Disclaimer: I still don't speak Scots Gaelic nor Irish Gaeilge aside from a few words ( I do know slightly more Gaeilge though), so if my translations are wrong then blame Google Translate, not me. I also don't own any character that is not my own creation, obviously. Wish I did though. Could use the kind of money Star Wars rakes in. At this point I'm just too lazy to get rid of this disclaimer so it's staying despite getting my point across by now.

Caibideil 13

Riyo Chuchi was sitting in the hospital waiting room, nervously bouncing her leg as she waited for Barriss to come out of surgery, with Luminara Unduli sitting right next to her. The Jedi Master looked at the Pantoran Senator reassuringly as the doctor came out. "Are you here for," he looked at his sheet, "Barriss Offee?"

"Yes?" Senator Chuchi replied nervously. Had she died? Was she crippled for life? What happened? Was she ever going to see her love again?

"She's awake and out of surgery now. I'll take you to her."

"Please!" Riyo requested, a little too eagerly. The pair followed the doctor into Barriss's hospital room, where she was hooked onto an IV, EKG, and other monitors for vital signs, with bacta patches over the areas where she was cut during surgery.

The patient smiled, "Baby!" as Riyo ran up to her and kissed her with relieved tears in her eyes. Breaking the kiss she finally noticed her former master standing beside them with a semi-surprised half-smile. She had heard the reports but was actually doubtful of her apprentice's taste in partners being so refined. "Master? You came too?"

"Like I said," Luminara answered, "You're the closest thing I have to a daughter."

Clearing his throat the doctor made it clear he had specifics to mention, "We tried to save the kidney, but it was totally destroyed. You should be able to live just as well with only one, but I'd personally recommend a dietary change for the next few weeks: drink at least 2.5 liters of water per day and reduce salt intake by half."

"Makes sense," Barriss replied, having medical training herself.

"The lightsaber strike also went through your uterus and we had to perform a hysterectomy. You won't be able to have children of your own."

Glancing at Riyo, who was most definitely a woman since last she had checked, Barriss looked back and quipped, "Yeah, I don't think that'll be a problem."

"Didn't think so, but I'm legally obligated to inform you anyway," the doctor replied, "Also, we found something rather interesting while you were on the operating table."

"Yes?" Barriss asked, somewhat nervous. These add-ons were almost always bad.

"When Grievous stabbed you, well you should probably thank him. We found Stage II-A2 cervical cancer." Everyone's eyes went wide with horror. "We removed all visible signs of the tumors with the full hysterectomy, but I still want you to come in every two months for the next year for a check-in to make sure the cancer is really and truly gone and hadn't spread anywhere that we might have missed."

"O… O-Of course… d-doctor."

"I'll give you three some privacy," the doctor said after looking at a commlink notification, probably letting him know of another patient in critical condition. It was going to be a very long day.

Luminara was holding Barriss's shoulder while Riyo refused to let her go of her hand. She had had cancer? And never even noticed? "Grievous saved my life," she stated blankly, barely comprehending the words coming out of her own mouth. "Grievous… saved… my… life."

Grievous was sparring with a seven training drones at once. He had to hurt something. Slicing one of the drones in half with his green blade, he could only think about Dooku's words, "Blowing up his ship and putting him in that armor was the best and worst decision I ever made." After all this time, all these years of being Dooku's unquestioning, obedient attack dog when he was the one who made him into this cybernetic freakshow? All this time he had mindlessly followed every little meticulous order, taken every syllable of verbal abuse without question because he thought the Jedi were behind his injuries? And it wasn't even them? Grabbing another drone and slamming it into one behind him, he was practically frothing and probably would be if he still had a mouth! A mouth Dooku stole! Sure he had other reasons to detest the Jedi, they had forced his Kaleesh warriors to back off from their conquest of the Huk and rendered Ronderu Iij Kummar's death in vain. "No!" he shouted. He would not dig up memories of her. He had spent so long burying that pain; his lightsabers swirling in a whirlwind of death totally scrapping the drones around him.

Master Fisto was partaking in a holocall with the Council as Anakin and Ahsoka watched, discussing the repercussions of Grievous's attack on the planet and Gràinne's kidnapping. "Do we know how many people have died?"

