Chapter 37

Anakin was feeling rather pleased with himself. The look of shock and delight on Obi-Wan's face when he saw the reserve had been exquisit. He would give an awful lot to see that look again. The two droids really had done a wonderful job in finding such a place. Anakin knew there was a park near the Temple but he had never expected Coruscant to house such a place.

Once they had eaten, they lay back down together, enjoying the atmosphere. They made sure to keep their hoods up so they wouldn't be recognised but it wasn't too much of a sacrifice to have the day together. They had also both worn regular clothing, opposed to Jedi robes. Anakin had made sure to get Obi-Wan a couple of sets of regular clothing upon finding out he owned nothing but Jedi robes. If they were to get about without being recognised, it was a requirement. He needed to get some for Ahsoka as well. They also served as useful for any undercover missions. Jedi robes were quite distinctive.

"Thank you for this. I love it." Obi-Wan told him as they watched some fish swimming in the stream.

"My pleasure." Anakin told him sincerely. After a pleasant lie down, they packed up and Anakin summoned the droids once more to take the stuff back. Then he and Obi-Wan took a slow walk around the rest of the park. It was relatively quiet as it was early afternoon and most people were at work. It turned out that the place had plenty of species of both plants and animals that weren't native to Coruscant. Obi-Wan was in his element pointing out the various things and telling him what they were and where they came from. Anakin was quite content to simply listen to him.

This quiet peace was such a change from the chaos of war. It was almost jarring and yet wonderful at the same time. Once upon a time he would have enjoyed the war. Going out and proving himself, winning battles. Now he found himself craving simplicity. The quiet, stolen moments with Obi-Wan that meant everything to him. He could picture them living somewhere like Naboo, with plenty of places like this to explore. Maybe he could join the royal guard for something to do. Padme would surely put in a good word for him in regards to his trustworthiness.

"What are you thinking so hard about?" Obi-Wan asked him, pulling him back to the present.

"Oh, just dreaming." He felt slightly foolish for thinking of such things when there was still a war to be won. There was no guarantee either of them would live long enough to enjoy such a future. Anakin pushed away those thoughts. It was supposed to be a good day.

"Good dreams?"

"Of course. They're about you." Anakin admitted, taking great delight in the redness that rose up Obi-Wan's neck and cheeks. Obi-Wan pulled him in for a kiss and he reciprocated eagerly. Sadly they did have to head back eventually. Anakin made sure to take the long way back in the speeder, still keeping to his promise to drive horribly slowly. Or 'regular speed' as Obi-Wan called it. As he was parking the speeder, Obi-Wan's commlink beeped. Ahsoka's voice came through saying she was arriving back.

"Where has Ahsoka been?" Anakin asked.

"Oh, I guess I forgot to tell you."

"Yep."

"She had some visions about Aurra Sing assassinating Padme so she accompanied her to a conference on Alderaan." Obi-Wan told him.

"Good for her." Anakin smiled. He guessed his Padawan had been successful as she would have sounded more upset otherwise. "Let's go and meet them." Obi-Wan nodded so they made their way to the landing pad Padme usually used. They arrived only a few minutes before a familiar Naboo ship did. Ahsoka, Padme and Captain Typho disembarked. Padme had her arm in a sling but didn't seem to be injured further.

"Are you two ok?" Anakin asked, slightly anxiously. Ahsoka was holding her arm as well.

"Just a scratch, Master." She assured him.

"I'm perfectly fine, Anakin." Padme smiled. "Thanks to Ahsoka. She saved my life."

"I'm glad to see you are all alive and well." Obi-Wan said with a small bow.

"Good work, Snips." Anakin told her. Ahsoka beamed. Then three guards came off the ship, leading Aurra Sing who was in cuffs. "And you caught the bounty hunter."

"Well, Padme did that bit." Ahsoka admitted looking a little sheepish.

"Did she indeed." Anakin smiled in amusement. He certainly had no trouble believing that.

