#See if you can time it and reach Lookout Landing as the oneshot ends

[pixelsjoy]

If I ever start a new game on Tears of the Kingdom, I'm going to think that while I'm busy running around Great Sky Island and trying to find my way to Lookout Landing, a wacky group of Zonai researchers is going on their own adventure elsewhere in Hyrule.

[talkfastromance4]

Green Eyes & Leather--Michael Clifford oneshot (biker gang!au)

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Copyright talkfastromance4 © All works is intellectual property of the author. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction or any part or all contents in any form is prohibited. You may not, without written expression and consent from the author, distribute works amongst other social media platforms

Word count: 2.3k

Warnings: just smut near the end lol and poorly edited

donate to my ko-fi here :)

Masterlist

• • • •

Michael Clifford. Just the thought of his name sent shivers down your spine as you watched him enter the diner you work at during the summer. His platinum blond hair has turned to more of a natural gold and it contrasted nicely with his leather jacket. Patches were sewed on haphazardly, but he somehow always made his outfits work. Black is his color and he looks damn good in it.

Tattoos on his fingers and a cross earring that always dangled from his ear screamed dangerous. The way his cold green eyes stared you down made anyone shake in the knees. He’s the leader of the biker gang in your town, but they’re more of a vigilante group. They’re called the Moon Raiders because they did most of their patrolling at night, and when Michael became leader, it was as if everything shifted.

Neighboring towns stopped harassing the kids, the women felt safer walking to their cars at night; everyone seemed to get along under the surveillance of Michael. He sits in his usual booth while his comrades surround him, Ashton Irwin, Luke Hemmings and Calum Hood. The four of them are always together.

“Oh shit,” your coworker, Lana gasps next to you.

“What?” you blow a large bubble from your bubblegum, forcing your eyes away from Michael who has picked up one of the laminated menus.

“I can’t help them; I lose my voice every time.”

When your bubble becomes too large, it deflates, and you suck it back into your mouth. “They aren’t that bad; they do good things.”

“I know but they just look so scary. They’ve got a sweet spot for you; you go take their order.”

You pat Lana’s shoulder reassuringly then grab your small black notepad and swing around the counter. As if he could sense your movement, Michael’s eyes fixate on you. He watches you until you’re stood in front of their group, you lean on one foot and smile politely at them all.

“Hi, I’m Y/N,” you say brightly popping your gum. “What can I get you guys?”

“Four of your best burgers with fries,” Michael says, his eyes still dead set on you. “Two chocolate shakes, one strawberry and one vanilla.”

“You sure you can eat all that?” you quirk your eyebrow up as you’re writing the order then your pen freezes on the pad. Did you just say that? And to the leader of the city’s gang no less? You felt your cheeks warm.

The group chuckles quietly, you sneak a peek at Michael and he’s still staring at you. You wish the floor would swallow you up right now.

“I’m pretty good at sharing,” he smirks slightly, his voice always had a slight scratch to it that made you weak. He always sounded so nonchalant, but you can hear the power beneath it.

With your mouth dry out of embarrassment, you nod then quickly shuffle behind the counter to relay the order to Sal on the grill. Lana is by your side immediately, her eyes widened like a bush baby.

“Were you flirting with the leader of a biker gang?! I can’t believe you did that,” she says a little too loudly in disbelief.

“Shh!” you hush her. You already embarrassed yourself once, you don’t want to go for a second round. “I don’t even know why I said that, it just slipped out. You don’t think he took it as flirty or rude, do you?”

“It was definitely flirty. I can’t believe you actually did that.”

“Can you stop saying that!” you run your fingers through your hair and clutch your cheeks. They’re super warm.

Lana finally leaves you alone to take orders from other guests while you waited for Sal to finish making the food for Michael and his friends. You made a point to keep your back turned to them while you wipe down the counters and restock napkins until Sal slaps the little silver bell that your food is ready.

Balancing it all on the tray, you walk more confidently than you feel towards their booth. Four pairs of eyes zero in on you and you avoid the one pair of green eyes that will most definitely make you spill the tray.

“Thanks doll, this looks great,” Ashton comments already reaching for the ketchup bottle.

“Anything else I can get you guys?” you ask a little breathlessly glancing at each of them. You land on Michael last who seems to have not faltered his focus on you.

“We’re perfect,” Michael nods.

You felt his stare on your back as you moved behind the counter once more to take orders from other patrons that have entered.

Preoccupied with your task, you jump slightly when a wad of twenties is slapped on the counter in front of you.

“We gotta run, keep the change as part of your tip,” Michael says, and you gape at him.

“Please, that’s way too much. I can’t—”

“When does your shift end?” he interrupts while the others are gathering their things.

“Um, eleven. Why—”

“I’ll see you at eleven and we’ll go for a ride. See you later,” he winks knocking his knuckles on the white linoleum countertop.

***

You kept glancing at the large clock on the wall for the last half hour until your shift ends. Nerves and butterflies pixelate in your entire body and Lana’s constant babbling isn’t helping you relax. When the second hand finally ticked on the twelve, the bell above the entrance jingled and Michael struts in.

Your heart leaps into your throat at the sight of him and he gives you an easy smile.

“Hey, are you all done?”

“Um, yeah…yes,” you nod and wave quickly to Lana whose eyes are still wide as saucers from earlier this afternoon. Michael gestures you in front of him but pushes the door open for you and you breathe in the summer air.

“I’ve got a helmet for you,” he holds up a small black helmet. “And I always keep an extra jacket just in case, so you can wear that too, so you don’t get cold with the wind.”

He holds both items in his hands and you stare at each of them in shock. Is this happening or is this a fever dream?

“Is something wrong?” he asks, his arms lowering slightly.

“I just… I don’t understand what this is exactly?”

“It’s us going for a ride so we can get to know each other better. There’s a spot I like to go to I think you’d like,” he holds out the jacket and helmet once more, “I don’t bite, I promise.”

Once you were on his bike you felt like you were flying. The scenery blurred past and you were initially nervous where to put your hands, but Michael looped your arms around his waist. He patted them gently before starting the bike.

He ended up taking you to a nice lookout point where you could see the town. Lights from cars and buildings looked like stars and you could see why he likes it so much. When you turn around from the view, Michael has laid out a large blanket and is already sitting down; he pats the space next to him.

Thankfully, the moon is bright enough that you can see each other as he asks you questions about yourself. What your likes and dislikes are, your favorite memory, your most embarrassing memory, what makes you happy, what makes you sad and so many others. When he’s finished, you ask him the same things.

When you start to shiver from the lowered temperature and your eight-hour shift catching up to you, Michael says he’ll take you home.

“Where do you live?”

“On Cordelia Street, by the movie theater.”

“I know just where that is,” he grins.

You didn’t want to let go of him once he stopped the bike in front of your small home. He gets off first then helps you clamber off the machine. His fingers brush your neck as he unclips the strap beneath your chin then places the helmet on the back of the seat.

He holds your hand as he leads you up the short walkway to your front door, the porchlight is on and casts you both in a light golden glow.

“I really enjoyed this tonight, I hope you did, too,” he says, his thumb rubs soft circles on your skin.

“I did, thank you for this.”

“Can we do it again tomorrow?” he takes a careful step forward, tilting his head to the side so he can see into your eyes.

“Yeah, I get off at eight. I’ll make sure to bring a change of clothes,” you giggle pointing at your uniform.

“I think you look beautiful,” he shakes his head then continues to move his face closer to yours.

You close your eyes just when you can feel the light scratch of his beard tickle your lips before his own lips brush over yours. You melt into him, his other hand cups your cheek so he can kiss you a little deeper, he makes your whole body jittery. Then you’re pushed against your door, your own fingers curling in his blond hair.

After a lot of kissing and soft giggles, Michael leaves so you can get some sleep. He has to do some patrolling until about six a.m. and as you crawl into bed you couldn’t help feeling a bit safer that he’s out there.

***

Weeks go by and you’ve spent every night with Michael after your shift. Tonight, isn’t any different but thankfully he’s the only one in the diner before close. Sal has left for the night so it’s just you two eating a plate of leftover fries. The security lights are on, the shades are drawn and it’s quiet in the restaurant. Michael dips a fry in ketchup then holds it up for you to eat.

