A MESSED UP DESTINY

A STAR WARS STORY

Chapter 24

Disclaimer: Disney owns everything and I make no profit from this.

Hello there everyone and welcome to chapter 24 of the story! Today's chapter picks up a few minutes after the last one ended, and begins with Ahsoka's point of view, before changing to Anakin's for the impending duel. I don't have much else to say except an apology for the delay (this was supposed to be uploaded yesterday), so without further ado…let's dive right into it!

Dueling with a Master! Frustrated by her apparent lack of skill and power compared to her Master, Ahsoka challenges the former Sith Lord to a duel, intent on finally proving that she can better than he thinks. Meanwhile, Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, still reeling from his argument with his Clone Captain, attempts to reconcile with his apprentice for letting her down one time too many, but will he succeed, or will this simple duel end in a tremendous disaster?

Resolute, Training Room 5, Ahsoka's point of view:

Following my discussion with Rex –as well as his unexplained departure- I had collected myself once more, preparing to face against another horde of metallic enemies, hoping to improve my skills for the next time Master Skywalker and I would spar. He was just…so much better than me and I had a lot of catching up to do if I wanted him to stop holding back when we trained, and the best way to prove that to him was to finally best him…or so I thought.

The particular attempt at beating the training droids had been going well, but ended up in yet another failure, with the darned thing perfectly parrying the strike I had been so sure would work, and me ending up with my face to the floor, again. I let out a loud sigh since there was no one to hear. This was hopeless… I'd never be as good as Master Skywalker, always stuck in second place…

Using the Force to remotely deactivate the training droid, I lied down on the floor, content with just staying there for a little while, just enough to rest until I could try again. Even though I had wanted get back up after a few seconds, by body seemed to have a mind of its own, and I lacked the energy to keep going, so I allowed myself to think about what I could do to prove himself to him, since training more was clearly insufficient, as he had once commented. I refused to acknowledge that said comment had been made for an entire different thing not related to my training at all, and I could suddenly feel a tear forming in my eye.

If what Rex had said about Master Skywalker was true, then he was far more powerful than I could ever hope to be. When I'd first heard those who came back from Jabiim babbling away at the supposed Force Storm he had allegedly created, I had written it off as just a cool story, and I never once thought to ask him about it.

I probably should do that sometime, but only after I managed to beat this droid again. One victory out of fifty six matches was too low a percentage for me to accept, and I knew that Master Skywalker would just give that patient smile and shower me with advice on how I could do better, but every time he did, I'd also get the distinct feeling that he knew I could do better, so going to him for help began feeling like I was disappointing him more with every question I'd ask.

Lost in thought, I didn't hear the door to the training room open, nor did I see Master Skywalker step inside, followed by Rex, who he was chatting away with. I only noticed them when I felt his surprise through the Force. He clearly hadn't expected to see me like this.

Composing myself as best as I could, I prepared a smile for when he'd run to my side and ask if I was okay. He was full of compassion and empathy for others, both of which would be added to the list of reason I looked up to him so much, even though I knew I'd never be as good at anything.

Master Skywalker was already half way through kneeling to my side when I shot up, flipping in the air and landing on my feet right beside Rex. He looked at me with a light in his eyes and gave an amused smile, before calmly walking towards Rex and me.

"Hello there!", he greeted with enthusiasm, not a hint of Master Kenobi's usual sass present when he said it. No, Master Skywalker's greeting was full of excitement, no attitude included in the slightest, except for when he was taunting Count Dooku's assassin as they dueled.

"Hi Master. Rex", I replied happily, and I actually felt like it since Rex was also here. I wasn't sure why, but every time he and I spent time together outside of a battlefield, he made me feel a lot better about…anything, really. It's a shame he left so quickly before, I could have used the break.

