AHSOKA TANO

The next morning, Ahsoka and Lux loaded the empty supply crates into the New Jedi Temple’s freighter that everyone called the New Hope. Mace Windu, whom she was leaving in charge until she and Lux returned, had adopted the name shortly after Ahsoka had found him, and it had stuck with everyone else.

“I still can’t believe we have this old bucket of bolts,” Lux said. “I told you that we could have gotten a new one, but you always said–”

“No. I always said no. What you call the old bucket of bolts I call my pride and joy.” She laughed. “I wouldn’t part with this on my life!”

“It’s practically an antique now.”

“Yes, but we need all the money we have right now. We’ve got nearly a hundred people to support, and until you can get that facility on Bespin up and running, The Hope will be able to suit our needs for another good while. So stop complaining!”

“All right, fine,” he said, taking her in his arms. “Let’s continue our bantering tomorrow, all right? We’re getting married today.”

“Pipe down! Someone’s going to hear us,” she whispered.

“I don’t care.” He kissed her neck. “I love you, and if things were different, I would stand on street corners and say it out loud.”

She pushed him away playfully. “Yeah, and I would come looking for you and drag you back inside.” As they were done loading up the crates, she walked over to the ship’s ramp and began to climb up. “Well, are you coming?”

He nodded, and ran over to join her. Ahsoka looked back at him, and their eyes met for a long second. She leant in, as Lux did. They were about to kiss when they heard a yell. It was Amni.

“Ahsoka, I need to talk to you!” she called, running over to them. They both pulled away to a safe distance, blushing. Amni’s eyes widened, then she smiled. “Not interrupting anything, am I?”

“Um… No, no. Of course not,” Lux said. But Ahsoka could see that telltale blush that faintly colored his fair-skinned cheeks.

“I want to come with you.” She raised a hand before they could say anything. “No. Don’t try to stop me. I’m a doctor, and I could see that Anakin was in a dangerously imbalanced state when he left. I didn’t say anything, because he promised me not to, but I think that I have to, for his health’s sake.”

Ahsoka and Lux exchanged a look. Satisfied that she had their attention, Amni continued. “I had Anakin on… on prescribed medication. It’s been going on for about a year now. He would get the most awful dreams, which led to him staying up for days on end so he wouldn’t have to endure them. I gave him some pills to help him sleep so deeply that he wouldn’t feel anything.”

“I can’t believe it! Why? Why wouldn’t he tell me? Why wouldn’t you tell me? Someone should have said something!” Ahsoka vented. After a few moments of pacing, she was calm again. “I’m sorry. Is this why you want to go?”

“Yes. Anakin hasn’t taken his medication, and I’m worried. He nearly went over the edge once because of the dreams. He was conducting lightening in his sleep.” She smiled slyly. “And besides, I want to be there when the two of you get married.”

“How did you know?” Lux asked, shocked.

“I put a tracker in one of your blasters back before Ahsoka woke up,” she said. “Just to keep an eye on you. It has a communications unit built into it, and I overheard it.”

“You mean you… You could hear us at night? Um, okay then…” Now it was Ahsoka’s turn to blush. When Lux spent the night, his blasters were almost always in the room as well…

Amni rolled her eyes. “Come on! What kind of person do you think I am? I have some respect for privacy, you know! I turned it off at night yesterday and the day before!”

She and Lux breathed a sigh of relief. “All right, Amni. You can come with us.” she said, then took on a deep voice. “I, as Grand Master Jedi, give you the clearance.”

They all laughed, and walked up the ramp. Soon they were free of the planet’s gravity, and Ahsoka pulled the joystick, engaging hyperspace. And then the stars were zooming by as they flew towards Tatooine…

*Ahsoka and her friends are finally on their way to Tatooine. But what has happened since they last heard from Anakin? What will they find waiting for them on the desert planet's surface? And could there be something that Anakin's near future holds that will get the better of everybody? You'll find out in the next compelling chapter of The Unchronicled Adventures Of Ahsoka Tano!

Turn your back on the Jedi Order and become Sidious's next apprentice and may the Force be with you,

Sharron

PS: Anyone notice the change in covers? Huh? Huh? None of the pictures change at all, but they all have typesets that look like this one now. But all in all, I think that this one was the hardest to make, because I'm a perfectionist and I had to line up EVER LETTER perfectly. Sadly, unless there's a way I haven't discovered to make vertical textboxes using Preview on Macs, I have to do it one at a time. And by the time I was done I was like PRAISE THE SITH LORDS!!!! IT'S OVER!! IT'S DONE!!!!

I have another chapter almost ready, but I'm feeling kind of sleepy right now (I woke up too early again... my stupid internal clock is still used to school time) so I don't know if I'll finish and post it or not. I'll see...