You lean forward to take it in your mouth, but he pulls back, it’s a little game he’s set up. The more you move forward, the more he inches away until you’re falling against his chest and he kisses you deeply. Kissing Michael always makes you warm, from your head to your toes and in between your thighs.

To your surprise, Michael lifts you onto the counter, his fingers tickling the outside of your thighs while his tongue explores your mouth. A soft moan rumbles in your chest and Michael pulls away giggling.

“What?” you ask breathlessly, pulling his lips back to yours by the collar of his leather jacket.

“You sounded like a kitten just then,” he rasps swiping his tongue over your lower lip.

“Meow,” you tease cupping his crotch. His body jerks at your touch and he moves his lips to your neck.

“Are you a naughty kitty?” he asks, his hands slipping under the skirt of your uniform to tug your panties down your legs. The fabric hangs loosely on one of your ankles just above your shoes. Michael lowers himself to the floor, spreading your legs open. He kisses the inside of your knee and looks up at you with those green eyes you love so much. “Or can I make you purr again?”

Before you can respond, you watch a little lightheaded as his supple lips kiss up your legs. He tugs you forward on the counter, hooking a leg over his shoulder and then his tongue is licking at you at an antagonizing delicious way. You pet his hair as he eats you out, tongue slick and urgent awakening your arousal with each swipe of his tongue.

He makes little noises and moans of his own, then he adds a finger and your body clenches at the added stimulation. You toss your head back as you feel your release approaching. You’re trying to focus on everything he’s doing, his lips, his tongue, his finger and his moans are sending you into hyperdrive and then you’re crashing.

You bite your lip to try and keep the moan inside, but your orgasm is so palpable, it slips out loudly. With your legs twitching slightly, Michael stands to his feet again and attaches his lips to yours. You taste the salty twang of yourself and it makes you want more of him, more of his touch. You unfasten his belt and jeans quickly, feeling the weight and girth of him in your palm. He groans at your slow strokes, his breath hot on your neck as his nimble fingers unbutton the top of your uniform. You continue to stroke him, your thumb running over his slit and it becomes sticky from his precum. Michael palms and squeezes at your breast.

“Need to feel you,” he grunts, and you nod as he inserts himself inside you. It takes a few pumps until he’s fully inside but once he is, your eyes roll back at the stretch. “Fuuuuck, kitty…”

Your forehead is against his shoulder, the smell of his leather jacket swims in your nose and you focus on each thrust he gives you, each one getting faster and faster. You’re jerking back and forth against the counter; Michael’s hands squeeze your ass and he fucks into you so deeply you’re moaning his name. He lets out more grunts and groans of his own that you love to hear.

When he hits that special spot, you pull away and arch your back, so he keeps hitting it at the right angle. His mouth is on yours immediately, fingers tightening on your ass and then you’re coming. You’re coming loudly and forcefully, feeling it take control of your body and you’re so thankful Michael isn’t letting up.

It isn’t until moments after you that he’s coming as well, he pulls out quickly and you feel his hot ropes land on the inside of your thighs. You watch him as he releases, his lips quivering in ecstasy, breathing heavily. When he’s finished, he looks up you beneath his lashes, smiles softly and kisses you gently.

“While this was hot, how about we do round two in my bed?” you sigh heavily stroking his sideburns.

“Round two huh?” he chuckles licking his lips. His fingers dance over the swells of your breasts, green eyes full of lust and burning into yours. “I can go all night, gorgeous.”

• • • •

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**if your url has a strike through it’s because your blog didn’t show up as a tag! :(

[theworldbrewery]

Plot Build: Unnatural Corruption

This is a plotline built to be adapted to your own campaign or for use as a oneshot. Feel free to change names, NPC races, etc., or adapt by adding or removing enemies, traps, etc. to increase or decrease the difficulty of the adventure. This build assumes a 4-person party at 4th level. 

Want a customized plot build for your party? $15 Ko-Fi supporters can leave a private message with their tumblr or email contact information to request a personalized outline.

One-sentence hook:

Creatures infected with a strange plague are coming out of the Black Ridge Marsh; those who live off the land turn ill and feral, and even the trees themselves--well, they don’t quite wither, but the otherwise barren bark blossoms with bright orange, white-speckled blossoms.

The outline will be available under the cut at the end of the post, just in case your players follow your blog 👉😎👉 (pro-tip: if you’re not a DM or prepping to be one, don’t look!)

Groundwork to lay before the plotline begins:

A message to an ally of the party from a Doctor Amada from Black Ridge Marsh requesting aid for a mysterious and lethal illness.

Report from a neighboring town that a merchant shipment into the marsh was attacked by rabid bears; only one person escaped alive to tell the tale. The townsfolk are too afraid of being killed to retrieve the dead or their possessions.

As the party travels into the marsh, note the way the plants are withering and there are no signs of the usual prey animals except as carrion, overgrown with grey-orange fungus or ripped up by predators.

See the rest of the build below the cut.

Major Locations+NPCs:

Moonglow Tavern & Inn - crooked, ramshackle tavern just on the edge of the village, run by Jantriss Pearbrewer, a halfling sorcerer of the Aberrant Mind. She possesses the orange sunstone gem that controls a large Orange Slaad dwelling within the marsh. See her stats under Encounter 3. Her goal is to create unrest and spread the corrupting touch of the slaad under her control. She is crafty and an excellent liar. She claims that Haymander Stirk, a trapper and woodsman, is to blame, implying that he uses magicked traps to catch game that are contaminating the food.

Doctor Amada’s Apothecary - a canvas-walled building for treating the sick, managed by Doctor Gayle Amada and her ward, Forrest Lodestone, an herbalist. Forrest Lodestone is infected, and treats the ill from one side of a canvas partition to prevent Amada from contracting the disease, too. Doctor Amada believes the illness is magical in origin, but she can’t say for certain what the cause is. If the party brings her one of Stirk’s traps, she can verify it was not the cause of the illness, but she thinks the food is responsible somehow. Forrest Lodestone is a vegetarian and didn’t eat any of the “contaminated” meat, so he thinks it can’t possibly be the fault of the game traps. Lodestone has two days left since he developed symptoms of exhaustion: he moves slowly, and struggles to do and remember things.

Haymander Stirk’s Cabin in the Marsh - The cabin is a sturdy log structure. There are animal pelts being stretched on wooden frames outside and a pile of animal bones sits a hundred yards from the house itself. It is inhabited by Haymander Stirk, a trapper and woodsman who has lived in the marsh all his life. He is hostile to strangers, thinking that they’re here to accuse him of causing the disease. If the party can convince him to talk with them, he will reveal that he got sick, too, and by his best guess he’s got a couple hours left. He says he saw something out there--a large, orange, amphibious creature that attacked a bear and then fled; the bear survived, but he saw the same creature again last night, shambling and zombified and covered in orange fungus. At the DM’s discretion, Stirk may already be dead when the party arrives (especially if they go everywhere else first).

The Remains of the Merchant Shipment - two badly damaged wagons. The contents of the wagons have been strewn about the site; food rots in the muck and clothes are scattered across the quagmire. Everything of value has already been taken, and the bodies are gone. The most the party can find are a few missing limbs, grown over with a disgusting grey-orange fungus.

The Slaad Nest - a rock-walled hideaway deep in the marsh. One side of the marsh is a downward, rocky slope, while the rest is sheer cliff; at the back of the nest, a crack in the rock provides a back exit. The nest has several small, scraggly trees and due to the marshy landscape is considered difficult terrain.

Outline:

The herbalists and doctors of Black Ridge Marsh don’t know what to do about the people who come to them covered in pebbled, sickly orange pustules, and when they begin coughing up gray-orange, blood-streaked mucus and die a few days later, they send a call for help from the nearest town. The party may have been hired to investigate, or perhaps they are coincidentally traveling through the marsh around the same time (at the DM’s discretion, based on what suits your needs)

Encounter 1:

Takes place outside Black Ridge village, before the party reaches the village. 

Enemy: 4 zombie wolves. 

To boost its difficulty in a party with heavy damage-dealers, consider maxing out the wolf’s hitpoints to 18 hp rather than the recommended 11.

