FYI: This is in response to Trillian's Challenge Forum Supported by BaM Webs. The challenge was: A romance that takes place before or after the events of K1 and K2 with someone who was not on the Ebon Hawk with Revan or Exile during the game period. You can visit my profile page for a quick link to the challenge. There, you can see other entries and vote for your favorite.

Disclaimer: The characters here belong to Bioware and Obsidian and the GFFA belongs to Lucas. I just tell stories for free.

Epilogue to Redemption

"…and now onto Who's Doing Who in the Galaxy with our very own Schodd Torman."

"Thanks Riesa. The big news today isn't the attempted comeback of former head banging sensation Galactic Boys. In fact, it's who was there to see it…"

The camera zoomed into the crowded auditorium to focus in on a human man and woman. The man had a medium build with brown hair and brown eyes. The woman was a bit shorter than him. She had a small frame with black hair and green eyes. Both had huge smiles on their faces and were dancing and singing along with the music.

The female reporter's voice could be heard, "Schodd, that's not who I think it is, is it?"

The male reporter appeared on the screen again. "If you were thinking former Dark Lord Revan, you would be right. It seems the one-time Jedi has found yet another boy toy. You may remember her earlier years with various Jedi, Senators, Soldiers, and others. This scene shows us she's still on the prowl."

The image shifted to another scene of the pair with their arms around each other sharing a rather steamy kiss.

"I guess she is." Riesa commented. "So tell us, Schodd, who is this man?"

"Sources tell us he's a former Republic soldier that fought in the Mandalorian War. At the end of the war, he was one of the many that joined Revan's forces. So far, we haven't been able to determine what his role was with the Sith. He seems to have many aliases, but most commonly goes by the name of Atton Rand."

"Schodd, is there any indication this man is still involved with the remnants of the Sith?"

"On the contrary, although Rand has a rather extensive criminal record, it appears he was heavily involved in the battle over Telos that nearly destroyed the restoration efforts. This time, he was on the side of the Republic."

"It seems this one switches sides as much as she does," Riesa pointed out.

"Indeed. It makes them an interesting pair."

"Schodd, is this union something the galaxy should be worried about?" Riesa asked.

The man shook his head. "I think Republic officials were much more concerned about the various rumors of the former Dark Lord being bedfellows with a high ranking Fleet officer…"

The woman standing in the sleeping chamber doorway spoke, "I thought we agreed not to watch that trash?"

Atton sighed heavily and sank further into the cushions of the couch. "I know we did."

Revan padded over to where he was slouched in a sitting position. Adjusting her sleep shift, she eased onto his lap and faced him with one knee on either side of him. She casually brushed her hands along his bare chest and rested them above the band of his sleep pants. He was looking down, unwilling to meet her gaze. His barriers firmly in place, he wasn't allowing her access to sooth his troubled thoughts.

They were on Coruscant to prepare for a mission. Part of the preparation was to gain a little exposure to the public to let them know Revan was still around. She and Atton had been working for Special Ops since shortly after Revan and Sera returned. Certain members of the Fleet and Senate were not so foolish as to let Revan's skills go unused. Although she had cut her ties with the Order, her allegiance to the Republic was still wholly in place. Of course, they never relinquished entire control of the fleet to her again… although she did still offer a few pointers here and there.

It was late and she had been sleeping. She'd thought Atton had been with her until she woke to find him gone. When she reached out with the Force, she had found him sitting in the common room… a dark veil over his senses.

He finally looked up at her with a tired expression. "I want to leave."

Revan smiled faintly. "Why? Because of that?" She threw a glance over her shoulder at the holoimager sitting across from them. It was now running through a series of images of alleged affairs she'd had… most of which were untrue.

Atton sighed and moved his hands to run along the outside of her thighs. "I hate how they talk about you."

"I know you do," she replied softly. She didn't detect any jealousy on Atton's part. They were very honest with one another and both knew the personal aspects of each other's lives. It was a necessity for Atton. He had a wild imagination and if he suspected a threat from another man, it could lead to embarrassment for all of them. But for safe measure… "Come on, you don't think I'd really have an affair with Senator Ticin, do you? I mean, look at him, he has four nostrils."

