Everybody seemed to be busy doing something or other. The Jedi were trying to find the Sith, and they were even reluctantly investigating the Chancellor. Senator Amidala was working with some close associates of hers to do an investigation of their own about the senate and the Demonstrations. General Skywalker was working with Shaak Ti to figure out what had happened with Dogma and his slavery mindset.

Jesse was invested in all these issues, but he didn't get directly involved in any of them. He watched. He listened. And he tried to work out the details for his own plan.

All those other things were important. Stopping the Sith would theoretically stop the war, and Jesse was all for that. Finding corruption within the senate was vital, because that was what would save the clones from these Demonstrations, and it would prevent the creation of another group of Separatists who were willing to fight to get away from an oppressive rule.

Of course Jesse wanted to get to the bottom of Dogma's possible reconditioning, or whatever he'd been through. He wanted the kid to be okay. He wanted to know how to help him heal, and how to stop this kind of thing from happening to any other clone. Jesse had done what he could to give Skywalker the resources and information he needed to figure things out, but he couldn't do more than that for a few reasons.

For one thing, Jesse was just a clone. He could fight as hard as he wanted, and nobody would listen to him. Skywalker was a General. He'd been a hero of the war. If he wasn't listened to, nobody would be. If Jesse meddled he would just make his fight harder.

More than that, Jesse didn't know if he actually wanted to know the details of Dogma's reconditioning. He'd been teasing the kid since he had met him, using his reconditioning, his torture, essentially, against him. Fox hadn't been exaggerating when he'd accused Jesse of being a bully. Just because he hadn't had truly malicious intentions didn't make it any less hurtful.

He'd hurt Dogma. He was trying to do better now, but he didn't think he had any right to know the little details of what he'd been through. He hadn't earned that yet.

He didn't really want to be directly involved in catching the Sith either. That was a Force issue, and the Jedi had it covered. If Jesse was involved he would just be another soldier on the field, and he didn't want to do any of this as a soldier. He wanted to do this as a brother. And as a brother, he didn't want to work with the Jedi Council right now because they were still looking for any reason to not believe what Fox had to say to them, even though he and the guard were their best chance of quickly finding the Sith.

The Jedi would figure it out eventually, but Jesse didn't want to follow their orders as they ran in circles until they got over themselves and saw what was right in front of them.

At first Jesse had tried to help find information about the Demonstrations, back when he'd first gotten to Coruscant and they didn't know about the slavery thing or the Sith. The only problem to worry about was the abusive Demonstrations, and the only mystery was what Dogma had learned on Kamino.

Jesse had known from the start that he wouldn't be able to get information from Dogma, either about his lessons or about the Demonstration that he didn't even remember. So he got answers elsewhere. Specifically from the guard.

It had started with him just asking Thire more details about what had happened and why. Some of the other guards overheard them talking about the Demonstration, and they shared their own personal stories. It soon became a bit of an event, with dozens of guards all crowding around the sleeping quarters, exchanging stories and rumors. It was very informative, and not just because he learned more about the Demonstrations.

Until that moment Jesse hadn't truly seen the guards as brothers. He knew they were clones, of course, but they had always seemed like they didn't quite fit in. They were outsiders. Wannabe soldiers who didn't truly understand the war, and couldn't possibly have the kinds of connections with each other that the brothers got in the GAR.

After Dogma had been sent to the guard Jesse had tried to look at them differently. He tried to think of them as brothers, just like the rest of them, because if they weren't brothers then there wouldn't even be the possibility of Dogma having the support he needed. The support that Torrent had failed to properly give him.

It had been a massive relief for Jesse to actually see for himself that the guard took care of Dogma. They protected him, even from other clones. That had been a weight off of Jesse's shoulders, but that one experience wasn't enough to help him see that everything the GAR said about the guard was a harmful lie.

