{"id":914,"date":"2012-04-16T00:01:31","date_gmt":"2012-04-16T05:01:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jackofharts.com\/?p=914"},"modified":"2013-02-25T00:21:22","modified_gmt":"2013-02-25T06:21:22","slug":"jester","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/?p=914","title":{"rendered":"Jester"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 I gained two names during The War.\u00a0 The Peloran gave all of us names of animals, and they gave me the name of Hart.\u00a0 I still don\u2019t entirely understand why they picked that name.\u00a0 Still, I chose to keep it.\u00a0 It has a ring<\/em> to it that I like.\u00a0 My fellow pilots gave me a name too.\u00a0 I developed a bit of a reputation for practical jokes back then.\u00a0 I do truly understand why<\/em> they gave me that<\/em> name.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Jester<\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

It was Oh Dark Thirty and Jack was bored.<\/p>\n

It was never good when he got bored.\u00a0 Back home, people had learned that a bored Jack was a scary<\/em> Jack.\u00a0 Not that he was dangerous of course.\u00a0 But when he was bored, he always looked for something to fill the time.\u00a0 Whatever it was usually made him smile, or maybe giggle like a schoolgirl if it was particularly amusing.\u00a0 And it usually resulted in other<\/em> people running away.<\/p>\n

Right now, he was bored.\u00a0 Very bored.<\/p>\n

Jasmine and Betty stood on either side of the watchtower, in their preferred clothing since they were alone with him, scanning Leif Erikson Spacebase for any irregularities.\u00a0 He watched too, but in all honesty they were much <\/em>better watchers than he was.\u00a0 They<\/em> never got bored<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Jack frowned in suspicion as an thought occurred to him.\u00a0 \u201cAre you two playing games right now?\u201d<\/p>\n

The two cybers glanced at each before turning to shrug towards Jack.\u00a0 Betty answered with a smile.<\/p>\n

Jack sighed.\u00a0 \u201cI wish I could.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat<\/em> would be against regs<\/em>,\u201d Jasmine supplied in a commiserating voice.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me<\/em>,\u201d Jack grumped.\u00a0 \u201cYou girls have it so<\/em> lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n

The two cybers rolled their eyes in unison and returned to scanning the base.\u00a0 Not that they\u2019d really stopped when they looked at him of course.\u00a0 Still, it was the appearances that mattered.\u00a0 He stood up and walked around the inside of the tower, staring out at the early morning darkness that covered the base.<\/p>\n

Jack frowned and slapped his hands on his knees.\u00a0 \u201cOK.\u00a0 This is bull.\u00a0 I need something to do.\u00a0 Anyone up for strip poker?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine and Betty crossed their arms, cocked their heads, and just stared at him.<\/p>\n

Jack gave a disappointed sigh at their response.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ll take that as a \u2018no\u2019 I suppose.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack walked over and sat down at the watchtower\u2019s main control console.\u00a0 He cleared his throat, drummed his fingers on the console, and looked out into the darkness.\u00a0 The cybers returned to watching and he felt more precious time crawl by.\u00a0 He hated having nothing to do, and this was just starting to make him go crazy.\u00a0 And very, very bored.<\/p>\n

Jack sighed.\u00a0 This was ridicules.\u00a0 \u201cOK.\u00a0 How about we plan<\/em> to do something?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike what?\u201d Betty asked.<\/p>\n

Jack shrugged and waved his hand at the console.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u00a0 Something that makes me laugh<\/em>, so I can at least anticipate<\/em> the end of this soul-sucking boredom.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t like watching?\u201d Jasmine asked.<\/p>\n

Jack grunted in annoyance.\u00a0 \u201cThere\u2019s nothing interesting to watch<\/em>.\u00a0 All those guys are doing down there is sleeping<\/em>!\u00a0 Oh, if there\u2019s something interesting<\/em> to watch, I\u2019m happy to, but I\u2019ll always love doing<\/em> a whole lot more,\u201d he finished with a wink.<\/p>\n

