Consciousness slowly came back to Anakin, much to his surprise. He wasn't even aware he had passed out in the first place!
Bringing a hand up to rub the sleep out of his eyes, the first thing Anakin noticed was that he was no longer sat in the hallway of the 500 Republica. Instead, he was tucked up in a nice comfy single bed, the duvet pulled up over him to ensure his comfort. He still wore his robes, for which Anakin was grateful, but he had somehow found his way to a bed somewhere.
Or had he? He didn't remember getting into a bed. The last thing he remembered was sitting down, back against Ahsoka's apartment door, contemplating everything he had done that day, and all the places he wasn't welcome.
So how had he gotten here?
Reaching out with the Force, Anakin suddenly found himself swamped by a warm familiar feeling, one that he associated with...
"Ahsoka?"
No response came to his question, which wasn't a surprise. He was in a small room with a single bed by himself. Not like anyone could hear him.
Pushing himself out of bed, Anakin moved towards the window, pulling back the curtains to reveal the world outside. The sun shone down on the endless towers of Coruscant, indicating a new morning. Clearly he had slept through the night.
It was then that a luscious scent hit his senses, one that made his mouth water. Deciding to follow his nose, Anakin moved towards the door out of the room and opened it, stepping through the threshold and into a familiar apartment.
Blinking his eyes twice to make sure he wasn't imagining things, Anakin stepped further into the room, more and more confused as to how he had ended up in the spare bedroom of Ahsoka's prestigious apartment. He really didn't remember how he got here!
"Oh hey… you're up! Just in time too Skyguy. I've got some breakfast for us to eat!"
The sound of Ahsoka's voice calmed Anakin down instantly. Just by her presence alone he felt safe and wanted, something he really hadn't last night.
It was nice to know that he still had one person he could go to in a time of need.
"As long as it's not undercooked!"
"Very funny Skyguy! I didn't have to pick your rear up off the corridor floor last night you know. I could have happily left you there."
"You wound me Snips!"
"Good."
Despite the distance that had grown between them in the aftermath of her leaving, Anakin could not be more pleased whenever they would immediately fall back into their usual banter with one another. Despite everything, Ahsoka was a true friend to him.
Moving across the apartment to the table where Ahsoka had laid out two plates full of various pieces of what looked like bacon and toast, Anakin felt himself relax ever more for the first time in several days. The whole business with Clovis, even prior to the confrontation in Padmé's apartment, had put Anakin under great duress. How could Padmé not see the man for what he was? It was all well and good trying to see the 'good' in all people, but sometimes there just wasn't any to find!
Pulling back the chair and claiming his seat, Anakin popped the first bit of bacon into his mouth and began to chew, enjoying the flavour of it on his taste buds.
"Is it good?" His Togruta companion inquired as she joined him at the table, watching for his reaction.
Inwardly, Anakin smirked. He was going to enjoy answering this!
"Yeah it tastes great and… oh.. no… hang on a minute… it… I…. hkkkk..ackkkk…. can't…. breathe…..been….poisoned….."
Rather than launch into a panic however, Ahsoka simply sat there in her seat, expression stony and unamused.
"You know that joke stopped being funny the second time you tried it right? This is what… the tenth time you've done it now?"
"Bah! Ninth actually!"
"Wow. So sad."
Shaking his head at the tone of Ahsoka's voice, Anakin returned to eating his freshly prepared breakfast. If he was being honest, Ahsoka had seriously improved in her cooking skills since her time in the Temple. Perhaps one day she would host a dinner party or something? Her food would certainly be enjoyed.
"So… why were you out in the hall in the middle of the night?" Ahsoka finally questioned after devouring half of her plate of food, blue eyes inquisitive as they focused on Anakin's expression which fell suddenly as the memories of the previous night flooded back to him. For a brief moment here with Ahsoka he had forgotten about them.
Now though, as he expected, they were returning.
