-Chapter 67: Stranded Part 3-

Location: Scarif

"Accidents often happen for a reason; either to correct you or to teach you."

Today was the first day that clouds filled the sky. The past few days consist eyed of a bright blue expanse that stretched on for miles. But today, puffy white clouds dotted the heavens, occasionally sliding in front of the sun.

Wraith and Ahsoka had spent four days surviving on Scarif so far and could only hope Wraith's calculation of only spending eight days here would be true. So far, surviving was no issue, but they were starting to show signs of being away from civilization for too long.

Ahsoka's clothes had grown slightly sun-bleached, coming off a lot paler than their normally darker, earthy hues. She was afraid they might start to fray and dearly hoped that she would be rescued long before she had to think about changing her attire.

Wraith's clothes were sweat-stained and also showing the wear and tear of island living. But his face showed their time here more clearly. He hadn't had a chance to shave in a while, and a layer of stubble was forming along his jaw and cheeks, threatening to turn into a full beard if he didn't tend to it soon. Wraith had always gone clean shaven, primarily because he couldn't grow one for a few years but also because his helmet wouldn't fit with all the extra hair.

Suffice to say, both teens had enjoyed their little impromptu-vacation, but knew they needed to get back to their respective sides and soon.

Having spent all day yesterday gathering up food for the days to come, Wraith had set up a drying rack in an attempt to turn some of the meat into jerky, questioning if they had enough resources to make such a thing possible. They'd also found a myriad of different fruits to sample and try, improving the variety in their diet.

"Too bad we don't have what it takes to make a smoothie or something." Wraith commented.

"Oh! That would be so good!" Ahsoka readily agreed.

"Had one before?" Wraith inquired, loving how light-hearted Ahsoka was being.

"There's a couple of cafes in the senate district, Anakin and sometimes Padme go there with me to grab something." Ahsoka answered, between bites of her tart yet tasty fruit. "I've had a few different flavours, but they're all pretty good."

"Is that so...?" Wraith replied, biting into his own sweet piece. Ahsoka emphatically nodded, juices staining her chin and lips. "If we had the drinks, all we'd need is the swim time."

"The spring doesn't count?"

"Nah, I'm thinking we take a dip in the ocean."

"If only we had swimsuits... or wetsuits for that matter."

"What? Not a fan of skinny-dipping?" Wraith joked. Ahsoka turned blood-orange at the notion and looked away, clearly flustered and embarrassed. "I'm just kidding, Ahsoka. You're right, we don't have what it takes to go for a swim." Wraith quickly apologized.

"Oh... Y-Yeah, right. Okay." Ahsoka stuttered out, giving a sheepish laugh as she avoided his gaze. The fact that her blush didn't vanish wasn't helping things and the Togruta was starting to feel very much on-the-spot. Seeing her expression of awkwardness, Wraith was starting to wonder if his innocent joke had somehow caused her Urge to kick in.

"You alright?" He wondered.

"I-It's nothing. I just..." Ahsoka stammered before growing lost. After a joke like that, she couldn't help but wonder about his true intentions for her again. Was he really just trying to claim he saw her or ha been with her? She needed to know. "Why do you care about me?" She blurted out.

"Hm?" Wraith wondered with eyebrows raised, caught mid-bite.

"You say you care, but why?" Ahsoka pressed. "Is it because you think I'm attractive? Because you could do better." Wraith spluttered at her statement. How could she have such a self-depreciating view like that.

"W-What?! Ahsoka, I-"

"I mean, surely someone else like Master Secura or Master Ti are much more beautiful than me. Surely, you'd want them instead..." The Togruta suggested. She expected Wraith to come up with a response of some kind, or worse, stay silent.

Instead, he burst into laughter.

Raising an eyebrow marking, a quizzical Ahsoka watched his reaction with growing concern. Was he mocking her?

"How... How old do you think I am?" Wraith finally wondered. What an odd question to ask, Ahsoka taken completely by surprise.