The DM’s goals in this encounter are 1) establish the threat of zombified creatures in the area, 2) batter the PCs before their arrival in town, and 3) leave the threat open of another zombie-wolf attack later. With that in mind, use description of the wolves to suggest that around their eyes and muzzles is a peculiar orange fungus sprouting from their flesh, aim to harm the PCs rather than drain their resources, and if 2 wolves are killed, let the other 2 attempt to flee the scene rather than fight to the death.

If the party is keeping a lookout for creatures in the marsh, they might be able to detect the wolves before they attack. Use a DC 12 Perception check to determine if the wolves are seen; if they aren’t, the party members are considered surprised for one round. 

After the zombie-wolf encounter, the party comes upon the village. By the time they arrive on the scene, ten of the marsh’s 120 residents are dead, three of them children. There is a funeral taking place at the first house they come to; the body is wrapped in canvas to prevent contamination and placed in a steel box to be sunk in the depths of the marsh.

The townsfolk are desperate for help; five more infected are wasting away in the town’s only apothecary. They’ve traced the problem to their food, so the price of food brought in from other areas has tripled as people will pay a high premium for uncontaminated food.

Through interactions with Doctor Gayle Amada, trapper Haymander Stirk, and barkeep and sorcerer Jantriss Pearbrewer as well as other assorted NPCs, the party can discover assorted details outlined in the location and NPC section above that they can use to inform their actions.

Intermediate encounters can be rearranged depending on what the PCs choose to do and where they go; each of these is tied to a location. You may not use all of these; they depend largely on party choices. 

Encounter 2.1:

Takes place in the village of Black Ridge. 

Enemy: 3 zombies. 

The DM’s goals in this encounter are to 1) cause some havoc in town, and 2) set up the calculating maneuvers of the ultimate villain. The zombies’ strategy is to attack the Moonglow Tavern, which is near the burial grounds of the village. They attempt to break in and attack Jantriss, but never actually harm her--even apparent “attacks” should miss. 

Encounter 2.2:

Takes place in the marsh, preferably while the party is looking for the monster causing all this. Alternately, use before or after they visit Haymander’s Cabin.

Enemy: 3 zombie wolves and 4 slaad tadpoles. 

The DM’s goal here is to set up the appearance of the Slaad later in the plot and follow through on the escape of the zombified wolves at the beginning of the arc, as well as staying consistent with the dangers to be found in the marsh. If they examine the tadpoles, a DC 12 Investigation check shows large protrusions from their heads containing small orange gemstones.

See zombie wolf stats above.

Encounter 2.3:

Takes place at the merchant shipment.

Enemy: 7 zombies. These zombies are blooming with orange fungus. A few of them are missing limbs that match up perfectly to the dismembered limbs the party finds at the scene, making it clear that the merchant caravan was zombified.

Encounter 3.1 (boss fight):

Takes place in the marsh.

Enemy: an orange slaad (homebrew version of Red Slaad).

When the Orange Slaad’s HP is under half its hitpoint maximum, it will claw at a tree as part of its multiattack, then flee through a crack in the rocks behind it. The tree ripples and melts into an ochre jelly.

Encounter 3.2: 

Takes place as a part of the Boss Fight.

Enemy: 1 ochre jelly. After it is formed by the Orange Slaad, the Ochre Jelly acts as a defense against the party while the Slaad attempts to escape. The jelly will attempt to block the opening in the rock at all times, but it can be lured away.

Your goal here is to give the Slaad a chance to recover HP while complicating combat with another enemy. The party can also choose to let the Slaad escape for the time being and break away to take a short or a long rest in the meantime.

Encounter 3.3: 

Boss fight cont’d.

After defeating the jelly or finding another way to track the Slaad, the party can eventually track it down. If the party opted to take a rest, the Slaad is back to full HP; otherwise, it regains 10 hp for every round that has passed.

The Twist: The slaad has a hole carved in its head, and after it is killed, the party can see there is a spot where a chunk of gemstone has been chipped out. The rest is with Jantriss Pearbrewer, who has been controlling the slaad this whole time! She is a sorcerer of the aberrant mind, and she’s furious that her monster is dead.

Reward:

The townsfolk are overjoyed that the monster is defeated. They will reward the party with horses, 200gp, and a letter of commendation they can use at the nearest city to exchange for a favor with the captain of the guard, who grew up in Black Ridge.

[oneirataxxiaa]

Melting Point

REQUEST ; Could I get Icicle Jr. with a pyrokinetic! Fem! reader? Headcanons or oneshot is up to you.

KEY; 

y/h/n - your hero name          y/n - your name       l/n - last name

NOTES: hope you like this one anon, it was fun to write!

listening to ; The Reckless and the Brave , All Time Low

written by Persephone

← ♦ →

“Use the psychic link only, the Bialians have the tech to intercept our radios. Anything goes wrong, we scatter and meet at the rendezvous point, clear?” Miss martians voice echoed through Y/n’s head, dissimilar to the usual crackling sound of team chatter over the radio comm link. 

“Clear!” Y/n responded across the mental link. Mixed along with her voice was the response of Batgirl and Bumblebee. 

“ugh, clear. . “ Wonder Girl spoke aloud before gasping and covering her mouth quickly. “clear!, sorry. . “ her voice gone, replaced with the mental connection. When Wonder Girl spoke for the second time, the rest of the team was already in motion, leaving the blonde girl alone on the hill as a lookout. 

Y/h/n followed Batgirl along the side of the facility, scaling the wall and crouching along the edge of the roof, keeping an eye out, as well as out of sight of the guards below as Batgirl made her way into the building through the vents. When the red head was gone, y/h/n ran silently along the rooftop, jumping from it to the next one and entering through the door to an external staircase. She tried her best to keep her footsteps silent, creeping down the staircase and peaking through doorways and avoiding the sounds of talking from guards and other such people within the building. 

Y/h/n ran across a doorway opening, grabbing the handle to the one entrance to the room and slamming it shut. The yells of protest from inside were quickly muffled by the closed door. Y/h/n then focused, feeling her hands heat up and begin to glow a faint red as the metal below her hands melted, sealing the door closed and trapping those inside. She let out a small laugh, stepping back a few times and turning, continuing her run down the hallway towards the docking bay. 

She was almost there, keeping a low profile, avoiding or knocking out any guards nearby as she travelled. All seemed well. 

A sudden crash, and yell of ‘ LOCK DOWN’ from outside the building made Y/h/n pick up the pace of her run, not caring who saw her now as it was clear their cover had been blown. Doors began to slam shut, the hanger door closed slowly and an alarm echoed annoyingly through the hallways. Y/h/n continued to follow the hallways towards the final hanger before turning a corner and crashing directly into someone running the opposite way. Her hands lit up, her eyes glowing, only to calm when she realised who it was. 

“Batgirl! Geez girl you scared me” Y/h/n let out a sigh of relief and the glowing subsided. After a quick look, she could also see Bumblebee flying in her small form over the red heads shoulder. 

“Whats going on?” Bumblebee asked, “the links down”.

“I’m not sure, but we need to get to the rendezvous point a-s-a-p” Batgirl said. 

“We’re not getting out through the hanger, its all sealed up!”

“I was looking over the map of the air ducts, they connect all three hangers, but they also link to a larger room further underground, 20 metres below, that could be our way out” Batgirl hummed, looking over one of her little devices that y/h/n could never understand. Anyone associated with Batman seemed to have those kind of devices to help them out. Maybe Y/h/n should get one if they were so useful.

“Lead the way B” Y/h/n said, gesturing with her hand for the girl to go ahead. Batgirl ran past her, and Y/h/n followed. She could hear the mechanical buzzing behind her as Bumblebee followed them as well. The facility in Bialya was a maze, but Batgirl seemed to know where she was going, leading them down hallway after hallway before finding a large vent opening, towards the ground. Batgirl directed them to move silently through the vent and out the other side. It was a few minutes of crawling through dust and stuffy air before they crawled out into a large stone opening. 

“oh. . .” Y/h/n looked wide-eyed at the strange engraved walls and broken pillars littering the room. 

“Can you say temple of doom?” Bumblebee asked, flying upwards to get a better look at the layout. Meanwhile, Batgirl continued to lead, creeping along the edge of the shadows and moving towards a hanger door further down. Y/h/n could see a large open door in the distance, and a plane. Alongside the wall closest to them, she could see a multitude of containers, their contents eluding her due to the angle she was facing. 

Batgirl was already ahead of her, looking at the containers with worry clear on her masked face. “Wh-what?’ she muttered to herself. Y/h/n was about to join her on the ground level when she spotted people moving quickly towards the caped heroine. A scream called out from the girl when Simon blasted her with a mental wave, knocking her unconscious. A small conversation Y/h/n couldn’t hear began among the villains, discussing what to do clearly as they had just captured a member of the team. Y/h/n jumped down from the landing, ending up hiding behind one of the nearby pillars. 

“Are you serious?” Y/h/n frowned, she didn’t think she’d heard that voice before. It was possible though, considering how new she was to the team, only joining up a few months prior. There were dozens of villains out there. It would be usual for her not to know them all. “The rest of these kids are run aways, strays!, they won’t be missed, but a Bat Brat?” The pyrokinetic looked around the side of the pillar, spying a few different figures. Most she recognised from reading about them in the Teams logs of missions. Simon was the first one she recognised obviously, everyone in the team had to be aware of him and his abilities as a psychic. Devastation was another, along with shimmer that she recognised. Mammoth was further away, loading some of the pods onto the plane nearby. The final one she could see was Icicle Jr, that must have been the voice she didn’t recognise from before. 

“I want this bird in the air in ten” Simon said, as the others around him began to work on their allocated assignments. Bumblebee flew down towards Y/h/n, hovering by her ear. 

“I’m going to go find Miss Martian, keep an eye on them and make sure they can’t take off!” Y/h/n nodded, Bee flew off, and she was left alone with 5 villains and a large amount of assorted henchmen. With a quick sigh, Y/h/n moved along the wall, keeping herself low as to not cast a shadow. Ahead of her, she could see Devastation moving more of the pods. An idea came to mind to slow down progress. The girl waited until Mammoth and Devastation were walking towards the plane before resting her hand on the base of one of the pods, said hand glowed and began to heat the metal, eventually melting it slightly into the ground. She continued this process with as many of the pods as she could reach before having to dive for cover again when they returned. 

“Hu-What?” Devastation grunted, attempting to pull the pod from the ground.

“Whats going on over there?” Simon called out. 

“The pod, its melted to the ground!” Devastation made one final pull, ripping the thing harshly from the floor, sending concrete spraying through the air. Y/h/n ducked back to avoid being hit by debris and to avoid the woman's wrath.

“Thats not possible! One of those little justice imps must be hanging around, find them!” Simon yelled. Y/h/n stepped back from where she was hiding, moving further into the shadows. Mammoth was close by, walking past where she was hidden. A few more steps and he would see her. 

“Shimmer! What are you doing!” Simon yelled again. The woman with the half-shaved head turned towards the telepath, the glowing green eyes gave away the fact that that person was not, in fact, Shimmer at all. “The martian. . .” Chaos seemed to ensue from there. The large cargo plane began to move towards the end of the runway, Mammoth and Devastation running after it. Wondergirl and Bee attacking the two of them. Y/h/n spotted Icicle Jr moving towards Miss Martian and sprang into action, running forwards and bringing up a wall of flames behind the girl to push him back. 

“Oh no you don’t!” Y/h/n yelled, holding her hand forwards to send a blast of flames towards him, at the same time, the boy sent a blast of ice towards her. The result was a cloud of steam from the melted ice that surrounded them. “Oh, that is, interesting” she said, running her hand through the floating steam, watching it move around her hand. After another ice blast was thrown her way, Y/h/n moved back into the fight. More steam rose as the fire and ice hit each other. 

“Y/H/N, LETS MOVE!” Bumblebee yelled from where she was, flying towards the departing plane. Y/h/n paused, bouncing on the balls of her feet to get her bearings quickly before waving a goodbye to the ice covered boy.

"later loser" she grinned, sending one last fireball towards him as a distraction before sprinting after the plane. A quick glance back confirmed that the fireball had hit it's target, knocking junior back. She almost felt sorry seeing him holding a hand on his stomach as he got to his feet. They locked eyes, for a moment, and Y/h/n winked before turning away and jumping into the open hanger as the plane took off into the air.

On Bialyian soil, Icicle Jr got to his feet, watching the plane vanish. Around him the others got up from where they had been thrown, beginning to organize what they had left from the raid, Junior, however, kept glancing towards the hanger entrance. Something in his mind that he couldn't quite put a finger on.

[thebrokenscript]

Not A Fallen Jedi - Part 2

this even longer part is a continuation of Not A Fallen Jedi, a oneshot that i did for @finish-the-clone-wars‘s writing wednesday. this part is a rewrite of To Catch A Jedi and is the second part in what’s gonna be a three part series following captain rex through The Wrong Jedi arc

don’t tag as rexsok/a

Part One | Part Two | Part Three

The ride to the Temple was tense and silent. The air between Anakin and Rex crackled with anxiety. Rex fiddled with one of his pistols just to give his hands something to do while his thoughts spun.

Ahsoka was resourceful. It was very likely that she could disappear in the underworld for a long, long time. Not that that would stop them from hunting her but- he frowned. What was her goal? Would she stay to prove her innocence? Or would she try to leave? He was almost certain it was the former, but he felt like the world had been yanked out from under his feet. Nothing made sense anymore.

“Would you have shot her?”

Anakin’s voice snapped Rex out of his thoughts. The question startled him and his immediately response was to be defensive. 

“No.” 

Anakin was silent. Rex stared down at the pistol in his hands. 

“I would have talked to her,” he finally said. “Try to convince her that the best thing was to come back.”

“And if that didn’t work?”

“I don’t know, sir.”

Anakin sighed. “That makes two of us, Rex.” His grip tightened on the steering. “We won’t have a choice next time.”

If there was a next time. For all intents and purposes, Rex could definitely see the Council taking Anakin off the hunt for Ahsoka. They were so touchy about attachments. Anakin had gotten lucky, Rex supposed, that he was the only one who had seen him let Ahsoka go. He would never admit that Anakin let her go, even if it meant lying to the Council.

They reached the Temple and hurried inside, sweeping past the open halls, the meditating Knights, and the racing Younglings. It looked like it always did, but Rex swore he could see the shadow hanging over it.

“Wait out here while I talk to them,” Anakin said. “I’ll make them understand that she’s innocent and then we’ll find her.”

“Yes sir,” Rex said, watching Anakin whisk into the Council room. Sighing silently, he waited, tapping a quick rhythm on his leg. Where would Ahsoka go? If she was going to try to prove her innocence like he thought she would, she’d probably start where it had all begun. So, the prisoner’s home. What was her name? Letta Turmond, that was it. The place would probably still have some form of police protection, especially now. So then-

“Nervous, Rex?”

Rex spun around to find Wolffe coming to a stop behind him. “No,” he said, then pushed on before Wolffe could call him out. “What are you doing here?”

“General called. I assume it has to do with your commander.”

Rex could hear the unasked question in his statement. Far be it from him to ignore it. “She’s innocent, Wolffe. We just have to find her and bring her back.”

“Jedi have fallen before, Rex.”

“I know,” Rex snapped at the warning. Of course he knew. He still had nightmares from Umbara. From Krell. Taking a deep breath to force the sudden fury below, he continued with restrained calm. “But not her. She would never turn on us- on the Jedi!”

Wolffe shifted slightly to face the doors of the Council room. “We’ll see.”

Before Rex could respond, the doors opened and Anakin and General Plo came out. Rex and Wolffe fell into step beside them as they left.

“You’re going to be commanding the Coruscant guard,” Anakin said. “They know the underworld better than anyone. Make sure all of your men have their weapons set to stun and that they don’t hurt her.” He directed the order mostly to Wolffe, who nodded sharply.

“Will do, sir. How do we plan on finding her?”

“Anakin has already alerted the lower level police to be on the lookout for her,” Plo rumbled. “We’ll listen for any suspicious activity on the way down.”

“If I can make a suggestion, General,” Rex said, “if Commander Tano is trying to prove her innocence, I believe she might start at the home of the prisoner, Letta Turmond.”

Plo nodded. “A fair observation, Captain. If we do not hear anything from the police, that will be a good place to start.”

