"aaaa" - talking through a holocomunicator or comlink. aaaa - inner thoughts and Force Visions. 'aaaa' - talking through a bond.

AN: We've made it! Welcome to my first Time Marker! I also want to quickly thank everyone as this story has reached over 2,000 views! You guys are all awesome and I hope you all know that! I wanted to use Rosella's birthday for this to signify that she's getting older and to also help mark the passage of time. Which means that starting with the next chapter, we will be moving on to the second year of the war.

Thank you princesselsaamidala22 for your review of the last chapter.

I will only be covering 3 out of the 5 episodes that are in the Second Battle of Geonosis Arc. Don't worry, you'll find out what they are when I begin posting them.

On today's adventure; Rosella is turning fourteen! Anakin has come up with a last-minute idea to help mark the occasion, but he has to convince the rest of his family to help him with his plan...

Time Marker: Celebrating Rosella's Birthday

It was almost lunchtime when Anakin turned off his comlink and put it away. After calling Rex to let him know that he, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka had safely returned from Felucia, he hung up and dialed Padmè. When she answered, he told her all about his idea to throw a small party for Rosella since today was her birthday.

Once he heard that she was on board with the idea and learned that she had the afternoon off from the Senate, he made a plan to meet her in her apartment after lunch. Getting up off the couch, he headed into the kitchen and made himself a quick lunch. Since Rosella was going to be busy with her classes until that evening, he had until then to convince the rest of his family to agree with his idea and see if Rex would let them use the common room in the 501st's barracks as the place for the party. Once he had eaten, he took a shower in the refresher, got dressed and left, heading over to Obi-Wan's. Knocking on the door, he waited for his brother to answer.

A few minutes later, the door slid open to reveal Obi-Wan standing on the other side. "Morning Anakin," he said. "Do come in." He stepped to the side, watching as Anakin entered his apartment and headed towards the living room. The Jedi Master followed him, wondering why he was here. "What can I do for you?"

"Is Ahsoka here?" He asked, not wanting the Togruta to overhear their conversation.

"No," Obi-Wan responded. "She's in class."

Anakin nodded. "Rosella's birthday is today. I know this is a last minute thing, but I really want to do something special for her," he said. "It's going to be the first one that she'll get to have since Padmè and I adopted her into our family and I want today to be a day where she can be a kid and not have to think about the war, being a Jedi or anything else."

Obi-Wan smiled. "Anakin, I think that's a very nice thing to do for her," he said. "I'd be happy to help you and I'm sure that Qui-Gon, Padmè, and quite possibly Dex would love to help out as well."

"Um…I'm not sure if I want to have Dad help out with anything," Anakin said. "Remember my 13th birthday and the cake that he made?"

Obi-Wan nodded, a slight grimace on his face. "Yes," he said, chuckling a little, "I remember that. So, what do you want me to do?"

"Does the Council need you for the rest of the afternoon?" Anakin asked.

"Not that I know of," Obi-Wan responded, slightly curious as to what Anakin had in mind.

"That's great," Anakin said, a smile appearing on his face. Then he glanced at the chrono on the wall and got up off the couch. "I'm sure Padmè won't mind if you tag along."

"Padmè?" Obi-Wan asked. "She already knows about your idea?"

"Yes," Anakin replied as he headed towards the door. He stepped out into the hall once it slid open and turned around. "Are you coming? I promised her that I would meet her in her apartment so we could go shop for party decorations."

"I'm coming," Obi-Wan replied.

After leaving a quick note for Ahsoka, telling her that he had some urgent business to attend to and that she was to report to the Crèche for her volunteer shift as soon as she got back from her classes that afternoon, the Jedi Master joined his brother in the hall. Then they made their way over to Senator Amidala's apartment. After waiting for a few minutes, Padmè joined them. She was delighted to hear that Obi-Wan liked the idea. Then they headed out and bought six bags full of party supplies.

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Over in the barracks that housed the 501st, Rex was bored. He was currently lounging on the couch in the common room, watching the latest holonet gossip that made him sigh and shake his head as he knew that the supposed rumor about some Corellian woman who kept claiming that her two and a half-year-old toddler was meant to be a Jedi as she had seen him lifting a toy block with his hand wasn't true.

