A/N: I don't remember the timeline I had set up for this story, I'm saying they're currently in the beginning of February, but it's entirely possible that's wrong. If any of you guys think it's something different, let me know cause I really cannot remember or figure it out. Regardless this chapter was fun and the next chapter is also very fun. So enjoy these two chapters of relative peace, because a storm is coming.

Hope y'all are doing well out in the world!

Summary: Padme Amidala built bridges with people, especially with her 4th grade students. When new student Ahsoka joins her class, she is ready to start building a bridge to the young girl. Anakin Skywalker doesn't trust easily, especially when his little sister is involved. But he's drawn to the 4th grade teacher and willing to trust Padme with the darker battles his family is facing.

Chapter Twenty

Obi Wan let out a heavy sigh as the contents of the garbage fell onto the garage floor. That's what he gets for letting Anakin go to the store alone, he always gets the wrong bags that weren't strong enough to keep everything inside. The day, though not entirely unpleasant, had certainly been long and not very kind to him. His clients were struggling more than usual and there was the matter of Maul. He'd been quiet these past few weeks since the summons, which was both good and bad for his mind. Their first court date was set for March, still some time away, but it would be here before they knew it.

He got down on one knee to start picking it up when a crumbled sparkling piece of paper caught his eye. Curious, he picked it up and started to uncrumble the item. It was probably some old art paper from either Ahsoka's projects or maybe one of Cody's, so there was no reason to look at it, but his curiosity had been spiked as it stood out against all the other trash bits.

Obi Wan straightened the paper to see it was a flyer... for a father daughter dance flyer for the Clans, theme Starry Night. Gravity then seemed to drag Obi Wan down further as he read over the contents, according to this flyer the dance was set for this weekend and it was Thursday which left so little time to prepare. He hadn't heard anything about it. Obi Wan climbed to his feet, he needed to speak with Ahsoka right now about this.

"Rex," Obi Wan started as he entered the kitchen, "Would you mind getting the trash for me? I need to speak to Ahsoka, now."

Rex lifted his gaze from his laptop, continuing to type as he said, "Sure. Why do you look so worried?"

Obi Wan held up the wrinkled paper, "Did you know about this?"

Rex visibly deflated at the sight, he nodded, "Yes. When I had gotten her from the meeting, one of the scout or clan leaders told me about it. Ahsoka ripped up the first flyer and threw it away. Made me swear not to mention it."

"I see," Obi Wan said with a deep exhale.

Without another word, Obi Wan made his way outside to the backyard where Ahsoka was swinging on one of the tire swings Anakin set up for her for Christmas a month ago while they weren't Christian, Padme had insisted that they join her family in the celebrations which allowed the gift giving. It had been a most enjoyable time and Ahsoka had so much fun, Obi Wan was considering that they do it again next year. Though maybe not at the same time as to not conflate the holiday too much with their beliefs.

Obi Wan walked over to her, he kept the flyer hidden behind his back so as not to alert her that he knew about yet. On the one hand, he considered seeing if she would tell him, but he didn't want to her lie and thought better of it. He observed her for a moment, dressed in a pair of blue jeans, she had her striped hat still on and a tie dye shirt she insisted looked like lightspeed traveling which always made him laugh. She really watched too many Battle Stars movies and shows, but they were entertaining.

"Hello there," Obi Wan said to her.

"General Kenobi," Ahsoka said as she continued to swing.

"Mind if I join you," Obi Wan asked her.

Ahsoka nodded, "Sure."

Obi Wan took his seat on her left, he lightly moved the swing back and forth, though his feet remained on the ground. "Mind if I ask you a question?"

Ahsoka kept kicking her legs, "I don't know what you've heard, but whatever it is, Ventress started it."

Obi Wan let out a sigh and laugh, "I'm sure, but no, it's not about school."

"Okay, what is it," Ahsoka asked as she moved forward and back.

Obi Wan held up the flyer for her to see as she swung by, at the sight of it she stopped kicking her legs and just let the tire swing on it's own. A scowl formed on her face when she realized what it was, not quite what he expected, but he supposed if she had thrown it out, of course she wouldn't be thrilled to see it again.

Ahsoka looked away, she gripped the rope tighter in her hands and started to swing her legs a bit harder, "What about it? It's just a stupid dance."

"I think it's a rather sweet dance idea," Obi Wan started softly, he kept his eyes trained on her, "Any reason I found it in the trash?"

"Because it is trash," Ahsoka answered, her tone bitter.

"Ahsoka," Obi Wan said, his tone both exasperated and disappointed.

Ahsoka turned her head to look at him, her blue eyes filled with all kinds of emotions, "What Obi Wan? It's just a stupid dance, I don't want to go, I don't have a dad, so there's no point."

"You wouldn't want to go at all," Obi Wan probed, he would come back to her 'I don't have a dad' statement later. For now, he needed to focus on one thing at time. Ahsoka hesitated the briefest moment, barely noticeable, but it told him all he needed to know.

Ahsoka shook her head, "Nope."

Obi Wan took a quick breath, wondering how he should go about this. The drama with Maul was still at a high, though they were lucky to not have really encountered the man since the summons and Ahsoka hadn't seen him since he appeared at her school. Though that wouldn't last forever, after all, Ahsoka would need to testify in court and he would be there. And if things didn't go in their favor, their would be visitation rights put in place.

Obi Wan pushed that away, or he tried to at least. The situation with Maul was constantly on his mind and it likely wouldn't ever leave. He did his best shield Ahsoka from it, all of his brothers did. But some things they couldn't do. And Maul was nothing if not persistent. And though Obi Wan never liked him, he did his best to understand him, he tried and most of the time didn't. At least, outside of areas where Ahsoka was involved.

Maul was harsh, cold, but he did care for his sons and daughter. Despite their disagreements, Obi Wan knew that Ahsoka and Maul had a decent relationship before the incident happened. It was only after the event occurred that Ahsoka's view of him had change, but the conflict never left her. He needed to learn why she didn't want to go. If it was because she did want to go with her dad and feared her brother's reaction or if she truly didn't want to go because it was a painful reminder. Ahsoka said she didn't have a dad, but that didn't mean much to Obi Wan at this second.

Obi Wan spoke, "If you did want to go with him-"

"I don't. I'd never want to go with him," Ahsoka interrupted sharply.

"If you did," Obi Wan continued with a long look. "None of us would be upset by that."

Ahsoka stopped swinging her legs as harshly at those words, her face mildly surprised, "What?"

Obi Wan nodded as she slowed down, "If you wanted to go to the dance with him, none of us would be upset. He is still your father, nothing can truly change that. Unless of course you truly feel like he can never hold that title for you again."

"Maybe that is how I feel," Ahsoka said softly.

Obi Wan knew that wasn't true, he could tell almost instantly, "I know that isn't true. You feel more conflicted about him than anything."

Ahsoka pouted, "You're psycho analyzing me, aren't you?"

Obi Wan chuckled lowly, "Only a little. Good vocabulary word, those sessions with Cody are paying off."

Ahsoka didn't say anything to that, her mind focusing back on what Obi Wan was implying to her about how she still cared about her dad. She'd already had this conversation before, she didn't like revisiting it. That even after the bad he had done, she still cared.

"Listen Ahsoka, it's okay to still care about him," Obi Wan told her, his tone sincere.

Ahsoka frowned, "You hate him and he's done a lot of bad things."

"I don't hate him," Obi Wan informed her.

"Really," Ahsoka asked, a little confused and not convinced.

Obi Wan shook his head. "Not at all. We may have never gotten along, especially when I was younger, but I don't hate him. He made our mother happier and-" Obi Wan reached over to poke her stomach- "he gave me three more rambunctious younger siblings."

Ahsoka let out a small laugh as she moved his hand away. A look of shame however quickly replaced the expression and Obi Wan wished he could make such a look never cross her features again. All he ever wanted for his siblings was for them to be happy, safe and healthy. But life wouldn't allow that all the time.

"But he's done a lot of bad things," Ahsoka said thoughtfully, "To you, Anakin, Rex and Cody, those guys at the park, even some other people before that. So I shouldn't care about him."

Obi Wan put his hand on her shoulder, "Everyone does bad things, makes mistakes. Sometimes it changes how we view a person, but not how we feel about them… You are very much like our mother in this way."

Ahsoka's blue eyes sparkled at that, she twisted her body so that she was facing him more, "I am?"

Obi Wan's smile was warm as he said, "Yes. You get your heart from her, that compassion and kindness for everyone you come in contact with, no matter what they've done. That's how I know you don't hate him, why I know you don't mean it when you say you want him gone."

"But I don't really want him around," Ahsoka said truthfully, "Not now."

"And that's alright. Maybe in the future you will want him around or maybe you won't, both are more than acceptable," Obi Wan explained to her with an understanding look. "What isn't acceptable is you trying to deny those feelings. Pretending they aren't there won't make them go away."

Ahsoka knew that was true, she did, but again, she thought maybe if she could just ignore it, it would leave her alone. Of course, life never worked that way. She looked away from Obi Wan as she let his words sink in. It always upset Ahsoka how much she did still care about her dad after all he had done, but she just couldn't help it.

