Hey everyone!

Side note: I am doing my best to work on the 12 days of Rexsoka, but as previously stated, I have finals and such. Luckily I have pre written and edited chapters for Fives Effect and Guilty.

OneLittleSpark18: Thank you so much!

lady pomegranates: Yup. A very, very long time. I'm glad you're enjoying though! I'm also glad that my focus on the trauma isn't too overbearing or angsty.

Time for the long awaited Rexsoka conversation!

Mando'a translations at the end!

Rex was greeted by his brothers with barely suppressed delight. Fives must have commed ahead because the barracks were filled with straight backed clones at attention. As he entered they all smoothly saluted.

"At ease." Rex said.

They all relaxed and the smiles they had been repressing broke out. All of their gazes felt heavy on Rex, but he just nodded to them.

"Welcome back, Captain." Kix said.

"Thank you, Kix." Rex said. "I assume you've been taking good care of the men while I've been gone?"
Kix looked offended at the question.

"Of course I have." He said. "Do you have so little faith in us, Captain?"

"I have perfect faith in you." Rex said. "I was worried the rest of the legion got into too much trouble for you to handle."

"Oh, we've tried." Fives said cheerfully. "You'd be surprised though, Rex. Jesse was a huge killjoy as Captain."

"That's part of the job description." Rex said.

The banter came easily to Rex, but each word seemed to chip away at him. Neya Ha had warned him that he might not be able to handle as much social interaction as he had before. Well, he could endure his men's company for now. He owed them that.

A majority of the troopers gathered around Rex and Tup, asking excited questions. Tup luckily drew their attention away from Rex. Being a new ARC trooper made him plenty interesting, and if Rex was honest, Tup was a bit more approachable than Rex himself.

Rex noticed a subset of clones gathered farther away. Curiosity and apprehension was reflected in their eyes.

They didn't approach the entire time Rex spent with his men. They were separate from their brothers, and it bothered Rex.

It also bothered him to not see the Republic cog among the eager faces around him.

"Kix," Rex said. "Take me to see Jesse."

The medic nodded and helped Rex maneuver through the crowd of brothers. It was slow going, as Rex couldn't resist clasping the arms of any brother who proffered theirs. He had missed them, and it was good to be back.

The medical bay was filled with too many troopers. Rex grimaced at the sight of so many brothers injured. Kix led Rex to the room of bacta tanks. Each one held a trooper. Kix pointed to a nearby tube of blue goo. Jesse was easy to recognize, with his large Republic cog. Rex approached the tank. His chest constricted at the sight of his younger brother suspended helpless in bacta. Ahsoka had felt the same when Rex had been in the tank.

Rex waited patiently. One tended to sleep for most of the time when in bacta, but Rex was willing to stay here until Jesse saw him. Kix even wandered off to return to his medic duties. Rex relished the quiet of the bacta room, even if the floating troopers were a little eerie.

Finally Jesse's eyes cracked open. Rex smiled at him, though he knew Jesse wouldn't be able to see much through the bacta. Jesse's eyes widened and he jerked in the harness.

"Hey, udesii, vod." Rex said aloud.
Jesse seemed to have heard Rex, as he stopped moving and stared down at him.

"It's good to see you." Rex went on.

Jesse nodded slightly.

"You've done an ori'jate job as Captain." Rex went on. "Thank you."

Jesse closed his eyes again and Rex guessed he was falling back asleep. The fact that he'd stayed awake this long was impressive.

"Get back on your feet soon." Rex said. "We'll need everyone we've got to win this siege."

Jesse didn't respond. Rex heaved a sigh and put a hand on the cool tank.

"Rest while you can." He muttered.

He turned from the tank and walked among the others to see if there were any more troopers that he knew. After giving each a few moments, Rex started his way back to the barracks.

"Rex!"

Rex looked up to see General Skywalker approaching with a grin.

"Good to have you back, Captain." Anakin said, reaching an arm out.

Rex clasped the General's arm.

"Good to be back." He said.

The General seemed- off. Rex had been confused when he'd learned that the General had been seeing his wife rather than greeting the new troopers. He usually made meeting the shinies a priority.

Rex studied the General's eyes for a moment. They seemed distant, like his thoughts were elsewhere. Rex could guess exactly where they were.

Anakin walked with Rex a ways, filling him in on the last few battles.

"Ahsoka's really taking charge." He said.

It was a declaration that Rex would have thought would be filled with pride. There was some pleasure in Anakin's voice, but there was also a melancholy there.

"Is everything all right, sir?" Rex asked.

Anakin blinked.

"Besides losing two thirds of our battles, yes." He said. "Why do you ask?"

He sounded genuinely confused. Rex shrugged.