They made their way over to the speeder and hopped in. Anakin flew them back to the prison through the still raging storm. When they landed, Fox had already gathered a group of men and was waiting for them.

“Generals,” Fox said, stepping forward when they climbed out. “These are my best men. They know the underworld like the back of their hands and will find your apprentice.”

Anakin nodded sharply. “Thank you, Commander. Where are the gunships?”

“You’ll be taking the search ships, sir.” Fox pointed over at the black ships. Rex glanced over at them, noting the lack of guns immediately.

“Alright. Rex, Wolffe, divide the men into two teams and brief them. Meet us at the carriers when you’re done,” Anakin said.

“Yes sir,” Rex and Wolffe replied before turning to the men. He and Wolffe quickly split them in half, then stepped aside to brief them.

Rex flipped open the Wanted list on the data pad, heart clenching at the sight of one already listed for Ahsoka. Couldn’t they have chosen another picture? One that didn’t make her look so angry and cold hearted?

WARRANT FOR ARREST AHSOKA TANO. JEDI. FUGITIVE FROM REPUBLIC

Ignoring the rage that swept through him, Rex turned to the men he was leading. “I’m Captain Rex. We’re searching for Commander Ahsoka Tano,” he said, lifting the datapad so everyone could see. He then handed it to one of them so they could pass it around and get a better look. “We are not looking to kill or harm her; capture only. I want all weapons set to stun now.” There was a flurry of movement and clicks as they changed the settings on their blasters.

“But sir, what if she attacks us?”

Rex kept his face carefully neutral, casting his gaze around at all the apprehensive faces staring back at him. They all had the same question.

“It is very likely that she won’t attack unless she’s cornered. She’s looking to escape, not attack,” he said firmly. “As long as you stay with the group, you’ll be fine.”

In the back of the group he heard a quiet scoff and a muttered, “What good is a group against a Jedi is she just decides to cut us all down?”

Rex’s expression turned to steel, the fury he’d been wrestling back now starting to gain some ground. He stepped forward and the group quickly parted until he was staring down the clone who had said it. “What’s your name, trooper?”

“Camo. Sir.” His gaze flicked off to the side, suddenly unable to hold Rex’s glare.

“Well, Camo,” Rex said, his voice borderline growl. “I have served alongside Commander Tano for years. I know her. You can trust me when I say that she will avoid hurting any of us and that she absolutely will not kill anyone. Is that understood?”

“Yes sir.”

Rex turned sharply to look at the rest of the men. “Does anyone else have any concerns?”

A tense silence met his question.

“Good. Let’s go.” Rex shoved his helmet on and finally released the choking anger that he couldn’t hold back any longer. His mouth twisted into a snarl as it swept through him, hate and anger rolling off of him in waves as he led the way over to the carrier.

He hated the Jedi and the Republic for making them hunt her down. He hated how everyone was doubting Ahsoka’s innocence. A tiny part of him that had been blackened by everything he’d been through even hated Ahsoka for running. And that only infuriated him further.

“My group is ready, General,” he said tightly once he reached Anakin.

Plo and Anakin both fell silent, glancing over at him. Anakin’s expression visibly darkened. He excused himself from Plo, then took Rex off to the side. “Rex, I know you’re frustrated and angry, but I need you focused.”

“I am focused.”

Anakin shook his head. “You are this close to going off in a blind rage. Don’t-” he cut in as Rex started to protest. “-Rex I can sense it. You’re not exactly trying to hide it.” That shut Rex up. “I don’t care what you do, but I need you focused, okay?”

“Yes sir.”

“Alright. Let’s go.” He clapped one hand on Rex’s shoulder and they headed over to the carrier. Rex pulled his helmet off again as the carrier took off. It was easier to control his emotions when others could see his face. The ships sank down into the underworld and in his mind’s eye Rex could see her jumping again.

He had been terrified- hadn’t known that there was a ship for her to land on. His heart twisted. Was she alone? Was she scared? He would be. The nightmares of hunting and killing Jedi were fresh in his mind. This was one of them brought to life in a sick twist of fate. He could only pray that it wouldn’t end the same way the nightmares always did. No, it wouldn’t. Because he knew, with absolute certainty, that he could never gun Ahsoka down. Not like in his dreams. Never like that.

A shudder ran through him and he turned his attention to the radio. He listened to the chatter, gaze flickering across all the levels. How far would she have gone? It depended on whether she was investigating or escaping. Even so, they were on route to Letta Turmond’s house. With any luck they would get a lead there.

A sudden crackle of chatter suddenly caught his attention. Looking sharply up to Anakin he said, “The lower level police may have spotted Commander Tano headed to level 1312.”

Hope and resolve flashed through Anakin’s gaze and he nodded. “Alright, let’s bring her home!” he said, then turned to the pilot. “Level 1312!” The carrier veered sharply as it turned. Anakin punched his com. “Master Plo, the police might have seen her going to level 1312.”

Plo’s voice crackled through the com. “Alright, we’re heading that way now.”

Anticipation rushed through Rex as he skimmed the levels down until he caught sight of the distant level 1312. The probe droids should make finding her easier. His grip tightened on his helmet. There were no excuses this time. This time if they found her they would have to capture her, no matter what.

Rex’s eyes narrowed as they got closer to level 1312. There were a fair amount of figures milling around. It would be near impossible to pick Ahsoka out from here.

Except Anakin suddenly stepped forward, hyper-alert.

“Shine the light over there!” he yelled. Rex stepped forward, following his gaze and the light. It landed on two people, one who looked vaguely like-

Anakin flung himself out of the carrier.

-Ahsoka.

Moving closer to the edge, Rex squinted at the two people as the carrier got closer and closer. He had no doubt that one of them was Ahsoka now, but who was she with?

They were pale- extremely pale, and moved with a grace he’d come to associate with Force users. He caught sight of two lightsabers swinging from their side-

Red exploded across the scene as the ray shield appeared before them.

Asajj Ventress.

Rex staggered back as if he’d been punched, the ship tilting as it turned sharply to avoid flying too close to the ray shield.

It couldn’t be Ventress- Ahsoka would never-

And then he saw Ventress rest a hand on Ahsoka’s shoulder.

Gentle.

Comforting.

Rex’s world began to crumble around him.

“Send out the probes!” Anakin yelled. “I want them found now!”

The probes were released. Rex’s heart pounded furiously in his chest, pumping only ice water through his veins. His head was throbbing. It couldn’t be Ventress. She was their enemy- she’d killed so many clones, taken so many innocent lives- she was a Sith! Ahsoka would never- she couldn’t have...

The carrier rose into the air without Anakin. Rex’s eyes widened as they left behind the only person who could confirm or deny if it was Ventress. Turning sharply away from the ground, Rex’s grip tightened on the bar. It was fine. They would land inside the level and he’d get to Anakin and Anakin would tell him that it wasn’t Ventress.

It couldn’t be Ventress.

The carrier swept down to the street below. Rex pried his fingers loose from the bar, pushing his helmet back on as he worked the tension out of his fingers. Anakin quickly approached. Before he came to a stop, he pulled up a map. “Master Plo’s squadron is going to take this area,” he said, gesturing along the streets. “We’re taking this one. All weapons set to stun, and if we find her we want her alive!”

“Yes sir!” the men replied, and then they were off, slinking through the shadowy streets on high alert. Rex stayed near Anakin, whose expression was grave and almost unfocused.

“Who was it?” The question escaped Rex in almost a whisper without his permission. The plea in his tone was painfully obvious, begging for Anakin to say it wasn’t her.

Anakin’s hollow gaze turned slowly up to Rex’s. He didn’t say anything. He only nodded in confirmation.

Horror flooded Rex. Ahsoka was with Ventress. Ventress, who’d slaughtered his men in cold blood, who had killed so many innocents and laughed. His stomach turned. He could still remember it. Still feel her invisible hand closing around his throat to choke the life out of him. Still feel the invisible fingers reaching into his mind to corrupt him. A shudder ran through him. Ventress was evil. Ahsoka couldn’t be working with her- there had to be a reason!

But nothing that came to him made sense. The fact remained that they were bitter enemies. Or so he thought. Doubt began to trickle into his mind.