"Ready for our lesson?", Master Skywalker asked with a smile, and I suddenly got nervous because Rex was here. What if I made a fool out of myself in front of him? He was my friend and he couldn't be allowed to see me like that…but I had no way to get out of this, so I just nodded to my Master as Rex shuffled to the corner of the room, leaning against the wall to watch.

Master Skywalker's glance fell on the deactivated droid in the other corner and his eyes lingered on the electrostaff for a few seconds, before focusing back on me. "Have you been practicing Snips?", he asked with nothing more than genuine curiosity in his voice. No expectation for me to be better seemed to there, but I knew he thought there was room for improvement.

"I have, Master. Though…it didn't go as well as I expected.", I admitted hesitantly, slightly afraid of a reprimand I knew would never come.

Master Skywalker's eyes narrowed for a moment, as if he had detected that last thought, before he turned to Rex, asking him if he'd like to see us give it a go.

"Don't worry sir, I already saw Commander Tano train with it before. And she managed to defeat it too!", he exclaimed, voice filled with pride for my accomplishment, with caused me to smile.

Surprise was evident on my Master's face, as if he hadn't expected me to actually do it. "Really?", he questioned, though he did so jokingly, trying to tease me. "I knew you could do it Snips.", he then added, almost as an afterthought, or a late reassurance. Was he really proud, or just glad I was slowly catching up?

"Say…", he began and I could practically hear the mischief in his voice. "…Snips, how about you pick what we practice today?", he asked, and I smiled to myself. This was it. I'd challenge him to a duel, win, and prove I was just as good! A worthy Padawan, not someone who always needed help to fight!

A few moments ago, Anakin's point of view:

"Say…", I began trying not to betray the mischief in my voice. "…Snips, how about you pick what we practice today?", I asked, and Ahsoka smiled to herself. Seemed like today would be interesting. Maybe she'd ask for something more advanced?

Ahsoka's eyes flashed with excitement and I could sense her determination to go through with whatever idea had gotten to her head. I wasn't about to stop her, so I waited patiently, ready to listen to whatever my snippy Padawan was about to propose.

"How about a spar?", she asked, and I felt confusion wash over me. A spar, of all things? I'd been hoping for her to ask for something a bit less…mundane. After all, it's not like she can't request a duel whenever…

Nevertheless, I gave her a smile and subtly glanced at Rex, who I could sense was excited to see the upcoming duel. "As you say Snips.", I told her, a teasing tone evident in my voice. "Ready to lose?", I challenged, and her eyes flashed with determination, with the same kind of fire mine did when I was on a mission…thought the missions in question tended to be far more gritty than anything a spar would lead to, unless I ever decided to try fighting Windu or Pong Krell, with the latter case most certainly ending in his death, since I had not forgotten what he had put my men through on the shadowy world of Umbara.

Ahsoka ignited both her blades and carefully positioned herself in a form five stance, leaving a small space between her legs as I had taught her to do, while I shook my head, freeing myself from dark thoughts and focusing on the moment and the environment around me, trying to find a way to make this a challenge for her. I obviously wasn't about to hurt her, but I wasn't about to hold back either. Even at the right old age of fourteen, she was a worthy adversary and I would treat her as such.

I pulled my saber to my right hand with the Force and twisted it behind my back for show before finally igniting the azure blade, with that spark of determination that I was always proud to see. Wait a moment…spark…fire…that's it! Smiling to myself, I hid one hand behind my back and gathered a small ball of flame in it, making sure to disperse the fire enough for it to not actually burn whatever target it would hit, but still appear dangerous to any opponent.

With our blades ignited and both of us in our respective stances, Ahsoka decided that it was time to begin, and I let her make the first move, where she charged at me and slammed her blades down on mine as blocked effortlessly, my prosthetic hand's physical strength far outmatching hers.

I used the Force to lightly push her back to her starting point, before smiling at her mischievously. I wanted her to understand that brute force would amount to nothing when fighting someone bigger or stronger than her, but I also wasn't above teasing her a little in the progress. The fire in my Padawan's eyes burned hotter as she went in for another charge…only to be met with a ball of flame headed her way.