"No reason in particular."

"I've got some reports to do." Anakin said after an awkward moment. "Let me know if your leg gives you any trouble."

He waved his cybernetic hand at Rex.

"I'll see you around."

Rex nodded.

"Thank you, sir."

When the General left, Rex considered going back to the barracks. The prospect of being jumped again made him wince. Hackjob had told him to make time for himself.

Rex walked the length of the runway. It was mostly deserted, save for a few mechanics working on the ships. They nodded as he passed. Finally he reached the edge of the platform on which the base was built. It overlooked a kilometers wide river that glistened in the setting sun.

Rex sat down on the edge of the platform and admired the view. Anaxes seemed nice, at least when the ground wasn't scorched by blasterfire and the air shattered by ordnance. He undid his gauntlets and sighed with relief as he slipped them off and laid them aside. While he was proficient with them, they still made his hands ache. He rubbed at them for a minute, but it didn't do much good. Hackjob had suggested getting someone to help him knead his hands, but who was Rex supposed to ask? It had been awkward enough with Hack, and he had seen more of Rex than anyone else.

Rex closed his eyes and bathed the setting sun. He had missed natural light. It was warm and pleasant on his skin. A similar feeling was growing larger in his mind.

"Are the shinies settled?" Rex asked as Ahsoka sat down next to him.

"I wouldn't call them shinies." Ahsoka said. "They've seen battle. They're mostly dregs from platoons that didn't make it."

"I know." Rex said. "I just hope they hold up."

"They seemed fine." Ahsoka said. "Some of them aren't pleased to change their armor colors."

"Too bad good taste isn't genetic." Rex said.

He loved the 501st blue. The General had picked it, and while Rex had been neutral on the shade at first, it had come to mean so much more.

"How are you?" She asked.

Rex opened his mind to her. He had little apprehension about it. While he still struggled somewhat, he was far and beyond the wretched creature he had been on the medical station.

"Good." Ahsoka murmured. "Good."

Silence fell over them. Rex basked in not only the sun, but her presence next to him. She felt so different, but at the core it was still so very much Ahsoka. Speaking across the galaxy was an all right substitute, one he had been very grateful for, but nothing compared to having her beside him.

He opened his eyes and looked at her.

She was looking across the river. Her face was relaxed and the sunset cast a warm glow over her auburn skin. The blue of her lekku, he suddenly noticed, was almost the 501st blue he loved so much.

Kriff, when had she become so, so-

Rex had always known that Ahsoka was attractive, but in the same way that he knew General Skywalker or General Kenobi was attractive. Others would be attracted to them, but not Rex. But now- now there was something about how her lekku had grown past her ribs, how her cheekbones had become more prominent, how her white markings had elongated and subtly changed form that made it so he couldn't stop staring at her.

She wasn't a child anymore: far from it.

She turned to meet his gaze with her soft blue eyes. She cocked an eyebrow.

"What are you looking at?" She asked.

The spell was broken and Rex was suddenly ashamed and horrified by his thoughts. He'd managed to keep them in the private corner of his mind, where Ahsoka would never look, but she was his commander. It was highly inappropriate for him to think of her that way, even if she was one of the most stunning things he'd ever seen.

"Your armor." Rex managed. "I'm glad you finally decided to get some."

She shrugged.

"Kix wouldn't leave me alone." She said.

"More than usual?" Rex asked dryly.

Ahsoka rolled her eyes.

"Speaking of which." She said, before removing her vambraces. She stretched her arms out in front of her

"It's nice out." She said. "At least we wage war on a pretty planet."

Rex didn't respond. His focus was on the blue tattoo on her forearm. Jaig eyes. He half lifted his hand, overcome with a desire to touch it.

She noticed his gaze and flushed.

"You've done so much for me." She said in way of explanation.

Rex nodded slowly. Then it was for him, and not some wild decision to emulate the Mandalorians.

"Er- thank you." He said. "Commander."

She looked down, her blush intensifying. Then she seemed to notice his hands. Her brow furrowed and sadness crossed her face. Rex caught a glimpse inside her mind.

"No." Rex said. "None of that."

"None of what?" Ahsoka asked.

"You can't blame yourself for what happened to me." Rex said firmly.

"You have to admit it happened because of me." Ahsoka said.

"I will not." Rex said. "It didn't happen because of any choice you made."

She frowned at him.

"Can I at least feel bad that it happened?" She asked.

"For five minutes." Rex replied. "Then you have to pick yourself up and move on. Dwelling on it won't change anything."

"I'm sure you didn't dwell on it at all." Ahsoka said with a raised eyebrow.

"You know I did." Rex said. "And it held me back."

Ahsoka nodded and looked back over the river. Rex watched her for a moment. Something else was on her mind, something she was upset over.

"Anything else on your mind?" He asked after a few moments of silence.

Ahsoka's hands clenched where they were resting on her legs.

"I'm trying my hardest to keep the promise I made to you." She said. "But the men are making it difficult."

"Difficult?" Rex asked. "What happened?"

Ahsoka explained what had happened during their last battle. As Rex listened, he experienced an odd jumble of shock, anger, and understanding.

"Why won't they let me protect them?" Ahsoka finished. "It's like they want to die!"

"Ahsoka," He said slowly, taking care to choose his words. "We don't want to die, but you have to understand. We have a duty. When you made that promise, I wasn't asking you to prevent every clone death possible. I was asking you to keep things fair."

"You being here isn't fair!" Ahsoka said.

"We're soldiers." Rex said "We understand the risks. It's when we're thrown away when they think we're useless. That's what I wanted you to protect them from, and to not risk their lives unnecessarily. It was necessary this time."

"So you're okay with them drugging me?" Ahsoka asked.

"No. What they did was wrong. I'll have to have words with them." Rex said. "But they must have felt that they had to, because you weren't listening to them. Getting yourself intentionally injured isn't what any of us want!"

"It's what I want."

"You want to be-"

"No! I just want-" Ahsoka took a deep breath. "You're willing to give up your lives for the Republic and I'm willing to give my life up for you."

"I know you are, but we have to find a balance." Rex said. "I am grateful to you for protecting our men and doing everything you can, but there's a limit."

She looked away and then suddenly snorted.

"What do you do when you have two parties that are so willing to die for the other?" She asked.

"We ran into that problem on Saleucami." Rex said with a smile.

"I'm still angry with you about that." Ahsoka said.

"Really." Rex said.

He could tell she was changing the subject on purpose, but he let it go for now.

"What about you?" She asked. "There's something on your mind."

Rex nodded.

"Yeah."

He took a moment to collect his thoughts.

"There are so many troopers in the 501st that I don't know." He said. "I used to know all of their names."

"There are some you didn't even get to meet." Ahsoka said softly.

Rex got a flash of grief from her and a memory of her holding a dying trooper on Felucia. Rex's heart twisted.

"I don't know if-" He said.

"If what?" Ahsoka asked.

"I don't know if I should be the Captain again." He said.

"Rex!" Ahsoka said. "You're the best captain there is."

"I was." Rex corrected her. "Because I knew my men. I think Jesse should be permanently promoted, and stay as Captain."

"Then they'll just transfer you away!" Ahsoka's voice had taken on an edge of fear.

"I'm pretty sure after what they did to you, they'll do whatever you want."

"You'd think that." Ahsoka said.

"General Skywalker will make sure I stay with the 501st." Rex said. "But I honestly think that Jesse is the better man for the job."

"What will you do, then?" Ahsoka asked. "Go back into the ranks as a normal trooper?"

"You forget I was an ARC before I was Captain." Rex said.

"Then they'll just send you away."

"Fives has stuck around." Rex said. "And Tup has managed to make his way back to us."

Ahsoka looked at Rex. Rex had to suppress a shiver at her intense gaze.

"If you're sure." She said.

"I am." Rex said. "It'll be for the best."

"I'll talk to Anakin then." Ahsoka said.

"Thank you." Rex replied.

They sat again in silence. Rex felt better that he had gotten something off his chest, if not everything.

"There's something else." Ahsoka said, jolting Rex. "Something since you were on the medical station."

Rex closed his eyes.

"You'd think I'm crazy." He said.

"I know you're not." Ahsoka said. "You think I wouldn't know if the person I was bonded to was insane?"

Rex's heart did an odd flutter when she mentioned their bond. He scolded himself internally. They'd been bonded for months now, there was no reason to react like that!

"We've been losing so many battles lately." He finally said. "I've been keeping track. All of them, they're my plans."

Mine and Echo's Rex added in his mind.

"What if they've found something, an algorithm, that cracks me?" He asked.

"That's impossible." Ahsoka said with a frown.

"Is it?" Rex asked. "Just imagine it for a second."

"How could they do that? Why would they just crack you? No other legions or battalions have been having this level of losses. You'd think they'd-" Ahsoka said.

"I don't know." Rex interrupted. "I don't know exactly. But I'm sure it has something to do with my plans."

"What else aren't you telling me?" Ahsoka asked. "Rex?"

Rex stared at his mutilated hands.

"Most of these plans." He whispered. "Are variations of plans I drew up with- with Echo. I think he's alive."

Ahsoka was silent.

"Go on." Rex said. "Tell me I'm crazy."

