Chapter Text
To my dearest Skyguy,
I am overjoyed to learn that I will be able to visit you, and gladly accept to come to the wedding. Must I bring gifts? You know I am terrible at picking gifts, though I am sure my presence shall be enough. I am a joy to be around, after all.
Unfortunately, I have been called back to the academy and asked to teach a class for the younglings, to which I was unable to refuse. But you need not worry, I will make it back in time.
But tell me, how are you faring? I assume that you must be under great pressure, will all the preparations needed. Unless, of course, you found a way to slack off and let others do the work. I wouldn’t put it past you. No offense.
Do write back to me in time before I leave. We wouldn’t want a repeat of the Ryloth accident, now, would we?
With love,
-Snips
~~~
Rex glowered are he made his way through the halls, feeling like sleep evaded him more and more everyday. He had stayed up the whole night, signing documents for his general that he was ‘too busy’ to sort out. He admired and respected his general, he truly did, but the man could be a bastard when he wanted to.
And now, he had to write back to this lady to tell her that her ‘skyguy’ did not receive the letter, that the letters must have been mixed up in some way.
He pushed the doors to the armory open, hoping to see his men in perfect, neat rows, awaiting his orders in complete calm. He was of course let down, as merely two steps into the large room a knife flashed towards his face, which he caught with ease.
In front of him stood the culprits, Fives, Jesse and Hardcase, eyes wide in shock as they saw him enter, to whom he had explicitly said not to throw knifes around the room, even if they were bored.
But who was he to think any order that he gave could make it into their empty skulls.
He didn’t have to say a word before the men gathered into the armory rushed to form crooked lines, their sides facing him. He closed his eyes and sighed internally, hoping that when he opened his eyes, they would be somewhat presentable.
Once again, he was let down.
“Fives, mind explaining all of this?” He asked.
“Uh…explain what, Captain?” The man called Fives replied, holding blades not so well hidden behind his back. The captain gave him a look, signaling that today was not a good day to play around. Fives, bless the skies, seemed to understand that at least. “We were, uh, just testing our accuracy with knives, sir.”
“By throwing them at the door?”
“Why yes, sir, where else would we throw them?”
“At the training dummies, sergeant.”
“Ah, well…you make a good point, sir.”
‘Why do I even bother?’, he asked himself, sighing for what felt like the hundredth time this morning.
After running his men through drills all the way to noon, Rex, drenched in sweat, made his way to the palace gardens. Sometimes, when he came here, he could pretend that his life wasn’t filled with war and death. As he settled in his favorite spot, a stone bench nestled under the leaves of a willow tree, he let himself imagine a life where he was free to do what he pleased, without his responsibilities and the expectations put upon him.
He ate, his lunch consisting of a piece of bread with butter he had swiped from the kitchens this morning. Staring back at the palace, he couldn’t help but admire the beauty in its architecture. Naboo was known for its arts, after all.
The kingdom of Naboo was settled in a valley surrounded by mountains and gorgeous lakes. It was less affected by war, and remained untouched by the atrocities and conflicts, unlike his home of Mandalore.
Rex Fett was the second to last son of the king of Mandalore, Jango Fett. Like his brothers, Rex had been trained in the art of war from the moment he had turned 10. At 16, he had started training with the other soldiers in his father’s army, whom he had started seeing as his brothers. And on the day he turned 18, he was given his own legion. Now, two years later, his legion had been assigned to a mage named Anakin Skywalker, whom had become one of his closest friends, which explains why he had been asked to be one of the groomsmen at his wedding.
He heard footsteps off to his left, and the man himself arrived, like summoned. Skywalker sit down next to him, looking back at the palace that would soon become his official home.
“How are you holding up, General?” He asked. Rex couldn’t pretend to know the stress one would be under when awaiting their wedding, as he never saw himself marrying in the first place.
“Come on, Rex, I thought we’d reached first name basis by now.”
Rex scoffed. On leave or not, he would not call his superior officer by his first name. He had been taught better than that.
Skywalker rolled his eyes at him, turning his eyes back towards the palace.
They stayed in comfortable silence for while, before the general spoke up.
“Just so you know…I’m glad to have you as a friend, Rex. Who knows where I’d be without you.”
“Dead in a ditch, if I were to guess.”
Skywalker threw his head back, laughing at his comment. “Come on, Rex, can’t you and I be sentimental for one time?”
Rex scoffed again, though it was humorous this time. “Save the tears for your wedding,” he replied.
Skywalker let out a chuckle again, before getting up again and slowly walking back towards the palace. “Well, Rex, duty calls. Also, remember to sign the documents.”
“You mean the documents your were supposed to sign?”
“What? I can’t hear you from here!” He shouted back, a smile evident on his face.
Rex shook his head, smiling at his general’s antics.
The rest of the day went by in a blur. Rex sighed as he leaned back into his chair, exhausted. Outside, the moon was high up into the sky. He was about to finally go to bed when he noticed the letter from earlier on the edge of his desk. He grabbed it, deciding to reply to it that night before he finally allowed himself to sleep.
~~~
Madam,
I regret to inform you that there has been a mistake in the delivery of the letters, and that I received your letter instead of your ‘Skyguy’. I advise that you send another letter to him and hope that this problem doesn’t happen again.
My apologies for the mixup,
R.F.
Ahsoka put the letter back down onto her lap, groaning in frustration. She had been brought this letter right as she was climbing up into the carriage that would bring her to the Jedi Temple back in Coruscant. She’d been worried at how fast the letter arrived. Anakin never wrote back in time unless there was an emergency that required her immediate assistance.
Turns out he had never gotten her letter in the first place.
She looked back down at the letter in her hands, smiling at how she was addressed.
“Madam”, she snickered under her breath. She very rarely was called that. Although she enjoyed the respect that came with it, she hated how formal it felt.
She settled further into her seat, watching the forests roll by. Sorgan was a wonderful place, with lush green forests and and a peaceful, hospitable people. Still, she didn’t like being so far removed from the Capital.
She’d been sent there on an assignment to discuss with the Regent about their alliance with the Republic in regards to the inevitable war coming. The council refused to admit it, saying that they could find a “diplomatic solution” without there being a need for conflict, but she knew that even they were preparing themselves for combat.
Still, in these stressful times, there were some good things that managed to make the bad things somewhat bearable. Like the fact that her brother was getting married soon, force knows how. She didn’t know how Padme could stand him enough to want to spend her whole life with him, but she was glad. Moreover, she was relieved that she didn’t need to deal with Anakin’s lovesick speeches about Padme while she was trying to sleep anymore.
They were getting married on the first day of spring, which couldn’t come any faster. Unfortunately, she had been called back to the Temple to oversee the training of some younglings.
The good news was she would finally be able to see her friends again. She hadn’t seen them in over a season, with them having been sent on assignments of their own.
Maybe I should stop by the market and get some wine, she thought to herself. They needed to celebrate their reunion, after all.
After another few too long days on the road, Ahsoka finally caught sight of the Capital on the horizon.
Coruscant. The ever bustling city filled with scum and villainy.
Her home. And home to all the Jedi Mages on this continent.
When her carriage reached the city walls, she asked the coachman to stop, announcing that she would be making her way back on foot from now on. She stopped momentarily to pat the horses before she got on her way, lazily walking through the loud city, enjoying the way the warm sun felt on her.
She stopped by a liquor stand and exchanged what few credits she had for a cheap bottle of Nabooian wine, hiding it in the back of her robe. Being a Jedi didn’t pay as much as one would think.
After that, she finally made her way back to the Jedi Temple, an old, beautiful building with twisted towers standing tall in the very center of the city. It was impossible to miss.
She made her way through the Temple doors, the guards at the front recognizing the Jedi insignia on her headdress. The Temple smelled like incense, the smell bringing her back to when she was first brought here all those years ago.
She had been six at the time. Her homeland of Shili was in the middle of a full scale civil war, the two princes fighting for the throne after the death of the late king. Her home had been caught in the crossfire, and Jedi Master Plo, who had been sent to try and stop the conflict, had found her clinging to the body of her long dead mother.
He was the one who brought her back to the temple, and over the years he had become a sort of father figure to her. Now, he was waiting for her at the top of the stairs leading to the the main hall.
“Welcome back, Little ‘Soka,” he said in his deep, gravely voice.
“Master Plo!” She ran up the stairs and threw her arms around his middle. She knew that many of the Jedi would frown at her display of affection but she couldn’t really bring herself to care right now.
“How was your mission to Sorgan?”
“It was fine,” she replied, “the people were very nice. Unfortunately, barely any of them know how to even hold a weapon: when the war starts, they’ll be close to helpless.”
“If the war starts. Remember, Little ‘Soka, the moment we think war is the only option-“
“Is the moment we lose our stance as Peace Keepers, yes, I know.”
He gave a satisfied nod, before turning to make his way towards the East Wing. She followed him closely, wringing her hands together.
“Master Plo? She finally asked.
“Yes, Little ‘Soka?”
“What will you do wh-” She paused to correct herself, “if the war starts?”
He thought for a moment. “I suppose I will have to go on the front, if I am asked to.”
They continued walking for a little while. Ahsoka didn’t know what to make of her thoughts. On the one hand, she had always been told that she, as a Jedi, was a peace keeper. On the other hand, she had grown up being taught how to fight, all with the purpose of being ready for a potential war.
“Clear your mind of fears, Little ‘Soka. You have other things to worry about before you worry of war.”
“W-what do you mean?”
He raised an eyebrow at her, the movement displacing the mask he wore over the lower side of his face. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed your poorly concealed bottle of wine”.
“A-ah, that. Well, I-“
“You don’t have to explain yourself to me. I am not concerned with what you do on your free time. The other masters, on the other hand…”
She sighed in relief. “Thank you, Master Plo.”
He only nodded in answer. After a few more minutes of walking in comfortable silence, they stopped in front of the stairs that would lead her to the women’s dormitories.
“Remember that you meet with your class first thing tomorrow morning, so be careful about how much you drink tonight.”
She nodded quickly and bowed before she quickly made her way up the stairs. She turned right and walked towards the end of the hallway, before pushing the door to her room open.
Her dear friend Barriss sat up from where she had been sitting on her bed, her smile broadening when she saw Ahsoka hold up the bottle of cheap wine.
They spent the rest of the afternoon and early night enjoying the slightly sour liquor while catching up on what they had done during the weeks they were separated. The next day, Ahsoka would realize that she should have listened to Master Plo and limited herself to one glass, never having drunk enough to be considered anything other than a lightweight.
She would also realize, with a bit of dread, that drunk her had decided that it was a wonderful idea to write a letter back to the polite gentleman who had received her first letter instead of her brother Anakin, who would receive this letter with some shock and a little confusion.
But those were all worries for future her, for tomorrow her.