"We still don't know who was really behind it though." Ahsoka pointed out. "Aurra said whoever hired her had a grudge against Padme."

"Well, that could be quite a few people. She is rather annoying." Anakin said, winking at Padme.

"That's rich, coming from you." She retorted, raising an eyebrow. "I really don't know how Ahsoka and Obi-Wan put up with you."

"Neither do I." Obi-Wan agreed.

"You're supposed to be on my side." Anakin complained.

"But I agree with Padme."

"That's not the point." Anakin pouted. Padme and Ahsoka both burst out laughing and he glared at them both. Sadly this only made them laugh harder.

"Ahsoka, are you sure you saw nothing in your visions. Think back." Obi-Wan told the Padawan. Ahsoka closed her eyes and muttered out a few things that didn't make any sense to Anakin. Ahsoka seemed equally confused.

"Ah. I know someone who matches that description." Padme sighed.

"You do?"

"Ziro the Hutt." Anakin scowled at the name Hutt.

"Isn't Ziro still in prison?" He asked angrily.

"Yes. He should be anyway." Padme said.

"I guess you and I are going to pay Ziro a little visit, Snips. See if we can get a confession." Anakin said. Ahsoka nodded grimly. "He'll pay for this." Anakin vowed. Obi-Wan squeezed his arm and Padme gave him a grateful smile. Then she and Typho left to get back to the Senate. Obi-Wan agreed to meet them back at the apartment once they were done.

The trip to Ziro was surprisingly productive thanks to Ahsoka. Anakin had barely been able to suppress a smirk as she tricked Ziro into admitting he had hired Sing. Triumphantly they were able to extend Ziro's sentence by another twenty years on top of the original sentence.

"Nice work, Snips. You handled that excellently." Anakin told her.

"Thank you, Master."

"And you thought you wouldn't learn anything while staying behind." He teased. She rolled her eyes at him. They made their way back to the Temple. Anakin told Ahsoka to get some rest as they were likely to get another mission soon enough. Then he met Obi-Wan back at their apartment. They sat together on the couch as Obi-Wan informed him they would be leaving in the morning.

"Aww, where are we going?"

"Kamino. Master Tiin intercepted some coded Separatist messages and Ventress has been commanded to attack Kamino. Master Ti is already there."

"That's a very bold move." Anakin frowned. Obi-Wan nodded.

"Last time Ventress and Grievous led the attack, now it seems to just be Ventress. Or someone new. Maybe Dooku has found another leader."

"Wonderful." He sighed. "Well, we'll deal with whatever they throw at us together. And I'm sure the Clones will be sure to put up the fight of their lives given that Kamino is their home planet." The rest of the evening passed pleasantly and they had an early night, falling asleep quite easily.

Ahsoka was quite unhappy with herself. She had been beaten far too easily by Aurra Sing, leaving Padme to have to look after herself. Though she did do it very well, she shouldn't have had to. Ahsoka clearly needed more practise in deflecting rapid blaster bolts. The droids fired relatively slowly compared to the bounty hunter. They also fired in a repeating pattern rather than a burst of random fire. It annoyed her enough that she couldn't rest. Instead she got up and went for a walk to clear her head. Ahsoka didn't want to talk to Master Skywalker or Master Obi-Wan about it. Padme had insisted that Ahsoka had saved her life and she didn't feel like explaining her being caught off guard by an attack she knew was coming. Or the fact that she was beaten by one bounty hunter.

She didn't really have a destination in mind and her feet ended up taking her to the hangar they were supposed to leave from the next morning. Maybe she was just eager to get back out there and prove she could do it. That she was good enough.

"You're out late, Little one." Came a voice from behind her, making her jump. Whirling around, lightsaber out, she let out a sigh of relief when she saw Rex emerging from the shadows.

"Couldn't sleep." She admitted. He gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Me either." He told her.

"Why can't you sleep?" She asked curiously.

"Those damn clankers are wanting to attack my home and I'm not there. Maybe we won't arrive in time, maybe we will. Those are my brothers back there, some of them not old enough to be able to defend themselves yet." Rex sighed. "We clones don't really have much but we have a home and we have each other. They want to destroy both things at once."

