#ahsoka is also a precision fighter

[isagrimorie]

"History lesson: The Jedi won the war with Mandalore. Your tricks and tactics may save you from time to time, but not in the long run." - Kanan Jarrus

[aurora-starwars]

Be Honest In Your Heart

Pairing: Ahsoka x fem!Jedi!reader

Summary: While on mission, Ahsoka and reader have to pretend to be a fake couple.

Word Count: 1.5k

Warnings: idk, none? slight angst with a little fluff

A/N: I don’t really like this but here you go!

Master-list

Rough. That was the word Ahsoka used to describe the journey. Rough was putting it lightly. While out on mission in the outer rim, Ahsoka and [Name] were intercepted by a separatist-droid fleet. Fighting to make it through on their way to Mandalore, their ship had taken quite the beating. Without shields, making it out alive would prove to be a nearly impossible task. Regardless, the two were committed to surviving and seeing their mission through.

“Flank right!” [Name] called to Ahsoka, who was piloting the ship.

She spun the ship to the right, narrowly dodging blasts from the large star destroyer.

“Two star-fighters on our rear, I will try and shoot them but I don’t know how much more of this this ship can take.”

“Copy that. One star-fighter on my left.” Ahsoka called back.

“I see it.” [Name] aimed and shot at the single star-fighter; with one precise blast the star-fighter exploded. “I got it!” [Name] exclaimed, before directing her focus once again on the other two star-fighters that enclosing quickly.

“Have you got the other two?” Ahsoka asked.

“Yep!” [Name] smiled, shooting at the wing of one of the star-fighters causing it to spiral and crash into the second.

“Awesome, now we can get out of here.” Ahsoka said, pushing a few buttons before pulling the lever to jump to light speed.

“How long do you think it will take for us to get there?” [Name] asked loudly, having gotten out of the gunner’s seat and taken off her headset com-link.

“Not long.” Ahsoka yelled back.

As [Name] climbed up the latter to the ships main hull, she found herself wondering what was in store for them on Mandalore. The information they were given from the Jedi Council was simple but clear: find the mole on Mandalore, secure the information, and leave without Mandalore having ever known that the Jedi were even there. [Name] supposed that they sent Padawans because it was less conspicuous. After all, they were still Padawans. They haven’t had the time to make too much of a name for themselves and haven’t had enough time to completely take on ‘the Jedi persona’.

As [Name] made it to the bridge where Ahsoka sat, Ahsoka asked:

“Do you think our mole will believe that we are Jedi?”

“What? Don’t believe we are convincing Jedi?” [Name] teased, a wide, smug grin on her face.

Ahsoka elbowed her as [Name] moved to sit down in the pilot’s seat next to Ahsoka.

It wasn’t long after that they came out of hyperspace and the planet of Mandalore came into view. Mandalore wasn’t a very slightly planet, having had plenty of wars held on the surface, the natural landscape was almost completely demolished. As the two were entering the atmosphere, the environment around them reminded of why they had sent padawans. Not only would padawans be less conspicuous, they were also less likely to be clocked as Jedi. And if Mandalore was known for not liking one thing, that would be Jedi. It was common knowledge that the Mandalorians and the Jedi were at war long before Ahsoka and [Name] were born. It was crucial that the padawans were careful about hiding their Jedi ways in order for this mission to be successful.

Ahsoka landed the ship on to the docking bay and the two of they made their way to the exit of the ship. ”Before we go, we should probably wear our robes so we can hid our lightsabers.” [Name] suggested.

“Good idea.”

The two girls grabbed the robes before exiting the ship and entering the world of the Mandalorians. In a way, Mandalore was not much different to Coruscant, the way of life in a big city was hard to differentiate. But in contrast, the architecture was different and uniquely Mandalorian.

The two walked through the large city admiring all of the beautiful architecture and fashion that comes with a planet with as much culture as Mandalore. Beautiful box-like buildings that seem to grow from one another and the colours of the blue and grey with the accents of gold were marvellous. Moments like these were such a wonderful part of being a Jedi, exploring other planets and experiencing different cultures.

Ahsoka quickly whispered in [Name] s ear, telling her that they were close to where the mole said they would meet. [Name] nodded in acknowledgment.

They rounded a corner and entered a bar. Despite their apparent young age, no-one seemed to even spare a glance at the two. Ahsoka’s eyes drifted to a spot in the corner that held a man around their age that matched the description of the mole.

“Over there.” Ahsoka whispered, nudging in the direction of the boy.

“Got it.”

The two made their way over, doing their best to stay casual. When they made it to the booth where the guy was sitting, they sat down and started the conversation.

“We heard you’re Drurk Crurar. We heard you have information.” [Name] started.

“I might. What’s it to you?”

“We are not big fans of the Trade Federation and we wish to aid in their down fall.” Ahsoka offered.

He took a moment to think, surveying the girls before coming to a conclusion.

“You two don’t work for the Jedi do you? I hate the Trade Federation, but I hate the Jedi even more.”

[Name] and Ahsoka looked at each other for a beat before Ahsoka started:

“No, we don’t work for the Jedi. In fact, I came here by order of Senator Amidala of Naboo in hopes of not only putting a stop to the Trade Federation but also to protect Naboo and other planets affected by the Trade Federation.”

“How do I know? I mean, it is come for Jedi to work in pairs. How come one of you couldn’t have come alone?”

The girls’ stomachs sank, the boy was getting too inquisitive. They had to think of something quick. So, Ahsoka took [Name]’s hand, and gave her a look that said trust me.

“She is my girlfriend. She is from Alderaan and so we don’t get much time together unless it is for missions like this.” Ahsoka explained, she was calm despite being hyperaware of the hand in hers.

“Missions like these with my love, make life really worth it. Getting a chance to take down something as oppressive as the Trade Federation as well as spend time with her is something I will never turn down.” [Name] added, smiling at Ahsoka, who was smiled back. Real or not, having Ahsoka’s hand in her’s brought [Name] more calm than anything.

The boy was smiling, seemingly touched.

“You two are sweet, you remind me of my parents. My mom was from Mandalore and my dad was a part of the Trade Federation; they didn’t get much time together, but when they did, they made the most of it. That’s how I got this information,” Drurk held up the info chip for them to see. “He is still a part of the Trade Federation, but he still comes to visit from time to time. Last time he visited, he left this. Please, take it. Free your worlds and spend time together. We never know how much time we have.” The boy smiled sadly, before looking down at his hands.

Ahsoka and [Name] looked at each other sadly, [Name] going to rest her head on Ahsoka’s shoulder. When the boy looked up, he smiled once again, handing the chip to Ahsoka offered a small ‘good luck’ before he walked out of the bar.

[Name] looked up to Ahsoka and whispered:

“Is he gone?”

Ahsoka checked around quickly before nodding slightly.

“We should head out now, just to be safe. We don’t want him to have changed his mind about us and then turn us in.” [Name] softly spoke, careful that no others heard but Ahsoka.

Ahsoka nodded, giving a squeeze to [Name]’s hand before guiding her out of the booth. They both understood that it would be in their best interest to remain in this act until they were at least aways away from the bar.

The two held hands as they looked at the architecture around them. It was beautiful and somehow the moment was made more magical than when they first landed. [Name] wondered if it was because Ahsoka’s hand was in hers. And Ahsoka wondered if it was because, just for the moment, she could picture them actually being in a relationship. These thoughts were forbidden for Jedi, they were not to have attachments after all.

Time and time again they were told that attachments lead to jealousy and jealousy to fear and fear into anger and anger into the dark side. But the thoughts were still there and though the two of them only would feel peace and comfort in the other’s presence, the Jedi order would never let them be. [Name] and Ahsoka looked at each other, heads turned at the same time, the giggles bubbled between them. When they stopped, easy smiles rested on their faces, maybe they would be fine after all.

A/N: Please feel free to request! I might not get to them right away but my requests are still open! Have a look at the request Guidelines first!

Master-list

[cyberfeather]

How the clones fall to the Dark Side (Part 1)

So I’ve been rewatching the Zygerria arc, and more specifically that scene where a slaver gloats about how Obi-Wan can’t kill him because of the Jedi code, but still dies when Rex throws an electrical spear at him saying “I am no Jedi.” And then it got me thinking (although I know it’s unlikely) “but hey, what if a clone was force-sensitive, but no Jedi noticed it before they fell to the Dark Side because 1. No one would expect a clone to be force-sensitive and 2. The clones have the most stressful and violent life you can imagine, not to mention and they are literally engineered to kill.” And it spurred me on to imagine how each of the clones would fall to the Dark Side and to write it, so here you go, starting off with some commanders + captain Rex.

Also, Spoilers ahead for all seasons of Clone Wars.

Edit: I’ve posted these as well as many more on A03 for easier access! So don’t hesitate to check it out 😄

                                                     Rex

The Empire has taken everything from him. From his brothers. Rex can still feel the weight of Jesse’s limp body in his arms, the ice that bit at his fingers when he dug his grave. So many lives have been lost. So many lives he couldn’t save

Ahsoka is the only one he could get to safety. She’s all he has left, as they travel on that cold, deserted planet, in search of a ship. So, when they’re attacked by thieves determined to murder them and steal what meager possessions they have, Rex doesn’t hold back. He knows Ahsoka will, and he can’t risk losing her. He has killed to protect the Jedi before. He can do it again.

It doesn’t take long to defeat their foes; he’s a skilled fighter with years of experience, after all. He’s already thinking of how to hide the corpses so Sidious won’t catch their trail when Ahsoka lifts his chin with the tip of her fingers to get a better look at his face. She looks absolutely devastated and he hates it.

“Oh no, Rex… Not for me…”

Fresh tears roll down her cheeks, and Rex would give anything to make them stop. She doesn’t have to tell him what’s wrong with him. Somehow, he guesses it, feels that something inside himself has shifted. She probably thinks she’s going to lose him, too. Rex clenches his fists. That won’t happen, not as long as he breathes. She’s his sister, and he will never abandon her.

“This doesn’t change anything. I’ll stay by your side no matter what, alright?”

Her eyes are filled with infinite sadness, but still, she nods.

                                                    Cody

It happens after a stealth mission went south. His General was supposed to infiltrate an enemy base, but was captured instead. When Cody finally finds him, Obi-Wan is bleeding, on his knees, barely conscious, and the commander has rescued enough citizens of occupied planets to recognize the whip marks on his back.

The separatist scum who has done this to him is still standing over his general, smirking, one hand pulling hard at the hair of the Jedi, still unaware of the clone’s presence. Cody doesn’t even hesitate. He presses the trigger and feels nothing but satisfaction as the enemy falls on the floor, dead, the blaster impact still fuming at the back of his head.

Then he rushes to his General and cradles him into his arms, because he’s not sure the Jedi could walk in this state. He only realizes something is wrong when Obi-Wan brushes his fingers against the side of his head, all while looking like the saddest man in the world.

“Cody, your eyes… I… I have failed you.”

And nothing could have prepared him for the sight of the man he holds dearest sobbing uncontrollably. Just like he can’t handle the deafening, world-shattering realization that comes next. He has fallen to the Dark Side and is now a Sith or something close to it, the precise thing he has been fighting against all his life.

With shaking hands, he reaches for Obi-Wan’s lightsaber, which he has taken back from the separatists earlier, and he puts it into the hands of the injured Jedi.

“You have to kill me, sir, please. Before I lose control over whatever I have become.” Cody begs. “I can’t take the risk of ever hurting you.”

                                                     Fox

Fox’s eyes turn yellow when he kills Fives. It takes days for him to notice. Nowadays, he’s almost always wearing his helmet to hide the growing dark circles under his eyes and the hair greying at his temples, and it’s not like he has time to stare at himself in the mirror. Not with how exhausted he is.

He finds out about what he’s become when meeting with his batchmates at 79’s. Of course, Rex isn’t here. His vod’ika categorically refuses to see him ever since Fives died; their last holocomm ended with his little brother spitting rageful insults at him. The helmet has also been useful at dissimulating Fox’s silent tears, then.

He tries not to think of it as he sits between Bly and Wolffe, tries to just enjoy being reunited with his family again. Cody might be sending death glares at him, but he won’t waste this chance to see them, not when they could never come back from the battlefield, like Ponds…

So, he convinces himself to relax and to remove his helmet for once. That’s when his siblings all gasp and stare at him in horror, because they have seen Siths before, and therefore know how to recognize one. When they explain, when Fox understands what he has become, the last string of his sanity snaps.