Surprised, she tried to jump away from it, before realizing that she already in the air and had no time to dodge the attack, leading to her taking the fireball straight to the chest and to her clothes showing a few signs of being burned, blackening near the area where she had gotten hit. Nothing else happened to her though, and upon realizing this, Ahsoka took a step back and went off at me, complaining about the 'unfair' move.

"That wasn't fair! I didn't know you could do that!", she complained, almost whining a little. She wasn't actually upset, just a bit frustrated with herself for not seeing it coming.

I sent a cocky grin her way in response. "Duels rarely are! Keep your mind in the moment and be ready for anything! You never know what your opponent's skillset is and if that was a real attack, you'd probably be dead!", I shouted, though I wasn't at all angry. It was a simple reminder, and nothing more.

Ahsoka huffed, but seemed to accept this after a moment or two. She looked me in the eye, her gaze challenging mine. I only smiled and nodded, letting her come at me again. She charged once more, receiving another fireball, this time to the side after an unsuccessful attempt to dodge.

I shook my head, trying to keep amusement out of my voice as I spoke to her. "Ahsoka. Anger and frustration will get you nowhere. They only lead to mistakes. Repeatedly charging your opponent isn't going to make them lose, regardless of how much strength you put behind the move. Be patient. Analyze patterns and let them make the first move.", I told her calmly, summoning another small ball of fire in my hand, ready to toss it her way again.

Snips seemed ready to ignore my advice, but reconsidered at the last second, instead nodding an affirmative. As soon as she was looking my way again, I let the fireball go, and this time, she dodged it perfectly, flipping over it as a way to show off. I knew she wouldn't actually do that in a real fight, so I let it slide, remembering that too many reprimands from Obi Wan had caused me to think badly of him for a time.

Ahsoka turned around and brought her sabers up, ready to face me. I grasped mine with both hands and attacked, sending a few slow but heavy strikes her way. She tried and failed to parry the first one, leading to her preferring to dodge the second and third.

I smiled at her as she looked at me again, and I could sense that this approval meant everything to her. I then took another step back, positioning myself as I had at the beginning of the duel, only this time, my left was fully visible to her. No need for fireballs now, this would be a real fight.

Ahsoka recognized what I was doing and decided to wait for me to attack, which was a smart move on her part. I –of course- was holding back a little, since no one but Obi Wan himself could actually defend against a real attack of mine, and this had been proved by my victory over both Master Koth and Mundi in the Temple's training halls shortly after the Battle of Ryloth, since we had been called back to Coruscant for our wounded to be looked at and have time to heal. A generous move by the Chancellor, or as Revan preferred to call it, a bribe to be paid back later.

After a few minutes of trading strikes and parrying attacks, I decided it was time to show off a little and went for the spin Obi Wan had performed during our duel on Mustafar. Ahsoka, driven by the same desire to prove she was just as good as her Master, the very thing that had led to copy my brother's move back then, attempted the same.

Ahsoka's emerald blade twisted in the air she copied my previous movement, trying to mimic the move I had just performed on her. It took a couple tries, but she eventually managed it as I carefully took a step back to give her space to work with. I was impressed since she had only failed a total of four times before succeeding on the fifth. To be honest, seeing her fight brought out a sense of pride for her accomplishments, which was usually accompanied by a desire to make sure she reached her full potential someday in the future. What she had was raw talent, and I intended to help her maximize that potential in all aspects, not unlike I had done in another life but it seemed as though the groundwork had already been laid in the past few months, especially in terms of lightsaber combat, but without lacking skill in wielding the Force itself.

