Nobody likes Tarkin
Ahsoka paced slowly behind her master, standing stoic as ever, outside the door to the Supreme Chancellor's office in the Senate Office Building. The door was flanked by blue, similarly stoic Senate Guards, behind a desk manned by the Supreme Chancellor's Rodian receptionist. The waiting room curved to envelope those inside with rich red tones; the walls were lined with snugly curving red benches occasionally partitioned by white tables. Opposite the doors to the Chancellor's office, the room gave way to tall, open hallways lined with striking columns. The white hallways were arguably more impressive than the ostentatious waiting room.
Captain Tarkin sat primly on one of the plush, red benches on the other side of the waiting room, apparently oblivious to anyone else. Ahsoka took advantage of his unobservant air to shoot unkind faces his way whenever she needed to feel better. Her little challenges flew right under the noses of the receptionist, too busy idling on the HoloNet to notice, and the Senate Guards, staring dull-eyed toward the hallways. Obi-Wan Kenobi stood talking in hushed tones with Commander Cody somewhere behind, closer to the hallways.
Everyone had touched down on Coruscant not even a half hour ago, finally free of the most infamous Separatist prison, the Citadel, thanks to the rescue efforts of Masters Plo Koon and Saesee Tiin. Anakin and Obi-Wan's venture had initially been a rescue mission of Jedi Master Piell, who held the significant information about the Nexus Route, a hyperspace lane that could allow the Republic to fly to the heart of the Separatist homeworlds. The rescue party soon realized Master Piell split the information with Captain Tarkin of all people under his command.
Ahsoka now carried the fallen Master Piell's half of the information, pacing, glaring, biting her thumb. They were all waiting for an audience with the Supreme Chancellor because Captain Tarkin would not disclose his information to anyone else; Ahsoka had been instructed to only inform the Jedi Council. So here they loitered while Grand Master Yoda conferred with the Supreme Chancellor behind closed doors.
Ahsoka would've rather been taking a shower, but Tarkin raised a fuss that if any Jedi returned to the Jedi Temple, they must be going there to inform the Council about certain secrets. And so he effectively herded them to the Senate Office Building. The paranoid twit.
"Snips," her master whispered, his back still towards her, "have a little patience."
The Togruta opened her mouth to respond and immediately felt harsh eyes on her. Again. Anakin could talk to her as much as he wanted with no reaction from the pallid Captain across the room; Kenobi and Cody had been jawing since they arrived with no reaction from the Captain. A dewback could've putzed through the waiting room on a speeder bike shedding essential parts without so much as a glance from Tarkin. But let Ahsoka try to talk to anyone else in the room and she instantly received the brunt of his attention.
Feeling his eyes slide across her made her need for a shower all the more urgent. She shuddered before circling her master, using Anakin as a human shield against the eavesdropping captain.
"Master, isn't it a little strange that Master Piell wanted the Jedi Council to be informed first, but yet here we are at the Supreme Chancellor's office?" Her voice was even more hushed than Anakin's, but a nagging paranoia told her that Tarkin heard her much better than he had Skywalker.
"Master Yoda's in there discussing everything," Anakin replied calmly. "And even if the Council isn't to know, doesn't it make more sense that the Senate and therefore the Army has this information instead of the Jedi? What are we going to do with it, send the Council to the Separatist homeworlds?" Ahsoka's shoulders slumped as her master continued. "No, if the Supreme Chancellor is the only one to hear this information, he'll share it where it's most needed." Anakin finally looked down at the forlorn Togruta, offering his first smile since returning planetside. "Have faith, young one."
Ahsoka wore a noncommittal expression as she returned to pacing. She chanced a peek back at Tarkin only to unexpectedly lock eyes with him. The Togruta paused in order to focus all her effort into staring the captain down, her eye markings slowly angling over her eyes blazing with outright challenge.
Tarkin stared back, composed as always, his mouth ever so subtly bent in that haughty manner he had refined into an art form.
Ahsoka was determined to not look away first. Despite the fact that she was the one to save Tarkin, he never once stopped strutting around like he was superior to everyone he interacted with. She wanted his uncomfortably pale face to quit first, or twitch, or show any kind of telltale sign that he was actually human. The Togruta started slightly when the dark color of her master's robes effectively blocked her nemesis from view. She glanced up; he was staring straight down at her, his previous smile nowhere to be found.
"Am I interrupting something?"
Ahsoka curled her fingers around her lightsabers. Clutching her weapons in both hands always evoked a sense of comfort in her. They gave her a feeling of invulnerability and confidence when she was otherwise feeling small. They gave her the pluck to look at her master with almost the same level of challenge she had sent Tarkin's way.