"Last estimates put nearly a hundred civilian casualties both killed and wounded, with eighty clones dead and another fifty injured. As well as Master Tiin and Knight Offee," Shaak Ti concluded, her arm in a sling from getting smacked with a clone who managed to survive somehow.

"Barriss?" Ahsoka asked, with worry quite evident in her tone.

"I checked on my former student this morning at the hospital. She's alive and mostly well. She'll be needing cancer treatments for the foreseeable future though." Luminara added, confirming her student's status and needs.

"Cancer treatment?" Eeth Koth inquired.

"Apparently Grievous stabbed her in such a way to require a hysterectomy and removal of a kidney, they discovered Stage II cervical cancer during the surgery," master Unduli answered truthfully, "They believed that all traces were removed in the operation but they'll require her to come in every two months for the next year to run tests and make sure it doesn't come back."

"That won't be possible," Master Windu answered coldly, "Between the war and the Republic in total collapse, we'll need everyone we can get our hands on."

Luminara smiled, tilted her head slightly and answered in the sweetest voice she could muster, "Go to hell, you kriffing soulless hypocrite." Anakin tried, and failed, to contain his laughter as Windu looked at her in shock. She had never openly sworn before, nor had she ever directly insulted a Council member to their face.

"Allow her medical leave, without question, we will," Yoda answered, glaring at Windu out of the corner of his eye.

"We should be arriving on Alderaan within two days," Kit interjected, "We will likely need reinforcements shortly after arrival."

"A new battalion is being deployed fresh from Kamino," Shaak Ti answered.

"And the 212th should be arriving a week after you," Kenobi added, "Our campaign in the Outer Rim can be put on hold while the Core Worlds are under threat. If Grievous can lead an extraction team on Coruscant, it is only a matter of time before he leads an invasion force."

Which Mundi countered, "In which case, we should consider the defense of Coruscant. Already the Coruscanti Defense Fleet is with Skywalker and Fisto, and the capital world is a sitting duck without it. I suspect that is how Grievous was able to slip in so easily."

"And what do you suggest Master Mundi?" Kenobi argued, "withdraw our already thin numbers to defend a single planet? That would only prove the Separatists' point that the Republic doesn't care about its member worlds."

"I'm suggesting using more than just clones. If a bill could be passed in the Senate-"

"In its current state, I don't even think the Senate's authority would be respected even if it was capable of passing a new military bill."

"Then perhaps at least giving combat training to the regular citizens"

"Wasn't the point of the clone army to avoid casualties among the civilian population?" Ti questioned.

"If what Sidious admitted was true then the point was to kill us," answered Mundi, "If we cannot impose a draft then we should at the very least allow volunteers to enlist; it would help to offset the numbers issue."

"We can't ask the people to do that!" Windu argued before Mundi cut him off.

"And why not? Are enough of them not already dying helplessly when we fail to rescue them? Like we failed to defend Alderaan?"

"We haven't failed yet Master Mundi," Anakin retorted.

"What you are doing is a reconquest Skywalker, not a defense. If the reports we've received are even slightly true, then over a third of the planet has already been massacred and more will die in trying to retake it. We couldn't prevent genocide with the soldiers and tools at hand, but asking the populace to help defend themselves, to defend their wives and children, is too much of a burden?"

"Where would we even find volunteers?"

"Are you even aware of the lower levels of Coruscant's existence? There are literally billions of people down there who are unemployed, homeless, starving. Offering them a job, income, a home, medical care, food, is totally unimaginable to you?"

"Ki Adi," Gallia tried to interject, but Mundi was having none of it.

"NO! I am tired of being a pawn in Palpatine's games! We were all played for fools by the Sith once, and I will not be made a fool again! Especially when millions, perhaps even billions of innocent lives are at stake!" Master Mundi stood, "I can't sit back and watch any more people die helplessly! I can't watch the Jedi Order collapse in on itself from its own hypocrisy of defending 'freedom' in the galaxy with slave soldiers or preaching compassion while we let entire worlds burn without so much as blinking!" He pointed at Windu in particular, "You are so hardened and tunnel-visioned you won't even let a 19-year old girl get cancer treatment because it conflicts with your scheduling! A child! And another thing!" he pointed at the hologram of Ahsoka, "We are sending children to the front lines in this insane war to their almost certain deaths! How can you possibly justify any of this?!" Mundi was visibly shaking, clearly having wanted to say this for a very long time, he finished, "If you fail to understand that, then I have no further interest in being a part of this Council, or of this Order. Good day," and with that, he turned and stormed out the door.