"I needed to get away from it all. Came to see if you were back from your mission yet… but you weren't. Guess I passed out in the hall or something."
"You were sound asleep leaning against my door when I got back. It was a pain in my shebs to pick you up with the Force and carry you to the bed! You weigh a lot Anakin!"
"Blame the cybernetic hand. It adds like twenty pounds." Anakin retorted, earning a chuckle from Ahsoka as the Togruta took another bite out of her breakfast, her sharp teeth tearing into the meat.
"So… how did the mission go in the end? Find yourself a hot date with that advice I gave you?" Anakin asked, hoping to divert the discussion away from what was souring his mood, even if he knew that eventually Ahsoka would make him talk about it.
"As if anyone could ever woo anyone with the advice you gave me! Are you sure you didn't mind trick Padmé into being with you?" Ahsoka retorted after finishing her mouthful, a smirk on her face and her signature in the Force teasing.
"Ouch Snips… that hurts."
"Good. Anyways, I didn't need your advice in the end. Got into a bar fight over a game of Sabacc instead. That drew out my target, and seemed to be enough to keep her interested in me."
"Well at least you had some success."
"Yeah."
Ahsoka's tone turned despondent at the end, the spark in her eyes fading away suddenly as she began to stare into space, as if reliving some haunting memory.
"Hey? You alright Ahsoka?" Anakin questioned, instantly wanting to offer comfort to his former Padawan. For now his own problems meant nothing, not while Ahsoka was dealing with her own demons.
"I found Barriss."
"Oh."
Anakin honestly didn't know what else to say. When Ahsoka had told him she was hunting down an escaped Barriss, Anakin had wanted to hit something! How dare that traitor escape from prison! She should have stayed and rotted if she had any decency.
Clearly though, she did not! Upon hearing of her escape, Anakin had felt a buildup of anger and hatred over the Mirialan who had framed his Padawan for treason, resulting in her leaving the Order, and him!
Ahsoka could have died because of Barriss Offee's cowardice! A large part of him wanted to skewer her with his own lightsaber.
But Ahsoka, as she always was, remained calm and collected. She had asked him to let her handle it, and he had, despite how much he had wanted to jump in his starfighter and go and help.
And now, Ahsoka was back from the mission. Clearly that meant it had been completed to some extent.
The question was how?
"What about Barriss? Is she…"
"She refused to come in, so I did what I had to do."
Anakin had to strain to hold his tongue. No matter how much he just wanted to say 'good' aloud, he didn't, because he knew that would upset Ahsoka, even after everything that Barriss had done.
"I see. And how do you feel about it?" Anakin chose to say instead, hoping a more diplomatic tone was the right way forward. He could tell that Ahsoka needed to talk about it, so that's what he would do, no matter his personal feelings on the subject at hand.
"I'm fine. She chose her path." Ahsoka responded, in a tone that was very obviously a lie.
"Really?"
At her former Master's response, Ahsoka's shoulders sunk, waves of despair and what felt like disappointment rolling off of her Force signature.
"No, not really." Ahsoka began, her voice timid and hesitant, her eyes closed, as if remembering a past event. "I was so close Anakin. So close to bringing her back. But she wouldn't let me! I tried, I swear I did, but I wasn't strong enough to save her. Just like I wasn't strong enough to save Steela back on Onderon."
From Ahsoka's description of her apparent failings, Anakin could paint a pretty clear picture in his head of what had happened, and he knew exactly what that felt like. He had been so close to saving his mother years ago, only to have it stolen from him at the last second.
"What happened to Steela wasn't your fault Ahsoka, and neither was Barriss. It was just a terrible tragedy."
"A tragedy that could have been avoided if I was more powerful Anakin! What if next time it's you teetering on the edge, or Obi-Wan, or Rex or Padmé? What if I can't save any of you!" Ahsoka erupted into a shout, standing from the table and moving over to the large window panes overlooking the city of Coruscant below, her posture tense, anger falling off of her in droves.