Wolffe was right. Jedi had fallen before.

But not Ahsoka. Never Ahsoka.

Perhaps how much he cared was blinding him to reality.

There had to be reason for it-

Maybe she’d been working with Ventress for awhile.

No, she couldn’t be- it wasn’t possible.

But he could find no explanation for why Ventress had touched Ahsoka so comfortingly.

“Focus, Rex,” Anakin growled, slipping around a sleeping body before falling back into the shadows.

A sudden flood of information from a probe saved Rex from having to answer.

“A probe has spotted her at a holobooth at the corner of 12th and G,” he said.

Anakin’s eyes narrowed. “That’s Master Plo’s area. What is she doing at a holobooth? Who is she contacting?”

“Are we going over there, sir?” Rex asked urgently.

Anakin nodded sharply. “Yes. Come on!” He broke into a run. Rex motioned for the men to follow, then took off after him. Anakin set the pace at a dead sprint, something Rex was grateful for as he poured all of his fury into lending him speed.

It wasn’t long before they reached 12th and G, only to find Wolffe and his men gingerly picking themselves up off the ground. Fear spiked through Rex at the sight of them. No- no Ahsoka would never hurt them. They came to a stop just as Wolffe pulled off his helmet to rub his head.

“Commander what happened?” Anakin asked, coming to a stop much too close to Wolffe. The Commander stepped back, a cold fury settling on his face.

“She got away with the help of Asajj Ventress,” he growled. “Sir,” he slapped on absently, turning sharply to help one of his men up.

Rex felt himself disconnecting. She was being helped by Ventress. Oh no, no, nononono-

Anakin faded away to speak to Plo. Rex knelt down unthinkingly, gently checking one of the men who was slow to get up. “Come on,” he whispered, helping him to his feet.

“Still think she’s innocent, Rex?” Wolffe growled.

Rex flinched internally at the challenge. Yes- yes she had to be innocent. This was Ahsoka- Ahsoka could never- he felt sick. His stomach was churning unpleasantly and the spinning in his head was getting worse.

“Yes,” he said. “Yes she’s innocent.”

Wolffe fixed him in a cold stare. “Didn’t you learn your lesson last time?”

The shot cut deep. Rex took a tiny step back. Ahsoka wasn’t Krell. She hadn’t hurt any of the clones- just like he had said earlier- they had cornered her, so she fought her way out. Nobody was dead. She... she...

Wolffe scowled at him, then put his helmet back on and turned to the Jedi.

Rex suddenly felt very alone. He was here in the depths of Coruscant surrounded by clones he didn’t know, on a nightmare hunt for Ahsoka, who was as close to him as any brother, and she might have betrayed them. Anakin was untouchable, and the 501st, the ones who would understand, were still on Cato Neimoidia. For the first time in a long, long time, Rex felt truly and absolutely alone, facing what could be the greatest betrayal of his life.

Staring after Wolffe, Rex took a shaky breath and put it all in a box. Everything. All the anger, all the confusion, all the fear. He put it all in and shut it up, locking it tight and setting it aside, not to be opened again. Turning, he went through the men, checking that they were alright.

Once he had gotten through everyone, Anakin came over to him. “We’re heading back to the carriers. We’ll keep scanning the police radios, but for now we’re going to go to Letta Turmond’s house,” he said.

“What about the holobooth, sir?” Rex asked. “If she used it we should be able to trace who she contacted.”

Anakin shook his head. “She rewired it. We can’t efficiently trace it.”

“Ah,” Rex mumbled, watching the others climb aboard the carrier.

“We’ll find her, Rex.”

“I know, sir.”

“Have faith in her. We know she’s innocent.”

“Yes sir.”

Rex turned away, climbing aboard the carrier. A frown crept across his face. The hunt through the prison was still fresh in his mind. She had been terrified. The whole time, she’d been more scared than he’d ever seen her before. His gaze dropped back to the street as the carrier took off.

She was scared. Maybe she wasn’t thinking clearly. Maybe Ventress had promised her something. Ventress was manipulating her. She had to be. Ahsoka was innocent.

Resolve turned his heart to steel. They would find her, and given the chance, he would shoot Ventress dead himself.

The radio suddenly crackled to life. “Calling all units. Suspicious activity on level 1315.”

Rex looked up to Anakin, who nodded sharply.

“Level 1315,” Rex called to the pilot. The engine revved as the ship tilted forward, soaring to the level.

“This is Captain Rex from the search party looking for the Jedi,” Rex said into the com, eyes narrowing at the quickly approaching level 1315. “Requesting to know the location of the suspicious activity.”

“An abandoned warehouse on 28th and L, Captain.”

“Thank you.” Rex turned back to Anakin. “28th and L. It’s an abandoned warehouse.”

“What’s she doing at a warehouse?” Anakin muttered, frowning.

Plo’s carrier landed first. Rex watched as they streamed out of the carrier, moving swiftly into the shadows. Nervous energy crackled through him. The carrier landed and they lunged out, streaking after Wolffe’s group. Anakin started for the shadows, a bid at being stealthy, then promptly dropped the act, breaking into a dead sprint.

Something was wrong.

Rex bolted after him, forgetting being stealthy, forgetting trying to catch her off guard, forgetting forgetting forgetting.

“No! Wolffe, let me explain!”

Rex’s heart skipped a beat at her voice. Desperate, pleading.

“Wolffe wait!” Rex yelled into the com. There was a shot that he heard both through the com and in real time. A moment later he was upon them.

He knew Wolffe had fired a stun ray, but that did nothing to lessen the wave of rage and grief that crashed over him at the sight of Ahsoka’s fallen body. Anakin was already at her side. Wolffe flashed a side glance at Rex as he put his blaster away, then turned to the boxes surrounding them.

There was a moment of tense silence and then-

“Explosives. These were the same type of nanodroids that were used to blow up the Jedi Temple,” Wolffe said, picking one up.

Rex stared blankly at them.

Anakin stepped back from Ahsoka, looking to Wolffe and the explosives. “I can’t believe it,” he said, disbelief and confusion flashing across his face. Betrayal, almost.

Rex stepped forward. “Sir,” he said lowly, “she was looking to prove her innocence. This proves nothing-”

“Captain,” Plo interrupted. “None of us want to believe Ahsoka was capable of this, but we cannot deny that this is suspicious.”

Anakin balked at that. Rex could see Plo’s words getting under his skin. But, for some reason, Anakin said nothing.  “Come on,” he finally said. “We have to get her back to the Temple.” He started toward Ahsoka, but stopped, freezing as if something was blocking him from getting to her. And then, inexplicably, he stepped back. “Rex,” he said shortly, then turned and stalked away, heading back toward the carriers.

Not quite understanding why Anakin was suddenly acting so strangely, Rex moved stiffly over to Ahsoka and carefully picked her up. He noted dully that she was heavier than last time he had done this. She had been even younger then- god what were they doing sending children into war? Jaw clenching in an attempt to keep the tears at bay, he followed Anakin.

They boarded the carrier. Rex carefully set her down, keeping one hand on her shoulder to stop her from falling. Anakin was facing away from them, blinking hard and roughly pushing his hair back. Rex silently looked away, pretending not to notice.

Plo and Wolffe climbed aboard and the carrier took off. Rex pulled his helmet off, finding it all too confining. Wolffe did the same, flashing Rex a look as he rested a hand on Ahsoka’s shoulder to steady her. Rex’s eyes narrowed.

“It had to be done,” Wolffe said lowly. “You wouldn’t have done it.”

No. If Ahsoka had pleaded with him like she’d pleaded with Wolffe, he wouldn’t have been able to pull the trigger. He didn’t justify Wolffe with an answer. They both knew that he wouldn’t have shot Ahsoka. He would have let her speak. Or escape again. Rex looked away to where Anakin and Plo were putting in a contact.

Master Yoda’s image suddenly appeared. “Captured, she has been?”

Fury flooded Rex at the serene look on the Jedi’s face. How could he speak so casually about something like this? Anakin was tense beside him, rage half frozen on his face.

“Yes, Master Yoda,” Plo said.

“Without incident?”

