Mutual Feelings

Before the Council

About ten minutes after Anakin had left the chancellor's office, a holocall was placed through to an anonymous number, deep in the Coruscant undercity, from another anonymous number, somewhere in the senate district.

"Yes?" The Nikto at the end of the line asked, his voice distorted by three different filtering programs before finally reaching the ears of the hooded figure on the other end of the line.

"I have a job for you and the Morgukai." Darth Sidious announced, without preamble. "The Jedi Ahsoka Tano is starting to interfere with my plans. Keep an eye on her, and take any opportunity to see that some harm comes to her."

"The usual fee?"

"Doubled. This isn't a normal contract, although I am sure that you are up to completing it. The credits should be in your Nar Shaddaa numbered account."

The Nikto assassin turned away, calling up a small monitor, which showed green. Lots of it.

"She will not live out the week, Lord Sidious."

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Obi-Wan pushed open the doors of the council chamber, before stepping past Anakin, and taking his own seat.

"Anakin Skywalker." Mace Windu stated, once Obi-Wan was seated, and the chamber doors were closed. "We have approved your appointment to the Council as the Chancellor's personal representative."

Anakin nodded, slightly surprised at the fact that they'd accepted such a blatant imposition.

"I will do my best to uphold the principles of the Jedi Order." He responded.

"Also, Anakin, it is my pleasure to tell you that your padawan, Ahsoka Tano, is to be awarded the rank of Jedi Knight, for her courage and conviction."

You bastard. Anakin thought. You were just as ready as the rest of the council to send her before a firing squad with almost no real proof.

"Thank you, Master Windu." He replied instead. "I'm sure she'll be pleased to hear it."

"Why is she not with you?" Windu asked. "You were both summoned before us."

"She's meditating, Master Windu. She believed that she was about to be granted the rank of Jedi Knight, and was struggling to contain her emotions."

"Anakin, how many times do we all have to apologise to her?" Mace asked. He'd been forced to examine a few uncomfortable facts about his own psyche in the days after her trial. He'd actually managed to apologise for his actions, rather than blaming the Force, in the end.

"I'm not sure that the number can be expressed within the lifespan of this universe, Master Windu. She was so wounded by those allegations, and the lack of faith in her shown by the Order, that I could, ultimately, only convince her to stay as my padawan through bribery."

Mace, not to mention the rest of the council, both those physically present and not, looked at him with surprise.

"What were her terms?" He asked.

"A really large meal at the Manari, and the right to choose at any time except in during combat that she wished to leave both me and the Order behind." He didn't mention the circumstances of the offer, at the departure terminal of Coruscant Spaceport, seconds before she was going step through the immigration checkpoint.

"You got a table at the Manari?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Being the Hero with No Fear does come with a few advantages, Master. The maître-d' was willing to use his discretion to free up a table for us, although I believe that the booking had been cancelled shortly before." The steak had been excellent, although Ahsoka had somewhat overindulged on the wine, and had had to be extracted over one shoulder, giggling, before being poured into bed.