Catalyst | By : Jade_Max Category: +S through Z > Star Wars: The Clone Wars Views: 20918 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0 |
Disclaimer: Star Wars belongs to Disney and is the intellectual property of George Lucas; he created the sandbox. I make no money off of this and am simply destroying the sandcastles |
Author’s Note: Many thanks to a certain individual [you know who you are] who brought it to my attention that during the whole of “Catalyst”, every adult encounter between Ahsoka and Rex is seen from his POV. This is a look at the last chapter from Ahsoka’s.
Post Mission
The familiar click of blaster's being readied to fire barely registered in the back of Ahsoka's mind before both of them were suddenly awash in light. She flinched, closing her eyes and turning her head away at the sudden change, even as she threw up one open hand to block it out.
A challenge rang out somewhere beyond the glare.
"Halt! State your business!"
Rex stepped forward, blocking the light, his voice carrying every inch of his command in that moment. "Stand down and point that light elsewhere!"
"Captain!"
"Captain Rex, sir!"
"It's the Captain!"
Relief had a grin starting to form on her lips until the last of the troopers spoke.
"Who's that with you, sir; she's quite-"
"I'd stop there, Trooper."
Rex's protective, instructive growl was familiar and welcome, but it was the curious appreciation she felt from the other trooper, a ripple spreading outwards, saturating their thoughts as she cautiously stepped forward to join him. As she passed the first rank, a ripple of awareness seemed to be gaining momentum, shifting into something primal and potentially dangerous.
"Commander?!"
It was, she realized, swallowing hard as she reached Rex's side, eerily similar to the echoes of arousal and lust she'd been dealing with daily at The Catalyst for the last week. Coupled with that awareness was a new appreciation the boys didn't seem to realize she could sense and she kept her gaze straight ahead on the ramp of the Resolute.
For the first time since joining these men as their Commander, she felt threatened by them. Threatened in a way that only a woman can be by a man; the shift in the view of her to her troops-
Rex's coat dropped around her shoulders, suddenly enfolding her in the specific scent that was just him, his arm heavy across her shoulders as she was drawn into the shelter of his side. Clinging to the slick, soft fabric, Ahsoka ducked her head and turned into Rex’s body, blocking out the cut of his voice even as she attempted to banish the feel of having the other men ogle her.
It made her feel… not bad precisely, but it was different than when Rex did it.
She’d wanted Rex to look at her and want her; she didn’t want that from anyone else. It reminded her too much of be caught, backed into a corner by Rhyn backstage of The Catalyst. She shuddered with the memory. It reminded her far too much of the look he’d given her, like she was a piece of flesh to be bartered with and then absorbed and conquered by his greater size and experience. He’d looked at her as if he wanted to own her, completely; to hurt her.He would have if Rex hadn’t come along when he did.
With the regard of her men having morphed into something less sinister, but equally disturbing, she tried to keep an outward calm. Even though she managed not to say anything, she felt everything despite withdrawing within herself, shrinking into Rex’s coat. Rex cast her a sidelong look she felt clear to her toes; concern in his eyes for all he was an emotional maelstrom of protective and possessive instinct.
Caught in the sensations and eddies of the shifting reality around her, Ahsoka missed Coric’s offer of medical attention and Rex’s response. She didn’t feel the ramp under her feet even as the sweeping relief of being home and safe conflicted with the reality of it.
Things had changed between her and Rex, shifting into a charged physical and emotional amalgamation of their shared experiences. Experiences that they would be required to cast off as they attempted to resume living the lives they’d left behind. Rules and regulations would once again control their days and dictate their interactions.
Rex would no longer be in the other room the moment she woke or sharing her space. He would no longer be that familiar figure in black, stoically doing what was needed to ensure she could accomplish her mission, no matter his personal discomfort. He would no longer have the right, according to his command structure, to interact so informally with her.
As they reached the door to her quarters, Ahsoka found herself wishing that they’d had more time; even just one more night. Leaving had happened too fast. They’d had no time to accept and absorb, let alone discuss, what had nearly happened on the sofa in her dressing room. No time to see if just one more night alone would have led to a completion of that heated exchange.
For all the excitement to get them out, for all the hardships, embarrassment and frustration they’d faced in learning their roles, she and Rex had still been Ahsoka and Rex. They’d been just themselves; partners in the truest sense of the word. They’d supported one another through the adversity of their temporary reality to conquer and overcome them.
Not that they didn’t in their military roles, but it was different in more ways than she could count.
Staring up at him now, she could do nothing but plead silently with him not to go. Knowing everything of what she felt was likely in her eyes, Ahsoka didn’t care; she loved him completely and was fairly confident he loved her too, despite the fact he didn’t seem to realize what he was feeling.
Rex lifted his hand to touch her and her throat closed, her heart aching as she saw him hesitate before his fingertips settled against her cheek. Rex. It killed her to see him already trying to remove himself from what had happened; to step back as protocol and regulation demanded.
She knew what he was doing, knew they didn’t have a choice, and her fingers curled more firmly around the edge of his jacket. She wished he’d hug her; take her in his arms. Hold her close as he’d done so often this last week and reassure her that everything would be fine. The expanse of his naked and muscled chest in the corner of her gaze did nothing to help the urge to throw herself against it.
But she didn’t; couldn’t.
Rex was right in his attitude and approach; they were home, back on familiar ground, and everything they’d left behind was suddenly reality again. His fingers caressed her skin, his voice rough. "Get some rest, Ahsoka."
Don’t go. The thought rose unbidden as she made no move to turn. Don’t leave me here; take me with you. Swallowing hard, she nodded reluctantly, knowing it was time and wishing there was something, anything, she could do to prolong this moment. To make this moment last and morph into the intimacy they’d shared already.
If they’d been back at the suite they’d shared this past week, they might have been able to recapture it. But here, on the Resolute, caught by regulation and restriction, Ahsoka’s heart sank to her toes, her eyes burning with the heart breaking reality. There was nothing.Shrugging out of his coat, she handed it to him wordlessly, the tightness in her throat preventing her from speaking. It was a calculated move; a precursor to leaving when she didn’t want him to go.
Rex, however, didn’t seem to catch onto the fact and reached around her to open the door. Shaking her head, refusing the signal, she reached out to grab his hand as it dropped. Her lips opened but no sound came out as she silently pleaded with him to stay, clutching him tightly. Stay, she wanted to say, though the words wouldn’t come, please don’t leave me yet.
He stared at her for a moment, her heart leaping as she applied pressure to his fingers and tried to draw him close. Only to have her hopes dashed when his hand shifted in hers and he bent, his lips pressing briefly in a poignant caress across the backs of her fingers.
It was over too soon, Rex stepping back. "Goodnight, Ahsoka."Reaching for him, her hand extended to where he’d been standing in silent supplication, tears burned and pooled her eyes as she fought to find her voice; to call him back. Her heart beat the same tattoo as his footsteps, each one widening the gap between them. Rex, she cried silently, wishing he’d turn to look at her again. If he did, surely he wouldn’t leave her just yet. Please don’t go; don’t leave me alone. Not yet; I need you!
He didn’t hear her, made no move to turn and, as he neared the end of the corridor, she turned and entered her room. Closing and locking the door behind her, between them, with a finality that made her shiver, she wrapped her arms around her waist. Ahsoka leaned back against the portal, closing her eyes as the sudden sense of loneliness closed in, enveloping her with a swiftness that made her swallow hard, fighting sudden and inexplicable tears.
Rex.
She slid to the floor, her arms offering no measure of comfort comparable to his embrace. The echoes of his intense, personal struggle mired and mixed with the emotional disbelief and lust of the men whose trust and respect she’d worked so hard to earn, reverberated painfully within her. Like he’d reached into her chest and grabbed her heart in his hands and squeezed.
He hadn’t wanted to leave; she’d seen the conflict within his gaze, but he had and she was alone. Alone to face the aftermath of their mission, running flight and recovery. Alone to face the questions that would inevitably follow.
Her hands shifted as she started to rub her upper arms, seeking to warm herself, and brushed the fabric of the bandage he’d placed on her arm not so long ago. A bandage that had once been his shirt; the only piece of clothing possible to make a bandage as her own costume had been brief enough to make only the sorriest of scraps.
Gently, as if afraid she’d dislodge it or lose it, she traced the edges of the bandage. The action alone made her feel closer to him; made her imagine she could feel his heat still wrapped within it. That it carried his scent despite being saturated in bacta and blood.
The reminder was a painful one, for with it came not only the memory of them fleeing The Catalyst and their desperate run through the city, but what had come before, casting her back to the cantina itself.
To the mission and why they'd been there in the first place. Having to dance for the Separatist and the method she'd used to be able to do so. The memory was abhorrent; never in her life had she acted to wonton - so disgraceful. She recalled Rex's question, his hurt as he'd demanded to know how she'd been able to complete her mission when she’d been so adamant she hadn’t wanted to be touched. She hadn’t but she’d done what was necessary to accomplish her goal, using his memory in the way the males in the cantina had wanted to use her body.
Feeling suddenly dirty for what she considered a betrayal in using his memory, his presence as a buffer between her and an unsavory task, Ahsoka pushed to her feet with a cry and stumbled towards the 'fresher. Tearing, clawing at her clothing, she stumbled into the room, shreds of cloth littering the trail as her nails slashed it to ribbons.
Ripping it free of her body, she stood naked - but for the black band around her upper arm - in the 'fresher, staring at her reflection in the inadequate surface above the sink. Her eyes were wide, almost haunted, the look on her face wounded and weary; guilty.
I have to get clean.
Turning to the shower, Ahsoka flipped it from sani-steam to the water setting, a voice in the back of her head telling her she shouldn't even as she knew she'd never feel clean if she didn't. She had a week's worth of unused rations and intended to put them to good use.
Turning the water on as hot as she dared, she stepped in without preamble, immediately sluicing water across her skin and ignoring the sting of it as it seeped under her bandage.
Thinking about the Seppie had made her think about Rhyn and how The Catalyst's manager hadn't so much as asked for permission to touch her, simply assumed she would welcome it. Remembering the feeling of his fingers on her thighs was similar to the arrogant touch of the Seppie target and Ahsoka couldn't help herself as she scrubbed her skin.
Time passed without meaning and in a blur as Ahsoka struggled to wipe the feel of the strange men from her body. She careened from wanting to savor the memories of Rex, which changed the glide of her hands from purposeful to caress whenever she picture him, to a violent scrubbing when the memories were interlaced with more unpleasant ones.
Memory traveled further back, to before she'd donned the costume she’s just destroyed, to the dressing room and the sofa; to being on Rex’s lap and dancing just for him, at his request. A request she’d been powerless to resist and ignore with the way he’d been looking at her; with the way she’d sensed his attraction. With the way she’d already come to love him and acknowledge him as her mate, she’d been unable to consider turning away.
The rest of the week was a myriad of images, a collage of ups and downs that all held the same message. Rex had been there for her at every turn. He’d been her rock, her shadow; she’d never have been able to accomplish her goals without his support. Without him, she’d have failed her mission utterly.Shutting off the water, she stood in the now silent shower, uncertain of just how long she’d been lost in her memories, but clear on one thing.
I can’t do this by myself.
She needed to talk to someone about what had happened during the mission, to work through it and not just about what had nearly happened with her and Rex. There was no one she could talk to except Rex; no one who would know what they’d been through together and the depraved indecency she’d needed to practice to accomplish their goal.
Rex.
Regardless of what had happened on the mission, of the charged attraction between them, of the deep, intensely emotional tie she’d forged to him and couldn’t, as a Jedi, afford, she knew he’d never deny her. Especially not now, not after this last week. She needed to talk to him, to get his advice on how they would and should proceed.
They needed to talk about it to find a way for them both to resume their ‘normal’ lives.
Treating him as she had been during the mission would be impossible in their military roles, but going back to how they’d once been would be impossible too. Somewhere there had to be a happy medium; there had to be middle ground.
Overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of the daunting task, she stepped out of the shower, shivering, and wrapped herself in a towel. Stumbling as she entered her room, barely reaching her bed before her legs gave out. Ahsoka fumbled for the comlink she’d left on the bedside table. Clicking it, she clutched the comlink in a death grip as she waited for it to connect.
"Rex here."
His voice washed over her, commanding and in control. Reassuring; familiar and welcome. "Rex... It's Ahsoka."
"What do you need, Ahsoka?"
He was the rock she needed at that moment and she didn’t even think about her response as the single word slipped free of her lips. "You."
There was a pregnant pause that followed her soft declaration and Ahsoka belatedly realized how that must sound. And while she did want him, that wasn’t in doubt, she needed his company and council more than anything. Of course, she wouldn’t have said ‘no’ to the opportunity of being sheltered in his strong arms at that moment. Being close to him, even if they didn’t talk, would have been enough. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she tried to clarify her request. "That is, can you come to my room?"
"Your room?"
"I need to talk to you."
"Now?"
"It's about the mission, Rex,” which wasn’t a lie, but she needed his presence like a desperate thing, suddenly certain she’d never make it through the night without him. “It's important. Will... will you come?"
There was a moment of silence that felt like an eternity before his voice came back, carrying a resigned note she missed entirely in the context of his reply.
"I'll be there shortly."
The call disconnected with a faint click and Ahsoka realized she was shaking, trembling. Just hearing his voice had helped a little, but it wasn’t enough. Not nearly enough. Carefully placing her comlink back on the table, and reassured by his response, Ahsoka sat where she was for a moment, taking a bracing breath.
Rex would be there soon; he would be there to help her, to reassure her. Pushing to her feet, she crossed to her wardrobe, the towel discarded on the floor as she opened the doors. Reaching automatically for what had been her normal clothes before the mission, she’d pulled the skirt off the hook before realizing what she’d done and paused. Staring at that leggings and tub top still on the hangar, she couldn’t help but picture some of the stage costumes she’d worn as a part of her role. More covering than the outfit she’d been wearing when they’d arrived back at the Resolute, it was still too... exposed. After having the men ogle her, she needed to be covered; for all she wanted Rex to look at her, Ahsoka wasn’t sure she’d have been able to handle it at that moment. Her regular clothes were just too close to the reality she’d just left, too similar, and she needed to get away from that. Emotionally raw and strung out, she hung the top and legging back in the wardrobe before slipping into her skirt, avidly listening for Rex’s presence. I'll be there shortly. Reaching for a long, white shirt on another hook, her fingers froze as they curled around it. Rex’s last words suddenly rang true in her mind, reluctance and everything. He wouldn’t deny her, even if it meant hurting himself, but... had his tone meant he didn’t want to be with her now that they were back on the Resolute? Her fingers trembled as she pulled the shirt off the hook and slipped into it, the fabric sliding against her skin, combining the good and the bad memories of the last week into one. Her fingers fumbled with the buttons, tears stinging her eyes as she couldn’t seem to get them to cooperate, Rex’s final answer echoing through her thoughts; had she been wrong in asking him to come to her?Morning would come quickly and, with it, Ahsoka would find her reality changed; never suspecting those moments of shared passion would bring only heartache and pain and a misunderstanding that would tear them apart.
Fin
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