"Get some air. I'll call if we're summoned."
There was no room for argument. Hands firmly clenching her hooked lightsabers, Ahsoka sauntered around her master, eyes fixed on the entryway blocked by Kenobi and Cody. There was that cringe-worthy, beady-eyed stare from Captain Pale in the corner. Somebody get that man a holozine.
Slipping past Master Kenobi and his second in command was no trouble; they parted to let her through. On the other side she found herself in the middle of four sprawling hallways radiating from the waiting room entrance like a starburst. There was much more light out here as all the high ceilings were transparisteel windows. Ahsoka ambled down the hallway leading towards the turbo-lift, staring up at the cloudy sky more than anything else.
In the open air silence of this new room, Ahsoka's hand soon trailed to the comlink on her wrist, wondering briefly what Rex was up to at that moment. She thought back to the end of their mission when Master Plo's gunship carried all the survivors to the waiting Venator-class ship. Everyone had exited the gunship a little slowly; for Ahsoka's part it was because she was slipping from her adrenaline rush into the familiar, encompassing arms of fatigue. She recalled when Fives exited, he tottered as far as the hangar bay wall before falling forward against it. Rex was the first one at his side and knelt next to him for the longest time, an arm around his shoulders, comforting words lost to all but their memories.
Ahsoka stopped several meters down the hallway to lean against a column, reflecting on her responsibility to her soldiers. Maybe Fives should be the first one she contacted; Ahsoka hadn't seen him since they landed on Coruscant. It was possible that after losing Echo, he just wanted space. But then again, as the only remaining member of his squad, maybe the last thing Fives should be was alone.
Ahsoka traced her finger around the comlink indecisively. She glanced up when the lift doors at the far end of the hallway opened, and immediately broke out in a wide smile when she saw Rex walk in. He carried his helmet under an arm, his armor a dingy gray in comparison to the pristine corridor.
Before she even noticed it, the Togruta's mind wandered to how pleasantly tan her captain looked in this environment. An immediate, involuntary reaction flared in her chest that quickly settled into a soft glow. The less she regarded him with her logical mind, the stronger the glow became. A couple blinks tripped her brain into gear again and extinguished that unexpected feeling.
Rex headed for the waiting room at a good clip, nodding once to Ahsoka. "Is the general in there?" he asked, coupled with an off-handed gesture toward the red room as he passed his commander, her smile faltering.
"Along with Tarkin."
Rex turned around so promptly it looked like he had been given the rear march order. He found space to lean on the same column next to his superior, deciding, "I'm in no hurry." He distractedly thrummed his fingers against his helmet.
"Not a fan of Master Piell's illustrious captain, either?" asked the Togruta, her grin tainted with a conspiratorial twist. She crossed her arms over her chest and watched with no small level of satisfaction how carefully Rex thought about wording his answer.
"I... am just fine with the fact that after this," he indicated the extravagant Chancellor's suite with a roll of his hand, "we won't have to see him again."
Ahsoka's wide grin was back in place. "And what do the other troopers from our mission think?"
"Fives hates him," Rex intoned.
Ahsoka knew she shouldn't feel good about so much dislike of Tarkin, but her soldiers' negative judgment felt like validation for her own. However, she couldn't bask in the glory of vindication for as long as she would have liked.
"How's Fives doing, by the way?" the Togruta asked, her voice casual but her eyes full of anxious anticipation. She watched Rex shrug, his attention falling to the polished floor.
"He says he wants to be alone, but I don't think that's what he needs. He—"
The back of Ahsoka's neck bristled as she felt a poisonous shadow descend on their personal moment before she saw Tarkin appear a distance down the hallway, sweeping his suspicious gaze across all the corridors until resting on her. It was fortunate her hands immediately grabbed her arms, else they would've flown to her lightsabers in what could've been construed as a very threatening reaction.
"Ah, Padawan Tano," he called with no hint of surprise at finding her there, "we expect to be admitted momentarily."
"To an insane asylum?" she muttered through gritted teeth, barely even audible to Rex. The captain shoved his helmet over his head and shook with what she could only imagine to be laughter. When both made no move to leave their supporting column, Tarkin took a couple steps closer, hands properly behind his back.
"I needn't remind you of how sensitive this information is, Padawan Tano..."
The Togruta held up a staying hand before enunciating, "Commander. Commander Tano." She shouldered herself upright. It was her intent to walk past Tarkin back into the waiting room without so much as a glance in his direction, but just as she came in line with him, he held out his own hand to halt her.
