This collection of one-shots was inspired by GettingTraught's 'Clones and Their Commander'.
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars.
Okay, guys, let's see how this goes. When I first came up with the concept of writing one-shots about Ahsoka's interactions with people of the same rank as her, the characters involved were mostly OCs. Since then, I've been re-watching the TV show and have realised how many super cool Commanders pop up here and there. It would be rude to not write scenes about the ones who only featured briefly in the show.
Hence, my first attempt at writing 'Commander Tano Meets Commanders'…
Chapter 1: Commander Wolffe, after 'Rising Malevolence'
Sometimes, we can only save the survivors.
"Master Plo's faring best." Glory told Ahsoka, her soft voice echoing through the quiet medbay, "Followed by Sinker and Boost." The two girls walked further into triage and Ahsoka observed the men inside, all neatly tucked into their beds with thick blankets.
The medbay was calm, much calmer than usual. No blood stained the floor, nobody was screaming in pain and none of the medics had reached the caf-dependent stage of exhaustion. Torrent's casualties were minimal, so the only permanent patients were the Wolfpack survivors and Master Plo who was sat up in his bed, reading a datapad.
He waved at Ahsoka, earning a shy smile in return. She was glad that her oldest friend was on the mend, but he wasn't the reason she paid a visit to the meday.
The clone medic halted and the Padawan followed her gaze to the furthest bed that was tucked in the corner, "What about Wolffe?"
He seemed to be sleeping peacefully like the others, but Ahsoka had come to the medbay after feeling his intense, negative emotions in the Force, so strong that it made her nauseous.
Glory pursed her lips, "There's no cure for nightmares, Ahsoka." She rested a hand on the Jedi's shoulder, "He's not sleeping, so you may talk to him if you believe it'll help."
Before her feet started to subconsciously move towards the corner of the room, Glory's grip on her shoulder tightened, "Thank you for persuading the General to look for survivors; you did good out there."
"Thanks." She breathed, not moving an inch until Glory released her.
Once she was stood next to the Commander's bedside, and completely unsure of what to say. Wolffe had never introduced himself to her, despite their frequent encounters, and Ahsoka always felt like squirming under his harsh glare.
Even with his eyes closed, Wolffe was scowling.
"You got something to say, kid?" He asked suddenly, making her jump. "Or are you just going to stand there?"
"H-How are you?" She found herself asking, leaning against the railing of his bed. Nobody had ever told her that the beds could move, and Wolffe jerked his eyes open when the bed scrapped across the floor, "Sorry!"
As she pulled the bed back into position, Ahsoka didn't miss the way Wolffe's eyes went wide and the heart monitor sped up. Clones had nerves of steel, so his panic unsettled the Padawan.
"I'm fine." He said eventually, filling the silence, "Medic said I was affected more because I wasn't wearing armour."
"Well, you'll be alright now, and so will the rest of your men." She tried to reassure him, "Glory's the best of the best."
"Hm." He replied, scowling again, leading them into another painfully awkward silence.
Sure, Anakin could be difficult to carry on conversations when he wasn't feeling like it, but Ahsoka could easily walk away from her Master to find another source of entertainment. Now, she would've looked like a terrible person if she walked away. Besides, she wasn't talking to Wolffe to entertain herself, she was trying to help him.
"The first time I fought Ventress, I thought I was going to die." He glared at her with a raised eyebrow, causing her to stutter, "So, d-don't feel ashamed."
"Ashamed of what?" He spat, looking down at his feet. "Clones aren't afraid of death."
"Says who?" She asked, angry that he felt the need to act so unaffected even after nearly being vacuumed out of an escape pod. His only response was to cast her a nasty look.
She hadn't been near many clones during their final breaths, the medics and her Master always tried to shelter her from it, but their Force-signatures always projected fear before they passed.
"I wasn't afraid of dying, kid." He was lying. Every report about the mystery weapon stated that there were no survivors and any person, clone or not, would be terrified to face something like that. "I just wish there were more survivors."
That caught her off guard, and here she thought Wolffe was incapable of having emotional responses. "The Wolfpack?" The veteran Commander nodded, partially closing his eyes.
When the rest of Torrent found out that only three clones survived the Malevolence, shock rippled all the way up the ladder. The Wolfpack were one of the best squads in the GAR, and their reputation was well-known. The fact that the Separatists had decided to attack them, and succeeded, had shocked everyone.
Unfortunately, like Torrent at Teth, the Wolfpack weren't invincible.