The Republic and the Chancellor have stolen what little part of humanity he could still hang on to despite being a clone, despite being seen as little else than property, he realizes with horror. Then, his despair slowly turns into cold determination

He’s going to make them pay for it.

                                                 Wolffe

The 104th has just boarded a separatist ship which is suspected of holding a new kind of weapon, and even as he shoots his way through dozens of droids, all Wolffe can think of is the Malevolent. Of thousands of his brothers, dead, swallowed by the vacuum of space. Of watching, powerless, as the last remaining survivors in the escape pods were slaughtered.

It fuels his rage, and the wolfpack has no trouble finding the hidden weapon. What Wolffe didn’t expect, however, was for one of the engineers who conceived it to be standing next to it. Maybe this man has played a part in building the ion cannon, he ponders. And even if he hasn’t, his goal is to invent armaments designed to kill clones. Wolffe can’t let him live, can’t take the risk that he’ll escape and imagine some new mass destruction laser.

A second later, the engineer falls dead and Wolffe feels like he can breathe again. Until he glances at the bay windows of the ship and sees his reflection. He can’t stand the sight of his unique eye. A yellow Sith eye. Panic washes over him as he remembers Ventress, how she tortured him, how she laughed while taking away a part of him and… He can’t become like her, he can’t…

Then there are gentle, familiar arms wrapping around him, as Master Plo Koon drags him close.

“Buir…” Wolffe chokes out, desperate, as silent tears fill his eyes.

“It’s going to be alright, my son. I’m here.” The Jedi promises.

And Wolffe has no idea how things could be alright ever again, but Plo Koon has never lied or deceived him before, so he just holds on tight and trusts him.

                                                        Bly

Bly is in the middle of the battlefield, on a planet where the local people have taken the side of the separatists. Aayla is fighting at his side, taking down clankers one after the other. He would probably be staring at her in awe if he weren’t busy destroying droids as well. They’ve been at this for hours and are both exhausted, with blood and dirt covering their uniforms, but thankfully, victory draws near.

That’s when Bly sees one of the locals attacking Aayla from the back, pointing an electrical arrow at her. The Jedi is already dealing with a droideka, she’ll never have time to dodge, not even if he warns her. He can’t let that happen, can’t lose her. Bly shoots several times at the autochthone, although he hits his target on the first try. Still, he can’t take any chance, not when it’s Aayla’s life on the line.

Soon after, the separatist army retreats, and Bly removes his helmet, fully intending on celebrating their win, but Aayla’s victorious grin drops the moment their gazes meet.

“No… No, you can’t be… Not you… Anyone but you…”

It takes heartbreaking explanations for Bly to understand what he’s become. Aayla still presses her forehead against his, unwilling to let him go. The commander doesn’t understand how any of this is possible, how he can be force sensitive, how he can have fallen to the Dark Side. He whispers a plethora of heartfelt apologies in-between tearful kisses, because he has never wanted this.

Has never wanted to hurt her.

                                                     Ponds

“Boba, do it.”

Cold rage fills Ponds when he hears Aurra Sing give the order. Not at the prospect of being killed, that’s an outcome he got himself ready for from the second he was taken hostage. No, what really makes him burn with anger is that she would ask Boba to do it. His own brother. It gets only worse when he notices how the younger-looking vod is trembling, clearly reluctant to harm him. Even if he was raised by bounty hunters, he must sense, deep down, that they are still family. And to think that Aurra Sing would want to tear that apart...

All his wrath is focused on her, and suddenly, the bounty hunter starts gasping. When Ponds turns around, it’s to see her scratching at her throat, as if trying to shake off something invisible. Then, just as his rage declines, she falls on the floor, unconscious. Or maybe dead, he doesn’t know and frankly, doesn’t really care. Not when Boba is looking more distressed than ever.

“Did you… Did you do that?” He asks him, while pointing his blaster towards Ponds, but his hand is shaking.

Ponds is about to answer that he’s not sure, but before he can do so, one of the other bounty hunters speaks up.

“Lower that weapon, kid, and untie him.”

“But he…”

“Trust me on that one. I’ve seen how it goes, and I am not angering a Sith.”

“Fine.” Boba grumbles as he starts freeing him.

A Sith, uh? That would explain the force choke. Master Windu will not be pleased, that’s for sure, but Ponds tries to stay positive and not panic. Everything is better than dead. For now, he needs to play his advantage, no matter if what the bounty hunter said is true or not. He’ll have an existential crisis later, because what matters first is saving the other hostages and, if he’s lucky, bring Boba home.

[nanagoswife]

Noticing You, Noticing Me

Summary: You're the daughter of King Organa, but many outside of your kingdom don't know you. Your brothers Anakin and Varlo are the ones who are in the spotlight. Then your father holds a celebration in your kingdom for many others to attend. Will a certain someone notice you there?

W/C: 1.7k

Warnings: swearing, fighting, light angst

- - -

A knock sounded at your door.

“I didn’t know you were expecting anyone,” your eldest brother, Anakin said with a cheeky smile.

You rolled your eyes as you went to answer the door, “You know exactly who it is. This time, can you at least pull yourself together long enough to not drool over her before you leave.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle as he adjusted his position on his chair. “I’m afraid, little sis, that would be impossible with how close I am to marrying her.”

Once again you rolled your eyes before greeting your best friend, Padmé.

Anakin and Padmé had been together for as long as you could remember. It was a wonder that it took this long for them to get married. Yet, they still aren’t. Their wedding isn’t going to take place for nearly a year from now.

To your surprise, you were met by a very annoyed look on your friend’s face which immediately filled you with concern.

Before you could ask what happened, Padmé answered for you.

“Varlo is a right piece of shit,” she said angrily.

Although you couldn’t see, you knew Anakin had straightened in his seat as he listened. The smallest thing that happened to his fiancé tended to always throw him into an immediate protective mode. Well, that happened with whoever he was extremely close to.

“What did he do this time?” you asked as you guided her into the room. Varlo, your other older brother, had a tendency to be a bit of a pain. Although the two of you were super close, he could sometimes go too far. Especially when it came to people other than you and Anakin. The only person he didn’t mess with was any of the guard or your father, Bail Organa.

Your friend plopped down on the sofa beside Anakin’s chair with a sigh.

“Nothing today really,” she said, sighing once again. “Just playing games that I don’t have the energy to deal with today.”

“Would you like me to talk to him,” Anakin cut in, taking Padmé’s hand and gently massaging it. He was sitting on the edge of his seat, ready to go find Varlo to set him straight. You had to stop yourself from chuckling.

Padmé only shook her head, meeting Anakin’s gaze. Right then, was when you rolled your eyes for the millionth time as he did exactly what you asked him not to.

Clearing your throat, you took your place beside your friend.

“Anakin, didn’t you say you would meet Ahsoka, Sir Fisto and Sir Koon at the training grounds?”

An alarmed look took over your brother’s expression.

“Oh no. What time is it? They’re going to kill me if I’m late again.”

Both you and Padmé looked at each other with looks of amusement as Anakin shot out of his chair. After he gave her a quick kiss goodbye, he fled the room. You wouldn’t have been surprised if he ran to the training grounds.

The two of you burst into laughter once the door had closed.

“You’re marrying that,” you said through your laughter.

“True, but you’ve dealt with that your whole life. He’ll still be your problem.”

Padmé’s statement threw you into another fit of laughter.

Once the two of you had calmed down once again, you turned in your seat. She mirrored you.

“So, what brings you here today other than obviously wanting to be in the presence of the best person in the world?”

She beamed and looked as if she wanted to tease, until some sort of realization came over her. “Have you not yet heard?”

Confusion filled you. “Heard what?”

“About King Organa’s celebration at the castle next week. Has he not yet told you?”

You shook your head. “Anakin and I have been here all morning. So was Varlo for most of it.”

A look of understanding came over her. She knew how close you and your brothers were. So much so that the three of you would always find days where you would all spend time with each other. Whether it be in one room or going out to a nearby village to have some fun.

“I heard that King Qui-Gon Jinn and his son, Prince Obi-Wan Kenobi would be attending. There’s also…” Padmé trailed off when she saw your far off gaze. “Y/N?”

“Padmé, you know no one will notice me. Hardly anybody knows I exist. So many think my brothers are the only children of my father,” you replied as you felt your throat tighten. Although you tried not to think about it, it was still painful.

Padmé moved closer to you and took your hand with a caring smile.

“The only thing that matters is that we care for you. The people in the villages care about you and all the good you do for them and helping the poor. If other kingdoms don’t see you because they only see your brothers, who cares? Anakin and Varlo love you. Your father loves you. And you have me.”

You gave your friend a grateful smile. She always knew how to cheer you up, and this was no exception. Every time you felt like you would never be noticed, she always reminded you of how you were. Deep down, you knew you were. Other than your family and close friends, you also had people like Ahsoka, or Snips as Anakin likes to call her, and others like Rex, the head of the royal guard, and Sir Kit Fisto and Sir Plo Koon. Not to mention the multitude of guards that you were friends with. Especially Fives and Echo.

The more you thought of it, the bigger you smiled.

“See,” Padmé started as she squeezed your hand, “there you go. Your kingdom loves you.”

Before anymore could be said, another knock rang out through the room. When you answered, your father was there.

Looking over your shoulder, he chuckled, “I see you already found out about next week.”

“I did.”

When you looked over at your friend she couldn’t help but smile sheepishly. She tried her best to let your father, the king, be the one to give you the news of these things, but she usually got to you first.

You knew, though, that your father preferred it. He was busy enough so it was nice for him to save some time.

“I also wanted to tell you that the first guests will start arriving six days from now.”

For a moment you thought to yourself. “Father, that’s the day I said I would go to the Naboo village to assist in the set up of a small festival.”

Although it was true, your father knew of your true intentions. It’s not that you didn’t like greeting parties, but you knew you would most likely be looked over. So, in your mind, what was the point?

You were expecting your father to try and reason with you, but a sympathetic look came over him as he smirked.

“Alright, my sweet. At least promise me to tell Anakin-”

You opened your mouth to interject but he raised a hand to silence you.

“You get to tell him. Not only that, but you must also promise me to come to the ball that will be held.”

A smile crossed your lips at the mention of a ball. It was always a time where you and your brothers and Padmé could really have fun. Most of the night you and Varlo would dance together while you stole a couple dances with Anakin. If you weren’t dancing, you were with Padmé. Sometimes the two of you would sneak off and she would tell you of the gossip she had heard. Balls were events you hardly ever dreaded.

“It’s a deal then?” your father asked as you reminisced in the memories.

You smiled brightly as you caught a glimpse of your friend who still sat on the sofa. “Deal.”

-

“Come now, my prince. I heard that King Organa has a daughter,” Cody, Obi-Wan’s best friend and protector, said as they sparred.

Obi-Wan chuckled. “Do you really think I’m that desperate?”

Dodging his opponent’s strike, he was able to push Cody back far enough to where they were circling each other, looking for an opening. It was nearly impossible as the two have sparred with each other for so long that they knew every move the other was going to make before they could even act. This left this period of time to be dragged out as they used it to catch their breath, wiping sweat away from their eyes.

“Desperate? No. But you never know.”

“I wasn’t even aware that King Organa had a daughter,” Obi-Wan said as he finally broke the still moment.

Cody laughed, “Not many do. Not when you have two famous brothers like Anakin and Varlo overshadowing you.”

​​ The two stayed silent for a moment as they fought each other off. Each block and strike being made with precision that drew the fight out longer.

“I guess you have a point,” Obi-Wan grunted out as he locked his sword with Cody’s, bringing them face to face.

“She does amazing things for her kingdom too. It’s a shame that no one pays attention to any of it.”

Obi-Wan felt a slight sense of guilt fill him. It only built as Cody explained more of what you’ve done for your people. How had he never heard of you? Why were none of your accomplishments well known in other kingdoms?

He got so lost in thought that he left an opening for Cody. Being the talented fighter that he is, he took it, throwing Obi-Wan to the ground and pointing his blunted sword to Obi-Wan’s throat.

“Are you sure ‘desperate’ isn’t the right word?”

“More like entranced, my friend,” Obi-Wan said with a fond smile at the commander.