"Master Skywalker and Master Kenobi won't let that happen." Ahsoka told him firmly.

"Provided they can look away from each other long enough to watch the droids." Rex gave a small chuckle.

"Ahh, they don't need to look at them to destroy droids." Ahsoka smirked, wondering exactly how much the Clone Captain knew about the two Jedi. Rex inclined his head in agreement.

"They work well together. General Kenobi has the brains and General Skywalker has the boldness to bring about the radical plans."

"Master Skywalker can be quite clever when he wants to be." Ahsoka defended her Master. Rex raised an eyebrow. "I mean, they clearly share the brains. They both have moments of stupidity and the other ones comes up with the brilliant plan to fix the stupid thing."

"General Kenobi definitely has the brains more often." Rex said.

"Well yeah." Ahsoka couldn't defend her Master on that one. "But I'm pretty sure Master Skywalker prefers it that way. He says he works better when he doesn't have to think."

"That explains a lot." Rex muttered. Ahsoka laughed and he soon joined in. "So why can't you sleep, Little one?" He asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I got caught off guard on a mission." She told him. For some reason Rex was easy to talk to. He didn't judge or dismiss her feelings.

"It happens to us all." He told her. "You just need to make sure you learn from it and don't let it happen again." Ahsoka nodded.

"Thanks, Rex." She gave him a smile which was returned.

"You should try and get some sleep if you can, Little one. We have a big trip tomorrow. Or today, I should say." Rex said, checking the time.

"I will. Make sure you rest too, Rex." She told him. Rex looked after her and Anakin all the time and she wondered who took care of him. Yeah, they reminded all the Clones to get some rest after a battle but did anyone really think about how they must feel after each battle? How they felt having watched countless brothers die in the field? Ahsoka doubted that. She made a silent promise to do better at looking out for the Clones.

The next morning dawned. Obi-Wan and Anakin rose slowly, not wanting to get out of bed. Eventually Obi-Wan decided to get Anakin up by tickling him which Anakin considered incredibly unfair. Finally they started to get themselves ready for the day. After a routinely, longer than strictly necessary, shower they made their way to the hangar. Ahsoka was there to meet them with Rex and Cody. Both Rex and Cody were grimmer than usual which was to be expected. Though the corner of Rex's mouth was tugging upwards like he wanted to smile. Anakin guessed Ahsoka had been trying to cheer them up. They all boarded the Resolute and departed. Ahsoka went to the bridge with the Clones while Anakin and Obi-Wan went to get some breakfast.

Anakin cooked up some pancakes. Then they sat on the bunk together and ate. Once they had finished, Anakin used the Force to put the dishes in the sink and then curled up, leaning against Obi-Wan. He could hear the comforting sound of his heartbeat, strong and steady. Just like the man himself. Anakin found himself in awe of Obi-Wan every kriffing day.

"I love you." He said quietly but firmly. Something in him just wanted to make sure the older man knew.

"As I love you." Came the soft reply. Anakin shifted slightly so he could look up in Obi-Wan's face. The love and tenderness in his expression took Anakin's breath away. That look made him feel like he mattered. Like he was cared for. It was a feeling he had craved for so very long. Now Obi-Wan gave him that security and love all the time and Anakin wasn't sure what to do with it. Emotions welled up within him and for a startling second it felt like he might actually cry. "You ok?" Obi-Wan asked him, slight concern bleeding into his tone.

"Yeah." Anakin said, fighting back a cringe as his voice came out a little shaky. "Yeah, I just…" He didn't know how to put into words how he was feeling. Instead he leaned up and kissed Obi-Wan, trying to put his feelings into the kiss instead of words. Obi-Wan's arms wrapped around him, supporting him as he returned the kiss. Anakin had to shift again as he became uncomfortable, so he was basically sitting in Obi-Wan's lap. The older man then turned him, so Anakin was straddling him and pulled him tight against his body. Anakin buried his face in the other Jedi's hair, kissing it.

