POV: Ahsoka Tano

My Master was asleep on my shoulder. For two hours, he tried desperately to keep himself awake, but he couldn't resist any longer. His close proximity made me feel funny, like I was on some high that I just couldn't get down from. I wrapped my arm around his shoulder, holding him close to me.

After a few minutes, he began to moan. His face twisted a little and he began to kiss my neck slowly. His legs and hands moved, one hand rubbing my leg, moving up. As much as I wanted this, it wasn't right. "Master," I whispered, nudging him a bit with my shoulder.

I grabbed his hand before he could get any further. "Master, wake up."

He groaned. I felt his muscles tense as he realized what he must have been doing. His face lifted from my shoulder and he stared at me, eyes widened. "Ahsoka, I –"

I put my hand over his mouth. "You didn't do anything too stupid, so don't worry. It was just a –"

"I'm really sorry! I shouldn't have fallen asleep!" He jerked out of my arms, pushing himself up into a standing position. I felt his inward anger, so I stood up. I quickly walked over to him, gripping his wrist tightly.

"Master, it was just a dream –"

"Don't try to make me feel better, Ahsoka. It's not working. I should have had more control over myself. I don't want to do something that will hurt you or push you away from me, Ahsoka." His voice was so angry and so pained…

I bit my lip, pushing my forbidden knowledge deeper down into my core. "Master, please, don't do this. That was the first time and the last time that that will ever happen. I promise I won't tell anyone."

He pulled me against his chest, tightly circling his arms around me. "I promise you that I will never allow myself to do that to you again, Ahsoka."

I rubbed his back slowly. "I know, Master."

We slowly separated our bodies, his hands gripping my shoulders. "I'm so sorry," he whispered.

"Don't be," I whispered, laughing lightly. "There's absolutely nothing to forgive you for. You didn't do anything wrong as far as I'm concerned."

He smiled weakly at me before moving his flesh hand to stroke my cheek. "Thank you, Ahsoka."

Though the hand was gloved, it sent chills up my spine…

"General," a voice announced in the doorway. My Master and I were in the hangar of the cruiser, waiting to be told that we had reached Jabiim. He decided that he didn't want to stay in the dorm we'd been assigned because he didn't want to fall asleep… "We are entering Jabiim's orbit. The star cruiser cannot penetrate the electrical storm, but a small transport ship can."

I stared up at him, watching him nod. "Round up the troops and have them ready for immediate takeoff once the cruiser stops."

"Yes, sir," the clone responded, saluting. The clone left to go find a few of the others.

He turned back to me, smirking. "Ready for a little rain, my Padawan?"

I rolled my eyes. "Of course. Shili had rains, but Tatooine, however, did not."

He chuckled. "I think I've got you beat. Sandstorms are much worse."

"I won't let you get lost down there, Master."

He laughed, gripping my shoulder. "I'm only afraid that you will get lost."

"Let's see who can make it through then, shall we?"

"Snips, you'll fall off of the transport before we even land, so I've already won."

"I will not!" The humor in his eyes and smile made me happy.

"All right, come on, Snips. The troops are boarding the transport."

We ran across the hangar, getting onto the transport. He stood tall, gripping one of the holders above us, and determined beside me. I reached up a bit to reach my holder. After a few minutes, Admiral Yularen gave us the 'okay' and we began to leave the cruiser.

The ship rocked and his arm flew out towards me. "Relax," I whispered, smiling at him. He smirked as he held onto my shoulder.

The storm around us rocked the ship violently. He and several clones groaned a little. I, however, closed my eyes, feeling sick. My grip on the holder slipped, but a strong arm pulled me back before I began to rock around the ship…

I wrapped my arms around his waist, holding onto him for dear life. My eyes were shut tightly…

After a few more minutes, the rocking slowed down until it finally stopped. I knew then that we had landed. I slowly unwound my arms from his body, pulling my head back to open my eyes. "Are you feeling okay?"

"I feel a little lightheaded, but other than that, I'm okay."

"I got a little worried up there," he chuckled. "I thought you were going to get really sick."

The door slid open and rain poured in on us. He walked off of the ship first, trying to figure out where we were.

I stood in the threshold, watching him open a holomap on a tiny datapad. A really bad feeling washed over me as I began to hear a faint beeping.

He heard it, too, spinning around. I saw a little device counting down. "Explosive!" I screamed.

Before I realized what was happening, I was pulled out of the ship. He pulled me into his arms, running away from the ship as it exploded behind us. I ended up tripping and falling onto the wet, muddy surface. Unfortunately, I dragged him down with me.

I lifted my head to see us both covered in mud. He was breathing heavily, staring at me with widened eyes. "How could we not have known?" he whispered.

I glanced back at the flaming wreckage, seeing pieces of the transport and clones littering the ground. He slammed his fist into the mud, spraying his face. "I knew I should have checked the ship!"

I bit my lip, hating to see the anger and guilt in his expression. I crawled closer to him. "It's not your fault. You didn't know. I didn't know…"

I heard a ship flying overhead. He draped his arm over my back, stopping at my side, to pull me closer. "Stay down," he whispered.

He slowly looked up as the sound faded away. "All right. If you aren't hurt, we still have to rescue the Senator."

