As promised, now the second chapter for today, and thanks for crossoverpairinglover and random reader w/o profile for reviewing so fast.

For random reader w/o profile: Thanks so much for the suggestion of your OC, I will consider and maybe even use it, as it's a pretty good character, but I have to watch out to create her not too much like Ahsoka. You can PM me as soon as you have a profile, as I want to make sure I get everything right.

As they entered, Anakin headed straight for the pilot's chair. "Typical", was Ahsoka's silent thought about this.

Well, Anakin was indeed a great pilot (but not so great in keeping a ship undamaged), and in situations when other Jedi would have been shot down, he had a lot times saved everybody's skin. Even if she and Master Kenobi insisted they were sick because of his flying, it was probably more because of the dangerous situation.

By the way, she hadn't seen Obi-Wan in a while. She wondered how he was doing, but as Anakin's, her feelings about him were kind of… mixed. He was her friend, no doubts… But he had left her down in her trial.

Well, different from Anakin she had been able to forgive him for his reaction to the situation; at least she had said so. She had said so about the whole council…

Had she really forgiven them all… for everything?

Argh, she had to think about something else than this. "Master, would you mind giving me details about our mission?"

"Wait a sec." Anakin pulled off one of the levers and the shuttle and they were taking off from the Resolute. "Program the computer for the jump through light."

"No problem, Master." Ahsoka quickly tipped in the coordinates with her left hand and waited, till a slight Bling could be heard. "We're ready."

"Then let's go!" Anakin moved the lightspeed lever and the stars were rushing by next to them. He hit the one button meant for the autopilot and turned around to Ahsoka. "To be honest, Snips, I haven't looked at the data myself as well, so it's the first time for both of us. We should have plenty of time; we meet up with the Dove in four hours."

They left for the Backroom, were Anakin fed the holoprojector with a data pack.

A map of a castle like building was set up. "Well, the Assignment is on Mikun, a neutral planet. The inhabitants are relatives of the humans; they just seem to have bigger ears than us and are smaller." A picture of one of the inhabitants appeared and disappeared again. Ahsoka was reminded of dwarfs, who lived on the lonely planet. "Shall we look up the Senators first or the Security guards?"

"The Senators, we have to see who we are going to protect and who might be suspicious."

"Sepi's or our Senators?"

"Let's take a look at our Senator's first."

"Well", Anakin took a look at the data, "it seems like our delegation…" He stopped, but then continued with a smile on his face, "…is led by Senator Amidala."

"Padmé!" Happily, Ahsoka exclaimed the senator's name. Padmé was indeed a nice surprise, maybe the best one she could have gotten in this situation.

Padmé. Anakin's thoughts couldn't concentrate on anything else than her any longer. Back in Coruscant, he had wanted to talk to her, but immediately after Ahsoka's trial they had sent him on a couple of missions again, not one of them leading back to Coruscant.

Padmé. He missed her with every single piece of his heart. Two months since their last meeting. He had felt something troubled her, but hadn't any idea about what it could have been possibly.

"Master?"

Anakin startled and continued. "Okay, so she will be accompanied by Senator Chuchi from Pantora, Senator Trakien from Terras and Senator Bonteri from Onderon."

"Lux!" This time as well, Ahsoka could not hide her joy. Thinking about him made Ahsoka's heart already beating higher, and butterflies were flying through her belly. Heat slowly reached up into her face.

Anakin smiled as he saw how much happier Ahsoka had already become by only thinking of some of the people meeting again. Maybe this assignment wasn't so bad after all.

The demonstration of the separatist senators was ended without any calls from Ahsoka, as all of them were pretty unknown to the two Jedi.

"The conference will be leaded by the Senator of the neutral planet of Hangura and the King of Mikun, Ad Kar. Now Security," Anakin nearly sighed. "With us will work Master Kenobi, who…" but he was already rudely interrupted by his padawan.

"Master Kenobi will work with us? Well, that's great, why haven't you told me?" Then she saw the expression on her Master's face and her smile faded as fast as it had come. "You're not happy? About this? Why?"

Anakin turned around, his face darkened. "I love my master like a brother, Ahsoka. But he did fail to protect you when he should. And…" He bit himself on the lip and looked at the floor, "you're like my little sister, Ahsoka. I could never let anything happen to you, but I failed as well. And when Obi-Wan could have been the Back-up, he let you fall. I have trust him… But this…"

She saw the pain in his eyes and knew, that Anakin still blamed himself as well for her trial, and maybe a lot of injuries as well, including the one on her shoulder. "You never failed, Anakin. And it is my honor to be your student."

He looked up at her in surprise as she was using his pre-nom, because she did it so rarely, actually never. Normally only when he was in danger. But then he nodded.

"And don't blame Obi-Wan as well. He had his reasons as well." Ahsoka slightly smiled. "Everything is fine now." She wanted to stretch her hand to him for comforting him, but she had forgotten her shoulder. "Aww."

"Ahsoka, are you okay?"

"Yes, just forgot the damn shoulder."

He looked at her uncertain, but then seemed to make a decision. "Take one of the pain killers and prepare your light saber, Snips, we have some training to do. You may not use your right arm yet, but you do not have an excuse for your left arm."