Ahsoka slashed and swung her shorter blade my way, but I was able to block her with near zero effort. Sith Hells, the fact that it took any effort at all to block the attacks of a fourteen-year-old spoke volumes of her skill and power, at least compared to the other Padawans of the Temple. I'd even go so far as to say that it wouldn't be long before she could defend against and perhaps defeat even Senior Padawans, with the right training at least. The kind I intended to continue giving her. Ducking another slash from her, I jumped away before positioning myself in a way that would allow me to block Ahsoka's attempts to strike me down for at least a few moments before allowing my thoughts to stray away from the practice duel.

She -of course- wasn't as good as I remembered. Then again, she had barely stepped foot on a battlefield until recently –something I was extremely grateful for-, though the fact that she has seen War at age fourteen truly saddened me. This thought was perhaps the first one to cause pure sadness to appear in my mind since that fated day in Sidious' office from six long years ago. To my own surprise, there was no anger or hate towards the Council this time, who made the ridiculous mistake of drafting children into War -something I had regrettably failed to change their minds about-, there was only sadness, caused by the fact that someone so young and innocent has been forced to grow up so very quickly and lose a massive part of her childhood.

The Ahsoka I knew and had loved as a sister was gone, washed away by my mistakes, probably murdered by those she had once seen as friends, brothers even. I would see to it that this version of her didn't end up like her predecessor, that she would reach her full potential, both as a Force User and as a person. And if the latter led to her leaving the order, I would encourage it, since the conventional ways of Jedi training had never done much good for her anyways. She was just like me in that sense, preferring to roam the Galaxy and provide help wherever she could instead of being tied down by rules and the decisions made solely by other people.

Lost in thought as I was, I never saw her green blade heading right for my chest, having bypassed the automated –it was muscle memory by now- attempts to block her strikes. There was a hit, and I stumbled back before tripping over myself and falling to the floor, my right hand having let go of my saber.

The way she stood over me sparked something in the Force, and Ahsoka was suddenly replaced by a young man clad in black, wielding a green lightsaber. I couldn't make out his exact features, but he seemed to be blond and around my height, though the angle I was looking from could be obscuring his true measurements. There was anger in his face, the kind that one could find on my own occasionally, but it was replaced with something else as his gaze fell to where my right arm should be. He looked at his own, but I had already turned away.

For barely a moment, I could hear the wheeze of Darth Vader's mask echoing from where my mouth should be, and as I tilted my head to look around, I saw the Emperor's form sitting in a throne, and behind him there was the vacuum of space, with an enormous battle taking place. Was this a vision of my future, or simply part of the timeline I had left behind, one where a new Jedi rose up against the Emperor's tyrannical regime? I'd have to ask Qui Gon about it, for I was not certain.

"-ster? Master, are you alright? Did I hurt you?" Ahsoka's voice echoed in my ears for a moment, seemingly coming from far away as I tried to focus and steady myself once more, keeping my mind in the moment and shoving all thoughts on this…future away for the time being.

I blinked a few times before registering that Rex had also approached me, and was now kneeling beside me, trying to see if I was injured. Realizing that they worried, I was quick to reassure them that I was, in fact, quite alright. "I'm fine Snips.", I croaked out, much to my own surprise. "I just had a vision. That's all.", I tried again, this time being a lot more coherent.

"Sir, are you sure you're okay? I can get Coric, he'll be down here in a few minutes if-", Rex rambled, but I ignored him and jumped up, trying to show them that I was physically unaffected by the fall.

Ahsoka recognized the move for what it was and rolled her eyes, confirming to Rex that I was indeed fine, with maybe a bit more attitude than appreciated, but I paid it no mind. Instead, my thoughts trailed back to the conversation Rex and I had a few minutes after I had cleared up the…misunderstanding regarding Dooku and answered as many questions as I could regarding Sidious. It was dangerous for him to know too much, but I couldn't leave him completely in the dark. Trust went both ways after all, and Rex had more than proved himself at that point.

"I understand sir. Knowing too about this guy, much less his suspected identity, can be dangerous.", Rex had said, true understanding and acceptance of my secrecy in his voice.