He released me, pushing himself out of the puddle to stand. He outstretched his muddy hand for mine and I took it. I stood in front of him, laughing at his face and attire. "Hey, you look just as bad as I do."

He bent down for a moment before straightening his posture to smash mud against my face. "Master!" I cried over his laughter.

I wiped my face, smacking some of it into his own. "Cute," he smirked. "I think you look much better this way."

I rolled my eyes. "Come on, Master. You're the one who said we need to rescue the Senator. Let's get a move on."

"Right," he said. He became General Skywalker, hiding the real Anakin Skywalker beneath the carefully crafted soldier's soul.

The rain continued to pour down upon us as we ran through a large tree-infested area. He gripped my hand tightly, not wanting to lose me. Once we reached a clearing, we figured the stronghold was out there. He pulled me behind a tree and began to glance over our surroundings.

He closed his eyes, reaching out into the Force. "Ugh," he grunted, opening his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"There's too much of the dark side's signature. I can't sense the Senator. For all we know, Senator Zar is dead and we could be walking into a trap."

"Master, you always lead us into a trap…"

He turned his head, showing me his frustrated 'knock it off' look. "Let's see how you like it. Lead the way, Snips."

"I didn't mean –"

He motioned for me to move. I sighed, pulling my lightsaber into my hand. "Just watch my back," I whispered, leading him through the remaining trees.

I heard him mutter something along the lines of, "What else am I supposed to watch, Snips?"

Luckily, there was a patch of trees connecting to the large stronghold before us. We both stared up. "That's a lot of climbing…"

"You'd better get started then," he chuckled.

I sighed, beginning to grab onto rocks that jutted out from the cliffside. I looked down to see his back. He was making sure nothing was coming up on us. I could feel his anxiety building.

Once I got a bit of distance from the ground, he began to follow me. I shuddered as I continued my journey to the top. The dark side was very strong here. "It's okay, Ahsoka," he said beneath me. I poked my head over the top of the cliff, glancing at a platform leading into the stronghold.

It was clear, so I threw myself up. I knelt down, waiting for him. I reached my hand out for him as he got closer. He took my hand and I helped him finish the climb.

"I see what you meant earlier," I whispered.

"We'll be fine. We just need to be careful. I've got your back, Snips."

We walked into the building silently. He walked behind me, mainly watching behind us both. I held his hand so he could follow me without taking the risk of bumping into something while glancing back.

POV: Anakin Skywalker

"We're getting closer," I whispered. "Ahsoka, scout the next hallway." I paused, releasing her hand. I stared back at where we'd just come from as she silently dashed across the hall.

"Master!" she whispered. I turned around. She was motioning for me to follow her. "The Senator is in here."

I nodded, crossing the hall just as silently as she had. She continued ahead of me, so I carefully backed into the room.

"It's so good to see that you've finally arrived," the Senator said. Ahsoka slashed his bonds and greeted him. I walked back to the doorway, watching for Separatists.

"Mas – ter!" she screamed. I ignited my lightsaber, spinning around quickly. Her lightsaber was under his foot. A blaster was held directly to her montral, an arm restricting her breath. She stared at me in fear, trying to pry the arm from her neck.

"Drop your weapon or I'll kill the girl!"

"Mas – ter! No!"

Tears were running down her face, her fear colliding with my own. "Let her go," I growled.

"Drop your weapon."

I tossed it onto the floor, listening to its deactivation. "Release her."

His grip around her neck tightened. I moved and his finger hovered over the blaster's trigger. "Don't move. If either of you wish to survive, you'll allow me safe passage off of this planet. Your Padawan is my hostage now."

"Why are you doing this?"

"The Jedi took my family from me. You destroy building after building, ship after ship, but you never consider the lifeforms being held hostage! My wife was killed during your mission, General. The Defender collided with the Separatist ship. She was a loyalist and you killed her! I've pledged myself to the Separatists to get revenge on you and only you!"

I frowned, my heart sinking."I see that you care so deeply about your Padawan. She could be the equivalent of a wife to you or perhaps a daughter. You took one from me as well."

Ahsoka's breath became short, coming and going slower with each breath. He kept tightening around her neck. I reached my hand out, pulling the blaster to me. My other hand reached for the lightsaber, which came to me obediently.

Senator Zar laughed. "And now I snap her little neck!"

"No!" I screamed. Without thinking, I flung my lightsaber at him. The tip pierced through his chest…

He fell to the floor, crushing Ahsoka beneath him. My lightsaber clattered to the floor, deactivating itself. I ran to the body, pushing it off of my Padawan.

Her eyes were closed and she looked absolutely motionless. "Ahsoka! Wake up!" I shook her lightly. "Ahsoka! No… no… no!" Images of my mother's death and Padme's future one crashed down on me, suffocating me. The temperature in my body dropped into the negatives. I thought back to Mortis several months ago. Everything inside of me froze at the sight of her motionless body for the second time…

I pulled her upper body into my arms, cradling her against my chest. Tears began to fall as I rocked us back and forth, closing my eyes.

"M… Mas… Master…" a small voice whispered. My eyes snapped open and I glanced down. Hers were slowly beginning to open, her breathing evening out, and a small smile playing upon her lips.