Cody rolled his eyes before offering a hand to the prince. “I should mention her more often if it means I’ll win.”

Shaking his head with a soft chuckle, Obi-Wan turned to put away his training gear. Now thinking that the trip to your kingdom may not be too bad after all.

- - -

@stardancerluv @where-fantasy-meets-reality @jaydenwoo @madmax2003 @mackycat11 @generousrunawaydonut @imabeautifulbutterfly @animalgirl05 @blondekel77 @cosmicsierra

[agoddamn]

Jocasta keeps Ahsoka's secret about losing her 'saber, helps her look for the pickpocket, hooks her up with another source of help, and advises her that this isn't something to be so terrified of. That's...actually quite a lot of backup and faith from someone who isn't Ahsoka's personal teacher.

While it's not spelled out onscreen, it's actually quite charming that Ahsoka knows exactly who to go to if she's having a problem she can't/won't talk to her master about. There's a lot of baseline trust in the institution there, especially since she doesn't seem to have any particular personal relationship with Jocasta

Sinube is identified as a "Jedi elder" as if that's his specific role, and it seems like he specializes in researching the underworld. He does mention that he hasn't "been on assignment in years", which means that there is definitely a place in the Jedi temple for people who aren't typically fighters

Anakin seems to be not teaching Ahsoka basic Jedi principles of emotion (she's surprised to learn from Sinube that if she calms herself she can sense emotions locally), which...very in-character but still very "oh, sweetie" lmao

Ahsoka physically grabs the perp by the collar to question him, then throws him around with the Force. I note this both because I'm keeping track of relative Force powerlevel/appropriate use and because I'd like to contextualize "just how evil is starting a conversation by Force Choking someone, exactly"

Sinube also recognizes the fence off the top of his head, dude knows his shit

Sinube tells Ahsoka that her fear that someone will be killed with her lightsaber is "a valid one, and one for you to puzzle out", which is...interesting. The Jedi philosophy seems to encourage you to do what you can with things that are under your control, but also accept it when things are not. Which is...quite healthy, honestly. I think it's notable that it's SPECIFICALLY this crime expert Jedi that's telling her to calm down and stop torturing herself over this. He's got the most potential personal interest in local crime, but he still holds no anger with her for inadvertently dropping a nuke on the scene precisely because it was inadvertent

As a mystery fan, Sinube's non-statement of "it is likely [that this corpse is the man we're looking for]" is HILARIOUS

As you may have guessed, I LOVE it when stories play with "just because you assumed it doesn't mean it's true", like the identity of Nack

Sinube refers to Ahsoka as "my Padawan". I wonder if he's lying, or maybe that's not necessarily a specific phrase? Like, any grade-school teacher would say "my student" of a kid they're responsible for (say, on a field trip), regardless of whether or not that student is normally in their class. All teachers are responsible for all students present, is the assumption. I wonder if Jedi are the same? It would make sense if they approached teaching as a broad philosophy rather than with a narrow concept of ownership.

Palpatine ad: "The accusation that the Jedi created the war to increase their own power is absurd!" Ten years ago I would have called this kind of rhetoric stupidly obvious, but after suffering through Trump...it's apparently actually extremely effective

Honestly, after Trump happened, no American can in good faith say "the Jedi were so stupid for falling into Palpatine's trap and brought it on themselves". We, unfortunately, know as an absolute, verifiable fact that misinformation campaigns are incredibly effective and there's no single way to shut it down because it relies on what people want to believe rather than reality

I'm not saying I'm Into Sinube but him being like "haha I'm senile and incompetent and can't fight but I know exactly what you're doing and I'm manipulating your manipulations to benefit myself now" is VERY pleasing. He's cute!

Droids come to the rescue instead of meatbag cops or clones

"You ran off so fast, but I'm sure you didn't mean to be rude! ...well, perhaps you were a little rude" lmao

Is this lady the same species as Aurra Sing? She's got the same "bald with ponytail dreads" look. She also...doesn't appear to wear shoes??

"Don't tell me what to do! I've got a lightsaber and I'm as powerful as a Jedi!" This ep seems like it's specifically addressing--and deflating--the idea that Jedi are just crazy sword guys

[acourtofsnakes]

Jetii'kad - Rogue, Chapter 22| The Mandalorian x Force Sensitive! Reader

GIF by @di-kut​​

Summary: Your training with Ahsoka moves on to new, exciting levels and a comms call with Din threatens to shatter the peace of the last few weeks. 

Warnings: Not too many in this actually. Swearing - I don’t think there is, but I’ll pop it on just in case, injury, falling, me making things up about Jedi training

Word Count: 5k+

A/N: Oh, dear. 

Rogue Msterlist: 1: Solus | 2: Arir | 3: Tor | 4: Gaa'tayl ^ | 5: Kyr’am | 6: Cabur ^ | 7: Ret'urcye Mhi | 8: Haran | 9. E’tad | 10: Tome * | 11: Aliit Ori'shya Tal'din * | 12: Mar’eyce**^ | 13: Kov’nyn | 14: Ne’tra ^ | 15: Or’dinii | 16: Dar | 17: Haalur | 18: Mesh’la** | 19: Talyc ^^ | 20: Jorhaa'ir ^^ | 21: Hibirar | 

Rogue| The Mandalorian x Force Sensitive! Reader (f) Taglist: @snipskixandbeskar @weirdowithnobeardo @the-bottom-of-the-abyss @jackgrzs @sarahjkl82-blog @boomtownboy @goldielocks2004 @seninjakitey @what-iwish-you-knew @queenofthefaceless @rosiefridayrogersunday @greeneyedblondie44 @itsnottilly @welcometothepedroverse @xgoldenjenny @mamacitapascal @heyitsjaybird @amyk-37 @greatcircle79

Permanent Taglist: @greeneyedblondie44 @mamacitapascal @mypedrom @undiscovered-misunderstood @kaylee-krystal

Mando’a Translation: Jetii’kad - Lightsaber; Literally: Sword of the Jedi

Another couple of weeks had passed, and things were still going incredibly well. 

You were flying through your training, and Ahsoka was continually impressed with you. There were still days where your past threatened to choke you, but Ahsoka was there to help you work it through. 

Din had taken to going on small hints that took him away for a few days at a time. He was comfortable and satisfied that the pair of you and the kids were safe here - and happy. 

Ahsoka had previously had some trouble with the town, but that had been resolved now and she still chose to reside here on Corvus peacefully whilst looking for things herself.

So, Din had gone off after getting a comms message from Greef about some small bounty missions. 

He’d been uncharacteristically like a mother hen the first time he left. You’d had to practically throw him in the Crest and send it into the sky yourself. He’d also checked in every night and morning, making sure everyone was okay and you weren’t pushing yourself too hard. 

It didn’t bother you, his worrying or checking in. If anything, it just filled you with a blissfully sweet warmth that wrapped around your heart and soul. 

You hadn’t had anyone do such things in… far longer than you could remember. 

And maybe because you were equally as worried about him. 

Oh, to be in love. 

You did miss him when he was gone, there was no denying that.

He had been by your side almost every single day since he picked you up on Sorgan, and to not have him there was a bit of a shock. You found yourself turning around to say something to him... only he wasn’t there. It wasn’t just the conversation either, it was the little things. 

Like the brush of his hand over your lower back or hand, his shoulder bumping against yours as you walked, him flanking you like a broad, metallic guard. 

Even just the sound of his laughter or the soft clink of beskar as he moved. 

It felt like he had taken a limb with him, leaving you unbalanced and off-centre. 

Although had you been truly on your own, it would have been a hell of a lot worse. But there were a few things in particular that made it easier. Training, the kids and Ahsoka of course, but mainly... the next thing you had moved onto. 

Lightsaber training. 

You hadn’t expected to even get near the training sabers - poles of the same size and near weight of lightsabers, used to get acquainted with the momentum and movements - for months. But Ahsoka had informed you a couple days ago that she truly believed you were ready so soon. Like you were born for this. 

You were ecstatic, beside yourself with glee when you told Din over your comms call that night that you’d be starting. The man had been so proud of you, complimenting you the whole call until the praise turned his voice to a lower pitch, that honey rasp that heated your blood and your call had turned into a very different kind of praise and reward until the early hours of the morning. 

All the stars above, this man would be the death of you one day. 

Ahsoka had pretended not to notice the lingering flush on your cheeks the next morning as she set you to work with the poles, explaining the basics of grip and balance.

At first, you were rather clumsy. Your weapons of choice were either a bow, daggers or long knives. At the most, you’d sometimes practised with Din’s beskar spear, but a saber would be a length between your longest knife and Din’s spear.

Hence why you spent the first day with the training pole slipping out of your hands, nearly taking off your foot at one point. 

However, you kept going, determined to prove that Ahsoka’s pride and instincts about you hadn’t been wrong. 

That your own steadily growing belief in yourself hadn’t been wrong either. 

After your nightly calls with Din, you took yourself off to the edge of the clearing, practicing your saber movements. 

You worked through the drills Ahsoka gave you in the day, spinning and whirling until you could move across the floor of the clearing silently, whipping the training pole through the air like an extension of your arm. 

You knew a real one would take more practice, more care and precision but this was a good start – you were proud of yourself, actually. 

There was only one thing bothering you and you hadn’t told Din or Ahsoka. 

See, there was this… feeling inside you. A small, swirling darkness that sat in your chest. 

It wasn’t the same as the heavy cloud that sometimes lowered over your mood and mind… No, this was a different kind of darkness. 

This darkness yearned for… destruction. Devastation. 

To bring down pain and fury on all of those that hurt you. To tear apart their lives the way yours had been torn. But not just your life, but the people that had hurt Din and Grogu. 

Those who had made Ahsoka choose to banish herself. 

And it scared you because, well… you had wanted those things for a long, long time. From back when your powers were once again dormant, and you often hesitated between knocking a hunter out – or killing them. And when that dark cloud had first emerged, it gave you the power to butcher those who dared come after you. 

That was the first time your bounty price has risen. Word got out that you were taking down elite members of the Guild, Stormtroopers, high ranking noble fighters from far off planets. 

The scared little girl with no family had given way to a deadly assassin who would strike with the speed of a serpent and had the venom of one too. 

That same version of yourself often walked in your dreams, and lately, you felt her lingering at the shadows around your peripheral. She had risen from her long slumber, triggered perhaps by the understanding of Haran’s words, back when he had kidnapped you. 

This assassin… she would recognise the horrors he had committed, the monster that prowled in his skin but… she would understand. Because the same monster prowled beneath her own skin. 

Two kindred spirits who’s lives had been torn apart by monsters who refused to understand. 

And last night… last night you’d awoken from a dream-like state, only to find yourself nearly a mile from the camp. 

As if you were going for that hunt right away. 

You’d been shaken, that lingering craving for destruction still sitting heavy in your chest as you hurried back to camp. 

No. 

You couldn’t tell the others at all. 

~~

“So, are you ready to move onto the next stage of your training today?” Ahsoka faced you across the clearing you often practiced in, the strange, murky haze shifting today to something closely resembling sunlight. 

You nodded, trying not to look too eager as you watched her, limbs already loosened up and warmed, ready to go. “Ready.” 

Ahsoka smiled a little at your eagerness, her hands clasped behind her back, “Now, this is usually something that Jedi get trained to do near the end of their learning. After they’ve mastered the essentials of the Force, honed them to use in everyday life and in battle, they have to learn the theory and history of this next part. Then extensive training and only after they’ve proved with the practice weapons that they won’t take off someone’s leg or their own arm, then they are simply just considered for this next phase.”

You began to read where she was going with this, and you had to bite your lip to contain the squeal of excitement that threatened to burst forth from your chest. 

She knew this, of course. 

“But, you’ve risen up through the training quicker than even I thought. And with the life you lead…  I don’t see why you aren’t ready.” She moved her arms from behind her, holding out her hand. 

She was holding out a tube. 

A sleek, silver tube that was ever so slightly curved… it was one of her own. 

She was going to let you train with one of her own lightsabers. 

Your head snapped up to look at her as your breathing caught in your throat, “Ashoka… This is… I can’t use this. What if I break it?” You gripped your own elbows, forcing your hands not to be all grabby and reach for it like they so desperately yearned to. 

Ahsoka chucked softly despite herself, “What did I teach you?” She still held out the saber, the hazy sun glinting off of the metal. 