Jasmine laughed back.\u00a0 \u201cDuly noted.\u00a0 So what do you want to do<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack leaned back in his chair and furrowed his brow in thought.\u00a0 Finally something came to mind and he smiled.\u00a0 \u201cWhat those tech wizards yesterday failed to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine and Betty looked at each other in confusion.\u00a0 Betty finally raised one eyebrow, questioning what he meant.<\/p>\n

Jack chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cScare the crap out of Leif Erikson Spacebase.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine rubbed her chin for a moment, in deep thought.\u00a0 \u201cDidn\u2019t Charles said not to wake him?\u201d she asked with a sly smile.<\/p>\n

Jack gave her an answering smile.\u00a0 \u201cThen we don\u2019t.\u00a0 We do it at Reveille.\u201d<\/p>\n

Betty smiled at him, brought both hands behind her back, and cocked her head to the side, asking what he was thinking about.<\/p>\n

Jack shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know\u2026maybe we could start with fireworks?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine shared a gaze with Betty before answering.\u00a0 \u201cNot very scary,\u201d she finally said.<\/p>\n

Betty smiled, nodding for Jack to continue.<\/p>\n

Jack chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cNot until the fireworks start exploding at street level all over the assembled marines.\u201d<\/p>\n

Betty laughed and shook her head at him.\u00a0 Jasmine looked at him in surprise.<\/p>\n

\u201cHolographic of course,\u201d he said with a smile and a shrug.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019d love some better ideas.\u00a0 Come on and spill if you got any,\u201d he added with a wink.<\/p>\n

Betty looked out at the base and shifted back and forth.\u00a0 \u201cWe could get in serious trouble for disrupting Reveille,\u201d she said with a shake of her head.<\/p>\n

Jack\u2019s smile broadened.\u00a0 \u201cWell, of course we wouldn\u2019t want to disturb<\/em> it,\u201d he returned and she turned back to him.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s why we start the fun after<\/em> Reveille.\u201d\u00a0 He frowned as a new thought came to mind.\u00a0 \u201cSay, are the Devildogs still on base?\u201d<\/p>\n

Betty blinked in surprise and cocked her head to the side as she accessed the information.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 They are scheduled to finish their packing for transport to the fleet tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack smiled in a conspiratorial manner.\u00a0 \u201cGood.\u00a0 I may have a job for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cybers exchanged a doubtful glance and Betty pursed her lips at him.\u00a0 \u201cI don\u2019t know if this is a good idea, Jack,\u201d she warned him.<\/p>\n

Jack chuckled at the two cybers.\u00a0 \u201cNonsense. \u00a0It\u2019s a great<\/em> idea!\u201d he said with upraised arms.<\/p>\n

Betty sighed and shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cYou are going to get in so much trouble.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack chuckled at them.\u00a0 \u201cNot if they don\u2019t catch us,\u201d he said with a wink.\u00a0 \u201cUnless you think you\u2019re not up to being able to do something like this without getting caught of course.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both cybers cybers bristled at the idea that they weren\u2019t good enough.<\/p>\n

Jack smiled at them with a face full of cherubic innocence.<\/p>\n

Betty\u2019s eyes narrowed.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t fool me, mister.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine giggled.\u00a0 \u201cBut he\u2019s right,\u201d she said towards Betty.\u00a0 \u201cIt would be so<\/em> much fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

Betty glanced at Jasmine and they shared the silent communication the two cybers always had.\u00a0 Betty finally sighed and gave Jack a reluctant smile.\u00a0 \u201cFine.\u00a0 I guess I\u2019m in too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack clapped his hands in joy.\u00a0 \u201cExcellent!\u00a0 This is going to be fun<\/em>.\u00a0 So\u2026any ideas on improving the plan?\u201d<\/p>\n

Betty shook her head and smiled at him.\u00a0 \u201cYour vision, Jack,\u201d she said and waved a hand at him to get thinking.<\/p>\n