"I... I dunno..." She hesitantly answered, fishing for an answer, "Uh... an adult? Twenty-something?" She wondered with a shrug. Wraith nodded with a partial smile and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"I'm seventeen." He answered. Ahsoka's jaw dropped.

Until now, only Thrawn, Palpatine and the Jedi Council knew Wraith's true age. This was brand new to her.

"You're...?!" She exclaimed, visibly shocked by the information. A lot of things suddenly started to make sense. Wraith, being only a year older than her, was likely going through some similar issues like she was. He could relate to her, understand her better than most, because he was undergoing similar changes.

That sure did explain a lot of his motives.

But as a Separatist, a hardcore one engineered to be fiercely loyal and dedicated to the cause, that could influence him and ways not even he would be aware of.

Ahsoka chose to warily move forward, not fully trusting of Wraith even now.

"Ahsoka, I care because... well, it's hard to explain." Wraith began. "My heart... it just goes out to you. Whenever I hear about what you're going through... I just want to help."

"That doesn't answer my question." Ahsoka replied, casting the rind of her fruit aside. "That's how you care about me, not why." Without waiting for him to answer, Ahsoka got up and started walking away. "I'm gonna go meditate for a bit."

"...okay." Wraith quietly answered. As Ahsoka disappeared into the foliage, the super-soldier was left alone with his thoughts.

Why didn't you tell her? Voice asked. She needs to know the truth, why are you still afraid? There was something about the way he said it that made Wraith wonder if he were asking himself.

"Because this wasn't the right time." He plainly answered.

If you don't tell her at some point, the right time may never come. Voice responded.

"I know." Wraith responded. He sighed and discarded his fruit rind, running a free hand through his hair. "Give me some time. I need to work up the courage and plan this out."

There are some things you can't control. Voice told him. I'll give you time, but I don't know if she will. You may be running out of it.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Wraith growled. "Look, I want to tell her. I legitimately do. But this is a big deal, it's heavy information. I can't just drop it on her."

Well... you can...

"I won't do that to her. She's got enough on her plate already." Wraith vowed, stroking his stubble-covered chin. A few thoughts ran through his mind as he marked down some ideas as to how to set up the moment. She was asking for his motivation, he really shouldn't be holding back.

But was he ready to handle her response?

Wraith was still largely convinced that Ahsoka would turn him away upon learning that he didn't just like her but in fact loved her. And that sole thought was enough to hold him back in many regards.

Standing up and grabbing his spear, Wraith decided he'd go hunting. He knew Ahsoka liked those little creatures... maybe he could whip her up something special for dinner tonight.

Little did he realize that destiny had different plans in store for that evening...


As Ahsoka walked, she sighed and attempted to use the Force to clear her mind. But no matter how hard she tried, her thoughts drifted back to one subject: Wraith. To her, it seemed like he was dodging her question, indicating that he did not have an answer that would satisfy her. This seemed to perfectly tie into what Anakin and Corsair had said, reinforcing their point even more.

And yet Wraith did have some goodness about him, Ahsoka wouldn't deny him that. While part of her viewed it to be an act that contributed to the desire to bed her, the rest of her deemed it as him genuinely being himself. Surely these wholesome acts were borne of wholesome intentions, right?

There lay the divide and her source of turmoil. She didn't know what to believe. Wraith seemed to prove one notion right and then another later. But there wasn't enough evidence to prove either notion right.

With a heavy sigh, Ahsoka then hoped that she would be rescued soon. The Jedi didn't teach her how to understand men like Wraith and she didn't think she couldn't handle such close interactions for much longer.

She needed a break.

Instead of finding a place to meditate like she planned, Ahsoka decided she needed to bathe. The idea of cold, refreshing water soaking her body and washing her worries away was a far more appealing idea and she chose to act on it, changing direction and heading for the spring. Her only worry would be Wraith stumbling across her, since he was under the impression she was doing something else. But if his intentions towards her were truly wholesome, then he would giver her privacy and respect her modesty and decency... or lack thereof.

