Chapter Text
Captain Rex was all for leave on Coruscant. It was a very nice break from the battlefield and endless fighting. He, however, did not like that it gave Fives an opportunity to get wasted. He really didn’t like that Echo’s death gave Fives the opportunity to get plastered without someone to keep him safe. Without Echo, Fives kept interacting with troopers from other legions and causing domestic disturbances that had to be sorted out with the Coruscant Guard. And then smoothed over by him.
Rex didn’t exactly have a problem with the Guard and the Guard didn’t exactly have a problem with him. Or maybe they did, the Guard was weird. However seeing a red and white clad trooper writing on a data pad with Fives in handcuffs on a curb wasn’t a very pleasant sight. It became ten times worse when Bly was sitting next to him.
So, being on leave obviously wasn’t the problem. It was the fact that Rex still had to save Five’s ass on leave, and now Bly’s too. And this was why they put Rex time in the official Resolute schedule.
An exhausted sigh escaped from beneath the Corrie's helmet before he asked for Rex’s vode’s designations. Fives answered in a very drunken slur.
“You ‘otta ta’e m’number from m’ass, ‘Orrie!”
The guardsman and Rex sighed in unison.
“His number is ARC-5555,” Rex explained somberly. “I’m sorry about him. He lacks any self preservation on leave. Or ever.”
The Corrie grunted before turning to Bly who offered a very dopey grin. “Yours?”
“CC-5052,” Bly said, 100% not drunk. Rex dragged his hand down his face. Now the real question was whose idea it was. Which it honestly could be either. It wasn’t exactly an encouraging thought that a commander and Rex’s older brother would willingly follow Rex’s very drunk vod’ike Arc into whatever bullshit idea they had. No reason to hide from the truth though.
“Bly,” Rex said tiredly, “Remind me again what happened.”
Bly’s golden tattoos stretched as he gave Rex a huge grin. “Well, Fives was drinking away Echo’s death, which is fair. And he was drunk.”
The guard looked unamused even with his helmet on. Rex did him a favor and portrayed it on his face. “Bly, that explains very little.”
“Yeah, yeah. But anyhow I was like, ‘bro you need to stop drinking all of that alcohol you're gonna die or something’ and he was like- Actually it was pretty drunk I couldn’t understand, but I think it summed up to ‘I’m going to keep drinking’. Anyhow, I tried to take the drink away and get him some water because a) he’s a vod, and b) I remember Cody and you talking about how distraught Fives was after his twin died and he’s Fives. But he got really angry and punched me, so I instinctively punched him back. So I started a fist fight, but for a good cause, ya’know?”
“Ha!” Fives replied, “All ‘or takin’-”
Rex interrupted his Arc before everything could derail. “I don’t know, Bly. Shouldn’t General Secura be bailing you out, too?”
The Guard answered his question for him. “Technically yes, but he’s not drunk and he’s a commander, so I’m letting him out with you. No need to bother a general.”
Rex nodded listlessly. So the guardsman was breaking the rules. He guessed he saw a new thing every day. “I’m sorry about both of them, uh- I’m sorry I didn’t catch your name.”
The Guard looked up from the datapad surprised. “Oh…”
Both Rex and Bly waited patiently, before the guard shook his head. “I need your signature, sir. If you could sign on the dotted line.”
Rex let out a little sigh, but signed on the line. The guard removed the handcuffs from Bly, then Fives. He nodded a little, thanked them, and then instantly disappeared into the streets. Rex turned to snap at his brothers before instantly stopping. Bly looked crest fallen, and Fives had passed out.
“I didn’t even get to ask him about Fox…” Bly muttered. Oh. So Bly had gotten arrested on purpose to ask about how Fox was doing. That made a lot more sense. Rex sat down next to him and wrapped his ori’vod in a hug.
“I’m sorry, ori’vod. Here, I need to get Fives back to the barracks, but then we can go find General Secura or something.”
Bly lit up at the mention of his general and nodded, withdrawing from the hug. Together they slumped Fives over their shoulders, and marched to the nearest cab with Bly non-stop complaining about how weird and cagey the Corries were. Rex couldn’t help but laugh.
<[--]>
Ashoka sat upside down on one of the Chancellor’s plush red chairs while Palpatine talked at Anakin. Normally Ashoka didn’t come to these meetings, but the old man had started taking interest in her after she stubbornly refused to give up her half of the coordinates. She was a Jedi before she was a Commander, and she wasn’t about to forget that. It would be good for the Chancellor to remember that too.
Anakin looked very invested in his conversation which Ashoka couldn’t understand. The man talked circles and was boring about it too. Master Kenobi always said this was why she can’t negotiate, but who really cares? It’s not like she’s a senator.
A little mouse droid was aggressively rolling into a chair leg a bit away, and Ashoka turned it around half mindedly using the force. The mouse droid froze and then returned to banging itself against the chair. Ashoka flipped herself upright, and then used the force to send the mouse droid in the opposite direction of the chair. It started squealing, and then as soon as it was back on the ground, it sped full force into the chair again. What the fuck.
“I just feel so stuck- Ashoka stop messing with the droid- I can’t move up and I can’t go down. Like I’m in carbonite," Anakin ranted in the background. “Ashoka stop trying to move the droid.”
“Hmph,” Ashoka said, releasing the force. These meetings were sooooo boring. Maybe she should pay attention. But Palpatine was duller than a rules and procedures book and she’d had to read way too many of those. But hey, maybe Skyguy would say something funny.
“Well, my boy, it seems the Council doesn’t care about your success,” Palpatine replied, and Ashoka cocked her head, instantly more engaged. That wasn’t right. It was too straight forward for Palpatine and the Jedi Council was way too nice to not care.
Anakin aggressively shook his head. “No, they care so much about me, just I’m stuck where I am. I’m super successful, and they helped me be that way.”
Something wasn’t right about this situation. Anakin shouldn’t be talking to a politician about his feelings. Palpatine had to be tricking him or something.
Palpatine let out a small thoughtful sound, but continued a second later. “I’m sorry I missunderstood, my boy, I just thought because they didn’t trust you to handle the citadel mission alone-”
Ashoka reached out into the force, and made the chair mouse droid swerve suddenly and crash into Palpatine’s desk. Both Palpatine and Anakin startled, as the mouse droid aggressively tried to drive over the Chancellor’s foot to the chair. Ashoka then mentally pulled some wires and the poor little droid exploded.
“Sorry little guy,” Ashoka muttered under her breath as Palpatine stumbled back, shocked.
“Chancellor! Are you okay?” Anakin said shocked, surveying the area for threats. Ashoka appeared by his side within a second, her lightsaber hilts in hand. Of course she knew this was a distraction because Palpatine was fucking with Anakin, but Anakin didn’t know that, and neither did Palpatine. Something told her to keep it that way.
“Yes, yes, my boy, I’m going to call Commander Fox, though. He’s always so paranoid about my safety,” Palpatine drabbled. Ashoka watched carefully as he called the commander into his office, and was shocked by how quickly he appeared in person.
Fox seemed to become a statue as soon as he walked into the room. The trooper gave all three of them a sharp salute.
“Sirs.”
“Ah, Fox, my boy, another mouse droid exploded. You really mustn’t keep letting this happen,” Palpatine said, patting the very tense trooper on the shoulder. Ashoka didn’t like it at all. He was treating Fox like how he was treating Anakin, and Ashoka found her eyes narrowing at the chancellor.
The commander only nodded though. “My apologies, sir. Are you secure?”
Palpatine tightly smiled at him, “Oh yes commander, but we will need a meeting later to ensure that I’m no longer subject to exploding droids.”
“Of course, sir. Do you need my assistance right now?”
“No, commander, but be sure to have a cleaning crew take care of the remains of the mouse droid.”
“Yes sir. I will call the cleaning crew.”
“Be on your way then,” Palpatine dismissed. Fox’s shoulders seemed to relax just a smidge before he marched out the door.
Ashoka decided that was the most passive aggressive conversation she’d ever heard. The meeting later was obviously a threat, too. It was wrong, all wrong. She needed to get her master out of here now.
“Chancellor, I think it might be smart if we go check around the office for threats-” She tried.
“Oh, don’t worry about it, Ashoka dear, the guard has it covered. They’re very competent, really. No need to worry.”
“No, my padawan is right. As much as I trust the Guard, I’m gonna go check the security feed. Com’on, Snips,” Anakin replied, smiling at her. Ashoka beamed, as she followed her master out of the annoyed Chancellor’s office.
Honestly he could go fuck himself. No one got to put lies in her master’s head.