"aaaa" - talking through a holocomunicator or comlink. aaaa - inner thoughts and Force Visions. 'aaaa' - talking through a bond. 'aaaa' - regular dreams

AN: Happy New Year! I hope everyone is having a great start to 2025!

For those who recently celebrated the holidays, I hope you managed to get everything that you wanted.

Just a quick disclaimer: I know absolutely NOTHING about hand to hand combat or even any form of martial arts in general so PLEASE do not take what I write to be good advice lest it can be dangerous. I'm not a professional and I seriously have no idea what I am talking about. Thank you. Also, I have no idea if ANY of the medical terms in the scene after are even correct. If they aren't, please feel free to leave me a review or send me a PM telling me what I need to correct and I will make sure it's done.

Any and all Mando'a translations will be at the bottom of the chapter! (Also, I know the title isn't a good one, but it's all I could come up with)

The inspiration for the last scene came from the fanfic titled A Little Help from My Friends by Garbage_Chute_Fly_Boy (MultifandomofMadness) on AO3.

On with the story!

While Anakin, Obi-Wan and a squad of carefully chosen members of the 501st and the 212th are assigned a dangerous rescue operation, Rosella is left behind at the Temple for her own safety.

Hanging Back at the Temple

Four days later, Rosella was attending her astronavigation class, which was an elective that she had signed up for. As her teacher was wrapping up the lesson for the day, the teenager took a moment to glance around at her fellow classmates. While most of them were padawans like she was, there were one or two students who were still Initiates. Focusing on her teacher again, she and a few of the others resisted the urge to groan as the woman assigned some homework that was to be completed before their next class, which was in a few days.

Then a chime sounded, signalling that it was over.

Getting out of her seat, Rosella reached over, grabbed her datapad and stylus and left the room. While heading towards her History of the Jedi Order class, she overheard some of the older padawans talking about a stealth rescue mission that was currently being organized to go rescue Jedi Master Even Piell. While the news of his capture had come as a shock to the entire Temple, it once again served as a reminder to all of the Jedi that they were no longer as safe as they might have been before the start of the war.

Spotting the door to the classroom, she clutched her datapad tightly to her chest and began to politely make her way through the crowded hallway. Letting out a sigh of relief as she made it before the second chime sounded, she walked in and found a seat near the bank of windows on the right side of the room. As she and the rest of the students waited for their teacher to arrive, her thoughts drifted towards her father. She hadn't seen him since last night when they, plus Obi-Wan, Ahsoka and Qui-Gon, went to Padmè's apartment for dinner. I wonder if the Council called him in for an early morning meeting. If that's the case, then he must have left before I got up, she thought as she glanced out the nearest pane at the stream of speeders and other vehicles that were constantly flying past the Temple.

Then her attention was drawn to the front of the room as the door slid open and the teacher came in.

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Meanwhile, in another part of the Temple, Plo Koon, along with Obi-Wan, Anakin, Rex, Cody, Echo and Fives were currently in one of the war rooms, going over their carefully devised stealth plan to get into the Citadel.

As soon as everyone was ready, the Kel Dorian moved towards the holoprojector and pressed a button, causing a small, rotating image of the citadel, which was an odd shaped building, to appear before them. In reality, it was far larger than what the flickering blue holo showed the small, carefully selected group. "As you are all, without a doubt, aware by now, the Citadel was built by the Galactic Republic to be used to be a detention center," he said, looking at the four clones who were stationed on the other side of the holoprojector. "But now that the Separatists have taken control of the facility, it has become known as one of their most isolated and impenetrable holding places for high profile detainees. No one has ever escaped."

Anakin, whose arms were crossed over his chest, shifted his eyes away from the hologram and over towards Plo. "Well, there's a first time for everything," he said in a somber tone as he lifted his mechanical hand a little before resting it back on top of his other arm.

"Indeed, there is," Obi-Wan commented.

"However, their security is very tight. None of the probes that we sent out there have been able to get an updated scan of the facility or the surrounding area. All we have is this very crude map that we were able to make using data from the archives," Plo said as he leaned forward and pressed another button, this time bringing up an image of a very basic map.

Glancing at the map before it disappeared, Obi-Wan sighed. Then he looked at Cody and the others. "Since the data is heavily outdated, that map will be difficult to rely on," he said.

The Knight, who had narrowed his eyes upon seeing the map, kept his arms crossed over his chest as he focused his gaze on his brother. "So, what you're saying is that we're essentially going in blind," he said, causing Obi-Wan's attention to shift from the men over to him.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, Generals," Rex said, narrowing his eyes behind his buy'ce while Fives and Echo stood behind him. He was the only clone who wasn't physically present for the briefing as he had a few last minute things to take care of before joining them. "But I have a question. How can we be certain that Master Piell is still alive?"