She had no idea that destiny had a different turn of events in mind...


A short while later...

The clouds obscuring the sun was having an effect on the creatures Wraith was hunting. It seemed they enjoyed the warmth the sun provided and willingly came into the open, and when things were shady, they scattered.

Today being partly cloudy, they weren't exactly making themselves readily available.

Spear in both hands, Wraith trudged on, determined to find another of the four-eyed critters in order to make dinner. But with his search becoming even more difficult, he was wondering if he would have a catch ready by the time Ahsoka returned.

So far, all he'd speared were some leaves, certainly not good enough for a full meal. He was having trouble pinpointing the creatures as they hid, the dense underbrush and broad leaves making for remarkable hiding places. Not even his own enhanced eyes could accurately track them in a place where they had the environmental advantage.

"I need my helmet." He determined. The tracking and scanning systems in his optics would surely be enough to find the creature in the underbrush. That would mean having to go back to the camp so, with a sigh, he shouldered his spear and trudged onwards. "How in the universe am I supposed to even start that conversation?" He wondered aloud. "'Hey Ahsoka, I've been in love with you for more than a year now. How do you feel about me?' Force, that's kriffing terrible." He muttered. "Is there an easy way to say it? Pretty sure there isn't." Wraith kept mulling over scenarios in his mind, growing increasingly anxious with each one he deemed a failure.

After several minutes of walking and talking to himself and grumbling about how fruitless his attempts at setting up the right moment were, Wraith was headed for trouble.

Lost in his own thoughts, Wraith lost his sense of direction as the green of the foliage started to blur together. He thought he knew where he was going, but his feet were leading him somwhere else altogether.

All of a sudden, he could feel it again, a sensation now familiar after several days. That same, strange sensation of nervousness... He'd felt it several times before when out hunting and still couldn't understand it. He knew what it felt like to be nervous, but it wasn't him feeling it. The feeling grew more intense with each step, Wraith's own senses heightening in response. His muscles went taut, like a coiling spring, ready to pounce at a moment's notice. Levelling his spear, Wraith pressed on, carefully moving the leaves in front of him, anticipating a creature to be hidden behind one.

And then, parting the brush, Wraith realized he had arrived at the island's spring, approaching it from the side... and he stopped dead in his tracks.

For a fraction of a second, he saw a sight that would be burned into his memory for eternity. There in the spring, he saw familiar blue and white striped headtails and the smooth expanse of Ahsoka's toned orange back. She was waist deep in the water, anything from her hips down completely obscured from view.

But that didn't stop Wraith from losing all coherent thought and becoming completely frozen in mesmerized awe.

"Woah...!" He breathed, absolutely stunned by the sight in front of him. He dropped his spear, thinking of nothing else other than the beauty that was before him.

And then she turned and Wraith got a very brief glance of her curving chest and toned, slim waist. Wraith barely managed to recognize that he was trapped in a very compromising position when Ahsoka's blue gaze met his and widened.

"EEEEEK! WRAITH!" She screamed, instinctively covering herself, cheeks turning red.

"Uh oh!" Wraith gasped as he whirled around, turning away from her.

"HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN STANDING THERE?!" She shrieked.

"ItwasnomorethanthreesecondsIswear!" He speedily replied.

"GET OUT OF HERE!" Wraith did as ordered and bolted, making a beeline for the beach.

"Oh Force...! Oh Force...!" He gasped, moving at a sprint, the green foliage becoming a blurr. He hadn't meant to stare for so long, but his mind had simply clammed up and refused to act.

Force... she was beautiful...

Wraith kept running and didn't stop running until he burst free of the jungle and stumbled across the beach. "Holy... Sithspit..." Wraith still couldn't believe what had just happened. "I'm in trouble... Oh I'm in trouble..." He had a feeling Ahsoka would come back and want to tear a strip off of him. He was doubtful she would even be willing to hear out his explanation... but he'd have to try.