The rest of the Jedi Council sat slack-jawed and blinking at what just happened. Ki Adi Mundi, one of the most powerful, wisest, and most faithful members of the Jedi Order, just stormed out in a rage and had renounced all ties to the Jedi. "Sense a coming Fifth Schism, I do," Yoda finally stated, his voice filled with woe.

"Now we need to fill two seats on the Council," Windu bluntly continued, "Everything has to involve a vote of ten Jedi Masters."

Ahsoka, who at that point had only been involved in the conversation to be used as a prop in Mundi's argument, politely excused herself and went to call her injured friend. Finding Barriss's frequency she pressed the button to call.

Barriss was laying in her hospital bed with Riyo right beside her, refusing to leave, refusing to even go home to sleep, instead opting to sleep in a chair in the corner. She was about to try and tell her to go home again when her commlink beeped in her bag, "Babe, would mind getting that for me?"

"Of course," Chuchi replied, reaching in and trying to find the commlink. She eventually found it… under a ring box?

Barriss answered and projected a hologram of Ahsoka, "Ahsoka! Are you at Alderaan yet?"

"Not for another two days, I called to check in on you after I heard what happened."

Barriss rolled her eyes, "Well, not the first time I've been shot, stabbed, blown up, or buried alive. Ha! Remember that one?"

"Never forget it," Ahsoka smirked reminiscing about when they first met and almost died. Fun times. "But I was thinking more about the cancer news."

"Oh, yeah that was a bit of a shock. But I'm not too worried so long as it doesn't come back."

"Barry-baby?" Riyo interjected.

Ahsoka stifled a giggle, "Barry-baby?"

"Shut up," Barriss told her before looking at her girlfriend, "Yes?" Then she saw the ring and went pale, with the EKG starting to show a rapid heartrate increase.

"Were you planning to propose?" Riyo asked, smiling.

"And when were you planning on telling me this?" Ahsoka inquired, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow marking.

"After it happened," Barriss snapped at her friend. "I was going to ask you last night but… well, I had a General Grievous thrown at my face."

"Yes."

"What?"

"Yes! I want to marry you!" Riyo exclaimed before going in to kiss her now fiancé.

Ahsoka couldn't help but smile, "I'm happy for you. Both of you," she paused, "Kind of miffed that you didn't get my opinion on the ring but, oh Force it's gorgeous!" she exclaimed as Riyo showed it off after putting it on. "Barriss! How the hell did you afford that?!"

"Erm… It may or may not have been on clearance… for like 100 credits because it was sitting there for ten years and nobody touched it," Barriss answered sheepishly.

Riyo kissed her again, "You could have gotten it from a cereal box for all I care Barriss!" another kiss and she put her head on Barriss's shoulder, nuzzling into her shoulder, "I love you."

"I love you too."

Anakin followed the sounds of excited, girlish squealing to find his padawan fawning over a ring on Senator Chuchi's finger via holocall. "Snips?" he interrupted, "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"One second, Master," she answered, "I have to go. I'm so happy for you two." Closing the call and turning to face her master, "What's up?"

"There's a chance we will find your sister. We know she was captured by Count Dooku and are reasonably sure that he's still on Alderaan."

"Ok?"

"And I know she's family, but we need to keep focused on the mission, so we can't go searching for her until after the planet's been retaken."

"I wasn't planning on searching for her at all. That's all on you."

"Ahsoka…" Anakin sighed in aggravation, "I know you aren't on the best of terms with Gràinne, but you don't need to pretend you aren't at least a little concerned for her."

"I'm concerned," Ahsoka argued, "with the idea of her being the next Ventress. I may sound 'un-Jedi-like,' but I don't care if she's alive or dead when you find her, if you find her."

Anakin frowned. He knew that Ahsoka was always extremely protective of her friends, but he sensed that there was more to it than just hurting people she cared about. Her mental shields were on full alert though and he couldn't quite tell what caused her to be so cold on the topic of her sister. Shaking his head, he turned and left the room to think it over, shutting the door behind her.

"I'm not going to be replaced," Ahsoka muttered quietly.