You thought back to all your lessons, but already knew where she was going with this, “Never doubt my Master.” 

She raised an eyebrow, wiggling the tube almost teasingly, “And?” 

You puffed out a breath through your cheeks, rolling your eyes, “Never doubt myself.” You shot her a look, all playful, friendly bantering… because she was right. 

She grinned beautifully, a rare sight, “See. I wouldn’t let you touch this if I didn’t think you were ready. Or trust you.” Her expression softened, “You have nothing to fear from yourself, Padawan.” She used the name affectionately, remembering it from her own times of being young and unsure, eager to prove herself. 

You studied her face, reading the confidence there, the understanding, and you thought of the belief in yourself that had been regrowing for a while now. Almost immediately, your shoulders relaxed, and you let go of your arms, instead reaching out for the saber. You hesitated for a brief moment, but then took it, holding it carefully and bringing it back toward your body. 

As soon as you touched it, you could have sworn it thrummed with energy, a gentle pulse that sung through your blood and veins and spoke to you. It made you feel immediately… whole. Settled. 

This had been what you were missing. 

Ahsoka watched you, studying the was your face softened, the light growing in your eyes. Your stance had changed too, more balanced and self-assured. “Activate it.” 

You looked up at her, holding your breath for a moment and you lifted the saber, taking a second to think. 

All your life… had been leading to this moment, really. 

As soon as you activated this saber, you were stepping into the role that had been in your blood, always. Not a Jedi, but something different. 

Entirely unique.

Every trauma you had gone through, every wave of pain as you tried to restrain your true self. The stigma and fear, the admiration from those that believed and chose to help you… even if it had ended up in their own demise, despite your best efforts. 

This all flashed through your mind quickly, before it cleared. Emptying of everything but the cool, flowing feeling of the Force and so, you shifted your thumb and activated it. 

Glowing, white energy burst upward as the crystal was activated, pushing away the murky haze and filling the small area around you with that pure light. 

Beautiful, radiant… true. 

Ahsoka Tano smiled more, activating her remaining lightsaber with that pulsing hum, “And now we begin.” 

~~

The moon shone high in the murky sky, casting everything with a milky glow as you settled into your tree of choice. 

It was your nightly call to Din, and you often called him whilst perched in one of the more substantial trees, so as to not disturb Ahsoka with the noise. You knew she fell asleep late and rose early, but you still wanted to be polite. 

It was also more to make sure Grogu didn’t wake up – he was a little monster for not going back to sleep again. Din called in the day sometimes, to speak to Grogu but the nights… they were just for the two of you. 

You watched the hologram display, which told you the call was patching through. 

Your model of the comms watch didn’t allow for video calls, but its sound quality was crystal clear, almost as if you were standing right next to Din. 

You almost hadn’t been able to wait for your call tonight, to tell him all about your day learning. 

The training had gone… really, really well. 

Ahsoka had shown you the basics of handling the saber so you wouldn’t slice through your toes, how to move with the glowing beacon of energy and use it most effectively. 

It was different to the training spears, but it was a concept you grasped quickly. 

Your past training and skill in combat came in useful, for you were already light and nimble on your feet. 

The pair of you had trained over and over, until you were both dancing across the clearing, spinning and leaping around each other, aided by the Force and lighter than the air itself. 

It was a spectacular light show for the kids, who were cheering – or meowing – in delight throughout the whole thing. 

And, at the end, when you were both panting and a little flushed, Ahsoka had dropped to a knee in front of you, inclining her head in a soft bow, “It’s an honour to fight with you, and teach you.” 

Ahsoka Tano… praising you. Feeling honoured by you. 

By the Maker and all the stars above, you still couldn’t get over that. 

There was more to learn, much more, but Ahsoka had been so impressed, she promised a day off tomorrow where the four of you would explore some of the rare, beautiful spots on the planet. 

You had so much to tell Din. 

It took Din little longer than usual for him to answer, but you put that down simply to the distance between you, and the storm that Ahsoka said was going to roll in soon. 

A few minutes later, the ringing tone pinged, and Din’s voice filled the air, “Hey, sweetheart.” 

Those two simple words, the gentle rasp of them that was all honey and roughness just instantly soothed your very soul. It caressed over your body, much like Din’s hands, and you let out a soft sigh, your chest loosening, “Hey, Din… How are you?” 

There was a lot of wind his end, rushing through the mic but then it stopped, like he’d turned a different way, “I’m okay, tired. But better hearing your voice.” 

Sweet-talker.

You grinned to yourself, tilting back your head, “Oh, yeah? Why’s that?” Your leg swung lazily from the branch, a picture of relaxation now that you were talking to your love. 

Din grunted, the wind suddenly roaring through the line again, blocking out whatever he was saying to you. 

You frowned, wincing as the gust made the line all staticky, “Din, what are you doing? It sounds like you’re on the back of one of those reptavian from Nevarro.” However, the hairs on the back of your neck stood up, a sense telling you that you weren’t going to like whatever came next. 

There were a few moments hesitation, and you could almost hear Din wishing the ground – or maybe air – would swallow him whole, “Um…” 

Oh. 

You really weren’t going to like this. 

Dread coiled with apprehension in your belly, a tight feeling creeping along your skin, “Um? What do you mean, um? Tell me, Din.” There was a sharpness to your tone, one that he knew well. 

It was a ‘don’t you dare lie to me’ tone. 

A very soft noise over the wind and Din started to speak, but then was cut off by a burst of rapid, loud fire. 

Blaster fire. 

He was being shot at. 

Your heart nearly dropped through your stomach, and you had to grab hold of the tree branch so you didn’t fall out. A light trembling shook your hands, but your voice was still steady, “Din Djarin, was that blaster fire?!” 

It sounded like Din seemingly retaliated, because then his voice came back, “Okay… Okay, promise me you won’t get mad.” There was a pleading note to his words, but it seemed like he was cringing, waiting for the blow up.

“Too late.” You hissed those two words through gritted teeth, heart pounding with fear in your chest. “If you keep avoiding my questions, it’s going to get a whole lot worse.” 

Din sucked in a breath, and then let it out all in a rush, “I’m at an Imperial base.” 

Silence from you. 

So quiet, Din would have been able to hear the owls in the trees. Maybe even the fire crackling down below. 

The words echoed around in your mind slowly, unfolding and repeating. 

He had to be joking. Din wouldn’t be that reckless.

“Sweetheart…?” Din was hesitant, worried by your silence, when he’d been expected fire - and shouting. 

You closed your eyes, more to rein in your impending anger, to give you something to focus on, so that your voice remained quiet when you spoke, “And what, might I ask, are you doing at an Imperial base?”

He audibly swallowed, still grunting and seemingly dodging the shots being fired at him from Stormtroopers, “Well, I was on a hunt and I found talk of an Imp base nearby causing trouble in the town. I asked what it was and…” He hesitated for a second before realising that might simultaneously worry you and make you even more mad “And the townspeople told me they were looking for someone. Someone with a huge bounty… a girl.”

It was like someone poured ice water over your body. 

There was a whole Imp base… looking for you?

Sure, a few Stormtroopers had come after you before, and then those ones that had ambushed you before Haran showed up but... a whole base…

Don’t think about that though. That’s secondary.

“Okay… And what, they sold you out to the Imps? Told them you were hunting nearby?” Maybe you had jumped to conclusions a little quickly. 

Of course Din wouldn’t have gone to a base and ambushed it. If the townspeople wanted to stop the trouble, maybe they thought giving information to the Imps would be a good idea.  It would make sense. Plenty of people had sold you out the very same way to save themselves, and you hadn’t been able to blame them. 

More blaster fire, but it was a little further away this time. It still didn’t stop you flinching with each shot, waiting for the inevitable grunt of pain from Din.

“Uhm… not exactly. I… asked Cara and a few old friends to help me. We… infiltrated it and tried to find the information they had on you, but they realised who we were.” Din’s voice was halted, stumbling over the word ‘infiltrated’. It was choked somehow, as if was grappling with retelling you the story. 

Something had happened in there… And then it occurred to you. 

If they infiltrated the base… Din wouldn’t have bene able to waltz in there with his beskar armour on. 

He would have to have blended in. 

Which meant… he took off the armour. 

Before you could mention it, he was talking, his words quieter in that voice that meant trouble, “We managed to get out and…”

The trembling had taken over your entire body, a voice in your head chiming that Din was lying, that he was joking with you because he wouldn’t do this, he wouldn’t do what you knew he was going to say… “And?” A single word, weighted. 

You heard Din swallow, and then, “We kind of… blew it up…” 

Silence, again. 

Laughter then suddenly burst from your mouth, albeit slightly hysterical laughter, but still. One minute you were staring at the moon in utter horror, and the next you were doubled over in fits of giggles.

“Sweetheart…?” Now Din just sounded concerned. He had expected another blow up the moment you realised what was going on, and so far, none of it had happened the way he thought. And now here you were, laughing? 

You shook your head even though he couldn’t see you, “I’m sorry, it’s just – for a moment there, I really believed you!” You covered your mouth, trying to stifle the increasing hysteria, “I really believed you had infiltrated an Imperial base with a tiny crew, to find information out on me you could have got from capturing an Imp, and then you make it even better by trying to convince me you blew up a base!” You leant back against the tree, your heart rate picking up unsteadily, sweat pooling in your hands and you felt your power thrum through your blood. 

“Darling - ”

“Ooh, you really nearly had me there, Din. And I’m so glad you’re joking, because no way would you yell at me endlessly for getting kidnapped and then plunged into a frozen lake – none of which was my fault – telling me I’m reckless and stupid… and then go off on a little joyride to destroy Imperial strongholds.” The laughter was melting away, your voice getting more frantic and pleading, like you were begging him to tell you he was joking. 

The wind rushed through the comm’s call again, the sounds of Din twisting in the air, presumably with the Rising Phoenix to steer clear of the ground forces, “Sweetheart, listen to me.” His voice was steady, soothing, “I’m fine, okay? I’m completely fine. I’m not doing this to be reckless, or stupid, or hypocritical. They have information on you and there are hundreds of them. If they’re gone, they can’t hurt you. They won’t know where to find you.” 

His words were doing nothing to soothe you, “Don’t patronise me, Din. You can’t tell me you’re fine and then tell me there are hundreds of Troopers after you. There are only… what, four of you?” Your breathing was coming in sharp pants now, images of Din’s broken body, blood on white armour and dark dungeons flashing through your mind’s eye.

“Five.” Din spoke the word softly, and you nearly didn’t hear it over the rushing wind and sounds of fighting. 

Another laugh that sounded more like a sob, “Oh, five? Like that’s so much better!! I don’t doubt your abilities, Din. You know I believe in you more than anything in the world, but this is… I can’t believe you would do this.” The words were a trembled whisper at the end, fear clutching at your heart once more. It was starting to choke you, turn your blood to slush and your bones to ice. 

The thought of losing him was something that kept you awake frequently. Sometimes it would hit you out of nowhere in the day, the idea of living the rest of your life without them by your side. 

Gone, little more than a gravestone and memories. 

The thought made you physically sick, having you have to run to the nearest place to expel that terror in heaving gasps. 

You’d hidden that from Ahsoka and Din too. 

Distantly, it occurred to you that you should hang up, let him have his full concentration back but… you couldn’t help the horrid thought that if you hung up... you would never speak to him again.

Din knew this, heard it all in the tone of your voice, in the things you couldn’t and didn’t need to say. He knew you weren’t mad at him, not like that. It was the same anger he had felt when he thought he’d lost you. The gut-wrenching fear of not being able to do anything – the anger at the helplessness. “I promise you; everything is okay. I will be fine; my friends will be fine, and no one will get hurt. We’re nearly done already. Breathe, sweetheart. You’re not going to lose me. We promised each other, remember?”

That’s true… you had. You’d promised each other that you would never part this life alone. When one left, the other would follow. 

You swallowed, trying to take a deep breath in through your nose and out your mouth, “Okay…. Okay. Just… come home, okay?”

“Of course, darling. I’ll be home just as soon as-”

A piercing pulse shattered his voice, searing through the speaker on your watch with its resounding whistle. 

Your breathing exercises halted immediately, “Din? Din?!” 

No, no no no - 

It means nothing. Just a close call knocking out the signal, that’s all. That’s all it is. 