"The Separatists won't kill him yet," Obi-Wan responded. "But they will keep torturing him until they have what they need."

Plo spoke up, drawing Rex's focus away from Obi-Wan. "Master Piell managed to get his hands on the coordinates for a secret hyperspace lane known as the Nexus Route," he said. "The Route travels into the heart of both the Republic and Separatist homeworlds."

"Which could be vital for maneuvering our forces deep into some of the more remote sectors of Separatist space," Obi-Wan said.

"Or," Anakin said, "they could, just as easily, allow the enemy to slip past our defences and launch a surprise attack against Coruscant or any other key world in the Republic."

"In other words," Plo said in a cautionary tone as he wanted to remind them of the stakes involved with the mission, "Those hyperspace lanes are of immense interest to both sides. Whoever has the coordinates could tip the scale of this entire war." Then he brought the meeting to a close with three final words. "That is all."

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After Rex told Anakin that he would meet them in the hanger, his hologram vanished. Then, once Cody, Echo and Fives had been dismissed, the three Jedi walked out of the war room while discussing the finer details of the operation.

"Based on those archive schematics," Plo said, glancing over at Obi-Wan and Anakin, "we were able to narrow Master Piell's location down to three possible areas."

"My biggest concern is getting past their outer security," Obi-Wan said, shifting his eyes to his right as he looked at his fellow High Council member and friend. Placing his left hand on his beard, he began to think about what ships the Separatists were using to guard the planet and how tough it was going to be to slip by them without drawing attention. "The life form scanners that they're using are going to be very hard to fool."

Anakin glanced at his fellow Jedi. "Don't you worry about that," he said with a slight smile on his face, watching as his brother let go of his beard. "I've already thought of an idea on how to get past them."

I'm really not looking forward to finding out what this idea of his is all about, Obi-Wan thought as he looked at Anakin with a pair of raised eyebrows. Before he could say anything in response, he heard a pair of footsteps heading in their direction.

"Master!" Rosella called, panting slightly as she ran up to the group, slowing down a little in order to match the pace that her father and the others were walking at. "Sorry I'm late." She glanced at Obi-Wan and Plo, nodding at them in greeting before flicking her eyes over to Anakin. "I heard about the mission. We're going to rescue Master Piell, right?"

As soon as Anakin heard that, he came to a stop. Obi-Wan glanced at his niece as he walked ahead with Plo, sensing that his brother hadn't gotten the chance to tell her that she wasn't coming with them. Then the Knight crossed his arms over his chest as he gazed at his padawan.

Both of the Council members paused for a few seconds as they glanced over their shoulders. "I believe you two have a lot to talk about," Plo said. Obi-Wan, on the other hand, sent his brother an amused look. Then they continued down the hall, disappearing as they rounded the corner.

Anakin, who had turned to look at them both, sighed before turning to face his daughter. "Rosella, listen," he said gently, watching as she raised her head to look at him. Reaching out, he placed his left hand on her right shoulder. "I'm sorry for not saying anything to you, but you won't be joining me on this assignment."

Rosella's eyes widened a little as she stared at him in complete shock. Then a small frown appeared on her face. The last time that Anakin had ordered her not to come on a mission was more than a year ago, when he, Obi-Wan and Master Gallia had gone to rescue Master Eeth Koth, who had been held captive aboard General Grievous' ship. Of course, there was the time when she had been ordered to stay behind while Anakin went to Balith, but Master Windu had been the one to tell her that, so it didn't count. "Not coming?" She asked, sounding a little confused as she took a tiny step backwards, not caring as his hand slid off her shoulder. "But you and Master Obi-Wan are going to be breaking into the Citadel! No one has ever done that before!"

"This isn't going to be like one of our usual missions," Anakin said. Shifting his eyes away from her, the Knight turned and walked away before coming to a sudden stop. "The Citadel wasn't designed to hold common criminals like the Detention Center here on Coruscant. The reason why the Republic had it built was so they had somewhere to put Jedi, if any of us lost our way. It's not a place for Padawans."

Rosella, who had nearly clenched her left hand into a fist as she heard her father tell her why she wasn't going, relaxed a little as she listened to the rest of his words before raising one of her eyebrows at him. Deep down, she knew that he was right, but she was also a little frustrated since it felt like he was treating her like a kid and not a Jedi. Then she let out a soft sigh. "I know you want to protect me, but I still don't think this is fair," she muttered, watching as he turned around to look at her. Crossing her arms over her chest, she spoke again, letting a tiny bit of her frustration leak into her voice. "How am I supposed to learn anything if you won't let me share the same risks that you're facing out there?"