It had taken me a second to reply, but when I had, I had been completely honest. "I hate secrets Rex, but sometimes…they are necessary. That's the worst thing about them really, you don't know if even those you trust can keep it that way." Rex had nodded silently, and I had figured that he wanted to move on to a different topic, so I had waited for him to speak.

"General…is something wrong with the Commander?", Rex had questioned, and had felt worry over Ahsoka's wellbeing.

"I don't know…", I had told him, regretting that I hadn't been spending much time with her lately. "Is there?", I had asked right after, searching for answers.

Rex had stiffened in response to the question, before he went on to explain how she looked disappointed even after her success against the training droid. How in hindsight, her expression after he had told her of my feats during the Battle of Jabiim was…hopeless. He had advised that I talk to her soon, and I wasn't about to put this off for later.

"Master? You're spacing out again, are you sure there's nothing wrong?", Ahsoka inquired politely, and I realized I had probably been staring at the wall for a few seconds –if not minutes- as the sequence had replayed itself in my head.

"I'm fine.", I assured her quickly enough. "Just thinking about something Rex mentioned." Ahsoka's eyes widened at that, as if she was a child with her hand caught inside a cookie jar –as I had once been when I was twelve, my brain reminded me- and she begun stammering for some sort of reply, or an excuse, but she found none.

I sighed to myself, figuring that what Rex had observed wasn't just fatigue and that something serious was going on. "Snips, is something wrong?", I inquired as politely and calmly as I could, trying to ensure she would feel it safe to confide in me.

Ahsoka stammered again before finally responding, and I didn't need the Force to know she was lying. Her body language was enough for me to realize that. "No. I'm…fine. Why do you ask?", she hesitated, trying to change the subject after her response as she probably seen Obi Wan do. While I was glad she had found an application for her knowledge, now was not the time to use it.

Sitting down on the floor, I gestured for her to do the same, and Ahsoka obeyed –to my surprise-. It was clear she didn't want to talk and I wasn't going to push her, but I'd sure as Hell let her know that she could talk to me about anything that was bothering her. Neither of us said anything for a while, until Ahsoka said something in a voice barely above a whisper.

"You're so much better than me.", she said in a hushed tone, and for a moment, I didn't realize what she meant by that. Thankfully, that was enough for her to elaborate without me having to ask, since that would have been embarrassing on my part.

Ahsoka swallowed nervously before speaking again, and I could sense she was afraid of me either reprimanding her or treating this like a joke, which I wouldn't do, no matter the situation. "You're so much better at everything. You're stronger, wiser, have more control over your emotions, and here I am, just a Padawan, trying to understand why you'd chose someone like me as your apprentice.", she said quietly. It wasn't a whisper, but not quite a regular volume just yet.

Her concern surprised me, leaving me speechless for a good second. Did she really think she was…unworthy of being my student? "Ahsoka, you're more than worthy of being my Padawan, if that's what worries you. When I first met you, I did think you were a bit hasty in your actions, but you've grown since then. For better or worse, you aren't a kid, and even if you were, I'd still be proud to have you as an apprentice.", I told her, not bothering to hide any emotion I was feeling while doing so. I needed her to understand that her assumption was not the case here, no matter the cost.

Snips said nothing for a moment, but tears began forming in her eyes. From personal experience, I could tell that was not good. "You're just saying that to reassure me like you always do. I always screw up and you never reprimand me for it.", she spoke again, but I was just confused. Was she expecting me to scold her for trying to be better?

I tried to form a response, but she continued before I could. "And-" a sniff of the nose "-before you say anything, it's because I'm never good enough. Rex said it best, you can just annihilate an entire droid army in seconds, but me…I can't even beat a simple training droid…", Ahsoka added, and I was simply befuddled. In all honesty, I had no idea what to say to comfort her because this had never been a problem before, and because I didn't have a point of reference to draw information from.

