Padawan Found Chapter 10

A list of lovers!, after an impressive victory on the planet Felucia Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, along with his padawans Barriss Offee and Ahsoka Tano, report to the Jedi council for their mission review. But unbeknownst to the headstrong Jedi Knight, master Kenobi has come up with a plan to finally root out the source of Ahsoka's attachment.

Chapter 10: An Awkward Investigation

Master Yoda nodded thoughtfully from his seat in the Jedi councils chamber"Very impressive your story is, to mind trick a rancor a difficult challenge it is"

Barriss tried to hold her tongue, a compliment from master Yoda was enough to make her entire week but eventually she forced herself to shake her head "I didn't mink trick the rancor master, I simply asked her for help". Just for once she wished the masters of the council would let their feelings known through some form of facial expression but as usual each face in front of her was completely unreadable.

It was master Obi-Wan who finally broke the silence "rancor have never showed any signs of significant intelligence, how were you able to communicate with it?".

Barriss ran a nervous hand through her hair "well, through the force I think"

"did Ahsoka help you?" Obi-Wan's filled each word with compassion so much so that Barriss felt a little less tense as she turned to her friend.

Ahsoka returned her gaze before shrugging in Obi-Wan's direction "sorry master but I was surrounded by droids at the time, if I helped it had to be subconsciously". Master Yoda once again stepped down from his chair and asked for each girls hand, Barriss pulled her hood up so the other masters couldn't see her sweating as she extended her hand.

Yoda's presence surged through her so fast she barely felt it before it dissipated into nothing, master Yoda let go of both girls hands and nodded in appreciation "still under control the meld is, dismissed you both are".


^0^0^0^

Anakin let loose a loud sigh as both his padawans left the council room "ya know I'm really getting tired of keeping secrets from them, please tell me we know something so we can put all this behind us?"

Obi-Wan floated a data pad across the room "I contacted master Rues about the possibility of padawan Tyzen being the source of Ahsoka's feelings, she pretty much told me what you did Anakin. While the two did get along they haven't been in contact since their last mission together".

Anakin skimmed through the data pad with a raised eyebrow "what exactly is this?"

"a list of people Ahsoka has had extended contact with, I'm afraid the only way we're going to get to the bottom of this is by talking with each name on that list individually"

Anakin looked towards his former master "someone had some time on his hands"

"a simple thank you will suffice, now if you need some help we can split the list in two"

Anakin quickly shook his head "I appreciate the thought master but with all due respect I think this is something I should handle alone, besides I need something to do today anyway".


^0^0^0^

Barriss took Ahsoka's hand as they walked down the hallway and steered her friend into the mess hall, sitting down at the plain white table closest to the door each girl let out a soft moan as their tired legs finally got a rest. "I tend to have that effect on women"

Barriss turned her head towards the words ready to scold someones head off until she looked into the familiar brown eyes of James Clever "oh hello James, I forgot you work here now"

James pulled a old fashion pen and notepad out of the large apron he wore over his food splattered clothes "so what can I get the two most forgiving girls in the Jedi order".

Ahsoka offered a light smile as she spoke "just whatever you have ready will be fine James"

James shook his head defiantly "oh no nothing but the best for you two"

Barriss couldn't help but grin at the boy as he jotted down a few words on his notepad "ya know it still sounds like your hitting on us".

James brought his arms up in mock defense "I have no idea what you're taking about, jeez try to be nice to somebody and they just blow it all of proportion, ya know I have half a mind..." James continued to rant to himself as he walked off and disappeared behind the kitchen door.

Barriss struggled to hold back her laughter "ya know he may make a really bad first impression but James seems like a nice guy" Ahsoka opened her mouth to reply but a powerful presence stepping inside the mess hall stopped the words just short of her mouth. Anakin looked around the large room before spotting his padawans and walking over, Barriss motioned to the seat beside her "care to sit down master?"

"afraid I don't have that luxury today Raven, I just wanted to let you two know I'll be gone for most of the day so you have free reign of the temple. Just try and stay out of trouble"

Barriss did her best to answer the same time as Ahsoka "of course master".