"Rosella, this is not a mission in which you learn something," Anakin said in a firm and authoritative tone. "You either do what you're told and live to see another day, or you die out in the field." Walking towards her, he placed both of his hands on her shoulders as his voice softened a little. "And that's not a risk that I'm willing to share."

The 15 year old looked at him for a few seconds, then lowered her gaze to the floor. "I understand," she responded quietly. Even though her temper had somewhat cooled off, she still wasn't happy about him going off on such a dangerous mission without her. Then another thought entered her mind and she couldn't help but grow a little worried. Biting her lower lip, she looked up at him with a little bit of fear in her eyes. "But what if something goes wrong and you need help?"

"If we need help, then we'll be sure to contact the Temple," Anakin responded in a soothing tone. Leaning over, he placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "I have to go." Lightly squeezing her shoulders, he let go before turning around and walking away.

Rosella, whose worry had faded upon hearing that they had a backup plan incase anything went awry, was now left with her lingering frustration as she watched him vanish around the corner.

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In one of the hangers that were located beneath each of the 4 towers that surrounded the central spire, R2 moved down the middle aisle with three battle droids trailing behind him. While the lead droid's head was painted blue, along with a stripe across its shoulders and chest, the other two had a single stripe across the top of their heads and only a small bit covering their shoulders. The blue and white astromech let out a whistle, followed by a series of beeps, telling the droids to follow him as he headed towards a Sheathipede-class Type B escort shuttle that was going to be their transportation for the mission.

The only reason why C-3P0 was there was because Anakin had asked his wife if he could borrow the golden droid to act as a translator for the team of Ugnaughts who tended to the carbon freezing chamber that belonged to the Jedi Temple. Once he had finished translating everything that Master Plo, who had gotten the details from Anakin, and Erk, who manned the machine, were saying to one another, he moved towards the shuttle and decided to wait for Anakin to tell him to leave. Then the protocol droid turned his head when he heard the familiar beeps that belonged to his companion. "R2!" He called out in alarm as the droid headed towards him. "Look out! There are battle droids right behind you!"

R2's dome rotated back and forth a few times as he let out a different series of beeps and whistles.

"These are your troops?" Threepio asked, before gesturing to them with his left arm. "But they're battle droids!"

R2 let out another series of beeps and whistles as he came to a stop and retracted his third strut.

"What do you mean, they've been reprogrammed to follow you're orders?" The golden droid asked.

The blue and white droid let out a high pitched whistle, followed by a couple of low sounding beeps and one that was a mix of both.

The battle droid who was in the middle, standing behind R2, stepped forward and said, "We are awaiting your next order, Commander."

R2 let out a very fast string of beeps and whistles as his dome rotated toward the droid. Extending his third strut again, he backed up and slightly turned to the right.

"Alright, men," the battle droid said as it turned to the one on its left and raised its left arm into the air. "You heard him. Move out!" Motioning towards the shuttle, the trio began to walk towards it.

Turning to face C-3P0 again, R2 let out one last low string of beeps that seemed to offend the protocol droid before finally moving towards the shuttle.

"Don't you go thumbing your gears at me just because you have a bunch of dim-witted droids following you about!" Threepio exclaimed, sounding irritated as he moved aside to let them pass.

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Fives, who was standing nearby with Commander Cody and Echo, kept an eye on the droids even as he was in the middle of a conversation with his fellow ARC trooper. As soon as he got a glimpse of R2, he instantly knew that this was another one of his General's crazy ideas. "Are you sure this is a good idea, vod?" He asked, directing the question over to Cody, who had been watching them the entire time. "I know they've been reprogrammed and while I trust a majority of General Skywalker's plans, I'm not so sure about this one. Do we really need to use them to get us into the Citadel?"

Cody stayed where he was, watching as the droids began to move some boxes into the shuttle's hold. "It's the only way," he replied, turning to look at them both. Even though he hadn't heard the full plan yet, he somehow knew that they were an integral part of it. "We're flying right into the heart of Separatist territory. Those droids won't be detected."

Fives, who was still wary about the droids, glanced at Echo with an uncertain expression on his face.

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Once Anakin had caught up to Obi-Wan, they entered the hanger. "Threepio!" He called, spotting the droid that he had built as a child. "Come here!"

"Yes, Master Anakin?" The droid asked as he headed towards the two Jedi.

"You can go outside. Qui-Gon is waiting to take you back to Padmè's apartment," he said.

Threepio nodded. "Thank you, Master Anakin," he responded before walking towards the entrance.

