Disclaimer: Disney owns Star Wars, not me. All the characters and places (except for my OCs Analise, Meeka, Gaspar, Myra, Sibar, and Sierra) belong to them.

"aaaa"-talking out loud."aaaa" (bold and intellics)-talking through a holo or com. 'aaaaa'-inner thoughts. aaaaa-talking through a Bond. "aaaa" (bold)-another language.

AN: Apologies, apologies. I had ever intention of posting this yesterday, but unfortunately life got in the way and I wasn't able to get it posted. I am really, really sorry and I hope this makes up for it. Also sorry if its anti-climatic, but I just couldn't seem to find a good write to write this chapter.

Time to be serious. I understand that from a certain point of view, my descriptions of places, beings, and things within the Star Wars Universe are not 100% accurate. This is because due to my work and other comittments, I do not have the time to spare for doing the in-depth research I normally do nor do I have the detailed resources others might. I am trying to correct that as I go forward.

As for one reviewer's concern about Plo pushing Ahsoka to Anakin and Analise over her blood relations, I understand your concern and how family relationships work for Togruta. That being said...Ahsoka was taken to the Temple, by all accounts when she was about three-years-old. In that case she would have very few if any clear memories of her biological family and it would be those beings she came into contact with and formed close relationships with that she would view and treat as her family. In an earlier chapter Ahsoka told Plo she feels bad because she feels nothing for her biological family because this would be the first instance of contact with them in about ten years. Ahsoka feels something, but not any sort of real family-bond. In my mind Plo isn't pushing Ahsoka to Anakin and Analise, she's already there and has been there pretty much since meeting the twins (read Lightsabers). It may not read like it, but Plo is telling Ahsoka that it is okay to see Anakin and Analise as her real siblings because in her mind they are.

Serious time over and sorry for the long note...And yes StormSkye, all of Anakin's stories are true;)

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Chapter Nine

Ducked down behind a rock where the shadow could not see her, the plan she had formed in her mind suddenly seemed shaky.

It was probably not the smartest thing to do, but Ahsoka knew her act had to be perfect if she was going to draw out the shadow that was falling her. She couldn't take the chance of the shadow realizing that she was faking it and backing off. Maybe even vanishing all-together.

Ahsoka wanted to know exactly who was following her on her Akul Hunt. Who would want to hurt her.

Thoughts of Sibar and Sierra raced through her mind, but Jedi Youngling quickly shook them from her head. They were Togruta and to a Togruta family was important. Just because they were strangers to her and she to them, a stranger that had created a new family for herself; Sibar and Sierra wouldn't do anything to hurt her.

Yet the doubt remained. The doubt that had been planeted by Sibar's declaration that they would rather see Ahsoka dead or a slave rather than serving the Republic as Jedi.

She shivered a little, hands holding tight to a sharp rock she had picked up from the ground. The anti-Jedi movement had been mentioned in the Temple. Even Anakin and Analise had warned her about, but in all honesty Ahsoka hadn't even thought of it. Who could hate the Jedi? They were heros. Warriors, Healers, and Peacekeepers. Unless it was a Sith, Ahsoka simply couldn't see anyone hating the Jedi.

'Focus 'Soka...Analise and Anakin will shoot you if you do this wrong...Well if I do this wrong I'll probably be dead before they can shoot me...' Her grip on the rock tightened, edges biting into fingers as she looked at her leg.

Pants, worn from use and age. There was a history behind the pants, the top she wore. Shaak had worn them years and years ago on her own Akul Hunt before carefully storing them away. As the years had gone by, Shaak would sometimes take the clothes out of storage and allow them to be worn by another Togruta Youngling from the Temple on their own Akul Hunt. There were stiches, patches from where they had been repaired. Each one a marking, a passage of a those who had worn them before.

Now Ahsoka would be adding her own mark to join those Togruta of years past.