The words only served to infuriate Rex further. ‘Without incident?’ As if he had been expecting a body count? Anakin turned sharply toward Rex as if he head said it out loud, a furious warning clouding his gaze. Clenching his jaw, Rex dropped his gaze back to Ahsoka

“No. She was subdued by the clones and found in possession of explosive nanodroids,” Plo answered.

“That still doesn’t explain Ventress’s involvement,” Anakin snapped, the first words he’d truly spoken since they found her. “We saw her with Ahsoka.” Anakin then paused. Rex could tell he was reining himself back in. A heavy sigh escaped the Jedi. “I think there’s more going on than we know.”

“By Ahsoka or against her?” General Windu suddenly appeared.

“That remains to be seen,” Plo said.

“We’re bring her back to the Temple,” Anakin said after a moment.

“Let’s just hope we can keep her here,” Windu said.

Rex bristled at that. They had no faith in her. How could they abandon her like this? She hadn’t hurt or killed anyone, but they were still treating her like a traitor. Could they even be trusted to give her fair treatment when she got to the Temple?

The holocom cut out, leaving them in a tense silence.

Ahsoka began to stir. Rex looked sharply at her when he felt her shift slightly under his grip. She lifted her head slowly, blinking in confusion as if wondering where she was.

“Master? Rex? Wha-” She suddenly tensed, eyes flying open and the cloud of confusion clearing immediately.

“It’s alright, Ahsoka, you’re safe,” Anakin said, stepping in and quickly kneeling before her.

“No- no Master you have to understand, I didn’t do anything! Those nanodroids, I found them and Ventress she- she brought me there. She attacked me!” Ahsoka said desperately, then sucked in a sharp breath, one arm wrapping around her ribs. Tears flooded her eyes. “You have to believe me, I’m not guilty!”

She was injured, Rex realized with a start. Severely injured, from how she was acting. His fury turned to poison. Ventress. If he ever ran into that damn bogwitch again, he was going to kill her. He was going to gun her down like the mad dog she was. Realizing he was shaking, Rex let go of Ahsoka, grabbing the bar above to steady himself.

“I know, Ahsoka, I know,” Anakin said. “I know you’re not guilty and it’s going to be alright.”

The lie grated across Rex. Ahsoka shook her head slightly, eyes wide. They all knew things weren’t going to be alright.

Anakin stood up and for a moment Rex swore he looked helpless. If he did, it was gone in an instant. He turned sharply back to the holocom and punched a few buttons. A woman Rex only seen a few times and didn’t know the name of appeared.

“Master Skywalker?” she said, not sounding surprised. “What can I do for you?”

“Doctor Nema,” Anakin said, bowing slightly. “My padawan has been injured and needs a Healer.”

The Healer’s expression flashed from suspicion to concern to neutral all in the blink of an eye. “Very well. We’ll be waiting for you.”

“Thank you. We’ll be arriving shortly,” Anakin said, then disconnected.

Ahsoka seemed to shrink in on herself. Rex could see her struggling not to cry. A sadness that was almost too much to bear weighed down on him. Reaching out, he rested his hand on her shoulder; the only comfort he could provide at the time. He could feel her trembling.

The carrier suddenly began to slow. Looking out, Rex saw the Temple rising before them. A few moments later, they landed. Ahsoka stood and Rex let his hand fall away. Anakin took his place, guiding her out of the ship.

“I will go to the Council,” Plo said. “Let them know we have arrived.”

Anakin nodded. “I’ll take Ahsoka to the Healer. We’ll stay there until we hear from the Council.”

They walked silently into the Temple, Plo turning to head toward the Council room. Wolffe stayed at Rex’s side and they followed Anakin to the hospital where they stopped to wait outside.

“Rex,” Wolffe said quietly. Rex’s gaze flicked up to him. “Do you think she’s innocent?”

Rex’s eyes narrowed. It didn’t sound like a challenge this time. “Yes,” he said firmly.

Wolffe studied him for a moment. “Even if she was with Ventress?”

“You heard her. Ventress attacked her,” Rex said, then sighed. “Wolffe she made a mistake. It’s the only explanation for why she was with Ventress. She hated her as much as any of us. Ventress must have threatened her or promised her something. It wasn’t her fault.”

Wolffe didn’t respond. Rex lapsed into silence, having to remember that Wolffe had personally been scarred by Ventress. If he hated her, he could only imagine what Wolffe felt. The fact that he was even considering Ahsoka’s innocence despite her involvement with Ventress was something to be grateful for.

“Well,” Wolffe finally said, looking up. “I guess we’ll see.”

Rex’s heart sank, his gaze flicking past Wolffe to the entrance to the healing bay. There wasn’t much that could be done. They could only hope that the Jedi Council would know that Ahsoka was innocent.

Dread seeped through him, suffocatingly filling his chest and heart. A warning that things would only get worse from here. He prayed that he was wrong.

[liloelsagranger]

I want to know what love is (Rocketshipping-oneshot)

Attention: Since English is not my mothertongue you might find some spelling mistakes or syntax errors. I apologize in advance. My mothertongue is Swiss-German so I normally imagine a sentence in German and try to translate it as well as possible into English, sometimes there is a lack of vocabulary or I don't find a match or the appropriate idiom but I want to improve my English and become a better writer. Another thing I want to make clear is that I use „..." to introduce direct speech! „ are not commas but the German quotation marks, just to avoid confusion.

Attention Number 2: I didn’t dare to post this story on fanfiction.net, because I was really insecure about the topic. Please, tell me what you think. I searched for descriptions of thunderstorms and tried to improve my writing and I also borrowed some ideas (I just want to mention that I’m not a thief, those were phrases that are offered freely on the internet to embellish stories).

 I want to know what love is

 Jessie, James and Meowth noticed the upcoming of a nasty thunderstorm. Grim clouds darkened the cocktail-blue sky, billowing from the east. The first thunder was to be heard a long way off. The air grew heavy and the humidity pressed down. It was suffocating. The first raindrops slapped down onto the blades of grass. Team Rocket sought protection under a large oak tree. Jessie pressed her body against the massive trunk. She shivered not only from cold but she was also trembling with fear. James observed his best friend huddling together.

 „I don’t think this is a safe place to abide. They always told us to stay away from trees during a thunderstorm. They’re often the tallest objects and make great targets for lightning strikes“, James informed. Jessie flashed her eyes at him.

 „Can’t you just shut up, James“, her voice had a hysterical undertone. She buried her face in her hands, flinching every time a thunderbolt struck several miles away. Her uniform was soaked, she tried to calm down by holding her breath for a few seconds and exhaling slowly. Droplets of moisture began to drip from the leaves. Meowth and James were concerned about their team mate. Jessie seemed to get into a froth. She was shaking all over, a shrill scream escaped her mouth once a streak of hot silver split the sky. James went down on his knees, squeezing Jessie’s arm. She was petrified with terror and winced.

 „Is everything okay with you?“, he asked, almost whispering. Jessie shook her head.

 „We need to find a safe shelter“, she muttered. James gave her a leg-up and the trio started to run along the grain field. The clouds speat out their beads of water. So much rain was falling that the sound blurred into one long, whirring noise. Water accumulated and formed giant puddles. Their boots were drenched. James almost slipped, but was able to keep his balance. A flash lit the dark leaden sky, Jessie gave a jump she could hear the rumble of thunder. They were on the lookout for a hut or a cave when suddenly Meowth spotted a scarlet red roof standing out of the grey mass. James raised his hand to his forehead to shade his eyes from the piercing raindrops. He could see broken windows in the distance. They reached the manor, an imposing building, but the paint would flake off and most of it was barricated with logs. The shutters clattered, they were rotten and worn away. „Let’s climb through one of those windows“, he suggested while seizing Jessie’s arm. She was completely disoriented, trying to shut out the howling sounds from her ears. Meowth took over the lead. He jumped on the sill and attempted to open up the window pane. It broke open and he entered the building, closely followed by his team mates. James helped Jessie squashing into the room, he pushed her gently.

Jessie fell on the floor, lacerating her shin.

 „Can’t you look what you’re doing?“, she snapped at James. Her friend tried to dig his way through the small inlet and landed with a loud bang on top of her. He bobbed up immediately and apologized for his inconvenient landing. Jessie stood up and loaded her leg, she was still shaky and edgy from before. She had always been terribly afraid of thunderstorms and rememberd a childhood memory. Jessie was not older than five back then, a storm had been raging for hours. She considered the area under her bed as the ideal hiding place. Her stuffed animals kept her company. She closed her eyes, trying to suppress the harsh lights from outside. She whipmered and called after her mother, but no one was there to console her.

