Ahsoka stood stone still, barely comprehending what she had just seen and heard. The reporter reappeared on the screen and started reminiscing about Padmé's announcement, but while the crowd around her started talking she grabbed her stuff and ducked quickly out of the market, hoping that no one saw her under the cowl. She went straight home, as fast as she could without hurting herself. She didn't let herself think about it until she had locked her door and was safe in the flat.

Anakin had covered for her. Ahsoka had no idea how (and she was pretty sure she didn't want to know how), but he had convinced not only the Council but the Senate and now all of Coruscant, that the Inquisitor was dead. More to it, he hadn't proven her identity.

How did he fake a DNA scan?! Ahsoka wanted to pace but with her wound, she settled for sitting on the couch and resting her head in her hands. Her blood had soaked everything she had left down the street, it should have come up right away in the system! She barely managed to not leave a trail behind her to the house, and it was all over the street still unless someone had come by to clean it up.

How much did Padmé know? Had Anakin told her or had he kept it entirely to himself? Why had he hidden it?

To give me a chance, she realized. A chance to start over. One last shot at a normal life.

Ahsoka didn't even really know what normal was. All of her childhood, she had lived in the Temple, and for the past year, she had been held at Dromund Kaas. Could she do it? Could she really find a job somewhere, and settle into a rhythm under the surface, one without lessons and missions and battles? Could she maintain life on her own? She was almost eighteen, plenty of people lived on their own at eighteen.

I'm still a danger.

But she didn't have weapons. Tyrannus wasn't after her anymore, and Sideous was dead. If she didn't have a lightsaber, it would be a lot harder to hurt people, although she was plenty capable.

There's still the Darkness. It's not all gone.

I can fight it. I fought it at nights and I got rid of it, eventually. I can even sleep now, thanks to Anakin. I'll never use the Dark Side of the Force again.

And what about the Light?

Ahsoka wasn't a Jedi anymore, that much was clear. After everything she had done, she didn't deserve a shot at redeeming her name. Maybe a year ago, she could have, but it was far too late for that now. Someone like her couldn't live a life in the Temple. She had felt the Temple last night, and the feeling she got had been very clear: This is no longer your home.

Then I won't use either side of the Force, she decided. Maybe for small things, just in emergencies, but no more Sith Fire, no more Jedi Mind Tricks. No more Decay, no more healing. Telekinesis isn't on either Side if worst comes to worst. I won't be on either Side. I'll be in the middle of the balance. I won't be on either Side.

Ahsoka pondered the thought, the hope, that maybe she still had a chance. I can do this. I have a chance.

There was a lot she was going to have to do and it wasn't going to be easy, not by a long shot. She still had to keep her head low, too, and stay off the radar for a few weeks at least. Long enough to throw Tyrannus off her scent, but she could do it. It was possible.

She had a chance.

Ahsoka looked down at her bag of supplies. I don't have to leave, this time. I can stay.

Her gaze shifted from the bad to the window. The curtains were drawn but she knew, somewhere out there, Anakin was guarding her secret. She didn't know why, or what she had done to deserve his grace and mercy, but he was still looking out for her, even after all this time.

Anakin closed the doors to his quarters on his cruiser. With the recent news that Palpatine was Sideous, a lot of chaos had erupted in the galaxy, and Jedi were already being dispatched to put out some of the fires. He had just boarded, and any minute now the cruiser would jump to hyperspace.

It had been difficult, finding a way to throw the Republic off without flat out denying that Ahsoka was involved, but with a little help from R2-D2, it had been possible. Artoo had hacked into the Republic's database and then deleted a certain part of the code connected to Ahsoka's DNA profile. The profile itself hadn't changed, but when the system tried searching for it by matching the results, her profile would no longer turn up. It was still there if you searched her name, but now, when Anakin scanned her blood, no matches could be found. All he had to do was wipe the scanner's history and retry the scan. Nothing would match. Ahsoka was free.

Anakin knew that she still might leave, but he wanted to give her a chance to stay. She needed to heal and there was no better place to lay low than under the surface. Tyrannus wouldn't go all the way down there himself, especially if he didn't know she was alive, and he wasn't about to send battle droids down there either. He knew Padmé's announcement would be broadcasted all over the galaxy, to both Republic and Separatist systems alike, so Tyrannus couldn't miss the news that she was 'dead'. Or rather, the Inquisitor was dead.