It would hurt. Maybe for a moment or two, but she needed to do this. It didn't need to be deep, just look awful and painful and bloody. Something to make the shadow think she was injured, weak, and helpless. Something that she could still fight with.

Hands shook and Ahsoka called up for the Force to give her extra courage. She held the rock out. Found the sharpest edge. The edge that would be best for her to work.

The sharp tip pressed into her leg, cutting through the cloth of the pants and pricking the bare skin underneath. 'I could stop here...I could call for help...I could...No...No going back...'

Ahsoka pushed the tip harder aganist her leg, biting her lips it broke through the skin. Slowly, she pulled the rock turned knife up her leg. She cut a crooked path though cloth and skin. Tears ran down her face, but she didn't try to stop them or brush them away.

Even they could help lure in the hunter. Then she could turn the tables.

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Meeka was getting tired.

Tired of waiting and waiting.

The brat was turning out to be a little bit harder to catch than she thought. Appreantly just because the Jedi keep their stupid brats locked within the walls of the Temple didn't mean that they couldn't take care of themselves.

Meeka hated waiting. She liked action. Action meant her job would be done sooner and the sooner the job was done the sooner her payment came. Payment that might enable her to leave Shili and carry her message to other hotbeds of unrest within the galaxy.

The Count would be sure to support her. After all he was heading up the Seaperitist govenment and they had no love of the Jedi. A sneer graced the face that at one time had been pretty.

She had no love of Dooku, but even less love for Jedi. Even as it filled her stomach with bile at the throught, Meeka would take money and help from the Count if it let her destroy the Jedi.

The Count didn't like her either, but she bet he hated the Jedi even more.

Maybe they weren't so different after all.

A pained yelp broke through Meeka's thoughts and her eyes focused on the grasses beyond. A small figure stumbled out from behind a rock. She could just make out sniffles and pained-moans. Creeping forward Meeka made out blood running down one leg and staining her pants. Blood marked her hands and tear tracked marred the patterns on her face.

Meeka grinned.

At last her prey had made a mistake. A costly one. She rose, taking hold of her rifle. She strode to the brat, power in her steps and a grin on her face.

Once again Meeka would prove that she was more powerful than even the Force.

"At last I have my prey!"

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Ahsoka's head jerked up and she ducked her head so that strange Togruta woman would not see her grin. Her trick had worked. It was worth the scoldings...Many scoldings she would get for her stunt.

It worked though...And Ahsoka could always remind Anakin of some the stunts he had pulled. She was simply following his example.

The grin slipped from her face as the woman called out "At last I have my prey!" Baby-blue eyes lifted up to study the woman. A Togruta, but a Togruta Ahsoka had never seen before. At least not in her short stay in the village. The woman was dressed in clothes more suited to a bounty hunter and carried a rifle. A rife that was currently aimed at her. She might have been pretty at one point, but hate and bitterness had etched lines deep in her skin. An eye-patch covered one eye, but hints of scarring peeped out from the edge.

"Who...Who are you?" The woman laughed, shrill and hateful.

"I am hurt you don't remember me brat. After all it is your fault I look like this. Your fault my sight was taken from me." A hand reached up to touch the eyepatch. "You're fault and the fault of the blasted Jedi."

"What...What are you talking about?" Another laugh, one that grated on Ahsoka.

"I shouldn't be shocked though...You were still a small brat then. Barely able to walk in a striaght line." Her smile grew sick and twisted. "Your parents clung to you so tightly...All they had to do was hand you to me and I wouldn't have to kill them." Meeka threw her head back at the shocked look on the Youngling's face. "Well I might have killed them anyway and then taken your siblings to sell. A little extra credits never hurt anybody...But I wouldn't have given the order for my friends to destroy the village." She scowled. "But that stupid Jedi had to show up with others and wreck everything! The Jedi ruined everything...But now I shall have my revenge."