Both Jedi stepped to the right and headed over to where R2 and his trio of droids were. Over in one corner, near Cody and the members from the 501st, two members of the 212th were gearing up for their departure. One of them was perched on the edge of a crate. While he was busy inspecting his weapon to make sure that it was functioning properly, another clone was kneeling on the ground, packing thermal detonators into a backpack.

The Knight eyed the three battle droids with a small scowl on his face. He wasn't too happy about having to use them to help sneak their group into the Citadel. Even though they had been reprogrammed with his help, he still didn't trust them. "R2," he said, watching as his droid beeped and swiveled his dome to look at him. "I want you to keep a close eye on those droids. Make sure they don't stray from the flight plan."

R2 let out an acknowledging beep.

The lead droid instantly saluted. "Don't worry sir. We have everything under control," it said.

"I was talking to R2," Anakin said, narrowing his eyes at the metal machine as he gestured to his astromech. Dropping his hand, he slightly turned to the left and walked away.

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After taking some time to calm down and let go of her frustration with the help of a few breathing exercises that her Uncle had taught her, Rosella headed to the dining hall for lunch. On the way there, she saw Ahsoka. Dwelling on the fact that she hadn't seen the Togruta with Master Kenobi and the others earlier, she quickly came to the conclusion that her friend had also been told to stay behind. Sensing that the younger girl was headed to the archives to get some studying done for an upcoming test, she held up her left hand and waved at her. Smiling as her friend returned the gesture, the blond-haired teenager watched as the Togruta vanished into the crowd of initiates, padawans, knights and masters who were milling about outside of the large room.

Turning to her right, she walked into the room. Joining the line, the padawan moved forward with the others and grabbed a tray from the stack that sat near the buffet line. Then she headed over to the long table and loaded it with the food that she wanted to eat. Bypassing some of the dishes, since they were catered to those species who couldn't eat human food, the teenager grabbed a cup of water from the drink section and placed it on her tray before turning away from it. As her eyes roamed over everyone in the large area, she immediately smiled upon spotting Barriss, who was sitting at a table near the back. Making her way over to her, she said, "Hey. Mind if I join you?"

The Mirialan padawan looked up from her bowl of soup and smiled. "Rosella!" She said happily, glad to see a familiar face. "Of course, you can join me."

Placing her tray down across from her friend's, Rosella sat down and picked up her fork. "So," she said, spearing a bit of salad onto the utensil, "what have you been up to since we last hung out together?"

Barriss sipped at her soup while thinking about how to respond to the question. "Well," she responded, after placing her spoon in her now empty bowl, "I've mainly been here at the Temple. If I'm not studying or even reading in the library, I'll be down in the Halls of Healing. With so many injured Jedi coming back from the front lines every day, the entire wing has been understaffed, so they're getting as many volunteers as they can, which also includes the medics who serve with the clones, to help out."

After swallowing the bite that she took, the teen glanced at her friend. "I hope they're not making you work too hard down there," she said with a slightly concerned expression on her face.

Barriss noticed and quickly shook her head. "Don't worry," she replied, with a hint of reassurance in her voice. "Master Che has been adamant that all the volunteers take scheduled breaks every couple of hours. She doesn't want us to get burnt out."

Rosella, who had already finished her salad, and had picked up her sandwich, nodded in response. As she took a bite out of it, she was glad that her friend was still able to contribute to the war effort, even if she wasn't on the front lines with her Master. After swallowing her food and taking a sip of water, she looked up. "I know you don't like all the fighting, but when do you think you'll be shipped out next?" She asked.

"I honestly don't know," the Mirialan replied thoughtfully. "It all depends on when Master Unduli needs me by her side. She's currently busy with Chancellor Palpatine."

Rosella was about to ask why when she suddenly remembered that in addition to being a General on the front lines, Luminara was also a special advisor to the Chancellor. "Well, I hope it's not too soon," she told her. "I can tell that you're happier when you're at the Temple." As she finished her sandwich, along with the rest of her lunch, the teenager suddenly remembered that she still had some things to do that afternoon, her homework being one of them. Shooting her friend an apologetic glance, she reluctantly stood up and grabbed her empty tray off the table. "Sorry to cut our conversation short, Barriss, but I just remembered a few outstanding assignments that I need to finish for some of my classes."

The older girl smiled. "That's alright," she responded in a sincere tone. "I've got a few things to take care of before my next shift this evening."

Rosella smiled in return, removed one hand off of her tray and waved as she walked away.