Sitting with the guards, with nobody else there to strengthen the distance between them, Jesse saw just how similar they all were. The guard sat around and shared horrifying stories so casually, just like the companies would gather in their own sleeping piles and talk about their experiences in the most recent campaign. The guard teased each other kind-heartedly about their names or tattoos, just like they did in the GAR, except the guard never took it too far. If someone looked the least bit uncomfortable with a comment the teasing would stop immediately, they would get an apology hug, and then they would all move on like nothing had happened.

They were still brothers. With each other, and with the GAR, and the more time Jesse spent with them the more that became clear.

He came to Coruscant for Dogma, but the kid wasn't exactly the reason why he stayed. Dogma would have probably been so much more comfortable if Jesse wasn't there, and if he had returned to the 501st then he could have eased some of the strain that Kix was under in trying to keep them there.

Jesse stayed to learn more about the guard. They didn't trust him at first, but the thing about clones was that it was easy to get them to talk. Jesse just had to share some of his rations, which the guard had been generous enough for him to have in the first place, and a grateful brother would talk while he ate. He invited the guards to spar with him, because all clones wanted to vent their frustrations with their words as well as with their fists. He was rarely refused, because many of the guards wanted an excuse to hit someone in the GAR.

Jesse gave them a scapegoat in a way, and they gave him information. More than they probably knew. Because the guard were a lot like Dogma when it came to his lessons. Most of the didn't understand how abnormal their situation was. They didn't know that the GAR didn't have to deal with sleep cycles like this, or not having access to something as basic as bacta. They didn't know that their superiors weren't supposed to be using them as doormats. The only guards who knew the truth were those who had been transferred from the frontlines, and it was an alarmingly small number.

The guard may not lose scores of men at a time like they did in the field, but that didn't mean that they didn't lose brothers. Prison riots went badly. Senators were too harsh and uncaring with their 'punishments'. Tracking down criminals and escort missions went sideways. And sometimes brothers just disappeared, which was something else that the guard didn't realize wasn't supposed to be normal.

The guard lost men, but they didn't get any back. Fox didn't want shinies from Kamino, and they weren't giving them experienced soldiers in transfers, so their numbers were slowly dwindling. If it went on like this Jesse wondered just how bad it would be before somebody in a position of power finally did something. And would their solution actually help the guard, or just hurt them even more? He really didn't know.

The guard needed help. That much was very clear. But they didn't have a General to fight for them. The best they had was their Commanders, who did their best, but they couldn't fight the galaxy to get justice for their neglected men. Nobody else would fight for them.

Jesse would.

He had come here to fight for Dogma. Then he had started to see the issues in the guard itself. The final nail in the coffin was seeing the abuse and pressure that Commander Fox had to deal with. He needed help. They all did. And that was when Jesse's idea had started to form.

He couldn't see this through on his own. He needed to run the idea by at least four people, and he needed all of their approval or he would have to figure something else out.

Jesse waited for an opportunity, and he stumbled upon it by accident. It was the middle of the night. Rex was with Fox in his office, talking about vod stuff. Kix, Hardcase and Tup were all sound asleep. Jesse had tried to sleep at first, but it just wasn't coming to him. He eventually got up and decided to take a walk around the barracks or maybe get some sparring in. He hoped it would get him tired enough to sleep.

He was just strolling down the halls when he saw Dogma in front of him. The kid looked at ease. Jesse didn't know if he would ever get used to seeing how comfortable Dogma was here. He always used to be so tense with Torrent. Did they really make him that uncomfortable?

Dogma stopped in his tracks when he saw Jesse. The smallest amount of tension was visible in his shoulders, but a moment later it eased away and Dogma gave him a sincere smile.

"Hey." Dogma said. "Couldn't sleep?"

"Yeah." Jesse said. "What about you?"

Dogma shrugged. "The bed's not mine for another three hours. Click's shift became a shift and a half at the last minute, so my shift tomorrow has been rescheduled to a late half shift so we can both get a full sleep."

Jesse crossed his arms, hoping he looked casual as opposed to intimidating. He wasn't trying to scare Dogma. "And you're fine with that? I thought you would have insisted on getting just half a night's sleep."

