Epilogue

The End of Peace

Three Months Later…

After speaking to the Chancellor, Anakin and Ahsoka were surprised when Yoda contacted them and gave them a two month extension on their leave. He had told them it was being given as time for training Luke, but they knew better. They wouldn't tell Yoda that, he would deny it or say nothing and move on. So they did what was expected, and just took the time to rest, and of course train Luke. Anakin had also decided that it was nearing time for him to start thinking about who he should consider for Leia's training. He'd considered taking on her training himself, but knew that doing so might be disastrous. He was too attached to her in the Jedi sense. So instead, after two weeks of debating which was quite frankly driving Obi-Wan, Padmé and even Ahsoka, who was used to him being this way, insane, he'd finally decided against it. That of course still left the problem of who would train her. Obi-Wan and Ahsoka, the only two Jedi he trusted unconditionally, completely, and without question, already had Padawans. Sure, he trusted others, but that made deciding harder, as he wasn't entirely sure who he could trust with Leia.

"You know, you really should stop your brooding." Obi-Wan told him as they walked one of the many hallways of the Senate, having just come from one of Anakin's weekly reports with the Chancellor. Whie was following a few paces back as instructed, giving Obi-Wan the room he needed to address his former student's ongoing issue.

"I'm not brooding, Master." He said, sighing in annoyance.

"For pity's sake, Anakin, when are you going to learn that you can't keep these things from me? Even Ahsoka has noticed your not-so-lovely mood swings lately." Obi-Wan returned. He'd thought Anakin had resolved this when he decided not to take Leia as his apprentice.

"Then why are you the one chewing me out, not her?" he asked a little more forcefully than he wanted.

"Because I am your Master and she is not. It's my job to make sure you don't have a meltdown. I don't believe I need to remind you of what happened the last time I had to deal with one of your emotional tirades." Obi-Wan said in a half joking manner. Anakin visibly paled and emitted an exasperated moan. He was right, he didn't need a reminder. Still, he was reminded just as soon as he'd said it anyway. Anakin had been going on about how he couldn't figure out who should train Leia and Obi-Wan had tried to, unsuccessfully of course, calm him down. It had ended with Anakin decking Obi-Wan in the face, and then begging forgiveness like a five year old.

"I'm sorry, Obi-Wan. But really, I wasn't brooding this time." He said.

"You, not brooding over something? I must be going insane. The next thing you'll tell me is that you've actually made up your mind about who will be training Leia." Obi-Wan replied.

"Well…actually…" he began, somewhat embarrassed but at the same time amused that it was still this easy to get to his old Master.

"And here I thought the Force was punishing me for eternity with your weekly mood swings. Come on then, who is it?"

"Master Secura. Leia likes her. I asked Ahsoka what she thought and she said it was good choice for her. Padmé and I discussed it this morning. Actually, that's the reason I'm going to the Temple with you and not going back home."

"Well it's about time you made up your mind. I was beginning to get worried. Whie, take the pilot's seat and bring us back to the Temple." Obi-Wan told his Padawan, who obediently did so.

"You don't want me to drive?" Anakin asked.

"If I let you drive, Anakin, you'll end up crashing us into something. I'd rather not have a near death experience from your driving skills today." He answered.

"Now you know where Obi-Wan got all his gray hairs from, Whie."

"I'm not surprised, Master Skywalker. Master Kenobi actually complains about it quite frequently when he thinks I'm not paying attention." Whie answered, keeping his eyes set on the traffic.

"Wonderful, I relax for two minutes and both my Padawans are doing their best to make fun of me." He said in exasperation. Anakin simply smiled, and they continued on their way back to the Temple. When they arrived, Ahsoka was waiting for them. It didn't take a Force-sensitive Jedi Master to know that she was troubled about something.

"Masters, Master Yoda sent me to bring you to the Council chambers. There's an emergency session taking place as soon as we get there." She said.

"Why do I get the feeling we're not going to like this?" Obi-Wan asked.

"What's going on, Ahsoka?" Anakin asked after sharing what seemed like a knowing glance with Obi-Wan.

"I don't know, Master. He wouldn't tell me. He said we'd find out during the meeting. I think I may have heard the word classified a few times on my way down here." She answered.

"Very well. Padawan, go to the dormitories and start your meditation session. I'll join you when I can." Obi-Wan instructed his apprentice.

"Yes, Master." He said, bowed respectfully and left. The three then made their way to the Council chambers, but not before spotting Barriss and an obviously badly injured Zonder. After giving Ahsoka permission to talk to her friend, Anakin and Obi-Wan made their way to the Council chambers. Everyone else was there when they arrived.

"Master Skywalker, Master Kenobi. Glad I am, that join us, you did. To where, did Knight Tano go?" Master Yoda told them as they took their respective seats. Obi-Wan shared a quick glance with Anakin before speaking.

"She is talking to Knight Offee, Master."

"Allow this, you did?"

"She seemed very distressed, and Ahsoka figured she could use a friend. I told her to find out what happened and report to me later." Anakin answered.

"Hmm. Very well. Disturbing what happened to her Padawan, it is. Survive, he may not. Correct, your decision was. Brief us later, she will." Yoda said.

"Do we know what happened?" Master Fisto asked.

"Only that they were sent to do reconnaissance on the massive fleet Barriss and I found, and that Zonder returned with her injured. We know nothing beyond that." Master Secura replied. The meeting went on for some time after that. Near the end of the meeting, Anakin felt what seemed like a wave of grief through his bond with his former Padawan, but not from Ahsoka directly. It was more like a shared grief. That's when he knew that Zonder had died. Everyone else in the chamber must have felt it too, because they were all wearing frowns.

"Terrible is this turn of events. Meditate on this, I shall. Tomorrow, return here we will. Adjourned, we are." Master Yoda said.

Hours later, Anakin was still awake, having basically refused to go to sleep to wait for Ahsoka, somewhat like a parent would wait on their own child. If it were any ordinary night, Anakin would have been asleep hours ago. However, this wasn't just any ordinary night, nor had it been an ordinary day. That is, yesterday hadn't been an ordinary day. It was nearly three when Anakin heard the door to the lift open. He didn't need to look to know it was Ahsoka, her Force signature told him that. He watched as she went about her normal routine as she usually did when she got home. She went to check on her Padawan to make sure he was safe and sound, found him asleep, then went to her own room, tired enough that she took no notice that anyone was even watching her. Before she opened the door to her room, Anakin smirked and shook his head, deciding to end his silence.

"You know, with the way you are right now, someone could have snuck in here and you wouldn't even have noticed." He stated rather sarcastically. Instead of a snide remark, her reply was to ignite her lightsaber and leap at him, only to stop inches from his head when she realized who it was she was about to attack. With a look that could only be described as guilt, horror, relief and surprise all mixed into one, she deactivated her blade and took a step back as Anakin turned the lights up just low enough to be able to see, but not bright enough to wake anyone else.

"Master, I…I didn't see you, I'm sorry." She said.

"It's alright, Snips. Just try to be more careful. I'll admit that you probably would have scared me if I were anyone else." He replied.

"You're not going to let me forget this, are you?"

"Probably not."

"So…what are you doing awake? Everyone's usually asleep by now, even you."

"Oh, you know, I was stargazing."

"Yeah, right. Really, what are you doing up?"

"Well, I just got done fixing one of…"

"Master, come on, seriously."

"Alright, I was waiting for you. I wanted to make sure you were OK." He said, trying not to smirk. Even after knighting her, she was too easy to tease, much like Obi-Wan.

"Why do I always have to fight with you to get you to be honest, Skyguy?" she replied, sitting down next to him.

"Hey, at least I am honest. Most of the time, anyway. But back to my earlier question. Are you alright?" he asked, putting his arm around her. Ever since his near turn to the dark side, he'd been more attentive of Ahsoka. Not that he wasn't before, but he'd never openly displayed it because until only a few years ago, the Code forbade it because it lead to attachment. Of course, the Code had changed somewhat drastically since Palpatine's demise, allowing for attachments so long as they didn't conflict with a Jedi's duty to the Republic. The Council had even reversed course on its stance in regards to Jedi being in relationships, getting married, and having children. And so the Code now allowed for the type of attentiveness he'd always wanted to give her, as he would any Padawan of his should he choose to take another. Ahsoka looked briefly up at him, then out the window across the room. Not a distant look, but still enough to get her Master worried.

"Yeah. I think I'll be alright. Sorry I never checked in like I was supposed to."

"You were comforting a friend, Snips. I would've done the same." He replied sincerely. The look Ahsoka gave him couldn't stop him from rolling his eyes.

"Since when have you been the one to comfort anyone?" she asked.

"Since the Code changed, that way I can't get in trouble for being me anymore."

"You always get in trouble for being you, Master."

"Sometimes, but that's only…hey! Stop changing the subject, will you?" he replied, pretending to sound annoyed.

"Alright, I'm sorry."

"So…how is Barriss?" Anakin asked. He wasn't going to order her to talk about it, and he knew Ahsoka knew that. Still, he was just being his usual self, trying to fish for details so he could come up with a way to help. He wouldn't force the discussion.

"She's…well…like any Master would be if they lost their Padawan. She'll be alright though. I think the funeral tomorrow…well, tonight now…will help."

"I hope it does. The Council hasn't stopped nagging me for a report on what happened. Eventually I just told them to be patient and wait until I can figure out what happened first."

"Since when have you preached patience, Skyguy?"

"I didn't preach patience, Snips, I merely got them off my back. I believe my exact words were something like 'Masters, if you would stop nagging me then I'd have a report by now.' . Then I basically promised I'd have a report by tomorrow afternoon's Council session." Anakin told her. Then he asked what had happened, and she told him.

"You know, the Council is going to report this to the Chancellor, and then he's going to call a vote to take the planet, and then we're probably going to be sent to do it." Ahsoka said.