"You..." Ahsoka's heart felt as if it were breaking. At long last the nightmares of blood and death made sense. Of seeing through the eyes of a toddler as bigger beings run around her, screaming and crying. Familar voices calling for their mom and dad. Fear racing through her until a odd face covered by a mask and goggles appeared and clawed hands lifted her from the chaos. Lifted her high above it and taking her to a place where nothing bad could touch her. "You were the one who attacked my village...You killed my parents!"

"Ha! You finally figure it out brat!" Meeka clapped her hands. "Yes I did kill your parents and lost you. My sight was stolen, but it turned out for the best now that I think about." She paced. "I was able to spread my hate for the Jedi. Villages one by one are falling under my spell. So many Togruta follow me and call me leader...Including your very own brother and sister!"

"No!"

"Oh yes. Sibar and Seirra are devoted followers." Her grin become twisted.

"You've brainwashed them..."

"Not at all brat. They came to me very willingly, looking for someone to blame. Who better than their sister? They didn't remember it was I who attacked or killed your parents. They only knew I had answers they sought...And when their sister returned; a Jedi who felt nothing for them and only loyalty to the Jedi, well their anger only grew." She stopped pacing, lowering her rifle to take aim at Ahsoka again. "In fact they came to me, asking for me to kill you since they could not do it themselves...You needn't worry though." She advanced and Ahsoka stumbled back. "I'll only kill you if you don't come with me. The Count wants very much to meet you."

Rage, hate burned within Ahsoka. True, she felt no real bond with Sibar or Sierra; but this woman was bragging. Bragging how she had killed their parents only to know hold the two older Tano children in a thrall. Using the Force Ashoka called her spear to her hand.

Forget the akul. She wanted to hurt the woman in front of her. Wanted to feel life leave her body and see her blood soak the gound. She wanted to give into her rage and wipe the murder from the face of the earth. Something dark whispered to her. Encouraged her to give in and let go of her rage.

Something softer called to her. Something light and warm. It reminded her of time spent with Anakin and Analise. Of playing and learning. She closed her eyes and remembered the nights she had curled up in sleep with one or both of the twins. It was like the joy and happiness at the wedding where she had been surroned by family and friends.

'No...Anger is wrong...' Ahsoka took a deep breath, counting to ten like Analise had taught her. With each number counted off she released more and more of her anger and hate into the Force. With each number she let go of the darkness building inside her and replacing it with nothing but light. The bright, blazing light of a sun and the softer, gentler glow of a moon.

Meeka growled. At first the brat had tensed, her face twisted with rage and she had been looking forward to an easy fight. Now the body was relaxing, loosing. A calm, alomst peaceful look replaced the twisted lines.

She shook her head. What did it matter if the brat came at her full of rage or calm and cool? She would still beat her and the fight would still end one of two ways. The brat would be in chains or dead. "Say goodbye Jedi scum!" She took aim and fired.

With the Force, it seemed as though things slowed for Ahsoka. She could see the bolt from the rifle rippling through the air, heading straight for her. In the space of a breath Ahsoka rolled out of the way of the bolt. Meeka shouted her outrage when the bolt missed Ahsoka.

But it still hit something.

A roar, nearly as loud as a ship taking off echoed across the surrounding grasslands. Ahsoka, down in a hunter's stance allowed herself to grin. Her gamble had worked.

Out of the grasses burst a large, oranger, and furry mass of rage and teeth. The akul Ahsoka had sensed was not all happy to have have his territory invaded. He was even less happy to be attacked. He bellowed his rage again. The hunting instincts within the two Togruta rose.

Meeka growled low. The akul was a threat who could easily snatch her prey from her grasp. She wasn't about to let that happen. The brat was hers to capture or kill as she pleased. The akul would ruin all that.

The creature lunged forward and once again Ahsoka found herself rolling out of the way while it swiped down with claws and teeth. A cry broke free as a claw raked it's way down her skin, tearing cloth and spilling blood. Ahsoka darted for cover, gluping down air as she tried to push the pain away from her.