"I thought about it." Dogma admitted. "But Gamma has threatened to drug me if I don't have a good sleep schedule." Jesse snorted. It sounded like something that Kix would do. What was it about the head medics that made them so threatening in their care?

"So what are you going to do to pass the time?" Jesse asked. "Paperwork?" He was only half joking. Dogma's mouth twitched and there was annoyance in his eyes, but also humor.

"Funny." Dogma said. "Normally I would, but Fox is with his vod, and I don't want to get in the way of that."

"You know Rex wouldn't mind." Jesse said. If anything the Captain would probably feel more comfortable if there was a buffer there.

Dogma shrugged. "I have other stuff I can do anyway." He didn't elaborate. That was fair. Jesse didn't think he had a right to Dogma's personal life.

He expected Dogma to walk away and go about his business. That was what he used to do. But he just stood there. Both of them seemed to be waiting for the other to do or say something.

Dogma brushed some invisible dirt off of his armor. "You've been spending a lot of time with the guard. Are you getting along with them?"

"I mean, I think so." Jesse said. "For all I know they still hate my guts."

"They don't hate you." Dogma said confidently. "You're a brother. You have to do something really bad to be hated by brothers."

"Well, that's reassuring." Jesse said. He hesitated before asking the question on his mind. "Does being an oblivious di'kut who bullies a brother for things he can't help count as something really bad?"

There was no hesitation from Dogma. He just gave Jesse a small smile. "No. At least, I don't think so." It was like a weight was lifted off his shoulders, though Jesse's stomach sank again when Dogma continued.

"And you don't-" Dogma trailed off as he tried to find his words. It was odd to see him so unsure of himself. "I didn't do anything really wrong to you, did I?" He was asking the same thing as Jesse had.

"No, you didn't." Jesse said, and Dogma relaxed. "I just didn't know how to talk to you."

"I don't know how to talk to most people." Dogma said, complete understanding in his voice. "It's okay."

"But it wasn't." Jesse said. "What I did wasn't okay." He knew Dogma understood that. He just thought that Dogma was just trying to tell himself that it was fine because he was trying to forgive Jesse, and it was difficult to understand that you could forgive someone and still condemn their actions.

Jesse leaned against the wall. "You may not believe me, but I did miss you when you were gone. I was so mad at myself, thinking I wouldn't have the chance to make things right. I thought I would never get the chance to really bond with you."

Dogma's brow furrowed. "You had chances. You just didn't take them." And that hurt like a slap to the face, because Jesse knew he was right. "I invited you to read with me all the time. You never did."

"Right. That." Jesse was embarrassed and ashamed at the reminder. "This is gonna sound really dumb, and like a terrible excuse, but I'm not really good at the one-on-one stuff. It doesn't really feel personal to me. If I do something one-on-one, it has to be something special that's just between the two of us. You know, like the way that you brush Tup's hair, or spar with Hardcase."

Recognition sparked in Dogma' s eyes. "Like when I do paperwork with Fox."

"Yeah, like that." Jesse felt a little pathetic talking about this. "You liked reading with everybody, so it kinda felt like you didn't want to do something with me, you just wanted to do it with someone. I knew you wanted company, but I really didn't think I was your best bet for that." They would have just started fighting.

Dogma blinked and looked thoughtful. He was staring intently at Jesse's armor, and he didn't know why. Finally Dogma spoke. "Your armor is dented."

Jesse was thrown off by the sudden change in topic. He looked at the small scuffs and dents in his armor. It was barely noticeable. "I guess so."

"Do you want to see my closet?" Dogma asked. Jesse didn't know what he meant, but Dogma seemed to be making himself vulnerable, and he wasn't going to push him away now. He nodded. Dogma smiled and led him down the halls. He stopped in front of a door and opened it to reveal a small closet with all kinds of armor pieces and cleaning supplies in it. There were also a few pillows and a small blanket.