In all my life, no one had ever broken down on me like that, and if assurances of them being wrong didn't work, then what would? Opening my mouth to speak again, I was about to try bringing up some examples of times where she's helped us all out –I recalled Padme doing it to me when I was doubting myself-, but Rex interjected before I could say a word.

He cleared his throat and hesitated for a moment, but Ahsoka noticed neither action, her own thoughts busying her at the moment. "Commander…", he tried, but was ignored. "Ahsoka", he corrected himself, getting her attention as she looked him in the eye. "The droid you fought was on the highest difficulty. I'd beating is pretty impressive, not to mention the time you saved us from walking in that Separatist ambush, or the time where I nearly got blown up by a thermal detonator and you threw it away from me with the Force…" Rex stopped for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "What I'm trying to say is…the General may be powerful, but you're pretty amazing yourself, Commander.", he added, and Ahsoka smiled at him.

Her worries and doubts were long forgotten, seemingly followed by my being in the room. Rex then appeared to act on impulse and hugged her, which I thought was pretty adorable –a thought I could never express to Obi Wan, less I be subjected to teasing about a battle-hardened Sith Lord still finding things cute-, followed by Ahsoka hugging him back.

Seeing that this was a personal moment, I let the duo be and quietly slithered out of the room, using Force Slow on the door as I left to make sure it shutting behind me would produce no sound. I smiled to myself as I looked at the two through the Force, seeing that the tendrils of darkness formed by Ahsoka's worries and doubts had been washed away by the bright light that Rex's presence was made out of, acting as a pillar of support for Ahsoka's own. Thinking about Qui Gon and I having much more to talk about than just my vision, I enjoyed the slow walk to my quarters, the aforementioned grin never leaving my face.

And…scene! There you have it everyone, chapter 24 of A Messed Up Destiny! This one was improvised almost entirely, since I decided to throw my drafts out the airlock and just go for it, and I think it turned out better than what I had planned. My first draft was a bit bland and only really focused on the duel itself instead of fight being a lesson for Ahsoka, so I had to change that scene entirely. Then I got the idea of including Rex in there too…so he was added, and so on and so forth until the chapter was finished. I swear these things just write themselves sometimes…

Anyway, we have a lot to unpack here, so let's get right to the exposition!

Firstly, Ahsoka's self-doubt. This certainly has to be addressed since it happens to be the driving plot point for this chapter, but I don't want to analyze this too much since it was explained in the chapter itself, so I'll keep it short. Ahsoka, from even before she met Anakin, had heard about what a legend he was from the other Jedi in the Temple. In the time it took for the story to reach its current point, she has seen him do one impossible thing after the other, first starting with the Battle of Christophsis, where she sees him utterly destroy a droid army with Force Lightning, not to mention everything else he's ever done, and considering that Anakin is extremely confident in his abilities, we can even assume that there have been repetitions of the Geonosis Incident (he stopped the entire army's blaster bolts for a time: see Book 1 chapter 10) or other occasions where he's done something that should be considered impossible, which would obviously make anyone, especially an impressionable teenager, think that they'll never be as good as someone like him, hence Ahsoka doubting herself in this chapter and chapter 22.

She's trying –and failing- to do the same things her Master does (we can assume that Anakin has easily beaten the droid she trains with) and since Ahsoka has no idea that Anakin used to be Darth Vader and would not be remotely as powerful without that experience, it's led her to believe that this is how always was, which is untrue.

Secondly, Anakin's training methods. We get a glimpse of how Ahsoka views him as a teacher when she mentions that he's kind and always willing to help her with anything she needs, but I think their duel is a perfect example of how their lessons go. Anakin is never strict with her (he doesn't ever have to be and knowns it won't work), but he does correct her whenever it is needed, especially when it comes to fighting.