"I don't know." Ahsoka said. "I want to believe Echo's alive. I want to get someone back after losing so many. But the explosion-"

"It is possible that he survived the initial blast." Rex said.

"But why would the Separatists treat him?" Ahsoka asked.

"That was my thought." Rex said. "But- I don't know, there's just something going on."

Ahsoka put a hand on his arm.

"We'll figure it out." She said. "I think we can go to Anakin with what you said about an algorithm. It wouldn't hurt to look into."
"Thank you." Rex said.

"Come on." She said. "You're tired, and if we're going to talk to Anakin, you'll want to be at your best."

"What's wrong with him?" Rex asked as he stood and gathered up his gauntlets.

"I don't know." Ahsoka said. "Learning what Palpatine did to me and to you; it's really shaken him. I'm practically leading the 501st now."

"It was a shock." Rex said carefully.

"It's been over six months. He spends more and more time speaking with Padme. He still leads us in battle, but he's just different." Ahsoka said. "He doesn't talk to me anymore. I hurt him when I left the Order."

"He'll come around." Rex reassured her. "It must be hard for him."

Ahsoka shrugged.

"He's struggling and I don't know what to do. He won't let me in. I doubt he's talking to Obi Wan." She said. "Maybe he'll open up to you."

"Maybe he's finally feeling the effects of the war." Rex said. "Let's focus on winning Anaxes. And then we can see what we can do to help."
"Okay." Ahsoka said.

He could feel that she was still worried.

The next day they first went to Cody with the idea, omitting Rex's suspicions about Echo.

"It makes more sense than what anyone else has come up with." Cody said. "I think you're right. The Generals will want to hear this."

Ahsoka wasn't pleased to see Windu with Anakin gathered around the holo projector. She was surprised to see Windu paying more attention to Rex's explanation than Anakin was.

"What do you propose?" Windu asked.

"Let Rex and me take a small squad behind enemy lines." Cody said. "There's a Separatist Cyber Center which relays all battlefield intel to their command ship. If we're going to find anything, it will be there."

Windu nodded thoughtfully.

"What about you, Commander Tano?" He asked.

"I was planning on accompanying them." Ahsoka said.

Anakin's eyes immediately narrowed.

"Ahsoka-"

"Captain Rex has only just now returned to the battlefield. I believe things would go more smoothly if I went." Ahsoka cut off any excuse Anakin had for making her stay.

"I agree." Windu said. "Commander Tano's skills will be of a great benefit to any covert team."

Ahsoka managed not to stare open mouthed at Windu's compliment.

"Thank you, Generals." Cody said quickly. "We'll leave as soon as we can."

"I'll take care of assigning most of the squad." Cody said as they walked away. "Grab an ARC and a medic and we should be good to go."

Ahsoka looked at Rex as they headed back to the 501st barracks.

"Who do you think?" She asked. "Fives or Tup?"

"Tup." Rex immediately said. "I- if Fives finds out what we suspect, he might become unpredictable. I don't want to open that wound for him again."

"No." Ahsoka agreed. "It's hurting you as it is."

Rex's mind, at least a part of it, was in turmoil from the idea. Ahsoka didn't need to be bonded with him to tell that.

"If he's alive," Rex said quietly. "Then we abandoned him."

Ahsoka didn't know how to respond to that. It was true.

"I'll go get Kix and Tup." Rex said. "You go and let Fives know he's in charge."

"Orders, Captain?" Ahsoka said.

Rex blinked and flushed.

"I didn't mean-"

"I know." Ahsoka assured him. "Just teasing."

She patted his shoulder and that seemed to make him go redder. Ahsoka raised an eyebrow as he hurried away. Something had changed between them. She wasn't sure what lay in their relationship's future.

Mando'a:

udesii: calm down, used in this context more as be still

ori'jate: great

Oh heck Rex is finally catching them feelings! For me, an absence between Rex and Ahsoka is vital for their relationship. It gives Ahsoka time to mature further and for Rex to be able to differentiate this new Ahsoka from the kid he knew. Just my personal preference.

I hope their conversation was satisfying for everyone. Got to get some of their feelings out there. I'm sorry they didn't hug, but it just didn't feel right.

We're going into rewriting canon scenes now and that's something I want to tread carefully. I am of the opinion that in order to completely rewrite a scene, the characters now involved have to make a big enough impact besides a few lines or choices. So while we explore the Echo arc, I will be skipping several scenes. I hope that's okay for everyone.

Fair warning: we may have to take a short hiatus during the holidays. I don't know for sure, but don't worry. This fic ain't going anywhere.

Anyway, wear your masks, remember to review, and have a great few weeks!