Jax winced at An’s words towards Aeris, wondering how the other woman would respond. Aeris sighed, guessing that An had missed the point she was making. In fairness, she’d asked if it was that simple, but she hadn’t been referring to the plan itself in that instance. She couldn’t expect her to know that, though. “It’s not about simplicity, An. It’s about efficacy in the long run,” she replied, her voice level and calm, drawing on the calm she felt from the man next to her. She looked to Jek when he placed a hand on her arm and spoke again, telling her it was okay to have doubts, that it led to caution and survival. It was true, that was part of why she had managed to stay alive during the wars, because she was cautious, she voiced her doubts or concerns, and she used her mind to develop strategies during battles, rather than jumping at the first plan or rushing headlong into battle.<br/><br/>He went on, addressing everyone with a stern voice to tell them that they would proceed with this for now, until such a time that the plan needed to be changed. Aeris crossed her left arm across her chest, her right elbow resting on her left hand while her right hand cradled her chin, apparently deep in thought. She didn’t think it was that the plan needed to be changed, exactly. More like modified to address certain issues that she could guess would cause problems down the road, although she guessed that everyone else likely planned to ignore these issues and hope for the best. “Hmm? Yeah, sure,” she had agreed to the plan absentmindedly as she was lost in thought.<br/><br/>Jax had agreed to the plan, as before, but he wondered what it was that Aeris was thinking about now. She had always been the first to speak up and voice her doubts when something didn’t make sense to her. She was the complete opposite of him in that way. But he admired that she was brave enough to speak up when he was not. Honestly, he had his doubts, too. He had doubts about his ability to simply allow their mission to continue unhindered, about essentially lying to the girls if they did work against them, about whether they would really find the answer at the end, and more than anything, he had doubts about voicing his concerns.<br/><br/>Aeris focused her attention on Jek when he asked her for a tour of her ship before she gave him a tour of the battlecruiser. “Sure,” she replied, standing up and taking his hand, returning his smile. “See you,” she waved to the other two as An took Jax’s hand and swiftly dragged him away, which was a familiar sight that made her chuckle a little.<br/><br/>Jax gave a wave back at the two of them as An led them off the ship and to the lift. He pulled his hood back up as she had, putting his arms around her when she leaned into him, staring down into her eyes. “We can duel,” he replied, suspecting that this was what she would be more interested in. He brushed a finger against her cheek and offered a small but reassuring smile, “I’ll check out the power center again later,” he winked at her before moving only enough for his long arm to reach the button to take them up to the top floor.<br/><br/>He would continue to hold her, if she left him, until the lift came to a stop. He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before taking her hand this time and retracing the steps they’d taken before to the training room. “So, should we get some training sabers? Or are you wanting to use the real thing?” he asked as they walked in and he took the room in again.<br/><br/>-<br/><br/>When the other two had left the ship, Aeris led Jek around to the different parts of the ship, starting with a couple of rooms that would have served as crew quarters if she’d had any, showing him the fully stocked cargo hold, then to the main bridge that had a few places to sit, a large holoprojector, and a table for games, among other things. She gave him a little time to look around if he wished, then took him to the cockpit, which was a pretty good size, with entrances on either side, seats for not only a pilot and a copilot, but also a commander/captain, a holocomm, star maps, and all manner of panels and screens for various purposes along the two walls and the back wall. It was obviously a much newer model than what Jax had, thanks to the countless difficult, generally unwanted, and usually well-rewarded missions she tended to take for the Empire.<br/><br/>She again allowed him time to look around, sit, touch things if he wished, or otherwise inspect the large cockpit knowing there was a lot to look at, also hoping that one day he would join her on the ship. Once she had given him plenty of time and he seemed ready to move on, she took him to the other side of the ship, where there were additional crew quarters, one of which was converted to a training room, another of which resembled a meditation chamber.<br/><br/>“Last are my quarters,” she took him into the largest quarters on the ships, “I mainly just used them to store my things,” she explained as she moved to allow him to look around. The room was tidy, although not entirely unlived in. She had clothes and other various things in the room, all of which were stored neatly. “I don’t think I’ve ever actually slept in them,” she admitted, taking a seat on the bed, placing her hands behind her like a tripods and leaning back just a little to watch him. “I’ve probably spent more time in the meditation chamber than in here. That’s why I redesigned it that way,” she explained, keeping her eyes on him.<br/><br/>She didn’t say anything else for a short time before she decided to try to open up a little more. She’d already sort of given away that she didn’t sleep much anymore, but she’d never told him why. “Sleep didn’t come easy, either during the war or after,” she began, pursing her lips a little as she thought about it, “Every time I closed my eyes it was either a nightmare—either of the war or of losing you—or I was reliving tainted memories,” she explained, obviously struggling a little. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming herself. “So I learned to rely on different meditation rituals instead of sleeping. I ran from that like everything else, I guess,” she explained, her eyes watching him, following his every movement, searching for what he felt.