maskormenacelogs

Entry tags:

Closed

WHO: Ahsoka Tano and Anakin Skywalker
WHERE: Maurtia Falls
WHEN: Sometime on the 4th
WHAT: Reunion!
WARNINGS: Possible mentions of past torture/angst?

She'd read the pamphlet given as part of the explanation of her being here. She'd cooperated thus far, going where shown, behaving herself. Keeping her signature in the Force close around her, unsure of who she might feel. Who might feel her before she'd regained her feet.

Ahsoka remembered the feel of a hand at her back, dragging her away from a killing blow from the Sith her old master had become. But she'd thought it was someone else's. A friend.

And now, she'd been told that she could change her very appearance here. To become a human. Maybe it was for her protection, and she knew she'd be experimenting with the transformation until she could use it with ease. But...was this world so dangerous to non-humans? She needed to know.

It wouldn't keep her from going out to explore though. She was glad to find a cloak to cover her montrals and lekku, and at least put a shadow over her tellingly orange skin. Out she went, remembering some of what had been pointed out to her on the way to her new, temporary home.

Anyone who already knew her would get a flicker of her presence in the Force. And she wasn't really expecting to see anyone she knew. That would be too much a coincidence for her comfort.

But then, a figure caught her eye and she paused to look, not quite believing her eyes.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Being a bodyguard was sometimes exciting and far better than working with sand. Anakin was afraid this was going to be another dull assignment until he felt her signature in the Force. Thankfully he was saying his farewells to his temporary employer, so it was easy to slip away.

At a run.

She had better steel herself for an energetic embrace that would likely lift her off her feet.

"Snips!"

There was no such thing as coincidence, as she was so soundly reminded!

There was her former master. Just as he'd been when she'd been a teenager, and just barely no longer his Padawan. Not the husk of a man that Vader had become, who'd just been about to kill her.

...It didn't matter, not when he called her that! She swallowed heavily, not even thinking to reach for her lightsabers, and threw her arms around him when he reached her.

So what if her feet left the ground!

"You're back," she mumbled against his shoulder with a shudder of emotion. It also didn't matter if he understood or not.

There were parts of him that still, sadly, resembled Vader. But Anakin had found a way to slow that progression and rediscover the man he used to be. It just so happened that said man didn't want to fight her in the least.

He wanted to protect her and guide her. Wasn't that what a Master was supposed to do?

Spinning them in a circle, he smiled so broadly that his cheeks ached. He set her down and pulled back to peer into her face.

"I thought that was my line?" he arched a brow quizzically, "What do you mean I'm back?"

She could feel that too, but the Dark Side doesn't have anywhere near as much hold on him now as it had before. It mattered, and she promised herself all over again that she'd not abandon him again. Ever.

He might no longer be her Master, but he was still family. And family protected each other.

Ahsoka squeezed him back, grinning when he set her back on her feet. One hand moved to touch his cheek, then give it a teasing little pinch.

"I saw you a few days ago," her joy faded to sorrow and grief before she shook herself and gave him a fierce look full of determination. "I mean that you are back to being you, Skyguy." It was a good pain, to call him that again.

He knows she didn't have a choice - the Council forced her hand in much the same way it had forced his. Of course none of that excuses becoming a Sith, but there had been a lot of mistakes and the only way to correct them is to face them. That is precisely why, despite learning from Obi-Wan again, Anakin is not a Jedi.

The pinch makes him huff and he bats at her fingers playfully.

"I know you think a lot of me, but I'm concerned if you miss me that quickly!" he immediately regrets the tease, sighing softly, "Snips...?"

She must have seen...

He embraces her again, eyes closed tightly.

"I'm sorry."

Edited 2019-09-06 02:06 (UTC)

The Council had been wrong. She knew now that Barriss had been right, just...she'd wished their friendship hadn't been abused. They don't have to be the sort of Jedi the Order wanted them to be though. They could be, and do, better.

Ahsoka smirked at his huff and puff, accepting the tease happily. If he was able to tease again, she would treasure every moment.

Ah. So he knew too. "I missed you the moment I left the Order," she told him anyway. She hugged him back, still no hint of hesitation or fear.

"I'm the one who abandoned you, Anakin. I won't make that mistake again."

Fear had entered the Council and poisoned their decisions. Those decisions, ironically, led to things turning out much worse than their fear deemed possible. Anakin is angry at them, but he also remembers that they too, like him, like Ahsoka, are normal. Sure, they have Jedi powers and enough experience to be on a Council, but that doesn't mean they are omnipotent.

"I never blamed you." he gives her a little squeeze, reinforcing his words, "You didn't abandon me. Everything was so screwed up and... None of it was your fault, Snips. I promise."

He doesn't want her carrying that guilt. His decisions - the Council's decisions - are the responsibility of those who made them. Even with her around, he might have still become Vader.

Edited 2019-09-09 04:50 (UTC)

She couldn't, and wouldn't, blame him for being angry at the Order. He had the right to his emotions, as much as said Order didn't approve of them. She'd loved being his Padawan.

The guilt eased from her shoulders at his forgiveness and the squeeze. Ahsoka squeezed back. "We still should have faced it together as a team. I'd like that back, if you're ok with it?" And if not, she'd just follow him around, watching his back, dragging him out of trouble...

"You're family."

"I don't know if you want any part of all the trouble I've caused." he would love to have her as his friend - as family - again, but it's not that easy, is it, "We need to talk. I know a place around the corner."

On the way to said place, maybe he can figure out how to tell her about Vader, Padmé, Luke, Leia and Kylo. It's a lot for him to swallow and if she wants no part of it, he can't blame her one bit.

"Have you heard about a Sith Lord called Sidious?"

"I know what you became. We even fought." Not to mention he'd almost killed her in said fight, but does he need to know that? Maybe later...

Ahsoka followed him anyway, keeping to his side as close as she once had. "You can talk to me. About anything." She'd even try very hard not to push.

"I've heard of him. I know...You...Vader told me about him. Just before I was brought here."

He keeps her close at that revelation, one arm wrapped firmly around her shoulders. An apology is on the tip of his tongue, but she silences it by her unquestioning acceptance of him.

"I never wanted you to meet Vader." his voice shakes, "I relied on Sidious because, at first, I didn't know he was a Sith and, second, he promised he knew way to save Padmé. I saw her dying in my visions and I panicked. He used that as a way to...coerce me...into doing anything he said." he grits his teeth, "I'm not saying I'm not responsible for what I did. I am. But nothing mattered more to me than saving her and our...child."

She leaned into his side, reinforcing her full acceptance of him. She knew he needed that. To not be alone, just as she did. She'd tried it, and discovered more about herself than she'd thought.

Ahsoka almost stopped him, but maybe he needed to explain to her what had happened. So she let him. She listened, and tried to see his side of things, rather than just her own. Admittedly...she didn't entirely understand it. Mostly? Yes. Humans still confused her sometimes though, even the ones she knew well.

She wrapped an arm around his waist toward the end and squeezed in support. "Bail told me Padme died," she eventually told him, keeping her voice quiet. "But he didn't tell me about a child. Do you know what happened?"

So many assumptions had been made and she deserved to hear the truth from him. Whether she believed him or not was up to her, but Anakin was done keeping things from his family and friends.

"...yeah." he found it difficult to breathe, though it had been over a year (or more) since he had learned of Padmé's death. It was wrong and a part of him would always rage against it.

"It was...children, actually. We thought she was carrying one, but it turned out to be two. Twins." he leaned against her, trusting her strength, "They're here. Luke and Leia. They survived...and I had no idea."

He'd believed her before, it was only right she do the same. She would have anyways. She would want to hear his side of things.

Ahsoka squeezed his side again, easily supporting him when he leaned on her. Trusted her. It meant a lot, especially from him.

Her eyes flew wide at the news though. Twins! And they were here! "But that's-!" Oh. Thinking about it a bit more...Oh boy. "You're here for them here though." Because she knew Anakin Skywalker.

"I would like to meet them."

"How can I not be?" he is frightened of the future - of who he becomes and all the people he pushes away - but if Luke or Leia ask anything of him, he will do his best to see it done. They inspire something in him. Hope, maybe. That something is a feeling he wants to hold onto - it helps him keep Vader at bay.

"They're older than us." he smiles, "But you'll be able to recognize them. I also have a grandson here, but he's..."

Too much like him.

"...complicated."

"I'm here, Skyguy," she gently reminded. "I've got you." She wouldn't let Vader take over again if she could stop it.

Ahsoka answered his smile. "What are they like?" Of course she'd go looking for them anyway, but she wanted him to talk about them.

It was the description of his grandson that had her quiet, hearing the unsaid description just as clearly. "Dangerously so?" Would she have to give this grandson of his an asswhooping?

He lets out a long sigh, giving her a grateful squeeze. Her support makes everything more feasible. He can't let his doubts overwhelm him; doubts can so easily turn to fears.

"Luke is too sweet for his own good. He's...a lot like Padmé. Sweet, but strong and stubborn, of course. Leia is...like me. Our tempers are the same. But she has a big heart too." he smiles fondly as he talks about them, "Both of them are strong in the Force. Luke would've been a Jedi if..." well, she knows, "Leia has a strong sense of the Force. She is an amazing leader and since Bail adopted her, she has been raised as a princess."

Now onto Kylo...

"He's Leia's son and...yes. I don't really understand him. He wants to move beyond the Light and Dark and that leaves me questioning what exactly is guiding him. His instincts? So many mistakes have been made that way."

Ahsoka leaned into his side. He wasn't usually so affectionate. But obviously he needed it, and she wasn't about to push him away. They weren't Jedi anymore. Affection was good.

She grinned while she listened. She squeezed him in understanding but didn't comment. No, no more Order-trained Jedi. But that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. "I wish I'd known." Maybe she wouldn't have been able to do much for them anyway, but she could have tried.

Tricky Bail! Wait. She blinked again, then snorted out a quiet little laugh. "...I think I've seen Leia. When she was younger." Of course she hadn't let herself be seen in return...

Beyond the Light and the Dark? That had her silent again, looking ahead rather than at him. When she finally spoke, it was slowly, carefully as if she was trying to find the best way to explain her thoughts. "...I think...he could be right. Maybe not how he's going about it, if you're left confused and questioning him, but...I think it's possible to find your way beyond specific sides."

"I wish I had known a lot of things too." he has to wonder if it would have made a difference. Knowing, that is. He had been so head-strong, so sure that he was following the right path to save Padmé that he hadn't paid attention to any of the warning signs.

"You did? What was she like?" Anakin clings to any information about his twins. He wishes dearly he could have held them as babies and shown them, day by day, that they were - and are - loved.

His eyes narrow, however, at what she says next. "Specific sides over-simplify the Force. I agree with that. But no one can rise above it all. That would be...to feel nothing, wouldn't it? To never be swayed by emotion. I can't see anyone knowingly wanting to live that way, can you?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Closed

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject