Do you think Fox likes all things Mando because of Soniee or that he likes her because she's Mando'ad? hmmm...
anywho all caught up now. she wakes up and doesn't remember a thing.

When she woke her head was pounding. She tried to open her eyes but the light only made it worse. She knew where she was though, synthsilk sheets, her own night gown, she was back in Padme's apartment. She had no idea how she had gotten there or what had gone on most of the night before but at least...

"You're awake." Fox's voice.

Fierfek! What was he doing here in her room? She pulled the covers up to her chin. "Fox?"

"Yeah, I'm here. It's okay."

She forced her eyes open even though it made her head ache and waited till he came into focus. "We didn't..."

"No, nothing like that," he said but he looked a little guilty and she could sense through the force that he wasn't being entirely truthful.

She sat up slowly, facing away from him, very aware that her nightgown was rather thin. She pressed her hands to her temples trying to still the spinning.

"I uh brought you here. You passed out at 79s and I thought you'd rather be here than in one of the rooms there." He gave half a laugh as if he would ever have actually considered that.

"I'd rather be home, on Mandalore." she mumbled. "Where's Padme?"

"Emergency session of the senate."

She nodded, that hurt more, and said, "My head feels like I did a couple of rounds of Dha Werda Verda."

"You borrowed my armor." She could hear the smile in his voice even though she wasn't looking at him.

"I didn't."

"Well, you spent most of it telling the vode not to go easy on you and arguing about the lyrics."

She couldn't help but smile about that.

"Soniee, I..."

She was a little afraid of what he was going to say next but she surely wasn't expecting...

"Who's Korkie?"

She stuttered, "W-well, he's... what you have to understand is... his life would be in danger if... he's the heir to..."

She could feel Fox moving closer and then sitting down beside her on the bed.

"Was he your lover?" Fox didn't care about the politics. He was jealous.

"Did... did I say something? Did I say his name?"

He reached over and took her hand. "Do you want to get back to him? Back home?"

Soniee swallowed and whispered, "More than anything."

He cleared his throat. This was obviously hard for him. "That ship you flew in on. It was registered in your name at the Temple hanger?"

"Y-yes?" she answered confused.

"You were cleared of all charges and your ship was destroyed on Temple property. Seems like the Jedi owe you a new ship."

"What?" Maybe she still wasn't thinking correctly.

"Well maybe not a new one but a replacement for the one you lost."

"A ship?" She looked at his hand holding hers.

"Usually these things take a while, especially since they're busy with the bombing, and Commander Tano..."

"Oh well, I wouldn't..."

"But if you want I could talk to the quarter master, speed things up." His other hand joined the first gently caressing hers.

"You would do that for me?" she asked.

Fox nodded. "Unless..."

She finally looked up at his face. "Unless?"

"Unless you changed your mind... wanted to stay here, on Coruscant, with me." And then his lips were on hers and he was kissing her with such passion that she thought her heart would burst. It was the same blood racing, electric, sensation she had experienced the night before but it felt real. No one was possessing Commander Fox. He really and truly loved her, wanted her, and Soniee was swept away in the moment.

"If you want me to stop, I'll stop." He assured her but she didn't stop him.

She laid back on the bed and he went right with her, his lips never leaving hers.

He maneuvered them into a more comfortable position so he wasn't crushing her and then whispered between kisses, "Son'ika, gar baar ori mesh'la!" Your body is so beautiful!

"Gar hibirar Mando'a par ni?" You learned Mando'a for me? she asked.

"Elek, cyar'ika." Yes, beloved. "Ni cuyir gar burc'ya," I'll be your friend. "gar aliit, gar cabur." your family, your protector. "buir be gar ade..." father of your children...

She knew she should tell him no, tell him to stop, but feirfek, what was he doing to her?

"Ni kar'tayl gar!" I hold you in my heart!

Her body rebelled against her mind, responding as his hands grew impatient with the cloth between them and tugged at her nightgown, hungry to feel her skin.

And then she froze. The voice was laughing again in her mind. It seems I chose the wrong partner to tempt you.

Ne shab'rud'ni... Don't mess with me, She thought back at it.

Will this simple clone encourage you to draw on your feelings and reach your potential? The voice asked.

"Usenye be ner kovid!" Get out of my head! She pushed Fox from herself with the Force. He flew off the bed, slid a meter across the floor, and slammed hard into the wall.

He sat there stunned and the laughter echoed in the midst of her fear that she had hurt him just has she had hurt Lux. She tried to ignore it, going to him to see if he was alright.

But he asked her first, reaching up and touching her hair tenderly. "Son'ika, are you okay?"

"Fox, I..." She dissolved into tears. "I'm so sorry." She gritted her teeth against the nagging laughter.

Fox gathered her into his arms. "No, no. K'uur . It's okay. It wasn't your fault. Udesii now, k'uur."

"Did I hurt you?" she asked pulling away and looking him over.

He shook his head. "It's nothing. I'm fine." His concern was still for her. "It's the same thing that happened with Senator Bonteri, isn't it?"

She nodded, trembling, ashamed. "When I feel strong emotion it... it's in my head." She rubbed at her temples.

He kissed the top of her head and held her closer. "Udesii," Take it easy. He continued his efforts to calm her.

She laid her head on his chest and tried to remember what Kenobi had taught her. It seemed so long ago, that flight from Mandalore. "There is no emotion, there is peace," she whispered.

He must have been able to feel the tension start to ease from her shoulders. "There. That's right, k'uur. It's over now."

"I want to go home," she cried.

"I'll make sure you get there, Son'ika. I'll get you that ship."

"Thank you, Fox." She would have liked to just be held in his comforting arms but, suddenly she straitened up and wiped the tears from her eyes. "I want to see if Lux is okay."

His jaw tightened and she felt the jealousy in him again. "Soniee, when you said that was like what happened with him. Before you pushed him away, the two of you... weren't..."

She quickly stood and took a few steps away from him. "I told you Lux and I are just friends. Whatever happened, whatever was going to happen, it... it wasn't him. It was...something forcing him... forcing me..."

She heard him grunt as he stood. She had hurt him but he was trying not to let it show. She was also sure he was limping slightly as he stepped up behind her. "Nothing was forcing me just now," he whispered. "And, well, forgive me if I'm wrong, but I don't think you were being forced to do anything you didn't want to do either."

Soniee trembled. That scared her almost more than anything else. She hadn't pushed him away until she heard the voice. What would she have done, let him do, if the voice had not interrupted?

"And those weren't just Mando'a words I memorized from some holo." He put his hands on her shoulders her heart rate and breathing starting to pick up pace again. "I really would like to be your clan, your protector..."

She stopped him before he could continue. "Fox..."

He rested his forehead against the top of her head and whispered into her hair, "Soniee, I love you."

"I know..." It was all she could say. She took a deep, shaky breath trying to recover and then asked him, "You'll have to report for duty soon, won't you?"

"Yeah, but I have enough time to see you to the Medcenter first, if you still want to go."

"I-I do." She turned to face him feeling a little more in control of herself and trying not to notice how his eyes traveled over her with longing.

After a moment he cleared his throat and tried to look at the window, the wall, the floor, anywhere but at the small female in the thin nightgown, with the sleep tousled hair, and lips still a little swollen from his kisses. "I'll step out then and let you get dressed."

"Vor entye." Thank you.

He walked toward the door but looked back. "Just promise me you'll be thinking about what I said, about staying here with me."

It was exactly what Korkie had said to her. She nearly choked but managed, "I-I will."