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Later that afternoon, Rosella sighed as she walked into the common room that belonged to the 501st. Making her way over to the couch, she collapsed onto it and grabbed a nearby pillow, clutching it close to her chest. She had already finished her astronavigation homework, along with some extra work for her History of the Jedi Order class and now she was, well, for lack of a better term, bored. Normally, when she and her father were granted shore leave from the war, they would train together after she got out of class and he wasn't busy after his usual morning spar with Obi-Wan. But since he had already left for his rescue operation, that was no longer an option.

Jesse, who walked past the room while on his way to the training room, paused in his tracks when he saw the teenager sitting on the couch. Wondering why she was here; he backed up and poked his head around the doorway. "Commander?" He asked. "What are you doing here?"

The teen looked up as she heard her rank being called. Spotting Jesse, she softly smiled. "Anakin benched me from joining him and Master Kenobi on a mission," she said. Then she tilted her head to one side. "Did Rex leave you in charge?"

"Something like that," he responded in a light-hearted, humorous tone. "I was just about to watch some of the men spar with each other. Would you like to join me?"

"Sure!" The teenager said happily. Any excuse to hang out with the men, whom she saw as her brothers was good enough for her. Tossing the pillow aside, she hopped up and jogged over to him, watching as he took a step back to allow her to exit the room. Nodding in gratitude, they quickly made their way towards the training room.

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As the doors slid back with a hiss, Rosella and Jesse could see a large number of troopers gathered around the boxing ring that was tucked in the back right corner of the room. All of them were cheering the fighters that were currently in the center of it. Walking over to them, Jesse began to push his way through the crowd, with Rosella trailing behind him.

While passing by all the blue and white armor that the men wore, the blond-haired female thought she saw a quick flash of the red cross symbol that was usually worn on a medic's pauldron, so that had to mean that either Kix or Coric were in the room. A few minutes later, she finally made it to the front and saw that Tup and Dogma were sparring with each other.

After they were finished, and helped out of the ring, Jesse smiled and shouted, "Our kih Jetti al'verde is here!"

The crowd let out a joyous cheer.

"She should fight next!" One of them cried out and pretty soon, some of the others were saying the same thing.

Jesse glanced down at Rosella. "Well, how about it, sir?" He asked. "Want to show the boys how it's done?"

Rosella merely grinned and removed her utility belt. Handing it over to the Lieutenant, she strode towards the edge and ducked underneath one of the ropes as she rolled in. Quickly getting to her feet, she saw Kix edge his way to the front and stand beside Jesse. Nodding at him, she moved towards the center.

A few of the men, some of whom she knew and others that she didn't, started calling out a bunch of different names, trying to determine who she should go up against. Some of them ranged from a few of the veterans who had been with the 501st since she had joined them on Christophsis to the newer shinies who had just come in from Kamino. In the end, it was one of the newer shinies who was chosen to spar with her.

As the rookie made his way into the ring, Rosella sent him a warm smile. "What's your name, trooper?" She asked.

"Impulse," he said.

"Impulse, huh?" She asked, making sure to commit his name and face to memory. "I like it. Hope you don't mind if I don't go easy on you."

"Not at all, Commander," he replied.

"Now remember, Rosella, this is just a sparring match," Jesse stated from the sidelines. "You're not allowed to use the force while in the ring."

She nodded and the fight was on.

Both combatants began to circle each other. Ten seconds later, Rosella made the first move. Lightly bouncing on the balls of her feet, she darted forward, using her speed and agility to help her as she lashed out with a roundhouse kick that was quickly blocked. Bringing her left leg back, she followed through with two quick jabs. One was directed towards the trooper's chest, and the other one was aimed at his right shoulder. While Impulse was able to block the first strike, he barely managed to dodge the other one and winced as the blow connected with his deltoid. Leaping backwards, the teenager silently cheered, glad that all her training with Rex was finally paying off.

After retreating to the upper right corner and rotating his right arm to shake off the pain, Impulse moved back to the center of the ring. "Nice move," he said. "I can tell you've been training with the Captain."

"Yup," she responded in a lighthearted tone.

Several seconds later, after circling each other again, Impulse retaliated with his own move. Lunging towards her, he quickly aimed three rapid fire jabs at her face. Rosella quickly dodged all of them, moving her head to the left and then to the right. As she moved to the left again, ducking underneath his third strike, she swiftly countered by striking his right kidney with a semi-hard right hook before quickly attempting to unbalance him by sweeping the inner part of his right leg with her left foot. It worked. As he stumbled forward, she swiftly drew it back before aiming it high in the air as she struck the back of his left hand. Dropping her leg, she quickly bounced back to her starting area.

