Chapter 84: A Calming Cup of Tea

Embo stayed the night in one of the spare rooms in the back of my club. They were meant for my workers to stay in, but they weren't always actually occupied. Workers came and went, after all.

After fueling up his ship and giving him some supplies for the road, the bounty hunter was gone. I was sad to see him go, but I'd especially miss Marrok. The anooba had snuck up to my chambers to cuddle in the middle of the night and it'd been the best surprise anyone could ask for. I'd seen him rip men to shreds, but he was also a sweetheart–if he and his owner liked you, that is.

I shrugged on a jacket as I walked down the winding stairs from my office. The club was closed in the mornings, the cleaning crew working their magic to make my establishment shine again. The bar itself was empty, Earl likely sleeping off the busy night. Rouva, however, never seemed to need rest.

"You're out early this morning," she observed from where was sipping her morning brew. Her pale violet legs were folded lazily over the lush pillows of the booth, her robes emerald green and pooling over her thighs. "Tea?"

"No thanks," I forced a smile, despite my exhaustion–I'd been up all night worrying over Hardeen. Had the Jedi captured him? Why hadn't I heard anything? How was Dooku connected, if at all? And what was the Jedi Council hiding?

"What's the rush?" the Twi'lek called as I moved to rush past her. I stopped, sighing while I dragged my hand down my face in hopes of wiping away the tired expression. It probably didn't work, considering the deepening of Rouva's frown when I turned back to her. "What did you and Embo talk about?"

I shook my head. "Something isn't right," I allowed.

She gave me a sad look, opening her hand to me. "You're grieving, Pika. I know nothing feels right."

"That's not what I mean," I brushed her outstretched hand away. Rouva only scowled at me. "I'm not in denial either," I promised, chewing my lip, "even though it's going to sound a lot like denial."

Air whistled gently through her bejeweled nose as she sighed. "I really do insist on tea. You seem like you need it."

Maybe some caffeine and a talk to get my thoughts in order would help. I didn't sleep, after all. And it wasn't everyday someone went to speak to the Jedi Council. Though I seemed to be making a habit of it.

I sat with a heavy sigh, accepting the hot cup Rouva slid across the polished table. "Embo told me about a job he and a slew of other top-tier hunters were invited to."

Her elegant brows lifted. "That's a lot of manpower. The client is an ambitious sort," she mused before asking, "Do you know who it is?"

"Dooku."

"How unfortunate. Do you think he's behind your friend's death?"

I shook my head. "I don't know. But Embo said Cad Bane was invited, and Moralo Eval is supposed to be some part of this job, too. But both of them are locked up here on Coruscant, the former rather recently."

"And let me guess, Bane didn't put up much of a fight?"

"The fact that they got him at all is suspicious to me," I allowed, despite loathing the idea of complimenting the bounty hunter. "He's managed to evade us for so long…"

"You're right," Rouva hummed, stirring another spoonful of sugar into her tea. "Something isn't adding up. But how does your friend play into all this?" She didn't have to say his name; I knew she meant Kenobi.

"I'm not sure yet. I don't have anything on that aside from how weird two of the Council members acted after his funeral. I'm going to go speak with them this morning about Dooku though, so maybe I can get more out of them about Hardeen."

The Twi'lek pursed her lips in thought. "Do you think they were behind his death?"

The idea was dark. And while I wasn't one to put limits on what the Jedi Council might do, I'd never expect them to kill a fellow Council-member. Finally, after a moment, I shook my head. "There's something off about all this, but it's not that. It's almost like…Obi-wan isn't really gone."

"I'm seeing why you said it would sound exactly like denial."

"And I said that it wasn't, though," I argued, scowling at her concerned frown. "I am sad about Kenobi's death, of course," I allowed, "but I'm not in denial about his death. I am merely stating that this whole situation has felt…wrong."

Rouva took a long sip of her tea, making me realize I was neglecting my own. The drink was hot, warming my chest as I took a long swig. It had a soft hint of berry, with a looming aroma of mint that gave my mouth a weird feeling. I liked it, drinking greedily from the beautiful cup as the Twi'lek thought.

"Is it the Force?" she asked suddenly. I wasn't sure why I was surprised, but I choked on my tea anyway. She was unbothered as I spluttered and coughed. "You have spoken of your connection to it before. Is it telling you something?"