Dogma sat down. "Fox gave me this closet. It's a place to go when I need to be alone, and it gives me work to do when I need to keep myself busy." Dogma grabbed the things to buff out armor. Jesse wordlessly took off his pauldrons, which had the worst of the dents in it because they were the pieces he frequently forgot about.

He handed one of the pauldrons to Dogma. In return Dogma handed him the tools to work on the other pauldron. It took him a long time to recognize the invitation for what it was. Dogma had let him into his personal space and was giving him something for the two of them to do together. Something that Jesse assumed he didn't do with anybody else.

It was a little awkward, but Jesse felt far too honored to really notice it. Dogma was trusting him. Opening up to him. He was showing Jesse another thing that he could very well tease him about. Not that Jesse would now, but Dogma had every right to be cautious.

They worked in a silence that wasn't quite comfortable, but it was the closest that the two of them had ever gotten just with each other. It made Jesse feel hopeful about breaching the topic that he wanted to bring up.

"I've been spending a lot of time with the guards." Jesse said. "I think I understand them better. I understand you better. And what I understand better than anything is that you guys don't have nearly enough people on your side."

Dogma grimaced. He knew he was right. "We take care of each other."

"I know." Jesse said. He'd seen that much. It was a great support system, but it wasn't nearly enough. "And I want to take care of you guys too." He decided to just get to the point and just state very plainly what he was thinking. "I want to request a transfer to the guard."

Dogma froze and just looked at him. Jesse felt like he had overstepped, but he couldn't take it back. So he just waited. Finally Dogma seemed to get over his shock.

"You…want to join the guard?" Dogma's tone made it hard to tell what he was thinking. "Why?"

"I want to protect the guard." Jesse said. "I want to fight for them when they can't fight for themselves." He gave Dogma a pointed look. "I want to help you."

Dogma looked young and vulnerable. "You…you want to leave the 501st, Torrent, for me. But why?"

"I wasn't a good brother to you." Jesse said. "I want to make up for it. And you know the guards need the extra help more than the 501st does." He leaned closer to Dogma. "But if you aren't going to feel comfortable with me being here, then forget it. I'm doing this for you. If you hate it then that kinda defeats the purpose."

Dogma still looked very stunned, but he didn't seem mad or defensive, so that was a good sign. He swallowed thickly and put the pauldron and cleaning stuff down. "The guard is a lot different than the GAR."

"I know it is." Jesse said. "And I'm sure that Commander Fox will make sure I understand it well." He wasn't planning on Fox going easy on him. He'd gone through ARC training. He knew how to play the game.

Dogma's fingers tapped against his leg. "Are you sure about this?"

"I'm sure." Jesse said. "As long as you're okay with it, I want to be here."

Dogma was still for a long moment before he got to his feet. Jesse said. He watched as Dogma casually grabbed a pauldron with the red paint of the guard. Jesse held still as Dogma came up to him and put the pauldron on his shoulder. He attached it and then took a step back. Dogma was eyeing him. Jesse straightened his back and tilted his shoulder towards Dogma.

"So?" Jesse said. "What do you think?"

Dogma smiled. "I think red's a good color on you." He was still for a long moment before stepping towards Jesse again and leaning forward to rest his forehead against his. Jesse's throat tightened as Dogma initiated a Keldabe Kiss. "You'd be good for the guard. And I'd like to have you around."

"I'll be better this time." Jesse promised. Dogma nodded, believing him without any more reassurance. "I'll be a good ori'vod." It was the first time he'd called himself Dogma's ori'vod. He hadn't really meant to say it. He hadn't realized that was how he felt. After everything he'd learned and all the time he'd dedicated to protecting Dogma and the guard here on Coruscant, how could he not see himself as a big brother?

Dogma made a sound of contentment and leaned against him. Jesse held onto him. He was glad for this chance, and he wasn't going to mess it up.

It wasn't a guarantee that he could join the guard. Rex and Fox both needed to approve the transfer, and he wasn't going to leave Kix without a word. But Dogma wanted him there, and Jesse would fight with everything he had to stay here with him.