Nine days had passed since the commander awoke from his coma. Psawl was back in the midst of the fighting, but he was still not 100%, so Otienoh found himself taking up a lot of the slack. He was glad to, but it left him feeling exhausted and grumpy at the end of the day. Otienoh had been fighting back wave after wave of relentless droids and had the laser burns to show for it. He wanted nothing more than to go to his quarters, collapse into bed with his wife, and sleep for ten hours.

His plans changed when he opened his mail. Nestled amongst the routine thank-you notes from various people he had assisted and sketchy offers promising sums of credits in return for just a small down-payment was a forwarded message from Psawl. It was marked "urgent" and had a subject heading that consisted solely of a colon and right parenthesis. Otienoh opened it.

Inside was a security briefing from Theron Shan cataloguing the results of inquiries into assorted alliance personnel and contacts, most of which were marked "inconclusive." However, one line was highlighted. It read: "Quinn, Malavai. Major. Imperial Military (defected). Multiple witnesses place him nowhere near the throne at the time of sabotage. Status: cleared." Attached was a message: "Otienoh. If I know you, by the time you get this the day will be nearly over. I requested the guards wait until evening to release Quinn, because I figured you might want to be the first to congratulate him. Yup. Consider your friend officially pardoned. No need to thank me, I already know I'm amazing. If you hurry you might catch him. Your illustrious commander and BFF :P –Psawl."

Without even stopping to scowl at the BFF crack, and without regard to his weariness, Otienoh took off like a shot for the detention center. He briefly considered stopping to find Vette and bring her with him, but decided he didn't want to risk missing Quinn. Besides, the man would likely speak more freely without the threat of her teasing hanging over his head.

Apparently, the guards at the front of the detention center weren't expecting anybody, because he caught them leaning against the wall, sipping caff, deep in conversation. They didn't even notice him until he cleared his throat pointedly.

"Oh! Sir!" The first guard exclaimed, fumbling his cup and grimacing as a small amount of the hot liquid sloshed over his hand. "Ah… What are you doing here?" Otienoh glared, distinctly unimpressed.

"My lord!" The other guard, a former imperial, recovered more gracefully and bowed. "I… imagine you're here after Major Quinn?"

"Indeed."

"Ah… I suspect he's in out processing by now, my lord. I can take you…"

"Do it."

"Very good. Right this way, my lord." He started leading him into the detention center. "Er… my lord?"

"Yes, I will be informing your superiors of your lapse."

The guard sighed in resignation. "Yes, my lord." The silence that followed was awkward, but Otienoh ignored it, intent only on finding Quinn. He was eager, and – though he'd never admit it – a bit nervous to meet casually with his former captain for the first time in six years.

They came upon Quinn as he was just being escorted out of the cell block, still straightening the sleeves of his newly-returned uniform jacket. As though sensing his presence, Quinn looked up and locked eyes with Otienoh. Both stood frozen.

"My lord, I…" Quinn started, bowing slightly at the waist. Otienoh gave into an impulse he seldom indulged. He stepped forward, and before Quinn could as much as blink, Otienoh had wrapped him in a huge bear hug.

When Otienoh pulled back, Quinn was staring at him, open-mouthed in shock. Otienoh suppressed a chuckle.

"My apologies for the breach in decorum, major," Otienoh said, nodding courteously to Quinn. "It's just good to have you back."

Quinn's incredulous expression slowly melted into relief, then pride, with just a touch of a smile on his lips. He straightened and returned the nod. "It's good to be back, my lord."

By this point, both of their escorts had made a discreet exit, and it was just the two of them. Quinn cleared his throat, emboldened by the relative privacy. "Honestly, my lord, after the commander interviewed me, I'm a bit surprised he didn't lock me in the smallest cell he could find and throw away the key."

"No, that's where Saresh is," Otienoh replied; only half-joking, but Quinn smirked nonetheless.

"I had heard about that. Good riddance."

"Indeed," Otienoh replied, giving a feral smile, but a moment later he sobered. "What possible cause would Psawl have to lock you away?"

Quinn glanced away. "Most of his questions were typical. Ones I was prepared to answer. But one question…"

"Yes?"

Quinn licked his lips. "He asked me what I would do if you ever betrayed him. I told him my loyalties lay with you."

There was a pregnant pause, and then Otienoh chuckled. "Quinn," he said with a fond smile. "You've come so far."

Quinn glanced up in confusion. "My lord?"

"Psawl is not worried for one moment that I'll betray him. After the trials and temptations we've faced together, he trusts me with his life, as I trust him with mine." He smiled ruefully. "Not something I ever expected to say, especially about a Jedi, but there you have it." He caught Quinn's eye again. "Psawl knew already where your loyalties lie. What he wanted to know was whether you had the integrity to admit it, even when that admission could hurt you. You didn't with Baras, but now you do. I'm proud of you, Quinn."

Quinn lowered his eyes, ashamed. "I don't deserve it."

"Perhaps not," Otienoh agreed. "But to quote a certain obnoxiously cheerful commander, 'The Alliance is a second chance for anyone willing to serve.'"

Quinn finally smiled fully. "So… what next, my lord?"

"Well, you should probably get settled in your quarters, and then if you'd like I could introduce you to a few of my new associates."

"A colorful lot, from what I've seen," Quinn interjected. Otienoh grinned.

"You have no idea. Vette will want to say 'hello.' Broonmark is back on Odessen, so you don't have to worry about him yet. Pierce is here, however. He's the same rank as you, and technically has seniority now, so you may want to give him a bit of a berth for a while."

"I'll take that under advisement, my lord." And so, the Sith warrior and the imperial officer walked off into the evening air, allies once more.