After clearing my airways, I laughed hoarsely. "That's a fantastic question, and the one we're both asking." I shrugged, daring another sip of the tea. "I'd argue that it's a mix of the Force, my suspicious nature, and just reading the room." Rouva didn't speak, nodding for me to elaborate over the brim of her teacup. "Maybe I'm overestimating my abilities, but I didn't feel any changes when searching for Obi-wan in the Force after I heard he died. It's hard to explain," I sighed, "I couldn't find him or tell you where he was, but I didn't…not find him. Does that make sense?"

"So you didn't feel him die? Can you feel when everyone dies on this planet? That's a heavy burden–"

"No, no it's not like that," I cut my friend off. "But I could still feel him somehow…he just didn't feel dead. It's hard to explain," I repeated with a groan.

Rouva waved her hand in dismissal. "What was the next sign? There must be more than a mere feeling." She said it with surety, but I also heard a motherly warning in her tone. She was telling me that I'd better not be basing all of this on a single feeling. She wasn't wrong; That'd be stupid.

"They didn't show his body at his funeral," I continued, aligning my thoughts. "I'll admit that I've no idea what Jedi funeral customs are, so maybe they don't show the body. But I'm counting it as a suspicion for now. After, I received intel about Kenobi's killer, so I tracked down the heads of the Jedi Council to tell them. They were dismissive and didn't seem very interested. In fact, they were more interested in learning about Moralo Eval."

That made my friend's brows raise so high they nearly disappeared beneath her headdress. "The same man–"

"That is currently locked away here on Coruscant with Cad Bane, both of whom are due at a job from Dooku rather soon," I finished. I glanced down as my wrist comm beeped. It was Rex, finally reaching out amongst the chaos. It was only a written message, saying

Hardeen is behind bars.

While that was a good thing, of course, it felt like things were clicking together, even if I still wasn't able to see the big picture. "Kenobi's killer was just locked up there, too," I announced, Rouva frowning in thought.

"Maybe they are using him to get to Dooku. He'd be a good addition to an elite team," she stopped herself, pursing her lips, "Even if he isn't actually qualified, having a Jedi kill on your resume is a good seller."

"I agree, but is it circumstantial and they happen to have him and are trying to use him? Is he in on it?" My musings were mostly muttered into my teacup. Rouva refilled my drink, the steam warming my nose. "You know, neither Embo nor I heard about the hit on Kenobi."

"No one I talked to either, even though most would know better to tell either of us about a job against the Republic, given your current occupation."

"Hardeen's bounty hunter profile is good, sure, but I genuinely can't think why someone would hire him specifically to kill Kenobi."

"Death Watch? Hardeen's Mandalorian, right?"

"It's not their speed," I argued, despite it not having a whole lot of weight. "And Masters Yoda and Windu thought the same thing…but maybe a little too quickly? I don't know–they are always the ones who are so quick to second guess and overthink a situation from every possible angle. And they just jumped to conclusions way too many times after the funeral."

"They were grieving," Rouva reminded me.

"Jedi don't grieve the same way we do."

"Everyone grieves."

"You have not spent enough time with Jedi, then."

Rouva rolled her eyes. "That's your fault. You're the one who can only manage to convince the clones to come down here." She acted as if this place wasn't her pride and joy. Not to mention, her home.

"You love when I bring the guys," I laughed, letting her lighten the mood for a moment.

"That's true," she laughed back, giving me a wink over her cup. "I do love a man in uniform."

I chuckled a moment longer before turning us back to the conversation we'd snuck away from. "Grieving or not, they were acting weird." I thought for a moment. "I understand why they insisted that a Jedi bring in Hardeen, but they didn't even want to tell Anakin."

Rouva's brow lifted as she gave a shrug. "They were like brothers, right? That would probably be hard for him. And you've told me how volatile he can be. Maybe it's even worse than you think?"

"I've…come to understand a lot about Anakin. He is troubled and a mess, and he's done some bad things. Maybe even some terrible things. But what is the purpose of hiding it–" my words cut off, my comm chiming again. I looked down, seeing another message from Rex.

The General brought him in. The Commander still seems worried, though.