Without even using the Force, the padawan could tell that the trooper was getting a little frustrated that he wasn't able to score a hit on her. As she took a quick step towards him, the teen was forced to back away as he darted towards her, aiming his right hand towards her face. Blocking the move with her right hand, she drew her right foot back and quickly jumped into the air, lashing out with a powerful left kick that made instant contact with his chest.

The force of the impact caught the rookie off guard, sending him flying backwards into the ropes on the opposite side. Then he crashed to the ground. Knowing that he had enough energy for another round, Impulse opened his eyes and shook himself off as he got back on his feet. A few seconds later, after making his way back to the middle of the ring, both opponents were circling each other once again.

Rosella, who was now standing on the opposite side of the ring, sent him a cheeky smile, knowing in the back of her mind that it was time to end it. Rushing towards him, she threw a left-handed jab towards his face before stepping off to her left as she quickly followed it up with a backhanded one that he caught with his left hand. Knowing that he wouldn't see it coming, she launched into a roundhouse kick, smiling as the left side of her right foot instantly struck the left side of his face, sending the shiny tumbling to the ground. Before he could get back up and fight, she stepped on his chest, securing victory.

As everyone else around them cheered for their commanding officer, the teen got off of him and slowly backed away while catching her breath. Flicking her eyes up towards Kix, she softly nodded, watching as the medic climbed into the ring and quickly assessed him. A few minutes later, the shiny got up off the floor with some assistance from them both and began to make his way over to the edge of the ring.

"Impulse will be fine, Commander," Kix told her, watching out of the corner of his eyes as the rookie climbed out to a few cheers from some of the vod'e since he had lasted far longer than some of the other shinies that had also gone up against some of the more experienced fighters. Then he smiled. "That was one mean roundhouse kick. Did Rex teach you that?"

Rosella nodded. "Yup," she responded, still sounding slightly out of breath from the fight that she had just put up. "Nearly knocked him out the first time I used it." Once the medic had left the ring, she looked around at the assembled group. "Now, does anyone else want to spar with me?"

A bunch of hands shot into the air.

After two more matches, both of which she won, a slightly tired and sweaty teenage padawan climbed out of the ring. Walking over to Jesse, she held out her hand, watching as he handed over her belt. Once it was secured around her waist, she turned to face Jesse and told him that she was going to let Kix check her out before heading back to the Temple. He nodded and watched as she headed in the direction of the medical wing.

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After being directed to one of the empty rooms, Rosella found a towel and dried off as much of the sweat as she could before turning around and hopping up on the bed. A couple minutes later, Kix came in. Smiling at the baar'ur, she watched as he walked over to the left side of the bed that she was sitting on and pulled a penlight out of one of the various pouches on his belt.

"Commander," he said, clicking the pen and holding it up in the air. "Follow the light for me, please." Leaning forward, he shone it into each of her eyes, quietly sighing in relief as both of her pupils dilated and then went back to normal. Pulling away, he clicked it again, causing the light to vanish. As he lowered the device, Kix quickly asked her a few questions, since that was standard procedure when checking if someone had a concussion. Once she answered them all correctly, the medic nodded, satisfied that none of the harsh blows that she had received during her time in the ring were going to affect her down the road. "Can you please roll up your leggings and remove your vambraces as well as your arm coverings so I can check for any bruises?"

"Alright," she said, slightly bending over so she could reach for the hem of her leggings and pull it up. Once she had raised the one on her left up to her knee, she did the same to her right leg before removing her vambraces and taking off her arm coverings. Holding out both of her arms, the teen watched as his brown eyes methodically scanned over the various scrapes and bruises that she had gotten during her matches. Then he flicked them up towards her face, silently asking for permission to touch her.

The teen nodded, watching as Kix reached forward and began to gently run his fingers over many of the tender, swollen and red areas that were on her skin. Most of the ones that were on her arms and legs weren't too bad and would fade in a few days. Stepping back, he gestured towards her top, indicating that he wanted her to lift it up so he could continue to perform the rest of his medical checkup before letting her go. Grabbing the hem of her top, she lifted it up, wincing slightly as the fabric brushed over her ribs.

Once it was high enough, the medic told her to stop. Then he moved his left hand towards her ribs, gently repeating the same process that he had done to her arms and legs. "Does it hurt when I do that, Commander?" He inquired.

"A little," she responded, remaining still as he completed his exam.

As soon as he was finished, Kix stepped back. "You can lower your top now, sir," he said, watching as she did just that. "The only things that I saw was some mild bruising and a few scrapes." Then he glanced towards the cabinet that saw against the wall across from the bed. "Do you have some bacta ointment in the medkit that you keep in your apartment?"