Obi-Wan began softly kissing and sucking on his neck. It made Anakin moan and suddenly no matter how close they were it wasn't enough.

He pulled back slightly and pulled off his tunic, using the Force to lock the door, not wanting anyone to come walking in. Obi-Wan seemed quite on board with this plan as he took the time to remove his own tunic. Anakin then pulled him against him once more, letting their skin touch. Obi-Wan immediately returned his attention to his neck and Anakin grinded against him. His hand ran over the older man's back, paying attention to even the slightest reaction.

"Stil too many clothes on." Obi-Wan muttered, frustration in his voice.

"Your wish is my command." Anakin said, pulling away so he could get his pants off. Obi-Wan did the same. Clad in just their boxers, the two men moved into a lying position. They kissed tenderly, wanting to savour the moment. Anakin moved his fingers down Obi-Wan's stomach to the hem of his boxers. He played with the skin there, dipping his fingers underneath ever so slightly. After a few seconds, Obi-Wan groaned against his mouth impatiently. Anakin chuckled softly and then kissed his way down the other man's jaw and neck as his fingers deftly removed the remaining article of clothing that had been blocking his way. There was a sound of approval from above him and he smiled.

"Need you." Obi-Wan said, a little breathlessly. Anakin let his fingers circle closer to the waiting cock, drawing out alternate moans of approval and whines of impatience. Every delicious sound went straight down to his own cock which was trying to make its own needs known. He used the Force to remove his own boxers as his hand closed around Obi-Wan. There was a soft, drawn out moan at this and Anakin gently rubbed his thumb over the tip. Then he began to move his hand slowly. His other hand drifted between Obi-Wan's thighs, exploring lightly. Hips jerked as he reached a particularly sensitive spot and he made a mental note of that for the future.

Then he used the hand that was exploring to gently tease the entrance to Obi-Wan's anus. There was a sharp inhalation that made him look up. Obi-Wan's face was lit up with pleasure and his eye squeezed closed. Anakin committed that look to memory. It was exquisite. Then he summoned some lube he kept in a nearby drawer and put some on his finger. He used the Force to help him so he could keep one hand wrapped around Obi-Wan's cock. With his finger lubed up, he gently and slowly began inserting it into Obi-Wan. The other man stiffened momentarily and Anakin stopped.

"Is this ok?"

"Y..yeah." Obi-Wan panted. Anakin began moving again and soon he was able to slide one finger in and out with relative ease. Obi-Wan was now making breathy little moans that were positively sinful and Anakin enjoyed watching his expressions.

Adding more lube, he slowly began working in a second finger, pausing whenever Obi-Wan seemed in any discomfort. Anakin brought their mental shields together, not to be invasive but it allowed him to see flashes in mood and so made it easier to see if he was in any pain. Confident the older man was feeling nothing but pleasure, Anakin continued stretching him. Being so close mentally allowed some of Obi-Wan's pleasure to feed into Anakin's mind, which heightened everything. Anakin was beginning to wonder if either of them would last long enough to go any further. Still, he kept his pace up both with his fingers and the hand around Obi-Wan's cock. Obi-Wan writhed beneath him.

A third finger was added and soon enough he was managing to slide in easily enough. His own cock was rock solid by this point and desperate for some attention.

"Obi, can I...I mean..." Anakin fumbled for the words.

"Need you." Obi-Wan said. With permission to continue given, Anakin crawled back up Obi-Wan's body and kissed him deeply. The kiss was returned with equal fervour, hands grabbing at his back to pull him closer. He had to pull back for a second to put more lube on his cock, unable to quite believe what he was about to do. He was about to properly fuck Obi-Wan Kenobi. The thought almost made him giggle. A wave of pleasure from Obi-Wan and an impatient whine, drew him back and he lined up his cock with the other man's entrance.

