Anakin took the Temple steps two at a time.

He was going to see Padme.

Finally.

Even before they'd been deployed to the disastrous siege of Kaz'haria, he hadn't seen her for weeks. Everything had been such a mess after they'd lost Rex and it was all he could do to hold the Legion together. Appo tried, he really did, but nothing had been the same since they lost Rex.

Padme.

Just the thought of her was enough to send his heart racing. They had a whole night together. Maybe he shouldn't have charged Ahsoka with watching Rex. Perhaps he expected too much of his padawan sometimes. And, he was thrilled to see Rex alive. But, he had to see Padme. He charged toward the Temple speeder bay, knowing full well he was going to break all speeder laws heading over to Padme's high-rise apartment in the Senate district. But, what it did matter? He was a Jedi and couldn't be given a speeding ticket. Most of the regular laws didn't apply to them. Not really. And, soon, Padme would be in his arms and all thoughts of the war would fade away-

His comm chirped.

No!

Every instinct at him screamed not to answer it.

He hurried his pace toward the speeder bay.

His com chirped at him again. Demanding to be answered.

He was at the entrance to the speeder bay.

His com chirped a third time, shrill and insistent. A hot fury rose up in him and he grasped the comm link, prepared to smash it against one of the ornate columns which separated the older part of the Temple from the large hangar bay, which had been added later.

A padawan learner, covered in grease and tinkering on a speeder, glanced over at him in alarm. The padawan was Rodian, but reminded him so much of Ahsoka with their wide-eyed, innocent look. And, they were totally picking up on the angry aura he was emitting. He was broadcasting his emotions, and not positive ones either.

He paused by one of the large columns, and took several deep breaths to get a hold of himself.

His comm chirped again, and now more in control of himself, he answered it. "This... is Anakin."

"Anakin! I've been trying to reach you. The Council wants to meet with us. Now." Obi-Wan's voice on the other end brokered no dissent.

"But, Master, we only just returned home-"

"Oh, I am well aware. But, Masters Windu and Yoda were insistent they speak with us."

No. No. No. No!

The front windshield on the nearby speeder shattered. The padawan, who was working underneath, yelped in surprise. Anakin prepared to head over and apologize, but a nearby service droid was already inspecting the damage.

"Anakin, did you hear anything I said?" Obi-Wan asked insistently on the other end of the comm.

Anakin sucked in a deep breath, before replying. "I'm on my way."

He glanced back regretfully at the speeder bay, his night was ruined. He cast another guilty glance at the speeder he'd damaged. Krek. He needed to get a better handle on his temper.

Oh, krek, and Padme, how was he going to explain this to her? He ducked behind the column and dialed Padme's comm code. She answered immediately. "Anakin." Her soft voice set his heart racing.

"I'm sorry, Padme. I can't make it."

"It's alright," she said.

Her easy response left him both relieved and saddened. Shouldn't she object more to him not coming? Be more disappointed?

"I was summoned by the Council," he explained. "I'm sorry."

"I understand," Padme said, her voice still doing strange things to him. It always had. "There's an emergency meeting of the Senate tonight. A vote on action about to take place in the Outer Rim. In all honesty, it would have been difficult for me to send a proxy to this vote."

Wait? She was about to cancel on him?

There was an awkward silence on the comm. He couldn't make any promises on when he would see her again, or when he would call her again.

Padme ended the call. "I have to go. Be safe, Anakin."

Anakin's hand shook as he stared at the comm link, and it took every ounce of self-control not to smash it into the column. His vision was almost swimming red with fury. Not at Padme. But, at everything. The war. Being a Jedi. The situation they were trapped in. Being a Jedi. Everything which kept him apart from Padme.

He emerged from the column and stalked toward the Council meeting.

# # #

Appo was leaving medical. He was thrilled to be heading back on duty. Or, at least light duty. His one shoulder was still out of commission, but he was allowed to return to barracks while he finished his recovery. He hadn't expected both Coric and Denal to be waiting for him when he emerged from bacta. They helped him shower and dress. He was grateful for the help as his whole body still hurt, despite the bacta, and his body still felt stiff and awkward. Coric conferred with the senior medic on duty, and officially took over Appo's care. In less than an hour, they were headed back over to the barracks.