"Yes, Kix," Rosella replied as she slowly bent over and smoothed her leggings back into place. Then she sat up and put on her arm covers as well as her vambraces before getting off of the bed. "Anakin keeps it stocked since he usually needs some after he finishes tinkering on something in his room."

He nodded, shifting his focus back over to her. "When you get back," he said, "I want you to put some on your scrapes and then take it easy for the rest of the evening."

"I will," the teen promised. "Thanks, Kix." She smiled and left, making her way out of the barracks before catching an air taxi back to the temple.

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When Rosella arrived, she made sure to pay the driver before heading inside.

Since she didn't feel like going to the dining hall again for dinner, she headed for the stairs on the right side of the foyer. Making her way to the top, she turned to her left and headed for the lift at the end of the hall. Reaching forward, she pressed the call button and waited for a few minutes. Hearing the distinct noise as it arrived, she stepped inside once the doors slid open. Turning around, she reached forward again and hit the button for the residential wing. Then she watched as the doors closed before it began to move.

Once the lift stopped on the correct floor, she got off and headed to the apartment.

Entering the code into the panel by the door, she moved towards it, walking inside once it slid open. Stopping to turn on the lights that were in the main area, she knelt down, removed her boots and placed them on the rack's lowest shelf. Getting back to her feet, she turned and moved towards the kitchen. Instead of entering the area, the teen turned to the right and headed down the hall towards her room. Opening the door, she headed inside and removed her belt. Laying it on her nightstand, she moved over to her dresser. Pulling open the top drawer, she reached inside and pulled out a clean set of pajamas.

With the clothes in hand, she shut the drawer and headed to the refresher. Shutting the door behind her, she flipped on the lights and laid her clothes on the counter before kneeling to retrieve the medkit that Anakin kept under the sink. Once the white box was in her grasp, she stood up and placed it on the counter. After removing her dirty tunic, she opened it, grabbed the tube of ointment and applied some to her scrapes and bruises. Then she put the item away, closed the case and changed into her sleepwear. Quickly tossing her sweat covered clothes in the laundry bin, she put away the kit and then left, making sure to turn off the lights before walking out.

Heading into the kitchen, the teenager made dinner, which consisted of some leftovers that Padmè told her to bring home and a glass of blue milk. Picking up the glass and the plate, which she had heated up in the microwave, she walked over to the island, placed them on the surface and then slowly sat down on the nearest stool before digging into her meal. As soon as she finished eating, Rosella got up. Moving around the island, she reached over, picked up the empty plate, along with the glass and carried them over to the sink. Once she had washed the plate and the glass, she made sure they were clean before placing them in the drying rack. Grabbing a rag, she wiped down the counters and the sink before putting it away.

Making her way out of the kitchen, she headed towards the couch and eased her body down onto the soft cushions. Calling the remote to her hand with the force, she turned on the holonet and flipped the channel from podracing to a late night repeat of a movie that she had seen with Ahsoka a few days ago.

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Three days later, Rosella, whose bruises had faded to the point that they were practically non-existent, and Ahsoka were standing on the extended landing platform with Masters Yoda, Mace Windu, Qui-Gon and four members of the Coruscant Guard. They looked up towards the sky as a gunship that bore a painting of Master Plo with two of his troopers flew towards them before landing a few feet away. The doors slid open and both padawans breathed sighs of relief as their Masters, along with Plo Koon, Kit Fisto, Saesee Tiin, Adi Gallia, Even Piell and Tarkin exited.

Quietly moving behind her grandfather, Rosella made her way over to Anakin and stood just behind his right shoulder. Ahsoka, who had followed her, stood behind Obi-Wan's right shoulder.

"It's good to see you alive, Master Piell," Mace said. "I assume you have the coordinates for the Nexus Route?"

The Lannik Jedi nodded. "I've memorized half," he said. "My captain has the other half."

"Debrief them both, we must," Yoda said, moving towards the group.

"With all due respect, Master Jedi, the Chancellor asked that I bring the information directly to him for debriefing," Tarkin informed the group.

Rosella glanced over at the man, silently raising an eyebrow at his words, wondering why Palpatine wanted the coordinates when he wasn't even part of the Jedi Order. While he, along with a majority of the Senators who wanted to keep up with the events that were going on throughout the galaxy, were entitled to read over the reports that were filed after the end of every mission, that didn't mean that they had to know about the things that happened behind the scenes. Like military procedures and other things of that nature. Most of it was sensitive information anyway, which was why none of it was released to the public.

Yoda sighed, causing everyone to look at him. "Personally meet with the Chancellor, I will," he declared. "Decide what is best to do, we shall." As the Jedi Master turned around, the four troopers instantly stood at attention before splitting off as they backed up, forming an honor guard of sorts as they let the members of the Council walk inside the Temple.

