Chapter 14

It's Wednesday and I'm still not over last week's Clone Wars episode. The fight between Ahsoka and Maul: a highlight in all of Star Wars. And oh, the fact of how scared Maul actually was. That shit hits different, man.

Now on with the story.


After making sure they weren't tracked, the group decided to head back to Alderaan. They needed to discuss this with command and Ahsoka needed to check on Leia. Her shielding was somewhat of a priority which could not be checked on over a HoloCall.

Ahsoka was glad to go back there. The secret living space in the palace would make for a safer feeling than any of the other planets ever could.

They were currently nearing the Alderaan System and it had been two days since Ahsoka 'snapped'. Ever since that she'd been quietly meditating and calming down. The dark presence was completely gone, but she still pondered about how it had invaded her mind and taken over. Had she let it? Had she wanted it at the time? Had she clung to it? All questions she couldn't answer with certainty.

It was obvious the group was worried about Ahsoka. They wanted her to be okay. Which was logical, they were all friends here. It was obvious some were even a little scared of her now. Dara and Cornan, for example, seemed to keep out of her way a little. They weren't being all that obvious, but Ahsoka was a good observer. She noticed. It wasn't a strange reaction, but it still sent a pang of hurt through her every time she noticed it. Ahsoka never wanted to scare anyone away.

Contrary to Dara and Cornan, Lorey stuck to her even more now. The other girl checked up on Ahsoka regularly and engaged in small talk to keep Ahsoka's mind occupied. Jax and Thea had offered to spar once they were back on solid ground with more room, which Ahsoka gladly took them up on once they would land on Alderaan.

Deo shared some of his stories about the Clone Wars with her, which was also nice. Heartfelt stories of course, no gruesome tales. That would not do her any good. Ahsoka couldn't be happier with her team. They were the best people she could've wished for in this new life. Yet Ahsoka couldn't hide the longing she still had towards 'the past'. The times with Anakin and Obi-Wan and Rex and the 501st and-

Ahsoka sighed. She knows she shouldn't think like that.

=O=

When they dropped out of hyperspace, Ahsoka was all too happy to see the familiar sight of Alderaan through the viewport. This was the closest thing to a home she had, so it was always nice to see it. They were cleared for landing at the private hanger and they set down shortly after.

Lorey and Ahsoka had to report to the higher-ups and honestly, Ahsoka was not looking forward to that. Lorey could see Ahsoka's hesitation.

"You know, I'm sure with a good reason, like what you always do with the princess for example, you could get out of the briefing." Lorey smiled at Ahsoka.

Ahsoka looked at her with gratitude. Lorey was giving her an out.

"Thank you Lorey. I'll ask," she said with a smile.

"You know where to find me if you need me." And with that Lorey kept on walking towards the meeting room while Ahsoka turned the other way.

Via her comm she contacted Breha and asked if she could come by already. The queen immediately told her she was welcome right away, which gave Ahsoka a warm feeling. She made her way to the private quarters of the royal family and chimed the door. Breha let her in.

"Ahsoka, it's good to see you. How have your travels been?" the queen asked.

Ahsoka didn't want to be rude, but she did not want to talk about it. "Same old, I guess. Had some run-ins with the Imperial forces but other than that we got out okay. It's good to be here and not on the run, though. That's for sure."

Breha smiled but before she could say anything back an excited squeal came from a doorway to their right. There stood the princess of Alderaan, little Leia. She came rushing in and enveloped Ahsoka's legs in a tight hug.

"Ahsoka! You're back!" Leia said excitedly before letting go. Ahsoka crouched down so she was eyelevel with the girl but was pushed down on the ground by an even stronger hug.

"I missed you Ahsoka," Leia said as she squeezed her hugbuddy.

Ahsoka held Leia tight. "I missed you too, little princess. Have you been good for mommy and daddy?"

Leia nodded enthusiastically. "Have you practiced?" Ahsoka then asked, to which she got the same reaction.

Breha smiled at the two. It was obvious they got along great. Ahsoka was made to deal with someone like Leia. It shouldn't surprise Breha, considering whose daughter Leia really was. Leia told Ahsoka all kinds of stories she'd picked up around the palace and Ahsoka listened intently. Both girls were now seated on the floor. But then Leia got up. "I'm gonna show you what daddy got me from Coruscant last week!" the girl said, before running off to another room.

Ahsoka got back up and turned to Breha. "She's gotten better in her abilities, a lot. She has a lot of raw talent. I was only gone for a few weeks and she's progressed like she had a master here who constantly trained her. This is unusual but very wonderful. You should be very proud as her mother," she stated simply.

Breha smiled at her, again. She didn't know much about the Force, neither did Bail, but they did their best for their daughter. To hear someone like Ahsoka, a former Jedi, say that Leia was gifted and was doing well was always nice to hear.

Leia then came rushing back in, without anything in her hand. She was pouting.

