Chapter 6

Rex walked down the darkened corridor toward Ahsoka's assigned quarters. His body hummed with anticipation. He was prepared. On his last leave, he had spent some time in a certain sort of establishment. He didn't want to fumble with Ahsoka. He wanted to know what he wanted and what he wanted to do. Just like in all of his other duties, he wanted to be thoroughly trained.

He knocked briskly on the door and waited.

Ahsoka started up from her bunk. She was still dressed in only her towel, but her battle instinct told her she should answer the door immediately in case there was something important. She pressed the button to slide the door open.

Rex filled the whole doorway. He crossed his arms across his chest when he saw her dressed in the towel. She smelled like soap and still had some drops of water on her arms.

"Something wrong, Rex?" Ahsoka asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Not from where I'm standing," he replied with a slow smile. "Looks like everything is right, in fact." He put a hand on her shoulder and gently moved her back from the doorway so that he could enter and close the door behind him. She moved cautiously backward and kept up eye contact, unsure what he was doing, but liking the feel of his hand on her bare shoulder. He didn't have his gloves on. They rarely touched skin on skin.

The hand on her shoulder began a slow petting motion and Rex's eyes slid down to look at his hand on her. The hand moved down to her elbow and then he was steering her again. This time, he gestured with his other hand toward the bunk. "Please sit with me," he said softly. He felt his scalp start to tingle with anticipation.

Ahsoka was surprised by his tone. She thought she had heard every tone of voice that Rex had, but this was definitely a new one. A shiver ran down her spine as she settled on the bed, followed by Rex, sitting much closer to her than he had at the Temple. It was then that Ahsoka noticed that Rex didn't have all of his armor on. Just from the waist down. She took the opportunity to look over his impressive chest. She wondered what it would feel like to put her cheek against it and listen to his heart.

"I thought we could spend some time together, Ahsoka," Rex continued with the soft tone. She couldn't remember him using her name before. She loved the way his mouth seemed to caress the word as he said it. She looked back up into his eyes.

"Yes," she replied meekly. Again, his smell filled her senses. He was so . . . male. Ahsoka felt dizzy with excitement. She wondered what he was doing, sitting so close to her and touching her. Then she kicked herself mentally. He was, how does the phrase go, coming on to her.

His hand slid from her elbow to her hand. His long fingers and big palm enveloped her slim digits. "Is it ok if I touch you?" he asked for her permission. She nodded, wide eyed. Ahsoka couldn't help the sigh that escaped her as her skin caught on fire with his touch. The sound even slid into a bit of a moan, to her embarrassment. She tried to cough to cover it up, looking up for his reaction.

He smiled to reassure her and then moved a little closer, propping himself up with his other arm on the bunk behind her back. "Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are? When you are in the middle of a firefight, you look like a goddess. All determination and valor. It's intoxicating," he told her as he leaned closer. "I've been watching you and thinking about you. I was wondering if you ever thought about me?"

"Beautiful?" Ahsoka echoed, unsure. The truth was that she had thought about him, his eyes, his lips, his hands. They had spent some pretty intense time together. And all that fighting for life, fighting against death, made her appreciate his constant presence. He was her rock, even more than her Master who could easily be off at a moment's notice for one crazy reason or another. Rex was steady. "Yes, I think about you . . ." she began.

Her eyes widened as he leaned in toward her. Was he going to kiss her? Did she want him to? She wasn't sure that her mind was really working properly considering his proximity and her lack of clothing. He kept leaning-he was going to kiss her. She licked her lips nervously and looked at his. Then she closed her eyes.

Rex kissed her lightly once. And then lightly again, his hand letting go of hers and sliding around her neck. Opening her eyes, she reached up, cupped his cheek, and met him more than halfway for the third kiss. She had never imagined this feeling before. Her every midi-chlorian felt like it was on fire. Her Rex was kissing her. He thought she was beautiful! She was filled with feelings she couldn't identify. Her training had never covered such things.

Instinctively, Ahsoka scooted closer to his body and placed her other hand on that firm chest. She traced across the top of his muscles and down his sternum. He was all angles and warmth. Solid. Very different from her own body, softly curvy but spare and maybe a little spindly. She could feel his heart racing a little bit to match her own.

Their lips still joined, Rex opened his a little and touched her softly with his tongue. Surprised, Ahsoka pulled back. She didn't know what to do, and she felt self-conscious. "Sorry, I'm new to this. I don't know what to do," she apologized to him, dropping her hands into her lap and staring down. Ahsoka had not been kissed before-Jedi didn't kiss. She began to wonder how much experience Rex had in these matters. When had he had time or opportunity to learn how to kiss?

His tilted her chin up to look into her eyes. His voice continued to be soft and reassuring. "Don't worry. I'm new to all of this too. But I want to share it with you. Trust me?" he asked. Rex felt a flutter in his stomach, something he was not accustomed to. But he was determined to finish his mission. Ahsoka seemed more than receptive to that plan. Her eyes were still wide, but less with trepidation and more with anticipation.

She nodded her assent, and he wasted no time leaning in to taste her again. She was like nothing he had ever had before. She was special and unique. She was Ahsoka; his little Jedi. He started with the light kisses again, but this time, when he parted his lips, she followed suit. He slowly introduced his tongue to her lips again. This time, her body melted toward him instead of pulling away. He wrapped his whole arm around her and marveled at how small she was. His arm could almost go around her twice.

Taking his time, he thoroughly explored her lips, those plump lips that were always so sassy. He would tame them tonight. Then he moved beyond her lips, into her mouth. He hummed his approval at the feel of her tongue on his. Eventually, he had to come up for air. He kept his eyes closed and savored the flavor on his tongue.