The three of them walked through the streets of Coruscant, dressed identically, in their burgundy fatigues. It was just past dawn, and despite the early hour, the streets of Coruscant were already abuzz with people headed to work. A few citizens cast them confused looks at their identical appearance. Clones in armor were becoming more commonplace in the streets. But, Appo had come to the realization few Coruscanti understood there were men underneath the armor. Appo wasn't sure if he welcomed the anonymity, or found it ironic, considering he was a clone. After all, this was the Republic they were supposedly fighting for and these citizens seemed content to be so blessedly ignorant in all but their own narrow interests.

"You OK?" Coric asked.

He hesitated, considering his answer. During their long hours imprisoned together on Darkknell, he and Commander Tano had spoken at length on many topics. She'd outright told him his "people skills needed work." She also said he needed to be more "open and approachable" and this "worked well for Rex." He didn't like being compared to the Captain, but couldn't argue with how well respected he was by his fellow clones.

"I… uh… was thinking…" he started, and then stopped. Fek. He sounded like an di'kut. But, he could hear Ahsoka's light teasing voice in his mind, telling him he would never get a different result unless he tried a different approach. He took a deep breath and plunged ahead. He gestured around him with his good arm at the Coruscanti they were passing. "They look at us. But, they don't know who we are."

"So?" Denal asked, giving an unconcerned look around him as if it mattered little to him either way, "what of it?"

Appo resisted the urge to be offended by Denal's flippant response. He continued on and tried to explain himself. "They're supposed to be the ones we're fighting for, and yet they know nothing about us." He tried to voice what he was feeling. "They don't care to know anything about us."

Denal laughed and put a hand gently on his uninjured shoulder. "You think too hard. Be careful. You'll hurt yourself."

It was the sort of good-natured, teasing comment he'd heard the men make back and forth to each other many times as they laughed together. The sort of talk he'd always been excluded from... until now. It felt... nice. Normal.

"Yeah, that's... eh... good advice," he responded back to Denal, earning himself a smile from the longtime 501st trooper.

Coric and Denal talked with him constantly on the way back. Most of the news was of no consequence. The usual clone gossip. But, there was something incredibly soothing in the normality of all of it. He was content simply to listen.

Denal described their first meal back at the barracks in great detail. Coric told him Generals Skywalker and Kenobi were out of medical, and everyone was hoping they'd make an appearance at the barracks in the next day or two. There was a lot of speculation about when they'd be getting their new armor, or when they'd ship out again. Or, when they would get a ship again. But, most of all, the men were hoping they could get some news about what was going on with Captain Rex and Commander Cody.

"What?"

Appo took in this last piece of news, and his good mood faded away. Commander Cody was not his concern. But, anything concerning Rex affected Appo. "What happened to Rex?

Coric and Denal exchanged a look.

"He was sent to the RMB for contempt of Council," Coric finally answered.

Appo stopped in his tracks, refusing to take another step. Annoyed Coruscanti citizens walked around them, glaring at them for impeding their progress. "Explain."

"We don't know the details. He is being held until he has a hearing. But, it is by order of General Windu."

Appo tried to keep his expression even, but his thoughts were racing. Contempt of Council? Rex? He never could have imagined. This was likely a positive development, though. He and Rex did not exactly get along. So, maybe the problem had just taken care of itself. Coric and Denal were studying him intently. He would need to proceed very carefully to avoid losing the ground he'd made today.

"I see," he said, keeping his voice even, "eh... hopefully, the Generals will have an update for us... " He jerked his chin in the general direction of the barracks. "Shall we proceed?"

Coric cast him a suspicious look. Denal shrugged and launched into a humorous incident involving the purple Kazzie fruit. Appo wasn't listening, fortunately Denal didn't seem to care.

Would Rex be sent away again? If he was, it would clear the way for Appo to take command of the 501st with no interference. It was very difficult for him to command the men when all they were talking about or thinking about was Rex.

# # #

Revision history:

June 12, 2019: This scene was considerably shortened.

July 6, 2019: Notes on Appo. I haven't seen too many other fanfic authors write Appo in-depth in their stories. The universal consensus seems to be he is a despicable clone. I've struggled to write his character because the movies and the animated series doesn't give us a lot on him. He is promoted too quickly and comes across as a lackey. His rank and quick rise doesn't make sense. I've tried to explain it within the context of this story. It is different than how it is portrayed in the animated series. Appo has more "typical" clone qualities in this story than we see in the series. He is a fierce fighter and values honor and duty. But, there are underpinnings of ambition, which we don't see in other clones. His experiences on Darkknell, and being locked in a cell with Ahsoka, have left him confused. I've decided to downplay these experiences in the revised draft of this story. Initially, my thinking was a love triangle would make for interesting reading. But, this will derail too much from my primary storyline.