with a pink blush.
"Jaime's a good kid. It's his scarab I don't trust," Jaina entered the code for her bedroom to put her things away.
"Yeah, he's nice," Jessica admitted.
Jaina gave her a knowing grin. She wasn't much of a romantic, and she'd only been in love a couple times before, but that was enough to see what it looked like.
"Come on, girl," She hugged Jessica, "we've got a party to get to."
-------
"There you are!" Megan cried, waving to Jessica and Jaina as they finally found the location of Raquel's party.
"Happy bridal shower, Raquel!" Jaina said. She and Jessica took two of the three remaining chairs between Black Canary and Cassie.
"You're just in time for presents! Why don't you girls order something? It's on me," Raquel said, sipping her smoothie.
"I'll just have water," Jessica said. "I'm sorry I don't have a present for you, Miss Ervin."
"Call me Raquel, sweetheart. And it's fine, I've gotten so much stuff for this wedding already I'm having trouble figuring out what to do with it." Rocket waved her hand dismissively.
Jaina ordered a mint milkshake as Karen all but shoved the first present from the pile at Raquel.
"This one's from M'gann," Raquel announced, reading the label.
"And Jaina, and Artemis," M'gann's voice grew quiet. "We...we bought it together."
All went silent, and everyone turned down the table towards the last empty seat.
Raquel gripped the packaging in her fists. "What...what am I doing? Here I am having this shower, how can we celebrate so soon after-"
"Are you kidding?" Jaina stood up, her chair screeching loudly, and she almost rethought her outburst when she saw Jessica jump. "It's the perfect time to celebrate! You're not doing anything for yourselves or Artemis by moping around. Why not celebrate?"
M'gann nodded firmly in agreement. "Artemis would want us to celebrate."
Raquel looked down at her hands, and then she lifted her glass. "To absent friends."
Barbra, Karen, M'gann, Dinah, Cassie, Zatanna, and Jessica all raised their cups to the empty seat. "To absent friends!" They echoed.
Semi-transparent red liquid sloshed over Jaina's plastic cup in a crowded mess hall full of diverse Jedi trainees, but the only ones Jaina could see were a curly-haired chocolate teen wookie, waves of red-gold braids, and teasing brown eyes with a lopsided grin.
"And to the bride!" M'gann cheered suddenly. Jaina rushed to stand up with everyone else, toasting Raquel.
"And to the bride!"
Jaina looked down at her thick smoothie. "To friendship," she whispered quietly.
She steeled her gaze and took a long sip of her smoothie. She laughed with the girls and admired Raquel's presents, occasionally offering her input with wedding plans.
She was determined to be happy. Sadness would get her nowhere.