A burst of static shot into the night air, and then you heard broken up, jagged snippets of Din’s voice, undeterminable pieces of speech. 

“Din, Din I can’t hear you. You’re breaking up... Are you okay? Tell me you’re okay, please Din.” Your throat closed up again, the dark beast in your chest snarling as it tasted that terror, feeding on it and spreading through you with those horrific images. 

The part of you that craved destruction, that shadowy assassin woke up, bringing forth the vengeance, ready to tear them apart piece by piece if Din had been hurt.

More static and wind and then something that you would haunt your waking and sleeping dreams for a very, very long time.  

The signal unjammed, and clear as crystal, you heard Din’s broken cry of pain. Of agony. 

A harsh noise you had never heard before. 

It was stunned, dragged from within him by a wound that must have hit deep and sudden. 

The world seemed to go still on its axis, everything slowing down to a halt.

The entwined golden threads of your lives pulled taut, stretching apart from each other. 

Your heart tore to pieces. 

“DIN!!” His name broke on a sobbing cry, making the surrounding birds take flight from the bare branches, causing Grogu to wake up down below but you didn’t care. 

The line had just gone silent, just as one of those threads began to fray. 

~~

~

He was falling. 

Down, down, down toward the ground, smoke billowing from his back. 

He was an exploding star, a falling planet, hurtling toward the floor with a speed he couldn’t reduce. 

Thirty metres. 

The speed of his fall and the force of it caused darkness to pull over his vision momentarily, casting everything into shadow and silence before it all came flooding back. 

Everything was a blur of colour, whipping past the visor of his helmet in a smudge of brown, grey and green. The wind roared past him, battering the armour that used to be his savour, soon to be his tomb. 

Twenty metres.

The impact of the ground on his armour would shatter his bones and spine, cracking his head open and ending him instantly. 

Maybe he’d be lucky, and it wouldn’t be painful. 

Or he’d pass out before he crashed. 

Ten metres. 

His family was safe, at least. That eased his mind somewhat. It would be hard getting off the planet, but they’d find a way.

Eight metres.

There’d be nothing left of him to find. An anonymous man in a beskar tomb, body broken beyond recognition. The people who would soon find him may very well be the first to see his face in… years. 

Six metres. 

And they weren’t the right ones. 

They weren’t her.

No, he’d finally reached a place where he felt safe to reveal himself. Only his hands first, but that was enough. He wanted to give more, so very badly but… he just couldn’t, not yet. But that was okay. He knew she’d understand, be more than happy with that reveal of the very pieces of his anatomy that had started all of this. 

His hands, running over her skin, tracing the delicate work of her tattoo. 

Three metres. 

Two meters. 

“I love you.” His gasped words were snatched by the air before they even left his lips, and he hoped the wind would carry them to the person they had always belonged to.  

One metre. 

“Goodbye, cyar'ika.”

“Thank you for showing me a world worth living.” 

~~~

~~

“Sir?” 

The young woman’s voice was steady and strong, breaking him from his thoughts as she knocked on the door to the war room. She’d been working here for a year now and had swiftly risen up the ranks. 

She was essentially his right hand, and he knew she wore that token proudly. There were no official titles given, but she was his best officer. 

She had been the one to locate the Mandalorian the first time around – and had also been the one to find the girl. 

That was why he had felt confident when she suggested hiring the Shadow-Born hunter to track them both down. And she hadn’t been wrong yet. 

“What is it, officer?”

She saluted, then stood tall, shoulders back, chin raised enough to be respectful, but not so much it was defiant. She looked him in the eyes, “We’ve found him, sir. He was responsible for blowing up the Imperial base, along with a group of friends, including another Mandalorian, an ex-Shock Trooper, a wanted assassin and a prisoner from the Karthon Chop Fields. The Hunter shot him out of the sky and has already apprehended him. The accomplices are so far unaccounted for.”

A faint smile passed the man’s lips, hunger and victory setting a dark fire in his eyes. He nodded his head to the young officer, “Never-mind the rabble. Good work, officer. Tell them to bring him here. There will already be a cell prepared for him. You know which one.” 

The woman nodded, inclining her head and then she headed off, but not before he saw the small smile she allowed herself. 

Good work indeed. 

She had done more in the past twelve months than any of his senior officers had. Maybe he should see about naming her his official right hand. 

He turned back to the large open window of the cruiser, clasping his hands behind his back, breathing in a deep sigh. 

Finally. 

When the Hunter had let the girl slip through his fingers, he’d been worried that he was being played for a fool. The hunter was unreliable, working to his own twisted agenda. If the Hunter betrayed him, there was no chance for the success and power that he deserved. 

But he needn’t have worried at all. 

He now had the one thing that would guarantee the girls cooperation. He had hoped for the Child too, but he could wait for that. 

It may have been slow going, and people may have called him deluded for trying to bring back the old ways… but here was the proof that things were finally going the way Moff Gideon had planned it all along. 

~~~

~~

If only he knew that his plan had been set in motion by another. The successes were not his to claim. 

The King of Shadows and Destruction was sitting at his board of death, moving each piece as the endgame approached, the final checkmate that would put to rest years and years of waiting and scheming. 

Previous | Next

[sirloozelite]

Since we know exactly what Ahsoka went through during Order 66, maybe you could do a prompt of her having a nightmare of it? I’m sure Dr. Larte knows how to deal with panic attacks!

Hey anon.... thanks for the prompt. This one turned into a 3000 word one shot! I hope you enjoy it. I included some Rex too as it made more sense to me that he would be able to comfort Ahsoka about this particular dream. but Kaeden is there too, so a bit of a compromise. I hope you enjoy it.

This one shot is also up on both Fanfic.net and Archive if my readers over there are interested. Links are below.

Fanfic link: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12833125/49/The-One-Shot-Saga

Archive link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13648131/chapters/57906610

Anyways, here is the prompt for you anon. Thanks again. I had great fun writing this one!

An endless swarm of blaster fire erupted in her direction, each shot either missing her by inches, or being precisely deflected away by her sabers. Usually she would reflect them back at those that had dared to attack her, but this time…. This time was different.

She didn't want to hurt them…. Not if she couldn't help it.

Pivoting on her heel, she brought her shoto up again, defecting a trio of blue bolts away from her, before pooling what energy she had left in her to unleash the Force forward, knocking her would be assassins off their feet.

Pivoting again, she brought her blade up to reflect another series of bolts from a group that had flanked her, clearly trying to strike her back when it was turned.

Once again, she deflected the bolts, before trusting in the Force to push her foes away.

"Get me to the ship!" A cry from beside her caught her attention, stun blasts erupting from his own blasters as he too fought off those that would see them both dead.

Nodding her head once, she moved into position, continuing to deflect the bolts, protecting both herself and her companion.

Once ready, she nodded at her companion, who turned his attention away from the horde of their former friends that were surrounding them and made towards the Y-wing.

More bolts came their way, and more and more, and she began to tire. This was a do or die moment, and she had no intention of dying today…. Not like this…. Not to her own men!

Her companion reached the ledge, and she turned, pushing out with the Force to send her companion careening through the air, before landing on the front of the fighter that was their only salvation.

A small sigh of relief left her body before something hit her back, resulting in pain and agony flooding through her. It wasn't the first shot she had taken so far. Her arms were burnt from various shots that had glanced her skin thus far, and her hips were aching from a direct blast she had taken to it courtesy of someone she one trusted. For not the first time she thanked her Mandalorian friends for the outfit they had gifted her for the campaign. What areas it did protect of her body had likely saved her life.

Spinning around again, she unleashed the Force once more, knocking three more assailants off their feet.

Moving her arms, something that was becoming increasingly more difficult, she altered her blades to continue to deflect more incoming fire whilst her companion got to safety.

Blast after blast came her way, and she tried as she could to deflect as many as she could, ensuring that she didn't harm anyone else in the process.

The burn on her back pulsated in agony, but she couldn't pay it any mind, not right now.

Another shot grazed her arm, causing her to flinch in pain, but again, she could pay it no mind. She had to fight! She had to survive! She had to…

Another shot broke through her defenses, grazing her knee and forcing her to collapse briefly, narrowly avoiding a shot that was aimed for her head in the process.

Hissing through her teeth, she pushed herself up, ignoring the agonizing pain that echoed around her body as she continued her collapsing defense. She couldn't afford to take another hit. Any more and…

A loud explosion echoed throughout the hanger, her montrals ringing in response to the sudden sound before the entire ship began to list to one side, causing all of her former friends to lose their balance and…

*******************************************

"NO!"

The scream of terror, followed by the way her companion shot up in bed was more than enough to instantly wake up Kaeden Larte. Usually she was slow to wake up, preferring to let her body and mind prepare itself for the day ahead at it's own pace.

But this…this was something different, Kaeden could tell.

Pushing herself up, Kaeden instantly turned her attention to Ahsoka, who was now sat up in bed, eyes wide and haunted, entire frame shivering with terror.

"Ahsoka?" Kaeden asked quietly, reaching a hand over to place on her back, hoping to comfort her.

The Togruta flinched in response, her panicked eyes darting around the room, before her hands reached out and summoned something to her.

The next thing Kaeden knew Ahsoka was up out of their bed, her body dropping into a combat stance as her lightsabers flew into her waiting hands, white blades ignited and waiting for something. Kaeden watched as the Togruta pivoted her blades in various arcs, as if deflecting blaster fire away from her.

Except, there was no blaster fire… and there was no one trying to harm Ahsoka in the way she clearly thought there was. Whatever Ahsoka had been dreaming off was obviously bad if this was how she was reacting.

"Ahsoka? Ahsoka, it's me, Kaeden. Are you alright?" Kaeden spoke softly, trying to get through to her partner.

The Togruta's eyes continued to dart around, her blades moving around her in defensive arcs, still blocking the imaginary blaster fire away from her.

"Ahsoka?" Kaeden tried again, slowly reaching down to her side of the bed, picking up her dressing gown to drape over her own body in the process.

"Kae… Kaeden?" Ahsoka spoke this time, the alert in her eyes and body stance fading, her lightsabers extinguishing in an instant, dropping out of her hands and landing at her feet in the process as the Togruta began to shiver again.

"Hey, hey Ahsoka… it's alright. Come, sit down with me." Kaeden spoke, slowly reaching a hand forward to grasp Ahsoka's pulling her to a sitting position on the side of the bed before joining her, wrapping one arm around Ahsoka's body to comfort her.

Kaeden knew that Ahsoka had nightmares from time to time. Kriff, she had seen a few of them herself. Ahsoka would wake up in the middle of the night with a haunted look on her face, perhaps a few breathless gasps, before she would lay back down and cuddle into Kaeden's body, seeking comfort.

But never before had she shot up out of bed like that. Never before had she tried to defend herself from an imaginary threat!

Clearly, whatever the nightmare had been about was bad. Very very bad.

Ahsoka would not stop shivering, her body becoming slick with sweat, even as Kaeden tried to comfort her, whispering soothing words into her lekku.

"Talk to me Ahsoka. Tell me." Kaeden spoke, hoping that maybe if she talked about it, it would help. It usually did.

"I… I…"

"Yes?"

Ahsoka froze suddenly, gasping out in what appeared to be sudden pain from something, but what Kaeden did not know.

"Kaeden! Get me the bacta patches quick! I've been shot! I'm trying not to hurt them, but they shot me!"

Alarm flooded Kaeden once more. Ahsoka had been shot! How? When? By whom?

"Hurry Kaeden! It hurts!"

Kaeden vaulted to her feet, taking care not to hurt Ahsoka any more as she rushed over to the make-up table she had brought, opening a draw on it and removing a container of emergency bacta patches.

Spinning back around, she moved towards Ahsoka and spoke, her mind in 'Doctor Larte' mode.

"Where are you hit Ahsoka?" Kaeden asked, removing one of the bacta patches from the container, preparing to lay it across the wounds when Ahsoka revealed where it was. It would only be a temporary fix, but for now it would do.

"Everywhere! They got me on the knee, and the back. The waist too! And my arms! Look!"

The sheer panic in Ahsoka's voice was beginning to scare Kaeden. She was never ever like this, even when actually being shot at. Her dream must have been beyond bad!

"Show me Ahsoka." Kaeden spoke, controlling her worry the only way she knew how, by being a Doctor. She had treated blaster wounds before. She just had to get her patient to calm down.