Some days she really cared about him, some days she even wanted him around, but other times she couldn't stand him and the thought of him made her angry. It was really complicated and it bothered her that she couldn't make up her mind. She tried to show her brothers that he didn't matter to her when he did.

"Wanting to go to a father dance with your father is not a bad thing," Obi Wan told her, interrupting her thoughts.

Ahsoka looked back at him, "I don't want to go with him though."

"But you do want to go," Obi Wan asked for clarification.

"A little," Ahsoka mumbled not meeting his gaze.

Obi Wan spoke evenly and with a hint of a smile, "Well unlike those other scouts, you have options. Any of your brothers would be honored to take you."

Ahsoka started to swing again, "I don't want to pick just one of you though. I'd take Anakin cause he does a lot of dad things, but I could take Rex since he's my partner in crime, or no crime cause we never do anything wrong, but Cody is also responsible and acts all grown and then there's you cause you're the head of house and act like a dad too."

"It's the beard isn't it," Obi Wan asked rubbing his chin. "Satine tells me I need to shave."

Ahsoka laughed at him, "Maybe just a trim. It is getting kind of bushy."

"Cheeky girl," Obi Wan snickered, after a moment his expression turned somber, "Well the decision is yours. Since it's a father daughter dance, which of us does the most dad things?"

Ahsoka knew she didn't have to think long for that one. While all of her brothers watched out for her and taught her things, it was Anakin who had been the one doing those typical dad things with her that her dad never did with her. It was Anakin who taught her how to ride a bike, how to fix things when they were broken, played catch with, who pushed her to do her best, protected her from 'monsters'.

Obi Wan continued with a knowing look, "Why don't you go tell Anakin that he needs to free up his Saturday night?"

"How do you know he's the one I was going to pick," Ahsoka asked, mouth gaping that he knew.

"I'm a mind reader, remember," Obi Wan told her with a straight face.

Ahsoka scoffed, "Yeah right."

Ahsoka hopped off the swing, taking the wrinkled paper from him. For a moment, she just stood before him and kept her gaze on the paper. Obi Wan was about to question her, but a moment later she threw her arms around him neck and he quickly returned the embrace.

"Thanks Obi," Ahsoka said as she pulled back. Her expression was so mature for her age as she spoke. "He may still be my father, but he really isn't my dad. I was wrong before. I do have a dad, you and Anakin and sometimes Rex and Cody. Each of you guys takes on the dad role."

Obi Wan smiled at her, "Yes and we'll always be here for you."

Ahsoka grinned back at him then she raced away. Obi Wan remained in the swing for a few moments longer. At least his talk made her feel better, but he was still worried about her. It had been Obi Wan's rule that negative things wouldn't be said about Maul for the sake of Rex, Cody and Ahsoka. Though Rex and Cody said they didn't care, Obi Wan still held true to the rule and very, very few exceptions were made. Because he meant what he said.

While Obi Wan never got along with Maul, he never liked the man, at the end of the day he was still the father to three of his siblings. Without Maul, he never would have gotten to know Rex, Cody or Ahsoka and they were his greatest joys. He knew Ahsoka was hesitant in how she felt about her father because of everything that had happened, because she knew he wasn't a good man and had done some less than desirable things. But sometimes the people you love do bad things and it doesn't always change how you feel about them.

It was because of this Obi Wan understood why Ahsoka, Rex and Cody still cared for their father, why Anakin despite all his denials still cared about their grandfather. Out of all of his siblings Obi Wan had been the most detached, able to separate himself, his thoughts and emotions easily. He didn't hate Maul or their grandfather, but he didn't care for them either. However how he felt about them didn't truly matter. He knew they were not fit to watch Ahsoka, therefore he would keep them away from her in that regard.

However if Ahsoka ever desired a relationship with either of them, it was not his, nor Anakin's, nor Cody's, nor Rex's to keep her from them. That was why if she had said she wanted to go with him, Obi Wan would have been okay with it. But he couldn't deny the relief that went through him at Ahsoka saying she didn't want to go with him. Feeling a slight weight lifting off his chest, he got onto his feet and went back inside to finish some chores.

Anakin had been lying in his bed, trying to get a little bit of sleep considering he barely slept at all the previous night. The stress of everything going on his life had really started to get to him, nightmares beginning to plague his nights again making him a little more irritable than usual.

He had hoped it would have passed by now, but it wasn't going away and he felt his medicine wasn't strong enough, but he didn't want to ask for more. That was how people got addicted, he didn't want that. Maybe he'd talk to Obi Wan about it later on.

Anakin had been so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't hear the door open nor a young girl calling his name. What did get his attention was the sudden weight of a ten year old on him.

Anakin grunted, his eyes wide open to see Ahsoka, "What are you doing? Get off."