Even still... would she ever be willing to listen to him ever again?

Bracing for what was to come and composing himself, Wraith looked down, "Aaaaand I could use a cold shower... stat!"


Performing a few exercises to control his blood flow had certainly helped Wraith's situation. But even as he was sitting there, calming himself down, he felt uneasy about what was to come. He'd have to confront Ahsoka sooner or later and he was dreading that confrontation.

But it came sooner than he would've liked.

Brow creased in a deep frown, Ahsoka came tromping out of the jungle and stomped over to Wraith, her headtails glistening with droplets of still-drying water.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU JUST PEEPED ON ME!" She shouted.

"Ahsoka, I'm sorry! I swear it was-"

"First you look up my skirt, then you feel me up, and now this?!" She exclaimed.

"You're keeping track?! This was an accident-" Wraith tried to respond.

"WAS IT?!" She shouted again. "Seriously! What the kriff is wrong with you?!" She demanded, giving Wraith a murderous stare. The super-soldier struggled for an answer.

"I... Well... Um..." Crossing her arms, Ahsoka's piercing blue gaze fixated on him, conveying truckloads of mistrust and total dismissal.

"Corsair was right, you don't care! You just want me so you can put a notch on your bed post, that's all!" She declared. That sparked Wraith's mind and finally put it into gear, processing her statement within seconds.

"What the-... you're going to take that scumbag's word over mine?!" Wraith exclaimed, clearly incredulous. "We're talking about the same guy who decided to use you as bait to lure me out into the open and didn't even wait for you get out of the way before opening fire! Nor did he wait a single minute before calling you a whore afterwards! How could you possibly believe someone like that?!" He implored.

"Because... B-Because it just makes sense!" Ahsoka spluttered, her mind trying to catch up with her mouth which was clearly being run by her hot-headed emotions. "Anakin says he's right! I know he's crude and not one to listen to, but because someone else backed him up, this time he has a point!" She countered.

"You... You literally just contradicted yourself!" Wraith retorted, his mind spinning from the sheer amount of insanity he was digesting. "You're not making any sense!" He stated as he rose, not breaking eye-contact with her.

"...Are they right or wrong about you?!" Ahsoka demanded.

"Wrong! Very wrong! I care about you Ahsoka!" Wraith emphatically told her. Expecting some sort of comeback, Wraith was surprised when she said nothing, looking away. After a silence so tense you could cut it with a knife, she quietly spoke again.

"That's the funny thing, Wraith. I want to believe you. But so long as you keep telling me 'I care, I care', I can't!" She responded, turning back to him. "I want to know why! What motivates you?!" Now it was Wraith's turn to look away, struggling to keep the true depth of his feelings from becoming evident. He cared so much for Ahsoka... and he knew the reason why, but was reluctant to tell her for fear of her rejection of him. That and he wished to wait for better circumstances.

But maybe she wouldn't leave him with any choice.

"Tell me why Wraith! I want to know!" Ahsoka emphatically continued. "Why do you care about me?!" Her final exclamation pushed him over the edge.

"BECAUSE I LOVE YOU!" Wraith blurted out.

The instant he shouted the words, everything changed.

Ahsoka's demeanor dramatically shifted from interrogative to speechless, her eyes widening as he made his profession. Everything suddenly went quiet as Wraith realized what he said, groaning in utter dismay as he pressed his palms into his eyes and bemoaned his foolish outburst. "Force... Kriffing... damn it...!" He emphatically growled, dropping back to the log.

That was not how he wanted to tell her.

Of all the things to say, in all the tones, in all the settings, under all the circumstances, this was how he told her? Damn him! Damn him for letting the situation get the better of him.