"Poodoo!" Grabing a torn piece of cloth she pulled and pulled, tearing strips of cloth to bind the scratches. She wasn't the Healer that Analise was, but she knew enough that blood loss was bad and could make her weak. Weak to the point where it could spell her doom. Tying the makeshift bandages as tight as she dared, Ahsoke risked a peek from her hiding place, breathing a sigh of relife.

Meeka attacked the akul, her anger rolling off of her. Anger that was making her sloppy, slow, forgetful. Whatever real hunting skills Meeka had built as young Togruta Huntress had clearly vanished into nothing more than the natural skills that all Togruta were born with. Skills that needed to be improved, worked on in order to be at the level to take on akul.

Even Ahsoka had received mock hunting lessons from Shaak to prepare for this day. Just because she had the Force on the side didn't automatically make her some great hunter.

Growls and yells clashed together as two hunters, one strong and the other weak. The akul lashed out again and again with claws and teeth. It wanted to clamp down around Meeka's neck, shaking her until the bones snapped, and life left her body.

Meeka attacked again and again with her rifle, the bolts only glancing off the akul and making him madder and madder. It howled and lashed out, knocking Meeka down.

The so-called Leader Meeka never had a chance. The akul pounced, his mouth latching onto her neck and shaking her. At that moment, Ahsoka acted. In her free hand she picked up a rock from the ground and tossed it at the akul, hitting him. She picked up another and another. Each one hitting the akul until he dropped the limp body of Meeka and turned on the smaller Togruta with a roar.

There was no need to check on Meeka. The older Togruta was dead the minute the akul's teeth bit into her neck.

Ahsoka ran, using the Force to point her back towards the village. She wanted the akul to think it had her on the run.

She stopped and turned, using the Force to push herself up into the air and flipping onto the back of the charging akul. One hand held tight to her spear as she raised it over her head.

The akul swung back and forth, trying to dislodge his unwanted passenger, but Ahsoka had the Force on her side. She let it flow into her. Let it control her limbs and surge outward from her mind.

She leaned forward, the point of her spear aiming for the akul's head. With a wild cry she let the spear fall, slamming it as deep as she could force it to go into the head of the bucking akul.

His pain was a thundering cry and he stumbled. Ahsoka found herself tumbling off of the akul as the legs failed and he crashed to the ground. She rolled and rolled before coming into a crouch. Using the Force Ahsoka called the spear to her hand and rushed forward to the akul who was moaning his pain. There was no need for the akul to suffer.

She approached and bowed. Then with a sweep of her arm, the tip of the spear plunged deep and cut into the akul's neck. Blood watered the grasses and the akul at last gave up the fight for life.

Ahsoka wanted to fall to the ground. Wanted to sink into sleep, but that wasn't an option.

The pack slide from her shoulders. She opened it and pulled out the tools she needed then returned to the akul. Wincing at the small of death coming from the body, Ahsoka carefully forced his mouth open then set to work. Slowly removing teeth one by one.

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It was mid-day, warm and bright on the sixth day when a Togruta child saw a figure slowly making their way to the village. A figure that as it came closer he saw was dressed in torn clothes, make-shift bandages covered with blood, and carrying a pack that had seen better days.

A cry was raised and the village came rushing. Plo and Shaak pushing their way to the front as Ahsoka reached the edge. The three Jedi looked at each other. Ahsoka held up her pack. "I have killed an akul." She looked beyond to see Sibar and Sierra, outrage and disbelief warring on their faces. "Meeka is dead. The akul killed her. I killed the akul. Meeka thought I was prey, but I was not. Your plan failed"

Sibar stepped forward, fists clenched. "You bring disgrace to our family name!"

"A name I do not want or need truthfully." Ahsoka's words sounded old. Odd to hear old words coming from the mouth of a Youngling. "You and Sierra may be come from the same blood as I, but blood is all we share." She turned tired eyes to Shaak and Plo.

"Can we go home now?"