"Here!" Ahsoka's cry in response as she removed one hand from where she had been covering part of her arm, likely the spot where she had been shot.

However, when Kaeden glanced at the wound, Kaeden saw nothing. There was no damage to the skin, not that Kaeden could see. There was a small mark however, one that looked like a faded scar from a time when she had been shot. The wound had clearly healed over time, so why was Ahsoka….

"And here too!" Ahsoka cried out again, gesturing to another part on the other arm, where again, there was no blaster mark except for a faded scar of the past.

"Ahsoka…. There's nothing there, love." Kaeden spoke softly, confusion flooding her mind. Ahsoka seemed so sure that she had been shot, but there was nothing she could see on her body to say so, nor was there the stench of burnt flesh that Kaeden associated with a blaster wound.

"There is Kaeden! There is! They got me on my back too! And my waist! Look!"

Despite knowing she wouldn't find anything, Kaeden did look. Ahsoka's back was already a mess of scars thanks to Palpatine's Force lightning assault, but still, Kaeden could find no fresh blaster wound to treat, nor could she find any on the Togruta's waist.

"THEY ARE THERE KAEDEN! I SWEAR TO YOU! THEY ARE!"

Ahsoka's screams of self belief were accompanied by tears pouring from her eyes, sobs wracking her body in the process as the Togruta began to curl up in herself, shivering at a much more violent rate.

Kaeden honestly didn't know what to do. She'd never dealt with something in this condition before. She was a physical healer, not a mental one, and without the proper context as to what her dream had been about, Kaeden was utterly lost of what to do next.

Luckily for her, help came right away.

The bedroom door burst open, and the figure of Ahsoka's closest and oldest friend came darting into the room, a look of deep panic on his face.

"What's wrong!? I heard shouting!" Captain Rex asked, his own hazel eyes widening at the state of Ahsoka shivering on the bed. The old Clone had come round for a barbecue, and had chosen to sleep the night in the spare room. Clearly he had been awoken by the noise in the adjacent room, despite the soundproofing. How, Kaeden didn't know, and right now she wasn't even thinking about it. She had more pressing concerns.

"I don't know! She had a nightmare I think. She woke up, and grabbed her sabers, like she was deflecting blaster fire. She said she'd been shot and she tried to show me wounds on her arms and back, and her waist, but I can't find anything Rex!" Kaeden explained, trying in vain to keep the panic out of her voice. Ahsoka was hurting, and there seemed to be nothing Kaeden could do.

"Do you know what she was dreaming about Kaeden?" Rex asked, panic in his own voice as he approached the curled up Togruta, hesitating to reach out and touch her, to try and bring her back to them.

"No I… she didn't say anything Rex. She just suddenly started shaking violently and said something about trying not to hurt the people who were shooting her! I don't know what to do Rex!"

"It's ok Kaeden, it's ok. We'll figure it out. Where on the arm did she say she was shot?" Rex spoke, calming himself down despite the situation they were in. The constant sobs of the Togruta on the bed began to subside, however the shaking and what sounded like groans of pain did not.

"There." Kaeden replied, pointing towards where Ahsoka had gestured earlier, towards the small scar from the past. "But there is nothing there anymore. Any injury she did have has healed. I don't understand Rex!"

Rex didn't reply at first, not as he surveyed the small exposed mark on Ahsoka's arm. Something was going through the old Clone's mind, that much was clear, but whatever it was Kaeden did not know.

"I do. I understand perfectly." Rex finally replied, before gesturing to the container in Kaeden's hand, requesting a bacta patch.

Choosing to trust Ahsoka's oldest friend, Kaeden extracted the patch and gave it to Rex, who nodded in appreciation and moved towards Ahsoka.

"Ahsoka? Ahsoka can you hear me? It's Rex."

Ahsoka's shivering seemed to slow for a moment, as if she was recognizing the voice and it's owner.

"Re…. Rex?"

"Yeah, it's me Ahsoka. Are you ok?"

The Togruta moved in an instant, pushing her body up and throwing herself at the Clone, head buried in his neck like a lost child to a parent. From the way Rex reacted, he didn't mind. The Clone wrapped his arms around the Togruta, holding her tight as she began to sob again.

"Ssshh…, it's ok Ahsoka. You're safe. You're not hurt."

"I am Rex…. I am. They shot at me! My own men. Your brothers."

"Ahsoka, that was over twenty years ago. They can't hurt you anymore. You're safe, remember?"

"I… I'm safe?"

"Always Ahsoka. Always. Now, let me look at your wounds please"

"Ok."

The timid response from Ahsoka was surprising to Kaeden, but right now she was more glad that the Togruta had stopped shaking and sobbing and was holding a conversation with someone, no matter how small.

Kaeden watched as Ahsoka pulled back from Rex slightly, allowing the Clone to begin to inspect her arms for the wounds Ahsoka was convinced existed.

"Ahsoka, your wounds have healed nicely. They have left scars however. Is that ok?"

At Rex's words, the Togruta nodded, allowing Rex to continue.

"The wound on your back has also faded, though you have other scars there too. Again though, no major damage. Purely cosmetic."

"Ok."

"As for your waist, well the Beskar plating you were wearing took the brunt of the blaster impact. The only lasting damage was a bruise, which has faded."

"It has?"

"It has. You're going to be ok kid, you hear me?"

"Yeah… yeah I hear you. Thanks Captain. Sorry."

"Don't ever worry about it."

The Togruta's entire body language changed instantly, the terror that had been permeating from her fading away and instead being replaced with the calm serenity that Ahsoka was known for.

Kaeden watched as Rex stood from the bed, pulling back the covers enough for Ahsoka to climb back under, before tucking the Togruta into bed as she dozed off to sleep.

Content that his job was done, Rex passed the unused bacta patch back to Kaeden, before gesturing for her to follow him out the door.

*******************************************************

Several minutes later, and with a cup of hot blue milk in each of their hands as they sat in the lounge, Rex began to explain.

"Ahsoka was dreaming about the day Order 66 was issued. The Clones, including me, turned on her and tried to kill her. She got my chip out of my head and we had to fight our way off the ship together. Ahsoka was adamant that we not harm anyone, but that didn't stop my brothers from using lethal Force."

Kaeden sat and listened, feeling sick to her stomach. She knew all about Rex's story involving Order 66. Part of her had been mad at him until Ahsoka had explained the chips and their function. Now, Kaeden felt nothing but pity for the Clones. They had been used as a weapon against those who trusted them most.

"We made it to the hanger, and whilst we were there Ahsoka got hit, a lot. She took several grazes to her arms, as well as one to her knee, but she also got him in the back and the waist. I think she was having a nightmare about that." Rex continued, a haunted look in his eyes as he recalled the events.

"What about you?" Kaeden asked, wondering just how well Rex had fared. It couldn't have been easy, going against his own brothers in a life or death situation.

"I took a shot to my shoulder, as well as a few close calls, but aside from that I was fine. Ahsoka was in a much worse state than me. I treated those wounds of hers years ago after it was all said and done, and she treated mine. It's not a day I'll ever forget, that's for sure."

"Do you think Ahsoka has PTSD over it?" Kaeden asked, already knowing the answer, but needing to hear it from Rex to confirm it.

"I know I do Kaeden. We both very nearly died that day. It was us against an entire ship of Clones, and Maul certainly didn't help matters when he left us behind to die!"

A rise of anger built up inside Kaeden at the mention of Maul leaving them to die. Clearly that had now changed, but even still, she'd make sure Maul suffered for that one, even if it did happen years ago.

"I think I understand. I guess she responded to you better than me because you were actually there with her Rex." Kaeden said, coming to the realization of why she couldn't reach the panicked Ahsoka. Rex was the only one who truly knew what Ahsoka had been through that day, and the two of them had an unbreakable bond thanks to it. Kaeden wasn't jealous, not by a long mile, but she did understand, and frankly she was glad that Ahsoka had someone like Rex around to help her in times like these.

****************************************************

Both Kaeden and Rex finished their drinks in silence, each contemplating the situation they had found themselves in, and each thanking the Force for the peaceful resolution.

Glancing over at the chronometer on the wall, Kaeden noted the time as shortly after midnight. Kaeden didn't know how long they had both been up, or when Ahsoka's nightmare had begun, but right now she knew she needed to get back to bed, a feeling that was shared by Rex.

Placing their mugs in the sink, they retired upstairs, with Rex returning to the spare room and Kaeden moving to join Ahsoka in their bed.

Opening the door to their bedroom, Kaeden slowly crept into the room, gently closing the door in the process and approaching her side of the bed.

Pulling back the covers enough to expose her side of the bed, Kaeden dropped her dressing gown on the floor before sliding under the covers next to Ahsoka.

As quiet as she tried to be however, Kaeden's movement was enough to disturb Ahsoka, whose eyes opened slightly, a sleepy smile coming to her face as she recognized Kaeden.

"Hey."

"Hey back." Kaeden replied, leaning forward to rest her forehead against Ahsoka's, pulling her into an embrace in the process.

The terror and fear that had been in Ahsoka's eyes earlier had faded, instead being replaced by the happiness that the Togruta always seemed to reveal when around Kaeden.

"Missed you." Ahsoka whispered, one of her hands coming up to Kaeden's cheek to gently caress it.

"I wasn't gone that long Ahsoka." Kaeden replied, leaning her face into Ahsoka's palm and pressing a gentle kiss to it, relishing the contact.

"I know. Still missed you. Love you." Ahsoka spoke, before she again closed her eyes, dozing off once more, content and peaceful in Kaeden's arms.

Smiling to herself, Kaeden too closed her eyes, allowing sleep to claim her alongside the woman she adored the most, and the one she would protect from anything, even nightmares.

"Love you too Ahsoka."

[aleteia-ff]

How To Train A Jedi | Chapter 1: How To Crash A Jedi

And it’s finally here! I am very excited to publish the first part of this new How To Train Your Dragon fic, set in the Star Wars Universe!

This is mostly Star Wars AU, rather than a Star Wars crossover; the Star Wars characters are there but the main focus of the story will be on HTTYD characters. It takes place during the prequel eras, during the Clone Wars, between Episode II and Episode III and it will be a multi-chapter story!

To make sure it is also readable for non-Star Wars fans, I will put characters or very specific terms I have drawn from Star Wars in the author note at the top every time, so you can look them up if you're confused!

I am posting it on Tumblr now as well but in the future I will probably restrict myself to using AO3 and ff.net. 

I hope you guys enjoy! May the Force be with you!

Read on: AO3 | FF.net

Synopsis & Star Wars Background 

Character moodboards & info: Astrid | Fishlegs | Snotlout | Heather | Ruffnut & Tuffnut | Hiccup

Cover art featuring all of the characters

Discord for discussions and questions (channel: #aleteias-fics)

Summary:  Fighting as a General in the Clone Wars, Jedi Knight Hiccup’s starfighter is destroyed in a space battle with the rival Confederacy of Independent Systems. Before the Jedi can retrieve him and his loyal astromech droid Toothless from the wreckage however, he is found by a crew of bounty hunters, pirates and smugglers, led by Astrid Hofferson. Who intend to sell him to the highest bidder.

Hiccstrid | Rated M

Support me on Ko-Fi | PayPal

Star Wars characters featured in this chapter:

Ahsoka Tano - Padawan to Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker

Barriss Offee - Padawan to Jedi Master Luminara Unduli

Some necessary term clarifications:

(Battle) cruisers/frigates: really big starships, usually manned by hundreds if not more

(Star)fighters/Interceptors: small, one or two-person starships. Vulture droids are about the same size, but they are robots.

Clankers: slang for droids

Hiccup was someone considered to be many things. Jedi Knight of the Jedi Order. General of the Grand Army of the Republic to his troops. Master to those ranked lower than him. But to himself, he was a pilot above anything else. And a really good one, if he were to be that humble.

The Jedi Order knew that as well as he did. The Republic knew it as well. Which is exactly why he was the one to lead this particular mission. The assignment was quite simple, really: break through the Separatist blockade surrounding the planet Umbara. After the untimely death of its senator, the planet had chosen to align themselves with their enemy, the Confederacy of Independent Systems – Separatists. And with the planet forming a necessary link in one of their most vital supply routes, Umbara had to be retaken. No matter the costs.

