~months prior, on Coruscant~
Ahsoka could hardly pay attention during the briefing. The 501st was going to the Abrion sector. There was an important Separatist information center on the Scarif system that they were tasked with capturing, and that's all she needed to know. Anakin would fill her in later.
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get the events of last night out of her head. The way he kissed her, the feeling of their bodies together...
She smiled at the thought. Taking her friendly relationship with Lux to the next level had been a dream of hers for so long, and now that it was finally happening, she wasn't really sure what to think.
As soon as the briefing concluded, Ahsoka and Anakin walked out into a small atrium in the Jedi Temple. When the door closed behind them, Anakin pulled her aside.
"What's with you today?" he asked, crossing his arms. "Your focus is all over the place."
"Sorry, Master," she said, sighing. "I guess I'm just tired."
"How late were you out last night?"
She shrugged. "I wasn't looking at the time."
Anakin shook his head in disappointment. "Do I even want to ask about what you and Bonteri were doing out that late?"
Ahsoka did her best to keep her voice even. She was a terrible liar, and her master knew it. "Nothing, Master. Just catching up."
"Uh huh. You just saw him a few days ago. What could you possibly have to catch up on?"
She felt her face heat up. She knew Anakin could see right through her. "Well, I mean, we're friends. We were just spending time together before I had to come back because I have no idea when I'll see him again."
"And you're positive it had nothing to do with your feelings regarding that particular Senator?"
"Of course not," she reassured. Anakin raised an eyebrow. "Okay, maybe a little, but it was fine. Purpose comes before feelings. I know that. I made it to the briefing on time, so why does it even matter?"
"Because you left your focus back at his apartment, Snips. You didn't pay attention to a thing said in that meeting, and did you think I wouldn't notice that you didn't go back to the Temple last night?"
To be honest, no, she didn't think he'd notice. It wasn't uncommon for her to have to wake Anakin up for these meetings, so she assumed he'd be asleep for most of the time she was gone and would be too preoccupied trying to get himself to the meeting to notice her absence. "How did you–"
"It doesn't matter. I'm not going to ask for details because, in this case, the less I know, the better. Be careful, Ahsoka. You're lucky you were assigned to me instead of some crazy rule-follower."
"Like Obi-Wan?" she joked as Obi-Wan walked by. That would hopefully change the subject.
"What?" he said, stopping next to them.
"We're just talking about how jealous you are that you aren't coming with us on this assignment, Master," Ahsoka said. "You're really missing out."
Obi-Wan shook his head. Sometimes Ahsoka wondered what it was like when Anakin was a Padawan. The two of them must've been one heck of a dynamic duo.
Now was probably the best chance she'd have to leave the conversation without Anakin getting on to her about where she was headed. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to get some grub and pack my stuff. Master, Rex and I will be on the bridge patiently awaiting your arrival by tomorrow at 1800 hours."
"Wait, Ahsoka–"
"Don't be late!" she called back as she started jogging toward her quarters.
As soon as she arrived, she shed her cloak and reached for the comm on her bedside table. After making sure that the call wouldn't be traced or recorded, she made a call to the Senate complex. She was met with the usual automated response.
"Thank you for calling the Republic Senate. This is a secure channel for military use only. Please state your clearance code."
"8108," she said. She had her own passcode, of course, but Anakin had more privileges than her as far as who he was allowed to call.
"Thank you for calling the Republic Senate, Master Skywalker," the automated voice said. "Who can we connect you with?"
"Senator Luxadrian Kalex Bonteri."
"One moment, please."
The phone rang a few times before Lux picked up. He was sitting at his desk in what she assumed was his new office. "Ahsoka!" he exclaimed. "I thought I was about to get a stern talking-to from Master Skywalker!"
Ahsoka laughed. "No, it's me. I just got out of the briefing. I'm headed off to the Scarif system tomorrow night. I have until then to pack and get ready, unless my master makes me run the training courses with him later this afternoon. How's your first day on the job?"
"It's going absolutely fantastic so far," he said, smiling. "Jaryn came by after you left this morning, too, just to say hello."
"That's great!" She hadn't seen Jaryn since she'd returned to the Temple from Onderon. She made a mental note to look into where he was stationed later.
"It's lunch break right now if you want to stop by," he said. "I know we said we were going to give it time, but I miss you already."
Ahsoka crossed her arms. "I suppose I could be persuaded to make the trip all the way over there as long as I get to pick up take out on the way. Deal?"
"Absolutely."
Even through a hologram, Ahsoka thought she was the most handsome boy she'd ever met. "Great! I'll be there before you can say bantha. Ahsoka, out."
She cut the transmission and grabbed some credits from one of her drawers. Without looking back, she closed the door to her quarters and raced off to the hangar.
It didn't take very long to pick up the food. Regardless, She couldn't wait to see him. Ahsoka picked up her pace as soon as she entered the Senate building. Careful not to run into anyone, she jogged up to Lux's office. After knocking softly, she heard the lock click open, and the door opened.
"Commander Tano, how good to see you," Lux said, standing up from his desk. Senator Amidala was standing beside him.
"Hello, Senators." She held up the bag of food in her hand. "I brought lunch."
Senator Amidala smiled. "It's good to see you, Ahsoka." She looked back and forth between Lux and Ahsoka, smiling. "You know what, it's probably time I ate something today as well. Do you happen to know where Anakin is right now?" she asked Ahsoka.
"Yup. He's probably still arguing with Obi-Wan in the Temple. I'm sure he'd love an excuse to get out of that if you want to give him a call."
Padme laughed. "My thoughts exactly. I'll see both of you later."
Ahsoka put the food down on the desk while Padme left the office. As soon as Lux made sure his door was locked, he stood up and walked over to Ahsoka. He took her hand and twirled her around before bringing her in for a kiss.
"That was cute," Ahsoka said when they parted. "You should do that more often."
He smirked. "Noted."
As they ate, Lux told her all about everything that had happened since she left his apartment that morning. The more he talked, less she paid attention to what he was saying. When he was passionate about whatever he was talking about, Ahsoka found it easy to focus on just his voice. It was soothing and helped her feel at peace. How did she get this lucky?
"Ahsoka?" he said. "Hey, are you even listening?"
"Yeah, yeah, of course," she said.
He raised an eyebrow. "You were, huh? I bet you can't tell me a thing I said."
"Well, you were talking about Jaryn, and then Senator Organa, and, um," she paused, trying to come up with something. "Okay, fine, you got me. I like listening to you talk. It's calming."
He chuckled. "Let's hope the Senate thinks so, too, or my career will be over before it even starts."
Ahsoka smiled as she stood up and threw away their trash. As much as she wanted to stay with Lux for the remainder of the day (and possibly night, too), she really did have to prepare for her mission tomorrow. "I'm still not quite used to this, whatever we are, but I like it."
"I agree completely," he said.
"For now, though, I have to return to the Temple before my master misses me. It won't be long before he realizes I'm here and not doing what I should be doing."
Lux's face fell. "You have to go?"
She nodded. "But I'll be back soon. The campaign on Scarif won't last long."
"Good," he said. "Will you call and check in when you can? I know you'll probably be fine because you do this sort of thing every day, but it would put my mind at ease to see you and hear your voice."
"I'll do my best. It's going to be hard with my master around all the time, but I'm sure I can work something out."
"Thanks," he said, smiling. "I have one more request."
She raised an eyebrow. "What sort of request?"
"An Onderonian holiday is coming up. To celebrate, there's always a formal gathering of sorts in the palace for nobility and government officials. The holiday is about warding off evil spirits, so it's usually a masquerade ball. Would you want to be my date? The king let me keep the cottage, so we can stay there, just the two of us."
She paused a moment. Her meditative retreat was supposed to take place when she got back from Scarif, and no one would notice if she left for a few days. Besides, her master would sometimes disappear for hours on end with a lousy excuse for where he'd been. If it was a masquerade ball, the chances anyone would recognize her were slim. "I'd love to, Lux."
"Great! We can shop for everything you need when you get to Onderon."
"Maybe we can check some more things off that list of yours as well," she winked.
He took a step closer and planted a chaste kiss on her lips. When he pulled away, Ahsoka couldn't help but pull him in for another kiss. She certainly knew what love felt like because she loved Anakin and Rex with all her heart, but what she had with Lux was just different. Is this what romantic love felt like?
His kisses were slow and passionate. He never rushed anything, and that was part of what made kissing him so addicting. His kisses trailed down to her neck, but then he stopped abruptly.
"Well don't stop!" Ahsoka joked.
"Your uniform is in the way," he said, disappointed.
Right. The uniform... Her uniform covered much of her neck, which had never really been a problem before. She chuckled and kissed his cheek. "We can fix that problem when I get back." She walked toward the door, but before she left, she turned around and smiled. "Goodbye, Senator. I'll see you soon."
"Of course," he said, bowing slightly, "Master Jedi."