"You're probably right. At least the peace was nice while it lasted." Anakin said with a sigh. He didn't want to fight yet another war, but if that's what was required then that's what they would do. Ventress would be considered a Sith Lord, and once the Senate heard of it, they'd call for a war to stop her. Only this time the Republic would be going in fully prepared. They had ordered and received eight million more clone troopers at the end of the Clone Wars, and had also sizably increased it's fleet. This time, the Republic would win. And so, hours later, Anakin and Ahsoka were sent to report to the Chancellor after having given a report to the Council. The Chancellor as expected, after hearing the report, told them that before he could authorize the Jedi to do anything about Ventress or the fact that she was surrounded by a fleet of warships, that he would need to inform the Senate and call a vote. As they left the Chancellors office, Anakin rolled his eyes.

"What, was it really that bad? The meeting lasted all of ten minutes, Master." Ahsoka said.

"When are you going to stop calling me that?" he asked, completely ignoring both her question and her statement as they walked the halls of the Senate building towards the private hangar reserved for the Jedi.

"Sorry. It's a habit. Admit it, you still call Obi-Wan Master."

"Not as often. I think after all this time I'm finally getting used to calling him Obi-Wan. It's only been a few years since your knighting, I guess I just keep forgetting how long it takes to get used to it." He replied. Ahsoka smirked for a moment, but then became serious again.

"So really, What was so annoying about the meeting?" Ahsoka asked.

"It wasn't that it was annoying, it's just that it was too predictable. Don't you think it's a bit odd now that Obi-Wan has another Padawan that we're basically the dream team now?"

"It isn't that bad, Skyguy. Just look at it this way, we'll be away from the whining of the twins for a while, and we get to do what we do best."

"Oh? And what might that be?"

"Scrapping tinnies."

"We don't know that they're droids, Ahsoka. Remember that no one's actually come face to face with anyone or anything except for Ventress."

"If they aren't droids, then how come when we scan the ships they show no life signs and seem automated? You know no ship that size can be run fully automated. Look how it worked the few times we tried it during the Clone Wars."

"Wait a minute, that only happened because I never got to work on the project myself. Those tech people had no idea what they were doing." Anakin replied, suddenly satisfied that he was for once winning an argument. A satisfaction that left as quickly as it came.

"What about that cloaking frigate we had? You didn't work on that project either, Master. None of us did. We didn't even know about it until it was done." She replied.

"Alright, fine, so one time. Still, you're right. No ship the size we're talking could have been automated, even if the techs knew what they were doing when they built them. We're going to have to get aboard one of them and see for ourselves."

"Why do I get the feeling they're going to select us for that particular job?"

"Because, my old Padawan, we've both been on one of them already, so it's only logical that they send the two people who know the most about their ships, which would be us, to find out." He replied, unable to hide the smirk on his face.

"You have a point." she replied, moving her gaze off in the distance.

"Look, I know you don't exactly want to go on one of those ships, but we're the only ones who are available that can get the intel the Council needs." Anakin told her.

"I know. I'll be fine, Master."

"Alright, seriously, when are you going to stop calling me that?" he asked, only half joking. This time she didn't take notice and answered seriously.

"If it really bothers you this much, I'll stop." She replied.

"Ahsoka, I was kidding." He said, concerned.

"Oh. Still, I'll try not to call you Master too much." She answered. Alarmed by her sudden change of mood, he became serious.

"What's bothering you? Out with it." He said as they stopped in the hallway and Anakin proceeded to cross his arms as if to tell her he wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"I don't know. It's just…can't we just stay away from another war? This isn't really something I want to bring Luke into." She replied, for once being honest with him and not fighting to keep things to herself.

"If I remember correctly, I basically had the same impression when you were assigned to me because I thought you were only a child, and in Togrutan terms you were. Still, I see your point. This isn't something a seven year old child should be brought into. The problem is, we're the frontline team now, just like me and Obi-Wan were during the Clone Wars." He said, trying to address her concerns. Still, what he'd just told her only made her more nervous.

"I know, but Anakin, what are we going to do when we get called into battle?" she asked.

"Well Snips, it's pretty simple actually. We'll just….wait, did you just use my name?" he asked, the whole time watching Ahsoka's smirk grow larger.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist. But really, what are we going to do?" she asked again.

"After nearly two years living with me, Padmé and the kids, I'd think you would already know the answer to that, Padawan." He replied with a smirk of his own.

"Hey!"

"Well, don't get annoyed with me, you started it."

"I know! And yeah, I think I do have an idea of what we'll do if we need to go out and fight, but who would train him while we're gone?"

"Master Secura can do that, and when she isn't around, I'm pretty sure we could get Barriss to help out too. She knows how far along his training is and where it needs to go." He told her. Ahsoka snapped her head to him.

"Come on, Snips. Don't act surprised, I know you. Even if you tell me everything, and you do, you tell her everything too. So would I."

"Yeah, you're right. Well, I guess its back into the action for us then." She said. Anakin simply rolled his eyes. He didn't bother with a reply. Instead, they continued the rest of the walk, and then the drive back home in silence. What came tomorrow could wait until tomorrow.