Jasmine cocked here head to the side and tapped her cheek.\u00a0 \u201cI might have a few ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Betty sighed and shook her head in defeat.\u00a0 \u201cFine,\u201d she whispered with manifest reluctance.<\/p>\n

Jack laughed.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s the spirit!\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine laughed and began helping him plan the morning\u2019s festivities.\u00a0 After a few minutes, Betty emitted a long sigh of disapproval, and gave an idea of her own.\u00a0 Finally, the minutes stopped crawling by, and Jack truly began to enjoy his time brainstorming.\u00a0 They shot down most of his ideas, but in all honesty he\u2019d always enjoyed the brainstorming as much as the actual prank.\u00a0 And he so<\/em> loved having conspirators who could think even faster than he<\/em> could.<\/p>\n

Jack found his eyes stopping on Jasmine, and he studied her lithe form for a long time.\u00a0 A feeling of\u2026melancholy began to fill him and he smiled.\u00a0 She hadn\u2019t been around much lately, and it felt good to have her blue jeans and tank top back here, if even for a short time.<\/p>\n

She returned his gaze with a questioning gaze.\u00a0 \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack shrugged.\u00a0 \u201cJust thinking I\u2019m going to miss you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine cocked her head to the side.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack smiled.\u00a0 \u201cNorman.\u201d\u00a0 He nodded in the direction of Samantha\u2019s house, far enough away that even he<\/em> couldn\u2019t see it.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s pretty clear how you feel there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine blushed.\u00a0 \u201cOh.\u00a0 Well.\u201d\u00a0 She answered his smile.\u00a0 \u201cYou do<\/em> know we can be in multiple places at once, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack nodded with good grace.\u00a0 \u201cOf course.\u00a0 But you only ever have one place you really live<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine shared a glance he couldn\u2019t decipher with Betty before sitting down on the window ledge.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s true.\u201d\u00a0 She stared at him for a long time.\u00a0 \u201cSo what do you want me to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack sighed and spent several seconds thinking before answering.\u00a0 \u201cBe happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine and Betty shared another undecipherable look.\u00a0 \u201cThe coward\u2019s answer,\u201d Jasmine whispered.<\/p>\n

\u201cHey!\u201d Jack erupted.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s the truth!\u00a0 I\u2019ve seen<\/em> how you and Norman are together!\u00a0 I can\u2019t\u2026\u201d the words faded away and he shook his head in anger.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t what?\u201d Jasmine asked.\u00a0 When he didn\u2019t answer, she sighed.\u00a0 \u201cJack, Jack, Jack,\u201d she whispered in a sing-song tone.\u00a0 \u201cWhat do you<\/em> want? Not what do you want for me<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack shook his head, and let out a long breath.\u00a0 \u201cHonestly, Jazz, you and Drew were\u2026awesome<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 He smiled at her.\u00a0 \u201cNo other words for it.\u00a0 You and Norman are the same, and he\u2019s got a good family.\u00a0 Never<\/em> underestimate how special that is.\u00a0 Just stay<\/em> here.\u00a0 You\u2019re alive when most cybers aren\u2019t.\u00a0 Don\u2019t throw that second chance away by following some guy that could eat a missile tomorrow,\u201d Jack finished and looked away from her, clasping his hands behind his back.<\/p>\n

A cyber\u2019s feathery touch brushed his shoulder and Jack glanced over without turning his head.\u00a0 He recognized Betty\u2019s hand, let out a long breath, and brought his up to hold it.\u00a0 She would never leave, no matter what.\u00a0 That was her bargain.\u00a0 And he would never give up.\u00a0 That was his<\/em> bargain.\u00a0 But his only bargain with Jasmine was that he would help her live.<\/p>\n

Jasmine slid over to sit on the window ledge before him, a soft smile on her face.\u00a0 \u201cSo it really is<\/em> my happiness you worry about?\u00a0 And my life?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack nodded without reservation.\u00a0 \u201cYes.\u00a0 You\u2019ve got a chance to live forever<\/em> with that family and be happy<\/em>.\u00a0 Take it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine laughed and shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cAnd there\u2019s the rub,\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n

Jack raised his eyes to look at her, one eyebrow raised in a question.<\/p>\n

She smiled back at him.\u00a0 \u201cDo you know what I enjoy the most out of anything<\/em> I\u2019ve ever been or done?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack swallowed, thinking he knew exactly what she meant.\u00a0 Flying really was amazing, but it wasn\u2019t everything.\u00a0 \u201cJazz, I had a family and friends and everything I could ever want back home.\u00a0 If I could, I\u2019d go back to that.\u00a0 That\u2019s everything<\/em>.\u00a0 It\u2019s better than flying<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jasmine nodded slowly and pushed away from the window, standing tall in front of him.\u00a0 \u201cI couldn\u2019t have said it better myself,\u201d she said with a smile.<\/p>\n

Jack had the sinking feeling that his words hadn\u2019t had the effect he\u2019d wanted.\u00a0 \u201cJazz,\u201d he tried one last time.<\/p>\n

She raised a hand to stop him.\u00a0 \u201cJack,\u201d she said over her shoulder.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m just not good at playing a house cyber,\u201d she whispered with a wry smile.\u00a0 \u201cI chose to be born a ship<\/em> cyber.\u00a0 I\u2019m not going to give that up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack nodded slowly.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t talk you out of it?\u201d he asked in a sad tone.<\/p>\n

Jasmine shook her head with a firm motion.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not getting rid of me.\u00a0 So man up, stand up, and let\u2019s get back to work,\u201d she ordered.<\/p>\n

Jack came to his feet without hesitation, then shook his head in amazement.\u00a0 He wondered if she had any idea how much she\u2019d changed in the last month.\u00a0 Probably.\u00a0 But maybe not too.\u00a0 Blindspots were never as powerful as when they covered oneself after all.\u00a0 Jack smiled at her.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he said in the tone of voice he used for amazing women.<\/p>\n

Jasmine placed her fists on her hips and glared at Jack.\u00a0 \u201cAnd don\u2019t be using that tone of voice with me.\u00a0 I\u2019m not one of your scrumpets.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack chuckled.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he said in his superior officer tone.<\/p>\n

\u201cBetter.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jack turned to Betty and cocked his head to the side, asking her if this is what she wanted.<\/p>\n

Betty answered with a smile and slight nod of her head.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw that,\u201d Jasmine announced.<\/p>\n

Jack and Betty rolled their eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell then, where were we again?\u201d Jack asked and turned back to their work.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe wolves,\u201d Jasmine and Betty answered in unison.<\/p>\n

\u201cAh yes, how could I forget them?\u00a0 Do you think the Devildogs would enjoy chasing them away?\u201d<\/p>\n

They continued planning and working, industrious little jokers, until the first notes of Reveille began and they had to salute the flag rising before the base headquarters.\u00a0 The marines assembled in front of it looked great, in perfect formation all the way through to the end.\u00a0 Even the cannon shot went off with perfect timing, echoing across the base and declaring to all in earshot that a new day had come with the rising of the first sun over the distant horizon.<\/p>\n

And then the fireworks began, first high up in the air, and then lower and lower and lower until they swept through the assembled marines.\u00a0 Wolves howled in the distance, pandemonium split the ranked formations apart, and the Jesters ruled the base as more and more of their ideas erupted into being around the targets that really should<\/em> be on their toes enough to deal with them.\u00a0 This was<\/em> after all a military<\/em> base.<\/p>\n

The tech wizards from yesterday would be so<\/em> jealous at being upstaged.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 I gained two names during The War.\u00a0 The Peloran gave all of us names of animals, and they gave me the name of Hart.\u00a0 I still don\u2019t entirely understand why they picked that name.\u00a0 Still,[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-914","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2304-forge-of-war-1stdraft","uentry","postonpage-1","odd","post-author-jack"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/914","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=914"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/914\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1851,"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/914\/revisions\/1851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=914"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=914"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jackofharts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=914"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}