^0^0^0^

The Senate Building

Anakin hopped out of his speeder and started towards the giant entrance to the senate building, seeing that three names on Obi-Wan's list started with the word senator he quickly decided this would be the best place to start. 'Lord this should be a fun day, hi everyone I've ever met I just stopped by to ask if you've been sleeping with my teenage padawan, no, oh then sorry to waste your time' Stepping inside the elevator and pressing the button for the senators offices the thought did little to ease the knot in his stomach, as the elevator made it's way up the large building he rechecked the first name on the list, senator Riyo Chuchi, 'Obi-Wan is gonna pay for this'.

As the doors opened in front of him Anakin walked out into the long hallway, each side of the extravagantly decorated hall housed a row of large doors with a name written clearly across the top. Anakin walked down the hall a few steps before reading Chuchi's name on a door to his left, after a few light knocks the senators voice could be heard inside "come in".

Anakin took a moment to take a few deep breaths before opening the door with a wave of his hand, Chuchi's office resembled almost every other office in the senate with a long desk facing away from a equally long window that cast a thick ray of sunlight through the open area between himself and the senator.

Chuchi's already bright features lit up as she looked up from her desk "general Skywalker, please come in" the senators innocent voice only made it harder to walk up and take a seat opposite her desk.

Anakin nodded to the blue skinned girl before speaking, choosing each word very carefully "a pleasure to see you again senator Chuchi, I only wish it was less troubling circumstances that brought me here"

a look of concern that seemed foreign on the senators face brought his heart to his throat "is something wrong Skywalker?, you sound upset".

Anakin shifted uncomfortably in his seat "it's nothing really, I just need to ask you a few questions"

"am I in some sort of trouble?"

Chuchi leaned back in her seat now fully engrossed in the conversation as Anakin waved a dismissive hand through the air "no not at all senator, this is more of a personal visit to be honest".

Chuchi got up from her desk and walked gracefully to the small bar at the side of the room "well in that case would you like something to drink?"

Anakin raised an eyebrow "I never took you as someone who would drink, are you even old enough?".

Chuchi filled the room with a lighthearted laugh "anyone in my line of work starts drinking after a certain point, but to answer your question yes I'm old enough" Anakin offered a light smile as he took the glass offered to him, taking a small sip from the red liquid he felt the soothing drink reach his stomach as the senator once again took her seat "so you want to ask me some questions?".

Anakin nodded as he set his glass down on the small table beside him "you're familiar with my padawan Ahsoka Tano correct?".

Much to his dismay Chuchi's eyes lit up "oh yes Ahsoka, such a sweet girl".

"yes...sweet, Ahsoka spoke very highly of you after your short time together so I assume you got along"

"yes very well, I'll admit I don't know much about the Jedi order but I can tell you're doing an excellent job raising her"

"well thank you but I feel we're getting a little off topic here, did Ahsoka show any...special interest in you?"

Chuchi seemed to take a moment before she understood "you mean physically?"

"I'm sorry we have to have this conversation senator but Ahsoka has formed an attachment and I can't rule anybody out"

"no I understand Skywalker, it's just a little surprising you would even consider me as an option"

"well you are one of the few people Ahsoka knows who isn't to far away age wise, and to put it frankly since she is a Jedi we have no clue as to her sexual orientation so we have to check every possible lead" the look on Chuchi's face was killing him but Anakin forced himself to continue "I guess what I'm asking is, have you had a physical relationship with Ahsoka?".

Chuchi was silent for a moment as she took a sip from her glass, the poor girl was unsuccessfully trying to hide the discomfort from her face "Skywalker I can tell you without a doubt that I've never had a...intimate encounter with your padawan".

Anakin stood from his chair and gently shook the senators hand "that's all I needed to hear senator, and please accept my apology for this entire visit"

"no need to apologize Skywalker, it's always nice to see a friendly face"

"likewise senator, have a pleasant day" Anakin turned and fought himself to not run out the door, once he finally found himself alone in the hallway he brought up Chuchi's name on the list and deleted it 'one down, it's gonna be a long ass day'.


^0^0^0^

The Jedi Temple: Mess Hall

"The meal was excellent James you can quit worrying" Barriss could easily see the look of anxiety on the boys face as he walked up for the fourth or fifth time to check on them.

James let out a sigh of relief as he took the plates from the table "thank you so much, when master Obi-Wan told me I'd be the assistant chef I assumed their was a head chef but you know what they got be working with back there, freaking mouse droids, those poor excuses for hardware can barely reach the counter let alone cook. Don't get me wrong I'm good, but it would have been nice for a butler droid at least".