Without hesitating, Anakin too rose from his seat and went to join her by the window, pulling her into a side hug in the process.
"Ahsoka, I know exactly how you feel about needing to be stronger to save the ones you care for. But sometimes it's just not possible, no matter how powerful you are. I'm supposed to be some prophesied all-powerful chosen one, but I got my arm cut off by Count Dooku!"
"What are you trying to say?" Ahsoka retorted, tone snappy, but not hostile.
"What I'm trying to say is that sometimes loss is inevitable, and you can do nothing to prevent it. A Jedi rejoices in those that pass into the Force, after all." Anakin replied, knowing full well that he didn't believe in those words personally. Still, if that was what Ahsoka needed to hear, then so be it.
The Togruta's response however was not what he anticipated.
"I'm no Jedi Anakin, and I refuse to ever lose you, or anyone else I care about."
"Nor I you." Anakin replied instantly, his resolve matching Ahsoka's. He was glad that they both shared a desire to protect everyone around them from harm. That alone was all he ever needed in a best friend.
But still, Ahsoka was upset, that much he could tell. Barriss' fate had left her questioning a lot of things about herself when from what he could see she really didn't need to. Ahsoka was strong… stronger than him in some ways. But why couldn't she see that?
"Ok, I know this is hard for you Ahsoka, but what's done is done, and lamenting on it will bring you no clarity. Next time a situation like this occurs you'll know what to do, I trust that."
"You think?" Ahsoka's voice had returned to the timid tone it had been prior to her shouting, her body language slightly more relaxed than before.
"I know so Ahsoka. You are a good person and you know right from wrong. That will take you far."
The Togruta nodded her head slowly, her signature in the Force becoming less distraught and warmer by the second as she thought over Anakin's words. Whether or not she chose to believe them was unknown at the moment, but Anakin had said what he himself had believed about her. Surely that was all that mattered?
"What about you then? Why were you outside my door in the middle of the night and not with Padmé or at the Temple?"
Anakin wasn't able to stop the sigh from escaping his lips as Ahsoka asked the question he'd been dreading. Still, he knew he needed to talk about what happened. That was why he had come to Ahsoka in the first place. Despite her age, she would understand him and help him, without judging him like Obi-Wan would.
"I had a fight with Padmé. A bad one."
"Uh oh. What happened?" Ahsoka's response was laced with humour, as if expecting a joke to follow.
"Rush Clovis tried to kiss her… aaaannnddd I might have sort of beat him to a pulp."
"You did what?"
"I beat him up. Put him into a coma. Padmé had to hit me over the head with a vase to stop me."
"Pffttt, seriously? Wow your head is weak!"
"Says the Togruta with hollow montrals that act as a weak spot!"
"Yeah yeah. But seriously… you beat him up for trying to kiss your wife!?"
Sighing to himself again, Anakin turned away from the window panes and moved to sit on the couch, hands coming to rest on his head as he sat down.
"Yeah. I could have killed him Snips! I was this close! If Padmé hadn't stopped me then… well I could very well be in jail right now. Honestly it's a miracle she didn't report me to the authorities as it is!"
"That's because she loves you Anakin." Ahsoka replied as she moved to sit next to Anakin, taking one of his hands in her own and squeezing it for comfort. "I take it she kicked you out then?"
"Yeah. Deserved it really. Now I just don't know what to do. She said she didn't want to see me again anytime soon."
"And so you came to the person who has absolutely no experience in romance to help you solve a problem with your marriage?! Wow you must be desperate!"
Ahsoka's response elicited a chuckle out of Anakin, especially at the deadpan way in which Ahsoka had spoken. Trust her to make a bad situation funny.
"Do you think I should talk to her?" Anakin questioned, wondering what his former Padawan would do in the situation. Judging from the smirk on her face he knew her response would be a snippy one.
"I think if you went there now I'd be looking for a graveyard for you, as well as a tombstone. How about you stay here and I go and see her instead?"
Anakin didn't want Ahsoka to feel like she had to solve his marital problems for him. He was more than capable of doing that if he had to, when he had to.
"Don't worry about it Snips. It's my problem and I will sort it out in time. No reason for you to get involved. Besides, Padmé will just think you are biased towards me. She needs time to cool off as much as I do."
"If you say so Skyguy. You know your wife better than me."
"I'd be worried if you knew her better than I did Snips." Anakin retorted, throwing a smirk towards Ahsoka in the process, hoping to lighten the sour mood that had fallen over the both of them.
Judging from the way the Togruta chuckled in response, Anakin had been successful in his task. The sour mood lifted slightly, the bond between them in the Force warming slightly for both of them.
He may be at odds with his wife, but as long as he had one of his best friends around to support him, he knew he'd be alright.
Anakin would be forever grateful for Chancellor Palpatine for bringing Ahsoka back into his life. Without that kind man's actions, who knows where Ahsoka might have ended up.
"Lord Sidious intends to do what?!"
Count Dooku, Sith Apprentice to Darth Sidious, was frustrated. He knew he should not have told General Grievous about his Master's plans, especially not the ones pertaining to specific Jedi.
But, if he was to have any hope of succeeding in his own plans, Dooku needed as many allies as he could get, and that included the loyalty of Grievous, something that was far harder to obtain than most people thought.
"As I said General, my Master intends to create an order of Force users out of easily corruptible Jedi to enforce his will across the galaxy. He already possesses a list of candidates that both he and myself are analysing. Should all go according to his design, this new initiative will be ready before the fall of the Jedi Order, whether they know it or not."
The cyborg General's eyes moved over the various dossiers that had been placed before him, moving from one face to another as he studied those that had been picked out of an entire Order as easily corruptible.
"And these pitiful fools are the candidates in question!? Jedi are weak! They will fall easily! This is a waste of time, Count!"
"Need I remind you General that I was once a Jedi. A corrupted Jedi infused with the dark side is far more powerful than any single Jedi. An entire order of them will be a formidable force, one capable of maintaining the delicate balance of power."
"Of course my Lord. I meant no disrespect. I just do not believe that an order of corrupted Jedi will benefit us in the slightest! What if they seek to commit treason? Is it not the way of the Sith to betray one another?"
Dooku had to admit that Grievous had a good point. It was in the nature of the Sith to betray one another in search of greater power, and Sidious was no different.
"Rest assured General, that is something that has been on my mind more and more recently. The reason I am telling you about this initiative is to have a hope of impeding its progress. I may be old but I am no fool. Lord Sidious fully intends to replace us both when this over, and I predict this initiative is how he intends to do it. Therefore it is in the best interests of us both to ensure he does not have any members of the Jedi Order to corrupt."
Grievous was quiet for a moment, save for a brief pair of coughs that escaped his broken body as he reached down to the desk before him, picking up a holopad with the face of a human female Padawan on it, golden eyes studying it in depth.
"So you want me to assassinate these particular Jedi? Lord Sidious will not take too kindly to this." Grievous spoke at last, his faceplate shifting up from the datapad to Dooku's face, his eyes locking with the Count's.
"With luck, my Master will believe these Jedi have fallen by mere chance, but only if we play our hand well. We must be swift and discreet if we are to ensure our continued existence. Once this war is over the galaxy will need new direction. If Lord Sidious has his puppets to control, he will have power."
"But if he has no one then the galaxy will be ours for the taking?" The General speculated, his tone becoming borderline jovial.
"Yes… the galaxy will be ours General Grievous, and Lord Sidious and his plans will be nothing more than an annal of legend. The time of our ascension is nearly at hand General. We need only be patient for a little while longer."
At that, Grievous cackled.
