Everything after his brother shot their executioner was blurry to Jesse.

He remembered barely being able to breathe, coughing until his lungs burned, only a warm hand on his back giving comfort in the darkness.

The nights in Marisa were cold and while he was burning up with fever Jesse's teeth chattered. Fives rubbed Jesse's arms, urging him to "get up".

Fives had a bruising grip on Jesse's arm, holding him upright and hauling him along. Jesse just kept going, followed his brothers lead, his urging to 'keep up trooper', fell back into the thoughtless mindset that had gotten them through way too much.

Sometime when his legs felt like the bogy grounds of the swamps they had waded through sometime in another life Jesse's thought meandered. "Which planet was that on? Nal Hutta?"

A smile crossed his lips, that had been another story he had heard, ship rumours and tell-tales. "No have never been there."

He was dimly aware of his brother leading them through a maze of small alleys, pushing him forward and forward. They sometimes pressed into the smallest, darkest corners they oucld find, rough sandstone scraping their skin. Jesse held his breath then, waiting for the people to pass, trusting his brother to get them to safety when he didn't know where to go.

Then Fives stopped, bringing Jesse to a staggering hold and they entered the bright household that smelled of warm spices.

He heard a voice, female, high strung, civvie, nervous his mind supplied.

He tried to straighten up, but found that anything more than a courteous nod was beyond him.

Then, things went black even while Jesse shouted at his body to keep going, keep standing and tried to hold on to his brother's shoulder.

It didn't matter. He had given it all he could and now his body demanded rest.

Jesse then slept through the night, only waking up partly when Fives poured some overly sweet cough syrup down his throat whenever it wore off.

Sometime in the early afternoon he woke. Jesse blinked, for a moment he only remembered being sick. His fever muddled brain asked "why the feck is my bunk so soft? And why is med bay this silent?"

On the other hand, Jesse decided, it didn't really matter. He was a bit chilly, but breathed easier, no longer aching. It was alright for the moment.

Then something moved to his right, cushions shifting, wood creaking and Jesse shot up, arms forward, ready to lunge. His head swam and Jesse felt himself shifting as cool hands touched his shoulder, holding him.

Someone chuckled. "Easy vod, breathe."

Jesse closed his eyes, swallowed rising acid down and gritted his teeth, waiting for the unwelcome weakness to leave.

He gripped Five's arm. "Safe?"

He asked, blinking slowly while looking around, scanning the room. Jesse had lived his life in barracks, designed to cram as many men as possible into the smallest space. For him and his brothers privacy or even belongings, real ones, not the ones from the GAR, had been pure luxury.

But they had been safe, the barracks were the only home they had and at times it had been a damn good one.

This room looked… "This is unused, abandoned even. Good choice Fives."

His brother smiled, white teeth flashed in the dim light that crept through the closed curtains.

"Good choice by our host."

He helped Jesse shuffle backwards and packed a pillow behind his brother's back.

"I suppose they will continue looking for a while, besides, as long as we don't have a way off of this planet, this is the best place for both of us."

Jesse nodded in agreement and accepted a cup of juice his brother handed him. He drank it slowly, savouring the sweet taste.

Fives watched him and pressed a bowl into his hands. Jesse dug in the cold meal, faintly remembering the taste from last night.

The food raised his spirit, the sweetness reminding him of better times.

Jesse looked up from his meal and studied Fives posture. His brother was leaning forward, elbows resting on his knees. He was tired, hopeful, but exhausted.

Jesse decided his brother needed some positive words.

"We are troopers of the GAR; we got through a lot worse. Getting of this thing when things have calmed down will be easier than a patrol on Coruscant."

Fives nodded, grinned then. "You mean a trooper and an ARC."

Jesse huffed and smacked Fives in the arm, nearly sending him off the bed. He Gripped the headboard of the bed, usual fluidity of his movement just gone.

The ARC's face was drawn; Jesse saw the bags underneath his brother's eyes.