Ahsoka watched his change in expression, still very much in shock. His revelation rocked the very foundations on which she stood and suddenly threw his every action into a whole new light. The shared opinion of Anakin and Corsair suddenly felt meaningless in light of this new evidence. And yet the way he was acting now denoted something was wrong. Testing his presence with the Force, Ahsoka sensed he was in a state of turmoil. Worry and anxiety were radiating from him.

He was scared. But why?

"You... Y-You love me?" She repeated with a stammer, still feeling quite shocked. "I... I-I thought you just had a crush on me?" Wraith didn't reply. He didn't even look up. He remained still and motionless, not saying a word. Then, with a deep sigh, he finally did.

"I did once." He quietly revealed. "I had a crush on you ever since I first saw you on Felucia." He spoke slowly, taking his time. It was proving very hard for him to assemble a sentence without devolving to rambles. "It was a stirring in my heart that I simply couldn't ignore. At first I thought it was nothing more than me desiring your beauty, but as time went on and I grew more attracted to who you are as a person; how tenacious you are, how compassionate you are, how you're so energetic and powerful, how you have a fire like the one that burns within me. And like a moth to a flame I started desiring you with every fibre of my being until I was past the point of no return... and fell for you so hard I can never get back up again." Now it was Ahsoka's turn to remain silent. She could feel the absolute certainty in his words, the confidence behind them.

He didn't just like her. He loved her.

Exhaling, Wraith finally looked up. He turned to her, eyes red from being pressed into his hands. He felt like he'd just babbled on like a maniac, words pouring out of his head and through his mouth as he came clean with the biggest secret he'd held for literal years now. "I love you." He whispered again. "And I care about you... because I love you." There. He'd said it. His greatest secret was now out in the open. She knew now... but what would she do with it?

Ahsoka was still stunned. Standing there, speechless, still in a state of shock, processing all of his words, she still couldn't believe he'd said it. All of a sudden, his every action towards her started to make sense. Him going out of his way for her, his purposefully making himself available so they could talk when she needed to, he did it all because he loved her.

No one just went and did such things, especially such treasonous things, without a good reason. Being in love with someone was certainly reason enough.

But Wraith still looked so forlorn and troubled. Ahsoka had no idea what was bothering him. Maybe talking would reveal the answer.

"I... I had no idea." She stammered. "E-E-Everyone just made it sound like your feelings for me were superficial." She told him. Then her gaze fell. "I thought they were too..." She admitted, feeling ashamed of herself. "I... I didn't..."

"It's fine." He mumbled. "I didn't want you to know."

"Why not?" Ahsoka asked, dropping to her knees next to him.

"Because I was... am afraid of how you'll respond." Wraith quietly responded.

"What do you mean?" Ahsoka pried. Wraith sighed.

"You're a Jedi. Jedi aren't allowed to love." He reluctantly said, not even looking at her. "I... I love you and I want you to love me... but I know you can't." The sound of dejection was evident in his voice, enough so that Ahsoka was moved.

She was not speaking to a monster who... lusted after her. She was speaking to a man who genuinely cared about her... and loved her.

But how was she supposed to respond to this? Even before all of this, she was uncertain as to her feelings for Wraith. She thought that they'd been resolved after talking with Anakin... but now she wasn't so sure. But she didn't know how to answer him. This was all so sudden, she needed time to think, she needed time to sort herself out.

"I wanted to tell you. Really, I did. But... now..." Wraith sighed again, rubbing his temples and groaning a little. Ahsoka's big blue eyes roamed across his downcast face, a part of her wanting to reach out and reassure him. But she couldn't. Not until she sorted herself out. Wraith rose and started walking away, his shoulders slumped. Ahsoka watched him go, seeing not The Wraith, the deadly and unfeeling super-soldier... but Wraith, the man with hopes and feelings of his own. His entire posture was bent, like a man who'd had his dreams crushed. Ahsoka knew that feeling, knew what it was like to have an immense, crushing weight on her shoulders. But this time, there was a way to alleviate it... and the key lay with her.