If he'd been told only a few years ago that he'd be fighting for a cause like that, he wouldn't have believed it. His Master would've scoffed at the mere suggestion, and he would've happily joined in. But this was war. And he didn't concern himself with the politics of it too much. That was for the Republic senate, the Supreme Chancellor and the Jedi Order to decide. He was just one gear in the entire system. And he did as he was told. Hoping it'd bring the Clone Wars to an end as quickly as possible.

And right now, doing as he was told was shooting down the last Separatist battle cruisers that were still barring them access to the planet. He was soaring through the vast emptiness of space, just outside of Umbara's atmosphere, the gloomy planet lurking in the distance, circling back around behind the cover of his allies after he'd helped bring the previous cruiser down. Their own Jedi cruisers were lined up opposite of the Separatists', both fleets firing each other, hoping to break through each other's shields or providing cover fire for the smaller crafts that were making their way across the battlefield.

But to him, those things would always fade out of view. All he'd see was the nose of his starfighter, the displays in front of him and most importantly, his target. The Force told him everything else he needed to know. He could feel his black-and-red ship resonate around him, the stalling engines humming slightly, his favourite astromech droid mounted in the socket just in front of his cockpit.

"Ahsoka, how are we looking?" he asked the Jedi Padawans that was offering him support.

"Stan and I are still taking out most of their fighters, Master," the Togruta girl answered, referring to the clone pilot who was leading his clone fighter squadron.

"Good. I'm going to take another shot and taking out their surface turrets. Is Barriss ready with the bombers?"

"Yes, Master," the other Padawan, Barriss Offee, responded.

"Girls, for the last time, just call me Hiccup. I'm not that much older than both of you," he chuckled. Being twenty-one and consistently referred to as something he only associated with people who were quite his senior, like Master Yoda – who had quite an extreme case of seniority going on – just made him feel incredibly old. "Leave the Master-business for Anakin and Master Unduli."

"Anakin isn't very strict with the title either," Ahsoka remarked.

He smirked. "Perhaps that's why we get along quite well." He stabilised his ship, lining himself up with his target. "But I think he'd very much appreciate it if he and Master Kenobi could still land on the planet within the next cycle."

"I'm inclined to agree," Barriss commented, diplomatic as always and effectively putting an end to their playful conversation.

Hiccup smiled, shaking his head as he focused his gaze upon the battlefield once more. He could do this. He had done it many times before. He just needed to find the right opening.

"Alright, Toothless, you know the drill," he told his droid. "Get the engines ready."

He squinted his eyes, looking, following the many tiny ships and fired bolts. It was chaos. But his eyes, his years of experience and the Force gave him everything he needed to know. The focus. The clarity. The vision and precision to grab the opportunity when it presented itself.

And right then, it did.

"Okay buddy, let's go!"

He fired up the engines, launching them forward with an enormous burst of speed. It pushed him back in his seat, knocking the air out of his lungs as the corners of his mouth pulled up in a wide, excited grin. He let out a delighted yelp. And it would only get better from there.

He flew on instinct, swaying and twirling the starfighter around to dodge incoming blasts and stray pieces of debris. Enemy fighters blew past him, registering him too late, because he was quicker, faster, more on point than the enemy droids, blowing some of them to pieces with ease. No matter how often he looped or spun around his axis, he didn't lose his focus. Mastering the beloved lightsaber that was currently strapped to the belt around his waist had always cost him time. But this, navigating a spacecraft through a chaos that was his to command, that's what he was born to do. And he only knew one other pilot that came even close. Not that he would ever admit that to Anakin Skywalker himself.

He flew much faster than most people would deem responsible, but then again, flying with measure wasn't exactly his style. And it was exactly that kind of combination of insane speed, skill and arguably a search for his daily dose of adrenaline that allowed him to close in on his target in a way no one else could. He could see the first of the battle cruiser's surface turrets move as it registered him and he tightened his grip around his controls, destroying the thing before it had properly readjusted its aim.

"Gotcha," he exclaimed as he veered closer to the battle cruiser's armoured hull, watching the grey mass move just barely above him as he stayed close to it, looking for his next target. There were some controlled near-misses as he only barely dodged a few of the antennae and appliances sticking out of the ship. Although he definitely intentionally tipped his left wing so it sliced through a minor communications antennae at exactly the right angle. Not that it would disrupt the ship's overall system too much. At best, the droids aboard, who had no libido to begin with, could no longer watch HoloPorn. But he loved to take the opportunity to pull off precise moves like that when it presented itself.

He soared along the battle cruiser's outer defences, moving in and out of the turrets' firing range and taking them down one by one. He knew it wouldn't be long before the Separatists would send out their own fighters after him; there was only so much time he would have the field to himself. But he had made the most of it, getting the turrets that were placed in the most secluded positions down first. The rest would be easy.

And as if right on cue, the first group of vulture droids blew right past him, making a U-turn as they laid eyes on their target.

"I've got clankers after me," he called out. He did a quick count. "About four vulture droids, at most."

"We've got about ten of them on our squadron as well, General," Stan replied back.

He frowned. That wasn't what he'd wanted to hear. Keeping vulture droids at bay was easy enough when flying with enough cover around. Without it, however, the flying pieces of junk could tear through clone fighters with ease.

"Keep them distracted, Stan," he ordered. "I'll clear things here and come back around to give you back-up. Just focus on keeping the way clear for the bombers to come in. I shouldn't take much longer."

"Yes, General."

Strengthening his grip on his fighter, he looped around the side of the battle cruiser, taking some tighter corners, hoping it would mess up the droids' programming. He spotted one of them indeed smashing against the battle cruiser's exterior, leaving a lovely combination of sparks in its wake.

He continued to snake his way around the vessel, blowing up its turrets while the vulture droids closed in on him, putting him in a tricky position. The last set of turrets were mounted on the cruiser's large top, forcing him to cross quite a sizeable portion of open space. And as good as he was, even he couldn't dodge incoming fire from both in front and behind him.

"Alright Toothless, try to pull as much from the engines as you can," he told his astromech, listening to the slight change in pitch of the engines as his companion instantly responded. Until they were humming just right.

Then, he pulled back on the controls. His body flung forward as his fighter slowed down almost immediately. Checking and sensing behind him, he angled the ship just right. Two of the remaining vulture droids flew right past him. And he only barely avoided the third one as it tried to correct its course, slamming into one of its allies as a result.

Hiccup smiled to himself as he pulled the trigger, blowing up the last remaining ship. Content, he clicked his tongue as he told Toothless to divert some more power back to the engines, launching him forward once again. In the back of his mind, he could hear his former Master scold him for pulling off a move like this. But he'd succeeded. So he didn't see the problem.

Making his way towards the top of the battle cruiser, he agilely danced between the few shots the remaining turrets managed to throw his way, before he finally got to fire himself. And hit his targets right where he wanted to. Leaving the battle cruiser defenceless and open to destruction.

He veered upwards, distancing himself from the battlefield as he called upon the bomber squadron. "Alright Barriss, bring in the bombers. Ship's defences should be down."

"Yes, Master."

He levelled out his fighter, trying to scan the chaos below him. "Stan, Ahsoka, an update on the enemy fighters?"

"Got a couple still on my tail," Ahsoka informed him. "But I don't think they could make it to the bombers in time."

He nodded to himself. They were no stranger to Separatist commanders who sent their droids after Jedi Interceptors specifically, which was questionable at best. Sure, Jedi had a tendency to be extremely effective. But also incredibly hard to catch. Getting a kill on a Jedi was more of a claim to fame than a legit battle-tactic.

"I'm afraid we've only gotten more, General," Stan informed him. "I don't know how much longer we'll be able to hold them off."

"How many fighters did you lose?" He was always afraid to hear the answer.

"Six, sir."

He didn't need to know who they were. He'd personally picked each and every clone pilot under his command. And all of them were talented and good at their job. Or had been. "On my way."

Twirling his fighter around, he dove back towards the rest of his fighter squadron. It didn't take him long to find them amidst the chaos. It only took him a moment to confirm that, indeed, things weren't going too well. He'd been away too long. They were outnumbered and worst of all, in the intended trajectory of Barriss' bomber squad.

Decisively, he destroyed the two vulture droids that were trailing behind. Just then, the droids themselves destroyed their seventh target, making him lose another member of his trusted crew. But the enemy ships didn't relent, still chasing after his troops. And they needed to get back into the cover of their own cruisers as soon as possible if they were to get out of this. Alive, with any luck.

He shot one more vulture droid down as it turned just slightly too slowly. And that did the trick as finally, a few of the droids started to turn on him. Which was exactly what he needed to give his troops the opportunity to escape.

Making a U-turn himself, he checked whether the enemy fighters actually followed him. Once he had the confirmation that they were on his tail – making him outnumbered fifteen to one – he opened up his comms channel. But Stan spoke up before he had a chance to.

"Turning around to provide you with cover, General."

"Fall back to the main cruisers," he countered.

"All of us?" He could hear the confusion in the clone's voice.

"Yes, all of you," he ordered as he only barely dodged one blast coming his way.

"But sir, then we won't be able to back you up."

"Which is my intention. You won't survive out there, nor will the bombers if I don't manage to drag these clankers away from you," he told him resolutely, the enemy's fleet coming back into sight. Which he was heading straight for.

"General, that's a suicide mission," Stan argued.

He rolled his eyes. Stubborn clone. Not surprising, given that they had a tendency to pick up the character traits of the people who led them. "You know me, Stan. All I'm doing is getting these pieces of scrap metal back to where they came from."

"We are meant to be disposable, sir," Stan responded, seemingly unconvinced.

"Not to me." How some Jedi could look at the clones as units rather than what they actually were, was beyond him. Genetically engineered and with accelerated growth or not, they were people. Soldiers. Just like him.

"General –"

"Stan, fall back and cover the bombers," he insisted. "That's an order."

There was a very brief silence on the other side of the comms system. "Alright, General. Falling back."

Looking behind him, he could see his troops retreat into the relative safety of their cruisers' range. Leaving him alone, with about fifteen – no, make that fourteen, given that he just made a sharp turn around a piece of debris that one of the pursuing droids couldn't quite copy – enemy fighters on his tail. He had been in less-than-comfortable situations before. But even he had to admit that things were currently looking kind of bad for him.

Seeing nowhere else to go but forward, as he'd lead the droids back to the Republic's own vulnerable targets otherwise, he flew straight back into enemy territory. Trying not to get too close to their cruisers – they could blast him if he didn't pay enough attention – he veered into the debris field that the battle had left in its wake. It was the area that asked the most of the droids' piloting skills. And his own. But he was confident he could beat them – just not for how long.

"Alright, buddy, it's going to get tough," he told Toothless as he yanked on the controls, only just dodging a nasty barrage of incoming fire. "Do whatever you can to improve our manoeuvrability. Keep the speed up as much as you can." The droid beeped in response, its tones sounding slightly concerned. "Let's show them once again why we're the best at this."

And so their dance began; one lone Jedi Knight and his trusted droid versus a continuously dwindling amount of vulture droids. He didn't really know how to dance, but he imagined it would look something like this.

He led them through the debris field, dodging loose pieces of junk and navigating through the larger ships they'd destroyed earlier. Occasionally, one of the droids missed a vital turn. In other moments, he managed to find a way to loop around and catch the stragglers at the end of the formation.

But overall, they kept closing in on him and he couldn't go anywhere else than deeper into enemy territory, hoping the droids were too occupied with trying to take him down to notice what he was trying to pull off.

His heart jumped when he only narrowly dodged the exploding wreckage of a droid he'd just blown up himself. Seeing no other option, he pulled all power from the engines, making the fighter turn just sharply enough. His fighter stuttered as he brought them back to life, Toothless' alarmed beeps telling him what he already knew; his equipment wasn't exactly enjoying the prolonged period of demanding activity he was putting it through.

The amount of vulture droids chasing him reduced to seven, he continued to fly, using all of his most important senses to do so; sound, sight and whatever the Force told him. He used them in combination, instinctively rather than consciously, but overall he couldn't shake the fact that he was starting to get a very bad feeling about it all. But he had saved his troops. And surely, he'd find a way out of… whatever this was.

"Hiccup," he heard through his comms as he twirled around his axis. "Master Hiccup, can you hear me?"

"What is it, Ahsoka?" he answered, trying to control his breathing as well as he could. She didn't need to hear he was actually panting.