"Sucked out of those pods like angry nerfs being released from a pen." She could tell he wasn't exaggerating; he had seen it happen. "They stood no chance of surviving, and I had no chance of saving them."
He turned his head towards her, "As Commanders, it's our responsibility to keep our men alive. You've been in this war, what? Less than 3 months? You don't know how much faith your men are putting in you, kid."
Ahsoka clenched her jaw, "My men put a lot of faith in my Master and I, but they also understand that sometimes, we can't promise survival. Sometimes," Her throat closed up just thinking about Teth, "We can only save the survivors."
"As Commanders, we have to accept this fact." She added with a bite in her tone. "Our all will not always be enough, but the best men under our command can understand this."
Rex had not once blamed Ahsoka or Anakin for their losses on Teth, even though they could've saved more men if their mandate to return Rotta to Tattooine hadn't been put under so much pressure.
They waited in silence for a while, Ahsoka realised that Wolffe's walls were not penetrable like the men in Torrent. She could usually get Rex to crack if he had something on his mind, and it was easy to cheer up Honour or Glory when they felt defeated. But Wolffe, there was no way to warm his ice-cold heart.
She was soon proven wrong.
"Fancy some dinner, sweetheart?" Glory asked, holding a tray of steaming food in one hand as she approached them. At first, Ahsoka thought she was addressing her, but then the Padawan saw something she never thought she would see.
Wolffe smiled.
Ahsoka's jaw dropped open as the medic raised the top of Wolffe's bed and passed him the tray, all the while his eyes were lit up like a youngling being offered candy. "Meat and vegetable stew with rice, double portion." She winked at the clone playfully before meeting Ahsoka's eyes.
"Ahsoka can help me in the office if you'd like to eat alone, Commander." Glory offered, smiling back at Wolffe.
She recognised her cue to leave and straightened when Wolffe spoke out, "She can stay."
Ahsoka felt her chest swell with pride; Wolffe didn't hate her enough to make her leave whilst he ate his dinner. With one last smile, Glory left the pair and retreated to the office. Wolffe watched the medic until the office door closed before looking at the tray on his lap.
It was practically inhaled.
Ahsoka grimaced at the disgusting sound of lips smacking and meat being chewed, it made her want to gag. Wolffe paid her no mind as he devoured the mountain of food in less than three minutes. Honestly, Ahsoka thought watching Anakin eat was gross, but this was a new level of uncivilised mannerism.
"What?" He asked, glaring at her once again whilst chewing one of his final mouthfuls. If he wasn't careful, he would start eating the fork.
"Oh, just trying to decide what makes you less grumpy: food or having Glory wait on you hand and foot." She teased.
Wolffe choked, leaning forwards to spit the final piece of half-chewed, slobber covered meat back onto his plate. Ahsoka grimaced, she'd seen banthas eat with more grace.
"I'll tell you something, kid, might come in handy with your own men." For the first time, he made eye contact without looking straight into her soul, "The way into a clone's heart is pretty girls and hot food."
Ahsoka frowned, feeling slightly offended that she wasn't enough to cheer him up. He instantly noticed her sour expression and rolled his eyes, "Don't see you offering me any hot food, Soka."
A grin grew on her face, erasing any signs of irritation. She pointed to his plate, "You look like you could use seconds, Commander, let me get that for you."
Just as she went to walk away, Wolffe called, "Thanks for coming back for us, kid."
Glancing over her shoulder, she grinned, "I'll always come back for someone as cheerful as you, Wolfie."
He immediately scowled at the nickname, causing the Togruta to giggle. She left the medbay with a warm feeling in her chest, promising to never leave a clone behind.
Word count: 1,472
There we go; Wolffe made the first chapter! His relationship with Ahsoka is explored briefly in the TV show, but I've always wondered how they would interact alone. Did you guys like it?
Glory is my OC from 'Glory and Honour' and she'll make a few appearances here and there, but I want to keep the focus on Ahsoka and the Commanders. Please let me know if I'm going into too much detail with her, or if you would like to see her and Honour more in these one-shots.
My next upload will (hopefully) be Commander Cody after 'Crisis on Naboo'. How will he respond to Obi-Wan's deception, and how will he comfort Ahsoka who feels torn between her angry Master and supposedly dead Grandmaster?
Feel free to review and request Commanders who you would like to see feature. I would love to even write one-shots with your OCs. If this goes well, I may write more series, such as Ahsoka interacting with Sergeants, Generals, Medics and Captains (will feature heavy Rexsoka friendship fluff). Is this something you'd like to see?
Yours truly, dieFabuliererin