"Need to get sleep." He croaked, shifting to the left of the large bed. "Get rest vod, I take watch."

Fives sighed and stretched out next to Jesse.

That he surrendered watch with no further argument spoke volumes to about his brother's state to Jesse.

Fives was in a lot better shape than he was, but prison, work and hunger had worn the ARC down.

Jesse smiled. It was a rather tight fit, but coldness had made them huddle closer before.

Here and now it was comforting to know his brother close and safe. Jesse felt good, strangely light to be able to really do something in return after all the weeks Fives had watched out for him, distracting guards and picking up his slack.

So he kept his eyes on the door and his ears on the street below.

Only once he allowed himself to look at his brother on his left, the food and medicine on the nightstand to his right, and smiled.

For now, they were safe, could rest and recover. They would get out of this, he vowed himself.


Downstairs Lucia stood before her ex's desk, thought of the clones upstairs. She remembered the kind, but oh so tired, brown eyes of the young man she had met this morning in the kitchen.

Lucia knew Carth had known many people. She remembered how it had changed him.

"I tell you Lucia." He had always begun, coming back from his tour through cantinas and smaller towns. He was reeking of drinks and smoke, but was always sober.

"The last harvests were bad, people here don't know us and they don't have credits to spare. I am just opening contacts:"

"I know Carth." She would accept, knowing that his way with people got them the repair jobs they so desperately needed. Moving here had been a risk, they knew it wouldn't be easy to set foot here.

Then, he had gone out longer, still taking half of the work, work that he organized, but the people, his talks…

She hadn't wanted to know, really hadn't wanted to.

"We are so far away from all of that." She had always said, desperate to return to her old routine.

"Why do you care? It will never really come here anyway." Lucia repeated, again and again, preferring the gossip at the market, just talking to their neighbours over the things he told her.

Carth wanted so desperately to make her listen.

"How can you say that? If only you would be willing to listen. There is so much wrong. There are millions out there, millions I tell you, just bred to fight our wars. They have nothing Lucia, absolutely nothing." He shook his head, pushing his hands into his pockets, raised his head and met her eyes.

"I wish that was the worst the Republic does."

Lucia shrugged her shoulders, absently cleaning a wrench to give her hands something to do.

"Well, we can't really do anything about it, now can we? Just, let's settle down. Things are looking up here. The next harvest will be good, people like us here. We are getting more jobs right from here, right now."

He, stopped arguing, just sighed. "There will be a day where you can't say that anymore Lucia. There will be a day when you must make a choice. I just hope my contacts will be useful that day."

Lucia found it hard to return her thoughts to the current day. She was holding onto Carth's office chair, thought she could smell his aftershave clinging to the fabric and couldn't bring herself to open the drawers.

Fives and Jesse still had a way to go until they could leave. They needed rest and food.

Lucia was glad she had found an excuse to put of going through Carth's belongings.

She grabbed a rucksack and her purse, shortly contemplating to tell Fives, but then she remembered the bags under his eyes, the drawn lines around his eyes. Both he and Jesse should be sleeping; she didn't want to wake them up.

Stepping outside into the blinding sunlight made Lucia stopped for a moment. She usually shopped at the Market, but that was on the fifth day of the week, it was the third now.

"No choice but to go to the store today. Darn it, all set prices there. I'll miss the haggling with Martha at the meat vendor."


A.N.:

I have to say, I was almost a bit overwhelmed with the responses for that last chapter.

It was just meant as a bit of a breather, get all emotions settled before the tension rises again. I only wanted to place the characters so that their later interaction makes sense and was nervous that you would find it a bit dull... and then these came awesome, great responses.

Really made my day, thank you :)

So, in this one there is Jesse, all positive and just what Fives needed.

Also, I wanted to put the last bit into the next chapter, but decided to put it in here so that the plot would move at least a little bit forward.

One more thing, there is a refference to a bit of starwars lore hidden in here, free internet chocolate cookies if you catch it. (hint: a game)