An: Who else is sat at home doing a big fat nothing on New Years Eve whilst everyone else is at parties and getting wasted? -_- fml

Chapter 10

Ahsoka stared at the wall blankly, her face a composed epitome of calmness, not betraying one emotion at all. One would think that she was everything a Jedi should be – ungoverned by her emotions and peaceful – however, in her head was a different story, if one could navigate through the stormy unrest that was her mind they would find deeply rooted anger, coursing through her like a current.

Her sparring session with Obi-Wan had been cut short by the arrival of her Master, Master Fisto and Master Windu, they spoken with him in hushed voices but she caught most of it. They were going to interrogate the man detained not long ago - non-violently of course, the man who had murdered her friend, and almost had her.

She'd been quick to follow the Masters when they turned to leave but her own had forbidden her from getting involved, telling her to return to their apartment and that he'd come by to see her later, he claimed that only members of the council were going to interrogate him.

And the others, Masters Windu, Fisto and Kenobi deemed her too personally involved with the whole situation – emotionally comprised was how Windu described her – to even be considered to be present at the interrogation.

So here she was, sat in her quarters, wishing she was at the interrogation. She had to know why. She just had to. She wanted to know what his motive was, how he could so calmly walk into the temple and attack them, with no reason to do so, it wasn't done out of revenge or vengeance, it was pure spite. And she couldn't understand why.

What was his motivation to attack them? And what did he want with her?

Ahsoka wrestled with her demons, waging a war inside her, she wanted so desperately to go, to get answers and the demon sided with that idea fully, however, the little angel on her shoulder – her morality principle – argued not to get involved.

Ahsoka was too engaged in her own thoughts to notice the figure slid in through the window, stealthily creeping towards her.

Ahsoka's head jumped up, a flash of anxious warning from the force spurring her into action and she span around almost instantly, coming face to face with an unruly middle-aged man with scruffy clothes.

"Who are you?" Ahsoka's hand went to her utility belt, resting on top of her lightsaber hilt.

The man smirked, an unsettling image at the least. "I'm surprised you don't know."

"He's your friend." Ahsoka surmised. "The prisoner, you're one of them…then why are you here? Why are you after me when you could be rescuing him?"

Ahsoka felt another flash of alarm from the force, a warning for caution before proceeding, this man had somehow slipped into the temple undetected, she didn't know what he was capable of. Perhaps he'd had a bit of experience when it came to invading the temple unnoticed; maybe he was there at the massacre in the 'Chamber of Dreams.'

"Did you help him?" Ahsoka asked boldly. "When he killed all those kids? Were you there?"

The man didn't answer for a few seconds, watching the young girl closely, his eyes taking in every movement, every little thing she did. He cocked his head ever so slightly, an unidentifiable gleam in his eye and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly from the suppressed grin. "I don't answer to children."

A jolt of anger ran through the girl, he was mocking her, he was playing around with her, he thought it all a joke – he wasn't taking her seriously. He only saw her as a little kid, not a threat at all.

"Who are you?" She asked again, taking her lightsaber off of her belt and holding her thumb over the activation button.

Again, the only reply was a smirk from the man, making the young Togruta bristle with anger, anger at his blasé attitude, the way he just assumed that because of her young age, she wasn't a threat. Ahsoka could take this man, he wasn't a threat, he was just overconfident.

She lunged at the man, her lightsaber withdrawn in a second and ignited, she thrust it towards him, anger thrusting her forwards and into actions.

The man ducked at the last second evading her anger-filled swipe, she went at him again, putting more power into it but yet again he dodged at the last second, evading her blow by mere inches. Okay, maybe he was better at this then she thought – for an old man.

He was faster then she expected, faster than he should've been, he'd had some form of training, no untrained operative could fight a Jedi – fight her – like that.

They continued their little dance for what felt like hours, Ahsoka methodically striking where he left himself vulnerable but, as before, he would always avoid her swipes at the last second, befuddling the girl.

He was more than just an old man, he shouldn't be able to fight her like that, so easily avoid her swipes, no…she had underestimated him, he was dangerous. The man had training, he was excessively competent when it came to avoiding her attacks, and he was fast, too fast for it to not be through training. At his age, she should've finished this thing before it had started.

Left, right, duck, jump, flip…Ahsoka logically went for moves that would attempt to create an opening in his defence. She jumped back again before spinning on her toes, thrusting her lightsaber round with her, only to find he was gone.

Ahsoka felt his presence behind her a second too late and then she felt pain, so much pain, erupting from her, more than sensitive, lekku and she let out a gasp of pain, paralysed by the excruciating hurt. In a second, he grabbed her arm, shoving it up behind her back, and she reflexively let go of her weapon.

Ahsoka did the only reasonable thing she could think of; something she should've done the second this monster entered the apartment. She sent a flash of fear to her Master, hoping he would interpret it as her being in danger.

He pushed her arm further up into her back, his body pushing into her vulgarly as he did so, making the Togruta extremely distressed, she fought to get out of his grasp but when he pushed her arm even further – threatening to dislocate her shoulder - she gave in.

"I expected more, beautiful." He whispered next to her headtails, where her ears would've been had she been human. She bristled slightly, leaning away from him, beyond uncomfortable at his contact now.

Then he kissed her headtail.

'Master!' She screamed mentally to him, beginning to struggle again, this could not be happening.

A slight pop and a shooting pain through her arm told her that her shoulder had been dislocated; the Togruta hissed slightly, bouncing on her toes in attempts to get in a more comfortable position for her shoulder but the man wouldn't have any of it.

She felt him move about a little before forcefully shoved both her wrists behind her back, binding them there. Why was it always her that got captured? By force, when would she get to finish playing the role of victim?

Minutes later Ahsoka was being carried, embarrassingly over the man shoulder, through the deserted halls of the temple, this was ridiculous, where was everyone? Although, judging by how dark it was and how tired she was, she assumed they were all in bed.

Part of her was glad the halls were empty; she didn't think she would ever live it down if any of her classmates saw her in her current position, being carried like a troublemaking child, out of the temple. She was enough of a freak already, especially because of her advance abilities, she didn't need them thinking she was weak too. No, they teased her enough as it was.

"Why do you want me?" Ahsoka growled.

The man didn't answer, keeping up his mysterious charade that irked the young Togruta to no end. Could he not give her any answers, although that was pretty unreasonable of her to think, from experience, Ahsoka had noted that most half-decent criminals tended to keep the casual conversation to a minimum.

You can step in anytime Master, Ahsoka thought bitterly as she was carried through the irritatingly empty temple, seriously, was no-one wandering about?

Anakin hurried through the corridors, thankful that no-one was about to obstruct his way, he knew he shouldn't have left her, the girl was almost as bad at finding trouble as he was and this time she managed to do it from the comforts of her own room.

He'd felt the flash of warning from the girl, which was enough to create worry in him, and was certainly reason enough for him to quickly leave the interrogation, giving his reasoning to Obi-Wan quietly before he left.

It was when he had heard her shout through the force that he'd really began to panic, he'd already checked their apartment, she wasn't there. Anakin tried to swallow the ball of guilt rising in his throat, force, he shouldn't have left her. He hadn't been around for her for weeks, and now she been taken, it was all too easy for them; they didn't have to worry about any protest from him, he been too neglectful to even remember her.

Anakin randomly took a right, spurring himself on, feeling this was the direction his Padawan and her taker were, he had to save her. He wouldn't lose her too. He'd been so focused on saving Padme that he'd forgotten to protect Ahsoka, and now she was missing…again.

Anakin felt anger surge through him as he saw a fairly podgy man speed walking down the corridor in front of him, so far unaware of his presence, what irked him the most was that his Padawan was over the man's shoulder, kicking and bucking as much as she could to try and get out of his grasp.

"Let her go." Anakin bellowed.

The portly man span around suddenly, tensing in preparation for another fight, causing the child over his shoulder to let out a quiet gasp of pain, her injured shoulder bouncing against his back. Anakin made to approach him, his expression menacing and his eyes hateful, he was out for blood.

The man had other ideas; he quickly dropped the young girl, spinning her around to face Anakin before pulling her back, putting a knife at her throat, pressing down so it drew the tiniest amount of blood.

"Another step and I kill her." He threatened, his eyes flashing with madness, letting out a fearfully insane cackle. "You gotta make a choice, boy: save her or kill me."

Anakin looked uncertain for a second but he stopped nonetheless, his eyes full of stirring emotions, just below the surface, but fixed, not on the man, behind him. He looked back at the man, overconfidence filling his every gesture, a small smirk playing on his face, his head moved the tiniest little bit in what could've been a nod, before…

SPLAT

Blood spurted out from the man, erupting from a steaming hole in his head – courtesy of the clone stood metres behind him. He stood immobile for a few seconds before crumpling to the ground with a loud crash.

Ahsoka blinked, she was coated in blood and worse, her senses disappeared and she swayed on the spot for a few seconds before she made a hoarse gagging sound, trying to fight back the rising bile. She bent over a little, holding her stomach, trying not to think about what she was covered in, to no avail.

"It's alright." Anakin was by her side in a split second, holding both her shoulders to keep her steady. "You're alright, Snips."

"I'm covered in…" She trailed off and gestured to the blood and more that coated her entire upper half.

"Try not to think about it." Anakin told her gently, wiping a large chunky piece of organic matter from her face with his sleeve, trying not to think about the fact it was probably part of his brain.

"Oh, why didn't I think of that?" It looked like she wasn't too traumatised from this ordeal; her snippiness – her namesake - was still intact.

Ahsoka let out a shaky breath, focusing her mind on exerting her out-of-control emotions. Everything was fine, she was fine. She was a Jedi; Jedi don't freak out.

"You killed him." Ahsoka murmured, not quite meeting her Master's eyes.

"I didn't kill him."

"Not directly but I know you gave the order, the way you looked behind me – at that clone – and nodded slightly before he fired." Ahsoka folded her arms over her chest. "I know, Master – I'm not stupid – I know."

"Fair enough." Anakin stood to his full height, wiping the blood on his hands on his robes. "I had to make a choice, Ahsoka, and I chose you. The Jedi will have to get all their information from the prisoner."

"It wasn't a very Jedi-like thing to do." Ahsoka commented uncomfortably, she didn't like it when her Master allowed himself to be dictated with his emotions. It made her uncomfortable.

"I think we established a long time ago that I'm not a very good Jedi, Snips." Yes, but only now was Ahsoka beginning to see his unjedi-ness and unorthodox ways.

AN:Please review, you guys motivate me. Btw, Happy New Years, I'd rather be writing for you guys than going to parties anyway :D