"Can't find it. Mommy, I need help searching. Please," Leia said with the biggest tooka-eyes Ahsoka had ever seen. How could you ever say no to a kid like that? But Breha just smiled. Ahsoka figured she was just used to it by now. She was also glad that she wasn't the one who had to raise this girl. While Leia was a sweetheart, she was very much like her father. So strong headed and stubborn and above all, Leia was incredibly cute. Ahsoka would've just given in to every demand the girl made.

But then Ahsoka's comm chimed. She took a few steps back while Breha started talking to Leia about where she could've left her new present. Ahsoka answered the comm.

It was Lorey. "Ahsoka, I need you to come to the briefing. There's important information you might want to know firsthand."

Ahsoka sighed. There went her free afternoon. "I'll be there in a bit. Thank you for calling," and cut the transmission off. She turned to Breha.

"I have to get to the meeting. I'm sorry, I'll be back later."

"Oh, don't be sorry Ahsoka. It's part of the job you have. And I know Bail will be happy to see you as well. Besides, this gives Leia an opportunity to search for this special thing she wanted to show you, right Leia?"

Leia nodded. "Well see you later, now go. We don't want to keep you."

Ahsoka smiled and with that she left the room, on her way to the briefing room.

=O=

The walk there was short and when she entered her code, she noticed they'd been expecting her, obviously. Ahsoka moved to take her seat next to Lorey. The meeting resumed with Ahsoka silently asked Lorey what she'd missed. The other girl explained in a short summary and it came down upon the fact that she hadn't missed anything important, but the next thing they would discuss would be important.

"A recent run-in with another rebel cell by one of our agents has brought something to our attention," one of the commanders started. Ahsoka listened intently. "Onderon has had a group of rebels for years now-"

Ahsoka didn't hear the sentence he said after that. Onderon? Rebels? Could that be Saw? "According to our observation, these rebels have been getting more dangerous over the years. Their actions grow bolder and more and more people are falling victim to their reckless actions. Never in our right mind can we continue to let this happen to civilians who fall victim. I want to send a team there to help them-" The commander couldn't even finish his sentence. Ahsoka had gotten up and now had all the attention.

"Don't look any further commander. We'll go," Ahsoka said. Lorey looked at her curiously. They'd just gotten back after weeks of roaming the galaxy, and here Ahsoka was ready to jump into the next mission? While it was her who wanted to be here for a while.

"If I may ask Ahsoka, why do you volunteer for this mission?" It was Bail who spoke up.

"Back in the Clone Wars I was responsible for training this group of rebels to overthrow their corrupt separatist government. I know them. I believe it would be only natural to send someone who's familiar enough with them. It would certainly help in not making them our enemy," Ahsoka said.

There were hums of confirmation all across the room. What Ahsoka had said had made sense of course. Not long after that it was decided. Ahsoka's team would go to Onderon to meet with Saw Gerrera. Lorey was immediately with Ahsoka as soon as they walked out the room. She pulled her away from the main hallway.

"Are you serious Ahsoka? We just got here. After everything, we deserve a break." Lorey almost sounded pissed.

"I get that, and I want a break so bad, but I know Saw. I know just sending someone will send the wrong message. I don't know what he would do to anyone else. He hasn't been the same since his sister died. If he sees you as hostile, he'll likely kill you. We can't afford to lose someone to such a petty cause. He'll most likely react best to me."

Lorey huffed but didn't say anything to that. "I'll inform the team. But we're not leaving today. Tomorrow at the earliest. I need a good night of sleep."

At that Ahsoka nodded. She couldn't help but agree. Sleep was important. Especially after what she'd been through the last week. She was sure she could sleep a whole day if the chance presented itself. Alas, that wasn't the case. When Lorey walked off Ahsoka made her way back to the main hall. Then she noticed Bail still standing there.

"Ah Ahsoka. I was waiting for you." Ahsoka approached him wearily. What was so important he had to wait for her? "I noticed you seem on edge. There is no ulterior motive then just making sure you are doing well."

That made Ahsoka smile in appreciation. These people really cared for her. Bail started walking back towards the personal quarters of the palace and Ahsoka followed.

"To be completely honest with you Sir, I haven't been well. These were a tough few weeks. It must've already been brought to your attention through our short reports from the last weeks, but I've encountered two Inquisitors. We'll have no trouble from either of them ever again, just so you know, but that has been troubling me."

Bail nodded along but he didn't seem convinced by Ahsoka's explanation for her weariness. "I can understand that would be trying. You handled the situation well. Yet this doesn't seem to be the only thing troubling you."

Ahsoka sighed. She was convinced Bail could read minds or something. And he wasn't even Force sensitive. "Sir, what do you know about bonds between a Jedi Master and his Padawan?" she asked.

Bail looked at her quizzically. He had a suspicion which direction this was going to take but had no idea what she was going to tell him next. "Probably not enough for me to understand what you're going to tell me right now."

"In a Jedi's life, it is normal to form a training bond between master and apprentice. This means you can find each other in the Force, check up on them, feel their presence. Anakin and I had such a bond. It never broke, even after I left the Order. I was convinced he was dead when the purge hit because I couldn't feel him anymore. Every attempt to reach out was met with emptiness. When I learned what had happened to him, I thought it had broken. Turns out I was wrong."

