It's late in the evening now, Lux notices idly. He should be going to bed, but there's too much Senate work to take care of. It's exhausting, he must admit. His thoughts are broken by a sudden call from Padme. "Hello?" he greets her.
A tiny hologram of Padme appears on his desk. She looks worried, more so than he ever remembers seeing her since coming to Coruscant. They've started talking a lot, and she's spent time helping him adjust to working in the Senate. What could be wrong now?
"Lux," she asserts in response, "Did you hear what's going on?"
"With what?" he queries with a frown, raising an eyebrow.
"With Ahsoka," she explains.
His blood instantly runs cold at the words. What could Padme be so worried about, unless – No, he's jumping to the most catastrophic conclusion first thing. There's no proof. There's no way – "What?" he demands anxiously.
"You heard of the Temple bombing, right?" she inquires, then continues without waiting for him to reply. "Ahsoka was called to speak with the suspect, and while she was talking to her, the suspect was mysteriously strangled to death with the Force."
"And they think Ahsoka did it," Lux realizes, dread pooling inside of him. It's not as bad as the first catastrophic thought he had, but that doesn't make this any better. Ahsoka is being accused of murder.
"There's more," Padme continues, "She just escaped the prison, from what I've heard, and no one's been able to find her yet."
What?! "Why would she do something like that?" he exclaims, "That's only going to make her look even more guilty!"
"I don't know," Padme sighs, "We're probably missing most of the details. I can... maybe talk to Anakin once this is over, but for now, we'll have to wait. Or watch the news, because it's already all over the place."
The news which he'd been ignoring while trying to get his Senate work done. Well then. "Do you think there's anything I can do?" he asks desperately. He wishes he could go out there and find Ahsoka himself, to see if he can figure out what's going on, but it's not like he even has any idea where she could be or anything. Besidies, if he did get involved, it would make her look more suspicious. He doesn't know what to do. But he's going to keep a close on eye on what's happening as much as he can. "Thank you for calling, Padme. Just... keep me updated," he requests finally.
"I will," she promises, expression still grim as the connection breaks.
***
Lux can't shake the sinking feeling of foreboding he's had ever since the last Senate meeting he attended, where they discussed the situation with Ahsoka. It's beyond aggravating to hear everyone there talking about her like she's a dangerous criminal, and despite everything he argued to the contrary, he's not even surprised when the Senate finally reaches the decision that they want her thrown out of the Order and turned over to Republic courts for trial.
Thrown out of the Order. The very place that was always her home, the only one she ever knew. He can only hope that the Jedi Council will look over the evidence and realize that something else is obviously going on here.
Still, that doesn't mean he isn't dreading it when he gets another call from Padme. By the look on her face, he's certain he already knows what happened. "They did throw her out, didn't they?" he asks.
"Yes," Padme replies grimly, "They did."
"I don't understand this," he declares, anger leaking into his voice, "I know the Senate demanded it, but the Order wouldn't have to give in to that necessarily unless they believed she was guilty! How did the fact that she could have killed the suspect get blown into how she must be behind the bombing?!"
Padme sighs. "I don't know, but Ahsoka is going to need someone to represent her in the Senate. Anakin already asked me, and I agreed."
Right. He'd hardly thought that far ahead even, his mind too busy reeling from the shock of what's going on. He was starting to respect the Jedi, after disliking them his entire life, and now they go and do something like this?! He... wants to go talk to Ahsoka, but that's going to have to wait until this is all over. "I can help represent her too," Lux offers.
"I thought you would want to," Padme replies, "I'm going to see Ahsoka now so we can work on her defense. I can call you about it after I get back."
"Good luck," Lux tells her finally before the call ends again. He can't believe how much things have changed overnight. Only yesterday, everything was normal, and now, Ahsoka has been thrown out of the Order and is literally on trial for treason against the Republic which could end in – No, he won't think about that. Ahsoka is innocent, and he'll do everything in his power to prove it.
***
"Ahsoka Tano," Palpatine's voice rings out, and despite herself, Ahsoka looks up, eyeing the Chancellor where he stands at the front of the room. The betrayal by the Council, throwing her out as if she was never even anything to them, as if everything she did her life was nothing, is still crushing her. She didn't think another betrayal could hurt nearly as much as what happened in the Hardeen incident, but apparently, she was wrong.
"You have been charged with sedition against the Jedi Order and the Republic itself. This court will decide your fate. Prosecution, you may begin your arguments."
Tarkin strides to the edge of the railing, staring arrogantly at her. "Former Padawan Tano, I shall prove that you were the mastermind behind the attack on the Jedi Temple, and that once your accomplices carried out your orders, you eliminated them one by one. When you are found guilty, I ask the court that the full extent of the law be brought down upon you, including penalty of death."
What?!
Dread pulses through Ahsoka, the full meaning behind the words, behind the situation she's in right now, crashing down on her. Yes, she already knows that the penalty for treason is execution, but to hear it stated so simply –
Especially when this is the very Republic she's spent her entire life serving, the very Republic that she's watched countless clones die on the battlefield for, and now they're doing this to her. And the Order didn't even have a problem turning her over for this. They didn't even listen to her or give her a chance to defend herself first.
"Look at the facts," Padme speaks up, stepping forwards. Next to her, Ahsoka spots Lux standing, expression grim and filled with determination. She wasn't expecting him to be there as well to speak for her, but she's beyond grateful. Everyone – the very people she thought were her family – have abandoned her, except Anakin, so actually seeing Lux here at least makes her feel slightly better. At least it's a firm reminder that someone is continuing to stand by her.
It still hurts that Anakin was willing to chase her down for the Jedi in the first place, even if she knows there wasn't much else he could do then. But the pain of that is lost in the face of... what she might be facing now.
"Letta Turmond called Ahsoka to her cell to reveal the name of the true mastermind behind the bombing of the Jedi Temple. Letta told her that she was afraid. She told her the mastermind was a Jedi, and before she could reveal the Jedi's name, Letta Turmond was strangled to death by way of the Force. Why would Ahsoka kill Letta with a method that would so obviously tie the murder to her? A Jedi may be responsible for the murder, but that Jedi is not Ahsoka Tano. Members of the court, you are prosecuting the wrong Jedi," Padme continues.
"Well said, Senator Amidala," Tarkin retorts, "However if she is innocent, then why was she seen conspiring with known Separatist terrorist, Asajj Ventress?"
"Ventress set me up!" Ahsoka exclaims, temper flaring, "My master will prove that."
"And where is your master?" he asks snidely.
"He's trying to find the real murderer."
"Then maybe he should be looking at you."
Ahsoka glares back at Tarkin, but doesn't reply. There's no point arguing. They need to focus on facts right now. He's already convinced of her guilt, and he's not looking at facts.
"When Ahsoka was in the Underworld," Padme continues, "Ventress attacked her, planning to turn her in, but they reached a mutual understanding so they could continue working towards finding who is really behind the terrorist attack on the Temple."
"Yet when she was apprehended, she were found at the very sight where the nanodroids used in the bombing must have been being stored."
"They were investigating and found a lead! Of course, they would be there," Lux retorts.
"But coincidentally enough, when she was found, the entire warehouse was burning. Most of it was destroyed before the blazes could be contained. It is clear that the fire there was set deliberately in an effort to cover up any evidence that could still be used to trace the crime back to you," Tarkin insists.
"When she was at the warehouse, she was attacked by a figure in Ventress' bounty hunter disguise," Padme declares, "Whoever this was, intentionally set the place ablaze."
"I find this hard to believe, when none of the clones saw anybody else there when they showed up," Tarkin replies.
"She took off right before the clones showed up!" Ahsoka snaps, unable to help herself.
"So you claim. There are too many coincidences here to be believable," he argues.
"Did you ever stop to consider why Ahsoka was injured when she was apprehended?" Lux asks.
"They were clearly signs of an extended fight," Padme continues, "As evidenced from her visit to the Healers at the Temple after her arrest."
"She was in the Underworld for an extended period of time as well as fighting and killing clones back in the facility. These injuries could easily have come from that," Tarkin suggests.
"You still have produced no evidence that Ahsoka was the one who killed those clones back at the facility," Lux retorts, eyes narrowed.
"She was spotted right next to their bodies on multiple occasions, right after fresh wounds had been inflicted. That is evidence enough."
"Isn't there visual footage of this?" Padme argues, "It's something the court should see."
"The footage was mysteriously damaged in the hallways where she had passed through," Tarkin replies. "This also seems far too coincidental for her not be implicated."
"And you think that somehow while Ahsoka was running for her life she had time to damage cameras all over your facility?" Lux states flatly.
"Only two of the cameras had been damaged," he retaliates. "She is the only one who could have done it. We have a secure facility, with not just anyone running about."
"So you say, and yet the sound wasn't working on the cameras to the cell which Letta died in," Lux counters.
"Yes, and if there was a breach so major in your security present already," Padme argues, "How can you know there wasn't a security breach elsewhere?"
The argument is still continuing back and forth, with Tarkin still refusing to back down – even though his excuses are starting to get even more lame – when the doors to the Senate abruptly slide open.
Ahsoka spins around at the interruption, eyes going wide as she sees Anakin standing there, numerous Temple guards behind him, surrounding someone. He did it. He found the real traitor.
***
Ahsoka doesn't think any decision could possibly hurt more than the one she's being forced to make right now. She already knows what she has to do, but that doesn't mean it isn't crushing her to do it. After what the Order did to her, she can't come back to them anymore. She can't just go back to pretending that nothing happened, that things can go back to be the way they were before.
She needs space to figure this out on her own, and she can't do that here. Her entire life was dedicated to the Order, and it didn't even matter to them. They're falling from what they once were, and as much as she's loath to admit it, she can see what Barriss was saying. Even if that doesn't justify what she did.
"The Council didn't trust me, so how can I trust myself?" she asks desperately, unable to meet Anakin's gaze. She doesn't want to do this, to hurt him like this, but she doesn't know what else she can do.
"What about me? I believed in you, I stood by you!"
His pleas cut deeper into her already shattered heart. How can she ignore that, and walk away? But what choice does she have? "I know you believe in me Anakin, and I'm grateful for that. But this isn't about you. I can't stay here any longer, not now."
"The Jedi Order is your life! You can't just throw it away like that. Ahsoka, you are making a mistake."
"Maybe, but I have to sort this out on my own," Ahsoka insists quietly, even as it crushers her to do so, "Without the Council." She trails off at that. She wants Anakin to come with her so badly, but she can't ask him. She won't pressure him into a decision like that. It simply wouldn't be fair. If she wants to do this, she needs to do it alone. The Council's betrayal showed her well enough what could happen when she relies on others, and while Anakin saved her on time, she can't help but wonder, what if he hadn't succeeded? That's why she needs to go, because she could have died, and – and it could happen again. "And without you."
Anakin lets out a defeated sigh, turning sideways to look at the Temple behind them. "I understand. More than you realize, I understand wanting to walk away from the Order."
Her mind drifts back to the days after Hardeen, the restlessness she's always felt in him for so long, the underlying feeling that he doesn't belong. She saw it herself, how he is hardly seen as one of the Jedi. She noticed how he never seems relaxed or at home among the Jedi, the way he did in the clones. "I know," Ahsoka replies, quietly.
She feels a crushing pained resignation, and – and she can't do that. "This doesn't have to be the end for us, Anakin," she offers, mind scrambling to reach a decision. "I'll stay with Lux or something. We can still... talk." Eventually. She doesn't have anywhere else to go, other than to Lux, and... she needs to thank him for coming to stand up for her.
"I – okay," he breathes.
"See you later then, Master," Ahsoka whispers, before finally turning and walking away towards the Temple steps.
She wants to look back, but she doesn't. If she does, she knows this is something she'll never be able to go through with. Even if she can still see Anakin, it's never going to be the same.
***
Now that she's actually gone, left the Temple behind to never look back, Ahsoka suddenly feels lost and alone. Even if she knows where she needs to go now. All confidence she might have been feeling before (she really wasn't) is gone. She's never truly been on her own like this. Even during incidents like with the Trandoshans, she always knew Anakin would be trying to find her. But now, she willingly walked away from him.
It still hurts, more than she could ever say. But... if she's going to be staying with Lux, she will see Anakin again. Even if it won't be the same.
The sky is steadily darkening as she makes her way to the 500 Republica. It's hard being here now, since she can so clearly see the Senate building in the distance. The last time she was in the area was because she was about to be executed. But she doesn't have anywhere else to go at this point.
Gaining entrance to the building is easy enough, and she makes a beeline for Lux's apartment as soon as she's inside, knocking on the door.
He opens it almost immediately. "Ahsoka!" he exclaims, "What's going on? Why are you here?"
"I... I can't go back," she explains, looking away as he lets her into the apartment.
"You left the Order?" he realizes, and she nods.
"I understand," he says, reaching out to rest a comforting hand on her shoulder, "After what they did to you, I'm sure no one would want to."
"They didn't trust me when I needed them the most," she says bitterly, "Now I wonder if I shouldn't have just left all those months ago when Anakin and I first talked about it." At least if they had he'd still be at her side, but she couldn't ask him to leave with her. She couldn't put him in a situation like that.
"Well, you're here now," Lux murmurs, "And like I told you, you're always going to be welcome on Onderon, or here, if that's where you want to stay."
"Thanks," she says, giving him a small smile, "I don't have anywhere else to go at this point. And... I don't even know anything else, outside the Order."
She doesn't even know what she's going to do with herself now that she's left. All she's ever done is fight, or spend her life preparing to do so, and now that that's gone, she has no idea what's next. "I can help you figure that out," Lux offers, "But you probably don't need to dwell on that tonight. Wait until tomorrow, or a few days, and we can go from there."
What would she do if she didn't have him here? Yes, she might be able to get by on her own, but still.
"There is an extra bedroom here that you can stay in. And you could just... keep your things in there, I guess," Lux continues.
"I don't really have anything beyond this," she says dryly, gesturing to the clothes she's wearing right now. It's not like she had time or the desire to go back to the apartment at the Temple to get her other clothes.
"Well, if you need that..." Lux looks slightly uncomfortable. "I'm sure Padme could help with that."
"Yeah," Ahsoka agrees, "But that can probably also wait until tomorrow." She's not ready to talk to anyone else right now. She needs some time. She's completely worn out, more so than she remembers being in literally ever. She's never had to make a completely life altering decision like this, after all.
Lux nods his agreement.
Ahsoka moves closer, slipping her arms around him. "Thanks," she whispers again.
"Any time," he whispers back, pulling her closer. This doesn't automatically make anything better but knowing that he's going to be here at her side makes trying to sort things out on her own a lot easier.
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