"I apologize, Commander," he said in a tone far from it. "I was merely calling you by your first and foremost title. Unless you identify yourself as a soldier before a Jedi?" Her scowl was nowhere near fierce enough to wipe the patronizing smirk from his face. Ahsoka pointedly walked around his hand and reentered the waiting room.
Rex sauntered over to Tarkin, kama swaying. "You know, one captain to another, I would refrain from offering my opinion to a superior officer unless asked for it, first." His words stalled the man, making him turn back to face Rex. "Unless... they didn't include protocol at your military academy?" Rex's visor slowly slid from the tight-lipped captain before he followed his commander into the waiting room, still in that leisurely swagger.
Anakin was the only one still in his original spot; Obi-Wan stood next to him, hand on his beard, conferring, while Commander Cody sat on the red bench closest to the entryway. Ahsoka took a seat at his left hand; moments later Rex sat on his other side. Their visors met, heads subtly bobbed, but no sound was heard. Ahsoka, increasingly jealous of their in-helmet privacy, slouched in her seat before checking the chrono on her wrist. She calculated that she could've easily taken a shower and arrived in the waiting room by now. So when Tarkin entered, she returned the courtesy of his earlier glare on her back when she had first left. The captain calmly resumed his seat on the far opposite bench closest to the Senate Guards.
Rex leaned around the Cody, whispering, "Hey, kid. The commander's with you about..." A subtle head jerk toward the pallid captain. Even without Rex finishing his sentence, a smug grin pulled at Ahsoka's mouth. Suck it, Tarkin.
The doors to the Supreme Chancellor's office opened then and Mas Amedda, the Chagrian Vice Chancellor, bade the Jedi and Captain Tarkin welcome. The two clones merely nodded farewell to Ahsoka and sat contently on the plush bench.
Rex bounced once in his seat. "We need these in all our ships."
"Once you have a salary on par with the Supreme Chancellor's..." chuckled Cody.
"What salary?"
To Ahsoka's displeasure, the Supreme Chancellor and Master Yoda had agreed that the information should be shared here, in the presence of a recorder droid, who would assimilate Tarkin and Ahsoka's messages to be disseminated by the Supreme Chancellor himself. Maybe it was Ahsoka's own disappointment of Tarkin's victory that colored her view of the calm-faced Yoda, imagining he was just as disappointed as her. With a wave of his hand, Chancellor Palpatine dismissed Anakin and Obi-Wan to the waiting room.
Ahsoka and Captain Tarkin emerged nearly shoulder-to-shoulder from the office, determinedly ignoring one another. The Jedi Masters stood waiting with their corresponding clones; the Senate Guards and receptionist still acted as if no one else was there.
Ahsoka confidently pulled away from her nemesis, but when she reached her master, it was Captain Tarkin his attention was focused on.
"Captain," Anakin announced, hand held out expectantly. "It was a pleasure to meet you. If you're not busy, I invite you to come eat with us. I'd be interested in discussing recent campaigns with you."
Tarkin shook his proffered hand. "You honor me, Master Jedi." A spike of contempt tugged at Ahsoka's upper lip. He was probably repeating something he heard in a holovid once.
"However, I wouldn't dream of imposing. I know how busy the Jedi Council keeps their warriors anymore." His eyes flashed to each Jedi in the room, an accusatory lilt to his voice, in Ahsoka's opinion.
"Not at all," replied Anakin, all civility. "Our schedules are free the rest of the evening. I think conversation with you would be thoroughly engaging."
Since Anakin would clearly miss her message, Ahsoka angled towards Rex to share a disgusted roll of her eyes. He responded with the slightest nod.
Anakin turned to Obi-Wan, finally including the older Jedi in the conversation. Realizing he had been granted the privilege of adding his opinion, Obi-Wan gave a start, as if a forgotten memory suddenly sprang to mind. His hand left his beard to tap Cody's arm. "I must apologize, Anakin. I know I promised to dine with you tonight, but Cody and I have that mission brief... with Master Gallia. Remember?" Cody nodded on cue.
"Right, General. The mission to... Beqya Prime."
"Beqya?" Anakin repeated, an uncomprehending expression sliding over his face. "I didn't hear about this mission..." Obi-Wan's unbothered shrug didn't help matters.
"Just popped up when we returned, sir," Cody said with a reassuring nod.
"No rest for the weary," added Obi-Wan, his hand returning to his beard. "Sorry to disappoint, but we'll have future opportunities for civilized discussion." His gaze never once wandered to Tarkin.
Anakin's focus shifted to his padawan; both Ahsoka and Tarkin tensed. "Snips?"
"More talk of war is always exciting, but I've got all that training to catch up on, Master. ...So. Much. Training." Her smile was as fake as Captain Tarkin's disappointed expression. Finally, Anakin swung around to face Rex.