Tarkin, who kept his eyes on his General and the others until he could no longer see them, turned to face Anakin and Obi-Wan. "Well then, General Skywalker," he said, "that was a job well done." He stuck out his hand, watching as the Jedi Knight grasped it. They shook before letting go. "If only the rest of the Order shared the military sensibilities that you possess." Turning away, he began to walk towards a shuttle bus that was waiting for him on the other side of the platform before coming to a halt. "Maybe I can inform the Chancellor of your valour." Then he continued on his way.

Obi-Wan stroked his beard in thought before turning to face his brother. "I'm not sure what to think of your new ally," he commented, feeling a little uneasy about the way Tarkin was behaving.

"Well, I think we need people like him," Anakin replied, glancing at his brother. "This is a war that we're fighting. If the Jedi aren't willing to do what it takes to win, we risk losing everything that we try to protect."

"Unfortunately, war tends to distort our point of view," Obi-Wan said. "If we sacrifice our code, even for victory, we may lose that which is most important. Our honor."

The foursome watched as Tarkin and his guards boarded the shuttle. As soon as the door closed, it took off.

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Later that same evening, after having dinner with Obi-Wan and Ahsoka, Rosella and Anakin were back in their apartment, sitting in the living room. The teenager was holding the Knight's toolkit, watching as he undid the latches that held his glove in place. Then he slipped it off. Placing the dark brown item on the coffee table, he sat up and began to make the necessary repairs on his mechanical arm.

After hearing that he had gotten electrocuted after rescuing Master Piell, she quietly told him to take a look at it, just to make sure that everything was working properly. "Dad," she asked, hoping that she wasn't distracting him. "Did Captain Rex and the others make it?"

"Yes," Anakin responded as he fiddled with a few more wires before placing the tool that he had been using back in the kit and reaching for a different one. "Echo is a little banged up, but he'll be fine after a few days off to rest." As he tested out the wires to make sure that everything still functioned like it was supposed to, a spark flew, causing his durasteel fingers to go haywire for a moment before they fizzled and went slack. He sighed in frustration as he realized that there was a part that he needed to get to that was buried deep in the core of the mechanism. Knowing that he was going to need some help, he looked up at his apprentice. "Want to help me with this?"

"Ok," Rosella responded, turning slightly to the left as she placed the satchel of tools on the table. Shifting her eyes over to his prosthetic, she hesitated a little as she was unsure of what to do.

Anakin sensed that and gently smiled before instructing her on what to do, what pieces to hold and which parts to avoid. He noticed that she was being very careful with her movements, almost gentle even as she didn't want to do any more damage that would cause him pain. Smiling fondly at the care that she took, he knew that her own sense of compassion wasn't something that he had taught her. It was something that she had developed on her own, whether that came from hanging out with their men after a particularly hard mission or taking time out of her day to check in with her friends when they were all at the Temple.

"There," the Knight said as he tightened one last screw, securing the entire assembly into place. "That should do it." Flexing the fingertips carefully, he was relieved as they moved just the way he wanted them to.

Rosella smiled as she let go of his hand. Picking up his discarded tools, she placed them back in the satchel before flipping the flap closed. Then she looked up, watching as he slipped his glove back on before redoing the latches.

Once Anakin was finished, he stood up. "Leave my kit on the coffee table. I'll put it away later," he said before motioning towards the door. "Come on. I want to see if you've mastered that new Ataru move that I was in the middle of teaching you before I left."

Smiling, Rosella got up off the couch and followed him out the door.

Mando Translations

buy'ce - helmet
vod - brother
kih - little
Jetti - Jedi
al'verde - Commander
baar'ur - medic

AN: Yes, Master Piell and Echo are alive. It's my personal head canon that even if Ahsoka (or my OC) hadn't gone with them, they still would have made it. Echo most likely would have gotten hurt since Anakin would have told him to get away, or even used the Force to fling him away, from the exploding shuttle (yes, it still would have blown up) which is what I went for here.

As for Master Piell, he DEFINITELY would have survived his encounter with the Anoobas if he had sensed the incoming attack and dodged it in time. Yes, he probably would have been tired after his fight with the crab droids, but I'm pretty sure that the Force would have warned him of the incoming danger.

(Using one of the early layout scenes that never made it into the Citadel Rescue episode for this one) After Fives (or Echo, since's he's still alive) shoots down the Single Trooper Arial Platform that Sobeck is riding on, Tarkin would have used the blaster that he was holding to shoot the Phindian in the shoulder and then right in between his eyes.