Ahsoka waved a hand towards the kitchen "ya know Skyguys been teaching me a thing or two about electronics, if you want I can try and tweak those droids a bit?"

James offered a light smile as he headed back towards the kitchen "then what would I have to complain about?, I'll see you girls later".

Barriss waited till James disappeared behind the kitchen door before standing to her feet "so what now?".

Ahsoka followed her out the mess and back into the hallway "how about since we have the whole day to ourselves we do that research we talked about, see if there's a special connection between out species".

"sounds like a plan"


^0^0^0^

The Senate Building

Anakin walked only a short way down the hall before he saw the door to the next name on his list,senator Bail Organa, a light knock was once again met with the usual "come in". As he stepped inside he was taken by surprise as Bail walked up to him with a stack of papers in his hands, Anakin used a slight will of the force to help the senator keep the papers from falling to the floor "sorry to bother you senator but I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions?".

Bail moved past him and headed for the door "that depends if you can ask and walk at the same time Skywalker, these forms have to be at the senates main office ten minutes ago"

Anakin followed the senator back out the door and down the hallway "well I just wanted know if you've noticed anything odd in my padawans behavior lately?"

Bail stopped just inches from the elevator "Ahsoka, no last time I saw her she seemed perfectly normal. I believe you asked her to deliver a data pad to me about a week ago"

"nothing out of the ordinary?, please senator anything you have to say will be a big help"

Bail was silent for a moment as he thought back "well come to think of it she did seem to be in a very good mood, that young Mirialan who was with her, what was her name?".

Anakin pulled the data pad from his pocket and deleted the senators name before he answered "that was master Luminara's padawan, Barriss Offee" Bail snapped his fingers, almost dropping the stack of papers in the process "that was it, Ahsoka really seemed to enjoy being around her".

Anakin pressed the button for the elevator "those two are good friends, well I heard all I needed to. Sorry to waste your time senator" Bail turned as the elevator doors opened and stepped inside "anything to help a Jedi, hey tell Ahsoka I said hi"

"will do senator" Anakin waited for the doors to close before collapsing against the nearby wall "this is freaking brutal". He sat on the hallways floor for a few minutes before reluctantly pulling himself to his feet 'only one more senator to go' his heart jumped as he looked closer at the data pad, senator Padme Amidala, 'oh this should be fun, might as well delete this name right now. But since I'm here I guess there's no reason I shouldn't see what she knows'.


^0^0^0^

The Jedi Archives, First hall

Barriss sat at the terminal farthest away from Ahsoka, not because she wanted to but because as Ahsoka had so delicately put it 'we don't anyone thinking we're too close'. Ignoring the fact that is was now very hard to feel Ahsoka's presence Barriss activated the terminal in front of her, her finger moving lazily across the keyboard she immediately found what she was looking for Togruta species: history, traits, appearance, biology, special characteristics "there we go".

A finger gracefully clicked on the last image, Barriss read slowly and carefully through the information in front of her.

Togruta, a humanoid species originally from the planet Shili. Special Characteristics are stated below in no particular order:

Togruta have a strong sense of togetherness and hate being alone 'that's good to know' they are always pleased to have any sort of pleasant company. Togruta are born with markings on their face, each marking is unique to the individual. In association with the markings Togruta also have stripes on various parts of their body, including the arms, wrists, chest, back, thighs, and legs respectively, these stripes can also vary from each individual.

With a flick of her wrist Barriss scrolled the page down: Togruta also vary greatly in skin color, those on record are orange, red, and blue or purple on occasion. Number of head tails or Lekku is less varied, only cases of three or four have been found. Togruta have little but pointed teeth 'yeah no shit' taking a moment to rub the mark on her arm Barriss continued reading. Some outsiders of Shili believe the species to be poisonous to the touch, but this rumor has been diminished over time 'better hope she's not poisonous, pretty sure I'd be dead by now'.

Togruta have the ability to hear even the smallest of noises through vibrations in their montrals (what many species would refer to as horns) although if the noise is too loud it can be very painful. Barriss looked away from the terminal as a few young-lings walked by behind her, a bright smile and short wave sent the kids on their way.

Going back to a few pages Barriss let out a short sigh 'nothing that could explain the force meld' hitting another pages she quietly began to read 'I hope Ahsoka is having better luck'.