-/-/-

Obi-Wan had meditated since the ship had taken off from Coruscant, not once he had left the room on the ambassador ship.

He searched the Force for a hint, what to do now. But it did not seem as she wanted to answer him now.

It was more like she told him to wait. That there was more to come.

But collecting his thoughts in her wide was finally some kind of enjoyment.

And even though he had thought it was still too painful thinking of Satine, it actually turned out to be a good exercise as long as he stayed focused on their happy memories, not…

Not her death. Not mail.

Pain flood Obi-Wan. His dear, lovely Satine. Dying in his arms.

Satine. No.

I loved you always.

Her blood, all over him.

I always will.

Maul. Anger. Hate.

A silent knock on his door.

A silent knock?

Obi-Wan was pulled out of his thought, and he couldn't help but being thankful for the interruption. He knew that he had nearly lost control of himself. Again. Like the last ten times actually. Feeling a little bit guilty, he did try not to look at the smashed furniture in his apartment.

"Yes, come in."

The door opened and somebody turned on the light in his quarters. It was Senator Amidala. She seemed a little bit unsure about what to do.

"Welcome, Senator. What gives me the honor?"

Padmé stepped nearer to him. "I actually wanted to check on you, as this is the third day of our journey and you still haven't left the quarters or eaten anything.

Well, actually, Obi-wan hadn't eaten since two months, only gaining strength from the Force. But Padmé did not need to know that, Anakin would have learned about this then, and well… It would only cause more pain, especially as things with Anakin were… so difficult at the moment, as he seemed to hate him since Ahsoka's trial. There was no need for Anakin to know.

So he just said: "I assure you, Senator, I'm completely fine. Do not worry about me; you have enough of work with the peace conference."

"Well, we have made all necessary preparations as well and have plenty of free time as well." She looked a little bit uncertain over the floor of broken things. "How about you join me in a game of chess?"

Obi-Wan hesitated. He should leave his quarters for a few hours, it would calm him… "No, thank you for your offer. But I am fine."

"Like you wish." She turned around, but then looked back one more time. "Cut your hair, it looks terrible, and Anakin will arrive in a few hours."

-/-/-

Anakin left the cockpit after he had once more checked the Auto-Pilot to find Ahsoka sitting silently at the starship's window.

"What's up, Snips?"

"Master…" Somehow Ahsoka sounded drifted away. She was having one of her depressive phases again, even if she thought Anakin wouldn't notice that they come to her ever since… Well, ever since the trial.

"Yes, Ahsoka?"

"Have you ever wondered if it was the right decision for me to come back? I mean…" and she was raising her arm to stop him from speaking, "if I hadn't come back, my clones would have never been trapped and killed, and my shoulder…" She did not have to continue.

"Ahsoka…" Anakin kneeled next to his still so young padawan. "Ahsoka, look at me." The blue eyes of the Togruta fixed at Anakin, and he saw the sad expression in her face. It nearly broke his heart. "Yes. Maybe your clones would still be alive. And maybe your arm would still work. But we can't know. Maybe, I'd be dead by now if you had left the order. You know how much you saved my life already, Snips? Or… every single men of the 501. would have died because they had no known commander with them in this trap, who risked everything to save them.

Even our slightest decision can influence the presence and future, mind that Ahsoka. For example, the decision if I drink a coffee or a hot chocolate in the morning…"

Ahsoka's sad expression had vanished and now she even nearly giggled, as Anakin came up with this example. Anakin had to smile as well. "Okay, it's a stupid example, but it shall do. I decide for the nasty coffee, get in a bad mood and tell everybody to piss off. Nerved by me, one of the clone troopers will look up on his screen just to see an unusual transmission, and by that, we capture Grievous. But if I'd chosen the chocolate, I would have such a good mood I had told everybody so brilliant jokes they would have missed the transmission and Grievous would have attacked us instead."

She raised an eyebrow in amusement. "So this is why you always only drink coffee?"

Anakin winked. "I agree, it was a silly example, but you should have gotten the point. The slightest decision, to enter a door two seconds earlier or later for example, can have bigger effects on the future than we think in this moment. The decision if I stop our ship now shortly before moving on: It could have bigger effects then we think."

"But how can we know what's the right thing to do then, Master?"

"We can't. The Force tries to show us, which way is the right. There are a lot of possibilities, how that day could have gone different. So stop blaming yourself, Ahsoka. Because off all that I know, you have saved a lot of lives by staying in the order, even me several times, Snips."

Ahsoka slightly smiled. "Thanks master."

With a plop they fell out of hyperspace, directly in front of the Dove. The two Jedi jumped on their feet and ran into the cockpit. "Dove, this is Anakin Skywalker, asking for permission to land in your hangar."

"Permission granted, General, welcome aboard."

-/-/-

"General Grievous… You have captured Master Mundi?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Well, well. Master Ti is on her way."

"She won't be a match for me."

"Make her suffer."

Dun, dun, dun!

SO, see you all Saturday and don't forget to post reviews and suggestions for padawans, wishes for characters, suspicions about the plot…