Then he slowly pushed forwards. His tip pushed past the ring of muscle and it was heavenly. He continued slowly until a brief pulse of pain came from Obi-Wan. Instantly he stopped moving, giving the other man time to adjust. It was a couple of minutes before he was confident enough to carry on. Anakin began to slowly slide forwards, pleasure shooting through him. Eventually he was fully sheathed in Obi-Wan and he had to stop moving in order to stop himself orgasming immediately. He squeezed his eyes closed and the pleasure engulfed him and he kissed Obi-Wan again to distract himself. It was a few seconds before Obi-Wan began to rock his hips and Anakin began to slowly slide back out. Soon he was smoothly moving in and out at a relatively slow pace, enjoying every single second.

"Faster." Obi-Wan demanded, attacking his neck. Anakin was not one to deny Obi-Wan so he increased his pace. They were both moaning and Anakin could feel his peak racing towards him. His hips snapped faster and with a final thrust he let out a loud groan and stilled. Pleasure coursed through him and he rested his head on Obi-Wan's collarbone. It took him a few seconds before his brain started working again and he eventually realised that Obi-Wan had not orgasmed. He felt a flush of shame. This was supposed to have been for the other man. Anakin slowly removed himself from Obi-Wan and took his cock in his hand once more, moving quickly. It didn't take long before the older man's breathing became shallow and his hips were moving frantically. Then he arched upwards with a shout of Anakin's name. Warm seed spurted out and covered Anakin's hand. They flopped back down together, Anakin's head on Obi-Wan's chest.

"We should probably get cleaned up." Obi-Wan murmured a few minutes later. Anakin gave a sleepy noise of agreement though he didn't really want to move. Eventually they both summoned up the energy to shower. They managed to be quite quick about it, having realised they would probably be needed on the bridge relatively soon. Anakin was surprised someone hadn't called for them already. Although, he supposed that the trip to Kamino should be straightforward and it wasn't the closest planet around.

The two Jedi got themselves dressed and made themselves presentable before heading to the bridge. It took all of his control and willpower not to just constantly grin broadly. Ahsoka, Cody and Rex were there, waiting for them.

"Master, Master Kenobi." Ahsoka greeted them with a smile.

"General." Cody and Rex said together.

"Do we have any idea of the size of the enemy fleet heading to Kamino?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Master Tiin's information says several ships but exactly how many 'several' is, we aren't sure." Ahsoka told him. "The Republic does have quite a substantial blockade there already though." She added.

"Yes, we are going as reinforcements on the ground should they make it through the blockade." Obi-Wan replied.

"Snips, when we get there, I want you to lead the fighters in the battle. I will be on the planet surface with Obi-Wan and Master Ti." Anakin said.

"I suspect they are not just simply after the planet. The force that would be required to take Kamino completely would be phenomenal." Obi-Wan pointed out.

"What do you think they are after?" Cody asked.

"Most likely...the Clone DNA I should think. Either they want it, or they want to destroy it so we can't use it." Obi-Wan replied.

"Why take such a risk to destroy it though?" Rex asked. "There are still us Clones. Surely they can just use our DNA and replace what is destroyed."

"I honestly don't know how it works." Obi-Wan shrugged. "That does seem possible which means we should assume they want to take the DNA for themselves, if that is indeed what they are even after."

"Well, once we get there, I'll guard the DNA room." Anakin said. Obi-Wan nodded.

"Rex, Cody, you'll need to have some men protecting the younger Clones. We'll move them all to the barracks but they will need guards. Some men on higher ground to act as snipers wouldn't go amiss either." Rex and Cody exchanged glances.

"We know just the troops for that job." Rex said.

"Good." Anakin nodded. They discussed a few more options and various backup plans for the backup plans just to make Obi-Wan happy. Soon they were arriving at Kamino. The Resolute landed in Tipoca City to allow all the Clones off. Then Yularen and Ahsoka took off to join the blockade. Anakin, Obi-Wan, Shaak Ti, Cody and Rex met in the briefing room to go over the plans they had made. Shaak Ti agreed that the Clone DNA was the most likely target if they were not aiming to take over the entire planet.