Getting up, he reached out, grabbed the remote that was sitting on the table in front of him and turned the holonet off. Then the silence was interrupted by a couple of voices. Ones that he recognized as they approached the door that led to the common room.

Anakin's voice cut through the silence as he, Obi-Wan and Padmè stepped through the door. "Captain?" He called out as he spotted the man who he had come to see.

Rex walked around the table and immediately stood at attention as he saw his commanding officers and the Senator of Naboo walking towards him, each of them carrying two bags, which looked to be very heavy. "Yes General?" He asked. "Is there something I can help you with?"

Anakin, Obi-Wan and Padmè all placed their bags down as they came over to Rex and the Captain saw that there were party supplies in each bag. Two of the bags had a bunch of brightly colored streamers in them, another two had some party poppers and other decorations and the last two had a bunch of letters that could flash every color of the rainbow if someone wanted them programmed that way. "I wanted to see if we could use the common room for an event that will be held later this evening," he said.

"Are you planning something Sir?" Rex asked.

Anakin nodded. "Rosella's birthday is today and I thought it would be nice to throw a party for her," he said.

Rex looked surprised and his jaw nearly dropped. He knew what a party was since both Anakin and Rosella had taken the time to explain it to the Captain and some of the men after they accidentally overheard them talking about birthday parties and the ones that Shmi would throw for Anakin whenever his birthday rolled around each year. He, along with Cody and a few of his men, were among a carefully selected group of people who knew that Rosella was the General's adopted daughter and that he was married to the Senator. "Really?" He asked. "I knew it was soon, but I didn't think it would be here already."

"I know Rex," Anakin said. "I can hardly believe it myself."

The Captain smiled. "Of course, you can use the room, sir," he said. "Consider it a present from the 501st. Do you need help with the decorating?"

"Thanks, Rex," Anakin told him. "That would be great."

Rex nodded, picked up the bags that Anakin and Padmè had placed on the floor and followed the Senator as she explained how she wanted the room to look.

Anakin grinned, knowing that Rosella was going to love it. Then he turned to Obi-Wan. "Hey, can you go to Dex's and see if he'll supply some food for the party?" He asked.

"Sure," Obi-Wan replied. "I'll head over there right now." Then he turned around and walked out of the barracks.

The Knight smiled as he turned around, picked up the bags that his brother had been carrying and walked over to where Rex and Padmè had already started to decorate the room. A few minutes later, Echo and Fives, along with Cody, came into the room. Rex spotted them and once he explained what was going on, had both of his brothers help with the decorating while Anakin, who had been taking a break, got Cody to help him choose music for the party.

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Obi-Wan's eyebrows nearly shot up in surprise when he walked into Dex's establishment. "Master Qui-Gon," he said as he greeted the man who was sitting on a barstool at the counter right in front of him. Dex, who was a large and slightly unkempt Besalisk that owned the diner, was leaning on the counter behind him.

It seemed that the two men had either been swapping stories or news with each other.

Nearly everyone within the Jedi Order either knew or had heard a small rumor that Qui-Gon had turned down a more active role in the war due to his age and his anti-war views. He was perfectly fine with staying on the sidelines, even though his adopted children and granddaughter had a more active role as they all fought on the front lines. They also knew that the esteemed Jedi Master had duties of his own to attend to since he was the council head when Master Windu and Grand Master Yoda had to travel away from the temple.

"Hello Obi-Wan," Qui-Gon said. "Are you enjoying your time off?"

"I am," Obi-Wan said. "I came down here because I need to ask Dex if he would do something for me."

"Oh? And just what can I do for you, my friend?" Dex asked, still leaning on the counter.

"Well…I was hoping that you could supply some food for a party that Anakin, Padmè and I are throwing for Rosella since today is her birthday," Obi-Wan said. Even though he remembered that Rosella had only tried Dex's food once, when Obi-Wan had made a stop at the diner for lunch one day and ended up bringing the leftovers back in time for dinner with Ahsoka, Anakin and the teenager, he also knew that she happened to develop a liking towards the greasy food.