I stared at the words, my heart racing. The Jedi were lying. They had to be. What was going on?

"What is it?" Rouva asked after letting me stew in shocked silence for a minute. She leaned forward across the table as if trying to peer at the message. "What's it say?"

"When I got the information on Hardeen, I told the Jedi Masters exactly where they could find him. I respected that they wanted a Jedi to go and I stayed out of it." I hadn't answered her question, but my thoughts were racing too quickly.

"What did it say?" she whispered again.

I didn't hear her as my mind kept going down its spiraling path. "They didn't want to tell Anakin and while I disagreed, that's their choice."

"Kida," Rouva snapped finally, rapping her knuckles against the table to get my attention. "What did the message say?"

"Rex says that Anakin arrested Hardeen."

Her eyes widened, staring at me in silence for a moment before licking her lips. "So did he find out, or did the Jedi Council send him?"

I downed the rest of my tea, the liquid searing my throat. I didn't care, jumping up and heading towards the door. "I don't know, but I'm going to find out."

The Twi'lek let me go this time, watching as I raced from my club to where I'd had Apex pull up my speeder. I hopped into it easily, Apex already running the engine for me. "Thanks buddy," I muttered as I took control of the ship, speeding my way towards an ascension shaft to get to the surface. As I flew, I sent a message back to Rex, not bothering to explain further.

How did Skywalker find Hardeen?

A part of me worried about sending too much over messaging to Rex. Despite using an encrypted connection, I worried someone would see our communication somehow if it was written. And my current line of thought was treading dangerously close to treason, depending on who you asked.

The Council, I assume. Why?

I tapped my wrist, sending the message away and not responding. Not right now. The Council was lying. They were hiding something. And I was determined to find out what. The first step was feeling their reactions as I told them the information I've learned about Dooku's plans.

Once I was heading up the surface, I knew it wouldn't be long until I could face the Council. My chest was tight with a mixture of anxiety and frustration. What if they'd merely taken my words into account and given Anakin the chance to bring in his friend's killer? But then again, they were rarely ones to accept advice from their subordinates. Especially when it came to Windu and I.

What's going on?

I glanced down to see Rex's next transmission, just as I slowed my speeder outside the Jedi Temple. A sigh pushed past my lips as I slid from my seat, giving control back to Apex. I trusted the AI to keep watch while I handled things.

To be honest, I knew just walking into the Temple wouldn't be easy, but what actually happened was certainly past what I expected. I'd barely made it up the steps before a temple guard, clad in white and gold, was blocking my path. They stood before me, their dual-bladed lightsaber hilt held before them like a warning.

I quirked an eyebrow, more annoyed than anything. "I'm here to see the Council," I said bluntly, "And I'm happy to show ID."

I couldn't see the guard's face behind the stoic painted mask, but I was sure they frowned. Still they didn't move, tilting their head down to me to say, "The Council is not seeing visitors."

Now I frowned. "I'm not a visitor, I work for them. I have information that may be important to–" I stopped myself, unsure of how much to share. It didn't matter anyways, the guard was barely listening.

"You were not summoned by the Council," they said calmly, a second guard emerging from between the massive structures to back up their comrade.

"Well, no, but–" I stopped again. "How would you know?"

Neither guard responded, the second's stance now matching the first. It was drawing gazes of the few workers that were milling around, coming into their workday. I shifted my weight, feeling strangely nervous. Everything felt so wrong and clouded. In truth, the war and Coruscant made everything cloudy anyways. But it was worse since Obi-wan died.

A voice in the back of my head whispered that it was my grief clouding things. Was it? Was I looking into this too much?

I shook my head, forcing myself to focus. "Listen, I need to get a message to the Jedi Council. It may be important to the war effort and people could be in danger." That wasn't a lie, either.

"Give me the message, then," said the first guard.

"I–" Osik. "This is sensitive information. I will be delivering it to the Council personally."

There was a gentle wave of impatience from the guards before me. The second finally spoke, "You said people could be in danger. If this is true, give us the message."

I stared at them in silence for a moment. This was ridiculous. If they just bothered to check my ID, they'd know who I—

It dawned on me then. They didn't need to check my ID. They knew exactly who I was. "Do you have orders to keep me out?" They both seemed startled, which was answer enough. "Wow," I breathed, genuinely shocked. A nearby familiar presence drew my attention. "Ahsoka!" I called, seeing the Togruta walking amongst the structures with an elderly Cosian Jedi.

