I Want to be Your Knight: Chapter 14

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Awareness came slowly, accompanied by the tang and taste of Bacta. I blinked open my eyes, and found myself staring at a soft blue ceiling. I scowled at that ceiling, fairly certain the one in my room was white.

Casting my thoughts back, I searched my memories. I remembered the sparring session which Kyp took over. The hundred or so remotes. Seeing Seha injured and Jys standing over her as all the remotes closed in on her. Then I remembered my diving towards the floor, trying to figure out a way to protect both of them.

I struggled to sit it, and looked around to find myself in a standard med center room. Against the wall opposite the bed was a worn brown couch, and on that couch, beneath a thin hospital blanket, were Seha and Jys, leaning against each other, asleep.

Set against another wall, close to the door that I assumed led out to the hallway, was a single-person chair. A hideous orange color. I had to guess that they bought chairs that color because no one else wanted them and they were cheap. Or because no one would steal them. Either way, it was probably the ugliest thing I had seen in years.

On one side of my bed was a simple wooden nightstand, and on the other a bank of diagnostic equipment, none of it currently turned on.

I turned my attention back to the girls and felt a grin come to my lips. As it did so, I could feel my cheek wrinkle oddly, stretching in places where it shouldn't. Frowning, I lifted my hand and ran it down my face, feeling an odd hardness that ran the length of my face from my temple to my chin.

Before I could figure it out, the door opened, and Kyp walked in. He saw me sitting up in the bed, and grinned my way. "Ah, you've woken up I see." Then he glanced at the girls. "And I could have sworn I told them to return to the quarters and get some rest."

I scratched at my head, frowning. "What happened?"

Kyp grabbed the chair and dragged it to the side of my bed. Then he plopped down into the chair, and leaned back slightly. "Well, besides you destroying a few hundred thousand credits worth of remotes, droids and training equipment?"

I snorted. "Yeah, besides that."

Kyp shrugged his shoulders, and gestured towards the nightstand. A mirror floated over to his hands, and he silently handed it to me. I frowned at it for a moment, and then lifted it up to gaze into it.

I gasped in shock at the jagged white line which stretched the length of my face. I lifted my hand and ran it down the scar, feeling that hardness underneath his fingers again.

My eyes flicked from my reflection to stare into Kyp's dark eyes. "What? How?"

He slowly shook his head. "It's your stupid, Skywalker genes. You saw Seha injured, and Jys standing over her and you reacted. I was so focused on your acrobatics with the ball droid, that I hadn't noticed them. When you noticed, and before I could do anything, you were suddenly on the floor getting shot by those remotes. Then you used the Force to slam them into the ceiling. You tackled Jys and used the Force to throw a shield over the three of you to protect everyone from falling bits of flaming metal. But before you did, a piece of shrapnel sliced down your face, and it was hot enough to cauterize the wound."

Listening to Kyp, I remembered flashes of what had happened. Ending with the memory of sudden cut off of Jys' rant, and Seha whispered voice saying, "Ben, I'm so sorry."

I shrugged my shoulders and tossed the mirror towards the foot of the bed. "Ah, well, it's just another scar."

Kyp chuckled. "That's the spirit." He said, and then he stood up, smiling at me. "Get some rest, you have classes in the morning again."

I sighed and leaned back in the bed, as Kyp walked from the room. As soon as the door was shut, I grinned and sat back up. With a flick of my fingers, I activated the door lock, and then turned back to the girls who were sleeping peacefully.

I slipped out of bed, and found a pitcher under the nightstand. Still smiling, I filled it with cold water and then went and stood over Jysella. I lifted it above her head, and then looked down at her and paused.

Kyp's words bounced around my head. Such an off-hand comment he had made. That he had told them to return to our quarters. I frowned and lowered the pitcher, then I walked over and set it on the nightstand by the bed. I couldn't be mean to her. I couldn't play that prank on her. Not here. Not when she was so obviously worried about me.

Besides, I realized, I might have gotten some of that cold water on Seha.

I returned to the girls and touched Jysella on her shoulder. Her eyes snapped open, and focused on me. A smile flickered across her face before being replaced by a dark scowl. She sat up, creating a small space between the two girls.

"Kriff, Skywalker," she growled out. "What are you doing out of bed? And you shouldn't wake people up, you know."

Jys' growlings had woken Seha, and she lifted her head, scrubbing at one eye with a fist. Then she blinked as she noticed me and a warm smile graced her face. "Ben! You're awake!"

I smiled at her, and then flipped my eyes back to Jys. "Why couldn't your greeting be as nice as hers?"

She crossed her arms, and flipped her head away from me. "You don't deserve it. Not after that stunt you pulled."

I laughed, an dropped into the space that Jys had created earlier, jamming myself between them. I wrapped my arms around them both and drug them in for a hug. "Aw, I knew you both cared. Sleeping on this couch. I almost didn't wake you two up, because you both looked so cute sleeping here."

Jys and Seha both slapped their hands onto my chest. Then Jys pushed against me, struggling to stand. I released her and she shot up off the couch, glaring down at me. "You're so karking annoying, you know that Skywalker?"

I smirked at her. "Well, Jaina always said that was my best feature."

She stormed towards the door. "I'm going back now."

I smiled at her back, and as she reached the door, called out, "Hey, Jys?"

She stopped, her hand over the lock plate, as she glanced back over her shoulder, looking at me. That smile still on my face, I said, "Thanks for watching over me."

She watched me for a moment longer and then gave a quick nod of her head, and left the room.

The door closed again with a slight hiss. I watched it for a few moments, trying to figure that girl out. Then I remembered that Seha was still wrapped tight in my arms. I looked down, wondering why she hadn't struggled to escape my hug the same way Jysella had. The reason why, was because she had snuggled down into my arm, laid her head where the shoulder joins the chest, and fallen asleep, a nearly silent snore escaping her.

I watched her for a few minutes, thinking that she was even more confusing to me than Jysella.

I used the Force, to draw the blanket up over us, and I got as comfortable as I could while sitting up like that. Then I closed my eyes and tried to sleep.

I'm not sure how long I was asleep, or if I even managed to get to sleep, but Seha's voice woke me. With my free hand, I scrubbed at my eyes, and looked down, to discover that she was still asleep.

A light sweat clung to her, as she fidgeted in my arms.

I recognized the signs of a nightmare.

I frowned at that, as Jedi weren't supposed to dream that often. She mumbled some other things, a random collection of words and sounds: who... len... -are, no!, dun-, then, no!

Then her eyes snapped open and she bolted up off my chest. Her mouth opened in a silent scream, and her eyes rolled back up into her head as she collapsed to the floor.

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