Fic: "If You Call" (J/Z AU; sequel to FaIC; COMPLETE)
Part One | Part Two | Part Three | Part Four | Part Five | Part Six | Part Seven | Part Eight | Part Nine | Part Ten | Part Eleven | Part Twelve | Part Thirteen | Part Fourteen
x-x-x
Zekk was acutely aware of the two female stares that followed him as he tried not to pace in front of the Hawk. He glanced up at the suns, but they were as glaringly bright as they would be at noon. Quarter to noon, he reminded himself; he’d checked his chrono hardly thirty seconds ago. Jaina still had time to come. He was beginning to suspect foul play on the part of a certain dark-haired Jedi Master, but it wasn’t as if he’d figured out what to say yet.
“For someone who’s waiting for his girlfriend, you look like crap,” Scooti told him. He turned to scowl at her, and reassured himself that the mechanic-very hungover, if not still drunk-looked far worse than he did.
Next to Scooti, Raven smirked. “Did you sleep at all last night?”
Zekk split his glare between the two of them. Rather than let him watch his chrono in peace, Raven and Scooti had been up surprisingly early to keep watch on the Hawk’s entrance hatch. Zekk hadn’t had peace for hours; small wonder he looked harangued. “You can both shut up now. And yes, I did. After finishing all those diagnostics you claimed couldn’t wait, not to mention a grocery run since someone cleared out the kitchen.”
Scooti pushed her dark glasses further up on her nose, and managed an evil smile. “Hrul deserved all the food I threw at him.”
“Why don’t you go in and prep the ship for takeoff,” Zekk suggested.
“And miss out on our co-pilot’s rendez-vous with the Galactic First Daughter?” Raven said, amused. “Zekk, I really think not.”
“You’re the one who’ll be paying the fine,” Zekk retorted, half-hoping now that Jaina wouldn’t make it after all. The situation was confusing enough without even more know-it-all observers.
Despite his frustration, Jana did push through the spaceport bustle, and found the Hawk ten minutes before takeoff. “Sorry!” she said when ten feet away. “It was one thing after another, with the defence lawyers showing up, and Brakiss leaving messages-”
“I have to go in ten minutes,” Zekk told her.
“Six minutes,” Raven corrected from the entrance. “I’m not getting docked late fees, and you are my co-pilot.”
Jaina glanced at her chrono and looked argumentative, perhaps about how long it took to prepare a ship for takeoff. In a display of mercy, she chose to remain quiet on the matter. “Right, well-”
“I’ll go start the engines,” Raven said.
Jaina raised an eyebrow.
“Sure, thanks,” Zekk said quickly, staving off a talk about proper ship maintenance. “Scooti?”
The young mechanic grinned. “I’m staying right here.”
Zekk scowled, but decided to ignore his audience, and turned back to Jaina. “Well.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll call you. Or you can call me.”
“I can keep you updated on my swift descent into paperwork madness,” Jaina said. She was grinning, but she didn’t fly full time, and he knew she would never think of leaving the Jedi.
He smiled back at her. “Your propaganda could use some work.”
“I’ll send you some of the recruitment and early training films. You can brew tea and practice your breathing. I’ll even mail you a few rocks for practice.”
“Mystical Force rocks?” he wondered sceptically.
Her grin broadened. “Very mystical and ordinary, heavy rocks. If you train, I can teach you of the mystical ways they do nothing. Very secret.”
“Hey, all I know about the Jedi comes from holo-films and hints from you. And you hardly ever talk about your powers.”
“I grew up with them.” She glanced up as the Hawk’s engines began to whirr. “When are you next on Coruscant?” she asked, raising her voice slightly.
He shrugged. “Soon, probably. Most of our shipments take us through there, even if Raven doesn’t let us know ahead of time.”
“I suppose you don’t know how long you’ll be off finding yourself, either,” she said, half cheerfully. Zekk looked up at her sharply. “Well,” she shrugged, looking very not-casual, “good luck with everything.”
“I’m coming back.”
“You better,” she retorted, grinning to let him know that she wasn’t upset. “But in the meantime-” She paused, and her smile changed at the edges. “I hope you find everything you’re looking for out there.”