"Master?" Ahsoka's voice came through his commlink.

"Yes?" He said.

"The Separatists have arrived." She said.

"Copy that." Anakin replied. He informed the rest of the group. "Right, I'll head to the DNA room."

"I'll be in the main hangar." Obi-Wan said.

"I will remain here to coordinate." Shaak Ti stated. They all nodded and Anakin left with Obi-Wan. Once outside and clear of any Clones, Anakin pulled him into a hug,

"You be careful." He told the older Jedi firmly.

"You as well. Ventress is likely to be the one trying to get the DNA."

"I can handle Ventress." Anakin assured him. "You're going to be getting shot at from all angles by droids." Obi-Wan nodded.

"I'll be careful." He agreed. They hugged once more and went their separate ways. Anakin arrived outside the DNA room and then there was nothing left to do but wait. Not one of his strong points. It was nerve wracking, just waiting for something to happen. He heard reports over his commlink that the enemy had aqua droids.

Then something happened that caused the entire place. Someone reported that the droids had arrived. Anakin was on edge. Obi-Wan was probably right in the middle of battle right now. It took everything in him not to go and find him. Obi-Wan could handle himself. He had a job to do. Knowing that the enemy were here, Anakin slipped inside the DNA room and hid himself.

It was another few, long minutes before the door opened and Ventress came walking in. Anakin narrowed his eyes and waited. She didn't even bother looking around, simply walked up to the machine. Then Anakin leapt out from his hiding place and brought his lightsaber down. He sliced straight through Ventress' arm as she couldn't react in time. Anakin Force pushed her back out of the room, not wanting to damage any of the equipment with the following fight. By the time he leapt out of the room to join Ventress, she was up and had a lightsaber in her remaining hand.

"So ungentlemanly, Skywalker." She spat.

"Well, we can't all be Obi-Wan." Anakin shrugged. Then he attacked, wanting to press his advantage. This time, he would not let her get away.

"How is dear old Kenobi?" She asked casually, as if they weren't in the middle of a fight to the death.

"Just fine, no thanks to you." He stated, pushing her into a wall. She grunted but recovered and he had to duck a slash aimed at his head. Then he blocked an attack aiming for his legs. Lightsabers clashed. Anakin and Ventress both pushed against the other. Suddenly she gave a little, making him stumble off balance. A well placed kick, sent him crashing sideways into the wall and he only just rolled out of the wtay of the follow up attack that would have taken his head off. He retaliated with a Force push through another doorway. Obi-Wan's voice on his commlink told him the droids had been pushed back to the main hangar. Anakin smirked at Ventress who was scowling.

"How's this 'being in charge' thing working for ya?" He taunted. Ventress snarled and leapt at him. Anakin parried the attack, whirling around and slashing. He only caught the hem of her robe. Ventress then decided to retreat. Anakin gave chase, following her out into the typical Kaminoan rain drizzle. They both had to dive sideways to avoid being smashed into by a robotic...was that a tentacle? There was no time to dwell on it, he jumped to his feet and kept after Ventress. Eventually he chased her to the edge of one of the platforms. Several Clones came up behind him, blasters aimed at the assassin.

"I suppose you expect me to surrender?" She asked.

"Frankly, I'd be disappointed if you did." Anakin replied. He had let her live once, he would not do it again. She glanced backwards and he saw a ship shooting towards them. With a growl of frustration, Anakin dived forwards but Ventress jumped up, managing to grab hold of the passing ship and passing beyond his reach. Anakin stared after it and sighed. She would live to fight another day. Hopefully the loss of her hand would slow her down. He examined a tear in his robes that he hadn't noticed before but he had sustained no other damage. Slowly, he made his way back to the briefing room. Obi-Wan and Shaak Ti were waiting for him. Shaak Ti was uninjured but Obi-Wan seemed to be holding his shoulder. Anakin looked at him in concern.

"I'm fine. Just a graze." Obi-Wan assured him, noticing the look. Anakin nodded but he wouldn't be convinced until he could look at it himself.