That revelation stopped Bail dead in his tracks. "You connected with him?" he asked her, voice dropping low.

Ahsoka nodded. "I didn't really mean to. I was just reminiscing the past with Lorey. I must've sunken deep enough in the Force during my story to pull on the bond hard enough. It was a painful experience."

Bail stayed silent in a gesture for her to continue.

Ahsoka did just that. "It was all so dark, and it felt cold. First just some cold feeling in my mind, I don't know how to describe that. But the more it invaded my mind, the colder I actually got. I'm pretty sure I was shivering afterwards. I know it was him, the Force told me as such. I don't know if he felt me too. I have a suspicion he couldn't, either because his own presence was too strong, or I unconsciously kept mine at bay. If he had felt me, I'm sure I wouldn't be standing here right now."

It stayed silent between Ahsoka and Bail after that. At some point they started walking again. Ahsoka was looking down the whole time. She debated about whether to tell him about what it had done to her. It was Bail who brought her out of her thoughts by speaking up again.

"It sounds like it took a lot out of you. I'm sorry you had to go through that, but that only brings up the question whether you should go to Onderon even more. Are you sure you're ready for another mission like this?"

Ahsoka nodded. "I think it would be good for me. I need the distraction. But don't worry. I won't leave Leia without a new lesson. I did promise I'd teach her after all," she said with a smile.

This brought a smile to Bail's face as well. "Alright then Ahsoka. I'll take your word for it. Although, I must ask you something. Do keep me updated on this development of your bond. It would do nobody any good if it led some bad people here."

Again, Ahsoka nodded. They reached the personal quarters again and when they stepped inside, Leia came running up to them. But she didn't go for her father as Ahsoka expected. No, she went for her. "Look Ahsoka! Look! I found it!" It was a plushy of a tooka. Leia certainly seemed obsessed with it.

"Oh Leia, it's beautiful. It looks like it gives good hugs too."

Leia nodded enthusiastically and hugged it close in an exemplary manner. Ahsoka laughed at that. Leia held the tooka out towards her. "Want to try?" she asked.

Ahsoka took the tooka and hugged it closely. She never had plushies when she was young. Jedi didn't really have anything. Leia beamed at her. Ahsoka then handed the tooka back.

"Leia, I have a new game for you. Did you know that tookas can fly?" Ahsoka said nonchalantly. The little girl's eyes widened. They could fly? How?

"You can make it fly. We have special 'fly-powers'. Here," and Ahsoka lifted the plushy out of the girl's hand with the Force. Leia stared awestruck at her new toy. It really did fly! Ahsoka let it down again.

The two moved to the middle of the room and sat down. "I'm going to teach you how to make your tooka fly, okay?" Leia nodded eagerly.

Bail and Breha stood off to the side and watched the exchange fondly. They knew Leia was strong with the Force. They were curious to see when she'd pick up this skill.

"Alright. I'll place the tooka here. Now you close your eyes and hold your hand up towards the tooka. Think about your flying tooka. Think hard." Leia did as instructed, even squinted her eyes in concentration, but nothing happened. She started pouting after three tries.

"Hey, Leia. Don't feel bad. It's really hard, but you're doing great. Keep trying and it's fly at some point," Ahsoka said reassuringly, putting her hand on the girl's shoulder.

Leia was determined. She kept trying. Ahsoka sat patiently beside her and watched her. Bail had meanwhile gone to his personal office to get some work done and Breha said on the couch, reading something on a datapad.

Suddenly Leia squealed. Breha looked up startled, and then she saw it. The tooka was levitating just centimeters above the ground, very shakily. But it was flying. And Leia was doing it alone. "Oh Leia look at you! I'm so proud sweetheart!" Breha exclaimed at her daughter.

That made Leia drop the plushy back on the ground, but she didn't care. She was so happy she'd done it. And her mommy was proud! And Ahsoka was smiling at her!

"Well done little princess. That was very good. Now, keep practicing and you'll be able to let it fly really high, real soon." Leia nodded dutifully. Ahsoka got back up and turned to Breha.

"I'm going to go to my chambers now. Please tell Bail we'll be leaving tomorrow. I don't want to disturb him. Have a good night."

Breha nodded at her. "Of course, dear. Thank you once again. I'll let Bail know. And Ahsoka, it's Breha. No fancy titles here. You have a good night as well." She smiled at the Togruta woman, who smiled back. Then Ahsoka left.

When she reached her chambers, she fell down on her bed. She was exhausted. It was always nice to be near Leia, but the little girl was still definitely a Skywalker in every aspect. They were very tiring to be around if she was being honest. She was glad she could relax a little. She had until morning before leaving again.

Ahsoka was determined to make this night the most relaxing one, and she succeeded. Not long after she dropped onto the bed, she'd fallen asleep. And she slept the whole night without nightmares, or any form of dreaming at all, for the first time since her connection made with Anakin/Vader – she still didn't know how to address him right now. She hated his identity crisis. Right now, there were no worries. They were pushed away towards tomorrow.


Thank you for reading. I'm a sucker for reviews so don't mind to leave one behind ;)