Oh. Oh. He had the mad urge to laugh out loud, but he doubted that Jaina would take well to hysterical laughter. Especially when she was using all the patience she’d never really had.
“Jaina,” he said carefully, and had to stifle another laugh.
She waited a moment, then glanced up at the Hawk’s helm; the engines were getting louder. “What?” she asked, raising her voice even more to be heard.
“I’m coming-”
She frowned and came closer. “What?”
He spoke louder and leaned in. “I said-” The engines gave a loud boom, and Scooti scrambled up the ramp and into the ship. This time, Zekk did laugh, and Jaina grinned back at him in confusion. He felt slightly mad and invincible, perhaps like Jaina did right before she pulled a stunt that she knew only a few people (herself included) could pull off. If there was a prize for miscommunication and bad timing, Zekk wouldn’t have been surprised if they won it, but, maybe-the realities of befriending a celebrity Jedi Knight, saving the galaxy, and an evil ex-fiancé aside-
“Jaina,” he said, “there is no way I’m letting you go.”
-but maybe Peckhum and his holo-vids had managed to get this much right: as terrible as they were with words, Zekk and Jaina weren’t going to uncross any wires without a bold move or two. Not stopping for a deep breath, Zekk leaned down and kissed Jaina until she pulled him closer, and then until he had to leave. At the very least, the pull of her fingers at his jacket and the bump of their noses left “just friends” far behind.
When he finally pulled away and ran up the Hawk’s ramp, they were both grinning.
Game on.
---------
I can pretty well guarantee that you'll hear more about this AU/story here, in random posts, commentary, or even short fic, but thank you to those of you who read FaIC and/or IYC and for not getting very sick of me and my rambling posts about Jaina/Zekk, and J/Z meta, and then Jaina/Traest stuff. I hope the ending paid off :D
(Also, thanks to poppytea for not smothering me with a pillow for going on and *on* about a fanfic in a fandom she doesn't read, let alone after I had supposedly retired to publishable-writing. I swear, I'm almost ready to write That New Story.)
cut!lyrics: When I Am King by Great Big Sea.
Jaina/Traest Prequel: But You And I Know The Reason Why
x-x-x
Zekk was acutely aware of the two female stares that followed him as he tried not to pace in front of the Hawk. He glanced up at the suns, but they were as glaringly bright as they would be at noon. Quarter to noon, he reminded himself; he’d checked his chrono hardly thirty seconds ago. Jaina still had time to come. He was beginning to suspect foul play on the part of a certain dark-haired Jedi Master, but it wasn’t as if he’d figured out what to say yet.
“For someone who’s waiting for his girlfriend, you look like crap,” Scooti told him. He turned to scowl at her, and reassured himself that the mechanic-very hungover, if not still drunk-looked far worse than he did.
Next to Scooti, Raven smirked. “Did you sleep at all last night?”
Zekk split his glare between the two of them. Rather than let him watch his chrono in peace, Raven and Scooti had been up surprisingly early to keep watch on the Hawk’s entrance hatch. Zekk hadn’t had peace for hours; small wonder he looked harangued. “You can both shut up now. And yes, I did. After finishing all those diagnostics you claimed couldn’t wait, not to mention a grocery run since someone cleared out the kitchen.”
Scooti pushed her dark glasses further up on her nose, and managed an evil smile. “Hrul deserved all the food I threw at him.”
“Why don’t you go in and prep the ship for takeoff,” Zekk suggested.
“And miss out on our co-pilot’s rendez-vous with the Galactic First Daughter?” Raven said, amused. “Zekk, I really think not.”
“You’re the one who’ll be paying the fine,” Zekk retorted, half-hoping now that Jaina wouldn’t make it after all. The situation was confusing enough without even more know-it-all observers.
Despite his frustration, Jana did push through the spaceport bustle, and found the Hawk ten minutes before takeoff. “Sorry!” she said when ten feet away. “It was one thing after another, with the defence lawyers showing up, and Brakiss leaving messages-”
“I have to go in ten minutes,” Zekk told her.