^0^0^0^

Ahsoka gave a playful wink in her friends direction as she crossed the first hall of the Jedi Archives and sat down at the last available terminal, her nimble fingers typed faster than she could think and soon enough the desired page appeared in front of her. Ahsoka's face was cast in an orange light as she started to read.

Mirialans: a species of near humans native to the planet Mirial. Mirialans appearance varies from yellow-green skin to paler skin similar to that of many humans. Mirialans are known throughout the galaxy to be incredibly flexible and agile 'well this research just paid off' making them fast and formidable foes on the battlefield. As a people the Mirialans are religious and even those who aren't Jedi practice a primitive understanding of the force.

They also believe each individuals actions contributed to their destiny. A Mirialan is known to place a unique, often geometrically repeated tattoo on their face and hands to signify that they had completed a certain test or task or achieved sufficient aptitude for a certain skill. The number of tattoos often acts as a good indicator of how mature or skilled a Mirialan was 'huh, wonder what Barriss' tattoos mean'. Ahsoka prepared to click on the next page before realizing there wasn't one "hey what gives?, that can't be all there is" obviously hearing her words Jedi master (and chief librarian) Jocasta Nu walked silently to her side "is there a problem my child".

Ahsoka shook her head "no master Jocasta it's just...is this all there is on the Mirialan people?"

master Jocasta looked at the terminals screen for a moment "I'm afraid so my child". Ahsoka watched as Jocasta glanced across the first hall at Barriss who sat all the way at the other end "I noticed your friend was investigating the Togruta, is this about the force meld you two share?"

Ahsoka was a bit taken back but not at all surprised, nothing went one in the archives that master Jocasta wasn't aware of "we thought maybe the reason we could form the meld was because of a special connection between our species"

"and what did you find out?" master Jocasta kept a look of concern on her kind face as she took a seat beside her

Ahsoka shrugged towards the terminal "master I know everything there is to know about my species and nothing I just read is even remotely similar to the Togruta, our species couldn't be more different".

Master Jocasta put a comforting hand on Ahsoka's shoulder "I'm sure that in time the answers you seek will make themselves known my child, but if I may offer some advice?"

"of course master"

"the answers you're seeking, they aren't something you will find in the archives"

"what do you mean master?"

"I mean rather than searching in this terminal, maybe you should be looking inside yourself. What you find may surprise you" Ahsoka sat speechless, unsure of what, if anything to say as Jocasta rose from her seat and walked away without another word.


^0^0^0^

The Senate Building, Senator Amidala's quarters

Senator Amidala's beautiful face lit up at the sight of her husband walking through the door"General Skywalker, a pleasure to see you again"

Anakin let a cocky smirk cross his face as he sat down in the chair opposite his wife's desk "yeah you can cut the act Padme, I'm alone".

Padme's face instantly lit up "oh well in that case" before Anakin could prepare himself Padme' ran across the desk and jumped on his lap "oh!, you could warn a person". Padme' smiled at the face inches from her own "you're a Jedi, aren't you supposed to know what I do before I do it?"

"in a way" Anakin wrapped a hand around his wife's back and pulled their lips together in a passionate kiss, after pulling back he felt an uncontrollable smile grace his usually serious face "as much as I hate to say it I am here on official Jedi business".

Much to his surprise Padme' simply smiled and stood to her feet "then what may I help you with Ani?"

"well it's about Ahsoka"

Padme' made her way back to her desk before she spoke up "good god did you pull her Lekku again?"

"you're never gonna let me forget that are you?, and no that's not it. She's formed an attachment"

"oh...Anakin I'm so sorry. Who is it with?"

Anakin tried his best to ignore the pain in his wife's stare "well so far I've ruled out Riyo Chuchi, Bail Organa, you, and me"

"well who else is there?"

Anakin pulled the data pad from his back pocket "I still have to question clone captain Rex, masters Plo Koon and Kit Fisto, and I might check in with Dex down out that diner Obi-Wan goes to to see if Ahsoka's been their with anybody. I know Obi-Wan took her there a few times and she seemed to really like the place."

"So I take it the council knows about this, what will they do if..."

"if she acts on the attachment then the punishment is to be stripped from her teachings and banned from the temple, the same thing would happen to me if the council ever found out about us"

"Anakin we have to help her, if we can find out who her attachment is to and how serious it is maybe we can...I don't know. I guess we can't tell her about us, but maybe we could help her hide it like we do"

Anakin fought the urge to raise his voice "no, even if we do find out who the attachment is to before the council I don't think Ahsoka would hide it. Hiding our marriage was not an easy decision for me to make and Ahsoka is even more headstrong than me, I have a feeling she would leave the order before hiding anything from it".

Padme' rose from her seat and took the data pad from Anakin's cold mechanical hand "well we still have to try, we can split the list in two. I'll go talk to master Fisto and visit Dex's diner while you talk to Rex and master Plo Koon".

Anakin raised an eyebrow towards his wife "don't you have laws to pass or something?"

Padme' was already grabbing the keys to her speeder and heading for the door "my work can wait, I can't let something like this hurt what is essentially our daughter".

Anakin cringed a bit at the use of the D word but rose to his feet none the less "well in that case I'm happy for the help, to be honest this a lot harder than I thought it would be".


^0^0^0^

The Jedi Temple

Barriss led the way into master Anakin's quarters and quickly flopped down on the coach, it was amazing how quickly this small apartment started to feel like home. She watched with heavy eyes as Ahsoka walked into the kitchen and grabbed a soda from the counter before joining her on the coach, she could tell her friend was holding something back "you want to ask me something, what is it?".

Ahsoka tried to hide the blush from her Lekku by burying the back of her head into the coach "it's just...the information I read about your people said they were extremely flexible".

Barriss felt her face turn red within seconds "that's true, why does that...interest you?"

Ahsoka cracked open her soda and shrugged "I'm just saying it's good to know is all, so what do the tattoos mean?".

Barriss could tell her friend just wanted to change the subject but decided it might be better for the both of them to talk about something else "well the one's I have right now are for joining the Jedi Order but I'll probably get more when I become a Knight"

"that's what I figured, so uh...what do we do now?. That research didn't take as long as I thought it would"

Barriss sighed as she sunk deeper into the coach "I really hoped we would find a connection that explained the force meld"

Ahsoka laid back on the coach and took Barriss' hand "we will figure this out, together".


^0^0^0^

Padme' watched Anakin's speeder disappear into the rush of daytime traffic before turning towards the Jedi temple and starting up the steps into the main entrance, a bright smile graced her face as Obi-Wan walked up to met her. She let the Jedi master lead her a good way into the temples halls before she spoke up "so how is Ahsoka holding up?"

Obi-Wan stopped in the middle of the sun drenched hallway "I'm afraid she isn't aware that anybody knows"

"when Skywalker said she could be stripped from the order I had to help somehow"

Obi-Wan nodded "I understand senator, none of us want to see miss Tano be forced to leave"

"then why not just let her explore these feelings?"

"Padme' it is the duty of all Jedi to put personal feelings aside for the good of the galaxy, unfortunately this is something every Jedi has to face at least once in their life"

"I...you're right. May I speak with master Fisto?"

"his quarters are at the end of the hall, and Padme'...I know sometimes it can be hard to understand the Jedi's code. But what you need to realize is Ahsoka willingly agreed to live by this code for the rest of her life, we do not take that promise lightly" before she had time to say anything Obi-Wan turned and started back down the hall at a brisk pace.

Padme' followed the directions given to her and lightly knocked on the last door in the hallway "senator Amidala please come in", shrugging away the fact that Jedi always seemed to know who was at their door Padme' opened the door in front of her and stepped inside.

Master Fisto sat in the middle of his large living room cross legged, Padme' took a few cautious steps into the room "master Fisto I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions".

Fisto opened his eyes and let his signature smile cross his face as he answered in a thick, for some reason Jamaican sounding, accent "I take it you're here about young Ahsoka's problem?"

"yes master Fisto" Padme' tried to hide the worry in her voice but was painfully aware of how obvious her feelings were being portrayed.

Fisto rose to his feet long enough to sit down on the coach that took up the majority of his living room "you care very deeply for miss Tano"

Padme' quickly felt herself becoming more at ease with Fisto's easy going personality and even gathered enough strength to sit down beside him "I've known Ahsoka for a long time now, she's like a daug...uh...sister to me" .

Master Fisto's smile widened "Ahsoka is very strong willed, perhaps even more so then her master. She will pull through this"

Padme' returned the smile "master is there anything you can tell me I don't already know?, maybe something you sensed".