"The bombers have reached their target. The cruiser's down. You can come back around," the Padawan informed him.

He bit his lower lip as he narrowly soared through the carcass of one of the battle cruisers they'd destroyed earlier. "Don't think that's going to happen anytime soon."

"Hiccup –"

"Ahsoka, you and Barriss need to sign in the others and escort the gunships down to the planet surface."

"But –"

He inhaled sharply as he put himself through another near-miss. "Don't be stupid. I will find my way back. Whatever ships they still have should retreat or move to the planet itself soon anyhow. That'll be my window."

"I'm sorry," was all Ahsoka responded with.

"Just make sure you retake that damn planet," was the last thing he told her.

"Yes, Master."

Trying to think to the extent that he could while not losing an ounce of fatal focus he needed to keep flying, he considered his options. He could try to make it back to their own cruisers, but with the amount of distance he had to cross and the seven – no, six – droids still on his tail, he had no idea if he could even make it there. The alternative was to navigate through the debris field, to the other side, into open space. Which was closer, but if the droids followed him all the way there, they could fire straight at him once he made it out.

One way or another, he had to take his pursuers down. And he shouldn't wait much longer. He had to pull off something crazy. And arguably, quite stupid.

Settling into his seat more confidently, he flipped a few switches. The engines protested loudly as he disabled some of the safety measures on the starfighter. He needed everything his ship could give him. Even if that meant overloading its systems. He'd done it successfully before, in a training drill. Surely, he could do it again.

"Okay, Toothless, give me everything we've got!" he yelled at the tiny droid.

It was hard not to feel excited when the fighter shot forward, revitalized with the extra amount of energy its engines now had access to. It meant some of his targeting systems no longer functioned properly, but he didn't need those to begin with. He was a good shot. And he had the Force to guide him. The fighter's targeting equipment just allowed him to lay back a little more. Which he could no longer allow himself to do.

He proceeded to use the debris field as cover, looping and twirling around the larger parts to throw the droids off-course. The key to outmanoeuvring them was to be unpredictable and to show up in places where the clankers' systems didn't expect him to. Which meant pulling off moves that most pilots wouldn't even dare to in the first place.

Continuing whatever crazy, out-of-sync dance it was he was doing with the droids, he slowly started to take them out, one by one. His fighter sputtered with every too-sudden move he pulled off. Piloting a fighter was usually an art, something that required a degree of fluency and sensitivity. But he was currently absolutely abusing the poor thing.

As time passed on, a certain degree of exhaustion and strain on both the fighter and his senses started to kick in. But somehow, he managed to get the number of pursuers down to two.

Just a little while more. He was almost out of the debris field. And after he'd gotten rid of his pursuers, he could fly out of there, with his body still intact – or well, as intact as it had still been at the start of the battle.

But that one moment of inner monologue and distraction had made him miss something. And he only realized it when he blew up what he thought was the last vulture droid.

He'd lost one. And it appeared right in front of him at that very moment, its target locked.

Given the minimal distance between his enemy and him, there was no way he could still dodge whatever it shot at him. He was going down. But he could take his enemy down with him.

He yanked the controls towards himself, sending him straight at the droid. His left wing slammed right into it, his whole body thrown forward as it ripped off.

It sent both him and the vulture droid spinning, his wing lodged into the droid's controls systems. He only just saw how it crashed into a piece of stray debris. Desperate, he tried to correct his course as his fighter continued the twirl uncontrollably.

But the controls were unresponsive. No matter how hard he pulled or twisted, there was nothing he could do.

The last thing he saw was another piece of space junk as the nose of his fighter slammed into the particular large slab of stray metal. It threw him forward with enormous force, his head painfully hitting the front of his cockpit. And then everything turned black.

"Just don't go too fast. We don't want to be noticed by any sensors. Make it look like we're just floating debris as well."

Nervously, Astrid Hofferson tapped her fingers on the top of the pilot's chair as she peered into the space in front of them. It was filled with litter, some parts of it more useful than other. Mostly pieces of debris, junk, parts of spaceships that were neither useful or valuable. Or not valuable enough.

"Calm down, Astrid, this is not the first time I'm doing this, remember," Snotlout shot back from the pilot's seat in front of her, his gaze focused on the field in front of them as they slowly navigated through it.

"We just really need something good today," she murmured, trying to shake off her uneasiness. As confident as she was in her abilities and those of her crew, going into the debris field of a space battle after it had only just happened remained risky.

"I'm sure we'll find something," Snotlout tried to reassure her, but she could see how he was holding the controls just a little too tightly, the letters covering the heart-shaped tattoo on his bare biceps that spelled out Me, My Ship, I scrunching as a result.

Before she could shoot back that she wasn't very reassured, she heard the sound of the door to the cockpit open behind her. "How are we looking, Az?"

"Don't know," she told Heather. The Togruta woman frowned, sitting down in the seat next to her. She tucked her sniper between her legs – she never went anywhere without the thing – and leant forward, her black-and-white lekku, which she kept tied in some sort of braid for convenience, falling over her left shoulder as she leant forward, her green eyes joining them in peering into the darkness above the planet Umbara.

"Do you think we'll be noticed?" Astrid asked.

Heather shook her head. "No, I highly doubt it. The Republic's clean-up crew shouldn't come in for a while longer, nor should any other scavengers. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't hurry and get out of here as soon as we can."

She nodded, silence surrounding the three of them as they continued their trek.

"Wait, I think I see something!" Snotlout suddenly shouted.

"What is it?" Heather asked, her voice on high-alert while she only moved slightly in her seat.

"I'd recognize a beauty like that anywhere," their pilot continued, his eyes focusing on something in the distance. "That's a Jedi Starfighter."

Astrid almost jumped to the front of the cockpit. "Where!?"

Snotlout pointed into the space in front of them and when she followed his finger, she finally saw it too. A black fighter with red accents, badly damaged and floating around aimlessly. Its left wing had been ripped off and its nose looked almost split in two, but the cockpit and a lot of other parts remained intact.

Given how rare these fighters were, this was exactly the kind of find they needed.

"Bring us in closer," she told Snotlout before sprinting out of the cockpit, through their main corridors to alert Fishlegs and the twins they'd found something.

Together, they made their way towards the cargo hold, where they paused to put on their space suits. As usual, Tuffnut struggled to fit his entangled lekku into the helmet – why the Twi'lek guy didn't just untie his green, spotted appendages instead of wearing them as a beard was beyond her, but at least Ruffnut and Fishlegs knew the drill by now.

Impatient, she tapped her foot on the floor of their ship as she waited for the go-ahead from Snotlout. "Are we there yet?" she asked the communications device incorporated in her helmet. They didn't have time to lose.

"Closing in on it now. Are you ready?" Snotlout asked.

She shot a look at the twins before responding. "Yes. Open the door."

Right after she issued the command, the large door to their ship's cargo hold opened, its flap coming down and allowing them to walk – or float, rather – out. The sudden shock of weightlessness and the sheer cold of space hit her instantly; but she was used to it by now, their space suits giving them protection and long lines keeping them attached to the ship.

Checking whether her vibro-ax was securely strapped to her back, she made her way out, the Jedi fighter not too far away from them. Wading through space, she eventually managed to grab a hold of its large black-and-red right wing, allowing her to control her movement better.

The first thing she saw when she investigated the fighter was how different it was. Not that she had seen many of them before, but all of those had been pretty standard. This one however was clearly painted by whoever owned the thing, its remaining wing embellished with a myriad of patterns and figures. An artistic pilot. How cute.

Something else caught her eye when her gaze wandered, and she instantly signalled to Fishlegs. Mounted in the socket of the spaceship, was a black-and-green astro droid. It looked like most other droids she'd seen in the R2-series, but the interesting thing about his particular one was that it seemed to be intact. And still functioning, she realized as its upper part turned, its single eye settling on her.

"Disable it as quickly as you can," she told Fishlegs as he reached her, pointing at the droid. She could see his eyes go wide, his long, blonde moustache moving up in surprise along with the rest of his face. "Don't need it causing trouble."

Providing Fishlegs with the support he needed to get to the droid, she crawled along the fighters surface to investigate the cockpit. The puzzling thing about it was that it was still closed. And as soon as she reached it, her eyes peering into the small space, she could see why.

Behind the glass, she found a young man. He was lying slumped in his seat, either dead or unconscious, his eyes closed as his head hung awkwardly to the side. His pale face was that of a man who'd gone through puberty not too long ago, his frame slender, his nose slightly oversized; she figured he was about the same age she was. Although the way in which his mouth hung open, revealing the gap between his front teeth, made him look slightly younger in this moment.

A small stream of blood crept out from beneath his messy auburn hair, trailing down along his defined cheekbones, which were dusted with freckles. The droplets eventually reached his jaw, where she found thin stubble covering a small scar on his chin, before those same droplets trickled down onto the white robes he was wearing.

If the way he was dressed didn't already tell her enough – a classic structure of layered robes of various shades of white and light brown – the item strapped to right side of his belt most certainly did. A lightsaber. Which meant that the arguably quite handsome stranger was a Jedi.

She watched him for a while, a smile spreading across her face as she noticed how his chest was heaving only so slightly. He was alive.

"Astrid, I've got the droid, what are you –" Fishlegs started, coming up next to her before his breath audibly caught in his throat. "Oh my. Is that?"

She nodded. "Yup."

"A Jedi…" he murmured.

"I'm sorry, Fishface, what did you just say?" Snotlout butted in across their comms.

"There's a Jedi still in the fighter, Snot. And he's alive," she clarified, her smile only widening.

"WHAT!? Are you serious!?" was the last coherent thing Snotlout managed to yell before he let out a loud scream of excitement.

Trying to shut him out, she beckoned Ruffnut and Tuffnut over, who were already making their way over, eyeing the cockpit curiously. "Get whatever explosives you can find. Fish, let's get the droid first, before we try to get him out alive."

"What?" Tuffnut asked. "You want us to blow up the ship?"

"Yes. We want whoever will undoubtedly come for him to think he's dead." She took a look at the unconscious stranger, who had just made her happier than he could possibly imagine. "Mister Jedi here is all the merchandise we need."

"We are going to be so fucking RICH!"

And for once, she couldn't tell Snotlout he was wrong. Because he was absolutely, gloriously right.

[cienie-isengardu]

Anakin repairs starfighters of his men

Anakin loves to fix things. It was shown in so many, various sources. In Legends & canon materials related to Clone Wars era, he is often repairing or upgrading his own starfighter.

And in TCW Gambit: Stealth, we learn that after Battle of Kothlis, Anakin devotes time to repair not only his vehicle but also repairs starfighters of his men. In this case, Gold Squadron’s starfighters:

Hours passed. He wasn't disturbed. No call from Obi-Wan or the Jedi Council. Slicked with oil and hydraulic fluids, nicked and scraped and pinched bloody in places, once the gross mechanical faults in five fighters were repaired, he decided to give every ship in the hangar a tune-up. After all, there was nowhere else he needed-or wanted-to be.

But not even the sweaty, exacting work of bringing Gold Squadron's starfighters to pitch-perfect performance status managed to ease his heart or lighten his thoughts.

Rex. Coric. Ahsoka. And fourteen dead pilots. Scores more dead and wounded ground troopers.

When Obi-Wan contacted with Anakin via comlink to remind about their meeting with Council, Anakin chose to stay in hangar and help ("Sorry. Obi-Wan, I have to stay and fix this. Hangar Three's almost empty. We're practically the only fighters in the place. If something comes up overnight...")

For Anakin, fixing things is a way to relax, to calm his mind. Working with machines makes feel him better, and I even dare to say, this is terapeutic  activity that Skywalker seriously needs. But the fixing starfighters is not only about his love for fixing things nor his whim and excuses to not meet with Council. The better machine, the bigger chance for survival of clone troopers and thus for Republic’s victory.The job is messy, but it’s necessary especially after one of hard battles like that of Kothlis; the starfightes need to be repaired as fast as it’s possible because Separatist may strike back any moment. Anakin is already quite well-known Jedi general of Great Army of Republic but he is working in hangar(s) like common mechanics do. He is doing extra work that no one asked him to do. And I think clone troopers really appreciate Skywalker’s devotion. He takes care of them by taking care of their equipment - and he does that with the same passion and precision as if he was repairing his own starfighter.