The Besalisk merely grinned as he looked at Obi-Wan. "Of course, I'll supply the food for the party," he said. "Consider it my treat. Let me close up early. Then I'll make some food and bring it over to the barracks."

"Thanks, Dex," Obi-Wan replied as he shot the man a smile. Turning to leave, the Jedi Master was brought to a halt as he heard Master Jinn speak.

"Maybe I'll make a cake," the bearded Jedi told Dex.

Obi-Wan turned around. "Um…no thanks," he said. Feeling the need to explain since Qui-Gon was now giving him the same glare that he was fond of using with Anakin when he had been a teenager which consisted of a raised eyebrow and a pair of crossed arms, he continued. "Anakin told me earlier that he doesn't want you to help with anything for the party. That includes making the cake."

"What?!" Qui-Gon said as Dex laughed in the background.

Obi-Wan took that as his cue and left the diner before the man that he considered to be his father could come after him. Climbing into his speeder, he headed back to the Temple since he had a few Council members in mind who he thought would like to be invited to the party.

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When they were finished with their tasks, Anakin and the others stepped back and surveyed the room. There were purple, pink and blue streamers hanging from the ceiling and Rosella's name had been spelt out on the wall to their left where the couch was located with all the lights plugged in and ready to go. Echo and Fives had placed some of the streamers on both sides of her name. The table that had been sitting in front of the couch had been moved to the wall in front of them and there was another one beside it. Both of them had been covered in blue and purple tablecloths.

"This looks great," Anakin said. "She's going to love it."

"I'm sure she will Anakin," Qui-Gon said from behind him.

The entire group turned around to see both Dex and Qui-Gon standing there with six loaded trays full of food.

"Where should we put this?" Dex asked.

"Right over here," Padmè said as she took the trays that her adopted father-in-law was carrying and led the Besalisk over to one of the tables that was for the food.

Anakin smiled, then nodded to Rex, Echo, Fives and Cody as he said, "Thanks for helping out boys."

The troopers nodded and responded, "It was our pleasure, General."

The Knight then glanced over at the chrono and dashed out of the room. Padmè, who knew what he had to do, merely smirked to herself and continued to help Dex put out the food.

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When Anakin arrived back at the Temple, he quickly rounded up Ahsoka, who had just finished her afternoon shift with the younglings, Tabitha, Callum and Alex. After telling them about the party that he was throwing for Rosella, he had them all go down to the barracks where the 501st were since he still had to grab Rosella and head back there himself.

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After grabbing Rosella and blindfolding her, Anakin led his daughter to the speeder that he was using. After helping her in, he closed the passenger side door, ran around, got into the pilot's seat and took off for the barracks. On the way there, he could sense her confusion over their bond. As he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, he saw her reaching for the strip of purple cloth that covered her eyes. "Ella, leave that alone," he said.

"But Dad, you still haven't told me where we're going," she whined, confused as to why he had taken her out of the Temple.

"You'll find out when we arrive at our destination," Anakin responded. Then he got a mental nudge from Obi-Wan. Opening the bond that he shared with his brother, he found out that Mace and Yoda had arrived and everything was ready.

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Once they arrived in front of the 501st's barracks and Anakin let her out of the speeder, he placed both of his hands on her shoulders and led her down to the common room. Looking up, he saw that the lights were off. Mentally alerting Obi-Wan to their every move, he gave his daughter a slight nudge and walked behind her into the room. As he untied the blindfold and let it drop, two things happened at the same time.

Obi-Wan, who was standing near the light switch, flicked it on.

As soon as that happened, everyone jumped out from their hiding places and yelled, "SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

Rosella stood there shocked, as her eyes swept around the entire room. Her mouth dropped open as she saw all the decorations, the food and the small number of gifts that were for her. Upon seeing all her loved ones who had gathered in the room to celebrate her birthday, she couldn't help but smile. Knowing that most of them knew her secret, she grinned, turned around and hugged her father. "Thank you, Dad," she quietly whispered.

"You're welcome," Anakin quietly responded as he hugged her back. 'Happy Birthday sweetheart. I also have another gift for you.'