"Ventress escaped." He told them with a frustrated sigh. "But she did not get the Clone DNA."

"That's one good thing." Shaak said. "Tipoca City sustained a fair bit of damage in the attack but nothing that can't be fixed." Rex and Cody then came in. They gave their report. They both recommended that Hevy, Echo and Fives be promoted to ARC Troopers for their performance. Cutup had been killed in the attack. All the Jedi agreed they deserved it. Anakin went with Rex and Cody to inform the three other Clones. All three were delighted, despite mourning Cutup and 99 who had both died defending the younger Clones.

"I'm honoured to have you as ARC Troopers in the 501st." Anakin told them. They saluted and then were dismissed. "Get some rest as well." He told Rex and Cody. They both nodded. Anakin made his way back to Obi-Wan and Shaak Ti. There was still a lot of cleanup to do.

It took them another three days to properly clear the city. Ahsoka joined them late on the first day, saying the Separatist fleet had fled. Lama Su was most grateful for their help. Anakin couldn't help but smile slightly as young Clones whispered whenever he walked by. He really wasn't a role model they should be inspired by but it made him feel good anyway. After the third day, he, Ahsoka and Obi-Wan were summoned back to Coruscant.

On the way back he received a message from Padme, asking if he could meet with her. Anakin wondered what that could possibly be about. When they got back, Obi-Wan agreed to go and debrief the Council while Anakin and Ahsoka went to meet Padme. She met them on her landing platform which was a bit strange.

"Hey, Padme. What's going on?" Anakin asked as she approached.

"Hello, Anakin. It's good to see you again, Ahsoka." She greeted them both while hugging Ahsoka. She then informed them of the situation involving Pantora. "This blockade troubles me. It reminds me of Naboo's own history."

"Ah, that blockade was rather easy really." Anakin chuckled. "Besides, I'm rather grateful to that particular blockade. It is what allowed me to meet you, Obi-Wan and Master Qui-Gon." Padme smiled while Ahsoka gave him a confused look.

"I'm afraid the situation isn't just the blockade. The new Chairman's daughters have been kidnapped. Normally it would just be a job for the local authority but I suspect the Separatists are behind this and local authority won't be able to do anything." Padme told them. "I was wondering if the Jedi would be able to investigate."

"I'm afraid, as you said, it's a job for local authorities." Anakin told her regretfully.

"If the situation is not resolved quickly, then I'm afraid Pantora may have no choice but to join the Separatists." Padme stated. Anakin looked at her. His own experience with the Pantorans had been mixed at best but it wouldn't be good if they joined the Separatists.

"The Jedi may not be able to get involved officially," He said slowly. "But the fact that Separatists are likely to be involved does give cause for Ahsoka to investigate."

"Me?" Ahsoka asked in astonishment.

"Yes." Anakin told her.

"You aren't going to help?"

"I will be helping. I'll be making sure the Council doesn't find out about your expedition." He said. "Help find out what happened to the Chairman's daughters but do not get in the way of the local authority." He warned.

"Yes, Master." She nodded.

"Should you really proceed without the approval of the Council?" Padme asked. Then she saw his expression and rolled her eyes.

"Ah, we do it all the time, don't we, Snips?" Anakin smirked.

"Yep." Ahsoka agreed with a laugh.

"You're a terrible influence, Anakin Skywalker." Padme told him though her eyes sparkled in amusement. "I can't believe they let you teach."

"Me either." He shrugged with another laugh.

"Be careful, Ahsoka." Padme told the young Togruta, giving her another hug. Ahsoka then departed and Anakin watched her leave apprehensively. "She'll be ok." Padme told him.

"Of course she will. She learnt from me." Anakin gave her an innocent smile.

"That will be why she gets in trouble." Padme stated dryly.

"But it will also be how she gets out of that trouble." Anakin pressed. Padme rolled her eyes but chuckled.

"True." They hugged before Anakin had to leave to get back to the Temple.