“Six minutes,” Raven corrected from the entrance. “I’m not getting docked late fees, and you are my co-pilot.”
Jaina glanced at her chrono and looked argumentative, perhaps about how long it took to prepare a ship for takeoff. In a display of mercy, she chose to remain quiet on the matter. “Right, well-”
“I’ll go start the engines,” Raven said.
Jaina raised an eyebrow.
“Sure, thanks,” Zekk said quickly, staving off a talk about proper ship maintenance. “Scooti?”
The young mechanic grinned. “I’m staying right here.”
Zekk scowled, but decided to ignore his audience, and turned back to Jaina. “Well.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll call you. Or you can call me.”
“I can keep you updated on my swift descent into paperwork madness,” Jaina said. She was grinning, but she didn’t fly full time, and he knew she would never think of leaving the Jedi.
He smiled back at her. “Your propaganda could use some work.”
“I’ll send you some of the recruitment and early training films. You can brew tea and practice your breathing. I’ll even mail you a few rocks for practice.”
“Mystical Force rocks?” he wondered sceptically.
Her grin broadened. “Very mystical and ordinary, heavy rocks. If you train, I can teach you of the mystical ways they do nothing. Very secret.”
“Hey, all I know about the Jedi comes from holo-films and hints from you. And you hardly ever talk about your powers.”
“I grew up with them.” She glanced up as the Hawk’s engines began to whirr. “When are you next on Coruscant?” she asked, raising her voice slightly.
He shrugged. “Soon, probably. Most of our shipments take us through there, even if Raven doesn’t let us know ahead of time.”
“I suppose you don’t know how long you’ll be off finding yourself, either,” she said, half cheerfully. Zekk looked up at her sharply. “Well,” she shrugged, looking very not-casual, “good luck with everything.”
“I’m coming back.”
“You better,” she retorted, grinning to let him know that she wasn’t upset. “But in the meantime-” She paused, and her smile changed at the edges. “I hope you find everything you’re looking for out there.”
Oh. Oh. He had the mad urge to laugh out loud, but he doubted that Jaina would take well to hysterical laughter. Especially when she was using all the patience she’d never really had.
“Jaina,” he said carefully, and had to stifle another laugh.
She waited a moment, then glanced up at the Hawk’s helm; the engines were getting louder. “What?” she asked, raising her voice even more to be heard.
“I’m coming-”
She frowned and came closer. “What?”
He spoke louder and leaned in. “I said-” The engines gave a loud boom, and Scooti scrambled up the ramp and into the ship. This time, Zekk did laugh, and Jaina grinned back at him in confusion. He felt slightly mad and invincible, perhaps like Jaina did right before she pulled a stunt that she knew only a few people (herself included) could pull off. If there was a prize for miscommunication and bad timing, Zekk wouldn’t have been surprised if they won it, but, maybe-the realities of befriending a celebrity Jedi Knight, saving the galaxy, and an evil ex-fiancé aside-
“Jaina,” he said, “there is no way I’m letting you go.”
-but maybe Peckhum and his holo-vids had managed to get this much right: as terrible as they were with words, Zekk and Jaina weren’t going to uncross any wires without a bold move or two. Not stopping for a deep breath, Zekk leaned down and kissed Jaina until she pulled him closer, and then until he had to leave. At the very least, the pull of her fingers at his jacket and the bump of their noses left “just friends” far behind.
When he finally pulled away and ran up the Hawk’s ramp, they were both grinning.
Game on.
---------
I can pretty well guarantee that you'll hear more about this AU/story here, in random posts, commentary, or even short fic, but thank you to those of you who read FaIC and/or IYC and for not getting very sick of me and my rambling posts about Jaina/Zekk, and J/Z meta, and then Jaina/Traest stuff. I hope the ending paid off :D
(Also, thanks to poppytea for not smothering me with a pillow for going on and *on* about a fanfic in a fandom she doesn't read, let alone after I had supposedly retired to publishable-writing. I swear, I'm almost ready to write That New Story.)
cut!lyrics: When I Am King by Great Big Sea.
Jaina/Traest Prequel: But You And I Know The Reason Why