When he opened them, she sat looking at him thoughtfully. Rex reached up and stroked a hand gently down her lekku. Ahsoka closed her eyes in surrender. "Are you okay?" he asked her. Her eyes opened again, slowly. They both breathed heavily, eyes locked together.

"I think so. You?" she let a ghost of a smirk touch her mouth.

"Better than okay. I feel complete, here with you," he confessed. What the hell, he figured. He might as well come clean about his feelings so that she didn't think that he was only interested in her physically. "More complete than any Clone has a right to feel considering. You are very special to me. I thought I would die while you were gone for all those weeks-like part of me was missing. I had trouble concentrating, even on the field. I just couldn't get the image of you in that bed out of my mind. I wanted to kill every single clanker by hand until I knew I had gotten the ones that had planted that bomb." Rex clenched his fists and scowled at the memory of Ahsoka bruised, broken, and paralyzed.

Ahsoka ran her hands down his arms and eased his fists open. "It's okay, Rex, I'm here now. I'm getting better, stronger, every day. And you are very special to me too. Even though I'm not supposed to form attachments. . . I couldn't help myself with you," she said.

He looked up at her and smiled while she slid the palms of her hands across the palms of his now-open ones. "You are the only person who is special to me," she continued. She hoped that he knew what she meant. She leaned in an gave him a quick peck and then sighed. "The Jedi way is to love life generally and unconditionally, but the war has changed so many things. My Master has said as much. And I can feel myself growing in the Force with my feelings for you. It doesn't feel wrong. It doesn't feel Dark. I won't dismiss it or try to belittle it." She looked searchingly at his face. She wanted him to understand that she wasn't ashamed of her attachment to him even though it was something forbidden.

"Why is attachment forbidden?" Rex asked. He had always wondered why the Jedi had been encouraged not to create connections between each other and others even though he had witnessed great loyalty and commitment between the Jedi he had served with.

"Attachment to people and to things can lead to possessiveness, jealousy, anger, fear, hatred, and the Dark side of the Force," she recited. "The Dark side is Evil itself. Greed, deception, destruction, a detriment to life. The Force can give us so much, but the lure of power can lead us astray." Ahsoka informed him. She looked around furtively, and grinned at him now. "But I've read some of the history of the Order, and Jedi used to marry and have families! Can you imagine Master Skywalker with kids?" she squealed. Rex chuckled along with her.

Suddenly, Rex realized that Ahsoka might be a little uncomfortable sitting with him like this in just her bath towel. "Um, would you like to put some clothes on? I could step outside while you change," he suggested to her. She giggled again and looked down at herself.

"I guess I could at least put on something that won't fall off of me if I breathe too shallowly," she replied. "But, you don't have to leave. Why don't you just close your eyes?" She looked up at him through her eyelashes.

"O-k," he hesitated. But he figured he could control himself. So he stretched out on his side on her bunk and closed his eyes tightly. Ahsoka waved her hand in front of his face. He smiled and reached out to grab her wrist. "I can still smell you. And hear you," he informed her, kissing her fingers.

She giggled again. "Ok, ok, I'm getting dressed." Ahsoka found her sleeping clothes and slipped into them quickly. She heard a clunk behind her. She spun around to find that Rex was removing his armor, piece by piece, his eyes still closed. She watched silently as the contours of his body were opened up to her. The battle armor made all the clones look mostly the same in shape, but her time with her troopers had shown her that there were variations.

"I want to be comfortable too," he explained. She was fascinated by how he was doing everything by touch. She longed to reach out and touch him in those newly exposed places. She longed to memorize what made his body unique and so very Rex.

When just his body stocking remained, he opened his eyes to look up at her. She had a soft tank top and cropped, loose pants on. She looked so sweet-so unlike his avenging goddess on the battlefield. He blinked a couple times to take it in. She looked young and vulnerable. Maybe he was rushing things. For the first time, he looked down from her eyes with indecision.

But Ahsoka made the decision for him this time. She felt those shivers spread from her spine to her stomach as she sat down at his waist level, and leaned sideways across him with one elbow. Tucking her legs up under her, she let her other hand run over his arm, carved from hours of training and exercise, not to mention battles. She was beginning to really like this intimacy. Given access to the Captain made her feel like she was the 'Chosen One.' She smiled at him warmly, and his doubt melted away.

He reached up a hand to stroke her shoulder again, but then he moved it up to her neck. Before he could tug on her to join him on the bunk, she herself slid forward, stretching her legs out next to his. She moved up until her face was level with his. Then she initiated a slow, passionate kiss.

Rex's arm tightened around her waist again, dragging her fully against him. He knew she would feel his erection, but he wanted her to know that he was aroused by her. He didn't just see her as a 'kid' anymore. She was much, much more than that to him. He kissed Ahsoka as the woman she had become before his eyes. The only woman he had ever wanted. She squirmed her hips against him, causing a spike of heat to flare through his body.

When she broke the kiss to breathe, Rex moved for her lekku with his mouth. He wanted to taste the skin. Would it taste differently than the rest of her? He kissed and mouthed his way from the tip to the top of her head. Then he stopped to look in her eyes. They were wide open, and she was panting. I guess she liked that, he thought to himself.

They were in the middle of another heated kiss when the alarms went off. Rex snapped to attention and jumped overtop of Ahsoka to activate his comm. "What's happening?" he demanded of the pilot.

"We've come out of hyperspace early, sir. I don't know why yet," the pilot reported.

Rex looked back at Ahsoka on the bunk, her eyes wide with surprise. "Stay here. I'll comm you if you are needed." Rex scooped up his armor and exited the room with purpose. He was on duty.

Ahsoka face-planted onto the bunk in frustration and elation-both fighting for dominance in her psyche. Kriffing Separatists, she cursed.