'You do?' Rosella leaned back and looked up at him, a surprised expression on her face. 'What is it?'

He chuckled as he looked up and saw her friends all staring at her, expressions of confusion written all over their faces. Then he stepped back. "Turn around," he said.

As Rosella turned around, she too caught sight of her friends. Then she gasped and covered her mouth with her hands as she knew what he was about to let her do. 'Are you serious? I can tell them?'

Anakin nodded. 'Yup. I'm going to let you decide how much to tell them.'

Rosella happily spun around and hugged her father again, smiling as she heard all her guests laugh behind her. Then she ran over to her friends, grabbed them by their hands and took them over to the couch that was sitting underneath her name which was lit up pink and purple. Deciding to leave out the part about Anakin being married and the fact that her adopted mother was a Senator, she took a deep breath and told them that Anakin, who was also her Jedi teacher, had adopted her into his family and that her last name was actually Skywalker.

Her friends all looked shocked and then happily cheered and congratulated her on her adoption, promising not to tell anyone and also saying that they were going to keep calling her by her last name and not use her official one until they knew the war was over.

Rosella smiled. "Thanks, guys," she said. "Hey, go have fun and enjoy yourselves."

Her friends all smiled, wished her a happy birthday and got up off the couch.

Rosella watched as Ahsoka, Tabitha, Callum and Alex made their way to the dance floor where Echo and Fives were showing off their moves. Knowing that her friends were currently occupied, she got up and made her rounds as she thanked everyone for coming. When she reached the Senator, she leaned in and gave her a quick hug, knowing that Padmè was one of the ones who had helped set up this party for her, along with the rest of her family. When she finished with her rounds, she made her way back over to the couch, sat down and smiled as she watched everyone have fun at her party.

She still couldn't believe that one whole year had passed since her parents had adopted her. Then she outright laughed as she saw her father making his way towards her with an ice cream cake in his hands that had fourteen lit candles on top. One that she knew her grandfather certainly hadn't made. After everyone had gathered around and sang to her, the teenager leaned forward and blew out the candles. Once she had gotten the first slice of cake, along with some of Dex's food on the side of her plate, she smiled and told everyone else to get a slice as well.

After finishing her food, Rosella stayed where she was, closed her eyes and took everything in. In a way, this was the most normal thing that she had ever done. It felt like they weren't even at war. That it was over or had never happened at all. That everything was back to the way it used to be. Then the teenager opened her eyes and softly shook her head. As soon as she had stepped foot into the room and saw everything, she mentally told herself that she wouldn't even think about the war, what would come tomorrow or even in the future. She was going to live in the here and now.

"Are you having fun, Commander?" Rex asked as he came up to her, hoping that he wasn't interrupting whatever it was that she had been doing.

"You bet I am Rex," she responded as she smiled brightly, her eyes sparkling with that glow of pure happiness that meant the world to those who knew her and loved her. "I also know that you and the boys had a hand in setting all this up."

Rex chuckled. "It was mostly General Skywalker and General Kenobi who were the ones in charge, along with some help from the Senator," he said. "They wanted you to have this day for yourself, to be able to forget about everything going on in the galaxy."

Rosella turned and smiled at her parents who were talking to each other. Then she picked up her empty plate, threw it in the nearest trash can, glanced over at the dartboard and stood up, a light bit of humor in her voice as she said, "I'm pretty sure I can beat both you and Cody at a game of darts."

"I highly doubt that," Rex said as they both made their way over to the board where Cody was playing with Fives.

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Later that night, Rosella smiled as she climbed into bed. As she glanced at the bookshelf in her room that had been placed beside her closet, she grinned as she saw all the presents that she had received at her party on one of the shelves. She had gotten a book about the history of Kamino from Echo, a bag of her favourite candy from Fives, and a book on how to properly handle and take care of a blaster from Cody since Rex had told her that he wanted to start teaching her how to use his and the Commander wanted to make sure that she knew how to properly care for the weapon in case she ever had to use one.

She really didn't want to go back to all the fighting and everything else, but then she thought of all those people that she, her family and the rest of the Jedi were fighting for and knew that one day, the galaxy would be free and everything would return to normal.