"And he's helping me!" Ahsoka exclaimed, linking arms with the clone captain. Rex nodded once.
"You're all missing out," Anakin said with a shake of his head. He and Captain Tarkin strode out into the bright hallways, already exchanging wartime experiences.
The remaining four breathed a sigh of relief as the atmosphere considerably lightened. Obi-Wan patted his commander's armored shoulder.
"My thanks, Cody. I owe you one."
"That you do, General."
"Now, we just need to find a place to lay low until our 'meeting' is over." The two nodded a friendly farewell to their fellow liars before heading out; Commander Cody only allowed Obi-Wan to exit the waiting room after giving the hallways a cautious sweep.
Ahsoka dissolved into devious snickering, thankfully still ignored by the guards and receptionist. One glance at her quiet captain informed her that his attention was fully focused on their still-linked arms.
"Am I escorting you to your training like this?" he asked dryly. Ahsoka slid her arm out from his somewhat hesitantly. His expression was hidden behind his helmet, but hers was borderline disappointed. They ambled out of the waiting room to head down the long hallway leading to the turbo-lift.
"I'm not training tonight. I want a shower." She didn't hear Rex's sudden cough because she was too preoccupied with suggesting, "But you can escort me to your barracks!"
Rex stumbled a pace. "Y-you're showering at the barracks?"
"No!" retorted the Togruta, white eye markings flat. "I want to visit Fives."
The warning, "Female on the floor!" didn't even draw curious glances anymore from the clones; the only female to ever visit their barracks was Ahsoka. The frequency of her visits exhausted their novelty. It was getting to the point where the clones were so comfortable with their commander in the sleeping bay that they ceased adjusting their habitual routines around her; they now wore however little to the showers, or changed clothes with her in the room as they pleased, much to the ire of their captain.
The large sleeping bay in the 501st barracks, neatly cluttered with bunks and personal lockers, seemed sparser. Ahsoka remembered hearing Rex complain to her master that the 501st wasn't scheduled to receive fresh soldiers for several months still. Many top bunks were vacant; their owners' names graced the memorial wall on one side of the bay. Neat columns of hand-written names lined the wall, separated chronologically by battles, of every fallen 501st soldier.
Ahsoka passed the memorial wall following Rex to Fives' bunk, and chancing a peek at the newest addition under the heading of LOLA SAYU—CITADEL, she found the names CHARGER and ECHO.
Fives sat in his undersuit on the edge of his bunk, elbows on his knees, dejected gaze on the ground. Ahsoka didn't even ask permission before sitting next to him, resting a hand on his arm. Rex took this moment to leave them in favor of reprimanding several conspicuously bare-chested soldiers clear on the other side of the room.
Ahsoka could feel the fatigued anguish radiating from her friend. "When was the last time you slept?"
Bleary, blood-shot eyes lifted to take her in as if Fives just realized she was there. He hung his head again silently. She squeezed his arm.
"Fives—"
"Can't sleep," he muttered in a voice that sounded like even whispering was an effort. "Every time I try, I see the explosion. I see his helmet rolling..." Both hands went to his eyes as if he could wipe the memory from sight. "And nothing I've done has gotten rid of the smell."
"Smell?" Self consciously, Ahsoka subtly sniffed her own shirt. Fives' hands dropped into his lap.
"Burning flesh. Hasn't gone away. And the best part is..." A disgusted laugh slipped out. "I don't even know if it was from that night, or if it's just some... phantom smell from every battle I've ever been in." The wide arc in which he flung one hand mirrored the bitter emotional spike she felt in his Force signature. Talking about his problems was only making him more aggravated.
Ahsoka wrapped her arms around him and pulled the unresisting clone into her shoulder. Fives vented a shaky breath, completely limp against her. "Kix and them've been in here, trying to get me to go out and get my mind off of things." A pang of guilt accented his words. Ahsoka lifted one hand to stroke through his hair soothingly.
"Don't let that bother you. Mourn," she advised in a low tone. "Mourn how you have to." She felt his restrained sob skid across her neck and found herself blinking back a similar emotion from her stinging eyes.
Minutes later, Fives shifted slightly to raise his head. "Wh...what happened with the mission? The information?"
Unwittingly, Ahsoka's hand stroked Fives' hair a little rougher. "We had to tell the Supreme Chancellor. Like Tarkin wanted." Fives mustered an incredulous grunt.
"I hate that karkin' shabuir."
Despite herself, Ahsoka grinned. Her hand turned soft again, and she started a slow, lulling rock side to side. "We all do."
A.N. I never minded Tarkin in the OT. Then he appeared in TCW and ugh. What a little prima donna.