Beyond - Legends Zephyr in the Sky- response to the 90's Songfic Roulette, Jaina/Jag, spoilerific for Fury

Title: Zephyr in the Sky
Author: DWH
Genre: missing scene... probably. (if the Revelation excerpt is the prologue, then it's a missing scene. If not... oh well?)
Characters: Jaina Solo, Jagged Fel
Timeframe: sandwiched between Fury and Revelation
Summary: Jaina promised she wouldn't leave without saying goodbye.
Notes: Written for the 1990's Pop Songfic Roulette, using Madonna's "Ray of Light." Obvious statement: Fury spoilers. This should probably only be read if you've finished the book because, well... context is everything. And, you know, lack of spoilerdom.


Zephyr in the sky at night I wonder
Do my tears of mourning sink beneath the sun
She's got herself a universe gone quickly
For the call of thunder threatens everyone

The final preparations were finished. Jaina Solo sat on the lowest rung of the ladder leaning against her StealthX and looked up to the sky. She'd barely had time to process anything since the assault on Lumiya's asteroid and the death of Alema, and once more, she was rocketing off in an attempt to save the galaxy. Not for the first time, she wondered if heroics were just encoded into her DNA. The family history was certainly there to support the theory.

Shaking her head, she turned her helmet over in her hands. She'd been in more fights than she could count, more than she'd ever care to tally. And in spite of all her efforts to the contrary, there was no end in sight. Everyone told her she needed to rest, take a break, anything to slow her down. It wasn't that she didn't agree- she found herself more and more frequently daydreaming of relaxing in a bubble bath, instead of settling for her usual quick sanisteam. Such thoughts were at once lovely and frustrating, because she knew the ugly truth. There just wasn't time for her to stop and relax. The Galactic Alliance was growing more dangerous with each passing day, her brother's influence slowly corrupting everything she'd once sworn to protect. It was wrong on every possible level, and there was only one solution. Jacen had to be stopped, and she had to be the one to do it.

So I came up with this particularly inspired scheme. If by inspired, I mean insane.

And I feel like I just got home
And I feel
And I feel like I just got home
And I feel

Jaina stood, double-checking the contents of the ship's small cargo hold. The case holding the Mandalorian armour sent to her father was secure. She'd thought about wearing the armour under her flight suit, as it might come in handy if Fett decided to be difficult. However, her desire to not have to sit in a small cockpit with armour under her suit eventually won out.

She looked around the surrounding forest and sighed. Endor wasn't home, but where was home, anyway? The Coruscant of her youth was effectively gone, no matter how much they tried to cover over the damage inflicted by the Yuuzhan Vong. The Yavin IV academy had similarly been destroyed. Home, at the end of the day, had slowly just become wherever her friends and family happened to be. For now, that was here, but she was leaving. And this time, she wouldn't have Zekk's presence to steady her, or Jag to spur her on. Mere months ago, that idea wouldn't have bothered her. Now, she wasn't so sure.

Jag had given her a pretty solid kick in the pants. Since he'd beaten her in the practice duel, she'd spent a lot of time thinking about her role as a Jedi, as a pilot, as a Sword, and as a friend. Jag had rather pointedly told her that she was a lousy Jedi. What he didn't mention was that, un-Jedi-like as she was being, she was an even worse friend.

She'd spent so long with Zekk, she'd barely noticed. He was so loyal that she probably could have treated him in the worst way possible, and he still would have stuck around. And, in fact, she'd had some shining moments of awful in the last few years. But he always stayed, even when she was pushing everyone away. It wasn't until recently that she had come to appreciat

 

What a treat to see you posting here in Beyond. Its a wonderful piece too. Perfect context for the song, and your prose is, as always, splendid.

So I came up with this particularly inspired scheme. If by inspired, I mean insane.

Jaina's voice is perfect. That sarcastic tone that both her parents are known for, with her own self-deprecation. Its good to see her being introspective without being a crybaby- which people all to often accuse her of.

Jag arguement over the "logic" of his feelings is so like him. You really showed how much it was bothering him, made worse by the fact he, being a non-Jedi, can't do what he wants to do.

I really love the conversation's tone. Its a beautiful combination of humor and unspoken longing. It really makes me sad for both of them.

And the little nod at the end toward Jacen is priceless. She's going to stop him, and come home to Jag and a bubble bath- wow, if we were all that lucky!


You might not write here often, but you sure have these two down perfectly, and I hope you take the time to grace us with your presence again- soon!

 

Thank you, padwanlost! I have to admit, it felt very strange posting over here, but I think something might have bitten me, because I've gotten a few more ideas. Once I get past the fact that it's well-known canon characters who have never been caught near a video game, I'm sure I'll be fine.

Needless to say, Jaina Solo is my favourite character, and has been for many years. Jag is also a character I've always liked, but Fury rocketed him up to the top end of my list. My copy of the book has started to naturally open to some of his best scenes.

Anyway, thanks for dropping by and commenting. And I got really behind on reading pretty much every story I was following before I graduated, so I've been slowly catching up on everything I missed. I'm part way through Eternal War, but I'm still behind. Worry not, it's next on my list of things to finish, so hopefully I'll see you in the comments over in your story soon.

 

I like this little scene. Jag is awesome - after reading how he pushed Jaina in Fury, I was thinking "it's about time..."

KT

 

This was a sheer joy to read!

He would never dream of stopping her. She was determined to go, and this time, it was for all the right reasons. He'd even been the catalyst, forcing her to realize she wasn't ready for the task she'd appointed herself. He had no logical objections to her mission.

That was the problem. There was no logical objection. He just wanted to go with her, and there were untold logical objections to that plan.

Jag frowned. He knew better than to think there was a galactic force out to get him, but he sometimes wondered.

She would handle herself well, he knew. Once she committed herself to an idea, she always saw it through, even if she wore herself ragged doing it. He'd watched her train relentlessly, and while it wasn't enough, she would be an eager, if stubborn pupil. She'd see the galaxy brought back to peace if it killed her doing it.

Wonderful!

 

First of all, beautifully written.

He didn't take his eyes off the starfighter until it shot out of sight, and even then his eyes lingered on the stars a few moments longer.

Turning, he left the landing platform. There was no point in staying there any longer.

These lines capture so much of his personality in such a small space. Wonderful characterization!

Second, terrific choice for that particular song! I wouldn't have originally thought of Jaina for it, but now that you wrote it, I can't see anyone else.

Great story!

 

KT: Thank you for reading! I agree, Jaina needed a swift whack over the head, and Fury did such a good job of handling it.

Mama Vader: Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed the story.

divapilot: You know, I decided pretty early on that I wanted to use this song for a pilot, but until I read Fury, this story was going to be set in the KOTOR era. So yeah, there are a lot of ways this song could be used, but it just fit so well I couldn't resist. I'm glad the characterization came through- I haven't written these characters since the NJO, and Jag especially was so good in Fury that I wanted to do his character justice. Thank you for taking the time to read the story!

 

You really made this song work here. Nice job.

I also liked the ease into friendship you portrayed between the two of them. It's nice to see them be friends again.

Nice job.

 

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