From his expression it seemed like it almost hurt the Jedi master to shake his head "I'm sorry senator but all I can say is I do feel the attachment when Ahsoka is nearby, as far as who it's to your guess is as good as mine".


^0^0^0^

The Resolute

Anakin flew his speeder directly into the docking bay of the Resolute, luckily the large ship was docked at Corusant until his next mission. As he parked his small speeder and hopped out onto the docking bay he was immediately greeted by the very man he was here to see, captain Rex offered a salute before he spoke "this is a surprise sir, not often we see you in between missions".

Anakin leaned on the hood of his speeder "Rex we need to talk"

Rex's light smile faded to a more serious look "is there a problem sir?"

"hopefully not, Rex you and your men respect Ahsoka right?"

"of course sir, I'd follow her to hell and back without hesitation"

Anakin gestured to all the clones working non stop around the docking bay "and your men are okay with taking orders from someone so young?".

Rex turned around to his men and shouted at the top of his lungs "alright men!, general Skywalker here wants to know how much each of us trust his padawan!. How many of you here would hesitate even the slightest if commander Tano told you to jump from the highest mountain on Hoth?".

Rex smile as the clones simply looked at him "and how many of you would object to leaping head fist into a sarlaac pit just to save the commander!" Rex turned to Anakin for a moment as once again his comment was met with silence. As the two shared a crooked smile Rex looked at his brothers once more "lets try this a different way!, raise your hand if you would gladly give your own life for Ahsoka's!".

Anakin looked out into the docking bay as every hand within his sight shot up the second Rex finished talking, the clone captain gave a silent command for his men to resume their duties before turning back to him "Ahsoka has always treated us with respect sir, she sees each of my men as individuals, we don't forget that".

Anakin stood to his feet "the clones loyalty was never in question Rex, what I really need is to speak with you personally"

Rex raised an eyebrow as he took a few steps closer "what is it sir?"

"well Rex what I need to know is your specific feelings for Ahsoka, what do you think of her?"

Rex took a moment to think "that's not a question I ever thought I'd have to answer sir...I'm not really sure what to say"

"just say what comes to mind when you think of her"

"well...she's smart as they come, an excellent soldier on the battlefield, she's one of the few people I know who actually takes the time to get to know each of us clones personally, she's..."

"pretty"

Rex put a hand on the speeders hood to stop himself from falling over "I'm sorry sir"

"Rex I hate to be so direct about this, what do you think of her physically?" a rarely seen look of confusion crossed the clones face "sir this is highly inappropriate, I would never think of commander Tano in that way"

"Rex I know this is hard but I really need an honest answer here, Ahsoka's status as a Jedi could be at stake" even as the words left his mouth Anakin knew they would hit home. There was no question in his mind that the clone soldier cared about Ahsoka like family, he would never hold back information that would help her.

His suspicions were proven precise as Rex pulled a crate to the speeder and sat down just a few feet away "I don't like this sir, but if it helps Ahsoka I'll answer anything" the clone was silent for a few seconds before speaking again in much softer voice so as not to attract attention from his brothers "I...suppose to someone her own age Ahsoka would have a rather...charismatic appearance. I wouldn't call her pretty so much as cute, sir please don't make me say any more".

The pained expression on the clones face forced Anakin to come clean "that's all I needed to hear, Rex I can't leave you like this. Ahsoka has formed an attachment and some of the masters thought it might be to you, that's why I had to ask those questions. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you at the beginning".

Rex stood at full attention "don't be sir, is there anything I can do to help?"

"just telling me what you did was a big help, thank you Rex, I know that wasn't easy"

"anything to help a friend sir" with a warm smile Anakin hopped back into his speeder, just as his finger was inches from the ignition Rex's voice caught his attention "sir you said commander Tano formed an attachment, you mean she has feelings for someone now right?"

"that's right Rex, why?"

Rex ran a hand along the back of his head "well I wasn't going to say anything but, one of the clones said he saw Ahsoka holding hands with commander Offee"

Anakin took a moment to realize who Rex was talking about "oh Barriss, those two are good friends, it's pretty comman for girls their age to hold hands. But either way thanks for the heads up Rex".

