It Takes Two to Tango

Part 3: An Old Friend

Ahsoka hated running. Whenever she was forced to run for an extended period of time, she was painfully reminded of how out of shape she really was. As she dodged the trees and plants of the Onderonian jungle, she couldn't help but realize that she was seriously out of practice in the field.

It had been nearly a year since Order 66 and the fall of the Jedi. She had just gotten around to building new lightsaber and hadn't practiced much since Mandalore.  Saw's rebels seemed much faster now than ever before. It was most likely because they were chasing her rather than the Empire. Saw was never one for peaceful talks to begin with. She should've known that a meeting with him by herself on behalf of the Rebel Alliance would go wrong. He was, and always had been, an extremist. 

She jumped up to the top of the tree to catch her breath. Saw's rebels were gaining quickly. She leaped from branch to branch, trying not to lose her lead. There was something fundamentally wrong with the whole situation; Saw, an old friend and ally, was after her, a rebel informant, because of a rebellion within a rebellion. 

The capital was close; she could feel the hum of the city. She needed to find cover before it was too late. A trade center under Imperial control wasn't ideal, but she had nowhere else to go.  Ahsoka glanced over her shoulder and tripped on a vine wrapped around her foot. She swore as she fell from the trees, landing hard on her leg.

She took a second to look at it. Her ankle was easily twice the size of what was considered normal, but it was probably just her imagination. It was probably just a sprain. In the grand scheme of things, it was only a minor complication. She had survived worse.

Ahsoka stood up and kept running, pain shooting up her bad leg with every step. "Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch," she muttered each time her food hit the ground. Her injury had slowed her down significantly. Saw's rebels were within shouting distance, which has closer than they'd been the entire trek across what seemed like half the planet.

Finally, she reached the edge of the forest. The rebels couldn't leave the shelter of the trees without risking being caught, which would play to her advantage. She pulled her cloak's hood over her head and walked towards the main gate, trying to act normally. It was difficult to fit in with everyone else riding various animals, but there wasn't a thing she could do about it.

"Identification please." A stormtrooper held out his hand. She froze. An identification? She had forgotten to make herself a fake I.D. before coming to Onderon in the first place. It was usually part of her routine process, but somehow, it had escaped her this time.

She stuck her hands in her pockets, pretending to look. "I guess I left it at home, officer. Would you like to come with me while I go get it?"

He shook his head. "Sorry, citizen. You know the law. You're going to have to come with me."

Before she could react, two other troopers emerged from who knows where and grabbed her arms. Her first instinct was to fight back and escape, but her ankle really hurt. She wasn't sure she'd be able to see the task of escape to its end. She sighed and let the troopers lead her to prison. Escape would be a problem for a later day.

-:-:-:-:-:-

Of all the prison cells she'd been in, this one was definitely not the nicest. The walls on either side of her were made of a jagged, rocky surface. A door with metal rods separated her from freedom. Water was leaking from the ceiling, which was more irritating than anything else. Two troopers were guarding her. It seemed like overkill for what she was sure was a common crime, unless they had discovered her true identity...

There was some chatter outside in the hallway as a woman began talking to one of her guards. She was obviously affiliated with the royal family; she wore a long ruby dress with gold sequins. Her long brown hair sat in perfect ringlets across her back and shoulders. For a moment, she wondered if this woman had caught the eye of the king yet. She was certainly more attractive than Ahsoka, in her ripped and dirty combat uniform. Besides, he hadn't seen her in over a year. People change.

The bars in front of Ahsoka slid open, and the woman came in and knelt beside her. "Whatever you do, just go along with whatever I say. Got it?"

Ahsoka raised an eyebrow. "Who are you?"

"Shhh. Never mind who I am. I'll explain later." The woman gave Ahsoka a once-over. "My goodness, what did you do to your ankle?"

She shrugged. "It's fine, I'm sure. It's just a little sore."

The woman felt around the joint. "No, you most definitely sprained it. And to say there was nothing wrong! Ice and elevate. I'll grab you a compression wrap when we get upstairs."

"Okay..." What was upstairs? She knew she had been taken to the basement of the Royal Palace, but everything had changed since the last time she's been to Onderon.

The woman helped her up and led her through a maze of hallways until they reached what Ahsoka knew to be the throne room. She gulped. Lux still thought she was dead. They hadn't spoken since Mandalore, and even then, they didn't speak directly. It was going to be really awkward for both of them if he recognized her, which was almost certain to happen.

The door opened, and the woman helped Ahsoka inside.

A/N: TIME FOR A DOUBLE UPDATE!!! READ ON TO FIND OUT WHAT GOES DOWN WHEN LUX AND AHSOKA SEE EACH OTHER FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME...