LUX BONTERI

“Anakin!” cried Ahsoka, leaping into his arms. Her former Master looked a little embarrassed at this attention, since it was in front of his troops and Captain Rex, but hugged her as well. Lux tensed at this encounter.

 “It’s great to see you, Snips.” 

 “The speed of your arrival is very impressive, Master Jedi,” said Lux, holding out his hand, and Anakin shook it. He would have to put on his Senator Lux Bonteri mask and pretend that all was well for the time being. He was trying to ignore a surge of jealousy that had just popped up uninvited. 

 “Thank you, Senator. I’m sorry that we did not leave enough security on Onderon to avoid a Separatist invasion, but glad we made it in time.” 

 “Any more and the people would have felt threatened. We appreciate your support.” 

 “Anakin, what’s the status in the fighting?” asked Ahsoka. 

 “Not bad, my old apprentice. It’s been beaten back to other sectors.” He looked up at the sky. “But it’s getting late. Can I invite the both of you to spend the night at our camp?” 

“We will take you up on your offer, if it won’t be any trouble. My villa does not have satisfactory living conditions at the moment, I’m afraid,” said Lux.

 “Then it’s settled,” he said, and turned to holler back at his men. “Prepare to make camp!” 

 Once a camp had been set up, Anakin and Ahsoka sat together around a campfire, talking about what had happened in their separate lives over the course of the last few months. Unbeknownst to them, Lux watched from around a fold in his tent, seething with envy. He watched Anakin take her hand and give her a soulful look, and then she laughed, and slapped him playfully on the shoulder. 

 He couldn’t help but wonder: was the girl he loved falling for her old Master?

 ANAKIN SKYWALKER

 “So, what have you been up to these past few months, Ahsoka?” asked Anakin. He was dying to know about how she had been, and if she had found the life that she had been searching for. 

 “Well, things have been pretty slow lately, but it’s all right with me. I’m the Senator’s personal bodyguard now, so I earn my keep here. And Lux and I are a bit of a… a, um…” 

 “I get it, Snips. Really, I do.” 

 “How do you get it?” she asked suspiciously. She had thought a lot about what he had said a long time ago about understanding with Lux. At that moment, it occurred to her that Anakin might also be in a relationship, or have been. 

 “I can’t tell you here. But if you can come back with me to Coruscant when this whole thing is cleared up, I can explain it to you.” Seeing the look of concern on her face, he added, “But don’t worry. I won’t force you back to the Jedi Temple. I just heard that Senator Bonteri is coming back to Coruscant in a few days.” 

 “That’s true. I’m sure that Lux will be okay with it if I take a leave of absence for a little while when we get there.” She was thinking about her premonitions, but said nothing. It was the kind of vision that she felt was meant to be kept secret. 

 Suddenly Anakin’s expression changed. “I sense a great anxiety about you. Something is troubling you.” 

 She nodded, biting her lip. She hated lying to Anakin. And even though it wasn’t really lying, just withholding something, she still felt bad.

“Can you tell me about it?” Anakin persisted. She nodded no. “Fine,” he said. But I’m here if you want to talk.”