 Jessie didn’t notice that James and Meowth were already exploring the old manor. They walked down the corridor that led to another unlit room at the end of the building. Meowth searched for the light switch and pressed the button. A lamp on the ceiling shed light onto a bordeaux leather sofa. There was a small wooden tea table and several oil paintings hanging on the walls. One of the pictures showed an affluent elderly man with a monocle and a twirly moustache. He gazed at them with a withering look as if he knew that they had entered his home without permission. James swallowed hard, the picture had a magical attraction. The squire seemed to be a trusted person, but he couldn’t remember the face for the life of him. „Why are you staring at this oilpainting?“, Jessie had snuck up from behind and scared James to such an extent that he almost lept out of his skin.

 „Did you calm down?“, he asked. Jessie nodded, her eyes wandering to the open fireplace. „We can’t go outside, so why don’t we stay here and lit a cosy and warming fire instead?“, she proposed. James didn’t feel good about using the fireplace, sitting down on the couch and make themselves comfortable and feel like at home. At home was slightly exaggerated, they hardly ever had a roof over their heads. Team Rocket was used to sleep outside under the worst conditions. They never had beds, not even blankets or pillows. They were hardened and had learned to freeze and get a touch of the jitters.

Meowth agreed with Jessie’s idea. He grasped at a chair and broke it in pieces, Jessie helped him out and took a hold of a table leg in the corner of what appeared to be the parlor. James cringed. He was always included in Jessie’s and Meowth’s illegal acts and he didn’t dare to contradict them. Jessie was intimidating and Meowth’s scratch was highly effective, he had no alternative but to support his team mates.

 He piled the kindling loosely in the middle of the fireplace and set it aflame. James slowly blew some air onto the fire, adding firewood on top. Jessie observed her friend and was visibly amazed that he knew the art of lighting fires. The wood crackled in the flames and it gradually began to heat up the entire room. Jessie, James and Meowth nestled in front of the fireplace.

 „Do we have some leftovers?“, Jessie wondered and searched through their backpack. She fished some cookies and a couple of marshmallows out of the bag. „Let’s share them equitably“, she handed James and Meowth a chocolate-chip cookie and put the marshmallows on the skewers. Meowth refused to eat his portion. He was exhausted and informed his friends that he would go to sleep very soon. He scouted for a basket or a giant pillow and was soon beyond their range of vision.

 Jessie and James remained silent for a moment. They were listening to the crackling of the fire. James gnawed at his cookie and observed the flames licking higher. Jessie looked at him out of the corner of her eyes. He was lost in thoughts. James was probably thinking about his Cacnea and how he had given his beloved Pokémon to Gardenia. It had been severe and anguishing for him. He wasn’t good at saying goodbye to his companions. James cared for his Pokémon, he always asked them to accompany him, it was his unique and pleasant nature that attracted them. The shock was deeply felt. Jessie had something on her mind and she thought it was time to address the problem. She slipped a bit closer to James, so near that she could feel him breathing. „James, would you kiss me?“, she asked. James turned to her, his eyes went wide in surprise. „What?“, he was flabbergasted. The normally so overbearing and furious Jessie asked him to kiss her. He pulled the blankets over his head and recoiled in fear.

 „What’s that sudden change of mind?“, he wondered, still distancing himself from Jessie. „Only a few hours ago, you told me to shut up and scolded me for my clumsy behaviour“, his voice trembled.

 Jessie sighed deeply. „James, I reached a certain age, I’m not the youngest person and I’m aware of that. It’s just that I don’t want to die as a spinster“, she was exceedingly open and honest towards James, almost vulnerable. „Oh, never mind. I’m sure one day, you’ll find the right partner“, he tried to liven up his friend, but Jessie kept a straight face. „I know I’ve been talking about true love and romance recently. That I imagine my partner and future husband to be strong, creative and a self-starter, but what if that man is you?“, she presumed.

 „Why me?“, James wondered. He felt more than uncomfortable to talk about feelings and love, not least because he had made some really bad experiences in the past.

 „I don’t know. Maybe, because I can trust you and because you know me better than anyone else on this planet“, she assumed. „Besides, I’ve never met someone so attentive and caring like you. The way you treat your Pokémon, Meowth and me. You’re always solicitous and courteous. I think you would go through fire and water for us, especially for me“, her usually wayward and egoistic manner turned into a friendly and sincere attitude.

 „Remember the time we headed toward a Team Rocket Headquarters, when it suddenly exploded? You hold onto my arms to console me. We were pressed against each other. When Giovanni asked what we wanted, I hid behind you and grabbed onto your arm. Yes, I felt safe with you protecting me and I still do today“, she tried to unbosom herself to James even though it was harder than she had originally thought. James was very restrained, he didn’t want to reciprocate her feelings.

 „Let me ask you again, would you kiss me?“, she repeated her question. She knew that James could rebuff her and it wouldn’t be the first time in her life. Many men had exploited her and her feelings that’s why she appeared to be coldhearted and withdrawn at times.

 James didn’t dare to look into her sapphire-blue eyes. Not only was he shy and sheepish, he was afraid of commitment and didn’t want to rush his fences.

 „I can’t, Jessie, excuse me“, he replied. „It has nothing to do with you, it’s just that I can’t imagine having a relationship with a woman, not after experiencing such horrible days with my ex-fiancée“, he whispered, still not ready to affront Jessie.

 His best friend could relate to him. Jessiebelle was a boiler. She was domineering and presumptous, but James had never told Jessie what happened between him and his fiancée.

 „James, don’t you think it’s time to open up and tell me what happened?“, she wondered.

 James was sitting on the couch, his arms around his knees, fragile and deathly pale.

 „It was terrible. When we were eighteen, I dated her for about two months. Back then, I had feelings for this woman, I think I was blinded by love. She was graceful and gorgeous, but she used to hit me with her whip when I didn’t obey her stupid orders. She wanted to change me, change my whole personality, she didn’t like the way I ate, drank or walked, she forbid me busying myself with Growlithe. I couldn’t bear it any longer and wanted to run away and leave my old life behind, but she followed me at every turn. Do you remember when you asked me about that scar on my right leg? That was a whiplash at full tilt, she tried to retain me, I slipped and...“, James didn’t have the chance to complete his sentence, Jessie kissed his cheek so he would turn his head her way. She was decisive and confident. She tilted her head to the left, leaned in and placed a tender kiss on his mouth.

 James was taken by surprise. He could feel her warm and soft lips on his.

The kiss sent shock waves throughout his body. He closed his eyes to heighten the intimacy. They let the kiss last for a few seconds. Then he slowly drew his lips away, keeping them close enough to Jessie’s so that they were almost touching. Jessie dared to open her eyes in order to see how James would react. She had finally done it. He stared at her, completely dazed and then he cupped her face and gently pulled her towards himself, kissing her again. This time it had a touch of passionate devotion, it was more intense. Jessie ran her hands through his lavender mane, he caressed her cheeks.

 James had almost forgotten about his devastating past. He felt a strong bond between him and Jessie, he was happy that she acknowledged him, quirks and all. She accepted his sometimes blundering behaviour. Their lips parted.

 „So, what do you say?“, Jessie wanted to know.

 „That was...good?“, James felt slightly insecure. „I kinda liked it, it was different from what I knew“, he admitted.

 „Then we should probably maintain it“, both chuckled. Jessie’s fear of rejection was unfounded and James would eventually be able to combat his fear of commitment.

 „You think like a...couple?“, he asked shyly.

 „I don’t know, maybe one day, we both will be ready“, Jessie replied wishfully with a gleam of hope.

 „You think so?“

 „Mhm“, Jessie faced away from James, hiding her embarrassment.

 „What about Meowth? Are we going to tell him about the kiss?“, James asked. „Well, I think he already suspected that there’s more between us than an amicable friendship“, Jessie replied.

 „Yes, and it was high dime for both of you do recognize each other’s feelings“, Meowth said, leaning against the fireplace.

 THE END