She seemed just as confused and shocked as I was as she approached, her eyes warily settling on the guards. "Everything okay over here?" she asked, her brow arching to match my own.

"Miss Fett is withholding important information in regards to the war effort," said the first guard.

"You jagyc'kovid," I growled, Ahsoka stepping between me and the guard immediately, her cool hand on my shoulder to steer me backwards.

"Whoa there," she said with a forced chuckle, casting a fake smile to the guards. "I'm going to hope no one knows Mando'a because I'm sure that wasn't kind," she whispered in my ear, making me smirk. She spoke louder to the guards, "Let me handle this, okay?"

I let Ahsoka turn me from them, the guards receding but not very far. I cast them looks, but the padawan snapped her fingers to drag my attention back to her. She gave me an expectant look, to which I groaned, "I came here to give information to the Council but these guards have orders to keep me out."

"What?' I could feel that her confusion was genuine, which was reassuring. At least she was telling the truth. She seemed like she wanted to argue with the guards, but I knew better. If the Council didn't want me there, I wasn't going to get inside. "That's ridiculous. The Council would never order–"

"It's okay," I cut her off, mirroring her and putting my hand on her shoulder. "I think I upset them after the funeral," I admitted. It wasn't really a lie, even if I think their distaste was my suspicion. And their annoyance made me think my suspicion wasn't unfounded.

Ahsoka's big, cerulean eyes peered at me with curiosity. There was sorrow in them too, at the mention of her master's passing. "How so?"

I shrugged. "Doesn't really matter. But I trust you way more than these faceless guards." I cast a look to the temple guards, who didn't react to my words. They were trained not to, I suppose. "Something is wrong about all of this." I spoke softer now, low enough that the guards couldn't hear us. "I got a tip about a job Dooku called bounty hunters in for. And I'm talking a csll for the best."

"What's their plan?"

I gave her a look. "Of course I don't know that. But Masters Windu and Yoda seemed interested in Moralo Eval when we spoke, and my contact said Eval was rumored to be a part of Dooku's plans."

Ahsoka's face was pinched in thought, her knuckles tapping at her chin. For a moment, she reminded me of Kenobi. "I'll get this to the Council," she promised. "And I'll try and get this ban lifted and get you an audience."

I smiled. I'd seen her as a ruthless warrior and hotheaded apprentice, and she was absolutely both, but she was also a sweet young Togruta who cared about her friends. Sometimes it was easy to forget how kind people were when you were constantly in a warzone. "Thank you," I said genuinely, tipping my head.

She glanced over her shoulder at the guards, looking past them to the entrance to the inner temple. "I should go. Be careful, and feel free to comm me if you need or hear anything." She gave me a quirked brow and a smile. "You don't need to come shouting at my doorstep to talk."

I only laughed as she hurried away into the temple. She was practically asking for me to communicate more. Maybe I needed to spend more time with the padawan. Especially now. I'd told her information I'd have rather shared myself to gauge their reaction…but I guess that would've been selfish. What if it was just my grief clouding my judgment after all? Maybe I was grieving too, just like everyone else.

I shook the thoughts away. I was at a stopping point, for now. There was no further investigation that was possible, considering the Council and Temple were off limits, Embo had shared all he would, and any other suspects were locked in the Coruscant prison. I smirked darkly to myself as I walked back to my speeder. If the Council wouldn't even speak to me, there's no way I'd be given access to interrogate prisoners.

Especially since they were up to something in there.

Still, there was nothing I could do at that point, other than go home. I considered swinging by the barracks, but there were more ears there than in my club. Well…in my apartment in my club. As much as I wanted to see Rex, it was probably best if it wasn't on military grounds.

So I messaged that I would tell him everything next time he visited, inviting his team to the club, and steered my speeder towards home.

MANDO'A

Osik- shit

Jagyc'kovid- dickhead

RYL

Pika- loved one

Author's Note:

I'm not dead, I promise! Writing is just impossible right now and I don't know why. Here's to hoping I post again soon but I can make no promises lol

Still breathing,

Ryder