Ahsoka climbed off of him, "I called your name like a billion times, I thought you died or something cause you aren't a heavy sleeper. You answer lightning fast."

Anakin brought his hand over his face. "I was almost asleep."

"I can come back," Ahsoka said, her tone clearly disappointed.

Anakin shook his head, "Don't worry about it. I wasn't really getting any sleep anyway. What's up Snips?"

Ahsoka tugged at her hat. "Well I need to talk to you about something."

Anakin felt his chest seize, those were never good words. His mind scrambled to think of what she might need to talk to him about. It could be something bad about school? That Ventress kid bothering her again? Maybe it was the Maul situation? She didn't know the court dates, only that they were happening since it was likely at this first date she wouldn't need to testify. So if she asked, he wouldn't tell her. What else could she possibly need to talk about looking nervous?

Dread washed over him. He could not have the talk with her now. There was no way. Though Padme did say that girls as young as ten could get their cycles and when that happened, the talk followed, but he really, really didn't want to be the one to talk about it with her. The thought of having to explain sex to his ten year old sister made him want to vomit. She was never having sex, nope, she would stay this age forever. But if she really needed to talk about it, maybe he could get Satine to do it instead.

Ahsoka frowned at his expression. "What's wrong with your face?"

"Please tell me you're not here to talk about how babies are made or what a cycle is," Anakin blurted out, his eyes wide.

"What, ew no," Ahsoka said making a disgusted face. "I don't want to talk about that with you."

Anakin let out a breath of relief, "Okay good- hey, what's that supposed to mean?"

"You're my brother, I'm not talking to you about sex," Ahsoka replied like it was obvious and he should know that. And he did.

"You know about sex, since when," Anakin asked absolutely mortified that she knew the word. Did that mean she knew the process? "Do you know how it works?"

Ahsoka raised her eyebrows, "Uh no? I just know two people who get together to do adult things have a baby. Riyo said so and she knows things."

"Please only ever talk about that stuff with Satine or even Padme, heck even Cody since he's looking to study medicine. But wait until you're old," Anakin told her, earnest.

"Don't you mean older," Ahsoka questioned.

"No," was his flat reply. "What did you want to talk about then?"

Ahsoka stiffened, but after a moment she held out some paper to him. "Here."

Anakin looked down at the scrunched up paper in confusion, hoping it wasn't a disciplinary note that he would to sign He didn't have to sign many and so far she'd only gotten one, so things were promising on that end. Silently, he took it from her and opened it to inspect what she had brought him. A flyer for a father daughter dance. His blue eyes looked up at her in shock.

"The Clans are having a father daughter dance and since you're mostly in charge of me, getting custody and do all the dad things like teach me about cars, how to defend myself, play catch. I don't know... maybe you'd want to go with me," Ahsoka said, very interested in the ends of her hat.

Anakin couldn't speak, he didn't know what to say. Him and his brothers split responsibility over Ahsoka, but it was Anakin who did the most out of them when it came to the things she missed out on with her dad not around. Though part of Anakin was a little surprised that she would want him to go with her. Mostly because of her two other options in the forms of Obi Wan, who acted the most like a dad or her actual father.

Obi Wan would be preferable to Maul, but Anakin had to remind himself that Ahsoka's rocky relationship with the man hadn't always been there and that it was possible she still wanted him around. Just that she didn't want live with him. And with Maul being a free man and the only real restrictions he had were that Anakin and Obi Wan didn't want him around, he could take her if that's what she wanted.

But no, she wanted him to go with her. Instead of Maul, Obi Wan, Rex and Cody. Unless of course she already asked them and they said no, which he knew would never happen. None of them would say no to her for things like this. So he knew she was asking him first and only him and he could not have been happier.

"I get if you don't-" Ahsoka didn't get the chance to finish her statement as Anakin had pulled her into a tight hug. He actually stood up off the bed and swung her around. "Is that a yes?"

Anakin set her down with a beaming smile, "Of course it is. I would be honored to take you."

Ahsoka's eyes brightened, "Really?"

Anakin grinned at her, "Yes. When is it?"

"This Saturday," Ahsoka said looking a little sheepish. "Hope you don't have a date."

Anakin smirked, "I do. This dance, it's brother sister date in the form of a father daughter event is the date. Do you have a dress for the theme?"

Ahsoka shook her head.

"Well, I have to work Friday night, but Obi Wan and Satine could take you dress shopping," Anakin suggested.

Ahsoka considered this, then her eyes lit up. "Do you think Padme could take me?"

"Maybe," Anakin replied with a thoughtful look. "I'll ask her next chance I get."

"Sweet! You're the best Skyguy," Ahsoka told him with a big smile as she left his room.