He kneeled down and sank into meditation, relaxing, and feeling out for Ahsoka. Where once, he couldn't feel her if he tried, now her presence was as clear as a bell. Just knowing that she was okay calmed Anakin, even if she wasn't next to him. I didn't kill her, he thought. She's going to be okay. It was a drastic improvement from yesterday.

Focusing on Ahsoka's presence, all other sound and thoughts cleared from his head. How was she recovering? Was she still in pain, or was it subsiding? Had she finally been able to rest, like he had? He narrowed in on her, but he found something peculiar. It felt like she was feeling for him as well, off in the distance.

He heard a sound as if he was gaining speed in a tunnel, then he couldn't hear anything, except for his breath. Well, his, and someone else's. He opened his eyes, and, mirroring him, knelt Ahsoka. It was as if she was in the room with him. Anakin couldn't see where she was, but he could see her. Ahsoka opened her eyes, and she must have seen him too. She looked confused for a moment, but she smiled.

"Thank you," she told him, whispering.

Anakin nodded and returned the grin. "You're welcome."

Her eyes filled with hope, hope that she could move on, but before Anakin could say anything else the ship jumped to hyperspace and their connection broke. Anakin wasn't concerned, they probably needed to be focusing harder to keep something like that while moving so rapidly apart.

To be completely honest, Anakin had no idea how they had connected either. He had never heard of two Jed-Force users connecting telepathically. Maybe there was something in the library. He would have to check once the mission was over.

Anakin left his quarters to go and check in with Rex. He walked to the bridge, passing clones as he made his way past them. He didn't know it (and quite frankly, he wouldn't have cared), but they noticed that something was different about the general. Those who were going to the mess hall told those they sat by, and pretty soon the whole ship knew about General Skywalker.

When the bridge doors opened, Rex was double-checking the status of the hyperdrive. When he saw Anakin walking in, he clapped the soldier he was talking to on the shoulder and greeted his general. "Where to, sir?"

"Onderon, Rex," Anakin told him. "They want some answers, and there could be a few riots. We're just going to help keep things calm if we can."

Rex nodded but frowned. "I thought Onderon was Separatist."

"They were, but after Palpatine's death, they notified the Republic with the intent of joining. They'll make it official later, but it was agreed that civilian safety was more important than the legal part of things."

The Captain smiled. "That's a new one."

Anakin chuckled. "That's what I thought, but I'm not surprised." He glanced at Rex, then waved him off of the bridge. Once the doors shut, he turned to the Captain. "You heard about the Chancellor?"

Rex nodded. "It was difficult to avoid, sir. Everyone on board is aware of what happened."

"So you all heard the part about him being a Sith Lord, too?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then you won't be surprised to hear that that's what caused the change."

Rex shrugged. "I had a feeling."

"When do we drop out?"

"14 parsecs, sir."

Anakin nodded. "Got it. See you soon, then."

"If I may, sir," Rex called after him, "I had a question."

The Jedi turned back to the soldier. "What is it?"

Rex took a breath before asking. "I know it's not my place, sir, but something seems different today."

Anakin knew that Rex was talking about him, not just about the Republic or the mission. Instead of trying to hide it, though, he told Rex what he didn't want to ask for: "I found her, Rex. She's alive."

He grinned as Rex's eyes widened, and chuckled. Rex was silent as Anakin walked away, grinning. He knew that was the last thing that Rex expected him to say, but the look on his face was priceless.

Rex, who was too shocked to say anything, bolted for the mess hall. He burst through the doors and everyone turned to look at him, falling silent, and expecting an emergency.

"She's alive!" He shouted into the hall. "The general found the commander!"

The entire room erupted into cheers. Soldiers started jumping up, rushing to hug their closest brother or ask Rex about what had happened. The shinies in the room (and there were plenty of them) who had never met Ahsoka Tano looked around, startled and completely confused, and tried to avoid getting steamrolled by a stampede of the veterans.

Anakin heard all of this from a distance and smiled. He made a promise to himself that one day he would find a way to bring her on board, just so she could see them. Not for a mission, not for business, just to see her friends again.

One day.