"any time sir, have a nice day"

"you to Rex, see you next time we have something to destroy"

"wouldn't miss it sir"


^0^0^0^

The Jedi Temple

Although Barriss thoroughly enjoyed watching her friends stomach rise and fall while sunlight poured in through the large window on the other side of the room something she had been holding in the back of her head for a while forced her to speak "Ahsoka I'm sorry but I really need to hear you say it".

Ahsoka twisted her head slightly on Barriss' lap "say what?"

"you know what, I mean don't get me wrong it was cute when you said I know but I just really need to hear you say it. You can say it right?"

Ahsoka was silent for a moment "oh alright I know what you mean now, of course I can say it". Barriss felt a chill go through her body as Ahsoka sat up on the coach and took her hands "Barriss Offee, I love you" Barriss lunged forward and wrapped both her arms around Ahsoka the second the words finished leaving her mouth.

They sat there wrapped in each others arms until Ahsoka finally broke the silence "it doesn't bother you does it?"

Barriss pulled back from the hug and turned her beat red face towards the window "what could possibly bother me about this?"

"that we're both girls"

the question took Barriss by surprise "honestly, up until now, I never really thought about it" much to her delight Ahsoka's Lekku lit up "really?"

"really, Ahsoka I could care less that we're both girls. All that matters is the feelings we have for each other, I love you, and I always will".


^0^0^0^

Dex's Diner

Padme' walked into the front door of Dex's diner, it was getting later in the day but she knew she had to get here before they closed. As if on cue Dex appeared from behind the counter "hello beautiful, so tell me, what is the legendary former queen of Naboo doing in a crap shack like this?"

Padme' forced a smile as she approached the counter "I see my reputation precedes me, I don't suppose you would mind answering a few questions?"

"that depends on the question doesn't it, please take a seat"

sitting down on the closest stool Padme' did her best to ignore her own voice coming from the television mounted over the counter "I need to know if a Jedi visited your diner recently".

Dex scrubbed the counter with one of his four hands "lots of Jedi come to this diner, could you be a little more specific"

"this Jedi is a young Togruta my the name of Ahsoka Tano"

"ah yes Ahsoka, she was here with Obi-Wan a few times before"

"yes that much I know, but was she here recently?"

Dex leaned his head back for a moment before snapping two of his sets of fingers at once "matter of fact she was, came here with a young Mirialan, what was her name?, what was her name?. Ah Barriss!, yeah that was it".

Padme' took a minute to think back 'Ani did say Barriss was living with them for a while' "what did they do while they were here"

Dex gave her a skeptical look "they talked, laughed, nothing out of the ordinary for girls their age"

"nothing they did seemed odd?"

"hey I don't watch all my customers like some dumb ass gungan, that's what the camera's are for" one of Dex's hands pointed towards a camera mounted on the ceiling, the silent machine was pointed directly at them.

Padme' tried to hide the excitement in her voice "do you keep the holovids on stock?"

"for a few weeks"

"may I have a copy of the day Ahsoka and Barriss came in?"

Dex seemed to tense up at the question "well, normally I wouldn't give anything to a senator but...a lot of my regulars do speak very highly of you. Alright I'll be right back" Padme' couldn't help but smile as the four armed alien disappeared behind a large door into the back of the diner.


^0^0^0^

The Jedi Temple

"Well, thank you for your time master Plo" Anakin turned out the door and into one of the many hallways of the Jedi temple 'nothing, all those people and not a damn thing that I didn't already know. There has to be something I'm missing, some clue I'm not seeing'.

Just as he was about to head back to his quarters a familiar voice caught his attention "I take it my list didn't help" Obi-Wan stood beside him obviously sensing his thoughts, Anakin took the now empty list and handed it to his master "unless senator Amidala had more luck then me master"

"yes the senator, her help was...a surprise"

"her and Ahsoka have been together on several occasions, she cares about her"

"fair enough, well I guess we won't know anything until..." Obi-Wan cut off his words as Padme's graceful form rounded the corner "what would you two do without me?".

Anakin let a crooked grin cross his face "you found something"

Padme' pulled a round disk out of her back pocket and flashed it into the sun "Dex had a holovid of the day Ahsoka visited his diner, according to him Barriss was with her".

Anakin was already halfway down the hall with his friends following closely behind "if Ahsoka is going to talk about her attachment with anyone it's Barriss, we need to find artoo and play this thing now".