Atton couldn't help but chuckle at that. She was glad she was at least able to lighten him up a little. It was something they'd learned to do… tend to each others "darker" moods.

"You know it's not that," he said with half a smile.

He was quiet for another moment. She reached for the controller and said, "Look at this." He looked around her at the holoimager to see her rewind the images to the ones with them at the performance. Revan stopped at the image of the two of them laughing together. "What does that look like from the outside?" she asked.

She studied his expression, but Atton made no move to respond. She decided to fill in for him. "It looks to me like two people having a great time. They look…" she trailed off as she considered the image.

"Happy," he said. His voice was barely above a whisper, but the simple word sent a feeling of warmth throughout her. The fog he had been in was slowly beginning to lift.

She smiled broadly and her eyes lit up in mock surprise. "Happy? You?"

He chuckled again and leaned his head against the back of the couch. "I can't believe there's actually visual proof of me being happy on Coruscant."

She laughed with him. "I won't hold it against you."

Neither liked being on Coruscant. Whenever they blasted off planet, it was like a heavy weight was lifted from both of them.

For Revan, Coruscant was once her home. And it was a home she no longer felt welcome in. Atton's experiences on the city planet were those he would like to keep long forgotten. And although he had come to terms with Revan and Carth's past relationship, he still felt a little animosity around the Admiral. Carth had moved on before Revan's return. But Atton was convinced the soldier would give it all up with the right words from Revan. But Revan felt she and Carth were simply unable to live with the past together… old wounds constantly being torn open.

Then there was Sera. But the more time they spent around the former exile, the more Atton realized she wasn't the woman for him. She had become very devoted to the Jedi and the rebuilding of the Order in the wake of its devastation. Mical had been more than willing to stand beside her to create the Order he'd always dreamed of. Atton, on the other hand, had no intentions of being a Jedi. It didn't stop him from training with Revan, but neither claimed to be Jedi.

"I still can't believe you knew all the words," he said.

She lifted an eyebrow. "Me?" Pointing a finger into his chest, "You knew the words just as much as I did, Rand."

He swatted her hand. "Bah, I was drunk. Probably just making them up as I went along."

Revan looked off in thought. With a wry smile, she said, "No, if you were drunk I would have been pressed against the wall in some alley at some point."

With a pointed look, Atton defended, "Hey, I'm not always the one responsible in those situations."

Her smile grew. He was right about that. "I know you knew the words," she added, "I do believe you were singing an occasional line into my ear."

He blushed furiously, always embarrassed when she called him out on his tender moments.

Atton reached for the controller and pressed another button. The holo advanced and then stopped at the sight of their embrace. They were both silent for a moment.

She smiled faintly and shifted in order to wrap her arms around him. He moved his hands around her waist to pull her closer.

She leaned forward and planted tender kisses along his jaw. "I love you, Atton," she whispered into his ear. It was then he opened himself up and finally accepted the reassurance she had been trying to send to him.

They held onto each other tightly, physically and through the Force for several moments. Through the quietness of the room, she murmured, "Three more days."

Atton sighed, "Three more days." He loosened his hold on her and said, "We need to get some sleep."

She leaned back and paused as he tenderly tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

Sliding off his lap, Revan stood and offered a hand to guide him back to their sleeping chamber. When he stood, he pulled her to him and kissed her softly.

They crawled back beneath the sheets and Revan naturally fell into the warmth of his embrace, her back pressed against his chest. Atton's heart filled with the love he had for her, the love he'd thought he would never find. He certainly never expected to find it in her. But he thanked the Force every day for sending her to him. "I love you, Revan."

He felt her mental caress, but also noted a hint of mischief. She said, "It's a good thing because we're going to the opera the night after tomorrow."

Atton's eyes shot open as the horror of what she said sank in. He groaned inwardly, The Opera? With a heavy sigh, he nuzzled into her hair. "Only for you, babe. Only for you."

He detected her triumphant smile and chuckled to himself before drifting off to sleep.

The End

A/N: This isn't the Revan/Atton story I had in mind, but I didn't have time to write that one. It's on the list after I've completed some other WIP's. Special thanks to Alexandra3 for the beta.