Author's thoughts
Well... that was a boring chapter for you all now wasn't it? Nothing really happened. In fact... you might call it filler.
Anyways, jokes aside, this chapter only really exists to give Skyguy and Snips some screentime together post Barriss and post Clovis. Both individuals have just been through a rather traumatic event, and they need someone to listen to them at the moment. By having them banter and confide in each other we hopefully get a good look at their mental states. Ahsoka is trying to hide her struggle after Barriss 'death', and she needs someone like Anakin to, in a way, tell her that everything is going to be alright. Likewise, Anakin is looking for someone to not judge him for beating Clovis to near death!
Of course, both sides have their opinions about the other's recent adventures, and in the end of the day both tell the other what they want to hear. Clearly time and seemingly endless war is taking it's toll on both of them. Let's hope no one tries to take advantage of that.
Meanwhile, the true meat of this chapter comes from Dooku and Grievous. I'm sure there are some of you that won't like the hints of what they are up to, and I respect that. However, for the sake of this story, this is a side plot that will become very important in an arc to come. There is a rather large plot twist coming in the future that might cause some conflict for my readers. What that twist is though I will leave as pure speculation for now.
So, this chapter marks the end of the interim chapters for now. Next time round we jump right into the next story arc, with Anakin taking center stage for once.
Thanks again to my awesome beta reader 'ArrinSynders' for all his help. He continues to be invaluable.
Oh... and sorry for the slow update. I've been having issues writing recently, and didn't want to post this chapter until a future one was fully drafted. Plus my nasty cough still hasn't gone away!
As usual, comment and speculate at will. Speaking of which:
Silver-Dragon66: Poor Dooku indeed. He's not gonna get a wink of sleep. Damn paperwork! Even dangerous Sith Lords need rest! XD
Erukat: Skyguy did do it again didn't he? Always finding new ways to screw up. He must have a gold medal in causing trouble by now!
At least Padmé let him have it this time around. She is a badass like that after all. XD
Palpy and Dooku are each up to their own thing now, and whether or not either of them will succeed remains to be seen. Though you may be right about Palpy assuming the fate of Barriss rather than confirming it.
And don't worry... more Ahsoka and Morai will occur down the line. Hope you liked this chapter. :)
60FPS: 0_0 That's all I have to say on that! XD
Dressyone22: You're not wrong there. When you are secretly married you have to expect some confusion and misunderstandings. But.. as he always does.. Anakin goes to the extreme when it comes to protecting people he sees as family. I'd agree that you are right not to sympathize with Anakin. He's not exactly the nicest guy after all.
I guess he didn't press charges in canon out of fear of what might happen. Though it is reasonable to think that was what made him defect. :)
Cat-Gods-of-the-Cat-People: Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the chapter. It was fun to write someone having a go at Anakin for a change. Having it be Padmé made it twice as awesome fun!
As for the foreshadowing... I do love putting that in. XD
TragicFiction: Thanks. Glad you are enjoying it. More to come. :)
Mysterious Guest One: That does seem to be Sidious' plan now doesn't it.. and you are right... she is unfortunately heavily qualified for the role. Only time will tell if Palpy's plan is a success though. XD
1saaa: Yes yes... you did call this reveal a while ago, so well played to you as well as the others who guessed it. It wasn't supposed to be a great mystery as there were plenty of hints beforehand. Only time will tell if Ahsoka falls into Palpy's trap completely though.
Internet cookies are on the way to you. Hope you enjoy them. XD
The Warrior of Twilight: I'm glad you enjoyed Anakin being on the end of a 'Reason you Suck' speech. It was great fun to right... and oddly satisfying too. Like you I grow tired of people excusing Anakin's actions... as well as Vader's. I'm of the camp that he didn't redeem himself during ROTJ, but that's just me it seems.
Plus this gave Padmé a chance to be a badass like she always is. That's always a plus too. XD
tf330129: Keeping it up. Thanks for the continued encouragement. :)