While admittedly, I haven't written a scene where they have a normal lesson the spar isn't much different, with Anakin usually starting off with a lecture and then moving on to practicing the ability or skill that Ahsoka is being taught along with her, to correct things like posture and methodology when necessary.

An example of this comes from Anakin's reference to Ahsoka's combat stance and how he noticed her leave some space between her legs as he had instructed in a previous lesson, and there are many more such things that I will be showing later, especially when Ahsoka begins asking for the advanced stuff like Pyrokinesis and Force Judgment (the Jedi version of Force Lightning). In conclusion, Anakin's style is unique compared to any other Jedi's and he's trying to teach Ahsoka the things that will most benefit her in the time they are in, and do so in a way he knows will work with her, having already been her Master once before.

Thirdly, Anakin and Ahsoka's spar. While this is a simple sparring match, I do think there are things worth mentioning about this duel, mostly because of how Anakin acts during the fight. At first he and Ahsoka take their respective places opposite each other and Anakin allows Ahsoka to attack first, something that is unlike him considering that he is the Master of Offense in lightsaber combat and this has been stated and shown multiple times throughout Star Wars media.

He then proceeds to wait for Ahsoka to charge him, knowing that at this point in the timeline she's still a kid and can be rash and impatient, so he tries to help her understand the value of being patient in a fight and since Ahsoka (from the early seasons of the show) has never been good at saber-to-saber combat (having lost to Ventress, Grievous and various other opponents at the time) and even surprises her with an ability she hasn't seen before, trying to get her to understand that one: She can't just blindly rush an enemy and expect to win, and two: There will be times where opponents can use a power she can't and that she needs to be ready for that if it ever happens.

This teaching methods actually works well with her since she does realize her mistakes and defeats Anakin at the end (and yes, he would have let her earn the win if he wasn't distracted), and is also a good way for Anakin to teach her pretty much anything because of how unconventional it is. We know that Ahsoka is an unconventional student, so an unconventional teaching method works best for her.

Fourthly, Anakin's vision of Luke. Before I say anything else about this segment, I want to be clear that what Anakin saw was the scene where Luke stands over a defeated Vader in ROTJ, just so we are all on the same page. So…this segment here was added completely on impulse after I realized it clicks well with something mentioned by Anakin in chapter 17. It isn't the same thing, but the Force granted him vision for reasons that will be explained later, though it isn't too important to the plot, just for something I want Anakin and Obi Wan to discuss at some point.

Lastly, the relationship between Rex and Ahsoka. In chapters 22 and 24 (this one) we've seen how both of them look at one another. For those who are shipping those two, I am personally indifferent towards it, but I don't intent for romance between the duo for now. I might change my mind later if you guys want to see it happen, but it's not important for the story, so I don't mind either way.

Now, Rex has stated that hearing Ahsoka laugh brightens up his day, and I'm actually surprised that no one commented on that at all. Felt like something that you guys would want to ask or talk about, but anyways, I digress. In this chapter we've seen Ahsoka's view of Rex, as well as a fluffy comfort scene which happens to be foreshadowing, but you didn't hear that from me, alright?

I personally had a lot of fun writing that part since Rex is stepping in to help with something Anakin doesn't know how to handle and apart from the Captain's dynamic with Ahsoka, it's also a nice little reminder that there are things Anakin still needs help with sometimes. Also, seeing Rex be more his own person with an identity beyond "Republic Clone Trooper" is always fun for me, hence me giving him tons of character development as of late.

Next time: With Master Koon's fleet under attack by a mysterious Separatist superweapon, will Anakin and Ahsoka be able to rescue him and his men, or will they be crushed inside General Grievous' iron grip? It's a race against time, but with a new ally stepping up to help them, the Jedi have a better chance than ever before at capturing the evasive Separatist Leader before he can escape their sights once more…

That's all for now everyone! Reviews are always welcome, whether it be to ask question or to chat, and I'll see you all next chapter, but until then, May the Force be with you!